Basic Theories and Practices of Wicca

Well... I suppose I had better start with the usual talk about how all Wiccans are witches, but not all witches are Wiccans. This is because a Wiccan is someone who practices the Tradition of Wicca. A witch, however, is someone who practices magick. The practice of magick is commonplace within the Wiccan Tradition, thus making all Wiccans witches. BUT not all magickal practice is confined within the boundaries which Wicca sets, so not all witches are Wiccans. There. Any clearer?!? Possibly not. But lets continue...

The practice of Wicca as it is done today actually happens to be a fairly new Tradition. Yes, it's theories and much of the background is ancient, however modern Wicca only dates back about sixty years or so. This is largely due to the period of which us pagans refer to as the Burning Times. You know, that horrible, dark and dank period where any person was burned at the stake for the mere whisper of the word "witch". It wasn't just witches who were persecuted at this time, so an in-depth discussion doesn't belong here, but none-the-less it was a time that modelled much of what the Tradition is today, so it deserves a mention.

All those who identify themselves as being Wiccan follow the Wiccan Rede. This is like a code of conduct for all followers of the Tradition (click on the link and you can read it for yourself). The breaking (and following) of this code of conduct results in the Law of Three (that which you put out returns to you times three - be it good or bad). Basically, if you hurt someone, you can expect to get hit with the energy which you put out, only three times worse. If you heal someone, you can expect to benefit in some way, reaping three times the goodness. This is the way in which Wiccans believe the universe to work, and it is a completely natural way of working (kind of like the law of karma, only its slightly more specific). Having said this, it puts to smittence the majority of rumours surrounding this Tradition.

Upon your meanderings around Wicca, you've probably noticed the symbol of the pentagram (left) plays a pretty important role in this religion. You can probably tell just by looking that there is no Satanic figure represented in the symbol (this way round at least). In fact, it is an elemental symbol, which is very useful for magickal work. Each point on the star represents a different element - earth (bottom left), air (top right), fire (top left), water (bottom right) and spirit (or Akasha - the topmost point). If you use your imagination a little, you will notice that you can (sort of) make out a human figure (the head being in the spirit point, right arm being fire, left arm being

air, right leg being earth, and left leg being water. The surrounding circle therefore symbolises the auric form of the human being (as well as the Circle of Power, which by the Wiccan Rede must be cast upon each Sabbat/Esbat). The myth of the pentagram being a symbol for Satan comes when you flip the above symbol upside down and picture a goat's head within the symbol (as seen here).

The Circle of Power is a very important part of Wiccan practice. The Rede states that a practitioner must "Cast the Circle thrice about, to keep the evil spirits out". This means that you must do the rounds of the boundary (traditionally 13 ft in diameter, but this is impractical if you are a solitary practitioner) once with the consecrated salt and water, once with the incense and once with the athame or sword (not necessarily in that order). This gives the boundary the strength of all five elements - earth and water from the consecrated water, air and fire from the incense, and spiritual or Akashan energy from the athame or sword. Once created, the Circle will act as an in-between worlds "bubble", if you like. This enables you to draw on energy from the spirit realm/world, and use it to bring about the desired consequences in the physical realm/world.

LEFT: a Wiccan is defining the boundaries of the Circle with the consecrated water.

As you are probably already aware, Wicca is an Earth Religion. This is because it recognises the turning of the seasons (known as the Wheel of the Year) in the form of eight Sabbats (times of Seasonal celebration on the Wiccan calendar). Each Sabbat has its own corresponding symbols and activities, so, starting with Beltaine, this is what they are:

BELTAINE: Celebrated as May 1 in the Northern Hemisphere (October 31 in the Southern). This is the Flower Festival, the return of full-blown fertility to the land. A Maypole is danced, a King and Queen are crowned, flowers are gathered, a fire of nine woods is burned (for the strengthening of the sun), and the Great Rite may be performed.

LITHA: Celebrated as June 21 in the Northern Hemisphere (December 21 in the Southern). This is the time of the year when the sun is at the peak of its power, and this is traditionally celebrated with many bonfires. Sunflowers are also gathered, and you may leap over the flames for protection throughout the coming year.

LAMMAS (or Lugnasadh): Celebrated as August 1 in the Northern Hemisphere (February 1 in the Southern). This is the celebration of the First Harvest, and the Circle is traditionally adorned with vegetables and reaping tools (such as a scythe - a tractor is impractical). This is like a Wiccan Thanksgiving, and the eating and sharing of bread and wine is the focus of this Sabbat.

MAYBON: Celebrated as September 21 in the Northern Hemisphere (March 21 in the Southern). It's the Autumn Equinox, and as such the Circle is adorned with Autumn leaves, and Wiccans will SYMBOLICALLY enact the death-like sleep of nature that is Winter.

SAMHAIN: Celebrated as October 31 in the Northern Hemisphere (May 1 in the Southern). This is commercially known as Halloween, and symbolises the darkest time of the year. It is the time of year when the veil between the veils between the world of spirit and the world of mankind is thinnest, and so we celebrate this Sabbat by asking the spirits of the deceased to join the ritual. The Circle is cast widdershins and may be decorated with jack-o-lanterns, a seance is conducted, and the future is predicted.

YULE: Celebrated as December 21 in the Northern Hemisphere (June 21 in the Southern). This is the rebirth of the sun - the birth of the new Solar Year. A Yule log is burned and its ashes are kept as amulets of protection and fertility.

IMBOLC: Celebrated as February 1 in the Northern Hemisphere (August 1 in the Southern). This is the time when nature begins to stir, but its awakening remains unseen. The Bride's Bed is the rite associated with this Sabbat - involving the placement of a corn doll into a basket alongside a wand to represent the marriage of the Lord and Lady.

OSTARA: Celebrated as March 21 in the Northern Hemisphere (September 21 in the Southern). Night and day are now of equal power, and the light will now begin to grow greater than the dark. The Circle is decorated with Spring flowers and the rites include an offering of coloured eggs and cakes, sometimes inscribed with solar crosses, to the deities.

Also celebrated are the Esbats. This is the time of the Full Moon when Wiccans gather to discuss coven matters, perform any magick requested of them (when appropriate), and to work on personal advancement. Esbats can be fashioned to meet any needs required, whether it be all business or just a meditative time of guidance and thanks.

While the names and concepts of the deities in Wicca change according to the individual (you may have Greek or Roman fascinations, and thus use Greek or Roman names for the deities, whereas another may identify better with the Celtic names). The names in Wicca are not important - the concepts are. All Wiccans believe in two forms of deity - a god and a goddess. Both deities have many aspects (eg. the Father, the Lord of the Wood and the Divine Child are all aspects of the god). More often than not however, the focus of Wicca seems to be stuck on the goddess, pictured in her three Divine aspects on the right here - the Maiden, Mother and Crone.

This is perhaps because of all the connections between nature and the female body. The phases of the moon are the most obvious example to give. The Maiden is represented by the waxing moon (growing fertility), the Mother by the full moon (full fertility), the menopausal stage by the waning moon (lessening

fertility), and the Crone by the new moon (barrenness). This is also reflected in the Seasons. Spring is the time of the Maiden, Summer the time of the Mother, Autumn the time of menopause, and Winter the time of the Crone. With the nature of Wiccan celebration, it seems only natural that the majority of the focus is therefore placed on the goddess, and bringing the god in equal stance within the boundaries of Wicca is difficult (the Rede doesn't even mention the god).

It must be noted that Wicca is not a cop-out religion for people who don't want a strict set of guidelines to follow. All practicing covens are very selective of their initiates (the people who are chosen to study Wicca and eventually become a High Priest or Priestess), not only due to the protection of their public image (see the Articles of Interest page for an explanation of that one), but also because of the responsibility that the practice of magick entails. Part of learning Wicca is learning magick, and thus it is YOU who are responsible for the consequences in the physical world, not your teacher, not the book you read or the website you visited. Learning how to correct and learn from your mistakes is part of the process of becoming an initiate.

On a whole, Wicca is a fantastic starting point for beginners to learn, whether you plan on remaining within the practices of Wicca or not is entirely up to you, and just because you've been initiated into Wicca by no means binds you to a lifetime worth of practice. It's a very flexible path because it leaves so many blanks to be filled in and defined by the individual (eg. deity names, when to practice, how to practice, indoors or outdoors, what focus, etc). Books I recommend regarding Wicca are listed here, websites you can jump to are here. I will have pages regarding the Casting of the Circle and the elemental symbolism up soon (probably within the month).

Living in Oz and wanting to find more information about Wicca, events and happenings in your area?!? Write to the Church of Wicca at:
The Church of Wicca
PO Box 103
Kelmscott WA 6111
or give them a buzz on: (08) 9430 6779

Or, for information on all pagan events throughout the country, the Australian Pagan Information Centre (APIC) may be just what you're looking for.

A more Witchraft-orientated place, very pagan, but not overly Wiccan, is the Church of the Ancient Mysteries, directed by Anath Woolfkeepe. For more information about this, write them at:
Church of the Ancient Mysteries
PO Box Q223
Queen Victoria Building Post Office
Sydney NSW 2000
or call them on: (02) 6687 6775