Is finding a coven mandatory if I want to study Wicca?

Question

I've gotten much advice on the first steps to take. Some of the advice involves finding a coven. But there are no covens around here. I checked on witchvox.com. Is it really that important?

Answer 1

Many people are on a solitary path.

Personally I have done both solitary practice and have been in a coven. Each side has its strengths and weaknesses.

One advantage to a coven is having others to bounce ideas off of.

Answer 2

Absolutely not.

Coven work *can* be a very good thing, just as a good teacher or good friends can help you understand a subject better if you work with them on it. However, finding a good Coven can be *very* difficult, and isn't at all needed.

Coven work can also be a bad thing too, if you hook up with the wrong Coven. I have known a good many very dysfunctional covens over the years, usually as the result of a HP or HPS (or both) with serious ego issues, or who view their Coven as a sort of private "kingdom". People get together for all sorts of reasons, and a lot of them, while perhaps wearing the trappings of a Coven, don't know diddly.

I would suggest that you start your study with a lot of books. Specifically, I suggest the works of Scott Cunningham, A.J. Drew, and Dorothy Morrison. There are a *lot* of crap books on the subject currently being published, but Scott Cunningham is well respected for his works for the solitary practitioner, and covers the basics pretty well. A.J. Drew is a personal friend, and puts a *lot* of very careful research and serious thought into his books. Dorothy Morrison is probably one of the single classiest women I have ever met, and has some absolutely fabulous ideas. All three I highly recommend. Raymond Buckland is a decent source as well, although I find some of his writing to be a tad stuffy from time to time.

At the same time, I would also steer you away from some of the "fluff" authors, namely Silver Ravenwolf. Silver's not a bad person, she just writes for the "pop" market.;. people who are looking at Wicca because they think it's "cool" or "trendy".

No, you don't need to find a coven to study Wicca. I actually recommend that you spend a year or two studying on your own before you even start shopping for a coven. And yes, it is exactly that, shopping. You should try a coven on for fit. If you're not comfortable there, or you don't like their practices, you should find a different one. I know some very excellent Wiccans who have *never* done any coven work in their 30+ years in the craft, so it's far from essential.

Best of luck to you :)

Answer 3

Oh goddess, of course you must! There is NO SUCH THING as a solitary Wiccan!

Find a REAL coven that practices skyclad (i.e., naked as nature) and really practices the Great Rite (i.e., sex, not simply sticking an athame in a chalice). Don't join a coven with a bunch of self-loathing, man hating whales that are scared to take their clothes off even in the shower. You'll be miserable, and they're not really practicing Wicca anyway.

Either you are a real Wiccan or you're not. It boils down to that. Yes, join a coven!

Blessed Be!

Answer 4

No, but I've been told that it makes it easier. There are many Wiccans who are solitary and they seem to get on fine. I wish to find a coven when I'm older if I'm still into Wicca, but I'm trying to learn on my own at the moment.

Answer 5

You do not need a coven. Get a hold of "Wicca for the Solitary Practitioner" by Scott Cunningham.

Answer 6

Many people find the solitary path of Neo-Wicca to be very fulfilling.
http://www.witches-tutorial.com/paths/neowicca.html

This is a good Yahoo group about Wicca. Perhaps they may have some good resources for you to find a coven.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wiccan_collegium/

Answer 7

Nope. Solitary practitioners are common and covens are often more trouble then they're worth. Wicca varies greatly from person to person in both beliefs and practices. It's really a laid back religion with only a few fakes that demand certain rules.

Answer 8

You do not need a coven to study Wicca, you are perfectly capable of studying what you can without a coven, however in order to actually become Wicca you do need a coven. This is because not only is Wicca a priesthood thus requiring initiation, Wicca is oath-bound – this means that much of what Wicca is remains secret from those outside of Wicca, they do this in order to maintain the integrity, so information on their practices, beliefs and doctrines are by large kept within Wicca, so only those initiated know these things and know the mysteries and gods that Wicca follow.

Most of what you will read about Wicca is 'outer-court', this is information given to those outside of Wicca to teach some of the basic philosophies, for example outer-court teachings will refer to the deities of Wicca as The Great Mother Goddess and The Horned God, these are simply placeholders, names to use until a Seeker or someone training within a Wicca coven are initiated. Training prepares a person for initiation, only when initiated, and so have taken an oath not to tell those outside of Wicca the things that are oath-bound, are they taught the real meanings of things within Wicca.

Studying Wicca does not require initiation, you can learn a lot from outer-court material, you do however need to be aware that what you are learning is not the whole of Wicca, but either outer-court teachings or more specific information relating to Neo-wicca or Paganism, both different from Wicca.

If you were to wish to become Wicca you would find a coven, although you may not be able to find a coven locally there is always the chance that there is a local coven they just do not like to make themselves known – my own coven kept under the radar to avoid the 101 people coming to them wishing to become Wicca for fad-value, they did however keep in touch via local pagan meetings, so when a potential Seeker came about they could bring them into their coven – thus what is meant when others well you that teachers will find you when you are ready.

If there is no coven in the area and you wish to become Wicca, simply, you move, I have known people who have dedicated themselves to Wicca and remained Seekers for decades before finding a coven, others who have moved to whole new areas to find a coven, it is dependant on how serious you are in your commitment to become Wicca.

Answer 9

I read a book about Wicca once. Check your public library or a bookstore.

Answer 10

the covens are supposed to make it easier, but you can study alone, in fact there are lots of people that study Wicca alone.