Table of Contents

What's New on the Site	-- Safety Tips: Spells & Covens
Events & Announcement	-- A Whole Wicca School
Wicca Course In Progress	-- Samhain
Ask The Priestess	-- Wicca Spell Gone Wrong
Fave Quotes	-- On Adversity
Word on the Street
Silver Chalice Details

What's New On The Site

There are a couple new pages on the website to share with you. Though I didn't plan it this way, they're both on the theme of safety for Witches.

One is Magick Tips for Safe Spell-Casting -- a reworking and updating of tips that used to be on the Wiccan Etiquette page.

I'm particularly fond of the graphic on this page, which is why I'm sharing it even though it's not entirely new information. :-)

The other is Joining a Coven? Caution Signs & Tips To Make a Safe Choice.

This tells you what to look for when you want to Circle with other Wiccans, or find a mentor or teacher… and what to avoid like it were a brain-hungry zombie!

I consider this one of the most important articles on the whole website. Getting in with the wrong people, in a magickal context, can be a nightmare.

As it says in the article, "Having a coven or spiritual teacher creates energetic ties between you and them."

Be sure, before you get involved, that they are safe and worthy of your trust. This article guides you in that decision-making process.

Events & Announcements

A Whole Wicca School

Interested in the upcoming Wicca Beginners Course?

As it turns out (and those of you familiar with my work won't be surprised), there are actually multiple Wicca courses currently taking shape. ;-D

So the only thing I can do is... Start a Wiccan School!

Magick & Mystery Wicca School -- dedicated to guiding Wiccans and Wiccans-In-Training to the deeper mysteries and power of Wicca Spirituality.

The courses offer an illuminating and fun adventure of esoteric wisdom, Wiccan philosophy, and most important, practical how-to exercises ... most of which you can't find anywhere else.

There's an excerpt from the first course for Wicca Beginners in this Zine -- part of the Samhain lesson. And I'm sure you've seen the excerpts in past issues as well, so you know the kind of insights you get from Wicca Spirituality.

I'm so excited to finally have this to offer the hundreds of people who ask me to guide them in how to get started in Wicca as a beginner! I've put my very best into this course, as you will see.

In fact, it offers more than a First Degree Initiate's training!

And it goes into so much more depth than other courses and books, it's going to be a great tool for people who are already Wiccans to hone and deepen their understanding and practice of Wicca.

(Yes, I'm totally stoked!!! Can you tell?? )

Where's The Best Discount?

Everyone who follows Wicca Spirituality will be offered a discount on the Wicca beginner course that launches this month. But not everyone will get the same rates.

Subscribers to this Zine and the Inspirations Plus email service get the best rate. (Aren't you smart for subscribing! )

Followers of Facebook and Twitter also get a discount, but it won't be as sweet as yours, so be sure to go to the next email from the Silver Chalice when you wish to register for the course.

Wicca Course -- In Progress

Samhain

As the old year dies again

The new begins at dark Samhain

— Rede of the Wiccae (adapted version)

Samhain (or as it's known in popular/Christian culture "Hallowe'en") is the turning point of the Wiccan Wheel of the Year: The Great Sabbat.

Since modern Witches use the Julian calendar on a daily basis, many of us celebrate according to the calendar date: as of sunset on October 31 (May 1 in the Southern Hemisphere).

According to Mike Nichols in The 8 Sabbats of Witchcraft, though, the actual cross-quarter day is deemed to be "when the sun has reached 15 degrees Scorpio, an astrological 'power point' symbolized by the Eagle."

Samhain is pronounced SOW-in, SOW-ain, SOW-een, or SOW-and — rhyming "sow" with "how." It comes from the Old Irish word Samuin, which meant "Summer's End." Confusing to us, but it makes sense when you realise they saw the year as divided up into not four but two seasons: Summer and Winter. The start of Winter marked the end of Summer. And the word (or a derivative) still means November in Irish & Scots Gaelic.

So what happens at Samhain?

The outward movement of the year's cycle has come to a close, and the inward journey into the power of the dark is well underway.

In Wicca, Samhain is the end of one cycle of seasons, and the beginning of the next . . . hence, it is the Wiccan New Year. The end and the new beginning are considered to occur simultaneously, so Samhain is both.

Roman mythology has the beginning of the year coincide with the new growth of the sun. As Wiccans, we perceive that all birth actually begins in the darkness; the hidden growth happens long before any sign of it rises into the light. We could even say that the new crop begins with the clearing away of the old stubble . . . the cleansing of the old is the beginning of the new.

That's Samhain: the dark of the year which eats the remains of Summer's life. All things belong to the Dark Goddess at this time, returning to the Earth to be transformed into new life. Any fruit still on the branches on this date belong to Her, and are left for the wildlife to consume.

Samhain is a day outside of time, as the New Year is in many traditions. At Samhain the veil between the world of the living and the world of the dead is at its thinnest. Communication with our beloved dead — and with the Divine — is easiest to accomplish at this time of year.

So there are three main themes to Samhain celebrations:

  Honouring / visiting the beloved dead

  Divination for the future

  Descent to the underworld / self-transformation

We will explore each of these in this lesson, but first there's one thing more you should know.

There is another aspect to Samhain specifically for Wiccans and Witches. As the greatest of the Wiccan Sabbats, Samhain is a time to consider the spiritual path we have chosen...

• Reflect on it really means to be a Wiccan,
  
  
• Consider how it is influencing our lives and changing us,
  
  
• Take stock of how we have grown in spirit, in our Craft, and in magick,
  
  
• Set intentions for how we would like to grow in the next year,
  
  
• Reaffirm our commitment to our spiritual path.

If you think about it, you can see that each of these reflections is aligned with one of the Directions/Elements.

. . .

What Do You Think So Far?

I'd love to hear from you… Please write and let me know!

Ask The Priestess

Wicca Spell Gone Wrong!! :(

Dear Priestess,

Help me please!!! Tonight's the first full moon for the month and I was hoping to practice a spell for the blue moon so I set up my circle, called the spirits and began the spell to help me ease my back pain. As I was closing the circle and thanking the spirits of the south my candle fell apart and went out in its own wax, I quickly pieced it back together and did the closing over and properly snuffed the candle out.

Being that it's a full moon with this jeopardize my heath?? I smudged my little room just in case.

My aunt's mentoring me. She opened a whole new world for me. I wasn't raised Wiccan like her, some things are hard.

K.M., USA

Dear K.M.,

I think it's great that you're getting guidance. There are a lot of different kinds of practice out there though; please read through the Wicca Spirituality website for a basic introduction, so you can know when you are getting good guidance and when to question what you're told. Not that everything I say is The Only Right Way, but it's that sense of higher spirituality and goodness that's so critical to find in teachers.

The candle falling apart is intriguing, but I very much doubt it's going to cause you any harm. More likely it's a message to you. Although I am extremely reluctant to interpret messages without knowing a lot more, I think it's safe to say it's a warning that you need a lot more foundation in this spiritual path before you start doing spells.

Things can go wrong in any real-world situation — it doesn't mean there's something bad happening. Maybe the candle was just faulty. But when things go wrong in weird ways, it can certainly be that something's going weird with the energy.

Smudging your room was a very good idea! That should undo any harm that may have accrued. I doubt you'll have any trouble.

With Blessings,

erin

<3

Do you have a question you'd like answered? Email the Priestess and your question could be answered in a future issue.

(Note: questions may be edited for brevity or clarity. No real names will be disclosed. For reasons of legality, all questions become the property of Wicca-Spirituality.com.)

Fave Quotes

Too many problems, not enough lying on the beach.

~ Dr. John Diamond

Most people walk around thinking that what they’re capable of is what they’re consciously aware of. What we’re good at, what we remember we’ve succeeded at and what we remember we’ve failed at….

But we don’t know what we’re really capable of until a situation calls it forth in us.

~ Gary Halbert (I think)

The key to succeeding is to find the seed in what sucks.

~ Swami Beyondananda

How did I know that I could do it? Well, I didn't! I had no crystal ball. All I knew was that I had to do it.

~ Mary Kay

Always remember… you are smarter than you think, stronger than you feel, and braver than you believe.

~ Christopher Robin (in, the New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh)

Word on the Street

What People Are Saying About Wicca-Spirituality.com:

Gratitude! I am deeply impressed by your site. It is nurturing and rich. -- O.A.. in UK

~~~

I have spent the evening ready thru your website and love it! I have spent years searching for a "religion" that gives me peace and have come to Wicca on more than one occasion. Now I know I have come home to where I belong.

But I was having issues with some websites not speaking in plain words lol I love the way you teach how to begin and to learn.

Thank you so much for all you have on your website. I look forward to spending much more time on here! I have also signed up for your emails! -- P.M.. in USA

~~~

Compliments — Hi, what a fantastic read! It all seemed to make very logical sense,the very best of all the diluted religions that exist. Love and peace -- M.B.. in UK

Thanks for writing!! I appreciate hearing from you! : )

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