it wasn’t until years ago when my mother introduced me to her own rosemary plant. she also hadn’t had much of a relationship with it (she’s caribbean) until she bought her own and began caring for it, but wow did that relationship grow fast and strong!!

i watched how my mother talked to it. she’d compliment her plant, tell it about her day, and ask it how it’s doing. she’d touch the rosemary, brushing it so its scent would release and fill the room. i could feel how deeply her rosemary plant loved her, and since we’re family, i felt the rosemary begin to love me too.

this is what witches mean when they tell beginners working with herbal magic to build relationships with their herbs.

New Moon: September 21st

First Quarter: September 29th

Full Moon: September 7th

Last Quarter: September 14th

Sabbats: Mabon- September 22nd

Hazel Moon

Also known as: Corn Moon Haligmonath, Haefest Monath & Witumanoth

Element: Earth

Zodiac: Virgo & Libra

Nature Spirts: Trooping faeries

Deities: Brigid, Ceres, Demeter, Freya, Isis, Depths & Vesta

Animals: Jackal & snake

Birds: Ibis & sparrow

Trees: Bay, hawthorn, hazel & larch

Herbs: Copal, fennel, rye, skullcap, valerian, wheat & witch hazel

Colors: Brown, dark blues, Earth tones, green & yellow

Flowers: Lily & narcissus

Scents: Bergamot, gardenia, mastic & storax

Stones: Carnelian, cat's eye, iolite, lapis lazuli, peridot, sapphire, spinel, tourmaline & zircon

Issues, intentions & powers: Confidence, manifestation & protection

Energy: Balance of light & dark, cleaning & straightening mentally, physically & spiritually, dietary matters, employment, health, intellectual pursuits, prosperity, psychism, rest, spirituality, success & work environment

The Celtic name for the hazel tree is ‘coll’ which is the ninth letter of the Ogham alphabet’. The Hazel Moon is the ninth month of the Celtic Tree Calendar. This is the time of year when Hazelnuts are appearing on the trees, & are an early part of the harvest. 

•There is a total lunar eclipse On September 7th.

A blood moon is commonly referred to as the dramatic red glow of the moon during a total lunar eclipse. It happens when Earth's shadow completely covers the full moon, filtering sunlight through our atmosphere & turning the lunar surface deep red or coppery brown.

September is commonly referred to as Corn moon by The Farmers Almanac because this time of year—late summer into early fall—corresponds with the time of harvesting corn in much of the northern United States. For this reason, a number of Native American peoples traditionally used some variation of the name “Corn Moon” to refer to the Moon of either August or September. Examples include Corn Maker Moon (Western Abenaki) and Corn Harvest Moon (Dakota). 

Mabon

Also known as: Alban Elved, Aequinoctium Auctumnale, Autumn Equinox & Witch's Thanksgiving

Season: Autumn

Element: Water

Symbols: Acorns, apples, autumn leaves, balance, berries, bolines, corn, cornucopia, dried seeds, effigies/scarecrows, gourds, grains, grapes, ivy, pine cones, pomegranates, vines, wheat, white roses, sickles, scythes & wine

Colors: Blue, brown, dark red, deep gold, gold, indigo, leaf green, maroon, orange, red, russet, violet & yellow

Oils & Incense: Aloe, apple, apple blossom, benzoin, black pepper, cinnamon, cedar, clove, frankincense hay/straw, myrrh, passionflower, patchouli, pine, red poppy & sage

Animals: Dog, horse, salmon, squirrel & wolf

Birds: Blackbird, eagle, goose, hawk, owl, swallow & swan

Stones: Amber, Agate, amethyst, carnelian, hematite, lapis lazuli, sapphire, yellow agate, & yellow topaz

Foods: Apples, beer, blackberries, blackberry wine, breads, carrots, cider, corn, cornbread, grapes, heather wine, melons, mead, nuts, onions, pomegranates, potatoes, rye, squash, vegetables, wheat & wine

Herbs & plants: Acorn, benzoin, corn, echinacea, ferns, grains, grapes, hops, ivy, milkweed, myrrh, pine, sage, sassafras, Salomon's seal, thistle, tobacco, & wheat

Flowers: Aster, carnation, heather, honeysuckle, hyssop, marigold, mums, passionflower, rose, sunflower & yarrow

Trees: Ash, Aspen, cedar, cypress, elder, hazel, locust, maple, myrtle & oak

Goddesses: Danu, Demeter, Epona, Ereshkigal, Inanna, Ishtar, Juno, Modron, Minerva, Morgan, The Morrigan, Muses, Osun, Oya, Pomona, Persephone, Sin, Sophia, Sura & Yemaya

Gods: Apollo, Dionysus, Dumuzi, Esus, The Green Man, Hermes, Jupiter, Mabon, Mannanan, Thoth, Thor & Vulcan

Tarot Cards: The Empress, The Hanged Man, Wheel of Fortune & The World

Spellwork: Balance, grounding, harmony, healing, protection, prosperity, self-confidence & transition

Issues, Intentions & Powers: Accomplishment, agriculture, balance, community, death, family harmony, goals, gratitude, grief, love, planning, public safety, preparation, security, sharing, success & wisdom

Activities:

•Scatter offerings in a harvested fields & Offer libations to trees

• Decorate your home and/or altar space for fall

• Bake bread

• Perform a ritual to restore balance and harmony to your life

• Cleanse your home of negative energies

• Pick apples

• Collect fall themed things from nature like acorns, changing leaves, pine cones, ect)

• Have a dinner or feast with your family and/or friends/ communal feasts

• Set intentions for the upcoming year

• Purge what is no longer serving you & commit to healthy changes

•Take a walk in the woods

• Enjoy a pumpkin spice latte

• Donate to your local food bank

• Gather dried herbs, plants, seeds & pods

• Learn something new

• Make wine

• Burn effigies

• Fill a cornucopia

• Brew an apple cinnamon simmer pot

• Create an outdoor Mabon altar

•Adorn burial sites with leaves, acorns, & pinecones to honor those who have passed over & visit their graves

The name Mabon comes from the Welsh/Brythonic God Mabon Ap Modron, who's name means "Divine/great Son", However,there is evidence that the name was adopted in the 1970s for the Autumn Equinox & has nothing to do with this celebration or this time of year.

Though many cultures see the second harvest (after the first harvest Lughnasadh) & Equinox as a time for giving thanks before the name Mabon was given because this time of year is traditionally when farmers know how well their summer crops did & how well fed their animals have become. This determines whether you & your family would have enough food for the winter.

That is why people used to give thanks around this time, thanks for their crops, animals & food

Related festivals:

• Sukkot- Is a Torah-commanded holiday celebrated for seven days, beginning on the 15th day of the month of Tishrei. It is one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals on which Israelites were commanded to make a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem. Originally a harvest festival celebrating the autumn harvest, Sukkot’s modern observance is characterized by festive meals in a sukkah, a temporary wood-covered hut, celebrating the Exodus from Egypt.

• Thanksgiving- This is a secular holiday which is similar to the cell of Mabon; A day to give thanks for the food & blessings of the previous year. The American Thanksgiving is the last Thursday of November while the Canadian Thanksgiving is celebrated in October

• The Oschophoria- Were a set of ancient Greek festival rites held in Athens during the month Pyanepsion (autumn) in honor of Dionysus. The festival may have had both agricultural and initiatory functions. Amidst much singing of special songs, two young men dressed in women's clothes would bear branches with grape-clusters attached from Dionysus to the sanctuary of Athena Skiras & a footrace followed in which select ephebes competed. Ancient sources connect the festival and its rituals to the Athenian hero-king Theseus & specifically to his return from his Cretan adventure. According to that myth, the Cretan princess Ariadne, who Theseus had abandoned on the island of Naxos while voyaging home, was rescued by an admiring Dionysus; thus the Oschophoria may have honored Ariadne as well. A section of the ancient calendar frieze incorporated into the Byzantine Panagia Gorgoepikoos church in Athens, corresponding to the month Pyanopsion (alternate spelling), has been identified as an illustration of this festival's procession.

Sources:

Farmersalmanac .com

Llewellyn's Complete Book of Correspondences by Sandra Kines

Wikipedia

A Witch's Book of Correspondences by Viktorija Briggs

Encyclopedia britannica

Llewellyn 2025 magical almanac Practical magic for everyday living

The why, the how, and the importance of circling casting in magic

What is Circle casting?

When people talk about casting a circle, they are most often talking about casting a circle of protection. This is something to help keep you protected when you are in your most vulnerable state, for instance during a particularly taxing ritual or spell. I often describe this as a dome of protection, as large as you need it, to keep you safe. It can also work as a way to contain your own magic, to make sure your energy and magic can be focused on the thing you need it to focus on. 

How to cast a circle:

There are plenty of ways to cast a circle, but this is the way I have always done it

Make sure you cleanse yourself and your space. Just think, if you are about to but a dome of protection over you, where your energy can’t get out, and bad energy can’t get in, you want to make sure the energy of the space is right before you start. 

Draw a line. This can be mentally or physically, but draw a line around the space you want to protect. This could be directly around your altar, around the room you are in, or around your whole house. When drawing your line, do some clockwise to attract the energy of protection. 

Speak your intention clearly. When casting your circle, make sure you are clear with what you are protecting from. Are you protecting from all outside energy, or simply negative energy? Are you protecting from fairfolk coming into your circle? Make sure you are thorough with your intention. 

If working with a deity, call upon them. This is an optional step, but for the same reason you would want to be thorough with who you don’t want around, you also want to be thorough about who you do want around. If you are doing some rituals or spells, you may find you want to call upon certain deities or spirit guides, but that is wholly up to you. 

Now, go on with what you were doing. That would be rituals, spells, or well… Living your life. There are many people who simply put up protection circles on their home so they have protection in their home at all times, others only put up circles when they are working on rituals they feel need it (Some believe that having a circle up all the time can be draining for your spiritual health, or can effect some divination readings, since energies aren’t supposed to be able to come into your circle) 

When you are ready, make sure you close your circle. Thank those that helped you in your work, and thank those who respected your circle. When closing your circle, go backwards from the direction you cast, so in our case that is counterclockwise. Make sure to bless those who helped you with their travels.

Why do we cast circles?

A circle is a psychic or physical representation of protection, which is very important when opening yourself up during spells. When we are doing rituals or spells or meditations, it opens us up to receiving energy, but we can’t always control what energy is coming our way, that circle is there to only let through the energy you want to interact with during your work. Now, not all spells or rituals needs a circle cast, but it never hurts to do one if it feels right. This is just an option for you to keep you feeling safe and comfortable, especially when you don’t want to be worried about such things. 

It can be really intimidating, starting as a new witch. Especially learning what herbs you may need. Many young new witches don't have money to start a huge herb garden. And that's understandable! You don't have to do everything all at once! Truth is: you really don't need much to start! Here are some relatively cheap herbs you can start with! You don't need much!

Mint ☽⛧☾

Really easy to find in nature, easy to grow and maintain. And can be used for a lot of beginner spells and rituals! You can find it in almost every grocery store. Buy a plant in a pot or dried herb, both work. Mint also has a lot of health benefits! Really if I'll have to recommend one herb to start with, that would be mint!

Common Nettle ☽⛧☾

Yes, that nettle you were scared of as a child! Turns out, it does have some benefits! Nettle is a great plant to start with. It grows almost everywhere! As my biology teacher said "wherever there are people, there is nettle". It's very easy to maintain and can be used for a huge amount of beginner spells! And it is a perfect replacement for many other herbs, just like a white candle can replace almost all colors!

Chamomile ☽⛧☾

Chamomile is amazing! Both for magic purposes and your health! Chamomile tea helps you calm down, and taste like heaven, especially with honey. In the magic world it's amazing for love rituals and purification. What's great about chamomile is: it's everywhere! It's a wild flower, you can find it in a meadow or forest and easily start a little chamomile garden. Since it grows in nature, it's easy to care for. Truly brilliant!

Lavender ☽⛧☾

Lavender is a beautiful flower and great herb! It works well in gratitude, protection and purification rituals. Also, it tastes amazing in tea! Lavender is a wild flower, easy to find, easy to maintain, easy to dry. The smell calms you down, and it's vibrant color makes it so inspiring!

Remember to have fun! ☽⛧☾

Magic isn't supposed to stress you out. Not all witches have a green thumb and that's okay! It's okay if your first garden doesn't work, it doesn't mean you failed! Keep trying, research, listen to advice. No matter how many times you'll have to try. A wilted plant is not the end of your journey, it's just a small step along the way! I understand it may feel devastating... been there done that! I personally don't have a flair for gardening, so I go to forests and into nature, looking and foraging for wild plants! Not every witch has a garden. And if you don't, that's okay! If you have only one plant, that's okay too! Just remember to have fun and respect nature! ☽⛧☾

Until January 2nd, I'll be doing free tarot readings, pulling up to 3 cards per reading.

Want to request one? :)

Follow my account

Reblog this post

Ask a question or let the Universe/your guides/gods tell you what you need to know. Please include a personal detail about yourself, your practice or deities so I can connect better with your energy.

One question per person (no yes/no questions)

Through ask, not dms (keep in mind they'll be public)

Check out my other readings here - it's not required but I'd appreciate it if you reblogged that one as well since I'm trying to get back into doing readings 🌈

Thank you so much for participating. Can't wait to do a reading for you!

Wondering what to put in your Book of Shadows (or other occult journal) besides your spell/ritual log? Wondering why the information you're told to include is important? Here's some stuff to put in your Book of Shadows, and why:

Magical Theory and Philosophy: The basics of what magic is and how it works. There are a bunch of different theories of magic from different occult systems, and you may want to research and experiment with them to find the one that works best for you. Lots of older occult texts, like Agrippa’s Three Books of Occult Philosophy, The Doctrine and Ritual of High Magic by Eliphas Levi, and Crowley’s Magick in Theory and Practice contain detailed explanations of magical theory. There’s also ancient philosophical texts like the Corpus Hermeticum or Iamblichus’ On the Mysteries that can give your magical or mystical practice a solid foundation. More modern perspectives include philosophies like Chaos Magic or the Kybalion principles.

Correspondences: If you research witchcraft on the internet, the first thing you’re likely to see are long lists of the magical properties of crystals, plants, colors, oils, planets, elements, months, days, hours, moon phases, etc. and their relation to each other. These are called correspondences, and they have their roots in early modern natural magic. They’re super popular nowadays, and crystal shops make a ton of money selling all the appropriate ingredients. I remember feeling a bit nonplussed about how I was actually supposed to use correspondences in spellwork, but I have the obligatory long lists of them in my Books of Shadows. Once you figure out how to use them, they’re convenient to reference. Remember that you can list all of your own correspondences based on your personal associations!

Witchlore: Superstitions about “satanic” witchcraft are a gold mine for ideas about your practice, especially if you decide to take a historically-inspired or trad-witchcraft route. For example: incantations associated with curses or flying ointments, beliefs about familiars and common forms that they take, purification and curse-breaking methods, activities at the Sabbat, etc. (I recently copied over most of Isobel Gowdie’s confession.) Regardless of the historicity of these ideas, it’s easy to adapt them into something workable (and ethical) for your own practice. Also, I think it’s important to understand the original concept of the witch archetype, warts and all, and decide how you personally relate to it.

Witch History: The actual history of witchcraft is fascinating and important to know if you are interested in any of the modern traditions of it, especially because there’s still a lot of misinformation about witchcraft out there. “The Burning Times” still get brought up. If you’re going to refer to history at all, you should at least know the basics. My go-to is Ronald Hutton, a historian who covers the history of witchcraft, and I have a lot of quotes from him in my notes. His book The Witch is about witch trials and the historical conception of the witch, and The Triumph of the Moon is about the history and many influences of modern Wicca.

Local Folklore: What kind of folklore exists in your area? Are there any local haunted houses, or natural formations with legends attached? Any local cryptids? Historical witch trials? Unique superstitions? Do people in your culture and community practice folk magic, now or historically?

High Magic: Ceremonial magic, rituals to summon spirits and harness the energy of planets. Much of the modern Western esoteric tradition is based on the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a nineteenth-century occult society. Its ritual structure is the basis of Wicca and many other occult groups. There’s also the grimoire tradition, medieval and early modern books of spells that were used to summon and bind spirits. Ceremonial techniques are less associated with witchcraft than folk techniques, but they’re tried and true, and a lot of witches use them.

Low Magic: Witchcraft in particular is more folk than ceremonial. There are literally thousands of spell techniques — traditional ceremonial rites, spell bags and sachets, witch bottles, poppets, candle magic, knot magic, sigil magic, herbalism, etc. etc. You have many more options than you think you do. It’s good to familiarize yourself with at least some of them so that you can start experimenting with them to figure out which one works best for you. A lot of correspondences have their roots in folklore (like, for example, the idea that amethyst can cure drunkenness). Pay attention to what folk beliefs exist around you.

Divination Methods: There are also thousands of divination methods — cartomancy (tarot cards, oracle cards, Lenormand cards), cleromancy (casting dice, bones, rune stones, sticks, etc.), scrying (with mirrors, candles, crystal balls, and bowls of water), automatic writing, dream interpretation, pendulums, dripping hot wax in a bowl of water, tea leaves, astrology, etc. Again, it’s a good idea to try out different ones to see which one works best for you, and different methods are also better suited to different kinds of situations and questions. You’re gonna need at least one to do any magic effectively.

Deity Fact Sheets: If you’re pagan and you plan to do deity work, you need to know as much as possible about the god you want to work with. What is the god associated with? What do all these different associations have in common? What are some of the other names and epithets (titles) that the god is known by? What context were they used in? What kinds of people worshipped the god, and why? What are its traditional offerings? What are its correspondences? Are there any surviving hymns to the god? You may not find answers to all these questions, depending on how much information about your deity survives, but anything you can learn is good. If we don’t know much about the god, what do we know, and where does that information come from?

Magical Alphabets: In case you want to keep your secrets, or just look cool. Some of the popular ones are the Theban alphabet, the Enochian alphabet, FUTHARK runes, Egyptian hieroglyphs, the celestial alphabet, various symbol fonts, etc. Feel free to make up your own, too!

Symbols, Magic Circles, and Diagrams: I mean, you don’t need magic circles and diagrams, but there is nothing quite like the feeling of opening up a handwritten book and going “oh yeah, this is a book of magic” just from looking at it. Grimoires have a vibe. It’s the equivalent of putting cute doodles in your diary, but so much cooler. It’s also a good idea to keep track of any symbols that might be relevant to your practice or the spirits you work with. Or, you could take the Chaos Magic approach and create an “alphabet of desire,” your own personal language of symbols.

Sabbats or Festivals: Which festivals and holy days are associated with your practice? What are they centered around? Which gods or spirits do they concern? What are their correspondences? How were they celebrated historically? How are they celebrated now?

Magical Recipes: Many witches have their go-to recipes for tinctures, teas, soups, powders, vinegars, essential oils, cakes, and other concoctions that can be used to heal, strengthen, cleanse, or curse. (IMPORTANT: Do not dabble in herbalism unless you know exactly what you’re doing. It’s as much medicine as it is magic, and many stereotypically “witchy” plants are toxic and can kill you.)

Poetry and Hymns: What do you recite when you perform rituals? There’s lots of books that can tell you what to say, but you also can write your own poetry and hymns, which are often more personal and more meaningful. Poetry also doesn’t have to be occult to be used in ritual — if you come across any poems that resonate for you, copy them into your BoS and use them as hymns.

Shadow Work: I personally think that Shadow work is a necessity, even though it can be painful. Shadow work has gotten more popular lately, and you’ll find lots of suggestions and prompts for how to approach it, but it isn’t easy, and is probably best discussed with a therapist. Still, you can use this part of your BoS as a kind of therapy journal for your interactions with yourself, especially the ones that make you uncomfortable. Writing it down will help you work through it. (It’s not called a “Book of Shadows” for nothing.)

Keep in mind, your Book of Shadows should be personal. You don't need to include all of this information, just what's most necessary for you and your practice.

Look everyone, in These Trying Times we can't always afford things so we gotta make do with what we got. So here's some hot tips to help you become a garbage witch:

Save and use apple seeds, orange seeds, peach pits, cherry pits, etc. to use in your spells.

Make a spirit board/pendulum board out of an empty cardboard box.

Make drawstring pouches out of old clothes.

Use bag strings for binding magic or use them in small drawstring bags.

Shoelaces and drawstrings from old pajamas or sweatpants are fine for knot magic or turning into drawstrings for pouches.

Save glass jars for spell jars.

Study carrion animals, animals that eat garbage, fungus, and the process of decomposition in general. Learn about the importance of biodiversity, and the hazards of oversterilization.

But also study proper sanitation methods, and be aware of biohazards. Don't go living in a house fulla mold or fish through people's garbage for... uhhh... ummm... taglocks. Don't store chicken bones so they'll rot.

If you have a compost bin, write anything you want to "decompose" out of your life on a banana peel. Put the banana peel in the bin.

Learn how to repair broken stuff. (But also learn what you really shouldn't repair for yourself - EG, microwaves - lest you meet with a horrible fate.)

Make charms/talismans by cutting out pictures of things that correspond with your intent and decoupaging them onto wood, chipboard, or layered cardboard.

Make paper mache diety art/statues out of newspaper.