Validation for beliefs and finding community is a great thing.
Hearing the same thing over and over again without challenge or without other perspectives can become a huge problem (see: witchtok to alt right pipeline, or any political pipeline honestly).
Questions to ask when engaging with content, witchy edition:
Is this author/creator trying to sell me something? What are they trying to sell?
What is the author’s/content creator’s motivation for making this?
Are there weird vibes/energies emanating from this content? (Does my environment feel unsafe after consuming the content- weird sounds, feelings of being watched, etc)
How do I feel after consuming this content? What made me feel this way?
Why would the creator of this content benefit from me feeling a certain way?
Does this align with my higher self/deities/moral values?
Does this content make me fear my neighbors, physical ones and spiritual ones?
As with all things, I recommend to balance magical practice with a healthy dose of skepticism to avoid getting trapped in an echo chamber. Unfortunately, harmful rhetoric is often fed to people in small doses that gradually increase over time. The adage of the boiled frog comes to mind.
as good of a time as any to share my list of activities I do during what i like to call Scheduled Soul Maintenence to avoid burnout
go on an aimless bike/ride/walk - move your body, do it for as long as you feel like it, discover new places near you weather that is a frog or a cafe
watch a new movie/read a new book/listen to a new album - get inspired, excercise having opinions and longer attention span, break out of consuming content and make a choice about what you want to expirience
create something in a medium i haven't used in a while - get out of a habit, rekindle a flame you haven't been upkeeping, making a friendship bracelet counts
go have a fun new drink/snack - arguably most important, have a little treat without rush, slow down and focus on physical sensations, treat yourself in a way that isn't landfillcore
meet with friends and/or go to a place where you meet strangers - human connection is good for you, (maybe some casual sex if you like that/try something new with your partner)
make some bad art - create for the sake of creating without any expectations
play an instrument - this can be anything that makes you reach a kind of flow state
go see something you haven't yet - get to know the cultural/geographical map of your area, this includes events, places, or just anything that makes you go out of your way to expirience something new, can be like a viewpoint or it can be a museum exhibit, anything you find cool
cook/bake something new - nurish your body, break out of cooking habits and routine, make it an event, plate it nicely too
and i would like to point out that none of these have to cost more money than your usual lifestyle.
As the veil thins and the air turns still, we remember those who came before us, our ancestors, both known and unknown. Samhain is the time when the living and the dead draw close, when the whispers of the old ones can be felt in candlelight, smoke, and dreams.
This isn’t merely remembrance, it’s connection.
🌑 Who Are Our Ancestors?
When we speak of ancestors, we often think of family lines — parents, grandparents, those tied by blood. But ancestor veneration in witchcraft is broader and more inclusive.
There are:
Blood Ancestors: those in your direct family line.
Cultural Ancestors: those who share your heritage, traditions, or language.
Spiritual Ancestors: witches, healers, mystics, and rebels who paved the way for the craft you practice now.
Ancestors of the Land: the spirits and peoples who lived, worked, and died where you stand today.
Chosen Ancestors: those who have passed but guided or inspired you in this life — mentors, authors, artists, or friends.
There is always questions about adoption and who you honor if you are adopted, but the real answer is to Honor who and what feels right for you. If you feel more connected to your adopted family, honor them. If you feel more connected to your biological family, honor them. If you want to do a mixture of both, do so. It is all about what feels right for you, there is no wrong way to do this.
All are worthy of honor. Ancestor work is not about worship — it’s about acknowledgment, gratitude, and relationship.
🍞 Ways to Honor Your Ancestors This Samhain
🕯️ 1. Create an Ancestor Altar
Set aside a small space — it could be a corner of your main altar, a windowsill, or even a shelf. Add:
Candles: black for protection, white for remembrance
Natural elements: autumn leaves, stones from ancestral lands, herbs like rosemary or marigold
Light a candle and speak their names aloud if you know them. If you don’t, simply say:
“To all my ancestors known and unknown, of blood, of spirit, of craft, and of land, I honor you. Walk beside me in wisdom and peace.”
🍎 2. Offer Food or Drink
In ancient Samhain traditions, families left plates of food on doorsteps or at the hearth for the wandering dead — a practice known as “Dumb Supper”. You can recreate this by:
Setting a spirit plate with small portions of your meal and leaving it overnight.
Hosting a Silent Supper, where you eat in silence by candlelight, leaving a place open for the ancestors.
These gestures feed the bond between worlds, a reminder that love continues beyond the grave.
🌿 3. Connect Through Memory and Story
Storytelling is a form of magic. Spend time recalling memories, reading old letters, or researching your lineage. If you don’t know your ancestry, meditate on the archetypes and energies that feel ancestral such as: healers, warriors, poets, mothers, midwives, dreamers.
You may find that your spirit recognizes family where your mind does not.
Personally, I will light a white or cream colored candle in honor of a specific ancestor, the last few years my grandfather because he past away about 6 years ago. I will sit with the candle lit and just talk, I tell him about my favorite memories I have of him, update him on my life, tell him about the family that he never got to meet because of his passing. I always get a larger candle for this, like a 7 day candle or a pillar candle because I tend to ramble on and talk with him a lot because I just miss him so much.
🔮 4. Divination & Dream Work
Samhain’s thinning veil makes it an ideal time to receive messages.
Before bed, ask:
“Ancestors of my highest good, what wisdom do you have for me tonight?”
Keep a dream journal by your bed. You might notice familiar faces, symbols, or sensations -they’re subtle ways your ancestors communicate.
You can also use tarot or pendulums to connect, always setting clear intention and boundaries:
“I open this space to messages only from my benevolent ancestors and guides.”
🌾 5. Acts of Living Tribute
Honoring your ancestors isn’t limited to ritual, it’s also found in how you live. You honor them by:
Breaking generational patterns they could not.
Living joyfully when they could not.
Creating and healing, adding your light to the lineage.
Sometimes the best offering is simply peace, healing your own life in their memory. Remember any ancestor of your highest good wants you to live a long, happy, healthy, and truly wonderful life, so live it!
At Samhain, as the wheel turns and the nights deepen, remember:
You are the living altar of your ancestors.
Their breath moves through your lungs.
Their magic flows in your veins.
I struggle a lot with all or nothing thinking. If I can’t do things in what I consider the “right” way, then I get frustrated and end up not doing anything at all. The feeling of being frozen is not a good one. I clench my jaw and ball my hands into fists. I think about all the offerings I should be doing, the shadow work that needs to be done, the cleanses, the protective rituals, money jars, etc etc. I end up stressing out over something that should be filling my cup, not emptying it.
I am not going to claim that I’ve mastered this part of myself, but I’ve seen that it has its grip on other facets of my life, and I have slowly been working this brain-knot out over time.
Some things that helped me were:
Realizing that my craft is my own, I’m not performing for anyone, so if I fuck up it’s totally okay (hello, religious trauma)
Working with deities that feel gentle to me (found by meditating with them and researching them)
Implementing new rituals slowly and bit by bit, taking my time in general
Breathing techniques to help quell rushing thoughts
Burnout happens when someone is chronically stressed and said stress is not successfully managed. This leads to a cascade of symptoms ranging from physical aches and pains, mental apathy, irritability, to depression and exhaustion. It rears its head differently from person to person, but the general gist is that if the stress doesn’t let up soon, the person’s health is in dire straits.
Burnout can happen to anyone, but burnout is more prevalent in people affected by chronic mental and physical conditions, due to their daily lives having more stress than that of an average individual.
Spiritual burnout is burnout with a spiritual source.
Common causes are:
Performance based faith
Perfectionism
Lack of boundaries
Neglect of personal needs
Trauma
Symptoms for spiritual burnout mirror general burnout, but some spirituality-centered symptoms to look out for are:
Spiritual doubt and consequential cynicism (not to be confused with healthy doubt and questioning)
Feeling disconnected from deities
Lack of motivation to practice or interact with your practice
Resentment or irritability towards one’s path/deities
Isolation
Those experiencing severe spiritual burnout or burnout of any kind need to seek professional help.
However, some advice for avoiding and coping with mild to moderate spiritual burnout would be:
Prioritize rest
Take a step away from spirituality for awhile, focus on the mundane
Connect with a spiritual community that aligns with belief system
Go back to basics; try to find the parts of practicing that originally brought joy
What are your thoughts on eft tapping (as a fellow Virgo north node too). I have Pisces moon and Jupiter so I can be extra delulu sometimes
I researched EFT tapping a bit and there’s growing evidence that it is an effective tool in treating numerous psychological and physiological conditions. Here’s my favorite scientific source and my favorite slightly less scientific but easier to digest source
In my opinion, I think the combined breathing techniques and repetitive movements from tapping are what help calm people down and allow them to be with their thoughts. I think the location of the tapping is less important and is probably more of a placebo effect.
I think the tapping location can help bring one’s focus to their thoughts and breathing, but isn’t actually doing much because it is missing a critical part of the practice rooted in acupuncture, a Traditional Chinese Medicine. Acupuncture can be effective against certain conditions due to the needles piercing the skin and the body sending extra blood and good stuff to heal the tiny punctures. Endorphins are also released. With both a traditional acupuncturist (follows Qi and how it moves) or a more modern acupuncturist (focused on tension points), the needles are very important because they pierce through the skin at very specific locations and activate the body’s healing mechanisms (source). Tapping alone won’t do that.
That being said, EFT tapping causes no harm to the body and is easy to implement — so if it works, it works, and keep on utilizing this tool to help regulate!
Side note, right there with you on the delulu. Based on your extra Pisces planets I bet you are super creative and kinder than other placements. Your intuition is probably outstanding too!
I hope you guard that energy, and anyone you share it with is truly fortunate.
Virgo North Node are pushed to be of service. I was initially incredulous and frankly kinda pissed that I was destined to keep on giving to a world that had done nothing but show me pain to this point (hello CPTSD, chronic illness and other neurodivergent conditions).
Then I learned that Virgo NN is to be not just of service but of sustainable service. In other words, I was to learn to take care of myself first before attempting to care for others. I had never done this before and come to find out, had been leaning heavily into my Pisces South Node of sacrifice and martyrdom.
It feels selfish sometimes, but taking care of yourself is not an act of vanity nor malice.
(Where red means to GTFO and orange means to stay on guard)
Violation of personal/group boundaries. Ex: unwanted touching, creepy comments, etc
Encouraging or demanding isolation from friends and/or family
Demanding more than you can give of any resource, including your time, emotions, and money
Critical thinking is discouraged
Hierarchical structure puts some (usually the leader) above reproach
Love bombing
Demonizing those who leave the group or disagree with the group’s doctrine
Spiritual bypassing (being told to “stay positive” all the time, or “raise your vibration” all the time)
Language and thought policing through shaming emotions and words
Heavy use of jargon
Pressuring others to disclose personal wounds or details before they’re ready/if they don’t want to
Shaming of boundaries
Making others feel they’re walking on eggshells (unspoken rules)
Addictive highs during rituals followed by low lows when not performing spirituality (similar to love bombing, but this is specific towards group rituals) I made this one orange because it might be more of a personal problem than necessarily a group’s problem. It needs context.
Us vs. them mentality
Constant self-blame is encouraged
Gatekeeping- controversial, but I’m a firm believer that some practices are closed practices and are gate kept. However, in some situations this can become toxic, hence the orange rating.
If you have a Virgo North Node (NN) you are being asked in this lifetime to shift from the overly expansive, watery, at times delirious, Pisces South Node (SN), to the grounded, meticulous, and tangible realm of Virgo.
However, the most important lesson you’ll learn is balance. Abandoning all of your dreamy qualities will tip your scales too far into Virgo, which can manifest as a wounding with control.
The control wound’s symptoms range in severity from person to person, but often look similar.
If you struggle with:
Perfectionism
Micromanagement
Over scheduling
Hyper vigilance
Difficulty delegating tasks
Resistance to change
Fear of disorder
Over-responsibility
Tying your worth to productivity
You might have some healing work to do in regard to control. Doubly so if your NN is in Virgo.
There are some ways to help.
First and foremost, I encourage you to start shifting your focus to just being present. Your presence in this moment is enough, and it is your job to sanctify this tangible time- not polish it and make it better just because it exists.
Secondly, reframe control as care. Yes, you are to be of service and this is an important and wonderful thing to do, but you need to release the chokehold you have on being of service. Let people come to you, and put up boundaries for your own good- and their good too! Sometimes, we have to let people make their own mistakes and learn in their own time. We do not always know what is best for others in any given situation, and that’s okay!
Thirdly, probably one of the harder ones, is to soften to good enough. The goal isn’t perfection, it’s good enough. Not having enough time or energy to fully complete a task is totally okay- you did your best. Completing something to 80% is better than not starting at all.
Fourth, engage your senses and check in with your body frequently. The need for control is an anxiety response, and although it can affect your entire being, it mostly resides in your mind. Bringing yourself make to center and pulling your awareness back to the present can help realign your thoughts and bring yourself attention to reigning in the need for control.
Lastly, make service sustainable. With a Pisces SN, sacrifice is the default. Virgo NN challenges you to step away from martyrdom and into service that is still meaningful, but has boundaries that allow you to serve yourself as well. As the adage goes, you can’t pour from an empty cup!
As always, these practices take time. You will slip up (I know I have) but it’s important to stumble. Mistakes can be good things, as you can learn from them.
Slip but don’t slide, I wish you healing and comfort.
Shadow work prompts to help you understand your inner critic and quiet it:
What would my inner critic say if it were a scared child?
What do I believe would happen if I’m not perfect/don’t complete something perfectly?
What is my inner critic trying to protect me from?
Where did my inner critic learn its language from? Is there anyone else who has spoken to me like this, especially when I was young?
When was the first time I can remember failing at something? What happened? How did others react? How did I feel?
In what other ways can I measure success instead of by outcome? (Some ideas to get you started would be: connection, emotion, presence, etc. This one was hard for me so let me know if you want some more clarification or ideas if it’s hard for you too)
The difference between your inner critic and your intuition can be subtle or pretty obvious.
Don’t feel bad for mistaking the two, especially if you’re trying to balance your approach to spirituality.
Your inner critic will:
Nit-pick. In other words, nothing you say or do will be right. Your inner critic demands perfection.
Be really mean. Like super mean. It’ll use derogatory language, call you names, and just generally make you feel like shit for trying.
Demand that you quit. Even if you know that mistakes are part of learning, a sure sign you’re dealing with your inner critic is its demands that you stop trying so you never have to make a mistake again.
Overwhelm you with details and emotions. The inner critic is steeped in anxiety, so it will bombard you with hundreds of possible scenarios to try and convince you that you’re doomed for failure.
Be rooted in survival. Your inner critic, although it can be an asshole, is just trying to keep you safe. The best and sure fire way to safety is to just… not try.
Your intuition will:
Guide you, not puppet you. It won’t make demands, it will just quietly nudge you.
Sometimes feel scary, but not in a bad way. It might guide you to doing something in a different way, or consider a new perspective. Hard caveat here: YOUR INTUITION WILL NEVER PUT YOU IN DANGEROUS SITUATIONS. It’ll only guide you to situations that will push you towards personal growth, not certain doom. Don’t pull a Bella Swan lmao
Rarely come with any extra explanation. This sucks a lot of the time, but your intuition often won’t tell you why you should do something, or how, or when— just that you should.
Take practice to listen to. It’s difficult to separate your inner intuitive voice from your personal critic. It takes time to be able to tell them apart and to quiet the right one. Be patient, just listen to your thoughts and feelings, and start by pointing out the differences you sense. You’ll arrive at your answer eventually.
Is rooted in trust. Your intuition comes from your inner spring. Your inner spring comes forth from trust in yourself, trust in the universe, trust in the gods… Trust that you’re doing right by you and your path, and you’ll come out just fine.
Remember that nothing comes from nothing- you must put forth effort to get better and discernment, and from discernment you can act according to your intuition. From there, remember just that- you need to ACT. Do not let complacency be your end!
Trust the universe and yourself, but love yourself enough to see it through.
Shadow work prompts for Virgo north node (or if you’re feeling generally unbalanced):
Where do I need to recharge before I give?
What’s the smallest next step that matters today? Why do I feel like smaller steps aren’t as important/necessary as more grandiose actions?
Where am I idealizing something rather than seeing it clearly? What can I do to help clarify the situation?
Which project or area of my life needs me to stop fussing and start finishing?
Am I using my spirituality to face life or to avoid it? How?
Which practical habit (hydration, nutrition, budgeting, sleep, etc) would I like to focus on as an act of self respect and therefore sacred?
I purposely selected a wide gambit of common Virgo north node traits/struggles and brainstormed these prompts to reflect that. Hopefully they help without overwhelming- remember that even small steps are meaningful!
Nazis will never be welcome in paganism. They have no space in our communities, we will have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to nazis. You have no right to the cultures, gods and religions you hijack to spread your disgusting ideologies. You will find no refuge or comraderie amongst pagans.
Reblog to let nazis know they’re not welcome here.
dailybridgerton
romaincrisis
2087
dededos
