What is Traditional Witchcraft

Basically it is a belief system much the same as any religion. It has become very secretive over the centuries after being widely persecuted in the Middle Ages. Most Traditional witchcraft practiced today is of British origin.

Like all religions or ways of life it has evolved over time and can trace it's roots back as far as 40,000 years. The witchcraft practiced today would not be anywhere near the same as it was back then but some of the core beliefs would remain.

During the process of evolution many religions split and Trad witchcraft is no exception. There are many differences between covens that are close to each other and very few actually practice in exactly the same way. Both beliefs and rituals differ from coven to coven.

Trad witches do not necessarily follow religious books or worship a god or goddess. More modern forms of witchcraft differ greatly in this regard. Traditional witches revere and respect nature above all and they do recognize the existence of spirits. Their power comes from within but they may summon a spirit to assist them with magic.

The majority of Traditional witches are fatalists and believe in reincarnation. Their new year begins at Samhain, more commonly known as Halloween, which is the when the agricultural year ends. Seasons and moons are followed closely by Traditional witches.

A number of more modern variations of Traditional witchcraft do not all practice magic. All Traditional witches do. The magic involved is more traditional folk magic and is basically very simple. No need for special ingredients or long winded spell casting and often practiced with the aid of only a candle for concentration. Traditional witchcraft tries to keep things simple and down to earth.

More information on Witchcraft can be found at Witchcraft Reviews..

Article Source: What is Traditional Witchcraft - Ezine Article

Magic Spells - Myth or Reality?

There is a wide variety of literature, both ancient and modern, that points to the use of magic spells throughout the ages. A large number of books or papers have been written by well respected historians and authors on some of the more famous instances where magic was allegedly used.

One thing is certainly reality. People have lost their lives over the centuries to supposed evidence of magic spells. A large number of these people were either innocent bystanders caught in the middle or falsely accused. The burning of witches at the stake during the Middle Ages is one well documented example of the pain of reality.

Another well publicized event is the Salem Witch Trials held in Massachusetts during 1692 and 1693. There is more than enough lack of evidence surrounding the whole episode that no conviction would be obtained today. Most of the accusations appear to be either outright lies or had been coerced by authorities. Nineteen people were convicted and hung as a result.

The most widely followed religions in the world all have some form of magic in their books. They don't necessarily call it magic, of course, preferring to use such terms as miracle instead. Whatever you want to call such things they can be construed as magic spells.

Some examples of what have been termed miracles could easily be called magic or illusion but because they are associated with a major religion they are termed miracles. Some of the more well publicized ones are a statue weeping human blood, an apparition of the Virgin Mary, the silhouette of the Virgin Mary on a building and Muslim symbols found inside vegetables. The largest miracle in the last twenty years involved Hindu statues drinking milk all over the world in 1995.

Modern society chooses to call these type of events miracles when they could just as easily be called magic or illusion. Christians believe in the miracles of Christ and Pagans believe in magic. In the end it boils down to religion or faith as to whether magic spells are a myth or reality.

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Article Source: Magic Spells - Myth or Reality? - Ezine Article

Learn Witchcraft as it Should be Done

So you want to be a witch and you want to be able to cast spells right away. Good luck finding someone to teach you. A practicing witch may well teach you but you must learn witchcraft as it should be done. Solo or in a coven you will have to begin with the basics.

Witchcraft has a set of basic principles that most adhere to. No two covens are identical and each will have some variations depending on it's own leadership. Learning from a solo witch brings in even more variables. The basics are fairly constant though.

The first principle states that you can do as you will, so long as you harm none. That also means you cannot harm yourself. Harming others includes gratuitous violence such as war unless in self defense.

The law of cause and effect. Every action has a reaction and every effect has a cause. All things occur according to this law and whatever goes forth will return threefold.

Harmonizing with the universe is another basic principle. This involves recognizing that everything is dual. This can best be summed up by saying that to every action there is a reaction and that everything has an opposite. All things are balanced.

All things exist within the universe and therefore all live. Nothing is dead. This in turn means that there is no true death as we merely alter our condition or state.

All Gods are one God and all Goddesses are one Goddess. What these are called may be different in any given tradition but they are all one in the same no matter how the individual tradition chooses to name them.

Care for the body as it contains the spark of life. Heal others, both physically and psychologically, but only with their consent and express permission.

These are not all of the basic principles but cover some of them. All are equally important. Once you have learned all of that then you might begin to harmonize with nature and learn magick. Learn witchcraft as it should be done, do not try to run before you can walk.

More information on Witchcraft can be found at Witchcraft Reviews.. Article Source: Learn Witchcraft as it Should be Done - Ezine Article

Witch - Good or Evil?

Traditionally a witch would be considered by many as being evil as that is how they are portrayed in many religions. Pagans who practice the evils arts using blood sacrifice and possession to cast their spells. This is how many religions wish us to classify witches and witchcraft as a whole and just calling yourself a witch was enough to be termed a heretic in many faiths.

We have several television shows and movies that portray witches as being good. The most popular being the Harry Potter movies and books and shows like Charmed. These depict witchcraft as being good and not evil but they are purely fiction with no real basis in reality.

So on one hand we have our religions calling witches evil and on the other we have Hollywood and other media telling us they are good. This all helps to feed our curiosity about all things occult and makes us believers in witches as a whole.

Witches themselves, whether they are traditional or modern, will tell you that they are neutral and the person who casts the spell determines it's use for good or evil. They do not believe in Satan and they have their own rules which tell them that they can not use their skills to harm others.

A witch is often thought of as being an old hag which helps to create the illusion of evil and yet witches are just as likely to be male as female. During the history of witchcraft there have always been both male and female practitioners.

Witchcraft is commonly associated with the use of herbs and potions for healing which is considered good. On the other hand witches are also often supposed to be involved with possession which would be considered evil. This places the witches own description of being neutral as more likely as it would be the person who decides good or evil intent.

A witch decides good or evil by their actions and is subject to the threefold rule. They receive back whatever they sow threefold, so practicing evil would be a little against their belief structure as it would harm the witch more than the target of the spell.

More information on Witchcraft can be found at Witchcraft Reviews. Article Source: Witch - Good or Evil - Ezine Article

The History of Witchcraft

The history of Witchcraft can be traced back as far as the Paleolithic period some 40,000 years ago. Archeologists have discovered cave paintings from this period that depict witchcraft in it's basic form. Our ancient ancestors would not have considered themselves witches but they were using practices associated with witchcraft today.

Witchcraft has evolved since that time and was much more commonly referred to as such beginning before medieval times. The practice of witchcraft was fundamental to many cultures of this period and was widely practiced in Europe where it is most often referenced. The emergence of Christianity as the main religion of the period would bring untold misery to those practicing witchcraft.

Many so called witches of this time, who for the most part were healers using basic herbs to treat their villages, were persecuted as a result of edicts from Pope John XXII in 1320. The history of witchcraft was mainly peaceful until this time as witches were not directly sought out by the inquisition, but this edict authorized the inquisition to prosecute sorcerers as well.

Estimates of those killed during this period range from 40,000 to 100,000, a large number of which were brutally slain out of revenge or jealousy more than for actually practicing witchcraft. Burning at the stake was the original method of execution but this later changed to hanging in many regions as it was less barbaric. Witchcraft would be practiced in secrecy for centuries as a result if this treatment.

Modern day practices are broadly referred to as neopaganism, although this term does not accurately represent the many varieties followed in modern times. Traditional witchcraft as a way of life with very limited direct structure is probably the most common but there are more regimented religious forms of witchcraft. Wicca is perhaps the most well known of these and is very much a religion involving witchcraft.

During the history of witchcraft no overarching principles were laid down that governed all covens or witches, which led to each coven practicing the arts in their own way as directed by their individual leadership. Solo practice is also wide spread and unique, again following the persons own beliefs.

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Why is Witchcraft Real

Today Witchcraft is both a Religion and a way of life practiced by an increasing number of people throughout the world. The answer to the question, is witchcraft real, would be yes, as it is a belief system and thus is real if people believe it to be.

Witchcraft is close to paganism and would be classified as an unorthodox religion in that context. There are many different variations of witchcraft from older more traditional ways to the more modern and somewhat more popular types.

Traditional witchcraft has it's roots in Britain where it has been practiced for centuries and was the predominant way of life up until the Middle Ages. In medieval times some witches went to more extreme lengths with their practices and would use blood in their rituals to summon evil spirits for help. These practices allowed the church powers of the time to denounce witchcraft as heresy which had far reaching consequences and led to the slaughter of thousands of innocent people.

Witchcraft, out of necessity, became a more hidden society to survive. Anti witchcraft laws remained in force in England until 1951 when they were repealed. The last known person to be convicted was Jane Rebecca Yorke in 1944.

The Witchcraft Act remained in force in the Republic of Ireland until 1983 and the British Law is still in force today in Israel, which gained it's independence prior to the laws being repealed in 1951.

The fact that so many countries made specific laws against witchcraft and that it is mentioned in the writings of many other different religions answers the question, is witchcraft real, more than anything else. Christianity in particular denounced witches as heretics which means that if you are a Christian then you acknowledge the existence of witchcraft.

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Is Witchcraft Real

Is Witchcraft Real? The answer depends on your own beliefs and that of others, as well as what you mean by Witchcraft.

Witchcraft is very real as a Religion. It has been practiced for many centuries and it's roots can be traced back as far as forty thousand years. Ancient cave paintings point to our ancestors believing in the power of Nature which is the fundamental focus of Witchcraft. This makes Witchcraft one of the oldest known belief systems.

So is witchcraft real? As a Religion or system of beliefs the answer would be yes. Witchcraft is just as viable as any Religion, be it Christianity, Muslim, Judaism or any other.

If you mean Witchcraft with respect to magic and spells that is an entirely different matter. Forget Harry Potter or Charmed, these are purely fiction and have absolutely no link to any real witch or the craft they pursue. Fun to watch maybe but products of the human imagination.

You could also say that magic and spells as a whole are also pure imagination. There are plenty of references in Religious books to spells and magic though, and there is no smoke without fire. Witches do believe in magic and will cast spells depending on their particular path.

As an example: being Wiccan does not necessarily mean you cast magic spells. Wicca is a newer form of Witchcraft and some practitioners do use magic and some don't. On the other hand all Traditional witches do use magic. Again it is down to who and what you believe.

Do you believe that Christ turned water into wine? If the answer is yes, then you should have no difficulty believing in magic. This was a miracle you say. Only because you believe it to be so. It could just as easily be fiction, a simple magic illusion or a form of spell craft.

More information on Witchcraft can be found at Witchcraft Reviews. The key is belief.