Witchcraft without Wicca?

[Anteros]

I'm wondering if anyone practices a form of witchcraft that doesn't have the usual Wiccan-influenced practices? Some of these would be, for example, casting circles, calling on the four elements, celebrating sabbats and esbats, honouring unnamed deities like "the Goddess", and so on. I'm curious about whether witchcraft has become more or less universally Wiccan-ish these days, or if there is more to it.

An example of non-neopagan witchcraft that comes to mind would be a modern follower of Hekate not working within a non-Wiccan framework, practicing ancient magic and curses while honouring a specific deity (Hekate). I'm not sure what ancient witchcraft would entail exactly, but it would be different.

[Shawn Blackwolf]

There is already quite a thread on this , Anteros...

Let me see if I can find it...:uhhuhuh:

[Nox_Mortus]

there are plenty of non-Wiccans who practice some form of witchcraft, and as Shawn Said I think there is a very lage thread on this already.

[Shawn Blackwolf]

Here is one...maybe others can help you find the others...

http://mysticwicks.com/showthread.php?t=184688&highlight=Witchcraft+Wicca&page=5

Here is the main one...

http://mysticwicks.com/showthread.php?t=142873&page=13&highlight=Witchcraft+Wicca

[Anteros]

Ah, thank you.

[Dumunzi]

I don't think theirs anything wrong with a nameless deity. :)

[Lunacie]

I'm wondering if anyone practices a form of witchcraft that doesn't have the usual Wiccan-influenced practices? Some of these would be, for example, casting circles, calling on the four elements, celebrating sabbats and esbats, honouring unnamed deities like "the Goddess", and so on. I'm curious about whether witchcraft has become more or less universally Wiccan-ish these days, or if there is more to it.

An example of non-neopagan witchcraft that comes to mind would be a modern follower of Hekate not working within a non-Wiccan framework, practicing ancient magic and curses while honouring a specific deity (Hekate). I'm not sure what ancient witchcraft would entail exactly, but it would be different.

Wicca has not only influenced many other forms of Paganism, but it was influenced itself by many sources. There are other religions or cultures that also honor the four (or six) directions, the ancestors, the gods. The Sabbat celebrations based on the cycles of nature and the phases of the moon have long been celebrated by Shamanic cultures and these are things that Wicca adapted into it's practices. Some things have become so conmingled at this point that it's rather difficult to say "This is purely Wiccan" and "This is something that Wiccans never do."

There are Witches who do not follow any religion, and there are Witches within nearly every religion. Magic is magic, whatever trappings we add to it, neh?

[Teresa]

I practice Witchcraft without Wicca. I practice Hoodoo and also Voodoo.

[Ben Gruagach]

There are sections devoted to non-Wiccan Witchcraft here in the Paths section.

Kitchen, Green, & Hedge Witches (http://mysticwicks.com/forumdisplay.php?f=263) is one.

Dianic and Goddess Witchcraft (http://mysticwicks.com/forumdisplay.php?f=389) is another.

Christian Witchcraft (http://mysticwicks.com/forumdisplay.php?f=223) is another.

You'll also find threads that discuss non-Wiccan Witchcraft forms such as that practiced by followers of Robert Cochrane (Clan of Tubal Cain, 1734, and Roebuck traditions) and Andrew Chumbley (the Cultus Sabbati) as well in various sections around the messageboard. The best way to find them is to use the Search feature in the MysticWicks menu bar near the top of each page to look for the term you want to find.

[cydira]

I'd also like to note that the perspective that Wicca = Witchcraft is a purely American one. There are quite a few places in Europe where having some measure of psychic ability results in your being labeled a witch. And in places outside of the highly industrialized 'First World' any display of sufficiently advanced technology will be viewed as witchcraft. There are many places where the use of cameras, for example, is viewed with great suspicion because of the fear that the photo will capture the subject's soul.

[Meisopomenos]

I guess you could say I'm one of those "Goddess-Only" Witches. And I'm a male, so go figure. I call myself a Religious Witch, with very little Wicca-influence.

I do not follow a Rede or Three-fold Law. I do not always do what is right, but what is necessary. I trust myself. I know myself.

The misconception that if you practice Witchcraft is ridiculous, but that's what happens sometimes when a religion becomes dominant over a practice/spirituality.

[Deerwoman]

Another non-Wiccan witch here. I'm in a witchcraft tradition not related to Wicca, and my personal practice is Scottish witchcraft. I usually go by the definition of traditional witchcraft. Non-Wiccan witchcraft sites and forums are popping up like weeds lately, so if you're interested in learning about it Google is your best friend.

[FiresSong]

Wicca is a religion. Witchcraft is a practice. Simple as that.

[Lahmi]

Wicca is a religion. Witchcraft is a practice. Simple as that.
Well put, FireSong. :)
There are many spiritual paths that use witchcraft, Wicca just happens
to have been the 'in' thing for a while now. :)

[SoulFire]

Wicca is a religion. Witchcraft is a practice. Simple as that.

Thirty-seven years ago, when I was starting out, no Wiccan or Witch made that distinction. In fact, most Old Guard used the terms interchangeably. Mainly, we used "Wicca" when talking to our non-Pagan friends, family, teachers, or people who might frown on the word "witch". But in reality, most of us preferred to call ourselves "Witch" over the archaic "Wicca". The word "wicca" is an old Anglo-Saxon term for a male Witch; "wicce" used to denote a female Witch. Check the Oxford English Dictionary.

Today, however, "Wicca" is a loaded term, and I too now prefer to identify as a non-Wiccan, Traditional Witch.

[Lunacie]

Thirty-seven years ago, when I was starting out, no Wiccan or Witch made that distinction. In fact, most Old Guard used the terms interchangeably. Mainly, we used "Wicca" when talking to our non-Pagan teachers, friends, or people who might frown on the word "witch". But in reality, most of us preferred to call ourselves "Witch" over the archaic "Wicca". The word "wicca" is an old Anglo-Saxon term for a male Witch; "wicce" used to denote a female Witch. Check the Oxford English Dictionary.

Today, however, "Wicca" is a loaded term, and I too now prefer to identify as a non-Wiccan (meaning Traditional) Witch.

Yep, to relate it to a better known paradigm, it's like saying "I'm a Christian" instead of specifying whether one is a Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Quaker or whatever.

I generally say "I'm a Wiccan" rather than a Witch or a Pagan, but that's because I've been following the Wiccan path for so many years that it's part of who I am. But I do use the word "witch" when I initiate someone new into the Path... "you are now a Witch."