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This excerpt was taken from Green Witchcraft by, Ann Moura, with the permission from the publisher, Llewellyn Publications.

Magic is a basic part of the Craft, but it does not have to be the same as the religious aspect. In other words, Wicca may be considered a religion with a Goddess and a God that uses magic in a religious framework. Witchcraft may also have a religious application through the practitioner's connection with the Goddess and the God, but the magical practice itself may be religious or it may be a form of folk magic in which personal power is used in conjunction with natural objects to effect changes. This latter type of magical practice is what allows a person of any religious background to work magic without being Wiccan.

For some people, having the best of both worlds is being able to conduct spells while still being a member of a mainstream religion or without being committed to the Lady and the Lord. I practiced the arts of Witchcraft successfully for many years before I introduced myself to them in a self-initiation ceremony, followed later by a dedication to the Lady and the Lord. In this primary level of Green Witchcraft practice, I was sometimes associated with Christianity other times I was unattached to any religious system, but always could use the power through natural objects to effect magic from spells to divinations.

My maternal background made magic without affiliation with Lady and the Lord an easy matter since both my mother and her mother were nominally Catholic and practiced folk arts. For them, the Lady Mary and the Lord was Jesus, but they were Mary-oriented and had tie to say about or to do with Jesus. The difference between them me came about when I detached myself from the trappings Christianity and became a practicing Witch. Even then, I was not Wiccan because I put off the religious aspect of the Craft for many years.

I see the Craft as functioning in three levels. Witchcraft can work as folk practice under the cloak of a mainstream religion; it can be a practice of natural magic without reference to the Lady and the Lord; and it can be a religion in which magic can be practiced through union with the God and the Goddess. Today I can be called either a Witch or a Wiccan, but as I belong to no particular tradition I would use Wiccan only with reluctance. In that sense, I see Wiccan as not quite what I am; Green Witch or Green-level Witch is more to the point. In the Teutonic system I might be called Seidhr and I would not object, for that is the name for the practitioner of the Green level in the Northern system.

Scott Cunningham prefers the word Wicca and would question anyone who claimed to be a Witch to find out if the person meant "magician" or "devotee of the Goddess and the God" by the term. To me, the word magician connotes a practitioner of Ceremonial magic, which is neither Witchcraft nor Wicca. The Green-level Witch who is dedicated, then, performs magic through the Goddess and the God and through the elementals and the devas When it comes to identifying yourself or your path, you need to decide if you feel Wiccan, Witch, or Magician is the better description.

The Pagan community today makes a distinction between Witch and Wiccan but even the term Wiccan is fairly recent. The usage came about after a number of books had already been written on Witchcraft by members of traditions. The Witch's Sabbats have become merely the Sabbats, but I have yet to see them referred to in print as the Wiccan's Sabbats. The word Wicca is considered masculine by some, and the word Wicce is sometimes used to indicate the feminine, but for the most part, the Craft as a religion is called Wicca and its practitioners are Wiccans. They may also call themselves Witches, so the terms are sometimes interchangeable depending on the magical and religious context, so it is a matter of personal choice.

Candle magic is the most basic form of magical practice. It can be highly complicated, with the candle anointed with an oil that is scented by herbs to draw upon the power of the herb devas and prepare the candle to a magical purpose, inscribed, dedicated, and lit with some appropriate ceremony. Or it can be very simple, with merely a prayer and the lighting of the candle before an image or in a special place. For my mother, the lighting of candles before the image of the Goddess as described by Catholicism was the primary purpose for going to church. She did many of her candle magics in the incense-heavy and solemn atmosphere of shrines, but others were done in her home, sometimes before a beautiful, slender Thai image of Buddha that looked very much like an image of Shiva Mahayogi (Great Teacher or Great Ascetic, depending on the usage). These yogic images of Buddha, based on the earlier Shiva images, are an orthodox Vedic version of the Dravidic tradition. Nevertheless, I was surprised to discover at the end of her life that she had been familiar with Shiva since her youth and was thus pleased that I was drawn to this image of the God.

I have read in some guide books of the importance of doing a purifying bath and dressing in ceremonial robes before beginning a candle spell. I like to do this for a Sabbat or an Esbat, but under ordinary circumstances I have found that in actual magical practice the intuitive sense dictates what is necessary. There have been times when I felt I wanted to do a very formal spell and so I have done a ritual bath and dressed in ritual clothing, but there are times when magic is practiced on the spot or on the go, as it were. I might come home from the grocery store and suddenly have an urge to light a candle at the permanent altar. I never question intuitive impulses, but follow them through and feel the better for doing so. This is something that develops over time from practicing the Craft so that it becomes part of your everyday life. When you are comfortable in the Craft, things will simply come to you. Being a Witch doesn't mean hanging about all day looking portentous. Jeans and a tee shirt are just as appropriate for spell work as a ritual robe. For a Sabbat or an Esbat, the robe may still have to be set aside depending on where, how, and with whom you are celebrating (the Green level of the Craft may be family oriented, after all).

One of the first things I noticed when reading about the practice of magic is the number of injunctions given to people to watch what they eat: to avoid sugar, bleached flour, and meat, and to consume plenty of fruit and vegetables. This is sound advice for good health, but it really does not affect your magic ability if you like to eat things with sugar, bleached flour, or even meat. The key to all good health programs is to observe moderation in what you do. You may be an epicurean and still be a Witch. Indeed, the namesake for this facet of good living has been sadly maligned for centuries. The first name given by Christians to the Devil was not Lucifer, but Epicurus (this was not the practice or philosophy, but the man personally). Since being so identified in early Christian history, the philosophy of this man has been distorted and denounced to this day. He was an early scapegoat for the pious ascetics. Epicurus did not say that people should be hedonistic and overindulge themselves in all manner of extravagant eating, drinking and sexual behavior. He did teach that life is meant to be enjoyed, but all things in moderation lest the enjoyment fade. The same applies to Witchcraft. If you feel you are entering a severe religious order that requires selfdepravation for magic to work, you are missing the picture. Enjoy your life without feeling guilty, but be responsible and exercise a healthy moderation in your enjoyment.

When doing magic that is a communication with the Goddess and the Horned God, the elementals and the devas spontaneity is part of the joy. The Green practice can be an ongoing connection once the dedication is performed, so there really is little point in making too much of dietary restraints. The Green level is not the same as Shamanism, which in its true expression requires the seeker to experience neardeath fasting and exposure in order to better communicate with spirits. The original purpose of Shamanism was to help the sick by entering the spirit world to fight spirits of the dead over the sick and dying. This practice exists in some forms of Buddhism, but still is not quite the same thing as Witchcraft. Although Witchcraft and Shamanism share certain elements, as with contacting a spirit guide or a power animal, overall the focus of Green Witchcraft involves union with nature.

Green Witchcraft © 1996 by Ann Moura and Llewellyn Publications. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be printed or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from Llewellyn Publications except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.