Happy Wednesday and almost Beltane!
I’ll be doing four prompts a week, on Wednesdays, tagged #WitchyWednesday on Twitter. I’m happy to clarify anything and respond to any questions or comments. Feel free to contact me as well! The prompts are originally from a Tumblr post by user Baduhennasraven.
Here’s this week’s prompts:
- How do I see gender (roles) in witchcraft?
- Would I want to be dedicated/initiated?
- Am I interested more in magic, or spirituality?
- What kind of witch do I feel I am?
How do I see gender (roles) in witchcraft?
Gender roles in general are outdated and fairly useless.
As someone who identifies as queer, I don’t see a point in necessarily focusing on the male/female binary. That being said, I did start out just honoring the Lord and Lady when I first started. Nowadays, I couldn’t pick a single pantheon to work from if I had to. The Triple Goddess, divided by Maiden, Mother, and Crone, and the Triple God, divided by Youth, Hunter, and Sage, are deities I often work with as well. But those outside the binary are just as valid. Personally, I tend to favor the Crone, as I feel I’m an older person than my body is with everything I’ve been through.
Gender roles, like the whole priest/tess issue can have a dysphoric effect on some. I don’t consider myself a high priestess of my craft; I just consider myself a witch, and a grey one at that.
Would I want to be dedicated/initiated?
I don’t think I would want to work within one of the typical traditions, like Gardenerian or Alexandrian Wicca, that do the typical ranks and degree system and the like. For one thing, I only work skyclad when I feel like it, and that isn’t all that often. For another, people that base the beginnings of their faith of the neo-Pagan movement of the early 20th Century, like with troublesome figureheads like Aleister Crowley, and claim to be centuries old is…well, daft. I acknowledge that I’m not learning some ancient craft passed down by generations; I am basically taking bits of faith piecemeal together and using them as it so suits me. Unless I find a coven that is as bizarre as my path, it’s unlikely for me to be initiated.
Self-dedication, however, I could see. For me, as much as I’m sharing it here, is personal. I would dedicate myself to the service of myself and my fellow beings, striving to leave the world a better place than what I was first presented with. Though, to be fair, that is no small task given the current political, socioeconomic, and environmental conditions.
Am I interested more in magic, or spirituality?
The Oxford dictionary defines spirituality as “the quality of being concerned with the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things.” I think this differs highly from magic, as magic is faith in action. Magic, to me, is ritualized prayer. The casting of a circle, the calling of the Quarters, the ritual of a spell itself: these are all just another form of prayer.
Spirituality, for me, is about self-improvement through faith, action, and active thought. To choose between magic or spirituality is difficult. But if I had to answer honestly as to which I more focus on, the answer would be magic. I don’t necessarily consider myself a spiritual person.
What kind of witch do I feel I am?
As I said before, I am a grey witch. And what kind of witch? I mean, I’m eclectic as hell. That is the short answer.
I’m more complicated than a single traditional strand. I am Theodora and my faith is what I make it. I don’t pick from a single pantheon. Nor do I believe in one single archetype as necessarily more correct than another. I believe in the All, almost akin to Omnism in that I don’t discount the faith of others in pursuit of my own. A follower of the Abrahamic traditions is no less a person of faith than I am. I’m just polytheistic rather than monotheistic, and I burn a lot more incense than your common Catholic.
I don’t know if I have a particular term beyond “grey” (and yes, I know the American spelling is “gray”). Anyway, I have a certain skill for tarot cards and cartomancy. But I consider myself a grey witch because I don’t believe in all problems having a single solution. Nor do I believe that magic should be the first inclination towards solving a problem. While I am a believer in universal humanism, and in the Golden Rule that can be shortened to that of “do onto others as you would have done to you”, I’m also morally grey. I believe that some times you must take the ‘lesser’ path to achieve a greater goal. Sometimes, you have to act rather than react, and the lack of passivity can be considered negative.
I hope that makes sense. Let me know if it doesn’t.
That’s it for this week’s #WitchyWednesday. Blessed Be and take your meds, folks!
Postmark Wonderland 