Do you believe, "An it harm none, do what you will" (Wiccan Rede)?

Question

Blessings

Peace and Love

Bide you the Wiccan laws you must, in perfect love and perfect trust.
Live and let live, fairly take and fairly give.
Cast the circle thrice about, to keep the unwelcome spirits out.
To bind the spell every time, let the spell be spake in rhyme.
Soft of eye and light of touch, speak little and listen much.
Deosil go by the waxing moon, chanting out the Wiccan rune.
Widdershins go by the waning moon, chanting out the baleful tune.
When the Lady's moon is new, kiss your hand to Her times two.
When the moon rides at Her peak, then the heart's desire seek.
Heed the North wind's mightly gale, lock the door and trim the sail.
When the wind comes from the South, love will kiss you on the mouth.
When the wind blows from the West, departed spirits 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 quick and burn them slow.
Elder be the Lady's tree, burn it not or cursed you'll be.
When the wheel begins to turn, let the Beltane fire burn.
When the wheel has turned to Yule, light the log, the Horned One rules.
Heed you flower, bush and tree, by the Lady, blessed be.
Where the rippling waters go, cast a stone, the truth to know.
When you have and hold a need, harken not to other's greed.
With a fool no seasons spend, or be counted as his friend.
Merry meet and merry part, bright the cheeks and warm the heart.
Mind the Threefold Law you should, three times bad and three times good.
When misfortune is enow, wear the blue star on your brow.
True in love you must ever be, lest their love be false to thee.
These words the Wiccan Rede fulfll: An it harm none, do what you will.

Answer 1

No, because everything impacts someone, including yourself.

Answer 2

I am a Wiccan so yes I do and I try to apply it always, although it is not necessarily a rule that we must abide by it is merely a suggestion and is used only because it is very helpful and helps keep my life happy.
I do however believe in the Rule Of Three it is a rule and you have to be willing to accept that whatever you send out you must expect to get it back threefold I understand that it will not always come back right away but It may come back when I least expect it, all I know is it will come back.
The Rede works with this because if you harm none then how can you get it back? I do understand that it is very hard to live a life with out any harm, I know the Christians believe that their savior Jesus Christ did live a harmless life as well as Buddha, Mother Theresa and Gandhi (of different beliefs). I believe that all of these people lived harmless lives but I’m sure that it took a lifetime to develop this skill.
The rede works as a code of ethics and if you harm none then you are bound to live a peaceful life and I admit that I do harm others and I am still working on illuminating as many situations that I do this so umm yea.

Hope this helps!
BB
)O(

Answer 3

OK, just remember you asked.

No, I don't in the "Wiccan Rede". The rede is merely a ripoff of Aleister Crowley's "Do What Ye Will". Crowley himself plagarized it (as well as his idea for Thelema) from the novel Gargantua and Pantagruel.

The reason religions have moral codes is to ensure the saftey, health, and wel being of the society the religions exist in. Moral codes transcend the individual.

Imagine if everyone simply did whatever they wanted. Pedophiles don't think they're harming their young victims. Rapists often claim their victims actually wanted to be raped. True, these are two extreme examples, but every religion in the world, Shintoism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, Islam, Sikhism, Zoroastrianism, etc, all have rules agains adultery, murder, theft, lying, and treating each other fairly.
http://usminc.org/other.html

Wicca was started by Gerald Gardner...a man who was a masochist and nudist. The "rede" is simply a code for swingers to live by.

Answer 4

I would make a distinction between harming none and harming none but yourself. I don't have a problem with people smoking, for example, if they understand the harm they're doing to themselves. Beyond that, it's a perfectly apt standard for the sorts of things people should avoid, but since it makes no mention of the sorts of things that should be encouraged (rather than just allowed) it still seems a little incomplete.
It has one up on the 'morality' of most religions, in that it isn't a specific set of rules which can become outdated.

Answer 5

Being a Wiccan, yes, I do.

To say that the Rede simply means "do no harm" is selling it far short. In my opinion, the Rede is not a commandment -- it is a suggestion for right conduct. It is impossible to avoid actions in this life that cause harm. I myself prefer an innovation on the Rede: "If it harm none, do what you will; if you must harm, do only what is necessary."

I refer you to the following articles for more clarification and a sampling of how Wiccans variously interpret the Rede:

http://wicca.timerift.net/rede.shtml

http://www.sibyllineorder.org/editorials/ed_rede.htm

http://www.sacred-texts.com/bos/bos661.htm

http://www.paganlibrary.com/ethics/wiccan_ethics_rede.php

http://www.ecauldron.com/opedrede.php

http://www.wcc.on.ca/faq/faq1.html (you'll have to scroll down on this one)

Answer 6

Yes indeed. Another school of thought expresses it as harmlessness. "The most potent force in the world today is harmlessness. I speak not of non-resistance, but of that positive attitude of mind which thinks no evil. He who thinks no evil and harms naught is a citizen of God's world."

This is the means of living in harmony with all the kingdoms upon the planet. I've read that the indigenous even avoided bending blades of grass when walking. How cool is that? :-)

Answer 7

I think it's a nice sentiment, but it has too many flaws.
How can you be sure that just by being here you aren't harming someone or something else? Every decision, every action has some consequence. There is no way to fully examine those prior to doing something.. and by doing nothing, one could affect something or someone negatively.
Again, nice sentiment; but totally impractical and impossible to actually implement as a way of life.

Answer 8

I do believe that. However, as a former soldier and current law enforcement officer, I understand there is some need for violence. A quote by George Orwell has summed up how I feel about my place in respect to my beliefs. He said "People sleep peaceable at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."

Answer 9

I try to follow the whole Rede, and the full meaning behind it, not just eight words.

Answer 10

As much as possible. Realizing of course, that if myself or my family is being threeatened I am capable of harming someone.
BB
)O(

Answer 11

Of course. What could be wrong with an action that harms no one?