PunkyLilWitch

Birth Cards: Justice and The High Priestess ~ I post general witchy information in order to introduce all manner of subjects to all manner of witches! :)

[buggywiththefolkmagic]

Saw your book post and I think you've confused a few things...

You seem to mix up Hoodoo and Vodou a lot. They are not the same. Hoodoo is not a closed practice nor religion. It's just fking weird and poser-ish if someone claims it without ever growing up in the culture for it. But many Hoodoo practioners will tell you their practice is not closed. Vodou/Santeria is closed.

Also saying to be careful not to fall into Hoodoo while doing Conjure... you know rootwork is similar across all cultures right? This just feels like a gatekeeping statement and prevents people from really digging into their folkwork by making them constantly worried they're appropriating.

The thing with smudging: you make no mention of which kind of smudging is closed. You just said it generally, which is a bit ridiculous. Burning herbs for the sake of energy and cleansing is not inherently a Native Indigenous practice. Bayabas, or guava leaves, have been used in the Philippines pre-colonialism. Frankenincense in Europe and Old Christianity. Ti Leaves in Hawaii. Rose in Ancient Rome, and Blue Lotus in Ancient Egypt. As a latina, and as half of one myself🇨🇺, we both know our people love to use incense at altars. SAGE, particularly white sage, is where the line is drawn. Same with palo santo. I agree with your points, but I think you need to be specific if you're being critical.

Much love from 🇵🇭✨️

Hello there anon! I see you sent another ask apologizing for assuming I was Latina, and you're quite forgiven! I am as they say white as white can be.

As a white person I went to an American BIPOC friend of mine in order to answer all of this as honestly as I possibly could. Hoodoo by means of origin IS a closed practice. It's roots come from Ghana and was created in America as a very specific response to slavery. Both Hoodoo and Vodu are tribal/family based, and both require a initiation of sorts through community in order to practice them. Vodu's roots are in Haiti, and through community, enslavement, and initiation needed through the "family" as some groups of Vodu practioners call themselves, are required therefore it is also closed. I shall include some links below to help with the distinction of Hoodoo and Vodu and why they are both closed practices/religions. Hoodoo could be considered a religion in Louisiana specifically due to it's usage there and sometimes it's blending with Vodu. https://medium.com/@empressnaima/my-hoodoo-initiation-5086e375e378 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoodoo_(spirituality) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haitian_Vodou https://cswr.hds.harvard.edu/news/magic-matters/2021/11/10 https://brizomagazine.com/2020/06/15/the-appropriation-of-magic-how-white-people-demonised-voodoo/ Now that I've cleared up through BIPOC voices/history/links on why Hoodoo is in fact closed...let me address the specific comment of

"You know rootwork is similar across all cultures right? This just feels like a gatekeeping statement and prevents people from really digging into their folkwork by making them constantly worried they're appropriating." Rootwork in of itself is a Hoodoo term iirc, but I may be wrong on that front. As for worrying about appropriation...white people SHOULD BE worried about appropriating. Hell currently in America we still through simply social climate and judicial systems are failing our BIPOC/Indigenous communities.

As a folk worker who has some herbalism that stems from Cherokee and Creek peoples I am so beyond careful to make sure my practice is not appropriating from them. White people demolished them, slaughtered them, and took away their homes and sacred spaces, hell, we stole and demolished their LANGUAGE. And you're telling me I don't need to worry about taking anything else from them? The best option is to contact the people you believe is being appropriated from and just...asking them. Wild concept I know. Make friends that are not from your station! Send emails and letters to community leaders in these appropriated cultures in an honest and respectful way to see if what you're studying is appropriated. A good example of this was I found recently an ancestor of mine worked closely with what she called "Grandmama Spider". Grandmother Spider is a Cherokee creation deity. Referencing the above horrors and terrors us white folk did and are still doing to the Cherokee people...I will not be following in her footsteps. Individuals like Cat/Catherin Yronwode has perpetrated that Hoodoo is open, and has caused catastrophic issues with her large standing in the American Folk Magic world. A link to an open letter about Cat Yronwode and her severe appropriation/dismissal of the real history of New Orleans Voodoo being "fake" and "not a slave based religion" is here: https://conjureart.blogspot.com/2013/10/open-letter-to-cat-yronwode-and-lucky.html I don't want to pick on any specific religions/groups of people but all you have to do is read through ONE "witchcraft for beginners" book written in America or England and find at least two stolen items from Indigenous Americans AND the BIPOC/Black community. It's THAT common. Totems and Spirit Animals? Not entirely Indigenous but the ones these authors are teaching about ARE. The same goes for the word smudging, when I mention a book has smudging in it I am talking about white sage. White Americans love to use their white sage with an illegal owl feather and a shell to hold their bundle of sage in. The word smudging in of itself comes from the 15th to 16th century Germanic language and was actually talking about using smoke to rid a home or building of insect infestations. The word we SHOULD be using for cleansing with smoke should simply be...smoke cleansing. It avoids the person reading from having to guess if it's appropriated or not.

Having said all of that I guess all of this boils down to one thing: Listen to the voices of the cultures first. If they say something's appropriated? Stop. If they say it's closed? Stop. I have no authority on anything at all, but if I can speak up just once and give others a platform to say, "Hey this is kinda fucked up" I will. It's the least I as a white person can do.

[wisdomofthewitches]

Educate yourself on closed cultures and practices as a witch AT ALL TIMES - If you're whiter than white, you cannot appropriate anything from a culture YOU HAVE NEVER BEEN PART OF

It needs to stop. You can absolutely learn about WHY, but don't get all pissy because you cannot shove all of that into YOUR practice and have everything you read about work the same. It WON'T.

[punkylilwitch]

Hi! We have the same birth cards and I thought that was kinda neat! 🥰

Hey, that's awesome!! :)) I've never met anyone with my same birth cards before so hello!

[magnoliawitchcraft]

So you wanna make your own incense?

You've come to the right place sweetness. For clarity's sake I want to specify that I am not a professional. This is simply what I did to make the incense that I use. Always research your herbs and herbal mixtures, be aware of your allergies, and remember to use herbs from high quality sources to protect your health. And remember, the best witchcraft is safely practiced witchcraft.

What you'll need: Herb of choice (no correlations listed here, otherwise we will be here all night)

Coffee grinder (or a mortar and pestel, but baby we are in the 21st century work smarter not harder)

Tap water (charge it if you want for extra pizzazz)

Optional: oven, preheat to 190 degrees Fahrenheit

Step one: grind up your herbs in the coffee grinder, the finer the better. My herb was food grade lavender.

Step two: Divide the ground herb into two separate bowls, a wet bowl and a dry bowl. Into the wet bowl, mix into the herb with some water so the consistency is a modable clay. Sacred water is great for this.

Step three: Form the clay into a cone shape in any way that makes the most sense for your body. For me, that involves using my thumbs and middle fingers, but whatever way works best.

Roll the wet cone into the dry bowl, coating the cone in a layer of powdered lavender.

You can either leave the cone to dry over night, alternatively---

Place in oven for 40 minutes to an hour to dehydrate the cones!

Ta-da! I hope these directions inspire you to give this a shot yourself. I know I had a lot of fun making this lavendar incense, and I know I'm excited to make more in the future. Don't stop creating lovelies.

<3 Magnolia

[punkylilwitch]

Yoga and Meditation History

https://www.instagram.com/weronika.salach/?hl=en

First, let’s talk about Meditation

Though I’m sure you all know, meditation is (according to Wikipedia mind you) “Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state.”

“Some archaeologists date meditation back to as early as 5,000 BCE, according to Psychology Today, and the practice itself has religious ties in ancient Egypt and China, as well as Judaism, Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism and, of course, Buddhism.“ - https://time.com/4246928/meditation-history-buddhism/#:~:text=Some%20archaeologists%20date%20meditation%20back,and%2C%20of%20course%2C%20Buddhism. 

In the 1960′s, meditation began to be seriously researched and critically analyzed for it’s medical benefits. It was famously found that meditation calmed the person doing the meditating, slowing their heartrate and breathing a considerable amount as well as changing their brainwaves in a way that promotes and helps with sleep. The 1970′s-80′s, however, is when meditation was boosted into the mainstream when The Beatles got a hold of it. They began to partake in Transcendental Meditation, which is a form of meditation that utilizes meaningless sounds as a means of concentration. Once meditation became more mainstream, doctors picked up interest in researching it once more, and discovered that it is a wonderful mindfulness exercise that is good for your health, so now, today, doctors recommend practicing it to relieve stress, anger, and other such mental ailments. 

Then comes yoga

Yoga has heavy ties to meditation. Not only are you easily able to meditate while doing yoga, but yoga is a good way to link your body to your mind and soul, as you can focus on the slow and steady movements while meditating. 

“The beginnings of Yoga were developed by the Indus-Sarasvati civilization in Northern India over 5,000 years ago. The word yoga was first mentioned in the oldest sacred texts, the Rig Veda. The Vedas were a collection of texts containing songs, mantras and rituals to be used by Brahmans, the Vedic priests.“ - https://www.yogabasics.com/learn/history-of-yoga/#:~:text=The%20beginnings%20of%20Yoga%20were,by%20Brahmans%2C%20the%20Vedic%20priests. 

Yoga does not adhere to any particular religion, belief system or community. Yoga is a multicultural phenomenon, but in yoga subcultures there can absolutely be religious ties. Some examples of these types of yoga are Jnana-yoga, Bhakti-yoga, Karma-yoga, Dhyana-yoga, Patanjala-yoga, Kundalini-yoga, Hatha-yoga, Mantra-yoga, Laya-yoga, Raja-yoga, Jain-yoga, Bouddha-yoga etc. Each subculture has its own individual principles and practices, and they each lead to the altimate aim and objectives of yoga as a whole. There are many religions and regions that claim to be the originators of yoga, such as Hinduism and Buddhism for example. Despite the debate, however, most believe that Hinduism is the overarching origin of the practice, and I’m inclined to agree. But regardless, it’s up to you to do your personal research and decide on your own what to believe.

Now, what does that all mean for witchcraft?

Well, in witchcraft, meditation and yoga have similar affects, as they both put you in a good mindset for practicing. They also are known to link the body, mind, and soul in a calming and secure way. Meditation is used in a grand handful of witchcraft ceremonies and rituals, as meditation can be centered around many differing topics and provide many differing results. Meditation is a wonderful way to do your shadow work, as it revolves around tackling one’s mind and taming one’s thoughts. Ergo, it can help you to calm yourself enough to unbury old memories, traumas, and fears so you can confront them in a healthy way. You can explore yourself thoroughly and delve into your inner mind, coming to terms with some of the reasons why you think and behave the way that you do.

https://www.mea.gov.in/in-focus-article.htm?25096/Yoga+Its+Origin+History+and+Development 

https://serval.unil.ch/resource/serval:BIB_D645BCE270FF.P001/REF.pdf 

[punkylilwitch]

Highs and Lows of Magick

@euge--rome​

High Magick

High magick, also known as ceremonial magick, is the type of magick done by learning a precise and typically complicated ritual or ceremony. Its origins (in the West)  see it almost entirely rooted in judeo-christian myth until the late 19th century, and today many ceremonial witches continue to work using a high magick within that specific context. During the late 1800's and early 1900's the resurgence was known as The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, or the Golden Dawn for short. “The Golden Dawn was a magical system that blended elements of Christian and Jewish mysticism with elements of freemasonry and tarot, seeking to unify all of the religions into one single framework”. And although today this system is considered dead by many, the influence that the Golden Dawn had on Wicca and Thelema is strong, so it's legacy lives on through them. It is meant to have a spiritual purpose rather than a practical one, however these can absolutely overlap conceptually. These ceremonies and rituals involve improving the soul, which includes gaining divine purification, spiritual knowledge, having regular encounters with destiny/embracing one's own destiny, and attracting the proper magical influences for your soul to learn and grow in healthy way.

Low Magick

Low magick, also known as Folk magick, is a practical kind of magick having to do with healing, attracting luck or love, driving away evil, fertility, good harvest, etc. It is called folk magick because it is said to be the magick of  “common folk”, and records of these practices are sparse due to the illiteracy of the practitioners. This is the kind of magick more well-known however because this is the kind of magick that is recognized and used more often today between the two. Contrary to High magick, low magick is called low magick because of its practical nature and association with the lower class. Rituals were simple and evolved over time and they included everyday items that the modern which is more than familiar with such as plants and wood and so on. Another name for low magick is natural magick, as it is linked closely to the natural world in the ways that I mentioned(it having to do with plants and wood and such).  Natural magick has much to do with astrology and herbalism, however it's still in compasses more modern methods such as divination. Low magick has its roots in spiritual practices such as shamanism, which is regarded to be one of the world's oldest religions as well as one of the newest, as evidence of its practice has been discovered in Paleolithic cave art however it has evolved in such a way that many see it as being new rather than old because of the recently created Neo Shamanism variations. One of the earliest examples of shamanism, or at least that is what this cave art is believed to depict by experts, dates back to around 17,000 years ago. Shamanism is part of the Ainu religion and Japanese religion of Shinto, although Shinto is different in the way that it is Shamanism specifically made for an Agricultural Society. but enough of the history lesson, I'm getting a bit sidetracked here!

Conclusion

In all, the major historical difference between high magick and low magick is the classes it enveloped, however the difference today is that high magick is more ceremonial while low magick is more “casual” and down to Earth by comparison.

https://www.jsouthernstudio.com/blogs/esotericinsights/low-magick-vs-high-magick https://www.learnreligions.com/types-of-magic-95961 (info on shamanism, shintoism, and paleolitic art I learned in my AP Art class a few years ago)

TLDR: High magick is ceremonial, prepared carefully with instruments, emotions, and conjuring. It is rumored that the gods prefer high magick due to its formality.

Low magick is close to the opposite end is done using ordinary objects like a spoon or plants or a stick. Low magick is known for its simplicity and takes power from the earth instead of words or self power. 

[gaypolywitch]

Divine Love Jar

This spell can be used either to attract love to you, or help you better love yourself. Set your intent and focus on it while filling your jar.

You will need:

Rose petals

Lavender buds

Rosemary

Mistletoe

Basil

Rose quartz shards

Clear quartz shards

A jar

After cleansing yourself, the area, and all the items you'll be using, layer your herbs in the jar in whatever order you please, leaving the crystals for last. While filling your jar, chants the words:

"I am worthy of love."

If you don't have these herbs, feel free to make the spell your own! I create all my own spells through research and intuition. If it feels right, I simply let my instinct guide me. Would love to see how others make a jar with similar intent!

[dragoncastings]

Unconventional Witchcraft Tools:

🦴 Bones:

It is essential to find animal bones in an ethically sourced manner. Bones have been apart of us and magic itself always. These rigid organs are used in forms of offerings, animism, grounding, cleromancy, and osteomancy.

💍 Charms:

Very dependent on the shape of the charm, many practitioners adorn their magical possessions with charms. (I.e a heart charm in a sachet representing romance.) From ancient Europe to Asia, jewelry and charms were tossed from baskets onto a soft surface for divination. There is also a process called charming, which is imbuing an object with a particular energy.

⚰️ Coffin Nails:

Coffin Nails are utilized in witchcraft for warding, mourning, baneful magic, and death work in general. Coffin Nails represent the security of one’s physical body, as it seals us off from danger.

🪙 Coins:

Coins are utilized as offerings, charms, runes, and ways to honor deities and ancestors. Coins are also added to money bowls. Coins represent Fortune and Wealth.

🪶 Feathers:

Each Bird has a different magical significance, so the magical properties of a bird can be both interpreted from that as well as Color Magic. Feathers themselves embody the element of Air and are great for Cleansing.

🐴 Horseshoes:

Horseshoes have been hung over doorways for at least a few centuries. This tradition not only attracts luck and fortune, but wards your space from negative energy.

🔨 Iron Pikes:

Iron Pikes come from the railroads that trains run across. These Iron Pikes are often already rusted, and imbued with the intentions of protection and warding.

🗝 Keys:

Old keys have been used by many and have unlocked doors many times. Each time you use a key, visualize you unlocking and harnessing potential opportunity, closure, openings, journeys, protection, safety, warding, and security.

🍁 Leaves:

Leaves magically represent growth, transformation, nourishment, change, development, and can be used to draw sigils upon.

🪴 Seeds:

Seeds not only magically symbolize fertility, but potential, growth, wealth transformation, and fortune. One can use Nuts, Seeds, or Acorns in wealth, luck, and growth spells, or as a charm.

🐚 Shells:

Cowrie shells were once one of the most common forms of global currency. African traditions use Cowrie Shells for Divinatory purposes since Ancient times. Shells embody fertility, sensuality, wealth, life, and spirit.

🪵 Sticks:

Sticks not only embody the Earth, but can be used for Wands, Besoms, Crafts, or in place of bones in Osteomancy. You can use any kind of wood you like including cinnamon and driftwood.

🪨 Stones:

The gorgeous and delicate simplicity of one of the Earth’s greatest forms of matter not only provides grounding energy, but can be used and imbued for many other purposes as well.

[growing-yet-into-magic]

Hey, I was wondering if you've read any of Jason Miller's books, and what you think of them. I tried searching your blog, but I don't trust tumblr's search.

Thanks!

Neither do I, apparently, because the one book of his that I read was at the 12th page of a 40 page search!

Beyond his-- questionable and offputting-- personality, he's a white man with no frame of reference for appropriate relations to ATRs and their deities and his one book I was able to take from the library was nothing but Hoodoo and Hecate. I didn't approve of how he tackled his subjects, and if you want to investigate his work yourself, I found a link to his book in the process of trying to figure out if he was actually Black or not. (Spoiler, he was not!) I linked my review above, and the link is in that post!

When in doubt, skip the names, scroll through my "witch books" tab. It's more likely to have all my reviews backed up somewhere down there without the duplicity of actual names of human people :P Thanks, tumblr!

[punkylilwitch]

Summoning Familiars

Before we begin, a disclaimer, familiars must be granted by spirits or deities. You cannot summon a familiar all on your own. The information I am providing is how to get into contact/start using a familiar, not create one. The only exceptions to this are if you join a coven or the likes and gain access to a group familiar, or if you inherit one from an active line of familial (by blood) witches. Your pet is typically NOT a familiar, unless the pet has been spiritually sent to you after you asked (ex. you ask a spirit and they say yes and suddenly the same stray cat comes by repeatedly and takes interest in your witchcraft work). Also when I say “takes interest” I mean sleeps on your altar, likes to be on or near you while you work, likes to watch your work, is overly vocal when you begin to work, or even picks up a bottle or ingredient and adds or takes it from your spell.

(image by https://twitter.com/SqueakyArt)

Typically Familiars will show themselves to you in one way or another, whether it be in dreams, visions coming from heavy meditations, or even in real life. But sometimes (say, if you have a cat and so you see cats and cat related things very often) it’s hard to tell if an animal is your familiar or if it’s something else like a sign from a deity or spirit guide or just coincidence. Therefore, a good way to know is by summoning your familiar in one way or another, and here I will give you a couple ways to do this.

Getting Spiritual Aid

You can also get help from spirits and deities to summon your familiar. DISCLAIMER 2; if you ask for a familiar, the spirit can say no and will not hesitate to do so if they don’t think you’re ready or it’s time or what have you. A familiar is a privilege to be granted by the spirit, not the other way around.

Mantras

Mantras are a very helpful way to find a familiar, and it’s fairly straight forward too. 

“Manifestum spiritus animalis”; this is a quite literal and direct way to call upon a familiar, as it is Latin for “Manifest animal spirit”. If repeated in a state of meditation involving the focus of your magickal energies, imagine the words and ideas behind the words forming a figure before you, and let it shape what it needs to. As much as you can help it, try your best not to be biased or else it may not work and you may not see the correct animal. From here you have a choice. you can manifest it into an astral body then stop it there, or you can manifest it into an astral body, then go further and manifest it into a physical body. The best way to do this is by repeating the mantra for ~10 minutes daily on an empty stomach. I would recommend doing it in the morning to achieve this. Don’t forget, you must have emotional engagement in the manifestation to get it to work.

You can also bind an animal of your choice as your familiar, given it has provided some kind of interest in your magick(consent/willingness) and the process has been approved/given by a spirit. This is done by this mantra: “You, will become my familiar, you are a strong, brave and smart (Type of animal, Cat, dog, bird ) Your name will be, (Name, not it’s actual name. Make a stage name, for the magical world, don’t call it by it’s magical name when humans can overhear.) Once called, (Animal’s Real name) now (Animal’s Magical name) in Magic(k) world. I summon you as my familiar.“ 

Visualization Spells

There is a bit of a technique to it, but there is a spell you can do that involves pouring your magickal energy into a process of manifestation. This is a ritual so it does involve ritualistic items like a ritual knife or other ceremonial item like a besom. The ritual goes like this:

Light a candle in a dark and quiet room

Use a magical wand or a dagger to draw an inverted pentagram in the air above the candle

Next, use the same ritual item to draw the shape of the animal spirit you wish to summon

Now, close your eyes and point the ritual item at the candle flame. Visualize the familiar manifesting in reality the candle flame as you pour your energy through the wand/dagger into the flame.

(ritual from https://occultist.net/how-to-summon-a-familiar/ )

https://occultist.net/how-to-summon-a-familiar/ 

https://www.spellsofmagic.com/spells/love_spells/friendship_spells/19352/page.html 

[polychaeteworm]

Purely out of friendly curiosity (and maybe a bit of disbelief) what is your source for that disclaimer? Because thats a pretty big statement to make without explaining why.

Like are you saying familiars come from a paradigm that involves this concept of them being granted by spirits or deities as being integral? If so can you elaborate on that?

Are you saying that secular witches with familiars haven’t had their familiars granted probably because they don’t work with spirits or deities like that?

Or is the spirit doing the granting the familiar itself?

Why -cant- you summon one yourself?

There are so many different magical traditions and ways to go about doing things.

Chaos magicians build entities all the time, and I’ve made so many successful servitors without being “granted” anything, so I find such a sweeping disclaimer like that a bit odd.

I have a familiar, he chose me and was not granted by a god or a spirit, no spirit other than his own.

I can understand the concept of not forcing a familiar, and a familiar needing to choose to stay on its own, but to say you cant summon one on your own sounds off to me.

You absolutely can create entities, so I’m pretty sure you CAN create a familiar, even if that’s not the aim of this post.

[punkylilwitch]

On this account, I try to introduce concepts that not every witch my known/that baby witches might want to learn, so I try to generalize as much as I can while talking about my subjects. I understand that witchcraft is very much up to the interpretation of the witch and can be practiced in many different ways, and it is not my intent through this account to target one specific type of which, as I am an eclectic witch myself and simply want to learn/teach about as many different witchy subjects as I can in this lifetime.  I do not intend for my target audience to be a kitchen witch, a green witch, a chaos witch, or any other type of witch, but instead I intend for it to be whoever needs a baseline to a subject to the best of my ability (meaning all witches in these categories who have never heard of these terms or phrases or practices before). I have never claimed to target audience, and I’m sorry for the miss communication, but I always intend and have encouraged multiple times in several different posts that a witch should always do their own research and figure out what works best for them according to the specifications of their craft. So yes, I know about different magical traditions, and no, I am not trying to tell every witch that this is how you have to do things or how things have to be.

For your question on secular witches, secular witches don’t necessarily have zero contact with deities or spirits. They just don’t have any religious beliefs and don’t necessarily believe in those theories, but that does not mean that they cannot call upon them or do not call upon them. Of course, witchcraft is very much up to interpretation when it comes to labels, and this isn’t the same for all secular witches, however as you know, what a familiar is is an animal in which a witch has a spiritual, psychic bond with, so typically this involves the animal having some type of astral form, which many considered spiritual or a spirit all together. In all though, the definition of a spirit is wild and varied, and many people interpret it in many different ways, including literal (by that I mean a metaphysical being like a person or entity similar (in depiction) in their minds to a ghost). This means that in order to have a spirit animal, again simply to my understanding and I am not perfect, witches tend to have at least some kind of belief in “spirits” (again, the definition of which is muddled). 

As for the granting, I didn’t know that Chaos Witches could manifest things, and I am very wary of witches crossing lines with familiars by calling to them and being disrespectful by saying that they created the familiar. So for that I’m sorry, I thought that chaos witches were witches who rejected the theological, ceremonial, and symbolic aspects of witchcraft, so I was unaware they worked with familiars in the ways of summoning them completely.

The reason why I said the statement about pets the way I did is because I see a lot of people out there saying that their pet is there familiar simply because they want their pet to be there familiar. These people assume that because their pet likes them that must mean they’re their familiar, and I was attempting to clarify that that isn’t always the case and the animal must find interest in the craft. I should’ve worded that a little bit better though, so I’m sorry about that one as well.

In general, what I learned is that entities absolutely can be created by chaos witches, and ergo familiars may be able to be created as well, and I apologize for the miscommunications. I’ll try harder next time to make it more apparent that I am generalizing and not aiming to talk to one specific type of witch. Again, I’m sorry for the miscommunication and for not getting all the information correct! And thank you for your response!

[punkylilwitch]

Summoning Familiars

Before we begin, a disclaimer, familiars must be granted by spirits or deities. You cannot summon a familiar all on your own. The information I am providing is how to get into contact/start using a familiar, not create one. The only exceptions to this are if you join a coven or the likes and gain access to a group familiar, or if you inherit one from an active line of familial (by blood) witches. Your pet is typically NOT a familiar, unless the pet has been spiritually sent to you after you asked (ex. you ask a spirit and they say yes and suddenly the same stray cat comes by repeatedly and takes interest in your witchcraft work). Also when I say “takes interest” I mean sleeps on your altar, likes to be on or near you while you work, likes to watch your work, is overly vocal when you begin to work, or even picks up a bottle or ingredient and adds or takes it from your spell.

(image by https://twitter.com/SqueakyArt)

Typically Familiars will show themselves to you in one way or another, whether it be in dreams, visions coming from heavy meditations, or even in real life. But sometimes (say, if you have a cat and so you see cats and cat related things very often) it’s hard to tell if an animal is your familiar or if it’s something else like a sign from a deity or spirit guide or just coincidence. Therefore, a good way to know is by summoning your familiar in one way or another, and here I will give you a couple ways to do this.

Getting Spiritual Aid

You can also get help from spirits and deities to summon your familiar. DISCLAIMER 2; if you ask for a familiar, the spirit can say no and will not hesitate to do so if they don’t think you’re ready or it’s time or what have you. A familiar is a privilege to be granted by the spirit, not the other way around.

Mantras

Mantras are a very helpful way to find a familiar, and it’s fairly straight forward too. 

“Manifestum spiritus animalis”; this is a quite literal and direct way to call upon a familiar, as it is Latin for “Manifest animal spirit”. If repeated in a state of meditation involving the focus of your magickal energies, imagine the words and ideas behind the words forming a figure before you, and let it shape what it needs to. As much as you can help it, try your best not to be biased or else it may not work and you may not see the correct animal. From here you have a choice. you can manifest it into an astral body then stop it there, or you can manifest it into an astral body, then go further and manifest it into a physical body. The best way to do this is by repeating the mantra for ~10 minutes daily on an empty stomach. I would recommend doing it in the morning to achieve this. Don’t forget, you must have emotional engagement in the manifestation to get it to work.

You can also bind an animal of your choice as your familiar, given it has provided some kind of interest in your magick(consent/willingness) and the process has been approved/given by a spirit. This is done by this mantra: “You, will become my familiar, you are a strong, brave and smart (Type of animal, Cat, dog, bird ) Your name will be, (Name, not it's actual name. Make a stage name, for the magical world, don't call it by it's magical name when humans can overhear.) Once called, (Animal's Real name) now (Animal's Magical name) in Magic(k) world. I summon you as my familiar." 

Visualization Spells

There is a bit of a technique to it, but there is a spell you can do that involves pouring your magickal energy into a process of manifestation. This is a ritual so it does involve ritualistic items like a ritual knife or other ceremonial item like a besom. The ritual goes like this:

Light a candle in a dark and quiet room

Use a magical wand or a dagger to draw an inverted pentagram in the air above the candle

Next, use the same ritual item to draw the shape of the animal spirit you wish to summon

Now, close your eyes and point the ritual item at the candle flame. Visualize the familiar manifesting in reality the candle flame as you pour your energy through the wand/dagger into the flame.

(ritual from https://occultist.net/how-to-summon-a-familiar/ )

https://occultist.net/how-to-summon-a-familiar/ 

https://www.spellsofmagic.com/spells/love_spells/friendship_spells/19352/page.html 

[hallow-witxh]

Seashells and Sea Glass in Witchcraft

Part Two - Seashells!

Alright everyone, welcome back!

Seashells used to be a major part of my craft. When I was younger and feeling like the world was trying to get me, I really felt like I depended on protection magic as a way to keep myself shielded from everything going on around me. I was anxious, overthinking a lot of things, and that's why I started using seashells in my practice regularly.

Seashells are, in their truest form - shells. I know, shocking, it's almost like it's in the name! Heheh. But on a real note - yeah, really, that's exactly why they're such symbols of protection. Once upon a time, that seashell had been the difference between life or death for something as alive as your or I. It was depended on to protect that little life, until they needed to find a different one.

Seashells are also incredibly connected to the elements of water and spirit. It was home to a life, making it highly spiritual, and it spent a majority of its existence in the sea. It has a very powerful connection to sea-based deities, especially Aphrodite and Poseidon, so they also make fantastic offerings.

But how exactly did I use them in practice? I'll make a list of a few ways that I have and still do.

Seashell protection candles. I have a bit of wax twine that works very well as makeshift wick, so I cut off just a bit to make a nice little protection candle. You can use all kinds of wax, you can add herbs (carefully, and keep an eye on it), whatever you so wish. Just pour a bit of melted wax into the shell, carefully settle the wick where you'd like, and you have a small protection candle that's easy to bring with you wherever you may go.

Herb infusion. Sometimes if I'm making a protection spell jar, or a burning spell, I will use small shells to scoop the herbs from their jars and pour them where they need to be. It makes me feel like it encouraged the protective benefits of those herbs, and is also a nice little ritual to do.

Offerings. Especially for Aphrodite, I have used a large shell to place offerings on. Be that dried flowers, herbs, a bit of wine, whatever you may feel is best. It also has easy clean-up once you're ready to retire said offerings.

Gifts. I have a gigantic collection of shells that I collected when I lived in Okinawa (the sea wall had breaks where you could look for shells - I loved them!), and I constantly hand them out as little gifts to friends and loved ones. Even to non-spiritual friends, seashells can be very meaningful, and I've yet to have a friend who threw a shell away. They're a token of affection and also one of protection!

As always, practice in a cleansed and safe space and always do your own research as well. Cross-check each fact over 3-6 sources just to make sure you've got it right before moving on.

Be safe everyone, and Blessed Be <3

Tips and Commissions for a struggling witch: Ko-Fi Apply the code WINTER20 at checkout for 20% off all shop items until Nov. 30 2021!

[hallow-witxh]

Support your local witch on Ko-Fi or at my store, Hallow Grove!

[punkylilwitch]

hello! i’m trying to do some research before looking to work with the fae, i’ve previously only done tarot so i was wondering if you had any recommendations on where to start and how to go about getting into it!

Generally, some of the best advice I can give to you as someone who doesn't work with the fae is this: do not go back on promises or insult them! For example, don't lie to them! They are particularly sensitive about this, and they will be vengeful if you aren't polite and careful with how you talk to them and interact with them.

Some things you can do to please them, however, are making them baked goods, helping nature (cleaning up litter, planting things that attract bees and other wildlife, just taking care of nature in general), and setting aside places for them where they can relax and be safe!

Definitely do lots of research before working with anything or anyone though, as it's always good to be over-prepared!!

Some extra tips for working with the fae:

Do not give them your true name

Do not *fully* accept food, drinks, or gifts

Always use protection (heh) via spell jars, protection circles, etc., and cleanse your space regularly and appropriately

They like sweet offerings like baked goods as well as shiny things and spices/seasonings! But avoid chemical-things, they like natural things! Ex; no chocolate unless it is specifically requested.

Remember that all faeries are different and have different interests/likes!

Do not only give them gifts during spellwork, it's rude

Research Seelie and Unseelie fae

As for getting started, again, I do not work with them personally, but if they leave you offerings, and if you accept said offering, say aloud your appreciation for the gift (but DO NOT say thank you or sorry in any circumstance or they will take it as you owe them more than you will be able to repay), then put it on an altar, (on yours or theirs, it will be decor essentially and be permanently there) and return the favor by giving them an offering as well. From then on this cycle will repeat and you will be able to learn from them more and learn how to work with them!

Here is a really good post by @leannan-sithe aboutFae and Kindred Spirits! :)) https://www.tumblr.com/blog/view/leannan-sithe/618509923357196288?source=share

[punkylilwitch]

How to make Infused Oils

Essential Oils vs Infused Oils

Essential oils: extracted, making these oils more potent, concentrated, and expensive. 

Infused oils: created when plant matter is soaked (or infused) within an inexpensive oil base.

Method 1: Infusion via shaking

Put your chosen herbs in a clean, dry quart jar, leaving 1-3 inches for the oil. 

Fill the jar the rest of the way with oil of your choosing. The herbs need to be submerged, so cover them by >1 inch. If they rise to the surface just add more oil. They need to be covered completely

Cover the jar tightly and shake it very well, for at least a minute.

Leave the jar out near a window sill or wherever is bright and warm for about 4 weeks(2-6), shaking once a day in the same manner.

Remember, for the magick to become truly infused with the mixture, do all of this with intent! Especially the shaking, and straining! If you’d like though, every time you see it and remember to (before it’s time to strain), repeat your intentions to yourself in your head

Strain the herbs! You can do this using a special cloth of your choosing or with just a strainer, but make sure to get out as much of the oil as you possibly can! 

After this, you can separate the mixture into multiple labeled jars or just one motherload of a jar for the ultimate stash! Be careful with this though, as it may be easier to spill or drop this way and you’d end up loosing all of it if that happened!

When you label the jars, date them!! They can only be kept and be good for about a year! With this in mind, you may want to cleanse at least the outside of the jar every month or so, but this is sort of a given for any ingredients and you can totally just wait and only cleanse them again before you need to do something with them. Also when labeling, label the type of oil along with the herb!!! Adding Vitamin E, however, can make it last longer, even two years if done correctly!

When storing, keep it in a dark, cool place!

Method 2: Infusion via heat

In a crock pot or double broiler at 100° and 140° F for at least 1 to 5 hours (72 hours on lower heat - 100 ° F), place the herbs and oil in the pot with the same rule of the herbs needing to be submerged in the oil completely. 

Turn off the heat and allow it to cool 

After this, do the same steps listed in the previous method starting at step 6! :)

Method 3: Infusion via alcohol

Weigh out approximately 1 oz. of your dried herb or herbs. None of the herbs before this method should be dried.

Using some sort of blender (coffee grinder, bullet grinder, etc.) and grind into coarse powder. Coarse being the key word, as it cannot be too fine a powder or else it won’t strain very well later on.

Transfer the herbs into a clean, dry jar with tight fitting lid. Then measure out ½ oz. whole grain alcohol or vodka and pour it into the jar; using a fork or shaking to mix it all together. The consistency should be similar to soil or wet sand from the beach

 Set this mixture aside for 24 hours, using the method I mentioned to help the mixture retain it’s intentions

Put the mixture into a blender and add approximately 8 oz. of carrier oil, measured by volume or weight. (Add more as necessary to cover everything well and ensure the herbs are blending correctly) Blend this mix for 5 minutes or until the blender itself is warm to the touch

Once it’s done, strain and follow steps 6-9 again 

Oils that can be used for this

Coconut oil, Extra virgin olive oil, Sunflower oil, Peanut oil, and Grape seed oil are some options! Make sure your oil is fresh before using, check the expiration date!! 

Sources: 

Method 1 -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4HoZTPoq_g

https://www.hgtv.com/design/make-and-celebrate/handmade/healing-herbs-learn-to-make-infused-oils-and-balms

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmY3unVhIbU

Method 2 - 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VU88n1FcJa4

Method 3 - 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INykP25N2SQ

https://theherbalacademy.com/alcohol-intermediary-herb-infused-oils/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBemR9–yWQ

All Methods and more -

https://blog.mountainroseherbs.com/making-herbal-oils

https://theherbalacademy.com/herb-infused-oils/

[teawitch]

Additional note: get your hands on some vitamin E oil and add it when doing an oil infusion. It helps keep the oil from going rancid and the infusion lasts longer. (A more traditional method is to add lots of salt.)

[millennialdivination]

Also, for method 3 make sure you use a vodka of at least 80 proof (40% ABV) or higher! Honestly higher is better. In America Mr. Bostons has 100 proof vodka that’s relatively inexpensive, especially compared to Everclear or Graves.

[punkylilwitch]

Quickie #29: Blasting

Blasting it's an all the term that was mainly used to describe which is who caused disruption in new crops, animals, and humans. as per usual, witches and Witchcraft were the scapegoat for anything that went wrong, are go they were fast 4 blasting despite the fact that, in reality, witches Heavenly support and worship  fertility, nature, animals, and humans alike.

It is called blasting because its aim is to blast the witch's power to certain place, the most typically the intense to destroy whatever it may be, however it all depends on intentions. More often than not, a Blasting rod is used to do this.

Here is a blasting rod from the Museum of Witchcraft and Magic in the Cornwall:

https://museumofwitchcraftandmagic.co.uk/object/wand-rod/

Here I will link a more detailed post by @barberwitch​ about blasting rods in particular: https://barberwitch.tumblr.com/post/182250716431/witch-tip-wednesday-12319 

“In Paganism and Wicca, blasting and all other acts of harmful magic are considered unethical, a violation of the law, “An’ it harm none, do what ye will.” According to tenets of the Craft, Witches must use their powers for good, to help others and work in harmony with nature (see Wiccan Rede). In many tribal cultures, however, such ethical distinctions are not made, and blasting continues to be among the acts of Sorcery carried out against people, animals, crops and possessions.” - Blasting By Occult World

https://occult-world.com/blasting/

[punkylilwitch]

Quickie #28: Skyclad

(Image: https://www.saatchiart.com/print/Collage-Skyclad-Witch-with-Familiars/469908/1659650/view)

Skyclad is the option of nudity during rituals in Wicca and Modern Paganism. This ritual dates back to the Roman Empire and was even done in the Middle Ages by some branches of Christianity.

https://www.mystiqamber.com/blogs/crystal-wisdom/things-you-should-absolutely-know-about-wicca

[thoughts-of-a-heathen]

What do you think of Joyofsatan.org? They claim to follow the Norse Gods and they’ve become the largest Norse Pagan group in the world.

I think that you lie a whole lot online and try to pose yourself as "the largest" whatever, when clearly you're just a bunch of pathetic neonazis whose ideas are so unpopular that your only way of spreading your shit is to "ask" random people on Tumblr about yourself. Yikes.

These are just some of the asks I found when doing a quick search on Google. So yeah, people shouldn't bother with you, and I encourage anyone who gets this or a similar ask in their inbox to just flat out ignore you. You're using Tumblr asks as a way of promoting your shitty ideas.

Oh, and your way of exploiting people's spirituality is absolutely vile too. Find a trashcan and climb inside it, because that's where you belong. Bye.

[punkylilwitch]

I wish I didn’t respond to this, they sent me TWO not one ask;; people like this make me tired

[punkylilwitch]

Hi everyone, I’m really sorry

I didn’t fully understand what I was reading with the rainwater post, and I said it’s illegal to collect rainwater in some places

This is not true!! Again I’m really sorry about the misunderstanding! It’s much more complex than illegal and legal, and people can collect rainwater (with some restrictions per state).

I’m so sorry again for the misinformation, that is absolutely not what I’m trying to spread here!!