by the way its not 'cast the circle thrice' its 'tread the circle thrice about to keep unwelcome spirits out' and it actually has every two lines you have as one!! so get it right!
Re: The Wiccan Rede By: WhiteRav3n / Knowledgeable
Post # 4 Jun 03, 2012
There are MANY versions of the Rede. At least this wasn't the one that mentions werewolves. Yes, one mentions "werewolves howl". Truly there is no set rede and the rede is far younger than Wicca itself and has been revised so many times, its ridiculous. Here is an article on it.
Actually it is "cast the circle thrice", and the author is not unknown. The Rede of the Wiccae was started by Adriana Porter, finished by her granddaughter, Gwen Thompson. The 26th & final couplet "Eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill - an it harm none, do what ye will.", was borrowed from Doreen Valiente with her permission after the statement was published in "The Green Egg" in the 1970's.
Do your research, and a good place to start is with a book that not only traces the author's lineage, but also cross references the information several times and includes not only the reference notes but also the cited manuscripts and works used. The book is: The Rede of the Wiccae: Adriana Porter, Gwen Thompson and the Birth of a Tradition of Witchcraft ~ By Robert Mathiesen & Theitic [ISBN- 0-9709013-2-1 (softcover) And the publisher is Olympian Press; Providence, RI.
The Rede itself actually predates anything Dr. Gerald Gardner put out, and most of his stuff (ie. chants, spells, rituals, songs, guidelines, etc) used for his Coven specifically wasn't even written by him, it was his colleague and later Priestess Doreen Valiente. Which didn't last too aweful long as she didn't take to his constant desire for the "public" spotlight; especially when at that time witchcraft was just being accepted to the point that witches weren't being hung, burned, stoned to death, or imprisoned for their practices anymore.
Research everything for yourself before discounting someone's shared research.
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