Select structure to see pre joining arrangements explained, and types of covens.
Once you become a witch, having undertaken the gateway ritual, you will be invited along to a full inner coven meeting. You will be welcomed as a new member of their family. You will find that the coven like any family has some members who get on better with some other members, but all are friendly and helpful to each other.
Part of their and your promise when joining was one of secrecy, so your identity will be kept secret and anything you tell other coven members will for all time remain confidential within the coven.
In recent year's we have chosen to share a small amount of our knowledge through the school of witchcraft web site, but this is only a small fraction of our total knowledge, and most will always stay secret within our membership, as it could be to easily misused by outsiders.
The exact dress and procedures within covens vary slightly, so the description that follows is by necessity general.
You will now be able to wear a tabard and cloak. A tabard is a rectangular piece of material with a hole in the middle to put your head, the two sides are worn front and back and tied with a cord.
The cloak being a major expense or involving a lot of work is optional. Some will have both a lightweight indoor cloak, in some covens made of netting similar to the decorative type hung in some windows, and a heavier outdoor one with a lining, that is usually a dark color. Some covens have a standard design. (Don't buy or make a cloak in advance of becoming a coven member).
The tabard with open sides, and netting cloak, allows most of the benefits of operating skyclad (in the nude) while at the same time wearing clothing to avoid embarrassment.
Covens can perform some rituals scyclad if they wish, but this would never happen unless it was pre arranged and everyone involved was aware of it and wanted to participate in this form. In practice as everyone is in the same condition and concentrating on the ritual, with subdued lighting, most people are completely comfortable with this, and not embarrassed as they expected to be.
Outside we suggest that tabards or cloaks are worn so as to avoid cold at night and winter and sunburn in summer.
Of course, to start with, it will appear a little strange, some things may happen that you do not understand and there will be some rituals that you may be excluded from at this point, and others where you all leave the room, for a period while some aspect is dealt with by two or three on their own.
You will not have to participate in anything much, or in fact ever that you do not want to. To start with you will watch, and learn, but have the opportunity in the socials that follow to have some items explained to you. Sometimes you will have an explanation before if you are to be directly involved.
As you progress you will find you are being invited to become more involved, and if you at any time would like to be more involved you need to point this out to those running the coven.
Witches can be male or female, and most traditions have male and female witches. A few traditions concerned about women's rights etc, or for some other reason exclude men, but non of our covens do.
Water Witches have male and female witches, they undertake the same and learn the same knowledge.
Historically perhaps men were often thought of as wizards, this we think comes from older times when men perhaps were more involved in astronomy/astrology, and magic while women perhaps were more into herbal cures.
Within the Water Witches, you will find people referred to as Wizards, these are in effect professors or experts in their own fields. They may not be high priestesses, and involved in the ritual, but instead experts and teachers in in one or two fields only for example herbalist cures, or Hypnotherapy.
Many witches are happy to stay as witches, some however will want to move into the leading of rituals, being able to organized gateway rituals and other special rituals like hand fasting, our equivalent to marriage, and management of the coven.
The first stage is normally acting as maiden or assistant in the coven, or perhaps acting as a teacher of a specialist area of knowledge. All good coven leaders will give all those who wish the opportunity to fully participate.
The next major stage is to become a high priest or priestess, (remember that all witches are priests or priestesses already).
Becoming a high priest/ess involves getting a more complete understanding, being confident to explain to other members of the coven our beliefs, and rituals and being confident to work with the covens book of shadows. Once you have decided this is for you and the coven leaders agree you are ready you will undertake a gateway ritual that in effect involves you in making further promises and commitments to the coven, and to all Water Witches, and requesting extra powers and support from the superior power. A coven can have any number of High priest/esses
Within the coven their is one more step that can be taken, this is to become the leader of the coven, this is referred to as the Queen or King Witch. This again involves a gateway ritual and further promises and commitments. A coven has to have had more than 7 members for a year and a day, before it can have a leader made up, even then it is optional, and you can have only one per coven. Queen and King witches are more often found when there are either very large covens that meet in parts, or where for some other reason it has been decided that a clear leader should be established.
There is far more that could be leant, than even the most enthusiastic witch could master, which of course is one of the major advantages of being in a coven, in that you can share the abilities. Covens would normally expect to collect a number of abilities.
Sometimes people enter the coven with specialist knowledge already, sometimes after joining they will identify an area of interest and be encouraged to study this. On other occasions, knowledge will be passed from one member to another. It is the duty of every witch to wisely share with other witches his or her knowledge and skills. By wisely we mean, when you feel you can pass on the knowledge to that person, when they are sufficiently motivated to learn, and you believe they will be able to use the new skills to the benefit of others and harm of none.
Eventually some members will become experts to such a level and gain the respect as a teacher and problem solver in their chosen field, and at that point they may be considered for a special ritual and celebration, from which point forth they will be known as a Wizard. Wizards can, when they choose, wear pointed hats and outfits that are patterned, while witches wear clothing that is un-patterned and hoods.
The suggestion to make a witch into a wizard is made by the high priestess, and requires either the agreement of another wizard in the same subject or a king or queen witch, who has witnessed their skills. All appointment of wizards is reported to the high king, the head of the Water Witches 4 weeks before they are to be told of the appointment, in a detailed report giving the specialty and reason why they should be considered a wizard. He can ask that the appointment is reconsidered, or more often that the specialty is redefined. The High King can also select people to become Wizards. It is a great privilege and honor to be classed as a wizard and one that is not granted lightly.
Merlin was a title given to a series of wizards historically rather than being a single person. And within each of our covens we have an officer chosen to act as Merlin, who is responsible for the spreading of knowledge within the coven. They may also have special ceremonial roles in some covens, such as carrying the sword escaliber ahead of a high king or king witch or the female equivalent. This has a practical as well as ceremonial purpose in that he then knows where he is going. they do not have to be either a wizard or high priest. In most covens their main role is in keeping track of skills and training being received and identifying external courses or experts you can bring in to train your members when needed. In theory they could be female but in practice have always been male to date. In some covens they are the male equivalent to the maiden assisting in all rituals as well.
A female assistant to the high priest/priestess. Helps out in ceremonials and when invited dignitaries such as wizards, kings, queens or the high king visits makes sure that all their needs are being looked after. In many covens this is a post held before someone becomes a high priestess. In some covens it is a role or office a person has and in others it is a role allocated to different people so as to allow more people to be involved.
These are performed by a member who is at least one level above the grade being introduced therefore:
| Ritual to create | Minimum |
| Witch | High priestess |
| High Priestess | Queen witch |
| Queen Witch | Princess |
| Princess | High King |
Or the male equivalent of any grade
They usually occur two days after a full or new moon, this is at the time of the spring tides, when tides are higher.