To all who in love and sincerity aspire to the Light; to those whose deeds, words, and writings have assisted this writer in his (continuing) search for the Light; to Those discarnate and nearer the Light who in Love and Compassion guide and assist we who are still Earthbound:
This Work is the result of one person's search for the Light, and the Path which he has found.
No claim is made that this Path is the only one and that all should follow it - the hope is rather that some part at least of this Work might act as an aid to others seeking their own Paths. All that the writer states is that this works for him, and that if something works it can be used, whether or not any theory for such working is known. "It works" is immutable; theories should be subject to revision in the light of experience and understanding gained in "making it work".
That your own particular Path may be Illumined; that you shall receive Guidance, Healinq, and Protection as you have need, and that you may Blessèd Be, is the sincere wish of:-
No discussion can be truly effective unless the terms used therein are defined and agreed by the parties to the discussion. Unless this is so, lack of communication ensues, with all that implies.
'Fact' and 'Truth' are perhaps two of the most emotive words in the language, so best it be understood from the start how these words are used within this document.
A FACT is something that has, or has had, demonstrable existence – NO MATTER HOW ‘UNLIKELY' OR INEXPLICABLE. One can ignore a Fact, but not cause it not to have been. (Not without retrograde time-travel, anyway!) That this Work is in your hands, is a fact. That you are (so far) reading it, is another. You may deny that the content is ‘Valid for you’, but that does not cancel the ‘Be-ing’ of it – the Fact of it endures.
Truth, however, is another matter. It is subjective, in that it is deduced by each person from observed facts. ANYTHING ELSE IS 'RECEIVED' TRUTH! In other words, I believe sincerely in this, and all that follows; for me, it is truth. You may believe it also, or not; if you accept it as being 'Truth' on my say-so, that would be 'Received Truth' for you. You might also choose to regard it as 'Not-truth', of course, or if you felt that it was deliberately intended to deceive or mislead, as 'Lie'.
Let it be clearly understood, then, that all that is in this Work is Truth as I see it. It is valid for me, and I sincerely believe in it. I accept though that it might not be Truth as you see it; you have the right to your form of Truth, as I to mine. I have neither need nor intent to deceive, for either would negate completely the whole purpose of this Work. All that I ask is that you, the Reader, shall bear in mind that what follows is 'Truth as I see it', presented in the hope that at least some part of it may be of help to you in finding your own Path, your own Truth, and especially your own Self.
ALL our lives are spent, consciously or otherwise, in asking questions and finding answers to them. Consider; at this moment you are asking yourself, "Shall I continue readinq this, or shall I do something else - and if so, what?"
Questions, the operating of the enquiring mind, generate answers. (It might even be that a definition of intelligence is the ability to question.) The quality of the answer is limited at least in part by that of the question, in that if we can ask the question correctly, then we can obtain and understand the answer.
What we have to accept, no matter how reluctantly, is that some questions we are NOT able to ask correctly even if we know that there is a question that could be asked. We therefor have to be content with answers that are not perfect or not fully understandable in our present state of knowledge. If we lack the concepts to frame the question, we will not have those necessary for comprehension of the answer.
However, we are not thereby absolved from asking questions, for 'No question' generates ‘No answer’. Our aim should always be to refine our question-framing process, and to be prepared to accept the answers we get – which are not always going to be what we would have liked! Remember the 'Garbage in, garbage out' adage of computer programmers; the sooner you begin to ask meaningful questions, the sooner you will begin to receive meaningful answers.
You 'asked a question' when you started to read this. I hope that it is beginning to provide you with some answers.
WHAT is Infinity, or, for that matter, Eternity?
Here we have examples of questions which, although at first sight seem straightforward, cannot be framed in order to generate an answer which is both comprehensive and comprehendible. Therefor we have to do the best we can with such answers as we can get.
Firstly, we have to accept that Infinity and Eternity ARE, and that our minds are not capable of total understanding of them. Within our limitations, however, we can say that Infinity exists without boundaries in all directions, and includes all things, potentials, and probabilities. Having no boundaries, it cannot be properly sub-divided, as no part of it can be expressed as a determinate fraction of the whole. There is, therefor, interconnection and interaction, no matter how tenuous, between everything within Infinity; what happens at one locus affects all other loci, as each is perforce within the Totality. It follows from this, that I affect, and am affected by, all the rest of the Totality.
This being so, I believe it to be my responsibility to do my best to make sure my actions shall produce the most benefit and the least harm possible to the Totality, since that which I do to ALL other manifestations of Being, animate or otherwise, affects myself as well as them.
Action and reaction being equal in strength and opposite in direction, whatever I harm, I will also harm myself. This could be regarded as self-interest, but applied to correct ends, what is wrong with that? It is, after all, the strongest motivation possible!
As with Infinity, so with Eternity; having neither start nor finish, that which has been within it still IS, and affects all that was, is, and will be, and is likewise affected by them. As Infinity is to Space, so Eternity is to Time. What I do is within the totality of Eternity as much as that of Infinity. Even though the effects may be small, they will still be there – had I not written this, you could not be reading it!
Within these two, Infinity and Eternity, are room and time enough and to spare for all potentials and possibilities, all ethics and mores, so who dare say that their system is the only correct one and all others, by definition, wrong? I state only that mine is right for me as I see it at this time. If further experience shows that it can be made better, then I shall do my best to carry out the indicated improvements. The learning process is, or should be, a continuing one, and largely consists of correcting mistakes!
To sum up; within an Infinite Universe, there is room for an infinite number of possibilities; within Eternity, there is time for all of them to be accomplished.
COMPARED to Eternity, the life-span of any individual is immeasurably short.
By the definitions of every belief and faith that I have researched, and they are many, the Supreme Being, however Named, is all-wise, all-knowing, and Perfect, and the object of our existence is to come to know that Perfection.
It seems illogical to assume that, given the above parameters, we are allocated only one short life-span in which to accomplish such a monumental task; more so as much of that time is taken up by the sheer mechanics of living. A further requirement is that we shall attain at least a large measure of Perfection for ourselves. Within the average lifetime of 70 years only? Having to find and apply without error the only correct 'Book of Rules' in that time? To realise what mistakes we have made along the way, to wish to correct them, no doubt, but probably being told on whatever authority that there will be no opportunity to do so? Having no option but to 'Get it right first time or else... '? No, I cannot accept that such a 'one shot' scheme of things is valid; neither can I think that Death is the end of everything. If either of these things were so, Life itself would be pointless, and surely the Perfect One could not allow that? Nor can those who apply Reason say that that would be reasonable.
We need a purpose for all that we do. Surely, living becomes more dignified and worthwhile if we can feel that its purpose is not just that we should work, eat, drink, sleep, and procreate others of our kind just to do the same, but that also, step by step, we may learn and come to understand more of the Great Totality, and approach closer to the Ultimate Perfection.
With acceptance of the concept of Reincarnation, fear of Death goes, for just as Birth is the ending of one stage of existence and the beginning of another, so also is Death. Does the caterpillar know, when it pupates, what the outcome will be? It dies as a caterpillar, only to enter a new life as a butterfly or moth. So, just as the caterpillar accepts pupation, we should accept Death as part of the Life Process - who knows what 'Butterfly' we might become?
It also helps when the loss of a loved one occurs; we can feel that the separation is not permanent, and that eventually the relationship will be renewed even if in a different form.
Some schools of thought hold that, reincarnation being accepted, one can 'Come back' as an animal, or even an insect. Whilst respecting that view as valid for those holding it, I feel it to be illogical for the following reasons.
Scientists tell us that they find only 1/3rd of Man’s brain to be used in the conscious and unconscious processes of life. The rest they call the Silent 2/3rds.
I theorise that it is within this 2/3rds. that the record of all one's past lives is stored. This information comprises the 'Total Identity', to give it a name, and it is normally non-recoverable by the active 1/3rd except under certain rare conditions.
At the end of the current incarnation, the contents of the 'Active Storage' of the working 1/3rd. are added, to form the ‘Total Identity’ of the next incarnation. The occasional leakage from 'Store' to 'Working' could account for such phenomena as 'deja vu'.
Now the brain of an animal, and still less that of an insect, DOES NOT HAVE the storage capacity required to accept the Information Bits which make up a human identity, never mind anything else: This does not preclude an ‘Identity’ having originated in the Animal sphere of existence, however, as an animal's 'Identity' would easily be accommodated by a human brain.
To sum up:
AT first sight, this is a simple question, but it demands a complex answer, for it depends on what you mean by 'Witchcraft'.
Basically, it is a religion - the oldest known to Mankind, and elements of which persist even in those other Faiths which have spent so much time, effort, and blood in trying (vainly) to eradicate it. It is also a philosophy, a mode of thinking, a way of living; the list is long.
In the present era, there are three main branches; Gardnerian, Alexandrian, and Traditional. Each of these tends to go its own way, and respects the right of other Branches to go theirs. Even within each main Branch, there can be differences in practice and interpretation as between one group and another; again, they agree to differ. The writer is a Traditionalist and also hereditary to 'The Craft', as we call it. What follows is based on that Branch's beliefs, but it is again stressed that it is in the Practice that the main differences arise.
We believe in and worship the Great Goddess (of whom all others are particular aspects) and Her Partner, the Great God, of whom all other Gods are likewise aspects. It may be said that The Goddess is the Totality of all that is female, and The God, of that which is male. However, most important to bear in mind is the concept that 'above and between' these Great Ones, is THAT which is greater than Both, and which being limitless is un-nameable; for to name is to identify, and to identify is to limit.
We believe that all animate things, including Mankind, are children of the Great Ones, and should be respected as such; that inanimate things also partake of the Great Ones, and should also be treated with respect. Though all things are provided for us to use, we are responsible for what we do with them, and have only 'Stewardship' rather than 'Absolute Right' or 'Dominion' over them.
We do not believe in 'sacrifices' of ANY sort, for how is it possible to give back a gift to the Givers? Rather, we express our appreciation by enjoying all the gifts of the Great Ones, without abusing them by excess. We certainly do not kill anything in Their Names, for we are concerned with prolonging Life, not hastening Death. Nor do we submit ourselves or others to indignities or pain, for again this would in no way be consonant with our belief that all are our sisters and brothers, and that the Great Ones are represented in us. In demeaning ourselves or others, we would be demeaning Them.
We take note of the Circle of the Year, for this knowledge is still vital to the survival of the Race. We mark each season appropriately, not to worship the Sun as such, but as a reminder of our own human condition, of our hope and expectation of Rebirth, and to give thanks for the particular Gifts of each season.
We seek Understanding and Knowledge; firstly of ourselves, for without those we can understand or know nothing else properly.
We seek not to judge others, (but we are allowed to ASSESS within the relevant parameters) for we are qualified only to judge ourselves. Conversely, we do not accept that others are qualified to judge us for what we are and do. Nor do we intervene or take sides, for each of these is a form of judgement, but we give our help willingly to all who ask, and take responsibility for what we then do.
We seek to live our lives in peace, in amity and accord with all so far as we may, for thus we are instructed to do.
Although we may not be aggressors we are entitled to protect ourselves and others (by passive means if possible) against those who are.
We do not seek 'converts', for 'Many Paths make up the Way', but for those who seek our Path, there is Guidance.
Above all, we seek to survive and to help all other life-forms to survive also, so therefore tend to be conservationist and ecologically aware.
If we survive, so will our religion, which is one of peace, love, joy, and serenity, not hate, fear, guilt, and misery.
Our Goddess is our loving and compassionate Mother; our God, our wise and helpful Father.
Nothing more needs to be said.