What is a Witch?
Welcome all friends to my new blog in which I will give you basic knowledge, insider opinions, and some tips and tricks on the both ancient and new practice of witchcraft.
Remember that these are my personal opinions and experience. Witchcraft can look different depending on who you are and your own spiritual path.
So what is a witch?
In the most basic sense, “witch” is a gender neutral term for someone who practices witchcraft. Witchcraft is not a religion, but a method by which you would observe your religion.
For example, a wiccan might burn incense under their idol or on their altar to enhance their meditation and prayer.
A pagan might return their orange peel to the undergrove of a tree as a way of thanking the universe for the meal.
Or, to describe it in a more controversial way, a christian might partake in communion as a congregation to observe and symbolize sacrifice.
Anyone can be a witch!
Why does everyone disagree about witchcraft?
The short answer goes back to that old adage about education:
Education is not just about going to school and getting a degree. It’s about widening your knowledge and absorbing the truth about life.”
-Shakuntala Devi
In that sense, everyone starts somewhere, and everyone might end up somewhere different based on what they’ve been exposed to. Your truth might be different from my truth.
If I told my conservative christian family that I was a practicing witch, they would shun me for dancing with the devil and his demons. In all honesty, I don’t believe in the devil, and most if not all forms of genuine witchcraft don’t have an adversary at all. I am not in league with the devil, because my faith tradition does not observe such an entity.
That is why education is so important, and that is why I decided to start this blog: so those who are curious can have an insider view of what witchcraft is.
If witchcraft can be anything, what’s the point?
The point is to make something personal for you.
I decided to start practicing because I wanted to focus on healing. Healing myself and healing the planet. In my form of witchcraft I focus on humanitarian activism, and this is true for a huge majority of witches.
I’m not going to insert my soap box here, but I think my practice helps me to ground myself so that I can begin my journey onto another adventure in life. The universe is massive, the Earth is small in comparison, and arguing over how to practice your faith only stands in the way of making this world a better place.
What’s the point? You get to decide.
Do witches cast spells or hexes on people?
Most of us do, and that’s not something to be afraid of.
You might find a poisoned apple here or there that just wants to cause chaos because they come from a place of hurting, but I’ve never encountered one of these such witches.
All of the witches I know, including myself, put a lot of weight on intention. With witches, intention is everything.
If I know one of my LGBT friends is in a dark place because their family won’t accept them, I might make a meaningful charm to give to that friend so they know someone has their back. I might also perform a spell to help broaden the vision of the family and help them see the harm that they’re inflicting on my friend. My intention is to help others.
Is there success to these spells? I’ll dedicate that to a later post because it’s more complicated than a simple yes or no.
Okay, let’s talk about what a witch is NOT
1. Not a Halloween Caricature.
Except when it comes to satire.
I love purchasing hairy old witches covered in moles from the dollar store because I think it’s so ridiculous that someone would be petrified of a person who sings to plants, eats homemade bread, and runs barefoot through the rain.
2. Not historically respected by governing bodies.
I’ll touch on this in a later post, but in short witches were persecuted after the rise of Christianity in 1484 when Pope Innocent VIII endorsed the Malleus Maleficarum, a guidebook on how to get witches to confess to their evil sorcery so they could be banished or executed.
This text came second only to the Bible in production for 200 years, and caused mass hysteria from the laymen churchgoers for centuries.
This book killed millions.
3. Not a gateway drug to selling your soul to the devil.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen kids messaging my witchy friends, asking how to sell their souls or make a pact with the devil.
If you’re a young person and you want unlimited power or money (or followers, whatever), don’t go to a witch. Their practice has nothing to do with that, and asking for anything before doing any research of your own will only piss somebody off.
4. Not concerned with the concept of good and evil.
There’s no good witch or bad witch like in The Wizard of Oz. There are just witches.
That doesn’t mean people can’t cause harm.
What people do to each other, to animals, and to the planet is all a reflection of who they are.
Good and evil are amorphous constructs based purely on subjection.
Yes, it is wrong to hurt and even kill others, but evil has such a metaphysical and specifically religious meaning behind it that just doesn’t have a place here. We can discuss this more in a later post.
5. Becoming a witch should not be used as a way to rebel against your mom.
Look, if anyone knows what it’s like to be isolated, it’s me. I am just now in my mid-20’s learning how to be a kid.
In no situation should witchcraft be used to cause drama.
I can’t tell you how badly I wanted out of my home situation at one point or another. Nothing gets solved by making your mom think you’re going to hell and making her cry.
I grew the most when I realized the freedom was within me.
Okay, I won’t make my mom cry. Where would I get started with witchcraft?
Start with a blank journal. That’s it! That’s all you need for right now.
Go get you a cheap notebook from Wal-Mart or Barnes and Noble and write your name in the front.
This is your bread and butter.
Journal everything. Mark this as the day you start. Jot down your feelings about it. It’s not girly or kiddish to mark a journey.
Then, do your research. You got here, so I know you have the internet. Don’t just read my blog.
Find one topic that you think is interesting and research the hell out of it.
Do you think tarot cards look cool? Great! Go look up what people say about them.
Want to know what crystals are for? Bang! Boom! Get that knowledge.
Don’t go out an buy a $60 pendulum set. Start with what you have.
Everyone starts somewhere. It’s going to be worth it.
How would I get connected to others who think like me?
Contact me! I’d love to hear from you and where you are in your journey.
I got started with witchcraft on Instagram. There are tons of resources and other witchy accounts that share their story and how they found the craft.
There’s a lot of esoteric shops in most major cities. A quick search should lead you to one.
There’s also a website called Meetup that gets local groups together to talk about things. You might be able to find other witches in your area.
Finally, if you’re first starting out, remember to start small. It will get overwhelming at first because there are so many avenues to take.
It’s truly a Diagon Alley.
Back to basics
Really, witchcraft has led me to so much healing. I have found such an amazing community that has brought me so much joy.
If this sounds at least a little interesting to you, I encourage you to browse my blog and have an open mind about what you read.
Everyone is different, and that’s what makes us special.
