Glossary - exWitch Australia (formerly 'Born Again Pagan')

FLAGELLATION

A ritual practice, extending back at least to the 2nd Millennium BC or earlier, designed partly as a sexual stimulant and partly as a symbolic form of discipline.

Flagellation is an integral part of Gardnerian Wicca, involving the use of a ritual instrument to scourge a candidate during first and second degrees of Initiation when the recipient, according to Gardner's instructions, receives forty strokes. In many Gardnerian covens this takes the form of a token scorging. It is frequently applied whilst the recipient is blindfolded and ritually bound.

Gardner also required flagellation to be an essential component of preparation for the Great Rite, the third degree of Initiation. Critics claim that he was obsessed in an unhealthy way with this form of masochism because of his predilection for physical subservience to women, a necessary prerequisite to his achievement of personal sexual potency.

It should be noted that flagellation is not confined to Wicca and is also widely observed in other religions, including Islam, Christianity and Hinduism.

see also: SCOURGE

PLEASE NOTE:
One of the major problems with 'defining' Paganism and/or its beliefs and practices is that it is an 'organic' movement, in that it is undergoing constant change and re-evaluation from within, and as such any 'one-size-fits-all' approach to understanding Paganism will be found wanting.

Due to the very 'organic' nature of Paganism, and the many differing Paths and Traditions within it, in many cases no one definition may be universally accepted by all Pagans. Therefore, where such cases of possible conflicting and/or contradictory meanings of certain terms occur I have endevoured to give not only the generally accepted meaning, but also any major 'variations' in belief and/or practice.

Christians who believe this difference in meaning of certain key terms, beliefs and practices to be unique to Paganism need to remember that such conflicts also arise within the Body of Christ - the Church. Take for instance the differing practices amongst Christians concerning Baptism and the different attitudes towards women in the clergy.

- Jean-Luc