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ADVICE TO THE NEW WITCH To the New Witch: You are now initiated into a line of witches stretching back to the far distant past, to the beginnings of time. Each new witch is initiated by a person who is him or herself a witch - the tradition is passed by the laying on of hands. You are therefore part of a very old tradition, and one of which you can be proud. We could say that you inherit certain duties and responsibilities by becoming a witch - but that would be contrary to the Law. Only you know what your duties and responsibilities are, but we have to tell you that you are carrying a great power, and that we, your elders, recommend that you use it wisely. Though we are not allowed to tell you to do that. You are your own mistress, in charge of the powers you have. We can only advise, if we are asked. The power is freely given to you to use as you wish. You can use it for good or evil, for personal gain or in the service of others. The choice is yours. Now that you are a witch, you should study witchcraft in order to learn what it is all about, and what paths are open to you. If you wish your powers to grow and be really useful, you need to work at some occult discipline. There are many to choose from, if you are not sure which is for you, try one or two and see if you are good at them. You can try astrology, tarot, divining, scrying, healing, study and use of herbs, making potions, ointments and incenses, candle-making, robe-making - anything which is useful in the craft or pleasing or helpful to others - you can write songs, make music, paint pictures - almost anything can be turned to the service of wicca. This is an open coven. This means there is no formal teaching or training, no one will try to pass on opinions, rules or laws to you. You must find out what is best for you, as each of us is an individual. You can and will be expected to ask for guidance and information from your elders, but you are not obliged to act on it. Anything you learn in your studies, which you feel is of use to the coven, should be brought to the members’ attention. For instance, you can suggest items for inclusion in rituals, or write your own sub-rituals for inclusion in the main ones. Variety is welcome. It is recommended that you start your own Book of Shadows, in which you record ceremonies, spells, workings - with results. In the old days, a witch was required to copy all the rituals into this book. If you wish, you can still do this, as writing the words helps fix them in your mind. However, it is not necessary, as you will be issued with printed records. It is recommended you keep these in a file. Witches celebrate eight major festivals a year. Four of these are Fire Festivals and are very ancient. They occur on Feb 2 - Imbolc - the stirring of the seed within the earth. I regard this as the start of the pagan year. April 30 is Beltane - the beginning of the summer. Witches weddings are performed by jumping through the fire. Aug 1 is Lammas or Lughnasad, celebration of the God of Light, and is the Festival of the First Fruits. Oct 31 is Samhain, the Feast of the Dead, and the onset of the Winter. The other four are related to the Sun’s movements, very important to the ancient world. We celebrate the Spring Equinox, Summer Solstice, Autumn Equinox and Winter Solstice, As well as these eight festivals, witches like to celebrate the full moon. After one year and a day, or on the anniversary of your initiation, you will normally seek admittance to the second degree of wicca - which is called the second initiation. At this stage you pass beyond the stage of novice and enter into the real priesthood. At this point you will choose a witch name, and by this time you should know enough about the craft to be able to choose one. Either at the same time, or a little later, it is usual to be admitted to the Third Degree of the Priesthood, and this entitles you to form your own coven should you so wish, and take the title of High Priestess. There can only be one High Priestess in a coven, so although you attain Third Degree, you would not use the title until you head your own coven, or your own Priestess steps down and the others nominate you. Blessed be!
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