(based on a recipe from Sacred Year, by Anni Daulter)
2 ounces of dried rose petals
4 - 6oz honey
10 - 12 ounces of vodka or brandy
1 pint canning jar
Mix together in the jar and let infuse in a cool place protected from sunlight (you might also like to charge up your elixir under the full moon or new moon).
(This elixir is intended to offer support with anxiety or emotional stress. It can be dropped under the tongue, stirred into water or tea, or added to a bath)
The religion of Wicca began in the 20th century. It has no roots in paganism, but is notably known for having been inspired by a myriad of different practices, specifically honing in on putting a modern twist on traditional practices.
It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and was introduced to the public in 1954 by Gerald Gardner, a retired British civil servant. Wicca draws upon a diverse set of ancient pagan and 20th-century hermetic motifs for its theological structure and ritual practices.
To understand the origins of Wicca and how it became so widespread, we need to understand the Feminist movements that inspired its growth, such as The Goddess Movement.
(Gerald Gardner)
The Goddess Movement was one of the many ways in which witchcraft would begin to separate itself from the devil and its negative associations, and “Although the belief systems and practices of modern witches vary widely from group to group, there are generally consistent qualities: a female principle is deified, equal to or greater than a male principle; body and soul are interdependent; nature is sacred; individual will is sacred and powerful; time is cyclical; sexuality, spontaneity, imagination, and play are sacred and often incorporated into ritual; and the experience of pleasure is sacred–a positive life force. Worship can be monotheistic, polytheistic, or pantheistic.” (Dumpert, 1999), This is formally known as The Goddess Movement, and is a particularly modern view on witchcraft and Wicca in relation to its reclaiming into today’s world.
This movement describes the spiritual beliefs or practices (mainly in neopaganism) that grew as a reaction to perceptions of predominant organized religion as male dominated, and makes use of goddess worship and focus on gender and femininity. It is widespread and non-centralized and the practices vary widely. The Goddess Movement is also referred to by some as being a form of cultural religiosity that is increasingly diverse, graphically widespread, eclectic and more dynamic in process.
The goddess in this context is the same goddess worshipped in Wicca, which was explained in the article, however the goddess movement is not entirely Wiccan-based, nor is it bound to any other religion worshiping a female God. Instead it is a conglomeration of multiple religions and practices of worshipping femininity and female gods with the intent of redefining religion as something that is not male dominated.
Some, such as dianic-wiccans, exclusively worship female deities while others do not. It is shown that “In some parts of Europe, women believed that they participated in nighttime spiritual journeys led by the goddess Diana or by other supernatural female figures. These nighttime spiritual assemblies would dance, feast, and occasionally enter the homes of neighbors, rewarding the hospitable and punishing the slovenly. The wild ride with Diana was a form of folk belief in the “wild hunt,” a troop of spirits led by a female or male deity that rode out at night, striking terror in those who encountered it. During the Middle Ages, the Christian view of these beliefs changed. Early in the period they were seen as merely superstitious and mistaken, but towards the tenth and eleventh centuries they began to be considered heretical. The Canon Episcopi, a legal document of the Frankish kingdom issued about 900 CE, condemns “wicked women… who believe that they ride out at night on beasts with Diana, the pagan goddess.…Such fantasies are thrust into the minds of faithless people not by God but by the Devil.” Gradually, the folk concept of the wild hunt, with its feasting, music, and dancing, was transformed into the diabolical sabbat, a nocturnal assembly of witches under the direction of the devil where horrible acts took place.” (Russell, 2005).
Belief systems range from monotheistic to polytheistic to pantheistic, encompassing a range of theological variety similar to that in the broader neopagan community. Wicca has huge impacts on witchcraft because witchcraft directly derives many of the topics, ideas, and even practices of wicca despite not being religiously tied down to anything. Today, there are witches of many religions who still come together to worship and celebrate wiccan holidays as a part of their craft
Sources:
Dumpert, J. (1999). Witchcraft: Contemporary Witchcraft Movement. In S. Young (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Women and World Religion. Macmillan Reference USA.
Burton, J., & Magliocco, S. (2005). Witchcraft: Concepts of Witchcraft (L.Jones, Ed.). Gale In Context: World History. Retrieved March 17, 2021, from vol. 14, Macmillan Reference USA,2005, pp. 9768-9776
Baptism is the ceremony where parents and a priest bless a baby in the name of the Christian God and signifies that the child will be brought up Christian.
Wiccaning, also known as paganing and saining, on the other hand is what happens when a baby is blessed with protection, health, and happiness. There is no obligation or strings attached that bind you to any one religion or practice, and wiccaning can be adapted to any religion.
“The Wiccaning is a magickal ceremony for the parents to seek wisdom and guidance, and set their own intentions as they responsibly guide their child in understanding of our world.“ - Michelle
This ceremony is done like so:
Create a traditional altar, adding items such as a special garment and a special amulet for the child to wear that will grant them protection throughout life. Other than that, add the basics such as tributes to each element, gods and ancestors, and whatever tools you may use to create your sacred space
Create a sort of a temple by casting a circle around the altar. This is around when you would light the candles and incense and whatever else
Next, the parents of the child will carry it to the altar while any attending guests will form a circle around them
There are certain words that should be said here, but it largely varies per group and intent, so just do your research and practice a script beforehand
Finish the ceremony by closing the circle however it is traditionally closed
There is a separate wiccan ceremony of induction called an initiation, and it requires having been studying for a year and a day after declaring ones dedication to the craft. After the initiation, there is more study and practice required of course, but the initiation is a proclaiming to anything and everything that you are a regularly practicing witch.
Wiccanings may also be merged with naming ceremonies, in which the only change would be in the words the parents speak. In this, they will do the ceremony specifically on the tenth day after the baby’s birth.
For any witch who doesn’t know, these signs DO invite the fae, especially when you set things around them like this person set a coin on the sign:
I won’t reiterate my entire fae post, but generally it is a poor idea to make deals with the fae. So unless you specialize in working with them and know EXACTLY what you’re doing, please watch out for these!! Especially in thew spring, these little garden décor things are rampant!
If you want to make a little fae garden without actually attracting anything, do not:
accept or leave out food or drinks for them
make a faery ring
write letters to them
verbally invite them, even as a joke
insult them in some way
give them your personal information like your name (see my fae post)
I don’t know if ‘spell fallout’ is already a term or not, but I always feel like it’s an important thing to discuss in Witchcraft. Basically spell fallout are the unintended or unaccounted events that happen after you perform a spell. Let’s use what happened to me as a great example of how you can F up your life with magic.
For about 4-5 years I was working at a company that I on and off loved. At first it was not great, but we moved around and I kind of began to like where I was at and more importantly what I was working on. I learned a lot and even though it was frustrating, I wanted to be there. Then after a few years we were moved again to another space and it was a little horrible. Around that time I was super stuck and not feeling like I was experiencing any growth. Of course I blamed my environment and the circumstances around me and not my own fear-driven decision making. I could have simply looked for another job that continued my career growth. But I didn’t, I blamed everything and everyone else around me.
Out of frustration I did a spell on the waning moon to let go of all the things that didn’t serve me. I was NOT specific and I just generally did the magic without even reading my tarot. That week I was laid off at work. I have not always been financially stable in my life and having the security of a steady paycheck was a HUGE deal for me. And now it was gone. The rug was pulled out from under me and my safe little job had vanished. Being laid off or even fired was one of my biggest fears and that experience sent me into a huge month-long panic attack.
Of course, afterwards everything was fine. It took some time, but I was able to secure employment and continue to grow in my career. I also had a lot of personal growth related to that experience. I let go of tons of fear, moved forward with my own side business and stopped giving into other people’s expectations of me and started living for myself.
Although these were all AMAZING things that I could never have accomplished without the help of my irresponsible spell, THERE ARE BETTER WAYS to achieve this. So before you cast a spell and turn your life into a hot mess for months on end, think about why you need the spell and all the things that could happen in your life from the casting of this one spell. And most importantly, be specific about what you want in your spell. Otherwise you’ll accidentally ‘let go’ of that job that might no longer be serving you, but is still paying the bills.
Crystals are an amazing way to start your witchcraft journey. They are perfect atmosphere cleansers, help protect and can even amplify your psychic abilities. Although everyone is drawn to different crystals for their own reasons, these are always my go-to favorites and I always highly recommend them to newbie witches.
1 - Clear Quartz The OG of crystals. This clear white stone is like the grandmother of crystals. It can replace ‘almost’ any stone in a spell and is a good all around healer, protector, cleanser. If you need to start your crystal collection, start here.
2 - Rose Quartz One of my all time favorites. Not only is this pink stone gorgeous to look at, it has amazing self love properties. I find that it helps open you up to accepting and being kinder to yourself. I always have one on my altar to remind myself that I love myself above all else.
3 - Black Tourmaline This is not the stone for everyone. If you want to try it out I recommend buying one and sitting around with it for a few days and seeing if you jive with it or not. If not, no worries replace with a Black Obsidian ideas. But if you do feel like you are bonding with your Black Tourmaline it’s perfect for keeping spirits away, bad vibes and a whole bunch of other not great stuff.
4 - Moonstone I love a good Moonstone. This beautiful iridescent stone helps me feel connected to The Goddess and all things divine feminine. I always keep one next to my altar and when I do tarot readings to help me connect to my higher self and guide my intuition.
5 - Amethyst Another OG rockstar. This purple stone is fabulous for so many things. A great protector this stone will keep you safe in any situation. It’s perfect for having around your home because it’s so pretty and it keeps the space cleansed and safe.
6 - Citrine This orange stone sometimes gets overlooked but it has great properties. Abundance, growth and energy are all in here. I keep one around to make sure things are flowing and I’m growing at the same time.
7 - Selenite This crystal usually comes in a sort of tower form. It’s a light pink but looks completely different then a Rose Quartz. It’s perfect for people who struggle with insomnia or who are restless and need guidance to find their inner peace. I always keep one in my space to instill a calmness in the room.
8 - Tigers Eye This one was one of my very first favorite stones as a kid. I could not get over the shiny orange/gold stripes mixed with brown sides. It’s still one of my favorites. It’s the perfect stone to help you focus and get rid of any fear and anxiety.
9 - Smoky Quartz A darker, richer brown tone than it’s sister clear quartz, this stone is amazing at dispelling any negativity. I actively use this crystal when cleansing my tarot or tools or just wanting to rid the space of any bad vibes.
I was looking for a cleansing incense a few months ago and ran across a shop that sold room sprays. The idea is you can use these sprays to cleanse the ‘vibe’ in your room before ritual work. I picked up one for the Full Moon and one for the New Moon and I freaking LOVE them. Especially if I’m in a hurry and don’t want to light a whole charcoal block to cleanse with loose incense or any incense in general I just use these witchy sprays.
Both sprays are come in dark glass bottles and filled with incense, distilled water, crystals and blessed by the full moon. I use them so often now that I wanted to try my hand at making my own room spray.
This recipe is for a cleansing room spray that can be used pre any spell or ritual. It’s great for times you’re on the go and can’t light incense or are sensitive to the smoke from incense in general. Room sprays are my for sure go-to now,
What you need
One small glass spray bottle
Lavender and Sage essential oil
Moon water (bonus if it’s distilled)
One small Amethyst
What you’ll do
It’s pretty simple. You just need to place the ingredients in the spray bottle. Try decorating a sticker or label and place it on your glass bottle so you know which spray it is. If you’re curious about how to make Moon Water I’ve written about it before here. You basically leave water outside during the full moon to collect the energy and you can use the water for different things like ritual baths and to make this room spray.
Change it up by adding different crystals, essential oils and herbs to make sprays for energy, self love, or anything else you can think of. I would love to make a protection spray too.
One of my favorite ways to spell cast is with a deck of tarot cards. It’s so simple and effective, and you can literally use this basic spell for anything you want to draw in or release from your life. You can use any tarot deck for this spell technique, but I keep an older deck that I don’t use for readings anymore and use that.
What you need:
You can improvise in any way, but I usually have incense burning, a few white candles out (tea lights are my fave) and whatever crystals I feel are appropriate for the issue at hand. You can always use a general white quartz if you’re unsure.
I always include a physical portion of whatever I’m spell casting for. If it’s a job I want, I might print out my resume and have it laying on the bottom, or collect a some dirt from around the building. If the spell is about me, I might cut a lock of my hair. Just so there is something to anchor the spell to.
I will usually add whatever other elements I might need for visualization or to set the tone. Some things I have used was ribbons for school colors, pictures, herbs that have relevant properties and things like that.
What you’ll do:
Start out by predetermining which three tarot cards you want to use. If I am looking for a job for instance I might choose the 10 of pentacles to represent money, judgement to represent the decision of me working and a third card that closely represents the work I will be doing.
Begin your spell by casting a circle or simply visualizing a bright white light around you, protecting you and your space. Light your candles and incense. Set out your physical items leaving space for your cards.
Set out the first one and visualize in your minds eye the intention of your spell. Then lay out the second one and visualize you getting what you want or the decision being made in your favor. Set out your third card and visualize you in the position of where you want to be.
Meditate on this for a few minutes, making sure you are releasing your intention out into the world and knowing that if there is any mundane work to be done that you are committed to your part. (Mundane work would be working on your resume, brushing up on any skills, and submitting for the job…basically doing your best effort to get where you want to be.)
When you feel like you have released your intention, blow out the candles (or let them burn up to you) and ignite your incense. Thank the energies and release your circle however you want to.
Collect all the items and place them in a small bag and carry them with you. Leave your tarot cards out (if you can) and revisit that energy as many times as you want until your spell is successful. Happy casting!
As I understand it, a spirit attachment is a collective of negative energy, or a form of an entity that has attached itself to you for various reasons, usually not good ones. Sometimes (most of the time really) the attachment is from you. You have harbored some negativity in your life that has now manifested into its own energy-form and is currently hanging out dragging you down. Things that can cause this? Maybe a bad break-up, a rough patch at work, or anything that seems to cause extended periods of mental distress. (Think trauma. Also this isn’t your fault sometimes it just happens because life.) Constant self-doubt, anguish, or negativity forms these things into bad energy fields that just hang around our aura making us feel like absolute shit for no reason. They can also cause us to get stuck in loops, attracting into our lives the types of people, things and situations that we have not processed out or healed from yet.
The second kind, and far rarer are you have a nasty spirit entity clawing around you, and you need to get rid of it ASAP. Where can they come from? Could be somewhere you went that wasn’t really a spiritual ‘safe space’ but could be as simple as an old house or just a random place that had a nasty thing inhabiting it.
Another more likely cause is that you attracted it to you with your bad vibes. (Sorry!) Sometimes these entities are pretty much just loitering around looking for someone to grab onto. They thrive off of our negativity. That’s why it’s so important to keep your space high-vibing, so you don’t attract any lower entity beings.
How can you tell
There’s not really a ‘way’ to 100% clearly tell, sometimes you just feel off. Maybe you’ve had a stream of bad luck, sleepless nights of insomnia, nightmares or just generally feeling like shit for no reason. Of course these aren’t always the signs, so before you think you have a spirit attachment make sure to get your physical and mental health checked out first.
You honestly probably don’t have one…even if you think you do
If you’re freaking out because you feel like you might have a spirit attachment, you probably don’t have one. I’ve only ever come in contact with one or two really HORRIBLE ones and one of those I created myself. More than likely if you are feeling off you just need to do a basic cleanse to get rid of any projecting energy BEFORE it starts manifesting into something larger.
But in case you do here’s a cleanse
Cleanses are always a good thing to do regularly no matter what. Especially for any magical practitioner because usually we are more sensitive to picking up energy and things, so it’s not a bad idea to start the habit of performing a monthly cleanse if you don’t already do so.
My FAVORITE way to do a cleanse is in a ritual bath. I realize not everyone takes a bath, so you can definitely do this in the shower or just stick your feet in water if you are pressed for time, space or privacy.
What you need
One chunk of clear quartz
Incense (any kind)
White candles (My favorite inexpensive way to do this is to line the tub with white tealights)
What to do
Open the window. Even if it’s freezing, crack it open. Otherwise, your bad energy will just be circling the room with you.
Light the candles.
Light the incense.
Lay out your quartz. Add more crystals if you feel it’s necessary. Sometimes I pop in a rose quartz for self-love because you can never have too much of that.
You can also add herbs in at this point. My favorites are lavender or rose petals, but I HATE picking all that shit out of the tub, so I’ve gotten to the point where I’ll either put the herbs in a cloth bag beforehand or just skip it because it’s too much trouble.
Fill the tub and get in.
Visualize a white light protecting you and your space and ask to connect to your highest self.
Next, meditate until your mind is clear. Then visualize a bright white light coming from the center of your chest radiating out to your fingers and toes, removing any blocks, attachments or bad feelings. Imagine anything you don’t want in your energy space leaving out the window alongside the incense smoke. Stay as long as you need to in this space.
Some people think that you find witchcraft when you’re looking for something that you don’t have in your life. That thing you can’t describe but fits you perfectly once you seek it out. But I think witchcraft finds you. It puts things in place, runs books or titles across your phone, haunts you in your sleep and finally when you’ve had all you can take, you open the door. And it’s not scary, or strange, it just feels like it was right there the whole time.
If you’ve been called to practice magic, then chances are there were signs and signals long before you realized what the heck was even going on. Maybe you’ve dreamed about things before they happened, or maybe your empathic abilities were shining bright as a kid, bringing your moods up and down. We’ve probably all had one or more of these experiences. So read on to see, were you born a witch?
[This post is mostly just for fun… because we are really all natural witches]
You heard people talk in your head before they spoke aloud
Ever hear someone say something before they say it, just to announce the answer out loud and have them look at you like you shocked the Hell out of them? Then they swear they didn’t say it out loud. It’s because you heard it in your head first.
You knew something was going to happen just before it happened
Maybe it was just a gut feeling, or a heightened intuition, either way you called it, and it happened.
You got a sick or gross feeling around someone and later learned that person was trash
Everyone LOVES person X, but you always got a horrible vibe around them. Later on you hear that they did this really nasty thing, and you’re all like, I told you so. Boom.
You had dreams about things that didn’t happen yet
Dreamed of the house before you moved in, of a visit that didn’t happen yet, or a trip in the making. You are basically a walking psychic.
You had imaginary friends (ghosts) and talked to them as a child
You had all the friends. Only all the friends were dead. But that either didn’t bother you, OR you didn’t realize you were the only one playing dress up and tea with your dolls.
You could step into a room, and it could really bring you down if it was depressing or lift you up if the mood was right
Hop into a room or space, and you immediately pick up the vibe, good or bad, and it can really affect your mood. Sometimes for a while too.
When a song plays you really feel the lyrics
Maybe it’s not a pop song, but when the lyrics play the notes speak directly to your soul.
You are well liked by animals
Go to a friend’s house and her cats are all over you. Even your neighbor iguana sits on your lap. Animals know a witch when they see one.
You were drawn to natural things as a child like being outside, playing with rocks or bugs
You liked to play outside but it was overkill. Not only that, but you walked around barefoot, collected rocks or just felt the Earth over being inside anyway.
You never really felt like you belonged
There was always this eerie feeling that you didn’t belong. Now I know we all kinda feel that way but you’re particular, like something was missing…
You lived in your imagination and made up stories and could visualize them as a kid
Imagination was your jam. You always made up wild stories with vivid imagination and could see every single detail in all its glory.
You liked to read and could see the images play in your mind like a TV show
Reading is still your favorite hobby. And you can still play out every scene from all your favorite books in your head.
You said things about dead relatives to your family members that you have never met
You knew Great-Grandma had dark brown eyes and wore a pink cardigan to church even though you never met her, and she died 8 years before you were born.
You talked to trees and plants
Trees seem alive to you. You can feel their spirits and sometimes like to walk up to them and give them a high five.
You feel called to the ocean, rain or a specific element
The ocean is a special place for you. Its mystic energy pulls you in, and you can’t ever get enough.
You have a natural aversion to helping people
You always volunteered to babysit the class pet, help your friend move, or just be an ear when someone needed a cry.
People seem to tell you their darkest secrets for no reason
The grocery store checkout lady spills the tea on her divorce, or the lady you babysit for vents to you about a long stressful day at work. People seem to open up to you, and you don’t really know why.
Graveyards never bothered you
Maybe it just seemed more like a natural ending to things than a big scary end all. Either way even when you were a kid, visiting the cemetery was never even a thrill.
The moon has always been a big deal
Were you fascinated with the moon as a child? Spend nights staring at the stars? Or was astronomy your favorite subject?
Have you had an unusual experience that happened to you before you discovered witchcraft? Drop a line below and share your experience…!
