The Three Fold Law in Witchcraft

 What is the 

Threefold Law?

The Threefold Law (also called the Law of Threefold Return or simply the Rule of Three) is one of the most widely recognized ethical principles in modern Wicca and many forms of contemporary Paganism and Witchcraft.

In its simplest form, it states:

Whatever energy you send out into the world—whether positive or negative—returns to you multiplied by three.”

Or, in the more poetic wording commonly found in Wiccan circles:

“Ever mind the Rule of Three,

Three times what thou givest returns to thee.”

It is both a karmic law and a practical warning: your actions, thoughts, intentions, and especially your magic have consequences that come back amplified.

Origins of the Three Fold Law

The Threefold Law is not an ancient pagan belief. It is a modern creation that emerged in the mid-20th century within Gerald Gardner’s Wicca (founded in the 1940s–1950s). Gardner himself phrased it in his writings, and it was later popularised by high priestess Doreen Valiente and by Raymond Buckland in the United States.

The concept appears to be influenced by several sources:

•  Eastern ideas of karma (action and consequence)

•  The Western occult idea that energy follows thought and intent

•  A possible misreading or reinterpretation of older folklore sayings (e.g., “a curse comes home to roost” or blessings being returned “threefold” in some medieval tales)

•  Aleister Crowley’s Thelemic dictum “Do what thou wilt” tempered with responsibility

Because of this, many reconstructionist pagans, traditional witches, and practitioners of pre-Wiccan folk magic reject the Threefold Law as a modern invention that does not apply to their paths.

How the “Three” Is Usually Interpreted

Wiccans and neo-pagans typically explain the multiplication in one (or more) of these ways:

Three levels of existence
What you do affects you on the physical, mental, and spiritual planes—so the return is “three times” because it hits body, mind, and soul.

Literal energetic multiplication
The universe amplifies the energy you put out and returns it at triple strength (some say 3×, others 9×, or simply “greatly magnified”).

3Three stages of return
The energy comes back in three waves or through three different events/people.

Most practitioners treat it as a guideline rather than a precise mathematical formula.

Common Misconceptions

•  It is not a universal law of witchcraft. Traditional witches, Hoodoo practitioners, many Heathens, and chaos magicians usually do not follow it.

•  It does not mean you can never defend yourself or curse. Many Wiccans interpret “harm” narrowly (only unjustified harm triggers the law), and defensive or binding magic is often considered exempt.

•  It is not the same as the Wiccan Rede (“An it harm none, do what ye will”). The Rede is about permission; the Threefold Law is about consequence.

Criticisms of the Threefold Law

Outside of Wicca, the concept is frequently criticized:

•  It can promote victim-blaming (“you must have deserved that bad return”).

•  It discourages realistic self-defense or justice-oriented magic.

•  It contradicts observable reality—plenty of harmful people seem to prosper without obvious threefold payback.

•  Some see it as a watered-down, “fluffy” morality imposed on witchcraft to make it more socially acceptable in the 1950s–1970s.

The Threefold Law is a core ethical teaching within Wicca and Wiccan-influenced neo-paganism, functioning as both a karmic warning and a call to personal responsibility. It teaches that whatever you put out—good or ill—comes back to you amplified, usually by three. While it is treated almost as natural law by many modern witches, it is a 20th-century innovation rather than an ancient universal principle, and a large portion of the broader witchcraft community does not accept or follow it.