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I found
the following information at a very very good web site. I
believe in sharing knowledge so I have put it here with full credit.
 Witches
Moon 
Home of
Hand Made Books of Shadows, Grimoires & Ritual items
What
is Witchcraft?
Some of the info
below is provided by the book Witchcraft a secret history by
Michael Streeter and is not necessarily the opinion of Witches Moon.
We wanted to share the info we have found as a means to show that
Witches are not Evil.
What is Witchcraft? it is one of the
fastest growing religions in the world today. More & more people are
drawn to the craft everyday, the sad thing is some will not
stay with it once they find out that it is not all Sabrina &
charmed. The word Witch has been loaded down with so many negative
meanings throughout history. Lets start by looking at some
alternative meanings of Witchcraft.
Folk
Magic, or simply put, sorcery, the use of magick in casting spells,
healing, telling the future or influencing the weather. Witchcraft
has existed in every culture in some form since time began. In some
societies they are known as Cunning Women & Men or Wise Men & Women,
Elders & so on. They still exist today and for them Witchcraft is
just that, a craft, a use of Magic for specific ends. Magic can be
defined as using one's will to shape or change consciousness &
reality.
Witchcraft is a religion with a capital W. a mystery religion which
does not believe in one ultimate deity, but puts special emphasis on
the female aspect of that deity in the form of the Goddess & it
reveres the Gods from old pagan religions. Witchcraft uses magic,
which witches believe is part of the natural world around them & not
something supernatural. A Modern Witch rejects the suggestion of
satanic associations on the understandable grounds that Satan & the
Devil are Christian concepts & witches worship neither the Christian
God or it's Devil. To many so much negative has been associated with
the word witch that some prefer to be called Wicca or Wiccan & not
witch. I am proud to be a witch and frankly think it is time to take
back the word witch. It is part of who I am, I am not asking anyone
to like it, just accept it as part of me & my individuality. I am
just like you, in fact you never know how many Witches there are
around you, If you were to sit in your local Barnes & Noble & watch
the New age section you would be surprised to see how many, doctors,
lawyers, mothers, grandmothers & teenagers are buying these books
and learning the craft.
Pan: Our God, the Devil in Christianity:
Pan, God of the Witches, Horned Hunter of the night... He is
a Greek God and the son of Hermes. He is half man and half goat like
beast. He is an important god symbolizing nature, lust, playfulness
& all things pastoral. His importance in witchcraft is that he is
now identified in modern witchcraft as a version of the Horned God.
He is seen as a consort to the Goddess & his annual birth at
Yuletide & his symbolic death at the end of each summer mark the
passing of the seasons, the cycle of birth, death & rebirth. Another
important point is the physical features of pan, the goat like
appearance was later attributed in the Christian world to the Devil.
Certainly Christians have had problems with the idea of Pan, who
reveled in pleasures that some Christian traditions have considered
sinful. pan is regarded by some witches as the antithesis of the
moralizing & rule driven Christian church. We would like to let all
know the significance of Pan and that he is not the devil. I know
this is so redundant but we do not believe in a devil being. We do
respect Christianity and those who worship it's faith.
The New Beginning:
When the religion of Wicca emerged in Britain in the early
1950's it's early adherents maintained that it was in fact a direct,
surviving descendant of ancient fertility cult which had worshipped
a Goddess & Horned God & that this tradition had lasted through the
dark days of the Burning Times & had been preserved in one or two
covens in England. This view went perfectly with the published
opinions of Charles Leland & Margaret Murry. This concept of a
surviving tradition of a pagan witchcraft religion has since been
widely challenged, to the point where few practicing witches
subscribe to it. But, initially, at any rate, this dramatic
reemergence of the " Old Religion" struck a chord with many who
believed- or wanted to believe- the wonderfully romantic history
provided by Leland & Murry.
Gerald Gardner may appear on the surface to be an unlikely
person to be credited with the development or creation of such a
religion. he was born in 1884. he had a successful career in the
customs service for Malaya & collected objects & antiquities. He was
also interested in spirit matters, occult, religion & magick. He
was a very widely read intellectual man who was deeply interested in
humanity & his place in the universe. He new folklore, history &
magic. These were the qualifications that were to stand him in good
stead when it came to the development of the Wicca Religion.
Gardner was married but had no children. He moved to the
country side or rural Idyll, he later claimed the events that
occurred there were to have a profound effect, not just on him but
on the future of modern witchcraft. his life was rather
unexceptional until he came across the New Forest Coven. Of all the
controversies surrounding the origins of Wicca, one of the most
crucial hinges on the existence or otherwise, of a coven of Witches
in the New Forest area. Gardner was later to claim the he discovered
the existence of the old witch religion when he was initiated into
such a coven in 1939.
Modern historians are still unsure whether such a coven ever
did exist & if it did who started it & why. Further more, there are
some historians that believe even today Witches are very secretive
with others & covens would especially take great offense & upset if
a person they trusted with their secrets told them to others & so
on. There is no proof the coven did or did not exist. Gardner
claimed he was initiated into the coven by an old woman named old
Dorothy Clutterbuck. According to Doreen Valiente, an initiate of
Gardner's, the lady did exist & lived in a large home in
Christechurch. It remains to be seen however if she ever was a witch
or had any sort of magickal ties. Although she was a real person,
nothing in her life, including her own diaries ever spoke of or
proved she was a witch or had anything to do with the occult. But,
if the real Mrs. Clutterbuck was not a witch, why then would Gardner
have pointed to her as the source of his initiation? One suggestion
is that he was simply having a joke at the expense of the very kind
of conventional woman who would have hated the idea of being linked
to witchcraft & that he waited for her to die first. She died in
1951 the year Gardner started to publicize his "discoveries" of the
Old Religion.
Another suggestion is that Gardner was covering up for a
woman with whom he really did practice witchcraft. This was a music
teacher whom he knew by the name of "Dafo" who did have a house in
the New Forest area & was also a member of the Rosicrucian Theatre.
There is evidence this woman did practice the craft with him at some
time in the 1940's & early 1950's though this in itself does not
prove she was a priestess of any coven. One of the interesting
stories he told later was in 1940 when Britain felt under the Nazi
invasion. According to Gardner, Old Dorothy convened a meeting of
different covens from around the country who all met in the New
Forest. this group cast a great circle & raised a Witches Cone of
Power directed at Hitler & his troops, which said, "do not come
here" A number of these witches, who were quite elderly, supposedly
died a few days later from their exertions. There was, incidentally,
a tradition that a similar cone of power had been raised by English
Witches against the invasion force of the Spanish Armada in 1588,
which was ultimately defeated with the help of freak weather
conditions.
In the 1940's Gardner was collating material that was
eventually to make up his collection of rituals & beliefs which
would stand at the heart of the new witchcraft religion. This book
was to become known as the book of shadows. In 1954 with the
publishing of his book Witchcraft Today in which he announced to the
world that the religion of witchcraft was alive & had survived from
ancient times & that he called it Wicca..
I personally believe that Witchcraft is old , as old as time
& never really went away, just put away. It is the craft of the
wise, past down through the ages in secrecy, verbally or in writing,
from mother to daughter & so on to those who would have it until the
age of the modern author & publisher who has made the old ways able
to be learned in ways never thought possible before to anyone who
would be of the Old Religion.
Wicca,
Wica or Wice??
The Word
Wicca was used by Gerald Gardner for the witchcraft religion he
developed, though he initially spelled it with a single "c"- "wica"
"Wicca meant a male witch in Old English, "Wicce meant a female one.
The origin of the word Wicca is not entirely clear. the popular
suggestion that it comes from the Old English word "Witan" meaning
"to know" & thus related to wisdom, seems to be false. Another
suggested origin is in the Old English word " wican meaning "to
bend". Wicca was formally pronounced "witch-ah" but is now
pronounced with a hard c as in "wick-ah"
In regards to Gerald Gardner's creation or discovery of
Wicca.... what was his true role? The evidence certainly indicates
that this retired colonial administrator from England did not "
discover" a witchcraft religion that had been under ground for
hundreds of years. It is an attractive idea but not enough facts
exist to back up such a claim.
In a sense the lack of evidence makes Gardner even more
central to the story of modern Wicca. It turns out that he perhaps
is not a discoverer but a creator or re creator of the Pagan
religion. By drawing together strands of eighteenth, nineteenth &
twentieth century ceremonial high magic plus the low magick of
traditional witchcraft, he came up with something new & distinct. As
with any religion, it is the content & how it evolves that count no
where it came from.
My opinion? well I personally think magic & Witches are as
old as time, yes I do think a lot was lost over the years & we are
still getting it back. Maybe Gardner did find an ancient coven or
maybe he was trying to bring an old religion into a world that
really would not understand it without a creation story, we
may never know the entire truth.
There is always a lot of talk among us of degrees & levels &
all. Learning is very important & Wicca is not a path to follow for
fun or games, but do I think you must go through degrees and such
to be a "real" witch, no I do not. Learning i important and should
be taken as such, one is not all knowing after a year and a day,
your journey is just beginning at this point. But again this is only
what I believe & what I was raised to Believe. Magic comes from
within & is all around us. That will not change no matter who tells
you what or who you know. I do feel that learning from a
qualified teacher as a student or apprentice is quiet admirable and
should be sought if possible. Just try to find a school or teacher
who makes you feel comfortable.
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Witchcraft & Religion Today..
On the subject of
Witches & our craft we get many emails & letters. The simple
fact is I feel that we are still to this day very
misunderstood. Witches are, for lack of better wording,
still burned at the stake. We still have to prove we are not
satanists killing dogs & cats & abducting children. The lore
of magick is great & the ideas behind all of it's mystical
beliefs & practices draw hundreds of people into it every
year.
The idea of the
old ways being re-learned & shared is of great interest to
many a aspiring Witch. Witchcraft is the old religion, it is
not new although "Wicca" is a relatively new in the last
century, religious movement brought on By Mr. Gardner.
Below I would
like to discuss some very witchy topics, topics that will
hopefully help those who are unsure of what witches do & who
we are to understand our ways & know without doubt that we
are not the evil of the world. By no means should this be
seen as me saying I am right & others are wrong, or Witches
are the best humans on the planet, nor is it me saying your
religion is all wrong, it is actually that whole point of
right & wrong I wish to address. This is simply a point of
view from one person's perspective.
Our ways are of
the old ways, of what was before it was changed, lost or
forced underground. All Pagan religion had been nearly
eradicated & driven underground by the Christians and other
persecutors. Forced to verbally pass down our history,
practices & magick, forced to practice in seclusion for fear
of being killed, tortured, or worse, converted. Made to keep
our Books In the Shadows. (hence the term book of shadows,
which is a new term, not an old one). For having a book that
was more important to you than the bible would get you in
jail or worse put to death. Christians though were just
doing, no matter how wrong, what they thought was right. But
that is how most old religions, groups, African Americans
and others who practice or look a way that main stream
beliefs do not, are put on trial so to speak, because
something about us is different and others do not fully
understand it. Questions should be asked and fear should not
take over. We are all humans and should be treated with
respect.
As you know
there is a lot of things Christian based religions do &
celebrate that are very pagan. Except of course for having a
female deity, Mary was branded a whore and in more recent
times it is being found out that she was possibly Jesus'
Wife and Partner. Woman were not supposed to have any power
at all during the Rule of Christian men, we were not
supposed to be Goddesses or religious leaders. We were to be
seen & not heard, so to speak. it is really a sad thing as
in the beginning both Pagan & Christians accept, & I use
this term loosely, each other. If Pagans were seen
worshiping a tree instead of taking down the tree the
Christians would consecrate the tree to God. This was a way
to allow or put up with the pagan ways without actually
persecuting them. though as we know in History it did not
stay that way & soon Pagans were converted or killed. I
truly believe Christianity can be and is a beautiful
religion if it is truly practiced they way it was intended
by Jesus. Too much fear goes into it. They fear and
persecute Witches, Pagans and Gay People/ Why? There is
nothing wrong with any of those things. It is nature and our
own lives to make the choices we feel are right. Fact is if
you do not like what is on TV, do not complain about it,
turn the channel. If you do not like a person's faith, be
human. Allow them to be who they are and you can be who you
are. if it is not harming you then leave it be. I know it is
a true cliché. but does it really bother you that much? how
is it that love should see a color, religion or sex as a
reason not to be? Love is Love there should be no one
telling you not to love the person you do. There should be
no one telling you that your faith, what you believe and
what your spirituality is, is wrong.
The fact is
witches, Wicca & Paganism were meant to be lost, forgotten
branded as evil & feared. Truth be told witches & pagans are
among the most peaceful people on this earth, we are of the
earth of the trees, the air the wind, lakes & streams and so
on. We are not a religion trying to convert anyone, we
believe in freedom of religion, any religion. We do not run
around telling people to convert or you will burn in the
eternal fires of hell. I always say that there is enough
room on this planet for all of us no matter what we believe.
Another common misconception is that we worship Satan,
Witches do not even believe in Satan, he is a Christian
concept of guess what? a duality good versus evil, the age
old debate. How we can be devil worshipers is beyond
me since we do not even believe in him, but again this is
the fear instilled and taught for so many years. We tend to,
as humans, fear what we do not understand.. The fact is, &
this is a scary thought, that there are people in this world
who are part of what they term satanic groups and yes they
may call themselves witches but we all must learn to be able
to realize that as there are both good and not so good
Christians, Muslims, Witches & so on
One of the most
common misconceptions with Witchcraft is the Pentagram. Most
Witches choose to use the upright pentagram as a Wiccan
symbol, it symbolizes protection the elements, the center,
or Akashic, spirit or however you choose to term it. But
some also use the inverted Pentagram, which there is nothing
wrong with. Remember symbols themselves are not evil, it is
how we use them. Now there are some traditions who do use
the inverted pentagram in a different way, for instance
a Satanist would use this symbol to represent Satan or
rather Satan's Horned Image, Below is some ways these
symbols are used in a different way even by our own
government!.
"The
points of the upright pentacle represent the four elements
as a physical base for Spirit at the top point. *Spirit
dominating matter"
"The points of the inverted pentacle
has Spirit at the bottom point with the elements above.
*From Spirit grows the physical."
It
represents the Horned God of Celtic paganism...ie. Cernunnos
The U. S. Medal of Honor, as well as the Bronze Star is an
inverted pentacle
In some Wiccan traditions, it has been used a s a symbol of
2nd degree initiation
And yes, it also represents Satanism
There are other
groups who use an inverted pentagram (seen below), which is
not a symbol of all Wiccan's some Witches who practice what
some call the "dark arts ". My point of all this is as i
said above, it is not the symbol that is evil, it is the
person using it. We must be able to understand the
differences between other religions & other traditions if we
wish to live peacefully with each other. All religious
groups, no matter who they are, as long as they are hurting
no one with their path, should be allowed to worship &
practice how they wish without fear of persecution. I know
there are some who would say oh i practice Black Magick I,
however believe magic is not black or white , it is the will
of it's user that makes the difference.
I mean would it
be fair to say that just because a middle- eastern man who
believes strongly in his religion will become a terrorists?
& does that mean that all middle-eastern people are evil &
terrorists? That is simply not the case. They, like us have
those in their group that use religion as a motive for
destruction. These people feel extremely passionate about
what they believe and though their actions are killing
ignorant and innocent alike, they care not for those facts.
They only know their passion. I wish I could stop all the
terrorist acts and make everyone get along, but i know this
is not possible. I will never forget where I was when I saw
the first plane hit on 9 11. It was the most terrible
feeling that I was unable to help anyone. I was sad, sad for
the world, the people hurt and killed, for their family' and
even for the terrorists. It is sad that some people use fear
as a weapon. They need professional help in my opinion, But
one bad apple does not make the entire tree no good. Bottom
line do not judge someone or their beliefs before you know
what they truly are.
To learn more you can visit this
site
http://www.religioustolerance.org/index.htm#new
Magickal Practices... The Lore of The Witches Craft
The bubbling cauldron, the waving wand, the old or young
woman in the kitchen, attic or outside brewing an ancient
cure, charm or even possibly a binding? ( yes witches do use
binding spells & on rare, rare occasions curses, but please
understand we do not take these lightly, nor are they done
on a whim which I will get into more detail about further
on) The large old Tome resting on it's Stand, it's pages
stained with potion and brew oils, herbs & incenses. The
woman is looking in the book & with a brightly lit smile
says this is it! She begins chanting, lighting her candles &
Invoking her Goddess/God, calling the elements & beginning
her spell. Within days it comes to pass, the magick has
worked, her problems ended. What was she doing? Bringing
some much needed Financial growth into her life.
This is the lore
of the Witch. To be able to help those in need, to cast
spells & research your magical heritage & craft. To be able
to help yourself to create a fruitful life with the tools &
wisdom of nature. Witches use magic for many things. We cast
healing spells on friends & family ( if we have obtained the
proper permission), we work rites for the Earth to bring her
healing & most importantly, we work with The Gods....
There is a woman
standing there, flowing silver hair, in a glimpse her face
of beauty begins to age, until it is that of an old woman,
worn with time yet still a beauty in her own right. She is
the mother, the maiden, the crone. You know her , her face
is so familiar, she is the woman in all of us, the face in
the moon, She is our mother.
The
Goddess is a very important aspect of the Witches Craft. She
is our Mother, She is Hecate, Brigid, Isis, Diana and so on.
The Trinity aspect of Wicca is maiden mother crone. The
goddess is all three, all three phases of life. We do not
make animal offerings to any god or Goddess. Magick is not
black or white, it is in the heart of the witch were the
darkness lies.
We
live by the rule of "An it harm none, do what ye will" this
is the most sincere rule of Wicca. These rules, have been
put in place for a reason & are part of a much more detailed
system of guidelines that govern our craft. As Oberon Zell
has said, with great power, comes responsibility.
As
I said above, we will use binding spells & in very rare
cases Curses, but they are only used when all other means of
solving the problem have failed & we are left with no choice
and believe me someone i care for deeply will have to have
been hurt before i would EVER consider any such thing.
Anytime yo are doing something that effects another's life,
it is no to be taken lightly. Peace is always the best way.
Witches who would use power for "evil" or to hurt others are
in fact destroying their own lives now & in the future.
Karma is not something I think they really believe in as
they do not feel what they are doing will harm them & this
tells me that they have not fully studied Witchcraft & more
importantly are not responsible enough to practice Magic.
Bottom line, if you can not handle the Karmic effect of
miss-using Magic then your best bet is to not use it at all.
Some people think
it is just like Charmed where we run around freezing things
or orbing all over, which by the way if it were possible I
would like never drive anywhere! The fact is Charmed is not
as real as it sometimes can be or seem to be. Like when they
turn certain Goddess Like Kali & Hecate into Demons, well
that sort of gets me, they are not "demons" & the producers
of Charmed have effectively put another brick in the wall of
understanding What Witches Do. See for some reason people
tend to think that just because the show is loosely based on
real witches that everything on the show is real. Wrong,
there are only a few things that are real, that is why it is
a TV show. Believe me if they showed what real witches do,
well it would never have made it past season 1! We are not
as exciting as the girls on Charmed and we most certainly do
not have Demons & Warlocks breaking down our doors all the
time. Charmed is truly an awesome show, but that is just it,
it is just a show.
Though there are
some very real things on charmed as well like The Wendigo.
Wendigo's are part of an old North American Indian belief.
They believed it was a creature with a heart of ice who
roamed the woods devouring helpless humans. The Shamans
Believe it is the worst type of Psychic Sickness that can
befall them. There is so much more that can be read on it
if you take the time and do some research. The Akashic
Records, Supposed to be real. The Power of three well yeah
three witches are going to be more powerful than just one &
3 witches who are related would make the bond even
stronger, so yes that is real as well. The Triquetra is an
ancient symbol of the triple goddess & a powerful symbol of
protection. Fact is a lot of Charmed is made up & A lot of
Charmed is real info that has been twisted or re done to use
on the show by the writers, you just have to know &
understand what is real & what is made up & be able to tell
the difference.
I suggest you
research Withes & Wicca & be sure you really want to be one
& be part of the religion before you call yourself one. It
is a way of life & a path we follow. Traditionally there is
a year & a day of study before one even starts to say I am a
Witch. Remember, simply saying I am a Witch does not make
you one. Follow your heart, it will lead you right on the
path to your destiny.
Blessed be
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Living
the Magickal Life.......
From the
moment you become a Witch, you feel different, the world feels
different. Things appear to look more Magical & new wonders are
abound, the trees come alive and speak, the birds seem to know your
name & when you walk among the forests it is like walking into a
realm of Faries, Elves, Elementals & other spirits & deities. You
begin to see their world & the delicate Magic they weave to make
ours beautiful. The mundane is gone and you see the beauty or our
planet, of Mother Earth & all she has to give. The winds seem to
speak to you with answers to questions & gentle Hellos. When you are
a witch you become one with all these, you are aware of them & they
of you, a rainstorm does not have the same meaning anymore, you can
here the Elementals voice, you know their names & yes they know
yours, life just becomes more "Magical".
You see what can not be seen, you know what most do not, you
share of the Elements & become one with all creatures great & small.
The life you live through Magic is like no other. When you go
outside to look at the moon you see the Goddess's Face, the stars
seem to tell a story, in the morning sunlight you feel the God's
warmth & glow as some plants & creatures begin to awake. Being a
Witch means much more than a name to call yourself, it is a path, a
never ending circle of love, life & learning. Witches are like
anyone else, some many choose to dress the part & others may wear
clothes from the gap, your personal style is just that,
personal. Dressing in cloaks & Magical attire helps us to connect to
the Magic, to embrace the Witch within us, it helps to feel more
"Witchy" so to speak. I am not saying you have to do this, as I said
do what you feel is right for you, not what others tell you to do.
Magic is all around us, all the time all we have to do is connect
with it.
Below you will find several informative things to add to
your own book of shadows... All have been adapted from Scott
Cunningham's Books and are well worth reading if you are serious
about the Wiccan
-
The
Thirteen Goals of a Witch.....
-
From
Scott Cunningham's Book, Wicca a guide for the solitary
practitioner
-
Know Yourself
-
Know your
Craft
-
Learn
-
Apply
Knowledge with Wisdom
-
Achieve
Balance
-
Keep your
words in good order
-
Keep your
thoughts in good order
-
Celebrate Life
-
Attune with
the cycles of the Earth
-
Breather & eat
Correctly
-
Exercise the
body
-
Meditate
-
Honor the
Goddess & God
The Law of Our Ways....
Adapted also from Mr. Cunningham's book
We are of the
old ways, among those who walk with the Goddess & God.
Keep the Sabbats
& Esbats to the best of your abilities
Harm None, this
is the oldest law & is not open to discussion or change
Shed Not blood
in ritual, the Goddess & God need not blood to be worshiped, those
of our way are kind to all creatures for hurtful thoughts are
draining. Misery is self created so to is jealousy.
Teach only what
you know to those you choose. Teach not to those who would use your
instruction for destruction or control, also teach not to boost
pride, for ever remember that she who teaches for vain/ glory shall
take little pride in her own workings.
The Law of Power.............
Scott
Cunningham
The Power should not be used to bring harm, injure or control
others, the power shall be used to protect life & the lives of
others
The power is used only as need dictates
The power can be used for your own gain as long as in doing so you
harm none
Use not the power for prideful gain for such cheapens the mysteries
of Magick
Ever remember the power is a gift from the Goddess & God & should
not be misused or abused
Do not use the power against someone else who has the Power.
The Nature of
our Way........
Scott
Cunningham
As often as
possible hold rites in forests, by the seashore, on deserted
mountain tops, or by tranquil lakes & streams. If this is not
possible they may be held in a garden or chamber prepared with
fumes.
Seek out wisdom
in books, rare manuscripts & Cryptical poems, but also seek it out
in simple stones & fragile Herbs as well as in the circles of wild
birds, listen to the whispers of the wind & the root of water if you
would discover Magick, for it is here that the old secrets are
preserved.
Ever remember
that the old ways are constantly revealing themselves. Therefore be
as the Willow that bends & sways, that which remains changeless
shall outlive it's spirit but that which evolves & grows shall shine
for centuries.
Mock not the
spells & rituals of another for who is to say yours are greater in
power or wisdom
Ensure that your
actions are honorable for all that you do shall return to you three
fold, good or bad. Be wary of one who would dominate you or who
would control or manipulate your power, look with suspicion on those
who would twist worship from you for their own gain and glory, but
welcome those who are sufficed with love.
The Sabbats...
Yule (yool):
Winter Solstice December 21st
This
is when the Goddess gives birth to the God.( a familiar tale in
Christianity). This is a time of rebirth, & candles are lit to
welcome the God who is the returning sun of the Winter Solstice.
Gifts are given to children & others by the departing Holy King as
he rides his solar sleigh, pulled by the eight sabbats personified
by reindeer, throughout the night sky at Yule Eve. He is also called
Old Nick by the Pagan Norse, was usurped by Christianity & turned
into Santa Claus. This is a Holiday when Pagans & Christians can
both relate to as a holy time & a sacred birth.
Imbolc (em-bowl/g) : February 2
A
time when the Goddess recovers from Birth rejuvenated & the God is a
spirited youth. It is a time of purification & dedication.
Ostara (oh-star-ah): Vernal Equinox March 21
When the God & Goddess walk the fields causing creatures to
reproduce. The first day of Spring is inspiration for renewal &
creativity, the seed buried in the ground now begins to move back
into the world.
Beltane ( Beel-teen or bell-tayn): May 1st
When
the Goddess & the God unite & is a celebration of fertility &
healing. Welcome May Day with flowers & tokens. Dance the May pole.
This is a most Magickal Day
Litha
( lee-thah): Summer Solstice June 21st
This is the summer solstice, although referred to as Midsummer. It
is the peak of fertility, used to celebrate life, love, health,
purification, & dedication.
Lughnassadh ( loo-nahs-ah): August 1st
This
is when the God impregnates the Goddess with himself, & is the feast
of bread & time of transformation.
Mabon
( may-bone or mah-boon): Autumnal Equinox September 21st
When
the God prepares to leave & the Goddess rests. This is celebrated
today as harvest home or Thanksgiving, which was moved into November
time frame by President Lincoln in the 19th century even though the
pilgrims celebrated it in September. A time to celebrate the
abundance of the Earth. The great feast.
Samhain ( sow-een or american sam-hain): October 31st
The
witches new year, when the God departs & the Goddess mourns, but
knows he will be reborn at Yule. This is a time of celebrating the
mysteries of death & of contacting spirits. The Catholic church
adopted this celebration as all hallows eve mass. This is when the
veil between the worlds is at it's thinnest, leave plates of food
out for the dead as they journey onward, light candles in the
windows to help light their way. This is a time to honor the dead
and remember all those that have gone. This to me is a most Magickal
time, if ever there was a day I felt more "Witchy" it is this day.
OF PAGANISM IN HISTORY
This page is created to give a little bit of History on Pagans,
their holidays & their Goddess & God. The information has been
collected by us from one of our favorite books, WITCHES, by Erica
Jong. It is a wonderful large book filled with lovely artwork &
fascinating information..........We do believe all religions, as
long as they are not harmful, have the right to believe whatever
they choose & practice what they feel is the correct path for
them......
We call
to thee, Goddess of the Moon,
Lift
your face & bless this sacred space,
Gathered on hill, grove & stream,
With
Witches words, we call your beam,
We draw
you down with sword & chalice,
Within
Witches circles without malice,
We call
to thee & honor thee, oh Gracious Goddess Blessed Be..........
Poem by
Miya Bukovsky
Imagine the
following evolution..... People of prehistoric times worshiped
Deities very different from those worshiped today. One was the
Mother Goddess or Great Mother or Queen of Heaven, who represented
creation, birth, food gathering, agricultural plenty, & the Summer
months. The other a Horned God ( Stag-antlered, animal-skinned,
cloven-hoofed) , who represented the hunt, the killing of food & the
Winter months.
The year was divided
between the worship of these two deities, especially in places where
early humans divided their time between agriculture & hunting,
depending upon the seasons. These two gods were most ancient &
enduring. Even when Christianity came to be the established
religion, their cults could not be eradicated. All over Europe,
peasants persisted in their worship long after Kings & courts were
converted to Christianity. In many places, Christian & Pagan Gods
were worshiped simultaneously, & even Christian Priests were
initiates of Pagan mysteries.
As long as it was in
the interest of the Christians to tolerate paganism- indeed, they
had no choice since Pagans outnumbered them- Pagan gods & goddesses
were received into the Christian pantheon as saints, & Pagan feast
days were kept as Christian holidays. For example, the use of
December 25th-four days after the winter solstice-as Christ's
birthday was chosen precisely to bring sun-worshipers into the
Christian fold, since this was their feast day, & it is
always easier to change the name of a holiday, & it's supposed
symbolism, than to invent a wholly original holiday on a new
day...(Christmas tree-Pagan, ornaments-Pagan, these are all pagan
things assimilated into this holiday Christmas.)
But when Christians
were finally entrenched, had established themselves as temporal as
well as spiritual lords, they were ready to begin the systematic
persecution & eradication of Paganism. It was then that the Pagans
went underground, so to speak. It was then that their gods were
termed devils by the Christians & their religious practices alleged
evil. The people who continued to honor the old ways & the old gods
did so in secret, often meeting in out-of-the-way places: on heaths,
in forests, on hill top, in groves. Their Horned God the Christians
now termed "the devil:. Their Great Mother was made to serve
as Christ's virgin Mother-her sexuality erased, her power reduced
from that of a creator of the world to intercessor between man & a
male God, thus Paganism was first tolerated, than assimilated, than
brutally stamped out.
But it's power over
people never quite faded, & those who continued to worship the old
ways were called Witches. Because they were scattered & divided into
separate groups or covens, because theirs was a non proselytizing
religion, different practices grew up in different localities with
different ceremonies evolving different names for deities. Thus we
have in Witchcraft an example of an ancient religion lingering in a
Christian world, holding it's power over people despite burnings,
persecutions of worshipers, despite defamation & proscription of the
old gods... (this in essence was an argument put forth by Margret
Murry).
OF WITCHES
I can tell you that I
have been a Witch for as long as I can remember my mother
teaching me, though technically I did not take on the full
path of the Witch until I choose to follow the Path of
Nature in a dedication, and later initiation ceremony my
mother preformed to fully bestow on me the name "Witch". I
want to add some facts about Witches here... No matter how
redundant they may seem from all you have already read, I
just want all to know that we are really not the hook nosed
hags people think of when they think of Witches.
Witches are not evil, we
do not worship the devil, nor do we believe in one. Demons
are not part of Wicca, we do not believe in them, they are a
Christian belief, not a Wiccan one. We do not sacrifice any
living thing or cast harmful spells to hurt.
We are healers, mothers,
daughters, sisters. The woman ( or man) next to you on the
bus could be a witch and you may never know it.
We love nature & worship
the seasons.
We do not fly around on
broomsticks ( wish we could).
We follow a rede "an it
harm none, do as ye will" which means basically do what you
want as long as you harm no one or animal in doing so.
We respect all religions
great & small & never try to tell you you are wrong for what
you believe.
Our practices, though
steeped in mystery are open to those with an open heart as
well as mind.
|
Copyright © [2001] Triquetra
Productions.