Terms and Definitions
Here is a list of some popular terms in the Wiccan vocabulary.
Altar - A flat surface where Wiccans hold their tools and work magick and rituals from.
Amulet - A charm that is charged for a specific purpose, like love, pritection, prosperity etc.
Ankh - An Egyptioan symbol that represents life, love and reincarnation.
Asperger - Something (like a bunch of herbs) that is dipped in water and dispersed over an area to rid it of negativity
Athame - I've heard this prounouced a few different ways. Some say it like, Ath-ah-may, or A-tham-ee. Whichever you like best is ok I guess. This is a dull-edged knife used to cast the circle, or call the quarters. Its never used to cut anything.
Banish - To magickally end something, or send away.
Beltane - Bell-tane or Beil-teen
Besom - A broom which is used to rid an area of negativity.
Boline (spelled many different ways too) - (Bowl-leen) - Is usualy a white-handled knife used to cut herbs and carve signs in candles and cut threads and such.
Bind - To magickally restrain or stop something or someone.
Book of Shadows - A book where spells, rituals, dreams, recipes or whatever else you want to know, is kept.
Cakes and Ale - A form of communion where some kind of food and beverage is offered to each participant . Its also a ceremony after certain rituals where the Wiccan can ground and center themself, and thanks the god and goddess
Chakras - The 7 major energy points found on the body.
Charm - An object that is charged for a specific task.
Cone of Power - A mass of energy thats raised in ritual and focused on by a group of people, and then is released into the universe to manifest.
Cleansing - To remove any negative energy from a person, place or area.
Consecration -Blessing an object or place with positive energy.
Coven - A group of witches who works magick, rituals and celebrates the sabbats together.
Dedication - A ritual where the person accepts Wicca as their religion, and vows to studt and practice it as much as possible.
Deosil (pronounced jessile)- This means Clockwise. You work deosil to bring in postitve energy
Diety - A word for a God or Goddess
Divination - The art of usinf tools or symbols to predict the future, or see into the past.
Dowsing - The art of using a pendulem or a stick to find something, or find an answer to something.
Drawing Down the Moon - A ritual held on a full moon where the witch draws the energy and essence of the goddess into her.
Elder - An experienced individual who oversees a group or church.
Elements - The 4 (or 5--spirit) elements of earth, air, fire and water.
Equinoxes - Days where day and night are of equal length (march 21st and september 21st).
Evocation - To call something out from within.
Familiar - An animal that has a spiritual biond with a witch
Green Man - A term for the God in the aspect of Lord of the Woodlands. Represents fertility of the land.
Guardians - The creators or angels that protect the four corners.
Handfasting - A Pagan marriage ceremony
Initiation - A ceremony where a wiccan is let into a certain degree system in a coven.
Invocation - To bring something in from without.
Karma - The belief that what you do in life will come back, and that what you do in this life will determine your next life.
Magick Circle - The sacred space where a Wiccan holds rituals, works magick and celebrate the sabbats.
Pentacle - A 5-pointer upright star with a circle around it representing unity if the elements.
Planetary Hours - A system of hourly division associated with planetary energies.
Priestess - A female who dedicates her life to the sevice of the God and Goddess.
Priest - A male who dedicates his life to serving the God and Goddess
Reincarnation - The belief that when people die, they are reborn into another life.
Ritual - A ceremnoy where the God and Goddess is honored, majick worked, or a sabbat celebrated.
Runes - A group of symbols used as a divination tool.
Sabbat - A holiday-like celebration where 8 seasonsal festivals are celebrated. Yule, Imbolc, Ostara, Beltane, Litha, Lughnasada, Mabon and Samhain
Scrying - The art of looking into a pool of water, a mirror or crystal ball to see the past and future.
Skyclad - Working naked in rituals.
Solitary - A person who practices Wicca alone, without a coven.
Summer Solstice - June 21st. When day is longer than night.
Summerland - A place where some Wiccans believe your soul rests before being reincarnated.
Wheel of the Year - A term to describe the sabbats. The full circle of the seasonal year.
Widdershins (pronounced just like it looks)- This term means counterclockwise. You work widdershins if you want to work magick to get rid of something.
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