[ Post a Response | Celeste's Magickal Witches Cottage ]
Posted by Inujade
on October 24, 2009, 4:50 pm, in reply to "When does a Witch stop being a Witch?"
173.35.61.111
Hmmm. Tricky questions.
Meditation and visualization are key, of course. If they don't do that, how can they learn to manipulate energy, and if they can't manipulate energy, how can they do magic?
To me a working knowledge of natural remedies and resources (as the Cunning Folk had), as well as the ability to perform magic when necessary is what constitutes a witch. There are other abilities a witch may have, like divination, communion with the spirit world, and astral projection. But the bare bones is magical and natural knowledge and capability.
I hate to disagree with you Celeste, but why should an eclectic witch know the sabbats, or pray? A wiccan should, certainly. Anyone claiming to be a wiccan but doesn't know the wiccan holidays is a poser. Probably thinks it's 'trendy' to take on an alternative religion.
But a witch? I'm eclectic, and I keep no patron deities, so who would I pray to? And I don't recognize the wiccan God and Goddess, so why should I celebrate the cycle of their life? I celebrate Halloween and the Day of the Dead, not Samhain.
On a purely personal level, I use the craft as a means for understanding and improving myself. I meditate after my daily exercise routine. I have a bi-monthly ritual on the Full and New Moon. I study the tarot and divinate frequently. When ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY, I cast spells. That doesn't happen very often, but I keep my tools clean and at the ready just in case. I make contact with my totems and ask for their guidance.
I also study philosophy and culture, and I apply what I learn from that into everything I do (after much critical thought, of course). When I'm sick, I use natural remedies alongside the usual Cold FX or what have you. 
But that's just me. Above all witchcraft is a craft. And like any craft, you have to devote yourself to it. Someone who scribbles down a few paragraphs of a story then gets bored and wanders off is not a writer. So, a so-called witch who performs a few spells, gets bored, and then keeps her tools around for show is not a witch.
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