Queastion for pagans.....?

Question

I an very interested in learnig more about wicca and other sects of paganism. Can someone please give me some general info and refer me to good website or books to learn more. I would especially like to know more about the origin of Wicca. I know that it is a spin on old pagan ideas created by Gardener in the 1950's, but what are these ancient ideas this religion is based on? Aslo do only wiccans practice magik, what excactly is magik, and what other rituals and beliefs do pagans/wiccans practice? What gods and godesses do they worship and why? What are some good books and tools to start with? Please only serious answers from people with years of knowledge in this area. No offens to christians, but no bible quotes please!

Answer 1

religioustolerance.org and search wicca. they are unbias and informative but not scary or far out.

and for the record wicca has been around forever it did not start in the 50's. Religioustolerance.org can tell you more.

Answer 2

I am a pagan, not a Wiccan, I follow a path that I call Sean Ski (it is old Irish for The Old path or way) First if you are truly serious about learning then you want to stay away from most books published by Llewellyn. What you will get from them is watered down and often incorrect information. here are some places to start.

http://www.religioustolerance.org/var_rel.htm
http://www.religioustolerance.org/wic_hist.htm
http://www.witchvox.com/

If your interested in the Celtic Path http://www.imbas.org/
is a good place to start.

Authors you might want to look at include:
Raymond Buckland, Ferrer, Gardener,

There are many paths and Many Gods. The Gods I follow chose me. There are paths that worship Irish Celtic Gods (like mine) Others Worship (Welsh, or Scottish Celtic Gods) Still others worship Egyptian, Norse or Babylonian Gods. The list is endless.

Wiccans are not the only ones that practice Magik, but not all pagans practice magic. Magik is using force of will, as well as personal energy and the energies of the gods, nature, etc. to cause change in your life.

Answer 3

Acout.com has a very good newsletter that is educational for Wiccans. It will also point you to other websites that can give you more information. I would avoid the forum on about.com just because a few people think they run it and their ideas are absolute.
The core belief of the Wiccan religion is , Do no harm, I fail to see how anyone can find a problem with that. There are many good books and it depends on whether you join a coven or decide to practice alone. I practice alone so my favorite book is called, A Witch Alone.
I also believe that you do not need to put a lot of money in getting started, common household objects are usable for your altar. As far as robes and all that, you normally end up sky clad so why bother?
Just my personal thoughts.

Answer 4

www.witchvox.com is a really good, general site.

I always recommend Truth About Witchcraft Today by Scott Cunninham. It's very open, easy to read, and written with seekers in mind to give general information.

Someone mentioned Celtic Wisdom. It's by John or Caitlin Matthews. Excellent authors. I also like the Farrars. Stay clear of Ravenwolf and Amber, if you want something other than fluff and nonsense.

And we worship any deity we wish or who comes to us. Yes, a lot of it is based on the pre-Abrahamic religions. Do your research. Use college / university books, not the stuff off the new age shelf.

Don't worry about magic. Learning magic is for the priests. If you have no plans on becoming a priest, don't worry about it. If you get that far, you'll know by then which authors you want to contemplate studying.

And you can email me. I've been a practicing Pagan for 22 years and I AM a magician.

Answer 5

A long time ago, before the fires of industry begat the killing of our Mother Earth, humans were more tuned in to nature, and the natural order to life.

Magick is conscious creation. Manifestation. We all create, but most do not realize they are creating the reality they live in...

No, not only Wiccans practice magick. To be pagan, is not to be Wiccan, but surely to be Wiccan you are pagan. Now, those who would use Magick to work negativity, they are messing with the natural order of things. Karma will get them... the Threefold Law.
I believe, that Wicca is ever changing. It was created, yes, but once a thing is made, it can be changed, and it evolves. Wiccans who work in Light and Love are evolving it into a beautiful path to manifesting God,dess' love.
We worship the ones who call us. I have patrons from all different pantheons. The 'why' here is because they all carry different energies, and those who come to us know we need that energy. But as the names and faces change, I believe in the Divine Creator, and that we are all God,dess..a sliver of divine in all humans. What we choose to do with it determines our fate.
You ask for good books. For the basics on Wicca, Scott Cunningham's Guide for the Solitary Practitioner is good, as is Living Wicca. You will need inspiration from all points. Witchvox.com is a site where pagans from all walks post articles.
Beliefnet.com is a site where you can find inspiration from all sides, including earth-based religion. Blessed Be.

Answer 6

You don't have to be Wiccan to practice magick. Not all people who do are Wiccan. Wicca does have the rule of three though. Whatever you do comes back to you three times fold. Also, the Wiccan Rede of "An it harm none, do as ye will"
Here's a url that may help. http://www.religioustolerance.org/wicrede.htm

What most people don't understand, or even realize, is that the ability of magick comes from within you yourself, not from what you've learned from a book. There is an old saying I heard from a Wiccan friend of mine "Witches are born, not made"

As for Pagans, back in the old days when the Christians were trying to get Pagans converted, they would build churches on the Pagan sacred grounds just to get them to come.

A lot of the Christian holidays we now celebrate were orgionally taken from Pagan holidays. The reasource I found this in was one of the books by Sylvia Brown.

Answer 7

You have already received some good sources. I have a few more to add:

A good site to learn about all different religions. Alphabetical listing:
http://religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu/profiles/listalpha.htm

For information about Druidry and the ancient Celts:
http://www.wildideas.net/cathbad/druid.html
http://www.glasstemple.com/essays/index.php?conjure=druidfq&print=yes

For info about Reconstructionist paths:
http://paganachd.com/faq/index.html
http://www.thetroth.org/memsvc/stewards/flyers/benw/reconflyer.pdf (Has links to various Reconstructionist sites at the end)
http://www.manygods.org.uk/

About the religion of Wicca:
http://wicca.timerift.net/
http://www.geraldgardner.com/essays.php
Book recommendation: "Wicca: The Old Religion in the New Millennium" by Vivianne Crowley
This is a good reading list:
http://www.tangledmoon.org/reading_list.htm
A good Wiccan Yahoo group:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wiccan_collegium/


For an excellent forum that has members of many different neo-pagan paths:
http://www.ecauldron.net/

Many Wiccans practice magic, but not all do so. There are many different religions that practice some kind of magic. Not all people who practice magic are religious.

Answer 8

Wicca is an Earth-based religion, older than Christianity, that believes in the forgotten Gods and Goddesses that the Christians wrote out of the bible, but also of the elements, Earth, Air, Fire, Water and Spirit. It involves spells and rituals that are more or less prayers, nothing evil about it.

Answer 9

You've asked quite a few good questions here, and unfortunately this format doesn't allow enough space to answer them all. I'd strongly recommend that you check out http://witchvox.com (you can even find other likeminded pagans in your own local community).

As for rituals, spells, etc., you might want to start with Starhawk's book "Spiral Dance." I love Starhawk and find her to be a great mentor & role model for pagans. Along those lines, you might want to read her book "The Fifth Sacred Thing" (it's fiction, but very transforming in terms of the way we look at the world & our own role in it).

If you find that you like Starhawk's teachings, then check out http://reclaiming.org or http://starhawk.org

Answer 10

Read anything by Ronald Hutton, he's a professor specialising in the history of paganism and his books are full of balanced explorations of much of what you ask for.

Answer 11

Pagans, page 6.