TYPE 4

"MY WICCA" - A PESONAL OPINION

MY WICCA

By Durwydd MacTara

My RELIGION is Wicca, my LIFE-STYLE is Witchcraft! I believe in a supreme

being that is both Immanent and Transcendent, that is expressing itself

within AND without. However, I also believe that trying to define/describe

such an infinite Divine B eing in finite terms to be a waste of time and

energy. I CAN describe my perceptions of the Ultimate in terms of the

energies that I work with and find significant in my daily living. My style

and methods of relating to what I can perceive of these Divine Energies are

what I describe as my RELIGION. How I apply these insights gained via my

religious practices, I term my CRAFT.

The name for my religion is derived from the Saxon root "wicce" (pronounced

"witchy") and is loosely translated as "Wise". The word "Wicca" was first

used in modern times in England by Gerald B. Gardner to describe/define an

attempt at restoring "th e old wisdom" of pre-Christian beliefs and practice

into a modern context in the 1940's.

Ergo, I could call my religion "wisdom" and my style of application of this

wisdom "wise-craft" or more simply, "The Craft of the Wise".

For the sake of convenience and easy understanding, I divide the expressions

of the Divine Energies into two groups; that of the active positive

(symbolically "male") energies represented to me by the stag horned Lord of

the Forest, and those of a mo re passive, nurturing, or "negative" polarity

represented to me by the Threefold Goddess.

Approaching my perceptions of the universe and its energies in this way

allows me to break them down into "bite sized chunks", applicable to my daily

life in a mundane world, and what good is ANY belief system if it is not of

immediate and practical use here and now?

So what are some of the beliefs and practices of this religion called Wicca,

and how do I apply them to my daily life? What does it all mean? The

following explanation is based on a press statement released by the American

Council of Witches releas ed in the early 1970's, with some editing on my

part to reflect my own beliefs and practices.

BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE CRAFT

1. The first principle is that of love, and it is expressed in the ethic,

"AN IT HARM NONE, DO AS THOU WILL"

a) love is not emotional in it's essence, but is an attribute of the

individual as expressed in relation to other beings;

b) harming others can be by thought, word, or deed.

Thought is included here, because for the Witch, "thoughts are things" and

every action, even thoughts, can become magical actions, whether consciously

intended

or not;

c) it is to be understood the "none" includes oneself, though it is

permissable to harm self in helping others, should one so choose;

d) the harm which is to be regarded as unethical is gratuitous harm; war, in

general, is gratuitous harm, although it is ethical to defend oneself and

one's liberty when threatened by real and present danger, such as personal

defense or defense of another WHEN REQUESTED.

2. The Witch must recognize and harmonize with the forces of the universe,

in accord with the Law of Polarity: everything is dual; everything has two

poles; everything has it's opposite; for every action there is a reaction;

all can be categorized as either active or reactive in relation to other

things.

a) The Infinite and Ultimate Godhead is one unique and transcendent

wholeness, beyond any limitations or expressions; thus, it is beyond our

human capacity to understand and identify with this principle of Cosmic

Oneness, except as It is reveale d to us in terms of It's attributes and

operation.

b) One of the most basic and meaningful attribute of the One that we, as

humans, can relate to and understand, is that of polarity, of action and

reaction; therefore

Witches recognize the Oneness of the Divinity, but worship and relate to the

Divine as the archetypal polarity of God and Goddess, the All-Father and the

Great Mother of the universe. The Beings are as near as we can approach to

the One within our human limitations of understanding and expression, though

it is possible to experience the divine Oneness through the practices of the

Mysteries.

c) Harmony does not consist of the pretty and the nice, but the balanced,

dynamic, poised co-operation and co-relationship.

3. The Witch must recognize, and operate within the framework of the Law

of Cause and Effect; every action has it's reaction, and every effect has

it's cause. All things occur according to this law; nothing in the universe

can occur outside this law, though we may not always appreciate the relation

between a given effect and it's cause.

Subsidiary to this is the Law of Three, which states that whatever goes forth

must return threefold, whether of good or ill; for our actions affect more

than people generally realize, and the resulting reactions are also part of

the harvest.

4. As Above, So Below. That which exists in the Macrocosm exists, on a

smaller scale and to a lesser degree, in the Microcosm. The powers of the

universe exist also in the human, though in general instance they lie

dormant. The powers and abilitie s can be awakened and used if the proper

techniques are practiced, and this is why initiates of the Mysteries are

sworn to guard the secrets from the unworthy: Much harm can be done by those

who have power without responsibility, both to others and t o themselves

according to the Laws of Cause and Effect and of Threefold Return.

a) Since our philosophy teaches that the universe is the physical

manifestation of the Divine, there can be nothing in the universe which

does not partake of the

nature of the Divine; hence, the powers and attributes of the Divine exist

also in the manifest, though to much smaller degree.

b) These powers can be awakened through the various techniques of the

Mysteries, and, although they are only capable of small effects in and of

themselves, it is possible to use them in order to draw upon the forces of

the universe. Thus humanity c an be the wielders of the power of the Gods, a

channel for Godhead to act within It's own manifestation. This, many feel,

is further reason for the oath of secrecy.

c) Since the universe is the body of the One, possessing many of the same

attributes as the One, it's Laws must be the principles through and by

which the One operates. By reasoning from the known to the unknown, one

can learn

of the Divine, and thus of oneself. By experiencing the Mysteries a person

can truly LEARN more about the One. Thus the Craft is a natural religion as

well as a MYSTERY religion, seeing in Nature the expression and revelation of

Divinity.

5. We know that everything in the universe is in movement or vibration and is

a function of that vibration. Everything vibrates; all things rise and fall

in a tidal system that reflects the motion inherent in the universe and also

in the atom. Matte r and energy are but two poles of one continuous

phenomenon. Therefore the Witch celebrates, harmonizes with, and makes use of

the tides of the universe and of life as expressed through the cycle of the

seasons and the motion of

the solar system. These ritual observances are the eight great Festivals of

the Year, referred to as the Wheel of the Year. Further,the Witch works with

the forces and tides of the Moon, for this body is the mediator of much

energy to our planet Ea rth and thus to ourselves.

6. Nothing is dead matter in the universe. All things exist, therefore all

things live, though perhaps in a different manner from that which we are used

to calling life. In view of this, the Witch knows that there is no true

death, only change fr om one condition to another. The universe is the body

of Godhead, and therefore

possesses one transcendent consciousness; all things partake of the

consciousness, in varying levels of trance/awareness.

a) Because of this principle, all things are sacred to the Witch, for all

partake of the one Life.

b) Therefore the Witch is a natural ecologist, for Nature is part of us as we

are a part of Nature.

7. Throughout the development of the human race, civil e products of

humanity's striving to know the Godhead.

a) In keeping with the Law of Polarity, these god-forms are brought into

harmony by the one great Law which states: All Gods are one God. All

Goddesses are one Goddess. There is one Initiator. This law is an

expression of our understanding that all of the forces of the universe, by

whatever ethnic god-form is chosen to clothe and relate to whichever force,

can be resolved into the fundamental polarity of the Godhead, the Great

Mother and the All-Father.

b) It is the use of differing god forms, of differing ethnic sources or

periods, which is the basis of many of the differences between the various

Traditions of the Craft. Each Tradition uses the forms, and thus the names,

which to that Tradition bes t express and awaken an understanding of the

force represented, according to the areas of emphasis of the Tradition.

c) Because we know that differing names or representations are but

expressions of the same divine principles and forces, we require our

members to swear

that they will never mock the names by which another honors the Divine,

even though those names be different from and seemingly less expressive than

the names and god forms used by our Tradition (for to the members of

another Tradition, using it 's names, ours may easily seem equally less

expressive).

8. A Witch refuses to allow her/himself to be corrupted by the great guilt

neuroses which have been foisted on humanity in the name of the Divine, thus

freeing the self of the slavery of the mind. The Witch expresses

responsibility for her/his acti ons, and accepts the consequences of them;

guilt is rejected as inhibiting to one's self-actuaization, and replaced by

the efforts of the Witch to obey the teachings of harmlessness,

responsibility for the consequences of one's

actions, and the goal of actualizing the full powers of the individual.

a) We refuse to believe that a human being is born innately sinful, and

recognize the concepts of sin and guilt are tremendously inhibiting to the

human potential;

the consequences of the Law of Cause and Effect, called karma by some, are

not punishment, but the recurrences of situations and their effects because

the individual has not gained the Wisdom needed to handle or avoid such

situations.

b) There is no heaven except that which we ourselves make of our life on

Earth, and likewise there is no hell except the effects of our unwise

actions. Many of us believe in a "waiting place" sometimes called Summerland

where we rest, recuperate an d prepare for our next sojurn in the earth.

"Death is not followed by punishment or reward, but by life and the

continuing personal evolution of our human potential.

c) One cannot damn the divine in oneself; one can, however, cut oneself off

from it through the rejection of wisdom and a refusal to strive for self-

realization.

This cutting off does not lead to personal suffering in "hell", for there is

no Self to suffer if the tie to one's own divinity has been severed; what

remains is merely an empty shell, a "personality" or thought-form devoid of

it's ensouling Spark of the Divine Fire.

9. We know of the existence of the life-force which ensouls all living

things, that is, all that exists. We know that a spark of this Divine Fire

is within each and every thing that exists, and that it does not die; only

the form of it's existence changes. We know that this spark of the life-force

returns to manifestation again and again in order to fully realize and

actualize it's potential, evolving finally to the peak and essence of

existence which is pure being. In this process of reincar nation each form

returns in the same type of form, though it's ever-increasing actualization

may lead to higher levels of existence of that form. Man returns as man, cat

as feline, mineral as mineral, each class of form evolving as the individual

fo rms of that class evolve.

10. This process of evolution through successive incarnations in manifest

form works through the utilizations of wisdom gained, the essence of the life

experience. This essence of experience, or Wisdom, is an attribute of the

spark of life itself, o ne and inseparable.

11. We must care for the body, for it is the vehicle of the spark of life,

the form by which we attain. Thus we must heal the body of it's ills and

keep it a tuned and perfected tool; so must we heal others (both physically

and psychologically) as far as it is within our power to do so. However, we

cannot interfere with the life of another, even to heal, except at their

request or with their express permission.

The reasoning behind this apparent limitation is that we are endowed with

Free Will, and what the Gods themselves hesitate to infringe upon, is best

left alone by us "mere" mortals.

13. Harmony with, and utilization of, the great natural forces of the

universe is called magick. By magick we speak, not of the supernatural,

but of the superbly natural, but whose laws and applications are not as yet

recognized by the scientific establishment. The Witch must strive to

recognize these forces, learn their laws, attune her/himself to them, and

make use of them. The Witch must also be aware that power corrupts when

used only for the gains of the self,

and therefore must strive to serve humanity: Either through the service in

the Priesthood, or by example and effects of his/her life on others. The

choice must be made in accord with the true nature of the Witch.

BLESSED BE.