Seven Seasons of Buffy: Science Fiction and Fantasy Authors Discuss Their Favorite Television Show (Smart Pop series) (34 page)

June 21–23: Summer Solstice, or Litha, often associated with the Fairy Folk. A very magical time.

August 1: Lammas, or Lughnasad. This was often the first harvest of the autumn, and marks the moment when the god (often believed to live in the crops) willingly sacrifices himself so that humans may survive the winter.

September 21–23: Mabon, or the Autumnal Equinox.

October 31: Halloween, or Samhain (pronounced “sow-ahn”). This is considered the Witches’ New Year and is the highest of the holy days. The time between Samhain and Yule, the birthday of the god, is often considered to be time out of time, for reflection and settling into
the still, quiet darkness. It’s a good time for magic, as the “veil between the worlds” is believed to be quite thin.

December 22: Yule, the Winter Solstice. This marks the time when the days grow longer, the return of the light, the birthday of the sun god.

Wiccans also celebrate what are called Esbats, which are the new moon and the full moon. Witches and Wiccans work with the energy of the seasons and the waxing and waning energies of the moon.

Many things we’ve learned about Willow seem to contradict or ignore much of the above. Admittedly, there are indeed references to various gods and goddesses. Hecate, the Greek crone goddess who is often linked with Persephone and Demeter to form the Maiden, Mother, and Crone trio of the moon’s cycles, is known as “the witches’ goddess” and is frequently invoked on the show. And when Willow decided to raise Buffy from the dead, she asked for the aid of Osiris, the Egyptian god of the dead. Perhaps the most “Wiccan” ritual we’ve seen came at the very last, during the series finale. From what I saw, it appeared to me as though Willow was performing what is known as a “drawing down,” when the supplicant draws Divinity directly into herself (or himself—one can “draw down” the god as well). Essentially, it’s channeling. For a few moments, Willow actually became a goddess—or The Goddess—and had all Her powers. Kennedy said, “You’re a goddess,” and she was correct, right down to the hair color change. (Which, by the way, doesn’t happen to real Wiccans when they perform this rite.)

But there are goofs that no self-respecting Wiccan would make. Invoking “Diana” as a “goddess of love” is certain to piss off that famous virgin, whose best-known involvement with a suitor ended badly for the gentleman in question when she turned him into a deer and set his own hounds on him. Not exactly the most romantic of encounters.

Oz’s comment to Willow in which he said she stopped keeping track of the full moon after he left is also peculiar, since witches make it a point to know when the moon is full, and are aware that its energy is different from the new moon.

Judging by what we’ve seen on the show, it’s safe to conclude that Willow does not look at her magic as a part of a religious, spiritual path, nor does she truly worship and honor the gods she calls on for assistance in her spells.

It would have been nice to see more attention paid to this—I can picture Willow and Tara wearing flowers in their hair and holding hands on Beltane, or doing serious magic on Samhain, or singing “Happy Birthday” to the sun god on Yule.

2. A
GUIDING PRINCIPLE OF
W
ICCA IS CALLED
“T
HE
T
HREEFOLD
L
AW
.” This is essentially karma—the belief that what you do comes back to you threefold. It’s not to be taken literally. It doesn’t mean that if you nicely stop to help someone change a flat, that people will stop three times to help you change one. It does mean that if you do something good and helpful, when you are in need of help, you’ll have it in abundance.

The converse is equally true. If you do something vindictive and cruel, be prepared for it to come back to you like a boomerang, three times as bad. It’s important to understand the Threefold Law if you are someone who shapes and bends things to your will. It’s kind of a “Slow Down, Proceed with Caution” sort of thing.

3. A
NOTHER PRINCIPLE OF
W
ICCA IS THE PHRASE
“A
N YE HARM NONE, DO AS THOU WILT
.” This means, as long as you don’t hurt anyone, do what you want. Key phrase: “An ye harm none.” This doesn’t just mean you can’t go out and beat people up and take what you want. This means harm none, including yourself.

To the best of my knowledge, neither of these important philosophies has ever been mentioned on Buffy. One might think such phrases might have given Willow pause long before she became “addicted” or tried to thwart the natural order by raising Buffy.

4. W
ICCANS USUALLY INCORPORATE RITUAL INTO SPELL WORKING
. While the Hollywood Witch only needs her FX guy and some fun-sounding words, real witches require ingredients for spells. They’re more like the sage, rose quartz, and green candle ingredients than the eye of newt and fawn blood that we’ve seen on
Buffy.
(Remember that “harm none”? Killing a fawn is certainly harming it. Wiccans love animals and would never, ever hurt them.)

Wiccans also often use physical components, but don’t need them. Their “spells” are prayers, supplemented with a little practical working. The Wiccan god and goddess really do “help those who help themselves.” Contrary to the ways in which many other religions view fate and destiny, witches and Wiccans have always known that they need to take an active part in bending and shaping their own lives.

Some quickie examples regarding prosperity: The Hollywood Witch turns lead into gold. A Christian may pray to God for wealth, then sit back and wait for it to appear. A real witch may do a money spell. A Wiccan may pray, but as part of the prayer ritual he’ll also do a money spell AND get out the classified ads and look for a part-time job.

Here’s a more detailed “for instance.” This a possible description of how a Wiccan and a Hollywood Witch might go about casting the same spell.

Say it’s a love spell. Our Hollywood Witch manages to obtain a lock of hair of the desired person, or makes a voodoo-type doll, or snaps a picture. Browsing through the mysterious shop on the corner, she finds an ancient tome with crackly, dusty pages. At home, surrounded by about a million candles, she recites a very complicated spell. Bright pink light shoots up from the book. Several blocks away, the desired person’s eyes glaze over. He rushes to our Hollywood Witch, her love slave.

The Wiccan might think that her coworker is cute, but she knows she can’t “make” him love her. Remember the Threefold Law and “an ye harm none?” If she casts a spell to make someone else fall in love with her when he normally wouldn’t, that’s violating the other’s free will—definitely harming him. Also, she could find herself the victim of others who try to bend her to their will.

So while she might long for this cute coworker, she takes the bigger view. She purchases essential oils, perhaps rose and ylang-ylang, known as romantic scents. She takes a long bath by candlelight using red and pink candles. They’re the color of love, and the bath purifies her body and spirit. She might choose to wear something romantic or sexy, in anticipation of the love that will arrive soon. She sits in front of her altar, which is filled with flowers, red candles, and a beautiful seashell. She has perhaps written out a spell, or maybe she makes one up on the spot. Either way, she knows that her own words carry much more weight than some stranger’s spells.

She calls upon Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, and asks her to send love the Wiccan’s way, using the seashell as a focalizing point. She asks for the wisdom to know love when it comes and promises to thank Aphrodite for it when it arrives. And she says,
if it’s meant to be
, it wouldn’t bother her if that cute coworker happened to notice her tomorrow.

Over the next several days, our Wiccan lady dresses more romantically, uses perfume, and accepts invitations to go out where she’ll have a chance to meet men she wouldn’t otherwise meet.

They’re rather dramatically different takes on the same thing, aren’t they? Both are magic, both involve spells, but one is much more real than the other.

One thing I have to address before I close is the infamous “Wicca Group” at which Willow and Tara meet. They’re hilarious, and rightfully deserve Willow’s contempt. You’ll find people like these in Wicca, and they’re usually referred to as “fluffy-bunny Wiccans.” But I find it very interesting that in the original script there was a mention of “healing energy” that the members used. That line got cut, and when Willow
mentioned “spells,” they all jumped down her throat for using negative stereotypes. According to
The Watcher’s Guide, Vol. 2
, the line was cut for length. While that may be true, I also think it would just get too complicated for the show if there were “fluffy bunnies” out there working magic too, so the writers chose to make the Wicca group “wimmin” completely without power, full only of hot air. Willow comments that she was talking about “real” spells; the irony is, of course, that the healing energy that the Wicca group wimmin performed is much more real and closer to what Wiccans actually do than Willow’s FX-created black eyes and levitating tricks.

Now, if we’re being honest, watching someone sit around and pray isn’t all that interesting, and writers of TV shows know this. The pink lightning and stuff is much more fun to watch. So that’s what we get—the Hollywood Witch. There’s nothing wrong with her—but she’s not a Wiccan.

So, in sum . . . is Willow a sorceress?

Absolutely.

Is she a witch?

Only the Hollywood kind.

Is she a Wiccan?

Sadly, no.

Is she a wonderfully written and acted character on what was one of the best TV shows to ever hit the airwaves?

Oh, heck yeah.