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Witches celebrate the sabbats (marking the change of season) and esbats (full and/or new moon), either alone or in groups. Such groups may be casual, with no formal membership or leadership, and performing self-created rituals. Other groups are tight-knit and invitation-only, following traditional ritual and training — and these are called covens.
The ideal coven has close to but no more than 13 members and roughly equal numbers of men and women. Real-life covens, however, consist of any number of people, but are generally are small and intimate. Gender distribution varies. The original idea was to promote “polarity” between males and females. These days we generally settle for the high priest and high priestess providing that balance, and sometimes we skip the gender-polarity thing altogether.
The notion of polarity involved using the free-floating sexual energy of a mixed group for “raising power”, i.e., directing a psychic charge towards some end, such as a healing spell. However, groups that are all-women or all-men, or all straight or all gay, or any mixtures thereof, seem to work fine. Witches, being practical, are more concerned with convening a group of people who like each other and work well together rather than with observing the technicalities.
Covens used to be hard to find. These days both covens and casual groups may well advertise for members in occult bookshops or Pagan newsletters, or they may offer courses as a way of finding suitable people. As in any other social encounter, everyone concerned, both group members and prospects, should be careful and exercise common sense, especially in preliminary contacts. In a few cities open circles can be found, often operating out of occult bookstores. Individuals can also meet witches and witch groups by attending festivals, which are open to all and are advertised in bookstores and newsletters.
Although a witches’ coven is the popular image, the fact is that a great many witches are solitary practitioners. This is sometimes by choice. However, in Canada, unless you live in a large city, you may be on your own because you have trouble finding any kindred souls. The solitary can take solace in the basic premise of the modern Pagan movement, namely, spiritual autonomy, whereby we all have to find our own way, whether alone or in the company of fellow seekers. And there are many Pagan books on the market these days, in which people have found a model of spirituality and, on the practical side, many suggestions for activities and rituals.
Check out our short list of recommended books.