# 3.3 The Wiccan altar

Solo practice has nevertheless always been a central part of Wicca. Many Wiccans keep an altar in their home, and for some who are not members of a coven, this is where the Wheel of the Year and lunar ceremonies would be marked, either ritually or through seasonal decoration. It is also where the special tools used in ceremonies are kept and ritually consecrated. But the altar is also where magical work is carried out. Not all Wiccans use magic, but it has always been a central aspect of the tradition, both in the form of herbalism and other folk healing techniques, and more elaborate forms derived from Renaissance ritual magic. Many witches differentiate their ‘white magic’ from forms which aim to benefit the practitioner at the expense of others, however.

Figure 10 High Priestess Mrs. Ray Bone consecrating water and salt at the beginning of a witchcraft ritual, 1964.

OpenLearn - A spiritual revolution? Wicca and religious change in the 1960s
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