Aradia: Gospel of the Witches (Chapter 8: To Have Good Wine by the Aid of Diana)

Chapter VIII

To Have A Good Wine And Very Good Wine By The Aid Of Diana

Charles G. Leland

He who would have a good vintage and fine wine, should take a horn full of wine and with this go into the vineyards or farms wherever vines grow, and then drinking from the horn say –

I drink, and yet it is not wine I drink,
I drink the blood of Diana,
Since from wine it has changed into her blood,
And spread itself through all my growing vines,
Whence it will give me good return in wines,
Though even if good vintage should be mine,
I’ll be free from care, for should it chance
That the grape ripens in the waning moon,
Then all the wine would come to sorrow, but
If drinking from this horn I drink the blood –
The blood of great Diana – by her aid –
If I do kiss my hand to the new moon,
Praying the Queen that she will guard my grapes,
Even from the instant when the bud is born
Until it is a ripe and perfect grape,
And onward to the vintage, and to the last
Until the wine is made – may it be good!
And may it so succeed that I from it
May draw good profit when at last ’tis sold,
So may good fortune come unto my vines,
And into all my land where’er it be!

But should my vines seem in an evil way,
I’ll take my horn, and bravely will I blow
In the wine-vault at midnight, and I’ll make
Such a tremendous and a terrible sound
That thou, Diana fair, however far
Away thou may’st be, still shalt hear the call,
And casting open door or window wide,
Shalt headlong come upon the rushing wind,
And find and save me – that is, save my vines,
Which will be saving me from dire distress;
For should I lose them I’d be lost myself,
But with thy aid, Diana, I’ll be saved.

This is a very interesting invocation and tradition, and probably of great antiquity from very striking intrinsic evidence. For it is firstly devoted to a subject which has received little attention – the connection of Diana as the moon with Bacchus, although in the great Dizionario Storico Mitologico, by Pozzoli and others, it is expressly asserted that in Greece her worship was associated with that of Bacchus, Esculapius and Apollo. The connecting link is the horn. In a medal of Alexander Severus, Diana of Ephesus bears the horn of plenty. This is the horn or horn of the new moon, sacred to Diana. According to Callimachus, Apollo himself built an altar consisting entirely of horns to Diana.

The connection of the horn with wine is obvious. It was usual among the old Slavonians for the priest of Svantevit, the Sun god, to see if the horn which the idol held in his hand was full of wine, in order to prophesy a good harvest for the coming year. If it was filled, all was right; if not, he filled the horn, drank from it, and replaced the horn in the hand, and predicted that all would eventually go well. It cannot fail to strike the reader that this ceremony is strangely like that of the Italian invocation, the only difference being that in one the Sun, and in the other the Moon is invoked to secure a good harvest.

In the Legends of Florence there is one of the Via del Corno, in which the hero, falling into a vast tun or tina of wine, is saved from drowning by sounding a horn with tremendous power. At the sound, which penetrates to an incredible distance, even to unknown lands, all came rushing as if enchanted to save him. In this conjuration, Diana, in the depths of heaven, is represented as rushing at the sound of the horn, and leaping through doors or windows to save the vintage of the one who blows. There is a certain singular affinity in these stories.

In the story of the Via del Corno, the hero is saved by the Red Goblin or Robin Goodfellow, who gives him a horn, and it is the same sprite who appears in the conjuration of the Round Stone, which is sacred to Diana. This is because the spirit is nocturnal, and attendant on Diana-Titania.

Kissing the hand to the new moon is a ceremony of unknown antiquity, and Job, even in his time, regarded it as heathenish and forbidden – which always means antiquated and out of fashion – as when he declared (xxxi, 26, 27), “If I beheld the moon walking in brightness…and my heart hath been secretly enticed or my mouth hath kissed my hand…this also were an iniquity to be punished by the Judge, for I should have denied the God that is above.” From which it may or ought to be inferred that Job did not understand that God made the moon and appeared in all His works, or else he really believed the moon was an independent deity. In any case, it is curious to see the old forbidden rite still living, and as heretical as ever.

The tradition, as given to me, very evidently omits a part of the ceremony, which may be supplied from classic authority. When the peasant performs the rite, he must not act as once a certain African, who was a servant of a friend of mine, did. The man’s duty was to pour out every morning a libation of rum to a fetish – and he poured it down his own throat. The peasant should also sprinkle the vines, just as the Devonshire farmers who observed all Christmas ceremonies, sprinkled, also from a horn, their apple trees.

Aradia: Gospel of the Witches (Chapter 4: Charm of the Stones)

Chapter IV

The Charm Of The Stones Consecrated To Diana

Charles G. Leland

To find a stone with a hole in it is a special sign of the favour of Diana. He who does so shall take it in his hand and repeat the following, having observed the ceremony as enjoined –

I have found
A holy-stone upon the ground.
O Fate! I thank thee for the happy find.
Also the spirit who upon this road
Hath given it to me;
And may it prove to be for my true good
And my good fortune!

I rise in the morning by the earliest dawn,
And I go forth to walk through (pleasant) vales,
All in the mountains or the meadows fair,
Seeking for luck while onward still I roam,
Seeking for rue and vervain scented sweet,
Because they bring good fortune unto all.
I keep them safely guarded in my bosom,
That none may know it – ’tis a secret thing,
And sacred too, and thus I speak the spell:
“O vervain! ever be a benefit,
And may thy blessing be upon the witch
Or on the fairy who did give thee to me!”

It was Diana who did come to me,
All in the night in a dream, and said to me:
“If thou would’st keep all evil folk afar,
Then ever keep the vervain and the rue
Safely beside thee!”

Great Diana! thou
Who art the queen of heaven and of earth,
And of the infernal lands – yea, thou who art
Protectress of all men unfortunate,
Of thieves and murderers, and of women too
Who lead an evil life, and yet hast known
That their nature was not evil, thou, Diana
Hast still conferred on them some joy in life.

Or I may truly at another time
So conjure thee that thou shalt have no peace
Or happiness, for thou shalt ever be
In suffering until thou greatest that
Which I require in strictest faith from thee!

[Here we have again the threatening the deity, just as in Eskimo or other Shamanism, which represents the rudest primitive form of conjuring, the spirits are menaced. A trace of this is to be found among rude Roman Catholics. Thus when St. Bruno, some years ago, at a town in the Romagna, did not listen to the prayers of his devotees for rain, they stuck his image in the mud of the river, head downwards. A rain speedily followed, and the saint was restored in honour to his place in the church..]

The finding of a round stone, be it great or small, is a good sign, but it should never be given away, because the receiver will then get the good luck, and some disaster befall the giver.

On finding a round stone, raise the eyes to heaven, and throw the stone up three times (catching it every time), and say –

Spirit of good omen,
Who art come to aid me,
Believe I had great need of thee.
Spirit of the Red Goblin,
Since thou hast come to aid me in my need,
I pray of thee do not abandon me;
I beg of thee to enter now this stone,
That in my pocket I may carry thee,
And so when anything is needed by me,
I can call unto thee: be what it may,
Do not abandon me by night or day.

Should I lend money unto any man
Who will not pay when due, I pray of thee,
Thou the Red Goblin, make him pay his debt!
And if he will not and is obstinant,
Go at him with thy cry of “Brie – brie!”
And if he sleeps, awake him with a twitch,
And pull the covering off and frighten him!
And follow him about where’er he goes.

So teach him with thy ceaseless “Brie – brie!”
That he who obligation e’er forgets
Shall be in trouble till he pays his debts.
And so my debtor on the following day
Shall either bring the money which he owes,
Or send it promptly: so I pray of thee,
O my Red Goblin, come unto my aid!
Or should I quarrel with her whom I love,
Then, spirit of good luck, I pray thee go
To her while sleeping – pull her by the hair,
And bear her through the night unto my bed!
And in the morning, when all spirits go
To their repose, do thou, ere thou return’st
Into thy stone, carry her home again,
And leave her there asleep. Therefore, O Sprite!
I beg thee in this pebble make thy home!
Obey in every way all I command.
So in my pocket thou shalt ever be,
And thou and I will ne’er part company!

Aradia: Gospel of the Witches (Chapter 3: Diana Made the Stars & The Rain)

Chapter III

How Diana Made The Stars And The Rain

Charles G. Leland

Diana was the first created before all creation; in her were all things; our of herself, the first darkness, she divided herself; into darkness and light she was divided. Lucifer, her brother and son, herself and her other half, was the light.

And when Diana saw that the light was so beautiful, the light which was her other half, her brother Lucifer, she yearned for it with exceeding great desire. Wishing to receive the light again into her darkness, to swallow it up in rapture, in delight, she trembled with desire. This desire was the dawn.

But Lucifer, the light, fled from her, and would not yield to her wishes; he was the light which flies into the most distant parts of heaven, the mouse which flies before the cat.

Then Diana went to the fathers of the Beginning, to the mothers, the spirits who were before the first spirit, and lamented unto them that she could not prevail with Lucifer. And they praised her for her courage; they told her that to rise she must fall; to become the chief of goddesses she must become mortal.

And in the ages, in the course of time, when the world was made, Diana went on earth, as did Lucifer, who had fallen, and Diana taught magic and sorcery, whence came witches and fairies and goblins – all that is like man, yet not mortal.

And it came thus that Diana took the form of a cat. Her brother had a cat whom he loved beyond all creatures, and it slept every night on his bed, a cat beautiful beyond all other creatures, a fairy: he did not know it.

Diana prevailed with the cat to change forms with her; so she lay with her brother, and in the darkness assumed her own form, and so by Lucifer became the mother of Aradia. But when in the morning he found that he lay by his sister, and that light had been conquered by darkness, Lucifer was extremely angry; but Diana with her wiles of witchcraft so charmed him that he yielded to her love. This was the first fascination; she hummed the song, it was as the buzzing of bees (or a top spinning round), a spinning-wheel spinning life. She spun the lives of all men; all things were spun from the wheel of Diana. Lucifer turned the wheel.

Diana was not known to the witches and spirits, the fairies and elves who dwell in desert place, the goblins, as their mother; she hid herself in humility and was a mortal, but by her will she rose again above all. She had passion for witchcraft, and became so powerful therein, that her greatness could not be hidden.

And thus it came to pass one night, at the meeting of all the sorceresses and fairies, she declared that she would darken the heavens and turn all the stars into mice.

All those who were present said –

“If thou canst do such a strange thing, having risen to such power, thou shalt be our queen.”

Diana went into the street; she took the bladder of an ox and a piece of witch-money, which has an edge from a knife – with such money witches cut the earth from men’s foot tracks – and she cut the earth, and with it and many mice she filled the bladder, and blew into the bladder till it burst.

And there came a great marvel, for the earth which was in the bladder became the round heaven above, and for three days there was a great rain; the mice became stars or rain. And having made the heaven and stars and the rain, Diana became Queen of the Witches; she was the cat who ruled the star mice, the heaven and the rain.

Aradia: Gospel of the Witches (Chapter 1: Diana Gave Birth to Aradia)

Chapter I

How Diana Gave Birth To Aradia (Herodius)

Charles G. Leland

“It is Diana! Lo!
She rises crescented.”

-Krats’ Endymion

“Make more bright
The Star Queen’s crescent on her marriage night.”

-Ibid.

This is the Gospel of the Witches:

Diana greatly loved her brother Lucifer, the god of the Sun and of the Moon, the god of Light (Splendor), who was so proud of his beauty, and who for his pride was driven from Paradise.

Diana had by her brother a daughter, to whom they gave the name of Aradia (i.e. Herodius).

In those days there were on earth many rich and many poor.

The rich made slaves of the poor.

In those days were many slaves who were cruelly treated; in every palace tortures, in every castle prisoners.

Many slaves escaped. They fled to the country; thus they became thieves and evil folk. Instead of sleeping by nigh, they plotted escape and robbed their masters, and then slew them. So they dwelt in the mountains and forests as robbers and assassins, all to avoid slavery.

Diana said one day to her daughter Aradia:

‘Tis true indeed that thou a spirit art,
But thou wert born but to become again
A mortal; thou must go to earth below
To be a teacher unto women and men
Who fain would study witchcraft in thy school

Yet like Cain’s daughter thou shalt never be
Nor like the race who have become at last
Wicked and infamous from suffering,
As are the Jews and wandering Zingari,
Who are all thieves and knaves; like unto them
Ye shall not be…

And thou shalt be the first of witches known;
And thou shalt be the first of all I’ the world;
And thou shalt teach the art of poisoning,
Of poisoning those who are great lords of all;
Yea, thou shalt make them die in their palaces;
And thou shalt bind the oppressor’s soul (with power);
And when ye find a peasant who is rich,
Then ye shall teach the witch, your pupil, how
To ruin all his crops with tempests dire,
With lightning and with thunder (terrible),
And with the hail and wind…

And when a priest shall do you injury
By his benedictions, ye shall do to him
Double the harm, and do it in the name
of me, Diana, Queen of witches all!

And when the priests or the nobility
shall say to you that you should put your faith
In the Father, Son, and Mary, then reply;
“Your God, the Father, and Maria are
Three devils…”

“For the true God the Father is not yours;
For I have come to sweep away the bad
The men of evil, all will I destroy!”

“Ye who are poor suffer with hunger keen,
And toil in wretchedness, and suffer too
Full oft imprisonment; yet with it all
Ye have a soul, and for your sufferings
Ye shall be happy in the other world,
But ill the fate of all who do ye wrong!”

Now when Aradia had been taught, taught to work all witchcraft, how to destroy the evil race (of oppressors), she (imparted it to her pupils) and said unto them:

When I shall have departed from this world,
Whenever ye have need of anything,
Once in the month, and when the moon is full,
Ye shall assemble in some desert place,
Or in a forest all together join
To adore the potent spirit of your queen,
My mother, great Diana. She who fain
Would learn all sorcery yet has not won
Its deepest secrets, then my mother will
Teach her, in truth all things as yet unknown.
And ye shall all be freed from slavery,
And so ye shall be free in everything;
And as the sign that ye are truly free,
Ye shall be naked in your rites, both men
And women also: this shall last until
The last of your oppressors shall be dead;
And ye shall make the game of Benevento
Extinguishing the lights, and after that
Shall hold your supper thus:

WOTC’s Extra – Goddesses/Gods You Can Call On for Specific Spellworking

Goddesses You Can Call Upon for Specific Spellwork:

Aphrodite: Greek; Goddess of passionate, sexual love.
Aphrodite will assist you in pulling loving energy toward yourself.
Aradia: Italian; Queen of the Witches, daughter of Diana.
Aradia is an extremely powerful entity and a protectress of Witches in general.
Artemis: Greek; Goddess of the Moon.
Astarte: Greek; Fertility Goddess.
Whether you wish to bear children or have a magnificent garden, Astarte will assist in your desire.
Demeter: Greek; Earth Mother archetype.
Excellent Goddess where birthing or small children are involved.
Diana: Roman; Moon Goddess and Goddess of the Hunt. Diana is many faceted.
She is seductress (as she enchanted her brother Lucifer to beget Aradia in the form of a cat) as well as a mother figure for Witches.
Isis: Egyptia; represents the Complete Goddess or the Triple Goddess connotation in one being.
Persephone: Greek; Goddess of the Underworld as well as Harvest. Daughter of Demeter.
Selene: Greek; Goddess of the Moon and Solutions.
Appeal to Selene to bring a logical answer to any problem.
Venus: Roman; Goddess of Love and Romance

Gods You Can Call Upon for Specific Spellwork:

Adonis: Greek; consort of Aphrodite. Also another name for “lord”.
In Phoenician his counterpart is Astarte.
A vegetarian God. Roman counterpart is Venus.
Apollo: Greek and Roman; twin brother of Artemis. God of the Sun, Light and the Arts.
Cernunnos: Celtic; Horned God and consort of the Lady. Also Kernunnos.
Eros: Greek; God of Romance and Passionate Love.
Hymen: Greek; God of Marriage and Commitment. His counterpart is Dionysus.
Luce: Italian; Soul mate and Brother of Diana. Father of Arcadia. God of the Sun and Light.
Osiris: wiccan; counterpart of Isis. Over-all God form including vegetation and after-life.
Pan: Greek; God of Nature and the Woods, Laughter and Passion.
Also music and personal abandon. Of course, you can refer to either the God and/or Goddess as merely Lord and Lady if it makes you feel more comfortable.

Today’s Goddess – Diana

Diana

The classical moon goddess, Diana, is still worshipped by neopagans today. Long after Christianity’s triumph over classical paganism, her worship is still going strong.

Diana was the personification of the positive aspects of lunar forces. She was also believed to have led groups of nightriders (known as the “Wild Hunt” or the “Furious Horde”) who flew through the air. The “Wild Hunt” was comprised of “people taken by death before their time, children snatched away at an early age, victims of a violent end.” The goddess would accompany her followers as they wandered at night among the houses of the well-to-do. Whenever they would arrive at a home that was particularly well-kept, Diana would bestow her blessings upon it.

Diana was intrinsically linked with several other witch deities, including Abonde, Abundia, Aradia, Hecate, Herodias, Holda, Perchta, Satia, and Venus.

Calendar of the Sun for February 12th

Calendar of the Sun

12 Solmonath

Day of Diana as Lady of the Animals

Colors: Brown and green
Element: Earth
Altar: Lay with cloth of earth colors and set with representations of many animals, as well as a crescent moon for Diana. Burn cypress incense.
Offerings: Animal figures. Kindliness towards the other creatures of the earth.
Daily Meal: Serve both vegetarian food (for the prey animals) and wild game (for the predators).

Invocation to the Lady of the Animals

Goddess who runs with the rabbit,
Fleet of foot, silver of tail;
Goddess who runs with the wolf
Who follows on its path,
Lady who runs with the cycle,
From Life to Death to Life again,
Who is with fish and frog,
Bird and butterfly,
And all that runs on four legs
Or crawls upon the ground,
Lady of our sisters and brothers,
Those who became one with
Our ancestors,
Those who gave their lives
That we might live,
Let us never forget, Diana
Of the deep forest, that this world
Is a shared one
And not ours alone.

Chant: Diana Diana Brother Wolf and Sister Bear
Diana Diana Brother Mouse and Sister Hare
Diana Diana Brother Stallion, Sister Mare.

(All go outside, where treats of seed and peanut butter are hung on branches for the forest spirits, and any livestock are given special treats.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

February 12th – Holy Day of Diana

February 12th

Holy Day of Diana

Diana was the Roman Goddess of the moon. She was the patroness of hunters and the guardian of the forest, where her sacred grove stood near Aricia. Diana is called upon to protect animals, children and the forest. As light and life return to the Earth, her powers of protections are invoked for all creatures great and small.

A Prayer to Diana

Goddess of the Hunt, Lady of the bow,

I ask you now the way to show.

I pray you bless me from this hour,

With your strength and with your power.

Through times of sorrow and times strife,

Help me make the most of life.

Let’s Talk Witch – Even Witches Need To Know How to Meditate

Let’s Talk Witch – How To Meditate

To begin, sit in a darkened room (not pitch dark, but dim lights). Sit still, sit quiet, for 10 minutes. No music, no talking, no tapping your fingers, no jiggling your foot, no moving your head or cracking your neck or looking around. It’s harder than you think. If you don’t make it through the first time, try again the next day (don’t rush it or you’ll just get really mad at yourself – this isn’t a speed competition!) and keep trying until you can sit still and quiet for 10 minutes. You can think about anything you want, the point is to be physically still, and not have any external stimuli (no TV, no music, no whatever). This teaches you to have a quiet body. This also teaches you about time, because it’s hard to know how long 10 minutes is. Your eyes can be opened or closed, it doesn’t matter (and blinking isn’t counted as moving, so you can blink all you want).

Once you are able to sit still for 10 minutes, then try sitting for 10 minutes and think only about white things. If you start to think about something that isn’t white, stop yourself, and start thinking about white things again. Here’s a list of words to help you get started:

Snow, polar bears, cotton, vanilla pudding, paper, light bulbs, chicken, arctic hare, white wolf, beluga whale, dove, cream, soap, flower, milk, flour, rice, refrigerator, tooth, swan, snowy owl, sand, stones, clouds

Once you have done it, do it twice more, on different days. Ten minutes thinking about things that are white. It will teach you how to concentrate and how to have a quiet mind. If you think about white things and you start to move, try again. If you are still, but you think about what that jerk on the bus said to you today, try again. Each time you try, take at least a one day break in between your tries. You will learn concentration and discipline, both very important for meditation. Don’t rush it, this isn’t a contest!

When you are comfortable with spending 10 quiet, still, minutes thinking about things that are white, try 10 minutes thinking about things that are natural, like animals, grass, trees, sky, and so on. Anything in the natural world, made naturally and not altered by human hands. Remember to keep still, and keep quiet. Don’t say the things out loud, just think them in your head.

If your mind wanders, just pull it back. So if you are thinking about animals, and you think about your cat, and your cat’s fur, and your cat’s meow, and the neighbourhood dog that chases your cat, that is fine. If you then think about the neighbourhood dog that barks, and your stupid neighbour who lets the dog bark at night and it wakes you up and then you get a bad sleep and you have an important meeting tomorrow and… now you have let your mind wander. Immediately think of another natural thing, and refocus yourself.

Then, practice and practice and practice until thinking about natural things is really really easy, and being still is really really easy. Think about different things each time – maybe think about animals one time, and then flowers the next time.

I recommend thinking about natural things because it is a great way to connect to the Goddess. So that when you want to meditate on the goddess Diana, for example, you can concentrate on things that are important to Her: trees, a cool stream, a deer, a dog and so on, without getting off track.

Give it a try, it will take some time to get good, but it will be worth every minute you spend trying. It will let you connect better with the Goddess, and that will increase the power of your spells and magick.

Let’s Talk Witch – How To Meditate

Author Unknown

Article Transferred Over from Old Yuku Site

Deity of the Day – Diana

The classical moon goddess, Diana, is still worshipped by neopagans today. Long after Christianity’s triumph over classical paganism, her worship is still going strong.

Diana was intrinsically linked with several other witch deities, including Abonde, Abundia, Aradia, Hecate, Herodias, Holda, Perchta, Satia, and Venus.

Deity of the Day – Diana

The classical moon goddess, Diana, is still worshipped by neopagans today. Long after Christianity’s triumph over classical paganism, her worship is still going strong.

Diana was intrinsically linked with several other witch deities, including Abonde, Abundia, Aradia, Hecate, Herodias, Holda, Perchta, Satia, and Venus.

Crystal of the Day – Moonstone

As its name implies, moonstone is tied to the lunar deities, in particular, any goddess with a triune or triple aspect. Diana, Selene, and Hecate are often associated with moonstone. This stone can be used in workings related to female reproduction, menstrual cycles and childbirth. On a magical level, include moonstone in rites having to do with wisdom and intuition, womens’ mysteries, and goddess-centric ceremonies.

Common Name: Moonstone

Also known as: Cylon Opal

Appearance: White to colorless, sometimes found in pale blues; looks a bit like Opal in some cases

Element(s): Water

Planetary connection: Moon

Deity connection: Any goddess with a triple aspect – Diana, Selene, Hecate

Healing powers: Anything related to female reproduction, childbirth, menstrual cycles

Magical uses: Can be used in workings related to wisdom and intuition, Goddess-focused rituals

Deity of the Day – Hekate

Deity of the Day

Hekate

Perhaps the most notorious of all witch goddesses, Hecate was a dark manifestation of Diana. Hecate is the patron goddess of witches and sorceresses because of her skill in the arts of black magic. She is the queen of darkness, perverse sexuality, and death. Classically, she is the goddess of “roads in general and crossroads in particular, the latter being considered the center of ghostly activities, particularly in the dead of night… Offerings of food (known as Hecate’s suppers) were left to placate her, for she was terrible both in her powers and in her person–a veritable Fury, armed with a scourge and blazing torch and accompanied by terrifying hounds.”

The followers of Hecate were rumoured to have strange powers, such as that of being able to draw down the moon in order to employ the averse aspects of lunar forces. Followers could metamorphose into animals and birds, had insatiable sexual appetites, and had an intrinsic understanding of aphrodisiac and poisonous herbs.

Homage to Diana

Huntress, Goddess, maiden fair
Seated in Thy queenly chair
Forest Lady with Your stag
Moon held tight within a bag
Lady with the azure eyes
Flashing as Your quarry flies

Take up fast Thy silver bow
To cock the golden arrow
With sharpened tip of black pearl
Tightly grip the moonstone knurl
Let fly Thy shaft through the night
To hit Your target tonight

Brightly shines the silver moon
Gently calls the banded loon
Diana walks soft tonight
Sending forth shafts of moonlight
Howling wolves call Her sweet name
And ‘neath Her hand become tame

Blessed Be

The Witch

Women have strange powers men do not: the power to bear children and feed them from their own bodies, to bleed without being hurt or sick, and to provoke
erections in heterosexual men. Perhaps these strange beings have even more
remarkable powers.

Or perhaps when the image of a Goddess dwindles until all that remains is the
memory of Her uncanny powers, She becomes a Witch.

Witches have been credited with such magical feats as blasting crops, cursing
people to sickness, lameness or death and causing men to become impotent or
even stealing their penises.

The Renaissance Christian myth of the witch is complex and grotesque. Most
witches were women, the Malleus Maleficarum stated, because “All witchcraft
arises from lust, which in women is insatiable.” Their lust was supposedly for
the Devil, who initiated the witch at the Sabbat and copulated with her often,
according to the accounts of the churchmen.

These witches gathered at mass meetings called Sabbats, to which they flew via
brooms or animal companions. There, the Devil appeared, usually in the form of
a black goat. They kissed his buttocks in greeting. Then they informed him of
all the harmful spells they had done since the last Sabbat. Wild dancing and often sex with gathered demons followed, along with a feast often consisting of
the corpses of babies.

There is no evidence that a real conspiracy of witches who worshipped the Devil
ever existed. But many European clergymen devoutly believed in it during the
great Witch Hunt. Estimates as to how many people, mostly women, were burned or hanged for witchcraft range from a few thousand to nine million.

But the witches of pagan stories had no need for a male Devil. Long before the
great Witch-Hunt, European women were accused of believing that they travelled with the goddess Diana or Signa Oriente or Herodias at night, entering people’s homes and being given food. Roman witches were thought to worship Hecate.

Morgan Le Fay tormented King Arthur and his knights. Circe turned the men who invaded her island into pigs. The volva told Odin how the Aesir gods would
fall. The witches in The Golden Ass can command even the Greek gods with their
spells.

The myths have led to a real Witchcraft religion springing up — one that worships Goddesses, not the Christian’s Devil.

Many other cultures have known the fear of the witch, which may date back to
the Stone Age. Some Native American tribes feared witches, such as the Iroquois
and Navajo (Dina). Certain African tribes believe in female witches who ride
trained hyenas to meetings and cast evil spells.

The urban legends of child-molesting Satanist conspiracies that spring up even
today show how enduring the myth of the witch is. As in Renaissance times, most of the accused are women.

Above: “The Witches’ Sabbat”, by Francis Goya. Below: From a collage.

The Witches Magick for November 1 – Witchcraft Spell

Witchcraft Spell

To bless magickal work

Items You Will Need:

White candle

Book of Shadows

Athame or other magickal tools

Book of Spells

This is a great spell to cast on either the Full Moon or Samhain. It can be used by both Solitaries and Coven Witches. If you are working a particularly important piece of magick, you can say this blessing first. This is a good spell to ask your familiar to help out with if you have one. Just their presence in your circle will give your magick a boost.

Great Diana (or Hecate), Queen of Witches

Look down on me, your child

As I walk the Path of the Ancient Ones.

Bless these tools, that I might use them well

Bless these spells, that they may work as I desire

Bless my heart and mind

That I might practice in perfect love and perfect trust

Shine your light on all my magickal workings

For the good of all

And according to the free will of all

So Mote It Be.

Full Moon Ritual No. 1

You will need

-two white candles

-a bell

-Wine or lunar liquid

-Your chalice (or cup)

-spell material if you are doing something afterwards

Cast your circle . Stand before the altar facing North and say:

This is the time of the full moon, a time of great power for positive manifestation, a time of increasing and gaining. The tide of Moon-power is strong. I am of the Goddess. I stand before You at Your altar, in love and adoration. Be with me Goddess. Let me feel your presence here tonight.”

Go to the east with the bell. Ring it once and say:

“Hail Selene. Help me feel the Lady’s power and presence within my mind.”

Go to the South. Ring the bell once and say:

“Hail Cerridwen. Help me feel the Lady’s power and presence within my spirit.”

Go to the West. Ring the bell once and say:

“Hail Athene. Help me feel the Lady’s power and presence within my emotions.”

Go back to the North. Ring the bell once and say:

“Hail Aphrodite. Help me feel the Lady’s power and presence in my body.”

You will probably have an amazing wave of feelings come over you. Let them sink into your body and soul. When you are ready, return the bell to the altar, turn to the North, and raise your arms high above your head. Say:

“Hail Goddess! Moon Mother, Lady of Light, Mistress of Magick and Animals. You are the white light of the Moon upon the Earth, the brillant rays of sun upon life. You are the beginning and ending, the One who creates and takes away. Within You, I see myself and all woman. In this time, You come to me and fill me with your presence.”

Communicate with Her now. Tell Her your problems, wishes and anything you wish to tell her. When you are finished say:

All honor and love to the wonderful Goddess, for She is the power behind all powers, the Goddess behind all gods, the Eternal Life behind death. I see Her loving face within the moon and rejoice. All Hail Queen of the heavens and the earth, the eternal on of Wisdom!”

Raise the chalice to toast her and say:

To Diana and all the Goddesses!”

Now is the time for divination, meditation, and spellwork of any kind.

Close the circle when done.

Where Did All The Myths About the Besom Come From?

Some authors claim that the oldest known source of witches flying on broomsticks is a manuscript called Le Champion des Dames by Martin Lefranc, 1440. This might be one of the oldest images representing a hag on a broomstick, but it is certainly not the first. A wall painting from the 12th century in Schleswig Cathedral (Germany) shows the Norse deity Frigg riding her staff.

If we really dig a bit deeper into history, we’ll find that from the Roman world
there are reports that mention witches flying on broomsticks as well as having
used ointments, as early as the first century. They were called Straigae (Barnowl) and the Lamiae from Greek culture had similar characteristics. Later in Roman history, the goddess Diana was the leader of the Wild Hunt:

“It is also not to be omitted that some wicked women, perverted by the Devil,
seduced by illusions and phantasm of demons, believe and profess themselves in
the hours of the night to ride upon certain beasts with Diana, the goddess of
pagans, and an innumerable multitude of women, and in the silence of the dead of the night to traverse great spaces of earth, and to obey her commands as of
their mistress, and to be summoned to her service on certain nights”.

Similar beliefs existed in many parts of Europe. From Norse mythology, we know
that the army of women, lead by Odin (Wodan), called the Valkyries, was said to
ride through the skies on horses, collecting the souls of the dead. In continental Germanic areas, the goddess Holda or Holle was also said to lead the Wild Hunt and is connected to chimneys and witchcraft. Berchta or Perchita, another Germanic goddess, which can be identified with Holda, has similar characteristics.

Again in Celtic Traditions, the Horned God Cernuous, and/or Herne the Hunter
was leader of the Wild Hunt and the Scottish Witch Goddess Nineveh was also
said to fly through the night with her followers. Eastern Europe sources also
have a wealth of folklore about witches flying through the air. So flying
through the air, evidently, was a deeply rooted mythological theme, associated
with the free roaming of the spirit, the separation of soul and body.

Have A Very Beautiful & Blessed Wednesday, dear friends & family!

Full Moon Chant

By the one power

Acting for me and through me (us)

I hereby Draw Down The Moon

Into myself (into us all)

According to free will and for the good of all.

Diane, Selene, Hecate, enter me now!

I hereby Draw Down the Moon for

(here you list specific work or desire, it’s equivalent or better)

Thank you, Diana,

Thank you Selene,

Thank you Hecate.

The power that moves the moon moves through me always- (us)

Through all time and all space

So mote it be

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