y were born.The rituals are begun with a circle being drawn. The circle has four cardinal points, north, south, east, west. The cardinal point north represents earth, south represents fire, east is air, and west is water. A athame or sword is used to measure and cast the nine-foot magical circle, sometimes a pentagram is drawn within the circle. Witches use circles to concentrate the cosmic powers within it. The witches circle is a sacred place between the world of humans and the world of the gods. The circle is viewed as a place of contact between two realities, where humans may unite with the gods, becoming cosmic. Circles are also reservoirs that hold the energy produced during the ritual until the time comes for the energy to be released which will invoke the Goddess and the God. The Goddess and God are invoked through rituals and poetry. The High Priestess, the highest ranking witch, then ‘draw down the moon’; meaning she dances, sings meditates or whatever she can do to open herself up to the divine power. The coven then raises the cone of power. Once this is done the coven then joins hands, sings and dances. When the energy is at its peak, the coven releases the power from the cone and focuses on its speed toward its destination. The raising and releasing of the cone requires a great outpouring of energy. Once the ritual is completed a period of meditation and centering follows. Next, consecrated cake and wine are passed around, man to woman, women to man, until all have received some. Once this has ended, the witches share poetry, discuss minor magic, sing, or play games, whatever is felt appropriate. The ritual is almost over when the last remaining thing to do is to break the circle. The athame is used again to cut across the circle’s circumference. Once this is done, the witches are allowed to leave and resume their normal lives. Today modern Witchcraft “is a variety of paganism”...
