š® Learn the classic definitions of the cards - you donāt need to memorize every cardās meaning, I still use my book, but knowing a general meaning of cards will help
š® Wands- fire, Cups- water, Swords- air, Pentacles- earth
š® Using the elements helps me understand the cards and give them meaning
š® You can connect with a card by envisioning it and placing yourself inside of it- Stand in it and think of what you feel, see, smell, hear. I think this is a fun little exercise, though I donāt do it frequently.
š® Incorporate lucky numbers, personal habits and preferences into the way you shuffle, pull cards and organize spreads
š® I cut the deck and deal cards with my left hand (Iām right handed), but thatās just me
š® If you want more information on a card, pull another one and place it on top of the first.
š® Donāt pull too many cards or do too many readings- If you overwhelm yourself with information or deal half the deck, the cards tend to lose meaning and you learn very little from the reading.
š® Practice on yourself, family and friends- the more you practice the better youāll know the cards and be able to create a story, which brings me toā¦
š® Connect the cards to make a story- this is how my mom reads cards and it always blew me away how she could just create this little story from a few cards and really give them life. Connecting the cards makes it easier to understand and less like random tid-bits of information.
š® Thank your cards when youāre done
š® Try meditating before a big reading- this doesnāt have to be classic meditation where you clear your mind, it can be very personal and whatever you feel like connects you to your cards, the person youāre reading and any deity or spirit you might be asking for help.
š® You donāt need to call on Gods or spirits while reading. If youāre not into that, donāt mess with it. And if you do practice this, please do it responsibly.
š® When I meditate I see vines, water, energy and spirits- I know that when these all come together Iām calm and focused. Your meditation will probably be nothing like mine and thatās perfectly normal.
š® Not a tip, but now that Iām thinking about it, is there a name for what Iām doing besides āmeditatingā because I donāt find that fitting? š§
š® Never stop learning (exhibit A ā¬ļø) and donāt be afraid to ask possibly silly questions (see: exhibit A)
āļø Naturally Lucky šæ
In love with my new fluorite dice set by @urwizards ~
The history of herbal witchcraft
Trees, Trees, Trees
Edible Wild PlantsĀ
Wildflowers ~ harvesting + foraging + drying
Medicinal Plants + HerbsĀ
Mushroom Identification
Teas, Tinctures, Meads + Smoke Blend recipesĀ
Crystals + Gems + StonesĀ
Types of witches
Deities/Archetypal God-desses
Altar building + devotionsĀ
Types of magickĀ
Types of energy
Types of spellsĀ
Types of divination
Elements + their magick
Moon PhasesĀ
Seasonal MagickĀ
Cyclical Nature of EarthĀ
Wheel of the YearĀ
Wheel of Days (celebrations and feasts)
Native SpiritualityĀ
Animal Medicine + Animal TotemĀ
Famous Herbal WitchesĀ
Astral Travel + ProjectionĀ
EntheogenĀ
The best antidote to the unknown is to learn as much as you can.
Blessed be,
Rosemary Milk š¹
Platonic Vampirism
look at this cute incense box i thrifted the other day!!! love it sm
ghibli + nature scenarios (part 2).
18- Baba Yaga (Slavic Folklore).
This classic witch originates from Russian mythology and Slavic fairytales. Baba Yaga appears in various legends, often occupying the role of the witch residing deep in the woods that the main character must interact and barter with. She is the predecessor to witches like those found in the fairy tales of Charles Perrault, as well as those found in the Grimm Brothersā works. Baba Yaga retains many unique characterizations and attributes not found in any other witch, however, making her singularly iconic.
Baba Yaga is described as a hideous, deformed, and vicious looking woman, resembling the classic hag archetype. In some versions of her story, Baba Yaga is not one, but three sisters all named Baba Yaga, each sister being older than the next. In this way, Baba Yaga is intimately connected to both The Graeae and the Moirai (#64), and illustrates the triple goddess. More specifically, Baba Yaga is a representation of the Crone phase, and is associated with death, darkness, and winter. Her function in the legends she appears in further matches this archetype, as she āmay help or hinderā the characters that beseech her. She stands at the crossroads of death and mystery, allowing some to pass unscathed.
Baba Yaga is best known for two specific attributes that have defined witch iconography and contributed to Baba Yagaās mythological uniqueness. Her residence, as well as her choice of aerial transportation, are some of the most distinctive out of any witch in this series. While most fairy tale and fictional witches fly through the sky on their iconic brooms, Baba Yaga sits her little old body inside a mortar, and steers her āspice-craftā with a pestle as rudder. The iconography and symbolic nature of this, with the mortar representing the divine feminine/womb and the pestle representing the divine masculine/phallus, shows Baba Yaga to be a character in balance with nature, called by some as a āphallic motherā. Other depictions show Baba Yaga riding through the sky in a cauldron, further solidifying the relationships between witches and their love of these cast iron pots (Ceridwen #56).
Baba Yagaās hut is similarly iconic and unique, and has influenced centuries of witch-lore. Her house sits upon a pair of chicken legs (sometimes just a single claw). It jumps in the air and spins around, constantly moving from place to place and turning direction. Iāve seen dozens of references and depictions of witch-homes on chicken legs, but they are all imitations of Baba Yagaās. Her yard is surrounded by a fence impaled with skulls, furthering her placement at the gates of death and dying. Her fowl-legged home appears in the earliest references to Baba Yaga, so whatever this strange attribute means, its intimately connected to her being.
The etymological roots and significance of her name are disputed. Itās generally agreed that the Baba is the same root as babushka, meaning grandmother. Other roots in Old Russian bring the shared meaning of Baba to āmidwife, sorceress, and fortune tellerā. The Yaga part of her name is less conclusive, however, with no root universally agreed upon. Some believe it has its origin in āserpent, snakeā, while others see it from anything from āhorrorā, āwitchā, āevil womanā, and āpain and worryā. In this way, Baba Yaga principally means Grandmother Witch, the Slavic etymological counterpart to the Italian version, Strega Nona (#21). Both Strega Nona and Baba Yaga are examples of the tradition of witch names ending in an A, with Baba Yaga perhaps being the earliest (See: Hilda and Zelda #36, Sabrina #62, Samantha/Endora/Clara #s 89/54/39, Glinda 76, et. al.).
In modern times, Baba Yaga has become more of a bogeyman character, used to scared children into good behavior. Sheās described as flying through the air in her cauldron, stealing kids away to eat them. She is often shown as a consort to the personification of Death, sealing her Crone status. This association expands beyond the original source material for her, however, and while she is now often seen as evil, she was more thoroughly understood as being morally ambiguous. Baba Yagaās ultimate good or evil was brought out by the decisions and/or actions of the main character in the fairy tale who interacted with her, serving as a reminder of caution, thoughtfulness, and sure-footedness.
Baba Yaga remains one of the classic hag witches from world folklore and mythology. I am absolutely enamored with her flying around in a Mortar/Pestle, as I find her to be one of the prototypes for modern Kitchen Witch iconography. Her witch residence goes down in history as one of the most unique, rivaled only by the far removed castles of witch/queens. I find her manifestation as three Baba Yagas, each living in a chicken-clawed home, to be her most allegorical and fascinating. In this way, Baba Yaga illustrates the singularity and unity of the Triple Goddess into one character, promoting the final stage of Crone as the most pertinent to the archetypes of witchcraft.
Witchy Update!
so apparently witchtok is a bad place to get info about witchcraft, and i have gathered a vast majority of my current knowledge from tiktok and pinterest should i be concerned?
I donāt intend on working with deities or gods, Iām choosing to stick to spells, spirituality, maybe some divination, connecting with nature, etc. Iāve heard that intent matters most, but i just want to be on the safe side because I am not trying to summon fae or do some of the crazy things people have warned me against.
Hi I hope you are doing well. Can I have a reading on my writing please? Iām an aspiring writer and in a process of writing a blog. I often feel incompetent and have difficulty to express myself. Thank you! M, Leo
Hi M !
Comet here ! I've responded in private!
Have a nice day/night!
Hello!This blog is run by two witches Comet and Angel. Feel free to talk to us !Ā
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