eris 𖤐

FOR BEGINNER AND NON-BEGINNER WITCH :

psychic witch by mat Auryn

Secret teaching of all ages encyclopedia of esoteric teaching

weave the liminal by Laura tempest zakroff

six ways by aidan wachter

the grek magical papyri in translation edited by dieter betz

the complete grimoire by lidia pradas

witchery by juliat diaz

spells for change by frankie castanea

celtic witchcraft by mabh savage

the althlone hiatory of witchcraft and magic in europe

the spell book for new witches by ambrosia hawthorn

kate freuler of blood and bones by mat Auryn

the kitchen witch's spell book by cerridwen greenleaf

love spells by anastasia greywolf

encyclopedia of magic herbs by scott Cunningham

guided tarot by stefanie caponi

the witch's journal by selene silverwind

the casting of spells by Christopher penczak

sacred essential oils edited by claire waite brown

the crystal bible by judy hall

the magical household by scott Cunningham

wicca in the kitchen by scott Cunningham

the house witch by arin Murphy-Hiscock

the heart witch's compendium by anna franklin

the heart witch's kitchen herbal by anna franklin

a spell book for the season

the complete illustrated book of herbs

italian folk magic by mary grace fahrun

the complete illustrated guide to palmistry by peter west

apractical step by step guide to herbs for the home and garden by Shirley reid

top 50 edible plants for pots by angie thomas

the mystical magical marvelous world of DREAMS by wilda b. tanner

the eclectic witch's book of shadows by deborah blake

plant witchery by Juliet diaz

the witch at thd forest's edge

subtle energy by keith miller

protection&reversal magick by jason miller

curses,hexes&crossing by S. connolly

modern witch by devin hunter

the complete book of incense,oils&brews by scott Cunningham

encyclopedia of 5000 spells by judika illes

the good witch's journal by selene silverwind

inner magic a guide to witchcraft

spell crafting by arin Murphy

the green witch by arin murphy

moon magic by diane ahlquist

protection magick by cassandra eason

the little big book by ileana abrev

herbal remedies by andrew chevallier

witchcraft for healing by patti wigington

complete book of correspondences by sandra kynes

poppet magick by silver davenwolf

earth medicine by kenneth meadows

earth power by scott Cunningham

a century of spells by draja mickaharic

positive magic by marion Weinstein

Inspired by the douchebag who saw fit to put a neo-Nazi (oh sorry, “alt-right” -eyeroll-) propaganda flier under my wiper at the market today.

May the hateful hands that forged this Have their own hatred turned back to bite them May their own teeth bite their slanderous tongues May their own bile choke them May their own spite confound them May the harm they do be visited upon them a hundred times And a hundred times again Until enlightenment finds them Or death takes them

1. Take dried stinging nettle and burn it with the name of your enemy. It'll cause a lovely string in one way or another.

2. Filling a poppet of your enemy with stinging nettle it cause issues on the inside.

3. Making stinging nettle tea and putting the name of your enemy in it.

For when you’ve moved into a new living situation or are ready for a new start <3

Finding your home/moving:

House hunting crystals

Spell jar to find a house

Spell for your dream house

The witch’s moving checklist

Cleansing:

A deep room cleanse

To absorb negative energy from a room

Summer house cleansing

Herbal wall/floor wash + witchy cleaners

Home cleansing tips

Home cleansing brew

Thoroughly clearing spaces

Crystals to cleanse the home

Cleansing your space without smoke

Cleansing your space: a how-to guide

Energy cleansing

Low energy cleaning + cleansing

Warding + Protection:

A crash course on warding

To ward the home

Threshold magic 101

Protect my home spell

Home protection steam spell

Simple home protection jar spell

“Little lurkers” home protection spell

Room/home protection

Sharehouse peace witch’s ladder

Wall of fire property & house protection spell

Protection (wind) chimes

The Rowan cross

Protecting the property

Check out the sigils below!

Sigils:

For a magical and happy home

My new home suits me well

Sospidonum

This space is full of life, light, and bright energy

My home is safe

This home is safe for all

This home is a safe and healthy environment

My house is protected from unwanted influences

My home is protected

I live well on my own

Witchin’ it up:

Happy home spell jar

Home sweet home spell jar

House to home spell

Laundry magic

Pleasing household spirits

When a bad guest leaves

New home witch tips

Building a magical home

The magical home

Odds and ends:

Magic, and power, in homemaking

The history and creation of witch bottles

Bringing nature inside

Cottage witch tips

Hearth witch tips

The basics of kitchen and cottage witchcraft

You may also like:

Bedridden witch: garden / stale energy / kitchen edition

Spells for job seekers

Travel witchery

Throughout history those who practice magic have had a close connection to the spirit world, from fairy doctors who were said to learn their craft from the fae, to ceremonial magicians invoking angels and demons, to witches working with familiar spirits. To practice magic is to open yourself to this connection and to become aware of a whole new world of intelligent beings.

In modern Western culture, there’s a lot of fear around working with spirits. There are countless horror stories about malevolent hauntings, seances gone wrong, and violent possessions. It’s easy to see why many new witches are reluctant to work with spirits.

Ironically, in most other times and places, the spirit world was and is accepted as a normal part of life. All over the world, since before recorded history, people have honored their ancestors, left offerings for local land spirits, and built relationships with deities. We’re actually the weirdos for not having a healthy relationship with the spirits around us.

I personally have found working with spirits to be incredibly rewarding, and being aware of the spirits around me adds a lot of depth to my spiritual practice and my witchcraft. As long as you do your research, keep your wits about you, and are polite, you have nothing to fear and everything to gain from working with spirits.

Some Philosophy Terms

Animism: defined by Merriam-Webster as “attribution of conscious life to objects in and phenomena of nature or to inanimate objects.” An animist believes that all things have a spirit, from animals and plants to rocks and even man-made objects. Animism is a big part of many magical practices, especially in folk magic. It’s also a part of several modern religions, including Shinto and Anito. I personally am an animist, and my magic includes connecting with the spirits of the plants, crystals, and objects I work with.

Pantheism: defined by Merriam-Webster as “a doctrine that equates God with the forces and laws of the universe.” A pantheist believes that the physical world is the Divine. Whereas an animist believes that all things have their own spirit, a pantheist believes that the entire world shares a single, divine spirit. Many Wiccans are pantheists, and in some cases pantheism can coexist with animism (all things are both individual spirits and part of the divine whole).

Panentheism: defined by Merriam-Webster as “the doctrine that God includes the world as a part though not the whole of his being.” A panentheist believes that the world is a part of the divine, but that there is also a part of the divine that exists beyond the physical world. Some Christian groups are panentheists. Another example of panentheism is ancient Egyptian religion, where natural objects like the sky and the sun were seen as the bodies (but not the souls) of the gods.

Which of these philosophies you resonate with will shape how you interact with spirits and the spirit world.

Types of Spirits

This is not by any means an exhaustive list, but here are some of the types of spirits witches commonly encounter or work with:

Ancestors: deceased human spirits, especially those with a familial link to you. Ancestor veneration is a huge part of some magic systems, as well as many religions. Some witches ask their ancestors for help in every single spell or ritual, while others honor their ancestors on certain days, like on Samhain or on a deceased loved one’s birthday. Honoring the ancestors is a good place to start with spirit work because they already have a connection to you and are more likely to be willing to help you. However, working with ancestors can be difficult if you don’t know your family’s history or if you don’t feel close to your family. As author Aaron Oberon says, “Sometimes ancestor work is undoing the blocks our ancestors have built.”

To begin connecting with your ancestors, start by researching your family history. Ask your living relatives about their parents and grandparents. Try your hand at genealogy research and see how far back you can trace your family. If you feel called to do so, you can create a special altar to honor your ancestors. Light candles and leave out offerings of food that your ancestors enjoyed while they were alive.

Land Spirits: spirits that embody and are connected to a natural object or landmark. There are many, many types of land spirits, from individual tree and plant spirits to the spirits of great mountains and rivers. Some land spirits are even worshiped as gods – like Hapi, the Egyptian god of the Nile. Some modern witches even choose to recognize cryptids like Mothman or the Jersey Devil as land spirits! Working with your local land spirits can help you develop a deeper connection to your environment and can make your magic feel more localized and personal.

To begin connecting with land spirits, start by learning about the biology and folklore of your local area. Offerings for land spirits are usually left outside, so be sure to offer things that won’t harm local wildlife. Wild bird seed, fresh fruit, and unsalted peanuts are a few examples of safe offerings.

Spirits of Place: spirits tied to a specific building or location. Unlike land spirits, these beings aren’t always connected to a natural feature. Houses and other buildings can have their own spirits that embody the energy of that place. In Germanic folklore, these spirits are called house wights or husvaettir, and in English folklore they’re called brownies. For people who grew up in non-animist cultures, it can feel strange to leave offerings for the spirit of a man-made building, but there’s a long history of these types of spirits being honored all over the world. I personally see house wights as being similar to land spirits.

If you want to begin connecting with the spirits of your home, start by greeting them by name and leaving out an offering for them. Establishing a relationship with the spirits of your living space can help you create a more harmonious and productive home. Traditional offerings for house wights include dishes of cream, grain-based porridge (like oatmeal or grits), and clean water.

Animal Spirits: the spirit of a specific animal, the archetypal Spirit (with a capital “S”) of an entire species of animal, or an individual spirit that appears as an animal. The concept of animal spirits that act as protectors and guides is found in many cultures, especially those with shamanic traditions. In Norse mythology, fylgjur were protector spirits who often appeared as animals. In British Traditional Witchcraft, witches work with familiar spirits that often take on animal forms. It’s worth noting that the terms “spirit animal” and “totem animal” come from Native American spiritual traditions and should not be used by people who don’t belong to those cultures. The concept of animal guides exists in other cultures, so there’s no reason to appropriate indigenous words and ideas. In my experience, animal spirits are often friendly and easy to connect with, so this is a good place to start for witches who are new to spirit work.

If you’d like to work with animal spirits, you can begin by connecting to the animals that are local to your area. You may feel called to bring a part of the animal you’re connecting with into your sacred space – for example, I keep crow feathers on my altar. Offerings depend on the type of animal spirit you’re connecting to – some require only fresh water, while some traditions state that familiars should be fed with blood (not human). Use your intuition to choose what works for you.

Fairies: fairies are a specific kind of land spirit, and most fairy lore is based on mythology and folklore from the British Isles. Fairies have a reputation in modern pop culture as being sweet, friendly creatures – some authors even compare them to angels! However, I think it’s important to remember that historically, fairies were known for being mischievous and sometimes dangerous. In folklore, fairies are less Tinkerbell and more Spiderwick Chronicles. As author Morgan Daimler says, “They can be cruel and vicious, or generous and kind. Some of them are helpful. Some are indifferent. And some of them think we make a very tasty meal indeed.” For this reason, fairies should be approached with caution.

If you want to honor the fairies in your practice, I recommend checking out Morgan Daimler’s books – they have several on this subject that are both easy to read and well-researched. There are a lot of rules for working with fairies, such as not telling them your full name and not saying “thank you” to a fairy, so this is one type of spirit that you should definitely research before beginning to work with them.

Angels: divine messengers; spirits of love and light that come from the Divine and have no physical form. Strictly speaking, “angel” refers to a messenger of the Abrahamic God, but there are other spirits from other religious traditions that fill a similar role. Angels and similar spirits embody divine love, and as such they are both incredibly powerful and incredibly supportive. Because of their loving nature, working with angels is a good place to start spirit work. Some witches who have had negative experiences with Christianity, Judaism, or Islam may feel uncomfortable working with angels. I have personally found that angels don’t really care how you identify in terms of religion, and have had good experiences with Christian angels even though I identify as pagan. However, your experiences may be different, so please don’t do anything that makes you uncomfortable!

There are a lot of bad resources floating around the Internet when it comes to angels. If you’re interested in working with them, I recommend Chantel Lysette’s books Azrael Loves Chocolate and The Angel Code. There’s also a YouTube channel called Ask Angels with Melanie Beckler – I don’t agree with 100% of her ideas, but it’s a decent free resource. Offerings to angels are typically non-physical, like the light from a candle or the smoke from incense.

Demons: spirits of mischief, strife, and/or evil with no physical form. In Western culture, we associate the word “demon” with Christianity, but demons appear in many other religions, including Hinduism and Kemetic paganism. I personally define “demon” as a spirit who: 1.) is not and never was human, and 2.) is antagonistic towards humans. Most witches only deal with demons when they’re trying to get rid of one. However, there are some magic traditions, such as Goetic Magic, that call on demons in magical rituals. Let me just say this: in my experience, there are very few reasons why someone would want to work with a demon, and doing so is as dangerous for the person doing the summoning as it is for the intended victim. I definitely recommend that new witches stay away from these spirits. (But it should be noted that demons are not the same thing as dark deities!)

If you need to get rid of a demon, sulfur is used in American traditions to banish them. (It may also banish helpful spirits, so keep that in mind.) Blessed water is used to repel demons in several cultures. You can also call on an angel or deity for protection.

Deities: powerful, divine spirits who are worshiped as gods. Deities vary a lot from culture to culture, and each deity has their own personality, moral code, and mannerisms. I have found working with deities to be very fulfilling, as deities allow us to put a human face on the Divine. It’s much easier to form a relationship with, say, Odin than it is with an abstract divine force, at least in my experience. Aside from spiritually fulfilling relationships, deities can also be powerful allies in magic. It’s worth noting that very few deities are 100% good or 100% bad – they’re more nuanced than that. Just like anyone else, deities have strengths and weaknesses. (Yes, even the Abrahamic God. Read the Old Testament sometime and tell me God doesn’t have flaws.)

If you are interested in working with deities, start by doing research into the pantheons you feel drawn to. Were you obsessed with Greek mythology as a kid? (Or Norse? Or Egyptian? Or any other culture?) Read up on it! Find out how those deities were worshiped historically, and use that as a starting point for building your own practice. Offerings for deities vary from culture to culture, but I’ve found that fresh, clean water seems to be pretty much universally accepted.

This post ended up just being a whole lot of vocab, but I wanted to get some definitions straight before I start writing about how to connect with the spirit world. In my next post, I’ll talk about how to introduce yourself to different types of spirits and etiquette for maintaining a healthy relationship!

Resources:

Southern Cunning: Folkloric Witchcraft in the American South by Aaron Oberon

A Practical Heathen’s Guide to Asatru by Patricia M. Lafayllve

Where the Hawthorn Grows by Morgan Daimler

Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner by Scott Cunningham

Temple of the Cosmos by Jeremy Naydler

Altars are generally where you will do most of your working as a witch, but they aren’t a necessary part of your craft.  If you don’t want to have one, you don’t have to.  They are more than anything else, acquired out of want or convenience.  They make a good place to put your supplies and create an atmosphere within your home.  You hear about them fairly frequently within the community so this document will endeavour to help explain them, or otherwise help you put your own together!

Altar Etiquette

Alter etiquette mostly revolves around how you should interact with another witch’s altar.  Most of this is easily helped by consent, but it might not be immediately obvious that doing something like taking a photograph or picking up something off another witch’s altar would be frowned upon.  Oftentimes an altar has a lot of significance to a witch, everything might have been placed in a very specific way.  Sometimes people don’t mind, but it’s always better to ask first!

Constructing an Altar

Constructing your own altar can be done by a few methods.  From purely intuitive to more planned for best associations methods like putting objects associated best with the elements in their respective cardinal directions.

Intuitive Method

The intuitive method is about as straightforward as it sounds.  You get what feels right to you personally.  This can involve placing certain stones or flowers on the altar that seem to mesh with what you want the general vibe to be.

Directional Association

Taking a directional association is usually going to involve finding the cardinal directions or picking a part of your home that already falls under them, for example setting up at your most northern facing wall.

Using an Altar Cloth

An altar cloth similar to a table cloth in that it is used both to protect the table from things like spills and damage as well as acting as a decoration.  Some altar cloths come with instructions or designs that imply where certain objects should be placed.  These are found across different rituals, cultures, and religions.

Uses for an altar A few notes to help you get started!

Offerings

An altar is a good place for leaving offerings whether this be to gods, fae, or local spirits alike.  Usually placed in a vessel called an offering dish, offering plate or offering bowl.  This doesn’t have to be on the altar, and if you’d prefer to have it somewhere else, that’s also fine, but this is a very common place for it to be kept.  Often this comes with the idea that the being you are leaving an offering to is blessing your altar and it’s purposes.

Spellwork

Most of your spellwork is going to be conducted at your altar, especially things regarding the home and yourself.  All of your tools are easy to use and in one place, so this acts as both an area to help ground and amplify spellwork as well as a convenience.

Charging Objects

Setting objects on your altar is a known way to charge them.  Where some witches will put objects in the sun or moonlight, burn objects, or charge things otherwise, you might place something on your altar in order to let it acquire energy from the area around you.  Your altar tends to be your magical center, so the flow of energy would theoretically bring it charge.  Otherwise if you also put charged crystals on your altar periodically this effect could be amplified.

Affecting the Atmosphere of the Home

Another reason for an altar is having it act as spellwork in and of itself.  Decorating or otherwise arranging your altar be it per season or for certain effects could turn the whole thing into one large house spell.  You put your intent into your arrangement.

Storage

Draw sigils on your wrist for motivation, calming, better sleep, positivity, literally anything

Make a cup of tea

Put some crystals in your bra/sock/pocket

Meditate!

Remember that LITERALLY EVERYTHING CAN BE WITCHCRAFT IF YOU PUT INTENT INTO IT

Pray to your deities if you have them

Color magick!! Fingernails, clothes, shoes, stickers on your laptop, hair ties, ANYTHING

Take a cleansing bath

Listen to a witchy playlist/podcast

GO OUTSIDE

BREATH THE FRESH AIR

TOUCH THE GRASS

Add something to your grimoire/BOS

Remember- it’s okay to get into a slump. Everyone does. Just take a deep breath and look back on what got you interested in witchcraft in the first place and incorporate that into your everyday practice!

I've covered warding recently in my protection post. But here I will go into more detail on what warding is, the most popular ways to ward and how to create them as well as when to know when a ward is no longer useful or has been broken. I will also go into baneful warding and what it is.

What is warding?

Warding is a form of defensive magick which acts as your first line of defense against negativity. Be this baneful magick from another practitioner or negative entities and general negative energy. There are multiple ways to ward with each practitioner warding differently to the other. Wards come in all shapes and forms, and there is no limit as to how much warding you should do, you protect yourself as you see fit.

What is baneful warding?

Baneful warding is a form of warding in which the negative that hits a ward gets sent back to its source. Baneful warding is seen as a more "advanced" form of magick, however not too advanced for a novice to do with the appropriate amount of research. Baneful warding can come in the same forms as normal warding would.

Warding jars

Perhaps one of the most common wardings on this post, warding jats usually contain ingredients charged with the intention of warding. These ingredients usually range from herbs to bodily fluids such as saliva or blood. These jars are either buried on the practitioners property, left above entryway, left on an altar, or are carried with the practitioner when they want protection on the go.

A warding jar might contain: ashes of a warding sigil, bodily fluids, herbs and plants, crystals, bones, warding or protection oils, spices, metals, glass shards etc. These jars are then sealed with black or white wax (or are sealed in any other way, with glue, tape or simply just with intention).

When a warding jar is broken, you might find the contents of the jar to become moldy, the jar shatters, the seal might break or the contents of the jar to go off, you also might feel that the jar no longer has its power. When this happens, if the jar is intact, break the seal and empty the contents into the bin/trash or return them back to the earth. You can then cleanse the jar with your preferred method of cleansing and reuse the jar for another ward or spell.

Talismans and symbols

Talismans are objects which are charged with the intention fo protection or warding. A well known example would be the Nazar, known to ward off the evil eye.

Symbols are used to represent something or represent an intention example would be the pentacle/pentagram, a well known protection symbol. Another example could by the Eye of Horus, a symbol used by the Ancient Egyptians for protection, health and restoration.

You can create your own talismans and symbols to aid in warding. These might be used to ward against a specific thing, or can be used as a general ward to all negativity.

A talisman or symbol might break or feel like they're no longer useful once theyve done thier job. If this time comes, you can simply dispose of the old one and create a new one.

Sigils

Sigils are created and can be programmed with any purpose necessary. May this be warding ot cursing, they can be used for almost any working.

Sigils can be burnt to activate them, with the ashes being used in spells to add extra power. Sigils can be put up around your house or around your room for warding. These sigils can look like anything, simply draw them with the intention of warding.

Crystals

Crystals can be placed above entryways or in windows to act as a ward. Crystals can also be added to spells to give a desired effect or worn as jewellery to act as warding or protection on the go.

Some examples are: black obsidian, black tourmaline, clear quartz, amethyst, hematite.

When a crystal ward has been broken, the crystal might shatter, or go missing. Or you may feel the crystals energy feels different than usual. With crystals you cam simply cleanse and recharge the crystals to be used again!

Spells

Warding spells can be as simple as a dressed candle, or can be a complex ritual. Warding spells differ from practitioner to practitioner. Similar to warding jars, these spells might include the use of herbs, bodily fluids, crystals, plants etc. The methods of creating a warding spell vary, as there is no one way to create one.

When a ward breaks down, you might feel the ward break, or if it does what is intended, you might feel something bounce off the ward. Depending on the negativity sent your way, the ways in which you might feel a warding spell break down vary, this could range from feeling sluggish or nauseous to downright feeling psychic attack. (Whenever this happens, please consult a doctor, mundane before magical. What you may feel is a magical occurrence could be explained by illness, so please consult a doctor of you feel this way constantly)