The tired witch

General Christianity

“The first and most important thing you need to do to practice Heathenry is read the Eddas.”

“You must worship Odin even if you don’t want to, because he’s the head god.”

“The point of being Heathen is to live life in a way that grants you entry to Valhalla.”

“Valhalla is the good/awesome afterlife and Helheim is the bad/boring afterlife.”

“The Æsir are good and the jötnar are evil.”

“Odin is like God, Loki is like the Devil, and Baldr is like Jesus.”

“Odin is more powerful than the rest of the gods.”

“Ragnarok is the End Times.”

(“Us vs. them” attitudes.)

(Not knowing what to do with the the goddesses in general, regardless of one’s gender.)

Catholic-Specific

“To be Heathen, you must serve the gods.”

“We can’t truly know the gods, only attempt to understand them through the Eddas.”

“The gods are distant and don’t care about our personal needs or lives.”

“We must act as the gods’ ambassadors on Earth.”

“Making sacrifices should be painful. That’s why it’s called a sacrifice.”

“Ragnarök is the End Times and there’s nothing we can do about it.”

(Treating the Hávamál as scripture.)

(Using medieval Icelandic law-tracts as a stand-in for Heathen religious orthodoxy.)

(Observing strict worship and insisting others do the same.)

(Adopting a very feudalistic relationship with the gods; lord/servant dynamics.)

Protestant-Specific

“Showing devotion to the gods is done by acting as their hands and feet on earth.”

“You must think about the gods all the time and involve them in everything you do.”

“Why should we merely ‘work with’ the gods when we can worship them?”

“Ragnarök is the End Times and we must prepare to fight on the side of the gods.” OR...

“Ragnarök is the End Times and we must help fulfill it.”

(Behaving as marginalized on the basis of their faith.)

(Reacting badly when confronted with new information about Heathenry.)

(Making bold or even standoffish declarations of faith.)

If you come from a Christian background and hear someone make statements like this, you’re probably going to feel pressured to come up with a counterargument for why it’s okay for you to disagree. What you actually need to do is dismiss the premise entirely. These arguments aren’t reflective of Heathen truths and you don’t have to argue with them as though they are.

This is also not a dig at those who’ve made these statements / done these behaviors before. It’s not exactly second-nature for us to break out of the habit of believing in a specific idea or behaving in a specific way when we believed / behaved that way for most of our lives. However, it’s still worth understanding how specific to Christianity these things are and trying to move away from them.

It’s up to you if you want to point out the nature of these arguments to the people making them. But if you do, I recommend doing so tactfully, with a clear head, and with a very clear understanding about what makes the premise Christian in nature.

She got the idea for the study while walking with her advisor at Stanford to discuss her thesis topic, and the paper she eventually published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology in 2014 is sharp enough that it should have ended the seated meeting on the day it came out.

She ran 4 experiments on 176 people. Same person tested twice. Once sitting, once walking. The creativity tasks were the standard ones psychologists have used for decades to measure how good a brain is at generating novel useful ideas.

81% of participants in the first experiment produced more creative ideas while walking than while sitting. In the second experiment, 88%. In the third, 100%. Every single person walked into a more creative version of themselves. On average, people generated 60% more novel useful ideas the moment their legs started moving.

The skeptical question is the obvious one. Maybe it was the fresh air. Maybe it was the scenery passing by. Maybe it was the change of environment doing the work, not the walking itself.

Oppezzo killed every one of those explanations with one experimental decision. She put people on a treadmill facing a blank wall. No scenery. No fresh air. No environmental change. Just legs moving in place while staring at white drywall. The 60% boost held.

Then she ran the experiment that closed the case completely. She took participants outside in two conditions. Half of them walked through a Stanford courtyard. The other half were pushed through the exact same courtyard in a wheelchair. Same outdoor stimulation. Same scenery passing at the same speed. The only difference was whether the legs were moving.

The walkers produced dramatically more novel high-quality ideas than the wheelchair group. The outdoors did almost nothing on its own. The walking did everything.

She also tested the opposite kind of thinking. Convergent thinking. The kind where there is one right answer and you have to narrow down to it. Word puzzles where 3 words share a hidden fourth word that connects them. The seated participants did slightly better on these. Walkers got slightly worse.

Walking is not a general intelligence enhancer. It does one specific thing. It opens up the divergent search inside your brain. The part that generates options. The part that produces unexpected connections. The part that takes a problem and finds five ways into it instead of one.

When you need to converge on the single right answer, sit down. When you need to find the answer in the first place, get up.

The mechanism is now well understood. Walking selectively activates what neuroscientists call the default mode network, the system inside your brain that runs when you are not consciously focused on anything. The DMN is where mind-wandering happens. Where memories cross-reference each other. Where ideas that have been sitting in separate folders inside your head finally bump into each other.

When you sit at a desk and force yourself to concentrate, you suppress the DMN. When you walk at a natural pace, the executive part of your brain gets just busy enough handling the walking that the DMN comes online and starts doing the work that focus was blocking.

The most useful finding in the entire paper is the one almost nobody quotes. The boost did not turn off the moment people stopped walking. Participants who walked first and then sat back down stayed elevated. Their next round of seated creativity work was still significantly better than people who had been sitting the whole time. The rest lingered for at least several minutes after the legs stopped moving.

You do not need to do creative work while walking. You need to walk before the creative work. The brain holds the state.

The little bugs

The little rodents

The little birds

The little ones on the street who can’t find food

A Little Trance Reference Guide

Disclaimer: These are things I’ve learned to do through trial and error. My advice might work for you, or it might not work for you. I don’t have many resources, as this is something I simply learned through working with Spirits, along with trial and error.

What is trance?

How I define and experience it, trance is going in a state where I’m relaxed, less in control, and allow myself to become a conduit for either information, energy, or imagery; sometimes it’s two of those things at once, or even all three. I use trance during hedge walking (astral travel), introspective spirit work, and some spell work. In part one I’ll be discussing three forms of trance that I use, along with things I help to induce trance and aid in the process. In part two I will discuss what type of trance I like to pair with what aids, and what those combos have been useful for me for. Also a lot of this is off the dome from just experience being a witch on the specific path I'm on, and experience with using trance for my spirit work, hedge walking, and some spell work– so I don’t have resources to cite.

Types of Trance

Ecstatic trance - This form of trance is high energy, and involves a lot of movement. The movement is usually big, and oftentimes can be symbolic. Light Trance - This form of trance is not so high energy. It involves little movement. Deep Trance - This form of trance requires either no movement, or very little movement depending on what you do to help achieve it.] Note: All of these will be discussed further in part two, along with examples of each type of trance.

Trance Aids (things to aid in helping you achieve trance)

Herbs

Forewarning: When using any herbs please be mindful of your allergies, any medications you’re taking that may interact with herbs, along with any other health concerns, and the legality of herbs where you are and your ability to use them.

Herbs like mugwort and chamomile have helped me with trance. Mugwort is an herb that has associations with second sight, visions, and clairvoyance. While I’m not sure if chamomile has any direct ties that are widely known with its help with visions and the like, I have used it before to help aid in the process of relaxing myself to better be “present” in my trance activities and it worked very well for me. You can make tea with chamomile, but I would not suggest making tea with mugwort. Like, you can, but the price you pay in taste is not nearly worth it. I’d suggest burning mugwort to get the same hard hitting effects that will help you with trance. The downside to this is mugwort does have a pungent smell– so crack a window if that bothers you, or also if you have sensitive fire alarms.

Marijuana (18+)

Smoking a joint can be very helpful with aiding hedge walking, and trance! If you’re not used to smoking, I’d say start off with a hit or two of a joint, and increase from there.

Oils & Ointments

Flying ointment is something I use for all of my trance activities– it doesn’t matter if it’s ecstatic, light, or deep. Flying ointment (or oil) is a salve that has herbs or roots that’s properties are associated with spirit travel, clairvoyance, and spirit sight. I wrote a post about how to make your own flying ointment, but there’s many wonderful etsy sellers who make great ointments! Here’s two different options at different price points: CatCaveCrafts ($10) + DeadLandsApothacary ($25). I like to put it on with intention, and ask the plants in the oil to aid in my session. You can rub it on your inner wrists, behind your ears, and the bottoms of your feet. I also like to anoint my spirit eye (the point in the middle of your forehead) with it, and the top of my head.

Spirit Guides

(Disregard if not applicable to your practice.)

If you have Spirits that you have relationships with, there’s always the option to ask them to help with your sessions! Spirits can range from Deities, to animal spirits, to fae. It’s dependent on you, who you feel comfortable asking, and sometimes the purpose of what you’re doing. For example: If I’m doing hedge walking and I want help not only crossing over, but being protected, I know I can ask the Ferryman (a Guide I have a relationship with) for help by simply asking him to guide the session after I put on my oils, but before I start the actual activity.

Music

I use music as a base component for all my trance activities, because it helps not only filter out the noise of my house, but it also helps my ADHD be not so distracting. For me I like to repeat songs with heavy drums, repetitive chanting or sounds, and I usually like to go for songs in other languages because it helps me not to focus on the lyrics vs. what I'm trying to do. A few songs I've found helpful: Traust by Heilung // Drumming by Drums of Trinidad Tobago // Hagal by Wardruna // Fire by Oakville Choir for Children // Vibrant Night by African Tribal Orchestra // Whirling Dervish by Omar Faruk Tekbilek // Tyr by Wardruna Depending on what sort of trance you're trying to achieve, some songs will work better than others. If you want to do a deep relaxing trance, using a song that's too energetic might not help. Also, these songs are songs that are just examples of what I like. I used Drumming by Drums of Trinidad & Tobago because I have relationships with deities from the African diaspora. It works well for me for that reason. The songs are to provide an example and reference for things that can be helpful, but by no means will 100% work for you. Use songs that speak to you, your spirit, and even your spirit life. Be okay with trial and error here!

Level-Up Your Witchcraft

Find ways to practice daily. Start small with more energy manageable spellwork, like daily tea/kitchen magic. Try out planetary magic to help plan spells and rituals ahead of time. Daily practice helps novice witches to grow their abilities to handle and manipulate energy in greater capacities.

Daily prayer. Remember, praying doesn’t always have to be directed towards spirits or deities. Praying for your own personal power is extremely empowering. Here’s a great video from one of my favorite magical mentors on the topic.

Wear a crystal or oil programed as a magical enhancer to help amplify your will while casting. This was a game changer for me.

Discover & follow your path. Many witches are encouraged to learn many casting methods and types of magic when they are beginning their journey. I considered myself an eclectic witch for eight years before realizing what speciality of witchcraft fit best with me. Once a practitioner focuses on their most suitable path, things feel like they unlock naturally and magic feels more intense.

Read witchcraft adjacent nonfiction. As you dive deeper into most practices, what’s useful won’t be a correspondence cheat sheet or a spell book, but actual history and science. Reading books on quantum physics has helped me develop my own magical theory. Historical & geological references can help witches connect with their ancestral magic. When witches open their view of magic to include everything around them, any topic can become magical exploration and information for the grimoire. Correspondences can be discovered the old fashioned way, through discernment and for yourself.

Routine spell management. Reinforce wards or cast spells routinely in whatever manner works best for you. That could be weekly, monthly, or seasonally. Are you routinely cleansing under the New Moon? Maybe your wards are cast seasonally.

Write your own spells. Everyone loves a good spell book, but if all your casting are other people’s spells, you may not be reaching your full potential.

Meditate. Fifteen minutes a day will unlock more than you ever dreamed possible. I read in a mindfulness book once that meditating eliminates resistance, allowing what you’ve been asking for to flow into your life uninhibited. It also enhances your intuition and recalibrates your mind and body.

Master a method of divination. Tarot, runes, anything! Divination allows the witch to answer their own questions regarding spellwork, better plan, and communicate with allied spirits. It’s the first thing I would tell a young witch to learn.

Haruka Kawakami