The Customs of Wicca

The religion of Wicca cannot be examined as a whole entity. There is no single Wiccan orthodoxy, and no central body oversees its practice. Many different beliefs and traditions make up the Wiccan religion, and they often vary from practitioner to practitioner and coven to coven. However, some central religious principles and customs are shared among most Wiccans, with five central Wiccan customs that can be identified.

Wicca does not have a list of commandments. Instead, Wicca has one single commandment intended to guide all behavior. According to the Church of Universal Eclectic Wicca, this guiding principal can be summarized as, "An' it harm none, do as you will." In other words, if it doesn't hurt anyone, you are free to do it. It is customary for Wiccan practitioners to abstain from behaviors that can cause harm of any kind to any person, including themselves.

Another central custom in Wiccan practice is acting in accordance with the law of returns. The law of returns dictates that the actions you take influence your experiences in the world. Wiccans believe that if you want to have good things happen to you then it is imperative that you do good things. Likewise, they hold that if you do bad things you should expect that bad things will happen in your life.

Wiccans believe in taking responsibility for their own actions. Wiccan customs do not believe in placing blame on one's own actions on an outside force. There are no demons or devils in the Wiccan religion, so when a Wiccan makes a mistake, he has no one to fault but himself.

According to Wiccan custom, all practitioners should constantly seek improvement within themselves and the world around them. Common goals many Wiccans strive for include racial acceptance, religious tolerance and an appreciation for art and history. Through continually striving for enhanced understanding within these broad categories, practitioners hope to create a better reality for themselves and others.

The Wiccan ethic of attunement is the custom that most closely resembles the belief structure of most Western religions. The ethic of attunement dictates that all practitioners regularly seek to connect with divinity. However, unlike most Western religions, that divinity is not concentrated in one spiritual body. Rather, Wiccan practitioners regard three powers as divine: the self, the gods and the universe.