WITCHES' HOLLOW

for farers on the witching way

[uwhe-arts]

Amanita muscaria … | uwhe-arts

[dog-rose]

What to use when in Witchcraft -

Ok so I am gonna say this is my personal reference, its mainly through associations. You might TOTALLY disagree and thats chill!

Its more something to think about and a guideline of what I use myself…

Candle Magic:

Carve a candle when…. the candle represents the target, in sympathetic magic. When, essentially, the candle is a poppet and lighting it is a symbol of destruction or empowerment to the target.

Place something under the candle or before it when… you are doing general candle magic, when the candle represents empowering a wish, idea or concept.

Anoint the candle when… doing work with spirits and gods, when you mark the candle for a special purpose, when doing high magic.

Herbs and plant work:

Use dry herbs when… it is convienent to do so, when the herbs are out of season or when you need to store them in a jar or bottle for a long time.

Use fresh herbs when… the spell is very earth orientated, when doing magic on behalf of another or when the magic is sympathetic so that the herbs represent the target, within kitchen witchery.

Use flowers when… when the spell concerns love and sex, or perhaps fertility and attraction, due to flowers being the reproductive parts of the plant.

Use fruit when when… working with children as a target, or with children practising. When you work with fertility and abundance spells.

Use wood and twigs when… when the spell is for protection or binding, for hardiness.

Burn herbs (recaning/incense) when… you wish to cleanse or banish, or invoke an atmosphere - that being, for divination using herbs that are said to open up your perceptions, when banishing, burning acrid or pungent herbs.

Use oil infusions when… you wish to anoint something, when you wish to mark something permanently.

Use floral waters (rose water etc) when… dealing with spirits and gods, for glamour as it has a long history of being used to beautify.

Crystals:

Use metals (haematite, copper, ores etc..) when… you work in protection, when you do energy work due to the conductive properties of metal.

Use shell, pearl, coral and such when… you work in sea magic, when you work within emotional magic due to the element of water.

Use points when… you wish to direct magic to a target.

Use tumble stones when… you wish the magic to be gentle or manifest at a certain place on the body on a target.

Use geodes when… you work in protection, when you work with glamour aimed to obscure and hide.

Knot magic:

Use cotton when… it is convenient.

Use silk when… doing spells that benefit the target.

Use ribbons when… love spells and wealth spells, as well as confidence and beauty spells. Spells to ensure victory.

Use rope when… doing spells that aim to hurt or weaken the target, binding especially.

Poppets:

Use cloth when… the spell aims to benefit who the poppet represents, use particular care when sewing or cutting, choose colours that are appropriate to them.

Use wax when… you wish to manipulate the target.

Use clay when… wish to create fetches or servitors, when you wish to create permanency.

Use twigs when… you wish to bury or throw the poppet out, when you want the poppet to be easily destroyed by breaking or setting on fire.

Sigils:

Use an alphabet grid or circle when… you wish the sigil to be more random and less attached to you.

Combine the shapes of letters from a sentence… when your sigil is very specific and a short term goal.

Use your own personal symbols when… you want the magic to be connected to you, when it is personal.

[etamina-amata]

Who is the man in black? What is initiation? Why is it irreversible? Is all of this part of traditional witchcraft? I’m a witch but I’ve never heard of any of this before. Why not?

Wow, that’s a lot of questions. Okay, one at a time. 

1. The Man in Black is also known as the Witch Father and the Witch’s Devil. He is one of the most common initiating spirits in traditional witchcraft, though by no means the only one. This is not the same figure as the Christian devil, but instead, a father of sorcery, of enlightenment, who brings knowledge and power. He is a spirit of the liminal places, of the wild and the dark, of the things that frighten you.

2. Initiation is the process of spiritual death that a traditional witch goes through after making their oaths with their initiating spirits. It is a process of cleansing, emptying, and rebirth.

3. It is irreversible simply because it is a spiritual death. It is a harsh process, one that rips you up and empties you out. Not everyone can handle it, and not everyone comes out well on he other side. When we say things like “it can drive you mad,” and “it fundamentally changes your sense of self-identity,” we are not kidding. You can’t go back. You’ve seen and experienced something so beyond your normal life, that you are changed.

4. Yes, all of this is part of traditional witchcraft.

5. You’ve probably heard parts of it, and just dismissed it. Have you never heard of witches meeting with the devil and signing his black book? Never heard of witches meeting with him at the crossroads? The stories are there, they are just usually dismissed by modern witches, wanting to distance themselves from people’s ideas of the witch, or in some cases, anything that hints at Christianity, like the term “devil.” 

It also comes with the dismissing of the victims of the witch trials as all being innocent, and the erroneous idea that all confessions were tortured out of people and not freely given. See Isobel Gowdie, who gave her confession four times, without torture, and stayed consistent – something that has been shown to be impossible for people who have been tortured, especially during witch trials, where such inconsistencies were used to prove that the “witch” was hiding things. Likewise, while she’s been accused of being schizophrenic, the consistency of her reports make this exceedingly unlikely as well. We know how unmedicated schizophrenics act while under scrutiny and interrogation, and according to her own words and the reports of witnesses, she showed none of these symptoms. Symptoms that would have been recorded as evidence of bedevilment, had they been present.

This is not to say that every accused witch, was in fact, a witch – far from it, but historically, we do see similarities between confessions of people who were never tortured. No historian doubts that Alizon Device believed she was a witch, but she’s called a liar or mad, even though her confessions match others she never met, and again, show consistency. Historians call Elspeth Reoch mad, even though her trial in Orkney and her claims are hauntingly similar to Isobel and others in the Scottish witch trials, despite taking place at different regions of the country, and never having met. 

[petitalbert-blog]

Bonus question:

Who are the key writers and thinkers in the traditional witchcraft movement? What are the key books?

I got into it through a couple of blogs, but I’m not sure that’s a good enough source for publication.

[ioqayin]

Here are some authors worth looking at: 

Michael Howard -  writer of numerous books on the folklore of the British Isles as it pertains to witchcraft. He was also the owner of the Cauldron, which has more than a few articles by various authors of note. 

Gemma Gary - a well-known author of many books on the folklore of Cornwall and its witchcraft. 

Emma Wilby -  an anthropologist and author of two books about cunningfolk, familiar spirits, and dark shamanism. 

Nigel Jackson -  The former magister of Via Nocturna, and author of some good classics on traditional witchcraft, angelology, vampyrism, and astrology. 

Paul Huson - the classic Mastering Witchcraft is a staple in many traditional witch libraries, I think. 

Daniel Schulke - the current Magister of the Cultus Sabbati, and author of a few books on magic, herbalism, and traditional alchemy. 

Lee Morgan -  Author of a few occult novels, and A Deed Without a Name. 

Shani Oates - Maiden of the Clan of Tubal Cain, blogger, and author. Her last two books would be of interest to you regarding the Devil.

Doreen Valiente -  Priestess and witch within a couple traditions of witchcraft. 

Owen Davies -  Author of many books on folklore and the history of magic. 

Peter Grey -  Owner of Scarlet Imprints, and author of a few books inspired by Jack Parsons and Ted Hughes. 

Nicholaj de Mattos Frisvold - Alchemist and witch, offering a perspective of non-European witchcraft. 

And now some of my friends! 

Sarah Lawless 

Shivian Balaris

Gede Parma

Sara Star

Faery Lizzy

Here are two books that show a wide variety of perspectives (you’ll even find yours truly!) 

Hoofprints in the Wildwood - some essays and artwork about the Devil and the Horned One of the Crossroads

Serpent Song - Essays on traditional craft

[joncarling-deactivated20190604]

‘Witch’s Brew’

[helleborea-deactivated20190328]

Necromantic Herbs: Plants of the Dead

Sourced from Grey Necromancer on Wordpress: There are a number of plants which can be extremely useful to the necromancer. Among these are the following.

Mullein: Erroneously described as a substitute for graveyard dirt, this in fact is a misconception. Known as the “Hag’s Taper”. The soft leaves are used as candle wicks and the dried stalks are soaked in beeswax or tallow to make a torch for rituals of necromancy. It is also burnt to see manifestations of spirits of the dead at night, to see into the Otherworld, and communicate with the spirits and deities that dwell there. Can also be used in talismans.

Wormwood: Used for summoning spirits and to help them manifest.

Cedar: The dried needles when smouldered serve both as a sustaining feast and call for the blessed dead, and the smoke is used to exorcise malevolent shades. The wood works for this purpose as well when turned into a fetish or as a staff.

Dittany of Crete: Used to aid in the manifestation of the spirits of the dead. Also has somewhat of a nasty reputation because of where it tends to grow. Harvesters tend to fall from the cliffs and crags where it grows and plummet to their death.

Aconite: Also known as Wolfsbane or Monkshood. Because of its incredible toxicity it is better to not to harvest it. If one has the dried root it can be preserved in order to serve as a tutelary spirit. Not to be used by amateurs.

Yew: Known in European countries as the Death Tree, it is a symbol of death, reincarnation, and longevity. Is planted in graveyards to protect the spirits of the dead. It can be used to banish malevolent spirits of the dead. Often associated with sorcery and dark magic. It is considered the sister of the Tree of Life, the birch.

Apple: Considered the food of the Irish dead and the inhabitants of the Otherworld. Can be added to incense blends to feed the spirits of the dead and ancestors.

Mugwort: Ingested as a tea to aid in divination and talking to the dead. Also boiled in water and, then the liquid is used to wash divination tools.

Copal: Serves as a offering to the dead and can be used to appease the spirits  who remain in states of trauma or confusion after death.

Willow: The wood of the willow is used in incenses and in the construction of fetishes dedicated to the dead.

Tobacco: May be presented as a herbal offering upon a ancestral altar or a grave in the form of a incense or sacramental smoke to honor the shades of the dead.

Cypress: The oil of this tree serves as a great addition to incenses and formula of the underworld.

Myrrh: The oil aids in all blends of a necromantic design. Can also be mixed into incenses.

Graveyard Mold: Technically no folklore or magical traditions associate this herb with necromancy of any kind. However I have included it here because I believe it can be used as a compound in necromantic incenses. Since it grows on graves it should contain some of the essence of the dead.

Mandrake: According to legend King Solomon carried a piece of this root in his seal ring to give him sovereignty over souls. Since one of its names is the “Little gallows man” it can be used as a poppet for laying curses of death, illness, pain, etc.

Birch: Petitions and blessings are written on the bark of this tree which is then burnt or buried in the grave of the spirit.

Bay Laurel: Used to communicate with the dead, possibly through use as an incense. Easily available in the form of bay leaves.

Chervil: Also known as garden chervil or “gourmet’s parsley” a tea or other drink made with it can be imbibed to aid in rituals of communion with the dead.

Lavender: Burnt as incense in order to bring peace of mind to the dead.

Marigold: Associated with funerals and used in funeral sprays.

Asphodel: In Greek legend is connected with the dead and the underworld. Sacred to Hades, Persephone, and Hekate. The roots were eaten by the poor of Greece and hence thought good enough food for the dead. Could be burnt as incense or the roots could be given as food offerings.

Thyme: Burnt as an incense helps ease the soul of a person who died a violent death.

American Sycamore: Known as “Ghost Trees” for their distinctive patchy appearance. Associated with the dead and poverty.Elder: In Norse mythology the tree is considered the Guardian of the Road to Hel (and thus sacred to Hela, Goddess of the Dead). Also associated with the ancestors.

[theheadlesshashasheen-deactivat]

Re: Mandrake:

The Galgen-Männlin (Little Gallows Man) is not used for cursing, death, or illness. The familiar specifically procures wealth, and falls along the lines of the ‘Hand of Glory’ found in the Black Dragon, some editions of the Grimorium Verum, & etc.:

“At the awful yell which the plant utters in the process, the poor dog drops dead to the ground, but you have got the mandrake. All you have now to do is to pick up the plant, wash it clean in red wine, wrap it in white and red silk, and lay it in a casket. But you must not forget to bathe it every Friday and to give it a new white shirt every new moon. If you only observe these precautions, the mandrake will answer any question you like to put to it concerning all future and secret matters. Henceforth you will have no enemies, you can never be poor, and if you had no children before, you will have your quiver full of them afterwards. Would you be rich? All you need do is to lay a piece of money beside the mandrake overnight; next morning you will find the coin doubled.” - James Frazer, Jacob and the Mandrakes.

Compare with:

“Pull out the root, with its root, from a mare in heat, the closest to nature, saying: Dragne, Dagne. Conceal this hair. Go at once and buy a new earthenware pot with its lid, without haggling. Return home with it, fill this pot with water from a fountain to within two fingers from the top, and put the aforesaid hair within; cover the pot and put it in a place where neither you nor others can see it, for that would be dangerous. After nine days, and at the same hour you hid it, uncover the pot; you will find within it a small animal in the form of a serpent, which will raise itself upright and after which you say immediately: I accept the pact. That done, you take it without touching it with your hand, and put it in a new box expressly without haggling. You give him some wheat, nothing else, and do not forget to give him some every day…” -The Black Dragon (from Crossed Keys by Michael Cecchetelli.)

[rootandrock]

Re: Mullein, too. 

It’s the flower stalk of Mullein, not the leaves, used to make hag-tapers. The leaves are anything but “soft” when dried and are more akin to the texture of a crinkly paper bag, but covered in needle-fine, itchy, hairs (that suddenly dislodge in your eyes, nose, mouth, lungs, and skin). In short: Not just a “bad” time, but the WORST time. 

PSA time deluxe on that one.

[bodaciousbanshee-deactivated202]

Re: Yew

Don’t burn yew. It will release toxic fumes and potentially kill you. These are not the get-you-high kind of fumes, these are the actual painful death kind of fumes. It’s the Death Tree because it is poisonous…and also useful in bowmaking.

[serpentandstang-deactivated2021]

Scottish Folk Magic and the dead (part two) - The dead as a witches familiar

An exploration of the role the dead play as the witches familiar with a potential link to older ancestral practices. In Scottish folk magic communicating with 'the other' is a clear theme. The other takes many forms. The good folk, the sidhe, the dead, the ancestors,the slaugh and perhaps even the de'ill himself. All colourfully reviewed in the witch trials of Scotland.

“It is the familiar spirit of the place; It judges, presides, inspires Everything in its empire; It is perhaps a fairy or a god?“

– Charles Baudelaire (the flowers of evil, 1857)

“The call of the desolate, dank and dead. Twilights veil settles thickly on a resting landscape. Nightfall’s gloaming orange light catching the harl, billowing mist unrolling like a generous feather duvet. Vapour peaks and troughs captured by the sinking Valium sunset form a myriad of grotesques as they rise and fall from sight. Unrelenting drizzle frames Scotland in driech endless grey. October country. A country where the ‘others’ are never far away. A familiar feeling this time of year…”

[lakritzellaz]

[yesterdaysprint]

The language of flowers..

Polite Society at Home and Abroad, 1891

warning, it’s long, but there’s a lot of really great specifics, like:

you are a fop good but odd you will cause my death I declare war against you intellectual but heartless false and gay handsome but dangerous your looks freeze me an enemy in disguise

Keep reading

[deerhoofandrabbitsfoot-deactiva]

The Black Mirror

To create a black mirror for spirit communications, to speak to both angels and devils, and that which lies beyond the veil.

Take ashes from a sacred bonfire, lampblack from a blessed candle, or other holy ashes. Take a pane of glass from a frame and spread over it a small amount of glue. Sift the ashes onto the glass, making a black and reflective surface. Let this dry.

Gather together a quantity of graveyard dirt, collected from the grave of a good and giving person, and heat it over a low flame in a cauldron until sufficiently dry. Combine with this the herbs rosemary, vervain, and cinquefoil.

On virgin parchment, using blessed ink, draw a Triangle of Manifestation or a sacred mark of conjuration. Make the sign of the cross over it three times and seal in the enchantment. Affix this to the inside of the mirror using sealing wax.

Set upon this sacred mark the botanical mixture of herbs and graveyard dirt.

Finally, set the pane of glass in place and seal of all this into the frame. Let it sit in a sacred place, such as a cemetery, a crossroads, or in a place blessed by the spirit of witchery, for three nights.

To use the mirror, light a candle below the mirror and gaze into it with unfixed eyes. Using the power of second sight, gaze through the mirror and into the realm of darkness.

Wrap the mirror in a black cloth when not in use. Store it in a secret place.

[unfetteredwood]

Scottish Folk Magic and The Dead ( An Introduction)

There is a seldom explored thread of an idea that needs woven into a larger narrative. That of Scottish Folk magic and older practices relating to ancestors, the Sidhe and animism and not so much deity as some of us have come to view them. I have been given the task of capricious seamstress in this regard, rooting between rich veins of folk-lore, academic research and archaeology to weave old ideas into a new story and hypothesis I hope will add to the conversation around this area as the series progresses.

[serpentandstang-deactivated2021]

Bane-Worts, a triplicity of Infernal Herbs, strong in poison and frequently deadly. The first in this group are plants of the clan of Nightshades: Belladonna, Thorn-Apple, Henbane, Scopolia, and occasionally the Mandragore. When used in a disrespectful way, these plants readily ally with certain Devils, and it is the vision phantasmagoric which is usually attributed them. The second group are the Umbellifers of the Skull, that tenebrous society of killing-plants the Greeks of Old collectively called Koneion, most notably Poison Hemlock, Cowbane, and Fool’s Parsley. To them is attributed the aspect of the going-forth of the soul: flight or the incipient metempsychosis at the onset of theriomorphic ingress. The third group consists entirely of Monkshoods, being the deadliest poison of Europa’s wort-cabinet, and to it is attributed the suppression of the flesh into narcosis, loosening the gateways of the soul, or yet even Death itself.

Daniel Schulke, Viridarium Umbris: The Pleasure Garden of Shadow, Chapter 12, “Book of the Balsam Grove.” (via serpentandstang)

[dianasson]

Clouties

British strips of cloth tied to trees near holy wells or sacred places. These cloths would be tied around a body part suffering from an ailment as the person walked to the sacred land. With the assistance of a charmer, the cloth would be tied to the tree and as it decayed, so would the ailment with it. Clearly, the cloth must be made of biodegradable material.

[iopanosiris-deactivated20210713]

Artist: Adam Burke

[serpentandstang-deactivated2021]

“Beware the autumn people. For some, autumn comes early, stays late, through life, where October follows September and November touches October and then instead of December and Christ’s birth there is no Bethlehem Star, no rejoicing, but September comes again and old October and so on down the years, with no winter, spring or revivifying summer. For these beings, fall is the only normal season, the only weather, there be no choice beyond.

Where do they come from? The dust. Where do they go? The grave. Does blood stir their veins? No, the night wind. What ticks in their head? The worm. What speaks through their mouth? The toad. What sees from their eye? The snake. What hears with their ear? The abyss between the stars.

They sift the human storm for souls, eat flesh of reason, fill tombs with sinners. They frenzy forth. In gusts they beetle-scurry, creep, thread, filter, motion, make all moons sullen, and surely cloud all clear-run waters. The spider-web hears them, trembles—breaks. Such are the autumn people. Beware of them.”

— Ray Bradbury, Something Wicked This Way Comes.

Image: “Autumn People” by Frank Frazetta.

[ofwoodandbone]

Crystals in Traditional Witchcraft

One of the things I see a lot of traditional witches shy away from is crystals. Often times, it’s because they’re deemed as very new agey.  But, they had associations long before the newer ones.  Crystals are stones. They are earth. They are just another rock.  But as stones and earth, they can be used successfully in magic. And yes, in traditional/folkloric witchcraft.  They were employed by witches and magicians for a long, long time. Take onyx for example. It’s one of my favorite examples of this point.  Ask a new age magician and they’ll tell you it’s good for calming and releasing negative emotions. Ask a folkloric or traditional witch and they’ll tell you that onyx is good for killing love, causing nightmares, and housing demons.  Onyx is a particularly dark example, but there it is. There are countless others. Amethyst in folklore is said to bring luck and safety to those who travel.  Quartz is said to make excellent spirit houses.  Lapis Lazuli has long been used as an aphrodisiac and makeup, so it would be great for love and lust spells.  Moonstones are great for creating glamours and illusions.  The list goes on.  I will admit, I don’t much care for or work with crystals. I have about three that I carry with me and use, only really because each has a personal story. One especially, because it was mined out of the land in my area by a friend and gifted to me.  You don’t have to incorporate crystals in your craft, but it’s something to keep an open mind about.  You never know what you could use to spice up your witchery. 

[ioqayin]

Útiseta [ON ‘sitting-out’] refers to the act of an individual positioning him or herself in any of a number of auspicious or liminal places, such as a graveyard or crossroads, in order to seek counsel with the dead. […] These practices included song and charm, especially under cover of an animal hide or heavy cloak.

The Language of the Corpse; Cody Dickeson (via serpentandstang)