Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Q&A

As a novice witch, I was wondering if you had any tips/ suggestions for me that might help get me more into the learning process. Book suggestions would be fantastic! Thank you.
Hello! Hm, some tips eh? I’m gonna give you the same schpeal I give to all new witches (copied from my old blog but meh).
  • I really think one should take the time to figure out what witchcraft is all about - what it offers, what it doesn’t, and the benefits and disadvantages of being a practicing magic user. Not only that, but think about what interests you about witchcraft - why you want to practice, what really drew you in to the craft, what you wish to do with magic, things you like about it, and even things you don’t. Do you have any expectations? Is there an end goal, something you ultimately want to achieve from magic? Do you want to be a magic user just for a certain amount of time, or indefinitely? Figuring out these things should help round out your practice and give you a bit of a path (heheh) to follow and explore.
  • There is never enough research. Really. You are most likely going to be studying and learning through your whole magical journey. I still am; I learn something new every day, and I love it. As a knowledge leech I love that part of witchcraft - spending hours reading up on various things makes me so happy. (Hey, no one said it was easy. :p) [This post] actually sums it up beautifully.
  • With the tons of research that comes with studying witchcraft, it will be good to keep a notebook (or grimoire / Book of Shadows) to store all your findings in. Write down spells, references, correspondences, rituals (if you plan to use them)… anything you think you’ll need to know or want to know when it comes to practicing your craft. I keep my blog for this purpose, though without internet it’s kind of hard to access at all times, so I have a physical book as well. And it doesn’t have to be any fancy leather bound anything - I have spiral notebooks and an obnoxious orange binder. xD
  • Don’t be worried if you can’t practice every single day. Maybe you can, and that’s awesome; maybe you can only work up the energy or privacy to perform spells once a week, or once a month, and that is completely valid. I only really use magic when I need it, and that’s fine too. Don’t beat yourself up for missing the moon phases or sabbats or what have you. It happens - I have missed every sabbat since I started practicing, and the only stuff I do on the full moon is cleansing my tarot deck or crystals (and I still forgot to do that yesterday, oop). We all have lives outside of witchcraft, and it’s important to maintain the rest of your life and other interests as well. As awesome as witchcraft is, don’t let it absorb you. The point of this was supposed to be, don’t feel bad for not going 150% with witchcraft all the time, but also know when it’s time to not practice witchcraft and engage in other areas of your life.
  • When it comes to supplies, particularly herb related, the grocery store is more than fine. Like, 90% of my herbs have come from there, either dried or fresh. It’s still the same herb, same genus, same biological build - it will work. The whole “witchcraft is ALWAYS organic” stuff that I’ve seen floating around is bunk. Like, if that’s what you want, and what you can do, awesome, but it certainly isn’t the only thing that will work, nor should you feel bound to comply with someone else’s ideology. Get what you can afford or find, and don’t spend so much time stressing about the rest of it.
  • Honestly, even if you *can’t* afford physical ingredients for spells, it’s no big deal. Witchcraft is about your intent and your energies, and how you work with them and manipulate them to bring about a desired effect. Spell components like herbs and crystals and all that are just bolsters to what’s really important - your desire to induce a certain outcome. They have uses, yes, and they help, yes, but they’re not all important, mostly just boosts for your own energies. You can be a successful witch without all the fancy herbs or rare crystals.
  • It’s okay if you stick to pre-written spells by other people. Some people don’t have the energy, or the full knowledge, to yet write their own spells, and that’s perfectly fine. There’s nothing wrong with referencing another witch’s work. (Though, when you can, learning to write your own spells and using them is an amazing skill to have. I used to suck at / hate spellwriting - now I try to do it as much as I can, and it’s super beneficial to personalizing your craft which is important too.)
  • That being said, you also shouldn’t feel tied down to what is written. Experimentation is encouraged, to help personalize things to you. If you’re looking at a spell and think, “Hmm based off what I know, I want to try this herb instead,” totally go for it. Give it a go, and write down your results. Personal associations for objects in spellcraft are JUST AS powerful, if not more so in some ways.
  • When I said “comply with someone else’s ideology,” I meant that, if someone has one way of doing things, and you don’t agree with it, that’s fine. If you do agree with it, though, that’s cool too. If you do things differently than someone else, it doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong either. Definitely feel free to form your own opinions and experiences. Personalizing your craft to suit YOU and YOUR NEEDS is actually pretty important, and can have a big impact on your magic. If your magic is more suited to you, it is more likely to work for you.
  • Believe in yourself. I’m not kidding. It’s so corny and cliche, but your magic will be so much more powerful if you have confidence in it and in yourself. Feel empowered by the awesomeness of being a witch and working with spells.
For book suggestions, @natural-magics​ compiled some [books and resources], which is a good place to start. @visardistofelphame​ has a post of [witchcraft resources galore] too. Here is some more [recommended reading]. There is also this post about how to tell if [your book on witchcraft is bullshit], which will likely be of great use when reading as a beginner. Most of my knowledge has been gathered from Tumblr or other various internet resources; I can’t afford a lot of books right now, so I’ve never really read any, and can’t recommend any personally.
Also, here are a lot of links to other resources that you may find use for:
I really hope that answers your question and gives you what you need. Good luck on your path! :D
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