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There's a new article Witch (magic) I found at WP:UNCAT. It seems that article should be deleted as it overlaps with this one. Concur? MatthewVanitas ( talk) 04:23, 25 September 2009 (UTC)
Is there any reason why most of the articles on Wikipedia have such little referance to religion and there effects on the topic? It is mentioned i think once in detail in this article and that is only brefly when some religons have had pretty large effects on this topic. Is there any reason for this and if so what?-- William.stowers ( talk) 13:12, 30 October 2009 (UTC)
That's because witchcraft doesn't necessarily have much to do with religion. It's a practice, not a faith in and of itself. Stregamama ( talk) 14:57, 15 March 2011 (UTC)
This site: [ Saudi] talks about a person sent to death for witchcraft in Saudi Arabia. Agre22 ( talk) 12:51, 26 November 2009 (UTC)agre22
"Witchcraft, in various historical, anthropological, religious and mythological contexts, is the use of certain kinds of supernatural or magical powers in order to inflict harm or damage upon members of a community or their property. "
This is incorrect and violates NPOV. Historically, witchcraft has been used for many purposes among which "inflicting harm or damage" is only one. I propose this instead:
"Witchcraft, in various historical, anthropological, religious and mythological contexts, is the use of various magical techniques and practices to attain desired results."
What do you think?? 70.112.71.2 ( talk) 18:14, 26 February 2009 (UTC)
Later... I decided the whole first paragraph needs revision. How about this:
Witchcraft, in various historical, anthropological, religious and mythological contexts, is the use of certain magical techniques and practices to attain desired results. In many societies a distinction is drawn between good witchcraft and bad witchcraft. The former is used to heal, while the latter is employed to inflict harm. A witch (from Old English wicce f. / wicca m.) is a practitioner of witchcraft. 70.112.71.2 ( talk) 22:16, 26 February 2009 (UTC)
I don't think you guys get NPOV at all. The claim "Historically, witchcraft has been used for many purposes among which "inflicting harm or damage" is only one." is more POV-pushing than the original. Witchcraft historically, religiously, anthropologically, etc. has overwhelmingly meant inflicting harm. The ONLY side saying otherwise is modern people who self-identify as witches, and their POV should not be pushed onto the article. Their view can be mentioned, and indeed it is, but it does not get to be treated as if it were the primary or even an equal definition. This is not Wiccapedia.
And, seriously folks, an anon user and some newbies suddenly showing up to try to overrule longstanding consensus both on this article and in academics is not how things work here. If you want to change it, you will need clear consensus following Wikipedia policies. You can't just insist that the term historically was used for good and bad, you'd need reliable sources not only to show that anyone thinks that but that enough academics think that to overrule the strong consensus of experts who say otherwise. Get real sources from trustworthy academics on the topic, not just your own personal opinion, and post them here so we can look at them and see what you have. DreamGuy ( talk) 00:26, 1 March 2009 (UTC)
I think the article should draw on major scholarly sources. These would include Lucy Maier's Witchcraft and 'Evans Pritchard's Witchcraft, Magid, and Oracls among the Azande. They describe witchcraft as involving harm, not healing. In the Americas, a distinction is often made between shamanism (which is good) and sorcery (which is bad) but Spanish-speakers distinguish between good and bad witchcraft i.e. there is a healing witchcraft. From this I conclude that most forms of witchcraft are harmful, but in many cses it may be helpful. I think it is reasonable to have a first sentence that emphasizes the mainstream, and then cover the nuances in the remainter of the first paragraph. I am vehemently opposed to any view that jusges the NPOV compliance of this article based solely on one sentence. The article has to be judged as a whole, and the introduction schould introduce the article as a whole. I expect the first paragraph to provide all major points of view; to expect this of one sentence will lead to an overwrought and distorting sentences. Slrubenstein | Talk 06:37, 1 March 2009 (UTC)
--I couldn't wade through this whole discussion, I don't have the patience or attention span for that; but I do agree with this: :: And, while I appreciate Mdwh's contribution to distinguish between bad and good witchcraft, it still implies that "good" witchcraft is only used when trying to counter the real, "bad" witchcraft that has already affected someone. Witchcraft should be a neutral term. Aaatkins 27 February 2009 There are many other purposes for good witchcraft that do not involve a need to counteract harmful witchcraft. A few examples: and no, these don't aply to only Wiccans: Blessings, Communicating with the Divine, Healing, Rites of Passage, etc. None of these involve a direct relationship countering an "evil magic." Wolfpeaceful ( talk) 19:33, 15 August 2009 (UTC)
Daoism may be any of the following;
1) A school of philosophy, strictly philosophy, as a means for understanding spiritual matters and for a different perception of the world.
2) It can be religious, and employ the worship of various gods through the use of idols.
3) It is also known for sorcery; the idea of the 5 elements, earth, fire, water, metal and wood, and their manipulation, are as old as China itself in fact even older. Ultimately all witchcraft regardless of region, originated from Shamanism. The branch of Daoism that deals with sorcery, in fact has its origins in Chinese shamanism before "China's ascent from the darkness" ("darkness" e.g. ignorance). One of the errors made regarding Daoism, is how it is seen as a single system, when in fact, different branches of it can be as different from each other, as night and day. For example, even though Daoist philosophy urges simplicity, Daoist sorcery, involves heavy ritualization, the humming of various sounds through the practice of Chi Kung, etc. In other words an accusation may be thrown as mystical Daoism, as not being TRUE Daoist philosophy because of the heavy ritualization that makes it far from simple. Not a personal opinion, just an illustration.
However, because there are branches of Daoism that deal with mysticism, they are worth a mention. Additionally, even withing "magical" Daoism there are different beliefs. For example, as with "traditional" witchcraft, there is the use of familiars. However, some forms of mystical oriented Daoism worship Shangdi ("the one true God") and hold the claim that all comes from Shangdi. Now, mind, worship of Shangdi does not imply, it is an Abrahamic faith; the rites, rituals and prayers are totally different. Moreover, because the worship of Shangdi in China has always been influenced by Daoism, it is nowhere near as dogmatic, as merciless, towards "heressy." In fact, most Chinese religions have no concept of "heressy."
I am starting to soapbox here, so I'll stop typing; please look into Daoist magical practices and consider expanding the article.
67.148.120.102 ( talk) 01:45, 26 May 2009 (UTC)stardingo747
The article currently fails to address the very significant differences between the English experience of witchcraft and the wider European one, and the role that religious strife between Protestants and Catholics in the late 16th and early 17th century played, as the case of the Samlesbury witches demonstrates. Except for the brief career of Matthew Hopkins in East Anglia, there were none of the witchhunts so common in continental Europe, and some English counties like Cheshire had rather few witch trials, and only about 11 executions for witchcraft in total IIRC. Protestants in England did not share all the same views as their counterparts in continental Europe, being somewhat influenced by the views of King James I. -- Malleus Fatuorum 02:38, 28 July 2009 (UTC)
This is taken from a book Memoirs of the protectoral-house of Cromwell: deduced from an ..., Volume 1, by Mark Noble, pp. 24–26 published in 1787 so now in the public domain which I am using to write an article about Sir Henry Williams (alias Cromwell), the grandfather of Oliver Cromwell, who's second wife Lady Weeks, died from a long illness, for which a family of three were found guilty of witchcraft and executed. The section in Mark Nobles book about this issue, how it affected the people of Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, and in the footnote what the judge in the last witch trial in England asked a witness for the prosecution, to show the silliness of it all, is too long to be in the article on Sir William but some of it may be of use either in this article or in another article linked to this one:
As this lady [Weeks the second wife of Oliver Cromwell's grandfather] died of a lingering illness, the popular error of the times attributed it to witchcraft; such an idea would now be laughed at, by any but the lowest of the people; but at that time it was of the most serious consequence, as a poor, inoffensive family fell victims to the folly and cruelty of the age. John Samwell, Alice his wife, and Ann their daughter, then inhabitants of Warboys, were ridiculously supposed to be the authors of this lady's death, and were committed to prison. The mother (who seems by age to have been weak and decrepit) was so teized and tortured in prison, and kept constantly without sleep, that her faculties (much impaired before) became now entirely lost, and at length she confessed any the most strange fooleries, that the malice and folly of her enemies could devise; in consequence of which they were all, in defiance of common sense, tried before mr. justice Fenner, 4 April 1593, and convicted of the fact, of not only being the cause of the death of lady Cromwell, but also of bewitching five of Mr. Throgmorton's children, and seven of his servants, the gaoler's man, &c. No mercy, we may readily imagine, would be shown to these unbefriended victims, when even majesty degraded itself by writing the most idle nonsense (some years after this) to prove, not only that there were witches, but recommending certain means to be used as infallible ways to discover them; [1] they were therefore all three publicly murdered, suffering amidst the acclamations of a barbarous and rude populace, who rejoiced that they themselves were relieved from (as they supposed) dangerous neighbours. It was found upon their conviction, that their goods, which amounted in value to £40 were forfeited to Sir Henry as lord of the manor of Warboys; but, he unwilling to posses himself of the supposed felons goods, gave them to the corporation conditionally, that they procured from Queen's college in Cambridge, a doctor, or bachelor of divinity to preach every day of the annunciation of the Second lady of blessed Virgin, a sermon against: the sin of witchcraft in one of the churches in Huntingdon. [2]
I have dwelt longer upon this subject, as it serves not only to prove that Lady Cromwell was supposed to die by witchcraft, but also, that it sufficiently shows that the credulity of the age was such, that even the greatest (if not the wisest) men in the kingdom, acquiesced in the infatuation that then prevailed, and were, as occasion served, subject to the loss of their reputations and lives, when it suited the dark purposes of any malicious enemy to charge them with sorcery, a crime they could not, if they would, commit. [3]
- ^ Noble, 25. States "I remember to have read (I forget where) that King James I the english Solomon, repented that he had written his treatise concerning witchcraft; a poor satisfaction for the very many lives lost during his reign,especially in Scotland!"
- ^ Noble p 26. Stated "It is with real concern that I acquaint the reader, that there is still an annual sermon prached against witchcraft in Huntingdon, by a divine sent from Queen's college, Cambridge; for which he receives £2 but is obliged to distribute 10 shil. to the poor; and by custom, to treat part of the corporation with a dinner. This is the more extraordinary, as an act of Parliament has repealed all the penal statutes against this supposed crime of witchcraft, which is tacitly declaring that there are no such beings as witches, nor crime as witchcraft. It would be, therefore, highly commendable in the corporation of Huntingdon, and Queen's college, in Cambridge, to agree, that if a sermon must be preached, the subject of it should, instead of being levelled against the pretended sin of witchcraft, be an address to the people, cautioning them against falling into such errors and prejudices, as made their forefathers involve the unhappy and immeasurably injured Samwels in ruin and destruction. In the last trial for witchcraft in England, the judge asked a clergyman, who had the folly to appear against the supposed witch, whether he really from his heart thought the poor old creature guilty of the crime of which she was accused; and he answering in the affirmative; the humane magistrate replied, pointing to the prisoner, it is not such a poor wrinkled wretch as this that I should take for a witch; but such beautiful ladies as these, bowing to some very handsome females, who were near him."
- ^ Noble, 26. States History affords several instances of the greatest ladies being accused of witchcraft; even royalty itself did not escape. The lady of marshal de Ancré having been condemned as guilty of this crime against the queen dowager 'Mary de Medici, the relict of great Henry IV of France, whom the governed in the most despotic manner said when going to execution, instead of confessing herself guilty of witchcraft "she had that asendancy over her, which great minds must always have over little ones."
-- PBS ( talk) 16:21, 28 August 2009 (UTC)
That's a little cruel, especially since the quote does indeed mention "the last trial for witchcraft in England" (look in the footnote). The witchcraft laws were amended significantly at a certain point so that people were no longer tried as 'witches' but as people who pretended witchcraft (con-artists, essentially). The last trial as a 'witch' may be what this passage refers to, and if so it may contain something of relevance to the European witchcraft article. Fuzzypeg ★ 04:31, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
This article says that "warlock" was not used for male witches, but the Warlock article says otherwise. This article also lacks citations for the assertion, whereas Warlock has a citation. edit: Looking over it again, I would suggest that the entire Terminology section be either removed or substantially enhanced. It currently serves no purpose. 69.251.39.23 ( talk) 00:17, 14 November 2009 (UTC)
Well, 'warlock' was a term for (male) witches in Scotland. I can't see anything in this article that says it wasn't, so presumably the problem has been fixed. Fuzzypeg ★ 04:40, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
Hi. A larger discussion of this is occuring on the Wicca talk page, near but not at the bottom. I had linked Sex magic and the Great Rite to the See also list on this page, as neither topics are discussed within the article. The links were removed. Can we put them back, and if not, why not? And, as I've asked at the Wicca talk page, if anyone has an interest in creating a major section for Wicca and Witchcraft on the Sex Magic page, please consider doing so. More at Wicca, and thanks, Aleister Wilson ( talk) 16:40, 12 December 2009 (UTC)
look, I KNOW this isnt a forum n all, but did witchcraft stem or did it not from christainity, or at least its beliefs? if so, could u add to article? thanks! ^_^ Celestialwarden11 ( talk) 20:05, 28 January 2010 (UTC)
it did NOT come from christainity it was around BEFORE christainity or at lest its mother religion paganism was. besides how on earth did you figure that? did you not hear about them burning acused witches (most of which probebly were not witches as a witch would have to be wrong in the head to go within 50 miles of one of those places, it is next to impossible to get me out of the car near a church.)the religion you might be thinking of is satinism which is in no way connected to witchcraft. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.217.87.224 ( talk) 19:25, 20 June 2010 (UTC)
As a practicing Pagan and Witch I am here to say that I am offended by the information found in this article about Witchcraft. If I were to correct the errors here I would have to re-write the whole page. The one who had written this article obviously has not taken the time to much unbiased research. If you would like to know more about witchcraft please look up info on the subject elsewhere. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.177.235.8 ( talk) 03:16, 1 March 2010 (UTC)
hey ian i agree with whoever was behind the the origanal commet it is extreamly offensive to actual witches and there are so many incorrect things on there that i get overwelmed just thinking about trying to fix it —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.217.87.224 ( talk) 19:30, 20 June 2010 (UTC)
Please explain to me how a belief about an idea and the idea itself can be the same.
The existing content has now been reverted four times (thrice by Malleus Fatuorum), apparently without anyone bothering to read the source, thus making the NSF label 10 ideas themselves as pseudoscientific beliefs, when not all of them are beliefs. The NSF is referring to those who believe in them, and not to the ideas themselves. As an aid to understanding the source, I'll reproduce the exact quote from the source, right after introducing it:
Note they are referring to "pseudoscientific belief[s]" in the first sentence, and then they mention the ideas, which if believed by someone, make that individual one who holds "pseudoscientific belief[s]". It's a matter of grammar and meaning. That's why the inclusion of "belief in" is necessary for the sentence structure. In this source they aren't calling the ten ideas pseudoscience, but are referring to the beliefs. In other sources one can easily find such items labelled as pseudoscience, but not here. -- Brangifer ( talk) 05:50, 10 March 2010 (UTC)
I have removed the entire passage since it is a crass misrepresentation. In the 2006 (only!) version of a longish document on science and education that the NSF publishes every 2 years, a short section talks about ignorance of the public about science. In this context they traditionally talk about "pseudoscience". The document defines pseudoscience correctly as something that pretends to be science but isn't. In the following paragraph it talks about belief in pseudoscience, but uses a Gallup poll about belief in paranormal. By assembling a sentence from the main text with a footnote one can synthesise a statement that all the 10 paranormal-proxies used by Gallup are actually pseudoscience. (BullRangifer would insist on adding "belief in" everywhere, but this is not the point.) This is obviously not what the author intended to say, as it contradicts the previous paragraph: Ghosts, reincarnation and witches do not normally have anything to do with pretending to do science. There are connections to pseudoscience, but they are not really pseudoscience. This appears to be the only remotely reliable thing anywhere that claims ghosts and witches to be pseudoscience, so it's not at all appropriate to use this casual "claim" as a source. Let alone to claim that here "the NSF" is speaking, and expressing "scientific consensus", no less.
The entire document is simply not useful for this article, except for supporting that Gallup considers witches paranormal, in case that's of any use. So I have removed it. I will also remove the absurd box above that claims that this article has something to do with the pseudoscience Arbcom case. BullRangifer is obsessed with pseudoscience and simply wants everything he doesn't like to be pseudoscience and fall under that case. It's obviously not supported in the case of this article. Hans Adler 00:40, 17 March 2010 (UTC)
Chan Xiao Ting is the first recorded accused witch? What source? I can't find one that matches and it doesn't seem to have a source or fit the article where it is placed. Please fix.-- Hitsuji Kinno ( talk) 03:35, 29 April 2010 (UTC)
I'm embarrassed to say I probably introduced this wrong terminology myself (see my older posts on this page). Historiography is the study of historians and their approaches to history (a kind of meta-history), rather than the study of history itself. That means one heading in the article changes. Fuzzypeg ★ 01:20, 26 July 2010 (UTC)
Where belief in malicious magic practices exists, such practitioners are typically forbidden by law as well as hated and feared by the general populace, while beneficial magic is tolerated or even accepted wholesale by the people – even if the orthodox establishment objects to it.
This seems like made up crap to me. First of all, there are places where witchcraft are forbidden, but it is done by social rather than by formal means. It's not like a formal law of "thou shalt not". Should I pull up the Kaluli or the Azande? Or should I pull up other places that don't have formal laws...? I don't get it...
Also, I think the article could benefit a little bit from defining witchcraft v. sorcery in anthropology which may quiet the upset wiccans a little bit. And also separate the academic thoughts of witchcraft from what wiccans think of witchcraft v. the purely historical European version of witchcraft. I can easily pull up sources for that starting with Magic, Witchcraft and Religion which has a variety of papers, including ones on Wiccans. Even if it's not put in, I still have to say that "Wicca" is actually in anthropology thought to be "sorcery" not "witchcraft"-- Hitsuji Kinno ( talk) 18:38, 17 August 2010 (UTC)
The BBC programme In Our Time presented by Melvyn Bragg has an episode which may be about this subject (if not moving this note to the appropriate talk page earns cookies). You can add it to "External links" by pasting * {{In Our Time|Witchcraft|p004y2b0}}. Rich Farmbrough, 03:23, 16 September 2010 (UTC).
T.M. Luhrmann, The Goat and the Gazelle: Witchcraft from Magic, Witchcraft and Religion. (College textbook) I'm adding this to the article. The first is about Wicca (which is more sorcery than witchcraft for Anthro POV and the article discusses this (things like you need to *learn wicca* which is not witchcraft, that's considered inherent).
It's worth noting that the witch doesn't have to be a physical manifestation (as in *that person over there*) for a witch to "exist."
Kaluli culture, for example. All death is a work of a witch, but you don't know who it is.
Source: http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/anthro/faculty/fiske/135b/kaluli.htm
That's UCLA... and they have a large Anthro department. (Written by one of their department). That would be a reliable source.
Azande--I found this article: EE Evans Pritchard, Witchcraft, Oracles and Magic amoung the Azande 69-70 (1937).
The summary is that the witch doesn't have to be a physical manifestation, as it was in Western European tradition, but that if the grain silo tipped over on someone it was considered witchcraft--only they didn't know who it was. In another words, an "accidental" witch. It goes on further about how the grain silo was often infested with termites. The Azande knew that. They also knew people often took refuge from the sun under them. It wasn't the work of a witch when it didn't fall over on someone. It was only the work of witches when it killed someone. In another words the "magic" served to explain why bad things happen.
Two additional sources worth looking at: http://www.unicef.org/wcaro/wcaro_children-accused-of-witchcraft-in-Africa.pdf Children accused of witchcraft in Africa. Tribes are specified.
http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/samples/cam034/2003043949.pdf A world look at Witchcraft and an extensive discussion on the definition of it in Britain. (i.e. that Pritchard is a functionalist.) From a University Press, so reliable source?
Does anyone have objections to these sources?-- Hitsuji Kinno ( talk) 23:36, 10 December 2010 (UTC)
"Africans have a wide range of views of traditional religions." But there isn't a similar comment for Europeans. Couldn't this be phrased so it doesn't make Africa to be an enormous country? Rather it's made up of a lot of tribes. I find the comment ridiculous. It's like saying Native Americans don't have one religion. Of course not. Be specific. It does more honor to those tribes. -- Hitsuji Kinno ( talk) 00:36, 11 December 2010 (UTC)
I've removed the following sentence from the article. It cites the Encyclopaedia Britannica 11th edn.:
Yes, the same kind of blood libel was used, as with Bacchics, Christians, Jews, Lepers and Muslims before them, and of course witches. But the theory that this may have "been the beginning of the great European witch-hunt" is pretty outdated. Encyc. Britt. 11th edn was published a long time ago. Fuzzypeg ★ 00:01, 9 April 2011 (UTC)
I removed the following sentence from the article:
The relevance to witchcraft is not explained, and is not clear to me, unless we are going to treat every magical religion as witchcraft. People who are interested in knowing more about the various branches of Neopaganism can go to the Neopaganism article. Fuzzypeg ★ 00:15, 9 April 2011 (UTC)
I've removed the following WP:ESSAY from the article:
If anyone can find anything useful that's not already elsewhere in the article, feel free to try to work it into the article. I can't see anything of value, myself. My main problem with all this is that it claims there was a hard distinction between cunning folk / healers / diviners on the one hand, and witches on the other. There was no such hard division. Many cunning folk were quite willing to curse, and many cunning folk (and their counterparts in other countries) ended up being accused of witchcraft. This is stated and cited elsewhere in the article, so I won't bother giving citations here. The essay continues to talk about the 'confusion' that the mix-up of witches and cunning-folk has caused, and it separates charmers, cunning men/women and diviners, as though they were three separate occupations; they are, in most cases, all the same thing. Fuzzypeg ★ 11:14, 12 April 2011 (UTC)
There was a load of old waffle at the end of the article posturing itself under the title Atheisim. As someone felt that I was deleting something of some import I've reinstated it. However as the references are so non-specific as to be almost completely meaningless, I've rewritten in an equally significant manner just to show what a load of old tosh it is. Mighty Antar ( talk) 18:20, 1 June 2011 (UTC)
I agree Mighty, what the current sections named after religions address, is how the subject of witchcraft is/was treated by those religions. How witches address Atheism doesn't really follow. Atheism is a philosophy, not a religion per se, and taken as a participate in theological discourse, Atheism is at a unique disadvantage. I think that warrants a measure of extra care in circumstances like this. I'm not convinced this article needs to indulge speculation about Atheist magical praxis.
Regarding the cites, whitemagic.com fails WP:RS if anything does. The quote:
Weiser Field Guide to Witches [3] Non-Wiccan Witches, ( p.30), was chosen in lieu of Atheist Witches, ( p.21), to further contradict Buckland's use of Witch and Wicca as synonymous.
The term was invented in response to the now-common assumption that all modern witches are Wiccan. Non-Wiccan witches may belong to any tradition other than modern Wicca... [or] to any spiritual or religious tradition or none—agnostic or atheist witches are typically considered non-Wiccan.
— Judika Illes, The Weiser Field Guide Series, "Non-Wiccan Witches", p.30
Fnord Galaxy: Hope it helps clarify the (non-symbiotic) meaning for "Non-Wiccan Witches" who don't necessarily / necessarily don't hold to Wiccan Duotheism proper. I can certainly see why Atheism would prefer to opt-out.
As atheists, these witches do not acknowledge a Supreme Creator or the Wiccan conception of a Lord and Lady; but work their magic using Earth's natural powers and energies. Some may work with elemental spirit such as land spirits or fairies.
— Judika Illes, The Weiser Field Guide Series, "Atheist Witches", p.21
I'm reminded of Scientific Pantheism/ Naturalistic Pantheism. [4] They wag a finger at the magic, spirits, fairies... Actually, all of the above except Earth and nature, symbiosis but they admire the ritual savvy.
References
There is nothing on whether or not there were real witches during the witchcraze and and the middle ages. Aside from the so-called "witchdoctors" in Scotland, there doesn't seem to be any evidence of them being any more than a myth. Ericl ( talk) 19:54, 5 October 2011 (UTC)
Djambe redirects here, but it's not present in the article. Djambe is the witchcraft-creature that lives inside people, belonging to the Maka in Cameroon. We are learning about it in class (From the Modernity of Witchcraft ethnography. Does it belong somewhere in the article? Semitones ( talk) 02:14, 15 November 2011 (UTC)
The section about japanese witchcraft says that the two types of familiars used by japanese witches, supposedly, are foxes and snakes. However, the image immediately to the right talks about a 'cat witch'. This is not coherent! If there is such a thing as a cat witch in japanese folklore or in modern witchcraft practice, we should be able to find sources and be able to include information about it. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.208.126.137 ( talk) 03:21, 27 January 2012 (UTC)
If I'm not mistaken I believe Japanese artist Sadahide did a drawing (ca 1860) of a suppose "cat witch" (Station Okazaki. The actor Onoe Kikugoro as a cat-witch). There was also a wood block print that was sold by Kuniyoshi (1797 - 1861) titled "The Cat Witch", Okabe. Maybe these are the sources??? (btw I'm just throwing things out here to see if I can help) There is in Japanese mythology of a "Bakeneko"- a shape shifting cat. I dont know what it supposibly shape shifts into or if it has any relationships with a cat-witch. There is also a "Kasha"- a cat like demone who carries off corpses into the sky. My guess is good as yours. I hope it may lead to a more reliable source. Henry123ifa ( talk) 21:06, 1 April 2012 (UTC)
I've just reverted this edit which for the second time has tried to insert some irrelevant catehgories into the article. Both edits have come from IP editors so there may not be much chance of engaging in dialogue - but if you are reading this, please can we discuss those cats? If others see them being reinserted and agree with me, please revert also. Kim Dent-Brown (Talk) 20:13, 5 March 2012 (UTC)
I just created an article about Madumo, A Man Bewitched, which deals heavily with the idea of a man that has been cursed and has to seek the help of an inyanga. It's non-fiction, of course, but I thought it might help the section out some. I'll see if there's a way I can smoothly work it in, but I don't want to ruin the flow or anything. It's just that even with its flaws, it's still a fairly good book about witchcraft in Africa. Tokyogirl79 ( talk) 04:48, 21 March 2012 (UTC)
I removed the following for now:
It's a shoddy mess that doesn't really seem to know what its own purpose is. The first two references try to support a claim with sources that only trivially address the subject. (With one using 'agnostic or atheist witches are...' in a throw-away line and the other making a case for irreligious witchcraft being theoretically possible without spending any time on whether there actually are irreligious witches). I'm sure there probably are agnostic and atheistic witches, but the sources don't support this (additionally, agnosticism and atheism are not the same thing as irreligion).
The third source is a website that runs afoul of so many guidelines for sources that I don't rightly know where to begin...
And the rest of the section isn't really relevant to the first two sentences and really doesn't merit having its own section (in fact, it was probably added only in an attempt to justify a separate section for the first two sentences).
So yeah, removed for now until someone with more involvement in this page can trim the extraneous parts and merge the rest into other parts of the article as required. Robrecht ( talk) 01:59, 2 June 2012 (UTC)
You experts on Witchcraft's use of pharmakeia are needed to go to pharmakeia and expand on the historical examples of spell giving potions as well as examples of famous people being poisoned to death in history and what they were poisoned with. As well as the alchemical aspects of pharmakeia and the potions people in history would consume that was believed to have transforming properties. This article needs a lot of help. 2602:306:C518:62C0:7560:4718:4121:2E90 ( talk) 02:57, 19 July 2012 (UTC)
Hi, I am Saebou, mainly working in the Japanese Wikipedia. I hope some Wikipedians working in the English Wikipedia will split this article and create a new article titled 'Witch', for this English article on witchcraft is quite long and most of Wikipedias in other major languages separate 'Witch' from 'Witchcraft'. For example, the Japanese Wikipedia has an article ja:魔女, the French version fr:Sorcier, and the German version de:Hexe for 'Witch'. I wish I could do this myself, but I'm not an English native speaker. さえぼー ( talk) 13:07, 17 November 2012 (UTC)
After i read this article. I think this article has a vague description about history of witchcraft. Like when the word "witch" was first mentioned? Since when people started to think bad things about witch? Since when people started to think witch associated with devil? What was the original reasons for that? It wouldn't make any sense that suddenly people started to think "witch" is anti-Christianity. I think the article is missing a major info about witch. 65.128.159.236 ( talk) 02:27, 12 April 2012 (UTC)
- What absolute unscientific, unencyclopedic nonsense you spot, Glorious Goddess. Waerloga contains Celtic nothing, being a strictly Old English word. Ae is not a Celtic sound at all and appears in many languages and as Old English contained a real W it was not pronounced as a V at all.
And most of what you said is original research or plain Wiccan rubbish. We are an encyclopaedia, dedicated to facts, truths and logical reasoning, not fantasy stories cooked up in the Victorian era. The whole article here is in need of a major clean-up to make it perfectly clear that witches NEVER existed and do not exist now, save in the mind of paranoid Christians of the past and deluded people who want to seem powerful, mystical and magical by following a belief system that is not based on any old religion in any substantial way.
Stop using wikipedia to peddle your religion, folk etymology and original research. Thanks. 90.207.162.211 ( talk) 22:17, 29 January 2013 (UTC)
A quick but careful search turns up sources (need to be careful as some sources I found talk about spiritual healing to cure problems caused by witchcraft). [3], [4], [5]. Dougweller ( talk) 22:04, 17 February 2013 (UTC)
Those sources are poor, being anecdotal accounts of particular practitioners who engage in a variety of activities such as psychology and counselling. The selection of the phrase spiritual healing seems to be cherry-picked and there's no telling what it actually means because we don't have an article of this name at the other end of the redirect. What we have is called energy medicine and that's so vague as to be useless. Now if you look at a proper encyclopedic source such as the entry for contemporary witchcraft in Encyclopedia Britannica, written by the emeritus professor Jeffrey Burton Russell, this says nothing of healing, spiritual or otherwise. In listing what they do, that entry says, "Adherents to Wicca worship the Goddess, honour nature, practice ceremonial magic, invoke the aid of deities, and celebrate Halloween, the summer solstice, and the vernal equinox." Neo-pagans are said to be something different, "Although Neo-Paganism incorporates the emotional involvement and ritual practices associated with religion into its tradition, many Neo-Pagans prefer to think of themselves as practicing magic rather than religion, and although their emphasis is on opening themselves up to hidden powers through rites, chants, or charms, most do not call themselves “witches,” as Wiccans do."
Now, per WP:PROVEIT, "Any material lacking a reliable source directly supporting it may be removed." The reference to spiritual healing has been challenged and so a citation to a reliable source is required. Edit-warring + hand-waving is not enough. Warden ( talk) 23:17, 17 February 2013 (UTC)
SORCERY: the study of using good and(or) evil magic power that in which you posses and carry and create the power from the sorcerers hand(s). SORCERER: a male who studies sorcery, a sorcerer who uses good magic is a LIGHT SORCERER, while for evil is a DARK SORCERER. SORCERESS: a female who studies sorcery same as sorcerer, good is light as evil is dark. WIZARDRY: the study a magic used, carried, or created by staff or a wand used by a wizard. Same as sorcerer good is light as evil is dark. WIZARD: male or female who studies wizardry. WITCHCRAFT: the practice of the Pentagon and(or) using mainly potions, spells, curses, healings but although all the forces of magic (sorcery, wizardry, witchcraft and satan worship) all use these witchcraft use it many ways. WITCH: a male or female who studies witchcraft although males usually go by mitch meaning male witch or they normaly study other forces, but an evil male witch is called a WARLOCK while an evil female witch is a DARK WITCH or WICKED WITCH. But same goes as the others good is light and evil is dark. SATANISM: is the religion worshiping a creater of peopel but not the same satan as from Christianity. SATAN WORSHIP: is the worship of the Christian satan AKA fallen Angel. !!!!-message me for more info or ask a question-!!!! TruthTeller197508 ( talk) 04:24, 14 July 2014 (UTC)
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Shouldn't historical and anthropological descriptions of witchcraft cite sources from historical and anthropological sources? Why then are we treating this author Judika Illes as reliable when it's obvious that a lot of what she's written on the subject is bunk? Her descriptions of witches in pre-Christian Russia is impossibly detailed, considering that nothing about these beliefs was written down before the Christianization of Russia, and thus highly suspect! While some of them may conceivably contain a grain of truth based on extrapolation from current Russian folk tales and practices, it seems just as likely that they were entirely fabricated by a quack. A quick look at her Wikipedia entry pretty much sums up my point: the only training she's had is in English, communication, and aromatherapy! Nothing even close to the realm of anthropology or religious studies. She may be a practitioner of modern magic and miscellaneous spirituality, but I would not consider her a valid source on pre-Christian Russian paganism, especially something as specific and covert as witchcraft. 173.57.54.188 ( talk) 05:11, 9 August 2014 (UTC)
I've made a few edits to try and improve the global representation and a few other issues, mainly in the intro.
The key issue is, it is very poor in its characterization of the topic. Academics routinely emphasize the diversity of belief and the difficulty of definition, but we say none of that. Therefore the current intro is basically a view through Western eyes and not much more. It describes "faculties" (skills), but the existence of such "faculties" is at best one view of several significant views, and most texts emphasize the difficulty of defining witchcraft, and the pitfalls of imposing Western concepts and distinctions that poorly reflect non-European "witchcraft" concepts. In addition the existence of such skills must not be assumed - presumably, the authoritative view on existence would be that they have not been proven scientifically. Words such as "superstition", "occult", "sorcery" and the like are not the same as "witchcraft" either, across cultures, but this crucial aspect of mistranslation is never mentioned either.
I'm also going to have a go at reducing globalization issues in the body too, by moving a few sections around.
I've had a go. Please help to improve it :) FT2 ( Talk | email) 05:39, 27 August 2014 (UTC)
.. wiki: "Hexe" . Stephanie — Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.128.16.94 ( talk) 18:16, 30 September 2014 (UTC)
Kianna, Very good use of sources, almost each sentence of your contribution is back up with a credible source. Just a few things, maybe try finding some kind of image that relates to Italian witchcraft. You talk about Cassandra, I think she needs a better introduction or it needs rewording. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Rolarreola ( talk • contribs) 03:10, 11 April 2016 (UTC)
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The reference to the Canon Episcopi is totally misleading. That canon did not "introduce" the ideas mentioned. It lists them as commonly believed and false! In short, it describes "witchcraft" (word not used in the text) as a delusion. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 73.37.41.162 ( talk) 19:05, 31 July 2017 (UTC)
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I've noticed a few edits with "in-universe" (or "in-belief-system", in lieu of a better term) perspective, which is inappropriate: statements from within a belief system should not be presented as factual. For example, I am removing the following sentence from the intro: "Witchcraft involves the use of intent (and often physical objects) to manipulate environmental energy in order to effect change in favor of the practitioners." Compare this with, e.g., the language in the Wiki articles for Christianity, Islam or Werewolf. The source for that statement (Witchipedia) also seems to be written from an in-universe perspective (this would be analogous to stating on Wikipedia that "Jesus Christ is the son of God" and using the Holy Bible or Vatican texts as a reference. The sentence could have been adjusted to say something like "adherents believe ..."; however, I'm removing it completely because it doesn't add anything valuable to the previous statements in the intro.
Please refrain from making such edits and, as always, try to maintain a neutral tone.
TastyChikan ( talk) 08:32, 13 December 2017 (UTC)
Hey, Im working on a school project, and i am adding a section on the relations of modern witchcraft and feminism through media. I have sources and if you have any question, let me know. Foxx Molinari ( talk) 22:34, 5 June 2017 (UTC)
I think there are some problems with this section, and should either be removed or the information moved elsewhere. From what I could gather, the referenced sources are primarily talking about Neo-Wicca or "Eclectic Wicca" (as the Wicca section of this article calls it) which is not clear when reading the section. In addition, the media and feminist aspects seem a bit disjoint, and there are some weasel words with unclear attributions (e.g., "Wiccan literature has been described as aiding the empowerment of young women[...]": by whom? Catherine Tosenberg is the next reference, and she doesn't seem to be making this claim in her essay).
Since Wicca is only a small section of the Witchcraft article, and Eclectic Wicca is a mere mention within that section, it seems to me that this feminism/media section is trying to go into way more depth that is appropriate for the Witchcraft article. If cleaned-up and referenced properly, there's definitely some interesting information here, but I think it would be a lot more appropriate to be incorporated into the main Wicca article.
I've added links to the sources used in this section to aid further discussion of whether this section should stay or where the information should go.
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Non-Wiccan witches may belong to any spiritual or religious tradition or none—agnostic or atheist witches are typically considered non-Wiccan.
You can even be an atheist and do magic. Magic is a practice and, in itself, does not involve any connection with deity.
Witchcraft is a lifestyle choice not a spiritual belief system (even an atheist can be a witch).
At other points, the association of atheism, heresies, idolatry and witchcraft was stated by Bacon in the Advancement of Learning in ways that simultaneously differentiated and yet assimilated them.
Of central importance for the present study is the fact that Marlowe was in contact with several of the most advanced and open-minded scientists and philosophers in Europe, and he was intensely and no doubt uncomfortably aware that among the tools used to suppress freedom of inquiry were accusations of atheism and witchcraft.
In the Hyderabad State, the belief in witchcraft and sorcery is still deeply entrenched in the minds of the people. In 1983, leaders in the district administration in Medak invited the Atheist Centre to help dispel such superstitions.
![]() | This is an archive of past discussions. Do not edit the contents of this page. If you wish to start a new discussion or revive an old one, please do so on the current talk page. |
Archive 1 | Archive 2 | Archive 3 | Archive 4 | Archive 5 | Archive 6 | → | Archive 10 |
There's a new article Witch (magic) I found at WP:UNCAT. It seems that article should be deleted as it overlaps with this one. Concur? MatthewVanitas ( talk) 04:23, 25 September 2009 (UTC)
Is there any reason why most of the articles on Wikipedia have such little referance to religion and there effects on the topic? It is mentioned i think once in detail in this article and that is only brefly when some religons have had pretty large effects on this topic. Is there any reason for this and if so what?-- William.stowers ( talk) 13:12, 30 October 2009 (UTC)
That's because witchcraft doesn't necessarily have much to do with religion. It's a practice, not a faith in and of itself. Stregamama ( talk) 14:57, 15 March 2011 (UTC)
This site: [ Saudi] talks about a person sent to death for witchcraft in Saudi Arabia. Agre22 ( talk) 12:51, 26 November 2009 (UTC)agre22
"Witchcraft, in various historical, anthropological, religious and mythological contexts, is the use of certain kinds of supernatural or magical powers in order to inflict harm or damage upon members of a community or their property. "
This is incorrect and violates NPOV. Historically, witchcraft has been used for many purposes among which "inflicting harm or damage" is only one. I propose this instead:
"Witchcraft, in various historical, anthropological, religious and mythological contexts, is the use of various magical techniques and practices to attain desired results."
What do you think?? 70.112.71.2 ( talk) 18:14, 26 February 2009 (UTC)
Later... I decided the whole first paragraph needs revision. How about this:
Witchcraft, in various historical, anthropological, religious and mythological contexts, is the use of certain magical techniques and practices to attain desired results. In many societies a distinction is drawn between good witchcraft and bad witchcraft. The former is used to heal, while the latter is employed to inflict harm. A witch (from Old English wicce f. / wicca m.) is a practitioner of witchcraft. 70.112.71.2 ( talk) 22:16, 26 February 2009 (UTC)
I don't think you guys get NPOV at all. The claim "Historically, witchcraft has been used for many purposes among which "inflicting harm or damage" is only one." is more POV-pushing than the original. Witchcraft historically, religiously, anthropologically, etc. has overwhelmingly meant inflicting harm. The ONLY side saying otherwise is modern people who self-identify as witches, and their POV should not be pushed onto the article. Their view can be mentioned, and indeed it is, but it does not get to be treated as if it were the primary or even an equal definition. This is not Wiccapedia.
And, seriously folks, an anon user and some newbies suddenly showing up to try to overrule longstanding consensus both on this article and in academics is not how things work here. If you want to change it, you will need clear consensus following Wikipedia policies. You can't just insist that the term historically was used for good and bad, you'd need reliable sources not only to show that anyone thinks that but that enough academics think that to overrule the strong consensus of experts who say otherwise. Get real sources from trustworthy academics on the topic, not just your own personal opinion, and post them here so we can look at them and see what you have. DreamGuy ( talk) 00:26, 1 March 2009 (UTC)
I think the article should draw on major scholarly sources. These would include Lucy Maier's Witchcraft and 'Evans Pritchard's Witchcraft, Magid, and Oracls among the Azande. They describe witchcraft as involving harm, not healing. In the Americas, a distinction is often made between shamanism (which is good) and sorcery (which is bad) but Spanish-speakers distinguish between good and bad witchcraft i.e. there is a healing witchcraft. From this I conclude that most forms of witchcraft are harmful, but in many cses it may be helpful. I think it is reasonable to have a first sentence that emphasizes the mainstream, and then cover the nuances in the remainter of the first paragraph. I am vehemently opposed to any view that jusges the NPOV compliance of this article based solely on one sentence. The article has to be judged as a whole, and the introduction schould introduce the article as a whole. I expect the first paragraph to provide all major points of view; to expect this of one sentence will lead to an overwrought and distorting sentences. Slrubenstein | Talk 06:37, 1 March 2009 (UTC)
--I couldn't wade through this whole discussion, I don't have the patience or attention span for that; but I do agree with this: :: And, while I appreciate Mdwh's contribution to distinguish between bad and good witchcraft, it still implies that "good" witchcraft is only used when trying to counter the real, "bad" witchcraft that has already affected someone. Witchcraft should be a neutral term. Aaatkins 27 February 2009 There are many other purposes for good witchcraft that do not involve a need to counteract harmful witchcraft. A few examples: and no, these don't aply to only Wiccans: Blessings, Communicating with the Divine, Healing, Rites of Passage, etc. None of these involve a direct relationship countering an "evil magic." Wolfpeaceful ( talk) 19:33, 15 August 2009 (UTC)
Daoism may be any of the following;
1) A school of philosophy, strictly philosophy, as a means for understanding spiritual matters and for a different perception of the world.
2) It can be religious, and employ the worship of various gods through the use of idols.
3) It is also known for sorcery; the idea of the 5 elements, earth, fire, water, metal and wood, and their manipulation, are as old as China itself in fact even older. Ultimately all witchcraft regardless of region, originated from Shamanism. The branch of Daoism that deals with sorcery, in fact has its origins in Chinese shamanism before "China's ascent from the darkness" ("darkness" e.g. ignorance). One of the errors made regarding Daoism, is how it is seen as a single system, when in fact, different branches of it can be as different from each other, as night and day. For example, even though Daoist philosophy urges simplicity, Daoist sorcery, involves heavy ritualization, the humming of various sounds through the practice of Chi Kung, etc. In other words an accusation may be thrown as mystical Daoism, as not being TRUE Daoist philosophy because of the heavy ritualization that makes it far from simple. Not a personal opinion, just an illustration.
However, because there are branches of Daoism that deal with mysticism, they are worth a mention. Additionally, even withing "magical" Daoism there are different beliefs. For example, as with "traditional" witchcraft, there is the use of familiars. However, some forms of mystical oriented Daoism worship Shangdi ("the one true God") and hold the claim that all comes from Shangdi. Now, mind, worship of Shangdi does not imply, it is an Abrahamic faith; the rites, rituals and prayers are totally different. Moreover, because the worship of Shangdi in China has always been influenced by Daoism, it is nowhere near as dogmatic, as merciless, towards "heressy." In fact, most Chinese religions have no concept of "heressy."
I am starting to soapbox here, so I'll stop typing; please look into Daoist magical practices and consider expanding the article.
67.148.120.102 ( talk) 01:45, 26 May 2009 (UTC)stardingo747
The article currently fails to address the very significant differences between the English experience of witchcraft and the wider European one, and the role that religious strife between Protestants and Catholics in the late 16th and early 17th century played, as the case of the Samlesbury witches demonstrates. Except for the brief career of Matthew Hopkins in East Anglia, there were none of the witchhunts so common in continental Europe, and some English counties like Cheshire had rather few witch trials, and only about 11 executions for witchcraft in total IIRC. Protestants in England did not share all the same views as their counterparts in continental Europe, being somewhat influenced by the views of King James I. -- Malleus Fatuorum 02:38, 28 July 2009 (UTC)
This is taken from a book Memoirs of the protectoral-house of Cromwell: deduced from an ..., Volume 1, by Mark Noble, pp. 24–26 published in 1787 so now in the public domain which I am using to write an article about Sir Henry Williams (alias Cromwell), the grandfather of Oliver Cromwell, who's second wife Lady Weeks, died from a long illness, for which a family of three were found guilty of witchcraft and executed. The section in Mark Nobles book about this issue, how it affected the people of Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, and in the footnote what the judge in the last witch trial in England asked a witness for the prosecution, to show the silliness of it all, is too long to be in the article on Sir William but some of it may be of use either in this article or in another article linked to this one:
As this lady [Weeks the second wife of Oliver Cromwell's grandfather] died of a lingering illness, the popular error of the times attributed it to witchcraft; such an idea would now be laughed at, by any but the lowest of the people; but at that time it was of the most serious consequence, as a poor, inoffensive family fell victims to the folly and cruelty of the age. John Samwell, Alice his wife, and Ann their daughter, then inhabitants of Warboys, were ridiculously supposed to be the authors of this lady's death, and were committed to prison. The mother (who seems by age to have been weak and decrepit) was so teized and tortured in prison, and kept constantly without sleep, that her faculties (much impaired before) became now entirely lost, and at length she confessed any the most strange fooleries, that the malice and folly of her enemies could devise; in consequence of which they were all, in defiance of common sense, tried before mr. justice Fenner, 4 April 1593, and convicted of the fact, of not only being the cause of the death of lady Cromwell, but also of bewitching five of Mr. Throgmorton's children, and seven of his servants, the gaoler's man, &c. No mercy, we may readily imagine, would be shown to these unbefriended victims, when even majesty degraded itself by writing the most idle nonsense (some years after this) to prove, not only that there were witches, but recommending certain means to be used as infallible ways to discover them; [1] they were therefore all three publicly murdered, suffering amidst the acclamations of a barbarous and rude populace, who rejoiced that they themselves were relieved from (as they supposed) dangerous neighbours. It was found upon their conviction, that their goods, which amounted in value to £40 were forfeited to Sir Henry as lord of the manor of Warboys; but, he unwilling to posses himself of the supposed felons goods, gave them to the corporation conditionally, that they procured from Queen's college in Cambridge, a doctor, or bachelor of divinity to preach every day of the annunciation of the Second lady of blessed Virgin, a sermon against: the sin of witchcraft in one of the churches in Huntingdon. [2]
I have dwelt longer upon this subject, as it serves not only to prove that Lady Cromwell was supposed to die by witchcraft, but also, that it sufficiently shows that the credulity of the age was such, that even the greatest (if not the wisest) men in the kingdom, acquiesced in the infatuation that then prevailed, and were, as occasion served, subject to the loss of their reputations and lives, when it suited the dark purposes of any malicious enemy to charge them with sorcery, a crime they could not, if they would, commit. [3]
- ^ Noble, 25. States "I remember to have read (I forget where) that King James I the english Solomon, repented that he had written his treatise concerning witchcraft; a poor satisfaction for the very many lives lost during his reign,especially in Scotland!"
- ^ Noble p 26. Stated "It is with real concern that I acquaint the reader, that there is still an annual sermon prached against witchcraft in Huntingdon, by a divine sent from Queen's college, Cambridge; for which he receives £2 but is obliged to distribute 10 shil. to the poor; and by custom, to treat part of the corporation with a dinner. This is the more extraordinary, as an act of Parliament has repealed all the penal statutes against this supposed crime of witchcraft, which is tacitly declaring that there are no such beings as witches, nor crime as witchcraft. It would be, therefore, highly commendable in the corporation of Huntingdon, and Queen's college, in Cambridge, to agree, that if a sermon must be preached, the subject of it should, instead of being levelled against the pretended sin of witchcraft, be an address to the people, cautioning them against falling into such errors and prejudices, as made their forefathers involve the unhappy and immeasurably injured Samwels in ruin and destruction. In the last trial for witchcraft in England, the judge asked a clergyman, who had the folly to appear against the supposed witch, whether he really from his heart thought the poor old creature guilty of the crime of which she was accused; and he answering in the affirmative; the humane magistrate replied, pointing to the prisoner, it is not such a poor wrinkled wretch as this that I should take for a witch; but such beautiful ladies as these, bowing to some very handsome females, who were near him."
- ^ Noble, 26. States History affords several instances of the greatest ladies being accused of witchcraft; even royalty itself did not escape. The lady of marshal de Ancré having been condemned as guilty of this crime against the queen dowager 'Mary de Medici, the relict of great Henry IV of France, whom the governed in the most despotic manner said when going to execution, instead of confessing herself guilty of witchcraft "she had that asendancy over her, which great minds must always have over little ones."
-- PBS ( talk) 16:21, 28 August 2009 (UTC)
That's a little cruel, especially since the quote does indeed mention "the last trial for witchcraft in England" (look in the footnote). The witchcraft laws were amended significantly at a certain point so that people were no longer tried as 'witches' but as people who pretended witchcraft (con-artists, essentially). The last trial as a 'witch' may be what this passage refers to, and if so it may contain something of relevance to the European witchcraft article. Fuzzypeg ★ 04:31, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
This article says that "warlock" was not used for male witches, but the Warlock article says otherwise. This article also lacks citations for the assertion, whereas Warlock has a citation. edit: Looking over it again, I would suggest that the entire Terminology section be either removed or substantially enhanced. It currently serves no purpose. 69.251.39.23 ( talk) 00:17, 14 November 2009 (UTC)
Well, 'warlock' was a term for (male) witches in Scotland. I can't see anything in this article that says it wasn't, so presumably the problem has been fixed. Fuzzypeg ★ 04:40, 25 July 2010 (UTC)
Hi. A larger discussion of this is occuring on the Wicca talk page, near but not at the bottom. I had linked Sex magic and the Great Rite to the See also list on this page, as neither topics are discussed within the article. The links were removed. Can we put them back, and if not, why not? And, as I've asked at the Wicca talk page, if anyone has an interest in creating a major section for Wicca and Witchcraft on the Sex Magic page, please consider doing so. More at Wicca, and thanks, Aleister Wilson ( talk) 16:40, 12 December 2009 (UTC)
look, I KNOW this isnt a forum n all, but did witchcraft stem or did it not from christainity, or at least its beliefs? if so, could u add to article? thanks! ^_^ Celestialwarden11 ( talk) 20:05, 28 January 2010 (UTC)
it did NOT come from christainity it was around BEFORE christainity or at lest its mother religion paganism was. besides how on earth did you figure that? did you not hear about them burning acused witches (most of which probebly were not witches as a witch would have to be wrong in the head to go within 50 miles of one of those places, it is next to impossible to get me out of the car near a church.)the religion you might be thinking of is satinism which is in no way connected to witchcraft. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.217.87.224 ( talk) 19:25, 20 June 2010 (UTC)
As a practicing Pagan and Witch I am here to say that I am offended by the information found in this article about Witchcraft. If I were to correct the errors here I would have to re-write the whole page. The one who had written this article obviously has not taken the time to much unbiased research. If you would like to know more about witchcraft please look up info on the subject elsewhere. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.177.235.8 ( talk) 03:16, 1 March 2010 (UTC)
hey ian i agree with whoever was behind the the origanal commet it is extreamly offensive to actual witches and there are so many incorrect things on there that i get overwelmed just thinking about trying to fix it —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.217.87.224 ( talk) 19:30, 20 June 2010 (UTC)
Please explain to me how a belief about an idea and the idea itself can be the same.
The existing content has now been reverted four times (thrice by Malleus Fatuorum), apparently without anyone bothering to read the source, thus making the NSF label 10 ideas themselves as pseudoscientific beliefs, when not all of them are beliefs. The NSF is referring to those who believe in them, and not to the ideas themselves. As an aid to understanding the source, I'll reproduce the exact quote from the source, right after introducing it:
Note they are referring to "pseudoscientific belief[s]" in the first sentence, and then they mention the ideas, which if believed by someone, make that individual one who holds "pseudoscientific belief[s]". It's a matter of grammar and meaning. That's why the inclusion of "belief in" is necessary for the sentence structure. In this source they aren't calling the ten ideas pseudoscience, but are referring to the beliefs. In other sources one can easily find such items labelled as pseudoscience, but not here. -- Brangifer ( talk) 05:50, 10 March 2010 (UTC)
I have removed the entire passage since it is a crass misrepresentation. In the 2006 (only!) version of a longish document on science and education that the NSF publishes every 2 years, a short section talks about ignorance of the public about science. In this context they traditionally talk about "pseudoscience". The document defines pseudoscience correctly as something that pretends to be science but isn't. In the following paragraph it talks about belief in pseudoscience, but uses a Gallup poll about belief in paranormal. By assembling a sentence from the main text with a footnote one can synthesise a statement that all the 10 paranormal-proxies used by Gallup are actually pseudoscience. (BullRangifer would insist on adding "belief in" everywhere, but this is not the point.) This is obviously not what the author intended to say, as it contradicts the previous paragraph: Ghosts, reincarnation and witches do not normally have anything to do with pretending to do science. There are connections to pseudoscience, but they are not really pseudoscience. This appears to be the only remotely reliable thing anywhere that claims ghosts and witches to be pseudoscience, so it's not at all appropriate to use this casual "claim" as a source. Let alone to claim that here "the NSF" is speaking, and expressing "scientific consensus", no less.
The entire document is simply not useful for this article, except for supporting that Gallup considers witches paranormal, in case that's of any use. So I have removed it. I will also remove the absurd box above that claims that this article has something to do with the pseudoscience Arbcom case. BullRangifer is obsessed with pseudoscience and simply wants everything he doesn't like to be pseudoscience and fall under that case. It's obviously not supported in the case of this article. Hans Adler 00:40, 17 March 2010 (UTC)
Chan Xiao Ting is the first recorded accused witch? What source? I can't find one that matches and it doesn't seem to have a source or fit the article where it is placed. Please fix.-- Hitsuji Kinno ( talk) 03:35, 29 April 2010 (UTC)
I'm embarrassed to say I probably introduced this wrong terminology myself (see my older posts on this page). Historiography is the study of historians and their approaches to history (a kind of meta-history), rather than the study of history itself. That means one heading in the article changes. Fuzzypeg ★ 01:20, 26 July 2010 (UTC)
Where belief in malicious magic practices exists, such practitioners are typically forbidden by law as well as hated and feared by the general populace, while beneficial magic is tolerated or even accepted wholesale by the people – even if the orthodox establishment objects to it.
This seems like made up crap to me. First of all, there are places where witchcraft are forbidden, but it is done by social rather than by formal means. It's not like a formal law of "thou shalt not". Should I pull up the Kaluli or the Azande? Or should I pull up other places that don't have formal laws...? I don't get it...
Also, I think the article could benefit a little bit from defining witchcraft v. sorcery in anthropology which may quiet the upset wiccans a little bit. And also separate the academic thoughts of witchcraft from what wiccans think of witchcraft v. the purely historical European version of witchcraft. I can easily pull up sources for that starting with Magic, Witchcraft and Religion which has a variety of papers, including ones on Wiccans. Even if it's not put in, I still have to say that "Wicca" is actually in anthropology thought to be "sorcery" not "witchcraft"-- Hitsuji Kinno ( talk) 18:38, 17 August 2010 (UTC)
The BBC programme In Our Time presented by Melvyn Bragg has an episode which may be about this subject (if not moving this note to the appropriate talk page earns cookies). You can add it to "External links" by pasting * {{In Our Time|Witchcraft|p004y2b0}}. Rich Farmbrough, 03:23, 16 September 2010 (UTC).
T.M. Luhrmann, The Goat and the Gazelle: Witchcraft from Magic, Witchcraft and Religion. (College textbook) I'm adding this to the article. The first is about Wicca (which is more sorcery than witchcraft for Anthro POV and the article discusses this (things like you need to *learn wicca* which is not witchcraft, that's considered inherent).
It's worth noting that the witch doesn't have to be a physical manifestation (as in *that person over there*) for a witch to "exist."
Kaluli culture, for example. All death is a work of a witch, but you don't know who it is.
Source: http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/anthro/faculty/fiske/135b/kaluli.htm
That's UCLA... and they have a large Anthro department. (Written by one of their department). That would be a reliable source.
Azande--I found this article: EE Evans Pritchard, Witchcraft, Oracles and Magic amoung the Azande 69-70 (1937).
The summary is that the witch doesn't have to be a physical manifestation, as it was in Western European tradition, but that if the grain silo tipped over on someone it was considered witchcraft--only they didn't know who it was. In another words, an "accidental" witch. It goes on further about how the grain silo was often infested with termites. The Azande knew that. They also knew people often took refuge from the sun under them. It wasn't the work of a witch when it didn't fall over on someone. It was only the work of witches when it killed someone. In another words the "magic" served to explain why bad things happen.
Two additional sources worth looking at: http://www.unicef.org/wcaro/wcaro_children-accused-of-witchcraft-in-Africa.pdf Children accused of witchcraft in Africa. Tribes are specified.
http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/samples/cam034/2003043949.pdf A world look at Witchcraft and an extensive discussion on the definition of it in Britain. (i.e. that Pritchard is a functionalist.) From a University Press, so reliable source?
Does anyone have objections to these sources?-- Hitsuji Kinno ( talk) 23:36, 10 December 2010 (UTC)
"Africans have a wide range of views of traditional religions." But there isn't a similar comment for Europeans. Couldn't this be phrased so it doesn't make Africa to be an enormous country? Rather it's made up of a lot of tribes. I find the comment ridiculous. It's like saying Native Americans don't have one religion. Of course not. Be specific. It does more honor to those tribes. -- Hitsuji Kinno ( talk) 00:36, 11 December 2010 (UTC)
I've removed the following sentence from the article. It cites the Encyclopaedia Britannica 11th edn.:
Yes, the same kind of blood libel was used, as with Bacchics, Christians, Jews, Lepers and Muslims before them, and of course witches. But the theory that this may have "been the beginning of the great European witch-hunt" is pretty outdated. Encyc. Britt. 11th edn was published a long time ago. Fuzzypeg ★ 00:01, 9 April 2011 (UTC)
I removed the following sentence from the article:
The relevance to witchcraft is not explained, and is not clear to me, unless we are going to treat every magical religion as witchcraft. People who are interested in knowing more about the various branches of Neopaganism can go to the Neopaganism article. Fuzzypeg ★ 00:15, 9 April 2011 (UTC)
I've removed the following WP:ESSAY from the article:
If anyone can find anything useful that's not already elsewhere in the article, feel free to try to work it into the article. I can't see anything of value, myself. My main problem with all this is that it claims there was a hard distinction between cunning folk / healers / diviners on the one hand, and witches on the other. There was no such hard division. Many cunning folk were quite willing to curse, and many cunning folk (and their counterparts in other countries) ended up being accused of witchcraft. This is stated and cited elsewhere in the article, so I won't bother giving citations here. The essay continues to talk about the 'confusion' that the mix-up of witches and cunning-folk has caused, and it separates charmers, cunning men/women and diviners, as though they were three separate occupations; they are, in most cases, all the same thing. Fuzzypeg ★ 11:14, 12 April 2011 (UTC)
There was a load of old waffle at the end of the article posturing itself under the title Atheisim. As someone felt that I was deleting something of some import I've reinstated it. However as the references are so non-specific as to be almost completely meaningless, I've rewritten in an equally significant manner just to show what a load of old tosh it is. Mighty Antar ( talk) 18:20, 1 June 2011 (UTC)
I agree Mighty, what the current sections named after religions address, is how the subject of witchcraft is/was treated by those religions. How witches address Atheism doesn't really follow. Atheism is a philosophy, not a religion per se, and taken as a participate in theological discourse, Atheism is at a unique disadvantage. I think that warrants a measure of extra care in circumstances like this. I'm not convinced this article needs to indulge speculation about Atheist magical praxis.
Regarding the cites, whitemagic.com fails WP:RS if anything does. The quote:
Weiser Field Guide to Witches [3] Non-Wiccan Witches, ( p.30), was chosen in lieu of Atheist Witches, ( p.21), to further contradict Buckland's use of Witch and Wicca as synonymous.
The term was invented in response to the now-common assumption that all modern witches are Wiccan. Non-Wiccan witches may belong to any tradition other than modern Wicca... [or] to any spiritual or religious tradition or none—agnostic or atheist witches are typically considered non-Wiccan.
— Judika Illes, The Weiser Field Guide Series, "Non-Wiccan Witches", p.30
Fnord Galaxy: Hope it helps clarify the (non-symbiotic) meaning for "Non-Wiccan Witches" who don't necessarily / necessarily don't hold to Wiccan Duotheism proper. I can certainly see why Atheism would prefer to opt-out.
As atheists, these witches do not acknowledge a Supreme Creator or the Wiccan conception of a Lord and Lady; but work their magic using Earth's natural powers and energies. Some may work with elemental spirit such as land spirits or fairies.
— Judika Illes, The Weiser Field Guide Series, "Atheist Witches", p.21
I'm reminded of Scientific Pantheism/ Naturalistic Pantheism. [4] They wag a finger at the magic, spirits, fairies... Actually, all of the above except Earth and nature, symbiosis but they admire the ritual savvy.
References
There is nothing on whether or not there were real witches during the witchcraze and and the middle ages. Aside from the so-called "witchdoctors" in Scotland, there doesn't seem to be any evidence of them being any more than a myth. Ericl ( talk) 19:54, 5 October 2011 (UTC)
Djambe redirects here, but it's not present in the article. Djambe is the witchcraft-creature that lives inside people, belonging to the Maka in Cameroon. We are learning about it in class (From the Modernity of Witchcraft ethnography. Does it belong somewhere in the article? Semitones ( talk) 02:14, 15 November 2011 (UTC)
The section about japanese witchcraft says that the two types of familiars used by japanese witches, supposedly, are foxes and snakes. However, the image immediately to the right talks about a 'cat witch'. This is not coherent! If there is such a thing as a cat witch in japanese folklore or in modern witchcraft practice, we should be able to find sources and be able to include information about it. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 72.208.126.137 ( talk) 03:21, 27 January 2012 (UTC)
If I'm not mistaken I believe Japanese artist Sadahide did a drawing (ca 1860) of a suppose "cat witch" (Station Okazaki. The actor Onoe Kikugoro as a cat-witch). There was also a wood block print that was sold by Kuniyoshi (1797 - 1861) titled "The Cat Witch", Okabe. Maybe these are the sources??? (btw I'm just throwing things out here to see if I can help) There is in Japanese mythology of a "Bakeneko"- a shape shifting cat. I dont know what it supposibly shape shifts into or if it has any relationships with a cat-witch. There is also a "Kasha"- a cat like demone who carries off corpses into the sky. My guess is good as yours. I hope it may lead to a more reliable source. Henry123ifa ( talk) 21:06, 1 April 2012 (UTC)
I've just reverted this edit which for the second time has tried to insert some irrelevant catehgories into the article. Both edits have come from IP editors so there may not be much chance of engaging in dialogue - but if you are reading this, please can we discuss those cats? If others see them being reinserted and agree with me, please revert also. Kim Dent-Brown (Talk) 20:13, 5 March 2012 (UTC)
I just created an article about Madumo, A Man Bewitched, which deals heavily with the idea of a man that has been cursed and has to seek the help of an inyanga. It's non-fiction, of course, but I thought it might help the section out some. I'll see if there's a way I can smoothly work it in, but I don't want to ruin the flow or anything. It's just that even with its flaws, it's still a fairly good book about witchcraft in Africa. Tokyogirl79 ( talk) 04:48, 21 March 2012 (UTC)
I removed the following for now:
It's a shoddy mess that doesn't really seem to know what its own purpose is. The first two references try to support a claim with sources that only trivially address the subject. (With one using 'agnostic or atheist witches are...' in a throw-away line and the other making a case for irreligious witchcraft being theoretically possible without spending any time on whether there actually are irreligious witches). I'm sure there probably are agnostic and atheistic witches, but the sources don't support this (additionally, agnosticism and atheism are not the same thing as irreligion).
The third source is a website that runs afoul of so many guidelines for sources that I don't rightly know where to begin...
And the rest of the section isn't really relevant to the first two sentences and really doesn't merit having its own section (in fact, it was probably added only in an attempt to justify a separate section for the first two sentences).
So yeah, removed for now until someone with more involvement in this page can trim the extraneous parts and merge the rest into other parts of the article as required. Robrecht ( talk) 01:59, 2 June 2012 (UTC)
You experts on Witchcraft's use of pharmakeia are needed to go to pharmakeia and expand on the historical examples of spell giving potions as well as examples of famous people being poisoned to death in history and what they were poisoned with. As well as the alchemical aspects of pharmakeia and the potions people in history would consume that was believed to have transforming properties. This article needs a lot of help. 2602:306:C518:62C0:7560:4718:4121:2E90 ( talk) 02:57, 19 July 2012 (UTC)
Hi, I am Saebou, mainly working in the Japanese Wikipedia. I hope some Wikipedians working in the English Wikipedia will split this article and create a new article titled 'Witch', for this English article on witchcraft is quite long and most of Wikipedias in other major languages separate 'Witch' from 'Witchcraft'. For example, the Japanese Wikipedia has an article ja:魔女, the French version fr:Sorcier, and the German version de:Hexe for 'Witch'. I wish I could do this myself, but I'm not an English native speaker. さえぼー ( talk) 13:07, 17 November 2012 (UTC)
After i read this article. I think this article has a vague description about history of witchcraft. Like when the word "witch" was first mentioned? Since when people started to think bad things about witch? Since when people started to think witch associated with devil? What was the original reasons for that? It wouldn't make any sense that suddenly people started to think "witch" is anti-Christianity. I think the article is missing a major info about witch. 65.128.159.236 ( talk) 02:27, 12 April 2012 (UTC)
- What absolute unscientific, unencyclopedic nonsense you spot, Glorious Goddess. Waerloga contains Celtic nothing, being a strictly Old English word. Ae is not a Celtic sound at all and appears in many languages and as Old English contained a real W it was not pronounced as a V at all.
And most of what you said is original research or plain Wiccan rubbish. We are an encyclopaedia, dedicated to facts, truths and logical reasoning, not fantasy stories cooked up in the Victorian era. The whole article here is in need of a major clean-up to make it perfectly clear that witches NEVER existed and do not exist now, save in the mind of paranoid Christians of the past and deluded people who want to seem powerful, mystical and magical by following a belief system that is not based on any old religion in any substantial way.
Stop using wikipedia to peddle your religion, folk etymology and original research. Thanks. 90.207.162.211 ( talk) 22:17, 29 January 2013 (UTC)
A quick but careful search turns up sources (need to be careful as some sources I found talk about spiritual healing to cure problems caused by witchcraft). [3], [4], [5]. Dougweller ( talk) 22:04, 17 February 2013 (UTC)
Those sources are poor, being anecdotal accounts of particular practitioners who engage in a variety of activities such as psychology and counselling. The selection of the phrase spiritual healing seems to be cherry-picked and there's no telling what it actually means because we don't have an article of this name at the other end of the redirect. What we have is called energy medicine and that's so vague as to be useless. Now if you look at a proper encyclopedic source such as the entry for contemporary witchcraft in Encyclopedia Britannica, written by the emeritus professor Jeffrey Burton Russell, this says nothing of healing, spiritual or otherwise. In listing what they do, that entry says, "Adherents to Wicca worship the Goddess, honour nature, practice ceremonial magic, invoke the aid of deities, and celebrate Halloween, the summer solstice, and the vernal equinox." Neo-pagans are said to be something different, "Although Neo-Paganism incorporates the emotional involvement and ritual practices associated with religion into its tradition, many Neo-Pagans prefer to think of themselves as practicing magic rather than religion, and although their emphasis is on opening themselves up to hidden powers through rites, chants, or charms, most do not call themselves “witches,” as Wiccans do."
Now, per WP:PROVEIT, "Any material lacking a reliable source directly supporting it may be removed." The reference to spiritual healing has been challenged and so a citation to a reliable source is required. Edit-warring + hand-waving is not enough. Warden ( talk) 23:17, 17 February 2013 (UTC)
SORCERY: the study of using good and(or) evil magic power that in which you posses and carry and create the power from the sorcerers hand(s). SORCERER: a male who studies sorcery, a sorcerer who uses good magic is a LIGHT SORCERER, while for evil is a DARK SORCERER. SORCERESS: a female who studies sorcery same as sorcerer, good is light as evil is dark. WIZARDRY: the study a magic used, carried, or created by staff or a wand used by a wizard. Same as sorcerer good is light as evil is dark. WIZARD: male or female who studies wizardry. WITCHCRAFT: the practice of the Pentagon and(or) using mainly potions, spells, curses, healings but although all the forces of magic (sorcery, wizardry, witchcraft and satan worship) all use these witchcraft use it many ways. WITCH: a male or female who studies witchcraft although males usually go by mitch meaning male witch or they normaly study other forces, but an evil male witch is called a WARLOCK while an evil female witch is a DARK WITCH or WICKED WITCH. But same goes as the others good is light and evil is dark. SATANISM: is the religion worshiping a creater of peopel but not the same satan as from Christianity. SATAN WORSHIP: is the worship of the Christian satan AKA fallen Angel. !!!!-message me for more info or ask a question-!!!! TruthTeller197508 ( talk) 04:24, 14 July 2014 (UTC)
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Shouldn't historical and anthropological descriptions of witchcraft cite sources from historical and anthropological sources? Why then are we treating this author Judika Illes as reliable when it's obvious that a lot of what she's written on the subject is bunk? Her descriptions of witches in pre-Christian Russia is impossibly detailed, considering that nothing about these beliefs was written down before the Christianization of Russia, and thus highly suspect! While some of them may conceivably contain a grain of truth based on extrapolation from current Russian folk tales and practices, it seems just as likely that they were entirely fabricated by a quack. A quick look at her Wikipedia entry pretty much sums up my point: the only training she's had is in English, communication, and aromatherapy! Nothing even close to the realm of anthropology or religious studies. She may be a practitioner of modern magic and miscellaneous spirituality, but I would not consider her a valid source on pre-Christian Russian paganism, especially something as specific and covert as witchcraft. 173.57.54.188 ( talk) 05:11, 9 August 2014 (UTC)
I've made a few edits to try and improve the global representation and a few other issues, mainly in the intro.
The key issue is, it is very poor in its characterization of the topic. Academics routinely emphasize the diversity of belief and the difficulty of definition, but we say none of that. Therefore the current intro is basically a view through Western eyes and not much more. It describes "faculties" (skills), but the existence of such "faculties" is at best one view of several significant views, and most texts emphasize the difficulty of defining witchcraft, and the pitfalls of imposing Western concepts and distinctions that poorly reflect non-European "witchcraft" concepts. In addition the existence of such skills must not be assumed - presumably, the authoritative view on existence would be that they have not been proven scientifically. Words such as "superstition", "occult", "sorcery" and the like are not the same as "witchcraft" either, across cultures, but this crucial aspect of mistranslation is never mentioned either.
I'm also going to have a go at reducing globalization issues in the body too, by moving a few sections around.
I've had a go. Please help to improve it :) FT2 ( Talk | email) 05:39, 27 August 2014 (UTC)
.. wiki: "Hexe" . Stephanie — Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.128.16.94 ( talk) 18:16, 30 September 2014 (UTC)
Kianna, Very good use of sources, almost each sentence of your contribution is back up with a credible source. Just a few things, maybe try finding some kind of image that relates to Italian witchcraft. You talk about Cassandra, I think she needs a better introduction or it needs rewording. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Rolarreola ( talk • contribs) 03:10, 11 April 2016 (UTC)
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The reference to the Canon Episcopi is totally misleading. That canon did not "introduce" the ideas mentioned. It lists them as commonly believed and false! In short, it describes "witchcraft" (word not used in the text) as a delusion. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 73.37.41.162 ( talk) 19:05, 31 July 2017 (UTC)
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I've noticed a few edits with "in-universe" (or "in-belief-system", in lieu of a better term) perspective, which is inappropriate: statements from within a belief system should not be presented as factual. For example, I am removing the following sentence from the intro: "Witchcraft involves the use of intent (and often physical objects) to manipulate environmental energy in order to effect change in favor of the practitioners." Compare this with, e.g., the language in the Wiki articles for Christianity, Islam or Werewolf. The source for that statement (Witchipedia) also seems to be written from an in-universe perspective (this would be analogous to stating on Wikipedia that "Jesus Christ is the son of God" and using the Holy Bible or Vatican texts as a reference. The sentence could have been adjusted to say something like "adherents believe ..."; however, I'm removing it completely because it doesn't add anything valuable to the previous statements in the intro.
Please refrain from making such edits and, as always, try to maintain a neutral tone.
TastyChikan ( talk) 08:32, 13 December 2017 (UTC)
Hey, Im working on a school project, and i am adding a section on the relations of modern witchcraft and feminism through media. I have sources and if you have any question, let me know. Foxx Molinari ( talk) 22:34, 5 June 2017 (UTC)
I think there are some problems with this section, and should either be removed or the information moved elsewhere. From what I could gather, the referenced sources are primarily talking about Neo-Wicca or "Eclectic Wicca" (as the Wicca section of this article calls it) which is not clear when reading the section. In addition, the media and feminist aspects seem a bit disjoint, and there are some weasel words with unclear attributions (e.g., "Wiccan literature has been described as aiding the empowerment of young women[...]": by whom? Catherine Tosenberg is the next reference, and she doesn't seem to be making this claim in her essay).
Since Wicca is only a small section of the Witchcraft article, and Eclectic Wicca is a mere mention within that section, it seems to me that this feminism/media section is trying to go into way more depth that is appropriate for the Witchcraft article. If cleaned-up and referenced properly, there's definitely some interesting information here, but I think it would be a lot more appropriate to be incorporated into the main Wicca article.
I've added links to the sources used in this section to aid further discussion of whether this section should stay or where the information should go.
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Non-Wiccan witches may belong to any spiritual or religious tradition or none—agnostic or atheist witches are typically considered non-Wiccan.
You can even be an atheist and do magic. Magic is a practice and, in itself, does not involve any connection with deity.
Witchcraft is a lifestyle choice not a spiritual belief system (even an atheist can be a witch).
At other points, the association of atheism, heresies, idolatry and witchcraft was stated by Bacon in the Advancement of Learning in ways that simultaneously differentiated and yet assimilated them.
Of central importance for the present study is the fact that Marlowe was in contact with several of the most advanced and open-minded scientists and philosophers in Europe, and he was intensely and no doubt uncomfortably aware that among the tools used to suppress freedom of inquiry were accusations of atheism and witchcraft.
In the Hyderabad State, the belief in witchcraft and sorcery is still deeply entrenched in the minds of the people. In 1983, leaders in the district administration in Medak invited the Atheist Centre to help dispel such superstitions.