Gerina Dunwich - 27 Nov

Welcome, my friends, to the Wicca Garden. It is an enchanted world of green magick where flowers and trees possess the power to heal the sick as well as to bewitch. It is also a mysterious place of superstition, omens, and ancient folklore.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Wicca, I will try to explain it with a brief excerpt from the introduction to my book Wicca Craft : Wicca (an alternative name for modern Witchcraft) is a positive, shamanistic, nature religion with two main deities honored and worshipped in Wiccan rites: the Goddess (the female aspect and a deity related to the ancient Mother Goddess in Her triple aspect of Maiden, Mother, and Crone) and Her consort, the Horned God (the male aspect).

Wicca often includes the practice of various forms of white magick (usually for healing purposes or as a counter to negativity) as well as rites to attune oneself with the natural rhythm of life forces marked by the phases of the moon and the four seasons.

For additional information about the ways of Wicca (which is also known as the Craft of the Wise or often just the Craft), please read my other books Wicca Craft and The Wicca Spellbook.

The art of wortcunning (the use of and knowledge of the secret healing and magickal properties of herbs) is a very important facet of the Wicca Craft, and the relationship between herbs and the Craft goes back a long, long way.

Herbal sorcery was a renowned art in ancient times (especially in the mythology-rich country of Greece). Medicinal gardens were common, and all plants and trees were believed to be governed by the gods and goddesses whose hands guided the destiny of man.

In medieval times, Witches experimented with wild-growing plants, and it was not long before they learned of the wonderful, magickal healing qualities found in many flowers, roots, and leaves.

The power to heal wounds and to cure the ills of both man and beast soon became the Witchs trademark, and many wise old women were hanged or burned because they possessed knowledge which was forbidden by the Christian Church.

In modern times, many Witches continue to grow and use natures herbal remedies to combat illness and disease. Wortcunning is a talent that seems to come naturally to many in the Craft, and most country-dwelling Wiccans (and many city ones as well) are skilled in the art of preparing healing herbal potions.

However, the curative power of plants and trees is not limited by any means to potions alone. Herbs are also used in sachets, amulets, and homemade candles crafted especially for healing spells and rituals. (Even store-bought candles can be charged with healing herb power by being anointed with an oil made from the appropriate herb.)

In addition to healing, all blossoms, leaves, roots, thorns, bark, and seeds have long been employed by women and men of the Craft for divinational purposes. Botanomancy (the art and practice of divination by herbs) has been practiced since ancient times by nearly every culture around the world.

Over the course of time, numerous methods of drawing omens from plants have been devised, from the simple tossing of sticks, seeds, or flower petals to spell out messages, to the reading of tea leaves (also known as tasseography), to the burning of herbs and then interpreting the flames, odor, crackle, color, or shape and direction of the smoke produced.

Herbal divination has been used to foretell future events, identify the guilty, and discover that which is unknown or hidden.

Magick is a powerful tool and an important skill to many who follow the path of Wicca. And where would the magickal arts be without herbs for love philtres, wands, natural amulets, incense, oils, sachets, candle scents, and so forth?

A word of caution: Although the Wicca Garden is a wondrous place of healing power, magick, and love, like everything else, it does have a dark side which should be approached only with the utmost caution.

Many folks have been made seriously ill by experimenting with potent medicinal herbs or by deliberately abusing potentially dangerous plants for their intoxicating or hallucinogenic properties. Some have even been poisoned to death.

With this in mind, you should never attempt to gather wild herbs for medicinal use unless you are an herb expert or are accompanied by someone who is a trained, experienced herbalist. Also, do not rely on illustrations in books to determine which herbs are safe to use and which are dangerous. Many poisonous and nonpoisonous plants possess identical features which can easily be confused.

There are also some very noxious weeds out there with evil properties employed by those foolish enough to follow the left-hand path (black magick). Their nasty uses are outlined in many grimoires, especially those written in the Middle Ages.

Using such plants to hex your enemies in any way is not consistent with the positive, loving ways of Wicca. In fact, using any form of black magick for any reason is generally frowned upon in all circles of the Wicca Craft, for it is a violation of the Wiccan Rede which states: An it harm none, do what thou wilt.

If you practice magick with deliberate, evil intent, you are headed for self-destruction, because whatever evil power you send out to others is soon returned to you three times as strong. (The same also applies to good power.) This threefold karmic retribution is known as the Threefold Law (or Law of Three), and trust me when I tell you that it works every time you do something good or bad, even if you do not believe that it will. So always think twice before you cast a spell, and make it a point to use magick in a positive and constructive fashion.

Whether you are an initiated Priestess/Priest or a novice Witch, a covener or a solitary, I hope this book will help guide you on your spiritual journey to Light and Love.

The Wicca Garden is a sacred garden of the Goddess and the Horned God, and all are welcome to stroll down its meandering, moss-covered path. It is a place of beauty and dreams. It is a realm where wisdom grows and magick is always in bloom.