Black Elk was a holy man of the Lakota people of the Sioux tribe. He writes of rituals and beliefs of his people in his book The Sacred Pipe. The sacred pipe is very important symbol to his people. It symbolizes the medicine wheel, all four directions living in the same space. Pinches of tobacco are placed in the pipe along with grains and seeds for all relatives and the pipe takes on new meaning. It also symbolizes how everything in the universe is unified. The pipe is very important in the lamenting process, which is discussed in Black Elk's writings. He goes into great detail about lamenting. It is looked at as a quest for healing,

Starhawk takes an Ecofeminist approach in her writings about Witchcraft. She is not a "man hater" and she clearly states that Witchcraft promotes equality between sexes. In this portion of Spiral Dance, she gives examples of ethical applications. Sexuality, for example, is "a direct expression of the life force"; it must be appreciated and held sacred. It is to be expressed freely, but only for love. She says that rape is intolerable because it is violent, and when hurting someone else - it is hurting the Goddess. Starhawk also discusses the ethics of stealing. Pagan followers apply the golden rule to their daily life, "do unto others as you would have them do unto you". This belief can be applied with the issue of stealing. Stealing can harm individuals and by harming someone else, it is also harming to the Goddess.

Black Elk presents the spiritual beliefs of his people. He focuses on the strong belief that everything is relative and how one must have an understanding of this sacred relationship and how this can be achieved through the lamenting process. The spiritual beliefs of Witchcraft are similar to that of the Lakota. Both Starhawk and Black Elk emphasize the importance of an understanding before practice.

Modern Witchcraft's ideals began approximately 35,000 years ago. They have been one of the most misunderstood and unjustly persecuted spiritual groups. For example, the Inquisition, which was aided by the 1484 A.D. Papal Bull of Innocent the VIII. This persecution was aimed at women. According to Starhawk, "Of an estimated 9 million Witches executed, 80 percent were women, including children and young girls, who were believed to inherit the 'evil' from their mothers." The ideology behind the Inquisit

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