Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Living the Threefold Law

The Threefold law is something that is intrinsic to Wicca.  We all know and have alluded to it's similarity with Christianity's Golden Rule, and while it is different, I think that a normal person's reaction to it is about the same.

They ignore it.

As modern people, we need to do more than just take what works for us and toss the rest to the side.  The easier path is just that, easier.  The worthwhile path is always the hardest.

All of us want to believe we stand for truth and honor.  The Threefold law goes hand in hand with Harming None, and most of us believe in it.  But how many of is truly live it?

I started thinking of this yesterday, as we limped my injured knee to the store to get a few groceries and some prescription meds.  We were walking by the meat counter, because Sean always wants to check out the competition.  There were a bunch of steaks in the counter...I mean, meat looks like meat to me, but Sean said that they weren't what they were labeled as, and they were priced wrong.  WAY wrong, like the store would lose 3$ a pound if they sold them that way.

Sean is still learning about Wicca.  He only became interested in it when we started dating, and I was explaining my beliefs to him.  His response to what I told him? "Wow, that sounds what like I believe except without the fancy words!"  He asked to point out specific things when they came up, because he finds that is the best way to make things stick in his head.  While he has read a lot, there is nothing like hands on experience.

So when he was about to walk away from the meat counter yesterday, I asked him, "Aren't you going to tell them?"

"Tell them what?"

"Umm, about the meat being the wrong price?"

"Well, I guess...but that takes effort."

Like most of us, we want to take the easiest path.  No one is free from it.  We all do it.  I've no issue admitting that I do it also.  But when certain things could truly harm someone, you have to look at the ripples that one decision would make.  What if these things kept being labeled incorrectly?  What if so much money was eventually lost that someone lost their job?  Are these things likely to happen?  No, but they could.

At Sean's work they are all about numbers.  If the numbers come back good next month, Sean gets a raise.  So I asked Sean, "What will it do to their numbers?  What would you want someone to do?"

So he did go and tell them, and they thanked him profusely.

The right thing is not always the easiest thing, and I think that is the main point behind how the threefold law works.  If we do nothing, we get nothing in return.  But if we expend the energy to do something good for other people, we get more of that energy in return.  Call it a karmic tithe.

I know for a fact that I don't live the Threefold Law as often as I should, or would like to.  But I am working on it, and moving forward.  Isn't that what life is all about?

What do you believe about the threefold law?  Do you live it as often as you should?

Goddess Bless,

Stacy

Also, thanks for the well wishes from yesterday, everyone!  I'm still feeling a little sick, and my knee is still sore, but I can *almost* walk normally on it again.

5 comments:

  1. Hi Stacy,
    I'm pretty sure Sean felt much better after doing the right thing- that, in itself, is a reward.
    I am not a follower of the Threefold Law, but understand it well.
    Glad you are better.

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  2. :) I think the main problem may be that those who want to follow it don't understand it well. I'd be interested to see a blog post from you about what drives your personal ethics! Always interesting to learn about what makes other people tick. Thanks Kallan! ♥

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  3. I try my best to follow it, I have Harm None tattoo'd on my back and it means a lot to me. My friends kid me about giving back the change if I was given too much but yet I have been known to toss a Wendy's bag out the window. Very bad I know, some how I rationalize it with job security for someone, however it is horrible to litter and to deface Gaia... need to work on this more myself. Thank you, I will be more mindful and watch myself better.

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  4. Thanks, Sherry! It's something that everyone could work on, the fact that you recognize it is a wonderful thing! I that watching yourself like that can help in other areas of your life as well, especially with that you are going through. ♥♥

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  5. Whether one believes in the Threefold Law or just the understanding that what we put out into the world (good or bad) is often returned to us (which is so easy to observe in the world), it seems to be in our best interest to try to do the right thing and be a good person. But we're all human. We're going to fail. Sometimes we learn as much from our failures as our successes.

    Yes, doing the right thing can be hard. That's an awesome lesson to learn. Patience with ourselves and our own learning process is also important.

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