The Basics - Basic Principle of the Craft
The first principle is that of love, and it is expressed in the ethic,
"Do as you will, so long as you harm none."
love is not emotional in its essence, but is an attribute of the
individual as expressed in relation to other beings;
a. harming others can be by thought, word, or deed;
b. it is to be understood the "none" includes oneself;
c. the harm which is to be regarded as unethical is gratuitous harm;
war, in general, is gratuitous harm, although it is ethical to defend
oneself and one's liberty when threatened by real and present danger, such
as defense against invasion.
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 its opposite; for every action there is a
reaction; all can be categorized as either active or reactive in relation
to other things.
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 Its attributes and operation.
a. 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.
b. Harmony does not consist of the pretty and the nice, but the
balanced, dynamic, poised cooperation and co-relation.
The Witch must recognize, and operate within the framework of the Law
of Cause and Effect; every action has its reaction, and every effect has
its 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 its 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.
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.
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.
a. 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 Its own
manifestation. This, then, is further reason for the oath of secrecy.
b. Since the universe is the body of the One, possessing the same
attributes as the One, its 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. Thus the Craft is a natural
religion, seeing in Nature the expression and revelation of Divinity.
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
ourselves.
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.
Because of this principle, all things are sacred to the Witch, for all
partake of the one Life.
a. Therefore the Witch is a natural ecologist, for Nature is part of
us as we are a part of Nature.
Astrology can be useful in marking and interpreting the flow and ebb of
the tides of our solar system, and thus of making use of those tides;
astrology should not be debased into mere fortune-telling.
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.
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.
a. 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.
b. 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 godforms used by our Tradition (for to
the members of another Tradition, using its names, ours may easily seem
equally less expressive).
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 consequences of
them; guilt is rejected as inhibiting to one's self-actualization, and
replaced by the efforts of the Witch to obey the teachings of harmlessness,
responsibility for the consequences of one's actions, and the goal of
actualizing the full powers of the
individual.
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.
a. 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. Death is not followed by punishment or reward, but by life and
the continuing evolution of the human potential.
b. 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 its ensouling Spark of the Divine Fire.
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 its existence changes. We know that this spark of the
life-force returns to manifestation again and again in order to fully
realize and actualize its 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 its 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.
This process of evolution through successive incarnations in manifest
form works through the utilization 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 (see 9a).
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 its 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; unless such
noninterference would be inhibiting to our own, ethical existence and
development -- and even then the responsibilities and consequences must be
understood and accepted. This, then, is one of the important reasons for
the communal life the Witches under the guidance of the Priesthood:
That the group may be guided by wisdom and experience, with the aid and
support of one's peers; and that one's actions may be guided by the
influence of the
ethical life of the group as a whole.
Harmony with, and utilization of, the great natural forces of the
universe is called magick. By magick we speak, not of the supernatural, 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.