Wicca or Witchcraft?
One of the first questions people ask when they start exploring this path is: “Am I Wiccan or am I a witch? What’s the difference? Does it matter?”
These are good questions. The answer depends on what you’re looking for and how you want to practice. Let me break it down.
An Earth-Based Pagan Religion
What is Wicca?
Wicca is a religion – specifically, a modern earth-based neo-pagan religion that emerged in the mid-20th century. It has structure, theology, and ritual practices that have been passed down and adapted over generations.
Most Wiccans honor a Goddess and a God, often understood as the divine feminine and masculine – the moon and the sun, the earth and the sky, life and death in constant balance. Some Wiccans work with specific deity names from various pantheons. Others see these energies as archetypal forces rather than literal beings. Some Wiccans are polytheist, pantheist, or even atheist, viewing the gods as symbolic rather than literal.
Wicca follows the Wheel of the Year – eight sabbats marking the solstices, equinoxes, and cross-quarter days. Many Wiccans also celebrate esbats, rituals aligned with the lunar cycle. The Wiccan Rede (“An it harm none, do what ye will”) serves as ethical guidance, though interpretations vary.
Wiccan practice often includes ritual circle-casting, calling the quarters, working with specific tools like athames and chalices, and observing traditions passed through covens or books. Some Wiccans practice in covens with hierarchical structures and initiations. Others practice as solitaries, adapting traditions to fit their own understanding.
Wicca is a religion. You can be Wiccan without practicing witchcraft, though most Wiccans do incorporate magical work into their spiritual practice.
Magic and Rituals
What is Witchcraft?
Witchcraft is a practice, not a religion. It is the act of working magic – casting spells, using herbs and correspondences, performing divination, setting intentions with ritual, and shaping energy to create change.
Witchcraft does not require belief in any particular deity or adherence to any religious structure. Some witches are Christian. Some are Buddhist. Some are atheist. Some work with gods and spirits. Some work purely with energy and intention.
Witchcraft has existed across cultures and centuries under many names. What we call witchcraft in the modern Western context draws from folk magic traditions, herbalism, divination practices, and energy work. It is both ancient and constantly evolving.
You can practice witchcraft without being Wiccan. You can cast spells, read tarot, work with herbs, honor the moon, and call yourself a witch without ever stepping into a ritual circle or celebrating a sabbat.
"Unruly women are always witches no matter what century we’re in."
~Roxane Gay
The Overlap
Here’s where it gets interesting: most Wiccans practice witchcraft as part of their religious observance. They cast spells, work magic, use correspondences, and perform rituals. But not all witches are Wiccan.
Think of it this way – Wicca is a religion that includes magical practice. Witchcraft is a magical practice that can exist within or outside of religious frameworks.
You can be:
- Wiccan and a witch (following Wiccan religious structure while practicing magic)
- A witch but not Wiccan (practicing magic without Wiccan religious beliefs)
- Wiccan but not a witch (following Wiccan spirituality without focusing on spellwork)
- Neither (interested in earth-based spirituality but not claiming either label)
None of these choices is more valid than the others. Your path is yours to define.
How Do You Know Which You Are
Ask yourself a few questions:
Are you drawn to religious structure – sabbats, deities, ritual frameworks, spiritual community? Does the idea of honoring the Goddess and God resonate with you? Do you want to learn traditional Wiccan practices, perhaps join or form a coven someday? If yes, you might be Wiccan.
Or are you more interested in the practical side – learning to cast spells, working with herbs and correspondences, reading tarot, creating your own rituals without adhering to a specific religious tradition? Do you want the freedom to blend practices from different sources, to work magic on your own terms? If yes, you might identify as a witch but not necessarily Wiccan.
Maybe you’re both. Maybe you follow Wiccan spirituality and also practice witchcraft. Maybe you celebrate the sabbats because they align with the seasons where you live, but you don’t consider yourself religiously Wiccan. Maybe you avoid labels entirely and just do what feels right.
All of these paths are valid.
Why Labels Matter (Or Don't)
Some people find labels helpful. Calling yourself Wiccan or a witch or both gives you language to describe your practice, to find community, to understand where you fit in a larger tradition.
Other people find labels restrictive. They prefer to practice without claiming a specific identity, drawing from whatever sources resonate and leaving the rest.
Both approaches work. What matters is that you’re honest with yourself about what you’re actually doing and why.
If you’re practicing magic, you’re doing witchcraft – whether you call yourself a witch or not. If you’re following Wiccan religious practices, honoring Wiccan deities and observing Wiccan sabbats, you’re practicing Wicca – whether you use that label or not.
Finding Your Path
If you’re just starting out, explore both. Read about Wiccan traditions and sabbats. Try casting a spell or two. See what resonates and what feels forced. Pay attention to what draws you in and what leaves you cold.
You don’t have to decide today. Your practice will evolve. The labels you choose now might shift as you learn and grow. That’s not failure – that’s the natural progression of a living practice.
What matters most is that you’re paying attention – to the land you’re on, to the rhythms you’re part of, to what feels true when you’re standing barefoot on the earth.
Start there. The rest will follow.