Glossary Part 1

Anglican Tory
Anglicans are members of the protestant Christian faith, while Tories are people of a right wing political persuasion in British politics, also referred to as Conservatives.

Astrology
Astrology is the study of the planets and stars and how they affect life on the Earth.

Autonomous
Autonomous means "self-governing". A big attraction of witchcraft is that witches can be their own rulers and there is little hierarchy in most traditions outside of a High Priestess and Priest.

Buddhism
Buddhism is a major world religion, it was founded in north-eastern India and is based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, also known as the Buddha, or the Enlightened One.

Ceremonial Magic
Ceremonial magic is often referred to as High Magic. At heart it is a series of practices to effect Union with the Divine.

Coven
Traditionally a coven is a group of thirteen witches that come together regularly for religious and magical practice. It is quite common to have covens with just three members.

Crystal healing
It is a common belief in Wicca that crystals have subtle electro-magnetic properties that help cure illness and disease. Others would also state that the colours of the crystals have a beneficial effect.

Cunning
Cunning-folk were known for a range of practices that included lifting curses and bewitchments, love magic, herbalism and curing diseases in animals as well as humans. A few also practiced Astrology. The term "cunning" when used in this context is not pejorative. Some modern day Wiccans claim such people were witches and that they are their direct descendants. Others see this as quite an odd claim to make as there is actually evidence that Cunning-folk aided the persecution of those who it was claimed were witches during the craze in the seventeenth century[35].

Deity
The divine, all powerful and pervasive force in creation, commonly worked with as the Goddess and God in Wicca.

Elements
In magic it is seen that all creation owes its existence to the four Elemental Forces of Fire, Water, Air and Earth.

Divination
The practice of foretelling future events.

Dogma
Dogma is an authoritative and precise statement of religious doctrine that is given as an unquestionable fact. Witches generally have a strong aversion to dogma.

Enochian Magic
Enochian magic is a magical system that derives from the Elizabethan mage John Dee (1527-1608) and his accomplice Edward Kelley. It was developed by the Golden Dawn and some witches choose to specialise in it. It is generally considered an advanced subject and is not recommended for beginners.

Esbat
Monthly meeting of a group of witches usually at, or around, the Full Moon.

Freemasonry
The largest fraternal organisation in the world, believing in a duty to God, one's country, family and fellow human beings. Much masonic symbolism and ceremony has found its way into magical practice over the centuries.

Golden Dawn
Also known as The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a famous and very influential Victorian magical society, albeit one that was shortlived in its original form.

Herbalism
The study of herbs and their practical applications for magical, healing and culinary purposes.

Immanent
Immanent means present everywhere. Many witches see that Deity quite literally exists in all things.

Initiatory system of Three Degrees
Many traditions of Wicca have three levels of attainment that can be progressed through, typically a year and a day at a time. This is achieved by a mixture of study, practice and examination. How the degree is conferred varies; some traditions allow self-initiation whilst others will only let it be given by senior witches. Each level confers certain rights and responsibilities, although quite how these are defined varies from one tradition to another.

Kabbalah
Ancient Jewish philosophy that underpins much magical practice. Its incorporation in Wicca owes much to the influence of the Golden Dawn.

Neolithic Period
The Neolithic is a period of time that saw the origins of farming and a more sedentary way of life than hunter-gatherers had. It is typified by the use of pottery and of polished or ground stone tools.

Pagan
The word pagan derives from the Latin paganus, meaning "country dweller". It was a term originally applied by Christians to those who retained their old religious beliefs and practices. Today it is used to describe a multitude of native or "traditional" religions. Wiccans are often referred to as neo-pagans to emphasise the fact that Wicca is a modern religion.

Pantheon
A pantheon is all the goddesses and gods in the religion or mythology of a particular culture.

Polarity
Opposites

Polytheism
Polytheism means belief in many deities.

Priesthood
In Wicca every witch is a priest and has responsibility for developing their own learning and practice.

Reiki
A practitioner of Reiki places their hands on a patient with the aim of inducing natural healing. Practitioners will the Reiki energy, which they believe underlies everything in the universe, to effect a cure.

Seasonal Quarters and Cross Quarters
The seasonal quarters are:
Mid-winter solstice or Yule
Vernal equinox or Eostre or Ostara
Mid-summer solstice or Litha
Autumnal equinox or Mabon
The Cross Quarter days are:
Imbolg or Imbolc, 2nd Feb
Beltane or Beltaine, May Eve
Lughnasdh or Lammas, July 31st
Samhain, November Eve

Solitary
A solitary is a witch who practices Witchcraft by themselves.

Rosicrucians
The Rosicrucians are a large international fraternal organisation that pursue esoteric knowledge. Teachings include Kabbalah, Egyptian Hermeticism and Gnosticsm as well as other occult beliefs. Like Freemasonry much Rosicrucian practice has been influential on magic in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Shamanic
A shaman is essentially a medium, who acts as a channel for spirits. Traditionally a shaman's work consists of healing and divination.

Solitaries
A solitary is a witch that has chosen to practice alone. Some sectors of the Craft see this as being a lesser witch than one inaugurated in a coven; others see this as nothing more than snobbishness.

Spiritualism
Spiritualism is the belief that the dead manifest in the material world usually through a medium or clairvoyant. Although it has been believed in since the dawn of recorded history modern spiritualism has its roots in nineteenth century research.

Talismanic Magic
A talisman is an object that has been created for a specific magical purpose. Often it has complex symbols inscribed upon it, which constitute magical formulae.

Wiccan Initiation
See "Initiatory system of Three Degrees" above.

Wicca and Witchcraft
Some Witches draw a sharp distinction between "Witchcraft" and "Wicca", seeing that "Witchcraft" is a set of magical practices that can be performed by anyone regardless of their beliefs and that "Wicca" is a formalised religion. Some go so far as never to use the term "Witch" to describe themselves, preferring "Wiccan" instead. Others, including many well known established Wiccan authors, blur the distinction and use "Wicca" and "Witchcraft", "Wiccan" and "Witch" interchangeably. As a School we are in this latter camp, but we strive to make sure our students are always aware of other ways of seeing things.

Widdershins
When moving "widdershins", an anti-Sun or anti-clockwise direction is taken.

Woden and Freya
Woden is the chief God in the Germanic pantheon and Freya/Frigg is often seen as his wife. There is debate among established sources as to whether Freya and Frigg can be considered as the same goddess; some state that at one time they may have been equivalent, others see Frigg as Woden's wife and consider Freya to be another entity.