Category: Spells & Potions


Not Gonna Work

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October 7, 2012

So I was on the Black Witch tumblr, tumblin’ like always and look at what I found on my dashboard:

Oh. My. Gods. No. Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

I don’t know what site this is – I shall hereby declare thee webpage Spellz-R’n-Us, and it is done – but man, I really hope no one took that seriously. I mean, really? Okay, let’s go over what’s wrong with the whole picture, starting with the glaringly obvious.

– It’s titled “Baby Spell”. Not fertility spell or anything potentially legit sounding but “Baby spell”.

– It’s either “to make a baby or find love”, a major red flag because those aren’t very similar. At all.

– ‘Dat ad. It does not help the corniness and shadiness of it all.

– What you will need for this spell: Rose peddles – I mean, petals. That’s it. Yes there is such thing as hand magick, meaning no materials used but your own mind and ability, and I am usually a fan of minimalism but this spell is a dud from the start

– The casting instructions: First of all, handclap for the American public education system and American politics snipping it up, what stunning prose we all have witnessed. It was a twist between a rejected Justin Bieber song and adolescent stupidity/horniness in pure form.

This whole spell is a total joke but the wording, oh dear gods. I am a big fan of free verse poetry but this person simply has zero idea how lines work but then again it could be cut into by the Spell Index, I wouldn’t know and perhaps no one will through this person’s aversion to punctuation. Let us put special attention on the spelling and wording, bearing in mind that this is a spell for either to make a baby or be given love (something the writer of the spell has zero concept of). Now, if someone made a slipsies somewhere by forgetting a comma or something like that, I would not be that harsh because even this blog probably has some typos lurking on here but the writing is super bad. Let us focus on the word “pragnetse”.

Pragnetse.

The word looks like it should rhyme with “magnet”. And the snippet it is in, “…baby give me pragnetse your so hot…”, oh my gods, the person who wrote it must be 12, there is no care towards fertility nor the desire of deep love which transcends the physical. This is not love, the person would have been more on point if she or he wrote “Oh man, let’s bone. Babezzzzzz.” And you can’t give someone a pragnetse or pregnant. While it is the creation of the gift of life, you still can’t give someone pregnants like, “Here you go, nine months of hormonal roller coasters and limited range of movement to finish with a pain that could kill a man and a new life with a wailing, shrill thing that hopefully won’t grow up to be a serial killer or genocidal maniac.” No. This isn’t even internet talk the person wrote, it’s incoherent and conflicting babble. (What if the person just wants love? Do they take that part out now?)

And this, “…baby baby come to me in reall life and my dreams” – No. Absolutely zero concept on love, I’m not letting up on this point. If you love someone (and all is healthy between you two), they shouldn’t consume your waking and dreaming life. This person has clearly never been in love or experienced a genuine relationship. This is, like, the 50 Shades of Grey of spells: innaccurate beyond belief, jaw dropping for those who are more informed and the question begs, “Who greenlighted this stuff?”

Speaking of the action part, “then throw the rose peddles in the air and the spellis done”, lol-worthy. Dude, “peddles” and “spellis”, I am dyin’ over here. Oh man, does this person really think this spell will work with no raising energy and incoherency all around? There is no structure, you’d have to do more than chuck some roses petals in the air and that’s that, especially to inspire something as deep as fertility or love. Way more.

Man, this spell – and site – is all sorts of terrible. And oh look, apparently there’s spells for body swaping so all the pathethic guys asking me this can perhaps go over there. Hopefully no one, animal or human, dies as a result of this and if the spell is as bad as this one it won’t work.

All joking out my system (not really), here’s the thing: spells like the one I just dissected above would never work, a forever dud. Believe it or not but spells – good spells, well constructed spells – do have a method to their madness. Regardless whether the spell requires a lot of materials, some materials or none at all, there is a form and function to them all. And this is for any type of spells, simple to complicated.

Spells need well defined purpose. The spell above wasn’t, it was supposed to be used for two extremely different things. For a spell to work, it needs a solid purpose, simple as that. If there’s no purpose, then there’s no point. The purpose could be as little as just wanting to have a good day after a long streak of strife and trouble, it doesn’t matter as long as it is well defined. Even multi-purpose spells (which is what that spell tried to be and failed miserably at) are closely related and pretty general in function, not asking for something in particular.

Like attracts like in spells, the person who wrote the spell above apparently had the faintest of faint ideas of that but still missed the mark about a mile wide. In case a couple readers couldn’t figure, love and fertility aren’t easy spells and would need materials of some sort or at least a lot of skill to go material-less. And the actions you perform also have to be more than what the pseudo-spell above wrote. There has to be some meaning in what you do, what would chucking petals in the air have anything to do with having kids or finding (fake) love? If you want something palpable to occur, there would have to be more than just that. Now, if this person had better wording and said to have the rose petals released on a gusty day, I’d be a little more lenient because the symbolism is carrying – if you just want the love part, the whole motion is pretty useless for the baby part. There just has to be a defined point in what is being done.

It would also be smart to mention that without energy movement, you pretty much wasted your time and money. There is no movement of energy here, just say some poorly written words and hurl some rose petals. There’s no pulling of energy, no raising of energy, nothing. Just empty movements.

Frankly, this spell is a fantastic picture of what a skeevy looking spell looks like and why you shouldn’t use spells you found on the internet.

That’s all for Black Witch, sorry this post was super late! Please know also that this is the third year of Samhain Pickers! Samhain Pickers is the yearly divination sweepstakes that I do. Here’s how to enter:

Send an email to thisblackwitch@hotmail.com with “Samhain Pickers” in the subject line and your:

  • Name
  • Email (to contact the winner)
  • Form of divination done (Cartomancy, Tarot, natal chart, dream interpretation)

And winners will be selected on Oct. 26 so get crackin and submit! Also there will be a BW Ustream chat (I am learning to get better at those) on Samhain at 4:30 PM EST. Be there!

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What a Dud

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September 14, 2012

Doing spells for a while, you’re going to notice that occasionally you get a few duds. It’s not that they don’t work out in the grandeur that you hoped or that they backfired somehow, they just didn’t work. At all.

I guess before I get into the lamenting of how spells don’t work, I guess I should go into how you can tell a spell did work. Usually when I do spells, the most basic way I can tell it worked is through whether it actually did. In detail, usually I notice when things are tilted in my favor, even when I have a severely slim chance. Basically, things just fall into place, no matter the obstacle.

Then there’s spells where simply nothing happens. Everything appears to be business as usual and whatever happens happens. It doesn’t mean the spell makes life more awry or anything, it’s just simply a dud. You thought you did everything right and everything felt like it was going well but nothing of note occurs. There are several reasons why a spell simply does not work and sometimes it is due to the caster, sometimes things just fall apart.

The biggest reason I have noticed (and experienced) for spells simply going ka-put is actually experience itself. When you’re a noob at spell casting, it’s hard to get a feel of things because, frankly, you’re new. It’s hard to learn how to gather and manipulate energy because it’s not exactly like swimming or coding, there’s no visuals or anyone to really go, “No, no, you’re making a mistake,” when you’re in the middle of it all and on the brink to making a flub. It’s all intrinsic when you start out, just something you and only you can really feel…and you probably can’t feel a thing. The only thing that cures that problem is meditation and energy manipulation exercises. Enable to get good at this stuff, you have to practice at it to be better at it. Learn grounding and centering exercises, learn how to pull energy up from the ground or from the universe, so on and so forth. Just keep at it because the more you do it, the more successful spells become because actual energy is being used, directed and charged and a stronger stream of it at that.

Another reason is that if you use any sort of divinity, sprite, elemental, spirit, whatever, in your spellwork, you should have some sort of rapport. You don’t have to have to necessarily have a decadent shrine to each and every thing you ask to aid in your spellwork, just have some type of general rapport, at the very least be respectful. Yes, you could bypass all that and use your own energy but as you read above, it’s just a fast track to burning yourself out.

Then there’s distraction. If you’re not fully focused on the spell while casting it, practicing absolute mindfulness, it’s not going to work as well as it should. That’s different from not having enough energy because the caster could definitely be well skilled but if their mind is scattered or just unfocused due to a rough day or the concern of the situation weighing too heavy on their mind, the spell may never get off the ground. Spells run on intent but if your mind is scattered, there isn’t as much focus on intent as there should be.

Ah, and finally, not knowing what you want. I’ve had spells flat line on me this way. There has been spells where you want tons o’ stuff to happen and trying to cram all that into one spell thinking that it’ll work. For example, you cast a spell to do well in school, get into a good college or to get a good job and to be financially, emotionally and in other forms successful. That’s too much. Casting a spell for good fortune or to do well in school, things of that nature are far more on point rather than trying to do such a catch-all spell. Basic rule of thumb: If you can’t fit the point of the spell into a single, cohesive sentence, it’s too convoluted and needs to be trimmed down.

All in all, sometimes spells don’t work. Don’t feel bad, it happens to everyone at one point or another. Look at it like this, though: at least it didn’t backfire, that’s worse. The only thing you can do is either try again or just fix the problem the mundane way.

Welp, that’s Black Witch for this week! Next week is The Arts!: Presidential Edition. Yeap! There’s going to be an all-around guide about the upcoming American presidential election (sorry, international readers but Black Witch is an American-based blog so it matters). That means there’s going to be:

– The History of the Method of Voting
– Voter ID laws and how to get around them
– The candidates: Democratic, Republican, Independents, the lot!

And after that is Ask Black Witch so send in your questions via the FB fan page, twitter, the comments section, Tumblr or the Ask Black Witch submission form! (Don’t know where those are? Have you tried the Contact Me page up top?)

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Summertime Magick

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July 13, 2012

Summer is a pretty good time to do magick (unless you’re me and abhor heat). Unlike Winter, this season can get you up and moving. Everything is in bloom – or baking from the heat – there are festivals everywhere, more energy roused up. It’s a pretty nice for spells that involve movement and action.

Although, for a person that doesn’t like heat and such, the concept of sun, summer and light is very appealing to me. Since the vast majority (most likely all but I’m leaving room for error) of my magick revolves around the abilities of fire for both creation and destruction, it makes me feel as if it boosts my spellwork where as the winter makes me focus on energy internally. Or makes me light more things.  Fire is pretty much a staple in my spellwork as I use a crap load of candles and even a stick of lit incense for a wand. I like the combustibility of fire and its absolute nature. Once you burn something, it’s gone and there’s no turning back. Hence, I personally prefer candle spells because I like fire. I’mma firebug, it runs in the family (mainly on my dad side).

When I was younger, I used birthday candles and would cast with a big pool of water nearby, such as doing spellwork on the ledge of a filled sink, because my mom had a strict no-fire rule (despite being a smoker, oh lol) and if something happened and I freak out, I can just shove everything into the sink and clean up afterwards without anyone knowing what went on. Of course, I didn’t use incense, too fragrant. I just made do with birthday candles and even a pack of Hanukkah candles a friend gave me. Actually, I still use birthday candles, I just bought some new ones recently.

Candle work stuck with me because they come in such different colors and if you’re new to magick, very affordable. Every Witch is different but I would feel the spell was going better with the visual cues of lighting a candle set for a purpose, seeing the smoke wafting in the air, watching the wax either pool up or disappear, if the wick curls up or break apart. There were times the candle I lit for whatever spell I was doing at the time would flare up greatly like a torch. I know I remember a time a flame went from a normal flickering light to a steadily burning five to six inch flare when I was doing a spell that involved Mars/Ares. All these visual cues would help me feel that the spell is moving forward and that the gods are communicating with me while doing the spell. I get a sense of things going right, things going wrong (I have had spells where things have gone very wrong) and if energy is moving or not. It tells me that a spell has been successfully sent into the universe when there’s a change in the flicker, color or height of the flame.

Besides candles, I use incense for a wand. I don’t always feel like charging or cleansing a wand and that’s already ignoring the fact that a) I don’t have one and b) never really had a strong desire to own one. Maybe if I start learning high magick/ceremonial magick I might get one. But for now, I use incense for wands because they’re more adjustable for magick work since you can get a particular stick for whatever type of spell you’re casting. Money spell? Patchouli incense. Good fortune spell? Sandalwood. Banish spell? Dragon’s Blood. Very versatile. It fine tunes the spell in a way that I feel a crystal can’t (or at least can’t for me). Not only but with incense, it’s used for that one spell so it’s specialized and hyper focused in guiding the energy of intent. It’s easier to charge or charm items because the waft of smoke provides visual aid. As the stick of incense burns away, the more it releases the spell to do its thing. If I did all that with a candle, I would have a mess everywhere from the dripping wax and may even potentially set something on fire with the open flame, something no one wants.  Incense is great general way for me to do magick from setting the circle to conducting the spell itself. Plus, once it’s all burnt out, I can chuck the little stick. A wand I have to put back – and keep out the hands of others who may want to simply play with my spellwork items – incense doesn’t catch anyone’s eyes or the person could be allergic to it and hence not want to touch or simply don’t like smoky things. Not to mention a wand, especially a metal one, is a strong conductor and if the practitioner is working around electricity, the built up energy can cause a spark (okay, the metal ones are likely to cause a spark, wooden ones are fine). There’s just an ease of use of incense for me and much like using a candle, it helps me guide the spell better.

I’ve tried using other methods of fire resemblance such as fire type stones or fire type plants but it simply doesn’t work for me. I see the connection but subconsciously, it still doesn’t make the jump because I associate stones and plants with earth unless there’s a strong connection to another element (for example, a water lily can represent water for me because water lilies, well, grow on water). It doesn’t make me a purist, just finicky. And simply letting my inner firebug shine.

That’s all for this week! Next weeks is The Arts! and look at who we’re featuring:

– Boobs Don’t Work That Way
– The Undertaker [Short Film]
– Miles Jai

Also, don’t forget to check out the current raffle that is going on right now with Princeless. Here’s the post on it!

And apparently the Black Weblog Awards nominations are happening again but I’ll write on that later. Don’t wanna overwhelm myself.

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A Friend in Need

Filed under: Pagan Life, Relationships and Dating, Spells & Potions — 3 Comments
February 10, 2012

Being a Witch can be buckets of fun. You got magick, you got faeries jacking your house keys at random times (or that’s just me), nothing can get in your way – you’re a Witch! But what about when your hands are morally tied?

As a witch, you can do anything you want – as long as it does not infringe on the free will of others and if you do spellwork for others, you have to ask first. This can create a problem because what if the person you want to work magick for may be squicked out by the prospect of magick, think you’ll “mistakenly” hex them, or plain think that magick is a notion thought by crazy people?

What about if you just want to make it better?

An example:

More than once I have had a friend who is really cool and nice and wouldn’t hurt anyone (or wouldn’t hurt people who didn’t deserve it) but life still delivers a rippling body slam of problems such as health issues, financial problems, storm after storm of problems that never seem to go away but roll up one after another. And it sucks just seeing them either pretend everything is fine or become stressed from the pressure. It just seems so unfair all the crap they’re getting and all the wrong they’re not doing to deserve such short straws.

Surely it would seem simple to the average person what the solution would be: Just cast whatever appropriate spell and poof, problem gone, everyone is happy and teddy bears are dancing in the street with matching marching band, ticker tape and flag dancers in tow. Nope. Some issues are likely to arise in magick:

– You did what?: The response to witchery varies from person to person and they vary especially when someone finds out they were the subject of a spell. You could mean well but here’s how they see it: Someone just casted a spell on them. One reason why magick is seen as bad is because it is commonly associated with being shrouded in secrecy and being hidden, something that doesn’t exactly breed trust in people. Even my Witch friends would like some forewarning, especially if they attempt to cast something themselves and it clashes.

– Can’t Always Be Superman: Hey, even Superman has had things slip through his fingers, can’t save everyone. It hurts but it’s true. And it hurts more when you think, “Maybe I shouldn’t have gotten involved”, “Was it me?” It’s natural to want to help and save your friends but be smart, it may take more than one whisk of a wand and some clever wording to save the day.  

– Misery Loves Company/Quicksand Dilemma: The issue about caring too much and wanting to help everyone who looks like they don’t deserve the pain they’ve got is that sooner or later, you’re no longer a side participant but now thoroughly wound up in the same situation. It’s like spending so much time trying to pull someone out of a hole that you lose footing and wind up falling in yourself.

– Bad to Worse in 60 Seconds: There are several sides to a situation – There’s what your friend knows, what your friend told you, what you know (totaling friend’s personality, type of situation, the supposed worst case scenario, etc.) what your friend didn’t tell you, what they didn’t know about the situation and every possible side to the situation. Magick could help but it can also backfire and with missing consent, it could backfire badly.  I’ve been there, the clean-up is not pretty.

Yep, rely on the human experience to complicate matters. So what is there to do? The smart move varies. Certainly I don’t suggest the Silver Ravenwolf method where she says you ask them if you could “pray” for them and take that as a yes for spellwork – people think very differently of prayer and spellwork, even if the concepts are strikingly similar. I think that if you can’t work up the guts to ask them for whatever reason, make the safe bet and don’t do it. If you feel strongly about it and don’t want to sit on your hands, at least do some divination for guidance on what to do. Some people are not for that and would not like that suggestion I made but guess what? Life is not so cut and dry like that. You can’t make everyone stand to the side as they watch life kicking the crap out of someone they care about, it’s simply not fair and not natural. And at least with divination, you know what’s going to happen down the line so even if it say ”No”, there’s usually a story of why and results.

A good suggestion if you go with such spellwork is to use spells that have more of a guiding impact rather than try to make direct change. If the issues are money problems, try to cast something that open up opportunities for improved finances and to make sure they’re not touched by the financial difficulty at hand and to make those difficulties clearer so to be more solvable.  If the issue is with people, then make sure that you cast a protection spell. You could cast a binding spell but you might wind up binding the wrong person – or you could cast a “sticky binding” spell which binds only the people who try to make the situation worse or are trying to keep the drama flowing. As long as the person is not trying to make things worse or is actually trying to help the situation, or are just plain neutral, the binding won’t stick to them. Just go with protection and things of the like, don’t try to solve the problem for them, just aid.

Then there are times when your hands are just plain tied. There, you try to help out the best you can without magick. Give them information, be a soundboard, give ideas and try to help out however you can. But remember, not every problem you come across is your problem.

Next week is The Arts! Who’s being featured:

– Sut Jhally, “Why America Can’t Think Straight about Race (Even With a Black President)”
– The 10th Hour
– The Witch and the Babe

And remember, March is coming up, that means new series titled “Comin’ Straight Outta Yo’ Monolith”

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Ethics I’ve Learned

Filed under: BW Public Service Announcement, Divination, Pagan Life, Spells & Potions — Leave a comment
January 13, 2012

Ethics are very important in divination and witchery. Every new Pagan is going to have their run ins with ethics but they are necessary. Every Pagan is different and all Pagans are going to think differently as well as could perceive the same situation differently. As for ethics and divination, I have a strict set of rules to go by. Always have ever since I started at 17. These rules are to keep everyone involved safe and are only broken under the most severe situations.

Never make people pay ~ I don’t charge at all for divination. As a diviner, my job is to give you advice on what to do next, that’s it. I’m not drawing up haunting ghouls and ghosts to do my bidding, it’s purely me and what I can gather from the universe. I often tell people I don’t charge because they’re going to find out in about three months what their future is going to be anyways. I know some of my divination friends differ in opinion because they believe a service is given but for me personally, I never would pay for a reading and never have, why would I enforce something different? Plus, not everyone has the money to dole out but could use the help all the same. Besides, what would I do with the money? Nothing noble most likely, just squander it on food and lolita, not donate it somewhere or be useful with it. I am a very fortunate person and I am extremely aware of this. I feel that what I have is a gift to share and help people with, not take money from. I also feel that money can corrupt even the best of diviners because it’s very easy to get greedy and to take advantage of people in need. I will take snacks (I love me some red bean mochi and if you can spot me some good okonomiyaki joints in Maryland/DC, you can have any reading you want, as many as you like!) in exchange for readings if the person offered but no money whatsoever. Besides, I already have a job. I work at my university’s library so it’s not like I’m suffering. I feel best when I’m being selfless and helping someone because they need it, not because I want something in exchange. The only time I ever broke that was for the Divination Days held by my school’s Pagan Student Union and it was to raise money for our group, not a dime went into my pocket. We didn’t charge more than $3 (I controlled the prices) and I made sure all the diviners knew that their primary goal besides raising money is to help people. While I am perfectly fine with fleecing the rich kids, I don’t want anyone undeserving getting mixed up in it. Besides, I’ve gotten so much back in good fortune from helping people and I rather have that than money any day. In addition, nothing reeks “Potential phony” like a $15 price tag for a quick palm reading.

Keep it confidential ~ That’s right, I don’t say a word about another person’s reading because it’s no one’s business but their own. To be loose lipped can bite me in the derriere in ways I don’t think I need to explain. Often time I am sought out in confidante by people who are embarrassed or frustrated by their problems, concerned that they are breaking from their religious beliefs or worried that someone else may find out what’s going on. I understand keeping a secret if a secret has to be kept. I don’t break that unless the person exudes suicidal tendencies or may harm themselves in another way. Then I gotta start talking, usually to someone who cares deeply for them or refer them to a trusted professional. I know when people are feeling suicidal or want to indulge in self-injury, they don’t want to tell someone who they think is going to snitch but guess what, I have to. There’s no special oath a diviner takes before dealing with other people’s problems but we do have a conscience to contend with. I would much rather keep Jiminy Cricket quiet rather than grieving me all day about how I should have said something when there was a chance. I too have wanted to kill myself (and I’m not afraid to say that I still gripe with that a little now, I have issues just like everyone else*) and I know about self-injury from personal experience* so it’s not like the person is talking to some apathetic psychologist who knows only what the textbook tells them. However, I have to bring it to light that the person I’m reading for is in dire need of attention.

I’ve had the awesome luck to read for one of my favorite bands evar! My goodness gracious, I was doing natal charts (astrology) for two of the members. They happened to be the most popular members so of course people wanted to know what I found on them. I never said anything once that would discuss their personal lives or cause them harm from a crazy fan. Granted, I found out stuff about my favorites that, to be honest, I could have gone my whole life and about three more others not knowing about. *shudders* Talk about the saying about meeting your heroes. I wrote nearly twenty pages for each member (something else I’m not doing again unless I am working super close with the person, the fact checking and the checking-fact-checking was tedious!) so there was some pretty sensitive information but they were for those band members eyes only. I still feel wacktacular that I gave them such a rushed copy and never had the chance to share the refreshed and worked-through copy of their natal charts. I never got their responses back (it was a quick meet) and it still gives me chills sometimes wondering what they are.

Don’t read everyone ~ Every diviner, whether they make you pay or not, has the right to refuse a reading. I know I’ve done it before. It’s an added perk in not making people pay because it’s easier to refuse readings, yay for me! Just like I have the right to refuse readings, people have the automatic right in not being read. I can read hands/palms, faces, handwriting and auras but just because I can doesn’t mean that I should. It’s simply wrong. I wouldn’t want someone doing that to me, I’m not going to do it to someone else. While I can easily sneak a glance at someone’s hand to figure out some of their more basic life story, I don’t with everyone. I don’t do it to my parents, I don’t do it to those I look up to or appreciate. I see it like this, if my parents wanted me to know about a part of their life so much, they would tell me. I’m not going to pry about and wind up getting my feelings hurt because I decided to be snoopy. It may not be time for me to know or some things are simply better not knowing.

 As for those I appreciate [caution: fangirling ahead], it goes back to the “meeting your heroes” saying, you never know what you’re going to get and you really don’t know if you’re going to like what you find. In the entertainment industry, often there is a stage persona that is shown to the crowd and the presses, keeping the real person a secret. They go by other names, gimmicks and/or amiable personalities. We think we know everything about our idols and their lives but there are still some things that they (rightfully) keep under wraps for the sake of privacy. Everyone needs their privacy. For example, I love Janelle Monae. I could talk about her for hours on end; she’s such an awesome person in my eyes. I appreciate her style and she really means a lot to me as a Black girl growing up very different from the crowds. I would be devastated completely if anything were to happen to her. Though I find her to be an adorable little ball of energy, cute and with vibrant imagination, I love The ArchAndroid and bought The Chase Suite twice (a digital and physical copy), I’m not going to scan her hand in her photo ops. Firstly, that’s creepy. Secondly, I rather let her tell me her story rather than me find out for myself. How can I say that I care (in the way that a fan cares about a performer) about her well-being by being sneaky? I am confident she’ll speak for herself on whatever topic she has to. She’s a performer and I’m just a fan, nothing more. Plus, what if I find something I may not like that could bust my perception of her wide open? Ignorance can be bliss and I’m stickin to it.

Simply put, I don’t read others unless they would like me to, regardless of person. Unless it’s dream interpretation. That’s so fun and usually people want to understand the dreams they have so rarely does anyone mind me giving some input. It’s so fun to me! I used to have a dream thread back at Fortminor.com but that’s gone now (and I’m still grieving over it, 50+ pages gone, dang).

Can’t save everyone ~ This is the one that gets diviners with big hearts such as myself. Some people simply can’t be saved. No matter how many reading you give or how much advice you offer, some folks are too far gone. Not everyone takes advice when given and some people have terrible misfortune. All a diviner can do is to do the best that they can do and not guilt themselves when things still go wrong. I know I have moments where I still wonder if I did the right thing or made the right choice in helping someone but I can’t dwell in the past and I can’t save everyone. Not everyone wants to be saved and there are times where you have to save yourself. They’re very scary times but they do happen. All a diviner can do really is just guide best they can. At the end of the day, the person I’m reading for has to figure out what to do with their life, not me.

Don’t rope a person into doing witchcraft ~ You won’t believe how often I hear people who have met shady diviners and had to do some form of magick to make the bad thing go away. If it is against your beliefs to do magick, it’s against your beliefs to do magick. Be firm in your ideals. If the person says that you have to do it, know that you don’t. More often than not, a person is not jinxed* but with a case of bad luck (or a negative perception on life). Often these people are roped into doing dangerous things that doesn’t make sense like laying in a bath of lye for a month or foolish things like buying a $400 pair of leather shoes from Nordstrom (why Nordstrom, I dunno but that’s usually what I hear) to spit at or whatever have you. I never would tell a person to do witchcraft to solve their problems, often times that’s not what’s needed. If they needed magickal assistance, I would explain everything piece by piece so they fully understand everything and it’s usually small. Like smudging (cleansing) a house with sage if they think they really need it or anointing a dollar with bayberry oil for money (and a copy of the employment section with a red sharpie. Where d’you think the money’s coming from?). If a person is happening on bad times, I usually tell that person to solve the problem the way their religion sees fit. If that means they are to pray to their god for an answer, that’s what they’re supposed to do. I’m not going to drag someone waaaaaay out of their comfort zone and possibly get them hurt or mistakenly kill them. 

It’s up to the Pagan to decide what their ethics are, just know that it is important to have them and they’ll carve themselves out sooner or later. Books and teachings can only go so far, it’s up to the Pagan to live, learn and make mistakes. What’s the point of being Pagan if you’re living inside the velvet ropes of life anyway? Make mistakes but don’t be reckless, though. And don’t be afraid to learn from the mistakes of others.

That’s the BW column for this week! Next week is The Arts! Who’s being featured:

– Racist Political Ads
– Disoccupy
– Sh*t Girls Say (for Black girls)

And the week after that is Ask Black Witch! Get it goin’ and send in your questions!

And don’t forget to read my interview from Black Pagan

Also, please help this little kitty from the Charm City Animal Shelter named Little Mouserat. He was born with no eyelids and needs surgery. Without surgery, his fur will constantly rub against his corneas until his eyed are damaged to the point that they need removed (vet says 2-3 years). His eyes gets very dry from not being able to blink, too! Any donation will help, this poor kitty has already been through enough. Click here to donate and learn more. Thank you!

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Wishing Wicked

Filed under: Pagan Life, Spells & Potions — Leave a comment
October 14, 2011

Hexing. Jinxing. Cursing. Bad juju. Whatever you want to call it, it is the act of inflicting harm on someone through magickal means. It is also the first thing that comes to other people minds when you say that you’re a Witch – as well as the source of their crappy jokes. (“Oh, don’t make her mad, she’ll hex you!”) Every book worth its salt will tell you not to hex or jinx because of the threefold karmic return and how there are other ways to solve the problem without having to resort to astral nasties. Even here on this blog I’ve said, “Don’t do it.”

Why am I not for hexing? Because it isn’t right to throw a monkey wrench undeserved into someone’s life. And people who believe hexing is fine and does it usually portray controlling personalities or become that way in my experience. Do I believe that some people need their just desserts? Yep. The same way that I believe some people can’t see how they are wrong in any given situation and would much rather cast a harmful spell than correct their own attitude. I would totally be for cursing if it didn’t give such ample room for douchbaggery.

Now, note I said “undeserved”. I believe that if you do bad things, bad things happen to you in return. While what is considered bad is a manner of perspective – a man stealing bread, for example – some people are thoroughly wronged. An example could be someone that Person A trusted totally betrayed them by being instrumental to Person A getting robbed or burgled. It’s not Person A’s fault, they didn’t know they were getting set up, and in response (after going to the cops and such), they want to jinx that person as payback. I have friends who have been through such a situation and that’s the route they took. I couldn’t diss them at all about it as my friends weren’t being wonton, as in attacking any ol’ random person out of anger. And if they weren’t sure, the jinx would be left open-ended to the attack the person or people responsible for the bad deed, whoever they are. Are my friends right in what they’re doing? Maybe, maybe not but they are not some derpy teen with a random spellbook and completely over-emotional. They are people who have already tried to be the nice guy and are at the end of their rope. The police may not be cooperative, the problem person may have decided to cause a ripple effect in their damage, etc etc., these are reasons that are valid. It is understandable why some people hex – why, it’s even part of how I got into Witchcraft.

Yep. I said it.

I think I made mention in my very first or second column that one reason why I got into Witchcraft (besides inherent interest) was that I wanted to hex my bullies back in high school. The school administration wasn’t doing anything, I wanted to simply be left alone and not so cruelly picked on. I didn’t care if the spell would kill them or not, I just wanted the bullies to go away. I’m tellin’ you, I rather chill with the Taliban than be around my bullies. You want to see what terrorism looks like? Just peer inside your schools, bin Laden would be taking notes. I never did hex any of my bullies because I was taught through the books I found that this is not the right way to use Witchcraft but it’s not like the thought never crossed my mind…over and over and over and….

Whether to harm or not has crossed my mind numerous times before as a Witch and also as a marital artist. There are tons of times I have figured life would run a lot more smoothly if I just jinxed someone submissive or put them in the hospital. The reason I haven’t done either is because I’m a person that would bobsled like a penguin with a turbo jetpack down the slippery slope. It’s good to have some self-restraint. Plus there have been countless times I have thought I was the right one when in the end it turned out I wasn’t. Yay for avoiding damage control and the super excessive guilt over realizing that actually I might have been the jerk. I don’t think I’m the only one who has been in such a situation.

Now, I have never jinxed and I am pretty solid in the “Don’t jinx” group because I wouldn’t feel right telling people that they are perfectly in the right to jinx people because, honestly, I don’t feel that way. Plus, you never know the mindset of the people you’re talking to and last thing I need is to give them a pass – or what they perceive is a pass – to cause harm. That’s part of why I don’t put spells up here, too. I don’t want some mentally unstable person tripping upon it and doing Gods-know-what with the info. What my friends do is of their choice, I wouldn’t supply them with a curse or anything because that’s not my ethics. If they say they’re going to do it, I’m just going to check in for a second as their conscience. I’ll just ask why and for the details to check and double check that they are truly the wronged party. After that, they’re on their own.

This is my opinion on jinxes. Karmic spells, otherwise known as grey magick, have a different opinion from me. Karmic spells serve mainly as a karma audit and responds as such. I’ve not casted those (Never had a reason to) but I’m not really against it, unless used way too loosely. It’s okay but only as a last resort – as spells should be – and barely used, if ever. The upshot of karmic spells that jinxes don’t have is that A) You’re not adding additional energy into someone’s life, just using whatever is already available by their own actions and B) The karmic spell audits both the good and the bad. This means that a person could be someone good generally but have a bad day and passed that on to a Witch via a run-in. So the Witch is moody and pissed now and cast the karma spell. Because the person is usually a good person and the spell is an audit on both sides, the person might actually have an exceedingly nice amount of good things happening to them and perhaps a few bad things because the person being targeted isn’t Jesus. To the chagrin of the Witch that preferred to have something bad happen, she or he may learn a lesson too through the whole ordeal. That, I favor over a hex because it’s a bit more fair than just plain putting bad happenings into someone’s life, whether they deserve it or not.

Another reason why I prefer karma spells over hexes is because not everyone knows they’re fouling someone else. I have been in the position where I didn’t know I was being a pest to anyone and I’m sure there are plenty of people out there like that, not deliberately trying to wrong someone, just makes a lot of awkward mistakes. It’s not fair to them that they should be wrongfully punished for something they didn’t know that they were doing. Some people have thinner skins than others, some people have absolutely no filter between their brain and their mouth, some people just are crappy with social interactions, etc. People are people and people are different – and annoying.

Now, are hexes all inherently evil via the use of devils and such? No, not at all. All it is, is the intent to disrupt and cause harm or worse through magickal means. Spirits and otherkin not necessary. I don’t bother with hexes though and same with most of my practicing friends. Too much to concern myself with and you need a particular mindset to go to the point of jinxing someone. Nothing is wrong with being miffed. Nothing is wrong with being fair and leveling the playing field either. But be fair, use karmic spells instead. The potential jerk factor drops by a considerable lot.

Okay peoples! This is the last column before the installments and I would like to tell people that if you have not submitted for the 2nd annual Samhain Pickers, please do so now! Samhain Pickers is a giveaway where I pick three people to do divination for with one of these styles:

– Tarot
– Cartomancy
– Dream Interpretation

Yes, yes, if you were here last year then you would know that I had slightly more selections but here’s the thing, I’m actually moving to a new apartment so that means limited time to do stuff. Still want in? Great! Send me an email (look on the About Me/Contact Me Page for info) with your

– Name
– Email
– What type of reading would you prefer (Choose One)

I will pick the three winners using Random.org’s number generator. Each email counts as an entry and a number. If you are the first email I get, you’re #1, thirteenth email I get, #13 and so on and so forth. That way it’s extremely random for the reader and easier to pick for me. I will draw winners on Oct 31 and we’ll go from there. Also, unless otherwise stated, there will still be the Black Witch vcast chat on Ustream. 9 PM EST, be there!

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Ask Black Witch

Filed under: Ask Black Witch, Dreams, Resources & Information, Spells & Potions — 2 Comments
July 29, 2011

I know it’s not strictly enforced (because it never had to be) but actually I have a three question monthly quota. Since this is the first month I’ve actually gone over, I’ll answer all questions. I keep the quota around just in case I get a slew of questions but since this is really a first, I have no issue answering everything. Same for the upcoming months unless there are more and more question filled months but I provide warning first. In short, all is spiffy.

I have been cursed or hexed to not have or keep money. What can I do to break the hex or curse? Or what can I do to attract success or money to me.
– Louis R.

Usually when people come to me saying they’ve been cursed, I’m a bit of a skeptic but only because I’ve seen many people come to me claiming to be cursed when really it could be their own downfall or a general downfall that’s been going around (i.e. bad economy, illness, stress) and not a curse. The general rule of thumb is that the more developed a nation, the likelier that someone has not been cursed really but got some bad luck going but even then you have to stratify that to socio-economic levels and environments (in other words, if you’re upper class and fairly wasp? It’s probably bad luck, mate) so still people can get hit with a hex but it’s not common. Improbable but not impossible, basically.

Now as for Louis, I can’t tell for sure if you’ve been actually jinxed out of money, I’d have to hear more to be able to rule out the fact we are currently in a pretty sluggish economy and as of this writing, with US unemployment at 9% and Black unemployment at 16% and even big businesses are feeling the brunt of the economy. That can have an easy chain effect on a person’s spending and finance. Also, hexes don’t come from nowhere (no one really hexes a random person just for the screw of it, that’s mad rare) so if it’s not really traceable (as in, without doubt. Not, “Well, I got that weird coworker…”), it could be unfortunate circumstances that has fallen upon your head. I’m just throwing that out there to make sure you know what you should look for roughly when it comes to figuring out if it’s bad luck or bad juju.

How are you hexed out of keeping money? Surprise bills? Things keep breaking that are in constant need of repair (and shouldn’t be)? Mugged every time you step off your front step? Banks constantly go, “’Paychecks’? What’s that?” Magick takes the path of least resistance usually but when it comes to hexes, they can throw in wrenches like none other. For example: Say you have been magickally knocked in the pockets. It could express itself by the bank losing track of say, your direct deposit and no one’s been notified. You don’t have money (that you honestly should) in your bank account, which you seriously did not know and so you spend like normal, which hits you with overdraft fees and not-so-nice letters from the banks, possible not-so-nice letters from bill collectors and you try to check into it but every human on a computer is saying all is fine and you screwed up (even though it was an error in the system, either human or technical) and because the blame is pinned squarely on you, ya gotta fork up some cash to remedy (which, remember, you don’t have because of your status of direct deposit went awry) and that all snowballs into a giant headache, to put the ending nicely. These are all situations that could and has happened to people in the past: banks making mistakes on accounts, programs have an error, unknown overdraft fees get accumulated, banks going “Not me” even when it is squarely their fault, etc etc. They’ve all happened before in human history of modern finances. But it’s quite a queer probability all of that happening at once and if it’s pretty sudden as well as have a super hard time being corrected, as if obstacles keep falling onto your path.

If what I described above sounds pretty close to your situation, then yep, you just might be right, someone’s put a fix on you. How to solve it? Depends on your background and how good you are with faith and spirituality. If you are particularly spiritual and part of a particular religion (i.e. Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, etc etc), then generally you’ll be able to find some prayer that’s meant for protection from evil and harm as well as for prosperity and good fortune. Faith would seriously do some good now because prayers and rituals can’t be done without heart in them. Salt is useful for neutralizing but I’m not at the point where I’m going to tell you to sprinkle it about (and if you do, don’t do it on your lawn, it’ll kill the grass). Hexes are spells just like any other, they come in different kinds and thus must be handled differently. Dragon’s Blood (it’s a resin and can come in the form of oil, incense and even a bath solution) is good for uncrossing and for protection. Patchouli and Jade are great for finance and success. I’m giving beginner’s grade stuff because I don’t know your background in magick and I don’t want to suggest anything that has a very good chance of screwing up if you don’t know what you’re doing. Also since I don’t know the nature of the potential jinx, I can’t really subscribe anything more particular than that. Believe it or not visual mediation may also best aid you in severing ties from your hex (that should have prayer woven in there somehow because you can’t do it on your own) by visualizing actual dark ropes you are severing mentally.

Granted this is if all your money troubles stems from a hex, remember. If life is still pretty crappy no matter what you do, it could be life throwing you a hardball that’s completely striking you out. Hopefully things will work out.

Hi, I have read your blog and seen you on facebook… My question is that I done a prosperity spell last week visualizing that I make sales at my telemarketing job, it worked the first time  ( I made a sale)  but the second time nothing happened. Strangely I got called 2 days later about a job offer working for a company that I love and a career I love! I don’t have the job yet because it opens later this month but it seemed very strange that all the sudden after the ritual they called me… just wondering.
– Olivia L.

How astonishing! You have my first name. I would say definitely that it was probably the ritual helping you out to do bigger and better things. Now for the reason why something happened the first and not the second time: Magick, not always like the movies, does not promise you’ll get it in each and every time. Plus the spell could have bundled up energy from what could have been the second good sale in a row and become a big opportunity altogether, which is forever better. I hope you’re happy in your new position!

I happen to know a couple of these ‘preachers’ that frequent the buses down in this county, and it does annoy me, but what can I do about it?
– Torrence B.

This question is in reference to the recent post Get Off the Bus. My suggestion is either get some good headphones to blast them out, debate with them until they note their own fallacies and shut up or you might just have to deal with it until they get off or you get off. It’s not easy dealing with people like that, I’m certain, but sometimes you can’t do something or may not have the will to do it. I wouldn’t upfront suggest debate because not everyone has an extensive amount of religious knowledge and it can be a battle of personalities too so if you don’t have a dominant personality or just an expression of strong yet silent will, it could put you in a bad spot because these people don’t really respond or dialogue, they just think it’s the Devil in you making you speak out and shut them down so they may simply grow more persistent and shouting matches help no one. If you have the knowledge and background to flip whatever they say on its ear, perhaps go for it because I can say for myself it does make them pipe down but if you don’t have what it takes, that’s okay. It’s not okay that these people take free license to be total bigoted douchebags who don’t know the difference between spreading the word of God and forcing it down people’s throats but your well-being has to go before their empty-headed ways. Informing the bus driver may not do anything except get you scolded and that’s not good. So your best bet is to get a good Mp3 player with nice headphones and slip them on when they start yappin’.

Hi and nice to meet you. I come from a very strong Christian background so this is a very big step for me it’s just god irritates me so you know. By the way this may be a rather long message but please read it I am desperate to get an answer I have tried so many other people and not got a reply. So please let me tell you a bit about my self so this will all cover the question I need to ask.

I hate how I look I have a big nose and thin lips and puffy eyes and I am always either pink or red and I am very prone to spots.

I also look a lot like my mum and we aren’t on the best of terms right now so I would prefer to look more like my dad. Recently I have met a girl who I imagine would look just like my dad’s daughter if there was no interference from my mum. It’s also a rather funny story actually because my friend looks a lot like her dad who she does not like and I also look a lot like her mum so it’s really weird. So I was thinking what if I had been born in her body and she had been born in mine so we would still be recognised as the same person who we are now. so obviously it would be very difficult as you can probably imagine to find spell that would have the power to do that so I was thinking about trying to make my own spell or maybe you could give me a spell hopefully but if not I will try and make my own but another question is is would a spell be able to change the past because I’m not just talking about a body switching spell I am talking about a spell that could actually change the past!

I don’t want to be a different person I still want to be me just to have been born in another person’s body. I also don’t really know if making up my own spell would work so I guess that’s three questions altogether and I really hope you can help me. Hope I hear from you soon
– Jershua

It sounds like two interconnected questions to me.

I read your question over several times (It was a little hard reading, mate. I figured the British prided their language more than us Americans) and I’m going to be quite frank and start with the bottom and go up. You say you don’t want to be a different person but you actually do. Your whole letter bleeds with that intention because in your mind, you think you can escape your mom (and ultimately the bad relationship with her) if you were just in another physical body or to switch up the past. You could switch bodies with anyone from your friend to your next door neighbor to the Prime Minister, but keep the same mind and you’ll always be tortured because your problem is in your mind, not on your face. You could cast a spell to change the past but I can pretty much assure you what you’re asking for is waaaaaay beyond your skill set and most likely will forever be since you’re tipping into high magick and that’s no walk in the park. I have major difficulties with it and I’m a practiced Witch of nearly ten years. Besides, by changing the past to change the present and the future, how do you know the wheel of fortune will spin in your favour the second time around?

Now, since you would have someone to switch bodies with, your good friend who doesn’t like her dad, how do you know she would want to switch places with you? Can’t exactly pull a “body snatchers” thing, especially not on an unsuspecting and new friend. And how do you know you would be happier in her life – actually, body since changing bodies doesn’t promise a life switch – than you are in yours and that she vice versa? It just sounds a little one sided in your question. Even if you two equally do want to switch bodies (but not minds), what happens if one of you want to switch back?

Even in the vastness of magick, possibilities can come with limits and things happen for a reason. It’s clear you want to separate yourself from the hurt and that makes total sense but this really is not the way. You don’t like your physical features because of who they relate to so there’s nothing you can do really that would truly heal your problem on the physical level except to deal with them on the mental and emotional level where they reside. Work on whatever problems you have with your mother because running won’t solve anything. Talk to a counselor, therapist or someone that you trust to help iron out the problems. That’s the only way to solve this issue. The problems you have with your body are simply red flags to a deeper issue that need far more attention than the shape of your nose and lips. And try some Witch Hazel solution for your skin, it takes care of the red very well and keep spots at bay with consistent use.

I apologize if this is a strange question, but I was browsing and found your site, and was curious if you had an answer for me.   First off, let me say that I am not a pagan, nor am I very familiar with pagan customs; but, I felt that if I wanted to gain some understanding, I’ve got nothing to lose in asking and searching.

So, as for my question:

I have been having an interesting recurring dream.  Well… sort of.  I’ve had an interesting recurring “visage” lately.  Every couple of nights or so, I drift off to sleep and I see this girl.  She has lovely features, but never says a word.  In my dreams I often walk with her and talk to her.  (The setting is always a moonlit glade or stream).  She simply smiles and listens until I wake up.

Well about a month ago, I had the most peculiar thing happen.  I was laying, staring up at my ceiling in the dark early morning.  I think I must have only been half awake, but I could feel a presence in the room with me.  And just for the strangest moment, I felt a cold but calming touch on my face…. and (this is going to sound really bizarre) I saw the girl’s smiling face in a glimpse and she kissed my cheek… I think.  As I startled awake, the image and feeling was gone.

I know I must sound completely insane, or that it’s just my “hormones” running away with me.  It’s for this very reason I haven’t told ANYONE about this.  I can’t explain how, what or why, but this being whatever she is, feels so real to me.   I am currently happily in a relationship, and yet the “girl” doesn’t seem to care.  What’s really strange is that, being with her feels natural…  It doesn’t feel in any way conflicting with my current relationship…  Which makes me feel a little guilty.   

Again, I know I must sound crazy.  Please forgive the strangeness of my question..  but I am just curious if you, as a witch, had any sort of insight for me.

Truly and sincerely yours,
S.S.

If I had a nickel for every “This is a strange question”, “I’ve an interesting dream” or “I must sound crazy”, I would never worry about money again.

Have you ever thought that this dream could be crafted by your own mind because sometimes a cigar is just a cigar? I don’t know how long you’ve been having this dream versus how long you’ve been dating the girl you’re currently with but it sounds like you’re just having a happy dream. It doesn’t mean that you don’t love your girlfriend, it doesn’t mean you’ve gone nuts, it could just mean that you’re just dreaming. Even the half-asleep part, which is probably you already being halfway in the dream state hence touches and things like that feel real.

Nothing to feel guilty over until you put more focus on the dream girl than the real girl or even worse, try to turn the real girl into the dream girl. People can have reoccurring dreams of good things just like they can have reoccurring dreams of bad things. So go with it unless things take a turn for the worse.

That’s all the Ask Black Witch for this month! Want to ask a question? There are various ways to contact me! Everything is on the About Me/Contact Me page but you can also use the Ask Black Witch Submission Form on the right or tweet me @thisblackwitch and/or using the #askblackwitch hashtag. ABW questions are answered on the last Friday of every month.

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DIY Witchcraft

Filed under: AfroPunk/The Establishment, Pagan Life, Spells & Potions — Leave a comment
May 13, 2011

The Establishment (Afro-Punk) Version

Through a particular issue (okay, issues. They just have to come in clusters), I’ve had to do a lot of shuttling back and forth and doing spellwork in the midst of it all (so I can get rid of my issues on a metaphysical level as I handle them on a physical level. I’m Pagan. It’s how we solve our problems. Christians take it to the cross, we take it to the spellbook (generally)). In that and even when I wasn’t shuttling back and forth and causing columns like Absent Black Witch, I never had a dedicated altar for ‘crafting.

I don’t own a wand, a cauldron (though if I had a mini-cauldron, I would only have an urge to burn dried herbs in it and a stronger, insatiable urge to chuck it at somebody. It’s got some weight to it.)  I don’t own a Witch’s pantry, a shelf dedicated to spell work, or anything like that. To be honest, most witches that I know of don’t have the prescribed altar that are spoken of in so many witch books, beginner, intermediate and advanced. To save me a bunch of space explaining what an altar is or looks like, I’ll take a leaf out of vlogger Shazzypbear’s book and show her vid about it to you:

and here’s another vid about altars from another Pagan, TheMorganFire (The altar is about halfway in and based on Lammas, a Pagan holiday)

Yep, altars are diverse and they all may look a little different, depending on the Pagan. I don’t have one because I’m deftly accustomed to living in a household where I had to hide my beliefs from my pretty Christian family. That and not having a lot of money would put a dent in any altar to have so I’m use to DIY’ing it enable to adapt to my environment and situation. Plus it’s mad helpful when I travel because you can’t drag a whole altar around with you and there are just some restrictions (i.e. can’t carry a lot, gotta travel light) that you can’t help. Here’s some of what I use:

Birthday candles – Alright, I actually have candles you put on menorahs given to me as a gift from my Jewish friends (shalom, pplz!) but I mostly use birthday candles because they come in so many colors, even black! Birthday candles are very easy to find, cheap and very discreet for spellworking or any other religious function. They take roughly 30-40 minutes to burn so they’re about the length of a spellcasting session. Very cute too!

Aluminum foil – Spectacular for bundling everything together for traveling or storage. They can be meld into fire-safe creations such as candle snuffers, candle holders and placemat for them for easy clean up. Also easily accessible and not expensive

Incense – Useful for wand work because they are long and wand-like but you can specify them for whatever spell you’re doing or pick a general “wand” and throw it away after once it all burns out. Useful instead of using salt to cast a circle for the smoke can be an visual aid for the same effectiveness (a note: have an incense with some protective quality such as dragon’s blood if you’ll be casting with the same wand that you draw the circle with, otherwise, just let that incense sit somewhere else to burn out and use another for the spell. I usually use the same incense for circle drawing and spellcasting.)

Sticks, stones, plants – if you can’t burn anything or don’t want to draw attention, that’s what the readiness of nature is for. Use a stick or general stones to put down a circle (I haven’t said use salt yet because salt can be messy and I don’t use it for myself for that very reason) and use particular stones for the four quarters, such as fire agate for fire (south), aquamarine for water (west), topaz or clear quartz for air (east), and hematite for earth (north). Instead of a stick of incense, just use a stick roughly the length of your forearm for a wand (where do you think wands come from?) or a pointed stone. Since you’ll be using nature, best to learn nature and be creative!

Cloth – This is a method that I personally don’t use but author Lauren Manoy mentioned in her book Where to Park Your Broomstick. You design a cloth with six or nine foot circle marked out as well as any enchantment symbols you pull to. I don’t use this method because it is too much work for me to find a piece of acceptable cloth big enough, paint on it, let it dry (undetected) and pack it and use it. Frankly, some spaces may not be big or clear enough to accommodate the cloth. Then there’s walkin on it, laying it down, cleaning it and other arduous things that I rather not trade up my current methods for. However, if this is a spiffy method for you – and it does have its upshots such as an already defined sacred space so you just have to put it down, do your thing, clean up, pack up and continue on. Can’t argue with that.

Cups – another method that I don’t use but has been vouched for. These, of course, should be glass cups because they will be use to hold the symbols of the elementals/directionals: a white or red candle (fire/south), salt or dirt (earth/north), nothing or filled with sand to hold incense (air/east), water (west). These cups don’t have to be spectacular, just small and clear. This method could also be used for holding candles (gold and silver) or incense to represent the god and goddess if you so choose. They’re small for easy storage and easy for clean up and keeping everything all to the same place.

Tub o’ dirt – This method a friend of mine introduced to me recently and since using it, I find it to be incredibly awesome. She reused a plastic food container tub, washed it out (which should be done anyways), and poured sandy dirt in it to weigh it down and uses it to keep lit incense and able to put it anywhere. I believe that small candles can be used just as well, just skim out the remainder wax. For incense ashes, just sift and shake until the soil looks new again. There’s no need to skim that out because everything is of the earth so it all can stay – plus who want to dredge, skim and sift out fine ash from sandy dirt? Very much a waste of time.

Bookbags – This is a method I used for the longest time to store my witchy things while living at home. Get a bookbag, preferably with lots of pockets and compartments to better section stuff up. It doesn’t have to be pricy, a simple and cheap one from Wal-Mart worked fine for me. Store your books, herbs, stones and other things there and store that somewhere you believe the bookbag will remain safe. I would say put a lock on the zippers but nothing screams “Suspicious!” quite like that.

These are some of the methods that I use and then some. Now, of course magick can still be done without materials but materials can help focus the mind. The ability of spellcrafting is from within, not in the products that you use, they only amplify the intent you’re trying to pass into the universe. To do magick without materials, meditation and visualization is all that is particularly needed since that garners energy that is going to be raised later on in the process of the spell.

Now, spells work best with personal connection, there’s nothing wrong with taking materials from the world around you (materials, not life. No killin’ (Just throwing that in there for the possible newb who somehow missed that modern (and even some back then) witchcraft does not tolerate killing for spellwork) and please, no using your cat somehow, they’re animals, not insta-altars) if they bear a natural connection to you already. That means if you see those little brightly multi-colored pebbles outside and they remind you of magick or whatever that may be important, go for it. That’s part of why I actually don’t use salt and dirt in my circles although it is greatly recommended. I don’t feel much connection to salt and it would upset my OCD to use dirt – yay for disorders – so I much rather use incense to draw my circles and use stones to resemble the earth because otherwise I would feel disconnected and out of focus. That’s not useful at all.

Magick is what you make of it. It isn’t 100% arbitrary and definitely you shouldn’t restrict yourself so steadfast to the book if you know something better. This doesn’t mean destroy and reinvent the whole system – unless you’re a chaos magician, which is an entirely different matter altogether – but to modify what you see to who you are. It wouldn’t be incredibly sincere if it were any other way, unless you were super scared of making a mistake. Being scared of messing up in Witchcraft is perfectly natural, just not tightly adhering to the rules and regulations for an extremely long time and way beyond the learning curve, gotta branch out someday. That means figuring out and finding out what that means for you.

That’s all the Black Witch for this week, next week are the installment posts, starting with The Arts. Who will be featured:

– The Shy Witch
– Lolita artist, Atramental
– Yak Ballz

After The Arts is Ask Black Witch! I haven’t gotten any submissions yet so send them in! Here are your methods:

  1. Tweet me on Twitter (@thisblackwitch)
  2. Ask on the Black Witch Fan Page
  3. Fill out the Ask Black Witch submission form
  4. Email me directly (look on About/Contact Me for the email)
  5. Write to me directly (also on the About/Contact Me page)

There are five different ways to contact me and send me questions! Some methods are quicker than others, some slower than others but they all reach the same place right on time. Ask whatever you like.

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Ask Black Witch

Filed under: Ask Black Witch, Coming out of the Broom Closet, Pagan Life, Spells & Potions — Leave a comment
April 29, 2011

This is April’s Ask Black Witch. Remember, if you want to submit to future ABW’s submit to the ABW submission form or email. Even tweeting or asking on the fan page qualifies.

Do you believe in gods and goddesses? Are they part of your craft and if so, what are your favorites?
– Spookycreep

Yep. Kinda hard to be Pagan without it – it’s possible, just not that easy considering most Pagan materials make a reference to a god and goddess. Of course they’re part of my craft but I don’t really use any particulars, I try to be rather general (just God and Goddess instead of maybe Isis and Osiris or Juno and Zeus, for instance) when it comes to spellwork, especially since a big rule is to not summon different deities of different cultures in one ritual. Keeps the headaches to a low.

First of all, thank you so much for giving me your card at the end of Otakon last year (I asked about Rocking Horse shoes). It helped outside of Lolita, cause magick and such has interested me since forever.
 
A while ago I picked up a book at my school library called Spellcraft for Teens. It listed a couple different things such as candle magick, poppet magick, and such. It also mentioned casting circles and such, and ended up leaving me with a lot of questions.
 
1) Do I need a circle to use the other types of magick?
2) If there are no specialty shops in my area, can I just get them from the grocery store?
3) Was picking up a book ‘for teens’ even a good idea?
4) I’m living in a Jehovah’s Witnesses household and therefore practicing is completely out of the question. I’m currently learning about tarot cards and other things on my own, but is there something else I can do that won’t end up with my parents raging at me? It’s not a secret to my mother that I’m not Christian in general, but I don’t want to do anything that will set off alarm bell; she’s had a bad experience about black magick in the past and I don’t want her jumping to conclusions.
 
Thanks again!
 – Bertina

For those who aren’t aware, Otakon is an anime convention that is hosted in Baltimore every summer. I’ve been going to them for a while (with the exception being last year and I’m not so sure about this year). As for rocking horse shoes, just look at my About Me/Contact Me page, I wear them all the time.

Spellcraft for Teens, penned by Gwinevere Rain, is actually a good book and one I would definitely recommend because it’s written by a trusty author and very easy to follow. I’m also glad that your school library supplies it, not many do. Now for your questions:

1) Casting circles is pretty important for any spellwork because it creates a defined space to work in and keeps the inside energy pure as well as any outside influences out. Some Witches may disagree but I don’t think it’s a must to have a circle for the minutest spells but the bigger ones definitely. However, I also believe in following things by the book when a beginner so if Rain recommends a circle, cast one.

2) Yep. For candle magick I use birthday candles actually. They come in various colors (even black!), small, discreet, burn for the better part of an hour (which is good because that’s how long spell casting lasts for me) and extraordinarily easy to get. Most things for spells can be bought in your average grocery stores such as olive oil for anointing, black pepper for binding/isolation spells, salt for purifying a sacred space (note: don’t use outdoors, you’ll kill the grass), etc etc etc. Even the tea bags can be used as an aid to make potions. I very rarely go to a metaphysical shop for witchy products. I’m fine as is with the local supermarket.

3) I actually recommend teen books more than adult books on Witchcraft because they’re more comprehensive, easier to read – and on the eyes -, breaks it down even further than adult books on Witchcraft because it’s for a younger audience and it’s a wonderful springboard. Most of my witch books are teen books and I much prefer them over some arduous reading of a tome that could probably put me to sleep.

4) Ah, it’s always a tricky situation when living in a household that may not be so conducive to learning metaphysics or anything related. I’m afraid I would have to suggest that until you move out, try to keep your practices to yourself until you move out, especially since your mother had a run in with black magick and that it probably solidified her beliefs and hence more adamant to your practices. There’s probably tension in the home because she knows you’re not Christian so best not to potentially ruffle more feathers. The best you can do besides practice in secret and bide your time ‘till you can leave is to perhaps have some conversations with mom about different religions if at all possible during the meanwhile. It isn’t easy but it’s better that way than risking getting kicked out or harmed over terrible misconceptions.

That’s it for this month’s Ask Black Witch. Also, Black Witch is now competing for several Black Weblog Awards (I always call them the Black Bloggers Awards because it sounds better to me). Nominations are currently open so if you run a Black blog, submit. And for everyone else, voting starts on May 16! I am very excited and look incredibly forward to this engagement!

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Black Magick, White Magick

Filed under: AfroPunk/The Establishment, Pagan Life, Spells & Potions — 4 Comments
April 15, 2011

The Establishment (Afro-Punk) Version

Any decent book on witchcraft will tell you that despite popular media, there’s no such thing as black or white magick, just intent. But still even among witches the term “black magick” in reference to hexes and jinxes is used and even accepted partly. We as witches understand that magick itself is not evil – it’s just utilizing the natural energies of the universe to bring about change – but the colorizing of different types of magick (white magick, green magick, black magick) I admit does make it a little easier to discuss. Especially to those who do not understand witchcraft and think all of it is evil, the explainer just has to include the “magick is neutral” rider.

Here are the different forms of magick as understood by witches, pagans and/or normal people:

Black magick – Most referenced to and most thought of when magick is discussed at all. This identification encapsulates hexes, curses and jinxes. If it’s considered wicked, evil, dark and potentially insurmountable, it’s here.

White magick – Barely ever discussed (unless around a herd of fluffy bunnies*) but this is supposed to be the opposite of black magick. It’s considered to be nice and neat and clean (and weak against big bad black magick (ugh)). White magick witches are suppose to have Glenda DNA and they are so pure, they’re almost not human.

Green magick – Mainly discussed within witchy circles, this acceptable term and form of magick refers to using only plants, stones and other materials found in nature to do magick. Green magick witches are good at potions, herbal work and tend to have a green thumb. Read any book written by Ellen Dugan for a good idea of green magick, she’s really cool.

These different ideas of magick differ in general knowledge and popularity depending on who is talking and in what social circle but usually the average person doesn’t know about green magick (or probably think it’s the Harry Potter overload version of a eco-hipster using recyclable bags to cast spells) but of all three color identifications, it’s the most accepted and understood. The other two are just pretty mainstream ideas of magick. White and black magick refer to intent whereas green refer to style of magick. As a matter of fact, if people want to strictly identify with color to magick, grey magick should be noted too.

Grey magick is middle-of-the-road magick. They are karmic spells and other spells that blur the line between good (white) and bad (black) but rides on enough technicalities that those who do not practice jinxes or curses can cast them as a form of retribution. For example, I don’t do jinxes or other versions of harmful magick because I think that’s wrong. Now, some of my friends may disagree and jinx when severely wronged but however, I do believe in retribution and feel that instead of putting additional bad energy on someone and be accused of being no better than the person who wronged me, I rather amplify and dredge the bad karma they already created themselves from their own wickedness. A karmic spell can also be used for good in the same effect of amplifying and dredging the good karma too. Karma spells are neutral; they just take whatever is there, good or bad, and use it in consequence. It’s not jinxing, more like a karma/life audit.

The essence of magic is like electricity: neutral. The same jolt that lights your home could shock you dead, depending on how it’s used and handled. Same with magick, neutral until intent is applied. Magick itself isn’t evil or wrong but how it’s used could be, something that all boils down to human choice. Another way to express this can be a doctor could kill a patient but they don’t because they feel it isn’t right and not what they’re in the business for (I consider that choice because even with the threat of malpractice suits and murder charges, that doesn’t stop someone wanting to permanently halt a heart.) It all depends on the person how magick is used, not the magick itself.

Now, the average witch isn’t out there to cause trouble and jinxing like mad because they clearly asked for French and not Ranch dressing and there aren’t any more bacon bits at the salad bar. Most witches (if not all) I’ve come across aren’t that shallow and generally have better things to worry about than someone being a mild and unwitting pest. To assume that any magick is most likely black magick is not only foolish but tells me more about the person saying it than the person hearing it. Why would I care so much about you, another faceless person I’ll meet, to the point that I would utterly waste my time and resources, which could be better used not getting emo over the pointless, to teach you a lesson that you’ll most likely dredge up yourself? Erm, no.

I would always ask people something along those lines when they would make reference to black magick in the form of “Oh, don’t piss her off, she’ll jinx you” or “I’m glad she liked my work, narrowly missed that one,” (I get that one after featuring folks) because, well, that like saying, “I’m happy she liked my shoes but I’m happier she let me keep them” simply because I’m Black. I just would outright ask “Now why would you think I’d waste my time jinxing you, especially since I don’t even do any of that stuff?”  Based on the responses I would receive and my own experience, I believe it’s because people see magick get used in movies and TV as a form of revenge or to slight others. What people don’t see is the “main character gets jinx, gotta fix it” plot is a tired old plot that churns in a lot of money, hence why it’s used so much. It provides a story of formidable odds for the main character to compete against and rise above. Even in movies where both sides have magick, the bad side is always seen as the stronger side because again, if the main character was the stronger one, there wouldn’t be much of a story to tell and not so much of a cash cow for the makers of the film.

Now, I like movies like Harry Potter and The Craft (both favorite movies of mine) but they’re just that, movies. Just like Inception, The Matrix trilogy and Bewitched. Movies. Yeah they may have some inkling of truths (Nicholas Flamel was a real person and alchemist, for example (Harry Potter)) but that doesn’t mean they’re training tapes you’re watching in a theatre nor true depictions. So, yeah, assuming every witch is a walking vat of hate and wickedness when most aren’t is the same of assuming every Black person you meet is an uneducated mushmouth hoodrat that only knows how to make money through every illegal means you could think of (but usually as the gun-toting peons and pawns, never the mastermind) and even if they do have a job that doesn’t come with a federal sentence, it’s usually going to be in subservient roles. A Black man in the White House on the silver screen? Only if he’s cleaning the windows or screwing up worse than Bush. Now, it wouldn’t be right to assume that of Blacks but according to the TV and movies, that we’re still vaudeville characters to be secondhand men and women to a White lead. We’re not people, just a race of plots hinges, obstacles, helpers and villains. If that doesn’t make any sense then why does thinking I’m naturally evil (for practicing magick, not because I’m Black) does?

At the end of the day, magick is just magick. It’s the people who make it what it is.

Okay peoples, next week starts the nomination process for the event I have been waiting for since this blog began – the Black Weblogs Awards. I am very excited and happy to finally compete. Nominations begin on the 18th so if you also are a Black blogger, take note now, it only lasts until May 7th. Voting begins on May 16th and lasts until June 17th and the winner for each category is picked on July 9th. Get yourself together if you have a blog or just vote for this one when the time comes around.

Also, please note that I will be at the Afro-Punk Festival in New York City on both Aug. 27&28. Right now we’re picking bands so if you have one or have some names in mind, submit here. Annnnnd I’ll also be at the Black Comic Book Convention on May 21 in Philly. Summer’s rolling around so of course, I’m getting a move on.

* Fluffy bunnies are the newbies of Wicca and witchcraft. Verrrrry new agey in thinking to the point it showcases the absence of a working mind. They believe just about anything fantastical and spout just about anything fantastical. Most of their knowledge consists of Silver Ravenwolf, Twilight, Harry Potter, Hot Topic and godknowswhat. They’re not all bad, just a pestilence to be around.

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