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Let me start by saying that I realize some of you may be part of a Coven or other group that works together to enhance your learning. While I find that is a wonderful learning tool, it is important that we continue to develop our own learning devices. As a member of a Coven, I find myself leaning on the group for my education sometimes a little more than I should. It is my own opinion that we are Solitary Wiccans first and foremost. Being a member of a group, should we choose to be one, does not replace that individuality, nor does it relieve us of our responsibility to educate ourselves. Having said that, we will approach this text from a Solitary Wiccan standpoint, just as it is written. Now, onto the lesson.
Scott Cunningham (S.C.) begins by providing four tools of learning that the Solitary Wiccan can apply to their lives. It is the author's belief that nearly every question can be answered through Study, Thought, Prayer and Meditation. He does point out one very important condition of this success. It will only work "if you're not caught up in worrying that you're doing something incorrectly." I don't know how many times in our last course I hounded on this point. As S.C. points out in the next paragraph, there is no ultimate one right way to do things in this faith. It took me a long time to get over that roadblock. The sooner you are able to learn this point, the sooner your education and your faith will increase.
Study
For many Solitaries, the first and sometimes only form of education available, comes in the form of books. This truly can be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, there is a lot of very good information available to the reader, and if you begin with a credible text you will be well on your way to learning about the Wiccan Path. On the other, there are several texts out there that, in my honest opinion, are worthless fantasies put out by someone who has no clue what Wicca is all about, and is trying to make money off of their readers.
Assuming that the individual starts with a good text, he/she may run into some confusing situations when they move on to another reputable text. As S.C. points out, some say the alter is in the East, and some say it's in the North etc. The beginning student may, understandably, become confused, maybe even agitated, and just forget the whole thing. Hopefully however, the student will begin to see that one of the major tenants of Wicca is that it allows for individual expression, within the framework of a few set rules. See how it all comes back to that point?
I like what S.C. says about each book being a teacher. Even the most open minded experienced Wiccan has their own biases, their own way of doing things, and that will naturally be reflected in their writing. If the student can keep in mind that these books are just that one author's opinion of how to do things, and not some holy writ, then hopefully they will be able to begin to analyze the contradictions and choose what is best for them.
S.C. continues this section with some extremely important advice. After doing the reading, and being confronted with contradictions, the student must make a choice. If the student is still a "newbie" this can be a frightening thought. They do not have enough experience, so they think, to trust their own decisions. Part of that inability to trust their instinct is perpetrated by our modern religious society. Every other religion that I can think of has a leader or wise teacher who is expected to set the standard, and show the way. We are not accustomed to having the right, nor the responsibility, of making our own decisions when it comes to religious and spiritual matters. This is yet another obstacle that the beginning student must overcome. They must learn to use their instincts, reasoning, and comfort level when deciding which way is right for them. Reading the information, thinking about it, praying to the divine for guidance, and then doing it can accomplish this. Yes, there may be mistakes along the way, but we all make those. The important thing is to begin to trust your instincts and your inner self.
If possible, it is best to avoid purchasing or reading a book that has little
or no value to it. The problem is, how do you determine what books are worth
reading, and what one's aren't. While that is again going to be a matter of
personal preference, S.C. does provide several key things to look for when
deciding on a text.
1. Does the author profess to be an experienced Wiccan? If someone who is
not Wiccan writes the book, then I'd be willing to bet there is not going
to be a whole lot of practical information contained. After all, how can one
teach what one does not know?
2. Are there constant references to: Satan, the Bible, negative magick, sexual
rites, etc? If so, again, it's best to avoid these texts, at least initially.
There is probably some good information in there somewhere, but it's going
to take a great deal of effort to discern the truth from the lie.
There are a couple of additional things that I would like to add here about
picking out books.
1. Don't believe everything that a book says. Again, this is not holy writ;
this is a work written by a human and open to human interpretations and biases.
2. Don't discount an author just because another pagan says they are not worth
reading. Personally, there are some author's whose style I don't care for,
but the material is still valid.
S.C. concludes this section with some additional tips on how to choose and then use Wiccan texts. In summary, use your books. Don't be afraid to mark in them. I promise the book police will not beat down your door. These are texts. Mark them up! Also, question everything you read. S.C. even advises you to question what he writes, as do I. And lastly, don't expect the books to do everything for you. They are a great starting point, but if you don't put the knowledge into practice, then they are useless.
Thought
Many students never get past the Reading part of the learning process. Initially, I was one of those. I would read everything I could get my hands on. It took me a good year almost before I truly moved on to the second part of this process; the independent thought process. This process is not taught in our educational system today. We are taught how to perform, not to think. We are taught that this is the right way, this is the wrong way, and that's just the way it is. We have to move beyond that limiting concept, and allow ourselves to truly begin to think.
So how does this independent thought process work? Well, for me, it was a matter of basically forgetting everything I had learned about the divine, religion, spirituality, everything. (Now before anyone starts screaming about that being impossible, I know it is, but that must be our mindset. We will continue to draw on that information, but if we start saying, "Well I already know this stuff" we are robbing ourselves of some valuable learning). Then I began to reevaluate everything, question everything, and only then was I able to really decide for myself what was right and what wasn't. That is the same process each of us must go through, although in a different manner as each of you will develop your own style and way of doing things. But the end goal of really establishing in your mind what is right and wrong must be obtained.
S.C. states that "thought should also be combined with feeling". This is something that, again, has been taken out of our educational systems. There is a distinct difference to most people between thinking and feeling. Thinking is a concrete, reliable thing; whereas feeling is abstract, flighty thing that can't be relied on. Personally, and this is just my personal opinion here, I think that stems from the male dominance. Men are perceived as the thinkers, and women as the feelers. So, if thinking is higher or better than feeling……. Hopefully you see my point here. The sad thing is that I really think the men are the one's that lose in this thought process. Over the past few decades' women have begun to take their rightful place as man's equal and have once again developed their independent thinking, while maintaining their feelings. Men, on the other hand, still haven't, overall, quite caught on to this whole feeling idea. It's new, it's different and it scares the hell out of many of us. Men, we need to get over that. This doesn't mean we have to become weak or wimpy. It simply means that we must learn how to balance those two sides. Ok, off my soapbox for now.
S.C. gives a great definition and explanation about intuition. "Intuition (the unexplained knowledge or feeling that makes itself known in our conscious minds) is a form of psychic awareness. Use of this tool while learning Wicca is of the utmost importance, for it's the filter through which you can evaluate questionable information."
Prayer
Prayer is a tool that, in my experience, is way underutilized by Wiccans. S.C. gives the initial impression in this first paragraph that it's basically a last resort. Having read many of his books, I know that's not his belief, but I want to touch on this briefly. Prayer is simply a matter of talking with the Divine. Who better to give us some assistance, guidance or direction. It doesn't have to be elaborate, or eloquent. Just talk to them. They'll hear you, and in their own way, they will respond. And don't wait until you are in so deep before you ask for help. I think a lot of religions kind of view prayer as an emergency exit so to speak.
As S.C. points out, every prayer will be answered, there's no doubt in my mind about that. The question is, will we recognize the answer. Most times it's not going to be some audible voice giving you specific directions, although this can happen. It may be more of a intuitional response, or something you read latter will just speak to you as being the answer. You may see the answer by using the divination tools. A friend my say something that on the surface has no connection to your question, but may actually be the answer you are looking for. So the trick here to not to have a set way in mind of how the prayer will be answered. Rather, prepare yourself to receive the answer in whatever form it may take.
S.C. concludes this section with some solid advice. When we receive an answer to our prayers, there is a temptation to think we have stumbled on some divine revelation that should be applicable to everyone. That is not the case!!!!!!!! Again, remember that this is an individualistic path, and that everyone has to find his or her way to the divine. Don't allow yourself to give into the temptation to "convert" others to follow your path.
Experimentation
This is where the true practice of Wicca begins. By now you've read your information, thought about what's best for you, and asked for some guidance from the Divine. Now it's time to step out of the box and start acting like a Wiccan. Put together a simple rite, based on what you feel is best for you. Don't allow yourself to think about if it's "right or wrong". If it feels right to you, and it's not harming anyone, then go for it! After you have finished your rite, record your feelings and thoughts in your journal. Did one particular area really feel great? Was there anything that just didn't quite sit right for you? Record these things so that you can come back to them next time and avoid making similar mistakes. Through this process of actually living the Wiccan path, you will grow in your knowledge and faith that truly is the ancient ways.
Writing Assignment
Choose a topic that is of interest to you, but one that you are currently struggling with. Perhaps you are still trying to decide what corner call you want to use, or how you want to cast a circle. Maybe you are at a point in your journey where you are beginning to sense a different meaning in the divination tool of your choice from what you were taught initially. The subject doesn't matter as much as following the process given by S.C. in this lesson. Now, go through each step of this process and record your steps. When you have completed the cycle, record your results.