Mastering Witchcraft is a book written by Paul Hudson, a well-known occult author. This book explores various aspects of witchcraft and provides insights and methods for those interested in mastering the craft. The main idea of this book is to guide individuals in their journey to becoming proficient witches. Hudson emphasizes the importance of understanding the history, beliefs, and practices of witchcraft. He delves into the origins of witchcraft, tracing it back to ancient civilizations and explaining how it has evolved over time. By understanding the roots of this practice, individuals can gain a deeper appreciation for the craft and its significance.
“Stand Still Like a Hummingbird” is a perfect title for an episode devoted to Rue’s constant motion, leading nowhere. Writer/director Sam Levinson throws all he has into her attempted flight, establishing a thrilling chase that culminates with a terrifying escape. Zendaya commits just as thoroughly, even performing a few stunts (or appearing to) that add to the near-constant tension of her desperate evasions. The visceral journey they create reflects the kind of raw, swirling energy “Euphoria” specializes in, and the added conflict Rue sparks across town should bring about a dramatic second half to the season.
But that shielded, trembling expression expands into a panicked scream 15 minutes later, when Rue bolts from the car into moving traffic and Gia s worst fears are nearly realized once again. Special In an interview for Time she talked about special moments from 2021, including the Venice Film Festival, which she attended with her Dune co-star Timothée Chalamet, 26.
By understanding the roots of this practice, individuals can gain a deeper appreciation for the craft and its significance. One of the key focal points of Mastering Witchcraft is the importance of belief and intent in witchcraft. Hudson highlights that true mastery lies in one's ability to harness and direct their intention towards their desired outcome.
‘Euphoria’: Zendaya Unleashes Rue’s Inner Vampire in a Ruinous, Day-Long Sprint — Spoilers
Episode 5 puts its star through the wringer via an intense suburban saga that exemplifies "Euphoria's" power and pitfalls.
Plus iconBen Travers
TV Critic
More stories by Ben February 6, 2022 10:00 pm Zendaya in "Euphoria" Eddy Chen / HBO Share Show more sharing options[Editor’s Note: The following review contains spoilers for “Euphoria” Season 2, Episode 5, “Stand Still Like the Hummingbird.”]
Gia Bennett, played by Storm Reid, is the first face shown in “Euphoria’s” fifth episode, and even without the contentious conversation overheard seconds earlier, loyal audiences know what her appearance means. Gia has a way of popping up whenever her older sister’s substance abuse issues escalate. In the series premiere, it’s Gia who finds Rue (Zendaya) laying on her bedroom floor in a heap of her own vomit. It’s Gia who calls the paramedics and watches the ambulance drive off. It’s Gia who’s told to check her sibling into rehab, and Gia is home when Rue points a shard of broken glass at their mother, Leslie (Nika King), when first confronted with that daunting recommendation.
In Episode 5, Rue is confronted again. Only this time, despite her sister’s anguish, Rue runs. She’s not going back to rehab. She can’t face the withdrawals. She can’t face Gia, either — not this time, and the tragedy of Rue’s situation is bookended within two shots of little sister’s worried gaze. Dejected recognition crosses Gia’s face when she hears her family fighting in those opening moments. But that shielded, trembling expression expands into a panicked scream 15 minutes later, when Rue bolts from the car into moving traffic and Gia’s worst fears are nearly realized once again. Is her sister about to die, right in front of her? Can she make it out of another disastrous situation? Will she ever come back to her? Rue is not coming back. Not until much later that night, after sprinting through the suburbs, leaving a fiery wake. And by then, it may be too late.
Related Stories“Stand Still Like a Hummingbird” is a perfect title for an episode devoted to Rue’s constant motion, leading nowhere. Writer/director Sam Levinson throws all he has into her attempted flight, establishing a thrilling chase that culminates with a terrifying escape. Zendaya commits just as thoroughly, even performing a few stunts (or appearing to) that add to the near-constant tension of her desperate evasions. The visceral journey they create reflects the kind of raw, swirling energy “Euphoria” specializes in, and the added conflict Rue sparks across town should bring about a dramatic second half to the season.
Most notably, Rue unveils the most critical secret of Season 2, telling Maddy (Alexa Demie) and the rest of her friends that Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) has been sleeping with Nate (Jacob Elordi). Their reaction is about what you expect: Maddy starts threatening her now-former best friend. Cassie can barely speak, trying in vain to deny the allegation even though the fear on her face is all the confirmation anyone needs. (Sweeney, it must be said, is having a stellar season.) The adults try to keep the focus on Rue, who they’re trying to convince to go back to rehab, but the bomb she dropped is too big. The focus shifts, and Rue takes advantage of the distraction to elude her mother’s aide once more. (The staging of that moment, however, leaves a lot to be desired; it’s hard to believe Leslie would pay any attention to those bickering girls, let alone yell after them long enough to let Rue leave unnoticed.)
Rue isn’t done starting fires, though. Next, she visits Fez (Angus Cloud) and has to be forcibly removed when she goes looking for pills. Then she slides under a closing garage door, like a hat-less Indiana Jones, so she can steal enough luxury items to pay back her debt to Laurie (Martha Kelly). Of course, she gets busted, and her initial odyssey — driven by dueling desires to ingest drugs and relieve her digestion — takes a darker turn. (Part of me wants to believe the entire episode is an ode to Kramer’s quest to find an open restroom on “Seinfeld,” but even if not, Zendaya’s hunched running style must be.)
Storm Reid in “Euphoria” Eddy Chen / HBO
It’s also when Levinson’s frenetic energy is put to best use. Once Rue loses her lunch in front of a suspicious patrol officer, the chase is on — there’s even an overhead zoom on Zendaya booking it down an alley, cop car close behind, reminiscent of police pursuits captured by local news helicopters. From there, Levinson’s camera gets creative. He’s hiding behind some bushes as Rue cuts through her first backyard; he’s inside a home where the only occupant is a cat crossing a long table while Rue scoots past the pool outside; and, my personal favorite, he tilts the frame up to discover Rue on top of a garage before tracking her jump down, using the closing door as her makeshift slide. (Levinson even follows the rule of threes when it comes to canines, starting with the tamed guard dog, moving to the junkyard rottweilers, and ending on a pair of yipping little puppers, politely ushering Rue off their lawn.)
Shading humor into “Run, Rue, Run” — let alone the unrelentingly bleak “Euphoria” itself — pays dividends, especially when the fleeing central figure reaches her final destination: Laurie’s apartment. There, we learn just how morally bankrupt the monotone, pajama-clad drug pusher really is: “You want to know a funny thing about me?” she asks Rue. “I’ve never gotten angry in my entire life.” And she doesn’t get angry — not even when Rue comes up short on repayment — but its her calm, methodical demeanor that’s even more alarming. Why? Because it’s clear Laurie has been here before. Confronted with a user trying to make a plea bargain, Laurie feigns kindness and understanding while preparing the trap that could keep Rue tied to her forever.
She tells Rue she doesn’t have any pills, only intravenous drugs, which she knows the young woman avoids. Yet when Rue is coaxed to a relaxing bath, Laurie opens up a suitcase filled with pill bottles, but removes a syringe and bottle of morphine instead. Rue hasn’t even asked for them yet, but Laurie knows it’s coming. She’s done this before. She knows how to make her money back, and Rue wakes up to the living nightmare implied by Laurie’s bone-chilling “advice.” “It’s one of the good parts of being a woman,” she says. “Even if you don’t have money, you still have something people want.”
Rue avoids selling herself for drug money via one last hair-raising escape, though there’s no telling when Laurie or her cronies will come calling. (Rue isn’t exactly hard to find.) The episode ends with the sound of a door opening and closing, Leslie’s silhouette perking up from her frozen place at the dinner table. The cut to black emphasizes how quickly things can go from bad to worse when you’re desperate and terrified, but Rue’s return also harkens back to the episode’s first act. For those invested in Rue and Jules’ (Hunter Schafer) romance (and come on, who isn’t?), seeing their vehement break-up could’ve been the worst burned-bridge all hour. Passively tricked into exposing her dark side, Rue doesn’t back off. She pushes forward. What matters to her in that moment isn’t what the woman she loves thinks of her; love is but a distant memory compared to the betrayal she feels and the compulsion she has to get away.
“You’re a fucking vampire,” Rue tells a tearful Jules. “Going around sucking the fucking spirit out of everyone.” These hurtful words and many more spill easily out of Rue’s mouth because they’re fueled by pure rage. There’s little truth to them, which is part of what makes the lengthy tirade more tiring than piercing. Levinson just lets Zendaya go, which isn’t a bad idea with an actor this gripping, and her rambling attacks paint a believable picture of a substance disorder, but there’s plenty of episode left to appreciate all the aspects conveyed in the 15-minute scene. She’s angry, she’s hurt, she’s lashing out — we know, we know, we know. Zendaya is attuned to every trigger, shifting up and up and up with each new challenge, but it’s even more impressive that she’s able to highlight Rue’s core truth by dialing down. “You don’t love me!” she shouts at Jules, before faltering her way through, “You fucking left me when I fucking needed you.” The truth is harder to admit than the lies, even when the latter is being shouted at full volume.
Episode 5 is all power — so much so, that it’s frustrating to reach the end and realize we’ve been through this before. “Euphoria” told a similar story in one-tenth the time during Season 1, conveying all the fear, resentment, and heartbreak within the Bennett family via brief, telling flashbacks. Season 2’s second intervention simply makes it more explicit, the destruction more widespread, and the effect more discouraging. It’s hard to fault the series for its honesty. Many people with substance disorders relapse. Few interventions go smoothly. But like Gia, exhaustion becomes the predominant takeaway. While the episode would’ve been more artful, more moving, and more pointed had it ended with Gia waiting up for Rue, rather than their mother — a young girl still clinging to that 5 percent of hope for her sister, still waiting to be told if their future is doomed or redeemable — it’s hard to blame her for going to bed.
“Euphoria” Season 2 premieres new episodes Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO. The finale is scheduled for February 27.
A TMZ video from six years ago shows the actress candidly speaking to a reporter about her dating life. She responded to questions posed to her while casually walking her dog. Zendaya, a San Francisco native, was asked if she supported the NBA team, Golden State Warriors. The actress indignantly responded, saying that she was a fan. The actress was then asked if she would go on a date with Klay Thompson, to which she stated, “I guess, why not.”
TV Critic
More stories by Ben February 6, 2022 10:00 pm Zendaya in "Euphoria" Eddy Chen / HBO Share Show more sharing options[Editor’s Note: The following review contains spoilers for “Euphoria” Season 2, Episode 5, “Stand Still Like the Hummingbird.”]
Gia Bennett, played by Storm Reid, is the first face shown in “Euphoria’s” fifth episode, and even without the contentious conversation overheard seconds earlier, loyal audiences know what her appearance means. Gia has a way of popping up whenever her older sister’s substance abuse issues escalate. In the series premiere, it’s Gia who finds Rue (Zendaya) laying on her bedroom floor in a heap of her own vomit. It’s Gia who calls the paramedics and watches the ambulance drive off. It’s Gia who’s told to check her sibling into rehab, and Gia is home when Rue points a shard of broken glass at their mother, Leslie (Nika King), when first confronted with that daunting recommendation.
In Episode 5, Rue is confronted again. Only this time, despite her sister’s anguish, Rue runs. She’s not going back to rehab. She can’t face the withdrawals. She can’t face Gia, either — not this time, and the tragedy of Rue’s situation is bookended within two shots of little sister’s worried gaze. Dejected recognition crosses Gia’s face when she hears her family fighting in those opening moments. But that shielded, trembling expression expands into a panicked scream 15 minutes later, when Rue bolts from the car into moving traffic and Gia’s worst fears are nearly realized once again. Is her sister about to die, right in front of her? Can she make it out of another disastrous situation? Will she ever come back to her? Rue is not coming back. Not until much later that night, after sprinting through the suburbs, leaving a fiery wake. And by then, it may be too late.
Related Stories“Stand Still Like a Hummingbird” is a perfect title for an episode devoted to Rue’s constant motion, leading nowhere. Writer/director Sam Levinson throws all he has into her attempted flight, establishing a thrilling chase that culminates with a terrifying escape. Zendaya commits just as thoroughly, even performing a few stunts (or appearing to) that add to the near-constant tension of her desperate evasions. The visceral journey they create reflects the kind of raw, swirling energy “Euphoria” specializes in, and the added conflict Rue sparks across town should bring about a dramatic second half to the season.
Most notably, Rue unveils the most critical secret of Season 2, telling Maddy (Alexa Demie) and the rest of her friends that Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) has been sleeping with Nate (Jacob Elordi). Their reaction is about what you expect: Maddy starts threatening her now-former best friend. Cassie can barely speak, trying in vain to deny the allegation even though the fear on her face is all the confirmation anyone needs. (Sweeney, it must be said, is having a stellar season.) The adults try to keep the focus on Rue, who they’re trying to convince to go back to rehab, but the bomb she dropped is too big. The focus shifts, and Rue takes advantage of the distraction to elude her mother’s aide once more. (The staging of that moment, however, leaves a lot to be desired; it’s hard to believe Leslie would pay any attention to those bickering girls, let alone yell after them long enough to let Rue leave unnoticed.)
Rue isn’t done starting fires, though. Next, she visits Fez (Angus Cloud) and has to be forcibly removed when she goes looking for pills. Then she slides under a closing garage door, like a hat-less Indiana Jones, so she can steal enough luxury items to pay back her debt to Laurie (Martha Kelly). Of course, she gets busted, and her initial odyssey — driven by dueling desires to ingest drugs and relieve her digestion — takes a darker turn. (Part of me wants to believe the entire episode is an ode to Kramer’s quest to find an open restroom on “Seinfeld,” but even if not, Zendaya’s hunched running style must be.)
Storm Reid in “Euphoria” Eddy Chen / HBO
It’s also when Levinson’s frenetic energy is put to best use. Once Rue loses her lunch in front of a suspicious patrol officer, the chase is on — there’s even an overhead zoom on Zendaya booking it down an alley, cop car close behind, reminiscent of police pursuits captured by local news helicopters. From there, Levinson’s camera gets creative. He’s hiding behind some bushes as Rue cuts through her first backyard; he’s inside a home where the only occupant is a cat crossing a long table while Rue scoots past the pool outside; and, my personal favorite, he tilts the frame up to discover Rue on top of a garage before tracking her jump down, using the closing door as her makeshift slide. (Levinson even follows the rule of threes when it comes to canines, starting with the tamed guard dog, moving to the junkyard rottweilers, and ending on a pair of yipping little puppers, politely ushering Rue off their lawn.)
He discusses various techniques and rituals that can aid practitioners in refining their intent and manifesting their desires. Furthermore, the book delves into the use of tools, such as herbs, crystals, and divination, in witchcraft. Hudson provides detailed information on the properties and purposes of different tools and teaches readers how to incorporate them into their practices effectively. He emphasizes the importance of understanding the symbolism behind these tools and how to utilize them to enhance one's craft. Throughout Mastering Witchcraft, Hudson also addresses the importance of ethics in witchcraft. He emphasizes the use of magic for positive purposes and encourages practitioners to adhere to moral principles. He warns against using magic to harm others or manipulate situations for personal gain, stressing the importance of responsible and ethical practice. Overall, Mastering Witchcraft by Paul Hudson is a comprehensive guide that provides valuable insights into the world of witchcraft. It offers practical advice, techniques, and rituals for individuals seeking to master the craft. This book serves as a valuable resource for aspiring witches, guiding them on their path towards proficiency and understanding in the mystical art of witchcraft..
Reviews for "The Witch's Bookshelf: Essential Reads for Mastering Witchcraft by Paul Hudson"
1. Emily - 2/5 - I was really disappointed with "Mastering Witchcraft" by Paul Hudson. I was expecting a comprehensive guide to the practice of witchcraft, but instead, I found this book to be quite shallow and lacking in-depth information. The author seemed to focus more on his personal experiences and anecdotes rather than providing practical advice or detailed explanations. I also felt that the writing style was not engaging or captivating, making it difficult for me to stay interested in the subject matter. Overall, this book didn't live up to my expectations and I would not recommend it for anyone looking to learn about witchcraft.
2. John - 1/5 - "Mastering Witchcraft" by Paul Hudson was a complete waste of my time and money. The book lacked substance and was filled with vague and general statements that didn't provide any meaningful insight into witchcraft. It felt like a poorly written self-help book rather than a guide to mastering a craft. The content was repetitive, and the author's writing style was convoluted and hard to follow. I was hoping to gain some practical knowledge and learn about the history and traditions of witchcraft, but this book fell short on all accounts. Save your money and look for a more credible and comprehensive resource on the subject.
3. Sarah - 2.5/5 - While "Mastering Witchcraft" by Paul Hudson had some interesting concepts, I ultimately found it to be lacking in substance. The book touched on various aspects of witchcraft, but it often felt surface-level and lacked depth in explanations. The author shared personal anecdotes, but they didn't always feel relevant or add value to the content. Additionally, there were several instances where the information provided was contradicting, leaving me confused and uncertain. Overall, I think there are better resources available for those interested in learning about witchcraft.