Sacred Sexuality

There are so many different reasons for why I wanted to do a lesson on sexuality.
Many people will possibly not see the point and many more may have problems
with different parts of this lesson. To put it bluntly, that is not a reason to not do
this lesson. The role of a teacher is to lead their students into new experiences
so that they may experience, learn and grow as a person. That is something I
am hoping to do here.

Whether you realise it or not and whether you like it or not witchcraft and sex
are closely entwined in a lovers embrace. The very first book of shadows drips
with a sexual undercurrent partly due to Gardner’s personal tastes and partly
due to the fact he was tapping into a ribbon of nature worship that had existed
and wanted to exist again. In nature you cannot have life without sex, and we
are but natural creatures. The sexual drive inhabits our physical and mental
realms, so it would be arrogant to believe there is no sexual drive or impulses in
our spiritual life as well.

Magic and sex also have had a long history together. So has religion and sex. In
fact anything humans touch will have at some point a sexual influence because
that is what we are and what we do. The person who can go though their life
without doing anything influenced by sex is a rare person indeed. And maybe
one who should be pitied.

This lesson is here to give you information on this aspect so that you have a
complete understanding of the basics and to challenge your views. The craft
does not want people who are hidebound and will not question the status quo.
The craft wants strong independent people who will change the world, and after
all isn’t that what magic and religion have been doing for years?

Before we begin though understand this, there are large amounts of woman who
are forced into working in the sex industry against their will and this is both
reprehensible and evil. The people who are responsible for the forcing woman
into sex work they do not want to participate in must be resisted and fought at
every turn. The same goes for anyone who forces any being into a sexual
relationship without their informed consent.

Also understand there will be exercises in this lesson that you may not want to
do for various reasons, one of which will be fear. If you wish to do them, then
that is up to you. If you feel that you genuinely cannot do an exercise then again
that is up to you. This path takes different speeds for different people. Just enjoy
the walk.

Religion and sex

No matter what religion you are or want to be you will have to realise that the
religion of your choice has views on certain sexual endeavours. A faith should be
there to help us through the difficult times in our lives, to give us hope when we
have little or to teach us how to be better people to those around us.

Unfortunately organised religion has instead taken on itself the mantle of

spiritual judge and has given us book after book, war after war and death after
death all in the name of their god to teach us what we should believe rather than
giving us the tools to find out for ourselves. To many people a blind follower is
better than one who questions, after all ask to many questions and you may find
some difficult answers.

One of the many ways religions control us is through their lessons on sex and
sexual morality. Once you get told something for the hundredth time, especially
from someone you trust then you will believe it. If you’re told not to use
contraception because your god doesn’t want you to one hundred times then
you will stop using contraception and start having large families to add more
converts. Control through sexual attitudes established.

And if you think that control and manipulation through religion is not that
invasive or powerful and that you would never fall for it think on this. We are
used to hearing about anti abortion violence in the United States but did you also
know that it occurs in Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Even worse we are
not free from the pro life groups. In 2006 A private members bill to make
abortion illegal in all but exceptional circumstances failed. The question is why
was it allowed to take place at all?

I know that the abortion argument is an emotive and touchy one. I use it here to
show you that the majority of pro life groups generally follow a religious faith and
it is because of that faith teaching’s that violence is committed. In North
America alone there are approximately 1000 denominations who oppose
abortion access to woman.

So to begin with we will have a look at the different faiths and their sexual
viewpoints.

Current faiths and their general sexual viewpoints

Orthodox Jewish people have some very strong taboos to do with sex. Not
surprising since a lot of its cannon has remained unchanged for centuries. To be
fair to the Jewish faith it does say that sex is not sinful or evil. It also says that
sexual desire should be controlled and channelled and finally satisfied in a timely
manner. Looking at the Jewish faith you soon see that it is a mix of progressive
and regressive sexual attitudes.

The main point of sex within the Jewish faith is to reinforce the loving bond
between husband and wife. This means of course there is no sex before
marriage. In the marriage bed all things are permitted that do not lead to
sh'chatat zerah or destruction of seed (ejaculation outside the vagina).curiously
one of the three main rights of the wife is the right to sex and is called Onah. A
man is not permitted to deprive his wife of sex.

Birth control can be used as long as at some point the couple have at least two
children (one of either sex). However condoms cannot be used because they
permit the destruction of the seed, so the pill or other forms of chemical
contraception only. You can also forget masturbation, since this is a sin
punishable by having your hand chopped off. This however only seems to be
true for male masturbation.

The Talmud quite clearly says that if a mother’s life is in danger during
pregnancy then abortion is required because the mother is more important than
the potential human life inside. What is difficult to stomach for a lot of people is
that a foetus is only a potential human life and not actually alive until the
majority is outside the mother during birth.

Homosexuality is punishable by death. Only the acts are sinful though, actually
being homosexual and not acting on it is ok. Funnily lesbian practises are not
forbidden in the Torah, so that was clearly written by men. Due to the Jewish
proscription against woman who are menstruating (they are seen as unclean to
the point where they cannot even make a meal) sex at this point is obviously a
no no.

Christianity follows a similar pattern. While individual denominations have

different values, for this section I am going to look at the largest Christian
denomination which is Catholicism which has over 1 billion adherents. Like the
Jewish faith the main point of sex in a catholic marriage is to bring a husband
and wife closer.

Since the marriage bond is seen as a sign of love between God and humanity,
any sexual activity outside of marriage is seen as deeply wrong. The same goes
for contraception which is seen as getting in the way of stopping procreation.
Like the song says, “every sperm is sacred”! Contraception isn’t seen as just
wrong though, in some cases it is seen as evil. Think about that for a moment.
Evil is killing someone or hurting an innocent for fun. Can you truly see
contraception as evil?

Unlike the Jewish faith there is no actual proscription against having sex while
menstruating for woman, it has to be said that years of moral values that raise
men and lower woman in societies eyes have had the effect that this time is
seen as dirty and unclean.

According to the scriptures homosexuality is seen as a grave depravity. Unlike

Jewish faith, this also includes feminine homosexual relationships. Masturbation
for either sex is seen as being contrary to purpose and as such a disordered
action. There strongest stance though is taken on the point of abortion.
If you procure or help to procure an abortion for yourself or someone else you
can run the risk of ex-communication. No other sexual crime seems to pull this
sort of penalty down so why should this particular act be such a sin? It is
because any sort of new life is seen as sacred and by having an abortion you are
seen as breaking the commandment you shalt not kill. I won’t go into the
hypocrisy here since it is so transparent.

Islam has a slightly more humanistic view in that incest is banned which is
understandable. Sex is considered a pleasurable, even spiritual activity, and a
duty. At least one hadith explicitly states that for a married couple to have sex is
a good deed rewarded by God. Another hadith suggests that a man should not
leave the proverbial bed until the woman is satisfied, a reference many say
points to orgasm.

They do however share several values with the other major religions. The aim of
sex in Islamic teachings is for procreation and as a way to strengthen bonds
between the couple. The sexual relationship though can only be between
married partners. Pre-marital sex carries harsh penalties varying between 100
lashes and death.

Like the other religions homosexuality is forbidden although they do seem to

have a more relaxed attitude compared to pre-marital sex! One verse in the
Qur'an states If two men commit a lewd act, punish them both; if they repent
and mend their ways, leave them alone—God is always ready to accept
repentance, He is full of mercy. (4:16) so there is always the chance you may get
away with it! This is also thought to mean relationships between two women.

Masturbation is strongly discouraged, ranging from outright banning in some

sects to a more conciliatory standpoint in others. The stance on contraception is
more humanist compared to the previous two. Sex for pleasure as opposed to
sex for procreation is allowed under Islamic law and there are several passages
that allow for the use of contraception.

The same sort of thing applies to abortion. The Islamic view is that life does not
start at contraception but at any time between 40 and 120 days after so abortion
up to these times is permissible although as time goes on it is becoming more
and more frowned upon.

Like the Jewish faith the Muslim faith also has specific times that you cannot
have sex. These are while the woman is menstruating, the forty days after
giving birth and during fasting times. Going on a pilgrimage to Mecca would
count as a fasting time. Again we see the idea that menstrual blood is unclean
or something to be avoided.

Hinduism follows a strange set of values. On the one hand they follow the
proceeding three faiths in some of their views, but on the other hand they allow
for an anything goes attitude between husband and wife.
Pre-marital sex is still a sin with it not just being a sin but also seen as shameful.
Shame can often be a harder burden to carry than just knowing you have
committed a sin. However once married anything done between a husband and
wife in the bedroom is allowed. In Hinduism the bedroom is a very private place.

Abortion is again seen as a sin, since it interferes with the fetus journey towards
god. Hindu scriptures refer to abortion as garha-batta (womb killing) and
bhroona hathya (killing the undeveloped soul). However abortion is legal in India
and there has not been the same type of anti-abortion violence we have seen in
the west.

Contraception is seen as a possible good thing in the Hindu scriptures. While

there are many parts of the scriptures that applaud large families, there are also
many which applaud smaller families as a form of positive social good. The
Upanishads (texts delineating key Hindu concepts) describe birth control
methods, and some Hindu scriptures contain advice on what a couple should do
to promote conception (thus providing a type of contraceptive advice).

Homosexuality in Hinduism in not as straightforward as other faiths. Currently

there are two stances on the subject. The against argument is based on the idea
that romantic love can only happen between a man and a woman therefore any
sex between two men would be a product of lust which is wrong. Plus two men
cannot procreate or get married and because of this they should not engage in
sexual activity.

The for argument however says that two men can experience romantic love and
therefore anything that comes of that is a product of love which is one of the
universal forces. Plus the Kama Sutra states that homosexual sex "is to be
engaged in and enjoyed for its own sake as one of the arts." Basically on this
one you take your own view by the looks of it.

Just looking at these four faiths, which quite a large amount of the planets
population follow you can see some core ideas emerging. Pre marital sex is
generally frowned upon or seen as a sin. Abortion is usually a definite sin as is
homosexuality. For quite a large amount of the population birth control is either
a no go or only during particular instances.

As witches can we also have some sort of sexual view that comes from our faith?
Yes we can, however very few witches will sit down and think like this. This
could be because the public elders of our craft will not talk about sex thinking it
is a media time bomb. Unfortunately by ignoring a part of our faith then we are
also showing an immaturity towards it.

So let’s take a look at these big issues starting with homosexuality. If we as

pagans are to take some of our lessons from nature then we should surely take a
look at animals. After all we are always being told by devout scientists that we
are nothing but animals. So take a look at black swans, Amazon dolphins,
American bison, apes, lions. In fact quite a lot of animals exhibit some sort of
homosexual behavior making it one hell of a natural act. The fact that orthodox
faiths have bans against homosexuality is a sign that they want to leave their
animal origins behind and that for some of them in power, the act itself is seen
as distasteful rather than their god will show displeasure if you do.

In other words homosexuality is a normal sexual impulse. Part of any population

will have homosexual feelings, both male and female. This should be expected
and not feared or condemned. In Britain in 1992 a study concluded that 6.1% of
the population was homosexual. In 2005 another study concluded that it was
6%. These figures haven’t changed much so I think it’s safe to say the
population will not crash if homosexuality wasn’t seen as a sin. Personally
though in my experience i think it’s more 10%, still not a huge figure.

Another point Wiccans can have a view about is menstruation or sex during
menstruation. I believe this is more a case of men in power again finding
something distasteful and trying to hide it away. After all there is no clear health
risk if you come into contact with menstrual blood. There is no real health risk to
you or your partner if you have sex during your period and indeed some woman
feel more sexy during this time making it more fun for them. In fact studies have
even shown that an orgasm can help relive the painful cramps that can occur
during this time, although I think this could be more to do with the release of
certain brain chemicals rather than the sex itself.

Many prominent female wiccans see the menstrual blood as a powerful symbol
for females. It is a symbol of everything men dislike about woman.
Unfortunately a lot of woman still have hang ups about his particular subject.
When it comes to Wicca though our main rule of thumb is the “if it harm none,
do what you will” rule. Since there is no medical reason for proscribing sex
during this time and it has been shown that it can actually help then there is no
reason why this cannot be a sexual time for both partners.

Contraception is another topic that we have to look at. Our world today is over
populated to the point of collapse. New medical advances and (supposedly)
better living conditions allow us to live longer and longer while at the same time
the death rate is becoming smaller and smaller. This means that we will at some
point over populate the planet.

We have to be more socially aware of what we are bringing onto our mother.
That is not to say that we should abandon all pretence of having kids, just that
we cannot allow ourselves to have large families anymore. One or two children
are good, it continues the family line, allows for a stable population base, even
maybe allowing for a family tradition of the craft. More than this is in today’s
world more than we can cope with and should be discouraged. Because of this
contraception should not just be allowed but it should be encouraged as early as
possible.
Attached to that argument is the argument on abortion. Abortion for the
purpose of family planning or because you want a particular set of genes is
wrong. I won’t call it a sin, because I do not agree with the word sin, but it is
wrong. Abortion to help the medical well being of the mother, either physical or
mental should be allowed. The time of allowed abortions is something
interesting though.

Current magical thinking says that the soul leaves the body at the last breath.
Conversely the soul enters the body at the first breath. This first breath is during
the actual birth process, so following the argument to its logical conclusion
abortion should be allowed up to the ninth month right?

Wrong. Currently research has just stated that a foetus cannot feel pain up to 24
weeks following conception. If a being can feel pain, then no matter what the
esoteric arguments are that being should be kept from pain as much as possible.
That’s why we do not mistreat animals or other humans and why we love the
planet so much. It’s called respect for life. We can respect life and still allow for
terminations if need be.

How about pre-marital sex? Well I for one advocate it purely on the basis that if
you get into a relationship and you are not sexually compatible then you will
spend the rest of that relationship feeling like you are missing part of yourself.
However there is a line to be drawn between having sex outside of wedlock and
bedding every person who will allow you to. It all comes down to our desires and
whether we want to be controlled by them or for us to control them.

Once we are controlled by our desires we are then doomed to be unhappy until
we have our desires. And unfortunately desires never go away. If we can take
our happiness not from what we want, but what we have around us then we are
truly free to enjoy our life. Take a look at the world around you. Do you really
think that it’s a happy place? The more we have the “more” we want, both in
terms of goods and terms of sexual appetites.

This is represented in the pentagram. Two points up, one point down is the
symbolic representation of man being controlled by his desires. This is not
necessarily a bad thing as now and again we have to be human and enjoy
ourselves and our desires. But the lesson is to not allow it for all your life, but to
treat all things with respect and love and realize that it is what we have in our
lives, not that what we want in our lives that we should be happy for.
Like all things Wiccan if you can look at your desires and are happy to live with
the results both positive and negative then by all means do whatever you want.
It is your body at the end of the day and no one can tell you what to do with it.
However just remember it may not just be you who will be living with those
consequences.
Exercise – take some time and write down everything that you consider taboo in
sex. Then go back and try and figure out why. Is it because you have tried them
and they were unpleasant, or is it because you just dislike the idea. Mark the
ones that you dislike the idea of and then judge how powerful ideas can be when
it comes to controlling and manipulating a person.

Sacred prostitution

The word prostitute elicits strong feelings amongst many people. The idea that a
woman has to sell her body for any reason is one that many woman and some
men have a large problem with. However the idea that someone who sells their
body for sex is doing it because they have to and not because they want to is
Victorian and ridiculous at best.

Add to this the people who work in the adult film industry since these people are
getting paid to have sex and you can begin to see that there are a large amount
of people who want to have sex for money. Figures from the United States put
the amount of people who are in prostitution (not the film industry) willingly at a
low 15%. If you add in the film industry then I would say this figure goes up to
around 30% - 35%. While that means that the largest percentage does not want
to be in the sex trade which is deplorable (see my opening statement) about 1 in
3 sex workers are there because they want to be.

In fact if you think the argument through to its logical conclusion anytime you go
on a date where your partner ends up paying for something for you and you end
up sleeping with them that night then you are a prostitute. After all you have
exchanged goods that you haven’t paid for with sex. While no knowledge of the
transaction has been talked about before hand, no person on earth has brought
dinner for a date without at least hoping for a little something afterwards.

Sacred prostitution is the exchange of someone’s body for inner well being. That
well being is brought about because you are following the scriptures of your faith
that has been followed for generations. And it has a long history. In fact there is
still a stream of it happening today.

That temple prostitutes existed in Mesopotamia, Greece and other

Mediterranean cultures is well known. However there is many other temple or
sacred prostitutes in every other continent on this planet. For example,

• In India, temple prostitution was a requirement for all Santal girls at

Telkupi Ghat, who were under the obligation to be a public prostitute at
least once in their lives
• Among the Tahu tribe of western Mexico, the girls designated for the
sacred office of priestess were held in high esteem and were consecrated
with much ceremony at great annual festivals, when all tribal chiefs of the
area were present. After the public celebration, with songs and dances,
 the girl retired to a special hut "and the chiefs went one by one to lie with
her and all the others who wish to do so follow them"
• The women of the Algerian (Nigeria) clan of the Walad ’Abdi practiced
sacred prostitution and were regarded as holy.

There are many other examples; these are just three on three different
continents. The main source of information on this subject comes from
Herodotus, writing about his travels in Mesopotamia. He states

The most shameful custom of the Babylonians have is this: every native woman
must go sit in the temple of Aphrodite, once in her life, and have sex with an
adult male stranger…Once a woman sits down there, she doesn’t return home
until a stranger drops money into her lap and has sex with her outside the
temple. When he drops it, he has to say, “I call on the goddess Mylitta”.
Assyrians call Aphrodite Mylitta. This money can be of any value at all- it is not
refused, for that is forbidden, for this money becomes sacred. She follows the
first one who drops the money and rejects none. When she has had sex, she has
performed her religious dues to the goddess and goes home; and from that time
on you will never make her a big enough gift to have her. All those who have
looks and presence quickly get it over with, all those of them who have no looks
wait for a long time unable to fulfil the law…

This was written in the six century BC. It has been said that Herodotus never
went to Babylon and there is an argument currently happening as to whether
this is factual or fantasy. There is another writer from antiquity as well though.
He is called Strabo and he writes

The temple of Aphrodite was so rich that it had acquired more than a thousand
hierodule whores, dedicated by both men and women to the goddess. And
because of them, the city used to be jam-packed and got wealthy. The ship-
captains would spend up easily, and so the proverb says: ‘Not for every man is
the voyage to Corinth’.

There is also evidence of this practise in the Hebrew texts. In the Hebrew bible
there is a word kedeshah. This word literally means "consecrated (feminine
form)", from the Semitic root q-d-sh meaning "holy" or "set apart.

That the ancient cultures had people who were dedicated to a particular deity
and had sex with people for money or goods that then went to that deity is
obvious. What is not obvious is how this pertains to witches today. After all
witches don’t tend to go out and become prostitutes any more than any other
group of people.

Ancient cultures saw sex as sometimes being holy. This is a world away from
what most people believe today, that sex is something shameful and sordid.
This is especially true in this country. The third degree rite in witchcraft uses sex
in a holy way which goes back to those ancient cultures and this is the point I’m
trying to get across. Sex is not profane or shameful. It can be a holy experience
that can bring you closer to the goddess. To quote the charge of the goddess,

“All acts of love and pleasure are the Goddess rituals”

Exercise – a simple one this. Next time you either masturbate or have sex
quickly give thanks to the goddess or god before and after. See if you have any
experiences that are weirder than normal during the act in question.

The kundalini flow

Kundalini is the ancient Sanskrit word for coil. It is seen as either a goddess or a
serpent coiled around the base of the spine and is considered in India to be a
force of libidinous desire. I am going to use it here to describe the idea that we
all have a sexual energy current flowing through our bodies.

This energy can be felt. A quick exercise for you so you can hopefully feel this
energy is to lie face down and get your partner or someone you trust to rest
sitting on the top of your legs. Now get them to place their palms down on your
back just at the top of your buttocks and lean forward putting pressure on the
balls of their palms. That quick burst of energy that runs up your spine is what
I’m talking about.

Every single one of us has this flow. It is what gives us our sex drive, our urge to
reproduce, our sudden desires in the night. And religions and faiths have the
world over tried different things to deal with it.

Many times when the kundalini energy flow is talked about there will be allusions
to serpents. This is because the flow is seen as a serpent coiling around the
lower back and flowing up the back. As far as I can tell personally it seems to
flow up slightly to the left of the spine. It can be measured if you have a willing
partner and a pendulum.

Some eastern schools of thought say that this needs to be awakened using forms
of yoga. This awakening can come spontaneously via such as accidents, near
death experiences, childbirth, emotional trauma and so on. In fact the
awakening stories all seem to bear remarkable similarities to the awakening
stories that shamans tell.

Here in the west it is that much more difficult to find a yoga master to awaken
this sexual energy. There are magical ways to awaken this energy but you will
need to find a decent practioner and be able and willing to sleep with them. It’s
not a popular option. However the good news is that you do not actually have to
do these things to awaken your sexual energy. I will go more into this during the
lesson on energy work.
The effects of feeling this energy first hand can be quite stimulating. For
example after sex you may find yourself plagued by involuntary twitches, a
larger than normal sense of emotion or a sense of heat emancipating from parts
of your body. During sex you may find a more intense sexual experience.

Sex and magic

Sex and magic have long been coupled together. There are many good reasons
for this, many of which would require long philosophical debates to explain!
There are some though that can be quickly explained here to give you a better
idea of the subject. I will not get into specific techniques here though since this is
something that can lead to a lot of trouble without the basic knowledge of magic
first understood.

Sexual symbolism in magical objects

Many objects used in magic have sexual symbolism attached for varying degrees
of reason. There are things such as the cauldron or the cup that have gained
there symbolism from the stories and myths that have grown up around them.
Then you have something like the Tibetan bell that has gained its sexual
symbolism through the thinking processes of high magicians the world over. The
following is for reference only.

The grail/cauldron

These two are synonymous with each other and have gained their sexual
symbolism through the idea that they are both responsible for acts of creation
and they are both round symbolising the vulva which is also responsible for
generative properties.

The grail is best known in the Christian mythos and to a lesser extent the tales of
King Arthur. It is famous for its ability to heal. Its power to heal is so famous
that it is said it can give immortality. In the king Arthur tales it healed the land
by healing the king. This healing or giving of life force is symbolic of the female
regenerative powers of life and therefore of the vulva.

The cauldron is known from ancient Celtic tales as the cauldron of Ceridwen.
This amazing cauldron could not only bring the dead back to life, but would then
also feed them. It was also said that if you drunk three drops from the cauldron
you would gain wisdom but anymore than three would be the deadliest poison.
This ability to give life and to nourish that life is responsible for it being
accounted as part of the sacred feminine.

The wand/staff

These two serve the same purpose. Only the size is different as the staff should
be the same height as you and the wand should be the length of your arm from
the crook of your elbow to your middle finger tip. They should both be wood and
are used for directing energy.

The staff symbolism originates from the caduceus, the staff that Hermes carried
with himself. This staff had two snakes entwined around it. It was thought to
convey the power to put the waking to sleep or to awake the sleeping. I won’t
go into the male’s legendary power to fall asleep after sex but instead say that
the snakes are symbols of the kundalini spirit. The idea that the wand and staff
are wooden and of varying sizes also I believe should be obvious for the sexual
symbolism.

There is a more subtle sexual symbolism to the staff though. At times

throughout history it has been used to denote authority and mastery. This was
especially true of the shepherd’s crook, a staff given to shepherds to help them
tend their flock. In every relationship there is someone who is subservient and
someone who has mastery to some extent. It may be very slight and it may vary
from situation to situation but it is there. So for some people the staff and wand
are symbolic of this slightly subservient/dominant situation.

The bell

The bell is used in a variety of magical workings. Indeed the Tibetan bell is used
in many healing or psychic circles to clear the air. Not many people would
imagine that the bell would have sexual imagery. The bell cone is feminine in
aspect and follows the same symbolism as the cup/grail. The clapper is male
since it is clearly phallic in nature and when the clapper (male) meets the bell
cone (female) the result is “eternal and never ending” to quote some high
magicians.

Creating magic using sex

There is a long tradition of sex magic that has been practised and to a small
extent perfected both here in England and in Europe. Germany in particular has
a strong sex magic tradition. The idea is simple, if non-spiritual sex can create
new life, the intentional ritualised form of sexual intercourse can give birth to the
greatest supernatural effects and results.

Of course you can add to this the idea that magic requires energy to create and
sex produces energy that can be used. This combination of theory being easy to
grasp and the practise being so pleasurable can lead some people to misuse this
valuable magical technique to the extent that they cannot create any magical
effect from any other technique. A valuable warning, that to lose yourself in
something without the willpower to pull yourself out at any given moment will
only cause chaos in your life.

The greatest feat of a sexual working is the creation of a child who will be a
natural magical being designed for great things. Some magicians will tell of
examples throughout history that they say backs up this idea. Names such as
King Arthur who was conceived thanks to magical help and for a high purpose
are often bandied about in conversations but it is doubtful if any magical child
has actually been produced. This idea of creating a magical child for a specific
high purpose is something that a lot of people would have ethical and moral
problems with. It is also the highest art of the sex magician roughly analogous
with the alchemist creating the philosophers stone or the grimoire magician
speaking with his holy guardian angel.

When we speak of sex magic we talk of highly ritualised workings where desire
plays only a small bit part. Rather than finishing the act of lovemaking in its own
time the magician will attempt to keep his or her orgasm from completion for as
long as possible. When finally the orgasm hits, that is the time when the magic
is released letting it go with the greatest pleasure possible. To sex magicians
holding the orgasm off for an hour or more is not unusual.

This is also the case when using sex magic solo through self manipulation. Again
the goal being to keep the orgasm off for as long as possible while concentrating
and visualising the outcome desired. While this technique is not compulsory for
anyone learning magic it should be kept in mind that this technique for the
advanced magician can be invaluable in certain magical acts.

Many ceremonial lodges have rituals that use sex in this way. Highly ritualised
examples of sexual magic can be seen in workings such as the Babylonian
working which was done in 1946 by Jack Parsons with a huge nod from Aleister
Crowley. Ritual magicians though aren’t the only ones to employ sex magic.
The craft in particular is immensely sexual in some respects.

Exercise – during masturbation, when you have plenty of time and no one
around, see how long you can keep your orgasm staved off for. Try and judge
what responses your body goes through. Then when you are more proficient at
sensing energies around you (which will be shown to you later) try it again and
try and judge what your energy levels are going through.

Witchcraft and sex

I know a lot of people don’t want to think about the relationship that witchcraft
and sex has, instead concentrating on the ability to create their own spiritual
path. This is good and for those people if that is enough, then by the goddess’s
blessing I wish them all the luck in the world.

But for the other people who want to learn, who need to know and who feel there
is more to it than just what is written in the majority of the books out there here
is an explanation for some of the more open and available parts of the craft that
are linked to sex.
A lot of these are to do with coven work and go back to old Gerald’s time.
However it is still good to know where the ideas that you follow came from. You
should never be afraid to look a little deeper to find the truth, even if the truth is
not what you expected.

Now the following sections aren’t really sexual in nature. But the problem is we
are human so even if we know the religious philosophy behind the idea, the
symbolism and meaning inherent in the act you will still always get a shiver of a
sexual impulse if you see someone sky clad. So keep in mind that the following
are not full on in your face sexual, but rather put here because they fit with the
whole sections ideal.

The fivefold/sevenfold kiss

The fivefold kiss is a ceremonial greeting that was first seen in Gardners book of
shadows. It is meant to honour parts that are considered sacred of the opposing
person. Male would traditionally give this to the female and the opposite applies.
By kiss we mean touching of lips to the part, not what we would consider a
sexual kiss.

You start at the feet and work your way up the person kissing each individual
part and reciting the blessing after the kiss. The actual blessings change from
coven to coven, but the original gardner blessings are:

(kissing feet) "Blessed be thy feet, that have brought thee in these ways";
(kissing knees) "Blessed be thy knees, that shall kneel at the sacred altar";
(kissing womb) "Blessed be thy womb, without which we would not be";
(kissing breasts) "Blessed be thy breasts, formed in beauty and in strength";
(kissing lips) "Blessed be thy lips, that shall speak the sacred names."

As you can see these blessings are ceremonial and religious in nature. This kiss
is given before ceremonial work in a full coven setting. This practise is most
prevalent in Garnderian and Alexandrian covens where you work sky clad.
However there is nothing to stop you using this while clothed if you had a willing
partner and wanted to experience it.

Many later craft workers have expanded this for their personal use, so it would
not be unusual to have a fivefold kiss that doesn’t follow this path but instead
concentrates on the upper body. The most common expansion is the sevenfold
kiss which is as follows.
(kissing feet) "Blessed be thy feet, that have brought thee in these ways";
(kissing knees) "Blessed be thy knees, that shall kneel at the sacred altar";
(kissing womb) "Blessed be thy womb, without which we would not be";
(kissing breasts) "Blessed be thy breasts, formed in beauty and in strength";
(kissing lips) "Blessed be thy lips, that shall speak the sacred names."
(kissing eyes) “blessed be thy eyes, that see the beauty of their love”
(kissing forehead) “blessed be thy mind, that seeks knowledge and wisdom”
This blessing has been changed for wiccans who practise sex magic. for those
witches the following blessing is often used instead.

Man to woman

A deep and loving kiss on the mouth, open or closed - “Blessed be Thy mouth
which speaks the sacred words of the Lord and Lady and words of love to me.”
A soft kiss between the breasts - “Blessed be Thy heart which holds the wisdom
of the gods.”
A tongue swirled around first one nipple and then the other - “Blessed be Thy
breasts, for they feed evolution.”
A lingering kiss at the level of her womb - “Blessed be Thy womb which brings
forth life and those who come after us.”
Tongue tastes of her vagina and swirls around her clitoris - “Blessed be Thy
passage of all womanhood as it pushes our children into the world. And blessed
be Thy mound of woman, for it brings forth the pleasure of the Goddess.”

Woman to man

A deep and loving kiss on the mouth, open or closed - “Blessed be Thy mouth
which speaks the sacred words of the Lord and Lady and words of love to me.”
A soft kiss in the center of his chest - “Blessed be Thy heart which holds the
wisdom of the gods.”
A kiss in each of his hands, center of the palm - “Blessed be Thy strong hands, a
warrior-poets only tools.”
A soft kiss to the tip of the penis (drawing it into the mouth is all a matter of
mood) - “Blessed be Thy manhood from which your seed is given.”
A kiss on each testicle, again to what extent is an individual choice - “Blessed be
these holders of evolution, for in them lies the code of humankind.”

Remember these are all blessings and it shows the inherent nature of the craft
and its interest in the sacredness and holiness with the parts to do with
procreation. It also shows the humans lustier, sexual side concentrating on
these parts. Together they come together to complete the perfect person,
happy in their sexuality but also respectful of their partner and the sexual act.

Scourging

Another fragment of Geralds book of shadows. Scourging is the act of lightly

whipping the back of initiates and witches alike. This light whipping is done for
several reasons dependent on the ritual being followed.

For example for the initiate, being lightly whipped during the initiation ceremony
is symbolic of the pain and toil of learning the craft. It is never meant for sexual
gratification, however this more than any other part of old time craft has been
used for sexual gratification of dodgy high priests.
Another reason this was a sacred practise in Gerald Gardners time is purely
magical. It is thought that by whipping the skin lightly, the blood flow would be
increased to the skin and the flow of magic would correspondingly flow easier.
This however is not the case unless you like being whipped in which case
magical energy would flow quicker due to heightened sexual impulses on the
whippee’s side.

The scourge itself is “a sign of power and domination. It is also to cause suffering
and purification, for it is written, to learn you must suffer and be purified” as the
original book of shadows puts it. The idea that you must suffer to be purified is
seen in religious texts and myths the world over. It is also an old idea from the
times of the lodges, both magical and freemasonic, that as you learn you will
suffer, if only because your eyes are made open to a different reality than
everyone else.

The actual scourge is a light whip with eight strands coming out from a handle.
It is remarkably reminiscent of those light whips you see in jokey documentaries
about dungeons and the sub dom culture.

Sky clad

No technique, ritual or aspect of the craft has caused as much consternation,

argument and general annoyance as the idea of being sky clad. To many people
it is seen as being freeing, liberating and a sacred part of their worship. To
others it is a scary, taboo idea that reminds them of the problems they have with
their own body image.

Sky clad is the term witches use for being naked while working. It doesn’t
matter if you are working alone or in a group, if you believe that you should be
sky clad then you will have to be, otherwise the flow of the work you are doing
will be greatly disturbed. The effect that the mind has on magical ceremonies
and spells is completely under estimated by the majority of witches today.

But why do this at all? Well if you are working solo then working naked can be
seen as an expression of your confidence, self assurance and simple joy in the
gift of your body. This however is not for everyone as body hang-ups are a major
cause of emotional turmoil in today’s world.

If you are working in a coven then having everyone working sky clad can be both
a blessing and a curse. For a start by working naked you are in effect
demystifying the human body. After seeing that naked body doing the most
ordinary of things all sexuality goes out of the window. There is nothing as un-
sexy as seeing a naked body just sitting watching TV. It is at that moment that
the body stops being a sexualised object and becomes a fully fledged person.
If you work in robes or basic coverings in a group then you will always have that
chance of seeing a slip of flesh that makes it intensely sexual. Especially if there
is someone in the group that you actually wouldn’t mind going to bed with!
Women have been using lingerie for years simply because they know the truth.
Covering up has always been sexier than a completely naked body.

Another reason people work sky clad in a coven is that once everyone is naked
and everyone reaches that point that they realise their fellow coveners are
normal everyday human beings you start to empathise. Instead of looking at a
good looking person and immediately wondering about their intelligence or
maybe looking at someone who is perhaps a little more ugly than normal and
thinking there a bad or dodgy person, you realise that everyone is the same. We
all love, hate, fear, laugh, cry and more importantly hope the same.

The reason given in the original book of shadows that it allows the flow of magic
to come quicker or easier is completely and utterly false. From experience I will
say that magic is as far as I am concerned a living force sometimes with its own
mind. I see it as a snake made of smoke that comes when called but sometimes
doing its own thing as well. Magic comes when called no matter what you are
wearing if you have the skills. I’ve seen someone scry into a pint of beer while
wearing jeans and a t-shirt. And conversely I’ve seen someone put out a candle
by asking for it while naked. Either way it just doesn’t matter.

So if you want to work naked and personally I do if the spell calls for it and other
times I don’t, then by all means try it out. If you think you could work in a coven
naked and want to go that way then try it out. Just be aware that for the first
five minutes, going naked in front of people for the first time is one of the most
excruciatingly embarrassing things you could possibly do unless you are a
complete and utter exhibitionist.

Exercise – if you have the chance spend 30 minutes in a space you feel
comfortable in and do everything you would normally do in that 30 minutes sky
clad. See how you feel at the start and at the end.

The third degree rite

Another thing about the craft that is quite often misunderstood is that of the
third degree rite. I am aware that different covens and traditions seem to have
different third degree rites so I am going to have by personal experience which
again may be different to what you read.

The basic premise of the rite is an initiation as a high priest or priestess into the
craft. This is more serious than just being a witch, since by becoming a high
priest or priestess you are expected to carry out anything that the goddess
sends you no matter what the personal cost. In this we are not much different to
the clergy of other more established faiths. We work for the goddess, they for
their god.
However to do this and as a sign that you are ready to take this measure and are
prepared to sacrifice your very life in necessary you do one very important step.
You marry the goddess or god. This is where the sexual aspect comes in as for a
marriage to be binding it must be consummated. For the goddess or god and
the land to flourish you must pour your very life into it. Your seed or in the case
of female witches your sexual organs, give life and therefore play an important
part in the ceremony.

If you wonder how anyone could give their life for the land look up the story of
the battle of Britain witch who gave his life up for the land. During the battle a
coven met and it was decided that someone would be sacrificed to help save the
land. The eldest member promptly stood up and went off naked to die alone in
the night in the hope that his sacrifice would help save the land he loved. I only
hope I have that level of courage if my time comes. But this is the step that you
must make if you love the goddess and go through the third degree.

The traditional way of doing it is to follow the ritual with the coven which will
include drawing down the moon or sun so that the priest or priestess is the living
representative of the divine. Then when the time comes the rest of the coven
leaves the room or place of work. The person to be initiated and the priest or
priestess then have sex to consummate the marriage between person and
divinity.

Soon after the ritual became the person to be initiated and the priest/ess would
just lie on top of each other. After that the idea of carrying out the ritual
symbolically became in vogue so instead of actual people you would just have
the athame stand in for the male and the cup stand in for the female with each
participant wielding one. This however is more of a ceremonial magician’s type
of gig to me. No matter what happens though you should be aware that the
point still stands. You are joining with the divine so it should be taken seriously.

I cannot stress enough that this is a step that should only be undertaken
seriously. There is no coming back from this step. Once you are a priest you are
a priest for life. you don’t look at things the same after this experience so only
take it if you are really sure of what you want.

Sexual Healing

Although this isn’t really part of the craft I have decided to put it here as the idea
of healing someone fits in nicely with my own view of the craft. When I talk
about sexual healing I am not talking about casting a healing spell since that
would be a sex magic operation. Instead I am talking about healing people who
have sexual problems through the medium of your body which can be the
highest form of empathy and an extremely important gift to give to someone.

Currently we are used to the idea that unless both parties want sex then it
shouldn’t happen and this is absolutely the right way to go. There is never any
reason to force someone, period. But what happens if you have a friend who
confides in you that they have a particular sexual problem? You may not want to
sleep with them but if done right it may heal them of their problem so what do
you do? This is of course a personal choice.

The idea of sleeping with someone to help them heal sexual or emotional
problems is relatively new, but has been taken to new heights with some careers
becoming sexual surrogates during sessions. These sexual surrogates get paid
for their work and have been known to sleep with clients to help them so are
they prostitutes and do they always want to sleep with their clients? The answer
to each question is no.

To heal someone this way you must be able to identify what their possible
problem is and be able to counteract it with the right emotion or experience. For
example if you know someone who is suffering from impotence dragging them
straight into a sexual experience would probably do more harm than good. If
however you approach them with the idea of relaxing them first, massage them,
take your time and make them feel completely safe. Then seduce them with the
right words to make them feel powerful and complete. And after the sexual acts
reassure them that they will be ok and what happened is between the both of
you and it was a onetime deal then you may just heal them of a problem that
could ruin their life for a large amount of time.

Of course I would never ever tell anyone to do this sort of healing. It is

something you can either do or not dependent on your mindset. But it does
show such an utter act of charity, empathy and love for the entire universe you
should at least respect the people who do it.

Exercise – jot down how often you have sex with someone when you don’t want
to. Then jot down the reason. Unfortunately as we are humans we are complex
and we do all occasionally have sex when we don’t really want to. Are your
reasons better than wanting to heal someone from a nasty emotional malady?
Does this make you change your mind on certain ideas about sleeping with
someone for money or other goods?

Things to remember

• Sex is not profane but something which at times can be a religious or holy
experience.
• Sex should not be channelled through a list of do not’s, but seen as an act
of responsibility, respectfulness and love.
• Your body is not ugly, you are not ugly, you are beautiful, desirable,
wanted and needed. Just because other people cannot see it does not
mean all people will not see it.
• Sex is a powerful magical and healing tool in the right hands, but must be
used carefully.
• Sex is a gift, not a right so don’t abuse it and don’t let it abuse you (unless
you like that sort of thing).
• A faith built upon a fertility religion like the craft has its sexual aspects.
Get used to it, be proud of it and move on from it.
• Strong female characters will be feared for a little while yet, sorry!