Kyle Lewis, 2007

This document is available for pdf download at:

http://www.hearthcraft.org

The author can be contacted at:

info@hearthcraft.org

This document may be freely copied and printed at home for personal use. Modification of this document
is expressly forbidden. Commercial use or distribution not authorized without express written permission
by the author. This material may not be bound or otherwise repackaged for the purpose of being sold,
without express written permission by the author.

This document is intended to accompany the Hearthcraft Book of Shadows, also available at the Hearth-
craft website.

Revision History
Version 1.0, 20 March 2007
Version 1.1, 6 August 2007
Forward

I started this project in March of 2006, and finished in March of 2007. At the time, I made
the claim that there were no other robust, published curriculums out there for Wicca. I based this
information on building a library of study through the first five years of my practice. I noticed
then that there much more defined programs in Ceremonial Magic than Wicca. However, the
available resources, whether online or in the book stores, exploded in the following years. Today
there is a treasure trove of information out there, and this book is by no means the only resource.
Nevertheless, I offer this as a resource for interested students of Wicca.

~Kyle Lewis, March 2007

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 5

Table of Contents

Introduction 9
Course Overview: First Degree 13
Module 1-1: Laying a Foundation 15
Lesson Objectives 15
Your Robe 15
The Book of Shadows 15
Your Hearth Library 16
What is Wicca? 16
Aspects of Hearthcraft 17
Lesson Review 19
Module 1-2: The Gods, Myth and Ritual 21
Lesson Objectives 21
The Gods 21
Myth 23
Ritual 23
Tools and Temple Implements 24
Lesson Review 27
Module 1-3: Belief Structure 29
Lesson Objectives 29
Sexuality and Fertility 29
Beliefs 30
Ethics 31
Ritual Preliminaries: The Pentagram, Signs, and Gestures 31
Lesson Review 32
Module 1-4: Temple and Coven 33
Lesson Objectives 33
Fundamentals of Practice 33
Initiation and Coven 37
Lesson Review 39
Module 1-5: Practice 41
Lesson Objectives 41
Beginning Temple Work 41
Esbats 43
Lesson Review 44
Module 1-6: The Wheel of the Year 45
6

Lesson Objectives 45
The Wheel of the Year 45
Lesson Review 46
Module 1-7: The Law, The Grade of Dedicant 47
Lesson Objectives 47
Continuing History 47
The Law 47
Other Paths 50
The God and Goddess Myth and Lore 52
Lesson Review 53
Module 1-8: Craft Foundations 55
Lesson Objectives 55
Introduction to the Occult 55
Meditation and Prayer 57
Existential Harmonics 59
Elements, Planets, and the Zodiac 60
Tree of Life and the Tarot 61
Hermetic Kabbalah 62
Craft History 62
Mystical Study 63
Magical Study 63
Lesson Review 63
Module 1-9: Divination 65
Lesson Objectives 65
Divination 65
Mystical Study 65
Tarot 66
Astrology 68
Other Forms of Divination 69
Craft History 69
Lesson Review 69
Module 1-10: Spell Work 71
Lesson Objectives 71
Spell Theory 71
Raising Energy 73
Construction and Timing 73
Preparatory Divination 75
Mystical Study 76
Casting a Spell 76
Lesson Review 76
Module 1-11: Natural Magic, Herbs, and Healing 77
Lesson Objectives 77

Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
 7

Herbcraft 77
Natural Magic 79
Healing 80
Craft History 83
Mystical Study 83
Lesson Review 83
Module 1-12: Ritual and Ceremony 85
Lesson Objectives 85
Mystical Study 85
Ceremony and Ritual Construction 85
Consecration Rites 87
Craft History 87
Spiritual Taxonomy 88
Synthesis 91
Lesson Review 91
Module 1-13: Initiation 93
Lesson Objectives 93
Practice Assessment 93
Knowledge Exam 94
Self-Initiation 97
The Work of the First Degree 104
What now? 104
Way Ahead 104
In Closing... 106
Notes 107
8

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Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007

Introduction
This book is designed to be a companion
to the Hearthcraft Book of Shadows. Normally, if
one is initiated into a hearth, the material in that
hearth's Book of Shadows is revealed over a pe-
riod of time through formal training by the coven,
accompanied by oral instruction. Each coven will
have its on particular flavor of mysteries, and the
inner teachings and practices will vary from coven
to coven. However, the core of the tradition is the
same.
To help the student who is without access to a
hearth, I've put together a core Book of Shadows
Ok, so this is going to be a lot of work. It's
of the tradition so that people might start their
own, fully legitimate Hearthcraft covens. If you
are that person, then this book was written for
you. In the absence of a physical teacher, this
companion book is supposed to take the place of
such a teacher and guide you through a compre-
hensive program of study that I hope will be re-
warding, whether you simply adopt a Wiccan style
Well, absolutely nothing. Except yourself.
of practice or you choose to self-initiate and start
a full-fledged hearth. You can go through this
course alone, or with a group of friends.
Keeping with traditional Wiccan practice, both
this companion course and the core Book of
Shadows are free. When you form your own
hearth, feel free to add to the Book of Shadows,
but if you claim the Hearthcraft tradition, don't al-
ter the core material. Also, don't take this material
and pass it off as your own. It belongs to the tra-
dition and all who practice the tradition, and those
core pieces that remain consistent bring a tradi-
tion together.
This book is free, as said before, but don't
expect not to expend some funds. I'm not asking
for any money--nor do I even need to know who
you are, for legitimacy in this tradition is not won
through lineage, but rather through the quality of
Don't get me wrong. There's nothing
your own work and effort. The Gods see your
progress. However, this is a course of study, and
like any course, you get out of it what you put into
it. You will be asked to purchase materials to
construct your tools and altar implements, and to
acquire textbooks. Building your library will
probably be one of your biggest expenses up
front, and you will have reading assignments to
complete from a variety of books. The Book of
Shadows is not a complete set of Wiccan knowl-
edge, nor is it meant to be! It brings together the
core elements of what defines the tradition, but is
The short answer? It can't.
Introduction
9
assumes the Witch is well learned in the field and
comes with a wider base of understanding. This
is what I hope to provide by stitching together a
body of knowledge spanning several authors,
from historical books, to Wiccan books, books on
ceremonial magic and Kabbalah, and even some
books written by non-pagan authors. There are
also websites I will ask you to read, because it's
the modern age and the web can be an invaluable
"library of Alexandria" for you, if you know what to
sift through.
going to require time, effort, and money. If you
have a lifestyle fairly similar to most folks out
there, this could take a year or more to complete.
For some, it might take less. What's to stop you
from printing out the Hearthcraft Book of Shad-
ows, performing the self-initiation right now, and
offering training to others who want to join you?
There are two components required for initiation:
knowledge, and spiritual development. The spiri-
tual development is a life-long process, and it's a
subjective call as to whether one is ready for ini-
tiation or not. I hope to guide you through an ex-
perience that fosters such development--but ulti-
mately you have to decide when you are ready.
The knowledge component is objective. You can't
fake it, and you can't fool yourself. This book will
contain a set of core knowledge areas that every
initiate should know. A lot of it has to be memo-
rized. If you can answer all the core competency
questions, you know that you've met the knowl-
edge requirement for initiation. If you don't have
that knowledge, you will know. And, should you
meet someone who's gone through it, it will be-
come apparent to them as well.
wrong with reading through the Book of Shadows,
using it to add to and shape your own practice. If
you are Wiccan--meaning you hold a Wiccan
world view and worship the Gods by practicing
the religion of Wicca--not completing this course
does not invalidate you in any way. All going
through this course means is that you can claim
initiation into this tradition. And, of course, you'll
have the fruits of the labor of the journey.
How can a book be an initiator and a teacher?
10
The long answer comes in two parts. A
book cannot be an initiator. Only the Self can ini-
tiate the self. This book seeks to help you culti-
vate your own initiation experience.
A book cannot teach you the Wiccan mys-
teries. All it can teach you is knowledge and
method. As a solitary practitioner, you have to
let life and experience, trial and error, teach you.
This book seeks to assist you in that process by
providing you a direction. You have to be open to
the Gods working in your life in order to discover
the Wiccan mysteries, and oftentimes you have to
listen to the Gods speaking and acting through
other people--which means you have to maintain
healthy social contact with those around you, fam-
ily and friends.
Why do I want to make this tradition available?
Because I think it has something to offer
that currently isn't available in the open. There is
an inordinate wealth of information out there, both
There are some outstanding textbooks for
published in books and on the Internet. For the
beginning student, this can be overwhelming, es-
pecially when it comes to sorting the good infor-
mation from the bad.
The coven initiate from a traditional sys-
tem (whether Wiccan or otherwise) has the bene-
fit of teachers and mentors who present them with
a complete, robust course of training. The coven
initiate also has the benefit of "authenticity" within
the tradition into which they were initiated.
What about the solitary practitioner?
What about the person who does not have access
to coven training, or only has access to covens
and traditions that are not a good fit? The solitary
Some people don't want to be taught or
seeker has a few options. One option is to bor-
row traditional material and practice it, knowing
you're not authentic within the context of that tra-
dition (nor do you have access to all of its teach-
ings), as one might with material from Gardnerian
Wicca or Alexandrian Wicca. Another option is to
eclectically pick and choose a practice, which has
the advantage of freedom but the disadvantage of
having to reinvent the wheel, and the possibility of
making a lumpy, wobbly wheel to boot!
Some authors have tried to fill the need to
guide the solitary practitioner. There are many
What is needed is a tradition that allows
books on Wicca out there (some better than oth-
ers). One kind of book introduces you to the
ideas and core beliefs of the religion, and tells you
how to cobble together a practice. An example of
one of these is Scott Cunningham's Wicca, a
Guide for the Solitary Practitioner, which illus-
trates an attempt at, in my opinion, "initiation"
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
(dedication) without tradition. Some books try to
give you a tradition that recognizes self-initiation,
such as Raymond Buckland's Seax-Wica. Other
books give a wealth of information, such as Janet
and Stewart Farrar's A Witch's Bible, but ulti-
mately are deeply based in traditions that are ex-
clusive by definition, requiring lineage and initia-
tion. Each of these books fall short in some way
for the student who wants the discipline of a tradi-
tion and does not have the opportunity to train in
a traditional manner, or simply does not care for
or desire the lineage (for whatever reason). A
student quickly outgrows books like Cunning-
ham's. Buckland's A Complete Book of Witchcraft
is also sparse on its own and and not as complete
as it might suggest. A Witch's Bible is an out-
standing sourcebook, but I personally feel like I'm
intruding a bit if I claimed it as the sole basis of
my practice due to the nature of the root traditions
for that book.
the student on ceremonial systems now, not least
of which is Kraig's Modern Magick, and the
Cicero's Self-Initiation into the Golden Dawn Tra-
dition. There is an outstanding workbook by Delo-
res Ashcroft-Nowicki called the Ritual Magician's
Workbook. These are the style of book I want to
present you with. They draw the reader through a
very demanding course of study, appeal to the
reader to be honest with his or her progress, and
has the student learn from readings and sources
from outside the book. Yet, not only are these
mentioned books not Wiccan, they're not even
religions, technically speaking.
told to practice a certain way. While each person
is certainly entitled to chart their own path, I think
there is too much of this "do what feels right"
mentality in modern Wicca, particularly in the ma-
jority of those paths outside of any tradition. I
think people tend to fall into the trap of mistaking
what feels "right" for what feels "easy" or "cool".
People may chafe at a tradition's exclusivity, or its
fixed structure of form (at least in part)... but the
practice of a tradition brings too much value to be
carelessly discarded.
for self-initiation yet sets forth clear requirements
for such. Also needed is a book that will act as a
guide for sifting through the tons of information
out there by selecting a library of textbooks for the
course, and giving reading assignments from a
variety of authors, yet stitched together in a cohe-
sive way. Like Seax-Wica, this tradition gives

authenticity to the self-initiate within its own con-
text, but it gives a depth and foundation of knowl-
edge rivaling the material found in A Witch's Bible
or the Ceremonial Magic workbooks.
Why would you want to be a part of this tradi-
tion?
This tradition provides a disciplined, initia-
tory mystery tradition in a coven setting, yet it
does not close its doors to new lineages sponta-
Hearthcraft is a reformed Wiccan tradition
neously forming, allowing self-initiates into the
tradition to start their own lineages.
It is a tradition that celebrates traditional
Wiccan style and values, pulls from Ceremonial
Magic (one of the roots of Wicca), and seeks to
form the warmth of community we call hearth.
The following tradition description is taken
from the Book of Shadows:
Hearthcraft is a Wiccan tradition. We
worship a transcendent, immanent, and personal
Hearthcraft is American in that it em-
Divinity embodied by the coequal and interde-
pendent principles we call God and Goddess. We
observe the cycle of the year as a means to cele-
brate life and community, to include human fertility
and the bounty of the harvest. We honor the Full
Moon as a time to explore the inner life. We ex-
plore the cyclical nature of time, the mysteries of
the internal human psyche, and seek to mindfully
Hearthcraft derives its name from a con-
engage in the interconnectedness between Divin-
ity, our human inner life, and the natural outer life
of the Earth around us. We abide by the Wiccan
Rede in that we do not condemn others for ac-
tions that harm none, and we acknowledge the
Hearthcraft is influenced by Gardnerian
Law of Return in that we believe our choices and
actions shape ourselves just as they shape the
world around us.
Hearthcraft is an Eshimite Path in that it
embraces the ten core values of the Eshim: God,
Divinity, Life, Compassion, Choice, Individuality,
Interconnectedness, Truth, Representation, and
If this appeals to you, this might be a tra-
Mindfulness, and the four virtues of Integrity,
Service, Excellence, and Humility.
But what do you get out of it? You get a
Hearthcraft is a mystery tradition in that
we explore the inner mysteries that cannot be told
but only experienced. We cultivate such experi-
ences by means and rites that are only shared
with initiated members who comprise a Hermetic
magical order, seeking spiritual enlightenment
through the Great Work in a lodge-styled system
of initiation.
Hearthcraft is a tradition because it in-
volves specific core practices as set down by the
tradition. It draws from several sources, but it is
Introduction
11
no more eclectic than Gerald Gardner's original
Wicca, which also drew from several sources,
each of which was also syncretic in their own
ways (Murray, Frazer, and Graves among others).
We do not consider ourselves eclectic in that we
do not encourage a laissez-faire, "anything goes,
pick and choose" approach to spirituality. The
core of the tradition remains consistent between
covens.
in that we reject the historical and anthropological
claims made by Frazer, Graves and Murray as
being untrue, and so we reject the exclusivity of
British lineages, or the myth that any Wiccan tra-
dition is the direct continuation of an "Old Relig-
ion." Wiccan traditionalists might find this notion
offensive, but the fact that Wicca has grown be-
yond a particular lineage indicates that it has ma-
tured as a religion. The gods are bigger than one
human institution.
braces American ideals of individual freedom and
worth, industriousness, and merit through labor. It
also echoes the American tendency to rebel
against laws set down by our British roots and
chart our own way. We are democratic in that we
recognize our authority to practice our religion
comes from within ourselves.
cept embodying the warmth of love ideal in a
home between family members, which we call
hearth. We seek to cultivate hearth with our gods,
with our families, and with each other.
and Alexandrian Wiccan traditions, Hermetic
Kabbalah, Thelema, and the Golden Dawn sys-
tem of magic. However, it does not inherit directly
from them as we claim no initiation or lineage
from any of those orders.
dition for you.
rigorous program of study, completion of which
gives you more knowledge than many who claim
the label of "Wiccan". You get a tradition to call
your own, a tradition that recognizes self-starters.
You get a comprehensive system of honoring the
Gods that cultivates the experience of them. You
get the basis to effectively chart a path to deeper
mysteries. You learn to explore the interconnect-
edness of the world around you through magic.
Most importantly, you're offered a means of self
discovery, self development, and transformation.
12
What's the advantage of finding an estab-
lished hearth?
What defines the tradition of Hearthcraft
is its structure, its initiatory nature, and its first-
It is true that Hearthcraft allows for lay
degree material. The second and third degree
mysteries are developed by the coven initiates.
The tradition structure gives guides as to the fo-
cus of second and third degree, but each coven
must shape and enrich these experiences on their
own.
Seeking entry into an established hearth
not only gives you a human mentor, which is bet-
ter than any book, but also the unique flavor of
that coven's inner mysteries, which are not shared
with the outside world. It gives access to specific
mysteries and lore provided by those who have
worked at those higher degrees.
What's the advantage of starting your own
The purpose of recognizing a lay commu-
hearth?
If you cannot find a coven that suits you,
the advantage is clear. In addition, you have the
freedom to build your own inner mystery experi-
ences and create your own hearth flavor.
What is "hearth," anyway?
Hearth is communal warmth and love.
Hearth is the fire around which a family gathers.
It is the symbolic light of Kith and Kin. When the
Hearth is warm, the individual inner indwelling
light of each person's heart is warm. When each
person's inner heart is warm, so too is the Hearth.
Again, this comes back to an ethic I was
The Hearth is formed by a sense of loving-
kindness for each other member of the Hearth.
A loving, close-knit family is a great ex-
ample of a Hearth, where members share a
common blood. This is perhaps the strongest
Hearth in common practice, and sadly today very
much broken. It seems that many today have lost
the experience of Hearth, whether with their fami-
lies, or to each other. Hearth requires loyalty,
love, fellowship, selflessness, honesty and re-
No. The Companion Book does not ex-
spect between people.
A hearth is also a community of Hearth-
craft practitioners centered around a coven of ini-
tiated Witches or Witches-in-training, but may in-
clude lay people as well.
What about solitary practitioners?
Hearthcraft supports solitary practitioners.
It take two or more people to make a coven, but
only one to make a hearth. Honoring the Gods on
Esbats and Sabbats, even as a solitary practitio-
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
ner, you are sharing hearth with the Gods. We
are never truly alone.
What about lay practitioners?
practitioners in a hearth. The term Accepted
means the person has been accepted into the
hearth. The Accepted, and are seen as full mem-
bers of the religion of Wicca by the other hearth
members, whether initiated as Witches into the
coven or not. They celebrate the Sabbats to-
gether but are not considered clergy, and so don't
lead any of the rites. The term Accepted holds
specific meaning as to acceptance within a
hearth, so a solitary practitioner really cannot be
Accepted. However, you can still perform an
equivalent rite of self-dedication, identifying your-
self as a follower of the Gods and the way of the
Wicca.
nity is not to set up an intermediary priest class.
The priest is not intended to be the go-between
between congregant and the gods. Keeping with
Wiccan tradition, each person appeals to the gods
without need for a priest. The role of the priest in
hearthcraft more describes a specific role of pro-
viding the ritual mythological environment for
people to experience those mysteries by leading
rites and managing the day to day administration
of a temple.
Why make this freely available?
taught: "Witches do not charge for initiation and
training." It doesn't mean this course is free, be-
cause you'll have to purchase supplies and other
books to build your library and complete the as-
signments. It just means that I'm not getting paid
for your work.
Can I go through this course with just this
Companion Book and the Book of Shadows?
plain each topic by itself. It points you to reading
assignments, the Book of Shadows location, and
adds commentary as needed. The Companion
Book is also here to provide a methodical guide
approach to self training, and also provide ration-
ale as to why certain choices were made when
building the tradition. The Companion Book tries
to help facilitate the student's own "bringing every-
thing together".
 13

Course Overview: First Degree

First-degree lays the foundation in all three aspects: religious, initiatory and craft. This course is
written assuming the student has no knowledge whatsoever for the Craft. For such a student, this course
will take 12 to 24 months to complete. A student coming in with more knowledge and experience will go
through a little bit faster, as some of the material will already be familiar, and some of the readings might
already have been read. For such a student I still recommend reviewing familiar readings, focusing on
the knowledge in each, and reading those assignments which they have not read yet, even if they ad-
dress a familiar topic.

Goal of the First Degree Curriculum
The competency goal of first-degree is
not to make an expert witch or master spell-
caster. The primary focus is on what it means to
be a priest of the craft. The first-degree Witch
should be able to run a small temple, perform
Sabbat and Esbat rites, and understand and be
able to practice magical technique. The first-
degree is not expected to be an expert in magic
or divination; rather, she understands the tech-
nique and knowledge behind the practices and is
able to practically utilize them, and establish and
continue a discipline of practice that brings mas-
tery with time.
The mystical goal of first-degree is to ob-
jectify and identify the elemental aspects of the
initiate so that she might begin to understand how
those elements affect and shape her self, and
how to go about harmonizing and balancing those
elements. The initiate brings those elements into
their sphere of awareness, and connects to them.
This first volume also serves another pur-
pose. There are people who want to adopt the
religious world-view and practice of Wicca from a
lay perspective. A person should not be barred
from the religion just because she may not be
called to the priesthood. So this is a break from
Wiccan tradition in that Hearthcraft allows for lay-
practitioners.
Syllabus
The following is an outline of the core
competencies of a first degree initiate. 1st De-
gree Knowledge requirements:
Understand history of Wicca--it's mythical his-
tory and its actual history
All 1st Degree Core Rites must be memorized.
This includes the Charge and the Witch's Rune.
(this also includes all elemental pentagram
forms in order to properly call and banish quar-
ters)
Wiccan concept of Deity adequately described
Aradia and Cernunnos aspects of Deity must be
understood (write extensive God and Goddess
essay). Meanings of Eloah, El, Elohim, Ashera
and YHVH. Historical roots of those names
from pre-Judaic times.
Tarot--basic meanings of all 78 cards.
Tree of Life layout (astrology and Tarot on the
Tree, basic names and meanings of Sephiroth,
in latin alphabet)
10 values and 4 virtues
The New Law (of the tradition) must be known.
Hearth Law for your hearth must be known.
Know purpose and meaning of all tools.
Know cosmology (levels and polarity, reincarna-
tion) and other core Wiccan doctrines
Know Sabbat lore. Elements of each Sabbat
rite must be known, but these need not be
memorized. (Goal here is that if BoS is lost,
initiate can rewrite Sabbat rites that capture es-
sential elements)
Memorize one Esbat rite (could be as simple as
the Aradia adoration)
Describe eight ways of magic (Eight Paths to
the Center)
Herbalism (minimum for temple: how to make
core temple incenses and anointing oils)
Basic Elemental and Astrological correspon-
dences.
Basic magic: cord magic, symbol/rune magic,
candle magic
Meditation--different types of meditation
In addition to Tarot, show competence in one
other type of divination
Concentration techniques (these need not be
mastered, but knowledge of the discipline to
attain mastery is required)
How to construct a new invocation/ritual

Volume 1 Introduction
14

Know altar layout and temple layout, and sym-

bolism associated with each, including purpose
of the Circle and how to cast it.
Have actually honored all Sabbats at least
once. (hence basic year and a day requirement
prior to initiation).
Hand-sewn white robe.

Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007

Module 1-1: Laying a Foundation
Remember that the journey is why you walk, not the destination at the end.
Don't rush through the lesson in desire of completion.
Take your time, and mull things over. Involve yourself in the work of the lesson.
Take notes, and reflect upon the ideas to which you are exposed.
Lesson Objectives
This first lesson lays the groundwork for
The Book of Shadows is a Wiccan's per-
the course ahead. You will be exposed to the top-
ics of the course in order to understand where the
course will take them. The student will start
studying what comprises Wicca and its history. In
addition, you will begin studying Hearthcraft, in
order to understand its structure and methodol-
ogy. You will understand how Hearthcraft is not
only Wiccan, but also how it is built upon the prin-
ciples of the Eshim.
If you have not already done so, obtain
Your Robe
When we meet in Temple, it is best be
done in such a way to signal ourselves that we
are putting aside the mundane world for a time.
Originally, Wiccans worked skyclad (in the nude).
Some still do. However, most now work in robes,
and even if you have the privacy and freedom to
be able to work skyclad, it's helpful to have the
option of the robe.
The robe of the Dedicant is white, repre-
senting the purity of the unwritten page and the
light of the force of the seeking soul. The Dedi-
The BoS does not contain all the knowl-
cant wears a black cord about the waist, repre-
senting the ink of the story yet to be written upon
the page, the constriction of form, and the vast
possibilities of outer space.
Your first robe should be hand sewn
Because it is a special book, I encourage
completely by you. No sewing machines, and no
one else may sew your thread. This is your first
practice of discipline. There are easy methods of
constructing a robe, the easiest being the Tau
robe which requires no pattern. If you don't know
how to do this, your first task is to go find out.
The cord is to be three yards long. Knot
the very ends, and whip-stitch them so that they
do not appear loose and frayed.
Module 1-1
15
The Book of Shadows
sonal religious text. There is usually a shared,
coven book, containing the coven traditions,
teachings, and rites. Each Witch will have a per-
sonal book as well, containing the core tradition
(just as the coven book does) and holding any
personal rites, observations, discoveries and lore
that are not shared in common by the coven
community.
the Hearthcraft Book of Shadows and print your-
self a copy. The Book of Shadows' pages are
purposefully unnumbered, in order for you to be
able to personalize and add to it without being
constrained to a particular order, table of con-
tents, or numbering scheme. Furthermore, the
Book of Shadows (hereafter abbreviated BoS)
contains a blank page so you can use it to make
stationary to print on it and add to as you see fit.
In addition, the lack of page numbers and a table
of contents forces you to be familiar with the
book. An initiate should be familiar enough with
his or her BoS so as to make a Table of Contents
irrelevant.
edge you will need. It is primarily a reference
book. It contains the heart of your practice, but it
is dead without you, and more importantly, without
the knowledge that you bring to it.
you to treat it specially, giving it more care than
you might another book. Find a way to bind it,
even if it's as simple as getting a three-ring binder.
I recommend binding it in such a way that you can
add pages to it, as you undoubtedly wish to do so
in the future. I purchased a leather journal at a
renaissance festival that had leather cords to bind
together three-hole hole-punched paper, and
used that for my BoS. In addition, I purchased
16

nice, parchment-looking paper and fed that comprehensive basic library that will serve as
through the printer to give it an even more special reference and continue to bear fruit as you pursue
feel. None of these extras are required by any your own studies.
means, but many people find it enjoyable finding
ways to make their BoS special and unique to
them. Core Library Books
You will need to acquire the following
Assignment #1: books in order to complete the required readings
1. Print your Book of Shadows and obtain a for this lesson:
suitable binding. 1. Farrar, Janet and Stewart. (1996). A Witch's Bible.
2. Hand-sew your your white robe and acquire Washington USA: Phoenix Publishing Inc
your black cord. 2. Valiente, Doreen (1978). Witchcraft for Tomorrow.
3. Acquire a note-book in which to do any writ- Washington USA: Phoenix Publishing Inc
ten assignments, journal entries, and take 3. Farrar, Stewart. (1971) What Witches Do, The
notes as you read. For every reading as- Modern Coven Revealed. New York: Coward,
signment you do, you should take notes on McCann & Geoghegan Inc
what you read in your journal. 4. Hutton, Ronald. (1999) Triumph of the Moon, Ox-
ford: Oxford University Press
You can do this assignment while you
proceed with the rest of the lesson. You won't
These will be principal texts within the
actually wear the robes or the cords for a few les-
course. Doreen Valiente is a seminal personality
sons yet, but you will need them for the self-
within Wicca. She was Gerald Gardner's initiate,
Dedication lesson. At this point in time, you are
and wrote the "Charge of the Goddess", which is
not yet a Dedicant to initiation--you are still evalu-
still included as a core component of many mod-
ating the religion. You may make the choice to
ern Wiccan rites. The Farrar's are Alexandrian
adopt the religion while not pursuing the path of
and Gardnerian initiates, and provide a traditional
the Witch. Such choices are between you and
rather than eclectic influence. Ronald Hutton is a
the Gods.
non-Wiccan professor at Oxford University who
wrote the first scholarly study on the development
of the Wiccan religion.
Your Hearth Library In addition, you will need the following
In addition to the Book of Shadows, you
article:
will be building a core reference library. Through-
out the course you will be required to read pas-
1. Lewis, Kyle. "What is Wicca?" (available at
sages from certain authors. This is important for
the Hearthcraft website)
several reasons. The first is to study a variety of
views on the subject matter, so that you gain a
perspective more than just from one teacher. The
second is to become familiar with influential
authors in the field, so you can understand some
What is Wicca?
of the works that have impacted the pagan and
magical community. Assignment #2
In addition, it is recommended you actu- 1. Read: "What is Wicca?"
ally obtain your own books and keep them, rather 2. Read: What Witches Do, Chapter 1: Initiation
than check them out at a library. The purpose in
this is so you can start building your own core The first article gives an overview for
reference. those unfamiliar with Wicca. For those familiar
You need not purchase your library all at with Wicca, it gives you an idea on where I'm
once. Each lesson will give required readings, coming from. The second selection describes an
and let you know which books you need to ac- initiation ceremony.
quire, with optional recommended supplemental
books. At the end of this course you'll have a

Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
 17

Wiccan History Part 1

Aspects of Hearthcraft
Wiccan history can sometimes be a con-
troversial topic in Craft circles. The founders per- There are three aspects of Hearthcraft
petuated the belief that they were the inheritors of Wiccan training program: the religious aspect,
a pan-European ancient stone-age fertility cult, the self-development aspect, and the craft aspect.
which they called the Old Religion. This largely While each of these aspects could function inde-
due to the works of the now-discredited Margaret pendently from the others, in Hearthcraft all of
Murray (The Witch Cult of Western Europe) and these aspects enrich and involve each other.
James Frazer (The Golden Bough). The belief The religious aspect involves our relation-
that Wicca is an ancient religion is starting to be ship to the Gods and to the world around us, and
slowly let go as more and more realize that Wicca includes, but is not limited to, the formal rituals of
was put together in the 1940s by Gerald Gardner, the Sabbats and Esbats. It also involves our roles
drawing upon a wide variety of as students of the Gods, including
sources. A look at how this came to This training pro- worship, ethics, and morality. It
be will be examined throughout this asks questions about our relation-
gram has three as- ship with the Gods, and what it
course. Not only does it provide us
a clear look as to our own roots, but pects: religious, craft means to seek, discover, and act-
it also gives an excellent case study and self-development. ing in tune with their Will. The re-
as to how a religion emerges, since ligious aspect also includes the
it is relatively new and we have ac- The tradition itself mystical aspect, which seeks to
cess to much more recent historical uses the craft aspect bring to conscious experience the
records regarding Wicca's inception presence of the Gods, the fruits of
and religious aspect which are joy and serenity.
compared to other, older religions
such as Buddhism, Christianity, and for the goals of self- The self-development
the others. development and aspect works in harmony with the
Triumph of the Moon will be hearth-development. religious aspect, and is also mysti-
our principal text on Wiccan history. cal in nature. It involves under-
An initiated Witch is a priest of the standing one's self in a very spe-
Craft, and as clergy needs to understand the field cific way, and realizing one's relationship to the
of the Craft, which includes its history. It's impor- Gods and the world around us. More importantly,
tant to know our real roots, and not the roots the it involves seeking a deliberate transformation of
Wiccan founders wanted to be true. There was the self in order to enrich the other two aspects of
no unified Old Religion as so many Wiccans Hearthcraft. Specifically, this aspect is engaged
seem to claim, nor are we the inheritors of said by the course of initiation and training. The in-
Old Religion. We are a new religion based on a tended fruits of this aspect are self-awareness
blending of old traditions and ideas. This is not a and mastery, the ultimate goal of which is to
bad thing. Old doesn't make something better, move one step closer to enlightenment, whether it
and yet we are still rooted in the past. We are a comes in this life or lifetimes to come.
new tree planted in ancient soil. Our ways of The craft aspect falls under magic and
practice and worship today might be new; our divination, and seeks to consciously understand,
roots are ancient. strengthen, and engage our interconnectedness
Chapter 1 explores the word "pagan" and to the world on all levels. The fruits of this aspect
"religion" in preparation for the study ahead. is the power to understand and the power to
change.
None of these things guarantee fruit by
Assignment #3
themselves. These methods, be they religious,
1. Write in your notebook what the word "pagan"
initiatory, or magical, can be misapplied. You can
means to you. Do the reading assignment
change yourself into a worse person through ini-
below, and then answer the question again
tiation rites, depending on how they are designed.
and see if it's changed.
You can worship selfish ends, or use religion to
2. Read: Triumph of the Moon, Preface and
control and obscure. You can use magic for per-
Chapter 1: Finding a Language
sonal gain at the expense of the whole. But, ap-
plied correctly, and using each aspect to enrich

Module 1-1
18
and inform the other, you can be filled with virtue
and walk the path towards enlightenment under
the guidance of the Gods.
From a broader perspective, talking about
the practice of Hearthcraft Wicca rather than fo-
cusing on elements of the training program, one
could say that the craft and religious aspects sup-
port the goals of self-development and hearth-
development.
The Eshim
Hearthcraft is a marriage between the
mystery religion of Wicca and the ethical frame-
work of the Eshim, which espouses ten core val-
ues and four virtues. Hearthcraft is a Wiccan im-
plementation of the Eshim. The Eshim holds that
In traditional Wicca, such as the
the nature of good is wholeness and balance, and
so the ten values are meant to be taken in bal-
ance with each other--isolated, each value on its
own is an evil. In Wiccan language, the Eshimite
values could be described as follows:
1. The Gods are the foundation of existence.
2. Divinity permeates reality. The Gods are
alive and present within all of creation. Our own
essence is divine, for we are their children.
3. Life is precious. Life is the will of the Gods
and awareness is the purpose of the Gods.
4. Good is the nature of the Gods, and
As we read through the next assignment,
Compassion is the root of the Good.
5. Choice is the ability to create our selves
and shape the world around us, and this ability to
choose is a good thing. Choice is the ability to
say no, to oppose something by deciding what we
are not, what we shall not stand for.
6. Each of us is a unique, individual expres-
sion of the divine, and each of us is valuable.
I find great value in traditional Wicca,
7. Each of us is part of an interconnected
whole. We're all in this together.
8. Truth exists, and seeking truth is good.
Not all beliefs are equally close to truth. Part of
seeking truth is the ability to judge something as
false. Part of seeking truth is the ability to admit
when we are wrong.
9. Words, myths, and images are used to
represent Truth. However, the truth that can be
told is not the eternal Truth; it is but a representa-
tion. There are many ways to represent truth.
Some representations will be better than others,
and some representations won't represent Truth
at all. Yet, no one representation (in other words,
In these next two readings, you'll see
no one name for God) can be the only true repre-
sentation; to claim otherwise is idolatry (the wor-
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
ship of the form and not the truth behind the
form).
10. Mindful action of these values, and rep-
resentations of Truth, positively impacts and
transforms the world around us. Rituals enact
these values to create transformative experiences
and understanding. Choices in the moment, in-
formed by these values, do the same. The values
are dead if they are not enacted. The virtues es-
sential to mindful action of the ten core values
are: integrity, service, excellence, and humility.
More about the Eshim can be found at:
http://www.eshim.org
Public Wiccan Tradition
Gardnerian and Alexandrian traditions, initiates
are sworn to secrecy. You cannot initiate yourself,
and can only gain entry into the Craft by training
under a lineaged Witch, or so tradition holds. Yet,
early members of these traditions, including
Doreen Valiente, have published books making
information available to the public. It may not be
100% the same as what is taught in covens today,
but as we go through this course you'll discover
that many such secrets are of no real conse-
quence outside the small community of the circles
who guard them.
keep in mind that Valiente (Gardnerian) and the
Farrars (at the time Alexandrian and Gardnerian)
assert the Murray hypothesis that there was an
Old Religion driven into hiding by the Christian
Church. Yet, it is still important to read these tra-
ditional authors because it gives us a window into
early Wiccan roots.
more so than the popularized eclectic approach to
things that has become commercialized in the
modern book market. I want to make that quite
clear up front. I agree with their methods of struc-
ture, and discipline, and academic rigor. Where I
differ with the traditional view is over the apostolic
exclusivity to the religion Wicca has become as
put forth by those lineaged traditions. I have no
issue with their exclusivity over lineaged initiation
within their own Traditions. I'm not claiming to
practice either Gardnerian or Alexandrian tradi-
tions because I have not been initiated into those
traditions.
competing views from Doreen Valiente, who
opens up to the concept of a self-taught Witch,
 19

and the Farrars, who say that "only a Witch can

make a Witch." You will also be introduced to
names of organizations and ceremonial magi-
cians that had inspiring influence on the early
formation of the Craft.

Assignment #4
1. Read: What Witches Do: Introduction
2. Read: Witchcraft for Tomorrow: Introduction
3. Read: A Witch's Bible: Book 2, Chapters 23
(Self-Initiation) and 26 (In Tune with the
Times).

Lesson Review
1. Have you obtained the required books?
2. Did you do the assigned readings?
3. Have you completed your robe?
4. What is the Dedicant's robe color, and what
does it signify?
5. What is the Dedicant's cord color and dimen-
sion, and what does it signify?
6. Describe the three aspects of Hearthcraft.
7. Describe the 10 Values of the Eshim.
8. What are the 4 virtues of mindful action?

Module 1-1
20

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Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007

Module 1-2: The Gods, Myth and Ritual
Lesson Objectives
In this lesson, we start to look how Wicca
understands Deity, and by what concepts and
persons Deity manifests in the Wiccan context.
We also look at myth and ritual, two fundamental
building blocks Wiccan practice. Finally, we also
introduce the working tools of the Witch.
By the end of this lesson, the student
should be able to:
1. Be able to describe fundamental concepts of
Since the Book of Shadows has no page
the Wiccan God and Goddess
2. Understand Myth and and the uses of Ritual
3. Understand the symbolism of the basic tools
The Gods
The Gods of Wicca manifest as the many
You'll notice in the book of shadows that
faces of the Lord and Lady, the God and the
Goddess.
The two primary Gods of the first-degree
initiate are Cernunnos and Aradia, the traditional
Gods of Wicca. Cernunnos is the Horned God,
and Aradia the daughter of Diana, the Moon
First, let me say that while we may some-
Goddess. These two god-forms are very much
tied to the concept of the immanent and personal
presence of the deities.
Wiccans interact with different faces of
the Gods, however, and are not limited to Cer-
nunnos and Aradia. Different pantheons can be
explored, and might vary from coven to coven.
Each coven might have their own personal repre-
sentations of the Gods, with names unknown to
others and not draw from historical mythologies,
but are instead revealed by the Gods themselves
to that coven.
Assignment #1
1. Read: What Witches Do, Chapter 2: The
Roots of Modern Wicca
2. Read: Triumph of the Moon, Chapter 2: Find-
The fact of the matter, however, is that
ing a Goddess, and Chapter 3: Finding a God
Module 1-2
21
3. Read: Witchcraft for Tomorrow: Chapter 1:
The Old Gods
4. Read: A Witch's Bible, Part 1: Introduction
5. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows, (The
Gods), including the commentaries.
6. Read: A Witch's Bible, Part 2: Chapter XVI,
Many Mansions.
Book of Shadows Readings
numbers and no numbered chapters (so that its
modular design allows you to add to it and rear-
range it as you wish), I'll be following the following
convention when giving assignments: "Book of
Shadows (Section Title): subsections within the
section."
Kabbalistic God-names and Wicca
there are Hebrew names given for the more tran-
scendental God and Goddess concepts (King and
Queen of Heaven). It may seem incongruous for
Wiccans to use Hebrew god-names, such as El
and Ashera.
times use the same names as found in the Torah,
in no way do we believe that we believe in the
Jewish God! At least, we don't believe in that God
any more (or less) than any other name ascribed
to divinity. We don't believe in the literal nature of
the Torah, nor do we believe that God is the jeal-
ous god as described in the Tanakh (what Chris-
tians call the Old Testament). Second, these
names evolved over time, through ancient tribal
understandings and politics. El and Asherah from
from the Ugaritic myth cycle, circa 1400 B.C.E.
(Ugarit was an ancient semitic port city.) Since
we don't believe in the revelatory nature of Abra-
hamic faiths, we don't hold that they have a mo-
nopoly on those names since those names devel-
oped (I believe) prior to those books claiming the
revelatory monopoly.
Judeo-Christian mythology has greatly affected
22
Western occultism, which includes European
strains of paganism. Moreover, as different, non
Church-sanctioned belief systems went under-
ground, there was a certain amount of cross-
The Charge of the Goddess was originally
pollination of ideas. Finally, it is consistent with
pagan tradition, particularly as in ancient Rome,
to be syncretic to a degree.
Wicca is no different. Hopefully by now,
you will have come to understand that Wicca is
not an ancient practice. We inherit from ancient
practices, and our beliefs are timeless, but our
forms are new. Wicca grew out of an amalgam of
disparate cultural forces, to include a heavy influ-
ence from the Golden Dawn, an occult order of
western ceremonial magic which used as one of
Wicca definitely started as matrifocal.
its core sources the Kabbalah. Occult, or Her-
metic, Kabbalah is very different today from its
kosher counterpart, and most Jewish Kabbalists
would not grant it authenticity. Hermetic Kabbalah
is syncretic in nature, and is no more Jewish than
the Catholic Church is... and is no more Christian
than Wicca is.
Personally, I have found that Kabbalah
provides a harmonious way to bring together the
Hearthcraft focuses on the God and
various influences on Western occultism, and so
have chosen not to throw out the proverbial baby
with the bath-water in an effort to achieve a more
"pure" pagan practice. What is "pure", anyway?
We will get into the Kabbalah a little later in the
course, but I bring this up now as the inclusion of
Hebrew god-names in the Book of Shadows
might have been confusing for some folks.
In summary, Wicca is not a reconstruc-
tionist religion. There are pagan reconstructionist
efforts, and if this is more to your calling, more
power to you. Wicca, however, is a modern prac-
This version of the Charge of the God is
tice, and while we cherish, learn from and build
upon tradition, we do not seek to recreate the
past. Rather, we look to embrace the present,
and move forward into the future as a pagan.
I considered making this a mandatory
The Charge of the Gods
Assignment #2
1. Memorize: "The Charge of the Goddess" ,
as found in the Hearthcraft Book of Shadows.
2. Read and understand: "The Charge of the
God". Optional: Memorize
When reciting the Charge, Men should
substitute "I" and "Me" for "She" and "Her" in the
Charge of the Goddess. Women should make the
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
appropriate substitution for the Charge of the God
as well.
written by Doreen Valiente, student, initiate, and
working partner of Gerald Gardner. Doreen Vali-
ente's work and inspiration shaped the foundation
of Wicca as we know it today, and the Charge of
the Goddess is probably the best example of this.
This work has been called by the Farrars, "the
unique and definitive statement of Wiccan phi-
losophy." The Charge has been modified by vari-
ous authors as it passes through offshoot tradi-
tions and into eclectic use.
Gardnerian and Alexandrian tradition today are
still matrifocal, with primary emphasis on the
Goddess with God as consort. As such the
Charge of the Goddess reflects this, for it de-
scribes a whole deity, complete unto Herself.
There doesn't seem to be a commonly accepted
Charge of the God, and those come not from tra-
ditional circles.
Goddess together, and as separate, distinct, co-
equal Persons. They are each complete in and of
themselves, yet interrelated as part of a larger
divine whole. In keeping with that, I have written
a Charge of the God in parallel structure to the
Charge of the Goddess, yet on its own depicts a
God complete and whole unto Himself. I offer this
in the hope that this fulfills a much needed (in my
opinion) gap.
The Charge of the God
original to Hearthcraft. For some reason, the
Wiccan community has not embraced a common
Charge in the same way that Valiente's Charge of
the Goddess has been so widely adopted (and
adapted).
memorization piece. Traditionally, the Charge of
the Goddess is recited at the opening of Sabbats
and Esbats (as presented in the Book of Shad-
ows). I had considered reserving the Charge of
the Goddess for Esbats and the Charge of the
God for Sabbats since Hearthcraft is not
Goddess-centric. However, I have not practiced
that yet, and I'm not going to put something in a
self-study course that I haven't practiced. So, I
decided that for the underlying Hearthcraft tradi-
tion, the normal opening will suffice. Use of the
 23

Charge of the God in the opening will be left for
exploration within my own hearth context, and
leave the choice on how to use it up to other
hearths to decide for themselves. Feel free to
experiment with the alternate solar opening for
Sabbats.
myths that have shaped history itself, from
the creation story in Genesis, the death and
resurrection in the Gospels, to the sagas of
Egypt, Greece, Rome, Northern Europe, In-
dia, China and other countless cultures.

Myth Ritual
Excerpt from Why?, Chapter 10: Mindfulness
Excerpt from an earlier work of mine titled Why?, (Kyle Lewis, 2005)
Chapter 9: Representation:
Why is ritual important? Ultimately,
Stories are part of the human experi-
ritual is about practicing mindfulness. Mind-
ence, and have captured hearts of peoples
ful ritual practice leads to merging doing and
throughout history. It is difficult to conceive
being as one. In their highest forms, ritual is
of a culture without stories. Story and
a form of meditation, and meditation is a
drama have consequently been at the heart
form of ritual.
of religion as well. There are special kinds of
I think people lose sight of what it
stories, called myths, that touch upon such
means to practice a religion. Practicing a
fundamental truths, capturing archetypes,
religion does not simply mean believing cer-
that they move us on a deep level. Myths are
tain things or looking at the world in a cer-
not limited to religion, but religion is a natu-
tain way. It means putting those beliefs into
ral vehicle for myths: dramatic narratives of
practices that represent those beliefs.
truths. Myths take mental truths and mani-
When being in the present, you are
fest them through fiction.
aware of the fullness of your surrounding.
Myths are not just fiction. Their de-
You consciously experience all sensory in-
tails might be fiction (in varying degrees, de-
put. You are not lost in thoughts, daydreams,
pending on whether the myth was fabrication
or plans, ignoring sensory data that is being
or inspired from historic events), but because
fed to your brain. Rituals are a means to
they capture underlying truths, they are not
both contemplate the spiritual truths of a sys-
"mere" fiction. The fact that myths are told
tem and practice mindfulness at the same
through fiction does not lessen their import
time. Ritual is a discipline that transforms
or value in any way. To say something is a
the mind.
Myth is not to write something off as mere
This is not to say that the practice of
superstition.
ritual is the only way to practice mindfulness.
However, not all fiction is Myth.
Yet, some people pass off ritual as being
Myths are stories which hold magical power.
mindless, but this speaks more to their own
They capture emotion, energy, and truth,
inability or unwillingness to mindfully ap-
and offer a way for us to experience such
proach it.
things in a transformative manner. Historical
There are many ways to practice
stories, if they manifest the right symbolic
ritual--certainly, such things are not relegated
patterns, can hold such meaning as to be
to temples, churches or circles. Learning a
mythical, or to become myths. There are
martial art can be a ritual practice of mind-
modern myths. I consider works such as
fulness, just as can be training for a mara-
Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings and Lucas' Star
thon. The simplest ritual is mindful breath-
Wars to be modern myths, capable of trans-
ing.
formative power similar to some traditional
religious myths. Of course, religious stories
are the most obvious example of powerful

Module 1-2
24
Rituals create deliberate experi-
ences of ideas by manifesting sym-
bols.
Ritual is the heart of mystical practice.
The Hindi talk about mantra, which is medi-
tating on symbolic sounds, and mudra, which
In Wicca, we use ritual to connect with
is meditation on symbolic body position.
Movement--dance--is also a form of ritual.
Body position, location, and verbal intona-
tion are components of ritual, and some
rituals are as simple as chanting one word
over and over again. Rituals can be as com-
plex, or as simple, as the designer would like.
Why use complex rituals beyond sim-
ple breathing? While not "required", ritual is
a powerful tool to enact symbols in the physi-
cal world, whether they be "pure" symbols or
the dramatic stories of myths. Through rit-
ual we bring symbols and ideals down into
the world around us. Through ritual, we
create deliberate experiences of those deeper
meanings. Experiences shape and define us,
so ritual becomes a powerful tool to trans-
The Witch's tools are physical objects that
form ourselves into the ideals we hold dear.
Ritual will transform us based on the frame-
work upon which the rituals are constructed.
Rituals can be used for good or evil.
The temple is an obvious place for
ritual. Objects within the temple become the
physical presence of symbols. The temple
itself can have meaning, where the layout
and space becomes a representation of the
universe, composed of related concepts. Dif-
ferent physical locations in the temple can
hold meaning (such as where the altar is
placed), meaning that the physical location of
a ritual participant can hold meaning. The
temple itself becomes a living symbol
All life becomes a grand rite, a stage to
enact these values. The temple is a place to
For those of you who have already stud-
do it deliberately. The home and community
is a place to cultivate hearth. The greatest
values in the world aren't any good if we
don't act them out in the world around us. I
choose to be good in spite of the world, and
even if the rest of the world is dark, I choose
to transform the world into a greater good.
Every action then becomes a ritual of trans-
You will also find that different texts as-
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
formation, a mindful practice that affects
change in the world in accordance with the
values that make up my understanding of
good.
our Myths to build community and provide experi-
ential opportunity for divine communion. We also
use ritual for magical initiation, involving the spiri-
tual transformation and growth of the initiate. We
also use ritual to engage a magical universe to-
wards practical spell work.
Assignment #3
1. Read: A Witch's Bible, Book 2, Chapter 14:
Myth, Ritual and Symbolism.
Tools and Temple
Implements
are symbols embodying concepts. The Witch
uses these tools in the Temple to enact rituals, to
enable working with the underlying concepts.
This is not to say that these tools are "merely"
symbolic. They hold meaning in a magical sense,
and thus are linked to the the essence of magical
meanings in the higher planes. Their connections
to conceptual essences are strengthened by ritu-
als of consecration which imbue them with magi-
cal energy and give them purpose and definition
within the spiritual world.
Assignment #4
1. Read: A Witch's Bible, Part 2: Chapter XXIV:
The Witches' Tools
2. Read: Witchcraft for Tomorrow, Chapter 8:
Witches' Attire, and Chapter 6: Witch Tools
ied some Hermetic Kabbalah, note that the color
correspondences given in Chapter 8 of Witchcraft
for Tomorrow are using the King Scale on the
paths of the Tree, not the Sephirothic Queen
Scale colors. If this does not make sense to you
right now, don't worry--it will be addressed in
depth in a later lesson.
cribe different elemental correspondences.
 25

Second, its not quite as simple as

Assignment #5 sword/Air and wand/Fire. In the Golden
1. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows (The Dawn, it is not to say that the daggers are
Temple--Witch's Tools) Air and wands are Fire. It is more
correct to say that the elemental tool of
Air is a dagger and the elemental tool of
Fire is a wand. This is a huge difference.
The Elements of Tools There were different wands and different
I wrote the following on 4 December, 2002, blades. The Air Dagger was NOT the same
as a student's response to the elemental attri- as the ceremonial sword, which WAS attrib-
butions with the tools as found in the Farrars' uted to Geburah and Fire. The Air Dagger
A Witch's Bible. It was revised on 27 March, has the markings of a different sephirah alto-
2006. gether: Yesod. The lotus wand of the Adep-
tus Minor was not attributed to ANY one
element... rather, it had the markings of all
The Farrars say that the attribution of
12 zodiacal signs, and so ruled ALL the ele-
the wand to fire and sword to air was a de-
ments. The wand itself depicted the grade of
liberate blind perpetrated by the early
a sephirah of air, yet it was a grade higher
Golden Dawn... They are quoting Tech-
than elemental Air. The adeptus tran-
niques of High Magic by Francis King and
scended and commanded all the elements, so
Stephen Skinner. But, the Farrars admit that
his tool incorporated all of them, but hap-
there is a puzzle: the earliest documents that
pened to be a wand.
were given in the utmost secrecy give the
The elemental tools, which means spe-
sword/Air and wand/Fire attribution. Then
cifically those tools which are there to repre-
they say, So if there was a blind, to whom
sent and embody that particular element on
was it directed?
the altar (even though other tools may have
I would like to delve a little more into
elemental associations) are derived from the
the background and throw up some other
Tarot, so we should look there.
possibilities as to the historical development
In the Golden Dawn Cipher Manu-
of these symbolic attributions.
script, throughout the knowledge lectures,
I assert that the Golden Dawn, as an
the implication is that the suit of wands rep-
order, did in fact use the sword/Air and
resents the element of Fire. The key there is
wand/Fire attributions, and that this was not
the tetragrammatons elemental correspon-
a deliberate blind at least on their part.
dences of the letters, along with the kabbalis-
First of all, works published by later
tic worlds. The tetragrammaton YHVH:
Golden Dawn initiates, from Crowley to Re-
Yod-heh-vav-heh, which elementally is Fire-
gardie, maintain the sword/Air and wand/
Water-Air-Earth, or Atziluth-Briah-Yetzirah-
Fire attributions, even after the period of
Assiah. In the knowledge lectures published
which such blinds were in vogue. Regardie,
by Regardie, and in the original cipher
from what Ive read of the man, was inter-
manuscripts republished by the Holmes Pub-
ested in preservation of the system and not
lishing Group, it attributes the YOD to the
its confusion, and had access to original ma-
suit of Wands in the tarot pack.
terial first through Crowley and then later
And so I feel that it is reasonable to
through Dion Fortune, both of whom were
assume that the Golden Dawn used the wand
members of the original order founded by
to represent Fire and the dagger to represent
Mathers. It is my opinion that Regardie
Air, and that this was not a deliberate blind
would not have perpetuated blinds, but was
perpetrated by the early Golden Dawn.
interested in preserving the Order material in
However, the puzzle still remains. The
its true form.
Golden Dawn system was synthesized to-

Module 1-2
26
gether by Mathers based on the cipher
manuscript and his own occult knowledge
(primarily Agrippa, Kabbalah, the Enochian
system and Freemasonry). The Golden
Dawn system is known to have some errors in
some areas, and some original innovations in
Assuming that the GD did in fact use
others. (For an outstanding history of the
development of the modern GD-influenced
major arcana numbering see The Western
Mysteries by David Allen Hulse, which used
to be titled The Key of it All, Book II). One
error they had is to attribute Wands to Dia-
monds, when the history of the suits leads
pentacles/coins to diamonds (earth associa-
tion) and wands to clubs. (The Encyclopedia
of Tarot, Stewart R. Kaplan). Additionally,
there is reason to question the Fire-Water-
Air-Earth order in Kabbalah, and correct the
worlds to Fire-Air-Water-Earth, but that is a
case not so easily made.
There is also the questionable origin of
the cipher manuscript. Who wrote it? Was it
a forgery? The debate hasnt been fully de-
cided and going into each is beyond the
scope of this discussion.
Another thing is that there is a piece of
information that I have found pre-GD (The
Western Mysteries, David Allen Hulse) which
hints that the correct is actually sword to fire.
It lies in the court cards. The court cards
were King, Queen, Knight, Page. The GD
assumed the ranking order was as such and
renamed them King Queen Prince Princess.
My personal feeling is that the GD
But Crowley changed it, making it Knight,
Queen, Prince, Princess. David Allen Hulse
asserts that in the original ranking, the
Knight had precedence, not the King, and so
the order would have been: Knight Queen
King Page, or Fire-Water-Air-Earth, and the
Knight is holding a sword and the King is
holding a scepter.
So taking all the above into considera-
tion, I see a few possibilities to consider.
However, I dont think it really mat-
First, I think that I have been able to argue
that King and Skinner were incorrect and
oversimplifying in their assertion. Second, it
is possible that the blind occurred before
the creation of the Golden Dawn, or that the
sources creating the GD made a mistake and
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
not a deliberate blind. If the cipher manu-
scripts were from a secret order, there could
have been a blind injected before Mathers
got hold of it. Or, there was no blind at all,
and Mathers did what made sense to him.
these attributions, and taking into account
that for good or ill, the GD has had a huge
impact on the modern occult world, another
possibility exists. In the visualizations associ-
ated with the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the
Pentagram, Michael the Archangel of Fire
holds a flaming sword and Raphael the
Archangel of Air is holding a Caduceus. It is
possible that people got confused not under-
standing that not all swords have the same
meaning, and a wand isnt a wand isnt a
wand (even though that sword and wand look
nothing like what the GD has on their altar
as the elemental wand and dagger). That is
an easy way the switch could have oc-
curred. Another easy way is that somewhere
along the line after the GD split, as people
began blending the knowledge with other
systems external to GD, someone made an
arbitrary change. Finally, maybe the foun-
ders of Wicca thought the GD was mistaken
and decided to "correct" the blind or mistake
for whatever reason. Or perhaps they didn't
think it was a mistake and decided to make
that change anyway, as the authors of their
own tradition.
created their attribution for their system
based on Mathers syntheses, and that it was
confusion later that caused the switch. I
think it's another case of early Wiccans want-
ing to be right by claiming the Golden Dawn
perpetuated a blind--these are the same peo-
ple who believed the Murray hypothesis and
held to it long after the academic world dis-
credited her.
ters. The GD used one system, and clearly it
works. British Traditional Wicca uses the
athame to represent fire, and clearly that
works. I think the important thing is that a
magical system is self-consistent.
 27

Lesson Review
1. Describe the primary god-forms of first de-
gree, and their relationship to each other.
2. Define myth and ritual and describe their pur-
pose in Witchcraft.
3. List and describe the meaning and purpose of
all witch's tools described in the Book of
Shadows.
4. What is the difference between the Witch's
athame and the ceremonial Air Dagger?
5. What symbols are traditionally inscribed on
the athame? What do they mean, and from
what traditional text from Ceremonial Magic
are they taken?
6. What symbols should go on the pentacle, and
what do they mean?
7. What is the purpose of the pentacle?
8. Which Witch's tool is used to attract rather
than repel energies?
9. What is the scourge used to symbolize?
10. Write out the Charge of the Goddess on pa-
per with no promptings. Compare it to the
Charge in the Book of Shadows. Now recite
it, without prompting, and with smooth
speech.
11. Why is the God not a jealous god?
12. What attains the end of desire?
13. Who is the spark of awareness within us?
14. How does one come to know the God?

Module 1-2
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Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007

Module 1-3: Belief Structure
Lesson Objectives
This is an exciting lesson! It brings the
world view of the Witch together, acting as a basis
for religious and magical practice. So far, we've
introduced Wicca, the Eshim, and the concept of
Hearth, and then we've looked at myth, ritual, the
Gods, and the Witch's ritual tools, which are
physical symbols. But, we've not really gotten
The coven is not a swingers' club. This
much into the beliefs and ethics of the religion,
other than to talk about the Gods. The Gods are
important, but as with any religion, Wicca involves
a way of looking at the world and a practice of
engaging the world. This lesson completes the
core structure of the Wiccan worldview, as pre-
sented by the Hearthcraft tradition.
By the end of this lesson, the student
should be able to:
1. Describe the role of sexuality within Wicca,
and the Wiccan perspective on sexual moral-
ity.
2. Describe Wiccan concepts of morality and
Wicca is charged with sexual symbolism,
ethics, to include the Wiccan Rede and the
Law of Return.
3. Describe the theory of reincarnation, the the-
ory of levels, and the theory of polarity.
4. Describe the four Elements
5. Know how to trace the invoking and banishing
forms of the elemental pentagrams, and learn
the signs and gestures of the first-degree.
Sexuality and Fertility
A central theme of Wicca is fertility, both
of the harvest and of human fertility. Because of
this, Wicca celebrates sexuality both as a means
of life and as a means of pleasure. While we do
not advocate sexuality without responsibility, we
also do not fear healthy sexual expression. We
do not believe that sexual pleasure is limited for
No student or any other person should
procreation alone, nor do we believe that sexual
pleasure is reserved only for married couples.
Module 1-3
29
Assignment #1
1. Read: A Witch's Bible, Part 2: Chapter XV:
Witchcraft and Sex
2. Read: A Witch's Bible, Part 2: Chapter XVIII:
Naked in Your Rites
Sexual Ethics
bears mention, because sometimes people take
advantage of Wicca's openness about sexuality,
and seek to make coven circles a place to find
sexual partners. While it is natural that some
coven mates might find sexual partners and rela-
tionships with other coven mates, as can happen
in any group activity to include the neighborhood
volleyball club, it is not the purpose of the coven
to set up such liaisons, just as it is not the pur-
pose of the volleyball club to set up sexual en-
counters. Volleyball club is for volleyball, and the
coven is for community worship and seeking
hearth with the divine.
and uses the dynamic tension between gender
opposites to raise energy, so coven leaders need
be aware of situations that may arise that need to
be grounded in a dose of healthy perspective.
The coven is not a swingers' club. Wicca does
not condemn casual sexual encounters, but nei-
ther does it celebrate them. The Charges states
"all acts of love and pleasure are My rituals." It
does not read "all acts of love or pleasure." As
with all areas of Wiccan ethics, the religion is
permissive of anything that truly harms none.
That is not a carte-blanche to do anything you
desire without consequence--as with everything, it
is freedom with responsibility. We may not be-
lieve that the Gods condemn, judge, or punish us
for our actions, but that doesn't mean actions
don't have natural consequences, both in the
physical and spiritual worlds.
ever be or feel pressured to surrender sex in ex-
change for lessons, initiation, or anything else.
Furthermore, while Wicca accepts that some
people might choose alternate lifestyles
(polyamory, open marriages, etc.), most people
are monogamous, and choices for monogamy
30
must be respected. No Wiccan group should be-
little or put pressure on a monogamous couple to
"lighten up." Being sexually open and forgoing
monogamy does not make you any more enlight-
ened than those who choose monogamy or even
chastity. Unfortunately this has to be mentioned
because I've seen this attitude occur in pagan
(not just Wiccan) circles.
Sexual tension, pleasure, stimulation, and
intercourse may be used in ritual, and can be an
As you go through the reading assign-
effective means of raising magical energy,
whether for religious purposes or for practical
spell work. It should be reiterated from the above
reading assignment, "Sex magic without love is
black magic." In other words, those sexual expe-
riences in ritual should only be between those
Within the context of this tradition, the
who have a sexual relationship outside of circle.
Furthermore, actual sexual activity, as opposed to
symbolized gender union, should be done in pri-
vate between the people involved, rather than in
front of the coven.
The Great Rite
When it comes to matters of history, I
Assignment #2
1. Read: A Witch's Bible, Part 1: Chapter II:
The Great Rite
You'll find the version in the Book of
Shadows is taken from this version.
Beliefs
The BoS reading talks about the four
The following reading assignments give
an in-depth explanation of various Wiccan beliefs.
Assignment #3
1. Read: What Witches Do, Chapter III: What
Witches Believe
2. Read: A Witch's Bible, Part 2: Chapter XI and
XII, The Rationale of Witchcraft and Reincar-
nation
3. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows: Section
titled "Worldview"
It is important to understand the distinc-
tion between the Individuality and the Personality,
the theory of levels, and the theory of Reincarna-
tion and karma. The Hearthcraft theory of rein-
carnation holds that the individuality is shaped
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
through each lifetime by incarnating as a person-
ality. Hopefully, the individuality evolves to greater
levels of awareness and draws closer to the di-
vine source, rather than farther away, but this is
dependent upon the choices the personality
makes. The Tree of Life is important because it
describes the dynamic interplay between the
Theory of Levels and the Theory of Polarity.
ments, you'll find that some authors conflict with
each other. This is normal, especially in the oc-
cult world. You'll find the more you read that you'll
form your own opinions and learn to trust certain
authors over others.
Book of Shadows is considered more authorita-
tive (for the purposes of Hearthcraft practice) than
the reading assignments. Personal intuition and
decision is ultimately the highest authority, since
this tradition is based on the Thelemic thought
that your True Will is your highest authority (more
on this later).
tend to trust Ronald Hutton much more than I do
the Farrars or Valiente--they write under the belief
that Margaret Murray and Frasier got things right.
However, it's still important to read their views on
things because it's important to understand what
has been taught in their traditional context if one
is to understand how Wiccan belief in the com-
munity has been shaped to this day.
The Elements
(five) elements. Much of Wicca is based upon
working with these elements. Remember that the
four-elemental system, the 10-sephiroth system,
and the 7-level system are all mental models
used to describe the magical universe. They are
not infallible descriptions of the universe itself.
Think of them as a working model, like the peri-
odic table of elements, in chemistry. The periodic
table describes real chemical properties--but the
table is not the chemicals themselves, nor does it
represent a geographical map. The periodic table
describes conceptual relationships, and uses spa-
tial relationships on the table to describe those
conceptual relationships. The same is true for the
various magical world models--they describe con-
ceptual relationships, not geographic relation-
ships. Fire is not "above" Air in the same sense
 31

that the physical Sun is "above" (from our per- Assignment #5

spective) the clouds. 1. Read: Book of Shadows, (Magic) Arcane
Knowledge for First Degree: The Pentagram
2. Learn and memorize the elemental penta-
grams. You'll have to be able to trace them
Ethics during rituals.

Wicca is not a dogmatic religion. It has
To practice tracing the pentagrams, stand
traditional laws, but it does not have a list of moral
commandments.
Oftentimes, people mistakenly say Wicca
has one commandment: "Harm none." This is a
bastardization of the Wiccan Rede, which states,
"An ye harm none, do what ye will." In modern
English, that's, "If you harm none, do as you will."
Or more clearly, "If what they are doing is harming
none, then chill; it's okay." This is not a com-
mandment to do no harm. Rather, it is a reminder
that we should not judge others for performing
actions which harm none. There may be in-
stances where doing harm to someone or some-
thing is necessary--even morally right. Some-
times taking no action causes more harm than
taking action.
Assignment #4
1. Read: A Witch's Bible, Part 2: Chapter XIII:
The Ethics of Witchcraft
2. Read: Witchcraft for Tomorrow: Chapter 2:
Witch Ethics
3. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows: (Hearth
Foundation): The Law of Thelema, The Wic-
can Rede, The Law of Return, 10 Values, 4
Virtues, The Way of the Hearth
with your right foot facing forward. Move your left
foot slightly back and point towards the left, touch-
ing your right heel. This will angle your shoulders
so your right shoulder leads forward. Your eyes
should look forward, guided by where your right
foot is facing. Extend your right arm, place your
hand in the projecting gesture (see Assignment 6,
below), and trace the pentagram. Remember,
your right foot indicates your "front", not where
your chest is pointed. This stance creates a pro-
jective posture, poising your will towards the for-
mation of the symbols in the astral plane. Below
illustration shows the approximate stance, includ-
ing foot position. Do not forget the sixth "sealing"
stroke. We don't use the sealing stroke when we
move into Ceremonial Magic later on, but for the
purposes of religious temple rites and non-
ceremonial styles of magic, we use the sealing
stroke.

Ultimately, the Witch is expected to take

responsibility for their actions, and to seek the
wisdom to understand the consequences of a par-
ticular action. The Witch believes that each
choice and action she performs shapes herself
just as it shapes the world around her.

Ritual Preliminaries:
The Pentagram, Signs,
and Gestures
The Pentagram is quintessential symbol
of the Wiccan faith.

Module 1-3
32

Part of ritual involves assuming symbolic
body postures, called signs. Also are hand ges-
tures used to convey certain meanings.
Assignment #6
1. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows: Section:
Signs and Gestures, Signs: Horned God
Stance, and Goddess Stance. Gestures:
Athame, Projecting Hand
The Horned God Stance is used by the
male Witch when invoking the God during the
opening rite, and the Goddess stance is used by
the female Witch when delivering the Charge of
the Goddess. Men would not assume the
Goddess position, and vice versa.
The student does not use the athame
until she is initiated and consecrates her own
athame. Until then, the student uses the projec-
tion gesture in place of the athame.
7. What is the concept of reincarnation? How
does Wiccan belief in reincarnation differ from
Hindu belief?
8. What is a boddhisatva?
9. What is Summerland?
10. What does the Law of Return state at its
core?
11. What are the 10 Sephiroth? Diagram the
Tree of Life, drawing the Sephiroth and con-
necting them with the path lines. Number and
name each Sephirah in its Hebrew title and
English translation.
12. How does the Tree of Life relate to Wiccan
cosmology?
13. What theory describes the structure of the
universe?
14. What theory describes the activity of the uni-
verse.

Terminology: Invocation/Evocation
Because we're getting ready to get into
ritual next lesson, and we've mentioned "invok-
ing", we should probably clarify the terms.
Invoking means to draw the spiritual force
(whether it's an energy, spirit, or god) within you.
Evoking means to bring in that spiritual force and
summon it externally, not within you.
Women invoke the Goddess and evoke
the God, while men invoke the God and evoke the
Goddess.
Invocation and Evocation will become
more clear in future lessons.

Lesson Review
1. Trace all the pentagrams.
2. What is the Wiccan Rede? How is it com-
monly misunderstood? How does the
Hearthcraft tradition understand it?
3. Describe the Theory of Levels.
4. Describe the Theory of Polarity.
5. How does sexual polarity fit into the Wiccan
world-view and ritual practice?
6. Describe the nature of each of the four classi-
cal elements. Describe how they relate to the
different spiritual worlds.

Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007

Module 1-4: Temple and Coven
Lesson Objectives
This is the final preliminary lesson prior to
actual temple work. We'll pull together some final
aspects of academic understanding regarding the
Wiccan path, including a look at coven structure
and the three-degree system of initiation. We'll
also start some basic meditative and mental exer-
cises in order to start mystical practice and pre-
pare you for work in the temple.
By the end of this lesson, the student
should:
1. Begin relaxation and concentration exercises
2. Adopt a healthy way of life.
3. Understand organizational structure of
Hearthcraft.
4. Understand goals and stages of Hearthcraft
initiation at each degree.
5. Understand and be able to describe the ra-
tionale of occult secrecy and the different
kinds of secrets.
Core Library Books
We're adding another book to your core
library. You will need to acquire the following
book in order to complete the required readings
for this lesson:
1. Cooper, David A. (1999). A Heart of Stillness.
Woodstock VT: Skylight Paths Publishing
David Cooper is a Jewish author who
published the book on Kabbalah titled God is a
Verb. This particular book, A Heart of Stillness, is
a non-sectarian guide to meditation, and the top-
ics in this book are inter-religious, pertaining to
pan-religious mystical practice.
Fundamentals of Practice
In the last three lessons, we've covered a
lot of ground, academically speaking. We have
not gotten much into the way of actual practice
yet, so we're going to start focusing on that, even
as we continue the academic portion and address
Module 1-4
33
the celebration of sacred days over this lesson
and the next lesson. In this lesson, you will start
practicing skills that will help you in both your re-
ligious practice and your magical work.
Tradition
Why is tradition important? Many people
are drawn to paganism, and even to Wicca, be-
cause they are trying to get away from rigid ad-
herence to tradition. While it's true that we should
try to avoid stagnation--the unwillingness to
change based on the way things have always
been done--that doesn't mean we should ignore
the footsteps of those who have gone before us.
It is true that the magical student should not be
constricted to a certain point of view--that in the
quest for truth we should try to be free, even from
our selves. Yet, to ignore the lessons learned
from the past would be foolhardy.
The truth is that very little human knowl-
edge is instinctual. One of the great things about
the human race is our capacity to learn. Further-
more, we learn and pass on those lessons to our
children, and our children's children, and so on.
Through evolution and civilization, we stand on
the shoulders of our ancestors.
Tradition communicates more than just
knowledge, however. It passes down a sense of
shared meaning from generation to generation. It
shapes the way we think, and thus shapes the
way we interconnect with the world around us.
Discipline
Discipline is a matter of focused, con-
scious restriction imposed upon the self by the
will. The concept of restriction is essentially fun-
damental to the practice of magic. In her book,
Witchcraft for Tomorrow, Doreen Valiente makes a
great analogy comparing the magic circle to the
cylinder in a car. Gasoline by itself does not have
much power. You light it, and it burns. But, when
you constrict the combustion by a cylinder, you
get a lot of power from it. The magic circle per-
forms a similar function, and in a larger context,
discipline performs the same function on the self
34
during the process of self-development and initia-
tion.
The mind does not like to be disciplined,
however. The student needs to develop her pow-
ers of concentration, focus, and will. This takes
methodically recurring practice, the same way
that mastering the piano takes recurring practice
of doing scales. The mind, however, will resist
this. Daily practice is change, and the mind re-
sists change until it is internally adopted as a way
of life.
This is true for prayer and meditation, just
as it is true for mundane lifestyle changes like
going to the gym every day. For many years I
struggled getting myself to work out every day. I
kept thinking that if only the gym were closer, or if
only the workout were shorter, or if only it was
more convenient... and I kept failing to establish a
continuous practice. I also studied magic, and
tried to establish a daily ritual and meditative
practice, but ended up falling into the same ex-
cuses. I had an epiphany when I realized that
daily meditation, and daily exercise (running, lift-
ing weights, etc.) were the same thing. The rea-
sons for not doing them were the same thing. It
didn't matter that I could do the meditation in the
comfort of my own home, and that lifting weights
required driving to the gym. It didn't matter that
the time requirements were different. What it all
boiled down to was will, and the decision to just
do it. You do what's important to you, and if it's
important to you, you can make it work in your
schedule.
What will eventually happen is that after
months of continual practice you will eventually
become accustomed to the practice. It will be-
come a positive habit, a routine in your life. You
will find that the mind does not like change--so
that when you don't do your practice, you will get
a sense of unease, because your practice has
become normal, and the change is now to not do
it. I found this to be true after I had been regularly
going to the gym for a year. Now, if I don't go to
the gym, I feel a sense of unease. The same is
true if I do not observe a Sabbat.
You will find that the frequency of practice
may or may not have any bearing on your resis-
tance to adopt a practice, especially if you are
practicing alone. You may find that observing
every Full Moon may not be any easier than es-
tablishing a weekly or even a daily practice, even
though there are only 13 Full Moons in a year!
Now, all of this is said to inform you about
the resistance of the self. What I'm not trying to
do is create a self-defeating guilt complex. Ob-
serve yourself... if you achieve your daily practice
goals, it tells you that that's important to you. If
you don't achieve your goals, then you are telling
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
yourself that it's not that important to you. If you
think it's important, then make it important and do
it! Also, just as with exercise... it is not the end of
the world if you miss a day. What matters is
overall, continual level of practice. If I exercise six
days a week, and then one week I only do five
days, does that really hurt me? No. If I exercise
six days a week for three months, and then miss
one month because I'm home for vacation and
chosen not to exercise, is that wrong? No, as
long as I'm ok with accepting a month of deterio-
ration.
You make choices. If you don't like the
choice you made today (by missing your prac-
tice), then don't fret over it. You can make a dif-
ferent choice tomorrow. If, however, you continu-
ally make a choice to not do your practice, then
you should consider if you really want this at this
point in your life.
You make the choice. If you don't suc-
ceed in performing your daily practice, understand
and accept it's not because you can't. It's be-
cause you wont.
Learning that first lesson is an important
step to becoming a Witch.
Effort
Im going to continue to use the exercise
analogy. When you go to the gym and lift
weights, its good to do it so it becomes routine--
because then youre used to going and it will be-
come part of your daily life. This does not mean
that you get used to each rep that you do, so that
lifting the weight becomes routine and boring. If
you allow this to happen, you are no longer get-
ting the full benefit of the exercise. You still need
to exert yourself and put in a high level of effort
into your lifting. If a specific weight becomes
easy, you increase the weight so you are putting
in that high level of effort.
It is similar, if not the exact same, with
ritual. Lets say you are practicing a daily ritual
that involves tracing and visualizing a blue penta-
gram in the space in front of you. You should
have this memorized so that it becomes routine.
But, at the same time you are trying to build a rou-
tine (like you can build muscle memory while
playing a musical instrument), you dont want to
let it become merely routine. As it becomes rou-
tine, your challenge will be to maintain the same
level of focus. You need to focus and feel the rit-
ual each time you perform it. Concentrate on the
pentagram, even if youve made that same pen-
tagram a hundred times before. Feel it, focus on
it. Each time, put more energy into it, and try to
make that visualization a little clearer, a little more
concrete. Stretch out to it with your other senses

as well. Each time you do an invocation, feel the
words. Dont just recite them, but know their
meaning in the moment that you say them. This
is practicing mindfulness, and this too is a skill
that is cultivated over time.
Consider someone who has learned to
play a sonata. It takes considerable level of effort
in the beginning as she is learning to play it.
There comes a point, however, where muscle
memory sets in, and the sonata becomes routine.
But, if the pianist allows it to become routine to
herself while playing it, it will lose its power and
passion, no matter how technically correct it is.
So too is it with ritual. From a meditational per-
spective, the topic of Effort will be explored more
in future readings of A Heart of Stillness.
Health
A temple is said to be a place where the
presence of the Gods reside, and as we each
have a divine spark within us, your body is a tem-
ple during your life here on Earth. As such, you
should treat your body well, and cultivate a
healthy lifestyle.
Im not going to tell you that you can
never eat chocolate, or have sugar, or eat meat.
You will have to make your own health choices,
and decide what is appropriate for you. But, if
you eat like most Americans, you should seek to
reduce your fat, sugar, and starch intakes. I per-
sonally prefer an eating plan that is relatively strict
during the week, but allows me one free day a
week to eat whatever I want. The key, in the end,
is mindful, intelligent moderation.
Im not going to tell you that you have to
be an athlete. You will have to decide how much
exercise is appropriate to you, especially if you
have a medical condition that prohibits an active
lifestyle. But, physical activity is an important part
of your physical health and wellness.
I expect some interest to be taken in your
personal health. Not only is this simply out of re-
spect for yourself, and hence the indwelling divin-
ity within you, but also because a healthy vessel
makes for more potent and grounded magic. So,
your first exercise involves the physical body.
Assignment #1
1. Start an Exercise Plan. Pick three days,
evenly spaced, throughout the week (such as
Mon-Wed-Fri). On those days, do some kind
of cardiovascular workout for 15 minutes
(jogging, biking, swimming, aerobics machine,
etc). Move up to the point where you can do
it for at least 20 minutes a day. This is the
minimum. You can also walk, rigorously, for
60 minutes. Do some stretching exercises
Module 1-4
35
five days a week, including the days you do
your workout. This is the minimum I would
ask my students (given no complicating medi-
cal conditions), and if you can do this, then I
wont bother you again about your physical
health. If youre already doing this or more,
great!
2. Eating Habits. Over the next four weeks,
choose one improvement to your eating hab-
its and make it a permanent change. Be care-
ful not to sabotage yourself (e.g., if you
choose to cut out soda, dont add a candy bar
every day). Examples could be to replace
soda for water, dont have desserts during the
week, make mid-meal snacks a fruit or un-
salted (raw) nuts rather than candy or pas-
tries, have breakfast if you usually skip break-
fast, cut down your portions at dinner, cut
fried foods completely (including french fries).
Remember that if you have a high calorie/high
fat day once a week, thats not necessarily
bad, as long as you are consistently moderate
calorie/low fat the rest of the week.
Drastic lifestyle changes can be psycho-
logically stressful. There is no need to go from
nothing to perfect overnight. Make small changes
at a time, and increment your way towards a
healthy lifestyle.
Stillness
The treasure of the initiate is the inner
heart of stillness. It is important that you begin to
cultivate this stillness so you can listen. It has
been said that if prayer is speaking to the Gods,
meditation is listening to the Gods.
Exercise: Seeking Inner Stillness
1. Find a quiet place where you can sit undis-
turbed.
2. Outer Stillness. Use either a cushion, or a
straight chair such as a dining room chair,
where you can sit with your spine straight. If
you are sitting in a chair, sit with your feet flat
on the floor, and rest your hands on your legs
towards your knees. If you are using a cush-
ion, cross your legs and rest your hands on
your knees.
3. Relaxation. Sit in the chair as described.
Close your eyes. Be observant of yourself.
Allow your breath to slow to a four-count in-
hale and a four-count exhale. In your mind's
eye, form a globe of golden light in your head.
36
Wherever this globe is, relax your muscles.
Let the globe absorb any tension. Start with
your forehead, your eyes, your face, and your
head. Move down through your neck, each
arm, your trunk, and each leg. Remember to
relax your toes and fingers. Go over your
As a student of mysticism, you should
muscles with the globe repeatedly until you
feel totally relaxed. Let the globe dissolve
and sink into the ground. With practice, you
will be able to achieve the relaxed state
quickly, once you've learned how to reach it
methodically.
4. Breathing. Be deliberate, slow, and rhythmic
in your breathing. Four counts inhale, hold,
four counts exhale, hold.
5. Listening. Observe yourself, and your
thoughts. See how your mind chatters. Mys-
Practicing mindfulness is the opposite of
tics call this the "monkey mind", and it is diffi-
cult to master. Allow it to be silent. The goal
is to achieve a state of nothingness, of no-
thought. This is a lot harder than it sounds.
Thoughts will return. Observe them, accept
them, allow them to be, and release them into
nothingness. When faced with difficulty, re-
turn your focus to your four-count breathing.
6. Don't try for nothingness. Relax into nothing-
It is important to remember that the
ness.
7. Do this for 15 minutes.
You may find this difficult at first. If you
need, simply practice motionlessness until you
can sit still without moving any muscle for 15 min-
utes. Your body may complain at first, including
loss of blood to a foot. Dismiss it, and don't use
your body's aches and pains as an excuse to
break your posture. Once you achieve motion-
lessness, focus on breathing, four counts in and
four counts out. When your mind wanders, return
to breathing.
Assignment #2
1. Read: A Heart of Stillness: Preface, and Mas-
tering the Monkey Mind
2. Daily Practice. Perform the Seeking Inner
Stillness exercise every day for one full moon
cycle.
3. Log your daily practice in your journal. Re-
cord your observations about the practice.
Observe your emotional and mental states
before the exercise and after the exercise,
and make a note of those.
Continue with your lessons. You don't
need to stop for the full month while you perform
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
this practice. Rather, you should be practicing
this as your study continues.
Mindfulness
begin practicing mindfulness. In the ideal, mind-
fulness means being consciously aware of the
here and now, in total. When you watch TV you
can still hear other sounds, and you can still feel
your clothes on your skin and the pressure of the
seat you are sitting upon, but your mind is not
conscious of these things. Your senses do not
stop sending signals to your brain, but you have
tuned them out. You have achieved a state of
partial mindlessness.
this. It is a focused awareness of here and now.
While it is true that some occult practices require
us to loosen our mind and we lose awareness of
our physical senses while we travel the astral
planes, it is still important to practice and know
mindfulness. In doing so, we can cultivate a more
conscious awareness of divine activity in our day
to day lives, here in the physical world.
physical world is not something evil. This world is
manifested by the Gods, and this is where life
actually happens. Thus, it is beautiful. Malkuth is
the fullness and fruit of Divine Activity.
Exercise: Being in the Now
1. Bring your mind back to its center, quieting
extraneous though. You need not be meditat-
ing to do this. You can pause in the office,
and quiet yourself. You need not close your
eyes.
2. Seeing. Know where you are. Observe your
surroundings. Be aware of everything in your
field of vision, all at once, instead of just the
thing that your eyes are focused on.
3. Hearing. Know where you are. Observe all
the sounds coming to your ears, all around
you. Don't tune anything out. Don't let your
Seeing slip from your awareness, but hold the
two simultaneously.
4. Feeling. Know where you are. Observe all
your bodily sensations, from the clothes you
are wearing, to the temperature, to little
breaths of air as it passes over your skin.
Observe the feeling inside your body. Hold all
these feelings in your awareness at once.

Don't let Seeing and Hearing slip from your
awareness, but hold the three simultaneously.
5. Smelling. Know where you are. Observe all
the scents in the air, all at once. Hold this
simultaneously with Feeling, Hearing, and
Seeing.
6. Tasting. Know where you are. Observe the
taste in your mouth, even if you are not eat-
ing. Your mouth has its own taste, probably
shaped by what you've recently eaten or
drunk. Hold this together with Smelling, Feel-
ing, Hearing and Seeing.
This will take practice. As you gain facil-
ity, hold in your awareness your inner self as well,
your feelings and thoughts, your state of heart
and mind.
Assignment #3
1. Practicing Mindfulness. Once or more a
day, take a few minutes to practice Being in
the Now. Do this at different times, such as
when you're sitting, when you're walking or
exercising, and when you're eating. Because
the mind is fickle at the beginning of mental
disciplinary practice, don't do this at times that
require your focus for safety, such as while
driving a vehicle.
2. When you've made some progress in the
Seeking Inner Stillness exercise, you can en-
hance it by Being in the Now.
The issue of how the coven is run--
You'll notice that as you practice mindful-
ness, your Seeking Inner Stillness exercise is also
a form of mindful practice. Inner Stillness will en-
hance your mindful practice, and observing your-
self to achieve that Inner Stillness requires mind-
fulness. They are mutually beneficial practices.
The Book of Shadows is written from the
Initiation and Coven
There's a lot of material in the next Book
of Shadows reading. This is written to support an
operating Hearth, so some of it does not apply to
the solitary practitioner. One of the key things to
remember in reading this that there will be prac-
1 This was illustrated in her and Gavin Bone's Book, Progressive Witchcraft, and in an interview they held
on the Deo's Shadow Podcast (www.deos-shadow.com), episode #14.
Module 1-4
37
tices that are peculiar to each Hearth that is not in
this course. A dedicant to a hearth will undergo
that hearth's training structure, and so the pro-
gression will be somewhat different. There may
be hearth secrets that are required to be kept. In
this course, there is no need to swear to secrecy
any of this printed course material since it is pub-
licly available!
This course only takes you through first
degree. The published Book of Shadows only
covers first-degree material. At the end of this
course, I will try to give some direction in charting
your own second and third degree courses of
study. If you were to join an existing coven, they
would have their own courses of study for the
higher degrees. As a solitary practitioner, you're
stuck, for better and worse, with charting your
own path.
Assignment #4
1. Triumph of the Moon, Chapters 4-6: Finding a
Structure, Finding a High Magic, and Finding
a Low Magic.
2. Hearthcraft Book of Shadows: Section
"Hearth Foundation", Headings: Hearth Lexi-
con, The Wiccan Congregation, The Mystery
Tradition, Tradition of Secrecy, and Hearth
Structure.
Coven Authority
whether it is democratic or authoritarian--can be a
contentious issue in modern Wiccan circles. Tra-
ditionally, Wicca was hierarchical, and British Tra-
ditionalists today are still that way. Many non-
lineaged covens, however, run by consensus.
Even Janet Farrar has adopted a more demo-
cratic style approach in her modern coven (which
is no longer Alexandrian) 1.
standpoint that the coven leadership has the final
say. This authority, however, is limited only to
matters of the coven practice, within the bounds
of the circle and temple. This also includes mat-
ters of training, and rules for admittance. The
authority is never valid when asking someone to
betray their own morality (an example is sexual
ethics--sex is not a requirement for initiation!!!)
38

So, when joining a hearth, don't think you As a Coven Seat, you can modify hearth
are giving yourself, body and soul, to coven lead- law to your content. If you modify tradition law--
ership. Rather, you are agreeing to abide by their that's ok too, but you're not following the Hearth-
authority in matters of the coven and craft until craft tradition any more. That's fine--just don't call
such a time that you become autonomous in your yourself Hearthcraft. One of the reasons for this
practice. You wouldn't join the Freemasons and is that since the Hearthcraft trad is freely avail-
walk in as a novice demanding their rituals be able, someone seeking training within a hearth
changed to suit your whim. No, you (rather than going through this course)
would train under their system and should expect those aspects that are
then maybe advance to a position ...if among the public to be the same, which includes
where you had greater influence. It is v u l g a r s o m e tradition law.
no different in this case. discoveries One final note. These are con-
All that being said, as you are should arise siderations you can put on the back
on a self-initiate course, you are the concerning burner for now. Keep them in the back
coven authority, for you are a coven of of your mind, and then file the away.
some maxims of Right now we're still working on first
one. If you are going through this with
a partner, then a democratic approach thy belief in the degree, and there's a long way before
might make more sense. Gods so do you're ready to take on forming a
If you are ever in the situation thou, for the coven. If you're going through this
where someone else seeks you for most part, keep course with a group, just focus right
training and you've grown your own silent. For there now on being a good study group.
coven, it will be your choice how to
is a great risk
of those who Secrecy
tailor hearth law (vs. tradition law).
Hearth law governs how a coven is
straightaway You've read the portion in the
run and defines its administrative
Book of Shadows regarding secrecy,
structure. Coven leadership can re- vomit up that it's uses, and the different kinds of se-
shape this as they will, and if you opt which they hast crecy. One will ask, however, "I'm go-
for a more democratic style, then feel not digested. ing through a publicly available self-
free to do so. study course. What can possibly be
If you are going through this secret here?" That's a great question.
course as a group of people, the entire group will You'll have to feel out your own situation.
advance together and chart the shape of the It is good in any circumstance to practice discres-
coven. You will become the first "council of eld- sion. Most people are not comfortable with the
ers". You will have to decide which structure you Wiccan religion--some outright hostile, depending
will follow, and since you are coming up together, on where you live.
There is an occult saying: "To Dare, To
it makes sense you elect the High Priest and High
Will, To Know, To Be Silent." Learning when to be
Priestess. My hearth law does not have those silent is very important. This has magical applica-
positions as subject to terms and reelections, but tion when it comes to spell-work--you don't talk
there is no reason why you could not do that about the spells you cast in order to keep the en-
should you choose. You could even have the ergies unaffected by others' attentions--but this
Coven Seat be the council of elders (the third de- has practical application to your overall practice.
gree initiates, for example), and have the roles of What about others who are magically in-
High Priestess and High Priest be purely func- clined? Even here, discretion is good. Of course
tional... fulfilling ritual duties and roles... and rotat- you can freely talk with other Wiccans, and self-
ing through the years amongst the elders. identify as pagan. You can even discuss this
Any students your coven took once you course-work. The choice is up to you. If you
make personal discoveries along the way, espe-
were established would, of course, have to abide
cially when you start meditating, you decide how
by the hearth structure you set up. I couldn't much you choose to share.
come to your hearth and demand you move to a But consider this traditional bit excerpted
more authoritarian manner if you had set up from "A Note for Initiates":
something different.
The point is, there are multiple ways to "For there is a greatrisk of those who
skin the proverbial cat without sacrificing a struc- straightaway vomit up that which they hast
tured and disciplined training approach.
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
 39

not digested. And when someone shall say to

thee, thou knowest naught and it bites thee
not, then knowest thou that thou hast begun
the work."

Be careful of letting enthusiasm push you

to vomit up new information that you're excited
about, but haven't digested. Also, when other
people--even other pagans--come up and tell you
that you don't know anything, gauge your internal
reaction. If that doesn't sting you anymore, and
you're not goaded into trying to prove yourself,
you'll know that as a sign of spiritual progress on
your part.

Lesson Review
1. What are the self-development theories be-
hind each degree?
2. What are the different reasons for secrecy?
What kind of secrets are there?
3. What are the different kinds of hearth mem-
bership? What are the Accepted?

Module 1-4
40

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Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007

Module 1-5: Practice
Lesson Objectives
In this lesson, you establish and begin
working in your temple. We are now moving into
the practice of the religion, rather than just dis-
cussing the beliefs of the religion.
By the end of this lesson, you should be
Once you've read the above, you're going
able to:
1. Set up your Temple
2. Perform the Opening and Closing Rites
3. Perform the Cakes and Ale Rite
4. Celebrate an Esbat
Beginning Temple Work
Practice Seeking Inner Stillness and Be-
ing in the Now for at least one week before pro-
ceeding to this part of the lesson. Continue your
exercises as you continue with the rest of this
We will be referring to this section
module.
Assignment #1
1. Read: What Witches Do, Chapter 4: Training
of a Witch
In the Book of Shadows, look at the altar
2. Read: A Heart of Stillness, The Foundation of
Spiritual Practice: Introduction and Purifica-
tion
3. Read: A Witch's Bible Book 1: Chapter I: The
At this stage, you need to acquire a table
Opening Ritual, and Chapter III: The Closing
Ritual
A Heart of Stillness is written by a Jewish
mystic, but all of these chapters have something
of value to learn and apply to Wiccan practice.
We may not express things in the same way, but if
we look beneath the words, we can find insight.
Rabbi Cooper talks about how following
the laws and precepts of a particular religion is
part of the purification process in order to prepare
You'll need small bowls to hold salt and
the devotee for the mystical journey. This is true
in Western and Eastern paths, even if the theolo-
gies are different. He even gives examples from
ancient pythagorean mystery cults. While in
Wicca we may not tend choose things like celi-
bacy as an act of purification, we do have other
practices. The practices of observing the Esbats
God and Goddess statues are not neces-
and Sabbats, of casting the circle, of purifying the
temple with water, air and fire, and of blessing our
cakes and ale; all these are practices that can
Module 1-5
41
help bring purification as we attune ourselves to
the divine cycles found in nature.
Setting Up your Temple
to need to select a place where you can start to
worship and practice. If you have the luxury of a
dedicated room, that is great. Most don't. In-
stead, you'll need a table you can convert into an
altar, and understanding housemates if those you
live with do not share your interest in Wicca!
You'll need privacy.
Assignment #2
1. Hearthcraft Book of Shadows: The Temple
throughout this portion of the module. You will
need to memorize the altar layouts, learn the tool
meanings, and elemental directions (if you have
not already done so).
layout. There are 15 different items listed. To
begin, you won't need all 15. You will, however,
need some.
you can use as an altar. You'll need a God and
Goddess candle. Traditionally the Goddess can-
dle is black, and the God candle is white. If you
can only find 2 white taper candles, that is fine.
I've also used blue-green for the Goddess candle
and red-orange for the God candle, the king scale
colors for the path of the High Priestess and the
Heirophant on the Tree of Life, respectively. (Blue
and Red will also work if the other shades cannot
be found.)
water (items 4 and 5), and a libation dish. You'll
need a small plate to hold cakes, and a chalice for
wine. If you can't find the perfect plate and chal-
ice, don't worry at this point. It's better to set
aside some to work with rather than put off prac-
ticing because you haven't found the right chalice!
sary, but are nice to have. Take your time in look-
ing for these.
42
You may start to look for a wand and
athame, but you won't be using them quite yet.
You will use your athame gesture with your hand
It's time to learn the opening rite. In
until you perform the self-initiation at the end of
this course, where you will consecrate your
athame. So, leave the athame and wand off the
altar for now.
Although not required, try to find a
scourge. It adds an important part to the Opening
Rite. There are traditional ways to make a
scourge, with proper knot counts, and these can
be found in the Witch's Bible. However, I did not
follow that tradition while making my own. I was
in Korea, and ended up making mine from extra
You've read the opening and closing rites
parachute chord! You do what works, with what
you have at the time. Remember that traditions
serve us, not the other way around.
Get an incense holder and some incense.
Frankincense or sandalwood are nice general-
Look in the Book of Shadows in the Sec-
purpose scents. I prefer Nag-Champa, which you
can find in most Tibetan import stores. You may
use a censure and charcoal if you wish, but to be
honest, I use stick-incense. It puts of less smoke
(and is less favored by some), but it's more con-
venient indoors because it's less likely to set off a
smoke alarm! You'll also need an anointing oil.
For now, you can purchase one from an occult
supplier.
It helps to set the temple mood by select-
ing some sacred music, and playing that softly in
For the opening rite, a single person can-
the background during Esbats and Sabbats. I've
made a mixed CD of some of my favorite sound-
tracks, including "Braveheart", "Gladiator", and
"The Lord of the Rings". New Age music is also
popular, like Enya. You'll have to decide what is
appropriate. I find instrumental, or celtic vocal
As a solitary practitioner, you perform all
music works best for me.
Finally, you'll need to construct your pen-
tacle. Traditionally, it is wax. I've seen metal
used. I made mine out of wood. I bought a
wooden disk from the local hobby chain, sanded
Every time a pentagram is to be traced,
it, spray-painted it black, and used paint to place
the symbols. The one shown in the Hearthcraft
Book of Shadows uses the seal of the tradition,
but the markings surrounding the pentagram may
Review all areas of the Book of Shadows
vary from hearth to hearth.
Assignment #3
1. Gather altar tools and construct your pentacle
Learn the Cakes and Ale blessing. If you
as described above.
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
The Opening and Closing Rites
ceremonial lodge work, this would be called "the
Temple Opening in the First Degree." Since you
are working towards first degree, this is the proper
opening rite that prepares the Temple for all first-
degree rituals, whether they are Sabbats, Esbats,
or other. Since First Degree focuses mainly on
being a priest of the Craft, the First Degree Open-
ing (and Closing) is also used for religious cere-
monies such as handfastings (marriage) and wic-
cannings (blessing a newborn).
as presented in A Witch's Bible. The version in
the Book of Shadows is nearly identical to that
(and that found in the Appendix to Book 2 of the
Witch's Bible).
tion "Rites of the Temple of the First Degree".
Look at the Opening Rite and Closing Rite. Each
of these are outlines, referring to other sequences
in the text. You will need to memorize the com-
plete opening and closing so you can perform
them without scripts. Since you've already
memorized the charge, this helps. The Witches'
Rune is the other longer passage, and its inherent
rhythm and rhyme should make it relatively easy
to remember.
not perform the Drawing Down of the Moon, so
you'll have to deliver the Aradia Invocation and
the Charge of the Goddess. During coven rituals,
either can be used depending on the need and
direction from ritual leadership.
roles in these rites. You should be able to piece
everything together based on the lessons already
given. Keep in mind your own gender when de-
livering the Charge.
visualize it as practiced. At the quarters, assume
the projective stance. Notice too, that casting the
circle requires visualization.
that you've read, including the tools and the circle.
Take care not to break circle once cast until you
close it. If you must enter or leave a cast circle,
the Book of Shadows tells you how to do so.
are solitary, you will take the chalice in the left
hand and lower the athame into it with your right
hand. As a student, you will not use an athame,
but rather you will use the athame gesture. Keep

a small dish on your altar as a libation dish. Once
you've passed the consecrated wine around, pour
a little in the libation dish as a gift to the Gods.
If you cannot make the day of the Full
Do the same with the cakes and put a little bit of
the cakes in the dish. You will keep this, and
then, at the end of the rite once the Circle is
closed, take this and pour it outside on the earth.
I usually have a favorite tree that I take the liba-
tion to at the end of every rite.
Look at the Esbats section of the Book of
Assignment #4
1. Memorize and learn to perform without script
the Opening, Cakes and Ale, and Closing
rites.
Since we haven't covered magic yet,
Practice these until you are ready. If you
make a mistake, it is not the end of the world. Go
back and repeat that line again. For rituals of
purely religious nature, you're not going to cause
great harm by messing something up. The Gods
are understanding. Don't let this be an excuse for
We're going to look at the Prayers and
laziness, however. Correct your mistake and
move on, but make an effort to re-memorize
something if you stumble across a line and keep
mindful focus so as to not make that mistake
again. The ability to carry out ritual smoothly will
become more important in certain magical cere-
monies, and honing those skills here will make
you a better magician later on, not to mention just
Look back at the Esbat section. It has a
being respectful and reverent towards the Gods
and the Guardians of the Watchtowers.
Esbats
If you can open the Temple without the
script, using incense and oil, and having chosen
Follow this structure. On the next full
appropriate temple music, then you will have suc-
cessfully brought together a lot of the knowledge
from previous lessons.
The Esbat is the celebration of the Full
Moon. As it says in the charge, "Once a month,
and better it be when the Moon is full, ye shall
assemble in some secret place and adore the
spirit of Me who am Queen of all Witches."
We use the Esbat are our primary recur-
ring day of worship. The time of the Full Moon is
a time for the coven to come together for ritual,
whether for meditative, magical, or other reasons.
Initiation rites, marriages, and other Temple serv-
ices should ideally be done at the Full Moon. If
Module 1-5
43
the coven has spell work to be done, the Full
Moon is also a time to do that.
Moon, the day before and the day after have the
same effect.
Your First Esbat:
Adoration to Aradia
Shadows. You'll find that this is a rather sparse
section. This is because each hearth and person
will define their Esbat practices.
there are two things we can easily do for Esbat.
The first is to simply informally pray and meditate.
You can open temple, pray and meditate after the
Witch's Rune, and then do Cakes and Ale and
then close. The second is to deliver an invocation
or adoration from a pre-written text.
Invocations section of the Book of Shadows and
start with the Adoration to Aradia. You do not
have to memorize this, but a well memorized
piece flows better and has more impact. Since
you are not yet an initiate, change the words from
"I am your Witch" to "Claim me as your Witch".
structure for a Simple Esbat:
1. Open Temple
2. Adoration to Aradia
3. Meditation/Contemplation
4. Cakes and Ale
5. Coven business/teachings/discussion
6. Close Temple
moon, open your temple, give (you can read) the
Adoration to Aradia, and then sit and meditate in
quiet reflection for 15 minutes. After that, perform
Cakes and Ale, and then close temple. If you are
working with a group of students, any discussion
and administrative matters should wait until after
Cakes and Ale.
Assignment#5
1. Determine the date of the next full moon.
Make a list of everything you need to do to
prepare for the Esbat rite.
2. Perform the simple Esbat given on this full
moon.
44

3. Observe every full moon in the future.

You can find other prayers, invocations

and adorations and perform these as well. You
are not limited to just the Aradia Adoration, but
take the time to research and understand where
other invocations come from, if you plan to borrow
from another source.

Other First-Degree Rites

You should now look at the rest of the
Book of Shadows section titled "The Rights of the
Temple of the First Degree", the "Core Rites".
Read the Great Rite, and the Drawing Down the
Moon. Memorize these at your leisure. You won't
be performing them as a solitary practitioner prior
to your initiation, but you should know the Core
Rites.

Lesson Review
1. Can you perform the opening and closing
ceremonies from memory?
2. What is David Cooper's concept of purifica-
tion?
3. What are Esbats? What non-magical things
can we perform at Esbats?

Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007

Module 1-6: The Wheel of the Year
While the Esbats are lunar, the Sabbats
Lesson Objectives
This lesson focuses on the seasonal fes-
tivals found in Wicca, the Sabbats. This is one of
the core defining features that differentiates Wicca
In coven, each Sabbat rite should include
from other religious and occult practices.
By the end of this lesson, you should be
able to:
1. Describe Sabbat Lore and the essential
meanings of each Sabbat.
2. Describe the evolution of the Sun God and
Holly and Oak Kings throughout the year.
3. Describe the elements of each Sabbat rite.
4. Observe Sabbats.
This lesson may look shorter than the
others, but there is a lot of reading to be done
here. The Sabbats are an oft-neglected aspect of
Wicca for a new, solitary Witch, as the lure of
studying magic, the psychic arts, and casting
spells is tempting. However, it's important to re-
member that Wicca is a religion. While magic is a
core element of the religion, the Sabbats and Es-
bats, I would argue, are more important to Wiccan
practice.
This lesson completes the portion of this
course dedicated to performing the religious prac-
tice as a priest in the circle, at least from a solitary
perspective. Between the Esbats and the Sab-
bats, you can honor the Gods in the Wiccan tem-
ple.
This lesson will take a year to complete.
You will continue with the last assignment of this
lesson as you continue on to the second half of
The next assignment is the year-long as-
this course, in parallel. Through this, your educa-
tion in the history of the formation of the Craft, in
addition to your self-development, will continue.
The Wheel of the Year
The Sabbats are the seasonal feast days
in the Wiccan calendar. Celebrating the Sabbats
is an important way to connect with the Gods as
experiential parts of our day to day and year to
year lives.
Module 1-6
45
follow the Solar cycle of the equinoxes and sol-
stices, and the community life that is tied to the
seasons: the harvest.
a feast. Usually, each person brings a dish, pot-
luck style. After the formal cakes and ale cere-
mony, the coven should bring out the food into the
circle and feast and drink together, while in circle.
Complete the ritual at the end of the meal and any
dinner conversation, but before folks are too
drunk to close circle.
Assignment #1
1. Read: Triumph of the Moon, Chapter 7: Find-
ing a Folklore
2. Read: What Witches Do, Chapter 7: The
Seasonal Festivals
3. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows: (The
Wheel of the Year): Hearth and Mystery Rites,
The Hearthcraft Year Cycle, and Sabbats
4. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows (The
Wheel of the Year): For each Sabbat, read
the Elements and Coven Rite
5. Know: Elements of each Sabbat. You need
not memorize them word for word verbatim,
but you should be able to list them. It's not
necessary to memorize the Sabbat rite, as
each hearth may have different versions.
However, each Sabbat rite should express the
core elements for that Sabbat.
signment to observe every Sabbat. As you do
this, continue with the rest of the course. Once
you've observed all eight Sabbats, you should
have completed the rest of the modules, and be
ready for self-initiation.
Assignment #2: Observe all eight Sabbats
1. Before each Sabbat, read the chapter in A
Witch's Bible, Book 1 corresponding to that
Sabbat.
2. Review the coven rite and adapt it for soli-
tary use. A minimalist approach is to open
temple, read the Sabbat story, and then pro-
46
ceed to cakes and ale, but it's recommended
One of the goals of Hearthcraft is to culti-
you work to adapt the coven rite to solitary
practice. Not every detail of the rite need be
captured (some, like the Great Rite, require
more than one person), but as long as you
capture the essential elements, you should be
good. As a priest, you'll need to be able to
adapt and construct ritual, so this is a good
place to start. If you are studying in a group,
so much the better. You can work with group
rites. Since you are students, different people
should try the different roles (High Priest,
High Priestess) from Sabbat to Sabbat.
This is an important assignment, and one
of the prerequisites for self-initiation. If you're go-
ing to claim to be a priest in the Craft, you should
have already celebrated the seasonal festivals!
However, don't be beholden to a particu-
lar day. If the Sabbat falls on a week day, and
your family or work schedule won't permit, do it on
Certain rites in Hearthcraft should main-
the closest weekend. If you're out of town, or in
the hospital, or some other thing, observe it at the
earliest opportunity prior to the next Sabbat. If
you're in the military and deployed, and cannot
get any private space, study the rite and do it in
your mind, focusing on visualizing it in meditation.
The spirit of the law is important here:
celebrate the year cycle. The intent is not that if
you miss a Sabbat, you now have to wait an extra
12 months before you can self-initiate. Make
every effort to practice the Sabbats.
If all other things fail, and you must miss
one due to military deployment, illness, or some
other grave misfortune, and cannot perform it
After you can answer the review ques-
prior to the next Sabbat, skip it, self-initiate at the
proper time, and then observe it the next time it
comes around.
If you miss multiple Sabbats due to un-
foreseen circumstances and acts of the Gods,
then question whether this path is right for you at
this time in your life. In this case, perhaps re-
starting the year cycle is not a bad idea.
Solitary Practice
Some in the craft community argue that a
solitary practitioner not only need not celebrate
the Sabbats, but should not celebrate the Sab-
bats. They reason that the purpose for the rituals
are for community, and without community, it's just
posturing. I could not disagree more.
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
vate and celebrate a sense of hearth. Normally,
this means in community with your fellow human
beings... in this case, with your coven. But if you
are alone, is not the purpose of religion to form
that relationship with the divine, the Gods? Are
you truly ever alone? I have found it an important
and enriching part of my practice to keep these
days sacred, to open temple, and celebrate with
the Gods. Solitary ritual, especially the Sabbats,
helps cultivate that sense of Hearth you hold with
the Gods. It helps form and maintain your con-
nection to the Gods. This is not to say that the
only connection comes during Temple, but it does
serve as an anchor point for your faith and your
practice.
From Hearth to Hearth
tain some consistency from Coven to Coven,
such as the Temple Opening rites and the Initia-
tion rites. The Sabbats, however, may vary from
hearth to hearth. The important thing is for each
initiate to learn the core elements of the Sabbats,
so that if need be, they can reconstruct Sabbat
rites around these themes. They need not memo-
rize all Sabbat rites, however, as these may grow
and evolve.
Lesson Review
tions and begin Assignment #2, continue with the
next module.
1. What is the difference between the Lesser
and Greater Sabbats? Identify which Sabbats
are which.
2. What are the key elements of each Sabbat?
3. Which Sabbats deal with the transition of
power, and how do they do this?
4. Describe the four axes, which concepts they
embody, and which Sabbats occupy the poles
of each axis.
5. At which two Sabbats is the Veil said to be the
thinnest?
6. What are the roles of the Oak and Holly King?
What is their relationship to the Sun God?

Module 1-7: The Law, The Grade of Dedicant
Lesson Objectives
In this lesson, we'll cover tradition law,
Wicca originally came with a series of
and then you'll be faced with a choice: do you
wish to dedicate yourself to training towards be-
coming a Witch, to completion of this course?
By the end of this lesson, the student
should:
1. Know Tradition Law.
2. Dedicate to the Training (or realize this isn't
While it is true that Wicca is not a
your path at this time).
Continuing History
It's important to understand the history of
the Craft if one is going to practice it, simply as a
matter of commitment to truth. This lesson will
The following is included for reference
involve a lot of history and reading as we make
considerable progress through Triumph of the
Moon.
You can find the traditional Wiccan laws
Assignment#1
1. Read Triumph of the Moon, Chapters 8-10:
Finding a Witchcraft, Matrix, and God (and
Goddess) Parents
Through the selected readings so far, you
I agree with the author of the "Wicca for
will have noticed two different versions of Craft
history. In the versions given by Wiccan authors,
the Murray hypothesis is considered to be correct,
and we inherit from an ancient practice. Accord-
ing to Ronald Hutton, however, this is not true.
Let's push ahead with our history study.
Does this make Wicca worthless? No, not at all.
It shows that Wicca--just like every other religion--
goes through a formative beginning. Our ways
are new; our mysteries are ancient.
Why do I have you study this book, as dry
as it can be? Because I firmly believe that truth
is an antidote to dogmatism and sectarianism.
So bear with me. You don't need to remember
every detail, but seeing the evolution of ideas is
important.
Module 1-7
47
The Law
laws each initiate had to swear by and follow.
British traditional Witches today will still abide by
their sets of laws. Many eclectic Wiccans today
don't have a code of laws they follow, believing
that Wicca is an "enlightened religion with no
commandments."
commandment-oriented religion, laws did have its
place in the formation of Wicca, and are held by
many even today.
The 161 Wiccan Laws
purposes. Feel free to compare them to the laws
that are in the Hearthcraft Book of Shadows.
Some are the same. Most are different.
at several websites. Here are a few links at the
time of writing this document:
1. http://wicca.timerift.net/laws/161.shtml
2. http://wicca.timerift.net/laws/old_laws.shtml
the Rest of Us" website (http://wicca.timerift.net).
I don't believe that these laws are "of old", nor do I
believe that all of them are relevant today, as writ-
ten.
In the following section, you'll be able to grasp
why the 161 laws were written, considering the
focus on the Burning Times and even present-day
hostility.
Assignment #2
1. Read Triumph of the Moon, Chapters 11-14,
Gerald Gardner, Gerald's People, The Wider
Context: Hostility, and The Wider Context:
Reinforcement
48

The New Law

Hearthcraft tradition does not ascribe to
the traditional 161 Laws. Ultimately, Hearthcraft
holds one law, the law of Thelema: "Do what thou
wilt shall be the whole of the law. Love is the law,
love under Will." As has been mentioned before
in prior reading assignments, "will" is not the
same as "whim." Crowley was talking about our
True Will, our highest purpose... so the first task,
of course, is to discover one's Will! The belief is
also that no True Will conflicts with another True
Will, so if everyone were following their True Will,
there would be harmony.
Why then the need for laws? Because
these laws help define common practice within
the tradition, and help specify things that would
violate the Thelemic law (such as prohibiting
against forcing belief of a god upon another).
Consider these as a code of conduct, or rules,
that help define traditional practice. Furthermore,
when one chooses to live by Thelemic law, one is
still accountable to civil and state law; there are
different kinds of laws. The New Law derives
from the Law of Thelema in the context of the
Tradition, but it is only applicable to those who
choose to abide by the Tradition.
Assignment #3
1. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows (Law)
The Laws of the Hearth (Examples)
Coven Leadership 2
1. The High Priestess and High Priest shall rule their
coven as the representatives of the Gods. Acting to-
gether as a unit, they are referred to as the Coven Seat.
2. The High Priest rules during the light half of the
year, from the Spring Equinox to the Autumn Equinox.
The High Priestess rules during the dark half of the
year, from the Autumn Equinox to the Spring Equinox.
3. These laws are not eternal. The High Priestess and
High Priest, acting in accord, may change the laws of
their coven, but only after much thought and only if
both agree with enthusiasm, for truly the laws are made
for the Wicca, not the Wicca for the laws.
4. Hearth elders may petition for revisions or addi-
tions to the law, but the High Priest and High Priestess
have the final say.
5. The Coven Seat may bring a matter before the Full
Council, composed of all coven initiates.
6. The Coven Seat may bring a matter before the full
Hearth, which includes Accepted.
7. Dedicants get no votes in council, even if they were
previously Accepted, due to their special status as stu-
dents.

You need not memorize the laws verba-
tim, but you must know their content.
Much of the Old Law involves the running
of the coven and settling disputes. Rather than
make some of these things uniform across the
tradition, I've divided the law into tradition law and
hearth law. Tradition law will be consistent be-
tween hearths, but hearth law will vary considera-
bly. Some hearths, especially if they adopt a
more egalitarian, democratic way of worship, may
not even have a hearth law.
The Hearth Law I've given below are just
examples of possible Hearth Laws--ones I would
use myself in my own Hearth, following a hierar-
chical, authoritarian structure for coven govern-
ance. You can include them in your Book of
Shadows or not as you see fit.
The Outer Court
8. The lay community in the hearth shall be known as
the Outer Court.
9. Those petitioning entry into the Outer Court shall
be known as Candidates. Those initiated into the outer
court are full members of the Hearth, and shall be
known as Accepted.
10. All second and third degree lore is to be hidden
from the Accepted.
11. Accepted may participate in Sabbats unless ex-
pressly forbidden by coven leadership.
12. The Coven Seat may decree a particular Accepted
must dedicate to coven training or forfeit her status as
Accepted in the hearth. This is best only done when it
is clear that the Accepted shows potential, has the time
to commit, and merely needs that push from leader-
ship.

2I considered putting these in the Tradition laws, but putting it here leaves a coven open to a more democratic style
of leadership, should the coven founder decide. The coven founder will be the one who dictates the initial set of
hearth laws anyway, as a matter of practice, especially a self-initiate. If someone swears to a hearth law, then they
are bound to take that law with them into their new hearth if their source hearth law dictates.
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007

13. Those accepted to the Outer Court are Initiates of
the Hearth, and will choose craft names for themselves
so as to keep the tradition of member secrecy.
Disputes
14. The Coven Seat has the final say in disputes, but
their authority only extends to matters of the Craft and
issues concerning the Hearth.
15. The Coven Seat should hear advice from the
counsel of elders. Consensus is best, and if that cannot
be achieved, the the rule of the majority is preferable.
Only rarely should the Coven Seat dictate a way.
16. The Coven Seat shall be fair and just, deciding
thing impartially and not favoring one hearth member
If you've been doing all the readings and
over the other.
New Covens
17. Third-Degree initiates may found new covens as
autonomous Hearths. The parent Coven Seat has no
authority over them within the Tradition.
Book of Shadows
18. Oath-bound material will be clearly marked so
there be no confusion in the minds of coven members
as to what should be kept secret, and where secrecy is
not necessary.
By now you should have enough informa-
Coven Lineage
19. Each initiate shall memorize their lineage to un-
derstand those who have gone before and observe the
path that ideas have been transmitted.
20. Lineage is not to be used as a basis for rank.
Secrecy
21. Unless specifically published, or part of the core
tradition, all knowledge is assumed to be secrets of
specificity as described in tradition law.
22. Knowledge marked "Oath-Bound Confidential" is
secrets revealed only to members after initiation, and is
a secret of specificity as described in tradition law.
23. Knowledge marked "Oath-Bound Secret" are hid-
den teachings as described in Tradition Law, and are
The purpose of the dedication rite is to
not revealed to aspirants until after initiation.
24. Hearth laws are not secret.
Training
25. It is preferable that a man is trained and initiated
by a woman, and a woman by a man, but this is not
absolute.
Module 1-7
49
26. When someone petitions the Coven Seat for train-
ing, or Acceptance, the matter is brought before the
Full Council. Any present initiate can veto entry of a
petitioner.
27. Dedicants to First Degree are not initiates.
Guests
28. The member who vouches for a guest is responsi-
ble for that guest's actions.
Dedication
practices, you're ready to formalize your commit-
ment to the path if you so choose. If you had
been a part of a Hearth, you would have dedi-
cated prior to beginning first-degree training.
Things work a little differently if you are on a self-
study course. Right now, you've already done a
lot of the work of a first-degree dedicant without
having made any commitment... in a hearth, you
would have committed earlier to keep hearth se-
crets because there may have been additional,
hearth-specific lore and insights as part of your
curriculum.
tion to determine whether you wish to proceed to
initiation as a first-degree Witch, a priest of the
Craft. If so, we're going to have you perform a
self-dedication rite. If not, then you can stop do-
ing the exercises, read the course at your leisure,
and either adopt a Wiccan worldview and lifestyle,
or not, as a lay-person. You may decide to per-
form a "self-Recognition" ceremony to commit
yourself to the Hearthcraft tradition as a lay per-
son or not, as you see fit. The Recognition rite is
intended for a coven to accept a lay person and
recognize them as full members of the Hearth. In
this case, consider it a ceremony in which you
and the Gods mutually recognize your adoption of
the Wiccan path and belief-system. You are Ac-
cepted by the Gods, even without a Hearth.
commit yourself to the training, and an initiate is
called a Dedicant. It is not a commitment for the
rest of your life. The oaths you take at dedication
are just for training, and to abide by tradition (and
hearth if applicable) law for the duration of the
training. You will have a point prior to initiation to
decide this is or is not for you before you take
oaths that commit you to the Wiccan practice as a
50
life path. You need not go through a Recognition
ceremony in order to self-dedicate. In fact, it is
not standard practice for dedicants to commit to
We should never get so wrapped in one's
the Craft until they are initiated.
The dedicant rite has a coven purpose of
committing the students to keep coven secrets.
This isn't applicable to the solitary student. For
the solitary student, the dedicant rite serves the
simple purpose of you making a formal commit-
ment to the Gods to learn the priesthood, with the
understanding that you may or may not self-
initiate at the end. This is not a commitment to
I think that each practiced religion has
become their priests, but rather to become their
student, study their path, and ask for guidance
along the way.
Assignment #4
1. Perform the self-dedication rite, if it is your
desire and will to commit to learning the craft.
You are committing to the Gods to complete
the training. Remember, better to swear not
at all than to swear too lightly.
I find that keys to the true religion can be
The rest of the course is written for the
student who has self-dedicated, so that's the as-
sumption I will make when addressing the reader.
The Magician sees God at the heart of
Now that you've dedicated to the
path, are you continuing to practice
your Esbats and Sabbats? Are you
This is not to say that I think you should
practicing your mindfulness and visu-
alization exercises? If not, now is
the time to restart these practices.
If there comes a time that you decide you
cannot honor the commitment and complete the
training, it is best to open a circle and state that to
the Gods, explaining why you must part ways with
the path. Remember, the Gods are always pre-
The Western Magical Tradition blends
sent and take many forms--you are not parting
ways with the Gods. They are forgiving, and un-
derstanding. If you must take a sabbatical, you
can do the same: open circle (preferably an Es-
bat) and state the intent and the reason, just as if
Someone who has recently adopted the
you were explaining it to a physical teacher. Re-
member, these rituals are as much for our own
benefit (even more, in fact) as for the Gods.
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
Other Paths
own particular path that we become blind to the
world around us. No one religion, including our
own, has a monopoly on truth. I believe that there
is a true, underlying, generic 'religion' that perme-
ates through the world traditions. This goes to the
difference between "truth" and "representation".
This does not mean that I think all religions are
true!
individual people who are practicing generic relig-
ion in their cultural context, and people who are
missing the boat completely. This means that
there are Christians who are walking the path of
truth, and there are Christians who are not. There
are Muslims who walk the path of truth, and Mus-
lims who do not. There are Wiccans who are
practicing the 'generic' religion of truth, and there
are Wiccans who do not.
found in those world teachings which speak of
compassion, love, understanding, wisdom, and
mysticism.
the great world traditions. It is food for thought
that if one blasphemes Jesus, they blaspheme
Osiris. If one blasphemes Zeus, they blaspheme
Yahweh.
believe in all religions! Not at all! That would be
impossible, because the exoteric religions are on
some points mutually exclusive. I do not, for ex-
ample, believe that I have to profess my belief in
Jesus Christ in order to enter Heaven. Nor do I
believe that Mohammed is God's last prophet.
Nor do I believe that Jesus came to the Americas,
and that Joseph Smith uncovered golden tablets
that revealed an ancient Jewish civilization living
in Utah.
Christian, Jewish, Egyptian, Greek, Roman and
Persian wisdoms into a unified whole. Not only
that, it incorporates Eastern wisdom as well, from
Taoism to Hinduism.
pagan faith might reject Golden Dawn magic,
such as the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Penta-
gram, saying, "I am a pagan! I have rejected the
Christian church, and I cannot invoke Adonai in
my circle!" You are certainly free to make that
claim (and if so, this tradition is not for you; there
are others out there that are probably more to

your liking). Consider, however, how approaching
The first site has a lot of introductory ma-
the Golden Dawn system would be for a Chris-
tian, when they are confronted with invoking Isis,
Apophis, and Osiris? The Western Magical Tradi-
tion incorporates elements of religious symbolism
from many traditions (particularly those that influ-
enced and shaped western culture and history),
yet it is beholden to none. A Wiccan can practice
the Western Tradition, as can a Christian.
Religious Tolerance.org is also a good
Ultimately, the point here is that a Wiccan
student should familiarize themselves with other
religions as a matter of his or her education, to
include at a minimum the broadest descriptions of
For example, it has an Intro to Wicca that
the major world traditions, whether it is the Abra-
hamic faiths, Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, or
Confucianism. It would be good to know the
names of the holy books of each, and what each
contains, at least at a cursory level. In your stud-
ies, be open to finding profound wisdom that en-
riches your own practice.
On other hand, don't mistake a cursory
study in a religion to make you an expert. Each
religion holds a complex history. If you consider
just Christian history alone, with all its thousands
of sects, and that schools of Christian thought
disagree with each other on many things, you can
assume that applies to the other world religions
as well.
Furthermore, understanding other relig-
ions allows you to dialogue with people. Under-
standing the dominant religion of your land allows
you to more successfully navigate and communi-
cate with people in that land. If your an American,
like me, that means the dominant religion is Chris-
tianity. So, a familiarity with the Bible (i.e., Chris-
tian Mythology) is not a bad thing to have.
You need not worry about mastering all
this right now. A religious path is a lifelong path,
and you can continue to enrich your knowledge
continually through the years.
A student of Wicca should be a student of
religion, and the world scriptures are a good re-
source to have in any religious library.
Resources
If you have the opportunity to take a
world-religion survey course, I recommend it. The
internet is also a great resource for learning about
world religions. Here are two great sites:
1. www.religioustolerance.org
2. http://www.sacred-texts.com/
Module 1-7
51
terial on different religions, including many ob-
scure ones. The second site is an online library
containing just about every world sacred text.
You can order a CD archive of the site, which I
highly recommend. This can also be a resource
for you when designing rituals and a source of
inspiration for invocations.
place to see how outsiders see your religion, and
get an overview of other schools of thoughts and
opinions within your own religious community.
states the following:
Overview:
Depending upon how you look at Wicca, it is
either one of the newest or one of the oldest relig-
ions in the world:
Wicca is a recently created, Neopagan relig-
ion. The various branches of Wicca can be
traced back to Gardnerian Witchcraft which
was founded in the UK during the late 1940s.
Wicca is based on the symbols, seasonal days
of celebration, beliefs and deities of ancient
Celtic society. Added to this material were Ma-
sonic and ceremonial magickal components
from recent centuries. In this respect, it is a
religion whose roots go back almost three mil-
lennia to the formation of Celtic society circa
800 BCE.
A follower of Wicca is called a Wiccan. Wicca
and other Neopagan religions are currently expe-
riencing a rapid growth in the U.S., Canada, and
Europe. This is seen particularly among some
teenagers, who are rejecting what they feel is the
autocracy, paternalism, sexism, homophobia, and
insensitivity to the environment that forms part of
some more traditional religions. Many North
Americans of European descent, who are keen to
discover their ancestral heritage, are also attracted
to this religion.
About deities:
Depending upon one's point of view, Wicca can be
considered a monotheistic, duotheistic, polytheistic, or
atheistic religion:
52

Wicca is monotheistic: Some Wiccans recognize a These can provide years of study, and be invalu-
single supreme being, sometimes called "The All" or able sources for your Temple experience.
"The One." The Goddess and God are viewed as the Another great place to start is wikipedia:
female and male aspects of this single deity. (http://en.wikipedia.org). From there, you can
Wicca is duotheistic (a.k.a. rarely as bitheistic): search on god names and mythologies. Try
Wiccans often worship a female Goddess and a male
searching on "Greek Mythology", or "Athena". Try
God., often called the Lady and Lord.
"Asherah". Or course, also try "Cernunnos" and
Wicca is polytheistic: Wiccans recognize the exis-
tence of many ancient Gods and Goddesses, includ- "Aradia". Also check out other academic sources,
ing Pan, Diana, Dionysius, Fergus, etc. such as the library, book store, etc.
Wicca is atheistic: Some Wiccans view the God and
Goddess as symbols, not living entities. Depending Assignment #5
upon which definition of the term "Atheist" that you 1. Research and summarize your findings on the
adopt, these Wiccans may be considered Atheists. following gods and goddesses in your course
journal, and consider recording your findings
http://www.religioustolerance.org/wic_intr. in your Book of Shadows:
htm (retrieved 6 Jan 2006) a. Aradia
b. Cernunnos
c. Asherah
The God and Goddess d. El
e. Yahweh
Myth and Lore f. Athena
g. Chronos
Your journey with the Gods is a continual h. Zeus/Jupiter
one. You have just scratched the surface on get- i. Ares/Mars
ting to know Cernunnos and Aradia. In the First- j. Apollo
Degree temple, these are the primary gods we k. Aphrodite/Venus
work with, but this does not mean you are limited l. Hermes/Mercury
to working with them. In time, you will find your- m. Artemis/Diana
self drawn to particular gods. Just as it's impor- n. Dyonysis
tant to gain some knowledge about the world re- o. Pan
ligions, it's even more important to continue to p. Isis
study your own. q. Apophis
Wicca is a new religion. In some sense, r. Osiris
this means that the Greek, Roman, or Celtic gods s. Set
are no more "our own" than Hindu gods. Yet, t. Thoth
these have shaped our western world, and are u. Horus
perhaps more accessible to us. Wicca is mostly v. IAO
Euro and Middle-Eastern centric in its deity w. Demiurge (Gnostic)
choice. x. Cerridwen
It's important not to just mish mash gods y. Bel
together from different pantheons based on whim z. Lugh
and 'cool' factor. Some gods--the personalities aa. any others listed in the Charge of the
associated with them--do not get along. While Goddess and Charge of the God
each god represents the underlying God, each 2. Write two papers, one expressing your under-
has a different personality, an energy associated standing of the Goddess and the the other for
with it, and perhaps a different polarity. the God. Use what you have learned in your
I would start with studying the pantheon research, but feel free to include personal
that draws you. As you proceed on your Wiccan insights and inspiration, and reflections on
path, you will be able to draw your magical and how the Gods move in and touch your life.
religious knowledge together to explore relation- Include this in your Book of Shadows.
ships with these gods. Sometimes, the gods pick
you, rather than you pick them.
The sacred-texts website has a classical
section, Celtic section, and Egyptian section.

Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
 53

Lesson Review
1. What is the New Law?
2. What is the true, underlying Law, and what is
the New Law in relation to that?
3. What social forces helped shape the 161 tra-
ditional laws?
4. Whom is the law meant to serve?
5. What does the law say regarding payment,
initiation and training?
6. What are the rules concerning security and
secrecy?
7. What are the rules concerning the use of the
Art?
8. ...concerning prescribing belief in the Gods, or
the necessity of such belief?
9. Between whom is the matter of belief and un-
derstanding of the mysteries?
10. What does the law state about lay people?
11. ...about lineage and initiation?

Module 1-7
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Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
 55

Module 1-8: Craft Foundations

Remember that the journey is why you walk, not the destination at the end.
Don't rush through the lesson in desire of completion.
Take your time, and mull things over. Involve yourself in the work of the lesson.
Take notes, and reflect upon the ideas you are exposed to.

1. Farrar, Janet and Stewart. (1990). Spells and How

Lesson Objectives They Work. Phoenix Publishing, Washington USA
This lesson begins the formal study of the 2. Greer, Michael John. (1996). Paths of Wisdom.
Occult. We move from the religious rites of Sab-
Llewellyn Publications, St Paul MN, USA
bat and Esbat and into the Craft disciplines of
magic and divination.
Spells and How They Work is the last
This lesson includes a lot of memorization
Farrar book we will use. Between this and the
of various symbols and how they relate to each
rest of our core library, we have enough to study
other. The student will start memorizing tables of
to gain reasonable facility with practical spell-
correspondence here. It's important to take the
work.
time to do this, and digest it, because it creates a
Paths of Wisdom is a tremendous re-
magical language in the psyche that becomes
source on every Sphere and Path on the Tree of
empowering in magical rites, whether they are
Life. This course will not take you through the
rites of self transformation, or rites involving trans-
entire book, but you will be able to rely on it to
formation of the world around you.
enrich your study of the Tarot, the Tree, and any
By the end of this lesson the student
contemplation endeavors you undertake. In addi-
should be able to:
tion, this will be a resource for some of the exer-
1. Describe the trap of egotism.
cises you will do.
2. Describe the roles that meditation and prayer
play in mystical practice, and describe and
demonstrate techniques.
3. Understand the meaning of the term "Existen- Introduction to the Occult
tial Harmonics". The Craft aspect of Wicca deals with the
4. Practice the Tree of Light exercise. Occult. So far, this course has dealt with things
5. Recall from memory certain elemental, plane- that one would find common with exoteric religion.
tary, and astrological symbols. It is just the forms of the rites and the gods that
6. Describe the qualities of the fundamental are different.
building-blocks of astrology (the planets and The Craft aspect is what makes Wicca a
signs). mystery tradition. It includes both magical and
7. Recall astrological and Tarot layouts on the divinatory lore, which can be applied to practical
Tree of Life. and religious ends. As you work with the Craft,
you'll find that the separation between "religious"
and "craft" aspects are somewhat artificial, for the
Core Library Books
religious practices becomes a natural extension of
We're adding some more books to your
the magical practice. One is the form of the other.
core library. You will need to acquire the following
The previous lessons are much easier to
book in order to complete the required readings
teach in a written format. It is largely academic,
for this and/or future lessons:
and the work is up to you. As we touch more into
the magical worlds, where experience becomes
more fluid in its subjectivity, it is much more diffi-

Module 1-8
56
cult to learn from books. What I hope to give you
is enough basis of information so you can develop
and practice on your own, charting your own way
Here is what Dr. Regardie has to say on
ahead. This course will not make you a master of
magic. Only you can do that. But, this course will
also not make you a master of magical academia.
It will give you the basic survey of a variety of top-
ics that you will have to pursue upon your initia-
tion, focusing in the areas of your choice.
The occult is an academic field. Just as
any field you might study in college, you come to
a point where you have to choose a major, an
academic specialty. As you progress through
your education, you'll develop a focus even within
your specialty. When you get into post-graduate
work, you'll focus even more. The same is true in
magic. The Occult body of knowledge is simply
too large to become an expert in all of it. There
will be those who take Tarot to depths others
don't; the same is true with Herbalism, Astrology,
Kabbalah, and Enochian magic. Each of these
fields are interrelated... so the Tarot master will be
familiar with the Kabbalah, and the Hermetic
Kabbalist will have a deep understanding of the
Tarot. But, each might have more depth in those
fields than the other. Don't expect to be a master
overnight.
Regardie goes on to make the point about
What this course will give you is introduc-
tory knowledge on several topics, the basic occult
symbols and meanings, and means of construct-
ing and casting spells to practical end.
Egotism
This is very important to mention here, as
you are beginning your formal study of Occultism.
The problem that besets many students is the
inflation of the ego as their occult work awakens
powers within them. This is particularly danger-
He talks about how this is an ever-present
ous for the solitary student. One of the advan-
tages of group training is that you have a mentor
who can watch for such signs, unless of course
the mentor never broke through their own ego
inflation!
I'm going to include a passage here from
The Complete Golden Dawn System of Magic, by
Israel Regardie, as published by New Falcon
Press in 1984. The Hermetic Order of the Golden
Dawn is the foundational magical initiatory system
of the late 1800s and early 1900s, and most
modern magical systems today, including Wicca,
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
are are greatly influenced by the Golden Dawn
system.
the matter:
One of the great dangers inherent
within the practice of Magic and indeed of
all the occult arts -- is the development of an
enormous egotism characterized by messi-
anic feelings, infantile omnipotence and the
utter destruction of any capacity for effective
self-criticism. It appears that as the student
become more adept in the skills of medita-
tion, skrying, or ceremonial work, he be-
comes more threatened by an inflation of the
ego. It appears slowly and insidiously, with-
out apparent warning. Only those people
who are closely related to or associated with
the student become aware of the subtle
metamorphosis that occurs. The student
rarely is conscious of this unconscious trans-
formation. Attempting to make him aware
of this egotism is doomed to failure; it is like
knocking on a stone wall.
the benefits of working with a "legitimate" magical
school, unless the teacher of the school fell victim
to his own messianic fantasies.
So many [modern occultists] developed fan-
tastic notions of their own unique impor-
tance and role in the world or even cosmic
picture. Only recently I heard of one who
claimed to have been the teacher of Jesus!
There are an almost infinite number of
variations on this theme.
danger to all occult students, whether in an order
or not. The student (and teachers) need to be
mindful of this phenomenon. Otherwise, he says,
they are doomed.
They experience what appears to be at
first an enhancement of life-feelings, a rich
harvest of previously unknown information
and knowledge, and the awareness that des-
tiny has suddenly acquired a new direction, --
only to collapse later in total frustration, ig-
nominy, and exile from all of society.

It is important to pay close attention to Dr.
Regardie's words! This phenomenon is a natural
Meditation is the foundational practice of
result of the release and expansion of individual
energy within the psyche. The ego swells from
strengthened connections with the universe.
I see this phenomenon alive and well in
the pagan community. There are those who claim
to be half-faerie, or spirits who have incarnated
into human form but are not human, or Atlantean
elders come back to rectify things, or the champi-
ons of Gaia, the planetary consciousness...
Meditation is a term that can mean sev-
These fantasies are not only alluring; they are
insidious. A common thought that occurs to one
experiencing such delusion is the recognition of
delusion in others, but when it comes to the self,
an exception is made. "Of course such things are
crazy, except for the extremely small percentage
of people where it's actually true." That's the
thing... the feeling that it's "actually true." The
biggest deception, in my observation, comes from
the area of past-life memories. I can tell you this
as someone who has undergone this type of ex-
perience. It took me 10 years to overcome it, and
I attribute a lot of that to not having a consistent
mentor.
In Liber O, Aleister Crowley wrote, "...it is
spoken of Sephiroth and the Paths, of Spirits and
Conjurations; of Gods, Spheres, Planes and
many other things which may or may not exist. It
is immaterial whether these exist or not. By doing
certain things, certain results will follow; students
are most earnestly warned against attributing ob-
jective reality or philosophic validity to any of
them. There is little danger that any student,
however idle or stupid, will fail to get some result;
but there is great danger that he will be led astray,
obsessed and overwhelmed by his results, even
though it be by those which it is necessary that he
should attain."
What I would highlight from Crowley is the
phrase, "It is immaterial whether these things ex-
In Rabbi Cooper's chapter on Concentra-
ist or not." This is especially true concerning
past-life regression. What's important is what you
do in this life. Identity with past-life personalities
is another illusion, a trap along the spiritual path.
You'll read more about this in A Heart of
Stillness, especially when you get to the section
on "pleasant mind states" and "fantasy". The ego
Also of note from this reading is his dis-
is an illusion that separates us from our inherent
union with the Divine, and trading our present ego
for another seemingly "higher" ego is just another
illusion in the end.
Module 1-8
57
Meditation and Prayer
the mystical path. It has been sometimes said
that prayer is speaking to the gods, and medita-
tion is listening to the gods. In its most basic
form, meditation is control of the mind, whether it
is to seek silence or to seek discourse upon a
certain topic. Mysticism is seeking union (Yoga)
with the Divine, and meditation is a practice that
facilitates that.
eral things. Consider the following, from Wikipe-
dia:
Meditation is usually defined as one of the
following:
a state of relaxed concentration on the real-
ity of the present moment
a state that is experienced when the mind
dissolves and is free of all thoughts
"concentration in which the attention has
been liberated from restlessness and is fo-
cused on God."
focusing the mind on a single object (such
as a religious statue, or one's breath, or a man-
tra)
a mental "opening up" to the divine, in-
voking the guidance of a higher power
reasoned analysis of religious teachings
(such as impermanence, for Buddhists).
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meditation),
retrieved 6 Jan 2006
Assignment #1
1. Read: A Heart of Stillness, the rest of the
section called "The Foundation of Spiritual
Practice." This includes the subsections ti-
tled: Concentration, Effort, and Mastery.
tion, he says, "These practices fall into basic
categories: visualization, mantra, body aware-
ness, ritual or controlled movement, and intense
focus on an object. [...] For the most part, these
groupings cover the majority of established medi-
tation practices."
cussion on effort and attentiveness. "When we
are deeply interested in something, we are atten-
tive without effort. [...] The sign of a true master
is that his or her absorption never waivers; the
master remains attentive at all times."
58
The practice of mastery is "elimination,
negation, and restraint." You've already started to
cultivate mastery when you add a workout regi-
Study this practice and reflect upon the
men (by saying "no" to other needs at the time)
and meditative practice.
Once inner silence is achieved, the stu-
dent can use meditation for several purposes: a
single-minded movement towards God. Visuali-
zation to create and experience religious scenes.
Communicate with spiritual guides.
You've already started practicing inner
stillness, rhythmic breathing, and mindfulness.
Study the following practice. You will per-
form this as part of your next assignment.
Mental Development Sequence
1. Inner Stillness: Based on your earlier exer-
cises, when you can achieve inner stillness
for at least 5 minutes, move to the next step.
2. Object Concentration: choose an object. It
may be meaningless. Sit in stillness and fo-
cus your attention upon this object. Every
time your mind wants to wander, return back
to the object. When you can concentrate on
the object for 10 minutes, proceed to the next
exercise.
3. Visualization: When you do your meditation
practice, hold an object in your mind's eye. It
can be something as simple as a geometric
object. At this stage, choose either sign of
the Horned God, the sign of the Triple
Goddess, or the Pentagram. When you can
hold this object unwavering in your mind's eye
focus for at least 10 minutes, proceed to the
next step.
4. Audialization: As with the last exercise, but
concentrate on a word and repeat it over and
over in your head. When your mind wanders,
bring it back and continue the word again.
Contemplation
You can contemplate a symbol or a pas-
sage from a sacred text. When you sit in and
achieve stillness, then focus on that symbol or
passage. Try to recall everything you know about
that symbol. When your mind wanders away,
guide it back. Be open to allow your mind to gain
new insights regarding the topic. Don't forget to
record your results (as with all these exercises) in
your magical journal.
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
Tree of Light
symbolic meanings of what is going on with the
symbols and energy flows. You will be performing
this practice as part of the next assignment.
Meditation: Tree of Light
1. Find inner stillness and mindful, rhythmic
breathing.
2. Visualize a system of roots extending from
your feet (or the base of your spine if you are
sitting on the floor) extending deep into the
Earth. Know that this grounds you to the
Earth and taps into the Earth's healing life-
force.
3. Visualize and feel this life-force coming up
within you and filling your body, spreading
through your spine and nervous system.
4. See a great light descent from the heavens,
from the Gods, raining down upon you like
luminescent water. See and feel it washing
away fears, anxieties, and psychic negativity.
It flows through you and washes away the dirt
from you and your aura.
5. Feel that divine white energy concentrate
upon your head. Visualize the energy focus
into a blue-green triple-phased Goddess sign:
0( upon the middle of your brow, be-
tween your eyes (third eye). As you see this
sign, intone the name "ARADIA" in one long
breath. (You may silently intone this, loudly in
your inner voice, or you may physically intone
this as well). Feel that name vibrate through-
out your head. It's light radiates throughout
you. This is a door to the astral realms.
6. See the divine energy from above also fall
gently to the ground around you. It is soaked
up by the earth. See tendrils and streams of
this energy flow through the planetary life-
force, rejuvenating it.
7. See this commingled energy captured by your
roots and flow into your body, concentrating in
a red-orange Horned-God sign: in your
heart. Intone the name "CERNUNNOS" and
feel it vibrate in your chest, sending ripples of
light radiating throughout you. This is the in-
carnate divine life-force within you.
8. See your aura as an egg of white light around
you, pulsing with the clean Earth life-force
and the divine energy, illuminated by the light
of the Gods. Let these energies merge into
your aura.

9. Contemplate the meaning of this meditation
exercise, or sit in stillness in these energies
Through the rest of this course, you will
for as long as you wish.
10. To close, allow the symbols to fade, but know
they are present.
11. Allow the stream of light from above to return
to its source, leaving your vessel filled to your
need.
12. Slowly allow the Earth's life-force to withdraw
back into the planet's core, leaving you filled
Keep in mind that it's not because I agree
to your need.
13. Bring your roots back into your body.
14. Slowly open your eyes and stretch.
Assignment #2: Mental Training
1. Perform the Mental Development Sequence
as described in this lesson. Don't wait for
mastery and completion to continue; do this in
parallel with the rest of your lessons. You'll
need to work at this every day in order to suc-
ceed.
2. Once you've successfully completed the Men-
tal Development Sequence, start a practice of
regular meditation. For now, start with the
Tree of Light. When doing this meditation,
although not required, it is highly encouraged
you do it in your Temple. You need not go
through a Temple Opening ritual (unless you
The Rede, by itself, is not a robust ethical
do this meditation as your Esbat), but it is
good to have meditation music, light incense
and your God and Goddess candles. Cast a
circle. You need not use water, salt or call
quarters, but casting the circle is a good way
to bring added tranquility, harmony, focus and
What I do believe is this: you reap what
containment to your meditation space.
Existential Harmonics
There are many theories as to why and
how magic works. None of these theories, as to
yet, are scientifically provable. Recognizing that
Bottom line, take responsibility for your
these theories are largely speculation, Hearthcraft
instead makes the observation that magic and
divination works, and refers to the phenomenon of
seemingly unconnected synchronicities as "Exis-
tential Harmonics".
Assignment#3
1. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows:
(Magic): Definitions, Existential Harmonics,
The Craft: Magic, the Witch, and Magical Eth-
ics
Module 1-8
59
read various authors' takes on magical ethics,
from the Farrars to Scott Cunningham (in his
herbalism books in a later lesson). There is a
large school of thought in public Wicca that a
magical commandment is to "Harm None", and
that if you put out bad magic, you'll get hit with the
same, but with a triple whammy.
with everything they say that I've selected these
authors, and neither should you blindly accept
everything they (or I) write. You should critically
engage any author, and the more you study, they
better you'll be able to do this. I include these
authors because they are experienced in the field,
have shaped Wiccan practice, and frankly, have a
lot of great insights to learn from. In regards to
the "harm none, 3-fold boomerang effect"; to be
honest, I don't buy it, at least as presented. First
of all, the Wiccan Rede, as we've discussed be-
fore, is not a commandment to "harm none." It's
advice that if an action harms none, it is permissi-
ble. It doesn't address actions that cause harm.
The same is true regarding magic and spell work-
ing: the Rede does not tell people not to do harm-
ful magic. It does tell people that if a spell causes
no harm, it's ok.
system, especially in the area of magic. In addi-
tion, I personally don't believe in a three-fold rule
regarding karmic rebound. I won't try to tell you
what to believe--you'll have to come to that on
your own.
you sew. Because you're interconnected with
everyone, there will be some sort of "rebound"
that affects you. Furthermore, your actions and
choices change you, and this is true in magic as
well. If you cast a spell to cause X, you become
the type of person who causes X. The universe
will respond accordingly.
actions. All magic, positive or negative, will
change your life and affect you. If you cause
harm to another by cursing them, you will share in
that, and negative experiences will be drawn to
you as well.
60
Note that each sign has a quality and
Elements, Planets, and
the Zodiac
We're going to get a lot more into sym-
bolic detail in the next few lessons, where you'll
be required to memorize basic tables of corre-
spondence. This will be easier for some of you
who have already had exposure to these things.
For others, it will be difficult because there won't
The key-phrase for each is a great way to
be background knowledge to associate with these
symbols.
I've found that a good way to learn some-
thing is to go over the same material again and
again, learning a basic structure, and adding
There are seven classical planets. In as-
more depth in each passing. This way, your mind
isn't just memorizing meaningless information...
it's fleshing out knowledge.
The seven classical planets are: Saturn,
The Elements
You've already been introduced to the
Elements in earlier readings of the Book of Shad-
ows. It won't hurt to review that reading for a
The classical planets are named after
moment. Elsewhere in the Book of Shadows
there are tables of correspondence for the ele-
ments.
Assignment #4
1. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows (Magic):
Arcane Knowledge of the First Degree: Tables
of Correspondence: Elemental Correspon-
dences.
At this point, you need not memorize the
Memorize the alchemical symbol (the tri-
angles) associated with each element, along with
their associated plane of existence.
The Zodiac
The Zodiac are the constellations on the
path through which the Sun travels (from our per-
spective on Earth).
As you look through various books, you'll
Assignment #5
1. Read and memorize: Hearthcraft Book of
Shadows (Magic): Arcane Knowledge of the
First Degree: Tables of Correspondence: Zo-
diacal Correspondences
These correspondences need to be
memorized, including the symbols.
It's also important to note here that in
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
element associated with it. The element de-
scribes a basic nature of the sign, and the quality
describes how that sign manifests that element.
Cardinal signs generate the element, fixed signs
concentrate the element, and mutable signs dis-
tribute the element. The four fixed signs are also
called the "Kerubic" signs, and are the four Keru-
bim: the Man (Air), The Eagle (Water), the Lion
(Fire), and the Bull (Earth).
get to the heart of the sign.
Planets
trology, the Sun and Moon are considered plan-
ets. Astrology takes an Earth-centric perspective
of the universe. Planets are those celestial bod-
ies that travel through the zodiac.
Jupiter, Mars, the Sun, Venus, Mercury, and the
Moon. Modern astrologers also track Neptune,
Uranus, and Pluto, in addition to some of the as-
teroids.
Roman gods. The quality of the god is related to
the kind of things the planet influences.
Assignment #6
1. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows (Magic):
Arcane Knowledge of the First Degree: Tables
of Correspondence: Planetary Correspon-
dences
entire set of planetary correspondences. For
now, memorize the key words, the element, and
the rulerships. You'll notice later on that the ele-
ment of the planet is different from the element of
the Sephirah to which it is assigned. For exam-
ple, Mercury's element is Air, while Hod's elemen-
tal polarity is Water.
begin to find contradictions in terminology, particu-
larly in the way the word 'element' is used. To say
that Mercury's element is Air does indicate a rela-
tionship between Mercury and the element of Air.
However, this does not mean that Mercury is Air.
The planets operate in a higher plane than the
elemental world, and it's important not to confuse
the two.
magic, correspondence does not equal mathe-

matical equality. In mathe- Tables of corre-
matics, if A=B, and B=C,
spondence show
then A=C (transitive prop-
erty). In magic, when you patterns of exis-
say "Mercury is Air", this tential harmonic
does not mean that = 9 . resonance, not
Mercury is connected to Air. reflexive identity.
Mercury is connected to
Hod. Hod is connected to Water. This does not
mean that Mercury is connected to Water any
more than to say Air is connected to Water.
Tables of correspondence show patterns
There's a Tree of Life diagram in the Book
of existential harmonic resonance, not reflexive
identity. The farther away the chain of correspon-
dence gets (trying to get to Water through Mer-
cury by virtue of mutual connection to Hod), the
greater the logarithmic drop-off (just like a mag-
net's strength gets exponentially weaker the fur-
ther you get away from it).
Q: I wish to travel from Yesod to Hod.
A: From Yesod, the sphere of the Moon,
Tree of Life and the Tarot
Q: Two sephiroth have no planetary as-
Assignment #7
1. Purchase a Tarot Deck. You will need a stan-
A: Chokmah refers to the entire Zodiac,
dard, 78 card pack, with 4 suits and 22 Major
Arcana. I recommend the Hanson-Roberts
Tarot or the Universal Waite Tarot if you don't
Q: Describe the path of the Tarot Trump:
already have on you work with. The Rider-
Waite is the standard, but I personally find the
A: The Moon joins the 10th Sephirah
colors ugly in that version. I recommend
starting with one where the Minor Arcana has
scenes depicted upon them rather than just
the pips, as found in the Golden Dawn Tarot
decks. I don't recommend Crowley's Thoth
Deck to beginners, because that deck has
some reinterpretations for the Thelemic Aeon
Q: What is the path of Gemini?
of Horus. While I love the Thoth deck and
A: The path of Gemini, the mutable Air
incorporate it into my personal study, I don't
recommend it as a starting point.
2. Read: What Witches Do: Chapter 9, Tarot
and the Tree
3. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows (Magic):
Arcane Knowledge of the First Degree: Tables
of Correspondence: "Sephirothic Correspon-
The basic minimum requirement is the
dences", "Meanings of the Minor Arcana", and
"Alef-Bet, the Paths on the Tree". From these
readings, memorize:
1. Sephiroth: English and Hebrew (not the
letters, but the transliteration) names, the
Module 1-8
61
queen color, and astrological (Assiah)
correspondences.
2. Alef-Bet: The Tarot Trump, the power
(sign, planet or element), and the sephi-
roth it connects.
4. Familiarize yourself with your deck. You need
not memorize every card's meaning all at
once. Just start spending time looking at it
and familiarizing yourself with the scene that
is going on in that card.
of Shadows showing the tarot on the paths and
the energy associated with that path. That's the
memorization goal of the above: to be able to re-
produce that diagram from memory. I want every
student, if confronted with a path on the Tree to
do the following:
we travel upon the path of Resh, the Tarot Trump
titled The Sun, and corresponding to the astro-
logical Sun (and so to glory, personality, and the
ego), and into Hod, the sphere of Mercury.
sociations. Which are they?
and Kether refers to Primum Mobile, the first
whirlings of manifestation.
"The Moon."
Malkuth, the word of the elements, to the 7th Se-
phirah of Netzach, the sphere of Venus. The
Moon card is attributed to Pisces and the letter
Qoph. As the sign of Pisces, the mutable sign of
Water, the powers of Water are distributed here.
The key phrase is "I believe."
sign, joins Tiphareth, "beauty", the 6th Sephirah
and sphere of the Sun, to Binah, "understanding",
the 3rd Sephirah and sphere of Saturn. The
Trump associated with this path is the Lovers.
The key phrase for Gemini is, "I think."
tarot trump, the path on the tree (by identifying
which sephiroth it connects), and the astrological
association for the path and the sephiroth. When
reproducing the diagram, be able to number all
the paths from 1 to 32 (this includes the sephi-
roth).
62
The Hebrew Letters are recommended,
The purpose of the First Degree initiation
but considered "extra credit" for first degree.
Good extra credit for the Sephiroth include the
God-names, Archangels, and Angelic choirs. If
you memorize the Hebrew, more power to you, as
this only sets you up for success further on when
you pursue ceremonial magic (work after first de-
You'll find the Tree of Life come up again
gree).
Hebrew is a magical alphabet. Each let-
Contradictions Between Books
You will find that the more books you
read, you'll find more contradictions in symbolism.
Some authors attribute the swords to fire and
wands to air, and vice versa. Others have differ-
ent Archangelic associations, or even color asso-
ciations. Some of this is due to shoddy scholar-
ship. Most, however, is due to the fact that some
of these symbols don't matter, other than that you
are self-consistent internal to your system of prac-
Many modern Wiccans spell magic with a
tice. In time, you will work with these things
enough and read enough authors to formulate
your own decision on which system unfolds for
you. So, when you see tables of correspondence
in your reading assignments, you may want to go
back to the Book of Shadows and see which as-
sociation is used there.
Hermetic Kabbalah
Wicca, as was said in the beginning, in-
herits from Thelema and the Golden Dawn tradi-
tions, but some modern Wiccan practitioners try
In my opinion, spelling magic with a k is
to distance themselves from their ceremonial
roots, due to hypersensitivity to names and sym-
bols found in the monotheistic Judeo-Christian
traditions. Hearthcraft Wicca does not seek to
sever this bond, and provides its First-Degree
initiates the first steps towards the practice of
ceremonial magic.
Assignment #8
1. Read: Paths of Wisdom: Introduction, and
Part 1: Principles of the Magical Cabalah
(Chapters 1 though 6).
Continue your study of Craft history with
Some of things you read here will enrich
old material. Some will be new material. Some
will be tangential to our course of study, but is still
good knowledge to have. Don't rush through this
reading assignment. Take time to digest it.
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
is to awaken the powers of the Elements within
the candidate so the candidate and proceed to
balance them. This is similar to the first stage
described by the myth of Seth, the loosening of
the Dragons Coils.
and again in your occult studies. It's best to
commit the form of the Tree to memory early on.
ter has meaning: the 7 planets, 12 signs, and 3
elements comprise the 22 letters. Three elements
and not four you ask? There are two answers to
this: The element of Earth is the combination of
the other three. Saturn, Tav, also acts as Earth
when needed, meaning there is an occult connec-
tion between Saturn and Elemental Earth.
Magick vs. Magic
"k". This practice started with Crowley. It is said
that he chose this spelling to distinguish real
magic from stage magic. Crowley had specific
numerological reasons as well, and by 'magick',
he meant specifically his system of magic, even
as differentiated from the Golden Dawn. More
specifically, Magick refers to the Great Work of
discovering your True Will in the Thelemic sense,
and achieving knowledge and conversation of the
Holy Guardian Angel. That is what Crowley
means when he defines magick as the "art and
science of causing change to occur in conformity
with will."
pretentious and ridiculous when used to describe
anything other than Crowley's Thelemic system of
discovering and acting one's True Will, to include
Wiccan forms of practical folk magic. Rational,
intelligent people aren't going to confuse real
magic with stage magic.
Craft History
the following reading assignment. We're starting
to get past Gardner's initial formation of the Craft
and into its offshoots.
Assignment #9
1. Read: Triumph of the Moon: Chapters 15-16,
Old Craft, New Craft, and The Man in Black
 63

Mystical Study Lesson Review

Continue your mystical study with the fol-
lowing reading assignment.
Assignment #10
1. Read: Heart of Stillness: Part 2: Unpleasant
Mind States, Introduction, and Sections on
Desire and Aversion.
When you meditate, reflect on your ten-
dencies driven by desire and aversion. During
the day, mindfully examine your thoughts and
their motives.
Of particular note is the final paragraphs
of the section on Aversion. Cooper talks about
the paradigm shift being accomplished "simply by
observing our thoughts, using the techniques of
concentration and effort, and working with the raw
materials provided by desire and aversion." Also
reflect on the paragraph following that regarding
visualization and mantra.
1. Write out the alchemical symbols of the ele-
ments, planets, and signs.
2. What are the key phrases for each sign?
3. Group the 12 signs into elements, and identify
which are cardinal, fixed and mutable.
4. What are the keywords of each planet and
what concepts do they rule?
5. What does the Law of Return really mean
when it comes to magical practice?
6. What must the student first learn to do before
being able to effectively work magic?
7. Diagram the Tree of Life, and place the num-
bers of the paths, the astrological associa-
tions, and the Major Arcana upon the 22
Paths.

Magical Study
The following readings describe how
spells work and how to perform them.

Assignment #11
1. Read: Spells and How They Work. Introduc-
tion. Chapters I-V, Do Spells Work, Why and
How, Ethics of Spellworking, The Boomerang
Effect, and Psychic Self Defense
2. Read: A Witches' Bible: Book 2: Chapter IX,
Rituals of Protection

Module 1-8
64

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Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007

Module 1-9: Divination
Lesson Objectives
This lesson covers the area of divination,
which is using occult connections of existential
harmonics to determine information through other
than mundane methods.
By the end of this lesson, the student
should be able to:
1. Perform a Tarot divination for self and others.
One other point to remember: develop-
2. Construct a natal chart.
3. Perform a divination using another form of
divination aside from the Tarot.
Core Library Books
We're adding some more books to your
core library. You will need to acquire the following
book in order to complete the required readings
for this lesson:
1. Woolfolk, Joanna Martine. (1982). The Only As-
trology Book You'll Ever Need. Stein and Day,
New York USA, 1990
Divination
Continue your mystical study with the fol-
Divination is the practice of gathering in-
formation through reading existential harmonics.
The Farrars define it as "the art and science of
being aware of facts, objects or situations by psy-
chic means when they are not available to 'ordi-
nary' awareness."
Assignment #1
1. Read: Witchcraft for Tomorrow: Chapter 7,
Methods of Witch Divination
2. Read: A Witch's Bible, Book 2: Chapter XIX:
There is a difference between pain and
Clairvoyance and Divination
3. Practice Scrying for a month. Don't fret if you
don't get results. This is easier for some than
Fear is rooted in the desire for security.
others.
Journal work is very important especially
when practicing divination. Everyone wants to be
successful, but don't let lust for results delude
you! If you predict something through divination,
Module 1-9
65
record it so you can verify whether the prediction
was true or not. If something is not accurate, note
that in your journal and continue to hone your
skills. Verification and detached honesty about
results are crucial to you remaining grounded as
you progress in your magical development. Delu-
sion is a danger of all occult studies, and the self-
initiated path is no exception.
ment of a particular psychic gift or ability does not
indicate spiritual progress! Too often do people
take manifestations of the gifts as signs that they
are farther along in the path than another person.
The fact is, these abilities are not indicators. You
could have someone more spiritually evolved and
in tune with the Gods and the cosmos, and not be
able to scrye worth a damn, while the next person
hasn't a clue into real insight (maybe they're
locked into a fundamentalist worldview, or
wrapped up in their own ego delusion), but is able
to scrye to their heart's content.
Mystical Study
lowing reading assignment.
Assignment #2
1. Read: Heart of Stillness: Part 2: Unpleasant
Mind States,Sections on Pain, Fear, Demonic
Visions, Separation, Agitation and Fatigue,
and Doubt. (This finishes the section on Un-
pleasant Mind States).
suffering. A master may still experience pain, but
he will not suffer.
When we no longer want to be secure, we no
longer fear not being secure. This is an important
point because eventually we have to face the fact
that the world is not a safe place. Accepting con-
stant insecurity as a truth banishes fear.
66
Of course, Cooper writes from a Jewish
Keep in mind the position of the card in
perspective. When he talks about love and lust,
try to see what he is saying, but from a pagan
perspective. We don't see sexual desire as a
thing to be avoided, or an evil. What is evil is
when the desire (any desire) rules us and is de-
structive to us and others.
I didn't select this book because I want
you to agree with every point being made. I want
you to consider every point made. You can agree
or disagree, or you don't have to either agree or
disagree, but can file it away for future reference
as you walk the mystical journey. You may find
that it is true, or not.
Tarot
Tarot is the primary method of divination
within Hearthcraft. The reason for this is that the
study of the Tarot is rich in mystical insight, for the
cards describe an initiatory system of enlighten-
ment, the journey of the spiritual seeker. Studying
the Tarot not only provides a system of divination,
but also enhances the Witch's mystical and magi-
cal studies, as should already be apparent at this
point in the course.
From your look at Kabbalah and the Tree
of Life, you'll know that you've already begun
studying the Tarot. The Tree of Life gives you the
pattern and structure of the deck. Four worlds,
represented by the four elements, are the four
suits. Within each world are 10 sephiroth: Ace
Some card decks talk about reversed
through 10, with Ace being Kether and 10 being
Malkuth. The court cards (King, Queen, Prince,
Princess, or Knight, Queen, Prince, Princess) is
the power of the Tetragrammaton, the four-letter
elemental name of God, acting in each world.
Remaining are the 22 paths on the Tree, connect-
ing the various Sephiroth: the 22 Major Arcana,
each assigned to a Hebrew Letter.
In addition to Tarot being a worthwhile
The Book of Shadows has a list of mean-
study for mystical purposes, you may also use it
for it's more commonly understood purpose: divi-
nation.
When I first started doing Tarot readings,
the best advice I got was to read through the card
meanings once, and then put them away. Do a
reading, and let the pictures tell you a story, allow-
ing your intuition to bring out the meaning.
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
the spread. The meaning of the card is shaped
by its position in relation to the other cards. Keep
also in mind the general meanings of suits.
Swords usually means conflict and trial, but also
deals with things of the mind. Wands usually
means passion, energy and spirit, but also means
spirituality. Cups deals with emotion, the matters
of the heart, and soothing qualities of healing.
Pentacles (Coins or Disks) deals with the physical
world, work, and money. Aces are beginnings,
and Tens are conclusions. Use the picture to nu-
ance any meanings--if you get a swords picture
that looks peaceful, it's probably not indicating
conflict. (For example, a Two of Swords is usually
a peaceful card meaning resolution of conflict).
Note which cards are predominant in the spread.
Is one element represented above the rest? Per-
haps there's a pattern. Also, the more Major Ar-
cana, the stronger the reading... the more difficult
it is to change the path. The less Major Arcana,
the opposite, because Major Arcana represent the
active, dynamic forces on the Tree of Life, and the
Minor Arcana are the fixed spheres on the Tree.
Court cards can represent people, or a specific
transformation of the energy. For example, Kings
and Queens are active in their gender, while the
Prince and Princess is receptive. Kings and
Queens initiate action, and Princes and Prin-
cesses are the fruits of action. Kings and Queens
can also represent a mature person of that type,
and a Prince and Princess an immature person.
Allow your intuition to make connections.
cards and their meanings. You may use this
method if you choose, but I find it redundant... the
Tarot as a whole, with it's "upright" meanings,
provides a complete system for interpretation.
You can determine if a card is in conflict based on
whether or not it is dominated by cards of oppo-
site polarity. I shuffle my deck in such a manner
to keep all cards upright, and if any mistakes are
made in shuffling, I turn all cards upright in the
spread.
ings for the cards in its tables of magical corre-
spondence.
 67

Giving a Reading:
Celtic Cross Spread
When you give a reading, select a card to
represent the person you are reading for, called
the querant (the questioner). Let your intuition
guide you. An easy way to select the querant if
you don't have strong intuitive feelings is based
off of their sign and gender. If they are young,
choose a prince or princess that matches the
element of the sign. For example, a young
woman who's sun sign is Cancer, Scorpio, or Pi-
sces might be represented as a Princess of Cups.
Another method from Crowley's deck is to have Once the cards are selected, remove the
the kings (knights in his deck) represent the mu- rest of the cards, keeping the significator. Then,
table signs, the queens represent the cardinal lay the cards in the pattern shown below:
signs, and the knights (princes in his deck) repre-
sent the fixed signs. The card representing the
querant is called the significator.
Remove the significator from the deck.
Shuffle the deck. Give the deck to your querant
and have her shuffle until it feels right to her. Ask
her to concentrate on her question (if there is a
specific one) while she shuffles.
When she's done, have her cut the deck
into three stacks, laying them from her left to her
right. Take up the middle stack, her right (your
left) stack underneath that, and then the final
stack at the bottom. (You can change this
pattern--this is not a set in stone part of the se-
quence, but I find personal value in cutting the
deck).
As you lay each card, say:
Then, spread the cards in a semi-circle
1. This is what surrounds you.
around the significator, as illustrated. Have the
2. This is what binds you.
querant choose 10 cards and give them to you.
3. What is above you.
Keep the first card on top, followed by the second,
4. and what is beneath you.
etc., so that you keep the cards in the order cho-
5. What is behind you,
sen.
6. and what is before you.
7. What is within you,
8. and those who surround you.
9. Your hopes and your fears, the seed of de-
sire,
10. and the final outcome.

Now, intuit the meaning based on the pic-

tures, the patterns, your knowledge of the occult
symbols (this is why studying the Tree of Life en-
riches your Tarot readings), and finally, most im-
portantly, your inner feelings. If you feel a line of
interpretation that is inspired by a card, go with it.
The positions of this spread have the fol-
lowing meanings:

Module 1-9
68
1. Surrounds you: The forces immediately
around you regarding the situation.
2. Binds you: the forces in opposition to you
within the situation.
3. Above you: Your higher goals and ideals in
the situation.
4. Beneath you: Your incarnate goals and pur-
suits. (It is interesting to see if this and the
3rd card are in harmony or not).
5. Behind you: the immediate past (perhaps last
You need not complete this assignment to
6 months or so, but this is not a hard and fast
rule).
6. Before you: the immediate upcoming events/
energies in the next 6 months or so (but this
is not a hard and fast timeline... could be
days, could be a year... usually not more than
12 months because life changes each day).
7. Within you: your inner self, your subcon-
scious. Also check alignment with card 3 and
card 4.
8. Those around you. This is called the House
The focus of this course is not to make
card. It could be your family, but in today's
age, your family is not always the immediate,
close influence on your life. This describes
the impact of others on your situation.
9. This is either hopes or fears... or both. You'll
have to intuit which. It talks about the seed of
desire that is prompted by the situation, or
prompts the situation. It might show what the
querant hopes to gain, or hopes to avoid.
Hopes and Fears are closely related...
wishes.
10. Final outcome. The concluding answer to the
question as it relates to the rest of the spread.
Other Notes on Readings
The Celtic Cross is the most common
spread seen in public. There are other spreads
you can try in various books. Feel free to experi-
ment.
Reading for yourself can be tough. It
takes a much more objective eye to be honest
with yourself and read what the cards are saying
rather than reading into the cards the message
you want to be there.
The querant should not get readings too
frequently. I would suggest a minimum of two
weeks between readings, if not longer. Give
events time to progress in order to get any mean-
Now you're going to go through the proc-
ingful follow-on readings regarding the same
question.
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
Assignment #3
1. Perform Tarot readings until you feel moder-
ately proficient. The best way is to have folks
who are willing to get readings from you.
They can then give you feedback on how
meaningful the reading is.
continue. Work this in parallel. You should suc-
cessfully complete this assignment prior to initia-
tion. Three successful readings is the sign of
successful completion of the assignment. Unless
you have absolutely no one to read for, only one
of these readings can be one you do yourself.
Astrology
you an experienced astrologer. It will, however,
give you basic knowledge of the field--enough to
enhance your magical practices. In addition to
that, you'll be discovering your natal chart. One of
the tasks of the mystic is to "know thyself", as in-
scribed at the entrance to the Oracle of Delphi.
Your natal chart provides a look at your karmic
makeup.
Assignment #4
1. Read: The Only Astrology Book You'll Ever
Need:
a. Chapter 1: Sun Signs,
b. Chapter 3: The Decanates and Cusps of
Sun Signs,
c. Chapter 7: You and the Planets--Their
Role in your Destiny. (No need to read all
of this... read the first page, and then the
intro page for each planet).
d. Chapter 8: The Houses of Astrology (up
through pg 236.. don't need to read about
the planets in the houses yet.)
e. Chapter 11: The Story of Astrology
f. Chapter 12: The Zodiac--The Legend
Behind Each Sign
g. Chapter 13: The Age of Aquarius
2. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows, Astrol-
ogy.
ess of determining your natal horoscope, or birth
chart. The goal of this course is two-fold. The
practice of determining the chart will help to bring

a deeper level of understanding of the astrological
forces. Studying your chart will give you deeper
insight into yourself.
Assignment #5
1. Use The Only Astrology Book You'll Ever
Need to construct your birth chart, as de-
scribed in Chapter 9: How to Cast Your Own
Horoscope. Use the sections in the rest of
the book to help with interpreting what a par-
I'm not going to give you any more books
ticular plant in a particular sign in a particular
house means.
You should check your work with an As-
trology program, but go through this process first.
The point is not to become a master astrologer
(unless you choose that as a focus area), but to
become familiar with the concepts by working
through the process, and then to get an accurate
Some systems require more academic
birth chart so you can examine the karmic forces
in place at your time and place of birth.
The reason to check your work with an
astrology program (or find another book that takes
you through casting the full horoscope) is that the
simplified method in this book does not take into
By having students choose an alternate
account the fact that a sign and a house do not
neatly correspond. For example, according to this
book, my Jupiter is in Taurus, in the 10th house
(because my 10th house begins in Taurus). How-
ever, my Jupiter is in Taurus in my 9th house
(even though my 9th house begins in Aries) be-
cause Taurus actually starts prior to the beginning
of the 10th house in my chart.
Continue your study of Craft history with
Other Forms of Divination
There are many kinds of divination. The
student should learn and successfully practice at
least one other kind of divination. This choice will
be left to the student. Astrology is one such
choice... you can take your studies farther into the
study of horoscopes (Page 290 of Woolfolk's book
begins to talk about this). You will have to buy
books and make this an object of study, as delv-
ing further into astrology is beyond the scope of
this companion book.
There are other options as well. You can
practice scrying as described in the readings.
There are books on palmistry, and rune divination.
You can also look into the I Ching. Another, less
well known form of divination is called Geomancy,
which involves tuning into the flows of the Earth.
Module 1-9
69
John Michael Greer published a great book on
Geomancy called Earth Divination, Earth Magic.
Other forms include reading tea leaves and inter-
preting dreams. The list does not end there.
Assignment #6
1. Select another form of Divination and perform
three successful readings.
on these subjects. One of the tasks of a magician
(and hence, a Witch) is to be able to go forth, re-
search and learn a topic on his own. So, pick a
form of divination, read about it and practice it.
You can start by using the internet to get a survey
and make a better decision as to which method
appeals to you (if you don't already know based
on this course's readings).
study up front, and some are more intuitive, re-
quiring practice. If you had success with scrying,
you have your second form of divination cov-
ered... you just need to hone it to produce accu-
rate results.
form of divination to learn, one gets a variety of
expertise within a coven, enriching the overall
knowledge.
Craft History
the following reading assignment.
Assignment #7
1. Read: Triumph of the Moon: Chapter 17,
Royalty from the North.
Lesson Review
1. What are the qualities of each house?
2. What is the Ascendent Sign, and how is it dif-
ferent from the Sun Sign (differentiate techni-
cal description of location on the chart and
difference of meaning between the two).
3. What does each position in the Celtic Cross
spread mean?
70

4. What is your Ascendent? Your Sun Sign?

Your Moon Sign?
5. Are the presence of psychic gifts and the abil-
ity to generate "phenomenon" indicators of
spiritual progress?

Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007

Module 1-10: Spell Work
Lesson Objectives
This lesson focuses on applying magical
energy to practical ends in order to effect a
change in the physical world around us.
By the end of this lesson, the student
should be able to:
1. Understand the theory behind spell casting.
2. Describe different methods of raising energy.
3. Describe different methods of directing en-
ergy and defining a purpose with a magical
language.
4. Construct and cast a spell to practical ends.
For the sake of defining terminology, in
the context of this course, I'm using the word
"spell" to refer to any magical operation aimed at
achieving a definite change in the world around
you. In other words, "practical magic." Although
magic is a larger field involved with the transfor-
mation of the self, I won't use the word "spell" to
refer to mystic rites of self-transformation, medita-
tions, or initiation rituals.
Spell Theory
Why Magic?
Assignment #1
1. Read: What Witches Do: Magic
The basic aim of magic is the spiritual
development of the individual, and the expanding
of consciousness. How does this apply to spell-
work? I try to answer this in a section on how the
Eshimite value of Interconnectedness manifests
in Wicca, from Why?:
Interconnectedness is expressed in
a variety of ways. In the sense of commu-
3 Most folks who ask about Wicca really want to know about the magic, not the religion. Most folks who come to
Wicca are drawn to the magic and psychic aspects, and often times pass over the religious aspect (the Sabbats and
the myth-cycle of the year). These people tend to either change their focus, or wander away from the path, for while
magic is a part of Wicca, Wicca is not about practicing magic.
Module 1-10
71
nity, we have a coven pledged to "perfect love
and perfect trust," with whom we "drink,
feast, make music and love, all in Her name."
"Reunion with those who have gone before"
extends hearth to honor our ancestors. In-
terconnectedness in divinity, we have prayer
and communion with our Gods. In love, we
see sacredness within sexuality and the joy of
sexuality, and find value in that even when
not in conjunction with fertility. In connect-
ing to the world around us, we have magical
practice, and the development of intuitive
arts such as tarot, astrology and other divina-
tory systems.
Magic is a part of Wiccan practice,
and this seems to be what most non-Wiccans
immediately focus on3. Why practice Magic?
In the context of the so-called "Right-Hand
Path", informed by the values that I've set
forth, Magic in any form is no different from
prayer or meditation in action. In fact, I find
that the practice of magic evolves into a bril-
liant mystical experience of interconnected-
ness. Why magic? Magic means different
things to different people... but why do I
practice it, why do I am drawn to it, what do
I get out of it? To me, magic is... well... magi-
cal. Wonderful. Brilliant. Love. Magic--
even practical magic--is experiencing the funda-
mental truth that I am connected to every-
thing in the universe, and I find that magnifi-
cent. It also brings me to the experience that
the universe is greater than just me. Love is
found in such unity--love of everything. It is
not power over, but power with. As illumina-
tion sets in, previously "practical" and non-
religious acts of magic become religious acts
of communion, as does all action. Focus
drops away from "making things happen" to
72
serve desire, but instead becomes a mystical
practice. I see prayer and any religious ritual
as inherently magical. I may call it magic,
but others could easily call it prayer , ritual,
contemplation, or sacrament. Mysticism is the
As far as the formulation of intent, some
love affair with the Divine. When distinc-
tions of "divine" and "not divine" become
meaningless when everything is seen as a glo-
rious whole, the practice of magic is nothing
more than a passionate mystical dance.
Magic performed for the sole purpose of cul-
tivating a deeper connection with God and
for God is nothing less than sacramental.
The Wiccan technique goes something
Process
Assignment #2
1. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows: (Magic):
Magical Technique
Boiled down, casting a spell involves: 1.
raising energy, 2. programming and directing en-
Obviously, much of this is guided by ac-
ergy, and 3. releasing energy. You raise power,
charge it with a purpose, and release it into the
world to do its work.
After you do this, it's best to not dwell on
the spell; let it do its work. Record in your magi-
After raising power and energy, the magi-
cal journal that you've performed the spell, the
conditions under which you performed it (date,
time of day, phase of moon, astrological sign,
hour performed, your physical state of health, and
mental/emotional state of being, and anything
else you can think of), and the purpose of the
spell. Then forget about it. Leave it alone. When
The Wiccan's circle, in addition to defining
your spell manifests, go back and record that in
your journal. If it never manifests, record that too.
Part of magical training is self-honesty. You must
be honest with your failures so you can learn from
them, just as you take joy in your successes.
The Magic Circle: Wiccan Technique
You've already learned how to cast a cir-
cle for Temple purposes. This same circle is used
in spell-casting, normally in Esbat (although some
spells might call for a different phase of the
moon).
When working within the temple for spell-
work, the opening rite is the same. The Witches'
Rune provides a way to raise the cone of power.
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
You may use this, or you may select another
technique. In addition, you can begin your spell
after invoking the Gods, and work the Witches'
Rune into the power-raising portion of your spell.
of this work should already have been done dur-
ing spell construction. If the spell's mode is by
magical talisman, for example, much of the intent
has been formulated in your mind when you de-
signed and constructed the talisman. For candle
magic, you'll already have selected the appropri-
ate color of the candle, the oil that consecrates it,
and perhaps engraved appropriate symbols.
like this. We gather and erect the Temple, mindful
of our purpose. We focus on the intent as we
raise power. Power is raised as a cone of power
that focuses to a point above the circle. At the
proper moment, the ritual leader will signal every-
one to release the intent and energy. She will
then fire off the charged energy into the universe.
Some see this as being fired through the top of
the cone. Others see this as seeing the entire
cone fly off itself into the cosmos.
tive visualization. When you are called to release
the energy, you feel it release, and visualize it
going to the rite leader. If you are the rite leader
(or solitary), you fire the cone off yourself.
cian should ground herself, returning to earth and
releasing excess energy. Eating is a good way to
do this (ground), and banishing also disperses
excess energy. The Cakes and Ale ceremony,
accompanied by the First-Degree Closing Rite,
provides an effective and safe means to do this.
the sacred space, a "boundary between the world
of men and the realm of the might ones," and pro-
viding protection by acting as a "rampart and pro-
tection", it fulfills another purpose as well: "to pre-
serve and contain the power we shall raise within
thee." You don't need a circle to work magic.
Ultimately, you can raise power and direct it to-
wards manifesting an intent no matter where you
are. The Circle amplifies the power raised so that
you get more bang for you buck, just a cylinder in
a car amplifies the power of igniting gasoline. The
power is much more potent when confined in a
space and then released into the universe by ex-
plosive force. What this allows is for the Witch to
produce larger effects with safer, smaller amounts
of power that is more manageable, especially by
the beginner.
 73

2. Read: A Witch's Bible: Book 2: Chapters IX

Raising Energy and XXII, Rituals of Protection, and Spells
Traditional Wicca talks about Eight Ways
of raising power. I've included this passage from The art of constructing a spell capitalizes
the traditional Wiccan Books of Shadows under on symbols, meanings, and tables of correspon-
the heading "Eightfold Path" (this is not the same dence to maximize the existential harmonic reso-
as the Buddhist Eightfold Path). nance of the spell.
This section also includes five things you
need to successfully practice the Art. Surely all
these things will aid in your magic, but they are
not requirements. You can work magic without
Setting Goals
properly consecrated tools, but properly conse- Each spell should have a specific goal in
crated tools will strengthen your magical workings mind. Specifically, what is it that you wish to
(especially in the beginning). The circle should be manifest in your life?
properly cast and consecrated... but this does not
mean the specific rite is the only one that will work
for everyone. The key is: purified space, circle Spell Techniques
for boundary and containment, temple powers
(watchtowers and Gods) invoked.
Assignment #4
The Eightfold Path is about raising en-
1. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows (Spells)
ergy. Not all these means be employed. In fact,
some are used more frequently than others. Un-
less you have an active, magical, sexual partner, Sigils
you are probably not going to be doing the Great
Rite to raise power. The use of cords for blood Constructing a sigil is a way to take a
control is more conducive to a coven setting. It word and reduce it to a single symbol. Often, the
should also be noted that anyone who has sworn symbol is based upon a design describing a con-
to the New Law won't be using any illegal sub- ceptual pattern of energy. It could be a universe
stances. map, or something much simpler. A common de-
As a solitary practitioner, you will probably sign to use is the planetary magic square.
be working with concentration, channelling your Let's say you're getting ready to do a
passion, chants, invocations, and dancing. The speech or debate, where you want to clearly illus-
Witches' Rune uses chants and dance to raise trate your viewpoint. Let's say you have a prob-
energy. lem with public communication. Depending on
Any means to raise your emotional pas- the root of this problem, you could approach this
sion is effective. This could be sex, or it could be in different ways. You could think of Mars, desir-
something as simple as music. The key is, once ing courage. Or, you could think of Mercury, if
the passion is raised, it's released with intent. your issue is clarity and choosing the right words
The easiest way to bind intent to raised rather than actual fear of speaking.
energy is through symbolic association. Symbolic For this example, let's say you need clar-
association communicates to your subconscious ity. Mercury is the planet that has most to do with
mind how it should charge the energy, and this clarity, and in the Eshimite tree, it's also the planet
comes into play during spell construction. linked to the sphere of Truth. In clarity, you desire
your true understanding to be correctly received
with minimal interference to the listener, to pre-
vent misinterpretation.
Construction and Timing You can use the word "clarity" or choose
another word. Since I'm in Information Technol-
Assignment #3 ogy field, I might also choose the word "integrity",
1. Read: Spells and How They Work: Chapters since "integrity" is a specifically defined term in
VI-X: Setting About It, Sex Magic, Spell- the area of Information Assurance, meaning the
Working and the Cabala, Talismans, Coming message they receive is the same as the mes-
Unstuck sage you transmit.

Module 1-10
74
You take your word and make a sigil
based on the kamea of Mercury. From your
reading, Chapter IX in A Witch's Bible, Book 2 will
show you how to do that.
Using the pythagorean numerology for
English letters (as shown in Appendix 2) we get
the mercurial sigil of "clarity" (3-3-1-9-9-2-7):
There are other patterns on which one
Note that there is a difference between
Or:
You'll find the Book of Shadows section
Some books publish lists of "spell reci-
Notice that 3 is hit twice by looping back
into the number to create another point. So too
with 9. The sigil begins with a circle, the source of
That being said, the "recipe" books can
the energy of the sigil, and terminates in a "T" to
ground it.
You may also have a flash of insight and
realize that in order to achieve clear communica-
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
tions, you need to be in tune with your audience.
So, you might pick the word "perception" or "in-
sight", and construct the sigil based on the lunar
kamea. These could be your inner sigils in the 4-
sided parchment talisman as found in the Book of
Shadows. Of course, as your building the talis-
man, you are visualizing and pushing energy to-
wards the final outcome: you speaking adeptly,
being sensitive to your audience, and your audi-
ence clearly understanding what it is you are try-
ing to say.
can construct a sigil. This is just one way to do it.
This way is beneficial because it's linked with the
symbols of the overall magical language we've
been working with (the planets and sephiroth).
Ethical Note
understanding and agreeing. It would be possible
to construct a talisman to get an audience to
agree with you, but then you would be trying to
influence their will, and not only is it frowned upon
in Wicca, it's also highly unethical. The talisman
example here works on you: you work to provide
them a clear understanding of your position, but
you leave them the choice on how to respond to
that information.
Spells in the Book of Shadows
on spells (and for other sections as well, such as
herbalism) very sparse. This is intentional. Re-
member, the Book of Shadows is designed to give
you a structure to add to. It's one of the reasons
there are no page numbers, and each section is
not printed sharing a piece of paper with another
section (assuming you print double-sided). It's so
you can insert your own lore and discoveries.
Remember, the Book of Shadows is a living
document that grows with your practice.
pes". By themselves, they are useless. It takes a
trained magician to really make use of magic in a
consistent sense. The spells you construct your-
self will be the most potent.
be a useful resource to a trained magician. You
can take some of these spells as starting points
and modify them to your intended purpose. A
trained magician can also look at these spells and
actually understand the pieces of them and the

forces at work behind them. You may find that
you have to make corrections to some.
Prior to performing the spread, formulate
Preparatory Divination
It's important to consider the impact of a
spell that touches the external world, even if it is
seemingly innocent. One should consider explor-
ing the current harmonic resonance lines in order
to avoid unintended consequences by having
something manifest in a way that you would re-
gret. The cliched example of this would be doing
magic to get money to pay a bill, and someone
dies to leave you an inheritance. Whether or not
someone would actually die from your magic, you
avoid a lot of mental anguish and guilt wondering
if it were so by doing your preparatory divination
work. What's more, it's a signal to the Universe
that you consciously intend to be responsible with
your spell work.
The following is a good Tarot spread for
such purposes.
Spellwork Divination
Cause/Effect Scatter Spread
This spread is based on examining the
spell's causes and effects. The bottom trial is the
causal triangle focusing in your desire to cast the
spell. The top triangle is the resulting affect of
manifestation, whose effects get wider as time
progresses.
5 6
4 aims. It may advise you to adjust based on
7 9 8 the spell will be successful and what conse-
1 ror the rest of the spread, as there may be
2 3
Module 1-10
75
a specific question, something to the effect of:
"What will be the outcome if I use magic to
achieve [your intended manifestation]." Don't ask
a question such as "Should I use magic to..."
Divination isn't to be used to tell you what deci-
sion to make. As a student of magic, you make
the decision based on the information you get,
and you accept all consequences. Divination is
only there to provide you with data so you can
make a more informed decision.
The card meanings in the spread are:
1. Conscious desires. This shows your ego
desires in the matter.
2. Unknown Spiritual Influences. This reveals
forces in the subtle planes of existence and
your own karmic currents that will affect the
operation.
3. Unconscious Desires. This reveals forces
at work within your own subconscious that will
shape the effect of the work.
4. Affect on Self. All magic transforms the self.
This reveals the immediate affect on yourself
and your inner being.
5. Affect on Environment. This reveals the
effect on your path and situations in the future
(much like the 1st and 2nd cards in the Celtic
Cross spread).
6. Affect on Others. This reveals the unin-
tended impact the spell will have on others as
the universe moves to set up circumstances
that manifest your desired effect.
7. Spiritual Advice. This reveals advice regard-
ing the spell as it applies to your higher aims.
It may advise a refocus of the spell, or a dif-
ferent angle to include in the spell to bring it in
line with your higher goals.
8. Practical Advice. This reveals advice re-
garding the spell as it applies to your practical
your unconscious and conscious goals.
9. Final outcome. This will help indicate wether
quences it might have. It may or may not mir-
other factors involved you cannot see.
76

3. What is a kamea? What are the number to-

Mystical Study
Continue your mystical study with the fol-
lowing reading assignment. Consider the ideas,
and draw your own conclusions on how they re-
late to your practice.
Assignment #5
1. Read: Heart of Stillness: Part 3: Pleasant
Mind States: Introduction and Sections on
Fantasy, Ecstasy and Bliss.
tals for each? What are the total number of
squares in each?
4. How does one construct a sigil?
5. Describe the types of spells (the desired kinds
of goals) that might fall under each planet.
6. What is the magical purpose of the Wiccan
circle, as distinct from the magical purpose of
the ceremonial magician's circle?

Casting a Spell
Some authors say that you should never
use magic for practical means unless you have a
true and genuine need. While it's true that need,
real need, makes a spell much more effective, it's
also important to experiment and learn, and see
results for the techniques.
So, to that end, you are going to construct
a spell to achieve a desired end. Consider a goal
small enough to be reasonable (something that
you could actually imagine happening to you,
such as finding small amount of money), yet
unique enough that it won't be too trivially fulfilled
(finding a parking space at a busy shopping mall),
and select a small scope that is limited to your
own desires and life (for example, trying to win
the lotto is probably not a reasonable goal, since
everyone who plays has some will invested in
winning).

Assignment #6
1. Construct and cast a spell successfully. Re-
cord your results. Remember to give it time
to manifest. Remember to perform your divi-
nation prior to the spell. If the divination
comes up adverse to the operation, don't per-
form the spell; reexamine your goals, or wait
a week before performing another divination
for that spell.

Lesson Review
1. What are the Eight Ways of raising power?
2. What five things do you need to practice the
Art successfully, according to traditional
Wicca?

Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007

Module 1-11: Natural Magic, Herbs, and Healing
Lesson Objectives
This lesson covers natural magic, herb-
I'm going to level with you. I'm not an
craft, making anointing oils and incenses, and the
concept of the Witch as a healer.
By the end of this lesson
Understand basic herbal magic concepts
Understand basic herbal correspondences
Make an anointing oil
Remember how I talked about earlier that
Make a temple incense
Understand a Witch's role as a healer
Understanding how to apply Craft knowledge to
healing
Core Library Books
We're adding some more books to your
core library. You will need to acquire the following
Some might say that by choosing Wicca
book in order to complete the required readings
for this lesson:
1. Cunningham, Scott. (1956). Cunningham's
Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs. Llewellyn
Publications, Minnesota, USA
2. Cunningham, Scott. (1956). The Complete
Book of Incense, Oils & Brews. Llewellyn
Publications, Minnesota, USA
3. Fetrow, Charles W. Avila, Juan R. (2000) The
Complete Guide to Herbal Medicines, Simon
and Schuster, Inc. New York
These three books will give you a good
basis in magical herbalism. The first book is a
magical encyclopedia of herbs, their uses, their
On the other hand, there are good rea-
natures, and their correspondences, particularly
from a magical perspective. This book will give
you an insight into the harmonic resonances that
First of all, Wicca is a fertility religion.
can be utilized.
The second book specifically deals with
how to use the herbs in different ways, from in-
censes to oil, from brews to ointments. It includes
some of the technical aspects of preparing the
herbs themselves.
The final book is included to give your a
scientific encyclopedia concerning herbal reme-
This involvement with plant-life takes on a
dies, in particular the possible side-effects.
Module 1-11
77
Herbcraft
herbal expert. This may be shocking to some
who believe that every Witch is a folk-healer, spe-
cializing in natural magic. While there are good
arguments for a Witch to be a folk healer, there is
another perspective.
a magician eventually has to "choose a major"? I
hold to that. Personally, I think a first degree
witch should study and achieve a basic, practical
understanding of a wide variety of occult topics.
In a way, it's like an undergraduate degree. As
the witch progresses, she may specialize and go
deeper into a particular field of study, one that is
enhanced by the broad knowledge she gained in
her "undergraduate" work.
as a religious path, and seeking to become a
practicing Witch, that means a specialization in
that herb-craft. You could see why this might be
so from your early reading in Triumph of the
Moon, specifically the Chapter 6, "Finding a Low
Magic". You can also see from the history on
Wicca that there is more to Wicca than low magic.
Since Wicca is not a direct inheritor from the ar-
chetypical wise woman in the village, one can
argue that Wiccan practice is no more (or less)
about folk magic than it is about ceremonial high
magic! Personally, my specialization has been in
the area of Tarot, Kabbalah, and ritual magic. You
can choose a different specialization, and if herb-
craft calls to you, more power to you!
sons to study herbalism, and let's look at that for a
moment. Why study herbalism at all?
This includes reverence of all earthly life, not just
human life, and this is captured in Wicca's heavy
basis in agricultural fertility: the harvest. The
heart of the village community life (its "hearth", so
to speak) is woven of sexual fertility (having ba-
bies), the harvest (getting through the winter each
year), and community celebration.
spiritual dimension within Wicca, and keeps us
78
connected with the Earth rather than getting lost
in a lofty astral temple. I'm all for astral temples,
but if we lose our connection with the magic and
life all around us in Malkuth, especially as it mani-
fests on our planet as an interconnected whole,
then we are losing sight of what it means to be
Wiccan.
Herbalism is a great case study as to why
Gaining magical power and resonance
from the Earth is a great way to keep our earthly
interconnectedness active. It puts us in touch
with the manifested world of the elements.
There is another reason that relates to the
technical, professional aspect of being a temple
priest. Because of the magical role that of in-
cense and anointing oil within Wiccan worship
and magic, a priest should be able to create these
things without the aid of store-bought products.
There is nothing wrong with buying incense from
As you study herbalism, it's very impor-
the occult store--in fact, most of the time I do just
that as a matter of convenience. But, should you
be in a location where you don't have access to
such things, you should be able to create them on
your own. If you are an initiate in a hearth which
has lay-people, it is your duty to provide those
ritual experiences to the others, and this is part of
that.
My rule of thumb is to research the herb
You may find as you work with herbs and
oils that the ones you create yourself are more
potent than the ones you buy, and you may end
up choosing to make your own as a matter of per-
sonal choice, in spite of the convenience of
stores.
To acquire the herbs, we are blessed to-
day with the Internet, and there are numerous
resources online that will ship to you if you don't
have a local herb shop. You can grow your own
garden, but being able to find the "raw ingredi-
ents" (the herbs and essential oils themselves)
Keep in mind that herbs have both
and make from them a meaningful blend satisfies
the course requirements.
There is sometimes a perceived conflict
between herbal healers and the modern scientific,
medical community. Reviewers on Amazon.com
have accused the authors of The Complete Guide
to Herbal Medicines as being "in the pocket of"
the pharmaceutical companies.
My personal opinion is that such criticism
is a bunch of hogwash. People are quick to come
up with conspiracy theories to justify why they
shouldn't have to listen to particular scientific
communities. I think science and magic can (and
should) be in harmony, informed by each other.
Sure, there are some experiences that the con-
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
ventional scientific community may never accept,
and that's okay. But, one shouldn't throw out all
scientific knowledge! Otherwise, we've de-
scended into superstition. Not all ancient folklore
is good. There are superstitions that are flat out
wrong, and dangerous for that matter.
we shouldn't just go about believing anything we
want to about magic. Our magic should be in-
formed by study. If there's an herb that's poison-
ous, no amount of "but I believe it will do X and
because it's from the Earth it won't hurt me" non-
sense will prevent you from getting sick. The pur-
pose of magic is to empower us in our work in
Malkuth, not escape from it. You shouldn't take
everything an herbalist tells you without a grain of
salt.
tant to learn about the herbs you will be using,
including and especially from the scientific com-
munity to find out if there are any physical dan-
gers. Consider that herbs may have different ef-
fects if ingested, placed on the skin, or inhaled.
What may be safe in an oil may not be safe to
inhale via incense, and vice versa.
in question and find out if there are poisonous
effects. Note that there is a difference between
"possible side effects" (as one might find on a
medicine label) and known poisons (such as Bel-
ladonna). If the herb is reasonably safe, then I
can proceed to use it for its magical resonance.
For example, frankincense is safe as an incense,
so I can use it to bring in solar energies into the
temple. Cloth of Gold, however, is not recom-
mended for internal use, but can be worn as an
amulet or a charm.
chemical properties and etheric properties. In
magical herbalism (such as spell work--using
herbal sachets as amulets to be worn, for exam-
ple), particularly in the incenses and oils, we are
more interested in the etheric properties.
Assignment #1
1. Familiarize yourself with the layout of Cun-
ningham's Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs.
Look at page 266 to see the health codes as-
sociated with each herb.
2. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows: Herbal-
ism (Lore)
3. Select one or two herbs in each planet and
one or two for each element. For every herb
 79

selected, look up that herb in both Cunning- 2. Create a basic temple incense. The easiest
ham's Encylopedia of Magical Herbs and The way is to prepare a non-combustible mix to be
Complete Guide to Herbal Medicines. Take used on charcoal. Use it in your next temple
notes on what you find, and put those in your rite.
copy of the Book of Shadows. You may flesh
this out more as you desire.
4. Read: The Complete Book of Incense, Oils & Anointing Oils
Brews,
a. Part 1: Chapters 1-5: On Magic, On Pro- As with incenses, the Book of Shadows
portions, Empowering Rites, Ingredients has some basic recipes. Feel free to add more.
and Creating your Own Recipes. For this
assignment, focus more on the technical Assignment #3
aspects rather than his ethics and magi- 1. Read: The Complete Book of Incense, Oils &
cal theories (we've covered this) or his Brews, Part II, Oils. (pp 101-109). Again, feel
particular magical techniques (for exam- free to peruse the recipes, but you need not
ple, you don't need to follow his empow- commit them to memory.
ering rites, but you may use them as in- 2. Create a basic temple anointing oil. Use it in
spiration if you desire). We're more inter- your next temple rite.
ested in the tools for magical herbalism
and the technical aspects of herbcraft,
such as substitutions, what a gum is, how
to acquire herbs, etc. His descriptions of
Natural Magic
Herbcraft is one specific type of natural
intent and energy of the plant are nice,
magic, that is, magic that enhances practice by
but not crucial. The plant already has a
using inherent, naturally occurring energy pat-
natural property, and you don't need to
terns of harmonic resonance.
charge it further. You may, to enhance its
Another popular form of natural magic
effects, but that is up to you.
involves harnessing the power of stones and crys-
b. Part 3: Introduction
tals. In herbcraft, we touch the power of life
through the plants. With stonecraft, we touch the
Remember, a lot of these books are ref-
power of the Earth itself through the stones that
erence books. You will learn the kinds of things
have formed in her body.
they can tell you through your readings, but you
There is a different quality of each. One
won't be reading all the texts cover to cover.
form deals with life in a much more immediate,
When you have specific questions about specific
defined, and focused way. The other works with
herbs, go back and look them up.
energies that may not vibrate as life as we nor-
mally recognize it, but carry with it the more basic,
primal, elemental essence of the planetary soul.
Stone lore is another line that you can
Temple Incense explore and add to your knowledge as a witch.
The Book of Shadows has some core However, it's beyond the scope of this course. If
incense recipes. Through the course of your study you're interested in natural magic as a focus of
and practice, you are encouraged to add other study, I encourage you to add stone lore to your
recipes and notes, either your own, or others that studies.
you find. What about animals? It goes to reason
that if one can utilize the natural magic found in
Assignment #2 plants because of their life, one could do that with
1. Read: The Complete Book of Incense, Oils & animals as well. Well, yes. This kind of practice
Brews, Part II, Incense. (pp 45-57). You often involves animal sacrifice, and animal body
need not study the specific recipes in detail, parts as amulets (such as antlers, bones, a rab-
but feel free to peruse them. You might want bit's foot, etc.)
to use some and add to you own Book of Animal sacrifice is not a common part of
Shadows. Wiccan practice, and most Wiccans frown upon
the taking of life. There are some religions, how-

Module 1-11
80

ever, who do utilize animal sacrifice. Most often, works with angels or other kinds of spirits than it
the animal is also consumed as food, and there is to harvesting herbs and enhancing rituals with
are ethical ways to approach this within the con- stones.
text of those religions. There's nothing to say you cannot add
Using animal body parts is another way to animal symbolism to the magical language we've
explore animal energy. Again, there are ethical been learning; it's just that animals simply aren't
ways to do this. If you're consuming the animal, the basis for the magical language in this course.
there's no reason not to use body parts if you The Tarot is.
choose. If you find a set of released antlers in the
woods, there's no reason it couldn't become a
ritual item for you. Killing animals to get their
body parts, however, when the animal is not going Healing
to be part of a meal, is considered unethical and
immoral in most Wiccan circles. Personally, I A Witch is a healer. This role takes on
don't feel any pull to exploring the energies of several dimensions. The first is the traditional role
animal body parts when there are plenty of other of one who uses magic and wisecraft to heal ail-
natural resonances that can be used without ments. The second is the work of healing the self,
causing loss of life. and the third is the work on healing the world. All
"But wait!" you might say. "There are of this involves the work of tikkun, the rectification
plenty of systems that use animals a spirit guides of the universe by freeing holy sparks, and the
and totems! Isn't that natural magic using ani- initiatory three-degree system of Witchcraft.
mals?"
Not necessarily. What I'm talking about
here is utilizing the natural energy vibrations of Physical Healing
physical objects, regardless of what we under-
Disclaimer: The first thing I want to
stand them to mean as symbols. Let's explore
stress is that you are not earning a medical de-
this distinction a little bit more.
gree, and you are in no way becoming a licensed
I can take any herb and use it as a talis-
medical practitioner! Any healing work you do
man to heal any thing. I can take that object and
should be in conjunction with professional medical
charge it to a purpose. I can call that herb a sym-
treatment. It should not replace, nor should it in-
bol for X concept, no matter what it is, and I can
terfere with, medical treatment administered by a
get some resonance out of it. But in that case, I
licensed medical practitioner.
would be generating the magic based on the
Oftentimes, the Witch desires to heal an-
symbol-language I've developed (a magical lan-
other, or another asks a Witch to heal them.
guage), where I've said that herb is a "word" for a
While you may not manifest instant results, your
certain meaning. This is completely irrespective
efforts will help facilitate the healing process.
of any vibration the herb actually has before I
charge it... so my magic would work in spite of it. Herbal Healing
By picking the proper herb so as to match its ac-
tual resonance to a purpose, I could strengthen Herbs have physical, chemical properties
the potential resonance. in addition to magical energy. The Complete
By the same token, I could use animal Book of Incenses, Oils, and Brews shows ways to
symbolism to form a magical language, where prepare herbs for different methods of application.
animal-forms take on magical meanings. This You can also purchase ready-made herbal reme-
has nothing to do with the physical properties of dies at health and wellness stores. Use your ref-
the animal's bodies, but is empowered by the ar- erence books to determine which herbs should be
chetypal symbolic meaning it has for me. applied in which situation, and be informed of
You can work with animals as spirit possible side effects. Someone who takes herbs
guides, but this too involves a different source of for medicinal reasons should consult a licensed
power. It involves making contact and working medical practitioner. If they come to you for
with the spirits of animals (or the group-spirit for herbal remedies, you should explain to them that
that animal). That's very shamanistic, but it is you are not a licensed medical practitioner and
closer to being similar to the kind of magic that that while you may do something to help, they
need to seek professional medical help. Doing
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
 81

this helps to protect you from legal action if some- physical and mental troubles that you might en-
thing goes wrong. counter that you just won't be prepared to deal
with. You need to know when you're out of your
Healing Spells depth so you can encourage the person to seek
proper treatment. This act alone can be a catalyst
You may also use any of the spell tech-
for healing by receiving professional treatment
niques to raise energy towards healing a person
they might truly need.
as the object of the spell This could be symboli-
But, that doesn't mean you can't help
zation, a talisman, cord magic, mental magic, or
someone's healing process. Sometimes being
any other means of raising and directing magical
there to lend an ear when they just need some-
energy.
one to talk to can have a healing effect. Lending
Think of healing as restoring a state of
a shoulder for them to lean on to lighten some of
being to its proper balance, and think of sickness
their load can have a healing effect. Acts of
as a state of imbalance. In that way, you can
compassion, loving-kindness, also have a healing
bring healing energies to a person through any of
effect on those around you.
the four elemental levels of experience.

The Healer Ethos

Channeling Energy
One of the components of being a healer
One could argue that this is a form of
is cultivating the healer ethos. This is a general
mental magic. It involves raising energy within
attitude towards the world that grows into a way of
the self, and then laying the hands on someone
life. Central to the healer ethos is compassion
and sending the energy through your arms and
and empathy. While this does not always mean
into their bodies. Often this energy is visualized
sympathy , the ability to empathize and under-
as a pure white light, or a soothing, cool blue.
stand another's feelings is crucial.
If you are sensitive to the person's aura,
On a physical level, the healer attempts to
you can determine imbalances in the person's
sooth pain and disease. On an emotional level, a
energy and use your own energy to help restore
healer attempts to sooth the heart. At the mental
balance.
level, the healer seeks to open perspectives to
The trick is not to drain yourself by using
new understandings. At the spiritual level, the
your own energy, but to connect to the limitless
healer seeks to facilitate reconnection to the di-
source of divine energy present in the cosmos,
vine source.
and channel it so you become a conduit allowing
it to flow into the person.
This discipline takes practice and cultiva-
tion, and requires that you are balanced yourself, Tikkun, The Great Work and Karma
healthy on all four levels. This sort of technique is Let's look at three words from three dif-
more difficult to use at First Degree because the ferent faith traditions that describe similar con-
Witch is focused on her own self healing and in- cepts. For our purposes, we'll relate them to each
ternal balance. Insights into this technique can other and give them slight nuances.
reveal themselves with time and meditation over Tikkun is the process of restoration of the
the years. Universe to Union with the Divine. Tikkun is the
path of rectification, which frees holy sparks from
Knowing your Limits the veils of separation.
There are many ways to heal someone. Karma is the natural process (think, "the
You can administer medicine and therapy to the Wheel of Karma") through which the Universe
body. Counseling and psychotherapy can heal naturally engages in Tikkun. The natural state is
the mind and soul. It's important to know your the flow towards unity. The natural process of
limits as a healer. This course does not ade- Karma is very slow, taking eons of evolution.
quately train you in any of these areas for you to Conscious engagement in one's spiritual evolution
go forth and present yourself to the world as a can speed up the process of Tikkun.
healer. Physical medicine takes years of study, The Great Work is mindful, conscious
as does becoming a trained counsellor. There are engagement in the process of Tikkun. In the

Module 1-11
82
Eastern traditions, Yoga means "union", and prac-
True forgiveness is a form of acceptance.
tices of yoga are intended to bring union with the
divine. There is Raja Yoga, union through medita-
tion and mental mastery. There is Bakhti Yoga,
union through loving devotion to a deity. There is
Karma Yoga, union though good works (acts of
loving-kindness). There is hatha-yoga, which is
union through mastery of the body.
The Great Work is a Western, Hermetic
form of Yoga. It specifically refers to the individu-
als labor on self-transformation to reach gradually
higher states of awareness of interconnectedness
with the divinity in all things, eventually leading to
the attainment of union.
The Great Work is a form of healing. The
initiatory process of the Witch is one method that
facilitates this healing. It is thought of as healing
because the Great Work involves harmonizing
This includes forgiveness of the self. Of-
and restoring elements of the psyche to their
natural state, clearing the blocks of separation
that prevent the free flow of energy between
them. Seeking and praising the Divine frees holy
sparks. All acts of loving-kindness free holy
sparks. In other words, combining the two, "all
acts of love and pleasure," Her rituals, frees holy
sparks.
Forgiveness takes time. One does not
Clearing the channels in the self in order
achieve balance is a prerequisite to being a
healer. A Witch is a healer, and the first and most
important step in that is self-healing.
The Importance of Forgiveness
I cannot stress enough the importance of
forgiveness. Forgiveness is essential to self-
One might have flashbacks to a Christian
healing and spiritual progression. This includes
forgiveness of the self, and forgiveness of others.
Forgiveness is not simply telling someone
that you forgive them, and then acting like it, all
the while resenting them underneath. That's just
deception. Sometimes acting as if you've forgiven
someone is an important first step to true forgive-
ness, but it's not the same as actually forgiving
them.
I hate the phrase "forgive, but never for-
get." On one hand, I agree that if someone lies to
you, you can forgive them and then choose not to
trust them again because you recognize a charac-
No one is telling you that you have to go
ter trait within them. But, when people say that
phrase, they usually say it with such emotional
conviction focused on the "never forget" that I
doubt if they're really achieved the liberation of
forgiveness.
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
When someone wrongs you and you achieve for-
giveness, it is a moving experience of self-
transformation where you move from the hurt and
pain to acceptance of who that person is. This
does not mean you blind yourself to that person's
faults. You accept them. You still may make
choices based on that person's character traits,
such as whether to trust them in situations or not,
or have certain expectations of them or not. But,
this level of acceptance means we don't feel
negative emotion towards that person (anger, re-
sentment, hurt, etc.) This is the first step on re-
storing active interconnectedness (that moves
from Venus to Jupiter, from empathic connection
to deeper love rooted in compassion) with that
person, and also frees sparks.
ten we are angry and bitter at ourselves for our
weakness, failings, fears and cruelty. Christians
would call this our sinful nature. Part of self-
restoration through the Great Work is to forgive
who we are, to accept that those things are part of
us. One cannot transform and balance those
things if one does not truly accept and own them.
forgive overnight, even if the choice towards for-
giveness is immediately made. One has to ac-
cept one's own emotional reactions, such as an-
ger, guilt, or what have you, and allow them to be.
If you suppress them, ignoring them, they won't
really go away, and you can never achieve that
internal restoration of self that occurs with forgiv-
ing acceptance. Part of forgiving others is forgiv-
ing the feelings of hurt within yourself.
faith they have left behind when one hears of talk
of forgiveness. It's important, though, not to throw
out the proverbial baby with the bath-water. Re-
member, that we have no commandments from
our Gods in the same way of exoteric Christian
denominations. It's not that the Gods will punish
us if we don't forgive others. Rather, I've been
describing a mystical process of self-
transformation involving forgiveness, and I will
argue that no one can truly approach the divine
without being able to forgive the self and forgive
others.
around forgiving everyone. You are free to not
forgive, as you will. You will or will not forgive, in
time, according to your will.
 83

As you experience forgiveness, you may

find that it is the beginning glimmerings of divine
love, an essential component of liberation.

Craft History
Continue your study of Craft history with
the following reading assignment.

Assignment #4
1. Read: Triumph of the Moon: Chapters 18,
Uncle Sam and the Goddess.

Mystical Study
Continue your mystical study with the fol-
lowing reading assignment.

Assignment #5
1. Read: Heart of Stillness: Part 3: Pleasant
Mind States, Section on Love

Lesson Review
1. Name at least one corresponding herb for
each element and describe its characteristics.
Do the same for the planets.
2. Describe a temple incense recipe.
3. Describe a temple oil recipe.
4. According to Hutton, what phenomenon oc-
cured when the Craft came to America?
5. Why is forgiveness important?
6. Describe natural magic. Be precise. How is it
differentiated from symbolic magic, or a magi-
cal language.
7. What value do incenses and oils bring to your
temple practices?
8. Describe different healing techniques.
9. Describe considerations to be taken into ac-
count when you prepare to do healing work.

Module 1-11
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Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007

Module 1-12: Ritual and Ceremony
Lesson Objectives
This lesson wraps up the Craft aspect of
this course in a discussion of ritual and ceremony.
By the end of this lesson, the student
should be able to:
One of the skills of the Witch as magician
1. Construct and perform a magical ritual.
2. Use lunar cycles to explore magical concepts.
3. Describe and differentiate different kinds of
spirits.
Core Library Books
We're adding two more books to your
core library. The first book is an essential refer-
ence book for your magical library. The second
book is required for your work upon your initiation.
1. Crowley, Aleister. (1973). 777 and other Qa-
In the early lessons, you've studied the
balistic Writings of Aleister Crowley. Samuel
Weiser, Inc. Maine, USA
2. Regardie, Israel. (1938) The Middle Pillar.
Llewellyn Publications, St. Paul MN. Third
Edition, edited and annotated by Chic and
Sandra Tabitha Cicero. 1998
When constructing a ritual, a lot of the
Mystical Study
Complete your reading of Rabbi David
Cooper's A Heart of Stillness.
The core elements of ceremony construc-
Assignment #1
1. Read: Heart of Stillness: Part 3: Pleasant
Mind States, Sections on Calmness and
Tranquility, Equanimity and Peace, Divine
Inspiration, Union with the Divine, The Fifth
Dimension.
The Tree of Life, as it describes the ener-
Module 1-12
85
Ceremony and Ritual
Construction
is to be able to construct ritual in order to bring
about a desired effect. It goes beyond the role of
Priest, who enacts the rituals of a certain form for
a deity or a religious path. The Witch, as a magi-
cian, begins to see all rituals as magical, whether
they be religious rites or aimed towards a particu-
lar purpose as a spell. The division between the
so-called religious aspect and Craft aspect falls
away. It is all magic. The division becomes be-
tween magic for religious ends (theurgy) and
magic for practical ends (thaumaturgy). From a
certain view, even that division can fall away, be-
ing seen as arbitrary.
how myth describes spiritual and philosophical
truths, and how ritual provides a methodical way
to explore, experience, and learn from those
truths. Those early lessons introduced ideas, and
now you have a magical language built up within
your mind that you can use to put into practice.
same thought as what goes into constructing a
spell comes into place. If you wish to work with a
particular energy, learn what deity is associated
with that. Then learn everything about that deity
that you can.
tion (as opposed to the performance of the cere-
mony) are spoken words (changes, invocations,
declamations, vibrating words of power, etc.),
body position (in symbolic positions--the God-
position is one of them), and movement around
the temple (such as movement from one quarter
to another, or movement in a doesil spiral) and
correspondence. To use Hindu words for the first
two, these are distilled to mantra (words), mudra
(postures), movement, and correspondence.
gies in the universe and the interplay between the
86
theory of levels and the theory of polarity, pro-
vides a wealth of correspondence. For this rea-
Notice that I'm not giving you a step-by-
son, 777 is a must-have reference book for any
ceremonial magician. It contains lists of corre-
spondence based on the 32 paths (10 Sephiroth
plus 22 paths) of the Tree of Life.
In 777, note the color scales. The King
Most rituals follow a simple pattern: purify
and Queen scales refer to Atziluth and Briah, and
are senior to the Emperor and Empress scales
(Yetzirah and Assiah). Because the Sephiroth are
fixed, and feminine in relationship to the paths,
the Queen scales are what are commonly used to
describe the colors of the Sephiroth. The paths
(11 through 32) are usually denoted with the King
scale. So, if you see a color for a planet and it's
not what you expect, look to see if it's matching
that planet on a different scale, either in its Sephi-
rah, or in its path.
These correspondence lists are not abso-
lute. You'll find that some correspondences are
different from what's in the Book of Shadows, par-
ticularly the Archangels of Hod and Tiphareth.
You can use the cycle of the moon, incor-
The Golden Dawn, and Crowley in 777, attribute
Michael to Hod and Raphael to Tiphareth, giving
the reasons that Michael is the Archangel of
Glory, and Raphael is the Divine Healer. How-
ever, this seems to be at odds with some more
Jewish authors, so I wonder if this is a mistake
Cornelius Agrippa made (one of the sources for a
You would use the full lunar cycle, from
lot of the Golden Dawn material). John Michael
Greer also recognizes this, if you check Paths of
Wisdom, and he places Michael in Tiphareth and
Raphael in Hod. Given the mythological history of
Michael and his very solar role, including that of a
mediator of souls, it makes sense to me to place
him in the mediating sphere of Tiphareth. In addi-
tion, Tiphareth is the sphere of the manifestation
of the personality of unity of God, the 'supreme
personality of the god-head', and Michael is said
to be very close to Christ (the Supreme Personal-
ity in the Christian system). Moreover, Raphael is
a Healer, but the physician heals by knowledge,
and the healing arts, the caduceus, is attributed to
Mercury and Hod. But the point here is not to
banter about archangelic correspondences--it's to
show that 777 is not an end-all and be-all. It's a
starting point. You'll also notice that the herbs
don't all match the correspondences in Cunning-
ham's books. I suspect some of Crowley's work is
more symbolic-magic rather than natural magic.
You'll have to get a feel as you work with these
lists for which correspondence you ultimately go
with (and what gets transcribed into your Book of
Shadows).
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
step of how to construct a particular ritual. I'm
expecting you to go out, do research, construct
your own, and gain facility through the experience
of trial and error.
the space, banish, invoke the deities, and then
the energies you desire, direct the energy, and
close by banishing. The Temple Opening and
Closing rites fulfill these functions. You can
change the God invocations to suit the ritual in
question, if necessary, but Aradia and Cernunnos
will also oversee any ritual work you do at this
level. As Aradia is the first Witch, traditionally
speaking, she can guide and protect you.
Lunar Cycle of Inner Transformation
porating Esbats, to ritually explore a series of
ideas. You could explore the elements, giving a
moon-cycle to each one. You could explore a
particular sequence of deities. You could also
explore the planets, or the sephiroth, or the Major
Arcana (ambitious, at 22 months).
New Moon, to Full Moon, to next New Moon.
The New Moon is used to state the intent and be-
gin planning. You conduct the rite at the Full
Moon, and then you meditate every day after the
Full Moon on the concept, recording in your jour-
nal as you go, until the next New Moon. On that
New Moon, you write your concluding thoughts,
distilling the lessons-learned, and then state your
intent for the next idea of the series, and begin
planning for it.
Let's use the Elements as our example.
1. New Moon: State your intent to work with and
learn from the elemental powers of Earth.
2. Waxing Moon: Plan, research, and saturate
yourself with the idea of Earth. Use this time
to write your ceremony, and acquire any items
you might need.
3. Full Moon: Perform your ceremony. Record
any immediate impressions.
4. Waning Moon: Allow the rite to gestate and
sink in. Meditate on Earth every day. Journal
your impressions.
5. New Moon: Distill your impressions down to
their essential lessons learned. Once they

are identified, Proceed to Water. Lessons
learned from Earth may prove valuable in
your planning sessions for Water.
6. Repeat the Waxing, Full and Waning cycles
One can vibrate silently as well. It in-
for Water. Then Air. Then Fire.
Obviously, you can plug in any idea se-
quence in the above formula. You use the waxing
moon's externalizing powers (manifesting) to build
and construct the ritual, and do all your outer-
world thought and research. You take the value
and manifest it fully in the Temple at the Full
Moon. Then, you move to the Waning Moon,
which focuses inward, internalizing the work. It is
a time for inward contemplation, to bring that ex-
perience back into the center of being, to allow
the experience to take effect and transform within.
Since the lessons of one experience seed
the next, you need to consider in which sequence
the ideas should be explored. Obviously, the Se-
phiroth are serial in nature. Different sources vary
You're coming close to the end of this
on the elemental sequence. The Golden Dawn
uses Earth-Air-Water-Fire (following the Tetra-
grammatonic formula) to encounter the elements
as they rise through the elemental grades of initia-
tion. Some say Earth-Water-Air-Fire is the appro-
priate way to explore them, as this rises the
planes from dense to subtle, in sequence. Study
and decide, but know why you are doing it that
way.
When you get to the end of the sequence,
in addition to distilling the last idea, you will
probably want to write notes in your journal syn-
thesizing all the lessons you have learned, on
how the various ideas work and relate together.
In truth, you will probably have synthesis ideas
Choose your Craft name as well. This is
along the way, as each new idea is internalized.
Vibration of Words of Power
Certain words of power, often times deity
names, can be vibrated to effect resonance with
the divine source of the particular vibration (con-
cept or quality) you wish to work with.
To vibrate a word, take in a deep breath.
Feel the name, and mentally intone it in your
heart. Then, in one slow breath, exhale while
Complete your reading of Ronald Hutton's
chanting that name loudly so it lasts through the
entire breath. The name becomes a mantra. Use
your powers of concentration to feel the name
vibrate in the desired location. It could be a part
of your body, projected into space, or into an ob-
ject. Sometimes when I wish to charge a certain
quality in an object, I'll vibrate the appropriate
Module 1-12
87
word of power while holding the object, feeling the
energy resonate with the Word as it pushes out
through my hands and into the object.
volves the same breath-work and energy focus,
but instead of chanting aloud, sound out as loud
as you can with your mind's internal voice, hear-
ing the word trumpet and echo as if by 1,000
voices in the astral planes around you.
Consecration Rites
Assignment #2
1. Read: Hearthcraft Book of Shadows: Conse-
crations.
2. Acquire an athame, but don't yet consecrate
or use it.
course. It's time to start thinking of a Craft name
for yourself, and a name for your athame. The
athame will be a symbol of your authority and
your single focused will (like the Elemental wand
and dagger rolled up into one). Since it will be-
come part of you, it will be a living creature in its
own right on the astral plane. It is important to
choose a name that is meaningful to you. You
can choose English words, foreign words, or
come up with a new word. If you come up with a
new word, work with the symbolism and numerol-
ogy of the letters. You can transliterate the Eng-
lish letters to Hebrew letters to get magical asso-
ciations (planets/elements/zodiac) with them.
the name you will go by in circle, before the Gods.
This is the name the Guardians of the Watchtow-
ers will know you by. This will be a name the rep-
resents you and the magical path, so choose
carefully. Your name can have a powerful trans-
formative effect upon you.
Craft History
book.
Assignment #3
1. Read: Triumph of the Moon: Chapters 19-20,
Coming of Age and Grandchildren of the
Shadows.
88

They may be as developed as a human,

Spiritual Taxonomy
You'll notice in the Book of Shadows ta-
bles of correspondence that there are different
Spirits can also refer to any entity without
kinds of spirits listed. The following section is not
intended to tell you how to work with each spirit,
but to give you a basic understanding of the lexi-
con you might encounter.
but lack physical bodies. They may or may not
have etheric bodies.
physical form. In addition, the spirit can refer to
an general atmosphere of feeling, such as the
"Spirit of Thanksgiving".

Elementals
Angels and Archangels
Elementals are spirits which have highly
Angels are divine spirits carrying out spe- developed etheric bodies according to their na-
cific roles in the divine plan. They are tightly de- tures. They live in very precise, focused modes of
fined, always working in accordance with the Di- being according to the nature of their elements.
vine Plan. In Hermetic Terms, Angels are spirits If one considers ether as the medium of
which are performing according to their own True awareness in Malkuth, the elementals can have a
Will, which is in harmony with the universe. An- strong effect on our experiential world. Some
gels have a sense of personal will and identity, writings say because of their etheric natures that
while Archangels are balanced between personal they can directly affect matter in the physical
identity and unity with the Absolute. Any higher world as well.
level beyond Archangel is essentially part of the The Elemental Ruler is the collective con-
Absolute, their distinctions unintelligible to us at sciousness of the elementals. The King is one of
this level. Angels and Archangels may be in- the elementals, so the Ruler is more encompass-
voked, but never commanded. Magical ritual can ing than the King.
contact these spirits if the ritual is in harmony with It's important to remember that spirits,
the purpose of the Angel. The Angels can be and elementals, don't think like we do. You can
seen as personifications of the creative principles think of the Ruler as almost human, or a highly
of the Universe. intelligent animal, but it still has a nature and will
do, be, feel, and act according to its nature.
The elemental Rulers can be commanded
Intelligences and directed by magic, if their natures and needs
You'll notice that each planet has an intel- are met and respected.
ligence associated with it. This is the spiritual
consciousness of that planet. Planetary intelli-
Artificial Elementals
gences play an important role in ceremonial
methods of talismanic consecration. They can be These are spirits that are created by the
summoned and commanded within the confines magician for a specific purpose. They are usually
of their nature. dissolved upon completion of their task. These
Some hold that methods of divination are sometimes also called servitors.
have intelligences, said to be the source of the
information for that method.
Nature Spirits

Spirits It is said that there are nature spirits, like

elementals, who work in the etheric realms, but
There are spirits for each planet, and spir- have different purposes and natures from the
its for all manner of things. They are often dis- elementals. Some traditions call these the faerie.
honest and evasive, and levels of friendliness to Also potentially highly dangerous, de-
humans varies greatly from spirit to spirit. Just pending on the nature of the spirit, and the state
because you get an impression from a spirit of mind and actions of the magician.
doesn't mean you should trust it. All information
should be objectively challenged and verified.
This includes the Olympian Spirits.

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August 18, 2007

Familiars
A familiar is a Witch's name for a spirit
guide. This guide will aid them on the astral
plane, help in journeys, and other tasks the Witch
might set for the guide. Remember, though, that
Familiars are spirits, so one has to be careful with
the information gleaned from them. Also, they too
will have their own natures and resolve.
It is possible to build an Artificial Elemen-
tal as a familiar.
The following is an essay I wrote a while
Egregores
An Egregore is a group spirit. Every or-
Evoking a spirit for a special purpose
ganization has an egregore of sorts, whenever
two or more gather for a specific purpose. The
coven, or a magical lodge, will have an egregore
that is the combined energy and consciousness of
the individuals in the group. Some groups will
consciously engage in work with the eregore,
building up its energy. The egregore can be used
to provide power to initiates as well. This is one
of the reasons that candidates are carefully se-
lected. For one, the egregore will be affected by
the new candidate. For another, initiation officially
links that candidate to the egregore, and they can
tap into and use the group energy to add to their
own magic. Because of this power source, initi-
ates should be carefully chosen.
Demons
Demons are the pure, unbalanced es-
sence of a concept or energy. They are the in-
habitants of the fallen Tree, the Kellipoth (literally,
"shells" or "husks"). Every Sephirah has an un-
These spirits are both aspects of the
balanced expression of energy. While the energy
a demon describes has its place in the universe,
the demon represents an unbalanced state of be-
ing. Thus, they are inimical to humans. Working
with demons is highly dangerous, as they will am-
plify any unbalance within the magician, and ac-
tively work to disrupt and unbalance the magician
It is written that the sword (hence
and his work. Deceptive and sometimes seduc-
tive, they should always be understood to be hos-
tile.
Working with Spirits
When working with spirits, one should
always start at the top of the hierarchy and go
Module 1-12
89
down, to ensure a balanced, stable approach to
the energy in question. This means, start by in-
voking the God-name for the concept, then the
Archangel, the Angel, and the Intelligence or
Ruler. There is no need to go below the Ruler in
levels of spiritual development.
on Ceremonial Magic
back that I put into my personal Book of Shad-
ows.
involves payment. Historically, this was a
sacrifice, because you cannot get something
for nothing (there must be an exchange of
energy). Now, as described in Donald Mi-
chael Kraig's Modern Magick, such a payment
can be given by simply projecting energy at
the spirit to give it strength (this occurs in
circle, after the entity is invoked, entreated
properly, and the request stated). This is the
same as directing energy towards a talisman
or a purpose because through ones study,
one has already given that spirit a meaning, a
purpose. One has identified that spirit with
the part of the personality (higher or lower)
that has the force and drive to make that
happen.
Why ceremony (religious/mythic
magic) vs. simple talismans or mental magic?
It engages the personality in a living, dy-
namic relationship with the universe.
psyche/personality and external forces, for
truly nothing is external and everything is
part of an interconnected whole. The forms
and names we give these spirits are the win-
dows by which these forces connect and flow
through us.
athame) is used to command evil spirits, and
the wand used for other things, to entreat
good spirits (for a wand is an attractive
power, as love). Why would one command
an evil spirit? The sword is therefore used for
invoking and banishing the circle (the raw
forces, and repelling neutral and evil spirits).
90
Every purpose or idea in ceremonial
magic is modeled by a hierarchy of spirits.
There are the angels, and there are the
Olympian spirits, the rulers, the elementals,
and finally, the demons. What constitutes
one from another? Intent. The intent is
woven into the fabric of taxonomy based on
the meanings of the labels in relation to each
other. The angels are that power represented
So, one thinks, "Can I invoke the An-
in harmony with the higher purposes of the
world (some are severe, some are merciful,
and in the Hebrew system the higher source
is called God). The spirits and elementals
represent that power as its own force (like
electricity) that power in its primal nature.
The demons represent that power used for
purposes divorced from divine purpose (it
may be in harmony, it may be not, but the
purpose is achieved in spite of it). In essence,
it is the same force as the angel, but the guid-
ing purpose defines it. The demon is di-
rected by the ego (if the will is strong and
pure in the moment) towards an end that
serves the desire of the ego, whether it be in
accordance with higher wisdom or not (even
though the magician invokes the higher wis-
dom, the demon so controlled will do the
specified task, whether its in the interests of
the magician or not). The very act of evok-
ing a demon (even if for 'good purpose')
means you evoke a power to do your will
even if your will is not in accordance with
divine will. This is built into the fabric of
what it means to be a demon, within the
mythic/magical fabric of the magical uni-
verse that has such a hierarchy.
The appeal to the angelic nature
means that the force is invoked, but will also
be directed by divine wisdom and purpose
(and True Will). Why then would one ever
want to evoke a demon to a purpose? Better
it not be to evoke the force in such a way that
should there be unintended negative conse-
quences, and harm be done, that the force be
constrained to harmony with the Highest
Good? Better to entreat an angelic force
with love and respect, and gain the power to
neutralize your intent should it bring unin-
tended evil (ultimately, the angelic petition
Hearthcraft Companion
August 18, 2007
always includes a "Thy Will be done, not my
will be done" or "if it is accordance with Thy
Will, O Lord", built into the essential mean-
ing of the angelic spirit (like built into the
code of the magical subroutine)).
Effects reflect upon the agent of cause,
for all things are interconnected. Such is
called Karma.
gel of Vengeance" or the "Angel of Judg-
ment" upon someone? Yes, but let there be a
word of caution. Look to the example of
Shylock in William Shakespeare's "The Mer-
chant of Venice". When you make a person
the object of your will, particularly in the
magical realms, you bring to the forefront the
relationship between you and the object of
your will. You form one system, and the en-
ergies invoked involve both of you. This
means that an Angel of Healing will bring its
energies upon both--as will an Angel of
Judgment. "Judge not lest you yourselves be
judged." You can evoke angelic judgment on
a person, and be it angelic it will happen only
in accordance with the Highest Good. Yet,
such attentions will be invoked for you as well
(particularly since you approach an angel
through the wand, which is inclusion and
binding together, meaning you are less sepa-
rated from the angel as you would be from a
demon). If judgment is evoked, and it's not
in the highest good for the target, it may be
suspended yet could still come on you as
being in your highest good (like teaching you
not to judge). Look to Shylock in Shake-
speare's Merchant of Venice, where the Jew is
punished for seeking justice against another,
justice untempered by mercy--and is pun-
ished by having justice done to him, his sen-
tence the worst of all for a Jew: to forsake
being a Jew in order to become a Christian.
In most circumstances, invoking an Angel for
judgment (vengeance?) indicates a motive not
in accordance with the Higher, meaning
most likely it will not have your desired effect,
but still is applied to you as well. Thus invok-
ing angels for judgment or other punitive
means usually manifests a backfire (if any
effect at all is to be noticed).
 91

So too, evoking an Angel of Healing
may not heal the recipient if it is not in ac-
cordance with their higher will, yet healing
The goal of the Western initiation system
will also be applied to you, if it is in accor-
dance with your higher will, regardless of the
effect it has on the target.
In this light, ceremonial magic can be
seen as a means of actively engaging a magi-
cal universe.
with ecstasy and pleasure. The Charge tells us
Mirth and Reverence are both important.
is not to annihilate the ego, but to perfect it. Part
of perfecting it is realizing it for what it is, and an-
nihilating the illusion that the ego is the Self. Most
people exist in a state of consciousness where
the Ruach is tightly controlled by the Nephesh.
The Neshamah has very little influence on the
Ruach. Part of the process of Tikkun is to unbind
the Ruach from Nephesh rulership, and allow the
Neshamah to fully connect and illuminate the
Ruach personality.

Synthesis
Assignment #4 Lesson Review
1. Read: Paths of Wisdom, Chapter 7, the Tree
Below the Veil, Section on Malkuth (pp 94- 1. What is the difference between an angel, an
103) intelligence, spirit or elemental, and a demon?
2. Sit in meditation and contemplate Malkuth 2. Describe how the phases of the moon can be
and the Temple, the 10th Sphere on the Tree used to structure a ritual sequence of explora-
of Life. Record your results. tion of a series of related concepts.
3. Acquire the rest of your temple implements if
you have not done so already, to include the
scourge. (I made my scourge out of para-
chute chord. There are traditional knot
counts, but I just did 8 tails, with knots at the
end).

You've come to the end of your training

for First-Degree. Whether you take initiation or
not, you have enough knowledge to hold and lead
Wiccan religious rituals, use divination to read
patterns of existential harmonics, and apply en-
ergy through folk magic (sometimes called Low
Magic) techniques to achieve a practical end.
In addition to the Sabbats and Esbats,
you've started your own mystical journey of self-
transformation. You've read a lot about medita-
tion from Cooper's book, readings which you'll
probably have to come back to again and again in
the future as you have new meditative experi-
ences.
The process of transformation takes a
lifetime. It's not a singular thing you do with
completion in mind. It's a way of life, a journey
that we work on each day.
Remember balance in all things. Rabbi
Cooper talks about a very disciplined, aesthetic
approach to meditation. Other pagan paths work

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 93

Module 1-13: Initiation

Lesson Objectives
This lesson focuses around completion of the training and initiation into the First Degree of
Wicca. The tasks of this lesson are to:
1. Assess completion of assignments.
2. Pass the closed-book Knowledge Exam with a minimum score of 90%.
3. Perform the Self-Assessment.
4. Undergo Self-Initiation.

Practice Assessment
Have you?
1. Completed all reading assignments?
2. Printed and bound your Book of Shadows?
3. Completed your robe?
4. Opened and Closed Temple without consulting ritual notes?
5. Celebrated the Esbats since you started them?
6. Celebrated all 8 Sabbats at least once?
7. Achieved your concentration goals?
8. Achieved the inner-stillness goals?
9. Performed divination to proficiency based on positive feedback?
10. Constructed your natal horoscope?
11. Completed your God/Goddess research and papers?
12. Completed your herbal research?
13. Completed your month of scrying practice?

Module 1-13
94
Knowledge Exam
Needed to pass: 90%.
1. What is the secret to solitary practice?
2. Why do we use Hermetic Kabbalah?
3. Write out the Charge of the Goddess from
Memory.
4. Stories and symbols are aspects of what Core
Value?
5. Write out the core elements of each sabbat
from memory.
6. What are the 8 Sabbats? What are their
dates?
7. What are the four axes that are formed by the
Sabbats? Describe the four axes, identify
their polar concepts and which Sabbat are
attributed to each.
8. What is an Esbat?
9. What is the difference in quality between the
Spring and Autumn Equinox.
10. From memory, draw a Tree of Life. Label the
Sephiroth, the Hebrew titles and English
meanings. Label the Tarot, and astrological
powers on each path. Label the Queen Scale
colors of the ten Sephiroth. Label the Assiah-
correspondences for each Sephiroth.
11. Describe the structure of the Tarot deck.
12. Diagram and label the Celtic Cross Tarot
spread.
13. Diagram and label the cause-effect scatter
Tarot Spread. What is this spread used for?
14. Describe the 12 Houses of the Zodiac, and
what each one means.
15. Describe the Holly King and Oak Kings roles
at the solstices. Compare and contrast their
interplay with the Sun God at Winter and
Summer solstices.
16. Describe the roles of the Oak and Holly Kings
as they relate to the overall Wheel of the Year.
17. List one herb for each planet.
18. List one herb for each element.
19. Write out the Witches' Rune.
20. Write out the Aradia Invocation.
21. Write out the Cernunnos Invocation, and the
Cernunnos Call.
22. Draw and annotate the starting direction for
all 12 forms of the Pentagram.
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August 18, 2007
23. Describe the steps in using Lunar cycles to
mystically explore a series of magical con-
cepts.
24. What is the infrastructure of all spiritual disci-
pline?
25. What are the basic categories of concentra-
tion awareness?
26. What powers does the Oak King deal with?
27. What powers does the Holly King deal with?
28. Over which Sabbats does the Oak King reign
supreme?
29. Over which Sabbats does the Holy King reign
supreme?
30. Which Sabbat is the Sabbat of the Waxing
Goddess? The Waning Goddess? The Wax-
ing God? The Waning God? Why?
31. What are the phases of the model for spell
casting?
32. Define and differentiate these terms: Ruach,
Nephesh, Neshama, Chiah, Yechidah. To
which is each Sephirah attributed?
33. What is the Dedicant's robe color, and what
does it signify?
34. What is the Dedicant's cord color and dimen-
sion, and what does it signify?
35. Describe the three aspects of Hearthcraft.
36. Describe the 10 Values of the Eshim.
37. What are the 4 virtues of mindful action?
38. Describe the primary god-forms of first de-
gree, and their relationship to each other.
39. Define myth and ritual and describe their pur-
pose in Witchcraft.
40. List and describe the meaning and purpose of
all witch's tools described in the Book of
Shadows.
41. What is the difference between the Witch's
athame and the ceremonial Air Dagger?
42. What symbols are to be inscribed on the
athame? What do they mean?
43. What symbols should go on the pentacle, and
what do they mean?
44. What is the purpose of the pentacle?
45. Which Witch's tool is used to attract rather
than repel energies?
46. What is the scourge used to symbolize?
47. Why is the God not a jealous god?
48. What attains the end of desire?
49. What is attained at the end of desire?
50. Who is the spark of awareness within us?
51. How does one come to know the God?
52. Trace all the pentagrams.
53. What is the Wiccan Rede? How is it com-
monly understood? How does the Hearthcraft
tradition understand it differently?

54. Describe the Theory of Levels.
55. Describe the Theory of Polarity.
56. How does sexual polarity fit into the Wiccan
world-view and ritual practice?
57. Describe the nature of each of the four classi-
cal elements. Describe how they relate to the
different spiritual worlds.
58. What is the concept of reincarnation? How
does Wiccan belief in reincarnation differ from
Hindu belief?
59. What is a boddhisatva?
60. What is the Summerland?
61. What does the Law of Return state at its
core?
62. How does the Tree of Life relate to Wiccan
cosmology (we study it because it describes
what)?
63. What theory describes the structure of the
universe?
64. What theory describes the activity of the uni-
verse?
65. What are the self-development theories be-
hind each degree?
66. What are the different reasons for secrecy?
What kind of secrets are there?
67. What are the different kinds of hearth mem-
bership? What are the Accepted?
68. What is David Cooper's concept of purifica-
tion?
69. What are Esbats? What non-magical things
can we perform at Esbats?
70. What is the difference between the Lesser
and Greater Sabbats? Identify which Sabbats
are which.
71. What are the key elements of each Sabbat?
72. Which Sabbats deal with the transition of
power, and how do they do this?
73. At which two Sabbats is the Veil said to be the
thinnest?
74. What are the roles of the Oak and Holly King?
75. What is their relationship to the Sun God?
76. What is the New Law?
77. What is the true, underlying Law, and what is
the New Law in relation to that?
78. What social forces helped shape the 161 tra-
ditional laws?
79. Whom is the law meant to serve?
80. What does the law say regarding payment,
initiation and training?
81. What are the rules concerning security and
secrecy?
82. What are the rules concerning the use of the
Art?
Module 1-13
95
83. ...concerning prescribing belief in the Gods, or
the necessity of such belief?
84. Between whom is the matter of belief and un-
derstanding of the mysteries?
85. What does the law state about lay people?
86. ...about lineage and initiation?
87. What are the qualities of each house?
88. What is the Ascendent Sign, and how is it dif-
ferent from the Sun Sign (differentiate techni-
cal description of location on the chart and
difference of meaning between the two).
89. What does each position in the Celtic Cross
spread mean?
90. What are the Eight Ways of raising power?
91. What five things do you need to practice the
Art successfully, according to traditional
Wicca?
92. What is a kamea? What are the number to-
tals for each? What are the total number of
squares in each?
93. How does one construct a sigil?
94. Describe the types of spells (the desired kinds
of goals) that might fall under each planet.
95. What is the magical purpose of the Wiccan
circle, as distinct from the magical purpose of
the ceremonial magician's circle?
96. Name at least one corresponding herb for
each element and describe its characteristics.
Do the same for the planets.
97. Describe a temple incense recipe.
98. Describe a temple oil recipe.
99. According to Hutton, what phenomenon oc-
cured when the Craft came to America?
100.Why is forgiveness important?
101.Describe natural magic. Be precise. How is
it differentiated from symbolic magic, or a
magical language.
102.What value do incenses and oils bring to your
temple practices?
103.Describe different healing techniques.
104.Describe considerations to be taken into ac-
count when you prepare to do healing work.
105.What is the difference between an angel, an
intelligence, spirit or elemental, and a demon?
106.Describe how the phases of the moon can be
used to structure a ritual sequence of explora-
tion of a series of related concepts.
96

Self-Assessment

1. Why do you wish to follow this path?

2. What is your understanding of the God and
Goddess? The nature of the divine? Your
connection with them?
3. What is your intended Craft-name? What
does it mean to you?

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 97

Self-Initiation
Now you're ready for self-initiation. The only thing holding you back now is yourself. You either
choose to do this, or you don't. Take a quiet walk and talk with the Gods. Discuss with them your deci-
sion, and what the commitment means. After all this study and work, only you can know if this is the path
for you. The decision is between you and the Gods, and no one else can invalidate your path. If you de-
cide that this is your path, then make the necessary preparations, and perform the following rite on the
next Full-Moon.

Self Initiation to First Degree

This is an adaptation for the solitary practitioner.

Preparation
You will need your athame, a blue-green and orange-red cords properly prepared, and a
scourge. You will also need the normal Temple tools... the dishes, the pentacle, the candles; all
those things you normally need to open your temple. You will also need a tow-cord, something
to tie yourself to the altar. At the appropriate time, you will tie it around your neck, and tie the
other end to something on the altar (a table leg works fine).

Rite

1: PURIFICATION

The Threshold

Open the Temple as normal.

After Witches' Rune, state:

I stand at the threshold of the Temple of the Gods. I bear two passwords: 'Perfect Love,
and Perfect Trust'.

Consecration of Candidate
(and recognition of path behind)

Initiator affirms the path behind:

You have brought me to this temple, after much study, joys, sweat, and tears. I stand
before You, and my heart rejoiceth, for to stand in Your presence is in itself an act of
love and pleasure.

Module 1-13
98

The Ordeal of Purification

I am prepared for the ordeal, mindful that while water purifies the body, the scourge pu-
rifies the soul.

Kneel, and tie yourself to the altar using the tow-cord. Take up the scourge.

Thirteen is the sacred number of the Lady, the Bright Moon and Queen of the Witches.
I have been a slave in the world, and a slave to tradition.

[thirteen lashes, gently but firmly]

I seek You, Eternal Goddess, Aradia and Asherah, for You are the soul of nature who
gives life to the universe!

[thirteen lashes]

I am blinded. Close my eyes, but open my Eye! Free me! Free me! Awaken me and open
my Eye!

[thirteen lashes]

And finally one more, the 40th lash, to remind myself of the loving restraint a mother
uses with a child, that the Gods never give me more than I can handle.

[1 lash, not quite so gentle]

After that lash, untie cord binding you to the Altar.

I have passed through the Eye to stand in the realm of the Gods. I am ready to state
your path to the Gods and the Universe.

2: REBORN TO THE GODS

Dedication to the Gods

As I will to honor the gods as a Wiccan and follow the path of the Wicca, I shall there-
fore...
seek to see the Gods in all things.
honor and cherish the Gods in my life.
abide by the Wiccan Rede, by giving freedom to those actions which harm none.

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 99

Dedication to the Tradition

As I will to follow the Hearthcraft tradition, I shall therefore...
aspire to become a living embodiment of the ten core values and four virtues of the
Eshim.
follow and agree to be bound by tradition law for as long as I follow and claim the
Hearthcraft tradition.
teach any worthy petitioners who wish to enter into the service of the Gods and form a
Hearth with them.

Oath/Dedication

I solemnly swear before the Gods:

I am a free Child of the Light. "Do what thou will shall be the whole of the law: love is the
law, love under will." I pledge to seek to honor the flame of divinity in myself and others,
and that I will not honor my own flame to the exclusion of another's, nor will I honor an-
other flame to the exclusion of my own.

I shall hold beauty and strength, power and compassion, honor and humility, mirth and
reverence, within me as part of my being, and shall act and live with genuine love, con-
cern, and compassion.

I will not teach the Magical Arts to someone not properly prepared, but I will aid and as-
sist genuine seekers of the light and teach all worthy seekers. I am a vessel of light, a
Messenger in the world, in the service of the Gods. These words emanate from within my
Self, a statement of my inner Divine Will as an act of Self-Creation.

None may deny I am a child of the Gods, a Witch and priest of the Craft, for only the
Self can initiate the self!

Let the name (NAME) be a window between my mundane self and my higher self, a
portal though which the higher light may shine down and illuminate that which is below. I
am (NAME).

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100

Seal of the Goddess and God

Stand in the center of the temple facing south.

Placed in "perspective" of North--the place of power in Witchcraft, which orients you to the Craft tradition, standing in
the center in the balance and harmony of all four elements, the center of the solar Celtic cross.

Visualizes your aura growing brightly.

Let the Divine Light descend.

Visualize: A beam of brilliant light, brighter than the brightest intensity, descends from the highest heights and
touches your aura. A silver 3-moon symbol descends and rests in your third-eye chakra, blazing brilliantly, hovering
and fixing itself there just floating above your head. The light also falls upon the earth, infusing the ground, and soaks
up through your legs into your heart, formulating a green horned-god symbol. It shines brilliantly, until the silver and
green light from the God and Goddess symbols merge and suffuse the aura.

The seals of the Bright Lady, the three phased moon, and the Mighty Lord, the Horned
God, are upon and within me. I now thrice consecrate myself.

I consecrate with oil.

Consecrate third eye and heart with oil.

I consecrate with wine.

Do same with wine.

I consecrate with my lips.

Kiss your fingers, and then touch your fingers to the foot of the Goddess image (or candle).

3. PRESENTATION TO THE WORLD

Presentation to the Quarters

(Earth-Air-Water-Fire)

Move to North, facing outwards. Trace the Passive Equilibrating Pentagram of Spirit.

Guardians of the Watchtower of the North, ye Lords of Earth, bless me with your wis-
dom and grant entry to your realms. Let there be Hearth between us, in Perfect Love,
and Perfect Trust.

Trace Invoking Pentagram of Earth and complete the circle around the pentagram.

I stand in a lush forest, broad green leaves all about me. My feet are submerged ankle
deep in a cool rich soil, beneath the growing grasses, my soles resting on a firm cold and
dry rock beneath the earth. I feel its strengthening foundation and its nurturing earthy
womb, all at once, interwoven together. This is the land of life and of growth, the recep-
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 101

tacle for all other elements. This is the land of beauty and riches, rock and metal, earth
and tree, grape and grain, where the astral forms manifest and are born to, live in, die
from and are reborn to again. Earth brings foundation, stability, order to things, and
experience, and is the path that brings us to discovery of the Sacred Names. May I be
ever mindful of my body's needs, and keep it healthy and fit, for it is the temple of the
Gods. Abundance. Beauty. Tranquility. Silence.

Guardians of the Watchtowers of the North, I am (NAME), properly prepared and called
by the Gods through the footsteps and journey of life, a duly consecrated Witch and
priest of the Craft.

Move to East, facing outwards. Trace the Active Equilibrating Pentagram of Spirit.

Guardians of the Watchtower of the East, ye Lords of Air, bless me with your wisdom
and grant entry to your realms. Let there be Hearth between us, in Perfect Love, and
Perfect Trust.

Trace Invoking Pentagram of Air and complete the circle around the pentagram.

I stand atop a mountain, looking out into the sky and over the land below. A warm
breeze touches upon my brow, gently at first and then growing to the might of the hurri-
cane to show its strength, and then calm again, touching with gentle caresses with the
misty moisture of clouds in the air. This is the land of the mind, the land of reason and
meaning, where spirit is divided into different concepts and forms... this is the land of
Words and Names that divide and enrapture creation. Yet this is a land of freedom and
flight, for definition and creation are tools of the Spirit... with the power of the mind
comes the ability to recreate and redefine according to one's Will. Without the breath of
Air and the definition it brings, there would be no life. This is the land of Air, whose gifts
are many. Air brings motion, allows us to communicate, reason and understand, and
carves the form of the Sacred Names. May my mind be opened to new possibilities so
that the fire of wisdom may thrive in the breath of knowledge. Understanding. Reason.
Knowledge. Movement.

Guardians of the Watchtowers of the East, I am (NAME), properly prepared and called
by the Gods through the footsteps and journey of life, a duly consecrated Witch and
priest of the Craft.

Move to West, facing outwards. Trace the Passive Equilibrating Pentagram of Spirit.

Module 1-13
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Guardians of the Watchtower of the West, ye Lords of Water, bless me with your wisdom
and grant entry to your realms. Let there be Hearth between us, in Perfect Love, and
Perfect Trust.

Trace Invoking Pentagram of Water and complete the circle around the pentagram.

I stand in a pool of clear and radiant water, a deep wetness and soothing coolness
about me. It darkens and booms and waves crash around me for a moment to show its
strength, and then it becomes again calm, clear, peaceful, a brilliant azure reflecting
sparks of glittering light. This is the land of the soul, of the heart and of feeling and
emotion, where the forms of spirit take bodies of vision. This is the place of the Caul-
dron, from which souls emerge and to which souls return. Water brings feeling, intuition,
healing and cleansing, and is the heart's response to the Sacred Names. May my heart
be opened to the Voice of the Gods, that my soul might be a chalice for the wine of Their
intoxicating love and splendor. Passion. Cleansing. Transformation. Vision.

Guardians of the Watchtowers of the West, I am (NAME), properly prepared and called
by the Gods through the footsteps and journey of life, a duly consecrated Witch and
priest of the Craft.

Move to South, facing outwards. Trace the Active Equilibrating Pentagram of Spirit.

Guardians of the Watchtower of the South, ye Lords of Fire, bless me with your wisdom
and grant entry to your realms. Let there be Hearth between us, in Perfect Love, and
Perfect Trust.

Trace Invoking Pentagram of Fire and complete the circle around the pentagram.

Say:

A heat arises, hot and dry, and I stand in the bright desert. There is nothing here, but
me and the Divine, the bright Sun of God revealing only truth. For a moment, the sky is
fire and the land around me burns, to show its strength, and then it is calm once more,
the peaceful simplicity of the desert. This is the land of Spirit, the land of life, where all
inessentials are stripped down to their finest purity. Here is the power of radiant energy
that animates life, the Soul of Nature. This is the land of Fire, whose gifts are many. Fire
brings protection against the wild beast, the warmth and comfort of the hearth against

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the bitter cold winter, the heat which burns away imperfections, light which drives away
the dark, and is the power behind the Sacred Names. May my heart be alight with the
sacred flame, that piece of myself deep within, a spark of Divinity, a gift of the Gods.
Will. Power. Love. Life.

Guardians of the Watchtowers of the South, I am (NAME), properly prepared and called
by the Gods through the footsteps and journey of life, a duly consecrated Witch and
priest of the Craft.

Return to center, facing North.

Declare the initiation to the Universe.

I am (NAME,) duly initiated, Witch and Priest of the Craft.

Presentation of Cords and Athame

Tie the new cords around your waste. One is green-blue and the other orange-red (as the paths of
HP and HPS in the King Scale on the Tree of Life), mirroring the seals of the Gods as given in
this rite).

Initiator brings cords to Initiate.

The red-orange cord is the color of the High Priest on the Tree of Life, which is Taurus,
the seal of the Horned God as you received upon your spirit here in this rite of initiation.
The blue cord is the color of the High Priestess on the Tree of Life, the Lady of the
Moon, the triple-sign of which is the seal of the Bright Lady as I received upon my spirit
here in this rite of initiation.

Consecrate your athame. Cast your first circle with newly consecrated Athame.

Take up sign of the degree (upright pentagram) and wear it, removing the cross of the dedicant.

Proceed to Cakes and Ale, and then closing.

Module 1-13
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The Work of the First Degree

with the formalized recitation of the Charge. This
What now? too can have magical impact on the High Priest-
Now that you've taken the self-initiation, ess, and if done right, can be the first steps to
what now? Well, the first, most obvious thing is more advanced forms of the Drawing Down. Of
that as you are now a priest or priestess of the course, the same goes for the Drawing Down of
God and Goddess, you continue your celebration the Sun.
of the natural cycles through the Esbats and Sab- The Great Rite, as has been discussed, is
bats. You've adopted a way of life. the central religious rite of the Craft. It is also a
There is, as always, more self- rite of the Third Degree. What does this mean for
development to do. Classical Wicca uses three the solitary practitioner?
degrees of initiation, and this course has been Well, the secret of the Great Rite is the
designed to provide you the first degree training union of opposites. You'll find that even the "ac-
you need to continue on your own. tual" Great Rite is still symbolic on a different
Training towards and initiation into First- level. In truth, all souls are bisexual, when taking
Degree has identified, activated, and connected into consideration a multi-incarnation existence.
you to the elements. Initiation is a beginning, Each of us have masculine and feminine currents
however, not a graduation. flowing through our bodies, and they are more co-
present in those levels of ourselves which are
less tied to, less identified with, the physical body.
Thoughts for Consideration Ultimately, the Great Rite is an internal
process, part of the Great Work. It's a process in
There are some traditional leaves of the
which you slowly bring your masculine and femi-
Book of Shadows included in the Hearthcraft
nine currents (the God and Goddess both within
Book of Shadows. One is called "To get the
you) into harmony and union, creating a new be-
sight". This is a technique that does not lend itself
ing altogether. In Yoga, these are called the ida
to solitary work, but is included for coven work.
(lunar current) and the pingala (solar current).
The solitary practitioner is left to a much slower,
methodical process of developing scrying and
eventually, astral travel, as described in some of
the books I'm going to recommend. There are Way Ahead
other passages given in the "leaves from the
Book of Shadows" section in A Witch's Bible Book You have connected to the Elements
II. Feel free to peruse this and add to your Book through the First-Degree initiation. Now your task
of Shadows as you see fit. is to balance them so that the fifth-element of
The Drawing Down the Moon rite given spirit (awareness) can be found within you.
here is a ritualized, formal version. The way it's This work is beyond the scope of this
presented, you do the ritual, and then the High course. This first-degree course lays the ground-
Priestess recites the Charge. This however is not work for the path of the Ceremonial Magician,
a true Drawing Down. As the High Priestess through the Western Occult Tradition. The next
makes deeper connections and improves as a logical step, one that I would bring my students
medium, the Drawing Down is intended to be the through, can be found in several books. If you
High Priestess allowing the Goddess to come want to continue this course of study, I'm going to
through her and speak. This is a technique using recommend some books for you.
trance, best learned under tutelage. And, of
course, it's important to remember the deceptions
of the ego. Until you've been trained in trance, or
acquire that ability on your own, it's best to stick

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August 18, 2007

Self-Development, Magic of Light
Regardie's Middle Pillar gives you the
banishing rituals and the ritual of the Middle Pil-
lar... essential core practices of the Magic of Light.
Study and build up to the point where you are
practicing the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pen-
tagram, the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Hexa-
gram, the Middle Pillar, and the Circulation of the
Body of Light every day.
The version of The Middle Pillar edited by
the Ciceros gives a whole lot of commentary, and
pagan versions of these rituals, using pagan
rather than Hebrew names.
One of the academic areas that a 2nd
There are plenty of practices to augment
your further development (at this stage and later)
in the back of the book Paths of Wisdom by John
Michael Greer, which you've already acquired for
For my students, I would use John Mi-
the course, including pathworking up the Tree.
As you practice the middle pillar daily,
plan a 4-month Lunar Cycle to explore the ele-
ments. During each planning phase, construct
your Elemental Tool, and consecrate them. With
the consecrated tool, contemplate it.
Continuing Magical Training
Keep reading and studying. For personal
magical work, I recommend Circles of Power by
Towards running a coven, another book
John Michael Greer. As you go through this, you
will see that you don't have to follow all of his ex-
ercise because you've already done some of that.
For example, he gives a first-degree opening of
the temple in simple and expanded forms. You
can study that for insight, but you've already
learned a first-degree opening rite that you could
When you've worked on the Magic of
use.
Ceremonial Opening and Closing
If you wish to adopt a more ceremonial
style of opening and closing for magical spell rites
(such as consecrating talismans), here is an al-
ternate way to open and raise energy. It's less
ecstatic, in that there is no dancing or chants as a
As initiation rites are the beginning of the
means to raise energy. Rather, it uses a ritual
method, required concentration. If you have been
practicing the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pen-
tagram, it is no less effective.
1. Cast circle as you normally do, with salt, wa-
ter, incense, candle, etc.
The Work of First Degree
105
2. Instead of calling quarters, perform the Lesser
Invoking Ritual of the Pentagram.
3. Give Aradia invocation without the Charge.
4. Give Cernunnos invocation without the Call.
5. State, "I declare this Temple duly open in the
First Degree."
6. Do your magic.
7. When complete, dismiss quarters with the
Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram.
8. Close circle and thank Gods as normal.
Lodge Work
Degree initiate would study is lodge magic, and
how to coordinate a group effort system of ritual
for self development.
chael Greer's Inside a Magical Lodge as one of
the principle textbooks. When you read that
book, you'll learn about the theory of devising and
constructing a system of ritual initiations unified
by a common purpose. You'll recognize similar
patterns in the three-degrees of initiation de-
scribed to what you've already studied in this
course. You've already taken that first-degree
step. Through further study, you should be able
to chart a program of self-study towards Third
Degree.
that deals with some of the administrative aspects
is Covencraft, by Amber K.
2nd Degree and Beyond
Light practices and have established a good con-
nection with the balanced elements, and have
enough knowledge to construct a second degree
rite, devise a second degree initiation and perform
it. You have one example in A Witch's Bible. You
have another example of an 2 Opening Rite in
Circles of Power. The theme is descent into the
underworld and confronting and integrating the
shadow self.
work (and study prior to the initiation rite is just
preparation for the work), take time after the rite
for self introspection. Really, aggressively exam-
ine yourself, particularly your negative emotions.
The goal here is not to banish, but to know. Work
on your inner meditation. I would have my stu-
106

dents go through the exercises in Dr. Phil's book
(yes, the Dr. Phil on TV), Life Strategies: Doing
What Works, Doing What Matters.
The goal here is not to create negative
forces that aren't there--it is to explore, identify,
and understand the ones that are. This includes
our deepest motivating fears, hopes, hurts, and
desires. This includes going back to one's early
childhood, and reconciling with all those influ-
ences that have shaped us, from our parents to
early friends. This does not necessarily mean
talking with those people. It does mean coming to
reconciliation with their influence.
If you've completed this course, you can
The goal of 2nd Degree is to accept your
negative side and darker tendencies and identify
them. When you are mindful of the influence they
have on you, you are free from being a slave to
Looking back at just some of the things
them. Part of this freedom is accepting them
without self-loathing, without emotional judgment.
If you loath yourself for tendencies you see, you
cannot truly transform them into something bene-
ficial to you. In Christian terminology, this is iden-
tical to the process of realizing you are a sinner
and surrendering to Christ. In magical terminol-
ogy, you realize you have a destructive, unbal-
anced side, and you surrender to the Higher Self,
the Universe, and the Gods.
I hope this course has provided some
The goal of 3rd Degree is the regenera-
tion of the whole self. Once the shadow self is
integrated, the higher light previously brought
down by balancing the elements transforms the
whole being into something new. The person at-
If you have self-initiated into the tradition,
tains knowledge and conversation with the Holy
Guardian Angel, and awaken to their True Will.
The Third Degree then goes about manifesting his
True Will in the world. And remember... there's a
difference between initiation into the degree (start-
ing the work) and attainment of that degree. At-
taining Tiphareth can take a lifetime. More often
than not, it takes several lifetimes.
called Progressive Witchcraft. Like their earlier
books, I don't agree with everything in there
(they're biased against ceremonial magic, for in-
stance) but they're entitled to their opinions and
I'm entitled to mine. Nevertheless, they have
some great recommendations for those choosing
a more shamanic experience, blending chakra
work with the circle and magical practice rather
than using the Sephiroth.
In Closing...
look back and appreciate that you've done quite a
bit of work. You should be proud of your journey
so far, and take time to congratulate yourself.
you've done in this course, you've started your
own personalized Book of Shadows, learned a
consistent method of practice that holds integrity,
learned to use magic for practical ends, created
extensive notes in your journals, you know how to
research and self-teach, have charted a way
ahead, and have practical experience you could
pass on to others.
value to you and enriched your spiritual path. If
you were not new to Wicca, and do not practice
Hearthcraft, I hope something here has been en-
riching to you nonetheless.
then let there be Hearth between us, and Blessed
Be. May the Gods shelter and guide you on your
path, and grant you the secrets of Wisdom.

Other Ways
The above section is written assuming
one continues upon a ceremonial magic style of
path. While Wicca certainly included ceremonial
magic in its infancy, there are many Wiccans to-
day who choose a more shamanic approach,
choosing to not include Kabbalistic influences in
their practices. This is ok too.
For ideas for an alternate path, to include
alternate coven structures, there is some great
material in Janet Farrar's and Gavin Bone's book

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August 18, 2007
 107

Notes

Core Library:

Module 1-1
1. Lewis, Kyle (2007). Hearthcraft Book of Shadows. www.hearthcraft.org
2. Farrar, Janet and Stewart. (1996). A Witch's Bible. Washington USA: Phoenix Publishing Inc
3. Valiente, Doreen (1978). Witchcraft for Tomorrow. Washington USA: Phoenix Publishing Inc
4. Farrar, Stewart. (1971) What Witches Do, The Modern Coven Revealed. New York: Coward,
McCann & Geoghegan Inc
5. Hutton, Ronald. (1999) Triumph of the Moon, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Module 1-4
6. Cooper, David A. (1999). A Heart of Stillness. Woodstock VT: Skylight Paths Publishing
Module 1-8
7. Farrar, Janet and Stewart. (1990). Spells and How They Work. Phoenix Publishing, Washington USA
8. Greer, Michael John. (1996). Paths of Wisdom. Llewellyn Publications, St Paul MN, USA
Module 1-9
9. Woolfolk, Joanna Martine. (1990). The Only Astrology Book You'll Ever Need (1982). Stein and Day, New
York USA
Module 1-11
10. Cunningham, Scott. (1956). Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs. Llewellyn Publications,
Minnesota, USA
11. Cunningham, Scott. (1956). The Complete Book of Incense, Oils & Brews. Llewellyn Publications,
Minnesota, USA
12. Fetrow, Charles W. Avila, Juan R. (2000) The Complete Guide to Herbal Medicines, Simon and
Schuster, Inc. New York
Module 1-12
13. Crowley, Aleister. (1973). 777 and other Qabalistic Writings of Aleister Crowley. Samuel Weiser, Inc.
Maine, USA
14. Regardie, Israel. (1938) The Middle Pillar. Llewellyn Publications, St. Paul MN. Third Edition, edited
and annotated by Chic and Sandra Tabitha Cicero. 1998

Other References

1. Regardie, Israel. (1984) The Complete Golden Dawn System of Magic, New Falcon Press, USA