You will hear the following statement often in your study of magickal spirituality: Eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill; an’ it harm none, do what ye will. Although Gerald B. Gardner claimed that the creed came from the words of legendary good King Paulsol—“Do what you like as long as you harm no one,”64 it is highly likely that, like other forms of Gardnerian material, the Rede may have been borrowed from Crowley’s Law of Thelema—“Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law”—who gathered this snippet of wisdom from European magickal lodges popular in the late eighteen and early 1900s, and they got it from ancient Egyptian magickal texts dated around 3000 b.c.e.65 However, there is a debate on the time frame. Some historians date this information from 1600 b.c., where others may be adding the Pyramid Texts of 2500 b.c., which in turn may well draw on even older concepts. Even with the 1600 b.c. timing, that’s pretty darn old.
In the Egyptian magickal/religious system, magick itself (as in the Craft) was considered neither good nor bad, and if one was called upon, one met difficulties head-on with like energy without the worry that you might be condemned for it later. Do what thou wilt meant that you were to follow your mission in life. The Egyptians also gave us another frequently used Craft adage: There is no part of us that is not of the gods. Greek Pagans originated the saying To the pure, all things are pure, meaning that when you have reached a high stage of spiritual enlightenment, you have evolved past petty day-to-day irritations, religious dogma, and society’s sometimes misguided decrees to understand the meaning of one’s true will.66
The only problem with taking “an’ it harm none” in a literal sense is that if you lived by it fundamentally, you couldn’t grow up to be a police officer, join the military service, sit on a jury of your peers, or be a judge, nor could you work against disease, stop discriminatory behavior, halt abuse, or make sure that the yo-yo who smashed your car window gets caught.
Many new students in the Craft stub their toe on this rule. Indeed, a few never seem to overcome the worry that every time they do magick, they are somehow tinkering with the universe in a way they shouldn’t. Everyone’s thoughts already tinker with the universe (the collective unconscious and quantum physics), therefore doing focused magick is actually more intelligent then letting your thoughts fly all over the place. People are here to create; they have their individual talents for a good reason. I don’t think anyone was born to be a couch potato. There are people who buy loads of books on Witchcraft, the occult, and magick, and read, read, read, but never find the courage to lift one magickal pinky, even when a tornado threatens to squash their home, because they are afraid that they will do something wrong. This is a victim’s mentality, not that of a real, practicing Witch. The word Rede comes from Old English, meaning “to guide or direct”—it doesn’t mean “to lie down and allow life to run over you.”
“An’ it harm none” is a moral, spiritual sound bite. (I read that somewhere on the Internet—whomever said it, kudos to you.) Think of a karate student who is trained to walk away from a fight, and to only use the skills he or she has learned if there is ultimately no other choice for survival of the home, family, or friends. In the old laws of the Craft, the student was instructed that they could not attack, but they had every right to defend themselves if the necessity arose in a manner in which they felt would get the job done most efficiently, and if in that defense harm occurs, they weren’t going to wring their hands and fret over the positive or negative balance in their karma bank. They were also taught that they may never, ever harm the innocent on purpose in their workings, which meant every precaution possible was taken before any work was done.67 However, if you lived by the “an’ it harm none” rule to the letter, you couldn’t even work against disease! Now that’s a silly thought, isn’t it?
How the Rede Works
Let me give you an example, to be sure you understand how this rule works. Let’s say you and Alicia are running for student government president—college, high school, doesn’t matter. If you zap Alicia because she’s pretty, has everything, and is most likely going to win because she is a good person, you have just broken the “an’ it harm none” rule, and you will pay for it. However, if Alicia is running a dirty campaign by spreading lies about you, accusing you of tearing down her campaign posters when you didn’t, and telling the teachers you smoke dope, which you don’t, then you have every right to do something about this nasty predicament. If you don’t do anything, then you are breaking the “an’ it harm none” rule because you are allowing yourself to be hurt. Even in this circumstance there are rules of Craft behavior. Here, rather than just blast Alicia (which could have karmic repercussions), you might first do a ritual of protection for yourself, and then you might choose to work a spell or ritual that concentrates on exposing the truth.
Have your magickal actions harmed Alicia? No. As she is the one who started the negativity in the first place, she gets to keep it. You are just kindly sending back her own package of glop, magickally marked “undeliverable.” In the Craft, you make it—you own it. You are always responsible for your own actions and you cannot blame your behavior on someone else (living, dead, or myth). Unlike Christianity and Judaism, which have their own boogymen (Satan and assorted demons), the Craft belief system identifies all negativity as human driven, putting responsibility for one’s actions right where it belongs: in one’s own lap. In this scenario, Alicia may very well win the election (especially if you didn’t move fast enough, or just let it go to see what might develop); however, she will reap the consequences of her actions further down the line. Magick doesn’t always move as quickly as we’d like, which tells us that Spirit has a divine plan, despite our impatience. Years later you may learn that Alicia did get her just rewards. I’ve found that Spirit does somehow inform you, especially when you consciously or subconsciously need closure—just don’t stop your life to wait for the message or stew over a situation that you should have released a long time ago.
There are other Witches who follow the Wiccan Rede by working the magick and giving the problem up to Spirit, thereby releasing themselves from incurring karmic debt (where every action has an equal reaction). This is especially so in healing magicks (which we’ll cover under that section). They still work the magick and do the ritual, but rather than targeting Alicia by name, they focus on harmony in Spirit with Spirit on the subject, and let Spirit handle all the tough decisions—which is not a bad thing, and ties into the alchemical transformation you’ll read about in this book. Looking at this alchemically: Chaos (the problem) meets your thoughts on the subject, and is challenged by purification (the Spirit-guided magick) to create positive change (the best manifestation possible) because you know for certain that the change in a positive direction can occur. (see Part 2, Wand, Rod, Stang, and Staff, for more information on how this is done.) Therefore, if you use the alchemical formula of manifestation in your magick, you will not have to worry about ethics because you have purified all intent by incorporating Spirit after you created the thought. If this is confusing to you, be sure to read the sections in Part 4 on Alchemy and As Above, So Below before you continue.
Finally, the Wiccan Rede also applies to how you treat people of other belief systems.68 According to my understanding of religion (meaning ritual and reverence), the idea isn’t to trash someone else’s belief to make oneself feel better, stronger, or secure. Religion should be a set of practices that supports one’s spiritual needs. Being nasty to someone of a faith different from yours isn’t supporting your spiritual requirements—indeed, such a negative practice cripples the soul, and spirituality flounders and drowns. I will always believe that Witches are among the physical angels of the Earth plane, and their job is not only to enhance their own lives but to be of service to those around them, regardless of their (or those they help) religious preference. Likewise, to dishonor a fellow Crafter over petty differences, jealousies, or greed is considered in many magickal circles to be the epitome of disrespect, and eventually you will lose your gifts as well as any standing you have gained in the community. If you turn on your own, then you don’t deserve to belong.
Many of today’s Craft students were introduced to the Rede through the poetry of Doreen Valiente titled The Witches’ Creed, which can be recited after the circlecasting of a sabbat ritual. However, what most modern Wiccan students do not see are Doreen’s obvious references to alchemy. Once you’ve read about alchemy, the Emerald Tablet, and the Great Work in this book, you will thoroughly understand what she was saying, and in that moment you will never again argue over ethics. (Notes to Doreen’s poem are in brackets.)
The Witches’ Creed (Annotated)
Hear now the words of the Witches,
the secrets we hid in the night,
when dark was our destiny’s pathway,
that now we bring forth into light.
Mysterious water and fire
[Primal energies of water and fire;
ice and fire in some groups]
the earth and the wide-ranging air,
by hidden quintessence
[Spiritual energy—the fifth element,
first used in the alchemical sciences]
we know them,
and will and keep silent and dare.
[The Witch’s Pyramid]
The birth and rebirth of all nature,
[The Wheel of the Year]
the passing of winter and spring,
we share with the life universal,
rejoice in the magical ring.
[The magick circle]
Four times in the year the Great Sabbat
returns, and the witches are seen
at Lammas and Candlemas dancing,
on May Eve and old Hallowe’en.
When day-time and night-time are equal
[Solstices]
when sun is at greatest and least,
the four Lesser Sabbats are summoned,
and again gather Witches in feast.
Thirteen silver moons in a year.
[Ancient lunar calendar where
there were 13 months following
the moon rather than 12]
Thirteen is the coven’s array.
Thirteen times at Esbat make merry,
for each golden [solar] year and a day.
The power was passed down the ages
[Lineage]
each time between woman and man,
each century unto the other,
ere time and the ages began.
When drawn is the magickal circle,
by sword or athame of power,
its compass between the two worlds lies
in land of the Shades for that hour.
This world has no right then to know it,
and world of beyond will tell naught.
The oldest of Gods are invoked there,
the Great Work [Alchemy]
of magic is wrought.
For two are the mystical pillars
[Chaos vs. Order; Force and Form]
that stand at the gate of the shrine,
and two are the powers of nature,
the forms and the forces divine
[Occult Kabbalah].
The dark and the light in succession,
the opposites each unto each
[Full Moon]
shown forth as a God and a Goddess:
of this did our ancestors teach.
By night He’s the wild wind’s rider,
the Horn’d One, the Lord of the Shades.
By day he’s the King of the Woodland,
the dweller in green forest glades.
She is youthful or old as She pleases,
She sails the torn clouds in Her barque
[Boat (see the Four Adorations)]
the bright silver lady of midnight,
the crone who weaves spells in the dark.
The master and mistress of magic,
they dwell in the deeps of the mind
[Psychology and the science of magick]
immortal and ever-renewing,
with power to free or to bind.
So drink the good wine to the Old Gods
[Communion]
and dance and make love in their praise,
till Elphame’s
[Summerland; Faeryland]
fair land shall receive us
In the peace at the end of our days.
And do what you will be the challenge,
so be it in love that harms none,
for this is the only commandment.
By magic of old it be done!
Then take up the pentacle, and walk with it clockwise around the circle, holding the symbol up at the four quarters, east, south, west, and north, repeating each time:
Eight words the Witch’s Creed fulfill:
If it harms none, do what you will!69