Wicca is a Western neo-pagan religion, based on the veneration of nature. Wicca gained popularity in 1954 thanks to the creator Gerald Gardner, a retired public servant.
At first, Gardner called his religion “witchcraft” - it was a secret and ancient teaching. He argued that members of the witchcraft cult, which had survived in Europe and operated clandestinely, had dedicated it to this teaching. Gardner himself considered the Wiccan tradition a continuation of pre-Christian European beliefs - they were based on the veneration of the forces of nature, which were embodied in the image of the Mother Goddess and God the Father.
However, archaeologists, anthropologists and historians believe this version is doubtful, and it is officially believed that Wicca was created no earlier than the 20s of the XX century. Wicca is indeed similar to archaic matriarchal beliefs, but rather resembles an attempt to partially recreate them in order to combine them with the concept of modern neopaganism.
Wiccans are called not only the followers of Gardner, but also everyone who has similar beliefs. New forms of Wiccan theory and practice are constantly being created.
Creator of the Wiccan tradition
Gerald Gardner was a civil servant, amateur anthropologist, writer and occultist. He came from a wealthy family and grew up in the care of an Irish nanny. Since childhood, Gardner was tormented by asthma, therefore, believing that a warm climate would be more useful for the boy, his parents and his nanny released him to the continent. It so happened that Gardner spent his youth in Europe, in Ceylon, in Asia. Then he moved to Malaysia, where he grew rubber, met local people and studied their religions, which impressed him very much.
After 1923, Gardner got a public service job: a government inspector in Malaya. After 5 years, he married an Englishwoman with whom he lived for more than 33 years. At 52, Gardner resigned, returned to England, where he published the essay “Chris and Other Malay Weapons, ” based on his research.
However, in London, he did not live long - in the same year, he and his wife moved to Highcliff, where Gardner was seriously carried away by occultism and nudism. In 1939, he joined the Folklore Society, wrote in the journal Folklore, and in 1946 became a member of a public committee. Gardner loved the title.
In 1947, he met Alistair Crowley, who consecrated him to the Order of the Oriental Templars. There is a version that Gardner was initiated in the VII degree of the Order, from which the study of sexual magic begins. According to another version, Crowley himself taught Gardner some magical practices, which he later incorporated into his own rituals. However, according to occultist Patricia Crowther, Crowley did not give Gardner any materials on witchcraft.
Under the pseudonym Skyr, Gardner wrote two books: The Coming of the Goddess and The Help of Higher Magic. After 5 years, two more of his works were published: Witchcraft Today and The Meaning of Witchcraft, where Gardner described the witchcraft tradition into which he was dedicated. He claimed that he had taken a vow of silence, and only after the cancellation of the Act of Witchcraft in 1951 was he able to discover the "true essence of witchcraft."
In 1960, Gardner's wife died. This crippled him, an asthma attack returned. Gardner himself died in 1964 of a heart attack. Buried in Tunisia.
Theology and the Underworld
The basis of the Wiccan tradition is the worship of 2 divine principles - male and female, which have the image of God and Goddess. There is no consensus on the equality of these principles:
- some worship only the Goddess;
- others venerate the Goddess somewhat more than God;
- still others consider principles equal and worship them equally;
- fourth worship only God.
But the latter are less common, since Wicca pays more attention to the feminine. According to Wiccans, all the gods and goddesses of the religions of the past are the hypostases of their God the Father and the Goddess Mother. The latter will be endowed with the property of trinity: the virgin, mother and the old woman, which reflects the connection of the Mother Goddess with the moon cycles.
The Wiccan god is the horned hunter god of the ancient tribes that inhabited Europe. He is not related to the Christian god, because, according to the teachings of Wicca, there is no one omnipotent deity who created the world. The cornerstone of Wiccan theology is the extreme immanence of God and the Goddess.
Another important part of the Wiccan tradition is the transmigration of souls. Wiccans believe that after death, the human soul is in the country of eternal summer, where it awaits the next incarnation and prepares for it. Wiccans do not recognize the concept of Paradise or the Kingdom of Heaven, they do not want liberation from the wheel of Samsara and merging with the Absolute. They find meaning in the real world, and in practice do not show interest in posthumous. Even their spiritualism is concentrated on the practical goals of life, and not on communication with the afterlife.
Magic and Symbols
Wicca has not only a spiritual, but also a magical component. Witchcraft in it is a sacrament, a way of serving the Goddess and God, therefore the doctrine is called the “religion of the witches”. The word "Wicca" itself is translated from Old English as "witchcraft."
Practicing magic, however, is optional. For a Wiccan, it is enough to adhere to the basic concepts of religion and to express their own respect for the Goddess and God. However, most of the doctrine is focused on witchcraft, without which it will not:
- sacred places and rituals;
- worship and sacraments;
- scripture and prayers.
Even Wiccan festivals are magical rituals, and the community is a coven of witches and sorcerers, and practitioners.
The symbolism of Wiccans unites many ancient symbols from different cultures, but there are strictly official signs that can be seen on Wiccan tombstones. The first such sign is a direct pentagram, which depicts the harmony of the elements under the leadership of the spirit. The second sign is the lunar symbol, it denotes the Goddess.
