Wicca Basics

There are many who ask the question "What is Witchcraft?". This is surprisingly a difficult question to answer. It would be similar to trying to explain Christianity to someone who had no idea what it is. It is a complex religion, just like any other, and has many aspects to explain. We will start at the beginning...

In the earliest of times the world was a very different place...full of many religions all with their many Gods. And before the one God came to try and drive out the many...there arose what we now refer to as Witchcraft. Its history is deeply imbedded in our every day lives from the use of wreaths at Christmas time, to children's nursery rhymes...

But through time, witchcraft was outlawed by a kingdom ruled by the one God, and Witches everywhere went underground to protect themselves from persecution and certain death. But through the ages we have survived and are flourishing...

With time and education, people have put away the visions as the witch being an old hag who is out to do evil and hurt the local villagers. Today our Craft is becoming accepted and people are overcoming their prejudges to realize what a loving practice this is. Through the years the ancient religion, outlawed by the church, survived under shroud of darkness to protect themselves from capture and torture by the crusaders. Because of this, mankind's natural fear of the unknown brought out rumors of Satanism and evil doings. On the contrary, their is no "Satan" or all powerful evil being in witchcraft. The religion is a Pagan one which means a religion of nature worship. What is more beautiful than worshipping the very nature that we humans, being animals ourselves, are a part of?

The use of Magick in Witchcraft is used for only good works and should not be feared. Magic - seeking to influence ones surroundings by manipulation of unseen forces through the use of the tools of the craft - has its own guidelines for usage that some call the laws of the powers of Magic and is really no different than prayer. Funny how some, who are of narrow mind, will seek to influence an unseen force through prayer but call it "evil" when we seek to do the same only through different means.

There are many different Traditions of Witchcraft today and our numbers are ever growing. We seek not to harm anyone or anything. Ours may be different in the way we worship, but still, as educated as our technology has made mankind, we are still feared by some, and called evildoers.

We seek no evil nor to influence anyone in any way. All we ask is to be accepted in our worship of those we call our God and Goddess.....

Witchcraft recognizes the duality of the sexes that are present in nature and life. Without both, neither would survive, for neither female nor male can produce life without the other. Therefore, we see our deities as a God and a Goddess. Neither is more important than the other, both being equal, yet seperate.

The roles of the Goddess and God within the circle of ever-revolving year are portrayed in the holidays, or Sabbats as we call them. Different traditions see different aspects of the Goddess and God, and have different names for the Deities. For instance 'Venus', the Goddess of love, simply one personality of the Goddess, and one name. Because cultures originated separate from one another, there has been countless names, all pertaining to basically the same Gods. All cultures using different names for different aspects, and different geographical locations. Using again the same example, 'Venus'(Greek) or 'Shiela-na-gig' (Irish), both Goddesses, yet using different names, since both are from different locations. It is much like a family tree. At ground level you have The Goddess and God, as the tree grows and different societies branch out, like the limbs of a tree, you find many aspects of the deities all stemming from the same roots. A wise man once said, "All means of worship are nothing more than different paths to the same center."

We worship our deities and honor them at Sabbats via rituals. We call on them to help us with magick and everyday problems. We look to them to sustain us, and accompany us through our days. So you see, it isn't as different as at first it may seem.

There are many different Traditions of Witchcraft which have originated for the most part from different geographic locations. For example, Pictish Witchcraft is a Scottish Tradition, Strega is an Italian Tradition, the Teutonic Tradition follows a Nordic path, the list goes on and on. There are many who consider themselves 'Eclectic Witches' who use parts of many paths and use what works best for them. In my experiences this is the most common, and while traditionalist paths have much to offer, the novice witch usually does not wish to be tied down to a certain way of doing things.

There are also traditions that have come about by different people. These people have created their own tradition, as any eclectic Witch would do. Their coven grew, and thus a tradition was started. Some examples of these would be Gardenarian, founded by Gerald Gardner, Seax Wicca, founded by Raymond Buckland, and many more.

Although there are many who follow a particular Path, or Tradition, and are members of a coven, there are still very many others who are 'Solitary Practitioners', meaning that they practice Witchcraft alone. Many chose to be solitary, and still others are solitary simply because they have no coven in their area. There are benefits of both, as with anything. The choice is up to the individual, and what is right for you may not be right for someone else.

Aside from being an observance of an old religion, it is also a 'craft', meaning that within our religious rites, the practice of magic exists. Magic is as an in depth subject as religious worship itself, and very hard to place into words. The best definition of magic that we have ever seen would be this quote, "Magic is the projection of natural energies to produce needed effects", taken from Scott Cunningham's book, "Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner".

The one constant in all of the religions of the world is seeking to influence their surroundings with the assistance of an unseen spirit. Witches call this magic, and it is no more evil than prayer. Magic is a matter of fact follows two steadfast rules. The first being, "An it harm none, do what thou wilt" and the other, The Rule of Three, "That which you do, shall return to you times three". It is easy to see that with a loving reverence of nature, our Gods, and our fellow man, that Witchcraft is nothing to be feared.

The following is a list of reading materials that we recomend to further your education on Wicca/Witchcraft and related subjects. It is by no means a complete list, nor is it a list that represents the "best". We found these books to be a great help to individuals seeking to further their understanding.

To Ride a Silver Broomstick Silver Ravenwolf
Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner Scott Cunningham
Sabbats Edain McCoy
Living Wicca: A Further Guide for the Solitary Practioner Scott Cunningham
Eight Sabbats for Witches Janet and Stewart Farrar
Buckland's Complete Book of Witchcraft Raymond Buckland
Complete Book of Insence, Oils and Brews Scott Cunningham

The Sacred Marriage by Lira Silbury
To Stir a Magick Cauldron by Silver RavenWolf
Falcon, Feather, and Valkyrie Sword by D J Conway
Celtic Magic by D J Conway
´By Oak, Ash and Thorn by D J Conway
Moon Magick by D J Conway
Drawing Down The Moon by Margot Adler
The White Goddess by Robert Graves
Magical Household by Scott Cunningham
Earth, Air, Fire and Water by Scott Cunningham
Earth Power by Scott Cunningham
Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs by Scott Cunningham
Spell Crafts Creating Magical Objects by Scott Cunningham and David Harrington
The Encyclopedia of Witches and Witchcraft by Rosemary Ellen Guiley
A Druid's Herbal for the Sacred Earth Year by Ellen Evert Hopman
Celtic Myth and Magick by Edain McCoy

Bright Blessings and Gentle Breezes!

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