Localizing Your Practice
So much witchcraft emphasizes how important it is to honor and work with the Earth, but then teaches us spells with ingredients we basically have to import using locations we donât have access to. Itâs rare to find an existing grimoire or guide book that actually works with where we live. We can still use them, but it doesnât enhance our connection to our local land, which to many can feel important. Here are some tips for localizing your practice and working with the land you actually live on.
See what nature exists around you. Explore your own backyard with a critical eye. What plants can you actually go and pick yourself? What are those plants associated with? Do you have access to a creek or river? What does your local land actually have on it? If magic correspondences for your local plants havenât been written about, you may have to do your own research. Example: I grow several plants on my back porch which I can potentially use for magic.There are magnolia trees and rhodedendrons on the grounds of my apartment complex. My parentâs neighbors have chickens in the backyard, so I have access to some feathers when they shed.Â
Check out local folklore, legends, etc. This is one of my favorite parts, but can also be the hardest. What are the stories of your area, both on a local and cultural scale. Example: A West Virginian may incorporate legends of the Mothman. Everyone says that one building on my old college campus is haunted (and theyâre right.) People talk about that liminal-space feeling when you drive down that one road at night.
Find the magic spots. Sometimes the urban legends will tip you off to these (usually in a bad way) but other times you can find them on your own. A place where the energy is just right for some reason. A place you can go to be closer to nature, or a place you could host a ritual if needed. Sometimes itâs just a place where you can feel your mind open a little bit. Example: The shady corner of a public park. The tunnel downtown. That weirdly-perfect circle of trees in the woods behind Wal-Mart.
Meet your land wights. Spirits of the local land. This could be the fair folk, but also house spirits, the spirits of the trees near you, the nature spirits of wherever you are. Theyâre there. Be good to them and theyâll be good to you! Note: Some spirits and wights will not be interested in working with you, and thatâs okay. I generally think itâs good to at least leave a polite offering to just be on general decent terms even if you never work with them more directly beyond that.Â
Check in with your Seasons. Harvest holidays generally donât have actual lifestyle importance to most people reading this. The seasonal shifts other people write about may be from a very different climate than yours! Figure out a calendar that works for you. It doesnât have to be detailed, but something that ties you to the seasons as you actually experience them. I also love working in any fun annual festivals nearby, if any.
