Latest Posts by star-comet-witches - Page 6

holy shit indeed

I thought we were keeping that a secret!

18- Baba Yaga

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 Brothers’ 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 “may help or hinder” 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 Yaga’s 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 “spice-craft” 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 “phallic mother”. 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 Yaga’s 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. I’ve seen dozens of references and depictions of witch-homes on chicken legs, but they are all imitations of Baba Yaga’s. 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. It’s 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 “midwife, sorceress, and fortune teller”. The Yaga part of her name is less conclusive, however, with no root universally agreed upon. Some believe it has its origin in “serpent, snake”, while others see it from anything from “horror”, “witch”, “evil woman”, and “pain and worry”. 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. She’s 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 Yaga’s 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.

Tinder but for ghosts and solving mysteries.

Platonic Vampirism

Tarot A History and Brief Overview of Spreads

A History

The tarot, first known as trionfi and later as tarocchi or tarock is a pack of playing cards, used from the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play games such as Italian tarocchini, French tarot and Austrian Königrufen, many of which are still played today. In the late 18th century, some tarot decks began to be used for divination via tarot card reading and cartomancy leading to custom decks developed for such occult purposes. The word Tarot and German Tarock derive from the Italian Tarocchi, the origin of which is uncertain but taroch was used as a synonym for foolishness in the late 15th and early 16th centuries.

Playing cards first entered Europe in the late 14th century, most likely from Mamluk, Egypt, with suits of Batons or Polo sticks which are commonly known as Wands by those practicing occult or divinatory tarot, Coins which are commonly known as disks, or pentacles in occult or divinatory tarot, Swords, and Cups. These suits were very similar to modern tarot divination decks and are still used in traditional Italian, Spanish and Portuguese playing card decks. 

The first documented tarot packs were recorded between 1440 and 1450 in Milan, Ferrara, Florence and Bologna when additional trump cards with allegorical illustrations were added to the common four-suit pack. These new decks were called carte da trionfi, triumph cards, and the additional cards known simply as trionfi, which became “trumps” in English. The earliest documentation of trionfi is found in a written statement in the court records of Florence, in 1440, regarding the transfer of two decks to Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta.

The original purpose of tarot cards was to play games. A very cursory explanation of rules for a tarot-like deck is given in a manuscript by Martiano da Tortona before 1425. Vague descriptions of game play or game terminology follow for the next two centuries until the earliest known complete description of rules for a French variant in 1637. The 18th century saw tarot’s greatest revival, during which it became one of the most popular card games in Europe, played everywhere except Ireland and Britain, the Iberian peninsula, and the Ottoman Balkans. French tarot experienced a revival beginning in the 1970s and France has the strongest tarot gaming community.

Italian-suited tarot decks

These were the oldest form of tarot deck to be made, being first devised in the 15th century in northern Italy. The so-called occult tarot decks are based on decks of this type. Three decks of this category are still used to play certain games:

The Tarocco Piemontese consists of the four suits of swords, batons, cups and coins, each headed by a king, queen, cavalier and jack, followed by the pip cards for a total of 78 cards. Trump 20 outranks 21 in most games and the Fool is numbered 0 despite not being a trump.

The Swiss 1JJ Tarot is similar, but replaces the Pope with Jupiter, the Popess with Juno, and the Angel with the Judgement. The trumps rank in numerical order and the Tower is known as the House of God. The cards are not reversible like the Tarocco Piemontese.

The Tarocco Bolognese omits numeral cards two to five in plain suits, leaving it with 62 cards, and has somewhat different trumps, not all of which are numbered and four of which are equal in rank. It has a different graphical design than the two above as it was not derived from the Tarot of Marseilles.

Italo-Portuguese-suited tarot deck

The Tarocco Siciliano is the only deck to use the so-called Portuguese suit system which uses Spanish pips but intersects them like Italian pips. Some of the trumps are different such as the lowest trump, Miseria (destitution). It omits the Two and Three of coins, and numerals one to four in clubs, swords and cups: it thus has 64 cards but the ace of coins is not used, being the bearer of the former stamp tax. The cards are quite small and not reversible.

French-suited tarot decks

The illustrations of French-suited tarot trumps depart considerably from the older Italian-suited design, abandoning the Renaissance allegorical motifs. With the exception of novelty decks, French-suited tarot cards are almost exclusively used for card games. The first generation of French-suited tarots depicted scenes of animals on the trumps and were thus called “Tiertarock” (‘Tier’ being German for 'animal’) appeared around 1740. Around 1800, a greater variety of decks were produced, mostly with genre art or veduta. Current French-suited tarot decks come in these patterns:

The Industrie und Glück (Industry and Luck) genre art tarock deck of Central Europe uses Roman numerals for the trumps. It is sold with 54 cards; the 5 to 10 of the red suits and the 1 to 6 of the black suits are removed.

The Adler-Cego animal tarot is used in the Upper Rhine valley and its neighbouring hills such as the Black Forest or the Vosges, and has 54 cards organized in the same fashion as the Industrie und Glück. Its trumps use Arabic numerals but within centred indices.

The Tarot Nouveau has 78 cards, and is commonly played in France and is somtimes used to play Cego. Its genre art trumps use Arabic numerals in corner indices.

German-suited tarot decks

German-suited decks for Bauerntarock, Württemberg Tarock and Bavarian Tarock are different. They are not true tarot packs, but a Bavarian or Württemberg pattern of the standard German-suited decks with only 36 cards; the pip cards ranging from 6 to 10, Under Knave (Unter), Over Knave (Ober), King, and Ace. These use Ace-Ten ranking, like Klaverjas, where Ace is the highest followed by 10, King, Ober, Unter, then 9 to 6. The heart suit is the default trump suit. The Bavarian deck is also used to play Schafkopf by excluding the Sixes.

Tarot Card Readings

The earliest evidence of a tarot deck used for cartomancy comes from an anonymous manuscript from around 1750 which documents rudimentary divinatory meanings for the cards of the Tarocco Bolognese. The popularization of esoteric tarot started with Antoine Court and Jean-Baptiste Alliette (Etteilla) in Paris during the 1780s, using the Tarot of Marseilles. French tarot players abandoned the Marseilles tarot in favour of the Tarot Nouveau around 1900, with the result that the Marseilles pattern is now used mostly by cartomancers.

Etteilla was the first to issue a tarot deck specifically designed for occult purposes around 1789. In keeping with the misplaced belief that such cards were derived from the Book of Thoth, Etteilla’s tarot contained themes related to ancient Egypt.

The 78-card tarot deck used by esotericists has two distinct parts:

The Major Arcana (greater secrets), or trump cards, consists of 22 cards without suits:

The Minor Arcana (lesser secrets) consists of 56 cards, divided into four suits of 14 cards each;

The Magician, The High Priestess, The Empress, The Emperor, The Hierophant, The Lovers, The Chariot, Strength, The Hermit, Wheel of Fortune, Justice, The Hanged Man, Death, Temperance, The Devil, The Tower, The Star, The Moon, The Sun, Judgement, The World, and The Fool. Cards from The Magician to The World are numbered in Roman numerals from I to XXI, while The Fool is the only unnumbered card, sometimes placed at the beginning of the deck as 0, or at the end as XXII.

Ten numbered cards and four court cards. The court cards are the King, Queen, Knight and Page/Jack, in each of the four tarot suits. The traditional Italian tarot suits are swords, batons, coins and cups; in modern occult tarot decks, however, the batons suit is often called wands, rods or staves, while the coins suit is often called pentacles or disks.

The terms “Major Arcana” and “Minor Arcana” were first used by Jean-Baptiste Pitois (also known as Paul Christian) and are never used in relation to tarot card games. Some decks exist primarily as artwork, and such art decks sometimes contain only the 22 major arcana.

The three most common decks used in esoteric tarot are the Tarot of Marseilles, the Rider-Waite-Smith tarot deck, and the Thoth tarot deck. 

The six most common Tarot Spreads are the;

Love Spread

Here is a little you should know about the ‘love’ spread. This type of reading evaluates the relationships relevance, how strong and happy they are. Every relationship has its ups and downs and with this six-card spread you will be able to evaluate your physical, emotional, mental and spiritual connections with your partner. The ‘love’ spread has its own 6 cards which represent the following:

#1-The first card signifies what you currently feel about your relationship, your approach, and your outlook.

#2-The second card represents your partners current emotions towards you, his attitude, and expectations about your relationship.

#3- The third card is a connection card. For example; common characteristics of both of you

#4– The fourth card indicates the strength of your relationship.

#5– The fifth card shows the weaknesses in your relationship.

#6– This final card is your true love card. It interprets if the relationship is going to be successful or not.

Success Spread

Briefly about the ‘Success’ spread; it is a remarkably situational spread.  It’s often used when a person is facing an obstacle or hardship. It can also be helpful if you don’t know how to face or overcome a problem as it will point you in the right direction.

#1- it helps you to find out about the true colours of the challenge in front of you. It will help you to identify what sort of skill set and resources you will need in order to not just solve but also overcome the challenge.

#2- this further clarifies on your current problems and challenges.

#3- The third card reveals the hidden factors affecting your current situation. You need to have knowledge about what these factors are to really overcome the obstacle you’re facing.

#4- The fourth card represents new plans, people, or objects that can help you grow further. By adapting yourself to these new aspects, your vision of the situation will change, leaving you with better solutions to your problems.

#5- The final card shows what requirements you need to fulfill in order to be proven successful and things you should avoid as they will lead you to failure. It will point you towards success if proven to be a positive card but in other cases it could be a negative card and will warn you about an upcoming disaster in your life.

Celtic Cross Spread

Despite its complications the ‘Celtic Cross’ Spread has stood popular for many years. This is most likely due to the fact that its importance lies in its difficulty. Each result of the Celtic Cross can be illustrated in a variety of ways depending on the direction of the of the fallen cards. Though not recommended for beginners, once anyone understands it, he or she can use this spread to find out the full depth of the situation. With enough practice it can it can be taken in use to find the answer to any problem. Celtic Cross deals with intricate situations.

#1– presents the current situation the person finds themselves in the and the reading is about the question they are facing.

#2– is placed over the first card, pointing to the left and is always read in an upright position. It shows what the basic challenge is that needs to be solved or the mental or physical object holding them back.

#3– The third spread reveals the subconscious influences. These strange influences have an extremely strong and powerful effect on one’s everyday life, especially in scenes relating to the question.

#4 – The fourth card shows what resources one has and the things they can use to face and solve the problem shown by the second card and in the process reach their ultimate goal, shown by the third card.

#5 – The fifth card shows the prologue of the scene. A negatively influenced past may have an effect that prevents their success on their current situation and they will need to let the memory go in order to stop it from negatively influencing their current situation so they can face and eventually overcome the problem at hand as shown by the second card. A positive past should be can simply be called inspiration. Even though the person may be facing a challenge in their current part of life, the problem

They are up against is natural growth of the positive past they had the benefit of experiencing and after they have overcome all their challenges, things will look even brighter than they were in the past.

#6 – The sixth card is the headlight. If the card states there is some form of negative energy on the way the five previous cards should give a good reasoning of why this is taking place and what we could do to prevent it.

#7 – The seventh card represents the person’s attitude. It illustrates your physical actions, thinking and ideals regarding the current problem. This will give you more to work with into whether the person’s attitude is conducive to a likable outcome or whether it’s time to retrack the way the person perceives the information.

#8 – The eighth card is an energy card. It talks about the energy surrounding them and the energy other people and the environment is letting off and if these energies are helping in any shape or form.

#9 – The ninth card tells us about what the person’s desires and fears. This is a revelation card. It gives importance to the things a person should be aware of in their current situation and might change the way a person acts which should not be neglected by them.

#10 – This is the final outcome and emphasizes on the energies, if they are complementing or conflicting. It also tells the person about the future that will take place immediately and if it is necessary or not to face the future.

Spiritual Spread

Similar to the Success Spread, the Spiritual Guidance spread is used when faced with problems that are of a spiritual nature. These sorts of challenges are usually related to spirituality in a person.

#1 – The first card represents your main concerns. You may think you know about the problem but this spread goes more in depth with it.

#2 – The second card looks into your motivation for looking for guidance.

#3 – The third card looks into the things about your life you are insecure or worried about.

#4 – The fourth card emphasizes on the parts of your life that you are not aware of.

#5 – The fifth card is your advice card as it will guide you to the steps to face your fears. It ties in with the previous cards.

#6 –The sixth card guides us to a life with no worries so that we could move forward on our spiritual journey.

#7 – The seventh card teaches you to deal with the situation with the resources you have at hand.

#8 – Finally, the eighth card finishes the Spiritual Guidance Spread by telling us that the result of the tarot cards all depends on our reaction to it whether we focus on the positive or negative.

Career Path Spread

This spread is for times where we feel left out on our career. We work hard hoping for a promotion but to no benefit. It helps us with these kind of challenges that we face in our professional life.

#1 – The first card basically asks us if our job that we have right now is indeed our ideal job

#2 – The second card emphasizes on the actions we must take to further boost our career. A positive card means we should stay at the same position we are in right now whereas a negative one means we should make some changes.

#3 – The third card tells us about certain things about our job that we can no longer alter. The card may tell you to look for a job in the same category we are working in right now.

#4 – The fourth card refers to our skills on our job to see if they’re enough to get us a promotion or if we are behind everyone else.

#5 – The fifth card tells us about the things we can do in our career to improve and start a new one or just small things we can do in our current career to at least get noticed.

#6 – The sixth card gives us the answer to the question that if our past mistakes are influencing our career now.

#7 – The final card tells you that if the card is negative it might lead to a bad outcome as it might result in you making other bad career choices.

However, if you aren’t sure of the outcome, use the card again after a few days or weeks to see if the reading changes as your attitude changes.

Three-Card Spread

The simplest and the most useful spread, ‘The Three Card Spread’ only uses three cards. This is what makes it the most popular. This is one of the most powerful spreads and can find answers for you really quickly for almost anything, let it be overcoming a problem or an obstacle or if you are simply just feeling lost or left behind.

Linear 3 Card Tarot Spreads

As you can imagine, this layout is good at suggesting some sort of linear path, sequence of events, cause and effect, or a way of getting from point a to point b.

Past, Present, Future

You, Your Path, Your Potential

You, Relationship, Partner

Situation, Action, Outcome

Idea, Process, Aspiration

Balanced 3 Card Tarot Spreads

In this layout, each card of the spread has a common intersection. They are all equally important, like three sides of a pyramid. Without any of these, the whole structure collapses.

Mind, Body, Spirit

Physical State, Emotional State, Spiritual State

Subconscious, Conscious, Super Conscious

Option 1, Option 2, Option 3

What I think, What I feel, What I do

Foundational 3 Card Tarot Spreads

I think think one is a little harder to explain, but I like thinking of these spreads being communicators of advice in a way such that “given X and Y, the result is Z”. X and Y attempt to give you a clearer understanding of options, and Z is a summary, a crux, a way to move forward given the information that is there. In fact, even when phrasing these spreads, I like saying them in a way that follows this formula to make the point clearer. The bolded items represent the actual card positions.

Given your strengths and weaknesses, this is my advice.

Given what worked well, and what didn’t work well, this is the key lesson.

Given that this brings you together, and that this pulls you apart, you must focus on this.

Given that you want this from the relationship, and your partner wants this, your relationship is heading towards this.

Given Option 1 and Option 2, This is what you need to know to make a decision.

Crossed 3 Card Tarot Spreads

As the layout would imply, this is about understanding conflicts and obstacles. The card that crosses over is something that stands in the way and that needs to be overcome, something that blocks you from attaining your ultimate goal, while the third card acts as a sort of advice card, looking at the situation from a more distant viewpoint. These can also be used as simpler 2 card spreads if you want to use only the crossing cards.

Situation, Obstacle, Advice

Aspiration, Obstacle, How to Overcome

Opportunities, Challenges, Outcome

Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis

I will be doing card meanings on a later date :)

A friendship was made that day

Wheel of the Year Collection *:･ﾟ✧

For each turn of the seasons, 8 potions to celebrate with nature the cycles of the earth and everything that it gives us, to get full of energy and good vibes and maybe have a sweet time with the coven or by yourself .ﾟ*☆

Some of this potions are already in here and some of them will be added <3

☆ Yule ☆ Imbolc ☆ Ostara ☆ Beltane ☆ Litha ☆ Lughnassad ☆ Mabon ☆ Samhain ☆

Wholesome baby witch

Suddenly feline familiars make perfect sense

Free readings

Hi welcome to our blog!

We are Angel and Comet !

We are offering free readings ,before requesting a reading please read the rules.

Rules :

1. For the moment we prefer to answer them in private, so if you send us an anonymous ask we can’t do your reading .

2. Be patient , doing readings for free is not easy and is time consuming,so it gonna take some time .

3. Don’t be rude (say a hello and a goodbye , please tell us your nickname, if you have preferred pronouns let us know we don’t wanna make anyone uncomfortable)

4. Even if you requested before a reading for us make sure to tell us again what you wanna know , your nickname etc . After completing a reading we are going to erase the messages .

5. We are more than happy to hear some feedback , but please be polite .

6. It’s ok to ask for another reading but consider that other people want readings too so again be patient .

7. Try to refrain yourself from asking us what you should do , you have your own life so you should take your own decisions.

8.(temporarily rule) Right now we are going through some personal matters , so we gonna start doing the readings starting with 15 February, until then we aren’t able to respond at all but you can send us your requests.

Template for asking for a reading :

Hello , I’m… , these are my pronouns….  .

I’m here to ask for a reading ….

………..

Have a nice day/Goodbye/Etc.

Have a nice day !

⚠️Disclaimer⚠️

We can’t ask everyone and make sure you are old enough to ask for a reading or that you aren’t gonna hurt yourself after you get our reading. Everyone has their own triggers and their own mental state . So make sure before you ask for a reading to check with yourself if : you are mentally ok with hearing something you might not like and second you are mature enough to not have a harmful reaction towards yourself or other .

Why Witchcraft Might Not Be Working For You

There’s so many different reasons a spell or ritual might not be working for you. So I thought I’d share some common reasons why some new witches might be struggling with witchcraft.

✨ You’re not connecting to the ingredients, tools or supplies needed for the spell

What works for me, might not work for you, and that’s okay. This doesn’t mean the spell you’re using is a dud or that you’re not doing it right. It just means that you haven’t formed those connections with the ingredients or tools yet, or your connection with them is different. 

A great example is blueberries lol. In witchcraft blueberries are most commonly associated with protection BUT for me I associate them with creativity and astral travel. There’s a personal reason for this and through out my many many years practicing and studying witchcraft I’ve come to build this relationship with blueberries.

✨ You’re energy is too low

I know the feeling of just really really wanting to get into the magick of it all. But witchcraft is energy draining. If you’re low on energy (edited) then you’re gonna be putting out low energy and that can affect the effectiveness of your spells.

Give yourself time and practice low energy magick like smoke cleansing your space, charging your crystals under the full moon or rearranging your altar (or creating an altar).  

✨ You have been given a false idea of what witchcraft is and how it should feel or how it should work

Real witchcraft isn’t measurable nor is it able to be defined in one true way. Witchcraft is different for every single witch. Even witches in covens have given different descriptions of the feelings they’ve had while performing the same spell or ritual. That’s because we all experience magick a different way.

Don’t be too hard on yourself because you didn’t feel a hot light burning inside of you, like one witch may describe. And don’t feel bad if you don’t literally see colors radiating from your spell jar like another witch described. Personally I’ve never experienced either of those things but that doesn’t mean that what I was doing wasn’t working, it just worked differently and felt differently for me. I may not have had those exact same experiences but I had my own, and they were/are just as special. 

Next time you do a spell or ritual, write how it made you feel in your journal. Don’t just write the spell down but write all the things you felt, saw, smelled, heard and even tasted. This way you can get a better understand of how magick works and feels for you.

✨ Your space, body, mind or spirit needs to be cleansed

The biggest reason I’ve found for my spells just completely flopping is I didn’t bother cleansing before doing it. Negative energy is like white cat hair stuck to your favorite black leggings, it ain’t going nowhere until you clean it lol.

The great thing about cleansing is it can be done with just your hands! Yeah, bet a witch has never told you that before LOL. Sound is a great way to cleanse a space. Snapping, clapping and rubbing our hands together makes sounds. You can tab on a table, or use EFT (usually done as a meditative practice but could be utilized in cleansing the mind, body and spirit as well).

You can cleanse with incense, candles, oils, and water too.

✨ Your spells have too many ingredients

I find the more stuff you use for a spell the more unpredictable the outcome is, this is because each ingredient can have multiple properties. Even if you have personal correspondences with them they still usually have multiple uses. Like the blueberry example I gave, for me I associate blueberries more with astral travel and creativity but I also associate it with platonic relationships, happiness and protection. Even though I still associate it with protection it wouldn’t be necessary for me to use it in a protection spell if I’m already using something else that I more strongly associate with protection.

In witchcraft, often times, less really is more. I’ve created the 5 elements “rule” for myself and it’s worked out really well for me. I use 1 ingredient to represent each of the 5 different elements (earth, air, fire, water and spirit) in most of my spells and rituals. If it’s a spell jar, pouch, tea. elixr (or something like that) I like to try and keep my ingredients to a 3 - 5 limit. It prevents me from using up my stash so quickly and prevents my ingredients from completely canceling each other out.

✨ You’re scared

This is sooooooooo normal, don’t even think you’re weird or something because  you’ve got some fears or concerns about practicing witchcraft. It’s common for someone from a religious (especially an abrahamic one) background to hold onto the teachings of their religion and to be fearful of the unknown. Especially if it’s been drilled into your head that it’s evil and you’ll burn in an eternity of fire for burning a sage bundle lol.

If this is you, ease into witchcraft. Learn more about the different traditions and take your time studying. This isn’t a race. Witchcraft ain’t going nowhere lol. You’re not obligated to just dive in head first. It’s okay to take your time and really get comfortable.

✨ Lastly, you’re taking on too much at once

You ever see those witch blogs that seem to pop up out of nowhere and they’re just blasted into popularity, only for the witch to later denounce their practice in the craft claiming that it wasn’t really working for them or that it all turned out to be bs? This is usually because they watched 1 or 2 youtube videos about witchcraft and decided to buy a $300 witch starter kit, 10 books about witchcraft and 3 tarot decks all before even doing any research into witchcraft at all.

They took on too much, too fast. They’ve also taken on things they lack an understanding of and because of this lack of understanding (and a natural desire to want to be good at something instantly), when it doesn’t work for them they claim it’s bullshit and fake.

You need to be patient. Just like any skill or talent, it takes time to master and to see the results we want. So if you’re someone whose invested a lot of money upfront into your craft and now it just doesn’t seem to be working for you, take your time. You’re not going to learn everything about witchcraft overnight (chances are you’ll never learn everything about witchcraft lol). The amount of money you spend won’t make you a better witch or make you better at witchcraft. So don’t fall for those beginner witch starter kits that start at $100.

You don’t need to do everything at once.

I hope this is helpful. If you have anything to add to this list please do so. And remember, witchcraft is a craft. Crafts take time, patiences and skill. These are not things that you just develop overnight. Take your time, cleanse your space, grow relationships with your ingredients, tools and supplies, and allow yourself to experience your magick and don’t try to replicate someone else’s. 

To The Witch Who Doesn’t Feel “Witchy” Enough:

✨You are divine.

✨Witchcraft isn’t a competition.

✨Differences should be celebrated, not lamented.

✨You contain multitudes. Your feelings and perceptions may fluctuate, but you will always be you.

✨What another witch says about you says more about the witch than it does about you.

✨Taking a break from practicing witchcraft doesn’t mean you are taking a break from being a witch.

✨You are what you are, and that is pure magic.

Shadow Work

Origins, Meaning and Utility

The Structure of the Mind

Carl Jung theorized the existence of three levels/spheres in the human psyche: the Ego, representing the conscious mind, the Personal Unconscious where memories are contained and the Collective Unconscious, where all knowledge and experiences of the species are shared.

Each Sphere has in it a certain number of Archetypes, used to better describe the components of those structures, and the Shadow is one of them.

What is the Shadow

The shadow can be seen as a instinctual or primitive part of ourselves, it exists as part of the unconscious mind and is composed of repressed ideas, weaknesses, desires, instincts, and shortcomings.

It is this archetype that contains all of the things that are unacceptable not only to society, but also to one's own personal morals and values, normally going against social norms and rules as well as what we personally consider right.

The Shadow is often described as the darker side of the psyche, representing wildness, chaos, and the unknown, and it is common for people to deny this element of their own psyche and instead project it on to others.

The Shadow in Witchcraft and Benefits of Shadow Work

Art: Unknown

The Shadow, in witchcraft, can represent The Unknown, hidden depth of ourselves. Speaking in terms of energy, this is an area that can be a deep source of energetic issues, because it’s locked up in the dark and always striving to reach the light.

To not work with one’s Shadow is to make it greedy and aggressive, as well as denying a big part of oneself, making everything a half of a whole.

Through that brief explanation, we can already establish the importance and role of the Shadow in witchcraft, and with that in mind, comes the concept of Shadow Work.

Shadow Work can be seen in a number of practices, meditation, trances, inner journey’s, lucid dreaming, astral travels, spells and divination.

The method can change, but the principle is simple: Centering your intent to self discovery, self knowledge and self acceptance.

Working with one’s Shadow is not only beneficial to one’s craft, as it allows one to get in touch with their intuition as well as allows for easier connection with one’s guide/guides, but it also allows for healing and acceptance of one’s feelings and needs.

Think of all aspects of life as a wheel. If there is one part bent, the wheel can turn, but with more effort. If the owner spends time fixing that bent part, the wheel will turn in a much more smooth manner.

That is what happens when you take the time to do Shadow Work, you have to put in effort, and most of the time it’s not easy, but once done, all other components on the wheel of your life will be relieved to move on without that obstacle that makes their job harder.

The Shadow is not evil, as evil is just a moral compass invented by humans. It is a part of one’s nature, and to deny it is to supress a connection with yourself.

Take the time to know and accept your shadow, and you’ll see that life will be a little easier.

References:

A Natureza da psique (Structure & Dynamics of the Psyche) by C.G. Jung

The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious by C.G. Jung

Witchy Youtubers

Here’s a list of some of my favorite witchy/spiritual youtubers that I can’t get enough of. This is by no means a complete list, feel free to add onto it!

Anais Alexandre

Annie Tarasova

Ashera Star Goddess

Avalon Cameron

Azura DragonFeather

Broom Closet Artistry

Creosote Coyote

Dewdrop Dwelling

Ember HoneyRaven

Ethony

Harmony Nice

Hibiscus Moon

Jessi Huntenburg

Joanna DeVoe

Joey Morris

Kelly-Ann Maddox

Laura Daligan

Molly Roberts - HerSpeak

new age hipster

Oolong Witch

Orriculum

Owlvine Green

Samantha Valens

Scarlet Ravenswood

Snow Orchid

Sunshine MorningRae

The Sea Priestess 

The White Witch Parlour

The Ladygravedancer

WitchandMoon

WyllowWynd The Thrifty Witch

May the moon light your path.

Witchy Things You Probably Did Before Learning/Realizing You Were A Witch:

Talk to trees or animals/Connect with nature and/or animals as if they were your friends🌿🐾

Use leaves to make "potions" and magical concoctions🍵

Make wishes with candles and/or above mentioned potions🕯

Pretend that your food or drink was a magic potion of power or whatever you had wished for, lol 🥘🧃

Pretend to be a witch, goddess, powerful being, forest/water nymph, mermaid, or some celestial/"mythical" being🧚‍♀️🧜🏻‍♀️🧞‍♂️🧝🏽‍♂️

Try to see if you could control the weather with your emotions ⛈

Try to move things with your mind or read other peoples 🧠

Talk to the sun, moons, stars, etc. ⭐🌙☀️

Write spells, chants, or incantations in your notebook or on paper (or napkins, lol) 📜

Notice things you have spent time thinking about seem to happen the way you thought it would or wished it would (maybe sometimes how you wished it wouldnt have turn out *unconsciously manifesting the negative*) 💭

Experience dream deja vu and/or dream messages 🛌

Believed in ghosts and spirits or had some sort of supernatural experience(s) 👻

Collected Rocks, seashells, twigs, etc🐚

Looked for or was more frequently drawn to supernatural/mystical/mythical based books 🔮

Had memories that you couldnt explain or were too young to have and/or had *visions that were true or came true 👁

There are plenty more examples, these are just a few that I could think of on the spot 🤓, please reblog or comment with your own 😬🦋🧿🔮🌙🍃

You have always been a witch, you just didn't know it yet. ☽🧿☾

Tarot card combinations

Empress + Ace = childbirth

2 or more pages = Schools, education

4 of wands + Sun = Babyshowers, an amazing family gathering, sometimes weddings

King of pentacles + Magican (if querent is a man or NB) or high priestess (if querent is a woman)= Querent’s money

10 of swords + death = only time death can actually mean death (in my style of reading)

Death + king of pentacles = sudden changes of money

Death (reversed) + king of pentacles = need to change money situation; need to manage money differently

The Hierophant + 4 of swords = a place of worship, church, mosque, etc

Tarot Reading Tips 💖

🔮 Learn the classic definitions of the cards - you don’t need to memorize every card’s meaning, I still use my book, but knowing a general meaning of cards will help

🔮 Wands- fire, Cups- water, Swords- air, Pentacles- earth

🔮 Using the elements helps me understand the cards and give them meaning

🔮 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 don’t do it frequently.

🔮 Incorporate lucky numbers, personal habits and preferences into the way you shuffle, pull cards and organize spreads

🔮 I cut the deck and deal cards with my left hand (I’m right handed), but that’s just me

🔮 If you want more information on a card, pull another one and place it on top of the first.

🔮 Don’t 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.

🔮 Practice on yourself, family and friends- the more you practice the better you’ll know the cards and be able to create a story, which brings me to…

🔮 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.

🔮 Thank your cards when you’re done

🔮 Try meditating before a big reading- this doesn’t 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 you’re reading and any deity or spirit you might be asking for help.

🔮 You don’t need to call on Gods or spirits while reading. If you’re not into that, don’t mess with it. And if you do practice this, please do it responsibly.

🔮 When I meditate I see vines, water, energy and spirits- I know that when these all come together I’m calm and focused. Your meditation will probably be nothing like mine and that’s perfectly normal.

🔮 Not a tip, but now that I’m thinking about it, is there a name for what I’m doing besides ‘meditating’ because I don’t find that fitting? 🧐

🔮 Never stop learning (exhibit A ⬆️) and don’t be afraid to ask possibly silly questions (see: exhibit A)

🌌The Planets and the Days of the Week🌌

Each of the planets rules a day of the week. Use it’s associated metals,crystals, incense,and other elements to strengthen a spell or ritual worked on that day. In addition, the associations with the sun can be used not only on Sunday but with all sun magic, and the Monday associations can be used in all magic. If you are calling a particular archangel,apply the associations of its planet or weekday.

🌌 Days Of The Week 🌌

☀️Sunday ☀️

Planet: Sun

Archangel: Michael

Color(s): Gold

Element: Fire

Crystals: Amber,carnelian,diamond,clear crystal quartz,tiger eye, or golden topaz

Incense: Cloves,cinnamon,or frankincense

Trees: Bay,birch, or laurel

Herbs and Oils: Chamomile,juniper,rosemary,saffron, or St.John’s Wort

Metal: Gold

Astrological Rulership: Leo

For ambition,power,and success; for fathers; improving health; prosperity; self- confidence; and overcoming bad luck.

🌕 Monday 🌕

Planet: Moon

Archangel: Gabriel

Color(s): Silver or translucent white

Element: Water

Crystals: Moonstone, mother of pearl, pearl, selenite, or opal

Incense: Jasmine, myrrh, mimosa, or lemon

Trees: Willow or alder

Herbs and Oils: Lotus,poppy, or wintergreen

Metal: Silver

Astrological Rulership: Cancer

For home and family matters,for women (especially mothers and grandmothers),children,animals,fertility,secrets,and psychic gifts.

⭐ Tuesday ⭐

Planet: Mars

Archangel: Samael or Camael

Color(s): Red

Element: Fire

Crystals: Garnet,Bloodstone,Ruby, or Red Jasper

Incense: Dragon’s blood, all spices, ginger, mint, or thyme

Trees: Cypress,Holly, or Pine

Herbs and Oils: Basil,cinnamon,coriander,garlic,pepper, or tarragon

Metal: Iron or Steel

Astrological Rulership: Aries (co-ruler of Scorpio)

For courage,change,independence,overcoming seemingly impossible odds and bullies,energy,passion,strength,perfection,principles,and fierce defense of the vulnerable.

☿️ Wednesday ☿️

Planet: Mercury

Archangel: Raphael

Color(s): Yellow

Element: Air

Crystals: Yellow agate, citrine, falcon’s eye, yellow jasper, malachite, or onyx

Incense: Lavender,lemongrass, or mace

Trees: Hazel or ash

Herbs and Oils: Dill,fennel,parsley, or valerian

Astrological Rulership: Gemini or Virgo

For money making, examinations and tests, learning new things, shot-distance travel, moving, short holidays, repelling envy, malice,spite, and deceit.

♃ Thursday ♃

Planet: Jupiter

Archangel: Sachiel

Color(s): Blue or Purple

Element: Air

Crystals: Azurite,Lapis Lazuli, Sodalite, or Turquoise

Incense: Agrimony, Cedar, Sandalwood, or Sage

Tree: Beech, Oak, or Ash

Herbs and Oils: Borage, cinquefoil, coltsfoot, hyssop, or mistletoe

Metal: Tin

Astrological Rulership: Sagittarius (co-ruler or Pisces)

For expansion,career,leadership,long distance travel, moving, justice, marriage, self-employment,loyalty, male potency,and banishing excesses.

♀️ Friday ♀️

Planet: Venus

Archangel: Anael

Color(s): Green or Pink

Element: Earth

Crystals: Amethyst (also mercury),emerald,jade, moss agate, or rose quartz

Incense: Geranium,rose,strawberry,or vervain

Trees: Almond,apple or birch

Herbs and Oils: Feverfew, mugwort, pennyroyal, verbena, or yarrow

Metal: Copper

Astrological Rulership: Taurus or Libra

For all love magic, fidelity,sacred sex,mending quarrels, environment,fertility, women’s health, gradual growth in all matters, beauty,friendship, reducing the influence of destructive lovers,and possessiveness.

🪐 Saturday 🪐

Planet: Saturn

Archangel: Cassiel

Color(s): Brown,black,or grey

Element: Earth

Crystals: Haematite, jet, lodestone, obsidian, or smoky quartz

Incense: Aconite,cypress,or patchouli

Trees: Blackthorn or yew

Herbs: Aspen,bistort,comfrey,horsetail, or Solomon’s seal

Metals: Lead and Pewter

Astrological Rulership: Capricorn (co-ruler of Aquarius)

For unfinished business,endings,slow-moving official matters, Locating lost objects,animals,anti-addiction and debt, lifting depression,pain and illness,long-term psychic protection,locating lost objects(as well as animals and people), and establishing boundaries.

HOW TO SPOT TRAUMAS AND FEARS IN A BIRTH CHART pt.1 🦇☕️

Pay attention  to the 8th HOUSE:

The 8th house is all about fears, taboo, the dark side of the human mind and what’s hidden. It’s connected with Scorpio and associated with Pluto, the planet of regeneration and rebirth, it suggests that we’re all able to find the key for heal our traumas and win over our fears.

First, look at the sign on the cousp on the 8th house, here some examples (maybe I’ll explain in another post and in a more detailed way what does the sign on the 8th house cousp mean):

Aries 8th house: fears related to taking action, defining your individuality, competition, doing something exclusively for yourself, expressing your anger, impulsive behaviors.

Taurus 8th house: fears related to your own stability, expressing yourself in a creative way, expressing the sensual side of your personality.

Gemini 8th house: fears related to communication, expressing your opinion, being chatty, being superficial, not feeling smart enough.

Cancer 8th house: fears related to your roots, your family, expressing your emotions, being vulnerable.

Leo 8th house: fears related to self-expression in general, standing up for yourself, being extra, taking leadership, vanity, feeling confident, expressing yourself through art.

Virgo 8th house: fears related to rejection, being criticized, responsibility, respecting high standards, not feeling smart enough, being imperfect.

Libra 8th house: fears related to cooperation, relationships, connecting with other people, love, loosing your balance.

Scorpio 8th house: fears related to secrets, not being able to know what’s happening around and inside of yourself, jealousy, expressing your sexuality, open up, intimacy.

Sagittarius 8th house: fear of missing something, not living your life at the fullest, being trapped, not being able to experiment and have the opportunity to learn.

Capricorn in 8th house: fears related to taking responsibility, not working/trying hard enough, showing your emotions, open up.

Aquarius in 8th house: fears related to showing your authentic side to the world, feeling weird, not being able to “fit in”, being different, loneliness.

Pisces in 8th house: fears related to chaotic situations, deep emotions, love, explore your dreams, explore your spiritual side, losing yourself.

Look at the position of Pluto in the birth chart:

The position of Pluto in a specific house of your birth chart suggests how you can heal your traumas. Pluto can be a tricky planet, it’s connected to karmic lessons and can be challenging keeping on repeat the same lessons again and again until you change the game in a definitive way.

Pluto in 1th house: define your identity, find your authentic self and don’t be afraid to express who you truly are, open up with others, accept unconditionally your unique way to independence is the key.

Pluto in 2th house: find your comfort zone, guarantee yourself a stable lifestyle, develop resilience and try to set reachable goals for yourself, try to express yourself through art.

Pluto in 3th house: speak your mind, connect with people around you, share your ideas, relationships are important for your healing journey, write down your emotions, heal the relationships with your siblings.

Pluto in 4th house: understand and nurture your emotions, heal the relationship with your family, understand your roots and practice unconditional love, heal your inner child, feel a sense of belonging with your community.

Pluto in 5th house: heal your relationship with your inner child or surround yourself with children, give yourself the opportunity to “act like a kid” again, work on being spontaneous and less shy, express yourself through art and theater.

Pluto in 6th house: follow a healthy lifestyle, eat well and drink more water, do gym, work on your goals and dedicate your energy to a project or volunteering, connect with animals.

Pluto in 7th house: establish healthy relationships with others, define healthy boundaries with others, open up, establish 50-50 relationships based on mutual respect and cooperation.

Pluto in the 8th house: establish a healthy approach towards sexuality, explore your spiritual side and activate yourself in a direct way towards your fears, be honest and don’t fear your deepest thoughts.

Pluto in the 9 th house: expand your horizons through  travel and education, learn is the key for healing your trauma, connect with new realities, explore your spiritual and philosophical side.

Pluto in the 10th house: find your goals and work hard to achieve them, you can heal your wounds through a carrier that makes you feel happy and aligned with your highest goals, you need a lot of structure and to work on your approach to responsibility.

Pluto in the 11th house: you need to find a community and work with people that shares your same view of life, find a place where you can feel a sense of belonging and community, don’t isolate yourself and open up with others, you can heal your wounds through friendships.

Pluto in the 12th house: you need to explore with your spiritual side, work on your internal dialog, try to sleep well, analyze your dreams and trust your intuition, your spiritual gift will guide you through the healing process.

✨ how to manifest ✨

hi babes, I’m back! wanted to make a quick post on my manifestation routine and some of the essential steps necessary for the law of attraction to be effective. for those of you who don’t know what the fuck I’m talking about, the loa states that our thoughts, beliefs, and intentions create our reality. there are various methods, of course, but this routine has worked beautifully for me! I’ve manifested an entire business, a dream job, $2k in 24hours, my soul family, & so much more! let’s jump into this shit! 

1. get in a high vibrational state of being! what does this mean? it means focus on eliciting positive emotions and feelings at the start of this process. when we raise our vibration, shift our mood, we’re more in alignment with what we desire. in a high vibrational state, you’ll feel bubbly, happy, and excited! do anything that you can to achieve a higher vibration! listen to music, watch some R.IP vine compilations on youtube, dance around your room, etc. do whatever the fuck you gotta do. struggling with depression or anxiety? it’s okay! this state only has to be maintained for a couple of minutes for it to be effective. 

2. set your intention! what are you trying to bring into your life? to set your intention, all you have to do is write it or speak it out loud. pro tip: instead of saying ‘I want to manifest xyz’, say ‘I am ready to receive xyz’. the word ‘want’ creates more lack and will keep you in a state of ‘wanting’. another ex: “I am manifesting my perfect partner” vs. “I am going to manifest my perfect partner. 

3. visualize your desire manifesting. this is the fun part! vividly imagine and feel what it would be like to hold the desired amount of cash in your hand. what emotions would you feel if you were given what you asked for? being able to truly envision having your desire is going to make it a reality in your mind and put you in alignment to receive it in the physical.

4. detach from the outcome. definitely the part that everyone fucking hates. it’s important to let go of any attachment and trust that the universe will deliver what it is that you’ve asked for. surrender and allow it to unfold. don’t stress about when, where, or how it will manifest. just trust that it will happen. this is the one area where most people get stuck!

5. act as if you already have what you desire. this is also a pretty fun part! how would you feel if you had everything that you wanted? probably pretty fucking fantastic. acting as if sends a message to the universe that you are ready. 

6. & finally, take action! sometimes the universe will just drop blessings right in front of us, yes, but not always. you’re probably not going to find the love of your life if you spend all day in your house. you’re not going to become a famous actress if you don’t get up and audition! the universe can do so much for us but we also need to work with it. don’t just wait around for something to happen. search and be open to receiving the opportunities that you ask for. 

THANKS, THAT’S ALL I GOT FOR YOU BBYS !! hit me up with any questions and reblog with your manifestation tips or stories! share the good vibes. 💖💖

𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝖒𝖔𝖔𝖓

The allure of the Moon has a place in our hearts, and whilst it remains a mystery to us, something we know and something we feel is the strong magick and connection that surrounds it. The Moon affects the oceans of the earth and the cycles of nature. Animals of all kinds are more active during the full moon, weather is more intense during new moons, human pregnancy incubation is calculated by lunar cycles…

The moon has many appearances in folklore, and it plays a very profound role in witchcraft and spell casting, for the subconscious mind is ruled by the Moon. And by becoming acquainted with all the phases of the Moon and it’s many faces, and how to apply them into your magickal practice, its energy will guide you to a deeper connection with nature and magick all around you. Your life could be transformed by working with the different energies of the Moon.

When casting spells you are working with the subconscious mind, the elements, and a higher energy. The Moon is accessed and its transformational powers utilised. So it is always a good idea (with any form of spell casting, working with the moon or not) to make sure you are in a calm and focused state of mind before you begin, and you can do this in many ways, like using meditation. If you are patient, waiting for the correct phase of the Moon, you will enhance the results of your spell casting, and any magickal activity.

𝐓 𝐇 𝐄  𝐌 𝐎 𝐎 𝐍  𝐏 𝐇 𝐀 𝐒 𝐄 𝐒

🍁Waxing crescent: motivation, attraction, success.

🍁First quarter: creativity, divination, calming.

🍁Waxing gibbous: refine, observe, good health.

🍁Full moon: charging, cleansing, power, clarity, healing, reflection.

🍁Waning gibbous: undoing bindings, undoing curses, introspect.

🍁Third quarter: banishing, breaking negative habits, breaking curses.

🍁Waning crescent: balance, success, wisdom.

🍁New moon: new beginnings, cleansing, clarity, reflection, fresh start.

The Moon

The Phases Full Moon - cleanse your tools, restore your energy, give thanks, love magicks, beginnings, enhance psychic ability, power, healing, divination, enlightenment, banishing Blue Moon - divination, focus, achieving goals, wishes Waning Gibbous - expel negativity, releasing, undo bindings and curses Third Quarter - Forgiveness, letting go, releasing, reaking bad habits Waning Crescent - rest, cleansing, balance, success, wisdom, atonement Dark Moon - banishing, retreat, self reflection, justice, rest, stillness, observation New Moon - fresh starts, new beginnings, banishing, divination, healing, hope, openness Black Moon - manifestation, power, wishes Waxing Crescent - attraction, spells of intention or hope, luck, friendship, growth, wealth First Quarter - overcoming challenges, action, making decisions, balance Waxing Gibbous - making adjustments, refining, prosperity, motivation, good health, positivity, success What are the Blue, Dark, and Black Moons? A Blue Moon is an “extra” full moon that occurs in the same month. Or, it is what occurs when you get four full moons in one season. A Black Moon is just the opposite, an extra new moon to occur within the same month as another, or when four new moons happen in the same season. It can also refer to a month in which there is no full moon, which can only occur in February, as the lunar cycles run over 29.5 days. A Dark Moon is what you call the waning crescent just before the new moon and the start of the waxing phase. The duration ranges from 1.5 to 3.5 days. Full Moons January - Wolf Moon/Cold Moon/Spirit Moon February - Snow Moon/Hunger Moon March - Worm Moon/Sap Moon April - Pink Moon/Fish Moon/Egg Moon/Sprouting Grass Moon May - Flower Moon/Milk Moon/Corn Planting Moon June - Strawberry Moon/Rose Moon/Hot Moon July - Buck Moon/Thunder Moon August - Sturgeon Moon/Green Corn Moon September - Corn Moon/Harvest Moon/Barley Moon October - Hunter’s Moon/Travel Moon/Dying Moon November - Beaver Moon/Frost Moon December - Cold Moon/Long Nights Moon Why are they named? They are essentially nicknames that were traditionally used by Native Americans to track the seasons. Used as timing for growing and harvesting crops, keeping track of when certain animals would be around for hunting, and so on. Not all tribes used the same names at for these moons, or even count the same number of seasons. The names for the moons are largely localized to what grows, what animals are around, and how the mild or harsh the weather is in that area. Some tribes may only use a few names, where others may use the same name at a different time of year. Each tribe had their preferences. Colonial Americans later adopted some of the Full Moon names from the Native Americans and applied it to their own calendar. Where is the Harvest Moon??? Well, the Harvest Moon can occur in one of two months, September or October. It is the Full Moon that occurs the closest to the Autumn Equinox. It is named so, because the closer to the equinox, the later the sun sets, thus giving farmers more time to harvest their crops. What about the Supermoon? This occurs when the (New or Full) Moon is at it’s closest point in orbit to Earth, when it’s at it’s perigee. The Moon appears much larger than normal, and moreso when it’s lower in the horizon when it has just started to rise. This can happen at any point in the year. (NOTE) - we have 3 full supermoons occuring in a row in 2020… March, April, and May. image credit thebohomystic.tumblr.com

Southern Hemisphere Full Moon Calendar!!

Many southern witches have been asking for their own version so here it is!! ◞*✰

Tonight we have a beautiful red/worm moon outside depending on where you are <3 

How many southern witches do we have on witchblr tonight?

Grimoire ideas

About you:

How you got started in the craft

Your spiritual journey

Things you connect to (animals, elements, plants, ect)

Types of magic you do

Your natal chart

Your deities (if you have any)

Correspondences:

Remember, you don't need to write down correspondences you will never need! So instead, write about...

Crystals you have/want

Plants you can grow yourself/already have around you. Check your spice cabinet

And list things to use those for! So that would be herb bundles to burn, salves, recipes, and so on.

Other things you can use in magic that you already have

This would be things like sea shells, snail shells, grass, dirt, candles. Get creative!

Other witchcraft stuff:

Your sigils

Planets

The sun/moon +moon phases

Zodiac signs

The elements

Symbolism (animals, shapes, and whatever else you wish to add)

Spells:

What makes a spell that works!!! This should help with making your own spells

What NOT to do

Different types of spells

Spells you will actually use

Divination:

A section on tarot cards and their meanings

How to use a pendulum

Meanings of oracle cards

Rune meanings and how to cast them

Lesser known forms of divination!!!

Mental health:

Grounding and centering

Burn out care and being energy efficient

A list of what motivates you to do your craft

Small spells for self care

Astral work:

Your astral space (a map, a description, drawings of important locations)

Your astral body, if it's any different than your physical one

A list of spirits and important information about them

Protection, sheilding, banishing, and safety

Manners when interacting with spirits and what NOT to do

Methods of projection/travel that work for you

Post-astral grounding methods

General spirit work:

How to interact with spirits and how NOT to interact with spirits

Protection, banishing, shielding, and other safety things

How to give offerings (there's more than one way!)

Methods of communicating with spirits

Signs of spirits

Ways spirits can send signs and messages (animals, dreams, and so on)

A list of different kinds of spirits you work with/have encountered

A section for research, especially if you're doing deity work.

Grounding, if it helps you afterwards

A log of interaction with spirits. This can be like a divination journal but with spirits, if that's what you do.

Why Your Spells Don’t Work

You set your intention. You had all the correct correspondences. You even timed your spell with the appropriate moon phase. And yet – no results. What gives? 

Failed spells happen to the best of us, and for a variety of reasons. But a spell gone wrong doesn’t necessarily mean that magic isn’t real or that you’re bad at witchcraft. Magic is complicated, and there are a lot of reasons it might not behave the way you want it to. Here are some of the most common causes of ineffective spells: 

1. Lack of real-world follow through

Magic is meant to be used as a tool to supplement your mundane efforts – not as a substitute for them. How can you expect your job hunting spell to bring in results if you aren’t applying for jobs? 

Magic does not exist in a vacuum, and it can’t make something out of nothing. If a spell doesn’t bring you the desired result, make sure that your non-magical actions are aligned with what you are trying to manifest. 

2. What you’re trying to manifest isn’t a realistic possibility

Wait, what? Isn’t magic supposed to be, well… magic? Shouldn’t you be able to ask for whatever you want and get it? Yes and no.

Magic is simply a way of directing energy. Magic can’t defy the natural laws of the universe. It can’t make something happen unless it was already a potential possibility.

If your intention is unrealistic for where you are right now, try splitting it up into a multi-step process. No spell is going to make you a billionaire overnight, but magic could help you get hired at a better paying job… and then get promoted… and then get offered a profitable side gig… etc. Starting small and working your way up is always going to produce stronger results, because you laid the foundation first.

3. Your intention was either too vague or too specific 

Whether you use written petitions or spoken incantations, clearly stating your intention is an important part (maybe THE most important part) of any spell or ritual. A good intention is specific enough to get you the results you want, but open enough to let those results manifest naturally.

Let’s say you do a money spell, and your intention for the spell is simply, “I have more money.” If you find a penny on the ground the next day and pick it up, technically that is more money than you had before. A better alternative would be to use an intention like, “I have enough money to buy ___,” or “I have enough money for everything I need and want.”

Using an intention that is too specific creates the opposite problem. Let’s say you want to manifest a scholarship to a specific school. You do a candle spell with the intention, “I have been chosen for the John Smith Scholarship at Jane Doe University.” But maybe the John Smith scholarship had already been awarded by the time you did your spell. Maybe there’s another scholarship at the same school that would be a better fit for you, or maybe you’re eligible for a grant that would make tuition more affordable. A better intention for your spell would be “I have enough financial aid to easily and affordably attend Jane Doe University.”

Magic always follows the path of least resistance, so you want to make sure that your intention is specific enough to give your magic a clear direction, but open enough to allow it some flexibility. 

4. Lack of focus/concentration

We all know the struggle. You’ve been planning this ritual forever, and it’s finally the full moon, but you’ve got a really full schedule today. If you hurry, you can probably squeeze it into the thirty minute window between school and work, right? 

If you say a few quick words and burn some incense before you head out the door in the morning, that totally counts as a spell, right? 

Not so much. Rushed, lazy, and/or half-assed spells rarely, if ever, work. Spells revolve around the raising and direction of energy, and that requires two things: a clear intention (see above) and intense focus on that intention. If you don’t have the time/energy/mental capacity to focus, it’s best to take a break, have a self care day, and come back to your spell some other time. 

5. You’re subconsciously blocking your own results OR you did a spell for someone else who isn’t open to it

I decided to lump these two together, because they’re different variations of the same issue. 

Whenever you are doing magic on yourself, it’s important that your mindset is aligned with your intentions. You can do love spells all day long, but if deep down you don’t believe that you’re worthy of love, that belief is going to block your spells from working. This is why mindfulness, psychology, and self care are all such important parts of a successful witchcraft practice. It’s also why I recommend doing the mental work before you sit down to ritual. 

If you did a spell on yourself, or are trying to manifest something for yourself, and it just isn’t working, I highly recommend setting some time aside for journaling and meditation and asking yourself 1.) if this is really what you want, and 2.) if you truly believe that you can have it.

The whole mindset thing gets even more tricky when you’re doing magic on behalf of another person, because their energy is also at work in the situation and could be at odds with yours. For example, if you do a spell to help a friend land a job, but that friend believes that they’re totally underqualified and could never get it, they probably won’t get the job even if you did everything “right” in your spell. 

This should go without saying, but it is extremely unethical to use magic to mess around in someone else’s head. Even if you think you know what’s best for them, they need to be open to it. If someone is blocking the spells you do on their behalf, all you can do is try to be supportive and find other ways to help them out.

Other (Rare) Reasons for Failed Spells

If a spell goes wrong, it will almost always be for one of the above reasons. But maybe you did everything “right” – you did the mental work first, had a strong, realistic intention, put lots of focus into your spell, and followed through in real life – and you still aren’t seeing results. There are a couple of other things that could be blocking your spells, but they’re very uncommon so I’m not going to talk about them in as much detail. These may be things you want to look into if you really, genuinely can’t think of any other cause. 

It’s possible that another witch has done magic that cancels out or blocks yours. This is not common, and it does NOT mean that someone has cursed you. It could be as simple as two witches unknowingly casting spells with opposite intentions, which end up cancelling each other out. (For example, maybe two different people both cast a spell to get the same job. Obviously, they can’t both get that job.) This is why it’s never a bad idea to incorporate a protective element into your spells to block outside interference.

There is a very, very remote possibility that someone has placed a curse on you specifically to block your magic. However – and I cannot stress this enough – this is VERY uncommon. If you were cursed you would know it, or at least know that something was very wrong in your life. If you feel like you have been cursed or hexed, I recommend looking into uncrossing spells, which are specifically designed to undo negative magic.

It’s also possible that a higher power is intervening. This doesn’t necessarily have to be a deity, although it certainly could be. Most witches believe in some form of fate or destiny, and it’s possible that your spell didn’t work because what you asked for is not in alignment with your destiny. In these situations, really the only thing you can do is surrender to the bigger picture.