Covens? What are they like?

Duddy

So, as you can guess from the title, I'm a solataire, and just wondering what it's like being in a coven? O and any info on covens in the NW would be greatly appreciated!
Thanx:D

Suaimhneach

Covens are for witches. Groves are what the pagans would have.

NW?

rcunning03

Jesjes wrote:

Covens are for witches. Groves are what the pagans would have.

NW?

The "Grove" was also a youth disco in Clontarf, frequented by a lot of Goths, punks and rockers in ye olden days of yore.

NW = North West (I think)

Specky

...and Grover was my favourite muppet :eek:

Talliesin

Jesjes wrote:

Covens are for witches. Groves are what the pagans would have.

NW?

Groves are what some Pagans would have, others might have other things; for example Witches would have covens.

As for the original question of what it's like to work in a coven, it's not a terribly easy one to answer. For one thing I've only worked in two, and one of those never really took off, so that isn't really a statistically valid sample

For another thing a lot of it is difficult to talk about, I'm not thinking so much of the oathbound thing, but more that a lot of what happens in Circle can't be explained very well - you'll know about that already if you've been working solitary and just as a lot of what happens when you work on your own can't really be conveyed, neither can it for coven work.

Another caveat before I begin is that there are some traditions of Witchcraft that really can only be practiced, or at least learnt, in a coven setting. The Gardnerian and Alexandrian traditions and some of they're closer offshoots in particular don't really have a concept of solitary working and have no room at all for self-dedication or self-initiation so if you are drawn towards such a path there's nothing else for it.

Anyway a few things I'd note are:

Coven's can raise more energy, much more, than most people working on their own. However it may take longer to get going and be harder for those involved to use effectively.

Initiation's by another, especially someone who is experienced and lineaged, are more powerful than self-initiations in at least some ways. For good or ill one tends to find things get kinda weird for a while immediately after an initiation, especially to First, as your karma realligns itself. Of course initiations still come from the Gods, but the difference with self-initiation is profound. That's something that will always stay with you; you can leave the coven, stop practicing Witchcraft, follow a completely different path if that is where your life takes you, but you will always be someone who has gone through the initiation and that is not to be taken lightly.

Another thing that stays with you is that you will develop a very strong bond with your fellow coven members. Even with people you generally wouldn't bother with outside of circle there will be a bond there that is often compared to familial bonds. This isn't something that you are expected to develop right away (certainly, unlike "cults", there is no attempt to replace existing familial bonds, and if you ever sense that there is leave and don't look back) but it will happen (if it doesn't after a year you should leave for both your sake and the rest of the coven's and look elsewhere, it just wasn't the right coven for you). Again that is something that stays, there are people I have worked with that are now following very different paths and/or with whom I'm not often in contact, but they're still family.

A practical thing that doesn't come with solitary work is that there is more than one person to deal with. This doesn't even come into couple work that much (especially since such couples tend to also be partners or lovers and hence already have a lot in common and experience at negotiating the remaining differences). You therefore have less freedom both in what you do and in where and when you do it. As the coven grows the number of nights that everyone can get a babysitter for etc. and the number of workings that everyone is happy with decreases. Also at a (mainly) practical level, with a couple there is one relationship to think about, with 3 people there are 3 relationships, with the traditional (stereotypical anyway) 13 there are 78 relationships and the chances of everyone getting on sufficiently well for effective workings decreases. At best the dynamic of 13 people with 78 relationships between them is very complicated.

Suaimhneach

Talliesin wrote:

Groves are what some Pagans would have, others might have other things; for example Witches would have covens.

You must forgive me, I meant to say Druids. Not pagans in general. You are of course right.

rcunning03 wrote:

The "Grove" was also a youth disco in Clontarf, frequented by a lot of Goths, punks and rockers in ye olden days of yore.

My mam went there. Haha. And whenever we drive by it she tells us about it.

Nevyn

joining coven should be a hard thing to do,
finding a group of people and a high preist and priestess
that you can work with and that you feel you have perfect
love and perfect trust with.
leaving a coven shloud be easy if it isnt working for you it isnt

if you are looking i would suggest joining the an fainne mailing list
and asking there

all the best as you travel your path