Eleven Things Every Witch Should Know
1. Magic is what happens when you open yourself to the Divine. All real magic is
a manifestation of the Divine - it is how you co-create reality with deity.
2. The Divine is within you and is everywhere present in the natural world. And
everything is interconnected by this sacred energy.
3. Wicca is not about information -- it's about transformation, so practice,
practice, practice -- and do it as much as possible in Nature! Witchcraft
enables you to commune with divinity and to manifest your destiny, your desires
and your highest and sacred self.
4. The real ethics of how Witches live and practice magic are simple: Witches
live in a sacred manner because we live in a sacred world. We therefore treat
all of life with reverence and respect.
5. Because all magic flows from our connection to the Sacred, our lives and our
magic, must be guided by the sacred nature of the energy with which we work.
6. The energy Witches work with is not neutral -- it is divine love.
7. Magic often works in unexpected way because it is not a mechanical process,
and the Universe is not a machine. You are living and making magic within a
divine, organic, living reality.
8. Witches don't command and control -- they commune and co-create.
9. The real secret of successful spellcasting, as with all of magic, is your
connection to the Divine power that dwells within you, and surrounds you. And
spells do work so be careful what you ask for!
10. Nature makes the Divine tangible. By working, living, and practicing your
magic in harmony with Nature, you are in harmony with the Divine.
11. The ultimate teacher is the God/Goddess inside you and in the world of
Nature all around you.
Author unknown
THIRTEEN GOALS OF A WITCH
I. Know yourself
II. Know your Craft (Wicca)
III. Learn
IV. Apply knowledge with wisdom
V. Achieve balance
VI. Keep your words in good order
VII. Keep your thoughts in good order
VIII. Celebrate life
IX. Attune with the cycles of Terra
X. Breathe and eat correctly
XI. Exercise the body
XII. Meditate
Honor the Goddess and God
A CRASH COURSE IN A WITCH'S GARDEN
When considering our health, we cannot separate it from our environment. The
Earth's health influences and reflects our own. As Pagans, we are particularly
responsible for caring for our environment because we understand this
interconnectedness. The garden is an excellent place to begin a ripple effect of
healing by tending it in a sustainable manner. This healing can be seen by the
increase of vitamins in the foods we've grown organically. Subtle healing
effects will gradually become evident as gaps in life cycles are filled. All
forms of wildlife and insects will return to the garden and renew the essential
balance, eliminating the need for pesticides, herbicides, and chemical
fertilizers. The garden will also renew your balance and life force. Tending the
garden will tone your body, clarify your mind, and energize you Spirit. Other
side effects of your healthy garden will become apparent in all aspects of your
life. Healing formulas, spell components, and any other creations that
incorporate plants grown in this magical manner will all have enormously
magnified energy.
To understand this method, go to an undisturbed area like a woodland plot,
secluded area of a park, or under a large, healthy shrub. Notice that when
you're under a canopy of foliage the atmosphere is different. It smells fresh,
moist, and soothing. Touch the soil. Generally, it will be soft and spongy, with
layers of newly accumulated debris, and below that, humus rich soil in many
stages of decomp-osition. The soil here contains microorganisms whose sacred
names include fungi, protozoa, yeast, worms, and insects. These life forms are
known collectively as edaphon. Life flows through everything here and you may
begin to feel more balanced. This feeling is the essence of a Witch's method of
gardening. (there's more to this than the standard gardening techniques, read
on)
Good soil consists of 93% mineral and 7% bio-organic substances. The bio-organic
parts include: 85% humus, 10% roots, and 5% edaphon. The edaphon consists of :
40% fungi/algae, 40% bacteria/actinomycete, 12% earthworms, 5% macro fauna, and
3% micro/mesofauna. (1)
After a year of organic treatment, earthworms, or "tiny tillers", should
flourish. Chemical fertilizers kill earthworms and other soil life that release
carbonic acid (plant roots do too). This acid converts minerals in the soil to a
form that plants can assimilate.
Soil nutrients are to plants what proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, and
minerals are to people. Air, (all gasses, including carbon dioxide or CO2)
Water, Earth and Fire (sun) are essential to the plant world. Synthetic forms of
nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (N, P, and K respectively) in chemical
fertilizers are stated on packages like 15-30-15 or 10-5-5. These salt based
fertilizers will readily wash out of the soil and into our water systems.
Undines look out!
We must regularly replace non-organic forms of these nutrients because of this
constant leeching. Salts accumulate in the upper soil surfaces and "burn" tender
roots and soil life. Potted plants will show evidence of this build up with
powdery white deposits on the soil surface or a ring on the pot. Most plants
cannot tolerate this much salt in any form. This is a good reason to try not to
use salt in outdoor rituals for circle casting or purification. Instead, use a
truly sacred replacement such as compost or soil for the Earth element. (I've
used soil from my birthplace, as well as soil from fellow Witch's gardens to
help link with them when being together in person isn't possible)
Synthetic fertilizers cause plant cells to grow too quickly, developing thin
cell walls. The spaces between each cell are larger too, causing the entire
plant to be more susceptible to insects and disease. These plant predators hunt
for the easiest path to lunch, and the thin cell walls and gaps between them are
an open invitation. By invading your crops, these pesky predators are fulfilling
an essential duty, that of restoring balance and eliminating problems.
So, you ask, how can I nourish my garden, self and planet? The following
represents a basic outline of techniques to get you started:
Compost: Composting will unlock the nutrients from the components you put in the
compost pile. Begin by making a four foot diameter place in your garden in part
sun. Next, layer 4-6 inches of carbon materials, "browns," with 1-2 inches of
nitrogen material, "greens." Mystical formulas of carbon to nitrogen ratios can
be found in many superb garden Grimoires. Like all of Nature's magic, however,
you will find that intuition, observation, and experimentation provide the best
results. The following describes the basic compost cauldron components and
guidelines for their use:
DO USE: "Greens" are sources of nitrogen, a plant nutrient that helps heat up a
compost pile by activating the micro life in it. Sources include: fresh green
weeds, kitchen scraps, manure, cottonseed meal, and blood meal. "Browns" are
carbon materials like straw, hay, last year's garden debris, crop residue,
chopped leaves, and sticks under a half inch in diameter.
DON'T USE: Oil, wax, meat (small, clean bones are OK), colored newspaper, weeds
that have set seed, diseased or pest infested plants, and pet wastes or
litters. (which can carry diseases, among other problems)
Invoke the powers of the microbial soil life with a half inch layer of garden
soil sprinkled over each "green" layer. When the pile reaches about four feet
high, water it well to the consistency of a wrung out sponge, and let it rot! It
will slowly turn into fertilizer that feeds your plants and your soil without
interrupting the symbiotic relationship between the two. When it is done, it
will be brown and crumbly. This process can take from two weeks to six months.
If you're in a hurry, you can speed things up by turning it every week. To turn
a pile, remove the top and outside layers and put them on the ground beside the
pile. Then continue with the next layers until you've tuned it upside down while
fluffing it to let it breathe. If the pile smells bad, or if flies are taking an
interest in it, then turn the pile, incorporate more "browns," make sure it's
not soggy (cover it in the rain), and cover the top of the heap with an inch of
soil or hay to eliminate the problem and disapproving looks from neighbors.
Finished compost is used as a fertilizer and mulch around and under plants.
Diseased plants and weeds with seeds require hot compost, one that reaches 140-
165 degrees. This technique is best left for more experienced practitioners who
are more adept at its mysteries. Use these plant materials as erosion control
far from the garden, burn them, or if necessary, dispose of them in the regular
garbage. Meanwhile, train yourself in hot compost magic through the recommended
reading (2), intuition, and experience.
Nearly all organic forms of nitrogen, like those used in making compost, contain
varying amounts of phosphorus, potassium, and trace minerals. Composting
ingredients that contain high percentages of these nutrients will improve your
end fertilizer. Trace minerals can be derived from plants with literally rock
breaking, carrot-like tap roots that explore 25 feet or more down into the
Earth. These plants include dandelions, alfalfa, comfrey, and plantain. Harvest
their leaves as a "green" and let the roots put forth new leaves for the next
compost pile. The older the plant, the better the fertilizer, as the roots have
probed even deeper into the Earth.
Phosphorus and potassium are present in most crop residues and manure, but you
may need to supplement your soil or compost with additional sources. Your local
extension service can provide information on soil tests that help determine what
amendments will improve your soil's nutrient levels. These tests can be costly,
but if problems arise they will guide you in restoring soil balance. Greens and
rock phosphate (not superphosphate that damages earthworms and other soil life),
crushed granite and glacier rock are all good sources. You can apply them
directly to the garden bed according to package directions, or to the compost
pile with a handful between each layer. The amendments come in various packages
and if you can't find them locally, sources are listed at the end of the
article. (3)
Compost has nitrogen in it, but additional sources may also be desired. the same
manure used in compost can be applied directly to the soil. Do this several
weeks before planting to give the manure time to mellow. Cover crops are grown
exclusively to feed the soil with nitrogen and other nutrients. When mature,
they are tilled under, and the soil life transforms them into fertilizer. Life
is provided for by death. Every cover crop has different amounts and types of
nutrients. Wheat, oats, calendula, buckwheat, and legumes are all common cover
crops. Legumes are most often used because they are a group of plants such as
clover, beans, and peas that "fix" nitrogen. They have a symbiotic relationship
with a type of soil life known as nematodes. These beneficial nematodes take
nitrogen from the air and "fix" it to the legume's roots. They look like tiny
white potatoes clinging to the root system. They release nitrogen to the plant,
helping it thrive. When the crop of legumes is tilled into the soil, it becomes
a time release fertilizer as plants and nematodes break down again.
The following tips will also help to create your bewitching garden. These
methods can be used in any garden, in sun or shade, and can be started any time
of the year with Spring and Summer being ideal.
Raised beds: Raised beds save water, compost and amendments that are only used
where the plants grow and not in paths. Crops can be grown closer together which
saves space. You do not need to use the "space between rows" recommendation from
seed packets, since rows are not used. Only the "space between plants"
recommendation is needed. (4) This provides a canopy of foliage that traps CO2
and soil moisture like a suspended mulch. The leaves shade the soil to further
reduce weeding and watering chores. Make beds wide enough to reach across
comfortably (4 ft. is standard) in order to save work from bending and
straining. Raised beds drain well to allow plants to develop healthy root
systems, and they solve rot problems in packed clay soil. They also warm faster
in the spring for earlier planting and remain unpacked from foot traffic that
would otherwise choke oxygen from roots and spread disease. If you use concrete
blocks or railroad ties, your bed supports can provide a convenient resting
spot. Make paths wide enough so that you can walk side by side with friend or
partner without breaking off plants.
Mulch: Weeding and water requirements are kept to a minimum by mulching. Use
compost, straw, hay, woodchips, color-free newspaper, or special mulch papers.
All of these sources will slowly decompose, conditioning the soil and slowly
feeding plants. Mulch will also save your plants when you are low on compost.
Garden Sanitation: The garden is a sacred space and rain is its consecrated
cleansing. It should have solitude during this purifying time. Mud on shoes or
wet skin and tools, can spread diseases normally not as easily transported
without moisture. If you wish to accompany the garden in this cleansing, do so
quietly and meditatively. If you have urgent work to do, limit your areas of
activity and avoid touching plants.
Your garden's first year of withdraw from chemical dependency may be severe,
because the soil life is insufficient to transform its components into
nutrients. However, after the first year, it will flourish and the trouble is
worth it. While at first resisting the temptation to reach for a quick fix
fertilizer is difficult, be persistent while the balance is being restored. Talk
to and love your friends through it, touching them, especially the ones in the
tobacco family. Members of this family have fuzzy feelers on their stems and
leaves and touching them causes thickened cell structure and sturdier, disease
resistant plants. Avoid this practice if you smoke tobacco. It is often poorly
grown and may contain the tobacco mosaic virus that can spread to other family
members including tomatoes, potatoes, flowering tobacco-nicotiana, and datura.
Plants grown with these methods will glow with a mystical aura and they will
release their intoxicating fragrances to greet you on your daily visits. The
garden will soothe and quiet people, perhaps because of an elusive awareness
that something powerful and sacred is happening or because of its visual beauty.
Planting by the phases of the Moon, by Sabbat, or under specific planetary
influences will also amplify the garden's energy. This kind of information can
be found in most almanacs and I've recommended some at the end of this article
(5). Planting in special patterns of Celtic knots, circles, pentacles, or any
imaginative and magic(k)al design that you've created will also enhance and
focus energy...
Are you still skeptical of the damaging effects of chemical fertilizers? Organic
Gardening Magazine had a blurb in the January 1996 issue about Miracle Grow
(registered trademark). Apparently, it corroded a one inch hole through
someone's aluminum shelf! (6) Now that CAN'T be right?!
Good luck and happy growing! If you have any questions about gardening or if you
just want to talk plants, feel free to write to me. I can also offer some advice
(but mostly resources) about growing plants indoors organically.
Reference Notes:
1) Petrik, Vactav Sr. Excerpts from his work Understanding the soil
2) Fern Marshall Bradley and Barbara W. Ellis (Eds.) (1992) Rodale's All-New
Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening. Rodale Press
3) New Earth Indoor/Outdoor Garden Center, 3623 East Highway 44,
Shepherdsville, KY 40165; 1-800-462-5953 or 1-502-543-5933. Worm's Way Garden
Supply, 3151 S. Highway 446. Bloomington IN 47401; 1-800-274-9676 or FAX 1-812-
331-0854.
4) Jeavons, John (1991) How to Grow More Vegetable (than you ever thought
possible on less land than you can imagine) A Primer on the Life-Giving
Biointensive Method of Organic Horticulture. Ecology Action of the Mid-
Peninsula. Published by: Ten Speed Press, P.O. Box 7123, Berkeley, CA 94707.
5) Pepper, Elizabeth and Wilcock, John. The Witches' Almanac, P.O. Box 4067,
Middletown, Rhode Island 02842. The Old Farmer's Almanac and The Farmer's
Almanac are available at newsstands. Llewellyn's Magical Almanac, Moon Sign
Book, and Organic Gardener's Almanac can be obtained by calling 1-800-THE-MOON
or by checking at bookstores.
6) Organic Gardening Magazine, January 1996 issue, page 19. Rodale Press
A LETTER TO WITCHES
By Dr. Robert A. Morey
The following is a letter that Dr. Morey has written to teenage witches that he
thought you might like to share with others.
>I see from the pentagram you wear and all your magical charms that you believe
>in the power of >magic. Perhaps you have attended a Wiccan gathering or you
>have participated in some magic >rituals. I don't know.
I see by your cross pendants and rosaries that you believe in the power of your
god. Perhaps you have attended a Church Service or you have participated in Mass
or Communion. I don't know.
>But so many questions fill my mind. Have you "drawn down the moon" yet? Have
>you ever felt a power come upon you? Do you worship a particular goddess? Have
>you been initiated? Do you have a Wiccan name? Have you gone skyclading? Are
>you in the outer or inner circle? Have you used blood in your rituals? Have you
>ever called forth a familiar spirit?
Have you 'Received the Lord as your personal savior' yet? Have you felt the
power of God come over you? Do you worship at a particular church? Have you been
baptized? Do you have a Christian name? Have you ever dressed up for church? Are
you just a member of the congregation or are you a Sunday school teacher or
preacher? Have you ever took Communion, drank the blood of Christ? Have you ever
called on the Holy Spirit?
>The reason I am writing you is that I have studied the occult for thirty years
>and I have come to certain conclusions.
>Now, I know that you will disagree with some of my conclusions because we have
>traveled different paths. But I have added the benefit of the testimonies of
>those who used magic in the highest levels possible such as the Golden Dawn and
>the O.T.O. and then have come to faith in Christ and now have renounced magic.
Not exactly Witchcraft there.
>All I ask is that you have an open mind and give serious attention to the
>things I now bring up. Remember an unexamined faith is a worthless faith.
I. THE FACT THAT MAGIC DOES NOT WORK.
>After all the talk about the "power" that people can get from magic, I have
>never known a more powerless group of people.
Wiccans and Pagans are not usually as caught up on 'Power' as the author seems
to believe.
>Many of those who use magic are sick all the time. They go through multiple
>marriages. They have money problems. Their cars get flat tires. They get their
>share of flus and colds.
And I suppose Christians never suffer from flu or colds? No money problems,
always happy marriages? Christians never get flats I suppose? Shamans and other
healers are sick often so they will be better able to cure the illness in
others, having first hand knowledge.
>Even more seriously, they cannot beat their own drug or sex addiction. They are
>usually in bondage and totally powerless to change their life for the better.
Yet again, Christians also can fall under the same words.
>If magic really worked, they would never be sick. They would win every horse
>race in town! They would own Wall Street by now! They would be able to maintain
>a successful marriage.
Here is a complete misunderstanding of the use of Magic, and that power hungry
attitude again.
>But the fact is, you waste a lot of money and time on magic and are no better
>off. In fact, you will end up worse off.
You spend a lot of money on Christianity in tithes, donations and offerings and
are no better off. In fact, you become worse off.
>If magic worked, witches would be picking up the winning lottery numbers every
>week. But the fact is that when the "rubber meets the road" magic simply does
>not work.
If praying to God worked, Christians would be winning lots of money and never
have any problems, but the fact is that when the "rubber meets the road" God
simply does not work.
II. THEIR LAME DUCK EXCUSES AS TO WHY THEY ARE SICK OR WHY THEY CAN'T
KEEP THEIR MARRIAGE TOGETHER OR WHY THEY AREN'T RICH, ARE WEAK AND
FEEBLE.
>One psychic "healer" (a relative of mine) is sick all the time. Her husband is
>dying of cancer! When she boasted to me of her magical powers, I confronted her
>with the rather obvious fact that her magic did not work for her or her ex-
>husband. She replied that her magic will not work for herself.
>But who says that you cannot heal yourself by magic? Where is it written down?
>And who says that your husband or wife cannot use magic to heal you? If her
>magic cannot help herself or her husband, then what good is it?
This 'healer' seems to have some bad ideas from what the author said. Some
believe that using magic for yourself is bad, even to the point of believing it
won't work. Using magic to heal yourself and your loved ones is alright. Using
magic is alright for anything as long as 'An it Harm none' is kept in mind. As
for healing the sick, even though Christians never get sick, if they ever did, a
little prayer would clear it right up. Always, right?
>I could not help but point out that she was always crying about money problems.
>What use is her magic if it cannot make her rich?
Magic is only good if it can make you rich? What good is God if he cannot make
you rich? The author here seems hung up on materialism.
III. A MAGICAL WORLD VIEW IS INTERNALLY CONTRADICTORY AND
HYPOCRITICAL.
>Give the bible a good read and think for yourself. Contradictory...
>hypocritical...man is that the pot calling the.. Silverware black.
>A. To say, "there are no moral absolutes" is to give an absolute.
>B. To say, "Do what thou wilt, this is the whole of the law" has been used to
>justify everything from black magic to human sacrifice. If there are no
>standards, then on what grounds can they condemn child abuse, Hitler, murder,
>etc.? They can't.
The actual phrase here is "An it harm none, do what thou wilt. This shall be the
whole of the law" Leaving out the 'An it Harm None' is taking it out of context.
>C. To say, "everything is relative" and "there is no evil," and then to turn
>around and say that Christianity is "evil" is contradictory.
There is no absolute evil, ie. Satan or Lucifer. Evil exists in intent..
>D. To say, "Everyone has the right to believe what they want" and then condemn
>Christians for what they believe is contradictory.
Everyone has the right to believe as they want as long as they don't infringe on
my right to believe as I want.
>E. To say, "Do what thou wilt" and then tell Christians NOT to do what they
>wilt is hypocritical.
Again leaving out the 'An it Harm NONE.'
>F. To say, "that it is wrong to judge/condemn others," and then to
>judge/condemn Christians is contradictory.
"Thou shall not Judge." "Pagans are evil." Live by your own Ten Commandments.
The bible is so full of contradictions it isn't even funny.
IV. A MAGICAL VIEW OF LIFE DOES NOT CORRESPOND TO REALITY.
>G. No magic is going to make you thin if you do not stop eating. No magic will
>make you rich if you do not get up and go to work.
Duh. Another fine example of the author's misconceptions about magic.
>H. The claim of modern witches that they are reviving pre- Christian paganism
>is not true historically. The rituals and beliefs of modern day magic are of
>recent origin.
Whoa, are you talking about modern witches or modern day magic? Modern day magic
and Wiccan rituals are different things.
>I. My brother in law who is in the occult told me he was going to use magic to
>get himself a parking space in N.Y.C. I in turn told him that I would ask Jesus
>to get me a space. He drove around for four hours before finding a place while
>I found one immediately and did not have to go around the block even once! His
>magic was not even good enough to find him a parking space!
>J. A magical view of life is a cop out and it breeds irresponsibility . Instead
>of taking responsibility for their life, those who use magic always blame "bad
>luck" or claim that someone is using black magic against them. The truth is
>that YOU are responsible for the choices you make in life - not magic.
Hold it right there Mr. "Its the Will of God." and "The devil made me do it."
Christians have taken NO responsibility for their own actions. Come off your
high horse and live in reality, mister. Instead of taking responsibility for
their life, Christians always blame God or the Devil. Paganism and Wicca both
are about taking responsibility for your own life and actions. The Rule of Three
: What ye send out comes back to you threefold. You make your own life.
>K. It attracts people with mental problems. Sad but true. I have seen this
>many, many times. The State Mental Hospitals are filled with people who were
>users of magic. It appeals to people with those kind of people.
Okay, how about all the "God told me to do it" cases or Christians who go nuts?
The state hospitals are filled with guilted-out Christians.
>L. They live in constant fear of the powers they draw down. Hence they need the
>occult protection of the circles, towers, shields, charms, etc.. What a
>terrible religion of fear!
Religion of Fear?? "Follow God or Burn in Hell" Thats fear. Don't feel sexual or
you'll burn in hell, don't have too much fun, You'll burn in Hell. Do what God
says or you'll burn in hell. That is fear. Don't think anything that we don't
approve of or you'll burn in hell for eternity.
>M. If you depend upon trinkets such as pentagrams to protect you, you do not
>have any real power. To think that a stupid piece of metal or glass is going to
>protect you from a demon you summon is absurd.
You think the Crosses you wear have any real power? Do you think your Holy Water
will protect you?
>N. The lust for blood is evil. It has led to horrible crimes. Killing animals
>and people for their "energy" is wicked as well as criminal.
Ever wonder why Abraham thought nothing of sacrificing his only Son to God? What
sacrifice did God accept from Able and reject from Cain? What does the wine at
communion represent? What will wash away the sins of Christians? Who is blood
lustful?
>O. Sex magic is filthy and gross beyond words and involves child abuse,
>bestiality, sodomy, etc. You will never have a normal satisfying sex life once
>you debase yourself in sex magic.
First off, Sex is not nasty. Sex Magic does not involve child abuse, bestiality
or sodomy. Sex Magic is two people coming together with the same intent in mind,
using the sex act to raise the energy to send the purpose of the magic. But you
will never have a good guilt free sex if you're a christian.
>P. Magic is for losers.
>The greatest magicians always end up broke, alone, and miserable. Check to see
>what happened to people like Crowley. They were all losers.
>Whenever a true Christian challenges them, the magicians always lose.
>One of the most probable reasons for that might be the fact that Christians, in
>general, are so irrational. No matter what you point out they always come back
>with something, no matter if what they what they say directly contradicts what
>they said two sentences before. If they get confused its, "You can't understand
>God. Its the will of God, its just the way He is." There is no way to argue
>with an irrational person.
>I have challenged occultist to take their best shot and they always failed. On
>one occasion, a coven sent demons to kill me but I didn't even get a headache!
It seems you've been dealing with a lot of folks with Hollywooditis.
>Q. While there is a lot of hate and lust in magic, there is no love. If you
>leave or reveal the secrets, they will try to kill you.
>I helped to move a girl from Philadelphia to Florida to escape her former
>occult friends. If they really loved her, why did they try to kill her? If she
>wanted to leave the group, why did they object to her doing what she wilt?
This was obviously a Cult, not Wiccan or Pagan group. There is no hate inherent
in Wicca or Paganism. There is Hate inherent in Christianity, not taught
outright, but look at how good christian parents refuse to let their children
play with others of a different religion or different values. Look at how
vicious they attack someone who believes differently.
>R. There is no forgiveness, comfort or salvation in magic. It has no Savior or
>God who loves and cares for you.
>Nothing needs forgiving, there is nothing to seek salvation from. The God and
>Goddess do love and care for you and for all.
>The occult is lonely, sad, cold and sterile.
Go to a gathering and say that. Watch children run free in a crowd and have no
fear because they know, and their parents know that everyone there will look out
for them and protect them.
>S. The Bible says that true power behind the magical arts is satanic. Those who
>deny this are dupes of the devil.
>The Power behind Wicca and Paganism can't be an entity who doesn't exist. You
>have been duped and brainwashed to be guilty and afraid since birth.
>These are just a few things that came to mind as I thought about what I have
>seen in thirty years of research in the occult.
>The Lord Jesus Christ has broken the power of magic and has brought life, love
>and immortality to light through the Gospel. Jesus is Victor!
>The occult has nothing to offer that compares with the love of Jesus. Turn to
>Him in repentance. Renounce your witchcraft and the works of the devil. Burn
>your magic books and mash your altars. Turn or burn. Repent or perish! Jesus is
>the answer. John 3:36.
Turn or Burn. Fear based recruiting. How sad.
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Copyright 1992
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The Research & Education Foundation P.O. Box 141455 Austin, Tx 78714
The text of the letter was not edited or altered in any fashion. I'm not selling
anything. Graywalker's Comments are copyright 1998 by Graywalker. This copy of
the letter with Graywalker's comments can be use freely as long as the link to
Dragon Manor remains.
A Modern FATAL Witch Hunt
The following article is verbatim from the New York Times.
April 5, 1997
In Modern Russia, a Fatal Medieval Witch Hunt
By MICHAEL SPECTER
TEREKHOVO, Russia -- There is really no mystery about what happened in this
forgotten little village on the night of Feb. 22. Sasha Lebyodkin and his
terrified nephew, Sergei Gretsov, went on a witch hunt. Armed with hammers and
knives, they entered the house of the woman who they said had cast a spell on
them and started swinging.
When they were done one woman was dead -- the first murder here since the
Revolution -- and four of her five children were on their way to the hospital.
The 22-year-old woman whose life they were after, Tanya Tarasova, suffered
several hammer blows to the head, but survived.
Saying they were spooked by wild, half-human beasts and dogged by incantations
that set their eyes on fire, the killers were not reluctant to admit what they
had done. And with mysticism and sorcery a pervasive fact of modern Russian
life, the other residents of this village on the border with Ukraine weren't a
bit surprised.
"We went there to kill the entire family," the two men said in a joint
statement the next day. "Because Tanya has used her black magic and sent
ruination upon us."
So far the only legal proceeding to arise from the attack has come from
Lebyodkin's wife, Larissa, who has sued Miss Tarasova, for "putting a hex on my
husband and destroying him," she said. She has also requested that the police
confiscate a book called "Black Magic" that was found in the house on the night
of the attack.
"This would all be meaningless," said Gennadi Chekaldin, the police officer who
has been given the unpleasant task of trying to "solve" the crime. "But you
can't find anyone here to tell you that witchcraft wasn't involved in this
killing. In fact, you can go anywhere in Russia these days and witchcraft is a
daily part of life."
At times Russia seems governed as much by superstition as by democracy. One of
Moscow's, and the nation's, most popular weekly television programs, "The Third
Eye," whose engaging host is Mikhail Andreyev, the president of the Association
of White Magicians, is a straight, factual discussion of how sorcery and
witchcraft can improve one's daily life. (Last week's show featured a lesson in
how to "protect your house with the aid of an ordinary needle, and how to use a
big tailor's needle to cast special spells." wink
Major national newspapers advertise the services of clairvoyants, witches and
warlocks every day. Well-trained doctors at respected hospitals see nothing
unusual in recommending that their patients take a trip to a "babka," an old
woman with the power to heal. Until late last year, Gen. Georgi Rogozin was in
charge of a team of Kremlin staff astrologers whose sole job was to help guide
President Boris Yeltsin in making decisions.
"We have had in this country a very long period of total absence of spiritual
education, and people completely forget what religion really means," said the
Rev. Alexander Bulekov, from the Moscow patriarchate of the Russian Orthodox
Church, explaining the power of pagan beliefs for Russians. "People have lost
their spiritual immunity to resist evil. They have become confused and they
often have trouble knowing what is good and bad."
Asked if beliefs in witchcraft were more prevalent in remote, rural areas,
Bulekov said no.
"We witness it far more often in the cities," he said. "In villages the old
attitudes toward the church are still alive and immunity against evil is better
preserved."
Still, the story of the Terekhovo witch hunt is a tale out of the Middle Ages.
A web of lies, competing spells and dueling witches, it is a story that even
people who have lived through it find hard to believe and harder to tell.
Tanya Tarasova was a young woman who kept to herself in a village of only 100
people. That was suspicion No. 1. She has a lazy eye, a common enough problem,
but one often viewed as a sign of the demon to those devoted to pagan beliefs.
She was remote -- and most damning, often took long, solitary walks in the
woods.
After she had a few dates with Sergei Gretsov, a local woodcutter, he started
to have horrible visions. His mother said Miss Tarasova had put a curse on
Sergei because he would not marry her.
"He would wake up in the night screaming and afraid," his mother, Galina
Gretsov, said in an interview. "Every day it would get worse. He said he saw
her face on the head of a beast with enormous horns. He would sweat and scream
and beg me to look at the beast. Of course I never saw it. But Sergei was
always a normal healthy boy. Until he met her."
Sergei sought the aid of his uncle, Sasha, who said he also came under Tanya's
spell. Prompted by his wife, Larissa -- a 36-year-old woman deeply anxious
about her inability to have children -- the three took the hourlong bus ride to
see Maria Pashenko, 70, the region's most respected babka.
"The young one told me he was haunted by a beast and that whenever he went to
the forest the beast was there," Mrs. Pashenko said in an interview in which
she abruptly pulled a large silver cross from her bed covers and began casting
a "good" spell on the people in the room. "He said he wanted to get married but
the evil eye was on him and that the beast had prevented him from going back
near the girl."
Only one clear fact has emerged from the crimes: The lives of half a dozen
people have been ruined over the belief in magic.
Miss Tarasova, interviewed in the hospital where she is recuperating from the
attack, denies being a witch. She said she never wants to return to her village
and she cannot understand why a young man she liked would try to kill her.
Her uncle, Stepan Kopilov, is 70. He has lived through the Bolsheviks and the
hunger of farm collectivization. He has lived through the painful upheavals of
Yeltsin's reform program -- which have been felt with particular harshness in
this agricultural region. But he has never seen anything as agonizing as this.
"These men killed my sister," he said, standing in the house where Tanya's
mother, Raisa Tarasova, died. "They talk of black magic and horrible spells.
She was a decent woman who worked every living day. These men are the ones who
are evil."
The police do not know what to make of the crime. "We can't just tell everyone
in this town that magic is nonsense," Chekaldin said, even though it is clear
that he would like to. "But we have to bring justice." The two men who
committed the crimes are now being held in the nearby city of Kursk, where they
have been examined by psychiatrists, who have yet to issue a final report on
them.
Mrs. Pashenko, the babka, swears that while she can recognize the "evil eye,"
she never uses it.
"I cast only good spells, I cure people and help them with my special waters,"
she said. "I never use the evil eye." She said she had nothing to do with the
attack -- although she acknowledges that the two men and Mrs. Lebyodkin came to
her after it.
"Larissa was sitting here, and I asked what happened," she said, making it
clear by her facial gestures that Mrs. Lebyodkin was in deep distress. "She was
scared but she could not speak. I had to put her eyes and her nose and her
mouth back in their right places. I used special waters. I asked what happened
but nobody could speak. They just said nothing."
(c) 1997, The New York Times
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