The Witch Queen

Your shadow self is the one who gets angry when someone disrespects you.

The one who fights back when someone hurts you.

The one who tells you to leave a partner, a friend, a job that is harming you.

Yes, your higher self cares about your karma, your wisdom, your peace.

But it’s your shadow self who makes sure you are safe, loved, cherished.

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Long post based on my experience and research. Meant to be informative. I don't claim to know the absolute truth.

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Protection magic is any type of work meant to protect A from B, and there are many ways that this can be done: prayers, charms, talismans, tokens, casting circles, setting up wards, visualization. The list can go on and on because it can be done in many different ways and combining many different methods.

But methods are not the topic of this post today. No, today I would like to talk about some key concepts to keep in mind before getting started on making protections and keeping them effective.

The Importance of Cleansing

Before doing any protection work I like to do a cleansing. Imagine you have an open water bottle, and because it was open, a lot of dirt has found its way into it over time. You decide to seal the bottle so no dirt comes in, but you don't pour out the old water, so you end up sealing it in. Yes, you'll keep more dirt from coming in, but the muck is still there.

It is easier to see this being applied to a physical location, but I personally also apply this to personal protective tokens. I feel they work better when you are taking care of your energies by doing regular cleanses and managing internal negativity.

Important Definitions

Protection ≠ Banishing ≠ Cleansing

I feel a lot of people are under the impression that these are all the same. I think they all work together towards a similar goal, but their jobs are different.

Protection: protecting something from something

Banishing: driving out entities

Cleansing: clearing out energy

You can do cleansing, banishing, and protection at the same time, but that doesn't mean they are the same. You can do a ritual including all of them, but you can also just do a cleansing or just do warding (which is a form of protection).

Note: cleansing is not restricted to “negative energy”. You can cleanse any kind of energy. Exemple: a friend of yours decides tarot is not for them and hands down their deck to you. If you wanna work with that deck it is highly advisable that you do a thorough cleansing of it and then infuse it/consecrate it with the energies you want. It's not that your friend has “bad” energy, it's just that you might not want to work with the same energies they have, or use a tool that has someone else's energy in it.

Not Necessarily a Lazy Job

One important thing with protection magic is that no matter how strong or how successful are at doing it is that it is not failproof. I have yet to see protection work that lasts forever, and there may be a few reasons for it.

Negativity also comes from within

Imagine you have a fish inside an open fish tank. Just like the bottle example earlier, you decide to put a lid on so you prevent leaves from falling into the tank and polluting the water. However, there's a fish, a living being in there, and it produces waste. It is impossible for the fish to live without producing waste. If you don’t regularly clean the water, ammonia and fecal matter will build up.

In this analogy, you are the fish. I am the fish. Humans literally cannot live without ever having a negative thought or feeling, it is part of our existence and we have to live with it. No one lives in constant bliss.

That doesn't mean we have to live in the muck though. That's why cleansing yourself is important.

No one is immune to the environment

Here I have another analogy for you. Imagine you're facing a harsh winter, but you are safe in the security and warmth of your house. Your house is protected from the cold so you don't even mind it. However, you have to go outside. You dress up, go out and you feel very, very cold. You could perhaps wear something warmer, but it will never feel the same as home. Yet it is better than going outside naked, no?

Same thing for energies. You can have protection, but depending on how strong the energy in the environment is you are sure to feel it to at least some degree. However it's best to have some protection than no protection at all.

And there is a difference between Feeling an energy and dwelling in it vs Feeling an energy and not letting it latch onto you.

Energy can wear off, and new energy can build up

Energy is ever changing, ever moving. If you do a strong protection spell once, it can last for a long while, but if you forget about it it will likely lose a lot of its strength over time. Some of what you put out there might wear off and be substituted by something else. The energy can also grow stale, which means it becomes less effective.

But if you do a strong spell every month you will not only make your protections stronger, but also constantly renew the energies and not let them stagnate.

So keep doing cleanses and every now and then give a boost to your protections so they are refreshed and recharged.

Note on "Negative Energy"

One of the main reasons someone might choose to do a protection ritual and a cleansing is to ward off negative energy. But is that really needed? What is "negative energy"?

Negative energy might feel like a sense of heaviness, dread, pain, sadness, feeling ill, angry, sad or anxious. Emotions produce and attract what we can call "negative energy", the same way it can make us feel those things.

And while I personally think nobody wants to feel them, we must understand they are not always bad at their core.

The uncomfortable feelings they can cause may also be a gateway for healing and transformation. Pain tells us there is something that needs to be worked on, that needs change.

If you are feeling negative, ask yourself why. Why does this bother me? What makes me feel this way? What can I learn from this pain?

If you happen to feel negative energy, it is good to cleanse and protect. But I advise you to always look for the source to see what can be done about it or what you can learn from it. Don't just try to use spellcasting to run away from your shit. Own your shit. Deal with it.

Otherwise, it will keep coming back no matter how much protection you have.

Conclusion

It is impossible to always be free from “negative energy” all the time, no matter how strong your protections are. But protections can absorb some of the blows that you would otherwise take and ease the ones you were going to take no matter what.

Protection magic alone will not solve all your problems. It is a great tool to help you keep your center and remain grounded, but it is not usually something you do once and forget. It is a continuous, ever evolving work, meant to be used in conjunction with other types of spellwork.

And most importantly, it can give you some comfort through the many trials of life.

Intent: To banishing interloping spirits.

Ingredients:

2 pt Angelica Root

2 pt Basil (any type)

1 pt White Oak Bark

1 pt White Willow Bark

1⁄2 pt Bloodroot**

1⁄2 pt Black Salt

1⁄2 pt Sandalwood (if desired)

Note: Powdered versions of most herbs are available online. I recommend Starwest Botanicals and Penn Herbs for quality products at reasonable prices. Also, if you can get your hands on a good electric spice grinder, you can make your own powder from dried herb products.

If you don't have premade powdered herbs, grind each ingredient separately to produce fine powder. Sieve the material through a mesh strainer into a collection dish; this removes the larger unground pieces and gives you cleaner powdered herb. (Pro-Tip: Putting a funnel under the mesh strainer reduces lost material and makes collection much easier.)

Combine the component powders in the collection dish, mix well, and bottle immediately. Label with the name, date, and ingredients for future reference.

Use in magics intended to remove troublesome spirits from your home. Sprinkle in the corners of each room, and across thresholds and windowsills to banish unwanted spirits and prevent their return.

Cast a few pinches of Ghost-Be-Gone Powder out your front door or on your doorstep after performing a home cleansing or banishing ritual to help keep your home free of uninvited spirits. Keep a bottle of the powder in troublesome areas to help reduce problems with mild to moderate hauntings and make any spirits who wander in easier to remove. Including the powder in regular cleansing rituals also helps to keep out all but the most determined metaphysical pests.

Add a small amount of Sandalwood or your preferred incense powder to create a burnable mix for smoke-cleansing purposes. Be sure to ventilate your home well after censing as part of a spell or ritual. (Censing or heavy smoke-cleansing are not recommended for homes with pets, small children, or persons with respiratory ailments. Always let caution and common sense prevail when planning your workings.)

-adapted from Pestlework: A Book of Magical Powders & Oils, (c) 2017 by Bree NicGarran

(If you’re enjoying my content, please feel free to drop a little something in the tip jar or check out my published works on Amazon or in the Willow Wings Witch Shop. 😊)

Finally, all my powder recipes in one place! Go nuts, witchlings.

All-Purpose Cursing Powder

Banishing Powder

Clean House Powder

“Eye of Sauron” Revelation Powder

Heal Thy Heart Powder

Hexbreaker Powder

Jackpot Powder

Lucky Day Powder

“Outta My Way” Powder

Peacekeeper Powder

Persuasion Powder

STFU Powder

Traveler’s Luck Powder

Truthfinder Powder

For those of you who may not be able to find herbs locally, here are some online suppliers who consistently have affordable and high-quality products.

Ruth Roy’s Wellcat Herbs - A highly reputable seller with quality herbs, teas, incense, and botanicals. Also runs a booth every year at the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire. (*HIGHLY RECOMMEND*)

Starwest Botanicals - Bulk herbs, spices, oils, and teas. Good amount of organic and Fair Trade products, as well as supplies for holistic medicine and tea-making.

Mountain Rose Herbs - Bulk herbs, spices, and sundries. Also carries organic products and essential oils, and has link to schools that offer courses in herbalism and herbology.

The Magickal Cat - Online shop with just about everything you could want for your craft, from herbs to books to cauldrons, and everything in between. Reliable shipping and excellent customer service.

Bulk Apothecary - Bulk herbs, spices, and oils, in addition to materials for the home production of soap, candles, wine, and beer.

You Will Need:

3/4 cup of butter, softened

1/2 cup of sugar

1/4 cup of brown sugar

3 egg yolks

3 2/3 cup of white flour

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground cloves

1/2 tsp nutmeg

A dash of milk

1 cup of raisins, plus 1/4 cup set aside

Powdered sugar to decorate

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit

Instructions:

In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugars together until the mix becomes light and fluffy, the. Add the egg yolks one at a time and beat into the mix.

In a separate bowl, mix the flour and spices together with a wooden spoon, then add the dry mix to the wet mix and stir thoroughly to incorporate it.

Add the milk as needed, if you feel the mix is a little too dry. It should be wet enough that it forms a nice, solid dough ball, but not so wet that it’s sticky or untouchable.

Roll the dough out with a rolling pin into a slab that’s about 1cm thick. Use a round cookie cutter or an upside down glass to cut out the cookies.

Place the cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet, and cut an “X” into the top of each cookie, and then decorate them with raisins. Then, sprinkle a little powdered sugar over each cookie.

Bake them for about 12-15 minutes until they’re a little brown on top. Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool on a rack.

For the Spell:

Decorate your altar for Samhain, and include imagery and symbols of death and new beginnings such as the Death tarot card, ghostly decor, jack o lanterns, photos of loved ones who have passed on and ancestors you wish to honor, dark colors, or offerings for your deities or ancestors.

Light 3 white candles on your altar, and then place a plate of the soul cakes you just made at the center of your altar.

Respectfully say, “Souls of the Dead, I honor you. But now you must move on. The season changes, and I honor you. But now you must be gone. Souls of the Dead, I pray for you. But now you shall move along. So mote it be.”

C h a r m 🍄 c a s t i n g

🍄 Basics: if your into goblincore and like collecting random things, but are also a witch. This is something that you will love. Charm casting! Charm casting is the act of tossing random charms/objects into a dish or tray of some sort. Each object has it’s own meaning that you give it. You can have a HUGE collection of random things to use for charm casting. This is a fortune telling way and works very well if your using tarot cards with it. However you don’t have to use tarot cards with it if you don’t want to.

🍄 Collecting: When it comes to collecting charms, you have a huge variety. Some people will buy actual charms you use to make jewelry with and keep it simple. Some will go out and about and collect random nick nacks they find in the street. It’s up to you. However upon doing so, make sure you keep in mind… What meaning does this have?

I have teeth, a piece of corn and other things in my supply. I also have a lot of rings. However each ring has a different meaning. One that has an eye means to me that someone or something is watching you or keeping an eye on you. 

🍄 How to cast: Just like any other divination practice, you must ask a question. However, it’s best to place the charms into a bowl so you can easily swish your hand around and feel for the charms. Upon doing so, you then grab a hand full and throw it into a tray (or whatever your using). You’ll notice that they will scatter out, and some will stay in the middle. Many read it differently, some will read the middle and slowly work to the outside of where the charms are. And some will just focus on the middle.  Sometimes when you do cast, some little odds and ends that are unnessessary will make it’s way through the reading. If it doesn’t fit in with the rest of the reading then it’s not needed. You do not need to add it to the reading.

More information 🍄

✨🔮 How To Use Charms 🔮✨ Charm Collection

Sample Charm Casting Reading

CHARM CASTING: Divination with Blingy Things! ❤

Weekend divination charm cast November 10th and 11th

Divination:

To learn the present character of a person:

Take the stem of an apple between your fingers and begin to twist counter clockwise whilst reciting the alphabet. Keep the person of interest in mind. Then refer to the rhyme.

Example: The stem breaks at “A”. The person in mind is currently focusing all their attention on accomplishing a specific goal. This could mean everything aside from this goal has been placed on the backburner and other life aspects are suffering for it.

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“Tom Thumb’s Alphabet”

A was an Archer, who shot at a frog,

B was a Butcher, and had a great dog.

C was a Captain, all covered with lace,

D was a Drunkard, and had a red face.

E was an Esquire, with pride on his brow,

F was a Farmer, and followed the plough.

G was a Gamester, who had but ill-luck,

H was a Hunter and hunted a buck.

I an Innkeeper, who loved to carouse,

J was a Joiner, and built up a house.

K was King William, once governed this land,

L was a Lady, who had a white hand.

M was a Miser, and hoarded up gold,

N was a Nobleman, gallant and bold.

O was an Oyster girl, and went about town,

P was a Parson, and wore a black gown.

Q was a Queen, who wore a silk slip,

R was a Robber, and wanted a whip.

S was a Sailor, and spent all he got,

T was a Tinker, and mended a pot.

U was a Usurer, a miserable elf,

V was a Vintner, who drank all himself.

W was a Watchman, and guarded the door,

X was Expensive, and so became poor.

Y was a Youth, who did not love school,

Z was a Zany, a poor harmless fool.

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To cause confusion:

Simply use the name of that which you want to confuse.

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Anna Elise, she jumped with surprise;

The surprise was so quick, it played her a trick;

The trick was so rare, she jumped in a chair;

The chair was so frail, she jumped in a pail;

The pail was so wet, she jumped in a net;

The net was so small, she jumped on the ball;

The ball was so round, she jumped on the ground;

And ever since then she’s been turning around.

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To trap a spirit:

Recite “Anna Elise” whilst braiding rope and tying knots. Replace the lines after, “…she jumped in the net”, with:

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“…and now I’ve tied the final knot, and in my net was Anna set.

Try all her might, it’s structure is sound,

And ever since then she’s been turning around.”

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At the end of this last line, tie one end of the string to the other to create a circle.

To Overcome Adversity

Or to Strengthen a Wind or Storm:

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Arthur O'Bower has broken his band

And he comes roaring up the land;

The King of Scots with all his power

Cannot stop Arthur of the Bower.

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To Induce Spirit Flight with a “Fail Safe”:

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How many miles to Babylon?

Three score miles and ten.

Can I get there by candle-light?

Yes, and back again.

If your heels are nimble and your toes are light,

You may get there by candle-light.

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Use a small candle and when it burns out, you shall be pulled back to your body.

Hagriding with use of a Poppet:

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Ride a cock-horse to Banbury Cross,

To buy little Johnny a galloping horse;

It trots behind and it ambles before,

And Johnny shall ride till he can ride no more.

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To Replace What’s Been Lost:

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Little Betty Blue,

Lost her holiday shoe.

What will poor Betty do?

Why, give her another,

To match the other,

And then she will walk in two.

If you put a single crab into a bucket, it will climb out and escape from becoming someone’s dinner.  If you put a whole bunch of crabs in a bucket, however, the crabs in the bottom of the bucket will pull the crabs at the top of the bucket back down if they try to escape. Instead of allowing some or all of the crabs to survive, the group of crabs will ensure that every single one of them ends up on a plate. 

This same phenomenon is seen in human communities, where it has become known - appropriately - as crab bucket mentality. From the outside, these crab bucket communities might look like support groups, or places to get feedback and advice. But in reality, they are black holes - these are communities where people go to tear each other down, and to actively be torn down in return. Instead of lifting each other up, these communities burrow further and further into their buckets, until everyone is too bitter and broken to ever climb out.  And you might be part of a crab bucket community without even knowing it.  Some online communities are obvious crab-buckets. The so-called “incel” community might be the most obvious example; these are angry young men who tell each other over and over again that they are worthless, unattractive, and that they will never be loved. Lonely teenagers enter the incel community to talk about how frustrated and insecure they are after dealing with romantic rejection, and they quickly find themselves pushed toward hopelessness, violent misogyny and suicidal fantasies. Likewise, the “pro-anorexia” and “thinspo” communities are crab buckets, where members encourage each other to adapt more and more extreme disordered eating, and often invite other members to make cruel comments about their bodies and food journals. Insecure young women (and some men) go to these communities because they want to like their bodies more, and end up weighed down with self-hatred. 

But not every crab bucket is obvious. 

Although there are lots of wonderful and supportive spaces online for LGBTQ+ people, the internet is also littered with LGBTQ+ crab buckets - especially for trans people. Some trans communities are almost entirely dedicated to discouraging and criticizing other trans people for not “passing”; these communities will pore over each others’ pictures, pointing out lingering masculine or feminine features, comparing each other to “a man in a dress”, or outright convincing each other that there is no point in transitioning, as they have no hope of ever “passing”. Anxious trans or questioning people join these groups to navigate a very difficult time in their lives, only to have their own insecurities magnified and distorted.  Communities and feedback circles for writers and artists can also be crab buckets. Again, while there are wonderful and supportive spaces available, there are also toxic black holes out there, masquerading as genuine communities. I’ve belonged to writers’ groups where every single piece of writing was viciously torn to shreds, no matter how promising it might have seemed, and there were constant discussions about how ‘pointless’ it was to try to get published. Members were so insecure about not “making it” that they frantically tried to crush the hopes and dreams of anyone who might be competition. Instead of producing better writing, these kinds of groups eventually produce no writing at all. 

Activist communities are often crab buckets. On the surface, people join activism communities to lift each other up and feel less alone in their cause; in reality, however, many activist communities have underlying cultures of suspicion, gossip, and hostility. Members gleefully comb through each other’s posts and content carefully, constantly looking for any small mistake or out-of-context comment that will allow them to declare that someone is “trash” or “cancelled”. People join these causes to fight back against their own feelings of powerlessness, and often report developing anxiety, depression and panic attacks as a result. 

The list of crab bucket communities goes on. Any kind of group can become a crab bucket group under the right conditions; just because a community is created by and for a marginalized identity, it doesn’t mean that that community is actually safe for that identity. As humans, we like to band together in groups to accomplish large goals and feel less alone… but sometimes, we turn those groups into echo chambers for our own toxic ideas, and try to drag as many people as we can down into our buckets of despair with us. 

If you’re in a group that you suspect might be getting a little crabby, it’s probably time to leave. Turning a whole group around by yourself is an enormous and thankless task, and it’s not one that I’d wish on anybody. Once a group of people have formed a collective identity around proving why they’re all worthless or fat or problematic, it’s hard to turn that ship around, and any attempts to do it might be met with hostility. It’s okay to give up on toxic communities, and look for healthy ones that build you up instead of tearing you down. 

ATTENTION WITCHES!

So I'm aware of the mass hex that's supposedly happening on the full moon on the 5th against the police, the institution, and white suprememcists, however I have NOT seen any instructions or resources shared by a specific organiser. I largely feel as though it was an idea that floated around but never gained enough traction to be planned properly

I'd like to propose this spell that I have found in on of my books on witchcraft (Inner magic: a guide to modern witchcraft by Ann-Marie Gallagher)

The beauty of this spell is that it is not a hex or curse, so it's safe for inexperienced witches to do without anything bad rebounding on them. It's a binding spell created to stop a wrongdoer from continuing to do harm, I believe we will be able to name the wrongdoer as 'those against the BLM protesting'.

This spell, however, should be performed on a WANING moon on a SATURDAY, which would be this Saturday coming (Sat 6th June), since the full moon is on the 5th.

Please spread this if you think its a good idea.

im going to be offering pay what you wish tarot and oracle readings in order to add to my personal donations to protest and bailout funds

my following isn’t large, and i’m a new reader, but this is a small thing i can do to contribute so if youd like a reading, just donate any amount to the Ko-Fi ive set up, https://ko-fi.com/nosilencestandup and send me an ask or DM regarding what kind of reading you would like

Note: I do not read for questions that would be better answered by a professional.(Legal, medical, financial, etc.) Nor do I accept 3rd party questions. I reserve the right to deny any question.(But will absolutely work to find a question i am comfortable reading about for you.)