In the 1990’s there was a resurgence in popularity of this thing called Wicca. It is still a force to be reckoned with today. What is Wicca? My pith definition is that Wicca is a nature based religion that uses positive ritual and magic to transform lives. I would like it to be that simple but it is very dynamic.
Wicca relies on the natural cycles of the sun, moon, celestial bodies and the human body to inform its followers on the laws of the universe and how they work in our life. The Goddess and God or Divinity in general represents us. We believe that we become the Goddess and God during specific rituals. As Aliester Crowley once said:”Every man and every woman is a star.”
The wheel of the year represent the life cycle of the Goddess and God As a microcosm of the macrocosm it also represent our life cycle of birth, growth, reproduction, death and rebirth. The study of the moon phases and astrology helps us understand the ebb and flow of the subtle energies around us that impact our life and how to maximise our potential through them.
As an earth based religion, wicca teaches us that the earth is sacred and we are a part of her not separate from her. In my classes I usually use part of this discussion for the laws of ecology. That all things are connected. Everything goes somewhere. You cannot get something from nothing and my favorite of there is no such thing as a free lunch. In a more traditional setting lots of time in the first year is spent making sure the seeker understands all of the above before going into the details of ritual and even spell casting.
It is tempting to think going in that Wicca will teach you how to turn your jerk ex boyfriend into a toad or how to turn straw into gold. There are many seekers that want the magic at that base level. The real magic comes when we understand how to love ourselves and the world around us deeply and unequivocally. That our power comes from that love and understanding the flow of the world around us.
Over the next coming weeks we will delve into the the wheel of the year and specifically talk about YULE the upcoming sabbat or holiday celebration. After the basic instruction of Wiccan cosmology we will also talk about the role of motivational psychology, my buddy Maslow, and how the concept of group consciousness plays in ritual.
