The Ballad of Morris Cod

[Ashles]

People are always forgetting the most important part of that statement. As it stands, it sounds like an anthem for amoral selfishness and hedonism. It isn't.

The full creed is "An it harm none, do as thou wilt shall be the whole of the law"

Forgetting those first four words makes the statement entirely different. If your so-called "warlock" had really followed the creed, he would have had at least one or two moral scruples.

Thanks for posting, Morris Cod. I'm glad you were able to get through it all.

Absolutely. But Alasteir Crowley was a self-serving attenion seeking, self-publicising fraud.

I thought it was a nice parallel with the 'wizard' Morris encountered.

 

[The Mighty Thor]

Well done Morris.

You could probably turn this whole distressing experience to a positive advantage. There is surely a novel (and a film) in your story. If you are not a writer, maybe you could collaborate with one. It has all the ingredients: sex, the occult, betrayal, charismatic bad guy, definitive good guy, love overcomes all difficulties etc.

And the title? How about:

'Do As Thou Wilt'

Best wishes and I hope you keep on keeping on

 

[Zep]

Morris, I hate to be a party-pooper, but after reading your highly interesting OP, and being Tasmanian myself, I just had to go and see what the scoop was on this story.

And I'm having trouble finding ANY reference to a Wicca "wizard" or "white witch" who has been the subject of any court action in Tasmania in recent years. Unless this was before a Family Court (in which case no details will have been released), usually it is possible to find at least one reference to most legal cases of that nature, even if the actual names have been protected. It's even possible to find lists of restraining orders taken out. Sometimes the press gets a wiff of it, even local papers. And the Wiccan forums would presumably have some discussion of it as well, one way or another. But I just can't seem to match up any of your story's details with any available descriptions of actual situations from these and similar sources.

Not that I'm prying for nefarious reasons, of course, just out of my interest. And if I did think I had a hit with actual names I would never publish your details anyway (that would be an unacceptable breach of your privacy here on my part, for a start), but there appears to be nothing to match. Not even a single reference to a single specific misbehaving Tasmanian Wiccan Wizard, even though it appears Wicca is alive and well in my home state.

I'm confused now. Your story appears to be a fantastic one of eventual triumph over rampant hucksterism, but nary a mention of it has been made in the extant legal records. Or the press. Or the Wiccan forums and websites.

Ummm... Should I just stop looking?

 

[sophia8]

Zep, I'm also puzzled that I've not heard any of this before (although I got the impression from somehere that this had happened in England). It would have mentioned in at least some of the Pagan forums, for sure.
Like you, I don't doubt Morris' story but I'm wondering why the tabloid press didn't jump on this.

 

[jmercer]

Zep, Sophia8 - thank you for expressing your doubts, because I was similarly puzzled a few days ago when I originally read this. I have to admit that while I was reading the story I immediately developed a strong sense of incredulity due to the surreal nature of the tale. (Or ballad, as the case may be.) I refrained from posting because I couldn't decide whether to express my doubts or simply keep them private. Part of it is I could not imagine simply joining a public forum and sharing such an intimately painful experience. Such an open revelation is unusual, to say the least.

I still haven't decided whether or not to believe your anecdote, Mr. Cod. Certainly there are bizarre stories about cults and families, so what you described is possible... but I think I'll file this in the catagory of "perhaps, perhaps not" until there's some corroborating evidence.

After all, that's why they call us "skeptics".

 

[Psi Baba]

A good start would be for Morris to post the name and address of the scoundrel. If he really did what he did, there is absolutely no reason I can think of to protect this guy's identity.

 

[delphi_ote]

After all, that's why they call us "skeptics".

Yep. It's what we do. We have to question, or we're just as bad as the believers.

If anyone asks anything too painful or too personal, Morris, you know you're welcome not to respond. We would all understand that. Just let us know.

But you need to understand that without details, skeptics may not be able to believe your story.

 

[Beth]

Morris,

You have, indeed, had a very bad time of it. My sympathies and admiration for your overcoming such problems. It is difficult to break away from such people.

A few words of defense for songstress:

When she says "proper wizard" I think she is using proper to mean ethical.

I also don't think she is blaming Morris for his wife's actions, but rather acknowledging that such actions do not occur in a vacuum. Everyone plays a part in such a drama and by altering your own actions, you can lower the chances of a repeat occurrance. It's not about blame, it's about what can I do. We can't control what others do, but we can control ourselves.

I don't think the suggestion to become a medium was a good idea, but I think it highly unlikely that Mr. Cod would do so.

Finally, I once knew someone who went through a similar situation, but the man involved was not a wizard, but the minister of their church. The two women ended up having an affair together and leaving the men out altogether. Such things occur and I don't blame the occult or the church; they just form the backdrop for instances of a rather ancient drama that is repeated far too often.

Beth

 

[sophia8]

I want to repeat that I don't completely disbelieve Morris' story; it just seems unlikely that it shouldn't have been picked up by either the tabloids - sex and the occult make for cracking good stories! - or the general pagan community.
However, I do remember reading a web page that warned about a very similiar-sounding nasty piece of work here in the UK. He also used charisma, emotional manipulation and a pose of being a powerful witch to get his way, especially with teenage girls.
I've been googling for the past couple of hours, but can't find it, unfortunately. But it shows that stories like these aren't all that unlikely.

 

[Gr8wight]

A few words of defense for songstress:

When she says "proper wizard" I think she is using proper to mean ethical.

It doesn't matter what she meant. The fact remains that the only word in the english language that can honestly be used as an adjective to describe "wizard," is "imaginary."

 

[Morris Cod]

Hi all,
Thank you for your skepticism. I also would question the story. I assure you, it did happen. As for the press etc. would any of you go to the media in the same situation? It was humiliating, embarrassing and I desperately wanted an end to it.I was trying to get my wife back with me, and our families did'nt know too much about the reasons, just that we were apart, someone else was involved, etc. Yes, it would make a good film etc.but I think the trauma of digging it all up again..........I have fought long and hard to restore my family, I would'nt risk it.
As to the court proceedings, I talked to my wife, in regard to this, and she corrected me. Yes, it went to court, the end result was a verbal agreement by him,provisional, to stay away (2 years), which we took, as the cost in pain and time to pursue the thing at the time looked too great. So, in fact, no official restraining order was issued-my mistake. However it did the trick. Because we were seperated at the time my participation in proceedings was less than my wifes, so please forgive my error. If you want names,court location, etc I can provide them, if anyone wants them. Was it a family Court?- I am sure it was'nt.

Thanks again for your interest, if I had asked more at the time, all this would be irrelevant.

 

[Morris Cod]

Oh, just had another thought....

The court fight we had, was'nt a "witch/wizard against mere mortal" thing, it was an attempt by us to get a restraining order aginst him, a mere mortal. When given a chance to speak, his statements reffered to his absurd notions, which resulted in his lawyer advising him to take the agreement and cut his losses. (I assume). This was'nt a "law and order" type trial- it was a small proceeding in our local court-again, if you want names, approx. dates etc. ask away.

Don't panic, I am taking no offence!

 

[Morris Cod]

Hey Zep,
You make some interesting points, that was just my story, part of my life that happened.

As to Wiccan forums, I didn't know they existed-but 12 months ago I did'nt know JREF existed either. I do'nt know if the wiz was part of a larger community, or a deluded psychopath that got his ideas from books etc. How do these Wiccan forums go?-do they sit around and brag about all the stuff they do?? Sheesh, I gotta go there. I do know that he was computer illiterate.Would'nt even be able to turn one on to my knowledge. But, then again there was a lot of stuff I didn't know about him, so he could have been Bill Gates love child and gotten away with it.

I hope this helps clear up any doubt. If it did'nt happen, I want 7 years of my life back!!

Oh, and greetings fellow 2 headed Tasmanian!

 

[Zep]

Hi Morris,

The thing is, I would have expected that the local Wiccan forums just might have noted something about this case along the lines you described but possibly slanted more in their own favour than yours. And a defendant even at a local trial who started spouting this sort of wiffly bilge would certainly get the latest sheepdog trials, Aussie Rules team, and latest HEC foul-up off the front page of the local rag for a few days too. Long days in local court are the training grounds for cub reporters, who are very likely to think they have the scoop of the decade when they hear this sort of thing going on.

However your subsequent description would suggest that, although the incidents described were genuinely large on your radar and incredibly important to you personally, they were more run-of-the-mill in the community at large - possibly even commonplace. Hence the lack of reportage that we can find.

But please don't think that this minimises your issues or makes them less important in any way - it appears clear they were important to you, and affected you and others greatly. I'm not in a position to deny you that, so good luck with your future!

And no, I'm not from Maydena! Thanks all the same for asking...

 

[delphi_ote]

Don't panic, I am taking no offence!

Thanks for clearing those things up and being so gracious, Morris. You're truly demonstrating the best attributes of a critical thinker.

Curious: would you and/or your wife ever be up to talking about what happened more openly? Speaking from your experience in a lecture or outlining all of it in a book would be a very powerful warning to the credulous believers.

 

[jmercer]

Hi all,
Thank you for your skepticism. I also would question the story. I assure you, it did happen. As for the press etc. would any of you go to the media in the same situation? It was humiliating, embarrassing and I desperately wanted an end to it.I was trying to get my wife back with me, and our families did'nt know too much about the reasons, just that we were apart, someone else was involved, etc. Yes, it would make a good film etc.but I think the trauma of digging it all up again..........I have fought long and hard to restore my family, I would'nt risk it.
As to the court proceedings, I talked to my wife, in regard to this, and she corrected me. Yes, it went to court, the end result was a verbal agreement by him,provisional, to stay away (2 years), which we took, as the cost in pain and time to pursue the thing at the time looked too great. So, in fact, no official restraining order was issued-my mistake. However it did the trick. Because we were seperated at the time my participation in proceedings was less than my wifes, so please forgive my error. If you want names,court location, etc I can provide them, if anyone wants them. Was it a family Court?- I am sure it was'nt.

Thanks again for your interest, if I had asked more at the time, all this would be irrelevant.

Sounds to me like you're sincere, and that this really happened... in which case, you have my sympathy and my admiration for your perseverence.

Thanks for sharing.

 

[jambo372]

Thanks for clearing those things up and being so gracious, Morris. You're truly demonstrating the best attributes of a critical thinker.

Curious: would you and/or your wife ever be up to talking about what happened more openly? Speaking from your experience in a lecture or outlining all of it in a book would be a very powerful warning to the credulous believers.

A warning against what ?
You don't have to take a medium's advice.
An interesting story no less.

If Morris Cod's wife and the wizard were so close and went off alone together often then i'm surprised no-one suspected an affair until it was too late.

 

[Morris Cod]

Thanks again all,

I would have no trouble recounting all this, but my wife, I doubt would want to dredge it all up. She lives with a lot of guilt over it all. Just seeing a counsellor after the events was a huge step for her.

Zep, you have demonstrated that you know how things work here in Tassie!! I dips me lid!

Jambo, a fair question in regard to the affair, one that I have asked many times myself.

There were a few of our friends that knew before I did,(they did'nt know the whole story) ,in fact one of them, "prompted me " to get my head out of my arse, and see the truth, leading to my discoveries.

Thanks again for sharing my experience, I believe it has relevance to the forum, and if anybody is any the wiser for it I am happy.

 

[gnome]

People are always forgetting the most important part of that statement. As it stands, it sounds like an anthem for amoral selfishness and hedonism. It isn't.

The full creed is "An it harm none, do as thou wilt shall be the whole of the law"

Forgetting those first four words makes the statement entirely different. If your so-called "warlock" had really followed the creed, he would have had at least one or two moral scruples.

Thanks for posting, Morris Cod. I'm glad you were able to get through it all.

If I might be permitted a correction here:

The wiccan slogan is "An it harm none, do what you will."

The phrase, "Do as thou wilt shall be the whole of the law" is not from Wicca but indeed from the works of Alistair Crowley. The two have connections in their history but they are not the same set of beliefs by a long shot.

Having spoken to a Crowley enthusiast about these words, a friend insisted that "do what you will" referred not to "do what you feel like" but performing a lot of soul-searching (and even multiple rituals) to establish your "Higher Will"--which you can take for what it's worth, but it serves the point that even Crowley types by and large don't think it's ok to just do whatever you feel like.

As for the idea of soulmates--it's a fine romantic idea... in the sense that sometimes two people connect so well that it would seem a crime that they're not a couple. But the idea is often not as good as the reality, and I think a lot of people that believe they've found a soulmate are experiencing another phenomenon... discovering a new infatuation. It's an amazing and intense feeling, and each time it feels different. Each new intense relationship you make is distinct, like proverbial snowflakes... and I think that many misinterpret the difference as a feeling that something unprecedented has happened... but in the end, it's all snowflakes.

Add that to unscrupulous individuals using the romance behind the idea to prey on a target that is already attached (and for whom the initial giddy rush has probably faded)... and you have quite a mess, overshadowing the real joy of a couple who have a solid relationship that stands over time.

http://www.tinysepuku.com/comics.asp?a=4-6-00

 

[jmercer]

If Morris Cod's wife and the wizard were so close and went off alone together often then i'm surprised no-one suspected an affair until it was too late.

Jambo... this is so close to a skeptical comment from you that I almost swooned.

However... it's not unusual for one spouse to be completely blind the other spouse's affair. Denial isn't just a river in Egypt...