Reading for yourself is the hardest reading you will ever do, and everyone who pulls their own cards eventually hits the wall. You can read cleanly for a stranger all afternoon and then sit down with your own spread and get nothing but fog. That is not you losing the skill. It is the one situation where you have something at stake in the answer.
The whole problem is neutral. To read a card you have to let it be what it is, and you cannot do that when you already know what you want it to say. The wanting sits down between you and the card and starts doing the reading for you.
This is projection, and it runs both directions. Sometimes you read the card you were hoping for and call it confirmation. Sometimes a hard card lands and you read the entire spread through dread. Both of those are your own material, not the message on the table.
The clearest tell that it has gone sideways is the re-pull. You do not like what came up, so you shuffle and ask again. The second pull is almost never a cleaner answer. It is you talking over the first one, and the first honest pull is usually the one that held.
The other common wreck is the doom spiral. One heavy card shows up, the Tower or the Ten of Swords, and suddenly every other card in the spread reads like bad news too. The card did not get crueler because it was your spread. You got louder.
So the first practical move is to change the question. Drop 'will this work out for me' and ask 'what does this situation look like from the outside' or 'what is mine to do here.' Third-person, situation-first questions take your thumb off the scale, because you are no longer asking the cards to reassure you.
The second move is to write it down before you interpret it. Question, cards, one flat first impression, and then leave it. Come back and read it later when the heat has gone out of it. The record you made in the calm is almost always more honest than the story you told yourself in the moment.
And sometimes the right call is not to read for yourself at all. When you are too far inside the outcome to hear a no, you will not hear it, and no spread will fix that. Ask someone neutral to read it, or wait until you can. Knowing which questions you are not steady enough to ask yourself yet is skill, not a failure of nerve.
The cards are not kinder to a stranger and crueler to you. They are the same cards. The whole craft of reading for yourself is getting quiet enough to read what is actually on the table instead of what is sitting in your chest.
I gave it a form. I gave it fire and time and my own two hands working in the dark. I named the thing I was carrying and then I let the naming be enough.
Ritual isn't magic the way people mean when they say magic. It's not bending the world. It's bending toward yourself. Making a container strong enough to hold what you've been white-knuckling alone.
You process it. You mark it. You give it an ending.
I love astrology because it keeps reminding me that NOTHING is forever, everything is just transiting: the joys and the sorrows, it’ll all pass, each season its flavor.
witchdex is a comprehensive, dynamic, and mobile-friendly reference for magical + witchcraft correspondences based on several years of independent research. it's a work in progress and i am constantly updating and adding information so please remember to do your own research!
currently compatible with firefox, chrome, and safari, and for entertainment purposes only - not a replacement for medical, financial, or legal advice.
dataset + code created by me - please don't steal, copy, or redistribute as your own!
CURRENT CATEGORIES
crystals, plants, fruits, planets, metals, colors, and one single mineral, which is salt lol
TIPS + TRICKS
search for whole words without punctuation - instead of "self-love" try "self love"
some of the most common terminology used for associations/traits include but are not limited to: attraction, banishing, binding, cursing, divination, dreamwork, fertility, fidelity, love, lust, manifestation, protection, psychic abilities, power, warding
keywords for items include associations that would be considered benefic to the caster, and if an item also has a baneful association, it will be listed as such underneath its keywords - the same applies for items that may be toxic
you may notice missing information in some sections as i continue to work on this page - please be patient with me! :)
if you see any misinformation, misspellings, typos, formatting errors, coding errors, duplicate entries, etc. OR have any questions, please send me a message via the contact page
please enjoy and consider buying me a coffee so i can keep doing stuff like this in my spare time. :)
my links for non-tumblr viewers:
- blog
- personal site
- book of stars [grimoire]
- witchdex
- ko-fi
idk if you found an app for notifying you bout planetary movements and transits? but i use time nomad & would recommend it! idk if it'll have detailed enough notifications but i know it has planet movements
I went and checked it out and I think you might've just saved me. Haven't had a chance to look at it super in-depth just yet, but I got a pop-up saying it'll notify me about transits, aspects, retrogrades, and returns and that's honestly more than I could ask for.
It's the first month of Weyward Grove, and we already started with a toughie.
Throughout my life, I've given the concept of magic a lot of thought. I was raised believing magic existed - but unsurprisingly, my perception and understanding of it has changed over the years. There's been times where I've been asked to explain what magic is and how I know it's "real," but the truth is, I don't know. The way I interact with magic is always changing.
Sometimes, my belief is steadfast and unwavering - I see the magic in everything, everywhere, all the time; paradoxically though, there are times when I'm unaffected, unmoved and indifferent to magic, too. My understanding ebbs and flows.
— WHAT IS MAGIC?
Magic is everything.
It's all around us - there, even when we don't recognize or understand it.
There's really no easy way to explain magic. It's in nature - in the changes of the seasons, in the migration of birds, in the gentle summer breezes. It's in natural phenomena - the stuff that can be seen and explained by science and theories.
At the same time, magic is unknowable.
It's in coincidences that could be explained by chance and yet feel meaningful to you. It's in the feeling you get when someone triggers your wards, or when a spirit wanders into your sanctuary.
Magic is a paradox.
It's there when you want it to be. Gone, if you don't. There's magic in everything - the observable, the unknowable, and the proven.
Everything in life can be explained. You can explain it with logic, with science and theories, by chance and coincidence, and with magic. I choose to believe that nothing just /happens/ in life.
Everything, everywhere, all the time is connected to something else. Even if you don't see it or choose not to believe it, the threads of magic, of coincidence and science and chance, are embedded into everything.
— DO WE CREATE MAGIC OURSELVES?
This question is a tough one. Magic, in my opinion, is a kind of energy. It cannot be created nor destroyed - just transformed and converted.
The full question is, "do we create magic ourselves? Or are there pre-existing magical currents we're utilizing?" and I think the answer lies somewhere in the middle.
If there's magic in everything, which I believe there is, then that means there's inherently magic in us, too. But that magic is inherent - granted to us by virtue of being part of the world around us. It dwells within us, settled somewhere within the fabric of our very being; we don't create that. We draw from a finite, but constantly replenishing pool of energy.
That's why we get tired after a long ritual. That energy - the magic we use, comes from somewhere. If we could generate our own magic, then we'd all be casting spells 24/7 without ever getting tired.
In the same way we need regular sleep and nourishment, we need to regularly replenish our magic(al) energy.
That said, not everyone draws from their inherent pool of magic. Just like with anything in life, everyone's pool is different.
Some people have an easier time tapping into their own magic, while other's have bigger pools to take from. Some people's pool replenishes naturally with time, while other's have to take energy from elsewhere to take care of themselves.
Some people prefer to borrow magic altogether and turn to the ethereal and divine for help rather than using their own supply.
— WHERE DOES MAGIC COME FROM?
Like I said, magic is inherent. I'm sure you could come up with some theory about where it originates from - but like the blood that pumps through our body, magic is just there.
If you're part of nature, magic is part of you. (in other words, I don't know)
— DOES MAGIC HAVE A PURPOSE?
No.
When we harness magic, we can give it a purpose but magic can be used for anything. Think of electricity - before we found a way to convert it to power our lights, it technically didn't have a purpose.
That doesn't mean it wasn't there, or anything. It just didn't have anything to do or a place to go. Magic doesn't inherently have a purpose. Anyone can harness it and use it for whatever motivates them. Some people use it for healing and protection, while others get more destructive and baneful with it.
There's no right or wrong way to use magic. It doesn't follow a strict moral code or have a rulebook for the do's and don't.
— IF MAGIC ISN'T "MAGIC," WHAT IS IT?
Then it would be synchronicity. I know that Carl Jung gets mentioned way more than he should, but his concept of synchronicity - the concept that events can appear meaningfully related, yet lack actual connection, feels relevant here.
In a world where magic isn't magic, then those instances that felt "magical" would be examples of synchronicity.
— ARE YOU A MAKER OF MAGIC?
On impulse, I wanted to say that I am a maker of magic - but when I think about it for a second longer, I don't think that's true.
The full question, "are you a maker of magic? Or has magic made you?" truly made me wonder. Throughout my life, I've been guided by magic. In almost every major life decision, magic has been there for me. I learned from my grandma and mom, and every since then, magic has just been part of my way of life. There's something a bit poetic about saying that I'm made by magic, but I think that's true.
It's so deeply engraved into my soul and body. I've casted spells for so many things, and when they've failed, I've taken that as a sign to move on. It's that kind of process that's led me to where I am right now, literally. If my spells had worked as intended, then I'd be elsewhere - but I'm here.
And with that in mind, I say that my magic has definitely made me.
— WHAT ROLE DOES MAGIC PLAY IN MY LIFE?
As I've gotten older, magic has less of a role in my life - but I yearn for it.
I so desperately want to get back into doing magic and casting spells. Magic used to play such a big part in my life. Everything I owed was enchanted, protected and anointed - and while there's still lots of that energy around, the way I engage with magic as a whole has changed.
When I say that I was raised with magic, know that I mean I was raised with it. It's literally weaved into my daily life, that I don't think I could separate myself from my practice even if I tried.
From the color I paint my nails, to the jewelry I wear, and the oils I put in my hair - every aspect of my life has been touched by magic in one way or another. During my job search, I did so many different spells in the hopes of landing a job.
Whenever I need to make a big decision, I immediately pull out the tarot cards for guidance from the Universe. The rearview mirror of my car has like, three different amulets dangling from it as protection on the road. While I am not so intentional with it anymore, magic is just a way of life for me. I'm always engaging with it, even when it might not seem like it - magic surrounds me, and I'll forever be grateful for that.
Someone sent me a message saying that something odd was happening with the stars - and while I'm still waiting for them to tell me what they meant, I decided to look at my horoscope and yeah.
The Mercury-Sun/Moon square is beating my ass, I fear. Mercury is so at home in Gemini, and my Virgo Moon desperately wants to get along (as a fellow mercurial sign) - but my poor Pisces Sun just wants to relax.
In my life, I see this manifesting as a need - almost to the point of compulsion, to look towards the future while simultaneously finding every excuse to take it slow. In desperate need of a break that never seems to come because the need to feel "productive" is all-consuming at times.
The tension between the Sun/Moon - perceived vs. instinctual self, is always palpable with me by virtue of the two being in opposition in my chart, but Mercury's influence over the two makes them more at odds.
As the stars would have it be, the transiting Mercury is conjunct with my natal Saturn, too. My Gemini Saturn yearns for solutions - for guidance and rules to abide by. It wants things grounded in reality, a boundary to respect, something to hold onto. As the Sun/Moon fight each other, the Saturn turns to others for answers.
And somewhere in the mix, Neptune watches. In the background, as always, but still there - quietly shifting things behind the scenes. While my Aquarius Neptune is like my Sun's big brother - Neptune doesn't just empower it. Neptune turns thoughts into actions, and together with Mercury, actions into material success.
Neptune leads, making dreams into realities.
Altogether, these transits read as though I need to turn towards others for guidance. Mercury, which is at war with all concepts of self, can only seem to find comfort in others - in Saturn, that desperately wants a solution, and in quiet Neptune, who's ready to take the next step towards something.
Rather than wallowing in self-pity and a need to feel productive (rather than actually working towards anything), the best thing I can do is connect with others and put feelings into words.
baratheonpilled
discoholicmusic
prguitarman
tangentwithtanner
romaincrisis
vaporwave
dailybridgerton
gracieabrams
