Religion Wicca and its creator. Wicca rituals

Wicca is one of the new religions that was founded in the middle of the 20th century in England. According to its spiritual orientation, it is ranked by followers and religious scholars to the neo-paganism of the Western European model. About what Wicca religion is , how its adepts differ and how it is practiced, this article will be discussed.

Origin of Wicca

This young religion gained popularity in 1954, thanks to her apostle, occultist and magician Gerald Gardner. According to the legend, which he told the world, he was dedicated to the secrets of the ancient pagan doctrine by members of an underground witchcraft that was kept in Europe. This tradition, according to Gardner, is a direct descendant of pre-Christian European beliefs, based on the veneration of the forces of nature personified in the image of the Mother Goddess and God the Father. From the point of view of history, archeology and anthropology, these statements are rather doubtful, therefore it is officially considered that the Wicca religion was founded no earlier than the 1920s. It indeed reflects some features of archaic matriarchal beliefs, but in its nature is rather an attempt to carry out their partial reconstruction with subsequent synthesis based on the concepts of modern neopaganism. Thus, the theory of direct heredity is not supported by serious scientific arguments.

It is necessary to immediately make an amendment to the question of who created the Wicca religion. Originally this word denoted the tradition of Gardner's enemy named Charles Cardell, while the Gardnerian doctrine was simply called "witchcraft". However, since the sixties the name "Wiccans" has been attributed to the followers of Gardner, and subsequently to all other similar and derived from her traditions. Thus, it can be argued that today under the name "Wicca" religion means several more or less similar religious-magical currents. Below, we will not touch on the specifics and characteristics of each of them, as there are a lot of them, and new forms of Wiccan theory and practice are constantly being created. In addition, a good half of the Wiccan adepts are eclectic according to their own statements, successfully combining not only elements of various intra-Vicancian isolation, but also combining them with other religions, thanks to which there are so-called Christian, Jewish and even Muslim Wicca in the world. Instead, we will talk about common religious postulates, worldviews and intersection points in the practice of supporters of various Wiccan denominations.

Theology

The fundamental basis of Wiccan spirituality is the postulation of two divine principles - male and female, which appear in the image of God and the Goddess. Different traditions differently look at which of these hypostases has priority over the other. Some revere only the Goddess, others, adhering to the above-described ditheistic position, revere the Goddess somewhat higher than God. Still others observe equality, while the fourth prefers the male hypostasis. The latter, however, an extremely rare type of Wiccan. Probably, this is due to the fact that the religions of the patriarchal warehouse with hypertrophied veneration of the male principle are very much, both in paganism and in monotheistic traditions. Wicca also offers an alternative path, characterized by a special attention to femininity, which attracts and consolidates among themselves the worshipers of matriarchal cults and specific spirituality in the vein of the worship of the Mother Goddess.

Therefore Wiccans are particularly sensitive to everything that concerns the archaic cultures in which the divine mother was revered, be it the Great Mother, Mother Earth, etc. The later pantheons of pagan gods follow the Wiccans as aspects, particular manifestations of the original dual divine. According to this theory, all pagan goddesses are hypostases of the one Goddess, and all gods are hypostases of God.

It is also characteristic that, reanimating prehistoric and historical pagan cults, Wiccans endow their Goddess with the property of a triune, interpreted most often in the context of a bundle of "a virgin, a mother, an old woman". Obviously, this concept reflects the connection of the figure of the divine mother with the lunar cycles. A similar picture we see in the Greco-Roman, some eastern, Celtic beliefs.

As for God, it is correlated with the horned deity of the Europeans, the god-hunter of the Celtic and other tribes who inhabited Europe in pre-Christian times. Wiccans (at least not from adherents of Christian and, generally speaking, Abrahamic Wicca) insist that it is inadmissible to identify the God of monotheists and God Wiccan, since the neo-Pagan religion Wicca does not recognize any transcendent all-powerful deity and creator of the world. The extreme degree of immanence of the Goddess and God is an integral part of Wiccan theology. Thus, the theological mainstream in Wicca is pantheism, postulating two divine principles, sometimes viewed in a dualistic vein.

However, in the Wiccan sources one can find a reference to the higher deity standing over the differentiation of God the Goddess. In practice, of course, little attention is paid to it. But in theory it is still recognized by the Wicca religion. Its creator, Gerald Gardner, himself spoke of this being, claiming that his name remains unknown, and he stands above all the other gods. Others called him Dryten ("god" from Old English) or the One. However, the radical matriarchal movements of the Wiccans (Dianic and some others) deny the existence of this higher principle, arguing that the absolute of everything lies in the figure of the Mother Goddess.

Afterlife

Here is what is true about the Wicca religion in relation to all its currents, so this is that all of them profess the metempsychosis, that is, the transmigration of souls. In particular, of course, Wiccans may differ in their views, but in general, reincarnation is an integral part of their creed. According to the most common theory, the soul of a person after death resides in the so-called land of eternal summer, preparing for the next incarnation. Unlike the Abrahamic religions, Wiccans do not seek any other, heavenly kingdom or paradise. And unlike dharmic teachings, they do not try to free themselves from samsara and do not want to interrupt the chain of rebirths in order to merge with a certain Absolute. In this sense, Wicca religion is a very life-affirming natural religion, concentrated entirely on this world and in it finding a finite meaning. Therefore, in practice, the adepts of this creed do not show any particular interest in the other world. Of course, many Wiccans are engaged in spiritualism, but, firstly, not all Wiccan authorities approve of this, and secondly, it is done exclusively in a magical rather than a soteriological context.

The magic of Wicca

The religion we are talking about is not just a spiritual teaching. It involves intense magical work, because it regards witchcraft as a sacred activity, a kind of service to God and the Goddess. Therefore, it will be fair to say that this is a religion of witches. Wicca, in fact, means, from the Old English dialect, roughly what is meant today by the word "witchcraft".

Of course, it is not necessary to practice magic in order to have the right to consider yourself a Wiccan. It is enough simply to divide the basic doctrinal concepts of this religion and in one's own way express your veneration to God and the Goddess in prayers and personal rituals. But, on the other hand, there are units in this way, because the content part of this religion without magical content is very meager: there are no common services, no sacred places, no sacred scripture, no clergy, no sacraments. There are, of course, holidays that celebrate all Wiccans, but again this is not enough in itself to lead a full-fledged spiritual life. In addition, most of the festive rituals are regarded as magical acts, and the coven (community) by default is a community of practicing witches. Therefore, the Wicca religion is almost always associated with magical practice, and its adepts sincerely consider themselves witches and sorcerers.

Rituals

Wiccan rituals are not universally accepted - every Wiccan or Wiccan coven creates their own rituals based on personal tastes, attitudes and preferences. The only thing that can be said is the way in which certain Wiccan ceremonies are timed. First, these are the Sabbats and the Esbates, which will be discussed below. Secondly, these are practices of initiation or self-consecration into tradition. The most conservative covens adhere to the three-part system of initiation. Thirdly, there are rituals of Vikkanning and HandFasting. The first of these is a ceremony in which the newborn is presented to God and the Goddess in order to provide the infant with their patronage. Wikation is not an initiation into religion, and therefore is not analogous to baptism in Christianity. Handfasting is a ritual of Wiccan marriage. This is all that can be said about this, because as a specific description of the rituals each Wiccan keeps a secret, trusting them only with a personal book of shadows - a collection of spells, ceremonies and such information.

The main sorcery traditions of Wicca are rooted in the ancient rituals of the agricultural cycle. In more specific issues, magic is based on the ideas of European witchcraft: the four elements manipulating which the witch or sorcerer produces the desired changes in the physical world. This distinguishes western and northern magic from the east, where the magician only summoned the spirit he needed, which did all the necessary work. However, as has already been said, Wicca religion often acquires an eclectic character in the person of its followers, who actively experiment with various traditions, including African, Australian, Indian, Tibetan and shamanic practices. The root cause of all magical work in this system is the postulate of the four elements known from the writings of the classics (fire, earth, water, air) and spirit. The elements can control the will power, causing the desired changes on the physical and mental level. This is magic. Wicca ambiguously refers to the differentiation of magic to black and white, although many authorities of the movement held this division before. Denial of the very attribute of black color to evil. But what about evil, Wiccans have not yet developed a more or less intelligible concept. However, they have their own moral values, which will be discussed below.

Ethics

Wicca, as was said above, does not have any sacred, inspired scriptures. However, there are more or less authoritative texts for its adherents, among which there is a simple but capacious rule: "If your actions do not do any harm to anyone, then do what you want." This slogan serves as a guide in the life that every witch enjoys. Wicca, however, lacks an unequivocal doctrine of who and what is included in the circle of these "no one". Does it include only people or animals, including insects? And plants? Or how to cope with this installation Wiccan, called for war? Is this restriction removed if self-defense is necessary? And is revenge permissible? There is no unambiguous answer to these questions. But there is another rather popular text, called the Covenant of the Goddess. It was written by Dorin Valienti and it deals with eight qualities that a witch should strive for: joy, respect, respect, humanity, strength, beauty, power and compassion.

The third very popular moral principle of Wiccans is the so-called law of threefold retribution, according to which everything that a person does will return to him in triple size. Thus, the actions of a Wiccan are determined not by the commandments of the deities, but by what is called the golden rule in Christianity: "Do not do to others what you do not want yourself."

Sexual moral principles

Regarding sexuality, Wiccans do not adhere to Puritan views, positing a complete freedom (associated, however, with responsibility) in this matter. Among other things, some Wiccans also practice sexual magic, which often involves group rituals. Wicca is ambivalent about the issue of homosexuality. Conservatives, following the founder Gerald Gardner, refer to this negatively, arguing that such a connection causes the wrath of the goddess. On the other hand, most Wiccans are completely tolerant of people of non-traditional orientation and do not impose any sexual limitations on Wiccan. In some feminist movements of Wicca, for example, traditionally a high percentage of lesbians.

Symbolism

Wiccans adopted many ancient symbols from various cultures. However, there are the most characteristic and, so to speak, official signs, which, for example, are distinguished by Wiccan tombstones. The first is a direct pentagram, signifying the harmony of the elements under the primacy of the spirit. The second is the lunar symbol, which designates the Goddess. Wicca uses in this capacity the ancient Greek standard. Thus, for example, depicted the Greek moon goddesses. Also represents the Great Mother and Wicca. A photo of this sign is given below.

Holidays

Wicca is unthinkable without its traditional eight holidays. All of them have an ancient pre-Christian background and are oriented to changing the seasons in their connection with agricultural work. The calendar of these dates is called in Wicca the wheel of the year.

Of the eight holidays, four are considered great. They are identical with the ancient Celtic celebrations and mean a change of seasons. Four more are the days of the spring and autumn equinox, as well as the winter and summer solstices. All eight are called Sabbaths. Here they are: Samhein, Yol, Imbolk, Ostara, Beltain, Lita, Lammas and Mabon.

In addition to them there is also the concept of "esbat". The latter are full moons and sometimes new moons, which are also considered a special festive time.

Wicca Religion in Russia

Everything in our country, as you know, comes late. And if in the US the Wiccan symbol was included in the official list of emblems of faiths back in 1985, in Russia Wicca is just beginning to develop. So, the first coven in our country appeared only in 2011 in Udmurtia. However, this was the first official registration of the Wiccan community. Adherents of her, of course, there were before, but in a very limited number. Today, thanks to the Internet and the culture, Wicca in Russia is developing quite rapidly, mainly at the expense of young people. At the moment there is the Wiccan Union of Russia, there are several other organized Moscow and St. Petersburg groups. The number of covens is growing rapidly, and even more is the number of single practitioners. Among other things, they have already seen splits and confrontations on various issues, which in itself speaks of the significant influence and relative abundance of Wiccans in Russia.