VOCABULARY OF WICCAN TERMS

Rick Johnson
PO Box 40451
Tucson, AZ 85717
RikJohnson@juno.com

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CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION
Within any field be it science or religion or literature, there are words and terms that are specific to that field. Witchcraft is no exception. The major difference between Wicca and other fields is that our vocabulary is derived from words and terms that are centuries and millennia old. And as a result, our definitions of these words differs from the modern usage. Thus, when a Witch states that the universe is composed of four elements (earth, air, fire and water) it is easy to laugh with the enlightment of modern chemestry that has listed over a hundred and a dozen elements, not to mention isotopes.
But, in reality, what a Witch means is that the universe manifests itself in four states, solid (earth), liquid (water), gas (air) and energy (fire). We use the ancient terms simply because they more accurately describe the universe in terms that are understandable to the avarage Witch, provide a tie to the golden past and aid us in reading the ancient manuscripts.

Here are some of the terms and words that are common in the Wiccan Religion and Paganism as well as many that are obscure and fading from use. Not all of these terms are used by all Witches though many are becoming very common as others drop out of the language. The words come from a number of sources, Traditions and religions and so even though most of these terms are Wiccan, there are a few non-wiccan terms from other pagan faiths and magickal fields as well. These are included because they have been adopted or are useful. In most cases, however, the Gardnerian-Wiccan term has become the Common public term.

When Gerald Gardner started his reform of Wicca in the mid-20th century, he found that poetry was the language of ritual. So he would pour over old dictionaries for archaic terms with which to add flavor to the Rituals of the Craft. He would also introduce new words (sometimes by accident) into the language which would describe the religion in more poetical ways. And as most of the popular Traditions of Wicca are derived in some manner from Gardner's writings and work, the Gardnerian term came to be accepted as common. Thus did the language grow.

Be aware that many of these terms are thousands of years old and are retained to keep a tie to the past or because they can more easily distinguish between a magickal technology and a material technology. Others are modern terms that have been added to this vocabulary because of their use in Paganism. Those which are labelled (Gardnerian) are those found in the various Gardnerian Traditions, (Seax) are those found in the Seax Tradition of Wicca and so on. As in most dictionaries, I have placed the most common definition as used in modern Wicca as the first with the less common usages secondary. Thus, most definitions will be the Gardnerian as first and others as number 2 or 3. However, in some rare cases, the Gardnerian term is less common than others, in such case, the more common usage is shown first.

In cases where the term is in common useage with different spellings, I will list each spelling separatly. The most common spelling will carry the definition and the less common spellings will refer to the most common.

The Complete Vocabulary is about 10 times this length. I have deleted most of the Gardnerian terms as they are so obscure that most Gardnerians don't even use them. I have also deleted most of the herbs and proper names and anything that I felt would get me into trouble. Despite all this editing, it is still over 125 pages in length. Also I make no apologies for any editoral comments I have added.
Feel free to inform me of any terms that I may have missed, misdefined or that you would like added..
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A YEAR AND A DAY-- An expression of time that is used in Wicca. It is based on the comparison between the Lunar Year (364 days) and the Solar Year (365 days). Traditionally, the time between Initiations or the length of time of a 'contract'. For example, many Handfastings last for a year and a day and are renewed yearly unless the couple Handpart. Also, it is traditional to wait a year and a day between asking for Initiation and actually being Initiated.

ABBOT MELITIUS-- See Melitius, Abbot.

ABRACADABRA-- (Sumerian) An old magickal square that wards off illness. The idea is that as the word fades away, so will the sickness.

A B R A C A D A B R A
A B R A C A D A B R
A B R A C A D A B
A B R A C A D A
A B R A C A D
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A B R A C
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ABSENT HEALING-- The ability to heal a person without their being present. As magick works under a specific formula; E{s}=1/d(d)*, the closer you are to the target of the healing, the more energy that person will receive, absent healing is not as effective as other forms.
*The energy of the spell received by the target is equal to one over the square of the distance between the Witch and the target.
Please note that I don't have a program to do actual math formulae here so I have to wing it.

ACA THREADS-- (Hawaiian) Etheric 'threads' that attach you to everything that you touch. This is vital in an understanding of the Law of Contagion in magick and allows for the use of object links to aid absent healing..

ADEPT-- Someone experienced in magick. A person who has studied and worked hard enough to be proficient in a particular magickal system.

AEROMANCY-- Divination by the air.

AETIOLOGICAL MYTHS-- A story found in religion that is designed to describe an action that is or was common practice but no one today remembers why it is still being done. In Judaism, the Menorah and the story of Abraham are Aetiological myths in that they attempt to explain in the first case why the Jewish people burn a Bonfire on Yule (the practice was changed and a miracle invented to explain it) and in the latter to explain the early Israelite practice of sacrificing their first born son to jehovah.
In today's world, TV is attempting to do the same by inventing a myth of Santa Claus and the xmas tree.

AFTERWORLD-- Any of the many concepts of what happens when a person dies. The Wiccan Summerland is the one appropriate to this work.

AIR-- One of the Four Elements in Magick. It represents Gas, mind, the past. and the color blue. Its magickal Tool is the Wand and not the knife as stated by the Golden Dawn's Outer Court.. See Elements.

AKA THREAD-- See aca thread

AKASHA-- The fifth Element, spirit or a combination of the other four Elements.

AKASHIC RECORDS-- The 'library' that contains the sum total of all actions and knowledge. It exists on the Astral or spiritual plane and some people can 'read' them.

ALCHEMY-- A system of magick that seeks two primary goals, the elixir of life that gives immortality and the philosophers stone that transforms materials to gold. Alchemy is the father of chemistry. Modern alchemists tend to emphasise the transformation of the soul/self into a higher being.

ALECTRYOMANCY-- Divination by cocks or other poultry. This is not to be confused with priapomancy which is divination by the size and shape of the penis.

ALEXANDRIAN WITCHES-- (c 1960) Those Witches who follow the Craft as interpreted by Alexander Sanders in the 1960's. It combines judeo-christian ceremonial magick with Gardnerian Wicca and his claimed Heriditary Wicca.
There is an argument as to whether the Tradition is named after it's founder or after the city of Alexandria in Egypt.

ALGARD WITCHES-- (c1965) This is a Tradition formed by Mary N. in the 1970's who was both an Alexandrian and Gardnerian Witch. She realized that there was so much common ground between the Alexandrian and Gardnerian Traditions, she formed a new Trad that encompasses them both.

ALL FATHER-- (Eclectic) The Horned God. Probably taken from asatru who calles their primary god, Odin, the All Father.

ALL HEAL-- (viscum album). Mistletoe. So named by the druids for it's medical properties. Modern people should remember that mistletoe is toxic and should never be ingested even though many old lust and love potions require the use of mistletoe berries.
Mistletoe is ideally harvested on Yule with a golden sickle by a virgin or Priest and NEVER allowed to touch the ground. A white cloth under the tree works nicely. It is then tied with a red string or ribbon and placed over the bed or Altar as a lust charm. Christians kiss under mistletoe, pagans fuck. Beware the Witch who sets mistletoe into their belt buckle.

ALL HALLOWS-- See Samhain.

ALL HALLOWS EVE-- See Samhain.

ALL MOTHER-- (Eclectic) The Goddess.

ALMADEL-- (Ceremonial magick) A talisman fashioned from white wax and inscribed with various sigils and names of angels.

ALN-- A measurement from the elbow to the tip of your index finger with your arm bent at a 90 degree angle. About 18". The Wand is traditionally one aln in length. See ell and cubit. See also measurements.

ALPHA-- That condition where the mind slows and magick and psychics become possible. The brain cycles at about 8 - 12 cycles per second while in alpha.

ALPHITOMANCY-- Divination by meal, flour or bran.

ALRAUN-- A magickal talisman that is made from Rowan wood though one referance says that it is made from mandrake or bryony. The Alraun is generally human shaped and must be dressed and fed and treated with respect. If so, it will protect your home, if not it will bring bad luck. The name Alraun comes from the name of the Germanic sorceresss called Alrunes (or All Runes) and so it may be a Saxon charm that was adopted by Witches.

ALTAR-- A Wiccan Tool. The 'High Place' in a Wiccan Temple. An area or table generally within the center or north of the Circle upon which are placed the Tools of the Craft. Many Rituals revolve around the Altar and its exact location in the Circle shows not only what the Coven actually knows about magick and ritual, but it also tells what is being done in that Circle.
In some Rituals, the High Priestess sits upon the Altar during certain parts of the Rite. Thus a strongly built low Altar is necessary in these Covens. In other Covens where the members mostly stand, the Altar is a table of normal height.

AMERICAN GARDNERIANS-- (c 1964) Any Gardnerian Witch who is descended from Gerald Gardner via Raymond and Rosemary Buckland. American Gardnerians are identified by a more rigid structure and a few extra rules regarding Initiations and Lineage than are British Gardnerians. Not all Gardnerians who are American are American Gardnerian. The author is an American of Irish descent who follows a British Gardnerian Tradition. Obviously I'm avoided by both my family and other Gardnerians.

AMULET-- A passive defensive bit of magickal jewelry or other object lucky charm that is generally found and not made, though it may be considered to have been blessed by the God/dess. Stones with a natural hole in them are extremely powerful Amulets.
I once had a stone with a natural crescent-shaped hole which I set into a ring. The stone fell out one night when I was visiting an Alexandrian HPS to help her do a spell. It appears that the Gods didn't like the magick she planned that night.

ANAPHRODISIAC-- Any herb or herbal mixture that reduces sexual desire or ability. The military and various boys schools use salt peter as an anaphrodisiac which they used to hide in the mashed potatos. The opposite of aphrodisiac.

ANATHEMA-- A curse or condemnation placed upon another Witch. A Witch who has betrayed the Craft or their vows but not to the christians and therefore is not a warlock.

ANCYREA, COUNCIL OF-- (xian) In 314 c.e. a council of early church elders was held to codify the xian bible by deciding what would go in and what would be deleted and to determine what was proper behaviour for xians... Thus the xian bible contains a number of writings by people who had never met jesus to the exclusion of writers who had known the man personally. Among the things they ordered were:

1. a) The fifth cannon sentenced to depravity any clergy who consorted with Witches.
2. b) The 14th cannon forbade vegiterianism.
3. c) The 24th cannon declared 5 years pennance for anyone who used Witchcraft to cure a disease.
4. The exclusion of th writings of Mary Magdalene who knew jesus personally.
5. The inclusion of the writings of Paul who never met jesus.

ANGEL-- A demi-god that is considered to be good. Compare with demon. See complements.

ANIMA-- The feminine part of a man's unconscious.

ANIMISM-- The belief that all natural phenomena such as water, trees, rocks, etc are alive and have a soul and/or a deva and/or a god in control.

ANIMUS-- The masculine part of a woman's unconscious.

ANKH-- The Egyptian symbol of life. The symbol represents the male ( T ) and the female ( o ) and is often worn by Witches as an affirmation of the basic pro-life/nature aspect of Wicca and as a symbol of their religion when they cannot safely wear a Pentacle..

ANKH-KA-- The Egyptian symbol for 'soul life . It is sometimes used by Witches to represent the Great Rite.

ANOINT-- To purify in a Wiccan Ritual by rubbing with blessed oil or holy salt-water or a number of other specific materials. It can be done to an object or a person.
One can anoint a person in two different ways depending on if you want to purify them or do magick with them.

ANTHROPOLOGISTS-- The field of social studies that attempts to make some sense out of humanity and how we are. Anthropology students love to study Witches and the number of term papers on the religion are legion.
Anthropologists make one major mistake, however. They are woefully ignorant about the subjects that they are studying. To an old-style anthropologist, a Berdache is a person who cross-dresses, is gay and wants a sex-change operation. They see no difference between these three extremely different people. To an anthropologist, a witch is anyone who does any form of magickal or psychic work, including your aunt Matilda who likes to cast horoscopes for fun. As a result, the professional data regarding Wicca is generally innacurate and misleading.

ANTINOPOMANCY-- (Roman) Divination by the entrails of women and children. This is NOT a Wiccan practice but was used by the Romans. I am unaware of the name for divination by the entrails of men and politicians.

APHRODITE-- Originally a Goddess from the eastern Mediterranian region, Her original aspects were those of love and sex and fertility similar to the Maiden aspect of the Goddess. She was free from entanglements and did as She desired. However, as Her worship moved westward into Greece, the patriarchial Greeks who had replaced the Goddess centered Titan worship with the God centered Olympian religion couldn't accept a goddess who was free. So they married her to the crippled god, Hephaestus, in an effort to slow her down. Her original worship was designed to encourage women to freedom and independence so the Greeks tried to convert that into a promiscious adultry in an effort to keep their women in the harem.
Remember that the Greeks believed that if a woman was not kept pregnant, her uterus would break free, migrate up and strangle her heart. They also believed that homosexuality was good but lesbianism was evil.

APOLLONIAN-- An obscure and possibly outdated term that refers to those religions that are highly organized, structured and hierarchical with little or no free thinking allowed. Christianity is an appollonian religion. Compare with Dionysian.

APPARITION-- A ghost or spirit or vision.

APPRENTICE-- A person who is studying with a master of a subject. Generally in Magick or Wicca, it refers to a particularly close relationship where the apprentice does menial chores to pay for the teachings, in many of which are hidden the lessons that the master wishes the chores to be done. I had one student, who filed papers for a living, run her finger down the cover of the closed file and stop at random. She would then open the file to see if her finger had stopped at the next blank line in the index.
I have had a number of people ask to study under me in this fashion but none actually were willing to do the exercises, much less the written homework.
An excellent training manual for a Wiccan apprentice is to watch the movie, The Karate Kid. The biggest problem for the teacher of an apprentice is to find ways to teach the apprentice. This is difficult because the apprentice is NOT the teacher and what worked for the teacher may not work for the apprentice.

AQUARIUS, AQUARIAN AGE-- The new time in earth's history associated with the constellation of Aquarius. This age is said to usher in a more decentralized government and religion. Many Witches see it as a new age of freedom and the death of xianity. The age of Aquarius will begin anywhere between the year 1900-2100 c.e.

ARADIA-- 1) (Italian) A female 'messiah' who brought about a revival of Wicca in Italy in the 1353 c.e. only to be crushed by the catholic church. Aradia was arrested and escaped a number of times until she eventually disappeared. She returned a couple of centuries later and again in the 1920's to start another revival of Wicca in Italy but this time it was crushed by the catholic church and Benito Mussolini who banded together during the Second World War under the deal that the church would support Benito if Mussolini would outlaw all other religions and make catholicism the only legal religion in Italy. If you don't believe this, I refer you to the documented aid that the catholic church and the German Nazi Party gave to each other before, during and after that same war as an example of strange bedfellows.
2) (Alexandrian) The public name of the Goddess.
3) In Traditional and Italian Wicca, the name of the Daughter of the Horned God and the Great Goddess who was sent to Earth to teach people about magick and religion and to free them from slavery.
4) One of the names of the Goddess in Italy.

ARCANE-- Refers to any secret and occult knowledge.

ARCHAIC TERMS-- When Gerald Gardner started his own Wiccan Reform in the 1950's, he sought to make the Rituals more poetic and pleasing to the ear and so he spent a great deal of time perusing old dictionaries for old words and terms that struck a 'cord' in his soul. These terms were then added to the rites to give them not only an ancient flavor but also to sound more poetical when used. As a result, Gardner introduced a number of words into Witchcraft, many of which are still in use today.
In addition to this is the fact that most of our modern sciences are directly derived from ancient fields such as astronomy comes directly from astrology (modern astronomers hate the idea that Galleleo made his living as an astrologer) and so the definitions changed as the new field took over. Thus, a lot of words retain, in magick, their older meanings. Many though, are retained because they sound beautiful. (see poetry)

ARCHTYPES-- Symbols that are represented in the mind of mankind as a whole. I refer you to the excellent works of Dr. Carl Jung for more info on this.

ARITHMANCY-- Divination by numbers.

ARROW POSITION-- A Ritual stance in Wicca where one's feet are together and the arms are raised above the head with the palms touching. It is not so much as a position as a transition from one position into another.

THE ART-- (Gardnerian) Magickal practices conducted by the superconscious using intuitive and automatic abilities. Also a term for the technical aspects of magick within the frame of Wicca.

ART AND CRAFT-- The term for Wicca in Goddess Religion.

AS ABOVE, SO BELOW-- (Gardnerian) A method of explaining the interaction between the Gods and humanity, the compact between us and the idea that even the Gods must follow the Laws of Nature. Thus, whatever happens on the Divine Plane, also is reflected upon the Material Plane. This is very important to Wicca and magick.

ASPECTS-- The forms which a God/dess will take when They are called upon. Each Aspect will emphasise a specific area of Influence, such as The Goddess in Her aspect of the Great Mother will emphasise maternity and fertility as opposed to Her aspect of the Crone which emphasises wisdom and age.

ASPERGILLUM-- A Ritual 'sprinkler' used in Wicca and many other religions for charging or to scatter holy water about in blessing. In Wicca it is often made of herbs or twigs.

ASPERGE-- To sprinkle with an Aspergillum in order to purify someone or something.

ASPERGER-- A common term for a tool used to asperge. The proper term is aspergillum.

ASTAROTH-- A jewish demon derived from the Goddess Ishtar and Astarte whom the Israelites hated. It is said that the gods of the old religion become the devils of the new religion.

ASTARTE-- (Phoenicia) A fertility Goddess and a latter version of the Sumerian Ishtar.
She is an excellent example of the phrase, "the gods of the old religion become the demons of the new." As Ishtar, She was a supreme and vital Goddess. As Astarte, She became a less important but still vital fertility Goddess, and under the latter Israelites She was demoted from the wife of jehova to the male demon of lust ashtoroth.

ASTRAGALOMANCY-- Divination by dice.

ASTRAL-- The astral plane, a spirit.

ASTRAL BLEEDING-- An involuntary loss of astral 'matter', generally from the solar plexis. This is dangerous and should be fixed asap.

ASTRAL BODY-- The psychic 'double' of the body weighing about 1/8 oz. It is capable of passing through any matter and teleporting anywhere instantly. Also called the astral vehicle.

ASTRAL PLANE-- A series of 'worlds' in which the astral body travels. The lower planes are similar to the physical and in some cases may be travelled upon while awake in and without knowing that you are there (maybe there are things on a person going through the DT's and we simply cannot see them while we are in beta), though the higher ones are mental and shape themselves to whatever you wish them to be. The xian heaven and hell are on the higher Astral Planes. Thus if you believe heaven to be clouds and angels with robes and harps, then your soul will go to this Astral Plane during a near death experience (which is common), and you will experienc a heaven that is exactly what you want it to be. This makes it extremely difficult to convince the person that it wasn't real and they may attempt suicide in an effort to return or murder to send others to this wonderful place.
In reality, an Astral Plane is simply another 'dimension' and has no relation to what happens to the soul when the person dies. It is, however, a useful place to visit when searching out knowledge or helping people.

ASTRAL PROJECTION-- The art and ability of sending the astral body out of the physical body at will.

ASTRAL TEMPLE-- A place created on the astral plane by an individual or group. It is a place of spiritual refuge when alone and a physical place is not availiable.

ASTRAL TRAVEL-- See astral projection.

ASTRAL VEHICLE-- See astral body.

ASTROLOGY-- The science of describing personality traits and probable future events through the observations of planetary bodies. It is based upon the theory that the energy fields of these planets and their physical relationship with each other and with the stars will become locked in at the moment of birth and will influence the individual for life. There are a number of systems such as the Tropical, the Sidreal, the Chaldean and the Celtic.
In all cases, knowledge of the exact moment and place of birth is vital. In my case, as an example, I spent much of my life believing that I was born on August 24, 1952 at Westover AFB, Chicoppee Falls, Mass at 11:30 p.m. and so all of my Natal Charts were based on that time and the location of that city. When I finally purchased my birth certificate from Mass, I discovered that my birth time was 12:30 a.m. and that Westover AFB where I was born (42.12 N by 72.33 W) may be legally near Chicoppee Falls (42.10 N by 72.36 W) but is actually closer to Holyoke (41.12 N by 72.37 W). These two facts completely change my natal chart. If you want to send me an updated chart, feel free to do so.
In all cases, I was an eleven-month baby to be certain that I would be born a Virgo. I suspect that around June, my mother would rather I had been a nine month preemie.

ASTROMANCY-- To divine through the use of stars.

ATHAME-- The black-handled dagger that is THE most important Tool of the Witch. It is used to direct personal power and in most Traditions, it is never used to cut. It is a symbol of fire. Traditionally, the Athame has a black colored natural handle and a straight double-edged iron-based blade one spann long. Athame's generally have a set of symbols on the handle which have meaning to those who can read them.
The word appears to come from the Arabic 'Ad Homme', meaning 'ritual knife' or 'lancet' and is pronounced 'ath-AH-may' though others pronounce it 'ah-THAMM-ee' (rhymes with whammy) or 'ATH-ah-may' or 'ATH-ah-mee', or 'ath-AY-mee' (in Britain).
Most modern pagans attribute the Athame to the element air though it actually is symbolic of fire. This problem arose when the early magickal lodges such as the Golden Dawn decided to keep their secrets from the mundane world to prevent someone from causing trouble, so in their 'outer court' training system, they made a number of changes so that any spies or drop-outs wouldn't be able to accomplish anything (similar to a chef writing down the wrong ingredients in case his recipies were stolen but he knew which ones were wrong and would make the appropriate substitutions. Neiman Marcus recently discovered the value of this with their cookie recipie) then when the student learned enough and proved their dedication and loyalty, they were taught the truth and had to unlearn all that they thought they knew.

ATLANTIS-- 1) A mythical continent in the middle of the Atlantic ocean, the remains of which form the mid-atlantic ridge. It was believed to be the center of all wisdom until it was destroyed by the Gods for it's evil ways. The survivors fled to America and Europe and created the civilizations of the Aztecs, Mayans, Egyptians, and so on. This is myth.
2) Probably the Islands of Thera and Santorini in the Mediterranian Sea. It blew up in a volcanic eruption about 3000 years ago (give or take a few centuries) and the shock waves from that eruption destroyed the Civilization of Crete. It is possible that the pulling of the ocean away from a beach followed by a tidal wave during an underwater earthquake or volcanic eruption is the basis for the Israelite legend of the crossing of the Red Sea. In history, this may have happened but the reputed destruction of the Egyptian army is a complete myth as were the seven plagues of Egypt which also never happened. Myth is a powerful thing when codified into faith.
3) A story told by an obscure Egyptian Priest to Solan in the hopes of getting a good tip by preying on the Greek ego.
4) Some mythical place from which almost every space cadet claims to have been in a former life. These people were generally Priest-kings and can tell the most obscure details of Atlantian civilization and religion but are unable to even build or even describe with any accuracy something as simple as the Atlantion version of a light switch (which any person in modern day can do). Many wanna-be wiccans claim to be Atlantion in a past life.

ATTUNEMENT-- The action of a group balancine their personal energies and needs to become one with the group. Properly done, it enables the group to raise more power than any individual an possibly match. Done improperly, it reduces the power of the group to less than one person.
The formula for attuning the coven is: E{g} > E{i} (n + 1).*
*The energy of the group when properly balanced is greater than the sum total of the energy of the individual members when aded together.

AUGURY-- Divination by the interpretation of omens or chance phenomena.

AUGUSTINE, ST-- (xian) An important xian writer who, in 413 c.e., wrote "How can a Goddess be three persons at one and the same time?" He appears to have had no difficulty understanding the catholic trinity which preaches the same thing.

AURA-- The energy field that surrounds every object in the universe. In people it can be used to influence or cure physical problems. One of the basic things that Traditional Witches are required to learn is how to see the Aura. I personally find it easier to teach how to feel the Aura first, then when the student has confidence in themselves and the existance of the Aura, I move on the seeing. One of the best teaching devices that I have found for learning how to see the Aura is not the standard cyan light bulb but rather those new computer generated 3-D posters that have recently been placed on the market.
The colors of the Aura relate to the medical and physical condition of the person, but, unfortunately, there has been little hard research work in this area and so few people can agree completely on meanings of the colors. Thus, within a broad perameter, the color and meanings are open to individual interpretation. The worst problem that I have found is the tendency for the novice aura reader to place their own interpretations on the color instead of learning what that color means in reality. For those who wish to actually do some real work and not play games, I would suggest that you observe and record the auras of a thousand people then get a medical profile to see just what the aura looks like on a woman in the early (pre-diagnosable) stages of breast cancer.

AUTUMN EQUINOX-- see Mabon.

AVALON-- The Celtic Land of the Blessed, similar to paradise. It means the Island of Apples and is where King Arthur was taken at death to await until he could be returned to England when needed. Some traditions of Wicca use it to refer to a form of Paradise similar to the Celtic Sidhe or the Summerland.

AVATAR-- Someone who has 'evolved' to such an extent that they have no more need to incarnate on earth in a physical body. They do, however, return to earth to teach.

AXINOMANCY-- Divination by saws.
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B.C.E.-- Before the common era. A method of dating that is used by Pagans, non-xian nations and scientists to avoid using the christian term 'before christ' {B.C.} because much of the world dislikes using a dating system based upon a god in whom they do not believe. Compare to C.E.

BABD-- (Gaelic) The Irish word for Witch. Not to be confused with witta which is a new word made up by one popular author who claims to be an Irish Witch.

BABYLON-- See 666.

BACULUM-- See Wand

BAN-- 1) To curse. Generally referred towards a person who has committed a crime agains society and the Craft that would harm the Craft as a whole.
2) (Gardnerian) A summons.
3) (Gardnerian) Forbidden.

BANE-- 1) A poisonous herb. 2) (Wicca) Evil or bad. That which destroys life.

BANEFUL-- See bane.

BANEFUL MAGICK-- Any spell that is used for a morally improper goal. An example of good magick would be doing a love spell to attract someone into your life to love and love you. That same spell done on a specific person such as a neighbor is baneful. The difference is that in the former, you allow the universe to choose the proper person, in the latter, you are controlling someone's free will.
See Black Magick.

BANISH-- 1) To exile from the Coven and Craft for criminal or extreme anti-craft behavior. Most Traditional Witches will have nothing to do with a person who has been Banished because of the extreme measure that this is. To Banish shows that the Coven and HP/S feel that the crime comitted is so henious that the person must be punished severely and they have little or no hope that the person will ever be able to repair the damage they caused or that person will continually repeat their evil acts. Banishment is forever and is similar to the Amish Shunning or the catholic excommunication. It is the ultimate punishment in modern Wicca. In civil terms, Banishment would be equalivilant to life imprisonment without parole. A Coven can only banish it's own members. Refer to Shunning for other referances.
There isa saying that if the catholic church excommunicated as often as certain High Priestess' Banish, hell would be full to overflowing.
2) To cast out a non-material entity through ritual means. Many stupid and ignorant fundies have performed 'exorcisms' on people undergoing voluntary hysterical 'possession' (i.e. schizophrenia of a mild sort brought on by a method similar to implanted memories) for the sole purpose of reinforcing some mythical devil worship or for the greed of fame and money. Having been involved in a number of exorcisms, I have found that the Linda Blair type simply doesn't exist. True, people can be taken over by non-material entities, but most of these are voluntary or hysterical. Those few 'real possessions' follow certain basic patterns that are absent in the publicized exorcisms and thus can be considered fake.
3) Another term for Closing a Circle. This refers to the eliminating of the remaining energy which was raised during the Rite.

BANISHING-- The action of causing something to depart from the Wicca Circle. Often used to release elemental spirits at the end of a Ritual. Sometimes refers to Closing the Circle at the end of a Rite.

BAPHOMET-- According to Eliphas Levi, a human-like entity with the breasts of a woman and genitals of a man and the head of a goat. Also called the Goat of Mendes, it was said that the Knights Templar worshipped Baphomet. As the Templars spent a lot of time in Palestine during the Crusades and they appear to have brought back to France at least some islamic practices and so the name 'baphomet' may be a corruption of 'mohammed'.
Witches were also said to worship Baphomet because of the superficial resemblance to the Horned God. Compare the images of Baphomet with those of Cerne on the Gunderstrap Cauldron.

BARD-- (Celt) In Celtic and Druidic lore, a musician, a poet and a story teller and one of the three levels of priesthood. They traveled the country passing news and telling moral tales to people. They were so powerful that no king could deny them entrance and if the king was bad, the Bard would make a satirical song about him which would essentially destroy the person socially and politically.

BARROW-- (old English for hill) A pre-Celtic burial ground, specifically a mound of earth over a Dolmen. A holy place. See Tumulus.

BASQUE-- A region between France and Spain which is modern times is characterized by a certain amount of terrorism caused by Basque who wish their own country. Michael Harrison states that some of the Gardnerian chants are in the Basque language. The Basque, like the Romney, are said to be heavily involved in Witchcraft though the same is said about any group that disassociates themselves from society.
Pierre de Lancre was sent by the King to the Basque region of france to hunt Witches in 1612. His most famous quote is

"... questioning a suspect about what he has done is merely a trick to trap him into confessing."

BELL-- A Wiccan Tool. Considered to be the voice of the Goddess and therefore used during invocations, exorcisms and purifications. It often represents the union of the Goddess (the bell) and the God (the clapper) and is a strong purifier.

BELL, BOOK AND CANDLE-- 1) Refers to the closing act of exorcism "ring the bell, close the book and snuff the candle." It is used by some Witches to indicate the closing of a ritual.
2) A movie starring Kim Novak and Jimmy Stewart. The film concerns 'witches' in modern day Manhattan. It is not at all accurate but almost every Wiccan loves it anyway.

BELTANE-- {bee-yel-TUNE-ah} One of the Four Greater Sabbats of Witchcraft. It was originally dedicated to the Celtic God Bel or Belinus, but now a fertility festival that celebrates the coming of Summer, the union of the God and Goddess and rampant sexuality. Generally, it is celebrated with Bonfire jumping, Maypole dances and Love chases.
In some Traditions, it is THE most important Sabbat, in others it is the Second Most Important. For Traditionals, it is, however, the most enjoyable with requests for invitations by Eclectics and Traditionals from prudish Covens made to the more outgoing Traditional Covens.
Also called: Walpurgisnacht, May Day, Roodmas, Cethsamhain and in Ireland it is called Bealtaine (b'Yol-tinna which means Summer). It is held on May 1st or May 5th depending on which calendar you follow. Some Traditions start their yearly calendar at Beltane.

BERDACHE-- (Anthropological) A term used to describe any of a variety of people who cross-dress or change gender roles within a society. The reason may be magickal or social or economic or psychological.
If only a woman can own a house (as in Navajo society), then the only way a man can own his own home is to put on a dress and act like a woman in that society.
If there aren't enough men or women in society, then it is uesful for some of those of the more numerous gender to dress as the opposite sex and 'marry' others of their biological gender.
If a culture specifies certain magickal skills to specific genders, the berdache then possess both skills.
If a person is physically male but feels like a woman inside, he may dress and act as a woman to express hwat he feels is his true gender.
In some cultures the Berdache was accepted as having magickal powers, in others, they were killed outright as perverts.

BESOM-- A Wiccan Tool. The original term for the Broom. See Broom.

BETA-- That condition that exists when the mind is active and intense concentration occurs. It is characterized by the mind operating at 12-60 cps. I always hope that my Coveners and students are in beta when classes are held then I hope that they switch to alpha during magick and ritual.

BETWEEN THE WORLDS-- The place that you travel when inside the Magick Circle. It is neither wholly of the Material Plane or the Divine Plane, but 'between' both.

BEWITCH-- See fascinate.

BEWITCHMENT-- See fascinate.

BEYOND THE VEIL-- A way of referring to death by those who wish to avoid the 'D' word. One Law of Magick states that if you mention a name, that entity will answer. Thus, this is a way to avoid Death answering His call.

BIBLE-- (xian) The holy book of the christian religion. It was assembled by the Council of Ancyrea in 314 c.e. from the numerous writings by and about christianity. Those writings by Mary Magdalene and Thomas the Doubter (who knew jesus personally) were deleted in favor of the writings of Paul (who never met jesus at all) and many of the works included were never written by the authors at all or were written long after their 'authors' were dead. If truth be known, the christian bible would be condemned for obscenity by any court were the standards that banned other works applied to this book.
Many radical christians love to quote exodus as proof of the evil of Witchcraft, "Thou shalt not suffer a kaskagh (witch) to live. Unfortunatly, kaskagh means someone who kills with poison and has no connotation to either magick or religion. The word was ordered to be translated as 'Witch' by King James of Scotland who hated Witches and catholics and ordered his translators to create an anti-witch pro-protestant version of the bible. As an aside, when the scholars gave James his book, he refused to pay them for their work. In reality NOWHERE in the christian bible does it say that Witches worship the devil or even describe satan as anything other than the most beautiful of angels.
To those who argue the literality of this 'holy book' I mention that the bible requires the death sentence for : touching a holy thing (numbers 9:13), breaking the sabbath (exodus 32:12-15) and making a fire on the sabbath (exodus 35:2-3). If you would demand my death for being a Witch, I would suggest that you first clean your own house and execute all those people who bar-b-que on Sunday or wear a cross.

BI-LOCATION-- Possibly a form of astral projection where the astral body has an apparant physical form. Generally, both bodies are conscious and can operate independently of each other.

BIND-- 1) (Wiccan) To cast a spell that prevents the target from doing a certain action.
2) (Gardnerian) To tie up as during Initiation and Purifications.

BINDRUNE-- (Norse) Two or more Runes that are placed on a talisman or house for protection or another magickal goal. Often these runes overlapped or were set into an artistic design.

BIO-PLASMA-- See aura.

BLACK ARTS-- (xian) A term incorrectly used to refer to any of the methaphysical sciences.

BLACK BOOK-- The original term in Witchcraft for the Book of Shadows (which was introduced by Gardner in 1949). It is the vogue for insecure people trying to con others (like the guy who broke up my marriage) by claiming to belong to an 800 year old family tradition of witchcraft. These people always refer to possessing an 800-year-old Book of Shadows which shows that they are liers.

BLACK MAGICK-- Magick that is meant to cause harm or evil.
I personally never use the term as I find it to be racist. I agree with the Martello argument that if you label evil magick as 'black', you are placing an evil connotation on a color that will inevetably extend over into other areas. If black magick is evil and the old western villin wears a black hat, can we not also infer that anything black is evil? And by implication, the black man is also evil? Magick and Witches work in the subconscious so I dislike this term and prefer to use the term 'Baleful Magick', 'baneful magick' or 'evil magick' instead.

BLACK MASS-- (xian) Originally any mass done by the catholic church in France for the purpose of doing magick in opposition to king or 'official' church policy. It was invented by the priest to one of the mistresses of King Phillip to ensure that he wouldn't dump her in favor of a younger woman.
By the 17th century, sacrifices were added with the priest baptising the baby to ensure that it would go to heaven and carry the message to god. Eventually, it came to be considered a reversal of a christian service. Only christians can do a black mass.

BLESSED BE-- The traditional greeting, parting and blessing used by Witches.

BLESSING-- The act of conferring energy upon a person or object so as to do good.

BLUE MOON-- Full moons occur every 28 days. If the Full Moon occurs on or near the first of the month, then around the 28th of that month there will be a second Full Moon. It is this second Full moon in a calendar month that is called the Blue Moon. This happens every dozen years or so and so is a rare event. Thus the expression "Once in a blue moon" refers to something that happens very rarely.

BODKIN-- 1) An instrunent of torture resembling an ice pick with a double curve in the middle. The idea was that when the 'witch' sold their soul to the xian devil, that entity kissed them somewhere on their body. Said place then became insensitive and unable to bleed, thus giving proof of the pact.
It was used by the inquisitor stripping the 'suspect.' naked and tieing them to a post or ring in the roof. The bodkin was then plunged into the 'suspect' up to the bent part. If the 'suspect screamed or bled, it indicated that this was not the spot and the inquisitor moved over an inch and stabbed again. This continued until the 'suspect' could no longer bleed or scream at which point the 'devils mark' was said to be found and guilt was established. Favorite spots for pricking were the breasts and genitals and any scar, mole or birthmark that could be found. A confession given after being pricked like this was said to have been given 'without torture'.
Perverts love to prick their suspects. See False Bodkin and Without Torture.

BODY DOUBLE-- See astral body.

BOGGLE-- To confuse the mind by magick. Also Bogle.

BOGLE-- See Boggle.

BOLLINE-- (Gardnerian) A Wiccan Tool. Incorrectly used by far too many Wiccans to refer to the White-Hilted Knife, but actually is a specific curved blade with the edge inside the curve that is used to harvest herbs.
Some feel that the Bolline's blade must be made of wood or bone because it is antithical to herbalism to cut a herb with metal. Also Boleen, Bolleen.

BONFIRE-- A ritual fire used in many Wiccan Rituals for a number of reasons. At Yule it was built to give strength to the new-born Sun-God, at Imbolc it was for purification, at Beltane it was for Fertility and at Litha it was to heal the wounded Sun-God. In all cases the fire was jumped by the Coven for strength, luck, fertility, etc.
Traditionally, the Bonfire was made of either three, seven or nine woods chosen for their coorespondences and the reason for the fire. Your author (Rick Johnson) and Lee L. of Desert Henge Coven did a paper on each fire Sabbat, its bonfire meaning and the Traditional woods used, then we determined which native Arizona woods would work as substitutions for the European trees. This paper can be found elsewhere on this site.
Some bonfires are small and if made indoors, are generally built within a small Cauldron. Others are quite large and difficult to jump. At one Grand Sabbat at Litha, we made a bonfire so large that only a few people like myself were able or willing to attempt to jump it. In this case, we made it in the shape of an oval for those who could not broad/high jump a fire 4 feet across and 'x' feet high. The more sensible people contented themselves with jumping the smaller section.
Anyone who has jumped a bonfire knows why Traditional Witches worship Skyclad. Having jumped Bonfires in America and in Germany, I can attest that the psychological and spiritual benefits, not to mention the magickal ones, are well worth the hair I lost.
One of the best referances I have seen to Skyclad bonfire jumping is in the movie, The Wicker Man. I suggest that you see it for yourself. Also Bonefire.

BONEFIRE-- See Bonfire.

BOOK COLLECTORS-- A term used in the 1970's to refer to those Witches who would collect any number of Books of Shadows from different Covens and Traditions. Sometimes they were collected as an academic curiosity, other times they were collected to improve your own BOS.
As an example, my own collection contains a number of Gardnerian BOS' from various covens ranging from the one that Initiated me to a couple by Gerald Gardner and a partial one by Doreen Valiente as well as from other Traditions like: Mohsian, Aradian, Pagan Way, Outer Court, English Traditional, Saxon and other Traditions and Covens too numerous to mention here. Although my personal workings are Gardnerian, I have generally found something interesting, useful and workable in each of the others. And as a training exercise for my coven, it is useful to see how other Trads do the same thing we do.
The important thing is to be honest about your collection and not to try to pass them off as 'proof' that you are a member of said Tradition. One major BTW organization in California claims to copyright the BOS of it's members. If true, then they are required by Law to send two copies of these secret books to the Library of Congress where any person can access them. I personally suspect this organization of ulterior motives here.

BOOK OF SHADOWS-- (Gardnerian) THE Sacred Book of Witchcraft. Within its pages are kept the rituals, laws, spells and any other information that is used by the Witch or Coven. It is traditionally hand-copied by each Witch and so each Witch will have a slightly different version. The term 'Book of Shadows' was introduced by Gardner in 1949, probably after reading an article about a similar term used in Hindu magick.
Traditionally, the Book of Shadows is handwritten by its' owner and destroyed at the owner's death. Traditionally, and ideally, the Book is copied by hand by the Witch in a Circle during Cakes and Wine, thus explaining the many 'mistakes' and differences between Books of Shadows in the same Coven. It also explains the wine and candle wax found therein as well.
Kelly makes a big deal about Gardner inventing Wicca based on Gardners original BOS (Ye Boke of Ye Art Magickal) which contains ceremonial magick, early and different versions of sacred writings and material placed out of order or started on page six and finished on page 20 with other material between. However, Ye Boke is EXACTLY what an old BOS would look like. Explanation availiable upon request.
Many modern Witches type their BOS and even more modern Techno-Witches write a Disc of Shadows, though the smarter ones scan in their BOS, thus loosing many of the advantages of handwriting.

BOOMERANG EFFECT-- The Three-fold Law in practice. It means that a reletively weak defence will cause a reletively strong spell to rebound and return to strike the sender with greater effect. The action of a spell striking a magickal defence and then rebounding back to the sender with three-fold strength. See Three-Fold law.

BOS, BoS-- See Book of Shadows.

BOTANOMANCY-- To divine the future through the use of herbs.

BOTHWELL, FRANCIS STEWART, EARL OF-- (c 16th century) One of the heirs to the throne of Scotland Bothwell had only one obstruction, King James I. Were James to die without issue, then Bothwell would become King of England.
In a time when religious wars were common and people were being killed for praying in English or Latin, being a Witch placed you under the guns of catholic, protestant and puritan zealots. So Bothwell decided to stack the deck. He used his coven in North Berwick to try to kill the newly crowned James I before he could produce heirs of his own. With James dead, the throne would then go to Francis Stewart, the Earl of Bothwell and he could remove christianity and restore Britain to the Wiccan religion.
Unfortunatly, the plan failed and James survived every assassination attempt. James was eventually arrested but was released when the Horned God or His representative ordered the guards to open the cell. Francis escaped to Italy where James sent a message asking him to come home. Francis replied "You christians are all alike, you call me when you need me and cast me aside when done." He wisely refused the offer though most of his coven were arrested and burned to death.
King James, once a disbeliever, now became a fanatical Witch hunter and not only wrote Demonology but passed repressive anti-witch laws and ordered the bible to contain anti-Witch passages.

BRACELET-- A Wiccan Tool. The Metal band worn on the left wrist and bigraved with the Witches Name and Degree. The men wear one of gold ( brass or copper for those of limited financial assets) and the women wear one of silver. It is designed to allow for free energy flow along the meridians and is bigraved with the owner's name and rank.

BRIGANTIA-- See Imbolc.

BRIGID-- See Imbolc.

BRIGIT, SAINT-- The Great Mother Goddess of the Witches in Ireland. Patrick couldn't destroy Her or discredit Her so he invented a saint with Her name to steal Her worship as was common in those days. Refer to Abbot Melitius for details.

BRITISH GARDNERIANS-- (c 1952) Those Gardnerian Witches who are descended from any of Gerald Gardner's High Priestess except for Monique Wilson's descendants via Raymond and Rosemary Buckland. These latter are referred to as American Gardnerians.

BRITISH LINE-- (c 1960+) A term to describe the linear descendents of Sally T. who was an Alexandrian Witch in Britain. Another term for this is Old Line.

BROCKEN-- See Mount Brocken.

BROOM-- A Wiccan Tool that is symbolic of the female principle and the hearth.
There are many uses for the Broom. In Olden Days it was a walking stick, a weapon to defend the woman who was walking in the woods, and Witches even jumped the Broom during their Handfastings. They were also ridden as a hobby horse in the spring and summer as a spell to make the crops grow higher and better. Christians misunderstood this magickal spell and labelled it as Witches flying through the air on their Brooms. Of course, everyone knows that that is rediculous. Without a tail and rudders, the Broom has no lateral or vertical stability and riding upon the shaft is somewhat uncomfortable which is why old Brooms had a phallic tip. Most old brooms had a round brush instead of the modern flat one and were usually made of specific materials.

BRUJA-- (Mexican) A Mexican magickian who curses. This has been incorrectly translated as 'witch' but the two are nothing alike.

BUBASTIS-- (Egypt) A city in Egypt which is the center for the worship of Bast, the cat-Goddess.
Bast is the beloved of Witches, most of whom love cats, and by anyone who is bothered by rats. I personally think that the Bubonic Plague (Black Death) which wiped out a quarter of the population of Europe and half the population of the Middle-East was revenge by Bast because the christians would burn and drown cats by the thousands each Summer simply because they were beloved by Witches and the Horned God. So the church killed the cats and the plague went unchecked, spread by rats. Had Europe venerated the Witch and Bast and the Cat, the plague would never have been a much of a problem.

BUCKET-- A measurement between the thumb and little finger with the fingers spread. It is about 8 inches. See spann and measurements.

BULL GOD-- (Wiccan) That aspect of the Horned God which was worshipped in areas where the wild Bull was the primary meat source.
In some traditions of Wicca such as the Welsh Trads, the Bull and Stag are different aspects of the same Horned God and they fight themselves/each other on the Solstices to symbolize the Turning of the Wheel/year. See Goat God and Stag God.

BURIN-- An awl with a short point used to bigrave signs on talismans and jewelry.

BURNING TIMES-- The name Witches use for the Inquisition, a time from the 12th century to the 18th century (roughly) when christianity tortured and killed between 50,000 and nine million people (statistics differ but all agree that they were mostly women) in an attempt to stamp out Wicca.
Some feel that the Burning Times ended with the 17th Century, others point out that they are still happening today and refer to the last public witch Burning in America occuring in New Mexico in 1925 and in Mexico in 1959 and other instances of the government arresting Witches for little or no reason as an example.
When I teach Wiccan history, I always pass around a few instruments of torture used by the xian churches in those days. The explanations of their use and the ability to handle something like an eye gouge or bodkin is viscerally effective, not to mention the major reason for drop-outs that week.
If we do not remember the past, we will be condemned to repeat it. And even the best people will do the most evil deeds for what they perceive to be a good reason. Remember Mai Lai? How about the biological warfare that the US waged against the American Indian less than a hundred years ago? Or, how about the US government repressing info on AIDS because it only hit homosexuals and so was perceived as a solution to that problem (Patti, my ex-wife was taught by her catholic church and believed that AIDS was god's way of punishing homosexuals for being immoral)? And how about ... the list is endless as is our ability to kill and maim those we perceive as different. And if your religion states that you, alone, are right, then all other religions become, by definition, wrong and wrong equals evil and evil must be destroyed.
There is no difference between the xian Inquisition, the Nazi death camps, the McCarthy trials, the Iranian hostage situation and the modern police attacks on anything new-age (satanic).

BUZZ WORDS -- (Sue B.) A term that refers to any word that initiates a visceral or emotional reaction without conscious thought. Most Buzz Words are perceived by the individual to be evil and therefore the person reacts immediately and negetively. Some common Buzz Words are: Nazi, fuck, faggot, Witch.

BYTE-- 1) (Gardnerian) To cut or slash with a knife or sword.
2) (mundane) The smallest part of data in a computer. Each letter is composed of 2 bytes. Computer memory is measured in Mega-bytes (million) or now Giga-bytes (billion) which shows the total amount of information that can be possessed. A 5 1/2" floppy comtains 1.2 megabytes of memory. My personal BOS covers over a dozen floppys which is why I am putting it on CD..
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C.E.-- A term of dating that means 'of the Common Era'. It is used by Pagans, Witches, scientists and other non-christians to refer to the modern calendar without using christian references. Compare to B.C.E. The modern year 1990 a.d. equals 1990 c.e. In Wiccan terms, this date refers to 34,311 yr of the Goddess.

CABALA-- See Kabala.

CABALLA-- (Hebrew) See Kabala.

CABBALA-- (Hebrew) See Kabala.

CAIRN-- A Gaelic term that refers to a pile of stones made by a farmer when he is preparing his field for planting. They were made because Ireland is so rocky that they had to do something with the rocks.
In ancient times, they were piles of stones that had been heaped over a burial and had some religious significance such as a grave or to mark a holy spot or even a boundary marker.

CAKES AND ALE-- See Cakes and Wine.

CAKES AND WINE-- (Wicca) The small feast of wine and food with which most Wiccan rituals end. It uses blessed food and drink which are generally pot-luck and vegetarian and shared between the end of the ritual and the closing of the Circle.
Fundamentalist xians never tire of confusing Cakes and Wine with the black mass, which is a purely christian concept. Also Cakes and Ale.

CALL-- In Wicca, to invoke Divine forces.

CALLING DOWN THE MOON/SUN-- (Italian) See Drawing Down the Moon/Sun.

CALLING THE QUARTERS-- The action of evoking the Lords of the Watchtowers of the Four Quarters to come to witness and protect that ritual. In Traditional Wica, this is a vital part of the ritual and must be done properly or dire actions may result.

CANDLE-- That fire tool which is used in a ritual or spell for any of a number of reasons.

1. Altar Candles are placed on the Altar and represent the God and Goddess and allow you to see what you are doing.
2. Offeratory candles which are used in magick to represent a specific goal.
3. Circle candles are placed about the boundary of the Circle to represent the Four Elements and so are specifically colored.
4. Astral or object candles to represent the person or target in a spell.

CANDLE HOLDERS-- These are tools that have the sole use of keeping the lit candle from falling over. They can be ornate or simple as pleases the Witch. Since some spells and rituals require the candle to burn itself out, it is not a good idea to have a wooden candle holder. Those pretty glass candle holders in star shape are popular because of the pentacle symbolism as well as being cup-shaped to catch dripping wax. Some metal holders will transfer heat to the Altar so care should be taken with their selection.
As a free bit of advice, put a bowl under your candle holder to catch all the wax drippings. Otherwise you will be on your knees with an iron and brown paper bag trying to pick up spilled candle wax from the carpet.

CANDLE MAGICK-- The use of differently colored candles in a magickal spell to achieve a specific goal. Candle magick is the most popular form of magick used by Witches. There are a number of charts made as referances in candle magick.

CANDLEMAS-- see Imbolc.

CAPNOMANCY-- Divination by smoke.

CARDINAL POINTS-- See Quarters.

CARROMANCY-- Divination by melting wax.

CASTING-- To divine by tossing stones, twigs, coins or such onto the ground and interpreting the results. Rune stones are cast as well as i ching stalks and coins.

CASTING THE CIRCLE-- The act of ritually building the Wiccan Temple. Although each Tradition does it differently, there are rules that if followed, will provide a stronger and safer temple.

CATCHER-- See Summoner.

CATOXTROMANCY-- Divination by looking glasses.

CATTABOMANCY-- Divination by vessels of brass or other metals.

CAULDRON-- A Wiccan Tool. A 'pot' in which is placed water, fire or food. It is a symbol of Fertility and Rebirth from the Goddess.
Many Witches choose and venerate the Cauldron because of its symbolism and ties with the Goddess and Fertility and Rebirth.
At some Sabbats, a fire is built within the Cauldron and may be jumped for a number of different reasons. At others, it is filled with water for scrying or with flowers..

CAW-- See Church of All Worlds.

CELT-- A race of people who once covered Europe but who are now restricted to Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittony and the Isle of Man. The majority of modern Witches are descended directly or by literature, from the Celts.

CELTIC WITCHES-- Those Witches who take the Celtic Religion as the clothing for their version of Wicca. The Celtic and Italian Trads are the only Traditions that can be determined to have survived into modern times, all others being recreated from historical sources. Gardnerian, Alexandrian, Welsh and Algards are among the Celtic Trads.

CENSE-- To bless and purify by means of a Censer.

CENSER-- A Wiccan Tool. An incense burner that is usually hung from a chain. In it's simplest form, it is a shallow bowl filled with sand. Censers represent Air even though they do contain fire. Refer to thurible.

CENTERING-- The act or non-action of turning your mind within and ignoring the external world.

CEPHALONOMANCY-- Divination by broiling of an ass's head. Again, this is not done by Wiccans.

CEREMONIAL MAGICK-- A Complex form of magick developed by jews and christians. It usually has as its goal unification of the magickian with his god.

CERNUNNOS-- The Latin name for The Horned God of the Witches. His image can be found all over Eurasia from Mojo Domo in India to the Altar found beneath Notre Dame cathedral to the Gunderstrup Cauldron in Denmark to Val Camonica in Italy. He is generally shown with antlers, cloven hooves and an erect penis and often accompanied by the ram-horned serpent. He is a God of hunting (provider), death (caretaker) and lust (sustainer). Also Kernunnos.

CERRIDWEN-- (Celt) One of the Welsh Mother/Crone Goddesses who was accompanied by her sacred pigs (an unusually intelligent animal). She had a son who was so ugly that in order to compensate him she decided to give him the gift of prophecy. She set Gwion Bach to stirring the potion of Prophecy in Her Cauldron for an entire year so that She could go about Her own business. On the last day three drops spiled on the man's hand and as it was hot and burned, he sucked the injured part, accidently injesting the poition. He then was gifted with the powers of prophecy and realized that the Goddess would kill him for drinking the potion that She had made for Her son. She discovered this and chased him so he turned into a hare to escape and the Goddess turned into a greyhound in persuit. And so it went with each transforming into one animal to another until Gwion changed intoa kernel of grain. Cerridwen became a hen and ate the grain and shortly after discovered that She was pregnant with Gwion who when born, was called Taliesin and became the greatest of the Welsh bards.
In Wicca we remember this differently and venerate Cerridwen as the Great Goddess (some as the Mother and some as the Crone Aspect) in whose honor we play the Chase game in the Spring where a woman teases a man of her choice and runs off singing a certain rhyme (which I will not mention here) and becomming that chosen animal. The man must sing the proper complimentary rhyme as he becomes the proper and complimentary animal and he chases her as she changes from animal to animal until she allows him to catch her. What happens next shall be a Traditional secret. This is an aetological myth.
This is one of the many examples of the similarities betweenWicca and a related religion but yet showing certain differences that make Wicca unique. Also Cerwyddin and Keridwen

CERWYDDIN-- (Celt) See Cerridwen.

CHAKRA-- The focal points of the energy field, seven (actually six) in number that run in a line up the spine.

CHALICE-- see Cup.

CHANGELING-- In Celtic and Irish lore, a fairy who was given to a family in exchange for a human child. Modern Irish myths state that this was always evil but ancient indications show that there were a number of benevolent and profitable reasons for this fostering.

CHANNELING-- 1) A 'new age' practice where you allow a non-material entity to 'borrow' your body for the purpose of providing information or guidance.
2) (Wicca) The action where the High Priestess allows her mind and conscious to 'step back' so that the Goddess may enter into her body and speak to the Coven. A similar but less used act is done by the High Priest during Drawing Down of the Sun.

CHANT-- A set of words or sounds that are repeated to raise power or to alter the consciousness.

CHAPLET-- A garland of leaves, herbs or flowers that is worn upon the head.
During Handfastings, the bride wears a chaplet of flowers while the gorrm wears one of leaves. Flower chaplets are worn by the Maiden and during Beltane rituals. Chaplets of oak and/or holly are worn by the High Priest during some Yule Rituals.

CHARGE-- 1) A set of instructions from the Goddess in the form of a speech given to the Coven during the Drawing Down of the Moon. In Traditional Wicca, the version used was rewritten by Doreen Valiente and is considered to be a work that was either 'written' by the Goddess or inspired directly by Her.
2) To invest with energy, to dedicate to Craft use, to place under a geis.

CHARGING CUP-- This is a bowl used to contain the exorcised water on the Altar. It is then carried around to asperge the Circle and Coven. Also called the water bowl.

CHARM-- 1) Spoken or written words of a magickal intent. A simple spell.
2) An object that has been charged with magickal energy, generally in the form of a blessing.
3) To charm is to enchant or to put a spell on someone.

CHARM BAG-- See sachet.

CHARTER-- (Wicca) This is not really a Craft term but it does refer to Cross-Initiations. When someone mentions a charter, they are generally talking about a paper from some magickal lodge giving that person permission to found a local lodge of that order and not at all referring to a Coven.

CHARTOMANCY-- Divination by writing in papers.

CHEIROMANCY-- Divination through the examination of the hand. The technical term for Palmestry. Also Chiromancy.

CHIROMANCY-- See Cheiromancy.

CHOKING PEAR-- An instrument of non-torture that consisted of a pear-shaped object that was shoved in the mouth and throat by the Inquisition. A crank was then turned and the pear expanded to choke the suspect. Choking was not considered to be torture.

CHORD-- See aka thread.

CHRYSTALLOMANCY-- Divination by glasses.

CHURCH OF ALL WORLDS, CAW-- (c 1960+) An extremely sucessful religion developed by Tim Zell and based upon the science fiction novel, Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein. CAW adds other sci-fi concepts and uses the Wiccan Coven structure for its base. CAW admits that they are pagan but not Wiccan.

CINGULUM-- see Cord.

CIRCLE-- 1) The magickal, psychic and religious barrier in Wicca and magick which defines the place between the worlds. It is created at the beginning of almost all Craft workings; when formed it serves as a protection device and energy enhancer; when open or broken, it indicates the end of a working. It is the Temple of the Gods. There are certain methods of Forming the Circle, all based upon the physics of magick, the Psychology of Ritual and the needs of the Gods. To draw an effective Circle takes some months of training and practice under an experienced teacher. Some of the ancient Megalithic Stone Circles are still being used today by Witches as temples.
2) To get together to perform ritual or magick.
3) To dance in a circular motion to raise energy.
4) A group of Wiccans who get together for ritual or magick. More casual than a coven.

CIRCUMAMBULATE-- 1) To travel in a Ritual Circle along the edge, and thus in a circular direction.
2) To circle a person or object with your right side always facing that person as an act of blessing or worship.

CIRCUT-- Energy, even psychic and magickal energy must have a completed circut in order to function. Thus, when you are sending energy to someone, you also receive energy from that person as well. If you block the return so that you get nothing back, you will be unable to send. This is basic physics and works in magick as well as in your reading lamp.
Following this argument, if you are healing an illness (diabetes, cancer, etc) by sending healing energy to the target, you will receive energy from that person in return. When this happens, the received energy will be contaminated by the sickness of the target and you can easily contract that sickness. Therefore it is vital that you shield yourself while you are healing to allow the return energy but filter out the illness being carried by that energy.

CLAIRAUDIENCE-- The ability to 'hear' that which is normally not hearable such as 'hearing' the crash of a jet with the knowledge that it will happen in three weeks.

CLAIRVOYANCE-- The ability to perceive that which is not normally perceivable, generally interpreted as sight.. Examples are seeing the future or another location without any physical connection.

CLASSES-- Most groups have some method of teaching their new people about their organization. In a Coven situation, this is done by the Coven itself. But some people actually hold public Witch classes. I, myself, have been doing this yearly since 1982.

CLEANSING-- In Wicca, to remove or banish all energies from an object.
This is similar to an exorcism but concentrates on using energy and not on the assistance of an entity.

CLEROMANCY-- Divination by lots.

CLOCKWISE-- See deosil.

CLOSING-- To end a ritual by unforming the Circle is a set manner. Also Uncasting.

COCA-- The bean from which we get chocolate. It is chewed in the Andes to give energy to a people who are suffering almost constant oxygen deprivation because of the altitude.
The easiest way to tell an Eclectic Witch from a Traditional Witch is that Eclectics wrongly believe that Chocolate is the fifth element. This is, of course, rediculous as the Fifth Element is Akasha. Any Traditional Witch can tell you that Chocolate is the fourth Principle, the other three being mercury, sulphur and salt. If you don't know what the Principles are, you really should consider joining a Coven that knows what they are doing.

COGNITION-- 1) (Gardnerian) News, knowledge, information.
2) Any form of psychic knowledge received by the psychic.

COLOR THERAPY-- Healing through the use of color. It has been found that patients in a hospital room that is painted pale blue with a stripe of red will heal faster than those is a room that is painted red or white.

COMPLEMENTS-- (Rick Johnson) Two or more terms that appear to be opposites but are actually similar. It is only our perception that defines them as opposite. Some complements are: angel -vs- demon, religion -vs- superstition,

CONE OF POWER-- The concentrated field of energy that is raised by a Coven during certain workings.

CONJURATION-- The act of summoning a non-material entity.

CONSCIOUS MIND-- The rational part of the mind. That part that we use in everyday activities. It is generally ignored when doing ritual or magick.

CONSECRATE-- In Wicca, to bless an object to the service of the Gods.

CONSECRATION-- (Wicca) To dedicate something or someone to a sacred purpose such as to dedicate a Tool to the Goddess.

CONSTANTINE I, EMPEROR-- (c 4th century) This Roman Emperor had a vision in 324 c.e. of jesus immediatly before a battle. He took this as a sign and declared christianity to be the official religion of Rome.
His advisors had the same vision at the same time but they all reported seeing Mithras. Unfortunatly, Constantine was Emperor and his single vision was true wheras the vision of the majority was false.. or else!
Others argue that Constantine's conversion was a political move to get the minority xians behind him as a base of power.

CONSTITUTION, THE AMERICAN-- Two hundred years ago, and long after America won its revolution to be free (not to be confused with the Civil War where another group lost a similar revolution to be free), a group of people sat together and wrote a set of guidelines on how they should run their new country. There were problems however. The slavery issue was still a big thing. The Lees of Virginia (good christians) had threatened to pull out of the war and have Virginia and the South fight for England against the other colonies if Jefferson (agnostic) and Adams (athiestic) and Franklin (satanist) insisted that ALL MEN (black, white and red) deserved to be free and equal. Thus to keep the Colonies together, the founding fathers had to allow slavery. These same problems continued as they attempted to write a Constitution for the new country.
Fortunately, they had help from the Masons, a magickal order that still exists and whose symbols appear on our money today. They also wanted to avoid the problems that they inherited from England and Europe. Having suffered the tyranny of the Puritans who came to America to impose their own repressive religious beliefs on others, and having a hatred for the catholic church, the Founding Fathers included a provision that they felt would prevent one church or religion (christian) from imposing its views on everyone, thus creating what they felt was the first written, sanctioned concept of freedom of religion. The original idea was that the government would allow all religions equally and not favor any one above the other even for those who professed no faith. Thus whether you were christian, jew, satanist, athiest, or whatever, you would have the freedom of your beliefs.
Unfortunately, as many Witches have found out, Freedom of Religion in Amerika (spelling is deliberate) means that you have the freedom to be a christian... or else! More people should read the true history of our Country, or, at least, actually read the Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights (I own copies of all three and think that ALL Americans, especially those who flaunt the Flag, should go to the effort to own or at least read what they are 'supporting') and the conditions and reasons for these documents.

CONTACT-- A non-physical entity that acts as a guide or teacher.

CONTAGION, LAW OF-- That rule of magick that states that objects once in contact tend to remain in contact. This is the basis for object links and doing magick on a person from a distance because you have a piece of their hair or clothing.

CONVERSION-- In Wicca, few actually convert to the religion. Rather, one describes one's feelings for the faith as 'coming home'. Most people join the Witch religion because over the years they have developed their own system of beliefs and ethics and suddenly they discover that there is a religion that has almost exactly those beliefs that they also have. Some describe this as the person was possibly a Witch in a former life and is finally returning to the Goddess, others describe it as Wicca is simply the most logical and natural and emotional religion and most people, if left to themselves, will simply develop the most natural possible religion which just happens to be Wicca.
Wicca is one of the few religions that refuses to send out missionaries. As an Anthropologist, I personally believe that missionaries are evil and should be killed and eaten (attractive missionaries should be eaten then killed). As a Witch, I believe that missionaries have only one job ...to destroy your beliefs system by any means possible and force you to accept a foreign system as a replacement.
The argument against conversion goes like this. If your belief system is so good, then you will naturally want to share it with others. Especially if the alternative to accepting your system is eternal torment. Thus, through love, you want to share the religion that you follow. Nothing wrong with that, right?
Next, what if they don't know of your religion? Why not offer them printed material on it. After all, they can always throw it away and refuse to read it, right?
Next, if they refuse to read it, they will never know so why not tell them of it? Preach the 'truths' of your faith on the corners or at bus stops. They can always walk away, right?
But, what if your message is so important that they MUST listen. Then after they have heard your message, they can alwayse reject it, Right?
But, what if they aren't where you are, isn't it acceptable to visit them in their homes? It will only take a few hours to give them the message. Even on a Saturday morning when all they want to do is rest and vegitate after a long work week.
But what if after all this, they still refuse to accept the message? Doesn't that mean that they are against you? Evil? And if they are evil, isn't it right to kill them to save others from their evil?
Each of these leads logically to the next level and ALL have been used at some time in history. And Wicca refuses to take even the first step on this road. Thus, if you meet a Witch and ask for Initiation, you will be evaluated by that person and either be accepted as a student or sent to someone who can teach you (even if that person is from a different Tradition) or you will be told that you probably belong to another religion entirely where you will be happy.

COOK BOOK-- The common book on the market today that is usually one chapter on religion and padded with 10 chapters on spells and another 10 chapters on rituals to do. They tend to be written by people who never really learned the religion and owned by people who treat Wicca in the same fashion I do when I bake a cake. I open a cook book, read the recipe and follow it literally without thinking or knowing what I am doing.
Most cookbooks are simply a compilation of spells and rituals with little else.

COOK BOOK WITCHES-- An untrained Solitary or self-formed coven wiccan who has no idea of what magick is or how to do it. So they buy any of the popular books of spells, collect the listed materials and follow the instructions by reading the book during the spell. TV and the Movies are rife with Cook Book Witches who find an archaic book in a book store, read the spell and bring the dead back to life.
It NEVER works like that in real life simply because cook books never tell you the basics like how to breathe or stand to align the chakras or...

CORD-- 1) A Wiccan Tool. A rope used as a badge of rank, the color of which determines the Degree of the Witch.
2) A rope that is used to measure or used in certain magickal spells. The infamous 'Witches Ladder' uses a cord.
3) A measure of length equal to your height or the distance between finger tips when your arms are stretched out. About 6'. See famn.

CORD MAGICK-- The use of ropes that are knotted in a certain manner in order to focus and release power.

CORN-- In Wicca and in Europe, this refers to any of the cereal grains such as wheat, barley, rye, etc. In America, it refers to maize which is a specific starchy food grown by the Indians.
Some Eclectics like to purify their Circles with corn instead of salt. They argue that salt is ecologically harmful and corn will feed the birds afterwards so is ethically better. Unfortunatly, ALL actions cause problems of some sort, all we can do is to reduce the harm as much as possible. Also Salt IS a purifier because it destroys and non-material entities avoid the material. Corn attracts those which one would wish to keep away. Fortunatly, wiccans who use corn are rarely able to raise enough energy to attract the demons.

CORN DOLLY-- A figure, often shaped like a woman but occasionally symbolically-geometric made from wheat stalks or similar grain. They represent the bounty of the earth and are often used in Spring and Harvest Sabbats. They are usually made from the last of the wheat to be harvested. Sometimes they are buried in the fields, sometimes they are hung in the kitchen and saved for Imbolc.

CORRESPONDENCES-- A set of related concepts that allow us to use magick in our everyday lives. They are generally done in table and chart form.

COSCINOMANCY-- Divination by sieves.

COVEN-- 1) The church, school and extended family of the Wicca. This is where the Witch studies the religion, performs the rites and spells and goes to for suppport. As Covens vary in belief, structure and attitude, it becomes important to choose the right one for you to join. Careful examination of the locals is useful.
2) (Traditional) The Coven consists of at least three unrelated people and less than thirteen. Many Covens start as a husband-wife team with one other person. If that other person is their child, it isn't a Coven but a family group. They then grow slowly as Traditionals require that their members be of a like mind and similar personality so are careful as to whom they allow into their family. Traditionally, you can only belong to one Coven at a time. If you find another Coven that you wish to join, then you must first resign from your first Coven.
3) (Eclectic) A group of any number of people, no matter how loosely they are organized. Thus you will find Eclectic Covens consisting of and number from two up to and more than 40 people. Occasionally, you will even find a single person who claims that s/he is a coven even though s/he is a solitary wiccan.
One Eclectic coven that I know of considers any person who has ever attended one of their rites to be a member. This caused some consternation because when that Eclectic Coven did a public rite, they called out their members to take a bow and insisted that that a certain Traditional Witch come out with them. I and his HP cornered him later and asked what he was doing and which coven he actually belonged to. He explained that he was not a member of that Coven but of the Traditional Coven but he had guested with them once and ever since they considered him to be a member.

COVENANT OF THE GODDESS-- ( 1975) One of the major blanket organizations of Witches in America. It was formed in 1975.

COVENDOM-- The area ruled by a Coven. Traditionally, every Witch within a 1 1/2 mile radius or a league of the Covenstead will be members of that Coven. Modern Witches rarely follow this rule, thus creating enormous problems because of overlapping psi fields generated by the Covens.

COVENSTEAD-- That place where the Coven actually erects it's Circle. It is usually at the home of the High Priest or High Priestess of the Coven. Some Covens have an alternate Covenstead in the desert or woods for outdoor rituals.

COWAN-- (Traditional) The uninitiated or non-Witch. Compare with Mundane and Once Born. This is not an insult but a simple description.

CRAFT, THE-- see Witchcraft.

CRAFT LAWS-- A set of rules that are to aid Witches in times of troubles. There are a number of sets of these, each specific to a certain coven or Tradition.
There are a number of stories about how Gardner wrote the Laws to enforce some of his ecentricities, but Haining claims to have seem a 17th century ms in the British Museum that contains at least some of The Laws.

CRESCENT-- That phase of the moon that is somewhere between new and full. It resembles a circle with a bite taken out. Many High Priestess wear a crown consisting of a silver band with a crescent upon the brow to represent the Goddess.

CRETE-- One of the few true Goddess civilizations known. It is an island in the Mediterranian sea which was destroyed by the eruption that also destroyed Atlantis. Cretan Goddess statues show the Goddess in a full skirt, open vest to expose the breasts and holding snakes and are in much demand by modern Witches but can no longer be found in Crete today (I tried), thus forcing Witches to buy modern copies made in Japan, India or Mexico.

CRITHOMANCY-- Divination by grain and corn.

CROM-CALLEACH-- The name of the Ram-Horned Serpent which accompanies the Horned God. It was this serpent that was sent by the Horned God into Eden to teach Eve to think and give her wisdom. Unfortunately, jehovah didn't want Adam and Eve to think for themselves and twisted the myth around to show that freedom and knowledge is evil.
Note: I am not completely certain about the last part of the serpent's name being spelled this way, it sounds like this though and it may be cognate with cromlech.

CRONE-- The Third aspect of the Goddess as She changes from the Mother to the Hag. In this aspect She is the patron of magick, intuition and death. Her symbol is the waning moon.

CROSS INITIATION-- The process where a Witch of one Tradition (possibly Gardnerian) will Initiate another Witch into their own Tradition. In return, the other Witch (possibly Alexandrian) will Initiate the first Witch into their own Tradition. The advantage is that there are some secrets that are restricted to members of that Coven/Tradition and the only way to legally share the knowledge is to join that Tradition/Coven. The cross-initiation does NOT give the cross-initate the right to practice or pass on that Tradition, only to participate in the rites and to see the BOS.
This was a good idea when used with descretion but too many people became Degree Hunters and sought Cross Initiations from as many people as possible. Thus the concept which started out as a good idea became abused by a few greedy people.

CROSS QUARTER DAYS-- The Greater Sabbats of the Equinoxes and Solstices.

CRUX ANSATA-- See Ankh.

CRYSTAL BALL-- A round object made from quartz crystal and used as a means of scrying. If it is more than a few centimeters across, it is probably artifical. They should be optically clear and so are prohibitally expensive and replaced with glass balls. Also Crystal Sphere.

CRYSTAL SPHERE-- See Crystal Ball.

CUBIT--(Mid-east) See Aln. See also measurements.

CULT-- In strict Anthropological terms, a sub-set within a religion. Generally it refers to a religion that is so complex that people cannot follow or completely understand the entire thing so they concentrate on only a small part such as those catholics who pray almost exclusively to mary belong to the mary cult. They do so because catholicism has so many saints that no one can pray to them all.
Wicca is often referred to as the Witch Cult because it is a subset of Paganism.
With the incident of Jonestown where Jim Jones (a christian) murdered 900 other christians in a religious fervor, the term 'cult' has taken on bad connotations.

CUNNING FOLK-- See Cunning Man.

CUNNING MAN-- (Pennsylvania Dutch) In Pennsylvania and the surrounding area, a person, almost always a man, who understands the local folk magick well enoughto be called a sorcerer. Also Cunning Folk.

CUP-- A Wiccan Tool. The female symbol and container for the Ritual Wine that is to be blessed by the Goddess.
During many Rituals, the Cup is blessed by the High Priest and High Priestess and then passed around for all to share. Traditionally the Cup is made of silver to represent the Moon though many now are of pewter or even wood. Note that copper will mix with alcohol to produce a poison and alcohol will leech lead from pewter so copper or brass or pewter Cups MUST be silver plated on the inside with no scratches. When I worked with an Alexandrian HPS, she would do the wine blessing in such a manner that she would actually damage the Cup. I suspect that she didn't quite understand the what and why of that particular rite or of the chemical reactions she was initiating..
Many Witches at the time of the passing the Cup hope that the Circle will prevent the person next to them from passing a cold as well. There have been volumes written on how to deal with this in a public Rite where you know no one (and so trust no one's health reports) or when one member of the Coven is an alcoholic or is contagous. Do you deny the entire Coven Ritual wine because of one persons inability to control themseves or do you force the alcoholic to face their problem and drink, or do you have two Cups, one with Wine and one with Grape juice? The arguments go on and on as do the suggestions.

CURFAIN-- See Kirfane.

CURFANE-- See Kirfane.

CURSE-- A magickal spell used to harm. Usually it follows the target forever or until removed by someone far more powerful than the initial caster.
Few Witches like to throw curses around because of the Three-Fold Law, but some are more than willing to do what they call is 'helping that persons karma come back to them'. Right! Like catholic hospitals never do abortions, they only do 'uteral evacuations." A rose by any other name, as the Bard says.
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DACTYLIOMANCY-- Divination through the use of a finger ring.

DAPHNOMANCY-- Divination through the use of laurel leaves, generally by burning them and observing the smoke or rarely, by breathing the smoke and shifting into alpha where visions occur.

DARK ONE-- 1) The Horned God in His aspect of the Lord of Death or the Grim Reaper.
2) The Goddess in Her aspect of the Crone.

DARK MOON-- See new moon.

DARK OF THE MOON-- See new moon.

DAUGHTER COVEN-- A Coven which is formed from another Coven by members of that original Parent Coven who are felt to be ready to run their own Coven. The daughter Coven is generally independant of the Parent Coven but gives to that Parent Coven a certain amount of respect. The leaders of the Parent Coven will become Witch Queens and Kings (Magus) when the Daughter Coven has passed its probationary period. Compare to Sister Coven.

DAYS OF POWER-- The Eight Sabbats and/or the 13 Full and New Moons.

DEDICATION-- A form of self-initiation where the Wiccan dedicates themselves to the God, the Goddess and the Craft. Traditionals use this as a preliminary until they can find and join a Coven and be properly Initiated. Many Eclectics use this in place of an Initiation.

DEGREES-- A system of learning or achievement or rank among Witches. Some Trads have one Degree, others have 13, most have three. The main thing to remember is that the Degree system is a way of breaking down the jobs and teaching into smaller, more manageable parts. Thus the new person is still new whatever Degree you call them and the top of the hierarchy is still the top regardless of what Degree you take. Thus a Third Degree Gardnerian is equal to a Fourth Degree Welsh which is equal to a Thirteenth Degree Frostie.

DEITY-- A god or goddess. It is used by those who are uncomfortable with the 'g' word.

DEJA VU-- From the French word 'already seen', this is the idea or feeling that you have experienceed this situation before.

DELTA-- A very slow trance-like rhythm of the brain. It is related to certain healings and astral travel.

DEMETER-- (Greek) A Grain Goddess and Mother of Persephone. Two tales are important here, the first regards the bees who gave honey to the gods for food. So enthralled with this were the gods that they granted the bees a wish. The bees asked for the power to sting their enemies to death. So enraged with this request that the gods made the sting fatal to the bees. The bees are sacred to Demeter. The second story concerns Her daughter Persephone and Hades and the coming of Winter.
The Elusian Mysteries, which were THE thing to join, were held in Her honor.
Many modern Witches see Persephone and Demeter as variants on the Maiden and Mother aspects of the Goddess.

DEMON-- An unfriendly non-material entity. Compare with angel.

DEMONOMANCY-- Divination by suggestion of demons. See demons.

DEOSIL-- {day-O-sill} Moving in a clockwise direction in a Circle or Ritual. For you who own a digital watch, it means moving in a Sunwise direction. One source pronounces it "JESH-il" or "JES-ul"

DEVA-- A nature spirit that personifies that form of nature such as the Foxglove Deva is the nature spirit that relates to the foxglove plant.

DEVIL-- Literally a 'little god' or in xianity, a non-material entity of a negative force. This is NOT used within Wicca simply because Witches are not christians and so do not accept xian gods or concepts.

DEVIL'S MARK-- (xian) According to christian mythology, whenever a 'witch' sold their soul to the xian devil, he kissed the 'witch' somewhere on their body. this place then became insensitive, unable to bleed and produced a mark that often disguised as a mole, wart, scar, blemish or even was invisible. Much of the torture of a witch entailed finding this mark as proof of witchcraft.

DIANA-- 1) (Wicca) A common name for The Goddess to be used in public.
2) (Italian) The name for The Goddess in Italian Wicca.
3) (Roman) See Artemis.

DIANA'S CROWN-- A crescent moon mounted upon the headdress (usually silver) of the High Priestess of a Wiccan Coven and worn as a sign of her rank and position.

DIANA'S BOW-- The third day after the New Moon when the Moon appears to be in the shape of a bow. This time is important to Witches for it's magickal forces.

DIANIC WITCHES-- Those Witches who place the Goddess as supreme and all but ignore the God. The Dianic movemnet was formed in the early 1970's by Z. Budapest in Los Angeles, California. Compare to Feminist Witches.

DIANUS-- (Aradian) The Horned God.

DICHOTOMY OF EVIL-- The primary contradiction in such monotheistic religions such as christianity. In it's simplest form it goes something like this; If god is all good and all-powerful, then there can be NO evil. Since there is evil, then god cannot be both all-powerful (omni-potent) and all-good (omni-benevolent). Therefore, god is either helpless to stop evil (and so not all-powerful thus allowing a very powerful devil to exist) or evil himself.
Follow this arguement with a fundie and see how they erase the idea from their minds (like a computers delete key) and talk in circles to avoid the inevitable conclusion. Remember that choice cannot exist with omnipotence. See onmi-potent and omni-benevolent.

DIONYSIAN-- A possibly outdated term for the concept of religious rituals which are free flowing and uninhibited as opposed to Apollonian which is regemental and organized. Most Witches, particularly Eclectics, are Dionysian in nature.

DISCARNATE-- An entity without a physical body such as a ghost or an astral body.

DISCORDIANISM-- ( c 1970) A joke religion created by two kids in the 1970's while at a bowling alley. They decided to create a religion around the Greek Goddess Eris or Discordia that emphasises chaos. All Discordians are popes and create their own gods as they need them.
One of the most popular Discordian gods is Squat, the god of parking spaces. S/he (I'm not certain) likes transvestite nuns and if you promise him/her a few, Squat will see to it that you have no trouble parking at your destination.
The problem with Discordianism is that it may have started out as a joke but the followers quickly discovered that their prayers were being answered. The founder is quoted as saying, "Had I know it was going to come true, I would have worshipped Aphrodite."

DISCHARGE-- To divest of energy, to send off a spell, to desantify.

DISMISS QUARTERS-- The tern used in Wicca to refer to the release of the Lords of the Watchtowers so that the Ritual can end. Also Dismissing the Quarters.

DISMISSING THE QUARTERS-- See Dismiss Quarters.

DIVINATION-- The use of Tools such as Tarot Cards, Crystal Balls, or trance to perceive into the past, present or future in order to determine the best possible course of action. There are a number of different forms of Divination ranging from augury to pyromancy and beyond, many of which are scattered throughout this work.

DIVINE-- 1) Referring to a god or goddess.
2) To fortell the future as in divination.

DIVINE KING-- An old Wiccan custom where the High Priest represents the Horned God incarnate. As such, as the God ages in the Autumn and can no longer function in His role of provider He is crucified (to a T-shaped cross), castrated, blinded and killed. His body is then chopped up and buried as fertilizer in the fields to ensure the fertility of the crops and animals inthe next year.
The Divine King is ALWAYS a willing sacrifice because magickally, a dying man's curse is too powerful to avoid so the sacrifice MUST be willing. To ensure this, the Divine King is considered to be the God incarnate and so can have and do whatever he wants without question for the duration of His reign. See the Arthur mythos and the Fisher King for a symbolic representation of this.
The Divine King is performed on a double calendar which means that it occurs every seven years (nine years in Ireland where the men are accustomed to marrying a 20-year-old girl when they are in their 40's and financially stable) or whenever the 'king' shows that he is ageing and no longer sexually active enough to fulfill the functions of the Horned God, both sexually or youthfully.
Since the 'king' represents the God, as the 'king' ages, so also does the God by a curious magickal/psychic/religious link that only Pagans really understand. So, as you can't have a senile and impotent God, you have to prevent His earthly representative from ageing and this is done by simply killing him when he is old.
But, if the 'king' is chosen when young, he will still be active at 27 and so you would waste all that strength if you kill him while he is still young and so you find a substitute Divine King. English history is full of the Divine King and his substitutes. I refer you to a novel, (U>Lammas Night by Katheryn Kurtz as a 'history' of the most recent known incidence of the Divine King. Or if you are into histoy, read about William Rufus who is believed to be a substitute for the Divine King in early England.
If more people knew the true meaning of the Divine King, there would be a lot fewer people asking for the job of High Priest.
The last known Divine King Sacrifice was during the Second World War when one High Priest offered himself to cause the rebirth of England and so save his country from the ravages of the war.
In today's Wicca, the HP is symbolically killed as he steps down from office and is replaced by a younger man, thus saving all the knowledge and experience of the older HP which would have been lost had he actually been killed.
Interestingly enough, the HPS is never sacrificed even when she passes menopause. Instead, she changes her aspect to that of a crone filled with the wisdom of age.

DOLEMAN-- See dolmen.

DOLMEN-- A stone monument. Technically, the remains of a pre-Celtic stone grave that generally consists of four large flat stones for walls and a capstone for a roof. These were then covered with dirt but after thousands of years, the dirt has been worn away leaving only the stones which appear to be a giant stone table. Many of these are so large that a man on horseback can ride under them without touching any stone. Thus they give rise to legends of giants and heros.

DOLMER-- In one Tradition of Wicca, a ritual Circle of stones. Probably a misspelling and misinterpretation of Dolmen.

DOOR-- See Doorway.

DOORWAY-- The entrance into the Magickal Circle, generally in the North-east opened and closed by a specific ritual for the purpose of entering and leaving the established Circle.

DOPPELGANGER-- The German term for a double of a person. It may refer to an astral body, bi-location or an actual copy.

DOUBLE-- The astral body which may be perceived by other people as a visible and 'tangeable' copy of your own body.

DOVES BLOOD-- Any writing with ink on parchment, especially magickal in nature. It has no relation to the bird or it's bodily fluids.

DOWSING-- The act of using an amplifier (a forked stick or angle rods or pendulum) to allow the body to locate hidden objects. Also called water witching.

DRACHMA-- 1) A term in herbalism to indicate a measurement equal to a handful of the herb.
2) A Greek coin.

DRAGON LINES-- Ley lines or the currents of energy that criss-cross the earth and can be tapped by the Witch.

DRAKE, SIR FRANCIS-- ( 16th century) A famous English Privateer (this was a pirate who operated under the protection of the King) who was famous for stopping the Spanish Armada. It is said that Drake was a Witch whose coven raised the storm that smashed the Spanish Armada in 1588. He had a fleet of ships that were small enough to sail in under the Spanish guns to decimate the fleet. One story was that the decks of his ships were so small that no ordinary seaman could fit so he had Fairies man his guns. As an aside, Dr Margaret Murray said that the fairy race became extinct in the 1600's.

DRAWING DOWN THE MOON, SUN-- The ritual during which the Spirit of the Goddess is asked to possess the body of the High Priestess and the Spirit of the God is asked to possess the High Priest during a Wiccan Ritual. This is THE most sacred moment in a Rite and after that is done, the High Priestess literally becomes the Goddess Incarnate and the High Priest literally becomes the God incarnate. From then on, Their will is unquestioned.
Gardnerians and other Traditional Witches generally only Draw Down the Moon and rarely, if ever, Draw Down the Sun.

DRAWING THE CIRCLE-- See casting the circle.

DREAM DIARY-- See dream journal.

DREAM JOURNAL-- A diary of your dreams made immediately upon awakening. It is an invaluable training tool on many levels such as the astral, psychological and psychic.

DRUID NEW MOON-- Six days after the New Moon.

DRUIDS-- (Celt) An organized religion that is solar orientated and related to Wicca possibly as first cousins. Both Witches and Druids traded with each other, each enriching the dogma of the others faith.
There are now four known and three existing groups of Druids.

1. a) The original Druids were killed by Henry VIII under the demands of the Archbishop of Canturbury who ordered the last Druid and his Sacred Oak tree brought to London and burned to death in public.
2. b) The English revival of Druids occurred in the 18th century during the Romantic Period of Western Civilization,
3. c) The Reformed Druids of North America (RDNA) revival occurred in the late 1970's at Charlton College as a reaction to that institutions rule that all students had to go to church on a regular basis.
4. d) Ar nDraiocht Fein (ADF) was created by Isaac Bonewitz as a new religion that was non-wiccan and more intelligent than the usual neo-pagan mish-mash.

DRUMMING-- The use of a drum to raise power, alter consciousness or to give a beat for the magick to be done.

DUALISM-- A religious concept that attempts to explain evil by postulating the existance of an evil god in opposotion to a good god. Called the Dichotomy of Evil, it is responsible for the deaths of untold millions because this Dualistic philosophy inevetably leads to the idea that if you are not with me, you are against me.

DUNKING-- And ancient means of either punishing or proving witchcraft or adultry in Babylon. It was revised in Europe during the Burning Times with the witch either being tied to a chair and lever or simply being tied up and tossed into a river.
Depending on the time and place the witch either floated because water, being the instrument of baptism, rejected the witch or sank because water, being the instrument of baptism, enacted god's judgment and punishment. See swimming.
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EARTH-- 1) The planet where we live. Witches do not consider the Earth to be a prison or a casual way-station but our home for eternity. With each lifetime, Witches are re-born upon the Earth and so it is imperative that we work for freedom, justice and ecological ends so that the world we return to is better than the one we left.
2) The element that coresponds to North and solid.
3) To send into the ground any excess energy left over after a spell or ritual. To relax and center oneself. See ground and center.

ECSTASY-- To have broken the bonds of the everyday world and to have entered into another state of being through joy and pleasure. In Wicca achieving contact with the Goddess through the Eight Paths to Power.

EDWARD III, KING-- ( c 14th century) King of England in the 14th century and a friend of Wicca he has three major accomplishments.

1. 1) When Dame Alice Kytler was accused of Witchcraft and forced to leave Ireland, she was protected by Edward III who took her in.
2. 2) When the Countess of Salisbury lost her Witches garter at a ball in 1344, Edward protected her by taking the garter and declaring "Evil to those who think evil of it".
3. 3) In honor of the countess, Edward created the Order of the Garter, Englands most important order of knighthood.

EGREGORE-- A powerful thoughtform created by a group or nation which takes on a life of it's own. It may be created by accident. Possibly an explanation for mob behavior.

EIDOLON-- A thoughtform in semi-human shape.

EIGHT SPOKED WHEEL-- The symbol of the Eight Sabbats.

ELDER-- A Witch of sufficient rank (usually of the Second or Third Degree) who is a member of the governing council of the Coven. They have power and authority over only their own Coven or the Covens that give then that authority. Some covens require you to be the leader of a coven for nine years before you can be considered to be an elder. If the HP or HPS steps down, they become an Elder.

ELEMENT-- See elements.

ELEMENTAL-- The living nature spirits that are formed of only one element such as: Gnomes are Solid (earth); Undines are liquid (water), Slyphs are gas (air) and Salamanders are energy (fire). Each of these has its own personality, level of intelligence and 'biology' and can be contacted by the proper training. However it should be made known that Elementals have no souls and so they associate with people mainly because they have to (by the laws of magick) or because they want to learn how to get a soul for themselves. They can be mischevious, aloof, flighty or down right dangerous to us, though we should not judge them by our standards. If an Undine drowns you in the desert, it is probably because you screwed up and angered them or simply didn't know what you were doing.

ELEMENTARIES-- Thoughtforms created of one element by a person to perform a specific purpose.

ELEMENTS-- One of the five states of matter. In magick, one of the five forms in which matter manifests. The Five Elements are: Earth (solid), Water (liquid), Air (gas), Fire (energy) and Akasha (spirit).

ELF FIRE-- A fire produced by psychic means.

ELF LIGHTS-- A small hollow cairn of loosly piled stones so designed so that the light from a votive candle placed within shines through the spaces in the stones. They were designed by Patti M. of Campsite Coven in Tucson.

ELF SHOT-- (Gardnerian) 1) Stone arrowheads, possibly prehistoric but probably made by the Fairy Folk of Europe before, during and after the Celtic invasions of the Bronze Age..
2) To secretly poison someone with hellebore (helleborus spp.) by means of a thrown tool.
When I studied ninjitsu I was struck with the similarities between the ninja and the Witch. Both were persecuted by the ruling religion (ninja were persecuted by the Buddhists) and had to learn to hide. Both used magick (most ninja had 5 elements in contrast to the Wiccan 4 but some actually followed the European system), both believed in living with nature, and both had a form of throwing weapon. The ninja had the shuriken made famous by the movies and the Witch had the elf-shot. In both cases, it was impossible to throw the missle hard enough by hand to kill so they were poisoned or left in a manure pile before being used. Thus, they were feared more for infection (dangerous in a world that didn't have antibiotics or tetanus shots) than for the damage caused by the missle.
These stone arrowheads were often poisoned by the witch because the roughness of the stone held the poison better than a smooth steel arrow head. There was a way to fling them with your hand so that they struck the victim point first barely deep enough to give a wound but capable of giving a dose of the poison. I suspect that considering the shallowness of the injury and the limited amount of poison injected, death took the form of infection and so being struck by an elf-shot was perceived by the cowan as being cursed to death with a wasting sickness.

ELIZABETH SAWYER-- See Sawyer, Elizabeth.

ELL-- See Aln. See also measurements.

ELPHAME-- The Sidhe or Land of Faerie.

ELVES-- Beings which are near-human whose appearance is dependant on their type. They once may have ruled Europe before modern man arrived and drove them away.

EMPOWER-- To give to yourself or others personal control over their own lives. Wicca and other forms of Paganism are empowering religions because they insist that you are good and can control your own lives and because they state that your path to Divinity is equal to ours. Thus Pagan religions encourage men and women to become Priest/ess' and give them that opportunity. Christianity is an anti-empowering religion because they state that people are evil and can only be saved through the agency of another person, and because they encourage the idea that only the priest (almost always a white male ) can intercede between a person and divinity.
One night at an art gallery opening (I was hung in the gallery, both figuratively and euphamestically) I heard an excellent example of empowering a person. A friend of mine was going through a rough divorce and negotiated a deal where their 14 year-old daughtor could see her father whenever SHE, and not the courts and parents, wanted. This gave power to the kid, unusual in a society strives to take that power away.

ENCHANT-- A declaration of magickal intent. To cast a spell upon someone.

ENDOR, WITCH OF-- (Judiasm) A fortune teller described in the old testament, I samuel 28. She was consulted by King Saul who wanted infromation about an upcoming battle. The woman raised the spirit of King Samuel for Saul, an act which was illegal in Israel and carried the death penalty. This unnamed woman has been called a 'witch' but in reality she was actually a necromancer and was probably a loyal Israelite and Jew. It was King James who ordered her referred to as a "Witch" in his version of the bible.

ENERGY-- The force that is used by the Witch to accomplish magick. It may be innate (raised by the Witch from their own bodies) or Accumulated (saved by the coven for later usage) or external (tapped by the Witch from the gods or nature).

EOSTARA-- See Ostara.

EPHEMERIS-- A book used by astrologers and astronomers which lists the positions of the stars and planets at any time in history. In astrology this information is vital to predicting future influences on a person.
Because of the detail contained within, it is possible to use this information to locate where any star or planet will be at any time in the past or future and even to predict the mass and position of undiscovered planets. Pluto was discovered because Uranus wasn't where the emhemeris said it would be on a certain date. The astronomer simply calculated where it should be as compared to where it was and figured out what size of planet would do that to Uranus and where that unknown body must be. When they looked there, they found Pluto.
Modern Astronomers are embarassed by two facts: 1) that Galeleo was such a famous astrologer who kept such a good ephemeris that Copernicus kissed his ass to get to his records and 2) modern astronomers will never be invited to parties as exciting as the ones that Galeleo threw.

EPHESUS-- A city in Asia where a major shrine to the Goddess Diana was built in 550 b.c.e. It was destroyed by christians in 400 c.e.

EQUINOX-- Literally, 'equal night', it refers to the two times of the year when the daylight and nightime hours are exactly the same length. These are around March 21 and September 21. Most pagan religions consider them to be holy days.

ERIS-- (Greek) The Goddess of chaos and random behaviour. She is worshipped today in the Erisian religion which makes a great deal of the chaotic nature of life and the universe.

ESBAT-- A Witches religious festival dedicated to the Goddess and performed on or near the Full Moon. Magick is done at them. It appears to be derived from the French word 'Esbatarre' which means 'to frolic'. It may ultimately be derived through the word Sabbat from the Hebrew word 'Sabbath".

ESOTERIC-- That part of religion and magick which is hidden from non-initiates.

ESP, E.S.P.-- Extra sensory projection. A passive ability of collecting information through the past, present or future by a means not completely understood but probably related to very long radio waves.

ETHERIC-- Composed of Astral or Akashic substance.

EVIL EYE-- The ability to cause evil to occur simply by looking at the target. Not normally used in Wicca.

EVOCATION-- The calling of a non-material entity that is not a god. Compare with invocation.

EXORCISE-- To ritually remove or banish unwanted entities from a person, place or thing. The noun is exorcism.
The roman catholic chrch still retains a number of professional exorcists and the official manual includes the admonation that the exorcist wear a Pentagram as spirits that are unafected by the cross or crucifix will be controlled by the Pentagram.

EXORCISM-- The ritual that removes unwanted energies or entities.

EYE GOUGE-- A tool resembling an old buttonhook or a fishhook on an ice pick. It was thrust into the eyesocket between the eyeball and bone, then twisted around so that the hook looped around the optic nerve. The eys gouge as then removed, pulling the eyeball out of the socket and tearing the muscles and nerves apart.
It was used by the christian inquisition to force Witches to confess to crimes that they never committed.
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FAERIE-- 1) (Gardnerian) Fairy, enchantment, wonder.
2) See fairy.

FAGGOT-- A bundle of wood used to burn Witches and heretics.

FAIRY-- A race of very small people who lived in the British Isles. They were displaced by the Celts and other invadors until they were forced to live in pit pouses that were disguised to look like hills thus giving rise to the belief that they lived underground. Sir Frances Drake had small ships built to sail underneath the guns of the Spanish armada and had Fairies man his cannon. The Fairy race died out shorthy afterwards. Also faerie.

FALSE BODKIN-- When Matthew Hopkins set himself up as a Witchfinder, he got paid for each 'witch' her discovered and so to ensure a positive cash flow, he invented the false bodkin as a means of locating the 'devils mark'. The flase bodkin was similar tothe bodkin save that the blade was straight and blunt and slid into the handle so that the 'suspect' didn't feel any pain as the bodkin 'penetrated' their skin. This proved the 'suspect's' guilt and they were hanged. Refer to Bodkin.

FAMILIAR-- 1) A Coven totem animal in Wicca.
2) A Witches pet. Many Eclectics call their favorite cat their familiar. I am always asked if my iguana is my familiar. To that question, I respond, "No, he's my guard 'dog' who considers people to be lower than him on the food chain so watch out." My daughter, Cerridwen, is terrified of Link but that is only because he tried to eat her one day.
The most popular name for a familiar of this type is Pywackett, probably named from the classic movie Bell, Book and Candle staring Kim Novak and Jimmy Stewart. The name was derived from an illustration of Matthew Hopkins from the work Discovery of Witches, 1647, which showed a number of Witches and their familiars.
3) An animal owned by a Traditional Witch, sometimes used as a shield to detect or absorb incoming curses. If this is the purpose, when your pet cat suddenly dies for no reason, it may be wise to set up your shields in a hurry.
4) A thoughtform or other living receptacle of energy created in a set manner to provide a specific purpose. This form is generally short lived deliberately because it is such a drain on the Witches energy reserves and health. There are a number of books which tell how to do a simple form of this and often call them 'Thought-forms' or 'Whammie-balls.'

FAMILY TRADITION-- That form of Wicca which was kept within a family over the centuries as a means of survival. It was taught to the children or grandchildren, whichever was safer and over the generations, most of the knowledge was lost or distorted as it mixed with xian teachings.
In general, if you couldn't openly teach your children about the Goddess of the Moon for fear that the child would tell the neighbors, thus resulting in your being executed for heresy or Witchcraft, you told them about the Lady of the Moon instead, not mentioning that she was The Goddess. It would then be inevetible that the Lady idea would become distorted into a fairy or saint concept.

FAMN-- A measure of distance. See cord. See measurements.

FASCINATE, FASCINATION-- The act of controlling anothers mind generally through telepathy. Having been the victim of Fascination (despite my training) I can personally testify that it is subtle and effective. I only realized that I was being Fascinated when I thought back and realized that I had been doing things that I would normally not do. Then I was able to determine who was Fascinating me and put up shields to prevent it in the future.

FASTING-- Most Covens have some form of purification proceedure that they expect their members to undergo before a ritual. This purification is generlly more important than the ritual itself and some magickians will spend three months purifying themselves for a half-hour spell. Generally Wiccan Covens have a purification that is anywhere from 12 hours to three days and will restrict the types and food and drink consumed, sex, violence and such. One of the major purposes of purifications is to focus your mind and body on the rite and not that person in bed next to you or that meal on your plate. It also forces you to learn control. In other words, what is more important, the Goddess or a hamburger?

FATE-- Whatever happens. You cannot control or influence Fate, only react to it. This is a Wiccan term that was replaced by many modern Witches with a misunderstood form of the eastern concept of Karma.

FAVA BEAN-- The first of the bean family known in Europe. Among the Greeks and Romans it was used in Funarary Rites.
It has one major drawback. For those with G6PD disorder, eating fava beans causes an allergic reaction that has symptoms that can easily be mistaken for the attacks of a vampire, thus leading the superstitious to drive a stake through your heart and burn your body. The cure for favism is to stop eating the beans. Afterwards, the symptoms fade away and the victim recovers.

FEALTY-- (Gardnerian) Loyalty to a particular Lord or HP/S. This is based upon respect or power or payment of some form. In many Traditional Covens, you retain Fealty to your HP/S even years after you have 'left the nest' and formed your own Coven. This Fealty is shown by a blanket invitation (actually given freely and in good faith) to that HP/S to attend your Rituals and your listening to the advice of your Initiating HP/S.
Fealty, in the modern Wiccan world, is a thing of the past. All the more sad to a people who swore Perfect Love and Perfect Trust then turned on their Initiators when things got rough. This same person who refuses to call their HP/S 'Lord' or 'Lady', despite that HP/S giving for free years of training and assistance, will give to anyone who they pay to teach them martial arts, the title 'Sensi' and bow and grovel to that person based upon the ability to cash your check.

FEAST-- The ritual meal shared within the ritual to allow the Coven to settle down and relax. A social time characterized by song, game, dance and gossip.

FEMALE ENERGY-- The energy which is adjusted by the female body. It is receptive, nurturing and creative. Yin.

FEMINIST WITCHES-- (c 1972) Witches who deny the male principle and the Horned God in favor of exclusive worship of the Goddess. Some are lesbian and man-haters. This Tradition was developed by Z. Budapest in the early 1970's as a reaction to heterosexuality and patriarcial religions and as a means to empower women in a society that has striven to take that power away from them. Feminist Witches may even be a separate religion altogether and no longer a part of the Wiccan Family. Compare with Dianic with whom they are often confused. Feminists dislike the term 'woman' as it includes the word 'man' which is profane in their eyes. They have their own terms such as 'womyn', 'wimmin' and so on. See also Goddess Religion.

FESTIVALS-- A public gathering of Witches, Wiccans and Pagans to share ideas. They generally are composed of from a few to a few hundred people. Often Festivals have workshops, Rituals and a lot of social sharing.

FETCH-- 1) A thoughtform used to summon someone.
2) (Wicca) Another word for the Summoner. This is a rare use.
3) (Gardnerian) A ghost who is supposed to bring you tidings of your own death. If you see it, it will fetch you away. Similar to the Irish Bean Sidhe.
4) See astral body.

FETISH-- An object, often crudly made of simple materials, that possesses magickal power.

FFFF-- (Saxon) A contraction for 'Flags, Flax, Fodder and Frig.' Also written as 4F. It can easily be made into a mandala by joining them together at the base to any shape or design. See Flags, Flax, Fodder and Frig.

FILI-- (Irish) A seer or diviner.

FILTER-- The act of creating a psychic shield around yourself so that when you share energy with a person, only the energy gets through and any illness or baneful materials being carried by that energy is prevented from entering your aura or body.

FINGER-- A measure of length equal to the width of your longest finger at the knuckle nearest the finger tip. About 3/4". See measurements.

FIRE-- The Element that corresponds to Energy and South.

FITH-FATH-- A poppet.

FIVE FOLD KISS-- In Wicca, the ritual action of blessing the feet, knees, genitals, breasts and lips in a set ritual manner. It is a sign of devotion, humility and as an act of purification. It has no sexual connotations save during the Great Rite or sex magick.

FIX-- A short term negative spell. It is like a curse but it creates one swift kick then dissipates. Compare to Hex. and curse.

FLAGELLATION-- The art and practice of using a special whip to induce a form of enlightenment or purification. Some xian sects used flagellation to such an extent that often the members died. Many Traditional Witches use a modified form of flagellation, called scourging, to purify. See scourge. Many xoans and some wiccans confuse flagellation with B&D/S&M.

FLAGS, FLAX, FODDER AND FRIG-- An old Saxon blessing that has been adopted by many other pagans and witches. It translates into "May you always have a home to live in, clothing to wear, food to eat and someone to love.
Flags refers to flagstones, Flax refers to a plant (linum usitatissimun) that is used to make cloth, fodder refers to feed for your livestock and ultimately yourself and Frig refers to the Norse Frigga who was a Goddess of sexual love and from whom we get the term 'to frig.'

FLARE-- A bright spot in the aura that indicates a problem or emotional turmoil.

FLITTERMOUSE-- The common bat. Called this because if it's superficial resemblence to a mouse with wings. In reality they are not at all even closly related.

FLOUROMANCY-- Divination by flowers.

FLUID CONDENSER-- Any of a series of liquids that are designed to absorb, concentrate and store specific magickal energies.

FLYING OINTMENT-- 1) A mixture of materials, generally hallucinagenic considering the dozen or so recipies I possess, which when rubbed on the 13 Cardinal points is absorbed into the skin and bloodstream causing the sensation of flying. One experiment with these formulae showed each researcher having identical hallucinations which included flying to a mountain and worshipping the Horned God which was interpreted as the xian devil.
2) In Wicca, true flying ointment was made in the olden days to be rubbed on the skin as a protection against insects and the cold and to provide a slippery skin in case the xians tried to grab you.

FOLIATES-- Those images found on a number of early churches and resembling a human face made of leaves. They were often horned or had leaves in the shape of antlers to symbolize the Horned God. They are thought to have been placed there by witches who, being forced to attend church, wanted to pray to their own God. I have seen Floiates in Germany, England and Belize. Refer to Sheila-na-gigs. Also foliate mask.

FOLIATE MASK-- See Foliate.

FOLK MAGICK-- A system of magick where the natural herbs, stones, and the power of the magickian is used instead of spells. Similar to the modern 'Kitchen Witch'.

FOLKLORE-- The traditional myths, superstitions, stories and medical practices of a culture. It is related to but different from their religion even though there may be some cross-over. Santa Claus is a part of American folklore but has some aspects of the xian religion.

FOOT-- A unit of measurement equal to the length of your foot. About 9".

FOX FIRE-- A mysterious light often found hovering over marshy ground or old cemetaries at night. It has been called everything from UFO's to fairy lights but is probably methane gas ignited spontaneously.

FRANCIS DRAKE, SIR-- See Drake, Sir Francis.

FRANCIS STEWART, EARL OF BOTHWELL-- See Bothwell, Francis.

FUCK-- No one really knows where this word came from. Some say it is an anagram for the term "For Using Carnal Knowledge", others say is is a corruption of the older term 'firk'. It is a vulgar term for the physical act of sexual intercourse as opposed to the emotional action of making love. Although they seem similar, one is a gentle physical act that is expressed between two people who care deeply for each other and the other is pure wild sex, often without any emotional entanglement. Even people who are deeply and tenderly in love sometimes fuck each other. It's also a good way to ground excess energy after a ritual.
Witches are known for their ideas of sexual freedom (anything done between consenting adults is ok by us) and to a traditional Witch, "Fuck You!" may very well be an invitation. Of course, we also are taught that sexual freedom also means the freedom to say "no!"

FULL MOON-- The peak of the Lunar Cycle. The time of the Goddess. Witches usually meet at this time to perform magick.

FUNDAMENTALIST CHRISTIAN-- Those christians who are focused on their way being the ONLY RIGHT AND TRUE WAY of god. They generally believe that if you are not with them and attend their church, then you are against them and therefore evil. Fundamentalists put a great deal of energy and money into passing repressive laws and speak highly of the 'good old days' of the 1950's when America was a god-fearing moral christian nation. Of course, these are the same people who lynched blacks, stole land from the indians, burned synogagues and kept women barefoot, pregnant and at home so we can see what their true vision of christian morality is.
Note, recently there has developed a small cadre of fundametalist Wiccans (all BTW, most Gardnerian) who are known for claiming that the way that they believe and work is the right or only way.

FUNDIE-- A derogatory contraction of fundamentalist christian.

FUTHARK-- The Germanic-Norse alphabet used for writing and divination. Although there are a vast number of variations, generally Futhark, is composed of three series of nine letters each. See runic, Runes. Many Witches prefer this alphabet to the more common Theban. Also futhorc.

FUTHORC-- See futhatk
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GARBAGE WITCH-- A derogatory term first heard on a message board to describe someone who was looking for a 'real witch', described himself as a 'warlock' and bragged how he could 'control people'. It refers to someone who wants to be a witch but hasn't taken the time to actually learn anything about the Craft and would rather get their information from second and third rate Disney movies. An ego tripper or a kid who really needs a reality check.
Garbage witches are resented by those of us who have studied and sacrificed and worked for years to earn the title "Witch'.

GARDNERIAN WITCHES-- ( c 1952) Celtic Witches who follow the Craft as interpreted by Gerald Gardner and Doreen Valiente in the 1950's.

GARTER-- A badge of rank among high ranking Witches. A true Garter shows a great deal about the wearer that few can read. Much has been made of the incident where the Countess of Salisbury dropped her Garter while dancing with Edward III. The king, to protect her from the Inquisition and to show that he was king of christians and Witches alike, placed her Garter upon his own leg and started the Order of the Garter, Englands most noble order of Knighthood. Garters are generally worn only by Witch Queens and Witch Kings and are made of specific materials which I will not mention here. The Garter has one buckle for each of the Covens that that Queen has produced. Thus a Garter with a number of buckles shows that that woman has a great deal of experience and should be treated with a great deal of respect simply because of the number of years that it takes anyone to advance in a Traditional Coven. Beware the Witch who wears a Garter with a dozen buckles but who is still in her 20's.

GASTROMANCY-- Divination by the sounds of the belly or by signs on the belly itself.

GATE-- See Doorway.

GATHERINGS-- See Festivals.

GEIS-- (Gaelic) A personal obligation or vow to do or not to do something. Compare with Taboo. When my wife forced me to move out of our home so she could move her married lover in, I made a geis to never enter that house again. I swore this by the Goddess and my life's blood and so cannot ever renege on that vow. You can be released from a promise, but not from a geis.

GENIE-- See jinn.

GEOMANCY-- Divination through the use of random figures in the dirt or sand.

GEORGIAN TRADITION-- ( c 1970) A new Tradition of Wicca formed by George P. in the 1970's when he moved from New Jersey to California.

GESITH-- (Saxon) A warrior. In Seax Wicca, a Witch.

GHOST-- The soul of a dead person that has not gone on to the Summerland and remains on the Earth for some reason.
The Goddess in not perfect (it is a really big universe) and accidents happen. Normally, when a person dies, the soul passes into the Tunnel of Light or is taken into the Tunnel of Light by the Horned God to the Summerland where that soul is prepared for it's next life. But sometimes this doesn't happen and the soul remains as a ghost. Here are a couple of these accidents from personal experience.

1. a) John C. was an athiest who believed that when you die, you end. One day as a student at the U of A, he decided to go to the local store so on the worst day of the monsoon season he holstered his handgun hopped onto his motorcycle and rode from his dorm room to the local Circle K on Speedway near Euclid. After leaving the store, he entered rush hour traffic when visibility was only three feet and was struck by a car and killed instantly. He died so suddenly that he didn't know that he was dead and his ghost wandered that section of Speedway for a couple of weeks trying to make someone see and hear him. Eventually he ran out of energy and was pulled into the Tunnel.
   As an aside, I had loaned John some of my armor and weapons for the SCA and saw no reason to burden his parents with demands for my property while they were still grieving and waited. Unfortunatly, his xian friends had no such ethics and immediatly after he died, they told them that John had some of their belongings and took whatever they wanted (including my stuff) while John's parents were still in shock and couldn't think straight.
2. b) April was a catholic who was married with children but began to cheat on her husband with a man who got her hooked on drugs. She got pregnant by him and had an abortion. Then she went hiking with this man to Seven Falls and 'fell' off a cliff and died. April KNEW that she had sinned and was damned to hell but was afraid to go and she KNEW that she didn't deserve to go to heaven so her soul remained as a ghost simply because she was terrified of the alternatives. I had to convince her that heaven and hell were simply astral planes and that reincarnation was the truth and so she was able to accept a third option and went through the Tunnel.
   As an aside, when I convinced her ghost to enter the Tunnel, she asked if she could wait until the funeral. I agreed (what choice did I have) but made her promise to enter it immediatly. During the funeral service, a huge wind came up, knocked over the flowers and messed up the service. April then entered the tunnel at that point. Her best friend was heard to say, "That's April, making a show to the end."

GIRDLE-- See Cord.

GIRDLE CORDS-- See Cord.

GLAMOUR-- (Gardnerian) A spell or charm that changes the appearance of anything. To hypnotise, to drug. See also fascination

GLYPH-- A magickal symbol that incorporates the name and birth date of the wearer. It is often worn as a protection.

GNOME-- An elemental life form composed only of Earth.

GNOSTIC, GNOSTICISM-- A system of religion that states that humanity may possess inner wisdom by direct revelation instead of waiting for some massiah to tell them what is going on. Christian Gnostism was destroyed by the more conservative xians around the 4th century c.e.

GOAT GOD-- The aspect of the Horned God of the Witches who was worshipped in areas where the goat was the primary meat source. He survived as the Greek Pan and by the Middle ages, the christian churches had used Him as propaganda to justify the extermination of the Wiccan Religion. The argument, according to christianity, was that the Witches worshipped a goat or a devil in the shape of a goat and so deserved to die. But, nowhere in the christian bible is a description of their devil that resembles the Witches God, nor is there any referance that Witches worship their devil. Well, the truth never stopped anyone from harming the innocent.

GOAT WITHOUT HORNS-- (Voodoun) A referance to human sacrifice.

GOD-- That divinity that is expressed in masculine form. See Horned God.

GOD/DESS-- A term used to refer to both the God and Goddess at the same time.

GODDESS-- That divinity that is expressed in femine form. See Great Mother Goddess.

GOD POSITION-- The position where the Witch stands feet feet together and arms crossed at the wrists over the heart. It is used to contain power or to symbolize the Horned God. Also called the Osiris position.

GODDESS POSITION-- The position where the Witch stands with feet apart and arms outspread. It is used to absorb energy (if done one way) and to represent the Goddess (if done in another manner). See Pentacle Position.

GODDESS RELIGION-- The religion that emphasizes the worship of any and all Goddesses from history to the exclusion of the male principle. They are generally pagan but not Wiccan and are intensely personal.

GOETIC-- That form of High Magick that deals with calling up and controlling non-material and non-divine entities which are defined as spirits, demons, etc.

GOLDEN SICKLE-- (Celt) A Tool of the Druids and certain Wiccans. It is the Symbol of Druidism as is the Athame to theWitch. It's most famous use is to cut the sacred mistletoe (viscum album) on Yule. This Mistletoe is not allowed to touch the ground and so is caught in a white cloth.

GOODSWARDEN-- The Witch who is assigned to keep the Coven Tools and supplies between meetings.

GOOFER DUST-- (voodoun) Dust from a graveyard or moss from a grave.

GOWDIE, ISOBEL-- A famous Scottish Witch who confessed in 1662 to a number of fancifal acts of magick. Although her contemporaries appear to have considered her to be demented, Monatgue Summers believed her and considered most of her claims to be true.

GRADES-- See Degrees.

GRAIL, HOLY-- The Cauldron of Celtic religion that includes the Cauldron of Cerridwen and the Cauldron of Dagda that is one of the Four Sacred Tools of the Tuatha de Dannan. It was combined with the xian myth of the cup that jesus drank from at the last supper to form the concept of a holy object that has been searched for for generations and not found simply because the seekers are looking for the wrong object. Instead of a beautiflly ornate golden cup, they should be looking for a bronze cauldron large enough to hold a curled up adult.
As the Cup is the modern Witches version of the Cauldron, the cup that catholics use during their masses is the modern xian manifestation of the grail.

GRANDMOTHER-- The goal of many Traditional Witches is to be descended from another Witch by birth or family. In my case I can cite my Great Aunt Hepsabar who was an Irish Witch who moved to Boston in the 1920's (according to family tradition). It is best for this descent if the Witch Ancestor is conveniently dead to preclude interrogation by the sceptical. In my case, my Great Aunt had the good graces to die before I was born. This has led to the joke of Traditional Witches being Initiated by a dead Grandmother without the intervening generation suspecting a thing. This was a fad in the 1970's among Traditionals Witches and is being revised in the 1990's by Eclectic Witches.

GRANTING OF THE BOON-- A request to the Goddess to grant a gift to the Witch.

GRAPHOLOGY-- The study of a personas personality and medical condition as expressed in their handwriting. I have a photocopy of my ex-wife's journal that she wrote during our divorce that shows so many characteristics of mental illness that people wondered why I married her. Had I been able to hire a graphologist for divorce court, I would have gotten a better deal.

GRAVATTIAN VENUS-- The oldest Goddess image found to date. She was first carved about 850,000 years ago.

GRAVEYARD DUST-- Dust from a grave or powder from the herb patchouli or leaves from the mullein (verbascum myrrha) plant.

GRAY MAGICK-- An obsolete term used by many people to denote any use of magick that is neither wholly good (white magick) or completly bad (black magick) but is ethically neutral.

GREAT BOOK-- See Book of Shadows.

GREAT CIRCLE-- A more complicated and ceremonial circle than the traditional Witches Circle. It is formed only for acts of great or high magick where safety is the prime consideration.

GREAT DAYS-- The Sabbats.

GREAT MOTHER GODDESS-- The Primary Diety worshipped by Witches. She is also called the Triple Goddess, the Moon Goddess, Mother Nature, The Lady and by many other names.

GREAT RITE-- A Wiccan Ritual of great importance. The actual or symbolic sex act used to celebrate the Gods and the creation of the universe. It must be done in a proper ritual manner with the proper visualizations or it becomes meaningless. Generally, it is done between married couples or lovers. I've seen Traditional Witches do even the Symbolic Great Rite wrong.

GREATER SABBATS-- Samhain, Imbolc, Beltane and Lammas. They were celebrated by the Celts and adopted by Witches after the Celtic migrations into Western Europe.

GREEK RITE-- This is not a wiccan term even though some use it to refer to pagans. Essentially, it is simple anal sex so-named because in ancient Olympian Greece, women had little power and were kept in 'harems' by their men. Greeks at that time believed that if a woman was not kept pregnant, her uterus would break free, travel about the body and strangle the woman's heart. Also, men would often prefer the company of their own gender and thus believed that there was nothing wrong with male homosexuality though lesbianism was, in their minds, evil.

GREEN MAGICK-- Magick that emphasises the herbal sciences for healing. See wortcunning.

GREEN WITCH-- A Witch who practices green magick.

GRIMOIRE-- The Book of Spells owned by a Witch and magickian. It is often incorporated with the Book Of Shadows.

GROCK-- 1) (Gardnerian) To watch a person while they are eating in the hope that they will offer you a place at the table with them. Cats and dogs are very good at grokking.
2) (CAW) To understand something completely and absolutely.

GROUND, GROUNDING-- To discharge energy into the earth. To tie oneself to the earth.

GROUND AND CENTER-- The process by which the Witch or Coven will balance their energies with each other and become attuned to the forces of Nature before any work or ritual. The process is similar to what physicists call phasing and synchronizing energy waves.

GROUP KARMA-- The karma that is developed by a group of people. Consider the group karma that has been created by the Nazi's or the KKK.

GROVE-- A natural location that is used for ritual, generally surrounded by trees. These trees may be natural or planted in a specific pattern. Druids prefer to worship in Groves instead of the Stone Circles which are preferred by Witches.

GUANOMANCY-- Divination by the bird dropping on the windshield of your car. This was originally created as a joke but I suspect that someone has probably learned to do it.

GUARDIAN-- The traditional apprentice to the High Priest and similar to the Summoner. However he was responsible for physically protecting the High Priest, the High Priestess and the Book of Shadows from xian attacks. Guardians generally remained behind to fight while the Coven escaped, and so usually died, hopefully by suicide before capture.

GUARDIANS-- See Lords of the Watchtowers.

GUIDED MEDITATIONS-- Stories that are designed to place the Coven into a trance-like state and allow them all to explore the same situation. Another term for them is Pathworking.
I personally love to do guided meditations for my Coven but am unable to undergo them myself. Ashleen O'Gaea invited me to attend a guided meditation workshop given by an Odinist and at the beginning of every meditiation, I fell asleep and woke up at the end. I did this so regularly and without anyone shaking me that they thought I was tancing. I wasn't, but for some reason my mind shuts down during these and I fall asleep only during the meditiation.

GWENKIN-- A cartoon Witch created by Rus G., founder of the Promethian Tradition and publisher of the Witches Annual and a real nice guy despite his misplacing one letter in his name. Gwenkin is everthing that we all want to be and aren't and I like to use her cartoons in my public Wicca classes.

GYROMANCY-- Divination by rounds or circles.
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HALLOWEEN-- See Samhain.

HALLOWE'EN-- See Samhain

HALLOWMAS-- See Samhain.

HALLOWS-- See Samhain.

HALLUCINOGEN-- Any herb that causes a mind altering and unreliable 'vision'. They are occasionally used ritually to teach the student to drop their preconceived notions of reality. In modern times, they are used for recreational purposes and therefore tend to harm magickal abilities.

HAND-- A measure of distance equal to the width of your hand with the thumb and fingers closed. About 4".

HANDFASTING-- 1) The Witches marriage which lasts for a year-and-a-day or as long as love lasts. Some, but not all Wiccan HP & HPS' are legally allowed to perform a legal marriage. The couple may repeat their Handfast vows each year. If the couple chooses to part at the end of that year, they return to the place where they were Handfasted with the HP and HPS who did the ceremony and Handpart by walking away from each other in opposite directions.
Some common themes for a Handfasting include the tieing together of the hands of the Bride and groom, the jumping of the broom and the consummation of the wedding during the rite.
In Tucson, it is very common for Witches to have a private Handfasting for the Coven only and then a public Handfasting for friends and relatives.
2) (Gardnerian) A trial marriage that lasts for a year and a day. If they had children or she was pregnant, then they usually married. The woman in a Handfasting was always considered to be respectible as opposed to people who simply lived together.

HANDMAIDEN-- See Maiden.

HAND OF GLORY-- An old magickal talisman that consists of the hand of an executed man turned into a candle. It was used by criminals who would light it and carry it into a home in the hope that it would keep the occupants asleep while they were robbed.

HARD-GARDS-- ( c 1970+) Those Gardnerian Witches who follow the Gardnerian rules to such a literal extent that they allow no deviation or variation either from themselves or others. Almost all Hard-Gards are American Gardnerians and insist that rules that are specific to their own Lineages must be obeyed by all Gardnerians everywhere. If another Gardnerian comes from a Lineage that pre-dates or simply does not possess their specific rule (such as Initiation Circles being drawn by only a Third Degree High Priestess which is specific to post-Buckland American Gardnerians), then the Hard-Gard has a tendency to 'invalidate' that Gardnerian who does not follow their rule.
Hard-Gards are the closest Witchcraft has to a fundamentalist Witch and have been known to arbitrarily attack and destroy the reputations of other Gardnerians over these perceived violations of Hard-Gard rules.

HARUSPICY-- Divination through the inspection of entrails.

HARVEST DOLL-- See corn dolly.

HARVEST HOME-- See Mabon.

HEAL, HEALING-- To repair damage or ilness through the use of psychic or magickal means. Most Witches are taught healing.

HEATHEN-- One who lives in the meadows, a pagan. To a christian, an insult.

HEATING CHAIR-- A metal chair with numerous spikes which was used by the inquisition. The suspect was strapped tothe chair naked and a fire built beneath. The chair would become red hot and the heat would be transmitted tothe suspect via the hundreds of spikes that theywere forced to sit on.

HECATE-- The patron Goddess of Witchcraft in Greece. Modern Witches see in Her the Crone Goddess and some emphasise Her worship over the other Aspects of the Goddess. See Triple Goddess.

HEDGE-- (Gardnerian) Not real. Generally refers to a fake priest who performs ceremonies for money. These ceremonies have no legal standing. Currently refers to a non-initiated wiccan who claims Lineage and position. A fake.

HEDGE-WITCH-- (Eclectic Wicca)

HELL BROTH-- (xian) A mythical concoction supposedly made by Witches in their cauldrons for some evil purpose. Read the opening scene of Macbeth for one formula. Witches do not make this.

HENGE-- Literally a Circle dug into the earth to delineate a holy spot. The term has been Confused with Stone Circle due to the popularity of Stonehenge which many people think means 'a stone circle' but really means 'a circular ditch with a stone circle inside'.
In modern Traditional Wicca, this is remembered outdoors when the HPS draws the Circle with the Sword by dragging it along the ground at the Circles boundary, thus creating a small ditch or henge in the ground.

HENOTHEISM-- (Wiccan) The belief that all gods and goddesses are aspects of a single underlying source. This allows some pagans to accept the existance of multiple divinities without completly casting out their xian belief in monotheism as they can rationalize that the one 'source' for all gods is the (xian) god. Most Traditionals don't subscribe to that theory, preferring to believe that The Goddess was the prime divinity who created the Horned God and then They, together, gave birth to all other gods and goddesses..

HERALDRY-- The science of describing a 'coat of arms' in such a manner that anyone who understands the language can draw that design. Witches often use a simpler from of herladry that ignors the rules to produce logos for their covens.
When Desert Henge Coven existed, we had as our Coven logo the following: Azure, a pentagram, argent, surrounded by a circle of 13 stones, natural (grey) and upright, the top two topped by a lintel, all surmounted by a crescent, argent.
My family, being Irish and direct descendants of Brian Boru, can claim the right to the O'Brien Coat of Arms. But my ex-wife, also an O'Brien, cannot despite the name because she isn't a descendent but a commoner with no such Arms. Many companies make a lot of money from selling "Coats of Arms" to people with a similar name regardless of relations or rights.

HERB-- Any plant used for magickal or healing purposes.
Many pharmacutical companies will hire someone whose only job is to travel the world to find the local Witches to learn their herbal cures. These would then be taken back, refined and processed and made into a new miracle drug. An example of this is the old witche's potion made from foxglove (digitalis purpurea) which was given to cure chest pains. Some chemist examined the plant and discovered digitalis.
There are many different names for the same herb or plant. Some of these are regional dialect, some are chosen to scare off or impress the gullible and some were descriptive of their magickal or medical use. Because of the differences in naming a plant, herbalists should write on the jar and lid the common name and the scientific name of each herb. Refer to mandrake (mandragora officinalis) for an idea of this confusion.

HERBAL-- A book which contains information about herbs and herbal magick or healing.

HERBALISM-- See herbcraft.

HERBCRAFT-- The use of herbs and plants in magick or medicine.

HERIDITARY WITCHES-- Those Witches who can trace their lineage from parent to child over generations. Compare with Traditional Witches.

HERMETIC MAGICK-- Magick that uses the mind instead of ritual and Tools, generally considered to be high magick and not psychics.

HEX-- A short term 'curse' that is intermediate between the curse and fix. It is generally used to cure a specific condition and dissipates when that condition no longer exists. The term is derived from the German word 'hexen'.

HIEROS GAMOS-- (Greek) See Great Rite.

HIGH MAGICK-- Ceremonial magick generally derived from one of the judeo-xian magickal systems. It is generally used for the transformation of the magickian into a god-like state. Compare with Low magick.

HIGH PRIEST-- 1) Specificaly, the male leader of the Coven.
2) Any male Witch of the Second or Third Degree

HIGH PRIESTESS-- 1) Specifically, the female leader of the Coven.
2) Any female Witch of the Second or Third Degree.

HIGHER SELF-- In many traditions, that part of the mind that relates to the spirit or superego or parent or....

HIVING OFF-- The process where some members of a Coven leave to form a Coven of their own. Generally done under pleasant circumstances because there are too many members in the original Coven, the act of Hiving makes the original HPS and HP a Witch Queen and Witch King/Magus.

HOLY-- Sacred. This can be used to refer to an object (the Athame) or a place (Avebury) or an image (The statue of Diana of the Ephesians) or a ritual (Doreen Valiente's The Charge of the Goddess) or a vision.

HOLY GRAIL-- See grial, holy

HOLY STONE-- A stone with a natural hole. Hung by a red string, they are good luck and represent The Goddess.

HOLY STREGA, THE-- (Italian) The term that refers to Aradia in Italian Wicca.

HOOD, ROBIN-- ( c 12th century) A famous outlaw who, during the Middle Ages, was supposed to have robbed from the rich and given to the poor. By Wiccan tradition, Robin Hood and Marion were the High Priest and High Priestess of a Coven of Witches who were fighting a war of survival against the christians of the time. This is born out by contemporary Witch trial records accusing Witches of meeting with Robin of the Hood, Robin Wood, Robin of the Wood and so on, all of these being euphamisms for the High Priest of the Witches. This concept was explored by the British TV series, Robin Hood which was shown on PBS and was collected by many Witches.

HOODED ONE-- (Italian) The title of the Stag-Horned God.

HOODOO-- A combination of West African Voooo with West European folk magick.

HOPKINS, MATTHEW-- (c 17th century) A 17th century English Witchfinder who was a failure as a lawyer so in 1645 turned to hunting Witches for a living. Hopkins would enter a village, claiming to have a 'black book' listing all the Witches of England, and for a fee, would capture them. He would then choose his victim and torture them into confession. He originally used swimming but had to discontinue throwing bound women into a river as this was illegal. So he resorted to modern police methods of interrogation which usually worked to elicit a false confession. His preferred method was Pricking where he would take an object similar to an ice pick and repeatedly stab the suspect until a confession was made. Hopkins was credited with inventing the false bodkin to ensure proof of witchcraft.
After executing several hundred innocent people, Hopking retired and died of TB an old man.

HORNED CROWN-- The Crown of the High Priest in Wicca worn to symbolize his position. It generally has antlers or horns.

HORNED GOD-- The primary diety that is worshipped by Witches. The earliest drawings that we have of Him are some 15,000 years old. He is always shown with horns or antlers as a sign of His divinity and ties to nature. These may be goat horns, cattle horns or stag antlers. Often He has Cloven hoofs like a goat, bull or stag and when naked, as is common among the ancients and modern Traditionals, He is shown to be ithyphallic.
Note: Ithyphallic is a term that refers to a God as being sexually erect because Traditionals see nothing wrong with this aspect. In fact one HPS I know purchased a God statue once and complained that it wasn't 'anatomically correct'. The salesperson stated that He wasn't 'aggressively masculine'. The HPS, a Gardnerian, saw nothing wrong with Old Horny being aggressively anything and would gladly have done her pleasurable duty had He approached her. But she purchased the statue anyway and made a long distance call to her ex-boyfriend in California to get an accurate description of the missing part. I asked why didn't she simply call me over to model?
See Great Mother Goddess.

HORUS-- (Egypt) The falcon-headed god of Egypt who was the God of wisdom. In Egypt His name was Hor and His primary aspect was as a Sun God. He was one of the oldest and most common of the Egyptian Gods as the word for 'god' is a drawing of a falcon on a perch.
When the early Israelites lived in Egypt, they accepted the Egyptian religion as their own (Judiasm wasn't conceived until the time of Moses and not really formalized until the 600's b.c.e. with the decrees of king Joshiah) and Horus still survives in Caballah teachings as the Solomonic spirit, Florus.

HP-- The abbreviation used by many Witches to refer to the High Priest of the Coven.

HPs, HPS-- The abbreviation used by many Witches to refer to the High Priestess of The Coven. Gardnerians often use the HPs form.

HP/S-- An epicene term to refer to the facilitator of a rite without regard for the gender of the Priest or Priestess performing that action.

HUMILITY-- In Wicca, an awareness of the greatness and smallness of oneself .

HYDROMANCY-- Divination through the use of water.
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I CHING-- (China) A method of divination using yarrow (achillea millefolium) sticks or three coins. It was developed in China and was popular in America in the 1920's and is making a comeback.

ICTHYOMANCY-- Divination by fishes.

IDOL-- An image or representation of a God or Goddess. Pagans admit to worshipping idols or in some cases, the reality behind the image. Christians, muslims and jews worship idols in opposition to their stated objections to same.

IDOLOMANCY-- Divination by idols, statues, images or figures.

IMAGE MAGICK-- Magick that uses a representation of the target as a focus or object link. The most famous of these is the poppet though many modern Witches use photographs because it is easier to get a photo than an object link.

IMATATIVE MAGICK-- A form of magick wher the actions of the spell resemble the desired results. An example is a hunting spell where the hunter would use a toy bow to stalk and shoot a poppet of a deer in order to bring success in an upcoming hunt.
One of the earliest of such spells was found in a cave in France dated at about 10,000+ bce and is actually a death curse on a cave lion.

IMBOLC-- One of the Four Greater Sabbats of Wicca. Celebrated on February 1 or 5, it comes from the Celtic word meaning "in the belly", it celebrates the recovery of the Goddess after giving birth to the Sun-God. It also celebrates the first stirring of Spring and the lengthening of the days. It is pronounced "imm-OL-g". Traditionally, Witches were Initiated on this day. It is also called; Candlemas, Lupercalia, Feast of Pan, Feast of Torches, Feast of the Waxing Light, Oimelc, and Brigit's Day.

IMMANENT-- The attitude that the Gods exist as an integral part of Nature and cannot be separated from or avoided by people. Pagan Religions are based on the immanence of Divinity and state that They are here, in nature, and not in some mythical 'heaven'.

IMP-- (Medieval) See familiar.

INCANTATION-- A set of magickal words or phrases that is used during a magickal spell. They are best spoken in rhyme.

INCARNATE-- A spirit that dwells within a physical body.

INCARNATION-- One lifetime upon the earth. The soul will incarnate into a physical body, remain there until death, then reincarnate back upon the material plane for another lifetime. Often this is seen as an education, Buddhists see it as a prison, Witches see it as an adventure.
I have just seen my daughtor's religion book from a catholic school which defines Incarnation as 'the taking of a human body and soul by god the son.' Well, what can you expect from a church that waited until the 1980's to finally admit that the Sun is the center of the Solar System.

INCENSE-- A tool that is composed of herbs and is used to symbolize air. When burned in the censer it's purpose is to banish or attract non-material entities depending on the ritual and composition of said incense.

INCH-- A measure of length equal to the width of your thumb. See tum. About 1". See measurements.

INCUBATION-- A vision quest performed alone in a temple or other holy area in the hopes of receiving a divine message.

INCUBUS-- A male non-material entity in human form called up for the purpose of sexual activity. See Succubus.

INFUSION-- An herbal potion or tea usually made from one half ounce of herb to a pint of water. Note that it is important to always add the herb to the boiling water and not the water to the herb. Nor should you boil water with the herb already added.

INITIATION-- A ritualistic rebirth marking the beginning of a new phase of life as a Witch. In Traditional Wicca, they are extremely stressful and force the Initiate to face their fears and the Gods.

INNER PLANES-- The astral, mental and other such non-material planes that compose the human body.

INNER TEACHINGS-- That body of Wiccan knowledge that is given ONLY to Initiates.

INNNOCENT VIII, POPE-- ( 15th century) A catholic pope who reigned from 1484 to 1492. He is infamous for authorizing the Malleus Malificarum that turned the Inquisition from christians against Witches.
Few know that Innocent VIII, born Giovanni Battista Cibo in Genoa, Italy in 1432, had two children by his mistress and in his later life lived on milk that he drank from a womans breasts. Four young children were drained and killed in an early experiment in blood transfusion to prolong the life of this man.

INQUISITION-- See Burning Times.

INSECURITY-- Those Covens that worship Skyclad have one major problem, insecurity. From experience I have found that, generally speaking, men are willing to show off but are afraid that every other man in the Coven is better hung than they are (they are right, of course) and women are afraid that every woman is thinner and firmer and more endowed than they are (also true). Cowan husbands of Witches are afraid that their wives will see so many incredibly well hung men and have so much great sex that they will never be satisfied with their inadequate husbands again (also true). Cowan wives are afraid that their Witch husbands will see so many 18 year old sex-pots with firm breasts and flat bellys and no wrinkles, scars or cellulite that they will think their wives ugly (also true). For some reason, a cowan wife is not afraid of her husband having sex orgies with a dozen women in the Circle, I guess that is because they know what their husbands are like in bed and know that despite his complaints and bragging, he couldn't do half of what he wants. I guess that she has never undergone the energies of a good Ritual where ALL MEN are hung to their knees and can cum a dozen times a night and ALL WOMAN are thin and built and nymphos.
P.S. I wrote this definition especially for one overweight, 50+, partly transexual wiccan who had the bad form to write an article stating that s/he worked Robed because she didn't want the men in her Coven 'getting off' on his/her body in a Skyclad Circle.

In reality, people in my Coven ranged from 22 to 65 and from 90 lbs to 200+ lbs. Few, male or female, were what I would call drop dead gorgeous. They were simply avarage people with all the avarage physical faults that are possessed by all. I am personally too busy before and during the Rite to look (It's a LOT of work being a HP) and during Cakes and Wine, I forget to do so. To those new to Skyclad worship I say, "Stare at us all you want BEFORE the rite. Get it out of your system now because in 15 minutes nudity will become boreing and we need your concentration on the Rite and not on yours or someone elses genitalia. If you can't forget that tit or cock staring at you, you need to go back to Novice classes and learn concentration and focus because you definately do not belong in my Circle."

INSTA-WITCH-- A derogatory term that refers to those people who are xian on Friday, see a book on Witchcraft on Saturday, read it Saturday night and form their own coven on Sunday claiming all manner of religious incompatabilities.

INTUITION-- Knowledge gained without logical thinking. Probably one's psychics kicking in.

INVOCATION-- Words or phrases that are used to call down a non-human entity or God. Compare with Evocation.

IO-- (Greek) A cry of celebration or triumph. It was originally pronounced 'YO!" but modern Wiccans pronounce it "EE-oh!" as in "IO PAN!" during certain God rites.

ISIS-- The Egyptian Mother Goddess. Many pagans and Wiccans see Her as the ultimate Great Mother and so a representative of the Goddess. She is more popular among Eclectic Witches than among Traditional Witches whose Traditions are derived from Celtic lands instead of Egyptian. Xianity passed a number of laws against the worship of Isis because She was so popular that people went to Her shrines instead of the xian churches. Mary was elevated to veneration partially becuase of this insistance to worship a Goddess.

ISIS POSITION-- see Goddess Position.

ISOBEL GOWDIE-- See Gowdie, Isobel.

ITHYPHALLIC-- In the American media, with it's puritan ethic, you can see a woman with naked breasts and erect nipples but if you ever see a naked man, it will be a rear view. On those very rare times when you see a man frontal, he will have a flaccid (limp) penis. This is because far too many people consider the penis to be 'an aggressive organ'. See Michangelo's David in the original and in the rip-off copies that put a fig leaf over the important part.
In paganism, the Gods of Nature are shown to be magnificantly erect which is exactly what Ithyphallic means. This is because Pagans should have no hang-ups about sex. We accept that our Gods and Goddess have sex, make love and occasionally fuck as well. In Wicca, the universe was created when the Goddess seduced Her Brother, the Horned/Sun God, became pregnant and gave birth to the Universe.
Many pagans are faced with a problem when purchasing religious statues in that the artists castrate the Gods. Without a phallus, there can be no fertility and the world ends so we end up purchasing these emasculated pieces of 'art' and then rendering them anatomically accurate and erect.
When I was married to Patti she remarked that she wished that I would hide my naked God statues from the children. I remarked "why is nudity wrong but acceptable for them to pray to an instrument of torture and execution?"
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JAMES I, KING-- (16-17th century) Originally King James VII of Scotland, he later becamse James I of England. Although James originally disbelieved in Witchcraft, his fight with Francis, Earl of Bothwell, made him a believer. James is creditied with writing the King James Version of the Bible but he actually hired a number of biblical scholars to create an accurate translation into English. He made two rules, though. #1 was that the bible had to be a protestant bible and any passage that seemed to support the catholic church had to be changed to support the protestant church and #2, the bible had to condemn Witches whenever possible.
As an aside, when James was presented with the book and bill, he accepted the book and tore up the bill, refusing to pay for the work he had hired these people to perform.
James passed some of the most repressive anti-Witch laws in English history in 1604.

JEWELRY-- The Crown, Bracelet, Necklace and Cord worn by a Witch during a ritual.

JINN-- (Islam) A non-material entity that may take human form and be bound to a megickian for a set time or set of conditions. The genie in a bottle is a hold-over of the jinn.

JOAN OF ARC-- ( 15th century) Born in France, she was unusual in that she was a woman who raised an army to fight the British. She was even more unuisual in that she won often enough to become beloved by almost everyone. There are over 4,000 works written about Joan who was later to be cannonized a saint by the catholic church.
Witchcraft claims her for one of our own as she received her education from the fairies under a tree used by Witches during their rites. She never used the word 'god' but preferred to say 'My Lord'. She received her mission to free France from a naked man whom she met at the Fairies Tree. She did magick and used divination to win her battles both on and off the battlefield. And she had a reputation as a Witch long before the British burned her as a Witch in 1431.
Her execution was unusual as the English hanged Witches and had she been simply a French soldier, they would have shot or hanged her. But when taken to the pyre, the hangman set the fire to burn her clothes off, then he lowered the flames so that the crowd could see her naked body and watch her die slowly, then he burned her body in a manner that was un-English like but common in France for Witches. She was 20 years old when she died.

JOSHIA, KING-- King of Israel in the 7th century b.c.e., he is famous for forcing the Israelites to stop worshipping the Goddess around 621 b.c.e.
Around 586 b.c.e. when Babylon conquered Israel, many Israelites considered this as a sign of the ineffectualness of jehovah who didn't protect them from conquest and the power of the Goddess who did when She had Temples. Many Israelites then returned to Her worship.

JUJU-- (West Africa) See fetish.
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KABALA-- (Hebrew) In its simplest form, the Jewish magickal system that incorporates the Tree of Life as a means of understanding the universe. Also Caballa znd Cabbala.

KARMA-- (Hindu) Holdovers from a previous lifetime. Actions in this life that are the result of previous acts. Eclectic Witches prefer this to the older Wiccan Fate.
Often misunderstood as reward and punishment, it is nothing of the sort.

KARNAYNA-- See Cernunnos.

KERFAN-- See kirfane.

KERFAIN-- See kirfane.

KERFIN-- See kirfane.

KERIDWEN-- (Celt) See Cerridwen.

KERN-- (Italian) The Stag-Horned God. Probably a cognate with Cerne or Herne.

KERNUNNOS-- See Cernunnos.

KEY OF SOLOMON-- A set of magickal books (the Lesser Key and the Greater Key)which were supposedly written by King Solomon of Israel but appeared quite a few centuries later. A lot of Traditional Wiccan magickal usages can be traced to the Keys although this may be because Witches and Jews helped each other escape the xian holy inquisition and there was a trade of knowledge between them.
Many modern Witches use the Key as a referance or a historical work instead of an actual grimoire despite the tracing of many of our workings directly from this work.

KIRILIAN PHOTOGRAPHY-- The process where the aura may be photographed under varying conditions to demonstrate psychics, healings or spirituality.

KIRFANE-- (source unknown) Refers to the White-Hilted-Knife that is used by Witches for cutting. This knife is often confused with and referred to by the term and knife 'Bolline'. This term was discovered in the literature by the HPS of DHC and introduced into Desert Henge Coven vocabulary around 1990 to describe, in a more poetical manner, this tool. It has since spread to the vocabulary of other Witches.
It is interesting to note that the Sikhs possess a small sacred knife called a kirpan which the hide in their turban and which may be related to the Kirfane. Kirfan is Anglo-Saxon for "to cut" and is pronounced 'kar-fahn'.
Other spellings are curfain, curfane, kerfain, kerfan, kerfin, and is pronounced 'kerr-faign' or 'kar-fahn'' or 'ker-fahn'. Also Kerfan, Kerfain and Kerfin.

KLINGON WICCA-- (c 1995) A new Tradition that seeks to combine Wicca with the Star Trek phenomenom. As Wicca is the only major religion that has no devil or war god, one wonders how it can be combined with a fictional people who glorify war and battle. Klingon Witches perform their rites in the Klingon language, use nasty looking triple bladed knives for Athames and wear klingon armor in their rites. Only time will tell if this is a fad, a joke or, like the Discordian religion, a wave of the future.

KNIFE AND CHALICE-- See the Great Rite.

KOAN-- (Buddhist) A question which on the surface seems simple and obvious but after years of meditation, produces deeper meanings. The most famous of these is "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" In America we use the koan "If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around, does it make a noise?" Wicca has it's own version of the Koan but most Wiccans ignore the benefits of contemplation and go for the easy answer.

KYTELER, DAME ALICE-- ( 14th century) Although there were few Witch trials in Ireland, the Kyteler case stands out for its unusual nature. Dame Alice was a wealthy woman who is said to have performed magick to ensure the safety and wealth of her children. When bishop Richard de Ledrede of Ossory ordered her arrested for Witchcraft in 1324, she responded by having him thrown into jail. This act was doubly strange in catholic Ireland where a catholic bishop had more power than the king. The fact that she was able to resist him for so long shows the power of this woman.
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LABIOMANCY-- Divination via the size and shape of a woman's sexual organs. Another form of divination I invented. See Priapomancy.

LABRYS-- The double-headed axe found painted all over crete. It has been taken as a symbol for womans religion.

LADY-- 1) a title for the Goddess in Wicca.
2) A title for the High Priestess while she is possessed by the Goddess during a Wiccan ritual.
3) (Eclectic) Many wanna-be wiccans call themselves in public "Lady whatever" in an attempt to give some excitement to their otherwise dull and empty lives. Traditional Wiccans only use the title in Ritual or in Craft business.

LAMMAS-- One of the four Greater Sabbats of Wicca falling on the Evening of July 31. It celebrates the bounty of nature and so is a harvest festival. It is also called Lughnasath or Lughnasadh (pronounced Loo-na-sa).

LAMP-- See candle.

LAMP OF ART-- See candle.

LAMPADOMANCY-- Divination by lamps and candles. This form requires a flame and is not used with incadescent lamps though flourescant lighting may be possible because the frequency of the bulbs duplicates the frequency of the brain. Be careful, though, because flourescant lights cause irritability, headaches, psychosis and have been known to induce epileptic siezures in sensitive persons.

LAND OF FAERY-- The Sidhe or land between the material world and the fantasy world. In Wicca it refers to the Summerland and/or certain of the Astral Planes.

LANDMARKS-- The requirements which establish a person as free and able to follow the Craft.

LAW ENFORCEMENT-- One major problem that occurs within the Pagan Religions is the interactions that we have with the police. To us, we are simply trying to experience our Consitutional rights to Freedom of Religion. To the avarage cop, we are a bunch of potential criminals who are running around with weapons (Athames) that they would dearly like to see outlawed. Bigotry and ignorance are rife in the law enforcement profession which would rather look for some mass conspiracy than actually protect people's rights.
Note: this may be a bit rough on the law enforcement officers but after being raised by a 28 year veteran police officer, working in the court system for over 14 years, being a consultant to the police on 'occult' matters, speaking at police seminars and helping to train police in the truth, my personal experience as well as that of other Witches who have made similar attempts is that the avarage cop very quickly learns that the Constitution and Bill of Rights are an easily avoidable encumberance to a person who wears a badge and gun. After one police seminar I spoke at, the facilitator came up to me and apologised for her fellow cops who, as she put it, "Wore their badges and guns on the ends of their dicks."

There is a story that I heard recently that shows this attitude perfectly:
The FBI, the CIA, and the LAPD (Los Angeles Police Department) are all trying to prove that they are the best at apprehending criminals. The President decides to give them a test. He releases a rabbit into a forest and each of them has to catch it.
The CIA goes in. They place animal informants throughout the forest. They question all plant and mineral witnesses. After three months of extensive investigations they conclude that rabbits do not exist.
The FBI goes in. After two weeks with no leads they burn the forest, killing everything in it, including the rabbit, and they make no apologies. The rabbit had it coming.
The LAPD goes in. They come out two hours later with a badly beaten bear. The bear is yelling: "Okay! Okay! I'm a rabbit! I'm a rabbit!'

Lest you think I am an far too hard on the police, ask around to see how Witches perceive the police after they have been unjustly harassed by those who took an oath to protect us and our rights. Remember that the LAPD got into trouble NOT because they beat Rodney King when he was handcuffed and helpless on the ground; they got into trouble because they were filmed doing it. Had no one taped the incident, no one would have complained. And in Tucson a few years ago, a large group of armed police officers possessing body armor shot to death an unarmed Hispanic man for the crime of being drunk and tossing a few rocks. And FBI tapes 'appear' to show FBI agents in Waco Texas machine-gunning unarmed Branch-Davidian women and children who were attempting to escape that burning building.

LAW OF CONTAGION-- See contagion, law of.

LAW OF RESPONSIBILITY-- See responsibility, law of.

LAW OF RETURN-- See return, law of.

LECANOMANCY-- Divination by a basin of water.

LEECH-- 1) (Anglo-Saxon) A healer.
2) (biology) A worm-like creature that lives by drinking blood. Once used to drain blood from the sick, hence the application of the name to doctors, George Washington died from the application of too many leeches.

LEFT BRAIN-- that part of the brain that is devoted to logic and rationality. See right brain.

LEFT HAND PATH-- That type of lifestyle or magick that is concerned with evil.

LESSER SABBATS-- The four Equinoxes and Solstices. Yule, Ostara, Litha and Mabon. These are the original Sabbats worshipped by Witches before the Celts introduced the Greater Sabbats.

LEY LINES-- The currents of energy that criss-cross the earth. They can be tapped by the Witch to increase power or to send the spell a great distance.

LIBATE-- To pour a sacrificial drink on the ground or in a special libation bowl in honor of the God and Goddess. The idea is that all that we have comes from the Gods and so we should share with Them a part of our gifts. If this is done indoors in a bowl, the contents are later taken outside and given to the earth.

LIBATION-- See libate.

LICWIGLUNGA-- (Seax) the conjuration of spirits..

LIFE FORCE-- The energy that all living things possess.

LIGATURE-- 1) To bind as with a cord. Generally, in Wicca a certain type of cord magick and magickal training used by some Traditional Witches. It, like many of the paths, can be dangerous if misused.
2) A spell used to produce impotency in a man. I am unaware of a cooresponding spell for women. If you know of one, please let me know.

LILITH-- (Sumeria) A demon who was, in Jewish tradition, Adams first wife. She rebelled because she wanted to be equal to man and not a possession. Thus she ran away and was replaced with Eve who was more complacent and submissive. See Lilitu.

LILITU-- (Wicca) In Wiccan Tradition, Lilitu was the first woman, made by the Goddess and sent to Adam (the first man who had been made by jehova) to ease her lonliness. She ran away because Adam refused to grant her equality or let her get on top during sex and so she made a replacement man of clay to be her new partner. Christians are said to be the sons of Adam and Witches are the daughters of Lilith. See Lilith.

LINEAGE-- (Wicca) A historical fact of who Initiated Whom into a Tradition or Religion. Most Traditionals make a big deal of Lineage because your Lineage will tell a person what you actually know as opposed to what you think that you know. Since different people emphasise different things in their teachings, a Lineage derived from "***" indicates that you spend a number of years learning Ritual wheras a Lineage derived from "####" indicates that you slept your way to the Third Degree. As a result, many Witches 'invent' a Lineage in order to make themselves look better and more important to the newbees. Unfortunately, these invented people actually expect those of us with a real Lineage to believe their lies. Integrity people!!!
In British Gardnerianism, your Lineage is traced by the legal names of who actually did the Initiations, thus, I am Rik/Rick Johnson who was Elevated to the third Degree by Shelly R. who was Initiated by Paul M. who was Initiated by Margaret A. who was Initiated by Mary D. who was Initiated by John S. who was Initiated by Eleanor Bone was partner to Gerald Gardner.
In American Gardnerianisn (post Buckland), Lineage is traced by the Third Degree High Priestess who Drew the initiatory Circle and Craft names would be used. Thus I would be ***** who was Initiated by **** who was daughtor to ***** who was Initiated by **** who was Initiated by ***** whose Queen was ***** whose Queen was **** who was partner to Gerald Gardner. Sorry, I won't give full legal or any Craft names here.

LINK-- see object link.

LITHA-- The Wiccan Sabbat concerned with the Sun at it's high point. It is held on the Summer Solstice or June 21st and pronounced "LEE-ha". In ancient times, this Sabbat was called Beltane, though now it is generally called Midsummer or the Summer Solstice.

LITHIA-- See litha.

-LITHIC-- A suffex that means 'stone' and generally refers to an age of mankind. See Neolithic and Paleolithic.

LITHOMANCY-- Divination by stones.

LITTLE GALLOW'S MAN-- The plant mandrake (mandragora officinalis).
The reason that a man's pants cuffs were tied close around his ankles when he was hanged was because the act of hanging a person by the neck would cause them to orgasm, quickly followed by defecation and urination. The pants were tied to prevent the semen from dripping to the ground. It was believed that if the semen hit the ground, it would grow into a mandrake and so people would search for mandrake plants under the gallows.

LIVANOMANCY-- Divination by the burning of frankincense.

LOA-- (Voodoo) A Voodoo god or goddess.

LOGARITHMANCY-- Divination by logarithms.

LORD OF MISRULE-- During some Sabbats like Yule or Litha, one of the Coveners is appointed the Lord of Misrule. His job is to ensure that the games are fun and he has the authority to punish even the HPS for lack of entheusiasm during the Cakes and Wine. It is best if he has a warped sense of humor and a talent for the double entendre and satire. His symbol is often a wand with an air filled bladder with which he enforces his will.
He represents the chaos and disorder that occurs at various times of the year.

LORDS OF THE WATCHTOWERS-- In Wicca, The Guardians of the Four Quarters, also called The Mighty Ones. Little is known about Them and I refuse to expound further on Them other to say that you had better be in Their good graces.

LOVE APPLE-- The plant tomato (lycoperscion spp.).
It was once widely believed that tomatos were deadly poison. One day a couple of hundred years ago, a man took a bushel of tomatos to the steps of the city hall and declared that he would eat them in public. His doctor insisted that he was comitting suicide and called for the police to stop him, but before they could, he took a big bite from the fruit. Women fainted at the sight and men rushed to save him but he clamly ate the entire thing. By the time he had started on his third, the crown was laughing at the doctor and the tomato became a staple in our diet.

LOVE MAGICK-- That form of magick that concentrates on creating or enhancing or attracting love and lust between people. Although adult Witches prefer a spell to attract love, teenagers of both genders and all religions do love and lust spells on a specific person in violation of the Wiccan Rede.

LOVE POTION-- An herbal mixture that is designed to influence the emotions of a specific person favorably towards the caster of the spell. See philtre

LOVE SPELL-- A magick ritual used to attract and control the emotions and body of either a specific person or to attract anyone who is compatable to you. Although doing a love spell on a specific person is considered by most Witches as evil, there is a saying among Witches that "Being aWitch is trying to get rid of the result of your latest love spell!"

LOW MAGICK-- The simple magick used by the Witch. It uses simple tools like herbs, candles and cords and is done for personal reasons like healing, fertility or getting a job.

LOWER SELF-- In many traditions, that part of the mind that relates to the unconscious, id, child or the emotions and physical body together.

LUCK-- Energy that encourages good or bad to a person.

LUCKY HAND-- A collection of good luck charms.

LUGH-- (Celt) The Celtic Sun God. Also a name for the Horned God in His aspect of the Sun.

LUGHNASAD-- see Lammas.

LUNAR CALENDAR-- Most modern calendars are xian based with xian holidays. Many Covens are attempting to create a calendar that is specific to Wiccan holidays. Ideally, they name the month after the Full Moon that occurs at that time such as the Harvest Month is that month that begins at the New Moon before the Full Moon nearest the Autumn Equinox and ends at the New Moon after the Full Moon nearest the Autumn Equinox.
Lunar Calendars tend to be complex and mark important Wiccan days like the Sabbats, Esbats, historical dates of importance to Witches and so on.
There are a number of nameing systems used and Desert Henge Coven has produced a Wiccan Lunar Calendar for a number of years. We even created a lunar naming system specific to the desert. If anyone is interested in contributing Wiccan art to future editions, please let us know. We cannot buy the art but will send you a free copy of the calendar in which your art appears.

LUNAR CYCLE-- The 28 days that start at the New Moon and continue through the Quarter Moons, Full Moon and back to the New Moon. Each part of this cycle is used for a specific form or attitude of magick.

LUNAR GARDENING-- The science of planting certain crops or herbs by the appropriate phase of the moon. An example being that potatos are planted during the dark of the moon but apples are planted during the full moon.

LUNATION-- A single lunar cycle which begins with the new moon and ends with the next new moon.

LUPERCALIA-- (Greek and Roman) Celebrated on February 15, it is generally a fertility festival dedicated to Pan. It was a party festival where women were swatted with goat-skin scourges to promote fertility and licentiousness. It is occasionally celebrated in Tucson by female Witches.

LUPUS ERYTHEMATOSUS-- One of the diseases that cause arthritis. Symptoms include: swelling knuckles, the skin turns brown and leathery, sunlight sensitivity, the victim can come out only at night. Distinct reddend patches covered with greyish-brown scales may appear on the upper cheeks, nose, scalp, and the lips of the lining of the cheeks.
This may be one of the diseases that was confused with and may be the basis for Lycanthropy.

LYCANTHROPY-- From the Greek myth of King Lycos who was so cruel, the gods punished him by transforming him into a wolf. His name lives on as the technical term for the werewolf.
1) Although werewolves and Witches were often confused in the literature, they are generally two distinct matters. The true werewolf is a person who is cursed by the gods for some henious act to walk as a wolf. In some cases, a person uses a magick spell to transform into a wolf for various reasons.
Clinical lycanthropy is a psychological disorder based in sexual repression. It has been said that if the vampire is the ultimate in seduction, the werewolf is the ultimate in rape.
2) Some Witches astral project and may send their astral bodies into the body of a wolf for any of a number of reasons. Others are under the belief that they must send their astral body out in the shape of an animal and so choose the raven or wolf as such a form. If this is done, it is more to enable the sender to have a focus for their concentration than to play at shapeshifting.
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MAPPCAF-- One of the numerous Pagan Festivals that are held around the country, attracting hundreds of Pagans to share and socialize. For more information and a schedule of those well known festivals, I refer you to Circle Network, Box 219, Mt Horib, Wi, 53572 which acts as a self-appointed advertising house for the Festivals.

MABINOGEN-- Any of a number of collections of Welsh legends from the Celtic times and used as a basis for Welsh Wicca.

MABON-- ( may-BONE) The Wiccan Sabbat which celebrates the main harvest. In olden times homemade gifts or food were exchanged. It is held on the Autumn Equinox, around September 21.

MACCARONIC-- A poetic verse that is written in a mixture of languages. This may appear to give a certain savoir faire to the phrase but is a real pain unless you understand the language.

MACERATE-- To soak an herb in alcohol or oil.

MACHAROMANCY-- Divination by knives or swords.

MACROCOSM-- The universe, all that exists.

MAGE-- In ceremonial magick, a master magickian.

MAGIC-- Illusion done by conjurors and usually for entertainment. Compare with Magick.

MAGICK-- The ability and/or process of causing change to occur by non-material means. This may include psychic ability enhanced through ritual actions.

MAGICK CIRCLE-- see Circle

MAGICK MIRROR-- see speculum.

MAGICK SQUARE-- A series of letters written in a specific order sothat they read the same in different directions. They are powerful talismans of magick. The SATOR square, being one, is made to prevent fires and thieft.
S A T O R
A R E P O
T E N E T
O P E R A
R O T A S

MAGICKAL ARTS-- Any of the systems of magick used to make a change in self or environment.

MAGICKAL THINKING-- The method and attitude used to perform magick.

MAGICKIAN, MAGICIAN-- One who is skilled in magick.

MAGISTILLUS-- Literally 'little master'. Christian Inquisitors made a great deal of an old lady, abandoned by her family and society, turning to a pet for love (modern research has proven that simply petting a cat is healthy and will extend health and life ) which they called 'a devil' who was watching her for 'the devil'. See familiar.

MAGUS-- 1) A male magickian of high prank.
2) (Gardnerian) The second title given to male Witches of a high rank. It is the male equivalant to the Witch Queen. In Gardnerian Wicca, it is a purely honorary title held by the Working Partner of the High Priestess who is a Witch Queen, thus no man can be a Magus alone. See Witch King.

MAIDEN-- 1) The younger of the Three Aspects of the Goddess. She is referred to as the Virgin (not virgo intacta) because she, in this aspect, has no husband. She represents the unrestrained sexuality and freedom of youth as well as the new-found life in the world as well as the joys of a woman who answers only to herself and is not 'owned' by a husband or father or son as is usual in patriarchial societies like America.
2) In Wicca, the woman who is the assistant to the High Priestess. She is essentially a young woman who is a High-Priestess-in-training who takes over when the High Priestess cannot function.
3) The woman who rules at certain Spring Sabbats.

MAJOR ARCANA-- (tarot) The 21 cards in a tarot deck that represent divine influences.

MALANDANTI-- (Italian) The 'evil' witches who sought to overthrow the current political system in Italy and bring the country back to the worship of the Goddess.
Generally, any one who seeks to overthrow the system is a terrorist and evil. If they win, they are a patriot and good. Menachim Begin, the former Prime Minister of Israel was a terrorist when he fought for Israel's independence in the 1940's. After he won, history called him a hero. Think about George Washington.

MALE ENERGY-- The energy transformed by the male body. It is active, constructive and aggressive. Yang.

MALEFICIA-- See Black magick or Left Hand Path.

MALKIN-- A medieval term of a familiar in the shape of a cat.

MALLEUS MALEFICARUM-- The Witches Hammer was published in 1486 and is considered by Witches to be the most evil book ever written. Written by two dominican monks, Jakob Sprenger and Heinrich Kramer who firmly believed in the evils of Witchcraft, this work is devided into three sections. Part 1 describes the evil of Witchcraft and states that if you don't believe what they say, you are guilty. Part 2 is a list of the fancifle evils supposedly perpetrated by Witches and Part 3 is a 'how to' guide for torturing a confession out of a suspect.
The actual impact of this work is often understated but it was the one of the first books actually printed on the newly invented printing press and so had a much wider dissemination than it would have had had it been hand-copied as were prior works. Becasue of this printing, everyone had to have a copy just as today everyone had to have a cabbage patch kid or beany baby when they were popular.
Most Witches who read this work do so in the bathroom so that they can get sick in a room with a toilet. People like Montague Summers love the work. I suspect that Hitler may have treasured a copy.

MANIFEST-- To create.

MARGARET MURRAY, DR-- See Murray, Dr Margaret.

MARKERS-- Various historical scenes discovered theough astral projection through time which help one find your way.

MATRIARCHAL-- A society which is ruled by women. There are no martiarchal socienties today although the Amazons of Greek history may have been matriarchal. Contrast this with patriarchal where men rule. Almost every muslum society is patriarchal.
Many covens are matriarchal in design.

MATRIFOCAL-- Influenced by women or a society where women have a disproportionate say in life. Navajo indians are matrifocal.
This contrasts with Patrifocal where men make most of the decisions. America is a patrifocal society.
Almost every modern coven is matrifocal.

MATRILINEAL-- Societies where descent is traced from female to female. Contrast this with patrilineal where descent is traced through the father. America is patrilineal (we do take our father's name).
American Gardnerians are matrilineal.

MATTER-- Energy that manifests itself in such a way that it appears to be solid.

MATTHEW HOPKINS-- See Hopkins, Matthew.

MEASURE-- The string that is used to mark the body parts during a Traditional Wiccan Initiation. This is the ultimate Object Link.

MEASUREMENTS, BODILY-- In the old days, most measurements were taken from the human body. If you wanted to know how many feet a wall was, you simply set your feet down one after another and counted them and that was the required measurement. Obvioulsly, as peoples bodies were different (my foot is 8 1/2" but my 16 year old son has a 12" foot. Obviously I encourage in him a tendency towards barefoot.), arguments occurred. So King Henry VIII made the law that stated that his body measurements were the official and legal measurements in England. And so these measurements became standardized until the metric system was developed.
In Wicca, Tools are intensely personal items and so are traditionally measured according to the owners body. A Wand is one Ell long, the Athame blade is one spann long and so on.
Common Wiccan measurements are: ell, yard, cord, palm, hand, foot, finger, spann, inch, etc.

MEDICINE MAN-- (Native American) That person among the American Indians who possessed some spiritual, religious or magickal powers similar to Witches.
There are a number of 'white indians' who pretend to honor Native Americans by doing faked and watered down 'indian' rituals such as sweat lodges but who have not earned the right to do so.
One of my students was Darlene, the daughter of the Medicine Man for the Cherokee Nation and whenever she saw some white guy posing as a medicine man, she would swear them out in Cherokee and considered them to be lowest of the low. In her eyes, these people stole the Indian land, culture, language and now the religion with no idea of how these rites were to be done and not even caring that they were raping Indian religions.

MEDITATION-- A focused form of relaxed concentration in which the person allows the mind to go inward, changing emotional states or achieving an insight not normally possible while in a normal waking state.

MEETING-- A term used for any gathering of Witches. Compare to working.

MEGALITHIC-- A ritual site made of very large stones. Stonehenge is the most famous example of a Megalithic Stone Circle, Avebury the largest.

MEGALITHIC YARD-- A theoretical measurement for the ancient Stone Cicles of Great Britain. It is believed to be 2.72 feet or 0.82 meters long. If true, most ritual Circles are based upon the Megalithic Yard. If so, then the modern Wiccan Circle should be 3 Megalithic yards in diameter (8.16 feet) instead of the Traditional Nine Feet.

MELITIUS, ABBOT-- (7th century) An early christian missionary who around 601 c.e. was told by pope gregory that when he reached England, he should not destroy the pagan temples but rather steal them, build a church on that spot and invent a holiday to compare with the pagan one and a saint to compare with the local God/dess. Thus all saints day and all souls day were stolen from Samhain, easter was stolen from Ostara, christmas was stolen from Yule, etc. The Goddess Bride was changed into the saint Brigit and people who never existed such as saint christopher were invented.

MELRAWD-- In Wicca, the period when the Novice begins to unlearn the mundane thinking process and learns the magickal way of Thinking. A time of intense learning.

MENHIR-- A standing stone of Europe. Wheras Great Britain prefered the Stone Circle, Western Europe preferred the solitary Menhir.
Most Menhirs were used to mark holy spots or to recharge Ley Lines. However some were used as a weather control device by grounding out potential lightening storms and so producing generally good weather with light rains.

MERLIN-- Although scholors argue as to the date and even the races of those in the Arthurian myths, we may presume that Merlin was a Druid and thus a Celt, who assisted Arthur (possibly a Celt as well) in the 5th Century in his efforts to stave off the Saxon invasions of England after the Romans puled out of Britain. Merlin was reported to be half human and half demon (or Witch? as the christians called all Wiccan High Priests devils) and the greatest magickian in the history of the British Isles.

MERRY MEET, MERRY PART-- A greeting used by Witches.

MESO-PAGAN--A term coined by Robin Goodfellow and used to refer to a religion which attempts to revive any of a various form of a paleo-pagan religion but are unable to completley give up judeo-christianity. Some examples are Masonic Druidism,Thelemic and some eclectic wiccans who still attend a xian church.

MESSENGER OF THE GODS-- (Gardnerian) That person who has been appointed the task of maintaining communication between several Covens in an area. See Summoner.

METAPHYSICS-- The philosophy behind magick and physics.

METEMPSYCHOSIS-- The proper term for reincarnation.

MICROCOSM-- The universe duplicated on a scale smaller than and within man.

MIDSUMMER-- See Litha.

MIGHTY ONES-- See Lords of the Watchtowers.

MISTLETOE-- A parasitic plant that grows on a number of plants. Called All-Heal by the Druids, it was so sacred that it could only be harvested by a pure person who cut it with a sacred sickle after having a proper sacrifice made under the tree. The mistletoe was then cut and caught in a white cloth to avoid it being contaminated by touching the ground.
In reality, the berries and leaves of mistletoe are highly toxic and anyone who makes a love potion with it is guilty of poisoning the person they are trying to seduce.
It is customary for people to kiss under mistletoe though Witches have a different idea of what to do.

MITHRAS-- (Persia) Around 1400 b.c.e. (another date given for this is 500 b.c.e.), a young virgin entered a cave in Persia that was being used as a livestock barn and on December 21, gave birth to Mithras, the Sun God. A star appeared to herald the birth and wise men approached to give gifts and worship. Sound familiar? Remember that Saul of Tarsus was a priest of Mithras and later came to be called Paul when he converted to what can be referred to as Pauline Judiasm or christianity.
Essentially, Mithriasm was a popular religion in the Mideast and its temples are found as far west as England (which has five surviving temples to Mithras). It was heavily influenced by Zoroastrianiam and was much more popular with the Roman Empire than christianity (which was a slaves religion). For but one incident, the world may today be Mithraic. That one incident occured in 324 c.e. when the Roman Emperor and his generals had a vision before a battle. The Generals saw Mithras and took it as a sign that they were blessed and would win the battle. Constantine saw jesus and, because he was Emperor and could kill anyone he wanted, forced the Empire to convert to christianity.

MIZ-MAZE-- A maze cut into the earth to symbolize the Goddess and the winding path to Her. Roman catholicism remembers this when the offer you the illustration of a winding and difficult path to heaven or a straight and easy path to hell. Those who swollow this catachesm ignore the catholic belief that you can be the most evil person on the earth and still goto heavenas a saint if you repent at the last minute or ask a priest to do the last rites (a spell which is supposed to guarantee your entry into heaven), a request that he may not refuse. This makes the earlier choice useless.
The miz-maze has no choices. It takes you closer and farther from the center but you will always arrive at your destination if you will just remain on the Path..

MOLACH-- (Canaanite) Once considered to be a god to whom the Canaanites and Phoenecians sacrificed their children, it has since been discovered to be a term that represents the concept of child-sacrifice. Generally, these children were killed then burned (or burned to death, I'm not certain) and their ashes placed into funerary jars. The custom existed up through the fall of Carthage after the Punic wars.
Lest we dwell too much on the barbarism of this custom, remember that in the Old Testament, Abraham was told by god to sacrifice his first born son. As he was about to do so, he was stopped by an angel and murdered a ram instead. This represents what is called an 'aetiological myth' or a story made up to explain a custom that is common in a people. In this case, the early Israelites were accustomed to sacrifice their first born sons to jehovah and the story of how easily Abraham was willing to comply shows how ingrained and common this practice was. However, the myth then shows that at about the time of Abraham, the Israelites began to cease child-sacrifice and replace it with animal sacrifice.
The Irish, and I suspect many other catholic peoples, had a similar custom. However, instead of killing the child, they gave one of their sons to the church who was then given a new name and expected to sever most of his relations with his former family. Again a form of child sacrifice. Since the Irish did this to ensure a job for at least one son and as a means of reducing the numbers of reproductive males and so limit the population (HAH!!! I have three uncles who are catholic priests and four aunts who are nuns and that celebacy rule never slowed the priests down), one wonders if the 'molach' custom had similar intentions in a world of limited resources and a rising population?

MOMMET-- See Poppet.

MONOTHEISM-- The concept of only one god, generally believed to be separate from man and nature.

MOON-- The symbol of the Triple Goddess in Wicca.

MOON CROWN-- The Crown worn by the High Priestess of a Coven of Witches as a symbol of her position and a symbol of the Goddess. Generally they are a silver band with a silver Crescent Moon worn at the forehead.

MOON VOID-OF-COURSE-- (astrology) That interval between the time when the moon has left one sign but has not yet entered another.

MOONWISE-- See Deosil.

MOTE-- Might, may. See So mote it be.

MOTHER-- That aspect of the Goddess which symbolizes the nurturing and procreative aspect of the Goddess. Her symbol is the Full Moon.

MOTHER SHIPTON-- ( 15th century) Born in 1488 in Knaresborough, Yorkshire, England, she was the illigetimate daughter of a poor begger woman and the High Priest of the local Coven. When the mother told him of her pregnancy, he promised to teach her certain spells in return for her being faithful to him. She agreed and they travelled together with her becoming well off.
The baby (who later became known as Mother Shipton) was born Ursula Sontheil and was described as deformed and ugly but healthy, however a contemporary woodcut shows her to be an attractive woman. The mother was locked up in a convent (generally a way of imprisoning a woman who could not be legally killed). Despite her appearance (she may have been wrongfully described as ugly as an attack by her rivals), Ursula married Toby Shipton and became a famous prophet in the same manner as Nostradamus, dying peaceably (unusual for a Witch in those days) in 1561.

MOUNT BROCKEN-- The highest peak in the Hartz mountains of Germany where Witches are reputed to gather.

MUNDANE-- In Wicca, pertaining to the everyday material world. Eclectic Witches use the term Mundane to refer to non-Wiccans. Compare with Cowan.

MURRAY, DR. MARGARET-- ( ? - ? ) An Egyptologist who wrote about Witchcraft in the 1920's. Her theory was that Wicca was an organized pre-christian religion that was persecuted by christianity because of it's allegiance to the Horned God. Her first work, The Witch Cult in Western Europe (1921) explored an amazing number of contemporary records to collect evidence on the Religion. Her second work, The God of the Witches (1931) explored the basic beliefs of the Religion and her final work, The Divine King (1954) explored the idea that many of the English Kings were secretly members of the Witch Religion.
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NARCOTIC-- Any of the herbs that induce sleep or a coma-like state.

NATURE-- The system of things on Earth of which we are a part.

NATURAL MAGICK-- See Nature Magick.

NATURE MAGICK-- The system of magick that focuses on the energies of the Earth, Sun and Moon and uses simple materials found locally.

NECKLACE-- The jewelry worn by female Witches as a sign of Initiation and as a symbol of rebirth. It should be designed with Wiccan concepts which I won't describe here.

NECROMANCY-- Magick, generally of an informational form, that concerns the dead. Talking to the dead is easy, getting them to answer is the hard part.

NECRONOMICON-- A fictional book invented by H. P. Lovecraft in his Ctulhu mythos. He, and other writers are prone to quote passages from the work and as a result someone is supposed to have collected every referance to the work and then filled in the spaces, thus publishing a Necronomicon. If so, I would love to have a copy. Ed Slater has published The Necronomicon, a book based on Sumerian magick for popular use. I still havn't decided if it is a complete or only a partial hoax. I even had a discussion with one student who had had an affair with a vampire who was convinced that the Necronomicon was a real and dangerous work.
Incidently, I admit to being a Necronommie which is like a Trekkie only we collect copies (real or fake) and other material related to the Necronomicon.

NEED FIRE-- A fire produced by friction and used to light a Bonfire at Beltane when steel was forbidden.

NEMI, LAKE-- An Italian lake and the location of an important temple to the Goddess Diana. It is called 'Diana's Mirror' because of the way it reflects the Full moon.

NEOLITHIC-- The 'new stone age' when man was using complex stone tools. This is when Wicca first appeared.

NEO-PAGAN-- Someone who belongs to one of the modern recreations of ancient religions.

NEOPHYTE-- See novice.

NEW AGE-- That series of complex religious movements of which Wicca is a part. Some christian churches are new-age because they see the value of adopting the concepts of freedom and psychics into their belief system.

NEW MOON-- The time when the Moon shows no face. A time of introspection and inner workings .

NEWBEE-- Someone who is brand new to the Craft and is trying so hard to be accepted by the older and more experienced people that you can't decide if you should hug them or laugh at their efforts.

NORTH BERWICK WITCHES-- See Bothwell.

NORTHWAY-- In Wicca, refers to travelling Widdershins within the Circle.

NOVEMBER EVE-- See Samhain.

NOVICE-- That 'degree' which allows the new Wiccan to learn the Craft before actually being Initiated. Few Covens have a Novice Degree but refer to new people as Novices.

NUMBERS-- One day my youngest daughter, Cerridwen, came to me from the catholic school that her mother forced her to attend (she kept trying to get kicked out like her brother did because they want her to quote the party line and not her own opinion) and asked that if the catholic church is as bad as I say, why is it the largest religion in the world? This from a school that gave one column in its history books to the Vietnam War which was a major turning point in American history. I replied that this info, like most that they teach her, was false. (NOTE: The wife of my insurance salesman was a certified Art teacher who, being catholic, wanted to teach art at a local catholic schol. The school told her that they would hire her to teach, not art, but math. She replied that she wasn't qualified to teach math and they said it was that or nothing. She spent a semester calling me on the phone, reading to me the book and having me explain the material to her and tell her how to teach it to her class. And this is the kicker... I am dyslexic and still count on my fingers.) In reality, according to my Almanac, Buddhism is the largest religion in the world, Hinduism the second largest, islam the third largest and christianity, including baptists, mormons, catholics, etc was only the fourth largest religion. Also islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. The Institute for the Study of American Religion is said to have found that Witchcraft is the fastest growing religion in America (based on 'conversion' and not births). Cerridwen has since still not learned to shut her mouth in class despite her inheriting my obnoxiousness and her mothers stubborn streak.

NUMEROLOGY-- The science of using the relationship between letters and numbers to determine psychological traits and future influences upon the individual. This is based upon the fact that older languages such as Hebrew and Latin had no numbers and so used letters to indicate a number (Rome used I-1, V=5, X=10 etc). This all names could be reduced to a single number which was symbolic and representative. There are three major numerologic systems, the Hebrew, the Modern and the Celtic.
According to numerology, simply by changing the spelling of your name, you can make profound changes in your life. For example, I was born Richard Lee Johnson Junior but dropped the Junior when I became an adult and in all Craft matters I used the name Rik Johnson. When my coven broke up, I changed my name to Rick Johnson. If you wish to send me a numerological chart of me, please feel free to do so.
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O

OBE-- See out-of-body-experience.

OBJECT LINK-- That object that is used by the Witch to enable the Witch to focus on the target of the magick according to the Law of Contagion.

OCCULT-- That which is beyond the range of everyday knowledge. The word literally means 'hidden' and has no negetive connotations.

OFFERING-- A gift to the Gods or a nature spirit in return for something given. An example is that when you harvest an herb, you leave something behind for the herb or it's deva to use.

OFFICER -- Those Witches who hold a position within the Coven.

OGHAM-- The alphabet developed by the Irish God Oghma. It is a series of lines across a base line and is used by some Witches as a cipher code or means of divination. It is also called Beth-Luis-Nion or Beth-Luis-Fearn after it's first three letters.

OIMELC-- See Imbolc.

OIMLEC-- See Imbolc.

OIMLED (SP?)-- See Imbolc.

OINOMANCY-- Divination by wine.

OLD HORNEY-- One of the nick-names for the Horned God. In Traditional Wicca, the Goddess is the Mother and is ALWAYS treated with respect. But the Horned God, though the father to the universe and possibly us as well, is treated with respect and mirth. We believe that the Horned God has a wonderful sense of humor and will often play jokes on people. I personally would not play naked leap-frog with the Horned God because the temptation for THAT kind of joke may be too hard for Him to resist.

OLD LINE -- See British Line.

OLD ONES-- See Lords of the Watchtowers .

OLD ORDER WITCHCRAFT-- ( c1955) A term used by some of those who used to work under 'Robert Cochrane' to refer to themselves and to differentiate themselves from the Gardnerian Witches who were becoming popular at that time.

OLD RELIGION-- See Wicca .

OMEN-- A sign that means something that is or will be important in a personal situation. For example, having a strange dog come up to you and be exceptionally nice to you as you are going to a job interview may be an omen that you will impress the personal director.

OMNI-BENEVOLENT-- (xian) The concept that anything and everything that a god does is good and cannot be evil. This is the established concept in monotheistic religions such as xianity where they pray to a just and loving god.
But if everything a god does is good, then the logical extension is that if that god is omnipotent, everything that happens must be good by definition. "Thank you god for only drowning three of my children in the flood and thank you god for making me live with the knowledge that my wife is screwing my best friend. Thank you god for giving me cancer and ruining my family with medical bills that they can never pay off. Thank you god for putting my family on the street because you, in your infinite goodness, have chosen to ruin my business. We thank you for your good works which we only perceive as evil because we are scum and deserve no better."
Pagans realize that the God and Goddess are not all good. They have their own reasons for doing what They do and even the Goddess may have PMS sometimes (She has, after all, as one of Her aspects, a Bitch Goddess) so sometimes it is best to just stay out of Their way. This also means that a flood happens and is neither good nor evil and She doesn't mean to wash away our home. She gave us a choice, told us that it was a flood plain and since we were stupid enough to build there, we obviously enjoy loosing all of our possessions. Not Her fault, but ours.
Now immediately compare this with Omnipotent.

OMNI-POTENT-- (xian) The concept that divinity is all powerful. Monothiestic religions tend to believe that their god is omnipotent whereas Pagan religions believe the opposite. To a Pagan and Wiccan, the God and Goddess are powerful, but limited. They want to help us but They need our help for Them to help. Thus to a Pagan, we tend to rely upon ourselves and call the Gods to assist our own efforts. And sometimes The Goddess blows it and mistakes happen. So we can take credit for our own efforts and blame for our own mistakes.
The logical argument used by Witches against omnipotence is thus: If the catholics are true and "not a feather falls from the wing of a bird that god does not brush it away", then EVERY action is directly caused by god. There is no free choice because omnipotence literally means ALL-CONTROLLING. There is no option for less. To have the potential for omnipotence and not use it is a contradiction for omnipotence. All or nothing.

Thus, the good you do is because god made you place that money in the can of that begger. God made you jump into that river to save that drowning child. God made you build your home in a flood plain where it will get washed away and he made the flood to wash it away. God made that rapist jump that woman and even is using one hand to hold the woman down while he pumps the rapists' hips up and down with the other. There is no free choice because god has already made it for you and is making you do what he has chosen for you to do.
Nor can there be a devil making you do bad things because god is making the devil do evil and making you follow him. The bottom line of this is that any god who can end all evil and poverty in the world with a single word and refuses to do so is not deserving of worship.
Now, immediately compare this with omnibenevolent.

OMPHILOMANCY-- Divination by the navel.

ONCE BORN-- An old Wiccan term for christians indicating that they seek to remove themselves from the Cycle of reincarnation and the Earth Herself and as a term of derision to show that the christian is only on their first incarnation and therefore not as enlightened as a Witch who has the experience of many lifetimes.

ONIROMANCY-- Divination by dreams.

ONOMATOMANCY-- Divination by names.

ONYCHOMANCY-- Divination by the finger and toe nails.

OOB-- See out-of-body experience.

ORACLE-- 1) A shrine built to and dedicated to a god or Goddess who is known for fortelling the future.
2) Anyone who can fortell the future with any accuracy. Many oracles work in an Oracle but some travel.

ORAL TRADITIONS-- The majority of religious and magickal teachings cannot be written down simply because we do not know how to write this information. To understand this better, consider Dance. You can read every book on the shelf about Ballet but you will NEVER be a ballerina by reading the books and doing what they or your inner guides tell you to do. Or take karate. No book can tell you how to break a board with the side of your hand. I can teach you this in person in 10 minutes but if you try from a book, you will break not the board, but your hand. Or take magick. No book can describe how to channel energy.
BUT, an accomplished teacher can teach you these things by talking to you, showing you and correcting your mistakes as they happen. Then you can do a pliet, break an board or heal an illness.
Books are designed to hold basic facts like what does Foxglove look like and is used for. They are there to add to your knowledge, not replace a teacher.
This is why Witchcraft is called an oral tradition because we don't know how to write it down and must pass the majority of the information on person-to-person. Also oral teachings.

ORAL TEACHINGS-- See oral traditions.

ORNITHOMANCY-- Divination by birds. See alectryomancy.

OSIRIS POSITION-- See God Position.

OSTARA-- A Lesser Sabbat in Wicca that occurs on the Spring Equinox or around March 21. Fertility and spring are celebrated at this time.

OTHERWORLD-- Another term for that place that lies beyond our material world. It is often used by Eclectic Witches to refer to the Sidhe or Fairy World and sometimes the Summerland.

OUT-OF-BODY-EXPERIENCE-- An incidence of astral travel.

OUTLIER-- A menhir that is outside a Stone Circle and is apparantly related to it either as a Ley Line recharger or as a sighting sone.

OWL TIME-- The 13th hour which was between midnight and one a.m.
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P

PACT-- A magickal agreement, generally between a person and a God.

PAGAN-- One who does not belong to any modern religion but chooses to venerate nature as divinity. Pagans can be paleo-pagan, neo-pagan or meso-pagan. All Witches are pagan but not all pagans are Witches.

PAGAN REDE-- An obscure term for The Wiccan Rede.

PAGANING-- A form of baptism of children used by pagans which is similar to the Witches Wiccaning.

PALEO-PAGAN-- The ancient original versions of the modern neo-pagan religions.

PALM-- A measure of length equal to the width of your hand without the thumb. About 3 1/2". See measurements.

PALMESTRY-- See chiromancy.

PAN-- The early Nature God worshipped by the Greeks before the Mycenian invasions. At that time, the conquerors imposed their Olympian religion upon the Greeks and Pan, along with the Titans, was relegated to a demi-God. His worship was centered in Arcadia and He was the God of nature, sex, parties and music and dance. He is the Greek version of the Horned God of the Witches and many modern Witches honor Him by calling the Horned God 'Pan' in public.
As an aside, Delia (one of DHC's HPS') Morgan (a use name) saw a statue of Pan in a fountain store one day. She loved the statue but was broke and so asked for a sign before she spent $125 that she couldn't spare. The store turned out to be on the corner of Speedway and Arcadia streets (see above). She still hesitated and asked for another sign and found an old uncashed check in her purse for exactly $125. Sometimes the Gods answer and when They do, you had better listen.

PANTACLE-- The older and more accurate term for Pentacle.

PANTHEISM-- Literally 'all gods', this is the idea that Divinity can and does manifest as a multitude of Gods and Goddesses, generally within nature.

PANTHEON-- That set of Gods and Goddesses that your religion worships.

PARENT COVEN-- A Coven which has allowed some of it's members to leave and form their own Coven, generally under the wing of the Parent Coven for a certain amount of time. The leaders of a Parent cven are giventhe honorary titles Witch Queen and Witch King (Magus).

PARTING OF THE WAYS-- This refers to a person who belongs to a Coven deciding that they no longer wish to be a member of that Coven for some reason. It also refers to the Coven removing that person from their Coven's membership rolls. This has no moral connotations. It generally means that this person may simply dislike someone in his/her Coven and feels that they cannot Circle with them and so chooses to leave. Or it may men that this person refuses to work Skyclad in a Coven which requires that practice. All attempts to resolve the problem have failed and so they simply resign and seek elsewhere. The Witch is still a member of the Craft and Tradition and retains all of the benefits and ranks to which they have attained.
This does not refer to them leaving the Tradition either, if they were Gardnerian, they still are. They simply are no longer a member of that particular Coven. They may even guest and socialize with their former Coven at times. Refer to Shunning for other referances.

PARTY PAGAN-- A person who is attracted to Wicca and paganaism for the sole purpose and desire to rebel and show off. Party pagans are those who last month were into D&D, this month are witches and next month will be into the SCA. Party pagans are identified by their refusal to study the Craft, their desire to form a coven as the HP/S after reading one book and by wearing 'witchy' clothes like black, tons of 'occult' jewelry and having their bodies pierced and tattoo'd. Party pagans brag constantly about how powerful they are but when it comes down to dedication, party pagans leave for another fad.

PASSING RITE-- A Wiccan funeral where the purpose is to do a spell to ensure that the soul of the dead will be reborn among his/her loved ones in the next life.

PATEN-- The proper term for the pentacle. Specifically, the Tool which resides on the Altar.

PATHWORKING-- See guided meditiation.

PATRIARCHAL-- A society that is ruled by men and gives women no power. Most islamic societies are patriarchal. Compare with matriarchal.

PATRIFOCAL-- Those societies where men have the majority of power and women have some. America is patrifocal. Compare with matrifocal.

PATRILINEAL-- Societies where descent is traced through the father and where children and often the wives take the father's name. European and American societies are patrilineal. Compare with matrilineal.

PEN OF ART-- A Tool used to write spells and sigils.

PENN, WILLIAM-- ( 17th century) The Governor of Pennsylvania (he named the state after his father) and a Quaker in the late 1680's. He is only mentioned here because some people brought to him an old lady, insisting that she be tried as a witch. When Penn asked her crime, the people said that she flew on a broom. Penn then replied that if they showed him a law that made it illegal to fly on a broom, he would arrest the witch, but until then, she was innocent and he ordered her release. I've always liked that story.
It is said that Quakers and Witches would help each other in times of need.

PENTACLE-- 1) The five-pointed star worn by Witches as a protection or as a sign of their religion. h
2) The Tool which represents Earth. It is Traditionally made of wax or clay so that it can be easily destroyed when the inquisitors kicked down the door. In modern Wicca, it is made of copper, though I have seen them made of etched glass and I, myself, have made them of carved and inlaid wood. They have a specific pattern of designs engraved on them. Pentacles represent earth and are a reservoir of power and a protection against almost everything non-material.

PENTACLE POSITION-- See Goddess position.

PENTAGRAM-- The five-pointed star as drawn or marked. The difference between the Pentacle and Pentagram is that the former is worn, the latter is drawn.
When shown with one point upwards, it represents the Goddess as well as Spirit above and more important than the material world. When shown with two points up, it represents the Horned God and our ties to the Earth of which we and He are a part.
Modern Witches are suffering from the modern satanists who have adopted the reversed Pentagram (two points up) to replace the reversed cross which is the traditional satanic symbol.
The pentagram is a complex symbol to draw and children are quite proud when they master the technique of drawing a star. Unfortunately, among fundies, the parents 'freak out' and denigrade the childs accomplishments under the guise that their devil is possessing their child.

PEOTL, PEOTE-- A hallucinagenic root that is used in the ceremonies of the Native American Church. It is under attack by the christians who see nothing wrong with making young children drink alcohol in their own ceremonies.

PERFECT LOVE AND PERFECT TRUST-- A term used by Witches to mean that you give to your Brothers and Sisters of the Art Love and Trust without fear or greed. This does NOT mean absolute gullibility and uncontrolled lust.

PHILTRE-- A potion made to produce a magickal effect. Generally referring to a love potion.

PHRENOLOGY-- Divination by using the shape of the head to indicate personality traits. Nazi Germany used phrenology to show that the Jews were not intelligent at all.

PHYLACTERY-- A talisman for good luck that consists of a leather box containing parchment with magickal symbols and worn around the neck.

PISCEAN AGE-- The last two-thousand years when the earth was ruled by materialism, greed and central authority as characterized by xianity.

PLANE-- 1) A state of consciousness or matter.
2) A dimension or subworld within the macrocosm.

PLANETARY DAYS-- Each hour of the week cooresponds to a specific planet such as Sunday relates the the Sun. This is useful in magick.

PLANETARY HOURS-- Each hour of the day cooresponds to a specific planet such as 6 am on Sunday is the hour of Jupiter and is a good time for magick that relates to a powerful person such as a boss.

PODOMANCY-- Divination by the feet.

POETRY-- Most of the time we, as humans, operate with the left side of our brain which is logical and speaks in literal prose very much as I am now writing. This also allows us to operate in beta which is a fast active brain frequency.
Unfortunately, religion, magick and psychics don't work well in the left brain or in beta, they operate best in the right brain which speaks in poetry and symbols and in alpha which is slower. As a result, most Wiccan spells and rituals are performed in simple rhymes and elaborate poems that are filled with allegory and symbolism. This allows us to free our mundane mind and fly freely into the realms of the Gods and so, enhance our spirituality.
To do this, Gardner introduced a number of arcaic terms and words into the religious vocabulary, many of which are still in use today simply because they work. Unfortunately, few people today actually know what a 'pege' is and so we never use these terms in our everyday lives and rarely in our ritual lives as well.
This is unfortunate as poetry speaks to the soul and that is where spirituality resides. (see arcahic terms)

POLARITY-- Two opposites which combine to form a greater whole such as male-female or microcosm/macrocosm.
Some gay witches are known for ignoring the physical in favor of the emotional and confuse 'working partners' with 'polarity'. The former is any couple who do magickand ritual together as a team. The latter refers to two opposites that combine to form a greater whole. If you mention the definition of polarity, you are branded a homophobic racist.
Most working partners in British Traditional Witchcraft require a polarized couple of one man and one woman.

POLTERGEIST-- German for 'noisy ghost' because of their habit of haunting a person and tossing objects around, these are not ghosts at all. In reality once the movements of the 'hauntings were charted, they were found to move in a spiral path around the target of the 'haunting'. Upon closer investigation, the target was almost always a pre-pubescent girl who was undergoing puberty and being pressured to 'be a good girl -vs- be a bad girl'. This contradiction in sexual desires combined with the new hormones flowing through her body caused her subconscious to lash out in frustration by telekinetically or psychokinetically levitating objects and tossing them around her as if she were the eye of a hurricane.
Although most poltergeist activity centers around teen-aged girls, men going through a mid-life crisis can manifest the activity as well.
Although many victims spend great deals of money on exorcisms, the only solution the the poltergeist is to solve the frustration that causes it. Get the girl to come to terms with her sex drives, have the man get a new job or a temporary mistress.

POLYAMORITY-- A concept accepted by a certain percentage of the pagan population and making inroads into Wicca. It is based on the general idea that humans are not swans, we don't mate with one person for life. These people establish a large 'group' marriage with a number of sexual partners similar to the old-style communes. The idea is far more complex than this and requires a great deal of personal security to make it work.

POLYTHIESM-- The concept that divinity is multiple and cannot be separated from nature. In reality this means that any and every God/ess that has ever been worshipped does, in fact, exist. Thus no Witch will ever tell you that your god is a fraud because we KNOW that s/he exists. The problem comes from the fact that there are simply too many of them to worship, so Witches state that it is better to worship the Horned God and Mother Goddess as the primal Dieties. Then, individual Witches will add to their personal pantheon, whatever God/dess that they happen to perfer this month. Thus, a Witch will generally have the Main Altar to the God and Gddess and a secondary Altar dedicated to Aphrodite in order to get a date or to Hermes in order for a safe journey for a friend or to Mannannan ap Lyr for help in a swim meet.

POOKA-- (Irish) A nature spirit that took the form oa a horse. Although more of a prankster than an evil force, Druids feared it. Any crops not gathered by Samhain were given to the Pooka because it would spit on them and poison them to human use.

POPPET-- A doll or image resembling the target of a spell used to focus the will and power. They may be made of clay, wax or in Gardnerianism, cloth and filled with herbs.
Although they have a bad reputation because of old 'voo-doo' movies, in reality they may be used to heal as well as curse. If you find one with a pin stuck through it's heart, be certain of what the poppet is for before you remove the pin. That pin may be preventing a heart attack and by removing it, you may kill the target. Also called a fith-fath or mommet.

PORTAL-- A door into another perception of reality or another dimension.

POSSESSION-- The act of a non-material entity entering into and taking over a human body. The most famous case is actually a fiction, I refer you to Linda blair in The Exorcist. In reality, most possessions fit very well into a Johari window where they can be actual or hysterical, voluntary or involuntary: 
As you can see, the vast majority of cases of possession are simple mental illness brough on by an outside agency. The actual incidence of a real possession is so rare that I have only known of a couple of cases in my life.

POTION-- An herbal mixture made to produce a magickal effect like healing or love.

POW WOW-- (Pennsylvania Dutch) Magick.

PRACTICE-- The actual way a Witch will work their rituals and magick. Within a Tradition, the Practices are similar, but each person will place into that Practice their own interpretation of that Practice. Few are wrong, most are simply different. (ex. Drawing the Circle with Incense before you draw with the Athame is wrong! but invoking the Guardians instead of the Lords is simply different as is drawing the Circle with the Wand at times.)
Beware of people like one of my students who one day stated that only he and I knew how to draw the Circle properly. Everyone else, including his HPS did it wrong! His argument was that I carry the incense around the Circle, pause at each Quarter, and draw a Celtic Cross with the Censer at each point thus: up, down, center right, left, circle, then move to the next Quarter. His wife, also a Coven member, did the same but she drew that cross, up, down, center left, right, then around. The HPS simply exhibited the Censer to the Quarters. This small difference in Practice, in his mind, invalidated the entire Circle.
This shows an unnatural (for Wicca) focus upon one person as the 'fount of all knowledge' which will harm that person in the future. It also shows that the student never really paid attention to the lessons (preferring rote memorization to actual conceptual thinking) and I wasn't attentative enough to catch and cure this problem early enough.

PRACTITIONER-- One who performs magick.

PRECOGNITION-- The 'knowledge' of an event before it happens by means not completly understood.

PRIAPIC-- See ithyphallic.

PRIAPIC WAND-- (Gardnerian) Not a Wand at all but a riding stick or pole with a phallic tip. They are ridden as hobby-horses during certain fertility Rituals and spells.

PRIAPOMANCY-- Divination by the size and shape of the penis. There is more variation in the shape of the penis than in the shape of the face.
Note that I invented this term and system (along with labiomancy) on the spur of the moment but I suspect that someone, somewhere will be able to do it. If you want, send me photos and drawing of your penis in erect and flacced state and a complete life history and personality profile. Then when Llewellyn is ready to fork over the cash, I'll write the diffinative book on the subject. See Labiomancy.

PRIAPUS-- (Rome) The God of sexuality from which we get the term Priapism.

PRICKING-- A means of enacting a 'voluntary' confession of witchcraft during the Burning Times. The purpose was to locate the Devils Mark by the process of using a Bodkin ( similar to an icepick) to stab the 'suspect' repeatedly all over the body until the 'suspect' could o longer bleed or scream, at which time the devil's mark was said to be found and the witch determined to be guilty.

PRIEST-- 1) One who facilitates the rites of Wicca. Generally a man.
2) (Gardnerian, old) A referance to the christian priests who were seen as greedy and power-hungry who sold prayers for money.

PRIESTESS-- One who facilitates the rites of Wicca, always a female.

PROJECTION-- See astral travel.

PROJECTIVE HAND-- The hand from which energy is normally sent. In most people, even those who are left-handed, the right hand is projective. In a very few people the left is. See receptive hand.

PROMETHIAN TRADITION-- ( c 1975) One of the newer Traditions of Wicca to come out of Long Island. Developed by Rus G. it emphasises creativity among its members.

PROPHECY-- To predict future events while under the influence of the Gods.

PROPHET-- One who prophesys.

PROPHETESS-- According to the politically correct viewpoint, every term must either be gender neutral (epicene) or have a masculine and feminine version. Thus 'horse' is the epicene term, 'stallion' the masculine and 'mare' the feminine terms. In Englsh the feminine term is often derogatory such as 'bitch' or 'sow'.
This is the feminine form of prophet which I refuse to use.

PSYCHE-- The human soul, mind or spirit.

PSYCHIC ABILITY-- Any of varous paranormal skills possessed by lmost every person.

PSYCHIC ATTACK-- An attack by another person that uses non-material abilities.

PUCK-- I have to refer you to Shakesphere's A Midsummer's Night's Dream for this one. Although I have difficulty with heroic pentameter, the story is good. Also, Puck is a generic name for a mischevious sprite in Great Britain.

PURIFY-- In Wicca, to ritually remove all evil or unwanted influences.

PURSEWARDEN-- That Witch within the Coven who handles any money that the Coven may have. Considering that Wicca does not pass the collection plate or accept donations, this person really does not exist and I have no idea of where the term came from.
In one of my eraly public Wicca classes, there was one man who looked uncomfortable after class. I asked what was wrong and he said that he thought that he had missed the money collection that was common in xian classes and rituals. I asked him if he knew what would happen if a Witch passed the hat? He expressed the desire to know so I took my hat, passed it to Sue who was my co-instructor at that time and she, quite naturally, put it on her own head.

PROSPECT-- One who wishes to join a Coven but has not been accepted as a Novice.

PSYCHIC-- A sense other than the normally accented dozen. Also called 'the sixth sense.'

PSYCHOMANCY-- Divination by the soul, affection, will and/or religious and moral disposition.

PSYCHOMETRY-- The ability to mentally receive impressions from an inanimate object.

PYROMANCY-- Divination by fire.
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Q

QABALLAH-- See Kaballah.

QUAKERS-- A derogatory term for the Society of Friends, Quakers are the only christian group to have never persectued Witches. In fact, Wiccan legends tell of Quakers actually helping Witches escape arrest and execution.

QUARTER DAYS-- The Solstices and Equinoxes. The Lesser Sabbats.

QUARTERS, FOUR-- 1) The four ritual points of the Circle being North, East, South and West.
2) The four periods of 13 weeks that follow each Sabbat.

QUEEN, WITCH-- See Witch Queen.

QUEST-- An old requirement used to force a person to learn a special lesson or to perform a special task that requires extraordinary determination and skill.
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R

RACK-- A method of extracting a confession by tieing the suspected Witchs' hands and feet to opposite ends of a table. The rope is then drawn taught by means of a winch, thus disolcating the joints and causing great pain. Many examples of the Rack still exist and the contemporary illustrations usually show a christian priest overseeing this aspect of god's love for all men.

RAISING ENERGY, RAISING POWER-- The internal process where the Witch will produce energy from within their own body for use in magick. In some cases, the Witch will use their own energy to tap into an external source which they will then use.

RECEPTIVE HAND-- The hand from which energy is normally received. In most people this is the left hand. See projective hand and circut,

RECORDER-- The scribe or secretary of the Coven.

RECULADE-- (Gardnerian) An archaic term that means 'Removed from the Coven'. It means that this person has performed some act that has forced his HP/S to remove them from membership of the Coven and to strike their name from the Coven records. Unlike Banishment, being Reculed allows that person to start over with a fresh slate and join another Coven with no record of them ever having been in a Coven before. The advantages are that if you are reculed from Coven "A" because you did something bad but not criminal, you can learn your lesson, have your records destroyed and join Coven "B" as a completely new person without prejudice. Although Coven "A" may and probably will refuse to Guest with Coven "B" while you are there. But Coven "A" will not tell Coven "B" anything about you or that you were ever Initiated or a member of their Coven. It is as if you had never existed in Wicca or as if you had vanished off the face of the earth for that period of time. Refer to Shunning for other referances.

RECULE-- (Gardnerian) To retire. See bacare.

REDE -- The rules or Laws of the Craft. They should not be considered to be absolutes, but rather guidelines to be read in tune with the times and conditions that are here and now.

REINCARNATION-- The belief that we will all be reborn upon the earth in another body and life after we die. It is the belief of Traditional Witches that if we are 'good' and hold the Sabbats and Esbats, we will be reborn among our loved ones and be Witches again. But if we are 'bad' we will be reborn among the Cowan or strangers and have to, once again, search for the Craft and the Goddess. Since most of us who found the Craft in the 60's and 70's remember the years of searching and lonleness we endured before finding a Coven, this is an important concept.
The proper name for reincarnation is metempsychosis.

RELIGION-- The system of beliefs, myths, morals and Gods that a person follows to make up their faith. Compare with Superstition.

RESPONSIBILITY, LAW OF-- A Wiccan rule that states that if you harm another person, you MUST make restitution. It doesn not mean, "I'm sorry I smashed your car, please forgive me." which is when you have harmed another and you want the victim to take away your pain because you are unwilling to repair the damage you have done. Rather it means, "I'm sorry I got angry and told a lie about you, I'll contact everyone and tell them I lied and tell them the truth in an effort to repair your reputation."
This applies for every act from replacing that ceramic dragon you accidently broke when your sleeve knocked it off the shelf to stopping that jerk you taught magick to from cursing his neighbor.

RETREAT-- A method of going off to a lonely place for solitude and meditation. It generally refers to a spiritual place and goal.

RETURN, LAW OF-- That rule of magick that states that any action will cause the actor to receive that or similar energy back three times as strong. This can be explaoned with the mathematical formula: E{s} => 3E{r}*. Magickally, this means that you should be careful of what spells you cast. See also Three-fold law.
*The energy of a spell will rebound to you with three-fold intensity causing you to receive thrise whatever action you performed.

RIGHT BRAIN-- That part of the brain that deals with patterns, poetry and spirituality.

RIGHT HAND PATH-- Concerned with good works.

RITE-- See ritual.

RITES OF PASSAGE-- Those Wiccan rituals that celebrate Birth, Puberty, Adulthood, Marriage, Divorce and death.

RITUAL-- The action of attracting the Gods or other similar forces of nature by means of chants, gestures and invocations to produce a spiritual or magickal goal.

ROADOMANCY-- Divination by stars.

ROBE-- A ritual garment that is often worn by Witches when Skyclad is undesirable. It is best if they are made of cotton or wool as silk and synthetic materials will hinder, change or stop the energy from being raised.

ROBIN HOOD-- See Hood, Robin.

ROODMAS, RUDEMAS-- See Beltane.

RUNES-- 1) The alphabets and signs that are used by Witches. Theban is the most common and popular among Traditional Witches though Futhark is popular among Eclectics.
2) A set of chanted words in rhyme to produce a goal. A spell or prayer spoken in rhyme.
3) A system of divination using Norse alphabet engraved or painted on small tiles randomly tossed and interpreted.

RUNIC-- The norse alphabet. See FUTHARK.
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S

SABBAT-- The major religious festivals of Wicca which celebrate the major actions of the year. There are eight of them: 31 Oct., 21 Dec, 31 Jan., 21 Mar, 30 Apr., 21 Jun, 31 Jul. and 21 Sep. They are generally dedicated to the Horned God/Sun and are primarily celebratory.

SACHET-- A bag containing herbs and used for a specific magickal purpose. Another term for charm bag.

SACRED GEOMETRY-- The study and application of angles, arcs and measurements to define a sacred space and to enlighten others. The ritual Drawing of a Circle with the Cord and the laying out of the quarters is a specific ritual that few follow but is worth learning.

SACRED MARRIAGE-- See Great Rite.

SACRED SPACE-- Generally that area within the Circle after it has been cast but generally any area where a Wiccan ritual is performed from an ancient temple to that area in front of your bedroom Altar.

SACRIFICE-- The act of giving something to the Gods or spirits in payment for services to be rendered. This can be a promise to give up chocolate (which I LOVE) or a promise to build a monument to the Gods or returning the first and last parts of the crops during harvest to the earth as an offering. In Wicca, animals are never sacrificed as this is considered to be an insult to the Gods.

SALAMANDER-- That living elemental entity that consists only of fire/energy.

SALEM-- Actually Danvers, a small town in the state of Mass. where in 1692 19 people were hanged as Witches with others dieing under torture or in prison. There are a number of explanations for the outbreak of witch-hunting and these range from ergot-poisoning (ergot is a fungus that grows on wheat and containe LSD) to economic collapse (the accusers were puritans who were loosing business to their less fanatical neighbors) to political infighting (some families were after the land and political power held by other families) to the possibility that there may have been some actual Wiccans in Danvers (recently discovered carvings of Theban in the area).
I suspect that the truth is a combination of all these factors as Salem is so famous that any one explanation fails investigation but like a snowball rolling downhill, social changes tied to economic collapse could be the basis which was triggered by ergot poisoning as a catalyst.
Regardless, Salem is now famous as a tourist trap and the home of Lori Cabot, the official Witch of Salem. George Bush won the presidential campaign partly becaue he made a big deal of Michael Dukakis being a friend of Witches because he gave Ms Cabot her title.

SALISBURY, COUNTESS OF-- se Edward III

SALT-- 1) In magick, one of the three Base Principles. A symbol of Earth and purity.
2) (Gardnerian) When used as 'salty' it refers to being randy or to make randy in a sexual connotation.

SAMHAIN-- In most Wiccan Traditions, THE most important day of the year. It celebrates the New Year, those who have died and the end of Summer . It is pronounced "SOW-wen" and bigoted fundamentalist christians constantly invent lies about the 'great god sam' myth as a means of attacking the Craft. Samhain means literally 'summers end' (Gaelic) as anyone who calls up a Scot or Irishman can tell (unless you want to look in a good Gaelic-English dictionary). It is also called Hallows, All Hallows Eve, Halloween, Hallowmas, Feast of the Dead and the Feast of Apples.

SANCTUARY-- A location where a particular God or set of God/desses are believed to dwell. They may have a number of shrines, each one dedicated to a particular divinity.

SATAN-- (Judeo-Christian) A Judeo-christian god of evil. Originally spelled with a lower case 's', it originally meant an office similar to the District or Prosecuting Attorney in a court with connotations of an angel assigned by god to test the fidelity of man. The idea was that when a soul died, it was put on trial with god as a judge. Two different angels would play the roles of prosecutor (satan) and defence attorney. Each would present their side of the case and god would decide if the soul was in or out. This is where we get our modern legal system in America.
In addition to this, satan was confused with Lucifer which was another name for Prometheus, the Titan/angel who so loved man that he stole fire/wisdom and gave it to mankind so that they would become greater than animals. This was, of course, agaisnt the will of god who wished man to remain ignorant and helpless and so Lucifer/Prometheus was cast out of heaven/Olympus and punished.
By the middle ages, with the rise of christianity to power, satan/Lucifer became combined with the Horned God of Wicca to produce the modern concept.
Witchcraft is the only major religion that does not have any devil and therefore Witches do NOT and can NOT worship satan.

SATANISM-- A reaction against christianity that concerns itself with doing the opposite of what the christians pretend to believe. There are three major forms today. Christians often confuse satanism with Wicca despite the fact that you must be a christian to be a satanist and Witches are not xians.

SAWYER, ELIZABETH-- A witch who was hanged in April 1621, she was the inspiration for the formation of the Atlantion Wicca Tradition in the 1960's.

SCEPTER-- See Wand.

SCIOMANCY-- Divination by shadows.

SCOURGE-- A Wiccan Tool representing purity and submission/control. It balances the Wand which often represents mercy.
Modern Gardnerian Scourges are made from (classified). They are designed to stimulate that part of the body (classified) which is being scourged in a specific manner for a specific reason (classified). Many other Traditions which don't understand scourging, make theirs out of thread or embrodary floss under the belief that scourging is purely symbolic. Some old scourges were made of nettles.
In some rituals, the HP will use the Scourge to lightly encourage the coven to be more entheusiastic in their dancing. Used differently, it can also encourage fertility or luck or purification.
2) The act of causing ritual purification in a Wiccan Circle by using a Scourge on another person. Despite observed reactions by outsiders, it is not at all whipping by people into Bondage and Discipline. In reality, unless done in a specific area for a specific reason in a specific manner while accomplishing specific visualizations, it will not work. This is one of the ways we Traditionals know who has been properly trained and who simply read a book.
3) A form of mild punishment performed upon a person who did something wrong or bad during a Wiccan Ritual. It is not meant to embarass or hurt, but to force the culprit to realize that they should be more carefull in the future or drink a little less wine or watch what they say or do or possibly even to study a bit harder. There is a set ritual that is deliberatly casual to avoid embarassment to the culpret.
note) When I dated a dominatrix I made her a scourge for sex play that was completly different from the one I use in ritual. She loved the thing and insisted on using it (and the leather manacles I made her) that night. Although I am hopelessly vanilla, she did teach me the difference between Ritual Scourging and sexual scourging so from experience, I can say that Kelly was wrong in his hypothesis about the introduction of scourging into Wicca.

SCRIBE-- See Recorder.

SCRY-- To divine using a mirror, crystal ball or bowl of water.

SEAL-- The signature of a non-material entity.

SEAX-- (Saxon) 1) see Athame.
2) A tradition of Wicca popularized by Raymond Buckland in the early 1970's when he divorced Rosemary and left the Gardnerian Tradition.

SEAX WICA-- Wicca as reinterpreted by Ray Buckland and others based on Saxon mythos instead of the more traditional Celt. It is mildly eclectic. It was originally formed as a joke by a bunch of Drunken Gardnerians in the back room of The Warlock shop in New York City but later found to work.

SECOND SIGHT-- See precognition.

SEEKER-- One who believes that the Craft or a coven is for them but is not completely certain.

SELENE-- The Latin name for the Moon Goddess, often referred to in Wicca as the Maiden Aspect.

SELF-DEDICATION-- That process where the Wiccan declares themselves a Witch before the gods. It is used by Solitaries and Eclectics as a valid Initiation. Traditionals use it as a means of showing their fidelity to the God/dess until they can locate a Coven to join.

SELF-INITIATION-- See Self-dedication.

SENDING-- The launching of energy during a spell or a familiar to accomplish a task or a psychic communication to another person.

SEX-- The union of man and woman to produce the greater whole. Some religions degrade sex as evil and dirty, Wicca enhances and honors it.

SEX MAGICK-- A form of magick where energy is raised through sexual relations. It is the second most powerful form of magick and one of the hardest to learn. Most people who claim to be sex magickians are simply trying to get laid as it takes much hard training before you are even allowed to have sex. It is virtually impossible for a novice to do sex magick and in Traditional Wicca, it is reserved for only the highest ranking Witches in the coven.

SHADE-- a Ghost.

SHADOW-- That part of ourselves that we deny because the thought of us possessing such desires and attitudes is uncomfortable. Often when a Witch confronts their shadow, they get upset at having those desires and leave the Craft instead of accepting them and trying harder to be good.

SHAMAN-- Specifically a Siberian magickian though many modern pagans use it to refer to any solitary magickian involved in nature worship. The 'new' ego-trip term, it has been adopted by some eclectic pagans to replace the term Priest. In the latter case, the term is stolen from those who know how by those who wish they knew how but don't have the guts to learn. I personally have never see a true 'white' shaman, though I have seen many who pretend.

SHAPESHIFTING-- The ability to change ones physical or astral form to resemble an animal. This animal is generally the totem animal of the Witch. This may be the basis for the werewolf legend.

SHEILA-NA-GIG-- Those naked female statues generally placed in inaccessible places on churches in Western Europe. They are usually shown holding their labia wide open for all to see as they grin and laugh at those below. They are a Goddess symbol thought to be placed there by the pagan artisians who were forced to attend a xian church and wanted to be able to pray to their own Gods. When I was sent to an army base to rebuild the base chapel, yet denied access to that chapel for my own religious rituals, I placed a Shiela in the roof looking down upon the altar. To my knowledge, it is still there.
In many cases, they were placed above the north door which was the one used by witches who were forced to attend church. Refer to Foliates.

SHEILAS-- See sheila na gig.

SHIELD-- The ability to protect yourself with a psychic or magickal barrier in order to prevent energy or unwanted non-material entities from touching you or, in some cases, perceiving your existance.

SHOWSTONE-- A natural quartz crystal carved in the shape of a sphere and used for scrying.

SHRINE-- A small permanant or semi-permanant altar that is generally placed within the home for the personal use of the Witch.

SHUNNING-- Not a Craft term but useful to describe the four levels in which the Craft can handle a troublemaker. These levels are, in order of severity: Astriction, Parting of the Ways, Reculade and Banishment. Refer to each topic for details.

SIDHE-- (Irish) (pronounced "she") The land of the Faeries where life is a constant party. Unfortunately, time is different there and if you enter the Sidhe for an hour, you may learn that when you return to the mundane world, twenty years have passed. The opposite is also true.
In some Traditions of Wicca such as the Irish, it refers to the Otherworld, or the Summerland.

SIGIL-- Any sign or symbol drawn on a talisman used to portray a symbol or idea though it is usually the signature of a demon or angel. It is pronounced SIDGE-il.

SILVER CORD-- That thread that connects the astral body to the physical. If it is broken, the body dies.

SIMPLE-- 1) A potion that uses a single herb.
2) (Gardnerian) All medicinal herbs.

SIMULACRUM-- See double.

SINISTER-- See left hand path.

SISTER COVENS-- The process where a Coven devides into two or more Covens, both of which may be equal to the other. They may do so because the original Parent Coven has grown too large and unweildy so they decide to devide into two or more smaller Covens with different Elders forming a number of new Covens and allowing the members of the Parent Coven to choose which new Coven they will join. These sister Covens will still remain friends and will often guest with each other for Grand Sabbats. Generally, the HPS of the original Coven will retain the name of the Parent Coven and each sister Coven will take a new name. When Desert Henge Coven devided into Desert Henge Coven and Morningstar Coven because of its size (13 peple in Inner Court and 6 in Outer Court ready for Initiation) the HPS chose to explore more eclectic ways so because I was the original HP of DHC and she was the second HPS of DHC, and because I planned to remain Gardnerian, it was decided that I, the HP would retain the name and history of Desert Henge Coven and the HPS would choose a new Coven name.

SISTRUM-- A large rattle of Egyptian design used to make music during a ritual.

SIX SIX SIX (666)-- (Jewish) Caled the Number of the Beast of revelations, modern christians use it as the number of satan. In reality it is nothing of the sort.
Early Israel, like Rome and many other early civilizations, had no number system. Our numbers actually come from the Arabs. So these nations used letters as numbers. Just as Rome used 'I' as #1, 'II' as #2 and 'III' as #3, Israel did the same. Aleph = #1, beth = #2 and so on. There was even a system of numerology in Israel that sought the number value of names so that the name for jehovah, converted to numbers, equalled #1 which was important. After the conquest of Israel by the Babylonians in 586 b.c.e. the Israelites considered Babylon to be evil incarnate. And when they did a number chart for Babylon, the number they arrived at was ... "666".
Therefore, 666 actually refers to the nation of Babylon and not any individual angel of devil.

SKYCLAD-- The act of being ritually naked during a spell or ritual in order to allow the energies to flow without any interference. The term was introduced to Wicca by Gardner in the 1950's. Many Wiccans and pagans decry Skyclad because they say that it will lead to unrestrained sexual conduct and it is too cold in the north for outdoor Skyclad Rituals. To the first argument I refer you to the fact that most of us are better looking dressed and if nudity was so sexy, why is Fredericks of Hollywood and Victoria's Secrets making soooo much money? To the second argument, I simply state that in Tucson it drops to the 20's in the Winter and many of us still do outdoor Skyclad Rituals with no problem simply because a properly cast Circle will actually generate heat. Drop by and I'll teach you how to do this.

SMUDGING-- (Eclectic) The practice of burning some herbs (usually sage) and censing a person with the smoke. Modern wiccan wanna-be's use it to replace the Traditional Censing because Native Americans did it. Amer-Indians only invented the process about a hundred years ago and not all do it.

SNAP BACK-- A sudden and involuntary return of the astral body to the physical body. It is often accompanied by a disagreeable shock.

SO MOTE IT BE-- A traditional ending to a spell. It means that the spell shall happen as you wish.

SOLAR AGE-- See Aquarian Age.

SOLITARY WITCH-- Those Wiccans who worship and work alone because they cannot or choose not to join a Coven.

SOLSTICE-- The times when the Sun is at it's most northern or southern position on the horizon. This is usually June 21 and December 21.

SOMA-- A sacred drink from India that is used in religious rituals. Some Traditional and Gardnerian Covens still use soma though few know the proper formula. It took my HPS weeks to find the proper kind of milk for ours one year.

SOOTH-- Truth.

SORCERER-- A male magickian who performs Low Magick similar to that practiced by a Witch only Sorcerers do it without a religious basis. See Wizard and Sorceress.

SORCERESS-- The female counterpart of the Sorcerer and Wizard.

SORCERY-- Magick performed by an individual magickian outside of religion, generally for personal or economic gain.

SOUL-- That part of the person that is immortal and passes on from lifetime to 1ifetime.

SOULMATE-- Two people linked by Fate or karma or divine purpose. They often meet over many lifetimes. Despite popular belief, soulmates are not always lovers. They are simply a group of souls that reincarnate together in many forms; one life being lovers, another siblings, another friend, another enemies or any combination.
It is a frightening thought that Patti and I may be soulmates but Brenda and I may not be. Patricularly as I love Brenda still (despite all that she has done to me) and not Patti anymore. It appears that Patti and our two children, Matthew and Cerridwen are soulmates so, Patti, you had better get your act in order or the next time around will be as bad as this one.

SOUTHWAYS-- See Deosil.

SPANN-- A measurement of length equal to the distance from the tip of your little finger to the tip of your thumb with the fingers spread. About 8". See bucket.

SPATALAMANCY-- Divination by the skin, bones and excrement.

SPATULAMANCY-- Divination through the inspection of animal shoulders.

SPECULUM-- A mirror that is used for scrying.

SPELL-- The action of Magick. The focus reality through ritual in order to produce a desired goal by non-material means. It can be described as the enhancement of psychic ability through the use of ritual. It can also be described as the use of natural forces enhanced by ritual.

SPELLCRAFT-- See magick.

SPIRIT-- A non-material entity. Often it is the mind/soul/ personality of another who may be dead.

SPIRIT LOVER-- An astral body or ghost who remains nearby because of close emotional ties.

SPLITTING THE COVEN-- The process where some members of a Coven leave that coven to form their own. This may produce Daughter Covens or Sister Covens. Generally, Hiving produces Daughter Covens and Splitting produces Sister Covens.

SPRING EQUINOX-- See Ostara.

SQUASSATION-- See strappado.

STAFF-- A large Wand. Some magickians use it in place of the Wand .

STAG GOD-- That aspect of the Horned God that was worshipped by Witches in areas where the primary meat source was deer or elk. He survived in Celtic Religion far longer than His other aspect, the Bull whom some Traditions see as His other self who he must meet and fight on the Solstices. This may be an aetiological myth. See Bull God and Goat God.

STANG-- An old symbol of the God and Goddess of the Witches used when the possession of a God/dess image was a capital offence. There are two forms of stang, the male with two tines and the female with three tines.

STAREOMANCY-- Divination by the elementsor weather.

STAR WARS-- A series of Science Fiction movies started in the mid 1970's by George Lucas. The movie is based on Kurosawa's The Hidden Fortress and Lucas' love of theater. The basic plot is standard, evil villain kidnaps princess, tries to rule the universe, good guys stop evil people. But Lucas' use of The Force made the film a hit with the New Age and Metaphysical crowd. Even Witches love it and can use it as a training manual.

STEEP-- To soak an herb in a hot liquid such as water.

STERNOMANCY-- Divination by the chest from the breast to the belly.

STEWART, FRANCIS-- See Bothwell.

STONEHENGE-- One of three thousand Stone Circles in Great Britain. Many of these Circles are ritually built and orientated to the Lesser Sabbats (Pre-Celtic), others are magickal and many were social in use. Some were small enough to jump over, others were so large that an entire town was built inside them. Stonehenge was one of the most impressive. They predated the Celts and so were avoided by the Druids who preferred to worship in a grove of trees but their structure shows a lot of Wiccan influence and so some are still used by Witches. During the Burning Times, it was common for the local christian minister to take his congregation out to a local Stone Circle at a set time and destroy a stone, thus symbolically destroying the Craft and physically destroying an invaluable archaeological treasure. This custom ended with the Barber Stone incident at Avebury.

STRAPPADO-- A popular form of torture used by the Inquisition because of it's cheapness. The suspect's hands were tied behind their back as in modern police handcufing. A rope was then tied to the bonds and the person was liften to the roof by their wrists. As the arms were behind and straight, the pain was intense.
If desired and to relieve the boredom, strappado could easily be converted to squasssation by releasing the rope so that the suspect would fall to the floor. BUT, the rope was held so that the suspect never reached the floor as the rope would stop the suspect in such a manner that the suspects arms were dislocated and the musches damaged beyond repair.

STREGA-- (Italian) A female Witch.

STREGHERIA-- (Italian) A term to denote all Witches, regardless of gender.

STREGONE-- (Italian) A male Witch.

STREGONERIA-- (Italian) Witchcraft as a magickal persuit as opposed to the religious aspects.

SUBCONSCIOUS-- The child-like part of the mind. All power of divine knowledge cones through the subconscious and is therefore altered.

SUCCUBUS-- A non-material entity in female form called up for for sexual purposes. Some believe that there is only one form which becomes a Succubus for the purpose of collecting semen from a human male. The entity then becomes the Incubus which impregnates a human woman in order to reproduce. These 'children' possess qualities of both their human and demonic parents. Compare to Incubus.
I have a spell for the calling up of a Succubus which I am tempted to use, but as it is in German, I am waiting until I can find someone versed in the Magickal Language of German as opposed to the standard language. To understand this, I refer you to the Magickal term 'elements' compared to the Chemical term 'elements'.

SUFFUMIGATIONS-- An incense made wholly of herbs and burned during spells.

SUMMER SOLSTICE-- See Litha.

SUMMERLAND-- In Wicca the place where the Horned God rules and to which all souls travel between incarnations. Also called the Sidhe (Celtic) pronounced 'Shee'. It is not a place of punishment or reward, but rather a place of resting between lives and a place where you learn lessons from a past life to help you live our next one better. When you are ready to die, the Horned God takes you through the Tunnel of Light to the Summerland where you wait rebirth at the Hands/womb of the Goddess.
One way to understand this is if you step off the curb without looking, and a bus hits you, The Horned God comes up and asks if you are ready to pass on (i.e. die). If you say "no" He will leave. But if you say "Yes" He will take your soul through the Tunnel of Light to the Summerland where you will grow younger and younger. While you are reverse-ageing, The Gods set you in a comfy chair in front of a TV set and VCR. They then put in a tape entitled, {note: visualize a tacky fanfare here}"This is Your Life!" And you spend the next period of time watching a video of your life. Occcasionally the Gods will touch the pause button and ask, "Why did you do this?" or "What prompted you to say this and what else could you have said?" Be aware that none of this is judgmental, They are only curious as to your motives and trying to make you see other options.
Eventually, the tape reaches the end and as the credits are playing, They ask you to choose your next set of parents. When you do, you are taken by the Goddess and drop-kicked out of the Summerland and into the womb of your new mother.

SUMMONER-- 1) That Witch whose job is to call all other Witches together for a rite or spell. During the Burning Times the Summoner was the only person who knew the true names and addresses of the Coven so that if one of the Coven was taken by the christians, he couldn't betray the others under torture. Modern Covens give the Summoner the added job of Public Relations and checking out any new potential members to the Coven. In many modern Covens the Summoner is the assistant to the High Priest and fulfills the same function as the Maiden. In other Covens, the Summoner is the High Priest as only he would know who the members were and as the most experienced person, he would be the best PR person possible.
2) (rare British use) The Fetch.

SUN-- One of the symbols of the Horned God in His aspect of the Provider.

SUN WHEEL-- A symbol of the Horned God which is found all over the world. It consists of four 'L' shapes so arrainged that they form an equal-armed cross within a circle. Often the space between the 'L' and the circle contains three smaller circles.
When William the Bastard conquered England in 1066, he carried a banner with the Sun Wheel to show the local Witches that he was their king and to obtain their aid in the invasion.

SUNWISE-- See deosil.

SUPERCONSCIOUS-- The higher self made up of emotion, memory, ESP and imagination.

SUPERNATURAL-- A term used by cowans to refer to any of the magickal and psychic arts that can easily be understood and used by almost anyone with the determination to study them. It is generally used by cowans to refer to anything that they don't understand and so, is therefore, somehow bad. Witches never use the term as to us, these acts are completly natural.

SUPERSTITION-- I'd like to be professionel here but the best way to describe this term is to say that Religion is what I follow and superstition is what you believe in.
The above was what the Zen masters call a koan. Think about this defination for a few years and if you still don't get it, call me and I will enlighten you.

SWIMMING-- Originating in babylon to punish Witches and adulterers, it was adopted at various times to prove the crime of Witchcraft during the Burning Times. Swimming had two versions, in both the Witch was tied up and dunked into a river or lake.

1. #1 was if the Witch floated, she was guilty because water, being the instrument of baptism, was rejecting the Witch or
2. #2 was if the Witch sank, she was guilty because water, being the instrument of baptism, was enacting god's justice.

Also called Dunking.

SWORD-- A very large Athame. A Tool that corresponds to fire and the Athame, but of a greater size. In Gardnerian Wicca it is generally owned by the High Priestess and used only for the Coven. It is best for the Sword to be used outdoors as there is more room and less chance of poking a hole in the ceiling during an invocation.

SYCOMANCY-- Divination by figs.

SYLPH-- A non-material elemental entity composed of only air.

SYNCHRONCICITY-- A term used by Jung to refer to meaningful coincidence. An example of this is the term "speak of the devil" where you are talking or thinking about someone and they suddenly call you or drop by for a visit.

SYMBOLS-- The language of the mind and magick.

SYMPATHETIC MAGICK-- The system of magick that uses symbols and object links to accomplish a desired goal.

SYNCHRONICITY-- The action of having a number of similar things happen at the same time. More than a coincidence.
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T

TABARD-- A simple robe that is little more than a sheet with a neck hole cut in the center. It is often used as a person's first robe until they can make or buy a better one. Some Covens use a tabard over their robes to denote specialty, rank or as tradition.

TABOO-- A set of acts or words that are forbidden by religion or culture. They are generaly unwritten but still enforced. For example, one Taboo in Wicca is the killing female animals or people, another is the identification of another Witch without their permission.

TALISMAN-- An object of power. Aggressive active charms that are charged to produce a desired goal. Compare with amulets. They are generally made by the magickian and are one time affairs after which the energy is gone and they need to be ritually recharged or destroyed.

TAN-- (Celtic ) A fire, usually a ritual bonfire. Also teine.

TANTRA-- (Hindu) a form of meditation or magick or prayer which is characterized by sexual relations as a means of power and enlightenment.

TAPPING ENERGY-- A process whee the Witch will collect energy from an external source and focus it throgh their own body.

TAROT-- A set of cards used for divination or meditation or magick. They are generally credited as being developed in the 15th century and based on an old card game called Tarrocci. Many modern people reinterpret the Tarot and so produce entirely new decks each year. Many are quite beautiful and some of these actually work.

T.A.W.N.-- See Tucson Area Wiccan Network.

TEACHING-- Any field must have some manner of passing on knowledge and experience to the newer people. For Wicca, that means that if you wish to become a Third Degree in a Traditional Coven, then you must be aware that someday you will have to teach others. There are meny ways to do this from a classroom to on-the-job-training to simple read-and-do. However, every teacher must realize that people are different. What worked for you may not work for someone else and so teaching methoids must be fluid. It is also important to remember that everyone is unique and perceives the universe in a unique manner.
I am reminded of an incident that takes place in many police academys. It is day one and the classroom is filled witheager young people ready to learn how to be a cop. The instructor is giving a dull speech when suddenly someone enters the room, kills the instructor and leaves. The students are, of course, shocked and are wondering what to do but noone calls for help usually. Then the instructor stands up, calls the room to silence and orders everyone to quietly write down a complete description of the incident. When done, he reads them to the class. Even though all saw the exact same incident, some state that the killer was a man, some a woman, some black, some white. Some state that the weapon used was a hand gun, some a rifle, some a knife.
Reality trip! All people perceive the universe uniquely and what you say to a room is one thing. BUT each person will hear a different message. This is normal and must be considered by all good teachers.

TEINE-- (Celtic ) See tan.

TELEKINESIS-- Mind over matter. The ability to move or alter matter with the mind alone.

TELEPATHY-- Mental communication between two people. According to Kogan who did a lot of research on this for the KGB, telepathy is a radio wave of about 100 km wavelength.

TEMPLE-- That place that has been made sacred for the performance of a religious ritual. See Covenstead.

TENETS-- The beliefs, doctrines and principles of Wicca.

TETRAGRAMMATON-- (Hebrew) Literally, "four letters". It refers to the secret name of the Jewish god which was so sacred that it was known only by the high priest of the major temple and spoken only once a year. Because the Hebrew alphabet had no vowels, the name was written with only consonents thus making it impossibe to know how it was actually pronounced. These four letters being J, V, H, V have been pronounced anywhere from 'jehovah' to 'yahwey'. Unfortunatly, the only person who knew the actual pronounciation was killed when the Romans burned the major Jewish temple in 64 c.e.
Ceremonial magickians use the tetragrammaton as a sigil.

THAUMATURGY-- 'Low magick' using simple rituals and spells that is generally used to ease your everyday life.

THEALOGY-- See theaology.

THEAOLOGY-- The study of the Goddess. Generally used by Pagans to refer to Pagan Theology. Compare to Theology which is literally the study of god.

THEBAN-- One of the old magickal alphabets. It was first published by Barret in The Magus in the 1600's but I have seen a version that claims to date back to the mid-1200.s. Any referances or evidence of this will be appreciated. Theban is unoficially considered to be the 'official' alphabet of Wicca.

THELEMITE-- A follower of the magickal philosophies and practices of Aleister Crowley.

THEOLOGY-- The study of religion. Pagans use it to refer to the study of patriarchial religions like christianity. See Theaology.

THEOMANCY-- Divination by revelation of the spirit or by religious writings of the gods. Some referances state that this is 'pretending' to divine.

THERIOMANCY-- Divination by beasts or animals.

THEURGY-- 'High Magick' using mental disciplines to establish contact with divinity.

THEYN-- (Old English) A pagan Priest. Compare with Theowe.

THIRD EYE-- The pineal gland which appears to be related to many psychic abilities.

THIRTEEN-- The sacred number in Wicca. It relates to the number of Witches in a Traditional Coven or the aproximate number of Full Moons in a year. In reality, it is a prime number which is still usable, neither being too large or too small.

THOUGHT FORM-- A thought or desire that takes tangible shape and exists almost independently of it's creator. See familiar.

THREE-FOLD LAW-- The Law of Nature that refers to the idea that all that you do, good or ill, will return to you Three times as strong. Traditional Witches often say that it will return once in kind, once in spirit and once in need. Because of this Law and the Wiccan Rede, it becomes apparant that no Witch with any intelligence will take the consequences of casting a curse upon another. Rather, by doing blessings, you are not only helping others but, ultimately, yourself as well. There is a mathematical formula for this, as well as all laws of magick, and goes E{s} => 3E{r}* where anything in brackets{} is a subscript.

THREE-FOLD NATURE-- This refers to the idea that each person or object is composed of three parts; the physical body, the mind and the soul.

THUMB SCREW-- A device used by the Inquisition to induce a suspect to confess. In all of it's myriad variations, it resembled a small vice that was placed around the suspects thumb or finger (ten chances to confess). The crank was then turned so the vice would close and eventually crush the bones in the finger.
I own a thumb screw and during my public classes, I show a slide of a thumbscrew and use mine to crack a walnut during a description of it's use, the effect on the class as the sound of the nut/finger cracking is visceral.

THURIABLE-- See thurible.

THURIBLE-- A large wide incense holder, generally with a broad open top and no chains. Thuribles are usually left on the Altar. Compare with the censer which is similar but generally smaller and can be carried around the Circle. Also thuriable and turrible.

TINCTURE-- An herbal infusion made with alcohol or apple cider vinegar.

TOAD-- The toad was, like a cat, one of the traditional pets of a Witch. Although we in the 20th century find this distasteful, in reality the toad makes a good pet. It is loyal, friendly and eats bugs. Witches who had toads and cats around the house didn't suffer from the bubonic plague that exterminated the xians who were busy exterminating both the cat and toad.

TOOLS-- The working implements of Wicca. They must be ritually made and cleansed before they can be used. The process of preparing Tools is so complex in Traditional Covens, that no one other than their owner is allowed to use them. Also, any misuse will invalidate the Tool, thus forcing the Witch to start over from square one.

TORGY-- A form of goetic magick that calls only upon 'angels'. It is derived from the Key of Solomon. It is generally believed to be a form of magick that doesn't work and therefore, those who practice it are considered to be fools. Also turgy.

TORTURE-- Any means of cooersion used by the authorities to force a false confession out of a suspect. If there are no bones broken, the confession was said to be 'without torture'. Yelling, lieing, slapping, enforced wakefullness, denial of food or water, rape and sticking with an ice pick are not legally considered to be torture so are still used today by the police (well, except for the ice pick and maybe rape).

TOTEM-- An animal or object that is sacred to a specific religion, person or group. The black stone in the kabba is a totem for islam, the cathedral at Reims is a totem for catholics and the Sacred Well at Glastonbury is a totem for Witches.

TRADITION-- An organized subgroup within Wicca where the members follow the same working system as interpreted by one person. Compare with Types.

TRADITIONAL WITCHES-- Witches who can trace their system of Wicca through a number of generations of Witches or Covens. They generally follow the same basic ways and beliefs as those who Initiated them thus having a tie to the past. Any new ideas that enter the Coven MUST fit the pattern in order to form a cohesive whole. Compare with Eclectics.
Generally, in Britain, Traditional is based upon the Coven which compares with Heriditary which is based upon the individual. In America it is based upon a method of working.
Be aware that what an American calls a Traditional Witch, an English will call Revisionist.

TRADITIONS-- A means of differentiating one way of working with another. Generally, Wicca is a skeleton upon which you place the flesh of your own mythos. Although most Witches are of the Celtic Traditions (Alexandrian, Gardnerian, Sheban, etc), other Covens will choose Egypt for their mythic source (Thebans) or feminist mythos (Dianic, Feminists) or whatever ancestors from which that Witch is derived. This is complicated by some famous Witches (Gerald Gardner, Alexander Sanders, Gavin & Yvonne Frost, etc) who have reinterpreted the religion and thus changed it. To understand this, read how lutherian christianity came to be. The situation is comperable.
Gardnerian, Alexandrian, Sheban, Welsh, Faerie, Dianic, Feminist, Georgian, Promethian, etc. are different Traditions. Most Traditions die after one or two Covens, thus showing that it was not a viable adaption. Others become sucessful and grow, thus proving the talents and channeling abilities of the founder.

TRANCE-- A sleep-like state where the body processes slow and the mind is set free.

TRANSMIGRATION-- See Reincarnation.

TRANSVECTION-- Levitation or astral projection.

TRILITHON-- A gateway formed of two upright stones and capped by a stone lintel. They symbolize the doorway to another world.

TRIPLE GODDESS-- In Wicca, it is believed that the Goddess manifests Herself in three aspects, each of Whom is symbolized by a phase of the Moon. The maiden (Waxing Moon) is also the Virgin but not 'virgo intacta' because She is sexually active, but not yet pregnant. The maiden refers to Her being independant of all male control and completely free to be Herself. The Mother (Full Moon) is when She has been impregnated by theHorned God at imbolc and can now marry at Beltane now that She has proven Herself to be fertile and He has proven Himself virile. The Corne, (Waning Moon andNew Moon) refers the the Goddess after She has given birth to the Sun-God/Horned God at Yule and may now grow old and wise with knowledge and experience. In some Traditions the Crone is called the Hag and may be considered to be a bit of a Bitch at times so it is wise to give to Her all possible respect.

TROLL-- 1) A person who joins a coven of Witches for the sole purpose of discovering their secrets for their own use.
2) A person who joins a coven for the purpose of causing trouble within that coven or the Craft.

TUATHEAL, TUATHAL-- (Gaelic) See widdershins.

TUCSON AREA WICCAN NETWORK-- ( c 1988) One of the many local networks of Witches and Pagans that have popped up around the country. TAWN puts on a number of small public rituals, one Major public Sabbat in September and an open Cauldron-Luck each month. In an effort to attract the wider neo-pagan community, TAWN is changing its name to Tapestry.

TUM-- See inch.

TUMULUS-- (Latin) 'To swell'. An archaic term for a Barrow.

TUNNEL OF LIGHT-- That doorway into the Summerland that appears when you die. In most cases you can see it but for those who are afraid to die or who do not know that they are dead, the tunnel is behind them and therefore, unseen.

TUPHRAMANCY-- Divination by ashes.

TURRIBLE-- See thurible.

TURTLE POSITION-- In Wicca a kneeling foetal position with the back bowed up. A sign of submission.

TRYOMANCY-- Divination by the coagulation of cheese.
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U

UNCONSCIOUS-- That part of the mind that remains hidden.

UNCASTING-- See Closing.

UNCROSSING-- A spell performed to break an evil spell or curse. Also uncrossing ritual.

UNCROSSING RITUAL-- See uncrossing.

UNDINE-- A non-material elemental entity that is composed only of water.

UNFORTUNATES-- An old term used to describe those Witches who had been captured and tortured by the Inquisition. Estimates of thier numbers range from 100,000 to 9,000,000.
Note that the last Witch officially burned to death in North America was Josephina Arista who was burned to death by the catholic church, aided by the Mexican Police, in Ojinaga, Mexico on July 3, 1955.

UNICORN-- Originally the old wild bull (bos primegensis) which was untamable and dangerous. The early Israelites used the unicorn as a symbol of anything that didn't submit to god's will. The Babylonians would then illustrate this animal in profile with one horn hiding the other and so it came to be described as a single horned animal.
By the 1300's the Bos had been hunted to extinction (the last known animal being killed in Germany around 1350) and the medieval bards used it as a symbol of chastity, illustrating it as a cloven-hoofed antelope with a goat's beard and single horn. By modern times it was being illlustrated as a horse with a single horn.
In the 1920's a German biologist experimented with removing the horn buds from an immature calf and grafting them together onto the forehead of that calf. He discovered that the single horn bud would grow roughly straight in it's new location and the calf, possessing one large horn, would become more aggressive than it's normal fellows.
In the 1970's the Zells of CAW produced Lancelot, the living unicorn which they claimed to have created from a goat by using a secret Egyptian breeding technique but an examination of the creature revealed that it was actually the product of the German surgical technique.

UNITARIAN-- In many parts of Amerika (spelling intentional) it is physically dangerous to be known a Witch. I have friends who have had their children taken from them, been shot at, lost their jobs, lost custody of their children and so on simply because the system desn't like to have their boat rocked. Thus many Witches have found it necessary to belong to a mainstream church in order to survive. As many of the founding fathers of America discovered the same situation, the Unitarian Church was chosen because they are the most open and tolorant church in the country. In fact, if you are a Witch and join the Unitarians, they will probably ask you to teach them about Wicca.
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V

VALIDITY-- In Traditional Wicca, it refers to the Witch being properly Initiated by a Third Degree of the opposite gender according to the rules of that Tradition. This is important to a Traditional but of a far less concern to an Eclectic.

VAMPIRE-- 1) An entity or person that lives on the energy of another. A parasite.
2) A mythical creature that rises from the dead to live off other people. In modern use, the vampire drinks blood, in other countries, they simply kill and eat their prey. Also vampyre.
3) A cult-group in todays world that attracts the young who dress in black with pale skin and red lipstick. Vampires are into loud rock music and appear to have developed their own religion. Incubus-Sukkubus is an English Rock Group that does Wiccan-Rock and vampire-rock music.

VAMPYRE-- See vampire.

VARDLOKKER-- (Iceland) One who can summon spirits. See Warlock.

VEGLIONE-- (Italian) The Esbat.

VENENDUM-- (Latin) See staff.

VERDIGRIS-- Copper Sulfate. That green corrosion that appears when coppor ozidizes. Also called Zimat.

VIBRATING NAMES-- To speak a name or a sound in such a manner that a magickal effect is produced. To do this properly requires the ability to speak and breathe from the belly instead of the lungs.

VIBRATIONS-- The energy given off by a living or non-living thing. This energy can be detected and interpreted by a Witch or magickian or psychic.

VISUALIZATION-- To form a mental image of a situation that is perfect in every detail in such a manner that it is perceived by you as real. Or to remove from your perceptions something that isn't there. An example is the during an indoor Sabbat, I remove from my sight the wals and replace them with images of the Full moon over the Pacific as seen from Hawaii in the west, the Catalina Mountains in the north, a fire in the south and the wind-swept cloudy sky in the east. Then when I do a spell, I visualize the results as being done.
This is the basis for magickal workings.

VOODOO-- The religion that combines christianity and West African folk religion. It is often confused with Wicca with which it bears little or no resemblance.
It was brought to America in it's original form by the slaves who were forced by the whip to accept christianity. Those slaves who refused to give up their own religion compromised by combining the two into an uniquely American religion which has branched off into a number of sects. Voodoo rituals are noted for the ability of the priests and priestess to allow their Loa to possess them. Also vodoun and voudoun.

VOODOUN-- See voodoo.

VOUDOUN-- See voodoo.
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W

WAER LOGGA-- (Old English) One who breaks a covenant. See Warlock.

WALPURGIS NIGHT-- See Beltane.

WAND-- A Wiccan Tool and symbol of air and the Horned God. A wooden stick, generally phallic shaped, that is a symbol of air and is used as a low-power or subtle Athame (I can't tell you when it is to be used in place of the Athame, but it is VERY important and dangerous if they are used wrongly). Many Eclectic Witches prefer the Wand (despite the Phallic symbolism) to the Athame. The Wand should be one ell long. Some Witches will establish extremely complex rules about the care and making of the wand, others will simply buy a piece of dowel from a hobby store.
Because of the Golden Dawn misinformation campaign as represented in the Rider-Waite Tarot deck, far too many modern Witches believe that the Wand represents fire and will invent almost any implossable explanation to prove this.

WANING-- The cycle where the year or day or month is growing shorter such as the year from the Summer Solstice to the Winter Solstice. This is a time of introspection, rest, and gathering within your rewards of your actions.

WANING MOON-- The phase of the Moon as She travels from Full to New. In magick, it is a time of destructive spells like cursing to death a cancer tumor or selling my car.

WANNA-BE-- A person who pretends to be a wiccan or Witch after reading a few books on the subject but has no clear idea of exactly what Wicca is and so mixes Wicca, paganism, psudo-Native American and new age into one incompatable hodge-podge. The wanna-be is one step above the insta-witch.

WARD-- 1) To protect with magick.
2) (Gardnerian) A guarded place or a person who guards a place.

WARLOCK-- (Saxon) 1) A traitor, a Witch who betrays the Craft, the Gods or another Witch to the christians. The worst insult one Witch can give another. Xians call a male Witch a warlock which is, as usual, incorrect.
The word comes from the Old English 'waer logga' which means literally a covenant breaker. It may be derived from the Icelandic vardlokkr which refers to a person who can summon spirits.
2) An oath breaker. A Witch who violates their oaths to the Gods.
3) (xian) A male witch. Some pagans accept and use this term, most do not.
4) (Gardnerian) To bind. To properly prepare as by warricking. This definition is rarely used now.

WATCHER-- A familiar or Mighty One.

WATCHTOWER-- A symbolic representation of the Four Quarters, the entrance to their respective realms, the Guardians or the abode of the elemental rulers.

WATER-- One of the basic elements. It is liquid, and is related to the west.

WAX DOLLS-- A poppet made of wax or parrafin to be used as an object link tothe target of a spell.

WAXING MOON-- The phase of the Moon as She travels from New to Full. In macick this is a time of constructive magick like healing a broken bone or attracting a buyer for my car.

WHEEL-- In Wicca, a symbol of the Eight Sabbats and the Eight Paths to power.

WHEEL OF THE YEAR-- One full year generally marked by the seasons or the Sabbats. Called the Wheel because the cycle is never ending and always repeats itself.

WHITE-HANDLED KNIFE-- One of the lesser Tools in magick and witchcraft. It is a knife which is used to make other tools or to do any cutting or carving in a ritual or spell. As a result, it must have a strong handle and sharp blade which should be short. It has a white handle to differentiate it from the Athame and to show that it's use is utilitarian and not magickal. Traditionals use it only in the Circle. See Kirfane.

WHITE MAGICK-- An obsolete term used mainly by christians to denote magick that is negative in design and used for ill ends .

WICCA-- (Saxon) 1) A Witch.
2) The religion of Witchcraft .
3) (Traditional) Any follower of the Witch religion who has not been Initiated as a priest/ess.

WICCAN-- To a Traditional Witch, any one who follows the Religion of Wicca. All Witches are Wiccans but not all Wiccans are Witches. See Wicca and Witch.

WICCAN REDE-- The major moral law of the Wiccan religion. It goes:

"AN IT HARM NONE, DO WHAT THOU WILT."

To a Witch, you, as a reasonable and intelligent adult, are expected to figure out for yourself what causes harm and not to avoid or excuse it.

WICCANING-- A baptism of a Wiccan child where the child is presented to the God and Goddess for Their blessings and where the Witches in attendance give to the child a gift (generally with a spell to make it come true) such as the gift of beauty or laughter or wisdom. The three fairies in the story Sleeping Beauty were originally Witches performing a Wiccaning on Beauty.

WICKER MAN-- 1) According to a couple of Roman writers (Tacitus and Caesar) the Druids performed human sacrifies by placing people in giant wicker cages formed in human shape and then set them afire, allowing the victims to roast slowly as a sacrifice to the Gods.
Tacitus was a Roman who thought that anything non-Roman was bad and Caesar needed an excuse to invade and conquer the Celtic Lands of Gaul and Britain. Thus by using stories of barbaric human sacrifice (unlike the Romans who performed civilized human sacrifice) he was able to convince the Empire to allow him to devide Gaul into three parts with the Gladius (a short sword of wicked and effective use. My personal weapon/tool of choice that I carry with me whenever I hike. After all, as a Celt/Irishman/Witch, you never know when you may need to climb a cliff, cut a log or kill a saxon).
I have been able to find no archaeological evidence to show that anything like the 'wicker man sacrifice' ever existed. And Archaeologists are so thorough that they can identify the type of flowers placed in a grave 20,000 years ago by the remains of a few specks of pollen.
2) A popular by Anthony Shaffer movie starring:Edward Woodward, Britt Eckland and Christopher Lee. The plot revolves a missing girl on an island where the pagan religion holds sway and the attempts of a British policeman to find her. Although the ending leaves much to be desired, every Witch I know loves the film. It currently exists in three lengths, 84 minutes, 97 minutes and 127 minutes.

WIDDERSHINS, WIDDER-SHINS-- In a Wiccan Circle, to move in an anti-clockwise direction. Also withershins.

WIGLIAN-- (Saxon) Divining by the Moon.

WILD HUNT-- (Wicca) At Samhain, the Horned God travels the land searching for the souls of the recent dead. As this is a time between the worlds and outside of time, He sometimes gets carried away and neglects to differentiate between the living and dead souls. Thus, when you hear Him blow His horn and the baying of His hounds, it is best to take precautions against an accident. Some Witches reenact the Wild Hunt in the Winter as a Divine Play to remember our ties to the Gods.

WILLENDORF VENUS-- One of the oldest Goddess images found. She was carved in Central Europe about 32,000 years ago.

WILLIAM PENN-- See Penn, William.

WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR-- (11th century) (xian) During his life he was called 'William the Bastard' but his most important event was the conquest of England in 1066. William's father took William into a temple to the Horned God and made him swear loyalty in return for help in taking England. William did this willingly but his father realized that his christian son would not keep a vow made in a Pagan temple so also took him into a church and made him repeat his vows to his own god.
In return for this vow, the Witches of England assisted William with magick and information to take England from the hated Saxons.

WINTER SOLSTICE-- See Yule

WISE WOMAN or WISE MAN-- The village healer.

WITCH-- 1) One who follows the Old Religion, that of the worship of the Horned God, the Mother Goddess, believes in reincarnation and celebrates nature through the Eight Sabbats. It is also called: The Old Religion, Wicca, Witchcraft.
In Traditional Wicca, only a Wiccan who has been properly Initiated into the Priest/esshood can be called a Witch, prior to that time, they are called Wiccans. See Wicca.
2) (Anthropology) Any of a menber of a less technical people who practices any form of magick or psychics. Anthropologists tend to combine the Siberian Shaman, the African 'Witch Doctor', the Voo-Doun Hungan, the American Indian 'Medicine Man' and such with the modern European Wicce under this term despite the profound religious and philosophical differences.
3) (law enforcement) Sometimes it appears that to the avarage cop be it city police or FBI, anyone who has ever looked at a tarot deck or read an astrology column is classified as a witch. This is born out by many incidents of a good christian who attends church services regularly and wears a cross with a bible prominatly displayed and read going crazy and killing someone because "god told me to do it". The local cop then sees that the person owned a tarot deck and imediately reports that the suspect was into witchcraft and satanism.

WITCH BALLS-- Spheres of colored glass (usually fishing floats found on shore) that are used as amulets or speculums..

WITCH BOTTLE-- A small bottle filled with broken glass, bent nails and other damaged bits of material which can cut and pierce. They are a protective spell which is often sealed into the walls of a house or buried under the poarch or hearth to absorb evil. If s curse is suspected, they will also be filled with urine and destroyed in a specific manner to reverse the curse. The proper term for them is bellarmie jar.

WITCH KING-- In Gardnerian Wicca, the consort and working partner of a Witch Queen.
It is a purely honorary title and is retained only as long as that man works with the Queen. Some Traditions, however, treat the Witch King as a separate entity with all the respect of the Witch Queen. See Magus.

WITCH QUEEN-- A term of reverence to denote a High Priestess who has Initiated people who have been Elevated to the Third Degree and have branched off from their original Coven to form Covens of their Own. Generally, as Traditional Witches take years to work themselves from Prospect to Third Degree High Priest/ess, it is clear that few Witch Queens will be young. In many Traditional Covens, if you see a Witch Queen below middle age, and/or with a number of buckles on her Garter, it may mean that she is somewhat lax in her training and Elevations.

WITCHCRAFT-- The religion of Wicca. The art and practice of magick in a Wiccan religious context.

WITCHING HOUR-- Midnight or the time exactly halfway between sunset and sunrise which varies according to the season. Witches believe that it is a time of the greatest power that can be tapped to do magick. To find the exact time requires a bit of mathematical calculations and a good newspaper with a weather sextion.

WITHERSHINS-- See widdershins.

WITHOUT TORTURE-- A term used by the xian inquisitors to indicate that the confession of the 'witch' was given freely and willingly.
In reality, 'without toture' meant that they didn't break any bones or cut off any important limbs. The use of the Bodkin was not considered to be a part of torture, neither was Dunking, slapping, preventing sleep, yelling, pinching, rape, burning off the hair and so on.
If you examine current police practices, a modern interrogation sounds a lot like this with the supposedly innocent suspect being imprisoned with no hope of release while they are kept awake for up to 72 hours without sleep, being yelled at, insulted, lied to and even physically abused until they confess to a crime they didn't commit. And as they have not yet been charged, they cannot go home or call an attorney or family member who knows only that their loved one has vanished. It is known that at least nine innocent people have been executed in America based on a confession 'freely given' under these conditions.

WIZARD-- A male magickian who does simple magick comparable to Witchcraft's Low to Middle Magick, but Wizards do it without the religion.. Compare to Sorcerer, Sorceress.

WIZARDESS-- The supposed feminine form of Wizard, except there is no such word. A Female wizard is called a Sorceress. Modern politically correct people tend to invent 'feminine' words out of epicine terms to differentiate between genders in certain fields, thus mucking up the language and making things harder for those of us who are faced with learning a new and awkward term or looking like male chauvinist pigs. Consider the terms: wizardess, authoress, murderess. Don't those look stupid? Some words can be devided into Masculine and Feminine ( male-female, sorcerer-sorceress, priest-priestess, chairman-chairwoman, stallion-mare, etc), some can easily and properly be made neuter in gender (police officer, mail carrier, etc) and others are simply epicine in nature (Witch, writer, equistrian, etc).

WORDS OF POWER-- Those names of divinities that when spoken properly, can cause a change to occur in the fabric of reality.

WORK-- A term meaning any magickal operation done by a Witch or Coven.

WORKING PARTNERS-- In Traditional Wicca, a male and a female Witch who worship and practice magick together for the purpose of sharing polarity and therefore become greater than either alone. There is a trend to allowing male-male or female-female working partners simply because gays are doing it and no ne can give a real good reason for them to stop which anyone will obey.

WORKSHOPS-- A short, intensive class in a subject designed to teach the basics of a subject. Generally they are a hands-on class where you learn by doing and hopefully, to encourage you to study further.

WORT-- Any plant or herb. A wortcunner is an Herbalist.

WORTCUNNING-- The use of herbs in magick.

WRATH-- A thoughtform .

WYRD-- A saxon word that is pronounced 'word'. It means Fate, fortune, or luck. It is similar to the Three Fates of Greek Mythology. The three 'witches' in Macbeth were originally the Wyrd. Also wierde.
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X

XIAN-- A term used by many Witches and Pagans to refer to christianity. It is an abbreviation as well as a means of reducing the power and impact of the christian religion. It is derived from the christian term 'x-mas' where 'x' means christ. It is rarely capitalized by me for exactly the same reason that xians do not capitalize 'Witch' or 'Goddess'.
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Y

YARD-- A measurement equal to the distance from the tip of your nose to the tip of your middle finger with your head forward and your arm stretched out to the side. About 3'.

YULE-- (yul) A Wiccan Sabbat that occurs on the Winter Solstice or December 21. It celebrates the rebirth of the Sun God.

YULE LOG-- When the household fire was extinguished at Yule, a piece of the wood from that fire was kept until the new year when it was used to kindle the new fire. This was a holy action that is the ancestor of many customs such as the Menorah of Judism which is a modified Yule celebration for which a 'historical' miracle was invented in an attempt to explain why they were doing something.
Some pagans make a permanant Yule Log where they plane a log flat on the bottom, drill three candle-sized holes on top, set metal holders into the holes and decorate the log for ues each year.
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Z

ZIMAT-- That green corrosion that appears when copper oxidizes. Also called verdegris or copper oxide.
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