Practicing Witchcraft In Secret

Practicing Witchcraft in Secret

I love things that are traditionally “witchy.” I love dressing candles with herbs. I love setting things on fire. I love making poppets and charms. But not everyone is able to be so obvious in their craft. For various reasons, some witches choose to be secretive about their magical practice.

Why Would You Want to Keep It a Secret?

Historically, witches kept their practice a secret because it wasn’t safe to be open about their beliefs. In the late middle ages, the Catholic Church began to actively persecute witchcraft, herbal medicine, and folk spirituality with the publication of “witch hunting guides” like the Malleus Maleficarum. This witch hunting fervor would continue even after the Protestant Reformation, with some of the most famous witch hunts (such as the Salem trials) carried out by Protestants.

It is important to remember that the witch hunts were political at their heart and that very few of the people executed for witchcraft were what we would recognize today as witches. They were mostly women, poor folks, or members of ethnic or religious minorities. But even so, the danger of being accused of witchcraft and/or devil worship drove many medieval witches, herbalists, and pagans to hide their practice.

The United States experienced a modern witch hunt of sorts in the 1980s with the “Satanic Panic.” We still don’t entirely understand what caused this cultural phenomenon, but what we do know is that it resulted in widespread paranoia about devil worship. Anything that could be misconstrued as “satanic” was shunned or outright persecuted, from Dungeons & Dragons to heavy metal music to nature-based religions like Wicca — and, yes, witchcraft. People who had been comfortably open about their spirituality suddenly found themselves practicing behind closed doors. If you’re over 30, you may remember this. If you’re under 30, the Satanic Panic probably shaped how your parents view witchcraft and paganism, and they may still be grossly misinformed as a result.

Even today, a lot of witches choose to keep their practice a secret because it would be unsafe or uncomfortable to go public. Many witches have family members, friends, or coworkers who would be uncomfortable if they knew about their witchcraft, and may even choose to end the relationship because of it. Some witches live in culturally Christian areas where it might be harder for them to get jobs or make friends if they were openly self-identifying as a witch. Some of us live in places where an outdoor ritual could get the cops called on us, or have missionaries showing up to save our souls.

On the other hand, some witches just like privacy. You may feel like your spirituality is nobody’s business but yours, and for that reason you may prefer to do witchcraft in a way that is more subtle and secretive. Desire for privacy is a perfectly valid reason to stay “in the broom closet.”

There are also some magical traditions that require members to swear a vow of secrecy and to keep the group’s secrets. However, these traditions usually require an in-person initiation, so I won’t be discussing them here.

Inconspicuous Witchcraft

If you haven’t read my posts about magical journaling and kitchen magic, I highly recommend you check them out. Those are two forms of magic that are very easy to practice discretely.

No matter what your reason for keeping your practice a secret, here are a few tips for making magic without drawing attention.

Use scented candles. Candle magic is one of the easiest and most versatile forms of spellwork, and all it requires is a candle and your intention. Scented candles are perfect for undercover witches because, rather than adding herbs and oils, you can simply buy a scent that matches your intention. (For example, a vanilla candle is great for love, while a pumpkin spice scent will attract wealth.) Plus, they’re so commonplace that no one will think twice about seeing one in your bedroom or on your desk at work. If you’re a purist and want to make sure you’re using real plant materials, you can get all natural candles scented with essential oils — but lots of witches use artificial scents and get good results, so don’t feel like you have to go with the more expensive option.

Diffuse essential oils. Essential oils contain the concentrated essence of a plant, which makes them a must-have tool for witches. Essential oils are also extremely popular right now, both for holistic healing and for aromatherapy, so you definitely won’t attract any negative attention for using them. You can get a good essential oil diffuser for under $20 online. Some brands overcharge for their oils, but you can find good quality oils for under $10. When choosing an essential oil, look at the magical correspondences for the plant it is made from. You can diffuse oils to infuse your space with their energy, similar to the way you would use incense.

Enchant your perfume. You can choose a perfume to match your intention or make your own custom perfume by mixing essential oils in a carrier oil. Focus on your intention as you spray the perfume, letting it infuse your energy field with magic. You can also buy magical perfume blends from witch-owned businesses online or on Etsy.

Learn shufflemancy. “Shufflemancy” is a modern form of divination that is done by putting a playlist on shuffle — whatever song plays first contains an intuitive message for you, either in the lyrics or in how it makes you feel. You can find playlists specifically made for divination by Googling “shufflemancy playlist,” or you can make your own by compiling a playlist of songs from different genres that deal with different topics. Just be sure to keep it diverse — if your playlist only has love songs on it, you might not get very helpful messages if you have a question about your career.

Learn bibliomancy. This divination method is similar to shufflemancy, but much older. Bibliomancy is done by asking your question while holding a book, focusing on your question while connecting with the book’s energy, and then opening it to a random page. There is a long, long tradition within Christianity of doing this with the Bible — if you feel connected to a certain sacred text, you could use it for bibliomancy. You could also use a book of poetry, a novel, or even a dictionary. However, I think it’s important to use a book you feel a connection to, rather than something randomly grabbed off the shelf.

Use Pinterest and Spotify as manifestation tools. You may have heard of vision boards, a tool used to manifest something by creating a detailed collection of images that match your intention. Pinterest boards are already essentially virtual vision boards, and creating one with focused intent can be a spell by itself. Likewise, you can use Spotify playlists for manifestation. To do this, create a playlist of songs that match your intention (songs about money or love, for example) and listen to it while meditating on your desired outcome.

Choose your outfits with intention. You can pick clothes based on color correspondences (see this post for a guide to color magic), the material they are made from (a wool sweater vs. a cotton T-shirt), or some other symbolism. For example, if you want to feel empowered, you might wear leopard print to channel the energy of a fierce predator.

Enchant a piece of jewelry for a specific purpose. You can choose your jewelry based on the correspondence of the metal or gemstones it is made from, make your own piece, or use whatever you already have on hand. You can enchant this jewelry by passing it over the flame of a candle or through the vapor of an essential oil diffuser. State what purpose you want this charm to serve, either out loud or in your mind. Wear this jewelry whenever you need to tap into that energy, and make sure to cleanse it often.

Create magical art. If you want to manifest something, draw or paint a picture of it. You don’t have to be a skilled artist — what matters is that you are taking your mental image of what you want and bringing it into the physical world. Fold up the picture and keep it in your pillow, or in some other special place. Likewise, if you want to banish something, draw or paint a picture of it and then rip it into little pieces and throw it out. This ritual allows you to purge yourself of the negative emotions tied to the thing you are banishing.

Take a magical bath. We rarely have more privacy than when we’re in the tub. Taking a bath is already a ritual of sorts, and it’s easy to add magic. You can, of course, make magical bath salts by mixing essential oils into Epsom salt, but you can also create bath spells with household objects. For example, a bath with salt and vinegar will clear up nasty energy, while adding milk to your bath will attract love and abundance.

Practicing in secret does not have to mean a less deep or well-rounded practice. There are lots of magical acts that can be done subtly or kept private. The suggestions in this post are by no means exhaustive, and I hope they will give you some ideas for other ways to fill your life with undercover magic.

Resources:

“Introduction” from The Malleus Maleficarum at http://www.malleusmaleficarum.org

The Fat Feminist Witch podcast, “Episode 34 — Witches, Midwives, and Doulas”

“Most witches are women, because witch hunts were all about persecuting the powerless” by Bridget Marshall for The Conversation

New World Witchery podcast, “Episode 118 — The Satanic Panic”

Witchcraft for when depression hits 🥀

Sometimes, we may think that our magick is invalid, or that our deities don’t want to work with us anymore when we have depression. Altars get dusty, the air gets stale, and maybe you have quit working with magick all together, but still identify as a practicing witch.

Depression is an illness. If a professional runner fractured a leg, how could they continue to run while going through recovery? Can a witch continue to do mental work if their mental health is suffering? Think about it: witches are constantly using their brain to get themselves in a highly spiritual and magickal state. You cannot expect yourself to want to work with magick if getting out of bed is difficult on its own.

Understand that your deities are forgiving and understanding beings. Your magick will not dwindle. In fact, when you are sick, your deities and spirit guides will protect you and make sure nothing bad happens to you while you are sick. Don’t feel guilty for your depression. Depression is an illness, not a lack of dedication or general carelessness. I am going to give you advice on what kinds of spiritual work you can do while in a depressive episode.

Candle magick 🕯

🔮 Light a candle of your choice that symbolizes whatever you want to manifest (i.e yellow = confidence)

Aromatherapy 🧼

🔮 Different essential oils promote all different kinds of things. Lemon is uplifting and happy, while lavender is calming and promotes sleep.

Healing crystals 💎

🔮 All you need to do is set the intention. You can keep crystals by your bed, or you can set them up in a specific way for a spell or intention.

Chanting 🗣

🔮 You don’t need to get up for this one! You can even chant in your head.

Sleep meditation 💤

🔮 Sleep meditations are wonderful because of all of the insight you can get from intense dreaming. YouTube has great sleep meditation music.

Guided meditation 🧘🏻‍♂️ 🌀 🧘🏼‍♀️

🔮 This can be done in the bed as well. There are meditations on akashic records, spirit guides, past lives, you name it.

Be safe and know that it is okay to feel depressed sometimes. Make sure to get professional help if possible to help if these depressive episodes are chronic or prolonged. Know that the world loves you. Your deities love you. I love you. We love you.

Tags

Depression

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grimoire-archives

4 years ago

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grimoire-archives

4 years ago

When do you stop being a BABY-WITCH?

If you're hoping for a smooth reply... you'd be disappointed about this post LOL. This is just a personal opinion.

First thing first I'd prefer to use the term "beginner" instead of "baby" but let's go with the flow for a moment.

The more you know...?

I honestly don't think that the amount of info you know defines if you're a baby witch or not, but it does help for sure. Why?

In my humble opinion...you stop being a baby witch when you're able to fully explain the aspects of Your own ritual.

Easy? No. In order to do that you have to:

🔺Know how to set intent.

🔺Know how to focus properly on what you're doing.

🔺The ingredients correspondences.

🔺Be able to give a personal meaning to words/gesture/timing etc

🔺Be prepared for the consequences and eventually know how to nullify your spell or correct your mistakes

🔺If you work with a deity or another being... you should know about culture/pantheon/offerings/proper EVERYTHING.

To add your own touch to a certain ritual you have to know the general basics, the history behind your practice and mostly...Yourself, your reasons, what pushes you to grow or holds you still. Who you are...

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1 year ago

Yule/Midwinter/Winter Equinox

Overview and History

Winter Equinox, Midwinter or Yule as it’s more commonly known is the period of time where we celebrate the Sun’s rebirth and entry into a new year full of light.

This year’s Yule starts on the 21st of December for the Northern Hemisphere.

Most of this information is for the Northern Hemisphere but can still be celebrated in the Southern, I personally still celebrate but have a personal celebration for the new year on the last day of the year.

This year’s Yule starts on the 21st of June for the Southern Hemisphere.(Hey! That’s me)

Until the 16th century, most cattle owned were slaughtered to prevent the need to feed them during the long and dangerous winter, therefore it was a time of feasting and where meat was plentiful.

In pre-Christian Scandinavia the “Feast of Yule” lasted 12 days and it was common place to burn a “yule log”.

In ancient Rome the winter solstice was celebrated at the Feast of Saturnalia, a feast to honour the god Saturn, it lasted about a week and was a period of gift-giving, easting and debauchery.

One of the most famous celebrations of the winter solstice in the world today takes place in the ancient ruins of Stonehenge, England. Thousands of Druids and Pagans gather there to chant, dance and sing while waiting to see the spectacular sunrise.

Activities for Witches

One of the most important Yule practices revolves around the Yuletide altar, which consists of three main parts: the Yule log, candles and greenery. All three are symbols of bringing the outside in and welcoming the rebirth brought by the Sun. Greens, such as holly and the evergreen trees that are decorated in silver, gold, reds and greens, symbolize rebirth — a miracle that they prosper in the harsh cold while other plants are barren. For new-age pagans, the festively coloured candles are a safer way to bring the warmth of the sun into the home without risking fires that could be caused by burning the ceremonial log. Traditionally, the ceremonial log is ash. It is decorated in seasonal greens, doused in ale and dusted with flour before being set aflame and left to smoulder for 12 days.

Easy Activities

Kiss someone (who gives permission) under some hanging mistletoe

Give gifts to those you love

Have a feast with family and friends

Make spell wreaths and hang them around your space

Use cinnamon and pine smudges

Decorate a living outdoor tree

Use natural materials to make yule decorations then decorate your room/altar

Make seed covered apple treats for birds

Clean your pets space and re-decorate

Have meals by the fireplace (roast marshmallows)

Buy some new warm blankets to keep you warm

Knit sweaters for your pets, and scarves for your friends

Sing and dance under the moon (while wearing several layers)

Light cinnamon incense

Show love to everything deserving of your love

Reset your sleep cycle

Make some goals

Ask your tarot for some advice

(optional) Thank your gods for bringing a new year

Tags

yule sabbat

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grimoire-archives

4 years ago

So earlier I made a post about doing a video tutorial on creating your own sculpture of your diety well.... I'm going to being doing it and making it friendly to those in our community who aren't out in the open about their practice. It's going to take a little bit for some of the supplies to come in but it's happening.

Really excited about this.

I'm going to be doing a goddess for the video.

Reblog and let me know who your most interested in seeing created. I'll do sketches of the top 3 and then vote again on which one of those will be the final choice.

Bridgit

Danu

Morrighan

Artemis

Persephone

Athena

Hestia

Hekate

Ishtar

So Earlier I Made A Post About Doing A Video Tutorial On Creating Your Own Sculpture Of Your Diety Well....

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4 years ago

We are trying to buy a house - so soon I’ll make a series on my magical home!

Here are some ideas -

Packing with intent

Cleansing an apartment or home when leaving

Protection for your property

Wards and Hexes for your home

How to decorate with intent

Mantle altar set-up for different seasons

Kitchen altar set-up

Offerings to the land and house spirits

Communing with the land spirit

Painting - colors and their meanings

How to make a cozy, welcoming space

The 3 Hs - Hearth, Home, and Hospitality

How to bring the elements into your home

How to bring the seasons into your home

Witch decor on a budget

DIY witch crafts

DIY witchcraft

Decorating your home on a budget

Art/decor for intent

I have lots of ideas! I can’t wait to get started :)

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grimoire-archives

1 year ago

HONEY ALMOND CEREAL BARS FOR HAPPINESS

A treat or breakfast, anytime you need a pick me up throughout the day. You can infuse these bars with your intentions, and charge them with a crystal of choice. I hope you guys enjoy! ~ Angel.

For the Bars:

½ cup (170g) honey

happiness, healing, prosperity

½ cup (120g) almond butter

prosperity, universal love, luck

1 box Honey Nut Cheerios

happiness, nostalgia, prosperity

For the Coating:

½ cups (75g) white chocolate

friendship, self-love, fun

1/3 cup (85g) greek yogurt

2 tbsp honey

happiness

1 tsp vanilla extract

self-love, attraction

Directions

On medium heat, combine honey, almond butter, and your honey nut cheerios in a rather large pan. Make sure the almond butter has melted and the cheerios are fully coated. This should take about no longer then 7 minutes. About 3 plays of Set Fire to the Rain by Adele.

Once you have done this, spread evenly into a glass baking dish until it sets completely. This can take 1-3 hours.

Cut them into bars. Combine your greek yogurt, honey, melted white chocolate, and vanilla together, and dip the bottoms into the mixture, Let them set for an additional hour.

Enjoy!

Tags

recipes to try

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grimoire-archives

1 year ago

“It is also important to avoid making regular offerings to the spirits, including you familiars. Each offering should be made as payment for a specific service performed. In this way they will always be active and eager to earn their keep. As it is written in the Book of Abramelin the spirits are industrious creatures and must not be coddled like pets.

On the other hand, a spirit who expect to be fed on a schedule will be less inclined to work and may become a lazy glutton. Your only option then is to withhold food until they agree to work, which is counterproductive and certainly not the kind of hostile relationship you want with them!

… Other exceptions to this rule would be offerings made to your ancestors and your personal head-spirit/guardian angel - for whom you can make regular offerings without harm. However, such regular offerings should be kept very simple (such as fire, water, and incense), and special or more elaborate offerings given only as thanks for specific work accomplished.”

- Ritual Offerings

Tags

ritual work

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grimoire-archives

4 years ago