When people first learn of witchcraft, most feel doubtful, afraid, or uncertain when learning and practicing. Even some experienced witches will remain uncertain. Sometimes this makes witches doubt their paths or it can make a person ask others what they should do on their path. These tips can help you become a more confident witch who has less doubts and fears about practicing and learning witchcraft.
+You are your best teacher. Remember that while some people can help guide you on their path, that guidance is limited. Witchcraft is more of an internal process of figuring out who you are inside, what you can do, and what you need to improve on. Only you can figure this out as you are the only person who has access to your spiritual self. Do not expect others to teach you, either. Thank the people who give you some guidance as they do not have to do so. +Don’t be afraid to try things out without permission/asking. There is no need to ask someone else if you can do a spell or other witchcraft related activity. I’ve seen many people ask others if they can substitute an item for another item, if it would be okay to perform a spell in another way, and many more questions. Just do it. There is no need to ask, there is no need to get permission. This is your spell, your work, do what you want with it. No one else can promise you the results if you perform it a certain way or if you do it another way, so just try it out and see what happens. Do the spell as you want to and see what happens. +Do a spell when you want to. If you want to perform a spell on certain days or during certain moon phases or whenever, then do it then. You do not have to perform a spell on a certain day. Trust your power and your intuition. Also, do not wait to do a spell until you see others’ results. I’ve seen some people wait to do a spell until someone has told them that they did the spell and it worked. Results are different for everyone. Because one person could successfully do the spell doesn’t mean that the outcome will be the same for you. It can manifest differently or it may not happen at all. However, it definitely will not happen if you don’t try. +Trust yourself. Trust your spiritual self and your intuition. If you need to find this trust through shadow work, meditation, or another method then do so. Trusting yourself is incredibly important! Without that trust, you may feel fearful or doubtful about what you do. You need to learn to trust yourself so that you can trust in your intuition and power. This may be a long and hard process, so don’t give up or try to rush it. +Learn effectively. People learn in different ways, so if you try to learn about witchcraft in a way that another person does but in a way that does not suit your learning style, it may be very hard for you to understand and truly soak in knowledge. Find the learning style that fits you best, whether that be hands-on, visual learning, videos, or reading, and use it! +Stop trying to be someone else. I’ve seen too many new witches try to learn and practice the same way as someone else, and I’ve been there. You will never be that experienced witch who you look up to because you are not them. You need to learn about yourself and adhere to what you need, not just copy off of someone else and expect the same results. That person has those results because they have experience and have forged their own path. You can only be you, so learn and practice as you see fit, and the results may surprise you. +Don’t compare yourself to others. This is your path, not someone else’s, so stop comparing your craft to another’s. Everyone has an individualized path that they have forged with different styles of learning, different types of practices, and so much more. No one can duplicate another’s path. Your path is your own, and if that path is slower than another’s, or if your path has more experience than someone else’s, then so be it. There is no need to brag or feel lesser about your path because your craft fits you and only you. It is the path that you created for yourself. It is unique, special, and what you need. You cannot compare yourself to someone else’s completely different path. +Take your time. There is no need to rush into things. You do not need to learn about everything witchcraft related and start practicing a day after learning about witchcraft. You are not behind, you never were. Take things at a pace that suits your needs. If you want a fast-paced path, then that’s great, but if you also need to stop practicing for a while due to school or another reason, that’s fine, too. There are no deadlines, so pace yourself as you see fit.
Metaphysical shops/ new age shops are way over priced. Convenient, but expensive. Check out Etsy, farmers markets, thrift stores and grocery stores first.
Garden sage works just as well as white sage.
Spells can take a day, a week or even months to show. Be patient and don’t feel like you have to do the same spell again go get results.
Always, always protect yourself while doing any spell. Draw sigils on yourself or have a talisman of sorts on your person. Always.
If you’re using a spell book for your rituals, switch them up and make them personalized to your craft.
White or black candles can take the place of any colour candle. And rosemary can substitute for many herbs.
You can have certain books ( Wicca, pagan, occult, etc.) send to your local library for free.
You can cleanse your tools or crystals by moonlight and charge them by sunlight.
Always listen to your intuition.
Many “common weeds” can be used for magical purposes ( mugwort, yarrow, dandelion, etc.)
With energy manipulation,
you are essentially manipulating your own energy. You’re manipulating it to
work for you and to work with you.
You’re learning how to
the move your energy in your spiritual body around, call it forth, expel it,
etc., that’s why it’s called manipulation.
You can also manipulate
the energy of other objects and other people (thought that still is an extension of your energy). For example, programming/enchanting objects is a form of energy
manipulation.
Healing people would also
be a form of energy manipulation.
So all-in-all, it’s
moving the energy in your body to perform specific tasks.
If you’re interested in specifics,
feel free to ask more!
I don’t mind doing a
little energy manipulation series.
Grab your notes and close everything down. Dismiss any spirits or entities you are working with. Close down the circle. End the ritual. Diffuse the energy of the spell and close it down. If you were enchanting an item, announce over it that it is closed and nothing more may come in or out.
Spells and rituals are little portals of power; if you leave one open without closing it, all sorts of things could get screwy and come through.
2. End any spooky/witchy atmosphere immediately.
Blow out all the candles.
Put out all the incense.
Turn on all the lights.
Turn off spooky chanting music. Turn on some happy music or better yet, a non-supernatural television show or movie you love.
If you were enchanting an item, immediately put it in salt.
3. Don’t destroy the items/notes you will need later.
Trust me, do not throw away the spell you wrote or the objects you were working on. If things go wrong in the future you will needthese to fix the problem.
► Immediately write down exactly what happened. Write down every deviation from the spell that you did. Write down exactly what you said and saw during any visualizations. Write down exactly when things started to get freaky.
► If you were enchanting an item, keep it in a black bag filled with salt until you are ready to deal with it.
4. Cleanse.
Use an energy cannonball to purify the space you were working in. Burn rosemary and bay leaves to fumigate the area, or spritz a premade water solution if you can’t have smoke. Pay special attention to all ritual tools.
If you feel the need to, cleanse yourself by visualizing the power of the smoke enveloping you and driving away any bad vibes; or take a shower if you really feel something has gone wrong.
5. Get out of the area you were working in.
Go to another room. Leave the house if possible. Seek the company of others or turn on the television if you are alone.
6. Do mundane things for a while.
Eat a nice meal. Drink a big glass of water. Go for a jog. Do some chores. Put anything magical totally out of your head. Absolutely do not focus on how weird things just got.
7. When you are ready, return to the area you were working in.
Relax yourself and judge the energies within the room. Are things still ‘creepy’? A heavy-duty cleansing is in order. Do you feel as if someone else is there? Open a window and command it to leave – if it does not, more fumigation or a banishing is required.
Judge your ritual tools and determine if they will need additional cleansing. If you were working on an object, determine if it has been corrupted or if anything is wrong with it. If so, put it back in the salt and deal with it as soon as you can.
8. Take a break from witchcraft for a couple of days.
9. Figure out what went wrong.
Fear is never a good thing. There is a difference between embracing the darkness and being afraid.
► Fear can be caused if an entity showed up you were unprepared to deal with.
► Fear can be caused if your intuition (or perhaps a spirit ally) was warning you that what you were about to do was a really bad idea.
► Fear can be caused if you tap in to powers that overwhelm you.
You need to figure out what went wrong. It isn’t a situation where you can say “oh well” and try something else later – because you screwed up, and next time you may not get an adequate warning before things go to hell.
Friendly reminder to NOT USE AN ESSENTIAL OIL DIFFUSER IF YOU HAVE CATS.
It doesn’t matter how well-ventilated the area is.
Cats probably can’t understand to leave an area if they’re feeling ill.
Their livers physically cannot metabolize essential oils and it can easily kill them.
Also, while I’m at it, Young Living and DoTerra reps are in no way educated experts and are not required to learn anything about their essential oil products other than what they think will sell it.
Also never ingest essential oils or put them on your skin without a carrier oil.
When burning anything always keep a glass of water near you, unless you are working with burning oils, then keep a fire extinguisher or baking soda on hand.
When working with essential oils(EO), do not burn them they are highly flammable
Never leave anything burning unattended, be it a burn bowl, candle, incense. DON’T LEAVE IT!
Please remove anything flammable such as paper or string from the candle, it will ignite and you will be alarmed.
Make sure that what you’re burning your candle in is fire safe, metal and cast iron are good bets. Do NOT burn in a glass, if you have to put it out and dump water on it, it will explode.
Make sure you tie back loose hair and don’t have any floppy sleeves or necklaces to get in the way.
When putting out a candle it is best to use a candle snuffer and do not use water.
Don’t burn kitchen sage, it gives off a toxic smoke. Not something you wanna inhale.
Essential Oil Safety
Please, please dilute them properly. I have a chemical burn scar I can never get rid of due to undiluted cinnamon bark oil. The proper dilution is one drop per teaspoon.
Never ingest EO, there are some that are now generally recognized as safe by the FDA, but the quality of EO are not regulated. Who knows what a bad quality EO could do to your internal organs, not something I wanna test.
Essential Oils are photosensitive, meaning they deteriorate in light store them in a dark area to prevent them from spoiling.
DO NOT put them near on your skin and get in the sun or a tanning bed, especially citrus oils, they will blister.
Water will not dilute essential oils, only other oils(canola, olive, sweet almond, olive will all dilute). If you want to use them in a bath it is one drop per a teaspoon of oil.
Please seek medical attention if anything seems off after using EO, they seem harmless but can be very dangerous
Pets can be very sensitive to essential oils(particularly cats) and it is almost impossible to cover all my bases here. The sources provided below have some great resources.
Always go by the scientific name, German and Roman chamomile are very different products.
Kitchen Magic Safety
Wear shoes if you’re doing anything, I nearly lost a toe the other day cause I dropped a knife. I got lucky I was wearing boots.
Wear correct clothing, and tie back hair. No matter if you have a gas, electric or induction stove, I’ve caught a lab coat sleeve on fire thanks to a torch while making a creme brulee.
Use your knives correctly, learn about the pinch grip and use the correct knife for the job. Using a paring knife for chopping potatoes is asking for trouble. There are tons of videos online, I like the ones from Alton Brown and Jamie Oliver.
As a side note use sharp knives, a blunt knife will do more damage than a sharp one.
Don’t leave knives in the sink, someone could begin to wash dishes and cut themselves.
Watch the steam. Steam can give a worse burn than dry heat, open pot lids away from you and don’t stick your face and phalanges in steam.
Don’t leave food products unattended.
Use your damn pot holders, they protect you and your counters.
Store raw meat on the lowest shelves, and never store cooked meat on the same shelf
Wash your hands before, wash your hands after handling raw meats, wash your hands after.
Don’t leave food that is meant to be cold or hot out for more than 2 hours, this is to decrease foodborne illness.
When using the store turn handles in, to keep yourself from bumping them off the stove.
Cook meats to proper temps(there is a chart in the sources)
If you are using herbs be sure to use kitchen grade herbs, those that are not kitchen grade are not held up to the same purity standards and could have more pesticide residue.
Herbal Safety
Please be aware a lot of herbs can work against prescription medications, or should only be taken in very specific doses( St. John’s Wort I’m looking at you.) Check in with your doctor or a licensed herbalist or naturopath before ingesting herbs.
Crystal Safety
Identify your crystals, some are water solvent some are not and it matters
Some that aren’t safe in water include malachite and selenite. They have copper and if aren’t sealed they can become toxic. There is no way to know for sure if it was sealed or not keep -ite crystals dry as a good rule of thumb.
Some crystals fade in sunlight like rose quartz, amethyst and citrine, in order to prevent fading try cleansing them with sound, flower petals, moonlight and energy.
may the bridges I burn light the way 