Laurelei Black

Hexenritt

The Red Room

This post is the fourth in a series of posts exploring and celebrating witch archetypes at the eight seasonal festivals.

The festival of Midsummer celebrates the summer solstice, the longest day of the year. It has long had an association with the world of Faerie in the British Isles. The origin of the connection between the world of Faerie and the Midsummer holiday is unclear. At its core, Midsummer is a liminal day, though it may not seem like one upon first glance. Unlike Halloween, which falls between summer and winter, and May Day, which falls between winter and summer, Midsummer marks the end of spring and beginning of the summer season. It is a time of shifting priorities. In England, Ireland, and Wales, it was one of the four quarter days marking the times when accounts had to be settled. It marked the shift between the planting season and the summer harvest. On one side of Midsummer is the spring season and lightness, on the other, the shift toward the harvest and a time of increased darkness. Because Midsummer is the summer solstice, the longest day, every day after it must be progressively darker until the winter solstice in mid-December. 

In the old system of belief, the fairies and witches and other spirits enjoyed darkness. The festivals of Halloween and Christmas were times of darkness and were considered to be days when wild spirits would cause mischief. May Day, sometimes called Walpurgisnacht, was another one of their feast days. Some believe it would have been a kind of last hurrah for these beings before the light and cheerful summer months. Midsummer marks a time when periods of darkness begin to increase and this would have been a celebratory occasion. As Puck states in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, fairies travel “…By the triple Hecate’s team,/From the presence of the sun/Following darkness like a dream…”

The witch has, historically, been connected with the realm of Faerie. For this festival, let us discuss the witch as a fairy-being and the witch as a shaman. As Gemma Gary notes in her book The Devil’s Dozen, the connection between the fairies, the Devil, and the witch herself was not always made clear in old folklore. The witch, who has undergone the process of initiation, is closer to the realm of the fairies, closer to the Other World, than other living beings. The initiation of a witch is a death-and-rebirth style initiation. These kinds of initiations are found throughout the world in various cultures. For the witch, a physical initiation by other witches may occur, if she chooses to seek out other witches and join a coven. This ritual may involve blindfolds, the binding of the arms or legs with cords, and a ritual threat of some variety. The removal of the cords and the blindfold mark a rebirth. On the spiritual plane, the witch always experiences an initiation by the spirits, whether she seeks out other witches or not.

This means a sort of spiritual death and rebirth. Many witches report that when they begin to practice witchcraft, their lives fall apart in a very real, very physical way, only to be pulled back together in a more elegant, witchier order. The spirits break apart the spirit of the witch and stitch it back together. The initiated witch may live on our plane, but she has one foot permanently in the land beyond the veil.

It is worth noting here that many superstitions state that individuals who have near-death experiences may gain the ability to peer into the Other World. In England, it was once held that babies born with a caul have the ability to see ghosts or become witches. The baby, being born with a veil of amniotic sac, is not born fully into this world and is marked by the presence of that which came before.

The Irish fairy doctors, according to WB Yeats, were individuals that may have been especially loved by the fairies. In his book Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry, Yeats claims that, “the most celebrated fairy doctors are sometimes people the fairies loved and carried away, and kept with them for seven years; not that those the fairies’ love are always carried off–they may merely grow silent and strange, and take to lonely wanderings in the ‘gentle’ places.” This is, in a way, an initiation by the spirits - the fairies - who forever mark the practitioner as being “other.” It is worth mentioning here that the Irish made a great distinction between the witch and the fairy doctor, the former practicing baneful magic and the latter practicing healing magic primarily. Considering the subject at hand, it did feel significant to mention this intriguing piece of folklore.

Because she has been taken by the spirits and belongs, at least in part, in the land of the spirits, the magical practitioner (whether she identifies as a witch or a fairy doctor) is able to communicate with spirits and even to cross the border between our world and their world. Here we may discuss the hedge witch.

The phrase “hedge witchery” is used to describe a variety of different practices, but at her core, the hedge witch is one who jumps “over the hedge.” That is, she travels between this world and the Other World. This may be done with the use of aids, especially herbal ones. She is, after all, a hedge witch. She may utilize flying ointments, which are worthy of a write-up all their own. Flying ointments are ointments, usually made with a base of beeswax or lard, that contain plant matter of an entheogenic nature. The word entheogenic denotes plants that are hallucinogenic, but are primarily used for spiritual pursuits. To the witch, this often means the plants of the Solanaceae family and the genus Artemisia - belladonna, henbane, mandrake, datura, wormwood, and mugwort. Flying ointments may contain balm of Gilead, cannabis, and other plant matters. The historical witch may have had other methods to induce a trance state. She may have used body movements - dancing, running, shaking. She may have used drumming and rhythmic noises, as well.

The hedge witch essentially practices the art of astral projection, sometimes called flying or travelling. Though there is some debate in the community as to whether these phrases refer to different practices, these terms are all quite similar in nature. If one masters the art of astral projection, the ability to fly (with or without entheogenic aids) is certainly within one’s wheelhouse. 

Why does the hedge witch fly over the hedge? Surely she engages in more than supernatural tourism. She is a kind of shaman, as is the fairy doctor and the historical witch (who predates the term “hedge witch”). By communing with the spirits, these practitioners used spiritual means to affect the physical world. A witch who can cross the boundary between our physical world and the Other World can communicate with the spirits or fairies on the other side. She can work with these spirits to change the everyday, waking world. This is the great benefit of working with fairies. We are (mostly) corporeal. They are not. They possess a strange and dangerous magic all their own.

Of course, working with fairies is not without its hazards. They can be capricious and live by rules that are incomprehensible to humans (though I must add that surely the rules of our society are nonsensical to them, as well). The classic rules of the land of Faerie do apply here - do not take their food, do not dance in their circles, do not make impossible promises, and never, ever say “thank you” to a fairy. If one can master these Wonderland rules, working with the Fae can be highly beneficial.

The Fae are excellent teachers of the magical arte. They can heal the sick and can do great harm to one’s enemies. When they are angered, they can be merciless, spreading disease and destruction. They can bless those they love with generous gifts, including money. They can perform chores and small tasks and can lend their hands to spells, if they feel like it.

Silence!

Because she is everything they are afraid of. 

She’s a powerful force. A goddess who stole all the wisdom of civilization from Enki, who rose to become Queen of Heaven and descended naked into the underworld unafraid. She is the queen of love, of pleasure, of beauty…and of war and death. She cannot be subdued. She cannot be contained. She is unashamed and unafraid, and enjoys pleasure for the sake of pleasure. Gods and kings both bow before her. 

Bow before her. 

Don’t they already have a god?

Isn’t the point of Christianity that “this god is real, those gods are fake”?

I’ve written a lot about the familiar spirit, and now I’d like to talk about the familiar spirit a bit more. Because I can. I apologize for it being brief.  

Introduction:  Redefining Previous Terms

The Deific Familiar

The Animal Familiar

The Plant Familiar

The Dead Familiar

The Faery Familiar

Maintaining the Relationship

Why did I change my mind? Simply because I reevaluated the history of the familiar spirit. The witches often referred to various creatures as their familiar spirit, whether these were faeries, the ancestral dead, animals, or even gods (ie the Devil). Our ancestors believed it is possible to have numerous familiar spirits, so why shouldn’t we as well? However, I still believe there to be a personal, true familiar that is unique to every sorcerer, but I shan’t talk about that at this time. A witch may have one, or all of these familiars (though more does not necessarily equal more power, usually quite the opposite!), but (at least traditionally) witch must have at least one of these. In order to work magic effectively we -must- have that connection the Other. Or else it is just wishful thinking.

The Deific Familiar

The deity is the first, and most often first sought, of the familiar spectrum. Often this is referred to as one’s “patron god” or “patron goddess”. This is a god that either comes to the sorcerer in waking or slumbering vision, and a pact is struck. The sorcerer will serve this god, and in return the god will get offerings and allow part of their power to flow through the sorcerer.

For witches of the traditional stream, this deity is the Devil, or perhaps even the Faery Queen. And there are many ways of getting His attention, or perhaps He will come to you. He is a lecherous fellow, and often preys on young women with long, beautiful hair on His nightly Wanderings. Or, perhaps you will go out into the woods to find Him, or upon a shore at night for Him to take you away, or perhaps within a church with a stolen wafer in your shaking hands.

Once the relationship is started, it will forever cloud your mind. Turn back all who desire this path, I say. The relationship is now Familiar, and the deity may yet send you more familiar spirits as Their messengers.

The Animal Familiar

The animal familiar is the first thing people think of when it comes to familiars. This is a creature that may be either corporeal, or incorporeal. The Living Beast is, essentially, a creature that is made familiar to the witch over time. It is a magical creature fed with the witch’s own lifeblood to make it so. The Spirit Beast may be born of the witch’s own spirit in a similar manner, or granted unto the witch from the Wilds.

The Beast Familiar must be birthed into the world by the witch’s own hands, and cared for, and reared by the witch. The sorcerous connection is built over time by offerings of blood, so that beast and man become as one being. Then the Imp can be sent on various tasks for the witch, or the witch may possess the beast with her own spirit, and the animal may yet teach the witch a thing or two about its own, beastial magic.

The Fetch Beast is born from the witch’s own spirit, or it may come to them in the Wild. Such a spirit is usually housed within a vessel suitable to the shape and form of the animal (Spirit fills Shape), and offerings are made to the familiar to feed it, and sustain it’s presence in this world. As with the Living Beast, the witch may take on the Spirit Animal’s shape as she travels in the Otherworld.

The Plant Familiar

This is another familiar created by the magician, usually in the form of the Mandrake root. Or it may yet be a tree spirit that assists the magician, or a spirit of a shrub, or some poisonous plant. The plant spirit will teach the magician about poisons, balms, potions, salves, how to kill, how to heal, how to confuse, how to arouse the senses. They are dangerous, and strange spirits, but still very much kin.

There is not much to say on these familiars from me, as I don’t personally have one in my home. I work with their bodies briefly, and call out their spirits to bind part of their power to charms, or my meads (though I haven’t made mead in a long while…college), but have yet to be called to make an Alraun.

Some traditions may refer to this as a fetiche.

The Dead Familiar

The Dead Familiar is that of a spirit of the dead who comes to the witch to offer them aid. This may be an ancestral spirit of the witch’s kin, or a witch ancestor that chooses to guide the witch. The witch may also certainly go out and just find a suitable spirit to aid them.

This familiar is traditionally used for rites of divination and oracular work, such as that performed by the Witch of Endor. The spirit of the dead is usually housed within an altar/shrine, or within a bowl, or within a skull, whether human or some other material.

Historically, there was little difference between the dead familiar, and that of the faery, indeed there are of the same making.

The Faery Familiar

The Faery Familiar is what I have spoken of most, and is regards to the Faery Lover, or even Demon lover. This familiar is most popular within Scottish tales, usually between a king and his faery wife. The witches of Isobel Gowdie’s coven also claimed to have devil or faery lovers who assisted them in their magic.

This faery lover may come to you, or you may call to it, or perhaps its a little of both. The longing for, the desire for the relationship sparks it into existence. The relationship is erotic, and sexual congress is frequently made to feed the presence of the faery lover in this world.

Sometimes the faery lover will take you away, and give you unique powers, such as those of Thomas the Rhymer. Or they may stalk you, and rape you in order to give you their power. But that is a controversial topic, and may be saved for a later time.

Maintaining the Relationship

In essence, the stories are true. The familiar is fed milk, blood, wine, and other trinkets to ignite their presence in the sorcerer’s life. With some, this becomes a sexual union between the spirit and the witch. Oh, yes, even with the beastial spirits! Nothing is taboo in the Devil’s kingdom.

Now, I’m not saying to go out and fuck your horse helper, but! if you should have dreams of having sex with your horse familiar, and even transforming into a horse, do not be shocked–it is a part of the process. The feed on the foison of sexual energy, on the living fire within, and in return give you the living fire as well.

As a parting remark, I give this little poem for your contemplation. Within it is a, rather modern, interpretation for obtaining a spirit familiar.

Lol ikr

From the perspective of a Traditional Witch, witchcraft is not necessarily a religion. (This can break down into a conversation about what is and is not considered a religion, but let’s not go there.)

Witchcraft is a craft. It’s right there in the name. Weaving, woodworking, witchcraft - all skills that can be taught. And like all the crafts of old, it has its patron saints and deities. Saint Anthony for butchers, Saint Honoratus for bakers, Saint Ambrose for candlestick makers.

And witches, of course, have the Man in Black, the King and Queen of Faerie, Hecate, and a whole canon of powerful spiritual forces.

And like a craft, witchcraft can be taught. Some people come by it naturally, to be sure, just as some people are naturally skilled at drawing, singing, or dancing. But even those who are naturally skilled can improve their craft through hard work.