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My dad always told me to wear white clothes, sleep under white sheets, put a bowl of water under the bed and light two white candles, one of each side of your bed and let them burn during the night (my dad is cuban)

Witch Tip

Dont know if this ones been done before, but leave a glass of water out over night to collect whatever negative shit is going on around you, then throw the water off your property in the morning. Has to be off your property. Works for small dose, low key cleansing, and also helps get rid of illness.

[enchanted-wildflower]

eat your spells!

like really, but not on normal paper with inks and stuff, that’s yucky. allow me to explain some German folk stuff  

Okay so have yall heard of Schluckbildchen and Esszettel? Well, they were a very popular type of folk medicine in Germany through the 1800’s and some into the last century. Schluckbildchen is German meaning “swallowable pictures” and then Esszettel in Hungarian means “meal slip”. These would be small pieces  of paper that would be eaten in order to cure illnesses and fevers, general healing. But, Schluckbildchen is a bit different from Esszettle. These would be smaller squares and usually have Mary imagery(you’ll see a lot of OL of Altötting or the Virgin Mary) or saints. Here’s some examples! 

These wouldn’t really have words other than names of saints if there’s a saint on one, the name of the pilgrimage spot these were gotten, or a word/acronym associated with the devotional imagery. 

An Esszettel paper would be bigger and have prayers, Bible verses, or folk adeges/sayings and would have no imagery. These were more of a sigil to stick in your food and eat it! Sometimes people would use these to cure rabies in animals, similar to using sator squares to ward off rabies. Generally, an Esszettel is more specific while a schluckbildchen is about the healing properties associated with the devotional images. 

Now back to “eat your spells”, I was inspired by this to share ideas I have on doing this but making it more personal and pagan or including a different spirit

Instead of paper

Bread (bread is important in German folk magic!)

Buttered toast

crackers

cookies

wafer paper

Instead of ink

honey

scratch out the words on the buttered toast with a knife or needle!

icing

milk + food coloring

tea

Coffee

What you write/draw is up to you!

Write a prayer for one of your deities or a litany with their healing and protective titles!

Make a sigil as simple or as intricate as you would like or make your own devotional doodles

Implement some color magic

different edible writing mediums based on their magical properties(honey for sweetening or tea with specified herbs) Personalize and make it fit for you!

happy crafting witches, be safe and don’t eat paper or pen ink please

[enchanted-wildflower]

[enchanted-wildflower]

“I think it’s very healthy to spend time alone. You need to know how to be alone and not be defined by another person.”

— Oscar Wilde

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I went running for the first time in years yesterday and it was pretty amazing. I think I will go running more often

[enchanted-wildflower]

"Witchcraft isn't a Science but an Art"

"Witchcraft is, more than anything, learning another way to see"

The importance of knowing why you do what you do in witchcraft

At first we tend to see a spell like a recipe you have to follow to achieve something, however when we have seen multiple spells for one purpose we can make our own version of them taking into account the common elements that those spells have.

We can even achieve a higher efficacy and creativity knowing what means each aspect of our spells or rituals, creating specific ones that will fit ourselves and our needs better. It is important not to forget that witchcraft isn't a science but an art in which there are multiple ways to get the same result.

From the perspective of my own practice every plant or stone we use is more than a tool, it is in some way a being, a spirit that can assist our craft with its essence. That's in what correspondences are based, in the nature of the spirit that embodies that element.

Correspondences also have the power, even in some way a part of the spirit, of all the ancestors that have been using those elements with the same meaning. We can believe from our modern perspective that those associations were just a coincidence, nevertheless, everything suggests that they really understood the powers behind the items in our craft, for example in the case of the plants where their spiritual meaning correlates in some way with their fisical properties.

To conclude, we shouldn't try to turn into a mere recipe something that works with different powers and spirits, because, if these forces have taught me something over time, it is that witchcraft is, more than anything, learning another way to see.

Disclaimer: this point of view is highly influenced by an animistic perspective, remember that this is far from being the only valid approach to witchcraft. Besides, correspondences aren't universal and this doesn't invalidate the different ones that may exist.

[enchanted-wildflower]

An (anarcho-pagan) Solarpunk Phantasy

Imagine a city in some possible future. It’s a beautiful place, not so much because of the architecture or layout, but because there are growing things everywhere. It doesn’t look much like the cities of the past, but something more like a huge garden with buildings in it. Parts of it are completely forested and inhabited by wild animals. Others are given over to intensive crop cultivation. The rooftops and yards of every building are filled with vegetables and flowers. There are wells and streams of clean, clear water. In the large and open public squares, people of all types mingle freely to discuss local issues or daily events.

No two neighborhoods are the same: each has a distinctive personality and a different mix of cultures and religions. Not everyone is Pagan, but Pagan religious practices are fully accepted. Here and there throughout the city, you can see little shrines to different gods and spirits. There are sacred groves and holy trees, where people of any faith or no faith at all can go for spiritual renewal without fear of persecution.

The business of governing—if you want to call it that—is done on a neighborhood by neighborhood basis through directly democratic communes. Every person of every type has an equal voice, and an equal vote in the affairs of the commune. There are no bosses, although different people exercise leadership in different circumstances on an as-needed basis.

There is always work to do, from tending the vegetables or making clothing to keeping the streets clean or teaching the children, but there is no one forcing you to work for someone else’s profit. Everyone contributes in whatever way seems best to the individual, and everyone shares in the city’s wealth. There is no charge for food, or for a place to live, or for necessary health care. When there is a need for exchange, people treat it as an exchange of gifts.

People aren’t alienated from each other, they live and work together in close proximity. If you have something you have to do, there is never any question that someone will watch the children. People sing while they work, or tell stories or jokes. As evening falls, people dance and socialize.

The lifestyle of the city is in some ways a simple one, not reliant on the constant use of high technology, but it isn’t anti- technological. Technological knowledge is used extensively, but only in ways that will not disrupt the basic health and balance of the city’s ecosystem.

Capitalism fell—perhaps hundreds of years ago—but civilization endures.

This is a utopian vision, I know. It’s a fantasy of the imagination, but that doesn’t make it a useless daydream. By imagining what my utopia would be, I free myself from what is. I give myself the power to start working immediately for a better world. If this is what my utopia would be like, then I know what steps will bring us closer.

- Pagan Anarchism by Christopher Scott Thompson (published by Gods & Radicals)

[enchanted-wildflower]

What I've been reading: nonfiction edition. I'm still digesting "Braiding Sweetgrass" by Robin Wall Kimmerer, and I know it's a book I will return to again. There is a lot to savor here for a more peaceful and interconnected relationship with the world. I highly recommend it, especially this time of year when there is so much focus on buying and spending.

[enchanted-wildflower]

mother mary with roses

[enchanted-wildflower]

I consider plants and also other parts of nature like rivers and mountains to be my elders, because nature and humans aren't two different things, humans are nature. We live in a community made up of human persons as well as other-than-human persons, a community where everything (or maybe rather everyone) is interconnected. I believe we are meant to learn from each other and that some persons are wiser than ourselves, at least in some aspects, humans or otherwise. If saints are especially virtuous or wise persons and not all persons are human in an animist framework, idk why other-than-human persons wouldn't be able to considered saints. I actually love that idea and I would love to make some art of plants represented the way that christian saints are depicted.

Saints/Plants/Animism in Christian/Catholic Witchcraft

Does anybody else think of plants (especially when used in witchcraft) kind of like saints?

I think when I was first starting out in my practice I was really nervous about what I was allowed to include, not wanting to be accidentally practicing idolatry and all that other scrupulous stuff (which I now understand has a totally different definition than what I thought, lol)

But what's there to worry about? I don't think this plant is a god. I mean, maybe in the way that the Holy Spirit is in every living thing. But generally I think of them like saints: I am asking this rosemary for assistance in presenting my petition for cleansing my space to God. I am asking for this cinnamon stick's support in seeking God's protection.

They're mediators, symbols, sacramentals, go-between-ers.

Go hug a tree or something

[enchanted-wildflower]

19 & 20th of February

Library window and spring flowers.

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Beth Evans

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Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan

[enchanted-wildflower]

Image text: "I'm so sick of living life on survival mode. I want to live in creative mode."

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It's February!

Some pictures from this week. I'm really bad at posting at the moment, I'm just not doing well, but there were some happy moments too

[enchanted-wildflower]

“I will not think less of myself just because you do not know how to love me.”

— Stephanie Chhum

[enchanted-wildflower]

“Nobody wants to hear this, but sometimes the person you want most, is the person you’re best without.”

— B.J