As I was on vacation with my Christian family (parents), I found it might be unnerving for them if I were to do any sort of formal ritual, plus I left all my ritual tools at home. So I've planned to do a celebration/dedication ritual at Lughnasadh (August 1st) at the full moon (which is technically on August 2nd, but a full moon ritual within 3 days of the scientific event is acceptable, especially if it coincides with a feast day.)
If you're not familiar with what a year-and-a-day study is, here's some info:
Year-and-a-day study according to Scott Cunningham is a Wiccan practice. At the start of the contemporary religion of Wicca, a year-and-a-day study was done under the tutelage of a high priest or priestess of the tradition that the initiate wanted to join. This study was meant to give the initiate a solid education about the religion they were pursuing so that they could make an informed decision whether to join the coven at the end of their study, or to find another spirituality that fit more closely with them.
As a solitary practitioner (a witch without a coven), it is possible to do a self study as a year-and-a-day. I found it to be a very good practice in my case. If you choose to study on your own for a year-and-a-day, you need to be both dedicated to your study, and careful with the sources of your information. Some solitary practitioners find a mentor who is willing to teach them what they know, although this usually comes at a price (as all things must). Just be careful who you study with. Trust your intuition, your gut feeling. If you don't seem to mesh well with your teacher, they're probably not the right teacher for you.
I studied on my own without a steady guide. I did, however, have support from pagan friends who pointed out some good books and sources along my way. I also found an online community that helped to support me in my studies. Most important of all (to me) was to learn the core tenets of this spirituality, and let those tenets and your intuition guide your studies:
'An it harm none,
do as ye will.
Choose what you like and leave the rest, as long as you remember not to hurt anyone, including yourself.
The Threefold Law
Karma's a bitch. The basics of this tenet are synonymous with the Golden Rule: do unto others as you would have them do unto you. It also says that what energy you send out into the world, it will be returned to you times three. Send out loving energy? You will receive it in return. Send out hate? It will return to you threefold.
What I love about this spirituality is that I can be who I want to be, I can believe what I want to believe, I can create and hold my own values without a holy man or a holy book telling me what and who and how I have to be. Just be a good person. You can take it on more levels than that, but that's the core of it: be a good person.
To close up this blog post, I'm going to share some of the books/sources of info I've found helpful to my spiritual journey so far.
Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham
True Magick: A Beginner's Guide by Amber K
Paganism: An Introduction to Earth-Centered Religions by Joyce and River Higginbotham
Natural Witchery by Ellen Dugan
Here are some books that I have heard good reviews that I trust, however I haven't read them yet myself:
The Spiral Dance by Starhawk
To Ride a Silver Broomstick by Silver RavenWolf (and her other 2 books To Stir a Magic Cauldron and To Light a Sacred Flame)
I trust Scott Cunningham's work and I love Ellen Dugan's books. I would suggest pretty much any book authored by either of those people.
I'll leave you with one last source: an online community with tons of knowledge that I actually just joined but have found extremely helpful already. http://solitarymagic.ning.com/
Love & Light!
Tamra
No comments:
Post a Comment