A Talk I did .. well what I was supposed to say!
Greetings All.
I am Scott Bisseker and before we get on with this it is only right that you should have some idea who I am so you can have a context for what I am going to say. A short version of my career up until now runs something like this:
@ 5 I went down to the cross roads of our small town at midnight in order to make a deal with the monsters so I could get a decent night’s sleep. Something answered. @ 8 I lived in a log cabin down the road from Chenrezig and learnt meditation from the Monks.By 11 I was doing my own card readings and learning home remedies and basic spell theory from my mother and any text I could lay my hands on. @ 14 I did my first summoning. @ 18 I took an apprenticeship full time under a mentor.
By 20 I had my own group which lasted a couple of years until I disbanded it due to ill health and the fact that I was being done in by the responsibility of running a 15 strong group at a too tender age. I spent a couple of years getting over the stress and furthering my own studies in a variety of traditions before beginning another group.
During this time I continued writing and studying, occasionally tutoring and giving the odd lecture. I also did several stints doing public readings and etc. In that time I also helped out at the beginning of the first Pagan Summer Gathering up here in QLD to get it up off the ground. The second group I ran covered a range of different subjects from basic Wiccan forms through to ceremonial summoning, reality engineering and group dynamics. This was disbanded in 1999 when it had achieved the goals I had set for it. I then applied for and was accepted and initiated into the Pickingill line under Bill Liddell. I have since been given my traditional authority but as I have no wish to teach for the moment, have not formed a group of my own. For the time being I prefer to remain in the companie under Bill's jurisdiction.
Now that is out of the way let’s move on …..
First in this talk I am going to examine several issues regarding the difference between witchcraft and more modern practices, and hopefully make a few points clear from my point of view to you. What I want to try to avoid however is a didactic approach of dogmatic lecturing. I don’t want to simply enforce a stance by saying: ”This is what I think – it is what you should believe”. Nor will I attempt to persuade you to accept my thoughts. Instead, I will simply be running some ideas by you so that you can eavesdrop on the thoughts of another to your advantage. I don’t want you to BE TOLD, to puzzle out or even to act upon this talk. I am simply giving you something to experience. Think on this as listening to someone read out a controversial fairy story if it helps – hell do whatever it takes to just “swim in the thing”. Some of you will like it, some will hate it and some really lucky ones will do both.
Now let's talk about witches. It is at this point that must needs be careful to be sure that we are all thinking about the same thing. Know you that I am not talking about groups from the old pagan times nor am I discussing neopagans when I say groups of witches. These two are very different things again.
This is due, largely to the fact that witches were, in the main, the disparate survivors of the pogroms instituted by the Church of Rome and the simple ravages of a world that largely is more interested in the new and easier way of doing things than the old, mysterious and “backward” superstitious world of their forebears. These survivors found themselves cast down from their previously held positions of status and amongst those who had practiced magic alone and outside of the strictures of the various Pagan religions. (It should be remembered that even in the pagan world the “Witch” was looked down upon as a morally suspect practitioner of non state approved magic!) These witches who had existed before the arrival of the Church were those who gave the word it's original meanings, (i.e. "Frightener, Poisoner" & etc) and they had their effect on the newcomers.
This new conglomerate of witches and ex priests and priestesses of pagan faiths contained a number who often soon readily accepted the new God put forward by the Church, ("Satan") under the commonsense idea that "The ENEMY of MY ENEMY is my FRIEND." After this, (of course) came those who began such practice as a reaction TO the Church. This second wave of new comers made their own groups and, in some cases, joined existing groups.
I will say that yes, there were seasonal celebrations and simple celebratory nights in the pagan world. They did exist and this is undoubtably where a goodly amount of the basis for the, (later) witches rites came from. The old pagan rites required priesthoods and it is only sensible to imagine that some of these, some of the novices and the well wishing commoners made up some of the laity for at least some of the earliest witch festivities.
In various pagan times, there would be celebrations for the turning of the seasons - generally to ensure that they KEPT turning and that the people would survive the inevitable changes from one to the other. Some of these would be presided over by the Head Priest or, (more rarely than many would like to believe) by the Head Priestess. The common people would join in these were there time; mainly because it was their chance to be part of the community and have some fun while still contributing to the well being of the community as a whole. This simple common sense view is hotly disputed by many in the modern day who would have preferred history to read more like a fantasy novel.
So we see that such seasonal celebrations would be enjoined if there was time and inclination but the straightforward "work" aspect of such allegedly religious congregations and celebrations became largely the prerogative of the priest caste. As the Church rose to prominence these celebrations were viewed with suspicion and disdain. The new church did all it could to stamp these out and dissuade the people from such activities. The celebrations continued in a much-subdued manner among small societies and communities and all but faded into the realm of what we would call today - "Local Colour".
The upshot of this for the remnants, descendants and inheritors of the ancient priest castes was that they became a dispossessed people that suddenly were out of a job. Their "work" was now mainly aimed at their survival and all meetings had to be in secret. In this light the loss of such mysterious power and status must have been a bitter pill indeed.
It must have been soon after this stage of development that the "witches and warlocks" were 'born'. It is this salient fact that renders the understanding of the witch’s inherent difference in motive suddenly clear. The witches we speak of are not the priest caste – if they survived in any real way it would be limited and fragmented. These pagan priests and priestesses must be dispossessed before the correct motivation for mediaeval excesses can occur. This state of affairs will be the kernel for the later church propaganda to be wrapped around. Lest we forget that the most effective smear campaigns, (like myths) have a core based in actuality. As a result of this societal swing, (slow though it was and not without opposition!) there were suddenly lone members of the old priest caste with no existing support network. Some of them abandoned their roles but kept their faith and some who continued their roles in secret with small close-knit groups of people as congregants. This would not continue too long as the congregants were soon diminished in favour of the new easy religion that one would not be ostracized for following. As attractive as the idea of an actual pre-Christian-Pagan survival continuing any appreciable distance after the destruction of it’s societal niche may be; it is equally unlikely.
We know the period of time that the church ruled now rather applicably as "The Dark Ages" and it was a time of incredible poverty – financially and in terms of philosophical, practical and scientific progress. The classes became separated in a way that later Marx would prophecy for the future. The small numbered elite ruled and owned everything while the majority owned nothing, all but starved and worked to keep the elite living in the manner to which they had become accustomed. It was this time of overburdening authority and misery that was the birthplace and breeding ground for what we now recognise as "witches and warlocks" and it is perhaps this origin that defines them better than anything else!
The congregations of witches and warlocks have been often misrepresented by the New Age as staid, peace loving groups of hard done by relics of a bygone age. This representation of sweet gentle wise men and women is never quite annunciated but constantly implied in many modern treatises and lectures and seems to be a knee-jerk reaction designed to counter the medieval church propaganda. As both seem inherently unlikely we must consider the points of congruence and strive for some sort of compromise point between the two as being the most probable reality.
While there were some undoubtably active at those times for which this modern gentle description is quite appropriate, the mainstay of the remnants of the earlier age, (we can but imagine) were anything but staid relics. Rare is the man who is happy about his whole career going down the tubes – as the description of Britain and France’s Druidic resistance goes some way to delineating. If indeed there was a survival it would be a furtive tiny minority of half remembered practices, fiercely guarded and often exploited for personal gain. One of the texts of witchcraft sheds some light on this issue and describes the witches quite well and marks them as being very different to those who would later be referred to lovingly by the modern NeoPagan movement. This should not be surprising in that it is not our focal group that the modern NeoPagan movement traces it’s practically desired ancestry back to!
The Aradian Gospel, collated by Leland from old legends and etc from Italy makes it clear that many of the witches were anything BUT "accepting of their lot" as we see here:
" And thou shalt teach the art of poisoning, Of poisoning those who are great lords of all; Yea, thou shalt make them die in their palaces. And thou shalt bind the oppressor's soul (with power). And when ye find a peasant who is rich,
Then ye shall teach the witch, your pupil, how to ruin all his crops with tempests dire, With lightning and with thunder (terrible), And with the hail and wind... And when a priest shall do you injury By his benedictions, ye shall do to him double the harm, and do it in the name of me, Diana, Queen of witches all!
And when the priests or the nobility shall say to you that you should put your faith In the Father, Son, and Mary, then reply: "Your God, the Father, and Maria are Three devils..." "For the true God the Father is not yours;
For I have come to sweep away the bad. The men of evil, all will I destroy!""
So much for "An' it harm none" even with a certain amount of wishful romance factored in, this is not the vision of modernity that lends itself so well to the average Enya C.D! These witches and warlocks were in no way accepting of their lot and actively defied their oppression – irrelevant of the form it took. They became almost akin to guerilla style leaders who promised their adherents and congregations more joy than they were liable to find anywhere else and a life that involved more control over their world than the common people ever could have dreamt of.
With time many of the symbols that may have survived from the old pagan days would be kept but their meanings would be lost. The rites of the seasonal celebrations would be turned into excuses for an "invitation only" party. What were once a geographical exclusive seasonal observation would become largely an excuse to gather, plot, scheme and perhaps even more importantly, to indulge. In some cases the Church propaganda was not far from the truth and well, we are all aware of how readily life imitates fantasy!
SO WHAT MAKES THE WITCH TODAY?
Well now this is a difficult proposition. As you have no doubt seen from your personal experiences the examples vary greatly. There are many different Traditions, which have different expectations of their aspirants - many points of which in each case contradict those of other traditions. And all this from a subset of beliefs and practices that, by and large have the same ancestry!! Indeed sometimes it seems that this subject is a far more incendiary topic than most!
I will not "buy into" the "Whose is valid" argument; it is one that is a pointless timewaster with no agreeable answer – the same can be said for the allegedly “correct manner of practice”. Besides, in our "business" a little knowledge can be made to "go a long way".
Having had contact with many different traditions I can say that there is ONE THING (at least) that is a standard across the board and that is "seriousness". By this I don't mean that you are always serious - I mean that when it comes to the facet of the art with which the tradition is concerned; you must be prepared to take the study and work seriously. Each group has particular rules, laws, demands, trials and customs that must be obeyed if you are going to last any appreciable time in them.
The one group that really does not have to pay "lip-service" to this to a large extent are those who are known as the "Solo" witches and warlocks even though they tend to have their own rough hewn codes that are surprisingly alike. It should be pointed out that many of these codes that we find in evidence being used by Solitaires tend to be comprised of fragments of traditional codes from various sources augmented with the results of personal experience. Far from being a disparaging state of affairs, it is this reality that to a large degree, keeps the various arts vital and evolving – JUST AS IT ALWAYS HAS.
Witches and warlocks by and large have tended to work alone over the millennia and as such have no complex codes by which they MUST abide across the range. The price that they pay for this freedom is that they have no one to "back them up" in case of problems arising. In this case the “reward is it's own curse” if the work is attended to and given it’s due properly. Solitary work tends to be harder than any other path. The solitary witch must succeed or fail on their own merits. The number of solitaries that manage to continue successfully, (historically speaking) is accordingly small in comparison to the numbers that have come from the safer environments of covens, schools and colleges.
Of this section of the art there are two main types of witch or warlock. There are those that are a part of a "Line" and those who are not. The difference between the two is that those of a "Line" are those that were taught, (generally by apprenticeship) under another witch or warlock whereas those without a ‘line’ are simply individuals who have made the best use of what they have been able to find on their own. Over the centuries much has been made of the merits and failings of each.
Generally the argument runs something like: the "There is more power in having a line” standpoint versus the "Not having a line means that you learn the hard way - which is the best way" front. The fact is that having more power and knowing how best to put it to use are not the same and so each has it's merits and failings.
THE "LINE"
Those witches and warlocks who have "lineage" historically tend to have more prestige than those without but by the same token, their line has more rules than the lone solitary will ever have to put up with. To begin with, a witch or warlock who studies under another will, (historically speaking) generally have to undergo an apprenticeship after first ‘proving their worth’ to that ‘line’ in some way or another.
Many groups today do not make use of this sort of teaching method as it can be very labour intensive and slow. The would be apprentice must first make the teacher believe that it will be worth their time tutoring them and this, mixed with the time of observation, (wherein the teacher watches the student-to-be's movements carefully) may take anywhere up to several years. (I watched my first apprentice for two years before I accepted her as a student.)
During this time of observation, the “Master”, (Old Form title) will observe the student in all ways. They are considered on the basis of the "rightness" of their thoughts, beliefs, reasoning, ability, talent and action. It should be noted at this point that the term "rightness" is not used in an absolute sense but rather as a "would we work well together?" type of question. Indeed it is not unknown during this observation period for a student to be introduced, (overtly or covertly) to other "Masters" and to be handed over to them if they should prove to be "wrong" for the original "Master's" style and/or Tradition.
The testing is generally held over one year at the very least so that the "Master" may observe the postulant in good times and bad at all phases of the day and night, all days of the week and all months and phases of the year. If the student is considered above average in all ways and "gifted" one year may be enough; if not then the observation will continue. Again, it is not unknown for such masters to observe several candidates over times and test each to select the one that they will train. This period of time can be considerably longer in societies closer to tribality where the observation period may begin at birth and continue until that child officially "comes of age" - or longer depending on the criteria used!
When, (and if!) the student is accepted by the "Master", their training begins. The style of teaching, training and or apprenticeship is very different from many other styles. In extreme cases the student will have to live at the "Masters" home, do all of the daily chores for him/her and even support them!
In the traditional format there is no better way of learning than to observe and ask questions and this is exactly what the student now has the best way of doing. It should also be noted that the Master agrees to take care of the apprentice in all things. The physical, mental and "spiritual" welfare of the apprentice is their responsibility and other Masters monitor this. In addition, it is considered to be also the Masters responsibility to "raise" the student well. The old saying that illustrates this is: "The failure of the student is the failure of the Master". There is a great amount of stigma attached to students who "are not up to scratch" and so the cycle perpetuates and regulates itself to a large degree.
This becomes very important in the realm of Masters who train their students in the "Traditional" witch method. In "Traditional" styles, a male will train a female and vice versa and "passing the power" is considered a necessity. This refers to sexual induction, techniques and initiations etc. In these cases regulation etc is very important and it is ensured by the lineage of the Master and their standing with other masters. Terrible injustices have resulted by improper teaching in the past and as such; these aspects of the "Art" are paid careful and close attention to. A "Master" who has shown consistently that they cannot teach is ridiculed by all and shunned. All other Masters will "lock them out". What this means is that they will direct all potential students away from they who are "locked out" until they are no more or better their actions.
The other situation that must be considered is that the "Master" is required to pass on ALL their secrets to students who show aptitude and ability in their training. This, is, in and of itself a very telling point. It is the most ardent desire of all Masters that their students will some day be "better than [they] ever could be and carry their tradition proudly into the future". This is another expectation of the "Master"; all are expected to; (in the course of their career) find their successor. The "successor" is one whom they are satisfied will continue long after they are withdrawn and continue their line competently.
The student in this form may learn literally everything the Master in question can teach. I will briefly touch upon some of the subjects that the apprentice may be exposed to.
Their “sight” will be activated and senses honed. To some this ‘awakening’ or ‘epiphany’ may be quite devastating, (not to mention binding) so they will be supported through the same and have the ‘ins and outs’ of it explained to them.
They will learn to tell truth from lie, to recognize friend from foe. They will learn to ‘hear’, to ‘see’, to ‘smell’, to ‘taste’ and ‘touch’ and how to feel and not feel. They will learn control and abandon – and when best to use both. They will learn to self contemplate, second guess, meta-think, self express and realize, to find their own true ‘faith’ as well as to understand and utilize the religions of others. They will learn to recognize, discover and use their “true names” and “faces”. They will learn to “know”, to “contact”, to make use of and venerate their ancestors, their predecessors, their bloodline, their tradition and lineage. They will learn how to know, to have congress with, summon and dismiss entities of various kinds. They will learn codes of conduct and recognition, to ‘see’ the past, ‘see’ through the present and divine the future. They will learn how to make use of ritual structure, how to apply spell work to themselves, to others and to groups that they may encounter or create and how to make the best use of all of the same.
They will learn how to make that which they need to achieve their goals, what tools they will need and how best to use them. They will learn how to interpret and utilise the passing of time and it’s specific times, of the planets and their meanings and uses; the sun and the phases of the moon. The directions of the winds the virtues of day and night and the times in between. They will learn to know the worlds of stones, of flowers, of herbs, of animals, of talismans and fetishes, of spirits and humans. Of numbers, of letters and words. To heal, to ward and to weal. They will learn to bless and curse, to nurture and blight. They will learn stories, myths, secrets and truths that are not available to the rest of the world.
They will learn of Pagans and Neo Pagans, of White and Black, of Witches, Wizards and Magicians. They will learn ‘the way things are’, the way they were and how to make them and unmake them into what is desired. They will even study modern ideas; they will learn theories of magic such as ‘Temporal/Reality Engineering and Manipulation’ and their practices. They will learn how to guage the actions and desires of the mass of humanity by semiology, character analysis/manipulation as well as psychology.
And they will learn those things that are considered “lost subjects”. They will learn joy and fear, love and hate. And they will learn the ways to undo them all if needs be.
As you can see the two fates of the Master and Student will become intertwined and each has much responsibility to the other. The stakes are high, the chances are risky and retribution is severe but when it succeeds – it allows for a brighter and stronger future.
This is by no means a "lost" or "archaic" system but rather one that continues on - even into the modern era. Consider the martial and spiritual schools of Asia, or of any tribal based society anywhere on the face of the earth - this system of training is FAR from "dead". In fact, when one comes to think about it, the form continues to some degree pretty much everywhere – the trick is to not consider the extreme the norm!
THE LONE WITCH
In stark comparison, the "Lone" witch (or solitary) has none of these things to worry about. The lone witch makes his or her own way and is answerable only to those who know them and happen to be better than they are. These practitioners have had their "lot" improved greatly with the advent of the "New Age" but their newfound freedoms have come at a price.
Today, one may walk into virtually any bookstore and find books that either about or related to magic in some way or other and at no time in "our" history have things been so loose and inventive. Go into any bookstore and consider how many different points of view are represented by the many texts, manuals and workbooks that line the shelves and then remember that this state of affairs is very recent indeed. The collection of books that even the average person with only a passing interest in the "art" has, would have been UNTHINKABLE a hundred years; or even fifty years ago and it was this sort of scarcity that the lone witch of "yester-year" had to contend with.
The training of the lone witch is a progression of trials, errors and successes. They must acquire all the information that they can and find out whether or not it is useful to them. This is the basis of the "trial and error" system of work. Each aspect of ‘the Arts’ must be studied, trialed and then implemented (generally in a modified form) or discarded.
This is where the work is hard for the "lone" witch and how the Art exacts the price for such a freedom. The witch of today has more books and systems to choose from then they could ever make good use of BUT the fact remains that most of the texts will be useless. While it is true that "every book has at least one good line in it", (a solitaire's dictum if ever there was one!) the fact is that a good ninety percent of the texts about today will prove largely useless to any one of them.
Add to this the fact that there are startlingly few books about these days that address the notion of "basic skills" ("the sight" & etc.) and one can easily see how important and perilous the "trial and error" system can become. For the solitaire, (especially those of days gone by) there is no "back up", there is no one to turn to if things "go wrong".
This can be very perilous as there are certain aspects of “the Art” that can be dangerous at the best of times let alone when one has to "taste it to see what it does".
Many have refuted such ideas based on the grounding that: "if this is so then why are there so many solitaries about these days?" Well the answer is simple …
Today most people KNOW that they can be a witch alone - it was never the case when one turns "the clock back" - in those days it was a dangerous gamble in the extreme and your life was the "stake on the table" - so to speak. It is worth remembering that the lone witch of yesteryear was in just as much danger from their cousins (if you will) as they were from anyone else! These days most are aware that they don't HAVE to belong to a coven, it is comparatively safe to have such interests and there are a bevy of bookstores filled to the brim with books on every conceivable subject – all for the picking.
Another fact, (unpopular though it is) is that these days, because many places on the globe have forsaken witchcraft laws and suchlike and because of the great availability of information; it's tone and quality has largely degraded. As such, the "standards" of many of the operators who rely on these have fallen. Many believe that with "such and such a book and a regular skimming you'll be fine". This is not so. As the stakes become less we become little by little more lax and the overall tone must eventually suffer. How long will it be until we see “lapsed witches” who only practice once a month or on the high days? Some would say that day has already come and gone!
To be an effective lone witch takes great dedication and persistence. One's will must be made of iron to ignore the many distractions and push oneself to the limit. To teach oneself properly is, (in reality) as hard an occupation now as ever it was in the past. There are no "Year and a Day High Priest/ess Courses" - and if you do find one it won't be "worth a damn".
I have had the "best of both worlds" so to speak, as I am largely, self-taught. But by the same token I had mentors who would guide me away from some of the more horrifically dangerous mistakes. My mentors gave me a huge amount of "free reign" and only really corrected me when it was absolutely necessary in the area of study.
Even so, it has taken me years of full time hard work and study to get even as far as I have. Along the way I have made some mistakes that were so embarrassing that they make me blush even now to think of them and some again that have cost me more dearly than I ever could have possibly imagined. The way is difficult, costly and quite often insanely lonely. It is one that once begun, will not let you discard it. To be a witch or warlock truly is to consign yourself to a huge, long, hard and often fearful world that will be largely your responsibility even beyond your death. It is a great responsibility and one that should not be undertaken by any save those that hear the siren's call and cannot resist. Even though in the modern era some scoff at the idea of there being any inherent danger in studying and practicing witchcraft, it is pretty obvious that these are the arguments of those with little actual experience “in the field”.
Having taken a look at what the "witch or warlock" must be in order to "make the grade" so to speak, let us now examine a bit more closely what the "witch or warlock" actually does. Let us begin with the subject of Initiation and Self Dedication.
Over the centuries, much has been said and written about the subjects of Initiation and Self Dedication. I wish to first state emphatically that even though many people use these two interchangeably it is not so and that they shouldn't be used so. Self-Dedication is exactly as it sounds - it is a ritualised "promising" of the self to a particular goal or set of goals (and yes in this I include Gods!!) Dedication is when this occurs with the assistance of an advocate. In self dedication, one declares ones self and hopes to impress enough to make contact. When one is dedicated this scenario is assisted by one who already HAS the connection to the source you desire.
This situation differs from Initiation as an initiation infers a "rebirth" (of sorts) into a different world and has certain elements that are present, irrelevant of the tradition. In many groups and traditions the flow of rites tends to go: Dedication, Initiation and then any number of self dedications as necessary.
Throughout time there have many different forms of self dedication recorded. In the world of witchcraft these are generally in the form of anti-catholic rituals that have been chorused by howls of derision from the NeoPagan sects. This is generally because they are NeoPagans and as such this sort of thing means little to them.
A point that we can garner from history is that there was no need for self dedication before we “were scattered". In tribal and close-knit family unit based societies, the scenarios of dedication to the family/communities gods is a given – as is the initiation rite, (in whatever forms) that leads to the vocation. When we find ourselves divorced from this form of society we experience a lack that we remedy with self-dedication, taking initiations and the like.
The Self Dedication is a ritualised promise to "stick it out" - to finish what you begin. It is also in part, (at least!) a renunciation of past activities to better allow focus on the chosen goal. The reasoning behind the often-found anti-christian sentiment is simple. Whether one “believes” or not is irrelevant - if you were born into a nominally Christian country then you are subject to it's social programming. The self-dedication is designed in this way to break the programming that is instilled both consciously and unconsciously into every inhabitant of such countries. Even were one to be raised by strictly atheistic parents it would still not rule this out as the legal systems of any country that is nominally ANY single religion will bear the moral codes of that faith in it's legal system. This is the basis for the "social contract" that every inhabitant of a community must observe to live freely.
While it is certainly the case that if one is adhering to a “Pagan” descended faith or one is a NeoPagan this theological inclusion will have, (perhaps) a lesser impact and therefore be of lesser use BUT there is still an effect. My point is that even though "Pagan Theology" comes from a time before the church oppression and "Wicca/Neo-Paganism etc” comes from the time directly after the laws being repealed, (when the wide spread oppression had lessened) the fact remains that the careful use of “heresy” will still impact on the subconscious level that has been indoctrinated by the religio-societal codes of what is “acceptable”.
In short, rites of this kind, (such as medieval sabbat re-enactments or use of the “Black Mass”) while at their most effective if you are practicing as a WITCH will still jar the subconscious of any modern practitioner – regardless of tradition. This use of the self dedication as a sort of psycho dramatic “slate wiper” is more prevalent in solitaries as it more completely satisfies the individual’s psychological need for “religious closure” before continuing upon a path – or beginning a new one. This is especially the case in those individuals that last and succeed as they tend towards fanatical personality types – hence the more likely they are to succeed in their “surrogate drug” the more likely they are to find the “denial for new belief” model attractive. While there tends to be little more repellent than a “reformed now anti” type of person, (think of those reformed anti smokers!!) it is an excellent tool if wielded well. The secret here is to use the tool – and not to let the tool use you!
On this very subject and in this vein, let us now consider the subject of the so-called “Seasonal Celebrations”.
Before anything else let us first address the fact that witches have lives. To the witch there is no specific holy times that must be paid undue attention to. Their religion (should they deign to have one) is as much of their everyday as hanging out the washing and making coffee in the morning. They can have families and jobs and look just like anyone else if they care to. As for the magical life; (if you will) of the witch and what they do this tends to be more along the lines of what people want to know. In the main there are two things that are mentioned often in the modern age and they are Sabbats and Esbats. In older days gone by we would have simply said seasonal or spellwork.
Sabbats are, for the witch, by definition a reconstructed hold over from pagan times that are designed by and large to satisfy the need for dogmatics and reinforce group social mind links. This is because the Sabbat these days is generally presented as a seasonal celebration – however far removed from the life of the land the witches in question may be!
By and large these occur on the 22nd’s or 1st’s of the month. These are a modern attempt to reconstruct supposed solar harvest oriented agricultural festivals of celto-germanic yester-year. It stems largely from the unfortunate emphasis of some people on one of many old witch mystery myths, which, like fables revealed occult truths – in this case the cyclic nature of time. In the modern wiccan version the alleged hidden meaning is highly dependant on having a masculine god that effectively dies in winter and is then rebirthed by a terrestrial based goddess.
It gets even more confused from here with there also being mention of lesser and greater sabbats. That the term “Lesser Sabbat” is given to the actual equinoxes and solstices is a telling point in it’s own regard – the “Greater Sabbats” being the largely modern supposed harvest festivals. As a result of this there is in some circles these days, innumerable debates on issues such as "When exactly they are", "What significance each has", "What can and can not be done at what times" and so on. Again, the competent "witch" or "warlock" views such debates as an amusing spectacle at best and a waste of time at worst.
Consider for example, the debate "When exactly are they?" Today we have a neat little calendar that has circles around the "22's" and full moons and this is turned upside down depending on where you live, (taking into account the differences between Northern and Southern Hemispherical weather patterns etc) but the witch is someone who is "aware" and I cannot stress that enough. The witch knows when there is a full moon as they see it every night. The witch KNOWS when it is "the first of spring", (to use an example) because they see, smell, taste, touch and KNOW the changes all about them in every facet of their being and world. We do not use a calendar - we "feel" such things. The witch, first and foremost acts as they see fit and we do not come and go by the say so of anyone else – much less any damned piece of paper!
You will KNOW when it is right to hold the celebrations - when you take notice of the moon in it's path and the world around you - the changing of the weather, the comings and goings of the animals, (includes people by the way!!) all of these things will "speak" to you and they will TELL you when to hold the rites. Granted, some traditions have specific dates and so on but one MUST remember that the reason that there ARE dates is because once upon a time, where that author lived, their world told them ON THOSE DATES to hold the rites. All of which is fine and dandy if you live in exactly the same place - but if not … you may want to take a good hard look at what your "Traditional" text is really saying.
It is ALWAYS important to remember that the word "Traditional" carries a great deal of socio-cultural specificity with it. Were I to use say a rite based in Norse craft then I would have to look very closely at the spell itself as I live in a very different climate that has very different seasonal demands. This is perhaps more obvious to Australians as we were a colony formed of the British Isles. When they first came here it is amusing to note that they did everything as if they were still in Britain. Imagine for a second eating a full roast meal, (traditional Christmas fare in Britain at that time) while dressed in anywhere up to four layers of clothing in 35 degree heat!
This rather ridiculous notion just presented influences the idea of the cultural significance a great deal. It is important to remember that the "Celebrations" are based on alleged seasonal changes and so besides being a party; they also had, at one time a deeply commonsensical reasoning.
Take for example the preparations for winter and animal sacrifice. Animals would be slaughtered not only to appease the gods, (and hopefully thereby lessen the toll taken on the people) but ALSO so that there would be meat during this time! When one is at the mercy of severe winter then the world does indeed go into hibernation - can't till that land, no game to be found that would sustain a family and too cold to look anyway. The meaning here is quite obvious - if you don't have stored food and a good fire you and yours will not make it through the season.
Much is made these days of the "Spiritual Meaning" of these times and the common sense meaning is left behind. This is foolish as what it results in is a mass of people who are so busy raving about "metaphysical correspondences" that the real, hidden meaning is forgotten. The question here is "how many of you have worshipped the great Goddess of "K. Mart or Coles New World" lately? It sounds silly but really isn't from a magical viewpoint. Consider for a moment; many are more than willing to celebrate the "Birth of Mithras" because his birth "signifies the returning of the warmth and abundance" so why do we not, (for the same reason) celebrate the opening of the first supermarket in our area? After all - it brings great abundance and offers plenty in times of need. Some among you may see this as silly but it isn't; the ancient men and woman offered up a sacrifice to ensure returns didn't they? So why is you paying for your groceries at the checkout so different?
The point I am making here is that times change and that by looking closely at these changes the "real/hidden" meanings of things become obvious. The point is that the "traditional old ways" to be continued in any sort of meaningful way must either be celebrated in the same geographical location or altered so that they make sense. This is because misunderstanding and wishful thinking being treated as fact can have far reaching consequences!
This all brings up another notion, when you pick up your average book of "witchcraft" these days you would be forgiven for thinking that the seasonal celebrations are ALL that witches do! You don't believe me? Consider this quote, which I think sums up an important observation:
"The word "witchcraft," with a small "w," is sometimes used to refer to spellcraft, talismanic magic, and divination. However, it's more accurate and less confusing to call these practices folk magic, as they are different from the religion Witchcraft (with a capital "W"). Folk magic is practiced in many cultures, and is not necessarily a religious practice. Most Pagans and Witches practice folk magic as a historical part of their religion; however, it is secondary in importance to worship, spiritual and personal growth, and living a life in harmony with the Earth."
(© 1995 Pagan Public Education Group.)
So by this we can only assume that "little w" witchcraft is a secondary function to the RELIGION of "Big W" Witchcraft? What a lot of nonsense! What is being discussed here is WICCA - pure and simple. There is NO RELIGION of witchcraft save that which a witch or warlock may garb their life in - and we don't kid themselves that it is anything else than that.
Now, again, don't think that I have selected an out of the way group to victimise. These people purport to do a service – supposedly they "educate" and I will point out that many of you probably have the same books on your shelf that they have used as "source documentation". The point I am making here is that it is this sort of nonsense that is the effect of many of the texts that have, (right or wrong) been "canonised" by the masses. Valiente, Farrar, Gardner, Starhawk, Budapest, Kelly - all big names, all very common names on the occult shelves. So I want to ask you - this is the message that they tend to send so what exactly IS it that YOU believe? The fact is that the bigger and more influential a group is, the bigger it’s hidden agendas are and the more you should question them.
What do YOU do for "Seasonal Celebrations"? Myself, if I am somewhere that WARRANTS it or I feel a NEED to indulge in some "dogmatics" then I will go out into the open and talk to the gods - taking with me whatever offering is asked for. If not, then I will indulge in some MODERN ACTIVITY that honours them. There is nothing like giving a short oration to the gods, singing a song on your way and then "pigging out" at the local curry house for MidWinter - and it makes FAR MORE SENSE!
The REAL witch or warlock knows the "gods" in their OWN way and talks to them WHENEVER they wish in the way that works best for THEM! The fact is that to the witch there is no "primary and secondary" roles, there is only "what they do" and that means everything from archaic spells and rites to "just being in the right place at the right time".
There is but one thing that the witch or warlock must remember when wondering "what is permissible when" and it is the "Eleventh Commandment" - "Don't get caught". The witch will look to themselves for this information and then, if they are still in doubt, consult their gifts and tools.
Gifts and tools will remind you that the "waxing moon" is the time to aid "growth" works, that aiding births are best done with the wet warm wind and etc. All questions are answered if one asks correctly. Notions such as "Times" for work are guidelines, (and I stress that!) that have been garnered from the ceremonial traditions and have very little to do with witchcraft in the day to day world.
ESBATS
In some places you will also hear the word “Esbat” which supposedly refers to a meeting of a witches coven which does not occur on one of the reconstructed sabbat times. Some times this is also used to describe a meeting at a full moon or any meeting convened to engage in spellwork. To some the esbat is more connected with witches due to it’s supposedly secular nature – which is odd in that by far the meetings of witches were historically called sabbats!
Personally, I think that it is about time we stopped making things complex and pared back down to simplicity. I believe that the best possible format for including all that you will want to is this old form of "Witch's Sabbat" that the old medieval texts constantly remind us of. Afterall, these can be used to serve either as practical meeting or as celebrations – and they have the added bonus of belonging to no geo-specific seasonal cycle so one is constrained only by one’s own creativity!
Now, those of you who are familiar with the old forms described in such texts as Malleus Malleficarum, Compendium Maleficarum etc will note that I have cut what follows right back and stripped out all of the superstitious mumbo-jumbo that is generally related as well. The reason for this action is that when these things are cut right back to basics, they often become a lot clearer and useful then they are otherwise. When you take out religion and get rid of the superstition what we are left with is an extremely useful framework.
¨ Arrival
¨ Presentation to the Elder
¨ Presentation of any who are new
¨ Food, celebration - "Fellowship"
¨ Training
¨ Ritual - if appropriate
¨ Celebration proper
Let us examine this list in a bit more detail and discuss how it may be put to use in the modern era.
¨ Arrival - In the old texts there are many amusing stories regarding the arrival of the witches to the meeting. Stories of flying through the air, changing into various forms or being whisked there by familiar spirits and so on. While these may all seem silly we should remember that if we took a car back to the middle ages there would be much consternation at the "contraption of the devil" that came with us.
One thing that is interesting however is that the meetings always took place far from the abodes of men and women so that discovery was unlikely. THIS is something that you should bear in mind at all times. What you are doing is still frowned upon, (to say the least) by the majority of society and as such; it SHOULD be kept apart from "prying eyes". Society forgives superstition, society tolerates religion but EVERYONE is suspicious of magic! The meetings of your group should be JUST THAT and should NEVER be "open" to the interruptions or critique of others. This goes DOUBLY SO for "outsiders" who have nothing to do with the Art.
It is all very well and good to say: "We have nothing to do with politics and NOTHING to hide!" BUT one day you will have something that, (as a group) you will NEED to "chew over" that will run the risk of failure if the "word gets out" or that someone else would "not understand" - what will you do then? Have a sudden "secret meeting"? That would arouse suspicion more so than usual and then you will be back to "square one". As ANY experienced witch will tell you - it is easier to just begin “right quiet” and keep it that way - away from those it has nothing to do with.
¨ Presentation to the Elder - It really is little more than a matter of common courtesy to arrive at the appointed time and to announce yourself when you do so. It seems a very simple thing but it is unbelievable to see in this day and age the prevalence of people who "Just thought they'd drop in" or arrive early, late or not at all without any form of notice. To arrive unannounced early smacks of attempting to catch one unawares, unannounced period implies a lack of consideration and unannounced late shows a lack of respect.
Only slightly better than this level of ignorance are they who arrive in such manner and then make free with the amenities. Upon arrival, the member should make their arrival known to all who are present unless there has been prior arrangement or that member is otherwise occupied. It is after all only common courtesy to not make free with that which is not yours!
¨ Presentation of any who are new - In the case of a meeting, any who are new may or may not see the others that are present depending on their disposition and the discretion of the Elder present. It should always be remembered that by NO means is it acceptable to just arrive with someone who is not a part of the group without prior notice and consent. It is worth noting here also that the newcomer should be informed of an acceptable greeting so that they may not cause offence or appear ignorant.
¨ Food, celebration - "Fellowship" – This part is so often turned into a quite formal affair these days with much wandering about and complex passing of plates and so on. The real reason for this is to set up a resonance between all those present. From days of old we know that the simplest and best way to do this is for everyone to sit down, eat and drink together. It reinforces that we are all still just people with the same basic needs. It goes without saying here that witches of old look with a certain amount of disdain on “a sip of wine and a couple of crackers”. If one is to foster fellowship then the meal should be a real meal! It also breaks the ice in much more of a pleasant way than some of the more modern theatrics.
¨ Training is always something that tends to work better with a “skin-full”. Everyone is settled, the ice is broken – these things are absolutely necessary if people are to open up in the way that actual instruction takes and requires! It is important to remember that when you learn something from another they have given you a gift and it is certainly my experience that all such transactions occur more smoothly when everyone is already happy.
¨ Rituals can be conducted if they are considered appropriate for all and if not there is no reason why the whole assembly cannot be broken up into small groups to do as they best see fit – it certainly has historical basis after all. These may take the form of seasonal enactments or magical rites to achieve specific goals and again, will work better now that everyone is a bit more relaxed in each other’s presence. It must be remembered here that the old witch sabbats were not the staid performances we see today!
¨ Celebration proper occurs after all of the above and is at the end of everything so that, the work and tuition having been gotten out of the way some real fun can be had. Historically this involves further feasting and drinking, playing ribald games, singing, dancing and of course, plenty of sex.
posted by BissekArt at 2:44 pm
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