Welcome to Gaia! ::

You're obviously very eager to learn, and that's great. Just make sure not to try and push too hard too fast. A very common, I hate to say mistake b/c nothing that is a learning experience is a mistake, let's say detours that seekers can make is trying to learn too mauch too fast and confusing themselves.

I don't know how much you know so I hope you will forgive me if start by making sure we're on the same page about some basics. You didn't mention if this is the first book you've read on Wicca or if there have been others. I also don't know if you have settled on Dianic as the tradition for you, or if you just picked up a book that appealed to you w/o taking note that it was tradition specific. LOL, I don't even know if you are aware of the various traditions.

But like I said basics, when most people come to Wicca it's with a lot of old notions about religion, simply b/c the habits of a lifetime don't just dissapear overnight. In todays world we tend to see religion as having a set of rules and procedures to follow in order to be "doing it" properly. The most obvious example, of course, is going to drop a bill in the plate very Sunday is all the Christianity a lot of people practice. Now while there are many, I'm sure, that practice the same variety of Wicca ie just doing certain rituals on certains days, it really doesn't matter much. If all you're doing is worrying about "doing it properly" you're just going through the motions, so it doesn't matter much what you do.

With that in mind, Wicca is a very individual religion. It is one of the few that doesn't start by promising all the answers, but rather encourages one to follow a ptah of personal grown and learning in search of the answers. I like to think of Wicca as learning about the creator by studying the creation. We don't have ten commandments, or even one holy text b/c we don't need it. We take personal responsability to know and do the right thing w/o the need for prewritten rules. We don't need a church hierarchy to decide what everyone should believe, b/c we know that everyone's path is different, and that while paths may intersect we must all walk our own. We also know that one can foster a personal connection with the Devine and not need a priest or minister to serve as a liason.

That said, anything you read in a book shouldn't be taken as anymore than advice. Symbolism and sympathetic representation is very big in Wicca. The passages you're speaking of touch on that when referencing Goddesses being related to senses, pent points, and moon phases. This is the way the author put it together b/c ti is what works for her. It should be taken as an example to learn from, not as a set of instructions to duplicate.

My own view of the God and Goddess, for example is that they are beyond our comprehention. Deity images are simply man-made representations that we can fit in our brains. To me Hera, Isis, Corn Woman, Kali, some nameless primative goddess from prehistoric times known to us only through surviving artifacts, all representations of the same mother Goddess that has always been there from the beginning. Which aspect I may call on depends on the circumstances.

Books and advice from others can be wonderful, but as confusing as it may seem YOU are your own best teacher. The core of Wicca is really reverence of the cycle. There is the, the wheel of the year, the the endless repeating of the moon phases, the cycle of life death and rebirth, even things as simple as the circle of four points as a place of worship and the law of return, all these are representative of of the great cycle of which we are all part. There is no need to fear death or change for end and beginning mean the same.

The key is to find your place in it, to plant your feet on your path. If you have not begun journaling I would highly suggest it. I garentee you, you will be amazed at how much you have to teach yourself. I've had some people ask, "How can I begin w/o knowing what to do?" so let me wrap up by saying that you can not get where you are going w/o first figuring out where you are.

I'm sure you may have even more questions now, and I am sorry about that. But Wicca is such that one can not so much teach as guide. Please fell free to ask anything else you need to. heart

http://www.wicca-spirituality.com/altar-tools.html

This site explains various Wiccan tools. The Athame or knife is one of the most important. The supplies you will need greatly depends on what kind of circle you're doing. You may want to research a few other traditions than Dianic before you start setting up circles; I'm afraid I'm not knowledgeable enough on various traditions to elaborate. Good luck though! I hope that site helped explain about the tools you need and why you need them.

Right on the nose. There are common basic core's to Wicca such as the reverence of the cycles, and the caring for our natural world. living in accord with it. One can not live in accord with their place in the worl while struggling to fit inot someone else's place, so dogma and docterine don't fit well into Wicca.

Choosing other deities will not hinder you. What will hinder you is just trying to copy. Think of it like artwork. If a class were assigned to depicted a bowl of fruit, some might paint, some might sculpt, some might photograph, some might write detailed descriptions, there would probabaly abstracts and realistic work, color or black and white, different angles, lol some one could even do an interpretive dance about how the fruit makes them feel or sing a song about it. Lacking much artistic talent I'd probably bake banana bread and run the rest through a juicer. The point is none of these would be wrong. The core idea would be to depict the fruit, how to best do that wouuld differ from person to person. The only wrong thing would be just copying someone else's work. Inspiration is OK, but like I said, as confusing as it may seem you are your own best teacher. I promise you that will get less frustrating and confusing as you go.