need help from a Wicca?

Question

what is the use of a sword,feathers,crystals and bell.I just started out as a wiccan.

Answer 1

The sword is generally only used in a coven setting and is primarily used in creating sacred space, although it does have some other uses in specific rites.

Feathers and crystals have nothing to do with Wicca. That is to say, they are not part of the "working tools". They may be employed in spell-crafting, but so can just about anything else.

A bell is used in a couple of specific rites but, again, isn't generally viewed as one of the working tools.

p.s. spamahoy, Silver Ravenwolf isn't a Wicca. You also seem to have fallen to the ever popular misinformation about the origins of Wicca. Speculation about Gardner's sexual life is simply ridiculous to begin with and has absolutely nothing to do with our practices.

Answer 2

Swords are for banishing energies, casting circles, directing energies. Think of them as overgrown Athames.

Feathers can be used for censing or smudging. They can also be a decorative representation of the element air.

Crystals can be used for a lot of things depending on the crystal. Some example uses include (but are not limited to) spellcasting, healing, divination. You might want to check out Crowley's _Liber 777_ or Cunningham's _Encyclopedia of Crystal, Gem & Metal Magic_ or Russel's _Encyclopedia of Rocks, Minerals, and Gemstones_ for more specific info on each type of crystal.

Bells are used in the same way as knocks are - either as a quick banishing, or to call a meeting to order, or to call attention to something.

Answer 3

Swords or Athamaes are used to help cast circle and open circle. And even cut through atmospheric energy. Feathers are used alot on cleaning adn are a representative of the element of air. Crystals being an element of earth are charged with energy and actually give off a vibration. These are also used to absorb and transmute energy. Bells when rung can clear up, through sound vibrations, negative or built up atmospheric energy!

Answer 4

You didn't "just start out" as a wiccan if you don't even know what some of the basic tools of the trade are. I even know what they're for and I'm not a wiccan, though to be fair I did explore the path for a few years. My point is, it is silly to proclaim yourself something you don't have even the most basic, rudimentary knowledge of. Instead you should say that you feel like wicca is the right path for you, and you're in the process of learning more. I'm not being critical, believe it or not, I'm just advising you to walk before you run.

If you want to learn more:
Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham. My intro to the craft.

Teen Witch or to Ride a Silver Broomstick by Silver Ravenwolf. While most find her to be for the fluffy bunny types, she is (I believe) a good jumping off point for those who are very brand new to the craft.

Complete Book Of Witchcraft by Raymond Buckland (Also Known as the Big Blue Book). While I never used this book personally, It's set up like a workbook and is supposed to be helpful for beginners. Like Ravenwolf's books there is a bit of criticizm on this one, but if you remember that these books are just one person's take on the craft you'll be ok.

Another good book: The Sabbats by Edin McCoy. One of the few I actually held onto due to the depth that it goes into describing each of the Sabbats, how they were celebrated in the past, how they can be celebrated today, recipes (including one for mead, yum!), crafts, all kinds of stuff.

Answer 5

OK, first, read about the lives of famous occultists:

http://usminc.org/famous.html

Then decide if it's worth persuing. If you want to wind up broke and forgotten, go for it!

If there is any truth to the old saying "Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach.", that truth is found in the occult, and Wicca in particular. Silver Ravenwolf has written close to a dozen books on the subject of "The Craft", and claims she has been studying it since about 1969, which is almost as long as I’ve been alive. She has written a book on how to cast money spells, and includes a chapter on how to do so in her Teen Witch book. But the thing is, she doesn't particularly sound all that prosperous herself. Ravenwolf writes,

" For years I couldn't afford to go to a hair stylist (still can't, it's shop and chop for me). I got pretty good at stying my own hair from looking at magazine pictures" [SOURCE: Teen Witch, Llewellyn Publications, 2003 edition, page 145]

OK, she so rich she can't go to the hairdresser. Hey, get me a copy of that Prosperity Spell book!

Silver Ravenwolf seems to have inadvertently discovered that Wicca makes things worse, but won't ever admit it as such.
In Teen Witch she says

"A lot of people tell me how bad their lives have gotten after casting a spell and tell me they won't do Witchcraft anymore. I tell them their lives would have been much worse for not having cast the spell".

Gee Silver, you would think a lot of people would be saying things like "Hey, Silver Ravenwolf, my life has improved tremendously with Wicca!" if Wicca is as great as they claim. Instead it makes lives much worse, and even Silver Ravenwolf admits she hears this a lot!!!

Why? Because sometimes, things are just as you think they are. Most average people will tell you the occult deals with black magic and demons, and demons are evil beings who wish us harm. This is how it is my friend. The occult is evil, and brings bad happenings into a person's life, and Wicca is an occult religion. When you stop trying to rationalize it with inaccurate data and just use common sense you will realize this. Some occultists are of above average intelligence, and I think part of the problem is they have book smarts but not common sense. There are two forces at work in this universe: the counterfeit and the genuine. Wicca’s source of power is not the genuine. There’s just simply no way Wicca (and thus the copycat Neopagan religions) can be created from the black magic writings of “The Great Beast 666", the bizarre sexual practices of Gardner, the spiritual “guidance” of the Watchers (fallen angels) and still be a source of good!

None of the people who have answered your question can make it work either, Don't delude yourself. It's an incredible waste of time and money, and it's spiritual poison.

Answer 6

I am Wiccan, but in order for you to harness the power, you must educate yourself as to the uses. Get books and study from published Wiccans, their words are like gold. As a joke, I would tell you the Sword is for cutting your throat, the Feathers are for sopping up the blood, the Crystals are for throwing across the room, and the Bell is for ringing for HELP. Now, get to the library. :)

Answer 7

Well, you can use a tai-chi sword to cast a circle, signify willpower, feathers can represent wind, crystals have myriad :P purposes depending on which ones, and well, a bell often has a designated purpose, or it can be used to start or end ritual. Hope that helps.

Answer 8

Sword: Fire, cutting (symbolically), casting Circles, directing Energy. Basically a large Athame
Feathers: Air, to waft incense smoke, a representation of a bird animal Totem.
Crystals: earth, scrying, healing, focusing Energy and empowering spells.
Bell: water, announcing the beginning or end of ritual, banishing and summoning.

here is a wonderful site


http://www.joellessacredgrove.com/Tools/tools.html

Answer 9

The things you mentioned are called keys. Keys are things that a Witch uses to acheive his/her Higher self. They can also aid in magickal practices such as divination, healing, prosperity, etc,

Answer 10

Uhh....I'm wiccan but most of the stuff you listed there, I missed a lesson of such....you use it for how you see fit. That's what I believe, that's how praticed and that's how I see things. Spells, rituals and holidays, and for the offish people, dark arts, that I know.