Witches Haven

Who are the Dark Goddesses and Gods?

Actually? All of 'em. The represent the whole. Both sides of existence.

What are Dark Aspects? Should we be afraid? Hide in our closets? Under our beds? Simply play ostrich, stick our heads in the sand and ignore Their existence?

If this is your plan? Then your glass is not half full nor half empty - it is nothing at all.

A Wiccan cannot claim to be Wiccan, if the existence of the Dark Aspects are not known, accepted and understood as an integral part of the faith - in fact, a foundation of the faith.

We can't confuse popular fears/myths of the word Dark when discussing Wicca. The Dark Aspects are as much a part of who we are as is the Light Aspect.

Without the Dark - there is no Wheel, no birth, life or rebirth. There is nothing but what is commonly referred to as the "Fluffy Bunny" syndrome. Or as I prefer to call it - the Pollyanna of Paganism trend.

Why do we fear the dark? Part of it has to do with our nature as human beings; our early predators hunted at night. As humans, we are unable to see clearly at night - it is understandable to be cautious in the dark but being in the dark is not the same as Dark Aspect. Apples and oranges.

The Dark Aspect is not some sort of personification of evil, nastiness and all that is negative. With this said - any work done within the confines of the Dark

Aspects must be approached with care, knowledge and common sense. Dark imagery is very strong - very potent.

Throughout mythology - the Crone, the Dark Mother has been depicted in negative representations of the miseries of human existence - disease, war, barren lands - barren women, death and destruction. She is a collector of skulls.

The Dark Lord has fared no better - he is seen as the silent guardian in the underworld and land of the dead. It is a world of shadows and bleakness. He is also the bringer of Chaos, war and destruction. While the Crone gathers the skulls - the Lord gathers the souls.

But while these depictions may be true - there is also the other side of the coin.

The Crone, through death brings rebirth. She is infinite Wisdom. She is Knowledge and She is Justice.

The Lord is, indeed, Chaos but through Chaos come order - back to Chaos and again - Order. He gathers the souls and through their energies, creates new. The world of the dead is one of respite, of peace until it is time to begin again.

Unlike the beliefs of other faiths - our Deities, the Dark Goddesses and Dark Gods do not judge us on our passing - we judge ourselves. They possess no great book with all our names and columns of checks and balances. Our lives fulfill the checks and balances by our own actions. The physical theory of "For every action, there is an equal reaction."

The Dark Goddesses and Gods are our havens until it is time for rebirth. They aren't our punishers, our judges, jury and spiritual executioners.

The power behind the symbolism of the Dark Aspects is truly formidable.

These are the powers of banishing, of destruction and endings. We must always be very clear in our intent when attempting to focus these powers of Dark Aspect. There is no margin for error in this department...There is no "Whoops, I made a boo boo." The Dark Aspects brook no boo boos...screw up and you will find out just how powerful these forces truly are...Forget apologies or regret - focus these energies and they will go to work, there is no turning back. So make sure you do your research - you study, you learn and understand what you are working with before you attempt any Dark Aspect rituals or Magick.

We need the Dark Aspect - we must have the balance. Again, this is the foundation of Neo-Pagan belief - balance in all things. We have to look at the Dark Aspects, fully. It is necessary to completely understand and accept that the Dark is an absolute. It is the balance of life and there is nothing to be feared within it. When the individual truly understands this balance and has accepted it as part and parcel of everything - including themselves - there is incredible peace and contentment - a feeling of being whole.

Without this understanding, without this sense of balance - there is nothing. Not a half, not a part but nothing.

Here are two Charges - one to the Dark Goddess and one to the Dark Lord

Dark Goddess Charge

Charge of the Dark God

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 Canada License.