Wicca 101: The Basics Trivia Quiz

Answer: True

Many uninformed people assume that what they see on TV and in the movies is true. Wiccans have been treated poorly in the media, and one of the most common misconceptions is that Wiccans are evil, they worship the devil, and in some cases use human or animal sacrifice. This is not true. Wiccans revere the earth and all of nature, and would not harm another creature, human or otherwise.

The devil comes from a deliberate twisting of pagan ideals as Christianity spread its influence throughout Europe. By approximately 300 C.E., the demonization of Pan had begun, and it continued until the western world largely associated images of Pan with the devil. To the Greeks, Pan was a shepherd: he was half goat and half man, a thing of nature-certainly not the Antichrist or a being who was out to corrupt and steal men's souls.

Answer: False

An athame (ah-thah'-may) is a cleansed and consecrated ceremonial knife used in ritual work. The knife is never used to draw blood, and rarely used for cutting anything on the material plane.

Answer: False

A bolline is a curved, white-handled knife used for practical magickal purposes such as cutting a branch for a wand, harvesting herbs, inscribing candles, etc.

Answer: Seven major vortices found in the human body

Each of the seven chakras is usually associated with a color. These vortices are: crown - white; forehead (third-eye position) - purple; throat - blue; chest - pink or green; navel - yellow; abdomen - orange; groin - red.

Answer: It is a story of the message from the goddess to her children

The 'Charge of the Goddess' was originally written in modern form by Doreen Valiente. She originally wrote a Charge in verse, and later in prose: the prose version is the one known today.

This is the original text of the prose version, as it is found in 'Eight Sabbats for Witches' by Janet and Stuart Farrar. See The 'Rebirth of Witchcraft' by Doreen Valiente, chap. 4, which also includes her original verse version.

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Listen to the words of the Great Mother; she who of old was also called among men Artemis, Astarte, Athene, Dione, Melusine, Aphrodite, Cerridwen, Dana, Arianrhod, Isis, Bride, and by many other names.

Whenever ye have need of any thing, once in the month, and better it be when the moon is full, then shall ye assemble in some secret place and adore the spirit of me, who am Queen of all Witches. There shall ye assemble, ye who are fain to learn all sorcery, yet have not won its deepest secrets; to these will I teach things that are yet unknown. And ye shall be free from slavery; and as a sign that ye be really free, ye shall be naked in your rites; and ye shall dance, sing, feast, make music and love, all in my praise. For mine is the ecstasy of the spirit, and mine also is joy upon earth; for my law is love unto all beings. Keep pure your highest ideal; strive ever towards it; let naught stop you or turn you aside. For mine is the secret door which opens upon the Land of Youth, and mine is the cup of the wine of life, and the Cauldron of Cerridwen, which is the Holy Grail of immortality. I am the gracious Goddess, who gives the gift of joy unto the heart of man. Upon earth, I give the knowledge of the spirit eternal; and beyond death, I give peace, and freedom, and reunion with those who have gone before. Nor do I demand sacrifice; for behold, I am the Mother of all living, and my love is poured out upon the Earth.

Hear ye the words of the Star Goddess; she in the dust of whose feet are the hosts of heaven, and whose body encircles the universe.

I who am the beauty of the green earth, and the white Moon among the stars, and the mystery of the waters, and the desire of the heart of man, call unto thy soul. Arise, and come unto me. For I am the soul of nature, who gives life to the universe. From me all things proceed, and unto me all things must return; and before my face beloved of Gods and of men, let thine innermost divine self be enfolded in the rapture of the infinite. Let my worship be within the heart that rejoiceth; for behold, all acts of love and pleasure are my rituals. And therefore let there be beauty and strength, power and compassion, honour and humility, mirth and reverence within you. And thou who thinkest to seek for me, know thy seeking and yearning shall avail thee not unless thou knowest the mystery; that if that which thou seekest thou findest not within thee, thou wilt never find it without thee. For behold, I have been with thee from the beginning; and I am that which is attained at the end of desire.

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Copyright note: Doreen Valiente has put the text of the 'Charge of the Goddess' into the public domain.

Answer: True

Deosil is a clockwise movement in the northern hemisphere, but anticlockwise in the southern hemisphere. Most rituals and ceremonies, even spells, call for deosil movement at some point in their construction.

Answer: True

This is a ritual used during the Full Moon by witches to empower themselves and unite their essence with a particular deity, usually the goddess. The 'Charge of the Goddess' is often used during this ritual.

Answer: Another name for the god

The Green Man is a legendary pagan deity who roams the woodlands of the British Isles and Europe. He usually is depicted as a horned man peering out of a mask of foliage, usually the sacred oak. He is known by other names such as "Green Jack, "Jack-in-the-Green" and "Green George." He represents spirits of trees, plants and foliage. It is believed he has rain making powers to foster livestock with lush meadows. He was frequently depicted in medieval art, including church decorations.

http://www.pantheon.org/articles/g/green_man.html

Answer: False

A grimoire is also known as a Book of Shadows. It is a relatively new term for the collection of information in book form for a witch's reference.

Answer: Gaia

Environmental Action groups use this term almost as much as we do, if not more these days.

Answer: Handfasting

A handfasting is a marriage ceremony. Some handfastings are also legal marriage ceremonies, but others are only recognized by the Neopagan community and not the state. Handfastings vary as greatly as non-Pagan weddings do.

Not all handfastings are for life. Some handfastings are for a "year and a day", and the relationship is renewed annually.

Jumping the broom is very often part of the handfasting. In the ceremony, the broom represents a threshold. The handfasted couple, although still individuals, begin a new life together. Jumping over the broom represents crossing this threshold into new territory, a life vitally connected to another's.

The leap that the couple takes over the broom is also symbolic. Starting a new life with another person does require a "leap of faith." But by taking the leap, the individuals make a gesture of dedication to working together through the tough times ahead. Brooms are also symbols of the hearth, the center of the new family being created.

A handparting is a divorce ceremony.

Answer: False

A pantheon is a collection or group of gods and goddesses in a particular religious or mythical structure. For example, the Greek pantheon includes Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Ares, Aphrodite, and many others. The Roman pantheon includes Jupiter, Minerva, Mars, Venus, Vulcan, etc.

Answer: False

A pentagram is an upright star. When surrounded by a circle, it is called a pentacle. Each point on the star has a specific meaning: Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and Spirit. Pentacles are never worn inverted in the craft. Many witches consider this blasphemy of their faith.

However, an inverted pentagram is used in some second degree initiations, not to indicate evil, but to fulfill a function of growth.

Answer: A dowsing rod

Scrying is a method of divination where the diviner "sees" either normal visual pictures, mental visual pictures, or information without any pictures at all.

Dowsing is a controversial method of divination which dowsers say empowers them to find water, metals, gem stones and hidden objects by carrying some form of stick and watching its motion while walking over a piece of land.

Dowsers, sometimes known as diviners, also use a forked branch of a tree, bent pieces of metal or plastic wire, or a small pendulum. Some people use no pointing device at all.

Answer: True

The most powerful sigils are those that you create yourself. Sigils can be used on letters, packages, clothing, on paper tucked into your pocket, etc.

Answer: Nude

In some traditions (Gardnerian and Alexandrian, for example) going skyclad is the act of celebrating or doing a magickal working in the nude. Clothing is also shed so that individuals can be as natural as possible when worshipping the gods and simply, because the coven's circle is a safe environment. Starhawk states in Spiral Dance, "nudity establishes a closeness and honesty among coveners and 'is a sign that a witches loyalty is to the truth before any ideology or any comforting illusions'". Today, many pagans do worship skyclad.

Some pagans perform rituals without clothing but they wear special jewelry or cords.

Answer: A tool used to sprinkle salt water, or other liquid such as a herbal infusion, to purify sacred space

This is commonly a bundle of herbs thought to have properties of purification.

Answer: False

The frequent use of "warlock" to describe a male witch is largely based on Hollywood scriptwriters, especially those writing for the 1960s sitcom, Bewitched.

Among a few traditions of wiccans, a "warlock" is a punishment ceremony, not a person. In the ceremony a person's access to magickal power is "locked" and he or she has no ability to perform effective magickal spells, or have access to the energies at all. This is regarded, by those who believe in it, as one of the most severe punishments that can be meted out among the wiccan community.

Many wiccans and pagans consider the word an insult, probably because of its etymology. The word itself comes from a Scottish word meaning "oathbreaker" or "liar".

Answer: False

The Wheel of the Year begins with the Samhain ceremonies on October 31. This holiday is considered the witches' New Year, representing one full turn of the seasonal year. It is also the last of the three harvest Sabbats.

Answer: True

When you are closing a ritual circle, you would walk the circle widdershins.

I used the following sources for some of my information:

'To Ride a Silver Broomstick' by Silver RavenWolf
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)