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The question "What is a Witch? What is a Pagan?" continue to be asked. It is difficult to separate the two for they have become almost as one. An old saying goes "All witches are pagans, but not all pagans are witches." This is true, but not as true as it once was. There are those who call themselves Pagan who are truly Witches, and those who call themselves Witches who are truly Pagans. In days of yore, to be a Pagan was to live, simply, with the Earth, following the seasons, joining with other Pagans in the celebrations of the turning of the Wheel. The Witches went beyond these simpler ways, seeking to know, to understand, and to put to use the deeper mysteries and magick of the universe, thereby becoming "The Wise One." Today the two are melding into one, as those who call themselves Pagan extend their boundaries of knowledge and practice. A Witch is a part and the whole of the Universe, giving birth to the Gods and Goddesses as they give birth to her. She springs from the depths of the tumultuous seas, rises to the heavens, only to return--sometimes gently, sometimes violently--to her beloved Earth. There she begins the journey anew, rising as the sparkling spring, becoming the tinkling brook, the flowing stream, the rushing waters of the mighty river, returning again and again to the womb of the sea. She is the rich soil of Mother Earth, and the tiny seed cradled in the nourishing depths of Her soil. Warmed by the Sun, she springs forth and begins the struggle of life. Slowly, sometimes painfully, inch by inch she reaches higher, sending her roots deeper into the Earth as she reaches for the Heavens. The Wise One knows her strength comes from the Earth, of which she is a part, and there must be a solid unity of the self, for those whose roots are shallow and without substance will wither in the heat of life's fires, and be toppled by the storms and gales of life. The Witch is the blazing Sun and the candle's flame, lighting the dark corners, chasing away the shadows. She absorbs the Light of Knowledge, then sends forth its rays to light the path of those around her. She is the spark igniting the log, and the dancing flame which consumes it, while sending forth light, warmth, and love. Others gaze on her and, blinded by her brilliance, are lured into the other-world of dreams and fantasies by her hypnotic dance. She is the gentle breeze cooling the brow of those who labor, and the mightly gale forcing all in her path to bend before her will. She plays through the trees and grasses, and teases the locks of the maidens. She brings the scent of the prey to the hungry hunter and blows away the tracks of the pursued. She feeds the fire-flame and joins in its dance, until, tiring of the game, she extinguishes it with one mighty breath. The Witch is the babe in the womb and the child in the arms of the Mother. She is the maiden racing through the Sun drenched fields, and dancing coyly in the moolight. She is the eternal woman in the arms of her lover, the mother giving birth and caring for her young. She is the Old One, sharing her knowledge and love with those who follow in her steps, waiting, with happy heart, for the time when the cycle begins anew. The Witch is the Wise One, and to her door come those who seek to share in her knowledge, light, and love. And to all who seek she gives what is asked, freely, joyfully, with no thought of return except the joy she finds through the sharing. All are her children, all are her love, all are herself. She are they, and they are she. The Wise One knows that as the parts were separated, so, too, must they be united. The Witch stands with her feet firmly one with Mother Earth, raising her face to the Mother Moon and the Father Sun, and to the All from whence we came. And, standing solidly there, she flows with the tides, drifts with the winds, and warms herself at the flame of the Light of Knowledge. And always there is a twinkle in her eye, a smile on her lips, a lilt to her song, and peace within. She worships all Gods and Goddesses, yet she worships only one. She takes all, and gives all. Her Gods and Goddesses ask no sacrifice, yet she offers unto them the ultimate sacrifice--herself. The Witch is the God and the Goddess, the Ancient Ones, the Guardians of the Watchtowers. She is Air and Earth and Fire and Water. She is the grain from which the bread is baked and the grape from which the wine was pressed. She is the incense rising to the heavens and the flame dancing on the candle; the peal of the bell and the pages of the Book. She is each knot in the cords which binds her, and the blue flame which sparks from her Blade. She is the cone of power rising into the Universe, and its target. What is a Witch? Everything--and Nothing Lady Rhea, 1982
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