Halloween’s Most Popular Symbols: Witches
The term “bewitch” makes us typically think to a very old woman whose skin is grey or green, poring over a bubbling black cauldron that contains disgusting ingredients, pronouncing some kind of strange enchantment and worshipping the devil.
Fairy tales as well as derivative movies made in Hollywood are generally responsible for such untrue idea of those characters only because it makes the movie more exciting.
Witches are also frightening characters of Halloween celebrations. But what is the truth about them?
Basically, the term “witch” originates from the words wicca, wicce or wiccian; which all mean in reality ‘wise woman’, ‘wise women in the plural form. There always have been people interested in learning the special virtues of medicinal plants, the course of the moon, stars and other planets, and by many other aspects of the nature.
In general, witches are associated with a well-known earth-based religion: the Wicca, but a lot of others can be called “witches” no matter the fact that they do not follow this particular religion. A great number of these people practice a mingle-mangle of ancient pagan rites. These rites existed a long time before the advent of the Christian religion whose originated the term “witch” and launched the idea that those who lived under the cycles of nature were revering the church of the demon.
It was the Catholic religion which introduced the concept of Satan or any other demon. The term “pagan” itself in reality signifies “country people” – not devil worshippers.
Men can be witches also, but the term makes us think to women. There is a misconception of the word that male witches are supposed to be called ‘warlocks’ – this also is
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