#nontheist witches

[criticalthinkingwitches]

Critical Thinking Witch Con 2023 Sept 29th - Oct 1st Connect, learn, and get involved with community of science-minded witches and seekers from around the world at this 3 day virtual convention. All-Access Pass - $35/40 Saver Pass - $25/$30 Early Bird Pricing ends 9/15 at midnight EST! Scholarships available! Tickets on sale now! We can't wait to see you there! Tickets and virtual convention schedule available here

Apply to be a vendor here

Apply for a scholarship here

[satanicwitchery]

Satanic Rituals for the Full Moon 🌚

[booksandwitchery]

Part III: Initial Assumptions About Witchcraft

It has always been hard to reconcile my rational, science-loving self with the part that loves feeling witchy and connected to nature. At least, until now. There was a certain section of Sane Occultism that triggered quite an epiphany:

“The effect of a talisman is not upon external fate, but upon the internal reactions of the consciousness.” Essentially, we do not affect fate by our magical operations, we affect ourselves. Additionally, Fortune eloquently writes that “the uninitiated believe that the force invoked comes into physical manifestation through the symbolic object, but the initiated know that the material object is not employed to enable the power to come down, but to enable the mind of the magician to go up along a particular line of consciousness.”

So--what does this mean? It means that pop culture has steered us completely wrong about witches, witchcraft, and magic in general. Witches don’t believe, for example, that a spell triggers a supernatural force that creates magic; rather, a spell is the combination of visualization, meditation and ritual that has many psychological benefits and helps people to achieve their intentions. The “magic” that both Wiccans and secular witches utilize...it works because these acts are meditative practices--they are a ritualized visualization of one’s goals, the benefits of which are proven and acknowledged by the scientific community. See this article from Daytona State University, for example, or this TED Talk.

Obviously, my mind was blown. This whole time, “magic” has been real, witches have been real, and I have possessed the capacity to utilize this type of practice to better myself and achieve my goals. But I had to dig deeper and be sure that this definition of magic was representative of witchcraft. So I kept on reading. 

[breelandwalker]

I know that working with deities is a huge part of witchcraft. Part of working with deities is presenting offerings. What do atheist witches do in place of presenting offerings?

Well, considering there wouldn't be deities to present offerings to, many nontheist or atheist witches just...don't present offerings. They may still have altars, but they're more likely to be workspaces rather than dedicated worship space.

Witchcraft is a CRAFT before anything else and while there are many witchcraft traditions that involve deities or religious structure, it's not an essential component of the craft itself as a broader concept.

Some witches who don't involve deities in their practice may work with other entities like land spirits or ancestors, but that's usually considered something separate and may or may not involve tributes, depending on the practitioner.

(Atheist witches, please feel free to weigh in. I'm a secular witch but I'm also a pagan polytheist, so this isn't my primary area of expertise.)

[coinandcandle]

On Mabon

As it's coming up I want to go ahead and clarify for any newer witches:

Mabon is on the Fall equinox, but the Fall equinox is not Mabon.

Some witches from other cultures may call it other things. Some may not celebrate it at all.

Mabon is known now to be a Wiccan holiday, but in actuality, it is the name of a Welsh god. While it's not uncommon for holidays to be named after deities, Aidan Kelly gave the Fall equinox that name for reasons he mentions in this Patheos post not too many years ago.

Secular, nontheistic, eclectic, or unlabeled witches may just call it the Fall or Autumnal equinox. It's better to ask someone if they observe it as such before wishing them a happy/blessed Mabon.

Wicca's Wheel of the Year was created by Gerald Gardner and other wiccans and takes pre-existing holidays, repackaging them as Wiccan and claiming they're a part of an "ancient" religion (it isn't ancient).

The holidays that were taken from their original cultures are ancient, however. The Celtic Lughnasadh, Samhain, Imbolc, and Beltane, the Germanic Yule, and the Anglo-Saxon's Lammas for example. These were all taken out of context, the cultures conflated, and more due to the appropriation of Gardner and others.

I personally don't care if you call it Mabon, it's just good to know the history of the holidays that you celebrate. I also wanted folks to know why there may be some funk around the use of the name.

My autumnal equinox post will be coming out soon where I talk about a bunch of different holidays and histories involving this equinox for anyone interested!

[fall3n1]

#iamfallen #avesatanas #hailsatan #hailthyself #atheist #nontheist #satan #satanic #lucifer #satanism #witchcraft #baphomet #witch #religiousfreedom #fallen #hailyourself #kinky #bdsm #spanking #equality #kinkfriendly #livedeliciously #somoteitbe #thyselfisthymaster #solveetcoagula #livedeliciously #witchesofinstagram #occult

#wouldstthouliketolivedeliciously

#fall3n #i_am_fall3n

[fox4brains]

hi!! this is mainly my alterhuman and main blog, so heres a lil intro for yall, im spencer, im a bisexual genderqueer boy artist who uses he/him and they/them pronouns! im also a nontheistic pagan green witch :)

my art blog: @piercethespence (i do commissions!!)

kintypes: brown fox, harbor seal, coastal wolf questioning ghost/shadow person

hearttypes: snow leopard (also was a flicker theriotype), timber wolf, cryptid, questioning male deer

DNI: homophobes, transphobes, racists, misogynists, ableists, etc. nsfw/kink blogs, anti-xenogenders, anti-neopronouns, furry haters, anti-alterhuman/therian, anti-witchcraft, anti-pagan and dsmp fandom!

[greenauras]

can I assume ur a nontheistic witch? if so do u have any tips for how to change altars, spells, rituals etc to be nontheistic? most of the places I find these things include goddess and god worship in their core

yes! i’m agnostic! and i totally understand what you mean. a lot of witchcraft content on here can be catered to those who worship their Gods (which is totally fine, no complaints) but it definitely makes it a lil difficult for those wanting to find info on nontheistic religions & witchcraft.

i’ve always been agnostic while studying witchcraft, so i’ve never had to transition my altars/spells/rituals. my best tip is to work on centering your craft around yourself, rather than your Gods, mainly using objects you like. that’s what i do!

for example i worship nature and our universe over anything, so my altar is decorated with crystals, plants, astrology books, nature based art, etc. just really make it about you. self-love spells/rituals are a staple in my practice. as are manifestation and protection spells.

i hope this helped omfg i feel like i just rambled

[homebrewpodcast]

Question for nontheist, atheist, and naturalist pagans!

What does a pagan practice look like for you? And why choose pagan practices over other ritual practices?

There's been some recent talk in Kemetic tumblr (specifically from @inthemarshes ) about how a Kemetic framework might support an agnostic practice but ultimately cant support a nontheist practice. The gods seem to be too far integrated into even the descriptions of its values.

That's not the case for evey pagan framework though - nontheist and even atheist or naturalist pagans exist! Ya'll are few and far between and often drowned out by the many many polytheists that camp out on tumblr.

But if you're willing, would you share why you've chosen to use pagan rituals as opposed to any others? Does any element of the supernatural (ie nonphysical entities, magic, the law of attraction etc) have a place in your worldview?

.

.

.

(questions from the wandering mind of johna)

[under-amethystmoons]

I've been practicing and studying and researching my craft and what it means  me for about a year and a half now, and I think I'm just finally narrowing it all down.

I started out really wanting to be theistic, particularly dianic, because Goddess-centric Wicca/witchcraft seems so amazing and awe-inspiring to me, I tried to incorporate Goddesses into my craft for a long time. In fact, I just very recently stopped trying to force it.

While I love the culture and history and power that lies in Dianic Wicca/Witchcraft, I don't think a theistic path is for me.

I will be taking a more non-theistic approach, at least for now, as it feels more...right, for me. I still want to be woman-centric and focus on the power that lies within women in general and will definitely find ways to incorporate that into my craft.

I've also found I tend to lean towards a more green witch path. Herbs, plants, flowers and the things I find in nature are a very big part of my craft. I also incorporate the energy of the moon and whatever phase it's in into my craft.

I am still spiritual, just not theistic. However, I learn things each day and this is subject to change. I will also be keeping all past posts relating to Goddesses up.

Always remember you are growing and changing each day, and your craft can, too. And it likely will especially within the first couple years, and there is nothing wrong with that.

Research and read and learn and feel the energy of everything to see if you vibe with it. If something doesn't feel quite right don't be afraid to try something else or cut certain things out of your craft to fit you.

Your craft is yours and it should reflect you. :)

Go forth and be powerful, witches. <3

[autumn-witching]

Embracing Satan

I’m really excited to say I’ve connected with a local Satanic organization and I’m really looking forward to being a part of the community and hopefully a part of the activism as well.

[witchmaple]

My journey to discovering magick

Hi! I’m Carter. I’ve been into non-theistic satanism for about four years, having settled comfortably into the Satanic Temple’s beliefs after several years following the Church of Satan’s beliefs. I’ve been comfortable with this, but then I discovered chaos magick and have found that it seems a good fit for me.

I’ve heard about secular witchcraft for years and recently came across some information about chaos magick. After careful thought, I am beginning my first steps in practicing magick. I have been reading a lot about and finding out the ways some people practice it and learning about different kinds of witchcraft.

This is my beginning as I start to delve into magick.

9/22/18.

[satanicwitchery]

It's the first Full Moon of the new year, the Wolf Moon.

I know I feel like I am shedding a lot of negativity from last year. Anything negative that has had its claws in my back over the last year I am shaking off and throwing in the mud.

I've included some ideas of Full Moon activities. I'm going to be playful & creative with art & journalling.

What are your Full Moon plans?

Ave Satanas

[booksandwitchery]

Part V: In Which I Absorb More Pagan Literature

The next book that I picked up for my weird, newfound obsession with studying occultism, was Simply Wicca: A Beginners Guide to the Craft of the Wise by Lisa & Anton Stewart.

This book lost me at the point that the authors started to go into the belief of elemental spirits such as gnomes, elves, fairies, and undines, as well as elemental guardians who serve as deities that guard each elemental kingdom. It seems the authors believe in the actual existence of these things rather than thinking of them as metaphors or symbols. Of course, I respect all beliefs--but I can’t just force myself to believe in real-life fantastical creatures such as fairies and elves (no matter how amazing and cool it would be if they were real).  

Nonetheless, I couldn’t ignore the fact that all of this lore under the Pagan umbrella of beliefs is so rich, imaginative and beautiful. I do envy those beliefs, and I did take some nuggets of wisdom from Simply Wicca despite my ruinous skepticism:

1. “The craft of the wise [Wicca] encompasses, honors, and celebrates the very nature of nature itself.” What’s not to like about that?

2. The common thread that ties all Wiccan traditions/beliefs together is the natural rhythms and cycles of the the earth, more specifically the movement of the sun and moon in relation to earth.

3. Learning the correspondences of each season and element, while not rooted in objective truth or science in any manner, provides the Pagan with a way to celebrate and revere nature the way it deserves--after all, without nature and the elements none of us would be here.

4. “A wiccan is more appropriately described as “one who influences fate and fortune by bending, shaping and weaving the very fabric of reality.” While on the surface this can sound supernatural--it’s really not, and by assuming this we are prejudging something based on popularized stereotypes. We all bend, shape and weave the fabric of reality through our actions regardless of our beliefs--but Wicca places special emphasis on the individual’s responsibility and control over their life; in other words, Wicca celebrates the self as a powerful agent of change who can affect the course of their fate. And this--deities aside--this I can easily get behind. 

[mrs-k-cottage-witch]

Tea Tuesdays

Wish I could start a witchy meet-up in my area called Tea Tuesdays where we meet up for tea and talk about witchy stuff - it could be seasonal and holidays, spells we are working one, any new witch books we bought or read, that sort of stuff.

And have maybe a book swap, where the other witches could borrow some hearth craft books and make copies of stuff or copy stuff to our grimoires - and then give the books back after like 4 weeks.

Maybe one week could be Divination themed and we can read each others tea leaves and do tarot and pendulum and Ogham Readings.

Yeah, I’d just love to be in the physical presence of witches near me...

Should I try and make Tea Tuesdays a thing?

[fall3n1]

#iamfallen #avesatanas #hailsatan #hailthyself #atheist #nontheist #satan #satanic #lucifer #satanism #witchcraft #baphomet #witch #religiousfreedom #fallen #hailyourself #kinky #bdsm #spanking #equality #kinkfriendly #livedeliciously #somoteitbe #thyselfisthymaster #solveetcoagula #livedeliciously #witchesofinstagram #occult

#wouldstthouliketolivedeliciously

#fall3n #i_am_fall3n