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 Now the Journeyman Wizard applies their knowledge to draw a new map. They develop the wisdom to know the seen and unseen, and in seeing through both. The Journeyman Wizard learns to restore balance in themselves and with others. As a Wizard, they bring restoration to the Cosmos. The Journeyman practices what they have learned, testing limits wherever possible.
 
I think that the Journeyman phase could be likened to the White Phase of Alchemy. The purified essences of the Apprentice are released and separated. Then the opposing parts are joined and transformed. If this fails to produce a new person, then the process starts over. The Journeyman tries and retries until they have accomplished their goal. It can be the longest phase since the Wizard is refining their skills.
 
The final phase is the Master. In Alchemy, this is the Red Phase, the final steps in creating the Philosopher’s Stone, the Greater Stone. (The White Phase creates the Lesser Stone.) For the Journeyman to become the Master, they need to complete the Lesser Stone first. Upon completing the White Phase, the Journeyman Wizard will be able to discern what is needed to achieve mastery of the Greater Stone.
 
In Freemasonry, the Master Mason has the “cosmic responsibility to lead the way.” The Master Mason has the duty to continue building on the sacred teachings. Like the Adept Alchemist, the Master Mason has been tested and purified. They now understand the Mysteries of the Universe.
 
This is not the end for the Wizard, since the Master Wizard now manages and directs the directions of Wizardry. Understanding the Spiritual Laws of the Universe, the Master teaches others. In traditional Wicca, the Third-degree Witches are expected to hive off and to form new covens. These witches have experienced and understood the intense combination of spiritual and physical energies of their practices.
I think that a Master Wizard might seem to know everything. However, they only know what they seek to know and understand only what they can. But the Master knows that things are always in flux. Therefore, they retain the Apprentice mind to be open to learning new things, and the Journeyman mind to hone what they learned. Later, the Master teaches the new knowledge.
 
Works Used:
Clark, Natalia, “Pagan Portals – Baba Yaga Slavic Earth Goddess.” Alresford (UK): John Hunt Publishing. 2021.
Collinson, Kevin, “Spiritual Dragon Wizardry”, Web. https://www.dragonwizardry.org/.
Hall, Manly, “The Lost Keys of Freemasonry. (1923)” E-book. OK Publishing. 2019.
—, “What the Ancient Wisdom Expects of its Disciples. (1925).” E-book. Philosophical Research Society. 1982.
Hauck, Dennis, “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Alchemy.” New York: Penguin. 2008.
Michelle, Heron, “Elemental Witchcraft.” Woodbury (MN): Llewellyn. 2021.
Snavel, Deborah, “Degrees, Guilds and Initiation into the Wicca,” Raise the Horns with Jason Mankey, (November 4, 2014). Web. https://www.patheos.com/blogs/panmankey/2014/11/degrees-guilds-and-initiation-into-the-wicca/.
Stimpson, Ben, “Ancestral Whispers.” Woodbury (MN): Llewellyn. 2023.
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 Most people think in terms of “three stages” in mastering esoteric knowledge. This comes from the Medieval Guild system of Apprentice, Journeyman, and Master. Various traditions such as Wicca may not call these stages by the same name but they divide their membership into three levels. In Ancient Rome, the Vestal Virgins had three divisions – the girls learning how to be Vestal Virgins, the Vestal Virgins maintaining the protocols of the Goddess, and the senior Vestals who taught the girls. That for me summarizes the three stages of Wizardry – learning, maintaining, and teaching.
 
Dennis Hauck in “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Alchemy,” says that Alchemy is arranged into three levels of Mastery. He breaks down them down as: The Philosophicum – knowing what is really there, The Theoreticum – knowing how it works, and The Practicum – knowing how to do it. I apply these stages to my learning in Wizardry.
 
I believe that a fourth stage should be included – the Candidate. Before anyone can begin to study Wizardry, they need to know why they want to. Entering the mysteries of Wizardry (or any esoteric tradition) requires hearing the “call.” In “Elemental Witchcraft,” Heron Michelle calls the process of deciding – the “Path of Return.” She defines this as “the desire to form a proper relationship with the Goddess (in her tradition of the Pentacle Path of Modern Witchcraft) and the Cosmos. Meanwhile in Alchemy, Dennis Hauck describes the “why” as wanting to “transmute from being a dead stone to become the living Philosopher’s Stone.” Freemasonry calls it “hearing the Voice to enter the Mystery.” Understanding the “why” the person wants to be a wizard is important.
 
Therefore, becoming an Apprentice is learning the “How.” Each tradition has basic knowledge which needs to be learned. There has to be an understanding of how things work before “doing the work.” Since being a wizard entails manipulating Cosmic energies, the basics have to be honed first. As the website of Spiritual Dragon Wizardry states, “Wisdom are the bricks in a wall, if the higher bricks are placed on ‘poor’ bricks underneath then ultimately the wall will tumble down.”
 
This leads to the question of how to learn as an Apprentice. In her book, Michelle details the “spirit-lead” instruction of the Pentacle Path. She wrote “Elemental Witchcraft” to present an alternative to the oathbound initiations of the various lineages in Wicca. Meanwhile, Natalia Clarke in “Pagan Portals – Baba Yaga Slavic Earth Goddess” describes “Apprenticeship by Baba Yaga.” In this Goddess directed process, Clarke received a vision informing her, that she was not ready for the next step. In fact, she was directed to reframe what her path was.
 
In contrast, Ben Stimpson writes in “Ancestral Whispers” about the potential hazards of working with the Dead. His opinion is that the spiritual world can be a dangerous place. Therefore, Stimpson advises seeking out a mentor. He explains that this person has formed relations with the Spirits. Therefore, they can demonstrate a commitment to and the responsibility of maintaining those relationships.
 
My personal preference is to have a mentor or school for learning esoteric knowledge. For me, gleaning knowledge from books and being “spirit-led” leaves gaps in my knowledge. Moreover, I can fool myself into thinking I have achieved self-mastery.
 
In Freemasonry to enter the mysteries of the Universe, the Candidate works to be truly prepared. Then as the Entered Apprentice, they master the physical aspects of life (i.e. the concrete). To become a Fellow Craft, the Entered Apprentice learn self-mastery of their body in health and wellness.
 
I think that being an Apprentice in Wizardry is learning the map of the Cosmos. Then the Apprentice can draw the map already constructed by other Wizards. At the end of their apprenticeship, the Apprentice is prepared to enter the mysteries of the Journeyman. As an Apprentice, I feel ready as I ponder my final project to become a Journeyman Wizard.
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 Having a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is like going into a dark cave, wandering about and bumping into walls. Sometimes you thump into another person who then leads you through the cave. From my TBI, I learned that I have a light to share with others. We can combine our lights and go forward into the unknown to uncover who we are – Survivors. We become the light which increases with our comradeship.
 
The ones with the oldest TBIs help the new people who experienced a devasting loss. (I have fifteen years.) Together, we go through the bewildering maze of living with a TBI. If we dwell on our TBIs and trying to regain what we lost, we remain stuck.
 
The only way is forward to a new life. We must remember that everyone has wisdom to share and magic they do. As we solve each problem or dilemma, we gain knowledge in how to live independently.
 
In my magical life, I consider myself to be a Brain Wizard. After my TBI, I became a sailor on the seas of fate. In my small boat, I tack to the wind, zigzagging to where I want to be. In the TBI community, we work together to repair each other’s boats and trim the sails. We speak of destinations where we went or want to go.
 
As an Apprentice Wizard, I apply what I learned from TBI community. Life is an adventure to explore. Moreover, magic adds to the wonder. Furthermore, the people you share with along the way makes the journey worthwhile.
 
I know that as I move further into my wizardry, more will be uncovered. For me, it is sailing on those seas of fate but with maps and navigational instruments. Eventually, I will have an outboard motor for the boat to take my friends along.
 
My theme song for my wizardry is “The Greatest Adventure” (also known as “The Ballad of The Hobbit”, by Maury Laws (music) and Jules Bass (lyrics).) It speaks to me of what lies ahead in my wizardry. Some of the lyrics are as follows:
“The greatest adventure is what lies ahead.
Today and tomorrow are yet to be said.
The chances, the changes are all yours to make.
The mold of your life is in your hands to break.”
 
“The greatest adventure is there if you’re bold.
Let go of the moment that life makes you hold.”

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