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Curses, Hexes, Baneful Magic
The big no-no of Wicca

Most Wiccans are against baneful magic - that is, to cause harm to another through magical means, or to interfere with another's free will. There are a variety of arguments against it, some more educated than other:

Bad arguments against cursing:

• The Wiccan Rede's commandment to "harm none" - On account of the fact that the Rede doesn't actually say this.
• Our public image would suffer - Appearances are rarely a good reason for behavior.
• Wiccans just don't - Doreen Valiente, Gardner's student, worked baneful magic and wrote about it.¹

Good arguments against cursing:

• The Ardanes forbid harmful magic. (Assuming you find the Ardanes to be worth anything)
• The Law of Return.
• You're not comfortable with it.

When people speak of curses, they generally envision old crones hunched over their cauldrons calling plague down upon the village and blighting the crops. If that is the definition of curse, then NO, that's not our thing.

But there's much more to baneful magic. Binding, accepted by many Wiccans, clearly interferes with the free will of the target. The accepted use for binding is to contain a dangerous individual. It doesn't cause physical, mental, or emotional injury and is done in the interest of preventing harm, but it still interferes with free will.

So, if you practice bindings, don't tell me you never interfere with another's will. Just because it's for the greater good doesn't mean you can call it something other than what it is.

Then there are the more stereotypical curses: magic which inflicts physical or (more often) emotional harm. Is such a working ever acceptable?

Such actions can usually be addressed with less drastic measures. Cursing is never to be undertaken lightly. However, I am more than willing to consider that there are times where the greatest good might actually come from a proactive curse.

I myself have never cursed. It is not something to just be read out of a book or learned on a webpage. It will have ramifications.

You can really mess yourself up in the process if you are not careful. It requires cursing yourself in the process, and being willing to face your own destruction in an attempt to restore order. It takes commitment.²

Things to keep in mind:

• Revenge - If you're considering the use of magic to "get back" at someone who's wronged you, stop now. This is the sort of magic Wiccans are correct in forbidding. Revenge serves no purpose other than to make the original victim feel better, and frequently it fails to even accomplish that, as it in no way lessens the original wrong.
• Purpose - Will cursing accomplish anything more than making you feel better? "Deserving of punishment" isn't a good enough answer.
• Hypocrisy - Take a long hard look at yourself, your morals, and your own actions. To be guilty of of the same actions which you are opposing will lead to you being cursed as well. Anger or rage will cause the curse to implode.³
• The Law of Return - You will take a kick to the ass for cursing, not necessarily because you're being "bad", but at least because of the tremendous energies a curse channels.
• Knowledge - The more you learn of cursing, the less often you'll find it appropriate. The less often you curse, the more powerful they are when you do.
• Focus - Cut out the collateral damage. Cursing a target's children has been a dramatic staple of curses since the Plagues of Egypt, but what has the child done to deserve such? Keep your magic focused only on those actually involved.
• Doubt - Doubt can kill any spell. The repercussions of baneful magic can be worse. If you doubt your capability, don't do it. And if you're not 100% sure of your motive, or whether it's the "right thing", don't do it.

I strongly recommend you read the two external articles I quote here if you have any interest at all on the subject. It's not a matter to approach lightly. But the subject does exist, and so I offer it here for thought.