Stregheria is an antiquated word for witchcraft in the Tuscan dialect of the Italian language. The term comes from the Italian strega ('witch' or 'hag'), itself descended from the Latin word strix or striga ('owl'; the latter form is applied exclusively to a blood-drinking night spirit). It was popularized by C.G. Leland's book entitled Aradia or the Gospel of the Witches published in 1899. The modern word for "witchcraft" in the official dialect of the Italian language is stregoneria. However, even today many secular internet translation services, such as babelfish, will translate "stregheria" as "witchcraft".
Traditional Stregheria, or "La Vecchia Religione", is a quasi-messianic religion that honors the Roman god Lucifer, the Roman goddess Diana, and their lovechild, the demigoddess Aradia who was sent to earth in human form to offer freedom through witchcraft to the poor and oppressed. It is mainly a Classical Anarchist religion, and can be seen as a direct reaction to the Christianization of Italy and the predominant class system thereof. In fact, Stregherian mythology is filled with strong Anarchist and anti-Christian themes.
The form of Stregheria popularized by authors such as Raven Grimassi is considered by many adherents to be little more than Wicca with an Italian flavor, and those belonging to family traditions predating the Gardnerian movement are generally scornful toward such authors and their Wicca-biased characterizations of the religion.
Female practitioners of Stregheria are called Strega, male practitioners are called Stregone, and the modern neutral term is Streghe (which was actually feminine in Old Italian ).
History
Much of the history of Stregheria is largely unknown; guesswork, speculation, and fantasy must fill the gaps. Historical references to Stregheria prior to the publication of Aradia: The Gospel of the Witches are scarce, and some equate them with generic accusations of witchcraft leveled by alarmists during the inquisitions. Most adherents, however, feel that Stregheria is a genuine survival of a pre-Christian religion in Italy that endured virtually under the nose of the Catholic church.
Origins
More to be written
The Messianic period
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The "Witch Wars"
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Leland's influence
To be written: Leland's supposed discovery of Stregheria.
On the question of Leland's contributions, most modern adherents publicly denounce Leland's publication as an accurate reflection of Stregheria and regard it as a work of fiction -- but claim it, more or less, as a grossly inaccurate, highly fictionalized misrepresentation of an actual witchcraft religion. (As an aside, Leland's research concerning the Romani, or "Gypsies" was extremely influential, but much of it is nevertheless considered highly inaccurate.)
As expected, modern adherents of Stregheria are less than forthcoming in reference to their own beliefs and practices. It may be that Leland's book was a more or less accurate representation of Stregheria, and that modern Streghe denounce it because of its accuracy. Another possibility is that Leland's "Gospel", if having actually come from a surviving tradition as he claimed, might represent but a single branch of Stregheria that differs in many meaningful ways from other branches. It should also be pointed out that modern Streghe disagree widely as to which parts of Leland's book were inaccurate. Almost every aspect of Stregheria portrayed in Leland's "Gospel" is publicly accepted by some Streghe but disregarded by others. Which aspects are true and which are false depends entirely upon which Streghe one is asking. This lends to the hypothesis that Leland's book portrayed a hodge-podge of various different witchcraft cells with very different beliefs.
An alternate viewpoint is that Stregheria didn't exist at all before Leland's publication. Some point out that it is impossible for a member of a supposed family tradition to know which beliefs are truly ancient and which were just made up a generation or two ago. Even if records exist, there is always the possibility that said records were falsified. However, this view is often seen as overly skeptical, even among academics.
Modern Stregheria
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Mythology
Stregherian mythology is essentially a blend of Abrahamic and Pagan mythology; more specifically, it is derived from elements of Roman catholicism, Roman mythology, and Etruscan mythology. There also appears to be some influence from Persian mythology
The Pantheon
Key figures in Stregherian mythology include:
According to Stregheria, Aradia was a long forgotten Roman demigoddess, the daughter of Lucifer and Diana, who was instructed by Diana to go to Earth and offer freedom through witchcraft unto the thieves and assassins so that they would no longer have to steal or kill to avoid slavery.
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The Roman counterpart of the Greek goddess Artemis.
More needs To be written regarding her specific role in this religion.
Lucifer was originally the Roman god of light and equivalent to the Greek god Phosporus, later connected by Christians to The Devil of Abrahamic mythology. Many forms of Stregheria embrace a somewhat Christianized version of Lucifer, seeing him as a brave rebel who dared to oppose the tyrannical Yahweh. This can be seen as an allegory for the slaves (being followers of Lucifer) who opposed their Christian oppressors (being followers of Yahweh). In the context of Stregheria, Lucifer is also described as a Sun god, and is sometimes connected with Apollo.
More to be written
Dianus
A large number of modern Streghe, desiring to distance themselves from the overtly anti-Christian imagery and themes of traditional Stregheria, have begun to claim that Lucifer was a modern addition to the religion made by Charles Leland. These Streghe claim that the religion originally revolved around Diana and Dianus, and often disagree as to the nature of Aradia and the implications thereof. Still others see Dianus as just an alternate name for Lucifers, referring to his Moon god aspect.
The Three Devils
Referenced only one place, in the Vangello della Streghe.
- Yahweh: The most evil of the Three Devils, who of old banished Lucifer to Hell. He is seen as a totalitarian deity and a tyrant, who instructs his followers to commit evil acts such as witch hunts and oppression against Pagans and the poor.
- Jesus: The Christian messiah. In Stregheria he is viewed as a false messiah, much like the Christian concept of an "antichrist". Aradia is thus the true christ.
- Mary: Just as Yahweh is the evil counterpart to Lucifer, and Jesus the evil counterpart to Aradia, so is Mary the "mother of God" the evil counterpart to Diana.
The Grigori are fallen angels, also called watchers, who aided Lucifer in his rebellion against the tyrant-god Yahweh. These are the guardian angels of witches, similar to (but distinct from) familiar spirits. In Raven Grimassi 's version of Stregheria, the Grigori are merely keepers or watchers of the variety found in the various tradition of Wicca, perhaps ancestral spirits. In true Stregheria, however, the Grigori are separate and distinct from the ancestral spirits. Their names correspond to the four "royal stars" of ancient Persia.
- Aldebaran: Quarter guardian of the eastern gate , and counterpart to the archangel Raphael the Seraph of Kabbalah. Also called Alpena.
- Antares: Quarter guardian of the western gate , and counterpart to the archangel Gabriel the Cherub of Kabbalah. Also called Meana .
- Fomalhaut: Quarter guardian of the northern gate , and counterpart to the archangel Uriel the Seraph of Kabbalah. Also called Taga .
- Regulus: Quarter guardian of the southern gate , and counterpart to the archangel Michael the Virtue of Kabbalah. Also called Settrano .
The Lasa are the ancestral spirits of witches long deceased.
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In Leland's presentation of Stregheria, the Sun is analogous to the Christian Hell. The Biblical character Cain is said to be eternally trapped within the Sun, and Lucifer is said to be the god of the Sun as well as god of the Moon. This is interesting from an astrological perspective, for as the Moon orbits "above" the Earth, so does the Earth orbit "above" the Sun -- thus, in a sense, the Sun is a fiery inferno that exists "beneath" the Earth.
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Structure & traditions
To be written
Benandanti & Malandanti
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Group practitioners
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Solitary practitioners
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The Triad Clans
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The Fanarra
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The Janarra
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The Tanarra
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Religious practices
The most obvious Stregherian religious practice is magick. Although folk magick is most common, ceremonial magick is also practiced.
More to be written
Circle casting
In Raven Grimassi's version of Stregheria, circle casting is practiced just as it is in modern Wicca. An athame is used to "cut" holes in the circle so witches can enter and exit without breaking it. Circles are cast prior to any magickal working.
In traditional Stregheria, circles are cast only for safety before invoking certain potentially dangerous spirits. The circle cannot be cut or opened in any way, as this would give opportunity for malicious spirits to enter. Physical objects (including people) can enter or exit the circle without disrupting it, as circles are often cast outdoors where wind, rain, insects, and other physical objects pass in and out of the circle at all times without disrupting it. In terms of traditional Stregheria, "breaking the circle" does not mean disrupting it, but instead simply means leaving the protected area that the circle provides. Although leaving does not harm the integrity of the circle (and no "cutting" is necessary in order to leave), it is considered extremely dangerous to stray beyond its perimeter during a magickal working, as it would also be considered dangerous (perhaps more so) to cut holes in the circle. This philosophy of circle casting is the same historically used by the mages of medieval times.
In magickal workings that do not involve the invocation of spirits, circles are typically not cast. This is true of most antiquated magickal traditions. Some may feel more comfortable casting circles as a precaution before any type of magickal working, and it is probably from this practice that modern Wicca and the "Wiccanized" version of Stregheria developed their current practices, as contradictory as they now seem.
Religious holidays
To be written
References
- Leland, Charles G. "Aradia, or The Gospel of the Witches" 1899.
- Lewis, James R. "Witchcraft today: an encyclopedia of Wiccan and Neopagan traditions" ABC-CLIO 1999.
More to be written
See also
