The term "pagan" comes from the latin "pagus" meaning country dweller or outsider, it was a term used by the Romans to define the peasants living in the small villages. Also,when Christianity was the official religion, many villagers and peasants would not have heard of Christianity and therefore still be practicing the old ways.
A Pagan is someone who does not belong to any of the world's major religions. A Pagan follows a nature based religion in which each of the eight festivals tell another chapter in the story of nature. A Pagan worships the divine in two main forms, the Goddess and the God (female and male).
Pagans use the names of the ancient deities worshipped long ago by our ancient ancestors e.g the Greco-Roman Gods, the Norse Gods, the Egyptian Gods, Celtic Gods, Native American Gods etc. The list is endless,every country in the world had their own group or Pantheon of deities. When we read and study Mythology, we discover how our ancestors viewed their Gods, and how they believed they behaved.
Paganism is a joyous, peace loving celebration of nature, based on equality, polarity, duality and balance. Pagans are attuned with nature and realise that everything in nature is sacred and has it's place. We feel it important to address both the good aspects, or qualities of nature and the bad aspects of nature.i.e nature can't be all goodness and light, we need death and destruction to harmonise and retain the balance of nature. Notice that I use the words "good and bad" not "good and evil". This is because nothing in nature is evil, harmful, cruel and destructive yes, but not evil. I believe that only humans are capable of evil and is caused by imbalances between the forces of good and bad i.e when a person enjoys and delights in hurting another and seeing them suffer. Although we do believe that there are negative forces out there, we try not to think about them or give them names, this is because to give something a name, to label it, gives it power. A volcano can cause many deaths and the destruction of many villages etc but this does not make it evil. It does not maliciously plan to kill anyone, it does not enjoy killing, it is merely doing what is natural.
Paganism is not one religion, it is a whole group of religions, each one focusing on different traditions but still holding the same basic beliefs. Druidism, Asatrianism, Odinism, Shamanism, Wicca and others are all Pagan religions.
Unfortunately, Paganism, especially Wicca/Witchcraft is greatly misunderstood by many people, mainly due to the ignorant and barbaric behaviour of the medieval "Christians" during the Burning Times. Please note that Pagans do not believe in one right or wrong religion, we believe that there is more than one way to worship or view the divine. Divinity is like a great diamond with many facets, each facet being a different deity worshipped. By worshipping in different pantheons, Pagans come to realise this. I respect all religions and value all the customs and traditions of the world. I don't know where I would be if there was only one religion in the world, after all, "It takes more than one type of flower to fill a meadow". The biggest and most horrifying myth created about Pagans is that of the Devil. Pagans do NOT worship the Devil, I cannot stress this enough. As I mentioned before, we do not believe in a force of pure ultimate evil controlling and tempting people. We believe that you should take full responsibility for your actions. Pagans find the very idea of the devil peculiar to Christianity.
Wicca, the religion of Witchcraft is the Pagan religion I felt drawn to the most. The term Wicca is an Anglo-Saxon word meaning wise. Witches worship the Great Goddess and her consort the Horned God, who also has other forms i.e Sun God, lord of the Grain etc. We believe that all Goddesses ever worshipped throughout the world are simply different aspects of the Great Goddess, we hold the same view about the God. There are many different traditions in Witchcraft e.g The Faery tradition, Gardnerian, Alexandrian, Anglo Saxon, Nordic, Celtic, and many others. At the moment I am an Eclectic Witch, this means that I do not belong to any one tradition. I worship deities from many different pantheons and my ritual structure does not follow the pattern of any one tradition. Eclectic Witchcraft is very popular.
Wiccans live by the Wiccan rede "An it harm none do as ye will" which basically means as long as you harm no one (this is very important, we consider this before any action) then you are free to do as you wish.
Witchcraft, out of all the Pagan religions uses the most magic, or
MAGICK as we prefer to spell it (which is the old English spelling)
due to the fact that the other spelling is most commonly associated
with stage tricks and illusions.
Real magick is a natural force/energy that when used properly can
create desired effects. Magick is the craft of Witchcraft. Witches
believe that whatever magick you send out returns to you threefold
due to the Goddess trinity. Basically, whenever you
use magick, it always has the most effect on you as you are the one
that is channeling the power, therefore, curses and hexes are a big
no no. Having said this, there are Witches that do curse, but these
are very rare and not your run of the mill witches. Witches that do
curse only do it in extreme cases i.e cursing axe murderers and
rapists. A Wiccan would certainly never harm ANYONE. The threefold
does not only apply to magickal workings, but our daily life and how
we behave to others, if you are a negative person and give people a
lot of grief you'll get what's coming to you one of these days.
First and foremost those who practice the art of witchcraft or wicca as it is commonly known by are not satanists. The concept of Satan or the devil is from Christianity. One who acts against God, tempting and manipulating people into sin and eternal damnation - a force of evil. Witches do not believe in this force so how can we be Satanists? You would need to believe in the Christian ways to worship the devil. Some however, will still see witches as Satanists because if it doesn't fit their view of religion, then it must be evil. We see darkness and light, the yin and the yang, creation and destruction as all part of the Goddess and God.
Witchcraft or the "Craft" is a religion of love, joy and harmony with nature. It's not full of the doom and dispare of Christianity, with beliefs of "original sin" and salvation only in the afterlife, nor do we follow dogmas. We believe in both a Goddess and a God together as one, not just a single male God. To a witch the Goddess and God are just "there", as are the hills, trees, flowers, animals and rivers are "there". The Earth is the body of the Goddess and the God is the life force that impregnates her. There is no belief of one God in heaven judging us, nor that the pleasures of sexual desires are dirty or sinful. Above all, to witches, life and the elements of nature are sacred and are to be respected, celebrated and during the right times used in Magickal workings.
"If It Harms None, Do What Ye Will"
Witches believe in freedom, personal choices, and responsibility.
You and you alone must decide what "harms none". There is no rule
book saying what you must or must not do. Harming none, also includes
oneself but doesn't mean that you need to put yourself last behind all
others and be trampled on throughout your life. The witches code may
sound simple in some ways but in others it is very difficult.
You must really think about what is right for yourself. And always
remember for each action there is an opposite re-action.
The Goddess
Hear my words and know me. I am called a million names in a million
tongues. I am Eternal Maiden, the Great Mother, and I am
the Old One who holds the immortal key. I am shrouded in Mystery, but
am known to every soul. Hear my words and know me.
Whenever the moon rises in the Heavens, my children shall come to me.
Once a month when the moon is full, shall they assemble in some secret
place and adore the spirit of I, who is the Queen of the Wise. Under my
watchful eye, my children shall be taught the mysteries of Earth and
Nature, and the way of all that is magical. That which is unknown
shall be known, and that which is hidden shall be revealed, even the
secluded soul shall be pierced with my Light. From my cauldron shall
be drunk all knowledge and immortality.
Listen my children! You shall be free from slavery. You shall dance,
sing, and feast and make music, for mine is the ecstasy of the spirit,
and mine is also the joy of the earth. I do not demand sacrifice, for
behold, I am the Mother of all living things. Create and heal. Be strong,
yet gentle. Be noble, yet reverent. Bring forth and replenish.
And, as does the cycle of the Moon ever wax, wane and grow forth
again, as the seasons from one to the next flow in smooth rhythm, from
sowing to reaping, from seeming death to rebirth...so will my children
know their own pattern in both worlds.
And ye shall say these words...
I Will love and harm none.
I Will live, love, die and live again.
I Will meet, remember, know, and embrace once more.
For the free will of ALL, And with harm to None
.....As I will
.....It now is done
.....So mote it be!
The Charge of the Goddess
(Doreen Valiente)
High Priest:
"Listen to the words of the Great Mother;
She who of old was also called among men,
Artemis, Astarte, Athena, Dione, Melusine,
Aphrodite, Cerridwen, Dana, Arianrhod,
Isis, Bride,
and by many other names.
High Priestess:
"Whenever ye have need of anything,
Once in the month, and better it be when the moon is full,
Then shall ye assemble in some secret place to adore the Spirit of me,
Who is Queen of all Witches.
There ye shall assemble,
ye who are fain to learn all sorcery, yet have not won its deepest
secrets;
To these will I teach things that are yet unknown.
And ye shall be free from slavery.
And as a sign that ye be truly free, ye shall be naked in your rites;
And ye shall dance, sing, feast, make music and love,
All in my praise.
For mine is the ecstasy of the spirit,
And mine also is joy on earth;
For my law is love unto all beings.
Keep pure your highest ideal;
Strive ever towards it; let naught stop you or turn you aside.
For mine is the secret door which opens upon the Land of Youth,
And mine is the cup of the wine of life
And the Cauldron of Cerridwen,
Which is the Holy Grail of immortality.
I am the gracious Goddess Who gives joy unto the heart of man.
Upon earth, I give the knowledge of the spirit eternal;
And beyond death, I give peace, and freedom, and reunion with those
who have gone before.
Nor do I demand aught of sacrifice;
For behold, I am the Mother of all living, and my love is poured out
upon the earth."
High Priest:
"Hear ye the words of the Star Goddess;
She in the dust of whose feet are the host of heaven, And whose
body encircles the universe."
High Priestess:
"I who am the beauty of the green earth, and the white Moon among the
stars,
And the mystery of the waters, and the desire of the heart of man.
Call unto thy soul.
Arise, and come unto me.
For I am the soul of nature, who gives life to the universe.
From me all things proceed,
And unto me all things must return;
And before my face,
Beloved of Gods and man,
Let thine innermost divine self be enfolded in the rapture of the
infinite.
Let my worship be within the heart that rejoiceth;
For behold, all acts of love and pleasure are my rituals,
And therefore let there be beauty and strength,
Power and compassion,
Honor and humility,
Mirth and reverence within you.
And thou who thinkest to see me,
Know that thy seeking and thy yearning shall avail thee not
Unless thou knowest the mystery;
That if that which thou seekest thou findest not within thee,
Thou wilt never find it without.
For behold, I have been with thee from the beginning;
And I am that which is attained at the end of desire."
The Goddess is the substance of the Universe. She is from which we all,
and all life has come from. The Goddess is all around us as Mother Earth,
the Moon and stars. She is the air we breathe, she is us, and we are
part of her. She brings destruction as well as life. Any act of
building requires some kind of demolition. To make a garden, one must
kill weeds and so forth for example. The Goddess is both life and death. To many witches the Goddess comes first, not that She is more important then the God, for both are equal, but it does mean She is given proper respect as we do our human mothers. The Goddess is also the Moon, ruler of the tides and flow of the life force. The Moon is cyclical, like women who have a menstrual cycle. The three stages of the Moon correspond to the three stages in a woman's life - Maiden, Mother, and Crone. This is where the idea of the Triple Goddess comes from, expressing each phase of femininity.
The waxing Moon is the time of the Maiden - young, fresh and
adventurous.
The Full Moon is the time of the Mother - fulfillment, bounty, balance
and knowledge.
The waning Moon is the time of the Crone - wisdom, guardian and
sometimes death.
Most spells done by witches are done during the waxing or Full Moon
when She is the strongest.
The God
Hear me, I am called a thousand names in a thousand tongues but I am One. I am The Horned God, and the Lord of Chaos and the Consort of the Lady.
I am the strength of the rock at your back, the roots of the tree that seeks to anchor themselves in the Earth and I am the deepest of the tides in the black ocean. I am the warmth of the sun, the swelling of the grapes and the call of the road that leads over the hill. I am the Hunter and the Sacred Prey.
I give you the essence of my power. The power of peace hard earned, the spark of elemental fire, which lights the darkness and the visions of the ancients. I give you the glow of love, the power of the wind on your face and shelter from the wildest storm. The powers of running stag and glorious sun are yours. The darkest depth of night is yours and the lingering tendrils of dreams are yours.
I charge you by the beauty of your own creation, to follow your heart and your instinct wherever they lead you. The wealth of the heart will guide you where the cold edge of logic and science cannot. I charge you to take joy in the powers of your bodies. The form you take is unique in the Universe, and chief among your tools.
I charge you remember the path you have left behind. Learn wisdom from the foolish things you have wrought as well as the good you have done for others. I charge you remember you can never usurp another's power for the power you must rely is yours alone
I am with you always, just over your shoulder, running with you through the tall grasses and forests that surround you. I am the Hunter and the Hunted and I am the Lord of Death. When the time has come that your journey in this world is finished, it is I who will take you between worlds and give you peace and rest.
Look upon my face; know me. I am the spirit of the wild things,
but you too are wild and we are forever intertwined.
And ye shall say these words...
I Will love and harm none.
I Will live, love, die and live again.
I Will meet, remember, know, and embrace once more.
For the free will of ALL, And with harm to None
.....As I will
.....It now is done
.....So mote it be!
The God is the life force, the impregnator. He initiates change and
action. He empowers and protects the creations of the Goddess. Usually
depicted as the Horned God, which is believed to be where the Christian
version of Satan comes from. Many mythologies describe the Mother as
giving birth to Her son, who becomes Her lover, impregnates Her and
dies, to be born again as Her son, continuing the cycle of life. The
God is both the creator and the created. He is seen as the Sun which
dies each year in winter and is reborn again in spring. Another way of
looking at it is with man, when he makes love, he's spent
giving up his vitality with his seed. He soon recovers
to mate again. However, for women love making is more diffuse
and if she wishes she may simply continue. The Sun
impregnates the land, is spent, only to rise again to impregnate once
more the next spring. The land, as Goddess, remains constantly with us,
although changing her aspect.
We need both the Goddess and the God. They are the divine
partnership of creation itself.
