To be a witch alone?

RE: To be a witch alone?

Hi Willow11, I'm a solitary witch , I personally prefer to work alone . Having worked as part of a group ,in both moon worship and Druid . there's heaps of book, but if you go to the top of the " Wicca " thread , I think you'll find all you need from " Sherringham ". He has detailed loads of info......check those out.........good luck

Goddess Blessings

Oakapple

RE: To be a witch alone?

Hi Oakapple,

I will have a look at the thread you kindly suggested. I was just wondering what your expeiences of being a solitary witch were?

RE: To be a witch alone?

Hiya Willow11, The solo path is quite a lonely traditional route to take,and I can only suggest you read " A Witch Alone " , by Marian Green. That will explain the thirteen moons , and it gives you all sorts of exercises .

Kate West is a good writer. She is also connected to COA, She will be at " Witchfest " in Croydon soon . She,s very approachable , if you can make that venue? ,...... its very good.

As for my own path . I meditate every day , I do my path-work . I attend chanting, I study "Tree-lore"and Bushcraft, which I do with a group . But don't really get involved with group worship. Im studying the "Ogham ".........and on the Sabbats I attend open rituals. It takes time and commitment.......,thats why I personally prefer to go at my own pace, and work solitary.

You could quite easily be at different meetings every night . Which isn't for me. There are different levels of power you can attain........If you want to.......Good luck

Blessings

Oakapple

RE: To be a witch alone?

Hi Willow11,
I would also suggest Marian Green's excellent "A Witch Alone" as well as Rae Beth's "Hedge Witch: Guide to Solitary Witchcraft" which, although more of a collection of letters than a conventionally structured book, contains many inspirational and revealing lessons for the solitary practitioner.
There seems to be an ever-increasing number of Wiccan books on the market and some are good, but many are poor.
Personally, I feel that anyone embracing a nature-based faith such as witchcraft should be a solitary for at least part of their journey, because I believe that it fosters self discipline& mental focus and is the best way to achieve harmony or "oneness" with the essence of nature, without the possible distraction of group energies getting in the way.
It's not "dabbling"; approached with honesty and resolve, it's a path, a journey. Ultimately it is very rewarding, but it can be tough too - especially in the beginning - as you'll generally have to work out your own (usually eclectic) way. There are a few genuine teachers, but many solitaries are just that, keeping their own company. There are also a few teachers who are on an ego trip, looking for admiration to feed their self-importance.
Wicca, (one of the more popular forms of witchcraft, of whch there are many) is, in general, more ritualistic (by which I mean adhering to a set "form" of ceremony) than many solitaries prefer and, is also usually more social, with people working/teaching in groups - though there are also solitary Wiccans.
I tried a few Wiccan groups, but found that many of the meetings were primarily social evenings with few opportunities for study - and in some cases the attitude was "OK let's get the ceremonies over as quickly as possible and move on to the Wine and Cakes"!
I must stress that this has only been my experience; I'm sure that there are many excellent Wiccan teaching groups and Covens out there, but I was not able to find them.
To the beginning solitary I would say:

• Take nothing at face value - especially teachers - and trust your own intuition.
• Take what feels right to you and discard anything that feels wrong or that you have outgrown and, in either case, do the right thing, not the easy thing.
• Remember the feeling you get when you suddenly encounter a breathtaking sunset or a beautiful tree - that timeless moment of awe and joy is the connection to the universe that you can achieve with practice.

Namaste (Eclecticism at its best...) 🙂

Chris

RE: To be a witch alone?

HI Willow11

I have read all the books suggested (many years ago) and dip into them from time to time, they are very inspiring. I'm a solo practioner and very ecelectic, yoga plays a large part in my meditation! I'm not interested in joining a coven for many of the reasons Chris mentioned. Working on my own allows me freedon of choice, to try a new approcah or sticking to what works for me, often, I work straight form the heart and am not too big on fancy rituals. Much of the time I just sit quitely in my lilltel London back yard gazing at the moon feeling it energy, if it is a dark moon, well, I still sit there. Aswalk along the common in the summer I kick my shoes of to feel the grass and earth beneath my feet to feel at one and connect with the great Goddess, brushing the trees with my hand or just standing for a moment to feel the bark on my palm. These are all ways I practice, no one can tell you it is wrong.

Don't feel that you have to be a part of a coven, what is important is what you feel inside, and you are already on the path by seeking answers to your questions.

This is a great sight, I have found a few answers here myself, often raised by others.

Goodk luck, we are all here for you.

Om Shanti

Purplewolf

RE: To be a witch alone?

Thanks all for everything you have said it has certainly made me feel alot less confused. I know have a better view of the path I would like to go down. I agree with what Chris said about covens, I think I would find them too constricting. The idea of a solitary seems far better and what you said purplewolf about "brushing the trees with my hands" and "gazing at the moon" etc, it sounds just like my childhood so that would seem a natural way to go. I will certainly read the books you suggested to gain knowledge and inspiration.

Thanks again to you all.

I certainly know where to come for advice when I need it! x

RE: To be a witch alone?

There are lots of decent moots around the country. Some are just social but many have speakers, often authors of the books. I'm pleased to see Marian Green recommended on the reading list, I would, however, leave the Kate West pap and COA events well alone.

To find out about local meetings in your area, try some of the pagan magazines such as Pentacle, Pagan Dawn, White Dragon, The Cauldron. Alternatively, if you have a local pagan or occult shop they should know where the moots are in your area. I don't know whereabouts in the country you are but by far the best shops when it comes to real advice on what to read (and having them in stock) would be Atlantis Books in London, Treadwells in London and New Aeon Books in Manchester. There are others but these three seem to know what they are talking about more than any other shops I've come across in the country and the owners of all three of them are speakers at Pagan events.

RE: To be a witch alone?

Hi Bannick ,

I live in city centre Manchester so a stones throw away from New Aeon Books. I have been up recenlty to purchase some books (Marian Green and a book by Poppy Palin - The Craft of the Wildwitch - don't know if anyone has read this?). Also found out about some Pagan events in the area and at the shop.

RE: To be a witch alone?

The owner of New Aeon Books is actually a friend of Marian Green. She was one of the headline speakers at The Awakening Conference they held for a couple of years. I would suggest staying up to date with their courses and events as she goes up to Manchester a few times a year to give talks at the shop and occasionally runs full weekend courses in association with New Aeon Books. This means that people in Manchester get to do her weekend courses without having to travel to Bristol or London and pay for transport and hotels etc. If you enjoyed a Witch Alone then I'd give the guys at New Aeon a kick up the backside to get them to book her again!

RE: To be a witch alone?

Do you know the name of the person who owns New Aeon books? Yes I did enjoy a Witch Alone so maybe will try to get them to book her again!

RE: To be a witch alone?

Generaly speaking everybody follows a solitary path as we're all individuals and, thus, our paths are individual too.
Covens or groups can be fun, but many are quite short lived as egos get ruffled and friction develops.
My own stops and starts with the seasons here as the climate is inclement which makes outside working difficult during the Winter months. We usualy take a break from Hallowmas to Beltane. Everybody needs the break and it is useful to try new and excrutiatingly amusing ventures during this time and generaly have fun enjoying the freedom.
My advice would be to begin your path on your own with advice from books. There are many of these and to make a wise choice is to choose a book which feels right and suits you, rather than be swayedby somebody pushing their own personal experiences upon you.
If you're into Wicca I would reccomend Vivian Crowley, if into the more cabbalistic sides of things then Paul Huson.
If your interests follow a more Holistic bent I would highly recommend Laura Brown who is one of the more knowlegable people in this field.

RE: To be a witch alone?

If your interests follow a more Holistic bent I would highly recommend Laura Brown who is one of the more knowlegable people in this field.

:D:D:D Well, I've thoroughly enjoyed my 15 minutes of fame ... the time between reading this and putting 'Laura Brown holistic witch' into Google, whereupon I discovered I have a namesake who lives in London and is a reviewer for Amazon: page headed
Reviews Written by
Laura Brown [link= http://www.amazon.com/rss/people/ATKO4SYREPE33/reviews/ref=cm_rss_member_rev_manlink ][/link] (London)

I hope that link works for all ... it came with the copy and paste of the page heading, and is to a feed... the one from the address bar was VERY long, but is below.

Different page[url] this link [/url]

I couldn't find many titles by her though ... if it's the author you recommend, she seems to write mainly on femininist subjects.

Funny coincidence, though, that my user name is Holistic! 😀

Still on books (and back to topic! ;))there's a 'sticky' thread pinned to the top of the Wicca forum which gives a list of resources ... books, websites etc

Holistic