Raganas Vilkis: Grove of the Ancients

A Traditionalist Pagan Witchcraft Fellowship Based In Indianapolis, Indiana

 


 

To the Lord and Lady I bend my knee and pledge my service to their Ancient Way.


Welcome to the future home page of Raganas Vilkis. We are currently under construction threw out the next month and will be updating this web site when possible.

In the meantime feel free to join us at our message forum at Yahoo.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Raganas

WHO WE ARE AND WHY ARE WE HERE

Ragana Vilkis, founded upon October 18th, 2000 with one mission goal. With that goal being, to bring together Pagans and Witches of a more heriditory Witchcraft and traditional Pagan backgrounds together for fellowship and worship with like minded individuals, in the Indianapolis/Centeral Indiana area.

We are not just another Wiccan/Pagan circle or coven. We practice and worship inaccordence to historically based, cultural based, and folk tradition based sources of Pagan beliefs and Witchcraft practices. Indstead of reinventing and reconstructing practices which is the hallmark of Wiccan and neo-Pagan based traditions. Ragana Vilkis believes in rediscovery, renewal and revival of Witchcraft and Pagan tradiions which survive to this very day in verious traditions, cultures and yes even down to the Old World curious Grandmother folkways which she passed on.

Being that we are a more hereditory and traditionalist minded organization we have differences with the Wiccan and neo-Pagan traditions, minor differences, of philosophy, theology, an proceedures, yet differences none the less. Which tend to make a hereditory/traditionalist uneasy an stick out like a sore thumb in the Wiccan/neo-Pagan circles. Instead of having the hereditory/traditionalist conform to modern day Wicca/neo-Pagan role model, thus abandoning the ancient in order to `fit in'. We believe it is time to restore the anciemt back into what it means to be Witch, Shaman, Pagan. Without apology or reservations if such practices seem out of place in the Wiccan/neo-Pagan context.

Ragana Vilkis members are on the most part conservatives and literalists when it comes to the Old Ways, We believe in holding true to the Old Ways as we were taught them.


ABOUT OUR NAME: THE ESSENCE OF PHILOSOPHY

Raganas Vilkis (our name) ingrains our goal and philosophical stance in regrads to Old Ways.

Ragana, from the ancicent Latvian language, meaning Witch, from the noun Raga `cresent Horn` an verb regetti meaning `to forsee`. Thus we see that the Witch was the one who forsaw the future by the power of the cresent moon, ancient symbol of the Mother Goddess. A Shamaness engrained with the supernatural. A traveller of two paths. Anthropmorphic image of the Ragana was one of dual natures. on one hand the lovely seductive spirit of the woods by day. at night the talon footed hag/crone with the appearence of a bird of prey. that inhabitted the forks of dead oaks. Maiden and Crone, Light and Dark The Raganas (common in Latvian villages up to the early 1900s) in the village was the repected mid-wife, country doctor, keeping of folk knowledge. Yet she was a creature of the Magickal, as well, an when crossed curses, spells and spirits were at her command. The Ragana was both respected and feared. Life Giving Mother/ Dark Crone. Surivival of Hunter-Gather Shamaness.

Vilkis `wolf`, from the ancient Latvian language, meaning proper noun Vilkous (eyes of the wolf). Pagan God of Wolves and trickster magickal Shape-shifter. Vilkous totem sects were made of Warriors and Warrioress's headed by priest(ess) druidic castes, who evoked the God in times of War an Invasion to empower the Warrior with courage, strength and the Craft of Magickal shapeshifting. It was during the Northern Cruasdes (1200-1600ad) when the Christian Church attempted to convert the last Pagan Tribes of Northern Baltic Europe, by the sword. That the very first Were-Wolf legends were born when defeated Teutonic Knight/Priests straggled back to Germany with tales of armies of Were-wolves led by powerful robed druids. To this very day Latvia and the sister states of Lithuiana, Estonia remain heavyly Pagan.

The anthropmorphic image of the dark/light Witch, Shaman, Sorcery is found worldwide in the anthropologic record of verious cultures and dates back to pre-christian eras. The Witch, Sorcer, Shaman were not pacifistic do gooders adhereing to creeds of `An it Harm None, Do As Thou Wilt.` But in fact beings that traveled and adhered to codes outside of that of mortal law. The Witch, Shaman and Sorcer inhabitted that shadowly world between the vail of the world of man and the world of spirit . Such an existenence demanded the Witch, Shaman and Sorcer to act in accordence to Wisdom that would balance the two worlds and codes there in. Not always would such actions be demeed as positive to those of the world of man.

With this image of the Witch, Shaman, Sorcer found world wide dating back to pre-Christian era one may have to ask why then modern day revival of Wiccan and neo-Pagan community are so quick to calim linkage to ancient Pagans and Witches, yet deny the very essence of what it meant to be Witch and Pagan? Is it only to please the villagers? An in the process present a watered down pale imiation of the original.

Raganas Vilkis members believe `villagers be damned` my Goddess and God and their ways and the Craft, come first in our lives and keeping true to the Ancient Way of the greatest importance.

We welcome all, from all traditions and paths who wish to restore the Traditional Essence of Witch Pagan, Shaman and Sorcerer who place their faith in Great Mother Goddess and Horned God of Hunt above all. We welcome all, from all traditions and paths who are not fain of heart of learning from the Ragana even if she transforms in the night.

Abacriss, Druid of Ragana Vilkis, email: [email protected]

 

November 5, 2002, Tuesday, Last Update