BASIC WICCAN BELIEFS
Taken Largely from: 21st Century Wicca: A Young Witch's Guide to Living the Magickal Life. Citadel Publishing 1998.
1. THERE IS NO SEPARATION BETWEEN CREATOR AND CREATION. Wiccans belive that Diety exists within the physical world as awareness, consciousness, and self-direction. Because Diety is present in all things, we see creation as a proccess-the Universe is continually dying, and rebirthing itself. These cyles of renewal can be as big as as the lives of the Universe or as small as a day in the life of Earth. This internal direction, this consciouseness, is beautiful and sacred.
2.ALL THINGS ARE CONNECTED TO ONE ANOTHER. Everything we do has an effect on the rest of the Universe, like ripples in a pool of water or vibrations on a spider web. Nobody's actions happen in a vacum or can be "taken back". It stands to reason that Witches would generally be enviornmentalists, but it's more than that. WE have an individual responsiblitiy to be aware of the way we effect each other and the planet-not just physically, but emotionally, spiritually, and magikcally as well. The effect we have can and should be consiously directed to bring about a positive influence on the world around us.
3.SEXUALITY IS SACRED AND OUR BODIES ARE SACRED. We are sexual beings from birth. Between consenting adults, sexual union is a giflt from the Gods. It is also a way of expressing the creative force between the dual aspects of Diety, the God and Goddess-even when you're alone or with someone of the same sex. Sexuality is one of the greatest mysteries of the Universe, for it has the ultimate potential to create life. When we experience our sexuality in a positive, life-affirming way, we are all creators, and so come closer to the Divine. Some Wiccans do their rituals skyclad to appear before the Gods as they were made, with no false personas. Pagans, are, in general,more comfortable than most about being nude.
4.RELIGIOUS INSPIRATION COMES FROM NATURE. Before there were holy books, the earliest peoples used to look to the physical world around them for clues to the meaning of life and death. They saw that everything move is cycles: the moon, the Earth's seasons, day and night. The tree will spout,grow, die, and fertalize the soil for another to grow in it's place. Destruction and death are not bad or evil: they pave the way for new life. Human life happens in a cycle as well. We are born, we grow, we die, and we return in another form. Not all witches belive in reincarnation per se, but most will agree with the general principle. Because energy is never lost or gained, and matter cannot be destroyed, death is not an end, but a change. We do not belive that life is a one-way passage that lands the person in heaven or hell for all eternity,. Nothing else in Nature happens in a straight line: why should that?
5.WE HAVE AN INTIMATE & PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH DIETY
In order to gain a more intimate connection with the life force, Wiccans connect to it through various Dieties that are physical, emotional, and emobdied in basic life experiences. This helps us to experience Deity as being present and immediate.These Gods, are seen as the essence of being-not actual omnipotent beings living up on a mountain but expressions of life, love, forgiveness, anger...ect. They are real because we experience them firstand, in everything we do. We see the Gods as both male and female, because both are equally as important in the creation of life. The energy of deites comes through us and through everything else, humas, animals, plants..ect. We define and personify them to come closer to divinity, however, the life force, transcends all of these definitions...Mystery?
6.EACH WICCAN IS CONSIDERED TO BE CLERGY. Each of us has the same ability to connect with Deity. Of course, someone who has studied the Craft for ten years will naturally be more adept at magick and ritual than someone who is brand new:but the connection with Deity has nothing to do with trappings of ritual and therefore does not necessarily impove with time It is intuitive and natural. If anything, learing more about the mechanics may bring someone further away from the simple understanding. When everyone is clergy, everyone is equally powerful-and that's an important political statemenet as well as spiritual one.
7.MAGICK IS REAL, MAGICK WORKS, AND EVERYONE HAS THE ABILITY TO USE IT. Magick is sometimes defined as "the art of bringing change in accordance with will" in other words, channeling and directing the force of your own will to cause things to happen. There are lots of different therories as how to and why magick works., and these vary among cultures. In Witchcraft, the nature of the magick we do is interwoven with our beliefs about the world. All things and beings are connected by a web of energy. By using concentration, props (candles, incense, and such) symbols, or sounds, it is possible to affect this energy and bring change. This is an ability we are all born with, although it isn't acknowledged, much less encouraged, in our society. Still alot of us cast spells without even realizeing it like when you hurl a lot of anger at someone and he/she istarts to feel sick? or when an outpouring of live can heal emotional wounds?
8.WHAT GOES AROUND, COMES AROUND. We might make our own distictions between "black" and "white" magick, but in nature, there is no concept of good or evil. Such absolutes require a judge and the Gods do not judge. Because we are all so closely connected, we cannot harm one another withought harming ourselves. And because of the extent to which a person must immerse him/herself in any spell he/she casts, all spells, for halp or harm, will come back maginified. Hopefully, just having an understanding of this connection and the consequences of negativity should lead us to act responsibly. Of course, this isn't foolproof, but punsihment is usually swift and appropriate.
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