The Wiccan Rede is only eight words:
"AN IT HARM NONE, DO AS THOU WILL"
So many people seem to feel that the lengthy poem by Gwen Thomas that starts "Bide the Wiccan Law ye must..." is the rede itself. This is most likely because the title of the poem so closely resembles the guideline:
"Rede of the Wiccae" - NOT the Rede
"The Wiccan Rede" - IS the Rede
So, what IS the Rede?
The Wiccan Rede is an eight-word guideline of how to live, not unlike other religious tenets such as the "Golden Rule". The problem with interpreting the Rede is that most people, who jump into Wicca with little more than a Silver Ravenwolf book, only see two words in the eight-word guide: Harm None. With the fluffy likes of authors like Horne and Ravenwolf, they obliterate the other 6 words, leaving the "Harm None" and declaring it a LAW. The Rede was never a law (and didn't exist before the 1960's). The very word "Rede" means advise, or to guide. It's not a law that you MUST abide by lest you be struck down by lightning. If you step on a bug you're not condemned to the Wiccan hell where you will be tortured for eternity. Wicca does not subscribe to eternal torture concepts.
The Wiccan Rede is advice on how to conduct yourself, not only in a religious sense, but in the mundane world as well. It essentially tells the follower: If its not harming anyone, do it...but "harm" is a confusing word. Essentially everything you do from taking medication to swatting a fly is doing harm to something. The key is to determine whether or not the consequences are acceptable for doing as little harm as possible (while understanding that harm is inevitible). When you swat a mosquito, are the consequences greater than if you were to let it live? Say it carries the Zika virus everyone is so worried about. If you left it, it could bite another and transmit the disease.
Now I'm not saying all mosquitos are possible carriers, but usually the reaction is to swat and kill the mosquito because of how much of a nuiscence scratching a bite can be (I know, especially when you get bit on the foot!)
But there are other types of harm you can do that is acceptable, like medication that I mentioned above. Medication kills hundreds of bacterias and viruses every day. What would be the consequences if you were to not take your medication because you worried about causing harm to the virus? You could become deathly ill...is your death a harsher consequence than if you were to kill a virus or bacteria? I'd say so.
The Rede doesn't dictate to anyone what will happen if you DO harm. It's not saying DON'T EVER DO HARM, EVER!!! It's simply saying to think before you act; look before you leap. What are the consequences of your actions and are they acceptable?
Naturally, as adults you are free to do what you will. You can harm all you like, but in the end...no one faces the consequences of your actions, but you (and of course, your victim).
I recommend these links for further understanding of the Wiccan Rede. The first one is by a very respected acquaintance of mine, Mackenzie Sage Wright. She puts greater perspective on the Rede, than I've seen.
Ethics in Wicca Part I: The Wiccan Rede
Another noted author, Catherine Noble Beyer, also discusses the Rede and offers better perspective than others:
The Wiccan Rede
I hope these are helpful in understanding Wicca's Rede better.
The Wiccan Rede is advice on how to conduct yourself, not only in a religious sense, but in the mundane world as well. It essentially tells the follower: If its not harming anyone, do it...but "harm" is a confusing word. Essentially everything you do from taking medication to swatting a fly is doing harm to something. The key is to determine whether or not the consequences are acceptable for doing as little harm as possible (while understanding that harm is inevitible). When you swat a mosquito, are the consequences greater than if you were to let it live? Say it carries the Zika virus everyone is so worried about. If you left it, it could bite another and transmit the disease.
Now I'm not saying all mosquitos are possible carriers, but usually the reaction is to swat and kill the mosquito because of how much of a nuiscence scratching a bite can be (I know, especially when you get bit on the foot!)
But there are other types of harm you can do that is acceptable, like medication that I mentioned above. Medication kills hundreds of bacterias and viruses every day. What would be the consequences if you were to not take your medication because you worried about causing harm to the virus? You could become deathly ill...is your death a harsher consequence than if you were to kill a virus or bacteria? I'd say so.
The Rede doesn't dictate to anyone what will happen if you DO harm. It's not saying DON'T EVER DO HARM, EVER!!! It's simply saying to think before you act; look before you leap. What are the consequences of your actions and are they acceptable?
Naturally, as adults you are free to do what you will. You can harm all you like, but in the end...no one faces the consequences of your actions, but you (and of course, your victim).
I recommend these links for further understanding of the Wiccan Rede. The first one is by a very respected acquaintance of mine, Mackenzie Sage Wright. She puts greater perspective on the Rede, than I've seen.
Ethics in Wicca Part I: The Wiccan Rede
Another noted author, Catherine Noble Beyer, also discusses the Rede and offers better perspective than others:
The Wiccan Rede
I hope these are helpful in understanding Wicca's Rede better.
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