category
stringclasses 21
values | filename
stringlengths 3
191
| page
int64 1
4.42k
| text
stringlengths 1
49k
|
|---|---|---|---|
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,314 | well.
1639
However, even though laws against the practice of witchcraft had
been established for hundreds of years, the first major trial was not
until 1566, at Chelmsford, and was typical of the English style of
witchcraft: no pact with the devil, no gathering at Sabbats, but
simple and direct acts of maleficia, and the introduction of witches'
familiars. It was an important trial, for it set the precedent in
English law for accepting unsupported, and highly imaginative, stories
from children as evidence. It also accepted spectral evidence (sic),
witch's marks, and the confession of the accused.
There are some very distinctive aspects to English witchcraft, which
set it apart from its Continental and Scottish counterparts, and which
are worth noting. There was a relative lack of torture, and, this may
come as a surprise to some people, but witches were never burned in
England. Traitors and murderers were burned; witches were hung. Of
course, a traitor or a murderer could also be a witch, but this was
actually quite rare. The torture used in England - when it was used at
all - was typically swimming, pricking, enforced waking, and a diet of
bread and water. Unpleasant, but when compared to squassation, being
skinned alive, the strappado, the rack, and such delights as the
thumbscrews and the iron maiden, hardly in the same class. The focus
of English witchcraft was more towards simple, personal, acts of
maleficia than a perceived conspiracy against the power of the Chris-
tian Church. As one of Britain's foremost folklorists says: "Trad-
itions of an organised, pagan witch-cult were never very plentiful in
England, although they did exist occasionally, especially in the later
years of the witch belief. They were never really strong, and after
the end of the persecution in the early 18th century, they disappeared
altogether." (Christina Hole) This is interesting, because it has
been suggested that the witch trials phenomena was largely inspired by
the heretical Christian sects; this would seem to be born out by the
type of accusations made in England, which were largely neighbour
against neighbour rather than Church and State against an organised
conspiracy of heretics.
What is also interesting is that it was commonly believed in England
that if the bewitched victim could draw blood from the witch, then
they would be cured, and the witch's power made ineffective. This
belief has persisted in folk traditions to modern times. In 1875, at
Long Compton, the body of an old woman, one Ann Turner, was discov-
ered. She had been pinned to the ground by a pitchfork through her
throat, and across her face and chest had been carved the sign of a
crucifix. James Heywood, a local farmer, had once claimed: "It's she
who brings the floods and drought. Her spells withered the crops in
the field. Her curse drove my father to an early grave!". Heywood
maintained that the only way to destroy her power was to spill her
blood, and so after her murder, he was taken and tried for the crime.
He was convicted, and sentenced to life imprisonment. Long Compton has
always been associated with the practice of witchcraft, and is located
only a short distance from the magical Rollright Stones, and near to
the aptly named Wychwood Forest. The derivation of this name is from
the curiously named tribe of THE HWICCE, who lived in the area at the
time of King Penda of Mercia, and who seemed always to be ruled by two
brothers. But back to Long Compton:
1640 |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,315 | In 1945, Charles Walton, a local labourer, set out one morning to do
some hedging on nearby Meon Hill. That evening, his mutilated body was
found in a field - pinned to the ground by his pitchfork, which had
been stuck through his throat. There were cuts to his arms and legs,
and local police were baffled as to the motive for the crime, and who
the likely culprit might have been. But gradually locals began to talk
about Mr Walton; they said he was a solitary and vindictive old man,
who was concerned more with searching out the secrets of nature than
in taking company with his neighbours. They said that he harnessed
toads, using reeds and pieces of ram's horn, and then sent them across
fields to blight the crops. They also remembered that he kept a
witch's mirror - a piece of black stone polished in a mountain stream
- concealed in his pocket-watch, which he used for weaving spells and
seeing into the future. The police never discovered the culprit, but
it was accepted locally that Mr Walton was murdered because he was a
witch. His wounds were a result of the belief that a victim could be
freed from enchantment if he or she were able to draw the blood of
the witch.
We could not leave English witchcraft without mention of that infamous
gentleman, Matthew Hopkins; self-styled Witchfinder General. For all
his fame, his activities were restricted to a relatively small area,
and a relatively short period of time. However, his boundless energy,
and boundless enthusiasm for the collection of large amounts of money,
ensured that his name has not been forgotten.
Matthew Hopkins used the unrest of the Civil War to prey upon the
fears of the common people. Little is known of his early life, except
that he became a lawyer "of little note", and failing to make a living
at Ipswich in Suffolk, moved to Manningtree in Essex - an area of
Civil War tension.
With virtually no knowledge of witchcraft, but armed with a couple of
contemporary documents (including James I's "Demonology"), Hopkins set
himself up in business as a witchfinder. And a very profitable bus-
iness it was too. At a time when the average daily wage was 6d,
Hopkins received œ23 for a single visit to Stowmarket, and œ6 for a
visit to Aldeburgh.
His approach was consistent: James I mentioned that witches had
familiars, and suckled imps; therefore, anyone who kept a familiar
spirit or imp must be a witch! Bearing in mind the English partiality
to keeping pets, and you begin to see just how very successful this
technique could be. For example, Bridget Mayers was condemned for
entertaining an evil spirit in the likeness of a mouse, which she
called "Prickears"; another (unnamed) woman was rescued by her neigh-
bours from a ducking, where she confessed to having an imp called
"Nan". When she recovered she said: "she knew not what she had con-
fessed, and she had nothing she called Nan but a pullet that she
sometimes called by that name...".
Hopkins moved from Essex to Norfolk and Suffolk, and by the following
year, had operations in Cambridge, Northampton, Huntingdon and Bed-
ford, with a team of six witch finders under his control. "In Suffolk
alone it is estimated that he was responsible for arresting at least
124 persons for witchcraft, of whom at least 68 were hanged." (RHR)
However, Hopkins moved too far too quickly, and public opinion began
to go against him. In 1646, a clergyman in Huntingdon preached against
him, and judges began to question both his methods of locating wit- |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,316 | 1641
ches, and the fees that he charged for the service. In 1647 Hopkins
published a pamphlet called "Discovery of Witches", in which he sup-
ported his methods in sanctimonious and pseudo legal language. Howev-
er, it was to no avail, for later that year he died, "in some dis-
grace" according to most authorities. Witchcraft legend has it that he
was drowned by irate villagers in one of his own ducking ponds, but
this has no recorded evidence to support it. However, it would be a
fitting end to such an evil man, and I hope it was true.
Moving away from England; Scottish and Continental witchcraft shared a
great many similarities; Mary Queen of Scots, and her son, James VI,
were both educated in France, and this ensured that continental
attitudes towards witches were enshrined in Scottish law at the
highest level. In fact the concepts of witchcraft were introduced into
Scotland by Mary in about 1563. Before then, trials for witchcraft had
been few, and there were no recorded burnings of witches. In "The
Encyclopaedia of Witchcraft and Demonology" Rossell Hope Robbins says:
"Scotland is second only to Germany in the bar-
barity of its witch trials. The Presbyterian cler-
gy acted like inquisitors, and the Church sessions
often shared the prosecution with the secular law
courts. The Scottish laws were, if anything, more
heavily loaded against the accused. Finally, the
devilishness of the torture was limited only by
Scotland's backward technology in the construction
of mechanical devices."
It is well known that James VI was an ardent prosecutor of witches,
and it was under his authority that the Bible was translated to
include the word "witch" (Exodus 22:18) to provide Biblical sanction
for the death penalty for witches. The original Hebrew word - kashaph
- meant either a magician, diviner or sorcerer, but was definitely not
a witch. In the Latin Vulgate (4th century version of the Bible) the
word had been translated as "maleficos", which could mean any kind of
criminal, although in practice often referred to malevolent sorcerers.
Similarly, the so-called Witch of Endor, consulted by King Solomon:
the original Hebrew was "ba'alath ob": "mistress of a talisman". In
the Latin Vulgate she became a "mulierem habentem pythonem": a women
possessing an oracular spirit. It was only in the version of the Bible
authorised by King James that she became a witch.
By the time that James acceded to the English throne in 1603, his
attitude towards witches had undergone a subtle transformation. In
fact, he was directly responsible for the release and pardon of
several accused "witches", and personally interfered in trials where
he believed that fraud or deception was being practised. However,
Lynn Linton writing in 1861 says of him:
"Whatever of blood-stained folly belonged special-
ly to the Scottish trials of this time - and here-
after - owed its original impulse to him; every
groan of the tortured wretches driven to their
fearful doom, and every tear of the survivors left
blighted and desolate to drag out their weary days
in mingled grief and terror, lie on his memory
with shame and condemnation ineffaceable for all
time."
1642 |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,317 | But it was under Charles II that perhaps the most famous - and endur-
ing - of Scottish witches was tried, and most probably executed
(although records of her punishment have not survived). Isobel Gowdie
of Auldearne, on four separate occasions during 1662 testified that
she was a witch, and gave what Russell Hope Robbins describes as: "a
resum‚ of popular beliefs about witchcraft in Scotland.". He says that
Gowdie "appeared clearly demented", but that "it is plain she believed
what she confessed, no matter how impossible...".
From Gowdie are derived some of the concepts of today's Wicca, incl-
uding the idea of a coven, comprised of 13 people. Gowdie said that a
coven was ruled by a "Man in Black", often called "Black John". He
would often beat the witches severely, and it seemed their main tasks
were to raise storms, change themselves into animals, and shoot elf
arrows to injure or kill people. Coming as she does right at the end
of the witchcraft persecutions, it is difficult to establish how much
of Gowdie's confession is based upon real, traditional folk practices
of Auldearne, and how much she is simply repeating the standard
accusations against witches. The Coven of 13 is probably the single
aspect of her confessions which does not appear elsewhere in records
of witchcraft trials, and my own feelings are that she was probably as
genuine a witch as was ever taken and tried.
We have already commented how terrifying it is to consider the impact
that a single person can have upon the lives of so many people. We
have looked at a number of these - King James, Kramer and Sprenger,
Matthew Hopkins, Conrad of Marburg - and their latter day successors
are no less dangerous. Let us consider some of the 20th century
persecutors. We have already mentioned Adolf Hitler; what about
Stalin? his great purge in the period following 1936 saw charges of
treason, espionage and terrorism brought against anyone who showed the
least inclination to oppose him. Using techniques which would not have
been out of place during the great witch hunts, Stalin's henchmen
enforced "confessions", and effectively exterminated any threat to his
political power.
We could look too at McCarthy, whose fame for persecution was such
that his name is now used to describe "the use of unsupported accusa-
tions for any purpose". It is no accident that his activities were
referred to as a "witch hunt", nor that Arthur Miller's play about the
Salem witch trials, "The Crucible", was more a comment about McCar-
thyism than a comment about 17th century American life.
In 20th century Australia we are heirs to a European history, which
maintains that witches are servants of the devil, and should be
prosecuted for their crimes against humanity. In some States these
laws actually remain upon the Statute Books; in others, the legal
machinery has been removed, but often public opinion hovers around the
middle ages, believing that the only good witch is a dead witch.
Our latter-day inquisitors play upon these fears, in much the same
way as Matthew Hopkins played upon the fears of the people during the
Civil War. Christian Fundamentalists have no hesitation in using every
dirty trick in the book to ensure that public opinion remains opposed
to witchcraft. If this means that some of them have to stand up and
say: "Yes, I was a witch: I sacrificed my babies to the devil, and
copulated with a goat; I took part in drunken orgies, and drank the
blood of the sacrifice"; but then I found Jesus, and was born again,
1643 |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,318 | and now I'm a really nice person; well so be it. Some of them are so
psychiatrically unbalanced they may even believe it themselves.
Listen to a sample of the claims made by Audrey Harper, who achieved
notoriety in Britain as an ex-HPS of a Witches' Coven. This extract
is from an article by Aries, which appeared in Web of Wyrd #5:
Sent to a Dr Barnado's home by her mother, she
grew up with deprivation and social stigma. In
time she becomes a WRAF, falls in love, gets preg-
nant, boyfriend dies, she turns to booze, gives up
her baby and becomes homeless. Wandering to Pic-
cadilly Circus she meets some Flower Children with
the killer weed, and her descent into Hell is
assured. By day she gets stoned and eats junk
food; by night she sleeps in squats and doorways.
Along comes Molly; the whore with a heart of gold
who teaches Audrey the art of streetwalking. She
flirts with shoplifting, gets into pills, and then
gets talent spotted and invited to a Chelsea par-
ty, where wealth, power and tasteful decor are
dangled as bait. At the next party she is hooked
by the "group", which meets "every month in Vir-
ginia Water". She agrees to go to the next meeting
which is to be held at Hallowe'en.
Inside the dark Temple lit by black candles and
full of "A heady, sickly sweet smell from burning
incense", she is "initiated" by the "warlock",
whose "face was deathly pale and skeletal... his
eyes ... were dark and sunken" and whose "breath
and body seemed to exude a strange smell, a little
like stale alcohol." She signs herself over to
Satan with her own blood on a parchment scroll,
whereupon a baby is produced, its throat cut, and
the blood drank. Following this she gets dumped
on the "altar" and screwed as the "sacrifice of
the White Virgin". The meeting finishes with a
little ritual cursing and she's left to wander
"home" in the dark.
Her life falls into a steady routine of meetings
in Virginia Water, getting screwed by the "war-
lock", drug abuse, petty crime, and recruiting
runaways for parties, where the drinks are spiked
-"probably with LSD" - and candles injected with
heroin release "stupefying fumes into the air";
the object being sex kicks and pornography. She
falls pregnant again, gets committed to a psychia-
tric hospital, has the baby, and gives it away
convinced that the "warlock" would sacrifice it.
Things then become a confusion of Church desecra-
tion, drug addiction, ritual abuse, psychiatric
hospital, and falling in with Christian folk who
try vainly to save her soul. For rather vague
reasons the "coven" decide to drop her from the
team, and she dedicates herself to a true junkie's
lifestyle with a steady round of overdosing, jaun-
dice, and detoxification units. The "warlock"
1644 |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,319 | drops by to threaten her, and she makes her way
north via some psychiatric hospitals to a Chris-
tian Rehabilitation farm. She gets married, has a
child which she keeps, and becomes a regular chur-
chgoer. But beneath the surface are recurring
nightmares, insane anger and murderous feelings
towards her brethren. At the Emmanual Pentecostal
Church in Stourport she asks the Minister, Roy
Davies, for help. He prays, and God tells him that
she was involved with witchcraft. An exorcism has
her born again, cleansed of her sin. She gets bap-
tised and has no more nightmares, becoming a gen-
erally nicer person. She becomes the "occult ex-
pert" of the Reachout Trust and Evangelical Al-
liance, and makes a career out of telling an edi-
ted version of her tale.
Geoffrey Dickens MP persuades her to tell all on
live TV; "Audrey, to your knowledge is child sacr-
ifice still going on?" To this she replies, "To my
knowledge, yes." After this the whole thing ram-
bles into an untidy conclusion of self-congratula-
tion, self-promotion, and self-justification; and
for a grand finale pulls out a list of horrendous
child abuse, which is shamelessly exploited in
typically journalistic fashion, and by the usual
fallacious arguments which links it to anything
"occult"; help-lines, astro predictions in news-
papers, and even New Age festivals.
And so we are left with a horrifying vision of hordes of Satanists
swarming the country, buggering kids, sacrificing babies, and feeding
their own faeces to the flock."
Whilst all this seems incredible to any rational person, unfortunat-
ely, in the age old tradition, it confirms the worst fears of the man
and woman in the street, and so they swallow it whole. After all, it
was on telly, so it MUST be true!
As a direct result of people like Audrey Harper publicising their lies
and fantasy, children in England and Scotland were forcibly removed
from their homes, and subjected to the type of questioning that we had
previously believed had died out at the end of the Middle Ages.
A consultant clinical psychologist scrutinised the interview trans-
cripts and audio records of the recent Orkney child abuse case,
and in her summing up said: "[the Social Workers] told the children
they knew things had happened to them and were generally leading all
the way. When the children denied things, the questions were con-
tinually put until the children got hungry and gave them the answers
they wanted."
Who says that torture is no longer legal in the British Isles?
The father of four of the children who were taken into care said:
"At first I thought the allegations were laughable, but I found out
how serious the police were...". Just to remind you of the words of
Gilles de Rais some 500 years ago: [the accusations] are frivolous
and lack credit...".
1645 |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,320 | One 11 year-old described being asked to draw a circle of ritualistic
dancers. He said: "They got me to draw by saying, 'I am not a drawer.
Can you draw that?' It was meant to be a ring with children around and
a minister in the middle wearing a black robe and a crook to pull
children in."
The boy said he had been promised treats such as a lesson on how a
helicopter worked if he co-operated, and was told that he could
go if he gave one name. How remarkably similar to medieval witch
trials, where the victims were always pressed to name their accomp-
lices - for is it not said, "thou canst not be a witch alone?"!
In 1990, journalist Rosie Waterhouse commenting upon the Manchester
child abuse case said: "After three months of questioning by the
NSPCC, strange stories began to come out and other children were
named. The way the children began telling "Satanic" tales in this case
is remarkably similar to the way such stories first surfaced in
Nottingham. As "The Independent on Sunday" revealed last week (23/9/-
90), the Nottingham children began talking about witches, monsters,
babies and blood only after they had been encouraged, by an NSPCC
social worker, to play with toys which included witches' costumes,
monsters, toy babies, and a syringe for extracting blood."
Believe it or not, the parents of these children had no access to
them whatsoever. Why? Because our modern, scientifically trained,
20th century social workers believed that, "[the parents] would try
to silence the children, using secret Satanic symbols or trigger
words".
By March 1991, senior Police spokesmen were publicly claiming that
"police have no evidence of ritual or satanic abuse inflicted on
children anywhere in England or Wales". Scotland has a different
legal system, which is why it was not included in the statement -
not because the police have evidence there, for they do not.
When the Rochdale case finally came to court, after the children
had been in care (sic!) for about 16 months, the judge delivered a
damning indictment upon those who were responsible for it, and said:
"the way the children had been removed from their parents was par-
ticularly upsetting." He saw a video of the removal of one girl from
her home during a dawn raid, and commented that, "It is obvious from
the video tape that the girl is not merely frightened but greatly
distressed at being removed from home. The sobbing and distraught girl
can be seen. It is one of my most abiding memories of this case."
Let us return briefly to Salem, where, in 1710, William Good petit-
ioned for damages in respect of the trial and execution of his wife
Sarah, and the imprisonment of his daughter, Dorothy, "a child of four
or five years old, [who] being chained in the dungeon was so hardly
used and terrified that she hath ever since been very chargeable,
having little or no reason to govern herself.".
1646
Today's Christian Fundamentalist, like his vicious and self-righteous
predecessors, will use anything in his or her power-including innocent
children - to destroy the evils of Paganism and the occult. Sometimes
I wonder if we are becoming paranoid, or the subjects of a persecution
complex, but in writing this lecture it was brought home to me more |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,321 | strongly than ever before: the witch trials of the Middle Ages are not
a bloody stain on the history of Christianity; they are the source
from where today's fundamentalists draw their power, and are just as
terrifying today as they were hundreds of years ago. Bigotry and
persecution have changed in only one respect: 20th century mankind has
far more efficient and effective means of spreading lies and propa-
ganda than was available to our ancestors.
PERSECUTION: ANCIENT AND MODERN
Appendix A
The subject of the European Witch Trials has been written about ad
infinitum (and nauseam!), and there are a great many useful books
which the student will find of interest. There follows a short bib-
liography of those to which I referred when writing this lecture.
Select Bibliography
Bradford, Sarah Cesare Borgia (1981)
Cohn, Norman Europe's Inner Demons (1975)
Ginzburg, Carlo Ecstasies: Deciphering The
Witches' Sabbath (1990)
Hole, Christina Witchcraft in England (1977)
Howard, Michael The Occult Conspiracy (1989)
Kieckheffer, Richard European Witch Trials (1976)
Larner, Christina Enemies of God: The Witch Hunt in
Scotland (1981)
Larner, Christina Witchcraft and Religion (1985)
Maple, Eric The Complete Book of Witchcraft and
Demonology
(1966)
Radford, Kenneth Fire Burn (1989)
Ravensdale & Morgan The Psychology of Witchcraft
(1974)
Robbins, Rossell Hope The Encyclopaedia of Witchcraft and
Demonology (1984)
Russell, Jeffrey A History of Witchcraft (1980)
Scarre, Geoffrey Witchcraft and Magic in 16th and 17th
century Europe (1987)
Stenton, Sir Frank Anglo-Saxon England (1971)
Summers, Montague (Trans) Malleus Maleficarum (1986)
Thomas, Keith Religion and the Decline of Magic
(1971)
Trevor-Roper, H R The European Witch-Craze of the 16th
and 17th Centuries (1988)
Walsh, Michael Roots of Christianity (1986)
Worden, Blair (Ed) Stuart England (1986)
Encyclopaedia Britannica (1969 edition)
Collins Dictionary of the English Language (1980)
Newspapers: The Times, The Guardian, The Independent (Britain)
1647
PERSECUTION: ANCIENT AND MODERN
Appendix B - Historical Periods
Anglo-Saxon: broadly 550 AD to 1066 AD (the Norman invasion). |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,322 | Middle Ages: broadly the period from the end of classical
antiquity
(476
AD)
tothe
Italian
Renaissance
(
or
fall
of
Constantinople
in
1453).
More
specifical
ly
the period from 1000 AD to the 15th century.
Medieval: of, or relating to, the Middle Ages.
Tudor: the Royal House, descended from Welsh Squire Owen
Tudor
(d.1461),
which
ruled
in
England
between
148
5
AD - 1603 AD
Stuart: the Royal House which ruled in Scotland between
1371
ADand
1714,and
inEngland
between1603
AD
-
1714 AD.
Jacobean: relating to the period of James I's rule of England
(1603-1625).
Reformation: a 16th century religious and political movement
which
beganas
anattempt
toreform
theCathol
ic
Church,
but |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,323 | actually
resulted
inthe
establishm
ent
of the Protestant Church.
Renaissance: usually considered as beginning in Italy in the
14th
century,this
isthe
period
whichmarked
t
he
transitionfromtheMiddleAges
tothemoder
n
world.Itis
characterisedbyclassicalschol
ar
ship,scientific
andgeographicaldiscovery,a
nd
the exploration of individual human potential.
Civil War: 1640-1649, between the Royalists under Charles I,
and
the
Parliamentarians
ledby
Oliver
Cromwe
ll.
Charles I was executed in 1649.
Crusades: a series of wars undertaken by the Christians of
western
Europe
with
the
authorisation
of
the
Papac
y
from1095untilthe
mid-
15thcenturyforthe |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,324 | purpose
of
recoveringthe
HolySepulchre
atJer
us
alemfrom
theMuslimsand
defendingpossession
of
it. (Enc. Britannica)
Thirty Years' War: a major conflict involving Austria, Denmark,
France,
Holland,Germany,
Spain
andSweden
t
hat
devastated
central
Europe,
but
especially
Germa
ny.
It
beganas
awarbetween
Protestantsand
Catholic
s
but
developedintoa
generalpowerstruggle
(161
8
1648).
Lateran Councils: Five ecumenical councils held at the Lateran Palace
(the
official
residence
ofthe
Pope)
between
11
23
AD and 1512 AD. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,325 | 1648
PERSECUTION: ANCIENT AND MODERN
Appendix C - Gnostic and Christian sects
Manichaeism: a dualistic Gnostic religion first preached by Mani
(q.v.)in
the
3rdcentury
AD.
Itsearly
centrew
as
Babylonia,then
partofthePersianempireand
a
meeting place of faiths. (EB)
The basic theology of Manichaeism is that good and evil are
separate and opposed principles, which have become mixed in the world
through the action of the evil principle. There is a complicated
mythology which describes the creation of the world and the elements,
and a set of complex correspondences by which the seeker can return to
a state of salvation. Manichaeism spread across a huge area, including
the Roman Empire. However, by the 6th century it had virtually been
eradicated from Spain, France and Italy, although was strong in the
eastern Mediterranean until the 9th century, when it was absorbed into
the neo-Manichean sects of the Bogomils, Cathars, etc.
Bogomils: a religious sect which flourished in the Balkans
between the 10th and 15th centuries.
Their central teaching was strictly dualistic; that the visible,
material world was created by the Devil, and that everything within it
was therefore evil. They rejected many of the trappings of Chris-
tianity, and their condemnation of anything to do with the flesh -
including eating and drinking! - has rightly earned them the nickname,
"the greatest puritans of the middle ages".
Cathars: a heretical Christian sect that flourished in
western Europe in the 12th and 13th centuries.
They believed that goodness existed only in the spiritual world
created by God, and that the material world, created by Satan, was
evil. Their theology bore a great resemblance to that of Manichaeism
and the Bogomils, and they were closely connected with the latter.
Waldensians: also known as Valdenses or Vaudois. The sect was
founded
in
southern
France
in
the
12th
century, |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,326 | an
d
emphasised
poverty,
abstinence
from
physical
la
bou
r, and a life devoted to prayer.
They were influenced by other "heretical" sects, and rejected a
number of the basic tenets of the Catholic faith. They were stern
opponents to the acquisition of wealth and power within the Church,
and thus came into direct opposition to the Papacy,which thrived on
both. They were fiercely persecuted, and by the end of the 15th
century, confined mainly to the French and Italian
valleys of the Cottian Alps. During the 16th century, the Waldensians
were transformed into a Protestant church, but suffered heavy persecu-
tion throughout the 17th century from the Dukes of Savoy. This ceased
only after Oliver Cromwell intervened personally on their behalf with
the duke, Charles Emmanuel II. In the latter part of the 17th century
the Waldensians returned to their original homeland, and in 1848 the
Waldensians were given civil rights, and are today members of the
World Presbyterian Alliance.
1649
PERSECUTION: ANCIENT AND MODERN
Appendix D - A calendar of events connected with the persecution of
heretics
640 AD Eorcenberht succeeds Eadbald as King of Kent, and
becomes
the
firstEnglish
king
toorder
the
dest
r
uction of pagan idols throughout his kingdom;
663 AD Council of Whitby determines the date of Easter to
be
inaccordance
withRomanpractice,
andso
end
s
Celtic Christianity in Northumberland;
668-690 AD Liber Poenitentialis by Theodore, Archbishop of
Canterbury. Probably the first legislation against
witches. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,327 | Itadvised
penances
(eg,
fasting
)for
those
who"sacrificedto
devils,foretold
t
he
futurewiththeiraid,atefoodthathadbee
n
offeredin
sacrifice,orburnedgrainafter
ama
n
was deadforthewell-beingofthelivingandof
the house."
735-766 AD the Confessional of Ecgberht, Archbishop of
York, which prescribed a 7-year fast for a woman
convicted of "slaying by incantation";
871-899 AD reign of King Aelfred (brother of Aethelred), who
declared
the
death
penaltyfor
those
who
practi
se
Wicca;
925-939 AD reign of King Aethelstan, where murder - including
murderbywitchcraft
-waspunishablewith
th
e
death penalty;
936 AD Otto elected King of the Germans, whereupon he
declaredit
hisintention
to
drivethe
pagans
o
ut
of his land; |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,328 | 951 Otto crowned King of Lombardy;
955 Otto defeated the Magyars and proclaimed himself
"Protector of Europe";
962 Otto crowned Holy Roman Emperor;
1022 the first burning (at Orleans) for heresy;
1066-1087 AD reign of William the Conqueror in England; he
reduced
Aethelstan'ssentence
ofdeath
for
con
victed murderers to banishment;
1118 King Baldwin II of Jerusalem suggested to Sir Hugh
dePayensthat
heorganiseachivalric
ordero
f
knightsto
defendtravellersto
theHolyLand,
an
d
grantedpartofhispalace,which
stoodonthesit
e
ofSolomon'soriginaltemple,
fortheirheadqua
r
ters.Asaresultof thisgesture,HughdePayens
calledhisOrdertheTempliMilitia,andthenlater
1650
changedthisto KnightsoftheTempleofSolomonin
Jerusalem;
1162 Pope Alexander III issued a special papal bull
releasing
Templars
from
spiritual
obedience
t
o
a
ny
butthe
Popehimself,gavethemexemption |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,329 | fro
m
paying
tithes,
andallowed
themtheir
own
chaplain
s
and burial grounds;
12/13th cent the Cathar heresies: introduction of the obscene
kiss and ritual adoration of the devil;
1243-44 Siege of Montsegur;
1244 225 Cathars burned at the stake at Montsegur;
1259 relationships between the Knights Templars and the
Hospitallers
ofKnights
ofStJohn
deteriorat
ed
into open warfare;
1291 the Saracens took Jerusalem, and the Knights
Templars
were
expelled,
and
lost
their
headquarter
s
on the site of Solomon's Temple;
1301 Walter Langton, bishop of Coventry, tried by
ecclesiastical court for diabolism and acquitted;
1302 trial in Exeter for defamation of a man who called
a woman a "wicked witch and thief";
1307 King Philip of France ordered the arrest of every
member
ofthe
KnightsTemplar
in
France:this
w
as
followed
bya
papalbull
toall
rulersin
Christia |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,330 | n
Europe that all Templars were to be arrested;
1311 investigation in London by episcopal authority into
sorcery, enchantment, magic, divination and
invocation;
1312 the Pope officially disbanded the Knights Templars;
1314 Jaques de Molay (last Grand Master of the Knights
Templars) burned as a relapsed heretic;
1321 last Cathar burned at the stake;
1324 Alice Kyteler tried in Kilkenny by secular and
ecclesiastical
authorities
for
diabolism,
i
nvoca
tion and sorcery;
1347 the Plague spreads over the whole of Italy, and
arrives in France by the end of the year;
1348 the Plague reaches Paris, then the Low Countries,
and then via the Channel to southern England;
1349 Britain ravaged by the Plague, which passes into
Germany, Austria and Scandinavia;
1651
1360 the Plague, complicated by influenza reappears in
Europe, continuing in waves until 1441, and finally
ending around 1510;
1390 woman tried in Milan for attending an assembly led
by "Diana", "Erodiade" or "Oriente";
1408 the Plague, still rampant in Europe is complicated
by an epidemic of Typhus and Whooping Cough;
1409 trial of Pope Benedict XIII at Pisa for divination,
invocation, sorcery and other offences;
1428-47 Dauphine: 110 women and 57 men executed by secular
court for witchcraft, especially diabolism;
1431 Joan of Arc tried for heresy and burnt at the
stake:
the
trial
decision
was
annulled |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,331 | in
1456,
an
d
in
1920
shewas
canonised
byPope
Benedict
XVwit
h
the date of her execution (May 30) becoming a
national holiday in France;
1440 Gilles de Rais tried on 47 charges including con
juration
of
demons
and
sexual
perversions
agai
nst
children:
nearlyall
evidence
washearsay,
non
e
of
his
servantswascalled
totestify,and
theproce
e
dingswerehighlyirregular:
hewasstrangledan
d
thensenttothe pyre,buthisfamilyweregiven
permissionto removehisbodybefore theflames
reached it for burial at a nearby Carmelite Church;
1441 Margery Jourdain ("the Witch of Eye") convicted of
plottingtokillKingHenry
VI,andburnedas
a
traitor;
1458 first recorded use of the word "sabbat" (Nicholas
Jacquier).
"Synagogue" |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,332 | was
the
word
commonly
us
ed
todescribethemeeting
placesofhereticsa
nd
witches;
1470 trial before Royal Court in England for defamation
- man had accused the Duchess of Bedford of image
magic;
1479 Earl of Mar executed for employing witches
to kill James III of Scotland;
1484 Papal Bull of Pope Innocent VIII officially
declaring witchcraft a heresy;
1486 first publication of the Malleus Maleficarum;
1488 Metz: 31 women and 4 men tried by secular court for
weather magic: 29 burned;
1492 expulsion of Jews from Spain;
1521 Martin Luther excommunicated by Pope Leo X, and so
begins the Reformation;
1652
1532 the Constitutio Criminalis Carolina: the criminal
code
for
the
HolyRoman
Empire
which
specified
ho
w
witches,
fortunetellers,
etc
wereto
be
tried,a
nd
punished;
1542 first statute against witchcraft in England passed
by Parliament (revoked 1547); |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,333 | 1557 first list of prohibited books issued by the Roman
church;
1562 statute enacted in Scotland under Mary Queen of
Scots
declaring
the
death
penalty
for
witchcra
ft,
sorceryand
necromancy:theAct
wasconfirme
d
in
1649 and repealed in 1736;
1563 statute against witchcraft by Elizabeth I in
Englandordering
the
deathpenalty
for
witch
es,
enchantersand
sorcerers(undercivil,
note
cc
lesiastical law);
1566 first major trial under statute of 1563: Elizabeth
Francis,
Agnes
Waterhouseand
JoanWaterhous
e
at
Chelmsford:
Agneshanged,Elizabethreceive
d
a
light sentence and Joan was found not guilty;
1584 "Discoverie of Witchcraft" by Reginald Scot
published - a Protestant argument against belief in
witchcraft; |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,334 | 1590-92 North Berwick trials by James VI;
1595 Nicholas Remy publishes "Demonolatreiae" where he
boasted on the title page that he had condemned 900
witches in 15 years;
1596 John Dee as Warden of a Manchester College acts as
an advisor for cases of witchcraft and demonology;
1597 "Daemonologie" by King James VI published;
1600 Giordano Bruno burnt at the stake in Rome
as an "impenitent heretic";
1603 ascension of James VI to the English throne as
James I;
1604 new statute against witchcraft by James I
which
established
pact,
devil-worship
and
o
ther
continental ideas in English law;
1611 King James authorises a new translation of
the Bible to include the word "witch";
1612 twenty witches tried together at Lancashire
(the Pendle witches);
1628 in Massachusetts, an English lawyer, Thomas
Mortonordered
amaypoleto
beerectedin
t
he
colony
which
he
founded
(Merrymount),
and
celebr
at
1653
ed
MaywithlocalIndians
andrefugeesfromth |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,335 | e
Puritans,withstag
antlers,bellsandbright
ly
coloured clothes, under an elected "Lord and Lady"
to
ruleover
thecelebrations;
He
wasarres
ted
under
charges
ofpractising
witchcraft,bu
t
was
released;
1633 the public exorcisms of the nuns of Loudun as part
ofa
plotby
CardinalRichelieu
to
revengehimse
lf
upon Urban Grandier: Grandier arrested and tried by
investigating committee;
1634 Grandier tortured then burned alive;
1644 maypoles made illegal in England;
1644-5 Matthew Hopkins active in Chelmsford;
1646 Matthew Hopkins retired - he died the following
year;
1647 first witch hung in the USA, in Connecticut;
1649 first newspaper astrology column by Lilly;
1662 at Bury St Edmunds women were accused and convicted
ofwitchcrafton
thetestimonyof
hysteric
al
children;
1662 the trial of Isobel Gowdie in Auldearne, Scotland: |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,336 | Gowdie introduces the idea of a coven of thirteen;
1663 the Licensing Act determined that books could not
be
published
without
priorconsultation
wit
h
the
Church or State;
1679-82 the Chambre Ardente affair: a star chamber court
admittingof
noappealarraigned
totry
Mada
me
Bosse,
her
daughter
and
sons;
Madame
Montvoisin
(L
a
Voisin)and
La
DameVigoreux.
Duringthe
course
of
the
trial,severalhundredsofthehighestcou
r
tiersofKing LouisXIVwereimplicatedinthe
poisoningscandal.Theaffairdegeneratedintoa
searchforheresyandwitchcraft,andeventually
CatholicPriestsDavot, Gerard,Deshayes,Cotton,
Tournet,Guibourg andMariettewere alsodrawnin,
accused ofperforming theBlackMass. Evidencewas
collectedto showthat Madamede Montespan(Louis'
former mistress)attempted to poisonLouis andhis
new mistress, andwas the leader ofthe Satanic
cult. In all, 319 peoplewere arrested and 104
sentenced: 36 to death,4 to slavery in the gal
leys, 34 to banishmentand 30 acquitted. In 1709
Louis attempted to destroy the records of the
affair, but failed;
1684 Alice Molland was the last person executed as a
witch in England (at Exeter); |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,337 | 1654
1689 Cotton Mather (New England) publishes "Memorable
Providences
Relating
to
Witchcraft
and
Possession
s"
supporting belief in witchcraft;
1692 Salem witch trials: 19 hung and more than 100
jailed;
thelast
personexecutedin
theUSA
fo
r
witchcraft;
1727 last execution in Scotland for witchcraft;
1731 last trial for witchcraft in England: Jane Wenham,
who was convicted, then pardoned and released;
1736 the repeal of the statutes against witchcraft of
Mary
Queen
of
Scots(1562),
Elizabeth
I
(1563)
an
d
JamesI
&VI(1604):
replacedwith
astatutewhi
ch
statedthat,"no
prosecution,suitor
proceedi
ng
shallbe commencedorcarriedoutagainstany
personorpersonsforwitchcraft,
sorcery,inchan
t
ment (sic),orconjuration."Itprovided forthe
prosecutionof thosepretendingtopossessmagical
powers, but it denied reality to those powers; |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,338 | 1745 last execution in France for witchcraft;
1775 last execution in Germany for witchcraft;
1829 Lamothe-Langan fabricated and published documents
represented
to
berecords
of
trialsof
witches
i
n
Toulouse
andCarcassonne,
probably
in
an
attemp
t
to
provethe
continuingexistenceof
theworshi
p
of
the old religion;
1830 in "Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft" Sir
Walter
Scott
argues
thatalleged
witches
had
be
en
misunderstood and mistreated;
1862 Jules Michelet argues in his book "La Sorcerie"
that
witchcraftwas
aprotest
bymedieval
ser
fs
against a crushing social order;
1865 Pope Pius X again attacked secret societies,claim
ing
that
Freemasonry
was |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,339 | anti-Christian,
sata
nic,
and derived from paganism;
1899 publication of Aradia: Gospel of the Witches by
Leland;
1928 first English translation of the Malleus Malefic
arum (tr Summers);
1951 repeal of the 1736 Witchcraft Act with the Fraud
ulent Mediums Act;
1963 demand made for reinstatement of the Witchcraft
Laws
in
England
following
desecration
of
churc
hes
and graveyards;
1655
1966 the Index (of prohibited books) abolished;
1991 Anti-occult amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill
had its third reading in Parliament. Presented by
Geoffrey
Dickens,
this
prescribed
imprisonmen
t
f
or
not
morethan
five
yearsagainst
one
who,"permit
s,
entices
orencourages
aminorto
participatein,
o
r |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,340 | bepresentataceremonyorotheractivityofany
kindspecifiedinsub-
section3...".Subsection3
says:"Theceremoniesoractivitiestowhichthis
sectionappliesare thoseof,orassociated with,
Satanism andotherdevilworshipping, blackmagic,
witchcraft, oranyactivity towhich Section1 of
the Fraudulent Mediums Act (1951) applies.
The
Bill
was
rejected
for
a
number
of
reasons,
not
least because it made newspaper/magazine editors culpable if
minors should read the astrology column!
1656
HISTORY OF WICCA IN ENGLAND: 1939 - present day
This talk was given by Julia Phillips at the Wiccan Conference in
Canberra, 1991. It is mainly about the early days of the Wicca in
England; specifically what we now call Gardnerian and Alexandrian
traditions. The text remains "as given", so please remember when you
read it that it was never intended to be "read", but "heard" and
debated.
Text begins:
There are three main strands I intend to examine: one, Gardner's claim
of traditional initiation, and its subsequent development; two,
magical traditions to which Gardner would have had access; and three,
literary sources.
As we look at these three main threads, it is important to bear in
mind that Gardner was 55 years old at the time of his claimed initia-
tion; that he had spent many years in Malaya, and had an enormous
interest in magic, Folklore and Mythology. By the time he published
High Magic's Aid, he was 65, and 75 when "The Meaning of Witchcraft"
appeared. He died in 1964, at the age of 80.
Gardner was born in 1884, and spent most of his working adult life in
Malaya. He retired, and returned to the UK in 1936. He joined the
Folklore Society, and in June 1938, also joined the newly opened
Rosicrucian Theatre at Christchurch where it is said he met Old
Dorothy Clutterbuck.
I chose 1939 as my arbitrary starting point as that was the year that
Gerald Gardner claims he was initiated by Old Dorothy into a practis-
ing coven of the Old Religion, that met in the New Forest area of
Britain. In his own words,
"I realised that I had stumbled upon something interesting; but I was
half-initiated before the word, "Wica" which they used hit me like a |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,341 | thunderbolt, and I knew where I was, and that the Old Religion still
existed. And so I found myself in the Circle, and there took the usual
oath of secrecy, which bound me not to reveal certain things." This
quote is taken from The Meaning of Witchcraft, which was published in
1959.
It is interesting that in this quote, Gardner spells Wicca with only
one "c"; in the earlier "Witchcraft Today" (1954) and "High Magic's
Aid" (1949), the word Wicca is not even used. His own derivation for
the word, given in "The Meaning of Witchcraft", is as follows:
"As they (the Dane and Saxon invaders of England) had no witches of
their own they had no special name for them; however, they made one up
from "wig" an idol, and "laer", learning, "wiglaer" which they shor-
tened into "Wicca".
"It is a curious fact that when the witches became English-speaking
they adopted their Saxon name, "Wica"."
1657
In "An ABC of Witchcraft Past and Present", Doreen Valiente does not
have an entry for Wicca, but when discussing Witchcraft, does mention
the Saxon derivation from the word Wicca or Wicce. In the more recent-
ly published The Rebirth Of Witchcraft, however, she rejects this
Saxon theory in favour of Prof. Russell's derivation from the Indo-
European root "Weik", which relates to things connected with magic and
religion.
Doreen Valiente strongly supports Gardner's claim of traditional
initiation, and published the results of her successful attempt to
prove the existence of Dorothy Clutterbuck in an appendix to "The
Witches' Way" by Janet and Stewart Farrar. It is a marvellous piece of
investigation, but proving that Old Dorothy existed does nothing to
support Gardner's claims that she initiated him.
In his book, "Ritual Magic in England", occultist Francis King does
offer some anecdotal evidence in support of Gardner's claims. However,
it is only fair to point out that in the same book, he virtually
accuses Moina Mathers of murder, based upon a misunderstanding of a
story told by Dion Fortune! With that caveat, I'll recount the tale in
full:
King relates that in 1953, he became acquainted with Louis Wilkinson,
who wrote under the pen-name of Louis Marlow, and had contributed
essays to Crowley's Equinox. He later became one of Crowley's literary
executors. King says that in conversation, Wilkinson told him that
Crowley had claimed to have been offered initiation into a witch
coven, but that he refused, as he didn't want to be bossed around by a
bunch of women. (This story is well-known, and could have been picked
up anywhere.)
Wilkinson then proceeded to tell King that he had himself become
friendly with members of a coven operating in the New Forest area, and
he thought that whilst it was possible that they derived their exis-
tence from Murray's "Witch Cult in Western Europe", he felt that they
were rather older.
King draws the obvious conclusion; that these witches were the very
same as those who initiated Gardner. King claims that the conversation
with Wilkinson took place in 1953, although "Ritual Magic in England" |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,342 | was not published - or presumably written - until 1970. However, on
September 27 1952, "Illustrated" magazine published a feature by Allen
Andrews, which included details of a working by, "the Southern Coven
of British Witches", where 17 men and women met in the New Forest
to repel an invasion by Hitler. Wilkinson had told King of this
working during their conversation, which King believes to be proof
that such a coven existed; there are some differences in the two
stories, and so it is possible that two sources are reporting the same
event, but as Wilkinson's conversation with King came after the
magazine article, we shall never know.
In the recently published "Crafting the Art of Magic", Aidan Kelly
uses this same source to "prove" (and I use the word advisedly - the
book "proves" nothing") that Gardner, Dorothy, et al created Wicca one
night following a social get together! Of one thing we can be certain
though: whatever its origin, modern Wicca derives from Gardner. There
may of course be other traditional, hereditary witches, but even if
they are genuine, then it is unlikely that they would have been able
to "go public" had it not been for Gardner.
1658
There have been many claims of "hereditary" origin (other than Gard-
ner's own!) One of the most famous post-Gardner claimants to "heredi-
tary" status was actress Ruth Wynn-Owen, who fooled many people for a
very long time before being exposed. Roy Bowers, who used the pseud-
onym Robert Cochrane, was another: Doreen Valiente describes her
association with him in "The Rebirth of Witchcraft", and The Roebuck,
which is still active in the USA today, derives directly from Coch-
rane, via Joe Wilson. "Witchcraft: A Tradition Renewed" by Evan John
Jones with Doreen Valiente describes a tradition derived from Robert
Cochrane. Alex Sanders, of course is another who claimed hereditary
lineage, and like Cochrane, deserves his own place in this history,
and we'll get to both of them later.
Many people have been suspicious of Gardner's claims, and have accused
him of making the whole thing up. They suggest that the Wicca is no
more than the fantasy of an old man coloured by a romantic imagina-
tion. One particularly virulent attack upon Gardner came from Charles
Cardell, writing under the pseudonym of Rex Nemorensis.
One of Gardner's initiates who is still active in the Wicca today has
an interesting tale to tell about Cardell, whom he knew:
"Cardell claimed to be a Witch, but from a different tradition to
Gardner's. Cardell was a psychopathic rat, with malevolent intent
toward all and sundry. He managed to get a woman called Olive Green
(Florannis) into Gardner's coven, and told her to copy out the Book of
Shadows so that Cardell could publish it, and destroy Gardner. He
also contacted a London paper, and told them when and where the coven
meetings were held, and of course the paper got quite a scoop. Cardell
led people in the coven to believe that it was Doreen Valiente who had
informed on them.
Doreen had just left Gardner in a bit of a huff after a disagreement;
another coven member, Ned Grove, left with her. Anyway, the day the
paper printed the exposure, Cardell sent Gardner a telegram saying,
"Remember Ameth tonight". (Ameth was Doreen's Craft name, and as it
has now been published, I see no reason not to use it here)."
My informant also said that Olive Green was associated with Michael |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,343 | Houghton, owner of Atlantis book shop in Museum Street, who was the
publisher of High Magic's Aid. Through this association, she also
encountered Kenneth Grant of the OTO, although their association was
not friendly.
Cecil Williamson, the original owner of the witchcraft museum on the
Isle of Man, and present owner of the Witchcraft Museum in Boscastle,
has also published a number of articles where he states quite categor-
ically that Gardner was an utter fraud; but, he offers only anecdotes
to support these allegations.
Although Gardner claimed his initiation occurred in 1939, we don't
really hear anything about him until 1949, when "High Magic's Aid" was
published by Michael Houghton.
1659
This book has very strong Solomonic leanings, but like Gardner's own
religious beliefs, combined the more natural forms of magic with high
ceremonial. In his introduction to the book, Gardner says that: "The
Magical rituals are authentic, party from the Key of Solomon (MacGreg-
or Mathers' translation) and partly from magical MSS in my posses-
sion)." Gardner did indeed have a large collection of MSS, which
passed with the rest of his goods to Ripleys in Toronto after his
death.
Scire (pseudonym) was the name Gardner took as a member of Crowley's
branch of the OTO; although it is generally agreed that his membership
was purely nominal, he was certainly in contact with people like
Kenneth Grant and Madeline Montalban (founder of the Order of the
Morning Star).
Gardner was given his OTO degree and Charter by Aleister Crowley, to
whom he was introduced in 1946 by Arnold Crowther. As Crowley died in
1947, their association was not long-lived, but Crowther confirms that
the two men enjoyed each other's company.
So, after that brief introduction we can have a look at the first of
the strands I mentioned.
In 1888, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was born, beginning a
renaissance of interest in the occult that has continued to the
present day. It is impossible to overstate the importance of the GD to
modern occultists; not only in its rituals, but also in its personal-
ities; and of course, through making available a large body of occult
lore that would otherwise have remained unknown, or hidden in obscur-
ity.
I will be looking at this body of occult lore with other literary
influences later, and will here concentrate on the rituals and per-
sonalities that have influenced Wicca.
We cannot look at the GD in isolation from its own origins. It is
descended from a myriad of esoteric traditions including Rosicrucian-
ism, Theosophy, and Freemasonry. The latter in its own right, as well
as via the SRIA - a scholarly and ceremonial association open to
Master Masons only.
Whether the German Lodge or Fraulein Sprengel actually existed is a
matter still under debate; but either in fact or in spirit, this is
the source for the "Cypher Manuscripts" which were used to found the |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,344 | Isis-Urania Lodge in 1888.
As I'm sure everyone knows, Isis-Urania was founded by Dr Wynn-West-
cott, Dr Woodman, and MacGregor Mathers. Not only were all three
Master Masons; Wynn-Westcott and Mathers were also members of the
Theosophical Society. The most important thing though is the fact the
these three men were a ruling triumvirate that managed the affairs of
the SRIA. This is important, for the SRIA included Hargrave Jennings
in its membership, and Jennings is reputed to have been involved with
a Pagan group at the end of the 19th century, which drew its inspir-
ation from Apuleius - The Golden Ass.
1660
But back to the GD - whether the Cypher Manuscripts actually existed,
or Wynn-Westcott manufactured them is now irrelevant; Mathers was
commissioned to write-up the rituals into a workable shape, and thus
the Golden Dawn was born.
Members of the Isis-Urania Lodge at various times also included Allan
Bennett, Moina Mathers, Aleister Crowley, Florence Farr, Maud Gonne,
Annie Horniman, Arthur Machen, "Fiona Macleod", Arthur Waite and WB
Yeats. Also associated were Lady Gregory, and G W Russell, or AE,
whose "The Candle of Vision" was included in the bibliography of "The
Meaning of Witchcraft". The literary and Celtic influences within the
GD were immense.
From the Isis-Urania Lodge sprang all the others, including the
so-called Dissident Orders derived through Crowley. It is this line
that some commentators trace to modern Wicca, so it is the one upon
which we will concentrate.
Aleister Crowley was initiated into the Isis-Urania Lodge on 18
November 1898. As you most probably know, Crowley later quarrelled
with MacGregor Mathers, and in 1903 began to create his own Order, the
Argenteum Astrum, or Silver Star. In 1912, Crowley was initiated into
the OTO, and in 1921, succeeded Theodor Reuss as its Chief.
According to Arnold Crowther's account, it was in 1946, a year before
Crowley's death, that Crowley gave Gardner an OTO Charter. Ithell
Colquhoun says only that it occurred in the 1940s, and further states
that Gardner introduced material from the OTO, and less directly from
the GD, into "...the lore of his covens".
As Doreen Valiente also admits, "Indeed, the influence of Crowley was
very apparent throughout the (Wiccan) rituals.". This, Gardner ex-
plained to her, was because the rituals he received from Old Dorothy's
coven were very fragmentary, and in order to make them workable, he
had to supplement them with other material.
To give an example of some of the lines by Crowley which are rather
familiar to modern Wiccans:
I give unimaginable joys on earth; certainty, not faith, while in
life, upon death; peace unutterable, rest, ecstasy; nor do I demand
aught in sacrifice.
I am Life, and the giver of Life, yet therefore is the knowledge of me
the knowledge of death.
And of course, the Gnostic Mass has been immensely influential. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,345 | Not only poetry, but also magical practices in Wicca are often derived
from GD sources. For example:
the way of casting the circle: that is, the visualisation of the
circle, and the pentagrams at the quarters, are both based upon the
standard GD Pentagram Ritual;
1661
both the concept and word "Watchtowers" are of course from the Eno-
chian system of Magic, passed to Wicca via the GD (although I would
like to make it very clear that their use within Wicca bears no
relation to the use within Enochia - the only similarity is in the
name);
the Elements and colours generally attributed to the Quarters are
those of the GD;
the weapons and their attributions are a combination of GD, Crowley
and Key of Solomon.
In "Witchcraft Today", Gardner says, "The people who certainly would
have had the knowledge and ability to invent (the Wiccan rites) were
the people who formed the Order of the Golden Dawn about seventy years
ago...".
The GD is not the only influence upon Gardner; Freemasonry has had a
tremendous impact upon the Wicca. Not only were the three founders of
Isis-Urania Temple Masons, so too were Crowley and Waite; Gardner and
at least one member of the first coven (Daffo) were both Co-Masons.
Gardner was also a friend of JSM Ward, who had published a number of
books about Masonry.
Doreen describes Ward as a "leading Mason", but Francis King says only
that Ward was, "a bogus Bishop... who had written some quite good but
far-fetched books on masonry, and who ran a peculiar religious-cum-oc-
cult community called The Abbey of Christ the King..." Whether the
books were far-fetched or not, we can assume that some of the many
similarities between Wicca and Masonry are in some ways due to Ward's
influence.
Some of these include:
The Three Degrees
The Craft
So Mote It Be
The Challenge
Properly Prepared
The 1st Degree Oath (in part)
Presentation of the Working Tools at 1st degree
and so on.
It seems to me quite clear that even if Gardner received a traditional
set of rituals from his coven, they must have been exceptionally
sparse, as the concepts that we know of as Wicca today certainly
derive from ceremonial magic and Freemasonry to a very great extent.
Indeed, Gardner always claimed that they were sparse.
It could be argued that all derive from a common source. That the |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,346 | appearance of a phrase, or technique in one tradition does not autom-
atically suggest that its appearance elsewhere means that the one was
taken from the other. However, Gardner admits his sources in many
cases, and Doreen confirms them in others, so I think it is safe to
presume that the rituals and philosophy used by Wicca descends from
the traditions of Freemasonry and Ceremonial magic, rather than from a
single common source. However, as Hudson Frew points out in his
commentary upon Aidan Kelly's book, the phenomena of the techniques
1662
and practices of ceremonial magic influencing folk magic and trad-
itions is widely recognised by anthropologists, and certainly does not
indicate plagiarism. And of course there are many traditional witch-
craft aspects in the Wicca.
We have looked at the development of the magical orders which resulted
from the British occult revival of the 19th and 20th centuries, and
now we can see where this ties in with Wicca, and Gardner's claim of
traditional initiation.
I have here a "family tree" of the main branches of British Wicca. It
is by no means exhaustive, and is intended to provide an outline, not
a definitive history! I have included my own coven lines and develop-
ment as an indication of the kind of "cross-over" of tradition which
often occurs, not to suggest that these are the only active groups!
Also, it would not be ethical for me to include details of other
covens.
We have two possible "hereditary" sources to the Gardnerian Craft:
one, the Horsa Coven of Old Dorothy, and two, the Cumbrian Group which
Rae Bone claims to have been initiated into before meeting Gardner.
(NB: Doreen Valiente says that the Horsa Coven is not connected with
Old Dorothy, but is another group entirely.) There is also sometimes
mention of a St Alban's group that pre-dates Gardner, but as far as I
know, this is mistaken. The St Albans group was Gardner's own group,
which as far as research confirms, did not pre-date him.
To return to Rae Bone: she was one of Gardner's HPSs, and her "line"
has been immensely important to the modern Wicca; she was featured in
the magazine series, "Man Myth and Magic" if anyone has a copy of
that.
In her heyday she ran two covens: one in Cumbria, and one in South
London. Rae is still alive, and lives in Cumbria, although her last
coven moved to New Zealand many years ago, and she is no longer
active. No-one has ever been able to trace the coven in New Zealand.
At this point, I will just mention George Pickingill, although he is
not shown on the tree, as I think it extremely dubious that he had any
connection with Gardner, or any other modern Wiccan.
Pickingill died in 1909, whilst Gardner was still in Malaya. Eric
Maple is largely responsible for the beginnings of the Pickingill
myth, which were expanded by Bill Liddell (Lugh) writing in "The
Wiccan" and "The Cauldron" throughout the 1970s. Mike Howard still has
some of Liddell's material which he has never published, and I have
yet to meet anyone within the British Craft who gives credence to
Liddell's claims.
In the book, "The Dark World of Witches", published in 1962, Maple
tells of a number of village wise women and cunning men, one of whom |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,347 | is George Pickingill. There is a photograph included of an old man
with a stick, holding a hat, which Maple describes as Pickingill. This
photograph has subsequently been re-used many times in books about
witchcraft and Wicca.
1663
Issue number 31 of "Insight" Magazine, dated July 1984, contains a
very interesting letter from John Pope:
"The photograph purporting to be Old George Pickingill is in fact a
photo of Alf Cavill, a station porter at Ellstree, taken in the early
1960s. Alf is now dead, but he was no witch, and laughed over the
photograph when he saw it."
A very respected Craft authority has told me that he believes the
photo, which is in his possession, to be of Pickingill, but like so
much to do with Craft history, there is no definitive answer to this
one.
Many claims were made by Liddell; some obviously from cloud-cuckoo
land, others which could, by a stretch of the imagination, be ac-
cepted. The very idea of Pickingill, an illiterate farm labourer,
co-ordinating and supervising nine covens across the breadth of the UK
is staggering. To accept - as Liddell avers - that he had the likes of
Alan Bennett and Aleister Crowley as his pupils bends credulity even
further.
The infamous photograph which Liddell claims shows Crowley, Bennett
and Pickingill together has conveniently disappeared, and no-one
admits to ever having seen it. Like most of Liddell's claims, nothing
has ever been substantiated, and when pushed, he retreats into the
time honoured favourite of, "I can't reveal that - you're not an
initiate"!
But to return to the family tree: the names of Doreen Valiente, Pat
and Arnold Crowther, Lois Bourne (Hemmings), Jack Bracelin and Monique
Wilson will probably be the most familiar to you.
Jack Bracelin is the author of Gardner's biography, "Gerald Gardner,
Witch", (published 1960) now out of print, although still available
2nd hand, and in libraries. (In Crafting the Art of Magic, Kelly
claims that this book was actually written by Idries Shah, and simply
published under Bracelin's name. As with every other claim, Kelly
offers no evidence of this)
I have seen a copy of Bracelin's Book of Shadows, which it is claimed
dates from 1949, although in The Rebirth Of Witchcraft, Doreen says
that Bracelin was a "relative newcomer" in the mid-1950s. I have also
been told by two different sources that Bracelin helped Gardner write
"The Laws". In The Rebirth Of Witchcraft, Doreen states that she did
not see The Laws until the mid 1950s, when she and her partner Ned
Grove accused Gardner of concocting them in order to re-assert control
over the coven. As Bracelin was in the Gardner camp during the breakup
of the group, it seems reasonable that he did in fact help with their
composition. (NB: Alex Sanders increased the number of "The Laws"
much later - these appeared in June Johns' book, "The King of the
Witches")
1664 |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,348 | Although Doreen claims that the reason for the coven break-up was the
fact that Gardner and Bracelin were publicity crazy, there was another
reason, which was the instatement of a new lady into the coven,
effectively replacing Doreen as HPS. This is also the main reason for
Gerald's Law which states that the HPS will, "...gracefully retire in
favour of a younger woman, should the coven so decide in council."
Needless to say, Doreen was not impressed, and she and Ned left the
coven under very acrimonious circumstances. It was quite some time
before Doreen had contact with Gardner again, and they never quite
regained the degree of friendship that had previously existed.
Monique and Campbell Wilson are infamous, rather than famous, as
Gardner's heirs who sold off his magical equipment and possessions
after his death, to Ripleys in the USA.
Monique was the last of his Priestesses, and many Wiccans today still
spit when her name is mentioned. Pat Crowther was rather scathing
about her recently in an interview, and in The Rebirth Of Witchcraft,
although Doreen tells of the sale of Gardner's magical possessions to
Ripleys, she doesn't ever mention the Wilsons by name. In effect, the
Craft closed ranks against them, and they became outcasts.
Eventually, in the face of such opposition they had to sell the Museum
in Castletown, and they moved to Torremolinos, where they bought a
cafe. Monique died nine years after selling the Museum. It is rumoured
that Campbell Wilson moved to the USA, and met with a car accident
there: this is only hearsay though - I really do not know for sure
what happened to him.
However, Monique was influential in a way that even she could not have
imagined, when in 1964 or 5 she initiated Ray Buckland, who with his
wife Rosemary (later divorced), was very influential in the develop-
ment of the Wicca in the USA.
Fortunately, Richard and Tamarra James managed to buy the bulk of
Gardner's collection back from Ripleys in 1987, for the princely sum
of US$40,000, and it is now back within the Craft, and available for
initiates to consult and view.
D and C S. are probably completely anonymous, and if it were not for
the fact that C initiated Robert Cochrane (briefly mentioned earlier)
they would probably stay that way!
Cochrane's origins are obscure, but I have been told that he was
initiated into the Gardnerian tradition by C S, and met Doreen Valien-
te through a mutual acquaintance in 1964. When he met Doreen, however,
he claimed to be a hereditary witch, from a different tradition to
Gardner's, and as Doreen confirms, was contemptuous of what he called
"Gardnerian" witches. Indeed, Doreen believes he coined the term,
"Gardnerian".
Doreen said she was completely taken in by Cochrane and for a while,
worked with him and the "Clan of Tubal-Cain" as he described his
tradition, which was also known as "The Royal Windsor Cuveen", or
1734.
The figures "1734" have an interesting history. Doreen gives a rather
strange account of them in The Rebirth Of Witchcraft, which contra-
1665 |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,349 | dicts what Cochrane himself describes in a letter to Joe Wilson, dated
"12th Night 1966", where he says,
"...the order of 1734 is not a date of an event but a grouping of
numerals that mean something to a witch.
"One that becomes seven states of wisdom - the Goddess of the Cauld-
ron. Three that are the Queens of the Elements - fire belonging alone
to Man, and the Blacksmith God. Four that are Queens of the Wind Gods.
"The Jewish orthodoxy believe that whomever knows the Holy and Un-
speakable name of God has absolute power over the world of form. Very
briefly, the name of God spoken as Tetragrammaton ... breaks down in
Hebrew to the letters YHVH, or the Adam Kadmon (The Heavenly Man).
Adam Kadmon is a composite of all Archangels - in other words a poetic
statement of the names of the Elements.
"So what the Jew and the Witch believe alike, is that the man who
discovers the secret of the Elements controls the physical world. 1734
is the witch way of saying YHVH." (Cochrane, 1966)
Although Doreen says that Cochrane's group was small, it still proved
to be remarkably influential. As well as Cochrane and his wife (whom
Doreen refers to as "Jean") and Doreen herself, there were others who
are well-known today, and a man called Ronald White, who very much
wanted to bring about a new age in England, with the return of King
Arthur.
In The Rebirth Of Witchcraft, Doreen elaborates upon the circumstances
surrounding the death of Cochrane: the bald facts are that he died at
the Summer Solstice of 1966 of an overdose. Craft tradition believes
that he became in fact, and of his own choice, the male ritual sacri-
fice which is sometimes symbolically enacted at the height of Summer.
The Royal Windsor Cuveen disbanded after Cochrane died, only to be
re-born from the ashes at Samhain that year under a new name - The
Regency. All of its early members were from the Royal Windsor Cuveen,
and they were under the leadership of Ronald White. The Regency proved
to be of great importance to the development of the Wicca, although
its existence was kept a fairly close secret, and even today, there
are relatively few people who have ever heard of it.
Meetings were held in North London, at a place called Queens Wood. As
well as Ron White and Doreen Valiente, members included "John Math",
founder of the Witchcraft Research Association in 1964, and editor of
Pentagram magazine, and the founder of the Pagan Movement, Tony Kelly.
At its height, there were frequently more than 40 in attendance at
rites, which tended to be of the dramatic, pagan kind rather than the
ceremonial associated with high ritual magic. The Regency operated
fairly consistently for over twelve years, finally disbanding in 1978.
The Membership roll reads like a who's who of the British Wicca! Some
of the rites have been incorporated into modern Wiccan rituals - in
fact, one was used at the Pan European Wiccan Conference 1991 with
very great success.
Moving back over to Rae Bone's line, there are a number of influential
people here, mainly through her initiates, Madge and Arthur, who
probably take the award for the most prolific pair in Wiccandom! Rae,
although initiated by Gardner, does of course also claim a hereditary
status in her own right. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,350 | 1666
Madge and Arthur's initiates include:
John and Jean Score
John Score was the partner of Michael Houghton (mentioned earlier),
and the founder of the Pagan Federation, which is very active today.
Houghton died under very mysterious circumstances, which is briefly
mentioned in "The Sword of Wisdom" by Ithell Colquhoun. My Craft
source told me that this was actually a ritual that went badly wrong,
and Houghton ended up on the wrong end of some fairly potent energies.
There is an interesting anecdote about Houghton in The Rebirth Of
Withcraft, which is taken from "Nightside of Eden" by Kenneth Grant,
and agrees in some respect to a similar story that I was told some
years ago. Doreen suggests in The Rebirth Of Witchcraft that the story
may relate to a magical working involving Kenneth Grant and his wife,
Gardner, Dolores North (Madeline Montalban), and an un-named witch,
who was probably Olive Green.
They were all to perform a ritual together, supposedly to contact an
extra-terrestrial being. The material basis for the rite, which took
place in 1949, was a drawing by AO Spare.
Apparently soon after the rite commenced, a nearby bookseller (Michael
Houghton) turned up and interrupted proceedings. On hearing that
Kenneth Grant was within, he declined to enter, and wandered off. The
rite was disrupted, and the story goes that everyone just went home.
Kenneth Grant claims that as a result of disturbing their working,
Houghton's marriage broke up, and that Houghton died in mysterious
circumstances. In fact, the Houghton divorce was a cause celebre, with
her suing him for cruelty because he boasted of being a Sagittarian
while sneering at her because she was only a dingy old Capricorn!
The interrupted ritual could well have taken place. Madeline had a
flat near to Atlantis (Houghton's shop), and would certainly have
known both Grant and Houghton. I know for a fact that Madeline was
acquainted with Gerald, although her opinion of both him and the Wicca
was rather poor. One of Madeline's older students told me that she
thought Gardner rather a fraud, and ritually inept. She also had a
very low opinion of Wiccans, and refused to allow her own students to
participate in Wiccan rites. The reason for this lies in an anecdote
which Doreen doesn't relate: the story goes that Madeline agreed to
participate in a rite with Gerald, which turned out to involve Made-
line being tied up and tickled with a feather duster! The great lady
was not amused.
Prudence Jones
Prudence was for many years the president of the Pagan Federation, and
editor of its newsletter. She inherited her role from John Score,
after he passed away. With Nigel Pennick, Prudence also runs the Pagan
Anti-Defamation League (PADL), and is an active astrologer and therap-
ist. She has edited a book on astrology, and with Caitlin Matthews,
edited "Voices from the Circle", published by Aquarian Press. Al-
though Prudence took her degree in Philosophy, her main interests lie
in the areas of the Grail and troubadour tales, and she has published
privately an excellent essay on the Grail and Wicca. She is also a
very highly respected astrologer, who lectures extensively in Britain. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,351 | 1667
Vivianne and Chris Crowley
Vivianne Crowley, is author of "Wicca - The Old Religion in the New
Age", and also secretary of the Pagan Federation. She has a PhD in
Psychology, and is perhaps the only person to have been a member of
both a Gardnerian Coven and an Alexandrian one simultaneously!
Vivianne is very active at the moment, and has initiated people in
Germany (having memorised the ritual in German - a language she
doesn't speak!), Norway, and - on the astral - Brazil. As a result of
her book, she receives many letters from people from all around the
world, and organised the first ever pan-European Wiccan conference,
held in Germany 1990. The second conference was held in Britain at the
June solstice, and the third (1992) in Norway. In 1993, the Conference
will be in Scotland.
John and Kathy (Caitlin) Matthews, are probably well-known to every-
one, but possibly their Gardnerian initiations are not such common
knowledge. The story that John Matthews relates in "Voices from the
Circle" is essentially the one which he told the HPS who initiated
him.
Pat and Arnold Crowther
I have left Pat and Arnold till last, as it is from their line that
the infamous Alex Sanders derives! It is no secret anymore that Alex,
far from being initiated by his grandmother when he was seven, was in
fact turned down by Pat Crowther in 1961, but was later accepted by
one of her ex-coven members, Pat Kopanski, and initiated to 1st
Degree.
In "The Rebirth of Witchcraft" Doreen says that Alex later met Gard-
ner, and was allowed to copy from the Book of Shadows; Craft tradition
is somewhat different! It has always been said (even by Alex's sup-
porters!) that he pinched what he could from Pat Kopanski before being
chucked out, and that the main differences between the Alexandrian and
Gardnerian Books of Shadows occur where Alex mis-heard, or mis-copied
something! There are certainly significant differences between the
two Books; some parts of Gardnerian ritual are quite unknown within
the Alexandrian tradition, and the ritual techniques are often dif-
ferent. It is usually very easy to spot whether someone is an Alexand-
rian, or Gardnerian initiate.
Alex needed a HPS, and as we know, chose Maxine Morris for the role.
Maxine is a striking Priestess, and made a very good visual focus for
the movement which grew in leaps and bounds.
In the late 1960s, Alex and Maxine were prolific initiators, and a
number of their initiates have become well known. Some came to Austra-
lia, and there are still a number of covens in the UK today whose HP
and/or HPS was initiated by Alex or Maxine.
Alex and Maxine's most famous initiates are almost certainly Janet and
Stewart Farrar, who left them in 1971 to form their own coven, first
in England, then later, in Ireland. Through their books, they have
probably had the most influence over the direction that the modern
Craft has taken. Certainly in Australia, the publication of "What
Witches Do" was an absolute watershed, and with Janet and Stewart's
consistent output, their form of Wicca is more likely to become the
"standard" than any other type. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,352 | 1668
Since their early days of undiluted Alexandrianism, they have drifted
somewhat towards a more Gardnerian approach, and today, tell everyone
that there are no differences between the two traditions. In fact,
despite the merging that has been occurring over the last few years,
there are very distinct differences between the traditions; some
merely external, others of a very significant difference of philos-
ophy.
Seldiy Bate was originally magically trained by Madeline Montalban,
and then took an Alexandrian initiation from Maxine and Alex. Her
husband, Nigel, was also initiated by Maxine, and they have been
"public" witches for a number of years now, often appearing on TV,
radio and in the press. Their background in ritual magic is expressed
in the type of coven that they run; a combination of Wicca and Cerem-
onial Magic.
In 1971, Alex and Maxine went their separate ways. David Goddard is a
Liberal Catholic Priest, and for many years, he and Maxine worked in
the Liberal Catholic faith, and did not run a coven of any kind. Then
in 1984, Maxine gathered together a group again, and started pract-
ising a combination of Wicca, Qabalah and Liberal Catholicism. She and
David separated in 1987, and since then her coven has been exclusively
Wiccan. In 1989, she married one of her initiates, Vincent, and they
are still running an active coven in London today.
Alex's history after the split was a little more sordid, with one girl
he married, Jill, filling the gutter press with stories about Alex
being homosexual, and defrauding her of all her money to spend on his
boyfriends. Sally Taylor was initiated by Maxine and David, but then
transferred to Alex. She was trained by him, and then started her own
group.
I'd now like to focus upon the last of the strands which I believe has
been influential upon the birth and development of Wicca; that of the
literary traditions and sources to which Gardner would have had
access. To a certain extent these are contiguous with the magical
traditions described earlier, as nowhere is it ever suggested that
Gardner did in fact ever work in a magical Lodge, so we must assume
that his knowledge came from the written form of the rites, not from
the actual practise of them.
From reading Gardner's books, it is quite apparent that Margaret
Murray had a tremendous impact upon him. Her book, "The God of the
Witches" was published in 1933, and twelve years previously, "The
Witch Cult in Western Europe" had appeared. "The God of the Witches"
has been tremendously influential on a number of people, and certainly
inspired Gardner.
In fact, "Witchcraft Today", published by Gardner in 1954 contained a
foreword by Margaret Murray. At this time, remember, Murray's work was
still taken seriously, and she remained the contributor on the subject
of witchcraft for the Encyclopedia Britannica for a number of years.
1669
Now of course her work has been largely discredited, although she |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,353 | remains a source of inspiration, if not historical accuracy. In
Gardner's day, the idea of a continuing worship of the old pagan gods
would have been a staggering theory, and in the second article in my
series about Murray (published in The Cauldron), I made the point that
Murray may have had to pretend scientific veracity in order to get her
work published in such times. Don't forget that Dion Fortune had to
publish her work privately, as did Gardner with High Magic's Aid.
Carlo Ginzburg's excellent book, "Ecstasies", also supports Murray's
basic premise; although of course he regrets her historical decep-
tions.
There were of course other sources than Murray. In 1899, "Aradia:
Gospel of the Witches" was published. Most of Crowley's work was
available during the pre- and post-war years, as were the texts
written and translated by MacGregor Mathers and Waite. Also readily
available were works such as The Magus, and of course the classics,
from which Gardner drew much inspiration.
Of paramount importance would have been "The White Goddess", by Robert
Graves, which is still a standard reference book on any British
Wiccan's bookshelf. This was published in 1952; three years after High
Magic's Aid appeared, and two years before Gardner's first non-fict-
ional book about witchcraft. I would just like to say at this point
that Graves has taken some very unfair criticism in respect of this
book. The White Goddess was written as a work of poetry, not history,
and to criticise it for being historically innaccurate is to miss the
point. Unfortunately, I agree that some writers have referred to it as
an "authority", and thus led their readers up the garden path. This is
not Graves's fault, nor do I believe it was his intention.
Another book which has had a profound influence on many Wiccans, and
would undoubtedly have been well known by Gardner is "The Golden
Bough"; although the entire book was written based upon purely secon-
dary research, it is an extensive examination of many pagan practices
from the Ancient World, and the emphasis of the male sacrifice could
certainly have been taken from here equally as well as from Murray.
Certain of the Gardnerian ritual practices were almost certainly
derived from The Golden Bough, or from Frazer's own sources.
In "Witchcraft Today" Gardner mentions a number of authors when
speculating where the Wiccan rites came from. He says that, "The only
man I can think of who could have invented the rites was the late
Aleister Crowley."
He continues to say, "The only other man I can think of who
could have done it is Kipling...". He also mentions that,
"Hargrave Jennings might have had a hand in them..." and then
suggests that "Barrat (sic) of The Magus, circa 1800, would
have had the ability to invent or resurrect the cult."
It's possible that these references are something of a damage control
operation by Gardner, who, according to Doreen, was not too impressed
when she kept telling him that she recognised certain passages in the
Witch rites! "Witchcraft Today" was published the year after Doreen's
initiation, and perhaps by seeming genuinely interested in where the
Rites came from, Gardner thought he might give the appearance of
innocence of their construction!
1670
As mentioned previously, Gardner also had a large collection of
unpublished MSS, which he used extensively, and one has only to read |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,354 | his books to realise that he was a very well-read man, with wide-rang-
ing interests. Exactly the sort of man who would be able to draw
together a set of rituals if required.
The extensive bibliography to "The Meaning of Witchcraft" published in
1959, demonstrates this rather well. Gardner includes Magick in Theory
and Practice and The Equinox of the Gods by Crowley; The Mystical
Qabalah by Dion Fortune; The Goetia; The White Goddess (Graves); Lady
Charlotte Guest's translation of The Mabinogion; English Folklore by
Christina Hole; The Kabbalah Unveiled and the Abramelin by Mathers;
both Margaret Murray's books and Godfrey Leland's Gypsy Sorcery, as
well as a myriad of classic texts, from Plato to Bede!
Although this bibliography postdates the creation of Gardnerian Wicca,
it certainly indicates from where Gardner draws his inspiration from.
There are also several books listed which are either directly, or
indirectly, concerned with sex magic, Priapic Cults, or Tantra.
Hargrave Jenning, mentioned earlier, wrote a book called "The Rosi-
crucians, their Rites and Mysteries", which Francis King describes as
a book, "concerned almost exclusively with phallicism and phallic
images - Jennings saw the penis everywhere."
As I mentioned earlier, Hargrave Jennings, a member of the SRIA, also
belonged to a group, described as a coven, which met in the Cambridge
area in the 1870s, and performed rituals based upon the classical
traditions - specifically, from The Golden Ass. There is no evidence
to support this, except that there are often found references to a
"Cambridge Coven" linked to Jennings' name. Many of the rituals we
are familiar with today were of course later additions by Doreen
Valiente, and these have been well documented by both her and the
Farrars, in a number of books. Doreen admits that she deliberately
cut much of the poetry by Aleister Crowley, and substituted either her
own work, or poems from other sources, such as the Carmina Gadelica.
Of course we can never really know the truth about the origins of the
Wicca. Gardner may have been an utter fraud; he may have actually
received a "Traditional" initiation; or, as a number of people have
suggested, he may have created the Wicca as a result of a genuine
religious experience, drawing upon his extensive literary and magical
knowledge to create, or help create, the rites and philosophy.
What I think we can be fairly certain about is that he was sincere in
his belief. If there had been no more to the whole thing than an old
man's fantasy, then the Wicca would not have grown to be the force
that it is today, and we would not all be sitting here in Canberra on
a Saturday morning!
1671
The Wheel of the Year
From "The Witches of Oz", by Julia Phillips and Matthew Sandow,
Sydney,
New South Wales.
The Wheel of the year is of great significance to Wiccans, and
is one of the principle keys to understanding the religion. As we
said earlier, Wicca sees a profound relationship between humanity
and the environment. For a Wiccan, all of nature is a manifesta-
tion of the divine and so we celebrate the turning seasons as the |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,355 | changing faces of our Gods.
The Wheel of the Year is a continuing cycle of life, death and
rebirth. Thus the Wheel reflects both the natural passage of life
in the world around us, as well as revealing our own connection
with the greater world. To a Wiccan, all of creation is divine,
and by realizing how we are connected to the turning if the seasons
and to the natural world, we come to a deeper understanding to the
ways in which we are connected to the God and Goddess. o when we
celebrate our seasonal rites, we draw the symbolism that we use
from the natural world and from our own lives, thus attempting to
unite the essential identity that underlies all things.
Undoubtedly the significance of the Festivals has changed over
the centuries, and it is very difficult for us today to imagine the
joy and relief that must have accompanied the successful grain
harvest. What with factory-farming, fast freezing and world wide
distribution, our lives no longer depend upon such things and as a
consequence, our respect for the land has diminished in proportion
to our personal contact with it.
Wiccans believe that we can re-affirm this contact by our
observance of the passage of the seasons, in which we see reflected
our own lives, and the lives of our gods. Whether we choose to
contact those forces through silent and solitary meditation, or
experience the time of year in a wild place, or gather with friends
in a suburban living room, we are all performing our own ritual to
the Old Ones, reaching out once more towards the hidden forces
which surround us all.
What is of the utmost importance with the Wheel of the Year is
that we understand what we hope to achieve through our festival
celebrations, and avoid the trap of going through empty motions,
repeating words from a book which may sound dramatic, but have no
relevance in our everyday lives. That simply leads to the creation
of a dogma, and not a living breathing religion. It is not enough
to stand in a circle on a specific day, and "invoke' forces of
nature, those forces are currents which flow continuously through-
out our lives, not just eight times a year, and if we choose not to
acknowledge them in our everyday lives, there is no point in
calling upon them for one day.
1672
By following the Wiccan religion you are affirming your belief
in the sanctity of the Earth, and acknowledging that you depend
upon the Earth for your very life. Although modern lifestyles do
not encourage awareness of our personal relationship with the
turning seasons, or the patterns of life, growth, death and decay,
that does not mean that they no longer exist. The ebb and flow
of the Earth's energies may be hidden beneath a physical shell of
tarmac and concrete, and a psychic one of human indifference, but
they are nevertheless there for those who wish to acknowledge them
once more.
We do this by observing the changes of the seasons, and
feeling the changes reflected in our innermost selves, and in our
everyday lives. In our rituals we focus upon different aspects of
the God and Goddess, and participate in the celebration of their
mysteries; thus we re-affirm our connections on the most profound
levels. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,356 | The Wiccan Wheel has two great inspirations; it is both a
wheel of celebration, and a wheel of initiation. As a wheel of
initiation it hopes to guide those who tread its pathway towards an
understanding of the mysteries of life and the universe, expressed
through the teachings of the Old Ones made manifest in the turning
of the seasons. For a Wiccan, the gods and nature are one. In
exploring the mysteries of the seasons we are seeking to penetrate
more deeply the mysteries of the God and Goddess.
As a wheel of celebration, Wiccans accord to the words of the
Charge of the Goddess, where She says, "Let my worship be within
the heart that rejoiceth, for behold, all acts of Love and Pleasure
are my rituals"; and that, "Ye shall dance, sing, feast, make music
and love, all in my praise". Anyone can celebrate the turning of
the seasons, in their own way, and in their own time. Wiccan
covens will commonly gather together, and make the Festivals times
of joyful merrymaking, but you can just as easily make the
celebration a solitary one, or with just one or two friends. The
principles do not alter; just the way in which you acknowledge
them.
Wiccans generally celebrate eight Festivals, roughly six weeks
apart, which are pivotal points in the solar (seasonal) cycle.
Four of the Festivals are called the Lesser Sabbats: these are the
Spring and Autumn Equinoxes, and the Winter and Summer Solstices.
The other four Festivals are called the Greater Sabbats, and relate
to particular seasons when in bygone days, certain activities would
have been undertaken, usually followed by a party of some kind.
There are variations upon the names by which these Greater Sabbats
are known, but the simple ones are Candlemas, Beltane, Lammas and
Samhain. Candlemas is also known as Imbolg, Oimelc, or Brigid;
Lammas is sometimes called Lughnassadh.
1673
It is important to understand that the Festivals are celebrat-
ing a time of year: a season, not a date. Most books written about
Wicca have been written by an author living and working in the
northern hemisphere, who may quite rightly say that "Beltane is
celebrated on May Eve." Northern hemisphere readers will automati-
cally interpret this as, "Beltane is at the end of spring, just
before summer gets underway." IN the Wiccan Book of Shadows, the
poem by Kipling is used at this Festival which says, "O do not tell
the Priests of our art, for they would call it sin; but we've been
out in the woods all night, a'conjurin' summer in.... ."
Of course, "May eve" in the southern hemisphere is autumn
heading into winter, entirely the wrong time of year to celebrate
the portent of summer. In much the same way, Christmas and Easter
are celebrated at the wrong time of year here. In the Christian
calendar, Christmas coincides with the Winter Solstice - and the
growing popularity of the June Yule Fest in the Blue Mountains in
NSW each year suggests an awareness of this, even if it is, in this
case, expressed in a commercial sense. The date of Easter changes
each year, because it is the first Sunday after the first Full Moon
after the Spring Equinox, (And they try to tell us that Easter
wasn't originally a Pagan Festival!) So in the southern hemi-
sphere, according to the rules by which the date of Easter is
determined, it should fall sometime in late September or early
October each year. However, Christianity is not a religion which
sees a particular connection between humanity and the environment,
and therefore has no problem in celebrating Easter in autumn, and |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,357 | Christmas at the Summer Solstice. Wicca is different, and it IS
important to us to attune ourselves to the passage of the seasons,
hence we follow the natural cycle wherever we live. In the
southern hemisphere this means celebrating Beltane at the start of
summer, i.e., the beginning of November, not the beginning of May.
The Wiccan year starts and ends with Samhain, which is also
known as Hallowe'en, or All Saints Eve. It is the celebration
which falls just before the dark nights of winter take hold. The
Winter Solstice comes next, where Wiccans celebrate the rebirth of
the Sun; at Candlemas about six weeks later, we celebrate the first
signs of the growing light (longer days,) and of spring beginning
to show itself. The Spring Equinox (around 21 September - it
varies from year to year) is the time when day and night are equal
in length, and the Sun is on its increase. Next is Beltane, the
Festival where Wiccans celebrate the union of the young man and
woman, and everyone dances around a tree, crowned with a garland of
flowers, and decked with red and white ribbons.
1674
About six weeks after Beltane we come to the Summer Solstice,
when the Sun reaches its greatest height. It is the longest
day/shortest night, and in the southern hemisphere, falls around 21
December. Then the Sun begins its way back down towards winter,
but we are still in summer. Six weeks after the Solstice is
Lammas, when in agricultural societies, the harvest is reaped, and
we receive the benefits from our hard work. The Sun at Lammas
still has great strength, for it is the ripening time, rather than
the growing time which ceases around the Summer Solstice. The
Autumn Equinox follows this, usually around 21 March (again, it
varies from year to year), which is often celebrated as a Harvest
Festival. The next Festival, some six weeks after the Equinox, is
Samhain, which is the time just before the winter really sets in,
and when food is stored, and we remember those who have passed
away. In many countries this is the time when the Lord of the Wild
Hunt rides, which is mirrored in the way that the winds are often
wild at this time of year, and the clouds ragged and wind-torn.
In parts of Australia you will find that some of these
seasonal aspects are a little different, but generally speaking,
you should be able to feel the change from winter to spring; spring
to summer; summer to autumn and then autumn to winter. The
specifics will change, but the general trend is very similar - one
season leading to another. You have only to become aware of the
natural changes in your own environment to realize that the
concepts of the Wheel of the Year are valid wherever you may be.
As a Wheel of initiation, the Wheel of the Year is the path
which leads us through the experiences of our gods towards that
point which Jungian psychologists call individuation, and which
Wiccans call knowledge of the Old Ones. As with all mystical
experiences, these mysteries are not communicated in an academic or
intellectual manner; they are direct experiences which each
individual shares with the Old Gods. Different traditions have
developed different ways of travelling the Wheel, but all ways have
a common purpose, and all are equally valid, provided the basic
principles are sound.
We gave a very brief description of the cycle of the Wheel of
the Year above. Now we can have a look at this in more detail,
using for our framework a mythology which is used by our own Coven. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,358 | It is based upon the Gardnerian and Alexandrian traditions in which
we were initiated, but has evolved over several years, and has been
greatly modified to reflect our own understanding of the turning
wheel of the seasons. We should say at this point that we use the
terms "King" and "Queen" to refer to the principle characters in
the mythology. It is important to understand that we are not
referring to a modern monarchy, but to the ancient pagan principles
those titles infer. The King is the priest/king of the forest:
his tale is told in many forms in many lands. He is the essential
male that lies within all men, and is the animus (in it Jungian
sense) of all women. The Queen is Sovereignty: she is the
mysterious soul of nature; the essential woman that lies within all
women, and is the anima of all men.
1675
So to begin our journey: how do we set out to explore the
mysteries of existence? Well, the journey begins with a question -
we have first to be aware that there is a mystery to explore! And
that most basic of questions is: "where did life come from? how
did it all begin?" For a Wiccan there is an underlying spiritual
intuition that the answer to that question is quite simply that the
universe was created by deity. So we celebrate the beginning of
the Wheel of the Year as a being the creation of all life by the
God and the Goddess; we begin with a creation myth.
The Wheel of the Year starts with Samhain; at this time we
celebrate the Great Rite - the joyful union of the God and Goddess
in the Otherworld. This touches the very depths of the mystery.
We celebrate at this time the conception that will lead to the
birth of all creation.
Wiccans celebrate all life as a manifestation of the mystery
of the gods, but do not pretend to understand how such life came
into being. Nor do we claim to fully understand our gods; to the
Wicca they are a mystery, and when describing our vision of deity
we use symbols to express as best we can the vision we have seen.
We do not know how the universe was created and this remains
essentially mysterious. However, by choosing to take the path of
initiation - that is, by following the Wheel of the Year - we can
learn to commune more deeply with the gods, and experience visions
which can reveal a little of the mystery.
The vision that we have of Samhain is of the creation. In the
Wicca the inexpressible mystery of the deity is symbolized in the
form of the God and Goddess. Thus at Samhain we celebrate their
love as the root of all creation. Samhain is the time of creation:
the moment when life is conceived in the womb of the Great Mother.
As we proceed to the next of the festivals - Yule - it should
not be surprising to find that following the moment of conception
we should seek to understand the moment of birth. The conception,
the moment of creation deep within the mystery, took place at
Samhain. The seed planted at this time gestates in the womb of the
Goddess until the child of the gods - in essence, the whole of
creation - emerges from the womb of the Great Mother. This is
celebrated at Yule, which is symbolized by the birth of the Sun.
In pre-Christian times, this time was called "Giuli," and followed
"Modra Necht" - the Night of the Mothers.
Yule is celebrated at the time of the Midwinter Solstice.
This is the time of the longest night, and of the shortest day. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,359 | The Sun is seen to be symbolically born anew, as the Great Mother
gives birth at the time of the darkest night. The Sun is a vitally
important symbol to us, for it has been long known that all life on
Earth is dependant upon the Sun. The Wheel of the Year itself is
based upon the solar cycle, and the Sun is seen as symbolic of the
life force which we worship as the God and the Goddess. The Sun is
the dominant force in all our lives. Without its light and heat,
life as we understand it is impossible. The passage of the Sun
through the heavens regulates the passage of the seasons we
experience upon the Earth, and is therefore the foundation of the
Wiccan Wheel of the Year.
1676
At the Midwinter Solstice we celebrate the rebirth of the Sun.
Many Wiccan covens follow the old pagan tradition of enacting this
as the Goddess giving birth to the Child of Promise. It was at the
Midwinter Solstice in the northern hemisphere that the birth of
Mithras was celebrated. For the same reason it was decided in 273
A.D. to appoint this date to celebrate the birth of Christ; the
"son" of God.
In the world of nature, Yule signifies the moment of the
rebirth of the Sun. In our own lives we can take it to represent
the moment of physical birth. Thus in our ritual cycle, we enact
the rebirth of the Sun by the lighting of candles, and especially
the lighting of a flame within the cauldron to represent the
emergence of new life from the darkness of the womb of the Goddess.
We ritually invoke the Great Mother and All-Father, and we
symbolically enact the Goddess giving birth to the new year. In
human terms the child represents all the potential for life, as yet
unaware that all the mysteries of the universe lies hidden deep
within. Like Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, the child is born
in innocence, created in the image of the gods.
We have taken the second step upon our journey. From now on
the days continue to lengthen as the Sun climbs toward its height
at the Summer Solstice. In response to the greater heat of the
Sun, the land begins to awaken as we start the journey from winter
towards spring. The next festival is Candlemas. As we might guess
from the name (given to it by the Christians), it is a festival of
lights which celebrates the growth of the Sun. By Candlemas, the
days are appreciably longer. Our understanding of this festival
has been guided by ancient pagan tradition and our own inspiration.
We see this as a time of purification and most especially a time of
initiation into the female mysteries. At Candlemas we observe in
nature the awakening potential for the fullness of summer. In
human terms we represent this by the first female menstruation.
This is the virgin aspect of the Goddess, marking the awakening of
her potential to become the mother.
We celebrate this ritual by arming the young virgin with the
powers of the elements. We celebrate her initiation into the
mysteries of her sex. To reflect this essential female mystery, we
enact the young girl being instructed by her mother and grandmother
into the mysteries of being a woman. Thus we reveal that the
mystery of the virgin is also found within the mother crone as
well.
It is at Candlemas in many parts of Britain that the women of
the house dress a sheaf of oats in woman's clothing, and lay it in
a basket called "Brighid's bed." They also place a small phallic |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,360 | club in the bed and then call out three times, "Brighid is come,
Brighid is welcome!", and leave candles burning all night beside
the bed. Behind all this we catch glimpses of deeper mysteries
that can only be grasped by passing beyond a mere intellectual
appreciation of the symbolism.
1677
To continue our journey we now come to the Spring Equinox. It
might seem that celebrating Candlemas as a female mystery is rather
unbalanced in a religion which is based upon polarity of male and
female; but no; for reasons of tradition, and because woman reach
puberty before men, it is not until the Spring Equinox that the
initiatory male rite is enacted. In this we arm the young god with
the knowledge of his own creative power; he is initiated into the
mysteries of sex, just as the young girl was armed with the powers
of her potential. This ritual expresses the mystery that he
contains within his young life; the potential to become a father
and wise old man.
This continues to reflect the turning tide of the seasons. We
are now in the spring. New life is awakening on all sides. The
sap is rising in the trees, and both the young man and young girl
have awakened to the mysteries of their sexuality. The Spring
Equinox is a vital moment in the passage of the solar cycle. Day
and night now stand equal, and from this point onwards the light
will dominate the darkness. The long dark nights of winter have at
last been overthrown.
Between the Spring Equinox and Beltane the young man and woman
pursue one another, each becoming more aware of the other sex.
Thus the man understands that there is more to the mystery of life
than pure masculinity, and the woman sees that there is more to
life than her femininity. Having found this vision, they express
it in their desire to be joined as one.
We arrive now at Beltane. This is the time of the sacred
marriage when the young man and woman are joined together as
husband and wife. With their wish to be married, they have
glimpsed that the mysteries of love may lead to a deeper union
still - in essence, to a union with the gods. By going beyond
their sense of individual self to embrace one another, they have
taken a profound step toward the God and Goddess. They have
discovered that deep within themselves they are both male and
female, and the experience of this brings a new sense of joy and
wholeness.
Beltane is a time of joy and celebration; the dark of winter
is forgotten, and summer is coming. It is a time of fertility and
fire. We dance the ancient mystery of the Maypole, celebrating our
understanding our understanding of the mystery of the love of a man
for a woman. The pole is crowned with a garland of flowers to
symbolize their joining; the ribbons are red and white, reminding
us of blood and sperm. The dance is the sexual fire, as we dance
about the pole winding the ribbons in the pattern of the spiral,
which reveals the mystery of the serpent; that ancient awakener who
slumbers until warmed by the rising Sun.
This is the time of the sacred marriage. It is a moment when
human consciousness has grasped the powers of nature, joined with
those powers and shared in the mystery of life. The land and our
lives are married as one. For those that are able to see it, there |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,361 | is a vision of the creation of all life by the God and the Goddess.
For the mystery is now revealed for all to see - the woman
conceives of her husband. She is pregnant and will bear a child.
1678
Through their union they discover their deeper selves, which
we symbolize as the King and Queen of the land. The man and woman
now take up their new roles, and rule the kingdom of their new
found lives. At Candlemas and the Spring Equinox a man and a woman
were instructed in the powers of nature. Now at Beltane that
knowledge is transformed into understanding. For in joining
together they have understood that their lives and the land are
one.
The land continues to bring forth life in an ever greater
profusion. The woman who is now the Queen begins to show the first
signs of the Beltane seed planted in her womb by her husband, the
King. She is pregnant; the mirror image of the maturing crops.
Now we come to Midsummer, the height of the solar Wheel. This
is the time of the longest day and shortest night, and a time of
maturity, both in the agricultural cycle and the lives of the man
and woman. They rule now as King and Queen; just as the Sun is at
its height, so too they are at the height of their creative powers.
The woman's mature power is reflected in her approaching mother-
hood. The man's power is reflected in his kingship, and in his
mastery of nature and rule of the kingdom. Together the King and
Queen preside over the kingdom of their lives, celebrating the
vision of creative light.
But the light does not continue to rise. The vision of light
must once more give way to a growing darkness. As things grow, so
too they must wither and die. From Midsummer, the Sun must fall,
until reborn once more at the Winter Solstice. Thus Midsummer is
a celebration of the King and Queen's power, but must also reflect
the returning current of darkness. We symbolize this by the
appearance of a challenger who confronts the couple. Until now the
King and Queen have ruled supreme; they have imposed their will
upon the kingdom without challenge, but now a single dark figure
must appear. This is the beginning of the ancient pagan theme of
the battle between the brothers; the light and dark kings now begin
their conflict.
The challenger seeks to abduct the Queen; the child she bears
represents the kingdom. The King must now defend the land. They
fight, light against dark, but as yet the sun is still supreme, and
the King drives the challenger back. But, the challenger is armed
with the power of fate; we know that the Sun must fall. With a
single stroke the challenger wounds the King, laying open his
thigh; but still the light is the greater power, and the King
defeats the challenger. The light still rules supreme, but a
shadow has fallen over the kingdom.
Thus Midsummer comes to a close. The King and Queen remain at
the height of their power, yet a new force - darkness - is
awakening in the world. As the seasons continue to turn, the gods
begin to reveal a further mystery: not only are they light, they
are also dark as well. Thus the King and Queen have awakened to a
deeper mystery; they have seen that not only are they male and
female, but they are also light and dark as well. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,362 | 1679
As we look at the natural world, we see that the Sun is now
waning. The days grow shorter, and we sense profound changes in
the world around us. After Midsummer, the next festival we come to
is Lammas. The crops have matured, and in the way of nature, aged
and turned to seed. The days are still longer than the nights; the
light still rules in the land, but the powers of darkness are now
visibly growing. Summer is coming to an end and we are approaching
autumn. To symbolize the theme of the waning light and growing
power of darkness, we celebrate Lammas as a Harvest Festival. In
cutting the corn (wheat), we celebrate the end of the vision of
light. We cut the corn with joy; as we have sown, so now we reap,
but in cutting the corn we signal the end of the cycle of growth.
As we gather in the harvest we watch as the power of the Sun
wanes. The cutting of the corn is an ancient symbol of death and
transformation, and reflects the seasonal changes at work in the
land around us. As we look to the King and Queen, who were married
to the land at Beltane, we see in their lives a reflection of these
themes. Just as the harvest is reaped, so the Queen now births her
child.
The mystery of Lammas is that by fulfilling the vision of
light in bringing to fruition the seed sown in the spring, we must
face the vision of death. For the King bears the wound he received
at Midsummer, it is a wasting wound and will not heal. He slowly
weakens, his creative power spent. He is still King, but his
powers are waning, a reflection of the falling light. But Lammas
is also a time of hope, for in the cutting of the corn the seed is
gathered in, which is the hope for life to come. As the King looks
to his first born son he looks to the heir of the kingdom. We
celebrate Lammas as a time of fulfillment; it is a time of joy,
when we reap all we have sown.
Both King and Queen have been transformed. The King had to
accept the glimpse of the vision of death in his killing of the
challenger and taking of a mortal wound; so now the Queen dies to
herself, for in giving birth she has given the child a part of her
life, passing her power to her son. As the Wheel of the Seasons
turns, it reveals that the gods embrace both life and death. Just
as the man and woman were born, so too they must die. Lammas
brings the vision of mortality, but reveals the hope of the
immortal spirit hidden in the new cut grain, made manifest in the
new born child, who symbolizes the awakening darkness; he is the
power of the waning Sun. He emerges from the womb as the growing
darkness appears in the natural world.
We must now move on. Time will stand still for no-one. The
wheel must turn, and we must turn with it. This is our fate, as
our lives reflect the turning cycle of the seasons. We must now
make our way to the Autumn Equinox, where once again the powers of
light and darkness stand as equals - but now it is the darkness
that is in the ascendant.
It is the nature of human beings to resist the darkness.
Humanity fears death above all things. It is the root of all our
fears; death is the final initiation. Only through an acceptance
and understanding of death can we hope to understand the goods.
Only in accepting death can we truly accept life. Life and death
are two sides of the same coin; we cannot have one without the
other. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,363 | 1680
By the time we reach the Autumn Equinox, it becomes harder to
describe the mysteries that we celebrate. The mystery that can be
taught or explained is not, after all, a mystery. At the Autumn
Equinox we must face life's greatest mystery: death. This is the
hardest trial of all. In the ancient mystery schools, and in
shamanic practices, the most important of initiations was - and is
- the near death experience.
The child born at Lammas is now a young man. He is the
reflection of the growing powers of darkness. The old King of
Light bears his mortal wound and is now advancing in years, his
powers waning as the days grow shorter, and the Sun falls lower and
lower in the sky. The Queen also is no longer young; the flower of
her youth is past. The King and Queen are aging with the land, for
they and the land are one.
But as is natural in human affairs we none of us want to admit
the darkness. We fight against the coming of the night. So the
King and Queen each in their own way try to hold onto the kingdom
they have been at such pains to build. The King's powers are
waning; his son is in the first flush of youth and vigor, and has
been initiated into the mysteries of his power. The King grows
weak, and must rely upon his son to defend the kingdom. But, the
King now fears his son as a potential challenge to the throne. The
Queen likewise does not want to relinquish her power. She sees
that her husband grows weak and infirm, and is no match for a
challenger. To maintain her position in the kingdom she relies on
the power of her son.
Finally, in the dead of the night, the old pagan tale replays
itself. The battle begun at the Midsummer Solstice between the
light and darkness must now be resumed; the King and his son fight
as the Equinox comes upon us. Sword against spear the battle
rages; the experience of the King against the naked strength of his
son's youth. The Queen watches as they fight, torn by hope and
fear. But as they fight, there is a great mystery at work. Both
the King and Queen now face their fear of death, and as they look
death in the eye there is a moment of understanding. The King, the
Queen, and the land are one. Thus they are both the light and
darkness. In the moment of vision the King looks upon his son, and
at last realizes that he is only fighting himself, for all things
are one. The King and his son understand the mystery, and they
join in love as one. They give up the conflict of light and dark
to pass beyond this world, and they become the Lord of the
Otherworld. The Queen too has seen both life and death, and knows
that they are one. With this realization she becomes the crone,
and understands the ancient mystery. The Equinox marks her last
menstrual cycle; she can no longer bear children.
So now we must take our last step upon the Wheel; we come at
last to Samhain, from where it all began. As we saw at the
beginning this is the Wiccan New Year. The Queen has become the
crone - the hag, the Witch. She lives alone, for the King is now
dead. The Sun is waning toward the Solstice; winter is upon us,
and the night is now longer than the day.
1681 |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,364 | If we look to the land, the cycle of growth has come to an
end. The kingdom of the old year has symbolically passed away,
transformed by the turning of the seasons. The Queen is now a
Witch; the ancient hag crone who knows the mysteries of life and
death. In making her journey she has discovered the ancient power
which lies behind the Wheel of the Year. She has seen the spring,
the summer, autumn and winter, and she knows that an ancient
mystery lies hidden within it all.
Standing alone, for she is feared by those who have yet to
walk the Wheel, she kindles the ancient Samhain fire. As she
raises her arms in invocation to the Lord of the Otherworld, a
great storm gathers. The veil is opened between the worlds. The
storm breaks, and the Wild Hunt is upon us as the spirits of the
dead are led from the Otherworld by the ancient Horned God; the
Ancient Lord of the Samhain fire. To complete the final turn of
the Wheel, the Crone must now join with his mystery, and go with
him back into the Otherworld. She and the Horned Lord travel
together back into the depths of the mystery. There they join in
love as one; the supreme moment of the true Great Rite in which all
the mysteries of the male and female, all the mysteries of the
light and dark are married together as one as the seed is planted
deep within the womb of the Great Mother.
For now in the natural cycle the seeds of nature fall to the
ground, the seed of life to come. The seed harvested at Lammas is
now planted in the earth, fulfilling the mystery of the return.
For a while the land sleeps, and lies fallow. The darkness seems
to complete, but of course we know that we will eventually return
to the Winter Solstice, and the cycle will continue.
Let us now approach the Wiccan Wheel of the Year as it is
meant to be: as a mystery. Forget the intellect, and allow your
intuition and emotions to be your guide. What follows is a guided
visualization, which you can read onto a tape, or have one person
read aloud, as you follow the journey it describes. Allow the
images to form naturally in your imagination, and you will find
yourself making a magical journey through the mysteries of the
gods.
For those who are not used to following a guided visualiza-
tion, there are a few simple rules to observe. Before starting any
meditation work (which includes the kind of altered state that
guided visualization encourages), seat yourself comfortably in a
quiet room, free from distractions. Take the phone off the hook,
and tell anyone who lives with you not to disturb you. You can of
course do this out of doors, but if you do, make sure you are well
off the beaten track, with no danger of bush walkers stumbling over
you, or any other kinds of disturbance. Have a pen and pad handy,
and if it helps you to relax and focus, use some incense.
1682
The Wheel of The Year, A Guided Visualization:
Julia Phillips & Rufus Harrington
Make sure you are seated comfortably, and spend a few moments
quietly, allowing your mind and body to relax. Now, close your
eyes, and allow these images to build in your imagination:
It is dark, and a chill wind is blowing. You are standing
within a mighty forest, and can feel the ground hard and cold |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,365 | beneath your feet. You look up, and see the stars, but there is no
Moon. Patiently, you wait. You hear a sound behind you, and turn
and look over your shoulder. You realize that you are standing
upon the edge of a clearing; at its center burns a fire, with an
old man seated before it. He is wearing tattered animal skins, and
has long ragged hair which blows about in the wind. On the far
side of the clearing you see the mouth of a cave, and standing
before it is the mighty figure of the Horned God.
You turn back and look through the trees, looking towards the
eastern horizon. For tonight is the longest night: the dark time
before the Sun is reborn at the Winter Solstice, and you wait
patiently for the first rays of the new born Sun. At last you see
a faint glimmer of light upon the eastern horizon, and as the rays
of the new born Sun rise in the morning sky, you hear the sound of
a new born babe crying. You turn and look back across the clearing
as an old woman walks out of the cave carrying a new born child in
her arms. The Horned God reaches forwards and caresses the child's
cheek, and then the old woman takes the child, and sits by the side
of the old man at the camp fire.
As the Sun continues to rise in the sky, you know that you
have witnessed a very great mystery - the mystery of birth - the
birth of the Sun, and of the Son. You leave the clearing, and walk
back through the forest to your own cottage, where you warm
yourself at the fire, for you are chilled through after your long
vigil throughout the darkest night.
Days pass, and although the ground is still hard and cold, and
the nights long and dark, you are aware of a change in the season,
and know that winter is drawing to its close. One night as you are
about to go to bed, you hear a tinkling of bells from deep within
the forest, and are strangely drawn towards their sound. As you
make your way through the night, a waxing Moon lights your path,
and at last you find yourself once more in the clearing. You look
towards the cave, and see that a great red veil hangs across the
mouth, and that the old Crone, and another woman stand before it.
The other woman is younger than the Crone, but obviously not a
youth, and you instinctively realize that this is the Crone's own
daughter.
As you stand and watch you realize that the bells are being
shaken by the Crone, and that she and her daughter are softly
singing an ancient song: a song which calls to the Virgin to
awaken, and to come forth as the herald of winter's end, and
spring's beginning. The two women reach up, and with a single
movement, rend the veil, tearing it away, revealing the Virgin
standing poised upon the threshold. She is purity and innocence:
a young figure - blindfolded, dressed in white, and carrying in her
hands a posy of bright yellow flowers, symbolic of the growing
powers of the Sun.
1683
The Mother and Crone reach forward, and linking their hands
behind the Virgin, they pull her out of the cave. They lead her
towards the fire, and then the Mother speaks quietly to her. You
see the Virgin nod. The Crone then seems to ask her a question,
and although you cannot hear the answer, it seems she has spoken
truly, for the Crone nods, and reaches up to remove the blindfold.
The Virgin blinks her eyes, and stretches. She begins to dance
slowly around the fire at the center of the clearing, full of the |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,366 | joy of her awakening, and in the knowledge of her power and
potential as a woman.
Self-contained, she dances the dance of life; of blood and
waters flowing freely, no long frozen and still. You turn and
leave the clearing, taking one last look at the Virgin dancing
joyfully around the fire. As you walk back through the forest, you
feel an answering power moving through the land, and you are aware
that the Earth is beginning to come alive beneath your feet, and on
the trees you see the yellow blooms which are the promise of
spring, and the end of winter.
Day by day the Sun now grows visibly stronger: the land has
awakened from its sleep with the fire dance of the Virgin, and now
the Sun itself approaches the magical time of the Equinox: the
time when day and night are equal, but when light is in the
ascendant. The day of the Equinox dawns bright and clear. The
wind is fresh, and all around you are signs of spring. From deep
within the forest you hear the sound of a horn, and deep within
your innermost self you are aware of a stirring response to its
call. You make your way quickly through the forest; as you
approach the clearing, you realize that you are not alone, for all
the creatures of the forest are gathered upon the edge of the
clearing. They too have answered the summons of the horn.
At the center of the clearing stands a naked young man, his
skin shining with reflected sunlight. He is blindfold: before him
stands the old man, and behind him, the mighty figure of the Horned
God. It was he who blew the horn. The old man dances around the
youth - slowly, a shambling kind of dance - shaking a rattle and
chanting softly. He stops. The Horned God whispers to the youth,
who nods his head in reply. The old man then asks the youth a
question, and after listening to the reply, nods, and reaches up
and removes the blindfold. The youth blinks, and stretches. The
Horned God hands him the horn. He puts this to his lips, and a
single blast echoes through the forest. With a laugh the youth
leaps away into the forest, followed by all the birds and animals,
for he is Lord of the Forest. You feel a stirring in your own
blood, and before you realize what has happened, you find yourself
chasing the figure of the youth on his mad dash through the forest.
It is a wild and carefree dance, and you feel the answering echo
from the trees, and from the Earth, as they are warmed by the
growing Sun. The Land and the Youth both awaken to their fertile
potential.
1684
As you run through the trees, out of the corner of your eye
you see a flicker of white; you turn, and there hidden in the trees
you see the Virgin, watching and waiting. She is looking curiously
at the Lord of the Forest, intrigued by his strength and drawn by
his beauty. He sees her watching, but on this day, he is too full
with the joy of being in control of his own creative power to cease
his headlong chase through the forest. Gradually you tire, and at
last you find yourself walking back through the forest to your own
cottage, where you find rest.
All through the growing spring the Virgin and the Young Lord
watch each other through the forest. Each aware of the other, but
both self-fulfilled with their own potential and power. But the
Sun keeps getting stronger, and at last we come to that moment |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,367 | where the Young Lord and the Virgin realize that they have a
greater destiny to fulfil, and driven by their natural desires, and
the signs of the burgeoning world all around them, they seek each
other out, and in celebration of the great mystery of the Land
Marriage, they join as one.
It is the height of spring, and the signs of fertility are all
around. As you make your own way towards the clearing, you feel
the warm Sun upon your face, and feel the life in the Earth beneath
your feet. In the center of the clearing stands a great tree
trunk, crowned with a garland of spring flowers, with many red and
white ribbons fluttering in the breeze. From far and wide people
have travelled to the clearing, for today is the day of celebrating
the growing Sun, and the fertile Earth. Men and women take hold of
the ribbons, and enact their own celebration of Life as they dance
the pattern of the sacred spiral of creation around the tree. You
hold your ribbon firmly, and watch the spiral form as you dance the
ancient steps that have been danced since first Man and Woman were
joined as one.
You hear cheering and shouts of laughter, and there, walking
through the crowd hand in hand come the Young Lord and his wife -
Virgin no longer. Together they have celebrated the sacred mystery
in accordance with the Old Laws: for they have joined in love, and
so have become the King and Queen of the Land.
And the weeks pass, and the Sun grows ever stronger in the
sky, and the King grows in strength and majesty. The Queen begins
to show signs of her pregnancy, the mirror of the crops and fruits
that the Land begins to produce, for the Queen represents the Land,
and is at one with it.
At last the day arrives when the Sun reaches its most powerful
time: the Midsummer Solstice. The King and Queen are at their
peak too, reflected in the majesty of the King, and the growing
life in the womb of the Queen. To mark this day, the King and
Queen host a great celebration in the forest clearing: a feast to
mark the Solstice day, and their own creative powers which have
brought many good things to the Land. All day the feast and games
continue, with the King and Queen bestowing their blessings upon
everyone.
1685
At long last the Sun begins to sink slowly towards the west;
as it falls you hear a disturbance upon the edge of the clearing.
You see people running, and hear their screams. And then into the
clearing stalks a dark figure, his black cloak swirling around him,
wearing a helmet which obscures his face from view - shadow of
darkness in the forest. He strides towards the King, and in a loud
clear voice, challenges him for the right to rule the kingdom, and
for the Queen as his consort.
The King must protect what he has striven so hard to create,
and must protect his wife and unborn child. He accepts the
challenge, and a great battle ensues as the Sun slowly sinks in the
west. The challenger lays the King's thigh open with a sweep of
his sword, but is unbalanced, and despite his wound, the King
manages to throw the challenger to the ground and disarm him. The
challenger begs for mercy, but the King fears this dark and
threatening figure, and so ignoring his cries for mercy, he plunges |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,368 | his sword deep into the challenger's heart. And so in order to
protect, the King destroys, and a shadow of darkness is cast upon
the Land. The challenger's blood soaks into the Earth, and the Sun
finally sinks beyond the western horizon.
You make your way back to your cottage, as the King is carried
away to have his wound attended to. The next day the Sun rises as
before, and seems as strong as it ever was, but you have seen and
felt the shadow of the dark, and now sense a change in the Land.
Instead of growing, things are ripening; the heat of the summer Sun
brings the crops and fruit to ripeness, but the growth is now over.
And just as the Land gives forth its fruits, so now does the Queen
give birth to her son. The wheat is harvested; the barley made
into ale; and a great feast is held to give thanks for all the good
things of the Earth, and for the safe birth of the King and Queen's
son.
But in giving birth, the Queen is no longer simply a wife; she
becomes the Mother. She knows that her son is the hope for the
Land, for the King's wound, taken at the Midsummer battle, is a
wasting wound, and will not heal. He grows weaker by the day, a
reflection of the waning powers of the Sun. The Queen knows this,
and as her son grows, she trains him in the ways of sovereignty.
The King sees only that his son grows stronger, as he grows weaker.
He watches the Sun wane day by day as summer slips towards the time
of the Equinox, when once again day and night are equal; but this
time, the dark is in the ascendant.
At last the night of the Equinox arrives. The King feels
drawn towards the clearing in the forest, and under a waning Moon,
he makes his way along the track. He remembers his initiation at
the Spring Equinox; his love for the Virgin, and their joyful
celebration of the Land Marriage at Beltane; he remembers how proud
he was of his creative powers at the Midsummer Solstice, and with
a pang of sadness, he remembers how he had to face the dark
challenger who threatened his Kingdom and his Queen. And finally,
he remembers the birth of his son - a joy now turned to sorrow, as
the King finds himself once more in the clearing, where waiting at
the center is his son, armed with a spear.
1686
Out of the corner of his eye, the King sees a movement in the
shadows, and remembers how he first saw his beloved wife, when she
was newly awakened, a young Virgin, and he was the Lord of the
Forest. Now his wife hides in the shadows - she wears a black
cloak, and covers her face with its hood. The King and his son
face each other, and then without a word being spoken, the King
draws his sword and they begin to fight. Sword against spear, a
mighty battle rages in the clearing. The powers of light and dark
are equal, but the powers of darkness are now in the ascendant, and
as the night grows on, the King begins to tire. The wasting wound
he suffered at the Summer Solstice has never healed, and his powers
- like those of the Sun - are waning.
There is a brief pause in the fight: the King and his son
look deep into each others eyes. There flashes between them
recognition of the mystery that light and dark are equal: that
they are not fighting each other, but that each is fighting
himself. For the light and the dark are one and the same, as are
the King and his son, and with this realization, the King joyfully |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,369 | lifts his guard, and is impaled upon the spear as he drives his
sword deep into his son's heart. Together they fall dead to the
ground, and their blood pours out upon the Earth.
At the edge of the clearing the Queen watches, and as she sees
her husband/son die, she sends a great wail echoing through the
forest. There, standing in the cave mouth is the Lord of Death and
Resurrection, but she cannot see him. For her husband/son/lover
has now become the Lord of the Otherworld, and she is still of this
world. The waning Moon watches as she tears her hair, and as one
possessed, runs through the forest in an agony of grief. For she
too saw the mystery, and now she understands that the light and
dark are but the same. She knows that her husband/lover/son has
passed beyond the veil, and that her creative time is passed. For
the Queen is now a Witch: the ancient Hag Crone who knows the
mysteries of life and death and has walked the path of initiation.
In making her journey she has truly found the gods, and knows that
behind the wheel of the seasons there is an ancient power. By
walking the wheel she has joined with the mystery. She has been a
Virgin, a Wife, the Queen, the Mother and the Crone. She has
walked the way of the seasons. She has seen the spring, the
summer, autumn and winter, and she understands that an ancient
truth lies hidden within it all.
At last the time of the dark Moon arrives, when the Sun's
powers are low, and the veil between the worlds is thin. Standing
alone in the forest she makes her way to the clearing. She stands
alone for she is feared by those who have yet to walk the wheel.
For now she must perform the supreme act of magic. She kindles the
ancient Samhain fire, with woods of all the sacred trees. One for
each season, one for each way, one for the night and one for the
day, one for her lover and one for her son, one for the serpent and
one for her song.
1687
As she raises her arms in invocation a great storm gathers.
With a final act of understanding she opens the veil between
herself and the gods. She opens the veil of the Otherworld and
calls back the spirits of the dead. For she knows now to fulfil
the mystery she must join with the Lord of the Otherworld; they
must love and join as one. The storm breaks: lightning and
thunder tear and crack at the ancient night as the trees creak and
bend in the wind. For the wild hunt is now upon us as the spirits
of the dead are led from the Otherworld by the Horned God. Chaos
now reigns in the world for the Mystery is upon us.
But to join with this mystery the Crone must embrace the Lord
of Flame, the Lord of Death and Resurrection, and go with him back
into the Otherworld. To join with him she must become the Goddess.
So of her own free will, she dies the death of true initiation and
enters into the cave, and passes with the Horned Lord back into the
depths of the Otherworld. There they join in love as one: the
supreme moment of the true Great Rite in which all the mysteries of
the male and female; all the mysteries of the light and dark are
married together as one. For love has always been the key. It is
love that conquers our fear and shows the way to union. For true
love is true death, as the individual sense of self is transcended
by a vision of the One. As the gods fulfil the mystery of love,
the seed of new life is planted deep within the womb of the Great
Mother. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,370 | And the land sleeps, for the dark time is upon us once again,
and the God and Goddess lay in each others arms, deep within the
Land, hidden from sight. The Sun quickly wanes day by day, the
nights growing longer, the days shorter. Winter grips the land as
a cold wind blows through the forest. The darkness seems complete,
but those of the Wicca are wise and weep not for they know that the
Sun will be reborn through the love of the God and Goddess. Life
will not fail - the Sun will return again. And at last the night
of the Midwinter Solstice arrives: the longest night of the year,
but we know now it is only the darkness that comes before the dawn.
As you stand upon the edge of the forest, you see the first
signs of the new born Sun rising upon the eastern horizon, and hear
the sound of a new born babe. But this time, you walk away from
the clearing towards the rising Sun, and as you leave the forest,
you turn and see that it is no more than a shadow behind you.
Before you is a world which you know well; it is the world in which
you live, and now it is time to return. The Otherworld is real,
and you may return at any time, for the mysteries of the gods are
there for all to understand, if you have but eyes to see. You
continue to walk into the everyday world, and become aware of the
sounds around you, and of the place in which you sit. Spend a few
moments quietly re-attuning yourself to your normal state, and then
open your eyes and stretch. (End of Guided Visualization)
If you want to make any notes do, but please remember that the
Wheel of the Year is an emotional experience, not an academic
exercise!
And finally, always have something to eat and drink after any
activity which uses an altered state of consciousness. This is the
most effective and efficient way to "ground," and is vital if
participants are travelling home after the working.
1688
The Coven at Pooh Corner
(This article was first given as a talk at The Wiccan Workshop
Number 6, held at Coombe, North Cornwall, in May 1989, and was publis-
hed in Web of Wyrd #7, January 1993)
This talk is designed to illustrate that spiritual significance is
present in everything around us (see "Wicca and the Art of Motorcycle
Maintenance: Children of Sekhmet, May 1988). On this occasion I shall
be using for my inspiration the stories of that world famous writer A
A Milne, to whit, Winnie the Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner. These
are of course coded allegories of the spiritual development of a
certain bear.
Firstly I would like to introduce the characters because there may be
someone here not enlightened enough to have read these great works, in
a similar sort of way as a Christian may not have read his Bible.
Our Hero. W T Pooh.
Pooh, as he is known to his more intimate acquaintances, is a modest
chap not known for his intellectual ability, and has been called "a
bear of very little brain". He is given to composing hums well aware
that being a bear his singing voice is not what it might be. I would |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,371 | think he is probably a Taurean and all in all a well rounded pers-
onality; possibly because it is always time for a little something.
Piglet
Piglet is a small timid little person, a very young spirit, and Pooh's
best friend. He is a chattery soul who tends to dwell on his fears of
heffelumps and woozles. It is generally thought he may be a Gemini and
would be an extrovert if he could find more confidence. He has a
peculiar aversion to being clean.
Wol
Wol has delusions of being the wise old owl based mainly on the fact
that he can spell his name, which is OWL. He lives in the grandest
house in the woods, the old oak tree. It is quite obvious to everyone
that he is in fact Libran because he comes out with statements of fact
which are more often than not wrong. All the other animals turn to him
for advice, which he gives freely although no-one understands a word
of it.
Eeyor
Eeyor is a very interesting character. He is a very, very old spirit
who in this incarnation has come back as a donkey. Nothing much seems
to bother him and he lives all alone in a boggy field. He is generally
perceived to be miserable. This is wrong. He is quite happy in his own
little world and is thought to be a Piscean with a Capricorn ascen-
dant. He is in fact the most intellectual of them all because he can
make the letter A out of three twigs. Also he has a brain whilst all
the rest have grey fluff which has blown in by mistake.
1689
Kanger
Kanger is a newcomer to the forest and something of a matriarch being
very protective of her offspring, Roo. She is of course Cancerian,
like my wife, and will mother everybody whether they like it or not.
Tigger
Tigger is the archetypal extrovert and obviously an Aries. Overwhelm-
ingly friendly and bouncy. Piglet is terrified of him because he jumps
out at you and says "WorraWorraWorra" in what he thinks is a friendly
tone... He has no idea that he can't do something until after he has
done it. He shows no trace of forethought and eventually is adopted by
Kanger.
Christopher Robin
A small boy who will be fully explained at the end.
The Parables of Pooh
1 Down the Rabbit Hole
In this story, Pooh after breakfast of honey followed by honey,
decides to go visiting. First he visits Piglet, and is just in time
for a little something, ie a little honey. Eventually they go to
Rabbit's place. Rabbit, who has hundreds and thousands of relations, |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,372 | naturally lives in a rabbit hole, where Pooh and Piglet are just in
time for a little something. Pooh however eats too much and being a
stoutish bear anyway, finds that when he leaves he gets stuck in the
rabbit hole, with his feet dangling in Rabbit's living room and his
head out in the air. Everyone comes to his aid, but no amount of
pulling or pushing will shift him. Christopher Robin is summoned and
decides that Pooh will have to stay there without honey until think
enough to leave. Rabbit is obviously not well pleased about having a
bear wedged in his front door. However he is compensated when he
discovers that Pooh's legs make excellent towel rails.
Moral: From this escapade we can see that Pooh is not very spiritually
developed. He is far too keen on the physical desires of the body and
through this forced period of fasting and the altruistic use of his
lower limbs, he learns that it is alright to be portly so long as you
don't block someone's portal. In other words, you are at liberty to
follow your own way so long as you do not block another's. This is the
experience of the tarot card of The Devil. Deluded about the relative
sizes of the door and his tummy, he cannot pass through until he has
cast off the chains of his baser desires for honey. Most covens have a
Pooh at this stage of development. This is the witch who overindulges
in the communal wine during the rite, becomes comatose before the
altar, and neither heaven, earth, or High Priestess's boot, can shift.
1690
2 In which Pooh and Piglet go hunting heffalumps
One snowy day, Piglet finds Pooh staring at some footprints. Pooh
thinks this may be a heffalump or maybe a woozle, and exhorts Piglet
to come and follow it. Piglet is not keen. He agrees as long as Pooh
is with him. Sometime later they notice that the footprints have been
joined by another set, two heffalumps, or, as it may be, woozles! Pooh
composes a hum to keep their spirits up, "How cold my nose, tiddly
pom....". A little while later there are four sets of footprints.
Piglet is getting frightened. They sit down for a think and eventually
realise they are walking around a wood following their own footprints.
So off they go for a little something.
Moral: Here we see Pooh's total lack of brilliance. He gets there in
the end with a bit of help. On the other hand there is the immense
faith he inspires in others. People feel safe with Pooh. He knows the
value of a kind word and a cheery song. This also illustrates the
danger of overwhelming others with your enthusiasm for a path, which
may not be the path they would choose. This is why in Wicca we are not
evangelical. Each must find his or her own heffalump or woozle.
In Which Pooh Builds Eeyore a House
One rainy day Pooh sets out to find Piglet. After many hours of
careful thought he has realised that everyone has a house except
Eeyore, but he has a plan. On one side of the wood he has discovered a
pile of sticks, so with Piglet's help they take the sticks around to
the other side of the wood and build Eeyore a fine Des. Res. After
some moments of contemplation of their labours, they set off to find
Eeyore. They come across Eeyore in the approximate location of the
pile of sticks looking puzzled. So they take him off to show him his
new house. Eeyore is muttering but Pooh and Piglet take no notice
whatsoever. They arrive at Eeyore's house and Pooh and Piglet say
proudly, "There!". Eeyore looks pleased, but even more puzzled. It
transpires that Eeyore built a house out of a pile of sticks on the |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,373 | other side of the wood. He puts down the change of location and
certain architectural improvements to the high wind of the night
before. Pooh and Piglet say nothing to Eeyore, and then Pooh says that
he thinks it's "Time for a little something."
Moral: From this we can see that although still not devastatingly
intelligent, Pooh has managed to perceive someone else's problem, and
has made some attempt to solve it for them. It may however have been
better if he had consulted Eeyore who had already gone about solving
his problem for himself. Thus we see that we should not impose our
particular perception of the universe on others. Fortunately Eeyore is
of such greatness of spirit that he lets this event pass, and Pooh has
developed sufficient maturity to let discretion be the better part of
valour. As Eeyore was muttering perhaps we should also learn to listen
to others.
1691
The Great Flood
Pooh looks out one morning and sees that it is STILL raining. Chris-
topher Robin has been getting concerned about the rising waters,
measuring their progress with sticks. Each morning yesterday's stick
has disappeared. He goes around and warns everyone to go to high
ground. Pooh laboriously takes his stock of honey and balances all his
jars on a high branch of a tree, where he takes refuge. When all his
stock is exhausted he ponders for a while, then makes a not very
successful boat out of a honey jar. The boat and Pooh have some
disagreement as to whom should be on top. He eventually paddles this
Craft over to Christopher Robin's house where they take to Christopher
Robin's upturned umbrella. They then ensure that all the other animals
are safe.
Moral: This story illustrates Pooh's growing concern for the environ-
ment and his fellow creatures. In this particular crisis, Pooh does
not go off half cock making rash decisions, but seeks the help of the
most developed spirit in the forest. Pooh exhibits great fortitude
and determination in his quest for this higher spirit. Also he is
showing better use of his baser desires, ie for honey. There are
obvious parallels with numerous other flood myths although in this
Wiccan version, having had our fill of our favourite tipple, the Ark
mark 1A has some design faults. This is why in the world of today
there aren't quite so many unicorns and other mythical beasts. They
lost the argument with their honey pots.
What Tiggers Eat
Pooh, strolling through the woods, hears this peculiar noise:
"WorraWorraWorra". He picks himself up, looks around and espies this
strange creature. The creature bounces up and down and says, "Hello,
I'm Tigger". Pooh, being a generous soul, asks him back for a little
something. He asks Tigger what he would like to eat. Tigger doesn't
know what he eats, so Pooh gives him some honey. Tigger is not imp-
ressed, so off they go to Piglet's house with Tigger bouncing along,
running ahead of Pooh and leaping our at him in a very friendly
fashion. When they arrive, Piglet gives him some acorns. Tigger does
not like Acorns. So off they go to Eeyore's where Tigger tries thist-
les. Tigger definitely does not like thistles. Lastly they try Kanger.
Kanger is very concerned, but doesn't know quite what to suggest.
However, whilst giving malt extract to her baby Roo, Tigger bounces up
and grabs the spoon and says "Mmmmmmm". So we find out what Tiggers |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,374 | eat.
Moral: This shows Pooh's ready acceptance of all types of people, even
Aries! He goes to great lengths to help this very young spirit to find
spiritual sustenance and someone willing to look after him. Kanger, as
is the case with most Cancerians, does not believe they can solve the
problem but in fact the solution is in their grasp all the time.
Unfortunately, Kanger is now stuck with this waif and stray. Pooh has
climbed a long way from the days when he got stuck in Rabbit's door,
and has learnt the responsibility that goes with new initiates in our
world.
N.B. Please note that in the true Pagan spirit of this tome,
even Tiggers eat vegetarian food.
1692
Pooh and the Honey Tree
On this day we find Pooh staring up into the branches of a tree. His
highly tuned senses have detected honey. Being a portly bear he is
none too good at climbing trees, so he comes up with a plan. Chris-
topher Robin had a party with lots of balloons. So off he goes to
Christopher Robin's house to ask if he might borrow a balloon. He also
asks Christopher Robin to help him. They set off with Pooh's require-
ments. The balloon is painted black to look like a thundercloud, and
blown up. Pooh, grasping the string, floats aloft. Christopher Robin
stays beneath with his umbrella announcing "Tut tut, it looks like
rain." The bees of course are not fooled for an instant. About this
time Pooh discovers the major flaw in his plan. He cannot get down.
After much careful thought, Christopher Robin shoots the balloon with
his pop gun, and Pooh descends very rapidly and lands on a thistle.
Eeyore considers this a waste of a good thistle.
Moral: This is the pinnacle of Pooh's intellectual development. He has
solved his immediate problem, but not really thought out the conse-
quences. In a spiritual sense, he has strived too far without being
properly prepared and is brought back to earth with a bump. Pooh,
having developed so far, has forgotten that if you are to go flying,
astrally or not, then you must not forget your parachute. As Pooh
found with the bees, we must learn not to underestimate life forms we
perceive as being lower than ourselves. Eeyore is another case in
point. Although he is seen as under-developed because he does not say
much, he has obviously seen the outcome from the word go, and is only
upset at the demise of a juicy thistle. Christopher Robin is obviously
an interplanes adept since once again he rescues Pooh after having
clairvoyantly foreseen the outcome.
Conclusion:
To lead up to my great revelation I must conclude the story. On
frequent occasions when Pooh calls on Christopher Robin, he is out,
but has left a note that he will be "BAK SON", and is nowhere to be
seen. Pooh takes these notes to Wol, who is not sure if they refer to
a herbaceous "Bakson" or a spotted "Bakson". One evening, Christopher
Robin arrives at Pooh's house and reveals to Pooh that his time in
this place is nearly over and he must go to school. He and Pooh have a
long chat and Christopher Robin decides that Pooh is ready to accom-
pany him on this great adventure and they walk off hand in hand into
the Sun. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,375 | This illustrates the basic fact of life that no matter how comfortable
we are we must be prepared to grow and develop and move on when we
must. Christopher Robin is in fact Pooh's Higher Self and as can be
seen from the stories, unless you use your Higher Self you will not
reach your desired aims, and indeed may go the same way as the uni-
corns and their honey pots. Between Christopher Robin and Pooh they
have achieved sufficient development to leave their current plane and
move on to higher things. Christopher Robin, as can be seen from his
name, Christ/Robin, is a Tipherathic aspect of Pooh; ie the centre
where the lower and higher self come together. When they have united
the way is open and clear for them to move on to the next sphere of
existence.
1693
Thus it should be every witch's ambition to be reincarnated as a bear
of very little brain who lives in the hundred acre wood on a plane at
least one above this one. After all the idiots we see running this
world have to be seen as a damn sight more stupid than even Wol. (PS
Mrs Thatcher is also a Libran!)
copyright to David Wadsworth, who has been a bear of little brain for
many a long year!
The End
1694
Wicca & The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
by David Wadsworth
(This article first appeared in Children of Sekhmet, May 1988. It was
originally given by Dave as a talk at a Wiccan Workshop organised by
Chris and Vivianne Crowley in 1987)
This talk aims to illustrate the all-pervading nature of Wicca. If a
system of natural laws or beliefs is true, it can be applied to
virtually anything. I intend to try and apply parts of Wiccan beliefs
to my other passion, biking.
There is a peculiar sort of bonding between a real biker and his
machine. The biker will put the well-being of his machine far above
his own. I have seen men cry over a bent bike, or after an accident
tell the driver off for hitting his bike rather than him. I have
personally fought off two ambulence men so that I could hop to my bike
to inspect the damage before being taken to hospital. My theory for
this strange bond is that the motorcycle and rider form a sort of
Gestalt being, a conplete entity, either part of which is incomplete
or useless without the other.
The motorcycle represents the male part of this entity. It provides
all the force and power, but lacks control and direction. It is all
potential, in Wiccan terms, the God force, waiting for the female
aspect, the Goddess, in the form of a horrible grubby motorcycle
rider. The rider takes the force and harnesses it, giving purpose,
form and direction. Controlling the raw male potential, and together,
in harmony, they will be capable of reaching heights impossible to
either on their own. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,376 | The motorcycle can be seen as a way through which to tap a source of
cosmic energy. The energy which we in the Wicca use for healing,
spells, divination, as a gateway to alternative universes. Just as a
witch wouldn't attempt to tap this awesome power without protection,
neither would a biker. The biker will put on boots, gloves, helmet and
leathers in a similar sort of way as a member of the Craft would
surround themselves with a protective circle to preserve the power and
keep out undesirable spirits. In the biker's case he is also aiming to
keep in the heat, and protect him from the road, onto which demon car
drivers possessed of evil spirits (gin, vodka, whiskey etc.) would
lure him to his death!
This brings us neatly (?) to the subject of reincarnation. Most of you
reading this will have some knowledge of the ideas of reincarnation;
i.e. that we are born, live in the world, die, and are then reborn to
develop further. Not many of you will realise that motorcycles go
through a similar process. They leave the factory to roam about the
face of the earth, then some parts wear out, and they descend into the
dark underworld of the workshop. Here they are consoled and repaired
by the creative force of the female, who is the biker, to emerge
re-born in Spring, once more blooming with refreshed colour of res-
tored paintwork, and the cycle starts again. Many British machines go
through this every year. About Yule they are ready, and in the first
days of Spring they roar about in the first flush of youth. Then at
the peak of their power, at Lammas, they are cut down, usually due to
some terminal mechanical problem. They dwell for the remainder of the
year in Hades, the garage, thus mirroring the cycle of the God.
1695
The spirituality of bikes is perceived by man in different forms, and
each has its followers. Here are some of the major religions:
THE CHRISTIAN
This newcomer to the spiritual motorcycle rides a modern Japanese
bike. He pays little more than lip service to his religion. He has
few rituals, all he has to do is turn the key and start the starter
engine. He tends to be into power and speed, tearing past older
machines which he regards with contempt. He cares little for the inner
workings of the machine, running to his priest/mechanic whenever he
has a problem. Should his machine pass on, i.e., wear out, it will
believed to be irreparable, i.e., too expensive, and gone to the great
scrap heap in the sky. The makers of this are the great salesmen and
evangelists of the bike, not to mention the profit makers.
THE MAGICIAN
He will typically be an older bearded gentleman, who rides an immacu-
late old British motorcycle. They are into status, and will pootle
along at 40 mph all day, imagining themselves the envy of all who see
them. They are into ritual and mystery. The performance required to
summon some older bikes into life is awesome and dangerous. Yet these
fellows will watch in silence as a machine spits at a new initiate and
breaks his shin. They will endlessly pontificate on the correct shade
of colour for the petrol tank, or whether a part is the right year for
the model; mostly that's all they do.
THE WITCH
The bike will most likely be filthy, not from lack of care, but from |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,377 | constant use in all sorts of conditions. The rider knows and under-
stands the inner workings of his machine, its every click and whistle.
He relies on no guru for his understanding, he is not afraid to try
things out and see if it works. Not for him the search for power or
acclaim. He is just out to explore the universe and glean its myster-
ies. He will get there in the end, there's plenty of time. He will
rebuild bikes time after time, not sticking to rigid formulae, but
with whatever comes to hand. he enjoys his bike and is in-tune with
it.
As a biker-witch, I am now going to use two useful tools to explain my
theory of Life, the Universe and Everything: i.e., the Kaballah and
the four-stroke cycle.
Firstly the act of invocation and the four-stroke cycle. For those of
you who are not mechanically minded, I'll try and keep this simple.
Officially the four-stroke cycle is referred to as Induction,
Compression, Power and Exhaust. I prefer the much more evocative Suck,
Squeeze, Bang, Blow. There are a few parts that really matter: the
crank shaft, the con rod, the piston and the inlet plus exhaust
valves.
1696
1) Suck: Initially the piston is at the top and both valves are
closed. As the crank shaft turns, the inlet valve opens, the con rod
pulls the piston down which draws air and fuel in. At this point in an
invocation, the invoker is opening his chakras and drawing the cosmic
energy which surrounds us into his body.
2) Squeeze: The crank shaft continues around, the inlet valve shuts,
and the piston is pushed up, squeezing tha gases together. This is
when the invoker says the invocation and passes the power to the
invokee.
3) Bang: The fuel/air mixture ignites and pushes the piston down. The
priest/ess takes on the aspect of God/dess being invoked.
4) Blow: The exhaust valve opens and the piston pushes the charge into
the exhaust pipe. The God/dess charges and shares his/her power with
those assembled.
And now - motorcycles on the Tree of Life:
Kether - traditionally the godhead from which all energy flows. It is
formless. This is the high tension spark which ignites the fuel and
without which the bike is naught.
Chokmah - Formless, directionless energy, raw untamed power. In the
engine this is the burning fuel mixture.
Binah - this takes the raw force and starts organising and forming it.
The piston, conrod and crankshaft takes the power of the expanding
gases
and converts it to rotary motion.
Chesed - Takes the potential energy of Binah, gives it order, and
makes it more solid and usable. In the engine, the gearbox and final
drive take the power from the crank shaft and make it usable to the
whole machine. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,378 | Geburah - An essential breaking down. Where there is life, there must
be death. In an engine when you have got two lumps of metal thrashing
about in violent motion, they must wear each other away.
Tiphareth - This is the image of the godhead, the wayshower, Lucifer,
Prince of Light. In the bike this is represented by the electrical
system and the ignition system, and the lights, which on British
machines are provided by Joe Lucas, Prince of Darkness!
Netzach - This is the spirit of nature, intuition and sexuality. This
is more concerned with what bikers do. They are in tune with nature
and tend to get drawn to ancient sites, eg Stonehenge, Avebury and
Wayland Smithy, or just standing around in a muddy field communing
with nature and the local brewery. This is also the source of the
sexual bond between man and machine.
Hod - Communication, intellect and travel. It is also where your will
produces power. The travelling aspect of motorcycles is fairly ob-
vious, and hordes of despatch riders fulfil the communication role.
This is where we get the knowledge of the workings of the bike. It
definitely takes Hodic willpower on a cold, wet morning, along with
1697
highly verbal expletives, leaping up and down on the kickstart to get
the bugger moving.
Yesod - This is the lunar aspect of biking, linked to Tiphareth on the
Middle Pillar (refer Joe Lucas, Prince of Darkness). Many bikers will,
by the light of the Full Moon, switch their lights off and ride by
moonlight in their lunatic hunt for the local hostellry. In the event
of a biker meeting his death through this ridiculous activity, look
into the sky. For there you will espy, on his silver machine, the
spirit of the biker riding across the astral heavens. Scientists tend
to think these are meteors. There is also the illusion of security one
gets from riding around with one's head in a goldfish bowl, collo-
quially known as a blood bucket.
Malkuth - The concrete world, reality. On a bike you are cold, wet,
tired, frequently uncomfortable, and very vulnerable, and no-one in
their right mind would do it if it wasn't for something else......
Despite Malkuth, biking opens up other realms, other worlds (Birmi-
ngham, London, Glasgow, etc) and puts you in tune with the inner and
outer universes.
The End.
1698
THE GREEK & ROMAN GOD(ESSE)S
A quick overveiw by Thomas Palmer
APOLLO-Also called Phoebus, the bright one. Identified with the sun.
Said to be the most powerful of the Gods. Son of Zeus and Leto. Born
on Delos, taken North and raised by the hyperboreans, he went to
Delphi and killed the dragon Python, guardian of the oracle of Themis,
but a ravager of the countryside.
Tall,handsome,outstanding inword anddeed,he wasthe god
of ever-renewed youth, archetype of virile beauty and masculine |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,379 | virtue. He was also known as a seducer & extremely arrogant. Talented
in music, inventor of the lyre, he was the inspiration of poets and
soothsayers. His oracles were expressed in verse.
Hecould cure illnessand banish evil.He was adoctor who
knew the purification rites and was invoked against plague. His image
was set at dangerous places for protection (Lighting the ways) Nothing
escaped his vision (light of day).
ARIES (MARS)-Son of Hera, born without male assistance. He was a
supreme fighter, loved battle and cared little about issues, switching
sides without scruple. He delighted in massacres.
Hewas god of war,not victory, andwas thoughtless about
winning, only fighting. Was on occasion disarmed by Athena, Goddess of
restraint and forethought, to keep him from interfering in battles
that did not concern him.
He wasprolific inlove, butalso arapist.He wasrun byhis
passions.
CRONOS (SATURN)- Son of Uranus (Heaven) and Gaea (Earth). Gaea, worn
out by numerous pregnancies, requested to be free of this burden, so
Cronos (Saturn) took up a sickle and cut off his father's testicles.
His wife was Rhea, and he fathered Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades,
Poseidon and Zeus. Was eventually deposed by Zeus.
Hisfestivals, theSaturnalia,were atimeof liberationand
freedom for all and got pretty wild. They were celebrated from Dec.
17th until the new year. Saturn is the archetype for "father time".
DIONYSUS- Son of Zeus and Semele. His escort was satyrs and marginally
sane gods. He did not respect laws or customs, loved disguises, wild
screaming, licentious dances and wild places. He was a drunken god
with no home, living in the wild and eating raw meat. He encouraged
excesses of all kinds.
HerahatedDionysus becauseofZeus'sinfidelity andhounded
him. She caused him to be killed by the Titans, but he was resurrected
through the efforts of Athena, Zeus, Apollo, and Rhea. She drove him
mad, but through Cybele he gained mastery of it. He drove many people
mad for various reasons.
EROS (CUPID)- A primordial god, contemporary of Chaos, who existed
before Cronos (Saturn) and Zeus. He came out of an egg that formed the
earth and sky when it broke in two. He precipitated the embraces of
Gaea (the Earth) and Uranus (the heavens), which resulted in the birth
of Oceanus, Tethys, Coeus, and Cronos (Saturn). The Earth and heavens
were so tightly embraced that none of the children could rise towards
the light until Cronos (Saturn) castrated his father.
CupidwasassociatedwithAphrodite, whomoderatedhispower.
Where he was desire, instinct and violent sex, she was grace, tender-
ness and sweet pleasure.
Cupidmadepeoplelosetheir reasonandparalyzedtheirwills,
even inspiring Zeus to capricious sexual desires.
1699
AsEros heis saidto bethe childof Porus(Expedience) and
Penia (Poverty). Like Penia, he was said to always be in search of
something, and like Porus, he always found a means of attaining his
aims.
FAUNUS- A Roman God, Son of Circe and Jupiter. Protector of the Roman
peoples, he lived on Palatine Hill in Rome. His oracle was given in
nightmares. Lupercalia was his festival, during which his priests ran
through the streets with leather straps and struck any women they met |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,380 | with them to bestow health and fertility. The women were said to strip
themselves to be better targets. He reproduced himself in the satyrs.
HADES (PLUTO)- Son of Cronos (Saturn), brother of Zeus and Poseidon.
When the world was divided between the three brothers, the underworld
and hell fell to Hades, while Zeus took the heavens and Poseidon the
seas. He had a helmet that made him invisible. He ruled the dead, and
forbade his subjects to leave his domain. He desired Persephone, but
Zeus forbade the marriage. He then kidnapped her.
HEPHAESTUS (VULCAN)- Son of Zeus and Hera. He was lame, either because
his mother, startled by his ugliness, dropped him, or because Zeus,
angry that he took his mother's side in a dispute, threw him from
Olympos. He dwelled among mortals and became the god of black smithing
and artistic metal work. He made a golden throne that imprisoned any
who sat in it, and gave it to Hera to avenge himself for his fall from
Olympos.
HERMES (MERCURY)- Son of Zeus and the nymph Maia. He stole some of
Apollo's cattle shortly after his birth and concealed them, sacrific-
ing two to the Olympian Gods. This theft won him recognition as a God
himself. When Apollo discovered the theft and Hermes was tried, his
defense was so skillful and spirited that Zeus laughed and ruled that
there should be a friendly settlement between the brothers.
Hermes was Godof the spoken wordand oratory and wasthe
intermediary between the Gods and men. Also the God of commerce and
contracts, where language must be precise to convey the correct
meaning.
JANUS- ROMAN- The Two faced God. he was God of beginnings and presided
over new undertakings, gateways and initiations. he was revered as the
first king of Rome and made order reign. His temple was left open in
wartime so the God could act, but was closed in peace.
THE LARES- Roman- Twin children of Mercury by the rape of Lara. They
protected the land. Were symbolized by two boys and a dog.
PAN- Half man, half goat, with horns on his brow and lust in his eyes.
Son of Hermes and a daughter of the Dryops, he was the God of pastoral
regions and wilderness. Special friend of shepherds, he guided and
protected them from afar. Protector of all wild things and places. His
pipes had an aphrodisiac effect on those who heard them and induced
mating.
Pan wasalecherand adrunkwho constantlypursuednymphswho
would flee in terror. Caves rang with their cries when he caught them.
He was famous for his rages, where he attacked anyone who got in his
way. His irrational behavior led people to flee him in "panic." He
was dangerous when he took possession of a being. The possessed, or
panoleptic, took on his bearing and would wander in the wild, laugh
madly, or throw themselves on others for sex without respect to
gender, or have epileptic fits.
1700
POSEIDON (NEPTUNE)- Son of Cronos (Saturn) and Rhea, he is represented
wielding a trident and being pulled by monsters in a chariot. After
Zeus's victory over Cronos (Saturn), the young gods, who preferred
life on earth, divided the various domains of earth. Poseidon chose
the seas. He represented the hidden forces of germination and death.
Together with his wife Amphitrite, he had powerful ties with Gaea, the
Earth, mother of the Titans. As subterranean Gods, they shook the
world from inside. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,381 | Poseidoncausedearthquakes whenhemade lovetohis wife.
The mystery isle of Atlanta belonged to Poseidon. Poseidon could
provoke storms, set fire to rocks on shore and create springs of
water. He had many children, most wicked and violent, like the Cyclops
of the Oddessy.
PRIAPUS- A small god with a penis of immense size. Son of Zeus and
Aphrodite, he was deformed by Hera in revenge. Aphrodite abandoned him
in fear that she would be ridiculed for her ugly child. He began as a
symbol of fertility, but of no significance. Although he was over-
sized, he was impotent. He seemed to fail at everything he tried. He
was compared to an ass and ridiculed. He lent his name to the disease
priapism, an incurable illness where the penis remains painfully erect
but incapable of ejaculation. Ended up as an obscure gnome.
QUIRINUS- A Roman warrior god originally, he became a god who watched
over the well being of the community, opposite to his former nature.
Called an apparition of Romulus the founder of Rome.
ZEUS (JUPITER)- Son of Cronos (Saturn) and Rhea. He defeated Cronos
(Saturn) in a ten year battle and then divided the realms with his
brothers by lot, getting the heavens for his own. He was ruler and
judge, the arbiter of disputes among Gods and men. His decisions were
just and well balanced, showing no favoritism. He had several wives
and many lover's, earning the title "all father" or "father god". His
infidelity caused much strife on Olympos and in the world through he
raging of his wife, Hera.
Goddesses
APHRODITE (VENUS)- Daughter of Zeus and Dione according to Homer. 'The
Woman Born Of The Waves' according to Hesiod, born of the foam impreg-
nated by the sexual organs of Uranus, which Cronos (Saturn) had
severed and thrown into the sea. Plato identifies these as two
separate Aphrodites. One Urania, the daughter of Uranus was goddess of
pure love. The other, called Pandemos, (Root of pandemonium?) was the
Goddess of 'common' love. She married Hephaestus, but was unfaithful
with Aries.
Arieswascaughtandhumiliated. Aphroditefledinshame to
Cyprus, and there took Thrace as lover, resulting in the birth of Eros
(Love), Anteros (Love in return), Deimos and Phobos (Terror and Fear).
She also was a lover of Adonis, a human shepherd named Anchises who
fathered Aneas, of Hermes and of Dionysus who fathered Priapus. She
was known for jealousy. She made Eos (Dawn) fall in love with Orion in
spite for her seduction of Aries. She punished all who did not succumb
to her. A beauty competition between Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite was
proposed by Eris (Discord) with the prize being a golden apple. It was
judged by the human Paris. All the Goddesses offered him bribes to
win.
1701
AphroditeofferedHelen, mostbeautifulofall Humans.She
won and thus caused the Trojan War. Eros was the primordial god of in-
stinct. When Aphrodite appeared he adapted himself and joined forces
with her. At this time the sexes became distinct. Aphrodite's kingdom
was the place of desire. Young girls were said to pass from the place
of Artemis (chastity and games) to the place of Aphrodite, where they
become women. Considered by some to be an affliction or madness that
women must bear. She represents female lust and passion, and demonstr- |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,382 | ates its potential for destructive effect. Young girls gave their vir-
ginity to the Goddess by living in her temples and offering themselves
to passing strangers.
ARTEMIS (DIANA)-Daughter of Zeus and Leto. The huntress, she is seen
as the forever young goddess. She is proud of her shapeliness and
keeps her virginity to protect it. She was a warrior, joining Apollo
to kill Python and other exploits. Anyone who offended her or tried to
win her virginity paid dearly. They were killed, transformed, or
mutilated. She defended modesty and punished illicit love and exces-
ses. She avenged rape. She also took out her anger on those virgins
who gave in to love. She did not mind marriage, but when a virgin
married she was to give up all the things of childhood, toys and
dolls, locks of hair, etc., leaving them on her altar.
ATHENA (MINERVA)- Daughter of Zeus and Metis. Metis was swallowed by
Zeus, and when it was time for Diana's birth, he had Hephaestus crack
open his skull and she came forth in full armor shouting a war cry.
Also a virgin Goddess, she lived among men without fear due to her
warrior's skills. She was the protectress of Odysseus and other men.
She was a warrior who used strategy, ambush, cunning, and magic rather
than brute force. Her shield bore the head of a gorgon and she paraly-
zed her adversaries and made her companions invincible. She was
against excess, both in war and every day life. She taught men to
control their savagery and to tame nature. Was the initiator of all
skills. Taught Pandora to weave, trained horses and invented the
chariot. She was the patroness of blacksmiths and carpenters. She
built the first ship and the boat of the Argonauts.
CYBELE- Was born as Agditis, a hermaphrodite monster, from a stone
fertilized by Zeus. The Gods decided to mutilate him(?) and made the
Goddess Cybele from him. Her love for Attis, a human shepherd, drove
him insane and he castrated himself for her. Her priests were eunuchs
dressed as women. It is from the temple of Cybele that the reference
in the Wiccan Charge of the Goddess to "At mine Altars, the youths of
Lacedæmon in Sparta made due sacrifice.", comes.
DEMETER (CERES)- Daughter of Cronos (Saturn) and Rhea, the Goddess of
corn and grain. Demeter bore Persephone. She renounced her duties as
goddess and began a fast and went into exile from Olympos when her
daughter was abducted into the underworld until her daughter should be
returned to her. She caused the spread of the knowledge of the cul-
tivation of corn.
During herexilethe earthbecamebarren untilZeusdemanded
that Hades return Persephone. She had eaten from a pomegranate,
however, and was forever bound to the underworld. As a compromise, she
was allowed to rise up into the world with the first growth of spring
and return to the underworld at seed sowing in fall. And so the Earth
is barren in the winter, while Demeter mourns, and becomes fruitful
again when Persephone is released. Demeter made herself known to the
children of Eleusis, who raised her a temple and instituted the
1702
Eleusinian mysteries. In Sept.-Oct., the candidates for initiation
purified themselves in the sea, then processed down the sacred path
from Athens to Eleusis. The rites remain secret, but involve a search
for a mill for grinding corn, and a spiritual experience. During the
rites, men women and slaves were all treated as equal.
ERINYES, THE- Alecto, Tisiphone, and Megaara. They were born from
drops of blood that fell from Uranus's severed Penis, and did not |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,383 | recognize the authority of the gods of Olympos. They hounded and
tortured their victims, driving them mad. Also called the Eumenides,
The Good Ones, to divert their wrath. Assimilated by the Romans as the
Furies. They were implacable and demanded punishment for every murder.
To them murder was a stain. The murderer had to be banished and driven
mad before purification could occur. They were blind and carried out
their punishments indefinitely.
HARPIES- Greek genii/spirits- Daughters of Thaumes and Electra:
Nicotho or swift-footed, Ocypete or swift of flight, and Celaeno, the
dark one. Were either women with wings or birds with the heads of
women. Called the 'hounds of Zeus' and seized children and souls.
Skillful at torture, they could pester a victim into madness.
HERA (JUNO)- Daughter of Cronos (Saturn) and Rhea brought up by
Oceanus and Tethys. Married Zeus. It was claimed that each year Hera
regained hervirginity by bathing in the spring of Canathus. According
to some traditions Hephaestus, Aries, and Hebe (Youth) were conceived
by her alone without male assistance. As Zeus' legitimate wife, her
fury at his infidelities was boundless, and she took vengeance on his
lovers and any progeny of the affair without distinction. Zeus was
often reduced to hiding or disguising his children to protect them.
HESTIA/VESTA- Daughter of Cronos (Saturn) and Rhea. Goddess of the
hearth, she had the privilege of retaining her virginity forever. Her
symbol was the fire, which was never allowed to go out. The young
bride and newborn child were presented to her and she was invoked
before each meal. Her temple in Rome was served by the young vestal
virgins.
MOERAE (PARCAE)- The Three Fates. Atropos, Clotho, Lachesis, daughters
of Zeus and Themis. The first spins a thread symbolizing birth. The
second unravels it, symbolizing life's processes, and the third cuts
it, symbolizing death. They too were blind and ruled destiny. They
were also symbols of a limit which could not be overstepped. Were
connected to their sisters, the furies, who punished crime.
MUSES- Nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne (Memory). Calliope ruled
epic poetry, Clio ruled history, Polyhymnia mime, Euterpe the flute,
Terpsichore dance, Erarto lyric art, Melpomene tragedy, Thalia comedy
and Urania astronomy. They delighted the Gods and inspired poets. The
Muses created what they sang about. By praising the gods, they com-
pleted their glory, by boasting of valiant warriors, they wrote their
names in history.
Theywerecelebrated bythe Pythagoreansasthe keepersof the
knowledge of harmony.
1703
NEMESIS- Daughter and Night. Ruled over the distribution of wealth,
looked after balance, took revenge on arrogance and punished excess,
including excessive happiness, riches and power. Moderation in all
things was her creed.
NYMPHS- Daughter of Zeus and usually part of a greater god(esses)
entourage. Not immortal, though long lived. Mostly lived in caves.
Were dark powers whose beauty alone could lead to madness. Were
seducers of many of the gods. Were considered secondary deities.
THETIS- Daughter of the old man of the sea. Very beautiful. Mother of
Achilles. Saved Zeus from a plot to overthrow him and was an ally of |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,384 | Hera. Saved the Argonauts as they passed between the clashing rocks.
1704
Against The Witch Hunters
Robin Culain
"All this has happened before. And all this will happen again. But
this time it happened to ..."
Well, us.
Thebeginning of Sir James Barrie's PeterPan must echo what many of
us are feeling, as we watch a new and loosely-knit conglomerate of
yellow journalists, right-wing eco-spoilers and Evangelical and
Fundamental Christians move slowly towards a Witch hunt for the 90's.
Our spiritual ancestors faced similar problems in many times and many
lands.
Recall the Priestesses of Eleusis, last of an ancient line, in
decline, falling at last to the stratagems of Theseus and his new
Attic Gods. Recall the Etruscans, their vision of sexual-political
balance overpowered by the might and organization of the husband-
headed Roman empire. And most tender to the touch, recall the agony of
the middle ages, as the Catholic, then Protestant churches consolidat-
ed their grip on the rural population, killing six million alleged or
actual Witches in the process.
The hunt is in a beginning stage and beginnings are important. The
formal focus of the television specials, Redbook articles, diatribes
in the LaRouchite New Federalist, "Occult Crime" seminars and newspap-
er articles is some thing called "Satanism", which bears little or no
relationship to Wicca and Neo-Paganism.
In fact, media "Satanism" bears little resemblance to any histori-
cally verifiable Satanism. It is neither classical Egyptian Set-
worship", Romantic Ceremonial Satanism a la Huysmanns nor modern
Egoist flamboyance per La Vey. Sometimes it's heavy metal sullenness,
drugs and violence, but that's usually only for starters. The heavy
metal boys, we're usually told, are just dupes of the Great Conspira-
cy. And when you get down to the real stuff, the genuine complaint,
it's generally the stuff of horror movies and nightmare -- baby-
eating, virgin-sacrificing bloodsucking monsters!
All this has happened before. And all this will happen again.
There's a limited range of things that can be used to stir up the
anger of a populace against a group, or deaden moral sensitivity to a
persecution. It pretty much boils down to baby-eating, virgin-sacrifi-
cing and bloodsucking.
This has been the century of Hitler's Holocaust. but the Russians
who butchered entire Jewish villages in the Pogroms, the inhabitants
of York who slaughtered nearly every Jew in the city in the 1100's
didn't merely think the Yiddim dressed and talked funny. The accusa-
tions were the same. By Jesus, those Jews ate babies! They were just
like Satanists, with one exception.
You could find the Jews.
1705 |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,385 | There probably aren't any "Satanists" as portrayedin the articles,
seminars and diatribes. If there are, they're certainly not Neo-Pagans
or Wiccans. But in the lucrative atmosphere in which the press,
missionaries and so-called "Crime Advisers" publicize and proselytize,
the word "Witch" creeps in every third sentence.
Naturally,we Witches and Neo-Pagans have spent a certain amount of
effort pointing out that we love children like anybody else, have no
particular attraction to virginity, and tend, in the most extreme of
our diets, to vegetarianism. In short, we have tried to educate our
detractors and the media to our harmlessness.
This tactic is true, andthis tactic is good, but I thinkthat if it
becomes our primary response to persecution we will ultimately fail to
endure.
Imagine a Witch inthe Middle Ages in front of aCatholic or Protes-
tant tribunal. In some cases she has been denounced by a business
competitor, or an envious rival in love, or a spiteful neighbor. In
other cases she has been brought to the dock by an expert in "Occult
Crime" -- the traveling Witch Finder.
She stands bound before her Inquisitors,plain or pompous depending
on their religious persuasion. Perhaps there's a crowd around. She
tries to educate them to the simple fact that she's a worshipper of
the Old Gods, loves children like anybody else, has no particular
attraction to virginity, and tends, in the most extreme of her diets,
to vegetarianism.
They, in turn, accuse her of worshipping a living fiend, blighting
the cattle, and eating babies.
She doesn't stand a chance.
Now picture another scene, one that has not occurred often. She
stands before those assembled, and begins, shall I say, to point out
some facts. She points out the medieval physician with the two per
cent live delivery rate who wants the local midwifery practice shut
down. She points out the priest and bishop who are terrifying the once
fun-loving populace into penury and pestilence with the twin threats
of damnation and the noose. She denounces the Christian nobles who
will brook no interference with their rule, least of all from the old
Nobility of the land.
She'd be shut up in short order, but in a different way, for she
would be addressing the real issues. The nonsense about babies, Black
Men and cattle was then, and is now nothing more than a smoke screen
to mask real and significant religious and political differences. It's
all a cheap trick, a coward's cheat, a way of throwing muck until some
sticks. It is only used when the real terms of debate cannot stand the
light of day, and it works only if we permit it!
Our situation is in no way as dire as that of our ancestors. Only
now have things moved to the stage where one group, the far-right and
sometimes farcical Limonites, actively bait Wiccans and Neo-Pagans as
being "as bad as Satanists". And unlike our ancestors, we have a
freedom of speech they could only dream of. We will not be silenced if
we speak, certainly not at this time. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,386 | 1706
So let's not waste our opportunity! Whenever the "Witch-Hunters"
bait us or attempt to smear us with their cannibal taunts, let's find
out what the real agenda is, and address it. Make the Lyndonite defend
himself against whipping up the population against a minority religion
as Hitler stirred hatred against the Jews. Make the entire La Rouche
crew explain their suicidal environmental policies, and their editori-
al statement that "the worship of Mother Earth does indirectly lead to
mass murder ..." Engage them on the real issues -- just what the
worship of the Mother really means, and what people are really like
that scapegoat innocents and despise nature!
Likewise with the "Occult Crimewatch". Ask them about theirsources
of revenue. About their religious agendas and connection with Evan-
gelical missions. Ask the if they support religious freedom, and if
non-Evangelical religious belief, in their opinion, is a hazard to the
public. Ask them, if you can corner them into a frank reply, what on
earth they are doing lecturing hate to police officers sworn to
protect all the public, Christian and Pagan!
The media deserve the same. Let's not spend more than a breath
denying lurid charges. Instead, ask them why they are sensationalizing
and smearing a legitimate religion to make sales. Inquire as to
whether the German press in the 30's had a responsibility for the
slanders on the Jews that they printed. Ask them how they'll feel if
harm comes to one Pagan woman or man, girl or boy through their
negligence, indifference to non sensational fact and search for sales.
In every case we have an opportunity to turn the tide, by coming
right out with our real differences in front of the public, and
insisting that the terms of debate be on genuine issues. We must
refuse to be backed into a defensive posture, denying ever wilder
charges.
Instead let us bring our active advocacy and love of our Gods, of
Mother Earth, of our families and children and ourselves to the fore
in every debate. We must require our opponents to bare their genuine
beliefs and motives, and contrast them clearly with our own in full
view. We must sharpen the terms of debate so keenly that no person can
leave the scene without having to make a clear and conscious choice
about what they value and believe is right.
There's no point in lecturing to the Cardinal. The audience for
every debate is not the Witch Hunter, it is the neutral observer. Let
them see the love of the Earth, and contrast it to nearsighted greed
and poverty of emotion. Let them see the love of the Old Gods and
contrast it to a cringing fear of the Father's judgment. Let them see
generosity and intelligence and refusal to be sacrificed, and contrast
them to venality, cunning and scape goating. In every debate, let us
rise to the height of our capability, and let our opponents have it
in the Values -- right where it hurts!
1707
Charging Crystals
Ian Kesser
Crystals,as many of you know, are extremely useful for practition- |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,387 | ers of the Magickal arts. They can be used to channel power, to store
power, to heal, and many other ways. Due to space considerations, I
have chosen to limit myself to the charging aspect in this article.
Thefirst and most important part of charging a crystal is choosing
the crystal itself. For most general uses, Quartz is the best one. For
specific use, there are many others. I have found that Diamonds are
useful in storing Good energy, and Zircons (my birthstone!!) for Evil
energy. If you have a specific purpose in mind, please consult one of
the many fine tables of crystal affinities.
The next step, and also important, especially the first few times,
is to prepare yourself for the actual channeling of energy. In my
case, music helps, as well as pranayama and other forms of breath
control. The first one I used is simple
.
Pranayama, simply, is control of breath. Most forms amount to
hyperventilation or subventilation. The one I used first, and still
use, is this: take four quick inhalations, filling the lungs. This
should be over the space of about one and a half seconds. Then exhale
in four short bursts, again over one and a half seconds. Repeat as
necessary. The first few times this is done, I recommend you desist
after about one minute. Over the course of time, this can and should
be increased, but until you are used to the effect this gives, a
shorter time is suggested.
Now that you're in the mood, take the crystal in your right-hand
(left hand for those of you who are lefties). Visualize a door within
the heart of the crystal. Until this visualization is firm and steady,
wait. Then open the door. Behind it you should see a store of diffuse
energy, which varies with the type of the crystal. Some crystals,
usually the inferior ones, have little or nothing back here. These are
generally not good to use.
Close the door, but keep it in mind. That was just to check on its
energy. Decide which energy you wish it to house. Usually only one
will be needed, such as for talismans and storage of energy for later
use, but in some cases, such as a divination tool, more is suggest-
ed/required. DO NOT TRY THIS ON YOUR FIRST ATTEMPT! YOU WILL FAIL! The
energy you will be handling is powerful, and trying to handle more
than one world at a time is strenuous. Trying to handle all three,
plus personal and other energies, is straining to the limit. As with
all other bodily systems, an ability used beyond its capacity will
overload and break or refuse to perform, as with a man trying to lift
300lb barbells on his first try at weight lifting.
For general use, I find nature's energy is best for multipurpose
storage. Those in the Church of Set would probably find differently,
as would those in the Church of Christ. Use what you feel comfortable
with.
1708
Now, the fun part. For the three major energies, I find there are
certain ways of drawing them tat are easiest on the practitioner. For
Good energy, try it like this: Form a cone with the base connecting to
your skull in the region just between and above your eyebrows. "suck"
the energy (visualize it as you will, I use a light, golden yellow)
into the cone, then through a tube into your brain. The visualization
on this is a bit tricky, but it can be done. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,388 | For Nature's energy, visualize a "hose" going down into the Earth
from the base of your spine. This hose should ideally connect with the
center of the Earth, but some people simply cannot conceive the
distance involved with that, and can therefore not visualize it. Go as
deep as you can, with time, you should improve. I "see" this energy as
a ruddy, glowing red, as with magma. Use what works. Draw this energy
up the tube, then through your spinal column into the brain.
Now, the Evil energy. This is trickyfor me, but here's how I doit.
Place the feet together (if they already are, so much the better! It
means this isn't uncomfortable for you, as it is for me.) and visual-
ize a siphon, with the hose connecting to a cone connecting to your
feet, about two inches in diameter, one inch on either foot. Then, on
the other end, a hose entering a black, inky void(or whatever color
you perceive evil energy to be). One last connection: another hose
running from that area of your feet to the previously mentioned area
in the skull. This aligns nicely with the Chakra theory, to which I
subscribe, in that a Chakral spinal-type column connects all the major
power centers of ones body. If you know this system, so much the
better! Draw the energy through the siphon(sometimes visualizing the
bulb on the siphon squeezing helps) into the feet, then into the
skull, then into the brain.
Other objects you wish to draw energy from, use the door anal-
ogy/visualization given above( for powerful things such as the Tarot,
I see it as a gate more than a door. Again, whatever works for you),
and draw from your use hand. If you plan on using that object again,
take only a token amount of energy, and DON'T FORGET TO CLOSE THE
DOOR!
Personal energy: This varies so much with the individual! Some
people draw from their auras, some from the Chakras, some from the
Astral Body. Just use the method you feel most comfortable with. For
those of you who have no preference, or no knowledge of such things, I
use the Astral approach. I draw a bit of the substance of the Astral
body, generally the feet, into the brain. After I finish all else, I
"spread out" the Astral body to make up for this loss. Astral bodies
DO heal.
Well, that's most of it. Draw the energy you need, then draw from
the crystal. Take it in your use hand again, open that door, and take
out the energy, and bring it to the brain. Generally, I use the hose
again, connecting to that spot in the skull, but this one generally
runs INSIDE y body, such as along the arm bones, then up the neck
bone. Mix the energy up. If it helps, visualize a cosmic Cuisinart or
whatever. If it won't mix, like oil and water, you have failed. This
crystal will not hold this energy. Give up, put back the crystals
power, ground yourself(later...), and try again later with another
energy.
1709
Once you've achieved the mix, refill the crystal. Sometimes, the
energy won't go back in. This usually means you've put too much of the
energy you're using in, and not enough of the crystal's own energy.
Bring it back to the brain, and remix. How do you refill the crystal,
you ask? Switch hands on the crystal, then visualize that handy hose
again, but this time flow backwards, through the door. There will come
a point, especially early on in your practice, that the crystal is
full when you have energy left over. Slam that door and ground your-
self(later...), don't overfill it! Doors have their bursting point,
and that's a wonderful way to destroy a good crystal. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,389 | OK, it's later. You've finished the job at hand (Applause, you've
earned it!) but have all this energy left! There are many ways of
grounding energy, use the one you are comfortable with(I know I keep
saying that, but it bears repeating. Don't do anything against your
Will). The one I use is simply grounding it. Take that handy-dandy
all-purpose hose again, connect it to the base of the spine, and
thence into the Earth. Flip the switch to reverse, and push that
energy out! Be careful not to let out yourself as well!
That's it. I hope you find this helpful to you.
1710
Tarot Divination
Tuppence
Not long agoan on-line friend told methat he saw no reasonto use
the Tarot in divination; in fact, he felt that no one should use them
for divination as this was a profane use of the cards. He preferred to
use the cards solely for contemplation.
At the time Idid not feel inclinedto respond to thisnarrow view,
but after a night of thinking about it, I was prompted to write the
following in defense of Tarot Divination (and I don't mean fortune
telling!)
Divination:
1) The art or practice that seeks to foresee or foretell future
events or discover hidden knowledge usually by means of augury
(divination from omens) or by the aid of supernatural powers
2)Unusual insightor intuitiveperception (thesedefinitions from
Webster's)
According to theBrotherhood of Light there are fourmain uses for
the Tarot:
1) Science of Vibration
2) Divination by cards
3) Divination by number
4) Spiritual Science (themethod of putting the resttogether to
develop a philosophy)
Is it wrong to USE the cards?
1) Playing cards is fun! Without such use perhaps Tarot would long
ago have died as other games have faded from use. Chess may be
considered to be a child's game or a highly developed intellectual
discipline. The same is true of using the Tarot card's.
2) Have you ever played Taroc? It is a very interesting game like
bridge using the Major Arcana as Trumps...in profane decks the
court cards and majors may have two heads (to be read either up or
down.) Some versions of the game have certain mystical aspects.
3) In studying the history of the Tarot you will see that the
decks (except those belonging to aristocrats who had hand-painted
decks made for them by great artists) used long ago were very
primitive and made from wood cuts. We have come far from those
crude representations...but the ideas expressed in the Tarot
remain the same - they are still there in those early decks. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,390 | 4) Where did the Tarot come from? We have only theory and conjec-
ture:
a) Ancient Egyptians
b) They always have existed buthave been revived from timeto
time
c) Gift of Divine Origin
d) etc.
1711
It's validity and usefulness are what count
a) it works when used
b) it contains Universal symbology and archetypes found elsewhere
c) it is numerically correct and corresponds with ancient systems
of wisdom (especially to the Qabala)
10 = sephiroth (ace through 10 in the Minor Arcana)
22 = paths (22 Major Arcana cards)
4 = elements (four suits)
(etc.)
The Tarot is MUCH MORE than mere pictures on pasteboard. The
pictures on the Tarot cards are physical symbols for spiritual con-
cepts. One definition I use for the Tarot is as follows:
Asymbolic representationof ArchetypalForces and/orBeings which
have always existed and have been identified and passed on to us by
ancient initiates and which provide a focus for us to use in self-
initiation, spiritual development, and the perception of hidden
wisdom.
A few notes regarding the above........
1) Jung says of Archetypes that they exist for us at birth...they
emanate from the collective unconscious....they are NOT self-crea-
ted or generated.
2) Aleister Crowley says in his book the Book of Thoth:
"Each card is, in a sense, a living being." "It is for the student to
build these living stones into his living Temple."
"...the cards of the Tarot are living individuals..."
"Howis he to blendtheir life with his? Theideal way is that of
contemplation. But this involves initiation of such high degree that
it is impossible to describe the method in this place. Nor is it
attractive or suitable to most people. The practical everyday com-
monplace way is divination."
3) In Magick without Tears he says:
"...theTarot itself as a whole is an universal Pantacle...Each
card, especially this is true of the Trumps, is a Talisman; ...It is
evidently an Idea far too vast for any human mind to comprehend in its
entirety. For it is 'the Wisdom whereby He (God) created the worlds.'
"
As regards these Lively Forces: |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,391 | 1. These Forces can communicate with us...or rather we can
interpret their currents through our subconscious intuitive
minds....this is one use of divination (and contemplation). This
is the level, as Jung says, at which we are all connected.
2. These Forces can be directed by us Magickally if we are so
trained. First we must master divination; then direction.
1712
3. The Tarot is a Magickal Weapon In the hands of a trained
initiate the mere placement of one card between two others can
alter the forces involved and affect physical (and ethereal)
reality.
4. The Tarot is a philosophy as well, with an Ancient Message
about the Soul's journey.
5. Yes, the Tarot is useful to study and contemplate....the colors
and symbols are specifically designed and arranged to stimulate
things within us (forces, archetypes, subconscious).
6. The Major Arcana are especially sacred to us because they
represent the Paths, Steps, Forces which are necessary for us to
rejoin the Godhead and attain enlightenment.
I maintain that the best wayto understand that the Tarot cards
are ALIVE and ACTIVE FORCES is to USE/HANDLE/EXPERIENCE them and so
Divine (and perceive) what they are all about. The cards are a focus
for our minds upon forces which are ever-changing and evolving (even
as humankind is evolving).
We are fortunate that modern printing is so good and that the
Tarot decks and books which we have today are easily available to us.
This was not always the case for our brothers and sisters in times
past. Today one can afford to smile and say: "I only need to con-
template the cards to understand them." But there is more to the use
of the cards in Divination than many have been taught; for it is a
mysterious process.
Just as one muststudy and practice upon amusical instrument to
become a virtuoso, so too the Tarot takes many years of study and
practice to use correctly. One must be well developed spiritually,
emotionally, and intuitively, or (as in music) naturally gifted to
make full and accurate use of the cards in divination. In the hands of
a gifted Diviner or Initiate the Tarot is a formidable weapon. It can
even talk and spell out sentences! Hence the Hebrew letters correspon-
dence to the Major Arcana. However, since we do not all learn in the
same ways....the Tarot may not be the DIVINATORY METHOD for everyone.-
..although everyone can learn from it and should study it.
Other methods which may suit:
a) Astrology
b) Numerology
c) I Ching
d) Pendulum
e) Runes
f) etc. |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,392 | Ashumankind evolves spiritually (and in other ways) so too the
Tarot evolves. Take for example the reconstruction of The Chariot
(Arcanum VII) and The Devil (Arcanum XV) cards by Levi. He gave them a
new presentation based upon his advanced knowledge at the time. Also,
note how The Lovers (Arcanum VI) has changed from earlier decks. It
still has the same basic meaning, but the symbols have changed. No
longer are there two women...one good one bad...with the man in
between...now it is two people with an Angel above them. New Tarot
decks continue to be made as our knowledge and understanding evolves.
1713
A noteon The Book ofThoth, Aleister Crowley's Tarotdeck, is as
seen by him from the Astral Plane. This is why it is so different from
many decks; why it is so striking; and, why the energy felt has such
strong effects upon many people.
Some cardscome and go....thereare morecards on theastral plane
than we have on the physical....between the cards, above and below the
cards are others...as with the Quaballa.
When workingwith the Tarot ifone is in aMagickal State (Asana,
etc.) and reads the cards it is a Magickal or Divine (hence the term
divination) operation. I take the forces into myself when using the
cards thus they affect me and I them.
Because ofthis knowledge, I respect the Tarot as a Living Thi-
ng/Force and I do not bother it with profane questions. I treat it as
a Magickal Weapon and thus with care and respect. Fortune telling,
while not wrong, is the profane use of the cards.
Contemplationof thecards isuseful; withoutDivination, however,
one could not experience the forces within them in the same way. Also,
there are hidden uses for the Tarot. The Tarot is indeed a Teacher. It
is also a door, a gateway, an entryway into other realms which is
partly how it was used in Egyptian Initiation Rites. We may use it in
some of the ways listed below:
1) Scrying/meditation
2) Ritual (invocation and evocation)
3) Works/spells
4) Talisman use/focus
5) Divination
Some of the goals of initiates(after perfecting divination and
the Tarot's philosophy) are 1) to read with a blank deck and to use a
spread with no set meanings, and 2) to develop one's own Astral Deck.
Magick (in Theory and Practice), Crowley's famous book, calls
Divination an important branch of Magick, and defines it thusly:
1. "We postulatethe existence of intelligence's, either within or
without the diviner, of which he is not immediately conscious. (It
does not matter to the theory whether the communicating spirit so-
called is an objective entity or a concealed portion of the divi-
ner's mind.) We assume that such intelligence's are able to reply
correctly - within limits- to the questions asked."
2. "We postulate that it is possible to construct a compendium of
hieroglyphs sufficiently elastic in meaning to include every
possible idea, and that one or more of these may always be taken |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,393 | to represent any idea. We assume that any of these hieroglyphs
will be understood by the intelligence's with whom we wish to
communicate in the same sense as it is by ourselves. We have
therefore a sort of language...."
3. "We postulate that the intelligence's whom we wish to consult
are willing, or may be compelled, to answer us truthfully."
1714
He goes on to discuss divinationas shown in some of the quotes
below:
"In a system of divination each symbol stands for a definite
idea."
"As regards theHoly Quaballa, based as it ison pure number, (it)
evidently possesses an infinite number of symbols. Its scope is
conterminous with existence itself; and it lacks nothing in precision,
purity, or indeed any other perfection. But it cannot be taught, each
man must select for himself the materials for the main structure of
his system."
"It is always essentialfor the diviner to obtainabsolute magical
control over the intelligence's of the system which he adopts."
"Experienceis the only teacher. One acquires what one may almost
call a new sense. One feels in one's self whether one is right or not.
The diviner must develop this sense."
"In order to divine without error,one ought to be a Master ofthe
Temple. The faintest breath of personal preference will deflect the
needle from the pole of truth in the answer."
"One mustprepare oneself by generalpurification and consecration
devised with the object of detaching oneself from one's personality
and increasing the sensitiveness of one's faculties."
"The muscles with which hemanipulates the apparatus ofdivination
must be entirely independent of any volition of his. He must lend them
for the moment to the intelligence whom he is consulting."
(note:one of the first steps indivination is the invoking of the
Angel HRU)
"He must have succeeded in destroying the tendency of the ego to
interfere with the object of thought. He must be able to conceive of a
thing out of all relation with anything else."
"He should allow the question entire freedom to make for itself
its own proper links with the intelligence directing the answer."
"Hemust sink his personality in that of the intelligence hearing
the question propounded by a stranger to whom he is indifferent, but
whom it is his business to serve faithfully."
"He should exhaust the intellectual sources ofinformation at his
disposal, and form from them his judgment. But having done this, he
should detach his mind from what it has just formulated, and proceed
to concentrate it on the figure as a whole, almost as if it were the
object of his meditation." |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,394 | "The concluding operation istherefore to obtain a judgmentof the
figure, independent of all intellectual or moral restraint. One must
endeavor to apprehend it as a thing absolute in itself."
1715
"Divination is in one sense an art entirely separatefrom that of
Magick; yet it interpenetrates Magick at every point. The fundamental
laws of both are identical. The right use of divination has already
been explained: but it must be added that proficiency therein, tremen-
dous as is its importance in furnishing the Magician with the informa-
tion necessary to his strategic and tactical plans, in no wise enables
him to accomplish the impossible. It is not within the scope of
divination to predict the future with the certainty of an astronomer
in calculating the return of a comet. There is always much virtue in
divination."
"One must not assume that the oracle is omniscient."
"The Magician ought therefore to make himself master of several
methods of divination; using one or the other as the purpose of the
moment dictates. He should make a point of organizing a staff of such
spirits to suit various occasions. These should be 'familiar' spirits,
in the strict sense; members of his family."
"Divination ofany kind is improper inmatters directly concerning
the Great Work itself. In the Knowledge and Conversation of his Holy
Guardian Angel, the adept is possessed of all he can possibly need. To
consult any other is to insult one's Angel."
"Although the adept is in daily communication with his Angel, he
ought to be careful to consult Him only on questions proper to the
dignity of the relation. One should not consult one's Angel on too
many details, or indeed on any matters which come within the office of
one's familiar spirits. One does not go to the King about petty
personal trifles. The romance and rapture of the ineffable union which
constitutes Adeptship must not be profaned by the introduction of
commonplace cares."
Thus wemay use Divinationfor those worthy questionswhich we need
answered but cannot find out in any other way...either through our own
research or by the contacting of one's Holy Guardian Angel. If we can
attain the necessary magickal states discussed above and if we com-
plete the necessary study and work which he suggests, we can become
masters of Tarot Divination.
1716
The Dangers Of Magical Thinking In Magick
Nihasa
.
Magicalthinking is a psychological term for making a naive assump-
tion of cause and effect without consideration of intervening mechan-
isms. In plain English, it is the assumption that if I do THIS, then
THAT will happen even though I have no idea how or why. Prominent
examples of magical thinking can be found in Economics (if we cut
taxes on the Corporations, they will invest more money in upgrading
their production facilities and create more jobs) and Politics. It is
typical of the world-view of very young children, who have a somewhat |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,395 | simplistic model of How-Things-Work.
.
To many outsiders,most Magick seems to bebuilt on this basis...so-
me guy mutters some weird words and waves his hands and expects to get
a lot of money soon (sounds like a Management Consultant, come to
think of it), or to make it rain, or to be rid of an enemy. Then they
shake their heads, call the Magick-users children or worse, and go on
with their lives.
.
Within real Magick-use, this sort of sloppy thinking can lead to
anything from disappointing 'fizzles' to disastrous misfires of
spells. Our cultural heritage's are filled with "monkey's paw" type
stories of the results of ill-thought-out Magick use. While dilettante
New Agers are more likely to blindly 'cookbook' a spell or ritual,
some of us have been known to skip a few steps in the process as well.
.
Just think of the consequences of invoking Diana or Aphrodite in a
ritual designed to "keep those foolish women in their place." (Anyone
remember "Good-bye, Charlie"?)
.
While I am not saying thatyou need to understand thephysics/chemi-
stry/etc. of each step down to the subatomic level, I am suggesting
that you think through each step and each mechanism (and likely
consequences) of any major working BEFORE you perform it. A black-box
understanding (detailed knowledge of the inputs and outputs of a
mechanism and the relationship between them without an understanding
of the internal details of the mechanism) is usually enough for mot
purposes. For instance, if invoking or evoking a deity, make sure you
know the strengths, weaknesses, character, and personality of that
deity. If using herbs (ingested or in balms or incense) be sure you
know the pharmacological and combinational effects of each. Most of
all, when going for a long-term effect think of the ecology of that
effect: where it can come from and what it may causelater. You can't
always anticipate all side effects, and you certainly can't always
avoid them, but with a bit of work you can give yourself a shot at
handling them.
.
Do a reality check before you start a working. If you just pay
attention to the beginning (the ritual or working) and the end (the
desired effect) and leave the rest to wishful thinking, you are asking
for trouble.
.
NOTE: The above is an excerpt of a 1988 seminar on Magick and
Psychology: Insights and Interactions.
.
1717
Satanism As Media Hype
News article:
From the Phoenix Gazette 24 June, 1989
SCAPEGOAT: Satanism scareis mostly hype, experton cults says....
by Michelle Bearden
Judging by Satan's popularity in news accounts and police reports
these days, you'd think Satan had been elected to Congress or won the
Pulitzer Prize. But it's not true, says J. Gordon Melton, director of
the Institute for the Study of American Religion in Santa Barbara,
Calif. and one of the country's leading experts on cults. In fact,
there is no surge at all in Satan's popularity. "The only surge we're
seeing is the spread if mis-information," Melton says. "Malicious, |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,396 | suspicious, and ritualistic acts are being attributed to satanism, and
people are buying into it."
Melton has launched a one-man crusade to get what he considers the
truth out to the public. Using an extensive survey he completed in
1986 as his guide - "The Evidences of Satan in Contemporary America" -
Melton makes his case frequently before groups and in interviews. Most
misinformation regarding satanism comes out of police agencies, Melton
maintains. That's because, in the absence of true satanic groups, law
officials have to blame "something concrete," he says.
"What we've got is creation of imagination, paranoia, and general
ignorance," Melton says. "We've got wild speculation and jumps in
logic. What we don't have is the truth. One story perpetuates another,
and, before long, 'experts' in police departments are conducting
seminars on a topic they don't really understand."
At the Phoenix Police Department, police spokesman Andy Hill says
the agency analyzes every incident that has satanic overtones. He
blames a majority of these crimes on "kids caught up in experimen-
tation." "It's safe to say that most of it isn't hard-core. We're
usually dealing with copycat crimes," he says. " I wouldn't consider
satanism a big problem here in Phoenix. We know it exists, but it's
more underground than anything else."
According to Melton, onlythree established satanic cults exist:The
Church of Satan, a San Francisco based group headed by founder Anton
LaVey; a splinter group, the Temple of Set, also in San Francisco and
headed by Michael Aquino; and the Church of Satanic Liberation in New
Haven, Conn., led by Paul Douglas Valentine. Total membership in all
three groups is "probably less than 3,000," Melton says. Those fol-
lowers are the true satanists, and their numbers haven't varied much
in the last two decades, he says.
Many of the acts blamed on satanism are committed by teenagers who
are bound together b drugs and violence rather than demons. While they
may use satanic imagery in their deeds, Melton says they are "play-
acting" the role of worshipping the Prince of Darkness. "It's true
we're hearing a lot of satanic references in today's music, but that's
pure commercialism," he says. "Just because your teenager gets wrapped
up in certain rock'n'roll doesn't mean he's into the occult."
Someof the conclusions that support Melton's studies to combat the
theory of international satanic conspiracy include:
1718
* The existence of a large number of nonconventional religions,
such
as cults, that have nothing to do with occultism, much less
satanism.
* The growth of witchcraft as a new religion and how it is
confused
with satanism. Melton labels contemporary Wicca as a nature
religion that places great emphasis upon the preservation of life
and non- violence.
* Reports of cattle mutilations, which ignore the facts that
most
are mistaken observations of predator damage.
* The discovery of common symbols, such as an inverted |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,397 | cross,
pentagrams, and bloody altars, which lead investigators to con-
clude that satanic activity has taken place. However, no evidence
of any conspiracy involving the kidnapping and transportation of
children for ritual purposes has emerged.
* Fantasies of people who make "confessions" of their involvement
on
satanic cults.Typically, they cannot supply independent corrobora-
tion of the stories.
Moreover,a good portion of the mis-information on satanism - which
Melton says is really a "parody of religion" - comes out of evangeli-
cal Christian publishing houses. With that bias, "it;s easy to see how
misinformation breeds," he says.
Melton contends that opensatanic groups pose no publicthreat. If
there is cause for concern, it would be the small, ephemeral satanic
groups, mostly consisting of young adults or teenagers and possibly
led by psychopaths or sociopaths. "These are the groups that cause
immediate danger to themselves and society at large. That's where
police should be concentrating their efforts," he says. "In the
meantime, we've got to get out of this satanic mentality and get our
labels straight."
1719
Why I Don't Believe The "Survivors" Of Occult Groups
by Rowan Moonstone
Recently onthis echo, several people have taken Pagans to task for
naysaying the Christian sources dealing with former practitioners of
various occult disciplines. I have researched this area thoroughly for
the past five years. I've bought or read all the Christian books on
the subject that I can get my hands on. I have over 1,000 clippings in
the files dealing with this subject, I've got over 100 audio tapes and
20 videotapes on this subject, and I've got reams of Christian litera-
ture, and police training material to draw from. In addition to this,
I grew up as a Southern Baptist and was a Sunday School teacher at the
age of 16. I know whereof I speak when it comes to Christian sources.
I've also been a Witch for nigh on to 8 years now, and have net-
worked with other Pagans all across the country, attended festivals in
various states, and subscribed to many Pagan publications both in this
country and abroad. I've read many books on modern and ancient Pagan
religions, and can furnish a complete bibliography for anyone that's
interested.
After a concentrated search through this material, I must conclude
that most of the allegations of the "survivors" are fabricated and
insupportable. In the rest of this report, I will give documented
reasons why I believe this to be true.
6-17-82 -Province Victoria Bulletin - "A misunderstanding appeared
to be the root of a satanic scare in Victoria this weekend, police
sources said Wednesday. Police, hospitals and human resources ministry
workers had gone on the alert following a report that a satanic group
was planning Tuesday to sacrifice a human baby. The report came
through the child abuse prevention HELP line in Vancouver. Victoria
police said they had traced the source of the report to a church group
in Vancouver. The group apparently had heard rumors of a rise in
satanic activities in Victoria and had prayed that no atrocities would |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,398 | occur. Somehow someone interpreted that to mean that a sacrifice was
actually planned, police said. That was the report that got to the
HELP line. However, Tuesday passed peacefully with no evidence of any
satanic activity. "
5-4-86 - New York Times-" Derry Knight told an astonishing story
about his membership in a secret Satanic cult called the Sons of
Lucifer and his heroic efforts to take over the leadership of the cult
to free himself and 2,000 members from the coils of the devil. As he
told it, it was an incredibly dangerous mortal struggle he was waging
against the most evil forces in the universe, personified by some
prominent politicians, including Viscount Whitelaw, the deputy Prime
Minister, who were, he said, the secret masters of Britain's Satanic
orders ... In little more than a year, before Mr. Knight's activities
aroused the suspicions of Bishop Eric Kemp of Chichester, who called
in the police fraud squad, the support group contributed at least
$313,000 to the anti-Satanism struggle. A jury that convicted Mr.
Knight April 25 of 19 counts of fraud heard that much of the money
raised by Mr. Baker had been spent by his supposedly struggling friend
on call girls, fast cars, and a life of dissipation."
1720
January 1988 New York Folklore"Satanism, Where are thefolklorists?
by Phillips Stevens, Jr. p 12 ( Mr. Stevens is referring to a murder
of a 13-year =old girl in this incident) "While preparing me for the
taping of some commentary to be aired locally following the National
Geraldo Rivera TV special on Satanic cults on October 25, 1988, an
investigative reporter for a Buffalo TV station was discussing That
incident [the murder]. There were 13 people at that party, he said,
the murdered girl being the 13th. Since the murder, six of the party
goers had committed suicide.....I noted that it was strange that six
suicides with such a factor in common had not been reported in the
news; how did he know the details? The mother of the most recent
suicide had told him. ...I advised him to wait and check out the facts
before airing this story; he called me a few days later saying no, the
other suicides could not be confirmed."
1-19-89 Joplin Missouri Globe News (front page) - "Jasper County
Sheriff Bill Pierce said he had no figures available on how much time
and money that department has spent investigating claims. He cited a
November case as an example of the fruitless searches that have been
undertaken because of claims eventually fount to be false. ...a
Blytheville, Ark. woman told authorities there she had watched satanic
cultists cut the stomach of an infant, pour gasoline on the baby, and
set it on fire....After agreeing to take a polygraph examination, the
woman admitted the story was false. She told deputies she made the
false accusations to get attention."
3=6=89 - HoustonChronicle - "A Houston -area womanwho claims to be
a former satanic priestess and has told audiences she witnessed the
ritualistic murder of an 8-year-old Tomball girl has left law enforce-
ment officers frustrated in their attempts to investigate her allega-
tions. 'We have no homicide to link it to. Why she would make those
claims and then be hesitant to talk with authorities is reason to
question her motives,' Harris County Assistant D.A. Casey O'Brien
said"
The previous three messages should tell you why I don't believe in
the hysteria being generated. If anyone wants to see the entire
articles that these quotes were taken from, send a SASE with 3 stamps |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,399 | to P. O. Box 1842, Colorado Springs, Co 80901. BB Rowan
1721
"22 Commandments" For The New Age
Ann Waldrum
1. You shall learn of Honesty and attempt to heal your fear of it,
to use this in daily living.
2. You shall learn to Love Unconditionally--beginning with your-
self.
3. You shall help all people in your worlds come to physical heal-
ing.
4. You shall dwell on things of high and pure energy in others and
self to change Earth.
5. You will learn and practice Pure Service -- unconditional and
with love energy.
6. You will release Judgment into the Void--You will see, identify
and choose for yourself Only.
7. You will Recognize One God --the God that corresponds to your
vision.
8. You will destroy no one in any way -- through gossip -- through
killing their gifts -- discouraging self love by injuring the
physical body by foreign substance -- incorrect foods -- incorrect
labor.
9. You will use your mind in the way the Source prepared -- by
faithfulness of prayer -- by study and spiritual growth.
10. You will learn self discipline so that you respond to the Earth
with wisdom.
11. You will take full responsibility for your own life -- blaming
no other.
12. You will seek to learn about your God -- seeing the Connection
clearly.
13. You will be known for your Gentleness, your Loyalty, your
Kindness, according to your beliefs.
14. You will grow in Peace by change of attitude and understanding
of others.
15. You will learn to respond and act from the Highest Center of
Inner God -- the Love Response.
16. You will learn to Love All Mankind by seeing the Highest in all
people without exception.
17. You will promote the healing of Mind, Body, and Spirit by
teaching and living the belief in Man's Divinity.
18. You will show faithfulness in your study of yourself and your
persona (masks) in order to Free All Parts of Self.
19. You will Live your life as ordained by your faithfulness to the
Truth, as you understand the Truth.
20. You will Speak in Love, Honesty and Wisdom.
21. You will Think in Love, Honesty and Wisdom.
22. You will live in Moderation (Balance) in All Areas of your
life.
1722
Theforegoing was delivered on July 20, 1989, through the trance-
mediumship of Carla Neff Gordan by the Spirit Guide "Mary." Mary
stated that these ideas will also be released through other mediums in |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,400 | six different areas of the world. In preface to these "Commandments"
Mary said the following:
"Youare a loving,connected community oflike-minded souls assist-
ing through our inner connection. You are becoming a profound source
of awakening for your world. These rules are to open your hearts, to
teach you self-love, to calm your emotion to help you to live in
reality that you have wished. To grow, first you must become a source
of service. There must be a difference in earth because you have
walked here. Now is the time of shifting your energy into a higher
place through unconditional love. A part of your purpose is to heal
the earth through holy, or wholeness, relationships. You will begin
now."
1723
Risk Assessment Within The Craft Community
By Weyland Smith
There seems to betwo schools of thought within the "Craft Com-
munity" concerning the dangers faced by Pagans in general and witches
in particular. One school thinks that we are now in the Age of Aqu-
arius and that all danger has passed. The other camp seems to feel
that we are beset with dangers and that our only safety lies in
remaining "the hidden children of the Goddess", telling no one of our
religious faith (including our fellow practitioners), and being ready
to fly or fight on a moment's notice. Who's right? Do we know? Have we
even tried to find out?
On theone hand, we live in a countrywith a Bill of Rights. Times
have certainly changed since witchcraft was a hanging offence in
Massachusetts. People have been known to proclaim their faith and live
unmolested. On the other hand, there are about 3 million people in the
United States who profess themselves to believe that the Bible is the
literal word of God. If Leviticus says "Thou shalt not suffer a witch
to live.", then there should be 3 million people out there ready to
drag me out of my house and kill me.
Fortunately, the answer does not lie with either extreme and
therefore our reaction should likewise avoid either extreme position.
We live in a world beset by dangers. We could be in a traffic ac-
cident. We could have our house burglarized. Our child could be
abducted on the way home from school. We could be struck by lighten-
ing. Do we stay home, guard the house and family and avoid living? Of
course not!
What we DOis to act in sucha way as to recognize therisks we run
and to minimize them. We try to live in reasonably safe neighborhoods.
We keep good locks on our doors. We drive defensively and wear seat
belts. We teach our children to run from threatening situations. This
isn't paranoia, just good sense.
Is thereany danger that we as witches and pagans might be sub-
jected to another violent suppression? Any Jew with an eye to recent
history would tell you that of course there is! Is that danger great
here in this country? Not at present, but we do live in a world
subject to rapid changes. Within my lifetime, people of Japanese
extraction in this country were summarily rounded up and shipped off
to remote camps. This action was contested all the way up to the |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,401 | Supreme Court to no avail.
1724
So what should we do?
Well for a start, recognize that there is SOME residual risk
whenever anyone takes an ethical position. We must understand that
this risk is present whether we think it should be so or not. Further,
we must each decide what level of hazard we are personally willing to
run and to which we would subject our families. Finally, we should
avoid doing anything which might subject ourselves and those around us
to risks when such risks are avoidable. Especially, we should respect
one another's right to manage his own dangers. Just because I choose
to take a risk doesn't give me the right to endanger you!
Should wereturn to living ourlives under perpetual cover?I hope
not. But I do respect the individual rights of my brothers and sisters
of the Art to each make that decision on their own. It is on this
middle ground where I suggest we should all try to live for the
present.
1725
Supreme Court And Peyote (Articles)
The following 13 messages, retrieved from PeaceNet, discuss the
recent Supreme Court ruling permitting states to prohibit sacramental
use of peyote.
Supreme Court Continues Chipping Away At Citizen's 1st Amendment
Rights, Part 1.
Excerpts fromthe following articledetailing the April17th ruling
by the US Supreme Court which decided that Native Americans could no
longer use peyote in their religious practices:
"For all practical purposes,a majority of the SupremeCourt has
eliminated the Free Exercise clause of the First Amendment from our
Bill of Rights," said American Jewish Congress Executive Director
Henry Siegman.
"The court's decision in the peyote case can have the most far-
reaching consequences for all religions, but primarily for religious
minorities," continued Siegman. "It is precisely such minorities the
Bill of Rights sought to protect, for it is they who are particularly
vulnerable to the depredations of momentary and localized majorities."
Dr.Robert L. Maddox, executive directorof Americans United for
Separation of Church and State, said the "Smith" ruling is cause for
concern...
"We are concerned," he continued, "that this ruling will have a
negative effect on minority religions. Mainstream faiths will probably
have little difficulty getting the exemptions they need; smaller
groups with less political influence will have a tougher time of it.
That is unfortunate. Religious freedom should not be left to the whim |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,402 | of state and federal lawmakers.
"No one wants anarchy in the name of religion," headded, "but do
we really want more and more government regulation of religion? What
bothers us most is the movement away from individual liberty and
toward statism--whatever the government wants, goes."
[2]
The following article appeared in the June 1990 issue of "Church
and State", a publication of Americans United for Separation of Church
and State, 8120 Fenton St., Silver Spring, MD, 20910, and is reprinted
here w/permission.
1726
The Day 'Sherbert' Melted
by Rob Boston
Discarding A 27-Year-Old Test For Religious Liberty Cases, The
Supreme Court Says Government May Restrict Religiously Motivated
Conduct
Alfred Smithconsiders himselfapolitical; he's noteven registered
to vote. But, in light of what the Supreme Court did April 17, the 70-
year-old Oregonian is ready to jump into politics in a big way.
The highcourt ruled 6-3 thatday that Native Americansdo not have
a constitutional right to use the drug peyote during their religious
ceremonies. Smith, one of the plaintiffs who helped bring the case
before the nation's highest court, is angry enough to take his fight
to the polls.
"I'm encouraging all peopleto register and vote thisyear," Smith
said. "This is the time for it. I have never voted before because I
don't care to condone the system, but I have made a stand here with
this case."
The political route Smith proposes may be one many members of
minority religions are forced to take in the future, thanks to the
Supreme Court's decision in the "Employment Division v. Smith" case.
The justices' ruling marks an abrupt shift in free exercise jurisprud-
ence, granting government broad new powers over religious practices.
What makes the "Smith"decision so significant is thatin reaching
it five justices voted to abandon the court's doctrine of "compelling
state interest," a move with far-reaching implications for religious
liberty.
In a nutshell, the 27-year-old doctrine says that the government
can restrict religious freedom only when it proves there is a compell-
ing interest to do so and that there is no less intrusive alternative
available to achieve the state's goals. The judicial rule grew out of
the 1963 "Sherbert v. Verner" decision and is usually called the
"Sherbert" Test.
Inthe recent peyote case the court rejected the "Sherbert" stan-
dard in favor of a much narrower test, holding that government may
offer religiously based exemptions from generally applicable laws if
it chooses, but it is under no constitutional obligation to do so.
Wrote Justice Antonin Scaliafor the majority, "We havenever held |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,403 | that an individual's religious beliefs excuse him from compliance with
an otherwise valid law prohibiting conduct that the State is free to
regulate."
Scalia went on to say that applying the doctrine of compelling
state interest in the peyote dispute and similar cases would create
"a private right to ignore generally applicable laws [which would be]
a constitutional anomaly." Rigorous application of the "Sherbert"
approach, he said, would be "courting anarchy."
1727
Later in the opinion, Scalia admitted that the ruling will force
minority religious groups to seek relief from oppressive laws by
lobbying elected officials, and some may fail in their efforts. But he
excused this as unavoidable. "It may fairly be said," observed Scalia,
"that leaving accommodation to the political process will place at a
relative disadvantage those religious practices that are not widely
engaged in; but that unavoidable consequence of democratic government
must be preferred to a system in which each conscience is a law unto
itself or in which judges weigh the social importance of all laws
against the centrality of all religious beliefs."
The court majority acknowledged that judicial exemptions from
neutral laws have sometimes been granted for religious reasons. But,
Scalia argued, such exemptions have generally been granted in conjunc-
tion with another constitutional right--such as free speech. He called
these examples "hybrids" and implied they are special cases. Other
than that, said Scalia, the only legal disputes where the "Sherbert"
analysis has been applied consistently and usefully are unemployment
compensation rulings, such as the line of decisions approving jobless
benefits for workers who are fired for refusing to work on their
sabbath.
Ironically the "Smith" case involved just such an unemployment
controversy. It started in 1984 when Smith, a Klamath Indian, and
another man, Galen W. Black, a non-Indian, were fired from their jobs
as drug counselors after the agency they worked for learned the pair
had used the drug peyote during ceremonies in the Native American
Church.
The Council on Alcoholand Drug Abuse Prevention Treatment(ADAPT)
had a policy stating that all employees must be drug free. Smith and
Black thought an exemption would be made for their religious use of
peyote, a mild hallucinogen derived from some cactus plants, but ADAPT
officials saw things differently: Both men were dismissed.
When Smithand Black subsequently appliedfor unemployment bene-
fits, they were turned down. Officials with the state Employment
Dvision said the two had been fired for misconduct and therefore did
not qualify. The duo took the case to the courts.
Fouryears later the OregonSupreme Court ruledthat the ceremonial
use of peyote is permissible under state law and is even protected by
the First Amendment. The Supreme Court's recent action overturns that
decision.
The "Smith" majority drew upon a somewhat unusual alignment of
justices. Scalia, Chief Justice William Rehnquist and Justices Anthony
Kennedy and Byron R. White were predictable allies. All four have |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,404 | argued for a narrower reading of the First Amendment's religious
liberty clauses.
Justice John Paul Stevens, however, provided the key fifth vote.
Stevens, often thought of as a member of the court's liberal wing,
favors a strict separationist reading of the Establishment Clause, but
has argued in past cases for a less expansive reading of the Free
Exercise Clause.
1728
Justice Sandra Day O'Connor concurredin the "Smith" outcome, but
wrote a separate dissent that accused the majority of going too far.
"Although I agree with the result the Court reaches in this case, I
cannot join its opinion," asserted O'Connor. "In my view, today's
holding dramatically departs from well-settled First Amendment jurisp-
rudence, appears unnecessary to resolve the question presented, and is
incompatible with our Nation's fundamental commitment to individual
religious liberty." The free exercise of religion, O'Connor added, is
a "preferred constitutional activity," entitled to "heightened judi-
cial scrutiny." The "Sherbert" Test, she continued, has worked well to
"strike sensible balances between religious liberty and competing
state interests."
Justices Harry A. Blackmun, William J. Brennan Jr. and Thurgood
Marshall indicated agreement with O'Connor's opinion, although they
said they would have gone further and upheld the Native American
Church members' claim. The court's liberal wing criticized the maj-
ority for "mischaracterizing this Court's precedents" and engaging in
a "wholesale overturning of settled law concerning the Religion
Clauses of our Constitution."
Wrote Blackmun, "One hopes that the Court is aware of the conse-
quences, and that its result is not a product of over-reaction to the
serious problems the country's drug crisis has generated."
The justice insisted that ritual peyote use by Native Americans
could be tolerated without jeopardizing the nation's campaign to curb
drug abuse. He noted that the federal government allowed the Roman
Catholic Church to employ sacramental wine at masses during Prohibi-
tion.
Said Blackmun, "Ido notbelieve the Foundersthought theirdearly
bought freedom from religious persecution a 'luxury,' but an essential
element of liberty--and they could not have thought religious in-
tolerance 'unavoidable,' for they drafted the Religion Clauses precis-
ely in order to avoid that intolerance."
Even though the case dealt with the sensitive issue of drug use,
several religious organizations had sided with the Native American
Church members, most notably the American Jewish Congress, which filed
a friend-of-the-court brief in support of Smith and Black.
"For all practical purposes, a majority of the Supreme Court has
eliminated the Free Exercise clause of the First Amendment from our
Bill of Rights," said AJC Executive Director Henry Siegman.
"The court's decision in the peyote case can have the most far-
reaching consequences for all religions, but primarily for religious
minorities," continued Siegman. "It is precisely such minorities the
Bill of Rights sought to protect, for it is they who are particularly |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,405 | vulnerable to the depredations of momentary and localized majorities."
Three weeks after the decision the AJC and an extraordinarily
diverse coalition of religious and civil liberties groups filed a
petition for rehearing before the Supreme Court. The petition urged
the justices to hear the case again so the organizations will have the
opportunity to address their free exercise concerns in friend-of-the-
court briefs.
1729
Groups joining the AJC include: the Baptist Joint Committee on
Public Affairs, the National Council of Churches, the National As-
sociation of Evangelicals, People for the American Way, the Pres-
byterian Church U.S.A., the American Civil Liberties Union, the
Christian Legal Society, the American Jewish Committee, the Unitarian-
Universalist Association, the General Conference of the Seventh-day
Adventist Church, the Worldwide Church of God and the Lutheran Church,
Missouri Synod. Americans United for Separation of Church and State
also signed the petition.
Attorney OliverS. Thomas of theBaptist Joint Committee saidit is
important that religious and civil liberties groups have the oppor-
tunity to express their views to the court. He said the court's
abandonment of the "Sherbert" Test could have a wide impact.
"Taxation ofchurch assets, regulationof church schoolsand child-
care centers, zoning and other land-use questions are all areas of the
law where we've relied upon the compelling state interest test to
provide churches with exemptions," Thomas told the Baptist Press.
"With a stroke of his pen, Justice Scalia has overturned 27 years of
legal precedent and made the 'first liberty' a constitutional step-
child."
The Rutherford Institute, a conservative legal aid group that
frequently litigates free exercises cases, was also dismayed by the
ruling. Said Institute President John W. Whitehead in a press state-
ment, "Justice Scalia's opinion rejects the notion that free exercise
of religion is a preferred right. Rather, in most situations it is
valid only when coupled with another constitutional right.
"Armed with this opinion, a state may draft a law that violates
religious liberty, claim it is `religiously neutral' and those af-
fected by it may have no recourse under the Constitution."
Constitutional scholars wereparticularly amazed that themajority
in the peyote case relied heavily on "Minersville School District v.
Gobitis," a 1940 Supreme Court decision that said Jehovah's Witness
children in public schools could be forced to say the Pledge of
Allegiance. "Gobitis" was overturned three years later in the "Ba-
rnette" decision and has been roundly criticized ever since as one of
the court's biggest mistakes.
Observed Douglas Laycock, law professor at the University of
Texas, "The court repeatedly quotes "Gobitis" without noting that it
was overruled in "Barnette," and without noting that it triggered a
nationwide outburst of violence against Jehovah' s Witnesses. Until
the opinion in this case, "Gobitis" was thoroughly discredited."
But not all courtwatchers were chagrined by the ruling. Jules B.
Gerard, a constitutional law professor at Washington University in St.
Louis, told Religious News Service there has been a lot of overreac- |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,406 | tion. Gerard said the decision "overturns very little" and accused
those who have protested it of "hysterical talk."
Bruce Fein, a conservative constitutional scholar, went even
further, applauding the ruling in a column in "The Washington Times."
Fein wrote, "It is both counter-intuitive and contrary to American
political experience to suppose the "Smith" ruling portends an epitaph
for religious tolerance and accommodation in generally applicable
1730
legislative enactments. And when religion must yield to secular law,
the former continues to prosper."
Fein went on to saythat religions can drop fundamentaltenets and
still survive, pointing out that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-
day Saints (the Mormons) in 1890 dumped its support for plural
marriage after the Supreme Court refused to allow the practice for
religious reasons.
Conservative columnist George Will also was pleased with the
"Smith" decision. "A central purpose of America's political arrange-
ments is the subordination of religion to the political order, meaning
the primacy of democracy," he observed. "The Founders, like Locke
before them, wished to tame and domesticate religious passions of the
sort that convulsed Europe....Hence, religion is to be perfectly free
as long as it is perfectly private--mere belief--but it must bend to
the political will (law) as regards conduct."
However, Dr. Robert L. Maddox, executive director of Americans
United for Separation of Church and State, said the "Smith" ruling is
cause for concern.
"If a majority ofthe justices did not believe theNative American
Church members had a valid claim, they could have rejected them by
relying on the doctrine of compelling state interest," said Maddox.
"But a majority chose to go much further, effectively weakening the
protection the court has extended to religious free exercise.
"We are concerned," he continued, "that this ruling will have a
negative effect on minority religions. Mainstream faiths will probably
have little difficulty getting the exemptions they need; smaller
groups with less political influence will have a tougher time of it.
That is unfortunate. Religious freedom should not be left to the whim
of state and federal lawmakers.
"No one wants anarchy in the name of religion," he added, "but d
we really want more and more government regulation of religion? What
bothers us most is the movement away from individual liberty and
toward statism--whatever the government wants, goes."
The decision has already had a practical consequence for one
minority faith. Just six days after the "Smith" ruling, the justices,
by a 7-2 vote, ordered the Minnesota Supreme Court to reconsider a
recent decision it made exempting an Amish group from complying with a
highway safety law.
Members of theOld Order Amish had protesteda state law requiring
them to display orange safety triangles on their horse-drawn buggies.
The Amish said the bright symbols violated their belief in a plain
lifestyle. The Minnesota high court agreed in 1989, but now may be
forced to reverse the "State v. Hershberger" decision in light of the |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,407 | "Smith" ruling.
In Eugene, Ore., meanwhile, Al Smith has no more faith in the
courts. After joining about 100 people in a protest of the decision
that bears his name at a Eugene federal building April 20, Smith told
reporters he is backing proposed legislation suggested by state
representative Jim
1731
Edmunson of Eugene thatwould allow Native Americans touse peyote
in religious rituals in Oregon. If that fails, Smith said, the Oregon
Supreme Court could decide Native American peyote use is permissible
under the state constitution.
Smith told"Church & State" heis also working withNative American
groups in the United States that are considering filing a protest
before the International Court of Justice (commonly called the World
Court) in The Hague, Netherlands.
"The UnitedStates is saying theoriginal people of thisland can't
worship," Smith told Church & State. "We were worshipping a long time
before the white man ever set foot on this turtle island.
"The issue is not dead, by no means," continued Smith. "I'm not
giving up; I have committed no crime. It's not a crime to pray in the
old way."
KOYAANISQATSI ko.yan.nis.qatsi(from theHopi Language) n.1. crazy
life. 2.life in turmoil. 3. life out of balance. 4. life disintegrat-
ing. 5. a state of life that calls for another way of living.
__________________
Excerpts from the following article analyzing the effects the US
Supreme Court ruling on the Native American Church's use of peyote as
being illegal:
--------------------------------
Native American churchmembers stripped oftheir rights underthe
Constitution are now subject to the will of the legislative branch of
our state and federal governments. Not an enviable place for Indian
people; as a distinct racial and religious minority Indians have
always had an uphill struggle in the halls of Congress and elsewhere
to have their rights recognized and respected.
The legislativebranch ofany governmentis anexceedingly unusual
place for individuals to look to have their rights under the First
Amendment vindicated. Courts are traditionally looked to as protectors
of these rights, against majoritarian legislatures. Justice O'Connor,
in a separate concurring opinion which joined the result of the
majority but sharply criticized its method, reasoned that "the First
Amendment was enacted precisely to protect those whose religious
practices are not shared by the majority and may be viewed with
hostility."
As a result of "Smith," minority religions, in Justice Scalia's
opinion, may be at a disadvantage in the political arena. But that is,
in his estimation, "an unavoidable consequence of democratic govern-
ment," preferable to "a system in which each conscience is a law unto
itself." Justice Scalia had to strain to defend his decision, citing
the need to prevent "anarchy" in our democratic society. Indian |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,408 | people simply want to be left alone in our societyto worship the
god of their choice. Is that asking too much? The Court's decision in
"Smith" strips Indians of their pride and integrity, and makes many of
them criminals in the eyes of the law. Only history will judge the
Court's decision in "Smith;" but for now the remote specter of anarchy
may very well have been the preferred choice.
1732
1733
------------------------
The following article appearedin the Spring 1990 issueof "Native
American Rights Fund Legal Review", a publication of the Native
American Rights Fund,
1506 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80302, andis reprinted here w/permis-
sion.
------------------------
Supreme Court Deals Devastating Blow to Native American Church
by Steve Moore
On Tuesday, April 17,1990, the United States SupremeCourt struck
a gut wrenching blow to the religious lives of many of this country's
Native Americans, in a decision which invites the return to an era of
religious persecution one would hope a presumably enlightened and
tolerant society such as ours had left behind. In the case of "Oregon
Department of Employment v. Alfred Smith," Justice Antonin Scalia,
writing for a five member majority, and describing the First Amend-
ment's Free Exercise Clause as little more than a "negative protection
accorded to religious belief," held that a member of a religious faith
may not challenge under the free exercise clause of the First Amend-
ment to the United States Constitution a legislature's criminal
enactment of otherwise general application which produces infringement
on a particular religious practice. In the "Smith" case this amounted
to a challenge to the constitutionality of an Oregon drug law which
the Court Interpreted as a general criminal prohibition on all uses of
the drug peyote, considered by Indian members of the Native American
Church as an essential sacrament, the physical embodiment of the Great
Spirit.
The Native American Church, which claims over 250,000 members
nationwide, and additional Indian practitioners in Canada and Mexico,
and which can be traced back archaeologically several thousand years
in North America, was not absolutely destroyed or driven underground
by the Court's action. The Court did not go so far as to rule that any
state or federal law exempting the religious, sacramental use of
peyote was an unconstitutional establishment of religion, at the other
end of the religion clauses of the First Amendment. In the Court's
terms, a peyote exemption, while constitutionally *permitted*, is
neither constitutionally *required* or *prohibited*. A kind of con-
stitutional limbo-land for the Native American Church and its members.
In real terms the decision leaves the fate ofthe peyote religion
to the whim of majoritarian legislatures and Congress. Eleven states
currently have exemptions on the statute books protecting the relig- |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,409 | ion; another twelve tie their exemption to a federal Drug Enforcement
Agency regulation which rests on questionable foundation since the
decision. A small handful of states, notably California and Nebraska,
in which are located some of the largest Indian and Native American
Church populations, have based their protection on court decisions.
The others, and the federal government through Congress, have no
statutory or common law protection. Indian reservation lands will
provide some safe haven from possible prosecution, given the par-
ticular Public Law 280 configuration in any given state, but problems
of transportation of the sacrament into Indian country through "il-
legal" territory will reduce peyote ceremonies to complex and danger-
ous liaisons.
1734
Native American church members strippedof their rights under the
Constitution are now subject to the will of the legislative branch of
our state and federal governments. Not an enviable place for Indian
people; as a distinct racial and religious minority Indians have
always had an uphill struggle in the halls of Congress and elsewhere
to have their rights recognized and respected.
The legislative branchof any government is anexceedingly unusual
place for individuals to look to have their rights under the First
Amendment vindicated. Courts are traditionally looked to as protectors
of these rights, against majoritarian legislatures. Justice O'Connor,
in a separate concurring opinion which joined the result of the
majority but sharply criticized its method, reasoned that "the First
Amendment was enacted precisely to protect those whose religious
practices are not shared by the majority and may be viewed with
hostility."
A noted scholar of Indian law and philosopher, Felix Cohen, was
quoted several decades ago as saying: "Like the miner's canary the
Indian marks the shifts from fresh air to poison gas in our political
atmosphere; and our treatment of Indians, even more than our treatment
of other minorities, reflects the rise and fall in our democratic
faith " Cohen's words become even more prophetic after the Court's
decision in "Smith." The "Smith" decision may perhaps portend even
greater persecution for other forms of Indian religious expression.
Examples which come to mind include: the wearing of long hair by
Indian students in public schools, and by Indian prisoners in federal
and state prisons; missing school on a regular basis for cultural/rel-
igious ceremonial purposes; the taking of game by Indians out season,
when not otherwise protected by treaty; burning wood to heat rocks for
sweat- lodge ceremonies, when burning is otherwise outlawed by local
ordinance during times of high pollution; and body piercing as part of
the Sun Dance ceremony. If these forms of religious expression are
otherwise prohibited by general criminal laws, the First Amendment no
longer provides a basis from which to claim protection from religious
infringement. As with peyote use, reservation boundaries will provide
a buffer from the application of state law, except where Public Law
280 legitimizes intrusion.
As a result of "Smith," minority religions, in Justice Scalia's
opinion, may be at a disadvantage in the political arena. But that is,
in his estimation, "an unavoidable consequence of democratic govern-
ment," preferable to "a system in which each conscience is a law unto
itself." Justice Scalia had to strain to defend his decision, citing
the need to prevent "anarchy" in our democratic society. Indian people
simply want to be left alone in our society to worship the god of
their choice. Is that asking too much? The Court's decision in "Smith" |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,410 | strips Indians of their pride and integrity, and makes many of them
criminals in the eyes of the law. Only history will judge the Court's
decision in "Smith;" but for now the remote specter of anarchy may
very well have been the preferred choice.
1735
Statement From Pacific Northwest Church Leaders
Who Support Indian Religious Rights
Re: Employment Division, State of Oregon v. Al Smith, Galen Black,
88-1213
-----------------
The recentU.S. Supreme Court decisionregarding the sacramental
use of peyote in Native American religious rites is unfortunate and
deeply disappointing. We support the right of Native Americans to
practice their religion as they have for centuries. We concur with
Justice Harry Blackmun, who writing for the dissent, called the
decision a "wholesale overturning of settled law concerning the
religious clauses of our Constitution." The decision jeopardizes the
fundamental right of all citizens to exercise freedom of religion free
from government restraint. We will continue to work with Native
Americans to help them protect their religious rights.
The Most Rev. Raymond G. Huthausen Archbishop of Seattle Roman Cath-
olic Archdiocese of Seattle
The Right Rev. Vincent W. Warner, Bishop Episcopal Diocese of Olympia
The Most Rev. Thomas Murphy, Coadjutor Archbishop Roman Catholic
Archdiocese of Seattle
The Rev. John Boonstra, Executive Minister Washington Association of
Churches
The Rev. Calvin D. McConnell, Bishop United Methodist Church Pacific
NW Conference
The Rev. W. James Halfaker, Conference Minister Washington-Idaho
Conference United Church of Christ
The Rev. Lowell Knutson, Bishop NW Washington Synod Evangelical
Lutheran Church In America
The Rev. Dr. William B. Cate, President Director Church Council of
Greater Seattle
The Rev. Gaylord Hasselblad, Executive Minister American Baptist
Churches of the Northwest
These church leaders issued an apology to Indians that was carried in
the Winter 1988 NAF Legal Review
1736
Channeling For Fun And Prophet
Farrell J. McGovern |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,411 | Channelling is one of the more popular parts of what is call the
"New Age". It is also one of the most controversial aspects of this
movement.
To properly channelsomeone, be itMarylin Monroe, AliesterCrowley
(I have been told this doesn't work well...) or Devine, one must know
something of this person. The easiest way is by reading about this
person. Autobiographies are the best, of course, but biographies, news
reports, or even old photos are almost as good. You need some connec-
tion...
InPagandom, and Wicca, popular beingsfor channelling are various
aspects of the God and the Goddess. Again, one must know as much as
possible about the Lady or Lord that you are going to bring into
yourself for the enjoyment, edification and education of the others in
the Circle with you.
The most popular source of information on Gods and Goddesses is
again in books. Since there are many aspects of deities, there is a
great deal of literature about these beings. Most of this literature
that is over a couple of hundred of years old is usually in the form
of Fables or Epics, which have more literary content than reality. One
could easily call these works Docu-dramas, but they are still fiction.
"But..." I hear you ask,"How can they channel these beingsif all
they know about them is fictional?" Well, there seems to be enough
consensus on certain deities, but not on all. But these rituals work,
as anyone who has attended the beautiful "Drawing Down the Moon"
ritual of Wicca.
So it seems to me that the idea of a "consensual reality" is
created from the energies that all these people put into their concept
of whatever God or Goddess they believe in. There are hundreds of
thousands, maybe even millions of people who believe in Cerwdwin,
Eris, Hecate, Cherenous, and others. But...are there not also millions
of people who believe in Captain James T. Kirk? Arthur Dnt? Catwoman?
Batman? Smurfs?.....or even Peewee Herman?
Imaginesome Circle performing the DrawingDown The Moon ceremony,
and due to a lack of concentration by the priestess, she channels, not
Athena, but Marry Tyler-Moore?!?!?!? Or the priest channeling PeeWee
Herman?!?!?!
Weshall leave the furtherexploration of thisto some experimental
coven...but please! If you manage to channel Papa Smurf....we DON'T
want to hear about it!
1737
Bibliography Of Magick In Science Fiction
Magenta Griffith
Abbey, Lynn Daughter Of The Bright Moon
The Guardians
Anderson, Poul Operation Chaos
Mermaid's Children
Blish, James Black Easter
Bradley, Marion Z Darkover series, especially The Forbidden |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,412 | Tower
Crowley, Aleister Diary of a Drug Fiend
Moonchild
DeCamp, L. Sprague & The Complete Enchanter, Wall of Serpents
Fletcher Pratt
DeLint, Charles Moonheart
Eddings, David Pawn of Prophecy
Queen of Sorcery
Magician's Gambit
Castle of Wizardry
Enchanter's Endgame
Farrar, Stewart Omega
Fortune, Dion Sea Priestess
Moon Magic
Winged Bull
The Goat Foot God
Garrett, Randall Too Many Magicians
Murder and Magic
Lord D'Arcy Investigates
Heinlein, Robert A Stranger in a Strange Land
Waldo & Magic Inc.
Kurtz, Katherine Deryni Rising
Deryni Checkmate
High Deryni
Lammas Night
LeGuin, Ursula K A Wizard of Earthsea
Lovecraft, H. P. The Shadow out of Time
At the Mountains of Madness
The Strange Case of Charles Dexter Ward
Miesel, Sandra Dreamrider
Norton, Andre Witch World Series
Paxton, Diana Brisingamen
1738
Bibliography Of Magick In Science Fiction (cont.)
Magenta Griffith
Sky, Kathleen Witchdame
Tolkien, J.R.R The Hobbit
Lord of the Rings
Walton, Evangeline Island of the Mighty
Song of Rhiannon
Prince of Annwn
The Children Of Lyr |
Wicca | The-Complete-Uncut-Book-of-Shadows | 1,413 | Wilson, Robert Anton & Illuminatus! Trilogy
Robert Shea
Zelazny, Roger Chronicles of Amber
1739
Modified Assyrian Protection Spell
Ban! Ban! Barier That None Can Pass,
Barrier Of The Gods, That None May Break,
Barrier Of Heaven and Earth That None Can Change,
Which No God May Annul,
Nor God Nor Man Can Loose,
A Snare Without Escape, Set for Evil,
A Net Whence None Can Issue Forth, Spread for Evil,
Whether It Be evil Spirit, or evil Fiend, or Hag-Demon, or Ghoul, or
Robber-Sprite,
Or Phantom, or Night-Wraith, or Handmaid of the Phantom,
Or Evil Plague, or Fever-Sickness, or Unclean Disease,
Or That Which May Do Harm in Any Form or Fashion
Which Hath Attacked the Shining Waters of Ea,
May the Snare of Ea Catch It;
Or Which Hath Assailed the Meal of Nisaba,
May the Net of Nisaba Entrap It;
Or Which Hath Broken The Barrier
Let Not the Barrier of the Gods,
The Barrier of Heaven and Earth, Let It Go Free;
Or Which Reverenceth Not the Great Gods,
May the Great Gods Entrap It,
May the Great Gods Curse It;
Or Which Attacketh the House,
Into a Closed Dwelling May They Cause It To Enter;
Or Which Circleth Round About,
Into a Place Without Escape May They Bring It;
Or Which is Shut In By the House Door,
Into a House Without Exit May They Cause It To Enter;
With Door and Bolt, a Bar Immovable,
May They Withhold It;
Or Which Bloweth In at the Threshhold and Hinge,
Or Which Forceth a Way Through Bar and Latch,
Like Water May They Pour It Out,
Like a Goblet May They Dash It to Pieces,
Like a Tile May They Break It;
Or Which Passeth Over The Wall,
Its Wing May They Cut Off;
Or Which Lieth in a Chamber,
Its Throat May They Cut;
Or Which Looketh In at a Side Chamber,
Its Face May They Smite;
Or Which Muttereth In a Chamber,
Its Mouth May They Shut;
Or Which Roameth Loose In an Upper Chamber,
With a Basin Without Opening May They Cover It;
Or Which at Dawn is Darkened,
At Dawn To a Place of Sunrise May They Take It.
Out With You! Spirits of Fear, Spirits of Death!
Give Way to the Sun and the Moon!
For This is a Place Made Safe!
Bright Blessings and Peace Upon Us! |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.