Secular Magic:Ā Energy Sources
If you have the time/energy/desire, could you explain a bit about secular witchcraft, a la a beginner's guide. How do you charge spells/sigils/etc without a deity, how secular magic works, etc. Thanks!
I havenāt written a proper post in a while, so Iām taking this opportunity to get really into it and ramble on about things. Yay!
Warning: UPG and personal opinion abound.
We all know that witchcraft isnāt inherently religious - it can be performed just as successfully as any magical path that also happens to mingle with deities. It is also definitely possible to be religious and still practice secular magic; you just wouldnāt incorporate your religion into your magic, invoke your deityās power, that sort of thing - they remain separate. The flavor of the magic / energy used in secular magic versus non-secular magic is a bit different, in my opinion, based off the sources you draw from - even individual sources of energy in secular magic still have their own vibrations and ābest used forās.
Before I get too into it about what these methods actually are, please note that while Iāll do my best to list as many as I can think of, the energy sources I will be listing here certainly arenāt all of them. This list is not extensive, as people are constantly finding new sources of energy to fuel spells with, and methods to utilize the more ācommonā energy sources in new ways.
The main source of energy for secular magic, in my opinion, is from oneās own body, our intents and desires and wishes. (This is not the only one, just the one I think gets utilized the most / the ādefault.ā) We generate the energy required for the spells within ourselves, by summoning up the emotions and vibrations that match and fuel our intent, and then pushing them out into the spell. This is particularly strong in regards to cursing, if you happen to do them - you need to summon up all the anger and mean / hurtful feelings towards your target and use it to fuel the curse / redirect that energy to the target. This isnāt the only example of emotional magic, just the one that came first to mind.
Not only that, but think about what our body actually does! Blood is always pumping through our veins, our heart is always pounding, muscles are almost constantly flexing and exerting energy, synapses in our brains are firing. Think also about the physical energy we get from eating, or the heat and energy generated from exercise, even as simple as walking. All of those things can be drawn upon in spells and used to fuel magic.
The energy for secular magic can also be pulled from the world around us, environment wise. Some people do actually worship or revere the elements, as well as the planet, but that wouldnāt really fall under secular witchcraft anymore. It is still possible to utilize the energy from our environments in spells in a non-religious / -worshiping context, however. For instance, a lot of times that witches use their own energies for spells, they find they are drained, and then draw up energy from the earth / ocean to replenish themselves (a.k.a. a form of grounding). This can also be done before spellwork to ensure that you donāt suffer from the ever-possible energy drain from putting too much into your magic. Energy is drawn from storms, the ocean, even snowfall. The elements each have their own associations and energy vibes as well, and can be used individually, or drawn from all at once to encompass as much area, energy-wise, as possible.
Energy can be pulled from a bit further from home, too. Space witches draw their power and energy from the entire universe, from the planets and stars, from the infinite possibilities of space. While some do worship space (as @cosmic-witch speaks of in their post about [Astrolatry]), that isnāt necessarily in order to draw energy from the cosmos. I feel like people do more space magic than they think of. Items can be left to charge in sunlight, cleanse in moonlight; each of the planets have their own correspondences as well.Ā
In the case of drawing energy from the environment, or space, some people do tend to leave offerings as a sort of thank-you or attempt to give back what they took. This doesnāt necessarily equate to worship or drawing from a deity, but more honoring the source of the energy, or even trying to replenish what they may have taken by giving something back. (Some people do see these things as having spirits, but that doesnāt technically count as deities? :p)
Energy for spells in secular magic can also be drawn from objects. We know of the stereotypical herbs, candles, crystals, etc. These ingredients are so popular and commonly used because they have been used for a long, long time. And for good reason - each has its own vibration of energy, a different feel and purpose to its energy that can be drawn on and manipulated for use for our own purposes. They have proved time and time again to provide excellent fuel for magical workings. They also come in such a wide variety of types and intents, that allow for a huge range of work to be done for each. (Think of how people say rosemary is the go-to herb to replace one you donāt have, or quartz for crystals, white for candle colors, etc.)
Pulling energy in from external sources can also be considered a magic of its own. Just pulling in to you a certain frequency / āvibeā of energy can be enough to have an affect. For example - holding on to a piece of amethyst and feeling its calming energies flowing into you to help soothe anxiety.
In my opinion, anything that can generate energy, can have that energy channeled into magic. This includes electronics. The way I like to think about it, is every object is technically vibrating, some more than others, on a molecular level. That is the power that I think I draw on when I practice magic. Electricity is still a form of energy, and whether or not you channel it from a natural source (storm witches and lightning), or a āproducedā source (teach witches and power sources like plugs or generators). These sorts of sources are still absolutely valid for drawing energy from.
Again, though, each source of energy will have different sorts of vibrations and feels to the energy, and you might find that certain energies are better suited for certain types of magic or intents. For instance, I feel that using the bodyās natural energy (from blood pumping and exercise, etc) is best used to charge sigils drawn on the body. Herbs and crystals are best combined, I have found, or used in conjunction with other methods. Experiment, try out different sources of energy, see which ones you like best, which feel best to you, which might work best with different intents, etc. See if you can discover any sources of energy I havenāt mentioned here, or tweak some that already exist. Possibilities are limitless. :)
I wanna make a sidenote here, not necessarily exclusive to secular magic, but just magic in general. Some say that things ānaturalā from the earth or universe are the most potent for energy / spellwork, and should really be the things that you go for to use in magic. Along this train of thought is that organic herbs are better than dried / processed. Not true. While the energies might be different (if anything maybe slightly more potent at best, but not enough to matter in my opinion), that doesnāt mean that alternatives will not work as well - heck, maybe even better. Everything that has an association with it - imagery, symbolism - those things can be drawn on and used to fuel or contribute to a spell in some way. Your personal connections to certain things are super potent energy-wise as well, which can make a well-loved plastic charm more suited for a calming spell than one you donāt like made of rose gold.
Tl;dr - the energy for secular witchcraft comes from many sources, ranging from yourself to the environment, and from the natural world to the man-made one.
I hope that covered this topic enough, or answered your question adequately anon! I know it was a long post, but I felt it deserved it, and I also feel I was a bit slacking on my posts lately.Ā
Again, this list is not complete or extensive in any way, but are just some of the energy sources that I feel are pretty common or well known, and also the ones I could think of at the time of writing this post. My opinions bout what I wrote here may change over time; however, this is how I currently feel on the topic. Feel free to agree or disagree - after all, witchcraft is unique to everyone who practices it, and you are allowed your own opinions (as am I, writing this heavily opinionated post, lol), even if they differ from the masses. Feel free to break out, try something new, prove me wrong, whatever you wanna do - your craft, your choices. :D
