Athame
Encyclopedia
Magical tools in Wicca
In the neopagan religion of Wicca, a range of magical tools are used in ritual practice. Each of these tools has different uses and associations, and are used primarily to direct magical energies...
among several used in the religion of Wicca
Wicca
Wicca , is a modern Pagan religious movement. Developing in England in the first half of the 20th century, Wicca was popularised in the 1950s and early 1960s by a Wiccan High Priest named Gerald Gardner, who at the time called it the "witch cult" and "witchcraft," and its adherents "the Wica."...
, and is also used in various other neopagan witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
traditions. It is variously pronounced ˈæθəmeɪ or /əˈθeɪmiː/. A black-handled knife called an arthame appears in certain versions of the Key of Solomon
Key of Solomon
The Key of Solomon , is a grimoire, or book on magic incorrectly attributed to King Solomon. It probably dates back to the 14th or 15th century Italian Renaissance...
, a grimoire
Grimoire
A grimoire is a textbook of magic. Such books typically include instructions on how to create magical objects like talismans and amulets, how to perform magical spells, charms and divination and also how to summon or invoke supernatural entities such as angels, spirits, and demons...
originating in the Middle Ages.
The athame is mentioned in the writings of Gerald Gardner
Gerald Gardner
Gerald Brousseau Gardner , who sometimes used the craft name Scire, was an influential English Wiccan, as well as an amateur anthropologist and archaeologist, writer, weaponry expert and occultist. He was instrumental in bringing the Neopagan religion of Wicca to public attention in Britain and...
in the 1950s, who claimed to have been initiated into a surviving tradition of Witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
, the New Forest Coven
New Forest coven
The New Forest coven were a group of Neopagan witches or Wiccans who allegedly met around the area of the New Forest in southern England during the 1930s and 1940s...
. The athame was their most important ritual tool, with many uses, but was not to be used for actual physical cutting.
There has been speculation that Gardner's interest and expertise in antique swords and knives, and in particular the magical kris
Kris
The kris or keris is an asymmetrical dagger or sword nowadays most strongly associated with the culture of Indonesia, but also indigenous to Malaysia, Southern Thailand and Brunei. It is known as kalis in the southern Philippines. The kris is famous for its distinctive wavy blade , but many have...
knives of Malaysia and Indonesia, may have contributed to the tool's central importance in modern Wicca
Wicca
Wicca , is a modern Pagan religious movement. Developing in England in the first half of the 20th century, Wicca was popularised in the 1950s and early 1960s by a Wiccan High Priest named Gerald Gardner, who at the time called it the "witch cult" and "witchcraft," and its adherents "the Wica."...
.
On the other hand, the athame stands as one of the four elemental tools in Wicca; traditionally standing for fire, as does the ritual sword. (From the known origins of Wicca, with Gardner's own Book of Shadows, the athame represents fire; where the wand corresponds to air. Other varieties of Wiccan practice may switch those two around.) The other three elemental tools are the wand, the pentacle, and the cup or chalice. These four magical tools correspond to four 'weapons' of significance in Celtic myth - the sword, the spear, the shield, and the cauldron (and/or grail). The same four ritual tools also appear in the magical practices of the western hermetic tradition, derived from The Golden Dawn; and they appear in tarot decks as the four card suits: swords, cups, wands, and pentacles. The athame is an individual ritual tool, while the sword is more appropriate as a coven tool, or the personal tool of the high priest or high priestess. There are obvious risks associated with an entire group of people all wielding swords, while confined within a small ritual circle space nine feet in diameter; this safety factor, as well as ease of use, may explain why the emphasis within Wicca is more on each witch's personal athame, rather than the ritual sword.
Appearance
An athame can take many forms. It usually has a double-edged blade with a sharp point, and a handle which is often black. (A double-edged blade and black handle are required in almost all covens which practice some variant of British Traditional Wicca, including Gardnerian and Alexandrian.) The handle may be inscribed with particular symbols dictated by the tradition. Janet and Stewart Farrar in A Witches' Bible suggest that the point of an athame be dulled so as to prevent un-intended physical harm during ritual use.In eclectic forms of Witchcraft the handle decorations range from astrological glyphs to runes, the symbols being chosen by the owner. Many fantasy-themed athames are also available from medieval and neopagan supply shops.
Use
The athame's primary use is to channel and direct psychic energy, generally conceived as etheric fire. If things such as herbHerb
Except in botanical usage, an herb is "any plant with leaves, seeds, or flowers used for flavoring, food, medicine, or perfume" or "a part of such a plant as used in cooking"...
s or cords need to be cut, another knife called a boline
Boline
In Wicca the boline is a white-handled ritual knife, one of several magical tools used in Wicca. Unlike the athame, which in most traditions is never used for actual physical cutting, the boline is used for cutting cords and herbs, carving candles, etc...
- a white-handled knife - is used. An exception is the "kitchen witchcraft" philosophy, which actively encourages the use of magical tools for mundane purposes to increase the witch's familiarity with them.
The ritual drawing of the boundary of the Magic circle
Magic circle
A magic circle is circle or sphere of space marked out by practitioners of many branches of ritual magic, which they generally believe will contain energy and form a sacred space, or will provide them a form of magical protection, or both. It may be marked physically, drawn in salt or chalk, for...
- also known as "casting the circle" - is usually done with either a ritual sword or an athame, in traditional coven practice. For open rituals in public places, this is sometimes done with a ritual wand or staff instead, since there may be legal complications involved with swords and daggers in public places, even when the edges have been dulled. In most traditional covens, the athame is associated with the magical element of fire, so the circle is considered to be cast in etheric fire. This fire is traditionally envisioned as blue, indigo or violet; although it may equally well be envisioned as other colors. When the circle is ritually purified after being cast, that is traditionally done with the remaining three elements -- air (incense), water (salt-water), and earth (salt) -- because the element of fire has already been imbued into the circle during the casting, by the use of the athame.
After the casting, the athame is the tool traditionally used to invoke the elemental guardians of the four directions - also termed "calling the quarters" - typically by drawing elemental pentagrams at each quarter. This important traditional practice is one of the reasons often given for the requirement that the athame must be double-edged; because attempting to trace a pentagram in the air with a single-edged blade will require some awkward twisting of the hand and wrist, in order to keep the single cutting edge in the direction of motion.
As a masculine principle, the athame is often used in combination with the chalice
Chalice (cup)
A chalice is a goblet or footed cup intended to hold a drink. In general religious terms, it is intended for drinking during a ceremony.-Christian:...
, as feminine principle, evoking the act of procreation, as a symbol of universal creativity. The athame represents the magical element of fire, associated with the Sun and the Horned God; while the chalice represents the magical element of water, associated with the Moon and the Goddess. The union of the two then represents the union of God and Goddess, male and female, sun and moon, fire and water. The marriage of the Sun and Moon -- the union of opposites -- is an ancient idea in alchemy; and the hieros gamos or sacred marriage of god and goddess is an even more ancient idea in pagan religions. (For example, in ancient Greece - from whence the term "hieros gamos" comes.) This rite is done by dipping the athame into the chalice to bless the wine. This is a symbol of the Great Rite
Great Rite
In Wicca, the Great Rite is a form of sex magic that includes either ritual sexual intercourse or else a ritual symbolic representation of sexual intercourse....
in Wiccan rituals. Some modern witchcraft traditions may prefer not to use iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
blades, instead preferring alternatives such as copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
, bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
or stone
STONe
is a Japanese manga written and illustrated by Sin-Ichi Hiromoto. Kodansha released the two bound volumes of the manga on April 23, 2002 and August 23, 2002, respectively.The manga is licensed for an English-languague released in North America be Tokyopop...
, such as obsidian. This is most common amongst traditions that have a particular fondness of the Sidhe
Sídhe
The aos sí are a supernatural race in Irish mythology and Scottish mythology are comparable to the fairies or elves. They are said to live underground in the fairy mounds, across the western sea, or in an invisible world that coexists with the world of humans...
, to whom iron is supposedly baneful.
Associations
Most Wiccan traditions associate the athame with the masculineMasculine
Masculine or masculinity, normally refer to qualities positively associated with men.Masculine may also refer to:*Masculine , a grammatical gender*Masculine cadence, a final chord occurring on a strong beat in music...
principle and with the element
Classical element
Many philosophies and worldviews have a set of classical elements believed to reflect the simplest essential parts and principles of which anything consists or upon which the constitution and fundamental powers of anything are based. Most frequently, classical elements refer to ancient beliefs...
of fire
Fire (classical element)
Fire has been an important part of all cultures and religions from pre-history to modern day and was vital to the development of civilization. It has been regarded in many different contexts throughout history, but especially as a metaphysical constant of the world.-Greek and Roman tradition:Fire...
, as did Gerald Gardner; while the wand is associated with air
Air (classical element)
Air is often seen as a universal power or pure substance. Its supposed fundamental importance to life can be seen in words such as aspire, inspire, perspire and spirit, all derived from the Latin spirare.-Greek and Roman tradition:...
. Other traditions may reverse these elemental associations, and use the athame to represent air and the wand to represent fire. Janet
Janet Farrar
Janet Farrar is a British teacher and author of books on Wicca and Neopaganism. Along with her two husbands, Stewart Farrar and Gavin Bone, Farrar has published "some of the most influential books on modern Witchcraft to date." According to George Knowles, "some seventy five percent of Wiccans...
and Stewart Farrar
Stewart Farrar
Frank Stewart Farrar , who always went by the name of Stewart Farrar, was an English screenwriter, novelist and prominent figure in the Neopagan religion of Wicca, which he devoted much of his later life to propagating with the aid of his seventh wife, Janet Farrar, and then his friend Gavin Bone...
suggested this difference is due to the Golden Dawn
Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was a magical order active in Great Britain during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which practiced theurgy and spiritual development...
releasing false information in the hopes of preventing its rituals being used in the correct way. They add that a witch should always choose the association which seems the most correct to them.
Fire and water are considered to be polar opposite elements, classically and in alchemy and traditional magical practice. They are sometimes considered to be the two primordial elements, the combination of which gave rise to the other two elements of earth and air. Fire and water are also the elements most associated with Sun and Moon, and thus the Horned God and the Goddess within Wicca. For this reason, covens that associate the athame with air (and the wand with fire) may decide to use the wand to bless the wine chalice, instead of using the athame. A union of air and water does not carry the same symbolic significance of the "conjunctio oppositorum" (union of opposites) that the union of fire and water does. Also, covens that regard the athame as air and the wand as fire may choose to cast the ritual circle with the wand or staff, instead of the sword or athame - if they conceive of this casting in the traditional way, as a casting of etheric fire via a projection of psychic energy. If they conceive of the circle casting as cutting a line in the air with the tool of air, then they may choose to purify the circle with the remaining three elements of fire, water, and earth; this would involve using a candle to purify the circle, and omitting the incense, since the circle has already been imbued with the element of air.
The athame is the most important ritual tool in Wicca, and like other ritual tools it is generally purified and consecrated to the Gods before being used for ritual and magical purposes. There are various ways of accomplishing ritual purification and consecration, depending on the specific tradition of Wicca being followed, and also whether the individual Wiccan is practicing with a coven or as a solitary witch. One common way to do this is by using the four magical elements of fire (candle), air (incense), water and salt; and perhaps anointing the blade with an oil infused with magical herbs. Touching another person's athame without permission is considered a ritual faux pas in almost all traditions of Wicca. It is an intrusion of the owner's personal space; and more importantly, it is an act that violates the magical bond between the athame and its owner. Some witches will go to great lengths to ritually purify, reconsecrate, and rededicate an athame after it has been touched by another person.
Acquisition
There are rituals of consecration for a newly acquired athame, be it new, or acquired from another person. When purchasing a knife for this purpose (or any ritual tool) it is considered important never to haggle over the price.Etymology
Idries Shah
Idries Shah
Idries Shah , also known as Idris Shah, né Sayed Idries el-Hashimi , was an author and teacher in the Sufi tradition who wrote over three dozen critically acclaimed books on topics ranging from psychology and spirituality to travelogues and culture studies.Born in India, the descendant of a...
, who was personal secretary and close friend of Gerald Gardner
Gerald Gardner
Gerald Brousseau Gardner , who sometimes used the craft name Scire, was an influential English Wiccan, as well as an amateur anthropologist and archaeologist, writer, weaponry expert and occultist. He was instrumental in bringing the Neopagan religion of Wicca to public attention in Britain and...
, provides yet another etymology from an alleged Arabic al-dhammé "blood-letter", which was supposed to be the ritual knife of a medieval magical cult of Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
and Andalusia
Andalusia
Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest in area of the autonomous communities of Spain. The Andalusian autonomous community is officially recognised as a nationality of Spain. The territory is divided into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córdoba, Málaga, Jaén, Granada and...
. This etymology is controversial, however. It appears in his book The Sufis as a quotation from A History of Secret Societies by Arkon Daraul (a probable pseudonym of Shah). Robert Graves
Robert Graves
Robert von Ranke Graves 24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985 was an English poet, translator and novelist. During his long life he produced more than 140 works...
(an acquaintance of Shah) suggests an Arabic derivation from al thame (or adh-dhame), which he translates as "the arrow".
A Latin manuscript version of the Key of Solomon has a drawing that looks like a sickle
Sickle
A sickle is a hand-held agricultural tool with a variously curved blade typically used for harvesting grain crops or cutting succulent forage chiefly for feeding livestock . Sickles have also been used as weapons, either in their original form or in various derivations.The diversity of sickles that...
, labeled Artavo. Gerald Gardner's use of 'athame' probably came from modern French versions of the Key of Solomon, probably via Grillot de Givry's Witchcraft, Magic and Alchemy (1931), who misinterpreted the term as applying to the main ritual knife, as shown by his index entries "arthane" or "arthame".
Historical parallels
- The Malay krisKrisThe kris or keris is an asymmetrical dagger or sword nowadays most strongly associated with the culture of Indonesia, but also indigenous to Malaysia, Southern Thailand and Brunei. It is known as kalis in the southern Philippines. The kris is famous for its distinctive wavy blade , but many have...
is a ritual knife regarded as having magical powers, and Gerald GardnerGerald GardnerGerald Brousseau Gardner , who sometimes used the craft name Scire, was an influential English Wiccan, as well as an amateur anthropologist and archaeologist, writer, weaponry expert and occultist. He was instrumental in bringing the Neopagan religion of Wicca to public attention in Britain and...
was a recognised authority on these knives prior to his involvement in Wicca.
- The Roman secespita was a ritual knife; however, it was used for sacrifice.
- Zoroastrian priests ("magi") traditionally used a knife ("kaplo"), a spear (or stick with a nail on the end), or even the forefinger, to draw ritual furrows ("karsha") for purpose of protecting the sacred ritual space from evil and ritual pollution.