A message to those who profess to practice "The Old Ways"

First of all, you have alot of explaining to do as to what you imply by the use of the term. Secondly, anyone who abides by old agrarian traditions can tell you things like the wiccan "wheel of the year" is not one of them. Thirdly, witchcraft by any old tradition is shamanism, namely the power of psychic expression through the crafting of one's hands- regardless if you're healing or fashioning a suitable medicine to aid in the process, creating a work of art, cooking a meal, cleaning or just washing your face. It's all about foresight and providence in what daily life presents you, for better or for worse. Of course, if you want to make a medieval, gothic, or Dion Fortune fashion statement, then by all means call yourself a witch. Just remember how many midwives took that blame for any defective or unwanted children they had to bring into a world of religious superstition.

In a way, you could say magic is Machiavellian as there is really no limit to the means of achieving an end. Rather, the success of it depends highly on how well you understand the nature of causality- i.e. that there is a time and place for everything. Bad timing or placement will get you nowhere, if not in serious trouble. Knowledge is power, so if you waste your money on a load of trendy new age twaddle and trinkets to act as your charms in aspects of life you know little about, you might as well be pissing in the wind. There is a very good reason why wisecraft was better left to the elders, unless you are truly endowed with psychic kenning. Despite popular belief, the spiritual is not some diametrically opposed netherrealm to the physical world but is the very lifeforce within it. Just how well we can relate this depends on how well we make practical use of those higher senses our brain accomodates in our bio-electromechanical being and interaction. In otherwords, use your brain. So, in essence, what do the "old ways" actually mean? It means getting back to basics, namely the cause and effect of you interacting with the world around you. Plain and simple.