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HEX
A term or word designating a witch's spell which has a long historical association with the connotation of the number six. The Greek hex, and the Latin sex cognate with the Egyptian seven, "to embrace, to copulate." Six almost universally represzented the number of sex, representing the union between the Triple Goddess and her trident-bearing consort, which is why Medieval Christian authorities labeled six "the number of sin." Pythagoreans, on the other hand, called six the perfect number, or The Mother. One of its Egyptian forms seshemu, "sexual intercourse" - shown in hieroglyphics by male and female genitals in conjunction - allegedly survives in a Sufi love-charm designed to open the "cave" of the Goddess: Open, Sesame - though this is possibly a rather bizarre 'urban legend' within Neo-Pagan circles.
A triple six, 666, was the magic number of Triple Aphrodite (or Ishtar) in the guise of the Fates. After Solomon met the Queen of Sheba he acquired 666 talents of gold (I Kings, 10:14). In Christian literature the 666 has been referred to as the "Number of the Beast" (Revelation 13:17-18), but the recurrences of the number in esoteric Traditions is frequently surprising. The Labyrinth at Chartres Cathedral, for example, was planned to be 666 feet long.
The Egyptians considered 3, 6 and 7 most sacred numbers. Three represented the Triple Goddess, six meant her union with God; seven meant the Seven Harthos, seven planetary spheres, seven-gated holy city, seven-year reigns of kings, and so forth. Egyptians were obsessed with the conviction that the total number of all deities had to be 37, because of the number's magical properties. This was because it combined the sacred numbers of 3 and 7; and, 37 multiplied by any multiple of 3 gave a triple digit or "trinity": 111, 222, 333, 444, 555, etc. The number 666 is the product of 3 X 6 X 37.
Hexagonal hex signs include the six-pointed Tantric yanta of love. The name of the sign comes from the Pennsylvania Dutch, who borrowed it from their native German word for "Witch," Hexe, which in turn is derived from Old High German hagazussa or hagzissa. ("hag").
In common usage, hex means an evil spell or curse, but among the Pennsylvania Dutch, for example, a hex can be either good or bad. It is cast by a professional Witch whose services are sought out and paid for with a "voluntary" contribution. Witches also are consulted to protect against hexes.
see also: HEX SIGNS; NUMEROLOGY
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
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