WICCA

INTRODUCTION:

Wicca has become very popular recently, especially with the younger generation. I am Wiccan, and I never judge anyone’s beliefs, nor do I advise anyone on what they should or should not believe in, but certain rules have to be known before jumping on the broomstick.

Wiccan is for me, but it may not be for you. I decided this article’s main purpose must be to direct the importance in deciding to follow the path of a magickal sort with caution. You can not just wake up one morning and decide to be Wicca. There is much to know, to study, to respect, and much to be concerned with. Education is the key. Study and read all you possibly can, then make a decision.

Wicca is not a fad, a statement, or an attitude. It is a way of life, and the way of the Witch is not for everyone.

Phil DevinThoth

13 Goals of A Witch

1. Know yourself.

2. Know your Craft.

3. Learn.

4. Apply knowledge with wisdom.

5. Achieve balance.

6. Keep your words in good order.

7. Keep your thoughts in good order.

8. Celebrate life.

9. Attune with the cycles of the Earth.

10. Breathe and eat correctly.

11. Exercise the body.

12. Meditate.

13. Honor the Goddess and God.

Rule of Three

Ever mind the Rule of Three
Three times what thou givest returns to thee
This lesson well, thou must learn
Thee only gets what thou dost earn!

The Law

We are of the Old Ways, among those who walk with the Goddess and God and receive Their love.

Keep the Sabbats and Esbats to the best of your abilities, for to do otherwise is to lessen your connection with the Goddess and God.

Harm none. This, the oldest law, is not open to interpretation or change.

Shed not blood in ritual; the Goddess and God need not blood to be duly worshipped.

Those of our ways are kind to all creatures, for hurtful thoughts are quiet draining and aren't worth the loss of energy.

Misery is self-created; so, too, is joy, so create joy and disdain misery and unhappiness. And this is within your power. So harm not.

Teach only what you know, to the best of your ability, to those students who you choose, but teach not to those who would use your instructions for destruction or control. Also, teach not to boost pride, forever remember: She who teaches out of love shall be enfolded in the arms of the Goddess and God.

Ever remember that if you would be of our way, keep the law close to your heart, for it is the nature of the Wicca to keep the Law.

If ever the need arises, any law may be changed or discarded, and new laws written to replace them, so long as the new laws don't break the oldest law of all: Harm None.

THE WICCAN REDE

Bide ye the Wiccan Laws we must
In Perfect love, In Perfect trust,
Ye must live and let live
Fairly take and fairly give,
Cast the circle thrice about
To keep unwelcome Spirits out,
To bind the spell well every time
Let the spell be spoke in rhyme,
Soft of eye and light of touch
Speak ye little, listen much.
Deosil go by waxing moon
Chanting out the Wiccan runes,
Widdershins go by Waning Moon
Chanting out the baneful tune,
When the Lady's moon is new
Kiss the hand of her times two,
When the moon rides at her peak
Then the hearts desire seek,
Heed the North wind’s mighty gale
Lock the door and trim the sail,
When the wind comes from the South
Love will kiss you on the mouth,
When the moor winds blow from the West
Departed Spirits have no rest,
When the wind blows from the East
Expect the new and set the feast,
Nine woods in the cauldron go
Burn them quick then burn them slow,
Elder be the Lady's tree
Burn it not – or cursed ye’ll be,
When the wheel begins to turn
Let the Beltane fires burn,
When the wheel has turned to Yule
Light the log, the horned one rules,
Heed ye flower, bush and tree
By the Lady Blessed Be,
Where the rippling waters go
Cast a stone the truth to know,
When ye have and hold a need
Hearken not to others greed,
With a fool, no season spend
Or be counted as his friend,
Merry Meet and Merry Part

Bright the cheeks and warm the heart,
Mind the Threefold Law ye should
Three times bad and Three times good,
When misfortune thee endow
Wear the blue star on thy brow,
True to love ye must ever be
Lest thy love be false to thee,
These words the Wiccan Rede fulfill
An harm ye none, do what ye will.

Is Wicca right for you?

Most people already know if Wicca is right for them, however it's not always as easy as that so here as some question you might want to ask yourself...

1. Do you think you could incorporate Wicca into your life?
2. Do you understand at least the basics about Wicca?
3. Have you got a chosen pantheon or group of Gods, Goddesses or would you choose the titles rather than names?
4. How do you feel about love AND hate? Are both feelings valid?
5. Have you chosen your Wiccan tradition?
6. Finally do you feel comfortable with nearly all of the wiccan ideals?

You should be able to answer these questions with a positive answer to be sure this path is right for you...
If not, don't give up, keep studying Wicca and start looking at other paths. The rest of the information on this site will hopefully help you. Blessed be!

The Broom Closet:

There are a lot of Wiccans in the broom closet which is a term used to define a wiccan who has not yet revealed that they follow Wicca.
Personally I am half in and half out, if that makes any sense. I have disclosed my wiccan path to some friends and luckily I go to a school that is very multi-cultural and most of the people there are not backward in their views, however I don't go around telling everyone because obviously there will be people who disapprove etc. But I have not shared this information fully with my family. They already know I'm into the alternative paths of life, a more spiritual way of life but if I told them I'm a wiccan/witch they would probably get a bit worried until I explained it fully to them. Anyway the main point is you must be careful in who you tell. You have to consider your situation carefully. Maybe pop a few opinions and questions about what they think about pagans and so forth in a conversation. sometimes though it is nicer not to fully disclose it. Its like your keeping it more special, more secret. When it comes to buying all those Wiccan tools and lots of herbs, candles etc your family may be wondering why on earth your getting so many but you may to start showing a more alternative way of living your life style. When it comes to practicing rituals if you don't have nosy parents etc you should be ok with just practicing in your room however the more nosy your parents are the harder it will be.
Maybe you could cut down on ritual tools, buy smaller candles, conserve your incense and adapt your rituals to fit your situations. when it comes to going out in nature and just watching as the world changes and maybe you want to practice a ritual why not just go to a park and soak in the peaceful atmosphere while maybe quietly saying a chant or prayer or even just saying it in your head, remember the God and Goddess will always hear you.
I hope this has helped for any of you who are having trouble with your Wiccan lifestyle. Good luck and blessed be.

The Story about Wicca

Wicca, an alternative name for modern witchcraft is a positive, shamanistic nature religion with two main deities honored and worshipped in Wiccan rites. The Goddess (the female aspect and a deity related to the ancient Mother Goddess in her triple aspects of Maiden, Mother and Crone) and her consort, the Horned God (the male aspect). Their names vary from one Wiccan tradition to the next and some traditions use different deity names in both their higher and lower degrees.

Wicca often includes the practice of various forms of white magick (usually for healing purposes or as a counter to negativity), as well as rites to attune oneself with the natural rhythm of life forces marked by the phases of the moon and the four seasons.

Wicca (which is also known as the "Craft of the Wise" or often just "The Craft") is considered by many to be both a monistic and pantheistic religion and is part of the modern Pagan resurgence or neo-Pagan movement, as many prefer to call it.

Today, most people who define themselves as Pagans use the word as a general term for native and natural religions, usually polytheistic and their members. In simple terms, it is a positive, nature-based religion, preaching brotherly love and harmony with and respect for all life forms. It is very similar to Native American spirituality. Its origins are found in the early human development of religion. Animistic deities gradually becoming redefined to become a main God or Goddess of all Nature. This God or Goddess (bearing different names at different times and in different places) can be found in nearly all of the world's historic religious systems. Paganism does not oppose nor deny other religions. It is simply a pre-Christian faith.

The Wiccan religion is made up of various sects or "Traditions" such as Gardenerian, Alexandrian, Dianic, Tanic, Georgian, Ethnic Traditionalist and so on. Many of the traditions were formed and introduced in the 1960s and although their rituals, customs, myth cycles and symbolism's may be different from one another, they all hold common principles of Craft law.

The main tenet of Wicca Craft is the Wiccan Rede, a simple and benevolent moral code that is as follows...

AN IT HARM NONE, DO WHAT THOU WILT.

In other words, be free to do your own thing. Provided that you in no way bring harm upon anyone, including yourself. (The Wiccan Rede is extremely important to bear in mind before performing any magickal spells or rituals, especially those which may be considered unethical or of a manipulative nature.) The Threefold Law (or Law of Three) is a karmic law of triple retribution which applies whenever you do something good or bad. For instance, if you use white magick (or positive energy) to do something good for somebody else, three times the good will come back to you in your lifetime. By the same token, if you use black magick (or negative energy) to bring harm unto others, the bad or "evil" will also return to you threefold in the same lifetime.

The followers of the Wiccan religion are called Wiccan or Witches. The word "Witch" applies to both male and female practitioners of the Craft. Male Witches or Wiccans are seldom, if ever, called warlocks. The word "Warlock" which is considered an insult in most Wiccan circles stems from the Old English word "Waerloga," meaning an "Oath-breaker" and was used derogatorily by the Christian Church as a name for a male witch.

Although Witches are proud to be a part of the Craft, there are some who object strongly to the use of the term "Witch," feeling that the word stirs up too many bizarre images and misconceptions in the minds of those who are unfamiliar with the Craft and perhaps a bit reluctant to accept that which they do not clearly understand.

As Wicca Craft is a Nature-oriented religion, most of it's members are involved in one way or another with the ecology movement and current environmental issues.

Wiccans do not accept the arbitrary concept of innate sin or absolute evil and they do not believe in a Heaven or Hell, other than those which are one's own creations.

Wiccans do not practice any form of black magic or "evil," nor worship devils, demons, or any evil entities and do not make attempts to convert members of other faiths to the Pagan way. Wiccans respect all other positive religions and feel that a person must hear the "Call of the Goddess" and truly desire within her or his own heart, without any outside proselytisation to follow the Wiccan path.

Many Wiccans take on one or more secret names (also know as "Eke-names") to signify their spiritual rebirth and new life within the Wicca Craft. Eke-names are most sacred and are used only among sisters and brothers of the same path. When a Witch takes on a new name, she or he must be extremely careful to choose one that harmonizes in one way or another with numerical name-numbers, birth-numbers, or runic numbers. A well-chosen name vibrates with that individual and directly links her or him to the Craft.

Many Wiccans work together in small groups which are called covens. The coven (which can consist of up to 13 people) is led by a High Priestess and/or High Priest and gathers together to worship the Goddess, work magick and perform ceremonies at Sabbats and Esbats. The members of a coven are known as "Coveners" and the place where a coven meets is called the "Covenstead."

Wiccans who work on their own, either by personal choice or by circumstance are called "Solitary" Witches.

Wiccans celebrate 8 Sabbats each year, making transitions in the seasons. There are 4 major (or grand) Sabbats and 4 minor (or lesser) ones. The major Sabbats are Candlemas, Beltane, Lammas and Samhain. The minor Sabbats are Spring Equinox, Summer Solstice, Autumn Equinox and Winter Solstice.

The Esbat is a monthly coven meeting held at least 13 times a year during each Full Moon. At the Esbat, Wiccans exchange ideas, discuss problems, perform special rites, work magick and healing and give thanks to the Goddess and the Horned God. A traditional "Cakes and Wine" or "Cakes and Ale" ceremony also takes place at the Esbat. During this ceremony, consecrated food and refreshments are served and coveners take time to relax and discuss important magickal subjects. The "Cakes and Wine" or "Cakes and Ale" ceremony is a traditional custom whenever a Wiccan ritual takes place and the circle is cast.

In a coven, the Goddess is represented by the High Priestess and the Horned God by the High Priest.

The Goddess is known by many different names. She is often called Diana, Cerridwen, Freya, Isis, Ishtar, The Lady or any other name that a coven chooses to use or that a Wiccan feels responds to his or her own mythical vision.

The Goddess is the female principle. She represents fertility, creation, the regenerative powers of nature and wisdom. The moon is her symbol and in works of art, she is often depicted as having three faces, each representing a different lunar phase. In her New Moon phase she is the Maiden; in her Full Moon phase she is the Mother; and in her Waning Moon phase she is the Crone.

The Horned God is a phallic deity of fertility and intellectual creativity who symbolizes the powers of the waxing and waning crescent moons. He is usually represented by a hirsute and bearded man having the hooves and horns of a goat. He is a God of Nature and the male counterpart to the image of the Goddess. In primitive times, He was worshipped as the Horned God of Hunting.

Like the Goddess, the Horned God is also known by many different names. In some Wiccan traditions, He is called Cernunnos, which is Latin for "the Horned One." In others, He is known as Pan, Woden and other names.

The worship of the Goddess and the Horned God symbolize the Wiccan belief that everything that exists in the universe is divided into opposites: female and male, negative and positive, light and darkness, life and death, yin and yang, the balance of Nature.

Principles of Belief

The Council of American Witches finds it necessary to define modern Witchcraft in terms of the American experience and needs. We are not bound by traditions from other times and other cultures and owe no allegiance to any person or power greater than the divinity manifest through our own being. As American Witches, we welcome and respect all life-affirming teachings and traditions and seek to learn from all and to share our learning within our Council.

It is in this spirit of welcome and cooperation that we adopt these few principles of Wiccan belief. In seeking to be inclusive, we do not wish to open ourselves to the destruction of our group by those on self-serving power trips or to philosophies and practices contradictory to these principles. In seeking to exclude those whose ways are contradictory to ours, we do not want to deny participation with us to any who are sincerely interested in our knowledge and beliefs, regardless of race, colour, sex, age, national or cultural origins or sexual preference.

We therefore ask only that those who seek to identify with us accept the few following basic principles...

We practice rites to attune ourselves with the natural rhythm of life forces marked by the phases of the Moon, the seasonal quarters and cross-quarters.

We recognize that our intelligence gives us unique responsibility toward our environment. We seek to live in harmony with Nature, in ecological balance offering fulfillment to life and consciousness within an evolutionary concept.

We acknowledge a depth of power far greater than is apparent to the average person. Because it is far greater than ordinary, it is sometimes called "Supernatural," but we see it as lying within that which is naturally potential to all.

We conceive of the Creative Power in the universe as manifesting through polarity as masculine and feminine and that this same creative power lives in all people and functions through the interaction of the masculine & feminine. We value neither above the other, knowing each to be supportive of the other. We value sexuality as pleasure, as the symbol and embodiment of Life and as one of the sources of energies used in magickal practices and religious worship.

We recognize both outer worlds & inner or psychological worlds sometimes known as the Spiritual World, the Collective Unconscious and Inner Planes etc. We see in the interaction of these two dimensions the basis for paranormal phenomena and magickal exercises. We neglect neither dimension for the other, seeing both as necessary for our fulfillment.

We do not recognize any authoritarian hierarchy, but do honour those who teach, respect those who share their greater knowledge and wisdom and acknowledge those who have courageously given of themselves in leadership.

We see religion, magick and wisdom in living as being united in the way one views the world and lives within it, a world view and philosophy of life which we identify as Witchcraft or the Wiccan Way.

Calling oneself "Witch" does not make a witch but neither does heredity itself or the collecting of titles, degrees and initiations. A Witch seeks to control the forces within themselves that makes life possible in order to live wisely and well, without harm to others and in harmony with Nature.

We acknowledge that it is the affirmation and fulfillment of life, in a continuation of evolution and development of consciousness that gives meaning to the universe we know and our personal role within it.

Our only animosity toward Christianity or toward any other religion or philosophy of life is to the extent that its institutions have claimed to be "The one true, right and only way," in so doing have sought to deny freedom to others and to suppress other ways of religious practices and belief.

As American Witches we are not threatened by debates on the history of the Craft, the origins of various terms or the legitimacy of various aspects of different traditions. We are concerned with our present and our future.

We do not accept the concept of "Absolute evil" nor do we worship any entity known as "Satan" or "The Devil" as defined by Christian Tradition. We do not seek power through the suffering of others nor do we accept the concept that personal benefits can only be derived by denial to another.

We work within Nature for that which is contributory to our health and well-being.

Tips For Beginners:

The following tips are for beginners new to their path (no matter what path they choose).

1. Read, read, an read some more!! Find as much information as you can. Study daily. Use books, internet, courses etc.

2. Don’t take everything you read as being fact. Do some research. Compare and contrast what other sources of information say. Even the most experienced people get their facts wrong. And just because its published and popular dose not mean its right!


3. Check your sources! There is a lot of false information out there. Does the author really know what their talking about? Check out their experience and background. Could they be bias? Check reviews from other people. Try to get books which have been recommended by accredited sources.

4. Combine experience with your studies.


5. Be patient but be persistent. A lot of things on your new path will be hard!

6. ASK QUESTIONS! Ask as many as you can. Never be afraid to ask – there is no such thing as a stupid question.


7. If you want you could try out free courses and ask questions on the forums, or meet with other magickal people in a chat room.

8. Keep an open mind and remember not everyone will share your opinions.


9. If your on a budget use the internet or library for free information. Alternatively you could buy second hand books from places like eBay.

10. Be yourself and BELIEVE ONLY WHAT YOU BELIEVE not what anyone else tells you to believe.


11. Recognize your gut feelings.

12. Think before you tell others about your new path. How will they react?


13. Remember that you do not have to give up all your previous beliefs to study or even practice elements of your new path.

14. DON’T JUMP INTO PRACTING something that you don’t understand at all.


15. Don’t go calling yourself a Witch, Wiccan, Shaman etc after picking up your first book. It takes a lot of time and a lot of hard work and experience before you can really call yourself that.

16. Find out if there are any misconceptions. Is it really all about spells? Do they really hurt people?


17. Be weary that not everyone who calls themselves a Witch, Wiccan, Shaman etc may not actually be really who they say they are. There are a lot of frauds and misguided people out there.

18. Keep away from all those nice looking spells and spell books and stick to the important stuff for a while first (unless you are in dire need and even then it might be best to ask someone else about this first).


19. Get yourself out there and in touch with nature. Study outside. Take walks.

20. Carry a pencil when you read and highlight bits you think are important.


21. Keep a journal where you can write down your thoughts and ideas. Reflect back on these.

22. Remember that by publicly calling yourself a Shaman, Witch, Wiccan etc people who have never met one before may see you as representing what all magickal people are like. Act responsibly.


23. Ask yourself why do you really want to follow this path?

24. Recognize that not everyone you know may be ok with you taking on this new path. This may include even your own family.


25. Look out for people of the same or similar path in your own area. Maybe they can help you? Maybe there are teachers? Internet directories will often help get people connected. However be very careful and use your discretion, people don’t always turn out who they say they are or have the best intentions.

26. Be careful for scams! There are no instant or easy solutions towards becoming a Wiccan, witch, Shaman etc. No one book or course will achieve that or completely improve your life. Only you can achieve that!

27. Remember that there is no one right way of believing or doing things.


28. Don’t be forced into anything you really are not content with.

29. Be careful about considering joining any magickal groups. Always do your research first. Be even more careful about groups who might make inappropriate requests from you. But do recognize that some of these groups may do things which may come across as ‘strange’ to you but there may be logical reasons behind it. As with anything if your not sure about something then ask!


30. Don’t try to drag or coerce your friends or others into following your path too. They must choose this by their own free will and its not a fashion!

31. Contemplate about what you’re studying. Don’t just take it in, think about it too. What does it mean to you? Do you believe it? Can you adapt this into something better?


32. Don’t worry if you do not believe everything in the books and courses. This dose not mean that you cannot be a Shaman, Witch Druid, Wiccan or whatever other path you wish to follow.