Incoming!

Blessings Darlings!

For discussion purposes I 'divide' magic into two broad categories, thaumaturgy and theurgy, the thaumaturgy being measurable 'miracle working/money drawing/physical healing/etc' and theurgy being "spiritual development work".

I've posted some about those things before, like here, and here, and here, and here.

Now, probably everyone agrees that the theurgical magic you do is tied to you.  Cuz who else would it be tied to?  I'm also assuming that you probably use your magical tools to do this magic when use of them is appropriate.

It has come to my attention that some folks don't think that 'everyday' magic you do is also tied to you.  As in "Blood anoited [sic] tools binds magic to you and your bloodline. Not wise if you plan on to use the tool for basic everyday spells."  This was a response I got on the Witchcraft, Paganism, and Wiccan page on FaceBook.  I'd link you, but, due to people posting complaints about the regular plagiarism there, posting by all but the admins is now closed so getting at MY post is impossible. 

Darlings, your tools are ' yours' because you and then are bonded together.  that's a fundamental part of your being able to use them fully.  If you are REALLY bonded to, say, Wand, then you can use your finger and not a pretty anointed with ANYthing stick. And, guess what - your flesh, blood, and bone makes up that finger.

ALL MAGIC YOU DO IS TIED BACK TO YOU. That's how we trace back hexes to who they came from.  That's how the "Law of Return" works, to those who believe in that.  That's how the 'three fold law' works for those who believe in that.  That's how your senses work, for that matter - that tree I'm looking at is sending things that ENTER MY EYE so I can see it.

If you think you can duck being tied to your magic by NOT being 'blood tied' to your tools, you are fooling yourself.

The Threefold Bitchslap

Blessings  Darlings!

Some neopagans say that they live according to the Rede-as-harm-none (which I covered earlier here) and the Threefold Law Of Returns.  And that the three-fold law, they will tell you when asked, is "Whatever you send out you get back three times over".

Well, no, that's not what the Threefold Law is.

The root of the Threefold Law seems to be in the "long version" of the Rede, as written by Lady Gwen Thompson .... who was not Wiccan but but BTW .... and BTW at the time was NOT "British Traditional Wicca" but "British Traditional WITCHCRAFT".  It was published in Green Egg in 1974, don't recall which issue.

The line in question reads "Mind the Three-fold Laws ye should three times bad and three times good." I copied that from  http://rialian.com/wiccrede.htm 
 
That's not about you getting back three times over what you send out. That's "Whatever someone does to you, good or bad, do back to them three times over."  Yes, I checked this with a Gardnerian, in case anyone was asking.  It's supposed to be YOU being the manifestation of the hands of the God/dess/es handing people karma logical response to their actions. No room for passive-aggressive behavior here. 

It's not you sitting in front of a picture of the dude that dropped you and repeating "The three fold law will get you" and expecting some bean counter in the sky doing it for you. 

It means that you are expected to take an active, involved role in creating Justice right here on Earth. 

It's easy being nice to someone who's been nice to you.  Co-worker jumped your car and you bring them cookies or whatever.  Easy peasy, no risk.

It's harder, especially for women, to take an active role in bitchslapping someone who has worked to do you harm.  We've been rather socialized to just walk away, to be non-confrontational.  It's DANGEROUS, we've been told, to say "No, that is not allowed, stop that". Bullies are supposed to be out for attention and we've been told that to ignore them makes them go away.

But that's not the case.  Bullies get worse without confrontation.  Silence ENABLES abuse -ALL types of ause - rather than stops it.  I can't find the scholarly article right now, but last year I read one that pretty definitively showed that social confrontation did not CAUSE conflict - it ENDED conflict.

Yeah, it might take doing it more than once.  Like, maybe three times.... or more. 

But when pushed - push back ... or make dang sure that the push-ers momentum is used by you to make sure that they fall. Hard. And in public.

Administer the Three-Fold Bitchslap.

Frondly, Fern