Definitions 2!

WITCHCRAFT TERMS Page 2

Karma - A concept that originated in Hindu philosophy that is used to explain injustice and retribution. By karma, a trespass in this life will be punished in the next. Essentially, "what goes around comes around". Actions bad or good will eventually be returned to you. Modern interpretation aspect it to more immediate returns, i.e., it's not necessarily brought into action on your next life.

Kitchen Magick, Kitchen Witchcraft - A practical tradition of witchcraft. Allows one to utilize household items instead of the often difficult to obtain ritual items.

Lammas - A pagan sabbat which takes place on August 1st, celebrating the height of the realm of the God, and the beginning harvest

Left-Hand Path - Refers to the practice of using magick for personal gain. Dark Magick.

Libation - Ritually given portions of food or drinks to a deity, nature spirit, or ghost. A method of giving thanks.

Lithomancy - Divination by stones.

Mabon - Pagan sabbat celebrated in early autumn.

Mage - A master magician; often a mage is a scholarly and skilled practitioner who prefers that the only tools of their magick be their mind, ability, and spirit.

Magick - At it's most basic level, magick is the manipulation of the environment or self to affect some change in the environment or self, i.e., the expression of your will upon reality. Magick is neither black nor white. It simply is. What the magician decides to do with the magick is another matter.

Magick Circle - Actually a sphere, not a circle, it is a sacred space wherein all magick is to be worked and all ritual contained. It both holds ritual energy until the witch is ready to release it, and provides protection for the witch.

Magickal Name - A name chosen by the dedicated or initiate to symbolize rebirth into their new path.

Magickal System - The basic set of guidelines relating to the worship of specific Gods and Goddesses or cultural traditions.

Maiden - 1. The name of one of the members of a coven, generally the assistant to the High Priestess. 2. One of the aspects of the triple goddess (maiden, mother, crone) symbolized by the waxing moon, creation, and the time between Beltane and Imbolc.

Manifest - The known, the physical, the mortal and mundane.

Matriarchal - That which is run by only female force(s).

May Pole - Sexual symbol of Beltane representing the phallus.

Meditation - The practice of inverting the mind to pay attention to the inner silence instead of the outer chaos, though some forms of meditation focus on the outer instead. This practice is accepted in almost all religions, with various different names, but is encouraged most in Buddhism.

Megalith - A huge stone monument or structure. Stonehenge is the best known example of a megalith.

Menhir - A huge stone probably erected by early peoples for religious, spiritual or magickal reasons.

Merry Meet - A greeting commonly used by Wiccans and pagans. It basically means "Greetings". Abbreviated as MM. Shortened form of "Merry we meet."

Merry Part - A friendly phrase that basically means "Goodbye", used by Wiccans and pagans. Abbreviated as MP. Shortened form of "Merry we part."

Metaphysical - Having the nature of metaphysics.

Metaphysics - A field of abstract thought and philosophy about topics not on the concrete or physical level of understanding. This includes subjects like existence, the soul, being, the supernatural, astral travel, psychicism, etc. The spiritual version of physics and science.

Microcosm - The world within you.

Midsummer - Sabbat celebrated in June.

Mojo - The essence of Magick.

Mojo Bag - A small bag generally worn around the neck that is charged with energies towards a certain goal and filled with charms, herbs, and/or stones.

Mother - The aspect of the Goddess representing motherhood, mid-life, and fertility. The full moon, the egg, and the colors red and green represent her. Her Sabbats are Midsummer and Lughnasadh.

Myth - Cycles Body of lore about any land or people that makes up their mythology.

Necromancy - 1. The art of revealing the future through magick and especially through communication with the deceased. 2. The practice of summoning the souls of the dead.

Neo-Pagan - Literally, new pagan. General term for modern followers of magickal, shamanistic, and polytheistic Earth based religions.

New Age - The mixing of metaphysical practices with a structured religion.

New Religion - Pagan term used in reference to Christianity.

OBE - Out-of-body experience, the beginning stages of astral travel or death.

Occult - Literal meaning is "hidden" and is broadly applied to a wide range of metaphysical topics that lie outside the accepted realm of mainstream theologies.

Occultist - One who practices and or studies a variety of occult subjects.

Ogham - The magickal Celtic alphabet made up of 20 letters called fews, each representing a different kind of tree. Named after it's creator, the god of wisdom and learning, Ogham.

Old Religion - A name for Paganism, as it pre-dates Christianity by at least 15,000 years.

Omen - A sudden occurrence that is interpreted as being a sign of good or evil.

Oracle - A person through which otherworldly entities can be communicated with, similar to channeling. People often see oracles to ask questions or to be given insights to their future.

Ostara - Sabbat which occurs to celebrate the onset of spring. The Christian holiday of Easter originated from Ostara, a celebration named after the goddess of spring and rebirth, hence the egg and the rabbit as the primary symbols.

Pagan - Roman derogatory term for a person living outside of the city similar to the term Redneck. Latin for Country-Dweller.Currently used to describe any non Christian, or follower of a non Christian path. Also, anything not relating to Christian works.

Paganism - Any religion other than Christianity, Islam, or Judaism. Generally categorized as an Earth religion. Most are polytheistic (have more than one god or goddess).

Pallomancy - Divination with a pendulum.

Pantheism - Belief in many deities who are really one because they are all merely aspects of the single creative life source. Paganism is pantheistic.

Past Life Regression - A technique used by hypnotists to lead a person in a trance which allows them to supposedly recall events from previous lives, when their soul was in a different physical body at another time period and place.

Path Working - Using astral projection, bi-location, or dreamtime to accomplish a specific goal. Also called vision questing.

Patriarchal - That which is run by only male force(s).

Pendulum - A divinatory device consisting of a string attached to a heavy object, such as a quartz crystal, root, or ring. The free end of the string is held in the hand, the elbows steadied against a flat surface, and a question is asked. The movement of the heavy object's swings determines the answer. It is a tool that contacts the psychic mind.

Pentacle - A circle surrounding a five pointed, upright star (pentagram). Worn as a symbol of a witch's beliefs.

Personal Power - The energy that sustains our bodies. It originates within the Goddess and God. We first absorb it from our biological mother within the womb, and later from food, water, the Moon and Sun, and other natural objects.

Philtre - A potion, especially for love.

Phrenology - Character analysis by studying the shape and surface of the skull.

Polarity - The concept of equal, opposite energies. The Eastern Yin Yang is a perfect example. Yin is cold; yang is hot. Other examples - Goddess/God, night/day, Moon/Sun, birth/death, dark/light, psychic mind/unconscious mind. Universal balance.

Polytheism - Belief in the existence of many unrelated deities each with their own dominion and interests who have no spiritual or familial relationships to one another.

Poppets - Anthropomorphic dolls used to represent certain human beings in magick spells.

Projective Hand - The hand thought to be the point through which personal power is sent from the body. Normally the hand used for manual activities such as writing, dialing the phone, etc. It is also the hand in which tools such as the athame and wand are held.

Prophet - One who receives inspiration, information, or insights into the future, either from an external or internal source.

Psychic Awareness - The open state of awareness in which the conscious mind can tap into the psychic mind.

Psychic Mind - The subconscious, or unconscious mind, in which we receive psychic impressions. It is at work when we sleep, dream, and meditate. It is our direct link with the Divine, and with the larger, nonphysical world around us.

Pyromancy - Divination by fire.

Quarter Days - The solstices and equinoxes.

Quarters - The north, east, south, and west parts of the circle, often representative of the four watchtowers.

Receptive Hand - The hand through which energy is received into the body. The left hand in right-handed persons, the reverse for left-handed persons.

Rede - A Basic tenet. For Wicca, it's "An it harm none, do what thou will".

Reincarnation - The process of repeated incarnations in human form to allow evolution of the sexless, ageless soul.

Ritual - A specific form of movement of generally predetermined actions (either mental or physical), a manipulation of objects or inner processes designed to produce desired effects. In religion ritual is geared toward union with the Divine. In magickal works it produces a specific state of consciousness that allows the magician to move energy toward needed goals.

Ritual Consciousness - A specific, alternate state of awareness necessary to the successful practice of magick. This state is achieved through the use of visualization and ritual. The conscious mind becomes attuned with the psychic mind, a state in which the magician senses energies, gives them purpose, and releases them toward a specific goal. It is a heightening of senses, an expanded awareness of the nonphysical world, a linking with nature and with Deity.

Sabbat - A witch's festival.

Salamander - The elemental who dwells in the fire plane.

Samhain - Sabbat held on the eve of Nov. 1st, also called Halloween and celebrated by most people (religiously or not) on October 31. It is a night where the veil between the physical and the spiritual world is at it's thinnest. It also celebrates the death of the God. It is also considered The Witch's New Year.

Shade - The spirit of a being that remains behind after death. Often a sort of 'residue', and sometimes a refusal of the soul to move on.

Shaman - A man or woman who has obtained knowledge of the subtler dimensions of the Earth, usually through periods of alternate states of consciousness. Various types of ritual allow the shaman to pierce the veil of the physical world and to experience the realm of energies. This knowledge lends the shaman the power to change his or her world through magick. Major facets of Shamanism are animism, possession, prophecy/revelations, shape shifting, and soul travel.

Shamanism - The practice of shamans, usually ritualistic or magickal in nature, sometimes religious.

Shape shifting - A very esoteric practice involving changing the human form.

Simple Feast - A ritual meal shared with the Goddess and God.

Sky Father - Shamanistic in origin. It assigns deification to the sky as a male entity.

Sky clad - 'Clad only with the sky', it is the act of celebrating or performing magickal works in the nude. Considered deeply spiritual, NON sexual.

Solitary - Pagan who works and worships outside the structure of a coven

So Mote it Be - A phrase used often in rituals to close a chant or incantation. Mote being the future tense of may or might, to say "It Will Be".

Sorcery - Magickal practice that involves summoning, binding, or banishing spirit forms of all types.

Soul - The core identity of a human being, the immortal self which surpasses death and lives on into the other world, perhaps to be reincarnated.

Spell - A working of magick that employs many different ingredients, with the purpose of attaining some goal.

Spell crafting - The practice of creating spells by writing outlines, arranging correspondences, and authoring incantations.

Spiral - Symbol of coming into being.

Spirits - Entities that are without an organic, physical body.

Subconscious Mind - Part of the mind which functions below the levels we are able to access in the course of a normal working day. This area stores symbolic knowledge, dreams and the minutest details of every experience ever had by a person.

Summerland - The Pagan Land of the Dead.

Summoner - Like a male version of the maiden, a member of the coven who is an assistant to the High Priest

Sylph - The elemental of air.

Symbol - A sign or item or idea which represents something else. Symbols are used commonly in rituals to represent gods, elements, goals, and more. Many tools are symbols, for example, the chalice is a symbol of the Goddess and the giving of life.

Sympathetic Magick - Concept of likes attract. Using one object to represent another. Most common way spells are worked.

Tarologist - One adept at the art and science of handling the Tarot.

Tasseography - Divination by reading tea leaves.

Telekinesis - A form of psychokinesis that involves moving objects with the mind without ever physically coming in contact with them.

Telepathy - Unspoken (psychic) communication between two minds.

Theurgy - Magick involving the use of divine spirits and oneness or

Third Eye - The psychic eye, not physically visible, but mental. Located in the middle of the forehead, known scientifically as the pineal gland.

Threefold Law - Karmic-like principle that states that energies, events, ideas, or actions that are released are returned three times over.

Totem Animal - A spirit guide in the form of an animal that chooses to accompany you.

Tradition - Branch of paganism followed by any individual pagan or coven. Each tradition has a different set of rules and guidelines by which it follows, so when one chooses a tradition, one must be aware of the facets of the tradition and believe that the rules suit them best. Some examples of traditions are Alexandrian, Celtic, Faery, Gardnerian, and Strega.

Tree Calendar - Celtic system that recognizes 13 lunar months, each represented by a sacred tree.

Trilithon - A stone arch made from two upright slabs with one lying atop these. They are featured in Stonehenge

Triple Goddess - One Goddess in all of her three aspects - Maiden, Mother, Crone.

Ululation - The part of an incantation or chant that demands full vocal force and volume.

Uncasting - Opening the circle at the end of a ritual.

Vampirism - The practice of subsisting on the vitality of another. Commonly this is blood, other times it is life force (sapped psychically).

Virgin - Youngest aspect of the Triple Goddess. Also know as the Maiden. Represented by the waxing moon, colors white and blue. Her Sabbats are Imbolc and Ostara.

Virtues - Magickal properties of objects like herbs, stones, and creatures as was assigned to them during their divine creation.

Vision Quest - Using astral projection, bi-location, or dream time to accomplish a specific goal. Also called path working.

Visualization - 1. Forming clear mental images often used in magick to focus and direct energy to a visualized goal, including charging and forming of the magick circle. 2. Imagining a scene, a person, or an object with intense clarity. This is often done through a meditation with a written "visualization journey" that allows the practitioner to enter an imagined place to make personal discoveries.

Waning - The lunar phase when the moon is getting "smaller" (more crescent like). This is the time when magick that involves banishing things, breaking habits, and getting rid of things is to be performed. Opposite of waxing.

Ward - A protection spell

Warlock - Antiquated term misused in reference to a male Witch. It means oath breaker or Liar. Most pagans and witches find the term offensive.

Watchtowers - A concept derived from ceremonial magick, the four watchtowers each represent a cardinal direction, element, elemental, and a color.

Waxing - The lunar phase when the moon is getting "larger" (nearing the full moon). This is the time when magick that involves growth and bringing things to you is best performed. Opposite of waning.

Wheel of the Year - One full cycle of the seasons, a year, often beginning on Samhain or Beltane, instead of January.

Wicca - A modern Pagan religion with spiritual roots in the earliest expressions of reverence for nature. Some major identifying motifs are - reverence for the Goddess and God; acceptance of reincarnation and magick; ritual observance of astronomical and agricultural phenomena; and the use of magickal circles for ritual purposes.

Widdershins - Counter-clockwise motion, or counter to the motion made by shadows as the sun moves across the sky. Usually used for releasing the circle but also known for negative magickal purposes, or for dispersing energies or conditions such as disease.

Wise (wo)man - A solitary practitioner of witchcraft who gave charms, spells, and healing to villagers in Europe.

Witch - A practitioner of magick, particularly that kind relating to herbs, stones, colors, wells, rivers, etc. It is used by most Wiccans to describe themselves, but not all witches are Wiccan.

Witch Ball - An 18th century tradition; a glass sphere hung in windows to ward off evil spirits. This is where the Christian concept of the Christmas tree ornament came from.

Wizards - A name for male ceremonial magicians, rarely used for Wiccans unless they are eclectic and use ceremonial magick as well.

Working, Magickal Works - Any act involving magick or ritualism.

Yggdrasil - The Norse tree which held up the world and the heavens; its roots led to the underworld. It provided the complex network of the universe.

Yule - The winter sabbat. Also called Winter Solstice.

Yule Log - The traditional log burned at Yule ceremonies to symbolize the birth of the God.

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Tools and Their Definitions