1501 Susan Gale, a Philadelphia wife and mother and self-described "radical feminist witch not yet out of the broom closet" in her neighborhood: "There's a pain that's in young women even a decade after feminism. I was raised in a tough poor working-class neighbor- hood. My mother was a German Protestant, my father an Italian Catho- lic. I was raised as a very religious Presbyterian, but it didn't matter that I was the most brilliant student in my religion class - there wasn't a place for me as a minister. Deacons and ministers were men. And a lot of it rubbed me the wrong way: the anti-sexuality, anti-sensuality, the guilt and sin and punishment rather than joy. From the time I was a little kid, I couldn't accept redemptive suffer- ing. Why is the central metaphor of most religions the bloody violent death of a male? Why is it not birth?" Invoking the Spirit Starhawk signs her books"Blessed be." It is alsoher greeting and her Amen. In alarge room set up withflowers, crystals, trinkets and copies of her books, she presided recently at a women's ritual at the Univer- sity of Pennsylvania's Christian Association. "Where would you likethe altar?" asked a participantbefore the candles encased in glass were set on a brightly colored cloth in the center of the room. Two hundred womenof similarmind-sets - butvarying ages,religi- ons, occupations and sexual orientations - were ready to join Starhawk at the three-hour, $40 event. Another couple of hundred men and women arrived later that evening for Starhawk's lecture. People like GeelaRazael Raphael,a rabbinical studentwho wasone of the event's organizers. "Starhawk is a spiritual leader, a women's spirituality leader," says Raphael. "As a potential rabbi wanting to be a spiritual leader, I want to see as many role models as I can. Her form of non-hierarchical religion can be used in more traditional practice." In person, the 40ishpriestess looks not unlike theonetime tall Jewish girl from Los Angeles she used to be. But her soft-voiced, authoritative presence and staccato chanting and drumming command her sessions with surprising power. Women wear comfortable clothing: jeans, skirts, sweaters, tie-dye revisited. A majority tend to be of a certain size - the goddess religion rejoices in the female body. There are many embraces. Net- working materials are exchanged. Before casting the formal circle that so many women's rituals start out with, Starhawk encourages the youngest and strongest in the group to form an inner circle around the altar. Starhawk warms up the group with physical and vocal stretches. As participants form a larger ring around the inner one, she "casts" the ritual circle, theoretically making the space within it a special place. Candles representing the four directions and the Earth's center are lit. Earth, air, fire and water are invoked. Women stand and sway as she drums, urging them to find their centers, their connectedness, often against the background of a simple chant: "Rising, rising, the earth is rising. Turning turning, the tide is turning. Changing changing, she changes everything she touches. Changing, changing, and everything she touches changes." 1502 Like many women's ritualleaders, Starhawk uses such chantsas a kind of surrogate liturgy. Presented at different moments that morn- ing, the lilting song she teaches is used as a blessing, a uniting force, a backdrop to movement and dance. Starhawk leads the groupthrough a series ofactivities - somethat draw upon the circle as a whole, some small group discussions, guided visualizations. "What kind of a body are you in?" she asks. "Look at your body. How does it feel?" Some people writhe. Others beat time to the drums. Some stand awkwardly (earlier she assured them not to worry if they feel ill at ease). Some look dubious. Tofocus the visualization evenmore, Starhawk takesthe group to an imaginary crossroads in the sky. "Close your eyes," she says. "Reach out and feel and touch and smell these roads until you find one that feels like a road in the future. Go down the road. Know you can come back to this place of power because it is you. And remember there are many roads to the future. The road you chose is only one pos- sibility." The session endswith a grandfinale "spiral dance"- clockwiseto invoke, then counterclockwise to release. "Anything you want to do involves both," she says. A giftedspeaker with an easysense of humor, Starhawkis equally at home beating time in the center of a ritual or working the crowd at the podium of a lecture hall. She is also at home with what she calls the "W" word ("witch"). "Unless we understand it, we don't know why a powerful woman is so threatening and so frightening," she says. "There was a 400-year reign of terror particularly directed against women who were then burned alive," she says, likening the witch hunts to the African slave trade, the Holocaust. Starhawk became interested in witchcraft in her late teenswhen she and a friend did a student seminar on the subject at UCLA. Now she is at the forefront of a movement to reclaim the word for positive use. (Male witches also use the word rather than warlock, which means traitor.) For mostpeople, of course,the word "witch" conjuresup an image of a crinkled old woman you wouldn't want your children to talk to. But the picture of the craft that emerges within today's women's spirituality movement (and that is reinforced by Starhawk's Philadel- phia ritual) is a combination of group therapy, positive thinking, stretching exercises, guided visualization, song and dance - and even pot luck. Its goddess- and nature-orientedprecepts are similar tothe Old Religion of prehistoric times and societies that fell victim to the witch hunts and persecutions of medieval and renaissance Europe. It is earth-centered, individualistic and peace-loving. Starhawk spends about a third of her time teaching ritual and spreading the faith at college campuses and other forums around the country, and in Canada. She feels that people crave it. "Even people who live in cities - like most of us - are still connected to the cycles of nature," she says. "Doing ritual that helps you affirm that helps us not to feel cut off from the larger life around us, the actual life support systems that sustain our lives." 1503 Women's Rites Spring,with itsvivid reminders ofthe cycle ofbirth and death andrebirth, is a fertile time for the rituals of women's spirituality. Look at some recent manifestations in the Washington area: Last month, attracted by a flier heralding a celebration of the goddess ("dancing, singing, drumming, healing, creativity, inspira- tion, discovery, nurturing and goddess games"), 21 women gathered in a conference center in Potomac in honor of the spring equinox. "The day was designed for women who wanted to bring out the goddess within them," says organizer Nancy Smith, a seminar leader who specializes in stress management and massage therapy. 120 men, women and children turned up last month for a feminist Seder (for Holy Thursday as well as Passover) put on by the Silver Spring-based WATER. Now a place where Christian and Jewish women can come together for a feminist interpretation of religious rituals, WATER was created by Diann Neu and Mary Hunt, two Catholic theologian- s, in 1983. They send out 10,000 newsletters, stage workshops, con- ferences and lectures, hold ecumenical monthly breakfasts for women in ministry, publish books and act as an all-purpose feminist resource. On April 14, the new moon heralded the Jewish celebration of Rosh Hodosh. A group of women interested in finding or creating ritual specifically for Jewish women gathered in a Silver Spring home in honor of the occasion. Instead of going ahead with their scheduled topic - the redefinition of God in non-masculine terms - the group (representing a 30-year age span) shared its feelings and prayed (to the feminine aspect of god) about the recent death of a 42-year-old friend. Atthe All Souls Church in the District a smaller group of women is currently investigating women's religious history each Sunday after- noon through "Cakes for the Queen of Heaven," a 10-part correspondence course available through the Unitarian Universalist Church. Bev Tubby, who took the course last year, is one of the conveners this year. "In spite of everything that's been written about feminism and role differences, women really do bring a wonderfully strong view to this world," she says. "We do have a different perspective - it has to do with the human context and human relationships. If women are not cognizant of their spiritual history, they are missing out on a more complete identity that can help form our ideas of who we are and what we want to do in this world and how we're going to do it." And June 6, "Kestryl & Company," the first of six biweekly talk shows about contemporary witchcraft will air on Arlington Community Cable, Channel 33. Produced by Cheryl Ann Costa, a computer program- mer and third-degree Wicca high priestess, and moderated by Erica Angell (known as Kestryl), a housewife and second-degree high pries- tess, the show will feature high priests, magical tool makers, tarot experts and pagan bards. "Many people are looking for a way to plug into The Craft," says Costa. This is an easy way to do it. Havingcast their lotwith an enlargedview ofthe sacred, these women, like many others all over the country, are looking to the spiritual as a hope for the future. "It's life-giving for me to be a part of it, and tocreate it," says WATER's Neu. "What I keep coming back to is that there is a growing power within women. We are breaking all kinds of silences. Things are happening because there are more and more groups where women feel safe. My hope is that we'll keep creating these safe spaces where being together as men and women is possible." 1504 The 12 steps and Shamanism by Matrika co-sysop of PAN - the Psychic Awareness Network at 1-703-362-1139 copyright by PAN and Harvest ( a pagan newsletter at box 228 S. Framinham MA 01701 - $13. per year) Author's note - this article was first published by me under the name JUKNO in Harvest's Yule edition, 1989. Recently a local charecter in Alcoholics Anonymous here in the Wor- cester MA. area died. His name was "John the Indian" (he identified himself this way) and he was well-known as an AA speaker all over the world, although he lived near central Massechusetts. John had about thirty years of sobriety and was a great power of example to many people including Betty Ford who told him she had listened to tapes of his talks while she was in detox. John's story intrigued many people. An Indian who had been orphaned on the reservation when Tuberculosis wiped out his familly, he had ended up on skid row after serving in the Canadian army during World War II as a dishwasher. He came to AA in his mid-twenties, an il- literate wine. ( my note - this is NOT to imply that most alcoholics are on skid row. In fact most of them are people with nice famillies, a place to live, a car or even two, a job, etc. etc. etc. Less that 2% of the alcoholics in this country are on skid row) He ended up owning his own construction business after learning to read (from a elderly woman in AA who was a school teacher) and marrying a lady in AA with whom he raised a lovely familly. Because John had inspired me and so affected my life with his gift of simplicity, I was inspired to do a shamanic-style rite in his memory. I had always felt sorry for John because, in the process of his recovery, he seemed to have lost touch with the beauty of this herita- ge. Then it hit me; John WAS a shaman and anyone who truly worked a 12-step program was one too. In BIRTH OF A MODERN SHAMAN by Cynthia Bend and Tayja Wiger (Llewelyn Publication box 64383, St. Paul MN. 1988 ) it states " A shaman is hard to define. There are no two alike..... what happens, a shaman goes through a catastrophe or a string of catastrophes that enhance certain abilities within him ( or her! ) .....Most often theShaman has togo through a severetrauma, a severe illness or a severe psychosis and recover from it before he learns the recovery process that he can use." The authors are quoting Tsonkawa, Tayja's teacher on the Shamanic path. (a Native American Medicine person) Many other authors on Shamanism; Sunbear, Lynn Andrews, Amber Wolfe and Micheal Harner, to name a few: echo this truth. A shaman is a person who goes through great suffering, usually in the form of a mental or physical illness, and then goes on to heal himself or her- self. They are then able to use that same process to heal others. This is what happens in a twelve-step fellowship. Through the process of healing ourselves, we come to the point where we can help others hy "carrying the message" after having had a "spiritual awakening" as the result of taking the first eleven steps. 1505 Here are some books that can help any Pagan, Shaman, Druid, Witch, Practitioner of Feminist Spirituality, or other Magickal folk as they walk the steps in the process of recovering, while retaining their own unique spiritual path. TRUTH OR DARE by Starhawk (San Francisco, Harper and Row, 1987) This contains many references to the 12-step programs, especially Alcohol- ics Anonymous and Adult Children of Alcoholics, in a work on Wicca by a well-known priestess of the Craft who is also a psychotherapist. CRYSTAL CLEAR by Connie Church (Bew York, Willard books 1987) It contains a good section on how to use quartz crystals to help in relieving yourself of bad habits, compulsions, and obsessions, specif- ically for use with the various twelve-step programs. (note - amethyst is traditionally said to help in all these areas) BIRTH OF A MODERN SHAMAN, mentioned above, tells the story of a blind Native American woman who was a survivor of Child abuse and had been Psycotic as well as Alcoholic. This is the story of her complete recovery, including her eyesight, (documented by doctors) and the discovery of her Psychic gifts with her Native roots. Her healing occured through a process that began for her in Alcoholics Anonymous. THE TWELVE STEPS FOR EVERYONE published by Compcare (Minneapolis MN.) this is a non-sexist book on the steps by a grateful recovering member of Emotional Health Anonymous written in non-sexist language. The author draws heavily on the Eastern traditions of spirituality as well as the traditional Western monotheistic ones. EVERYDAY A NEW BEGINNING Published by Hazelden corp. (Also in Min- neapolis, MN. I believe) This is a daily meditation guide BY women in Anonymous fellowships and FOR women in these same self-help groups. Unlike the TWENTY-FOUR HOURS A DAY book (published by the same company and widely used in AA) it doesn't use quotes from the Bible. Instead it uses quotes from various women authors. Many men also claim to have benefitted from it due to it's non-religious approach. PAGANS IN RECOVERY a networking newsletter for Magickal folk, Shamans, Druids, Feminist Priestesses, Witches, Pagans, Pantheists, etc. who are in recovery via a 12-step fellowship of any type. It has con- tacts, reviews, articles, recovery techniques and more. It is a great source of support and inspiration to any Pagan in any of the Anonymous support groups. It is $8.00 a year and the address is P.I.R. c/o Bekki 6500 S.R. 356 New Marshfield, OHIO 45766 1506 ADDITION TO READING LIST REFLECTIONS IN THE LIGHT by Shakti Gawain, published by New World Library, San Rafael, California 1978. While not ONLY for the 12-step programs this book does go into the problems of addictions in light of the New-Age, Psychic Awareness as well as many other subjects. It provides a inspirational message and/or a creative visualization exercise with a non-sectarian affirmation for each day. The book is neither sexist nor sectarian and is truly a beautiful aid to anyone seeking to work the program of recovery. It is also a great way to share what you are doing with friends who share your spirituality but not your program, as it makes no direct references to the 12-step groups at all. It is very useful to those of us who prefer a daily meditation to the "prayer" people in the monotheistic Churches and Synagogues tend to use in their application of the program to their lives. 1507 Divine Circle of The Sacred Grove ***SCAM** Office of the Preceptor P.O. Box 66311, Seattle, WA, U.S.A. 98166 THE FOLLOWING IS FOR PUBLICATION; To the Pagan Community: In July of 1991, ADF sent out a Druid Alert about an organization called the Divine Circle of the Sacred Grove. ADF began investigating this group because they were using ADF letterhead, membership forms, advertising copy, and other materials with their names substituted for ours. Prior to raising any public issues, ADF's Preceptor, Domi O'Brien called the group and talked to their Scribe, Kal Mannis. Mr. Mannis told her that if she had questions, she could come to a public meeting on July 2nd, 1991, in Seattle, and ask them there. Domi, Bwca, Erynn and members of 4 other Traditions and organizations attended their talk. We noted with increasing amazement their claims and their views of the interrelationship of Druidism and Wicca, and after they mentioned Isaac Bonewits, Domi challenged some of their staements, as the ADF Preceptor. The DCSG literature going back to 1988 was examined, along with other staements which have been made to us or others. Janette Laverna Garcia a/k/a Gordon a/k/a Copeland, born 2/9/1942, Houston TX,; Richard Norman Ian Garcia a/k/a Gordon a/k/a Copeland, born 8/12/1940, Prescott, AZ; Jerry Eugene Everett Wayne Reamer a/k/a Prophet, born 8/12/1948, Pottstown, PA; Kalman Mannis, Nancy Brown, Brenda Matarazzo, David Trippey, Donovan Cotton; Dr. Jay Tibbles, Mary Ernst, and others affiliated with their group were examined for legitamate mundane and magickal credentials. The only person whose credentials we were able to verify was Dr. Jay Tibbles. Janette's claims, as given in her various peices of literature, and as made to us, or to persons whose credentials we were able to verify, include: Hereditary Witch and Druid; Pipe Carrier for the Lumbee, the Sioux, the Cherokee, and the Chumash; member of the MotherGrove and Board of Directors of the ADF, as well as group marriage to the entire ADF Board of Directors; membership and 3rd Circle status in the British Circle of the Universal Bond; training by Ross Nichols, 3rd Degree Celtic and Egyptian Priestess; 3rd Degree Alexandrian Priestess, New York, 1973; 3rd Degree Gardinarian Priestess, New York, 1965; incorporation of her organization in 14 states; training by Rhuddlwm Gawr, and training by Grandmaster Eli (Barney Taylor, of the Druidic Craft of the Wise), marriage to Eli, as well as being both Eli's daughter and graddaughter. She has also claimed to be a registereed nurse, a cosmetologist; a paralegal; a professional writer of romance novels, and a Vietnam Veteran. Ms. Copeland (?) claims that she has 10,000 people on her mailing list, groves all over the United States, and that she was born in London during the Blitz, although she has alos claimed that she was born in Houston TX. Ms Garcia (?) claims that her father, a U.S. Army Major on Eisenhower's staff during WW II (not, by the way, Grandmaster Eli), and her mother, a nurse now resident in Atlanta, were both members of the Circle of the Universal Bond. She claims that she was raised by a Cherokee grandfather. She claims to have been teaching Wicca, which she says is a simplified version of Druidism for the masses, since 1954, when she was 12 years old. 1508 Ms Gordon(?) took Lady Sabrin's course from Our Lady of Enchanment in 1987 and 1988, giving totally different information about herself then she gives now. According to Lady Sabrina, Janette has been selling Sabrina's courses as her own ever since. We have examined lessons from Janette's and Sabrina's courses, and they are indeed substantially identical, except that Sabrina can spell. Janette joined ADF in 1987, giving yet another set of data about herself, claiming no leadership positions, newsletters, or other affiliations. A check of the material on her application shows it to be substantially false. In checking Janette's claims, we contacted the Secretary of state, and Board of Nursing Registrations in the 14 states in which she claimed incorporation. Her organization is incorporated only in Washington and California. She is not listed as a registered nurse anywhere we checked. She and her group were offering BA's, MA's, and PhD's in Washington State until directed to cease and desist by the Higher Education Coordinating Board. They later obtained a religious exemption by saying that they were offering degrees only in Divinity and Theology. Former mebers of their organization state that most of their claims in their catalog as to available courses and faculty credentials are false. In examining their other claims we contacted over two hundred persons and groups in this country and abroad in an effort to authenticate their initiations and organizational affiliations. No one we contacted verified any of the DCSG's claims. All stated that they had never trained or initiated any known officers or members of the DCSG. Most had never even heard of them. Furthur, former members of her organization have mentioned paying thousands of dollars for courses, and additional thousands paid out on "tithes" -- 10% of their annual income to support the work of the Order of Melchizadek (demanded in the middle of their initiation or elevation rituals). We have also been contacted by Social Serrvices, Education, Law Enforcement and other authorities for other information about DCSG, and/or its members. ADF and some other Pagan groups and organziations are cooperating fully with these investigations, and have made it clear to the investigators that we do not regard these people as legitamate members of the Pagan community, since none of their alleged training and initiations can be verified, and may have been directly disproven. As Pagans, whatever our path, we can ill-afford to remain silent while groups knowingly steal and sell courses written by others, claiming training ties to the most senior and respected members of our community that they do not have, and engage in questionable behaviour presenting themselves as our kin, elders, and representatives to the world at large. Domi O'Brien T. Bwca Erynn Darkstar DTG Priestess Elder, NECTW Greenleaf Coven CWO Priestess Inis Glas Preceptor/Vice ArchDruid, ADF 1509 By: Domi O To: Lewis Stead Re: Details, please. Lady Sabrina was initiated by Bob Moshier and Dorothy Trion in Tuscon Arizona in 1978, according to what she says. She was in Danville, California for a while, near San Franscisco; and was in COG (I have not checked this); she then studied with Gavin and Yvonne in New Bern for 1 and a half years; then moved to Billerica, Mass; then to Hudson, NH; then Nashua, NH. I was in Epping, NH when a Gardnerian friend and fellow NH College administrator, Gerry Reilly, introduced me to Sabrina. Since I am Daughters of the Triple Goddess and Celtic Wiccan Order trained, Gerry's brand of witchcraft and Sabrina's struck me equally weird. I talked to Gavin and Yvonne last week; they feel Sabrina has borrowed heavily from them but they don't have an issue with it and they don't consider their organisation and hers to be connected. In 1987 Geraldine Gumm aka Gerri Garcia aka Queen Druid aka Laura Copeland aka Janette Gordon aka Janette Copeland aka Laverna Gordon aka Laverna Copeland aka Gerry Garcia aka Gerri Gunn aka Gerri Teah Garcia aka Jerry Leah Garcia took Sabrina's course; in winter of 1989 she began advertising a coorespondence course in Wicca, which according to Sabrina is Sabrina's. I've looked at them; they are very much alike. The Frosts and Sabrina both teach non-mainstream Wicca and charged for Craft when no one was doing that. I have heard far more negative things about some far more mainstream figures; both the Frosts and Sabrina are very public and really seem to have nothing to hide. What they teach isn't my Craft, but I will defend their right to practice their version and teach it as they see fit. Or did you mean something else ? Domi of ADF By: Domi O To: Corwynt Re: ADF letter Indeed it is from us. Since then, we have gotten "Janette's" arrest and conviction records from New Mexico and word from a usually reliable source that her real name may be Geraldine Gumm, and real date of birth may be 2-9-40. I am also informed by a law enforcement source that she has other records in several states. These range from child neglect to unlawful touching of dead bodies to kidnapping. Her group was investigated in 1975 in Arizona for dead bodies and missing persons, moved a bit over a hundred miles as the crow flies, and she and her husband were arrested in New Mexico in 1978. The children involved were returned to their parents, two being kept in social service custody while it was determined to whom they belonged, and two members of the group were "deprogramed" by Ted Patrick. She was calling herself "Queen Druid" then and initiating folks as "WI" or "witch one". I have a lovely pile of court papers and newspaper clippings I will gladly share with anyone who'd like to send me $4 for photocopying and postage... Domi O'Brien Box 66311 Seattle, WA 98166 1510 The Rede of the Wicca (Being known as the Counsel of the Wise Ones:) Bide the Wiccan laws ye must in Perfect Love and Perfect Trust Live and let live Freely take and freely give Cast the circle thrice about To keep all evil spirits out To bind the spell every time Let the spell be spake in rhyme Soft of eye and light of touch Speak little, listen much Deosil go by the waxing moon Sing and dance the Wiccan rune Widdershins go when the moon doth wane And the werewolf howls by the dread wolfsbane When the Lady's moon is new Kiss thy hand to her times two When the moon rides at her peak Then your heart's desire seek Heed the northwind's mighty gale Lock the door and drop the sail When the wind comes from the south Love will kiss thee on the mouth When the wind blows from the east Expect the new and set the feast When the west wind blows o'er thee Departed spirits restless be Nine woods in the cauldron go Burn them fast and burn them slow Elder be ye Lady's tree Burn it not or cursed ye'll be When the wheel begins to turn Let the Beltain fires burn When the wheel has turned to Yule Light the log and let Pan rule Heed ye flower, bush and tree By the Lady, Blessed be Where the rippling waters go Cast a stone and truth ye'll know 1511 The Rede of the Wicca (Being known as the Counsel of the Wise Ones:) (continued from previous page) When ye have a need Hearken not to others' greed With the fool no season spend Nor be counted as his friend Merry meet and merry part Bright the cheeks and warm the heart Mind the Threefold Law ye should Three times bad and three times good When misfortune is enow Wear the blue star on thy brow True in love ever be Unless thy lover's false to thee Eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill An' it harm none, do what ye will 1512 "Dryghten" Blessing Prayer (Gardnerian) By: David Piper The only published copy of the Blessing Prayer that I know of is in the book "Witch Blood! The Diary Of A Witch High Priestess!" by Patricia Crowther in chapter four (paperback edition 1974, House Of Collectibles, Inc.). "In the name of Dryghtyn, the Ancient Providence, Who was from the beginning and is for eternity, Male and Female, the Original Source of all things; all-knowing, all-pervading, all-powerful; changeless, eternal. "In the name of the Lady of the Moon, and the Lord of Death and Resurrection. "In the name of the Mighty Ones of the Four Quarters, the Kings of the Elements. "Blessed be this place, and this time, and they who are now with us." Life, Light, Love! Blessed Be! Dianis Lucien ---------------------------------------------------------------------- (120) Tue 17 Nov 92 21:12 By: Airmid To: David Piper Re: Monism/monotheism St: ---------------------------------------------------------------------- @INTL 93:9500/0 93:9500/0 DP> When you examine the "Blessing Prayer" of English Trad Wicca however, the Dryghtyn is obviously more than just a unifying essence since It is called: "the original source of all things; all-knowing, all-pervading, all-powerful; changeless, eternal." It describes the Ultimate, the Absolute, the Godhead of which the God and the Goddess are at one and the same time, both Its Polarities and also Its first Manifestations. Dryghtyn is also the name used for JHVH in some old English bibles. I think that was where the term actually originated. I think I saw a passing reference to it in some boxed comparative translated text in "In Search of the Indo-Europeans." 1513 =================================== BASIC MEDITATION TECHNIQUES by Bill Witt =================================== The course is devided into three sections. Section one deals with what meditation is and how it plays a part in the lives of those who use it. Section two will go into the techniques and tools of medita- tion. Section three gives suggestions on how to use what you've learned, in everyday life. A list of books for further reading on the subject, will be given at the end of section three. Webster defines meditation as "The act of meditating; close or con- tinued thought; the revolving of a subject in the mind." To meditate is to focusmentally on one thought, idea, orconcept. It may also mean, to revolve an idea in your mind so as to change the way in which you think of that idea. Meditation is therefore, a tool with which you may manipulate thought in an organized manner. Many people view meditationas a very difficult thing tolearn. In reality though, we do it often without even knowing it. When you daydream or find your mind fixed on one thought, that is a form of meditation. Have you ever watched a bird in flight, or stared up at the clouds in the sky, or maybe even found yourself watching a stream of water flow by? If you have and at that moment the rest of the world around you has seemed removed, then you were in a state of meditation. The real key to this practice, is to be able to exercise control over your thoughts and awareness of the world around you. There are manygroups of people for whom meditationis an everyday ritual. Others use it at special times as a means of relaxation and "mental house cleaning." It allows the individual a freedom unlike no other freedom. The freedom to look inside oneself and learn just who you are. Some use it as a way of being closer to nature or God. No matter how you wish to use it, you will find it a healthy and very rewarding experience. Most all religions practice meditation in one way or another. Eastern philosophies such as Yoga, and Buddism are not the only ones to view meditation as a way of looking for the Truth found in one's own consciousness. Even in Christianity meditation finds a place of value. The Bible itself mentions the value of meditation. In writing to the Phillippians, the Apostle Paul tells them this. "Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." (Phil. 4.8) So you ask,what can it do for me. Well, beyond just being a good way to really relax, which we can all use in this hectic world, it can be a doorway to the Truth inside yourself. It is a way of gaining wisdom. Knowledge has always been fairly easy to come by. Wisdom on the other hand, is a bit harder to grasp onto. 1514 In "The Task" by William Cowper, the following line is found. "Knowledge dwells in heads replete with thoughts of other men: Wisdom, in minds attentive to their own." For me, meditaion becomesa way of "grounding" myself,of reaching a place of peace and stability, where I can find how I fit into the universe. Inmany philosophies, meditaion isviewed as anecessary skill. All those who are students of these philosophies must learn the ways of meditaion early in their training. Although the techniques may vary from one group to another, the most basic concepts remain the same. The ability to be able to focus on one thought and selectively block out all others is the foundation upon which many more advanced skills will be built. These skills may range from telepathy to the ability to move objects with only the mind. It is well known that Yogi adepts can lower their breathing and heart rates to near death levels. This is something you should not try as it takes years of practice to learn and can be quite dangerous. Still, these yogis are proof of the type of power the mind can exer- cise over the body through meditation. In some cultures, the use of drugs to achieve a meditative state is encouraged. The american indians for example, used drugs derived from various plants to put themselves into an altered state of concious- ness. This was usually done as a religious practice and as an event marking the change from one state of life to another. A good example would be the ceremony marking the coming into manhood of a young boy. Today there are still many, who advocate the use of drugs to achieve these altered states. It is my opinion that such measures are neither necessary nor good. You can reach an altered state of conciousness without the use of drug induced "highs". It takes practice, but it can be done. In New Age philosophy, theart of meditaion is highlyvalued. We also find another well developed skill which is called "creative visualization". This is the idea of visualising what you want to the point of it becoming reality. A good example would be a salesman visualizing himself as successful and prosperous. The concept is simple, if you can visualize a personal reality, you can change or bring that reality into being. "Positive Thinking" is a very similar idea. The technique of creative visualization goes beyond positive thinking however. It deals with the premise that we all create our own reality and therefore have the power to change many aspects of that reality. The idea of "personal reality" is a lengthy one and we do not have enough room to cover it in this course. So far we have lookedbriefly at what meditation is and how it is used. By no means have we touched on all the aspects of this practice. There are many books on the subject which cover it in much more detail. My purpose is to give you an overview of the many facets of meditation in the hope that you will wish to learn more. 1515 BASIC MEDITATION TECHNIQUES =================================== This is the second part of a three part online course in Basic Meditation Techniques Thecourse is devided into three sections. Section one deals with what meditation is and how it plays a part in the lives of those who use it. Section two will go into the techniques and tools of medita- tion. Section three gives suggestions on how to use what you've learned, in everyday life. A list of books for further reading on the subject, will be given at the end of section three. In thissecond section ofthe "Basic MeditationTechniques" course, we will discuss various relaxation procedures and how they will aid you in entering a trance or meditative state. You will also be given some ideas about types of music and other "tools" which can help you achieve these relaxed states of mind. Let's begin. First, let's set thestage for our meditation practice.You should pick a place which is as private and safe as possible. An altered state of mind, as in meditation, lessens your awareness of the outside world. For this reason, it is not advisable to practice these techni- ques in a public place where there is a chance of being mugged, robbed, or molested. If you are at home, with other family members or friends present, ask that you not be disturbed and that all other noise in the house be kept to a minimum. When you have found a place suitable for meditation, you may begin. "The seekers of new mind states-the mind control devotees, the encounter group enthusiasts, the drug takers, the psychics, the meditators - all are on a journey into the interior universe trying to burst the limits of the socially conditioned mind. Weither acceptable or unacceptable, moral or immoral, wise or foolish, the mind of man is stirring toward a new evolution." Dr. Barbara Brown (1) As Isaid in section one,trance or meditaive states,alter the way your mind deals with the realities it accepts as normal. Things which are experienced in a trance state are often not easily expressed in everyday language. You will at some level, experience a heightened state of awareness. Colors, smells, and sounds may seem amplified from what they normally are. People who can acheivevery deep statesof trance often leavetheir bodies in astral projection, or have psychic experiences. I highly recommend, that if you wish to enter deep states of meditation, you do so under the guidance and teaching of someone who is well trained in the practice of such techniques. The key thing to remember is that it's not what level your working on as much as what you are learning. There is alot to be gained in wisdom and knowledge at all levels of trance. Now let's learn some simple and usefull relaxation exercises. 1516 You want to besure that the timeyou pick to practice yourmedita- tion is a time when you are least likely to be disturbed. You should not be overly tired or have just finished eating as both of those conditions may cause you to fall asleep. Even though you wish to acheive an altered state of consciousness, you do want to remain conscious to some degree. If you fall asleep when you are meditating, no harm is done and you will awaken quite refreshed and rested. Unfortunately though, you may not be able to recall all the things you experienced while in trance. If you are lying down, be sure your back and neck are properly supported so as not to fatigue the body. If you are sitting, be sure that both feet are flat on the floor and that you are sitting as erect as possible without being too stiff or strained. You should have your arms resting comfortably in your lap with palms up. In eithercase, it is important thatyour body not become strained or fatigued for at least thirty minutes. This is a good length of time to begin with as it should put neither a physical or mental strain on your being. Next, visualize a yourself in a cocoon of whitelight. You should surround yourself completely. See the light as bright and warm. You may play with this sphere of light making it bigger or smaller until it "feels" right for you. Say to yourself, "I am protected by the pure white light of all that is good and truthfull. I am surrounded by the pure light which keeps out all unwanted and evil influences." Thisis a good ideato do for several reasons.There are those, and I am one of them, who believe that each of generates an aura which protects us from outside influences when we are in trance. This aura may be strengthened by visualizing the light as growing brighter at our command. Even if you do not accept this idea, the practice lends a feeling of safety and security to you. Nothing which is outside of you may enter or touch you without your permission. Learning tocontrol and pay attentionto your breathing isthe next step. You should start by taking a deep breath in through your nose, hold it for the mental count of 4 and then let it all out slowly through your mouth. Repeat this until you begin to feel at rest and relaxed. Allow your breathing to settle into a steady, rythmic rate. Just this simple technique can relax and refresh you at any time. When you are only doing the breathing exercise, it is not necessary to go through the white light sphere visualization. Some people use a muffled metronome or recording of some other rythmic sound, such as ocean waves, to aid them in setting the pace of their breathing. A good source of recorded sounds which can help you in meditation is a series of records and tapes which have been produced under the title "ENVIRONMENTS". Now, as you are breathing,see yourself lying in the warmlight of the sun. The light is warm and pleasant to be in. Starting with the tips of your toes, feel the light warming all of your body, slowly moving up into your legs, your trunk, and then into your arms and fingers. As you feel this warming become more and more relaxed, going deeper and deeper into a calm and quiet place. 1517 Whenyou fell totally relaxed andat peace, bring a single thought into your mind. It should be of a pleasant experience or of an idea such as love, joy, peace, or compassion. Focus on this one thought and if some other thought should try to intrude, picture it as being written on a clear board between you and your focal thought. Then picture it being erased from that board as it might be from a piece of paper. Deal with any thought, other than your focal thought, quickly. Try to maintain concentration on your focal thought for at least five minutes. Picture it as being real and experience it as if it were. When you are able to do this and can exclude all other thoughts as they attempt to enter your mind, you will have learned the single most important technique of meditation. It isnow time to begincoming back tonormal consciousness. slowly let the thought fade from your mind and again become aware of the warm light of the sun. As you fell the light bathing you in its' warmth, start to reconnect your mind with the physical sensations of your body. Become aware of your breathing and the room around you. Do this slowly and calmly. When you are fully aware of your surroundings, open your eyes slowly. Enjoy the sense of calm and peace. If you succeeded in doing this exercise, you should feel more relaxed and calm than normal. It is important to remember that you are comparing it to normal for you, not to what you think others would or should feel. If you do not feel you succeeded try again in a day or two. Between meditaion sessions, practice your deep breathing exercises. If you keep trying, you will soon reach a calm and meditative state. Do not attempt to meditate when you are ill, tired, or hungry. Those feelings only serve to make your efforts more difficult. A very important part to remember is that you can not force yourself into a meditative state. You must flow into it and surrender to it calmly. Some things which are found to be helpfull in meditation follow. Tryconcentrating on theflame of a candlewhen focusing. You could also use a crystal ball. The later is rather exspensive but small crystal window ornaments or pyramids also work well and cost much less. Music is also anaid to some. The music shouldbe quiet and rhyth- mic. It should bring on feelings of peace and comfort. Such music may range from New Age recordings to classical. Anotherusefull device is to focus ona symbol which holds special meaning for you. It may be an well known symbol or one you design yourself. As long as it holds a special meaning or expresses a special concept, it is a usefull focusing tool. This brings section twoof this course toa close. In the nextpart I will give you some pratical ways in which to use what you have learned. 1518 The mostobvious use ofthe techniques you havelearned, is relaxa- tion. During the course of the day, many of us have moments when the pressure becomes almost to much. When this happens, we often can't deal with other people or projects the way we should. The breathing exercises you learned in section two can help at these times. It doesn't require alot of time or absolute quiet as does your meditation practice. All that is required is about five minutes and relative privacy. At these times, begin doing your rhythmic breathing and visualize a place which is calm and refreshing. This simple and quick exercise, can work wonders to help you regain control in a hectic situation. Another way in which meditation is used is in the development of psychic powers. There are several books on the subject, listed at the end of this section. Most of those who teach about the use and develo- pment of these abilities, agree that meditation is necessary to any such study. Again the reason for this is that meditation allows you to reach an altered state of conciousness. In this altered state your mind is more open to such phenomenon as telepathy. If you should decide to persue studies in this direction, please seek the help of someone trained in these areas. One final use I will suggest is visualization. Meditation can be used as a tool for problem solving. While in a meditative state of mind, you have the ability to take any situation and manipulate it. By that I mean you can mentally play the out the situation using several different solutions. Then, you can pick the one which seems to best solve the problem. While the use of meditation can help you deal with problem solving more effectively, it is not infallible. All it can do is allow you to think more clearly and concisely about the problem at hand. Well that concludes this study on meditation. I hope you have gained something usefull from this course. It has been by no means, a full explanation of the subject. There is much more to learn than could be covered in this short series and It is my hope that you will want to continue your studies into this fascinating and usefull skill. More studiesof this type willbe developed in thenear future. The New Atlantis BBS will continue to post these studies as an ongoing service to it's users. Please feel free to leave suggestions on the BBS about subjects you would like to see covered. 1519 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY: list of books for further reading will be included. References: (1) Dr. Barbara Brown "New Mind, New Body" New York, Bantam Books, 1975 Page 17 Miriam Simos (Starhawk) The Spiral Dance New York Harper & Row; 1979 W.E. Butler How To Read The Aura, Practice Psycometry, Telepathy and Clairvoyance New York Destiny Books; 1978 Melita Denning & Osborne Phillips The Development of Psychic Powers St. Paul, MN Llewellyn Publications; 1985 NEW ATLANTIS BBS 301-632-2671 Member of the ParaNet system End Of File ----------------------------------- Changes in format by the magician. 02/26/89 Crystal Cave 719-391-1092 1520 The following is from Magickal Blend Magazine, a bay-area periodical that publishes four editions a year. The magazine deals with many branches of the magickal world and can be useful to all aspiring magicians. Subscriptions cost $12 per year. They can be reached at: Magickal Blend P.O. Box 11303 San Francisco, Ca. 94101-7303 WHEN MAGIC DOESN'T WORK by Van Ault Every magician has occasions in which the magic he is directing does not seem to work. The desired result, whether internal or external, does not come into manifestation. These occasions are opportunities for greater developement in the magical arts, and by working through the disappointment and discouragement, he can reach greater self-knowledge and technical expertise in the art. I believe that magic always works. Magic is a tool, a reality shaper. Like any tool, however, its ability is limited to the operat- or's knowledge and skill. For an illustration, let's use the bow and arrow. Your intention is the arrow and your magical technique for directing that intention is the bow. You use the bow/technique to poise, balance and guide the intention/arrow with the strength of your arms and hands/ determination and will. What happens when thisall works together optimally? The will firmly grasps the clear intention, balances it upon the technique, you gather your emotional and mental force, and then fire the intention into the invisible world to be made manifest. In its own time and way, your wish materializes. Conversely,if you haven't got theskill to bring all of these efforts together, things can go askew. Your arrow can veer and stray, or it may travel a few feet before losing power. Your bow can break, or not be strong enough to propel the arrow. Or, you may find that you've got your bow and arrow ready to use, but you haven't got sufficient strength to manipulate it. I offer thefollowing meditationprocess for thosetimes whenit seems that your magic doesn't work. When you've tried all the techni- ques, when you've gotten no results, when you're wondering if any of this matters at all, the process in this meditation can produce miracles and create a sense of completion. You can read the script into a tape, or have a friend lead you through it. 1521 RIVER OF LIFE MEDITATION Find a comfortable placewhere you can relax andbe completely quiet...relax...allow your thought snow to just come and go...come and go...and take a deep breath in and hold it...(pause)...now gather up the tension in your body, and release it as you exhale...take another deep breath, and as you exhale, let go of anybody else's energy or thoughts you may be carrying....and breathe in new energy...breathe in new possibilities...and allow your body to fill with lightness...feel it becoming lighter and lighter as you relax more and more...relaxing deeply...going deeper...feeling very light now...so light you could almost float away.......... And asyou relax,imagine abeautiful coloredmist is swirlingup around you, billowing up around you into a cushiony, soft, cloud of energy...and you are resting completely upon this cloud...and you are safe...as you breathe in and out, let your thoughts just come and go...relaxing more and more...and the cloud of energy now lifts you up into the air and carries your down into your own inner world...down between the boundaries of time and space...to a place of timeless beauty and infinite possibilites...floating down now, going deeper and deeper,leaving the outer world and its concerns far behind, as you drift and float on this beautiful cloud....going further and further- ...down below you is a rock, a giant rock...and the cloud gently and effortlessly lands upon the rock and you step off it, as the cloud swirls back into a mist and disappears for now... Stand upon thisrock now, andfeel the strengthof it underyour feet...and as you turn around, you look out upon a great river...flo- wing as far as you can see...seeming to come from some infinite place...and disappearing into an infinite place,,,a flowing,endless river of energy...this is the river of all life waters...all of life draws upon the lifeforce that moves through its steaming currents... look closely at the water...what color is it? it may look like liquid light to you...look deeply into it, and sense the power and depth of the river...what sound does it make as it courses through its chan- nels?...as you stand securely upon your rock, notice and fragrance ...and bend down and cup your hands in the living water,and splash some of it on your face...feel the life giving force on your skin... take a sip of the water...allow the river of life to nourish you.... Now relaxa moment upon therock...and bring into yourmind the magical intention that never seemed to go anywhere...what were you trying to accomplish?...what was the basic intention you had?...what was the emotion behind the intention?...feel the energy of that emotion moving onto the palms of your hands now...feel the energy glowing...pulsating...breathe and allow your intention that you're still clinging to externalize...the energy of it is now shimmering, glowing...swirling into a sphere...allow all of your desire to flow into this sphere...and allow this sphere to appear to you however it appears...and just observe what you see...you may see pictures or symbols emerging within the sphere...whatever you see is fine... 1522 When your sphere is completely filled with the last of your desire,emotion,and intention, hold it aloft...feel the power of it in you hands,a globe of power that you can now release...and look out into the river of life...watch as its currents of possibility flow for ever and ever,as far as you can see...and whenever you're ready,with as much and as little force as you need, throw the pulsating sphere into the river...and give this intention to the life force of this great river...watch as the sphere touches the water...and gradually disappears into the current... Take a deepbreath... as the spheredisappears the last ofyour intention and emotion and desire merges with the source of all life, from which it orriginally came...and leaves you... Nowcomplete any business herethat you needto finish...take a few moments to enjoy the flowing river of life,and know that the possibilities it nourishes can bring miracles into you life too... Takeanother deep breath, and notice tha colored mist is once again swirling around you...billowing up underneath you to form a beautiful cloud of cushiony energy, which is lifted up into the air, with you upon it...relaxing into the cloud you are returning the way you came...lifting up up through time and space, coming back from the inner world...coming up... further and further...floating and drifting back...coming back...bringing you all the way back into your body now, into this room...brining your attention completely back into this time and place...take a deep breath and begin to re-orient yourself to the outer world...and when you're ready, count to three..., and on the count of three open your eyes,and return feeling relaxed,alert and at peace. * * * As always, change any of the wording or images in this meditation if it suits your purpose better. The important part is just to finally and completely let go of your intention, so that the energy can be recycled in whatever form the creative force and your own consciousness will allow. Out of this release, new lives, new opportunities, and new magical opportunities are born! MONISM, One Wiccan Perspective Copyright 11/24/92 Durwydd MacTara "Henotheism n. Belief in one god without denying the existence of others." (American Heritage Second College Dictionary) "Monism n. philos. A metaphysical system in which reality is conceived as a unified whole." (American Heritage Second College Dictionary) "Monotheism n. The belief or doctrine that there is only one God." (Amer- ican Heritage Second College Dictionary) "Pantheism n. 1. The doctrine identifying the Deity with the various forces and workings of nature. 2. Belief in and worship of all gods." (American Heritage Second College Dictionary) "Polytheism n. The worship of or belief in more than one god." (American Heritage Second College Dictionary) "To witches, deities manifest in different ways and can be worshipped and contacted through any form suitable to local conditions and personal needs. Wicca does not believe, as do the patriarchal monotheisms, that there is only one correct version of God and that all other God forms are false: the Gods of Wicca are not jealous Gods. We there- fore worship the personification of the male and female principles, the God and the Goddess, recognizing that Gods are aspects of the One God and all Goddesses are different aspects of the one Goddess, and that ultimately these two are reconciled in the one divine essence." (Vivianne Crowley, WICCA: The Old Religion in The New Age,- pp. 11-12) Vivianne Crowley, a very capable spokesperson for British Traditional Wicca, identifies the core belief of Wicca (at least BTW) as Monism in the piece quoted above. However, she also opens the door to defining Wicca as duotheistic in principle with the subdivision of the monist reality into the praxis of worshiping both Lord and Lady. However, there is yet a THIRD level of obscurity in Wiccan Praxis! Most Wiccans worship a threefold Goddess (Maid, Mother, and Crone) and many also worship at least a twofold God. So, are the Wicca REALLY polytheists or perhaps pantheists or even modified Henotheists as some have claimed? Or, perhaps, a new category altogether needs to be invented to accurately describe Wiccan belief and practice. 1524 One suggestion has been made to add a word to our Thea/Theo-logical lexicon, perhaps "Cthonotheism" (provided we MUST have a "Theism") to describe "Theistic Wicca". One advantage is that it makes the assumption of worshipping that which was there to be found and worshipped, NOT a Deity or deities invented in 1939! (More on this later.) The following is the only published copy of the (Gardnerian) Blessing Prayer that I know of. "In the name of Dryghtyn, the Ancient Providence, Who was from the beginning and is for eternity, Male and Female, the Original Source of all things; all-knowing, all-pervading, all-powerful; changeless, eternal. "In the name of the Lady of the Moon, and the Lord of Death and Resurrection. "In the name of the Mighty Ones of the Four Quarters, the Kings of the Elements. "Blessed be this place, and this time, and they who are now with us." ("Witch Blood! The Diary Of A Witch High Priestess!" by Patricia Crowther in chapter four (paperback edition 1974, House Of Col- lectibles, Inc.).) Courtesy of David Piper Airmid (aka Erynn Darkstar), a contemporary craft scholar and researcher says of this new (to most of us) name of Ultimate Deity: "Dryghtyn is also the name used for JHVH in some old English bibles. I think that was where the term ac- tually originated. I think I saw a passing reference to it in some boxed comparative translated text in "In Search of the Indo-Europeans." Grendel, an Asatruar from Seattle suggests the "Dryghtyn" may be an alternative spelling of the Teutonic "Drighten" meaning "Lord". I admit this is interesting, to me, as the closeness of the linguistic link between the Old English and Old German languages has been a scholarly "fact" widely known for many years. As a side issue, this might be some evidence that runs contrary to the thesis put forth by Aidan Kelly that Gerald Gardner "manufactured" Wicca in 1939. From personal experience, I have found that one unique distinction of the non BTW strains of Witchcraft (some times called "FamTrads" of Family Traditions) is the incorporation of old Christian Imagery, often including ArchAngels for the four directions or elements. Though this instance does not include Archangels, it DOES include archaic (and rel- atively unknown) Christian terminology. If Gardner did discover a remnant of the Old Religion upon which he based his modern reconstruction effort, it is this sort of linguistic "artifact" which would have survived. Perhaps a more scholarly investigation than mr. Kelly's will "turn up" more evidence? 1525 Jim Taylor, an Eastern Orthodox Theologian, also makes two (to me) il- luminating statements, concerning "The Dryghtyn Prayer": 1. "'In the name of Dryghtyn, the Ancient Providence, Who was from the beginning and is for eternity, Male and Female, the Original Source of all things; all-knowing, all-pervading, all-powerful; changeless, eternal.' This would be, entirely, an acceptable way of describing God, both for most Jews and for most Christians." AND 2. "'In the name of the Lady of the Moon, and the Lord of Death and Resurrection.' The Lord of Death and Resurrection would seem, to any Christian to refer to Jesus Christ." This evidence of a possible mixing of an older (unrecorded) Christian Prayer may lend further credence to Gardners' claims of building on an older, hidden, traditional remnant. I, personally, also agree with Mr. Taylors' statement that "the idea of Wicca being 'manufactured' in 1939 is far too pat, and ignores a great deal which ought not to be ignored. At the very least, some degree of recog- nition should be accorded to the obvious fact that most Wiccan practices and attitudes predate Wicca by considerable periods of time--possibly even millennia". The existence of Monism, Duotheism, and Polytheism simultaneously in the belief structure of Wicca is one good example of one of the Five Mysteries of Wicca, that of Union. Wicca is a mystery religion, a PARTICIPATORY religion, and much of its symbology must be lived and practiced to have meaning because much of the real (some say hidden meaning is based on the knowledge of experience and not the intellectual knowledge of mere logic and conscious thought processes. I am an eclectic Wiccan with strong ties in my beliefs and practice to British Traditional Wicca. I am a Monist, yet I have had strong direct experience with Brigid, Danu, and the Morrigan as well as the Earth Mother and the Horned Lord of the Forests. So my personal answer to the question of "What kind of Theism fits Theistic Wicca?" is "several, or none; it is not really a valid question in those limited terms"! But perhaps the concept of "Chthonotheism" would give a better label to this concept when attempting to discuss the idea of the peculiar theism unique to Wicca? Blessed Be, Durwydd MacTara 1526 Wedding Ceremony The Bard THE ORDER OF SOLEMNIZATION OF MARRIAGE (GENERAL) The Altar shall be dressed with a white cloth, with a Cup, and an un- sheathed Sword. A small lectern should be provided to the Minister, that he may hold the Sword and read the ceremony. One candle shall be unlit upon the altar, and two lit candles shall be provided, to either side. Smaller candles shall be provided to at least the wedding party, and to the whole congregation, if possible. % Ministers take Altar % Groom and attendants take altar % Processional music starts % Bridesmaids process % Bride and father process % Bride and father take altar MINISTER: Dearly beloved, today you are surrounded by your family, your friends, and your loved ones, all of whom have gathered here today in the sight of the ONE to share your joy and witness your marriage. Who gives this woman to be wed? FATHER: I do. % (the Bride's father shall give the Bride's hand to the Groom, and then take his seat) MINISTER 2: This most sacred of bonds is not to be entered into lightly, but soberly and advisedly, with openness and honesty. I require and charge you both now, upon your honors, to disclose any reason or impediment why you may not be lawfully joined this day. BRIDE/GROOM: By our honors, there are none. % (The Minister shall turn to the congregation and say:) MINISTER: Likewise, I charge all of you now, upon your honors, that if any know a reason that these two may not be lawfully joined this day, to speak now or forever hold your peace. % (There shall be a short pause for any response) MINISTER: (N) and (N), life has no singular meaning so much as it is made up of many meaningful events, some of which may be specified and planned for. One of these is Marriage. As you know, no minister, no priest, no rabbi, no public official can marry you; you can only marry yourselves. By a mutual commitment to love each other and to create an atmosphere of considera- tion and respect, you can make your marriage come to life. 1527 MINISTER 2: On this, the day of your marriage, you stand somewhat apart from all other human beings. You stand within the charmed Circle of your love, and this is as it should be, b u t love is not meant to be the possession of two people alone. Rather it should serve as a source of common energy, a form in which you can find the strength to live your lives w i t h courage. From this day onward, you must come closer together than ever before, yet your love should give you the strength to stand apart; to seek out your own unique des tinies, and to make your own special contribution to that which is always a part of us, and more than us. MINISTER: A marriage that lasts is one which is continually develop ing, in which each person is continually developing while growing in understanding of the other. Deep knowledge of another is not something that can be achieved in a short time. Real understanding can only develop fully with years of in- timacy. This wonderful knowledge of another grows out of really caring for the other so much, that one wants to understand as completely as possible the intricacies of the other. MINISTER 2: May you be blessed with this deep knowledge of each other through all the days of your lives. Would you now give your vows? BRIDE/GROOM: We will. MINISTER: What tokens do you give that you will keep these vows? BRIDE/GROOM: We give these rings. % (The rings shall be given to the Minister, who shall take them in hand.) MINISTER 2: The ring is used in this ceremony because the Circle is our symbol for Spirit; that which was in the Beginning, is now, and ever shall Be, Love, without end. In this ceremony, it is that love which is deathless and eternal. % (Both Ministers shall join hands, holding the Rings, and shall say:) MINISTER: We ask now the Blessing of the One upon these rings. They are bands of silver with the Tree of Life cast in relief upon their surfaces. Let the bands represent eternity, love without end, and let the trees represent the nurturement you will share in that Love, now and always. BOTH: And so it is. % (The Rings shall be taken by the second Minister.) % (And if it is a Swordfasting, then the Minister shall take up the Sword, and flourish it aloft, and then place it point-down in front of him.) 1528 % (The Bride and Groom shall face each other, and place their % hands upon the Sword's pommel, with both Ministers placing % their hands over the Bride and Groom's.) % (the Minister #2 shall turn to the Groom, and say:) MINISTER 2: (N), repeat after me: (N), I take you as my wife. I pledge to share my life openly with you To speak the truth to you in love And to honor and cherish you all the days of our lives. I promise to love and tenderly care for you For better and for worse For richer and for poorer In sickness and in health In all storms and fair days we may weather together For as long as we both shall live. I promise to respect your needs, To support you in your endeavors And encourage you as an individual Through all the changes of our lives. With these words, I pledge my love. % (The Groom shall take the Ring) And with this ring I seal my vows Now and forever. % (The Groom shall place the Ring upon the Bride's finger.) % (The Minister shall then turn to the Bride, and say:) MINISTER: (N), repeat after me: (N), I take you as my husband. I pledge to share my life openly with you To speak the truth to you in love And to honor and cherish you all the days of our lives. I promise to love and tenderly care for you For better and for worse For richer and for poorer In sickness and in health In all storms and fair days we may weather together For as long as we both shall live. I promise to respect your needs, To support you in your endeavors And encourage you as an individual Through all the changes of our lives. With these words, I pledge my love. % (The Bride shall take the Ring) And with this ring I seal my vows Now and forever. % (The Bride shall place the Ring upon the Groom's finger.) 1529 % (Both Ministers shall then say:) MINISTER: May you never hunger. MINISTER #2: May you never thirst. % (Here there may be an interlude of music) MINISTER 2: At this time, I would like to speak of some of the things that many of us wish for you. First,wewish foryou aLove thatmakes youboth better people, That continues always to give you joy And a zest for living, Andprovidesyouwith theenergytoface theresponsibili ties of life. Wewish foryoua Home,notaplace ofstoneor wood,butan island of serenity and sanity. Wehopethat thisHome isnot justaplace ofprivate joy and retreat, But rather serves as a Castle wherein the values of your life and family are generated and upheld. We hope your home stands as a symbol of humans living together in Love and peace, Seeking Truth and nurturement through each other. We hope that it has within it the elements of Simplicity, Exuberance,Beauty,Silence,Colorandaconcordancewith the Rhythms of Life. We wishforyou aHomewith Books,Poetryand Music,Fora home with all the things that represent the highest striv ings Of men and women. Finally, we wish that your lives be blessed with Spiritual Abundance, and that your spiritual involvement be enhanced through This marriage. % (The Minister shall turn to the congregation, and shall say:) MINISTER: Let us all stand together for the closing benediction, and the passing of the Light. % (The congregation shall stand. The Bride and Groom shall go % to the Altar and light the single candle from their candles, % and then shall light their attendant's candles, and shall % light the candles of the first person in each row of the % congregation. They shall then return to the altar, and % extinguish their candles, placing them on the altar, and % return to their place before the Ministers.) MINISTER 2: May we all recognize that the Presence of the One has already blessed you with the presence of each other. Keep in your rememberance the sacredness of this trust and the love that knows no end. May that Peace, which passes all human understanding abide with you now, and for always. BOTH: And so it is. 1530 MINISTER 2: And forasmuch as (N) and (N) have expressed their desire to be husband and wife, showing their love and affection by joining hands, and have made promises of faith and devotion, each to the other, and have sealed these promises by giving a n d receiving of rings: MINISTER: In the presence of this company of witnesses, by virtue of my sacred stewardship and the power vested in me by the State of Arizona, I now pronounce you Husband and Wife. You may kiss the Bride. % (The Bride and Groom shall then recess from the altar, % followed by their attendants. The congregation shall be % released by rows.) % (Here ends the Order Of Solemnization Of Marriage (General) 1531 Weasel Wicca: a Toon Trad by fara Shimbo, Diane Darling and the European Land Otters (Green Egg, Issue 95, Yule '91, p. 21.) The Great Mothers of this tradition are Galanthus, who was turned into a weasel for lying to Juno; and Eris, both Goddess and Ferret incarnate, who are IN CHARGE. This is the Holy Sacred Oath of the Weasel Tradition: "I don'tbelieve anythingunless Iwant to.Mymind issubject to change within reason and without notification at any time. We will always have Paris. (But not paris of sox.) I can do without my socks. Other than that there are absolutely no absolutes." Sacred Objects of the Weasel tradition include: * A Floppy Witch Hat (double sided, single density) * The nearest operational refrigirator * Dirty Socks * Tubes made of cardboard or plastic * Rubber erasers and squeaky toys * Loud plastic bag and ping pong balls * The Golden Apple of Eris * Silk Top hat. In order tobe initiated into the WeaselTradition, a new ber- serker must: * Co-habit with a Ferret; at least one. *Acquireyourtoolsin asomewhatless-than-entirely-scrupul- ous manner- stopping short of Genuine Theft. Use your imagination. *Sacrifice aSock toGalanthus. Itmust bea goodSock, one you wouldn't otherwise throw away, and you must have the other one in your possession. * Bake some holyFhood, with Weasel Help,which includes raisins and chocolate chips. *Write aritual containingat leastthree thingswhich are obviously or blatantly lifted, word for word, from somewhere else. Anywhere else. * Let a weasel lick your lips while you sing: The Weasel Help Song: Everyone needs Weasel help, Weasel Help, Weasel Help Everyone needs Weasel help, to get them through the day! I don't need no Weasel Help, Weasel Help, Weasel Help, I don't need no Weasel Help, no matter what you say! The Sacred Holidays of the Weasel tradition are any holidays which have even the slightest thing to do with Fhood. 1532 A Weasel Wiccan Witual ====================== Participants infloppy witch hatsenter, bearing theHoly Fhood and Drinkh. Arrange tastefuly around altar area. Prominent should be the Golden Apple of Eris, which is set upon the altar by itself. Call Watchtowers, lighting quarter candles at each. Suggestion invocations: EAST,being Air,signifies mediaand masscommunications. Invite the Marx brothers, Firesign Theatre, Douglas Adams, and Robert Anton Wilson, and, of course, the Illuminati, as representatives of Chaos. (Squeeze squeaky toys) SOUTH, for Fire, signifies fidelityto ideals. I suggest John Lennon and our witch ancestors, whose bravery in defense of the Sacred Right To Be Strange led to the ultimate sacrifice. May we be as brave, but luckier. (Hide the Matches.) WEST,for Water, signifies herethe Waters ofLife, ie: Bhooze. Invite W.C. Fields along with Dionysius and Osiris (inventors of wine and beer, respectively.) (Slug some eggnog.) NORTH, for Earth, signifies the Ultimate Mystery: Life, the Universe and Everything. Toast the Mystery itself and invite it to relax, take off its cloak and join us for awhile. (Hide a cookie.) And to provide a fifth point: SKY, for Eris, Our Mother,Lady Luck Herself, Lady of Chaos and Dealer of the Inside Straight. Hold up the Golden Apple, hail Her enthusiastically and invite Her to the party. Close theCircle, whichis,of course,semi-permiable toweasel-- kind. Lightaltarcandle; assume*ahem* seriousdemeanor. Whoeveris to read, don silk hat and drape a sock for a priest's vestement. Proceed: "For unto us is born a Saviour, who is Coyote, Pan, loki, Raven, Dionysius, and Robin Hood; to save us all from Santa's power when we have come to play, o tiding of chocolate and toys. And Io, neither is his Mother a Virgin, for She believeth in a good time. And when He came forth, She wrapped him in a National Enquirer and cradled him in her top hat, which holdeth all the stars of all the skies plus 500 foolproof card tricks; and the Wise came to Marvel (and to DC) because indeed and forsooth, they knew trouble when they beheld it." And Eris, the Great and Terrible, said to her son: "Kid, this is a special occasion; how should we celebrate?" And the TinyOne spoke, surprising all butthe Mother of the Unexpected: "let's have lots of Fhood, and create the most chaotic and demented animal of all to play with. And since I have a feeling that this party will be repeated many, many times, let's make that a rule: anyone celebrating My birthday should do the same. For I am the Glitch and the Song and the Gambler's Luck, and I love Surprises--which will never be lacking with Them around. Let them do this in honor of Me." 1533 And Eris was pleased and created The Weasel (hold one up). "This is the SacredWeasel, beloved little monster, honored pest, dearest of Holy Terrors and Agent of Entropy Everywhere. May it always remind us that Eris and the Kid love Surprises." (Holdup plateof cookies:)"This isthe HolyFhood; weshare it in Their names, and with the wish that we should always keep Life as interesting and strange as possible." (Hold upHoly Bhooze:)"This isthe HolySpikedEggnog; weshare in with the understanding that reality can always use a little bend- ing." Share all,generalhailing,toasts,silliness,woozlesnoozling, tricks and demonstration of weasel arranging. Guard honored guests of all species from overindulging in and/or diving into eggnog. Songs excellent idea. Open circle whenever you feel like it. ================================================================= Fara Shimbo, an ethologist living outside Boulder, Colorado with her husband Robert, ferret, Ruby, Siamese cat, mong, and Thoroughbred Hunter, Oficial Dude (AKA Chewie). She is main honcho of _Ferret unity and Registration Organization (FURO)_, a weasle warrior of reknown and author of "The Ferret Book" (see review GE83) and, with Bill Phillips, of _Ferrets and the New Inquisition_, published by the California Domestic Ferret Association (Box 1861, healdsburg, CA 95448. She is editor-in-chief of _The Weasle Help Monthly_, (wonderful!) newsmagazi- ne of FURO, available by joining FURO, PO Box 18193, greensboro, NC 27419. 1534 This is the story of Rabbit. A long time ago- No one knows how long ago it was-- rabbit was a brave and fearless warrior. Rabbit was befriended by Eye Walker, a witch. The witch and Rabbit spent much time together sharing and talking. One day EyeWalker and rabbitwere walking alongand thesat down on the trail to rest. Rabbit said "I'm thirsty." Eye Walker picked up a leaf and blew on it... it turned into a gourd of water... he handed it to Rabbit. Rabbit drank the water and didn't say any- thing. Than he said "I am hungry" Eyewalker pickedup astone andblew onit... itturned intoa turnip. She gave the turnip to Rappit... He tasted it and than ate the turnip with relish... but didn't say anything. Thetwo continued along thetrail, which ledinto the moun- tains. Near the top, rabbit tripped and fell and rolled almost to the bottom. Rabbit was in very sad condition when Eye Walker got to him. She used a magick salve on Rabbit to heal his great pain and mend his broken bones. Rabbit didn't say anything. Several days laterEye Walkerwent searchingfor herfriend. She searched high and love but Rabbit was nowhere to be found. Finally Eye Walkergave up.She met Rabbitquite byaccident one day. "Rabbit, why are you hiding and avoiding me?" the witch asked. "becauseI amafriad ofyou. I amafraid ofmagick," Answered Rabbit, cowering in fear. "Leave me alone!" "I see." SaidEye Walker. "I haveused my magical powerson your behalf and now you turn on me and refuse my friendship." "I wantnothing more to dowith you oryour powers," Rabbit countered. He did not even see the tears his words were bringing to Eye Walkers eye's. "I hope we never meet and that I never see you again." Rabbit continued. "Rabbit" Eye walker said. "We oncewere great friends and companions, but no more. It is within my power to destroy you, but because of the past and the medicines we have shared together I will not do this. But from this day on I lay a curse on you and your tribe. From now on, you will call fears and your fears will come to you. Be on your way, for the sweet medicines that bound us together as friends are now broken." 1535 Modern Wiccan Concepts based in Literary Satanism By: Diane Vera As I pointed out to Warren Grant in the PAGAN echo recently, Charles G. Leland mentions Michelet in the Appendix to _Aradia:_ _Gospel_of_the_Witches_: "Now be it observed, that every leading point which forms the plot or centre of this _Vangel_ [...] had been told or written out for me in fragments by Maddalena (not to mention other authorities), even as it had been chronicled by Horst or Michelet" (pp.101-102, 1974 Weiser paperback edition). . In _A_History_of_Witchcraft_, Jeffrey B. Russell writes: "Michelet's argument that witchcraft was a form of social protest was adapted later by Marxists; his argument that it was based on a fertility cult was adopted by anthropologists at the turn of the century, influenig Sir James Frazer's _Golden_Bough_, Jessie Weston's _From_Ritual_to_Romance_, Magaret Murray's _Witch- Cult_in_Western_Europe_, and indirectly T.S. Eliot's _The_Waste_Land_" (_A_History_of_Witchcraft_, p.133). . Russell states further: "Neopagan witchcraft has roots in the tradition of Michelet, who argued that European witchcraft was the survival of an ancient religion. This idea influenced Sir James Frazer and a number of other anthropologists and writers in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The publication of Charles Leland's _Aradia_ in 1899 was an important step in the evolution of the new religion of witchcraft. [...] The doctrines and practices of the witches as reported by Leland are a melange of sorcery, medieval heresy, witch-craze concepts, and political radicalism, and Leland reports ingenuously that this is just what he expected, since it fitted with what he had read in Michelet" (Russell, p.148). . As far as I know, it's possible that Michelet's influence on Gardner was only indirect, via the other above-named writers. This would not invalidate my point, which is that Michelet played a key role in the development of the ideas in question. . Michelet has had a more direct influence on feminist Goddess religion than on Wicca proper. Michelet's _La_Sorciere_ (_Satanism_and_Witchcraft_) is listed in the bibliography of _Woman,_Church,_and_State_ by Matilda Gage (19th-century Women's Suffrage leader and the founder of pre-Wiccan feminist Goddess religion) and, more recently, in _Witches,_Midwives,_and_Nurses:_ _A_History_of_Women_Healers_ by Barbara Ehrenreich and Dierdre English (1973). . In my opinion, Michelet's most important contribution to both Wicca and feminist Goddess religion was that, as far as I know, he was the first well-known writer (in recent centuries, anyway) to use the word "Witch" (capital W) with its present-day positive connotations of healing and opposition to tyranny. 1536 Intro to Satanism By: Diane Vera As promised in the PAGAN RELIGIOUS STUDIES echo, here's my brief introductory essay on Satanism (though Corwynt won't be seeing it, alas). I'll confine myself to discussing _serious_occultists_ who identify as Satanists. I have no interest in the teen-age glue- sniffing "Satin rulz" crowd, who are into "Satanism" as a way to shock the grown-ups, and who usually (as far as I know) outgrow it. Nor am I interested in criminals who say the Devil made them do it (often, I suspect, as a way to get themselves declared insane). . Since I don't know how much you don't know, perhaps I should start with the usual elementary disclaimers: . (a) Most Satanists do not think of themselves as "worshipping evil". Satan is associated with a variety of human traits and magic(k)al energies which Christianity traditionally considers "evil", but which the Satanists themselves do not consider "evil" -- though some Satanists may describe themselves as "evil" in an ironic sense. . (b) In what there is of a Satanist subculture (for serious occultists), nobody advocates sacrificing animals or babies, sexually abusing children, or other horrific activities described in fundamentalist propaganda. As Anton LaVey explains in _The_Satanic_Bible_, such activities serve no useful magic(k)al purpose. . (c) Although Satan is, obviously, a figure from Christian mythology (derived from Judaism and Zoroastrianism), Satanism is not just "reverse Christianity". I have yet to meet even one Satanist who believed in Christian theology, or a simple reversal thereof. (I've heard that such Satanists do exist, but they don't seem to be part of the organized Satanist scene.) All Satanists I've ever encountered have some alternative explanation of who/what Satan is. . There are many alternative explanations and, correspondingly, many different kinds of Satanism. Following is a list of _some_ of the many different possible interpretations of who/what Satan is: . (1) Satan is the Christian-era guise of some pre-Christian deity, e.g. Set or Pan. . (2) Satan is not a real entity at all, but just a symbol of human individuality, pride, thinking for oneself, sensuality, etc. . (3) Satan is an actual discarnate intelligence, and is the bringer of wisdom in a form of Gnosticism with the Christian "God" cast as the Demiurge. This idea is based on a form of Gnosticism that actually existed in the early centuries C.E., which venerated the serpent of the Garden of Eden myth. . (4) Satan is not an actual discarnate, sentient being, but is more than just a symbol. Satan is, at the very least, today's most powerful magic(k)al egregore. "Satan" is present-day society's number-one magic(k)al Name of Power. 1537 (5) Satan is an impersonal "Dark Force in Nature". . (6) Satan is one of many gods, all of whom are in some sense real. There is no one all-powerful "God" like the Christian idea of "God". There are many gods who are powerful, but not all-powerful. . Of the above possiblities, my own personal beliefs lean toward a combination of interpretations #4, 5, and 6. The Church of Satan, founded in 1966 C.E. by Anton LaVey, usually espouses interpretation #2 and sometimes #5. The Temple of Set is into _something_like_ (but not quite) a combination of #1 and #3. La> If you haven't been around other satanists, how do you know La> what is being practiced, is what you would do? I could call La> myself a Dianic Wiccan, but what I might practice is not what La> is generally practiced...and there is no way for me to really La> learn "right way" from "wrong way". . It doesn't matter. Satanism isn't really just one religion, but a category of religions, some of which are radically different from each other. (See my message to Deborah Kest on "Satanism 101".) Since most forms of Satanism do celebrate individuality, the lack of standardization is just fine, in my opinion. The only "right way" or "wrong way" has to do with _what_works_, and this will vary from one individual to another. . La> The reason you are being "punished" I think ostracized is La> a better word, is that most Satanists, and people who follow La> left-handed Magick/spirituality (folks I know it is not a fair La> term, but it works for this arguement) are considered by many La> of us the true enemies of Spiritualism that we would practice. . The term "Left-Hand Path" is OK. We use it too. You and I would probably define it very differently, however. What's your definition? . La> Even more than Christaniaty folks who follow your system of La> believes are very differnt than we. Pagan and Christanity, La> have very similar ideas and ethics, and while not at all La> tolerant of each other (generally) can live and let live. La> Satanists et.all on the other hand, have such a different view La> of life, love and the pursuit of the Divine, it is hard for us La> to accept you into our midsts. . Could you please be more specific? _What_ do you see as the similarities between neo-Paganism and Christianity? . I too see some profound differences between Satanism and neo- Paganism. And I too see enough similarities between neo-Paganism and Christianity that one can meaningfully use a term like "Right- Hand Path", which includes both Christianity and neo-Paganism but not Satanism. 1538 But I _also_ see some profound similarities between Satanism and neo-Paganism (especially Wicca) as well, which set them both apart from Christianity. For example, Satanism and Wicca-based Paganism are both much more tolerant toward sexual variety than Christianity traditionally is. (To be more exact, Wicca is _now_ tolerant toward sexual variety, though there was a time when it was quite homophobic.) And in general, Satanism and Wicca-based Paganism both emphasize individuality in ways that Christianity doesn't. . Also, as I've discussed at length both here and in the PAGAN and PAGAN RELIGIOUS STUDIES echoes, Satanism and most forms of neo- Paganism (especially Wicca) are both part of the family of modern Western magic(k)al religions, with many common roots and many basic magic(k)al concepts in common. We have natural reasons to be part of the same magic(k)al community (e.g. occult bookstores and this computer network). It would be much more pleasant for everyone concerned if neo-Pagans could get used to Satanists, because you are going to keep running into more and more of us whether you like it or not. 1539 Satanism, A Personal Definition By Delphine Please keep in mind that Satanism is a *very* individualistic religion, and if you asked 50 Satanists what Satanism is, you'd probably get 60 different responses. As a solitaire Satanist, I'll have a go at this.. but I'm pretty bad at trying to summarize what I believe, so please feel free to ask me questions. For me, these are the most important things I believe as a Satanist: *I believe in Satan as a literal entity. Many other Satanists do not, esp. those from the LaVey school of thought. *Satan is NOT a fallen angel, or a lesser created being, but instead a deity with as much power (for lack of a better word) as any other. He is the Shadow, a Destroying Deity.. and by such destruction,he purif- ies, for death of anything leads the way for rebirth. He is a symbol of rebellion, of pride, and of righteous anger. He brings freedom, in many different ways. * My first care is to myself, for if I am unable to serve myself, I have no basis by which to judge the actions of others. I strive for excellence, in a sense, very close to what Setians call "Xeper". *I believe in free will, with the understanding that "with freedom comes responsibility". I do not accept the threefold law, or any specific prohibitions like "harm none". In relating to others, I use the rule "do unto others AS they do unto you". If I am harmed or treated with dishonor, I will not continue to treat such persons in a way that is more than they deserve. Revenge, at the proper time and in a fitting manner, is acceptable behavior. If there are consequences to such revenge, I will accept them responsibly. *I will endeavor to be honorable about my own actions, and I will expect the same behavior from others. *I see Satan in Nature, in the floods, hurricanes, volcanoes, and tidal waves. I see fundamental laws in Nature, that death is as necessary as life. I am humbled and empowered by this, for though it blindly destroys, it is yet a part of me, as deity is immanent and transcendant to me. Satan the transcendant is that excellence that I strive for, Satan the immanent is the spark in me that strives. * I am polytheistic. The divine, to me, is like a jewel with many facets, each a part of us, each with something to teach us. No such lesson, to me , is greater or lesser than any other; but are instead more or less appropriate for a person at a given time. There is a great deal more I could say, and in greater detail, but this covers a large part of Satanism to me. Of course, I'm sure that Diane Vera, Sheryl, Balanone, and others will have different beliefs than I do. It seems that individualism and personal pride seem to be the link between most serious Satanists. -Qapla' Delphine 1540 The Wiccan Rede (WCC) Bide ye Wiccan laws ye must, in perfect love and perfect trust Live ye must and let to live, fairly take and fairly give Form the circle thrice about, to keep unwelcome spirits out To bind the spell well every time, let the spell be spake in rhyme Soft of eye and light of touch, speak ye little, listen much Deosil go by the waxing moon, sing and dance the Wiccan rune Widdershins go by the waning moon, chanting out the baleful tune When the Lady's moon is new, kiss the hand to her times two When the moon rides at Her peak, then the heart's desire seek Heed the north wind's mighty gale, lock the door and trim the sail When the wind comes from the south, love will kiss kiss thee on the mouth When the wind blows from the west, departed souls will have no rest When the wind blows from the east, expect the new and set the feast Nine woods in the cauldron go, burn them quick and burn them slow Elder be the Lady's tree, burn it not or cursed you'll be When the wheel begins to turn, soon the Beltain fires will burn When the wheel has turned to Yule, light the log the Horned One rules Heed ye flower, bush and tree, by the Lady blessed be Where the rippling waters flow, cast a stone and the truth you'll know When you have and hold a need, hearken not to others' greed With a fool no season spend, nor be counted as his friend Merry meet and merry part, bright the cheeks and warm the heart Mind the threefold law ye should, three times bad and three times good When misfortune is anow, wear the star upon thy brow True in love you must ever be, lest thy love be false to thee These eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill, An Ye Harm None, Do What Ye Will 1541 Orphic invocations of Goddess & God Bright Blessings to all... Here are invocations to the Goddess and God that I have used quite successfully in ritual. They are from the Orphic Hymns, for those who like historical accuracy, but have been updated just a tad, for those who like ritual with modern applications. Hope you enjoy them. Invocation to the Goddess Divine are Your honors, Oh Mother of the Gods and Nurturer of All. Yoke your swift chariot drawn by bull-slaying lions and, O Mighty Goddess who brings things to pass, join our prayers. Many named and reverend, You are the Queen of the Sky. In the cosmos, Your throne is above all others, for You are Queen of the Earth, and You give gentle nourishment to mortals. Goddesses, Gods, and mortals were born of You, And You hold sway over the rivers and all of the sea. Hestia, Gaia, Demeter, Inanna, Isis, Astarte, Ishtar, Persephone, Diana, Giver of prosperity who bestows upon mortals all manner of gifts, Come to this Rite, Queen whom the drum delights. Honored and loving Nurturer of Life, Joyfully and graciously visit our deeds of piety. Blessed Be. Invocation to the God Hear Our Prayer, O best and Many-Named God. Fine-haired, solitary, and full of lovely song; Many shaped and noble nurturer of all, Maiden and yout in one, unwithering bloom, O Adonis You vanish and grow again in the fair seasons' turn. Kurnunnos, Pan, Myrddhn, two horned Spirit of growth and blooming; Much loved and wept for are you, O Fair and Youthful Hunter of the luxuriant mane. Desire is in Your mind and You come to the Goddess in reverence and respect, in sensuous joy is your desire fulfilled You are the seed planted in the depths of the Underworld That springs forth, the Green God, that we may sustain our lives. You sacrifice Yourself in gentleness when you are grown. Come Kind-Hearted One, Come Blesseed God, and bring much joy to all. Blessed Be. Hope you find these beneficial... Briget Bless...Phaedra. 1542 EAST (INVOCATION) Facing East: Guardians of the watchtower of the east, we do summon, stir, and call thee up to protect us in our rite. Come to us now on the cool breath of Autumn's sigh which heralds the advent of Winter and the close of harvest time. Breathe into us the spirit of the pure joy of life. So mote it be! Responsorial: So mote it be! AIR (invocation) (Celebrant with the incense burner symbolizing the element of air) : "I am everywhere. I fill the fleshy pouches of your lungs, I stir all things from the smallest blade of grass to the tallest tree. I cool you with my breezes and destroy you with my storms. Without me you would die. Am I not holy and worthy of praise? " EAST (BANISHMENT) Facing East: "Guardians of the watchtower of the east, return now to the brisk Autumn breezes which are brimming with the excitement of the year's climax. Take with you our blessings and thanks. Hail and farewell! Responsorial: Hail and farewell! 1543 SOUTH (invocation) Facing South: Guardians of the watchtower of the south, we do summon, stir, and call thee up to protect us in our rite. Come forth from the cook fires and smokehouses where food is being made ready for the coming cold months. Kindle within us the flame of spiritual awakening. So mote it be! Responsorial: So Mote it Be! FIRE (invocation) (Celebrant with the candle symbolizing the element of fire): "I live in the guarded embers of campfires and the pilot lights of stoves, I spring from the lightning and the hands of men, I warm you and I destroy you. Without me you would die. Am I not holy and worthy of praise? " SOUTH (banishing) Facing South: "Guardians of the watchtower of the south, return now to the dying fires of Autumn's heat soon to give way to Winter's chill. Take with you our blessings and thanks. Hail and farewell! Responsorial: Hail and farewell 1544 WEST (invoking) Facing West: Guardians of the watchtower of the west, we do summon, stir, and call thee up to protect us in our rite. Come forth from the rainbow hued morning dew that covers the fields, and is soon to be frost. Asperge us with your diadems and water our deepest roots that we may find peace of mind. So mote it be! Responsorial: So mote it be! WATER (invocation) (Celebrant with the water vessel symbolizing the element of water): "I rise from the moist crevices of the Earth, I beat on the shores of Her body, I fall from the skies in silver sheets. Without me you would die. Am I not holy and worthy of praise? " (Celebrant asperges the circle with water) WEST (banishing) Facing West: "Guardians of the watchtower of the west, return now to the Autumn rains which cool the Earth's fevered brow baked in the heat of Summer afternoons. Take with you our blessings and thanks. Hail and farewell! Responsorial: Hail and farewell! 1545 NORTH (invoking) Facing North: Guardians of the watchtower of the north, we do summon, stir, and call thee up to protect us in our rite. Come forth from the fertile bosom of our Blessed Mother Earth, and nourish us so that our hopes may grow to fruition. So mote it be! Responsorial: So mote it be! EARTH (invocation) (Celebrant with the salt vessel symbolizing the element of earth): "I am your Mother. From me come the fruit and grain and animals which feed you. I am your support, and my pull on your bodies keeps you held firmly to me. Without me you would die. Am I not holy and worthy of praise? " NORTH (banishing) Facing North: Guardians of the watchtowers of the north, return now to the Earth where worms burrow deeper and seeds nestle awaiting the long sleep of Winter. Take with you our blessings and thanks. Hail and farewell! Responsorial: Hail and farewell! 1546 Wiccan History Wicca is a relatively modern attempt (approximately 50 years old) at reviving and reconstructing the old pre-Christian religions of Europe. In a mythopoetic sense it is many centuries old. However, the Witch of 200 years ago would not recognize what is called "witch- craft" today. Modern Wicca may have some of its roots in some of the local folk-magic and "family witchcraft" of mid 20th Century England. It does have traceable roots in the Golden Dawn magical society of late 19th century England, some of Aleister Crowley's magickal work and some Ceremonial Magic dating back to Elizabethan times. For a modern history of English Wicca, the reader can most profitably consult the works of Janet and Stuart Farrar and Doreen Valiente. PREHISTORY Up until recently, the earliest known remnants of human society that give us any clues to the spiritual dimension of prehistoric man are those belonging to the Gravettian-Aurignacian cultures of 2500- 1500 B.C.E. This is called the Upper Paleolithic Period. Though most of the sites so far discovered have been found in Europe, a very important site in Anatolia (modern Turkey) has also been found and is the (so far) the first or oldest City of Catal Huyuk (pronounced chatal Hoo-Yook),they form a conjectural foundation for the religion of the goddess as it emerged in the later Neolithic Age of the Near East. There have been numerous studies of these Paleolithic cul- tures, including extensive explorations of the sites occupied by these peoples, including the apparent rites connected with the disposal of their dead. The earliest remains of ancient civilization indicating some form of Goddess worship were in the caves in Lascaux, France. Here, the first and earliest non-anthropomorphic divine figures were symbolized by the horse for female Divinity and the Bison as the male divine influence. This portion of the cave was painted in approximately 17,000 B.C.E. and sealed approximately 10,000 B.C.E. The anthropo- morphic Goddess figures appear sometime approximately 7,000 B.C.E. The earliest remains in Catal Huyuk have been reliably carbon dated to 6,500 B.C. and show some interesting parallels in that the horse was replaced with an anthropomorphic goddess and the Bison (an ice age animal) has been replaced with the aurochs bull, ancestor of modern cattle. The anthropomorphic Goddess is an Earth Mother and the nearby volcanoes (then active) were considered her breasts.1 One major conjecture has been that the concept of the creator of all human life may have been formulated by the clan's image of women. The reasoning behind this conjecture lies in the observations in this century of the few remaining Paleolithic type cultures. These Paleo- lithic cultures tend to be woman centered since it is from the women that babies come and the women are absolutely essential for the continuation of the tribe or clan. Current information also indicates that it is also probable that the mother was regarded as the sole (or at least primary) parent of children in this culture, and that there was a definite pattern of ancestor worship. It is also very probable that ancestry was matrilineal. 1547 The most tangible evidence that these very ancient cultures and their predecessors worshipped a goddess is the numerous sculptures of women found throughout most of Europe and the Near east. Some of these sculptures date as far back as 25,000 B.C.E.! Small female figurines, made of stone, bone and clay (most seemingly pregnant) have been found throughout the widespread Gravettian-Aurignacian sites as far apart as Spain, France, Germany, Austria, and Russia spanning an apparent period of at least 10,000 years. Erich Neumnann, in "The Great Mother" (p.95) says- "Of the Stone Age sculptures known to us, there are fifty-five female figures and only five male figures. The male figures, of youths, are atypical and poorly executed, hence it is certain that they had no significance for the cult. This fits in with the secondary character of the male godhead, who appeared only later in the history of religions and derived his divine rank from his mother, the Goddess." Johannes Maringer, in his book the "Gods of Prehistoric Man" says- "it appears highly probable then that the female figurines were idols of a Great Mother cult, practiced by the non-nomadic Aurignacian mammoth hunters who inhabited the immense Eurasian territories that extended from Southern France to Lake Baikal in Siberia." It was from the Lake Baikal area in Siberia that tribes are believed to have migrated across the Bering land bridge to North America about this time period, and formed the nucleus of what was to become the race of North American Indians. In some primitive societies known to history, the male role in procreation was not known. Intercourse and pregnancy both begin with puberty, and there was no evident reason to regard one as the cause of the other. Women were believed to conceive from the light of the moon or from ancestral spirits. Neolithic cultures have left a bit more evidence for study and the images are a bit clearer and less speculative. One good instance of this is the stone age painting of a priestess officiating over a group of worshippers along with a male wearing a horned headdress. An interesting point here is that the priestess pictured is wearing a garter and wielding a ceremonial dagger, much like the ones used in modern witchcraft. Of course much has been made of this, including a lot of unfounded speculations on the "ancient connections" of modern witchcraft, but that is a topic beyond the scope of the present work. The beginnings of Roman religion are sure to have been based on the Etruscan culture. Ancestor worship was the earliest form of religion in Rome. Another interesting fact relating to ancient Matrilineal forms influencing present society is reflected in the Jewish custom current today that membership comes from the mother's side of a marriage. The above mentioned goddess images, some as old as 7000 BC, offer silent testimony to the most ancient worship of a great goddess in the land that is most often remembered today as the homeland of Judaism and Christianity. In exploring the influence and importance of the worship of the Goddess in Canaan in biblical times, we find that as Ashtoreth, Asherah (perhaps the origin of the tribe of Asher?), Astarte, Attoret, Anath, or simply as Elat or Baalat, she was the principal deity of such great Canaanite cities as Tyre, Sidon, Asca- lon, Beth Anath, Aphaca, Byblos, and Ashtoreth Karnaim. 1548 In Egypt, the Hebrews had known the worship of the Goddess as Isis or Hathor. For four generations they had been living in a land where women held a very high status and the matrilineal descent system continued to function at most periods. Judging from the number of Hebrews who emerged from Egypt in the Exodus, as compared with the family of the twelve sons who sup- posedly entered it four generations earlier, it seems likely that a great number of those Hebrews known as Israelites may actually have been Egyptians, Canaanites, Semitic nomads and other Goddess-worshipp- ing peoples who had joined together in Egypt. Archaeological records and artifacts reveal that the religion of the Goddess still flourished in many of the cities of Canaan long after the Hebrews invaded. What are some of the modern day applications of this long history of Goddess worship? For an answer to this, let's look at an encap- sulation of the "herstory" of the legend of the Universal Goddess as taught to the new entrants to the Faerie Tradition in 20th Century America. According to the legends of the Faerie, Witchcraft and magick began more than 35 thousand years ago, when the last ice age in europe began and small bands of nomadic hunters followed the free-running reindeer and bison herds. They were armed with but primitive weapons ( Stone Age, remember?), and had to lure or chase the animals over a cliff or into a pit to kill and eat them. As Starhawk says,"...some among the clans were gifted, could "call" the herds to a cliff side or a pit, where a few beasts,in willing sacrifice, would let themselves be trapped." As the last ice age retreated the tribes of nomadic hunters worshipped the Goddess of the Wild Things and Fertility and the God of the Hunt.Semipermanent homes were set up in caves carved out by the glaciers. Shamans and Shamanka conducted rites within hard to reach portions of the caves, which were painted with scenes of the hunt, magical symbols and the tribes totem animals. The transition from Hunter-Gatherers to agriculturists was reflected in the change of the "Lady of the Wild Things and Fertility" to the "Barley Mother" and the "God of the Hunt" to the "Lord of the Grain". The importance of the phases of the moon and the sun was reflected in the rituals that evolved around sowing, reaping, and letting out to pasture. Villages grew into towns and cities and society changed from tribal to communal to urban. Paintings on the plastered walls of shrines depicted the Goddess giving birth to the Divine Child - Her son, consort and seed. The Divine Child was expected to take a special interest in the city dwellers, just as His Mother and Father had taken an interest in the people who lived away from the cities. Mathematics, astronomy, poetry, music, medicine, and the understanding of the workings of the human mind, developed side by side with the lore of the deeper mysteries. 1549 Far to the east, nomadic tribes devoted themselves to the arts of war and conquest. Wave after wave of invasion swept over Europe from the Bronze Age onward. Warrior gods drove the Goddess' people out from the fertile lowlands and the fine temples, into the hills and high mountains, where they became known as the Sidhe, the Picts or Pixies, and the Fair Folk or the Fairies. The mythological cycle of Goddess and Consort, Mother and Child, which had held sway for 30,000 years was changed to conform to the values of the conquering patriar- chies. In Canaan, Yahweh fought a bloody battle to ensure that his followers had "no other gods before me." The Goddess was given a masculine name and assigned the role of a false god. Along with the suppression of the Goddess, women lost most of the rights they had previously enjoyed. In Greece, the Goddess in Her many aspects, was "married" to the new gods resulting in the Olympic Pantheon. The Titans, who the Olympians displaced were more in touch with the primal aspects of the Goddess. The victorious Celts in Gaul and the British Isles, adopted many features of the Old Religion and incorporated them into the Druidic Mysteries. The Faerie, breeding cattle in the stony hills and living in turf-covered round huts preserved the Craft. They celebrated the eight feasts of the Wheel of the Year with wild processions on horse- back, singing and chanting along the way and lighting ritual bonfires on the mountaintops. It was said that the invaders often joined in the revels and many rural families, along with some royalty, could claim to have Faerie blood. The College of the Druids and the Poetic Colleges of Ireland and Wales were said to have preserved many of the old mysteries. *** In the late 1400's the Catholic Church attempted to obliterate its competitors, and the followers of the Old Religion were forced to "go underground." They broke up into small groups called Covens and, isolated from each other, formed what would later be known as the Family Traditions. Inevitably, parts of the Craft were forgotten or lost and what survives today is fragmentary. After nearly five centuries of persecution and terror, came the Age of Disbelief. Memory of the True Craft had faded as non-members who could remember how they once had met openly died and those who came after never knew of them. All that was left were the hideous stereotypes which were ludicrous, laughable or just plain tragic. With the repeal of the last Witchcraft Act in England in 1954, the Craft started to re-emerge as an alternative to a world that viewed the planet as a resource to be exploited. 1550 Janet and Stewart Farrar, in the introduction to The Witches Goddess say of the modern re-emergence of the Goddess " ..may well prove to be one of the most significant spiritual, psychic and psycho- logical developments of our lifetime". They have since done a wonder- ful job of presenting an overview of the ascendancy and history of the expression of the masculine principle of deity as e pressed by Male God-forms and Gods with their book The Witches' God. What do the Farrars consider this "masculine principle" to be? "...it represents the linear-logical,analyzing, fertilizing aspect, with its emphasis on Ego-consciousness and individuality, while the feminine principle represents the cyclical-intuitive, synthesizing, formative, nourishing aspect, with its emphasis on the riches of the unconscious, both Personal and Collective, and on relatedness." As mankind started to develop his cultures in directions that were more male dependent in the nature of the cultures, the emphasis in religion shifted to become more male god than female goddess oriented. As this happened, the Goddess(es) lost ground to the God(s). At first, the female aspect merely became secondary to the male, but eventually the male took over and dominated to the total exclusion of the female, particularly in western society as we know it today. "The first major god-form to claim a monopoly of divinity was the Hebrew Yahweh, from which in due course sprang the Christian and Moslem forms." "Dr. Raphael Patai, in his books Man and Temple and The Hebrew Goddess shows that the Goddess Asherah was worshipped alongside Yahweh as his wife and sister in the Temple at Jerusalem for 240 of the 360 years the temple complex existed, and her image was publicly displayed there." There is also evidence that the Jewish community at elephantine in egypt acknowledged two goddess-wives of Yahweh, and also there still remains in Ezekiel (xxiii)a metaphorical reference to a pair of wives, where Yahweh condemns the "whoredom" of two sisters who "became mine and bore me sons and daughters". 1551 MY WICCA By Durwydd MacTara My RELIGION is Wicca, my LIFE-STYLE is Witchcraft! I believe in a supreme being that is both Immanent and Transcendent, that is expressing itself within AND without. However, I also believe that trying to define/describe such an infinite Divine Being in finite terms to be a waste of time and energy. I CAN describe my perceptions of the Ultimate in terms of the energies that I work with and find significant in my daily living. My style and methods of relating to what I can perceive of these Divine Energies are what I describe as my RELIGION. How I apply these insights gained via my religious prac- tices, I term my CRAFT. The name for my religion is derived from the Saxon root "wicce" (pronounced "witchy") and is loosely translated as "Wise". The word "Wicca" was first used in modern times in England by Gerald B. Gardner to describe/define an attempt at restoring "the old wisdom" of pre- Christian beliefs and practice into a modern context in the 1940's. Ergo, I could call my religion "wisdom" and my style of application of this wisdom "wise-craft" or more simply, "The Craft of the Wise". For the sake of convenience and easy understanding, I divide the expressions of the Divine Energies into two groups; that of the active positive (symbolically "male") energies represented to me by the stag horned Lord of the Forest, and those of a more passive, nurturing, or "negative" polarity represented to me by the Threefold Goddess. Approaching my perceptions of the universe and its energies in this way allows me to break them down into "bite sized chunks", applicable to my daily life in a mundane world, and what good is ANY belief system if it is not of immediate and practical use here and now? So what are some of the beliefs and practices of this religion called Wicca, and how do I apply them to my daily life? What does it all mean? The following explanation is based on a press statement released by the American Council of Witches released in the early 1970's, with some editing on my part to reflect my own beliefs and practices. ================================= BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE CRAFT 1. The first principle is that of love, and it is expressed in the ethic, "AN IT HARM NONE, DO AS THOU WILL" a) love is not emotional in it's essence, but is an attribute of the individual as expressed in relation to other beings; b) harming others can be by thought, word, or deed. Thought is included here, because for the Witch, "thoughts are things" and every action, even thoughts, can become magical actions, whether consciously intended or not; c> it is to be understood the "none" includes oneself, though it is permissable to harm self in helping others, should one so choose; d) the harm which is to be regarded as unethical is gratuitous harm; war, in general, is gratuitous harm, 1552 although it is ethical to defend oneself and one's liberty when threatened by real and present danger, such as personal defense or defense of another WHEN REQUESTED. 2. The Witch must recognize and harmonize with the forces of the universe, in accord with the Law of Polarity: everything is dual; everything has two poles; everything has it's opposite; for every action there is a reaction; all can be categorized as either active or reactive in relation to other things. a) The Infinite and Ultimate Godhead is one unique and transcendent wholeness, beyond any limitations or expressions; thus, it is beyond our human capacity to understand and identify with this principle of Cosmic Oneness, except as It is revealed to us in terms of It's attributes and operation. b) One of the most basic and meaningful attribute of the One that we, as humans, can relate to and understand, is that of polarity, of action and reaction; therefore Witches recognize the Oneness of the Divinity, but worship and relate to the Divine as the archetypal polarity of God and Goddess, the All-Father and the Great Mother of the universe. The Beings are as near as we can approach to the One within our human limitations of understanding and expression, though it is possible to experience the divine Oneness through the practices of the Mysteries. c) Harmony does not consist of the pretty and the nice, but the balanced, dynamic, poised co-operation and co-relationship. 3. The Witch must recognize, and operate within the framework of the Law of Cause and Effect; every action has it's reaction, and every effect has it's cause. All things occur according to this law; nothing in the universe can occur outside this law, though we may not always appreciate the relation between a given effect and it's cause. Subsidiary to this is the Law of Three, which states that whatever goes forth must return threefold, whether of good or ill; for our actions affect more than people generally realize, and the resulting reactions are also part of the harvest. 4. As Above, So Below. That which exists in the Macrocosm exists, on a smaller scale and to a lesser degree, in the Microcosm. The powers of the universe exist also in the human, though in general instance they lie dormant. The powers and abilities can be awakened and used if the proper techniques are practiced, and this is why initiates of the Mysteries are sworn to guard the secrets from the unworthy: Much harm can be done by those who have power without responsibility, both to others and to themselves according to the Laws of Cause and Effect and of Threefold Return. a) Since our philosophy teaches that the universe is the physical manifestation of the Divine, there can be nothing in the universe which does not partake of the nature of the Divine; hence, the powers and attributes of the Divine exist also in the manifest, though to much smaller degree. 1553 b) These powers can be awakened through the various techniques of the Mysteries, and, although they are only capable of small effects in and of themselves, it is possible to use them in order to draw upon the forces of the universe. Thus humanity can be the wielders of the power of the Gods, a channel for Godhead to act within It's own manifestation. This, many feel, is further reason for the oath of secrecy. c) Since the universe is the body of the One, possessing many of the same attributes as the One, it's Laws must be the principles through and by which the One operates. By reasoning from the known to the unknown, one can learn of the Divine, and thus of oneself. By experiencing the Mysteries a person can truly LEARN more about the One. Thus the Craft is a natural religion as well as a MYSTERY religion, seeing in Nature the expression and revelation of Divinity. 5. We know that everything in the universe is in movement or vibration and is a function of that vibration. Everything vibrates; all things rise and fall in a tidal system that reflects the motion inherent in the universe and also in the atom. Matter and energy are but two poles of one continuous phenomenon. Therefore the Witch celebrates, harmonizes with, and makes use of the tides of the universe and of life as expressed through the cycle of the seasons and the motion of the solar system. These ritual observances are the eight great Festivals of the Year, referred to as the Wheel of the Year. Further, the Witch works with the forces and tides of the Moon, for this body is the mediator of much energy to our planet Earth and thus to oursel- ves. 6. Nothing is dead matter in the universe. All things exist, therefore all things live, though perhaps in a different manner from that which we are used to calling life. In view of this, the Witch knows that there is no true death, only change from one condition to another. The universe is the body of Godhead, and therefore possesses one transcendent consciousness; all things partake of the consciousness, in varying levels of trance/awareness. a) Because of this principle, all things are sacred to the Witch, for all partake of the one Life. b) Therefore the Witch is a natural ecologist, for Nature is part of us as we are a part of Nature. 7. Throughout the development of the human race, civilizations have seen and worshipped many and various attributes of the Divine. These universal forces have been clothed in forms which were expressive to the worshipper of the attribute of the Godhead which they expressed. Use of these symbolic representations of the natural and divine forces of the universe, or god forms, is a potent method for contacting and utilizing the forces they represent. Thus the Gods are both natural and truly divine, and man-made in that the forms with which they are clothed are products of humanity's striving to know the Godhead. 1554 a) In keeping with the Law of Polarity, these god-forms are brought into harmony by the one great Law which states: All Gods are one God. All Goddesses are one Goddess. There is one Initiator. This law is an expression of our understanding that all of the forces of the universe, by whatever ethnic god-form is chosen to clothe and relate to whichever force, can be resolved into the fundamental polarity of the Godhead, the Great Mother and the All-Father. b) It is the use of differing god forms, of differing ethnic sources or periods, which is the basis of many of the differences between the various Traditions of the Craft. Each Tradition uses the forms, and thus the names, which to that Tradition best express and awaken an understanding of the force represented, according to the areas of emphasis of the Tradition. c) Because we know that differing names or representations are but expressions of the same divine principles and forces, we require our members to swear that they will never mock the names by which another honors the Divine, even though those names be different from and seemingly less expressive than the names and god forms used by our Tradition (for to the members of another Tradition, using it's names, ours may easily seem equally less expressive). 8. A Witch refuses to allow her/himself to be corrupted by the great guilt neuroses which have been foisted on humanity in the name of the Divine, thus freeing the self of the slavery of the mind. The Witch expresses responsibility for her/his actions, and accepts the conse- quences of them; guilt is rejected as inhibiting to one's self-actual- ization, and replaced by the efforts of the Witch to obey the teach- ings of harmlessness, responsibility for the consequences of one's actions, and the goal of actualizing the full powers of the individ- ual. a) We refuse to believe that a human being is born innately sinful, and recognize the concepts of sin and guilt are tremendously inhibiting to the human potential; the consequences of the Law of Cause and Effect, called karma by some, are not punishment, but the recurrences of situations and their effects because the individual has not gained the Wisdom needed to handle or avoid such situations. b) There is no heaven except that which we ourselves make of our life on Earth, and likewise there is no hell except the effects of our unwise actions. Many of us believe in a "waiting place" sometimes called Summerland where we rest, recuperate and prepare for our next sojurn in the earth. "Death is not followed by punishment or reward, but by life and the continuing personal evolution of our human potential. 1555 c) One cannot damn the divine in oneself; one can, however, cut oneself off from it through the rejection of wisdom and a refusal to strive for self-realization. This cutting off does not lead to personal suffering in "hell", for there is no Self to suffer if the tie to one's own divinity has been severed; what remains is merely an empty shell, a "personality" or thought-form devoid of it's ensouling Spark of the Divine Fire. 9. We know of the existence of the life-force which ensouls all living things, that is, all that exists. We know that a spark of this Divine Fire is within each and every thing that exists, and that it does not die; only the form of it's existence changes. We know that this spark of the life-force returns to manifestation again and again in order to fully realize and actualize it's potential, evolving finally to the peak and essence of existence which is pure being. In this process of reincarnation each form returns in the same type of form, though it's ever-increasing actualization may lead to higher levels of existence of that form. Man returns as man, cat as feline, mineral as mineral, each class of form evolving as the individual forms of that class evolve. 10. This process of evolution through successive incarnations in manifest form works through the utilizations of wisdom gained, the essence of the life-experience. This essence of experience, or Wisdom, is an attribute of the spark of life itself, one and inseparable. 11. We must care for the body, for it is the vehicle of the spark of life, the form by which we attain. Thus we must heal the body of it's ills and keep it a tuned and perfected tool; so must we heal others (both physically and psychologically) as far as it is within our power to do so. However, we cannot interfere with the life of another, even to heal, except at their request or with their express permission. The reasoning behind this apparent limitation is that we are endowed with Free Will, and what the Gods themselves hesitate to infringe upon, is best left alone by us "mere" mortals. 13. Harmony with, and utilization of, the great natural forces of the universe is called magick. By magick we speak, not of the super- natural, but of the superbly natural, but whose laws and applications are not as yet recognized by the scientific establishment. The Witch must strive to recognize these forces, learn their laws, attune her/himself to them, and make use of them. The Witch must also be aware that power corrupts when used _only_ for the gains of the self, and therefore must strive to serve humanity: Either through the service in the Priesthood, or by example and effects of his/her life on others. The choice must be made in accord with the true nature of the Witch. 1556 MONISM, One Wiccan Perspective Durwydd MacTara "Henotheism n. Belief in one god without denying the existence of others." (American Heritage Second College Dictionary) "Monism n. philos. A metaphysical system in which reality is conceived as a unified whole." (American Heritage Second College Dictionary) "Monotheism n. The belief or doctrine that there is only one God." (American Heritage Second College Dictionary) "Pantheism n. 1. The doctrine identifying the Deity with the various forces and workings of nature. 2. Belief in and worship o f all gods." (American Heritage Second College Dic tionary) "Polytheism n. The worship of or belief in more than one god." (Ameri can Heritage Second College Dictionary) "To witches, deities manifest in different ways and can be worshipped and contacted through any form suitable to local conditions and personal needs. Wicca does not believe, as do the patriarchal monotheisms, that there is only one correct version of God and that all other God forms are false: the Gods of Wicca are not jealous Gods. We therefore worship the personification of the male and female principles, the God and the Goddess, recognizing that Gods are aspects of the One God and all Goddesses are different aspects of the one Goddess, and that ultimately these two are reconciled in the one divine essence." (Vivianne Crowley, WICCA: The Old Religion in The New Age,pp. 11-12) Vivianne Crowley, a very capable spokesperson for British Traditional Wicca, identifies the core belief of Wicca (at least BTW) as Monism in the piece quoted above. However, she also opens the door to defining Wicca as duotheistic in principle with the subdivision of the monist reality into the praxis of worshiping both Lord and Lady. However, there is yet a THIRD level of obscurity in Wiccan Praxis! Most Wiccans worship a threefold Goddess (Maid, Mother, and Crone) and many also worship at least a twofold God. So, are the Wicca REALLY polytheists or perhaps pantheists or even modified Henotheists as some have claimed? Or, perhaps, a new category altogether needs to be invented to accurately describe Wiccan belief and practice. One suggestionhas beenmade toadd aword to ourThea/Theo-logi- cal lexicon, perhaps "Cthonotheism" (provided we MUST have a "Theism") to describe "Theistic Wicca". One advantage is that it makes the assumption of worshipping that which was there to be found and wor- shipped, NOT a Deity or deities invented in 1939! (More on this later.) 1557 The following is the only published copy of the (Gardnerian) Blessing Prayer that I know of. "In the name of Dryghtyn, the Ancient Providence, Who was from the beginning and is for eternity, Male and Female, the Original Source of all things; all-knowing, all-pervading, all-powerful; changeless, eternal. "In the name of the Lady of the Moon, and the Lord of Death and Resurrection. "In the name of the Mighty Ones of the Four Quarters, the Kings of the Elements. "Blessed be this place, and this time, and they who are now with us." ("Witch Blood! The Diary Of A Witch High Priestess!" by Patricia Crowther in chapter four (paperback edition 1974, House Of Collec- tibles, Inc.).) Courtesy of David Piper The Gawain Poet (the poet who wrote Sir Gawain and the Green Knight in Middle English) used the term 'Dryghtyn' to refer to the Lord God. At the start of fit IV - "Now neghes the Newe Yere and the night passes, The day drives to the derk, as Dryghtyn biddes." ("Now approaches the New Year and the night passes, The daylight comes up on the darkness, as the Lord God bids." or from Brian Stowes verse translation (Penguin Classics, 1974) - "Now the New Year neared, the night passed, Daylight fought darkness as the Deity ordained.") Grendel Grettison, an Asatruar from Seattle suggests the "Dryghtyn" may be an alternative spelling of the Teutonic "Drighten" meaning "Lord". I admit this is interesting, to me, as the closeness of the linguistic link between the Old English and Old German languages has been a scholarly "fact" widely known for many years. Supporting this view, the Anglo-Saxon (Old English) word was actually 'dryhtin', meant 'lord, the Lord' and is linguistically related to 'dreogan' meaning 'to perform, to serve'. 1558 As a side issue, this might be some evidence that runs contrary to the thesis put forth by Aidan Kelly that Gerald Gardner "manufactured" Wicca in 1939. From personal experience, I have found that one unique distinction of the non BTW strains of Witchcraft (some times called "FamTrads" of Family Traditions) is the incorporation of old Christian Imagery, often including ArchAngels for the four directions or elem- ents. Though this instance does not include Archangels, it DOES include archaic (and relatively unknown) Christian terminology. If Gardner did discover a remnant of the Old Religion upon which he based his modern reconstruction effort, it is this sort of linguistic "artifact" which would have survived. Perhaps a more scholarly investigation than mr. Kelly's will "turn up" more evidence? Jim Taylor, an Eastern Orthodox Theologian, also makes two (to me) illuminating statements, concerning "The Dryghtyn Prayer": 1. "'In the name of Dryghtyn, the Ancient Providence, Who was from the beginning and is for eternity, Male and Female, the Original Source of all things; all-knowing, all-pervading, all-powerful; changeless, eternal.' This would be, entirely, an acceptable way of describing God, both for most Jews and for most Christians." AND 2. "'In the name of the Lady of the Moon, and the Lord of Death and Resurrection.' The Lord of Death and Resurrection would seem, to any Christian to refer to Jesus Christ." This evidence of a possible mixing of an older (unrecorded) Christian Prayer may lend further credence to Gardners' claims of building on an older, hidden, traditional remnant. I, personally, also agree with Mr. Taylors' statement that "the idea of Wicca being 'manufactured' in 1939 is far too pat, and ignores a great deal which ought not to be ignored. At the very least, some degree of recognition should be accorded to the obvious fact that most Wiccan practices and attitudes predate Wicca by considerable periods of time--possibly even millennia". The existence of Monism, Duotheism, and Polytheism simultaneously in the belief structure of Wicca is one good example of one of the Five Mysteries of Wicca, that of Union. Wicca is a mystery religion, a PARTICIPATORY religion, and much of its symbology must be lived and practiced to have meaning because much of the real (some say hidden meaning is based on the knowledge of experience and not the intellec- tual knowledge of mere logic and conscious thought processes. I am an eclectic Wiccan with strong ties in my beliefs and practice to British Traditional Wicca. I am a Monist, yet I have had strong direct experience with Brigid, Danu, and the Morrigan as well as the Earth Mother and the Horned Lord of the Forests. So my personal answer to the question of "What kind of Theism fits Theistic Wicca?" is "several, or none; it is not really a valid question in those limited terms"! But perhaps the concept of "Cthonotheism" would give a better label to this concept when attempting to discuss the idea of the peculiar theism unique to Wicca? Blessed Be, Durwydd MacTara 1559 Air Meditation (taken from the WICCA echo on Sun 24 Jan 93 22:17) It is dawn. I find myself in a forest filled with Aspen trees. I raise my eyes and look for the sky, but the boughs looming overhead hide it from my view. As I look up, feel the cool breeze of spring brush my face, and hear the sound of the rustling leaves. Blowing, laughing from the east, Eurus brings thoughts of renewal and life. I follow the wind further into the soft shadows of the forest, inhaling deeply the strong scent of the trees. I smell, too, the wafting hints of fragrant incense. I follow where my senses lead me and come to a small clearing circled by burning censers filled with sweet-smelling oils. Toward the east end of the circle is a staff. I walk over to the place and sit on the ground before it. I take the staff into my hands and close my eyes. First come swirling colors of white then yellow then fading darker into lavender. Then, out of the swirling fog of colors come dozens of small, lithe figures who swirl around as if carried on the wind itself. They dance around my head and body, swirling around as if caught in a dance to unheard music. Then, taking my attention from the spirits of the air, I look up to find further figures emerging from the mist. First comes a woman with the beauty of the dawn. As she steps forward, each of the four winds, in turn, hasten from around here and fly, one to each of the four corners of the earth. As she fades, there comes another whose form seems insubstantial, and seems to constitute both the image of a woman and a cow at the same time. I look closely the attempt to solidify one form, but I cannot. As this image fades, I am presented with the forms of two women who immediately remind me of the nighttime sky. One glows with the pale light of the full moon, and her eyes hold the fullness of hidden knowledge. The other, whom also seems to radiate cool starlight, seems to embody the possibilities of many lifetimes. In due course, these figures too fade and I am left with only the mist of the elemental world of air. Suddenly, three male figures issue from the mist. They seem to be three aspects of one man, but each's attributes differ. The first glows with the light of the moon, seeming to be its protector. The second and third appear almost identical, except that one has a winged helmet and shoes. As I sit and study the sameness and difference of the three, they begin to fade, as does the fog. When the mist clears, I find myself sitting within the circle still clutching the staff in my hands. I place the staff once again on the ground and rise. I thank the element of air, and all it is associated with for sharing with me its wisdom, and leave the circle. Charis --- * PALLAS ATHENA, Atlanta, Georgia 404-920-1349 (93:9603/0) 1560 Re: Symbolism Classification: IT.IV.C.2.e Title: Symbolism Author: Grand Master of the Order of Shuti Temple of Set Date: December, XXIV Published: Dialogues I.3 (The section on "Neters" was published in issue I.4) Subject: Symbolism Reading List: 2L, 2V [copyright 1989, Temple of Set. Permission for electronic distr- ibution by echo and on PODS has been given by the author. Do not copy or distribute further without permission of the author or the Temple of Set.] The first session of the year-XXIV Order of Shuti Workshop discussed symbolism. While the study of symbolism itself is not a primary concern of the Order of Shuti, several of the Order's activities do involve working with forms of symbolism, or are discussed using various symbols. The symbols of the twin lion gods, Shu and Tefnut, who together are Shuti, are obviously of importance in understanding the activities of the Order. The topic of symbolism was therefore chosen for the introductory session of the workshop. Application In discussing this session and what would be discussed, the Grand Master stressed that symbolism wasn't to be discussed simply as an intellectual exercise, but that all participants should try to apply the Setian yardstick of "application" to this discussion. Each and every topic of this session (and all sessions in the workshop) should be measured by the questions of a) Can it be applied? b) Is it useful? c) Does it work? What is symbolism? One answer suggested by workshop participants is that symbolism is a language of the unconscious. It is a dynamic language in which one image, a single symbol, can conjure up archetypical impressions, complex or complete concepts and/or meanings, rather than being a structured language in which many words and/or several sentences are needed to put together an equivalent concept or meaning. Another purpose of symbolism offered by the participants is to serve as a metalanguage which has two levels or multiple levels of meaning. 1561 Each symbol or set of symbols can have one meaning to the initiated, and another meaning to the uninitiated. That symbol or set of symbols could also have /different/ meanings to the initiated, depending upon how the symbols are communicated, and how they are mixed with other symbols. A statement in a symbolic language could even have multiple meanings communicated at the same time to the same person. A lot of the symbols Setians use in our writings are like that. When we read through the _Scroll of Set_ or the jewelled Tablets, those of us who have been using the language of the Temple of Set for a while will see certain words, and will know just from the way the words are used that the author is writing symbolically as well as grammatically, and he therefore means "this type of thing". This symbolic use of language lets us add meaning to an article without adding substantially to the size of that article. Those who haven't been in the Temple of Set long enough to pick up on that symbolic use of language will miss almost all of that meaning on their first reading. This is one of the reasons why we all find it useful to reread past issues of the _Scroll_ and to reread Tablet articles. It enables us to read meaning in an article that we may have missed on an earlier reading. It sometimes happens that "unintended" meaning is found in an article during such a rereading. Even though the author may not have consciously intended to convey a certain meaning, that author's Higher Self may have influenced the writing in such a way as to symbolically give a specific message in the writing. These messages remain hidden except for those who can perceive and understand them. On the other side of the scale, if our writings are read by someone totally unfamiliar with occult symbolism, then the message can be totally lost, and the reader may never see it. Symbolism can be visual (examples are the Pentagram of Set, pictures of the Egyptian Neters, etc), and verbal (the closing we use on our letters, "Xeper and Remanifest", is a statement and reminder of our dedication to this Formula, a way of developing and keeping the habit of Xeper and Remanifestation going strong). Each Word itself is a symbol (Xeper, Indulgence, Thelema, etc.), as is each Neter (Shu, Tefnut, Sekhmet, Bast). A lot of principles can be used as symbols which have more meaning to the initiated than they do to those who just read about them in a dictionary. Visual and verbal/written symbols involve just one of our senses (sight). If you include verbal/spoken symbols, we then involve a second sense (hearing). We then asked the question, "Are there symbols which are perceived and communicated through each of our other senses?" 1562 The first examples offered by workshop participants were incense and music: Incense can bring about different emotions and responses through the sense of smell. Music can bring about different responses through the sense of hearing, in ways totally different than the verbal symbols do (the difference between right brained behavior and left brained behavior). Where does symbolism come from? When dealing with incense and music, we are leaving the mental processes and intellectual reactions that visual symbols will evoke, and going instead to the more reactive, bodily, reactions. We react to the smell of bodily feces with distaste because of the body's reaction to that sort of an input. We find the fragrance of a rose very pleasing. One of the reasons we use fragrant incenses during a ritual is to bring about bodily reactions which enhance a ceremony because of the smells and our reactions to the smells. The discussion of one question leads to another. We learn the reactions / interpretations / meanings of visual and verbal symbols (at least those discussed above). Do we also learn reactions to incenses and music, or are those reactions more innate? The first response was that our reactions and interpretations, even our likes and dislikes of music are learned. The example given was classical music, which strikes some people as very soothing and relaxing, and which is likely to put these people to sleep. But others who are aware of the intelligent dynamics and many other ingredients of classical music will find the same music very stimulating. (We believe that the workshop participant was thinking about the lighter classical pieces, such as "Tales from the Vienna Woods," and not the more active pieces such as "Night on Bald Mountain.") The second response disagreed with the first, pointing out that regardless of whether they are used in classical, modern, or any other form of music, harps and strings tend to evoke emotional (peaceful) moods, while drums are more primal and physical, evoking more active responses. The next example we discussed referred to the sense of smell. To a farmer, feces and fertilizer are pleasing and filled with promise, a smell of promised growth and life, a totally different reaction than most people will have (especially after scraping a dog's refuse off the bottom of one's shoe). Similarly, an inlander's first pleasant reaction to sea gulls on wing, grace in motion, can be compared to the reaction of those who live on the beach and have to live with the noise and the mess and the droppings left behind by those very same sea gulls. These examples tend to support the theory that we learn our interpretations of the sounds and smells around us. 1563 It seems from these examples that our reactions to inputs are learned, or at least they arise from our experiences. The question then becomes, can symbols have innate visceral responses, or is the response to a symbol necessarily a learned one? To look at innate responses, the original responses to stimuli, we necessarily looked at children. For instance, children generally have no innate response to feces, and will often eat them until they learn not to. They later learn to either react with disgust to feces, or to view them as fertilizer and the source of life. The first example of a possibly innate response brought to the discussion was that of the ephemeral beauty of a butterfly on the wing. None of the participants could envision any child's reaction other than awe and delight at such beauty (or at least none would admit to any other vision). This brought forth remarks concerning innate childish "awe", where almost everything is new and wonderful. Children as they begin to distinguish between the multiple events and objects in their world are simply delighted at the beauty and diversity they find around them. There is no "evil" during this time -- only the beauty of nature. Few of us have any reason to unlearn this initial response to the butterfly. These reactions can therefore be considered innate, stemming from the earliest days of our consciousness. Other reactions, unpleasant reactions and also more complex reactions, seem to be learned over time. Therefore, there's some of both types of reactions. People will have initial reactions to many meaningful symbols and inputs, but their reactions can be modified by their experience and training. This discussion raised yet more questions, for which no answers were attempted during this workshop. The questions were, how much of our symbolism is learned, and how much of our symbolism is innate? And if some form of consciousness or memory can survive from one life to another, then how much might be remembered from past lives? Symbols may or may not come to one's attention. An extremely visually-oriented person may not notice or respond to other types of symbols, such as a room's smell, or a background level of music, while those who are oriented towards those senses will respond to those inputs, but perhaps not to others. Symbolism may have personal and/or experiential meaning (such as the manure used to plant your garden or that you step in), or symbolism may be abstract (learned and used in writing, teaching, or jewelry, but not something that's impacted upon you in the past). This is the difference between a) the visceral response, which may be innate and may also be a learned response, modified through experience or training, and b) the mental response which must always be learned or developed. 1564 The Grand Master wishes to note that the discussion at this point had unintentionally left the strict topic of symbolism, and was dealing instead with experience and reaction to stimuli, on the unspoken assumption that these reactions applied to our use of symbolism. We feel this to be a valid assumption, since the pleasant reaction we have to a butterfly or to a unicorn extends to and impacts our use of those images as symbols. Those with differing reactions to sea gulls as described above would similarly have different reactions to Johnathon Livingston Seagull's story. Also, by concentrating on experience and reaction rather than symbolism, we temporarily lost sight of the most important measure of symbolism -- that of meaning. Yes, music has impact, but that music is symbol only if its impact includes meaning, such as the sense of freedom and power that accompanies the visual image of the "Flight of the Valkyries" and similar images of meaning those who are familiar with the movie will get from various pieces in the sound track from 2001. Likewise incense is symbol only if its impact includes meaning. That meaning may be supplied by the smell, or that meaning may be supplied by knowledge of the ingredients within the incense. Meaning may also be supplied by the words used during the censing of the chambre. Without some meaning, incense is not symbol, but only smell. Closely related to the sense of smell is the sense of taste, and it's fairly easy to see that certain tastes can have meaning as well. During Passover Seder, a ritual meal of thanksgiving and freedom (celebrating the Exodus), Jews will dip greens into salt water and eat the salty greens, to remind them of tears shed by the Jews in bondage. They will eat bitter herbs to remind them of the bitterness of slavery. Likewise, there can be kinesthetic symbols as well. We feel different when we hold a sword in ritual as opposed to when we hold a dagger. We feel different when we are standing up than we feel when we are sitting down, and different still when we are kneeling or laying down. We feel different in charged rooms, dry rooms, wet rooms, hot rooms, cold rooms, still rooms, breezy rooms. Uncontrolled, these latter experiences are just stimuli. Controlled and used meaningfully, these latter experiences can be symbols, manipulated and understood as such. How should symbolism be used? The first obvious use of symbolism is in the communication of ideas, whether written, spoken, or communicated through one or more other senses. 1565 Based on the idea that a single symbol can have a whole galaxy of meaning, a useful communications skill is the ability to use symbols in the proper places, in the proper ways, to communicate more meaning in a smaller package (with fewer words). Perhaps of greatest importance within the Temple of Set are the magical aeonic Words: Xeper, Remanifestation, and Xem, and the preceding Words of Indulgence and Thelema. By using these Words in writing or other forms of communication, we communicate the meanings associated with those Words. If I say the word "Xeper" to an initiate, it means something totally different than it would mean to someone off the street, and it means something totally different to a Setian than it would mean to an Egyptologist who /thinks/ he knows the Egyptian god Xepera. Our use of the Word is quite different and the symbol carries so much more meaning than just the word "Xeper" would carry in a modern Egyptian dictionary. This use of symbolism doesn't apply just to magical Words or Formulae, but applies to symbols of many different kinds, in many different uses. You'll sometimes find certain words capitalized in text, as are "Words" and "Formulae" above. When not overly used, this is a clear indication that the author wishes you to view these words with their symbolic meanings, rather than their normal meanings. During group ritual, certain words will be spoken more flamboyantly, perhaps louder, perhaps longer, and often with more gesturing. These words are then generally being used symbolically, with special meaning at least to the speaker, if not to other participants. Symbolism can also be used in Lesser Black Magic, as tools to influence certain people (singular or multiple) in certain ways. The magician (or politician or religious leader or arts director or other manipulator) will use lighting, music, fragrance, and other symbols in ways particular to their audience's response to the symbols. Symbolism can be used upon ourselves in a similar manner, to bring out responses from us that we want to bring out, as in ritual or as an aid to Xeper. Words which have become symbols to us can be used as a means of increased concentration, as a visual mantra or as a sensual mantra. Such mantras can be used in ritual, in nonritual meditation, or whenever we choose to remind ourselves of the principles carried within that symbol. Over time, some symbols can become richer and can carry more and more meaning to those people who work with the symbol. These symbols can become "magnetic", in that each use of the symbol brings forth yet another repetition of the symbol. Each reference brings forth a constellation of meaning, with one meaning and use leading to another. Each use of the symbol sparks, or attracts, another use of the symbol. 1566 In these cases the symbols will often be repeated over and over throughout a conversation or other communication, each time exercising one or more of those meanings, and through the course of the communication this symbol can almost hold or reflect an entire world view. This is the way the people influenced by the symbol see their world. At a political rally the symbol might be "America", "Democracy", or "the Party" (citizens of other countries may substitute those symbols meaningful in your domain). To some, the symbol might be "the Environment". The symbol "Xeper" has a similar impact within the Setian culture. Group consensus is important for communication through symbols. Different groups can have differing uses of symbols, and attempts to communicate between these groups using the symbols particular to one group (or those symbols which are viewed differently by different groups) can result in confusion or worse. Because Setians come from such diverse backgrounds, we have various communication problems related to these diverse backgrounds. Members from the O.T.O. may know all of the Qabalic correspondences, while members from the Wiccan background couldn't care less about the Qabalic attributions, and have correspondences which are totally different. Numerologists apply different meanings to their numbers than do the Qabalists. And all of these symbolic systems work. But very, very few of them work for all Setians. Qabalists within the Temple of Set who write articles and/or letters steeped in Qabalic symbolism find that very few others care enough about their symbols to wade through the text. Those from other backgrounds with intensive use of symbols similarly find difficulty communicating within the Temple of Set, since our symbolic vocabulary is so much less cohesive. This lack of similarity in symbolism affects not only written communication, but also ritual activity. Each pylon seems to develop its own pattern of symbolism, and inter-pylon rituals can at times be very difficult. Fitting many diverse magicians with their diverse backgrounds into one meaningful ceremony can be a challenge, a challenge faced at each Conclave, and at each activity like the Order of Shuti Workshop. 1567 Language of the Unconscious?{fn 1} The first question asked by the Grand Master was, "What is symbolism?" The first answer received was, "A language of the unconscious." Parts of the workshop's discussion might seem to support this definition, while others contradict it. So let the Grand Master speak: Symbols have many attributes. Among the more important of these attributes is their ability to cause reaction in their audience, visceral if not innate reactions, as discussed above. Elizabeth S. Helfman, in her book _Signs and Symbols around the World_, defines symbol as being: "anything that stands for something else." Look in your dictionary. Mine includes several definitions of symbol and symbolism, including: >> Symbol: 2: something that stands for or suggests something else by reason of relationship, association, convention, or accidental resemblance. 5: an act, sound, or object having cultural significance and the capacity to excite or objectify a response. >> Symbolism: 1: the art or practice of using symols esp. by investing things with a symbolic meaning or by expressing the invisible or intangible by means of visible or sensuous representations; as a: the use of conventional or traditional signs in the representation of divine beings and spirits, b: artistic imitation or invention that is a method of revealing or suggesting immaterial, ideal, or otherwise intangible truth or states. 2: a system of symbols or representations. Symbolism is an art, a practice, something which is done. It is used to communicate meaning. It is a language. Our visceral responses to symbolism may be unconscious, but if that's all there is, then have we received and/or responded to meaning? The transmission and communication of *Meaning* requires some form of consciousness. Let's use the word /Awake/ to mean the highest form of consciousness. Remember -- the capital letter indicates I'm using a symbol; Setian use of this specific symbol (Awake) most often refers to Ouspenski's heightened state of consciousness and awareness, a state of being totally awake. 1568 For simplicity, let's assign a whole range of various levels of conscious awareness to the name "conscious". This name can apply to heightened states of consciousness which those we would call Awake, those that barely miss being Awake, down to the almost somnabulent states in which most of mankind spends their day. Finally, I would call the preconscious state one of consciousness in this case, a state in which meaning can be received, interpreted, and acted upon, without the individual being "consiously" aware that this has happened. But if the individual's attention is brought to the subject, then the symbol and its meaning can be recalled and the process repeated without any difficulty. If symbols are generated and communicated, if they are transmitted and received, in one of these three states, then I believe we can correctly talk about symbolism, about language. However, if the generation and/or reception of the symbol is unconscious, and/or totally unintended, then I propose that that instance is not an example of symbolism, not language or communication, but rather the accidental generation of and/or visceral response to sensory input. [Now let us return to the discussion as it took place in the workshop...] Planetary Symbol System? We know there are differences in the meanings of many symbols. "Patriotism" can be exceedingly important to a Republican and also to a Libertarian, but the meanings that this symbol will have can be quite different in many ways. This leads us to ask the question of whether there might perhaps be a "planetary symbol system" in which some symbols at least can be found commonly used in many or all cultures. The cross, square, circle, and most or all simple symbols have been found in use all over the earth. We therefore can ask whether their meanings are similar, or are the symbols used simply because they are simple geometric figures, but with meanings arbitrarily assigned by the individual cultures? One participant brought forth Ouspenski's example that "Table" has a function, an innate form or essence, which can be perceived beyond words, and beyond a learned experience. "Table" provokes an image, feeling, or essence that is evoked through a willed perception that extends beyond the actual set of tables that a person may have ever experienced. 1569 Ouspenski claims that at a certain state of consciousness the Aware individual can see this deeper meaning or essence, and that this deeper meaning or essence can be commonly perceived by all who reach this level of consciousness. Similar ideas were offered by Plato, and the concept of Platonic Forms is very prevalent throughout the Setian use of symbolism. We often speak of the Egyptian Neters as being Forms, the original or specific essence of an Ideal. This is certainly an area that needs deeper investigation. The workshop session discussion however left the topic of abstract Forms, and instead investigated the historic use of symbols in various cultures. Looking first at the more complex god forms, it seems each major culture has a "trickster" god: Coyote fills this niche in several Amerindian cultures, Loki in the Norse mythos, and Thoth (Hermes and Mercury) in the Egyptian (Greek and Roman) mythologies. The Trickster is that Spirit who makes you Think. He is the Spirit who is unpredictable in his actions or reactions, who gets himself and everyone else into trouble. In the process of doing so -- most often after everyone is already in trouble -- he makes people Think, and in the end he generally gets everyone out of trouble by thinking. To represent the Trickster, each culture used that type of symbol or god form which for them was most appropriate for that type of character. The coyote is a fairly independent and hard to track animal in America, requiring more than the usual amount of intelligence and stealth to catch. Monkeys similarly were appreciated for their seeming intelligence and playfulness, and so Egyptians assigned the Trickster attribute and the monkey's form to Thoth. The question becomes ... is this type of being, this symbol, something which is universal, cross-cultural, or is it something which happens in just a few cases, and many other societies never had any use for it? Jung was exploring this area. He defined specific symbols which he felt were common to many or all cultures. They were fairly common within his culture and Jung did manage to validate them with some cross-cultural study. We still need to ask how complete his studies were, how extensive and wide spread. Given people in extremely different environments, such as the Eskimo, Hawaiian, Indian, Tibetan, etc., cultures where the people have many different experiences, totally different social and physical environments, it can be expected that these people would have very different reactions to the symbols that Jung thought he had commonality on. 1570 Jung's _Man and his Symbol_ was recommended by one participant as containing documentation on his cross-cultural studies in this area. Not having access to any resource materials that would answer our questions at the time, the workshop session then proceeded into the topic of Egyptian Neters and the use of Neters in symbolism. Neters The Workshop discussion of Egyptian Neters started with a brief discussion of the Egyptian languages. The ancient Egyptians used three different written languages, the hieroglyphic, hieratic, and demotic. The demotic language was a mostly alphabetic language used for common communications among those who could read and write. Its primary uses were for social and business reasons. The hieratic language was a pictographic language related to the hieroglyphic, but in which the pictographs were abbreviated and simplified to speed writing. It was used for important state documents and many later religious texts. The hieroglyphic language was the most ornate of the three languages, the most ancient of the three languages, and the most symbolic. It was used for the most important religious and philosophical statements, and for the most important state declarations. Many of the symbols used to form the hieroglyphic language had assigned sounds, and many others did not. In addition to the sounds and symbols used to form words, the Egyptians used determinatives, signs added to specifically identify each word. Through the use of the determinative, it was impossible to mistake one written word for another, even if verbal sounds were the same, even if the letters used were the same. This use of a purely symbolic, picture-oriented language encouraged the ability in the learned ancient Egyptians to think with right brained methods while doing the left brain activity of reading. It also encouraged these educated and intelligent Egyptians to work with symbols as they worked with language. They were able to communicate ideas and ideals in a language particularly well suited to this purpose. Setians use the ancient Egyptian neters as symbols, representing aspects of the world, or aspects of the individual. We feel this is very close to the way the higher initiates of the ancient Egyptian Temples, the priests of the Temples, and the smarter pharaohs used and viewed their neters. The neters were concepts that could be communicated to and shared among the initiated, rather than being actual gods and goddesses. 1571 The common man may very well have believed in the literal existence of his many gods and goddesses, but we believe the elite of the Egyptian society understood that these neters were purely symbols. When the Egyptian elite paid homage to the neters, they paid homage to the aspects of the universe or of the self represented by those neters. One neter of obvious importance is Set. In dealing with this symbol, we try to identify the original meaning of the symbol, and try to eliminate the corruptions of the symbol imposed by the later rule of Osirian religion. Rather than take space here to discuss the corruptions and distortions that were applied to the symbol of the neter Set through the Osirian culture, we'll simply refer the interested student to appropriate books in the reading list: 2A, 2E, 2G, 2W, and 2AA. It is rather clear that the use and peripheral meanings of the neter Set changed over time. The study of Set must therefore include the careful consideration of the source of whatever writings are being studied. Fortunately most other Egyptian symbols/god forms did not change significantly over time, and such care need not be used in studying and working with them. The neters were used and viewed as symbols. But the Egyptian temples _were_ temples, and were recognized as religions, not simply as centers of enlightened philosophy. This brings up the question: Do/did the Egyptian Neters actually exist? Were these religions founded to worship or work with beings that actually existed? Or were they simply the creations of the ancient Egyptian priesthoods? Rather than tackle immediately the question of whether the Neters actually existed, workshop participants first chose to examine ... Egyptian Priesthoods The first statement made about these priesthoods was that each temple in Egypt taught a different area of philosophy or knowledge. Those temples dedicated to a major neter or god taught that their primal Form was the First Cause. These were the major temples of the land, and an initiate who studied at temple after temple would be presented with the opposing claims that each god was the god, The Creator. We noted in our discussion that the priesthoods of several of the "minor" neters did not make any such claims. Thoth as a single neter never seemed to be treated as the creator god; nor was Geb. However, many of the major neters were treated as creator gods, and many gods were intentionally combined into units (such as Amon-Thoth-Ra) in order to form a god which would be powerful enough to qualify as The creator god. 1572 Neters as Symbols We returned to discussing the neters as ways of viewing possibility and potentiality, and ways of viewing different aspects of the universe and of the individual. For example, Ra, the sun god, was a most pervasive and powerful being, since every single day, there he is in the sky. Ra was consistent, reliable, and therefore powerful. Similarly each force in nature was given a personality, because each force in nature has a personality (or seems to, to those who humanize such things). This is the basic principle behind most spirits of most animistic religions. These personalities are generally reliable. A rain cloud is going to rain; it isn't going to add to the day's heat. The Nile was not going to dry up -- it was going to overflow once a year, and deposit good, rich, fertile earth upon the ground. Each force of nature, each personality, was given a name, a face, and a story. The most powerful stories, faces, and names are those that belong to the creator gods. There are so many creator gods, that it's really difficult to pin down an actual order of precedence. This brings up the fact that there are many apparently conflicting stories within the Egyptian mythology. The Grand Master pointed out that in several Egyptian myths, Shu and Tefnut are self-created. In others they were created by tears of the master creator god (whoever he happened to be according to the story teller). In yet others they were created by the master god's masturbation. Shu and Tefnut by definition are the first male and female. The master god's masturbation in these latter stories was always male masturbation, but Shu is the first male. Shu and Tefnut begat Geb and Nut, but Nut was the all-pervasive universal sky that preceded the first god... This confusion is the result of centuries of Egyptian story telling, and while some of it appears to be contraditory, most of it is useful. We certainly must hesitate to consider this mythology as one consistent symbolism, and must be careful if we wish to communicate consistent meanings using these symbols, but we have found value in this mythology. Each story is a different way of looking at the world, a different way of looking at the first cause, and of looking at the symbols. By using these symbols, we can then indicate not only a symbol, but also which way we are looking at the world. Hence, if in ritual or other communication we call upon Ptah-Geb-Nu, we are calling upon the creator of the earth and sky, the god who created the physical universe. If instead we call upon the Neter Ra-Ptah-ankh, we are calling upon the god who brought light and life to this planet. 1573 Having discussed these differing views of the world as expressed by the many symbolic neters, we felt that this was a good point from which to launch into a discussion of one of the ways in which we look at Neters. Set, the prime source of intelligence and the ageless intelligence himself, is a wee bit complex for someone a mere 20 or even 200 years old to understand, regardless of whether we look at Set as an actually existing being or instead as a master symbol. So rather than try to encompass all of Set, intellectually or emotionally, rather than try to understand all of Set, we can work with neters which are facets of Set's being, facets of Set's symbolism. Each neter can be thought of as a specific element of Set. As examples, Shu is one set of symbolism, one set of ideas, that an initiate can work with to "get somewhere" with, to accomplish certain initiatory goals. Tefnut is another set of ideas, as is Geb, Isis, etc. Rather than trying to encompass and work with the entire universe simultaneously, grab whatever you can hold onto, work with that handful, study that symbol or symbols, and see what it leads to. We had originally intended to discuss whether or not the Neters might or might not exist in their own right. Having discussed the above, it seemed somewhat unimportant as to whether the Neters actually exist. That topic will be left for a later discussion. Bibliography While the following books and papers were not necessarily discussed nor referenced during the workshop discussion (or in completing this article), the initiate interested in studying symbolism as a subject on its own would be well advised to begin with this bibliography. Additions to this bibliography are welcome, and should be sent to the Grand Master. (_RT_ entries are from _The Ruby Tablet of Set_.) Barrett, Ronald K., "Book of Opening the Way (Key #4)". _RT_ IT.II.A.5.b.(1).(d). Barrett, Ronald K., "Stele of Xem". _RT_ IT.II.A.4.a.(3). Cavendish, Richard, _The Black Arts_. 4C (TS-3). Crowley, Aleister, _The Book of Thoth_. 9L (TS-4). De Lubicz, Isha Schwaller, _Her-Bak_. 2L (TS-1). De Lubicz, Isha Schwaller, _Symbol and the Symbolique_. 2V (TS-4). Fisher, Leonard Everett, _Symbol Art: Thirteen Squares, Circles, and Triangles from Around the World_. NY: Four Winds Press, MacMillan Publishing Company, 1985. Helfman, Elizabeth S., _Signs and Symbols Around the World_. NY: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co., 1967. 1574 Jung, Carl G., _Man and his Symbols_. Garden City: Doubleday & Co., 1964, 1968. Also NY: Dell Publishing Co., 1968, and London: Aldus Books, 1964. Menschel, Robert, "Remanifestation: A Symbolic Syntheses", _RT_ IT.II.B.3.e.(2). Menschel, Robert, "Tarot Primer", _RT_ IT.II.B.3.e.(3). Norton, Lynn, "Golden Section Tarot Working", "Atu XV: The Devil", and "The Dialogue". _RT_ IT.II.A.3.k.(1), 4.h.(1), and 4.h.(2). Regardie, Israel, _777 and Other Qabalistic Writings of Aleister Crowley_. 9M (TS-4). Schaefer, Heinrich, _Principles of Egyptian Art_. 2R (TS-4). ========= Footnote: ========= 1. The Grand Master wishes to digress temporarily from the workshop's discussion, and to comment at this time on one of the first statements offered during this discussion. 1575 *********************************************************** INVESTIGATOR'S GUIDE TO ALLEGATIONS OF "RITUAL" CHILD ABUSE *********************************************************** January 1992 Kenneth V. Lanning Supervisory Special Agent Behavioral Science Unit National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Academy Quantico, Virginia 22135 ************************************************* TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Introduction. 2. Historical Overview. -- a. "Stranger Danger". -- b. Intrafamilial Child Sexual Abuse. -- c. Return to "Stranger Danger". -- d. The Acquaintance Molester. -- e. Satanism: A New Form of "Stranger Danger". 3. Law Enforcement Training. 4. Definitions. -- a. What is Ritual? -- b. What is "Ritual" Child Abuse? -- c. What Makes a Crime Satanic, Occult, or Ritualistic? 5. Multidimensional Child Sex Rings. -- a. Dynamics of Cases. ---- (1) Multiple Young Victims. ---- (2) Multiple Offenders. ---- (3) Fear as a Controlling Tactic. ---- (4) Bizarre or Ritualistic Activity. -- b. Characteristics of Multidimensional Child Sex Rings. ---- (1) Female Offenders. ---- (2) Situational Molesters. ---- (3) Male and Female Victims. ---- (4) Multidimensional Motivation. ---- (5) Pornography and Paraphernalia. ---- (6) Control through Fear. -- c. Scenarios. ---- (1) Adult Survivors. ---- (2) Day Care Cases. ---- (3) Family/Isolated Neighborhood Cases. ---- (4) Custody/Visitation Disputes. -- d. Why Are Victims Alleging Things that Do Not Seem to be True? 6. Alternative Explanations. -- a. Pathological Distortion. -- b. Traumatic Memory. -- c. Normal Childhood Fears and Fantasy. -- d. Misperception, Confusion, and Trickery. -- e. Overzealous Intervenors. -- f. Urban Legends. -- g. Combination. 1576 7. Do Victims Lie About Sexual Abuse and Exploitation? -- a. Personal Knowledge. -- b. Other Children or Victims. -- c. Media. -- d. Suggestions and Leading Questions. -- e. Misperception and Confusion. -- f. Education and Awareness Programs. 8. Law Enforcement Perspective. 9. Investigating Multidimensional Child Sex Rings. -- a. Minimize Satanic/Occult Aspect. -- b. Keep Investigation and Religious Beliefs Separate. -- c. Listen to the Victims. -- d. Assess and Evaluate Victim Statements. -- e. Evaluate Contagion. -- f. Establish Communication with Parents. -- g. Develop a Contingency Plan. -- h. Multidisciplinary Task Forces. -- i. Summary. 10. Conclusion. 11. References. 12. Suggested Reading. 1. INTRODUCTION Since 1981 I have been assigned to the Behavioral Science Unit at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia, and have specialized in studying all aspects of the sexual victimization of children. The FBI Behavioral Science Unit provides assistance to criminal justice professionals in the United States and foreign countries. It attempts to develop practical applications of the behavioral sciences to the criminal justice system. As a result of training and research conducted by the Unit and its successes in analyzing violent crime, many professionals contact the Behavioral Science Unit for assistance and guidance in dealing with violent crime, especially those cases considered different, unusual, or bizarre. This service is provided at no cost and is not limited to crimes under the investigative jurisdiction of the FBI. In 1983 and 1984, when I first began to hear stories of what sounded like satanic or occult activity in connection with allegations of sexual victimization of children (allegations that have come to be referred to most often as "ritual" child abuse), I tended to believe them. I had been dealing with bizarre, deviant behavior for many years and had long since realized that almost anything is possible. Just when you think that you have heard it all, along comes another strange case. The idea that there are a few cunning, secretive individuals in positions of power somewhere in this country regularly killing a few people as part of some satanic ritual or ceremony and getting away with it is certainly within the realm of possibility. But the number of alleged cases began to grow and grow. We now have hundreds of victims alleging that thousands of offenders are abusing and even murdering tens of thousands of people as part of organized satanic cults, and there is little or no corroborative evidence. The very reason many "experts" cite for believing these allegations (i.e. many victims, who never met each other, reporting the same events), is the primary reason I began to question at least some aspects of these allegations. 1577 I have devoted more than seven years part-time, and eleven years full-time, of my professional life to researching, training, and consulting in the area of the sexual victimization of children. The issues of child sexual abuse and exploitation are a big part of my professional life's work. I have no reason to deny their existence or nature. In fact I have done everything I can to make people more aware of the problem Some have even blamed me for helping to create the hysteria that has led to these bizarre allegations. I can accept no outside income and am paid the same salary by the FBI whether or not children are abused and exploited - and whether the number is one or one million. As someone deeply concerned about and professionally committed to the issue, I did not lightly question the allegations of hundreds of victims child sexual abuse and exploitation. In response to accusations by a few that I am a "satanist" who has infiltrated the FBI to facilitate cover-up, how does anyone (or should anyone have to) disprove such allegations? Although reluctant to dignify such absurd accusations with a reply, all I can say to those who have made such allegations that they are wrong and to those who heard such allegations is to carefully consider the source. The reason I have taken the position I have is not because I support or believe in "satanism", but because I sincerely believe that my approach is the proper and most effective investigative strategy. I believe that my approach is in the best interest of victims of child sexual abuse. It would have been easy to sit back, as many have, and say nothing publicly about this controversy. I have spoken out and published on this issue because I am concerned about the credibility of the child sexual abuse issue and outraged that, in some cases, individuals are getting away with molesting children because we can't prove they are satanic devil worshippers who engage in brainwashing, human sacrifice, and cannibalism as part of a large conspiracy. There are many valid perspectives from which to assess and evaluate victim allegations of sex abuse and exploitation. Parents may choose to believe simply because their children make the claims. The level of proof necessary may be minimal because the consequences of believing are within the family. One parent correctly told me, "I believe what my child needs me to believe." Therapists may choose to believe simply because their professional assessment is that their patient believes the victimization and describes it so vividly. The level of proof necessary may be no more than therapeutic evaluation because the consequences are between therapist and patient. No independent corroboration may be required. A social worker must have more real, tangible evidence of abuse in order to take protective action and initiate legal proceedings. The level of proof necessary must be higher because the consequences (denial of visitation, foster care) are greater. 1578 The law enforcement officer deals with the criminal justice system. The levels of proof necessary are reasonable suspicion, probable cause, and beyond a reasonable doubt because the consequences (criminal investigation, search and seizure, arrest, incarceration) are so great. This discussion will focus primarily on the criminal justice system and the law enforcement perspective. The level of proof necessary for taking action on allegations of criminal acts must be more than simply the victim alleged it and it is possible. This in no way denies the validity and importance of the parental, therapeutic, social welfare, or any other perspective of these allegations. When, however, therapists and other professionals begin to conduct training, publish articles, and communicate through the media, the consequences become greater, and therefore the level of proof must be greater. The amount of corroboration necessary to act upon allegations of abuse is dependent upon the consequences of such action. We need to be concerned about the distribution and publication of unsubstantiated allegations of bizarre sexual abuse. Information needs to be disseminated to encourage communication and research about the phenomena. The risks, however, of intervenor and victim "contagion" and public hysteria are potential negative aspects of such dissemination. Because of the highly emotional and religious nature of this topic, there is a greater possibility that the spreading of information will result in a kind of self- fulfilling prophesy. If such extreme allegations are going to be disseminated to the general public, they must be presented in the context of being assessed and evaluated, at least, from the professional perspective of the disseminator and, at best, also from the professional perspective of relevant others. This is what I will attempt to do in this discussion. The assessment and evaluation of such allegations are areas where law enforcement, mental health, and other professionals (anthropologists, folklorists, sociologists, historians, engineers, surgeons, etc.) may be of some assistance to each other in validating these cases individually and in general. 2. HISTORICAL OVERVIEW In order to attempt to deal with extreme allegations of what constitute child sex rings, it is important to have an historical perspective of society's attitudes about child sexual abuse. I will provide a brief synopsis of recent attitudes in the United States here, but those desiring more detailed information about such societal attitudes, particularly in other cultures and in the more distant past, should refer to Florence Rush's book _The Best Kept Secret: Sexual Abuse of Children_ (1980) and Sander J. Breiner's book _Slaughter of the Innocents_ (1990). Society's attitude about child sexual abuse and exploitation can be summed up in one word: *denial*. Most people do not want to hear about it and would prefer to pretend that child sexual victimization just does not occur. Today, however, it is difficult to pretend that it does not happen. Stories and reports about child sexual victimization are daily occurrences. 1579 It is important for professionals dealing with child sexual abuse to recognize and learn to manage this denial of a serious problem. Professionals must overcome the denial and encourage society to deal with, report, and prevent sexual victimization of children. Some professionals, however, in their zeal to make American society more aware of this victimization, tend to exaggerate the problem. Presentations and literature with poorly documented or misleading claims about one in three children being sexually molested, the $5 billion child pornography industry, child slavery rings, and 50,000 stranger-abducted children are not uncommon. The problem is bad enough; it is not necessary to exaggerate it. Professionals should cite reputable and scientific studies and note the sources of information. If they do not, when the exaggerations and distortions are discovered, their credibility and the credibility of the issue are lost. -- a. "STRANGER DANGER". During the 1950s and 1960s the primary focus in the literature and discussions on sexual abuse of children was on "stranger danger" - the dirty old man in the wrinkled raincoat. If one could not deny the existence of child sexual abuse, one described victimization in simplistic terms of good and evil. The "stranger danger" approach to preventing child sexual abuse is clear-cut. We immediately know who the good guys and bad guys are and what they look like. The FBI distributed a poster that epitomized this attitude. It showed a man, with his hat pulled down, hiding behind a tree with a bag of candy in his hands. He was waiting for a sweet little girl walking home from school alone. At the top it read: "Boys and Girls, color the page, memorize the rules." At the bottom it read: "For your protection, remember to turn down gifts from strangers, and refuse rides offered by strangers." The poster clearly contrasts the evil of the offender with the goodness of the child victim. The myth of the child molester as the dirty old man in the wrinkled raincoat is now being reevaluated, based on what we now know about the kinds of people who victimize children. The fact is a child molester can look like anyone else and even be someone we know and like. There is another myth that is still with us and is far less likely to be discussed. This is the myth of the child victim as a completely innocent little girl walking down the street minding her own business. It may be more important to dispel this myth than the myth of the evil offender, especially when talking about the sexual exploitation of children and child sex rings. Child victims can be boys as well as girls, and not all victims are little "angels". 1580 Society seems to have a problem dealing with any sexual abuse case in which the offender is not completely "bad" or the victim is not completely "good". Child victims who, for example, simply behave like human beings and respond to the attention and affection of offenders by voluntarily and repeatedly returning to the offender's home are troubling. It confuses us to see the victims in child pornography giggling or laughing. At professional conferences on child sexual abuse, child prostitution is almost never discussed. It is the form of sexual victimization of children most unlike the stereotype of the innocent girl victim. Child prostitutes, by definition, participate in and often initiate their victimization. Furthermore child prostitutes and the participants in child sex rings are frequently boys. One therapist recently told me that a researcher's data on child molestation were misleading because many of the child victims in question were child prostitutes. This implies that child prostitutes are not "real" child victims. In a survey by the _Los Angeles Times_, only 37 percent of those responding thought that child prostitution constituted child sexual abuse (Timnik, 1985). Whether or not it seems fair, when adults and children have sex, the child is always the victim. -- b. INTRAFAMILIAL CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE. During the 1970s, primarily as a result of the women's movement, society began to learn more about the sexual victimization of children. We began to realize that most children are sexually molested by someone they know who is usually a relative - a father, step-father, uncle, grandfather, older brother, or even a female relative. Some mitigate the difficulty of accepting this by adopting the view that only members of socio-economic groups other than theirs engage in such behavior. It quickly became apparent that warnings about not taking gifts from strangers were not good enough to prevent child sexual abuse. Consequently, we began to develop prevention programs based on more complex concepts, such as good touching and bad touching. the "yucky" feeling, and the child's right to say no. These are not the kinds of things you can easily and effectively communicate in fifty minutes to hundreds of kids packed into a school auditorium. These are very difficult issues, and programs must he carefully developed and evaluated. In the late 1970s child sexual abuse became almost synonymous with incest, and incest meant father-daughter sexual relations. Therefore, the focus of child sexual abuse intervention became father-daughter incest. Even today, the vast majority of training materials, articles, and books on this topic refer to child sexual abuse only in terms of intrafamilial father-daughter incest. Incest is, in fact, sexual relations between individuals of any age too closely related to marry. It need not necessarily involve an adult and a child, and it goes beyond child sexual abuse. But more importantly child sexual abuse goes beyond father-daughter incest. Intrafamilial incest between an adult and child may be the most common form of child sexual abuse, but it is not the only form. 1581 The progress of the 1970s in recognizing that child sexual abuse was not simply a result of "stranger danger" was an important breakthrough in dealing with society's denial. The battle, however, is not over. The persistent voice of society luring us back to the more simple concept of "stranger danger" may never go away. It is the voice of denial. -- c. RETURN TO "STRANGER DANGER". In the early 1980s the issue of missing children rose to prominence and was focused primarily on the stranger abduction of little children. Runaways, throwaways, noncustodial abductions, nonfamily abductions of teenagers - all major problems within the missing children's issue - were almost forgotten. People no longer wanted to hear about good touching and bad touching and the child's right to say "no". They wanted to be told, in thirty minutes or less, how they could protect their children from abduction by strangers. We were back to the horrible but simple and clear-cut concept of "stranger danger". In the emotional zeal over the problem of missing children, isolated horror stories and distorted numbers were sometimes used. The American public was led to believe that most of the missing children had been kidnapped by pedophiles - a new term for child molesters. The media, profiteers, and well-intentioned zealots all played big roles in this hype and hysteria over missing children. -- d. THE ACQUAINTANCE MOLESTER. Only recently has society begun to deal openly with a critical piece in the puzzle of child sexual abuse - acquaintance molestation. This seems to be the most difficult aspect of the problem for us to face. People seem more willing to accept a father or stepfather, particularly one from another socio-economic group, as a child molester than a parish priest, a next-door neighbor, a police officer, a pediatrician, an FBI agent, or a Scout leader. The acquaintance molester, by definition, is one of us. These kinds of molesters have always existed, but our society has not been willing to accept that fact. Sadly, one of the main reasons that the criminal justice system and the public were forced to confront the problem of acquaintance molestation was the preponderance of lawsuits arising from the negligence of many institutions. One of the unfortunate outcomes of society's preference for the "stranger danger" concept is what I call "say no, yell, and tell" guilt. This is the result of prevention programs that tell potential child victims to avoid sexual abuse by saying no, yelling, and telling. This might work with the stranger hiding behind a tree. Adolescent boys seduced by a Scout leader or children who actively participate in their victimization often feel guilty and blame themselves because they did not do what they were "supposed" to do. They may feel a need to describe their victimization in more socially acceptable but sometimes inaccurate ways that relieve them of this guilt. 1582 While American society has become increasingly more aware of the problem of the acquaintance molester and related problems such as child pornography, the voice calling us back to "stranger danger" still persists. -- e. SATANISM: A NEW FORM OF "STRANGER DANGER". In today's version of "stranger danger", it is the satanic devil worshipers who are snatching and victimizing the children. Many who warned us in the early 1980s about pedophiles snatching fifty thousand kids a year now contend they were wrong only about who was doing the kidnapping, not about the number abducted. This is again the desire for the simple and clear-cut explanation for a complex problem. For those who know anything about criminology, one of the oldest theories of crime is demonology: The devil makes you do it. This makes it even easier to deal with the child molester who is the "pillar of the community". It is not his fault; it is not our fault. There is no way we could have known; the devil made him do it. This explanation has tremendous appeal because, like "stranger danger", it presents the clear-cut, black-and-white struggle between good and evil as the explanation for child abduction, exploitation, and abuse. In regard to satanic "ritual" abuse, today we may not be where we were with incest in the 1960s, but where we were with missing children in the early 1980s. The best data now available (the 1990 _National Incidence Studies on Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway Children in America_) estimate the number of stereotypical child abductions at between 200 and 300 a year, and the number of stranger abduction homicides of children at between 43 and 147 a year. Approximately half of the abducted children are teenagers. Today's facts are significantly different from yesterday's perceptions, and those who exaggerated the problem, however well-intentioned, have lost credibility and damaged the reality of the problem. 3. LAW ENFORCEMENT TRAINING The belief that there is a connection between satanism and crime is certainly not new. As previously stated, one of the oldest theories concerning the causes of crime is demonology. Fear of satanic or occult activity has peaked from time to time throughout history. Concern in the late 1970s focused primarily on "unexplained" deaths and mutilations of animals, and in recent years has focused on child sexual abuse and the alleged human sacrifice of missing children. In 1999 it will probably focus on the impending "end of the world". Today satanism and a wide variety of other terms are used interchangeably in reference to certain crimes. This discussion will analyze the nature of "satanic, occult, ritualistic" crime primarily as it pertains to the abuse of children and focus on appropriate *law enforcement* responses to it. 1583 Recently a flood of law enforcement seminars and conferences have dealt with satanic and ritualistic crime. These training conferences have various titles, such as "Occult in Crime", "Satanic Cults", 'Ritualistic Crime Seminar", "Satanic Influences in Homicide", "Occult Crimes, Satanism and Teen Suicide", and "Ritualistic Abuse of Children". The typical conference runs from one to three days, and many of them include the same presenters and instructors. A wide variety of topics are usually discussed during this training either as individual presentations by different instructors or grouped together by one or more instructors. Typical topics covered include the following: -- Historical overview of satanism, witchcraft, and paganism from ancient to modern times. -- Nature and influence of fantasy role-playing games, such as "Dungeons and Dragons". -- Lyrics, symbolism, and influence of rock and roll, Heavy Metal, and Black Metal music. -- Teenage "stoner" gangs, their symbols, and their vandalism. -- Teenage suicide by adolescents dabbling in the occult. -- Crimes committed by self-styled satanic practitioners, including grave and church desecrations and robberies, animal mutilations, and even murders. -- Ritualistic abuse of children as part of bizarre ceremonies and human sacrifices. -- Organized, Traditional, or Multigenerational satanic groups involved in organized conspiracies, such as taking over day care centers, infiltrating police departments, and trafficking in human sacrifice victims. -- The "Big Conspiracy" theory, which implies that satanists are responsible for such things as Adolph Hitler, World War II, abortion, illegal drugs, pornography, Watergate, and Irangate, and have infiltrated the Department of Justice, the Pentagon, and the White House. During the conferences, these nine areas are linked together through the liberal use of the word "satanism" and some common symbolism (pentagrams, 666, demons, etc.). The implication often is that all are part of a continuum of behavior, a single problem or some common conspiracy. The distinctions among the different areas are blurred even if occasionally a presenter tries to make them. The information presented is a mixture of fact, theory, opinion, fantasy, and paranoia, and because some of it can be proven or corroborated (symbols on rock albums, graffiti on walls, desecration of cemeteries, vandalism, etc.), the implication is that it is all true and documented. Material produced by religious organizations, photocopies and slides of newspaper articles, and videotapes of tabloid television programs are used to supplement the training and are presented as "evidence" of the existence and nature of the problem. 1584 All of this is complicated by the fact that almost any discussion of satanism and the occult is interpreted in the light of the religious beliefs of those in the audience. Faith, not logic and reason, governs the religious beliefs of most people. As a result, some normally skeptical law enforcement officers accept the information disseminated at these conferences without critically evaluating it or questioning the sources. Officers who do not normally depend on church groups for law enforcement criminal intelligence, who know that media accounts of their own cases are notoriously inaccurate, and who scoff at and joke about tabloid television accounts of bizarre behavior suddenly embrace such material when presented in the context of satanic activity. Individuals not in law enforcement seem even more likely to do so. Other disciplines, especially therapists, have also conducted training conferences on the characteristics and identification of "ritual" child abuse. Nothing said at such conferences will change the religious beliefs of those in attendance. Such conferences illustrate the highly emotional nature of and the ambiguity and wide variety of terms involved in this issue. 4. DEFINITIONS The words "satanic", "occult", and "ritual" are often used interchangeably. It is difficult to define "satanism" precisely. No attempt will be made to do so here However, it is important to realize that, for some people, any religious belief system other than their own is "satanic". The Ayatollah Khomeini and Saddam Hussein referred to the United States as the "Great Satan". In the British Parliament a Protestant leader called the Pope the Antichrist. In a book titled _Prepare For War_ (1987), Rebecca Brown, M.D. has a chapter entitled "Is Roman Catholicism Witchcraft?" Dr. Brown also lists among the "doorways" to satanic power and/or demon infestation the following: fortune tellers, horoscopes, fraternity oaths, vegetarianism, yoga, self-hypnosis, relaxation tapes, acupuncture, biofeedback, fantasy role-playing games, adultery, homosexuality, pornography, judo, karate, and rock music. Dr. Brown states that rock music "was a carefully masterminded plan by none other than Satan himself" (p. 84). The ideas expressed in this book may seem extreme and even humorous. This book, however, has been recommended as a serious reference in law enforcement training material on this topic. 1585 In books, lectures, handout material, and conversations, I have heard all of the following referred to as satanism: -- Church of Satan -- Ordo Templi Orientis -- Temple of Set -- Demonology -- Witchcraft -- Occult -- Paganism -- Santeria -- Voodoo -- Rosicrucians -- Freemasonry -- Knights Templar -- Stoner Gangs -- Heavy Metal Music -- Rock Music -- KKK -- Nazis -- Skinheads -- Scientology -- Unification Church -- The Way -- Hare Krishna -- Rajneesh -- Religious Cults -- New Age -- Astrology -- Channeling -- Transcendental Meditation -- Holistic Medicine -- Buddhism -- Hinduism -- Mormonism -- Islam -- Orthodox Church -- Roman Catholicism At law enforcement training conferences, it is witchcraft, santeria, paganism, and the occult that are most often referred to as forms of satanism. It may be a matter of definition, but these things are not necessarily the same as traditional satanism. The worship of lunar goddesses and nature and the practice of fertility rituals are not satanism. Santeria is a combination of 17th century Roman Catholicism and African paganism. Occult means simply "hidden". All unreported or unsolved crimes might be regarded as occult, but in this context the term refers to the action or influence of supernatural powers, some secret knowledge of them, or an interest in paranormal phenomena, and does not imply satanism, evil, wrongdoing, or crime. Indeed, historically, the principal crimes deserving of consideration as "occult crimes" are the frauds perpetrated by faith healers, fortune tellers and "psychics" who for a fee claim cures, arrange visitations with dead loved ones, and commit other financial crimes against the gullible. 1586 Many individuals define satanism from a totally Christian perspective, using this word to describe the power of evil in the world. With this definition, any crimes, especially those which are particularly bizarre, repulsive, or cruel, can be viewed as satanic in nature. Yet it is just as difficult to precisely define satanism as it is to precisely define Christianity or any complex spiritual belief system. -- a. WHAT IS RITUAL? The biggest confusion is over the word "ritual". During training conferences on this topic, ritual almost always comes to mean "satanic" or at least "spiritual". "Ritual" can refer to a prescribed religious ceremony, but in its broader meaning refers to any customarily-repeated act or series of acts. The need to repeat these acts can be cultural, sexual, or psychological as well as spiritual. Cultural rituals could include such things as what a family eats on Thanksgiving Day, or when and how presents are opened at Christmas. The initiation ceremonies of fraternities, sororities, gangs, and other social clubs are other examples of cultural rituals. Since 1972 I have lectured about sexual ritual, which is nothing more than repeatedly engaging in an act or series of acts in a certain manner because of a *sexual* need. In order to become aroused and/or gratified, a person must engage in the act in a certain way. This sexual ritual can include such things as the physical characteristics, age, or gender of the victim, the particular sequence of acts, the bringing or taking of specific objects, and the use of certain words or phrases. This is more than the concept of M.O. (Method of Operation) known to most police officers. M.O. is something done by an offender because it works. Sexual ritual is something done by an offender because of a need. Deviant acts, such as urinating on, defecating on, or even eviscerating a victim, are far more likely to be the result of sexual ritual than religious or "satanic" ritual. From a criminal investigative perspective, two other forms of ritualism must be recognized. The _Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders_ (DSM-III-R) (APA, 1987) defines "Obsessive- Compulsive Disorder" as "repetitive, purposeful, and intentional behaviors that are performed in response to an obsession, or according to certain rules or in a stereotyped fashion" (p. 247). Such compulsive behavior frequently involves rituals. Although such behavior usually involves noncriminal activity such as excessive hand washing or checking that doors are locked, occasionally compulsive ritualism can be part of criminal activity. Certain gamblers or firesetters, for example, are thought by some authorities to be motivated in part through such compulsions. Ritual can also stem from psychotic hallucinations and delusions. A crime can be committed in a precise manner because a voice told the offender to do it that way or because a divine mission required it. 1587 To make this more confusing, cultural, religious, sexual, and psychological ritual can overlap. Some psychotic people are preoccupied with religious delusions and hear the voice of God or Satan telling them to do things of a religious nature. Offenders who feel little, if any, guilt over their crimes may need little justification for their antisocial behavior. As human beings, however, they may have fears, concerns, and anxiety over getting away with their criminal acts. It is difficult to pray to God for success in doing things that are against His Commandments. A negative spiritual belief system may fulfill their human need for assistance from and belief in a greater power or to deal with their superstitions. Compulsive ritualism (e.g., excessive cleanliness or fear of disease) can be introduced into sexual behavior. Even many "normal" people have a need for order and predictability and therefore may engage in family or work rituals. Under stress or in times of change, this need for order and ritual may increase. Ritual crime may fulfill the cultural, spiritual, sexual, and psychological needs of an offender. Crimes may be ritualistically motivated or may have ritualistic elements. The ritual behavior may also fulfill basic criminal needs to manipulate victims, get rid of rivals, send a message to enemies, and intimidate co-conspirators. The leaders of a group may want to play upon the beliefs and superstitions of those around them and try to convince accomplices and enemies that they, the leaders, have special or "supernatural" powers. The important point for the criminal investigator is to realize that most ritualistic criminal behavior is not motivated simply by satanic or any religious ceremonies. At some conferences, presenters have attempted to make an issue of distinguishing between "ritual", "ritualized", and "ritualistic" abuse of children. These subtle distinctions, however, seem to be of no significant value to the criminal investigator. -- c. WHAT IS "RITUAL" CHILD ABUSE? I cannot define "ritual child abuse" precisely and prefer not to use the term. I am frequently forced to use it (as throughout this discussion) so that people will have some idea what I am discussing. Use of the term, however, is confusing, misleading, and counterproductive. The newer term "satanic ritual abuse" (abbreviated "SRA") is even worse. Certain observations, however, are important for investigative understanding. Most people today use the term to refer to abuse of children that is part of some evil spiritual belief system, which almost by definition must be satanic. Dr. Lawrence Pazder, coauthor of _Michelle Remembers_, defines "ritualized abuse of children" as "repeated physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual assaults combined with a systematic use of symbols and secret ceremonies designed to turn a child against itself, family, society, and God" (presentation, Richmond, Va., May 7,1987). He also states that "the sexual assault has ritualistic meaning and is not for sexual gratification". 1588 This definition may have value for academics, sociologists, and therapists, but it creates potential problems for law enforcement. Certain acts engaged in with children (i.e. kissing, touching, appearing naked, etc.) may be criminal if performed for sexual gratification. If the ritualistic acts were in fact performed for spiritual indoctrination, potential prosecution can be jeopardized, particularly if the acts can be defended as constitutionally protected religious expression. The mutilation of a baby's genitals for sadistic sexual pleasure is a crime. The circumcision of a baby's genitals for religious reasons is most likely *not* a crime. The intent of the acts is important for criminal prosecution. Not all spiritually motivated ritualistic activity is satanic. Santeria, witchcraft, voodoo, and most religious cults are not satanism. In fact, most spiritually- or religiously-based abuse of children has nothing to do with satanism. Most child abuse that could be termed "ritualistic" by various definitions is more likely to be physical and psychological rather than sexual in nature. If a distinction needs to be made between satanic and nonsatanic child abuse, the indicators for that distinction must be related to specific satanic symbols, artifacts, or doctrine rather than the mere presence of any ritualistic element. Not all such ritualistic activity with a child is a crime. Almost all parents with religious beliefs indoctrinate their children into that belief system. Is male circumcision for religious reasons child abuse? Is the religious circumcision of females child abuse? Does having a child kneel on a hard floor reciting the rosary constitute child abuse? Does having a child chant a satanic prayer or attend a black mass constitute child abuse? Does a religious belief in corporal punishment constitute child abuse? Does group care of children in a commune or cult constitute child abuse? Does the fact that any acts in question were performed with parental permission affect the nature of the crime? Many ritualistic acts, whether satanic or not, are simply not crimes. To open the Pandora's box of labeling child abuse as "ritualistic" simply because it involves a spiritual belief system means to apply the definition to all acts by all spiritual belief systems. The day may come when many in the forefront of concern about ritual abuse will regret they opened the box. When a victim describes and investigation corroborates what sounds like ritualistic activity. several possibilities must be considered. The ritualistic activity may be part of the excessive religiosity of mentally disturbed, even psychotic offenders. It may be a misunderstood part of sexual ritual. The ritualistic activity may be incidental to any real abuse. The offender may be involved in ritualistic activity with a child and also may be abusing a child, but one may have little or nothing to do with the other. The offender may be deliberately engaging in ritualistic activity with a child as part of child abuse and exploitation. The motivation, however, may be not to indoctrinate the child into a belief system, but to lower the inhibitions of, control, manipulate, and/or confuse the child. In all the turmoil over this issue, it would be very effective strategy for any child molester deliberately to introduce ritualistic elements into his crime in order to confuse the child and therefore the criminal justice system. This would, however, make the activity M.O. and not ritual. 1589 The ritualistic activity and the child abuse may be integral parts of some spiritual belief system. In that case the greatest risk is to the children of the practitioners. But this is true of all cults and religions, not just satanic cults. A high potential of abuse exists for any children raised in a group isolated from the mainstream of society, especially if the group has a charismatic leader whose orders are unquestioned and blindly obeyed by the members. Sex, money, and power are often the main motivations of the leaders of such cults. -- c. WHAT MAKES A CRIME SATANIC, OCCULT, OR RITUALISTIC? Some would answer that it is the offender's spiritual beliefs or membership in a cult or church. If that is the criterion, why not label the crimes committed by Protestants, Catholics, and Jews in the same way? Are the atrocities of Jim Jones in Guyana Christian crimes? Some would answer that it is the presence of certain symbols in the possession or home of the perpetrator. What does it mean then to find a crucifix, Bible, or rosary in the possession or home of a bank robber, embezzler, child molester, or murderer? If different criminals possess the same symbols, are they necessarily part of one big conspiracy? Others would answer that it is the presence of certain symbols such as pentagrams, inverted crosses, and 666 at the crime scene. What does it mean then to find a cross spray painted on a wall or carved into the body of a victim? What does it mean for a perpetrator, as in one recent case profiled by my Unit, to leave a Bible tied to his murder victim? What about the possibility that an offender deliberately left such symbols to make it look like a "satanic" crime? Some would argue that it is the bizarreness or cruelness of the crime: body mutilation, amputation, drinking of blood, eating of flesh, use of urine or feces. Does this mean that all individuals involved in lust murder, sadism, vampirism, cannibalism, urophilia, and coprophilia are satanists or occult practitioners? What does this say about the bizarre crimes of psychotic killers such as Ed Gein or Richard Trenton Chase, both of whom mutilated their victims as part of their psychotic delusions? Can a crime that is not sexually deviant, bizarre, or exceptionally violent be satanic? Can white collar crime be satanic? 1590 A few might even answer that it is the fact that the crime was committed on a date with satanic or occult significance (Halloween, May Eve, etc.) or the fact that the perpetrator claims that Satan told him to commit the crime. What does this mean for crimes committed on Thanksgiving or Christmas? What does this say about crimes committed by perpetrators who claim that God or Jesus told them to do it? One note of interest is the fact that in handout and reference material I have collected, the number of dates with satanic or occult significance ranges from 8 to 110. This is compounded by the fact that it is sometimes stated that satanists can celebrate these holidays on several days on either side of the official date or that the birthdays of practitioners can also be holidays. The exact names and exact dates of the holidays and the meaning of symbols listed may also vary depending on who prepared the material The handout material is often distributed without identifying the author or documenting the original source of the information. It is then frequently photocopied by attendees and passed on to other police officers with no one really knowing its validity or origin. Most, however, would probably answer that what makes a crime satanic, occult, or ritualistic is the motivation for the crime. It is a crime that is spiritually motivated by a religious belief system. How then do we label the following true crimes? -- Parents defy a court order and send their children to an unlicensed Christian school. -- Parents refuse to send their children to any school because they are waiting for the second coming of Christ. -- Parents beat their child to death because he or she will not follow their Christian belief. -- Parents violate child labor laws because they believe the Bible requires such work. -- Individuals bomb an abortion clinic or kidnap the doctor because their religious belief system says abortion is murder. -- A child molester reads the Bible to his victims in order to justify his sex acts with them. -- Parents refuse life-saving medical treatment for a child because of their religious beliefs. -- Parents starve and beat their child to death because their minister said the child was possessed by demonic spirits. Some people would argue that the Christians who committed the above crimes misunderstood and distorted their religion while satanists who commit crimes are following theirs. But who decides what constitutes a misinterpretation of a religious belief system? The individuals who committed the above-described crimes, however misguided, believed that they were following their religion as they understood it. Religion was and is used to justify such social behavior as the Crusades, the Inquisition, Apartheid, segregation, and recent violence in Northern Ireland, India, Lebanon and Nigeria. 1591 Who decides exactly what "satanists" believe? In this country, we cannot even agree on what Christians believe. At many law enforcement conferences The _Satanic Bible_ is used for this, and it is often contrasted or compared with the Judeo-Christian Bible. The _Satanic Bible_ is, in essence, a short paperback book written by one man, Anton LaVey, in 1969. To compare it to a book written by multiple authors over a period of thousands of years is ridiculous, even ignoring the possibility of Divine revelation in the Bible. What satanists believe certainly isn't limited to other people's interpretation of a few books. More importantly it is subject to some degree of interpretation by individual believers just as Christianity is. Many admitted "satanists" claim they do not even believe in God, the devil, or any supreme deity. The criminal behavior of one person claiming belief in a religion does not necessarily imply guilt or blame to others sharing that belief. In addition, simply claiming membership in a religion does not necessarily make you a member. The fact is that far more crime and child abuse has been committed by zealots in the name of God, Jesus, Mohammed, and other mainstream religion than has ever been committed in the name of Satan. Many people, including myself, don't like that statement, but the truth of it is undeniable. Although defining a crime as satanic, occult, or ritualistic would probably involve a combination of the criteria set forth above, I have been unable to clearly define such a crime. Each potential definition presents a different set of problems when measured against an objective, rational, and constitutional perspective. In a crime with multiple subjects, each offender may have a different motivation for the same crime. Whose motivation determines the label for the crime? It is difficult to count or track something you cannot even define. I have discovered, however, that the facts of so-called "satanic crimes" are often significantly different from what is described st training conferences or in the media. The actual involvement of satanism or the occult in these cases usually turns out to be secondary, insignificant, or nonexistent. Occult or ritual crime surveys done by the states of Michigan (1990) and Virginia (1991) have only confirmed this "discovery". Some law enforcement officers, unable to find serious "satanic" crime in their communities, assume they are just lucky or vigilant and the serious problems must be in other jurisdictions. The officers in the other jurisdictions, also unable find it, assume the same. 5. MULTlDlMENSlONAL CHILD SEX RINGS Sometime in early 1983 I was first contacted by a law enforcement agency for guidance in what was then thought to be an unusual case. The exact date of the contact is unknown because its significance was not recognized at the time. In the months and years that followed, I received more and more inquiries about "these kinds of cases". The requests for assistance came (and continue to come) from all over the United States. Many of the aspects of these cases varied, but there were also some commonalties. Early on, however, one particularly difficult and potentially significant issue began to emerge. 1592 These cases involved and continue to involve unsubstantiated allegations of bizarre activity that are difficult either to prove or disprove. Many of the unsubstantiated allegations, however, do not seem to have occurred or even be possible. These cases seem to call into question the credibility of victims of child sexual abuse and exploitation. These are the most polarizing, frustrating, and baffling cases I have encountered in more than 18 years of studying the criminal aspects of deviant sexual behavior. I privately sought answers, but said nothing publicly about those cases until 1985. In October 1984 the problems in investigating and prosecuting one of these cases in Jordan, Minnesota became publicly known. In February 1985, at the FBI Academy, the FBI sponsored and I coordinated the first national seminar held to study "these kinds of cases". Later in 1985, similar conferences sponsored by other organizations were held in Washington, D.C.; Sacramento, California; and Chicago, Illinois. These cases have also been discussed at many recent regional and national conferences dealing with the sexual victimization of children and Multiple Personality Disorder. Few answers have come from these conferences. I continue to be contacted on these cases on a regular basis. Inquiries have been received from law enforcement officers, prosecutors, therapists, victims, families of victims, and the media from all over the United States and now foreign countries. I do not claim to understand completely all the dynamics of these cases. I continue to keep an open mind and to search for answers to the questions and solutions to the problems they pose. This discussion is based on my analysis of the several hundred of "these kinds of cases" on which I have consulted since 1983. -- a. DYNAMICS OF CASES. What are "these kinds of cases"? They were and continue to be difficult to define. They all involve allegations of what sounds like child sexual abuse, but with a combination of some atypical dynamics. These cases seem to have the following four dynamics in common: (1) multiple young victims, (2) multiple offenders, (3) fear as the controlling tactic, and (4) bizarre or ritualistic activity. ---- (1) MULTIPLE YOUNG VICTIMS. In almost all the cases the sexual abuse was alleged to have taken place or at least begun when the victims were between the ages of birth and six. This very young age may be an important key to understanding these cases. In addition the victims all described multiple children being abused. The numbers ranged from three or four to as many as several hundred victims. ---- (2) MULTIPLE OFFENDERS. In almost all the cases the victims reported numerous offenders. The numbers ranged from two or three all the way up to dozens of offenders. In one recent case the victims alleged 400-500 offenders were involved. Interestingly many of the offenders (perhaps as many as 40-50 percent) were reported to be females. The multiple offenders were often family members and were described as being part of a cult, occult, or satanic group. 1593 ---- (3) FEAR AS CONTROLLING TACTIC. Child molesters in general are able to maintain control and ensure the secrecy of their victims in a variety of ways. These include attention and affection, coercion, blackmail, embarrassment, threats, and violence. In almost all of these cases I have studied, the victims described being frightened and reported threats against themselves, their families, their friends, and even their pets. They reported witnessing acts of violence perpetrated to reinforce this fear. It is my belief that this fear and the traumatic memory of the events may be another key to understanding many of these cases. ---- (4) BIZARRE OR RITUALISTIC ACTIVITY. This is the most difficult dynamic of these cases to describe. "Bizarre" is a relative term. Is the use of urine or feces in sexual activity bizarre, or is it a well-documented aspect of sexual deviancy, or is it part of established satanic rituals? As previously discussed, the ritualistic aspect is even more difficult to define. How do you distinguish acts performed in a precise manner to enhance or allow sexual arousal from those acts that fulfill spiritual needs or comply with "religious" ceremonies? Victims in these cases report ceremonies, chanting, robes and costumes, drugs, use of urine and feces, animal sacrifice, torture, abduction, mutilation, murder, and even cannibalism and vampirism. All things considered, the word "bizarre" is probably preferable to the word "ritual" to describe this activity. When I was contacted on these cases, it was very common for a prosecutor or investigator to say that the alleged victims have been evaluated by an "expert" who will stake his or her professional reputation on the fact that the victims are telling the "truth". When asked how many cases this expert had previously evaluated involving these four dynamics, the answer was always the same: none! The experts usually had only dealt with one-on-one intrafamilial sexual abuse cases. Recently an even more disturbing trend has developed. More and more of the victims have been identified or evaluated by experts who have been trained to identify and specialize in satanic ritual abuse. -- b. CHARACTERISTICS OF MULTIDIMENSIONAL CHILD SEX RINGS. As previously stated, a major problem in communicating, training, and researching in this area is the term used to define "these kinds of cases". Many refer to them as "ritual, ritualistic, or ritualized abuse of children cases" or "satanic ritual abuse (SRA) cases". Such words carry specialized meanings for many people and might imply that all these cases are connected to occult or satanic activity. If ritual abuse is not necessarily occult or satanic, but is "merely" severe, repeated, prolonged abuse, why use a term that, in the minds of so many, implies such specific motivation? Others refer to these cases as "multioffender/multivictim cases". The problem with this term is that most multiple offender and victim cases do not involve the four dynamics discussed above. 1594 For want of a better term, I have decided to refer to "these kinds of cases" as "multidimensional child sex rings". Right now I seem to be the only one using this term. I am, however, not sure if this is truly a distinct kind of child sex ring case or just a case not properly handled. Following are the general characteristics of these multidimensional child sex ring cases as contrasted with more common historical child sex ring cases [see my monograph _Child Sex Rings: A Behavioral Analysis] (1989) for a discussion of the characteristics of historical child sex ring cases]. ---- (1) FEMALE OFFENDERS. As many as 40-50 percent of the offenders in these cases are reported to be women. This is in marked contrast to historical child sex rings in which almost all the offenders are men. ---- (2) SITUATIONAL MOLESTERS. The offenders appear to be sexually interacting with the child victims for reasons other than a true sexual preference for children. The children are substitute victims, and the abusive activity may have little to do with pedophilia [see my monograph _Child Molesters: A Behavioral Analysis_ (1987) for a further explanation about types of molesters]. ---- (3) MALE AND FEMALE VICTIMS. Both boys and girls appear to be targeted, but with an apparent preference for girls. Almost all the adult survivors are female, but day care cases frequently involve male as well as female victims. The most striking characteristic of the victims, however, is their young age (generally birth to six years old when the abuse began). ---- (4) MULTIDIMENSIONAL MOTIVATION. Sexual gratification appears to be only part of the motivation for the "sexual" activity. Many people today argue that the motivation is "spiritual" - possibly part of an occult ceremony. It is my opinion that the motivation may have more to do with anger, hostility, rage and resentment carried out against weak and vulnerable victims. Much of the ritualistic abuse of children may not be sexual in nature. Some of the activity may, in fact, be physical abuse directed at sexually-significant body parts (penis, anus, nipples). This may also partially explain the large percentage of female offenders. Physical abuse of children by females is well- documented. ---- (5) PORNOGRAPHY AND PARAPHERNALIA. Although many of the victims of multidimensional child sex rings claim that pictures and videotapes of the activity were made, no such visual record has been found by law enforcement. In recent years, American law enforcement has seized large amounts of child pornography portraying children in a wide variety of sexual activity and perversions. None of it, however, portrays the kind of bizarre and/or ritualistic activity described by these victims. Perhaps these offenders use and store their pornography and paraphernalia in ways different from preferential child molesters (pedophiles). This is an area needing additional research and investigation. 1595 ---- (6) CONTROL THROUGH FEAR. Control through fear may be the overriding characteristic of these cases. Control is maintained by frightening the children. A very young child might not be able to understand the significance of much of the sexual activity but certainly understands fear. The stories that the victims tell may be their perceived versions of severe traumatic memories. They may be the victims of a severely traumatized childhood in which being sexually abused was just one of the many negative events affecting their lives. -- c. SCENARIOS. Multidimensional child sex rings typically emerge from one of four scenarios: (1) adult survivors, (2) day care cases, (3) family/isolated neighborhood cases, and (4) custody/visitation disputes. ---- (1) ADULT SURVIVORS. In adult survivor cases, adults of almost any age - nearly always women - are suffering the consequences of a variety of personal problems and failures in their lives (e.g., promiscuity, eating disorders, drug and alcohol abuse, failed relationships, self- mutilation, unemployment). As a result of some precipitating stress or crisis, they often seek therapy. They are frequently hypnotized, intentionally or unintentionally, as part of the therapy and are often diagnosed as suffering from Multiple Personality Disorder. Gradually, during the therapy, the adults reveal previously unrecalled memories of early childhood victimization that includes multiple victims and offenders, fear as the controlling tactic, and bizarre or ritualistic activity. Adult survivors may also claim that "cues" from certain events in their recent life "triggered" the previously repressed memories. The multiple offenders are often described as members of a cult or satanic group. Parents, family members, clergy, civic leaders, police officers (or individuals wearing police uniforms), and other prominent members of society are frequently described as present at and participating in the exploitation. The alleged bizarre activity often includes insertion of foreign objects, witnessing mutilations, and sexual acts and murders being filmed or photographed. The offenders may allegedly still be harassing or threatening the victims. They report being particularly frightened on certain dates and by certain situations. In several of these cases, women (called "breeders") claim to have had babies that were turned over for human sacrifice. This type of case is probably best typified by books like _Michelle Remembers_ (Smith & Pazder, 1980), _Satan's Underground_ (Stratford, 1988), and _Satan's Children_ (Mayer, 1991). 1596 If and when therapists come to believe the patient or decide the law requires it, the police or FBI are sometimes contacted to conduct an investigation. The therapists may also fear for their safety because they now know the "secret". The therapists will frequently tell law enforcement that they will stake their professional reputation on the fact that their patient is telling the truth. Some adult survivors go directly to law enforcement. They may also go from place to place in an effort to find therapists or investigators who will listen to and believe them. Their ability to provide verifiable details varies and many were raised in apparently religious homes. A few adult survivors are now reporting participation in specific murders or child abductions that are known to have taken place. ---- (2) DAY CARE CASES. In day care cases children currently or formerly attending a day care center gradually describe their victimization at the center and at other locations to which they were taken by the day care staff. The cases include multiple victims and offenders, fear, and bizarre or ritualistic activity, with a particularly high number of female offenders. Descriptions of strange games, insertion of foreign objects, killing of animals, photographing of activities, and wearing of costumes are common. The accounts of the young children, however, do not seem to be quite as "bizarre" as those of the adult survivors, with fewer accounts of human sacrifice. ---- (3) FAMILY/ISOLATED NEIGHBORHOOD CASES. In family/isolated neighborhood cases, children describe their victimization within their family or extended family. The group is often defined by geographic boundary, such as a cul-de-sac, apartment building, or isolated rural setting. Such accounts are most common in rural or suburban communities with high concentrations of religiously conservative people. The stories are similar to those told of the day care setting, but with more male offenders. The basic dynamics remain the same, but victims tend to be more than six years of age, and the scenario may also involve a custody or visitation dispute. ---- (4) CUSTODY/VISITATION DISPUTE. In custody/visitation dispute cases, the allegations emanate from a custody or visitation dispute over at least one child under the age of seven. The four dynamics described above make these cases extremely difficult to handle. When complicated by the strong emotions of this scenario, the cases can be overwhelming. This is especially true if the disclosing child victims have been taken into the "underground" by a parent during the custody or visitation dispute. Some of these parents or relatives may even provide authorities with diaries or tapes of their interviews with the children. An accurate evaluation and assessment of a young child held in isolation in this underground while being "debriefed" by a parent or someone else is almost impossible. However well- intentioned, these self-appointed investigators severely damage any chance to validate these cases objectively. 1597 -- d. WHY ARE VICTIMS ALLEGING THINGS THAT DO NOT SEEM TO BE TRUE? Some of what the victims in these cases allege is physically impossible (victim cut up and put back together, offender took the building apart and then rebuilt it); some is possible but improbable (human sacrifice, cannibalism, vampirism ); some is possible and probable (child pornography, clever manipulation of victims); and some is corroborated (medical evidence of vaginal or anal trauma, offender confessions). The most significant crimes being alleged that do not *seem* to be true are the human sacrifice and cannibalism by organized satanic cults. In none of the multidimensional child sex ring cases of which I am aware have bodies of the murder victims been found - in spite of major excavations where the abuse victims claim the bodies were located. The alleged explanations for this include: the offenders moved the bodies after the children left, the bodies were burned in portable high-temperature ovens, the bodies were put in double- decker graves under legitimately buried bodies, a mortician member of the cult disposed of the bodies in a crematorium, the offenders ate the bodies, the offenders used corpses and aborted fetuses, or the power of Satan caused the bodies to disappear. Not only are no bodies found, but also, more importantly, there is no physical evidence that a murder took place. Many of those not in law enforcement do not understand that, while it is possible to get rid of a body, it is even more difficult to get rid of the physical evidence that a murder took place, especially a human sacrifice involving sex, blood, and mutilation. Such activity would leave behind trace evidence that could be found using modern crime scene processing techniques in spite of extraordinary efforts to clean it up. The victims of these human sacrifices and murders are alleged to be abducted missing children, runaway and throwaway children, derelicts, and the babies of breeder women. It is interesting to note that many of those espousing these theories are using the long- since-discredited numbers and rhetoric of the missing children hysteria in the early 1980s. Yet "Stranger-Abduction Homicides of Children", a January 1989 _Juvenile Justice Bulletin_, published by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the U.S. Department of Justice, reports that researchers now estimate that the number of children kidnapped and murdered by nonfamily members is between 52 and 158 a year and that adolescents 14 to 17 years old account for nearly two-thirds of these victims. These figures are also consistent with the 1990 National Incident Studies previously mentioned. We live in a very violent society, and yet we have "only" about 23,000 murders a year. Those who accept these stories of mass human sacrifice would have us believe that the satanists and other occult practitioners are murdering more than twice as many people every year in this country as all the other murderers combined. 1598 In addition, in none of the cases of which I am aware has any evidence of a well-organized satanic cult been found. Many of those who accept the stories of organized ritual abuse of children and human sacrifice will tell you that the best evidence they now have is the consistency of stories from all over America. It sounds like a powerful argument. It is interesting to note that, without having met each other, the hundreds of people who claim to have been abducted by aliens from outer space also tell stories and give descriptions of the aliens that are similar to each other. This is not to imply that allegations of child abuse are in the same category as allegations of abduction by aliens from outer space. It is intended only to illustrate that individuals who never met each other can sometimes describe similar events without necessarily having experienced them. The large number of people telling the same story is, in fact, the biggest reason to doubt these stories. It is simply too difficult for that many people to commit so many horrendous crimes as part of an organized conspiracy. Two or three people murder a couple of children in a few communities as part of a ritual, and nobody finds out? Possible. Thousands of people do the same thing to tens of thousands of victims over many years? Not likely. Hundreds of communities all over America are run by mayors, police departments, and community leaders who are practicing satanists and who regularly murder and eat people? Not likely. In addition, these community leaders and high-ranking officials also supposedly commit these complex crimes leaving no evidence, and at the same time function as leaders and managers while heavily involved in using illegal drugs. Probably the closest documented example of this type of alleged activity in American history is the Ku Klux Klan, which ironically used Christianity, not satanism, to rationalize its activity but which, as might be expected, was eventually infiltrated by informants and betrayed by its members. As stated, initially I was inclined to believe the allegations of the victims. But as the cases poured in and the months and years went by, I became more concerned about the lack of physical evidence and corroboration for many of the more serious allegations. With increasing frequency I began to ask the question: "Why are victims alleging things that do not *seem* to be true?" Many possible answers were considered. The first possible answer is obvious: clever offenders. The allegations may not seem to be true but they are true. The criminal justice system lacks the knowledge, skill, and motivation to get to the bottom of this crime conspiracy. The perpetrators of this crime conspiracy are clever, cunning individuals using sophisticated mind control and brainwashing techniques to control their victims. Law enforcement does not know how to investigate these cases. It is technically possible that these allegations of an organized conspiracy involving taking over day care centers, abduction, cannibalism, murder, and human sacrifice might be true. But if they are true, they constitute one of the greatest crime conspiracies in history. 1599 Many people do not understand how difficult it is to commit a conspiracy crime involving numerous co-conspirators. One clever and cunning individual has a good chance of getting away with a well- planned interpersonal crime. Bring one partner into the crime and the odds of getting away with it drop considerably. The more people involved in the crime, the harder it is to get away with it. Why? Human nature is the answer. People get angry and jealous. They come to resent the fact that another conspirator is getting "more" than they. They get in trouble and want to make a deal for themselves by informing on others. If a group of individuals degenerate to the point of engaging in human sacrifice, murder, and cannibalism, that would most likely be the beginning of the end for such a group. The odds are that someone in the group would have a problem with such acts and be unable to maintain the secret. The appeal of the satanic conspiracy theory is twofold: ---- (1) First, it is a simple explanation for a complex problem. Nothing is more simple than "the devil made them do it". If we do not understand something, we make it the work of some supernatural force. During the Middle Ages, serial killers were thought to be vampires and werewolves, and child sexual abuse was the work of demons taking the form of parents and clergy. Even today, especially for those raised to religiously believe so, satanism offers an explanation as to why "good" people do bad things. It may also help to "explain" unusual, bizarre, and compulsive sexual urges and behavior. ---- (2) Second, the conspiracy theory is a popular one. We find it difficult to believe that one bizarre individual could commit a crime we find so offensive. Conspiracy theories about soldiers missing in action (MlAs), abductions by UFOs, Elvis Presley sightings, and the assassination of prominent public figures are the focus of much attention in this country. These conspiracy theories and allegations of ritual abuse have the following in common: (1) self-proclaimed experts, (2) tabloid media interest, (3) belief the government is involved in a coverup, and (4) emotionally involved direct and indirect victim/witnesses. On a recent television program commemorating the one hundredth anniversary of Jack the Ripper, almost fifty percent of the viewing audience who called the polling telephone numbers indicated that they thought the murders were committed as part of a conspiracy involving the British Royal Family. The five experts on the program, however, unanimously agreed the crimes were the work of one disorganized but lucky individual who was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic. In many ways, the murders of Jack the Ripper are similar to those allegedly committed by satanists today. If your child's molestation was perpetrated by a sophisticated satanic cult, there is nothing you could have done to prevent it and therefore no reason to feel any guilt. I have been present when parents who believe their children were ritually abused at day care centers have told others that the cults had sensors in the road, lookouts in the air, and informers everywhere; therefore, the usually recommended advice of unannounced visits to the day care center would be impossible. 1600 6. ALTERNATIVE EXPLANATIONS Even if only part of an allegation is not true, what then is the answer to the question "Why are victims alleging things that do not *seem* to be true?" After consulting with psychiatrists, psychologists, anthropologists, therapists, social workers, child sexual abuse experts, and law enforcement investigators for more than eight years, I can find no single, simple answer. The answer to the question seems to be a complex set of dynamics that can be different in each case. In spite of the fact that some skeptics keep looking for it, there does not appear to be one answer to the question that fits every case. Each case is different, and each case may involve a different combination of answers. I have identified a series of possible alternative answers to this question. The alternative answers also do not preclude the possibility that clever offenders are sometimes involved. I will not attempt to explain completely these alternative answers because I cannot. They are presented simply as areas for consideration and evaluation by child sexual abuse intervenors, for further elaboration by experts in these fields, and for research by objective social scientists. The first step, however, in finding the answers to this question is to admit the possibility that some of what the victims describe may not have happened. Some child advocates seem unwilling to do this. -- a. PATHOLOGICAL DISTORTION. The first possible answer to why victims are alleging things that do not *seem* to be true is *pathological distortion*. The allegations may be errors in processing reality influenced by underlying mental disorders such as dissociative disorders, borderline or histrionic personality disorders, or psychosis. These distortions may be manifested in false accounts of victimization in order to gain psychological benefits such as attention and sympathy (factitious disorder). When such individuals repeatedly go from place to place or person to person making these false reports of their own "victimization", it is called Munchausen Syndrome. When the repealed false reports concern the "victimization" of their children or others linked to them, it is called Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy. I am amazed when some therapists state that they believe the allegations because they cannot think of a reason why the "victim", whose failures are now explained and excused or who is now the center of attention at a conference or on a national television program, would lie. If you can be forgiven for mutilating and killing babies, you can be forgiven for anything. Many "victims" may develop pseudomemories of their victimization and eventually come to believe the events actually occurred. Noted forensic psychiatrist Park E. Dietz (personal communication, Nov. 1991) states: