Practical guide to beginning witchcraft pt.2: Poison Control
Every living or non-living thing in nature has some kind of defense mechanism. Sometimes it's spikes, thorns, teeth, and claws, and sometimes it's toxic substances.
If you are going to be working with plants or crystals in any capacity you need to learn about poisons in order to keep yourself safe.
Always research plants before you consume them:
Especially if it is something that you have never consumed before. Some plants contain toxins that can do anything from give you diarrhea to leaving you dead in a matter of minutes. Plants can be consumed through eating, drinking, or turning them into balms, salves, tinctures, or oils.
There are toxins and pollutants that can be absorbed through the skin and through inhalation (breathing), so just because you aren't putting it in your mouth, chewing it up, and swallowing it, doesn't mean that poisons can't get into your body. Research what parts of a plant are toxic and why. Look up that toxin and how it can be absorbed into the body. When dealing with potentially dangerous plants and compounds always air on the side of caution.
I recommend starting an herbal practice with herbs that you already have in your kitchen. You already know they can be eaten safely, and some are safe to apply to the skin or to burn as well. For example: thyme is safe to eat and gentle enough to be applied to the skin, but cinnamon is more abrasive and can irritate the skin.
Be Mindful of where the plants you are using have come from:
Plants grow by taking nutrients from their soil. So, whatever is in the soil is in the plant. That includes parasites, heavy metals, and dangerous bacteria that can make you really sick even if the plant itself isn't inherently dangerous.
If you are foraging your herbs, be mindful of where you got your plant from. You can pick the flowers from the side of the highway, but they probably aren't very safe to put in your body. If there are bodies of water in your city, town, or village that are considered too dangerous to swim in or drink from, that water can run off and leach into the soil surrounding it. The plants from that water and that soil can make you just as sick as the water itself can. You should be able to get some information about where is and isn't safe and legal to forage from in your area online or from Municipal systems.
If you're buying your herbs/preparations; know who you're buying from.
Are they growing it themselves? Are they foraging? Are they having them shipped from other people who are growing them? Are those areas known to have clean water and healthy soil? If they aren't, are plant and animal products from that area required to be somehow cleared for safety by your local government before being distributed to the public?
In the united states anyone selling things meant to be eaten, smoked, or put on the skin are required to meet certain safety standards by an organization known as the FDA. Try to find information about similar organizations in your area!
Use products as directed! Those directions are for your safety!
If a balm says "external use only" do not put it in your mouth (or any other orifice). If your essential oil says "undiluted" you need to dilute it before touching it to your skin. There are things that are made to be safe to eat, touch, or breath, and things that aren't.
Rocks
This one is important because too many people don't know about it; including me when I first started.
Some crystals leech harmful toxins into water!
Research whether or not a crystal is water soluble (able to be dissolved in water) before you put it in a bath or potion. The reason for this is that some crystals will dissolve and leave the water contaminated with whatever was in the crystal.
The dose makes the poison, and so does the preparation.
Some substances are safe to consume in small quantities but not large. Some are safe in large quantities but not excessive. A classic example of this is willow bark; a small amount can be used as a fever reliever, but a large amount can thin the blood to a dangerous extent. Another example is Bananas; generally safe and healthy but if you were to eat thousands of them in a single sitting you could give yourself radiation poisoning.
There are some plants that, in their raw form, are poisonous, but when they are prepared in a certain way, they are made safe. A big example of this that's close to my heart is Collard Greens; if you eat them raw they can make you sick, you need to boil them 2-3 times to make them safe and appetizing.
All in All
Remember that knowledge is power, so gather as much of it as you can. Start with things you know are safe and research from there. Finally, always remember; just because it's natural doesn't make it safe.
Today I'm reviewing Wicca: a Guide for the Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham.
This book, as can be inferred by the title, is very specific to the wiccan religion.
I read this book years ago when I was first moving away from generic pagan witchcraft towards specifically a wiccan path. To say this book had an impact on my practice would be an understatement. There are prayers and ritual practices in this book that I still use regularly to this day. This is a book chock full of information about what Wicca is, what magic is, and how those two things are different! It is a great springboard to start forming your own beliefs and exploring spirituality and divinity for yourself.
Having said that I don't think this would be the first book I would recommend to someone just starting out (but it might be the second). I appreciate the emphasis it puts on the fact that there are endless ways to practice the craft, but some of the historical perspectives presented in the book are definitely of their time. I would recommend this to someone who already knows that the witch-cult theory was disproven, but that's just the archeologist in me.
My favorite part of this book would have to be the theory section. I am someone who loves to talk about what I believe and think about why I believe it. This section got somewhat into the nitty gritty about what Wiccans generally believe; There's a spiritual world that can be affected by the physical world through the practice of magic. It gives a definition for what magic is and why humanity practices it. It also explains the divine (or the all) which the lord and lady are expression of, a topic that some sorely neglect.
The section of the book that explains the wheel of the year and all of the holidays is another section that I would recommend you go into with some level of previous knowledge. The explanations of the individuals holidays are varied in detail, and the examples of how to celebrate can be a bit repetitive (almost all of the lower holidays just say to feast lol). But, it does give dates and mentions the natural cycles that the holidays are celebrating, and that's a positive.
Overall, I would say this is a building block book. A book that is helpful to read as a beginner so you have the basics you need to build your individual practice. I think this book is also helpful to explain to others what your religion is. When me and my partner were first courting, I told her I was a Wiccan, and she didn't even know that word. As an 18 yo who was not used to telling people that I was wiccan in the first place, I had no idea how to explain it to someone I wanted to be close to. I ended up showing her passages from this book to explain why there was an alter in my room or why august 1st was an important date to me. I think this book is best for those who have entered the wiccan space and wantt to know more.
Today I'm reviewing Conversations with Plants: The Path Back to Nature by Nikki Darrell
I decided to get this book for myself after hearing a review of it from a witchcraft youtuber that I admire, and I think it was well worth it. This book is dedicated to explaining the relationship between plants and humanity. The author does not shy away from the biology and chemistry of it all. Which made me very happy as someone from a (different) scientific background that is not apposed to looking up what a word or two (or dozens :)) means.
This book was so refreshing to read. A book that combined the scientific and the spiritual without sacrificing either. This is a book primarily about herbalism. It has large sections all about the spiritual and mental healing that can come from plants AND large sections designated to the biochemical aspect of herbalism.
This author also does something that I wish more spiritualist would do; admited that Europe has it's own energetic and herbal healing histories. With the amount that the witchcraft community has spoken about decolonizing, suprisingly few people go so far as to let go of using some victorian man's misinterpretation of Asian herbalism. This book speaks from the author's own culture and experience, without putting down other cultures and experiences, and that's something I greatly appreciate.
This was a deeply educational read, but there were some sections that had me scratching my head in a different way. I am a big believer that naturally derived medicine and modern synthesized medicine can and should coexist. There were a few passages in this book that, to me, almost strayed into the area of "antibiotics are the root of modern psychological problems". Having said that, those sections were brief and highly interpretive, so I suspect this reaction was just my hyper alertness from spending far too much time on the internet.
There were also some guided meditations and excersizes in this book focused on reconnecting you with your body and your evironment. I looooove these excersizes. There is one in particular that asks you to connect to your gastrointestinal system, which is a part of my body that causes me some strife (lactose intolerant but I loooove dairy sooooo much), and it helped me to center myself and remember to treat this core part of my bodies ecosystem well.
Overall I greatly enjoyed this book and I think that it will greatly add to my practice going forward.
I really want to dedicate more of my time to this blog. And I have a lot of free time lately. I think I'm going to start reviewing the witchy and occult books that I've read.
I wasn't sure if my golden rod mead had fermented until I opened the container and it exploded like a shaken soda with all the goldenrod petals stopping up the top like yeast in a bottle of champagne. At least I know the goddesses will be drinking good for awhile XD.
The separation between the "carnal self" and the "higher self" is complete bullshit. You can not seperate your humanity into little boxes like that. You are not worse for being an animal. We are made from mud and want and blood And sometimes that means you crave things like sex or food or comforts or whatever and that's OK. It's an expression of your existence as a child of the earth. The mind and the body are one and the same. When you strive for something inhuman you will always fail. When you starve the animal it only grows hungrier.
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