Tag: Wicca

Using Your Cauldron

Using Your Cauldron

In the center of a ritual area (with or without an altar) the cauldron can be used to receive offerings such as flowers, fruits, crystals, etc., in a seasonal celebration or abundance ritual.

Half-fill your cauldron with water on the full moon so that you and anyone present can look into the silvery water and scry (look for images). You can interpret these images as you would dreams to answer questions or to receive wisdom from the moon mother and your wise inner self.

Scry also in bright sunlight or by candlelight by dropping a handful of dried, chopped cooking herbs on to the water to give you moving images to answer questions.

If your cauldron is cast iron and not a replica, you can put a heatproof fire basket or metal liner inside and light a small fire. Alternatively, fill the cauldron with sand and embed a candle in the center. In this you can burn wishes, or scatter herbs of incenses.

Burn incenses in the cauldron either as charcoal or as sticks or cones embedded in sand.

Dance and chant around the cauldron.

Fill the cauldron with water, then cast petals or herbs on to the surface as you circle the cauldron to symbolize healing energies flowing. Alternatively, as a banishing ritual you could ritually tip away the water, for example, dead leaves you threw into the water symbolizing what is unwanted. Best of all, tip it back into the earth or water source.

Fill the cauldron with earth and during a ceremony, plant herbs and flowers and bury coins or crystals. This indicates prosperity, love or healing growing as the plants grow. You can transplant the whole lot after the ceremony or use an old or spare cauldron for this ceremony so that the rite can be ongoing (maybe from spring equinox to autumn equinox).

You finally know you are a witch when…….

Witchy Comments
You finally know you are a witch when:

1. Your BOS has spots on the pages from spilled brews.

 

2. When cleaning house you have to specify. “Where is the broom? No, not THE broom, where is the one to clean the floor with?”

 

3. Candle wax has dripped on your keyboard.

 

4. Neighbourhood cats commune in your front yard.

 

5. There are more jars of strange smelling plants in your cupboards than there are cereal boxes.

 

6. Friends know they can always give you candles and incense as a gift.

 

7. When watching old re-runs of Bewitched, you find you side with Samantha’ s mother Endora.

 

8. You’ve actually tried to twitch your nose to add emphasis to your spellwork.

 

9. When travelling, stranger and stranger strangers tell you their problems.

 

10. You swear in the plural.

 

11. You find yourself making corn dollies in the checkout line at the grocery store.

 

12. Whenever someone sneezes you say “Goddess Bless.”

 

13. You ask for Halloween off, because it’s a religious holiday.

 

14. You start answering the phone with “Merry Meet”.

 

 
~Magickal Graphics~

The Survival of Ancient Ways in Today’s World

The Survival of Ancient Ways in Today’s World

Author: wolf witch

Witchcraft, Wicca, and Pagan belief systems in general are more popular now than since the advent of Christianity in the West. As society gradually moves away from the group and toward individuality with respect to spiritual development, people seek alternatives to “organized” religion in order to more thoroughly immerse themselves in that sense of inner spirituality that, in the East, comes from meditation and a closely controlled lifestyle and in the West has its roots in the ancient Western Mystery Tradition in part or in whole surrounding the teaching founded upon Hermetic philosophy.

Wicca is, depending on which “expert’ you read, either very ancient or extremely new and linked to Neo-Paganism. Still, its practices demand individual dedication and action, and, even in its most basic form, stirs the inner workings further toward the sort of self-realization equated with spiritual enlightenment. Whether this enlightenment is as thorough as that of the Buddhists or is that a devoted Christian attains through constant prayer is unimportant. What is truly a key factor here is that Wicca, in whatever form, requires the individual to ultimately take responsibility for his own spiritual development, as must the Buddhist or the Christian or any other person of faith.

The claim for the Craft being a part of the spiritual movement of modern times collapses in the face of archeological and anthropological evidence to the contrary. The Internet and the ready availability of books from a wide range of authors resulted in an incredible number of “traditions” birthing literally overnight, each of which possesses their adherents and, in the case of many founding members, zealots, a rather surprising response from a religion that is by no means evangelical. The point of this text is not to criticize new or old traditions. Each finds its place in spiritual development. Those with more parochial views may learn something here but will find no further argument with any modern path.

If no other law holds true in the Craft, “Each to his own” certainly applies.

In order to understand Western occult philosophy, one must grasp the words of the Emerald Tablet, the essence of which is the statement, “As above, so below, ” and its reverse. There is no dictum of control implied here, so the phrase does not lose, as suggested by some authors, its validity in reverse. It merely explains that the nature of things is best discovered in any one thing within the set; that is, if something exists in this universe, then its structure and function resulting from that physical existence resembles in kind all other things in this universe.

The axiom applies equally to Man and Spirit. The whole reason for its existence is to tell man that the universe he sees and the Universe his spirit knows is hardly imaginary but very, very real. The stone is the Almighty’s message to Man that what he cannot see has no reality whosoever in relation to the greater Universe of gods, angels, demons, and the like. Man is part of that magnificent continuum.

Thus is the Creator known to Man.

There are as many paths to spiritual awakening as there are people on the planet. Some folks are so convinced their method is right that they insist on bringing it to others which in some cases is a truly positive gesture. However, when that new system comes into place through the annihilation of what went before, then the result proves destructive and dangerous.

In the time of Charlemagne, Paganism died in Europe at the hands of Christians bent on destroying every other belief system but their own. St. Patrick did not drive the snakes out of Ireland (there were none to begin with) , but he did burn every piece of literature concerning the religious history of the Celts, a close equivalent to the burning of the great library at Alexandria by the Romans who simply knew no better. Patrick knew exactly what he was doing, and the Church made a practice of eliminating all but their own warped view of religion as a source of power and authority.

The Craft has few written records that cover events from the Dark Ages. All such literature became personal as each witch kept a Book of Shadows though few would have called it that. The books held recipes and formulae for everything from herbal remedies to dynamic rituals, most of which these days are drawn from a single surviving grimier, the Key of Solomon. From this text, Gardner drew the rituals in his book.

Fortunately, the worst persecution could not eliminate folkways, and many made their way to the present, especially those regarding healing. This knowledge forged an excellent foundation for modern witches to expand their knowledge of the human psyche in order to better help those in need.

All of the present day’s rites and rituals owe much to Hermes and his simple statement. Understanding the universe makes clear the path delineated by the Craft, so the study of how the universe works is definitely worth the effort. In the end, the universe unfolds itself to each in its own way.

Here is one of the great gifts of the Goddess, as claimed in Celtic tradition: the Stone, a foundation upon which all else stands.

The occult deals with those entities and forces that, in general, lie outside the bounds of what most would define as normal existence. Where the world around us takes its description from physics, the occultist studies metaphysics. Where the scientist relies on proof as determined by experimental data, the occultist speculates using intuition as an equally valid point that influences understanding the true reality of any situation. While science plods on toward a complete understanding of the universe in detail, the occultist works more as a generalist using Hermes’ statement as a guide: “As above, so below”.

Today’s trend, thanks to the rapid spread of information and its verification relying very much on popularity rather than true alacrity, creates almost as many Craft belief systems as there are individuals capable of committing those beliefs onto a web page. More than a few seek a sense of authority within the old religion earned only in their own right. Many forget the trials that shaped Wicca over the years and the powerful forces and strong enemies that sought to wipe the Craft from the planet, burning, killing, and torturing every follower and many more who were rumored to be followers of the ancient ways.

There is a common feeling among these folk and a host of other witches that the burning times are over; that the public broadcast of one’s own faith can safely travel the Internet airways without fear of any repercussion.

One careful perusal of the news will prove this merry affection dangerously incorrect. With the smallest change in today’s status quo, the burning time could come back in force. Fundamentalism favors intolerance. There is absolutely nothing wrong with stating one’s beliefs in any public forum, but the defense of those beliefs to the blood must be the heart of that statement.

Dark Goddesses, Not So Dark: Understanding Hecate

Dark Goddesses, Not So Dark: Understanding Hecate

Author: Hecates Moon0013

There are many Goddesses who are considered “Dark Gods/Goddesses and who tend to be misunderstood or seen as “evil.” A few examples are Hecate, the Morrigan, Anubis, Poseidon and quite a few more, I’d wager as well. In my case, the “Dark Goddess” is my Patroness, Hecate. She has indeed a long history, and has been known in Her many different aspects, such as the three-faced crone, Goddess of Magic, Queen of the Night, Goddess of the Crossroads, and more. One culture supposedly offered dogs as a sacrifice to her out of honor and respect. (Although I personally don’t find that necessary to ever do myself!) In others, they offered feasts and left offerings at the crossroads.

The goddess Hecate is indeed widely known as a Dark Goddess and is associated with the darkness… But what exactly makes many people consider darkness as ‘evil’? Honestly, I see Her more as a mother figure. She looks after those who work with her.

Is She associated with the dark? Answer: Yes! However, She is not the darkness, but rather the light that guides people through the darkness. She watches over us all, and, in fact, helps nurture us. She is also not afraid to act. She, Hecate, Protects those that follow her like any other Goddess. Furthermore if you ask for her help, she will help and then ask simply “What’s next?” She finds ways to help Her adherents to grow both inside and out.

At this point, I would like to clear up a few misconceptions. First of all She, Hecate, is often portrayed as a Goddess Who is not fond of males, but favors female. This however is not true. As I know from personal experience, She will work with both.

Also it is thought that She is against love and marriage. However there is documentation that is not the case. She actually is all right with marriage, though She is strict on how it happens. She will not condone any form of sexual contact unless it is mutually acceptable between the two partners. She considers marriage and dating as normal things; marriage and childbirth, she considers “sacred things.”

One of the symbols that represent Her, in my opinion, is the Torch. Hecate, as I have said before, leads us through the hard times… through our anguish, through our grief, and She is there to comfort us, to warm us, and to guide us with Her light. Hecate herself is ‘The Torch’. She is the light within the eternal Darkness. One thing for sure, Hecate has seen me through many dark times, and has also helped me to learn more about myself… by helping me through those rough times she has shown me that, though sometimes life in itself can be scary, if we acknowledge it and learn to embrace ourselves for what might come, and learn to look through it, we will find ourselves at last in peace. We are able to walk through the fires, so to speak, of life and still be standing tall as we overcome the negative situations that we face.

When my first struggle with faith happened, Hecate was there. When I grieved over the loss of good friends and family, Hecate was there… When I felt lost, alone, and questioned Wicca, and religion itself, She was there. Hecate, at all of my crossroads, has brought people to help me in my time of need, and I have been brought in turn to help others in their times of need. If anything, Hecate has taught me that everyone is afraid, but we have to move on. Hecate also has taught me time and time again, that when you act with compassion, things in general are better for everyone.

I once struggled with Wicca. I had gotten myself to the point where I felt abandoned, and that I would never be able to feel energy or work with the Craft again. It was so bad, I questioned my sanity, wondering, is this even real?” Am I not supposed to be a part of this religion? Have the Gods and Goddesses abandoned me in my time of need? Why else could this possibly be happening? I prayed to Hecate to please watch over me and to help me overcome.

I eventually came across a group of people who helped me with my problem. I was looking for a group to work with and learn from in hopes I could find some clarity. I ended up finding a group, and though things did not work out for me with the group, I made some amazing friends. The people in it taught me a lot about myself, and other things as well. To this day, my ability to feel energy is not the same as it used to be, nor is my level of energy, but it is better. Not only that, but I have gained more confidence in myself.

I owe Hecate a lot. As odd as it might sound to some of you, I feel, to an extent, that I owe Hecate my life. She also taught me a valuable lesson: just because people are helpful does not mean that mistakes are not made. I learned to expect both good and bad from people and that we are all capable of both. No matter how good we are, or how bad we are, we are still capable of both. Because of this insight, I tend to look for the good in a negative situation. For there is always something, good and/or positive that can come out of any situation. The real trick is to find it in things and in people.

Now, most people are wondering, “Aren’t Dark Goddesses vengeful?” I feel the best answer for this is: What God or Goddess can’t be vengeful? In truth, they all can be. Hecate is literally a Mother Goddess. She is the ‘Okay. Done. What’s next?’ sort of Goddess. She is only vengeful to those who would harm Her charges, or rather those that She works with if someone would Harm them.

Hecate is able to give us so much knowledge, and teach us so much, that condemning Her without even getting to truly know Her I feel is a sad thing indeed. Furthermore, she teaches us that if we learn to accept the bad things in life, we become better… for Hecate carries the key to unlock that which we keep hidden. and once we discover ourselves, and accept things as they really are, we feel relieved. She helps us not only to see, but helps us to understand things in the ‘rawness of it all’.

I write this near the time of Samhain. For me, this holiday represents Hecate very well as she is also associated with the dead. One of my favorite characteristics of Hecate is that She teaches us to respect those who have come before us. As a Goddess of the crossroads, She makes the holiday even more meaningful. Samhain is the time when we are supposed to remember those who have helped pave our way. As the Goddess of the crossroads, Hecate compels us to reflect not only over what we have done or should have done, but also to remember that while we have gone through so much, it could have been worse. We are more blessed than we realize.

Hecate is more than just a simple Goddess. Hecate is my Mother, who protects me and nurtures me as I go through life. Hecate is my Patroness whom I am grateful to. I know that She is always there willing to help me, if ever I ask. Hecate is so misunderstood that, honestly, it saddens me a bit. If anything working with Hecate has truly been a blessing. I don’t think I would have been able to do, let alone get through, a lot of the things I have if not for her help, and for that I will always be eternally grateful.

Knowing that, as the sun sets, She is all around me at night is a comfort in so many ways. At night time, She is all around me, protecting me, and watching over me…and I know that when I am at the next crossroad, at some future turning point in my life, She will be there waiting for me, always more than willing to help me through the next hurdle. And so, I will continue to worship and work with Her, for She is not ‘the darkness that is evil’, but is, in fact, a guiding Light and a help for those who feel lost. And if you call to Her, Hecate will be there to help guide you through the rough times as well.

May Hecate bless you, and watch over you always!
Blessed Be!


Footnotes:
Understanding the Warrior Goddess by the author: Stephanie Woodfield

TO HELP DISPEL NEGATIVE ENERGIES AROUND YOU

TO HELP DISPEL NEGATIVE ENERGIES AROUND YOU

Take a small clear crystal, an acorn, some rosemary and mandrake and a bit of green silk
or cotton. It doesn’t need to be a big piece. Cast your circle and creating a pouch from
the herbs, bless them with each element saying:
“While this dwells within,
there will be protection without.
Cleanse and charge this charm,
element of against all who wish me ill!”
Now hang this somewhere not too obviously, like hiding it in a corner or over a window.
This will protect you ’til next Samhain when you should burn it in the sacred fire, crystal and all.
If it is not too tainted, the fire will just cleanse the crystal and you’ll be able to retrieve it
from the ashes but I always recommend just getting a new one.

The Fourth Rule of White Magick: Must be cosmic balance

The Fourth Rule of White Magick:
There must be cosmic balance

 
Though it is important, this rule is sometimes forgotten.
 
As mentioned earlier, even the fluttering of a butterfly wing affects the energies of the universe. So when you take from the cosmos at a time of need, you must redress the balance by a practical gift at another time when you are able to give. This need not be financial giving but should involve positive effort. There isn’t a time limit and if you are surviving on two hours’ sleep with a teething baby, the cosmos won’t charge interest on unpaid dues.
 
Sometimes you can pay back into the same area from which you took the energies. For example, if you used the power of the sea or a river in your spell to launch a venture, you could in the everyday world join a campaign for clean water in the Third World, help a harassed new mother with her washing and ironing or plan to feed the local ducks in winter when no one else bothers.
 
Occasionally perform an open-ended ritual to send out good vibes or healing to wherever it is most needed or to say thank you for your life, even if it is not perfect right now (it may suddenly and dramatically improve after the ritual).
 
Equally when you blow out your altar candles try to send the light to people who are being cantankerous or spiteful in the hope that it will brighten their aura. It may take a whole lot of butterflies to shift negativity but it is possible (and then you have some credit in the cosmic pot).

The Third Rule Of White Magick: Ask for enough for your needs & a little more

The Third Rule of White Magick:

You can ask for enough for your needs and a little more
 
Magick can be used for any area of your life where you need power, money, healing or protection. There is nothing wrong in asking for the resolution of an urgent problem. After all, you can’t be drawing down lunar energies or healing rainforests successfully if you are worried sick about the bald tire on your car and you’ve got to drive your grandma to the hospital for her annual check-up the next day.
 
Witchcraft is and always has been about real people and their daily needs. As the Christian Lord’s Prayer says, “Give us this day our daily bread.” The religion of witchcraft is no less caring.
 
Our ancestors’ seasonal and domestic rituals were based on the need for enough food, shelter, and clothing. These were days when the harvest or the hunt was crucial to survival. The necessity of enough rain and sunshine for the growth of the seeds and animals formed the focus of seasonal rites. In societies that still depend on hunting, fishing or the harvest, these seasonal rituals have maintained their urgency and central position in the religious life of the community.
 
As long as your needs are realistic, you can usually obtain the resources you asked for, plus maybe an unexpected free upgrade, by doing even a simple spell. Be sure that your heart is in it and that you suspend logic–at least while casting the spell.
 
You can ask for love, health, healing, career success, fertility, concentration and an improved memory to pass an examination or take a test. As long as you do put in the necessary hours of studying or earthly effort to bring your wishes to fruition, magick can give you the extra boost and the confidence to succeed.

The Second Rule of White Magick: What is sent out comes back threefold

The Second Rule of Magick:

What You Send Out Comes Back Threefold
 
This is a great incentive to do magick to help others and for the environment.

If you use magick to send healing, love or abundance to other people, the same qualities will come into your own life unexpectedly in ways you need them, with three times the intensity.
 
Equally, if you send out negative thoughts or wishes in a spell to a nasty gossiping neighbor, you may well succeed in making the target of your spells unhappy. But this may make her gossip even more. What is more, similar unhappiness or nastiness will come back into your own life three times as powerfully–even if the person you are sending bad thought to deserves them. Bitterness and anger are natural emotions, best shared with a loving friend or relative or relieved by an hour digging the garden and not amplified in a magickal way to pollute the cosmos.
 
You know yourself that if you wake in a happy mood, you smile and everyone responds positively to you because your energy field is radiating happiness and so attracting it back. Think of the cosmos as a giant aura or energy field and do your share of Mary-Poppins-style magick.

The First Rule of White Magick: Do as you choose/harm no one

The First Rule of Magick:

You are free to do as you choose as long as you harm no one.
 
This rule sounds deceptively simple to keep. However, scientifically it has been shown that a butterfly fluttering its wings subtly alters the energies of the universe. Therefore any decision, act or spell must affect others. We should never use magick to interfere with the free will of others, though there are binding spells that can restrict the effects of a person’s negative behavior.

Of course in order to survive emotionally and sometimes to survive at all, you cannot always avoid hurting others in everyday life or in magick. So magick does involve a lot of careful thought and evaluation and usually relates to what is happening in our everyday lives.
 
Supposing you needed more money each month to pay the bills, You know a senior colleague at work is holding a comfortable, well-paid position under false pretences. She is leaving you to do her work and taking the credit. However justifiable your resentment you should not do a spell to get her fired. If you were subsequently offered her job you would never be happy in it because you got it by negative magick. You could instead do spells to raise your own positive profile at work so you do get offered promotions and also to take earthly steps to limit your colleague’s plagiarism. You could in addition, cast spells so that you would find a better-paid job where you were appreciated. Usually such free-loaders are noticed by higher management and may get moved on naturally.

The Rules of White Magick

The Rules of White Magick 

 
The rules of white magick are very moral. Some witches do practice magick while actively following a religious faith, because there is no need to compromise. You need integrity of the highest order when practicing witchcraft. Christians are afraid they will be damned in hell because they are attracted to magick. The main misconception is that witches worship the devil. In fact the old horned god was a hunting god and witches do not believe in a devil as such.
 
Witches believe we choose to do wrong and so are accountable for any wrong words or actions. We can’t blame a devil for tempting us, only our inner desires. Witchcraft accepts polarity in the expression of both goddess and god energies. It also recognizes that evil is a fact as much as good and can’t be eradicated once and for all. However, we should all work to increase goodness in the world, and to contain and minimize the effects of those who choose to do harm.

The same polarity is described in Oriental philosophy as yang and yin, each of which contains the seed of the other, god and goddess, male and female, light and darkness, action and receptivity, hot and cold, summer and winter, dry and wet. Neither is better than the other but when one reaches its limits or extremes it must give way to the other, just as day follows night and night day. At the Spring Equinox (around 21 March in the northern hemisphere, six months later in the southern) light and darkness are equal. Thereafter light increases till the Summer Solstice around 21 June, after which darkness begins to multiply till the balance is restored on the Autumn Equinox around 22 September in the northern hemisphere. The darkest nights and shortest days last until 21 December, the Midwinter Solstice, after which light slowly increases once more. In the magickal wheel of the year this dynamic struggle represents our own inner change and dynamics.

In magick, therefore, you are accountable for your actions and can’t just say sorry about three Hail Marys and be absolved. We have to try to put it right or carry the bad deed or karma (another Eastern Buddhist and Hindu concept) with us.

White Magick

White Magick

  
Like any spiritual force, magick is neutral, whatever its form. In the past, and even today in some parts of the world, formal religion can be used to justify all kinds of cruelty and intolerance. Magick used for dark purposes is really about power and sometimes people do hide behind the name and practices of witchcraft to abuse the vulnerable, whether physically, sexually or psychologically.
 
Usually these folks aren’t really devil-worshippers as they claim, but have watched some nasty inaccurate horror film about satanism and get themselves into all kinds of psycholgical as well as psychic minefields, not to mention the dreadful harm they do to others — and to the good name of witchcraft.
 
Almost as harmful in terms of misinformation and causing psychological damage, though not intentionally are witch cult films that glorify special effect spells with fire, sulphur and blood sacrifice, ritual sex and medieval demons unleashed to grant their wishes.
 
To real witches all life is sacred even that of the smallest insect. If you’re looking for wild sex, forget witchcraft. You’re more likely to get a list of herbs to learn or the altar silver to polish at your local coven than an invitation to attend a moorland orgy.
 
White or positive magickal practice, the kind recommended in this and other books by responsible witches and organizations such as The Children of Artemis, probably the best on- and off-line resource, is a highly moral and responsible code. Common sense is the key and covens are like gold dust to find. You can be sure if you are offered instant initiation in some lonely place or after a few private lession; you should drink up and leave fast.
 
Natural magick is by its simplicity naturally protective and reassuring. However, in case we do get intoxicated by our own powers, floods, whirlwinds, volcanoes and earth tremors are a sharp reminder that we work with and do not control mother nature.

The Rule of Three

The Rule of Three

aka The Law of Threefold Return

ByPatti Wigington

 

Many new Wiccans and Pagans are initiated with the cautionary words from their elders, “Ever mind the Rule of Three!” This warning is explained to mean that no matter what you do magically, there’s a giant Cosmic Force that will make sure your deeds are revisited upon you threefold. It’s universally guaranteed, some Pagans claim, which is why you better not EVER perform any harmful magic… or at least, that’s what they tell you.

However, this is one of the most highly contested theories in modern Paganism. Is the Rule of Three real, or is it just something made up by experienced Wiccans to scare the “newbies” into submission?

There are several different schools of thought on the Rule of Three. Some Wiccans and Pagans will tell you in no uncertain terms that it’s bunk, and that the Threefold Law is not a law at all, but just a guideline used to keep people on the straight and narrow. Other groups swear by it.

Background and Origins of the Threefold Law

The Rule of Three, also called the Law of Threefold Return, is a caveat given to newly initiated witches in some magical traditions. The purpose is a cautionary one. It keeps people who have just discovered Wicca from thinking they have Magical Super Powers. It also, if heeded, keeps folks from performing negative magic without putting some serious thought into the consequences.

An early incarnation of the Rule of Three appeared in Gerald Gardner’s novel,High Magic’s Aid, in the form of “Mark well, when thou receivest good, so equally art bound to return good threefold.” It later appeared as a poem published in a magazine back in 1975. Later this evolved into the notion among new witches that there is a spiritual law in effect that everything you do comes back to you. In theory, it’s not a bad concept — after all, if you surround yourself with good things, good things should come back to you. Filling your life with negativity will often bring similar unpleasantness into your life. However, does this really mean there’s a karmic law in effect? And why the number three — why not ten or five or 42?

Objections to the Law of Three

For a law to truly be a law, it must be universal — which means it needs to apply to everyone, all the time in every situation. That means for the Threefold Law to really be a law, every single person who does bad things would always be punished, and all the good people in the world would have nothing but success and happiness — and that doesn’t just mean in magical terms, but in all non-magical ones as well. We all can see that this is not necessarily the case. In fact, under this logic, every jerk who cuts you off in traffic would have nasty car-related retribution coming his way three times a day, but that just doesn’t happen.

Not only that, there are countless numbers of Pagans who freely admit to having performed harmful or manipulative magic, and never having anything bad coming back upon them as a result. In some magical traditions, hexing and cursing is considered as routine as healing and protecting — and yet members of those trads don’t seem to receive negativity back upon them every single time.

According to Wiccan author Gerina Dunwich, if you look at the Law of Three from a scientific perspective it is not a law at all, because it is inconsistent with the laws of physics.

Many new Wiccans and Pagans are initiated with the cautionary words from their elders, “Ever mind the Rule of Three!” This warning is explained to mean that no matter what you do magically, there’s a giant Cosmic Force that will make sure your deeds are revisited upon you threefold. It’s universally guaranteed, some Pagans claim, which is why you better not EVER perform any harmful magic… or at least, that’s what they tell you.

However, this is one of the most highly contested theories in modern Paganism. Is the Rule of Three real, or is it just something made up by experienced Wiccans to scare the “newbies” into submission?

There are several different schools of thought on the Rule of Three. Some Wiccans and Pagans will tell you in no uncertain terms that it’s bunk, and that the Threefold Law is not a law at all, but just a guideline used to keep people on the straight and narrow. Other groups swear by it.

Background and Origins of the Threefold Law

The Rule of Three, also called the Law of Threefold Return, is a caveat given to newly initiated witches in some magical traditions. The purpose is a cautionary one. It keeps people who have just discovered Wicca from thinking they have Magical Super Powers. It also, if heeded, keeps folks from performing negative magic without putting some serious thought into the consequences.

An early incarnation of the Rule of Three appeared in Gerald Gardner’s novel, High Magic’s Aid, in the form of “Mark well, when thou receivest good, so equally art bound to return good threefold.” It later appeared as a poem published in a magazine back in 1975. Later this evolved into the notion among new witches that there is a spiritual law in effect that everything you do comes back to you. In theory, it’s not a bad concept — after all, if you surround yourself with good things, good things should come back to you. Filling your life with negativity will often bring similar unpleasantness into your life. However, does this really mean there’s a karmic law in effect? And why the number three — why not ten or five or 42?

Objections to the Law of Three

For a law to truly be a law, it must be universal — which means it needs to apply to everyone, all the time in every situation. That means for the Threefold Law to really be a law, every single person who does bad things would always be punished, and all the good people in the world would have nothing but success and happiness — and that doesn’t just mean in magical terms, but in all non-magical ones as well. We all can see that this is not necessarily the case. In fact, under this logic, every jerk who cuts you off in traffic would have nasty car-related retribution coming his way three times a day, but that just doesn’t happen.

Not only that, there are countless numbers of Pagans who freely admit to having performed harmful or manipulative magic, and never having anything bad coming back upon them as a result. In some magical traditions, hexing and cursing is considered as routine as healing and protecting — and yet members of those trads don’t seem to receive negativity back upon them every single time.

According to Wiccan author Gerina Dunwich, if you look at the Law of Three from a scientific perspective it is not a law at all, because it is inconsistent with the laws of physics.

Why the Law of Three is Practical

No one likes the idea of Pagans and Wiccans running around flinging curses and hexes willy-nilly, so the Law of Three is actually quite effective in making people stop and think before they act. Quite simply, it’s the concept of cause and effect. When crafting a spell, any competent Wiccan or Pagan is going to stop and think about the end results of the working. If the possible ramifications of one’s actions will likely be negative, that may make us stop to say, “Hey, maybe I better rethink this a bit.”

Although the Law of Three sounds prohibitive, many Wiccans see it instead as a useful standard to live by. It allows one to set boundaries for oneself by saying, “Am I prepared to accept the consequences — be they good or bad — for my deeds, both magical and mundane?”

As to why the number three — well, why not? Three is known as a magical number. And really, when it comes to paybacks, the idea of “three times revisited” is fairly ambiguous. If you whack someone in the nose, does it mean you’ll get your own nose punched three times? No, but it could mean you’ll show up at work, your boss will have heard about you bopping someone’s schnoz, and now you’re fired because your employer won’t tolerate brawlers — certainly this is a fate which could be, to some, considered “three times worse” than getting hit in the nose.

Other Interpretations

Some Pagans use a different interpretation of the Law of Three, but still maintain that it prevents irresponsible behavior. One of the most sensible adaptations of the Rule of Three that I’ve heard of is one that states, quite simply, that your actions effect you on three separate levels: physical, emotional, and spiritual. This means that before you act, you need to consider how your deeds will impact your body, your mind and your soul. Not a bad way to look at things, really.

Another school of thought interprets the Law of Three in a cosmic sense — what you do in this lifetime will be revisited upon you three times more intently in your NEXT life. Likewise, the things that are happening to you this time around, be they be good or bad, are your paybacks for actions in previous lifetimes. If you accept the concept of reincarnation, this adaptation of the Law of Threefold Return may resonate with you a little more than the traditional interpretation.

In some traditions of Wicca, coven members initiated into upper degree levels may use the Law of Threefold Return as a way of giving back that which they receive — in other words, what other people do to you, you are permitted to return threefold, whether it’s good or bad.

Ultimately, whether you accept the Law of Three as a cosmic morality injunction or simply a part of life’s little instruction manual, it is up to you to govern your own behaviors, both mundane and magical. Accept personal responsibility, and always think before you act.

Magical Ethics

Magical Ethics

ByPatti Wigington

There’s a saying among the contemporary Pagan community that “black magic is whatever works, white magic is anything else.” This stems in part from a misconception that black equals bad, white equals good, and that there are no gray areas at all. However, nothing could be farther from the truth.

Let’s look at the word blackitself, and figure out why it connotates evil. A big part of that is thanks to pop culture — after all, in popular shows like Charmed or Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the good guys are the “white light” people. The bad guys are surrounded by darkness. Another part of the whole black = bad concept is because of people who can’t let go of their Christian upbringing, in which those who are righteous are surrounded by the light of God, and those who are damned will dwell in darkness.

The problem with this logic is that darkness in and of itself doesn’t have to be bad at all. After all, how beautiful is a quiet night out in the country, miles away from the lights of a city? Have you ever walked in the woods at midnight, embracing the comfort of the shadows? Darkness is what lies in the soil, below the earth, before a plant grows in the spring. It is the long nights of winter, when we are drawn into our homes to embrace our families and count our good fortune. It is the inside of the womb, warm and nurturing. Even the darkness of the grave, of death itself, may be seen as welcoming.

Once we accept that dark isn’t all that bad, it’s a lot easier to look at the concept of “black magic” vs. “white magic.” Even if we replace the words “black” with “negative” and “white” with “positive”, we’re still in a bit of a pickle, and here’s why: because it is the intent that matters as much as the action. In other words, if someone performs magic that others might see as “negative,” but does it for what they believe is an honest and just reason, then is it really negative magic?

To do magic is to say that you want to bring about change in the Universe — after all, if everything were perfect, there’d be no need for magic at all. Any magic capable of causing change is also magic that can harm, simply by its very nature. Magic isn’t some Super Spooky Power that we have — it’s a tool we can use to precipitate changes. Any tool can be used for helping or harming — if I have a hammer, I can use it to build a house. I can also use it to whack people in the head. It’s not the hammer that’s “negative”, but what I choose to do with it.

Case in point: in the early nineties, a serial rapist was terrorizing the women of a coastal city in the Carolinas. His reported victims, over two years, numbered at least two dozen, including a teenage girl who later committed suicide. A group of witches got together one night, and did a working calling for this man to be stopped by the Universe. A couple of weeks later, the prime suspect — who was later convicted — led police on a high-speed chase and wrecked his car, nearly dying from his injuries. He has lived since then severely handicapped, but he never raped another woman.

Negative magic, or no?

There are people within the Wiccan and Pagan community who feel that any magic that affects other people at all is unethical, and they have the right to not perform any magic on, against, or for others. However, there are an equal amount of people who believe that change brought about by magic is acceptable, just as change brought about by mundane methods is acceptable. Chances are, the two camps will never agree, but what you can do, as an individual, is respect the beliefs of those who may disagree with you, whichever side you may happen to fall on.

Look at magic as a way to improve your life. You can use it to bring love to you, to gain financial abundance, to eliminate problems from your life. You can use it as a method of growth and self-empowerment. It can be used to help you fulfill your dreams, desires and goals. Can you use magic to help other people? Sure — if they ask you to. If they haven’t asked — or if they’ve specifically told you NOT to do anything on their behalf, then don’t.

Ultimately, only you can decide which forms of magic fall into your personal system of ethics. If you feel a particular course of action is wrong, then avoid it. If you feel it is ethically acceptable, and you’re willing to accept the results of your actions, then so be it.

Magical Ethics and Guidelines

Magical Ethics and Guidelines

There’s a lot of spirited discussion about magical ethics within the Wiccan and Pagan communities. What’s okay to do, and what’s not? More importantly, do the rules apply to everyone? Read on to find out the basics of magical ethics, and how you can figure out what’s acceptable within your own magical tradition.

Magic for Personal Gain

There’s an awful lot of speculation about whether or not it’s okay to perform magic for personal gain. Unless your particular tradition forbids it, here’s why you should feel okay about doing magic to benefit yourself.

One of the first cautionary warnings that people new to the magical life seem to stumble upon is the idea that magic shouldn’t be used for personal gain. There doesn’t seem to be any clear-cut precedent for where this mandate came from, and in fact very few Wiccan or Pagan traditions follow it. To do magic is, after, to express your own discontent with the universe and the things in it, and to make changes come about to your satisfaction.

Think of it this way. Let’s say you are particularly skilled at building things. Is there some big Rule of Building that says you’re only allowed to construct things for other people, but never for yourself? What if you have a talent for balancing numbers? Does the Accountant’s Rede permit you only to do someone else’s bookkeeping, but not let you balance your own checkbook? Of course not. That would be ridiculous.

If your tradition says, “Don’t do this,” then don’t do it. Otherwise, what’s holding you back? Your personal code of ethics will help you determine whether or not you can perform an action or not. 

Magic is a skill set just like any other. You can use it alone, or you can use it in tandem with the mundane. Part of developing magical ability is to make your own life better. If you’re sick, you do a healing working on yourself. If you’re financially strapped, you do a working that brings abundance your way. Just like with any other talent, use the skills you have to benefit yourself. If you’d like to use it to help other people as well, that’s awesome, and something to be proud of. In the meantime, unless your tradition specifically forbids you from doing magic for personal gain, don’t ever let anyone tell you that your abilities can’t be used for yourself.

What Is The Difference Between A Spell and A Ritual

What Is The Difference Between A Spell and A Ritual

 
 
In practice the terms “spell” and “ritual” are used interchangeably in magick and throughout used as a umbrella term for magickal working.
 
A spell tends to be a less formal kind of magick, usually cast for a specific purpose or need, for example to protect a named traveller (maybe yourself or a family member) on a particular journey or trip for a specified length of time. The energies are raised and then released so they will bounce back to activate the purpose of the spell which has been represented by a symbol of that journey. This physical focus of the spell might in natural magick be a feather or some chopped fennel herbs to symbolize travel.
 
In contrast a ritual is based on a more general or long-lasting focus. A ritual may be carried out at specified times, for example the first day of spring or to celebrate the birth of a baby. A ritual, even in natural magick, follows a more structured format.
 
What is more, whereas a spell builds up to a climax and release of energy, the ritual may release energy more evenly throughout the weeks and months ahead.

Wishing You A Very Magickal Weekend!

Days Of The Week Comments 

Happy Saturday Everyone!

 

Saturday’s Correspondences

Saturday Is Ruled By Saturn

Ruled by the Roman God of the harvest and planting. New starts and firmly planting your seeds of intention or good focuses on Saturday.

 Other correspondences for Saturday are:

Saturn Rituals: Disciplining ourselves.

Element: Earth

Colour: Black and sometimes purple

Number: 3



Magickal Graphics

How to Choose A Good Magickal Name

How to Choose A Good Magickal Name

Author: Bronwen Forbes

There’s a standard joke in the Pagan community that, at a gathering, if the loudspeaker were to announce, “Will Raven, Morgan, and Rhiannon please come to registration?” half the attendees would show up, and that the Ravens at least would be split pretty evenly between males and females.

Like most good jokes, it has a lot of truth in it.

So rule number one of how *not* to choose a good magickal name is: pick one that’s already been used to death.

Rule number two of how not to choose a good magickal name: pick one that’s unpronounceable. I can’t even begin to tell you how many times people with magickal names like Aistiranpaistinfionncoinini have gotten really annoyed with me because I can’t pronounce their name. If you must*have a name longer than ten letters, do your friends, fellow coveners and community a favor and allow us to use a nickname. “Aistir” would work for my example. It means, “star” in Irish Gaelic.

Now that you know what not to do when picking a magickal name for yourself, what doyou do?

First, decide whether or not you really need one, or if your legal first name will work just fine. Back in the 1980s (when I first realized I was Pagan) , most of us had a special name we used in the community. Even though we were on the cusp of the 21st century, we still felt the need to hide our legal identity in order to protect our jobs and our children.

If you have a career, a potential career (if you’re still in school) , children that might be in danger because of where you live or who you’re divorcing, or a work situation that could be jeopardized if people outside the community knew you were Pagan, you might want a magickal name for public community use.

Also, many groups and traditions only use their magickal names when they’re in ritual – it’s another way to move them into ritual space, just like putting on robes and lighting the candles do. For these folks, the privilege of knowing and using their ritual name indicates that you are “family” to them. The rest of the Pagan community calls them Lynn or Bob, i.e. their legal names.

If you still decide you want a magickal name, it’s best to pick one that a) tells the Pagan world something about you, b) is a reflection of your path, or c) invokes something into you that you feel you lack. A really good magickal name will fill all three criteria.

Let me explain. When I joined my first coven, I was required (as were all members) to choose a name from Tolkien’s made-up Elvish language. I was a theater major at the time, and was intrigued by the comedy-tragedy masks that not only summed up the human condition, but also in the balance implied by the smiling face and the sorrowful face. After some reflection, I chose Nienor Lailaith, which, loosely translated, means “sorrow joy.”

I was called “Nienor” in the community for roughly my first year. It definitely told the Pagan world that theater was sacred to me, which was something I wanted everyone to know. The coven I was in used a lot of symbolism from Tolkien’s works, and when I met people and used my Elvish name, there was no question in their minds what coven I was in and what path I was on.

Finally, I was twenty-two years old. “Balance” was not in my vocabulary – but I knew it needed to be. I remember thinking that maybe a nice, balanced name like “sorrow joy” would help me learn how to better juggle my schoolwork, home life, and coven responsibilities. As magickal names go, Nienor Lailaith was a pretty good one.

So in case you’ve accidentally or deliberately misplaced your copy of The Silmarillion, how do you pick a good magickal name?

Here’s what I did when it was time to retire Nienor and find something else. I took a piece of paper and a pen and started writing down every word or name that I liked from my favorite books — fiction and non-fiction — my favorite movies, mythology – Greek, Roman, Celtic, Slavic, Norse, plus plant and tree identification books, baby name books (they’re not known for historical accuracy, but they do have some names you might not otherwise think of) , animals I particularly liked, zodiac correspondences, birds, history… every source I could think of until I had a list of about thirty names.

I then started to cross off the ones I liked the least until I had two left. One, not surprisingly, was Bronwen. I liked the sound. I liked the spelling – there are several ways to spell “Bronwen, ” more if you want it to look exotic. I played around with what little I know about numerology and discovered that Bronwen spelled with an “o” and an “e” (as opposed to, say, “Branwyn” or “Bronwinn”) was a one, a number that balanced my birth number very nicely. So, Bronwen it was.

(On a side note, I legally changed my first and middle names in 1994. “Bronwen” is now my middle name. You don’t have to go as far as legally changing your name. In fact, considering all the expense and annoyance of changing all one’s legal documents, including driver’s license, social security card, medical insurances cards, etc. I strongly recommend you have at least one major compelling reason to do so. It’s really a pain to do!)

Whatever you do, don’t use one of those Pagan name generators on the Internet. They’re a joke. They’re meant to be funny. They are not for real! You’d think everyone would know that, but I’ve run into about one too many “Lavender Mermaid of the Sand” who got her “special” name from one of those sites and took it seriously. In fact, I just now played with the Pagan name generator and got Ariadne Bard Dragonfly.

Hmm. I think I’ll stick with Bronwen, thanks. But if Ariadne Bard Dragonfly works for you, feel free to take it!

Responsible Witch

Responsible Witch

Author: Donna Caldwell aka Scarlette Winter Rose

What is a witch? Is it, as by common definition, a sorceress, a person bent on evil doings, who casts spells and worships the devil? Is it someone to fear and therefore ostracize, imprison and execute? My answer to these questions is both yes, and no.

Why am I qualified to answer these questions? Because I am a witch, and have been all of my life.

So let’s get those questions answered.

First, a witch is many things. She, or he, as men are witches too, may or may not be a sorceress. Some witches practice no spell craft, but choose only to focus on the worship of nature, and the Goddess and God, providers of all that we are blessed with on this earth.

There are those like myself, who practice sorcery, or magick. And you will find that among witches, those terms, along with numerous others, intertwine for many, while some insist that the term sorcery only applies to black magic. I do not agree, because to me there is no “black” or “white” magick. There is only magick, and it is the intent of the practitioner that determines the direction of the energy used.

When one decides to follow the path of the witch, they are making a commitment that holds many responsibilities, and will find that there is much to learn before any actual casting of spells should be approached.

To quote High Priestess Ly de Angeles, from her book “Witchcraft Theory and Practice”, “Once initiation has occurred, there is no turning back…you will quest all of your life; it is not a thing to do thoughtlessly.”

This is, in part, because our spiritual path, unlike others, states that we are immediately responsible for all of our actions and the results that follow. We cannot lay blame elsewhere for our harmful deeds, whether toward ourselves or to others.

Witches do not believe in the devil, so the idea of our worshipping one is meaningless. If we have acted in a baneful manner, we will not be judged after our body dies, before a single god, but will reap the sowing of our intent while in the present life, and sometimes beyond it, in accordance to the laws of the universe.

This is known among witches as the Threefold Law. It states that any one baneful act by a witch shall be returned upon them three times.

Some, myself included, do not hold strictly to the Threefold Law, but believe that negative use of witchcraft returns upon those liable however many times the universe deems necessary, in order to teach that which must be taught to the practitioner. Think of the old saying “What goes around comes around.”

So witches do have rules? Hell yes!

We abide by that which is known as the Wiccan Rede, a hefty list of guidelines. The most basic and important of these is “And it harm none, do what thou wilt.” Now, just what does that mean?

It means a lot.

We must take care with everything and everyone on this earth, be it the people, the animals, nature, and the planet itself. All is a gift from the Goddess. We must not lie, steal, cheat, or raise war, either with nations, or other people who would condemn us for our beliefs because they differ from their own.

We must work magick responsibly. This means we must prepare for ritual with great thought and patience, being precise, and making sure our efforts do not impose upon another’s will, as that would be baneful.

We must not use mind-altering drugs of any kind before or during ritual. To do so would be against the Rede, as we could bring harm to others and ourselves due to our lack of clear focus.

There are strict rules for summoning energies or “watchtowers”, as we in the Craft refer to them. They are called upon to join and assist in ritual, and must be dismissed at the ritual’s end, in a certain way. Failing to do this can, and most often does, result in negative occurrences long after the ritual is over and those in the circle have gone merrily on their way.

Being in a drugged state would leave those practicing within the ritual circle completely vulnerable to the energies and spirits that have been summoned. To perform spell work correctly, successfully and safely, one must have complete control over their faculties.

Now, how about our reputation?

It has taken hundreds of years for witches to partially recover from the labels placed upon us, and whether we like it or not, our chosen path is one which is looked at by others who still hold to the opinion that we are not following a true spiritual path, but one of pure evil. We must show them differently.

We must act responsibly, respectfully, and never fall into the trap of believing that we are “right” and others “wrong” in their differing beliefs.

We must not boast of powers, or play upon another’s fear of us, thus falling prey to the ego and thereby promoting our own demise, either through personal fault, or by those who would seek to destroy us.

As for that last question, I think I’ll let you, the reader, decide. You have heard from me, a practicing witch, concerning some or our basic beliefs and ways in which we live our lives.

So, what do you think? Should I be feared? Ostracized and imprisoned? Executed?

Some would still answer, “Yes.” My neighbor is one. She has stated on more than one occasion that anyone who practices witchcraft, or her idea of witchcraft, should, in fact, be burned at the stake, twenty – first century or not. With the giant wooden cross she has erected in her front yard, I guess she is preparing for her own ritual….

There will probably always be those who will hate us, out of ignorance and fear. Or perhaps just because we have the courage some of them lack, to follow our own path rather than go along with what is most acceptable in society for the sake of fitting in.

As for myself, I shall continue on the journey my Goddess has provided me, and I shall remain a responsible witch.

We Must Hide No Longer

We Must Hide No Longer

Author: Ryan Smith

Welcome to America, the self-proclaimed land of the free and home of the brave. The country where, at least in theory, one can practice any faith one wishes and can fully exercise as the Founding Fathers put it the “freedom of conscience.”

The First Amendment, which starts with “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, ” while plain on its face has had a lot of footnotes attached to it over the years by the Christian supermajority. Freedom of religion as long as your faith is Abrahamic in origin. Freedom from persecution as long as you kneel before the Cross. Freedom to worship openly and unhindered only if your faith is one that was thrust on your ancestors by foreign missionaries who claimed to have their best interests at heart.

As a member of what is America’s Invisible Minority, I am no stranger to what happens to Pagans when one is ‘outed’. While I have not been physically assaulted or fired because of my faith I do know what it is for people to go oddly silent when I offer a blessing. I know what it is to be mocked as “insane” and/or labeled a “devil-worshiper”. And of course, I have heard the ever-popular chastisement of, “You’re going to Hell.” I’m fairly sure that anyone whom is not Christian reading this knows what I’m talking about. I’m also fairly sure most people reading this, if they personally have not been the victims of it, at least know someone who lost their job shortly after being outed for “personality issues” or because “didn’t quite work out” or because “we no longer have need of your services.”

Then we have the worst examples: Brandi Blackbear, who was suspended from school for fifteen days in Oklahoma due to accusations of witchcraft (1) . In 1999 Tempest Smith of Michigan who, after school administrators washed their hands of the ongoing harassment by Christian students at her school, hung herself rather than deal with it any longer in 2001 (2) .

Palmdale, California, the state that is seen by many and prided as the most forward-thinking in the country, in 2002 had a local Christian group invade a Pagan store and harass, browbeat, intimidate, and threaten patrons who were honoring Ostara. The best part was when the Sheriff’s Department refused to investigate because, oh by the way, a volunteer department chaplain was at the attack and helped organize it (3) .

2004 in South Carolina saw local prosecutors state that a man accused of murder did so because he was Wiccan (4) . There is of course the infamous case of the Wiccan Nevada National Guardsman denied a pentacle on his headstone by the US government (5) .

In 2007 an Army Chaplain, in spite of his stellar record as a soldier and Chaplain, was not only denied his request to serve as a Wiccan Chaplain but also removed from the Chaplain’s Corps (6) . I’m sure there are plenty of other incidents like these that are as bad, possibly worse, that have not been mentioned here.

So what, you may be wondering, is the point of all this? The point is simple: we as a diverse group of Earth-based faith traditions are routinely disrespected and disregarded by American society as a whole.

Now I know a lot of Pagans are likely thinking to themselves, “Why should we care what a bunch of superficial ‘sheeple’ think? We’re free spirits who dance to the beat of our own drums and don’t care what other people say about us!” There is a very serious problem with that kind of thinking.

In the United States of America today there are about 300 million people (7) . Of that 300 million it is estimated only 1.3 million are Pagans of some kind or another (8) . As much as our independent spirit and willingness to question convention is probably our greatest strength it cannot be ignored that we are a tiny minority in an overwhelmingly Christian nation.

What would happen if, for example, the good people at Operation Rescue who had regularly targeted Dr. Tiller’s clinic in Kansas for protest (9) were very directly confronted in the national media and asked if their accusations of him being a mass-murderer (10) were responsible in some fashion for his cold-blooded assassination inside his own church? You would have wall-to-wall coverage of pundits, preachers, and politicians tearing their hair out and wailing about “persecution.”

Now what happens if, say, a Druid Grove is accused of human sacrifice? First off you probably wouldn’t see any media attention given to such a story unless someone decides to go and actually do something about “those dangerous cultists.” You would probably also see outrage and condemnation on the web on Pagan blogs. And just like many other instances of persecution after we as a whole vow “Never Again” and some group or foundation takes up the incident as their championed cause, it sinks back into the morass of apathy.

Why does this happen? Are we not devoted enough to our own dignity? The answer is rather more elementary than Pagans being undeserving or incapable of organizing or any of the other excuses bandied about.

With only a small handful of real victories against our persecutors and attackers, any move to do something about it is already seen by many as doomed to fail. Too many Pagans give our independent nature and notorious difficulty in being organized in any meaningful fashion as cop-outs to really having an impact on society and improving our standing in it. It is, sadly, understandable why many would do so.

Who wants to exhaust their time, money, and energy fighting for a cause pre-determined in the minds of their colleagues as lost? Everyone wants to be the hero riding over the hill; no one wants to be the person who makes the glorious last stand for a greater moral victory. Far better, it would be argued, to think small.

Better to gain a seat on an Interfaith Council or use of a Unitarian Church than to run for public office. Better to make small, easy victories than to organize, mobilize, and take the fight to where it matters most: the public square. Better to cede the debate to people who do not understand us and in many cases are actively hostile to us.

To take such an approach is to sacrifice the future of our faith, of our community, and of the next generation of Pagans for the sake of questionable comfort and unsteady safety in the immediate present. As Ben Franklin once said, “He who would give up a little liberty for a little security will gain neither and lose both.”

We cannot continue to “wait and see” or “let our moment come” or “try not to upset people.” We upset a sizable fraction of the population simply by breathing; staying quiet and walking small will not change that. I see no reason why we, a community that wears our free spirits as a badge of honor and believe in the importance of personal responsibility, should be afraid of standing up for what we believe. Every other group striving for rights and dignity in American history has been told the same thing when they began their push.

If all the other groups had listened then we probably would still have slavery in the South, women as property of their husbands, and only those with land of their own having the right to vote. Discretion is said to be the better part of valor, but when discretion is forced by circumstance then it is no longer a guardrail against madness but a straightjacket for the soul.

So long as we allow inaction we will remain the Invisible Minority. So long as we act in reaction to fear Pagans will continue to be harassed, attacked, fired, and forgotten. The promise of the Declaration of Independence of, “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” will remain unfulfilled for all of us. The effort will be long. It will be hard. Only a fool would promise that it would be easy. But America now is no longer the America where the Religious Right stood unchallenged in their agenda by the masses.

The time is now. We stand at a vital crossroads in history. With the power of the social conservatives, at least for now, broken and our numbers on the rise we must seize the moment and begin the long journey to respect and acceptance. In so doing we must remember, for all who join us in the cause, that we do not just do so for ourselves. We fight for each other, our fellow Kin regardless of Tradition.

Most importantly, we are fighting for the future. The future of our Traditions. The future of our community as a whole and the health, vitality, and success of our local communities in particular. Most vitally we are struggling for the next generation. We must take up the cause to demand respect and dignity and work long and hard now so that when the next generation comes of age they will not know the fear, uncertainty, loneliness, and hardship that many of us have been forced to live with.

We begin today so tomorrow we may openly stand on the mountaintops and in the public square with each other, our children, and our fellow Americans and have no fear anywhere in this nation, from Seattle to Atlanta, from San Francisco to San Antonio, from New York to New Orleans there will be no place where we must hide the truth of who we are for the sake of survival or propriety.

We must take up the cause of liberation. We can no longer let fear instilled by our attackers to keep us shoved into the shadows. We must stand up and get involved in our local communities. We need to actively participate in local, state, and federal politics whether or not it is directly Pagan related or not. To give us a voice in public offices, we need to cultivate, assist and support people to run for these offices including those within the existing two major parties.

We must aggressively dispel the lies perpetrated by our foes by coming out to the public where it is safe to do so as a Pagan, as a Druid, as a Witch, as a Heathen so they know we are not some mysterious dark cult but real people they know. We must do this for what are our natural rights as human beings of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness on our terms according to what we believe not what others say we must believe.

We have no time to wait, no time to allow our moment to come. Our time is here.

Every act we take, great or small, alone or in a group, which is one made for the good of our greater community is one worth doing. Every act no matter its impact is one more step on the road to victory.

We cannot wait for heroes to come riding down from on high to our rescue. We must answer the call and rise to the challenge that we all face.


Footnotes:
1. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1568/is_9_32/ai_70461580/
2. http://community-2.webtv.net/FullMoonCircle/TempestSmith/
3. Rich Breault, “Wiccagate: What do Witches Grove protesters have to hide?, ” Valley Press, 2002-APR-8.
4. http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S=2347141 and nav=0RaPRIlo
5. http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2007/feb/08/news/chi-0702080027feb08
6. http://www.northcountrygazette.org/articles/2007/032907WitchTrials.html
7. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/US.html
8. http://religions.pewforum.org/pdf/affiliations-all-traditions.pdf
9. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/abortviolence/stories/tiller3.htm
10. http://www.christiannewswire.com/news/8967610531.html

Religion: From A Witch’s Perspective

Religion: From A Witch’s Perspective

Author: Crick

Have you ever wondered why humans are so scared to face life and the spiritual lessons that are in waiting for each of us? I ask this because since the dawning of humankind we have created religions. Religion in all reality is a subterfuge and a distraction from the individual pursuit of spirituality.

A state of spirituality is a journey of the individual. It does not require the presence of the many such as is found within a religion. This applies whether a religion is one of the so-called organized religions, pagan, or one of the myriad other religions created by humans.

A religion comes into existence by the hand of a human, generally a man or group of men. A concept of Deity and the mysteries of life are created and then transformed into a specific dogma or set of beliefs. The only problem with this approach is that it is predicated upon the narrow precepts of one or even a few select humans.

This is fine, if such beliefs were confined to the originators of such beliefs. For each individual is entitled to the beliefs that define their personal existence in regards to Deity and the mysteries that comprise this existence of life.

But when such personal opinions are then extended to the masses, the concept of individualism becomes mired in the tentacles of censorship that goes by the label of dogma. When this occurs, the concept of individuality is lost.

Another concern with such an approach is that those opinions that form the basis for religions are based upon select human perspectives and are not the direct offering of Deity. Of course there will be those humans who will insist that their perception of Deity was the driving force that has inspired the particular religion that they themselves subscribe to.

However with literally thousands of divergent concepts of deity that has been proffered since the beginning of humankind, who is actually right and just as importantly, who is wrong? Is there such delineation when it comes to spirituality and/or religion? Does one person have to be right in order for all others to be wrong?

As individuals, each seeking their own definition and thus understanding of deity, this self-imposed quandary goes away. For as individuals, the belief in deity and the search for a comprehensive understanding of the mysteries of life become a personal pursuit and as such, do not require the approval of any other human being on earth.

Paganism was at one time a path that actually encouraged individual seeking and thus a personal sense of understanding. And in many ways it still is to this very day. However the specter of religion and the pressure of peer acceptance as defined by the few have stretched its tentacles into paganism as well. This modern attempt at conversion is commonly referred to as neo paganism. In essence, there is an attempt by some of these modern converts to turn paganism, which once defined individual spirituality, into a religion which follows the same parameters as the so called organized religions.

Why is this being attempted when it is blatantly obvious that organized religions and paganism are diametrically opposed in their approach to the concepts of deity and the mysteries of life?

The most obvious reason for this forced perception of dogma is the entrance of the many who formerly subscribed to an established religious pattern of acceptance in regards to their spiritual journey. However there may be a deeper reason for such an imposition of foreign values when discussing the parameters of paganism.

For instance why does humankind even need the anonymity of a concept known as religion where one can comfortably become a faceless member of a pre-conceived set of beliefs (dogma) ? And as already noted, said set of beliefs, which in every man-made religion on earth is defined by a select few.

Could it be because there is a segment of society who is apathetic about their spiritual beliefs? Could such folks be personally insecure of what they may encounter if they were to actually seek out their own answers to spirituality? Does this observation offend you?

If so, perhaps there is a gem of truth here that you may want to explore within your Inner self. When a select person or group of persons places the concept of deity and the mysteries of life into an imposition such as religious dogma, there is in effect a barricade to any real spiritual growth. The individual loses the gift of self-identity because they are pressured into a specific set of beliefs (dogma) , which limits any further exploration of the many possibilities that are inherent in un-fettered spirituality.

Many man-made religions have mechanisms in place that are designed to ensure that their members do not stray outside of the accepted parameters of belief has dictated by the few. Where is the freedom of the individual in such a setting? And where within the tenets of paganism do such man-made impositions apply?

These same man-made religions also have mechanisms in place to cast out those who dare to seek out the truths of life as they apply to their personal seeking and yet are outside of the accepted dogma of the particular religion that one is subscribing to.

In my personal opinion such an approach has absolutely nothing to do with any real concept of paganism. And so the push to “convert” paganism into the parameters of organized religion is somewhat troubling and may border on hypocrisy.

There is a common saying that “trying to get pagans to come together is like herding cats”. I personally hope that such an analogy retains some iota of truth as paganism wends its way into the consciousness of modern practitioners. Once those who follow the path of paganism lose the inherent right to live as individuals and once members of paganism lose the drive to seek out Inner truths, which are not restrained by the masses that blindly follow the lead of the few, then it is no longer a true spiritual path. Rather it becomes nothing more than an extension of the mind numbing control of religion.

And those who describe themselves as pagans, in all reality become nothing more than faceless minions of yet another man-made religion.