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Internet Book of Shadows, (Various Authors), [1999], at sacred-texts.com
The Craft (Witchcraft - NOT to be confused with Satanism. A true
Witch has nothing to do with this, even though there are some
Satanists who (unright-fully) call themselves "Witch".) contains a
large number of groups with bonds to each other, for the most part,
which are looser than those you will find between Christian churches.
Each has it's own traditions, it's own beliefs, it's own pantheon,
etc. So just WHAT is it that, overall, a Witch believes in? The
American Council of Witches was formed to determine what it was that
all Witches have in common, belief-wise. In the early 1970's, a
paper was released with their findings, and gives a good overall
picture of it. The following is the text of that paper.
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BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE CRAFT
1. The first principle is that of love, and it is expressed in the
ethic,
"DO AS YOU WILL, SO LONG AS YOU HARM NONE"
a)love is notemotional in it'sessence, but isan attribute of
the individual as expressed in relation to other beings;
b) harming others can be by thought, word, or deed;
c> it is to be understood the "none" includes oneself;
d) theharm which isto be regardedas unethical isgratuitous
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 defense against invasion.
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) Godhead is one unique and transcendent wholeness, beyond
any limitationsor expressions; thus,it is beyond our
human capacity to understand and identify with this
principle of Cosmic Oneness, except as It is revealed to us
in terms of It's attributes and operation.
b) 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-relation.
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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 abilities 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 to 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 theMysteries, and,although they areonly
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 can be the wielders of the
power of the Gods, a channel for Godhead to act within
It's own manifestation. This, then, is further reason
for the oath of secrecy.
c) Since the universe is the body of the One, possessing 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. Thus the Craft is a
natural 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. Matter 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
Earth and thus to ourselves.
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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 from 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. Astrology can be useful in marking and interpreting the flow and
ebb of the tides of our solar system, and thus of making use of
those tides; astrology should not be debased into mere
fortune-telling.
8. Throughout the development of the human race, civilizations have
seen and worshipped many and various attributes of the Divine.
These universal forces have been clothed in forms which were
expressive to the worshipper of the attribute of the Godhead which
they expressed. Use of these symbolic representations of t h e
natural and divine forces of the universe, or god forms, is a
potent method for contacting and utilizing the forces they represent.
Thus the Gods are both natural and truly divine, and man-made in
that the forms with which they are clothed are 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 whichstates:
All Gods are oneGod. All Goddesses areone 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 ofmany of the
differencesbetween
thevariousTraditions
oftheCraft.
EachTraditionuses theforms,andthusthenames,which
to thatTradition bestexpress and awakenan
understandingofthe forcerepresented,accordingto the
areas of emphasis of the Tradition.
c) Because we know that differing names or representations
arebutexpressionsofthesamedivineprinciplesand
forces,werequire ourmemberstoswearthat theywill
nevermockthenames bywhichanotherhonors theDivine,
eventhough thosenames bedifferentfrom andseemingly
lessexpressive thanthe namesand godforms usedby our
Tradition(for tothe membersof anotherTradition, using
it's names, oursmay easily seemequally less
expressive).
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9. 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 actions, and
accepts the consequences of them; guilt is rejected as inhibiting to
one's self-actualization, and replaced by the efforts of the Witch
to obey the teachings of harmlessness, responsibility for t h e
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 recognizetheconcepts ofsinandguilt
aretremendouslyinhibitingto thehumanpotential;the
consequencesof theLawof CauseandEffect,called karma
bysome, arenot punishment,but therecurrences of
situations andtheir effectsbecause theindividualas
notgained the Wisdomneeded tohandle or avoidsuch
situations.
b) There is no heaven except that which we ourselves make of
ourlifeonEarth,andlikewisethereisnohellexcept
theeffectsofourunwiseactions.Deathisnotfollowed
bypunishmentorreward,but bylifeandthecontinuing
evolution of the human potential.
c) One cannot damn the divine in oneself; one can, however,
cutoneselfofffromitthroughthe rejectionofwisdom
anda refusaltostrive forself-realization. This
cutting off does not lead to personal suffering
in"hell", forthereisnoSelftosufferifthetieto
one'sown divinityhasbeensevered;whatremainsis
merelyanemptyshell,a"personality"orthought-form
devoid of it's ensouling Spark of the Divine Fire.
10. 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 reincarnation 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 forms of that class evolve.
11. This process of evolution through successive incarnations in
manifest form works through the utilizations of wisdom gained, t h e
essence of the life-experience. This essence of experience, o r
Wisdom, is an attribute of the spark of life itself, one and
inseparable (see 9a).
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12. 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 t h e i r
express permission; unless such non-interference would be inhibiting
to our own, ethical existence and development -- and
even then the responsibilities and consequences must be
understood and accepted. This, then, is one of the important
reasons for the communal life the Witches under the guidance of t h e
Priesthood: That the group may be guided by wisdom and
experience, with the aid and support of one's peers; and that one's
actions may be guided by the influence of the ethical life of the
group as a whole.
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 thegains of theself, and thereforemust 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.
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