Solitary Wicca vs Coven

[enchanted_one1975]

The topic of Solitary Wicca has come up on another board I frequent. I know that many of us practice Solitary and many are in a Coven. There may be some bias in this area, but there shouldn't be. I feel there are advantages to both and that we just choose the one that is right for us. In an attempt to save the staff a few keystrokes, let me say the following:

This is one area that it seems many Wiccans can disagree on. Post freely, but stay civil and proper. Remember that what you are posting is most likely your opinion, not fact. A real Wiccan follows his or her heart so, unless they are just being evil, it's not right to say they are wrong.

Now for my situation and views on this:
I am a Solitary Wiccan. I don't even know of any covens around me. I am not sure if I want to know of them. There is nothing wrong with them, but I enjoy practicing alone. My fiance is Wiccan as well, but I still practice Solitary. I see a coven as the Wiccan's equivalent of being the member of a parish. If you are not in one it doesn't mean you are not into your faith wholeheartedly. We each have our reasons. My personal attraction to Wicca was/is that I can worship my Gods and Goddesses properly. My idea of properly might vary from the next person's. Does this mean I can't be Wiccan? I think not. And since it is me, what I think is what matters. I love the one-on-one feeling I get from Worshiping from a circle. I also pray without a circle at times. This is not done so much for convenience as it is necessity. With work I am often strapped for time and/or space. Kneeling before bed and praying is something I am very comfortable with, so keeping it part of my daily routine keeps my faith part of my daily routine, even on the days that I cannot take part in a real ritual. Worship can take many forms too. Yes, there can be more that rituals, spells, and prayers. But what about the not so obvious? Many of you have gone out of your way to obtain something to use in a ritual for your Deities. Is going out of your way for these things, in itself, not a form of worship as well? The Gods and Goddesses know what you went through for the items and They know why you did it. They know all. If you spend a week carving the perfect Athame out of a solid slab (a project I do plan on soon) did you not just spend a week in worship? Some may argue, but I say that this is, in fact, a form of worship. Things like this are just a few of what makes me happy in Solitary Wicca. I can get as intimate and personal with any and every aspect of my worship without having to explain myself. Ok, I better cut myself off here. I think you get what I am getting at. Sorry to be so long-winded, but Thoth has been coming to me lately and I think He is inspiring my writing. This is one thing He is known for.

 

[Lehnah]

I am a Solitary Wiccan. I don't even know of any covens around me.

I am in the same situation and as such am a solitary by necessity. I don't know if I'd join a coven even if there was one where I live. I know of a few open circle rituals that go on but they are a number of hours drive from where I am so I've not attended one yet. It's something I plan on doing though however it's much different from joining a coven. I'd love to share my religion with other pagans but I'm not sure I like the idea of joining a coven who's rules I'd have to strictly abide by. It is something I'd have to consider very carefully.

 

[Gentoo]

I prefer a coven of solitaries. My friends and I sorta had one in college... we would worship alone, but would share ideas, skills, techniques with each other.

 

[Erebus]

I know a coven who lives near me. They are white witches through and through though and despite us having some of the same Gods/Godesses, they really don't approve of my use of demons, fallen angels, curses and "dark gods"* (I love how people who have never in their life worked with a demon can tell me that I'm the one who doesn't know what they're dealing with). So this coven is pretty much out of the question even if I did want to join them.

As far as I'm concerned, a chain is only as strong as its weakest link and covens run the risk of becoming bogged down by weaker members. This is one of the main reasons I consider solitary work to be more desirable and will usually refuse to perform a ritual even with somebody merely observing, let alone taking part.

*I don't like how this makes me sound like I'm talking about Dungeons and Dragons

 

[Vintermunder]

I work in a coven where we encourage each other to do solitary work. We have found that when people just practice as a group the group stagnates, conversely we feel that you can only go so far in your craft alone.
For us, it's all about balance.