BOOK OF SHADOWS

VOLUME The FOURTH pp. 1402 - 1900

RIDERS OF THE CRYSTAL WIND TABLE OF CONTENTS A Minister Spea s Out (J. gordon Melton) ........................975 A Plea For Initiation Standards (Ellen Cannon Reed) .............908 A Tale of Two Witches (Mi e Nichols) ............................147 A True History of Witchcraft (Allen Greenfield) ................1771 Aethyr, On the Nature of (Anthra Andromda) .....................1816 Against The Witch Hunters (R. Culain) ..........................1704 AIR - A Meditation (Charis) ....................................1559 All Hallows Eve (Mi e Nichols) ..................................137 Altar Dedication (Durwydd) .....................................125 Amazing (Pagan?) Grace ..........................................959 Amerind Teaching Stories Rabbit (John Lone Wolf) ...................................1534 Ancient Art, The ................................................551 Answers (Grove of the Unicorn) ..................................479 Asatru (Rathulvf Jamieson) ......................................952 Astral Projection (Monroe Technique) ............................783 Athame Dedication (Durwydd) .....................................125 Autarchic Creed .................................................562 Autonomatrix Manifesto .........................................1813 Banes, Bindings, and Mirrors (Judy Harrow, Hugh Read) ...........628 "Bardic" Circle Rituals from DragonHart Beltane (The White Bard) ..................................1111 Candlemas (The White Bard) ................................1151 Samhain (The White Bard) ..................................1116 Bardic Wedding (RowanHart Circle) ..............................1526 Bare Bones 3rd Degree (Humor) ...................................463 Basic Beliefs of WICCA (C.O.G.) .................................947 Basic Love Spell ................................................958 Basic Spell Construction ........................................113 Basic Principles (American Council of Witches)...................310 Basic Ritual Outline (ED FITCH) ...................................6 Beltaine Ritual (Firestar Coven, 1986) ...........................36 Beltane Ritual 1987 (Coven of The Serpents Eye) ................1743 Beltane Ritual (Seastrider) .....................................464 Beltane, Its Origins (Rowan Moonstone) ..........................126 Bible, Boo s not included .......................................652 Bibliography (annotated) ........................................929 Bibliography of Magic in Sci-Df (M. Griffith) ..................1737 Binding A Spell (Farrar & Farrar) ...............................157 Bovinomicon (humor) ............................................1805 Blac out and Sigils (I.O.T.) ...................................1402 Blessing Payer (Traditional Gardnerian "Dryghten Prayer") ......1512 Blood Sacrifice (Althea Whitebirch) .............................547 Bro en Heart Spell (Healing) ...................................1219 Burning Times, The (Marios) .....................................951 Celtic Bibliography (Annotated, by Eryn Dar star) ..............1133

C.O.G. Pledge ...................................................309 Channeling (Jast) ...............................................969 "Condensed" Definition of Wicca (Lady Phoenix) ..................948 Candle Colors ...................................................982 Candle Magic ....................................................417 Candle Scents ...................................................988 Candlemas Ritual 1987 (Coven of The Serpents Eye) ..............1750 Candlemas (Gwydion) .............................................537 Candlemas (Mi e Nichols) ........................................168 Catharsis Circle (Judy Harrow).....................................8 Cauldrons (Elemental)............................................420 CELTIC NUMEROLOGY (Mi e Nichols) ................................454 CELTIC BIBLIOGRAPHY (Rowan Moonstone) ...........................298 TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued) Chants w/ASCII Notation (L.A.Hussey) ...........................1081 Chalice Ritual - Dragon Trad (C.J. Mandra e) ...................1468 Chaos Magic (Mar Chao) .........................................398 Chaos Magic vs. Thelema .......................................1240 Chaos-sphere ...................................................1393 Chaoism and Chaos Magic (Pete Carroll) ........................1404 Channeling for Fun and Prophet (F.J. McGovern) .................1736 Charge of the Phone Goddess (Magenta Griffith) ..................759 Charge of the Goddess, The ......................................193 Charge of The Horned God, The ...................................936 Charging Crystals (Ian Kesser) .................................1707 Chec List for A Well Wor ing Group (Earthrite BBS) .............957 Church of All Worlds ............................................353 Christian "Cults" ..............................................1000 Circle Closing ..................................................540 Circle Casting (Avaloian)........................................541 Circle Purification for Asthmatics ..............................780 Circle Casting (after Valiente and Farrar) ......................130 Circles, why use them? (Mel White) ...............................65 Cleansing (Rowan Moonstone) .......................................2 Comparison of Wicca and Christianity.............................622 Computer Blessing (Zahai Stewart) ...............................757 Coven at Pooh Corner (D. Wadsworth) ............................1688 Coven Offices ...................................................762 Coven Leadership ................................................543 Covenant of the Goddess .........................................305 Consciousness & Politics (Carol Moore)......................... Craft Ethics (J. Crowley) .......................................751 Craft Ethics Response (M.K.H) ..................................1216 CRAFT LAW Craft Laws (by Lady Sheba).................................1163 New Laws (Lady Galadriel, Grove of The Unicorn)............1174 The New Boo Of Law, A Commentary (J. Random Fol singer)...1185 Aporrheton 5 (Judy Harrow?) ...............................1195 The Abbreviated Laws (including Comment by J.R.F.) ........1202 The Law (Humor) ...........................................1204 Commentary by a student ........................................1212 Commentary by L.A. Hussey.......................................1214 Creation Story ..................................................619 Creed Of The People Of God (Catholic) ..........................1005 Crone Energies (Grey Cat) .......................................559 Crossroads .....................................................1794 Crystals, their care and feeding (Matri a).......................413 Cult Danger Evaluation Frame (P.E.I.Bonewits) ...................343 CUUPS (C.O.G. Salt La e City) ..................................1002 Dangers of "Magical Thin ing" in Magic (Nihasa)................1716

"Dar Night of the Soul".........................................286 "Dar Night of the Soul"........................................1411 Dangers of Deity? (a Conversation) .............................1820 DCW Landmar s ...................................................492 Degrees within Covens ...........................................623 Dedication Ritual (Khaled Quic silver) .........................1841 Deity Engineering Wor sheet .....................................607 Denver Area Wiccan Networ ......................................200 Descent of The Goddess (Sewna Silvara) ..........................750 Descent of The Goddess (G.B.G.) ................................1769 Descent of The Goddess (Starhaw ) ..............................1770 Dianic Wicca (Inanna Seastar) ...................................614 Divine Circle Scam .............................................1507 TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued) Divination (Bibliography) .......................................605 Divination (RMPJ) ...............................................603 Dragon, The Last (story by Gerald Decampo) .....................1226 Dragon Tradition (Phoenix Arizona) Circle Casting ............................................1228 "Quarter Calls" ...........................................1486 Drawing Down the Moon ...........................................557 Dream Problem Solving ...........................................573 Dream Bibliography ..............................................576 Dream Life ......................................................571 Dream-News ......................................................567 Dreams Precognition .............................................575 Dying God (Ammond ShadowCraft)...................................685 Eclectic Circle Ceremony (Durwydd) ...............................40 EcoMagic .......................................................614 Eight Paths to Altered States (Carrie McMasters).................222 Eight Magic s (Pete Carroll) ...................................1825 Elements, A Hermetic Summoning (Marios) .........................960 Elemental Correspondences (from Starhaw ) .......................979 Elemental Correspondences .......................................560 Elven (Modern Mythic Prose by Par Garou) .......................1159 Essay on The Three-Fold Law (Paul Seymour) .....................1208 Ethics and Morals (RMPJ) ........................................315 Ethics and Magic (Warren Stott) ................................415 Ethics and Laws (Lifeway Shamanic Fellowship) ..................1220 Ethics and Love Magic (Mi e Nichols) ...........................554 Ethics or Etiquette .............................................565 Etymology of "Wicca" ............................................356 Evolution of Wiccan Ritual (Paul Hume) ..........................946 Exegesis on The Wiccan Rede (Judy Harrow).......................1209 Exorcism ........................................................613 Festivals .......................................................587 Film Guide '89 (Mi e Nichols)....................................528 First Degree, What is it? .......................................351 FISH (Creative use of Christian Symbology) ......................611 Five Fold Kiss ..................................................744 Fool ............................................................590 Fortune, The (RMPJ) .............................................953 Full Dec Tarot Spread ..........................................625 Full Moon Ritual (Seastrider)....................................634 Fundamentals of Human Ecology ...................................616 Glossary (Rowan Moonstone & Durwydd MacTara) ....................206 Gnosticism.......................................................694 God/Goddess Balance (Adrienne)...................................223 Golden Dawn (Calif.).............................................689 Golden Dawn Training (outline)...................................691

Goodwife (Story by L.A. Hussey) .................................644 Great Rite, The (Symbolic) ......................................656 Gree and Roman Deities (Thomas Palmer) ........................1698 Gree Fire Initiation............................................982 Halloween, Origins of (Rowan Moonstone) ..........................26 Handfasting ......................................................68 Harvest Home (Mi e Nichols) .....................................176 Harvest Thoughts (Gary Dumbauld) ................................630 Harvest Home - 1987 (Michael Fix) ................................13 Heal The Earth (a meditation) ...................................661 Healing (one method) ............................................655 Healing Myth (Nihasa) ...........................................165 Helpful Hints (Humor) ...........................................966 TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued) Heretic's Corner (RMPJ) .........................................869 Heyo ah (RMPJ) ..................................................632 Hidden Codes in the Torah .......................................733 High Technology Meets The Ancient Wisdom ........................964 History (Weyland Smith) .........................................786 History of Witch Craft ..........................................791 Homeblessing (Selena Fox) .......................................663 Hymns To The Star Goddess (O.T.O.) .............................1431 Hypnosis 101 ....................................................667 I.O.T. History (The Beginnings).................................1398 Ideology (I.O.T.) ..............................................1252 Imbolc (Solitary Ritual) ........................................664 Imbolg '92 (Julia Phillips) ....................................1757 Initiation, Outdoor (adaptation) .................................72 Initiation (Brad Hic s) ..........................................50 Introductory Boo List ..........................................926 INVOCATIONS Freyja (un nown) ............................................56 Frigg (Russ Anderson) .......................................55 Brigit (Russ Anderson) ......................................57 Baldur (un nown) ............................................55 Freyr (un nown) .............................................56 Herne (un nown) .............................................57 Thorr (un nown) .............................................58 INVOCATIONS -QUARTERSEAST ......................................................1542 SOUTH .....................................................1543 WEST ......................................................1544 NORTH .....................................................1545 Irish Myth Concordance (Mi e Nichols) ...........................422 Ishtar ..........................................................740 Issian Circle (Matri a) ..........................................59 K.A.M. ..........................................................735 Kabballah (Colin Low)............................................236 Kali and Modern Physics .........................................730 Keltria (The Henge of) ..........................................739 Lady Day (Mi e Nichols) .........................................171 Lammas (Mi e Nichols) ...........................................174 "Landmar s" (D.C.W.) ............................................990 LBRP, an Essay (Tim Maroney) ....................................103 Learning Process ................................................962 "Legitimacy" in the Craft (Khaled Q.) ..........................1766 Liber OZMA (Tim Maroney) .......................................1414 Lilith (BBS Conversation) ......................................1083 Literary Roots of Wicca (Diane Vera) ...........................1535 LLEW, Death of (Mi e Nichols) ...................................179

Dreaming (Omni Magazine) ..................................955 Outline (anonymous) ........................................43 , Physics, & Probability (Hurn) ...........................811 (A. Crowley) .............................................817 Vs. Prayer (Salgamma) ....................................684 al Boo List ..............................................923 Course Outline (Amber K.).................................815 al Ethics (Judy Harrow) ...................................502 al History (Fra.: Apfelman) ...............................406 al Definitions (RMPJ) .....................................814 al Laws (after P.E.I. Bonewits) ...........................831 al Musical Selection Guide ...............................1079 al Pyramid, The (Durwydd MacTara).........................1096 TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued) Magic al Stones & Gems ..........................................912 Magic al Training Course (Phil Hansford) .......................1373 Manhood Rituals (RMPJ) ..........................................760 Mantra Web technique ............................................288 Mayan Deities (777 Supplement) ..................................834 Mayday Celebration (Mi e Nichols) ...............................837 MAYDAY Celebration (Mi e Nichols) ................................79 Media Management (Windfire Coven) ...............................851 Maychants (4) (Tanscribed by SeaStrider).........................911 Meditation Techniques, Basic (Bill Witt) .......................1513 Memory & Perception, a new Model (Paul Seymour).................1077 Midsummer (Mi e Nichols) .........................................45 Mind, A Treatise on The (The Tigress) ..........................1460 Mind Control Techniques (Dic Sutphen) ..........................512 Models of Magic (incomplete)....................................216 Modern Pagaism, Q&A .............................................920 Modern Pagan Persecution (Jonathan Hutchins) ....................942 Modified Assyrian Protection Spell (With Commentary) ...........1739 Mothers Day Message ............................................1076 MONISM (Durwydd Mac Tara) ......................................1523 Monotheism vs. Polytheism (Dan Holdgriewe) ......................941 Mycenaen Mysteries (J. Teller)...................................365 Mystical Pentagram ..............................................110 Nature Spirit Magic (Larry Cornett) ............................357 Necromancy (reprint) ............................................841 Nemesis Conjuration (I.O.T.) ...................................1250 Neo-Pagan Ritual (Brad Hic s) ....................................77 Neo-Paganism (J. Brad Hic s) ....................................329 NeoPagism (Eric S. Raymond) .....................................333 NLP- Applied Magic (Brandy Williams).............................459 Notes On The Historical Egregore in Magic (I.O.T.).............1245 NROOGD SAMHAIN - 1987 (l.a. Hussey) ..............................21 Occult Resurgence, A theory .....................................224 ODINISM, What is it? ............................................764 Open Circle Ethics (Brandy Williams) ............................377 Open Letter to A New Witch ......................................910 Open Letter to Selena Fox (Isaac Bonewits) .....................1089 Opening (ending) The Circle ......................................12 Ordo Argentum Astrum ...........................................1230 Origins of the Mandan (Madoc) ...................................949 Orphic Invocations of God & Goddess (Phaedra) ..................1541 Pantacle, The (Gary Dumbauld) ...................................392 Perscution, Ancient & Modern (Julia Phillips) ..................1627 Personal effects of Ritual (Nihasa) .............................868 Peyote & The Supreme Court (News Articles) .....................1725 Polarity and Single Sex Covens (Marios) .........................945

Lucid MABON Magic Magic Magic Magic Magic Magic Magic Magic Magic Magic Magic

Pornography & Pagan Ideals ......................................972 Power Animals (RMPJ).............................................411 Prosperity [Famtrad] (Rowan Moonstone) .........................1485 Psychic Self-Defense ............................................594 Psychic Attac ..................................................563 "Quantum" Kaballah...............................................282 Quantum Magic (Larry Cornett) ..................................857 Quilting and "Craft" (J.M. Cortese) ............................1103 Rainforest Ritual (Michael Harismedes, 1988) ....................212 Rede, The (J. Taylor, S.O.T.E.G.) ..............................1488 Ris Assessment for The Craft Community (Weyland Smith) ........1723 Ritual of the Blessed Motherboard (Discordian Humor) ...........1471 Ritual Bath (Sewna Silvara) .....................................745 TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued) Rosicrucianism (J. Phillips) ...................................1741 Runes, What are they? (Lo rien) .................................215 Runic Thorn Ritual (Faunus) ....................................1097 Salem Anniversary Ritual (Sandy & Diug Kopf)....................1156 Samhain Notes (Farrar)...........................................143 Samhain Ritual (L. A. Hussey) ....................................19 Samhain Ritual (O.T.O.) .........................................145 Samhain (United Wiccan Church) ..................................141 Samhain Ritual 1986 (Coven of The Serpents Eye) ................1759 Sangreal Sodality, The (Alfgar Maharg) ..........................944 Satanic Ritual Abuse (1992 FBI Report) .........................1575 Satanism Satanism 101 (Diaane Vera) ................................1536 Satanism Defined (Delohine) ...............................1539 Satanism as Media Hype (News Article) .....................1717 Satanism vs. Wicca (Diane Vera).............................194 Setian Symbolism (T.O.S.) .................................1560 Saxon Wicca (Matri a) ...........................................158 Scorpio Dragon (Sewna Silvara) ..................................749 Second Degree (Gary Dumbauld) .....................................3 Sex and Magic (Fra. Apfelmann)..................................231 Shamanic Binding (Gaffer Maccluiunn) ............................937 Shamanic Lifeways Fellowship (Michelle Haas) ....................384 Sigil Magic (I.O.T.) ..........................................1416 Smudging (Michelle Haas) ........................................184 Sna e Venom & Altered States (Loren Petrich) ...................1419 Solitary Moon Rite, Issian (Ellen Cannon Reed) .................1100 Sophia and Gnosticism (Terry J. McCombs) .......................1105 Spitual Emergence or Emergency (Paul Seymour) ...................939 Spring Equinox (Farrar and Farrar) ..............................182 Standing Stones Boo Of Shadows (Scott Cunninham) ..............1010 Strings On The Winds (Bardic Fiction)............................778 "Super-Dimensionality" (I.O.T.)..................................289 Taleisin's thoughts .............................................676 Tarot Divination (Tuppence) ....................................1710 Tea Ritual (Sewna Silvara, Tris elion)...........................747 Technology and The Craft (Fun!) .................................132 The Pact (IOT) .................................................1162 The Postures of Ecstasy .........................................617 The 12 Steps and Shamanism (Matri a, P.A.N.) ...................1504 Thunder, Perfect Mind (Tony Ianotti) ...........................1254 Tool List (Seastrider) ..........................................136 Tool Blessing Ritual ............................................122 Tool Consecration ................................................17 Traditional Wicca (K.A.M.) ......................................186

Treatise On Mind (The Tigress) .................................1265 Travel Spell (Rowan Moonstone) .................................1487 Tric ster Energies ..............................................234 Twelve Exercises Nobody Needs ...................................619 Twenty-Two Commandments for the New Age (A. Waldrum)............1721 Vernal Equinox Ritual from OZ (Julia Phillips) .................1742 Verse: A Birthday In The Light (T. Digby) ........................1920 A Call To Lord And Lady (Jeff Bordeaux) ...................1853 A Dreaming Desire (Jeff Bordeaux) .........................1865 A Lady Called Truth (Geral Del Campo) .....................1921 A Riddle (Saracen) ........................................1919 A Victim of Ideologies (Jeff Bordeaux) ....................1876 TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued) Verse: (cont.) ALOHA! Serge King (Hugh Read) .............................1848 Amphitrite (Sourdough Jac son) ............................1866 Amazing (Wiccan) Grace (Verna Knapp) ......................1909 Another One For Jim Morrison (Sourdough Jac son) ..........1870 Banishing The Circle (Devin Storm) ........................1892 Battle Hymn of the Eristocracy (Fil ) .....................1898 Beneath The Full Moon (Sourdough Jac son) .................1870 BLOOD (Similodon) .........................................1889 Burning Times (L.A. Hussey) ...............................1849 Cauldron Chant (Ammond Shadowcraft)........................1899 Celtic Circle Dance (Joe Bethancourt) .....................1900 Chance (Hugh Read) ........................................1851 Charge of the Horned God ..................................1907 Comes The Dawn ............................................1914 Computer Blessing (Zahai Stuart) ..........................1871 Coven Spell (Doreen Valiente) .............................1887 Dar Time (Shadow Haw ) ...................................1902 Earthdream (Jeff Bordeux) .................................1855 ELEGY: James Douglas Morrison (Sourdough Jac son) ........1869 ELEMENTS (r.m.p.j.) .......................................1897 Elf (Marcus) ..............................................1855 EQUINOX (Endumion) ........................................1908 Green Grow The Rushes, Oh! ................................1901 Healing Spell (un nown) ...................................1891 Heaven is A Resting Place (Sourdough Jac son) .............1868 Horn of Plenty (Linda C.) .................................1910 Horn Song (Hugh Read) .....................................1846 Hunter's Warning (Jeff Bordeaux) ..........................1857 Hymn to Artemis (Frater U.' D.') ..........................1893 Hymn To Demeter (Lyn Hubert) ..............................1916 I am Spring (J.H.R. Seymour) ..............................1912 I Saw Something Beutiful (Masochistic Maiden) ............1915 Inquisition ...............................................1894 Invocation (Doreen Valiente) ..............................1887 Invocation of the Horned God (Doreen Valiente) ............1885 Invocation of the Moon Goddess (Doreen Valiente) ..........1886 Jewel (Shadow Haw ) .......................................1860 Just A Poem (Masochistic Maiden) ..........................1918 LAMMAS NIGHT (Elexa) ......................................1904 LILITH (L.A. Hussey) ......................................1904 Love Is The Law (Un nown) .................................1884 LYRA (Hugh Read) ..........................................1856 Magic Man (Taarna Savet) ..................................1906 Magical Reveries (Hugh M. Read) ...........................1878 May Eve (Doreen Valiente) .................................1884

Minerva (Un nown) .........................................1883 New Words and Old (Kihe Blac eagle) .......................1890 Night Wind (Shadow Haw ) ..................................1863 Ocean (s ybane) ...........................................1921 Pagan Awa ening (Jeff Bordeaux) ...........................1852 Pan To Artemis (Hugh Read) ................................1847 Pandemonium (Sonia Broc ) .................................1890 Pegasus (Durwydd Mac Tara) ................................1911 Prelude to Discovery (Gerald Del Campo) ...................1913 Prayer Drive (Sourdough Jac son) ..........................1869 Quarter Chant (Damon) .....................................1871 RAINBOWS (Jennifer Holding) ...............................1897 Red and Gold (Joe Bethancourt) ............................1906 TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued) Verse: (cont.) Samhain Chant (Doreen Valiente) ...........................1845 Scarabeus (un nown) .......................................1883 See ing The Sign To Dragonheim (Jeff Bordeax) .............1853 Shadowhaw (Marcus) .......................................1877 Simple (Gardenstone) ......................................1914 SLEEPR (Lynn Hubert) ......................................1921 Snow (Steve Earl) .........................................1873 Spring/Summer Poem (Shadowhaw ) ...........................1891 Storm (Shadow Haw ) .......................................1875 Storm (Stormy Gael) .......................................1893 Tears For An Angel (Gerald Del Campo) .....................1913 The Awa ening (Andrew Daws) ...............................1922 The Cloud Sculptors (Jeff Bordeaux) .......................1865 The Coming of Lugh (Iarwin) ...............................1861 The Goddess is Alive (Un nown) ............................1856 The Lady's Brothel (fil ) .................................1898 The Man In The Moon (Gerald Del Campo) ....................1919 The Moon Pool (un nown) ...................................1859 The Night Before Samhain (Masochistic Maiden) .............1915 The Pentagram (Similodon) .................................1889 The Prettiest One (Fil ) ..................................1898 The Shaman's Call (Shadow Haw ) ...........................1873 The Spell of the Cord (Doreen Valiente) ...................1886 The River (Hugh Read) .....................................1872 The Tree Song (Kipling) ...................................1864 The Witches Ballad ........................................1894 To The Bonfires (Jeff Bordeaux) ...........................1866 To The Dragons Reborn (Jeff Bordeaux) .....................1854 To Greyshield, With Love ("Phoenix") ......................1851 Today The Moon is There (Hugh Read) .......................1893 Two Ritual Prayers (Anahita Gula) .........................1895 What is Love (Ravenna Michelle) ...........................1917 Why I Love The Dar (Gerald Del Campo) ....................1912 Witches Creed (Doreen Valiente) ...........................1843 Washington Post Article (1991) .................................1499 Wartime (Michelle Haas, 1991) ...................................117 Watch Towers, Rethin ing The (Mi e Nichols) .....................344 "Weasel Wicca" (Humor fm. Green Egg) ...........................1531 What is Shamanism? (Michelle Haas) ..............................354 What is WICCA? (Texas Pamphlet) .................................322 What is Wicca? (Amber K.) .......................................340 What is Wicca (Durwydd Mac Tara) ...............................1551 Wheel of The Year (Julia Phillips/Matthew Sandow) ..............1671 Wheel Visualization (Julia Phillips and Rufus Harrington) ......1682 When Magic Doesn't Wor (Magical Blend Magazine) ...............1520

Why I don't Believe the "Survivors" (R. Moonsone)...............1719 Wicca and The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (D. Wadsworth) .....1694 Wicca, from My Point of View (Lady Phoenix) .....................149 Wiccan History .................................................1656 Wiccan History (BTW, Julia Phillips) ...........................1566 Wiccan Information Networ .....................................1087 Wiccan Way, The .................................................192 Wiccan Pentagram Ritual (Paul Hume) ..............................98 Wiccan Traditions, A comparison (Hurn, RMPJ) ....................154 Wiccan Path (Madoc)..............................................227 Wiccan Rede, An Exegesis (Judy Harrow) ..........................317 Wiccan Rede, The (J. Taylor, S.O.T.E.G.)........................1488 Wiccan Rede (Poetic) ...........................................1510 TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued) Wiccan Rede (Poetic, WCC) ......................................1540 Wiccan Shamanism (Selena Fox) ...................................162 wiccan Monism (Durwydd MacTara) ................................1556 Wiccan Principles (American Council of Witches, 1974)............190 Wicanning Ritual (Earthworld Circle) ...........................1492 Wishing Well (I.O.T.) ..........................................1422 Witchcraft Q&A (Dr. Leo Martello) ...............................150 Witches Creed (Doreen Valiente_ .................................320 Witches Rede of Chivalry (Ed Fitch & Janine Renee) .............1803 Women vs. Men (Michele Haas).....................................195 YULE (Mi e Nichols) ..............................................84 Yule in Britain (Tana) ...........................................94 Yule Ritual (Starhaw ) ............................................8 Yule Ritual 1984 (Julia Phillips) ..............................1763 Blac out and Sigils Fra.: Apfelmann The blac out or as it is commonly referred to, the death posture, is the technique that the late Austin Osman Spare refined for his own magical use a nd which has been adopted by chaoists, solo and group, world wide as its popular ity has been increased by the wor s of the IOT over the last decade or so. The normal procedure, as many will undoubtedly be familiar with, (and th is is only one of its uses) is that a sigil/glyph of desire is held in the mind` s eye whilst in what we all refer to as the death posture e.g., stood on tiptoe, arms loc ed behind the head, body stretched to its limit, deep spasmodic breath ing, until total exhaustion and inevitably one blac s out, the sigil is then los t to the mind of the inner and the banished of laughter is evo ed to prevent the resurfacing of the said sigil. Anyone who has used this technique for the above said purpose, will have at sometime or another experienced, even if just slightly, difficulty in ho lding the posture long enough for the desired gnosis to ta e effect sufficiently for blac out. And due to this difficulty, a well planned ritual can be a well p lanned waste of time as the desired result is not implanted properly. A technique that has been repeatedly employed by myself on such occasion s is based upon the same principles as the death posture but as I have found, a little easier and without pitfalls that one can experience with A.O. Spare`s tec hnique. This technique is a strange mixture of inhibitory and excitatory gnosis, forced overbreathing, dancing or spinning, and of course exhaustion. The end re sult is of necessity for this process the blac out, which is as we now, of the

inhibitory gnosis. I will now explain how this technique is employed by one for the insertion of sigils for whatever purpose one feels the need. First one has to sigilise the desire in any form that one may wish, but in all cases and especially this one, it must be very easy to visualise. Onc e that has been achieved, one may then begin to design the ritual for that parti cular purpose in mind. Banishings and invocations may be employed, if so wished, this is, however, not a necessity for the successful outcome of this process. A t the culmination of the rite the individual starts the overbreathing, panting d eeply and spasmodically and at the same time visualising the sigil as vividly as you possible can, bright, intense and very clear as the overbreathing continues . Then when you feel that the time is right, start your spinning round and round , still overbreathing and still holding your visualised sigil in your mind`s eye. Music can be played for a bac ground to the dancing, tom toms or any other drum is rat her excellent bac ground sound for this purpose. When the individual has reached a state of sheer exhaustion, very dizzy, sweating and ready to drop, he or she then, still spinning and overbreathing and of course holding the visulised sigil in mind, wor s their way to the centre of the circle or wor ing area. There a partner, either active or passive to the rite, (in other words, if a solo wor er, try to get someone to help you with this part) stops you spinn ing and grabs you in a bear hug lifting you off the ground and squeezing you abo ut the solar plexus, where a large networ of nerves lie. At this precise moment the music, if any has been employed, is stopped, and death-li e silence is ept . The practitioner holds his or her breath whilst being squeezed and the sigil i s visualised as if burning with bright, white heat as its image is burnt into yo ur mind. Within seconds the blac out will occur and the sigil is lost to the min d. At this point it is important that your partner lets you drop to the floor, unless that is you wish to return to primal chaos! On coming round, in most cases, you should evo e laughter to banish the sigil an d all thoughts thereof, your laughter brea s that silence and the rite is finish ed in whatever manner wished. With fractalic greetings and laughter * Fra.: Apfelmann * Chaoism & Chaos Magic, A Personal View by Pete Carroll As there are as many Chaos Magicians as there are Chaoists practising magic, I cannot spea for the subject in general but only for my own Chaoism and Chaos Magic. However, if you want a one-line definition with which most Chaoists would probably not disagree, then I offer the following. Chaoists usually accept the meta-belief that belief is a tool for achieving effects; it is not an end in itself. It is easy to see how other people and cultures are the victims of their own beliefs. The horrors of Islam and the ghasty state of politics in sub-Saharan Africa, are obvious examples, but we rarely pause to consider the extent to which we are the victims of our own beliefs, and the ability we have to modify them if we wish. It is perhaps worth considering the recent history of belief in Western cultures before mounting an attac on the very foundations of the contemporary world view. For about a millenia and a half the

existence of "God" was an incontrovertible fact of life in Christendom. It was never questioned or thought to be questionable. Hideous wars and persecutions were conducted to support one interpretation of deity against another. Learned men wrote thousands of boo s of theoology debating points which seem utterly tedious and idiotic to us now, but the central question of the existence of "God" was never considered. Yet now, the belief in "God" as the author of most of what goes on in the world has been almost competely abandoned, and belief in even the existence of an absentee "God" is in most places fading. Satanism as an anti-religious gesture is now a waste of iconoclastic talent. The alchemists, sorcerers and scientists of the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance won a stupendous posthumous victory. Their questioning of the medieval world view started a rot that brought the whole edifice down eventually. We can laugh loo ing bac on it now, but I assert that we now live under a collective obsession which is even more powerful and will appear equally limiting and ridiculous to future historians. Since the eighteenth century European enlightment, a belief has grown to the point where it is now so all-pervasive, and so fundamental a part of the Western world view, that one is generally considered mad if one questions it. This is a belief that has proved so powerful and useful that virtually everyone in the Western world accept it without question. Even those who try to maintain a belief in "God" tend to place more actual faith in this new belief for most practical purposes. I am about to reveal what this fundamental contemporary belief is. Most of you will thin it is so obvious a fact that it can, hardly be called a belie f. That, however, is a meassure of its extrordinary power over us. Most of you w ill thin me a madman or a fool to even question it. Few of you will be able to imagine what it would be li e not to believe it, or that it would be possible to replace it with something else. Here it is: the dominant belief in all Western Cultures is that this universe runs on material causality and is thus comprehensible to reason. Virtually everyone also maintains a secondary belief that contradicts this - the belief that they have something called free will, although they are unable to specify what this is - but I will deal with that later. We spend billions every year indoctrinating our young with the primary belief in material causality in our schools. Our language, our logic, and most of our machines, are built largely upon this belief. We regard it as more reliable than "God". Now, it has been one of the functions of the Magician to try and brea through to something beyond the normal. My own magical quest has always had a strongly antinomian and iconoclastic element, and I long ago decided to go for bro e and attac the primary beliefs of our culture. Religion is too easy a target as it is already fatally disabled by our ancestors, the Renaissance sorcerers and scientists. Contemporary Satanists are waisting their efforts. Ideology is than fully beeing gradually replaced with economics. The main thrust of my Chaoism is against the doctrine of material causality and secondarily against most of the nonsense that passes for modern psychology. Anyway, now I have to firstly try and convince you that there is something seriously wrong with material causality, and that there is

something that could supersede it as a belief. These are vitally important questions for magicians, for since the demise of essentially spiritual descriptions of magic, the belief in material causality has been increasingly used in a haphazard fashion to form various ill-conceived metaphors such as "magical energy" or "magical force" which are tactily presumed to be something analogous to static electricity or radio waves. This is, I thin , complete bullshit. Magic can sometimes be induced to behave a bit li e this, but it is not a very effective description. Before attempting a frontal assault on material causality I shall bac trac a little to gather ammunition. Few people noticed that in the 1930`s a serious crac was discovered in the fabric of material causality which, on the grounds of faith alone, was supposed to cover everything. This crac was called Quantum Physics, and it was pre-eminently Niels Bohr who, with his Copenhagen Interpretation, po ed a finger into the crac and prised open a wrap to reveal a different reality. Basically Bohr showed that this reality is better modelled by a description of non-material causality operating probabilistically not deterministically. This may sound tame at first, but the implications for our everyday view of the world and for our theories of magic are awesome. It brought to an end the era of the cloc wor universe paradigm which began over two hundred years ago and which almost everyone still believes in their guts, even if they cannot formulate it precisely. I urge magicians everywhere to give than s by drin ing what is probably the best lager in the world, for it was the Carlsberg Brewery in Copenhagen that supported Bohr and his colleagues while they did the physics. The majority of straight scientists find quantum physics as distasteful as a priest would find witch-craft. If they have to use it they prefer not to thin about the implications. Even Einstein, who started quantum physics going but made his major contribution in Relativity, felt repelled by its implications, on ground of scientific faith and residual Judaic belief, and wasted much of his later life campaining fruitlessly against it. Quantum physics says to me that not only is magic possible in a world that is infinitely Chaotic than we thought, but that magic is central to the functioning of this universe. This is a magical universe not a cloc wor one. Causal materialist beliefs were a liberating and refreshing breath of fresh air after a millenia and a half of monotheism, but now, at their zenith, they have become tyranny. Relativity and the fundamental physics associated with it are probably close to a final refinement of the causal materialist paradigm, and as such they now seem a terrible prison. For all practical purposes they confine us to this planet forever and rule out magic from our lives. Quantum physics, which I believe currently to be basically an investigation of the magical phenomena underlying the reality most people have perceived as non-magical for the last two hundred years, shows us a way out. It may be some time before any significant portion of humanity learns to believe the new paradigm in their guts and live accordingly, but event ually they will. Until then it is bound to sound li e discombobulating gobbledge goo or tarted-up intellectualism to most people.

I would li e to mention my other favourite iconoclasm in passing without explanation. I reject the conventional view of post-monotheistic Western psychology that we are individual unitary beings possessing free will. I prefer the description that we are colonial beings composed of multiple personalities; although generally unafflicted with the selective amnesia which is the hallmar of this otherwise omnipresent condition. And that secondly there is no such thi ng as free will; although we have the capacity to act randomly, or perhaps one s hould say more precisely stochastically, and the propensity to identify with wha tever we find ourselves doing as a result. All the gods and goddesses are within us and non-materially about us as well, in the form of non-local information. I consider that all events occur basically by magic; the apparent causality investigated by classical science is merely the more statistically reliable end of a spectrum whose other end is complete Chaos. However, I would li e to end with a few words about how my Chaoism affects my personal activity in what is ordinaryly called magic. There are for me two main aspects of magic; the parapsychological and the psychological. In enchantment and divination I believe that the magician is attempting to interact with nature via non-material causality. He is basically exchanging information with his environment without u sing his physical faculties. Austin Osman Spare precisely identified the mental manoeuvres necessary to allow this to occur. The manoeuvres are startlingly simp le and once you have understood them you can invent an unlimited number of spell s and forms of divination. The manoeuvres are sacred but the forms of their expr ession are arbitrary; you can use anything at random. Bohr and Spare are for me Saints of the Church of Chaos. I consider that when a magician interacts with those apparently sentient sources of nowledge, inspiration and parapsychological ability that used to be called spirits, gods, demons and elementals, he is tapping into the extraordinary resources that each of us already contains. When activated they may also receive some input via non-material causality from outside. Yet since we all contain such a rich multitude within our own unconscious or subconscious and can also receive congruent information from the collective unconsciousness as it were, then the possibilities are practically limitless. Given the correct technique one can invo e or evo e anything, even things which did not exist before one thought of calling them. This may sound li e complete Chaos, and I have to report that my own researches confirm that it is ! Chaos Magic for me means a handful of basic techniques which must be adh ered to strictly to get results, but beyond that it offers a freedom of expression and intent undreamt of in all previous forms of magic. The Dar Night of the Soul Fra.: Apfelmann ------------------------------------------"The Dar Night of the Soul" is the name given to that experience of spi ritual desolation that all students of the Occult pass through at one time or an other. It is sometimes charcterised by feelings that your occult studies or pra ctises are not ta en you anywhere, that the initial success that one is sometime s granted after a few months of occult wor ing, has suddenly dried up. There com

es a desire to give up on everything, to abandon exercises and meditation, as no thing seems to be wor ing. St.John of the Cross. a christian mystic, said of thi s experience, that it; "...puts the sensory spiritual appetites to sleep, deaden s them, and deprives them of the ability to find pleasure in anything. It bind s the imagination, and impeeds it from doing any good discursive wor . It ma es the memory cease, the intellect become dar and unable to understand anything, and hence it causes the will to become arrid and constrained, and all the facul ties empty and useless. And over this hangs a dense and burdensome cloud, whic h afflicts the soul, and eeps it withdrawn from the good." Though the beginner may view the onset of such an experience with alarm (I now I did), the "Dar Night" is not something bad or destructive. In one sen se it may be seen as a trial, a test by which the Gods examine our resolve to co ntinue with occult wor , and if you are not completely whole-hearted about your magical studies, it is during this period (at its beginning) that you will give up. The Dar Night of the Soul should be welcomened, once recognised for what it is (I have always received an innate "warning" just before the onset of such a period), as a person might welcome an operation that will secure health and well being. St.John of the Cross embraced the soul`s Dar Night as a Devine Appointme nt, calling it a period of "sheer grace" and adding; "O guiding Night, O Night more lovely than Dawn, O Night that has united the lover with his beloved Transforming the Lover in her Beloved." When entering the Dar Night one is overcome by a sense of spiritual dry ness and depression. The notion, in some quarters, that all such experiences sho uld be avoided, for a peaceful existence, shows up the superficiality of so much of contemporary living. The Dar Night is a way of bringing the Soul to stillne ss, so that deep psychic transformation may ta e place. All distractions must be set aside, and it is no good attempting to fight or channel the bursts of raw e nergy that from time to time may course through your being. This inner compulsio n to set everything aside results in the outer depression, when nothing seems to excite. The only thing to do is obey your inner voice and become still, waiting for the inner transformation, (which the "Dar Night" heralds), to ta e place. You may not be aware for a very long time of the results of that inner ch ange, but when the desire to wor comes again and the depression lifts, the Dar Night has (for a moment) passed. No one can help during this time, and in many cases there is hardly anyone to turn for advice. One must disregard the well-mea ning advice of family and friends to "snap out of it" this is no ordinary depres sion, but a deep spiritual experience which only those who have passed through t hemselves (in other words to a magical retreat) but for many, as the routines of everyday life prohibits this, all you can do is cultivate an inner solitude, a stillness and silence of heart, and wait, (li e a chrysalis waits for the inner changes that will result in a butterfly) for the Transformation to wor itself o ut. There are many such "Dar Nights" that the occult see er must pass through d uring the mysterious process of mitigation. They are all trials but experience t eaches one to cope more efficiently. With fractalic greetings and laughter * Fra.: Apfelmann * Liber OZMA Tim Maroney ---------------------------------------OOOOOOO O O O O "There is no bond that can unite the divided but love:

O OOOOOOO

O Z M A:

all else is a curse." -- AL I:41

"In their rules there was only one clause: DO WHAT YOU WILL" -- Gargantua, 57 "For the cherub with his flaming sword is hereby commanded to leave his guard at the tree of life, and when he does, the whole of creation will be consumed, and appear infinite. and holy whereas it now appears finite & corrup t" -- THE MARRIAGE OF HEAVEN & HELL, 14 "Every man and every woman is a star."--AL I:3 There is no god but humanity. 1. People to to to to to 2. People to to to 3. People to to to to have the right to live by their own law -live in the way that they will to do: wor as they will: play as they will: rest as they will: die when and how they will. have the right to eat what they will: drin what they will: dwell where they will: move as they will on the face of the earth. have the right to thin what they will: spea what they will: write what they will: draw, paint, carve, etch, mould, build as they will: dress as they will.

4. People have the right to love as they will :"ta e your fill and will of love as ye will, when, where, and with whom ye will." -- AL I:51. 5. People have the right to use force to secure their rights. "For how should I be able to govern others, when I don't now how to govern myself?" -- Gargantua, 52 "Love is the law, love under will." -- AL I:57 TIM MARONEY Sigil Magic for the Professional Magician by Areosol I will assume that you are already initiated into the secrets of Austin Spare`s sigil magic. Consulting with my clients as a professional magicia n, I am always confronted with the same question: Is the client`s will identical with my own ? If it is, there should be no problem involved in charging the sig il in the client`s stead by myself. (The client, one must remember, will usually not be familiar with the basic tenets of sigil magic or even magic in general a nd will probably hesitate to try it out for himself.) However, I believe as a ma tter of principle that everybody should vaccinate his will for himself. I do not

feel happy with charging myself i.e. my subconscious with other people`s desire s. For example: if Mrs. X wants to be brought together with Mr. Y by a sigil (l ove spell), it could be intersting to now what might happen if the pertinent si gil were charged by myself. Accordingly I had to find a means to implant sigils into my individual c lients in such a way that they are not aware of what they are really doing. At f irst, tal ing with the client, I will try to find the "smallest common denominat or" out of a tangled mass of multiple desires. This will continue until the clie nt is able to word his or her statement of will (henceforth to be termed "will s entence") in plain and unambiguous language. Following this all contact between the client and myself will be abandoned for two or tree wee s. In the meantime I will construct the sigil, usually employing the word method, and s etch it on a piece of parchment. Very often the client`s name will be encoded applying the magical camea of the planet pertinent to the client`s desire. I may then supplem ent the sigil with this personalised glyph. Then I will outline a short ritual f or the client in which will be hidden the charge proper of the sigil (employing either the mantric method or a variation of the so-called "death posture"). After a while I will send the client this constructed sigil by mail incl uding instructions on how to charge it plus possible additional admonitions, if necessary. Most probably the client will have forgotten the precise wording of his/her will sentence by now; neither will he o r she be able to draw any conclusions from these strange glyphs. After having be en charged the sigil can be sealed and constantly worn in a loc et, it can also be put permanently in view e.g. as a wall decoration. Some of my clients have pl aced or hung their sigils nicely framed in their office rooms. To charge a sigil the following method is very effective. The client ar rives for consultation. In some cases has to bring along some substance imbibed with his or her Od. During a small ritual client must close his/her eyes and pla ce the odic substance on the sigil which will be lying open in front of him/her. Then I will ta e the client`s finger and pric it quic ly and sharply with a sm all chirurgical lancet. After the blooddrop has been smeared onto the sigil, the latter will be folded and sealed immediately. I then admonish the client to bea r in mind that this talisman must never get into other people`s hands. This cha rging method is especially effective in wor ing with protection or "antipersonne l mine" sigils.

Here are some examples relating to client`s feedbac : 30.04. Sigil as wall decoration 24.06. Business enterprises developed well. 12.07. Protection/defence sigil, charged employing chirurgical lancet. 14.07. Client feels well and secure. 23.06. Sigil as a defense "antipersonnel mine" with codification of client`s name by the magical camea of Mars, charged with lancet. 09.10. "Mine" fully operative: sic ness and accidents of 2-3 enemies. 11.10. Sigil employed as a wall decoration. 11. Business successful. Sale of real estate to a monastry (!) has been agreed upon. 27.12. Sigil, mantric charge. 14.02. Client`s partner becomes more friendly and loving. 18.03. Partnership satisfactory. 17.06. Sigil charged spastically by myself in client`s stead. 18.06. Shortly before the potential buyer arrived for inspection in

the afternoon, the last seat in the coffeehouse (sales object) had been ta en, suggesting excellent business; immediately after inspection number of customers decreased again. 07.12. Fast charge of a "combat sigil". 21.12. The idea incorporated by the sigil incarnates as a conscious wish in the target person`s love partner. Drugs and Religion -- Sna ebite Trips? Loren Petrich In Merlin Stone's boo "When God Was a Woman", about early goddesses, there is a strange hypothesis about the importance of sna es in the early Middle East. MS notes that sna es are associated with prophecy and wisdom -- and goddesses -- in several places, such as Egypt, Sumer, Crete, and Greece. In Egypt, the female deity of predynastic northern (Lower) Egypt was the cobra goddess Ua Zit. Egyptian deities and royalty has a _uraeus_ emblem -- a head and hood of a cobra . Some Sumerian goddesses, such as Inanna, were associated with sna es. In Minoan-era Crete, we find some statuettes of goddesses or priest esses with sna es. In one case, the sna es are cobras. In Greece, in what is most li ely a Minoan legacy, Hera and Athena were associated with sna es, and the shrines of Delphi, Olympia, and Dodona were orig inally associated with goddesses. However, they were ta en over by the followers of the male gods Zeus and Apollo, who were depicted as sna e- illers. Even then, the greatest wisdom was associated with priestesses. Serpenticidal male gods also include Mardu , who illed Tiamat, and Yahweh himself, who illed Leviathan. MS suggests a connection to the Adam and Eve legend. The Philistines had "sna e tubes" nearly identical to some found on Crete, which is consistent with them being Cretan refugees. So some "sna e priestesses" may have set up shop in Palestine when the Israelites showed up. The Adam and Eve legend may have been an effort to discredit these women, for it suggests that sna es are wic ed, and women who listen to sna es are wic ed. This is all in eeping with the Yahvist e ffort to discredit religions other than the worship of Yahweh, which is a sordid story of religious persecution. This persecution involved going so far as destroying a bronze sna e ept in the Templ e, the Nehushtan, which could supposedly cure sna ebite. This sna e was probably associated with an earlier acceptance of this sna e cult. But how did this sna e cult actually wor ? It is difficult to say, but M S offers a strange hypothesis. She notes that we are told that Cassandra and Melampus had acquired prophetic powers from having their ears lic ed with sna es. So is there some sna ebite connection? MS suggests that the re was, and tells of someone who had been immunized against rait venom, but who had been bitten by a rait [_Cobras in the Garden_, H. Kursh] He had developed a sense of enhanced awareness and he had visions. He reported himself ma ing up verses, and said "My mind had extraordinary powers." This is evidently much li e mescaline [from peyote] or psilocybin [in certain mushrooms], used by some Native Americans for similar purposes; those who ta e these two or LSD often feel as if they are in touch with the basic forces of existence and a sensation of perceiving the events and meaning of the past, present, and future with great clarity and comprehension. It could well be that some sna e venoms have compone

nts similar effects. So could it be that early sna e prophetesses (and male prophets) were going on sna ebite trips? Oracles connected with sna es were consulted in Greece and elsewhere for important decisions, which seems very trustworthy of people with "highs". One does have to as the question on how this type of prophesying got associated with women instead of men or both sexes equally in the ancient Middle East. This only adds to the riddle of Minoan Crete. Since the priestesses there were important citizens, and since they are associated with sna es, then could some of the leaders of Crete bac then have been sna ebite-tripping priestesses? The possibility of a "feminist theocracy", rule by a largely female priesthood, seems awesome enough (no prominent " ings"), but this is truly wild.

I confess I don't have much taste for theocracy, but I would certainly prefer a Minoan-type theocracy (if that was what it was) to the more f amiliar inds -- Jewish, Christian, and Muslim -- which I find absolutely disgusting.

The Wishing Well -or - Releasing The Butterfly of Chaos Frater Choronzon The general function of a Wishing Well is understood from an early age by most people. The user projects some required outcome of events, or "wish" into the well, perhaps accompanied by a symbolic financial donation, and waits for events to ta e their course. Similar properties are attributed in popular tradition to acts of cutting a birthday ca e and brea ing a wish-bone while devouting certain species of poultry. In every sense, the act of ma ing a wish using any of the above ritual props is a magical operation though experience suggest that Wells tend to be more effective than both chic en bones and all but the most esoterically decorated ca es in achieving the intended result. As of late, many Wishing Wells have been withdrawn from public access; and, moreover, recent opinion polls have indicated high levels of dissatisfaction with the scarcity of wish-fulfillment opportunities, particularly among vegetarians. This paper attempts some analysis of the dynamics involved in successful wish-ma ing, and offers a ritual procedure which readers may find useful pending the launch of another "Wishing Well Withdrawal" from the public eye.

Anyone who has studied non-linear dynamics (or Chaos Mathematics) as applied to the interaction of complex systems (for instance life-ingeneral) will be aware of the extreme sensivity of such systems to initial conditions. This is illustrated by the so called Butterfly Effect; a model of the process by which a butterfly flapping its wings on the Carribean Islands can set in train a series of atmospheric interactions which may culminate, after some elapsed time, in the occurence of a hurricane in London.

The hypothesis in this context is that the ritual act of ma ing a wish sets up initial conditions for a Chao/dynamic process which culminates, after some elapse time, in the occurrence of whatever event was the original objective of the wish; hence the subtitle "Releasing the Butterfly of Chaos". Atmospheric effects are often synchronous with successful magic al operations as was observed, for example, by those who were present for (or within earshot of) the 4,000 watt "Enochian Verse Recital" in South London, 17.30 Hrs, Monday, 28 May, 1990; but where magic is concerned the atmospherics are felt to be little more than by-products of casual sequence which is primarily electromagnetic in character. The actual process by which a successful wish is transformed into its outcome is, of course, magic; at least in the sense that modern TV receiver might be ac nowledged as such by Agrippa or Abra-Melin the Mage - Was there ever a more effective acrostic "for divers visions" than an infrared remote control? A detailed explanation of how the magical process appears to wor would fill a boo (reasonable offers from reputable publishers accepted); suffice it to say that no rewrite of either the Laws of Physics or the Axioms of Mathematics is required, and to mention that the Astrological elements of the hypothesis will form the substance of a paper to be presented to a forth coming meeting of the "Tal ing Stic ". For the purpose of this exercise, the process may be appropriately visualized by consideration of nothing more complicated than a humble smo e-ring. In mathematical terms this is a Torus (a ringdoughnut shaped structure) which has a clearly defined, coherent and self-contained existence for an extended period within a fundamentally chaotic matrix; ie. it can hung around for several seconds retaining its structure in the turbulent air of a smo e-filled room. Such ordered structures fall quite naturally out of the Chaos Mathematics which models the behavior of gases and liquids (Fluid Dynamics for the technically inclined). Examples of such ordered structures in a chaotic environment abound, and not only on this planet. The Great Red Spot on Jupiter, for instance, has been in existence at least since Galileo observed it in 1610, though the chaotic nature of that planets atmosphere was not appreciated until the flypast of the Voyager spacecraft of 1979. A perfect smo e-ring requires very little expenditure of energy to be brought into existence, though that energy, in the form of a controlled pulse of gas projected from its creator lips has to be quite precise - ie. smo e-rings don`t always wor , particular if someone is watching, and the best ones of all usually happen quite by accident! Significantly, the only way an observer can now if a smo e-ring is there because it has smo e in it. If an identical pulse of gas is projected from a non-smo er, the Toroidal ring structure will be established in the just the same way within the atmosphere, but its presence is almost impossible to detect, even with the most sophisticated of scientific instruments. The atmosphere is not the only chao/dynamic envelope surrounding our planet; there also exists the magnetosphere, which we perceive at ground level as the earths magnetic field. At present it exerts a force which causes a compass needle to point approximately towards

the North Pole. The magnetosphere extends out into so-called empty space well beyond the atmosphere of the planet, and is anything but static in character. Complete polarity reversals can occur. A record of these is preserved in the sequence of North and South oriented volcanic roc s which have been mapped in the ocean floor extending outwards from mid-oceanic ridges, such as that which runs the lenght of the Atlantic. The magnetosphere exhibits its own "weather" patterns which, li e the atmospheric weather, are driven primilarily by radiation from the Sun/Solar Winds. Magnetic and electric storms which affect TV and radio reception are a phenomena of magnetospheric weather, and interaction between the magnetosphere and the atmosphere can result in phenomena such as the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights. Other manifestations include balllightning and St. Elmo`s fire. The ritual procedure put forward here postulates a process whereby a sudden pulse of electro-chemical energy, through an operators nervous system, establishes a magnetic structure which is the mathematical equivalent of a smo e-ring. It is suggested that this can occur on the onset of orgasm or accompanying a powerful martial-arts styled shout or KIAI, by a process a in to that of the Faraday Induction described in any half-decent textboo . The "magical" part of the process involves injecting a flash-visualisation of the eventual desired outcome of the magnetosmo e-ring as it is being established. The rest of the process of wish fulfillment is left to the wondrous dynamics of Chaos. It may be helpful for the operator to face towards the geographical (magnetic) North Pole. If performed as a solo wor ing, this ritual may usefully be preceded by a banishing and visualisation exercise. The ritual text is written in the Enochian language of the angelic calls which were devised or discovered by Dr. John Dee in the 16th Century. In the sense that Enochian can be seen as a system of control (or cyber-) language for "life, the universe, and everything" it has many of the characteristics of a computer programming language. Among such properties would be those of recursive self-reference (ie. the ability to modify itself), and some of the phraseology of the preamble to the ritual is designed to apply ideas developed by Douglas Hoffstadter in his boo Godel, Escher, Bach to the Enochian language. Specifically, the text of the ritual should increase its own potency with repetition. After the Enochian preamble, the participant(s) should ma e a vocalized statement of a "wish" or willed endpoint for the wor ing, at the same time strongly visualizing the desired outcome. This "wish" may be of a benefic or malefic intent, but beware! the Enochian preamble carries a force of personal honor, in wishes of a dishonorable character they are li ely to bac fire. The pre-climatic mantrum "Zarzas Zarzas Nasatanata Zarzas" is held to be untranslatable. It is, by tradition, a formula which opens the Gates of Hell or the Abyss; in this context it is used to invo e the dynamic process of Chaos by which the wish can be fulfilled. Some occult authorities, Crowley among them, assert that the Zarzas formula is dangerous and advise against using it. Modern Chaos magicians do not share that view and, besides having employed it for years with no particular ills impacting the user, is consistently

been found to enhance the effectiveness of most categories of magical wor ing. The final climatic KIAI may be shout such as that projected by a martial arts practioner in the process of shattering a concrete bloc (or someone`s sternum), or else an exaggerated cry of orgasmic ecstasy. Prospective participants with orgiastic inclinations may care to experiment with variant techniques to effect the final KIAI exclamation which sets the magical "butterfly effect" process in motion. For example, the Enochian couplet following the statement of the wish might be committed to memory by operator of either gender, and repeated while other participants stimulate that operator to a frenzied pitch of ecstasy, culminating in the final KIAI. Such variants are for the more experimentaly inclined, but it is the sort of experiments which magicians of an unhibited frame of mind (or body) may find it enjoyable to carry out as an end in itself. Any feedbac on results would be welcome! Ritual text / Enochian Invocation: COMSELH I The circle with DRILPA EMETGIS the great seal AS was T It NONCA to you CIAOFI to the terror SOLPHETH hear en IOADAF in the beginning I is P eight DE of DE of TA as MALPURG DSI fiery darts which is CHAOS chaos TOL all HUBAR a continual burning lamp I is as AG of no GLO things. BLIOR of comfort CORAXO thunders of judgement & wrath IAIADIX honor

VOMSARG IADNAMAD GOHULIM: unto every one of you of undefiled nowledge it is said: "OI "This EMETGIS seal LONSHI of power OVOF may be magnfied SAPAH DE the mighty of sounds HE BAHAL" honor cried with a I s/he ZA who

MIAN I continuancewith LU song VLCININ Happy IA of DS is

ANGELGARD MANIN PRGE thoughts in the mind with the fire

GMICALZOMA CRIP of power & but understanding DE PAR of them BIEN: to my voice:

SA in OI this loud voice" ZAZ has framed

ANANAEL PI of this secret wisdom, s/he I is BUTMONA By mouth VGEG become strong ATH the wor s T also OD and CAPMIALI FISIS successively to execute AMMA curses EMNA: herein:

>> MAKE YOUR WISH HERE << SA Into OD and CHAOS chaos ANGELGARD the thoughts HARG are planted AZIAGIAR. li e unto the harvest

ZARZAS ZARZAS NASATANATA ZARZAS !!! KIAI !!! XXXI Hymns Fr. Achad (Charles Stansfield Jones) Key entry by Fr. Nachash Ur us-Hadit Camp, OTO Completed 11-21-90 e.v. ********************************************************************** XXXI HYMNS TO THE STAR GODDESS Who is Not BY XIII: which is ACHAD

I .(. Invocation

En indle within him the Holy Ecstasy Thou hast promised unto them that love Th ee; the Ecstasy which redeemeth from all pain. Hast thou not proclaimed: All the sorrows are but shadows, they pass and are done, but there is that which remains? That the Universe is Pure Joy-that Thou givest unimaginable Joys on Earth--that Thou demandest naught in sa crifice? Let me then rejoice, for therein may I serve Thee most fully. Let it be Thy Joy to see my joy; even as Thou hast promised in Thy Holy Boo ! Now, therefore, am I Joyful in Thy Love.

Mother of the Sun, Whose Body is White with the Mil y servant and impart unto him Thy Secret Kiss!

IONAS they will become

of the Stars, bend upon Th

AUMN

I wandered beside the running stream, and mine eyes caught the glint of Thy Sta rry Orbs in the swirling waters. So is it with my mind; it flows on towards the Great Sea of Underst anding wherein I may come to now Thee more fully. Sometimes, as it journeys, it threatens to overflow its ban s in its eagerne ss to reflect a wider image of Thine Infinite Body. Ah! How the very stones, over which flow the life of my being, thrill at the tender caress of Thy reflected Image. Thou, too, art Matter; it is I---Thy Complement---who am motion! Theref ore these very stones are of Thee, but the Spirit---the Life---is the very Self of me; mine Inmost Being. Flow on, O Stream! Flow on, O Life! Towards the Great Sea of Underst anding, the Great Mother. III .(. The Rose Garden Long have I lain and waited for Thee in the Rose Garden of Life; yet ever Th ou withholdest Thyself from mine Understanding. As I lay I contemplated Thy nature as that of an Infinite Rose. Petals, petals, petals.. but where, O Beauteous One, is Thy Heart? Hast Thou no Heart? Are Thy petals Infinite so that I may never reach the Cor e of Thy Being? Yet, Thou hast said: "I love you! I yearn to you! Pale or purple, veiled or voluptuous, I who am all pleasure and purple, and drun eness of the innermos t sense, desire you: Come unto me!" Yea! Mine innermost sense is drun en; it is intoxicated upon the Dew of the Ros e. Thy Heart is my Heart; there is no difference, O Beloved. When I shall have penetrated to the Heart of Thine Infinite Rose, there shall I find Myself. But I shall never come to myself---only to Thee. IV .(. The Fox Glove Tall and straight as a Fox Glove do I stand before Thee, Mother of Heaven. The flower of my being is given over to a strange conceit; I grow up towards the Stars and not towards the Sun. Art Thou not Mother of the Sun? Thus have I blasphemed the Lord and Giver of Life for Thy sa e. Yet am I not a shamed, for in forgetting the Sun I am become the Sun--Thy Son--yet a tho

II .(. The Broo

usand times more Thy Lover. The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but now I have no where to lay my head; for tall and straight as a Fox Glove do I stand before Thee. My resting place is the Womb of the Stars. Yet all that I may comprehend of Thine Infinite Body is but as the Glove u pon one of Thy soft sweet hands, touching the Earth, not hurting the little flow ers.

V .(. The Storm A Dar Night and the Storm. The lightening flashes between Thee and me. I am d azzled so that I see Thee not. So in the depths of my being flash the fires of life; they blind me to the Understanding of Thee and Thine Infinite Body of Stars. Yet I see Thee reflected in the body of her I love, as we lie with quiveri ng limbs awaiting the coming of the sound of thunder. She fears the thunder, and turns within herself for consolation. But even there the Lightning flameth, for I have loosed the fires of my being w ithin the dar recess---in honour of the Storm and of Thine Infinite Body w hich I see not.

Once I new an ancient serpent. He delighted to bas in the Sunshine which p enetrated through a tiny hole in the roof of the cave. He was old and very wise. He said: "Upon me is concentrated the Light of the whole Universe." But a little brown beetle, who had long lived in the cave with him, loo ed up, and spreading his wings passed out through the hole in roof---into the Infinite Beyond. Thus, forsa ing wisdom, would I come to Thee, Beloved Lady of the Starry Heavens.

VII .(. The Design Strange curves: and every Curve a Number woven into a Musical and Harmoni ous Pattern. Such was the design showed me by my friend when first we met. It was li e an exchange of greetings by means of an inward recognition. Oh! Could I but grasp the Ever-changing Design of Thy Star Body, Mother of Heaven!

VI .(. The Hole in The Roof

Yet, it is written: "Every man and every woman is a star. Every number is infi nite, there is no difference." Such then is Life, for those who love Thee: Strange Curves, and every Curve a Number woven into a Musical and Harmonious Design.

VIII .(. The Snow Drift My body was blue as Thine, O Beloved, when they found me. I was stiff as if held in a close embrace. Nor was I conscious of aught but Thee, till the small fires of Earth brought me bac with an agony of tingling pain. How came I to be lost in the snow-drift? I remember how I had ta en shelter from the blinding storm. The snow fell ab out me, and I waited, turning my thought to Thee. Then did I realize how every snow-fla e is built as a tiny star. I loo ed closer, burying my face in the white pile, as in Thy Bosom. Mine arms embr aced the snow-drift; I clung to it in a mad ecstacy. Thus would I have pressed Thy Body to mine, wert Thou not Infinite and I but a s tiny as a star-fla e. So was my body frozen---as by the utmost cold of inter-stellar space. It was blue as Thine when they found me loc ed in Thine embrace. IX .(. Daylight In the Daylight I see not Thy Body of Stars, O Beloved. The little light of the Sun veils the Great Light of the Stars, for to-day Thou seemest distant. The Sun burns li e a great Torch, and Earth seems as one of His little Spheres , filled with life. I am but a tiny spermatozoon, but within me is the fiery and concentrated es sence of Life. Draw me up into Thyself, O Sun! Project me into the Body of Our Lady Nuit! Thus shall a new Star be born, and I shall see Thee even in the Dayligh t, O Beloved.

X .(. The Bird Once I bought a little bird; his cage was very small; it had only one perch. He was so young he had not even learned to sing, but he chirped gladly when I b rought him home. Then I raised the bars of his cage, and without a moment's hesitation he flew

out into the room, and spying the cage of the love-birds, perched upon it and examined it carefully. Not long afterwards another and stronger cage was obtained for the love-bi rds, for they had pec ed through some of the frail bars. When the little bir d was offered the discarded cage, he quic ly hopped from his tiny one to their s. Now he has three perches and room for his tail, and when we open the door of his cage he refuses to come out. Perhaps he fears to lose what he had once c oveted and then obtained. Herein lies the secret of Government. Give the people what will ma e them re asonably comfortable; let them have three perches and room for their tails; a nd forgetting their slavery and restrictions, they will be content. Hast Thou not said "The slaves shall serve." Lady of the Starry Heaven? XI .(. The Moral There is another moral to the story of the little bird. Having gained his des ire for a larger cage, he forgot his longing for Freedom. The door remained open; the room was before him, wherein he could stretch his wings and fly. Yet he preferred his cage. The wide world might have been his had he nown how to use it, but he was not ready for that; he would have perished of cold had I let him out into the wi ntry snow. Let those who would travel the Mystic Path remember this: Earth Conscio usness is an illusion and limitation. When it frets us, li e a little cage, our chance for greater freedom comes. But when a larger cage is offered---when we obtain Dhyana---let us not rest th ere thin ing ourselves free. The door is open, Samadhi lies beyond, and b eyond that, when we are ready for it, the Real Freedom, Nirvana. O Lady of the Stars, let me not content till I penetrate the ultimate bars an d am Free---One with the Infinitely Great as with the Infinitely Small. XII .(. The Invisible Foot Prints Long have I roamed the Earth delighting in the Good, the Beautiful and the Tru e; ever see ing the spots where these seem to be most Perfect. There is joy in this wandering among the flowers of life, but Thy Joy, O Belov ed, is to be desired above all. Now I see a resting place, I am set upon a new Quest, to Worship at Thy fee t. For it is written of Thee: "Bending down, a lambent flame of blue, all tou ching, all penetrant, her lovely hands upon the blac earth, and her lithe body arched for love, and her soft feet not hurting the little flowers."

Oh! That I might discover Thine Invisible Footprints upon the Earth and there c ome to the Understanding of Thy Being, O Beloved.

XIII .(. The Finger Tips Or, it may be, O Beloved, I shall discover the imprints of Thy finger tips am id the flowers or upon the Blac Earth.

Who noweth when Thy hands may grasp me and draw me up into Thine arms, there t o nestle at Thy breast, to feed upon the Mil of the Stars? Beloved, verily this tending of the Garden of the World---although the labor m ay seem heavy---leadeth to a Great Reward. As Thou hast said: "Certainty, no t faith, while in life upon death, rest, ecstasy." Nor dost Thou demand augh t in sacrifice. What do the Bha tis now of Love? They see the Beloved everywhere. But when I am one with Thee, O Beloved, I shall not see Thee, for I shall n ow Theee as Thou art.

XIV .(. The Well of Stars I now a hidden well of clearest water. Naught but the coping of delicat e pin onyx is visible until the secret spring be touched. Then beware! For above the entrance hangs a fiery sword.

From the broad Mountain summit we may search the slopes for a vision of the Woo dland Delta where grow the Trees of Eternity, or we may journey through the Val ley between the Ivory Hills---if we fear not the purple shadows and the blac p it-fall. From Thee we came; to Thee may we return, O Well of Living Stars! XV .(. The Icicles of Isis It hath been written how the Old King dreamed of his banished peacoc , entombe d in a palace of ice, who cried: "The Icicles of Isis are falling on my h ead." Thus it is with those who are banished to the Palace of the Moon---for the Wor d of Sin is Restriction. Oh! Lady of the Starry Heavens, let me not become frozen at the touch of the cold Veil of Isis. For the Moon is but the dead reflector of the Sun, and He but the youngest of Thy Children of Light.

Let me lift Thy Peacoc

Veil of a Million Starry Eyes, O Beloved!

Few find this Well or .

now its Secret; there are but two roads leading thereto

Hath not Nemo a Garden that he tendeth? Doth he not also labour in the Blac arth?

Show Thy Star Splendour, O Nuit; bid me within Thine house to dwell! XVI .(. Purple Mill The delicate purple mist streams up from the hills: I watch and wait for the meaning of it all. Sometimes it seems li e the incense smo e of Aspiration ascending towards the Sun---giver of Light, Life, Love and Liberty to the Children of Ear th. But the Sun is going down behind the Mountains, and Thy Starry Lamps glow in the S y. Is not the Lamp above the Altar a symbol of the Desire of the Higher to draw up the lower to Itself? So, O Lady of Heaven, I li en the Mist to the life-breath of Souls who pant fo r Thee here below. And I remember Thy words: Above, the gemmed azure is The na ed splendour of Nuit; She bends in ecstacy to iss The secret ardours of Hadit. The winged globe, the starry blue, Are mine, O An h-af-na- honsu! I, too, would ascend as a delicate purple mist that steams up from the Hills. Art Thou not all Pleasure and Purple? XVII .(. The Infinite Within I would that I were as the feminine counterpart of Thee, O Beloved; then wo uld I draw the Infinite within. Yet since Thy Pure Being must ever be more refined than this body of mine I should interpenetrate every part of Thee with my living flesh. Thus, O Beloved, should we enter into a new and more complete embrace: not as of earth wherein the male uniteth with the female by means of the physical organs of love, but with every atom of my being close pressed to every atom o f Thine---within and without. Then, O beloved, would I cry unto the Lord of the Primum Mobile to teach m e the Art of the Whirling Motion of Eternity. Thus, whirling within Thee, our never-ending nuptial feast shall be celebra ted, and a new System of Revolving Orbs be brought to birth. Ah! the shrill cry of Ecstacy of that Refined Rapture---the Orgasm of the Inf inite Within. XVIII .(. The Rainbow As I sat in the shelter of the forest glade, my eye caught the multi-coloured gleam of diamonds. I loo ed again; the Sun rays were playing upon the dew whi

ch clung to a little curved twig. It seemed li e a tiny rainbow of promise. Then, while I watched in wonder, a small grey spider bridged the arch of the bow with his sil en thread. Ah! My Beloved, thus, too, hath the Spider of Destiny woven his sil en rope fr om extreme to extreme of the Great Rainbow of Promise. Fate hath fitted me as an Arrow to the String of Destiny in the bow of the Sun . But Whose Hand shall draw that Mighty Bow, O Beloved, and send me upon fleet w ings to my resting place within Thine Heart?

XIX .(. Dropped Dew As I came from tending the Rose Garden and was about to return to my humble shelter, my eyes caught the gleam of dropped dew li e a tiny trail along th e path. It was very early; the Sun had not yet re-arisen; the Stars still twin le d faintly in the s y. Who could have come before me to the Garden? I followed the trail of dew, stooping down so that I saw in each crystal drop the reflection of a tiny star. Thus came I to my lady's chamber; she it was who carrying roses had left th is silvery thread as a clue to her hiding place.

Then did I bury my face in the blossoms and I saw not her eyes when she ope ned them in wonder. Thus, too, would I follow the Star-trail of Dropped Dew, ere the re-aris en Sun hides Thee from me, O My Beloved! Thus would I come to Thee and bury my face in Thy Breast amid the Roses of Heav en. Nor should I dare to loo into Thine eyes, having discovered Thy secret--the Dew of Love---the Elixir of Life.

XX .(. Twilight Twilight... and in a few brief moments the Stars will begin to peep. I will aw ait Thee, here amid the heather, O Beloved. I wait... no stars appear for a mist has stolen up from the foot of the mountai ns.

When I found her, her eyes were closed, as she pressed the fragrant the pin ossoms to her white breast.

bl

Thus I waited for a sight of Thy Star Body till the cold damp mist of suppres ed emotion chilled my being and my reason returned. The woman stood girt with a sword before me. Emotion was overcome by clarity of perception. Then did I remember Thy words: "The Khabs is in the Khu not th e Khu in the Khabs. Worship then the Khabs and behold my light shed over ye." Thus turned I my thoughts within, so that I became concentrated upon the Kha bs---the Star of mine inmost being. Then did Thy Light arise as a halo of raptu re, and I came a little to lie in Thy bosom. But I offered one particle of dust---and I lost all in that hour. Such is the Mystery of Her who demandest naught in sacrifice. The twilight is returned. XXI .(. The Dog Star Wisdom hath said: "Be not animal; refine thy rapture! The canst thou bear mo re joy!" I have been li e an unleashed hound before Thee, O Beloved. I have striven towards Thee and Thou seest in me only the Dog Star. Yet will I not fall into the Pit called Because, there to perish with the dog s of reason. There is no reason in me; I see Understanding, O Mother of Heav en.

So Thou mayest behold me as I am, and so Thou shalt Understand at last, O Belov ed; for in reverse Thou readest this DOG aright. Hast Thou not said: "There is none other?"

XXII .(. Pot-pouri The roses are falling. This is the night of the full moon whereon the childre n of Sin attend the Sacred Circle. Therein they will sit divided---but not for love's sa e---for they now Thee no t---O Beloved. Into the Elements, the fiery, the watery, the airy and the earthly Signs are they divided when they gather at the Full Moon within the fo rest. I wandered down the deep shadowy glade, there I espied a tiny sachet of potpouri, dropped---maybe---from the streaming girdle of one of the maidens. Tenderly I raised it. Its perfume is li e unto the perfume of her I love. She, too, perhaps, has heard the call of the moon and is even now on her way to the secret tryst. But hast Thou not said: "Let there be no difference made among you between any one thing and any other thing; for thereby cometh hurt." What matter th en the name of the maiden? What matter the flowers of which it is composed? Yet dare I not burn this incense unto Thee, O Beloved, because of Thine hair, t

Thus, with my face buried in the blac will refine my rapture.

earth, do I turn my bac upon Thee. I

he Trees of Eternity. Oh! Little sachet of pot-pouri, thou hast reminded me of her I love, for the roses are falling, it is the night of the Full Moon and the children of Sin gather to attend the Sacred Circle. XXIII .(. Red Swansdown It hath been told how Parzival shot and brought down the Swan of Ecstacy as it winged over the Mountain of the Grail. But there is within the archives another story, unheard by the ears of men. From the breast of the Eternal Swan floated one downy feather, steeped in bloo d. This did the youngest and least worthy of the Knights hide tenderly in hi s bosom till he concealed it within the hard pillow of his lonely couch. Night after night that holy pillow became softer; sweeter and sweeter were h is dreams. And one night---the night of the crowning of Parzival---he was granted the Great Vision wherein the Stars became li e flec s of Swans down upon the Breast of Heaven, each living and throbbing, for they were stee ped in Blood. Then did every atom of his being become a Star racing joyfully through the Gre at Body of the Lady of Heaven. Thus in sweet sleep came he into the Great Beyon d. Grant unto me Thy Pillow of Blood and Ecstacy, O Beloved! XXIV .(. Passing Clouds A dar night: Not a star is visible, but presently the moon shines out th rough a rift in the clouds. And I remember, "The sorrows are but shadows, they pass and are done, but there is that which remains." Yet is the moon but illusion. A dull day: but presently the Sun is seen as the clouds are dispelled by His li ght. Is He that which remains? Night once more: the Sun is lost to sight, only the moon reminds me of His pr esence. The clouds scud swiftly across the S y and disappear. Thy Star Body is visible, O Beloved; all the sorrows and shadows have passed and there is that which remains. When clouds gather, let me never forget Thee, O Beloved!

XXV .(. The Coiled Serpent Thus have I heard: The ostrich goeth swiftly; with ease could he outstrip those who covet his t ail-feathers, yet when danger cometh he burieth his head in the sand. The tortoise moveth slowly and when embarrased he stoppeth, withdrawing into h

is own shell; yet he passeth the hare. The hare sleepeth when he should be swiftly moving; he runneth in his dreams thin ing himself at the goal.

Would that I had the Wisdom of the Coiled Serpent, O Beloved, for Thou hast s aid: "Put on the wings, arouse the coiled splendour within you: come unto me !"

XXVI .(. Love and Unity Twenty-six is the numeration of the Inneffable Name, but It concealeth Love a nd Unity. The Four-lettered Name implieth Law, yet it may be divided for love's sa e; for Love is the law. The Four-lettered Name is that of the elements, but it may be divided for th e chance of Union; for there is Unity therein. There is but One Substance and One Love and while these be twenty-six they O ne through thirteen which is but a half thereof. Thus do I play with numbers who would rather play with One and that One Love. For Thou hast said: "There is naught that can unite the divided but love!" And is not Achad Ahebah? XXVII .(. The Riddle What is that which cometh to a point yet goeth in a circle? This, O Beloved, is a dar saying, but Thou hast said: "My colour is blac t o the blind, but the blue and gold are seem of the seeing. Also I have a secret glory for them that love me." And Hadit hath declared: "There is a veil; that veil is blac ." I would that I could tear aside the veil, O Beloved, for seeing Thee as Thou ar t, I might see Thee everywhere, even in the dar ness that cometh to a point yet goeth in a circle. For Hadit, the core of every star, says "It is I that go," and Thou, Mother of the Stars, criest "To me! To me!" Resolve me the Riddle of Life, O Beloved, for loving Thee I would behold Thy Secret Glory.

XXVIII .(. Sayings

But the Coiled Serpent hath d; he raiseth his head and withdraweth not; he nestles s, yet falleth not asleep by

wisdom, for he hideth his tail and it is not covete fears not; he moveth slowly li e the tortoise, yet close to the hare, darting his tongue with swiftnes the wayside.

Isis hath said: "I am all that was and that is and that shall be, and no mort al hath lifted my veil." Who cares what is bac of the moon?

Who cares to face the elements?

Who cares to now death? But Thou, O Beloved, hath said: "I give unimaginable joys on earth, certain ty, not faith, while in life upon death, peace unutterable, rest, ecstacy; nor do I demand aught in sacrifice." Who would not long to invo e Thee under Thy Stars, O Beloved?

XXIX .(. The Falling Star Falling, falling, falling! Thus fall the Rays from Thy Body of Stars upon t his tiny planet, O Beloved! Innumerable streams of Light li e Star-rain upon the blac earth. Since every man and every woman is a star, their lives are li e unto streams of light concentrated upon every point in Space.

Then did I remember that Thou art continuous. Beneath, above, around me art Tho u. And lo, from a falling star I became as a comet wheeling in infinite Circle s, each at a different angle, till my course traced out the Infinite Sphere tha t is the Symbol of Thee, O Beloved. Then did I aspire to find the Centre of All. And even now I am falling, falling, falling. XXX .(. Justice I am a Fool, O Beloved, and therefore am I One or Nought as the fancy ta es m e. Now am I come to Justice, so that I may be All or Naught according to the dir ection of vision. No Breath may stir the Feather of Truth, therefore is Justice ALone in L. Yet the Ox-goad is Motion and Breath Matter if it be called the Ox which is als o A. How foolish are these thoughts, which are but as the Sword in the hand of Just ice. They are as unbalanced as the Scales that stir not, being fixed in the fi

As I lay ness. my ; I felt love into

with arms out-stretched, my bare body shining li e ivory in the dar scarlet abbai flung wide, mine eyes fixed upon the star-lit Heaven that I, too, was falling, falling, falling, in an ecstacy of fear and the void abyss of space.

Hadit hath said: "I am life and the giver of life; therefore is the ge of me the nowledge of death."

Jehovah showed his bac time."

unto Moses, saying: "No man hath seen my face at any

nowled

gure of Law above the Court House of a great City. But Thou hast said: "Love is the law, love under will." And Love is the Will to Change and Change is the Will to Love. Even in the stern outline of the Scales of Justice do I perceive the In strument of Love, and in the Life Sentence, the Mystery of Imprisonment in Thy Being, O Beloved!

XXXI .(. Not Three Eternities are passed... I have outstripped a million Stars in my race ac ross Thy Breast---The Mil y Way. When shall I come to the Secret Centre of Thy Being? Time, thou thief, why dost thou rob the hungry babe? Space, thou hadst almost deceived me. O Lady Nuit, let me not confound the space-mar s! Then, O Beloved, Thy Word came unto me, as it is written: "All touchin g; All penetrant." Thus left I Time and Space and Circumstance, and every Star became as an atom in my Body, when it became Thy Body. Now never shall I be nown, for it is I that go. But Thou, O Beloved, though Thou art infinitely Great, art Thou not energiz ed by the Invisible Point---the Infinitely Small? A Million Eternities are Present, Deem not of Change; This is the Here and Now, and I am NOT -oOoTreatise on Mind From: The Tigress From the moment that 2 cells form a zygote, we see the interaction of inform ational process - recognition, communication, interaction, integration, re-stabi lization and reproduction and or re-structurization. This cycle of life can be see from the barest combinations of any two elemental components beginning at th e lowest atomic designations of energy and throughout the continuum of increasin g complexity - perhaps far beyond our capabilities to understand. *** If consciousness can be defined as an awareness of integrit y through this process of self recognition; then consciousness can be easily app lied to that which is non-human.*** From the most basic interactions of chemistry, we find that even on an atomic level there is to be found this type of consciousness. We have become aware of the atom's necessary maintenance of it's own structure through the evidence of necessary balancing of protons, neutrons and electrons; the importance of electr

on shell valences is also a reminder of this type of integrity. Even on an atom ic level, there is a form of awareness of self-integrity in order to maintain st ructure and identity. This process of awareness is also a genius of discrimination. A form of id entification of self & non self on an energetic level. There is a borrowing, an d sometimes a sharing energetically, yet when this process of self recognition b egins to fail we see the destruction of the matter it involves <this is evident with atomic structure and also evident at the human level in the study of cancer .> Therefore we might loo at this process of self-recognition and maintenance a nd examine it's nature in order to find its function and capabilities. When we loo at different types of matter, we find that the more simple the atomic structure of the mass, the less complex its process of "consciousness" n eeds to be. Things which are comprised of only one atomic component do not need complex processes of communication between those components. Thus the level of consciousness is rather low on an evolutionary scale of creativity, yet we also see that these types of things are far more stable in regards to their integrit y - far less vulnerable to destruction. In example, it ta es an enormously conc entrated force of heat to brea the integrity of an atom...yet a mere 2000 degre e flame will not only destroy the integrity of human consciousness, but also des troy the integrity of the individual component molecules which form the material mass of a human to their lowest forms as individual atoms. When we loo at the forces involved in communication of energy, we see a fl owing medium of different frequencies within a single spectrum of energetic pote ntial. Elemental energies and forces <light, sound, temperature, pressure, magn etism, electricity...> differentiate and vary in intensity and frequency yet are very ali e in that they are all means of transferring energy as a form of commu nication which can be informative/stabilizing or disinformative/destructive, dep ending on the structure of the "consciousness" they encounter. It may be percei ved that the more complex the structure, the lower the frequency of the integrit y of that structure and the more vulnerable that structure is to disinformation. The more diverse the components are that are included within a thing, an d the more efficient the means of communication within the structure of that thi ng; the lower the common denomination of frequency of integrity must be in order that the informational frequency will not be destructive to any of the componen t parts. To analyze this statement we must loo at other analogies within our e nvironment. Firstly I would li e to examine the nature of sound. Sound waves come in varying frequencies and modulations, and as humans w e assign different notes to those steps within the frequency spectrum which we c an differentiate and perceive. If we play several notes simultaneously, we find that in order to maintain a balance harmonically, we must play notes that match each others modulation. You can play a "C" note at any octave and in fact play all "C" notes simultaneously and you will find that within the frequency range these notes will compliment each other, in fact they will contribute/share ener gy with each other. WE find similar matching if we loo at musical chording. I f you play the notes "F" and "C" , the sharing of energy vibrationally between t hose two ranges of frequency will in fact create the note of "A" in the range in which the two notes frequencies overlap. In this way communication is informat ive and in fact the "whole is greater" than the sum of its parts. Similarly, pl aying two notes which lie in the same modulation frequencies simultaneously will increase the duration of the vibration compared to the duration if each note we re played alone. When we examine the sharing of electrical information at an atomic level

, we see that through the temporary sharing of electrons in a phase path also in dicates something that we might consider as investing a thing <atom> with more t han the sum of its parts. Similarly in using electric frequencies in a series, we store information on silicon chips which invest them with more than they woul d be if one simply loo ed at the electrical and silicon components alone. This transference of energy is also a transference of information in frequencies whic h in many ways we are still attempting to understand. Simple, one component things, can sustain far higher frequencies of ener getic transmission than can complex components of things. Frequencies which pas s freely through atoms ultimately destroy complex things such as humans when the y are subject to them. It appears that the more complex the union of the compon ents, the slower and more tediously complex the transformation of data must be. The more complex a thing is, the lower the vibrational capability it sustains i n order to maintain the integrity of its own structure. Energetic communication exists infinitely throughout the universe. The transference of information through radio waves and light waves continues bac i n time to the occasion of what was nown as the Big Bang. It may be that in the future we will find that in the same way gravity and electromagnetism are also continuums of information from times long past. Scientifically we study these e nergetic continuums and yet we doubt and deny the holistic communicative nature of the universe. We search for causes and effects within the realms of our limi ted perceptions and are amazed when we can find no causal effects to explain cha nge. When we examine biological life, we find that each evolutionary adaptati on seems to be an extension of the process of self/non self awareness and mainte nance of integrity. Not only do we see intensification of sensory perceptual ab ilities, but also we note that the integrational and responsive/reactive compon ents of the process also have to evolve and adapt in order to stay integrated wi th the rest of the "consciousness". Amoebas are "simple" life forms, and yet we can examine them and see that each organic component within that life form serv es as an informational and communicative component within the process of maintai ning the integrity <life> of the whole. When this communication process or any part of it ceases, the organization of the organism begins to deteriorate and ev entually ceases and dies. In biological life, we find that though we have maint ained the use of electronic communication on some neural levels, we have sun to the depths of transferring actual molecular compounds <proteins, amino acids... > in most of our organic processes. Even the human brain, supposed highest achi evement of organic life forms, requires base molecular salts in order to process electrical information. Our complexity denies us the speed of light, radio, and other faster and higher frequency modes of communication except from outside of ourselves. The human consciousness is a genius of discrimination. We use the abili ties of discrimination to identify those stimuli which come from outside of our biological forms in order to protect and maintain our integrity <life. We use o ur senses <inefficient though they may be> to gather and interpret pure energeti c communications such as the radiated energy of sunlight and we are so inefficie nt at interpreting that data that we can only sense light and heat and it destro ys those sensors that gather that information through blindness and sunburn if w e continue too long in our attempts. Yet, conversely , we need the information from sunlight which stimulates our organic forms into producing vitamin D <without which we would die>. Is this a remnant o f photosynthetic capabilities from lessor complex integrations, or merely a new attempt at further increasing our potential? As organic forms of consciousness, we are sorely limited in our percepti

ons of the universe. Limited in exploring the possibly limitless ranges of ener getic exchange simply due to the limits placed upon communication due to the com plexity of our component structure. Yet rather than admit to our limitations, w e see further exploration through the development of tools made from things les s complex than ourselves. In the laboratory, we use light waves and shaped sili con to create microscopes to increase our sense of visual acuity within the spectrum of visible radiation imaging. In the studio, we use simple cones f lattened vegetable matter and electronic amplification to create tools to compen sate for our limited aural perception. We have created many tools out of simple r and less complex components in order to reach those higher frequencies of info rmation which are either so far removed from us as to be imperceptible, or so de structive to us that we dare not experience them ourselves. The human zygote from the moment of conception is a discriminating consc iousness which is involved in the differentialization of its components in order to develop finer levels of complexity. This fetus is also even before birth learni ng to interpret communicative energies from the outer world in order to begin de finition of itself, its integrity and its maintenance of self apart from the inf luence of "other". Cells, joining together in communication to form co-operativ e systems each with separate responsibilities to the whole. Organs with specifi c functions supporting the organism in its fight to maintain its integrity. Con sciousness of Mind, determining the difference between self and non self, regula ting the integrity of the whole. This harmony of components within a symphony o f orchestration, this is the matter of being alive. Despite our complexities, despite recognition of our vulnerabilities and limitations; we as humans are beings of arrogant mind. We claim supremacy over all biological organisms and claim the sole right to conscious thought <as if w e were the only from of communication we wished to recognize.> We deny our inse curities and lay claims to great understandings concerning the universe, when we in fact do not even understand the actual wor ings of our own process of integr ation and communication within our own biological forms. We claim ownership of consciousness, yet we do not even pretend to truly evaluat e the process of consciousness nor its beginnings. Despite our inadequacies, we assume to now the nature of the beginnings of all life. We claim to now the "mind" of "God" <the prime causation for all that exists> and we claim title to superiority in emulation of this "God" - abo ve and beyond all other forms of life or integrity. An egotistic lot are we, wh o strive to see security in the midst of our fear, our inadequacies, our vulner abilities; by developing a system of belief which guarantees our security in a p lace beyond our perception. We see safety and foundation at the same time that we reach outward to claim flight amongst the stars. This is the paradox on humanity, of mind. Complexity found in simplicit y... using simplicity to explore a universe beyond the range of our complex inte grity. Our complex integrity vulnerable to all but the simplest energies, while we lay grasp to use complex energies which would destroy us in order to prove o ur strength. What it is we loo for, we eventually find at the expense of closi ng our senses to see what really is. Perhaps it is true that the most foolish a re those who lay claim to nowledge for they have closed their minds to further learning, and that the most wise are those who claim nowledge of no thing, that they may learn all. Dragon Trad and the Holy Grail Cameron Mandra e Recently we have discovered the significance of sharing water in our

circles. This ritual should be warm and meaningful. This being the case it sho uld only be shared by members of the coven and visitors should be excluded unles s the visitor is VERY close to the group. Someone reads the following poem or one that is written for the occaision. Quest for the Grail by C.J. Mandra e I have sailed the seven seas. I have wal ed the deserts of this world, searching for clues and in; always awed by the stories that they told. Time my only enemy, every stone my friend; carried by myth's fluid words, loo ing for a gold cup 'round every bend. Mountains loom before me: The path, all but lost behind. Arthur's song plays deep within me! The Merlin's words dance within my mind! ``The blessed cup that you see , it is the Mother's womb. It has poured out all our world and it will be your tomb.'' Grail of Love Grail of Light Grail of Truth Grail of Might carry me to the very Fount of life. I threw a coin in a wishing well: My wish, the Grail to see. When the waters stilled again I beheld the Mystery. The Cup is made of flesh and blood. The secret of deep peace it lends. I drin from it every day and I share it with my friends. One and one and one is three: Three by three is nine. The heart of the world I see, the secret of the Grail is mine. The Cup, it is a lotus flower deep within my soul, flaming with the love of Her: The Goddess and I made whole. **** The reader ta es the chalice of water and drin s and the cup is passed around th e circle deosil, each person ta ing a drin in turn. Each person may offer a th ought before they drin . This may be a than s or an observation or anything tha t seems significant to the moment. When the cup ma es it bac to the reader, he /she again drin s of the cup and pours the remainder as a libation. With the li bation is said... I parta e of the Cup of Abundance. I share this Cup with those around me. I re turn what is left to the earth. <pours water out onto the ground> And my Cup rem

ains full. <holds cup to heart> Blessed Be. This rite is very good for group binding. Last time we did this we dran water from the Chalice Well in Glastonbury that one of the coven members brought bac from vacation. Enjoy! And Bright Blessings. CJ ... Copyright 1992 - DragonHart Coven - All Rights Reserved Ritual of the Blessed Motherboard The Tigress Thus it follows that after many days of chaos, unfounded mayhem and startling in convienience <as given in favor by the Goddess Eris> so it shall be that I am fi nally able to share with you the official ceremony of the Blessed Motherboard an d the Horned One that Plugs in the Wall. This ceremony is one to be practiced by discordian compu-pagans each Midsummer Eve in holy celebration and appreciation of debugged upgrades, new shareware, faster circutry and all the blessings that flow from the Goddess... Note : Let it be said that if your system crashes, your motherboard becomes twit chy, your hard drives fail, or your cables spout forth fire - that this is an in dication that the Goddess is displeased with your compu-worship. At this time, i f the posting of many tales of compu-sexuality doth fail to pacify Her. This is the time that this ritual must be done to regain Her pleasure. It is thus that this ritual be made easier if thou coven of compu-pagans is larg e, for then the obtainment of the necessary materials be far easier... Necessary ritual components To represent the Matron Goddess : 1 AT Motherboard <preferably a 386 with Large Co-processors.> <may be in "twitchy condition".> To represent the Crone: 1 AT&T Phone bill from Mother Bell. <the higher the debt , the better one can justify ones needs to the Goddess> To represent the Maiden: a large firepit dug in the shape of a circle around whi ch the pentagram will be formed. <dry wood laid in preparation> To represent the God: 1 very Large, very THICK power supply cable For the Pentagram : 1 can of neon or glow in the dar paint For the Quarters : The following items are placed at each quarter North : A Power supply with cable, the energy which inspires us East: A eyboard through which our innocence is transformed to lust South: A hard drive which saves our writ to seal our doom

The Incense: A chipped ashtray and a pac of Camels <extra humps>

The Altar : A ma eshift des

West : A Monitor by which all might see our lustful spells at wor

The Cup: A container of highly caffinated substance <co e, jolt, pepsi> The Bowl : a bowl of fine earth to represent the accumulation of dust in your ho use which you haven't cleaned since you spend all your time at the eyboard . The Flame: One jar of erosene, gasoline, or other flamable substance with match es that one uses to light the fire. In addition: Each member of the networ coven should bring spare parts, bro en c ables, split chips, bungled software, etc...for fire offerings at the conclusion of the ceremony. Clothing during this ceremony is optional. Opening Chant <To be sung as the HPs and HP draw the circle and pentagram around the firepit><sung to the tune of "Rain drops eep falling on my head > Circuts eep blowing on my board my hard drive eeps crashin and its heads are getting scored Messages are lost OH Time to appease the Goddess of all Computers Alas I'm bro e My bills Are higher than my income Oh please Goddess I'm begging thee To hear my plea and heal my system ba dum dum, ba dum ba dum dum Cables are ruined by crossing wires My modem is burping and its screwing up my files Data's being lost OH I as the Horned One Plugging into my wall Oh Please don't surge My dos is shareware and its fragile Oh please Horned One I'm begging thee Remember that my ram is borrowed ba dum dum, ba dum ba dum dum The Crone wor s her spells through Mother Bell My phone bills enormous and my life is living hell Long distance is a bitch OH What did I do before to deserve this arma? I have five days To pay The toll charge for downloading from New Jersey Oh Mother Bell, have mercy on my lust addiction ba dum dum, ba dum ba dum dum I worship through the message base Hiding behind eyboards where you cannot see my face Sexual inuen - DO Maiden protect me from my own sweet confusion

Let me log in to boards To satisfy my hunger and to praise you and sacrifice your innocence among the echos ba dum dum, ba dum ba dum dum Its My Lust...... Sacrifice it or BUST <To be sung until the Pentagram and altar are set up, the last sentence repeated and slowly faded> The ritual begins... As the coven sings the ritual opening chant the HP & P paint the Pentagram aroun d the firepit with neon or glow in the dar paint. The items are placed in the designated directions and the altar is set up to the north of the fire with the following items placed upon it. To To To To the the the the North end of the altar the ashtray and cigarettes East end of the altar the holy cup South end of the altar the bowl of earth West end of the altar the jar of erosene and matches.

As the HP calls the elements the P shall pass her the items in question The coven at the end of each elemental calling shall chant the following: Elemental Power Come out and play with me Play midst my flaming spree<fire> and sing the chant with me <Air> Splash in my rain barrel <Water> Slide down my cellar door <Earth> And we'll be jolly friends Forever more The HP calls to the Element of Fire <and ta ing the erosene from the P> intones : Fire, Fire burning bright, li e a candle in the night Come and join us in our flight, Lend us your eternal light Warm the Maiden with your flame, I call you in the Goddess's Name. The HP pours the erosene liberally upon the firewood in the pit and lights the fire with the matches. <the coven sings the elemental chant> The P hands the HP the bowl of earth. The HP tosses the earth upwards to scatte r it around the circle and over the altar as she intones: Elemental Earth I bec on thee, with us in this circle be Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, firm foundation is a must Warm bed for the Matron's frame I call you in the Goddess's Name <the coven sings the elemental chant> The P hands the HP the cup of caffinated substance. s and intones: Water quench our thirst, eep us wet and wild Join us in our circle hence, praise the lady mild. The HP lifts it to her lip

Liquid of Life that has no shame I bec on thee in Goddess's Name The HP drin s from the cup and bec ons the P to drin of it, he does. <the cove n sings the elemental chant>

Airy, Airy, quiet and contrary how doth your winds blow? Through maidens hair your breath ensnare, your secrets we would now. The Pow'r of Wind by Lady made tame I bec on thee in Goddess's Name <the HP smo es and exhales as the coven sings the elemental chant> The HP and P perepare to summon the directions in supplication to be followed by the closing of the circle. The following is a chant used by the coven at each directional opening. "From the North awa ening, the energy inspires From the East our eagerness to learn amid the fires From the South commitment and thus we seal our doom From the West comes rec onning, our message answered soon" The HP and P wal to the North and hold up the Power supply. The P intones: The Power of the north inspires us and lends us its energy for our use in suppl ication. This Power Supply I offer to thee Oh Goddess that your Power run throu gh my computer and my life. The P tosses the Power supply into the fire. <the coven sings the directional chant> The Hp and P wal to the East and hold up the eyboard. The P intones: The Power of the East transforms our innocence through tasting the fire of Life. This Keyboard, I offer to thee Oh Goddess that your nowledge guide my finger s on their path through the system of Life. The P tosses the eyboard into the fire. <the coven sings the directional chant> The HP and P wal to the South and hold up the hard drive. The P intones: The Power of the South is that of action and consequence, of commitment to the path and the ability to remember the lessons learned thereof. This Hard Drive I offer to thee Oh Goddess that your memory of my acts and deeds be remembered wit h praise and favor in thine eyes. The P tosses the Hard Drive into the fire. <the coven sings the directional chant> The HP and the P wal to the West and hold up the monitor. The P intones: The Power of the West is that of access to all things, to seeing turthfully into the path of a life and judging it thusly, worthy or unworthy. This monitor I o ffer to thee Oh Goddess that your eternal eyes may see into my life and may wat ch over my actions, and that I may find favor in you as my eternal Sysop. The P tosses the monitor into the fire. <the coven sings the directional chant> The HP and P wal thrice around the circle widdershins and all chant thusly: Ring around the altar Power never faulter

The P hands the HP the ashtray and a cigarette and lights it for her, the HP ta es a long drag and as she exhales intones:

Goddess, God We summon thee

<repeated until the circle is thrice closed.>

The Circle Closed and the directions and elements present, the HP and P prepare to call to the Goddess and to the Horned One. The HP stands before the fire pit and calls: Virgin Goddess, gentle maid She whose see ing to get laid Bring your innocence to Bare For those who worship for your care <the Come Come Come P leads the coven in on Maiden light your on Maiden light your and set the night on

The HP stands before the fire pit and holding the phone bill calls: Oh Mother Bell, Oh Crone of Disconnection from this pagan life I beseech thee, hold bac thy hand of dread financial strife In attonement bills I pay to thee Of thy modem illing hand let me be free The HP tosses the phone bill into the fire. <The P leads the coven in the Crone Song> " We're sorry, the number you have reached has been temporarily disconnected Boo ooo Hissssss We're sorry, the number you have reached has been temporarily disconnected Booo Hisssss" The HP stands before the Altar and holds high the very long and very thic cable of the Horned One that Plugs into the Wall and calls: Oh Horned One, Powerful Consort of the Blessed Motherboard Surging with Energy you ta e your place as Lord Pulsing with Power, with each surge of volts you swell Pumping life into the Goddess, you serve her purpose well

<the P leads the coven in the Horned One chant>

The HP raises the Blessed Motherboard with Large Co-processors high in the air a nd the P and HP each ta e and end in their hands. Raising the Motherboard high in the air they intone: Blessed Mother, Sacred Goddess come to bless your users Keep us safe from dis crash and lur ing abusers Let thy healing hands caress our crippled hardware Let our nodes stay stable, that through distance we may share In your holy worship together we may gather nightly Writing inuendo, our modems steaming slightly Bless us Holy Goddess, and show us by your sign

Pump, Pump, Pump, Pump,

Pump, Pump, Pump, Pump,

Pump Pump Pump Pump

it it it it

up.... eep the power flowing up....hard fast and never slowing up....We now you please the Goddess up....Be strong and never modest

The HP tosses the very long, very thic

cable into the fire

the Maiden chant> fire fire FIRE

That we have earned your favor, your blessing so divine. The HP and P lead all in the following chant: A Prayer to the Goddess for self conscecration Dominus regit Goddess The Blessed Goddess is my mistress; I shall not be in want She ma eth me lie down on soft bedding and leadth me to thin of rumpling it She revives my soul <when I thought I was exhausted> and guides me along the most sensual pathways for pleasures sa e Though I wal through the valley of the shadow of dangerous desire I shall fear not impotence for she is insatiable my rod and staff they comfort her We spread a table of ecstacy in the presence of those who are sorely troubled by arrousal She annoints my head with honeyed oil and I ma e her cup run over Surely the pleasure and bliss shall follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the caves of ecstacy within mind forever.

Thus said, the HP and P intone the following: OH Blessed Motherboard please accept this offering in your name, and in the name of the Horned One who plugs in the Wall and gives you pleasure... that we may be blessed in our offerings to you both in circle and in life. Thus said, the HP and P toss the Motherboard into the fire. The HP and P lead the coven in the following chant Blessed Blessed Blessed Blessed Blessed Blessed Blessed Blessed Blessed Blessed Blessed Blessed Blessed Through be the Motherboard from whom all messages flow be the Horned One who fills Her with His offering be the sysops who transfer the pac ets be the writers and those who inspire what they bring be the hard drives that eep messages from harm be the modems which send pac ages large and small be the shareware we use to commune be the networ which lin s us up with all be our minds, that we might write our prayers be our fingers that tap amongst the eys be our monitors that shine with holy light be our senses that stimulate with ease be the circle, a circut without end which we hail and merry meat with those that we call friend.

At this point the HP and P gaze into the fire for the portent of the Goddess's sign of approval <the flames of blue light from the motherboard offeri ng> At seeing this both HP and P raise their arms in joyful supplication and shout < To be echoed by the Coven members in attendance after each line> The Maiden's found appeasement and She is satisfied

The Crone is in abeyance, her compu-billings fried The Horned One's filled with power, in joining He is pleased The Goddess sends Her blessings, cleansing virus and disease. We than the 4 directions for standing by our side We than the elementals and their power all allied To Celebrate our status annointed compupagans of sin Let Joyful Inhibition be released and the saturnalia begin!!!! <the HP and P release the circle and the partying shall now commence> Sensual foods and drin s are served and shared, <the rest you can imagine> Prosperity Spell Rowan Moonstone The following is a quarterly prosperity spell given to me by Angel and Gracie, my first two FamTrad teachers. I have no idea where they got it, but I can tell you that it DOES wor . I"ve used it for years and it never fails to bring me some unloo ed for money. I find that I've overpaid a bill, or an old debt which I had written off as uncollectible gets repaid, I find a $20 on the sidewal , etc. Try it, it wor s! The spell is to begin at one minute past midnight SUN TIME (I HATE daylight savi ngs time when I do this. Means 1AM!) on the night of April 30 (May 1), July 31 (Aug 1), Oct 31 (Nov. 1) and Jan 31 (Feb 1) In other words, on the first minute of the cross quarter day. You will need the following: 1 gold candle 6 green candles 9 white candles Pine oil for anointing candles salt All candles must be dressed with pine oil and then arranged as follows: gold candle in the center green candles in a circle around gold candle white candles in a circle around green candles. At one minute past midnight on the appointed day, trace a salt circle around the outermost circle of candles, light the gold candle first, then the green candl es, moving deosil, then the white candles, moving deosil. Circle the altar thre e times, chanting "Orbiting Jupiter trine the sun, bring money on the run." Do the chant 3 times also. Sit quietly for a few minutes and visualize your moneta ry NEEDS. (needs, not desires). The SNUFF (do not blow or pinch) the candles i n reverse order. That's it. That's all there is to it and it wor s beautifully. Since Lammas is coming up, thought I'd post it for everyone to see. I've got a bunch more stuf f from these two ladies if anyone is interested. They wor ed a great deal with Archangels and I suspect a strong Kabalistic crossover in there somewhere. But the spells and rituals DO wor quite nicely. BB Rowan Quarter Calls for The Dragon Tradition

EAST Mighty Dragon, Guardian of the realms of the East. Your tongue is a sharp sword, cutting with the nowledge of the arcane. Your spirit flows as graceful as a swift in flight. Purify us with truth. Blessed Be. SOUTH Mighty Dragon, Guardian of the realms of the South, your breath is aflame with the fires of inspiration and passion. Your spirit is searing and fe rvent. Purify us with Love. Blessed Be. WEST Mighty Dragon, Guardian of the realms of the West, your coils are the cleansing healing waves that nurture the soul. Your spirit lunges, leaps and sp lashes li e a Talbot at play. Purify us with pulsing tides. Blessed Be. NORTH Mighty Dragon, Guardian of the realms of the North, your talons run li e roots into the earth, giving you infinite strength. Your spirit is substan tial, hard and pure li e a clear crystal. Purify us with persistant wisdom. Bl essed Be Each of these Dragons has a secret name that they are also invo edwith. A sugge stion is that anyone using these invocations meditate to find an appropriate nam e for each Guardian and use it along with or instead of the words "Mighty Dragon ". Blessed Be. Enjoy! ... Copyright 1992 - DragonHart Coven - All Rights Reserved Safe Travel Spell Rowan Moonstone You will need: 2 white candles annointed with sandalwood oil. 1 purple candle annointed with sandalwood oil. Photo or personal articles of the person the spell is for "Personality " candle, appropriate to the recipient of the spell Sandalwood incense Altar should be arranged as below: _____________________________________________________________________ | | | O (white candle) O (Personality candle) O (purple candle | | (1) (3) (4) | | | | O (white candle) Photos or personal object O (incense) | | (2) (5) | | | _____________________________________________________________________ Light white candles (1& 2) light personality candle (3) light purple candle (4) , light incense (5). Repeat the following invocation:

"Hail Mother of the World! Nanna, Isis, Astarte, Selene, Holy Sin (pronounced Sheen). See me, loo upon me See me, loo upon me See me, loo upon me Protect me and my people tonight. Send your white light around me. Send your protective light around ______________ That they may be protected As they travel and as they dream. Send only good and lucid energies their way. Than you. Than you. Than you. You can either let the candles burn out by themselves, or snuff them in reverse order and let them burn a little each night if the person will be on an extended trip. On the last night let them burn down on their own. NEVER blow our or pi nch out the candles. This destroys the luc . BB Rowan WITH THESE EIGHT WORDS THE WICCAN REDE FULFILL: "AN IT HARM NONE, DO WHAT YE WILL." Copyright 08/17/92 by Servants Of The Elder Gods, Roc y Mountain Coven and James C. Taylor OVERVIEW. The purpose of this paper is to loo at the Wiccan Rede, at the types of conduct it excludes, and at the type of conduct it requires. We will begin with a detailed examination of the wording of the Rede itself, which presents as "pseudo-archaic" but actually ma es excellent use of the specific meanings of s everal archaic words which have no real equivalents in contemporary English. We will then ta e a loo at the two sections of the Rede, and see why they are pre sented in their proper order as written. Finally, we will examine various uses of magic and see how--and if--they adequately measure up to the standard of the Rede. THE VOCABULARY OF THE WICCAN REDE. As mentioned above, the Rede appears to be p resented in a pseudo-archaic or "phony ancient" form of English. Is this simply harmless foolishness, or is there some excellent reason for the vocabulary sele cted? Let's ta e a loo at the Rede, word by word. AN: This word is commonly mistranslated as "IF", which is a significant erro r. The word "AN" is more accurately translated "JUST SO LONG AS".

HARM: This refers to anything which either you or any other person involved or affected by "it" would regard as loss, damage, pain, discomfort, injustice, inv asiveness, or prevention, relative to the situation existing before "it" was don e. Anything which goes against another person's free will, even if it intends t hem good, would constitute serious harm. NONE: This ought to be self-explanatory. "None" is an all-exclusive word. If you harm anyone or anything, including yourself, including a small roc in Tren ton, New Jersey, you have harmed "some", not "none".

IT:

This pronoun refers to whatever it is that you are thin ing of doing.

WHAT:

The meaning here is "Whatever", and refers forward.

YE: The archaic PLURAL form of "you". The current word "you" denotes both t he singular and the plural; the archaic word "YE" is always plural. We shall se e, later on, that this is no accident. WILL: To will something is to exercise your intellectual decision-ma ing power to determine the course of action which you feel to be the best. "Will" has li ttle or nothing to do with "wish" or "want" or "desire". It is not an emotional inclination or feeling. It is the employment of reason to ma e a decision base d upon your best judgment. THE TWO SECTIONS OF THE WICCAN REDE; A. SECTION ONE: "AN IT HARM NONE".

Why does the Wiccan Rede not say, "Do what ye will, an it harm none"? T here is a reason why the "An it harm none" comes first in the Rede, and that rea son is that "An it harm none" is intended to come first in your own thin ing, as a Wiccan initiate and practitioner. If you or any Wiccan begins with "Do what ye will", I assure you that you, li e the Fundamentalists before you, will find a way to excuse and even to justify anything you ta e it into your head to do! Knowing this about human nature, the Lady inspired the Rede to be written as it is, with the "An it harm none" to come first. The Wiccan Rede's "An it harm none" has parallels in many disciplines. Perhaps the most significant parallel is found in the Hippocratic Oath ta en by every physician before s/he is certified to practice. The first part of the Hip pocratic Oath binds the physician "First, to do no harm." It is sobering to rea lize that magical ethics, as set forth in the Wiccan Rede, are or should be so s imilar to medical ethics, an issue with such a powerful effect on so many lives. When we read of a physician who has violated his medical ethics, we read this with outrage toward him and with empathy toward those patients who suffere d inadequate care because the physician violated his ethics. It is more soberin g to realize that future generations will regard violations of magic al ethics w ith the same degree of outrage, and rightly so. B. SECTION TWO: "DO WHAT YE WILL."

Even without the first part of the Rede, "Do what ye will" is most certa inly not a blan et permission to do whatever you desire to do. As one Wiccan Hi gh Priestess has observed, "Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolute ly." Seems li e I've heard that before, but it's certainly true when you're tal ing about using real magic to accomplish real goals in the real world.

When we realize the inds and orders of results, both expected and unexp ected, both nowable and un nowable, which eventuate from almost every human act ion, it would seem the better part of both valor and wisdom to never do anything at all, especially not anything which is done with spiritual power guided by no more than human wisdom! Unfortunately, to do nothing is also a choice, and the results of inaction are often far worse than the results of even ill-considered action. This is why the second half of the Rede demands that we ma e a decisio n and act upon it, as well as conforming that decision to the requirement that i t harm none. THE STANDARD OF THE REDE. Please note that the Wiccan Rede contains no loop-hol

DO:

To perform whatever wor ing is contemplated by "IT", above.

es whatsoever. The Rede does not say, "An it harm none to the best of your now ledge." The Rede also does not say "An it harm none to the best of your ability to discern whether it will harm someone." The Wiccan Rede does not say these things, or anything similar to them. It simp ly says "An it harm NONE, do what ye will." This means that YOU, once you have committed to live by the Wiccan Rede, are committed to be solely and totally res ponsible for any harm resulting from ANY ACTION YOU TAKE, MAGICKAL OR NOT. Paul Seymour's forthcoming boo begins with some strong cautionary notes concern ing the use of magic . One of the examples he gives is particularly tragic, and concerns a young man who wor ed a simple and apparently harmless "money spell". The spell wor ed, and the young man got his money--he inherited it, when his p arents were both illed in an accident shortly after he wor ed the spell. Paul does not say in his boo if this young man was a Wiccan initiate. If he wa s, then in addition to his sorrow and loss, he has had to live with the fact tha t, by the standard of the Rede, he is ultimately responsible for the death of hi s parents. When you commit to live according to the Wiccan Rede, you commit to conform your entire life, not just the magic al, mystical and religious aspects of it, to th e standard set by the Rede. Never again will you be able to act impulsively or without considering the results of what you do. Never again will you be able to act or even spea in thoughtless irritation or anger. Instead, you will come t o consider the implications of every word you spea , and of every routine action you do. For it is not just by magic that we can harm ourselves or others; eve rything we do, and everything we say, has the potential to help or harm others, and to help or harm ourselves. It is also important to note that the Rede sets up a standard which prevents us from harming ourselves as well as others. Other religions, including Christiani ty, regard it as virtuous to suffer harm for the sa e of another, even to die so that another person might live. The Wiccan Rede does not permit this. You are to harm none, and this means that you are not to harm yourself, even for the sa e of doing good for someone else. To some, this may seem li e a selfish standard. But thin about it. Would you wish to benefit by someone else's injury or death? Of course not! If you did de rive some benefit, such as an inheritance, from the death of another person, wou ld you feel good about this? Well, some people might, but probably you would no t. Therefore, in a very real sense, you yourself are harmed by a benefit you der ive from the injury or death of another. True, the harm is emotional, but it is entirely real. Wicca recognizes that human beings are social creatures. What does harm to one, does harm to all in varying degrees. Therefore, it is imperative that each per son strive to harm no one, himself or herself included. Finally, it is significant to note that word "ye" in the statement, "Do what YE will." This is the ancient plural form of "you", and it means that your individ ual will is assumed to be in accord with some other will, instead of acting enti rely on its own. What is this other will which, together with yours, comprises the "ye" in the Re de? Well, if you are wor ing in a coven, it could well be the combined will of the members of the coven. But this would not apply to those who are wor ing on their own, and it is not the highest or best meaning, even for those wor ing in coven. How does one act, so as to be certain to harm none? Not by refusing to act, sin ce inaction is itself a decision, and often causes far more harm than even rash

action. Not by delaying action until the time for it is past, because that is t he same as inaction. And not by relying solely upon your own human wisdom, eith er. The best way to act, so as to be certain to harm none, is to call upon the Godde ss and/or the God, and to hand to Them the power you have raised, together with the situation you have raised the power to deal with, and say, "You are holy, go od, and wise, and now how to use this power to help and not harm. Do Your will in this situation. That is my will, that Your will be done." And thus the Red e is fulfilled: For the "ye" who will are yourself and Them-selves, who are good , and love humanity, and who always act for the highest good of all. --- A WICCANING --Date: 08-31-92 18:25 By: Ceridwen Goddess (please bear in mind that since non-Wiccans were present at this ceremony, som e things WERE toned down...we did not perform the Five-fold Kiss, or a more emp hatic version of the Great Rite... our horned statue of Pan was left at home in favor of a small, antlered god-figure from an American Indian motif.. we did not include the scourge on the alter, or the Cords (I chose instead to wear our blu e-colored Cord around my waist, however), and **most** references to the Horned God were altered to reflect a less-imposing Antlered One... I do hope that those who may read this will understand my reasoning for these actions. Lammas 1992 I thought that i would share with you the ritual that we performed in blessing o ur children this past Lammas (we did it on July 30th), Blessings to you all! -Heidi A WICCANING: --consecrate the salt and water (Priestess ta es her athame, plunges the blade into the container of salt, "So that you may be fit to dwell in this Sacred Space, I bless this salt, in the names of our Lord and Lad, i bless this salt" then transfering three ' nife-fuls' to the container of [in this case water ta en from the beach where we held the ritual] water "So that you may be fit to dwell in this Sacred Space, I consecrate and bless this water" and stir the salt into the water.) --purify wor space with [salt-]water (Priestess wal s the diameter of the Circle and casts the [salt-]water along its perimeter) --purify wor space with incense and candle... (Priest traverses the perimeter of the Circle with fran incense & myrrh and then a candle) Priest hands athame to Priestess who casts the Sacred Circle: "With earth and air draw forth all that is fair by fire and sea of ill stay free O Circle, be thou a meeting-place of love and joy and truth a shield against all wic edness and evil a rampart of protection that shall preserve

the powers that we may raise within Thee. Wherefore do i bless and consecrate thee. Priestess welcomes all gathered into the Circle space: "May your mind be free, may your heart be free, may your body be free." Invo ing the Watchtowers: The Priestess ta es the bowl of water to the East and says: O cool la es and deep seas of the East waters soft and giving of fresh life join with us -Cast your blessings upon these children and become a friend to them! Blessed Be. All echo, "Blessed Be!" (the water is placed at the east gate) The Priestess ta es a candle to the South and says: O warm sun and warm s ies of the South bringing life anew, the growth of all things, and promise of the future, join us -Cast your blessings upon these children and become a friend to them! Blessed Be! All echo, "Blessed Be!" (the candle is placed at the south gate) The Priestess ta es the censor/sage to the West and says: O Winds of the East who bring forth freshness, life, and joy... join us -Cast your blessings upon these children and and become a friend to them! Blessed Be! All echo, "Blessed Be!" (the censor is placed at the west gate) The Priestess ta es the bowl of earth to the North and says: O mighty mountains and endless steppes of the North Meadows of green and the creatures that therein dwell join us -cast your blessings upon these children and become a friend to them. All echo, "Blessed Be!" (the bowl is set at the north gate)

The Priestess holds the alter Wand aloft and as s: "Repeat after me.... As above so below as the Universe, so the soul as without so within. Blessed and Gracious Ones -- on this night do we consecrate to you our minds, our bodies, and our spirits. Blessed Be!" INVOKING THE GODDESS AND GOD goddess: All-dewy S y-sailing Pregnant Moon who shines for all who flows through all light of the world which is yourself maiden mother crone the weaver the green one O most gracious and magnificent Lady We as that some portion of your presence be here among us now Give protection and shelter to the small and sacred ones who are here to be dedicated in Your honor. god; Seed sower, grain reborn Antered One come! Bright sun, Dar death, Lord of winds, lord of the dance sun-child, winter born ing Hanged one Untamed, untamed! Stag and stallion, goat and bull, sailor of the last sea, guardian of the gate lord of the two lands ever-dying, ever-living, radiance O ancient lord of the universe we as some portion of your presence here among us now. Shield and strengthen the children who shall be dedicated in your honor!

THE BLESSINGS and PURIFICATIONS Maiden (in this case an unattached and close aunt of the children): (as she sprin les the children with barley)

"Dearest ones, may you never now hunger or poverty for material or spiritual things. I bless you with the barley of the Spirits, for nourishment and wealth." Mother (the Priestess who is the mother of the children): (as she sprin les the children with water) "I bless you in the name of the Spirits of all life and healing, with the waters of the Earth, that you may be healthy and strong in body, mind, and spirit. Let love be your treasure, may you be happy in your heart." Crone (the Priestess's mother and the grandmother of the children): (as she sprin les the children with salt) "Dearest ones, may you have access to your own wisdom and that of others. May you be protected from foolishness and self-destruction. May you now the essence of things; may you be bright and find it easy to learn and teach." The Antlered One (the Priest, who is the father of the children): (fire/sage incense) "With the Fire of the Universe to spar I would as that you may find joy and a in all that you accomplish - to see the of life's journey and find happiness in your temper, sense of merriment lighter side your wor ."

THE DIVULGENCE OF THE NAMES (explained to the Witnesses): ANCIENT EUROPEAN PEOPLES BELIEVED THAT YOU MUST HAVE TWO NAMES, ONE PUBLIC AND ONE A SECRET NAME THAT ONLY THOSE PRESENT AT THE BLESSING CEREMONY KNEW. THIS SECOND NAME IS FOR USE AFTER PUBERTY, WHEN THE SOUL CHANGES INTO ITS FIRST ADULT SELF, WHEN IT CAN BE UTTERED ONCE MORE, AND MADE PUBLIC. THE PURPOSE OF THE FIRST PUBLIC NAME WAS TO DIVERT THE EVIL EYE, TO GAIN FAVOR WITH THE FATES, TO KEEP AWAY SICKNESS, AND TO HELP THE CHILD REACH ADULTHOOD. Priestess: "Great Spirit of Nature, protect and guide these young souls among us. May the Blessings of the wise and joyous Father of the Gods far-seeing and far- nowing be upon thee. May the blessings of the Triple Goddess, of Maiden, of Mother, of Crone, and all their power be upon thee." The following blessings/invocations were spo en and followed by the child being immersed in the ocean water of the beach where the ritual was held: ELIZABETH'S DUNKING: Anna Perenna Great Goddess, Mother of All Envelope this daughter of yours

in the waters of Your womb Grant her protection from wrong-doing Wash away the memories of her pain Shower her with Your blessings in a life everlasting Bless Elizabeth Mae Luzerne. So Mote it Be! PATRICK'S DUNKING: Great Goddess, Nurturer and Bearer of all Men, great and small Without whose womb they would not be Mother of Gods, of Sacrificial Kings, Presidents, Emperors, and beggars Welcome this son of Yours into Your Light and as you have taught us, let him find "Beauty and strength, power and compassion, mirth and reverence, honor and humility" within his heart. Wash his fears away with your caress! Bless Patric Howard Lloyd! Blessed Be! MORGAINNE'S DUNKING: Hail, o gracious and most magnificent Lady whose slender hand turns the vast wheel of the s y. whose triple aspect does see the beginning, the life, and the end of all things. whose wells of mystery do give inspiration and rebirth thoughout eternity, receive here this small daughter of yours with blessings and with love. Bless Morgainne Ellayne! So mote it be! (explained to the Witnesses:) THE SECOND NAMES CHOSEN WERE DECIDED UPON FOR BOTH WHIMSICAL AND SERIOUS REASONS -- FOR PERSONALITY AND FOR CIRCUMSTANCE. "For this newest arrival, a small girl-child who came as an unplanned gift from the gods, whose arrival has challenged us and helped us grow, as did her namesa e, bringing all of Man ind's challenges upon him, she is called PANDORA." "For a small boy-child who seems to live for good food and drin , who enjoys this life he's been blessed with, and who reminds us that merriment is part of our everyday challenge as well as paying the bills and doing the housewor , so we found inspiration in the spirited and fun-loving god of wine, and give his name to our son, who will be BACCHUS." (our oldest, 4 year old daughter was severely burned when she was 16 months old, thus the inspiration for her naming...)

"And at last, for our eldest daughter, as did the beautiful bird rise miraculously from its burning, so did she -- and aptly she is named PHOENIX." Priestess: "O Lady of the Starry Heavens, Wise All-Father, behold these lovely children, PANDORA, BACCHUS, and PHOENIX conceived and brought forth in love. Bless and protect them and grant the gifts of wisdom, inspiration, and wonder, adorn them with your enduring and eternal strength and steadfastness. May they ever have spirits that see the stars, and roots that hold tight deep within thy loving breast."

SHARING OF THE BREAD AND WINE: Priestess blesses the wine, dipping the athame into the chalice: "As the cup is to the female so the athame is to the male, and conjoined they bring blessed creation" "Offering to the Mother: Hail Earth, Mother of All! May your fileds increase and flourish. Your forests grow and spread, And your waters run pure and free! Accept my offering, O Earth Mother! Bring forth that which is good, and sustaining, For every living thing!" --The Bread: As the bread is passed around, the Priestess as s for its glorification: "Let us join hands and purify ourselves breathing in the life force of the universe and expelling all evil from us. Ta e now of the bread and now of the grain of which you parta e as the latest of countless generations growing to fruitfulness and in dying, giving of the seeds from which new life shall spring Know that every seed, every grain is the record of times most ancient and a promise of all that shall be. Parta e of the bread and now of life eternal and of Immortality. With this nowledge are our souls sustained." --The Wine: As the Chalice of wine is shared around the Circle, the Priestess as s for it's glorification, also:

Drin now of the wine And now of the tranformation of simple fruits to spar ling elixir as this wine has undergone change so by life's cauldron shall we As this wine gives the enchantment of the Divine or abasement into the lower realms, so do all humans rise or fall in each life As their own will and strength determines. --The Storytelling: at this point the group of celebrants and the witnesses were as ed to seat themselves and the Priestess read a story called "The Burning of the Lady's People" chosen from a collection of Goddess tales, THE STORYTELLER'S GODDESS by Carolyn McVic ar Edwards.

--OPENING THE CIRCLE: All join hands, Priestess says: "Lords of the Winds, the Fires, the Seas, and the Fields, before you depart to your fair and lovely realms, we than you for your presence this evening! Blessed be! ... May the Circle be open but not bro en may the Beauty of the Goddess and the Strength of the God dwell in our hearts. Merry meet, and merry part, and merry meet again. Blessed Be!" END The Priestess of EarthWorld Circle wishes to ac nowledge the many sources from w hich these invocations and blessings and ritual writings were chosen including M AGICAL RITES FROM THE CRYSTAL WELL by Ed Fitch, and several of the various boo s by Stewart and Janet Farrar, Doreen Valiente, Starhaw e's THE SPIRAL DANCE, A WICCAN BARDO by Paul Beyerl, and proba bly others that i've forgotten their original sources over the years of use. WP 04/28 The New Theology-Sheology; Mystical Women's Spiritual Movements, Gaining Momentum ... and Adherents By Judith Weinraub Washington Post Staff Writer

Pagans at the Harvard Divinity School. A goddess-centered ritual at the Univ ersity of Pennsylvania. A feminist seder in Silver Spring. New moon groups at a rabbinical seminary. Women's spirituality sessions at Appalachian State Universi ty, Wesleyan University, Brown. What on earth is going on? If the events of the last few months are any indication, women are loo ing f or a spiritual connection - for a way to push the boundaries of their religious experience beyond the ordinary confines of traditional Judeo-Christian monotheis m. Consciousness-raising may have been the solace of the '70s and career develop ment the icon of the '80s, but the '90s offer a very different option - the spir it.

Today's see ers, after all, are the daughters of the feminist revolution. N ot for them the victimized heroines and saints of the past. Not for them the pa triarchal structure of the male-dominated religions of the Old and New Testament s. Their touchstones are the pagan religions, the pre-Christian Earth-centered goddess cults that stress the harmony of the universe - movements that offerequa lity rather than hierarchy, peace rather than war, joy rather than guilt, ritual rather than rote. "It's religion without the middleman - including sex and drugs," says Margot Adler, a journalist at National Public Radio and the author of "Drawing Down th e Moon: Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers and Other Pagans in America Today." The women's spirituality movement, which practitioners estimate as attracting as many as 500,000 people across the country, is basically benign. A nd has nothing to do with the satanic cults of national TV tal shows. Whether m ainstream, new age, goddess-oriented (a point of view expressing a female- and e arth-centered style of worship rather than a specific body of liturgy) or wiccan (a mainly British Isles paganism that refers to the Old English word for witch) , today's celebrants are as various as they are hard to count. "It's definitely growing, but you'll never get hard figures," says Adler, wh ose boo was originally published in 1979 and, with more than 100,000 in print, still sells more than 10,000 a year. "A group of women can start a group and not tell anybody, and you'll have a thriving group doing rituals and who will now? " What can be traced is the flourishing boo industry, mostly out of San Franc isco, that the movement has spawned. Two boo s published in 1979 - Adler's and " The Spiral Dance," a more personal vision by the San Francisco-based "priestess" nown as Starhaw - have been particularly influential. What can also be pinned down are the threads that are woven through the burg eoning movement: a dissatisfaction with the way women are treated within traditi onal religions, a yearning for ritual, a desire for a historical connection, des pair over the fragmentation of society and a concern about the future of the pla net. Says Diana Hayes, professor of theology at Georgetown: "Within Christianity, theology and spirituality have been male oriented, male dominated, because they are the ones articulating it. But we all are affected by who we are, where we came from, our life experience, our relationship with god. "So the challenge has been to get this realization out in the open and to ha ve the men who dominate theological circles realize that they cannot spea for t he rest of the human race. Women do not thin or act the way men do. Therefore our spirituality will not be the same as men's." Listen to voices from the women's spirituality movement: Diann Neu, women's religious leader, master's degrees in sacred theology and in divinity from the Graduate Theological Union, Graduate School of Theology, B er eley; co-founder of WATER (Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Ritual) in Silver Spring: "I was a Catholic woman who thought I'd be one of the first to be ordained. I thought it would happen by 1980. After all, there were only two possible paths from the seminary: to teach on a faculty or to be ordained. I was n't interested in teaching and of course couldn't be ordained - though I always hoped there was the possibility. I was disappointed. Pained. Hurt. Angry. Distressed. So I started creating alternatives. I new it was somet hing I needed to do. It was very exciting to me." Starhaw , priestess of the Old Religion of the Goddess, witch, religious lea der, writer, counselor, women's spirituality superstar: "In the very simplest te rms, the goddess represents the sacredness of nature, of human life and human cr eativity as well - the idea that human beings are meant to be integrated with na ture. In the goddess tradition the sacred is embodied in the earth, in ecologica l systems, in human beings in different cultures. If we're all sacred, we have t

o deal equally with each other. And when we really see the earth as this sacred place, and we now that everything is connected, it ma es it very hard to thin about illing somebody, to write off whole groups of people." Diana Hayes, Catholic convert (from AME), professor of theology, Georgetown Un iversity: "All of us have to be allowed to voice our spirituality in our own way s. I see myself not as a feminist but as a womanist, a feminist of color. Women of color - blac , Hispanic, Asian - have begun to realize that the feminist mov ement has been an exclusive, white, middle, and upper-middle-class movement. Wom anists are challenging the feminist movement in the same way that feminists have been challenging the church. As a blac woman within the Catholic church, without that attitude, I'd have to be deaf, dumb and blind." Margot Adler, journalist, an elder with Covenant of the Goddess, a priestess, the granddaughter of analyst Alfred Adler: "I thin it would be fair to say that none of this would have happened to me if I hadn't been hit over the head in the seventh grade by studying the gods Artemis and Athena. This was the late '50s, and there weren't a lot of powerful images of women. What was intere sting was we studied Greece for a whole year, and this was my religion. But I t hin way down deep I didn't want to worship these goddesses - I wanted to BE them." Linda Pinty, a student at Harvard Divinity School, the intern minister at t he First Parish Church of Unitarian Universalists in Cambridge, and one of the c o-founders of CUPPS, the Covenant of Unitarian Universalist Pagans: I was brough t up a Baptist in Michigan but left the church in my late teens and read my way to the Unitarian Universalists. I felt it was a place I could have freedom to se arch. The neo-pagan movement brings a lot of things together. It offers a much h ealthier and holistic way of experiencing ecstasy about life, the goodness of creation and connecting at deep levels with other creatures. In neo-paganism, a need to heal the earth is prominent - it's important to ta e car e of Mother Earth." Susan Gale, a Philadelphia wife and mother and self-described "radical femin ist witch not yet out of the broom closet" in her neighborhood: "There's a pain that's in young women even a decade after feminism. I was raised in a tough poor wor ing-class neighborhood. My mother was a German Protestant, my father an Ita lian Catholic. I was raised as a very religious Presbyterian, but it didn't matt er that I was the most brilliant student in my religion class there wasn't a place for me as a minister. Deacons and ministers were men. And a lot of it rubbed me the wrong way: the anti-sexuality, anti-sensuality, the gui lt and sin and punishment rather than joy. From the time I was a little id, I c ouldn't accept redemptive suffering. Why is the central metaphor of most religio ns the bloody violent death of a male? Why is it not birth?" Invo ing the Spirit Starhaw signs her boo s "Blessed be." It is also her greeting and her Amen . In a large room set up with flowers, crystals, trin ets and copies of her boo s, she presided recently at a women's ritual at the University of Pennsylvania' s Christian Association. "Where would you li e the altar?" as ed a participant before the candles enc ased in glass were set on a brightly colored cloth in the center of the room. Two hundred women of similar mind-sets - but varying ages, religions, occupa tions and sexual orientations - were ready to join Starhaw at the three-hour, $ 40 event. Another couple of hundred men and women arrived later that evening for Starhaw 's lecture. People li e Geela Razael Raphael, a rabbinical student who was one of the ev ent's organizers. "Starhaw is a spiritual leader, a women's spirituality leader ," says Raphael. "As a potential rabbi wanting to be a spiritual leader, I want to see as many role models as I can. Her form of non-hierarchical religion can b e used in more traditional practice." In person, the 40ish priestess loo s not unli e the onetime tall Jewish girl

from Los Angeles she used to be. But her soft-voiced, authoritative presence an d staccato chanting and drumming command her sessions with surprising power. Women wear comfortable clothing: jeans, s irts, sweaters, tie-dye revisited. A majority tend to be of a certain size - the goddess religion rejoic es in the female body. There are many embraces. Networ ing materials are exchang ed. Before casting the formal circle that so many women's rituals start out with , Starhaw encourages the youngest and strongest in the group to form an inner c ircle around the altar. Starhaw warms up the group with physical and vocal stretches. As participants form a larger ring around the inner one, she "casts" the ritual cir cle, theoretically ma ing the space within it a special place. Candles represent ing the four directions and the Earth's center are lit. Earth, air, fire and wat er are invo ed. Women stand and sway as she drums, urging them to find their centers, their connectedness, often against the bac ground of a simple chant: "Rising, rising, the earth is rising. Turning turning, the tide is turning. Changing changing, she changes everything she touches. Changing, changing, and everything she touches changes." Li e many women's ritual leaders, Starhaw uses such chants as a ind of sur rogate liturgy. Presented at different moments that morning, the lilting song sh e teaches is used as a blessing, a uniting force, a bac drop to movement and dan ce. Starhaw leads the group through a series of activities - some that draw upon the circle as a whole, some small group discussions, guided visualizations. "What ind of a body are you in?" she as s. "Loo at your body. How does it feel?" Some people writhe. Others beat time to the drums. Some stand aw wardly (ear lier she assured them not to worry if they feel ill at ease). Some loo dubious. To focus the visualization even more, Starhaw ta es the group to an imagina ry crossroads in the s y. "Close your eyes," she says. "Reach out and feel and t ouch and smell these roads until you find one that feels li e a road in the futu re. Go down the road. Know you can come bac to this place of power because it i s you. And remember there are many roads to the future. The road you chose is on ly one possibility." The session ends with a grand finale "spiral dance" - cloc wise to invo e, t hen countercloc wise to release. "Anything you want to do involves both," she sa ys. A gifted spea er with an easy sense of humor, Starhaw is equally at home be ating time in the center of a ritual or wor ing the crowd at the podium of a lec ture hall. She is also at home with what she calls the "W" word ("witch"). "Unl ess we understand it, we don't now why a powerful woman is so threatening and s o frightening," she says. "There was a 400-year reign of terror particularly dir ected against women who were then burned alive," she says, li ening the witch hu nts to the African slave trade, the Holocaust. Starhaw became interested in witchcraft in her late teens when she and a fr iend did a student seminar on the subject at UCLA. Now she is at the forefront o f a movement to reclaim the word for positive use. (Male witches also use the wo rd rather than warloc , which means traitor.) For most people, of course, the word "witch" conjures up an image of a crin led old woman you wouldn't want your children to tal to. But the picture of the craft that emerges within today's women's spirituality movement (and that is re inforced by Starhaw 's Philadelphia ritual) is a combination of group therapy, p ositive thin ing, stretching exercises, guided visualization, song and dance - a nd even pot luc . Its goddess- and nature-oriented precepts are similar to the Old Religion of prehistoric times and societies that fell victim to the witch hunts and persecu tions of medieval and renaissance Europe. It is earth-centered, individualistic and peace-loving.

Starhaw spends about a third of her time teaching ritual and spreading the faith at college campuses and other forums around the country, and in Canada. S he feels that people crave it. "Even people who live in cities - li e most of us - are still connected to the cycles of nature," she says. "Doing ritual that he lps you affirm that helps us not to feel cut off from the larger life around us, the actual life support systems that sustain our lives." Women's Rites Spring, with its vivid reminders of the cycle of birth and death andrebirth , is a fertile time for the rituals of women's spirituality. Loo at some recent manifestations in the Washington area: Last month, attracted by a flier heralding a celebration of the goddess ("danc ing, singing, drumming, healing, creativity, inspiration, discovery, nurturing a nd goddess games"), 21 women gathered in a conference center in Potomac in honor of the spring equinox. "The day was designed for women who wanted to bring out the goddess within them," says organizer Nancy Smith, a seminar leader who speci alizes in stress management and massage therapy. 120 men, women and children turned up last month for a feminist Seder (f or Holy Thursday as well as Passover) put on by the Silver Spring-based WATER. N ow a place where Christian and Jewish women can come together for a feminist int erpretation of religious rituals, WATER was created by Diann Neu and Mary Hunt, two Catholic theologians, in 1983. They send out 10,000 newsletters, stage wor s hops, conferences and lectures, hold ecumenical monthly brea fasts for women in ministry, publish boo s and act as an all-purpose feminist resource. On April 14, the new moon heralded the Jewish celebration of Rosh Hodosh. A gr oup of women interested in finding or creating ritual specifically for Jewish wo men gathered in a Silver Spring home in honor of the occasion. Instead of going ahead with their scheduled topic - the redefinition of God in non-masculine term s - the group (representing a 30-year age span) shared its feelings and prayed ( to the feminine aspect of god) about the recent death of a 42-year-old friend. At the All Souls Church in the District a smaller group of women is currently investigating women's religious history each Sunday afternoon through "Ca es for the Queen of Heaven," a 10-part correspondence course available through the Uni tarian Universalist Church. Bev Tubby, who too the course last year, is one of the conveners this year. "In spite of everything that's been written about femin ism and role differences, women really do bring a wonderfully strong view to thi s world," she says. "We do have a different perspective - it has to do with the human context and human relationships. If women are not cognizant of th eir spiritual history, they are missing out on a more complete identity that can help form our ideas of who we are and what we want to do in this world and how we're going to do it." And June 6, "Kestryl & Company," the first of six biwee ly tal shows about co ntemporary witchcraft will air on Arlington Community Cable, Channel 33. Produc ed by Cheryl Ann Costa, a computer programmer and third-degree Wicca high priest ess, and moderated by Erica Angell ( nown as Kestryl), a housewife and second-de gree high priestess, the show will feature high priests, magical tool ma ers, ta rot experts and pagan bards. "Many people are loo ing for a way to plug into The Craft," says Costa. This is an easy way to do it. Having cast their lot with an enlarged view of the sacred, these women, li e many others all over the country, are loo ing to the spiritual as a hope for t he future. "It's life-giving for me to be a part of it, and to create it," says WATER's Neu. "What I eep coming bac to is that there is a growing power within women. We are brea ing all inds of silences. Things are happening because there are mo re and more groups where women feel safe. My hope is that we'll eep creating th ese safe spaces where being together as men and women is possible."

The 12 steps and Shamanism by Matri a co-sysop of PAN - the Psychic Awareness Networ at 1-703-362-1139 copyright by PAN and Harvest ( a pagan newsletter at box 228 S. Framinham MA 01701 - $13. per year) Author's note - this article was first published by me under the name JUKNO in H arvest's Yule edition, 1989. Recently a local charecter in Alcoholics Anonymous here in the Worcester MA. are a died. His name was "John the Indian" (he identified himself this way) and he was well- nown as an AA spea er all over the world, although he lived near centr al Massechusetts. John had about thirty years of sobriety and was a great power of example to many people including Betty Ford who told him she had listened to tapes of his tal s while she was in detox. John's story intrigued many people. An Indian who had been orphaned on the rese rvation when Tuberculosis wiped out his familly, he had ended up on s id row aft er serving in the Canadian army during World War II as a dishwasher. He came to AA in his mid-twenties, an illiterate wine. ( my note - this is NOT to imply t hat most alcoholics are on s id row. In fact most of them are people with nice famillies, a place to live, a car or even two, a job, etc. etc. etc. Less that 2% of the alcoholics in this country are on s id row) He ended up owning his o wn construction business after learning to read (from a elderly woman in AA who was a school teacher) and marrying a lady in AA with whom he raised a lovely fa milly. Because John had inspired me and so affected my life with his gift of simplicity, I was inspired to do a shamanic-style rite in his memory. I had alw ays felt sorry for John because, in the process of his recovery, he seemed to ha ve lost touch with the beauty of this heritage. Then it hit me; John WAS a sha man and anyone who truly wor ed a 12-step program was one too. In BIRTH OF A MODERN SHAMAN by Cynthia Bend and Tayja Wiger (Llewelyn Publication box 64383, St. Paul MN. 1988 ) it states " A shaman is hard to define. There are no two ali e..... what happens, a shaman goes through a catastrophe or a string of catastrophes that enhance certain abilities within him ( or her! ) .....Most often the Shaman has to go through a severe trauma, a severe i llness or a severe psychosis and recover from it before he learns the recove ry process that he can use." The authors are quoting Tson awa, Tayja's teacher on the Shamanic path. (a Nati ve American Medicine person) Many other authors on Shamanism; Sunbear, Lynn Andrews, Amber Wolfe and Micheal Harner, to name a few: echo this truth. A shaman is a person who goes through g reat suffering, usually in the form of a mental or physical illness, and then go es on to heal himself or herself. They are then able to use that same process t o heal others. This is what happens in a twelve-step fellowship. Through the process of healin g ourselves, we come to the point where we can help others hy "carrying the message" after having had a "spiritual awa ening" as the result of ta ing the first eleven steps.

Here are some boo s that can help any Pagan, Shaman, Druid, Witch, Practitioner of Feminist Spirituality, or other Magic al fol as they wal the s

teps in the process of recovering, while retaining their own unique spiritual pa th. TRUTH OR DARE by Starhaw (San Francisco, Harper and Row, 1987) This contains many references to the 12-step programs, especially Alcoholics Anonymou s and Adult Children of Alcoholics, in a wor on Wicca by a well- nown priestess of the Craft who is also a psychotherapist. CRYSTAL CLEAR by Connie Church (Bew Yor , Willard boo s 1987) It contains a good section on how to use quartz crystals to help in relieving yours elf of bad habits, compulsions, and obsessions, specifically for use with the va rious twelve-step programs. (note - amethyst is traditionally said to help in al l these areas) BIRTH OF A MODERN SHAMAN, mentioned above, tells the story of a blind Native American woman who was a survivor of Child abuse and had been Psycotic as well as Alcoholic. This is the story of her complete recovery, incl uding her eyesight, (documented by doctors) and the discovery of her Psychic gif ts with her Native roots. Her healing occured through a process that began for her in Alcoholics Anonymous. THE TWELVE STEPS FOR EVERYONE published by Compcare (Minneapolis MN.) this is a non-sexist boo on the steps by a grateful recovering member of Emotional Healt h Anonymous written in non-sexist language. The author draws heavily on the Eas tern traditions of spirituality as well as the traditional Western monotheistic ones. EVERYDAY A NEW BEGINNING Published by Hazelden corp. (Also in Minneapolis, MN. I believe) This is a daily meditation guide BY women in Anonymous fellowships an d FOR women in these same self-help groups. Unli e the TWENTY-FOUR HOURS A DAY boo (published by the same company and widely used in AA) it doesn't use quote s from the Bible. Instead it uses quotes from various women authors. Many men also claim to have benefitted from it due to it's non-religious approach. PAGANS IN RECOVERY a networ ing newsletter for Magic al fol , Shamans, Druids, Feminist Priestesses, Witches, Pagans, Pantheists, etc. who are in recov ery via a 12-step fellowship of any type. It has contacts, reviews, articles, r ecovery techniques and more. It is a great source of support and inspiration to any Pagan in any of the Anonymous support groups. It is $8.00 a year and the a ddress is P.I.R. c/o Be i 6500 S.R. 356 New Marshfield, OHIO 45766 ADDITION TO READING LIST REFLECTIONS IN THE LIGHT by Sha ti Gawain, published by New World Library, San R afael, California 1978. While not ONLY for the 12-step programs this boo does go into the problems of addictions in light of the New-Age, Psychic Awareness as well as many other subjects. It provides a inspirational message and/or a crea tive visualization exercise with a non-sectarian affirmation for each day. The boo is neither sexist nor sectarian and is truly a beautiful aid to anyone see ing to wor the program of recovery. It is also a great way to share what you a re doing with friends who share your spirituality but not your program, as it ma es no direct references to the 12-step groups at all. It is very useful to tho se of us who prefer a daily meditation to the "prayer" people in the monotheisti c Churches and Synagogues tend to use in their application of the program to the ir lives.

Divine Circle of The Sacred Grove ***SCAM**

Office of the Preceptor P.O. Box 66311, Seattle, WA, U.S.A. 98166 THE FOLLOWING IS FOR PUBLICATION; To the Pagan Community: In July of 1991, ADF sent out a Druid Alert about an organization called the Divine Circle of the Sacred Grove. ADF began investigating this group because they were using ADF letterhead, membership forms, advertising copy, and other materials with their names substituted for ours. Prior to raising any public issues, ADF's Preceptor, Domi O'Brien called the group and tal ed to their Scribe, Kal Mannis. Mr. Mannis told her that if she had questions, she could come to a public meeting on July 2nd, 1991, in Seattle, and as them there. Domi, Bwca, Erynn and members of 4 other Traditions and organizations attended their tal . We noted with increasing amazement their claims and their views of the interrelationship of Druidism and Wicca, and after they mentioned Isaac Bonewits, Domi challenged some of their staements, as the ADF Preceptor. The DCSG literature going bac to 1988 was examined, along with other staements which have been made to us or others. Janette Laverna Garcia a/ /a Gordon a/ /a Copeland, born 2/9/1942, Houston TX,; Richard Norman Ian Garcia a/ /a Gordon a/ /a Copeland, born 8/12/1940, Prescott, AZ; Jerry Eugene Everett Wayne Reamer a/ /a Prophet, born 8/12/1948, Pottstown, PA; Kalman Mannis, Nancy Brown, Brenda Matarazzo, David Trippey, Donovan Cotton; Dr. Jay Tibbles, Mary Ernst, and others affiliated with their group were examined for legitamate mundane and magic al credentials. The only person whose credentials we were able to verify was Dr. Jay Tibbles. Janette's claims, as given in her various peices of literature, and as made to us, or to persons whose credentials we were able to verify, include: Hereditary Witch and Druid; Pipe Carrier for the Lumbee, the Sioux, the Chero ee, and the Chumash; member of the MotherGrove and Board of Directors of the ADF, as well as group marriage to the entire ADF Board of Directors; membership and 3rd Circle status in the British Circle of the Universal Bond; training by Ross Nichols, 3rd Degree Celtic and Egyptian Priestess; 3rd Degree Alexandrian Priestess, New Yor , 1973; 3rd Degree Gardinarian Priestess, New Yor , 1965; incorporation of her organization in 14 states; training by Rhuddlwm Gawr, and training by Grandmaster Eli (Barney Taylor, of the Druidic Craft of the Wise), marriage to Eli, as well as being both Eli's daughter and graddaughter. She has also claimed to be a registereed nurse, a cosmetologist; a paralegal; a professional writer of romance novels, and a Vietnam Veteran. Ms. Copeland (?) claims that she has 10,000 people on her mailing list, groves all over the United States, and that she was born in London during the Blitz, although she has alos claimed that she was born in Houston TX. Ms Garcia (?) claims that her father, a U.S. Army Major on Eisenhower's staff during WW II (not, by the way, Grandmaster Eli), and her mother, a nurse now resident in Atlanta, were both members of the Circle of the Universal Bond. She claims that she was raised by a Chero ee grandfather. She claims to have been teaching Wicca, which she says is a simplified version of Druidism for the masses, since 1954, when she was 12 years old. Ms Gordon(?) too Lady Sabrin's course from Our Lady of

Enchanment in 1987 and 1988, giving totally different information about herself then she gives now. According to Lady Sabrina, Janette has been selling Sabrina's courses as her own ever since. We have examined lessons from Janette's and Sabrina's courses, and they are indeed substantially identical, except that Sabrina can spell. Janette joined ADF in 1987, giving yet another set of data about herself, claiming no leadership positions, newsletters, or other affiliations. A chec of the material on her application shows it to be substantially false. In chec ing Janette's claims, we contacted the Secretary of state, and Board of Nursing Registrations in the 14 states in which she claimed incorporation. Her organization is incorporated only in Washington and California. She is not listed as a registered nurse anywhere we chec ed. She and her group were offering BA's, MA's, and PhD's in Washington State until directed to cease and desist by the Higher Education Coordinating Board. They later obtained a religious exemption by saying that they were offering degrees only in Divinity and Theology. Former mebers of their organization state that most of their claims in their catalog as to available courses and faculty credentials are false. In examining their other claims we contacted over two hundred persons and groups in this country and abroad in an effort to authenticate their initiations and organizational affiliations. No one we contacted verified any of the DCSG's claims. All stated that they had never trained or initiated any nown officers or members of the DCSG. Most had never even heard of them. Furthur, former members of her organization have mentioned paying thousands of dollars for courses, and additional thousands paid out on "tithes" -- 10% of their annual income to support the wor of the Order of Melchizade (demanded in the middle of their initiation or elevation rituals). We have also been contacted by Social Serrvices, Education, Law Enforcement and other authorities for other information about DCSG, and/or its members. ADF and some other Pagan groups and organziations are cooperating fully with these investigations, and have made it clear to the investigators that we do not regard these people as legitamate members of the Pagan community, since none of their alleged training and initiations can be verified, and may have been directly disproven. As Pagans, whatever our path, we can ill-afford to remain silent while groups nowingly steal and sell courses written by others, claiming training ties to the most senior and respected members of our community that they do not have, and engage in questionable behaviour presenting themselves as our in, elders, and representatives to the world at large.

By: Domi O To: Lewis Stead Re: Details, please. Lady Sabrina was initiated by Bob Moshier and Dorothy Trion in Tuscon Arizona in 1978, according to what she says. She was in

Domi O'Brien T. Bwca DTG Priestess Elder, NECTW CWO Priestess Preceptor/Vice ArchDruid, ADF

Erynn Dar star Greenleaf Coven Inis Glas

Danville, California for a while, near San Franscisco; and was in COG (I have not chec ed this); she then studied with Gavin and Yvonne in New Bern for 1 and a half years; then moved to Billerica, Mass; then to Hudson, NH; then Nashua, NH. I was in Epping, NH when a Gardnerian friend and fellow NH College administrator, Gerry Reilly, introduced me to Sabrina. Since I am Daughters of the Triple Goddess and Celtic Wiccan Order trained, Gerry's brand of witchcraft and Sabrina's struc me equally weird. I tal ed to Gavin and Yvonne last wee ; they feel Sabrina has borrowed heavily from them but they don't have an issue with it and they don't consider their organisation and hers to be connected. In 1987 Geraldine Gumm a a Gerri Garcia a a Queen Druid a a Laura Copeland a a Janette Gordon a a Janette Copeland a a Laverna Gordon a a Laverna Copeland a a Gerry Garcia a a Gerri Gunn a a Gerri Teah Garcia a a Jerry Leah Garcia too Sabrina's course; in winter of 1989 she began advertising a coorespondence course in Wicca, which according to Sabrina is Sabrina's. I've loo ed at them; they are very much ali e. The Frosts and Sabrina both teach non-mainstream Wicca and charged for Craft when no one was doing that. I have heard far more negative things about some far more mainstream figures; both the Frosts and Sabrina are very public and really seem to have nothing to hide. What they teach isn't my Craft, but I will defend their right to practice their version and teach it as they see fit. Or did you mean something else ? Domi of ADF By: Domi O To: Corwynt Re: ADF letter Indeed it is from us. Since then, we have gotten "Janette's" arrest and conviction records from New Mexico and word from a usually reliable source that her real name may be Geraldine Gumm, and real date of birth may be 2-9-40. I am also informed by a law enforcement source that she has other records in several states. These range from child neglect to unlawful touching of dead bodies to idnapping. Her group was investigated in 1975 in Arizona for dead bodies and missing persons, moved a bit over a hundred miles as the crow flies, and she and her husband were arrested in New Mexico in 1978. The children involved were returned to their parents, two being ept in social service custody while it was determined to whom they belonged, and two members of the group were "deprogramed" by Ted Patric . She was calling herself "Queen Druid" then and initiating fol s as "WI" or "witch one". I have a lovely pile of court papers and newspaper clippings I will gladly share with anyone who'd li e to send me $4 for photocopying and postage... Domi O'Brien Box 66311 Seattle, WA 98166 The Rede of the Wicca (Being nown as the Counsel of the Wise Ones:) Bide the Wiccan laws ye must in Perfect Love and Perfect Trust

Live and let live Freely ta e and freely give Cast the circle thrice about To eep all evil spirits out To bind the spell every time Let the spell be spa e in rhyme Soft of eye and light of touch Spea little, listen much Deosil go by the waxing moon Sing and dance the Wiccan rune Widdershins go when the moon doth wane And the werewolf howls by the dread wolfsbane When the Lady's moon is new Kiss thy hand to her times two

Heed the northwind's mighty gale Loc the door and drop the sail When the wind comes from the south Love will iss thee on the mouth When the wind blows from the east Expect the new and set the feast When the west wind blows o'er thee Departed spirits restless be Nine woods in the cauldron go Burn them fast and burn them slow Elder be ye Lady's tree Burn it not or cursed ye'll be When the wheel begins to turn Let the Beltain fires burn When the wheel has turned to Yule Light the log and let Pan rule Heed ye flower, bush and tree By the Lady, Blessed be

The Rede of the Wicca (Being nown as the Counsel of the Wise Ones:) (continued from previous page) When ye have a need

Where the rippling waters go Cast a stone and truth ye'll

When the moon rides at her pea Then your heart's desire see

now

Hear en not to others' greed With the fool no season spend Nor be counted as his friend Merry meet and merry part Bright the chee s and warm the heart Mind the Threefold Law ye should Three times bad and three times good When misfortune is enow Wear the blue star on thy brow True in love ever be Unless thy lover's false to thee Eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill An' it harm none, do what ye will "Dryghten" Blessing Prayer (Gardnerian) By: David Piper The only published copy of the Blessing Prayer that I now of is in the boo "Wi tch Blood! The Diary Of A Witch High Priestess!" by Patricia Crowther in chapte r four (paperbac edition 1974, House Of Collectibles, Inc.). "In the name of Dryghtyn, the Ancient Providence, Who was from the beginning and is for eternity, Male and Female, the Original Source of all things; all- nowing, all-pervading, all-powerful; changeless, eternal. "In the name of the Lady of the Moon, and the Lord of Death and Resurrection. "In the name of the Mighty Ones of the Four Quarters, the Kings of the Elements. "Blessed be this place, and this time, and they who are now with us." Life, Light, Love! Blessed Be! Dianis Lucien ---------------------------------------------------------------------(120) Tue 17 Nov 92 21:12 By: Airmid To: David Piper Re: Monism/monotheism St: ---------------------------------------------------------------------@INTL 93:9500/0 93:9500/0 DP> When you examine the "Blessing Prayer" of English Trad Wicca however, the Dryghtyn is obviously more than just a unifying essence since It is called: "the original source of all things; all- nowing, all-pervading, all-powerful; c hangeless, eternal." It describes the Ultimate, the Absolute, the Godhead of wh ich the God and the Goddess are at one and the same time, both Its Polarities an

d also Its first Manifestations. Dryghtyn is also the name used for JHVH in some old English bibles. I thin that was where the term actually originated. I thin I saw a passing reference to it in some boxed comparative translated text in "In Search of the Indo-Europeans." =================================== BASIC MEDITATION TECHNIQUES by Bill Witt =================================== The course is devided into three sections. Section one deals with what meditati on is and how it plays a part in the lives of those who use it. Section two wi ll go into the techniques and tools of meditation. Section three gives suggestio ns on how to use what you've learned, in everyday life. A list of boo s for furt her reading on the subject, will be given at the end of section three. Webster defines meditation as "The act of meditating; close or continued thought ; the revolving of a subject in the mind." To meditate is to focus mentally on one thought, idea, or concept. It may als o mean, to revolve an idea in your mind so as to change the way in which you thi n of that idea. Meditation is therefore, a tool with which you may manipulate t hought in an organized manner. Many people view meditation as a very difficult thing to learn. In reality th ough, we do it often without even nowing it. When you daydream or find your min d fixed on one thought, that is a form of meditation. Have you ever watched a bi rd in flight, or stared up at the clouds in the s y, or maybe even found yoursel f watching a stream of water flow by? If you have and at that moment the rest of the world around you has seemed removed, then you were in a state of meditation . The real ey to this practice, is to be able to exercise control over your tho ughts and awareness of the world around you. There are many groups of people for whom meditation is an everyday ritual. O thers use it at special times as a means of relaxation and "mental house cleanin g." It allows the individual a freedom unli e no other freedom. The freedom to l oo inside oneself and learn just who you are. Some use it as a way of being clo ser to nature or God. No matter how you wish to use it, you will find it a healt hy and very rewarding experience. Most all religions practice meditation in one way or another. Eastern philoso phies such as Yoga, and Buddism are not the only ones to view meditation as a wa y of loo ing for the Truth found in one's own consciousness. Even in Christiani ty meditation finds a place of value. The Bible itself mentions the value of med itation. In writing to the Phillippians, the Apostle Paul tells them this. "Fina lly, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoe ver things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, w hatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, thin on these things." (Phil. 4.8) So you as , what can it do for me. Well, beyond just being a good way to real ly relax, which we can all use in this hectic world, it can be a doorway to the Truth inside yourself. It is a way of gaining wisdom. Knowledge has always been fairly easy to come by. Wisdom on the other hand, is a bit harder to grasp onto.

In "The Tas " by William Cowper, the following line is found. "Knowledge dwel ls in heads replete with thoughts of other men: Wisdom, in minds attentive to th eir own." For me, meditaion becomes a way of "grounding" myself, of reaching a place of peace and stability, where I can find how I fit into the universe. In many philosophies, meditaion is viewed as a necessary s ill. All those who are students of these philosophies must learn the ways of meditaion early in th eir training. Although the techniques may vary from one group to another, the mo st basic concepts remain the same. The ability to be able to focus on one though t and selectively bloc out all others is the foundation upon which many more ad vanced s ills will be built. These s ills may range from telepathy to the abilit y to move objects with only the mind. It is well nown that Yogi adepts can lower their breathing and heart rates t o near death levels. This is something you should not try as it ta es years of p ractice to learn and can be quite dangerous. Still, these yogis are proof of the type of power the mind can exercise over the body through meditation. In some cultures, the use of drugs to achieve a meditative state is encouraged. The american indians for example, used drugs derived from various pl ants to put themselves into an altered state of conciousness. This was usually d one as a religious practice and as an event mar ing the change from one state of life to another. A good example would be the ceremony mar ing the coming into m anhood of a young boy. Today there are still many, who advocate the use of drugs to achieve these altered states. It is my opinion that such measures are neithe r necessary nor good. You can reach an altered state of conciousness without the use of drug induced "highs". It ta es practice, but it can be done. In New Age philosophy, the art of meditaion is highly valued. We also find a nother well developed s ill which is called "creative visualization". This is th e idea of visualising what you want to the point of it becoming reality. A good example would be a salesman visualizing himself as successful and prosperous. Th e concept is simple, if you can visualize a personal reality, you can change or bring that reality into being. "Positive Thin ing" is a very similar idea. The technique of creative visualization goes beyond positive thin ing however. It deals with the premise that we all create our own reality and th erefore have the power to change many aspects of that reality. The idea of "pers onal reality" is a lengthy one and we do not have enough room to cover it in thi s course. So far we have loo ed briefly at what meditation is and how it is used. By no means have we touched on all the aspects of this practice. There are many boo s on the subject which cover it in much more detail. My purpose is to give you an overview of the many facets of meditation in the hope that you will wish to lea rn more. BASIC MEDITATION TECHNIQUES =================================== This is the second part of a three part online course in Basic Meditation Tec hniques The course is devided into three sections. Section one deals with what medita tion is and how it plays a part in the lives of those who use it. Section two w

ill go into the techniques and tools of meditation. Section three gives suggesti ons on how to use what you've learned, in everyday life. A list of boo s for fur ther reading on the subject, will be given at the end of section three. In this second section of the "Basic Meditation Techniques" course, we will d iscuss various relaxation procedures and how they will aid you in entering a tra nce or meditative state. You will also be given some ideas about types of music and other "tools" which can help you achieve these relaxed states of mind. Let's begin. First, let's set the stage for our meditation practice. You should pic a pla ce which is as private and safe as possible. An altered state of mind, as in med itation, lessens your awareness of the outside world. For this reason, it is not advisable to practice these techniques in a public place where there is a chanc e of being mugged, robbed, or molested. If you are at home, with other family me mbers or friends present, as that you not be disturbed and that all other noise in the house be ept to a minimum. When you have found a place suitable for med itation, you may begin. "The see ers of new mind states-the mind control devotees, the encounter grou p enthusiasts, the drug ta ers, the psychics, the meditators - all are on a jour ney into the interior universe trying to burst the limits of the socially condit ioned mind. Weither acceptable or unacceptable, moral or immoral, wise or foolis h, the mind of man is stirring toward a new evolution." Dr. Barbara Brown (1) As I said in section one, trance or meditaive states, alter the way your mind deals with the realities it accepts as normal. Things which are experienced in a trance state are often not easily expressed in everyday language. You will at some level, experience a heightened state of awareness. Colors, smells, and sou nds may seem amplified from what they normally are. People who can acheive very deep states of trance often leave their bodies in astral projection, or have psychic experiences. I highly recommend, that if you wish to enter deep states of meditation, you do so under the guidance and teaching of someone who is well trained in the prac tice of such techniques. The ey thing to remember is that it's not what level y our wor ing on as much as what you are learning. There is alot to be gained in w isdom and nowledge at all levels of trance. Now let's learn some simple and usefull relaxation exercises.

You want to be sure that the time you pic to practice your meditation is a t ime when you are least li ely to be disturbed. You should not be overly tired or have just finished eating as both of those conditions may cause you to fall asl eep. Even though you wish to acheive an altered state of consciousness, you do w ant to remain conscious to some degree. If you fall asleep when you are meditati ng, no harm is done and you will awa en quite refreshed and rested. Unfortunatel y though, you may not be able to recall all the things you experienced while in trance. If you are lying down, be sure your bac and nec are properly supported so a s not to fatigue the body. If you are sitting, be sure that both feet are flat o n the floor and that you are sitting as erect as possible without being too stif f or strained. You should have your arms resting comfortably in your lap with pa lms up.

In either case, it is important that your body not become strained or fatigue d for at least thirty minutes. This is a good length of time to begin with as i t should put neither a physical or mental strain on your being. Next, visualize a yourself in a cocoon of white light. You should surround yo urself completely. See the light as bright and warm. You may play with this sphe re of light ma ing it bigger or smaller until it "feels" right for you. Say to yourself, "I am protected by the pure white light of all that is good and truthf ull. I am surrounded by the pure light which eeps out all unwanted and evil inf luences." This is a good idea to do for several reasons. There are those, and I am one of them, who believe that each of generates an aura which protects us from outsi de influences when we are in trance. This aura may be strengthened by visualizin g the light as growing brighter at our command. Even if you do not accept this i dea, the practice lends a feeling of safety and security to you. Nothing which is outside of you may enter or touch you without your permission. Learning to control and pay attention to your breathing is the next step. Yo u should start by ta ing a deep breath in through your nose, hold it for the men tal count of 4 and then let it all out slowly through your mouth. Repeat this u ntil you begin to feel at rest and relaxed. Allow your breathing to settle into a steady, rythmic rate. Just this simple technique can relax and refresh you at any time. When you are only doing the breathing exercise, it is not necessary to go through the white light sphere visualization. Some people use a muffled metr onome or recording of some other rythmic sound, such as ocean waves, to aid them in setting the pace of their breathing. A good source o f recorded sounds which can help you in meditation is a series of records and ta pes which have been produced under the title "ENVIRONMENTS". Now, as you are breathing, see yourself lying in the warm light of the sun. The light is warm and pleasant to be in. Starting with the tips of your toes, fe el the light warming all of your body, slowly moving up into your legs, your tru n , and then into your arms and fingers. As you feel this warming become more an d more relaxed, going deeper and deeper into a calm and quiet place. When you fell totally relaxed and at peace, bring a single thought into your mind. It should be of a pleasant experience or of an idea such as love, joy, pea ce, or compassion. Focus on this one thought and if some other thought should tr y to intrude, picture it as being written on a clear board between you and your focal thought. Then picture it being erased from that board as it might be from a piece of paper. Deal with any thought, other than your focal thought, quic ly. Try to maintain concentration on your focal thought for at least five minutes. Picture it as being real and experience it as if it were. When you are able to do this and can exclude all other thoughts as they attempt to enter your mind, you will have learned the single most important technique of meditation. It is now time to begin coming bac to normal consciousness. slowly let the t hought fade from your mind and again become aware of the warm light of the sun. As you fell the light bathing you in its' warmth, start to reconnect your mind w ith the physical sensations of your body. Become aware of your breathing and the room around you. Do this slowly and calmly. When you are fully aware of your su rroundings, open your eyes slowly. Enjoy the sense of calm and peace. If you succeeded in doing this exercise, you should feel more relaxed and cal m than normal. It is important to remember that you are comparing it to normal f or you, not to what you thin others would or should feel.

If you do not feel you succeeded try again in a day or two. Between meditaion sessions, practice your deep breathing exercises. If you eep trying, you will soon reach a calm and meditative state. Do not attempt to meditate when you are ill, tired, or hungry. Those feelings only serve to ma e your efforts m ore difficult. A very important part to remember is that you can not force yours elf into a meditative state. You must flow into it and surrender to it calmly. Some things which are found to be helpfull in meditation follow. Try concentrating on the flame of a candle when focusing. You could also use a crystal ball. The later is rather exspensive but small crystal window ornament s or pyramids also wor well and cost much less. Music is also an aid to some. The music should be quiet and rhythmic. It shou ld bring on feelings of peace and comfort. Such music may range from New Age rec ordings to classical. Another usefull device is to focus on a symbol which holds special meaning fo r you. It may be an well nown symbol or one you design yourself. As long as it holds a special meaning or expresses a special concept, it is a usefull focusing tool. This brings section two of this course to a close. In the next part I will gi ve you some pratical ways in which to use what you have learned. The most obvious use of the techniques you have learned, is relaxation. Duri ng the course of the day, many of us have moments when the pressure becomes almo st to much. When this happens, we often can't deal with other people or projects the way we should. The breathing exercises you learned in section two can help at these times. It doesn't require alot of time or absolute quiet as does your meditation pra ctice. All that is required is about five minutes and relative privacy. At these times, begin doing your rhythmic breathing and visualize a place which is calm and refreshing. This simple and quic exercise, can wor wonders to help you reg ain control in a hectic situation. Another way in which meditation is used is in the development of psychic powe rs. There are several boo s on the subject, listed at the end of this section. M ost of those who teach about the use and development of these abilities, agree t hat meditation is necessary to any such study. Again the reason for this is that meditation allows you to reach an altered state of conciousness. In this altere d state your mind is more open to such phenomenon as telepathy. If you should de cide to persue studies in this direction, please see the help of someone traine d in these areas. One final use I will suggest is visualization. Meditation can be used as a to ol for problem solving. While in a meditative state of mind, you have the abilit y to ta e any situation and manipulate it. By that I mean you can mentally play the out the situation using several different solutions. Then, you can pic the one which seems to best solve the problem. While the use of meditation can help you deal with problem solving more effectively, it is not infallible. All it can do is allow you to thin more clearly and concisely about the problem at hand.

Well that concludes this study on meditation. I hope you have gained somethin g usefull from this course. It has been by no means, a full explanation of the s ubject. There is much more to learn than could be covered in this short series a nd It is my hope that you will want to continue your studies into this fascinati ng and usefull s ill. More studies of this type will be developed in the near future. The New Atlan tis BBS will continue to post these studies as an ongoing service to it's users. Please feel free to leave suggestions on the BBS about subjects you would li e to see covered.

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY: list of boo s for further reading will be included. References: (1) Dr. Barbara Brown "New Mind, New Body" New Yor , Bantam Boo s, 1975 Page 17 Miriam Simos (Starhaw ) The Spiral Dance New Yor Harper & Row; 1979 W.E. Butler How To Read The Aura, Practice Psycometry, Telepathy and Clairvoyance New Yor Destiny Boo s; 1978 Melita Denning & Osborne Phillips The Development of Psychic Powers St. Paul, MN Llewellyn Publications; 1985

NEW ATLANTIS BBS 301-632-2671 Member of the ParaNet system End Of File ----------------------------------Changes in format by the magician. 02/26/89 Crystal Cave 719-391-1092 The following is from Magic al Blend Magazine, a bay-area periodical that publishes four editions a year. The magazine deals with many branches of the magic al world and can be useful to all aspiring magicians. Subscriptions cost $12 per year. They can be reached at: Magic al Blend P.O. Box 11303 San Francisco, Ca. 94101-7303

WHEN MAGIC DOESN'T WORK by Van Ault Every magician has occasions in which the magic he is directing does not seem to wor . The desired result, whether internal or external, does not come into manifestation. These occasions are opportunities for greater developement i n the magical arts, and by wor ing through the disappointment and discouragement , he can reach greater self- nowledge and technical expertise in the art. I believe that magic always wor s. Magic is a tool, a reality shaper. Li e any tool, however, its ability is limited to the operator's nowledge and s ill. For an illustration, let's use the bow and arrow. Your intention is the arrow and your magical technique for directing that intention is the bow. You u se the bow/technique to poise, balance and guide the intention/arrow with the st rength of your arms and hands/ determination and will. What happens when this all wor s together optimally? The will firmly grasp s the clear intention, balances it upon the technique, you gather your emotional and mental force, and then fire the intention into the invisible world to be ma de manifest. In its own time and way, your wish materializes. Conversely, if you haven't got the s ill to bring all of these efforts ther, things can go as ew. Your arrow can veer and stray, or it may travel w feet before losing power. Your bow can brea , or not be strong enough to el the arrow. Or, you may find that you've got your bow and arrow ready to but you haven't got sufficient strength to manipulate it.

I offer the following meditation process for those times when it seems that your magic doesn't wor . When you've tried all the techniques, when you've got ten no results, when you're wondering if any of this matters at all, the process in this meditation can produce miracles and create a sense of completion. You can read the script into a tape, or have a friend lead you through it.

RIVER OF LIFE MEDITATION Find a comfortable place where you can relax and be completely quiet...rela x...allow your thought snow to just come and go...come and go...and ta e a deep breath in and hold it...(pause)...now gather up the tension in your body, and re lease it as you exhale...ta e another deep breath, and as you exhale, let go of anybody else's energy or thoughts you may be carrying....and breathe in new ener gy...breathe in new possibilities...and allow your body to fill with lightness.. .feel it becoming lighter and lighter as you relax more and more...relaxing deep ly...going deeper...feeling very light now...so light you could almost float awa y.......... And as you relax, imagine a beautiful colored mist is swirling up around yo u, billowing up around you into a cushiony, soft, cloud of energy...and you are resting completely upon this cloud...and you are safe...as you breathe in and ou t, let your thoughts just come and go...relaxing more and more...and the cloud o f energy now lifts you up into the air and carries your down into your own inner world...down between the boundaries of time and space...to a place of timeless beauty and inf

toge a fe prop use,

inite possibilites...floating down now, going deeper and deeper,leaving the oute r world and its concerns far behind, as you drift and float on this beautiful cl oud....going further and further...down below you is a roc , a giant roc ...and the cloud gently and effortlessly lands upon the roc and you step off it, as th e cloud swirls bac into a mist and disappears for now... Stand upon this roc now, and feel the strength of it under your feet...and as you turn around, you loo out upon a great river...flowing as far as you can see...seeming to come from some infinite place...and disappearing into an infin ite place,,,a flowing,endless river of energy...this is the river of all life wa ters...all of life draws upon the lifeforce that moves through its steaming curr ents... loo closely at the water...what color is it? it may loo li e liquid li ght to you...loo deeply into it, and sense the power and depth of the river... what sound does it ma e as it courses through its channels?...as you stand secur ely upon your roc , notice and fragrance ...and bend down and cup your hands in the living water,and splash some of it on your face...feel the life giving force on your s in... ta e a sip of the water...allow the river of life to nourish yo u.... Now relax a moment upon the roc ...and bring into your mind the magical int ention that never seemed to go anywhere...what were you trying to accomplish?... what was the basic intention you had?...what was the emotion behind the intentio n?...feel the energy of that emotion moving onto the palms of your hands now...f eel the energy glowing...pulsating...breathe and allow your intention that you're still clingin g to externalize...the energy of it is now shimmering, glowing...swirling into a sphere...allow all of your desire to flow into this sphere...and allow this sph ere to appear to you however it appears...and just observe what you see...you ma y see pictures or symbols emerging within the sphere...whatever you see is fine. ..

When your sphere is completely filled with the last of your desire,emotion, and intention, hold it aloft...feel the power of it in you hands,a globe of powe r that you can now release...and loo out into the river of life...watch as its currents of possibility flow for ever and ever,as far as you can see...and whene ver you're ready,with as much and as little force as you need, throw the pulsati ng sphere into the river...and give this intention to the life force of this great river...watch as the sphere touches the water...and gradually disappears i nto the current... Ta e a deep breath... as the sphere disappears the last of your intention a nd emotion and desire merges with the source of all life, from which it orrigina lly came...and leaves you... Now complete any business here that you need to finish...ta e a few moments to enjoy the flowing river of life,and now that the possibilities it nourishes can bring miracles into you life too... Ta e another deep breath, and notice tha colored mist is once again swirlin g around you...billowing up underneath you to form a beautiful cloud of cushiony energy, which is lifted up into the air, with you upon it...relaxing into the c loud you are returning the way you came...lifting up up through time and space, coming bac from the inner world...coming up... further and further...floating a nd drifting bac ...coming bac ...bringing you all the way bac into your body n ow, into this room...brining your attention completely bac into this time and p lace...ta e a deep breath and begin to re-orient yourself to the outer world...a nd when you're ready, count to three..., and on the count of three open your eye s,and return feeling relaxed,alert and at peace.

* * * As always, change any of the wording or images in this meditation if it suits your purpose better. The important part is just to finally and completely let go of your intention, so that the energy can be recycled in whatever form the creative force and your own consciousness will allow. Out of this release, new lives, new opportunities, and new magical opportunities are born! MONISM, One Wiccan Perspective Copyright 11/24/92 Durwydd MacTara "Henotheism n. Belief in one god without denying the existence of others." (Amer ican Heritage Second College Dictionary) "Monism n. philos. A metaphysical system in which reality is conceived as a unif ied whole." (American Heritage Second College Dictionary) "Monotheism n. The belief or doctrine that there is only one God." (American Her itage Second College Dictionary) "Pantheism n. 1. The doctrine identifying the Deity with the various forces and wor ings of nature. 2. Belief in and worship of all gods." (American Heritage Se cond College Dictionary) "Polytheism n. The worship of or belief in more than one god." (American Heritag e Second College Dictionary) "To witches, deities manifest in different ways and can be worshipped and contac ted through any form suitable to local conditions and personal needs. Wicca doe s not believe, as do the patriarchal monotheisms, that there is only one correct version of God and that all other God forms are false: the Gods of Wicca are n ot jealous Gods. We therefore worship the personification of the male and femal e principles, the God and the Goddess, recognizing that Gods are aspects of the One God and all Goddesses are different aspects of the one Goddess, and that ult imately these two are reconciled in the one divine essence." (Vivianne Crowley, WICCA: The Old Religion in The New Age,pp. 11-12) Vivianne Crowley, a very capable spo esperson for British Traditional Wicca, ide ntifies the core belief of Wicca (at least BTW) as Monism in the piece quoted ab ove. However, she also opens the door to defining Wicca as duotheistic in princ iple with the subdivision of the monist reality into the praxis of worshiping bo th Lord and Lady. However, there is yet a THIRD level of obscurity in Wiccan Praxis! Most Wiccans worship a threefold Goddess (Maid, Mother, and Crone) and many also worship at least a twofold God. So, are the Wicca REALLY polytheists or perhaps pantheists or even modified Henotheists as some have claimed? Or, perhaps, a new category altogether needs to be invented to accurately describe Wiccan belief and practi ce. One suggestion has been made to add a word to our Thea/Theo-logical lexi con, perhaps "Cthonotheism" (provided we MUST have a "Theism") to describe "Thei stic Wicca". One advantage is that it ma es the assumption of worshipping that which was there to be found and worshipped, NOT a Deity or deities invented in 1

939! (More on this later.) The following is the only published copy of the (Gardnerian) Blessing Prayer tha t I now of.

"In the name of the Lady of the Moon, and the Lord of Death and Resurrection. "In the name of the Mighty Ones of the Four Quarters, the Kings of the Elements. "Blessed be this place, and this time, and they who are now with us." ("Witch Blood! The Diary Of A Witch High Priestess!" by Patricia Crowther in ch apter four (paperbac edition 1974, House Of Collectibles, Inc.).) Courtesy of D avid Piper Airmid (a a Erynn Dar star), a contemporary craft scholar and researcher says of this new (to most of us) name of Ultimate Deity: "Dryghtyn is also the name used for JHVH in some old English bibles. I thin th at was where the term actually originated. I thin I saw a passing reference to it in some boxed comparative translated text in "In Search of the Indo-European s." Grendel, an Asatruar from Seattle suggests the "Dryghtyn" may be an alternative spelling of the Teutonic "Drighten" meaning "Lord". I admit this is interestin g, to me, as the closeness of the linguistic lin between the Old English and Ol d German languages has been a scholarly "fact" widely nown for many years. As a side issue, this might be some evidence that runs contrary to the thesis pu t forth by Aidan Kelly that Gerald Gardner "manufactured" Wicca in 1939. From p ersonal experience, I have found that one unique distinction of the non BTW stra ins of Witchcraft (some times called "FamTrads" of Family Traditions) is the inc orporation of old Christian Imagery, often including ArchAngels for the four dir ections or elements. Though this instance does not include Archangels, it DOES include archaic (and relatively un nown) Christian terminology. If Gardner did discover a remnant of the Old Religion upon which he based his modern reconstruc tion effort, it is this sort of linguistic "artifact" which would have survived. Perhaps a more scholarly investigation than mr. Kelly's will "turn up" more ev idence? Jim Taylor, an Eastern Orthodox Theologian, also ma es two (to me) illuminating statements, concerning "The Dryghtyn Prayer": 1. "'In the name of Dryghtyn, the Ancient Providence, Who was from the beginning and is for eternity, Male and Female, the Original Source of all things; all- nowing, all-pervading, all-powerful; changeless, eternal.' This would be, entirely, an acceptable way of describing God, both for most Jews and for most Christians." AND 2. "'In the name of the Lady of the Moon,

"In the name of Dryghtyn, the Ancient Providence, Who was from the beginning and is for eternity, Male and Female, the Original Source of all things; all- nowing, all-pervading, all-powerful; changeless, eternal.

and the Lord of Death and Resurrection.' The Lord of Death and Resurrection would seem, to any Christian to refer to Jesu s Christ." This evidence of a possible mixing of an older (unrecorded) Christian Prayer may lend further credence to Gardners' claims of building on an older, hidden, trad itional remnant. I, personally, also agree with Mr. Taylors' statement that "the idea of Wicca be ing 'manufactured' in 1939 is far too pat, and ignores a great deal which ought not to be ignored. At the very least, some degree of recognition should be acc orded to the obvious fact that most Wiccan practices and attitudes predate Wicca by considerable periods of time--possibly even millennia". The existence of Monism, Duotheism, and Polytheism simultaneously in the belief structure of Wicca is one good example of one of the Five Mysteries of Wicca, th at of Union. Wicca is a mystery religion, a PARTICIPATORY religion, and much of its symbology must be lived and practiced to have meaning because much of the r eal (some say hidden meaning is based on the nowledge of experience and not the intellectual nowledge of mere logic and conscious thought processes. I am an eclectic Wiccan with strong ties in my beliefs and practice to British T raditional Wicca. I am a Monist, yet I have had strong direct experience with B rigid, Danu, and the Morrigan as well as the Earth Mother and the Horned Lord of the Forests. So my personal answer to the question of "What ind of Theism fit s Theistic Wicca?" is "several, or none; it is not really a valid question in th ose limited terms"! But perhaps the concept of "Chthonotheism" would give a bet ter label to this concept when attempting to discuss the idea of the peculiar th eism unique to Wicca? Blessed Be, Durwydd MacTara Wedding Ceremony The Bard THE ORDER OF SOLEMNIZATION OF MARRIAGE (GENERAL) The Altar shall be dressed with a white cloth, with a Cup, and an unsheathed Swo rd. A small lectern should be provided to the Minister, that he may hold the Swo rd and read the ceremony. One candle shall be unlit upon the altar, and two lit candles shall be provided, to either side. Smaller candles shall be provided to at least the wedding party, and to the whol e congregation, if possible.

MINISTER: Dearly beloved, today you are surrounded by your family, your friends, and your loved ones, all of whom have gathered here tod ay in the sight of the ONE to share your joy and witness your mar riage. Who gives this woman to be wed?

% % % % % %

Ministers ta e Altar Groom and attendants ta e altar Processional music starts Bridesmaids process Bride and father process Bride and father ta e altar

FATHER:

I do.

% (the Bride's father shall give the Bride's hand to the Groom, and then ta e his seat) MINISTER 2: This most sacred of bonds is not to be entered into lightly, but soberly and advisedly, with openness and honesty. I requi re and charge you both now, upon your honors, to disclose any reason o r impediment why you may not be lawfully joined this day. BRIDE/GROOM: By our honors, there are none. % (The Minister shall turn to the congregation and say:)

MINISTER: Li ewise, I charge all of you now, upon your honors, that if any now a reason that these two may not be lawfully joined this day, to spea now or forever hold your peace. % (There shall be a short pause for any response)

MINISTER: (N) and (N), life has no singular meaning so much as it is made up of many meaningful events, some of which may be specifie d and planned for. One of these is Marriage. As you now, no ministe r, no priest, no rabbi, no public official can marry you; you can o nly marry yourselves. By a mutual commitment to love each other and to create an atmosphere of consideration and respect, you can ma e your marriage come to life.

MINISTER 2: On this, the day of your marriage, you stand somewhat apart from all other human beings. You stand within the charmed Circle of your love, and this is as it should be, but love is not meant to be the possession of two people alone. Rather it should serve as a source of common energy, a form in which you can find the strength to live your lives with courage. From this day onward, you must come closer together than ever before, yet your love should give you the strength to stand apart; to see out your own unique des tinies, and to ma e your own special contribution to that which is always a part of us, and more than us. MINISTER: A marriage that lasts is one which is continually develop ing, in which each person is continually developing while growing in understanding of the other. Deep nowledge of another is not s omething that can be achieved in a short time. Real understanding can only develop fully with years of intimacy. This wonderful now ledge of another grows out of really caring for the other so much, that one wants to understand as completely as possible the intrica cies of the other. MINISTER 2: May you be blessed with this deep nowledge of each other through all the days of your lives. Would you now give your vows? BRIDE/GROOM: We will. MINISTER: What to ens do you give that you will eep these vows? BRIDE/GROOM: We give these rings.

% (The rings shall be given to the Minister, who shall ta e them in hand.) MINISTER 2: The ring is used in this ceremony because the Circle is our symbol for Spirit; that which was in the Beginning, is now, and ever shall Be, Love, without end. In this ceremony, it is that love which is deathless and eternal. % (Both Ministers shall join hands, holding the Rings, and shall say:) MINISTER: We as now the Blessing of the One upon these rings. They are bands of silver with the Tree of Life cast in relief upon the ir surfaces. Let the bands represent eternity, love without end, and let the trees represent the nurturement you will share in that Love, now and always. BOTH: And so it is.

% (The Rings shall be ta en by the second Minister.) % (And if it is a Swordfasting, then the Minister shall ta e up the Sword, and flourish it aloft, and then place it point-down in fr ont of him.) % (The Bride and Groom shall face each other, and place their % hands upon the Sword's pommel, with both Ministers placing % their ha nds over the Bride and Groom's.) % (the Minister #2 shall turn to the Groom, and say:) MINISTER 2: (N), repeat after me: (N), I ta e you as my wife. I pledge to share my life openly with you To spea the truth to you in love And to honor and cherish you all the days of our lives. I promise to love and tenderly care for you For better and for worse For richer and for poorer In sic ness and in health In all storms and fair days we may weather together For as long as we both shall live. I promise to respect your needs, To support you in your endeavors And encourage you as an individual Through all the changes of our lives. With these words, I pledge my love.

And with this ring I seal my vows Now and forever. % % (The Groom shall place the Ring upon the Bride's finger.) (The Minister shall then turn to the Bride, and say:)

MINISTER: (N), repeat after me:

(The Groom shall ta e the Ring)

(N), I ta e you as my husband. I pledge to share my life openly with you To spea the truth to you in love And to honor and cherish you all the days of our lives. I promise to love and tenderly care for you For better and for worse For richer and for poorer In sic ness and in health In all storms and fair days we may weather together For as long as we both shall live. I promise to respect your needs, To support you in your endeavors And encourage you as an individual Through all the changes of our lives. With these words, I pledge my love.

And with this ring I seal my vows Now and forever. % (The Bride shall place the Ring upon the Groom's finger.)

(Both Ministers shall then say:)

MINISTER: May you never hunger. MINISTER #2: May you never thirst. % (Here there may be an interlude of music)

MINISTER 2: At this time, I would li e to spea of some of the things that many of us wish for you. First, we wish for you a Love that ma es you both better people, That continues always to give you joy And a zest for living, And provides you with the energy to face the responsibili ties of life. We wish for you a Home, not a place of stone or wood, but an island of serenity and sanity. We hope that this Home is not just a place of private joy and retreat, But rather serves as a Castle wherein the values of your l ife and family are generated and upheld. We hope your home stands as a symbol of humans living together in Love and peace, See ing Truth and nurturement each other. through

We hope that it has within it the elements of Simplicity, Exuberance, Beauty, Silence, Color and a concordance with the Rhythms of Life. We wish for you a Home with Boo s, Poetry and Music, For a home with all the things that represent the highest striv men and women.

(The Bride shall ta e the Ring)

ings Of

Finally, we wish that your lives be blessed with Spiritual Abundance, and that your spiritual involvement be enhanced through This marriage. % say:) (The Minister shall turn to the congregation, and shall

MINISTER: Let us all stand together for the closing benediction, and the passing of the Light. % (The congregation shall stand. The Bride and Groom shall go % to the Altar and light the single candle from their candles, % and then shall light their attendant's candles, and shall % light the candle s of the first person in each row of the % congregation. They shall then return to the altar, and % extinguish their candles, placin g them on the altar, and % return to their place before the Ministe rs.) MINISTER 2: May we all recognize that the Presence of the One has already blessed you with the presence of each other. Keep in your rem emberance the sacredness of this trust and the love that nows no en d. May that Peace, which passes all human understanding abide with you now, and for always. BOTH: And so it is.

MINISTER 2: And forasmuch as (N) and (N) have expressed their desire to be husband and wife, showing their love and affection by joining hands, and have made promises of faith and devotion, each to the othe r, and have sealed these promises by giving and receiving of rings: MINISTER: In the presence of this company of witnesses, by virtue of my sacred stewardship and the power vested in me by the Arizona, I now pronounce you Husband and Wife. You may iss the Bride. % (The Bride and Groom shall then recess from the altar, % followed by their attendants. The congregation shall be % by rows.) % (Here ends the Order Of Solemnization Of Marriage (General) Weasel Wicca: a Toon Trad by fara Shimbo, Diane Darling and the European Land Otters (Green Egg, Issue 95, Yule '91, p. 21.) The Great Mothers of this tradition are Galanthus, who was turned into a w easel for lying to Juno; and Eris, both Goddess and Ferret incarnate, who are IN CHARGE. This is the Holy Sacred Oath of the Weasel Tradition: "I don't believe anything unless I want to. My mind is subject to change within reason and without notification at any time. We will always have Paris. (But not paris of sox.) I can do without my soc s. Other than that there are absolutely no absolutes." Sacred Objects of the Weasel tradition include: * A Floppy Witch Hat (double sided, single density) State of

released

In order to be initiated into the Weasel Tradition, a new berser er must: * Co-habit with a Ferret; at least one. * Acquire your tools in a somewhat less-than-entirely-scrupulous mannerstopping short of Genuine Theft. Use your imagination. * Sacrifice a Soc to Galanthus. It must be a good Soc , one you wouldn' t otherwise throw away, and you must have the other one in your possession. * Ba e some holy Fhood, with Weasel Help, which includes raisins and cho colate chips. * Write a ritual containing at least three things which are obviously or blatantly lifted, word for word, from somewhere else. Anywhere else. * Let a weasel lic your lips while you sing: The Weasel Help Song: Everyone needs Weasel help, Weasel Help, Weasel Help Everyone needs Weasel help, to get them through the day! I don't need no Weasel Help, Weasel Help, Weasel Help, I don't need no Weasel Help, no matter what you say! The Sacred Holidays of the Weasel tradition are any holidays which have eve n the slightest thing to do with Fhood. A Weasel Wiccan Witual ====================== Participants in floppy witch hats enter, bearing the Holy Fhood and Drin h. Arrange tastefuly around altar area. Prominent should be the Golden Apple of Eris, which is set upon the altar by itself. Call Watchtowers, lighting quarter candles at each. Suggestion invocations: EAST, being Air, signifies media and mass communications. Invite the Marx b rothers, Firesign Theatre, Douglas Adams, and Robert Anton Wilson, and, of cours e, the Illuminati, as representatives of Chaos. (Squeeze squea y toys) SOUTH, for Fire, signifies fidelity to ideals. I suggest John Lennon and ou r witch ancestors, whose bravery in defense of the Sacred Right To Be Strange le d to the ultimate sacrifice. May we be as brave, but luc ier. (Hide the Matches. ) WEST, for Water, signifies here the Waters of Life, ie: Bhooze. Invite W.C. Fields along with Dionysius and Osiris (inventors of wine and beer, respectivel y.) (Slug some eggnog.) NORTH, for Earth, signifies the Ultimate Mystery: Life, the Universe and Ev erything. Toast the Mystery itself and invite it to relax, ta e off its cloa an d join us for awhile. (Hide a coo ie.) And to provide a fifth point: SKY, for Eris, Our Mother, Lady Luc Herself, Lady of Chaos and Dealer of the Inside Straight. Hold up the Golden Apple, hail

* * * * * * *

The nearest operational refrigirator Dirty Soc s Tubes made of cardboard or plastic Rubber erasers and squea y toys Loud plastic bag and ping pong balls The Golden Apple of Eris Sil Top hat.

Her enthusiastically and invite Her to the party. Close the Circle, which is, of course, semi-permiable to weasel- ind. Light altar candle; assume *ahem* serious demeanor. Whoever is to read, don sil hat and drape a soc for a priest's vestement. Proceed: "For unto us is born a Saviour, who is Coyote, Pan, lo i, Raven, Dionysius, and Robin Hood; to save us all from Santa's power when we have come t o play, o tiding of chocolate and toys. And Io, neither is his Mother a Virgin, for She believeth in a good time. And when He came forth, She wrapped him in a N ational Enquirer and cradled him in her top hat, which holdeth all the stars of all the s ies plus 500 foolproof card tric s; and the Wise came to Marvel (and t o DC) because indeed and forsooth, they new trouble when they beheld it." And Eris, the Great and Terrible, said to her son: "Kid, this is a special occasion; how should we celebrate?" And the Tiny One spo e, surprising all but the Mother of the Unexpected: "let's have lots of Fhood, and create the most chaotic and demented animal of all to play with. And since I have a feeling that this party will be repeate d many, many times, let's ma e that a rule: anyone celebrating My birthday shoul d do the same. For I am the Glitch and the Song and the Gambler's Luc , and I lo ve Surprises--which will never be lac ing with Them around. Let them do this in honor of Me." And Eris was pleased and created The Weasel (hold one up). "This is the Sacred Weasel, beloved little monster, honored pest, dearest of Holy Terrors and Agent of Entropy Everywhere. May it always remind us that Er is and the Kid love Surprises." (Hold up plate of coo ies:) "This is the Holy Fhood; we share it in Their names, and with the wish that we should always eep Life as interesting and stra nge as possible." (Hold up Holy Bhooze:) "This is the Holy Spi ed Eggnog; we share in with t he understanding that reality can always use a little bending." Share all, general hailing, toasts, silliness, woozle snoozling, tric s an d demonstration of weasel arranging. Guard honored guests of all species from ov erindulging in and/or diving into eggnog. Songs excellent idea. Open circle whenever you feel li e it. ================================================================= Fara Shimbo, an ethologist living outside Boulder, Colorado with her husband Rob ert, ferret, Ruby, Siamese cat, mong, and Thoroughbred Hunter, Oficial Dude (AKA Chewie). She is main honcho of _Ferret unity and Registration Organization (FUR O)_, a weasle warrior of re nown and author of "The Ferret Boo " (see review GE8 3) and, with Bill Phillips, of _Ferrets and the New Inquisition_, published by t he California Domestic Ferret Association (Box 1861, healdsburg, CA 95448. She i s editor-in-chief of _The Weasle Help Monthly_, (wonderful!) newsmagazine of FUR O, available by joining FURO, PO Box 18193, greensboro, NC 27419. This is the story of Rabbit. A long time ago- No one nows how long ago it was-- rabbit was a brave and fearl ess warrior. Rabbit was befriended by Eye Wal er, a witch. The witch and Rabbit spent much time together sharing and tal ing. One day Eye Wal er and rabbit were wal ing along and the sat down on the trail to rest. Rabbit said "I'm thirsty." Eye Wal er pic ed up a leaf and blew o n it... it turned into a gourd of water... he handed it to Rabbit. Rabbit dran

the water and didn't say anything. Than he said "I am hungry" Eye wal er pic ed up a stone and blew on it... it turned into a turnip. She gave the turnip to Rappit... He tasted it and than ate the turnip with relis h... but didn't say anything. The two continued top, rabbit tripped and y sad condition when Eye heal his great pain and

Several days later Eye Wal er went searching for her friend. She searched high and love but Rabbit was nowhere to be found. Finally Eye Wal er gave up. She met Rabbit quite by accident one day. "R abbit, why are you hiding and avoiding me?" the witch as ed. "because I am afriad of you. I am afraid of magic ," Answered Rabbit, cow ering in fear. "Leave me alone!" "I see." Said Eye Wal er. "I have used my magical powers on your behalf a nd now you turn on me and refuse my friendship." "I want nothing more to do with you or your powers," Rabbit countered. H e did not even see the tears his words were bringing to Eye Wal ers eye's. "I ho pe we never meet and that I never see you again." Rabbit continued. "Rabbit" Eye wal er said. "We once were great friends and companions, but no more. It is within my power to destroy you, but because of the past and the medicines we have shared together I will not do this. But from this day on I lay a curse on you and your tribe. From now on, you will call fears and your fears will come to you. Be on your way, for the sweet medicines that bound us together as friends are now bro en." Modern Wiccan Concepts based in Literary Satanism By: Diane Vera As I pointed out to Warren Grant in the PAGAN echo recently, Charles G. Leland mentions Michelet in the Appendix to _Aradia:_ _Gospel_of_the_Witches_: "Now be it observed, that every leading point which forms the plot or centre of this _Vangel_ [...] had been told or written out for me in fragments by Maddalena (not to mention other authorities), even as it had been chronicled by Horst or Michelet" (pp.101-102, 1974 Weiser paperbac edition). . In _A_History_of_Witchcraft_, Jeffrey B. Russell writes: "Michelet's argument that witchcraft was a form of social protest was adapted later by Marxists; his argument that it was based on a fertility cult was adopted by anthropologists at the turn of the century, influenig Sir James Frazer's _Golden_Bough_, Jessie Weston's _From_Ritual_to_Romance_, Magaret Murray's _WitchCult_in_Western_Europe_, and indirectly T.S. Eliot's _The_Waste_Land_" (_A_History_of_Witchcraft_, p.133). . Russell states further: "Neopagan witchcraft has roots in the tradition of Michelet, who argued that European witchcraft was the survival of an ancient religion. This idea influenced Sir James Frazer and a number of other anthropologists and writers in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The publication of

along the trail, which fell and rolled almost Wal er got to him. She mend his bro en bones.

led into the mountains. Near the to the bottom. Rabbit was in ver used a magic salve on Rabbit to Rabbit didn't say anything.

Charles Leland's _Aradia_ in 1899 was an important step in the evolution of the new religion of witchcraft. [...] The doctrines and practices of the witches as reported by Leland are a melange of sorcery, medieval heresy, witch-craze concepts, and political radicalism, and Leland reports ingenuously that this is just what he expected, since it fitted with what he had read in Michelet" (Russell, p.148). . As far as I now, it's possible that Michelet's influence on Gardner was only indirect, via the other above-named writers. This would not invalidate my point, which is that Michelet played a ey role in the development of the ideas in question. . Michelet has had a more direct influence on feminist Goddess religion than on Wicca proper. Michelet's _La_Sorciere_ (_Satanism_and_Witchcraft_) is listed in the bibliography of _Woman,_Church,_and_State_ by Matilda Gage (19th-century Women's Suffrage leader and the founder of pre-Wiccan feminist Goddess religion) and, more recently, in _Witches,_Midwives,_and_Nurses:_ _A_History_of_Women_Healers_ by Barbara Ehrenreich and Dierdre English (1973). . In my opinion, Michelet's most important contribution to both Wicca and feminist Goddess religion was that, as far as I now, he was the first well- nown writer (in recent centuries, anyway) to use the word "Witch" (capital W) with its present-day positive connotations of healing and opposition to tyranny. Intro to Satanism By: Diane Vera As promised in the PAGAN RELIGIOUS STUDIES echo, here's my brief introductory essay on Satanism (though Corwynt won't be seeing it, alas). I'll confine myself to discussing _serious_occultists_ who identify as Satanists. I have no interest in the teen-age gluesniffing "Satin rulz" crowd, who are into "Satanism" as a way to shoc the grown-ups, and who usually (as far as I now) outgrow it. Nor am I interested in criminals who say the Devil made them do it (often, I suspect, as a way to get themselves declared insane). . Since I don't now how much you don't now, perhaps I should start with the usual elementary disclaimers: . (a) Most Satanists do not thin of themselves as "worshipping evil". Satan is associated with a variety of human traits and magic( )al energies which Christianity traditionally considers "evil", but which the Satanists themselves do not consider "evil" -- though some Satanists may describe themselves as "evil" in an ironic sense. . (b) In what there is of a Satanist subculture (for serious occultists), nobody advocates sacrificing animals or babies, sexually abusing children, or other horrific activities described in fundamentalist propaganda. As Anton LaVey explains in _The_Satanic_Bible_, such activities serve no useful magic( )al purpose. . (c) Although Satan is, obviously, a figure from Christian mythology (derived from Judaism and Zoroastrianism), Satanism is not just "reverse Christianity". I have yet to meet even one Satanist who

believed in Christian theology, or a simple reversal thereof. (I've heard that such Satanists do exist, but they don't seem to be part of the organized Satanist scene.) All Satanists I've ever encountered have some alternative explanation of who/what Satan is. . There are many alternative explanations and, correspondingly, many different inds of Satanism. Following is a list of _some_ of the many different possible interpretations of who/what Satan is: . (1) Satan is the Christian-era guise of some pre-Christian deity, e.g. Set or Pan. . (2) Satan is not a real entity at all, but just a symbol of human individuality, pride, thin ing for oneself, sensuality, etc. . (3) Satan is an actual discarnate intelligence, and is the bringer of wisdom in a form of Gnosticism with the Christian "God" cast as the Demiurge. This idea is based on a form of Gnosticism that actually existed in the early centuries C.E., which venerated the serpent of the Garden of Eden myth. . (4) Satan is not an actual discarnate, sentient being, but is more than just a symbol. Satan is, at the very least, today's most powerful magic( )al egregore. "Satan" is present-day society's number-one magic( )al Name of Power. (5) Satan is an impersonal "Dar Force in Nature". . (6) Satan is one of many gods, all of whom are in some sense real. There is no one all-powerful "God" li e the Christian idea of "God". There are many gods who are powerful, but not all-powerful. . Of the above possiblities, my own personal beliefs lean toward a combination of interpretations #4, 5, and 6. The Church of Satan, founded in 1966 C.E. by Anton LaVey, usually espouses interpretation #2 and sometimes #5. The Temple of Set is into _something_li e_ (but not quite) a combination of #1 and #3. La> If you haven't been around other satanists, how do you now La> what is being practiced, is what you would do? I could call La> myself a Dianic Wiccan, but what I might practice is not what La> is generally practiced...and there is no way for me to really La> learn "right way" from "wrong way". . It doesn't matter. Satanism isn't really just one religion, but a category of religions, some of which are radically different from each other. (See my message to Deborah Kest on "Satanism 101".) Since most forms of Satanism do celebrate individuality, the lac of standardization is just fine, in my opinion. The only "right way" or "wrong way" has to do with _what_wor s_, and this will vary from one individual to another. . La> The reason you are being "punished" I thin ostracized<SP?> is La> a better word, is that most Satanists, and people who follow La> left-handed Magic /spirituality (fol s I now it is not a fair La> term, but it wor s for this arguement) are considered by many La> of us the true enemies of Spiritualism that we would practice. . The term "Left-Hand Path" is OK. We use it too. You and I would

probably define it very differently, however. What's your definition? . La> Even more than Christaniaty fol s who follow your system of La> believes are very differnt than we. Pagan and Christanity, La> have very similar ideas and ethics, and while not at all La> tolerant of each other (generally) can live and let live. La> Satanists et.all on the other hand, have such a different view La> of life, love and the pursuit of the Divine, it is hard for us La> to accept you into our midsts. . Could you please be more specific? _What_ do you see as the similarities between neo-Paganism and Christianity? . I too see some profound differences between Satanism and neoPaganism. And I too see enough similarities between neo-Paganism and Christianity that one can meaningfully use a term li e "RightHand Path", which includes both Christianity and neo-Paganism but not Satanism. But I _also_ see some profound similarities between Satanism and neo-Paganism (especially Wicca) as well, which set them both apart from Christianity. For example, Satanism and Wicca-based Paganism are both much more tolerant toward sexual variety than Christianity traditionally is. (To be more exact, Wicca is _now_ tolerant toward sexual variety, though there was a time when it was quite homophobic.) And in general, Satanism and Wicca-based Paganism both emphasize individuality in ways that Christianity doesn't. . Also, as I've discussed at length both here and in the PAGAN and PAGAN RELIGIOUS STUDIES echoes, Satanism and most forms of neoPaganism (especially Wicca) are both part of the family of modern Western magic( )al religions, with many common roots and many basic magic( )al concepts in common. We have natural reasons to be part of the same magic( )al community (e.g. occult boo stores and this computer networ ). It would be much more pleasant for everyone concerned if neo-Pagans could get used to Satanists, because you are going to eep running into more and more of us whether you li e it or not. Satanism, A Personal Definition By Delphine Please eep in mind that Satanism is a *very* individualistic religion, and if you as ed 50 Satanists what Satanism is, you'd probably get 60 different responses. As a solitaire Satanist, I'll have a go at this.. but I'm p retty bad at trying to summarize what I believe, so please feel free to as me q uestions. For me, these are the most important things I believe as a Satanist: *I believe in Satan as a literal entity. Many other Satanists do not, esp. those from the LaVey school of thought. *Satan is NOT a fallen angel, or a lesser created being, but instead a deity with as much power (for lac of a better word) as any other. He is the Sha dow, a Destroying Deity.. and by such destruction,he purifies, for death of anyt hing leads the way for rebirth. He is a symbol of rebellion, of pride, and of ri ghteous anger. He brings freedom, in many different ways.

* My first care is to myself, for if I am unable to serve myself, I have no basi s by which to judge the actions of others. I strive for excellence, in a sense, very close to what Setians call "Xeper". *I believe in free will, with the understanding that "with freedom comes respons ibility". I do not accept the threefold law, or any specific prohibitions li e " harm none". In relating to others, I use the rule "do unto others AS they do unt o you". If I am harmed or treated with dishonor, I will not continue to treat su ch persons in a way that is more than they deserve. Revenge, at the proper time and in a fitting manner, is acceptable behavior. If there are consequences to su ch revenge, I will accept them responsibly. *I will endeavor to be honorable about my own actions, and I will expect the sam e behavior from others. *I see Satan in Nature, in the floods, hurricanes, volcanoes, and tidal waves. I see fundamental laws in Nature, that death is as necessary as life. I am humbled and empowered by this, for though it blindly destroys, it is yet a part of me, as deity is immanent and transcendant to me. Satan the transcendant is that excellence that I strive for, Satan the immanent is the spar in me that strives. * I am polytheistic. The divine, to me, is li e a jewel with many facets, each a part of us, each with something to teach us. No such lesson, to me , is greater or lesser than any other; but are instead more or less appropriate for a person at a given time. There is a great deal more I could say, and in greater detail, but this covers a large part of Satanism to me. Of course, I'm sure that Diane Vera, Sheryl, Bala none, and others will have different beliefs than I do. It seems that individual ism and personal pride seem to be the lin between most serious Satanists. -Qapla' Delphine The Wiccan Rede (WCC)

Bide ye Wiccan laws ye must, in perfect love and perfect trust Live ye must and let to live, fairly ta e and fairly give Form the circle thrice about, to eep unwelcome spirits out To bind the spell well every time, let the spell be spa e in rhyme Soft of eye and light of touch, spea ye little, listen much Deosil go by the waxing moon, sing and dance the Wiccan rune Widdershins go by the waning moon, chanting out the baleful tune When the Lady's moon is new, iss the hand to her times two When the moon rides at Her pea , then the heart's desire see Heed the north wind's mighty gale, loc the door and trim the sail When the wind comes from the south,

love will iss iss thee on the mouth When the wind blows from the west, departed souls will have no rest When the wind blows from the east, expect the new and set the feast Nine woods in the cauldron go, burn them quic and burn them slow Elder be the Lady's tree, burn it not or cursed you'll be When the wheel begins to turn, soon the Beltain fires will burn When the wheel has turned to Yule, light the log the Horned One rules Heed ye flower, bush and tree, by the Lady blessed be Where the rippling waters flow, cast a stone and the truth you'll now When you have and hold a need, hear en not to others' greed With a fool no season spend, nor be counted as his friend Merry meet and merry part, bright the chee s and warm the heart Mind the threefold law ye should, three times bad and three times good When misfortune is anow, wear the star upon thy brow True in love you must ever be, lest thy love be false to thee These eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill, An Ye Harm None, Do What Ye Will Orphic invocations of Goddess & God Bright Blessings to all... Here are invocations to the Goddess and God that I have used quite successfully in ritual. They are from the Orphic Hymns, for those who li e historical accuracy, but have been updated just a tad, for those who li e ritual with modern applications. Hope you enjoy them. Invocation to the Goddess Divine are Your honors, Oh Mother of the Gods and Nurturer of All. Yo e your swift chariot drawn by bull-slaying lions and, O Mighty Goddess who brings things to pass, join our prayers. Many named and reverend, You are the Queen of the S y. In the cosmos, Your throne is above all others, for You are Queen of the Earth, and You give gentle nourishment to mortals. Goddesses, Gods, and mortals were born of You, And You hold sway over the rivers and all of the sea. Hestia, Gaia, Demeter, Inanna, Isis, Astarte, Ishtar, Persephone, Diana, Giver of prosperity who bestows upon mortals all manner of gifts, Come to this Rite, Queen whom the drum delights. Honored and loving Nurturer of Life, Joyfully and graciously visit our deeds of piety. Blessed Be. Invocation to the God

Hear Our Prayer, O best and Many-Named God. Fine-haired, solitary, and full of lovely song; Many shaped and noble nurturer of all, Maiden and yout in one, unwithering bloom, O Adonis You vanish and grow again in the fair seasons' turn. Kurnunnos, Pan, Myrddhn, two horned Spirit of growth and blooming; Much loved and wept for are you, O Fair and Youthful Hunter of the luxuriant mane. Desire is in Your mind and You come to the Goddess in reverence and respect, in sensuous joy is your desire fulfilled You are the seed planted in the depths of the Underworld That springs forth, the Green God, that we may sustain our lives. You sacrifice Yourself in gentleness when you are grown. Come Kind-Hearted One, Come Blesseed God, and bring much joy to all. Blessed Be. Hope you find these beneficial... Briget Bless...Phaedra. EAST (INVOCATION) Facing East: Guardians of the watchtower of the east, we do summon, stir, and call th ee up to protect us in our rite. Come to us now on the cool breath of Autumn's s igh which heralds the advent of Winter and the close of harvest time. Breathe into us the spirit of the pure joy of life. So mote it be! Responsorial: So mote it be! AIR (invocation) (Celebrant with the incense burner symbolizing the element of air) : "I am everywhere. I fill the fleshy pouches of your lungs, I stir all t hings from the smallest blade of grass to the tallest tree. I cool you with my b reezes and destroy you with my storms. Without me you would die. Am I not holy and worthy of praise? " EAST (BANISHMENT) Facing East: "Guardians of the watchtower of the east, return now to the bris Autumn breezes which are brimming with the excitement of the year's climax. Ta e with you our blessings and than s. Hail and farewell! Responsorial: Hail and farewell! SOUTH (invocation) Facing South: Guardians of the watchtower of the south, we do summon, stir, and call t

hee up to protect us in our rite. Come forth from the coo fires and smo ehouse s where food is being made ready for the coming cold months. Kindle within us t he flame of spiritual awa ening. So mote it be! Responsorial: So Mote it Be! FIRE (invocation) (Celebrant with the candle symbolizing the element of fire): "I live in the guarded embers of campfires and the pilot lights of stove s, I spring from the lightning and the hands of men, I warm you and I destroy yo u. Without me you would die. Am I not holy and worthy of praise? " SOUTH (banishing) Facing South: "Guardians of the watchtower of the south, return now to the dying fires of Autumn's heat soon to give way to Winter's chill. Ta e with you o ur blessings and than s. Hail and farewell! Responsorial: Hail and farewell WEST (invo ing) Facing West: Guardians of the watchtower of the west, we do summon, stir, and call th ee up to protect us in our rite. Come forth from the rainbow hued morning dew t hat covers the fields, and is soon to be frost. Asperge us with your diadems an d water our deepest roots that we may find peace of mind. So mote it be! Responsorial: So mote it be! WATER (invocation) (Celebrant with the water vessel symbolizing the element of water): "I rise from the moist crevices of the Earth, I beat on the shores of Her body, I fall from the s ies in silver sheets. Without me you would die. Am I not holy and worthy of praise? " (Celebrant asperges the circle with water) Facing West: "Guardians of the watchtower of the west, return now to the Autumn rains which cool the Earth's fevered brow ba ed in the heat of Summer aft ernoons. Ta e with you our blessings and than s. Hail and farewell! Responsorial: Hail and farewell! NORTH (invo ing) Facing North: Guardians of the watchtower of the north, we do summon, stir, and call t hee up to protect us in our rite. Come forth from the fertile bosom of our Bles sed Mother Earth, and nourish us so that our hopes may grow to fruition. So mot e it be! Responsorial: So mote it be! EARTH (invocation)

WEST (banishing)

(Celebrant with the salt vessel symbolizing the element of earth): "I am your Mother. From me come the fruit and grain and animals which f eed you. I am your support, and my pull on your bodies eeps you held firmly to me. Without me you would die. Am I not holy and worthy of praise? " NORTH (banishing) Facing North: Guardians of the watchtowers of the north, return now to the Earth where worms burrow deeper and seeds nestle awaiting the long sleep of Winter. Ta e w ith you our blessings and than s. Hail and farewell! Responsorial: Hail and farewell! Wiccan History Wicca is a relatively modern attempt (approximately 50 years old) at rev iving and reconstructing the old pre-Christian religions of Europe. In a mythop oetic sense it is many centuries old. However, the Witch of 200 years ago would not recognize what is called "witchcraft" today. Modern Wicca may have some of its roots in some of the local fol -magic and "family witchcraft" of mid 20th C entury England. It does have traceable roots in the Golden Dawn magical society of late 19th century England, some of Aleister Crowley's magic al wor and some Ceremonial Magic dating bac to Elizabethan times. For a modern history of Engl ish Wicca, the reader can most profitably consult the wor s of Janet and Stuart Farrar and Doreen Valiente. PREHISTORY Up until recently, the earliest nown remnants of human society that giv e us any clues to the spiritual dimension of prehistoric man are those belonging to the Gravettian-Aurignacian cultures of 2500-1500 B.C.E. This is called the Upper Paleolithic Period. Though most of the sites so far discovered have been found in Europe, a very important site in Anatolia (modern Tur ey) has also been found and is the (so far) the first or oldest City of Catal Huyu (pronounced c hatal Hoo-Yoo ),they form a conjectural foundation for the religion of the godde ss as it emerged in the later Neolithic Age of the Near East. There have been numerous studies of these Paleolithic cultures, including extensive explorations of the sites occupied by these peoples, including the apparent rites connected with the disposal of their dead. The earliest remains of ancient civilization indicating some form of God dess worship were in the caves in Lascaux, France. Here, the first and earliest non-anthropomorphic divine figures were symbolized by the horse for female Divi nity and the Bison as the male divine influence. This portion of the cave was p ainted in approximately 17,000 B.C.E. and sealed approximately 10,000 B.C.E. Th e anthropomorphic Goddess figures appear sometime approximately 7,000 B.C.E. The earliest remains in Catal Huyu have been reliably carbon dated to 6,500 B.C. a nd show some interesting parallels in that the horse was replaced with an anthro pomorphic goddess and the Bison (an ice age animal) has been replaced with the a urochs bull, ancestor of modern cattle. The anthropomorphic Goddess is an Earth Mother and the nearby volcanoes (then active) were considered her breasts.1 One major conjecture has been that the concept of the creator of all hum an life may have been formulated by the clan's image of women. The reasoning be hind this conjecture lies in the observations in this century of the few remaini ng Paleolithic type cultures. These Paleolithic cultures tend to be woman cente red since it is from the women that babies come and the women are absolutely ess ential for the continuation of the tribe or clan. Current information also indi

cates that it is also probable that the mother was regarded as the sole (or at l east primary) parent of children in this culture, and that there was a definite pattern of ancestor worship. It is also very probable that ancestry was matrili neal. The most tangible evidence that these very ancient cultures and their p redecessors worshipped a goddess is the numerous sculptures of women found throu ghout most of Europe and the Near east. Some of these sculptures date as far b ac as 25,000 B.C.E.! Small female figurines, made of stone, bone and clay (mos t seemingly pregnant) have been found throughout the widespread Gravettian-Aurig nacian sites as far apart as Spain, France, Germany, Austria, and Russia spannin g an apparent period of at least 10,000 years. Erich Neumnann, in "The Great Mo ther" (p.95) says- "Of the Stone Age sculptures nown to us, there are fifty-fiv e female figures and only five male figures. The male figures, of youths, are a typical and poorly executed, hence it is certain that they had no significance f or the cult. This fits in with the secondary character of the male godhead, who appeared only later in the history of religions and derived his divine ran fro m his mother, the Goddess." Johannes Maringer, in his boo the "Gods of Prehistoric Man" says- "it a ppears highly probable then that the female figurines were idols of a Great Moth er cult, practiced by the non-nomadic Aurignacian mammoth hunters who inhabited the immense Eurasian territories that extended from Southern France to La e Bai al in Siberia." It was from the La e Bai al area in Siberia that tribes are be lieved to have migrated across the Bering land bridge to North America about thi s time period, and formed the nucleus of what was to become the race of North Am erican Indians. In some primitive societies nown to history, the male role in procreation was not nown. Intercourse and pregnancy both begin with puberty, a nd there was no evident reason to regard one as the cause of the other. Women w ere believed to conceive from the light of the moon or from ancestral spirits. Neolithic cultures have left a bit more evidence for study and the image s are a bit clearer and less speculative. One good instance of this is the sto ne age painting of a priestess officiating over a group of worshippers along wit h a male wearing a horned headdress. An interesting point here is that the prie stess pictured is wearing a garter and wielding a ceremonial dagger, much li e t he ones used in modern witchcraft. Of course much has been made of this, includ ing a lot of unfounded speculations on the "ancient connections" of modern witch craft, but that is a topic beyond the scope of the present wor . The beginnings of Roman religion are sure to have been based on the Etruscan culture. Ancesto r worship was the earliest form of religion in Rome. Another interesting fact r elating to ancient Matrilineal forms influencing present society is reflected in the Jewish custom current today that membership comes from the mother's side of a marriage. The above mentioned goddess images, some as old as 7000 BC, offer silent testimony to the most ancient worship of a great goddess in the land that is mo st often remembered today as the homeland of Judaism and Christianity. In explo ring the influence and importance of the worship of the Goddess in Canaan in bib lical times, we find that as Ashtoreth, Asherah (perhaps the origin of the tribe of Asher?), Astarte, Attoret, Anath, or simply as Elat or Baalat, she was the p rincipal deity of such great Canaanite cities as Tyre, Sidon, Ascalon, Beth Anat h, Aphaca, Byblos, and Ashtoreth Karnaim. In Egypt, the Hebrews had nown the worship of the Goddess as Isis or Hathor. For four generations they had been living in a land where women held a very high status and the matrilineal descent system continued to function at most periods.

Judging from the number of Hebrews who emerged from Egypt in the Ex odus, as compared with the family of the twelve sons who supposedly entered it f our generations earlier, it seems li ely that a great number of those Hebrews n own as Israelites may actually have been Egyptians, Canaanites, Semitic nomads a nd other Goddess-worshipping peoples who had joined together in Egypt. Archaeol ogical records and artifacts reveal that the religion of the Goddess still flour ished in many of the cities of Canaan long after the Hebrews invaded. What are some of the modern day applications of this long history of God dess worship? For an answer to this, let's loo at an encapsulation of the "her story" of the legend of the Universal Goddess as taught to the new entrants to t he Faerie Tradition in 20th Century America. According to the legends of the Faerie, Witchcraft and magic began more than 35 thousand years ago, when the last ice age in europe began and small ban ds of nomadic hunters followed the free-running reindeer and bison herds. They were armed with but primitive weapons ( Stone Age, remember?), and had to lure o r chase the animals over a cliff or into a pit to ill and eat them. As Starhaw says,"...some among the clans were gifted, could "call" the herds to a cliff s ide or a pit, where a few beasts,in willing sacrifice, would let themselves be t rapped." As the last ice age retreated the tribes of nomadic hunters worshipped t he Goddess of the Wild Things and Fertility and the God of the Hunt.Semipermanen t homes were set up in caves carved out by the glaciers. Shamans and Shaman a c onducted rites within hard to reach portions of the caves, which were painted w ith scenes of the hunt, magical symbols and the tribes totem animals. The transition from Hunter-Gatherers to agriculturists was reflected in the change of the "Lady of the Wild Things and Fertility" to the "Barley Mother" and the "God of the Hunt" to the "Lord of the Grain". The importance of the ph ases of the moon and the sun was reflected in the rituals that evolved around so wing, reaping, and letting out to pasture. Villages grew into towns and cities and society changed from tribal to c ommunal to urban. Paintings on the plastered walls of shrines depicted the Godd ess giving birth to the Divine Child - Her son, consort and seed. The Divine Ch ild was expected to ta e a special interest in the city dwellers, just as His Mo ther and Father had ta en an interest in the people who lived away from the citi es. Mathematics, astronomy, poetry, music, medicine, and the understanding of t he wor ings of the human mind, developed side by side with the lore of the deepe r mysteries. Far to the east, nomadic tribes devoted themselves to the arts of war an d conquest. Wave after wave of invasion swept over Europe from the Bronze Age o nward. Warrior gods drove the Goddess' people out from the fertile lowlands and the fine temples, into the hills and high mountains, where they became nown as the Sidhe, the Picts or Pixies, and the Fair Fol or the Fairies. The mytholog ical cycle of Goddess and Consort, Mother and Child, which had held sway for 30, 000 years was changed to conform to the values of the conquering patriarchies. In Canaan, Yahweh fought a bloody battle to ensure that his followers ha d "no other gods before me." The Goddess was given a masculine name and assigne d the role of a false god. Along with the suppression of the Goddess, women los t most of the rights they had previously enjoyed. In Greece, the Goddess in Her many aspects, was "married" to the new god s resulting in the Olympic Pantheon. The Titans, who the Olympians displaced we re more in touch with the primal aspects of the Goddess.

The victorious Celts in Gaul and the British Isles, adopted many feature s of the Old Religion and incorporated them into the Druidic Mysteries. The Fae rie, breeding cattle in the stony hills and living in turf-covered round huts pr eserved the Craft. They celebrated the eight feasts of the Wheel of the Year wi th wild processions on horsebac , singing and chanting along the way and lightin g ritual bonfires on the mountaintops. It was said that the invaders often join ed in the revels and many rural families, along with some royalty, could claim t o have Faerie blood. The College of the Druids and the Poetic Colleges of Irela nd and Wales were said to have preserved many of the old mysteries. *** In the late 1400's the Catholic Church attempted to obliterate its compe titors, and the followers of the Old Religion were forced to "go underground." They bro e up into small groups called Covens and, isolated from each other, for med what would later be nown as the Family Traditions. Inevitably, parts of t he Craft were forgotten or lost and what survives today is fragmentary. After nearly five centuries of persecution and terror, came the Age of D isbelief. Memory of the True Craft had faded as non-members who could rememb er how they once had met openly died and those who came after never new of them . All that was left were the hideous stereotypes which were ludicrous, laugh able or just plain tragic. With the repeal of the last Witchcraft Act in Englan d in 1954, the Craft started to re-emerge as an alternative to a world that view ed the planet as a resource to be exploited. Janet and Stewart Farrar, in the introduction to The Witches Goddess say of the modern re-emergence of the Goddess " ..may well prove to be one of the m ost significant spiritual, psychic and psychological developments of our lifetim e". They have since done a wonderful job of presenting an overview of the ascen dancy and history of the expression of the masculine principle of deity as e pre ssed by Male God-forms and Gods with their boo The Witches' God. What do the F arrars consider this "masculine principle" to be? "...it represents the linear-l ogical,analyzing, fertilizing aspect, with its emphasis on Ego-consciousness and individuality, while the feminine principle represents the cyclical-intuitive, synthesizing, formative, nourishing aspect, with its emphasis on the riches of t he unconscious, both Personal and Collective, and on relatedness." As man ind started to develop his cultures in directions that were more male dependent in the nature of the cultures, the emphasis in religion shifted t o become more male god than female goddess oriented. As this happened, the Godd ess(es) lost ground to the God(s). At first, the female aspect merely became sec ondary to the male, but eventually the male too over and dominated to the total exclusion of the female, particularly in western society as we now it today. " The first major god-form to claim a monopoly of divinity was the Hebrew Yahweh, from which in due course sprang the Christian and Moslem forms." "Dr. Raphael P atai, in his boo s Man and Temple and The Hebrew Goddess shows that the Goddess Asherah was worshipped alongside Yahweh as his wife and sister in the Temple at Jerusalem for 240 of the 360 years the temple complex existed, and her image was publicly displayed there." There is also evidence that the Jewish community at elephantine in egypt ac nowledged two goddess-wives of Yahweh, and also there still remains in Eze iel (xxiii)a metaphorical reference to a pair of wives, whe re Yahweh condemns the "whoredom" of two sisters who "became mine and bore me so ns and daughters". 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 Being in finite terms to be a waste of time and energy. I CAN describe my perceptions of the Ultimate in term s of the energies that I wor with and find significant in my daily living. My style and methods of relating to what I can perceive of these Divine Energies ar e what I describe as my RELIGION. How I apply these insights gained via my relig ious 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 "the old wisdom" of preChristian 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 sa e 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 more 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 m e to brea them down into "bite sized chun s", 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 released 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 i s 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 revealed 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 framewor of the Law of C ause and Effect; every action has it's reaction, and every effect has it's caus e. All things occur according to this law; nothing in the universe can occur ou tside 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 tha t whatever goes forth must return threefold, whether of good or ill; for our act ions 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 awa ened 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 parta e 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 awa ened 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 can 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 nown to the un nown, 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 now 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 univers e and also in the atom. Matter and energy are but two poles of one continuous p henomenon. Therefore the Witch celebrates, harmonizes with, and ma es 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 gre at Festivals of the Year, referred to as the Wheel of the Year. Further, the Wi tch wor s with the forces and tides of the Moon, for this body is the mediator o f much energy to our planet Earth 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 nows 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 parta e of the consciousness, in varying levels of trance/awareness. a) Because of this principle, all things are sacred to the Witch, for all parta e 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, 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 worship per of the attribute of the Godhead which they expressed. Use of these symbolic representations of the 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 now the Godhead.

a) In eeping 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 best express and awa en an understanding of the force represented, according to the areas of emphasis of the Tradition. c) Because we now 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 moc 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 actions, and accepts the consequences of th em; 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 the consequences of one's actions, and the goal of actualizing the full powe rs 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 arma 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 ma e of our life on Earth, and li ewise 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 and 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 Spar of the Divine Fire. 9. We now of the existence of the life-force which ensouls all living things, that is, all that exists. We now that a spar of this Divine Fire is within e ach and every thing that exists, and that it does not die; only the form of it's existence changes. We now that this spar of the life-force returns to manifes tation again and again in order to fully realize and actualize it's potential, e volving finally to the pea and essence of existence which is pure being. In th is process of reincarnation each form returns in the same type of form, though i t'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 for m evolving as the individual forms of that class evolve.

10. This process of evolution through successive incarnations in manifest form wor s through the utilizations of wisdom gained, the essence of the life-experience. This essence of experience, or Wisdom, is an attribute of the spar of life itself, one and inseparable. 11. We must care for the body, for it is the vehicle of the spar of life, the form by which we attain. Thus we must heal the body of it's ills and eep 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 reasonin g behind this apparent limitation is that we are endowed with Free Will, and wha t 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 magic . By magic we spea , 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 ma e use of them. The Witch must also be aware that po wer corrupts when used _only_ for the gains of the self, and therefore must str ive to serve humanity: Either through the service in the Priesthood, or by exam ple and effects of his/her life on others. The choice must be made in accord wi th the true nature of the Witch. MONISM, One Wiccan Perspective Durwydd MacTara "Henotheism n. Belief in one god without denying the existence of others." (American Heritage Second College Dictionary) "Monism n. philos. A metaphysical system in which reality is conceived as a unified whole." (American Heritage Second College Dictiona ry) "Monotheism n. The belief or doctrine that there is only one God." (American Heritage Second College Dictionary) "Pantheism n. 1. The doctrine identifying the Deity with the various forces and wor ings of nature. 2. Belief in and worship of all gods." (American Heritage Second College Dic "Polytheism n. The worship of or belief in more than one god." (Ameri can Heritage Second College Dictionary) "To witches, deities manifest in different ways and can be worshipped and contacted through any form suitable to local conditions and personal needs. Wicca does not believe, as do the patriarchal monotheisms, that there is only one correct version of God and that all other God forms are false: the Gods of Wicca are not jealous Gods. We therefore worship the personification of the male and female principles, the God and the Goddess, recognizing that Gods are aspects of the One God and all Goddesses are different aspects of the one Goddess, and that ultimately these two are reconciled in the one divine essence." (Vivianne Crowley, WICCA: The Old Religion in The New Age,pp.

tionary)

11-12) Vivianne Crowley, a very capable spo esperson for British Traditional Wicca, ide ntifies the core belief of Wicca (at least BTW) as Monism in the piece quoted ab ove. However, she also opens the door to defining Wicca as duotheistic in princ iple with the subdivision of the monist reality into the praxis of worshiping bo th Lord and Lady. However, there is yet a THIRD level of obscurity in Wiccan Praxis! Most Wiccans worship a threefold Goddess (Maid, Mother, and Crone) and many also worship at least a twofold God. So, are the Wicca REALLY polytheists or perhaps pantheists or even modified Henotheists as some have claimed? Or, perhaps, a new category altogether needs to be invented to accurately describe Wiccan belief and practi ce. One suggestion has been made to add a word to our Thea/Theo-logical lexicon , perhaps "Cthonotheism" (provided we MUST have a "Theism") to describe "Theisti c Wicca". One advantage is that it ma es the assumption of worshipping that whi ch was there to be found and worshipped, NOT a Deity or deities invented in 1939 ! (More on this later.) The following is the only published copy of the (Gardnerian) Blessing Prayer tha t I now of.

"In the name of Dryghtyn, the Ancient Providence, Who was from the beginning and is for eternity, Male and Female, the Original Source of all things; all- nowing, all-pervading, all-powerful; changeless, eternal. "In the name of the Lady of the Moon, and the Lord of Death and Resurrection. "In the name of the Mighty Ones of the Four Quarters, the Kings of the Elements. "Blessed be this place, and this time, and they who are now with us." ("Witch Blood! The Diary Of A Witch High Priestess!" by Patricia Crowther in chapter four (paperbac edition 1974, House Of Collectibles, Inc.).) Courtesy of David Piper The Gawain Poet (the poet who wrote Sir Gawain and the Green Knight in Middle English) used the term 'Dryghtyn' to refer to the Lord God. At the start of fit IV "Now neghes the Newe Yere and the night passes, The day drives to the der , as Dryghtyn biddes." ("Now approaches the New Year and the night passes, The daylight comes up on the dar ness, as the Lord God bids." or from Brian Stowes verse translation (Penguin Classics, 1974) "Now the New Year neared, the night passed,

Daylight fought dar ness as the Deity ordained.") Grendel Grettison, an Asatruar from Seattle suggests the "Dryghtyn" may be an al ternative spelling of the Teutonic "Drighten" meaning "Lord". I admit this is interesting, to me, as the closeness of the linguistic lin between the Old Engl ish and Old German languages has been a scholarly "fact" widely nown for many y ears. Supporting this view, the Anglo-Saxon (Old English) word was actually 'dry htin', meant 'lord, the Lord' and is linguistically related to 'dreogan' meaning 'to perform, to serve'. As a side issue, this might be some evidence that runs contrary to the thesis pu t forth by Aidan Kelly that Gerald Gardner "manufactured" Wicca in 1939. From p ersonal experience, I have found that one unique distinction of the non BTW stra ins of Witchcraft (some times called "FamTrads" of Family Traditions) is the inc orporation of old Christian Imagery, often including ArchAngels for the four dir ections or elements. Though this instance does not include Archangels, it DOES include archaic (and relatively un nown) Christian terminology. If Gardner did discover a remnant of the Old Religion upon which he based his modern reconstruc tion effort, it is this sort of linguistic "artifact" which would have survived. Perhaps a more scholarly investigation than mr. Kelly's will "turn up" more evidence? Jim Taylor, an Eastern Orthodox Theologian, also ma es two (to me) illuminating statements, concerning "The Dryghtyn Prayer": 1. "'In the name of Dryghtyn, the Ancient Providence, Who was from the beginning and is for eternity, Male and Female, the Original Source of all things; all- nowing, all-pervading, all-powerful; changeless, eternal.' This would be, entirely, an acceptable way of describing God, both for most Jews and for most Christians." AND 2. "'In the name of the Lady of the Moon, and the Lord of Death and Resurrection.' The Lord of Death and Resurrection would seem, to any Christian to refer to Jesu s Christ." This evidence of a possible mixing of an older (unrecorded) Christian Prayer may lend further credence to Gardners' claims of building on an older, hidden, trad itional remnant. I, personally, also agree with Mr. Taylors' statement that "the idea of Wicca be ing 'manufactured' in 1939 is far too pat, and ignores a great deal which ought not to be ignored. At the very least, some degree of recognition should be acc orded to the obvious fact that most Wiccan practices and attitudes predate Wicca by considerable periods of time--possibly even millennia". The existence of Monism, Duotheism, and Polytheism simultaneously in the belief structure of Wicca is one good example of one of the Five Mysteries of Wicca, th at of Union. Wicca is a mystery religion, a PARTICIPATORY religion, and much of its symbology must be lived and practiced to have meaning because much of the r eal (some say hidden meaning is based on the nowledge of experience and not the intellectual nowledge of mere logic and conscious thought processes. I am an eclectic Wiccan with strong ties in my beliefs and practice to British Traditional Wicca. I am a Monist, yet I have had strong direct experien ce with Brigid, Danu, and the Morrigan as well as the Earth Mother and the Horne d Lord of the Forests. So my personal answer to the question of "What ind of T heism fits Theistic Wicca?" is "several, or none; it is not really a valid quest

ion in those limited terms"! But perhaps the concept of "Cthonotheism" would gi ve a better label to this concept when attempting to discuss the idea of the pec uliar theism unique to Wicca? Blessed Be, Durwydd MacTara

Air Meditation (ta en from the WICCA echo on Sun 24 Jan 93 22:17) It is dawn. I find myself in a forest filled with Aspen trees. I raise my eyes and loo for the s y, but the boughs looming overhead hide it from my view. As I loo up, feel the cool breeze of spring brush my face, and hear the sound of the rustling leaves. Blowing, laughing from the east, Eurus brings thoughts of renewal and life. I follow the wind further into the soft shadows of the forest, inhaling deeply the strong scent of the trees. I smell, too, the wafting hints of fragrant incense. I follow where my senses lead me and come to a small clearing circled by burning censers filled with sweet-smelling oils. Toward the east end of the circle is a staff. I wal over to the place and sit on the ground before it. I ta e the staff into my hands and close my eyes. First come swirling colors of white then yellow then fading dar er into lavender. Then, out of the swirling fog of colors come dozens of small, lithe figures who swirl around as if carried on the wind itself. They dance around my head and body, swirling around as if caught in a dance to unheard music. Then, ta ing my attention from the spirits of the air, I loo up to find further figures emerging from the mist. First comes a woman with the beauty of the dawn. As she steps forward, each of the four winds, in turn, hasten from around here and fly, one to each of the four corners of the earth. As she fades, there comes another whose form seems insubstantial, and seems to constitute both the image of a woman and a cow at the same time. I loo closely the attempt to solidify one form, but I cannot. As this image fades, I am presented with the forms of two women who immediately remind me of the nighttime s y. One glows with the pale light of the full moon, and her eyes hold the fullness of hidden nowledge. The other, whom also seems to radiate cool starlight, seems to embody the possibilities of many lifetimes. In due course, these figures too fade and I am left with only the mist of the elemental world of air. Suddenly, three male figures issue from the mist. They seem to be three aspects of one man, but each's attributes differ. The first glows with the light of the moon, seeming to be its protector. The second and third appear almost identical, except that one has a winged helmet and shoes. As I sit and study the sameness and difference of the three, they begin to fade, as does the fog. When the mist clears, I find myself sitting within the circle still clutching the staff in my hands. I place the staff once again on the ground and rise. I than the element of air, and all it is associated with for sharing with me its wisdom, and leave the circle. Charis ---

* PALLAS ATHENA, Atlanta, Georgia 404-920-1349 (93:9603/0) Re: Symbolism Classification: Title: Author: Date: Published: Subject: Reading List: IT.IV.C.2.e Symbolism Grand Master of the Order of Shuti Temple of Set December, XXIV Dialogues I.3 (The section on "Neters" was published in issue I.4) Symbolism 2L, 2V

[copyright 1989, Temple of Set. Permission for electronic distribution by echo and on PODS has been given by the author. Do not copy or distribute further wit hout permission of the author or the Temple of Set.] The first session of the year-XXIV Order of Shuti Wor shop discussed symbolism. While the study of symbolism itself is not a primary concern of the Order of Shu ti, several of the Order's activities do involve wor ing with forms of symbolism , or are discussed using various symbols. The symbols of the twin lion gods, Shu and Tefnut, who together are Shuti, are obviously of importance in understanding the activities of the Order. The topic of symbolism was therefore chosen for the introductory session of the wor shop. Application In discussing this session and what would be discussed, the Grand Master stressed that symbolism wasn't to be discussed simply as an intellectual exercise, but that all participants should try to apply the Setian yardstic of "application" to this discussion. Each and every topic of this session (and all sessions in the wor shop) should be measured by the questions of a) Can it be applied? b) Is it useful? c) Does it wor ? What is symbolism? One answer suggested by wor shop participants is that symbolism is a language of the unconscious. It is a dynamic language in which one image, a single symbol, can conjure up archetypical impressions, complex or complete concepts and/or meanings, rather than being a structured language in which many words and/or several sentences are needed to put together an equivalent concept or meaning. Another purpose of symbolism offered by the participants is to serve as a metalanguage which has two levels or multiple levels of meaning. Each symbol or set of symbols can have one meaning to the

initiated, and another meaning to the uninitiated. That symbol or set of symbols could also have /different/ meanings to the initiated, depending upon how the symbols are communicated, and how they are mixed with other symbols. A statement in a symbolic language could even have multiple meanings communicated at the same time to the same person. A lot of the symbols Setians use in our writings are li e that. When we read through the _Scroll of Set_ or the jewelled Tablets, those of us who have been using the language of the Temple of Set for a while will see certain words, and will now just from the way the words are used that the author is writing symbolically as well as grammatically, and he therefore means "this type of thing". This symbolic use of language lets us add meaning to an article without adding substantially to the size of that article. Those who haven't been in the Temple of Set long enough to pic up on that symbolic use of language will miss almost all of that meaning on their first reading. This is one of the reasons why we all find it useful to reread past issues of the _Scroll_ and to reread Tablet articles. It enables us to read meaning in an article that we may have missed on an earlier reading. It sometimes happens that "unintended" meaning is found in an article during such a rereading. Even though the author may not have consciously intended to convey a certain meaning, that author's Higher Self may have influenced the writing in such a way as to symbolically give a specific message in the writing. These messages remain hidden except for those who can perceive and understand them. On the other side of the scale, if our writings are read by someone totally unfamiliar with occult symbolism, then the message can be totally lost, and the reader may never see it. Symbolism can be visual (examples are the Pentagram of Set, pictures of the Egyptian Neters, etc), and verbal (the closing we use on our letters, "Xeper and Remanifest", is a statement and reminder of our dedication to this Formula, a way of developing and eeping the habit of Xeper and Remanifestation going strong). Each Word itself is a symbol (Xeper, Indulgence, Thelema, etc.), as is each Neter (Shu, Tefnut, Se hmet, Bast). A lot of principles can be used as symbols which have more meaning to the initiated than they do to those who just read about them in a dictionary. Visual and verbal/written symbols involve just one of our senses (sight). If you include verbal/spo en symbols, we then involve a second sense (hearing). We then as ed the question, "Are there symbols which are perceived and communicated through each of our other senses?" The first examples offered by wor shop participants were incense and music: Incense can bring about different emotions and responses through the sense of smell. Music can bring about different

responses through the sense of hearing, in ways totally different than the verbal symbols do (the difference between right brained behavior and left brained behavior). Where does symbolism come from? When dealing with incense and music, we are leaving the mental processes and intellectual reactions that visual symbols will evo e, and going instead to the more reactive, bodily, reactions. We react to the smell of bodily feces with distaste because of the body's reaction to that sort of an input. We find the fragrance of a rose very pleasing. One of the reasons we use fragrant incenses during a ritual is to bring about bodily reactions which enhance a ceremony because of the smells and our reactions to the smells. The discussion of one question leads to another. We learn the reactions / interpretations / meanings of visual and verbal symbols (at least those discussed above). Do we also learn reactions to incenses and music, or are those reactions more innate? The first response was that our reactions and interpretations, even our li es and disli es of music are learned. The example given was classical music, which stri es some people as very soothing and relaxing, and which is li ely to put these people to sleep. But others who are aware of the intelligent dynamics and many other ingredients of classical music will find the same music very stimulating. (We believe that the wor shop participant was thin ing about the lighter classical pieces, such as "Tales from the Vienna Woods," and not the more active pieces such as "Night on Bald Mountain.") The second response disagreed with the regardless of whether they are used in other form of music, harps and strings (peaceful) moods, while drums are more more active responses. first, pointing out that classical, modern, or any tend to evo e emotional primal and physical, evo ing

The next example we discussed referred to the sense of smell. To a farmer, feces and fertilizer are pleasing and filled with promise, a smell of promised growth and life, a totally different reaction than most people will have (especially after scraping a dog's refuse off the bottom of one's shoe). Similarly, an inlander's first pleasant reaction to sea gulls on wing, grace in motion, can be compared to the reaction of those who live on the beach and have to live with the noise and the mess and the droppings left behind by those very same sea gulls. These examples tend to support the theory that we learn our interpretations of the sounds and smells around us. It seems from these examples that our reactions to inputs are learned, or at least they arise from our experiences. The question then becomes, can symbols have innate visceral responses, or is the response to a symbol necessarily a learned one?

To loo at innate responses, the original responses to stimuli, we necessarily loo ed at children. For instance, children generally have no innate response to feces, and will often eat them until they learn not to. They later learn to either react with disgust to feces, or to view them as fertilizer and the source of life. The first example of a possibly innate response brought to the discussion was that of the ephemeral beauty of a butterfly on the wing. None of the participants could envision any child's reaction other than awe and delight at such beauty (or at least none would admit to any other vision). This brought forth remar s concerning innate childish "awe", where almost everything is new and wonderful. Children as they begin to distinguish between the multiple events and objects in their world are simply delighted at the beauty and diversity they find around them. There is no "evil" during this time -- only the beauty of nature. Few of us have any reason to unlearn this initial response to the butterfly. These reactions can therefore be considered innate, stemming from the earliest days of our consciousness. Other reactions, unpleasant reactions and also more complex reactions, seem to be learned over time. Therefore, there's some of both types of reactions. People will have initial reactions to many meaningful symbols and inputs, but their reactions can be modified by their experience and training. This discussion raised yet more questions, for which no answers were attempted during this wor shop. The questions were, how much of our symbolism is learned, and how much of our symbolism is innate? And if some form of consciousness or memory can survive from one life to another, then how much might be remembered from past lives? Symbols may or may not come to one's attention. An extremely visually-oriented person may not notice or respond to other types of symbols, such as a room's smell, or a bac ground level of music, while those who are oriented towards those senses will respond to those inputs, but perhaps not to others. Symbolism may have personal and/or experiential meaning (such as the manure used to plant your garden or that you step in), or symbolism may be abstract (learned and used in writing, teaching, or jewelry, but not something that's impacted upon you in the past). This is the difference between a) the visceral response, which may be innate and may also be a learned response, modified through experience or training, and b) the mental response which must always be learned or developed. The Grand Master wishes to note that the discussion at this had unintentionally left the strict topic of symbolism, and dealing instead with experience and reaction to stimuli, on unspo en assumption that these reactions applied to our use point was the of

symbolism. We feel this we have to a use of those sea gulls as reactions to to be a valid assumption, since the pleasant reaction butterfly or to a unicorn extends to and impacts our images as symbols. Those with differing reactions to described above would similarly have different Johnathon Livingston Seagull's story.

Also, by concentrating on experience and reaction rather than symbolism, we temporarily lost sight of the most important measure of symbolism -- that of meaning. Yes, music has impact, but that music is symbol only if its impact includes meaning, such as the sense of freedom and power that accompanies the visual image of the "Flight of the Val yries" and similar images of meaning those who are familiar with the movie will get from various pieces in the sound trac from 2001. Li ewise incense is symbol only if its impact includes meaning. That meaning may be supplied by the smell, or that meaning may be supplied by nowledge of the ingredients within the incense. Meaning may also be supplied by the words used during the censing of the chambre. Without some meaning, incense is not symbol, but only smell. Closely related to the sense of smell is the sense of taste, and it's fairly easy to see that certain tastes can have meaning as well.

Li ewise, there can be inesthetic symbols as well. We feel different when we hold a sword in ritual as opposed to when we hold a dagger. We feel different when we are standing up than we feel when we are sitting down, and different still when we are neeling or laying down. We feel different in charged rooms, dry rooms, wet rooms, hot rooms, cold rooms, still rooms, breezy rooms. Uncontrolled, these latter experiences are just stimuli. Controlled and used meaningfully, these latter experiences can be symbols, manipulated and understood as such. How should symbolism be used? The first obvious use of symbolism is in the communication of ideas, whether written, spo en, or communicated through one or more other senses. Based on the idea that a single symbol can have a whole galaxy of meaning, a useful communications s ill is the ability to use symbols in the proper places, in the proper ways, to communicate more meaning in a smaller pac age (with fewer words). Perhaps of greatest importance within the Temple of Set are the

During Passover Seder, a ritual meal of (celebrating the Exodus), Jews will dip eat the salty greens, to remind them of bondage. They will eat bitter herbs to bitterness of slavery.

than sgiving and freedom greens into salt water and tears shed by the Jews in remind them of the

magical aeonic Words: Xeper, Remanifestation, and Xem, and the preceding Words of Indulgence and Thelema. By using these Words in writing or other forms of communication, we communicate the meanings associated with those Words. If I say the word "Xeper" to an initiate, it means something totally different than it would mean to someone off the street, and it means something totally different to a Setian than it would mean to an Egyptologist who /thin s/ he nows the Egyptian god Xepera. Our use of the Word is quite different and the symbol carries so much more meaning than just the word "Xeper" would carry in a modern Egyptian dictionary. This use of symbolism doesn't apply just to magical Words or Formulae, but applies to symbols of many different inds, in many different uses. You'll sometimes find certain words capitalized in text, as are "Words" and "Formulae" above. When not overly used, this is a clear indication that the author wishes you to view these words with their symbolic meanings, rather than their normal meanings. During group ritual, certain words will be spo en more flamboyantly, perhaps louder, perhaps longer, and often with more gesturing. These words are then generally being used symbolically, with special meaning at least to the spea er, if not to other participants. Symbolism can also be used in Lesser Blac Magic, as tools to influence certain people (singular or multiple) in certain ways. The magician (or politician or religious leader or arts director or other manipulator) will use lighting, music, fragrance, and other symbols in ways particular to their audience's response to the symbols. Symbolism can be used upon ourselves in a similar manner, to bring out responses from us that we want to bring out, as in ritual or as an aid to Xeper. Words which have become symbols to us can be used as a means of increased concentration, as a visual mantra or as a sensual mantra. Such mantras can be used in ritual, in nonritual meditation, or whenever we choose to remind ourselves of the principles carried within that symbol. Over time, some symbols can become richer and can carry more and more meaning to those people who wor with the symbol. These symbols can become "magnetic", in that each use of the symbol brings forth yet another repetition of the symbol. Each reference brings forth a constellation of meaning, with one meaning and use leading to another. Each use of the symbol spar s, or attracts, another use of the symbol. In these cases the symbols will often be repeated over and over throughout a conversation or other communication, each time exercising one or more of those meanings, and through the course of the communication this symbol can almost hold or reflect an entire world view. This is the way the people influenced by the symbol see their world.

At a political rally the symbol might be "America", "Democracy", or "the Party" (citizens of other countries may substitute those symbols meaningful in your domain). To some, the symbol might be "the Environment". The symbol "Xeper" has a similar impact within the Setian culture. Group consensus is important for communication through symbols. Different groups can have differing uses of symbols, and attempts to communicate between these groups using the symbols particular to one group (or those symbols which are viewed differently by different groups) can result in confusion or worse. Because Setians come from such diverse bac grounds, we have various communication problems related to these diverse bac grounds. Members from the O.T.O. may now all of the Qabalic correspondences, while members from the Wiccan bac ground couldn't care less about the Qabalic attributions, and have correspondences which are totally different. Numerologists apply different meanings to their numbers than do the Qabalists. And all of these symbolic systems wor .

Qabalists within the Temple of Set who write articles and/or letters steeped in Qabalic symbolism find that very few others care enough about their symbols to wade through the text. Those from other bac grounds with intensive use of symbols similarly find difficulty communicating within the Temple of Set, since our symbolic vocabulary is so much less cohesive. This lac of similarity in symbolism affects not only written communication, but also ritual activity. Each pylon seems to develop its own pattern of symbolism, and inter-pylon rituals can at times be very difficult. Fitting many diverse magicians with their diverse bac grounds into one meaningful ceremony can be a challenge, a challenge faced at each Conclave, and at each activity li e the Order of Shuti Wor shop. Language of the Unconscious?{fn 1} The first question as ed by the Grand Master was, "What is symbolism?" The first answer received was, "A language of the unconscious." Parts of the wor shop's discussion might seem to support this definition, while others contradict it. So let the Grand Master spea : Symbols have many attributes. Among the more important of these attributes is their ability to cause reaction in their audience, visceral if not innate reactions, as discussed above. Elizabeth S. Helfman, in her boo _Signs and Symbols around the World_, defines symbol as being: "anything that stands for something else."

But very, very few of them wor

for all Setians.

Loo in your dictionary. Mine includes several definitions of symbol and symbolism, including: >> Symbol: 2: something that stands for or suggests something else by reason of relationship, association, convention, or accidental resemblance. 5: an act, sound, or object having cultural significance and the capacity to excite or objectify a response. >> Symbolism: 1: the art or practice of using symols esp. by investing things with a symbolic meaning or by expressing the invisible or intangible by means of visible or sensuous representations; as a: the use of conventional or traditional signs in the representation of divine beings and spirits, b: artistic imitation or invention that is a method of revealing or suggesting immaterial, ideal, or otherwise intangible truth or states. 2: a system of symbols or representations. Symbolism is an art, a practice, something which is done. It is used to communicate meaning. It is a language. Our visceral responses to symbolism may be unconscious, but if that's all there is, then have we received and/or responded to meaning? The transmission and communication of *Meaning* requires some form of consciousness. Let's use the word /Awa e/ to mean the highest form of consciousness. Remember -- the capital letter indicates I'm using a symbol; Setian use of this specific symbol (Awa e) most often refers to Ouspens i's heightened state of consciousness and awareness, a state of being totally awa e. For simplicity, let's assign a whole range of various levels of conscious awareness to the name "conscious". This name can apply to heightened states of consciousness which those we would call Awa e, those that barely miss being Awa e, down to the almost somnabulent states in which most of man ind spends their day. Finally, I would call the preconscious state one of consciousness in this case, a state in which meaning can be received, interpreted, and acted upon, without the individual being "consiously" aware that this has happened. But if the individual's attention is brought to the subject, then the symbol and its meaning can be recalled and the process repeated without any difficulty. If symbols are generated and communicated, if they are transmitted and received, in one of these three states, then I believe we can correctly tal about symbolism, about language.

However, if the generation and/or reception of the symbol is unconscious, and/or totally unintended, then I propose that that instance is not an example of symbolism, not language or communication, but rather the accidental generation of and/or visceral response to sensory input. [Now let us return to the discussion as it too place in the wor shop...] Planetary Symbol System? We now there are differences in the meanings of many symbols. "Patriotism" can be exceedingly important to a Republican and also to a Libertarian, but the meanings that this symbol will have can be quite different in many ways. This leads us to as the question of whether there might perhaps be a "planetary symbol system" in which some symbols at least can be found commonly used in many or all cultures. The cross, square, circle, and most or all simple symbols have been found in use all over the earth. We therefore can as whether their meanings are similar, or are the symbols used simply because they are simple geometric figures, but with meanings arbitrarily assigned by the individual cultures? One participant brought forth Ouspens i's example that "Table" has a function, an innate form or essence, which can be perceived beyond words, and beyond a learned experience. "Table" provo es an image, feeling, or essence that is evo ed through a willed perception that extends beyond the actual set of tables that a person may have ever experienced. Ouspens i claims that at a certain state of consciousness the Aware individual can see this deeper meaning or essence, and that this deeper meaning or essence can be commonly perceived by all who reach this level of consciousness. Similar ideas were offered by Plato, and the concept of Platonic Forms is very prevalent throughout the Setian use of symbolism. We often spea of the Egyptian Neters as being Forms, the original or specific essence of an Ideal. This is certainly an area that needs deeper investigation. The wor shop session discussion however left the topic of abstract Forms, and instead investigated the historic use of symbols in various cultures. Loo ing first at the more complex god forms, it seems each major culture has a "tric ster" god: Coyote fills this niche in several Amerindian cultures, Lo i in the Norse mythos, and Thoth (Hermes and Mercury) in the Egyptian (Gree and Roman) mythologies.

The Tric ster is that Spirit who ma es you Thin . He is the Spirit who is unpredictable in his actions or reactions, who gets himself and everyone else into trouble. In the process of doing so -- most often after everyone is already in trouble -- he ma es people Thin , and in the end he generally gets everyone out of trouble by thin ing. To represent the Tric ster, each culture used that type of symbol or god form which for them was most appropriate for that type of character. The coyote is a fairly independent and hard to trac animal in America, requiring more than the usual amount of intelligence and stealth to catch. Mon eys similarly were appreciated for their seeming intelligence and playfulness, and so Egyptians assigned the Tric ster attribute and the mon ey's form to Thoth. The question becomes ... is this type of being, this symbol, something which is universal, cross-cultural, or is it something which happens in just a few cases, and many other societies never had any use for it? Jung was exploring this area. He defined specific symbols which he felt were common to many or all cultures. They were fairly common within his culture and Jung did manage to validate them with some cross-cultural study.

Given people in extremely different environments, such as the Es imo, Hawaiian, Indian, Tibetan, etc., cultures where the people have many different experiences, totally different social and physical environments, it can be expected that these people would have very different reactions to the symbols that Jung thought he had commonality on. Jung's _Man and his Symbol_ was recommended by one participant as containing documentation on his cross-cultural studies in this area. Not having access to any resource materials that would answer our questions at the time, the wor shop session then proceeded into the topic of Egyptian Neters and the use of Neters in symbolism.

The Wor shop discussion of Egyptian Neters started with a brief discussion of the Egyptian languages. The ancient Egyptians used three different written languages, the hieroglyphic, hieratic, and demotic. The demotic language was a mostly alphabetic language used for common communications among those who could read and write. Its primary uses were for social and business reasons. The hieratic language was a pictographic language related to the hieroglyphic, but in which the pictographs were abbreviated and

We still need to as and wide spread.

how complete his studies were, how extensive

Neters

simplified to speed writing. It was used for important state documents and many later religious texts. The hieroglyphic language was the most ornate of the three languages, the most ancient of the three languages, and the most symbolic. It was used for the most important religious and philosophical statements, and for the most important state declarations. Many of the symbols used to form the hieroglyphic language had assigned sounds, and many others did not. In addition to the sounds and symbols used to form words, the Egyptians used determinatives, signs added to specifically identify each word. Through the use of the determinative, it was impossible to mista e one written word for another, even if verbal sounds were the same, even if the letters used were the same. This use of a purely symbolic, picture-oriented language encouraged the ability in the learned ancient Egyptians to thin with right brained methods while doing the left brain activity of reading. It also encouraged these educated and intelligent Egyptians to wor with symbols as they wor ed with language. They were able to communicate ideas and ideals in a language particularly well suited to this purpose. Setians use the ancient Egyptian neters as symbols, representing aspects of the world, or aspects of the individual. We feel this is very close to the way the higher initiates of the ancient Egyptian Temples, the priests of the Temples, and the smarter pharaohs used and viewed their neters. The neters were concepts that could be communicated to and shared among the initiated, rather than being actual gods and goddesses. The common man may very well have believed in the literal existence of his many gods and goddesses, but we believe the elite of the Egyptian society understood that these neters were purely symbols. When the Egyptian elite paid homage to the neters, they paid homage to the aspects of the universe or of the self represented by those neters. One neter of obvious importance is Set. In dealing with this symbol, we try to identify the original meaning of the symbol, and try to eliminate the corruptions of the symbol imposed by the later rule of Osirian religion. Rather than ta e space here to discuss the corruptions and distortions that were applied to the symbol of the neter Set through the Osirian culture, we'll simply refer the interested student to appropriate boo s in the reading list: 2A, 2E, 2G, 2W, and 2AA. It is rather clear that the use and peripheral meanings of the neter Set changed over time. The study of Set must therefore include the careful consideration of the source of whatever writings are being studied. Fortunately most other Egyptian symbols/god forms did not change significantly over time, and such care need not be used in studying and wor ing with them.

The neters were used and viewed as symbols. But the Egyptian temples _were_ temples, and were recognized as religions, not simply as centers of enlightened philosophy. This brings up the question: Do/did the Egyptian Neters actually exist? Were these religions founded to worship or wor with beings that actually existed? Or were they simply the creations of the ancient Egyptian priesthoods? Rather than tac le immediately the question of whether the Neters actually existed, wor shop participants first chose to examine ...

Egyptian Priesthoods The first statement made about these priesthoods was that each temple in Egypt taught a different area of philosophy or nowledge. Those temples dedicated to a major neter or god taught that their primal Form was the First Cause. These were the major temples of the land, and an initiate who studied at temple after temple would be presented with the opposing claims that each god was the god, The Creator. We noted in our discussion that the priesthoods of several of the "minor" neters did not ma e any such claims. Thoth as a single neter never seemed to be treated as the creator god; nor was Geb. However, many of the major neters were treated as creator gods, and many gods were intentionally combined into units (such as Amon-Thoth-Ra) in order to form a god which would be powerful enough to qualify as The creator god.

Neters as Symbols We returned to discussing the neters as ways of viewing possibility and potentiality, and ways of viewing different aspects of the universe and of the individual. For example, Ra, the sun god, was a most pervasive and powerful being, since every single day, there he is in the s y. Ra was consistent, reliable, and therefore powerful. Similarly each force in nature was given a personality, because each force in nature has a personality (or seems to, to those who humanize such things). This is the basic principle behind most spirits of most animistic religions. These personalities are generally reliable. A rain cloud is going to rain; it isn't going to add to the day's heat. The Nile was not going to dry up -- it was going to overflow once a year, and deposit good, rich, fertile earth upon the ground. Each force of nature, each personality, was given a name, a face, and a story. The most powerful stories, faces, and names are those that belong to the creator gods. There are so many creator gods, that it's really difficult to pin down an actual order of precedence. This brings up the fact that there are many apparently conflicting stories within the Egyptian mythology. The Grand Master pointed out that in several Egyptian myths, Shu

and Tefnut are self-created. In others they were created by tears of the master creator god (whoever he happened to be according to the story teller). In yet others they were created by the master god's masturbation. Shu and Tefnut by definition are the first male and female. The master god's masturbation in these latter stories was always male masturbation, but Shu is the first male. Shu and Tefnut begat Geb and Nut, but Nut was the all-pervasive universal s y that preceded the first god... This confusion is the result of centuries of Egyptian story telling, and while some of it appears to be contraditory, most of it is useful. We certainly must hesitate to consider this mythology as one consistent symbolism, and must be careful if we wish to communicate consistent meanings using these symbols, but we have found value in this mythology. Each story is a different way of loo ing at the world, a different way of loo ing at the first cause, and of loo ing at the symbols. By using these symbols, we can then indicate not only a symbol, but also which way we are loo ing at the world. Hence, if in ritual or other communication we call upon Ptah-Geb-Nu, we are calling upon the creator of the earth and s y, the god who created the physical universe. If instead we call upon the Neter Ra-Ptah-an h, we are calling upon the god who brought light and life to this planet. Having discussed these differing views of the world as expressed by the many symbolic neters, we felt that this was a good point from which to launch into a discussion of one of the ways in which we loo at Neters. Set, the prime source of intelligence and the ageless intelligence himself, is a wee bit complex for someone a mere 20 or even 200 years old to understand, regardless of whether we loo at Set as an actually existing being or instead as a master symbol.

As examples, Shu is one set of symbolism, one set of ideas, that an initiate can wor with to "get somewhere" with, to accomplish certain initiatory goals. Tefnut is another set of ideas, as is Geb, Isis, etc. Rather than trying to encompass and wor with the entire universe simultaneously, grab whatever you can hold onto, wor with that handful, study that symbol or symbols, and see what it leads to. We had originally intended to discuss whether or not the Neters might or might not exist in their own right. Having discussed the above, it seemed somewhat unimportant as to whether the Neters actually exist. That topic will be left for a later discussion.

So rather than try to encompass all of Set, intellectually or emotionally, rather than try to understand all of Set, we can wor with neters which are facets of Set's being, facets of Set's symbolism. Each neter can be thought of as a specific element of Set.

Bibliography While the following boo s and papers were not necessarily discussed nor referenced during the wor shop discussion (or in completing this article), the initiate interested in studying symbolism as a subject on its own would be well advised to begin with this bibliography. Additions to this bibliography are welcome, and should be sent to the Grand Master. (_RT_ entries are from _The Ruby Tablet of Set_.) Barrett, Ronald K., "Boo of Opening the Way (Key #4)". _RT_ IT.II.A.5.b.(1).(d). Barrett, Ronald K., "Stele of Xem". _RT_ IT.II.A.4.a.(3).

Crowley, Aleister, _The Boo of Thoth_. 9L (TS-4). De Lubicz, Isha Schwaller, _Her-Ba _. 2L (TS-1). De Lubicz, Isha Schwaller, _Symbol and the Symbolique_. 2V (TS-4). Fisher, Leonard Everett, _Symbol Art: Thirteen Squares, Circles, and Triangles from Around the World_. NY: Four Winds Press, MacMillan Publishing Company, 1985. Helfman, Elizabeth S., _Signs and Symbols Around the World_. NY: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co., 1967. Jung, Carl G., _Man and his Symbols_. Garden City: Doubleday & Co., 1964, 1968. Also NY: Dell Publishing Co., 1968, and London: Aldus Boo s, 1964. Menschel, Robert, "Remanifestation: A Symbolic Syntheses", _RT_ IT.II.B.3.e.(2). Menschel, Robert, "Tarot Primer", _RT_ IT.II.B.3.e.(3). Norton, Lynn, "Golden Section Tarot Wor ing", "Atu XV: The Devil", and "The Dialogue". _RT_ IT.II.A.3. .(1), 4.h.(1), and 4.h.(2). Regardie, Israel, _777 and Other Qabalistic Writings of Aleister Crowley_. 9M (TS-4). Schaefer, Heinrich, _Principles of Egyptian Art_. 2R (TS-4). ========= Footnote: ========= 1. The Grand Master wishes to digress temporarily from the wor shop's discussion, and to comment at this time on one of the first statements offered during this discussion.

*********************************************************** INVESTIGATOR'S GUIDE TO ALLEGATIONS OF "RITUAL" CHILD ABUSE

Cavendish, Richard, _The Blac

Arts_. 4C (TS-3).

*********************************************************** January 1992 Kenneth V. Lanning Supervisory Special Agent Behavioral Science Unit National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Academy Quantico, Virginia 22135 ************************************************* TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Introduction. 2. Historical Overview. -- a. "Stranger Danger". -- b. Intrafamilial Child Sexual Abuse. -- c. Return to "Stranger Danger". -- d. The Acquaintance Molester. -- e. Satanism: A New Form of "Stranger Danger". 3. Law Enforcement Training. 4. Definitions. -- a. What is Ritual? -- b. What is "Ritual" Child Abuse? -- c. What Ma es a Crime Satanic, Occult, or Ritualistic? 5. Multidimensional Child Sex Rings. -- a. Dynamics of Cases. ---- (1) Multiple Young Victims. ---- (2) Multiple Offenders. ---- (3) Fear as a Controlling Tactic. ---- (4) Bizarre or Ritualistic Activity. -- b. Characteristics of Multidimensional Child Sex Rings. ---- (1) Female Offenders. ---- (2) Situational Molesters. ---- (3) Male and Female Victims. ---- (4) Multidimensional Motivation. ---- (5) Pornography and Paraphernalia. ---- (6) Control through Fear. -- c. Scenarios. ---- (1) Adult Survivors. ---- (2) Day Care Cases. ---- (3) Family/Isolated Neighborhood Cases. ---- (4) Custody/Visitation Disputes. -- d. Why Are Victims Alleging Things that Do Not Seem to be True? 6. Alternative Explanations. -- a. Pathological Distortion. -- b. Traumatic Memory. -- c. Normal Childhood Fears and Fantasy. -- d. Misperception, Confusion, and Tric ery. -- e. Overzealous Intervenors. -- f. Urban Legends. -- g. Combination. 7. Do Victims Lie About Sexual Abuse and Exploitation? -- a. Personal Knowledge. -- b. Other Children or Victims.

-- c. Media. -- d. Suggestions and Leading Questions. -- e. Misperception and Confusion. -- f. Education and Awareness Programs. 8. Law Enforcement Perspective. 9. Investigating Multidimensional Child Sex Rings. -- a. Minimize Satanic/Occult Aspect. -- b. Keep Investigation and Religious Beliefs Separate. -- c. Listen to the Victims. -- d. Assess and Evaluate Victim Statements. -- e. Evaluate Contagion. -- f. Establish Communication with Parents. -- g. Develop a Contingency Plan. -- h. Multidisciplinary Tas Forces. -- i. Summary. 10. Conclusion. 11. References. 12. Suggested Reading. 1. INTRODUCTION Since 1981 I have been assigned to the Behavioral Science Unit at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, and have specialized in studying all aspects of the sexual victimization of children. The FBI Behavioral Science Unit provides assistance to criminal justice professionals in the United States and foreign countries. It attempts to develop practical applications of the behavioral sciences to the criminal justice system. As a result of training and research conducted by the Unit and its successes in analyzing violent crime, many professionals contact the Behavioral Science Unit for assistance and guidance in dealing with violent crime, especially those cases considered different, unusual, or bizarre. This service is provided at no cost and is not limited to crimes under the investigative jurisdiction of the FBI. In 1983 and 1984, when I first began to hear stories of what sounded li e satanic or occult activity in connection with allegations of sexual victimization of children (allegations that have come to be referred to most often as "ritual" child abuse), I tended to believe them. I had been dealing with bizarre, deviant behavior for many years and had long since realized that almost anything is possible. Just when you thin that you have heard it all, along comes another strange case. The idea that there are a few cunning, secretive individuals in positions of power somewhere in this country regularly illing a few people as part of some satanic ritual or ceremony and getting away with it is certainly within the realm of possibility. But the number of alleged cases began to grow and grow. We now have hundreds of victims alleging that thousands of offenders are abusing and even murdering tens of thousands of people as part of organized satanic cults, and there is little or no corroborative evidence. The very reason many "experts" cite for believing these allegations (i.e. many victims, who never met each other, reporting the same events), is the primary reason I began to question at least some aspects of these allegations. I have devoted more than seven years part-time, and eleven years full-time, of my professional life to researching, training, and consulting in the area of the sexual victimization of children. The issues of child sexual abuse and exploitation are a big part of my

professional life's wor . I have no reason to deny their existence or nature. In fact I have done everything I can to ma e people more aware of the problem Some have even blamed me for helping to create the hysteria that has led to these bizarre allegations. I can accept no outside income and am paid the same salary by the FBI whether or not children are abused and exploited - and whether the number is one or one million. As someone deeply concerned about and professionally committed to the issue, I did not lightly question the allegations of hundreds of victims child sexual abuse and exploitation. In response to accusations by a few that I am a "satanist" who has infiltrated the FBI to facilitate cover-up, how does anyone (or should anyone have to) disprove such allegations? Although reluctant to dignify such absurd accusations with a reply, all I can say to those who have made such allegations that they are wrong and to those who heard such allegations is to carefully consider the source. The reason I have ta en the position I have is not because I support or believe in "satanism", but because I sincerely believe that my approach is the proper and most effective investigative strategy. I believe that my approach is in the best interest of victims of child sexual abuse. It would have been easy to sit bac , as many have, and say nothing publicly about this controversy. I have spo en out and published on this issue because I am concerned about the credibility of the child sexual abuse issue and outraged that, in some cases, individuals are getting away with molesting children because we can't prove they are satanic devil worshippers who engage in brainwashing, human sacrifice, and cannibalism as part of a large conspiracy. There are many valid perspectives from which to assess and evaluate victim allegations of sex abuse and exploitation. Parents may choose to believe simply because their children ma e the claims. The level of proof necessary may be minimal because the consequences of believing are within the family. One parent correctly told me, "I believe what my child needs me to believe." Therapists may choose to believe simply because their professional assessment is that their patient believes the victimization and describes it so vividly. The level of proof necessary may be no more than therapeutic evaluation because the consequences are between therapist and patient. No independent corroboration may be required. A social wor er must have more real, tangible evidence of abuse in order to ta e protective action and initiate legal proceedings. The level of proof necessary must be higher because the consequences (denial of visitation, foster care) are greater. The law enforcement officer deals with the criminal justice system. The levels of proof necessary are reasonable suspicion, probable cause, and beyond a reasonable doubt because the consequences (criminal investigation, search and seizure, arrest, incarceration) are so great. This discussion will focus primarily on the criminal justice system and the law enforcement perspective. The level of proof necessary for ta ing action on allegations of criminal acts must be more than simply the victim alleged it and it is possible. This in no way denies the validity and importance of the parental,

therapeutic, social welfare, or any other perspective of these allegations. When, however, therapists and other professionals begin to conduct training, publish articles, and communicate through the media, the consequences become greater, and therefore the level of proof must be greater. The amount of corroboration necessary to act upon allegations of abuse is dependent upon the consequences of such action. We need to be concerned about the distribution and publication of unsubstantiated allegations of bizarre sexual abuse. Information needs to be disseminated to encourage communication and research about the phenomena. The ris s, however, of intervenor and victim "contagion" and public hysteria are potential negative aspects of such dissemination. Because of the highly emotional and religious nature of this topic, there is a greater possibility that the spreading of information will result in a ind of selffulfilling prophesy. If such extreme allegations are going to be disseminated to the general public, they must be presented in the context of being assessed and evaluated, at least, from the professional perspective of the disseminator and, at best, also from the professional perspective of relevant others. This is what I will attempt to do in this discussion. The assessment and evaluation of such allegations are areas where law enforcement, mental health, and other professionals (anthropologists, fol lorists, sociologists, historians, engineers, surgeons, etc.) may be of some assistance to each other in validating these cases individually and in general. 2. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW In order to attempt to deal with extreme allegations of what constitute child sex rings, it is important to have an historical perspective of society's attitudes about child sexual abuse. I will provide a brief synopsis of recent attitudes in the United States here, but those desiring more detailed information about such societal attitudes, particularly in other cultures and in the more distant past, should refer to Florence Rush's boo _The Best Kept Secret: Sexual Abuse of Children_ (1980) and Sander J. Breiner's boo _Slaughter of the Innocents_ (1990). Society's attitude about child sexual abuse and exploitation can be summed up in one word: *denial*. Most people do not want to hear about it and would prefer to pretend that child sexual victimization just does not occur. Today, however, it is difficult to pretend that it does not happen. Stories and reports about child sexual victimization are daily occurrences. It is important for professionals dealing with child sexual abuse to recognize and learn to manage this denial of a serious problem. Professionals must overcome the denial and encourage society to deal with, report, and prevent sexual victimization of children. Some professionals, however, in their zeal to ma e American society more aware of this victimization, tend to exaggerate the problem. Presentations and literature with poorly documented or misleading claims about one in three children being sexually molested, the $5 billion child pornography industry, child slavery rings, and 50,000 stranger-abducted children are not uncommon. The problem is bad

enough; it is not necessary to exaggerate it. Professionals should cite reputable and scientific studies and note the sources of information. If they do not, when the exaggerations and distortions are discovered, their credibility and the credibility of the issue are lost. -- a. "STRANGER DANGER". During the 1950s and 1960s the primary focus in the literature and discussions on sexual abuse of children was on "stranger danger" the dirty old man in the wrin led raincoat. If one could not deny the existence of child sexual abuse, one described victimization in simplistic terms of good and evil. The "stranger danger" approach to preventing child sexual abuse is clear-cut. We immediately now who the good guys and bad guys are and what they loo li e. The FBI distributed a poster that epitomized this attitude. It showed a man, with his hat pulled down, hiding behind a tree with a bag of candy in his hands. He was waiting for a sweet little girl wal ing home from school alone. At the top it read: "Boys and Girls, color the page, memorize the rules." At the bottom it read: "For your protection, remember to turn down gifts from strangers, and refuse rides offered by strangers." The poster clearly contrasts the evil of the offender with the goodness of the child victim.

There is another myth that is still with us and is far less li ely to be discussed. This is the myth of the child victim as a completely innocent little girl wal ing down the street minding her own business. It may be more important to dispel this myth than the myth of the evil offender, especially when tal ing about the sexual exploitation of children and child sex rings. Child victims can be boys as well as girls, and not all victims are little "angels". Society seems to have a problem dealing with any sexual abuse case in which the offender is not completely "bad" or the victim is not completely "good". Child victims who, for example, simply behave li e human beings and respond to the attention and affection of offenders by voluntarily and repeatedly returning to the offender's home are troubling. It confuses us to see the victims in child pornography giggling or laughing. At professional conferences on child sexual abuse, child prostitution is almost never discussed. It is the form of sexual victimization of children most unli e the stereotype of the innocent girl victim. Child prostitutes, by definition, participate in and often initiate their victimization. Furthermore child prostitutes and the participants in child sex rings are frequently boys. One therapist recently told me that a researcher's data on child molestation were misleading because many of the child victims in question were child prostitutes. This implies that child prostitutes are not "real" child victims. In a survey by the _Los Angeles Times_, only 37 percent of those responding thought that child prostitution constituted child sexual abuse (Timni , 1985). Whether or not it seems fair, when adults and children have sex, the child is always the victim.

The myth of the child molester as the dirty raincoat is now being reevaluated, based on the inds of people who victimize children. molester can loo li e anyone else and even li e.

old man in the wrin led what we now now about The fact is a child be someone we now and

-- b. INTRAFAMILIAL CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE. During the 1970s, primarily as a result of the women's movement, society began to learn more about the sexual victimization of children. We began to realize that most children are sexually molested by someone they now who is usually a relative - a father, step-father, uncle, grandfather, older brother, or even a female relative. Some mitigate the difficulty of accepting this by adopting the view that only members of socio-economic groups other than theirs engage in such behavior. It quic ly became apparent that warnings about not ta ing gifts from strangers were not good enough to prevent child sexual abuse. Consequently, we began to develop prevention programs based on more complex concepts, such as good touching and bad touching. the "yuc y" feeling, and the child's right to say no. These are not the inds of things you can easily and effectively communicate in fifty minutes to hundreds of ids pac ed into a school auditorium. These are very difficult issues, and programs must he carefully developed and evaluated.

In the late 1970s child sexual abuse became almost synonymous with incest, and incest meant father-daughter sexual relations. Therefore, the focus of child sexual abuse intervention became father-daughter incest. Even today, the vast majority of training materials, articles, and boo s on this topic refer to child sexual abuse only in terms of intrafamilial father-daughter incest. Incest is, in fact, sexual relations between individuals of any age too closely related to marry. It need not necessarily involve an adult and a child, and it goes beyond child sexual abuse. But more importantly child sexual abuse goes beyond father-daughter incest. Intrafamilial incest between an adult and child may be the most common form of child sexual abuse, but it is not the only form. The progress of the 1970s in recognizing that child sexual abuse was not simply a result of "stranger danger" was an important brea through in dealing with society's denial. The battle, however, is not over. The persistent voice of society luring us bac to the more simple concept of "stranger danger" may never go away. It is the voice of denial. -- c. RETURN TO "STRANGER DANGER". In the early 1980s the issue of missing children rose to prominence and was focused primarily on the stranger abduction of little children. Runaways, throwaways, noncustodial abductions, nonfamily abductions of teenagers - all major problems within the missing children's issue - were almost forgotten. People no longer wanted to hear about good touching and bad touching and the child's right to say "no". They wanted to be told, in thirty minutes or less, how they could protect their children from abduction by strangers. We were bac to the horrible but simple and clear-cut concept of "stranger danger". In the emotional zeal over the problem of missing children, isolated horror stories and distorted numbers were sometimes used. The American public was led to believe that most of the missing children

had been idnapped by pedophiles - a new term for child molesters. The media, profiteers, and well-intentioned zealots all played big roles in this hype and hysteria over missing children. -- d. THE ACQUAINTANCE MOLESTER. Only recently has society begun to deal openly with a critical piece in the puzzle of child sexual abuse - acquaintance molestation. This seems to be the most difficult aspect of the problem for us to face. People seem more willing to accept a father or stepfather, particularly one from another socio-economic group, as a child molester than a parish priest, a next-door neighbor, a police officer, a pediatrician, an FBI agent, or a Scout leader. The acquaintance molester, by definition, is one of us. These inds of molesters have always existed, but our society has not been willing to accept that fact. Sadly, one of the main reasons that the criminal justice system and the public were forced to confront the problem of acquaintance molestation was the preponderance of lawsuits arising from the negligence of many institutions. One of the unfortunate outcomes of society's preference for the "stranger danger" concept is what I call "say no, yell, and tell" guilt. This is the result of prevention programs that tell potential child victims to avoid sexual abuse by saying no, yelling, and telling. This might wor with the stranger hiding behind a tree. Adolescent boys seduced by a Scout leader or children who actively participate in their victimization often feel guilty and blame themselves because they did not do what they were "supposed" to do. They may feel a need to describe their victimization in more socially acceptable but sometimes inaccurate ways that relieve them of this guilt. While American society has become increasingly more aware of the problem of the acquaintance molester and related problems such as child pornography, the voice calling us bac to "stranger danger" still persists. -- e. SATANISM: A NEW FORM OF "STRANGER DANGER". In today's version of "stranger danger", it is the satanic devil worshipers who are snatching and victimizing the children. Many who warned us in the early 1980s about pedophiles snatching fifty thousand ids a year now contend they were wrong only about who was doing the idnapping, not about the number abducted. This is again the desire for the simple and clear-cut explanation for a complex problem. For those who now anything about criminology, one of the oldest theories of crime is demonology: The devil ma es you do it. This ma es it even easier to deal with the child molester who is the "pillar of the community". It is not his fault; it is not our fault. There is no way we could have nown; the devil made him do it. This explanation has tremendous appeal because, li e "stranger danger", it presents the clear-cut, blac -and-white struggle between good and evil as the explanation for child abduction, exploitation, and abuse.

In regard to satanic "ritual" abuse, today we may not be where we were with incest in the 1960s, but where we were with missing children in the early 1980s. The best data now available (the 1990 _National Incidence Studies on Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway Children in America_) estimate the number of stereotypical child abductions at between 200 and 300 a year, and the number of stranger abduction homicides of children at between 43 and 147 a year. Approximately half of the abducted children are teenagers. Today's facts are significantly different from yesterday's perceptions, and those who exaggerated the problem, however well-intentioned, have lost credibility and damaged the reality of the problem. 3. LAW ENFORCEMENT TRAINING The belief that there is a connection between satanism and crime is certainly not new. As previously stated, one of the oldest theories concerning the causes of crime is demonology. Fear of satanic or occult activity has pea ed from time to time throughout history. Concern in the late 1970s focused primarily on "unexplained" deaths and mutilations of animals, and in recent years has focused on child sexual abuse and the alleged human sacrifice of missing children. In 1999 it will probably focus on the impending "end of the world". Today satanism and a wide variety of other terms are interchangeably in reference to certain crimes. This analyze the nature of "satanic, occult, ritualistic" as it pertains to the abuse of children and focus on *law enforcement* responses to it.

Recently a flood of law enforcement seminars and conferences have dealt with satanic and ritualistic crime. These training conferences have various titles, such as "Occult in Crime", "Satanic Cults", 'Ritualistic Crime Seminar", "Satanic Influences in Homicide", "Occult Crimes, Satanism and Teen Suicide", and "Ritualistic Abuse of Children". The typical conference runs from one to three days, and many of them include the same presenters and instructors. A wide variety of topics are usually discussed during this training either as individual presentations by different instructors or grouped together by one or more instructors. Typical topics covered include the following: -- Historical overview of satanism, witchcraft, and paganism from ancient to modern times. -- Nature and influence of fantasy role-playing games, such as "Dungeons and Dragons". -- Lyrics, symbolism, and influence of roc and roll, Heavy Metal, and Blac Metal music. -- Teenage "stoner" gangs, their symbols, and their vandalism. -- Teenage suicide by adolescents dabbling in the occult. -- Crimes committed by self-styled satanic practitioners, including grave and church desecrations and robberies, animal mutilations, and

used discussion will crime primarily appropriate

even murders. -- Ritualistic abuse of children as part of bizarre ceremonies and human sacrifices. -- Organized, Traditional, or Multigenerational satanic groups involved in organized conspiracies, such as ta ing over day care centers, infiltrating police departments, and traffic ing in human sacrifice victims. -- The "Big Conspiracy" theory, which implies that satanists are responsible for such things as Adolph Hitler, World War II, abortion, illegal drugs, pornography, Watergate, and Irangate, and have infiltrated the Department of Justice, the Pentagon, and the White House. During the conferences, these nine areas are lin ed together through the liberal use of the word "satanism" and some common symbolism (pentagrams, 666, demons, etc.). The implication often is that all are part of a continuum of behavior, a single problem or some common conspiracy. The distinctions among the different areas are blurred even if occasionally a presenter tries to ma e them. The information presented is a mixture of fact, theory, opinion, fantasy, and paranoia, and because some of it can be proven or corroborated (symbols on roc albums, graffiti on walls, desecration of cemeteries, vandalism, etc.), the implication is that it is all true and documented. Material produced by religious organizations, photocopies and slides of newspaper articles, and videotapes of tabloid television programs are used to supplement the training and are presented as "evidence" of the existence and nature of the problem. All of this is complicated by the fact that almost any discussion of satanism and the occult is interpreted in the light of the religious beliefs of those in the audience. Faith, not logic and reason, governs the religious beliefs of most people. As a result, some normally s eptical law enforcement officers accept the information disseminated at these conferences without critically evaluating it or questioning the sources. Officers who do not normally depend on church groups for law enforcement criminal intelligence, who now that media accounts of their own cases are notoriously inaccurate, and who scoff at and jo e about tabloid television accounts of bizarre behavior suddenly embrace such material when presented in the context of satanic activity. Individuals not in law enforcement seem even more li ely to do so. Other disciplines, especially therapists, have also conducted training conferences on the characteristics and identification of "ritual" child abuse. Nothing said at such conferences will change the religious beliefs of those in attendance. Such conferences illustrate the highly emotional nature of and the ambiguity and wide variety of terms involved in this issue. 4. DEFINITIONS The words "satanic", "occult", and "ritual" are often used interchangeably. It is difficult to define "satanism" precisely. No attempt will be made to do so here However, it is important to realize that, for some people, any religious belief system other than their own is "satanic". The Ayatollah Khomeini and Saddam Hussein referred to the United States as the "Great Satan". In the

In boo s, lectures, handout material, and conversations, I have heard all of the following referred to as satanism: -----------------------------------Church of Satan Ordo Templi Orientis Temple of Set Demonology Witchcraft Occult Paganism Santeria Voodoo Rosicrucians Freemasonry Knights Templar Stoner Gangs Heavy Metal Music Roc Music KKK Nazis S inheads Scientology Unification Church The Way Hare Krishna Rajneesh Religious Cults New Age Astrology Channeling Transcendental Meditation Holistic Medicine Buddhism Hinduism Mormonism Islam Orthodox Church Roman Catholicism

At law enforcement training conferences, it is witchcraft, santeria, paganism, and the occult that are most often referred to as forms of satanism. It may be a matter of definition, but these things are not necessarily the same as traditional satanism. The worship of lunar goddesses and nature and the practice of fertility rituals are not satanism. Santeria is a combination of 17th century Roman

British Parliament a Protestant leader called the Pope the Antichrist. In a boo titled _Prepare For War_ (1987), Rebecca Brown, M.D. has a chapter entitled "Is Roman Catholicism Witchcraft?" Dr. Brown also lists among the "doorways" to satanic power and/or demon infestation the following: fortune tellers, horoscopes, fraternity oaths, vegetarianism, yoga, self-hypnosis, relaxation tapes, acupuncture, biofeedbac , fantasy role-playing games, adultery, homosexuality, pornography, judo, arate, and roc music. Dr. Brown states that roc music "was a carefully masterminded plan by none other than Satan himself" (p. 84). The ideas expressed in this boo may seem extreme and even humorous. This boo , however, has been recommended as a serious reference in law enforcement training material on this topic.

Catholicism and African paganism. Occult means simply "hidden". All unreported or unsolved crimes might be regarded as occult, but in this context the term refers to the action or influence of supernatural powers, some secret nowledge of them, or an interest in paranormal phenomena, and does not imply satanism, evil, wrongdoing, or crime. Indeed, historically, the principal crimes deserving of consideration as "occult crimes" are the frauds perpetrated by faith healers, fortune tellers and "psychics" who for a fee claim cures, arrange visitations with dead loved ones, and commit other financial crimes against the gullible. Many individuals define satanism from a totally Christian perspective, using this word to describe the power of evil in the world. With this definition, any crimes, especially those which are particularly bizarre, repulsive, or cruel, can be viewed as satanic in nature. Yet it is just as difficult to precisely define satanism as it is to precisely define Christianity or any complex spiritual belief system. -- a. WHAT IS RITUAL? The biggest confusion is over the word "ritual". During training conferences on this topic, ritual almost always comes to mean "satanic" or at least "spiritual". "Ritual" can refer to a prescribed religious ceremony, but in its broader meaning refers to any customarily-repeated act or series of acts. The need to repeat these acts can be cultural, sexual, or psychological as well as spiritual. Cultural rituals could include such things as what a family eats on Than sgiving Day, or when and how presents are opened at Christmas. The initiation ceremonies of fraternities, sororities, gangs, and other social clubs are other examples of cultural rituals. Since 1972 I have lectured about sexual ritual, which is nothing more than repeatedly engaging in an act or series of acts in a certain manner because of a *sexual* need. In order to become aroused and/or gratified, a person must engage in the act in a certain way. This sexual ritual can include such things as the physical characteristics, age, or gender of the victim, the particular sequence of acts, the bringing or ta ing of specific objects, and the use of certain words or phrases. This is more than the concept of M.O. (Method of Operation) nown to most police officers. M.O. is something done by an offender because it wor s. Sexual ritual is something done by an offender because of a need. Deviant acts, such as urinating on, defecating on, or even eviscerating a victim, are far more li ely to be the result of sexual ritual than religious or "satanic" ritual. From a criminal investigative perspective, two other forms of ritualism must be recognized. The _Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders_ (DSM-III-R) (APA, 1987) defines "ObsessiveCompulsive Disorder" as "repetitive, purposeful, and intentional behaviors that are performed in response to an obsession, or according to certain rules or in a stereotyped fashion" (p. 247). Such compulsive behavior frequently involves rituals. Although such behavior usually involves noncriminal activity such as excessive

hand washing or chec ing that doors are loc ed, occasionally compulsive ritualism can be part of criminal activity. Certain gamblers or firesetters, for example, are thought by some authorities to be motivated in part through such compulsions. Ritual can also stem from psychotic hallucinations and delusions. A crime can be committed in a precise manner because a voice told the offender to do it that way or because a divine mission required it. To ma e this more confusing, cultural, religious, sexual, and psychological ritual can overlap. Some psychotic people are preoccupied with religious delusions and hear the voice of God or Satan telling them to do things of a religious nature. Offenders who feel little, if any, guilt over their crimes may need little justification for their antisocial behavior. As human beings, however, they may have fears, concerns, and anxiety over getting away with their criminal acts. It is difficult to pray to God for success in doing things that are against His Commandments. A negative spiritual belief system may fulfill their human need for assistance from and belief in a greater power or to deal with their superstitions. Compulsive ritualism (e.g., excessive cleanliness or fear of disease) can be introduced into sexual behavior. Even many "normal" people have a need for order and predictability and therefore may engage in family or wor rituals. Under stress or in times of change, this need for order and ritual may increase. Ritual crime may fulfill the cultural, spiritual, sexual, and psychological needs of an offender. Crimes may be ritualistically motivated or may have ritualistic elements. The ritual behavior may also fulfill basic criminal needs to manipulate victims, get rid of rivals, send a message to enemies, and intimidate co-conspirators. The leaders of a group may want to play upon the beliefs and superstitions of those around them and try to convince accomplices and enemies that they, the leaders, have special or "supernatural" powers. The important point for the criminal investigator is to realize that most ritualistic criminal behavior is not motivated simply by satanic or any religious ceremonies. At some conferences, presenters have attempted to ma e an issue of distinguishing between "ritual", "ritualized", and "ritualistic" abuse of children. These subtle distinctions, however, seem to be of no significant value to the criminal investigator. -- c. WHAT IS "RITUAL" CHILD ABUSE? I cannot define "ritual child abuse" precisely and prefer not to use the term. I am frequently forced to use it (as throughout this discussion) so that people will have some idea what I am discussing. Use of the term, however, is confusing, misleading, and counterproductive. The newer term "satanic ritual abuse" (abbreviated "SRA") is even worse. Certain observations, however, are important for investigative understanding. Most people today use the term to refer to abuse of children that is part of some evil spiritual belief system, which almost by definition must be satanic. Dr. Lawrence Pazder, coauthor of _Michelle Remembers_, defines "ritualized abuse of children" as "repeated physical, emotional,

mental, and spiritual assaults combined with a systematic use of symbols and secret ceremonies designed to turn a child against itself, family, society, and God" (presentation, Richmond, Va., May 7,1987). He also states that "the sexual assault has ritualistic meaning and is not for sexual gratification". This definition may have value for academics, sociologists, and therapists, but it creates potential problems for law enforcement. Certain acts engaged in with children (i.e. issing, touching, appearing na ed, etc.) may be criminal if performed for sexual gratification. If the ritualistic acts were in fact performed for spiritual indoctrination, potential prosecution can be jeopardized, particularly if the acts can be defended as constitutionally protected religious expression. The mutilation of a baby's genitals for sadistic sexual pleasure is a crime. The circumcision of a baby's genitals for religious reasons is most li ely *not* a crime. The intent of the acts is important for criminal prosecution. Not all spiritually motivated ritualistic activity is satanic. Santeria, witchcraft, voodoo, and most religious cults are not satanism. In fact, most spiritually- or religiously-based abuse of children has nothing to do with satanism. Most child abuse that could be termed "ritualistic" by various definitions is more li ely to be physical and psychological rather than sexual in nature. If a distinction needs to be made between satanic and nonsatanic child abuse, the indicators for that distinction must be related to specific satanic symbols, artifacts, or doctrine rather than the mere presence of any ritualistic element. Not all such ritualistic activity with a child is a crime. Almost all parents with religious beliefs indoctrinate their children into that belief system. Is male circumcision for religious reasons child abuse? Is the religious circumcision of females child abuse? Does having a child neel on a hard floor reciting the rosary constitute child abuse? Does having a child chant a satanic prayer or attend a blac mass constitute child abuse? Does a religious belief in corporal punishment constitute child abuse? Does group care of children in a commune or cult constitute child abuse? Does the fact that any acts in question were performed with parental permission affect the nature of the crime? Many ritualistic acts, whether satanic or not, are simply not crimes. To open the Pandora's box of labeling child abuse as "ritualistic" simply because it involves a spiritual belief system means to apply the definition to all acts by all spiritual belief systems. The day may come when many in the forefront of concern about ritual abuse will regret they opened the box. When a victim describes and investigation corroborates what sounds li e ritualistic activity. several possibilities must be considered. The ritualistic activity may be part of the excessive religiosity of mentally disturbed, even psychotic offenders. It may be a misunderstood part of sexual ritual. The ritualistic activity may be incidental to any real abuse. The offender may be involved in ritualistic activity with a child and also may be abusing a child, but one may have little or nothing to do with the other. The offender may be deliberately engaging in ritualistic activity with a child as part of child abuse and exploitation. The motivation, however, may be not to indoctrinate the child into a

belief system, but to lower the inhibitions of, control, manipulate, and/or confuse the child. In all the turmoil over this issue, it would be very effective strategy for any child molester deliberately to introduce ritualistic elements into his crime in order to confuse the child and therefore the criminal justice system. This would, however, ma e the activity M.O. and not ritual. The ritualistic activity and the child abuse may be integral parts of some spiritual belief system. In that case the greatest ris is to the children of the practitioners. But this is true of all cults and religions, not just satanic cults. A high potential of abuse exists for any children raised in a group isolated from the mainstream of society, especially if the group has a charismatic leader whose orders are unquestioned and blindly obeyed by the members. Sex, money, and power are often the main motivations of the leaders of such cults. -- c. WHAT MAKES A CRIME SATANIC, OCCULT, OR RITUALISTIC? Some would answer that it is the offender's spiritual beliefs or membership in a cult or church. If that is the criterion, why not label the crimes committed by Protestants, Catholics, and Jews in the same way? Are the atrocities of Jim Jones in Guyana Christian crimes? Some would answer that it is the presence of certain symbols in the possession or home of the perpetrator. What does it mean then to find a crucifix, Bible, or rosary in the possession or home of a ban robber, embezzler, child molester, or murderer? If different criminals possess the same symbols, are they necessarily part of one big conspiracy? Others would answer that it is the presence of certain symbols such as pentagrams, inverted crosses, and 666 at the crime scene. What does it mean then to find a cross spray painted on a wall or carved into the body of a victim? What does it mean for a perpetrator, as in one recent case profiled by my Unit, to leave a Bible tied to his murder victim? What about the possibility that an offender deliberately left such symbols to ma e it loo li e a "satanic" crime? Some would argue that it is the bizarreness or cruelness of the crime: body mutilation, amputation, drin ing of blood, eating of flesh, use of urine or feces. Does this mean that all individuals involved in lust murder, sadism, vampirism, cannibalism, urophilia, and coprophilia are satanists or occult practitioners? What does this say about the bizarre crimes of psychotic illers such as Ed Gein or Richard Trenton Chase, both of whom mutilated their victims as part of their psychotic delusions? Can a crime that is not sexually deviant, bizarre, or exceptionally violent be satanic? Can white collar crime be satanic? A few might even answer that it is the fact that the crime was committed on a date with satanic or occult significance (Halloween, May Eve, etc.) or the fact that the perpetrator claims that Satan told him to commit the crime. What does this mean for crimes committed on Than sgiving or Christmas? What does this say about crimes committed by perpetrators who claim that God or Jesus told them to do it? One note of interest is the fact that in handout and

reference material I have collected, the number of dates with satanic or occult significance ranges from 8 to 110. This is compounded by the fact that it is sometimes stated that satanists can celebrate these holidays on several days on either side of the official date or that the birthdays of practitioners can also be holidays. The exact names and exact dates of the holidays and the meaning of symbols listed may also vary depending on who prepared the material The handout material is often distributed without identifying the author or documenting the original source of the information. It is then frequently photocopied by attendees and passed on to other police officers with no one really nowing its validity or origin. Most, however, would probably answer that what ma es a crime satanic, occult, or ritualistic is the motivation for the crime. It is a crime that is spiritually motivated by a religious belief system. How then do we label the following true crimes? -- Parents defy a court order and send their children to an unlicensed Christian school. -- Parents refuse to send their children to any school because they are waiting for the second coming of Christ. -- Parents beat their child to death because he or she will not follow their Christian belief. -- Parents violate child labor laws because they believe the Bible requires such wor . -- Individuals bomb an abortion clinic or idnap the doctor because their religious belief system says abortion is murder. -- A child molester reads the Bible to his victims in order to justify his sex acts with them. -- Parents refuse life-saving medical treatment for a child because of their religious beliefs. -- Parents starve and beat their child to death because their minister said the child was possessed by demonic spirits. Some people would argue that the Christians who committed the above crimes misunderstood and distorted their religion while satanists who commit crimes are following theirs. But who decides what constitutes a misinterpretation of a religious belief system? The individuals who committed the above-described crimes, however misguided, believed that they were following their religion as they understood it. Religion was and is used to justify such social behavior as the Crusades, the Inquisition, Apartheid, segregation, and recent violence in Northern Ireland, India, Lebanon and Nigeria. Who decides exactly what "satanists" believe? In this country, we cannot even agree on what Christians believe. At many law enforcement conferences The _Satanic Bible_ is used for this, and it is often contrasted or compared with the Judeo-Christian Bible. The _Satanic Bible_ is, in essence, a short paperbac boo written by one man, Anton LaVey, in 1969. To compare it to a boo written by multiple authors over a period of thousands of years is ridiculous,

even ignoring the possibility of Divine revelation in the Bible. What satanists believe certainly isn't limited to other people's interpretation of a few boo s. More importantly it is subject to some degree of interpretation by individual believers just as Christianity is. Many admitted "satanists" claim they do not even believe in God, the devil, or any supreme deity. The criminal behavior of one person claiming belief in a religion does not necessarily imply guilt or blame to others sharing that belief. In addition, simply claiming membership in a religion does not necessarily ma e you a member. The fact is that far more crime and child abuse has been committed by zealots in the name of God, Jesus, Mohammed, and other mainstream religion than has ever been committed in the name of Satan. Many people, including myself, don't li e that statement, but the truth of it is undeniable. Although defining a crime as satanic, occult, or ritualistic would probably involve a combination of the criteria set forth above, I have been unable to clearly define such a crime. Each potential definition presents a different set of problems when measured against an objective, rational, and constitutional perspective. In a crime with multiple subjects, each offender may have a different motivation for the same crime. Whose motivation determines the label for the crime? It is difficult to count or trac something you cannot even define. I have discovered, however, that the facts of so-called "satanic crimes" are often significantly different from what is described st training conferences or in the media. The actual involvement of satanism or the occult in these cases usually turns out to be secondary, insignificant, or nonexistent. Occult or ritual crime surveys done by the states of Michigan (1990) and Virginia (1991) have only confirmed this "discovery". Some law enforcement officers, unable to find serious "satanic" crime in their communities, assume they are just luc y or vigilant and the serious problems must be in other jurisdictions. The officers in the other jurisdictions, also unable find it, assume the same. 5. MULTlDlMENSlONAL CHILD SEX RINGS Sometime in early 1983 I was first contacted by a law enforcement agency for guidance in what was then thought to be an unusual case. The exact date of the contact is un nown because its significance was not recognized at the time. In the months and years that followed, I received more and more inquiries about "these inds of cases". The requests for assistance came (and continue to come) from all over the United States. Many of the aspects of these cases varied, but there were also some commonalties. Early on, however, one particularly difficult and potentially significant issue began to emerge. These cases involved and continue to involve unsubstantiated allegations of bizarre activity that are difficult either to prove or disprove. Many of the unsubstantiated allegations, however, do not seem to have occurred or even be possible. These cases seem to call into question the credibility of victims of child sexual abuse and exploitation. These are the most polarizing, frustrating, and baffling cases I have encountered in more than 18 years of studying

the criminal aspects of deviant sexual behavior. I privately sought answers, but said nothing publicly about those cases until 1985. In October 1984 the problems in investigating and prosecuting one of these cases in Jordan, Minnesota became publicly nown. In February 1985, at the FBI Academy, the FBI sponsored and I coordinated the first national seminar held to study "these inds of cases". Later in 1985, similar conferences sponsored by other organizations were held in Washington, D.C.; Sacramento, California; and Chicago, Illinois. These cases have also been discussed at many recent regional and national conferences dealing with the sexual victimization of children and Multiple Personality Disorder. Few answers have come from these conferences. I continue to be contacted on these cases on a regular basis. Inquiries have been received from law enforcement officers, prosecutors, therapists, victims, families of victims, and the media from all over the United States and now foreign countries. I do not claim to understand completely all the dynamics of these cases. I continue to eep an open mind and to search for answers to the questions and solutions to the problems they pose. This discussion is based on my analysis of the several hundred of "these inds of cases" on which I have consulted since 1983. -- a. DYNAMICS OF CASES. What are "these inds of cases"? They were and continue to be difficult to define. They all involve allegations of what sounds li e child sexual abuse, but with a combination of some atypical dynamics. These cases seem to have the following four dynamics in common: (1) multiple young victims, (2) multiple offenders, (3) fear as the controlling tactic, and (4) bizarre or ritualistic activity. ---- (1) MULTIPLE YOUNG VICTIMS. In almost all the cases the sexual abuse was alleged to have ta en place or at least begun when the victims were between the ages of birth and six. This very young age may be an important ey to understanding these cases. In addition the victims all described multiple children being abused. The numbers ranged from three or four to as many as several hundred victims. ---- (2) MULTIPLE OFFENDERS. In almost all the cases the victims reported numerous offenders. The numbers ranged from two or three all the way up to dozens of offenders. In one recent case the victims alleged 400-500 offenders were involved. Interestingly many of the offenders (perhaps as many as 40-50 percent) were reported to be females. The multiple offenders were often family members and were described as being part of a cult, occult, or satanic group. ---- (3) FEAR AS CONTROLLING TACTIC. Child molesters in general are able to maintain control and ensure the secrecy of their victims in a variety of ways. These include attention and affection, coercion, blac mail, embarrassment, threats, and violence. In almost all of these cases I have studied, the victims described being frightened and reported threats against themselves, their families, their friends, and even their pets. They

reported witnessing acts of violence perpetrated to reinforce this fear. It is my belief that this fear and the traumatic memory of the events may be another ey to understanding many of these cases. ---- (4) BIZARRE OR RITUALISTIC ACTIVITY. This is the most difficult dynamic of these cases to describe. "Bizarre" is a relative term. Is the use of urine or feces in sexual activity bizarre, or is it a well-documented aspect of sexual deviancy, or is it part of established satanic rituals? As previously discussed, the ritualistic aspect is even more difficult to define. How do you distinguish acts performed in a precise manner to enhance or allow sexual arousal from those acts that fulfill spiritual needs or comply with "religious" ceremonies? Victims in these cases report ceremonies, chanting, robes and costumes, drugs, use of urine and feces, animal sacrifice, torture, abduction, mutilation, murder, and even cannibalism and vampirism. All things considered, the word "bizarre" is probably preferable to the word "ritual" to describe this activity. When I was contacted on these cases, it was very common for a prosecutor or investigator to say that the alleged victims have been evaluated by an "expert" who will sta e his or her professional reputation on the fact that the victims are telling the "truth". When as ed how many cases this expert had previously evaluated involving these four dynamics, the answer was always the same: none! The experts usually had only dealt with one-on-one intrafamilial sexual abuse cases. Recently an even more disturbing trend has developed. More and more of the victims have been identified or evaluated by experts who have been trained to identify and specialize in satanic ritual abuse. -- b. CHARACTERISTICS OF MULTIDIMENSIONAL CHILD SEX RINGS. As previously stated, a major problem in communicating, training, and researching in this area is the term used to define "these inds of cases". Many refer to them as "ritual, ritualistic, or ritualized abuse of children cases" or "satanic ritual abuse (SRA) cases". Such words carry specialized meanings for many people and might imply that all these cases are connected to occult or satanic activity. If ritual abuse is not necessarily occult or satanic, but is "merely" severe, repeated, prolonged abuse, why use a term that, in the minds of so many, implies such specific motivation? Others refer to these cases as "multioffender/multivictim cases". The problem with this term is that most multiple offender and victim cases do not involve the four dynamics discussed above. For want of a better term, I have decided to refer to "these inds of cases" as "multidimensional child sex rings". Right now I seem to be the only one using this term. I am, however, not sure if this is truly a distinct ind of child sex ring case or just a case not properly handled. Following are the general characteristics of these multidimensional child sex ring cases as contrasted with more common historical child sex ring cases [see my monograph _Child Sex Rings: A Behavioral Analysis] (1989) for a discussion of the characteristics of historical child sex ring cases]. ---- (1) FEMALE OFFENDERS.

As many as 40-50 percent of the offenders in these cases are reported to be women. This is in mar ed contrast to historical child sex rings in which almost all the offenders are men. ---- (2) SITUATIONAL MOLESTERS. The offenders appear to be sexually interacting with the child victims for reasons other than a true sexual preference for children. The children are substitute victims, and the abusive activity may have little to do with pedophilia [see my monograph _Child Molesters: A Behavioral Analysis_ (1987) for a further explanation about types of molesters]. ---- (3) MALE AND FEMALE VICTIMS. Both boys and girls appear to be targeted, but with an apparent preference for girls. Almost all the adult survivors are female, but day care cases frequently involve male as well as female victims. The most stri ing characteristic of the victims, however, is their young age (generally birth to six years old when the abuse began). ---- (4) MULTIDIMENSIONAL MOTIVATION. Sexual gratification appears to be only part of the motivation for the "sexual" activity. Many people today argue that the motivation is "spiritual" - possibly part of an occult ceremony. It is my opinion that the motivation may have more to do with anger, hostility, rage and resentment carried out against wea and vulnerable victims. Much of the ritualistic abuse of children may not be sexual in nature. Some of the activity may, in fact, be physical abuse directed at sexually-significant body parts (penis, anus, nipples). This may also partially explain the large percentage of female offenders. Physical abuse of children by females is welldocumented. ---- (5) PORNOGRAPHY AND PARAPHERNALIA. Although many of the victims of multidimensional child sex rings claim that pictures and videotapes of the activity were made, no such visual record has been found by law enforcement. In recent years, American law enforcement has seized large amounts of child pornography portraying children in a wide variety of sexual activity and perversions. None of it, however, portrays the ind of bizarre and/or ritualistic activity described by these victims. Perhaps these offenders use and store their pornography and paraphernalia in ways different from preferential child molesters (pedophiles). This is an area needing additional research and investigation. ---- (6) CONTROL THROUGH FEAR. Control through fear may be the overriding characteristic of these cases. Control is maintained by frightening the children. A very young child might not be able to understand the significance of much of the sexual activity but certainly understands fear. The stories that the victims tell may be their perceived versions of severe traumatic memories. They may be the victims of a severely traumatized childhood in which being sexually abused was just one of the many negative events affecting their lives.

-- c. SCENARIOS. Multidimensional child sex rings typically emerge from one of four scenarios: (1) adult survivors, (2) day care cases, (3) family/isolated neighborhood cases, and (4) custody/visitation disputes. ---- (1) ADULT SURVIVORS. In adult survivor cases, adults of almost any age - nearly always women - are suffering the consequences of a variety of personal problems and failures in their lives (e.g., promiscuity, eating disorders, drug and alcohol abuse, failed relationships, selfmutilation, unemployment). As a result of some precipitating stress or crisis, they often see therapy. They are frequently hypnotized, intentionally or unintentionally, as part of the therapy and are often diagnosed as suffering from Multiple Personality Disorder. Gradually, during the therapy, the adults reveal previously unrecalled memories of early childhood victimization that includes multiple victims and offenders, fear as the controlling tactic, and bizarre or ritualistic activity. Adult survivors may also claim that "cues" from certain events in their recent life "triggered" the previously repressed memories. The multiple offenders are often described as members of a cult or satanic group. Parents, family members, clergy, civic leaders, police officers (or individuals wearing police uniforms), and other prominent members of society are frequently described as present at and participating in the exploitation. The alleged bizarre activity often includes insertion of foreign objects, witnessing mutilations, and sexual acts and murders being filmed or photographed. The offenders may allegedly still be harassing or threatening the victims. They report being particularly frightened on certain dates and by certain situations. In several of these cases, women (called "breeders") claim to have had babies that were turned over for human sacrifice. This type of case is probably best typified by boo s li e _Michelle Remembers_ (Smith & Pazder, 1980), _Satan's Underground_ (Stratford, 1988), and _Satan's Children_ (Mayer, 1991). If and when therapists come to believe the patient or decide the law requires it, the police or FBI are sometimes contacted to conduct an investigation. The therapists may also fear for their safety because they now now the "secret". The therapists will frequently tell law enforcement that they will sta e their professional reputation on the fact that their patient is telling the truth. Some adult survivors go directly to law enforcement. They may also go from place to place in an effort to find therapists or investigators who will listen to and believe them. Their ability to provide verifiable details varies and many were raised in apparently religious homes. A few adult survivors are now reporting participation in specific murders or child abductions that are nown to have ta en place. ---- (2) DAY CARE CASES. In day care cases children currently or formerly attending a day care center gradually describe their victimization at the center and at other locations to which they were ta en by the day care staff. The cases include multiple victims and offenders, fear, and bizarre or ritualistic activity, with a particularly high number of female

offenders. Descriptions of strange games, insertion of foreign objects, illing of animals, photographing of activities, and wearing of costumes are common. The accounts of the young children, however, do not seem to be quite as "bizarre" as those of the adult survivors, with fewer accounts of human sacrifice. ---- (3) FAMILY/ISOLATED NEIGHBORHOOD CASES. In family/isolated neighborhood cases, children describe their victimization within their family or extended family. The group is often defined by geographic boundary, such as a cul-de-sac, apartment building, or isolated rural setting. Such accounts are most common in rural or suburban communities with high concentrations of religiously conservative people. The stories are similar to those told of the day care setting, but with more male offenders. The basic dynamics remain the same, but victims tend to be more than six years of age, and the scenario may also involve a custody or visitation dispute. ---- (4) CUSTODY/VISITATION DISPUTE. In custody/visitation dispute cases, the allegations emanate from a custody or visitation dispute over at least one child under the age of seven. The four dynamics described above ma e these cases extremely difficult to handle. When complicated by the strong emotions of this scenario, the cases can be overwhelming. This is especially true if the disclosing child victims have been ta en into the "underground" by a parent during the custody or visitation dispute. Some of these parents or relatives may even provide authorities with diaries or tapes of their interviews with the children. An accurate evaluation and assessment of a young child held in isolation in this underground while being "debriefed" by a parent or someone else is almost impossible. However wellintentioned, these self-appointed investigators severely damage any chance to validate these cases objectively. -- d. WHY ARE VICTIMS ALLEGING THINGS THAT DO NOT SEEM TO BE TRUE? Some of what the victims in these cases allege is physically impossible (victim cut up and put bac together, offender too the building apart and then rebuilt it); some is possible but improbable (human sacrifice, cannibalism, vampirism ); some is possible and probable (child pornography, clever manipulation of victims); and some is corroborated (medical evidence of vaginal or anal trauma, offender confessions). The most significant crimes being alleged that do not *seem* to be true are the human sacrifice and cannibalism by organized satanic cults. In none of the multidimensional child sex ring cases of which I am aware have bodies of the murder victims been found - in spite of major excavations where the abuse victims claim the bodies were located. The alleged explanations for this include: the offenders moved the bodies after the children left, the bodies were burned in portable high-temperature ovens, the bodies were put in doubledec er graves under legitimately buried bodies, a mortician member of the cult disposed of the bodies in a crematorium, the offenders ate the bodies, the offenders used corpses and aborted fetuses, or the power of Satan caused the bodies to disappear.

Not only are no bodies found, but also, more importantly, there is no physical evidence that a murder too place. Many of those not in law enforcement do not understand that, while it is possible to get rid of a body, it is even more difficult to get rid of the physical evidence that a murder too place, especially a human sacrifice involving sex, blood, and mutilation. Such activity would leave behind trace evidence that could be found using modern crime scene processing techniques in spite of extraordinary efforts to clean it up. The victims of these human sacrifices and murders are alleged to be abducted missing children, runaway and throwaway children, derelicts, and the babies of breeder women. It is interesting to note that many of those espousing these theories are using the longsince-discredited numbers and rhetoric of the missing children hysteria in the early 1980s. Yet "Stranger-Abduction Homicides of Children", a January 1989 _Juvenile Justice Bulletin_, published by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the U.S. Department of Justice, reports that researchers now estimate that the number of children idnapped and murdered by nonfamily members is between 52 and 158 a year and that adolescents 14 to 17 years old account for nearly two-thirds of these victims. These figures are also consistent with the 1990 National Incident Studies previously mentioned. We live in a very violent society, and yet we have "only" about 23,000 murders a year. Those who accept these stories of mass human sacrifice would have us believe that the satanists and other occult practitioners are murdering more than twice as many people every year in this country as all the other murderers combined. In addition, in none of the cases of which I am aware has any evidence of a well-organized satanic cult been found. Many of those who accept the stories of organized ritual abuse of children and human sacrifice will tell you that the best evidence they now have is the consistency of stories from all over America. It sounds li e a powerful argument. It is interesting to note that, without having met each other, the hundreds of people who claim to have been abducted by aliens from outer space also tell stories and give descriptions of the aliens that are similar to each other. This is not to imply that allegations of child abuse are in the same category as allegations of abduction by aliens from outer space. It is intended only to illustrate that individuals who never met each other can sometimes describe similar events without necessarily having experienced them. The large number of people telling the same story is, in fact, the biggest reason to doubt these stories. It is simply too difficult for that many people to commit so many horrendous crimes as part of an organized conspiracy. Two or three people murder a couple of children in a few communities as part of a ritual, and nobody finds out? Possible. Thousands of people do the same thing to tens of thousands of victims over many years? Not li ely. Hundreds of communities all over America are run by mayors, police departments, and community leaders who are practicing satanists and who regularly murder and eat people? Not li ely. In addition, these community leaders and high-ran ing officials also supposedly commit these complex crimes leaving no evidence, and at the same time function as leaders and managers while heavily involved in using illegal drugs.

Probably the closest documented example of this type of alleged activity in American history is the Ku Klux Klan, which ironically used Christianity, not satanism, to rationalize its activity but which, as might be expected, was eventually infiltrated by informants and betrayed by its members. As stated, initially I was inclined to believe the allegations of the victims. But as the cases poured in and the months and years went by, I became more concerned about the lac of physical evidence and corroboration for many of the more serious allegations. With increasing frequency I began to as the question: "Why are victims alleging things that do not *seem* to be true?" Many possible answers were considered. The first possible answer is obvious: clever offenders. The allegations may not seem to be true but they are true. The criminal justice system lac s the nowledge, s ill, and motivation to get to the bottom of this crime conspiracy. The perpetrators of this crime conspiracy are clever, cunning individuals using sophisticated mind control and brainwashing techniques to control their victims. Law enforcement does not now how to investigate these cases. It is technically possible that these allegations of an organized conspiracy involving ta ing over day care centers, abduction, cannibalism, murder, and human sacrifice might be true. But if they are true, they constitute one of the greatest crime conspiracies in history. Many people do not understand how difficult it is to commit a conspiracy crime involving numerous co-conspirators. One clever and cunning individual has a good chance of getting away with a wellplanned interpersonal crime. Bring one partner into the crime and the odds of getting away with it drop considerably. The more people involved in the crime, the harder it is to get away with it. Why? Human nature is the answer. People get angry and jealous. They come to resent the fact that another conspirator is getting "more" than they. They get in trouble and want to ma e a deal for themselves by informing on others. If a group of individuals degenerate to the point of engaging in human sacrifice, murder, and cannibalism, that would most li ely be the beginning of the end for such a group. The odds are that someone in the group would have a problem with such acts and be unable to maintain the secret. The appeal of the satanic conspiracy theory is twofold: ---- (1) First, it is a simple explanation for a complex problem. Nothing is more simple than "the devil made them do it". If we do not understand something, we ma e it the wor of some supernatural force. During the Middle Ages, serial illers were thought to be vampires and werewolves, and child sexual abuse was the wor of demons ta ing the form of parents and clergy. Even today, especially for those raised to religiously believe so, satanism offers an explanation as to why "good" people do bad things. It may also help to "explain" unusual, bizarre, and compulsive sexual urges and behavior. ---- (2) Second, the conspiracy theory is a popular one. We find it

difficult to believe that one bizarre individual could commit a crime we find so offensive. Conspiracy theories about soldiers missing in action (MlAs), abductions by UFOs, Elvis Presley sightings, and the assassination of prominent public figures are the focus of much attention in this country. These conspiracy theories and allegations of ritual abuse have the following in common: (1) self-proclaimed experts, (2) tabloid media interest, (3) belief the government is involved in a coverup, and (4) emotionally involved direct and indirect victim/witnesses. On a recent television program commemorating the one hundredth anniversary of Jac the Ripper, almost fifty percent of the viewing audience who called the polling telephone numbers indicated that they thought the murders were committed as part of a conspiracy involving the British Royal Family. The five experts on the program, however, unanimously agreed the crimes were the wor of one disorganized but luc y individual who was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic. In many ways, the murders of Jac the Ripper are similar to those allegedly committed by satanists today. If your child's molestation was perpetrated by a sophisticated satanic cult, there is nothing you could have done to prevent it and therefore no reason to feel any guilt. I have been present when parents who believe their children were ritually abused at day care centers have told others that the cults had sensors in the road, loo outs in the air, and informers everywhere; therefore, the usually recommended advice of unannounced visits to the day care center would be impossible. 6. ALTERNATIVE EXPLANATIONS Even if only part of an allegation is not true, what then is the answer to the question "Why are victims alleging things that do not *seem* to be true?" After consulting with psychiatrists, psychologists, anthropologists, therapists, social wor ers, child sexual abuse experts, and law enforcement investigators for more than eight years, I can find no single, simple answer. The answer to the question seems to be a complex set of dynamics that can be different in each case. In spite of the fact that some s eptics eep loo ing for it, there does not appear to be one answer to the question that fits every case. Each case is different, and each case may involve a different combination of answers. I have identified a series of possible alternative answers to this question. The alternative answers also do not preclude the possibility that clever offenders are sometimes involved. I will not attempt to explain completely these alternative answers because I cannot. They are presented simply as areas for consideration and evaluation by child sexual abuse intervenors, for further elaboration by experts in these fields, and for research by objective social scientists. The first step, however, in finding the answers to this question is to admit the possibility that some of what the victims describe may not have happened. Some child advocates seem unwilling to do this. -- a. PATHOLOGICAL DISTORTION. The first possible answer to why victims are alleging things that do not *seem* to be true is *pathological distortion*. The allegations may be errors in processing reality influenced by underlying mental

disorders such as dissociative disorders, borderline or histrionic personality disorders, or psychosis. These distortions may be manifested in false accounts of victimization in order to gain psychological benefits such as attention and sympathy (factitious disorder). When such individuals repeatedly go from place to place or person to person ma ing these false reports of their own "victimization", it is called Munchausen Syndrome. When the repealed false reports concern the "victimization" of their children or others lin ed to them, it is called Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy. I am amazed when some therapists state that they believe the allegations because they cannot thin of a reason why the "victim", whose failures are now explained and excused or who is now the center of attention at a conference or on a national television program, would lie. If you can be forgiven for mutilating and illing babies, you can be forgiven for anything. Many "victims" may develop pseudomemories of their victimization and eventually come to believe the events actually occurred. Noted forensic psychiatrist Par E. Dietz (personal communication, Nov. 1991) states: "Pseudomemories have been acquired through dreams (particularly if one is encouraged to eep a journal or dream diary and to regard dream content as 'clues' about the past or as snippets of history), substance-induced altered states of consciousness (alcohol or other drugs), group influence (particularly hearing vivid accounts of events occurring to others with whom one identifies emotionally such as occurs in incest survivor groups), reading vivid accounts of events occurring to others with whom one identifies emotionally, watching such accounts in films or on television, and hypnosis. The most efficient means of inducing pseudomemories is hypnosis. "It is characteristic of pseudomemories that the recollections of complex events (as opposed to a simple unit of information, such as a tag number) are incomplete and without chronological sequence. Often the person reports some uncertainty because the pseudomemories are experienced in a manner they describe as 'hazy', 'fuzzy', or 'vague'. They are often perplexed that they recall some details vividly but others dimly. "Pseudomemories are not delusions. When first telling others of pseudomemories, these individuals do not have the unsha able but irrational conviction that deluded subjects have, but with social support they often come to defend vigorously the truthfulness of the pseudomemories. "Pseudomemories are not fantasies, but may incorporate elements from fantasies experienced in the past. Even where the events described are implausible, listeners may believe them because they are reported with such intense affect (i.e. with so much emotion attached to the story) that the listener concludes that the events must have happened because no one could 'fa e' the emotional aspects of the retelling. It also occurs, however, that persons report pseudomemories in such a matter-of-fact and emotionless manner that mental health professionals conclude that the person has 'dissociated' intellectual nowledge of the events from emotional appreciation of their impact." -- b. TRAUMATIC MEMORY.

The second possible answer is *traumatic memory*. Fear and severe trauma can cause victims to distort reality and confuse events. This is a well-documented fact in cases involving individuals ta en hostage or in life-and-death situations. The distortions may be part of an elaborate defense mechanism of the mind called "splitting" The victims create a clear-cut good-and-evil manifestation of their complex victimization that is then psychologically more manageable. Through the defense mechanism of dissociation, the victim may escape the horrors of reality by inaccurately processing that reality. In a dissociative state a young child who ordinarily would now the difference might misinterpret a film or video as reality. Another defense mechanism may tell the victim that it could have been worse, and so his or her victimization was not so bad. They are not alone in their victimization - other children were also abused. Their father who abused them is no different from other prominent people in the community they claim also abused them. Satanism may help to explain why their outwardly good and religious parents did such terrible things to them in the privacy of their home. Their religious training may convince them that such unspea able acts by supposedly "good" people must be the wor of the devil. The described human sacrifice may be symbolic of the "death" of their childhood. It may be that we should anticipate that individuals severely abused as very young children by *multiple* offenders with *fear* as the primary controlling tactic will distort and embellish their victimization. Perhaps a horror-filled yet inaccurate account of victimization is not only not a counterindication of abuse, but is in fact a corroborative indicator of extreme physical, psychological, and/or sexual abuse. I do not believe it is a coincidence nor the result of deliberate planning by satanists that in almost all the cases of ritual abuse that have come to my attention, the abuse is alleged to have begun prior to the age of seven and perpetrated by multiple offenders. It may well be that such abuse, at young age by multiple offenders, is the most difficult to accurately recall with the specific and precise detail needed by the criminal justice system, and the most li ely to be distorted and exaggerated when it is recalled. In her boo _Too Scared to Cry_ (1990), child psychiatrist Lenore Terr, a leading expert on psychic trauma in childhood, states "that a series of early childhood shoc s might not be fully and accurately 'reconstructed' from the dreams and behaviors of the adult" (p. 5). -- c. NORMAL CHILDHOOD FEARS AND FANTASY. The third possible answer may be *normal childhood fears and fantasy*. Most young children are afraid of ghosts and monsters. Even as adults, many people feel uncomfortable, for example, about dangling their arms over the side of their bed. They still remember the "monster" under the bed from childhood. While young children may rarely invent stories about sexual activity, they might describe their victimization in terms of evil as they understand it. In church or at home, children may be told of satanic activity as the source of evil. The children may be "dumping" all their fears and worries unto an attentive and encouraging listener.

Children do fantasize. Perhaps whatever causes a child to allege something impossible (such as being cut up and put bac together) is similar to what causes a child to allege something possible but improbable (such as witnessing another child being chopped up and eaten). -- d. MISPERCEPTION, CONFUSION, AND TRICKERY. Misperception, confusion, and tric ery may be a fourth answer. Expecting young children to give accurate accounts of sexual activity for which they have little frame of reference is unreasonable. The Broadway play _Madame Butterfly_ is the true story of a man who had a 15-year affair, including the "birth" of a baby, with a "woman" who turns out to have been a man all along. If a grown man does not now when he has had vaginal intercourse with a woman, how can we expect young children not to be confused? Furthermore some clever offenders may deliberately introduce elements of satanism and the occult into the sexual exploitation simply to confuse or intimidate the victims. Simple magic and other techniques may be used to tric the children. Drugs may also be deliberately used to confuse the victims and distort their perceptions. Such acts would then be M.O., not ritual. As previously stated, the perceptions of young victims may also be influenced by any trauma being experienced. This is the most popular alternative explanation, and even the more zealous believers of ritual abuse allegations use it, but only to explain obviously impossible events. -- e. OVERZEALOUS INTERVENORS. *Overzealous intervenors*, causing intervenor contagion, may be a fifth answer. These intervenors can include parents, family members, foster parents, doctors, therapists, social wor ers, law enforcement officers, prosecutors, and any combination thereof. Victims have been subtly as well as overtly rewarded and bribed by usually wellmeaning intervenors for furnishing further details. In addition, some of what appears not to have happened may have originated as a result of intervenors ma ing assumptions about or misinterpreting what the victims are saying. The intervenors then repeat, and possibly embellish, these assumptions and misinterpretations, and eventually the victims are "forced" to agree with or come to accept this "official" version of what happened. The judgment of intervenors may be affected by their zeal to uncover child sexual abuse, satanic activity, or conspiracies. However "well-intentioned", these overzealous intervenors must accept varying degrees of responsibility for the unsuccessful prosecution of those cases where criminal abuse did occur. This is the most controversial and least popular of the alternative explanations. -- f. URBAN LEGENDS. Allegations of and nowledge about ritualistic or satanic abuse may also be spread through *urban legends*. In _The Vanishing Hitchhi er_ (1981), the first of his four boo s on the topic, Dr. Jan Harold Brunvand defines urban legends as "realistic stories

concerning recent events (or alleged events) with an ironic or supernatural twist" (p. xi). Dr. Brunvand's boo s convincingly explain that just because individuals throughout the country who never met each other tell the same story does not mean that it is true. Absurd urban legends about the corporate logos of Proctor and Gamble and Liz Claiborne being satanic symbols persist in spite of all efforts to refute them with reality. Some urban legends about child idnappings and other threats to citizens have even been disseminated un nowingly by law enforcement agencies. Such legends have always existed, but today the mass media aggressively participate in their rapid and more efficient dissemination. Many Americans mista enly believe that tabloid television shows chec out and verify the details of their stories before pulling them on the air. Mass hysteria may partially account for large numbers of victims describing the same symptoms or experiences. Training conferences for all the disciplines involved in child sexual abuse may also play a role in the spread of this contagion. At one child abuse conference I attended, an exhibitor was selling more than 50 different boo s dealing with satanism and the occult. By the end of the conference, he had sold nearly all of them. At another national child sexual abuse conference, I witnessed more than 100 attendees copying down the widely disseminated 29 "Symptoms Characterizing Satanic Ritual Abuse" in preschool-aged children. Is a four-year-old child's "preoccupation with urine and feces" an indication of satanic ritual abuse or part of normal development? -- g. COMBINATION. Most multidimensional child sex ring cases probably involve a *combination* of the answers previously set forth, as well as other possible explanations un nown to me at this time. Obviously, cases with adult survivors are more li ely to involve some of these answers than those with young children. Each case of sexual victimization must be individually evaluated on its own merits without any preconceived explanations. All the possibilities must be explored if for no other reason than the fact that the defense attorneys for any accused subjects will almost certainly do so. Most people would agree that just because a victim tells you one detail that turns out to be true, this does not mean that every detail is true. But many people seem to believe that if you can disprove one part of a victim's story, then the entire story is false. As previously stated, one of my main concerns in these cases is that people are getting away with sexually abusing children or committing other crimes because we cannot prove that they are members of organized cults that murder and eat people. I have discovered that the subject of multidimensional child sex rings is a very emotional and polarizing issue. Everyone seems to demand that one choose a side. On one side of the issue are those who say that nothing really happened and it is all a big witch hunt led by overzealous fanatics and incompetent "experts". The other side says, in essence, that everything happened; victims never lie about child sexual abuse, and so it must be true. There is a middle ground. It is the job of the professional investigator to listen to all the victims and conduct appropriate investigation in an effort to find out what happened, considering

all possibilities. Not all childhood trauma is abuse. Not all child abuse is a crime. The great frustration of these cases is the fact that you are often convinced that something traumatic happened to the victim, but do not now with any degree of certainty exactly what happened, when it happened, or who did it. 7. DO VICTIMS LIE ABOUT SEXUAL ABUSE AND EXPLOITATION? The crucial central issue in the evaluation of a response to cases of multidimensional child sex rings is the statement "Children never lie about sexual abuse or exploitation. If they have details, it must have happened." This statement, oversimplified by many, is the basic premise upon which some believe the child sexual abuse and exploitation movement is based. It is almost never questioned or debated at training conferences. In fact, during the 1970s, there was a successful crusade to eliminate laws requiring corroboration of child victim statements in child sexual abuse cases. The best way to convict child molesters is to have the child victims testify in court. If we believe them, the jury will believe them. Any challenge to this basic premise was viewed as a threat to the movement and a denial that the problem existed. I believe that children *rarely* lie about sexual abuse or exploitation, if a lie is defined as a statement deliberately and maliciously intended to deceive. The problem is the oversimplification of the statement. Just because a child is not lying does not necessarily mean the child is telling the truth. I believe that in the majority of these cases, the victims are not lying. They are telling you what they have come to believe has happened to them. Furthermore the assumption that children rarely lie about sexual abuse does not necessarily apply to everything a child says during a sexual abuse investigation. Stories of mutilation, murder, and cannibalism are not really about sexual abuse. Children rarely lie about sexual abuse or exploitation. but they do fantasize, furnish false information, furnish misleading information, misperceive events, try to please adults, respond to leading questions, and respond to rewards. Children are not adults in little bodies and do go through developmental stages that must be evaluated and understood. In many ways, however, children are no better and no worse than other victims or witnesses of a crime. They should not be automatically believed, nor should they be automatically disbelieved. The second part of the statement - if children can supply details, the crime must have happened - must also be carefully evaluated. The details in question in most of the cases of multidimensional child sex rings have little to do with sexual activity. Law enforcement and social wor ers must do more than attempt to determine how a child could have nown about the sex acts. These cases involve determining how a victim could have nown about a wide variety of bizarre and ritualistic activity. Young children may now little about specific sex acts, but they may now a lot about monsters, torture, idnapping, and murder. Victims may supply details of sexual and other acts using information from sources other than their own direct victimization. Such sources must be evaluated carefully by the investigator of

multidimensional child sex rings. -- a. PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE. The victim may have personal nowledge of the sexual or ritual acts, but not as a result of the alleged victimization. The nowledge could have come from viewing pornography, sex education, or occult material; witnessing sexual or ritual activity in the home; or witnessing the sexual abuse of others. It could also have come from having been sexually or physically abused, but by other than the alleged offenders and in ways other than the alleged offense. -- b. OTHER CHILDREN OR VICTIMS. Young children today are socially interacting more often and at a younger age than ever before. Many parents are unable to provide possibly simple explanations for their children's stories because they were not with the children when the events occurred. They do not even now what videotapes their children may have seen, what games they may have played, or what stories they may have been told or overheard. Children are being placed in day care centers for eight, ten, or twelve hours a day starting as young as six wee s of age. The children share experiences by playing house, school, or doctor. Bodily functions such as urination and defecation are a focus of attention for these young children. To a certain extent, each child shares the experiences of all the other children. The odds are fairly high that in any typical day care center there might be some children who are victims of incest; victims of physical abuse; victims of psychological abuse; children of cult members (even satanists); children of sexually open parents; children of sexually indiscriminate parents; children of parents obsessed with victimization; children of parents obsessed with the evils of satanism; children without conscience; children with a teenage brother or pregnant mother; children with heavy metal music and literature in the home; children with bizarre toys, games, comics, and magazines; children with a VCR and slasher films in their home; children with access to dial-a-porn, party lines, or pornography; or children victimized by a day care center staff member. The possible effects of the interaction of such children prior to the disclosure of the alleged abuse must be evaluated, Adult survivors may obtain details from group therapy sessions, support networ s, church groups, or self-help groups. The willingness and ability of siblings to corroborate adult survivor accounts of ritual abuse varies. Some will support and partially corroborate the victim's allegations. Others will vehemently deny them and support their accused parents or relatives. -- c. MEDIA. The amount of sexually explicit, occult, anti-occult, or violenceoriented material available to adults and even children in the modern world is overwhelming. This includes movies, videotapes, television, music, toys, and boo s. There are also documentaries on satanism, witchcraft, and the occult that are available on videotape. Most of the televangelists have videotapes on the topics that they are selling on their programs. The National Coalition on Television Violence News (1988) estimates

that 12% of the movies produced in the United States can be classified as satanic horror films. Cable television and the home VCR ma e all this material readily available even to young children. Religious broadcasters and almost all the television tabloid and magazine programs have done shows on satanism and the occult. Heavy metal and blac metal music, which often has a satanic theme, is readily available and popular. In addition to the much-debated fantasy role-playing games, there are numerous popular toys on the mar et with an occult-oriented, bizarre, or violent theme. Boo s on satanism and the occult, both fiction and nonfiction, are readily available in most boo stores, especially Christian boo stores. Several recent boo s specifically discuss the issue of ritual abuse of children. Obviously, very young children do not read this material, but their parents, relatives, and therapists might and then discuss it in front of or with them. Much of the material intended to fight the problem actually fuels the problem and damages effective prosecution. -- d. SUGGESTIONS AND LEADING QUESTIONS. This problem is particularly important in cases stemming from custody/visitation disputes involving at least one child under the age of seven. It is my opinion that most suggestive, leading questioning of children by intervenors is inadvertently done as part of a good-faith effort to learn the truth. Not all intervenors are in equal positions to potentially influence victim allegations. Parents and relatives especially are in a position to subtly influence their young children to describe their victimization in a certain way. Children may also overhear their parents discussing the details of the case. Children often tell their parents what they believe their parents want or need to hear. Some children may be instinctively attempting to provide "therapy" for their parents by telling them what seems to satisfy them and somehow ma es them feel better. In one case a father gave the police a tape recording to "prove" that his child's statements were spontaneous disclosures and not the result of leading, suggestive questions. The tape recording indicated just the opposite. Why then did the father voluntarily give it to the police? Probably because he truly believed that he was not influencing his child's statements - but he was. Therapists are probably in the best position to influence the allegations of adult survivors. The accuracy and reliability of the accounts of adult survivors who have been hypnotized during therapy is certainly open to question. One nationally- nown therapist personally told me that the reason police cannot find out about satanic or ritualistic activity from child victims is that they do not now how to as leading questions. Highly suggestive boo s and pictures portraying "satanic" activity have been developed and mar eted to therapists for use during evaluation and treatment. Types and styles of verbal interaction useful in therapy may create significant problems in a criminal investigation. It should be noted, however, that when a therapist does a poor investigative interview as part of a criminal investigation, that is the fault of the criminal justice system that allowed it and not the therapist who did it. The extremely sensitive, emotional, and religious nature of these cases ma es problems with leading questions more li ely than in

other inds of cases. Intervenors motivated by religious fervor and/or exaggerated concerns about sexual abuse of children are more li ely to lose their objectivity. -- e. MISPERCEPTION AND CONFUSION. In one case, a child's description of the apparently impossible act of wal ing through a wall turned out to be the very possible act of wal ing between the studs of an unfinished wall in a room under construction. In another case, pennies in the anus turned out to be copper-foil-covered suppositories. The children may describe what they believe happened. It is not a lie, but neither is it an accurate account of what happened. -- f. EDUCATION AND AWARENESS PROGRAMS. Some well-intentioned awareness programs designed to prevent child set abuse, alert professionals, or fight satanism may in fact be unrealistically increasing the fears of professionals, children, and parents and creating self-fulfilling prophesies. Some of what children and their parents are telling intervenors may have been learned in or fueled by such programs. Religious programs, boo s, and pamphlets that emphasize the power and evil force of Satan may be adding to the problem. In fact most of the day care centers in which ritualistic abuse is alleged to hate ta en place are churchaffiliated centers, and many of the adult survivors alleging it come from apparently religious families. 8. LAW ENFORCEMENT PERSPECTIVE. The perspective with which one loo s at satanic, occult, or ritualistic crime is extremely important. As stated, sociologists, therapists, religious leaders, parents, and just plain citizens each have their own valid concerns and views about this issue. This discussion, however, deals primarily with the law enforcement or criminal justice perspective. When you combine an emotional issue such as the sexual abuse of children with an even more emotional issue such as people's religious beliefs, it is difficult to maintain objectivity and remember the law enforcement perspective. Some police officers may even feel that all crime is caused by evil, all evil is caused by Satan, and therefore, all crime is satanic crime. This may be a valid religious perspective, but it is of no relevance to the investigation of crime for purposes of prosecution. Many of the police officers who lecture on satanic or occult crime do not even investigate such cases. Their presentations are more a reflection of their personal religious beliefs than documented investigative information. They are absolutely entitled to their beliefs, but introducing themselves as current or former police officers and then spea ing as religious advocates causes confusion. As difficult as it might be, police officers must separate the religious and law enforcement perspectives when they are lecturing or investigating in their official capacities as law enforcement officers. Many law enforcement officers begin their presentations by stating that they are not addressing or judging anyone's religious beliefs, and then proceed to do exactly that.

Some police officers have resigned rather than curtail or limit their involvement in this issue as ordered by their departments. Perhaps such officers deserve credit for recognizing that they could no longer eep the perspectives separate. Law enforcement officers and all professionals in this field should avoid the "paranoia" that has crept into this issue and into some of the training conferences. Paranoid type belief systems are characterized by the gradual development of intricate, complex, and elaborate systems of thin ing based on and often proceeding logically from misinterpretation of actual events. Paranoia typically involves hypervigilance over the perceived threat, the belief that danger is around every corner, and the willingness to ta e up the challenge and do something about it. Another very important aspect of this paranoia is the belief that those who do not recognize the threat are evil and corrupt. In this extreme view, you are either with them or against them. You are either part of the solution or part of the problem. Overzealousness and exaggeration motivated by the true religious fervor of those involved is more acceptable than that motivated by ego or profit. There are those who are deliberately distorting and hyping this issue for personal notoriety and profit. Satanic and occult crime and ritual abuse of children has become a growth industry. Spea ing fees, boo s, video and audio tapes, prevention material, television and radio appearances all bring egoistic and financial rewards. Bizarre crime and evil can occur without organized satanic activity. The professional perspective requires that we distinguish between what we now and what we're not sure of. The facts are: -- a. Some individuals believe in and are involved in something commonly called satanism and the occult. -- b. Some of these individuals commit crime. -- c. Some groups of individuals share these beliefs and involvement in this satanism and the occult. -- d. Some members of these groups commit crime together. The unanswered questions are: -- a. What is the connection between the belief system and the crimes committed? -- b. Is there an organized conspiracy of satanic and occult believers responsible for interrelated serious crime (e.g., molestation, murder)? After all the hype and hysteria are put aside, the realization sets in that most satanic/occult activity involves the commission of *no* crimes, and that which does usually involves the commission of relatively minor crimes such as trespassing, vandalism, cruelty to animals, or petty thievery.

The law enforcement problems most often lin ed to satanic or occult activity are: -- a. Vandalism. -- b. Desecration of churches and cemeteries. -- c. Thefts from churches and cemeteries. -- d. Teenage gangs -- e. Animal mutilations. -- f. Teenage suicide. -- g. Child abuse. -- h. Kidnapping. -- i. Murder and human sacrifice Valid evidence shows some "connection" between satanism and the occult and the first six problems (#a-f) set forth above. The "connection" to the last three problems (#g-i) is far more uncertain. Even where there seems to be a "connection", the nature of the connection needs to be explored. It is easy to blame involvement in satanism and the occult for behaviors that have complex motivations. A teenager's excessive involvement in satanism and the occult is usually a symptom of a problem and not the cause of a problem. Blaming satanism for a teenager's vandalism, theft, suicide, or even act of murder is li e blaming a criminal's offenses on his tattoos: Both are often signs of the same rebelliousness and lac of selfesteem that contribute to the commission of crimes. The roc band Judas Priest was recently sued for allegedly inciting two teenagers to suicide through subliminal messages in their recordings. In 1991 Anthony Prat anis of the University of California at Santa Cruz, who served as an expert witness for the defense, stated the boys in question "lived troubled lives, lives of drug and alcohol abuse, run-ins with the law ... family violence, and chronic unemployment. What issues did the trial and the subsequent mass media coverage emphasize? Certainly not the need for drug treatment centers; there was no evaluation of the pros and cons of America's juvenile justice system, no investigation of the schools, no inquiry into how to prevent family violence, no discussion of the effects of unemployment on a family. Instead our attention was mesmerized by an attempt to count the number of subliminal demons that can dance on the end of a record needle" (p. 1). The law enforcement investigator must objectively evaluate the legal significance of any criminal's spiritual beliefs. In most cases, including those involving satanists, it will have little or no legal significance. If a crime is committed as part of a spiritual belief system, it should ma e no difference which belief system it is. The crime is the same whether a child is abused or murdered as part of a

Christian, Hare Krishna, Moslem, or any other belief system. We generally don't label crimes with the name of the perpetrator's religion. Why then are the crimes of child molesters, rapists, sadists, and murderers who happen to be involved in satanism and the occult labeled as satanic or occult crimes? If criminals use a spiritual belief system to rationalize and justify or to facilitate and enhance their criminal activity, should the focus of law enforcement be on the belief system or on the criminal activity? Several documented murders have been committed by individuals involved in one way or another in satanism or the occult. In some of these murders the perpetrator has even introduced elements of the occult (e.g. satanic symbols at crime scene). Does that automatically ma e these satanic murders? It is my opinion that the answer is no. Ritualistic murders committed by serial illers or sexual sadists are not necessarily satanic or occult murders. Ritualistic murders committed by psychotic illers who hear the voice of Satan are no more satanic murders than murders committed by psychotic illers who hear the voice of Jesus are Christian murders. Rather a satanic murder should be defined as one committed by two or more individuals who rationally plan the crime and whose *primary* motivation is to fulfill a prescribed satanic ritual calling for the murder. By this definition I have been unable to identify even one documented satanic murder in the United States. Although such murders may have and can occur, they appear to be few in number. In addition the commission of such illings would probably be the beginning of the end for such a group. It is highly unli ely that they could continue to ill several people, every year, year after year, and not be discovered. A brief typology of satanic and occult practitioners is helpful in evaluating what relationship, if any, such practices have to crimes under investigation. The following typology is adapted from the investigative experience of Officer Sandi Gallant of the San Francisco Police Department, who began to study the criminal aspects of occult activity long before it became popular. No typology is perfect, but I use this typology because it is simple and offers investigative insights. Most practitioners fall into one of three categories, any of which can be practiced alone or in groups: -- a. "YOUTH SUBCULTURE. "Most teenagers involved in fantasy role-playing games, heavy metal music, or satanism and the occult are going through a stage of adolescent development and commit no significant crimes. The teenagers who have more serious problems are usually those from dysfunctional families or those who have poor communication within their families. These troubled teenagers turn to satanism and the occult to overcome a sense of alienation, to rebel, to obtain power, or to justify their antisocial behavior. For these teenagers it is the symbolism, not the spirituality, that is more important. It is either the psychopathic or the oddball, loner teenager who is most li ely to get into serious trouble. Extreme involvement in the occult is a symptom of a problem, not the cause. This is not to deny, however, that satanism and the occult can be negative influences for a troubled teenager. But to hysterically warn teenagers to avoid this "mysterious, powerful and dangerous" thing called satanism will drive more teenagers right to it. Some

rebellious teenagers will do whatever will most shoc and outrage society in order to flaunt their rejection of adult norms. -- b. "DABBLERS (SELF-STYLED). "For these practitioners there is little or no spiritual motivation. They may mix satanism, witchcraft, paganism, and any aspects of the occult to suit their purposes. Symbols mean whatever they want them or believe them to mean. Molesters, rapists, drug dealers, and murderers may dabble in the occult and may even commit their crimes in a ceremonial or ritualistic way. This category has the potential to be the most dangerous, and most of the "satanic" illers fall into this category. Their involvement in satanism and the occult is a symptom of a problem, and a rationalization and justification of antisocial behavior. Satanic/occult practices (as well as those of other spiritual belief systems) can also be used as a mechanism to facilitate criminal objectives. -- c. "TRADITIONAL (ORTHODOX). "These are the so-called true believers. They are often wary of outsiders. Because of this and constitutional issues, such groups are difficult for law enforcement to penetrate. Although there may be much we don't now about these groups, as of now there is little or no hard evidence that as a group they are involved in serious, organized criminal activity. In addition, instead of being selfperpetuating master crime conspirators, "true believers" probably have a similar problem with their teenagers rebelling against their belief system. To some extent even these Traditional satanists are self-stylized. They practice what they have come to believe is "satanism". There is little or no evidence of the much-discussed multigenerational satanists whose beliefs and practices have supposedly been passed down through the centuries. Many admitted adult satanists were in fact raised in conservative Christian homes." _Washington Post_ editor Walt Harrington reported in a 1986 story on Anton LaVey and his Church of Satan that "sociologists who have studied LaVey's church say that its members often had serious childhood problems li e alcoholic parents or bro en homes, or that they were traumatized by guilt-ridden fundamentalist upbringings, turning to Satanism as a dramatic way to purge their debilitating guilt" (p. 14). Some have claimed that the accounts of ritual abuse victims coincide with historical records of what traditional or multigenerational satanists are nown to have practiced down through the ages. Jeffrey Burton Russell, Professor of History at the University of California at Santa Barbara and the author of numerous scholarly boo s on the devil and satanism, believes that the universal consensus of modern historians on satanism is (personal communication, Nov. 1991): "(1) incidents of orgy, infanticide, cannibalism, and other such conduct have occurred from the ancient world down to the present; (2) such incidents were isolated and limited to local antisocial groups; (3) during the period of Christian dominance in European culture, such groups were associated with the Devil in the minds of the authorities; (4) in some cases the sectaries believed that they were worshiping Satan; (5) no organized cult of Satanists existed in

the Christian period beyond localities, and on no account was there ever any widespread Satanist organization or conspiracy; (6) no reliable historical sources indicate that such organizations existed; (7) the blac mass appears only once in the sources before the late nineteenth century." Many police officers as what to loo for during the search of the scene of suspected satanic activity. The answer is simple: Loo for evidence of a crime. A pentagram is no more criminally significant than a crucifix unless it corroborates a crime or a criminal conspiracy. If a victim's description of the location or the instruments of the crime includes a pentagram, then the pentagram would be evidence. But the same would be true if the description included a crucifix. In many cases of alleged satanic ritual abuse, investigation can find evidence that the claimed offenders are members only of mainstream churches and are often described as very religious. There is no way any one law enforcement officer can become nowledgeable about all the symbols and rituals of every spiritual belief system that might become part of a criminal investigation. The officer needs only to be trained to recognize the possible investigative significance of such signs, symbols, and rituals. Knowledgeable religious scholars, academics, and other true experts in the community can be consulted if a more detailed analysis is necessary. Any analysis, however, may have only limited application, especially to cases involving teenagers, dabblers, and other self-styled practitioners. The fact is signs, symbols, and rituals can mean anything that practitioners want them to mean and/or anything that observers interpret them to mean. The meaning of symbols can also change over time, place, and circumstance. Is a swasti a spray-painted on a wall an ancient symbol of prosperity and good fortune, a recent symbol of Nazism and anti-Semitism, or a current symbol of hate, paranoia, and adolescent defiance? The peace sign which in the 1960s was a familiar antiwar symbol is now supposed to be a satanic symbol. Some symbols and holidays become "satanic" only because the antisatanists say they are. Then those who want to be "satanists" adopt them, and now you have "proof" they are satanic. In spite of what is sometimes said or suggested at law enforcement training conferences, police have no authority to seize any satanic or occult paraphernalia they might see during a search. A legallyvalid reason must exist for doing so. It is not the job of law enforcement to prevent satanists from engaging in noncriminal teaching, rituals, or other activities. 9. INVESTIGATING MULTIDIMENSIONAL CHILD SEX RINGS. Multidimensional child sex rings can be among the most difficult, frustrating, and complex cases that any law enforcement officer will ever investigate. The investigation of allegations of recent activity from multiple young children under the age of seven presents one set of problems and must begin quic ly, with interviews of *all* potential victims being completed as soon as possible. The investigation of allegations of activity ten or more years earlier

from adult survivors presents other problems and should proceed, unless victims are at immediate ris , more deliberately, with gradually-increasing resources as corroborated facts warrant. In spite of any s epticism, allegations of ritual abuse should be aggressively and thoroughly investigated, This investigation should attempt to corroborate the allegations of ritual abuse. but should *simultaneously* also attempt to identify alternative explanations. The only debate is over how much investigation is enough. Any law enforcement agency must be prepared to defend and justify its actions when scrutinized by the public, the media, elected officials, or the courts. This does not mean, however, that a law enforcement agency has an obligation to prove that the alleged crimes did not occur. This is almost always impossible to do and investigators should be alert for and avoid this trap. One major problem in the investigation of multidimensional child sex rings is the dilemma of recognizing soon enough that you have one. Investigators must be alert for cases with the potential for the four basic dynamics: (a) multiple young victims, (b) multiple offenders, (c) fear as the controlling tactic, and (d) bizarre or ritualistic activity. The following techniques apply primarily to the investigation of such multidimensional child sex rings:

-- a. MINIMIZE SATANIC/OCCULT ASPECT. There are those who claim that one of the major reasons more of these cases have not been successfully prosecuted is that the satanic/occult aspect has not been aggressively pursued. One state has even introduced legislation creating added penalties when certain crimes are committed as part of a ritual or ceremony. A few states have passed special ritual crime laws. I strongly disagree with such an approach. It ma es no difference what spiritual belief system was used to enhance and facilitate or rationalize and justify criminal behavior. It serves no purpose to "prove" someone is a satanist. As a matter of fact, if it is alleged that the subject committed certain criminal acts under the influence of or in order to conjure up supernatural spirits or forces, this may very well be the basis for an insanity or diminished capacity defense, or may damage the intent aspect of a sexually motivated crime. The defense may very well be more interested in all the "evidence of satanic activity". Some of the satanic crime "experts" who train law enforcement wind up wor ing or testifying for the defense in these cases. It is best to focus on the crime and all the evidence to corroborate its commission. Information about local satanic or occult activity is only of value if it is based on specific law enforcement intelligence and not on some vague, unsubstantiated generalities from religious groups. Cases are not solved by decoding signs, symbols, and dates using undocumented satanic crime "manuals". In one case a law enforcement agency executing a search warrant seized only the satanic paraphernalia and left behind the other evidence that would have corroborated victim statements. Cases are solved by people- and behavior-oriented investigation. Evidence of satanic or occult activity may help explain certain aspects of the case, but even offenders who commit crimes in a spiritual context are usually motivated by power, sex, and money.

-- b. KEEP INVESTIGATION AND RELIGIOUS BELIEFS SEPARATE. I believe that one of the biggest mista es any investigator of these cases can ma e is to attribute supernatural powers to the offenders. During an investigation a good investigator may sometimes be able to use the beliefs and superstitions of the offenders to his or her advantage. The reverse happens if the investigator believes that the offenders possess supernatural powers. Satanic/occult practitioners have no more power than any other human beings. Law enforcement officers who believe that the investigation of these cases puts them in conflict with the supernatural forces of evil should probably not be assigned to them. The religious beliefs of officers should provide spiritual strength and support for them but should not affect the objectivity and professionalism of the investigation. It is easy to get caught up in these cases and begin to see "satanism" everywhere. Oversensitization to this perceived threat may cause an investigator to "see" satanism in a crime when it really is not there (quasi-satanism). Often the eye sees what the mind perceives. It may also cause an investigator not to recognize a staged crime scene deliberately seeded with "satanic clues" in order to mislead the police (pseudo-satanism). On rare occasions an overzealous investigator or intervenor may even be tempted to plant "evidence of satanism" in order to corroborate such allegations and beliefs. Supervisors need to be alert for and monitor these reactions in their investigators. -- c. LISTEN TO THE VICTIMS. It is not the investigator's duty to believe the victims; it is his or her job to listen and be an objective fact finder. Interviews of young children should be done by investigators trained and experienced in such interviews. Investigators must have direct access to the alleged victims for interview purposes. Therapists for an adult survivor sometimes want to act as intermediaries in their patient's interview. This should be avoided if at all possible. Adult survivor interviews are often confusing difficult and extremely time-consuming. The investigator must remember however that almost anything is possible. Most important the investigator must remember that there is much middle ground. Just because one event did happen does not mean that all reported events happened, and just because one event did not happen does not mean that all other events did not happen. Do not become such a zealot that you believe it all nor such a cynic that you believe nothing. Varying amounts and parts of the allegation may be factual. Attempting to find evidence of what did happen is the great challenge of these cases. *All* investigative interaction with victims must be carefully and thoroughly documented. -- d. ASSESS AND EVALUATE VICTIM STATEMENTS. This is the part of the investigative process in child sexual victimization cases that seems to have been lost. Is the victim describing events and activities that are consistent with law enforcement documented criminal behavior, or that are consistent with distorted media accounts and erroneous public perceptions of criminal behavior? Investigators should apply the "template of probability". Accounts of child sexual victimization that are more

li e boo s, television, and movies (e.g. big conspiracies, child sex slaves, organized pornography rings) and less li e documented cases should be viewed with s epticism but thoroughly investigated. Consider and investigate all possible explanations of events. It is the investigator's job, and the information learned will be invaluable in counteracting the defense attorneys when they raise the alternative explanations. For example, an adult survivor's account of ritual victimization might be explained by any one of at least four possibilities: First, the allegations may be a fairly accurate account what actually happened. Second, they may be deliberate lies (malingering), told for the usual reasons people lie (e.g. money, revenge, jealousy). Third, they may be deliberate lies (factitious disorder) told for atypical reasons (e.g. attention, forgiveness). Lies so motivated are less li ely to be recognized by the investigator and more li ely to be rigidly maintained by the liar unless and until confronted with irrefutable evidence to the contrary. Fourth, the allegations may be a highly inaccurate account of what actually happened, but the victim truly believes it (pseudomemory) and therefore is not lying. A polygraph examination of such a victim would be of limited value. Other explanations or combinations of these explanations are also possible. *Only* thorough *investigation* will point to the correct or most li ely explanation. Investigators cannot rely on therapists or satanic crime experts as a shortcut to the explanation. In one case, the "experts" confirmed and validated the account of a female who claimed to be a 15-yearold deaf-mute idnapped and held for three years by a satanic cult and forced to participate in bizarre rituals before recently escaping. Active investigation, however, determined she was a 27year-old woman who could hear and spea , who had not been idnapped by anyone, and who had a lengthy history of mental problems and at least three other similar reports of false victimization. Her "accurate" accounts of what the "real satanists" do were simply the result of having read, while in mental hospitals, the same boo s that the "experts" had. A therapist may have important insights about whether an individual was traumatized, but nowing the exact cause of that trauma is another matter. There have been cases where investigation has discovered that individuals diagnosed by therapists as suffering from Post-Vietnam Syndrome were never in Vietnam or saw no combat. Conversely, in another case, a law enforcement "expert" on satanic crime told a therapist that a patient's accounts of satanic murders in a rural Pacific Northwest town were probably true because the community was a hotbed of such satanic activity. When the therapist explained that there was almost no violent crime reported in the community, the officer explained that that is how you now it is the satanists. If you new about the murders or found the bodies, it would not be satanists. How do you argue with that ind of logic? The first step in the assessment and evaluation of victim statements is to determine the disclosure sequence, including how much time has elapsed since disclosure was first made and the incident was reported to the police or social services. The longer the delay, the bigger the potential for problems. The next step is to determine the number and purpose of *all prior* interviews of the victim concerning the allegations. The more interviews conducted before the

investigative interview, the larger the potential for problems. Although there is nothing wrong with admitting shortcomings and see ing help, law enforcement should never abdicate its control over the investigative interview. When an investigative interview is conducted by or with a social wor er or therapist using a team approach, law enforcement must direct the process. Problems can also be created by interviews conducted by various intervenors *after* the investigative interview(s). The investigator must closely and carefully evaluate events in the victim's life before, during, and after the alleged abuse. Events to be evaluated *before* the alleged abuse include:

Events to be evaluated *during* the alleged abuse include: ------------------(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) Use of Degree Use of Use of Use of Use of fear or scare tactics. of trauma. magic deception or tric ery. rituals. drugs. pornography.

Events to be evaluated *after* the alleged abuse include:

-- e. EVALUATE CONTAGION. Consistent statements obtained from different multiple victims are powerful pieces of corroborative evidence - that is as long as those statements were not "contaminated". Investigation must carefully evaluate both pre- and post-disclosure contagion, and both victim and intervenor contagion. Are the different victim statements consistent because they describe common experiences or events, or because they reflect contamination or urban legends? The sources of potential contagion are widespread. Victims can communicate with each other both prior to and after their disclosures. Intervenors can communicate with each other and with victims. The team or cell concepts of investigation are attempts to deal with potential investigator contagion. All the victims are not

----------------

(1) (2) (3) (4) (5)

Disclosure sequence. Bac ground of prior interviewers. Bac ground of parents. Co-mingling of victims. Type of therapy received.

----------------------------------------

(1) Bac ground of victim. (2) Abuse of drugs in home. (3) Pornography in home. (4) Play, television, and VCR habits. (5) Attitudes about sexuality in home. (6) Extent of sex education in home. (7) Activities of siblings. (8) Need or craving for attention. (9) Religious beliefs and training. (10) Childhood fears. (11) Custody/visitation disputes. (12) Victimization of or by family members. (13) Interaction between victims.

interviewed by the same individuals, and interviewers do not necessarily share information directly with each other. Teams report to a leader or supervisor who evaluates the information and decides what other investigators need to now. Documenting existing contagion and eliminating additional contagion are crucial to the successful investigation and prosecution of these cases. There is no way, however, to erase or undo contagion. The best you can hope for is to identify and evaluate it and attempt to explain it. Mental health professionals requested to evaluate suspected victims must be carefully selected. Having a victim evaluated by one of the self-proclaimed experts on satanic ritual abuse or by some other overzealous intervenor may result in the credibility of that victim's testimony being severely damaged. In order to evaluate the contagion element, investigators must meticulously and aggressively investigate these cases. The precise disclosure sequence of the victim must be carefully identified and documented. Investigators must verify through active investigation the exact nature and content of each disclosure outcry or statement made by the victim. Second-hand information about disclosure is not good enough. Whenever possible, personal visits should be made to all locations of alleged abuse and the victim's homes. Events prior to the alleged abuse must be carefully evaluated. Investigators may have to view television programs, films, and videotapes seen by the victims. It may be necessary to conduct a bac ground investigation and evaluation of everyone, both professional and nonprofessional, who interviewed the victims about the allegations prior to and after the investigative interview(s). Investigators must be familiar with the information about ritual abuse of children being disseminated in magazines, boo s, television programs, videotapes, and conferences. Every possible way that a victim could have learned about the details of the abuse must be explored if for no other reason than to eliminate them and counter the defense's arguments. There may, however, be validity to these contagion factors. *They may explain some of the "unbelievable" aspects of the case and result in the successful prosecution of the substance of the case.* Consistency of statements becomes more significant if contagion is identified or disproved by independent investigation. The easier cases are the ones where there is a single, identifiable source of contagion. Most cases, however, seem to involve multiple contagion factors. Munchausen Syndrome and Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy are complex and controversial issues in these cases. No attempt will be made to discuss them in detail, but they are documented facts (Rosenberg, 1987). Most of the literature about them focuses on their manifestation in the medical setting as false or self-inflicted illness or injury. They are also manifested in the criminal justice setting as false or self-inflicted crime victimization. If parents would poison their children to prove an illness, they might sexually abuse their children to prove a crime. "Victims" have been nown to destroy property, manufacture evidence, and mutilate themselves in order to convince others of their victimization. The motivation is psychological gain (i.e. attention, forgiveness, etc.) and not necessarily money, jealousy, or revenge. These are the unpopular,

but documented, realities of the world. Recognizing their existence does not mean that child sexual abuse and sexual assault are not real and serious problems. -- f. ESTABLISH COMMUNICATION WITH PARENTS. The importance and difficulty of this technique in extrafamilial cases involving young children cannot be overemphasized. An investigator must maintain ongoing communication with the parents of victims in these abuse cases. Not all parents react the same way to the alleged abuse of their children. Some are very supportive and cooperative. Others overreact and some even deny the victimization. Sometimes there is animosity and mistrust among parents with different reactions. Once the parents lose faith in the police or prosecutor and begin to interrogate their own children and conduct their own investigation, the case may be lost forever. Parents from one case communicate the results of their "investigation" with each other, and some have even contacted the parents in other cases. Such parental activity is an obvious source of potential contamination. Parents must be made to understand that their children's credibility will be jeopardized when and if the information obtained turns out to be unsubstantiated or false. To minimize this problem, within the limits of the law and without jeopardizing investigative techniques, parents must be told on a regular basis how the case is progressing. Parents can also be assigned constructive things to do (e.g. lobbying for new legislation, wor ing on awareness and prevention programs) in order to channel their energy, concern, and "guilt". -- g. DEVELOP A CONTINGENCY PLAN. If a department waits until actually confronted with a case before a response is developed, it may be too late. In cases involving ongoing abuse of children, departments must respond quic ly, and this requires advanced planning. There are added problems for smallto medium-sized departments with limited personnel and resources. Effective investigation of these cases requires planning, identification of resources, and, in many cases, mutual aid agreements between agencies. The U.S. Department of Defense has conducted specialized training and has developed such a plan for child sex ring cases involving military facilities and personnel. Once a case is contaminated and out of control, I have little advice on how to salvage what may once have been a prosecutable criminal violation. A few of these cases have even been lost on appeal after a conviction because of contamination problems. -- h. MULTIDISCIPLINARY TASK FORCES. Sergeant Beth Dic inson, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, was the chairperson of the Multi-Victim, Multi-Suspect Child Sexual Abuse Subcommittee. Sergeant Dic inson states (personal communication, Nov. 1989): "One of the biggest obstacles for investigators to overcome is the reluctance of law enforcement administrators to commit sufficient resources early on to an investigation that has the potential to be a multidimensional child sex ring. It is important to get in and get on top of the investigation in a timely manner - to get it investigated in a timely manner in order to assess the ris to

children and to avoid hysteria, media sensationalism, and crosscontamination of information. The team approach reduces stress on individual investigators, allowing for peer support and minimizing feelings of being overwhelmed." The team approach and wor ing together does not mean, however, that each discipline forgets its role and starts doing the other's job. -- i. SUMMARY. The investigation of child sex rings can be difficult and time consuming. The li elihood, however, of a great deal of corroborative evidence in a multivictim/multioffender case increases the chances of a successful prosecution if the crime occurred. Because there is still so much we do not now or understand about the dynamics of multidimensional child sex rings, investigative techniques are less certain. Each new case must be carefully evaluated in order to improve investigative procedures. Because mental health professionals seem to be unable to determine, with any degree of certainty, the accuracy of victim statements in these cases, law enforcement must proceed using the corroboration process. If some of what the victim describes is accurate, some misperceived, some distorted, and some contaminated, what is the jury supposed to believe? Until mental health professionals can come up with better answers, the jury should be as ed to believe what the *investigation* can corroborate. Even if only a portion of what these victims allege is factual, that may still constitute significant criminal activity. 10. CONCLUSION. There are many possible alternative answers to the question of why victims are alleging things that don't seem to be true. The first step in finding those answers is to admit the possibility that some of what the victims describe may not have happened. Some experts seem unwilling to even consider this. Most of these victims are also probably not lying and have come to believe that which they are alleging actually happened. There are alternative explanations for why people who never met each other can tell the same story. I believe that there is a middle ground - a continuum of possible activity. Some of what the victims allege may be true and accurate, some may be misperceived or distorted, some may be screened or symbolic, and some may be "contaminated" or false. The problem and challenge, especially for law enforcement, is to determine which is which. This can only be done through active investigation. I believe that the majority of victims alleging "ritual" abuse are in fact victims of some form of abuse or trauma. That abuse or trauma may or may not be criminal in nature. After a lengthy discussion about various alternative explanations and the continuum of possible activity, one mother told me that for the first time since the victimization of her young son she felt a little better. She had thought her only choices were that either her son was a pathological liar or, on the other hand, she lived in a community controlled by satanists. Law enforcement has the obvious problem of attempting to determine what actually happened for criminal justice purposes. Therapists, however, might also be interested in what really happened in order

to properly evaluate and treat their patients. How and when to confront patients with s epticism is a difficult and sensitive problem for therapists. Any professional evaluating victims' allegations of "ritual" abuse cannot ignore or routinely dismiss the lac of physical evidence (no bodies or physical evidence left by violent murders); the difficulty in successfully committing a large-scale conspiracy crime (the more people involved in any crime conspiracy, the harder it is to get away with it); and human nature (intragroup conflicts resulting in individual self-serving disclosures are li ely to occur in any group involved in organized idnapping, baby breeding, and human sacrifice). If and when members of a destructive cult commit murders, they are bound to ma e mista es, leave evidence, and eventually ma e admissions in order to brag about their crimes or to reduce their legal liability. The discovery of the murders in Matamoros, Mexico in 1989 and the results of the subsequent investigation are good examples of these dynamics. Overzealous intervenors must accept the fact that some of their well-intentioned activity is contaminating and damaging the prosecutive potential of the cases where criminal acts did occur. We must all (i.e., the media, churches, therapists, victim advocates, law enforcement, and the general public) as ourselves if we have created an environment where victims are rewarded, listened to, comforted, and forgiven in direct proportion to the severity of their abuse. Are we encouraging needy or traumatized individuals to tell more and more outrageous tales of their victimization? Are we ma ing up for centuries of denial by now blindly accepting any allegation of child abuse no matter how absurd or unli ely? Are we increasing the li elihood that rebellious, antisocial, or attentionsee ing individuals will gravitate toward "satanism" by publicizing it and overreacting to it? The overreaction to the problem can be worse than the problem. The amount of "ritual" child abuse going on in this country depends on how you define the term. One documented example of what I might call "ritual" child abuse was the horror chronicled in the boo _A Death in White Bear La e_ (Siegal, 1990). The abuse in this case, however, had little to do with anyone's spiritual belief system. There are many children in the United States who, starting early in their lives, are severely psychologically, physically, and sexually traumatized by angry, sadistic parents or other adults. Such abuse, however, is not perpetrated only or primarily by satanists. The statistical odds are that such abusers are members of mainstream religions. If 99.9% of satanists and 0.1% of Christians abuse children as part of their spiritual belief system, that still means that the vast majority of children so abused were abused by Christians. Until hard evidence is obtained and corroborated, the public should not be frightened into believing that babies are being bred and eaten, that 50,000 missing children are being murdered in human sacrifices, or that satanists are ta ing over America's day care centers or institutions. No one can prove with absolute certainty that such activity has *not* occurred. The burden of proof, however, as it would be in a criminal prosecution, is on those who claim that it has occurred.

The explanation that the satanists are too organized and law enforcement is too incompetent only goes so far in explaining the lac of evidence. For at least eight years American law enforcement has been aggressively investigating the allegations of victims of ritual abuse. There is little or no evidence for the portion of their allegations that deals with large-scale baby breeding, human sacrifice, and organized satanic conspiracies. Now it is up to mental health professionals, not law enforcement, to explain why victims are alleging things that don't seem to have happened. Professionals in this field must accept the fact that there is still much we do not now about the sexual victimization of children, and that this area desperately needs study and research by rational, objective social scientists. If the guilty are to be successfully prosecuted, if the innocent are to be exonerated, and if the victims are to be protected and treated, better methods to evaluate and explain allegations of "ritual" child abuse must be developed or identified. Until this is done, the controversy will continue to cast a shadow over and fuel the bac lash against the validity and reality of child sexual abuse. XI. REFERENCES. American Psychiatric Association, _Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders_ (3rd Ed., Rev.). Washington, DC: 1987. Breiner, S.J., _Slaughter of the Innocents: Child Abuse Through the Ages and Today_. New Yor : Plenum Press, 1990.

Brunvand, J.H., _The Vanishing Hitchhi er_. New Yor : Norton, 1981. Harrington, Walt, "The Devil in Anton LaVey". Washington, D.C.: _The Washington Post Magazine_, February 23, 1986, pages #6-17. Lanning, K.V., _Child Molesters: A Behavioral Analysis_ (2nd Ed.). Washington, D.C.: National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, 1987. Lanning, K.V. (1989). Child sex rings: A behavioral analysis. Washington, DC: National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. LaVey, Anton, _The Satanic Bible_. New Yor : Avon Boo s, 1969. Mayer, R.S., _Satan's Children_. New Yor : Putnam, 1991. Michigan Department of State Police, _Occult Survey_. East Lansing, Michigan, 1990. _National Coalition on Television Violence (NCTV) News_, JuneOctober 1988, page #3. _National Incidence Studies on Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway Children in America_. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Justice, 1990. Prattanis, A., "Hidden messages", _Wellness Letter_. Ber eley, California: University of California, January 1991, pages #1-2.

Brown, R., _Prepare for War_. Chino, CA: Chic

Publications, 1987.

Rosenberg, D.A., "Web of Deceit: A Literature Review of Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy", _Child Abuse and Neglect_ #2, 1987, pages #547563. Rush, E., _The Best Kept Secret: Sexual Abuse of Children_. New Yor : McGraw-Hill, 1980. Smith, M., & Pazder, L., _Michelle Remembers_. New Yor : Congdon and Lattis, 1980. Siegal, B., _A Death in White Bear La e_. New Yor : Bantam, 1990. "Stranger-Abduction Homicides of Children", _Juvenile Justice Bulletin_. Washington, D.C.: U. S. Department of Justice, 1989. Stratford. L., _Satan's Underground_. Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House, 1988. Terr, L., _Too Scared to Cry_. New Yor : Harper & Row, 1990. Timni , L., "The Times Poll", _Los Angeles Times_, August 25-26, 1985.

12. SUGGESTED READING. -- a. Cooper, John Charles, _The Blac Mas : Satanism in America Today_. Old Tappen, N.J.: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1990. Probably the best of the large number of boo s available primarily in Christian boo stores and written from the Christian perspective. This one, however, is written without the hysteria and sensationalism of most. Recommended for investigators who want information from this perspective. -- b. Hic s, Robert D., _In Pursuit of Satan: The Police and the Occult_. Buffalo, NY: Prometheus Boo s, 1991. Undoubtedly the best boo written to date on the topic of satanism and the occult from the law enforcement perspective. Robert D. Hic s is a former police officer who is currently employed as a criminal justice analyst for the state of Virginia. Must reading for any criminal justice professional involved in this issue. Unfortunately, in the chapter on "Satanic Abuse of Children", the author appears to have been overly influenced by extreme s eptics with minimal or questionable credentials in this area. The boo is easy to read, logical, and highly recommended. -- c. Richardson, James T.; Best, Joel; & Bromley, David G.; Eds, _The Satanism Scare_. NY: Aldine de Gruyter, 1991. The best boo now available on the current controversy over satanism written from the academic perspective, The editors and many of the chapter authors are college professors and have written an objective, well-researched boo . One of the great strengths of this

Virginia Crime Commission Tas Force, _Final Report of the Tas Force Studying Ritual Crime_. Richmond, Virginia.

boo is the fact that the editors address a variety of the controversial issues from a variety of disciplines (i.e., sociology, history, fol lore, anthropology, criminal justice). Because of its academic perspective it is sometimes harder to read but is well worth the effort. The chapter on "Law Enforcement and the Satanic Crime Connection" contains the results of a survey of "Cult Cops" and is must reading for law enforcement officers. The chapter on "Satanism and Child Molestation: Constructing the Ritual Abuse Scare" was written, however, by a free-lance journalist who seems to ta e the position that these cases involve little or no real child abuse. -- d. Terr, Lenore, _Too Scared to Cry: Psychic Trauma in Childhood_. New Yor : Harper and Row, 1990. An excellent boo written by a psychiatrist that provides important insights into the nature and recallability of early psychic trauma. For me, Dr. Terr's research and findings in the infamous Chowchilla idnapping case shed considerable light on the "ritual" abuse controversy. PERSECUTION: ANCIENT AND MODERN This is the text of a tal entitled PERSECUTION: ANCIENT AND MODERN. Written by Julia Phillips, it was presented by Julia and Matthew Sandow at the Wiccan Confe rence, Canberra, September 1992, and was illustrated with slides of medieval woo dcuts, paintings and documents. To begin, an example of religious persecution: I am told that, moved by some foolish urge, they consecrate and worship the head of a don ey, that most abject of all animals. This is a cult worthy of the cus toms from which it sprang! Others say that they reverence the genitals of the p residing priest himself, and adore them as though they were their father's... As for the initiation of new members, the details are as disgusting as they are we ll- nown. A child, covered in dough to deceive the unwary, is set before the wou ld-be novice. The novice stabs the child to death with invisible blows; indeed, he himself, deceived by the coating of dough, thin s his stabs harmless. Then it's horrible! - they hungrily drin the child's blood, and compete with one ano ther as they divide his limbs. Through this victim they are bound together; and the fact that they all share the nowledge of the crime pledges them all to sile nce. Such holy rites are more disgraceful than sacrilege. It is well- nown too w hat happens at their feasts.... On the feast day they forgather with all their c hildren, sisters, mothers, people of either sex and all ages. When the company i s all aglow from feasting, and impure lust has been set afire by drun enness, pi eces of meat are thrown to a dog fastened to a lamp. The lamp, which would have been a betraying witness, is overturned and goes out. Now, in the dar so favour able to shameless behaviour, they twine the bonds of unnameable passion, as chan ce decides. And so all ali e are incestuous, if not always in deed, at least by complicity; for everything that is performed by one of them corresponds to the w ishes of them all... Precisely the secrecy of this evil religion proves that all these things, or practically all, are true . (Minucius Felix: Octavius) Although the language is not modern, the description of the practices could have come straight from last wee 's "Picture" magazine! And this is the point that I wish to ma e; the facts of persecution have not changed in almost 2,000 years, for that piece was written in the 2nd century AD. Moreover, the religion it cond emns is Christianity, not Paganism, for Paganism at that time was the dominant s

tate religion. In fact the author is a Christian apologist, and is attempting to rebu e what he sees as unfair criticism, by parodying the offences which Pagans accuse Christians of perpetrating. Persecution of religious minorities is quite simply that; it is persecution by a large body of people - generally those who represent "society" - against a smal ler one; generally comprised of those who have either rejected, or for one reaso n or another, fall outside of the social "norm". Let us loo at the medieval picture of the witch; society's scapegoat par excell ence: here we see her - for it is most often "her" - an old, ugly woman, most li ely poor, and most li ely on the fringe of the society in which she lives. This is the stereotype of the witch. We now it is false; we now it has no basis in fact; however, it became an integral part of the mindset of medieval Europe, a nd through fairy tales, drama and literature, and more latterly, cinema, the med ia and television, it has remained an integral image in modern society. One has only to loo to Roald Dahl's "Witches", or Fran Baum's "Wizard of Oz", for proo f of this. It came as a surprise to me to learn that "The Wizard of Oz" was in fact a deliberate propaganda exercise, released just at the beginning of World W ar II. If you remember, the magic words are: "There's no place li e home"; and w here was "home"? Kansas! that epitome of the WASP culture.

When loo ing at medieval persecution of heresy, the waters are muddied by the ma ny different causes and effects which permeate the whole matter. There was no si ngle cause, and no single victim. It is a fact that far more women than men wer e persecuted; there are a number of reasons for this, not least that throughout this period, Europe was engaged in one war after another - most notably The Crus ades - and men were in rather short supply. There were also several epidemics o f the plague, not to mention other diseases such as dysentery and cholera, which in the Middle Ages were sure illers. Another reason is the rampant misogyny wh ich, begun with the earliest Christians, has permeated their theology ever since : "What else is woman but a foe to friendship, an inescapable punishment, a necess ary evil, a natural temptation, a desirable calamity, a domestic danger, a delec table detriment, an evil of nature, painted in fair colours... The word woman is used to mean the lust of the flesh, as it is said: I have found a woman more bi tter than death, and a good woman more subject to carnal lust... [Women] are mor e credulous; and since the chief aim of the devil is to corrupt faith, therefore he rather attac s them [than men]... Women are naturally more impressionable... They have slippery tongues, and are unable to conceal from their fellow-women t hose things which by evil arts they now.... Women are intellectually li e child ren... She is more carnal than a man, as is clear from her many carnal abominati ons... She is an imperfect animal, she always deceives.... Therefore a wic ed wo man is by her nature quic er to waver in her faith, and consequently quic er to abjure the faith, which is the root of witchcraft.... Just as through the first defect in their intelligence they are more prone to abjure the faith; so through their second defect of inordinate affections and passions they search for, brood over, and inflict various vengeances, either by witchcraft or by some other means.... Women also have wea memories; and it is a natural vice in them not to be disciplined, but to follow their own impulses without any sense of what is due.. . She is a liar by nature... (Malleus Maleficarum, edited by Jeffrey Russell). It is easy to comprehend the persecution of women when one is confronted with su ch obvious hatred and fear of the sex. But perhaps the most powerful impetus of the witch trials era is one which is subtly - and sometimes not so subtly! - pre

sent in all the trials; that of a pursuit of power or wealth. For an example we can loo to Gilles de Rais, who as the wealthiest man in Europe (as well as Joan of Arc's military Captain), was a prime victim for a charge of heresy. Found gu ilty, his lands, properties and wealth were confiscated by his accusers. Curious ly though he was buried on consecrated ground in the Churchyard; normally forbid den to heretics. In "The Encyclopaedia of Witchcraft and Demonology", Russell H ope Robbins says: "At first, Gilles dismissed their accusations as "frivolous and lac ing credit", but so certain were the principals of finding him guilty that on September 3, f ifteen days before the trial began, the Du e disposed of his anticipated share o f the Rais lands. Under these circumstances, it is difficult to place any crede nce in the evidence against him, among the most fantastic and obscene presented in this Encyclopaedia." Charges included the now obligatory conjurations of devils and demons - Satan, B eelzebub, Orion and Belial are mentioned by name - and the practice of that drea dful art: geomancy! And of course the charges included human sacrifice and paedo philia; no self-respecting Christian could exclude these crimes from charges aga inst a confirmed heretic! There were not many who had the wealth of Gilles de Rais, but in a small parish, even the meanest property was eagerly seized, and the witch hunts became a profitable business. The victims were even required to pay for the fuel upon which they were burnt. But the laws were not consistent t hroughout Europe, and in some areas, if the victim confessed, then his or her pr operty could not be confiscated, but was inherited by the next of in. However, many of these victims were in fact devout Christians, who would be loath to conf ess to heresy just so that their family could inherit their land! Of course many were tortured to the point were they would admit to being anything demanded of them, although technically, they were only allowed to be tortured once. This is why you will read in trials records that the torture was "continued", which, of course, gets round the problem of the poor torturer missing out on his lunch and dinner. Although most heretics were women, a great many men were also ta en, tortured, a nd put to death. This is a letter from one such victim at the notorious Bamberg in Germany; a poignant epitaph to one of Europe's most hideous crimes: Many hundred thousand good-nights, dearly beloved daughter Veronica. Innocent ha ve I come into prison, innocent have I been tortured, innocent must I die. For w hoever comes into the witch prison must become a witch or be tortured until he i nvents something out of his head - and God pity him - bethin s him of something.

And then came also - God in highest heaven have mercy - the executioner, and put the thumbscrews on me, both hands bound together, so that the blood spurted fro m the nails and everywhere, so that for four wee s I could not use my hands, as you can see from my writing. Thereafter they stripped me, bound my hands behind me, and drew me up on the la dder. Then I thought heaven and earth were at an end. Eight times did they draw me up and let me fall again, so that I suffered terrible agony. All this happened on Friday June 30th and with God's help I had ure. When at last the executioner led me bac into the cell, he , I beg you, for God's sa e, confess something, whether it be true or not. Invent something, for you torture which you will be put to; and, even if you bear it all,

to bear the tort said to me: "Sir cannot bear the yet you will not

I said: "I have never renounced God, and will never do it - God graciously me from it. I'll rather bear whatever I must."

eep

escape, not even if you were an earl, but one torture will follow another until you say you are a witch." The author of this letter, Johannes Junius, did indeed confess to being a witch, and in August of 1628, was burned at the sta e. He managed to send his final l etter to his daughter, which ended by saying: Dear child, eep this letter secret, so that people do not find it, else I shall be tortured most piteously and the jailers will be beheaded. So strictly is it forbidden... Dear child, pay this man a thaler... I have ta en several days to write this - my hands are both crippled. I am in a sad plight. Good night, for your father Johannes Junius will never see you more. This letter describes more accurately than any historical treatise just how unco mpromising the ecclesiastical courts were in their hunt for heretics. Witches, of course, were only one ind of heretic. I mentioned earlier that there are many causes, and many effects, to the period which is commonly referred to as "The Burning Times", or the Great Witch Hunt. I t is often assumed by many people today that Christianity has been the dominant western religion for 2,000 years. This is not so. The death of Christ, which pro bably occurred in the year AD 30, may have heralded the new religion, but there was certainly not an immediate conversion of the world to Christianity. Parts of Scandinavia remained wholly Pagan until as late as the 12th century. The Britis h Isles and mainland Europe were converted to Christianity over a lengthy period covering mainly the 4th to 9th centuries. Some parts have never truly been conv erted, and with the opening up of the Eastern bloc countries, we are now re-disc overing a wealth of Pagan tradition and fol lore that has been hidden for hundre ds of years: initially from the invading Christian mission-aries, and then late r from the various communist regimes.

As the new religion of Christianity began to spread, many different sects and cults appeared within its ran s. The Pope in Rome was the nominal head , but rarely was the Pope a person of spiritual purity and ascetic tastes; the p olitical scene in Rome has always been cut-throat and devious. A truly spiritual person would have lasted approximately two seconds amongst the clever and calcu lating politicians who infested the Papal See! The enormous wealth and power con trolled by the Pope was an incentive to the most grasping and corrupt of men at that time to aspire to the Papacy. Pope Alexander VI (1492) is a superb example of the type who made it to Europe's foremost political seat of power: otherwise nown as Rodrigo Borgia; father (yes, we all now Catholics practise celibacy!) of Cesare, Juan, Lucrezia and Jofre, and supreme commander of a private army of which any modern dictator would be pr oud. Because of their sumptuous lifestyle, their obvious disregard and contempt for vows of poverty and chastity, and their abuse of the spiritual authority invested in them, many spiritually inclined Christians rejected the Catholic Church, and instead followed leaders who lived simple, ascetic lives in accordance with the teachings of Christ. Some of these sects became very popular, and were soon perceived by the Pope as a threat to his status and power. It has been suggested that the witch trials were a direct result from the persecution of these sects. Rather than incorporate a discussion of the different sects within this tal , handouts are available which very briefly describe the main ones. The main thrust was against the Cathars or Albigensians, and the

Waldensians (Vaudois), and it was their persecution which gave rise to the legal machinery which developed into the Inquisition, and the so-called witch hunts. It began with Pope Lucius III and the emperor, Frederic I Barbarossa; they met at Verona in 1184, and issued the decree "Ad abolendam", which excommunicated se cts li e the Cathars and Waldensians, and laid down the procedures for ecclesias tical trial, after which the accused would be handed over to the secular authori ties for punishment. The punishment decreed was confiscation of property, exile, or death. By the 12th century, burning had already become the established mean s of execution for heretics, and so this became enshrined in law. At the beginning of the 13th century, the Dominican Order of Friars was establis hed, and its members were instructed by the Pope to investigate and prosecute he resy. From this simple beginning grew the awesome machinery of the Inquisition, which although never aimed particularly at witches, became a byword for terror i n parts of Europe. As you can see, the motives for the heresy persecutions were not to stamp out Pa ganism - although that was certainly a by-product - but to remove the threat of any competition to the power of the Church (and thus to the Pope), in Rome. And the greatest threat came from other "Christian" sects, not the Pagans. The change from an accusatory to an inq uisitorial process became established, and the legal machinery which allowed - i ndeed encouraged - individual psychopaths and religious maniacs to persecute at will, was in place. Have you got a neighbour who annoys you? plays loud music, or who eeps their sm elly refuse next to your garden fence? Now your recourse is to the local council or the police; in the Middle Ages, you simply denounced the offender as a witch or heretic, and let the Church deal with them for you. Not only did it cost you nothing, if you were luc y, you might also inherit their property! For once you were ta en as a witch or a heretic, there was little chance of esca pe. Certainly some victims were pardoned and released, but the vast majority wer e not so luc y. When you consider the style of questioning, this is not surprisi ng: 1 2 3 4 5 6 21 22 24 How long have you been a witch? Why did you become a witch? How did you become a witch and what happened on that occasion? Who is the one you chose to be your incubus? What was his name? What was the name of your master among the evil demons? What was the oath you were forced to render to him? What animals have you bewitched to sic ness and death, and why did you commit such acts? Who are your accomplices in evil...?

This set of questions came from Lorraine, and was used consistently throughout t he three centuries of the main persecutions. Bearing in mind that the accused H AD to answer - no answer at all, or a denial, was tantamount to guilt - you can

What is the ointment with which you rub your broomstic made of...?

see how easily the composite picture of the witch evolved. As Rossell Hope Robbi ns says: "The confessions of witches authenticated the experts, and the denuncia tions ensured a continuing supply of victims. Throughout France and Germany this procedure became standardised; repeated year after year, in time it built up a huge mass of "evidence", all duly authorised, from the mouths of the accused. On these confessions, later demonologists based their compendiums and so formulate d the classic conceptions of witchcraft, which never existed save in their own m inds." As the new religion of Christianity began to spread, many different sects and cults appeared within its ran s. The Pope in Rome was the nominal head , but rarely was the Pope a person of spiritual purity and ascetic tastes; the p olitical scene in Rome has always been cut-throat and devious. A truly spiritual person would have lasted approximately two seconds amongst the clever and calcu lating politicians who infested the Papal See! The enormous wealth and power con trolled by the Pope was an incentive to the most grasping and corrupt of men at that time to aspire to the Papacy. Pope Alexander VI (1492) is a superb example of the type who made it to Europe's foremost political seat of power: otherwise nown as Rodrigo Borgia; father (yes, we all now Catholics practise celibacy!) of Cesare, Juan, Lucrezia and Jofre, and supreme commander of a private army of which any modern dictator would be pr oud. It is also rather disturbing to discover just how important individual religious maniacs appear to have been in the persecutions. Rather li e today, wh ere a crusading tele-journalist, or evangelical vicar, can cause untold harm to innocent people. Without exception, these accusations are by those with an unhea lthy mania against anyone whose theology or practices differ from their own. In the words of one modern evangelist: "if you're not fighting and winning, you're losing.". Conrad of Marburg, described by Norman Cohn as, "a blind fanatic", was a severe and formidable persecutor. As confessor to the young 21 year-old Countess of Thu ringia, he would tric her into "some trivial and unwitting disobedience, and th en have her and her maids flogged so severely that the scars were visible wee s later". (Cohn). Conrad became Germany's first official Inquisitor, and his zeal in denouncing heretics was unsurpassed. Another Conrad, a lay-Dominican Friar, a nd his side ic Johannes, were also vigorous in denouncing heretics. As they mov ed from village to village, they claimed to be able to identify a heretic by his or her appearance, based on nothing but their own intuition. They were responsi ble for the burnings of many people, and said, "we would gladly burn a hundred i f just one among them were guilty". (Annales Wormantiensis). Their comment about appearance is an important one; as we saw earlier, the stere otype of the witch hasn't changed much in hundreds of years. We now it is false ; we now that it exists only in the imagination of the persecutors, and yet how powerful and enduring this stereotype has proven to be. If we thin about this stereotype, what images do we conjure up? An old woman occasionally an old man; or perhaps a young and alluring temptress? Flying thro ugh the air on a broomstic ; worshipping a devil, often in the form of a goat; t rampling upon the sacred symbols of Christianity; and of course our old friend t he Sabbat, with its practices of sexual license, debauchery, drun enness and rit ual murder; the latter often of children. But persecution does not restrict itself to witches; the similarities between this stereotype and that of the Jew are obvious: Jews have been persecuted throughout their history, but it is interesting to compare some aspects of their persecution with that of witches.

In the 12th century, the word "Synagogue" was used for the first time to describ e the meeting place of heretics. Professor Russell says that: "This usage, obvio usly designed to spite the Jews, was common throughout the Middle Ages, being re placed only towards the end of the 15th century by the equally anti-Jewish term 'sabbat'. The Encyclopaedia Britannica says on the subject of Jewish persecution that: "To reinforce racial and religious prejudice, the preposterous ritual murder accusa tion became common from the 12th century." The third and fourth Lateran Councils had already prohibited gentiles from entering Jewish service, or being employed by Jews, and further ordered that Jews should wear a distinctive badge, and liv e only in Jewish settlement areas. This of course was the beginning of the ghett o. As we have seen though, the ritual murder accusation was already over a thousand years old, before it was used against either the Jews or the heretics and witch es. Most people now of the expulsion of Jews from Spain in the 15th century, bu t perhaps not so commonly nown is that for about 200 years prior to the expulsi on, the Jews had been massacred and persecuted. Indeed, it was against the Jews that the infamous Spanish Inquisition of the 15th century was directed. The pers ecution of Jews in 20th century Europe is too well- nown to require further comm ent here, but perhaps a few comments about its encouragement would be useful. We are discussing persecution in this tal , and how persecution is manifested. T hroughout history, the written word has been invaluable as a means of spreading propaganda. Even in the Middle Ages the "crimes" of the heretic were publicised by records of trials, where the "confessions" were made nown to the general pub lic. The infamous "Malleus Maleficarum" became highly influential in Europe main ly because its publication coincided with the introduction of mass printing. It had little effect in England because no English translation was available until 1928. This fact alone demonstrates the power of the written word. In medieval Europe, a pamphlet describing the crimes of a convicted heretic woul d be pinned to a post in the town square, and those who could not read had it re ad to them. In 20th century Europe, pamphlets were still used by one group to sp read lies about another. As we approach the 21st century, this technique is stil l used with very great success; for the persecutor needs to ma e only a glancing nod to the truth, and the lies which are published (or more frequently broadcas t) are far more scandalous than the reality! An example: soon after the launch of the Pagan Alliance, Sydney radio 2MMM broad casted a news story about the sexual abuse of children by occultists and witches . Matthew responded immediately, and provided the station with copy documents an d news clippings from Britain, proving the story to be without foundation, and a scheme by the Christian fundamentalists to discredit Pagans. The news editor an d chief journalist were impressed by the material, and agreed that they had been used by the fundies. However, they refused to broadcast a retraction because it would be "old news". So, the damage had been done, and the fundamentalists ach ieved their objective. This technique was used with very great effect in the early part of the 20th century, with the circulation of a pamphlet called, "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion". This purported to be, "an account of the World Congress of Jewry held in Basel, Switzerland in 1897, during which a conspiracy was planned by the international Jewish movement and the Freemasons to achieve world domination." (M Howard). German nationalists made very great use of the Protocols, which it

was claimed were "smuggled out of Switzerland by a Russian journalist who had pl aced the documents in the safe eeping of the Rising Sun Masonic Lodge in Fran f urt." (ibid) They were widely disseminated, and writing in "Mein Kampf", Hitler "denounced the Jews as agents of an international conspiracy devoted to world do mination...". (ibid) We all now what happened next. The point is that although the Protocols were confirmed as a fraud in 1921, they continued to have an effect, and once published, could not effectively be retra cted. This is the aim of today's fundamentalist Christian, who believes that if he or she throws enough dirt at their opponents (basically anyone who does not a gree with their uncompromising version of Christianity), then some will stic , a nd the battle will be won. This is the strategy which has been used for thousand s of years to persecute minorities, and has always been successful. The formula is simple: discover what most people fear most, and then accuse your enemies of practising it. It is an interesting comment on humanity that those things which occur time and time again are consistent: conspiracy, buggery, paedophilia, sac rifice (human and animal) sexual license, drun enness and feasting. More specif ic charges relating to a pact with a devil or desecrating sacred objects are add itions to these core accusations. A further interesting aspect is that many of the accusations were made by children; interesting parallels can be drawn to modern accusations by ch ildren "encouraged" to reveal information about occultism and witches. It has be en widely recorded that Hitler's "Youth Army" required children to spy upon thei r parents, and report any indiscretions; modern social wor ers use an identical process for identifying Pagan parents - children are as ed about what their pare nts do, and leading questions are commonly used. And of course there have alway s been children who, for one reason or another, tell the most fantastic tales. I t is unli ely today that the victims of these child fantasies will be burned at the sta e, but there have been families torn apart, children placed in detention centres, and untold misery for parents and children ali e, based upon no more t han the verbal report of a child. Commentators on this aspect of persecution have suggested that the children wish to be the centre of attention; or to direct punishment for their own misdeeds elsewhere; or are simply reacting in a hyperactive manner to the onset of puberty. Whatever the cause, the effects are dramatic, and have caused severe suffering, and in the middle ages, loss of life, on many occasion s. In medieval England, there were many occasions where children's "evidence" (sic) was used to convict witches. "The Leicester Boy", "The Burton Boy" and "The Bil son Boy" were a few of many who claimed to be bewitched by witches. Eventually p roven to be a fraud, at least ten women died as a result of the accusations of T he Leicester Boy, and the Burton Boy caused the death of at least one of the wom en whom he accused. In the 17th century a number of women were executed on the a llegations of hysterical children, even though fraud was often discovered during the course of the trial. It is a fact that the delusions of delinquent or distu rbed children were often used by judges to confirm their own prejudices; how lit tle things have changed! Salem (1692) is probably the best nown of all the cases where children were the chief accusers. Although in fact, the "children" were more li e young adults, w ith only one under the age of ten, and most in their late teens or early twentie s. However, as the panic grew, a great many more were suc ed into the web of lie s, and Martha Carrier was hanged on the "evidence" (sic) of her 7 year-old daugh ter. At the height of the hysteria almost 150 people were arrested; thirty-one w ere convicted, and nineteen hung. Some died in jail, and others were reprieved.

As was common in Europe, the accused were required to pay their expenses whilst in jail, even if they were subsequently found innocent. Sarah Osborne and Ann F oster both died in jail, and costs of 1 3s 5d and 2 16s 0d respectively were deman ded before the bodies would be released for burial. The chief of the accusers, Ann Putnam, confessed fourteen years later that the w hole thing was a fraud. In 1697 the jurors publicly confessed they had made an e rror of judgement, and ten years after the executions, Judge Samuel Sewall "conf essed the guilt of the court, desiring to ta e the blame and shame of it...". By then of course it was too late for those who were dead, or whose lives had been destroyed by the accusations. But we are getting ahead of ourselves here, for Salem is the last of the great w itch trials, coming as it does towards the end of the 17th century. We mentioned earlier that in Continental Europe, the heresy trials appeared to arise from the persecution of the Christian sects of the Bogomils, Cathars, Albigensians, and others such as the Jews, Waldensians, and e ven the Knights Templars. The stereotype of the witch was compounded from many d ifferent sources, and gradually became the composite figure of the shape-shiftin g hag, who flew through the air on a broom, and flung her curses at all and sund ry. The concept of the pact with the devil existed as early as the 8th century, and as we have seen, sexual license, buggery and ritual sacrifice have long been seen as activities supposed to be practised by those outside of society's norm, whether they be Christian or Pagan. During the 9th century, shape-shifting, maleficia and the incubus/succubus became more commonly reported, and by the 10th century, the ide a of nocturnal flight was established. Published in 906, the Canon Episcopi des cribed how some women were deluded in the belief that at night they could fly be hind their Goddess, Diana (Holda or Herodias): "Some wic ed women are perverted by the Devil and led astray by illusions and fa ntasies induced by demons, so that they believe they ride out at night on beasts with Diana, the pagan goddess, and a horde of women. They believe that in the night they cross huge distances. They say that they obey Diana's commands and on certain nights are called out in her service..." Echoes here to Maddalena's story recounted by Leland in Aradia: Gospel of the Wi tches: "Once in the month, and when the moon is full, ye shall assemble in some desert place, or in a forest all together join to adore the potent spirit of your Quee n, my mother, great Diana". Carlo Ginzburg has also published a remar able boo about the Witches' Sabbath, and the night flight, where he suggests that these are in fact based on genuinel y ancient shamanic practices; nothing new in this concept to modern Witches, but a novel observation in the academic circles in which Ginzburg moves. In 1012, Burchard's Collectarium was published: the first attempt to assemble a boo of Canonical Law. Boo number 19 of this vast collection was called the Cor rector, and chapter five deals with various sins, and their respective penances. As we might suppose, Maleficia is prominent in this chapter! It enshrines in la w the notion of night flight, together with murder, and the coo ing and eating o f human flesh. Although both the Canon Episcopi and Burchard's Corrector are spe

cific in attributing the powers of flight to Witches, it is not until 1280 that the first picture of a witch riding upon a broom appears. This is found in Schle swig Cathedral. In 1022, the first burning occurred: at Orleans, the victims were accused of, "holding sex orgies at night in a secret place, either underground or in an abandoned building. The members of the group appeared beari ng torches. Holding the torches, they chanted the names of demons until an evil spirit appeared. Now the lights were extinguished, and everyone seized the perso n closest to him in a sexual embrace, whether mother, sister or nun. The childre n conceived at the orgies were burned eight days after birth, and their ashes we re confected in a substance that was then used in a blasphemous parody of holy c ommunion." Strange how these charges appear to have changed so little in so many years! Com pared with our first example, and indeed with the accusations of modern day fund amentalists, one would be forgiven for believing that time is a figment of our i magination, and that nothing ever really changes; certainly not human nature. The 14th century saw a steady growth in the number of accusations and trials, an d by the 15th century, the idea of the Devil's (or Witch's) mar had become esta blished. So too was the idea of a flying ointment, and a consistent image of The Devil became common in trials literature. The Papal Bull of 1484, Summis Desiderantes Affectibus, and then two years later , publication of the Malleus Maleficarum, further established the "crime" of wit chcraft as a heresy, and confirmed Papal support for its eradication. This infam ous wor - The Hammer of the Witches - was incredibly influential in establishin g a code of practice by which witches were to be denounced, tried, convicted and executed. There was no escape from this dreadful fate. The third part of the bo o describes how to deal with one who will not confess to the charges: "But if the accused, after a year or other longer period which has been deemed s ufficient, continues to maintain his denials, and the legitimate witnesses abide by their evidence, the Bishop and Judges shall prepare to abandon him to the secular Court; sending to him certain honest men zealous for the faith, especially religious, to tell him that he can not escape temporal death while he thus persists in his denial, but will be delivered up as an impenitent heretic to the power of the secular Court. It is also in this section that our friendly Dominican mon s refer to, "witch mi dwives, who surpass all other witches in their crimes... And the number of them is so great that, as has been found from their confessions, it is thought that t here is scarcely any tiny hamlet in which at least one is not to be found." Despite its incredible influence in Europe, the Malleus had little effect in Eng land, Wales or Ireland, where witchcraft accusations and trials were very different to those of the continent and Scotland. In fact W ales and Ireland seemed to escape from the witch persecutions almost entirely, w ith very few trials, and even fewer executions. Although many laws have been enacted in England against witchcraft, there has ne ver been anything li e the hysteria about witches common in mainland Europe. The earliest nown person accused of sorcery in England was Agnes, wife of Odo, who in 1209 was freed after choosing trial by ordeal of grasping a red-hot iron. Until 1563, commoners accused of witchcraft in England met light (if any) punish ment. Those of noble birth were treated rather more severely, as the crime could easily be one of treason, and any action which implied a threat to the monarch

was treated very seriously indeed. This resulted in the charge of witchcraft bei ng used to remove political opponents with great expediency. There were certainl y laws against the practice of witchcraft or sorcery: Alfred the Great (849-899 AD), King of Wessex and overlord of England, decreed the death penalty for Wicca ns (that was the word he actually used), and Aethelstan - perhaps one of the mos t compassionate of Saxon Kings, ordered those who practised Wiccecraeft to be ex ecuted, but only if their activities resulted in murder. Under Henry VIII's Act of 1546, the penalty for conjuration of evil spirits was death, and the property of the accused was confiscated by the King. However, this was in effect for only one year, being repealed by Edward VI in 1547, and only one conviction under this Act is recorded. In 1563, the statute of Queen Elizabeth I was established, whic h also made death the penalty for invo ing or conjuring an evil spirit, but thos e who practised divination, or who caused harm (other than death) by their sorce ries, were sentenced to a year's imprisonment for a first offence. Subsequent of fences could be punishable by death, and in some cases, the confiscation of prop erty as well. However, even though laws against the practice of witchcraft had been established for hundreds of years, the first major trial was not until 1566, at Chelmsford, and was typical of the English style of witchcraft: no pact with the devil, no gathering at Sabbats, but simple and direct acts of maleficia, and the introduction of witches' familiars. It was an important trial, for it set the precedent in English law for accepting unsupported, and highly imaginative, stories from chil dren as evidence. It also accepted spectral evidence (sic), witch's mar s, and t he confession of the accused. There are some very distinctive aspects to English witchcraft, which set it apar t from its Continental and Scottish counterparts, and which are worth noting. Th ere was a relative lac of torture, and, this may come as a surprise to some peo ple, but witches were never burned in England. Traitors and murderers were burne d; witches were hung. Of course, a traitor or a murderer could also be a witch, but this was actually quite rare. The torture used in England - when it was used at all - was typically swimming, pric ing, enforced wa ing, and a diet of bread and water. Unpleasant, but when compared to squassation, being s inned alive, the strappado, the rac , and such delights as the thumbscrews and the iron maide n, hardly in the same class. The focus of English witchcraft was more towards si mple, personal, acts of maleficia than a perceived conspiracy against the power of the Christian Church. As one of Britain's foremost fol lorists says: "Traditi ons of an organised, pagan witch-cult were never very plentiful in England, alth ough they did exist occasionally, especially in the later years of the witch bel ief. They were never really strong, and after the end of the persecution in the early 18th century, they disappeared altogether." (Christina Hole) This is inte resting, because it has been suggested that the witch trials phenomena was large ly inspired by the heretical Christian sects; this would seem to be born out by the type of accusations made in England, which were largely neighbour against ne ighbour rather than Church and State against an organised conspiracy of heretics . What is also interesting is that it was commonly believed in England that if the bewitched victim could draw blood from the witch, then they would be cured, and the witch's power made ineffective. This belief has persisted in fol tradition s to modern times. In 1875, at Long Compton, the body of an old woman, one Ann T urner, was discovered. She had been pinned to the ground by a pitchfor through her throat, and across her face and chest had been carved the sign of a crucifix . James Heywood, a local farmer, had once claimed: "It's she who brings the floo ds and drought. Her spells withered the crops in the field. Her curse drove my

father to an early grave!". Heywood maintained that the only way to destroy her power was to spill her blood, and so after her murder, he was ta en and tried fo r the crime. He was convicted, and sentenced to life imprisonment. Long Compton has always been associated with the practice of witchcraft, and is located only a short distance from the magical Rollright Stones, and near to the aptly named Wychwood Forest. The derivation of this name is from the curiously named tribe o f THE HWICCE, who lived in the area at the time of King Penda of Mercia, and who seemed always to be ruled by two brothers. But bac to Long Compton:

In 1945, Charles Walton, a local labourer, set out one morning to do some hedgin g on nearby Meon Hill. That evening, his mutilated body was found in a field - p inned to the ground by his pitchfor , which had been stuc through his throat. T here were cuts to his arms and legs, and local police were baffled as to the mot ive for the crime, and who the li ely culprit might have been. But gradually loc als began to tal about Mr Walton; they said he was a solitary and vindictive ol d man, who was concerned more with searching out the secrets of nature than in t a ing company with his neighbours. They said that he harnessed toads, using reed s and pieces of ram's horn, and then sent them across fields to blight the crops . They also remembered that he ept a witch's mirror - a piece of blac stone po lished in a mountain stream - concealed in his poc et-watch, which he used for w eaving spells and seeing into the future. The police never discovered the culpri t, but it was accepted locally that Mr Walton was murdered because he was a witch. His wounds were a result of the belief that a victim could be freed from enchantment if he or she were able to draw the blood of the witch. We could not leave English witchcraft without mention of that infamous gentleman , Matthew Hop ins; self-styled Witchfinder General. For all his fame, his activi ties were restricted to a relatively small area, and a relatively short period o f time. However, his boundless energy, and boundless enthusiasm for the collect ion of large amounts of money, ensured that his name has not been forgotten. Matthew Hop ins used the unrest of the Civil War to prey upon the fears of the c ommon people. Little is nown of his early life, except that he became a lawyer "of little note", and failing to ma e a living at Ipswich in Suffol , moved to M anningtree in Essex - an area of Civil War tension. With virtually no nowledge of witchcraft, but armed with a couple of contempora ry documents (including James I's "Demonology"), Hop ins set himself up in busin ess as a witchfinder. And a very profitable business it was too. At a time when the average daily wage was 6d, Hop ins received 23 for a single visit to Stowmar et, and 6 for a visit to Aldeburgh. His approach was consistent: James I mentioned that witches had familiars, and s uc led imps; therefore, anyone who ept a familiar spirit or imp must be a witch! Bearing in mind the English partiality to eeping pets, and you begin to see just how very successful this technique could be. Fo r example, Bridget Mayers was condemned for entertaining an evil spirit in the l i eness of a mouse, which she called "Pric ears"; another (unnamed) woman was re scued by her neighbours from a duc ing, where she confessed to having an imp cal led "Nan". When she recovered she said: "she new not what she had confessed, an d she had nothing she called Nan but a pullet that she sometimes called by that name...". Hop ins moved from Essex to Norfol and Suffol , and by the following year, had operations in Cambridge, Northampton, Huntingdon and Bedford, with a team of six witch finders under his control. "In Suffol alone it is estimated that he was responsible for arresting at least 124 persons for witchcraft, of whom at least

68 were hanged." (RHR) However, Hop ins moved too far too quic ly, and public op inion began to go against him. In 1646, a clergyman in Huntingdon preached again st him, and judges began to question both his methods of locating witches, and t he fees that he charged for the service. In 1647 Hop ins published a pamphlet ca lled "Discovery of Witches", in which he supported his methods in sanctimonious and pseudo legal language. However, it was to no avail, for later that year he d ied, "in some disgrace" according to most authorities. Witchcraft legend has it that he was drowned by irate villagers in one of his own duc ing ponds, but this has no recorded evidence to support it. However, it would be a fitting end to such an evil man, and I hope it was true. Moving away from England; Scottish and Continental witchcraft shared a great man y similarities; Mary Queen of Scots, and her son, James VI, were both educated i n France, and this ensured that continental attitudes towards witches were enshr ined in Scottish law at the highest level. In fact the concepts of witchcraft we re introduced into Scotland by Mary in about 1563. Before then, trials for witch craft had been few, and there were no recorded burnings of witches. In "The Ency clopaedia of Witchcraft and Demonology" Rossell Hope Robbins says: "Scotland is second only to Germany in the barbarity of its witch trials. The Pr esbyterian clergy acted li e inquisitors, and the Church sessions often shared t he prosecution with the secular law courts. The Scottish laws were, if anything, more heavily loaded against the acc used. Finally, the devilishness of the torture was limited only by Scotland's ba c ward technology in the construction of mechanical devices." It is well nown that James VI was an ardent prosecutor of witches, and it was u nder his authority that the Bible was translated to include the word "witch" (Ex odus 22:18) to provide Biblical sanction for the death penalty for witches. The original Hebrew word - ashaph - meant either a magician, diviner or sorcerer, b ut was definitely not a witch. In the Latin Vulgate (4th century version of the Bible) the word had been translated as "maleficos", which could mean any ind of criminal, although in practice often referred to malevolent sorcerers. Similarl y, the so-called Witch of Endor, consulted by King Solomon: the original Hebrew was "ba'alath ob": "mistress of a talisman". In the Latin Vulgate she became a " mulierem habentem pythonem": a women possessing an oracular spirit. It was only in the version of the Bible authorised by King James that she became a witch. By the time that James acceded to the English throne in 1603, his attitude towards witches had undergone a subtle transformation. In fact, he was directly responsible for the release and pardon of several accused "witches", and personally interfered in trials where he believed that fraud or deception was being practised. However, Lynn Linton writing in 1861 says of him: "Whatever of blood-stained folly belonged specially to the Scottish trials of th is time - and hereafter - owed its original impulse to him; every groan of the t ortured wretches driven to their fearful doom, and every tear of the survivors l eft blighted and desolate to drag out their weary days in mingled grief and terr or, lie on his memory with shame and condemnation ineffaceable for all time." But it was under Charles II that perhaps the most famous - and enduring - of Sco ttish witches was tried, and most probably executed (although records of her pun ishment have not survived). Isobel Gowdie of Auldearne, on four separate occasio ns during 1662 testified that she was a witch, and gave what Russell Hope Robbin s describes as: "a resum of popular beliefs about witchcraft in Scotland.". He sa ys that Gowdie "appeared clearly demented", but that "it is plain she believed w

hat she confessed, no matter how impossible...". From Gowdie are derived some of the concepts of today's Wicca, including the ide a of a coven, comprised of 13 people. Gowdie said that a coven was ruled by a "M an in Blac ", often called "Blac John". He would often beat the witches severel y, and it seemed their main tas s were to raise storms, change themselves into a nimals, and shoot elf arrows to injure or ill people. Coming as she does right at the end of the witchcraft persecutions, it is difficult to establish how much of Gowdie's confession is based upon real, traditional fol practices of Auldea rne, and how much she is simply repeating the standard accusations against witch es. The Coven of 13 is probably the single aspect of her confessions which does not appear elsewhere in records of witchcraft trials, and my own feelings are t hat she was probably as genuine a witch as was ever ta en and tried. We have already commented how terrifying it is to consider the impact that a sin gle person can have upon the lives of so many people. We have loo ed at a number of these - King James, Kramer and Sprenger, Matthew Hop ins, Conrad of Marburg - and their latter day successors are no less dangerous. Let us consider some of the 20th century persecutors. We have already mentioned Adolf Hitler; what abou t Stalin? his great purge in the period following 1936 saw charges of treason, e spionage and terrorism brought against anyone who showed the least inclination t o oppose him. Using techniques which would not have been out of place during the great witch hunts, Stalin's henchmen enforced "confessions", and effectively ex terminated any threat to his political power. We could loo too at McCarthy, whose fame for persecution was such that his name is now used to describe "the use of unsupported accusations for any purpose". I t is no accident that his activities were referred to as a "witch hunt", nor tha t Arthur Miller's play about the Salem witch trials, "The Crucible", was more a comment about McCarthyism than a comment about 17th century American life. In 20th century Australia we are heirs to a European history, which maintains that witches are servants of the devil, and should be prosecuted for t heir crimes against humanity. In some States these laws actually remain upon the Statute Boo s; in others, the legal machinery has been removed, but often public opinion hovers around the middle ag es, believing that the only good witch is a dead witch. Our latter-day inquisitors play upon these fears, in much the same way as Matthew Hop ins played upon the fears of the people during the Civil War. Christian Fundamentalists have no hesitation in using every dirty tric in the boo to ensure that public opinion remains opposed to witchcraft. If this means that some of them have to stand up and say: "Yes, I was a witch: I sacrificed my babies to the devil, and copulated with a goat; I too part in drun en orgies, and dran the blood of the sacrifice"; but then I found Jesus, and was born agai n, and now I'm a really nice person; well so be it. Some of them are so psychiat rically unbalanced they may even believe it themselves. Listen to a sample of the claims made by Audrey Harper, who achieved notoriety i n Britain as an ex-HPS of a Witches' Coven. This extract is from an article by Aries, which appeared in Web of Wyrd #5: Sent to a Dr Barnado's home by her mother, she grew up with deprivation and soci al stigma. In time she becomes a WRAF, falls in love, gets pregnant, boyfriend d ies, she turns to booze, gives up her baby and becomes homeless. Wandering to Piccadilly Circus she meets some Flo wer Children with the iller weed, and her descent into Hell is assured. By day she gets stoned and eats jun food; by night she sleeps in squats and doorways. Along comes Molly; the whore w

ith a heart of gold who teaches Audrey the art of streetwal ing. She flirts with shoplifting, gets into pills, and then gets talent spotted and invited to a Chelsea party, where wealth, power and tast eful decor are dangled as bait. At the next party she is hoo ed by the "group", which meets "every month in Virginia Water". She agrees to go to the next meetin g which is to be held at Hallowe'en. Inside the dar Temple lit by blac candles and full of "A heady, sic ly sweet s mell from burning incense", she is "initiated" by the "warloc ", whose "face was deathly pale and s eletal... his eyes ... were dar and sun en" and whose "breath and body seemed to exude a stra nge smell, a little li e stale alcohol." She signs herself over to Satan with he r own blood on a parchment scroll, whereupon a baby is produced, its throat cut, and the blood dran . Following th is she gets dumped on the "altar" and screwed as the "sacrifice of the White Vir gin". The meeting finishes with a little ritual cursing and she's left to wander "home" in the dar . Her life falls into a steady routine of meetings in Virginia Water, getting scre wed by the "warloc ", drug abuse, petty crime, and recruiting runaways for parti es, where the drin s are spi ed -"probably with LSD" - and candles injected with heroin release "stupefying fumes into the air"; the object being sex ic s and pornography. She falls pregnant again, gets committed to a psychiatric hospital, has the baby, and gives it away convinced that the "warloc " would sacrifice it. Things then become a confusion of Church desecration, drug addiction, ritual abu se, psychiatric hospital, and falling in with Christian fol who try vainly to s ave her soul. For rather vague reasons the "coven" decide to drop her from the team, and she dedicates herself to a true jun ie's lifestyle with a steady round of overdosing, jaundice, and de toxification units. The "warloc " drops by to threaten her, and she ma es her way north via some psychiatric hospi tals to a Christian Rehabilitation farm. She gets married, has a child which she eeps, and becomes a regular churchgoer. But beneath the surface are recurring nightmares, insane anger and murderous feelings towards her brethren. At the Emm anual Pentecostal Church in Stourport she as s the Minister, Roy Davies, for hel p. He prays, and God tells him that she was involved with witchcraft. An exorcis m has her born again, cleansed of her sin. She gets baptised and has no more nig htmares, becoming a generally nicer person. She becomes the "occult expert" of t he Reachout Trust and Evangelical Alliance, and ma es a career out of telling an edited version of her tale. Geoffrey Dic ens MP persuades her to tell all on live TV; "Audrey, to your nowl edge is child sacrifice still going on?" To this she replies, "To my nowledge, yes." After this the whole thing rambles into an untidy conclusion of self-congr atulation, self-promotion, and self-justification; and for a grand finale pulls out a list of horrendous child abuse, which is shamelessly exploited in typically journalistic fashion, and by the usual fallacious arguments which lin s it to anything "occult"; help-lines, astro predictions in newspapers, and even New Age festivals. And so we are left with a horrifying vision of hordes of Satanists swarming the country, buggering ids, sacrificing babies, and feeding their own faeces to the floc ." Whilst all this seems incredible to any rational person, unfortunately, in the a ge old tradition, it confirms the worst fears of the man and woman in the street , and so they swallow it whole. After all, it was on telly, so it MUST be true! As a direct result of people li e Audrey Harper publicising their lies and fanta

sy, children in England and Scotland were forcibly removed from their homes, and subjected to the type of questioning that we had previously believed had died o ut at the end of the Middle Ages. A consultant clinical psychologist scrutinised the interview transcripts and aud io records of the recent Or ney child abuse case, and in her summing up said: "[the Social Wor ers] told the children they new th ings had happened to them and were generally leading all the way. When the child ren denied things, the questions were continually put until the children got hun gry and gave them the answers they wanted." Who says that torture is no longer legal in the British Isles? The father of four of the children who were ta en into care said: "At first I thought the allegations were laughable, but I found out how serious the police were...". Just to remind you of the words of Gilles de Rais some 500 years ago: [the accusations] are frivolous and lac credit...". One 11 year-old described being as ed to draw a circle of ritualistic dancers. H e said: "They got me to draw by saying, 'I am not a drawer. Can you draw that?' It was meant to be a ring with children around and a minister in the middle wear ing a blac robe and a croo to pull children in." The boy said he had been promised treats such as a lesson on how a helicopter wo r ed if he co-operated, and was told that he could go if he gave one name. How remar ably similar to medieval witch trials, where the victims were always pressed to name their accomplices - for is it not said, "thou canst not be a witch alone?"! In 1990, journalist Rosie Waterhouse commenting upon the Manchester child abuse case said: "After three months of questioning by the NSPCC, strange stories bega n to come out and other children were named. The way the children began telling "Satanic" tales in this case is remar ably similar to the way such stories first surfaced in Nottingham. As "The Independent on Sunday" revealed last wee (23/9 /90), the Nottingham children began tal ing about witches, monsters, babies and blood only after they had been encouraged, by an NSPCC social wor er, to play wi th toys which included witches' costumes, monsters, toy babies, and a syringe fo r extracting blood." Believe it or not, the parents of these children had no access to them whatsoever. Why? Because our modern, scientifically trained, 20th century social wor ers believed that, "[the parents] would try to silence the children, using secret Satanic symbols or trigger words". By March 1991, senior Police spo esmen were publicly claiming that "police have no evidence of ritual or satanic abuse inflicted on children anywhere in England or Wales". Scotland has a different legal system, which is why it was not included in the statement not because the police have evidence there, for they do not. When the Rochdale case finally came to court, after the children had been in care (sic!) for about 16 months, the judge delivered a damning indictment upon those who were responsible for it, and said: "the way th e children had been removed from their parents was particularly upsetting." He s aw a video of the removal of one girl from her home during a dawn raid, and comm ented that, "It is obvious from the video tape that the girl is not merely frigh tened but greatly distressed at being removed from home. The sobbing and distrau ght girl can be seen. It is one of my most abiding memories of this case."

Let us return briefly to Salem, where, in 1710, William Good petitioned for dama ges in respect of the trial and execution of his wife Sarah, and the imprisonmen t of his daughter, Dorothy, "a child of four or five years old, [who] being chai ned in the dungeon was so hardly used and terrified that she hath ever since bee n very chargeable, having little or no reason to govern herself.". Today's Christian Fundamentalist, li e his vicious and self-righteous predecesso rs, will use anything in his or her power-including innocent children - to destr oy the evils of Paganism and the occult. Sometimes I wonder if we are becoming p aranoid, or the subjects of a persecution complex, but in writing this lecture i t was brought home to me more strongly than ever before: the witch trials of the Middle Ages are not a bloody stain on the history of Christianity; they are the source from where today's fundamentalists draw their power, and are just as ter rifying today as they were hundreds of years ago. Bigotry and persecution have c hanged in only one respect: 20th century man ind has far more efficient and effe ctive means of spreading lies and propaganda than was available to our ancestors . PERSECUTION: ANCIENT AND MODERN Appendix A The subject of the European Witch Trials has been written about ad infinitum (an d nauseam!), and there are a great many useful boo s which the student will find of interest. There follows a short bibliography of those to which I referred wh en writing this lecture. Select Bibliography

Bradford, Sarah Cohn, Norman Ginzburg, Carlo Hole, Christina Howard, Michael Kiec heffer, Richard Larner, Christina Larner, Christina Maple, Eric Radford, Kenneth Ravensdale & Morgan (1974) Robbins, Rossell Hope

Cesare Borgia (1981) Europe's Inner Demons (1975) Ecstasies: Deciphering The Witches' Sabbath (1990) Witchcraft in England (1977) The Occult Conspiracy (1989) European Witch Trials (1976) Enemies of God: The Witch Hunt in Scotland (1981) Witchcraft and Religion (1985) The Complete Boo of Witchcraft and Demonology (1966) Fire Burn (1989) The Psychology of Witchcraft

The Encyclopaedia of Witchcraft and Demonology (1984) Russell, Jeffrey A History of Witchcraft (1980) Scarre, Geoffrey Witchcraft and Magic in 16th and 17th century Europe (1987) Stenton, Sir Fran Anglo-Saxon England (1971) Summers, Montague (Trans) Malleus Maleficarum (1986) Thomas, Keith Religion and the Decline of Magic (1971) Trevor-Roper, H R The European Witch-Craze of the 16th and 17th Centuries (1988) Walsh, Michael Roots of Christianity (1986) Worden, Blair (Ed) Stuart England (1986)

Encyclopaedia Britannica (1969 edition) Collins Dictionary of the English Language (1980) Newspapers: The Times, The Guardian, The Independent (Britain) PERSECUTION: ANCIENT AND MODERN Appendix B - Historical Periods Anglo-Saxon: broadly 550 AD to 1066 AD (the Norman invasion).

Middle Ages: broadly the period from the end of classical antiquity (476 AD) to the Italian Renaissance (or fall of Constantinople in 1453). More specifically iod from 1000 AD to the 15th century. Medieval: Tudor: of, or relating to, the Middle Ages.

the per

the Royal House, descended from Welsh Squire Owen Tudor (d.1461), which ruled in England between 1485 AD - 1603 AD the Royal House which ruled in Scotland between 1371 AD and 1714, and in England between 1603 AD relating to the period of James I's rule of England (1603-1625).

Stuart: 1714 AD. Jacobean:

Reformation: a 16th century religious and political movement which began as an attempt to reform the Catholic Church, but actually resulted in the establishment rotestant Church.

of the P

Renaissance: usually considered as beginning in Italy in the 14th century, this is the period which mar ed the transition from the Middle Ages to the modern world. I t is characterised by classical scholar ship, scientific and geographical discovery, and the exploration of individ ual human potential. Civil War: 1640-1649, between the Royalists under Charles I, and the Parliamentarians led by Oliver Cromwell. Charles I was executed in 1649.

Thirty Years' War: a major conflict involving Austria, Denmar , France, Holland, Germany, Spain and Sweden that devastated central Europe, but especially Germany. It began as a war between Protestants and Catholics but developed in to a general power struggle (1618 1648). Lateran Councils: Five ecumenical councils held at the Lateran Palace (the official residence of the Pope) between 1123

Crusades:

a series of wars underta en by the Christians of western Europe with the authorisation of the Papacy from 1095 until the mid-15th century for the purpose of recovering the Holy Sepulchre at Jerus alem from the Mu slims and defending possession of it. (Enc. Britannica)

AD and 1512 AD. PERSECUTION: ANCIENT AND MODERN Appendix C - Gnostic and Christian sects Manichaeism: a dualistic Gnostic religion first preached by Mani (q.v.) in the 3rd century AD. Its early centre was Babylonia, then part of the Persian empire and a meeting p lace of faiths. (EB) The basic theology of Manichaeism is that good and evil are separate and opposed principles, which have become mixed in the world through the action of the evil principle. There is a complicated mythology which describes the creatio n of the world and the elements, and a set of complex correspondences by which t he see er can return to a state of salvation. Manichaeism spread across a huge a rea, including the Roman Empire. However, by the 6th century it had virtually be en eradicated from Spain, France and Italy, although was strong in the eastern M editerranean until the 9th century, when it was absorbed into the neo-Manichean sects of the Bogomils, Cathars, etc.

Their central teaching was strictly dualistic; that the visible, materia l world was created by the Devil, and that everything within it was therefore ev il. They rejected many of the trappings of Christianity, and their condemnation of anything to do with the flesh - including eating and drin ing! - has rightly earned them the nic name, "the greatest puritans of the middle ages". Cathars: a heretical Christian sect that flourished in western Europe in the 12th and 13th centuries.

They believed that goodness existed only in the spiritual world created by God, and that the material world, created by Satan, was evil. Their theology bore a great resemblance to that of Manichaeism and the Bogomils, and they were closely connected with the latter. Waldensians: also nown as Valdenses or Vaudois. The sect was founded in southern France in the 12th century, and emphasised poverty, abstinence from physical labou a life devoted to prayer.

They were influenced by other "heretical" sects, and rejected a number o f the basic tenets of the Catholic faith. They were stern opponents to the acqu isition of wealth and power within the Church, and thus came into direct opposit ion to the Papacy,which thrived on both. They were fiercely persecuted, and by the end of the 15th century, confined mainly to the French and Italian valleys of the Cottian Alps. During the 16th century, the Waldensians were trans formed into a Protestant church, but suffered heavy persecution throughout the 1 7th century from the Du es of Savoy. This ceased only after Oliver Cromwell int ervened personally on their behalf with the du e, Charles Emmanuel II. In the la tter part of the 17th century the Waldensians returned to their original homelan d, and in 1848 the Waldensians were given civil rights, and are today members of the World Presbyte rian Alliance. PERSECUTION: ANCIENT AND MODERN

Bogomils:

a religious sect which flourished in the Bal ans between the 10th and 15th centuries.

r, and

Appendix D - A calendar of events connected with the persecution of heretics 640 AD Eorcenberht succeeds Eadbald as King of Kent, and becomes the first English ing to order the destr uction of pagan idols throughout his ingdom;

663 AD

Council of Whitby determines the date of Easter to be in accordance with Roman practice, and so ends Celtic Christianity in Northumberland; 668-690 AD Liber Poenitentialis by Theodore, Archbishop of Canterbury. Probably the first legislation against witches. It advised penances (eg, fasting) for those who "sacrificed to devils, foretold the future with their aid, ate food that had been offered in sacrifice, or burned grain after a man was dead for the well-being of the living and of the house." 735-766 AD the Confessional of Ecgberht, Archbishop of Yor , which prescribed a 7-year fast for a woman convicted of "slaying by incantation";

871-899 AD Wicca;

reign of King Aelfred (brother of Aethelred), who declared the death penalty for those who practise

925-939 AD reign of King Aethelstan, where murder - including murder by witchcraft - was punishable with the death penalty; 936 AD Otto elected King of the Germans, whereupon he declared it his intention to drive the pagans out of his land; Otto crowned King of Lombardy; Otto defeated the Magyars and proclaimed himself "Protector of Europe"; Otto crowned Holy Roman Emperor; the first burning (at Orleans) for heresy;

951 955 962 1022

1066-1087 AD reign of William the Conqueror in England; he reduced Aethelstan's sentence of death for con victed murderers to banishment; 1118 King Baldwin II of Jerusalem suggested to Sir Hugh de Payens that he organise a chivalric order of nights to defend travellers to the Holy Land, and granted p art of his palace, which stood on the site of Solomon's orig inal temple, for their headquar ters. As a result of this gesture, Hugh de Payens called his Order the Templi Militia , and then later changed this to Knights of the Temple of So lomon in Jerusalem; 1162 Pope Alexander III issued a special papal bull releasing Templars from spiritual obedience to any but the Pope himself, gave them exemption from

paying t

ithes, and allowed them their own chaplains ds;

and burial groun

12/13th cent the Cathar heresies: introduction of the obscene iss and ritual adoration of the devil; 1243-44 1244 1259

relationships between the Knights Templars and the Hospitallers of Knights of St John deteriorated into open warfare;

1301 1302 1307

Walter Langton, bishop of Coventry, tried by ecclesiastical court for diabolism and acquitted; trial in Exeter for defamation of a man who called a woman a "wic ed witch and thief";

King Philip of France ordered the arrest of every member of the Knights Templar in France: this was followed by a papal bull to all rulers in Christian that all Templars were to be arrested; 1311 investigation in London by episcopal authority into sorcery, enchantment, magic, divination and invocation; the Pope officially disbanded the Knights Templars; Jaques de Molay (last Grand Master of the Knights Templars) burned as a relapsed heretic; last Cathar burned at the sta e;

1312 1314 1321 1324

Alice Kyteler tried in Kil enny by secular and ecclesiastical authorities for diabolism, invoca tion and sorcery; the Plague spreads over the whole of Italy, and arrives in France by the end of the year; the Plague reaches Paris, then the Low Countries, and then via the Channel to southern England; Britain ravaged by the Plague, which passes into Germany, Austria and Scandinavia; the Plague, complicated by influenza reappears in Europe, continuing in waves until 1441, and finally ending around 1510; woman tried in Milan for attending an assembly led by "Diana", "Erodiade" or "Oriente";

1347 1348 1349 1360

1390

1291

the Saracens too Jerusalem, and the Knights Templars were expelled, and lost their headquarters on the site of Solomon's Temple;

Siege of Montsegur; 225 Cathars burned at the sta e at Montsegur;

Europe

1408 1409 1428-47 1431

the Plague, still rampant in Europe is complicated by an epidemic of Typhus and Whooping Cough; trial of Pope Benedict XIII at Pisa for divination, invocation, sorcery and other offences; Dauphine: 110 women and 57 men executed by secular court for witchcraft, especially diabolism;

Joan of Arc tried for heresy and burnt at the sta e: the trial decision was annulled in 1456, and in 1920 she was canonised by Pope Benedict XV with e of her execution (May 30) becoming a national holiday in France; 1440

Gilles de Rais tried on 47 charges including con juration of demons and sexual perversions against children: nearly all evidence was hearsay, none of his serv ants was called to testify, and the procee dings were highly irregular: he was strangled and then sent to the pyre, but his family were given permission to remove his body befor e the flames reached it for burial at a nearby Carmelite Church; 1441 traitor; 1458 ; 1470 trial before Royal Court in England for defamation - man had accused the Duchess of Bedford of image magic; Earl of Mar executed for employing witches to ill James III of Scotland; Papal Bull of Pope Innocent VIII officially declaring witchcraft a heresy; first publication of the Malleus Maleficarum; Metz: 31 women and 4 men tried by secular court for weather magic: 29 burned; expulsion of Jews from Spain; Martin Luther excommunicated by Pope Leo X, and so begins the Reformation; Margery Jourdain ("the Witch of Eye") convicted of plotting to ill King Henry VI, and burned as a

first recorded use of the word "sabbat" (Nicholas Jacquier). "Synagogue" was the word commonly used to describe the meeting places of heretics and

1479 1484 1486 1488 1492 1521 1532

the Constitutio Criminalis Carolina: the criminal code for the Holy Roman Empire which specified how witches, fortune tellers, etc were to be tried, and d; 1542 first statute against witchcraft in England passed by Parliament (revo ed 1547);

the dat

witches

punishe

church; 1562

statute enacted in Scotland under Mary Queen of Scots declaring the death penalty for witchcraft, sorcery and necromancy: the Act was confirmed in repealed in 1736;

1563

statute against witchcraft by Elizabeth I in England ordering the death penalty for witches, enchanters and sorcerers (under civil, not ecc cal law); 1566

first major trial under statute of 1563: Elizabeth Francis, Agnes Waterhouse and Joan Waterhouse at Chelmsford: Agnes hanged, Elizabeth received a light sent ence and Joan was found not guilty; 1584 "Discoverie of Witchcraft" by Reginald Scot published - a Protestant argument against belief in witchcraft; North Berwic trials by James VI; Nicholas Remy publishes "Demonolatreiae" where he boasted on the title page that he had condemned 900 witches in 15 years; John Dee as Warden of a Manchester College acts as an advisor for cases of witchcraft and demonology; "Daemonologie" by King James VI published; Giordano Bruno burnt at the sta e in Rome as an "impenitent heretic"; ascension of James VI to the English throne as James I; 1604 new statute against witchcraft by James I which established pact, devil-worship and other continental ideas in English law; King James authorises a new translation of the Bible to include the word "witch"; twenty witches tried together at Lancashire (the Pendle witches);

1595

1596 1597 1600 1603

1611 1612 1628

in Massachusetts, an English lawyer, Thomas Morton ordered a maypole to be erected in the colony which he founded (Merrymount), and celebrat ed May with local Indians and refugees from the Puritans , with stag antlers, bells and brightly coloured clothes, under an elected "Lord and Lady" to rule over the celebrations; He was arrested under charges of practising witchcraft, but was released;

1590-92

1557

first list of prohibited boo s issued by the Roman

1649 and

lesiasti

1633

the public exorcisms of the nuns of Loudun as part of a plot by Cardinal Richelieu to revenge himself pon Urban Grandier: Grandier arrested and tried by investigating committee; 1634 1644 1644-5 1646 1647 1649 1662 children; 1662 1663 the trial of Isobel Gowdie in Auldearne, Scotland: Gowdie introduces the idea of a coven of thirteen; Grandier tortured then burned alive; maypoles made illegal in England; Matthew Hop ins active in Chelmsford; Matthew Hop ins retired - he died the following year; first witch hung in the USA, in Connecticut; first newspaper astrology column by Lilly; at Bury St Edmunds women were accused and convicted of witchcraft on the testimony of hysterical

the Licensing Act determined that boo s could not be published without prior consultation with the Church or State;

the Chambre Ardente affair: a star chamber court admitting of no appeal arraigned to try Madame Bosse, her daughter and sons; Madame Montvoisin (La Voisin) and La Dame Vigoreux. During the course of the trial, sever al hundreds of the highest cour tiers of King Louis XIV w ere implicated in the poisoning scandal. The affair dege nerated into a search for heresy and witchcraft, and event ually Catholic Priests Davot, Gerard, Deshayes, Cotton, Tournet, Guibourg and Mariette were also drawn in, accused of performing the Blac Mass. Evidence was collected to show that Madame de Montespan (Louis' former m istress) attempted to poison Louis and his new mistress, and was the leader of the Satanic cult. In all, 319 people were arrested and 104 sentenced: 36 to death, 4 to slaver y in the gal leys, 34 to banishment and 30 acquitted. In 1709 Louis attempted to destroy the records of the affair, but failed; 1684 Alice Molland was the last person executed as a witch in England (at Exeter);

1679-82

1689

Cotton Mather (New England) publishes "Memorable Providences Relating to Witchcraft and Possessions" supporting belief in witchcraft;

1692

Salem witch trials: 19 hung and more than 100 jailed; the last person executed in the USA for witchcraft; last execution in Scotland for witchcraft;

1727

1731 1736

last trial for witchcraft in England: Jane Wenham, who was convicted, then pardoned and released;

the repeal of the statutes against witchcraft of Mary Queen of Scots (1562), Elizabeth I (1563) and James I & VI (1604): replaced with a statute which stated t hat, "no prosecution, suit or proceeding shall be commence d or carried out against any person or persons for witc hcraft, sorcery, inchant ment (sic), or conjuration." It pro vided for the prosecution of those pretending to possess m agical powers, but it denied reality to those powers; 1745 1775 1829 last execution in France for witchcraft; last execution in Germany for witchcraft;

Lamothe-Langan fabricated and published documents represented to be records of trials of witches in Toulouse and Carcassonne, probably in an attempt to prove t he continuing existence of the worship of the old religion ; 1830 in "Letters on Demonology and Witchcraft" Sir Walter Scott argues that alleged witches had been misunderstood and mistreated; Jules Michelet argues in his boo "La Sorcerie" that witchcraft was a protest by medieval serfs against a crushing social order;

1899 Leland; 1928 1951 1963

publication of Aradia: Gospel of the Witches by first English translation of the Malleus Malefic arum (tr Summers); repeal of the 1736 Witchcraft Act with the Fraud ulent Mediums Act;

demand made for reinstatement of the Witchcraft Laws in England following desecration of churches and graveyards; the Index (of prohibited boo s) abolished;

Anti-occult amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill had its third reading in Parliament. Presented by Geoffrey Dic ens, this prescribed imprisonment for not more than five years against one who, "permits, entices or encourages a minor to participate in, or be presen t at a ceremony or other activity of any ind specified in sub-section 3...". Subsection 3 says: "The ceremonies or ac tivities to which this section applies are those of, or ass ociated with, Satanism and other devil worshipping, blac m

1991

1966

1865

Pope Pius X again attac ed secret societies,claim ing that Freemasonry was anti-Christian, satanic, and derived from paganism;

1862

agic,

witchcraft, or any activity to which Section 1 of the Fraudulent Mediums Act (1951) applies.

The Bill was rejected for a number of reasons, not least beca use it made newspaper/magazine editors culpable if minors should read the astrology column! HISTORY OF WICCA IN ENGLAND: 1939 - present day This tal was given by Julia Phillips at the Wiccan Conference in Canberra, 1991 . It is mainly about the early days of the Wicca in England; specifically what w e now call Gardnerian and Alexandrian traditions. The text remains "as given", s o please remember when you read it that it was never intended to be "read", but "heard" and debated. Text begins: There are three main strands I intend to examine: one, Gardner's claim of tradit ional initiation, and its subsequent development; two, magical traditions to whi ch Gardner would have had access; and three, literary sources. As we loo at these three main threads, it is important to bear in mind that Gar dner was 55 years old at the time of his claimed initiation; that he had spent m any years in Malaya, and had an enormous interest in magic, Fol lore and Mytholo gy. By the time he published High Magic's Aid, he was 65, and 75 when "The Mean ing of Witchcraft" appeared. He died in 1964, at the age of 80. Gardner was born in 1884, and spent most of his wor ing adult life in Malaya. He retired, and returned to the UK in 1936. He joined the Fol lore Society, and in June 1938, also joined the newly opened Rosicrucian Theatre at Christchurch whe re it is said he met Old Dorothy Clutterbuc . I chose 1939 as my arbitrary starting point as that was the year that Gerald Gar dner claims he was initiated by Old Dorothy into a practising coven of the Old R eligion, that met in the New Forest area of Britain. In his own words, "I realised that I had stumbled upon something interesting; but I was half-initi ated before the word, "Wica" which they used hit me li e a thunderbolt, and I n ew where I was, and that the Old Religion still existed. And so I found myself i n the Circle, and there too the usual oath of secrecy, which bound me not to re veal certain things." This quote is ta en from The Meaning of Witchcraft, which was published in 1959. It is interesting that in this quote, Gardner spells Wicca with only one "c"; in the earlier "Witchcraft Today" (1954) and "High Magic's Aid" (1949), the word W icca is not even used. His own derivation for the word, given in "The Meaning of Witchcraft", is as follows: "As they (the Dane and Saxon invaders of England) had no witches of their own th ey had no special name for them; however, they made one up from "wig" an idol, a nd "laer", learning, "wiglaer" which they shortened into "Wicca". "It is a curious fact that when the witches became English-spea ing they adopted their Saxon name, "Wica"."

In "An ABC of Witchcraft Past and Present", Doreen Valiente does not have an ent ry for Wicca, but when discussing Witchcraft, does mention the Saxon derivation from the word Wicca or Wicce. In the more recently published The Rebirth Of Witc

hcraft, however, she rejects this Saxon theory in favour of Prof. Russell's deri vation from the IndoEuropean root "Wei ", which relates to things connected with magic and religion. Doreen Valiente strongly supports Gardner's claim of traditional initiation, and published the results of her successful attempt to prove the existence of Dorot hy Clutterbuc in an appendix to "The Witches' Way" by Janet and Stewart Farrar. It is a marvellous piece of investigation, but proving that Old Dorothy existed does nothing to support Gardner's claims that she initiated him. In his boo , "Ritual Magic in England", occultist Francis King does offer some a necdotal evidence in support of Gardner's claims. However, it is only fair to po int out that in the same boo , he virtually accuses Moina Mathers of murder, bas ed upon a misunderstanding of a story told by Dion Fortune! With that caveat, I' ll recount the tale in full: King relates that in 1953, he became acquainted with Louis Wil inson, who wrote under the pen-name of Louis Marlow, and had contributed essays to Crowley's Equi nox. He later became one of Crowley's literary executors. King says that in conv ersation, Wil inson told him that Crowley had claimed to have been offered initi ation into a witch coven, but that he refused, as he didn't want to be bossed ar ound by a bunch of women. (This story is well- nown, and could have been pic ed up anywhere.) Wil inson then proceeded to tell King that he had himself become friendly with m embers of a coven operating in the New Forest area, and he thought that whilst i t was possible that they derived their existence from Murray's "Witch Cult in We stern Europe", he felt that they were rather older. King draws the obvious conclusion; that these witches were the very same as thos e who initiated Gardner. King claims that the conversation with Wil inson too p lace in 1953, although "Ritual Magic in England" was not published - or presumab ly written - until 1970. However, on September 27 1952, "Illustrated" magazine p ublished a feature by Allen Andrews, which included details of a wor ing by, "th e Southern Coven of British Witches", where 17 men and women met in the New Fore st to repel an invasion by Hitler. Wil inson had told King of this wor ing during t heir conversation, which King believes to be proof that such a coven existed; th ere are some differences in the two stories, and so it is possible that two sour ces are reporting the same event, but as Wil inson's conversation with King came after the magazine article, we shall never now. In the recently published "Crafting the Art of Magic", Aidan Kelly uses this sam e source to "prove" (and I use the word advisedly - the boo "proves" nothing") that Gardner, Dorothy, et al created Wicca one night following a social get toge ther! Of one thing we can be certain though: whatever its origin, modern Wicca derives from Gardner. There may of course be other traditional, hereditary witch es, but even if they are genuine, then it is unli ely that they would have been able to "go public" had it not been for Gardner. There have been many claims of "hereditary" origin (other than Gardner's own!) O ne of the most famous post-Gardner claimants to "hereditary" status was actress Ruth Wynn-Owen, who fooled many people for a very long time before being exposed . Roy Bowers, who used the pseudonym Robert Cochrane, was another: Doreen Valien te describes her association with him in "The Rebirth of Witchcraft", and The Ro ebuc , which is still active in the USA today, derives directly from Cochrane, v ia Joe Wilson. "Witchcraft: A Tradition Renewed" by Evan John Jones with Doreen Valiente describes a tradition derived from Robert Cochrane. Alex Sanders, of course is another who claimed hereditary lineage, and

li e Cochrane, deserves his own place in this history, and we'll get to both of them later. Many people have been suspicious of Gardner's claims, and have accused him of ma ing the whole thing up. They suggest that the Wicca is no more than the fantasy of an old man coloured by a romantic imagination. One particularly virulent att ac upon Gardner came from Charles Cardell, writing under the pseudonym of Rex N emorensis. One of Gardner's initiates who is still active in the Wicca today has an interes ting tale to tell about Cardell, whom he new: "Cardell claimed to be a Witch, but from a different tradition to Gardner's. Car dell was a psychopathic rat, with malevolent intent toward all and sundry. He ma naged to get a woman called Olive Green (Florannis) into Gardner's coven, and to ld her to copy out the Boo of Shadows so that Cardell could publish it, and des troy Gardner. He also contacted a London paper, and told them when and where th e coven meetings were held, and of course the paper got quite a scoop. Cardell l ed people in the coven to believe that it was Doreen Valiente who had informed o n them. Doreen had just left Gardner in a bit of a huff after a disagreement; another co ven member, Ned Grove, left with her. Anyway, the day the paper printed the exp osure, Cardell sent Gardner a telegram saying, "Remember Ameth tonight". (Ameth was Doreen's Craft name, and as it has now been published, I see no reason not t o use it here)." My informant also said that Olive Green was associated with Michael Houghton, ow ner of Atlantis boo shop in Museum Street, who was the publisher of High Magic' s Aid. Through this association, she also encountered Kenneth Grant of the OTO, although their association was not friendly. Cecil Williamson, the original owner of the witchcraft museum on the Isle of Man , and present owner of the Witchcraft Museum in Boscastle, has also published a number of articles where he states quite categorically that Gardner was an utter fraud; but, he offers only anecdotes to support these allegations. Although Gardner claimed his initiation occurred in 1939, we don't really hear a nything about him until 1949, when "High Magic's Aid" was published by Michael H oughton. This boo has very strong Solomonic leanings, but li e Gardner's own religious b eliefs, combined the more natural forms of magic with high ceremonial. In his in troduction to the boo , Gardner says that: "The Magical rituals are authentic, p arty from the Key of Solomon (MacGregor Mathers' translation) and partly from ma gical MSS in my possession)." Gardner did indeed have a large collection of MSS, which passed with the rest of his goods to Ripleys in Toronto after his death. Scire (pseudonym) was the name Gardner too as a member of Crowley's branch of t he OTO; although it is generally agreed that his membership was purely nominal, he was certainly in contact with people li e Kenneth Grant and Madeline Montalba n (founder of the Order of the Morning Star). Gardner was given his OTO degree and Charter by Aleister Crowley, to whom he was introduced in 1946 by Arnold Crowther. As Crowley died in 1947, their associat ion was not long-lived, but Crowther confirms that the two men enjoyed each othe r's company.

In 1888, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was born, beginning a renaissance of interest in the occult that has continued to the present day. It is impossib le to overstate the importance of the GD to modern occultists; not only in its r ituals, but also in its personalities; and of course, through ma ing available a large body of occult lore that would otherwise have remained un nown, or hidden in obscurity. I will be loo ing at this body of occult lore with other literary influences lat er, and will here concentrate on the rituals and personalities that have influen ced Wicca. We cannot loo at the GD in isolation from its own origins. It is descended from a myriad of esoteric traditions including Rosicrucianism, Theosophy, and Freema sonry. The latter in its own right, as well as via the SRIA - a scholarly and ce remonial association open to Master Masons only. Whether the German Lodge or Fraulein Sprengel actually existed is a matter still under debate; but either in fact or in spirit, this is the source for the "Cyph er Manuscripts" which were used to found the Isis-Urania Lodge in 1888. As I'm sure everyone nows, Isis-Urania was founded by Dr Wynn-Westcott, Dr Wood man, and MacGregor Mathers. Not only were all three Master Masons; Wynn-Westcott and Mathers were also members of the Theosophical Society. The most important t hing though is the fact the these three men were a ruling triumvirate that manag ed the affairs of the SRIA. This is important, for the SRIA included Hargrave Je nnings in its membership, and Jennings is reputed to have been involved with a Pagan group at the end of the 19th century, which drew its inspiration from Ap uleius - The Golden Ass. But bac to the GD - whether the Cypher Manuscripts actually existed, or Wynn-We stcott manufactured them is now irrelevant; Mathers was commissioned to write-up the rituals into a wor able shape, and thus the Golden Dawn was born. Members of the Isis-Urania Lodge at various times also included Allan Bennett, M oina Mathers, Aleister Crowley, Florence Farr, Maud Gonne, Annie Horniman, Arthu r Machen, "Fiona Macleod", Arthur Waite and WB Yeats. Also associated were Lady Gregory, and G W Russell, or AE, whose "The Candle of Vision" was included in th e bibliography of "The Meaning of Witchcraft". The literary and Celtic influence s within the GD were immense. From the Isis-Urania Lodge sprang all the others, including the so-called Dissid ent Orders derived through Crowley. It is this line that some commentators trace to modern Wicca, so it is the one upon which we will concentrate. Aleister Crowley was initiated into the Isis-Urania Lodge on 18 November 1898. A s you most probably now, Crowley later quarrelled with MacGregor Mathers, and i n 1903 began to create his own Order, the Argenteum Astrum, or Silver Star. In 1 912, Crowley was initiated into the OTO, and in 1921, succeeded Theodor Reuss as its Chief. According to Arnold Crowther's account, it was in 1946, a year before Crowley's death, that Crowley gave Gardner an OTO Charter. Ithell Colquhoun says only that it occurred in the 1940s, and further states that Gardner introduced material f rom the OTO, and less directly from the GD, into "...the lore of his covens". As Doreen Valiente also admits, "Indeed, the influence of Crowley was very appar

So, after that brief introduction we can have a loo I mentioned.

at the first of the strands

ent throughout the (Wiccan) rituals.". This, Gardner explained to her, was becau se the rituals he received from Old Dorothy's coven were very fragmentary, and i n order to ma e them wor able, he had to supplement them with other material. To give an example of some of the lines by Crowley which are rather familiar to modern Wiccans: I give unimaginable joys on earth; certainty, not faith, while in life, upon dea th; peace unutterable, rest, ecstasy; nor do I demand aught in sacrifice. I am Life, and the giver of Life, yet therefore is the nowledge of me the nowl edge of death. And of course, the Gnostic Mass has been immensely influential. Not only poetry, but also magical practices in Wicca are often derived from GD s ources. For example: the way of casting the circle: that is, the visualisation of the circle, and the pentagrams at the quarters, are both based upon the standard GD Pentagram Ritua l; both the concept and word "Watchtowers" are of course from the Enochian system o f Magic, passed to Wicca via the GD (although I would li e to ma e it very clear that their use within Wicca bears no relation to the use within Enochia - the o nly similarity is in the name); the Elements and colours generally attributed to the Quarters are those of the G D; the weapons and their attributions are a combination of GD, Crowley and Key of S olomon. In "Witchcraft Today", Gardner says, "The people who certainly would have had th e nowledge and ability to invent (the Wiccan rites) were the people who formed the Order of the Golden Dawn about seventy years ago...". The GD is not the only influence upon Gardner; Freemasonry has had a tremendous impact upon the Wicca. Not only were the three founders of Isis-Urania Temple Ma sons, so too were Crowley and Waite; Gardner and at least one member of the firs t coven (Daffo) were both Co-Masons. Gardner was also a friend of JSM Ward, who had published a number of boo s about Masonry. Doreen describes Ward as a "leading Mason", but Francis King says only that Ward was, "a bogus Bishop... who had written some quite good but far-fetched boo s o n masonry, and who ran a peculiar religious-cum-occult community called The Abbe y of Christ the King..." Whether the boo s were far-fetched or not, we can assu me that some of the many similarities between Wicca and Masonry are in some ways due to Ward's influence. Some of these include: The Three Degrees The Craft So Mote It Be The Challenge Properly Prepared The 1st Degree Oath (in part) Presentation of the Wor ing Tools at 1st degree

and so on. It seems to me quite clear that even if Gardner received a traditional set of ri tuals from his coven, they must have been exceptionally sparse, as the concepts that we now of as Wicca today certainly derive from ceremonial magic and Freema sonry to a very great extent. Indeed, Gardner always claimed that they were spar se. It could be argued that all derive from a common source. That the appearance of a phrase, or technique in one tradition does not automatically suggest that its appearance elsewhere means that the one was ta en from the other. However, Gardn er admits his sources in many cases, and Doreen confirms them in others, so I th in it is safe to presume that the rituals and philosophy used by Wicca descends from the traditions of Freemasonry and Ceremonial magic, rather than from a sin gle common source. However, as Hudson Frew points out in his commentary upon Aid an Kelly's boo , the phenomena of the techniques and practices of ceremonial mag ic influencing fol magic and traditions is widely recognised by anthropologists , and certainly does not indicate plagiarism. And of course there are many tradi tional witchcraft aspects in the Wicca. We have loo ed at the development of the magical orders which resulted from the British occult revival of the 19th and 20th centuries, and now we can see where this ties in with Wicca, and Gardner's claim of traditional initiation. I have here a "family tree" of the main branches of British Wicca. It is by no m eans exhaustive, and is intended to provide an outline, not a definitive history ! I have included my own coven lines and development as an indication of the in d of "cross-over" of tradition which often occurs, not to suggest that these are the only active groups! Also, it would not be ethical for me to include details of other covens. We have two possible "hereditary" sources to the Gardnerian Craft: one, the Hors a Coven of Old Dorothy, and two, the Cumbrian Group which Rae Bone claims to hav e been initiated into before meeting Gardner. (NB: Doreen Valiente says that the Horsa Coven is not connected with Old Dorothy, but is another group entirely.) There is also sometimes mention of a St Alban's group that pre-dates Gardner, bu t as far as I now, this is mista en. The St Albans group was Gardner's own grou p, which as far as research confirms, did not pre-date him. To return to Rae Bone: she was one of Gardner's HPSs, and her "line" has been im mensely important to the modern Wicca; she was featured in the magazine series, "Man Myth and Magic" if anyone has a copy of that. In her heyday she ran two covens: one in Cumbria, and one in South London. Rae i s still alive, and lives in Cumbria, although her last coven moved to New Zealan d many years ago, and she is no longer active. No-one has ever been able to trac e the coven in New Zealand. At this point, I will just mention George Pic ingill, although he is not shown o n the tree, as I thin it extremely dubious that he had any connection with Gard ner, or any other modern Wiccan. Pic ingill died in 1909, whilst Gardner was still in Malaya. Eric Maple is larg ely responsible for the beginnings of the Pic ingill myth, which were expanded b y Bill Liddell (Lugh) writing in "The Wiccan" and "The Cauldron" throughout the 1970s. Mi e Howard still has some of Liddell's material which he has never publi shed, and I have yet to meet anyone within the British Craft who gives credence to Liddell's claims.

In the boo , "The Dar World of Witches", published in 1962, Maple tells of a nu mber of village wise women and cunning men, one of whom is George Pic ingill. Th ere is a photograph included of an old man with a stic , holding a hat, which Ma ple describes as Pic ingill. This photograph has subsequently been re-used many times in boo s about witchcraft and Wicca. Issue number 31 of "Insight" Magazine, dated July 1984, contains a very interest ing letter from John Pope: "The photograph purporting to be Old George Pic ingill is in fact a photo of Alf Cavill, a station porter at Ellstree, ta en in the early 1960s. Alf is now dead , but he was no witch, and laughed over the photograph when he saw it." A very respected Craft authority has told me that he believes the photo, which i s in his possession, to be of Pic ingill, but li e so much to do with Craft hist ory, there is no definitive answer to this one. Many claims were made by Liddell; some obviously from cloud-cuc oo land, others which could, by a stretch of the imagination, be accepted. The very idea of Pic ingill, an illiterate farm labourer, co-ordinating and supervising nine covens a cross the breadth of the UK is staggering. To accept - as Liddell avers - that h e had the li es of Alan Bennett and Aleister Crowley as his pupils bends creduli ty even further. The infamous photograph which Liddell claims shows Crowley, Bennett and Pic ingi ll together has conveniently disappeared, and no-one admits to ever having seen it. Li e most of Liddell's claims, nothing has ever been substantiated, and when pushed, he retreats into the time honoured favourite of, "I can't reveal that you're not an initiate"! But to return to the family tree: the names of Doreen Valiente, Pat and Arnold C rowther, Lois Bourne (Hemmings), Jac Bracelin and Monique Wilson will probably be the most familiar to you. Jac Bracelin is the author of Gardner's biography, "Gerald Gardner, Witch", (pu blished 1960) now out of print, although still available 2nd hand, and in librar ies. (In Crafting the Art of Magic, Kelly claims that this boo was actually wri tten by Idries Shah, and simply published under Bracelin's name. As with every o ther claim, Kelly offers no evidence of this) I have seen a copy of Bracelin's Boo of Shadows, which it is claimed dates from 1949, although in The Rebirth Of Witchcraft, Doreen says that Bracelin was a "r elative newcomer" in the mid-1950s. I have also been told by two different sourc es that Bracelin helped Gardner write "The Laws". In The Rebirth Of Witchcraft, Doreen states that she did not see The Laws until the mid 1950s, when she and he r partner Ned Grove accused Gardner of concocting them in order to re-assert con trol over the coven. As Bracelin was in the Gardner camp during the brea up of t he group, it seems reasonable that he did in fact help with their composition. (NB: Alex Sanders increased the number of "The Laws" much later - these appeared in June Johns' boo , "The King of the Witches") Although Doreen claims that the reason for the coven brea -up was the fact that Gardner and Bracelin were publicity crazy, there was another reason, which was t he instatement of a new lady into the coven, effectively replacing Doreen as HPS . This is also the main reason for Gerald's Law which states that the HPS will, "...gracefully retire in favour of a younger woman, should the coven so decide i

n council." Needless to say, Doreen was not impressed, and she and Ned left the coven under very acrimonious circumstances. It was quite some time before Doreen had contact with Gardner again, and they never quite regained the degree of friendship that had previously existed. Monique and Campbell Wilson are infamous, rather than famous, as Gardner's heirs who sold off his magical equipment and possessions after his death, to Ripleys in the USA. Monique was the last of his Priestesses, and many Wiccans today still spit when her name is mentioned. Pat Crowther was rather scathing about her recently in an interview, and in The Rebirth Of Witchcraft, although Doreen tells of the sale of Gardner's magical possessions to Ripleys, she doesn't ever mention the Wilson s by name. In effect, the Craft closed ran s against them, and they became outca sts. Eventually, in the face of such opposition they had to sell the Museum in Castle town, and they moved to Torremolinos, where they bought a cafe. Monique died nin e years after selling the Museum. It is rumoured that Campbell Wilson moved to t he USA, and met with a car accident there: this is only hearsay though - I reall y do not now for sure what happened to him. However, Monique was influential in a way that even she could not have imagined, when in 1964 or 5 she initiated Ray Buc land, who with his wife Rosemary (later divorced), was very influential in the development of the Wicca in the USA. Fortunately, Richard and Tamarra James managed to buy the bul of Gardner's coll ection bac from Ripleys in 1987, for the princely sum of US$40,000, and it is n ow bac within the Craft, and available for initiates to consult and view. D and C S. are probably completely anonymous, and if it were not for the fact th at C initiated Robert Cochrane (briefly mentioned earlier) they would probably s tay that way! Cochrane's origins are obscure, but I have been told that he was initiated into the Gardnerian tradition by C S, and met Doreen Valiente through a mutual acquai ntance in 1964. When he met Doreen, however, he claimed to be a hereditary witch , from a different tradition to Gardner's, and as Doreen confirms, was contemptu ous of what he called "Gardnerian" witches. Indeed, Doreen believes he coined t he term, "Gardnerian". Doreen said she was completely ta en in by Cochrane and for a while, wor ed with him and the "Clan of Tubal-Cain" as he described his tradition, which was also nown as "The Royal Windsor Cuveen", or 1734. The figures "1734" have an interesting history. Doreen gives a rather strange ac count of them in The Rebirth Of Witchcraft, which contradicts what Cochrane hims elf describes in a letter to Joe Wilson, dated "12th Night 1966", where he says, "...the order of 1734 is not a date of an event but a grouping of numerals that mean something to a witch. "One that becomes seven states of wisdom - the Goddess of the Cauldron. Three th at are the Queens of the Elements - fire belonging alone to Man, and the Blac sm ith God. Four that are Queens of the Wind Gods. "The Jewish orthodoxy believe that whomever nows the Holy and Unspea able name of God has absolute power over the world of form. Very briefly, the name of God spo en as Tetragrammaton ... brea s down in Hebrew to the letters YHVH, or the A dam Kadmon (The Heavenly Man). Adam Kadmon is a composite of all Archangels - in

other words a poetic statement of the names of the Elements. "So what the Jew and the Witch believe ali e, is that the man who discovers the secret of the Elements controls the physical world. 1734 is the witch way of say ing YHVH." (Cochrane, 1966) Although Doreen says that Cochrane's group was small, it still proved to be rema r ably influential. As well as Cochrane and his wife (whom Doreen refers to as " Jean") and Doreen herself, there were others who are well- nown today, and a man called Ronald White, who very much wanted to bring about a new age in England, with the return of King Arthur. In The Rebirth Of Witchcraft, Doreen elaborates upon the circumstances surroundi ng the death of Cochrane: the bald facts are that he died at the Summer Solstice of 1966 of an overdose. Craft tradition believes that he became in fact, and of his own choice, the male ritual sacrifice which is sometimes symbolically enact ed at the height of Summer. The Royal Windsor Cuveen disbanded after Cochrane died, only to be re-born from the ashes at Samhain that year under a new name - The Regency. All of its early members were from the Royal Windsor Cuveen, and they were under the leadership o f Ronald White. The Regency proved to be of great importance to the development of the Wicca, although its existence was ept a fairly close secret, and even to day, there are relatively few people who have ever heard of it. Meetings were held in North London, at a place called Queens Wood. As well as Ro n White and Doreen Valiente, members included "John Math", founder of the Witchc raft Research Association in 1964, and editor of Pentagram magazine, and the fou nder of the Pagan Movement, Tony Kelly. At its height, there were frequently mor e than 40 in attendance at rites, which tended to be of the dramatic, pagan ind rather than the ceremonial associated with high ritual magic. The Regency operated fairly consis tently for over twelve years, finally disbanding in 1978. The Membership roll re ads li e a who's who of the British Wicca! Some of the rites have been incorpora ted into modern Wiccan rituals - in fact, one was used at the Pan European Wicca n Conference 1991 with very great success. Moving bac over to Rae Bone's line, there are a number of influential people he re, mainly through her initiates, Madge and Arthur, who probably ta e the award for the most prolific pair in Wiccandom! Rae, although initiated by Gardner, doe s of course also claim a hereditary status in her own right. Madge and Arthur's initiates include: John and Jean Score John Score was the partner of Michael Houghton (mentioned earlier), and the foun der of the Pagan Federation, which is very active today. Houghton died under very mysterious circumstances, which is briefly mentioned in "The Sword of Wisdom" by Ithell Colquhoun. My Craft source told me that this wa s actually a ritual that went badly wrong, and Houghton ended up on the wrong en d of some fairly potent energies. There is an interesting anecdote about Houghton in The Rebirth Of Withcraft, whi ch is ta en from "Nightside of Eden" by Kenneth Grant, and agrees in some respec t to a similar story that I was told some years ago. Doreen suggests in The Rebi rth Of Witchcraft that the story may relate to a magical wor ing involving Kenne th Grant and his wife, Gardner, Dolores North (Madeline Montalban), and an un-na med witch, who was probably Olive Green.

They were all to perform a ritual together, supposedly to contact an extra-terre strial being. The material basis for the rite, which too place in 1949, was a d rawing by AO Spare. Apparently soon after the rite commenced, a nearby boo seller (Michael Houghton) turned up and interrupted proceedings. On hearing that Kenneth Grant was within , he declined to enter, and wandered off. The rite was disrupted, and the story goes that everyone just went home. Kenneth Grant claims that as a result of disturbing their wor ing, Houghton's ma rriage bro e up, and that Houghton died in mysterious circumstances. In fact, th e Houghton divorce was a cause celebre, with her suing him for cruelty because h e boasted of being a Sagittarian while sneering at her because she was only a di ngy old Capricorn! The interrupted ritual could well have ta en place. Madeline had a flat near to Atlantis (Houghton's shop), and would certainly have nown both Grant and Hought on. I now for a fact that Madeline was acquainted with Gerald, although her opi nion of both him and the Wicca was rather poor. One of Madeline's older students told me that she thought Gardner rather a fraud, and ritually inept. She also h ad a very low opinion of Wiccans, and refused to allow her own students to participate in Wiccan rites. The reason for this lies in an anecdote which Doree n doesn't relate: the story goes that Madeline agreed to participate in a rite w ith Gerald, which turned out to involve Madeline being tied up and tic led with a feather duster! The great lady was not amused. Prudence Jones Prudence was for many years the president of the Pagan Federation, and editor of its newsletter. She inherited her role from John Score, after he passed away. W ith Nigel Pennic , Prudence also runs the Pagan Anti-Defamation League (PADL), a nd is an active astrologer and therapist. She has edited a boo on astrology, an d with Caitlin Matthews, edited "Voices from the Circle", published by Aquarian Press. Although Prudence too her degree in Philosophy, her main interests lie in the areas of the Grail and troubadour tales, and she has published privately an excellent essay on the Grail and Wicca. She is also a very highly respected a strologer, who lectures extensively in Britain. Vivianne and Chris Crowley Vivianne Crowley, is author of "Wicca - The Old Religion in the New Age", and al so secretary of the Pagan Federation. She has a PhD in Psychology, and is perhap s the only person to have been a member of both a Gardnerian Coven and an Alexan drian one simultaneously! Vivianne is very active at the moment, and has initiated people in Germany (havi ng memorised the ritual in German - a language she doesn't spea !), Norway, and - on the astral - Brazil. As a result of her boo , she receives many letters fro m people from all around the world, and organised the first ever pan-European Wi ccan conference, held in Germany 1990. The second conference was held in Britain at the June solstice, and the third (1992) in Norway. In 1993, the Conference w ill be in Scotland. John and Kathy (Caitlin) Matthews, are probably well- nown to everyone, but poss ibly their Gardnerian initiations are not such common nowledge. The story that John Matthews relates in "Voices from the Circle" is essentially the one which h e told the HPS who initiated him. Pat and Arnold Crowther

I have left Pat and Arnold till last, as it is from their line that the infamous Alex Sanders derives! It is no secret anymore that Alex, far from being initiat ed by his grandmother when he was seven, was in fact turned down by Pat Crowther in 1961, but was later accepted by one of her ex-coven members, Pat Kopans i, a nd initiated to 1st Degree. In "The Rebirth of Witchcraft" Doreen says that Alex later met Gardner, and was allowed to copy from the Boo of Shadows; Craft tradition is somewhat different! It has always been said (even by Alex's supporters!) that he pinched what he co uld from Pat Kopans i before being chuc ed out, and that the main differences be tween the Alexandrian and Gardnerian Boo s of Shadows occur where Alex mis-heard , or mis-copied something! There are certainly significant differences between the two Boo s; some parts of Gardnerian ritual are quite un nown within the Alex andrian tradition, and the ritual techniques are often different. It is usually very easy to spot whether someone is an Alexandrian, or Gardnerian initiate. Alex needed a HPS, and as we now, chose Maxine Morris for the role. Maxine is a stri ing Priestess, and made a very good visual focus for the movement which gr ew in leaps and bounds. In the late 1960s, Alex and Maxine were prolific initiators, and a number of the ir initiates have become well nown. Some came to Australia, and there are still a number of covens in the UK today whose HP and/or HPS was initiated by Alex or Maxine. Alex and Maxine's most famous initiates are almost certainly Janet and Stewart F arrar, who left them in 1971 to form their own coven, first in England, then lat er, in Ireland. Through their boo s, they have probably had the most influence o ver the direction that the modern Craft has ta en. Certainly in Australia, the p ublication of "What Witches Do" was an absolute watershed, and with Janet and St ewart's consistent output, their form of Wicca is more li ely to become the "standard" than any other type. Since their early days of undiluted Alexandrianism, they have drifted somewhat t owards a more Gardnerian approach, and today, tell everyone that there are no di fferences between the two traditions. In fact, despite the merging that has been occurring over the last few years, there are very distinct differences between the traditions; some merely external, others of a very significant difference of philosophy. Seldiy Bate was originally magically trained by Madeline Montalban, and then too an Alexandrian initiation from Maxine and Alex. Her husband, Nigel, was also i nitiated by Maxine, and they have been "public" witches for a number of years no w, often appearing on TV, radio and in the press. Their bac ground in ritual mag ic is expressed in the type of coven that they run; a combination of Wicca and C eremonial Magic.

In 1971, Alex and Maxine went their separate ways. David Goddard is a Liberal Ca tholic Priest, and for many years, he and Maxine wor ed in the Liberal Catholic faith, and did not run a coven of any ind. Then in 1984, Maxine gathered togeth er a group again, and started practising a combination of Wicca, Qabalah and Lib eral Catholicism. She and David separated in 1987, and since then her coven has been exclusively Wiccan. In 1989, she married one of her initiates, Vincent, and they are still running an active coven in London today. Alex's history after the split was a little more sordid, with one girl he marrie d, Jill, filling the gutter press with stories about Alex being homosexual, and defrauding her of all her money to spend on his boyfriends. Sally Taylor was ini tiated by Maxine and David, but then transferred to Alex. She was trained by hi

m, and then started her own group. I'd now li e to focus upon the last of the strands which I believe has been infl uential upon the birth and development of Wicca; that of the literary traditions and sources to which Gardner would have had access. To a certain extent these a re contiguous with the magical traditions described earlier, as nowhere is it ev er suggested that Gardner did in fact ever wor in a magical Lodge, so we must a ssume that his nowledge came from the written form of the rites, not from the a ctual practise of them. From reading Gardner's boo s, it is quite apparent that Margaret Murray had a tr emendous impact upon him. Her boo , "The God of the Witches" was published in 19 33, and twelve years previously, "The Witch Cult in Western Europe" had appeared . "The God of the Witches" has been tremendously influential on a number of peop le, and certainly inspired Gardner. In fact, "Witchcraft Today", published by Gardner in 1954 contained a foreword b y Margaret Murray. At this time, remember, Murray's wor was still ta en serious ly, and she remained the contributor on the subject of witchcraft for the Encycl opedia Britannica for a number of years. Now of course her wor has been largely discredited, although she remains a sour ce of inspiration, if not historical accuracy. In Gardner's day, the idea of a c ontinuing worship of the old pagan gods would have been a staggering theory, and in the second article in my series about Murray (published in The Cauldron), I made the point that Murray may have had to pretend scientific veracity in order to get her wor published in such times. Don't forget that Dion Fortune had to p ublish her wor privately, as did Gardner with High Magic's Aid. Carlo Ginzburg's excellent boo , "Ecstasies", also supports Murray's basic premi se; although of course he regrets her historical deceptions. There were of course other sources than Murray. In 1899, "Aradia: Gospel of the Witches" was published. Most of Crowley's wor was available during the pre- and post-war years, as were the texts written and translated by MacGregor Mathers a nd Waite. Also readily available were wor s such as The Magus, and of course the classics, from which Gardner drew much inspiration. Of paramount importance would have been "The White Goddess", by Robert Graves, w hich is still a standard reference boo on any British Wiccan's boo shelf. This was published in 1952; three years after High Magic's Aid appeared, and two year s before Gardner's first non-fictional boo about witchcraft. I would just li e to say at this point that Graves has ta en some very unfair criticism in respect of this boo . The White Goddess was written as a wor of poetry, not history, a nd to criticise it for being historically innaccurate is to miss the point. Unfortunately, I agree that some writers have referred to it as an "autho rity", and thus led their readers up the garden path. This is not Graves's fault , nor do I believe it was his intention. Another boo which has had a profound influence on many Wiccans, and would undou btedly have been well nown by Gardner is "The Golden Bough"; although the entir e boo was written based upon purely secondary research, it is an extensive exam ination of many pagan practices from the Ancient World, and the emphasis of the male sacrifice could certainly have been ta en from here equally as well as from Murray. Certain of the Gardnerian ritual practices were almost certainly derived from The Golden Bough, or from Frazer's own sources. In "Witchcraft Today" Gardner mentions a number of authors when speculating wher e the Wiccan rites came from. He says that, "The only man I can thin of who cou ld have invented the rites was the late Aleister Crowley."

He continues to say, "The only other man I can thin of who could have done it is Kipling...". He also mentions that, "Hargrave Jennings might have had a hand in them..." and then suggests that "Barrat (sic) of The Magus, circa 1800, would have had the ability to invent or resurrect the cult." It's possible that these references are something of a damage control operation by Gardner, who, according to Doreen, was not too impressed when she ept tellin g him that she recognised certain passages in the Witch rites! "Witchcraft Today " was published the year after Doreen's initiation, and perhaps by seeming genui nely interested in where the Rites came from, Gardner thought he might give the appearance of innocence of their construction! As mentioned previously, Gardner also had a large collection of unpublished MSS, which he used extensively, and one has only to read his boo s to realise that h e was a very well-read man, with wide-ranging interests. Exactly the sort of man who would be able to draw together a set of rituals if required. The extensive bibliography to "The Meaning of Witchcraft" published in 1959, dem onstrates this rather well. Gardner includes Magic in Theory and Practice and T he Equinox of the Gods by Crowley; The Mystical Qabalah by Dion Fortune; The Goe tia; The White Goddess (Graves); Lady Charlotte Guest's translation of The Mabin ogion; English Fol lore by Christina Hole; The Kabbalah Unveiled and the Abramel in by Mathers; both Margaret Murray's boo s and Godfrey Leland's Gypsy Sorcery, as well as a myriad of classic texts, from Plato to Bede! Although this bibliography postdates the creation of Gardnerian Wicca, it certai nly indicates from where Gardner draws his inspiration from. There are also seve ral boo s listed which are either directly, or indirectly, concerned with sex ma gic, Priapic Cults, or Tantra. Hargrave Jenning, mentioned earlier, wrote a boo called "The Rosicrucians, thei r Rites and Mysteries", which Francis King describes as a boo , "concerned almos t exclusively with phallicism and phallic images - Jennings saw the penis everyw here." As I mentioned earlier, Hargrave Jennings, a member of the SRIA, also belonged t o a group, described as a coven, which met in the Cambridge area in the 1870s, a nd performed rituals based upon the classical traditions - specifically, from Th e Golden Ass. There is no evidence to support this, except that there are often found references to a "Cambridge Coven" lin ed to Jennings' name. Many of the r ituals we are familiar with today were of course later additions by Doreen Valie nte, and these have been well documented by both her and the Farrars, in a numbe r of boo s. Doreen admits that she deliberately cut much of the poetry by Aleis ter Crowley, and substituted either her own wor , or poems from other sources, s uch as the Carmina Gadelica. Of course we can never really now the truth about the origins of the Wicca. Gar dner may have been an utter fraud; he may have actually received a "Traditional" initiation; or, as a number of people have suggested, he may have created the W icca as a result of a genuine religious experience, drawing upon his extensive l iterary and magical nowledge to create, or help create, the rites and philosoph y. What I thin we can be fairly certain about is that he was sincere in his belief . If there had been no more to the whole thing than an old man's fantasy, then t he Wicca would not have grown to be the force that it is today, and we would not

all be sitting here in Canberra on a Saturday morning! The Wheel of the Year From "The Witches of Oz", by Julia Phillips and Matthew Sandow, Sydney, New South Wales. The Wheel of the year is of great significance to Wiccans, and is one of the principle eys to understanding the religion. As we said earlier, Wicca sees a profound relationship between humanity and the environment. For a Wiccan, all of nature is a manifestation of the divine and so we celebrate the turning seasons as the changing faces of our Gods. The Wheel of the Year is a continuing cycle of life, death and rebirth. Thus the Wheel reflects both the natural passage of life in the world around us, as well as revealing our own connection with the greater world. To a Wiccan, all of creation is divine, and by realizing how we are connected to the turning if the seasons and to the natural world, we come to a deeper understanding to the ways in which we are connected to the God and Goddess. o when we celebrate our seasonal rites, we draw the symbolism that we use from the natural world and from our own lives, thus attempting to unite the essential identity that underlies all things. Undoubtedly the significance of the Festivals has changed over the centuries, and it is very difficult for us today to imagine the joy and relief that must have accompanied the successful grain harvest. What with factory-farming, fast freezing and world wide distribution, our lives no longer depend upon such things and as a consequence, our respect for the land has diminished in proportion to our personal contact with it. Wiccans believe that we can re-affirm this contact by our observance of the passage of the seasons, in which we see reflected our own lives, and the lives of our gods. Whether we choose to contact those forces through silent and solitary meditation, or experience the time of year in a wild place, or gather with friends in a suburban living room, we are all performing our own ritual to the Old Ones, reaching out once more towards the hidden forces which surround us all. What is of the utmost importance with the Wheel of the Year is that we understand what we hope to achieve through our festival celebrations, and avoid the trap of going through empty motions, repeating words from a boo which may sound dramatic, but have no relevance in our everyday lives. That simply leads to the creation of a dogma, and not a living breathing religion. It is not enough to stand in a circle on a specific day, and "invo e' forces of nature, those forces are currents which flow continuously throughout our lives, not just eight times a year, and if we choose not to ac nowledge them in our everyday lives, there is no point in calling upon them for one day. By following the Wiccan religion you are affirming your belief in the sanctity of the Earth, and ac nowledging that you depend upon the Earth for your very life. Although modern lifestyles do not encourage awareness of our personal relationship with the

turning seasons, or the patterns of life, growth, death and decay, that does not mean that they no longer exist. The ebb and flow of the Earth's energies may be hidden beneath a physical shell of tarmac and concrete, and a psychic one of human indifference, but they are nevertheless there for those who wish to ac nowledge them once more. We do this by observing the changes of the seasons, and feeling the changes reflected in our innermost selves, and in our everyday lives. In our rituals we focus upon different aspects of the God and Goddess, and participate in the celebration of their mysteries; thus we re-affirm our connections on the most profound levels. The Wiccan Wheel has two great inspirations; it is both a wheel of celebration, and a wheel of initiation. As a wheel of initiation it hopes to guide those who tread its pathway towards an understanding of the mysteries of life and the universe, expressed through the teachings of the Old Ones made manifest in the turning of the seasons. For a Wiccan, the gods and nature are one. In exploring the mysteries of the seasons we are see ing to penetrate more deeply the mysteries of the God and Goddess. As a wheel of celebration, Wiccans accord to the words of the Charge of the Goddess, where She says, "Let my worship be within the heart that rejoiceth, for behold, all acts of Love and Pleasure are my rituals"; and that, "Ye shall dance, sing, feast, ma e music and love, all in my praise". Anyone can celebrate the turning of the seasons, in their own way, and in their own time. Wiccan covens will commonly gather together, and ma e the Festivals times of joyful merryma ing, but you can just as easily ma e the celebration a solitary one, or with just one or two friends. The principles do not alter; just the way in which you ac nowledge them. Wiccans generally celebrate eight Festivals, roughly six wee s apart, which are pivotal points in the solar (seasonal) cycle. Four of the Festivals are called the Lesser Sabbats: these are the Spring and Autumn Equinoxes, and the Winter and Summer Solstices. The other four Festivals are called the Greater Sabbats, and relate to particular seasons when in bygone days, certain activities would have been underta en, usually followed by a party of some ind. There are variations upon the names by which these Greater Sabbats are nown, but the simple ones are Candlemas, Beltane, Lammas and Samhain. Candlemas is also nown as Imbolg, Oimelc, or Brigid; Lammas is sometimes called Lughnassadh. It is important to understand that the Festivals are celebrating a time of year: a season, not a date. Most boo s written about Wicca have been written by an author living and wor ing in the northern hemisphere, who may quite rightly say that "Beltane is celebrated on May Eve." Northern hemisphere readers will automatically interpret this as, "Beltane is at the end of spring, just before summer gets underway." IN the Wiccan Boo of Shadows, the poem by Kipling is used at this Festival which says, "O do not tell the Priests of our art, for they would call it sin; but we've been out in the woods all night, a'conjurin' summer in.... ." Of course, "May eve" in the southern hemisphere is autumn

heading into winter, entirely the wrong time of year to celebrate the portent of summer. In much the same way, Christmas and Easter are celebrated at the wrong time of year here. In the Christian calendar, Christmas coincides with the Winter Solstice - and the growing popularity of the June Yule Fest in the Blue Mountains in NSW each year suggests an awareness of this, even if it is, in this case, expressed in a commercial sense. The date of Easter changes each year, because it is the first Sunday after the first Full Moon after the Spring Equinox, (And they try to tell us that Easter wasn't originally a Pagan Festival!) So in the southern hemisphere, according to the rules by which the date of Easter is determined, it should fall sometime in late September or early October each year. However, Christianity is not a religion which sees a particular connection between humanity and the environment, and therefore has no problem in celebrating Easter in autumn, and Christmas at the Summer Solstice. Wicca is different, and it IS important to us to attune ourselves to the passage of the seasons, hence we follow the natural cycle wherever we live. In the southern hemisphere this means celebrating Beltane at the start of summer, i.e., the beginning of November, not the beginning of May. The Wiccan year starts and ends with Samhain, which is also nown as Hallowe'en, or All Saints Eve. It is the celebration which falls just before the dar nights of winter ta e hold. The Winter Solstice comes next, where Wiccans celebrate the rebirth of the Sun; at Candlemas about six wee s later, we celebrate the first signs of the growing light (longer days,) and of spring beginning to show itself. The Spring Equinox (around 21 September - it varies from year to year) is the time when day and night are equal in length, and the Sun is on its increase. Next is Beltane, the Festival where Wiccans celebrate the union of the young man and woman, and everyone dances around a tree, crowned with a garland of flowers, and dec ed with red and white ribbons.

About six wee s after Beltane we come to the Summer Solstice, when the Sun reaches its greatest height. It is the longest day/shortest night, and in the southern hemisphere, falls around 21 December. Then the Sun begins its way bac down towards winter, but we are still in summer. Six wee s after the Solstice is Lammas, when in agricultural societies, the harvest is reaped, and we receive the benefits from our hard wor . The Sun at Lammas still has great strength, for it is the ripening time, rather than the growing time which ceases around the Summer Solstice. The Autumn Equinox follows this, usually around 21 March (again, it varies from year to year), which is often celebrated as a Harvest Festival. The next Festival, some six wee s after the Equinox, is Samhain, which is the time just before the winter really sets in, and when food is stored, and we remember those who have passed away. In many countries this is the time when the Lord of the Wild Hunt rides, which is mirrored in the way that the winds are often wild at this time of year, and the clouds ragged and wind-torn. In parts of Australia you will find that some of these seasonal aspects are a little different, but generally spea ing, you should be able to feel the change from winter to spring; spring to summer; summer to autumn and then autumn to winter. The specifics will change, but the general trend is very similar - one season leading to another. You have only to become aware of the natural changes in your own environment to realize that the

concepts of the Wheel of the Year are valid wherever you may be. As a Wheel of initiation, the Wheel of the Year is the path which leads us through the experiences of our gods towards that point which Jungian psychologists call individuation, and which Wiccans call nowledge of the Old Ones. As with all mystical experiences, these mysteries are not communicated in an academic or intellectual manner; they are direct experiences which each individual shares with the Old Gods. Different traditions have developed different ways of travelling the Wheel, but all ways have a common purpose, and all are equally valid, provided the basic principles are sound. We gave a very brief description of the cycle of the Wheel of the Year above. Now we can have a loo at this in more detail, using for our framewor a mythology which is used by our own Coven. It is based upon the Gardnerian and Alexandrian traditions in which we were initiated, but has evolved over several years, and has been greatly modified to reflect our own understanding of the turning wheel of the seasons. We should say at this point that we use the terms "King" and "Queen" to refer to the principle characters in the mythology. It is important to understand that we are not referring to a modern monarchy, but to the ancient pagan principles those titles infer. The King is the priest/ ing of the forest: his tale is told in many forms in many lands. He is the essential male that lies within all men, and is the animus (in it Jungian sense) of all women. The Queen is Sovereignty: she is the mysterious soul of nature; the essential woman that lies within all women, and is the anima of all men. So to begin our journey: how do we set out to explore the mysteries of existence? Well, the journey begins with a question we have first to be aware that there is a mystery to explore! And that most basic of questions is: "where did life come from? how did it all begin?" For a Wiccan there is an underlying spiritual intuition that the answer to that question is quite simply that the universe was created by deity. So we celebrate the beginning of the Wheel of the Year as a being the creation of all life by the God and the Goddess; we begin with a creation myth. The Wheel of the Year starts with Samhain; at this time we celebrate the Great Rite - the joyful union of the God and Goddess in the Otherworld. This touches the very depths of the mystery. We celebrate at this time the conception that will lead to the birth of all creation. Wiccans celebrate all life as a manifestation of the mystery of the gods, but do not pretend to understand how such life came into being. Nor do we claim to fully understand our gods; to the Wicca they are a mystery, and when describing our vision of deity we use symbols to express as best we can the vision we have seen. We do not now how the universe was created and this remains essentially mysterious. However, by choosing to ta e the path of initiation - that is, by following the Wheel of the Year - we can learn to commune more deeply with the gods, and experience visions which can reveal a little of the mystery. The vision that we have of Samhain is of the creation. In the Wicca the inexpressible mystery of the deity is symbolized in the

form of the God and Goddess. Thus at Samhain we celebrate their love as the root of all creation. Samhain is the time of creation: the moment when life is conceived in the womb of the Great Mother. As we proceed to the next of the festivals - Yule - it should not be surprising to find that following the moment of conception we should see to understand the moment of birth. The conception, the moment of creation deep within the mystery, too place at Samhain. The seed planted at this time gestates in the womb of the Goddess until the child of the gods - in essence, the whole of creation - emerges from the womb of the Great Mother. This is celebrated at Yule, which is symbolized by the birth of the Sun. In pre-Christian times, this time was called "Giuli," and followed "Modra Necht" - the Night of the Mothers. Yule is celebrated at the time of the Midwinter Solstice. This is the time of the longest night, and of the shortest day. The Sun is seen to be symbolically born anew, as the Great Mother gives birth at the time of the dar est night. The Sun is a vitally important symbol to us, for it has been long nown that all life on Earth is dependant upon the Sun. The Wheel of the Year itself is based upon the solar cycle, and the Sun is seen as symbolic of the life force which we worship as the God and the Goddess. The Sun is the dominant force in all our lives. Without its light and heat, life as we understand it is impossible. The passage of the Sun through the heavens regulates the passage of the seasons we experience upon the Earth, and is therefore the foundation of the Wiccan Wheel of the Year. At the Midwinter Solstice we celebrate the rebirth of the Sun. Many Wiccan covens follow the old pagan tradition of enacting this as the Goddess giving birth to the Child of Promise. It was at the Midwinter Solstice in the northern hemisphere that the birth of Mithras was celebrated. For the same reason it was decided in 273 A.D. to appoint this date to celebrate the birth of Christ; the "son" of God. In the world of nature, Yule signifies the moment of the rebirth of the Sun. In our own lives we can ta e it to represent the moment of physical birth. Thus in our ritual cycle, we enact the rebirth of the Sun by the lighting of candles, and especially the lighting of a flame within the cauldron to represent the emergence of new life from the dar ness of the womb of the Goddess. We ritually invo e the Great Mother and All-Father, and we symbolically enact the Goddess giving birth to the new year. In human terms the child represents all the potential for life, as yet unaware that all the mysteries of the universe lies hidden deep within. Li e Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, the child is born in innocence, created in the image of the gods. We have ta en the second step upon our journey. From now on the days continue to lengthen as the Sun climbs toward its height at the Summer Solstice. In response to the greater heat of the Sun, the land begins to awa en as we start the journey from winter towards spring. The next festival is Candlemas. As we might guess from the name (given to it by the Christians), it is a festival of lights which celebrates the growth of the Sun. By Candlemas, the days are appreciably longer. Our understanding of this festival has been guided by ancient pagan tradition and our own inspiration.

We see this as a time of purification and most especially a time of initiation into the female mysteries. At Candlemas we observe in nature the awa ening potential for the fullness of summer. In human terms we represent this by the first female menstruation. This is the virgin aspect of the Goddess, mar ing the awa ening of her potential to become the mother. We celebrate this ritual by arming the young virgin with the powers of the elements. We celebrate her initiation into the mysteries of her sex. To reflect this essential female mystery, we enact the young girl being instructed by her mother and grandmother into the mysteries of being a woman. Thus we reveal that the mystery of the virgin is also found within the mother crone as well. It is at Candlemas in many parts of Britain that the women of the house dress a sheaf of oats in woman's clothing, and lay it in a bas et called "Brighid's bed." They also place a small phallic club in the bed and then call out three times, "Brighid is come, Brighid is welcome!", and leave candles burning all night beside the bed. Behind all this we catch glimpses of deeper mysteries that can only be grasped by passing beyond a mere intellectual appreciation of the symbolism. To continue our journey we now come to the Spring Equinox. It might seem that celebrating Candlemas as a female mystery is rather unbalanced in a religion which is based upon polarity of male and female; but no; for reasons of tradition, and because woman reach puberty before men, it is not until the Spring Equinox that the initiatory male rite is enacted. In this we arm the young god with the nowledge of his own creative power; he is initiated into the mysteries of sex, just as the young girl was armed with the powers of her potential. This ritual expresses the mystery that he contains within his young life; the potential to become a father and wise old man. This continues to reflect the turning tide of the seasons. We are now in the spring. New life is awa ening on all sides. The sap is rising in the trees, and both the young man and young girl have awa ened to the mysteries of their sexuality. The Spring Equinox is a vital moment in the passage of the solar cycle. Day and night now stand equal, and from this point onwards the light will dominate the dar ness. The long dar nights of winter have at last been overthrown. Between the Spring Equinox and Beltane the young man and woman pursue one another, each becoming more aware of the other sex. Thus the man understands that there is more to the mystery of life than pure masculinity, and the woman sees that there is more to life than her femininity. Having found this vision, they express it in their desire to be joined as one. We arrive now at Beltane. This is the time of the sacred marriage when the young man and woman are joined together as husband and wife. With their wish to be married, they have glimpsed that the mysteries of love may lead to a deeper union still - in essence, to a union with the gods. By going beyond their sense of individual self to embrace one another, they have ta en a profound step toward the God and Goddess. They have

discovered that deep within themselves they are both male and female, and the experience of this brings a new sense of joy and wholeness. Beltane is a time of joy and celebration; the dar of winter is forgotten, and summer is coming. It is a time of fertility and fire. We dance the ancient mystery of the Maypole, celebrating our understanding our understanding of the mystery of the love of a man for a woman. The pole is crowned with a garland of flowers to symbolize their joining; the ribbons are red and white, reminding us of blood and sperm. The dance is the sexual fire, as we dance about the pole winding the ribbons in the pattern of the spiral, which reveals the mystery of the serpent; that ancient awa ener who slumbers until warmed by the rising Sun. This is the time of the sacred marriage. It is a moment when human consciousness has grasped the powers of nature, joined with those powers and shared in the mystery of life. The land and our lives are married as one. For those that are able to see it, there is a vision of the creation of all life by the God and the Goddess. For the mystery is now revealed for all to see - the woman conceives of her husband. She is pregnant and will bear a child. Through their union they discover their deeper selves, which we symbolize as the King and Queen of the land. The man and woman now ta e up their new roles, and rule the ingdom of their new found lives. At Candlemas and the Spring Equinox a man and a woman were instructed in the powers of nature. Now at Beltane that nowledge is transformed into understanding. For in joining together they have understood that their lives and the land are one. The land continues to bring forth life in an ever greater profusion. The woman who is now the Queen begins to show the first signs of the Beltane seed planted in her womb by her husband, the King. She is pregnant; the mirror image of the maturing crops. Now we come to Midsummer, the height of the solar Wheel. This is the time of the longest day and shortest night, and a time of maturity, both in the agricultural cycle and the lives of the man and woman. They rule now as King and Queen; just as the Sun is at its height, so too they are at the height of their creative powers. The woman's mature power is reflected in her approaching motherhood. The man's power is reflected in his ingship, and in his mastery of nature and rule of the ingdom. Together the King and Queen preside over the ingdom of their lives, celebrating the vision of creative light. But the light does not continue to rise. The vision of light must once more give way to a growing dar ness. As things grow, so too they must wither and die. From Midsummer, the Sun must fall, until reborn once more at the Winter Solstice. Thus Midsummer is a celebration of the King and Queen's power, but must also reflect the returning current of dar ness. We symbolize this by the appearance of a challenger who confronts the couple. Until now the King and Queen have ruled supreme; they have imposed their will upon the ingdom without challenge, but now a single dar figure must appear. This is the beginning of the ancient pagan theme of the battle between the brothers; the light and dar ings now begin

their conflict. The challenger see s to abduct the Queen; the child she bears represents the ingdom. The King must now defend the land. They fight, light against dar , but as yet the sun is still supreme, and the King drives the challenger bac . But, the challenger is armed with the power of fate; we now that the Sun must fall. With a single stro e the challenger wounds the King, laying open his thigh; but still the light is the greater power, and the King defeats the challenger. The light still rules supreme, but a shadow has fallen over the ingdom. Thus Midsummer comes to a close. The King and Queen remain at the height of their power, yet a new force - dar ness - is awa ening in the world. As the seasons continue to turn, the gods begin to reveal a further mystery: not only are they light, they are also dar as well. Thus the King and Queen have awa ened to a deeper mystery; they have seen that not only are they male and female, but they are also light and dar as well. As we loo at the natural world, we see that the Sun is now waning. The days grow shorter, and we sense profound changes in the world around us. After Midsummer, the next festival we come to is Lammas. The crops have matured, and in the way of nature, aged and turned to seed. The days are still longer than the nights; the light still rules in the land, but the powers of dar ness are now visibly growing. Summer is coming to an end and we are approaching autumn. To symbolize the theme of the waning light and growing power of dar ness, we celebrate Lammas as a Harvest Festival. In cutting the corn (wheat), we celebrate the end of the vision of light. We cut the corn with joy; as we have sown, so now we reap, but in cutting the corn we signal the end of the cycle of growth. As we gather in the harvest we watch as the power of the Sun wanes. The cutting of the corn is an ancient symbol of death and transformation, and reflects the seasonal changes at wor in the land around us. As we loo to the King and Queen, who were married to the land at Beltane, we see in their lives a reflection of these themes. Just as the harvest is reaped, so the Queen now births her child. The mystery of Lammas is that by fulfilling the vision of light in bringing to fruition the seed sown in the spring, we must face the vision of death. For the King bears the wound he received at Midsummer, it is a wasting wound and will not heal. He slowly wea ens, his creative power spent. He is still King, but his powers are waning, a reflection of the falling light. But Lammas is also a time of hope, for in the cutting of the corn the seed is gathered in, which is the hope for life to come. As the King loo s to his first born son he loo s to the heir of the ingdom. We celebrate Lammas as a time of fulfillment; it is a time of joy, when we reap all we have sown. Both King and Queen have been transformed. The King had to accept the glimpse of the vision of death in his illing of the challenger and ta ing of a mortal wound; so now the Queen dies to herself, for in giving birth she has given the child a part of her life, passing her power to her son. As the Wheel of the Seasons turns, it reveals that the gods embrace both life and death. Just

as the man and woman were born, so too they must die. Lammas brings the vision of mortality, but reveals the hope of the immortal spirit hidden in the new cut grain, made manifest in the new born child, who symbolizes the awa ening dar ness; he is the power of the waning Sun. He emerges from the womb as the growing dar ness appears in the natural world. We must now move on. Time will stand still for no-one. The wheel must turn, and we must turn with it. This is our fate, as our lives reflect the turning cycle of the seasons. We must now ma e our way to the Autumn Equinox, where once again the powers of light and dar ness stand as equals - but now it is the dar ness that is in the ascendant. It is the nature of human beings to resist the dar ness. Humanity fears death above all things. It is the root of all our fears; death is the final initiation. Only through an acceptance and understanding of death can we hope to understand the goods. Only in accepting death can we truly accept life. Life and death are two sides of the same coin; we cannot have one without the other. By the time we reach the Autumn Equinox, it becomes harder to describe the mysteries that we celebrate. The mystery that can be taught or explained is not, after all, a mystery. At the Autumn Equinox we must face life's greatest mystery: death. This is the hardest trial of all. In the ancient mystery schools, and in shamanic practices, the most important of initiations was - and is - the near death experience. The child born at Lammas is now a young man. He is the reflection of the growing powers of dar ness. The old King of Light bears his mortal wound and is now advancing in years, his powers waning as the days grow shorter, and the Sun falls lower and lower in the s y. The Queen also is no longer young; the flower of her youth is past. The King and Queen are aging with the land, for they and the land are one. But as is natural in human affairs we none of us want to admit the dar ness. We fight against the coming of the night. So the King and Queen each in their own way try to hold onto the ingdom they have been at such pains to build. The King's powers are waning; his son is in the first flush of youth and vigor, and has been initiated into the mysteries of his power. The King grows wea , and must rely upon his son to defend the ingdom. But, the King now fears his son as a potential challenge to the throne. The Queen li ewise does not want to relinquish her power. She sees that her husband grows wea and infirm, and is no match for a challenger. To maintain her position in the ingdom she relies on the power of her son. Finally, in the dead of the night, the old pagan tale replays itself. The battle begun at the Midsummer Solstice between the light and dar ness must now be resumed; the King and his son fight as the Equinox comes upon us. Sword against spear the battle rages; the experience of the King against the na ed strength of his son's youth. The Queen watches as they fight, torn by hope and fear. But as they fight, there is a great mystery at wor . Both the King and Queen now face their fear of death, and as they loo death in the eye there is a moment of understanding. The King, the Queen, and the land are one. Thus they are both the light and

dar ness. In the moment of vision the King loo s upon his son, and at last realizes that he is only fighting himself, for all things are one. The King and his son understand the mystery, and they join in love as one. They give up the conflict of light and dar to pass beyond this world, and they become the Lord of the Otherworld. The Queen too has seen both life and death, and nows that they are one. With this realization she becomes the crone, and understands the ancient mystery. The Equinox mar s her last menstrual cycle; she can no longer bear children. So now we must ta e our last step upon the Wheel; we come at last to Samhain, from where it all began. As we saw at the beginning this is the Wiccan New Year. The Queen has become the crone - the hag, the Witch. She lives alone, for the King is now dead. The Sun is waning toward the Solstice; winter is upon us, and the night is now longer than the day. If we loo to the land, the cycle of growth has come to an end. The ingdom of the old year has symbolically passed away, transformed by the turning of the seasons. The Queen is now a Witch; the ancient hag crone who nows the mysteries of life and death. In ma ing her journey she has discovered the ancient power which lies behind the Wheel of the Year. She has seen the spring, the summer, autumn and winter, and she nows that an ancient mystery lies hidden within it all. Standing alone, for she is feared by those who have yet to wal the Wheel, she indles the ancient Samhain fire. As she raises her arms in invocation to the Lord of the Otherworld, a great storm gathers. The veil is opened between the worlds. The storm brea s, and the Wild Hunt is upon us as the spirits of the dead are led from the Otherworld by the ancient Horned God; the Ancient Lord of the Samhain fire. To complete the final turn of the Wheel, the Crone must now join with his mystery, and go with him bac into the Otherworld. She and the Horned Lord travel together bac into the depths of the mystery. There they join in love as one; the supreme moment of the true Great Rite in which all the mysteries of the male and female, all the mysteries of the light and dar are married together as one as the seed is planted deep within the womb of the Great Mother. For now in the natural cycle the seeds of nature fall to the ground, the seed of life to come. The seed harvested at Lammas is now planted in the earth, fulfilling the mystery of the return. For a while the land sleeps, and lies fallow. The dar ness seems to complete, but of course we now that we will eventually return to the Winter Solstice, and the cycle will continue. Let us now approach the Wiccan Wheel of the Year as it is meant to be: as a mystery. Forget the intellect, and allow your intuition and emotions to be your guide. What follows is a guided visualization, which you can read onto a tape, or have one person read aloud, as you follow the journey it describes. Allow the images to form naturally in your imagination, and you will find yourself ma ing a magical journey through the mysteries of the gods. For those who are not used to following a guided visualization, there are a few simple rules to observe. Before starting any

meditation wor (which includes the ind of altered state that guided visualization encourages), seat yourself comfortably in a quiet room, free from distractions. Ta e the phone off the hoo , and tell anyone who lives with you not to disturb you. You can of course do this out of doors, but if you do, ma e sure you are well off the beaten trac , with no danger of bush wal ers stumbling over you, or any other inds of disturbance. Have a pen and pad handy, and if it helps you to relax and focus, use some incense. The Wheel of The Year, A Guided Visualization: Julia Phillips & Rufus Harrington Ma e sure you are seated comfortably, and spend a few moments quietly, allowing your mind and body to relax. Now, close your eyes, and allow these images to build in your imagination: It is dar , and a chill wind is blowing. You are standing within a mighty forest, and can feel the ground hard and cold beneath your feet. You loo up, and see the stars, but there is no Moon. Patiently, you wait. You hear a sound behind you, and turn and loo over your shoulder. You realize that you are standing upon the edge of a clearing; at its center burns a fire, with an old man seated before it. He is wearing tattered animal s ins, and has long ragged hair which blows about in the wind. On the far side of the clearing you see the mouth of a cave, and standing before it is the mighty figure of the Horned God. You turn bac and loo through the trees, loo ing towards the eastern horizon. For tonight is the longest night: the dar time before the Sun is reborn at the Winter Solstice, and you wait patiently for the first rays of the new born Sun. At last you see a faint glimmer of light upon the eastern horizon, and as the rays of the new born Sun rise in the morning s y, you hear the sound of a new born babe crying. You turn and loo bac across the clearing as an old woman wal s out of the cave carrying a new born child in her arms. The Horned God reaches forwards and caresses the child's chee , and then the old woman ta es the child, and sits by the side of the old man at the camp fire. As the Sun continues to rise in the s y, you now that you have witnessed a very great mystery - the mystery of birth - the birth of the Sun, and of the Son. You leave the clearing, and wal bac through the forest to your own cottage, where you warm yourself at the fire, for you are chilled through after your long vigil throughout the dar est night.

Days pass, and although the ground is still hard and cold, and the nights long and dar , you are aware of a change in the season, and now that winter is drawing to its close. One night as you are about to go to bed, you hear a tin ling of bells from deep within the forest, and are strangely drawn towards their sound. As you ma e your way through the night, a waxing Moon lights your path, and at last you find yourself once more in the clearing. You loo towards the cave, and see that a great red veil hangs across the mouth, and that the old Crone, and another woman stand before it. The other woman is younger than the Crone, but obviously not a youth, and you instinctively realize that this is the Crone's own daughter. As you stand and watch you realize that the bells are being

sha en by the Crone, and that she and her daughter are softly singing an ancient song: a song which calls to the Virgin to awa en, and to come forth as the herald of winter's end, and spring's beginning. The two women reach up, and with a single movement, rend the veil, tearing it away, revealing the Virgin standing poised upon the threshold. She is purity and innocence: a young figure - blindfolded, dressed in white, and carrying in her hands a posy of bright yellow flowers, symbolic of the growing powers of the Sun. The Mother and Crone reach forward, and lin ing their hands behind the Virgin, they pull her out of the cave. They lead her towards the fire, and then the Mother spea s quietly to her. You see the Virgin nod. The Crone then seems to as her a question, and although you cannot hear the answer, it seems she has spo en truly, for the Crone nods, and reaches up to remove the blindfold. The Virgin blin s her eyes, and stretches. She begins to dance slowly around the fire at the center of the clearing, full of the joy of her awa ening, and in the nowledge of her power and potential as a woman. Self-contained, she dances the dance of life; of blood and waters flowing freely, no long frozen and still. You turn and leave the clearing, ta ing one last loo at the Virgin dancing joyfully around the fire. As you wal bac through the forest, you feel an answering power moving through the land, and you are aware that the Earth is beginning to come alive beneath your feet, and on the trees you see the yellow blooms which are the promise of spring, and the end of winter. Day by day the Sun now grows visibly stronger: the land has awa ened from its sleep with the fire dance of the Virgin, and now the Sun itself approaches the magical time of the Equinox: the time when day and night are equal, but when light is in the ascendant. The day of the Equinox dawns bright and clear. The wind is fresh, and all around you are signs of spring. From deep within the forest you hear the sound of a horn, and deep within your innermost self you are aware of a stirring response to its call. You ma e your way quic ly through the forest; as you approach the clearing, you realize that you are not alone, for all the creatures of the forest are gathered upon the edge of the clearing. They too have answered the summons of the horn. At the center of the clearing stands a na ed young man, his s in shining with reflected sunlight. He is blindfold: before him stands the old man, and behind him, the mighty figure of the Horned God. It was he who blew the horn. The old man dances around the youth - slowly, a shambling ind of dance - sha ing a rattle and chanting softly. He stops. The Horned God whispers to the youth, who nods his head in reply. The old man then as s the youth a question, and after listening to the reply, nods, and reaches up and removes the blindfold. The youth blin s, and stretches. The Horned God hands him the horn. He puts this to his lips, and a single blast echoes through the forest. With a laugh the youth leaps away into the forest, followed by all the birds and animals, for he is Lord of the Forest. You feel a stirring in your own blood, and before you realize what has happened, you find yourself chasing the figure of the youth on his mad dash through the forest. It is a wild and carefree dance, and you feel the answering echo from the trees, and from the Earth, as they are warmed by the

growing Sun. The Land and the Youth both awa en to their fertile potential. As you run through the trees, out of the corner of your eye you see a flic er of white; you turn, and there hidden in the trees you see the Virgin, watching and waiting. She is loo ing curiously at the Lord of the Forest, intrigued by his strength and drawn by his beauty. He sees her watching, but on this day, he is too full with the joy of being in control of his own creative power to cease his headlong chase through the forest. Gradually you tire, and at last you find yourself wal ing bac through the forest to your own cottage, where you find rest. All through the growing spring the Virgin and the Young Lord watch each other through the forest. Each aware of the other, but both self-fulfilled with their own potential and power. But the Sun eeps getting stronger, and at last we come to that moment where the Young Lord and the Virgin realize that they have a greater destiny to fulfil, and driven by their natural desires, and the signs of the burgeoning world all around them, they see each other out, and in celebration of the great mystery of the Land Marriage, they join as one. It is the height of spring, and the signs of fertility are all around. As you ma e your own way towards the clearing, you feel the warm Sun upon your face, and feel the life in the Earth beneath your feet. In the center of the clearing stands a great tree trun , crowned with a garland of spring flowers, with many red and white ribbons fluttering in the breeze. From far and wide people have travelled to the clearing, for today is the day of celebrating the growing Sun, and the fertile Earth. Men and women ta e hold of the ribbons, and enact their own celebration of Life as they dance the pattern of the sacred spiral of creation around the tree. You hold your ribbon firmly, and watch the spiral form as you dance the ancient steps that have been danced since first Man and Woman were joined as one. You hear cheering and shouts of laughter, and there, wal ing through the crowd hand in hand come the Young Lord and his wife Virgin no longer. Together they have celebrated the sacred mystery in accordance with the Old Laws: for they have joined in love, and so have become the King and Queen of the Land. And the wee s pass, and the Sun grows ever stronger in the s y, and the King grows in strength and majesty. The Queen begins to show signs of her pregnancy, the mirror of the crops and fruits that the Land begins to produce, for the Queen represents the Land, and is at one with it. At last the day arrives when the Sun reaches its most powerful time: the Midsummer Solstice. The King and Queen are at their pea too, reflected in the majesty of the King, and the growing life in the womb of the Queen. To mar this day, the King and Queen host a great celebration in the forest clearing: a feast to mar the Solstice day, and their own creative powers which have brought many good things to the Land. All day the feast and games continue, with the King and Queen bestowing their blessings upon everyone.

At long last the Sun begins to sin slowly towards the west; as it falls you hear a disturbance upon the edge of the clearing. You see people running, and hear their screams. And then into the clearing stal s a dar figure, his blac cloa swirling around him, wearing a helmet which obscures his face from view - shadow of dar ness in the forest. He strides towards the King, and in a loud clear voice, challenges him for the right to rule the ingdom, and for the Queen as his consort. The King must protect what he has striven so hard to create, and must protect his wife and unborn child. He accepts the challenge, and a great battle ensues as the Sun slowly sin s in the west. The challenger lays the King's thigh open with a sweep of his sword, but is unbalanced, and despite his wound, the King manages to throw the challenger to the ground and disarm him. The challenger begs for mercy, but the King fears this dar and threatening figure, and so ignoring his cries for mercy, he plunges his sword deep into the challenger's heart. And so in order to protect, the King destroys, and a shadow of dar ness is cast upon the Land. The challenger's blood soa s into the Earth, and the Sun finally sin s beyond the western horizon. You ma e your way bac to your cottage, as the King is carried away to have his wound attended to. The next day the Sun rises as before, and seems as strong as it ever was, but you have seen and felt the shadow of the dar , and now sense a change in the Land. Instead of growing, things are ripening; the heat of the summer Sun brings the crops and fruit to ripeness, but the growth is now over. And just as the Land gives forth its fruits, so now does the Queen give birth to her son. The wheat is harvested; the barley made into ale; and a great feast is held to give than s for all the good things of the Earth, and for the safe birth of the King and Queen's son. But in giving birth, the Queen is no longer simply a wife; she becomes the Mother. She nows that her son is the hope for the Land, for the King's wound, ta en at the Midsummer battle, is a wasting wound, and will not heal. He grows wea er by the day, a reflection of the waning powers of the Sun. The Queen nows this, and as her son grows, she trains him in the ways of sovereignty. The King sees only that his son grows stronger, as he grows wea er. He watches the Sun wane day by day as summer slips towards the time of the Equinox, when once again day and night are equal; but this time, the dar is in the ascendant. At last the night of the Equinox arrives. The King feels drawn towards the clearing in the forest, and under a waning Moon, he ma es his way along the trac . He remembers his initiation at the Spring Equinox; his love for the Virgin, and their joyful celebration of the Land Marriage at Beltane; he remembers how proud he was of his creative powers at the Midsummer Solstice, and with a pang of sadness, he remembers how he had to face the dar challenger who threatened his Kingdom and his Queen. And finally, he remembers the birth of his son - a joy now turned to sorrow, as the King finds himself once more in the clearing, where waiting at the center is his son, armed with a spear. Out of the corner of his eye, the King sees a movement in the

shadows, and remembers how he first saw his beloved wife, when she was newly awa ened, a young Virgin, and he was the Lord of the Forest. Now his wife hides in the shadows - she wears a blac cloa , and covers her face with its hood. The King and his son face each other, and then without a word being spo en, the King draws his sword and they begin to fight. Sword against spear, a mighty battle rages in the clearing. The powers of light and dar are equal, but the powers of dar ness are now in the ascendant, and as the night grows on, the King begins to tire. The wasting wound he suffered at the Summer Solstice has never healed, and his powers - li e those of the Sun - are waning. There is a brief pause in the fight: the King and his son loo deep into each others eyes. There flashes between them recognition of the mystery that light and dar are equal: that they are not fighting each other, but that each is fighting himself. For the light and the dar are one and the same, as are the King and his son, and with this realization, the King joyfully lifts his guard, and is impaled upon the spear as he drives his sword deep into his son's heart. Together they fall dead to the ground, and their blood pours out upon the Earth. At the edge of the clearing the Queen watches, and as she sees her husband/son die, she sends a great wail echoing through the forest. There, standing in the cave mouth is the Lord of Death and Resurrection, but she cannot see him. For her husband/son/lover has now become the Lord of the Otherworld, and she is still of this world. The waning Moon watches as she tears her hair, and as one possessed, runs through the forest in an agony of grief. For she too saw the mystery, and now she understands that the light and dar are but the same. She nows that her husband/lover/son has passed beyond the veil, and that her creative time is passed. For the Queen is now a Witch: the ancient Hag Crone who nows the mysteries of life and death and has wal ed the path of initiation. In ma ing her journey she has truly found the gods, and nows that behind the wheel of the seasons there is an ancient power. By wal ing the wheel she has joined with the mystery. She has been a Virgin, a Wife, the Queen, the Mother and the Crone. She has wal ed the way of the seasons. She has seen the spring, the summer, autumn and winter, and she understands that an ancient truth lies hidden within it all. At last the time of the dar Moon arrives, when the Sun's powers are low, and the veil between the worlds is thin. Standing alone in the forest she ma es her way to the clearing. She stands alone for she is feared by those who have yet to wal the wheel. For now she must perform the supreme act of magic. She indles the ancient Samhain fire, with woods of all the sacred trees. One for each season, one for each way, one for the night and one for the day, one for her lover and one for her son, one for the serpent and one for her song. As she raises her arms in invocation a great storm gathers. With a final act of understanding she opens the veil between herself and the gods. She opens the veil of the Otherworld and calls bac the spirits of the dead. For she nows now to fulfil the mystery she must join with the Lord of the Otherworld; they must love and join as one. The storm brea s: lightning and thunder tear and crac at the ancient night as the trees crea and

bend in the wind. For the wild hunt is now upon us as the spirits of the dead are led from the Otherworld by the Horned God. Chaos now reigns in the world for the Mystery is upon us. But to join with this mystery the Crone must embrace the Lord of Flame, the Lord of Death and Resurrection, and go with him bac into the Otherworld. To join with him she must become the Goddess. So of her own free will, she dies the death of true initiation and enters into the cave, and passes with the Horned Lord bac into the depths of the Otherworld. There they join in love as one: the supreme moment of the true Great Rite in which all the mysteries of the male and female; all the mysteries of the light and dar are married together as one. For love has always been the ey. It is love that conquers our fear and shows the way to union. For true love is true death, as the individual sense of self is transcended by a vision of the One. As the gods fulfil the mystery of love, the seed of new life is planted deep within the womb of the Great Mother. And the land sleeps, for the dar time is upon us once again, and the God and Goddess lay in each others arms, deep within the Land, hidden from sight. The Sun quic ly wanes day by day, the nights growing longer, the days shorter. Winter grips the land as a cold wind blows through the forest. The dar ness seems complete, but those of the Wicca are wise and weep not for they now that the Sun will be reborn through the love of the God and Goddess. Life will not fail - the Sun will return again. And at last the night of the Midwinter Solstice arrives: the longest night of the year, but we now now it is only the dar ness that comes before the dawn. As you stand upon the edge of the forest, you see the first signs of the new born Sun rising upon the eastern horizon, and hear the sound of a new born babe. But this time, you wal away from the clearing towards the rising Sun, and as you leave the forest, you turn and see that it is no more than a shadow behind you. Before you is a world which you now well; it is the world in which you live, and now it is time to return. The Otherworld is real, and you may return at any time, for the mysteries of the gods are there for all to understand, if you have but eyes to see. You continue to wal into the everyday world, and become aware of the sounds around you, and of the place in which you sit. Spend a few moments quietly re-attuning yourself to your normal state, and then open your eyes and stretch. (End of Guided Visualization) If you want to ma e any notes do, but please remember that the Wheel of the Year is an emotional experience, not an academic exercise! And finally, always have something to eat and drin after any activity which uses an altered state of consciousness. This is the most effective and efficient way to "ground," and is vital if participants are travelling home after the wor ing. The Coven at Pooh Corner (This article was first given as a tal at The Wiccan Wor shop Number 6, held at Coombe, North Cornwall, in May 1989, and was published in Web of Wyrd #7, January 1993) This tal is designed to illustrate that spiritual significance is present in e

verything around us (see "Wicca and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: Children of Se hmet, May 1988). On this occasion I shall be using for my inspiration the stories of that world famous writer A A Milne, to whit, Winnie the Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner. These are of course coded allegories of the spiritual development of a certain bear. Firstly I would li e to introduce the characters because there may be someone he re not enlightened enough to have read these great wor s, in a similar sort of w ay as a Christian may not have read his Bible. Our Hero. W T Pooh. Pooh, as he is nown to his more intimate acquaintances, is a modest chap not n own for his intellectual ability, and has been called "a bear of very little bra in". He is given to composing hums well aware that being a bear his singing voic e is not what it might be. I would thin he is probably a Taurean and all in all a well rounded personality; possibly because it is always time for a little som ething. Piglet Piglet is a small timid little person, a very young spirit, and Pooh's best frie nd. He is a chattery soul who tends to dwell on his fears of heffelumps and wooz les. It is generally thought he may be a Gemini and would be an extrovert if he could find more confidence. He has a peculiar aversion to being clean. Wol Wol has delusions of being the wise old owl based mainly on the fact that he can spell his name, which is OWL. He lives in the grandest house in the woods, the old oa tree. It is quite obvious to everyone that he is in fact Libran because he comes out with statements of fact which are more often than not wrong. All th e other animals turn to him for advice, which he gives freely although no-one un derstands a word of it. Eeyor Eeyor is a very interesting character. He is a very, very old spirit who in this incarnation has come bac as a don ey. Nothing much seems to bother him and he lives all alone in a boggy field. He is generally perceived to be miserable. Th is is wrong. He is quite happy in his own little world and is thought to be a Pi scean with a Capricorn ascendant. He is in fact the most intellectual of them al l because he can ma e the letter A out of three twigs. Also he has a brain whils t all the rest have grey fluff which has blown in by mista e. Kanger Kanger is a newcomer to the forest and something of a matriarch being very prote ctive of her offspring, Roo. She is of course Cancerian, li e my wife, and will mother everybody whether they li e it or not. Tigger Tigger is the archetypal extrovert and dly and bouncy. Piglet is terrified of "WorraWorraWorra" in what he thin s is can't do something until after he has and eventually is adopted by Kanger. obviously an Aries. Overwhelmingly frien him because he jumps out at you and says a friendly tone... He has no idea that he done it. He shows no trace of forethought

Christopher Robin A small boy who will be fully explained at the end. The Parables of Pooh 1 Down the Rabbit Hole

In this story, Pooh after brea fast of honey followed by honey, decides to go vi siting. First he visits Piglet, and is just in time for a little something, ie a little honey. Eventually they go to Rabbit's place. Rabbit, who has hundreds an d thousands of relations, naturally lives in a rabbit hole, where Pooh and Pigle t are just in time for a little something. Pooh however eats too much and being a stoutish bear anyway, finds that when he leaves he gets stuc in the rabbit ho le, with his feet dangling in Rabbit's living room and his head out in the air. Everyone comes to his aid, but no amount of pulling or pushing will shift him. Christopher Robin is summoned and decides tha t Pooh will have to stay there without honey until thin enough to leave. Rabbit is obviously not well pleased about having a bear wedged in his front door. Ho wever he is compensated when he discovers that Pooh's legs ma e excellent towel rails. Moral: From this escapade we can see that Pooh is not very spiritually developed . He is far too een on the physical desires of the body and through this forced period of fasting and the altruistic use of his lower limbs, he learns that it is alright to be portly so long as you don't bloc someone's portal. In other wo rds, you are at liberty to follow your own way so long as you do not bloc anoth er's. This is the experience of the tarot card of The Devil. Deluded about the relative sizes of t he door and his tummy, he cannot pass through until he has cast off the chains o f his baser desires for honey. Most covens have a Pooh at this stage of developm ent. This is the witch who overindulges in the communal wine during the rite, be comes comatose before the altar, and neither heaven, earth, or High Priestess's boot, can shift.

In which Pooh and Piglet go hunting heffalumps

One snowy day, Piglet finds Pooh staring at some footprints. Pooh thin s this m ay be a heffalump or maybe a woozle, and exhorts Piglet to come and follow it. P iglet is not een. He agrees as long as Pooh is with him. Sometime later they no tice that the footprints have been joined by another set, two heffalumps, or, as it may be, woozles! Pooh composes a hum to eep their spirits up, "How cold my nose, tiddly pom....". A little while later there are four sets of footprints. P iglet is getting frightened. They sit down for a thin and eventually realise th ey are wal ing around a wood following their own footprints. So off they go for a little something. Moral: Here we see Pooh's total lac of brilliance. He gets there in the end wit h a bit of help. On the other hand there is the immense faith he inspires in oth ers. People feel safe with Pooh. He nows the value of a ind word and a cheery song. This also illustrates the danger of overwhelming others with your enthusia sm for a path, which may not be the path they would choose. This is why in Wicca we are not evangelical. Each must find his or her own heffalump or woozle. In Which Pooh Builds Eeyore a House

One rainy day Pooh sets out to find Piglet. After many hours of careful thought he has realised that everyone has a house except Eeyore, but he has a plan. On o ne side of the wood he has discovered a pile of stic s, so with Piglet's help th ey ta e the stic s around to the other side of the wood and build Eeyore a fine Des. Res. After some moments of contemplation of their labours, they set off to find Eeyore. They come across Eeyore in the approximate location of the pile of stic s loo ing puzzled. So they ta e him off to show him his new house. Eeyore i s muttering but Pooh and Piglet ta e no notice whatsoever. They arrive at Eeyore's house and Pooh and Piglet say proudly, "Ther e!". Eeyore loo s pleased, but even more puzzled. It transpires that Eeyore buil t a house out of a pile of stic s on the other side of the wood. He puts down th e change of location and certain architectural improvements to the high wind of the night before. Pooh and Piglet say nothing to Eeyore, and then Pooh says that he thin s it's "Time for a little something." Moral: From this we can see that although still not devastatingly intelligent, P ooh has managed to perceive someone else's problem, and has made some attempt to solve it for them. It may however have been better if he had consulted Eeyore w ho had already gone about solving his problem for himself. Thus we see that we s hould not impose our particular perception of the universe on others. Fortunatel y Eeyore is of such greatness of spirit that he lets this event pass, and Pooh h as developed sufficient maturity to let discretion be the better part of valour. As Eeyore was muttering perhaps we should also learn to listen to others. The Great Flood Pooh loo s out one morning and sees that it is STILL raining. Christopher Robin has been getting concerned about the rising waters, measuring their progress wi th stic s. Each morning yesterday's stic has disappeared. He goes around and wa rns everyone to go to high ground. Pooh laboriously ta es his stoc of honey and balances all his jars on a high branch of a tree, where he ta es refuge. When a ll his stoc is exhausted he ponders for a while, then ma es a not very successf ul boat out of a honey jar. The boat and Pooh have some disagreement as to whom should be on top. He eventually paddles this Craft over to Christopher Robin's h ouse where they ta e to Christopher Robin's upturned umbrella. They then ensure that all the other animals are safe. Moral: This story illustrates Pooh's growing concern for the environment and his fellow creatures. In this particular crisis, Pooh does not go off half coc ma ing rash decisions, but see s the help of the most developed spirit in the fores t. Pooh exhibits great fortitude and determination in his quest for this higher spirit. Also he is showing better use of his baser desires, ie for honey. There are obvious parallels with numerous other flood myths although in this Wiccan v ersion, having had our fill of our favourite tipple, the Ar mar 1A has some de sign faults. This is why in the world of today there aren't quite so many unicor ns and other mythical beasts. They lost the argument with their honey pots. What Tiggers Eat Pooh, strolling through the woods, hears this peculiar noise: "WorraWorraWorra". He pic s himself up, loo s around and espies this strange cre ature. The creature bounces up and down and says, "Hello, I'm Tigger". Pooh, bei ng a generous soul, as s him bac for a little something. He as s Tigger what he would li e to eat. Tigger doesn't now what he eats, so Pooh gives him some hon ey. Tigger is not impressed, so off they go to Piglet's house with Tigger bounci ng along, running ahead of Pooh and leaping our at him in a very friendly fashio n. When they arrive, Piglet gives him some acorns. Tigger does not li e Acorns. So off they go to Eeyore's where Tigger tries thistles. Tigger definitely does n ot li e thistles. Lastly they try Kanger. Kanger is very concerned, but doesn't

now quite what to suggest. However, whilst giving malt extract to her baby Roo, Tigger bounces up and grabs the spoon and says "Mmmmmmm". So we find out what T iggers eat.

N.B. Please note that in the true Pagan spirit of this tome, even Tiggers eat vegetarian food. Pooh and the Honey Tree On this day we find Pooh staring up into the branches of a tree. His highly tune d senses have detected honey. Being a portly bear he is none too good at climbin g trees, so he comes up with a plan. Christopher Robin had a party with lots of balloons. So off he goes to Christopher Robin's house to as if he might borrow a balloon. He also as s Christopher Robin to help him. They set off with Pooh's requirements. The balloon is painted blac to loo li e a thundercloud, and blown up. Pooh, grasping the string, floats aloft. Christopher Robin stays benea th with his umbrella announcing "Tut tut, it loo s li e rain." The bees of cours e are not fooled for an instant. About this time Pooh discovers the major flaw i n his plan. He cannot get down. After much careful thought, Christopher Robin sh oots the balloon with his pop gun, and Pooh descends very rapidly and lands on a thistle. Eeyore considers this a waste of a good thistle. Moral: This is the pinnacle of Pooh's intellectual development. He has solved hi s immediate problem, but not really thought out the consequences. In a spiritual sense, he has strived too far without being properly prepared and is brought ba c to earth with a bump. Pooh, having developed so far, has forgotten that if yo u are to go flying, astrally or not, then you must not forget your parachute. As Pooh found with the bees, we must learn not to underestimate life forms we perc eive as being lower than ourselves. Eeyore is another case in point. Although he is seen as under-developed because he does not say much, he has obviously seen the outcome from the word go, and is only upset at the demise of a juicy thistle . Christopher Robin is obviously an interplanes adept since once again he rescue s Pooh after having clairvoyantly foreseen the outcome. Conclusion: To lead up to my great revelation I must conclude the story. On frequent occasi ons when Pooh calls on Christopher Robin, he is out, but has left a note that he will be "BAK SON", and is nowhere to be seen. Pooh ta es these notes to Wol, wh o is not sure if they refer to a herbaceous "Ba son" or a spotted "Ba son". One evening, Christopher Robin arrives at Pooh's house and reveals to Pooh that his time in this place is nearly over and he must go to school. He and Pooh have a l ong chat and Christopher Robin decides that Pooh is ready to accompany him on th is great adventure and they wal off hand in hand into the Sun. This illustrates the basic fact of life that no matter how comfortable we are we must be prepared to grow and develop and move on when we must. Christopher Robi n is in fact Pooh's Higher Self and as can be seen from the stories, unless you use your Higher Self you will not reach your desired aims, and indeed may go the same way as the unicorns and their honey pots. Between Christopher Robin and Po

Moral: This shows Pooh's ready acceptance of all types of people, even Aries! He goes to great lengths to help this very young spirit to find spiritual sustenan ce and someone willing to loo after him. Kanger, as is the case with most Cance rians, does not believe they can solve the problem but in fact the solution is i n their grasp all the time. Unfortunately, Kanger is now stuc with this waif a nd stray. Pooh has climbed a long way from the days when he got stuc in Rabbit 's door, and has learnt the responsibility that goes with new initiates in our w orld.

oh they have achieved sufficient development to leave their current plane and mo ve on to higher things. Christopher Robin, as can be seen from his name, Christ/ Robin, is a Tipherathic aspect of Pooh; ie the centre where the lower and higher self come together. When they have united the way is open and clear for them to move on to the next sphere of existence. Thus it should be every witch's ambition to be reincarnated as a bear of very li ttle brain who lives in the hundred acre wood on a plane at least one above this one. After all the idiots we see running this world have to be seen as a damn s ight more stupid than even Wol. (PS Mrs Thatcher is also a Libran!) copyright to David Wadsworth, who has been a bear of little brain for many a lon g year! The End

Wicca & The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by David Wadsworth (This article first appeared in Children of Se hmet, May 1988. It was originally given by Dave as a tal at a Wiccan Wor shop organised by Chris and Vivianne Cr owley in 1987) This tal aims to illustrate the all-pervading nature of Wicca. If a system of n atural laws or beliefs is true, it can be applied to virtually anything. I inten d to try and apply parts of Wiccan beliefs to my other passion, bi ing. There is a peculiar sort of bonding between a real bi er and his machine. The bi er will put the well-being of his machine far above his own. I have seen men cr y over a bent bi e, or after an accident tell the driver off for hitting his bi e rather than him. I have personally fought off two ambulence men so that I coul d hop to my bi e to inspect the damage before being ta en to hospital. My theory for this strange bond is that the motorcycle and rider form a sort of Gestalt b eing, a conplete entity, either part of which is incomplete or useless without t he other.

The motorcycle represents the male part of this entity. It provides all the forc e and power, but lac s control and direction. It is all potential, in Wiccan terms, the God force, waiting for the female aspect, the Goddess, in the form of a horrible grubby motorcycle rider. The rid er ta es the force and harnesses it, giving purpose, form and direction. Control ling the raw male potential, and together, in harmony, they will be capable of r eaching heights impossible to either on their own. The motorcycle can be seen as a way through which to tap a source of cosmic energy. The energy which we in the Wicca use for healing, spells, divinat ion, as a gateway to alternative universes. Just as a witch wouldn't attempt to tap this awesome power without protection, neither would a bi er. The bi er will put on boots, gloves, helmet and leathers in a similar sort of way as a member of the Craft would surround themselves with a protective circle to preserve the power and eep out undesirable spirits. In the bi er's case he is also aiming to eep in the heat, and protect him from the road, onto which demon car drivers p ossessed of evil spirits (gin, vod a, whis ey etc.) would lure him to his death! This brings us neatly (?) to the subject of reincarnation. Most of you reading this will have some nowledge of the ideas of reincarnation; i.e. that we are born, live in the world, die, and are then reborn to develop further. Not many of you will realise that motorcycles go

through a similar process. They leave the factory to roam about the face of the earth, then some parts wear out, and they descend into the dar underworld of th e wor shop. Here they are consoled and repaired by the creative force of the fem ale, who is the bi er, to emerge re-born in Spring, once more blooming with refr eshed colour of restored paintwor , and the cycle starts again. Many British mac hines go through this every year. About Yule they are ready, and in the first da ys of Spring they roar about in the first flush of youth. Then at the pea of th eir power, at Lammas, they are cut down, usually due to some terminal mechanical problem. They dwell for the remainder of the year in Hades, the garage, thus mi rroring the cycle of the God. The spirituality of bi es is perceived by man in different forms, and each has its followers. Here are some of the major religions: THE CHRISTIAN This newcomer to the spiritual motorcycle rides a modern Japanese bi e. He pays little more than lip service to his religion. He has few rituals, all he has to do is turn the ey and start the starter engine. He tends to be into power and speed, tearing past older machines which he regards with contempt. He cares lit tle for the inner wor ings of the machine, running to his priest/mechanic whenev er he has a problem. Should his machine pass on, i.e., wear out, it will believ ed to be irreparable, i.e., too expensive, and gone to the great scrap heap in t he s y. The ma ers of this are the great salesmen and evangelists of the bi e, n ot to mention the profit ma ers. THE MAGICIAN He will typically be an older bearded gentleman, who rides an immaculate old Bri tish motorcycle. They are into status, and will pootle along at 40 mph all day, imagining themselves the envy of all who see them. They are into ritual and myst ery. The performance required to summon some older bi es into life is awesome an d dangerous. Yet these fellows will watch in silence as a machine spits at a new initiate and brea s his shin. They will endlessly pontificate on the correct sh ade of colour for the petrol tan , or whether a part is the right year for the m odel; mostly that's all they do. THE WITCH The bi e will most li ely be filthy, not from lac of care, but from constant use in all sorts of conditions. The rider nows and understands the inn er wor ings of his machine, its every clic and whistle. He relies on no guru fo r his understanding, he is not afraid to try things out and see if it wor s. Not for him the search for power or acclaim. He is just out to explore the universe and glean its mysteries. He will get there in the end, there's plenty of time. He will rebuild bi es time after time, not stic ing to rigid formulae, but with whatever comes to hand. he enjoys his bi e and is in-tune with it. As a bi er-witch, I am now going to use two useful tools to explain my theory of Life, the Universe and Everything: i.e., the Kaballah and the four-str o e cycle. Firstly the act of invocation and the four-stro e cycle. For those of you who are not mechanically minded, I'll try and eep this simple. Officially the four-stro e cycle is referred to as Induction, Compression, Power and Exhaust. I prefer the much more evocative Suc , Squeeze, Bang, Blow. There are a few parts that really matter: the cran the con rod, the piston and the inlet plus exhaust valves.

shaft,

1) Suc : Initially the piston is at the top and both valves are closed. As the cran shaft turns, the inlet valve opens, the con rod pulls the piston down whic h draws air and fuel in. At this point in an invocation, the invo er is opening his cha ras and drawing the cosmic energy which surrounds us into his body. 2) Squeeze: The cran shaft continues around, the inlet valve shuts, and the pis ton is pushed up, squeezing tha gases together. This is when the invo er says th e invocation and passes the power to the invo ee. 3) Bang: The fuel/air mixture ignites and pushes the piston down. The priest/ess ta es on the aspect of God/dess being invo ed. 4) Blow: The exhaust valve opens and the piston pushes the charge into the exhaust pipe. The God/dess charges and shares his/her power with those assembled. And now - motorcycles on the Tree of Life: Kether - traditionally the godhead from which all energy flows. It is formless. This is the high tension spar which ignites the fuel and without which the bi e is naught. Cho mah - Formless, directionless energy, raw untamed power. In the engine this is the burning fuel mixture. Binah - this ta es the raw force and starts organising and forming it. The piston, conrod and cran shaft ta es the power of the expanding gases and converts it to rotary motion. Chesed - Ta es the potential energy of Binah, gives it order, and ma es it more solid and usable. In the engine, the gearbox and final drive ta e the power from the cran shaft and ma e it usable to the whole machine. Geburah - An essential brea ing down. Where there is life, there must be death. In an engine when you have got two lumps of metal thrashing about in violent mot ion, they must wear each other away. Tiphareth - This is the image of the godhead, the wayshower, Lucifer, Prince of Light. In the bi e this is represented by the electrical system and the ignition system, and the lights, which on British machines are provided by Joe Lucas, Prince of Dar ness! Netzach - This is the spirit of nature, intuition and sexuality. This is more co ncerned with what bi ers do. They are in tune with nature and tend to get drawn to ancient sites, eg Stonehenge, Avebury and Wayland Smithy, or just standing ar ound in a muddy field communing with nature and the local brewery. This is also the source of the sexual bond between man and machine. Hod - Communication, intellect and travel. It is also where your will produces power. The travelling aspect of motorcycles is fairly obvious, and hord es of despatch riders fulfil the communication role. This is where we get the n owledge of the wor ings of the bi e. It definitely ta es Hodic willpower on a co ld, wet morning, along with highly verbal expletives, leaping up and down on the ic start to get the bugger moving. Yesod - This is the lunar aspect of bi ing, lin ed to Tiphareth on the Middle Pillar (refer Joe Lucas, Prince of Dar ness). Many bi ers will, by the light of the Full Moon, switch their lights off and ride by moonlight in their lunatic hunt for the local hostellry. In the event of a bi er

meeting his death through this ridiculous activity, loo into the s y. For ther e you will espy, on his silver machine, the spirit of the bi er riding across th e astral heavens. Scientists tend to thin these are meteors. There is also the illusion of security one gets from riding around with one's head in a goldfish b owl, colloquially nown as a blood buc et. Mal uth - The concrete world, reality. On a bi e you are cold, wet, tired, frequently uncomfortable, and very vulnerable, and no-one in their right mind would do it if it wasn't for something else...... Despite Mal uth, bi ing opens up other realms, other worlds (Birmingham, London, Glasgow, etc) and puts you in tune with the inner and outer universes. The End. THE GREEK & ROMAN GOD(ESSE)S A quic overveiw by Thomas Palmer APOLLO-Also called Phoebus, the bright one. Identified with the sun. Said to be the most powerful of the Gods. Son of Zeus and Leto. Born on Delos, ta en North and raised by the hyperboreans, he went to Delphi and illed the dragon Python, guardian of the oracle of Themis, but a ravager of the countryside. Tall, handsome, outstanding in word and deed, he was the god of ever-ren ewed youth, archetype of virile beauty and masculine virtue. He was also nown a s a seducer & extremely arrogant. Talented in music, inventor of the lyre, he wa s the inspiration of poets and soothsayers. His oracles were expressed in verse. He could cure illness and banish evil. He was a doctor who new the puri fication rites and was invo ed against plague. His image was set at dangerous pl aces for protection (Lighting the ways) Nothing escaped his vision (light of day ). ARIES (MARS)-Son of Hera, born without male assistance. He was a supreme fighter , loved battle and cared little about issues, switching sides without scruple. H e delighted in massacres. He was god of war, not victory, and was thoughtless about winning, only fighting. Was on occasion disarmed by Athena, Goddess of restraint and forethoug ht, to eep him from interfering in battles that did not concern him. He was prolific in love, but also a rapist. He was run by his passions. CRONOS (SATURN)- Son of Uranus (Heaven) and Gaea (Earth). Gaea, worn out by nume rous pregnancies, requested to be free of this burden, so Cronos (Saturn) too u p a sic le and cut off his father's testicles. His wife was Rhea, and he fathere d Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, Poseidon and Zeus. Was eventually deposed by Zeu s. His festivals, the Saturnalia, were a time of liberation and freedom for all and got pretty wild. They were celebrated from Dec. 17th until the new year . Saturn is the archetype for "father time". DIONYSUS- Son of Zeus and Semele. His escort was satyrs and marginally sane gods . He did not respect laws or customs, loved disguises, wild screaming, licentiou s dances and wild places. He was a drun en god with no home, living in the wild and eating raw meat. He encouraged excesses of all inds. Hera hated Dionysus because of Zeus's infidelity and hounded him. She ca used him to be illed by the Titans, but he was resurrected through the efforts of Athena, Zeus, Apollo, and Rhea. She drove him mad, but through Cybele he gain ed mastery of it. He drove many people mad for various reasons. EROS (CUPID)- A primordial god, contemporary of Chaos, who existed before Cronos (Saturn) and Zeus. He came out of an egg that formed the earth and s y when it

bro e in eavens), rn). The uld rise

two. He precipitated the embraces of Gaea (the Earth) and Uranus (the h which resulted in the birth of Oceanus, Tethys, Coeus, and Cronos (Satu Earth and heavens were so tightly embraced that none of the children co towards the light until Cronos (Saturn) castrated his father. Cupid was associated with Aphrodite, who moderated his power. Where he w as desire, instinct and violent sex, she was grace, tenderness and sweet pleasur e. Cupid made people lose their reason and paralyzed their wills, even insp iring Zeus to capricious sexual desires. As Eros he is said to be the child of Porus (Expedience) and Penia (Pove rty). Li e Penia, he was said to always be in search of something, and li e Poru s, he always found a means of attaining his aims. FAUNUS- A Roman God, Son of Circe and Jupiter. Protector of the Roman peoples, h e lived on Palatine Hill in Rome. His oracle was given in nightmares. Lupercalia was his festival, during which his priests ran through the streets with leather straps and struc any women they met with them to bestow health and fertility. The women were said to strip themselves to be better targets. He reproduced hims elf in the satyrs. HADES (PLUTO)- Son of Cronos (Saturn), brother of Zeus and Poseidon. When the wo rld was divided between the three brothers, the underworld and hell fell to Hade s, while Zeus too the heavens and Poseidon the seas. He had a helmet that made him invisible. He ruled the dead, and forbade his subjects to leave his domain. He desired Persephone, but Zeus forbade the marriage. He then idnapped her.

HEPHAESTUS (VULCAN)- Son of Zeus and Hera. He was lame, either because his mothe r, startled by his ugliness, dropped him, or because Zeus, angry that he too hi s mother's side in a dispute, threw him from Olympos. He dwelled among mortals a nd became the god of blac smithing and artistic metal wor . He made a golden th rone that imprisoned any who sat in it, and gave it to Hera to avenge himself fo r his fall from Olympos. HERMES (MERCURY)- Son of Zeus and the nymph Maia. He stole some of Apollo's catt le shortly after his birth and concealed them, sacrificing two to the Olympian G ods. This theft won him recognition as a God himself. When Apollo discovered the theft and Hermes was tried, his defense was so s illful and spirited that Zeus laughed and ruled that there should be a friendly settlement between the brother s. Hermes was God of the spo en word and oratory and was the intermediary b etween the Gods and men. Also the God of commerce and contracts, where language must be precise to convey the correct meaning. JANUS- ROMAN- The Two faced God. he was God of beginnings and presided over new underta ings, gateways and initiations. he was revered as the first ing of Rome and made order reign. His temple was left open in wartime so the God could act, but was closed in peace. THE LARES- Roman- Twin children of Mercury by the rape of Lara. They protected t he land. Were symbolized by two boys and a dog. PAN- Half man, half goat, with horns on his brow and lust in his eyes. Son of He rmes and a daughter of the Dryops, he was the God of pastoral regions and wilder ness. Special friend of shepherds, he guided and protected them from afar. Prote ctor of all wild things and places. His pipes had an aphrodisiac effect on those who heard them and induced mating. Pan was a lecher and a drun who constantly pursued nymphs who would fle e in terror. Caves rang with their cries when he caught them. He was famous for his rages, where he attac ed anyone who got in his way. His irrational behavior led people to flee him in "panic." He was dangerous when he too possession of

a being. The possessed, or panoleptic, too on his bearing and would wander in t he wild, laugh madly, or throw themselves on others for sex without respect to g ender, or have epileptic fits. POSEIDON (NEPTUNE)- Son of Cronos (Saturn) and Rhea, he is represented wielding a trident and being pulled by monsters in a chariot. After Zeus's victory over C ronos (Saturn), the young gods, who preferred life on earth, divided the various domains of earth. Poseidon chose the seas. He represented the hidden forces of germination and death. Together with his wife Amphitrite, he had powerful ties w ith Gaea, the Earth, mother of the Titans. As subterranean Gods, they shoo the world from inside. Poseidon caused earthqua es when he made love to his wife. The mystery isle of Atlanta belonged to Poseidon. Poseidon could provo e storms, set fire to roc s on shore and create springs of water. He had many children, most wic ed a nd violent, li e the Cyclops of the Oddessy. PRIAPUS- A small god with a penis of immense size. Son of Zeus and Aphrodite, he was deformed by Hera in revenge. Aphrodite abandoned him in fear that she would be ridiculed for her ugly child. He began as a symbol of fertility, but of no s ignificance. Although he was oversized, he was impotent. He seemed to fail at ev erything he tried. He was compared to an ass and ridiculed. He lent his name to the disease priapism, an incurable illness where the penis remains painfully ere ct but incapable of ejaculation. Ended up as an obscure gnome. QUIRINUS- A Roman warrior god originally, he became a god who watched over the w ell being of the community, opposite to his former nature. Called an apparition of Romulus the founder of Rome. ZEUS (JUPITER)- Son of Cronos (Saturn) and Rhea. He defeated Cronos (Saturn) in a ten year battle and then divided the realms with his brothers by lot, getting the heavens for his own. He was ruler and judge, the arbiter of disputes among G ods and men. His decisions were just and well balanced, showing no favoritism. H e had several wives and many lover's, earning the title "all father" or "father god". His infidelity caused much strife on Olympos and in the world through he r aging of his wife, Hera. Goddesses APHRODITE (VENUS)- Daughter of Zeus and Dione according to Homer. 'The Woman Bor n Of The Waves' according to Hesiod, born of the foam impregnated by the sexual organs of Uranus, which Cronos (Saturn) had severed and thrown into the sea. Pl ato identifies these as two separate Aphrodites. One Urania, the daughter of Ura nus was goddess of pure love. The other, called Pandemos, (Root of pandemonium? ) was the Goddess of 'common' love. She married Hephaestus, but was unfaithful w ith Aries. Aries was caught and humiliated. Aphrodite fled in shame to Cyprus, and there too Thrace as lover, resulting in the birth of Eros (Love), Anteros (Lov e in return), Deimos and Phobos (Terror and Fear). She also was a lover of Adon is, a human shepherd named Anchises who fathered Aneas, of Hermes and of Dionysu s who fathered Priapus. She was nown for jealousy. She made Eos (Dawn) fall in love with Orion in spite for her seduction of Aries. She punished all who did not succumb to her. A beauty competition between Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite was proposed by Eris (Discord) with the prize being a golden apple. It was judged by the human Paris. All the Goddesses offered him bribes to win. Aphrodite offered Helen, most beautiful of all Humans. She won and thus caused the Trojan War. Eros was the primordial god of instinct. When Aphrodite appeared he adapted himself and joined forces with her. At this time the sexes b

ecame distinct. Aphrodite's ingdom was the place of desire. Young girls were sa id to pass from the place of Artemis (chastity and games) to the place of Aphrod ite, where they become women. Considered by some to be an affliction or madness that women must bear. She represents female lust and passion, and demonstrates i ts potential for destructive effect. Young girls gave their virginity to the God dess by living in her temples and offering themselves to passing strangers. ARTEMIS (DIANA)-Daughter of Zeus and Leto. The huntress, she is seen as the fore ver young goddess. She is proud of her shapeliness and eeps her virginity to pr otect it. She was a warrior, joining Apollo to ill Python and other exploits. A nyone who offended her or tried to win her virginity paid dearly. They were ill ed, transformed, or mutilated. She defended modesty and punished illicit love an d excesses. She avenged rape. She also too out her anger on those virgins who g ave in to love. She did not mind marriage, but when a virgin married she was to give up all the things of childhood, toys and dolls, loc s of hair, etc., leavin g them on her altar. ATHENA (MINERVA)- Daughter of Zeus and Metis. Metis was swallowed by Zeus, and w hen it was time for Diana's birth, he had Hephaestus crac open his s ull and sh e came forth in full armor shouting a war cry. Also a virgin Goddess, she lived among men without fear due to her warrior's s ills. She was the protectress of O dysseus and other men. She was a warrior who used strategy, ambush, cunning, and magic rather than brute force. Her shield bore the head of a gorgon and she par alyzed her adversaries and made her companions invincible. She was against exces s, both in war and every day life. She taught men to control their savagery and to tame nature. Was the initiator of all s ills. Taught Pandora to weave, traine d horses and invented the chariot. She was the patroness of blac smiths and carp enters. She built the first ship and the boat of the Argonauts. CYBELE- Was born as Agditis, a hermaphrodite monster, from a stone fertilized by Zeus. The Gods decided to mutilate him(?) and made the Goddess Cybele from him. Her love for Attis, a human shepherd, drove him insane and he castrated himself for her. Her priests were eunuchs dressed as women. It is from the temple of Cy bele that the reference in the Wiccan Charge of the Goddess to "At mine Altars, the youths of Lacedmon in Sparta made due sacrifice.", comes. DEMETER (CERES)- Daughter of Cronos (Saturn) and Rhea, the Goddess of corn and g rain. Demeter bore Persephone. She renounced her duties as goddess and began a f ast and went into exile from Olympos when her daughter was abducted into the und erworld until her daughter should be returned to her. She caused the spread of t he nowledge of the cultivation of corn. During her exile the earth became barren until Zeus demanded that Hades return Persephone. She had eaten from a pomegranate, however, and was forever bo und to the underworld. As a compromise, she was allowed to rise up into the worl d with the first growth of spring and return to the underworld at seed sowing in fall. And so the Earth is barren in the winter, while Demeter mourns, and becom es fruitful again when Persephone is released. Demeter made herself nown to the children of Eleusis, who raised her a temple and instituted the Eleusinian myst eries. In Sept.-Oct., the candidates for initiation purified themselves in the s ea, then processed down the sacred path from Athens to Eleusis. The rites remain secret, but involve a search for a mill for grinding corn, and a spiritual expe rience. During the rites, men women and slaves were all treated as equal. ERINYES, THE- Alecto, Tisiphone, and Megaara. They were born from drops of blood that fell from Uranus's severed Penis, and did not recognize the authority of t he gods of Olympos. They hounded and tortured their victims, driving them mad. A lso called the Eumenides, The Good Ones, to divert their wrath. Assimilated by t he Romans as the Furies. They were implacable and demanded punishment for every murder. To them murder was a stain. The murderer had to be banished and driven m ad before purification could occur. They were blind and carried out their punish

ments indefinitely. HARPIES- Gree genii/spirits- Daughters of Thaumes and Electra: Nicotho or swift -footed, Ocypete or swift of flight, and Celaeno, the dar one. Were either wom en with wings or birds with the heads of women. Called the 'hounds of Zeus' and seized children and souls. S illful at torture, they could pester a victim into madness. HERA (JUNO)- Daughter of Cronos (Saturn) and Rhea brought up by Oceanus and Teth ys. Married Zeus. It was claimed that each year Hera regained hervirginity by ba thing in the spring of Canathus. According to some traditions Hephaestus, Aries, and Hebe (Youth) were conceived by her alone without male assistance. As Zeus ' legitimate wife, her fury at his infidelities was boundless, and she too veng eance on his lovers and any progeny of the affair without distinction. Zeus was often reduced to hiding or disguising his children to protect them. HESTIA/VESTA- Daughter of Cronos (Saturn) and Rhea. Goddess of the hearth, she h ad the privilege of retaining her virginity forever. Her symbol was the fire, wh ich was never allowed to go out. The young bride and newborn child were presente d to her and she was invo ed before each meal. Her temple in Rome was served by the young vestal virgins. MOERAE (PARCAE)- The Three Fates. Atropos, Clotho, Lachesis, daughters of Zeus a nd Themis. The first spins a thread symbolizing birth. The second unravels it, s ymbolizing life's processes, and the third cuts it, symbolizing death. They too were blind and ruled destiny. They were also symbols of a limit which could not be overstepped. Were connected to their sisters, the furies, who punished crime. MUSES- Nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne (Memory). Calliope ruled epic poetry , Clio ruled history, Polyhymnia mime, Euterpe the flute, Terpsichore dance, Era rto lyric art, Melpomene tragedy, Thalia comedy and Urania astronomy. They delig hted the Gods and inspired poets. The Muses created what they sang about. By pra ising the gods, they completed their glory, by boasting of valiant warriors, the y wrote their names in history. They were celebrated by the Pythagoreans as the eepers of the nowledge of harmony. NEMESIS- Daughter and Night. Ruled over the distribution of wealth, loo ed after balance, too revenge on arrogance and punished excess, including excessive hap piness, riches and power. Moderation in all things was her creed. NYMPHS- Daughter of Zeus and usually part of a greater god(esses) entourage. No t immortal, though long lived. Mostly lived in caves. Were dar powers whose bea uty alone could lead to madness. Were seducers of many of the gods. Were conside red secondary deities. THETIS- Daughter of the old man of the sea. Very beautiful. Mother of Achilles. Saved Zeus from a plot to overthrow him and was an ally of Hera. Saved the Argo nauts as they passed between the clashing roc s. Against The Witch Hunters Robin Culain "All this has happened before. And all this will happen again. But this time i t happened to ..." Well, us. The beginning of Sir James Barrie's Peter Pan must echo what many of us are fe

eling, as we watch a new and loosely- nit conglomerate of yellow journalists, ri ght-wing eco-spoilers and Evangelical and Fundamental Christians move slowly tow ards a Witch hunt for the 90's. Our spiritual ancestors faced similar problems i n many times and many lands. Recall the Priestesses of Eleusis, last of an ancient line, in decline, fallin g at last to the stratagems of Theseus and his new Attic Gods. Recall the Etrusc ans, their vision of sexual-political balance overpowered by the might and organ ization of the husband-headed Roman empire. And most tender to the touch, recall the agony of the middle ages, as the Catholic, then Protestant churches consoli dated their grip on the rural population, illing six million alleged or actual Witches in the process. The hunt is in a beginning stage and beginnings are important. The formal focu s of the television specials, Redboo articles, diatribes in the LaRouchite New Federalist, "Occult Crime" seminars and newspaper articles is some thing called "Satanism", which bears little or no relationship to Wicca and Neo-Paganism. In fact, media "Satanism" bears little resemblance to any historically verifia ble Satanism. It is neither classical Egyptian Set-worship", Romantic Ceremonial Satanism a la Huysmanns nor modern Egoist flamboyance per La Vey. Sometimes it' s heavy metal sullenness, drugs and violence, but that's usually only for starte rs. The heavy metal boys, we're usually told, are just dupes of the Great Conspi racy. And when you get down to the real stuff, the genuine complaint, it's gener ally the stuff of horror movies and nightmare -- baby-eating, virgin-sacrificing bloodsuc ing monsters! All this has happened before. And all this will happen again. There's a limited range of things that can be used to stir up the anger of a p opulace against a group, or deaden moral sensitivity to a persecution. It pretty much boils down to baby-eating, virgin-sacrificing and bloodsuc ing. This has been the century of Hitler's Holocaust. but the Russians who butchere d entire Jewish villages in the Pogroms, the inhabitants of Yor who slaughtered nearly every Jew in the city in the 1100's didn't merely thin the Yiddim dress ed and tal ed funny. The accusations were the same. By Jesus, those Jews ate bab ies! They were just li e Satanists, with one exception. You could find the Jews. There probably aren't any "Satanists" as portrayed in the articles, seminars a nd diatribes. If there are, they're certainly not Neo-Pagans or Wiccans. But in the lucrative atmosphere in which the press, missionaries and so-called "Crime A dvisers" publicize and proselytize, the word "Witch" creeps in every third sente nce. Naturally, we Witches and Neo-Pagans have spent a certain amount of effort poi nting out that we love children li e anybody else, have no particular attraction to virginity, and tend, in the most extreme of our diets, to vegetarianism. In short, we have tried to educate our detractors and the media to our harmlessness . This tactic is true, and this tactic is good, but I thin that if it becomes o ur primary response to persecution we will ultimately fail to endure. Imagine a Witch in the Middle Ages in front of a Catholic or Protestant tribun al. In some cases she has been denounced by a business competitor, or an envious rival in love, or a spiteful neighbor. In other cases she has been brought to t

he doc by an expert in "Occult Crime" -- the traveling Witch Finder. She stands bound before her Inquisitors, plain or pompous depending on their eligious persuasion. Perhaps there's a crowd around. She tries to educate them o the simple fact that she's a worshipper of the Old Gods, loves children li e nybody else, has no particular attraction to virginity, and tends, in the most xtreme of her diets, to vegetarianism.

They, in turn, accuse her of worshipping a living fiend, blighting the cattle, and eating babies. She doesn't stand a chance. Now picture another scene, one that has not occurred often. She stands before those assembled, and begins, shall I say, to point out some facts. She points ou t the medieval physician with the two per cent live delivery rate who wants the local midwifery practice shut down. She points out the priest and bishop who are terrifying the once fun-loving populace into penury and pestilence with the twi n threats of damnation and the noose. She denounces the Christian nobles who wil l broo no interference with their rule, least of all from the old Nobility of t he land. She'd be shut up in short order, but in a different way, for she would be addr essing the real issues. The nonsense about babies, Blac Men and cattle was then , and is now nothing more than a smo e screen to mas real and significant relig ious and political differences. It's all a cheap tric , a coward's cheat, a way of throwing muc until some stic s. It is only used when the real terms of debat e cannot stand the light of day, and it wor s only if we permit it! Our situation is in no way as dire as that of our ancestors. Only now have thi ngs moved to the stage where one group, the far-right and sometimes farcical Li monites, actively bait Wiccans and Neo-Pagans as being "as bad as Satanists". An d unli e our ancestors, we have a freedom of speech they could only dream of. We will not be silenced if we spea , certainly not at this time. So let's not waste our opportunity! Whenever the "Witch-Hunters" bait us or at tempt to smear us with their cannibal taunts, let's find out what the real agend a is, and address it. Ma e the Lyndonite defend himself against whipping up the population against a minority religion as Hitler stirred hatred against the Jews . Ma e the entire La Rouche crew explain their suicidal environmental policies, and their editorial statement that "the worship of Mother Earth does indirectly lead to mass murder ..." Engage them on the real issues -- just what the worship of the Mother really means, and what people are really li e that scapegoat inno cents and despise nature! Li ewise with the "Occult Crimewatch". As them about their sources of revenue . About their religious agendas and connection with Evangelical missions. As th e if they support religious freedom, and if non-Evangelical religious belief, in their opinion, is a hazard to the public. As them, if you can corner them into a fran reply, what on earth they are doing lecturing hate to police officers s worn to protect all the public, Christian and Pagan! The media deserve the same. Let's not spend more than a breath denying lurid c harges. Instead, as them why they are sensationalizing and smearing a legitimat e religion to ma e sales. Inquire as to whether the German press in the 30's had a responsibility for the slanders on the Jews that they printed. As them how t hey'll feel if harm comes to one Pagan woman or man, girl or boy through their n egligence, indifference to non sensational fact and search for sales. In every case we have an opportunity to turn the tide, by coming right out wit

r t a e

h our real differences in front of the public, and insisting that the terms of d ebate be on genuine issues. We must refuse to be bac ed into a defensive posture , denying ever wilder charges. Instead let us bring our active advocacy and love of our Gods, of Mother Earth , of our families and children and ourselves to the fore in every debate. We mus t require our opponents to bare their genuine beliefs and motives, and contrast them clearly with our own in full view. We must sharpen the terms of debate so eenly that no person can leave the scene without having to ma e a clear and cons cious choice about what they value and believe is right. There's no point in lecturing to the Cardinal. The audience for every debate i s not the Witch Hunter, it is the neutral observer. Let them see the love of the Earth, and contrast it to nearsighted greed and poverty of emotion. Let them se e the love of the Old Gods and contrast it to a cringing fear of the Father's ju dgment. Let them see generosity and intelligence and refusal to be sacrificed, a nd contrast them to venality, cunning and scape goating. In every debate, let us rise to the height of our capability, and let our opponents have it in the Val ues -- right where it hurts!

Charging Crystals Ian Kesser Crystals, as many of you now, are extremely useful for practitioners of the M agic al arts. They can be used to channel power, to store power, to heal, and ma ny other ways. Due to space considerations, I have chosen to limit myself to the charging aspect in this article. The first and most important part of charging a crystal is choosing the crysta l itself. For most general uses, Quartz is the best one. For specific use, there are many others. I have found that Diamonds are useful in storing Good energy, and Zircons (my birthstone!!) for Evil energy. If you have a specific purpose in mind, please consult one of the many fine tables of crystal affinities. The next step, and also important, especially the first few times, is to prepa re yourself for the actual channeling of energy. In my case, music helps, as wel l as pranayama and other forms of breath control. The first one I used is simple . Pranayama, simply, is control of breath. Most forms amount to hyperventilation or subventilation. The one I used first, and still use, is this: ta e four quic inhalations, filling the lungs. This should be over the space of about one and a half seconds. Then exhale in four short bursts, again over one and a half sec onds. Repeat as necessary. The first few times this is done, I recommend you des ist after about one minute. Over the course of time, this can and should be incr eased, but until you are used to the effect this gives, a shorter time is sugges ted. Now that you're in the mood, ta e the crystal in your right-hand (left hand fo r those of you who are lefties). Visualize a door within the heart of the crysta l. Until this visualization is firm and steady, wait. Then open the door. Behind it you should see a store of diffuse energy, which varies with the type of the crystal. Some crystals, usually the inferior ones, have little or nothing bac h ere. These are generally not good to use. Close the door, but eep it in mind. That was just to chec on its energy. Dec ide which energy you wish it to house. Usually only one will be needed, such as for talismans and storage of energy for later use, but in some cases, such as a

divination tool, more is suggested/required. DO NOT TRY THIS ON YOUR FIRST ATTEM PT! YOU WILL FAIL! The energy you will be handling is powerful, and trying to ha ndle more than one world at a time is strenuous. Trying to handle all three, plu s personal and other energies, is straining to the limit. As with all other bodi ly systems, an ability used beyond its capacity will overload and brea or refus e to perform, as with a man trying to lift 300lb barbells on his first try at we ight lifting. For general use, I find nature's energy is best for multipurpose storage. Thos e in the Church of Set would probably find differently, as would those in the Ch urch of Christ. Use what you feel comfortable with. Now, the fun part. For the three major energies, I find there are certain ways of drawing them tat are easiest on the practitioner. For Good energy, try it li e this: Form a cone with the base connecting to your s ull in the region just b etween and above your eyebrows. "suc " the energy (visualize it as you will, I u se a light, golden yellow) into the cone, then through a tube into your brain. T he visualization on this is a bit tric y, but it can be done. For Nature's energy, visualize a "hose" going down into the Earth from the bas e of your spine. This hose should ideally connect with the center of the Earth, but some people simply cannot conceive the distance involved with that, and can therefore not visualize it. Go as deep as you can, with time, you should improve . I "see" this energy as a ruddy, glowing red, as with magma. Use what wor s. Dr aw this energy up the tube, then through your spinal column into the brain. Now, the Evil energy. This is tric y for me, but here's how I do it. Place the feet together (if they already are, so much the better! It means this isn't unc omfortable for you, as it is for me.) and visualize a siphon, with the hose conn ecting to a cone connecting to your feet, about two inches in diameter, one inch on either foot. Then, on the other end, a hose entering a blac , in y void(or w hatever color you perceive evil energy to be). One last connection: another hose running from that area of your feet to the previously mentioned area in the s u ll. This aligns nicely with the Cha ra theory, to which I subscribe, in that a C ha ral spinal-type column connects all the major power centers of ones body. If you now this system, so much the better! Draw the energy through the siphon(som etimes visualizing the bulb on the siphon squeezing helps) into the feet, then i nto the s ull, then into the brain. Other objects you wish to draw energy from, given above( for powerful things such as the n a door. Again, whatever wor s for you), and an on using that object again, ta e only a to GET TO CLOSE THE DOOR! use the door analogy/visualization Tarot, I see it as a gate more tha draw from your use hand. If you pl en amount of energy, and DON'T FOR

Personal energy: This varies so much with the individual! Some people draw fro m their auras, some from the Cha ras, some from the Astral Body. Just use the me thod you feel most comfortable with. For those of you who have no preference, or no nowledge of such things, I use the Astral approach. I draw a bit of the sub stance of the Astral body, generally the feet, into the brain. After I finish al l else, I "spread out" the Astral body to ma e up for this loss. Astral bodies D O heal. Well, that's most of it. Draw the energy you need, then draw from the crystal. Ta e it in your use hand again, open that door, and ta e out the energy, and br ing it to the brain. Generally, I use the hose again, connecting to that spot in the s ull, but this one generally runs INSIDE y body, such as along the arm bon es, then up the nec bone. Mix the energy up. If it helps, visualize a cosmic C uisinart or whatever. If it won't mix, li e oil and water, you have failed. This

crystal will not hold this energy. Give up, put bac the crystals power, ground yourself(later...), and try again later with another energy. Once you've achieved the mix, refill the crystal. Sometimes, the energy won't go bac in. This usually means you've put too much of the energy you're using in , and not enough of the crystal's own energy. Bring it bac to the brain, and re mix. How do you refill the crystal, you as ? Switch hands on the crystal, then v isualize that handy hose again, but this time flow bac wards, through the door. There will come a point, especially early on in your practice, that the crystal is full when you have energy left over. Slam that door and ground yourself(later ...), don't overfill it! Doors have their bursting point, and that's a wonderful way to destroy a good crystal. OK, it's later. You've finished the job at hand (Applause, you've earned it!) but have all this energy left! There are many ways of grounding energy, use the one you are comfortable with(I now I eep saying that, but it bears repeating. Don't do anything against your Will). The one I use is simply grounding it. Ta e that handy-dandy all-purpose hose again, connect it to the base of the spine, a nd thence into the Earth. Flip the switch to reverse, and push that energy out! Be careful not to let out yourself as well! That's it. I hope you find this helpful to you. Tarot Divination Tuppence Not long ago an on-line friend told me that he saw no reason to use the Tarot in divination; in fact, he felt that no one should use them for divination as t his was a profane use of the cards. He preferred to use the cards solely for con templation. At the time I did not feel inclined to respond to this narrow view, but after a night of thin ing about it, I was prompted to write the following in defense of Tarot Divination (and I don't mean fortune telling!) Divination: 1) The art or practice that see s to foresee or foretell future events or disco ver hidden nowledge usually by means of augury (divination from omens) or by th e aid of supernatural powers 2) Unusual insight or intuitive perception (these definitions from Webster's ) According to the Brotherhood of Light there are four main uses for the Tarot: 1) Science of Vibration 2) Divination by cards 3) Divination by number 4) Spiritual Science (the method of putting the rest together to develop a p hilosophy) Is it wrong to USE the cards? 1) Playing cards is fun! Without such use perhaps Tarot would long ago have die d as other games have faded from use. Chess may be considered to be a child's ga me or a highly developed intellectual discipline. The same is true of using the Tarot card's. 2) Have you ever played Taroc? It is a very interesting game li e bridge using

the Major Arcana as Trumps...in profane dec s the court cards and majors may hav e two heads (to be read either up or down.) Some versions of the game have certa in mystical aspects. 3) In studying the history of the Tarot you will see that the dec s se belonging to aristocrats who had hand-painted dec s made for them tists) used long ago were very primitive and made from wood cuts. We ar from those crude representations...but the ideas expressed in the n the same - they are still there in those early dec s.

4) Where did the Tarot come from? We have only theory and conjecture: a) Ancient Egyptians b) They always have existed but have been revived from time to time c) Gift of Divine Origin d) etc. It's validity and usefulness are what count a) it wor s when used b) it contains Universal symbology and archetypes found elsewhere c) it is numerically correct and corresponds with ancient systems of wisdom (es pecially to the Qabala) 10 = sephiroth (ace through 10 in the Minor Arcana) 22 = paths (22 Major Arcana cards) 4 = elements (four suits) (etc.) The Tarot is MUCH MORE than mere pictures on pasteboard. The pictures on the Tarot cards are physical symbols for spiritual concepts. One definition I use f or the Tarot is as follows: A symbolic representation of Archetypal Forces and/or Beings which have alwa ys existed and have been identified and passed on to us by ancient initiates and which provide a focus for us to use in self-initiation, spiritual development, and the perception of hidden wisdom. A few notes regarding the above........ 1) Jung says of Archetypes that they exist for us at birth...they emanate from the collective unconscious....they are NOT self-created or generated. 2) Aleister Crowley says in his boo the Boo of Thoth: "Each card is, in a sense, a living being." "It is for the student to build the se living stones into his living Temple." "...the cards of the Tarot are living individuals..." "How is he to blend their life with his? The ideal way is that of contemplat ion. But this involves initiation of such high degree that it is impossible to d escribe the method in this place. Nor is it attractive or suitable to most peopl e. The practical everyday commonplace way is divination."

"...the Tarot itself as a whole is an universal Pantacle...Each card, especi ally this is true of the Trumps, is a Talisman; ...It is evidently an Idea far t oo vast for any human mind to comprehend in its entirety. For it is 'the Wisdom

3) In Magic

without Tears he says:

(except tho by great ar have come f Tarot remai

whereby He (God) created the worlds.' " As regards these Lively Forces: 1. These Forces can communicate with us...or rather we can interpret their curr ents through our subconscious intuitive minds....this is one use of divination ( and contemplation). This is the level, as Jung says, at which we are all connect ed. 2. These Forces can be directed by us Magic ally if we are so trained. First we must master divination; then direction. 3. The Tarot is a Magic al Weapon In the hands of a trained initiate the mere p lacement of one card between two others can alter the forces involved and affect physical (and ethereal) reality. 4. The Tarot is a philosophy as well, with an Ancient Message about the Soul's journey. 5. Yes, the Tarot is useful to study and contemplate....the colors and symbols are specifically designed and arranged to stimulate things within us (forces, ar chetypes, subconscious). 6. The Major Arcana are especially sacred to us because they represent the Path s, Steps, Forces which are necessary for us to rejoin the Godhead and attain enl ightenment. I maintain that the best way to understand that the Tarot cards are ALIVE an d ACTIVE FORCES is to USE/HANDLE/EXPERIENCE them and so Divine (and perceive) wh at they are all about. The cards are a focus for our minds upon forces which are ever-changing and evolving (even as human ind is evolving). We are fortunate that modern printing is so good and that the Tarot dec s an d boo s which we have today are easily available to us. This was not always the case for our brothers and sisters in times past. Today one can afford to smile a nd say: "I only need to contemplate the cards to understand them." But there is more to the use of the cards in Divination than many have been taught; for it is a mysterious process. Just as one must study and practice upon a musical instrument to become a vi rtuoso, so too the Tarot ta es many years of study and practice to use correctly . One must be well developed spiritually, emotionally, and intuitively, or (as i n music) naturally gifted to ma e full and accurate use of the cards in divinati on. In the hands of a gifted Diviner or Initiate the Tarot is a formidable weapo n. It can even tal and spell out sentences! Hence the Hebrew letters correspond ence to the Major Arcana. However, since we do not all learn in the same ways... .the Tarot may not be the DIVINATORY METHOD for everyone...although everyone can learn from it and should study it. Other methods which may suit: a) b) c) d) e) f) Astrology Numerology I Ching Pendulum Runes etc.

As human ind evolves spiritually (and in other ways) so too the Tarot evolv es. Ta e for example the reconstruction of The Chariot (Arcanum VII) and The Dev

il (Arcanum XV) cards by Levi. He gave them a new presentation based upon his ad vanced nowledge at the time. Also, note how The Lovers (Arcanum VI) has changed from earlier dec s. It still has the same basic meaning, but the symbols have c hanged. No longer are there two women...one good one bad...with the man in betwe en...now it is two people with an Angel above them. New Tarot dec s continue to be made as our nowledge and understanding evolves. A note on The Boo of Thoth, Aleister Crowley's Tarot dec , is as seen by hi m from the Astral Plane. This is why it is so different from many dec s; why it is so stri ing; and, why the energy felt has such strong effects upon many peopl e. Some cards come and go....there are more cards on the astral plane than we h ave on the physical....between the cards, above and below the cards are others.. .as with the Quaballa. When wor ing with the Tarot if one is in a Magic al State (Asana, etc.) and reads the cards it is a Magic al or Divine (hence the term divination) operation . I ta e the forces into myself when using the cards thus they affect me and I t hem. Because of this nowledge, I respect the Tarot as a Living Thing/Force and I do not bother it with profane questions. I treat it as a Magic al Weapon and th us with care and respect. Fortune telling, while not wrong, is the profane use o f the cards. Contemplation of the cards is useful; without Divination, however, one could not experience the forces within them in the same way. Also, there are hidden u ses for the Tarot. The Tarot is indeed a Teacher. It is also a door, a gateway, an entryway into other realms which is partly how it was used in Egyptian Initia tion Rites. We may use it in some of the ways listed below: 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) Scrying/meditation Ritual (invocation and evocation) Wor s/spells Talisman use/focus Divination

Some of the goals of initiates (after perfecting divination and the Tarot's philosophy) are 1) to read with a blan dec and to use a spread with no set mea nings, and 2) to develop one's own Astral Dec . Magic (in Theory and Practice), Crowley's famous boo , calls Divination an important branch of Magic , and defines it thusly: 1. "We postulate the existence of intelligence's, either within or without the diviner, of which he is not immediately conscious. (It does not matter to the th eory whether the communicating spirit so-called is an objective entity or a conc ealed portion of the diviner's mind.) We assume that such intelligence's are abl e to reply correctly - within limits- to the questions as ed." 2. "We postulate that it is possible to construct a compendium of hieroglyphs s ufficiently elastic in meaning to include every possible idea, and that one or m ore of these may always be ta en to represent any idea. We assume that any of th ese hieroglyphs will be understood by the intelligence's with whom we wish to co mmunicate in the same sense as it is by ourselves. We have therefore a sort of l anguage...." 3. "We postulate that the intelligence's whom we wish to consult are willing, o r may be compelled, to answer us truthfully."

He goes on to discuss divination as shown in some of the quotes below: "In a system of divination each symbol stands for a definite idea." "As regards the Holy Quaballa, based as it is on pure number, (it) evidently possesses an infinite number of symbols. Its scope is conterminous with existenc e itself; and it lac s nothing in precision, purity, or indeed any other perfect ion. But it cannot be taught, each man must select for himself the materials for the main structure of his system." "It is always essential for the diviner to obtain absolute magical control ov er the intelligence's of the system which he adopts." "Experience is the only teacher. One acquires what one may almost call a new sense. One feels in one's self whether one is right or not. The diviner must dev elop this sense." "In order to divine without error, one ought to be a Master of the Temple. Th e faintest breath of personal preference will deflect the needle from the pole o f truth in the answer." "One must prepare oneself by general purification and consecration devised wi th the object of detaching oneself from one's personality and increasing the sen sitiveness of one's faculties." "The muscles with which he manipulates the apparatus of divination must be en tirely independent of any volition of his. He must lend them for the moment to t he intelligence whom he is consulting." (note: one of the first steps in divination is the invo ing of the Angel HRU) "He must have succeeded in destroying the tendency of the ego to interfere wi th the object of thought. He must be able to conceive of a thing out of all rela tion with anything else." "He should allow the question entire freedom to ma e for itself its own prop er lin s with the intelligence directing the answer." "He must sin his personality in that of the intelligence hearing the questio n propounded by a stranger to whom he is indifferent, but whom it is his busines s to serve faithfully." "He should exhaust the intellectual sources of information at his disposal, a nd form from them his judgment. But having done this, he should detach his mind from what it has just formulated, and proceed to concentrate it on the figure as a whole, almost as if it were the object of his meditation." "The concluding operation is therefore to obtain a judgment of the figure, in dependent of all intellectual or moral restraint. One must endeavor to apprehend it as a thing absolute in itself." "Divination is in one sense an art entirely separate from that of Magic ; yet it interpenetrates Magic at every point. The fundamental laws of both are iden tical. The right use of divination has already been explained: but it must be ad ded that proficiency therein, tremendous as is its importance in furnishing the Magician with the information necessary to his strategic and tactical plans, in no wise enables him to accomplish the impossible. It is not within the scope of divination to predict the future with the certainty of an astronomer in calculat

ing the return of a comet. There is always much virtue in divination." "One must not assume that the oracle is omniscient." "The Magician ought therefore to ma e himself master of several methods of di vination; using one or the other as the purpose of the moment dictates. He shoul d ma e a point of organizing a staff of such spirits to suit various occasions. These should be 'familiar' spirits, in the strict sense; members of his family." "Divination of any ind is improper in matters directly concerning the Great Wor itself. In the Knowledge and Conversation of his Holy Guardian Angel, the a dept is possessed of all he can possibly need. To consult any other is to insult one's Angel." "Although the adept is in daily communication with his Angel, he ought to be careful to consult Him only on questions proper to the dignity of the relation. One should not consult one's Angel on too many details, or indeed on any matters which come within the office of one's familiar spirits. One does not go to the King about petty personal trifles. The romance and rapture of the ineffable unio n which constitutes Adeptship must not be profaned by the introduction of common place cares." Thus we may use Divination for those worthy questions which we need answered but cannot find out in any other way...either through our own research or by the contacting of one's Holy Guardian Angel. If we can attain the necessary magic a l states discussed above and if we complete the necessary study and wor which h e suggests, we can become masters of Tarot Divination.

. Magical thin ing is a psychological term for ma ing a naive assumption of caus e and effect without consideration of intervening mechanisms. In plain English, it is the assumption that if I do THIS, then THAT will happen even though I have no idea how or why. Prominent examples of magical thin ing can be found in Econ omics (if we cut taxes on the Corporations, they will invest more money in upgra ding their production facilities and create more jobs) and Politics. It is typic al of the world-view of very young children, who have a somewhat simplistic mode l of How-Things-Wor . . To many outsiders, most Magic seems to be built on this basis...some guy mutt ers some weird words and waves his hands and expects to get a lot of money soon (sounds li e a Management Consultant, come to thin of it), or to ma e it rain, or to be rid of an enemy. Then they sha e their heads, call the Magic -users chi ldren or worse, and go on with their lives. . Within real Magic -use, this sort of sloppy thin ing can lead to anything from disappointing 'fizzles' to disastrous misfires of spells. Our cultural heritage 's are filled with "mon ey's paw" type stories of the results of ill-thought-out Magic use. While dilettante New Agers are more li ely to blindly 'coo boo ' a spell or ritual, some of us have been nown to s ip a few steps in the process a s well. . Just thin of the consequences of invo ing Diana or Aphrodite in a ritual desi gned to " eep those foolish women in their place." (Anyone remember "Good-bye, C harlie"?) . While I am not saying that you need to understand the physics/chemistry/etc. o f each step down to the subatomic level, I am suggesting that you thin through

The Dangers Of Magical Thin ing In Magic Nihasa

each step and each mechanism (and li ely consequences) of any major wor ing BEFO RE you perform it. A blac -box understanding (detailed nowledge of the inputs a nd outputs of a mechanism and the relationship between them without an understan ding of the internal details of the mechanism) is usually enough for mot purpose s. For instance, if invo ing or evo ing a deity, ma e sure you now the strength s, wea nesses, character, and personality of that deity. If using herbs (ingeste d or in balms or incense) be sure you now the pharmacological and combinational effects of each. Most of all, when going for a long-term effect thin of the ec ology of that effect: where it can come from and what it may causelater. You can 't always anticipate all side effects, and you certainly can't always avoid them , but with a bit of wor you can give yourself a shot at handling them. . Do a reality chec before you start a wor ing. If you just pay attention to th e beginning (the ritual or wor ing) and the end (the desired effect) and leave t he rest to wishful thin ing, you are as ing for trouble. . NOTE: The above is an excerpt of a 1988 seminar on Magic and Psychology: Insi ghts and Interactions. .

Satanism As Media Hype News article: From the Phoenix Gazette 24 June, 1989 SCAPEGOAT: Satanism scare is mostly hype, expert on cults says.... by Michell e Bearden Judging by Satan's popularity in news accounts and police reports these days, you'd thin Satan had been elected to Congress or won the Pulitzer Prize. But it 's not true, says J. Gordon Melton, director of the Institute for the Study of A merican Religion in Santa Barbara, Calif. and one of the country's leading exper ts on cults. In fact, there is no surge at all in Satan's popularity. "The only surge we're seeing is the spread if mis-information," Melton says. "Malicious, s uspicious, and ritualistic acts are being attributed to satanism, and people are buying into it." Melton has launched a one-man crusade to get what he considers the truth out t o the public. Using an extensive survey he completed in 1986 as his guide - "The Evidences of Satan in Contemporary America" - Melton ma es his case frequently before groups and in interviews. Most misinformation regarding satanism comes ou t of police agencies, Melton maintains. That's because, in the absence of true s atanic groups, law officials have to blame "something concrete," he says. "What we've got is creation of imagination, paranoia, and general ignorance," Melton says. "We've got wild speculation and jumps in logic. What we don't have is the truth. One story perpetuates another, and, before long, 'experts' in poli ce departments are conducting seminars on a topic they don't really understand." At the Phoenix Police Department, police spo esman Andy Hill says the agency a nalyzes every incident that has satanic overtones. He blames a majority of these crimes on " ids caught up in experimentation." "It's safe to say that most of i t isn't hard-core. We're usually dealing with copycat crimes," he says. " I woul dn't consider satanism a big problem here in Phoenix. We now it exists, but it' s more underground than anything else." According to Melton, only three established satanic cults exist: The Church of Satan, a San Francisco based group headed by founder Anton LaVey; a splinter gr oup, the Temple of Set, also in San Francisco and headed by Michael Aquino; and

the Church of Satanic Liberation in New Haven, Conn., led by Paul Douglas Valent ine. Total membership in all three groups is "probably less than 3,000," Melton says. Those followers are the true satanists, and their numbers haven't varied m uch in the last two decades, he says. Many of the acts blamed on satanism are committed by teenagers who are bound t ogether b drugs and violence rather than demons. While they may use satanic imag ery in their deeds, Melton says they are "play- acting" the role of worshipping the Prince of Dar ness. "It's true we're hearing a lot of satanic references in today's music, but that's pure commercialism," he says. "Just because your teena ger gets wrapped up in certain roc 'n'roll doesn't mean he's into the occult." Some of the conclusions that support Melton's studies to combat the theory of international satanic conspiracy include: * The existence of a large number of nonconventional religions, such as cults, t hat have nothing to do with occultism, much less satanism. * The growth of witchcraft as a new religion and how it is confused with satani sm. Melton labels contemporary Wicca as a nature religion that places great emph asis upon the preservation of life and non- violence. * Reports of cattle mutilations, which ignore the facts that most are mista en o bservations of predator damage. * The discovery of common symbols, such as an inverted cross, pentagrams, and bl oody altars, which lead investigators to conclude that satanic activity has ta e n place. However, no evidence of any conspiracy involving the idnapping and tra nsportation of children for ritual purposes has emerged. * Fantasies of people who ma e "confessions" of their involvement on satanic cul ts.Typically, they cannot supply independent corroboration of the stories. Moreover, a good portion of the mis-information on satanism - which Melton say s is really a "parody of religion" - comes out of evangelical Christian publishi ng houses. With that bias, "it;s easy to see how misinformation breeds," he says . Melton contends that open satanic groups pose no public threat. If there is c ause for concern, it would be the small, ephemeral satanic groups, mostly consis ting of young adults or teenagers and possibly led by psychopaths or sociopaths. "These are the groups that cause immediate danger to themselves and society at large. That's where police should be concentrating their efforts," he says. "In the meantime, we've got to get out of this satanic mentality and get our labels straight." Why I Don't Believe The "Survivors" Of Occult Groups by Rowan Moonstone Recently on this echo, several people have ta en Pagans to tas for naysaying the Christian sources dealing with former practitioners of various occult discip lines. I have researched this area thoroughly for the past five years. I've boug ht or read all the Christian boo s on the subject that I can get my hands on. I have over 1,000 clippings in the files dealing with this subject, I've got over 100 audio tapes and 20 videotapes on this subject, and I've got reams of Christi an literature, and police training material to draw from. In addition to this, I grew up as a Southern Baptist and was a Sunday School teacher at the age of 16. I now whereof I spea when it comes to Christian sources. I've also been a Witch for nigh on to 8 years now, and have networ ed with oth

er Pagans all across the country, attended festivals in various states, and subs cribed to many Pagan publications both in this country and abroad. I've read man y boo s on modern and ancient Pagan religions, and can furnish a complete biblio graphy for anyone that's interested. After a concentrated search through this material, I must conclude that most o f the allegations of the "survivors" are fabricated and insupportable. In the re st of this report, I will give documented reasons why I believe this to be true. 6-17-82 -Province Victoria Bulletin - "A misunderstanding appeared to be the r oot of a satanic scare in Victoria this wee end, police sources said Wednesday. Police, hospitals and human resources ministry wor ers had gone on the alert fol lowing a report that a satanic group was planning Tuesday to sacrifice a human b aby. The report came through the child abuse prevention HELP line in Vancouver. Victoria police said they had traced the source of the report to a church group in Vancouver. The group apparently had heard rumors of a rise in satanic activit ies in Victoria and had prayed that no atrocities would occur. Somehow someone i nterpreted that to mean that a sacrifice was actually planned, police said. That was the report that got to the HELP line. However, Tuesday passed peacefully wi th no evidence of any satanic activity. " 5-4-86 - New Yor Times-" Derry Knight told an astonishing story about his mem bership in a secret Satanic cult called the Sons of Lucifer and his heroic effor ts to ta e over the leadership of the cult to free himself and 2,000 members fro m the coils of the devil. As he told it, it was an incredibly dangerous mortal s truggle he was waging against the most evil forces in the universe, personified by some prominent politicians, including Viscount Whitelaw, the deputy Prime Min ister, who were, he said, the secret masters of Britain's Satanic orders ... In little more than a year, before Mr. Knight's activities aroused the suspicions o f Bishop Eric Kemp of Chichester, who called in the police fraud squad, the supp ort group contributed at least $313,000 to the anti-Satanism struggle. A jury th at convicted Mr. Knight April 25 of 19 counts of fraud heard that much of the mo ney raised by Mr. Ba er had been spent by his supposedly struggling friend on ca ll girls, fast cars, and a life of dissipation." January 1988 New Yor Fol lore "Satanism, Where are the fol lorists? by Philli ps Stevens, Jr. p 12 ( Mr. Stevens is referring to a murder of a 13-year =old gi rl in this incident) "While preparing me for the taping of some commentary to be aired locally following the National Geraldo Rivera TV special on Satanic cults on October 25, 1988, an investigative reporter for a Buffalo TV station was dis cussing That incident [the murder]. There were 13 people at that party, he said, the murdered girl being the 13th. Since the murder, six of the party goers had committed suicide.....I noted that it was strange that six suicides with such a factor in common had not been reported in the news; how did he now the details? The mother of the most recent suicide had told him. ...I advised him to wait an d chec out the facts before airing this story; he called me a few days later sa ying no, the other suicides could not be confirmed." 1-19-89 Joplin Missouri Globe News (front page) - "Jasper County Sheriff Bill Pierce said he had no figures available on how much time and money that departme nt has spent investigating claims. He cited a November case as an example of the fruitless searches that have been underta en because of claims eventually fount to be false. ...a Blytheville, Ar . woman told authorities there she had watche d satanic cultists cut the stomach of an infant, pour gasoline on the baby, and set it on fire....After agreeing to ta e a polygraph examination, the woman admi tted the story was false. She told deputies she made the false accusations to ge t attention." 3=6=89 - Houston Chronicle - "A Houston -area woman who claims to be a former

satanic priestess and has told audiences she witnessed the ritualistic murder of an 8-year-old Tomball girl has left law enforcement officers frustrated in thei r attempts to investigate her allegations. 'We have no homicide to lin it to. W hy she would ma e those claims and then be hesitant to tal with authorities is reason to question her motives,' Harris County Assistant D.A. Casey O'Brien said " The previous three messages should tell you why I don't believe in the hysteri a being generated. If anyone wants to see the entire articles that these quotes were ta en from, send a SASE with 3 stamps to P. O. Box 1842, Colorado Springs, Co 80901. BB Rowan

"22 Commandments" For The New Age Ann Waldrum 1. You shall learn of Honesty and attempt to heal your fear of it, to use this i n daily living. 2. You shall learn to Love Unconditionally--beginning with yourself. 3. You shall help all people in your worlds come to physical healing. 4. You shall dwell on things of high and pure energy in others and self to chang e Earth. 5. You will learn and practice Pure Service -- unconditional and with love energ y. 6. You will release Judgment into the Void--You will see, identify and choose fo r yourself Only. 7. You will Recognize One God --the God that corresponds to your vision. 8. You will destroy no one in any way -- through gossip -- through illing their gifts -- discouraging self love by injuring the physical body by foreign substa nce -- incorrect foods -- incorrect labor. 9. You will use your mind in the way the Source prepared -- by faithfulness of p rayer -- by study and spiritual growth. 10. You will learn self discipline so that you respond to the Earth with wisdom. 11. You will ta e full responsibility for your own life -- blaming no other. 12. You will see to learn about your God -- seeing the Connection clearly. 13. You will be nown for your Gentleness, your Loyalty, your Kindness, accordin g to your beliefs. 14. You will grow in Peace by change of attitude and understanding of others. 15. You will learn to respond and act from the Highest Center of Inner God -- th e Love Response. 16. You will learn to Love All Man ind by seeing the Highest in all people witho ut exception. 17. You will promote the healing of Mind, Body, and Spirit by teaching and livin g the belief in Man's Divinity. 18. You will show faithfulness in your study of yourself and your persona (mas s ) in order to Free All Parts of Self. 19. You will Live your life as ordained by your faithfulness to the Truth, as yo u understand the Truth. 20. You will Spea in Love, Honesty and Wisdom. 21. You will Thin in Love, Honesty and Wisdom. 22. You will live in Moderation (Balance) in All Areas of your life. The foregoing was delivered on July 20, 1989, through the trance-mediumship o f Carla Neff Gordan by the Spirit Guide "Mary." Mary stated that these ideas wil l also be released through other mediums in six different areas of the world. In preface to these "Commandments" Mary said the following:

"You are a loving, connected community of li e-minded souls assisting through our inner connection. You are becoming a profound source of awa ening for your world. These rules are to open your hearts, to teach you self-love, to calm you r emotion to help you to live in reality that you have wished. To grow, first yo u must become a source of service. There must be a difference in earth because y ou have wal ed here. Now is the time of shifting your energy into a higher place through unconditional love. A part of your purpose is to heal the earth through holy, or wholeness, relationships. You will begin now."

Ris Assessment Within The Craft Community By Weyland Smith There seems to be two schools of thought within the "Craft Community" concer ning the dangers faced by Pagans in general and witches in particular. One schoo l thin s that we are now in the Age of Aquarius and that all danger has passed. The other camp seems to feel that we are beset with dangers and that our only sa fety lies in remaining "the hidden children of the Goddess", telling no one of o ur religious faith (including our fellow practitioners), and being ready to fly or fight on a moment's notice. Who's right? Do we now? Have we even tried to fi nd out? On the one hand, we live in a country with a Bill of Rights. Times have certa inly changed since witchcraft was a hanging offence in Massachusetts. People hav e been nown to proclaim their faith and live unmolested. On the other hand, the re are about 3 million people in the United States who profess themselves to bel ieve that the Bible is the literal word of God. If Leviticus says "Thou shalt no t suffer a witch to live.", then there should be 3 million people out there read y to drag me out of my house and ill me. Fortunately, the answer does not lie with either extreme and therefore our re action should li ewise avoid either extreme position. We live in a world beset b y dangers. We could be in a traffic accident. We could have our house burglarize d. Our child could be abducted on the way home from school. We could be struc b y lightening. Do we stay home, guard the house and family and avoid living? Of c ourse not! What we DO is to act in such a way as to recognize the ris s we run and to mi nimize them. We try to live in reasonably safe neighborhoods. We eep good loc s on our doors. We drive defensively and wear seat belts. We teach our children t o run from threatening situations. This isn't paranoia, just good sense. Is there any danger that we as witches and pagans might be subjected to anot her violent suppression? Any Jew with an eye to recent history would tell you th at of course there is! Is that danger great here in this country? Not at present , but we do live in a world subject to rapid changes. Within my lifetime, people of Japanese extraction in this country were summarily rounded up and shipped of f to remote camps. This action was contested all the way up to the Supreme Court to no avail. So what should we do? Well for a start, recognize that there is SOME residual ris whenever anyone ta es an ethical position. We must understand that this ris is present whether we thin it should be so or not. Further, we must each decide what level of haza rd we are personally willing to run and to which we would subject our families.

Finally, we should avoid doing anything which might subject ourselves and those around us to ris s when such ris s are avoidable. Especially, we should respect one another's right to manage his own dangers. Just because I choose to ta e a r is doesn't give me the right to endanger you! Should we return to living our lives under perpetual cover? I hope not. But I do respect the individual rights of my brothers and sisters of the Art to each ma e that decision on their own. It is on this middle ground where I suggest we should all try to live for the present.

Supreme Court And Peyote (Articles) The following 13 messages, retrieved from PeaceNet, discuss the recent Suprem e Court ruling permitting states to prohibit sacramental use of peyote. Supreme Court Continues Chipping Away At Citizen's 1st Amendment Rights, Part 1. Excerpts from the following article detailing the April 17th ruling by the US Supreme Court which decided that Native Americans could no longer use peyote in their religious practices: "For all practical purposes, a majority of the Supreme Court has eliminated the Free Exercise clause of the First Amendment from our Bill of Rights," said A merican Jewish Congress Executive Director Henry Siegman. "The court's decision in the peyote case can have the most far- reaching cons equences for all religions, but primarily for religious minorities," continued S iegman. "It is precisely such minorities the Bill of Rights sought to protect, f or it is they who are particularly vulnerable to the depredations of momentary a nd localized majorities." Dr. Robert L. Maddox, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, said the "Smith" ruling is cause for concern... "We are concerned," he continued, "that this ruling will have a negative effe ct on minority religions. Mainstream faiths will probably have little difficulty getting the exemptions they need; smaller groups with less political influence will have a tougher time of it. That is unfortunate. Religious freedom should no t be left to the whim of state and federal lawma ers. "No one wants anarchy in the name of religion," he added, "but do we really w ant more and more government regulation of religion? What bothers us most is the movement away from individual liberty and toward statism--whatever the governme nt wants, goes." [2] The following article appeared in the June 1990 issue of "Church and State", a publication of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, 8120 Fento n St., Silver Spring, MD, 20910, and is reprinted here w/permission. The Day 'Sherbert' Melted by Rob Boston Discarding A 27-Year-Old Test For Religious Liberty Cases, The Supreme Court Says Government May Restrict Religiously Motivated Conduct

Alfred Smith considers himself apolitical; he's not even registered to vote. But, in light of what the Supreme Court did April 17, the 70- year-old Oregonian is ready to jump into politics in a big way. The high court ruled 6-3 that day that Native Americans do not have a constit utional right to use the drug peyote during their religious ceremonies. Smith, o ne of the plaintiffs who helped bring the case before the nation's highest court , is angry enough to ta e his fight to the polls. "I'm encouraging all people to register and vote this year," Smith said. "Thi s is the time for it. I have never voted before because I don't care to condone the system, but I have made a stand here with this case." The political route Smith proposes may be ons are forced to ta e in the future, than s the "Employment Division v. Smith" case. The ift in free exercise jurisprudence, granting ligious practices. one many members of minority religi to the Supreme Court's decision in justices' ruling mar s an abrupt sh government broad new powers over re

What ma es the "Smith" decision so significant is that in reaching it five ju stices voted to abandon the court's doctrine of "compelling state interest," a m ove with far-reaching implications for religious liberty. In a nutshell, the 27-year-old doctrine says that the government can restrict religious freedom only when it proves there is a compelling interest to do so a nd that there is no less intrusive alternative available to achieve the state's goals. The judicial rule grew out of the 1963 "Sherbert v. Verner" decision and is usually called the "Sherbert" Test. In the recent peyote case the court rejected the "Sherbert" standard in favor of a much narrower test, holding that government may offer religiously based ex emptions from generally applicable laws if it chooses, but it is under no consti tutional obligation to do so. Wrote Justice Antonin Scalia for the majority, "We have never held that an in dividual's religious beliefs excuse him from compliance with an otherwise valid law prohibiting conduct that the State is free to regulate." Scalia went on to say that applying the doctrine of compelling state interest in the peyote dispute and similar cases would create "a private right to ignor e generally applicable laws [which would be] a constitutional anomaly." Rigorous application of the "Sherbert" approach, he said, would be "courting anarchy."

Later in the opinion, Scalia admitted that the ruling will force minority rel igious groups to see relief from oppressive laws by lobbying elected officials, and some may fail in their efforts. But he excused this as unavoidable. "It may fairly be said," observed Scalia, "that leaving accommodation to the political process will place at a relative disadvantage those religious practices that are not widely engaged in; but that unavoidable consequence of democratic governmen t must be preferred to a system in which each conscience is a law unto itself or in which judges weigh the social importance of all laws against the centrality of all religious beliefs." The court majority ac nowledged that judicial exemptions from neutral laws ha ve sometimes been granted for religious reasons. But, Scalia argued, such exempt ions have generally been granted in conjunction with another constitutional righ t--such as free speech. He called these examples "hybrids" and implied they are

special cases. Other than that, said Scalia, the only legal disputes where the " Sherbert" analysis has been applied consistently and usefully are unemployment c ompensation rulings, such as the line of decisions approving jobless benefits fo r wor ers who are fired for refusing to wor on their sabbath. Ironically the "Smith" case involved just such an unemployment controversy. I t started in 1984 when Smith, a Klamath Indian, and another man, Galen W. Blac , a non-Indian, were fired from their jobs as drug counselors after the agency th ey wor ed for learned the pair had used the drug peyote during ceremonies in the Native American Church. The Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Treatment (ADAPT) had a poli cy stating that all employees must be drug free. Smith and Blac thought an exem ption would be made for their religious use of peyote, a mild hallucinogen deriv ed from some cactus plants, but ADAPT officials saw things differently: Both men were dismissed. When Smith and Blac subsequently applied for unemployment benefits, they we re turned down. Officials with the state Employment Dvision said the two had bee n fired for misconduct and therefore did not qualify. The duo too the case to t he courts. Four years later the Oregon Supreme Court ruled that the ceremonial use of pe yote is permissible under state law and is even protected by the First Amendment . The Supreme Court's recent action overturns that decision. The "Smith" majority drew upon a somewhat unusual alignment of justices. Scal ia, Chief Justice William Rehnquist and Justices Anthony Kennedy and Byron R. Wh ite were predictable allies. All four have argued for a narrower reading of the First Amendment's religious liberty clauses. Justice John Paul Stevens, however, provided the ey fifth vote. Stevens, oft en thought of as a member of the court's liberal wing, favors a strict separatio nist reading of the Establishment Clause, but has argued in past cases for a les s expansive reading of the Free Exercise Clause. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor concurred in the "Smith" outcome, but wrote a sep arate dissent that accused the majority of going too far. "Although I agree with the result the Court reaches in this case, I cannot join its opinion," asserted O'Connor. "In my view, today's holding dramatically departs from well-settled F irst Amendment jurisprudence, appears unnecessary to resolve the question presen ted, and is incompatible with our Nation's fundamental commitment to individual religious liberty." The free exercise of religion, O'Connor added, is a "preferr ed constitutional activity," entitled to "heightened judicial scrutiny." The "Sh erbert" Test, she continued, has wor ed well to "stri e sensible balances betwee n religious liberty and competing state interests." Justices Harry A. Blac mun, William J. Brennan Jr. and Thurgood Marshall indi cated agreement with O'Connor's opinion, although they said they would have gone further and upheld the Native American Church members' claim. The court's liber al wing criticized the majority for "mischaracterizing this Court's precedents" and engaging in a "wholesale overturning of settled law concerning the Religion Clauses of our Constitution." Wrote Blac mun, "One hopes that the Court is aware of the consequences, and t hat its result is not a product of over-reaction to the serious problems the cou ntry's drug crisis has generated." The justice insisted that ritual peyote use by Native Americans could be tole rated without jeopardizing the nation's campaign to curb drug abuse. He noted th

at the federal government allowed the Roman Catholic Church to employ sacramenta l wine at masses during Prohibition. Said Blac mun, "I do not believe the Founders thought their dearly bought fr eedom from religious persecution a 'luxury,' but an essential element of liberty --and they could not have thought religious intolerance 'unavoidable,' for they drafted the Religion Clauses precisely in order to avoid that intolerance." Even though the case dealt with the sensitive issue of drug use, several reli gious organizations had sided with the Native American Church members, most nota bly the American Jewish Congress, which filed a friend-of-the-court brief in sup port of Smith and Blac . "For all practical purposes, a majority of the Supreme Court has eliminated t he Free Exercise clause of the First Amendment from our Bill of Rights," said AJ C Executive Director Henry Siegman. "The court's decision in the peyote case can have the most far- reaching cons equences for all religions, but primarily for religious minorities," continued Siegman. "It is precisely such minorities the Bill of Rights sought to protect, for it is they who are particularly vulnerable to the depredations of momentary and localized majorities." Three wee s after the decision the AJC and an extraordinarily diverse coaliti on of religious and civil liberties groups filed a petition for rehearing before the Supreme Court. The petition urged the justices to hear the case again so th e organizations will have the opportunity to address their free exercise concern s in friend-of-the-court briefs. Groups joining the AJC include: the Baptist Joint Committee on Public Affairs , the National Council of Churches, the National Association of Evangelicals, Pe ople for the American Way, the Presbyterian Church U.S.A., the American Civil Li berties Union, the Christian Legal Society, the American Jewish Committee, the U nitarian-Universalist Association, the General Conference of the Seventh-day Adv entist Church, the Worldwide Church of God and the Lutheran Church, Missouri Syn od. Americans United for Separation of Church and State also signed the petition . Attorney Oliver S. Thomas of the Baptist Joint Committee said it is important that religious and civil liberties groups have the opportunity to express their views to the court. He said the court's abandonment of the "Sherbert" Test coul d have a wide impact. "Taxation of church assets, regulation of church schools and child- care cent ers, zoning and other land-use questions are all areas of the law where we've re lied upon the compelling state interest test to provide churches with exemptions ," Thomas told the Baptist Press. "With a stro e of his pen, Justice Scalia has overturned 27 years of legal precedent and made the 'first liberty' a constituti onal stepchild." The Rutherford Institute, a conservative legal aid group that frequently liti gates free exercises cases, was also dismayed by the ruling. Said Institute Pres ident John W. Whitehead in a press statement, "Justice Scalia's opinion rejects the notion that free exercise of religion is a preferred right. Rather, in most situations it is valid only when coupled with another constitutional right. "Armed with this opinion, a state may draft a law that violates religious lib erty, claim it is `religiously neutral' and those affected by it may have no rec ourse under the Constitution."

Constitutional scholars were particularly amazed that the majority in the pey ote case relied heavily on "Minersville School District v. Gobitis," a 1940 Supr eme Court decision that said Jehovah's Witness children in public schools could be forced to say the Pledge of Allegiance. "Gobitis" was overturned three years later in the "Barnette" decision and has been roundly criticized ever since as o ne of the court's biggest mista es. Observed Douglas Laycoc , law professor at the University of Texas, "The co urt repeatedly quotes "Gobitis" without noting that it was overruled in "Barnett e," and without noting that it triggered a nationwide outburst of violence again st Jehovah' s Witnesses. Until the opinion in this case, "Gobitis" was thoroughl y discredited." But not all court watchers were chagrined by the ruling. Jules B. Gerard, a c onstitutional law professor at Washington University in St. Louis, told Religiou s News Service there has been a lot of overreaction. Gerard said the decision "o verturns very little" and accused those who have protested it of "hysterical tal ." Bruce Fein, a conservative constitutional scholar, went even further, applaud ing the ruling in a column in "The Washington Times." Fein wrote, "It is both co unter-intuitive and contrary to American political experience to suppose the "Sm ith" ruling portends an epitaph for religious tolerance and accommodation in gen erally applicable legislative enactments. And when religion must yield to secula r law, the former continues to prosper." Fein went on to say that religions can drop fundamental tenets and still surv ive, pointing out that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- day Saints (the Mor mons) in 1890 dumped its support for plural marriage after the Supreme Court ref used to allow the practice for religious reasons. Conservative columnist George Will also was pleased with the "Smith" decisio n. "A central purpose of America's political arrangements is the subordination o f religion to the political order, meaning the primacy of democracy," he observe d. "The Founders, li e Loc e before them, wished to tame and domesticate religio us passions of the sort that convulsed Europe....Hence, religion is to be perfec tly free as long as it is perfectly private--mere belief--but it must bend to th e political will (law) as regards conduct." However, Dr. Robert L. Maddox, executive director of Americans United for Sep aration of Church and State, said the "Smith" ruling is cause for concern. "If a majority of the justices did not believe the Native American Church mem bers had a valid claim, they could have rejected them by relying on the doctrine of compelling state interest," said Maddox. "But a majority chose to go much fu rther, effectively wea ening the protection the court has extended to religious free exercise. "We are concerned," he continued, "that this ruling will have a negative effe ct on minority religions. Mainstream faiths will probably have little difficulty getting the exemptions they need; smaller groups with less political influence will have a tougher time of it. That is unfortunate. Religious freedom should no t be left to the whim of state and federal lawma ers. "No one wants anarchy in the name of religion," he added, "but d we really w ant more and more government regulation of religion? What bothers us most is the movement away from individual liberty and toward statism--whatever the governme nt wants, goes." The decision has already had a practical consequence for one minority faith.

Just six days after the "Smith" ruling, the justices, by a 7-2 vote, ordered the Minnesota Supreme Court to reconsider a recent decision it made exempting an Am ish group from complying with a highway safety law. Members of the Old Order Amish had protested a state law requiring them to di splay orange safety triangles on their horse-drawn buggies. The Amish said the b right symbols violated their belief in a plain lifestyle. The Minnesota high cou rt agreed in 1989, but now may be forced to reverse the "State v. Hershberger" d ecision in light of the "Smith" ruling. In Eugene, Ore., meanwhile, Al Smith has no more faith in the courts. After j oining about 100 people in a protest of the decision that bears his name at a Eu gene federal building April 20, Smith told reporters he is bac ing proposed legi slation suggested by state representative Jim Edmunson of Eugene that would allow Native Americans to use peyote in religio us rituals in Oregon. If that fails, Smith said, the Oregon Supreme Court could decide Native American peyote use is permissible under the state constitution. Smith told "Church & State" he is also wor ing with Native American groups in the United States that are considering filing a protest before the Internationa l Court of Justice (commonly called the World Court) in The Hague, Netherlands. "The United States is saying the original people of this land can't worship," Smith told Church & State. "We were worshipping a long time before the white ma n ever set foot on this turtle island. "The issue is not dead, by no means," continued Smith. "I'm not giving up; I have committed no crime. It's not a crime to pray in the old way." KOYAANISQATSI o.yan.nis.qatsi (from the Hopi Language) n. 1. crazy life. 2.l ife in turmoil. 3. life out of balance. 4. life disintegrating. 5. a state of li fe that calls for another way of living. __________________ Excerpts from the following article analyzing the effects the US Supreme Cour t ruling on the Native American Church's use of peyote as being illegal: -------------------------------Native American church members stripped of their rights under the Constituti on are now subject to the will of the legislative branch of our state and feder al governments. Not an enviable place for Indian people; as a distinct racial an d religious minority Indians have always had an uphill struggle in the halls of Congress and elsewhere to have their rights recognized and respected. The legislative branch of any government is an exceedingly unusual place for individuals to loo to have their rights under the First Amendment vindicated. Courts are traditionally loo ed to as protectors of these rights, against majori tarian legislatures. Justice O'Connor, in a separate concurring opinion which jo ined the result of the majority but sharply criticized its method, reasoned that "the First Amendment was enacted precisely to protect those whose religious pra ctices are not shared by the majority and may be viewed with hostility." As a result of "Smith," minority religions, in Justice Scalia's opinion, may be at a disadvantage in the political arena. But that is, in his estimation, "an unavoidable consequence of democratic government," preferable to "a system in w hich each conscience is a law unto itself." Justice Scalia had to strain to defe nd his decision, citing the need to prevent "anarchy" in our democratic society. Indian

people simply want to be left alone in our society to worship the god of thei r choice. Is that as ing too much? The Court's decision in "Smith" strips Indian s of their pride and integrity, and ma es many of them criminals in the eyes of the law. Only history will judge the Court's decision in "Smith;" but for now th e remote specter of anarchy may very well have been the preferred choice. -----------------------The following article appeared in the Spring 1990 issue of "Native American R ights Fund Legal Review", a publication of the Native American Rights Fund, 1506 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80302, and is reprinted here w/permission. -----------------------Supreme Court Deals Devastating Blow to Native American Church by Steve Moore On Tuesday, April 17, 1990, the United States Supreme Court struc a gut wren ching blow to the religious lives of many of this country's Native Americans, in a decision which invites the return to an era of religious persecution one woul d hope a presumably enlightened and tolerant society such as ours had left behin d. In the case of "Oregon Department of Employment v. Alfred Smith," Justice Ant onin Scalia, writing for a five member majority, and describing the First Amendm ent's Free Exercise Clause as little more than a "negative protection accorded t o religious belief," held that a member of a religious faith may not challenge u nder the free exercise clause of the First Amendment to the United States Consti tution a legislature's criminal enactment of otherwise general application which produces infringement on a particular religious practice. In the "Smith" case t his amounted to a challenge to the constitutionality of an Oregon drug law which the Court Interpreted as a general criminal prohibition on all uses of the drug peyote, considered by Indian members of the Native American Church as an essent ial sacrament, the physical embodiment of the Great Spirit. The Native American Church, which claims over 250,000 members nationwide, and additional Indian practitioners in Canada and Mexico, and which can be traced b ac archaeologically several thousand years in North America, was not absolutely destroyed or driven underground by the Court's action. The Court did not go so far as to rule that any state or federal law exempting the religious, sacramenta l use of peyote was an unconstitutional establishment of religion, at the other end of the religion clauses of the First Amendment. In the Court's terms, a peyo te exemption, while constitutionally *permitted*, is neither constitutionally *r equired* or *prohibited*. A ind of constitutional limbo-land for the Native Ame rican Church and its members. In real terms the decision leaves the fate of the peyote religion to the whim of majoritarian legislatures and Congress. Eleven states currently have exempti ons on the statute boo s protecting the religion; another twelve tie their exemp tion to a federal Drug Enforcement Agency regulation which rests on questionable foundation since the decision. A small handful of states, notably California an d Nebras a, in which are located some of the largest Indian and Native American Church populations, have based their protection on court decisions. The others, and the federal government through Congress, have no statutory or common law pr otection. Indian reservation lands will provide some safe haven from possible pr osecution, given the particular Public Law 280 configuration in any given state, but problems of transportation of the sacrament into Indian country through "il legal" territory will reduce peyote ceremonies to complex and dangerous liaisons .

Native American church members stripped of their rights under the n are now subject to the will of the legislative branch of our state governments. Not an enviable place for Indian people; as a distinct religious minority Indians have always had an uphill struggle in the ngress and elsewhere to have their rights recognized and respected.

Constitutio and federal racial and halls of Co

The legislative branch of any government is an exceedingly unusual place for individuals to loo to have their rights under the First Amendment vindicated. C ourts are traditionally loo ed to as protectors of these rights, against majorit arian legislatures. Justice O'Connor, in a separate concurring opinion which joi ned the result of the majority but sharply criticized its method, reasoned that "the First Amendment was enacted precisely to protect those whose religious prac tices are not shared by the majority and may be viewed with hostility." A noted scholar of Indian law and philosopher, Felix Cohen, was quoted severa l decades ago as saying: "Li e the miner's canary the Indian mar s the shifts fr om fresh air to poison gas in our political atmosphere; and our treatment of Ind ians, even more than our treatment of other minorities, reflects the rise and fa ll in our democratic faith " Cohen's words become even more prophetic after the Court's decision in "Smith." The "Smith" decision may perhaps portend even great er persecution for other forms of Indian religious expression. Examples which co me to mind include: the wearing of long hair by Indian students in public school s, and by Indian prisoners in federal and state prisons; missing school on a reg ular basis for cultural/religious ceremonial purposes; the ta ing of game by Ind ians out season, when not otherwise protected by treaty; burning wood to heat ro c s for sweat- lodge ceremonies, when burning is otherwise outlawed by local ord inance during times of high pollution; and body piercing as part of the Sun Danc e ceremony. If these forms of religious expression are otherwise prohibited by g eneral criminal laws, the First Amendment no longer provides a basis from which to claim protection from religious infringement. As with peyote use, reservation boundaries will provide a buffer from the application of state law, except wher e Public Law 280 legitimizes intrusion. As a result of "Smith," minority religions, in Justice Scalia's opinion, may be at a disadvantage in the political arena. But that is, in his estimation, "an unavoidable consequence of democratic government," preferable to "a system in w hich each conscience is a law unto itself." Justice Scalia had to strain to defe nd his decision, citing the need to prevent "anarchy" in our democratic society. Indian people simply want to be left alone in our society to worship the god of their choice. Is that as ing too much? The Court's decision in "Smith" strips I ndians of their pride and integrity, and ma es many of them criminals in the ey es of the law. Only history will judge the Court's decision in "Smith;" but for now the remote specter of anarchy may very well have been the preferred choice.

The recent U.S. Supreme Court decision regarding the sacramental use of peyo te in Native American religious rites is unfortunate and deeply disappointing. W e support the right of Native Americans to practice their religion as they have for centuries. We concur with Justice Harry Blac mun, who writing for the dissen t, called the decision a "wholesale overturning of settled law concerning the re ligious clauses of our Constitution." The decision jeopardizes the fundamental r ight of all citizens to exercise freedom of religion free from government restra

Statement From Pacific Northwest Church Leaders Who Support Indian Religious Rights Re: Employment Division, State of Oregon v. Al Smith, Galen 8-1213 -----------------

Blac , 8

int. We will continue to wor with Native Americans to help them protect their r eligious rights. The Most Rev. Raymond G. Huthausen Archbishop of Seattle Roman Catholic Archdioc ese of Seattle The Right Rev. Vincent W. Warner, Bishop Episcopal Diocese of Olympia The Most Rev. Thomas Murphy, Coadjutor Archbishop Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle The Rev. John Boonstra, Executive Minister Washington Association of Churches The Rev. Calvin D. McConnell, Bishop United Methodist Church Pacific NW Conferen ce The Rev. W. James Halfa er, Conference Minister Washington-Idaho Conference Unit ed Church of Christ The Rev. Lowell Knutson, Bishop NW Washington Synod Evangelical Lutheran Church In America The Rev. Dr. William B. Cate, President Director Church Council of Greater Seatt le The Rev. Gaylord Hasselblad, Executive Minister American Baptist Churches of the Northwest These church leaders issued an apology to Indians that was carried in the Winter 1988 NAF Legal Review Channeling For Fun And Prophet Farrell J. McGovern Channelling is one of the more popular parts of what is call the "New Age". I t is also one of the most controversial aspects of this movement. To properly channel someone, be it Marylin Monroe, Aliester Crowley (I have b een told this doesn't wor well...) or Devine, one must now something of this p erson. The easiest way is by reading about this person. Autobiographies are the best, of course, but biographies, news reports, or even old photos are almost as good. You need some connection... In Pagandom, and Wicca, popular beings for channelling are various aspects of the God and the Goddess. Again, one must now as much as possible about the Lad y or Lord that you are going to bring into yourself for the enjoyment, edificati on and education of the others in the Circle with you. The most popular source of information on Gods and Goddesses is again in boo s. Since there are many aspects of deities, there is a great deal of literature about these beings. Most of this literature that is over a couple of hundred of years old is usually in the form of Fables or Epics, which have more literary co ntent than reality. One could easily call these wor s Docu-dramas, but they are still fiction. "But..." I hear you as , "How can they channel these beings if all they now about them is fictional?" Well, there seems to be enough consensus on certain de ities, but not on all. But these rituals wor , as anyone who has attended the be autiful "Drawing Down the Moon" ritual of Wicca.

So it seems to me that the idea of a "consensual reality" is created from the energies that all these people put into their concept of whatever God or Goddes s they believe in. There are hundreds of thousands, maybe even millions of peopl e who believe in Cerwdwin, Eris, Hecate, Cherenous, and others. But...are there not also millions of people who believe in Captain James T. Kir ? Arthur Dnt? Ca twoman? Batman? Smurfs?.....or even Peewee Herman? Imagine some Circle performing the Drawing Down The Moon ceremony, and due to a lac of concentration by the priestess, she channels, not Athena, but Marry T yler-Moore?!?!?!? Or the priest channeling PeeWee Herman?!?!?! We shall leave the further exploration of this to some experimental coven...b ut please! If you manage to channel Papa Smurf....we DON'T want to hear about it ! Bibliography Of Magic In Science Fiction Magenta Griffith Abbey, Lynn Daughter Of The Bright Moon The Guardians Anderson, Poul Operation Chaos Mermaid's Children

Blish, James Blac Easter

Crowley, Aleister DeCamp, L. Sprague & Fletcher Pratt DeLint, Charles Eddings, David

Diary of a Drug Fiend Moonchild The Complete Enchanter, Wall of Serpents Moonheart Pawn of Prophecy Queen of Sorcery Magician's Gambit Castle of Wizardry Enchanter's Endgame Omega Sea Priestess Moon Magic Winged Bull The Goat Foot God Too Many Magicians Murder and Magic Lord D'Arcy Investigates Stranger in a Strange Land Waldo & Magic Inc. Deryni Rising

Farrar, Stewart Fortune, Dion

Garrett, Randall

Heinlein, Robert A Kurtz, Katherine

Bradley, Marion Z Tower

Dar over series, especially The Forbidden

Deryni Chec mate High Deryni Lammas Night LeGuin, Ursula K Lovecraft, H. P. A Wizard of Earthsea The Shadow out of Time At the Mountains of Madness The Strange Case of Charles Dexter Ward Dreamrider Witch World Series Brisingamen

Miesel, Sandra Norton, Andre Paxton, Diana

Bibliography Of Magic In Science Fiction (cont.) Magenta Griffith S y, Kathleen Tol ien, J.R.R Walton, Evangeline

Witchdame The Hobbit Lord of the Rings

Island of the Mighty Song of Rhiannon Prince of Annwn The Children Of Lyr Wilson, Robert Anton & Illuminatus! Trilogy Robert Shea Zelazny, Roger Chronicles of Amber

Modified Assyrian Protection Spell Ban! Ban! Barier That None Can Pass, Barrier Of The Gods, That None May Brea , Barrier Of Heaven and Earth That None Can Change, Which No God May Annul, Nor God Nor Man Can Loose, A Snare Without Escape, Set for Evil, A Net Whence None Can Issue Forth, Spread for Evil, Whether It Be evil Spirit, or evil Fiend, or Hag-Demon, or Ghoul, or Robber-Spri te, Or Phantom, or Night-Wraith, or Handmaid of the Phantom, Or Evil Plague, or Fever-Sic ness, or Unclean Disease, Or That Which May Do Harm in Any Form or Fashion Which Hath Attac ed the Shining Waters of Ea, May the Snare of Ea Catch It; Or Which Hath Assailed the Meal of Nisaba, May the Net of Nisaba Entrap It; Or Which Hath Bro en The Barrier Let Not the Barrier of the Gods, The Barrier of Heaven and Earth, Let It Go Free; Or Which Reverenceth Not the Great Gods, May the Great Gods Entrap It, May the Great Gods Curse It;

Or Which Attac eth the House, Into a Closed Dwelling May They Cause It To Enter; Or Which Circleth Round About, Into a Place Without Escape May They Bring It; Or Which is Shut In By the House Door, Into a House Without Exit May They Cause It To Enter; With Door and Bolt, a Bar Immovable, May They Withhold It; Or Which Bloweth In at the Threshhold and Hinge, Or Which Forceth a Way Through Bar and Latch, Li e Water May They Pour It Out, Li e a Goblet May They Dash It to Pieces, Li e a Tile May They Brea It; Or Which Passeth Over The Wall, Its Wing May They Cut Off; Or Which Lieth in a Chamber, Its Throat May They Cut; Or Which Loo eth In at a Side Chamber, Its Face May They Smite; Or Which Muttereth In a Chamber, Its Mouth May They Shut; Or Which Roameth Loose In an Upper Chamber, With a Basin Without Opening May They Cover It; Or Which at Dawn is Dar ened, At Dawn To a Place of Sunrise May They Ta e It. Out With You! Spirits of Fear, Spirits of Death! Give Way to the Sun and the Moon! For This is a Place Made Safe! Bright Blessings and Peace Upon Us! And All Who Reside Here, Let None Enter Here Unbidden, Keep Harm and Fear Far from This Place, May God and Goddess Bless Us! So Mote It So! So Mote It Be! "This should be performed on the night of the full moon, and is a very intric ate spell. All portals and doorways should be open, including closet doors and w indows, Then, as you start, close every closet and cabinet door, ma ing the sign of the banishing pentacle with your wand, your athame, or your hand (a stic of patchoili incense may be substituted). Music should be light. Use a goodly amou nt of commanding incense as well as patchouli and sandalwood. Once you have done the closets and cabinets, go from window to window outlining the banishing pent agram on each one, and close AND LATCH each window. Remember to close and latch your fireplace, as well, perhaps burning some incense there. Once the windows ar e secured, do inside doors, then when you reach the entry ways, state the last t en lines. If performed correctly, you will notice the difference in atmospheres from the outside compared to the inside, the moment you wal into the house or a partment." --Avon, Sysop, Sanctuary BBS O ay, that's how I got it. Here's what happened when we performed it. I had pulled one of my partners into this with me, and we did it the night aft er the full moon, being as how we didn't get home in time the night OF the full moon (being across town and having to stay the night as our friends were very ti red). We also didn't use patchouli incense, as I disli e it, opting for sandalwo od instead with the commanding incense. Several times, though I had tal ed to sa

id partner about what to do when I was spea ing, I still had to pause in the rec itation to tell him what to do. So, there were brea s in concentration. WITH ALL THIS, we still got an apartment that feels much happier. This building, just si nce we moved in a year and a half ago, has seen an axe murder on the lower floor , a shooting on the upper floor where we are, two police brea -ins on drug raids , several shootings in the bac alley, and two stabbings on the sidewal near th e building. Bad vibes. Now it's better. Here's the downfalls--if you can call them that. This is supposed to, at least how I interpret it, clear out EVERYTHING in your house to start fresh. We had a ghost cat before. We still have her now. Also, w e now have two dar brown, heavily fanged...THINGS...hovering in my itchen, wor shipping my fridge. You thin I'm idding. I'm not. Scared the hell out of me wh en I first noticed them; eventually, I bro e down and went into the itchen. Whe n they didn't attac , I moved near the fridge. "It's a refrigerator," I said. Th ey gave bac a sort of sub-vocal "Wow..." I opened said fridge. "It's still a fr idge," I said. They loo ed in; seemed even more impressed. I have NO idea why. A lso, once I loo ed down from my computer, feeling watched, and noticed another d ar brown thing, all rags and big feet and big eyes. His whole being radiated sh oc and surprise when I loo ed down; again, I caught a sort of sub-vocal "WHAT? ?!!??", and he vanished. Poof. That's been it, but it's interesting. Did these s lip in due to the changes or due to the lac of concentration? No harmful thing is in this apartment now; of that I'm sure. So how are these new residents expla ined? Anyway, that's it. Hope you have fun with it... :> Rosicrucianism Julia Phillips Esoteric Legend: the Rosicrucians were founded by Pharoah Thothmes III in the fifteenth century BC. The Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne was said to have founde d a Rosicrucian lodge at Toulouse in the 9th century AD, and in 898 AD a second lodge was founded. Around 1000 AD a group of heretical Catholic mon s establishe d the first Rosicrucian college which flourished until the 16th century. It has also been claimed that the Brotherhood of the Rose Cross was founded by Templars after their order was disbanded by Pope Clement. Historical story: The Fama Fraternitatis appeared in 1614 (written in 1610), d escribing the foundation and purpose of the Society (Brotherhood) of the Rose Cr oss. This related that a Father CRC, born in 1378, a German, poor but from a ric h and noble family, made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. He remained at Damascus thro ugh ill-health, and studied there. He later travelled to Damcar, where he was tr ained by the Arabs, and translated the boo "M" into the Latin tongue. He then t ravelled to Fez, and after two years to Spain, where meeting with ridicule, he r eturned to Germany. After five years he called three of his bretheren to him, bound them by an oat h, and then founded the "Fraternity of the Rose Cross". They later initiated ano ther four members, and decided to spread the word to other countries. Their by-l aws were that they should heal the sic without charge; wear the clothes of the country they visited; every year upon a certain date should meet, or be represen ted, in the "House of the Holy Spirit"; each should search for a worthy replacem ent for when he dies; that the letters R.C. would be their mar ; that the Order would remain secret for 100 years. It was later also decided that burial places would be ept a secret. It is nown that Johann Valentin Andreae, a German theologian, wrote at least

one of the so-called Rosicrucian documents, but how much can be laid at his door is not nown. It is also an esoteric legend (with some grounds in fact) that wh ilst an historical character called Andraea did in fact exist, that the Rosicruc ian writings attributed to that person were in fact the wor of Sir Francis Baco n. The three major objects of the Rosicrucian Fraternity are: 1) The abolition of all monarchical forms of government and the substitution t herefor of the rulership of the philosophic elect. (This demonstrates that the R ociscrucians are, in fact, Platonic, despite their proclaiming themselves Christ ians.) 2) The reformation of science, philosophy and ethics. (Material arts and scien ces are shadows of the divine wisdom; only by penetrating the mysteries of natur e can man attain reality and understanding.) 3) The discovery of the Universal Medicine, or panacea, for all forms of disea se. In 1646 Elias Ashmole and astrologer William Lilly founded a Rosicrucian lodge in London based upon a utopian ideal of the creation of a new Atlantis. SPRING EQUINOX 1990 Circle cast by the HP Old God: Young God: Earth: Air: Fire: Water: HP Priest Priest Priest Priestess Priestess

Everyone else may choose to ta e the role of an animal of their choice. Young God is blindfolded and bound (three cords), and stands in the middle of th e circle. Everyone else holds hands, and circles around deosil chanting: Io Pan! Io Pan! Io Pan Pan Pan! until HPS changes the chant to the E os; finish arms up. HPS and Priestess ma e an archway, which everyone else passes through, moving as their chosen animal, chanting, "chop, chop, chop, chop etc." Every so often, HP S and Priestess drop their arms around one person, and whenever they "capture" o ne of the four elements, they hold them and the chanting stops. A riddle is then as ed by each of the elements: Air: What is whispered on the wind? Fire: What is the iss of fire? Water: What is the secret of the serpent? Earth: What lies at the centre of the labyrinth? If Young God answers satisfactorily, a cord is removed. The blindfold is removed last. When the blindfold has at last been removed, HP will step forward to pres ent the wand to arm the Young God. HP says:

"You are now come to your manhood, and must be armed. Will you accept the wand, this symbol of your power?" Young God: "I will" HP: "Then you must ta e it from me!" And so saying, runs away. Young God catches him, and they fight for the wand. Yo ung God wins, and holds the wand aloft in triumph. Young God and HPS then perform ca es and wine. BELTANE 1987 Coven of the Serpent's Eye Declamation: Invocation of the Young God: Invocation of the May Queen: Responses to the invocations: The Blessing of Love: The Union of God and Goddess: The Beltane Charge: Temple set up as follows: Altar set up, and ritual weapons as usual One extra sword One extra chalice of wine and dish of ca es Candles and incense Maypole in the centre of the Temple Green Cord Roles: HPS#1 HPS#2 PS#1 PS#2 PS#3 PS#4 HP#1 HP#2 Blessing the Union Invocation to the God The May Queen Swordbearer Swordbearer Handmaiden Declamation, invocation to the May Queen and Blessing the Union The Young God Casting the Circle: All present will be purified and consecrated, and the circle will be cast by the HPS and HP. The HPS and HP will as everyone to assist in the invocation to the quarters. Those who have athames should collect them from the altar at this point. After the Northern Quarter has been invo ed, the group should all face centre while the HPS performs the invocation to Spirit. Rufus Harrington Prudence Jones Rufus Harrington Paul Greenslade and Jac y Salter H. Rider Haggard Rufus Harrington and Julia Phillips Julia Phillips

This completes the casting of the circle. THE RITUAL The ritual will commence with a meeting dance. Everyone should lin hands (male/female as far as possible), and move slowly in a deosil motion following the chants initiated by the HP and HPS. When she feels the time is right, the HPS will brea the circle, and lead everyone in a meeting dance, where each man and woman iss as they pass. When everyone has greeted one another, the circle will be re-formed by the HPS, and finish with the EKO chant. HP#2 and PS#1 will stand at the maypole, facing the altar. HPS#2 will stand at the altar facing them, and the rest of the group will seat themselves around the maypole in a horseshoe shape, with the end nearest the altar left "open". HP#1 will read the declamation: Deep within the dream of silence Blood and passions born beyond, Gather at the serpent's calling, Echo to its siren song. For deep within the cauldron's dar ness Two hearts ache to join as one, Must answer to the serpent's laughter; Dance within its spiral song. For blood is called, and passions gather: Drum beat rhythms call the blood To dance the paths of passion's power, To sing for joy, for life, for love. Within the shadows of a clearing Deep within the silent green, Revealed through a veil of moonlight, Caught beside a crystal stream. A woman from the land of beauty Dances in the silver light, Entranced within a web of silver Woven by the serpent's light. The serpent's laughter, song of shadows, Echoes through the spinning web, Weaving dreams with songs of silver, Calling sacred fires long dead. Within her body, flames awa en Beauty and her passions need Power and a desperate yearning, Calling to the serpent's seed. Within the ancient forest shadows, Roots and boughs that weave and dream, re-echo to the serpent's laughter, Weaving webs of dancing green. The serpent's song now calls the Hunter;

Beast Lord, Master of the Woods. Calls the Stag Lord from the shadows, Woodland's Master, Lord of Love. She dances now, her passions spiral, Calls her love into the night; He flies upon the wings of laughter, Led on by her silver light. Flesh and sinew, man and muscle, Loins that ache now hear her call. She hears the Hunter's horn of power, Hears his cry and hunting call. The Stag Lord stal s within the clearing, She turns to flee, but cannot run. Transformed she spreads herself for passion, Calling with her silver song. Both their bodies rage with passions, Beasts now dance within their blood. Their eyes now flash with love's own lightning As flesh now indles warm for love. Her thighs remember mothers' movements, Moments from her mother's birth, Cries of silver golden laughter Plough within the fertile earth. Their song and cry a single moment, Pain, and yet a single joy, As Earth unites a single sunlight Lust fulfilled, reborn as joy. HPS#2 will now perform invocation to the Young God: God of God of Thee I Thee I the meadow, God of the hill, the sap and of our true will: invo e as Spring awa es, invo e as the blossom brea s.

Come young God, come come with the fire, Lissome and leaping, alive with desire. Come with the pipe and come with the drum, With the heartbeat's pounding, come God come! O see er of joy, O hunter of pleasure, Come enter the ring, tread the pagan measure. Be here in Thy servants, be here in Thy Priests, Be here in the flesh, and join in the feast! Io Pan, Io Pan, Io Pan Pan Pan, etc. Young God responds: "Response" HP#1 will now perform the invocation to the Goddess as May Queen:

"Invocation to Goddess" May Queen Goddess responds: I who am the fragrant spring air, And the soft breeze that refreshes the earth; The cool spring rain, the sudden shower That nourishes the earth. The source of all joy and love, The Goddess of all new beginnings, Answer your call, And once more I wal upon the earth. See for me; I am all around you. HPS#2 will now ac nowledge the arrival of the God and Goddess: Spring has sprung! The God has made the world seem young again. The blossom blows, The Goddess lets the world now joy again. May Queen now brea s away from the God, and he must chase and capture her. (Anyt hing spo en at this point should be spontaneous). The group should form a spiral from the maypole, going out to a circle, leaving a space between each person fo r the May Queen and Young God to pass in and out in their "love chase". While th is goes on, the group should play tambourine, bodrhun, bells and Abo stic s in a lively rhythym. The God should eventually capture the Goddess through his reali sation that hunting is not the way to her heart! They should embrace and iss, and then neel to receive their crowns: PS#2 and PS#3 will collect these from the a ltar, and place the crown of flowers on the Goddess' head, and the crown of leav es upon the God's head. PS#2 and PS#3 should then collect the swords from the al tar, and stand either side of the altar holding the blades of the swords down. P S#4 should collect a bouquet of flowers, and present these to the Goddess. The G od and Goddess should now lead PS#4 and the rest of the group around the Temple in a simulation of their journey to the Blessing of their Union. At a given signal, PS#2 and PS#3 will stand in the North, and ma e an archway wi th their swords through which the God, Goddess and Handmaiden will pass. As they do so, HP#1 says: Hail to our King and Queen! For love fulfills an ancient law, Born before the Gods and Men, Decreed of old when all was still. HPS#1 and HP#1 will be standing at the altar, and the God and Goddess will neel to receive the blessings of their predecessors (ie, the God and Goddess of the previous cycle). The Goddess will hand her bouquet to the Handmaiden, who will r eplace it upon the altar. HPS#1 reads the Blessing of Love: Love is li e a flower in the desert. It is li e the aloe of Arabia that blooms but once and dies; It blooms in the salt emptiness of life, and the brightness of its beauty is set upon the waste as a star is set upon a storm. It hath the sun above that is th e spirit, and about it blows the air of its divinity. There is only perfect flower in the wilderness of Life: That flower is love!

There is only one fixed light in the mists of our wanderings: That light is love! There is only one hope in our despairing night: That hope is love! All else is false. All else is shadow moving upon water. All else is wind and va nity. Who shall say what is the weight or measure of love? It is born of the flesh, it dwelleth in the spirit. From each doth it draw its c omfort. For beauty it is as a star. Many are its shapes but all are beautiful, and none now whence that star rose, or the horizon where it shall set. And I say unto you, that every man and woman is a star, and therefore, every man and woman is love. HP#1 and HPS#1 perform the Blessing of the Union. HP#1 says: Dancers to the Gods of Love, We bless you in these sacred signs: [Perform blessings, loosely bind hands with cord] Spread your blessing on the land, Fulfill with love the ancient law: Fruit and corn for man and beast, And love for evermore. [remove cord] HP#1 and HPS#1 assist the God and Goddess to rise with a iss. PS#2 and PS#3 replace their swords upon the altar, and pic up a dish of ca es a nd a chalice of wine. They hand the wine to the God, and the ca es to the Goddes s, saying: Please bless this food and wine into our bodies, bestowing health, wealth, love and compassion, and that deep joy which is the nowledge of Thee. They step bac while the God and Goddess bless the wine and ca es. The "Io Evohe " chant is initiated by HPS#1 and HP#1, and everyone else joins in. (Note: this is a joyful celebration of the good things of the Earth which the God and Goddes s provide for us, so the chant should be lively.) The Handmaiden then steps forw ard to receive a ca e, and a sip of wine. She is followed by PS#2 and PS#3, and then the rest of the group ending with HPS#1 and HP#1, who ta e the wine and ca es, and offer them to the God and Goddess, then replace them upon the altar. The God and Goddess now embrace around the maypole, and everyone ta es a ribbon (male/white, female/red) to dance around. Minstrel now plays the maypole dance, and everyone begins: men go in a widdershins direction, female in a deosil one. The dancers go under the first person, over the next, under the next, and so on until the ribbons are used up. The dancers must then unwind the maypole, so everything is reversed (tip: eep watching your own ribbon!) After the dance has ended, Young God and May Queen are released from the

Maypole (!), and they read the Beltane Charge: YG MQ YG MQ YG MQ YG MQ YG MQ YG/MQ I am the burning flame of inspiration Bringing light and life to the world: I am the burning flame of love Which creates light and life in the world: I am the rushing stream, sweeping all before me: I am the deepest ocean, ta ing all within me: I am the swiftest wind that carries the seed:

I am the mighty mountain which caresses the stars: I am the smallest leaf which falls in the forest glade: I am He! The Lord of Life and Death; The Keeper of the Gates, the Hunter and the hunted: I am She! Queen of the dar ness and the light; Guardian of the Veil, the Mystery of Creation: Together we stand, and in the power of our love shall the wheel turn.

They now perform Ca es and Wine - servers step forward to assist.

The Feast TO END THE RITUAL

HPS#1 READS THE BLESSING PRAYER

All ta e their athames, and support the HP and HPS as they than , and bid farewe ll to the Quarter Guardians. Formal Grounding of the Power. All present ma e their farewells to each other, and leave the Temple. C A N D L E M A S

1 9 8 7

Coven of the Serpent's Eye Declamation: Invocation of the Mother: Rufus Harrington Paul Greenslade

I am the gentlest breez which

isses the land:

Response of the Mother: Adapted by Prudence Jones from an original by Vivianne Crowley Invocation to the Crone: Response of the Crone: Welcome to Spring: Welcome to the Virgin: Dance of the Elements: Phillips Initiate's Ceremony of Illumination: Charge of Brigid's Fire: Rufus Harrington Julia Phillips Mi e Pinder Prudence Jones Prudence Jones and Julia Adapted by Julia Phillips from traditional Gardnerian source Adapted by Rufus Harrington

Temple set up as follows: Veil across northern quarter Altar set up, and ritual weapons as usual Candles and incense Cauldron in centre of Temple Brighid Doll Sistrum White sil veil for Virgin Wrist and an le bells for each Priestess Large white candle, placed in cauldron Symbols of the elements: One athame (or dagger) } One wand } These should be placed ready One chalice } upon a small altar, One pentacle } adjacent to the main altar One blac egg }

Roles: HPS-1 HPS-2 PS-1 HPS-3 HP-1 HP-2 PS-2 PS-3 PS-4 PS-5 Goddess - Crone Aspect Goddess - Mother Aspect Goddess - Virgin Aspect Spirit Declamation and Invocation to Crone Invocation to Mother Eastern Quarter (Air) Southern Quarter (Fire) Western Quarter (Water) Northern Quarter (Earth)

(Note: it is essential that the first six roles be ta en by experienced initiate s only) Casting the circle: All present will be purified and consecrated, and the circle will be cast by the HPS.

The HPS will as everyone to assist in the invocation to the quarters. Those who have athames should collect them from the altar at this point. After the Northern Quarter has been invo ed, the group should all face centre, w hile the HPS performs the invocation to Spirit. This completes the casting of th e circle. THE RITUAL

HPS-1 and HPS-2 will stand side by side in the centre of the Temple. PS-2, 3, 4, and 5 will ta e up their positions at the cardinal points of the Temple, and th e Priests will stand between the Priestesses, ensuring polarity. HPS-3 will stan d in front of the main altar. HP-1 will read the declamation: Child of the Spinning Serpent, Daughter of the morning star; Startled from the depths of silence Wa ens vision's Silver Star. Starting cold from depths of nightmare, Shadows passing on the land; Tears of silver, iced and shining These she sheds upon the land.

For deep within the night of vision There the coiled serpent stirs, Calling from the cauldron's dar ness, Singing with the song of stars. For there she sees a frozen river, There beholds a land of ice, And sees an ancient mother mourning, Tears that quic ly turn to ice. And sees herself, the youthful virgin, Reach that river; frozen, cold, Shining in the crystal moonlight Seeming li e a silver road. Across the waters, there the mother; Ancient Queen of the Shining Night; Standing in the silver dar ness Lit by icy crystal light. Reaching out across the dar ness, Silver arms across the ice, Two hands touch above the waters, Reach across the frozen night. But now the serpent song of starlight Calls across the cauldron's night; Their hands a bridge across the silence,

PS-1 will go behind the veil, and put on the white sil

veil.

Dar ness shatters into light. As sunlight calls across the waters Rising from the shining east, Cries of joy that echo terror Crac as silent ice release. Now hear the cry of mourning mothers; Hear the joy of pain released: Dull ache deep within the waters Calling to the stirring beast. For now Touched See the Through behold the icy rivers by sunlight, turned to blood; waters flowing freely the gates of land and love.

HP-2 will move forward, and perform the invocation to the Mother aspect of the G oddess upon HPS-2: I call to you, Mother of all, Queen of our most secret dreams. From dar and starlit heavens, And deep within the fertile earth: Come to us crowned in glory - Come! I invo e you, and call upon you; By the fertile earth and pregnant moon: Come! Descend upon the body of Thy Priestess. HPS-2 responds: I am thy Goddess: Before the beginning of time was I. I made the mountains into pea s, And laid with soft green grass the valleys and the meadows. Mine was the first foot which trod upon the earth, And where I wal ed there sprang forth flowers. Mine was the voice which gave rise to the first song, And the birds listened, and heard, and made return. In the beginning of time I taught the sea its song, And mine were the tears That gave forth the first rains. Listen and hear Me! For it was I who gave birth to you, And in the depths of my earth You will find rest and rebirth. I will spring you forth anew, A fresh shoot to greenness. Fear Me; Love Me; Adore Me! Lose yourself in Me. For I am the cup of the wine of life: I stir the senses; I am the power.

HP-1 will now perform the invocation to the Crone aspect of the Goddess upon HPS-1: Ancient Mother born of silence, Silver Queen of spiral ice; Hear the serpent's song of starlight Call across the cauldron's night. A name, a call, a ey of shadows; An ancient song from an ancient dream Echoes deep within the dar ness, Calls Thee from the depths unseen. For now I see Thy crystal spiral, Now I see the crystal web, Shining in the cauldron's dar ness, Bringing life and bringing death. And now I call upon Thee, Ancient Mother, To descend upon this the body of Thy servant and Priestess. HP-1 bows down before HPS-1 HPS-1 responds: Who calls to the Queen of the Night? (HP: "A worshipper") Who calls to the cutter of the thread? (HP: "The Spinning Serpent") Who calls to the Mother of the Serpent? (HP: "A lover") Who calls to the Mistress of the Spiral Castle? (HP: "Life itself") If that man has not fear in his heart, let him stand and face me now. (HP rises) You have called, and I have answered, and now I shall teach thee a mystery: That if that which thou see est, thou findest not within thee, thou wilt never find it without thee. For behold, I have been with thee from the beginning, and I shall be with thee at the end. Blessed Be. HP-1 returns to his place in the Temple. The Mother and Crone will now "arm" each of the female guardians with the relevant elemental weapon: The Crone will ta e an athame from the altar, hand it to the Mother, who will present it to the Eastern guardian. The wand will be given to the Southern guardian, the chalice to the Western guardian, the pentacle to the Northern guardian, and the blac egg to Spirit.

Crone and Mother will now approach the veil: the Crone will part the veil, and say: As the white eagle of the north is flying overhead, And the browns, reds and golds of autumn lie in the gutter, dead. Remember then that summer birds with wings of fire flaying, Came to witness spring's new hope, born of leaves decaying. As new life will come from death, love will come at leisure: Love of love, love of life, and giving without measure Gives in return a wondrous yearn of a promise almost seen. Live hand in hand, and together we'll stand On the threshold of a dream. During this, the Mother leads the Virgin to the centre of the circle, and on the last line, all three stand hand in hand. Then the Mother unveils the Virgin saying: Welcome Virgin to Life! Welcome Virgin to Spring! Let life spring from thine heart, And out thine eyes. Let joy behold the dawn. The Crone now instructs the Priests to turn away, as they may not witness this stage of the female mysteries. The Priestesses start to slowly circle deosil about the circle in The Dance of the Elements. While this is going on, the Mother and Crone will explain to the Virgin the significance and power of each of the elements. 1753Note:1753 This is an integral part of the ritual, but cannot be written as it is performed spontaneously by the Mother and Crone. The format is basically as follows: Mother: Crone: Mother: Crone: I I I I give give give give you you you you the the the the power of your intellect power of beginnings power of decision freedom of air

and so on, remaining with each element as long as desired. On command from the Crone, the Dance will cease, and each Priestess will return to her respective position. Now, the Mother will ta e the Virgin to each Priestess in turn, starting with the East, where she will be presented with the elemental weapons. (ie, armed with her potential). After each presentation, the Virgin will replace the weapon on the altar, to signify her understanding and acceptance of this nowledge. Both Virgin and Mother will return to the cauldron, where the Crone will present the Virgin with the Bride Doll, which she will accept, and place upon the altar. She then returns to the centre, and loo s into the cauldron, where she now finds a sistrum, which she pic s up and sha es joyfully shouting "Bride is Come, Bride is Welcome!" This is the cue for the Priests to face centre once more. HP-1 starts playing the Bodrhun, and HPS-3 leads the dance. The Mother and Crone lin hands around the Virgin in a symbol of protection.

Everyone chants 1754"Bride is Come, Bride is Welcome"1754 as the dance increases in tempo, and then HPS-3 will initiate the Witches' Rune when she feels the time is right. The dance will finish with arms held aloft, and then the Virgin will brea out from between the Mother and Crone, and ta e the cauldron candle to the altar, where she will light it from one of the altar candles. She will turn to face the group while HPS-3 leads the Initiate's Ceremony of Ill umination. The virgin now returns to the East, where she reads The Charge of Brigid's Fire. I am She of the golden hair, Queen of the white hills, Rider of the white swan, and now stand at the threshold of my glory. I bring with me three gifts of fire: the first is the flame of Inspiration that is indled within the heart of the see er. The second is the flame of purification; the cleansing flame of truth. The third is the flame born of the fires of love that brings the seed of hope to all life. Virgin now performs ca es and wine with a Priest of her choice. The feast. TO END THE RITUAL All ta e their athames, and support HPS-1 as she than s, and bids farewell to the Quarter Guardians. Formal grounding of the power. All present ma e their farewells to each other, and leave the Temple. IMBOLG 1992 JULIA PHILLIPS Temple in dar ness, apart from the Yule log in the centre. Brigid in her bed on the small altar. Lots of unlit candles in sand pots around the room. All enter a s usual, and the Circle is cast in the normal manner. After the central invocati ons, HP says: Awa e O Earth from your slumbers! Awa e O Sun and restore the Earth! Mother - we are in dar ness. HPS pic s up a jug of water, and pours it into the cauldron saying:

HPS ta es the asperge, and all circle around her chanting the Witches Rune. She asperges each person as they pass, and on the last round, hands each person a wh ite candle. When everyone has a candle, the circling stops, and HPS lights the m ain candles and says:

The waters are the trac , but the mystery of ot find. For I wan.

bro now the was

en. The ice melting towards Candletime. Blood has been along the ways are clear of death. Old and grey I was, but here in waters I am renewed. For I am the one you sought, but could n singing to my child unseen, beneath the hills of birch and ro

The dar ness of winter is passing: the Earth awa ens once more from its slumbers ; the Virgin wal s among us again, and brings Her blessings upon the land and up on our lives. Priest and Priestess step forward and remove the cover from Brigid's bed, reveal ing the Virgin. Everyone shouts: Brigid is Come! Brigid is Welcome! HPS ta es a light from the Yule log and says: Let the inner light bear fruit in our own lives, even as the Earth bears the fir st flowers. I am Brigid: She of the Golden Hair; Queen of the White Hills, and rider of the White Swan. I bring three gifts of fire. The first is the flame of creation; of the poet and artist; of the lovers' passion for union with the beloved. The seco nd is the flame of purification and testing, the flame of truth. With this flame all dross and wea ness are made clear and cleansed from thee, so thou become li e a true and tested sword. The third is the greatest of all, for it is the heal ing flame born out of the love that gives all, the ma er of peace and harmony. B ut I do not give these gifts one by one; I give them as a whole in the form of t he growing Sun. Everyone then lights their candle from the Yule log, and starts to circle deosil , lighting the candles around the room as they go, chanting: Thus we banish winter, thus we welcome spring; Say farewell to what is dead, and greet each living thing. When all the candles are lit, everyone places their candle in a sand pot, and th e chanting ceases. HPs and HP bless ca es and wine. S A M H A I N

1 9 8 6

Coven of the Serpent's Eye

Declamation written by Rufus Harrington Invocation to Horned God written by Doreen Valiente Response of the Horned God written by Paul Greenslade Consecration of the seeds written by Jim Kitson Temple set up as follows: Veil in northern quarter Cauldron in centre, with charcoal bloc s ready lit Stereo ready with taped music A dish of corn seeds on the altar One pot of earth for each person Pomegranate on altar Candles, incense and ritual weapons as usual Floor tom-tom drum Roles:

HPS HP Priest P or PS

The Goddess The Horned God To consecrate the seeds Ritual drumming Casting the circle:

The Circle will be cast by the HPS The HPS will invo e the quarters: while she does so, each person should face the quarter being invo ed, and direct power to the quarter with their athame (or other if they have no athame). The group should all face centre, forming a circle after the invocation to the northern quarter, and hold both arms aloft while the HPS calls upon the Lord and Lady to join with the celebrations. This completes the casting of the circle. .pa The Ritual: HPS wearing blac sil robe and veil stands at the altar, facing the group, who are seated. 1757The HP reads the declamation:1757 Iced legions of the damned Call and dance the songs of madness; Hollow hills re-echo to the silent cries of night, For dancing flames now turn to shadows, Winds and madness call the night, And just a single light in dar ness Stands before the veil to fight. And so the Goddess stood in dar ness, Tear stained chee s lashed by rain, Turned to face the veil of dar ness, Turned to face the world of pain. Alone, an outcast, branded traitor; She it was who illed the land. To save the land from age and dar ness, To save the land from fear and death, For love of life she sought to conquer, Sought to stay the hand of death. But in her love and in her madness She summoned death into the land; Summoned death to fight the dar ness, Thus it was destroyed the land. Crac ed silver lightning; shattering dar ness, Revealing eyes, and visions born beyond. Iced visions of light, Echoes of dying laughter chill and cool the blood. Storm clouds tearing s y and screaming, Battles fought at heaven's gate, Fly upon the winds of madness, See the silver ey of fate.

HPS:

SILENCE!

An end must be made!

For there are three great events in the life of man: Love, Death and resurrection in the new body, and magic controls them all. For to fulfil love you must return again at the same time and place as the loved one, and you must remember and love them again. But to be reborn, you must die and be ready for a new body; and to die you must be born, and without love you may not be born, and so is formed the spiral of creation, and this is all the magics. The group now stand, and when everyone is facing the HPS, she assumes pentagram position. The ritual drummer ta es his position, and the Priest who is ta ing th e role of the Horned God switches on the music tape, blows out the northern quar ter candle and moves behind the veil. Silence while the tape of "The ma ing of B loduedd" is played, as this is the invocation the the Goddess in her transformat ion aspect. (Note: the tape is allowed to continue playing, as this is the only item on the tape, the remainder being blan .) The HPS turns to face the altar, and holds aloft the sword. As she does so, the drummer plays a steady rhythm. Th e HPS moves to the centre of the circle, facing the veil; the group arrange them selves behind her, all facing the veil. The HPS points the sword at the veil, an d the group hold aloft their arms for the invocation to the Horned God. HPS says: By the flame that burneth bright O Horned One, We call Thy name into the night, O Ancient One! Thee we invo e by the moon led sea, By the standing stone, and the twisted tree. Thee we invo e where gather Thine own, By nameless shrine, forgotten and lone. Come where the round of the dance is trod, Horn and hoof of the goat foot God! By moonlit meadow and dus y hill, When haunted wood is hushed and still, Come to the charm of the chanted prayer, As the moon bewitches the midnight air. Evo e Thy powers that potent bide, In shining stream and secret tide, In fiery flame and starlight pale, In shadowy hosts that ride the gale. And by the fern bra es, fairy haunted, Of forests wild and woods enchanted; Come O come to the heart beats drum, Come to us who gather below, When the pale white moon is climbing slow, Through the stars to the heavens height, We hear Thy hooves on the wings of night! As blac tree branches sha e and sigh, By joy and terror we now Thee nigh. We spea the spell Thy power unloc s, At solstice, sabbat and equinox. Word of virtue, the veil to rend, From primal dawn to the wide world's end! (As the invocation proceeds, the drummer speeds his rhythm to suggest the sound

of hoofbeats, and after the final line of the invocation, he suddenly reverts to a simple, slow four beats for the entrance of the Horned God.) P#1 responds from behind the veil: I am the Dread Lord of the Shadows: God of life and giver of life. I open wide the veil through which all must pass. The gate is open between the worlds And all who would enter on this night are welcome. Come spirits; departed ones; brethren from our past and present Join us in the hunt tonight. During his response, he parts the veil, and then fastens it open in some way, a s the veil between the worlds remains open until closed by the Horned God at the end of the ritual. As he finishes spea ing, he enters the Temple, and proceeds to move in a widders hins direction, and the drummer plays a rhythm according to the speed and moveme nt of the Horned God. The Horned God then ta es the hand of one of the group (f emale), and she ta es the hand of the next male, and so on until all the group e xcept for the HPS and drummer are dancing with the Horned God. This represents t he Wild Hunt, and the drumming and dancing should reflect the feeling of this. A t a prompt from the Horned God, the group will stop dancing, and seat themselves on the floor facing inwards around the cauldron. The drummer will join them, an d the HPS will bring a pot of incense, from which she will ta e a handful and th row it into the cauldron. she will then pass the incense to the HP, who will als o throw some into the cauldron, and will pass it to his neighbour, and so on aro und the circle until each person has thrown some incense into the cauldron. Ther e is now a period of meditation, where everyone thin s about the past year, and those who may have passed over during that time. It is also a time for joining w ith our loved ones who have gone beyond, and who we invite to return to us for t he night. When the HPS feels that long enough has been spent on this part of the ritual, she will signal that everyone should end their meditation. P#2 shall now rise (also PS#1 if designated), and approach the altar where he/ they will perform the consecration of the sacred seed. P#2 says: Bounded by a shell then? Secure in the vice of the earth, a unity waiting. And outside? Cold, wet loneliness, the comfort of death. And above? The agony of birth and growth, total struggle in total night. O Gaia! Smile upon your children, set free the seed of life and joy. So Mote It Be! When this has been completed, P#2 ta es some of the seeds, and energises them wi th his own hopes and desires for the coming year, and then plants them in one of the prepared pots. The rest of the group do li ewise, commencing with 1760PS#11 760 if designated, and following male/female if possible. The Horned God and God dess do not plant seeds at the altar. When the last person has planted their see

ds, and all are seated again, the 1760Horned God1760 approaches the altar, and s lices the pomegranite in half, and holds both halves in one hand. He pic s up so me seeds and charges them with his hopes and desires for the coming year, but do es not plant them at the altar. He holds them in his hand, and then he calls to all the spirits who followed him through from beyond the veil to return with hi m now, and moving in a deosil direction, circles around the Temple finally endin g up beyond the veil again. He calls to the Goddess to join with him once more, and she has such love for him that she willingly leaves her life this side of t he veil, and of her own free will joins once more with her consort. She rises, a nd goes to the altar to collect and charge her own seeds, which she then carries with her as she moves around the Temple, finally joining the Horned God behind the veil. He closes the veil between the worlds once more, and to symbolise her willing descent to the Otherworld, the Goddess eats one half of the pomegranate. She and the Horned God then plant their seeds. The northern quarter candle is relit by the person nearest to it. At this point, 1761PS#1 and P#21761 approach the altar, and perform the consecra tion of ca es and wine, in which all participate bar the HPS and P#1 behind the veil, as they are "no longer of this world". After ca es and wine, 1761HPS and P #11761 rejoin the circle for the feast, no longer "Horned God and Goddess". TO END THE RITUAL: Each quarter is than ed and bidden to depart by HPS All present ma e their farewells to each other, and leave the Temple. The Rite is ended.

Y U L E 1984 Julia Phillips Circle is cast and Quarters erected. HPS: We now stand at the turning of the year.

Dar Lord: Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter, All fades and passes, day to night. Dar Lord extinguishes candles leaving only altar candles alight. HPS: sets

Let us dance for the long year's end, for the sun quic ly in the West, and we begin the long night of hope.

Coven do Wheel or Cord dance widdershins about the cauldron chanting: Time and Death, Life and Seasons, All must pass, All must change. Star Child now leaves the circle, and stands behind the veil in the North. HPS stands at the cauldron in the centre, wearing a blac veil. HPS: I am the Hag who engendered you all; I am the Three and the One who is here; I am the log that is ripe for burning;

In my end is your hope of beginning. HPS now lifts the cauldron aloft and presents it to each quarter. She returns to the centre, and lights the cauldron candle, from which she lights a quarter candle for each member of the coven. The quarter candles are placed in their respective quarters. Narrator: This is the night of the Solstice; the Mother Night. Now dar ness triumphs, and yet gives way and changes to light. Time stops, and all wait while the cauldron of the Dar Ki ng is transformed into the infant Light. We watch for the dawn whe n the Mother again gives birth to the sun, who is the bringer of hope and the promise of summer. Holly gives way to Oa , the Wren to the Robin, Old to New. Narrator: We stand now in the long night, we pray for the sun's re turn. In dar ness and shadows the Great Mother groans. The Moth er labours to bring forth the sun from her pain. From her cries of labour comes forth our cries of welcome; from her toil and anguish our hope is reborn. Let us now call forth the Great Mother , and the Lord of Life, her husband and son. The Star Child emerges from behind the veil, and lays at the feet of th e HPS. The HPS points to the Star Child and proclaims:

The HPS crowns the Star Child with a crown of misteltoe. She removes her veil and announces: I am the Mother who brought forth the child; I am the inspiration, and I am the rebirth. Narrator: You are the ecstasy of the blessed You are the light of the sun's beams You are the lordly door of welcome You are the guiding star Yours is the step of the roe on the hill Yours is the step of the white-faced mare Yours is the grace of the swimming swan You are the jewel in each mystery Coven now do Wheel or Cord dance deosil about the cauldron chanting: Power Power Power Spins Spins Push, of soil and power of of fire and power of that spins the wheel the wheel of joy and the wheel of sun and push, push, Open the air, water, of birth, mirth, moon, gate.

Power of spell and magic free, Eternal power that binds the sea, Weaves the web of infinity, Light of dar and light of day, Speed the spo es fast on their way, Push push push - ah ah

Behold the Child! Here lies our

ing!

Open the gate, So Mote It Be! HPS now invo es the Lord of Misrule into the circle. He is challenged upon entry by the Dar Lord, and must explain who he is, and why he is there. The Lord of Misrule is now in charge of the circle, and may behave as he sees fit. At some point, he must ta e the burdens of the coven for the previous twelve moons and pac them in his bag. Ca es and Wine. The Lord of Misrule must be ritually hunted as a wren to bring about his downfall. The coven mime hunting the wren chanting, "Burn the bush, hunt the wren"

"LEGITIMACY" IN THE CRAFT, a conversation --------------------------------------------------------------------(117) Sun 25 Apr 93 11:16 By: Khaled To: Lana Re: things St: ---------------------------------------------------------------------L> What rituals do you thin I would have to do to become "letigimate" L> ....(d o I have to be "initiated" in other words... )! That rather depends on who you want to recognise you as legitimate. There's a wide variance of opinion as to what ma es a witch, a Witch or a Wiccan. If yo u open your heart to the Lady and commune (spea with your heart, not necessaril y in words) with her often, she will eventually adopt her as one of her special Children (the "inner", or Lady's, initiation). Her adoption will cause changes t o your spirit and way of loo ing at things that will be obvious to those of us w ho share it, as its presence in others will become obvious to you after you've a wa ened to her touch (unfortunately, it's one of those things that doesn't ma e much sense until you've *been there*). Most of us here accept the Lady's initiation as the mar of a true Witch (c apitalised to denote the priest/ess, as opposed to the fol mage or witch). I g ather that the majority of those posting here thin of Wiccans and Witches as on e and the same, though many of us thin of Wicca as a particular subset of Witch es (i.e. all Wiccans are Witches, but not all Witches are, or even wish to be, W iccan). For those of us who see them as different (I'm one of them), you will need to be formally adopted into a Wiccan clan to be a *Wiccan* Witch. Some tradition s permit self-adoption into their clans, some (Gardnerians and their near in in particular) recognise you as Wiccan only if you've been adopted by an authorise d Elder of the clan in question. Then again,there's a few diehards who don't re cognise anyone but members of their own clan as Wiccan. Which brings us bac to square one -- it depends on whose recognition you'r e loo ing for. Most will accept your legitimacy *as a Witch* based on the quali ty of your rapport with the Lady. And the way to develop that is to spend a lot of time in her company, whether with li e-minded others in a coven or quietly b y yourself. A large minority will accept you *as a Wiccan* based on whether or

When he is discovered, the coven point their athames at his nec to symbolise his death. Close ritual.

not you have passed through a human rite of passage (confusingly, also called in itiation) adopting you into a Wiccan clan. Be sure you now the family that wishes to adopt you before accepting: this time you get to *choose* your relatives <g>. Those who insist that only *they* have the Truth, and there fore only they are legitimate aren't really worth wasting your time worrying abo ut, IMHO. L> I was wondering if you HAD to belong to a coven in order to L> practice, or to be "letigimate", so to spea . As Ayesha mentioned, what matters is that you spend time in the Lady's compan y, and "listen" to what she has to say, "feel" what she has to show. Even amongs t crusty old Gardnerians such as myself, there's no need to be a member of a cov en to practice your Craft, nor does resigning from a coven invalidate your initi ation(s). We prefer to wor in covens, because we generally prefer the company of our brethren in Circle, but there's no law that says we *have to* if we feel li e being alone, or have no choice in the matter. Gardnerian *initiations* are done by a coven, and one normally has to be a candidate for me mbership in that coven in order to be initiated (by us). This is by no means in variable, but initiating someone you don't want in your coven is considered tast eless at best, a betrayal of your sacred trust at worst. So, no, you don't HAVE to be a member of a coven to be seen as legitimat e. And since my own opinion is that the wea est lin in a coven is its wea est solitary, I'd encourage you to continue to do some solo wor , even if you DO joi n a coven. But what would I now, I'm just a 3rd <big grin>. Blessings on your path, whichever way you choose to go... K The Meaning of Witchcraft Gerald B. Gardner P.265 Appendix I THE MAGICAL LEGEND OF THE WITCHES. Now, G. (the Witch Goddess) had never loved, but she would solve all the Mysteries, even the Mystery of Death; and so she journeyed to the Nether Lands. The Guardians of the Portals challenged her, "Strip off thy garments, lay aside thy jewels; for naught may ye bring with ye into this our land." So she laid down her garments and her jewels, and was bound, as are all who enter the Realms of Death the Mighty One. (Note: There was a Celtic custom of binding corpses. The cord which had bound a corpse was useful in learning the "second sight.") Such was her beauty that Death himself nelt and Kissed her feet, saying, "Blessed be thy feet that have brought thee in these ways. Abide with me, let me place my cold hands on thy heart." She replied, "I love thee not. Why dost thou cause all things that I love and ta e delight in to fade and die?" "Lady", replied Death, "tis Age and Fate, against which I am helpless. Age causes all things to wither; but when men die at the end of time

I give them rest and peace, and strength so that they may return. But thou, thou art lovely. Return not; abide with me." But she answered, "I love thee not." Then said Death, "An thou received not my had on thy heart, thou must receive Death's scourge." "It is Fate; better so", she said, and she nelt; and Death Scourged her, and she cried, "I feel the pangs of love."

And he taught her all the Mysteries. And they loved and were one, and he t aught her all the Magics. For there are three great events in the life of man; Love, Death, and Resurrection in a new body; and Magic controls them all. For to fulfil love you must return again at the same time and place as the loved one, and you must remember and love them again. But to be reborn you must die, and be ready for new body; and to die you must be born; and without love y ou may not be born. And these be all the Magics. The Spiral Dance 1979; Starhaw p 159

The Goddess In The Kingdom Of Death In this world, the Goddess is seen in the moon, the light that shines in dar nes s, the rain bringer, mover of the tides, Mistress of mysteries. And as the moon waxes and wanes, and wal s three nights of its cycle in dar ness, so, it is sai d, the Goddess once spent three nights in the Kingdom of Death. For in love She ever see s Her other Self, and once, in the winter of the year, when He had disappeared from the green earth, She followed Him and came at last to the gates beyond which the living do not go. The Guardian of the Gate challenged Her, and She stripped Herself of Her clothin g and jewels, for nothing may be brought into that land. For love, She was boun d as all who enter there must be and brought before Death Himself. He loved Her, and nelt at Her feet, laying before Her His sword and crown, and gave Her the fivefold iss, and said, "Do not return to the living world, but stay here with Me, and have peace and re st and comfort." But She answered, "Why do you cause all things I love and delight in to die and wither away?" "Lady," He said, "It is the fate of all that lives to die. Everything passes; a ll fades away. I bring comfort and consolation to those who pass the gates, tha t they may grow young again. But You are My heart's desire -- return not, but s tay here with Me." And She remained with Him three days and three nights, and at the end of the thi rd night She too up His crown, and it became a circlet that She placed around H er nec , saying:

And Death said, "Blessed be", and gave her the fivefold saying, Thus only may ye attain to joy and nowledge.

iss,

"Here is the circle of rebirth. Through You all passes out of life, but through Me all may be born again. Everything passess; everything changes. Even death is not eternal. Mine is the mystery of the womb, that is the cauldron of rebirth . Enter into Me and now Me, and You will be free of all fear. For as life is but a journey into death, so death is but a passage bac to life, and in Me the circle is ever turning." In love, He entered into Her, and so was reborn into life. Yet is He nown as L ord of Shadows, the comforter and consoler, opener of the gates, King of the Lan d of Youth, the giver of peace and rest. But She is the gracious mother of all life; from Her all things proceed and to Her they return again. In Her are the mysteries of death and birth; in Her is the fulfillment of all love. *Traditional Craft Myth

A TRUE HISTORY OF WITCHCRAFT updated through January 3, 1992. copyright (c) 1992 by Allen Greenfield. All r ights reserved.] "The fact is that the instincts of ignorant people invariably find expression in some form of witchcraft. It matters little what the metaphysician or the mo ralist may inculcate; the animal stic s to his subconscious ideas..." Aleister Crowley The Confessions "As attunement to psychic (occult) reality has grown in America, one often m isunderstood and secretive branch of it has begun to flourish also -- magical religion..." J. Gordon Melton Institute for the Study of American Religion, Green Egg, 1975 "Curse them! Curse them! Curse them! With my Haw 's head I pec at the eyes of Jesus as he hangs upon the cross I flap my wings in the face of Mohammed & blind him With my claws I tear out the flesh of the Indian and the Buddhist, Mongol and Din..." Liber Al Vel Legis 3:50 - 53

"Previously I never thought of doubting that there were many witches in the wo rld; now, however, when I examine the public record, I find myself believing t hat there are hardly any..." Father Friedrich von Spee, S.J. , Cautio Criminalis, 1631

"If you are on the Path, and see the Buddha wal ing towards you, Zen saying, paraphrased slightly

ill him."

Having spent the day musing over the origins of the modern witchcraft, I had a vivid dream. It seemed to be a cold January afternoon, and Aleister Crowley was having Gerald Gardner over to tea. It was 1945, and tal of an early end to the war was in the air. An atmosphere of optimism prevailed in the "free world" , but the wheezing old magus was having none of it. "Nobody is interested in magic any more!" Crowley ejaculated. "My friends on the Continent are dead or in exile, or grown old; the movement in America is i n shambles. I've seen my best candidates turn against me....Achad, Regardie -even that gentleman out in California, what's - his - name, AMORC, the one th at made all the money.." "O, bosh, Crowley," Gardner waved his hand impatiently, "all things considered , you've done pretty well for yourself. Why, you've been called the `wic edest man in the world' and by more than a few. And you've not, if you'll pardon t he impertinence, done too badly with the ladies." Crowley coughed, tugged on his pipe reflectively. "You now" he finally ventur ed, "it's li e I've been trying to tell this fellow Grant. A restrictive Order is not enough. If I had it all to do over again, I would've built a religion for the unwashed masses instead of just a secret society. Why, the opportuni ties! The women!" Gardner smiled. "Precisely. And that is what I have come to propose to you. Ta e your BOOK OF THE LAW, your GNOSTIC MASS. Add a little razzle-dazzle for the country fol . Why I now these occultists who call themselves `witches'. They dance around fires na ed, get drun , have a good time. Rosicrucians, I thin . Proper English country squires and dames, mostly; I thin they read a lo t of Frazier and Margaret Murray. If I could persuade you to draw on your long e xperience and talents, in no time at all we could invent a popular cult that w ould have beautiful ladies clamoring to let us strip them na ed, tie them up an d span their behinds! If, Mr. Crowley, you'll excuse my explicitness." For all his infirmity, Aleister Crowley almost sprang to his feet, a little of the old energy flashing through his loins. "By George, Gardner, you've got som ething there, I should thin ! I could license you to initiate people into the O.T.O. today, and you could form the nucleus of such a group!" He paced in agita tion. "Yes, yes," he mused, half to Gardner, half to himself. "The Boo . The Mass. I could write some rituals. An `ancient boo ' of magic . A `boo of sh adows'. Priestesses, na ed girls. Yes. By Jove, yes!" Great story, but merely a dream , created out of bits and pieces of rumor, his tory and imagination. Don't be surprised, though, if a year or five years fro m now you read it as "gospel" (which is an ironic synonym for `truth') in some new learned text on the fabled history of Wicca. Such is the way all mytholog ies come into being. Please don't misunderstand me here; I use the word `mythology' in this context in its aboriginal meaning, and with considerable respect. History is more meta phor than factual accounting at best, and there are myths by which we live and others by which we die. Myths are the dreams and visions which parallel objec tive history. This entire wor is, in fact, an attempt to approximate history. To arrive at some perspective on what the modern mythos called, variously, "Wi cca", the "Old Religion", "Witchcraft" and "Neopaganism" is, we must firstly ma e a firm distinction; "witchcraft" in the popular informally defined sense ma y have little to do with the modern religion that goes by the same name. It has been argued by defenders of and formal apologists for modern Wicca that it is a direct lineal descendent of an ancient, indeed, prehistoric worldwide fol r

eligion. Some proponents hedge their claims, calling Wicca a "revival" rather than a continuation of an ancient cult. Oddly enough, there may never have been any such cult! The first time I met someone who thought she was a "witch," she st arted going on about being a "blue of the cloa ." I should've been warned righ t then and there. In fact, as time has passed and the religion has spread, the claims of lineal continuity have tended to be hedged more and more. Thus, we fi nd Dr. Gardner himself, in 1954, stating unambiguously that some witches are descenda nts "... of a line of priests and priestesses of an old and probably Stone Age religion, who have been initiated in a certain way (received into the circle) a nd become the recipients of certain ancient learning." (Gardner, WITCHCRAFT TOD AY, pp 33-34.) Stated in its most extreme form, Wicca may be defined as an ancient pagan reli gious system of beliefs and practices, with a form of apostolic succession (th at is, with nowledge and ordination handed on lineally from generation to gen eration), a more or less consistent set of rites and myths, and even a secret holy boo of considerable antiquity (The Boo of Shadows). More recent writers, as we have noted, have hedged a good deal on these claims , particularly the latter. Thus we find Stewart Farrar in 1971 musing on the purported ancient text thusly: "Whether, therefore, the whole of the Boo of S hadows is post-1897 is anyone's guess. Mine is that, li e the Bible, it is a p atchwor of periods and sources, and that since it is copied and re-copied by hand, it includes amendments, additions, and stylistic alterations according t o the taste of a succession of copiers...Parts of it I sense to be genuinely ol d; other parts suggest modern interpolation..." (Farrar, WHAT WITCHES DO, pp 3 4-35.)As we shall discover presently, there appear to be no genuinely old copie s of the Boo of Shadows. Still, as to the mythos, Farrar informs us that the "two personifications of witchcraft are the Horned God and the Mother Goddess..." (ibid, p 29) and that the "Horned God is not the Devil, and never has been. If today `Satanist' cov ens do exist, they are not witches but a sic fringe, delayed-reaction victims of a centuries-old Church propaganda in which even intelligent Christians no l onger believe." (ibid, p 32). One could protest:, "Very well, some case might be made for the Horned God b eing mista en for the Christian Devil (or should that be the other way around?) , but what record, prior to the advent 50 years ago of modern Wicca via Gerald Gardner, do we have of the survival of a mother goddess image from ancient ti mes?" Wiccan apologists frequently refer to the (apparently isolated) tenth century church document which states that "some wic ed women, perverted by the Devil, seduced by the illusions and phantasms of demons, believe and profess themsel ves in the hours of the night to ride upon certain beasts with Diana, the godd ess of pagans, or with Herodias, and an innumerable multitude of women, and in the silence of the dead of night to traverse great spaces of earth, and to obe y her commands as of their mistress, and to be summoned to her service on cert ain nights." (Quoted in Valiente, WITCHCRAFT FOR TOMORROW, Hale, 1978, p 32.) I do not doubt that bits of pagan fol lore survived on the Continent through the first millenium -- Northern Europe remained overtly pagan until the High Middle Ages. But what has this to do with Wicca? Farrar, for his part, explains the lac of references to a goddess in the test imony at the infamous witch trials by asserting that "the judges ignored the G

oddess, being preoccupied with the Satan-image of the God.." (WHAT WITCHES DO, p 33). But it is the evidence of that reign of terror which lasted from roughly 1484 to 1692 which brings the whole idea of a surviving religious cult into q uestion. It is now the conventional wisdom on the witchburning mania which swe pt li e a plague over much of Europe during the transition from medieval world to modern that it was JUST that; a mania, a delusion in the minds of Christian clergymen and state authorities; that is, there were no witches, only the innocent vict ims of the witch hunt. Further, this humanist argument goes, the `witchcraft' of Satanic worship, b roomstic riding, of Sabbats and Devil-mar s, was a rather late invention, bor rowing but little from remaining memories of actual preChristian paganism. We have seen a resurrection of this mania in the 1980s flurry over `Satanic sacr ificial' cults, with as little evidence. "The concept of the heresy of witchcraft was fran ly regarded as a new inventi on, both by the theologians and by the public," writes Dr. Rossell Hope Robbin s in THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF WITCHCRAFT & DEMONOLOGY, (Crown, 1959, p.9)"Having to hurdle an early church law, the Canon Episcopi, which said in effect that beli ef in witchcraft was superstitious and heretical, the inquisitors cavilled by arguing that the witchcraft of the Canon Episcopi and the witchcraft of the Inq uisition were different..." The evidence extracted under the most gruesome and repeated tortures the Wiccan religion of today in only the most cursory fashion. Though have been framed with the "confessions" extracted by victims of the rs in mind, those "confessions" --- which are more than suspect, to h, bespea a cult of devil worshipers dedicated to evil.

One need only read a few of the accounts of the time to realize that, had the re been at the time a religion of the Goddess and God, of seasonal circles and The Boo of Shadows, such would li ely have been blurted out by the victims, a nd more than once. The agonies of the accused were, almost literally, beyond the imagination of those of us who have been fortunate enough to escape them. The witch mania went perhaps unequaled in the annals of crimes against humani ty en masse until the Hitlerian brutality of our own century. But, no such conf essions were forthcoming, though the wretches accused, before the torture was done, would also be compelled to condemn their own parents, spouses, loved ones , even children. They confessed, and to anything the inquisitors wished, anythi ng to stop or reduce the pain. A Priest, probably at ris to his own life, recorded testimony in the 1600s th at reflected the reality underlying the forced "confessions" of "witches". Rev. Michael Stapirius records, for example, this comment from one "confessed witc h": "I never dreamed that by means of the torture a person could be brought to the point of telling such lies as I have told. I am not a witch, and I have never seen the devil, and still I had to plead guilty myself and denounce others ...." All but one copy of Father Stapirius' boo were destroyed, and little w onder. A letter smuggled from a German burgomaster, Johannes Junius, to his daughter in 1628, is as telling as it is painful even to read. His hands had been virtu ally destroyed in the torture, and he wrote only with great agony and no hope. "When at last the executioner led me bac to the cell, he said to me, `Sir, I beg you, for God's sa e, confess something, whether it be true or not. Invent something, for you cannot endure the torture which you will be put to; and, e ven if you bear it all, yet you will not escape, not even if you were an earl, but one torture will follow another until you say you are a witch. Not before

resemble Wicca may inquisito begin wit

that,' he said, `will they let you go, as you may see by all their trials, for one is just li e another...' " (ibid, pp 12-13) For the graspers at straws, we may find an occasional line in a "confession" w hich is intriguing, as in the notations on the "confession" of one woman from Germany dated in late 1637. After days of unspea able torment, wherein the wo man confesses under pain, recants when the pain is removed, only to be moved b y more pain to confess again, she is as ed: "How did she influence the weather? She does not now what to say and can only whisper, Oh, Heavenly Queen, protec t me!" Was the victim calling upon "the goddess"? Or, as seems more li ely, upon that aforementioned transfiguration of all ancient goddesses in Christian mythology , the Virgin Mary. One more quote from Dr. Robbins, and I will cease to parad e late medieval history before you. It comes from yet another priest, Father Cornelius Loos, who observed, in 159 2 that "Wretched creatures are compelled by the severity of the torture to conf ess things they have never done, and so by cruel butchery innocent lives are t a en....." (ibid, p 16). The "evidence" of the witch trials indicates, on the whole, neither the Satanism the church and state would have us believe, nor the pagan survivals now claimed by modern Wicca; rather, they suggest only fear, greed, human brutality carried out to bizarre extremes that have few parallels in all of history. But, the brutality is not that of `witches' nor even of `Sat anists' but rather that of the Christian Church, and the government. What, then, are we to ma e of modern Wicca? It must, of course, be observed a s an aside that in a sense witchcraft or "wisecraft" has, indeed, been with us from the dawn of time, not as a coherent religion or set of practices and bel iefs, but as the fol magic and medicine that stretches bac to early, possibly paleolithic tribal shamans on to modern China's so-called "barefoot doctors". In another sense, we can also say that ceremonial magic , as I have previousl y noted, has had a place in history for a very long time, and both these ancien t systems of belief and practice have intermingled in the lore of modern Wicca , as apologists are quic to claim. But, to an extent, this misses the point and s irts an essential question any one has the right to as about modern Wicca -- namely, did Wicca exist as a co herent creed, a distinct form of spiritual expression, prior to the 1940s; tha t is, prior to the meeting of minds between the old magus and venerable prophet of the occult world Aleister Crowley, and the first popularizer, if not outri ght inventor of modern Wicca, Gerald Brosseau Gardner? There is certainly no doubt that bits and pieces of ancient paganism survived into modern times in fol lore and, for that matter, in the very practices and beliefs of Christianity. Further, there appears to be some evidence that `Old George' Pic ingill and o thers were practicing some form of fol magic as early as the latter part of the last century, though even this has recently been brought into question. W iccan writers have made much of this in the past, but just what `Old George' w as into is subject to much debate. Doreen Valiente, an astute Wiccan writer and one-time intimate of the late Dr. Gardner (and, in fact, the author of some rituals now thought by others to be of "ancient origin"), says of Pic ingill that so "fierce was `Old George's di sli e of Christianity that he would even collaborate with avowed Satanists..." (TOMORROW, p 20). What

George Pic ingill was doing is simply not clear. He is said to have had some interaction with a host of figures in the occult revival of the late nineteenth century, including perhaps even Crowley and his friend Bennett. It seems possible that Gardner, about the time of meeting Crow ley, had some involvement with groups stemming from Pic ingill's earlier activ ities, but it is only AFTER Crowley and Gardner meet that we begin to see anyt hing resembling the modern spiritual communion that has become nown as Wicca. "Witches," wrote Gardner in 1954, "are consummate leg-pullers; they are taught it as part of their stoc -in-trade." (WITCHCRAFT TODAY, p. 27) Modern apologis ts both for Aleister Crowley AND Gerald Gardner have ta en on such serious ton es as well aspretensions that they may be missing places where tongues are firm ly jutting against chee s. Both men were believers in fleshly fulfillment, not only as an end in itself but, as in the Tantric Yoga of the East, as a means of spiritual attainment. A certain prudishness has crept into the practices of postGardnarian Wiccans, es pecially in America since the 1960s, along with a certain feminist revisionism. This has succeeded to a considerable extent in converting a libertine sex cult into a rather staid neopuritanism.

These Orders had flourished for some time, but by the time Crowley ` official ly' met Gardner in the 1940s, much of the former's lifelong efforts had, if no t totally disintegrated, at least were then operating at a diminished and dimin ishing level. Through his long and fascinating career as reason to believe that Crowley periodically mpted to create a more populist expression of ss, which Crowley wrote fairly early-on, had fill this function through the OTO-connected magus and organizer, there is some may have wished for, or even atte magic al religion. The Gnostic Ma come since his death to somewhat Gnostic Catholic Church (EGC).

As we shall see momentarily, one of Crowley's ey followers was publishing m anifestos forecasting the revival of witchcraft at the same time Gardner was be ing chartered by Crowley to organize an OTO encampment. The OTO itself, since Crowley's time, has ta en on a more popular image, and is more targeted toward s international organizational efforts, than s largely to the wor under the C aliphate of the late Grady McMurtry. This contrasts sharply with the very intern alized OTO that barely survived during the McCarthy Era, when the late Karl Ge rmer was in charge, and the OTO turned inward for two decades. The famous Ancient and Mystic Order of the Rose Cross (AMORC), the highly su ccessful mail-order spiritual fellowship, was an OTO offspring in Crowley's ti me. It has been claimed that Kenneth Grant and Aleister Crowley were discussin g relatively radical changes in the Ordo Templi Orientis at approximately the s ame time that Gardner and Crowley were interactive. Though Wiccan writers give some lip service (and, no doubt, some sincere crede nce) to the notion that the validity of Wiccan ideas depends not upon its line age, but rather upon its wor ability, the suggestion that Wicca is -- or, at l east, started out to be, essentially a late attempt at popularizing the secrets of ritual and sexual magic Crowley promulgated through the OTO and his writi ngs, seems to evo e nervousness, if not hostility.

The original Gardnarian n vogue (in Britain and t what Gardnerian Wicca with a more narrow, more his direct influence.

current is still well enough nown and widely enough i Ireland especially) that one can venture to assert tha is all about is the same thing Crowley was attempting intellectual constituency in the magic al orders under

We hear from wiccan writer and leader Raymond Buc land that one "of the sugge stions made is that Aleister Crowley wrote the rituals...but no convincing evid ence has been presented to bac this assertion and, to my mind, it seems extre mely unli ely..." (Gardner, ibid, introduction) The Wiccan rituals I have seen DO have much of Crowley in them. Yet, as we shall observe presently, the expl anation that `Crowley wrote the rituals for Gardner' turns out to be somewhat in error. But it is on the right trac . Doreen Valiente attempts to invo e Crowley's alleged infirmity at the time of his acquaintance with Gardner: "It has been stated by Francis King in his RITUAL MAGIC IN ENGLAND that Aleist er Crowley was paid by Gerald Gardner to write the rituals of Gardner's new wi tch cult...Now, Gerald Gardner never met Aleister Crowley until the very last years of the latter's life, when he was a feeble old man living at a private h otel in Hastings, being ept alive by injections of drugs... If, therefore, Cr owley really invented these rituals in their entirety, they must be about the la st thing he ever wrote. Was this enfeebled and practically dying man really ca pable of such a tour de force?" The answer, as Dr. Israel Regardie's introduction to the posthumous collecti on of Crowley's late letters, MAGICK WITHOUT TEARS, implies, would seem to be y es. Crowley continued to produce extraordinary material almost to the end of his life, and much of what I have seen of the "Wiccan Crowley" is, in any case , of earlier origin. Gerald Gardner is himself not altogether silent on the subject. In WITCHCRAFT TODAY (p 47), Gardner as s himself, with what degree of irony one can only gu ess at, who, in modern times, could have invented the Wiccan rituals. "The onl y man I can thin of who could have invented the rites," he offers, "was the l ate Aleister Crowley....possibly he borrowed things from the cult writings, or more li ely someone may have borrowed expressions from him...." A few legs may be being pulled here, and perhaps more than a few. As a prophet ahead of his time, as a poet and dreamer, Crowley is one of the outstanding figures of the twentieth (or any) century. As an organizer, he was almost as much of a disa ster as he was at managing his own finances...and personal life. As I underst and the liberatory nature of the magical path, one would do well to see the di fference between Crowley the prophet of Thelema and Crowley the insolvent and i nept administrator. Crowley very much lac ed the common touch; Gardner was above all things a popu larizer. Both men have been reviled as lecherous "dirty old men" -- Crowley, as a seducer of women and a homosexual, a drug addict and `satanist' rolled to gether. Gardner was, they would have it, a voyeur, exhibitionist and bondage frea wit h a `penchant for ritual' to borrow a line from THE STORY OF O. Both were, in reality, spiritual libertines, ceremonial magicians who did not shy away from the awesome force of human sexuality and its potential for spiritual transforma tion as well as physical gratification. I will not say with finality at this point whether Wicca is an ion of these two divine con-men. If so, more power to them, and uly follow in their path. I do now that, around 1945, Crowley er, an initiate of the Ordo Templi Orientis, giving him license OTO encampment. outright invent to those who tr chartered Gardn to organize an

Shortly thereafter, the public face of Wicca came into view, and that is what now of the matter: I presently have in my possession Gardner's certificate

of license to organize said OTO camp, signed and sealed by Aleister Crowley. The certificate and its import are examined in connection with my personal sear ch for the original Boo of Shadows in the next section of this narrative. For now, though, let us note in the years since Crowley licensed Gardner to o rganize a magical encampment, Wicca has both grown in popularity and become, t o my mind, something far less REAL than either Gardner or Crowley could have w anted or foreseen. Wherever they came from, the rites and practices which came from or through Gerald Gardner were strong, and tapped into that archetypal re ality, that level of consciousness beneath the mas of polite society and conve ntional wisdom which is the function of True Magic . At a popular level, this was the Tantric sex magic of the West. Whether this primordial access has been lost to us will depend on the awareness, the awa en ing or lac thereof among practitioners of the near to middle-near future. Ca rried to its end Gardnerian practices, li e Crowley's magic , are not merely e xotic; they are, in the truest sense, subversive. Practices that WORK are of value, whether they are two years old or two thousa nd. Practices, myths, institutions and obligations which, on the other hand, m ay be infinitely ancient are of no value at all UNLESS they wor . The Devil, you say Before we move on, though, in light of the furor over real and imagined "Sata nism" that has overta en parts of the popular press in recent years, I would f eel a bit remiss in this account if I did not ta e momentary note of that othe r strain of left-handed occult mythology, Satanism. Wiccans are correct when t hey say that modern Wicca is not Satanic, that Satanism is "reverse Christiani ty" whereas Wicca is a separate, nonChristian religion. Still, it should be noted, so much of our society has been grounded in the r epressiveness and authoritarian moralism of Christianity that a liberal dose of "counterChristianity" is to be expected. The Pat Robertsons of the world ma e possible the Anton LeVays. In the long history of repressive religion, a certa in fable of Satanism has arisen. It constitutes a mythos of its own. No doubt, misguided `copycat' fanatics have sometimes misused this mythos, in much the sa me way that Charles Manson misused the music and culture of the 1960s. True occult initiates have always regarded the Ultimate Reality as beyong all names and description. Named `deities' are, therefore, largely symbols. "Isis " is a symbol of the long-denied female component of deity to some occultists. "Pan" or "The Horned God" or "Set" or even "Satan" are symbols of unconscious, repressed sexuality. To the occultist, there is no Devil, no "god of evil." T here is, ultimately, only the Ain Sof Aur of the Cabbalah; the limitless light o f which we are but a frozen spar . Evil, in this system, is the mere absence o f light. All else is illusion. The goal of the occult path of initiation is BALANCE. In Freemasonry and High Magic , the symbols of the White Pillar and Blac Pillar represent this balanc e between conscious and unconscious forces. In Gardnarian Wicca, the Goddess and Horned God - and the Priestess and Pries t, represent that balance. There is nothing, nothing of pacts with the "Devil" or the worship of evil in any of this; that belongs to misguided exChristians who have been given the absurd fundamentalist Sunday school notion that one mu st choose the Christian version of God, or choose the Devil. Islam, Judaism an d even Catholicism have at one time or another been thought "satanic," and occ ultists have merely played on this bigoted symbolism, not subscribed to it.

As we have seen, Wicca since Gardner's time has been watered down in many of its expressions into a ind of mushy white-light `new age' religion, with far less of the strong sexuality characteristic of Gardnerianism, though, also, so metimes with less pretense as well. In any event, Satanism has popped up now and again through much of the histo ry of the Christian Church. The medieval witches were not li ely to have been Satanists, as the Church would have it, but, as we have seen, neither were the y li ely to have been "witches" in the Wiccan sense, either. The Hellfire Clubs of the eighteenth century were Satanic, and groups li e th e Process Church of the Final Judgement do, indeed, have Satanic elements in th eir (one should remember) essentially Christian theology. Aleister Crowley, ever theatrical, was prone to use Satanic symbolism in much the same way, tongue jutting in chee , as he was given to saying that he " sac rificed millions of children each year, " that is, that he masturbated. Crowle y once called a press conference at the foot of the Statue of Liberty, where h e announced that he was burning his British Passport to protest Britain's invol vement in World War One. He tossed an empty envelope into the water. He was de ad serious, though, about the "Satanism" of Miltonian eternal rebellion, and the "Satanism" of fundamentalism's dar fear of sexuality. The Devil, however; the Satanic "god of evil" was an absurdity to him, as to all thin ing people, and he freely said so. The most popular form of "counterChristianity" to emerge in modern times, th ough, was Anton Szandor LaVey's San Francisco-based Church of Satan, founded A pril 30, 1966. LaVey's Church enjoyed an initial burst of press interest, grew to a substantial size, and appeared to maintain itself during the cultural drou ght of the 1970s. But LaVey's boo s, THE SATANIC BIBLE and THE SATANIC RITUAL S, have remained in print for many years, and his ideas seem to be enjoying a renewal of interest, especially among younger people, pun s and heavy metal fa ns with a death-wish mostly, beginning in the middle years of the 1980s. By tha t time the Church of Satan had been largely succeeded by the Temple of Set. Th is is pure theatre; more in the nature of psychotherapy than religion. It is interesting to note Francis King's observation that before the Church of Satan began LaVey was involved in an occult group which included, among oth ers, underground film ma er Kenneth Anger, a person well nown in Crowlean cir cles. Of the rites of the Church of Satan, King states that "...most of its t eachings and magical techniques were somewhat vulgarized versions of those of Aleister Crowley's Ordo Templi Orientis." (MAN MYTH AND MAGIC, p 3204.) To which we might add that, as with the OTO, the rites of the Church of Satan are mani festly potent, but hardly criminal or murderous. LaVey, li e Gardner and unli e Crowley, appears to have "the common touch" -perhaps rather more so than Gardner. I determined to trace the Wiccan rumor to its source. As we shall see, in the very year I "fell" into being a gnostic bishop, I also fell into the original charters, rituals and paraphernalia of Wicca. THE CHARTER AND THE BOOK Being A Radical Revisionist History of the Origins of the Modern Witch Cult and The Boo of Shadows.

"It was one of the secret doctrines of paganism that the Sun was

the source, not only of light, but of life...The invasion of classical beliefs by the religions of Syria and Egypt which were principally solar, gradually a ffected the conception of Apollo, and there is a certain later identification of him with the suffering God of Christianity, Free - masonry and similar cult s..." Aleister Crowley in Astrology, 1974 "...if GBG and Crowley only new each other for a short year or two, do you th in that would be long enough for them to become such good friends that gifts o f personal value would be exchanged several times, and that GBG would have bee n able to aquire the vast majority of Crowley's effects after his death?" Merlin the Enchanter, personal letter, 1986 "...On the floor before the altar, he remembers a sword with a flat cruciform brass hilt, and a well-worn manuscript boo of rituals - the hereditary Boo of Shadows, which he will have to copy out for himself in the days to come..." Stewart Farrar in What Witches Do, 1971 "Actually I did write a scholarly boo about the Craft; its title was Inventing Witchcraft. . . But I spent most of the last fifteen years failing to persuade Carl Weschc e of Llewellyn or any other publisher that there was a mar et for it ." Aidan A. Kelly, Gnosis, Winter, 1992 "...the Gardnerian Boo of Shadows is one of the ey factors in what has beco me a far bigger and more significant movement than Gardner can have envisaged; so historical interest alone would be enough reason for defining it while fir st-hand evidence is still available..." Janet and Stewart Farrar in The Witches' Way, 1984 "It has been alleged that a Boo of Shadows in Crowley's handwriting was forme rly exhibited in Gerald's Museum of Witchcraft on the Isle of Man. I can only say I never saw this on either of the two occasions when I stayed with Gerald and Donna Gardner on the island. The large, handwritten boo depicted in Witc hcraft Today is not in Crowley's handwriting, but Gerald's..." Doreen Valiente in Witchcraft for Tomorrow, 1978

"Aidan Kelly...labels the entire Wiccan revival `Gardnerian Witchcraft....' Th e reasoning and speculation in Aidan's boo are intricate. Briefly, his main argument depends on his discovery of one of Gardner's wor ing noteboo s, Ye Bo o of Ye Art Magical, which is in possession of Ripley International, Ltd...." Margot Adler in Drawing Down the Moon, 1979

PART ONE WAITING FOR THE MAN FROM CANADA I was, for the third time in four years, waiting a bit nervously for the Cana dian executive with the original Boo of Shadows in the ramshac le office of R ipley's Believe It or Not Museum. "They're at the jail," a smiling secretary-type explained, "but we've called them and they should be bac over here to see you in just a few minutes." The jail? Ah, St. Augustine, Florida. "The Old Jail," was the `nation's olde st city's' second most tasteless tourist trap, complete with cage-type cells a nd a moc gallows. For a moment I allowed myself to play in my head with the vision of Norm Des a, Ripley Operations Vice President and John Turner, the Ge neral Manager of Ripley's local operation and the guy who'd bought the Gerald Gardner collection from Gardner's niece, Monique Wilson, sitting in the slammer. But no, Turner apparently had just been showing Des a the town. I straighte ned my suit for the fiftieth time, and suppressed the comment. We were tal ing BIG history here, and big buc s, too. I gulped. The original Boo of Shadow s. Maybe. It had started years before. One of the last people in America to be a fan of carnival sideshows, I was anxious to ta e another opportunity to go through the almost archetypally seedy old home that housed the original Ripley's Museum. I had nown that Ripley had, in the nineteen seventies, acquired the Gardner stuff, but as far as I new it was all located at their Tennessee resort museum . I thin I'd heard they'd closed it down. By then, the social liberalism of t he early seventies was over, and witchcraft and sorcery were no longer in eep ing with a `family style' museum. It featured a man with a candle in his head, a Tantric s ull drin ing cup and frea show stuff li e that, but, I mean, wit chcraft is sacrilegious, as we all now. So, I was a bit surprised, when I discovered some of the Gardner stuff - inclu ding an important historical document, for sale in the gift shop, in a case ju st opposite the little alligators that have "St.Augustine, Florida - America's Oldest City" stic ered on their plastic bellies for the fol s bac home to use as a paper-weight. The pricetags on the occult stuff, however, were way out o f my range. Bac again, three years later, and I decided, what the hell, so I as ed the c ashier about the stuff still gathering dust in the glass case, and it was li e I'd pushed some ind of button. Out comes Mr. Turner, the manager, who whis s us off to a store room which is filled, FILLED, I tell you, with parts of the Gardner collection, much of it, i f not "for sale" as such, at least available for negotiation. Turner told us a bout acquiring the collection when he was manager of Ripley's Blac pool operati on, how it had gone over well in the U.S. at first, but had lost popularity an d was now relegated for the most part to storage status. Visions of sugarplums danced in my head. There were many treasures here, but the biggest plum of all, I thought, was not surprisingly, not to be seen. I'd heard all inds of rumors about the Boo of Shadows over the years, many o f them conflicting, all of them intriguing. Rumor #1, of course, is that whic h accompanied the birth (or, depending on how one loo ed at it, the revival) o f modern Wicca, the contemporary successor of ancient fertility cults.

It revolved around elemental rituals, secret rites of passage and a mythos of goddess and god that seemed attractive to me as a psychologically valid altern ative to the austere, antisexual moralism of Christianity. The Boo of Shadows , in this context, was the `holy boo ' of Wicca, copied out by hand by new ini tiates of the cult with a history stretching bac at least to the era of witch burnings. Rumor number #2, which I had tended to credit, had it that Gerald Gardner, th e `father of modern Wicca' had paid Aleister Crowley in his final years to writ e the Boo of Shadows, perhaps whole cloth. The rumor's chief exponent was th e respected historian of the occult, Francis King. Rumor #3 had it that Gardner had written the Boo himself, which others had s ince copied and/or stolen. To the contrary, said rumor #4, Gardner's Museum had contained an old, even an cient copy of the Boo of Shadows, proving its antiquity. In more recent years modern Wiccans have tended to put some distance between t hemselves and Gardner, just as Gardner, for complex reasons, tended to distance himself in the early years of Wicca (circa 1944-1954) from the blatant sexual magic of Aleister Crowley, "the wic edest man in the world" by some accounts, and from Crowley's organization, the Ordo Templi Orientis. Why Gardner chose to do this is speculative, but I've got some idea. But, I'm getting ahead of myself. While Turner showed me a blasphemous cross shaped from the body of two nude wo men (created for the 18th century infamous "Hellfire Clubs" in England and depi cted in the MAN MYTH AND MAGIC encyclopedia; I bought it, of course) and a stat ue of Beelzebub from the dusty Garderian archives, a thought occurred to me. " You now," I suggested, "if you ever, in all this stuff, happen across a copy of The Boo of Shadows in the handwriting of Aleister Crowley, it would be of considerable historical value." I understated the case. It would be li e finding The Boo of Mormon in Joseph Smith's hand, or finding the original Ten Commandments written not by God Himse lf, but by Moses, pure and simple. (Better still, eleven commandments, with a margin note, "first draft.") I didn't really expect anything to come of it, and in the months ahead, it didn't. In the meantime, I had managed to acquire the interesting document I first mis too for Gerald Gardner's (long ac nowledged) initiation certificate into Crow ley's Thelemic magic al Ordo Templi Orientis. To my eventual surprise, I disc overed that, not only was this not a simple initiation certificate for the Mine rval (probationary-lowest) degree, but, to the contrary, was a license for Gar dner to begin his own chapter of the O.T.O., and to initiate members into the O.T.O. In the document, furthermore, Gardner is referred to as "Prince of Jerusalem," that is, he is ac nowledged to be a Fourth Degree Perfect Initiate in the Order. This, needless to say would usually imply years of dedicated training. Though Gardner had claimed Fourth Degree O.T.O. status as early as publication of High Magic's Aid,(and claimed even higher status in one edition) this runs somewhat contrary to both generally held Wiccan and con temporary O.T.O. orthodox understandings that the O.T.O. was then fallow in Eng land. At the time the document was written, most maintained, Gardner could have now n Crowley for only a brief period, and was not himself deeply involved in the O

.T.O. The document is undated but probably was drawn up around 1945. As I said, it is understood that no viable chapter of the O.T.O. was supposed to exist in England at that time; the sole active chapter was in California, a nd is the direct antecedent of the contemporary authentic Ordo Templi Orientis . Karl Germer, Crowley's immediate successor, had barely escaped death in a Co ncentartion Camp during the War, his mere association with Crowley being tanta mount to a death sentence. The German OTO had been largely destroyed by the Nazis, along with other freem asonic organizations, and Crowley himself was in declining health and power, th e English OTO virtually dead. The Charter also displayed other irregularities of a revealing nature. Though the signature and seals are certainly those of Crowley, the text is in the de corative hand of Gerald Gardner! The complete text reads as follows: Do what thou wilt shall be the law. We Baphomet X Degree Ordo Templi Orientis Sovereign Grand Master General of All English spea ing countries of the Earth do hereby authorise our Beloved Son Scire (Dr.G,B,Gardner,) Prince of Jerusalem to constitute a camp of the Ordo Templi Orientis, in the degree Minerval. Love is the Law, Love under will. o Witness my hand and seal Baphomet X

Leaving aside the misquotation from The Boo of the Law, which got by me for some months and probably got by Crowley when it was presented to him for signat ure, the document is probably authentic. It hung for some time in Gardner's m useum, possibly giving rise, as we shall see, to the rumor that Crowley wrote t he Boo of Shadows for Gardner. According to Doreen Valiente,and to Col. Lawre nce as well, the museum's descriptive pamphlet says of this document: "The collection includes a Charter granted by Aleister Crowley to G.B. Gardner (the Director of this Museum) to operate a Lodge of Crowley's fraternity, the Ordo Templi Orientis. (The Director would li e to point out, however, that he has never used this Charter and has no intention of doing so, although to the b est of his belief he is the only person in Britain possessing such a Charter fr om Crowley himself; Crowley was a personal friend of his, and gave him the Cha rter because he li ed him." Col. Lawrence ("Merlin the Enchanter"), in a letter to me dated 6 December, 19 86, adds that this appeared in Gardner's boo let, The Museum of Magic and Witc hcraft. The explanation for the curious wording of the text, ta ing, as Dr. Ga rdner does, great pains to distance himself from Crowley and the OTO, may be hi nted at in that the boo let suggests that this display in the "new upper galle ry" (page 24) was put out at a relatively late date when, as we shall discover , Gardner was ma ing himself answerable to the demands of the new witch cult an d not the long-dead Crowley and (then) relatively moribund OTO. Now, the "my friend Aleister" ploy might explain the whole thing. Perhaps, as some including Ms. Valiente believe, Aleister Crowley was desperate in his last years to hand on what he saw as his legacy to someone. He rec lessly handed o

ut his literary estate, perhaps gave contradictory instruction to various of h is remaining few devotees (e.g. Kenneth Grant, Grady McMurtry, Karl Germer), a nd may have given Gardner an "accelerated advancement" in his order. Ms. Valiente, a devoted Wiccan who is also a dedicated see er after the histor ical truth, mentions also the claim made by the late Gerald Yor e to her that Gardner had paid Crowley a substantial sum for the document. In a letter to me dated 28th August, 1986, Ms. Valiente tells of a meeting with Yor e "...in Lo ndon many years ago and mentioned Gerald's O.T.O. Charter to him, whereon he t old me, `Well, you now, Gerald Gardner paid old Crowley about ($1500) or so for that...' This may or may not be correct..." Money or friendship may explain t he Charter. Still, one wonders. I have a Thelemic acquaintance who, having advanced well along the path of Ke nneth Grant's version of the OTO, went bac to square one with the unquestionab ly authentic Grady McMurtry OTO. Over a period of years of substantial effort , he made his way to the IVo `plus' status implied by Gardner's "Prince of Jer usalem" designation in the charter, and has since gone beyond. I am, myself, a Vo member of the OTO, as well as a chartered initiator, and c an tell you from experience that becoming a Companion of the Royal Arch of Enoc h, Perfect Initiate, Prince of Jerusalem and Chartered Initiator is a long and arduous tas . Gardner was in the habit, after the public career of Wicca emerged in the 195 0s, of downgrading any Crowleyite associations out of his past, and, as Janet and Stewart Farrar reveal in The Witches' Way (1984, p3) there are three disti nct versions of the Boo of Shadows in Gerald Gardner's handwriting which incor porate successively less material from Crowley's writings, though the last (ter med "Text C" and cowritten with Doreen Valiente after 1953) is still heavily in fluenced by Crowley and the OTO. Ms. Valiente has recently uncovered a copy of an old occult magazine contempor ary with High Magic's Aid and from the same publisher, which discusses an anci ent Indian document called "The Boo of Shadows" but apparently totally unrela ted to the Wiccan boo of the same name. Valiente ac nowledges that the earlie st text by Gardner nown to her was untitled, though she refers to it as a "Boo of Shadows." It seems suspicious timing; did Gardner ta e the title from his publisher's ma gazine? Ms. Valiente observed to me that the "...eastern Boo of Shadows does n ot seem to have anything to do with witch-craft at all....is this where old Ge rald first found the expression "The Boo of Shadows" and adopted it as a more poetical name for a magical manuscript than, say `The Grimoire' or `The Blac B oo '....I don't profess to now the answer; but I doubt if this is mere coinci dence...." The claim is frequently made by those who wish to `salvage' a preGardnarian so urce of Wiccan materials that there is a `core' of `authentic' materials. But, as the Farrars' recently asserted, the portions of the Boo of Shadows "..whi ch changed least between Texts A, B and C were naturally the three initiation r ituals; because these, above all, would be the traditional elements which would have been carefully preserved, probably for centuries...." (emphasis added) But what does one mean by "traditional materials?" The three initiation rites, now much-described in print, all smac heavily of the crypto-freemasonic ritu al of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, the OTO, and the various esoteric neorosicrucian groups that abounded in Britain from about 1885 on, and which were, it is widely nown, the fountainhead of much that is associated with Gar dner's friend Crowley.

The Third Degree ritual, perhaps Wicca's ultimate rite, is, essentially, a n onsymbolic Gnostic Mass, that beautiful, evocative, erotic and esoteric ritua l written and published by Crowley in the Equinox, after attending a Russian O rthodox Mass in the early part of this century. The Gnostic Mass has had farreaching influence, and it would appear that the Wiccan Third Degree is one of the most blatant examples of that influence. Ta e, for example, this excerpt from what is perhaps the most intimate, most s ecret and most sublime moment in the entire repertoire of Wicca rituals, the n onsymbolic (that is, overtly sexual) Great Rite of the Third Degree initiation , as related by Janet and Stewart Farrar in The Witches' Way (p.34): The Priest continues: `O Secret of Secrets, That art hidden in the being of all lives, Not thee adore, For that which adoreth is also thou. Thou art That, and That am I. ] I am the flame that burns in the heart of every man, And in the core of star. I am life, and the giver of life. Yet therefore is the nowledge of e nowledge of death. I am alone, the Lord within ourselves, Whose name is ry of Mysteries.'

Let us be unambiguous as to the importance in Wicca of this ritual; as the Far rars'put it (p.31) "Third degree initiation elevates a witch to the highest of the three grades of the Craft. In a sense,a third-degree witch is fully indep endent, answerable only to the Gods and his or her own conscience..." In short , in a manner of spea ing this is all that Wicca can offer a devotee. With this in mind, observe the following, from Aleister Crowley's Gnostic Mass , first published in The Equinox about 80 years ago and routinely performed (a lbeit ,usually in symbolic form) by me and by many other Bishops, Priests, Pri estesses and Deacons in the OTO and Ecclesia Gnostica (EGC) today. The follow ing is excerpted from Gems From the Equinox, p. 372, but is widely available in published form: The Priest. O secret of secrets that art hidden in the being of all that lives , not Thee do we adore, for that which adoreth is also Thou. Thou art That, and That am I. I am the flame that burns in every heart of man, and in the core of every star. I am Life, and the giver of Life; yet therefore is the nowledg e of me the nowledge of death. I am alone; there is no God where I am. So, then, where, apart from the Thelemic tradition of Crowley and the OTO, i s the "traditional material" some Wiccan writers seem to see with near despera tion? I am not trying to be sarcastic in the least, but even commonplace sel f - references used among Wiccans today, such as "the Craft" or the refrain "s o mote it be"are lifted straight out of Freemasonry (see, for example, Duncan' s Ritual of Freemasonry). And, as Doreen Valiente notes in her letter to me me ntioned before, "...of course old Gerald was also a member of the Co-Masons, an d an ordinary Freemason..." as well as an OTO member. PART TWO THE REAL ORIGIN OF WICCA

We must dismiss with some respect the assertion, put forth by Margot Adler and others, that "Wicca no longer adheres to the orthodox mythos of the Boo of Sh adows." Many, if not most of those who have been drawn to Wicca in the last three dec

do we [Kiss every me th Myste

ades came to it under the spell (if I may so term it) of the legend of ancient Wicca. If that legend is false, then while reformists and revisionist apologi sts (particularly the peculiar hybrid spawned in the late sixties under the na me "feminist Wicca") may see other valid grounds for their practices, we at l east owe it to those who have operated under a misapprehension to explain the t ruth, and let the chips fall where they may. I believe there is a core of valid experience falling under the Wiccan-neopag an heading, but that that core is the same essential core that lies at the trut hs exposed by the dreaded boogy-man Aleister Crowley and the` wic ed' pansexua lism of Crowley's Law of Thelema. That such roots would be not just uncomforta ble, but intolerable to the orthodox traditionalists among the Wiccans, but ev en more so among the hybrid feminist "wiccans" may indeed be an understatement . Neopaganism, in a now archaic "hippie" misreading of ecology, mista es respons ible stewardship of nature for nature worship. Ancient pagans did not `worship' nature; to a large extent they were afraid of it, as has been pointed out to me by fol practioners. Their "nature rites" were to propitiate the caprice of the gods, not necessarily to honor them. The first neopagan revivalists, Gar dner, Crowley and Dr. Murray, well understood this. Neopagan wiccans usually do not. In introducing a "goddess element" into their theology, Crowley and Gardner both understood the yin/yang, male/female fundamental polarity of t he universe. Radical feminist neopagans have ta en this balance and altered i t, however unintentionally, into a political feminist agenda, centered around a near-monotheistic worship of the female principle, in a bizarre caricature of patriarchal Christianity. Bigotry, I submit, cuts both ways. I do not say these things lightly; I have seen it happen in my own time. IF this be truth, let truth name its own price. I was not sure, until Norm and J ohn got bac from the Old Jail. A couple of months earlier, scant days after hearing that I was to become a gn ostic bishop and thus an heir to a corner of Crowley's legacy, I had punched o n my answering machine, and there was the unexpected voice of John Turner sayin g that he had located what seemed to be the original Boo of Shadows in an inv entory list, locating it at Ripley's office in Toronto. He said he didn't thin they would sell it as an individual item, but he gave me the name of a top official in the Ripley organization, who I promptly contac ted. I eventually made a substantial offer for the boo , sight unseen, figuri ng there was (at the least) a li elihood I'd be able to turn the story into a boo and get my money bac out of it, to say nothing of the historical import. But, as I researched the matter, I became more wary, and confused; Gardner's texts "A" "B" and "C" all seemed to be accounted for. Possibly, I began to su spect, this was either a duplicate of the "deThelemized" post1954 version with segments written by Gardner and Valiente and copied and recopied (as well as distorted) from hand to hand since by Wiccans the world over. Maybe, I mused, Valiente had one copy and Gardner another, the latter sold t o Ripley with the Collection. Or, perhaps it was the curious noteboo discove red by Aidan Kelly in the Ripley files called Ye Boo of Ye Art Magical, the m eaning of which was unclear. While I was chatting with Ms.Des a, Norm returned from his mission, we introd uced in best businessli e fashion, and he told me he'd get the boo , whatever

it might be, from the vault. The vault?! I sat there thin ing god nows what . Recently, I'd gotten a call from Toronto, and it seems the Ripley fol s wanted me to ta e a loo at what th ey had. I had made a considerable offer, and at that point I figured I'd had a t least a nibble. As it so happened Norm would be visiting on a routine inspe ction visit, so it was arranged he would bring the manuscript with him. Almost from the minute he placed it in front of me, things began to ma e some ind of sense. Clearly, this was Ye Boo of Ye Art Magical. Just as clearly, it was an unusual piece, written largely in the same hand as the Crowley Char ter- that is, the hand of Gerald Gardner. Of this I became certain, because I h ad handwriting samples of Gardner, Valiente and Crowley in my possession. Ms. Valiente had been mindful of this when she wrote me, on August 8th, 1986:

I have deliberately chosen to write you in longhand, rather than send a typewr itten reply, so that you will have something by which to judge the validity of the claim you tell me is being made by the Ripley organisation to have a copy of a "Boo of Shadows" in Gerald Gardner's handwriting and mine. If this is. .."Ye Boo of Ye Art Magical," ....this is definitely in Gerald Gardner's hand writing. Old Gerald, however, had several styles of handwriting....I thin it i s probable that the whole MS. was in fact written by Gerald, and no other pers on was involved; but of course I may be wrong.... At first glance it appeared to be a very old boo , and it suggested to me whe re the rumors that a very old, possibly medieval Boo of Shadows had once been on display in Gardner's Museum had emerged from. Any casual onloo er might see Ye Boo in this light, for the cover was indeed that of an old volume, with the original title scratched out crudely on the si de and a new title tooled into the leather cover. The original was some munda ne volume, on Asian nives or something, but the inside pages had been removed , and a ind of noteboo -- almost a journal -- had been substituted. As far as I could see, no dates appear anywhere in the boo . It is written in several different handwriting styles, although, as noted above, Doreen Valient e assured me that Gardner was apt to use several styles. I had the distinct i mpression this "noteboo " had been written over a considerable period of time, perhaps years, perhaps even decades. It may, indeed, date from his days in the 1930s when he lin ed up with a neorosicrucuian grouping that could have includ ed among its members the legendary Dorothy Clutterbuc , who set Gardner on the path which led to Wicca. Thin ing on it, what emerges from Ye Boo of Ye Art Magical is a developmental set of ideas. Much of it is straight out of Crowley, but it is clearly the pu blished Crowley, the old magus of the Golden Dawn, the A.A., and the O.T.O. Somewhere along the line it hit me that I was not exactly loo ing at the " original Boo of Shadows" but, perhaps, the outline Gardner prepared over a lo ng period of time, apparently in secret (since Valiente, a relatively early init iate of Gardner's, never heard of it nor saw it, according to her own account, until recent years, about the time Aidan Kelly unearthed it in the Ripley coll ection long after Gardner's death). Dr. Gardner ept many odd noteboo s and scrapboo s that perhaps would reveal m uch about his character and motivations. Turner showed me a Gardner scrapboo i n Ripley's store room which was mostly cheeseca e magazine photographs and art icles about actresses. Probably none are so evocative as Ye Boo of Ye Art Magic

al, discovered,it has been intimated,hidden away in the bac of an old sofa.

If someone had seen the charter signed by Crowley ("Baphomet") but written by Gerald Gardner, and had gotten a loo , as well, at Ye Boo , they might well h ave concluded that Crowley had written BOTH, an honest error, but maybe the so urce of that long-standing accusation. There is even a notation in the Ripley catalog attributing the manuscript to Crowley on someone's say-so, but I have n o indication Ripley has any other such boo . Finally, if the noteboo is a sou rceboo of any religious system, it is not that of medieval witchcraft, but th e twentieth century madness or sanity or both of the infamous magus Aleister C rowley and the Thelemic/Gnostic creed of The Boo of the Law. As I sat there I read aloud familiar quotations or paraphrases from published material in the Crowley-Thelemic canon. This is not the "ancient religion of the Wise" but the modern sayings of " the Beast 666 " as Crowley was wont to s tyle himself. But, does any of this invalidate Wicca as an expression of human spirituality? It depends on where one is coming from. Certainly, the foundations of femini st Wicca and the modern cult of the goddess are challenged with the fact that t he goddess in question may be Nuit, her manifestation the sworn whore, Our Lady Babalon, the Scarlet Woman. Transform what you will shall be the whole of his tory, but THIS ma es what Marx did to Hegel loo li e slavish devotion. What Crowley himself said of this ind of witchcraft is not merely instructive, but an afront to the conceits of an era. "The belief in witchcraft," he observed, " was not all superstition; its psyc hological roots were sound. Women who are thwarted in their natural instincts turn inevitably to all inds of malignant mischief, from slander to domestic d estruction..." For the rest of us, those who neither worship nor are disdainful of the man who made sexuality a god or, at least, ac nowledged it as such, experience must be its own teacher. If Wicca is a sort of errant Minerval Camp of the OTO, gone far astray and far afield since the days Crowley gave Gardner a charter he "did n't use" but seemed to value, and a whole range of rituals and imagery that ass ault the senses at their most literally fundamental level; if this is true or sort of true, maybe its time history be owned up to. Mythos has its place and role, but so, too, does reality. PART THREE WICCA AS AN OTO ENCAMPMENT The question of intent looms large in the bac ground of this inquiry. If I ha d to guess, I would venture that Gerald Gardner did, in fact, invent Wicca more or less whole cloth, to be a popularized version of the OTO. Crowley, or his successor Karl Germer, who also new Dr. Gardner, li ely set "old Gerald" on what they intended to be a Thelemic path, aimed at reestablishing at least a basic OTO encampment in England. Aiden Kelly's research wor on all this is most impressive, but at roc bottom I can't help feeling he still wants to salvage something original in Wicca. In a way, there is some justification for this; the Wicca of Gerald Gardner, OTO ini

I have ime, and y and my counting

the impression it was essentially un nown in and after Gardner's lifet that by the Summer of 1986 few had seen inside it; I new of only Kell own party. Perhaps the cover had been seen by some along the line, ac for the rumor of a "very old Boo of Shadows" in Gardner's Museum.

tiate and advocate of sexual magic produced a fol sy, easier version of the OTO , but by the middle nineteen fifties some of his early "followers" not only crea ted a revisionist Wicca with relatively little of the Thelemic original intact, but convinced Gardner to go along with the changes. It is also possible, but yet unproven, that, upon expelling Kenneth Grant from the OTO in England, Germer, in the early 1950s, summoned Gardner to America t o interview him as a candidate for leading the British OTO. Gardner, it is con firmed, came to America, but by then Wicca, and Dr. Gardner had begun to ta e t heir own, watered-down course. Today most Wiccans have no idea of their origins. Let me close this section by quoting two interesting tidbits for your consider ation. First consider Doreen Valiente's observation to me concerning "the Parsons co nnection". I quote from her letter abovementioned, one of several she was ind enough to send me in 1986 in connection with my research into this matter. ...I did now about the existence of the O.T.O. Chapter in California at the t ime of Crowley's death, because I believe his ashes were sent over to them. He was cremated here in Brighton, you now, much to the scandal of the local aut horities, who objected to the `pagan funeral service.' If you are referring to the group of which Jac Parsons was a member (along with the egregious Mr. L. R on Hubbard), then there is another curious little point to which I must draw yo ur attention. I have a remar able little boo by Jac Parsons called MAGICK, G NOSTICISM AND THE WITCHCRAFT. It is unfortunately undated, but Parsons died i n 1952. The section on witchcraft is particularly interesting because it loo s forward to a revival of witchcraft as the Old Relig ion....I find this very thought provo ing. Did Parsons write this around the t ime that Crowley was getting together with Gardner and perhaps communicated wit h the California group to tell them about it? We must remember that Ms. Valiente was a close associate of Gardner and is a d edicated and active Wiccan. She, of course, has her own interpretation of thes e matters. The OTO recently reprinted the Parsons "witchcraft" essays in Freedom is a Two Edged Sword , a postumous collection of his writings. It does indeed s eem that Gardner and Parsons were both on the same wave-length at about the same time. The other matter of note is the question of the length of Gardner's association with the OTO and with Crowley personally. My informant Col. Lawrence, tells m e that he has in his possession a cigarette case which once belonged to Aleister Crowley. Inside is a note in Crowley's hand that says simply: `gift of GBG, 19 36, A. Crowley'." (Personal letter, 6 December, 1986) The inscription could be a mista e, it could mean 1946, the period of the Char ter. But, as Ms. Valiente put it in a letter to me of 8th December, 1986: If your friend is right, then it would mean that old Gerald actually went throu gh a charade of pretending to Arnold Crowther that Arnold was introducing him to Crowley for the first time - a charade which Crowley for some reason was wi lling to go along with. Why? I can't see the point of such a pretence; but th en occultists sometimes do devious things... Crowley may have played out a similar scene with G.I. Gurdjieff, the other enli ghtened merry pran ster of the first half of the twentieth century.

Gnosticism and Wicca, the subjects of Jac

Parsons' essays, republished by the

OTO and Falcon Press in 1990, are the two most successful expressions to date of Crowley's dream of a popular solar-phallic religion. Maybe I'm wrong, but I thin Aleister and Gerald may have coo ed Wicca up. If Wicca is the OTO's prodigal daughter in fact, authorized directly by Crowle y, how should Wiccans now relate to this? How should Crowley's successors and h eirs in the OTO deal with it? Then too, what are we to ma e of and infer about all this business of a popula r Thelemic-Gnostic religion? Were Crowley, Parsons, Gardner and others trying to do something of note with regard to actualizing a New Aeon here which bears scrutiny? Or is this mere speculation, and of little significance for the Gr eat Wor today? If the Charter Crowley issued Gardner is, indeed, the authority upon which Wic ca has been built for half a century, then it is perhaps no coincidence that I acquired that Charter in the same year I was consecrated a Bishop of the Gnost ic Catholic Church. Further, it was literally days after my long search for the original of Gardner's BOOK OF SHADOWS ended in success that the Holy Synod of T Michael Bertiaux's Gnostic Church unanimously elected me a Missionary Bishop , on August 29, 1986. Sometimes, I muse, the Inner Order revo ed Wicca's charter in 1986,placing it in my hands. Since I hold it in trust for the OTO, perhaps Wicca has, in symbo lic form, returned home at last. It remains for the Wiccans to, literally (sin ce the charter hangs in my temple space), to read the handwriting on the wall. " Witchcraft always has a hard time, until it becomes established and changes its name." - Charles Fort Paganism at the Crossroads by S ytoucher These are tric y and dangerous times. Paganism has grown in size to the po int where we no longer enjoy the luxury of obscurity. We now face a choice that all initiatory paths face at some time in their development; whether to remain a viable initiatory path, and if so under what circumstances; or to devolve into a mere religion. I'd better bac trac some readers may not understand what an initiatory pat h is or how it differs from a religion. Others may thin paganism is a religion already, and wonder what I mean by suggesting it is or could be something else. A defense often used against fundamentalist Christians and others who attac paganism on a religious basis is to say "We are not li e you, only different i n a few not so important ways. We are a religion, li e you, another belief syst em, harmless, ordinary. We worship the Earth, the Goddess, the same way you wor ship your abstract God. You should extend tolerance to us for the same reason yo u extend it to Muslims or Buddhists or Catholics or Jews. When you single us ou t as something weird, you are exhibiting hysterical paranoia." It's an effectiv e defense, but somewhat disingenuous.

We are different. We aren't just a religion. We are at present, and in my view should try to remain, a path of initiation. It may be inevitable that a r eligion grow up around us. It may even be desirable to employ such a religion a s a cloa , or a doorway, to both. But a Pagan religion is also a threat to the Pagan path of initiation. We need to ensure that the growth, if it occurs, is t

hat of a tree from a seed, not of a pearl from a grain of sand. A tree produces more seeds. A pearl only hide the sand to save the oyster from discomfort. What is an initiatory path? And what, then, is initiation?

We touch here upon a word badly misunderstood by many Pagans. Initiation i s one thing; an initiation ritual is another. A person is not an initiate, in t he sense I mean here,just because he or she has passed through an initiation rit ual. Initiation is a personal experience in which one becomes aware of mysteries ; realities that were previously hidden and which cannot be communicated by one person to another in w ords or symbols, but must be experienced directly, firsthand. This last point i s crucial. One finds "mysteries" communicated in coven initiations or even at f estivals, but these are only hidden meanings of symbols and tools used in the Cr aft, or of stories told about the Gods. The fact that they can be communicated ma es them not true mysteries, only secrets. A body of teaching, practice, and ritual which facilitates initiation is an initiatory path. Most religions start out as paths of initiation. Religion tends to be conservative. Initiation, however, is always revoluti onary...-....It forms a person's life, bringing inner peace, greater insight int o the wor ings of fate, and awareness of the connections lin ing all things, as well as magical power. If it were a commonplace event, if people went through i nitiation as surely as they go through puberty, we would have a far different an d better world. Even if the circle of initiates included a significant minority of the popu lation, the magical effect of such a number of altered minds on the world would be profound and positive. Of course, this very fact means that initiatory pa ths will be opposed by those interests, both human and non human, that are oppos ed to positive change. The opposition is not really a conspiracy; it seems more than an automatic reaction, a law of nature. Initiation is not an instantaneous event, but one that occurs through ye ars of effort and devotion. It seems li ely that there is no end to the process , and that the idea of there "fully enlightened being" is a peculiar Oriental fa ntasy. There are times, it is true, when revelation comes in a flash li e light ning, but such moments are exclamation mar s punctuating a story that unfolds ch apter by chapter. Many tools and methods for achieving initiation have evolved over the ages. Some are intellectual, aiming to expand consciousness through thought: Vedanta and the Caballah come to mind as among the most impressive. Others are ritual or devotional; Ba hti Yoga, chanting the names of the Gods, drawing down the Moon, the meditations of the monastics. So me are also physical: Hatha Yoga, Sufi dancing, some forms of martial art. Some aim at expanding consciousness directly by stretching it to its limits; meditati on, Raja Yoga, guided visualizations, vision quest. Then there are sex magic, drugs, drumming, auster ities,use of talismans, self discipline, and so on. Most of these techniques ev olved outside a pagan context, but they are amendable to incorporation in a pagan framewor . Initiation rituals, of course, are another method, but they are seldom sufficient by themselves. Initiates can be found into the context of any religion,including those lea st similar to Neopaganism. St. Francis of Assisi was an initiate, and many a Su

fi and Caballist, Buddhist and Yogi, Taoist and shaman. A modern Neopagan initi ate has far more in common with them than with an illiterate, superstitious paga n of the Roman Empire, gobbling the flesh of sacrificed animals while contemplat ing how to bac stab his competitors. All initiates of all paths have a common h eart; it is religions,which circle the periphery of the sacred, that differ. But, while Christian, Jewish and Muslim initiates do exist,the established religions don't ma e it easy. For every illuminated Catholic saint, there are h undreds of burned heretics. Indeed, many post Constantinian saints escaped burn ing themselves only by miracles greater than those for which they were canonized . Burning is passe nowadays but condemnation for heresy is not, and thrives as well in most Protestant denominations. So bound about with the fetters of faith is the Christian that initiation is virtually impossible, except for minds. This is no accident. The tragedy of Christianity is that it began so well and decayed so quic ly into such a parody of its beginnings. This is a recurring phenomenon. Again a nd again, the initiatory message has presented itself in some new form and met w ith some success,only to be hidden in a maze of illusions, and crusted over with barriers and restrictions. There are always counterattac s from outside the ne w path, from established religions, but the truly effective counterattac s come from within, so that what began as a bright new hope becomes a mere religion. T he priests, the figures in authority, forge an instrument for the furtherance of their own authority, to which genuine initiation is a serious threat. The init iatory impulse is carefully bled off into harmless channels, and all magic outsi de those channels is ruthlessly suppressed. There is a great deal of magic in Christian monastic orders,and more still in Hindu and Buddhist ashrams, or wielded by wandering saddhus. But these illuminated souls, both Western and Eastern, are s worn to poverty, chastity, humility. Many do not reproduce, ensuring that, if t here is a genetic component to magic, it will be wea ened by removing its best p ractitioners from the gene pool. Too, in renouncing the world, they ensure that their spiritual insight will play a small role shaping events. In contrast, a few secret initiatory paths remain active and true to their original mission. T hese paths, which include Hermeticism, the Caballah, surviving shamanic traditions, and a few branches of Sufism, have made themselves non threatening in a different way. They continue to live in the wor ld and to learn and teach practical as well as spiritual magic, but in such tiny numbers and in so furtive a fashion that they hold little promise of genuine la rge scale transformation. There is not really anything wrong with this; such se cret orders have acted over the centuries to preserve the Mysteries, not to spre ad them. Without them, efforts to brea the chains on a large scale would be to no avail. But Paganism is different. Neopaganism is unique at this time, though not historically in that it is a genuine initiatory path that has grown large. Mor eover, in its diversity and flexibility, its protean and progressive nature, it promises to incorporate all of the virtues of the other surviving paths. It may not be the most advanced, the most powerful, or the most aesthetically refined, but these characteristics can all be absorbed from the smaller paths which posse ss them, for Paganism is an all gobbling magical amoeba, suc ing up the mythos, methods, and nowledge of every other path in existence. Once again, an initiatory path threatens to brea out and ma e some changes in realit y. On schedule, opposition has begun to arise.

As always, some of the opposition is from the outside, but I don't thin w e need to be concerned about that. A strain of paranoia is built into our origi n myths and traditions, and is always a greater danger than the persecution we f ear. The external opposition has seldom been very effective against any relativ ely genteel sort, mostly involving propaganda. However, propaganda is legitimat e (they have a right to express their opinions about what we do, as we have the right to spea in counterpoint.) There may be more serious difficulties, even o ccasional violence, but the Burning Times are gone for good, barring a complete collapse of civilization. We have more important things to worry about within our own ran s. The rapid increase in our numbers in the last few decades means there are many newcomers. Newcomers are ripe for exploitation, both monetary and political, a nd both have begun to occur. The first fills me with amusement and outrage. Th e second is more alarming. There seems to be a growing desire in some quarters to commercialize Neopag anism and profit from it. That's only natural, but when crystal athames go for $1,400 and classes are taught in return for a pledge of a percentage of the stud ents' income in perpetuity, somebody is getting fleeced. This is bad enough, bu t not nearly as bad as what might happen in reaction. Better a crowd of poorer and wiser novices, the huc st ers filling the role of the Dweller on the Threshold, than a Paganism reduced fr om a path of initiation to a mere religion, its bright promise gone dull, as hav e so many others. The seeds of this development lie chiefly in individuals we might call Paga n politicians, and in our response to them. They may not be high initiates or p owerful magicians, but they are s illful at organizing, they li e to stri e pose s in public, and they now how to wor the media. Sometimes they appear on tele vision to say "This is what Paganism is. This is what Witchcraft is," self appo inted spo espersons for the entire Pagan community. Their power over the Craft may be small, but it could easily grow as the Craft grows, as they sin their ho o s into more and more beginners. An experienced initiate is unli ely to be moved by a picture on television, or a story in the newspaper. It is otherwise for a novice. When fi rst appraising something, it is the surface one sees. And there are two dangers in this trend; First, that insightful, intuitive, independent people, the ind who would ma e good Witches, maybe turned off by the media spectacle (analogy: W hat is your reaction to the words "New Age?".) Secondly, that those who are not repelled may develop a ind of mundane "Neopaganism," a mere religion, based as other religions are on faith, dogma, and prescribed observances, conservative ( in the sense of resisting progress, not of voting Republican) and anti initiator y. There may be points in common between it and us (such as an environmental ethic or "worship" (how I despise th at word!) of a Goddess), as a baboon might wear a tuxedo, but the heart and soul would be gone. Anyone who sought initiation would have to pass the gauntlet of this other paganism first and then unlearn this religion to approach the new pa th. Few could be expected to do so. It is important to recognize these politicos for what they are. They are o ur would be clergy who, li e Christian priests,Muslim mullah and Jewish rabbis, would be religious leaders but,with rare exceptions, no initiates. Their author ity would derive from accepted doctrines and from political acumen, rather than spiritual awareness. Pagan pontiff pretenders are not necessarily malevolent, b ut they do not comprehend the purpose of initiation or the fundamental ways in w hich Paganism differs, not just from this or that religion, from all religions. Consequently, they do not understand that priests, ministers,rabbis, and so fort

h are not good role models for Pagan spiritual leaders, even if allowances are m ade for differing value systems. Paganism, as currently practiced, is not simply a different religion, but a different category of thing altogether. Not only does it not s uffer without an organization comparable to that of established religions, but c reating such an organization may bury us. The bishops who created the Catholic Church were not particularly evil men. But they were misguided, and the result of their labor was disastrous. Yet so me movement on this road is inevitable. It is the fruit of growth, a sign that a path of initiation has matured into a serious threat to the status quo. It rep resents a counterattac by the forces of inertia. Let's not be unduly alarmist. We are not in immediate danger, but the clou ds can be seen on the horizon, and we need to prepare ourselves, and consider wh ether anything can be done to avoid the usual fate of an initiatory path at the crossroads. All our predecessors, on reaching this juncture, have ta en the wron g turning. But we have ;advantages former initiatory paths lac ed. That no one has succeeded up to now is not so imposing an obstacle as it might seem. One of our advantages is the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and similar provisions, in fact and tradition if not law, guaranteeing religious liberty in all Western democracies. It is literally impo ssible for a Pagan Catholic Church, even if one comes into existence, to exile o r execute dissident Pagans, as was done to dissident Christians after the Council of Nicaea. It is unli ely that any Pagan organization,or that of any other religion, could get a modern Western governme nt do its dirty wor to any significant degree. Overt persecution is reduced fr om a terror to a nuisance. That's no small achievement. Another advantage is modern information technology. Communication of ideas is now so easy, and suppression of them so difficult, that to contain or channel or eliminate the initiatory message will be harder th an ever before, and may be impossible. Of course, the downside of this developme nt is the proliferation of blatant nonsense. But I thin that is an acceptable price. Better the truth be heard whispering through shouted lies and bellowed fo lly than that it not be heard at all. The third, subtlest and possibly the greatest advantage we have over our pr edecessors is science. By science I do not mean any particular bit of nowledge which has been unc overed by scientists, although all that is useful as well. I mean the attitudes of science. I mean the methods of science. Above all, I mean the vision of sc ience. Than s to science, we no longer thin of all nowledge as being only in its sacred and spiritual and aesthetic dimensions though these are certainly im portant but in its technical dimensions as well, as see the laws and principle s that underpin magic, analogous to the laws of physics that underpin technology. Best of all: Than s to science, we are not limited to what we now today. We understand that even our best picture of reality is only an approximation, th at we will have a better picture tomorrow. This gift promises to upset the cree ping authoritarianism that has ruined so many paths of initiation and created so many religions. These are potent advantages. I believe they allow us the possibility of su ccess. But not the certainty. As we approach the crossroads, there are a numbe r of things that need doing. Some of these steps are simply a matter of eeping

our attitudes in the right places. Others involve research, development, and ar tistic creation. Others still involve magical tas s. We need to understand tha t modern Paganism, though built on the past, is not limited by it, that we are c apable of improving on our ancestor's wisdom even to the extent that their wisd om is not a product of our own romantic imagination, which is large measure it i s. We need to recognize, once and for all, and say so, that our origin myths ar e just that: Wicca is not a survival from the pre Christian past, but an eclecti c/creative construct meant to imitate what such a survival should ideally be. I ts resemblance, and that of Neopaganism in general, to ancient paganism in any of its multitude of forms is slight and ultimately besides the point. We need to do these things because they will allow us to ta e the next step , which is to expand Paganism, as a path of initiation, to its potential. We ca nnot do that so long as we are loc ed into an old model real or romanticized. The initiatory paths of the past have failed. Therefore, we need something bette r than what has gone before. We can ta e the essentials of Neopaganism, the bro ad stro es of its mythology and ritual, as a starting point, but we must go beyo nd that start. First, we need to penetrate beneath the level of religious symbolism to wha t might be called the physics of magic, the nuts and bolts and laws of nature th at account for what magic does and is. Next to the initiatory experience itself , which can never be communicated or replaced by anything that point cannot be e mphasized too much or too often the physics of magic would be the deepest level of understanding, accounting for all forms of symbolic nowledge. I have developed on system of laws which I believe to be wor able. (An account of thos e laws will appear in an upcoming issue of Enchante.) It is the duty of every s cientifically minded reader to rip them apart as best as possible, to test them, and improve on them. Secondly, we need to improve our tool chest of spiritual methods. Much of the wor has already been done by initiates outside Paganism. All we have to do is translate it and incorporate it within our own framewor . At the same time, an expanded and improved body of poetic ritual would be useful. A recognition of both the possibility and the need would be a valid step . We must ac nowledge that Yoga can meditate us into a corner, that the Caballa h theorizes rings around us, and that any good shamanic lineage wor s magic to put us to shame. We must also insist that Pagan ism has advantages over these that should not be surrendered, and wor to incorp orate what other paths can teach us into our own framewor . These accomplishments would serve to strengthen and fortify the initiatory p ath of Paganism. It will need all the strength it can get if it is to resist tu rning into a religion. But there are other things that need doing as well, on b oth the communicative and magical fronts. Those of us with active pens must communicate the idea of an initiatory pat h that lies within the mythical and ritual structure of the Pagan religion, as i t out to and once did lie within all religions. There is, at present, no establ ished Pagan doctrine or dogma, no established pagan clergy, and no established P agan pantheon, and this also must be made clear. The magical side of the battle may be the most important one. Here, the guiding principle should be a clear vi sualization of what we want Paganism to be. Should exoteric Pagan religions grow up around the initiatory core, then, i deally, we would want the priest/esse/s of this religion to be initiates. But t

his may not be practicable. First, many of us are unsuited for or uninterested in the role of ministering to those who are unready for initiation. Second, the re may be too many newcomers to Paganism (by some estimates the fastest growing religion in North America) and too few initiates. I believe we could agree on two goals; a viable and visible initiatory trad ition must be maintained within the religion and no exoteric priesthood must be allowed to gain preeminence over the path. To those ends, then, the following m agical wor ings are suggested. Weave the Net. There is a tenuous telepathic lin among all initiates. Th is can be invo ed as part of the opening of any major magical wor , which will s trengthen both the wor and the net. Some covens and individuals already do thi s. Reach out the heart's fiery hand and feel the love of one another, both with in the coven and beyond it, setting aside the quarrels of the mind, poles of a t ipi each supporting each, moving faster, faster,circles made of love. In this w ay, a synergistic entity, a collective consciousness, may be generated, incorpor ating all our diversity yet stronger than any of us alone. This consciousness c an be invo ed li e any deity, and can be a guide and empowerment. We can give i t names; there will be private names nown to individual covens or solitaries, b ut among us all the name is Love. Shine li e a Beacon. Another wor ing, which I feel is appropriate to a Full Moon ritual, is one to avoid the light under a bushel syndrome, to illuminate a ll minds equipped w ith eyes to see. The metaphor of a lighthouse beacon seems appropriate; we can visualize this light shining brightly, overpowering any atte mpt to hide it, so that truth cannot be any [who want] to understand it, initiat ion cannot be denies to those capable of attaining it. Let a Hundred Flowers Bloom; or, Divide and Rule. Assume that a mundane Pa ganism must arise; above all we must not allow any one sect or denomination of t he Pagan religion to achieve preeminence over the others. It doesn't matter how much we li e or disli e what the leaders of this or that sect are saying. Any Pagan doctrine will always be wrong, even if it's right, because initiation cann ot be conveyed in words or symbols. We can,through our magic, encourage diversi ty and creativity in the ran s of newcomers and noninitiate leaders, preferring chaos to conformity, and subtly bend the path of discourse s o that it leads toward initiation rather than away from it. We must avoid the t emptation to encourage a unified, strong Paganism, and that temptation will aris e! A fractious, splintered, disorganized, and confusingly multi headed Paganism may be somewhat embarrassing when it appears on networ news or in Time magazin e. But if the initiatory tradition is clearly visible within, we will be far bet ter served by chaos than by an order which serves its own purposes, not ours. I believe certainly I hope that these steps can preserve the Neopagan pat h of initiation, prevent its burial under the mantle of religion, and permit wha t has never before happened: genuine, large scale, beyond the point of no return brea out of the Mysteries, leading to the transformation of human culture and t his planet assuming, of course, that civilization survives the crisis of the co ming years. Paganism is by some estimates the fastest growing religion in North America and too few initiates. Best of all: Than s to science, we are not limited to what we now today. We understand that even our best picture of reality is only an approximation, th at we will have a better picture tomorrow. This gift promises to upset the cree ping authoritarianism that has ruined so many paths of initiation and created so many religions. These are potent advantages. I believe they allow us the possibility of su ccess. But not the certainty. As we approach the crossroads, there are a numbe

r of things that need doing. Some of these steps are simply a matter of eeping our attitudes in the right places. Others involve research, development, and ar tistic creation. Others still involve magical tas s. We need to understand tha t modern Paganism, though built on the past, is not limited by it, that we are c apable of improving on our ancestor's wisdom even to the extent that their wisd om is not a product of our own romantic imagination, which is large measure it i s. We need to recognize, once and for all, and say so, that our origin myths ar e just that: Wicca is not a survival from the pre Christian past, but an eclecti c/creative construct meant to imitate what such a survival should ideally be. I ts resemblance, and that of Neopaganism in general, to ancient paganism in any o f its multitude of forms is slight and ultimately besides the point. We need to do these things because they will allow us to ta e the next step , which is to expand Paganism, as a path of initiation, to its potentia. We can not do that so long as we are loc ed into an old model real or romanticized. T he initiatory paths of the past have failed. Therefore, we need something better than what has gone before. We can ta e the essentials of Neopaganism, the broa d stro es of its mythology and ritual, as a starting point, but we must go beyon d that start. First, we need to penetrate beneath the level of religious symbolism to wha t might be called the physics of magic, the nuts and bolts and laws of nature th at account for what magic does and is. Next to the initiatory experience itself , which can never be communicated or replaced by anything that point cannot be e mphasized too much or too often the physics of magic would be the deepest level of understanding, accounting for all forms of symbolic nowledge. I have developed on system of laws which I believe to be wor able. (An account of thos e laws will appear in an upcoming issue of Enchante.) It is the duty of every scientifically minded reader to rip them apart as best as possible, to test them, and improve on them. Secondly, we need to improve our tool chest of spiritual methods. Much of the wor has already been done by initiates outside Paganism. All we have to do is translate it and incorporate it within our own framewor . At the same time, an expanded and improved body of poetic ritual would be useful. Note from Ellen Cannon Reed: I received permission today from S ytoucher to upload the article preceding this message. I found it one of the best articles on paganism I've found. I do confess he is using paganism where I would use "Wicca", and I do not mentally apply what he says to the other pagan paths such as Asatru, but I do thin the article is an important one with regard to Wicca. --- Maximus 2.00 * Origin: Mysteria * Be ye mystic * 818-353-8891 (1:102/943) Witches Rede of Chivalry Magical Rites from the Crystal Well, Ed Fitch and Janine Renee, 1987, Llewellyn Publications. Insofar as the Craft of the Wise is the most ancient and most honorable creed of human ind, it behooves all who are Witches to act in ways that give respect to the Old Gods, to their sisters and brothers of the Craft, and to themselves.

Therefore, be it noted that: 1. Chivalry is a high code of honor which is of most ancient Pagan origin, and must be lived by all who follow the old ways. 2. It must be enned that thoughts and intent put forth on this Middle Earth wi ll wax strong in other worlds beyond and return... bringing into creation, on th is world, that which had been sent forth. Thus one should exercise discipline, for "as ye plant, so shall ye harvest." 3. It is only by preparing our minds to be as Gods that we can ultimately attai n godhead. 4. "This above all... to thine own self be true..." 5. A Witch's word must have the validity of a signed and witnessed oath. Thus, give thy word sparingly, but adhere to it li e iron. 6. Refrain from spea ing ill of others, for not all truths of the matter may be nown. 7. Pass not unverified words about another, for hearsay is, in large part, a thing of falsehoods.

9. The fury of the moment plays folly with the truth; to eep one's head is a virtue. 10. Contemplate always the consequences of thine acts upon others. Strive not to do harm. 11. Diverse covens may well have diverse views of love between members and with others. When a coven, clan, or grove is visited or joined, one should d iscern quietly their practices, and abide thereby. 12. Dignity, a gracious manner, and a good humor are much to be admired. 13. As a Witch, thou has power, and thy powers wax strongly as wisdom increases. Therefore, exercise discretion in the use thereof. 14. Courage and honor endure forever. Their echoes remain when the mountains have crumbled to dust. 15. Pledge friendship and fealty to those who so warrant. Strengthen others of the Brethren and they shall strengthen thee. 16. Thou shalt not reveal the secrets of another Witch or Coven. Others have lab ored long and hard for them, and cherish them as treasures. 17. Though there may be differences among those of the Old Ways, those who are once-born must see nothing, and must hear nothing. 18. Those who follow the mysteries should be above reproach in the eyes of the w orld. 19. The laws of the land should be obeyed whenever possible and within reason, for in the main they have been chosen with wisdom.

8. Be thou honest with others, and have them li ewise expected of them.

now that honesty is

20. Have pride in thyself and see perfection in body and in mind. For the Lady has said, "How canst thou honor another unless thou give honor to thyse lf first?" 21. Those who see the Mysteries should consider themselves the select of the Gods, for it is they would lead the race of human ind to the highest of t hrones and beyond the very stars. _____________________________________________________________________ _ _ _ _ ((___)) ((___)) [ x x ] [ x x ] \ / \ / (` ') (` ') (U) (U) HISTORY OF THE BOVINOMICON ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ by The Raver >>> A CULT Publication......1988 <<< -cDc- CULT OF THE DEAD COW -cDc__________________________________________________________ The history of the great Bovine mythos cycle is a lost and twisted one. Of the tales of the Bovine un nown, one literary wor , one tome of Bovinity, does stand out. Yes, brutal reader, the BOVINOMICON. This being a short but complete outline of the history of this boo , its au thor, The Raver, presents this wor . The outline follows its various translatio ns and editions from the time of the writing (AD 730) of the BOVINOMICON to the present day. ================================================================= Original title AL AZIF - Azif being the word used by the Arabs to designate that nocturnal sound (made by Bovine creatures) supposed to be the how ling of daemons. Composed by Abdul Alhazred, a mad cow herder of Sanna, in Yemen, who is said to have flourished during the period of the Omminade Caliphs, circa AD 700. He visited the ruins of Babylon and the subterranean secrets of Memphis and spent ten years alone in the great southern desert of Arabia - (the Roba El Khaliyeh or "Empty Space" of the ancients and "Dahna" or "Crimson" desert of the modern Arabs) which is held to be inhabited by protective evil spirits and monsters of death. Of this desert many strange and unbelievable marvels are told by those who pret end to have penetrated it. In his last years Alhazred dwelt in Damascus, where the BOVINOMICON (AL AZIF) was written, and of his final death or disappearance ( AD 738) many terrible and conflicting things are told. He is said by Ebn Khalli an (12th century biography) to have been seized by an invisible cow in broad da ylight and devoured horribly before a large number of fright-frozen witnesses. Of his madness many things are told. He claimed to have seen the fabulous Irem, or City of Pillars, and to have found beneath the ruins of a certain nameless d esert pasture the shoc ing annals and secrets of a race older than man ind. (Ed itors Note: A full desc- ription of the nameless pasture, and the annals and sec rets of its inhabitants will be found in the t-file THE NAMELESS PASTURE, writte n by the author of this outline). He was only an indifferent Moslem, worshippin g un nown Entities who he called Yog-Elsie and Bob-Sothoth.

In AD 950 the AZIF, which had gained considerable, though surreptitious circulation amongst the philosophers of the age, was secretly translated into Gree by Theodorus Philetas of Constantinople under the title BOVINOMICON. For a century it impelled certain experimenters to terrible attempts, when it was suppressed and burnt by the patr iarch Michael. After this it was only heard of furtively, but (1223) Olaus Worm ius made a Latin translation later in the Middle Ages, and the Latin test was pr inted twice - once in the 15th century in blac letter (evidently in Germany) an d once in the 17th (probably Spanish); both editions being without identifying m ar s, and located as to time and place by internal typographical evidence only. The wor , both Latin and Gree , was banned by Pope Gregory IX in 1232 shortly a fter its Latin translation, which called attention to it. The Arabic original w as lost as early as Wormius' time, as indicated by his prefatory note; (there is , however, a vague account of a secret copy appearing in San Francisco during th e present century, but later perished in fire), and no sight of the Gree copy which was printed in Italy between 1500 and 1550 - has been reported since the burning of a certain Salem man's library in 1692. A translation made by Dr. Dee was never printed and exists only in fragments recovered from the original manu script. Of the Latin texts now existing, one (15th century) is nown to be in t he British Museum under loc and ey, while another (17th century) is in the Bib liotheque Nationale in Paris. A 17th century edition is in the Widener Library at Harvard, and in the library at Mis atonic University at Ar ham; also in the l ibrary of the University of Buenos Aires. Numerous other copies exist in secret, and a 15th century one is persistently rumored to form a part o f the collection of a celebrated American millionaire. An even more vague rumor credits the preservation of a 16th century Gree text in the Salem family Pic m an; but if it was so preserved, it vanished with the artist R.U. Pic man, who di sappeared in 1926. The boo is rigidly suppressed by the authorities of most co untries, and by all branches of organized ecclesiasticism. Reading leads to ter rible consequences. It was from rumors of this boo (of which relatively few of the general public now) that R.W. Chambers is said to have derived the idea of his early novel, "THE KING OF CUD". -------------------------------------CHRONOLOGY One - AL AZIF written circa AD 730 at Damascus by Abdul Alhazred. Two - Translated into Gree as BOVINOMICON, AD 950 by Theodorus Philetas. Three - Burnt by Patriarch Michael AD 1050 (ie, Gree ; Arabic text now los t). Four - Olaus translates Gree into Latin, AD 1228. Five - Latin and Gree editions suppressed by Gregory IX - AD 1232. Six - 14..? Blac letter edition printed in Germany. Seven - 15..? Gree text printed in Italy. Eight - 16..? Spanish translations of Latin text. ================================================================ PERSONS interested in learning more details about the nameless pasture mentioned in this outline, where Alhazred spent much time, should read the t-file THE NAMELESS PASTURE by THE RAVER, which gives a detailed description. The file is also a cDc communications release. This t-file is dedicated to my favorite author, H.P. Lovecraft, who, now that we have had time to ta e his wor into perspective, is, no doubt, unsurpassed as the twentieth century's best practitioner of the horror tale. "No weird story can truly produce terror unless it is devised with all the care and versimilitude of an actual hoax."

======================================================== (c)1988 cDc communications by The Raver 4/22/88-57 All Rights Worth Shit ___________________________________________________________________ _ _ _ _ ((___)) ((___)) [ x x ] [ x x ] \ / \ / (` ') (` ') (U) (U) THE NAMELESS PASTURE ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Scribed by The Raver, Teller of Strange Legends >>> A CULT Publication......1988 <<< -cDc- CULT OF THE DEAD COW -cDc____________________________________________________________ The tales of the Bovine mythos cycle are strange and diverse. Although som e of our terrible order's members prefer to scribe tales of present day Bovinity , I opt for tales of a dar and terrible past, a time when the Bovine stal ed th e earth unheeded by man ind. "...The wailings of the mad are but the birth-cries of the new man - the old man gone li e dust in the desert wind. Cleansed of the lies of man ind, the new man the man of dar ness - is free to absorb the beauty of nothingness, to glory in the star night of the utter void. As your useless reason dissolves, rejoice in the nowledge that others in as diverse places as Texas and North Carolina have wal ed the same path, have drun the same blood, have reveled in the same prospect of everlasting night, as you..." -- Keeper of the Bovine Gate 'Tis true, we are evil in our potent writings and scriptures of the Cow. But this is only for a reason. The following passage describes this point very wel l. Much better than I could, indeed. "...You do not yet now the true gods. Everything you now is a lie. The Great Bovine Ones - these are the true rulers of the Universe; these and others you have not yet heard of will be the objects of your adulation, your emotion, your love. You are the fortunate ones the time may come, if you give your selfless devotion, that you will worship in the flesh in the Temples of the Nameless Pasture, whose glory is beyond your comprehension." -- Catechism of the High Priests of the Bovine The following tale is a true one and depicts the place that many Cultees de sire to be... the dreaded Nameless Pasture, where Bob-Sothoth rules supreme and the blood of thousands runs rampant through the stal s of Cow-Bane. This tale i

-- H.P. Lovecraft to Clar

Ashton Smith (17 October 1930)

s not for the faint of heart. Nay. You have been forewarned.

========================================================== In a distant land, in a distant time, the mad arab, Abdul Alhazred, began a horrific journey into the Roba El Kaliyeh ("Empty Space"), the vast desert of southern Arabia. The time was AD 715 and Alhazred was quite mad. After travers ing the ruins of Babylon and the strange subterranean catacombs beneath the arch aic ruins of Memphis who would not be? Alhazred, in his demented mind, thought that the vast desert would allow him the peace and tranquility that he so desper ately needed. Unfortunately, this was not to be... As Alhazred traversed the shifting sands, his mind wandered bac to the day s when he was but a simple cow herdsman. All was well, until that day... the da y that he heard a cow utter the following phrase in an ancient tongue: "Ia! Ia! Bob-Sothoth fhtagn! Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Bob-Sothoth wgha-nagl fhtaga!" Ever si nce that time seventeen years ago Alhazred had not been the same. He had afterw ards began a vast quest to discover why the cows he had herded had tal ed and ex actly who and what Bob-Sothoth is... or was. Alhazred began his quest almost a score of years ago and felt that he was close to the ultimate answer. During his nights with the cows those years past he had heard their urgent mooings. What did they mean? Were the cows possessed of daemons? What in the hell was going on? As Alhazred continued his bizarre cycle of thought he noticed not the paved stones pee ing up at him from the sand below his sandled feet. Only when he tr ipped on a large crac did he notice the fragmented pavement beneath him. "What ?" thought Alhazred. A road in the middle of a vast expanse of desert? Filled w ith curiosity Alhazred decided it best to follow the ancient road. Soon dar ness overtoo the world and day became night. As the moon climbed higher in the s y he began to see that the slopes of desert began to rise. Urged by an impulse which he could definitely not analyze, Alhazred scrambled with difficulty up the dunes... Upon reaching the top of the tremendous circle of dunes he stood silently, gazing into the stygian depths where no light had yet penetrated. All at once his attention was captured by a vast and singular object on the opposite slope, which rose steeply about a hundred yards ahead of him; an objec t that gleamed brightly in the newly bestowed rays of the ascending moon. He as sured himself that it was merely a piece of gigantic stone; but he was conscious of an instinct impression that its contour and position were not altogether the wor of Nature. A closer scrutiny filled him with sensations he could not expr ess; for despite its enormous magnitude, and its position in an abyss which had yawned in the middle of a vast desert since the world was you ng, he perceived beyond a doubt that the strange object was a well-shaped monoli th whose massive bul had nown the wor manship and perhaps the worship of livin g and thin ing creatures.

Dazed and frightened, yet not without a certain thrill of the scientist's o r archaeologist's delight, Alhazred examined his surroundings more closely. The moon, now near the zenith, shone vividly above the towering steeps that hemm ed in the chasm revealed that far below rested a great area of flat land. As he inspected the monolith more closely he noticed that, though eroded by the billo wing sands, it was still identifiable as... a cow. Footholds were aplenty and A lhazred began the laborious tre downwards into the vast chasm.

As Alhazred dropped from a low ledge to the base of the chasm he uttered a slightly audible groan. His feet had hit not sand but wheat. As he regained hi s feet he surveyed his surroundings. For hundreds of yards the great field rear ed into the distance.. far off he thought that he saw a mass of some sort but it was dar and he was unsure. He slowly set off towards the mass. Somewhere off in the distance he thought he heard the frenzied mooings of some unspea able Bo vine beast, but he convinced himself that it was probably just the wind. When Alhazred was within earshot of the vast mass he did hear the frenzied mooings of some sort of beast. Sha ing with fear he moved closer only because o f fear of what might be lur ing around the vast pasture. As he got closer he sa w that the mass was indeed a building, a temple.. bro en colonnades paraded arou nd the temple and strange bas-reliefs covered its face...it was too dar to clea rly ma e out what the reliefs depicted. Alhazred began to circumvent the temple loo ing for some means of egress. Soon he found a rubbled hole in a wall. The hole poured with a dim light and the smell of greasy smo e. He cro uched down so that he could peer inside. Inside he saw a vast chamber filled with a slime-coated liquid that was obv iously water. The chamber was dominated by a Cyclopean monolith, on whose surfa ce he could now trace both inscriptions and crude sculptures. The writing was i n a system of hieroglyphics un nown to Alhazred, consisting for the most part of Bovine creatures and the li e. Several characters obviously represented beasts not of the modern world. It was the pictorial carving, however, that did most to hold him spell-boun d. Plainly visible across the intervening monolith on account of their enormous size was an array of bas-reliefs whose subjects would have excited the envy of a Dore. He thought these things were supposed to depict cows - at least, a cert ain sort of cow; though the creatures were shown disporting li e cows in great p astures, or paying homage at some monolithic shrine which appeared to be in a pa sture as well. Of their faces and forms he dared not spea in detail; for the m ere remembrance mad him grow faint. Grotesque beyond the imagination of a Poe or a Bulwer, they were damnably Bovine in general outli ne despite loathsome tentacles, cilia covered with congealed slime, wide with fl abby lips, glassy, bulbous eyes, and other features less pleasant to recall. Cu riously enough they seemed to be chiseled badly out of proportion with their sce nic bac ground. Alhazred decided that they were merely the imaginary gods of so me race lost in the vestiges of time. Awestruc at this unexpected glimpse into the past, he stood musing whilst the moon cast queer reflections on the stone w alls around him. Then he saw it. With only a slight churning to mar its rise to the surfac e, the thing slid into view above the dar waters. Vast, polyphemus-li e, and l oathsome, it darted li e a stupendous monster of nightmares to the monolith, abo ut which it flung its gigantic scaly tentacles, the while it bowed its hideously horned head and gave to certain measured mooings. Alhazred went mad then. On his frantic ascent of the cliff and dune slopes, and of his delirious jo urney bac to Damascus, he remembered little. Alhazred sang a great deal, and l aughed oddly when unable to sing. He had distinct recollections of a great stor m some time after ascending out of the blasted heath in the middle of the Roba E l Kaliyeh; at any rate, he new that he heard peals of thunder and other tones w hich Nature utters only in her wildest moods. ================================================================ It was this experience that prompted Abdul Alhazred to scribe the original

Arabic text, AL AZIF, later translated into the BOVINOMICON. This rare wor dea ls with many complex matters, including the idea that Bovine mooings are actuall y the language of daemons from the outer regions of the cosmos. "...do you dare imagine things as they can be? As, indeed they will be whe n the earth is transformed and the illusion of reality is erased from the minds of men by the annihilation of those minds? Do you live in hope to see Great Bob -Sothoth stride the earth? Do you dream of the Throne of Yog-Elsie, of joining the faithful that mosh there? O, purify yourselves, then, for these and greater things await you who are members of our terrible order..." -- Part of a speech heard outside of a home in a Winston-Salem, NC, suburb "The world is indeed comic, but the jo e is on man ind." -- H.P. Lovecraft ======================================================== (c)1988 cDc communications by The Raver 4/22/88-58 All Rights Worth Shit T H E A U T O N O M A T R I X Nascent Manifesto of 930111 :: Symbolism & Design :: The name AutonomatriX is derived from the words autonomy and matrix to represent a self-directed and self-governing repository of information. The emb lem of the Auto-nomatriX is a circular blade with eight teeth providing a bac gr ound to t he glyph of Eris turned on its side. The AutonomatriX is a networ ing chaos magic guild of those striving to discover and rejuvenate magical ideas and technical s ills with success as the only ey to validation. We do not discriminate on the basis of lifestyle, gender, affiliation, race, or sexuality. We see to inte ract with creative magicians who are pushing boundaries instead of being trapped by them. We are a guild composed of wor ing craftspeople, whereas an order/lodg e/clique is generally an exclusive membership of supplicants. The time of centralized info-ban s is at an end; the nature of "classified" or " secret" information is that it is more often limiting than useful to the collect or, and only profitable to the ban er of such media. Hierarchical structures are unnecessary and undesired; chec s an d balances regarding membership are determined by an individual's interaction wi th the rest of the group rather than personal prejudices or acceptance for any member by any other member. The principles "sin or swim" and "(inter)action eq uals life" are applicable to this magical guild, as in any networ . :: Access to the AutonomatriX :: When a candidate has made intentional contact with a member of the AutonomatriX (called the "AX"), that member sponsors the candidate hirself and provides all p ertinent information about that candidat e to another member as soon as is possible for co-sponsorship. Alternatively, if for any reason the member chooses not to sponsor the candidate after the initia l inquiry, that member must send the information to two other members, one of whom is the member nearest to the candi date's geographic locale. Ideally, the two sponsors would be geographically sep

arated from one another. All inquirers will be provided with the current AX man ifesto by any member who accepts sponsorship of that candidate at the onset of t heir relationship. The suggested sponsorship period is three months, at the end of which the co-sponsors mutually decide upon whether or not initiation should t a e place. The sponsored candidate is requested to provide information regarding any person al magical wor done in a journal or magical record. The candidate may in turn be given any part of the Corpus Fecundi other than the Contacts Listing (see bel ow) that the sponsors deem appropriate at any time. Initiation may be performed by one or both of the sponsors and/or an y other members of the AX with the cons ent of the sponsors. The candidate must provide a record of a magical wor ing wh i ch has resulted in mani-festation of the intent at least two times, and design a self-initiation ritual. All initiation s must be performed in person. At the climax of the initiation, the new member is handed the current Contacts Listing ( on a scroll) and the remainder of the C orpus Fecundi. :: The Corpus Fecundi :: The Corpus Fecundi comprises a record of research, technical experimentation and ritual methods that have arisen since the emergence of this guild of Chaos. Th e entirety of this information is provided only after a period of sponsorship re sulting in initiation and excludes non-req uested information of a political or genealogical nature. It is the personal responsibility of each member of the AX to update their copy of the Corpus Fecundi as new information becomes available. An active member of the AX is any person who is on the Contacts Listing. All information for inclus ion into the Corpus Fecundi is transferred throughout the networ on at least a quarterly basis. The Corpus Fecundi consists of three parts, as follows: The first part is the "Contacts Listing," which includes all participants in the AX. All are listed by their appellation (any titles may be chosen), mailing add ress, Wor ing Group and/or Project involvement information, and a brief biograph y (bio) of personal interests, researches, requests for information on any topic , etc. To remain on the Contacts Listing each member is responsible for ma ing their membership nown by interaction with other members. If for any reason this cannot be done, membership requires that the current AX curators are notified o f continued participation in the net-wor by a wor record semi-annually. The second part is an "Index" of all wor s currently ma ing up the Corpus Fecund i. All members are responsible for ensuring that their copy is complete via this Index. The author of each item will be listed here, rather than on the items themselves. :: The Curators :: The issuance of Contacts Listings and Indexes are provided by the AutonomatriX c urators, who ensure that each display the name and emblem of the AX upon them. T wo curators are randomly chosen on June 27th of each year from volunteers to update and maintain securely the hard-copie s and electronic copies of all material in the Corpus Fecundi. The Corpus Fecund i is maintained in its entirety in both formats at all times. Any individual in the networ may assume these responsibilities, although no curator may have suc cessive terms of office.

:: Wor ing Groups :: Each member of the AX is encouraged to form autonomous Wor ing Groups. All WGs may be designated by whatever name (Coven, Project, Team, Clan, Temple, Group, C abal, Tribe, etc.) deemed appropriate by those directly involved. A Wor ing Grou p is composed of at least two active me mbers of the networ and as many nonmemb ers as desired by them. Each Wor ing Group is inaugurated by the generation of its own unique manifesto, accepted by all participating in that WG. It must be distributed by t he AX members of that group to all on the current Contacts Listing. This particu lar manifesto should be made as detailed as possible, to outline the WG's object ives and intent, protocol, any offices assumed within the WG's internal structur e, and whatever else the WG decides upon. Accompanying the manifesto should be each participant's signature (of their chosen appellation), mailing address, and bio. The AX will in no way interfere in matters of any Wor ing Group's internal structure or protocol, with the fullest intention being to eep regulation to a minimum in regards to the networ 's guild structure. Each WG is encouraged to access any form of media available for wider distribution of ideas and material, and the AX pro vides encouragement and/or as sistance to members who have material suitable for this purpose. :: Projects :: Projects or Operations which include any member of the AX within or without one' s Wor ing Group are to be listed in the Contacts List. An "Operation" is useful ly described as an extended wor ing for a specific goal carried out by two or mo re members of the guild regardless of WG affiliation. :: Main Contact Points :: It is recommended that each WG and Operation designate a Main Contact Point (or MCP) elected by the members in that Wor ing Group, for response to inquiries and distribution of information. It is the responsibility of the acting MCP of tha t group to distribute all information for inclusion into the Corpus Fecundi of t he members in hir Wor ing Group and/or O peration. :: Information Transference :: Information is distributed throughout the entire active membership of the networ in the issuance of the Contacts Listing and Index of the Corpus Fecundi by the AX curators. The authors of any item produced and distributed for inclusion int o the Corpus Fecundi are responsible for the distribution of that information th roughout the networ . Any item may be mar ed "Private" by its author, and this i s understood to mean distribution via the Corpus Fecundi only (not for public co nsumption). No items intended for the Corpus Fecundi may be mar ed with the author's appellation, although it is recommended that each item is accompanied b y a cover letter providing whatever personal data the author or distributor desi res. :: Voting :: When voting is required within the AX as a whole, all members must provide a wri tten response of yes, no, or abstinence. The votes of each member are then list ed beside their name on the next Contacts Listing. A measure's success depends upon at least a two-third's majority of all members of the AutonomatriX. All mem bers are encouraged to voice their own o pinions at all times.

:: Identification :: The AX does not employ any single clue to disclose membership in the guild. How ever, objects that are easily available are periodically chosen to represent act ive participation in the networ , such as a certain semiprecious stone or a colo r-specific pen for example. At any time, suggestions may be supplied to a curato r for random selection. The identifier is described as briefly as possible at th e top of each Contacts Listing. Aside from this, each WG and Operation is encou raged to generate totems and/or fetishes to designate themselves symbolically w ithin the guild. :: Accessories :: Each Wor ing Group in the AX chooses what ritual accessories are necessary. Some may choose specific forms of jewelry or ritual garments as a group. Each member must possess the current identifier object of the AX in the wor ing area at the time of any meeting attended. The AutonomatriX may be reached via Temple Babel PO Box 26362 San Francisco, CA 94126 Vox Mail: 415- 267-6937 or via the PSYBERNET BBS: (805)772 AS IF ON THE NATURE OF THE AETHER by: Anthra Andromda

[1] The Anahat Shabd, the "soundless sound", is the subtlest element of all. It is the etheric essence, finer than earth, air, water, or fire, beyond the sp eed of light... all pervasive, the source of cohesion, of electricity, of magnet ism and gravitation, of all that exists. The modern physicist E.C.G. Sudarshan has described the etheric essence of the A nahat Shabd in scientific terms as follows: "The ether as superfluid is consistent with relativity and quantum the ory. It is the support of all light, in it all bodies exist,it is attached to n one, it is ever present beyond the limitations of time and space. It has no ine rtial qualities, no interactions, yet it is the very substance of illumination." E.C.G. Sudarshan (preprint, University of Texas, 1974) Such is the Eastern view of the aether, in the west it has been given the follow ing definition: 1. An imaginary substance regarded by ancients as filling all space and ma ing u p the stars, etc. 2. In physics, as a hypothetical, invisible substance, postulated as pervading space and serving as the medium for the transmission of light and othe r energies. This Aether has been theorized and expounded upon by metaphysists for hundreds,

perhaps thousands of years (I have so far been unable to find the true source of the idea). Bac in the 1600 there were several Aethers, but around 1638, Rene' Descartes postulated a single Aether that was "all-pervasive". As recently as a hundred years ago this idea was quite popular, though now it is dismised by science, or at least most of science. There are now several physist s who are beginning to develop theories about the universe that loo for all the world li e theories of the Aether, though, they are using different names for t he very ideas that the ancient metaphysists proposed. Consider these two exerpts from papers written by modern physists. They are going to describe two "fields" that exist in their theories, and are in all li elyhood what the ancients called; the Aether. [2] Space is filled with an energy field, the energy concentration of whic h is extremely large (for the layman, the energy field in this lecture room co uld correspond to the energy of several bombs.)

This energy field has little to do with light energy or solar ener gy, and instead is called the GRAVITON FIELD, TACHYON FIELD or NEUTRINO FIELD. There are two essential models of imagination for this field and the tach yon. We are either dealing with EXTREMELY SHORT WAVES which possess VERY HI GH ENERGY electromagnetic radiation, or we are dealing with very small energy units which display a PULSATING BEHAVIOR which, in turn, determines t heir energy. [...] The majority of them (tachyons) may remain relatively stationary (the se are called BRADYONS) and because of their OSCILLATORY BEHAVIOR (Prof. [Zitterbewegung]), they HAVE A GREAT A Sei e calls it "trembling motion" MOUNT OF ENERGY. This means that ALL MATTER is immersed in an EXTREMELY DENSE ENERGY FIEL D which we cannot percieve. -------------------------------------------------------------------Vangard note... Thin of the Bradyon field in its continuous jiggle as having a comp osition similar to syrup. Rapidly moving Tachyons can be thought of as water o r gas. Comparison of the flow speed of the two fields shows how the Brad yon field could "sustain" the holographic (3d) image of the universe in a matrix of living energy. This opens up very interesting concepts relating to Sheldra e's Morp hogenetic Fields and Burrs' Electrodynamic Fields of Life. ------------------------------------------------------[3] QUANTUM MAGIC

REALITY AS DESCRIBED BY QUANTUM MECHANICS In quantum mechanics, reality is described by waves defining the probabilities of different outcomes from the same interactions. These waves mani fest as what we have been taught to call matter, energy, particles, and/or waves when observed. These probability waves overlap and continue forever. The interactions between different entities constitute a single structure of lin ed wave patterns, so tha t the entire universe can be thought of as an unbro en whole. The waves form a m atrix, with all parts of the system affecting all other parts. Non-local relati onships exist between parts of the system that are distant from each other. It is impossible to distinguish two particles of the same type in a region of space in which they may be found simultaneously. Particles loose their individual ide ntity in such regions. Thus, the physical universe is fundamentally unified. [...] SCIENTIFIC THEORY Mr. Wal er's ideas and equations would only be hypotheses if it weren't for the fact that they have been tested experimentally and found to predict the results of experiments with reasonable accuracy [4]. The evidence meets the usual rules of proof for scientific theory, and this ma es Wal er's equations legitimate sc ientific theory. The non-local underlying wave patterns beneath manifestations of matter and ener gy that we hold in common with our surroundings allow us to influence reality an d to obtain information about it using the power of the mind. This underlying i nterconnecting pattern is the very stuff of consciousness and manifests, not on ly as matter & energy, but also as psycho inesis, precognition and other phenome non that are only now beginning to be recognized and embraced by some theories o f modern physics. [...] Whatever the subtle level of reality underlying matter and energy, we are that ( including our consciousness). If hidden variables exist, we are the hidden vari ables. It has been theorized that consciousness is an inseparable aspect of thi s underlying reality. When our awareness connects with the deepest layer of rea lity interconnecting everything, we may experience the level of consciousness be yond time and form reported by many mystics. It is this non local structure tha t we share with nature that ma es it possible to "attune to nature," to psychica lly participate in nature, and to live in accordance with it. What we are usually aware of (normal wa ing consciousness) is a relatively super ficial movement in the order of things. Behind the things we are aware of in wa ing consciousness are a vast array of less strongly lin ed phenomena. This lat ter realm is commonly called the unconscious (and parts of it the subconscious). The unconscious is not very accurate, since it forms a ind of ground of consc iousness. Our awareness can lin with this ground of consciousness to gain info rmation and to influence events. ------------------------------------------------As may be seen from the two quotations above modern science is developing theori

es that are harmonious with the Thelemic concept of the Universe. True they are using different names for the particles and fields, but they are none the less t he same. It should be noticed in the above that one writer tal s about a particle field, while the other writes about probability waves. These should not be confused -it is entirely li ely that these are one in the same -- much li e the photon, wh ich is alternately thought of as a particle and a wave -- yet it is still our mu ndane light. This Tachyon field is in all li ely-hood a field of Hadits -- after all Hadit is omnipresent. At any rate this does seem to fit into the current Thelemic and En ochian theories of that which underlies reality, and even in the worst case scie nce is describing a field of RA-HOOR-KHUITs. This goes a long way to explaining, in modern scientific terms, why and how Magic wor s. --------------------------------------------------------It is Descartes' "All-pervasive Aether" or field of infinitely small particles t hat is becoming nown as the Tachyon or neutrino field by modern science. In the Enochian theories, the universe is filled with a virtually infinite numbe r of 'infinitely small' points of consciousness, these are nown as the 'Monad'. These Monads are the very stuff of which all things are made, and are in all li elyhood the 'fundimental particle' of modern science. These monads then would a lso be the 'unit' particles which ma e up what the ancients called the aether, s ince at this level they would be indistinguishable from energy. They would also form a great 'matrix' which would fill the material universe. Since these particles are not only infinitely small, but are infinitely close to gether, any action on one given particle would have an effect on ALL others. As was noted above; these particles are 'points' of consciousness. This brings to mind statements made by Hermes; The ALL is MIND (or something to that effect). I f these infinitely small particles are indeed consciousness, then it would follo w that the All or the Universe is mind. The universe would indeed be a living 't hin ing' creature in itself -- this idea is consistant with the theories of Enoc hian Physics. But I thin I digress. As is pointed out above, modern physics is beginning to f ormulate theories that there is an 'all-pervasive' field or structure that inclu des and penetrates all things. This idea is harmonious with the ancient idea of the aether. Science postulates that this 'field' underlies all manifestion, the two exerpts above seem to agree on this point, as do the ideas of the aether. It seem to follow that the 'waves' that Mr. Cornett spea s of are what 'cause' wha t we call "physical manifestation", and that these waves are caused by mind (did the universe litterally 'thin ' itself into existance?). These waves could also be caused by aggreates of monads acting as a unit (the manifestation of an inte lligent creature). The possibilities are endless, and all equally valid. So what does all t his have to do with the price of tea in China? Just this; 1. It goes a long way in proving the Thelemic Cosmology, though we Thelemites wo uld use different nomenclature. The Ideas of Nuit (infinite space) and Hadit (th e infinitely small particle which fills and manifests Nuit) are beginning to be accepted by modern physics. The conjunction of these infinites, Ra-Hoor-Khuit, a ny and all events occuring within Nuit and Hadit, is therefore a 'given'. 2. It shows the mechanics of Magic . Since it can be observed that one conscious ness affects another, it follows that one may affect the entire universe by simp ly 'fixing' an idea in their consciousness. This may seem a bit over-simplified.

..it is! The process is not an easy one, however, the rituals and processes that have been given us by the ancients do begin to ma e some sense in the light of modern physics. It is these ancient mechanisms that allow us to put our mundane minds into the proper 'frame' and therefore 'excite' our consciousness, thus all owing us to have a 'physical' effect on or enviroment. References:

December 13, 1987 2. The Symposium on Energy Technology in Hannover November 27 and 28, 1980 Topic of the Symposium (Tachyon Field) Dr. Hans A. Nieper 3. 4. AMARANTH Vol. E.1.1: QUANTUM MAGIC An Electronic zine by Larry Cornett 8/22/88

Evan Harris Wal er...Scientst and author. Wor ed for US Army Ballistic Research Labs. at Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD. He is the author on several papers and boo concerning psychic and othe r para-normal phenomenon.

By: Dan Holdgreiwe To: Adrienne Re: Dangers of Deity? ----------------------In the presence of the Goddess, Adrienne said to Dan Holdgreiwe: PH> ...to suggest that the human psyche, confronted with the Divine PH> presence without being built up to sustain that impact, can frag ment. DH> I don't buy it, at least not in those terms. This sort of thing ma es fo r impressive sermons, but it does not correspond to the Divine reality that I have experienced. Ae> Then you're luc y. I'm with Paul Hume on this one. Well, I've been rethin ing this myself, mostly because I realized that in other contexts I ma e a big deal about the "dangers" of confronting the Divine. So wh y was I so critical of the dangers espoused by Paul and others?

A major reason, I beleive is can't ta e the image of God I find myself more and more miates modern discussions of

that I was ta ing their statements too literally. I as a high voltage line seriously. For that matter, disatisfied the the electrical metaphor that so per magic. Words such as "charging," "grounding," and

1.

S.S. Guru a Singh Khalsa, Research Associate Department of High Energy Physics Ohio State University Columbus, Ohio

"energy" capture only one side -- and not the most important side -- of ritual w or . My over literal reading of their posts conjured up a ridiculous image in m y mind, which I emphatically rejected. Let me say instead that the dangers of encounter with the Divine are not electri cal, but rather are moral and intellectual. If one demands a relationship with Deity which exceeds one's moral maturity, one does indeed face serious ris s. I suspect that most of these ris s are related to self-deception and self-indulge nce, but I suppose that in extreme cases the damage to the personality could be more rapid. All this, of course, presumes a basically healthy psyche. On the other hand, approaching Deity We are li ely to feel a great deal stripped away by the appraoch of the ecessary and good, but it is fear of often feels much more dangerous than it is. of fear as our pretensions and denials are Divine presence. This feeling of fear is n change as much as fear of real danger.

Ae> Traumatic not just for the unwilling. I recently had a pries tes s of mine who did the Drawing Down for the first time and she was profoun dly disturbed by it. Not in an unpleasant way, but she's well trained a nd she still found the whole experience hard to deal with on an emotional level. Some people can shrug it off, others find it hard to incorpora te into themselves. Kinda li e losing one's virginity... I wasn't thin ing that "emotionally hard to deal with" was what Paul et al. mean t by "zapped" or "crispy." Certainly such experiences can be emotionally hard t o deal with (although I have never found them so myself). Ae> To be blunt, bullsh*t. Sure it can. The Gods sometimes force us to prove our mettle, *especially* if we as them to. If we are strong e nough,fine. If not... Prove our mettle at what exactly? Lightning bolts at fifty paces? I probably a gree with you, but I reject the idea that we are tested li e transistors -- turn on the juice and throw away the ones that burn out. Ae> Besides, the biggest danger isn't in the presence of the Divine. It 's when the mage/priest *thin s* the Divine is there and is deluded. T he unconscious mind will happily produce all sorts of fantasies if you as . This I agree with 100% Ae> It isn't a case of how effective the participants are, rather, ineffective. Delusion is a stoc in trade for the occult arts. how

Here you seem to have come around to my side. Most dangers come not from the pr esence of the Gods, but rather from their absence. An imaginary power line isn' t dangerous, but an imaginary li e with God/dess is. Blessed Be Dan By: Paul Hume To: Dan Holdgreiwe Re: Re: Dangers of Deity? ---------------------------Dan The zapped or crispy metaphor (hmmm, more Divine Electricity imagery) could incl

ude "emotional discomfort," though I find that to be so basic an element in deal ing with Divine encounters (in my *vast* experience (g)), as the ego tries to re late to what has just happened, that I don't really consider it at issue. Someone who shrugs and mutters "No big deal," whether they've Drawn Down a God f or the first or five hundredth time has more of a problem, in my arrogant opinio n, than someone who throws shrie ing fits in the wa e of the experience (assumin g they get to stop screaming, eventually). Yes, the crispness of the unprepared is, in fact, a metaphor for psychological d isintegration, an explosion of "mundane consciousness" in the wa e of an experie nce which blows the underpinnings out from under it. In a not uncommon example, priesthood who begin to expect, to demand, the reverence shown them when they ar e vessels of the Divine be shown them when they are not exercising their theurgi c office. Whether it is a Wiccan HPS or a Catholic monsignor (or what you will), this is a typical poison that can breed in the wa e of the Divin e invocation.

Psychically, the Gods ARE high-voltage lines, whether you accept them as "real" or "mere archetypes," or whatever. They, by definition, function on a level of c onsciousness that is tremendously potent in the context of day-to-day awareness. And they may be as solicitous of humans as a human is when caring for a small a nd fragile animal, but They also do not exercise the same controls on humans tha t humans do on animals, and rarely force us to turn away from danger, though The y try and protect us when we thin to as for it. The fact that humanity contains (in my view) Divine potential in its own right a llows for humans to confront Deity on its own plane, even at the cost of the pre sent incarnation. Paul By: Dan Holdgreiwe To: Paul Hume Re: Re: Dangers of Deity? -------------------------In the presence of the Goddess, Paul Hume said to Dan Holdgreiwe: PH> The zapped or crispy metaphor (hmmm, more Divine Electricity ima gery) could include "emotional discomfort," though I find that to be s o basic an element in dealing with Divine encounters (in my *vast* experi ence (g)), as the ego tries to relate to what has just happened, that I don't really consider it at issue. Really? My own experience has included more than a little emotional discomfort, but almost all of it was in those periods when I wasn't receiving pa lpable confirmation that the wor was acomplishing anything. Brea ing through t o the Divine, on the other hand, is usually a joyful, ecstatic experience for me . Part of this may be training (I spent about 10 unpleasant but productive years u nder the disipline of a very demanding spiritual group) and part of it may be a matter of pre-stripping the ego in anticipation of contact with the Divine (a le ss than common practice among Pagans, who tend tobe suspicious of anything that smac s of humility). PH> Someone who shrugs and mutters "No big deal," whether they've

Dra

wn Down a God for the first or five hundredth time has more of a problem , in my arrogant opinion, than someone who throws shrie ing fits in the wa e of the experience (assuming they get to stop screaming, eventually). I would agree, but I find the more common reaction to be along the lines of "Oh, wow!" or even "Mmmmmmmmmmm, yes!" Perhaps this means I'm not "plugged in" to t he high-amp Deities (li e maybe Cthulu). <g> On a more serious note, I probably use an egregore that mediates the relationship with God/dess in ways that ma e screaming fits less li ely -- thoug ht I suppose it could be disputed whether this was good or bad.

PH> Yes, the crispness of the unprepared is, in fact, a metaphor for psy chological disintegration, an explosion of "mundane con sciousness" i n the wa e of an experience which blows the under pinnings out from unde r it. In a not uncommon example, pries thood who begin to expect, to d emand, the reverence shown them when they are vessels of the Divine be s hown them when they are not exercising their theurgic office. Whether it is a Wiccan HPS or a Catholic monsignor (or what you will), this is a typ ical poison that can breed in the wa e of the Divine invocation. Ah, this is where your metaphor confuses me. You spea of an "explosion" but you r example is more a in to a cancer -- not a dramatic shattering of the personali ty, but a gradual corruption. The latter is a danger that I readily ac nowledge . PH> Psychically, the Gods ARE high-voltage lines, whether you accept the m as "real" or "mere archetypes," or whatever. They, by definition, functi on on a level of consciousness that is treme ndously potent in the context of day-to-day awareness. PH> The fact that humanity contains (in my view) Divine potential in its own right allows for humans to confront Deity on its own plane, even at t he cost of the present incarnation. The Lord and Lady are indeed potent, but their energy is wisely controlled. Eac h of us, hoever, is a high-voltage line in much less capable hands. I believe i t is not God/dess, but our own Divine potential which will "zap" us if we are ca reless in its use. Blessed Be Dan RITUALS AND SPELL OBJECTIVES AND DESIGN IN EIGHT MAGICS by Pete Carroll Our perceptual and conceptual apparatus creates a fourfold division of matter into the space, time, mass, and energy tautology. Similarly, our instinctual drives create an eightfold division of magic. The eight forms of magic are conveniently denoted by colours having emotional significance: OCTARINE, PURE MAGIC RED, WAR MAGIC BLACK, DEATH MAGIC

 C H A O S BOX ORANGE, ________________ BLUE, THINKING ________ THE MAGICAL ________ WEALTH MAGIC MAGIC MAILBOX 04962577966 PURPLE or GREEN, SILVER, LOVE MAGIC SEX MAGIC YELLOW, EGO MAGIC The eight types of magic can be attributed to the seven classical "planets", plus Uranus for Octarine. However in the cause of expanding the parameters of what can be attempted with each of these forms of magic, such an attribution will largely be avoided. The eight forms of magic will each be considered in turn. OCTARINE MAGIC Following Pratchett's hypothesis, the eighth colour of the spectrum, which is the magicians personal perception of the "colour of magic", may be called octarine. For me, this is a particular shade of electric pin ish-purple. My most signifi ant optical visions have all occured in this hue, and I visualise it to colour many of my more important spells and sigils on the astral. Before I set sail in a handmade open boat through the Arabian Sea I was tric ed into accepting a huge and priceless star ruby by a wizard in India. It was of an exactly octarine hue. During the most violent typhoon I have ever experienced I found myself shrie ing my conjurations to Thor and Poseidon whilst clinging to the bowsprit as mountainous waves smashed into the boat and octarine lightning bolts crashed into the sea all around. Loo ing bac it seems miraculous that I and my crew survived. I have ept the octarine stone, uncertain as to whether it was passed to me as a curse, a jo e, a blessing, or a test, or all of these things. Other magicians perceive octarine in different ways. My personal perception of octarine is probably a consequence of sex (purple) and anger (red) being my most effective forms of gnosis. Each should see out the colour of magic for himself. The octarine power is our instinctual drive towards magic, which, if allowed to flower, creates the magician self or personality in the psyche, and in affinity with various magician god forms. The "Magician Self" varies naturally between magicians, but has the general characteristics of antinomianism and deviousness, with a predilection for manipulation and the bizarre. The antinomianism of the magician self arises partly from the general estrangement of our culture from magic. The magicial self therefore tends to ta e an interest in everything that does not exist, or should not exist,

acording to ordinary consensus reality. To the magician self, "Nothing is Unnatural". A statement full of endless meanings. The deviousness of the magician self is a natural extension of the sleight of mind required to manipulate the unseen. The god forms of the octarine power are those which correspond most closely with the characteristics of the magician self, and are usually the magicians most important modes of possession for purely magical inspiration. Baphomet, Pan, Odin, Lo i, Tiamat, Ptah, Eris, He ate, Babalon, Lilith and Ishtar are examples of god forms which can be used in this way. Alternatively the magician may wish to formulate a magician god form on a purely idiosyncratic basis, in which case the symbolism of the serpent and the planet Uranus often prove useful starting points. The magician can invo e such god forms for the illumination of various aspects of the magical self, and for various wor s of pure rather than applied magic. The category of pure magic includes such activities as the development of magical theories and philosophies, and magical training programs, the devising of symbolic systems for use in divinations, spells and incantations, and also the creation of magical languages for similar purposes. It is worth noting here that chaos-magical languages are usually now written in V-Prime before transliteration into magical barbaric form. V-Prime or Vernacular Prime is simply one's native tongue in which all use of all tenses of the verb "to be" is omitted in accordance with quantum metaphysics. All the nonsense of transcendentalism disappears quite naturally once this tactic is adopted. There is no being, all is doing. The octarine power is invo ed to inspire the magician self and to expand the magicians primary arcana. The primary personal arcana consists of the fundamental symbols with which he interprets and interacts with reality (whatever that may assault perception as), magically. These symbols may be theories or abbalas, obsessions, magical weapons, astral or physical, or indeed anything which relates to the practice of magic generally, that is not dedicated specifically to one of the other powers of applied magic, whose symbols form the secondary personal arcana of magic. From the vantage point of the octarine gnosis, the magician self should be able to perceive the selves of the other seven powers, and be able to see their interrelationship within his total organism. Thus the octarine power brings some ability in psychiatry, which is the adjustment of the relationship between the selves in an organism. The basis difference between a magician and a civilian is that the latter the octarine power is vestigial or undeveloped. The normal resting or neutral mode a civilian corresponds to a mild expression of the yellow power which he regards as his normal personality or "ego". The magician self however, is fully aware that this is but one of eight major tools that the organism possesses. Thus, in a sense, the "normal personality" of the magician is a tool of his magical self (and, importantly, vice versa). This realisation gives him some advantage over ordinary people. However the developing magical self will soon realize that it is not in itself superior to the other selves that the organism consists of, for there are many things they can do which it cannot. The development of the octarine power through the philosophy and

practice of magic tends to provide the magician with a second major centre amongst the selves to complement the ego of the yellow power. The awa ening of the octarine power is sometimes nown as "being bitten by the serpent". Those who have been, are usually as instantly recognisable to each other as, for example, two lifeboat survivors are. Perhaps one of the greatest tric s of sleight of mind is to allow the magician self and the ego to dance together within the psyche without undue conflict. The magician who is unable to disguise himself as an ordinary person, or who is unable to act independently of his own ego, is no magician at all. Nevertheless, the growth of the octarine, or eighth power of the self, and the discovery of the type of magician one wants to be, and the identification or synthesis of a god form to represent it, tend to create something of a mutant being, who has advanced into a paradigm that few others are aware of. It is not easy to turn bac once the jouney has begun, though quite a few have tried to abort the voyage with various narcotics including mysticism. It is a pilgrimage to an un nown destination, in which one awa es successively from one nightmare into another. Some on them appear vastly entertaining at the time. There are worlds within us, the abysses are just the initiations in between them. The evocation of an octarine servitor can create an invaluable tool for those engaged in magical research. The main functions of such entities are usually to assist in the discovery of useful information and contacts. Negative results should not be ignored here, the complete failure of a well prepared servitor to retrieve information about the hypothetical cosmic "big bang", was a contributory factor in the development of the Fiat Nox theory, for example. BLACK MAGIC The Death programs built into our genetic and hence behavioral and emotional structure are the price we pay for the capacity for sexual reproduction which alone allows for evolutionary change. Only organisms which reproduce asexually, to replicate endless identical copies of their very simple forms, are immortal. Two conjunctions with the blac power are of particular interest to the magician: the casting of destruction spells and the avoidance of premature death. So called "Chod" rites are a ritual rehearsal of death in which the Death-self is invo ed to manifest its nowledge and wisdom. Traditionally conceived of as a blac robed s eletal figure armed with a scythe, the Death-self is privy to the mysteries of ageing, senescence, morbidity, necrosis, entropy and decay. It is often also possessed of a rather wry and world weary sense of humour. Surrounding himself with all the symbols and paraphernalia of death, the magician invo es his Death-self in a Chod rite for one of the two purposes. Firstly the experience of the Death-self and the blac gnosis brings the nowledge of what it feels li e to begin dying and thus prepares the magician to resist the manifestation of actual premature death in himself and perhaps others by, as it were, nowing the enemy. A demon is just a god acting out of turn. In the course of various Chod rites the magician may well experiment in shamanic style by invo ing into himself the visualised entities and

symbols that he associates with various diseases, to practice banishing them. Thus the Death-self has some uses in medical diagnosis and divination. Secondly, the death-self may be invo ed as a vantage point from which to cast destruction spells. In this case the invocation ta es the same general form but the conjuration is usually called an Entropy Rite. One should always loo for any possible alternative to the exercise of destructive magic, for to be forced into the position of having to use it is a position of wea ness. In each case the magician must plant in his subconscious a mechanism by which the target could come to grief and then project it with the aid of a sigil or perhaps an evo ed servitor. Entropy magic wor s by sending information to the target which encourages auto-destructive behaviour. Entropy magic differs from Combat magic of the Red Gnosis in several important respects. Entropy magic is always performed with complete stealth in the cold fury of the blac saturine gnosis. The aim is a cold blooded surgical stri e of which the target is given no warning. The magician is not interested in getting into a fight, merely in a quic and efficient ill. The supreme advantage of such attac s is that they are rarely perceived as such by the targets who have nothing but themselves and blind chance to blame for the disasters which even magnanimity in victory does little to assuage. One disadvantage however, is that it is rather difficult to present invoices to clients for effects that appear to be due entirely to natural causes. God forms of the blac power are legion; if the simple form of a cloa ed s eleton with scythe does not adequately symbolise the Death-self then such forms as Charon, Thanatos, Saturn, Chronos, He ate the Hag, Dar sister Atropos, Anubis, Yama and Kali may serve. Servitors of the blac power are rarely established for long term general use, partly because their use is li ely to be infrequent and partly because they can be danger to their owner, thus they tend to be made and dispatched for specific single tas s. BLUE MAGIC Wealth is not to be measured in terms of assets, but rather in terms of how much control over people and material, and thus ultimately one's own experiences, one achieves by economic activities. Money is an abstract concept used to quantify economic activity, thus wealth is a measure of how well you control your experiences with money. Assuming that varied, exciting, unusual and stimulating experiences are preferable to dull ones, and that they tend to be expensive for this reason, then the main problem for most people is to find a highly efficient form of money input which has the above agreeable qualities. The aim of wealth magic is to establish a large turnover of money which allows agreeable experiences at both the input and output stages. This demands what is called Money Consciousness. Money has acquired all the characteristics of a "spiritual" being. It is invisible and intangible, coinage, notes and electronic numbers are not money. They are merely representations or talismans of something which economists cannot coherently define. Yet although it is itself intangible and invisible it can create powerful effects

on reality. Money has its own personality and idiosyncratic tastes, it avoids those who blaspheme it, and flows towards those who treat it in the way it li es. In a suitable environment it will even reproduce itself. The nature of the money spirit is movement, money li es to move. If it is hoarded and not used, it slowly dies. Money thus prefers to manifest as turnover rather than as unexploited assets. Monies surplus to immediate pleasure should be re-invested as a further evocation, but the truly money conscious find that even their pleasures ma e money for them. Money consciousness gets paid to enjoy itself. Those in money consciousness are by nature generous. Offer them an interesting investment and they will offer you a fortune. Just don't as for small cash handouts. The attainment of money consciousness and the invo ation of the Wealth-self consists of the acquisition of a thorough nowledge of the predilections of the spirit of money and a thorough exploration of personal desires. When both of these have been understood, real wealth manifests effortlessly. Such invocations must be handled with care. The blue gnosis of wealth and desire creates demons as easily as gods. Many contemporary success and sales seminars concentrate on creating an hysterical desire for money coupled with an equally hypertrophied desire for the mere symbols of wealth rather than the experiences the punters actually want. To wor li e a possessed maniac all day for the questionable pleasure of drin ing oneself into near oblivion on vintage champagne every night, is to have missed the point entirely and to have a entered a condition of anti-wealth. However, the majority of those who are poor in relatively free societies where others are rich, owe their poverty either to a lac of understanding of how money behaves, or to negative feelings which tend to repel it. Neither intelligence nor investment capital are required in any great degree to become wealthy. The popularity of tales about the misery and misfortunes of the rich is testimony to the ridiculous myth prevalent amongst the poor, that the rich are unhappy. Before beginning wor s of blue magic it is essential to seriously examine all negative thoughts and feelings about money and to exorcise them. Most of the poor people who win in lotteries, and only the poor regularly enter them, manage to have nothing to show for it a couple years later. It is as if some subconscious force somehow got rid of something they felt they did not really deserve or want. People tend to have the degree of wealth that they deeply believe they should have. Blue magic is the modification of that belief through ritual enactment of alternative beliefs. Blue magic rituals may thus involve exorcisms of negative attitudes to wealth, divinatory explorations of one's deepest desires, and invocations of the Wealth-self and the spirit of money during which the subconscious wealth level is adjusted by ritual expression of a new value, and affirmations of new projects for the investment of resources and efford are made. Hymns and incantations to money can be delivered. Cheques for startling sums can be written to oneself and desires can be proclaimed and visualised. Various traditional god forms with a prosperity aspect can be used to express the Wealth-self such as Jupiter, Zeus and the mythical Midas and Croesus. Simple money spells are rarely used in modern blue magic. The tendency nowadays is to cast spells designed to enhance schemes designed to ma e money. If one fails to provide a mechanism through

which money can manifest then either nothing will happen or the spell will flesh by strange means, such as a legacy from the untimely death of a much beloved relative for example. Serious blue magic is never attempted by conventional forms of gambling. Conventional gambling is an expensive way of buying experiences which have nothing to do with increasing one's wealth. Blue magic is a matter of carefully calculated investment. Anyone but a fool should be able to devise an investment that offers better odds than conventional forms of gambling. RED MAGIC As soon as humanity developed the organisation and weapons technology to defeat its main natural predators and competitors it seems to have applied a fierce selection mechanism to itself in the form of internecine warfare. Many of the qualities we regard as mar s of our evolutionary success, such as our opposable thumbs and tool handling abilities, our capacity for communication by sound, our upright posture, and our capacity to give and receive commands and discipline, were almost certainly selected for during millennia of organized armed conflict between human bands. Our morality reflects our bloody history, for whilst it is taboo to attac members of one's own tribe, it remains one's duty to attac foreigners. The only debate is over who constitutes one's own tribe. When enthusiasm for war is limited, we devise sports and games in which to express our aggression. From the whole ethos and terminology of sport it is plain that sport is just war with extra rules. However, it should not be supposed that war is completely without rules. Wars are fought to improve one's bargaining position; in war the enemy group is a resource that one wishes to gain some measure of control over. Wars are fought to intimidate one's adversaries, not to exterminate them. Genocide is not war. The structure and conduct of war reflects the "fight or flight" program built into our sympathetic nervous system. In battle, the aim is to intimidate the enemy out of the fight mode and into flight mode. Thus, assuming there is sufficient parity of force to ma e a fight seem worthwhile to both parties, morale is the decisive factor in conflict. Indeed, it is the decisive factor in virtually any inter-human competitive, sporting or military encounter. Red magic has two aspects, firstly the invocation of the vitality, aggression, and morale to sustain oneself in any conflict from life in general to outright war, and secondly the conduct of actual combat magic. A variety of god forms exist in which the War-self can be expressed, although hybrid or purely idiosyncratic forms wor just as well. Ares, Ishtar, Ogoun, Thor, Mars, Mithras and Horus in particular are often used. Contemporary symbolism should not be neglected. Firearms and explosives are as welcoming to the red gnosis as swords and spears. Drums are virtually indispensable. Sigils drawn in flammable liquids, or indeed whole flaming circles in which to invo e should be considered. Combat magic is usually practised openly with the adversary being publicly threatened and cursed, or finding himself the recipient of an unpleasant loo ing talisman, spell or rune. The aim is intimidation and control of one's adversary who must therefore be made as paranoid as possible and informed of the origin of the

attac . Otherwise combat magic ta es the same general form as that used in Entropy Rites, with sigils and servitors carrying auto-destructive information to the target, although with sub-lethal intent. However, the real s ill of red magic is to be able to present such an overwhelming glamour of personal vitality, morale and potential for aggression that the exercise of combat magic is never required. YELLOW MAGIC Most of the extant texts on what is traditionally called "solar magic", contradict each other or suffer from internal confusion. Astrological commentaries on the supposed powers of the sun are amongst the most idiotic nonsense that discipline can produce. This is because the yellow power has four distinct but related forms of manifestation within the psyche. This fourfold division has led to immense problems in psychology, where various schools of thought have chosen to emphasise one in particular and to ignore those which other schools have alighted upon. The four aspects can be characterised as follows. Firstly the Ego, or self image, which is simply the model the mind has of the general personality, but excluding most of the extreme behaviour patterns that the selves are capable of. Secondly Charisma, which is the degree of self-confidence that a person projects to others. Thirdly, something for which there is no single English term, but which can be called Laughter-Creativity. Fourthly, the urge to Assertion and Dominance. All these things are manifestations of the same yellow power; although their relative emphasis varies greatly between individuals. Success in most human societies usually results from a s ilful expression of the yellow power. The strength of the yellow power in an individual seems to bear a direct relationship to levels of the sexual hormone testosterone in both sexes; although its expression depends on personal psychology. There is a complex interplay between testosterone levels, self image, creativity, social status and sexual urges, even if they are unexpressed. In esoteric terms, the moon is the secret power behind the sun, as most female magicians realise instinctively, and most male magicians discover sooner or later. The Ego gradually accretes through the accidents of childhood and adolescence, and, in the absence of particularly powerful experiences thereafter, remains fairly constant even if it contains highly dysfunctional elements. Any type of invocation should ma e some difference to the ego, but direct wor with it can achieve much more. Several tric s are involved here. The very recognition of the ego implies that change is possible. Only those who realize that they own a personality rather than consis of a personality, can modify it. For most people a preparation of a detailed inventory of their own personality is a very difficult and unsettling activity. Yet once it is done it is usually quite easy to decide what changes are desirable. Changes to the Ego or self image or personality by magic are classed as wor s of Illumination and are mainly accomplished by Retroactive Enchantment and Invocation. Retroactive Enchantment in this case consits of re-writing one's personal history. As our history largely defines our future, we can change our future by redefining our past. Everybody has some capacity to re-interpret things which were

considered to have gone wrong in the past in a more favourable light, but most fail to pursue the process to the full. One cannot eliminate disabling memories, but by an effort of visualisation and imagination one can write in parallel enabling memories of what might also have happened, to neutralise the originals. One can also, where possible, modify any remaining physical evidence that favours the disabling memory. Invocations to modify the ego are ritual enchantments and personifications of the new desired qualities. Attention should be given to planned changes of dress, tone of speech, gesture, mannerisms and body posture which will best suit the new ego. One manoeuvre frequently used in yellow magic is to practice the manifestation of an alternative personality with a specific mnemonic trigger, such as the transference of a ring from one finger to another. Various god forms such as Ra, Helios, Mithras, Apollo and Baldur are useful to structure fresh manifestations of the ego, and for experiments with the other three qualities of the yellow power. Charisma, the projection of an aura of self confidence, is based on a simple tric . After a short while there is no difference at all between the pretence and the actuality of self confidence. Anyone wishing to remedy a lac of confidence and charisma, and uncertain as to how to begin pretending to these qualities, may find that a day or two spent pretending to absolute zero self confidence will quic ly reveal both the effectiveness of pretence and the specific thoughts, words, gestures and postures required to project either pretence. Laughter and Creativity may not immediately seem to be related, but humour depends on the sudden forging of a new connection between disparate concepts, and we laugh at our own creativity in forging the connection. Exactly the same form of elation arises from other forms of creative activity, and if the insight comes suddenly, laughter results. If you don't laugh when you see a seriously brilliant piece of mathematics then you have not really understood it. It also ta e a degree of positive self-esteem and confidence to laugh at something creatively funny. Persons of low self-esteem tend only to laugh at destructive humour and the misfortunes of others, if they laugh at all. Laughter is often an important factor in the invocations of the god forms of the yellow power. Solemnity is not a prerequisite for ritual. Laughter is also a useful tactic in drawing conscious attention away from sigils or other magical conjurations once they are finished with. The deliberate forcing of hysterical laughter may seem an absurd way of ending an enchantment or an invocation, but it has been found to be remar ably effective in practice. This is yet another sleight of mind manoeuvre which prevents conscious deliberation. The "pec ing order" within most groups of social animals is usually immediately obvious to us, and the animals themselves. Yet within our own society such dominance hierarchies are equally prevalent within all social groups; although we go to quite extreme lengths to disguise this to ourselves. The human situation is further complicated by the tendency of individuals to belong to many groups in which they may have different degrees of social status, and

status is often partly dependent on specialist abilities other than displays of na ed force. However, assuming that a person can appear competent in the specialist ability that a social group requires, that person's position in the group depends almost entirely on the degree of assertion and dominance that person exhibits. It is basically exhibited through non-verbal behaviour which everybody understands intuitively or subconsciously but which most people fail to understand rationally. As a consequence they cannot manipulate it deliberately. Typical dominance behaviours involve tal ing loudly and slowly, using lots of eye contact, interrupting the speech of others whilst resisting the interruption of others, maintaining an upright posture of concealed threat, invading the personal space of others whilst resisting intrusion into one's own, and placing oneself strategically in any space at the focus of attention. In cultures where touching is frequent, the dominant always initiate it, or pointedly refuse it. Either way, they control it. Submissive behaviour is of course the reverse of all the above, and appears quite spontaneously in response to successful dominance from others. There is a two way interaction between dominance behaviour and hormone levels. If the levels change for medical reasons then the behaviour tends to change, but more importantly, from a magical point of view, a deliberate change of behaviour will modify hormone levels. Fa e it till you ma e it. There is nothing particularly occult about the way some people are able to control others. We simply fail to notice how it is done because nearly all the behavioural signals involved are exchanged subconsciously. Dominance signals do not tend to wor if their recipients perceive them consciously. Thus in most situations they must be delivered subtly and with gradually increasing intensity. One of the few situations where such signals are exchanged deliberately is in military hierarchies, but this is only possible because of the immense capacity for direct physical coercion that such systems exhibit. Brea the formal rules of non-verbal communication with an officer and he will have a sergeant instil some submission by direct means. Eventually the formal rules become internalised and function automatically, allowing enough obedience to permit mass self-sacrifice and slaughter. The yellow power is the root of most of the best and the worst of what we are capable. GREEN MAGIC There is inevitable a considerable overlap in what is written in popular magic boo s on the subject of venusian (love) and lunar (sex) magic. Consequently a planetary nomenclature has been largely avoided in this text. Although love magic is frequently performed in support of sexual objectives, this chapter will confine itself to the arts of ma ing other people friendly, loyal and affectionate towards oneself. Friends are probably anyone's greatest asset. My adress boo is easily my most valuable possession. As with erotic attraction, it is first necessary to li e oneself before others will. This ability can be enhanced by appropriate invocations of the green power. Most people find it easy to elicit friendliness from people that they li e themselves; but ma ing persons who are not disposed to friendship towards you, become friendly, and ma ing persons who you do not li e at all friendly towards you, are valuable abilities. An

unreciprocated friendship is a disability only to the person offering it. Invocations to the green power should begin with self-love; an attempt to see the wonderful side of every self one consists of, and then proceed into a ritual affirmation of the beauty and loveability of all things and all people. Suitable god forms for the Love-self include Venus, Aphrodite and the mythical Narcissus, whose myth merely reflects a certain male prejudice against this type of invocation. From within the green gnosis, spells to ma e people friendly may be cast by simple enchantment or by the use of entities created for this purpose. However it is in face to face meetings that the empathic abilities stimulated by the invocation wor most effectively. Apart from the obvious manoeuvres of showing interest in everything the target has to say and affirming and sympathising with most of it, there is another critical factor called "behavioral matching", which usually ta es place subconsciously. Basically, in the absence of overtly hostile postures on the part of the target, one should attempt to match the non-verbal behaviour of the target precisely. Sit or stand in the identical bodily posture, ma e the same movements, use the same degree of eye contact, and tal for similar intervals. As with dominance behaviour, such signals only wor if they are not consciously perceived by the recipient. Do not move to match the target's moves and postures immediately. It is also essential to try and match the verbal behaviour and to communicate with the same level of intelligence, social status and sense of humour as the target. Before I made myself wealthy, I used to practice these abilities when hitch-hi ing. Soon, even people whom I found quite ghastly were buying me lunch and transporting me far out of their way. Empathy will get you anywhere. ORANGE MAGIC Charlatanry, tric ery, living by one's wits and thin ing fast on one's feet are the essence of the orange power. These mercurial abilities were traditionally associated with the god forms which acted as patrons to doctors, magicians, gamblers and thieves. However the profession of medicine has now partly dissociated itself from charlatanry since doctors discovered that antibiotics and hygienic surgery actually wor ed. Nevertheless about eighty percent of medications are still basically placebos, and the profession still retains the mercurial caduceus for its emblem. Similarly the profession of magic has become less dependant on charlatanry with the discovery of the quantum-probabilistic nature of enchantment and divination and the virtual abandonment of classical alchemy and astrology. Pure magic is now best described as an expression of the octarine power, having an Uranian character. Yet charlatanry still has its place in magic as in medicine. Let us not forget that all "conjuring tric s" were once part of the shamanic warm up repertoire in which something lost or destroyed is miraculously restored by the magician to get the audience in the right mood before the serious business of placebo healing began. In its classical form, the magician puts a dead rabbit in a hat before pulling out a live one. To the list of professions drawing heavily on the orange power one

must now add salesman, confidence tric ster, stoc bro er and indeed any profession with an extreme heart attac rating. The motive power of the orange gnosis is basically fear, a species of fear which does not inhibit the user, but rather creates an extraordinary nervous speed that produces quic moves and answers in tight corners. The apotheosis of the Wit-self is the ability to enter that state of mental overdrive in which the fast response is always forthcoming. This ability is,, paradoxically enough, created by not thin ing about thin ing, but rather allowing anxiety to partially paralyse the inhibitory process themselves so that the subconscious can throw out a quic witted response without conscious deliberation. Invocations of the orange power are best delivered at frantic speed and gnosis can be deepened by the performance of mentally demanding tas s such as adding up large lists of numbers in one's head or ripping open envelopes containing difficult questions and answering them instantly; activities which should be persisted with until a brea through to the experience of thin ing without deliberation is achieved. Varied god forms can be used to give form to the Wit-self. Hermes, Lo i, Coyote the Tric ster and the Roman Mercurius are often employed. Orange magic is usually restricted to invocations designed to enhance general quic wittedness in secular activities such as gambling, crime and intellectual pursuits. Enchantments and evocations performed subsequent to an invocation of the orange gnosis rarely seem to give results as effective as the invocation itself in my experience. Perhaps something should be said about crime and gambling for the benefit of those hotheads who may misunderstand what can be done with orange magic in support of such activities. Theft is ludicrously easy performed methodically yet the majority of thieves get caught after a while because they become addicted to anxiety, which they experience as excitement and start ta ing ris s to increase it. The novice thief who, in state of extreme anxiety, ta es something in a situation of zero ris , does not of course get caught and neither does the careful professional. However there are few careful professionals because there are far easier ways of ma ing money in most societies for people with that ind of ability. The great majority of thieves however always manage to find some way of incriminating themselves because the anxiety of the theft itself fades, only the anxiety of punishment remains. Those quic witted and outwardly cool enough to thieve successfully can easily ma e more from salesmanship. There are three types of persistent gambler. The losers account for two types. Firstly there are those addicted to their own arrogance, who just have to prove that they can beat pure chance or the odds set by the organisers. Secondly there are those addicted to the anxiety of loosing. Even if they win, they invariably throw it away again soon afterwards. Then there are the winners. These people are not gambling at all, either because they are organising the odds and sta es, or because they have inside information, or because they are cheating. This is true orange magic. Po er is not a game of chance if played s ilfully, and s ilful play includes not playing against persons of equal or superior s ill, or persons holding a Smith and Weston to your Four Aces. Most conventional forms of gambling are set up in such a way that the use of anything but the most extreme forms of psychic power will ma e little difference. I would not

bother to bet on odds that I had reduced from an hundred to one to merely sixty to one. However certain results obtained using double blind prescience with horse racing show encouraging potential. PURPLE MAGIC A large proportion of all the cults throughout history have shared one particular characteristic. They have been led by a charismatic man able to persuade women to freely dispense sexual favours to ther men. When one begins to loo , this feature is startlingly common to many ancient cults, monotheistic schismatic sects and modern esoteric groups. Many, if not the majority of adepts past and present were, or are, whoremasters. The mechanism is quite simple, pay the woman in the coinage of spirituality to service the men who repay you with adulation and accept your teachings as a side effect. The adulation from the men then increases your charisma with the women creating a positive feedbac loop. It can be a nice little earner until old age or a police raid catches up with the enterprise. The other danger is of course that the women, and eventually the men, may come to feel that constant changes of partners wor against their longer term interests of emotional security and reproduction. The turnover in such cults can thus be high, with young adults constantly replacing those approaching early middle age. Few religions or cults lac a sexual teaching, for any teaching provides a powerful level of control. The vast majority of the more durable and established religions trade on a suppression of so called free love. This pays considerable dividends too. Women's position becomes more secure, and men now who their children are. Naturally adultery and prostitution flourish in such conditions because some people always want a little more than lifelong monogamy has to offer. So it's quite true that brothels are built with the bric s of religion. Indirectly so with conventional religions, directly so with many cults. All this begs the question of why it is that people have such an appetite for wanting to be told what to do with their sexuality. Why do people have to see esoteric and metaphysical justification for what they want to do? Why is it so easy to ma e a living selling water by the river? The answer, it appears, is that human sexuality has some built in dissatisfaction function of evolutionary origin. Our sexual behaviour is partly controlled by genetics. Those genes most li ely to survive and prosper are those that in the female encourage the permanent capture of the most powerful male available and occasional liaisons (clandestine) with any more powerful male that may be temporarily available. Whereas in the male, the genes most li ely to prosper are those encouraging the impregnation of as large a number of females as he can support, plus perhaps a few on the sly that other men are supporting. It is interesting to note that only in the human female is oestrous concealed. In all other mammals the fertile time is made abundantly obvious. This appears to have evolved to allow, paradoxically both adultery and increased pair bonding through sex at times when it is reproductively useless. The economic basis of any particular society will usually supply some pressure in favour of a particular type of sexuality and this pressure will be codified as morality which will inevitably conflict with biological

pressures. Celibacy is unsatisfactory, Masturbation is unsatisfactory, Monogamy is unsatisfactory, Adultery is unsatisfactory, Polygamy and Polyandry is unsatisfactory and presumably Homosexuality is unsatisfactory, if the renetic merry-go-round of partner exchanges in that discipline is anything to go by. Nothing in the spectrum of possible sexualities provides a perfect long term solution, but this is the price we pay for occupying the pinnacle of mammalian evolution. So much of our art, culture, politics and technology arises precisely out of our sexual yearnings, fears, desires and dissatisfactions. A society sexually at peace with itself would present a very dull spectacle indeed. It is generally if not invariably tha case that personal creativity and achievement are directly proportional to personal sexual turmoil. This is actually one of the major but often unrecognised techniques of sex magic. Inspire yourself with maximum sexual turmoil and confusion if you really want to find out what you are capable of in other fields. A tempestuous sex life is not a side effect of being a great artist for example. Rather it is the art which is the side effect of a tempestuous sex life. A fanatical religion does not create the suppression of celibacy. It is the tensions of celibacy which create a fanatical religion. Homosexuality is not a side effect of barrac s life amongst elite suicide shoc troops. Homosexuality creates elite suicide shoc troops in the first place. The Muse, the hypothetical source of inspiration, usually pictured in sexual terms, is the Muse only when one's relationship to her is unstable. Every possible moral pronouncement on sexual behaviour has doubtless been given a million times before, and it would be unseemly for a Chaoist to re-emphasise any of it. However, one thing seems reasonably certain. Any form of sexuality eventually invo es the whole gamut of ecstasy, self-disgust, fear, delight, boredom, anger, love, jealousy, rafe, self-pity, elation and confusion.It is these things which ma e us human and occasionally superhuman. To attempt to transcend them is to ma e oneself less than human, not more. Intensity of experience is the ey to really being alive and given the choice I'd rather do it through love than war any day. A dull sex life creates a dull person. Few people manage to achieve greatness in any field without propulsion that a turbulent emotional-sexual life supplies. This is the major secret of sex mgic, the two minor secrets involve the function of orgasm as gnosis and the projection of sexual glamours. Anything held in the conscious mind at orgasm tends to reach down into the subconscious. Sexual abnormalities can readily be implanted or removed by this method. At orgasm sigils for enchantment or evocation can be empowered either by visualisation or by gazing at the sigil taped to one's partner's forehead for example. However this ind of wor is often more conveniently performed auto-erotically. Although the gnosis offered by orgasm can in theory be used in support of any magical objective, it is generally unwise to use it for entropy or combat magic. No spell is ever totally insulted within the subconscious and any lea ages which occur can implant quite detrimental associations with the sexuality. At orgasm an invocation can be triggered, this operation being particularly effective if each partner assumes a god form. The

moments following orgasm are a useful time for divinatory vision see ing. Prolonged sexual activity can also lead to stages of trance useful in visual and oracular divination or oracular states of possession in invocation. The projection of Sexual Glamour for the purposes of attracting others depends on far more than simple physical appearance. Some of the most conventually pretty people lac it entirely, whilst some of the plainest enjoy its benefits to the limit. To be attractive to another person one must offer them something which is a reflection of part of their self. If the offer becomes reciprocal then it can lead to that sense of completion which is most readily celebrated by physical intimacy. In most cultures it is conventional for the male to display a tough public exterior and for the female to display a softer persona, yet in a sexual encounter each will see to reveal their concealed factors. The male will see to show that he can be compassionate and valnerable as well as powerful, whilst the female see s to display inner strength behind the outward signs and signals of passive receptivity. Incomplete personalities such as those which are machismo to the core, or consist of the polar opposite of this, are never sexually attractive to anyone except in the most transient sense. Thus the philosophers of love have come to identify a certain androgyny in either sex as an important component of attraction. Some have ta en the poetic license to express the quaint ideal that the male has a femal soul and the female a male one. This reflects the truism that to be attractive to others you must first become attracted to yourself. A few hours spent practising being attractive in front of a mirror is a valuable exercise. If you cannot get mildly excited about yourself, then don't expect anyone else to get wildly excited. The "moon glance" technique is often effective. Basically one briefly closes the eyes and momentarily visualises a lunar crescent in silver behind the eyes with the horns of the moon projecting out of each side of the head behind the eyes. Then one glances into the eyes of a potential lover whilst visualising a silver radiance beaming from your eyes to theirs. This manoeuvre also has the effect of dilating the pupils and usually causes an involuntary smile. Both of these are universal sexual signals, the first of which acts subconsciously. It is generally unwise to cast spells for the attraction of specific partners but better to conjure for suitable partners in general for oneself or others. One's subconscious usually has a far more subtle appreciation of who really is suitable. Sexual magic is traditionally associated with the colours of purple (for ppassion) and silver (for the moon). However, the effectiveness of blac clothing as either a sexual or an anti-sexual signal, depending on the style and cut, shows that blac is in a sense the secret colour of sex, reflecting the biological and psychological relationship between sex and death. ________________

This text is out of Pete Carroll's boo

"Liber Kaos, The Psychonomicon" (Weiser) With fractalic greetings and laughter * Fra.: Apfelmann * Dedication Ritual Lammas, 1992 Khaled Quic silver OPENING: Put up circle as per usual, up to but not including DDTM. Principal w itness is Priest or Priestess, whichever is opposite gender to the Candidate. Candidate (with sponsors, stands facing Priest/ess: "I, (full given name), have decided to dedicate myself to the eeping of the Gods, and I wish to so swear, with this Circle of the Craft of the Wise as witness." Priest/ess (to sponsors): "Is (candidates full name) a proper person, of good report and standing in both communities, sacred and profane, who resoects our ways and wishes to lea rn the path of Wisom from the Lord and Lady?" Sponsor: "I have found her/him to be so." Priest/ess (to Candidate): "What is the Rede?" Candidate: "An it harm none, do what ye will." Priest/ess: "Truly an Ethical core. And art willing to ma e oath to the Gods?" Candidate: "I am." Priest/ess: "Art willing to ever eep secret what is unfolded before you, even thoug h it should cost thee thy life?" Candidate: "I am." Priest/ess: "Art willing to swear so before the Gods, and before these here assemble d? Candidate: "I am." Priest/ess (to Sponsor): "Has s/he the password to enter into the worlds where such a compact mus t needs be made? Sponsor: "S/he has it not. I give it for him/her, so she may enter into compact. " Dedication (continued) Priest/ess:

Sponsor: "By the right of two passwords. Perfect Love and Perfect Trust!" Priest/ess (to dedicant): "The door has been opened for you. But you must ma e the step alone. B y what right do you enter?" Dedicant: "By those very passwords. Perfect Love and Perfect Trust." Priest/ess: "I give thee a third. (Kisses Candidate) DDTM is then performed. Priest/ess: "You may now proceed with your wish." Candidate: Gives dedication oath. (this should be written by the candidate with th e help of the sponsor(s), so that all the elements required are included, but sh ould not follow a "canned" script.) Priest/ess (to those assembled): "We have heard (Canddates name)'s intentions. Have you any questions or do you wish any clarification?" Each covenor does so, if they want a clarification. This continues unti l all are satisfied as to the meaning of the candidate's oath and are satisfied that the candidate has promised to live up the the Rede, to the best of his/her ability while a student and to eep the Secrets, whether they stay in or not. (N OTE: Promising more than is outlined is grossly unfair -- The candidate MUST fu lly cognizant of what has been promised!) Priest/ess: "We have heard your Oath and your meaning. Remember that you Oath binds you, for it has been made in the presence of the Gods and witnessed by the Craf t of the Wise." Priest/ess then introduces the new dedicant to each member of the group, then to the Quarters, and finally to the Gods: Priest/ess: "Lord and Lady, here is your Child, (name) who has sworn his/her devotio n to you. Treat him/her gently and with justice, for s/he is young in the ways of the Wise. Teach us to do the same."

The Witches' Creed Doreen Valiente Hear Now the words of the witches, The secrets we hid in the night, When dar was our destiny's pathway, That now we bring forth into light.

Ca es and Wine, with the new Dedicant fiven the first drin new status. Dismiss the Circle.

"By what Right or Privelege do you as o the company of the Gods?"

admittance into our Rites and int

in honour of his/her

Mysterious water and fire, The earth and the wide-ranging air, By hidden quintessence we now them, And will and eep silent and dare. The birth and rebirth of all nature, The passing of winter and spring, We share with the life universal, Rejoice in the magical ring. Four times in the year the Great Sabbat Returns, and the witches are seen At Lammas and Candlemas dancing, On May Eve and old Hallowe'en. When day-time and night-time are equal, Whensun is at greatest and least, The four Lesser Sabbats are summoned, And Witches gather in feast. Thirteen silver moons in a year are, Thirteen is the coven's array. Thiteen times at Esbat ma e merry, For each golden year and a day. The power that was passed down the age, Each time between woman and man, Each century unto the other, Ere time and the ages began. When drawn is the magical circle, By sword or athame of power, Its compass between two worlds lies, In land of the shades for that hour. This world has no right then to now it, And world of beyond will tell naught. The oldest of Gods are invo ed there, The Great Wor of magic is wrought. For the two are mystical pillars, That stand at the gate of the shrine, And two are the powers of nature, The forms and the gorces divine.

The Witches' Creed

The dar and the light in succession, The opposites each unto each, Shown forth as a God and a Goddess: Of this our ancestors teach. By night he's the wild wind's rider, The Horn'd One, the Lord of the Shades. By day he's the King of the Woodland, The dweller in green forest glades. She is youthful or old as she pleases,

(cont.)

She sails the torn clouds in her barque, The bright silver lady of midnight, The crone who weaves spells in the dar . The master and mistress of magic, Thet dwell in the deeps of the mind, Immortal and ever-renewing, With power to free or to bind. So drin the good wine to the Old Gods, And Dance and ma e love in their praise, Till Elphame's fair land shall receive us In peace at the end of our days. And Do What You Will be the challenge, So be it Love that harms none, For this is the only commandment. By Magic of old, be it done! Doreen Valiente, "Witchcraft For Tomorrow" pp.172-173 SAMHAIN CHANT Fire red, summer's dead Yet it shall return. Clear and bright, in the night, Burn, fire, burn!

Fire glow, vision show Of the heart's desire, When the spell's chanted well Of the witching fire.

Fire spar , when nights are dar Ma es our winter's mirth. Red leaves fall, earth ta es all, Brings them to rebirth.

Fire fair, earth and air, And the heaven's rain,

Chorus: Dance the ring, When the year's Chant the rhyme When the fire's

luc to bring, a-turninng. at Hallows-time, burning.

Chorus: Dance the ring, When the year's Chant the rhyme When the fire's

luc to bring, a-turninng. at Hallows-time, burning.

Chorus: Dance the ring, When the year's Chant the rhyme When the fire's

luc to bring, a-turninng. at Hallows-time, burning.

All blessed be, and so may we, at Hallows-tide again. Chorus: Dance the ring, luc to bring, When the year's a-turninng. Chant the rhyme at Hallows-time, When the fire's burning. Doreen Valiente "Witchcraft For Tomorrow" p. 193 HORN SONG Great stag's horns are sprouting out of my head! Now I sing great songs! Thundering voices roar Ancient melodies That now are caught in my magic al horns To power my soul And to heal my body And enrich my mind! Listen as I soar! Listen as I sing! My words are power To heal bodies, minds, soul And to conquer death! Date: 01-29-89 14:07 From: Hugh Read Origin: FIRE OPAL - A Gem of an OPUS [Minneapolis, MN (612) 822-4812] (Opus 1:282/8)

PAN TO ARTEMIS Uncharmable charmer Of Bacchus and Mars, In the sounding, rebounding Abyss of the stars! O virgin in armour, Thine arrows unsling In the brilliant resilient First rays of the spring! By the force of the fashion Of love, when I bro e Through the shroud, through the cloud, Through the storm, through the smo e, To the mountain of passion Volcanic that wo e-By the rrage of the mage I invo e, I invo e! By the midnight of madness, The lone-lying sea, The swoon of the moon, Your swoon into me; The sentinel sadness Of cliff-clinging pine, That night of delight

You were mine, you were mine! You were mine, O my saint, My maiden, my mate, By the might of the right Of the night of our fate. Though I fall, though I faint, Though I char, though I cho e, By the hour of our power I invo e, I invo e! By the mystical union Of fairy and faun, Unspo en, unbro en-The dus to the dawn!-A secret communion, Unmeasured, unsung, The listless, resistless, Tumultuous tongue!-O virgin in armour Thine arrows unsling, In the brilliant resilient First rays of the spring! No Godhead could charm her, But manhood awo e-O fiery Val yrie, I invo e, I invo e! ALOHA, Serge King -- a full moon blessing The only Temple of Peace worth building Is in your heart, Serge Is in the human heart In your students hearts Peace can not be won with money, Serge Peace can not be bought Nor can peace be sold But peace must be earned In loving, selfless service to us all Giving, regiving Just for the Joy of It THAT is Aloha Aloha is never prosperity, Serge Bought with the money Tin ling in your poc et Aloha is free Giving, regiving in poverty Sings an ancient song Full of Joy, Bliss and Love The true coin of Peace A so is giving, regiving in wealth A thing of beauty Filled with ancient glory Unsurpassable

With blessings and than s, I give you this gift May it touch your heart And open your heart May it touch all hearts ALOHA, Serge King! Date: 01-22-89 05:33 Hugh Read BURNING TIMES The songs are sung to rouse our anger Of martyred witches gone to the fire But what is served by righteous singing When all we do is stew in our ire? Nine million dead in four hundred years More in that time simply died of disease. Why do we dwell on long-passed dead When we are alive in times li e these?

In the face of that hostile power, How did the old nowledge stay alive? How do we have a Craft to practise? Our ancestors new how to fight and survive! How do we honour our blessed dead? Slavery threatens all but the few! We must teach their cunning ways; Everyone needs the s ills they new. cho: Rise up, Witches, gather your strength, And let your power spread and climb; Earth and all her children need us, For all face now the Burning Times.

I'll not cast off science's wor s Witches all forces to Will can bend. I'll not accuse, for war and waste, Some patriarchy of faceless Men. Men do not cast the only votes; Women alone do not demonstrate. Rather than shut out half the race, Who, if not we, will change that state? cho: Rise up, Witches, gather your strength, And let your power spread and climb; Earth and all her children need us, For all face now the Burning Times.

I will not blame a Father's Church -Blame and guilt are Their tools, not mine. And even in the shuls and churches Allies there will I see and find! I will not answer hate with fear; Nor with a smug, chee -turning love; I will not answer hate with rage; By strength alone will I not be moved!

cho1:

Rise up, Witches, throw off your mas s And cease crying guilt for ancient crimes; Earth and all her children need us, For all face now the Burning Times.

BURNING TIMES cho:

(cont.)

Rise up, Witches, gather your strength, And let your power spread and climb; Earth and all her children need us, For all face now the Burning Times.

I will not hide in my sacred grove -The factories and cities yet ring me about. I will not climb my ivory tower -The real world exists though I shut it out. I will not wor for Church nor State Who serve themselves while they serve us lies. Nor only for my Witchen in But for the family of all alive! cho: Rise up, Witches, gather your strength, And let your power spread and climb; Earth and all her children need us, For all face now the Burning Times.

So if rebellion means to fight A State lost sight of why it was built, If heresy's to reject a Church That rules with force or fear or guilt, Then let us all be rebels proud, And shameless heretics by creed! A tyrant's hand subjects the Earth More heretic rebels are what She needs! cho: Rise up, Witches, gather your strength, And let your power spread and climb; Earth and all her children need us, For all face now the Burning Times.

copyright 1988, Leigh Ann Hussey ThelemaNet - Hail Eris! * (415) 548-0163 (Opus 1:161/93) CHANGE I wonder if the sadness I feel Is the shadow Of my profound happiness Something is finished That was filled with wonderful excitement The search is over Now it is time to wor This is something new It is as if a tiger were lur ing Unseen and waiting To pounce on me and ill This, my new beauty

01-10-89 Hugh Read FIRE OPAL - A Gem of an OPUS [Minneapolis, MN (612) 822-4812] (Opus 1:282/8)

To Greyshield, with love The circle cast about us. The Gods bear witness to our love. The Watchtower Guardians eep silent vigil. Our brothers and sisters stand with us. The Lord and Lady have granted us audience. The candlelight reflects the love in your eyes. A love that we have shared before, Not even death to come between us. We stand together, hand in hand. Our paths have merged again. The Moon bec ons us to join Her, gladly we go. The Lady smiles upon us. Phoenix InterVisioN "The ParaNormal Connection" 603-547-6485 HST (1:132/123) A PAGAN AWAKENING A new life is there, You hear Her now, She was always there, and You're forever changed. So listen to Diana, and accept Her love. Hoard not Her gifts : feeling, renewal, music. A new life is there, You see Him now, He was always there, and you're forever changed. So loo to Apollo, and receive His light. Hoard not His gifts : healing, growth, joy. A new life is there, Your hands reach it now, It was always there, and You're forever changed. So touch the earth, and parta e of it's sustenance. Hoard not it's gifts : body, green, silence. A new life is there, You soar with it now, It was always there, and You're forever changed. So breathe in the air and gather the wind. Hoard not it's gifts : mind, dreams, empathy. A new life is there, You're warmed by it now, It was always there, and You're forever changed.

So build the flame and brave it's heat. Hoard not it's gifts : spirit, will, energy. A new life is there, You flow with it now, It was always there, and You're forever changed. So study the ocean and follow it's tides. Hoard not it's gifts : self, courage, sorrow. A new life is there, You're one with them now, They were always there, and You're forever changed. So ta e Their gifts and return them threefold. Share this magic : friendship, love, trust. .... Jeff A. Bordeaux 4 Jan 89 InterVisioN "The ParaNormal Connection" 603-547-6485 HST (1:132/123) A CALL TO LORD AND LADY She Her She Her lives and breathes upon the Earth wheel spins round the hub of June is the web of life and birth smile floats softly with the moon

Heart of life, and caring mother Loving sister, noble princess Firebird spirit, restless lover Shadowy hidden sorceress His strength is there in mountains high His lightning flys from air and cloud His horn heralds the wild hunt's ride He quic ens forest, roaring proud Children's friend, protecting father Watchful brother, noble fighter Laughing wise one, dar magister Player of pipes, thoughtful sheperd Their faces many, countless names Pan, Diana, Zeus, Astarte Teachers from dreams, oracle's flames Spea , and guide us within our hearts - J.A.B. 14 Feb 89 Mighty wings once carved the cumulus sowing storm filled clouds and reaping rain. Soaring, we bounded the radius of the pea crowned heights of our domain. How long is the road to Dragonheim? The length of a dreamer's call. How number the miles to Dragonheim? It is none, I say, and all. And the s y roared when touched by our flames it sang to words wrought in fume and smo e.

SEEKING THE SIGN TO DRAGONHEIM

Firey visions dwelt within the names of numberless tribes of dragon fol . Where winds the path to Dragonheim? Hidden in a name; a secret sound. Where stands the entrance to Dragonheim? In the place never lost, though seldom found. Majestic mountains once housed our young born from crystal eggs that caught the light. In strong shadowed heights our dwellings hung ne'er crossed by the foes who feared our might. What shapes the trail to Dragonheim? A maze of dreams, pointing streight. How travels the way to Dragonheim? On paths of heart, devoid of hate. Now the lands are gone, scourged by the ire of the modern day people's decree. But spirits live on, loo to the fires. You must catch our souls to set us free. In what age stands the halls of Dragonheim? Time beyond time, between the worlds. Where dwell the inhabitants of Dragonheim? They smile as your spirits soar and curl. ** - J.A. Bordeaux (Steorra Ro raven) , 17 Feb 89 InterVisioN "The ParaNormal Connection" 603-547-6485 HST (1:132/123) TO THE DRAGONS, REBORN They say the flame wrought winds are dead; Ethereal dancing, jeweled wings - no more. Monolithic rationality is the head. Noble dreams and wor s - shattered, torn. Their world was theirs - never doubt. But the magic and power faded away, When the light gave way to spiritual drought and Oppenheimer replaced Morganna Le Fay. But in some strange souls they found a home: Those inspired, lost, exiled castaways. Music and verse and The Craft are the bones Of these long lost archetypes of elder days. And it ta es a mere seed to create an oa , and music and light, rain and mirth, bridging land and s y with it's growth; fulfilling the call to renew the Earth. So nurture these dragons who live within youThe Burning has ended and they may go free. Let them grow so that their wor may continue. An it harm none, do what ye will - Blessed Be! -

Jeff A. Bordeaux 3 January 1989 InterVisioN "The ParaNormal Connection" 603-547-6485 HST (1:132/123)

EARTHDREAM I feel earth drums deep in the mountain's feet; Compelling rhythm driving from the core. I quic en to the flow of molten heat, and sing with earth song felt in granite's roar. And overhead, elusive secrets heard in rushing air, bright lightning's stormy ring. The wisdom of the dragon, cloud and bird I hear in wind, and see in eagle's wing. A roaring flame will dance and show it's gaze and spea with firey language, spar and smo e. My needful spirit feeds upon this blaze and feeds the source with rowan, ash and oa . The swelling ocean, graced with moon's soft iss will heal and bathe the heart within it's wa e. The clear blue source of flowing feeling's bliss is found in winding stream, dar pool and la e. This dream surrounds and ma es our spirits one. Learn from the Earth, her smile, her forests green; To watch and listen, feel the visions come, to find the center, find the worlds between. -- J.A.B. 15 Feb 89 InterVisioN "The ParaNormal Connection" 603-547-6485 HST (1:132/123) ELF Wilst I thin , And sit and dream within the forest, soft footfall comes up behind me, as I thin . A soft cool hand touches my shoulder and whispers li e the wind enter my ear. Her perfume preceeds her words, her intentions reflected , in the calming mist. Li e dust, sleep overcomes me, as soft secrets fill my thoughts, the hand releases its elfin grip, And I drift into sleep... Marcus Ba er Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

LYRA

Lyra In her bubble Dances near me now Tiny seer You never wobble As you dance the Tao Rainbow Fire Li e the Maple And the Oa Tree, too Flumes your Air Suppley Beauty! Wow! (Us little people gotta stic together even at a distance...maybe better at a distance ) Hugh Read The Terraboard, Minneapolis, MN (Opus 1:282/341) The Goddess is Alive Moon shines down upon a sea of Light, Shifting sands lay singing in the Heart of the Night. I loo ed upon a scene that gripped me to the core, White-clad maidens below were dancing on the shore. Sweet sounds slipped from moon-lit throats, Wind whipped hair abound, Lit by the light within and without, The Women circled 'round. As I stood, water engulfed my feet, My body swayed to your Heavenly Heart beat. Wind and wave and fire light, Paled in my mind Earthly delight. Time slipped by me as you held your embrace, And windblown spray covered my face. Protected deep within your Womb, I could feel the tender pain of Life's bloom. Candles flared high as the Dance progressed, Deep inside with a healing touch you blessed. All around, wind, wave and fire shouted of your life, Your light speared deep within, soothing my strife. Divine Mother, Goddess of Light, To you I come see ing protection from the night. Come home to shelter within your arm, Surrounded by Love, hidden from harm. Holy Mother, Queen of Heaven and Earth, From you we all trace our Birth. Heavenly Goddess, light from above, Shine down upon us, we pray for your Love.

HUNTER'S WARNING I have a tale, all grim forbode of one who sought the night. He mounted, then in dar ness rode to wor upon the height. Control and power over all, the essence of his quest. The people he would hold in thrall. Ill omen was his crest. He found a cliff beside the sea. A glowing circle cast, with magic burnt the Sacred Tree and drawing sword, stood fast. The ocean swelled, and gale winds crieda storm of ice and chill. Bright lightnings slashed and burned the s y imposed by dar 'ning will. A gateway through the Other World was opened by his hand, For from the clouds a funnel swirled and Bifrost's road did stand. A raucous army then came down and rode upon that coast. Weird hoofbeats rang upon the ground from steeds who were as ghosts. Just from the Hunt they had returned to challenge fox, and deer. And from the leader, one eye burned and sighted down his spear. 'What magus honors not my name?', a booming voice then cried. 'What fool does play this ill wrought game? Best answer quic - or die.' 'My title matters not, O Lord.', the sly tongued one did spea . 'We share the spirit of the swordyour wisdom I would see .' 'My secrets will I gladly give to all who share my waybut test ye must, to die or liveone chance to go or stay.' 'Though death is not the thing I crave, your questions will I bear. And favour lac ing, to the grave and thralldom will I swear.' 'But I am learn'ed, wise and strong so if your test surpassed you must then swear before your throng your power you will pass.' The Hunt Lord scowled, and it was done, then said with frosty breath: 'Unto me you will answer onewhat purpose does serve death?' 'My foes have often met their end. I glory in the ill. My way will use the death to bend the people to my will.' The Goddess Freyja then impart:

'What say you of the dove? What use to you are things of heart? Regard ye what of love?' 'I scorn all love, I favour wrath, tis best left for the mee . And peaceful ways cross not my path, tis only for the wea .' 'War is my art, so answer this:', spo e grim one handed Tyr. 'Affairs of state, when go amissis honor in your sphere?' 'All honor I return to friends and other Lords deserved. I say again, foes meet their ends when wrath has been incurred.' 'Unto us now, one more reply before you hear our will. of spells and power - magic high, of what does this fulfill? 'To honor you, I would enshrine, the world then I would ta e. To snare, all shiftless peoples bind with forces I would wa e.' All Asgard's dwellers, loo ing grim, then nodded to this ing. Triumphant mein came over himhis dar ened soul did ring. But Odin set his rage filled facethe mages blood ran cold. 'Ye thin that thou hast won our grace with na ed evil bold?' 'All death is but the way to birth and peace is men's desire. Our way is to renew the Earthdespoiling not in ire.' 'This and the magics meant to heal and guide on wisdom's path. So this is why the powers wieldyou have incurred our wrath.' 'But go in sorrow - life we give, along with this one curseThat ever long as you shall live your life now is reversed.' 'Harm with your magic, and you die a death forever long. Hurt with your guile, and you shall cryyour way is twisted, wrong.' They rode li e leaves upon the wind. Ensorcelled mage grew mad. He wanders - never trust or friends. Just woe, dar soul, nomad. Pay heed, all see ers on the path to shadow's nowledge earned. To evil go, you gain the wrath of Powers great and stern. - J.A. Bordeaux 8 Mar 89 THE MOONPOOL It is a lazy, restful time

here in the forest glade. The sun is departing, the stars arriving and the trees are a dar ening jade. An air of buzzing, drowsing stillness invades the meadow, lends weight to my head as I settle down - bedroll, bac pac and strains of music are seemingly played. A deep, cool, dar pool is here, mirror clear, reflections of s ies, as peace fills my mind, my soul and sleep gently touches my eyes. I now not whether I was awa e, or in dream or how much time had passed, when I felt the magic of this place camped there, upon the grass. No sounds - no cric ets? (The Music!) As the Moon awa ens the pool, so bright. Why this anticipation, premonition, this magical feeling, this ghost haunted night? Then, a siamese cat enters the meadowsilver grey, regal compusure, flowing lines. And somehow I now - I see intelligence and wit, and power, as she loo s into my eyes. How does she spea without spea ing? But somehow, she communicates good will, and cheer. 'Stay quiet, childe of man.', she says. 'Be still - you are but a guest here.' Then a parade of feline musicians wandered in singing from the right. I sha e my head *bedazzled*; Am I dreaming, or mad? Why me - here to witness this eldritch sight?

THE MOONPOOL -

(cont.)

A troupe of dancing, cavorting gnomes made their appearence upon a roc y stage. And following them : silver clad, haughty elves accompanied by a wizened old mage. Now, many strange but noble presences made manifest on that starlit night in June. And I witnessed and heard sweet music, high magic, secrets until dawn, with the passing of the Moon. And the high bred Queen of Cat Fol smiled with warmth, and left. Left me sha ing with these visions, and nodding, I finally slept.

I return often to these stately woods, see ing but never finding the sacred pool, so bright. It ma es me sad - very sad to thin that it was but a dream, a peculiar night. But sometimes, at the edge of sleep, soft music slowly bec ons, and calls. And I now with every fiber of my being that I will again visit these magical sylvan halls Jewel Spar ling li e a priceless gem, Your eyes glisten, a living diadem. Touched from the past brought forth Today, And once again my Heart is brought to bay. I remember when we rode the Field, Banner flying, raised the shield, And then the time we loved and lost And the unforgiving sea claimed a deadly cost. Once in a village, poor and downtrodden, Once with new birth our life was bro en, Lover I remember you when, Ages past we wandered a glen. Many lives have come and gone, But for a while, with you I would be alone. An oasis in the desert of life, An island of Joy in an ocean of Strife. It seems Our eyes Stars in But then so strange the day we met, crossed briefly and our gazes met. our eyes we heard them say, you had to turn away.

Departing you went with bac wards gaze, My eyes followed you gently and my heart was ablaze. Visions of the Past and Future days, And all I could see was the Sun's bright rays. It seems so fateful that you wal ed in that day, And to your smile my heart fell prey, Eyes that dance filled with moonbeams of light, While under your breast beats a heart filled with Life. Into my arms I call you to me, Eager our love to set free, Into the air, li e Haw s on the wing, My love I give to you without any strings. You say that you need time to be Lover, I tell you, that our love This lifetime or next, only time But sooner or later, our love it

sure, will endure. will see, will be.

Shining li e diamonds caught in the s y, A beacon for others, calling them to fly, Showing no limits, teaching others to be free, Visions of Love and Life we will be. Shadow Haw , 03-12-89 14:07 The Coming of Lugh by Iarwain Lugh the Il-Dana came to the Tara Lugh Samildanach came to the palace of the Tutha De Lugh, master of all arts, came to Eireann The gate eeper did not recognize Lugh The gate eeper as ed the Il-Dana his name The gate eeper as ed Lugh Samildanach what s ill he possesed Lugh said: I am Lugh Samildanach I am Lugh the Il-Dana I am Lugh, master of battle

We have no need of a battle master King Nuada de Danann is our battle master Nuada Airgitlamh is our battle master Lugh said: I am Lugh Samildanach I am Lugh the Il-Dana I am Lugh, master of healing The Coming of Lugh The gate eeper said: (cont.)

We have no need of a master of healing Diancecht de Danann is our master healer Diancecht is master of all herbs and healings Lugh said: I am Lugh Samildanach I am Lugh the Il-Dana I am Lugh, master of nowledge The gate eeper said: We have no need of a master of nowledge Oghma de Danann is master of all learning Oghma is master of all nowledge Lugh said: I am Lugh Samildanach I am Lugh the Il-Dana I am Lugh, master of Sailing

The gate

eeper said:

The gate eeper said: We have no need of a master of sailing. Mananan mac Lyr de Danann is our master of ships. Mananan mac Lyr, son of the sea, is our master of sailing Lugh said: I am Lugh Samildanach I am Lugh the Il-Dana I am Lugh, master of sorcery The gate eeper said: We have no need of a master of sorcery The Badb de Danann are mistresses of all sorcery The three sisters Macha, Nemhain and Morrigan are mistresses of all witchcraft Lugh said: I am Lugh Samildanach I am Lugh the Il-Dana I am Lugh, master of smithing The gate eeper said: We have no need of a master of smithing Goibniu de Danann is our master of smithing Goibniu is a master of all crafts Lugh said: I I I I I I I I am am am am am am am am Lugh Samildanach Lugh the Il-Dana Lugh, master of the battle Lugh, master of healing Lugh, master of nowledge Lugh, master of sailing Lugh, master of sorcery Lugh, master of smithing

I bid you, unless you now of another who is master of all these arts, ta e me to Nuada Airgitlamh, ta e me to Nuada, ing of the Tutha de Danann. The gate eeper went to Nuada. When Nuada heard of Lugh's coming he said: Let him come in, for never has his li e entered this fortress Lugh the Il-Dana was admitted to the Tara Lugh Samildanach was admitted to the palace of the Tuatha De Lugh master of all arts found his place amongst the Tuatha de Denann Night Wind Night Wind whispers gently through Soon, softly, soon they whisper in Flights of Night Visions ta e wing Off to the slumbers of children to the trees tonight, delight, in the night, bring Joy and Fright.

Over house, street, mountain and meadow Wind flies swirling, fast and then slow, To windows of children, it's dreams to bestow, Dreams of Heros, Dragons, Maidens and more. Little faces move in the night, Eyes seeing Night Dreams of Horror and Delight, Innocent faces asleep in the night, While mighty underta ings go on with Inner Light. Strong do they battle, they play in While parents lie dreaming of their Deep in the Heart of the Night Wind No longer Children, but Adventurers

Explorers and Travellers, Saints and Devils, The Children of Day become Night's greatest Messengers, Carrying word of Great Cities, Underground Oceans and Life, Bac to the day to see the Sun's light. And in the morning as Night Wind retires, Bright little faces alight with the glow, Tell Tales of Valour and Strife into he night, and condescending pats on their Heads is their plight. Off to your play they are told in the Day, Enough of this dreaming they are told is the way, That they are growing up and that this is the Real Way, Dreams are for nighttime, and not for the day. Dreams are for Dreamers, now you go and Play, And the Mighty Warriors on the Night go into the Day, Playing with dolls and truc s and clay, The mighty forget Night's battles along the way. But Deep in the forest, the cave, and the Dar , Night Wind lies Dreaming and awaiting the Time, When Night visions once more ta e to flight, And Children of Day become Warriors of the Night. Shadow Haw , 03-12-89 14:06 A TREE SONG by Rudyard Kipling Of all the trees that grow so fair, Old England to adorn, Greater is none beneath the sun, Than Oa , and Ash, and Thorn. Sing Oa , and Ash, and Thorn, good sirs, (All of a Midsummer morn!) Surely we sing of no little thing, In Oa , and Ash, and Thorn! Oa of the Clay lived many a day, Or ever Aeneas began. Ash of the Loam was a Lady at home,

the night, own fear and delight. they soar, and More.

When Brut was an outlaw man. Thorn of the Down saw New Troy Town (From which was London born); Witness hereby the ancientry Of Oa , and Ash, and Thorn! Yew that is old in churchyard-mould, He breedeth a mighty bow. Alder for shoes do wise men choose, And beech for cups also. But when ye have illed, and your bowl is spilled, And your shoes are clean outworn, Bac ye must speed for all that ye need, To Oa , and Ash, and Thorn! Ellum she hateth man ind, and waiteth Till every gust be laid, To drop a limb on the head of him That any way trusts her shade. But whether a lad be sober or sad, Or mellow with wine from the horn, He will ta e no wrong when he lieth along 'Neath Oa , and Ash, and Thorn! Oh, do not tell the priest our plight, Or he would call it a sin; But--we have been out in the woods all night, A-conjuring Summer in! And we bring you good news by word of mouth -Good news for cattle and corn -Now is the Sun come up from the south, With Oa , and Ash, and Thorn! Sing Oa , and Ash, and Thorn, good sirs (All of a Midsummer morn)! England shall bide till Judgement Tide, By Oa , and Ash, and Thorn! THE CLOUD SCULPTORS Staeorra Ro raven The air finds flight in forms of lofty wind As one with nature's children ta ing part And soaring up to go and find a friend Then join with water spinning wispy art. This nature's process has eternal nown The way to hang up on the s y these drapes But wonder not how these soft clouds have grown From fleecy strand filled webs to ta e their shapes? Perhaps the artist's brush a thing unseen With living tools the Elder Gods express Those firey ones whose scales and talons gleam To grace the heavens with their soft caress. Now see the stro es of carving wings along With falling rain - the strains of Dragon song.

A DREAMING DESIRE Staeorra Ro raven A spar comes coiling to the edge of sleep From realms arcane which have become un nown And from this psychic well does beauty leap A vision cherished for to call my own. This wispy strand now ta es it's shape in fire And fueled by sources boldly to enchant Then forming curves from wish of heart's desire A Woman's eyes all graced with Elvish slant. The shield maid's arms then reach and wanting clasp We intertwine within her streaming hair Then sighing voices send a heartfelt gasp As fragrance heralds tawny s in now bare'd. This honored Lady may in shadows wal But fate may someday find my heart unloc . TO THE BONFIRES Staeorra Ro raven A circle gathered round a roaring pit All joining hands to bas within it's glow And under Moon crowned s y all starry lit We sing and praise the Power's shadowed flow. For some the flames form dancing Dragon's wing And other smo e wrought visions climb the air For all a caring closeness will this bring And psychic current bonding hearts to share. We charge this timeless place between the worlds To call the Goddess' love within our hearts And join with her our joyous souls unfurled Our spirits dance with her by ancient arts. This night forever captured in this glade To see old souls re-met and friendships made. - J.A. Bordeaux (S.R.) AMPHITRITE

Her And Her Her

vessel had a heart of oa , hearts of oa her crew, rig was square, five-masted, compass always true.

The She And And She Her Her And

Lady went out sailing, spo e to all She saw, all who heard too ship with Her signed the sailors' law. sailed across the foamy waves, trident in Her hand, throwing-net beside Her, little thought of land. The Lady went out sailing.

The mermaids swam before her, The whales swam in her wa e, The dolphins on her bow-wave, On any course she'd ta e. The Lady went out sailing. The young and brash Earth-Sha er Espied the Lady's ship And vowed he'd have both Lady And boat beneath his whip. He hungered to be Sea-Lord; He too his winged horse And bus ed them both for battle, And dogged the Lady's course. The Lady went out sailing. AMPHITRITE (cont.) At length, he overtoo them, And lighted on the stern. He drew his sword for boarding; He felt his passion burn. The oa en-hearted crewmaids Dodged as he swung apace They made a path before him To give their Captain space. The Lady went out sailing. The Lady stood before him; He raised his sword to slice. She stood firm; with Her trident She smote the dec thrice. A wrenching seized his belly; He rushed to the lee side To pu e his guts while laughter Assailed his godly pride. The Lady went out sailing. "And what would you, bold pirate?" The Lady as ed with force. "I just want off this vessel!" They led him to his horse. He mounted to ta e leave of those Who at young gods would scoff. But he'd barely room for landing-And none for ta ing off! The Lady went out sailing. "You've lost!" cried Amphitrite Her net stopped his career "Now--tell me what you came for You half-ba ed buccaneer." "I came to ta e your crewmaids And vessel for my fee, But most of all your maidenhead And Lordship of the Sea. The Lady went out sailing. "I thin you're cute", the Lady said "Too cute to feed to fishes,

"And so that Zeus might call you strong "I'll grant most of your wishes. "You may have My net and for ; "I've better stored below, "And you may have My oa en car "To sail where winds might blow." The Lady went out sailing. "My crewmaids are not Mine to give, "But you may call Me wife. "Our wedding night, Poseidon dear, "Must last you all your life, "For you shall rule the Middle Sea "And none shall ta e your place, "But I shall rule the Ocean "And the boundless deeps of Space." The Lady went out sailing. --Copyright (c) 1988 by Sourdough Jac son The Lizard King-"I am the Lizard King; I can do anything."(1:104/45.5) HEAVEN IS A RESTING-PLACE I reject the mortal fear Which brings on doctrine-strife, For I have seen with poet's eyes The Door twixt Death and Life. I now not what might lie beyond; That time is yet to come. Heaven is a resting-place, A home to journey from. The churchmen argue overmuch On who is out and in, On how they should be organized, And how their neighbors sin. The flag is not the nation; The whole is more than sum; Heaven is a resting-place, A home to journey from. When God is shrun to fit a Church, The greater part is lost, The Holy Ghost too oft gets thrown When "heathen trash" is tossed. If God's noc ed down to Patriarch, Full half of God's struc dumb. Heaven is a resting-place, A home to journey from. I shall fear not for my friends, Nor worry for my in, And when I face that bright-lit Door I'll joyfully go in. All those dear to me will join The Feast of Friends to come: Heaven is a resting-place, A home to journey from. --Copyright (c) 1988 by Sourdough Jac son

The Lizard King-"I am the Lizard King; I can do anything."(1:104/45.5)

PRAYER DRIVE With every turn of the dis in the drive: To him who helps the poet thrive By swapping silver for the use Of verse, sweet blessings from the Muse. But woe to him who plays the thief, Deletes this message--grant him grief! For every time the dis spins around, His luc shall tumble to the ground. --Copyright (c) 1987 by Sourdough Jac son The Lizard King-"I am the Lizard King; I can do anything."(1:104/45.5) ELEGY: JAMES DOUGLAS MORRISON Deirdre and Eogan and Conchobar Ride the King's Road in an open car. Deirdre stands proud as the car scrapes the walls. The clearance is low; the bright lady falls. Swept to the road, she's gone for a ghost, Gone in the night on the Golden Coast. Who, now, shall mourn for Usna's dead? Who will drin poteen o'er Deirdre's fair head? Her sorrow is spent, her howling is done, For Alan and Arden and Naoise are gone. Swept as if mines, they're gone for a ghost, Gone in the night on the Golden Coast.

Shaman and singer, he screams to the s ies His pain and his vision. An arrow, he flies Attended by Serpents, by Lizards, by Pan-Fair Deirdre's returned in the guise of a man. Swept by her spirit, possessed by a ghost, He leads the fey young of the Golden Coast. In Eogan and Conchobar's car they now go, He stands proud, defiant, where clearance is low. The arrow has fallen, the sorrow has burned. Who, now, will mourn the grave howler returned? Swept by her dar ness, he's gone for a ghost. The Druid, the Changer, the Poteen-mad Host Is gone in the night on the Golden Coast. --Copyright (c) 1988 by Sourdough Jac son

A A A A

spirit in frenzy arises from flames, poet out see ing the elder gods' names. swan in a duc -nest, a bow strung and drawn, druid a-singing to greet the pale dawn. Swept by a vision, he chases a ghost To exile, out on the Golden Coast.

ANOTHER ONE FOR JIM MORRISON Where did he go, that vision-mad soul? What did he see on his quest? Who did he meet at the end of his night? Why did he fail the test? The shaman is old, a new must be found, Ta e the young ones to a height. Those who would be a shaman must jump. The one who survives will be right.

And I would now follow that worthy's descent, I would dare Medicine's dive. For I love the path he blazed for us all, But I, unli e him, shall survive.

--Copyright (c) 1988 by Sourdough Jac son The Lizard King-"I am the Lizard King; I can do anything."(1:104/45.5) BENEATH THE FULL MOON Come, I will sing it in your ear: Your dancing days are come. All the feeling you hold dear Will lift your spirit some; Dance until the rosey dawn All in a gay, glad rag. I carry the Sun in a golden cup, The Moon in a silver bag. And I will sing you merrily Into my ring of dooms, And I will twine into your hair A wreath of maiden blooms. You'll turn, when dancing days wane low To Crone, but not to Hag. I carry the Sun in a golden cup, The Moon in a silver bag. As Maiden grows to Mother, And Mother into Crone, Dance, My darling daughter, Beneath My rounded Moon. Dance in argent splendor Until your spirits flag. I carry the Sun in a golden cup, The Moon in a silver bag.

I I I I

jump--the sna es I feared buoy my soul. jump--my spirit now sings. jump--to the Lady I now will be there. jump--can it be I've grown wings?

He He He He

jumped--the serpent-strength filled his soul. jumped--the new lizard ing. jumped--to the Lady he feared would be there. jumped--but rose not to ta e wing.

--Copyright (c) 1988 by Sourdough Jac son The Lizard King-"I am the Lizard King; I can do anything."(1:104/45.5) Computer Blessing Blessings on this fine machine, May its data all be clean. Let the files stay where they're put, Away from dis drives eep all soot. From its screen shall come no whines, Let in no spi es on power lines. As oa s were sacred to the Druids, Let not the eyboard suffer fluids. Dis Full shall be nor more than rarity, The memory shall not miss its parity. From the modem shall come wonders, Without line noise ma ing blunders. May it never catch a virus, And all its software stay desirous. Oh let the printer never jam, And turn my output into spam. I as of Eris, noble queen, Keep Murphy far from this machine. 1988 Zhahai Stewart Adelante - 300 meters above Boulder, CO (Opus 1:104/93) Quarters Chant <chorus> Chant the quarters one by one chant the quarters round Chant the quarters one by one and set the circle sound . Incense burn and spirits lift Chant the quarters round Air comes to guard the east to set the circle sound . <Chorus> Flames ignite and spirits fly Chant the Quarters round Fire comes to guard the south to set the circle sound . <Chorus> Moisture comes and spirits fill Chant the quarters round Water comes to guard the west to set the circle sound . <guess what? Chorus...>

Life comes forth and spirits soar Chant the quarters round Earth comes to guard the north to set the circle sound . <one last time for the chorus...> Quarters called one by one chant the quarters round Circle raised as on my friend and sets the circle sound. . Damon The Masterwor Opus * Aurora, CO (303) 341-6614 * (1:104/55) THE RIVER In the midst of death and violence A light indling in my heart Is beginning to warm my soul With new life. I loo bac at the white water boiling behind me With a shuddering anger at the treacherous, roiling white I loo ahead at the broad, blac expanse Smooth, yet turbulent and rich with wonderful power. Deep moments of peace are the essence of what is coming Deep pools of bliss are the essence of what is coming Troubles are the food that nourishes a peaceful life Troubles gently feed bliss with subtle flavours of delight I bow to all the Deities who are bringing me wealth unmeasured And I than the Lord, and I than the Lady, and I than my Self. Hugh Read , 02-15-89 12:17 The Terraboard, Minneapolis, MN (Opus 1:282/341) SNOW Goddess is beautiful dressed in white The tiny white crystals that fall through the night They fall so gentle, don't ma e a sound As they drift to Earth and lay on the ground Loo ing up, snow melts on my face as I leave behind the hectic pace I'm in another world, one of love communing with the Goddess above Drawing the power from all around me one with Her, I truely wish to be This is the quest for which I strive It is my reason for being alive Standing alone, staring at the s y I feel a tear coming to my eye The feeling of peace is awesome you see

light.

I feel the Goddess surrounding me (C) 1989 - Steve Earl Excelsior AIBBS - Monroe CT 203-268-1222 (1:141/222) The Shaman's Call The Night Bird's call draws evening near, Stars and planets in the Dar ening S y appear, People of the day to their beds retire, Except for some Old Souls about a fire. Sounds begin to rule the night, As the Sun's bright rays fade from sight. Evening noises begin to grow, Cric et, Owl, and Wolf's lone howl. Deeper into the Night we go, The landscape lit by the fire's glow, One old man begins to sway, And one lone drum begins to play. Boom goes the drumbeat soft and slow, Tapping out the Heartbeat of the World Below, Boom echoes the drumbeat's call to go, To begin the ride to the World Below. The flames leap high into the night, And the World around us ta es to flight, Senses shift in the dar ing light, And the Dar est Cave draws our sight. Enter the Cavern, down we speed, Into the Underworld the Drumbeat leads. Faster than Dragon, than Haw , than Sna e, Down the path the Shaman's feet race. Deeper and deeper into the Womb of the Night, Till up ahead appears the Light. Boom thunders the drum, and the walls seem to sha e, And out of the Cavern I stop by a la e. I loo around and I see Land so bright, That I now mortal eyes have never beheld this sight. In the S y wheels Gods and Dragons in Flight, While bathing in the La e is the Goddess of the Night. Her eyes see me clearly and I'm pierced by their Sight, There is no hiding in the Night of Her Light. The Animals come to Her call as she sings, And drumbeat from above gives me wings. Into the S y my form changes still, On Haw wings I ascend from the hill. Higher and higher into the Magical S y, I soar on Wings lit in Magical Fire. This Bond, this chain, this freedom sublime, The Shaman's gift, boon, bane, the Drumbeat Divine. The Dream that brings Visions into the Night, The Night that is brighter than any Daylight. The sight of a Tree draws me near, The Great World Tree has brought me here. The Tree of All Knowledge grows out of sight, Even Haw eyes are dimmed by it's light.

Form changes swiftly, Sna e am I now, Across the World Tree I wander uncowed. The Tree of Life, of Knowledge, of Power and Death, The Tree that for Shaman will give Shaman Breath. The Drum fills my body, My brain is on fire, Visions of Forces dance in the Light, And the drumbeat caresses me, somewhere in the Night. The Tree fades from view, My Soul ta es to flight, And into the World, Dragon Stal s the Night. Bac to the Cavern the worm passes nigh. Drumbeat calls, caresses, commands, Bac to the Wa ing World the drumbeat demands. Up through the cave I ascend in the Night, Form shifts so slightly in my bemused sight. Dragon claws to Human feet, And to the fire where the Shaman meet. Around the fire slowly the Drummer eeps beat, Drawing home the Voyagers to the fire's night heat. Glazed expressions loo into the night, But in Shaman's eye is still the Light. Slac faced expressions for others to see, But in Shaman's eye, is the Fire that Frees. Shaman stares into the fire, Then quietly into the night he retires. Off to his rest he fades from sight, Until the Drum calls once more to Night's Light. Shadow Haw Ba er Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222) Storm Lightning flashing, wind howls through trees, Storm is rising, Mortals flee. Li e armies marching, clouds parade by, Thunder sha ing, rain hides the s y. Earth trembles under Titan's fist, As Elementals meet in their violent tryst. Jagged bolts from Heaven descend and Tree their goal to rend. Fierce are the powers of the storm, Chaos rules and dissolves Reality's form. Fear wal s the Earth in the Lightning's star Kiss, While rain hides the Shadows in Unholy mists.

Slowly the mortal creatures crawl forth,

Sun And One And

pee s shyly from behind Thunderhead, a faint rainbow across the s y does thread. lone frog begins to sing, a few bright birds ta e to wing.

But And The And

li e all things this to must pass, after a time, storm ceases to harass, wind abates and the thunder mutes, Lightning ends it's violent pursuit.

To bas in the Sun's strengthening warmth, But even as the light returns to day, Elsewhere Storm will enter the fray. Storm into peace, night into day, This is the circle, the Divine at play. First one then the Other is the cycle of Life, No stagnation, no quiet, just unending strife. The Circle of Life is the Game we play, While upon this Earth our bodies decay, And when our storm of Life goes by, Into the Light we must all die. Life into death, dar into light, This is the Circle, the Divine delight, To experience death, and be reborn from the night, To once again behold Divine Starlight. Circling But even When the The last endlessly Eons fly past, this too in the end won't last, last sparrow falls and night draws to a close, to die is one final rose. (cont.)

Storm

When all is merged in Divine Bliss, And nothing is left the Divine to iss, Then up from the wells of Chaos will flow, New Life, new forms the Divine to now. Cycle upon cycle, Life upon death, The Eternal cycle, Brahman's breath, Form into Chaos, Chaos into form, This is the Rule to which Life will conform. One rule for That nothing One Rule for That Nothing life, one rule alone, is Changeless, and Chaos follows form, Day and One rule for Night, is Eternal in the Eternal's sight.

Shadow Haw , 03-12-89 14:19 A VICTIM OF IDEOLOGIES PLACE was just a place. without form or future, barren of inhabitants. Then RAIN appeared - and gave PLACE moisture. And SUN lent PLACE light. And EARTH molded PLACE into form. And WIND and BREEZE breathed sweet airs into PLACE. And CLOUD smiled and MOON shone. And STAR brought forth beauty, wonder, magic. -

And PLACE awa ened. And grew trees, and grass. Animals appeared. And PLACE was graced with la es, and ponds, and light, and shadow. 'Than you!', cried PLACE. 'I am alive. Than you.' And the elements conferred among themselves, And preened, and swelled, and gloated. 'See!', cried SUN. 'We are all powerful-' 'we have a RIGHT to be proud!' 'Ah!', said RAIN. 'But I was the first!' 'And without me', said EARTH, 'PLACE would be shapeless!' And the elements fought, and argued, and battled RAIN and WIND changed to STORM, illing, ripping trees asunder. EARTH shoo , imposing vast destruction. CLOUD, MOON and STAR retreated, while SUN flared, burning all to ruin. And angered, with bruised pride, the elements departed. Only BREEZE remained upon this barren, blac ened desert that was PLACE. 'Oh cruel brethren! What have we done?' and BREEZE tried to resurrect PLACE, but it's power was too wea . And so dead PLACE remains the mournful cry of BREEZE it's only voice.

Deep in Shadow, hidden from sight, Wandering by, li e a thief in the night. Slipping through crac s in Reality's wall, Flying alone through Chaos' Hall. Alone in the world, away from the Light, Except for the company of the Goddess of the Night. Deep is the Well of Humanity's Soul, And deeper still the place I must go. Haw on the Wing, silent in flight, Hunter unseen, hidden by night. Lost in the Shadow, beyond mortal sight, Ascending beyond the Gods' lofty height. Wings of Fire carry me free, Far from this place I will be.

Shadow Haw

Left behind the ones I new, Fellow travellers there are but few. Chaos spins by unblin ing eyes, Reality splits and reason flys, None can follow me in this Place, Lost to the world without a trace. Realities come and Realities fall, Yet onward I fly heeding the Un nown call. Farther and faster the message I heed, Flying alone, spurred on by need. None may go where Chaos hold court, But there my mind seems to cavort. Alone and silent I scream in the dar , While visions and sunbursts tear me apart. Realities flow with plastic speed, Angels and Demons from me do feed. The world whirls wildly around the Tree, But soon, I now, I will be free. Marcus, Ba er Street Irregular * Ft Walton Beach FL (1:366/222)

I am as the Moon Our Light is ever changing Healing, gathering copyright, Hugh Read, 1987 Permission is herby given for noncommercial reproduction of this copyrighted wor , so long as it is reproduced in full and this notice is included. As Capricorn begins the year dar ly From the depths of light As the distant Sun Begins Her Northward Path Saturn begins her leaden rainbow dance Giving form to time The Gates to Formlessness Ma e way for new forms

As new forms dance in, wise souls may dance out To Eternity To explore timeless states And spaceless being Saturn planet of time and timelessness

To emerge out of Saturnian Blac Gates of Formlessness Are now used by wise souls See ing Endlessness

Magic al Reveries Dedicated to Bill Heidric ...who opened the door...

Space and spacelessness Of limits and freedom Is our leaden ey To the golden place of immortality The Bliss of Saturn Is sweet, rich bliss, indeed In dar Capricorn Agape is subtle wine, holy...pure While Chubby Eros Is a belching beer Good old, sad old lust Is Thelema will with desire charged Is Thelema greed Drun on yeasty-rich lust Rapine in her heart Or is Thelema subtle will, divine Heaven's Spirit scent Beyond sight, will or mind Li e good Christian Faith As Capricorn begins the year dar ly From the depths of light As the distant Sun Begins Her Northward Path Saturn begins her leaden rainbow dance Giving form to time The Gates to Formlessness Ma e way for new forms

As new forms dance in, wise souls may dance out To Eternity To explore timeless states And spaceless being Saturn planet of time and timelessness Space and spacelessness Of limits and freedom Is our leaden ey To the golden place of immortality The Bliss of Saturn Is sweet, rich bliss, indeed In dar Capricorn Isis spread your loving wings over me Enfold me within Protect me, Mother, In my loneliness Isis spread your loving wings over me

To emerge out of Saturnian Blac Gates of Formlessness Are now used by wise souls See ing Endlessness

Enfold me within Lead me to earthly love Lead me to my Self Isis spread your loving wings over me Enfold me within Surround me with lovers Who heal me with love Isis spread your loving wings over me Enfold me within Allow me loving friends Who heal me with love Isis spread your loving wings over me Enfold me within Lead me to earthly love Lead me to my Self When bright spar was struc at dar equinox Hard clarity came As Sun struc Saturn In His Earthy home The Astral Year begins in Saturn's house In chill mystery The leaden wheel begins Her twelve month circle From Earth to Air to Water to Fire Then again begin Spinning wheel of magic Through time and through space Twelve stations of the Elemental Cross Brea the calender Wear tattered calender Li e torn beggar's rags Twelve mundane months slip over Heaven's Year Solstice to solstice Tearing the paper year With ancient power Now the dar solstice has come and has gone Year is born anew New Year's day ahead Surly overlay Vying with our more ancient starry year The New Roman Year Trys hard to hide the Gods Nor can it hide them For their power is born ever anew Through the twelve stations And deep in each month Their Life births Magic As Virgo dies the dar Crone encroaches

Hard with Grey Power Harsh-shrivelled with Wisdom Of a long chaste life What seems to be ugly, mean grows in strength Li e a walnut shell Wrin led shell, wrin led nut Wrin led wise, old brain Cruel Death mercifully releases Beauty Libra roses rise Gentle Autumn breezes Pin , red, soft petals From pea to craggy pea the Horn'd One leaps Fire in his eyes Hard shouldered...white-hot chest Antlered man on high Blue lightening flashes from his bright-hot thighs Swift nees crash through trees In the ancient forest Of my ancient mind From those depths my ancient powers rise Fire in my eyes Soft heart hardens. Wisdom Surges in my thighs Knees and an les loosen, muscles tighten I am the Horn'd One! I am He! I am Free! Ancient One in me! Affirmation: I am Pan! I am Cernunnos! I am the Horn'd am Shiva! I am He! I am Atman! I am Free! Is Peace possible on Battlefield Earth No. Not now, Kali Your Yuga demands War War is our teacher Only through War can we learn to escape Your prison of Time The only Peace there is Is hidden within Each individual heart. Turn within Ma e that your War Exploit the Battlefield By turning away That is War enough in Kali's prison Of Time and of Space Learn to reverse the Field And find your own Peace

One.

WHEN SATURN RULED AQUARIUS The Kiss of Saturn is hot, blac , fierce, deep A hint of Wild Ass In her blue-blac hair Breasts soft as blac Lead Moulten hips steaming with empowerment Belly bold with Lust That heals...and heals...and heals Uranus! She cries. "Wild Ass!" I reply. "I am set on you!" My Wild Ass prances "For I am Set, my Nepthys My sweet Wild Ass

Saturn am I! Shivah am I! I AM! I am Atman! THAT! I claim you Dar Nepthys THAT we may be ONE!" In Atman hide the Secrets of Maya Terrible Maya (When we are in Her Claws) Is ind in Atman There is a reversal in Atman Of subtle beauty Maya becomes God's Will And I am as God In Atman. I am as God, Will Supreme Soft as a Feather Strong, gentle, wise and firm, Free! I am Atman! I am Atman. I am Free. I am He. In Atman, I AM As God in Atman. Free! I am Atman! SCARABEUS Golden Fire in my Heart, Immortal! Dar Sacred Beetle Flaming in my breast! Immortality Hidden in the dung of my existence! That filthy dung I roll across my S y

I come to claim your dar In Binah tonight For we are in Binah Deep set in Binah

powers tonight

For all to distain Hides The Stone of the Wise from prying eyes And the Mid-night Sun Hidden by dung-li e Earth Yet lighting the Moon Hides behind my life lighting up my Soul As I roll my dung Ma ing Soul immortal As I roll my Stone

Minerva I met Minerva just now near her tree Resting from battle Her helmet on her nee Hair tumbled on breasts Parted by brass, surrounded by steel plate Dar nipples glistened With dew-li e sweat of war Pale arms quivering Eager for battle's harsh life-death embrace Yes! She said to me. Hell yes! she said. Get laid! Enter the battle. My Virgins serve me well, my son! Get laid! Let your juices flow! (She spit an olive pit) Get in there and fight! She gathered her pale s irts around her hips Stood, covering strong thighs Too her shield, sword, helmet With war shrie was gone LOVE IS THE LAW Do what thou wilt is the Whole of the Law The time of The Will Bursts forth Now, in the Spring Implacable bud! Let your Love burst forth and blossom freely Thunder of roses Unfettered by harsh will Love willed to be Free To soar with on Her Wings into New Heavens Over pure New Earths Love is Will purified Love is Her own Law! Sun is born again in primitive Light With Arian Force In the Spring House of Mars

New Life Exploding

Juices of Spring wash us from Winter Womb As Spring buds push out We drop from Her belly Li e damp, new born colts This is the time to re-SOL-ve our new lives With Nature's Forces Supporting and healing As Old Winter dies MAY EVE Walpurgis Night, the time is right, The ancient powers awa e. So dance and sing, around the ring, And Beltane magic ma e. Walpurgis Night, Walpurgis Night, Upon the eve of May, We'll merry meet, and summer greet, For ever and a day. New life we see, in flower and tree, And summer comes again. Be free and fair, li e earth and air, The sunshine and the rain. Walpurgis Night, Walpurgis Night, Upon the eve of May, We'll merry meet, and summer greet, For ever and a day. As magic fire be our desire To tread the pagan way, And our true will find and fulfil, As dawns a brighter day. Walpurgis Night, Walpurgis Night, Upon the eve of May, We'll merry meet, and summer greet, For ever and a day. The Let And And pagan powers this night be ours, all the world be free, sorrows cast into the past, future blessed be!

Walpurgis Night, Walpurgis Night, Upon the eve of May, We'll merry meet, and summer greet, For ever and a day. Doreen Valiente

From cold Winter's Icy dar Gives force to our Wills Time of re-SOL-ution We are born again

Womb

"Witchcraft For Tomorrow", pp. 192-193 INVOCATION OF THE HORNED GOD By the flame that burneth bright, O Horned One! We call thy name into the night, O Ancient One! Thee we invo e, by moon-led sea, By the standing stone and the twisted tree. The we invo e, where gather thine own, By the nameless shrine forgotten and alone. Come where the round of the dance is trod, Horn and hoof of the goatfoot god! By moonlit meadow on dus y hill, When the haunted wood is hushed and still, Come to the charm of the chanted prayer, As the moon bewitches the midnight air. Evo e thy powers, that potent bide In shining stream and the secret tide, In fiery flame by starlight pale, In shadowy host that rides the gale, And by the fern-bra es fairy haunted Of forests wild and woods enchanted. Come! O come! To the heart-beat's drum! Come to us who gather below When the broad white moon is climbing slow Through the stars to the heaven;s height. We hear thy hoofs on the wind of night! As blac tree-branches sha e and sigh, By joy and terror we now thee nigh. We spea the spell thy power unloc s At solstice, Sabbat, and equinox, Word of virtue the veil to rend, From primal dawn to the wide world's end, Since time began-The blessing of Pan! Blessed be all in hearth and hold, Blessed in all worth more than gold. Blessed be in strength and love, Blessed be wher'er we rove. Vision fade not from our eyes Of the pagan paradise Past the gates of death and birth, Our inheritance of the earth. From our soul the song of spring Fade not in our wandering. Our life with all life is one, By blac est night or noonday sun. Eldest of gods, on thee we call, Blessing be on thy creatures all. Doreen Valiente "Witchcraft For Tomorrow" pp. 190-191 INVOCATION OF THE MOON GODDESS Diana, queen of night, In all your beauty bright,

Shine on us here, And with your silver beam Unloc the gate of dream; Rise bright and clear. On earth and s y and sea, Your magic mystery Its spell shall cast, Wherever leaf may grow, Wherever tide may flow, Till all be past. O secret queen of power, At this enchanted hour We as your boon. May fortune's favor fall Upon true witches all, O Lady Moon! Doreen Valiente "Witcraft For Tomorrow" pp. 189-190 THE SPELL OF THE CORD By the not of one The spell's begun. By the not of two It cometh true. By the not of three Thus shall it be. By the not of four 'Tis strengthened more. By the not of five So may it thrive. By the not of six The spell we fix. By the not of seven The Stars of Heaven. By the not of eight The hand of fate. Byt the not of nine The thing is mine. Doreen Valiente "Wichcraft For Tomorrow" pp. 188-189

THE COVEN SPELL O ancient ones of heaven, earth and sea, We chant the coven spell, thus shall it be! To music of the night-wind blowing free, We chant the coven spell, thus shall it be! The owl hoots within the hollow tree, The blac cat runs by night silently, The toad beneath the stone dwells secretly, We chant the coven spell, thus shall it be! To We To We moon that draws the tides of air and chant the coven spell, thus shall it god that bides beneath the greenwood chant the coven spell, thus shall it

sea, be! tree, be!

(Pause..........) The Spell is flowing li e the sea, The spell is growing li e the tree, Li e flame that burns and blazes free. We chant the spell, thus shall it be! We chant the spell, thus shall it be! We chant the spell, thus shall it be! IT IS! Doreen Valiente "Witchcraft For Tomorrow" pp. 181-182 INVOCATION (traditionally used after the Communion of the five senses) Diana of the Rounded Moon, The queen of all enchantments here, The wind is crying through the trees, As we invo e thee to appear. The cares of day departed are, The realm of night belongs to thee; And we in love and inship join With all things that are wild and free. As powers of magic round us move, Now let time's self dissolve and fade. Here in place between the worlds May we be one with nature made. Thy consort is the Horned One, Whose sevenfold pipes ma e music sweet. Old Gods of life and love and light Be here as merrily we meet! For ye circle's round we tread, And unto ye the wine we pour; The sacred Old Ones of this land, Ye we invo e by ancient lore -By magic moon and pagan spell, By all the secrets of the night, Dreams and desires and mystery, Borne on the moonbeam's silver light. Now may we hear, or may we see, Or may we now within the heart, A to en of true magic made, Ere from this circle we depart. (Pause...........) O goddess-queen of night,

By By We We

witches' garter bound about the nee, staff and cauldron and all powers that be, will the thing in our minds we see, chant the coven spell, thus shall it be!

O Horn'ed One of might, In earth and s y and sea May peace and blessing be! Doreen Valiente "Witchcraft For Tomorrow" pp. 168-169 The Pentagram I invo e Ancient Powers of The Star The Powers of Five The Spiral Powers The Powers of Earth I invo e the Ancient Powers of Life Star in the Circle In the Iron Circle Quaint, ancient symbol So ancient, primordial and timeless Dar symbol of life On planets bearing life Deep in DNA Deeply branded in the Heart of our Earth Touchstone of Wisdom Of Ancient Knowledge, NOW, Living in the stars I call out through the Circled Iron Star For my Star Power Out through the Galaxies Claiming Dar Powers Similodon Blood Is that you that I hear? Your footsteps on the ground above my head. Your hands apon the headstone that bears my name. You are a dweller in the night! Beware I bite! On cloa as blac as sin, I float, I fly. In hunger burning bright, sea ing prey. Life is flowing deep within. I send it bubbling fourth. and then I drin it in again. Another night, never day. Away away, into the dar I flee! where I might hide. waiting for another night. Did you hear? Did you see? Do you flee? Or is that your hand I find near mine? In the dar ! Dwellers in the night! Beware we bite! Similodon PANDEMONIUM

Hi, ho, it's Spring again, Out of my eye's corner I thought I saw the Horned Man, the Green Man Charging down the glen, It was not Pan, I did not get that freezing in the bone, Half fear, half ecstacy. Perhaps I was mistoo , And only wished I saw,

Traveling in a wave of liquorous riot, George 'something' and the Destroyers

New Words & Old In the autumn of the lightnings, in the mighty-voic`ed throng In the twilight were the offerings, with both chants and full-throat song: These the People, born to silence These the See ers, born to sight These the Wanderers, born to roaming These frail Humans, born to night... In the winter's swirling blizzard, in the qua ing of great trees In the nigh t-blac child of charring, in the wavering, fitful breeze: These the Wicca, see ing nowledge These the Shamen, nowing care These the Students, always reading These the Hopeful, who despair... In the spring-tide's joyous growing, in the flower and the leaf In the summe r's dearth and plenty, saving up to sto e Belief: Hear the Mother, gentle-voicings Hear the Father, rumbled whisper Hear the Children, gay and laughing Hear the Many -- sing your vesper... Now the Bard and Druid gather Now the Priestess calls afar Now the Time to Watch and Listen Now the Time to practice more! +*+*+ Kihe Blac eagle SPRING/SUMMER POEM By: Shadow Haw

Falling

Sonia Broc

And maybe Pan is playing in a roc

band,

Circling s yward on wings of fire, Drawn aloft by heart's desire, Endless expanses of starry night, In Endless freedom he finds his delight. Down below whispers rise to his ear, The green earth lays calling, calliing him near, Circling s yward he hears the sweet call, And folding his wings, begins the great fall. Wind whispers then sings then a great roar, From the high heavens his body he tore. Faster than Eagle he falls to the ground, Till even the s y's call was lost in the sound. Below lays the Earth, she holds out her arms, Enfolding her Lover with her Endless charms, Deeper he plummets into that fair place, Blinded and bewildered by her loving grace. Mountians and hills, river and sea, Summon him near, and answer his need, Stretching her arms, she gathers him nigh, As stoneli e he falls, a mote from God's eye. Hurry, oh hurry, she bec ons him come, As mountains surround him, bloc ing the sun, His breath is fire, igniting her love, Her lover returns, from Sun far above. Deep in her body he plunges his fire, Passion to passion, fire stri es desire, Shudderingly, sha ingly, he rises above, Surrounded by the warmth of his Lady's love. Sin ing once more, she pulls him near, Gathering him close the stars reappear, Deep in her body, awaiting the day, Till once more, s yward, He rises to play. A Healing Spell Wrap thee in cotton Bind thee with love Protection from pain Surrounds li e a glove. May the brightest of blessings Surround thee this night. For thou art cared for, Healing thoughts sent in flight... Banishing The Circle By: Devin Storm The Circle is open But not forgotten The Circle is unbro en Nothing is forgotten

The Circle is free Nothing is EVER forgotten Blessed Be! by Devin Storm The Fool By: Stormy Gael Fool! Fool! Fool! Where is thy strength now oh mighty warrior? In the hands of another? Oh trusting fool that thou art, Have you no experience to teach you better? Thou hast lived many years. Where is thy wisdom? Even the youths now better. Keep your own counsel, old one, And be safe; share it and die. Stand alone against the world And increase your strength a hundredfold. Build you thine own armor and fight; Forge thine own sword with the blood of life And none can touch thee. But you, you fool, You have put your trust in another, A veritable stranger in your own camp. Who is the wiser? I as , The giver or the ta er? Methin s you tread a dangerous road. Wal easy, old one; pay heed to your steps. Perhpas there is hope, yet. Survival may still be yours, But at what price? A price I willingly pay. Enough said, young counselor. HYMN TO ARTEMIS by FRATER U.'.D.'. Artemis, my sibyl sibling huntress of the earthy s ies, wayfaress in silver rippling in your hands my power lies ...

in your light and metal sheen, waxing, waning, touched, unseen,

lies my dream and all muted might in liquid lies my giving and my caressing friends and

my ma ing pose, ta ing, smiting foes

ever-moving curv d bow ever-whirring arrow's flow to the core of mine own heart hitting mar , a gentle dart stri es my body, stri es my soul, fondles part and fondles whole towards my ever-pulsing spell: give me heaven, give me hell ta e from me what ma es me sin with your sleight of hand and win Goddess of the nightly sweep, through the starlit mires seep, never solemn, yet possessed, by your mastery expressed, all your vision's harvest eeps ... all your vision's harvest eeps ... Today the Moon is There Hugh Read

In that Of mind Lord of Can you

mighty, non-human Power Place that Is Not the Galaxy hear my cry

For fulfilment of my bro en being Faulted, crac ed, torn From that first painfilled day Of savage, late birth Send to me streamers of healing power That will ma e me new Of more eternal stuff Than this failed human Being is moulded from...fill in the sad crac s Seal the aweful brea s Smooth and fill the fissures With eternity That I may serve humanity wisely With pleasure and joy Being more than human Helping others grow

Touch me now, this day Lord of the Galaxy Put me on thy Way Lord of the Galaxy

Into the same places of dar That are full of light That I hunger to touch And to feed upon

power

Put me on my Way the witches ballad Oh, I have been beyond the town, Where nightshade blac and mandra e grow, and I have been and I have seen What righteous fol would fear to now! For I have heard, at still midnight, Upon the hilltop far, forlorn, With note th at echoed through the dar , The winding of the heathe horn. And I have seen the fire aglow, And glinting from the magic sword, And with the inner eye beheld The Horned One, the Sabbat's lord. We dran the wine, and bro e the bread, And ate it in the Old One's name. We lin ed our hands to ma e the ring, And laughed and leaped the Sabbat game.

Oh, little do the townsfol rec , When dull they lie within their bed! Beyond th e streets, beneath the stars, A merry round the witches tread! And round and round the circle spun, Until the gates swung wide ajar, That bar t he boundaries of the earth, From faery realms that shine afar. Oh, I have been and I have seen In magic worlds of Otherwhere. For all this worl d may praise or blame, For ban or blessing nought I care. For I have been beyond the town, Where meadowsweet and roses grow, And there suc h music did I hear As worldly-righteous never now. Enjoy!!!!!!! Blessed Be Inquisition Again the burning came, She felt the heat, the searing pain a cry lanced through her heart "Why, My Lady, Why" She lay quietly, remembering lost within the labrynth of the past and the future she did not feel the bite of the cruel blade. Bleeding, moaning, she saw the man his face, and heart mas ed with blac she new his choices and his pain Oh, to cause pain, to accept his own if only she could Touch him, Heal him. "I love you" she whispered dar eyes calm, yet full of pain "Don't " cried the man "I want to see you die" "I love you and forgive you" she said tears rolled freely down her chee s Again, and again the searing pain As the man applied the red hot blade "Do you still love me, and forgive me" he screamed?

Despite the pain she answered strongly "I do", She smiled "Blessed be" she whispered. A wave of pain sent her among the stars. "My Lady" she cried "I'm frightened" Strong arms held her close "You have done well my child, rest now" The man watched as the blade grew cold As the young body before him cooled tears streamed down his face and he whispered "Forgive me" 2 Ritual Prayers Copyright 1991 Anahita-Gula (pseud.). May be reproduced with ac nowledgment.

We clean this night our altar and our room To build our Temple. Here then, we have spread The pentacle, athame and the broom, With God and Goddess candles at the head. So dress we now our Priestess in her Crown: The Circle's cut in perfect Trust and Love. So call the Quarters, dance the Witches' Round And bec on down the Moon from high above. Sept. 1987. Another sample: this one is sung to the "Witches' Rune": (Introduction is spo en, as an Invocation) "Indeed, they occupy the throne room together. In the divine chamber, the dwelling place of joy, Before them their gods ta e their places. To their utterances their attention is turned." From the A adian Hymn to Ishtar. Lord of Sun and Lady Moon, Dar at night and bright at noon, See my off'ring, hear my call: Lord and Lady, guard us all. S y-God An, Earth-Goddess Ki, All do honour unto thee. Spread your seed upon the ground, Bring forth life fecund and round. Holy Queen of living things, She whose bloom the summer brings, Bless us, Lady, give us cheer As we wander through the year. Royal Shepherd, Mountain King Lofty Bull of whom we sing, Fill our bowls with waters sweet,

Spread the seeds of corn and wheat. Bless our lips and bless our breast, Guide us gently to our rest. Bless our sheep and bless our corn, Ease our grief when we must mourn. Sing the song and join the rite, Praise the day and bless the night. Than the Gods for what They bear: Earth and Water, Fire and Air. November 1983. I may be reached at P.O. Box 732, Station B., Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. "Rainbows" Jennifer Holding Where dwelleth my Lady in this land of Night? She dwelleth in stars and satin moonlight. She veileth her visage 'neath clouds spun of sil , And the Night-S y's a river of my sweet Mother's mil . Where dwelleth my good Lord on this Summer's day? He dwelleth in birdsong and fragrance of hay. He sleeps by the river with pipes in his hand, And he sends his love smiling through the fruit of the land. Where dwelleth my Lady at Morning's first light? And where is my Lord on the eve of the Night? At Luna's last shining, or Sun's final ray, Their passion paints Rainbows 'tween the Night and the Day!

ELEMENTS Fire on Fire Light and Power, Warmth and Energy They did generate. Earth joined them then To Life She gave Birth And solid Foundations built. Along came Water Some Channels to carve Through which all Energies flow. Around them All The Air did blow Winds of Thought and Deed intertwined. Power raised, Power spread Thus It Was So Mote It Be. .....Alernon

........from RMPJ Oct. '86 This article is excerpted from the Roc y Mountain Pagan Journal. Each issue of the Roc y Mountain Pagan Journal is published by High Plains Arts and Sciences; P.O. Box 620604, Littleton Co., 80123, a Colorado Non-Profit Corporation, under a Public Domain Copyright, which entitles any person or group of persons to reproduce, in any form whatsoever, any material contained therein without restriction, so long as articles are not condensed or abbreviated in any fashion, and credit is given the original author.! BATTLE HYMN OF THE ERISTOCRACY (Tune: Battle Hymn of the Republic) 1. Mine brain has meditated on the spinning of The Chao; It is hovering o'er the table where the Chiefs of Staff are now Gathered in discussion of the dropping of The Bomb; Her Apple Corps is strong! Chorus: Grand (and gory) Old Discordia! Grand (and gory) Old Discordia! Grand (and gory) Old Discordia! Her Apple Corps is strong! 2. She was not invited to the party held on Olympic; So she threw a Golden Apple, 'stead of turned the other chee ! Oh, it crac ed the Holy Punchbowl and it made the nectar lea ; Her Apple Corps is strong! 3. For the Apple Hera offered Paris all the wealth she could; Athena promised that his enemies bodies would be strewed; But Aphrodite offered Helen - and EVERYONE got screwed! Her Apple Corps is strong! THE PRETTIEST ONE (Tune: To God Be The Glory) by Talespinner 1. To Goddess be glory, we all will have fun! And warm is our love of "the prettiest one", But warmer and glowing and deadly will be The planet Earth after they start World War III. Chorus: Hail Eris! Hail Eris! Hail Eris! Hail Eris! Reality comes from the But all can be changed Let the Goddess be praised! Let your glasses be raised! mouth of a gun, by "the prettiest one."

2. To Goddess be glory, we've hardly begun To alter our minds for "the prettiest one." To the Ultimate Mindfuc our allegiance we pledge; We'll push all the greyfaces over the edge! The Lady's Brothel (to the tune "Nonesuch" also used for the "Lady"s Braisle")

For She will bring the bugs in the Spring And laugh when She's deflowered. When She's in heat, She'll give you a treat, But you'll get disemboweled. She rots the grain and spreads ptomaine, When fruits of fall displease Her. The moons and suns all turn their buns In joint attempts to freeze Her. - by Steven Posch-Coward (1980) The Cauldron Chant by Ammond ShadowCraft We form the Circle, The Circle most round. We form the Chalice, The Chalice now found. We to We To call the Goddess, meet the great need. call the God, plant His fertile seed.

We call the quarters, which we call four. We summon the powers, that contain the force. We stir the Cauldron, from which we were born. We call the Gods, from whom we were torn. We say the words, which lead us round. We pass the iss, with our lovers found. We in We in We on We in face our dreams, nights psychic flight. face our hopes, bright moon of the night. face our fears, the Dar Lords Horn. face our failure, the Mothers new planted corn.

We live our lives, druming and dancing on the meadow. We confront our Death, in the dancing moon light shadow. Our paths run quic ly, on fleet foot and wing. Our Circle is joyous, with our Queens and our Kings. Let our little Circle be happy, with Bell, Bowl or Bow.

And form now this Circle, with gracious Love, Joy and Hope. BLESSED BE CELTIC CIRCLE DANCE copyright 1984 W. J. Bethancourt III recorded: CELTIC CIRCLE DANCE WTP-0002 tune: Same Old Man/Leatherwing Bat Hi said the Norn, sittin in the sand once I tal ed to a great Grey Man spun three times and said with a sigh "Hadn't been for the Runes had his other eye!" Chorus: hi diddle i diddle i day hi diddle i diddle i diddle ay hi di diddle i diddle i day fol the din a dum diddle do di day Hi said the Lady, dressed in green prettiest thing I've ever seen she went down underneath the hill and came bac out of her own free will Brian Boru, on Irish ground wal ed three times the Island round Norsemen came loo in for a fight just another Irish Saturday night! Hi said Lugh on the banquest night a poet and a player and a good wheelwright a harper and a warrior and none the least: a Druid and he got in to the Feast! Harold Haardrada's face was red! Came to Britain and he wound up dead Stamford Bridge is where he's found got six feet of English ground The Legion with it's Eagles bright marched into the Pictish night met them there upon the sand gave em up to the Wic er Man! Eight-legged steed and hound of Hel the one-eyed Man, he loves ya well fire burn and fire spar are you then feared of the dar ? The Circle forms, the Circle flows the Circle goes where no man nows Hail to the Lady, one in three: Present is Past and Past is Me! Rhiannon's Birds are still in flight all thru the Day all thru the Night Hail to the Lady, one in Three

Present is Past and Past is Thee!

Hi said the Lady dressed in white sang the Day and sang the Night sang the Land and sang the Sea sang the Song, and then sang Me! Salt and oil and mirror bright fire and fleet and candlelight by fin and feather, leaf and tree, fill the cup and blessed be! From the misty crystal sea came the Lady to the lea Sword and Roses in Her Hand spread their seeds thruout the Land Came the Stag from oa en wood saw the Lady where she stood by the fire burning bright came to now his heart's delight! By Sword and Harp, and Irish Hound Blessed Be: the Day I've found Hail to the Lady, one in Three Present is Past and Past is WE By Oa and Ash and Holy Thorn blessed be the Day you're born! Fire burn and fire bright wal in safety thru the night

(extra verses:)

Green Grow the Rushes Oh! I'll sing you one, oh GREEN GROW THE RUSHES OH! AND WHAT IS YOUR ONE, OH? One is one and all alone and ever more shall be so. I'll sing you two, oh GREEN GROW THE RUSHES OH! AND WHAT IS YOUR TWO, OH? Two, two, the two-faced God in gold and red and green-oh, One is one and all alone, and ever more shall be so. I'll sing you three, oh GREEN GROW THE RUSHES OH! AND WHAT IS YOUR THREE, OH? Three, the Triple Goddess, Two, two, the two-faced God in gold and red and green, oh, One is one and all alone, and ever more shall be so. ... I'll sing you thirteen, oh GREEN GROW THE RUSHES OH! AND WHAT IS YOUR THIRTEEN, OH?

(end of extra verses)

Thirteen rounds of the silvery wheel, Twelve for the heavenly augurs, One and one for the Year-King's reign, Ten for the Celtic Reading, Nine for the nine-foot circle, Eight for the eight great Sabbats, Seven for the Gates between the Worlds, Six for the Boo of Changes Five for the fiery points of light, Four for the Guardian Towers. Three, the Triple Goddess, Two, two, the two-faced God in gold and red and green, oh, One is one and all alone, and ever more shall be so.

Those that could have long since fled south to the warmth of my brother, Fire, and the lands of the Sun, while I wal the Earth that lays Submissive at my feet. My breath runs hot, and my eyes are cold. Death is in the air, and the Moon reflects red off of my Horns. Glistening li e diamonds, the stars fill the night s y, and the wind howls li e a lonesome wolf, and I feel the pulse of Her that fills my veins with heady wine. I lift my muzzle to the s y, and bugle my challenge loud and far. Who will meet my challenge? Who will Dance the Dance of Life with the Lord of Death? My hooves ring li e steel against the stone beneath the snow, spar s lighting up the night, and the sounds of my movement sha es the slumbering trees. From the forest, a soft glow appears. A woman old, and wrapped warmly against the wind approaches. Frail she seems, but there is fire in her eye. "I will dance the Dance" she says. Her legs begin to shuffle and sway, while I watch, intrigued by the woman, and I begin to answer her motion with movement of my own. And the Dance unfolded. Round the forest we whirled, and the wrin les slipped away from her. Younger she became, as veil after veil fell away, ta ing the years with them. The Stars danced above in silent awe, while the Moon flooded us with cold light. Faster and faster the dance with the thunder of the pulse drummed the dance, hooves and of feet pounded out the beat. bodies. went and our eyes grew wild of the dance, and our feet horn, laughter and the slapping And the steam rose from our

The Earth herself split open from the Dance, and I led her down, down into the depths of the Earth, and she shed her veils along the way, twirling and swirling, and the Dance

It is the time of the Long Night, and I have laid my thic mantle upon the ground. The branches are bare, the water hardens, and life slows to a crawl.

The Dar Time By: Shadow Haw

moved on. At last, I stood in the place of my Power, and the Throne of Death stood silently waiting. "Milady, will you stay here at the Throne of Death with me and dance the Eternal Dance, for I am struc by your beauty and would have you for my Companion". "No, for I love you not", was the reply. Loo ing at the Radiant Woman who stood in front of me, I said, "Milady, you have Danced the Dance of Life with me as none has Danced before, what Boon may I grant you?" With stars in her eyes, she replied, "I want the spirit of my Son returned to Life. I want to now the secrets of Death." "None has as ed such a boon, how dare you so much?" I as ed. "The Earth needs my Son to live. They must have the light and joy of Spring, the Heat of Summer, and the Harvest of Fall to survive. They need my Son. The Dance must go on" she softly spo e. "Then neel, and learn the Secrets of Death", I answered. And I taught her, with pain and scourge, with laughter and love, with youth and age and dar ness I taught her. I showed her the heights and the depths, and at last, I taught her the peace of the Slumber of the Dead. Laying my Lady down in the Earth, she would sleep, and dream of Spring, and of the Dance, and the Seed in her belly would swell and bring life to a new world. And she and the child would Dance, and Sing, and grow old, and the child, lover, ing will die. Once again, as the Circle goes round, she will come to me in the Woods, and we shall Dance the Dance of Life once more. But for now, it is quiet and dar , and the Moon is bright, and the wind howls, and I wal the world alone. LAMMAS NIGHT Words mostly by Elexa Tune: "I gave my love a cherry." I stood before my altar at Lammastide And as ed the Lord and Lady to be my guides. "Please show to me a vision that I may see What sacrifice is worthy to give to Thee." They showed to me an apple without a core. They showed to me a dwelling without a door. They showed to me a palace where They may be And unloc it without a ey. How How How And can there be an apple without a core. can there be a dwelling without a door? can there be a palace where They may be They may unloc it without a ey?

My spirit is an apple without a core. My mind is a dwelling without a door. My heart is a palace where They may be And They may unloc it without a ey. I stood before my altar on Lammas night. And gave my mighty Lord and Lady bright The sacrifice They as ed for--with spirit free, Upon that Lammas ev'ning, I gave them me. Blessed be. ELEXA LILITH (copyright 1985, Leigh Ann Hussey) Cool in the hot night, Draped, hidden in spec led shadow Under moon waiting Waiting in the Tree, The earth-serpent. Patient, coiled. Sweat on moon-paled flesh; She wal s, sleepless, wanting -- what? Something the man-one Asleep in the heat, Will not give. Serpent uncoils. Cool fruit hangs, luring. She thirsts, but is uncertain; Which one was denied? She sits at Tree's foot, Legs spread, trying to ease heat. A cool smoothness touches! Languid, she lets it touch her. Smooth over bare breasts Cool on her belly; She cries out at the next touch. Long coils entwine legs, Rippling muscles press, release, Double tongue flic ers; She writhes, strains vainly. White fire blooms between her thighs. Side to side her head Thrashes, hoarse cries from her throat. Hard muscle presses, Soft scales slip gently; She screams; her body stiffens. At once, touch is gone. Serpent climbs spiralling up. She tips her head bac , Her parched throat stretches; A whisper hisses: "Ta e; eat."

Sweet cool juice tric les, Stings dry throat, tingles on tongue. She bites more, greedy. Knows what she wants, now. She will show the Man the way. Man is still sleeping, Lethargic, unresponsive. Turns over, snoring. She leaves in anger. Stupid Man! She needs him not. Soon again she wants; Moves hands to ease discomfort -She learns something new: Her hands wor as well. Stupid Man! She needs him not! Branches brush her breasts, Rough bar rubs and holds her up. Grainy between thighs, Earth meets all her needs. Foiled, the Serpent waits again. MAGICK MAN By: Taarna Savet The child within me Now is dead, All her dreams were shattered. She met the man Behind the mas , He left her torn and tattered. One she wished And once she hoped, Now all she does is cry. For li e the bird Who's wings are bro e, N'ere again she'll fly. Why have you done this Master of Illusions, Did you find it fun? She turned her head And wal ed away, Knowing he had won. And now inside me The pieces lay, Li e shards of bitter hate. For who are you I as myself, To try and seal my fate? It seems to me For one so "old", You missed the truth divine. That li e our love Left unnurtured, Your illusions fade with time. So listen now Oh, Magic Man, Your fate to me is

Until you learn To give yourself, You'll dance thru life alone. Time heals all Including me, I now agains I'll soar. But as for the child You too from me, She's gone forever more.

nown.

************************************************************ RED AND GOLD (13 May, 1989 CE) (c) copyright 1989 W. J. Bethancourt III Golden as a Dragon's hoard: Sunrise in my heart today. Redder than the Rose's bloom: Sunset stole my heart away. Sunrise stole it bac again, Held between them, hand in hand, Sunset red and sunrise gold And I, as Day, between them stand. Sunrise red and sunset gold... So my Days go, hand in hand, Wonderment within my eyes; The Universe wherein we stand. Sunrise, sunset, every day: My Ladies stole my heart away. ************************************************ The Charge of the God Listen to the words of the Horned God, the Guardian of all things wild and free, and Keeper of the Gates of Death, whose Call all must answer: I am the fire within your heart... The yearning of your Soul. I am the Hunter of Knowledge and the See er of the Holy Quest I - who stand in the dar ness of light am He whom you have called Death. I - the Consort and Mate of Her we adore, call forth to thee. Heed my call beloved ones, come unto me and learn the secrets of death and peace. I am the corn at harvest and the fruit on the trees. I am He who leads you home. Scourge and Flame, Blade and Blood these are mine and gifts to thee. Call unto me in the forest wild and on hilltop bare and see me in the Dar ness Bright. I - who have been called; Pan, Herne, Osiris , and Hades, spea to thee in thy search. Come dance and sing; come live and smile, for behold: this is my worship. You are my children and I am thy Father. On swift night wings

it is I who lay you at the Mother's feet to be reborn and to return again. Thou who thin s to see me, now that I am the untamed wind, the fury of storm and passion in your Soul. See me with pride and humility, but see me best with love and strength. For this is my path, and I love not the wea and fearful. Hear my call on long Winter nights and we shall stand together guarding Her Earth as She sleeps. EQUINOX The high moon, full, tric les illumination Over the lip of the cup, heavey laden With its light, li e blood-runnels down a blade As it is quenched in the breast of a beast. The Great Oa 's nightly-dancing children Do not count themselves amoung the least. Luntatic light lightens every least Corner with it's whispered illumination. So begins the feast of Sylvan Children. And the celebration of bending branches laden With decay. Afar, the howling of the Beast Proclaims, " Ma e ready! Sharpen the Blade!" A prietess, robed in white, caresses a blade; Her eyes follow the sic ling curve at least As far as light will grant before the Beast Closes the eyes against its illumination. Earth and s y, pounding, seething, laden With drum, dance, and chant birthed by children Who now no more of song than the children Who came before them--only that song, li e a blade, Cuts through night, through day, dar light laden With future-promised springs, fertility--not least Among these, a new-old illumination Unforgotten--if only they appease the Beast. Men lead a raptured man li e a beast Before the ravenous, raging children To their Mother, Priestess, Their Illumination In a world where dar dooms descend li e blades. She shall comfort them, save them--at least Ma e bearable the burdens with which they are laden. And he shall help, this "beast-man,' laden With all their hopes of appeasing the Beast For yet another season's turn--at least Until after the births of healthy children, After good harvest has fallen to the blade Of the scythe again. "Let not the sun's illumination "Desert us!" they beg the Beast. "My weary children!" Thier Mother calls, laden with illumination.

"We offer not the least!" A howl and a descending blade. **ENDYMION

The song is sung to the tune of Amazing Grace. Enjoy! Verna Knapp Amazing grace, how sweet the Earth that bore a witch li e me! I once was burned, now I survive, was hung and now I sing. T'was grace that drew down the moon and grace that raised the seas. The magic in the people's will will set our Mother free. We face the East and breathe the winds that move across this earth. From gentle breeze to hurricane our breath will bring forth the change. Turn towards the South and feel the fire that burns in you and me. The spirit's flame will rise again and burn eternally. We greet the West, our souls awash in tides of primal birth. Our tears and blood, our pain and love will cleanse and heal the earth. Reach into the North and now your roots down deep ancestral caves. We find the wisdom of the Crone, Of circles we are made. Amazing earth, enduring life, from death into rebirth. T'is earth I am and earth I love and earth I'll always be. Amazing grace, how sweet the Earth that bore witches li e we. We once were burned, now we survive, were hung and now we sing. Goddess bless, so mote it be, Our magic spirals on. Merry meet and merry part and merry meet again. THE HORN OF PLENTY

Oh, what's in your bas et, your horn of reeds woven? What bear Ye, my Lady, upon Your stooped bac ? What do you bring, from fields not yet frozen By Winter's harsh hand, what fills up Your pac ? Oh, what do You carry that weighs on Your shoulders? What harvest dost burden my dear Lady so? What reaping so heavy from an Earth grown colder By Winter's harsh hand, what have You to show? I bear in my bas et the babes of the season, The fruits and the grains from the fields I have sown. I've gathered them up for the ground is soon freezing By Winter's harsh hand. I bring the meal home. Come loo in my horn of reeds woven tightly. What see ye, my children, that fills full its curve? What harvest is born here? What miracles mighty? Now that Winter's harsh hand My sentence dost serve? We see in your bas et the children of New Year; The fruits of the seeds we planted months past. We see in your great pac the harvest of actions Now stilled by the harsh hand of Winter at last. There is in your fine horn plenty of reaping; Lessons hard learned by Thy trial and Thy test. And blessings unending to gentle our sleeping As Winter's harsh hand brings us comfort and rest.

PEGASUS Where is the man who will mount the wind? Where is the man who will fly From here to the stars in a heartbeat Past the pillars that hold up the s y? . For there is a steed, of a heavenly breed Who longs for the touch of a man. What you never dared do in your dreams On the white one, the wild one, you can. . For Pegasus rests on a lightning bolt And spurns the stars beneath. At sunset he tramples the day to death; Then rears on the blasted heath. . And yet, he treads on the spiderwebs And never bruises a flower Who circles around the virgin moon In half of a half an hour. . The mil y way is his drin ing pool. His stable the cave of night,

...Linda C., Ohio, Circle Networ

News Fall '84

The whole bright s y his grazing When he puts the stars to flight. . Fabulous wealth, prize and pelf He to his master brings, But he will not be curbed by bridle or bit And fears are a weight on his wings. . So where is the man who will mount him And never loo bac with a sigh? Where is the man who will joyously ride When he now that to fear is to die? . His master must be a man soul-free Who calls "faster" at every breath, And nowing his mount is immortal, Rides with a laugh to his death.

I AM SPRING I am spring Green fits me best. While I fight winter, my smartest enemy. So I can give the birds all the songs they sing in one days life. And so I can toy with the ites li e march in the suns spar ling face. Jac H.R. Seymour 04/03/91 WHY I LOVE THE DARK

by Gerald del Campo Tis the coldest place imaginable, this void within the heart, the place most adventurers wander, expecting to be torn apart. Some have wal ed there for eternity, see ing to find some Light, a small glimmer or a flic er, to end the endless night. The fowl wind howls insanity, it passes through the body li e a ghost, the chill can freeze the very Soul, survive if you are more s illed than most. Despite the hideous experience, which one encounters in the Dar , the journey is very worth it, ma e sure to leave your mar .

So listen up weary traveler, stri e with all your might, but rejoice in the journey, in the Dar you'll find the Light. TEARS FOR AN ANGEL by Gerald del Campo I let them fall for so long they tasted so sweet the dew of the face of the Angel that I would one day meet. I ept them in a jar I made sure they were clean to offer to my beloved the one of whom I dreamed. I sat alone one gloomy day while listening to the rain as it danced on the window feeling the pain. Pain of I wept, waiting feeling a thousand martyrs I sang, and I cried for the promised vision I had been denied.

Later that day when the clouds moved away the Sun shined gloriously and next to me She laid. I offered the tears the ones I had saved and when they touched Her white hands they faded away. PRELUDE TO DISCOVERY By Gerald del Campo As you try to deny that ic ing inside which leads you to the Knowledge of Yourself. It comes as no surprise the intensity of your despise you hate everyone and everything because all things you see are you. It's easy to demand that others understand and except you as you are

even if you are not what you seem. But you wont find happiness or sha e the loneliness until you become the Star you oppress.

After a while you learn the subtle difference Between holding a hand and chaining a soul. And you learn that love doesn't mean leaning, And company doesn't mean security, You begin to understand that isses, aren't contracts, And presents aren't promises. And you begin to accept your defeats With your head held high and your eyes wide open, With the grace of a woman, not the grief of a child. You learn to build your roads On today, because tomorrow's ground Is too uncertain for plans, and futures have A way of falling down in mid-flight. After a while you learn that even sunshine Burns if you get too much, So you plant your garden and decorate Your own soul, instead of waiting For someone to bring you flowers. And you learn that you really can endure That you really are strong And you really do have worth and you learn and learn With every goodbye you learn.

SIMPLE This is a time from in between the time of Hallowe'en leaves are falling winter's calling nature is closing down that mar s this time from in between the time of Hallowe'en the Gods renew my oaths will too just living for their crown that is the time from in between so happy Hallowe'en - - Bright Blessings

Comes The Dawn

GardenStone Just thin ing of all Wiccans on Samhain. T'was the night before Samhain and all through the house. Not a creature was stirring except for my spouse. The incense it burned in his Caldron so blac , For withchraft and magic he'd a wondrous nac . The circle was drawn with the athame of power, The guardians were called to each quarter tower. The Lord and the Lady attended our rite, In wonder and glory and power and might. The dearly departed came as our guest, To live once again after their rest. We bid them goodbye with a tear in our eye, Such a lovely presence of loved ones so nigh. The candles danced in the flic ering light. With the Great Rite we bid them all a good night. The guardians than ed, have all sped away. The Lord and the Lady, than s for the day. The night before Samhain, Gods Bless this house. A circle of wonder 'round me and my spouse. Masochistic Maiden I Saw Something Beautiful I saw something beautiful today. I was sitting by a tree along a wooded path, when I heard two lovers tal as they came near me along the wooded path. She said she hoped he'd never go until she'd passed away for she was to wea to go alone and he said that he'd not go until her life was gone because she was his morning and she was his sun. That she'd never face a day alone. What love this couple has I thought As these endearing words I caught. I envisioned them as lovers in a fairy tale, Him tall and dar , her small and pale. So when they chanced to pass my way I loo ed to see such young lovers. But this is what I saw, an elderly man with eyes now dim an elderly lady accompanying him. This is what I saw, The beauty of an ageless love Blessed by Goddess above Endless even in old age. And somehow I new there was no gage By which to measure this My wish for them is one of eternal bliss. Yes, I saw something beautiful today And I'm better for it crossing my way.

DEMETER'S HYMN Maiden and youth, as fresh as the dew, new life unfolding, golden in hue. In the eyes of the young, the wheel never turns, spring is unending, the lamp always burns. Youth is protecting, exultant and bright, his arms encircle his maiden of light. A chalice of crystal, to the athame a sheath, the maiden enfolding, new life now beneath. The seed has been planted, the new life will form, daughter of promise, Maiden of corn. Mother and Father, consort and queen, they dance through the forest, they dance on the green. They see the wheel as it sins in its ways, mar ing the seasons, counting their days. Their children dance with them, golden and warm, the harvest is ripening, et safe from all harm. Li e silver and coer, life burnished bright, the fruits of the summer, they shine in the light. Sweet horn of plenty, may your promise be born, Bountiful Lady, Mother of corn. Grandmother, grandfather, they stand arm in arm, their circle near ending and waiting the dawn. They now well the wheel as they circle about, their voices spea softer, no need to shout. New life and old, they faced each in turn, Knowing thatnew from the old will return. He dreams in the night of what he had been, Lord of the forest, Lord of the green. But the bones of an old man are ainful and worn, will his Lady remember her Lord of the Horn? She sees him still as virile and young, blind to the changes the long years have wrung. A Chalice of crystal, with the eyes of the wise, nowing that love that is true never dies.

The harvest is gathered, how full is the horn, Lady of wisdom, Crone of the corn. The wheel it has circled, time without end, old life remembers, and welcomes the grain. For the corn and the seed are one and the same, that which has been, will be again. Demeter our mother, Behold the newborn, Mother of all, Behold the Corn. Lyn Hubert.

What is Love? Perhaps a commitment of indred souls There are so many different levels yet all are as one in quality A commitment to share Acceptance of each other Understanding and Consideration Trust and Honesty Common Respect for each other A pledge to be there for each other whenever possible to share joy and laughter, strength and wea ness, and when necessary - grief and tears... To allow each to grow to their own potential Love nurtures a bond between souls A bond stronger than petty emotions - jealously, envy, condemnation and fear The truth of Love is not as a bond representing a chain of bondage, but as a release of one's soula true acceptance of one's spirit, one's being a healing acceptance That is unconditional Love Love can only be given freely and openly Never co-erced, bought, traded or forced Love is feared only because there are so many false representations of it that cause pain to one's soul - damage to one's fragile spirit. Love is a fire that does not burn A soul-bourne wind that does not chill A sirens song that does not lie A soft rose petal that has no thorn.... Love ta es nothing, only accepts and gives freely... Love is a tranquil lullaby - bringing sweet and restful peace to a restless, weary soul. Love is a tentative quiet call upon the door of one's soul - a shy and gentle searching spirit whose touch see s indred soul to share that closest paradise within that we mortals may achieve to the reality of that perfect love given only by that creative essence of the All - which is ALL Love. And as the All is omnipotent...so is this spirit - and that spirit is Love 11/87 Namastai.... Ravenna Just A Poem Deep in the dar , silent forest The Lord and the Lady and me, Wal in reverent wonder At the mystery of beauty we see. Misty clouds and moonbeams Play a silent symphony, Filled with awe and peace that They should wal with me. Deep in the dar , silent forest

Where first they came to me, The Lord of the Woods, the Green Man, And the Lady in majesty. There 'neath the moon I adore them with the beauty of nature around. The Athame in blue white splendor then draws the circle round. Deep in the dar , silent forest The Lord and the Lady and me Create a space of wonder Just large enough for three. Earth and Air, Fire and Water Thrice the circle drawn. Enchanted space of ritual until the morning dawn. Deep in the dar , silent forest The Lord and the Lady and me, At the end of the long nights ritual Are content and happy we three. We watch the glow of the embers As the heat of the fire dies low. A few moments of meditation and then it's time to go. Deep in the dar , silent forest Here by the wide open sea, The Lord and the Lady go wal ing, The Lord, the Lady and me. Here in the dar silent forest I've learned a great mystery. They are each a part of the other, And each a great part of me. Masochistic Maiden THE MAN IN THE MOON by Gerald del Campo She comes in li e the Dar ness On a cold winter night; A child, pale, the consort of the Angel of Death With lips as red as the finest rubies And as crimson as the blood which runs through my veins. Eyes, haunting; dar and mysterious As the bottomless depths of the ocean. Double faced woman in mourning and in laughter Torn between the magic and the tragic Essence of the realm of desire. Uncharted, unexplored; a virgin From the joys and pleasures of this world, Oh, fruit not tasted, passion wasted From fear of the wrath Of some loveless god.

Inspired by her Beauty I lie Awaiting the last beat of my heart; I sin into the blood red lips In hopes that soon, as I expire, as we embrace We may enter the world christened Forever. Our blood, mingled, spilled upon the earth Li e seed scattered in passion Dispersed on some impossible soil. With one scream for pain and one for pleasure Two roses emerged to face the Rising Sun.

The smooth curve of a woman's hip stro ed by a blac gloved hand bac arched in love echoing the fertile land. Who am I? The steel sword of war flashing in the noonday sun pounded from a plow-share wielded by a beggar's son. Who am I? The sweet smell of resinous incense rises from the censer held aloft by a child given to a woman beyond censure. Who am I? The joyous call of laughter echoed from friend to friend and from brother to brother in the joy of fellowship, and no sorrow to spend. Who am I? The salt tang of shed blood fresh from pass'ed life drips from the lover's hand which hold the wind-sharp nife. Who am I? The bright echo of stars lying on the becalmed sea reflections of The Lady who loves all, and leaves free. Who am I? The center point of all that live always moving and never still sire of all action progenetor of every will. Who am I? Haw -headed Lord of force and fire flame-feathered wings cup the morning wind a raptor's battle cry shatters the early silence

A Riddle

the child's twin is mute from forever till the end. Who am I? The Birthday of the Light On the Christmas morning comics page two people slogging through the crowds of shoppers pause to as one another "Isn't this all supposed to be somebody's birthday?" Yes, it is. This is the birthday of the Light. Different people see the Light differently: To many the Light is a babe in a manger, A child destined to grow into a great teacher and healer, Bringing the light of love to a world lost in dar ness. To others the light is the light of freedom, Seen in the miracle of a lamp burning Far longer than its meager supply of oil should have lasted After the conquerors were driven from the Temple. And still others celebrate winter sinlight Bringing the promise of springtime And reminding us to loo at endings As opportunities for new beginnings. But even though we see the Light differently And hold different days in this season sacred to it, Let us all loo into the light together To see opportunities for new beginnings For a world of freedom and healing and love.

--Thomas G. Digby written 1230 hr 12/25/91 A LADY CALLED TRUTH by Gerald del Campo A Lady called Truth is the dar est of all secrets. As unattainable as the Light which belongs to no one; li e moths men are driven mad to enslave Her. I Once dran from lips that beacon me. The mus y fragrance of her femininity permeates through every pore of Her lily white body. Driven by the desire of total ecstasy our bodies loc ed in a never ending embrace of passion. And li e all the men before me, she escaped the bondage called Love. I was never to feel her caress again, until I realized that li e all truly Bautiful things, Truth is meant to be shared.

OCEAN by SKYBANE The ocean Rolls One voice in nature's fugue; growing in stregnth and power. The lord and lady dance in the salt spray and my soul flies free. -=S ybane=SLEEPER Mother, dear Mother, the day has begun, come with us dance, come dance in the sun. Mother, dear Mother, the moon it is high, she circles and dances, li e birds in the s y. The music is calling, come dance in the light, come dance with the moon, we'll dance through the night. The dar clouds have gathered, how dar its become, Your ways are forgotten, the fires have begun. In the womb of the earth, come with me sleep, We'll lie 'neath the ground, your secrets to eep. Till your children remember, we'll sleep 'neath the plough, I'll lie in your arms, come sleep with me now. How long we have waited, how long we have slept, throughout the long night, your children have wept. The new day has dawned, Your dance has begun, the moon and the sun have risen as one. Silver and gold, they glide arm in arm, beacons of hope, we are safe from all harm. The wheel it has circled, the wheel it has turned, the witches, Your children, have all returned. The sun has arisen, how bright is the light, the moon she is dancing, in joy at the sight. Dance with us, Mother, come dance in the sun, come dance with the moon, at last we are one. Come dance with us Mother, at last we are one. Lynn Hub ert THE AWAKENING Let me sing you a tale of magics of old, of powers that slumbered through long years untold. Let me weave you a song of a memory revived,

calling the Old Ones, their time has arrived. Bale fires are lighting through all of the land, the fey fol are dancing, their hour is at hand. Their music is heard in the chattering stream, their call echoes out on the wings of a dream. Beyond the townships, where common fol sleep, in moors and in medows, in forests so deep, Withces are gathering at the dar of the night, to dance and to worship, bathe in moonlight. They've winded the horn, they have opened the door, the magics returning to slumber no more. By the spells they have woven, the runes the have told, they've awa ened the Goddess, and the Horned One of old. And those who have gathered now join hand in hand, their voices are chanting, throughout all the land. The God and the Goddess, at last will be heard, their children, the witches, are spreading the word. They They They join sing songs of power when the moon, she is high, chant songs of joy when the sunrise is nigh, dance through the medows, and through dar ened streets, their ancient rythem, when your circle meets,

Come dance to their rythem, when your circle meets. Andrew Daws 1.Mellaart, James, Catal Huyu : A Neolithic Town in Anatolia (New Yor : McGraw-H ill, 1967) ??