Green Witchcraft, Altar Basics

In the last installment on Green Witchcraft, I mentioned the Code of Conduct briefly, and compared it to the Wiccan Rede. Here we will get into that a little deeper, and explain what each piece of the Code means.

The most basic version of all of this can be boiled down into the Witch's Rede, which is largely agreed upon, despite paths: "If it harms none, do what you will." This is a basic tenant of the practice of the craft.

It is not to say you should let people walk all over you, it's a caution to take care with your workings. Don't act hastily without thinking through what you are after, and be sure your intent is pure. Intent is key, as always.

The Code of Conduct, in depth:

• Be careful what you do.

Think it through so everything works out as intended. Don’t impinge on someone’s freedom or individuality. Have permission to work magic for them or wait for them to ask for your help. But if you sense danger, use your best judgement, and act accordingly.

• Be careful who you trust.

While people like to believe they’re open-minded about this stuff, not much 
has really changed since Salem. Don’t let people use this against you.  Keep 
your Working Name secret, etc.

• Do not use The Power to hurt another, because what is sent comes back

Energies travel full circle. Find other ways to deal with day-to-day stuff.  
This is not to be used lightly, and negative energy sent out will attract 
more like itself.  Send light to receive light.

• Never use The Power against someone else who has The Power

...for you draw from the same well. We who practice are kin, brothers and sisters,

and no matter how we interact on a personal basis, we are still kin. Kin does not harm kin.

• To use The Power you must feel it in your heart and know it in your mind.

Magic is something that must be kenned. When you ken something, you know it to be true, because you feel it to be so. There is no doubt. This sensation is something you’ll always recognize once you’ve felt it once. You just know something will happen, and accept it. If/when you connect to the Divine and the Elementals, the feeling of The Power is frequent, and uplifting.

As always, listen to your intuition. As for that "keep your Working Name secret" line, there are different names that a witch may use, aside from given/chosen name or nickname used in everyday life:

• Craft Name: The name you use in front of others of like-mind. The name you may use in a coven setting, for example.
• Working Name: Purely secret. If you dedicate yourself to a Lord and Lady, they will give you your Working Name. If you do not work with deities, you may choose or create your own second name. This name is meant to define who you are, and the secrecy adds to the energizing power of your magic.

If you don't want to choose something immediately, that is just fine. You could go with a placeholder, use your given name, use your Craft Name as your Working Name until you choose yours, etc. Again, follow your intuition, and do what feels right.

Basic Tools/Equipment for the Craft

As I said in the previous Green Witchcraft post, you don't NEED to buy anything to practice.  These are suggested tools for your working, and for your altar, with the nature-based options listed beneath each item. These are Ann's suggestions, from the Green Witchcraft book series, taken from my class notes.

Besom: traditional witch’s broom. Pronounced “bee’zum”. Can be any type of broom, but whatever style you choose, keep the besom for the singular purpose of cleaning the circle/sacred space prior to circle/ceremony/ritual time. Anything can be used:

• The type found around Halloween meant for decoration
• Round (as shown above) is preferred, where possible.  
• Cutting of decorative long grass, bound with string or yarn to make a handle
• Craft store decorative brooms: plain broom or one accented with flowers and ribbons
• find what you need in nature: branches with leaves, branch with pine nettles. If you find one in nature, acknowledge it as a perfect besom, use it, then leave it behind in a decorative way, to show respect for the ritual tool
  

Athame*: ritual knife. Pronounced a-thau’may or a’thamay. Used to draw energy into your working, create the circle, & perform magical ceremonies. Not for cutting, or using to create objects used in spellwork. This knife should be a 3-edged blade, double sided, ideally with a black handle. Black is protective, wards negativity, and draws power.

*May use pointer finger on power hand (dominant hand), or wand in place of a knife.

Wand*: Tool used to direct energy and energize objects, greets and farewells Elementals. If you prefer, you can use the wand as an athame as well, it’s a matter of preference. Several wands are used for different purposes, so you may want more than one. Different wood materials matter! (more tree/wood info Green Witchcraft I, pg 59.)

The wand should be the length of the forearm, from the crook of the elbow to the tip of the forefinger.

 *May use pointer finger on power hand (dominant hand), or piece of selenite crystal

Rule of thumb for taking a wand, etc: To get a gift, you must give a gift, to express appreciation for the item and to offer compensation. To give back, you may pour milk over the roots of the tree, leave at the base of the tree, tie ribbon to a branch, or simply state appreciation or offer your blessing to flower petals scattered at the base of the tree, arrange pebbles/pine cones/shells/twigs as a pentacle the tree. Just don’t take the tree for granted. It’s a living entity and as such, has an anima, or soul.

Choosing trees/wands:

• Oak is God-power
• Willow is Goddess-power
• Hazel is dual Deity power/witch’s tree, duality in union
• Alder/Hawthorn is best for Fairy/Faerie magics
• Elder harnesses the power of the Crone
• Fairy gift wands: If you come across an energized stick, it may be a fairy gift to you, and you may use it. Leave something behind, as always.

Bolline/Boline*: working/herbal knife. Pronounced bow-line’. This knife is used for cutting herbs, inscribing candles, etc. Keep a kitchen one for chopping foods for ritual cooking (ritual foods, like nuts/fruits for ritual fruitcake) The bolline should be a 3-edged blade, double sided, ideally with a white handle. White is for purity, protection, truth, meditation, peace, sincerity, justice, and warding of doubts and fears. These knives orient themselves to the jobs they’re used for, simply with continued dedicated use.

*You can use a kitchen knife that you place your blessing on.  It's best if you can set aside a knife for this purpose, but anything will do in a pinch.

Cauldron*: These can vary greatly in size, material, and function. Most witches end up with a selection, in the end. They may have feet or not, be made of iron, amalgamated metals, ceramic, or clay pottery. Keep foods separated from magical stuffs.

*May use a fireproof bowl, small cast iron pan, or votive holder (think fire safety!)

Altars/Stangs: Altars can be a shelf, tabletop, bureau top, or you can use a stang, a plain or forked staff set upright (in a floor stand). In the wild, you may use a stang, perhaps decorating it with items from nature, returning them to nature with gratitude when finished. A permanent stang can have the natural items adorning it, to personal taste. They may have their bark removed, it may have runes engraved, be draped with wreaths, wrapped in vines, or have other decorations as you are led.

Altar extras:

• Cups: Used for ritual beverages, libations (offerings) to the Divine, and magic ceremonies. May be metal, wood, pottery, glass, coconut shell, whatever!
• Bowls: For offerings, water, salt, herbs. May be made of pottery, brass, ceramic, or natural items like shells
• Incense holders/Incense
• Candles/holders/snuffer
• Pentacle: Made of wood, brass, ceramic, or simply drawn on paper. Represents the 4 Elementals, Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and Spirit together, which represents humanity.
• Figures of Deities: If desired. Horned deer-head or wheat for God, Mother & Child or Conch shell for Goddess,
• Bell: To signal portions of the ritual. May be large or small, or you may clap hands instead of ringing a bell if you prefer
• Represent all Elementals: fossil = earth, crystal = air, lava stone = fire, amethyst = water

There are special ways to arrange the altars, if you don't feel drawn to place things in a certain way yourself. Ann shows both deity or non-deity versions, as you prefer. If there’s room in altar room, place candles for each direction, maybe in special candle dishes with an element symbol of your choosing on them:

• North: Earth, Green
• East: Air, Yellow
• South: Fire, Red
• West: Water, Blue

Arranging Deity-oriented Altar:

• Altar is split into three sections: Left is Goddess, Right is God, Center is both.
• Left: Goddess representation, water bowl, wine/juice goblet, wand, bell, herbal & oil supplies
• Right: God representation, salt bowl, incense, athame, boline, matches, candles
• Middle: snuffer, censer, pentacle, cauldron, offering dish, libation bowl, book of rituals/spells, spell materials
• If using cake/bread for ceremony, place on front right of altar.

Arranging Non-Deity-oriented Altar (Working Area):

• Be as fancy or as plain as your needs/inclination allow
• Symmetrically lay out tools, with a single candle in the back center for focus. Or if using 2 candles, separate them right and left.
• Pentacle goes in the center, forward a bit
• Cauldron on top of Pentacle
• Knives to the right
• Wand to the left
• Spell book/paper forward center
• Herbs, oil, cloth, string, feathers, stones etc (things you’ll use) go on the left

So if you are new and have not done so yet, start gathering items as directed here! If you have questions, feel free to ask!

Blessed be!