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

INDRES, Shah Sayio

A writer on Sufi who was employed by Gerald Gardner as a secretary in the 1950s. His most famous work is The Sufis (1964), which investigates the famous order of Arab mystics who still exist today. In the book he postulates that the medieval witch cult in England was of Arabian or North African origin with secret communication taking place between middle eastern mystics and their western counterparts.

Some of the argument is based on the fact that the Moorish rule, and therefore influence, extended to Spain for over seven hundred years from 711 AD until 1492. Many of the Moorish sciences, including astronomy and medicine, were conveyed to Spanish intellectuals who generally fell behind in these disciplines. But the Moors were also deeply interested in Magick, Astrology and Alchemy, and it seems inevitable that many of their ideas and practices concerning the Occult arts were copied.

Further east, the Knights Templar also opened an interface for the exchange of magical ideas and almost certainly absorbed many before they were persecuted as heretics. They worshipped the deity Baphomet which, according to Doreen Valiente, bears a strong similarity with the God of the Craft and it is significant that Gerald Gardner was a Sufi initiate.

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