"An it harm none, do what ye will....." It's everywhere! Most Wiccans accept this law as the "only law in Wicca," or the "most important line in the Rede." Other Pagans and magickal practitioners accept this law also......from certain Druids to witches within family traditions. I suppose it's understandable, as it seems like a pretty good idea- do what you must as long as you aren't causing harm. Before I move on with my personal thoughts, I want to mention a few things: the Rede is a modern creation. The origin is attributed to a Celtic Traditionalist named Gwen Thompson, who stated that it was given to her by her grandmother. She first had it published in 1975 in Green Egg magazine and it was called "Rede of the Wiccae." There are debates on the actual age, however, the only real proof of age is the magazine submission in 1975. As you probably know, the word "Wicca" was not widely used until the 1960s when Gerald Garnder's religion became better known. It was used as a word for Garnderian and Alexandrian traditions, to separate them from traditions of witchcraft, so this suggests that this poem was not written prior to the mid-twentieth century. No one knows for certain what the Rede's purpose truly is......a poem that invokes a state of mind, a rule of magick, a rule of the Wiccan religion, an occult philosophy, a poem intended for entertainment.....nobody knows for sure. Over the years, the final line, "An' it harm none, do what ye will," was adopted by Wiccan traditions and solitaries alike as the foundation of Wiccan magick. The Rede also has many adaptations and variations created by many Wiccans of the past decades. You might notice that not all "Wiccan Redes" are worded similarly. This is because many others have taken the poem and changed the wording....for whatever reason. For more on origins of the Wiccan Rede, try http://pagan.drak.net/sheathomas.  "An it harm none, do what ye will," is the portion of the Rede that is the main focus of this article. Where does it come from? Why do so many people accept it? Why does this "rule" cause so many people to limit their magickal practises? The final line of the Rede was adapted from Aliester Crowley's Great Law, "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law, Love is the Law, Love under Will." However, it seems Crowley's law has a different meaning than stated in the Rede. Crowley's "will" is a person's ultimate purpose in life, a person's direction or path. For each individual, the "will" is different and varied according to life purpose. Within the Rede, "will" is simply a person's desire or need- be it a need for healing, desire for love, etc. Not a similar concept. Many Wiccans say, "The 'harm none' rule is not a free ticket to do whatever you want as long as you aren't hurting someone or yourself. It has a much deeper meaning than this." Well........no, it really does not. It means just what it says, it's plain and simple, it's just a short and sweet statement. The Rede does not expound on this concept of "will." It simply is a poem with a final line stating that a person is free to do as he or she wants/needs/must as long as his or her actions are not causing harm. "Will," in this case, is desire or need. I think many Wiccans attempt to portray this concept as being so deep and complex simply because it doesn't seem possible that there could exist a rule so elementary and straight forward- a one-liner that basically is a foundation for so many people's lives, magickal and mundane. How could eight little words "rule" a person's life? There seems to be proof in the Rede that this is, indeed, possible. What, if anything, is wrong with this concept of "you must not cause harm?" I suppose nothing is wrong with this rule, however, when a person obeys a rule for the simple fact that it's an ethic one must accept within a religion......it doesn't seem natural. "You must conform and be just like everyone else within this religion, you must accept the same rule and similar ethics." Are Pagans who accept this rule honestly comfortable with that? Do some people accept it because it seems like the "right" thing to do if you want to be a good Wiccan (or Pagan in general)? This thinking seems to bring a sort of paranoia...... So many people blow this rule so far out of proportion that they seem to be completely frightened of magickal practice. Some seem to be scared to death to, not only make a move that might potentially cause harm, but also paranoid that every move they make could be interpreted by the "great universal powers" as negative. Do I use magick to get a good grade in school....or is that selfish? Selfishness is negative, negativity can cause harm, I can't perform such a spell! Do I perform a spell to assist in finding a job? Using my magick for personal gain might be selfish, selfishness is negative, negativity causes harm! And lord knows, selfishness is unacceptable and we'd never want to do anything for ourselves for personal gain! What if I perform a spell to get that job but fate decides I shouldn't have it....now "Karma" is going to get me three times as bad....oh no! Are people afraid to think for themselves and use common sense? Are they brainwashed by this Rede and this "rule?" Are they so frightened of Karma and the notion of "magick returns to you three times as strong" (give me a break) that they can't develop a magickal practise that suits them? First of all.......anything and everything can be interpreted as harmful somehow, some way. Perform a spell to heal your mother's disease- seems perfectly acceptable, right? What if, by healing your mother, you have caused her to be in another situation that brings harm to others.....now healthy, she is driving her car to the store and causes an accident, injuring the driver of the other vehicle. Looks like you might have had a hand in causing some "harm." Nothing you do is fool proof. What seems like positivity and goodness in your mind might actually bring "negativity" and sadness that you can't foresee. Goodness and harmlessness to you might be seen as selfishness and harmful to another. So, does this mean that you should steer clear of magickal practise altogether? Why allow a rule to cause you to be afraid to live life? Try your best, do what you must, do what you can, be yourself, nobody's perfect, but at least you will try. What else can we all do? Do we allow a simple rule to frighten us to the point that we worry over every move we make, whether magickal or mundane? Must we all comform to this rule just because a few Wiccans decided it's a good idea? Why not just use common sense......live, and learn? And remember that our mistakes are a part of what make us more outstanding and wise individuals.                                                                                      HOME

The Harm None Scare