#practitioner

[4rimoire]

THE BASICS OF LEARNING MAGIC

If you want to learn magic but aren't sure where to start, this post will cover what I consider to be the basics of what you should research.

Eventually, most or all of these will be links to posts we make, this is still a work in progress!

Some of these things are considered essential, while others are more optional. I have put things fundamental for safety at the top of the list, as they should be researched first.

This list may be updated as I think of more to add, but I consider this a good starting point for now.

CLOSED PRACTICES

MAGIC SAFETY

UNDOING SPELLS

ENTITY AND DEITY ETIQUETTE

PROTECTION

BANISHING

CLEANSING

GROUNDING AND CENTERING

INTUITION

MANIFESTATION

MEDITATION

CHARGING

BINDING

SETTING INTENT

DIRECTING ENERGY

TYPES OF SPELLS

INGREDIENTS FOR SPELLS

HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN SPELLS

SPELLCASTING

ALTARS

GRIMOIRES

BOOK OF SHADOWS

SHADOW WORK

DIVINATION

DEITIES AND PANTHEONS

SPIRITS AND ENTITIES

OFFERINGS

MAGICAL PATHS

CORRESPONDENCES

[scorpiocordis]

witchcraft reminder:

you don’t HAVE to do things that you see other practitioners doing. it’s more important to work intuitively to your own craft. for example, personally i don’t like charging water with moonlight because it doesn’t resonate with me so i use sun water instead. part of growing in your craft is learning what makes sense to you and making it your own ♡

[caduceussky]

listen

not every spirit/deity/entity that enters your space or makes themselves known wants to work with you

some of them are just passing by

some of them just want to be there to vibe

some might be lost

some might just be curious about you or what you’re doing

communicate, ask if they want/need anything, don’t make assumptions

[freckledfortuneteller]

who wants to go find a stream to sit at and practice witchcraft with me?

[poisonnxkki]

Protection Magic & Baneful Protections⚡️

What are Baneful Protections?

Baneful protections can be considered both a form of baneful magic and a form of protection magic. When beginning baneful work, this is usually what I recommend starting with. Baneful protections are protection spells that produce some sort of consequence when energy hits it. This can be done without the use of physical taglocks (like names or dates of birth) because energy is able to act like a taglock. For example, some of the baneful protections I have set up will reflect any energy that hits it back to its source while others trap that energy instead (so it can be used later on).

It is very important that even though you are protecting yourself, you aren't accidentally tethering the energy to you. In my first baneful protection, I used my saliva to tether the protection to me but instead I tethered all the negative energy the spell had trapped to me and had a horrible case of bad luck for weeks before I realized what I had done. As a rule of thumb i personally don’t include any personal taglocks in baneful protections and always make sure to include a petition that details my exact intent for the spell.

When to use Baneful Protections:

Baneful protections can be used instead of or in conjunction with other forms of protection (see my blog posts for more information on alternative forms of protection magic). I personally didn't have any baneful protections before I was hexed (for the first time) and now I have some just as a precautionary measure. Baneful protections are most beneficial (in my opinion) if you are surrounded by a lot of negative energy or work in an environment that is mentally draining. These protections can help combat the toll that it takes and prevent much of that energy from staying with you for an extended period of time.

It is really up to you whether or not you choose to incorporate baneful protections into your practice. It is worth it to note that this spell work is considered baneful magic, so those who believe in "doing no harm" may choose to forgo this and stick to regular protections instead. Whatever you choose, be sure to do your own research before attempting any new forms of spell work.

Return-to-Sender Spells:

Mirrors- mirrors have the ability to reflect an image so they are also able to reflect energy. Putting up a mirror on your altar or incorporating a piece of a mirror into a spell is very effective at returning energy to its source.

Burning the bottom of a candle- this is a common one and it is also my preferred method at returning energy. The way I do it is by burning the top of the candle like normal and visualizing the energy that you wish to return. Once the candle is flat, I will flip it upside down and light the other end of the wick, symbolizing the return of that energy to its source. This can be done many different ways so check out what other practitioners do to come up with your own method.

Petitions- petitioning is a really great tool that I utilize in most of my spell work because it is an effective way at manifesting a specific intent. It helps if you know the name of the person who sent you the energy for this method but it is not necessary. As long as you have a clear intention and some return-to-sender oil you can make an effective spell.

Running water or rivers- running water has been viewed as being able to carry energy from place to place so it is possible to use it to return energy to its source. In the shower, you can imagine the energy running off of you, down the drain and back to the person who sent it. Another method is throwing your petition into a river and having the river carry it back to its source. (This method also works with a toilet if you are feeling especially feisty!)

*All images are from Pinterest*

[eliottia]

As an practitioner, today I’ve been had her in my head. I don’t know which goddes she is.  maybe Aphrodite idk.

[the-occult-lounge]

Ethics, morals and safety should be considered in all practices. Individuals will not always agree on how ethics should be incorporated, but listening to each other goes a long way. People will still disagree but taking the time to understand where the other party is coming from is part of strengthening the occult community.

Some faiths believe that what goes around, comes around, meaning that whatever you put out into the universe will revisit you. Some Pagan traditions believe that it comes back threefold as the universe's way of teaching people life lessons. Thus whatever good or harm that you put out into the universe "will come back to you in some way, shape, or form" because they see magick as an exchange of energies. HOWEVER, not every practitioner believes this ideology and that should be respected.

Everyone will have a difference of opinion.

Your ethics are up to you to decide.

Main areas of controversy:

• Consent: The reason baneful magick is considered so dangerous is because you don't have consent, Which means it can back fire onto you or just not work at all. This also can go towards positive spell work such as healing spells and love spells. The main reason a lot of people find issues with not having consent is free will. It is up to you to decide how you feel about consent in your magickal workings. As long as you take responsibility for what may come your way no one is allowed to look down on your practice.

• Using spirits or deity for your own gain: Let's put you in the spirits place. You have passed on and are still around for your family, friends, etc. People pull on your energy without asking you or offering you something in return. How, as the spirit being taken advantage of, do you feel? Do you think that the magick will work without energetically giving something in return to those that are having something taken from them? Probably not. Again, this is up to the practitioner to decide for themselves how they want to work with spirit, deity, and energy around them. But remember aome spirits were once in your shoes.

• White, Grey and Black Magick: These terms are used often but do we know where they originate from. In modern era these associate any magick that is performed by POC as black magick. That is just the typical thought process of someone not in the magick community. It is best we move away from these terms. I, Waric, tend to use positive, neutral and negative to describe my magick.

• Closed practices are those that you either must be born into or initiated into. Below.ia a list of some known closed practices:

• Voodoo

• Brujeria

• Buddhism (some paths ask a Buddhist before trying out a path, some are favorable to sharing, some are not)

• Catholicism

• Hindu

• Aztec

• Mayan

• Judaism

• Aboriginal Cultures (nearly all)

• Islam

• Orthodox Kemetism (worshiping a few Gods is okay and open though)

•Gardner Wicca (the most traditional version of it other branches are fine)

• Shinto

• Zoroastrianism

[vidaamour]

We need to have discussions about a lot of things this applies to baby witches mostly. Not every witch has psychic abilities, not every witch can do all types of magic, not every witch is gonna have success in all types of magic, not every witch has to work with a god or entity, not every witch is just gonna get it. Each person that practices has a different and specific skill set, you can learn them all but they’re not all gonna click for you! You’ll know what you’re drawn too and what doesn’t work for you, stop believing everything you see either fake witches or tiktok witches talk about especially as a beginner witch.

My blog is gonna teach a specific skill set of my abilities as a witch and my practice. What I recommend to all witches/warlocks/practitioners is know how to read tarot, protect, block, cleanse, curse, hex, and jinx. This is the bases to all witchcraft, especially if you’re gonna be open about it and post about it online with your real face and name. All in all not every practitioner can do everything so stop trying to do everything, master what you’re drawn too.

[lunasapphire]

When starting out in witchcraft I started writing everything little thing down when I had the chance, I didn’t take into consideration when or where I would use most of what I wrote down I just wrote it all down… worst mistake I did.

Here’s why… yes research is this best thing for a beginner witch or for someone just starting their journey. But research what you feel drawn to! Don’t dive into it all and try all of it, do what you feel comfortable with and what connects to you. I wrote things down and didn’t know what to do, I had chants I didn’t even understand. I had spells that included herbs I had no knowledge of but wanted to drive into spell work. Not the best decision I’ve made. But as I grew up, my practice grew up with me and we both have evolved into something totally different.

I just bought a new (notebook) Grimoire without thinking twice and it was the best decision, I felt so connected to it, I kept going back to the same listing on the site and just staring at the book a few times before buying it. I had no intention of it being a new grimoire but now it’s connected with me in a way I feel like it’s more personal then ever and I have limited what I want in it. I only write stuff in the book that I have used multiple times or daily and only things I have used multiple times where it’s a personal connection. I don’t write down where I got it or how, I write down how I have changed it into it being my own spell. I rest my hand on my book and talk to it like it’s my own child and I take care of it like it’s my own child, that’s how I know I grew a connection with it.

So for you beginners out there, don’t go crazy like I did, start slow and start small, grow with your practice or you’ll end up throwing a lot out the window, for some literally.💜 that is my Witch Tip for today, blessed be witches! Or any practitioners out there! Thank you for reading my Ted talk😁

[phantomnio]

I already left Africa but what a great time it was. Traveling alone and learning.

[pigeonflavouredcake]

I'm still procrastinating woopwoop

Previously I had a bunch of Terminology lists organised for each chapter under the title page but there's been so many terms in one in and barely any in other chapters so I'm gonna reorganize and move them all into one section at the end.

I think i'll use the free space on the title pages for some more drawings now my art tablet is running again. They'd be introductory linework doodle type drawings to the contents of each chapter so give me vibes. Inspire me, babes.

Here's all the chapters I got:

Theory: I basically contextualise different historical aspects of the practitioner community like paganism, wicca, witches and familiars but I'm also including the bad stuff like cultural appropriation, antisemitism and transphobia.

Practical Basics: talk about the history and practical uses of the simple stuff like altars, grimoires, the holidays, deity worship etc.

Practical Magic: talk about the history and practical uses of different types of magic and spellcraft like divination, protection, glamours etc.

Spells and activities: basically recipe guides to a bunch of specific things like witch bottles, cleansing sprays and other stuff.

Recipes: food. That's it. Just food. I like food.

Correspondences: A bunch of lists of different things and their magical meanings like colour, plants, symbols etc.

You can peek at my table of contents and what the actual grimoire pages look like in older posts.

[4rimoire]

GROUNDING AND CENTERING

grounding in a spiritual sense is the practice of connecting to the environment around you and releasing unwanted energies. centering is the act of clearing your mind to focus on the task at hand.

you may feel "out of balance" and unable to concentrate sometimes, this can be a sign that you need to practice grounding and centering. below i will list some ways to practice spiritual grounding and centering, but feel free to come up with your own ways as well!

note that the correspondences listed at the end are my personal correspondences, you may have different ones and thats okay!

GROUNDING AND CENTERING WITH BREATH

breathe in and out slowly, focus on the way that it feels. visualize (or alternatively, if you cant visualize, just think of) the unwanted energies and thoughts leaving you with each breath out and the thoughts of the task at hand coming in with each breath in

GROUNDING AND CENTERING WITH MEDITATION

try meditating and clearing your mind of all unwanted thoughts, focusing fully on whatever you need to be focused on. focus on the environment around you. what do you hear? what do you smell? what do you see, if your eyes are open? if you have trouble with meditation, there are guided ones online

GROUNDING AND CENTERING WITH VISUALIZING

try visualizing (or thinking about if you cant visualize) all the unwanted energies leaving you and you connecting fully to the environment. you can do this in many ways, but a common way is to visualize ( / think of) breathing out the energy for the release and roots connecting you to the ground for the connection. visualize ( / think of) the wanted thoughts and energies coming in

CRYSTALS FOR GROUNDING AND CENTERING

hematite

black tourmaline

smoky quartz

red jasper

carnelian

malachite

obsidian

fluorite

[scorpiocordis]

candle intention ideas

here are some ways to infuse intention into your candle spell work that aren’t carving, oils, & herbs:

• wrap string around the candle with colors that align with your intention (ex: black string for protection)

• anoint the candle with a certain element if it is prominent in the spell (ex: water for a dream spell, dirt for grounding, etc)

• wrap a taglock hair around it

• write your intentions on a piece of paper or bay leaf and tie it around the candle

• tie a printed paper photo around the candle (taglock) could also be a piece of paper with their handwriting on it

[caduceussky]

additional keywords for your spells

i use these keywords to guide how i add layers/complexity to my workings! they may influence my sigils, the time when i do the working, the colors/herbs/crystals i use, etc! keep in mind that words may have diff meanings to diff people, so feel free to use this as inspiration for other words you prefer (or maybe even words in your native language)

for prosperity/money drawing workings

sustainable (as in sustainable source of income), stable (similar to prev.), desired (also similar to prev.), efficient/easy/quick, unexpected

for success/school/job workings

balance (as in work-life balance), consistent (as in consistent efforts/energy/opportunities), long-term (as in long-term success), wanted/desired (as in wanted/desired opportunities/means to succeed)

for protection workings

un/wanted (as in protection from unwanted things/passage for wanted things; like a conditional protection), harm/harmful (as in protection from harmful things, bc i personally don’t see all bad/negative things as harmful; ie sadness can be seen as negative but not always harmful depending on the situation!)

for cleansing workings

un/wanted (similar to above; cleanse unwanted things, leave those that are wanted), renew/refresh/rejuvenate, space (as in cleansing to make space for what you want to be surrounded by), clarity/understanding (cleansing so that you may ‘see better’; ie seeing your own strengths/weaknesses, seeing what helps and harms you, etc.)

glamour workings

natural (as in natural beauty), inner/outer (as in inner/outer beauty, a balance of both), effortless, glowing/shine, invisibility/camouflage/chameleon (for when you want to use glamour to lay low)

decided to focus on the workings i tend to do the most, so feel free to add more keywords or even categories/types of workings!

[arcaneways]

Fucking tired of people that confuse the term "witch" with "practitioner".

They probably never read about a witch trial or where the term "Witch" comes from. They don't know the difference between Lucifer, Satan and the Devil. They probably don't even know about the difference between Devil worship and Demons worship.

The term witch, nowdays, means a lot of things and nothing.

[poisonnxkki]

Working In Graveyards & Graveyard Etiquette🕯

Why Incorporate Graveyards?

Graveyards have always been associated with the supernatural and metaphysical. In both ancient and modern cultures, funerary rights and the dead have always held great significance in society. When working in these spaces, the most important thing to remember is respect. The dead are not as mutable as the living and it may take longer to rectify a mistake and earn their trust again than it would have been to learn the proper etiquette from the start.

Which begs the question, why work in these spaces and with these spirits? Well lots of reasons, some people choose to only work in graveyards that they have a direct ancestral connection with (ie. family members or distant relative are buried there). Others, like myself, find it a good way to honour the local spirits. Even spirits of people you don't know and have no connection too are worth honouring. Some people believe that since all of humanity has a common ancestor, we are all related and so even cemeteries you have no direct connection to, are connected to you by our common ancestor (another reason I am quite fond of). Maybe you just think it's cool, which is valid. Whatever your reason, just make sure you have one and are not going there with insincere intentions.

What is Graveyard Etiquette?

Graveyard etiquette are the ways in which we should behave when entering and visiting a graveyard in order to be respectful to those resting there. Although there are general rules of thumb which many witches follow, as you develop a relationship with a particular graveyard, those customs can change. Here are some I like to follow:

Leaving an offering- I always bring an offering of coins or flowers. If I'm visiting a graveyard that I've never been to before, I will leave coins at the gate, for the guardian and at some of the older and unkept headstone (also graves of young children if I find any). During regular visits, I leave offerings with the guardian and at headstones of spirits I've developed a relationship with.

Walking the entire graveyard- this is not something I do every time but I like to walk around the entire site and introduce myself especially if I plan on having a working relationship with the spirits there (this may be more difficult for larger sites, I recommend picking an new area each time you visit if that is the case).

Entering and leaving through the same gate- this is not one I stick to every time if I know the spirits really well. If I've never visited before I will always leave through the same exit that I entered from.

Throwing salt or spinning- I heard this one from ChaoticWitchAunt (on TikTok) and it's something that I've just always done. They recommended spinning around three times before leaving to prevent spirits from following you home. I've also thrown a bit of salt over my left shoulder outside the entrance for the same purpose (beware: salt is not good for the earth). This is definitely something that just resonated with me after a bad experience and that's why I continue to do it.

A Note on Necromancy & Death work:

Necromancy is often a term used in many scary movies and cult fiction. It is actually a form of divination which utilizes the dead. Anyone can learn necromancy however it is an integral part of death work. Death worker (practitioners who practice death work) are involved with crossing spirits over. The job requires some level of mediumship abilities and can be very taxing on your mental health. Some death workers take on the lingering emotions of the deceased (pain, fear, anger, etc.) in order to help that spirit. Death work is much more than the small bit that I've described but it is important to note that the path is not for everyone. You can still work in cemeteries and utilize necromancy without doing death work (& a big thank you to the death workers who continue on their path despite the toll it takes, we love you!).

*All images are from Pinterest*