Now listen to the words of the Great Mother, who was of old also called among men Artemis,Astarte, Athene, Dione, Melusine, Aphrodite, Cerridwen, Dana, Arianrhod, Isis, Bride, and bymany other names. Whenever ye have need of any thing, once in the month, and better it be when the moon is full, thenshall ye assemble in some secret place, and adore the spirit of me, who am Queen of all witches.There shall ye assemble, ye who are fain to learn all sorcery, yet have not won its deepest secrets; tothese will I teach things that are as yet unknown. And ye shall be free from slavery; and as a sign thatye be really free, ye shall be naked in your rites; and ye shall dance, sing, feast, make music andlove, all in my praise. For mine is the ecstasy of the spirit, and mine also is joy on earth; for my law islove unto all beings. Keep pure your highest ideal; strive ever towards it, let naught stop you or turnyou aside; for mine is the secret door which opens upon the land of youth, and mine is the cup ofwine of life, and the cauldron of Cerridwen, which is the Holy Grail of immortality.I am the gracious Goddess, who gives the gift of joy unto the heart of man. Upon earth, I give theknowledge of the spirit eternal; and beyond death, I give peace, and freedom, and reunion withthose who have gone before. Nor do I demand sacrifice; for behold, I am the Mother of all living,and my love is poured out upon the earth.Hear ye the words of the Star Goddess; she in the dust of whose feet are the hosts of heaven,whose body encircles the universe.I am the beauty of the green earth, and the white moon among the stars, and the mystery of thewaters, and the desire of the heart of man. Call unto thy soul; arise and come unto me; for I am thesoul of nature, who gives life to the universe. From me all things proceed, and unto me all things mustreturn; and before my face, beloved of Gods and of men, let thine innermost divine self be enfoldedin the rapture of the infinite. Let my worship be within the heart that rejoiceth; for behold, all acts oflove and pleasure are my rituals. And therefore let there be beauty and strength, power andcompassion, honour and humility, mirth and reverence within you. And thou who thinkest to seek forme, know thy seeking and yearning shall avail thee not unless thou knowest the mystery: that if thatwhich thou seekest thou findest not within thee, thou wilt never find it without thee. For behold, Ihave been with thee from the beginning; and I am that which is attained at the end of desire.From Doreen Valiente's The Charge of the Goddess