Magic, Witchcraft & The Goddess

The word 'Witch' sits uneasily in most people's minds. Our conditioning may cause us to imagine being lost in the forest, stumbling upon the gingerbread house & the terrifying Crone who will almost certainly eat us. The Witch is often our mother. At best she is likely to be viewed as odd & eccentric, as worst as subversive & dangerous. Witchcraft is a lifestyle; its rituals attract the visionary, the intellectual & the artist. Sadly, the tabloid perception of Witchcraft also means it attracts its share of social misfits. In essence, we are an eclectic group of individuals.

Goddess worship is over 25,000 years old & concerns the cycles of life. Our modern, authentic practice needs to distance itself from notions of hierarchy. We live in a society that takes hierarchy almost for granted; encounters with powerful people are commonplace experiences for most of us; the true nature of power largely misunderstood.

Essentially, the word 'power' conjures a variety of overtly oppressive images ~ politicical power linked to legislation & authority; military power linked to aggression. The judiciary, education & medical professions; the worlds of music, entertainment & pornography all function by wielding power over others, not least, women. This power is usually achieved by abdicating responsibility for the consequences: war, poverty, ignorance, pollution, abuse, sexism & illiteracy. In the twenty~first century, the major influential powers are still largely those of established patriarchal governments, multinationals, the arms industry, & the predominant world religions.

As a universal archetype the Goddess symbolizes a past linking us to ancient memory & a time when the female was honoured. When equality was shaped around the the Mother & the male as guardian of Her ability to create life. Re-claiming the Goddess is both a political & a spiritual act of rebellion & courage. It is the beginning of a woman's journey toward a sense of her indwelling power & self-worth. In our circles, we create places of safety where we can be ourselves & get to know just who that self is; deny patriarchal 'power over.' Once the way of the Goddess is embraced, a journey begins. And a moving woman is a warrior spinning dreams into reality. When Witch priestesses practice magic, they take responsibility for having a vision & for transforming that vision into action.

Symbols are meaningless unless our practice is based on reality. Your mind is the true reality & your most useful tool. If you seek a meaningful connection to the Land; one that will make your heart beat faster & your hair stand on end; walk across the hills, sleep in the woods, dance by the ocean under Luna's light. Reach out & touch Faerie; learn to sing the songs of dragons. Be respectful, be honourable & there will be no need to feel afraid of the dark. And, whatever else you do, never forget ~ the trick is, knowing when not to cast the spell.

Blessed Be ~