Friday, November 24, 2017

Advice for Witchlings, Part 02


I’ve decided to rewrite and update the list of things I think it’s good for a new witch to know and have. It got so long, however, that it now needs to be divided up into multiple posts to make it easy on the dashboard!
This post is still just advice, my opinion and thoughts; as such, isn’t meant as a “you have to do this, no matter what” type of thing. I personally feel that all of these things are useful to at least ponder when starting out, but that doesn’t mean you need to do them. No matter what I say here, your path and your craft are your own, and it is up to you to decide ultimately where you want to go and what you want to do. I only hope that this post will inspire you, and give you an idea of what may suit or benefit you.
Now that all that is out of the way, I’ll jump right in…

Keeping a Magical Book, Gathering Supplies, & Budget / Discreet Magic

I highly recommend you keep a book (or even series of books) to write down all that you’ve learned and spells that you wish to use within your craft. Not only will this help you to keep organized to find things when you need them, but writing things down helps solidify them in your memory (as discussed in [this article]). Another use for writings things down comes into play when you write your own spells and practice casting them. Writing down exactly how you did it, why you used what you did, etc., can help you not only determine how spell mechanics work, but can also help shed some light on what may not have worked if a spell doesn’t fire exactly as planned. There is a lot more I have to say in regards to keeping a Book of Shadows / grimoire / spellbook - I actually made a post series about it!
One thing you see a lot of (or, at least, I do) is people talking about practicing every day, what you can do to cast spells every day, and are you a “Real witch” if you don’t. I’m here to tell you, you are, and you don’t *have* to practice every day to consider yourself a magic user. (P.S. I don’t.) It is your practice to do with as you will, do whatever you want, whenever you want. Life happens, we get caught up in other things, and this may cause us to not do as much magic as we may like. And that’s perfectly okay! Sometimes we get low on energy, or even just forget, and that’s still okay too. Do what you need to to get your life back settled - magic will be waiting for you when you return.
It is also important to say this - as awesome as magic is, it shouldn’t be all-encompassing in your life. Yes, it’s great, and it can do amazing things, but it shouldn’t be the only thing you end up doing, or the only thing you rely on to solve your problems. Magic is meant more as a bolster or a boost to mundane methods, to help tips the scales in favor of something happening - it doesn’t guarantee it to happen 100%. Magic is also more likely to fail if it doesn’t have a solid foundation of effort to work off of. A job spell won’t do much if you’re not seeking employment or handing out resumes, you know? Don’t lose yourself to magic - your other hobbies and interests are just as important and awesome too.
Sometimes, however, magic won’t be waiting for us when we come back from long breaks, or we find we are blocked when it comes to trying to cast spells - the energy doesn’t feel like it’s flowing as it should, it’s hard to access, etc. These things happen. With any other skill, your “magic muscles” can get rusty from lack of use. Do what you can to get yourself integrated into your practice again, however that may be; meditate, gather supplies, write out some spells, even cast a few small ones. It may take some time, but that is perfectly okay - just keep trying, try not to get discouraged or self doubt.
Speaking of gathering supplies… Don’t be concerned that, as a new witch, you don’t have as much as other witches do, or access to the same materials. Something I have learned is that these arsenal of supplies gets gathered over time. All the herbs and crystals I have, I didn’t acquire overnight. It’s been two years of purchases here and there, slowly filling in the gaps. Most of the herbs I have - no, wait, all of the herbs I have - were obtained from the spices aisle in the grocery store. It’s about what you *can* do, not about what you *have to do.* Start out by gathering the “base supplies” - this list will vary depending on who you ask. A good jumping off point would be this post on [Top 10 Herbs for the Lazy Witch]; another is [Witch Supplies Masterpost].
It can be hard to gather witchcraft supplies on a budget. It can seem discouraging when you search online and see these expensive herbs or crystals. Let me be honest with you - those expensive supplies you see online or in specialized stores, can all be replaced by more commonly found items! Not only that, but there are ways to gather supplies when your funds are tight.
(If you want more tips for this, I really suggest following low-budget-witches, a great blog that posts tips as well as submissions from others about how to practice magic while on a low budget.)
Another good point to make, is you don’t *need* supplies. Seriously. There are many things you can do with magic that do not require any sorts of crystals or herbs. The first, and most prominent, is energy work - energy work focuses on channeling energy from within yourself and the world around you toward a focus point (which doesn’t necessarily have to be a physical object). I have compiled a [masterpost of energy work resources], though it is a bit old and some of the links are broken (I’m working on it). Sigil work is great for being low on supplies as well - you just need a piece of paper and a writing utensil, and your intent. I have made a [Sigils FAQ] as well, where I answer a lot of questions about working with sigils, and provide more resources for further research.
I was very fortunate in being able to wear my witchcraft on my sleeve - my mom even nabs my crystals when I bring them over. Some magic users, however, are not so lucky. For whatever reason - accepting families, religious conflicts, etc. - there are cases where magic needs to be kept on the down low. There are ways to disguise your magical practice.
* not my choice of title
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