Queering the Craft

24 | Cis Gay Man | He/Him/His | Queer Witch

[thevelvetmenace]

Queer Rage Magic

The first word of the Iliad is “μῆνις” (pronounced mēnis) which roughly translates into a concept that is all but lost to our culture: divine wrath.  The concept refers to an anger so deep that it transcends beyond human emotion, a sort of cosmic rage that occurs when the very fabric of society is violated.  This wrath is more than just emotion, it is the extension of a divine Justice.  

The Iliad centers around Achilles in the Trojan War.  Achilles’ male lover Patroclus was slain in battle by the Trojans.  When Achilles learned of his lover’s death, he entered into this state of divine wrath, in which he proceeded to singlehandedly slaughter thousands of enemy soldiers.  Only the intervention of the gods brought an end to the carnage.  

This existential rage is a familiar concept to most queer individuals.  Alan Downs called it “the velvet rage.”  It is a sensation that many of us feel when presented with the countless ways that our lives are made difficult, more painful, by the hegemonic injustices of our society.  Even as we grow to love and cherish our queer identities, there is still the sense of loss, the longing for the childhood innocence that our cis/het counterparts were able to enjoy longer, the knowledge that life could have been easier, if only society hadn’t rejected us.

This rage, however uncomfortable it may be, can be a force for change.  Just as Achilles demolished the enemy armies that stole his lover from him, so too can you utilize this cosmic force to fight for justice. Invoke the wrath of Achilles in magical works dealing with defense of the oppressed and the protection of those fighting social injustice.  Use that rage to fuel your magical workings and lend strength to those activists fighting to right the cosmic scales of justice.

[thevelvetmenace]

It’s important to remember that cleansing and warding are not the same thing.  Just because you’ve locked the doors to keep gross people out, doesn’t mean you can stop vacuuming the carpet.  You create your own funk that needs to be cleaned up!  just cause nasty things are being kept out, doesnt mean you won’t create your own dirt, grime and stink on your own.  Cleanse yourself and your space!

[thevelvetmenace]

I am a witch.  I am not wiccan.  Wiccans are cool, but I just don’t vibe with it.  I’m still a witch.  just a different kind.  Kinda like Presbyterians and Baptists are both Christians.  Wiccans and I are more alike than we are not alike, but that doesn't make me a wiccan.  Also that doesn’t mean wiccans aren't witches.  Everyone is groovy with their own ways of being a witch.  Except gynocentric bioessentialist witches, which are just religious TERFs.  They’re b*ttholes.

[thevelvetmenace]

if the Self is a construct, become your own architect

[queenofboheme]

Grimoire Organization 📖

A list of how my own personal Book of Shadows is organized ! 🌙

Section One {Introduction}

Index

A blessing

The Wiccan Rede

13 Goals of a Witch

History of Magic

Personal Correspondences

Section Two {Time & Space}

Lunar Calendar [removeable]

Moon Phases

Full Moons

Moon Glyphs

Zodiac Symbols & Correspondences

Zodiac Map 》inc. Celestial Bodies

Elements

Magical Times of the Day / Day of the Week

Witches Compass

Sabbats

Transitions between Sabbats

Section Three {Tools of the Craft}

A to Z of Crystals

Planetary / Zodiac Crystals

How to Charge & Cleanse Crystals

Spreads & Grids

Chakras & Auras

Sacred Geometry

Oils 》essential oils & their properties

Candle Magick 》colours, scents etc.

Himalayan Salt in Magic

Metals & their properties

Amulets & Protection Items

Section Four {Nature Magick}

Flower & Plant properties

Herbs 》dangerous herbs, herbal amulets, edible flowers, cooking brewing & drying, healing herbs, flower associations

Gardening 》herbal, flowers, moonlight, to attract bees, faeries etc.

Fruit & Vegetable Correspondences

Spirit Animals / Familiars

Animals & what they symbolize

Wolf Magick

Bird Associations 》feather magick, owl magick

Water in Magick

Section Five {Divination}

A to Z Types of Divination

Tarot 》summary of the deck, how to charge etc.

Runes

Tea Leaves

Palmistry

Pendulum

Spirit Guides

Symbols 》witches alphabet, sigils.

Numerology

Graphology

Superstitions

Ghost / Spirit Work

Section Six {Basics}

Basic Altar set up

Cleansing & Charging

Grounding & Centering 》circle casting.

Invocation & Evocation

Actions in Witchcraft

Recipes 》tea / coffee / hot chocolate magick, witches brew, healing salves, face / hair masks, body scrubs.

Protection associations 》herbs, stones, candles / incense, metals, symbols.

Relevant Spells

Section Seven {Myth}

Gods & Goddess

Faeries

Myths & Legends

Entities

Please note that this is a very basic overview of the index in my Book of Shadows. For each bullet point is at least one page of information in my BoS.

I am only about halfway through recording information into my BoS; so as time goes on and as I learn more about the craft / my path this order may change. Also, if you feel I have missed anything please let me know !

For more posts straight out of my grimoire search the tag #queenofbohemebos 🌻

🌙🔮🌙🔮🌙🔮🌙🔮🌙🔮🌙🔮🌙🔮🌙🔮🌙

[wxtch-bxtch-shxt]

mood

[worldofcelts]

“The Sidhe passionately love beauty and luxury, and hold in contempt all the mean virtues of thrift, and economy. Above all things they hate the close, niggard hand that gathers the last grain, and drains the last drop in the milk-pail, and plucks the trees bare of fruit, leaving nothing for time spirits who wander by in the moonlight. They like food and wine to be left for them at night, yet they are very temperate; no one ever saw an intoxicated fairy.”

— Ancient Legends, Mystic Charms, and Superstitions of Ireland by Lady Francesca Speranza Wilde (via worldofcelts)

[thevelvetmenace]

Black & White: Banishing

A lot of beginner witches mistakenly believe the color white to be associated with good and the color black to be associated with evil.  This common mistake stems from centuries of racist ideologies that seek to create religious or naturalistic justifications for bigotry and supremacy.  

Even after a witches moves past the false dichotomies that attempt to equivocate black/white with good/evil, it can still be hard to grasp what relationship black and white have with positive and negative energies.  Both of these colors can be used for banishing, but understanding how and why is crucial to the effectiveness of the spell.  

The color black is the absence of all other colors.  It absorbs energy like a sponge.  In a banishing spell, the color black acts like a spiritual vacuum cleaner.  It absorbs the negative energies in a space, swallowing them up so that they can be properly disposed of by the practitioner.  

The color white is the presence of all other colors.  It reflects energy, casting it way from the practitioner.  In banishing spells, it is helpful to think of the color white like a hose, spraying away any negative energies.  

Understanding the nuances of the colors allows you to recognize the way in which energy will flow in your spells, allowing you to better control and influence the effectiveness of the spell.  

[thevelvetmenace]

Queer Herbal Magic

While there are flowers and herbs that hold significance in queer magic, such as lavender, pansies, and green carnations, sometimes the most potent magic comes not from the specific plant species, but from it’s circumstance.  

Weeds can be an extremely powerful ingredient for the queer witch.  Like queerness, weeds grow despite all efforts of the gardener to keep the garden neat and orderly.  Weeds can come in many shapes and sizes, but like queer identities, they exist in opposition to hegemonic structure.  

Sometimes the conditions where a plant grows can lend it to become a useful ingredient to queer magic.  For queer love spells, I often like to seek out plants that grow despite all the odds against them, such as flowers growing in the cracks of sidewalks, or saplings growing along fence lines just out of reach of the lawnmower’s blades.  

[thevelvetmenace]

This is a “cat got your tongue” sigil originally intended to protect against catcallers, but can be generally applied to any situation where you want someone to stop talking to you and leave you alone.

This sigil works well when turned into a talisman, as it acts a ward against ignorant people trying to talk to you or start shit. You could draw the sigil on a small piece of paper and put it in a locket, or you could carve it onto a small wood coin. Then when you feel like you need to use it, hold onto the talisman and in your head chant the phrase “cat got your tongue.” You can help fuel the spell by feeding it as much confidence and conviction as you can. Walk like you’re a boss ass bitch, glare at anyone who approaches you, you ARE unstoppable, untouchable, you ARE above them.

[thevelvetmenace]

Philter of Queer Desire

This potion and spell is designed to attract queer love into your life. As I originally created the spell for myself, it has some elements that are mildly gendered towards attracting the love of queer men. While the spell could be used as is for other forms of queer love, I will include some suggestions for ways it could be altered for those desiring the attraction of queer women.

Items Used:

Two Keys Without a Lock

Wood of a sapling, grown where it shouldn’t

Strand of your own hair

Token to represent loves first keen sting

Glass Jar

Small Glass Vial

Herbs and Ingredients:

Dandelion flowers in bloom

Geranium Petals

Lavender Buds

Petals of the Cherry Blossom Tree

Himalayan Salt Chunks

Potion Ingredients

Vetiver Root Essential Oil

Lavender Essential Oil

Frankincense Essential Oil

Instructions

In the small glass vial, combine the essential oils at a ratio of 60% Vetiver, 30% Frankincense, and 10% Lavender. Vetiver oil is tied to the energies of Mercury. Mercury, through it’s connection with the god Hermès, carries a masculine queer energy. For a more feminine queer energy, try swapping for Cypress essential oil, which holds connection with the goddess Artemis. Frankincense oil carries solar energy, as queer as Apollo himself, and bursting with energy, this oil will help to bring queer love into the light of the sun. Lavender oil is added to help invoke the energies of our queer ancestors, to ask them to bless this potion with their experience and wisdom.

Seal the vial of essential oil tight, and place it in the bottom of the jar. Next, place the chunks of Himalayan salt in the jar. The salt will purify the energy of the spell, cleansing out any negative energies. Place inside the jar the wood taken from a sapling that’s grown where it shouldn’t. I used a sapling that’s grown along a fence line where it is not wanted. This represents growth in the cracks of society’s rules and order. Next, place your token in the jar. The token I used was a stone from the beach where I first realized that my feelings toward my friend were more than platonic. I kept the stone all these years as a memento, a reminder of that day and the blissful emotions I felt. It was the not only the felt love, but also the first time I realized I was in love with a guy. Ideas for tokens could be photos, mementos, jewelry, etc, so long as it has personal meaning. Place a single strand of your own hair in the jar, to tie the spell back to you.

Add the herbs and flowers to the jar. The dandelions represent a beauty that is judged harshly by society, that grows boldly in defiance of the gardner’s cruel hands that seek to pluck it out. The geranium flower is associated with gentle love and self respect. It helps grant the spell an element of self-love. I chose to add Cherry Blossom Petals to the spell, as I happened to be creating the spell while my favorite tree was in bloom. The cherry blossom represents both permanence and ephemerality, a particularly queer contradiction. The blossoms bloom for a very short amount of time before they flutter away in the wind signifying their fleeting beauty, yet they bloom year after year without fail, showing they’re permanence. I felt it right that I include these petals, in recognition that queer encounters can often be ephemeral, yet there is a permanence to our existence and our persistence.

Lastly, poor water into the jar until it is full, then seal the jar. I replaced the lid with a wooden disk that I had burned a sigil onto, however this requires a pyrography pen, which you may not have, so it is optional. The sigil I used holds the intention that “queer love is drawn to me; queer love blooms in unexpected places.”

Once the lid is on the jar, tie the two keys without locks around the jar. These keys represent finding meaning and belonging outside of traditional roles. This is a mildly phallic symbol, and can be substituted for two locks without keys if you feel that better suits your preferences. Lastly, melt pink and purple candles over the lids, dripping the wax onto the lid to seal it shut. Place the jar somewhere safe for at least a week, if not longer. I buried mine beneath my favorite cherry blossom tree to allow it to absorb the earths grounded energy.

When you retrieve the jar, take the vial out and discard the remainder of the mixture how you see fit. The potion needs to be diluted in a carrier oil before applying it to your skin. Wear it as a sort of perfume or cologne to attract queer desire and queer love into your life. It should be noted that this spell doesn’t necessarily distinguish romantic/sexual love from platonic love. After performing the spell and while using the potion, I saw an impact in romantic, sexual, and platonic queer relationships in my life.

[thevelvetmenace]

Butch Hustler Boy and the Parking Meter

“Some adorable butch hustler boy pulls up a parking meter, mind you, out of the pavement, and uses it as a battering ram (a few cops are still inside the Wall, locked in). The boys begin to pound at the heavy wooden double doors and windows; glass shatters all over the street. Cries of "Liberate the Bar." Bottles (from hostile straights?) rain down from the apartment windows”

— Edmund White, Stonewall Riot Veteran

While their name is lost to the hegemonies of heterohistory, the legend of the butch boy and the parking meter lives on within each of us. Emblazing us with the power of their rage, and the strength of their conviction, they continue to remind us that resistance is action. Queerness is in constant motion, pushing against the regulations that society enforces upon us. Queerness cannot ever stand in stagnation, for only in motion do we find the strength of the butch hustler boy.

[thevelvetmenace]

Our Queer Ancestors

Ancestry is a concept that at first seems bound within a heterosexist framework. Ancestry—when understood within the confines of limited heterocentrist viewpoint—is thought to exist only within the realm of blood relation, stemming from the proliferation of the ideal family unit across time and space as parents produce children, who become adults that in turn find heterosexual partners and produce children.  This is what is understood when we speak of ancestry.  

But what of Queer Ancestry?  What of the kinships that are formed by those whose families have rejected them?  What of those families who’s bond to one another is not blood but instead a shared commitment to protect, support, and uplift one another?  Where, in the traditional family ideal, is there room for queer understandings of love and family?  Our families are not connected by some shared DNA, they are connected by a shared spirit of resistance, of a common will to life that drives us to reject the hegemonic in search of a more authentic sense of self-actualization. 

Many of our Queer Ancestors’ names have been lost to time, erased by the hegemonic power of heterohistory.  Although their names may be lost, their stories can still empower and embolden us.  By sharing their stories we carry their essence with us; they lend us their strength and their courage, their passion and their pain.  Take strength from your Queer Ancestors.  Allow them to empower you.  Allow them to lend you their spirit, and they will lift you to new heights.

[thevelvetmenace]

“The most radical reversal of homophobic discourse consists not in asserting, with the Gay Liberation Front of 1968, that “gay is good” (on the analogy with “black is beautiful”) but in assuming and empowering a marginal positionality – not in rehabilitating an already demarcated, if devalued, identity but in taking advantage of the purely oppositional location homosexuality has been made to occupy by the logic of the supplement and by the fantasmatic character of homophobic discourse.”

David M. Halperin, Saint Foucault: Towards a Gay Hagiography, p 61

[hillbillyoracle]

How to Give Spooky Good Tarot Readings (Reading Tarot Cards Vertically)

So I’ve touched on the idea of reading vertically briefly in my other posts but I wanted to put together one that goes into it a little more deeply.

When I say “read vertically” I mean considering the card as part of other cards with its same number, including the Major Arcana cards. It looks like this:

How to Understand Vertical Themes

Cards of the same number tend to have a similar higher level narrative theme.

Fives are my favorite example for this because of how much this layer of meaning can add to interpreting them. In the Rider-Waite Major Arcana, we have the Heirophant (5) and the Devil (15) – cards about the material world either being in balance or wildly out of balance.

5 of Pentacles is a card of sickness and poverty, 5 of Cups is reflective of losing a loved one or a breakup, 5 of Wands is work/goal oriented conflict with others or a hostile workplace, and 5 of Swords is about the kind of intellect that alienates you from others and arguments you win at the cost of your relationship with that person.

Within the Minor Arcana 5’s, we can see a theme of conflict, of desire and lack. When you take the Major Arcana into account it adds a new dimension – that these conflicts are a result of imbalance (the Devil) and are significant events in a person’s life that challenges them materially and spiritually (the Heirophant).

When 5’s are taken into consideration with the rest of the deck, we see they’re often the turning point from pure enthusiasm to deep commitment, when the crafter devotes themselves to the craft, when the lover must confront their own internal world so that they may try to invite another into it again.

That’s usually a lot more information than the few keywords that came in your deck booklet for each card (or the paragraphs of story if you shelled out for the proper book).

This will work better for some numbers than others but it’s always a useful lens to begin looking at your deck through.

Practice: Take each column and jot down key words, themes, symbols, or other ideas that seem to occur across all of them. Include the Major Arcana if you can but exclude them if it doesn’t make sense for your deck.

Reading Vertically in Practice

Here’s where I think reading vertically really shines.

We’ve all been there, we pull out a set of cards that on the surface don’t seem to be connected at all and you’ve got a querent sitting there patiently waiting for you to shed some light on their situation.

Reading vertically gives you another layer to investigate the cards, one that allows for more free associations than flipping through a book or going symbol spotting. Free association is the bread and butter of intuition work. It’s where your intuition gets to really come through.

The key is that while reading vertically is thematic, it’s still specific. Reading vertically isn’t going to give you themes like “love”, it’s going to give you “you’re at a turning point, you’re out of balance, and you better jump ship or redouble your efforts”.

I’ve often found it’s the layer that makes readings “feel spooky” to people I read for.

Practice: Draw cards at random or go in order and write down initial impressions, where the card falls narratively in its suit, and associations with others of it’s number. Then copy down meanings from the book that accompanies the deck. Compare.

Companion Books Are Useful, But Incomplete

The book that accompanies a deck is not the be all end all of card meanings. Decks have to be personalized in some way to the people who are reading them so there’s an interplay there. The author offers up their meanings, but you have to them meet them with your interpretations. For folks with a more academic bent, Hall’s encoding/decoding model of communication speaks nicely to how I understand and teach Tarot.

So that’s why I think it’s so important that people learning tarot do some amount of deep self-directed study beyond memorization of what’s in the book. It’s an incomplete picture otherwise. I offer up horizontal and vertical reading as a way to develop those personal associations and connect cards more deeply with your particular experiences/worldview.

That space between how the deck understands itself and how you understand it is where intuition can really flourish.

I hope this helps! If you have any questions, let me know!

*I do not claim my way is the one true way so take what is useful and leave the rest.

**If you wind up using this stuff in another setting, please credit me. This stuff is my art. Don’t steal, please credit. Thanks!

[thevelvetmenace]

Queer Witchcraft

In this blog, I will be sharing my beliefs and thoughts on a queer pagan way of life. I will include ideas for spells, sigils, potions and more, as well as my thoughts on the metaphysical and how queerness and magic function in our lives. As a disclaimer, I’m a cis, white, gay man. As such, I have many blind spots that I am always working to eradicate. None of my thoughts are intended to be held as object-fact, and I welcome constructive feedback.