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Prompt 17. Sunday 18th March 2018 - The 17th prompt will be.. Types of Witches.
This week is perhaps a slight cop out for me.. As it’s a lot of work for you and well not so much for me!!
First lets say that this week is focused on witches.. I understand not everyone is interested in this subject. Some of you are here as Pagans. However even if you're not interested or think you already know everything there is to know yourself please still read.. I believe it's important to learn and view other peoples opinions and perhaps increase your education and knowledge. Or recap and refresh your memory. I know personally when I first started getting into Witchcraft I was in my element as I hadn't realised the things I'd done for years was actually a real thing and not just pretend in the movies.. Education always defeats ignorance.. Even if you still don't believe in the end at least you know exactly what it is you don't believe so you can hold a better opposing argument. As said I encourage you to read and go study further (even if you already have) I know a lot of people, like myself, consider themselves to be a Pagan of sorts as well as a Witch of sorts and yes you can be both, one or neither. Now we have that cleared up a little let's delve in..
Please note the following is written from my personal education and thoughts, I am happy for you to disagree with me.. in fact I encourage you to converse with me about it as I'm always looking to expand my knowledge and practices too..
Before we go on I think it's important to mention that 'witch' is the name of someone who practices witchcraft. This is not gender specific, you do not have to be a female to be a witch. This is often confused and said that male witches are Wizards though this is not true (unless you wish to identify yourself as such). Equally male witches are also not Warlocks. In fact Warlock in old English is actually a very offensive term to label someone its meaning "oathbreaker" someone who has deceived and gone against their tribe / clan / coven / people and are now tarnished with this name and cast out. Other names for magical people may be Mage, Alchemist or Sorcerer. - Feel free to look up those definitions.
So let me mention a few types of witches which might get you started..
Shamanic Witch, Gypsy Witch, Elemental Witches, Draconic Witches, Vampiric Witches, Spiritual Witches, Psychic / Medium Witches, Techno Witch, Modern Witch, Traditional Witch, Druid… Oh the list goes on for types of witches. Feel free to study each and others.
Other people believe there to be witches that practice light / white / good (positive) magick and others that practice dark / black / evil (bad / negative) magick. Some people believe there's grey magick too which is sort of an inbetween of the two. For me I believe that everyone is capable of all kinds of magick regardless of what type of witch they set out to be. Doing workings to negatively affect or harm others or to bring love and peace but at what cost? Even if your intention is to bind someone (that would be bad) to stop hurting someone (that would be good), or (and this is why I hate 'love' magick) forcing someone to love you (bad for them, good for you). Always really think about your intentions before you set out to do any workings. There are also people who believe in Karma and/or the three fold law / rule in that anything you do (good or bad) will come back to you / come back to you three times. This could be it happens 3 times or is what would be considered 3 times worse or better than what you did. - Note doing things specifically to get good Karma or good back is considered bad!! (I won't be going into 3 fold law or Karma so feel free to look into that further if you wish.)
Some people go their whole lives in secret practice; this is sometimes because of personal choice but often it's more because of how society perceive witches and/or witchcraft, because you feeling stupid due to other peoples ignorance / lack of education on the subject (ie tarnished as a satanist, devil worshiper, idiot!). Or because their family is highly religious and it would be frowned upon. These days because of Social Media this has become a lot more popularised and well known. Equally it's easy to create a persona on the internet and have a whole witchy internet life and hide it outside in the real world (think of yourself like some Witchy Hannah Montana) - This is a great time to show off your magickal name that you choose (feel free to look into that yourself) though some people keep this secret or just between their coven as there is believed to be a lot of power in a name. Other Witches are out to close friends and family and some of us are out to the whole world and don't care what anyone thinks..! But know even in 2018 there's still witch hunters out there who will kill anyone claiming to be a witch!! - No Joke!!
First lets say that this week is focused on witches.. I understand not everyone is interested in this subject. Some of you are here as Pagans. However even if you're not interested or think you already know everything there is to know yourself please still read.. I believe it's important to learn and view other peoples opinions and perhaps increase your education and knowledge. Or recap and refresh your memory. I know personally when I first started getting into Witchcraft I was in my element as I hadn't realised the things I'd done for years was actually a real thing and not just pretend in the movies.. Education always defeats ignorance.. Even if you still don't believe in the end at least you know exactly what it is you don't believe so you can hold a better opposing argument. As said I encourage you to read and go study further (even if you already have) I know a lot of people, like myself, consider themselves to be a Pagan of sorts as well as a Witch of sorts and yes you can be both, one or neither. Now we have that cleared up a little let's delve in..
Please note the following is written from my personal education and thoughts, I am happy for you to disagree with me.. in fact I encourage you to converse with me about it as I'm always looking to expand my knowledge and practices too..
So what do I mean by types of Witches?
No I don’t mean good, bad, fire, water, light, dark…………. Well I suppose I could mean that if that's what you believe and/or practice but what I actually meant is there are different practices of witches; as there are witches that have different focus, practice and beliefs. Witches that focus on herbs only, on prayer only, on fairy magick, on elemental, on Mother Earth, on only divination... There are witches that are more focused on a Pagan practice such as Shaman Witches, Druid Witches, Wiccan Witches.. Although the two are not always the same you can be a Witch without being a Pagan. As said that not all Pagans are Wiccans, all Wiccans are Pagans and some of these people are Witches too.Before we go on I think it's important to mention that 'witch' is the name of someone who practices witchcraft. This is not gender specific, you do not have to be a female to be a witch. This is often confused and said that male witches are Wizards though this is not true (unless you wish to identify yourself as such). Equally male witches are also not Warlocks. In fact Warlock in old English is actually a very offensive term to label someone its meaning "oathbreaker" someone who has deceived and gone against their tribe / clan / coven / people and are now tarnished with this name and cast out. Other names for magical people may be Mage, Alchemist or Sorcerer. - Feel free to look up those definitions.
So let me mention a few types of witches which might get you started..
Green Witch: A Green witch (no we don’t mean her skin is green, thanks Hollywood!) but a Witch who is one with the Earth or more specifically who’s practice is with Nature Magick and their working are with Mother Earth. This extends beyond just growing, picking and using herbs. A lot of the practice would be done in the woods or lakes (or other larger bodies of water) to literally be one with the Earth throughout their practice. A Green Witch usually makes her own tool and uses mostly items found in Nature / connected to Mother Earth in their practice.
Flora Witch: A Flora Witch is A Green Witch who is more into the floristry side of things and who mostly uses flowers in their practice.
Herbal Witch: Much like a Flora Witch a Herbal Witch is again A Green Witch who mostly uses herbs in their practice.
Hedge Witch: A Green Witch may also be known as a Hedge Witch. Hedge witches are most often symbolised as a type of large bird such as a raven and sometimes a goose. It is said that the Hedge Witch has the ability to travel to and from other realms / worlds and communicate with spirits. They’re recognised as powerful healers or even midwives. - I have actually written a blog all about hedge witches (which you can read here) this was written some time ago as part of a class study!
Kitchen Witch: The Kitchen Witch name isn't exactly as it says on the label; as typically a Kitchen Witch is not just confined to the kitchen like some old house wife. Although her practice is more focused on potions and brews as well as the stereo typical broth and other edible/consumable goods. The tools are usually quite practical and mostly kitchen based and their practice usually focused on practical magick. That's not to say they don't make the rest of their home and its surroundings magickal or practice outside the kitchen.
Cottage Witch: Cottage Witches are more focused on the Home similar to the Kitchen Witch but their practice also focuses on practical magick as well as rituals and ceremonies. A Cottage Witch also makes practical and mundane items into their tools and also everyday tasks into sacred acts as well as being very much focused on ‘nesting’ and making her home and its surroundings a magickal place. Often the Cottage Witches practice is focused around the home and family.
Ceremonial Witch: Some witches are more Ceremonial based these are sometimes known as Ceremonial Witches which as the name suggests they are more focused on holding ceremonies and rituals. Their knowledge is nearly always passed down through ancestry and practiced from a ceremonial book eg a Book of Shadows. Their practice usually calls for an archetypal figures and/or known spiritual entities that represent the kind of energy they wish to manifest.
Gardnerian Witch: Gerald Gardner created a form of Wicca known as the Gardnerian Wiccan or the Gardner movement in the 1950’s derived from that has become a type of witch known as Gardnerian Witch whose practice I’m sure you can guess is mostly Gardner Wiccan based.
Dianic Witch: Dianic Witches stem from the most feminist of all Wiccan movements, the Cult of Diana. The Cult of Diana focuses primarily on the worship of the Goddess. Dianic witches are usually female 99% of the time.
Eclectic Witch: Of course you also have Eclectic Witch which basically like anything and everything ‘eclectic’ generally means not restricted to one type or takes various bits from other types. For example my music taste is very eclectic I don’t just like rock, country, flute pan music I like bands from this type and songs from that type. There for Eclectic Witches practice a variety of magick. – For me I consider myself Eclectic Wiccan / Pagan and a Witch because I take different things I study and apply what appeals to me to my practice, what feels right to me. I don’t like to stick to one set way of doing things.. I like to dabble in different kinds of spell work, ceremony, ritual, divination and other practices. I had a deep love for herbalism and horticulture workings but I’m also a fire sign and very into my candles too. I also love musical ritual and working with sound, sometimes I drift away from the hedge witch healer into a more cottage witch / kitchen witch as I love to make my home and its surroundings magickal as well as make use of everyday items and do daily practical magick with mundane things and other times I find myself plunging into alchemy type workings, sigils and runes, oracle, spell writing I like to write my own and I take different things I like and apply them to me and my practice / journey..
Faery Witch: Another name for Eclectic Witches maybe a Faery Witch or at least they’re somewhat similar. A Faery Witch is one who practices their own practice typically a lot of their practice is created themselves from what they have observed. Rather than Eclectic that takes what it likes Faery creates from what it likes. That said as the name may suggest their practice they may wish to communicate or have association with fae, fairy, folk and nature type spirits - As they too are known as observers.
Shamanic Witch, Gypsy Witch, Elemental Witches, Draconic Witches, Vampiric Witches, Spiritual Witches, Psychic / Medium Witches, Techno Witch, Modern Witch, Traditional Witch, Druid… Oh the list goes on for types of witches. Feel free to study each and others.
Other people believe there to be witches that practice light / white / good (positive) magick and others that practice dark / black / evil (bad / negative) magick. Some people believe there's grey magick too which is sort of an inbetween of the two. For me I believe that everyone is capable of all kinds of magick regardless of what type of witch they set out to be. Doing workings to negatively affect or harm others or to bring love and peace but at what cost? Even if your intention is to bind someone (that would be bad) to stop hurting someone (that would be good), or (and this is why I hate 'love' magick) forcing someone to love you (bad for them, good for you). Always really think about your intentions before you set out to do any workings. There are also people who believe in Karma and/or the three fold law / rule in that anything you do (good or bad) will come back to you / come back to you three times. This could be it happens 3 times or is what would be considered 3 times worse or better than what you did. - Note doing things specifically to get good Karma or good back is considered bad!! (I won't be going into 3 fold law or Karma so feel free to look into that further if you wish.)
Open or in the broom closet witches?
I absolutely love that term derived from the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender etc scene being that you're still "in the closet" and not out and open about your sexuality to the world. Being in the broom closet is much like that in that you're not open to your family, friends and/or the world as a Witch (and/or Pagan).Some people go their whole lives in secret practice; this is sometimes because of personal choice but often it's more because of how society perceive witches and/or witchcraft, because you feeling stupid due to other peoples ignorance / lack of education on the subject (ie tarnished as a satanist, devil worshiper, idiot!). Or because their family is highly religious and it would be frowned upon. These days because of Social Media this has become a lot more popularised and well known. Equally it's easy to create a persona on the internet and have a whole witchy internet life and hide it outside in the real world (think of yourself like some Witchy Hannah Montana) - This is a great time to show off your magickal name that you choose (feel free to look into that yourself) though some people keep this secret or just between their coven as there is believed to be a lot of power in a name. Other Witches are out to close friends and family and some of us are out to the whole world and don't care what anyone thinks..! But know even in 2018 there's still witch hunters out there who will kill anyone claiming to be a witch!! - No Joke!!
Side Note: PLEASE NOTE I AM NOT TELLING YOU TO LIE TO YOUR FAMILY AND/OR OR DO ANYTHING THAT WOULD UPSET/HURT THEM. TRY AND FIND A WAY TO BE TRUE TO YOURSELF BUT WITH DAMAGE CONTROL. - There are such things as ChristoWitches / ChristoPagans (Christian Witch/Pagans) I'm unsure how that works.. but feel free to look into it and/or ask someone that does/is!!Some Witches and/or Pagans have altars set up permanently that they work on/from/with and add to and/or change over time/seasons/events. I mentioned in my last blog post about the Tumblr blog "Fuch Yeah Altars" which has a lot of inspirational altars. Equally if you're not out it might be difficult to explain why you have an Altar. I know some people like YouTuber DragonFeather369 has a Dragon Altar (aka Draconic Altar) which when she was younger she told her family she was just really into Dragons and that was her Dragon collection. Others (like myself for the first maybe 10 years) have pocket altars, shoebox altars, travel altars and other kinds of easy to set up and take down and hide altars. Here's my YouTube video on my current travel altar which is in a small jewellery box I altered (I have this along side my main altar which can be seen on my @missimoinsane Instagram.) - That said it's not important to have an altar and/or tools (as a Witch or a Pagan). The biggest tool you need is yourself. Tools are more of a visual aid and something pretty we like to have. While some can be more practical like say a mortar and pestle for grinding herbs it's not always essential and these things can also be easily found in nature (ie mortar and pestle = two rocks!) and some times are household items ie a wine glass can be a challice, a saucepan can be a cauldron, you could use a side plate or trinket bowl to give offerings (see more about offerings on my last weeks blog HERE). - This is just to name a few things. Other ways to incorporate Witchy / Pagan elements are things like mundane looking jewellery which is actually an Amulet / Talisman or Charmed Jewellery (read more about that HERE). Between Goth Decor, Vampire Decor, Bohemian Decor, Tumblr Decor, Pottery Barn Decor and oh the list goes on it's not completely unusual to have semi precious stones or crystals around your room/home nor dreamcatchers, moon phases, statues of black cats or even angels or other things like skulls or ravens or your favorite animals, deities or even element symbols, trinket boxes (containing secrets).. A kitchen cupboard of herbs and spices oh the list goes on. Of course if you're out it helps. There are many subtle and not so subtle decor pieces, jewellery and items you can use as mentioned and there are many ways to keep a Book of Shadows such as on the computer such as evernote which you can link to multiple devices, a notebook or plain coloured folder or diary.. Mundane things can become ritualistic and magickal workings such as epsom salt in baths is very common for a relaxing bath but can double as a purifier to remove negative energies from yourself before working such as prayer. Similar goes for blessing water, drinks you make such as tea or coffee stir in positive thoughts that you think while string in a clockwise (positive) or anticlockwise (negative) intentions. If you're allowed a pet (why not get a familiar!) go to the pet store/shelter and allow one to choose you. If price for tools, decor and/or supplies is a factor perhaps look on second hand places like Ebay, Charity / Thrift stores, PreLoved / Gumtree / Craigslist / Freecycle - depending where you live.. Also check out swap meets & groups. You can always Cleanse, Consecrate and Charge (The three C's blog). Other things you could do are Feng Shui (I spoke a bit about that in my colour blog). There's a good number of books out there on everyday magick such as those by Author Deborah Blake. Or books on Magickal Housekeeping!! - I'll be doing a blog about this and going into more details of what I wrote in this paragraph in a blog soon!!
Typically there are a few types of practicing witch.
This also applies for Pagans and other Practitioners.
The first type is Solitary Practitioners – Solitary Witches are, as the name suggests, witches that practice alone; at least for the most part. All their spells, rituals and other workings are done alone by themselves. That's not to say they don't get together with others especially for the Sabbats, Esbats or other Holidays and Events.
The second type would be Coven Practitioners – There are many different types of covens. Some include a high priest and/or priestess they often are the physical representation of Deity. Some are very few in number (most typically 9 members or 13 members) and others are extensively larger. Coven members usually gather together at least once a month - online or in person. Think of them like a family. Often if you wish to be a member of a Coven then you have to be initiated into it – this is more common for Pagan / Wiccan Covens than Witch Covens. Typically when a coven is practicing or working attendance is mandatory. That’s not to say that members don’t practice alone outside of the coven practices / workings.
Other types of study may be closed covens, open covens, circles, groves, couple or actual family practices and I shall not say cults. (Feel free to research these study types and more).
Infamous / Famous witches from History?
As said in my opinion it is important to know the basics even if it’s not necessarily your interest or practice. Likewise I deem it important to know some basics of Witch history internationally too not just Salem Witch Trials or the Spanish Inquisition. Equally it’s important to know some basics of famous / infamous witches such as..Tituba - An enslaved witch and died quite famously at the Salem Witch Trials.
Anne Boleyn - yes the second wife of King Henry VIII from the Tudor period of sixteen century England.
Marie Laveau – Famous Voodoo Priestess/Queen of New Orleans.
Sybil Leek - Modern historian and Author of many witchcraft books. She was taught from a younge age and is one of Britain’s most famous witches.
Gerald Gardner - Of the as mentioned Gardnerian movement of Wicca in 1950's
Scott Cunningham – Although he much preferred to be known as a Wiccan than a Witch he is most famous for his books as on Wicca, Herbs and Incense although he wrote a few others.
Silver RavenWolf - Another famous witch and Author that is alive today is Silver RavenWolf.Just to name a few..
Activity..
- Research more about the different types of witches and their practices.
- Research Historical / Famous / Infamous Witches and Witch Events.
- (Optional) Research more into types of magickal people not just Witches.
- (Optional) Research and create yourself a magickal name.
- (Optional) Research more into Karma and/or Three Fold Law.
- (Optional) Journal about what type of Witch you believe yourself to be.
Book Activity..
- (Optional) Copy down any information from above you think you will find useful.. and/or any further information you find out.
Interact with me Activity..
- (Optional) on the Fb Page https://www.facebook.com/BookOfShadowsPrompts/ feel free to add any information you deem worthy..
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Imogen x
Next weeks prompts No.18 - Divination.
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