What is left handed vs right handed path?
*********Okay so I can only speak from how I understand things. I am not a left handed practitioner and I have only interacted with a few. I am not the most knowledgeable on this subject and can only explain as I understand it.************
A lot of people have in their minds that there is black magic and white magic, good magic and bad magic, etc. There isn't. Magic and witchcraft are a neutral force, whether something is used for good or harm is up to the practitioner. This is where right vs left handed paths come in.
Have you ever heard "love and light," "Only good vibes here," "...and you harm none, do what you will"? These are examples of things that stereotypical "light workers" say and believe. Those that follow the right handed path tend to stay in the light, they focus on positive energy, joy, happiness, and tend to steer clear of using anything negative in their practice. However, there is a practice that doesn't ignore anger, fear, greif, death, destruction... but rather accepts it all in love, and uses it. That's the left handed path.
Light Workers tend to focus their practice on others and often follow more deity regulated practices and rules - many are christian or follow the Wiccan Rede whose most important rule is "do what you will, but harm none". Even those who do not identify as Wiccan follow the wiccan belief of three fold law - the belief that anything you put out into the world returns to you threefold. Light workers use blessings over hexes, often specialize in chakra and reiki energy work (that's not to say left handed path practitioners don't use it, but that light workers tend to specialize in it), and heal through "love and light". They also tend to work solely with Gods and Goddesses that specialize in protection, healing, or magic.
People in the left handed path tend to be those that don't follow the law of three, have more self regulated practices, and view themselves as an active force when it comes to karma - which is why those in this path tend to be associated with "dark" magic and hexes. By active force, as someone has explained it to me, they do not hex over petty nothings, but rather take on bigger threats for the sake of those that are weaker or unable to push back when someone has pushed them down. This is also the path that tends to work with the dead more, (I don't mean specializing in helping the dead, but rather working with the spirits of the dead and their energy rather than the energies of "life"), are more open to will bending spells, and work with emotions and energies that self proclaimed "white magic witches" would consider bad - such as anger, fear, and grief.
Then there comes a difference in the paths that I think is actually explained very simply but efficiently: "left-hand paths, life ways which unlike Wicca and Christianity are focused on self-determination and the power of the self, rather than submitting to a superior force." There is also far less judgment in the left handed path - they may craft a spell for someone and send them on their way, regardless of how that person may use the spell. They simply crafted it, any harm or healing that may come about from it is due to the person who uses it. Each path is individual and they do not force their methods on others - the way many lightworkers do. While those that practice left handed paths do not follow the rules and morals of light workers and light focused paths, they do have their own set of rules unique to their practice. Left handed paths require a great deal of discipline, dedication, and focus.
I generally have a really hard time differentiating Light/Right handed paths from Lefthanded paths because they honestly are not all that different. They are two sides of a coin. They mirror each other. They both have rules, rights, rituals, and take varying degrees of work and dedication. I would even say that left handed paths take more dedication because of the spirits and deities they work with not being as lax as some of the deities that light workers work with. At their core the two paths both achieve pretty much the same goals; manifestation, blessing, healing, learning, and soul growth. They just use different methods.
I once asked someone that I know that walks the left handed path, about why they wanted to hex someone else. They said it was to inspire personal growth and healing. I asked why not simply bless them and send more healing energy so that they can overcome their trauma and grow? They essentially explained that the hex would use that person's trauma as the learning tool, forcing them to face what was wrong within themselves and grow - rather than putting a bandaid on it or allowing them to ignore the problem any longer. I will talk more on this when I explain shadow work, but I feel that it is an example that really illustrates the two approaches.
It is important to note that not all practitioners fall into the left handed path or that of light work, these are just two of the most well known. Many fall somewhere in the middle, calling themselves "Grey/Gray" witches. I myself feel that I fall into a lighter shade of grey. Most of the goddesses that I work with are on the lighter end of the spectrum - Aine and Brigid are healers, they bring hope and love to humanity ( however it is important to remember that all gods are not strictly light or dark.. Aine will make any unworthy lovers of her followers sick or go mad, She punishes those who commit sexual violence, etc.). Demeter is a benevolent neutral goddess who brings forth abundance, but also can cause famine. Maeve is a left handed goddess of personal sovereignty and power.
**Again this explanation is simply how I understand things, I'm sure someone who walks the left handed path would be able to explain much better and correct me on a lot of things. This is what I have gathered through talking and listening to how the few left handed practitioners I have interacted with. *****
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