Hi Fearn,
Gardner did indeed write a well known book called "Keris and other Malay Weapons" (1937?), not to be confused with the book of the same name that features many different writers (including an article by Gardner). A copy of this book would be quite pricy as it is very rare.
Gardner is known as the father of modern Wicca, but most of his work is a rehashing (with certain changes of his own, including a strong penchant for nude ritual
) of Victorian era Ceremonial Magick from such lodge groups as the Golden Dawn, of which, i believe he was a member. He was also a student of Aleister Crowley.
Many of the powerful grimores and manuscripts on which the magickal lodges were based were "discovered" in secret places or delivered by "mysterious" adepts from legendary and shadowy groups such as the Bravarian Illuminati.
What i'm getting at here is that "modern" magick and Wicca, though obviously connected to arcane knowledge, is basically a new philosophy. This is not to argue that it's all made up and wrong. I am more likely to argue that it is all made up and RIGHT!
But if you are looking for some ancient root to these words you may end up being disappointed.
