"I am not a glutton - I am an explorer of food."
Erma
Lesson One
"So you wanna be a Witch" I first came across these words when I was really starting to research Witchcraft as my religion. They seemed to just..jump right out at me and grab my full attention. Yes, I DID wanna be a Witch and I was looking for ways to learn, but I wondered what a web page could teach me. It was at that point I realized I needed to find a direction in which to study. That was a year ago, and I have come to the conclusion that those words will probably remain with me for the rest of my life. Kudos to whomever wrote them. I am past my Year and a Day, and am now really studing my new way of life. It wasn't easy, believe me! Witches don't stand on street corners or knock on your door, so you really have to look either for a good teacher or good literature to study. I have to use the latter. There are no teachers in my area, so I have to learn this on my own. So what makes me so darned qualified to teach this stuff? Good question. If you are looking for the Great Universal Truth, I am not your teacher. I will only teach what I know and what I personally do. I will not regurgatate what my books said to do, but what I discovered along my new path to enlightenment. The exercises do not have a time-line or limit attached. I have designed these exercises to meet the basic things a person should know. Use whatever resources you feel necessary, be they another Witch, chat rooms, books, the web or whatever. Go at your own pace and keep an open mind. Just remember, everything comes in its own time.
Exercise One.
If you are currently in a religion, write its history. Include the good as well as the bad giving three examples of each. Name one person you admire as well as one person you don't. Give examples of why you admire or dis-admire these individuals. Can you include one major doctrine? What do you like (no matter how trivial) and what do you hate (no matter how trivial)? Include three examples of each.
Exercise Two.
Research three other religions (not including The Craft). Find three good and three bad aspects. Find one person to admire and give an example of why. Do the same for a person you do not admire. Find out the religions founders and main doctrines. What do you like (no matter how trivial) and what do you hate (no matter how trivial)? Include three examples of each.
Exercise Three.
List what you think Witchcraft is. (Notice I have not said to research it yet?) Do the same for what you think a Witch is and what a Witch does.
Exercise Four.
Now. Research The Craft. Find three good and three bad aspects. Find one person to admire and one person to not admire and give one example for each as to why. Find out about the founders and some main doctrines. What do you like (no matter how trivial) and what do you hate (no matter how trivial)? Include three examples of each.
Exercise Five.
Now. List what you now think Witchcraft is. Have your opinions changed? For the good or worse?
Exercise Six.
How do you feel? Write it down. Do you feel guilty? List why. Do you feel embarassment? List why. Do you feel you are betraying your family/belief system/religion? List why. NOTE: This is the hardest lesson, in my opinion, because you have to come to terms with many years of social conditioning. Take your time with this area, and give yourself plenty of time to do soul searching and coming to grips with why you are looking for another religion.
Exercise Seven
List ways you can come to terms with your new religious choices. For example, research, questions, talk to other Witches etc. Go out and do them.
Exercise Eight.
Go over the previous exercises. Using what you have learned, decide if you still wish to be a Witch or if this is not for you.
Congratulations either way! You have used your inborn intelligence to decide for yourself which direction you want your spiritual to take. Pat yourself on the back, you earned it!
To flip through the pages of my BOS faster...
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Brightest of Blessings