what do you know about wicca?

Question

I need to know all about it because i have just begun and i don't know anything, any info would be great and anything rude will be ignored, so don't waste your time please. and ty in advance

Answer 1

First of all, congratulations on taking your first steps on the path. :-)

Wicca is a very complex faith which embraces widely varying practices and many different Traditions. The following, however, is what I consider to be "the basics".

Wicca is about 60 years old, with roots in Masonic practices, ceremonial magic, and the Romantic era's ideas of classical religions. It is in many ways a postmodern faith, embracing religious relativism, and one that resonates powerfully for increasing numbers of people.

The central tenet of the Wiccan religion is the Wiccan Rede: "If you harm none, do what you will." This is a deceptively simple "commandment" which can take a lifetime to contemplate and to master. Many Wiccans also believe in the Law of Threefold Return, sometimes called the Rule of Three: “Whatever you do, for good or ill, will come back upon you three times over.”

Wiccans honor Deity as both male and female, God and Goddess -- or at the very least as Goddess. Many Wiccans believe that the universe is the body of God/dess, and therefore that all things contain Divine energy and that the world itself is sacred. Some Wiccans are polytheists (many God/desses); others are duotheists (God and Goddess, of whom all other Gods and Goddesses are simply aspects); others are monotheists (God and Goddess Themselves are simply aspects of an unknowable Source).

Wiccans generally do not believe that God/dess is separate from the world; therefore, we have no concept of salvation, since God/dess is present to all and always. Many Wiccans believe that God/dess is too big to fit inside one religion -- all religions/spiritual paths are ways of reaching the same goal, and atheism and agnosticism are honorable perspectives on the mystery of life.

Each Wiccan operates as their own priest/ess. We do not have a distinction between clergy and laity. Therefore, each Wiccan is responsible for their own personal development and for forging their own relationship with God/dess. Some Wiccans practice in covens, which are generally initiatory and require a long period of study (traditionally a year and a day) before entering. Others practice in loosely affiliated groups of solitaries, which are Wiccans who practice outside of traditional coven structure. Others simply practice alone.

Wiccans do not usually have churches. We create sacred space as and where needed, by casting "circles" of energy which function as temples. When inside those circles, we invite the spirits of the four Platonic elements (air, fire, water, and earth) to join us, as well as the Goddess and the God (or at minimum the Goddess).

Many Wiccans practice witchcraft, which we see as working with the Divine energy that permeates the world to bring about change. In accordance with the Wiccan Rede, the vast majority of Wiccans will not curse or perform magic to bring harm upon anyone else.

A relatively objective (non-Wiccan) set of articles on what Wiccans do and believe:

http://www.religioustolerance.org/witchcra.htm

Another useful article:

http://www.religionfacts.com/neopaganism/paths/wicca.htm

A good site by Wiccans:

http://wicca.timerift.net

And the US Army Chaplains Handbook excerpt on Wicca:

http://www.religioustolerance.org/wic_usbk.htm

If you're looking to do some reading, I'd recommend "Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner" by Scott Cunningham, and "Triumph of the Moon" by Ronald Hutton. I advise you to stay away from anything by Silver Ravenwolf, for reasons outlined in the following essay:

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

If you have any further questions, please feel free to email me. I have an ebook that you might find useful as well as some collected material -- rituals, chants, spells, and so forth -- that I'd be happy to share with you.

Answer 2

Wicca is a Neopagan religion and a religious movement found in various countries throughout the world. It was first popularised in 1954 by a British civil servant named Gerald Gardner[1] after the British Witchcraft Act was repealed. He claimed that the religion, of which he was an initiate, was a modern survival of an old witchcraft religion, which had existed in secret for hundreds of years, originating in the pre-Christian Paganism of Europe. Wicca is thus sometimes referred to as the Old Religion. The veracity of Gardner's claims cannot be independently proven, and it is thought that written Wiccan theology began to be compiled no earlier than the 1920s.[2] Various related Wiccan traditions have since evolved or been adapted from the form established by Gardner, which came to be called Gardnerian Wicca. These other traditions of Wicca each have distinctive beliefs, rituals, and practices. Many traditions of Wicca remain secretive and require that members be initiated. There is also a movement of Eclectic or Solitary Wiccans who do not believe that any doctrine or traditional initiation is necessary in order to practice Wicca. The 2001 American Religious Identification Survey estimated that at least 134,000 adults identified themselves as Wiccans in the US.

Answer 3

Wicca is just one part of the pagan religion. It is a nature based religion. having multiple deities, having an all supreme both male and female form. not favoring one over the other.
Most Wiccans live by the 13 principles of beliefs as well as the wiccan rede "an it harm none, do what thy will". Meaning as long as it does no harm to anyone or thing then do as you feel free.
You will never learn everything there is to know about the wiccan/pagan religion as everything is constantly changing. The gods and goddesses are in everything from the tree's to the wind that blows through the leaves. from what waters in the oceans and lakes, from the grass and dirt, to the skys, stars, sun and moon. Just when you think you could learn everything there is to possibly learn Just look around you and look within yourself and you will see there are still unanswered questions out there.
The best way I can tell you to learn about wicca is to read read read read read, and read some more. talk to other wiccans/pagans. talk to others of different religions. I have found that Atheist also know alot about the pagan religion even tho they do not believe or follow the pagan path. Some good books I would recommend reading would be Raymond Bucklands witchcraft books., scott cunningham's wiccan books. I even enjoy Silver RavenWolf's To Ride a Silver BroomHandle. I mostly use that one for the exercises in it..
There is some witchcraft and wicca information on my 360 profile if you want to check it out.. you should be able to get access to it by clicking on my profile here..
When ever you come in contact with others on here who want to be ignorant just ignore them and follow your heart and soul.
Goodluck on your journey and Blessed Be

Answer 4

Wicca and witchcraft are not the same thing. Fundamentally, Wicca is a modern-day religion based on pre-Christian religious practices. Wicca was founded by Gerald Gardner back in the early '50s...... While beliefs vary among individuals and traditions, the following concepts are central to an understanding of Wiccan religion. (Note also that Wiccans do not share the Christian belief in Satan, or any other personification of evil.) ... They do believe in magic but not evil magic or spells

1. Imminence
believe that Deity is imminent in the natural world. The Universe itself is Sacred, as is the food and water we consume, the air we breathe, the earth under our feet. believe they are sacred, their bodies and their spirits. They view the physical and the spiritual as two sides of the same substance, inseparable and interdependent.

2. Polarity
They believe that the Divine, the Great All, manifests as both female and male, as Goddess and God. All they know scientifically and intuitively about our world tells them that both male and female are necessary to create life, and believe that creation is an act of love. Each principle – male and female -- balances, completes and interacts with the other. Each is necessary and valued. Each principle contains the other. They accept and honor both.

3. Connectivity
They understand that the universe is interconnected on every level and that we are all a part of it. All things are related.

Answer 5

Wicca is based on a religion older than Christianity. The celts worshiped the sun and the earth. Because no-one had made up their big imaginary friend in the sky yet. They prescribe peace and harmony while other religions promote torture and war. The Celtic cross was created by St. Patrick to add the sun to the crucifix so they could integrate Christianity with Paganism

Answer 6

The Wiccan religion was created in the 50s by Gerald Gardner and is largely based on solomonic ceremonial magick. He and some other occultists got together and brought back what they believed to be ‘brushed under the carpet’ for centuries,Wicca They believed that they were making it known once again. Gerald was the first to create the first branch of wicca, he called it “wica” derived from the old English word meaning “wise one” Gardnerians commonly refer to themselves as “The Wicca/Wica” There is some propaganda going around that “wicca” came from the word meaning “to bend” that wiccan is a twisting of reality. I do not believe this.

We wiccans believe that everything is related and intertwined with each other. We worship a God and Goddess we believe that they are so universally related to everyone that they are too big to fit into just one religion, we believe that everyone is correct in their beliefs, as long as it is for good. We believe that the God and Goddess are just two different aspects of a greater being; some choose to believe that they can take form of any thing. Some believe that they are just different forces acting in different ways to help and teach.

We believe that everything happens for a reason, we believe in the rule of three (karma) that whatever we send out returns to us three fold whether it be good or bad. We understand that sometimes times it may comeback when ever we least expect it or it may come back to when we do. We know that it will in some way, when you are good to others it will be repaid to you.

We celebrate the Wheel of The Year:

Yule, (Dec.21)
Imbolic falls on Feb. 2.
Ostara, the Spring Equinox (when the day and night are equal, usually around March 21),
Beltane (May 1)
Litha, the Summer Solstice (around June 21)
Lughnasad (Aug. 1) Also spelled Lughnassad and referred to as Lammas.
Mabon, the Fall Equinox (around Sept. 21)
Samhain(Sow-win, Oct. 31), Witches' New Year

We do cast spells, they are much like prayer to Christians we try not to harm people, we follow the Wiccan Rede:

"Bide ye the Wiccan laws ye must, in perfect love in perfect trust
Ye nust live and let live, fairly take and fairly give.
Cast the circle thrice about, to keep unwelcome spirits out.
To bind the spell well every time, lep the spell be spoken in rhyme.
Soft of eye and light of touch, speak ye little and listen much.
Deosil go by waxing moon, chanting out the Wiccan runes.
Widdershins go by waning mon, chanting out the baneful tune.
When the Lady's moon is new, kiss the hand to her times two.
When the moon rides at her peak, then the heart's desire seek.
Heed the North wind's mighty gale: lock the door and trim the sail.
When the wind comes from the South, love will kiss the on the mouth.
When the Moor wind blows from the West, departed spirits 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 ye'll be.
When the wheel begins to turn, let the Beltnne fires burn.
When the wheel has turned to Yule, light the log and the Horned One rules.
Heed ye flower, bush and tree, by the Lady, Blessed Be.
Where the rippling waters go, cast a atone, the truth to know.
When ye have and hold a need, hearken not to others' greed.
With a fool no seasons spend, or be counted as his friend.
Merry meet and mtrry part, bright the cheeks and warm the heart.
Mind the Threefold Law ye should, three times bad and rhree times good.
When misfortune is enow, wear the blue star on thy brow.
True in love ye must ever be, lest thy love be false to thee.
These words the Wiccan Rede fulfill:
An ye harm none, do what ye will."

Originally Written by Gerald Gardner, Revised by Doreen Valiente.

I hope this helps you understand what we are. It took me forever to type. Great question though, you get a star! *goes to the top and clicks the little yellow star*
BB
)O(

Answer 7

There's just too much to type here :-) As other have said, check out www.witchvox.com or head to the bookstore. Ask 50 Wiccans what Wicca means to them, and you will get 50 different answers. Many Wiccans are eclectic, which means we take what we like from different paths and meld it into our own one personal path. Happy researching!

Answer 8

while there are many who claim knowledge of wicca, dont pay them any mind, its inside of you already, you are the one that will bring it out all on your own, no one person can teach you, most are fake anyway, trust no one, learn on your own, develop your power through clean living, mind body and spirit, love the earth and protect it, meditate alone in the woods, remember this is not a game and in time you will get what you seek, it doesnt come to you fast so stay focused

Answer 9

Most of the beliefs are nature centered. The ritual is not ancient by any means. It was essentially started by Gerald Gardner. He based the vast majority of the rituals on freemasonry.

Answer 10

Believe it or not, there really isn't enough space to do it justice here. Try Witchvox, and every pagan's favorite, Barnes 'N Nobles (just stay away from Silver Ravenwolf). There are lots of websites (but remember that any jerk can make a website).

Answer 11

This is a great site, I am in the forums as much as I can be. You can email me if you have any questions. If I don't know the answer I will find out who does. You can ask just about any question on this site though.

http://www.wicca.com/