Bide within the Law you must, in perfect Love and perfect Trust.
Live you must and let to live, fairly take and fairly give.
For tread the Circle thrice about to keep unwelcome spirits out.
To bind the spell well every time, let the spell be said in rhyme.
Light of eye and soft of touch, speak you little, listen much.
Honor the Old Ones in deed and name, let love and light be our guides again.
Deosil go by the waxing moon, chanting out the joyful tune.
Widdershins go when the moon doth wane, and the werewolf howls by the dread wolfsbane.
When the Lady's moon is new, kiss the hand to Her times two.
When the moon rides at Her peak then your heart's desire seek.
Heed the North winds mighty gale, lock the door and trim the sail.
When the Wind blows from the East, expect the new and set the feast.
When the wind comes from the South, love will kiss you on the mouth.
When the wind whispers from the West, all hearts will find peace and rest.
Nine woods in the Cauldron go, burn them fast and burn them slow.
Birch in the fire goes to represent what the Lady knows.
Oak in the forest towers with might, in the fire it brings the God's insight.
Rowan is a tree of power causing life and magick to flower.
Willows at the waterside stand ready to help us to the Summerland.
Hawthorn is burned to purify and to draw faerie to your eye.
Hazel-the tree of wisdom and learning adds its strength to the bright fire burning.
White are the flowers of Apple tree that brings us fruits of fertility.
Grapes grow upon the vine giving us both joy and wine.
Fir does mark the evergreen to represent immortality seen.
Elder is the Lady's tree burn it not or cursed you'll be.
Four times the Major Sabbats mark in the light and in the dark.
As the old year starts to wane the new begins, it's now Samhain.
When the time for Imbolc shows watch for flowers through the snows.
When the wheel begins to turn soon the Beltane fires will burn.
As the wheel turns to Lamas night power is brought to magick rite.
Four times the Minor Sabbats fall use the Sun to mark them all.
When the wheel has turned to Yule light the log the Horned One rules.
In the spring, when night equals day time for Ostara to come our way.
When the Sun has reached it's height time for Oak and Holly to fight.
Harvesting comes to one and all when the Autumn Equinox does fall.
Heed the flower, bush, and tree by the Lady blessed you'll be.
Where the rippling waters go cast a stone, the truth you'll know.
When you have and hold a need, harken not to others greed.
With a fool no season spend or be counted as his friend.
Merry Meet and Merry Part, bright the cheeks and warm the heart.
Mind the Three-fold Laws you should, three times bad and three times good.
When misfortune is enow wear the star upon your brow.
Be true in love this you must do unless your love is false to you.
These Eight words the Rede fulfill:
"An ye harm none, do what ye will"
"The Three- Fold Law"
"May whatever you do, come back to you.
Three times bad or three times good."
On The Wiccan Rede
Religion has a very specific purpose. Or does it? In junior high social studies we learned that religion was one of the five basic institutions of society. Our textbook stated that the purpose of religion was to "explain w hy we're here." But it goes far beyond that, to reasons that differ from religion to religion. To some, it's the means to salvation. This believe is evidenced in the Lutheran religion, where it is believed that grace and salvation come from faith alone and that good deeds and penance are inconsequential. To others, practicing a religion is a way to keep the gods from being angry at you. This is the case in classical polytheism, which was practiced by the ancient Greeks and Romans to appease the less- than-perfect, quick-tempered gods. Still others see religion as a device that brings about unity. Baha'i believe that unity is essential, and that if religion were to bring about disunity, it's better not to have religion at all.
Wiccan people also have a specific reason for being religious: to become a better person. As you will see later, we don't believe that you have to be Wiccan to be a good person. We don't even believe that you have to be rel igious to be a good person. But as the Baha'i believe that religion has lost its purpose when it causes disunity, Wiccan people believe that it's better not to be religious at all if your religion does not help you grow as a person. For a person who bom bs an abortion clinic in the name of God, in the opinion of a Wiccan, the purpose for religion has been lost.
When a people believe that striving to be a good person is the ultimate goal of religion, it's logical to ask, "What is a good person?" In order to quest toward this goal, we must be able to define what it is. Almost all religions have standards of morality that they expect their adherents to follow. The Christian religion begins with the ten commandments, and then the teachings of Jesus, and then the results of the creed and lateran councils, and the Vaticans, and the priests, the ministers, the pope... morality comes from a variety of sources for them. And this is not unique--most religions actually have many volumes of book written by respected sources just about how you go about being a good person. Wiccans, h owever, put forth only one standard:
Do what ye will, but harm none.
The first and only criticism that we usually receive on the Wiccan Rede is that it's "too simple." I disagree. Let's examine the ten commandments:
1.Thou shalt have no other gods before me
3.Remember the sabbath and keep it holy
4.Honor thy father and mother
5.Thou shalt not kill
6.Thou shalt not commit adultery
7.Thou shalt not steal
8.Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor
9.Thou shalt no covet thy neighbor's house
10.Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, cattle, or other belongings
The only ones of these commandments that Wiccans would not immediately throw out are 5 through 8. As I've said, the purpose of religion is to become a better person; not to appease gods (and a person doesn't have to be religious to be a good person). Therefore, commandments 1 through 3 would really be of no consequence to Wiccans. Number 4 says to honor thy father and mother. Wiccans strive to honor all people that deserve to be honored. Thus, those people, whether our elders or or youth, that earn our respect receive our respect. Numbers 9 and 10 are about wanting something that is someone else's. Wanting something that belongs to someone else does not harm; acting on the want would. Commandments 5 through 8, however, are definitely about harmful acts. Murder, adultery, stealing, lying--all of these things have a victim; all of them cause pain.
What I have just done is made a series of several decisions about what I think is harmful and what I don't. Decisions, that is, based on one fundamental idea (an axiom, you might say). To assume that the Wiccan Rede is too simple to run one's life by is to assume that that person is not capable of making decisions on their own. The moral decisions in a Wiccan's life range from very simple (like verifying the validity of the fifth commandment) to incredibly complicated (Am I violating the Wiccan Rede if I allow someone that I know smokes marijuana to borrow my car? Should I keep my aging mother on life support, even though she is otherwise dying?). But there's too much room for interpretation! Two people might decide two different things when faced with the same issue and using only the Rede as an axiom! That's right, they might. And this is not a problem in the Wiccan religion. We relish our individuality and the right of all people to decide for themselves. Some of us believe that the Rede means we should be vegetarians; some think that eating meat is natural. Some think the rede tells them not to use drugs and not to harm oneself; others think that living without harming oneself is impossible and that a middle ground must be reached. All are valid views, even though we may disagree. My faith, my life, or my morality does not hinge on the faith or morality of another person. Not only that, but on the important levels, Wiccans do make the same decisions. This is partially because some things are so basic and against human nature (i.e., murder) that a long decision process is not necessary to decide that they are wrong. And even in religions such as Christianity, where values are prescribed in great detail, there is room for interpretation. After all, how can there be such a large group of people who believe Thou shalt not kill and also believe in capital punishment?
