#authentic witchcraft

[authentically-avalon]

They hold Their hand out,

Out past the centuries They were celebrated

Out towards the souls that have moved on from Their side

Out seeking those that choose to remember

Will you return that hand?

[constantly-disheveled]

Currently Reading-->Authentic Witchcraft: The Historical Tradition Revealed

I’ve only read the first two chapters but I can already tell it’s kind of... well, bad. 

Now, I understand that it’s supposed to be about “traditional” witchcraft, which he describes as pre-Christian, so maybe I’m just still not well versed enough to know that what the author is saying is correct. Here’s a few statements I have negative views of. 

“True Witches (yes capitalized) seek to determine their own destiny without the need for deities.”

“It must be noted that while Murray’s conclusions have long been abandoned by the academic community, the Neo-Pagan community continues to cling to them.” (this just seems kind of rude to me)

“Paganism refers to the systematic worship of ancient gods and goddesses.” Paganism is defined as any religion that isn’t one of the main world religions, specifically non-Christian religions. 

“Witchcraft is about physical and spiritual autonomy. It is about deciding our fate for ourselves, rather than petitioning some invented deity to do it for us. After all, why doe one practice magic if a god or goddess can be expected to answer our prayer?”

“Becoming a Witch requires more than just playing the part. One can not simply assume the power of the Witch. Access to the ancestral and archetypal fold requires a transfer of spiritual authority from master to student. This is why the process of initiation is so important.”

“This begs the question; how do the self-initiated know that they have been accepted by the ancestors and archetypal powers? Delusion is the scourge of the self-initiated.”

I suppose I can agree that when you keep these statements in the scope of “historical” witchcraft. I can believe that initation was important “back in the day.” Ill need to do more digging on this. 

I don’t like the patronization the author uses when talking about “neo-pagans” or the self-initiated. 

I’m also not incredibly thrilled with the way he talks about polytheists. As if it’s so despicable for a witch to go for a deity to help. It makes it seem like you’re not a real witch if you interact with deities. The author doesn’t make it clear whether he refers to modern day witches or the “historical” witches, but it is clear that he has some kind of personalopinion about those who don’t fit this mold. 

I will continue to post my thoughts on this book as I read it! 

[authentically-avalon]

Going to be cutting wood for an altar, preparing some canvas for later work and making a dress form for some new material I got today. Creative witchcraft is underway!

[avantgyaru]

Wiccan/Paganism VS Authentic Tradition

I have always felt uncomfortable in Wiccan groups. I could never fall for the idea of gods and goddesses, when I never believed in a higher power in the first place. I have always felt that I am empowered to make changes in my life and however unfortunate it may be, I cannot live my life and accomplish what I want by praying to a goddess. I cannot bring happiness to my life with expensive crystals or exotic spices.

I know many witches feel the same. Then six months ago I discovered Heritage Witchcraft Academy, created by Grayson Magnus to bring the authentic tradition to an online forum. It opened my eyes to the proof in history, the evidence in writing, that it was okay to feel so out of place in the Wiccan hodge-podge of ideas. If any of the below interests you, I encourage you to please check out his website.

What prompted this? Six months into the tradition and I have already seen spellwork manifest. Goals that I thought unreachable, not matter how many spells I tried with Wiccan groups, suddenly surfaced when I attempted them through the teachings on the authentic tradition. Plus I know carry a print version of Grayson’s book which has allowed me to absorb the content much better than reading a PDF.

What is this authentic tradition? How is there a tradition without gods and goddesses and preach and prayer? I feel it best to quote Grayson from his book titled Authentic Witchcraft.

"While Wicca may involve elements of Witchcraft, it is not the definition of Witchcraft. There were no-doubt Witches long before there were ‘Wiccans’.

For the sake of drawing distinctions between Wicca and the authentic tradition, I must take a moment to explain exactly what Wicca entails, that authentic Witchcraft does not.

a) Currently, Wicca tends to center around the worship of deities including a primary Goddess and sometimes a consort God. Originally, (1950’s) prominence was placed on the God and little was made of a Goddess. This changed in the 1960’s and 70’s with the emergence of the feminist movement which found Wicca to be a promising religious alternative to the patriarchal Church.

b) Wiccan magic is an extension of the worship service and is therefore not as much about magic as it is prayer.

c) Modern Wicca conforms to Christian-like morality which forbids Wiccans from harming others. This dogma is based in the so-called ‘Wiccan Rede’ and the ‘threefold law of return’.

d) Wiccan practice centers on a sophisticated ritual structure that is derived from Hermeticism, Freemasonry and Christian ceremonial magic.

e) Wiccan defines itself as ‘Pagan’.

None of these qualities have anything to do with the authentic Witchcraft tradition.

Witchcraft is not, nor has ever been, ‘Pagan’. Paganism refers to the systematic worship of ancient gods and goddesses. Even within the context of ancient religions, the practice of magic was considered taboo because it circumvented the temple systems at the center of most villages and city economies. Therefore, magic was often considered a crime against the state and punishable by death. Further, the idea that magic was socially accepted among the ancient Pagans is a new-age fallacy. It was just as feared and misunderstood then as it is now. This is evidenced by stories such as that of Circe.

Witchcraft is about physical and spiritual autonomy. It is about deciding our fates for ourselves, rather than petitioning some invented deity to do it for us. After all, why does one practice magic if a god or goddess can be expected to answer our prayers?”

Thank you Grayson.

I know I struggled with the concept of good and bad. Grayson’s third note highlights the crux of Wiccan practice. How do we define good and evil? How do we define white and black magic? It’s a law just to make practitioners feel good, a ‘fuzzy bunny’ rule. We cannot avoid harm. We kill animals to eat, we kill plants to eat and for spells and charms and talisman and jewelry, we harvest crystals from their homes by breaking them from the rest. We cannot define the rules of nature.

We might cast a spell that enables us to come across a large sum of wealth. In our eyes that is very good. Perhaps without interference, that wealth would go to someone in dire need of it, and we have just robbed someone of their opportunity. Surely robbing from the poor is bad and very evil and whoever casted such sorcery should be ashamed!

What then? Does the threefold law choose to project good or bad karma to the caster?

There is no good and bad in magic, just a point of view from which you view it. We live in a world with many points of view, and how I choose to view Witchcraft may be different than yours. But I hope that blasting this might open up a door to people confused by the idea of Gods or Goddesses in Witchcraft. I encourage you to read the free PDF of his book. I encourage you to read every bit of history concerning Witchcraft and sorcery, especially that predating Christianity. I encourage you to follow your heart and figure out which path works best for you, and let history shine a light on the authentic tradition.