He casts the Circle The Weschcke Documents and what they may be able to tell us about the development

t of the Craft in the 1 !"s by Melissa Seims In August 1959, Gerald Gardner received a letter from Carl Weschc e, o!ner and C"# of the American occult $ublishing house, %le!ellyn& Carl, having read Gardner's boo s, had !ritten to as him if he had any no!ledge about a device called the (!itches cradle' !hich he had seen mentioned in William Seabroo 's boo Witchcraft, Its Power and Influence Today. )he (!itches cradle' !as a sus$ended (cage' that $ur$ortedly heightened $sychic sensitivity through the use of restraints, combined !ith a monotonous s!inging motion& Gardner re$lied that he had not come across such a contra$tion, or its use in the Craft, and !ent on to say (I have as ed many of the older !itches, and none of them had ever heard of it&' After a fe! more letters had been e*changed, Gardner referred Carl to several other $eo$le including Margaret +ruce and Charles Clar , for further discussion& Carl first !rote to Charles in 19,1, the beginning of an e*change that !as to last about -. years& In one letter from 19,/, Charles mentioned to Carl that he had (some co$ies of the late G& +& Gardner's 0ituals that he sent me 1Charles2 for o$inions from time to time', and !ondered if Carl !ould be interested in them& When Gardner had still been alive, Charles and he had discussed the $ublication of material and Gerald had agreed that this may hel$ $eo$le better understand the Craft, and !hat it !as about&1 Conse3uently, Charles $ac aged the $a$ers u$ and sent them to Carl in A$ril 19,9& "*tracts from them !ere $ublished in %le!ellyn's maga4ine Gnostica, but they really came to light !hen Aidan 5elly obtained $hotoco$ies and subse3uently !rote about them in his boo Crafting The Art of Magic, !here the term (Weschc e 6ocuments' !as first coined& )he (Weschc e 6ocuments' are a collection of $a$ers consisting of 7/ ty$ed $ages of (Gardnerian' ritual material, including all eight Sabbats, ()he #ld %a!s', three !ays of forming the circle, ()o Gain the Sight', ()he "ightfold Way', the three degrees, consecrations, various versions of )he Charge and Amalthean 8orn, as !ell as a co$y of ()he Witches Chant' 9!hich many no! no! as ()he Witches 0une':& Many of them also have hand!ritten amendments on them, in !hat a$$ears in most cases, to be Gerald Gardner's o!n hand!riting& )hose of you !ho have seen Gerald's !riting !ill no! !hat a (scra!ler' he !as, and ho! bad his s$elling a$$ears to have been& Aidan 5elly suggests that he !as marginally dysle*ic #$ ;hili$ 8eselton considers Gardner's $oor "nglish and $honetic !ay of s$elling, to be a conse3uence of his lac of formal education%, and 0onald 8utton has suggested that Gardner's (aberrant s$elling' !as an attem$t by him to ma e things loo more archaic &' I $ersonally, thin the latter is unli ely as Gardner dis$lays similar traits in his $ersonal corres$ondence& )hese ty$ed documents, !hilst obviously easier to read, also e*hibit similar $oor s$elling& A further (3uir ' of Gardner's 9in a time before te*t messaging: !as his $enchant for abbreviating !ords& <or e*am$le, he !ould sometimes $ut (!d' for (!ould' and (shd' in $lace of (should'& <urthermore, he had a $eculiar habit of using a ty$e!riters' small case (l' instead of correctly using a ca$ital (I'= in some instances he even uses a ca$ital (%' for (I', and it's not unusual to see a mi* of both in the same document& As !ith so many things Gardner>related, he !as never com$letely consistent in his lac adaisicalness, something that I thin is 3uite frustrating for Craft historians? #f the various documents, I thin one of the more interesting ones is entitled (All Are ;urified' 9a a (Ceremony for !or ing !ith others':!& )his is essentially a !ay of casting the circle that starts off !ith a con@uration of the s!ord& If !e loo at the follo!ing $assage, ta en from Gardner's 195A boo Witchcraft Today, I thin !e can see !here the slightly unusual title may hail fromB (When

dra!n, this circle is carefully $urified, as also are all !ho celebrate the rites& Witches attach great im$ortance to this, for !ithin the circle is the godsC domain&' ( With regards to !hat is being im$lied by the subheading (Ceremony for !or ing !ith others' there may be a clue in the crossed>out section !hich refers to (17 candles'& As 17 is the traditional number in a Coven, could the reference to !or ing !ith (others' mean !or ing !ith Covener's as o$$osed to !or ing alone, or !ith @ust a !or ing $artnerD In vie! of Gardner's earlier !or s 9!hich !e !ill come to shortly: !here the focus seems to have been more on individuals as o$$osed to Covens, this e*$lanation seems to be li ely& 8o!ever, @ust to discombobulate things further, and for the sa e of com$letion, I should also dra! attention to the fact that the crossed>out section bears a strong resemblance to the beginning of the Eule ritual, thus adding a further nebulous dimension to consider in any final understanding of this document& A%% A0" ;F0I<I"6) [N ! Bold lettering indicates G. .G.s handwritten additions" Magus concecrates Salt G Water , 8 ;s neels at Altar, ta es u$ s!ord &says HI con@ure thee # S!ord of Steel to serve me as a defence in all Magical #$erationsGuard me at alltimes against mine enemies ,both visa ble G invisible, Grant thatI may obtain !hat I desire inall things !herin I may use )hee ,!herefore do I bless )hee G Invo e thee in the Iames of JGJ Gives S!ord to Magus , !ho * neeling* hands her vessel of Salt Conscrated Water GAs$ergulas, 8e Casts the Circle, )hree circles & She follo!s & As$erging Circle G all $resent + finely herself& returns vessel etc to Magus, !ho $laces them on Altar, or convinent $lace& + hands her ,word 8&;s !al s slo!ly round Circle saying& HI con@ure )hee # Circle of S$ace, bet!een the !orld of Men G that of the 6read %ords of the #F)"0 S;AC"S, )hat )8#F be cleansed ;urified G strengthend to contain )8A) ;#W"0 !hich !e so ernestly desireto raise !ithin thy bounds this night, Wherefore di I bless thee G intreet thee to aid me in the endevour in the names of J G J Hands ,word to -a.us /// Magus then summons the Mighty #nes as usual& 8&;s stands in front of Altar 9!hich may be $ushed bac for this: 8&;s assumes God KGoddessK ;ossition 9Arms Crossed&: Magus neeling in front of her, dra!s ;entical on her body !ith ; 8eaded Wand, Invo es, 96ra!ing do!n the Moon,: H I Invo e and +eseach )hee ,# Mighty M#)8"0 ofall life and fertility & +y seed and root, bystem and bud, by leaf and flo!er and fruit, +y %ife G %ove Ldo I invo )hee to decend into the body of thy servent and 8&;s J&& 9)he Moon having been dra!n do!n,I&"& %in established - and all Male #fficers give 5 S, All others bo!& Asembly form a semi circle at north of Altar, 9Wh shd be re$laced if it has been moved,: 8&;s in south, inserts $oint of S!ord or Athame in decorated bundle of 17 candles , saying I [This has #een crossed out #y hand and $%s ha&e #een ty'ed o&er it all" 8,;s in Goddess ;osition says 0rms Crossed I the Mother, 6ar some and 6ivine, Mine the Scourge and Mine the 5iss, )he <ive ;oint Star of %ove and +liss= 8ere I charge ye in this Sign, 9#$ens out 0rms to ;entacle $osition: +o! before my S$irite +right A$hridite Airanrod= 9All bo!:

%over of the 8orned God Mueen of Witchery G Iight I thin that the usage of the !ord (Magus' as o$$osed to (8;', use of the term (6read %ords of the #uter S$aces', the inclusion of the con@uration of the s!ord, and the circle being cast three times, are interesting (mar ers'& Identical terminology, and similar $ractices can be found in Gardner's 19A9 !or of fiction (igh Magics Aid, as !ell as in )e o* of )e Art Magical + a a AM,, !hich is thought to be the oldest, e*tant (Gardnerian' (+oo #f Shado!s&' )e o* is currently in the $ossession of 0ichard and )amarra Names of the (Wiccan Church of Canada' and is generally thought to have been com$iled and !ritten by Gardner, during the 19A.'s& In this case, Gardner's hand!riting is actually 3uite legible and dis$lays a calligra$hic style !hich he a$$ears to have reserved for his magical !ritings& )e o* contains several sections !hich are readily identifiable as being ty$ical of +#S material, as !ell as a $astiche of rituals and notes on Ceremonial Magic& <or e*am$le, there are $ages of sigils ta en from )he 5ey #f Soloman 9S&%& (MacGregor' Mathers' translation:, $lus $assages ta en from the !or s of Aleister Cro!ley, and the 0ites of <reemasonry, to name but a fe!& Similarly, (igh Magics Aid is also a mi* of recognisably (Gardnerian' material !ith a generous hel$ing of (high magic'& In )e o* the !ord (Magus' is often used to indicate the male role& 8o!ever, roughly a decade later in Gardner's magical !ritings of the 195.'s, this term a$$ears to have been generally su$erseded by the term (8;'& )his later material also ty$ically has the circle being cast only once, not three times, and then as$erged and censed& Additionally, the $hrase (6read %ords of the #uter S$aces' can be found (hidden' in $lain sight 9another idiosyncrasy of Gardner's: in (igh Magics Aid1B (+lindfold and hel$less he stood in the )riangle, outside, and cut off from the ;rotecting Circle, medium bet!een the $leasant !orld of man and the 6read %ords of the #uter S$aces&' %ater circle con@urations more commonly have the $hrase (J0ealms of the Mighty #nes' instead& <urther e*am$les of this change can be seen in 6oreen Oaliente's first +oo of Shado!s 9no! in the $ossession of Nohn +elham>;ayne:, !hich she co$ied from one of Gardner's +#S's $resumably follo!ing her initiation in 1957& In there !e find a cou$le of instances of the $hrase (%ords of the #uter S$aces' being crossed>out, !ith the term (Mighty #nes' inserted over the to$& #ne !ould assume that these alterations !ere made at some later $oint, after her initial co$ying& )his is not to say that the term Mighty #nes !as not used $rior to the 195.'s because it !as, but its use a$$ears to have become more $referable& +y the late 5.'s, the con@uration of the s!ord is also something that is no longer $art of a ty$ical circle o$ening, although a similar $assage is usually given for the consecration of one& )his document made me !onder if, !hen Gardner mentions casting the circle !ith a (duly consecrated' s!ord or athame, he had $erha$s intended at one $oint for this consecration to be done every time& Certainly this !ould be understandable in vie! of his love for s!ords and !ea$onry& #verall, it seems to me that the use of certain terminology, the con@uration of the s!ord, and the thrice cast circle, is more in ee$ing !ith the style of Gardner's earliest e*tant $enned !or s& 6ue to these similarities, I therefore consider the (All Are ;urified' document to be one of the earliest $a$ers in the Weschc e collection& 8o!ever, the fact that it ends !ith the 3uatrain verse version of ()he Charge', !ritten by 6oreen Oaliente, indicates that it has to be $ost 1957 after 6oreen had been brought in& Charles himself !as initiated about a year later and so I thin the date of this document is $robably contem$orary !ith that& (All Are ;urified' is interesting not only for the te*tual dating clues that it gives us, but also because it sho!s more of an e3uality, if not an actual bias, to!ards the Magus, instead of the 8igh ;riestess& It is he !ho first (casts the circle' and he !ho a$$ears solely res$onsible for the consecration of the salt and !ater, and summoning the Mighty #nes& Interestingly enough, the first degree initiation ritual that is given in )e o* a$$ears to have a Magus initiating a (;riest and Witch'& 8o!ever, the

co$y of this ritual that Gardner ty$ed u$ several years later 9almost certainly from )e o*: to give to 6oreen Oaliente, has been amended so that the Magus is no! initiating a ;riestess and Witch&1" #n reflection, I thin that the (All Are ;urified' document can also tell us something about the develo$ment of the Craft, and its material, and could re$resent a transition $oint from Gardner's earlier, more male>orientated !ritings !hich included a lot of Ceremonial Magic, to the more 8igh ;riestess orientated Covens that seemed to come out of the 19,.'s& I am not sure !hat may have brought about this shift, but I !ould !ager that the ever diligent 6oreen Oaliente could have had something to do !ith it, es$ecially as she had, !ith Gardner's $ermission, already set about re!riting $arts of the first +#S that he had given her, in order to disguise traces of the Cro!ley material in it&11 It could also have been sym$tomatic of the general shift in cultural ideology !hich seemed to be moving a!ay from the restrictiveness of World War )!o, to the liberation that e$itomi4ed the 19,.'s& If this $articular document had managed to find its !ay into more +oo s of Shado!s, our Craft may have ended u$ !ith a slightly different (feel' to it& It could $erha$s have been more common to see 8igh ;riest's consecrating the salt and !ater, and summoning the Mighty #nes (as usual&' Instead, there are at times, lengthy debates on sub@ects such as this& My o!n conversations !ith Charles Clar gave me the im$ression that things !ere much more egalitarian in the 195.'s, and the Wica of that time felt free to ad@ust the rituals to better suit the $eo$le in the Coven, using the rites as a basic frame!or and (s$ringboard'& A conce$t that is echoed in <red %amondCs boo -ifty )ears of Wicca, !here he 3uotes Gardner as saying (Jas you gain e*$erience discard those s$ells that don't !or for you and substitute those that you have thought of yourselves&1# If !e no! turn to loo at the eight Sabbats that are included in the (Weschc e 6ocuments', !e see the seemingly (later' term (8;' consistently used instead of (Magus'& <urthermore, the similarity of all the Sabbat documents, strongly suggests that they !ere all ty$ed u$ at the same time& <red %amond tells us in his aforementioned boo , (!e 1the +ric et Wood Coven2 li ed our feasts, so after Gerald's return to the Isle of Man in the s$ring of 195/ !e decided to celebrate both the cross> 3uarter days and the solstices and e3uino*es !ith feasts&' 1% With all this in mind, it !ould seem li ely that the Sabbats from the Weschc e 6ocuments !ere !ritten at some $oint shortly after this date& What I en@oy about researching and com$aring these original !ritings of Gerald Gardner is the insight that they can sho! us into the thoughts and mind of old Gerald himself& I don't believe that you can loo at these things in isolation, and I thin it is im$erative to vie! them as $art of a much !ider $u44le that included not only Gardner's life and u$bringing, but also the $olitical and social climate of the time& )hese things, along !ith the fragmentary rituals and teachings that are thought to have come to him from the Ie! <orest Coven, !ould have affected the !ay Gerald, and others, !rote these rituals and develo$ed our $ractices& In turn, this has all contributed to the gro!ing s$iritual movement that the Craft has become today& <ootnotes 1B In a letter to me, from Charles he !ritesB HI remember Carl Weschc e said he !ould !rite about those
$a$ers given him 1the (Weschc e 6ocuments'2, G+ 1Gerald Gardner2 agreed !ith me it !ould hel$ a lot&' -B Aidan 5elly, Crafting the Art of Magic 9%le!ellyn 1991B ;age *v: 7B ;hili$ 8eselton Gerald Gardner and the Cauldron of Ins'iration 9Ca$all +ann -..7B ;age -/1: AB 0onald 8utton& The Triu%'h of The Moon 9#*ford 1999B ;age --P: 5B )he subheading (Ceremony for !or ing !ith others' a$$ears in the +#S of Charles Clar , and is not given on the actual document itself& ,B Gerald Gardner Witchcraft Today 9Arro! +oo s 19P.B ;age -/: PB )ranscri$tion of the original document !ith s$elling, grammar and line structure as !ritten on the original&

/B Gerald Gardner (igh Magics Aid 9;entacle "nter$rises 1997B ;age 7: 9B Gerald Gardner )e o* of ye Art Magicial ;age 9, 1.B 6oreen Oaliente The .e#irth of Witchcraft 9;hoeni* 19/9B Illustration 1-: 11B 6oreen Oaliente, The .e#irth of Witchcraft 9;hoeni* 19/9B ;age ,1>,-: 1-B <rederic %amond, -ifty )ears of Wicca 9Green Magic -..AB ;age 1A: 17B <rederic %amond, -ifty )ears of Wicca 9Green Magic -..AB ;age -.: Many than s to t!o (Messengers of the Gods', namely ;aul Greenslade and ;hili$ 8eselton for their hel$ful comments and suggestions&