Teaching the Craft

Recently, I have had an opportunity to think about what a teacher of the Craft would need to pass on if they were to teach an apprentice. I thought that the list was interesting, so I thought that I would share it with you.

(These are my opinions of course and other traditions of Witchcraft (remember, I belong to a non-Wiccan, ecstatic, left hand path) may have different ideas- and that is OK. This path is not for everyone and that is OK too. There is room for everyone in all the myriad paths that exist.)

The Tools of Alchemy
My tradition has several specific tools that help transform a person into a Witch, ready to carry the current of my tradition. These tools include a daily sitting practice, working with life force, certain types of energy manipulation to transform the self, and what we call "demon work". These make a person ready to become a Witch. Not everyone can "run the amps" required to be what my tradition considers a Witch. I also differ with the idea that these tools benefit anyone and should be widely disseminated to people who aren't even being considered for initiation. This means that I disagree with some of the most visible Witches in the tradition that we split from*. I think these tools of alchemy are specifically to craft a Witch, not create a "better person". Some of these tools have become very commercialized lately- because they are easy to pass on in their simplest most shallow forms, one-at-a-time, via workshops, books, and intensives and sell them for a profit. That is unscrupulous to my mind. The Craft is not for sale.

The Gods and The Wheel of the Year Cycle
My tradition has specific Gods that it works with, both terrestrial and cosmic, and in order to be a part of this tradition you need to know them intimately and work with them deeply. Many are alien to neo-Wicca or non-initiatory groups of Witches, as they those folks tend to focus on gods in cultural clothing (the Greek or Roman pantheon, for example) or terrestrial gods only (Gaia, The Green Man, the Lord and Lady, for example).

My tradition is polytheistic and does not believe all gods are "the" god and all goddesses are "the" goddess (and we also believe that dualism is a human fiction). But we also simultaneously believe that we are all a part of one thing (did I ever mention that my trad enjoys a good paradox?)- God Herself- and hence all is divine and the divine is immanent. Hence WE (humans) are gods, too- and not just "a spark" or "a reflection" either.

We also teach a Wheel of the Year mythos that is tied to the seasons and the hero's journey- it tells the story not only of the earth's cycles (as most neo-Wicca trads adhere to) but also the life story of the initiate. To understand the Wheel and tie yourself to it is an act of Will**.

Ecstasy and Trance
My trad is not a fertility-based trad, but rather an ecstatic, shamanic one. This is a left hand path which means it can be scary for some and demonized by others. So be it.

Emphasis is placed on achieving brain states other than everyday mundane states (that we are in when driving, shopping, and going about our everyday lives). We do this because the job of the Witch (and yes, Witches have jobs to do!) is to go and be in-between. Between this world and the realm of gods, the fey, and the dead. We work with divine possession in this trad, sex magick, entheogens, divination, oracular work, and out of body travel as ways to achieve and as the tools used while in these ecstatic states. And because these are part of our work, we must be skilled at achieving these states and practice practice practice.

Working in a Group
While many Witches work solo, you also need to know how to work with a group, be it with a few others for a specific working, to celebrate the sabbats or esbats, or in a coven on an ongoing basis.

To that end, learning liturgy and its theological meanings are important. I have found that some teachers (in all kinds of religious traditions) learn liturgy and ritual forms but do not fully understand their theological significance. When ritual becomes empty of meaning, it is then that religion starts to die- because its practitioners do not understand, they merely do things because "this is how we do it" or "this is how I was taught" as the reason for doing things. I know there are several teachers that pass on information that they themselves did not write, experience first hand, or fully understand the significance of. And their tradition suffers for it.

Learning energetic hygiene is also key to working successfully in a group, too- as is learning to use non-violent communication and conflict resolution techniques. Far too often, when Powerful*** people join forces ego gets in the way of Will and starts power*** struggles. We need to recognize and deescalate these situations as they arise, for the sake of all.

The Universe
A Witch's point of view of how the universe is set up and how it "works" is different from that of other religions and people who do not believe in the divine or physics. We study the elements, our creation story, and learn about this animistic viewpoint. Knowing how it is set up allows us to understand that "you" and "me" are fictions that we reinforce to make life a little easier for us in the everyday and also allows us to make changes in the worlds- which is what many of us call "making magick".

Craft/Cunning/Conjure
What use would being a Witch be if s/he didn't use the Power that s/he has built for hirself? So we teach of how to work breath and energy as well and tangible objects and living things to make changes in the worlds. We have a shamanic, animistic outlook on the world, and therefore we must learn the properties of different plants, stones, foods, actions, animals to work our magick to its maximum effect. We learn to use sex, dreams and ingested substances to alter ourselves, others, and therefore the universe.

We also learn and use shapeshifting, out-of-body travel, necromancy and communicating with other non-corporeal beings.

Ethics and Philosophy
Being a Witch makes many people uneasy around you. This is because we are weird and energetically "off" to many, but also because there are no moral codes that to which we must ascribe- like the ten commandments, for example. And while some neo-Wiccans talk of "the threefold law" and "the rede" as their moral compass- my tradition does not ascribe to any moral code that is outside of ourselves. We do not follow the rede and call shenanigans on those Witches who would ascribe any moral code to our workings. Instead, we do the even harder work of cultivating ethics.

These ethics are based on aligning yourself, the Witch, with the Flow of All-There-Is. It means a Witch like me has to constantly do my Work**** to ensure I am not mistaking ego with Will. It means we make decisions that may seem immoral or amoral to outsiders. It means that with this Power comes great Responsibility.

I belong to a peculiar shamanic warrior tradition. We cultivate ethics much like what is outlined in the book Shambhala (which is a Buddhist lineage). Our warrior tradition is based on the interconnectedness of all beings and the reverence and love we have in defending them. We do not shy away from difficult situations. Often we seek them out and meet them head on- in order to not let fear rule us. We are Witches, not ostriches.

We also believe that this tradition is not for everyone. It is not a religion of the masses because not everyone needs to be a Witch (which is a function of society, not just a religious viewpoint). To say that "everyone can be a Witch" is like saying everyone can be an opera singer. Hogwash. Not only is this untrue, but society would suffer if everyone had the same role. We thrive as a culture when people specialize and have specific roles that serve others. We need Witches, teachers, doctors, shopkeepers, midwives, and yes- opera singers. We need mechanics and house builders and farmers. Sometimes a few roles overlap, but mostly they do not. And that is all to the good.

In this path, there are oaths that we take to the gods, to ourselves, to the tradition, and to each other. Breaking them means serious and dire consequences. For example, there are four Witches that I know in the tradition mine used to be a part of* that have broken oaths and/or sacred trusts and I actively shun them and warn people away from them.

They are currently facing serious consequences that only the gods can provide, but I know that it is my duty, as a sacred protector of this tradition, to shun and keep people away from them. They are not to be allowed to play with people's trust or sacred information or the Mysteries any longer. Oathbreakers are up there with murderers, child abusers, and rapists in my book- and no, that is not hyperbole. All four of these types of people have broken sacred trusts and created disconnection through their actions and/or words. It is up to a prospective student to agree to uphold this serious of an oath if they want to learn from me.

I will not charge for teaching the Craft and passing it on. Teaching is a sacred duty that exists out of time and space and certainly capitalism. However, I do demand loyalty and for a prospective student to do their work. I expect that they will be honest with me, themselves, and others. I expect them to work hard and show their work! And I expect that any student of mine, if they become an initiate- will follow these rules as well.

Faery is a mystery tradition, with an unbroken initiatory line extending back through Victor and Cora Anderson, whom we honor as its Grandmasters. Further, Faery is much older than the Andersons. It has its roots in a pre-Gardnerian era coven that had influences from Applachian, Celtic folk magick, and non-Wiccan British Traditional Craft. It was further influenced in the states by Voudou, Bruja, Ho'omana, and other American traditions as it took root here. To paraphrase Victor, this tradition is an amalgam of "the religions of the small dark people of the world."

How I hope to spend my pension years.

The principles that I personally agreed to when I was initiated are here:

Ours is a mystery tradition, which is entered only by means of initiatory rite performed by someone who is already a Faery initiate.

We recognize the value of individual autonomy, but we also recognize and honor the fact that our choices affect the choices of others.

We will not share, divulge or out the names of our initiates or their students.

We honor our oaths to aid and defend our brothers and sisters. We also do not rub elbows with oathbreakers, who are anathema to Witch kin.

Faery is not information; it is the mystery and experience.

Faery curriculum and liturgy, and lore specific to curriculum and liturgy, are not for widespread dissemination. (Which is why I have not posted specific lesson plans here in talking about what I would teach- only ideas and areas of study.)

Only initiates can teach the tradition.

We prefer to teach individually or in small groups. In all our teaching, direct personal contact between teacher and student is essential. This is key to truly KNOW our students, their lives, their decisions, and what they are capable of. In order to add to your family, we must only let the best of the best in.

When we teach Faery, we do so always with a view toward initiation, although there is no guarantee that every student will be initiated.

We recognize that Faery is highly transformative and extremely experiential, requiring closer attention and responsibility than workshops, seminars, or intensives provide.

We do not charge for teaching the core of the Faery tradition.

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*Faery had a public split with Feri a while back over many issues. Oathbreaking was one of them. My tradition split from a faction of the tradition who are very public teachers and authors because the Gods called for us to preserve the Mystery. We no longer share lore or gnosis with the public ("Feri") face of the trad, and their theology and lore will suffer for it. Looking up the road, I see very different outcomes for both traditions.

**There is a difference between will- with a small w- which is individualistic and often is tied to ego and Will- with a capital W- which is aligning yourself to the Flow and following it.

***I make a difference also between Power with a capital P, which in my tradition is one of the five human birthrights and comes from within (not by exploiting and subjugating others) and power with a small p- which has often been corrupted in our culture to mean oppression and subjugation of others for personal gain.

****Work, when used with a capital W, refers to The Great Work- of personal alchemy.

Tangible Witchcraft: Resurrection Plant

This past Friday at 9 AM, I put a resurrection plant in a bowl of water and left it near my door.

There are lots of traditions and rituals associated with The Rose of Jericho (or Resurrection Plant) that span several belief systems including Catholicism, Voudou, Hoodoo and Santeria. Fascinating stuff, and since so many attribute this plant with magickal workings, I say- where's there's smoke there's fire.

Background:
Known by many names (Mary's flower, Stone flower, Spike moss, Rosa Mariae, Rose of the Virgin, Dinosaur Plant, Holy Night Rose and Palestinian Tumbleweed are but a few), there are actually two plants that are called a Resurrection Plant (which is an attribute that they both share: actual resurrection). Anastatica hierochuntica is the true Rose of Jericho (growing in the Middle East and Africa) while the Selaginella Lepidophylla is known as the false Rose of Jericho (growing in North America). It is the more commonly available false Rose of Jericho is the one that is widely known and used in magickal workings and spells here in the United States.

Either Rose of Jericho (be the "true" or "false" one) has some amazing powers, whether you look at it from a scientific or a magickal point of view. I tend to look at both, since I am very animistic in my beliefs of how magick works (everything has a distinct energy field that hold certain properties that can be used to affect the worlds and create magickal effect.) The doctrine of signatures also, when extrapolated into a broad magickal world view, tells us that plants, minerals, animals, and beings not only have specific properties but that they can be identified if you are paying attention. This plant deserves some attention.

This is my plant before placing in water.

What properties does this plant have? It performs miracles! It can live in dormancy for up to 50 years, looking like a dried up, dead, old tumbleweed. As soon as it finds stable water, it comes back to life, greening up and even blooming! Is it any wonder so many belief systems have attributed it with power?

Catholics:
According to legends, it is said that the Virgin Mary blessed the eternal plant during her and Joseph's flight to Egypt. In Spain, it is traditionally connected to the Holy Trinity. And hey, it does and is reborn, just like Jesus- who wouldn't like that?

The true Rose of Jericho is sought for in the Holy Land by pilgrims as a holy relic. Some are actually kept in the family and is traditionally passed on, from generation to generation, as an important part of one's inheritance and it is brought out at Christmas or Easter time along with other decorations.

Catholic families sometimes keep a dried Rose of Jericho in a paper bag among their Christmas decorations, at Christmas they will place the rose in a shallow dish of water on the Christmas table allowing it to bloom. When used at Christmas, it is believed to symbolise the opening and closing of Marys womb. Other catholic families follow a similar tradition at Easter, the symbolism of death and resurrection being an obvious parallel with Jesus Christ.

Conjure:

I said a prayer over the plant before placing
in water. Depending on your religion,
you could invoke several powers here.
I called upon the ever-dying and reborn god
of my tradition to bless the plant and imbue
it with blessings, abundance, and prosperity.

In hoodoo, conjure, and obeah the plant is often used as a prosperity charm. It promotes good business (if placed in a place of work) and happiness and abundance in the home (when placed by the front entrance with a few coins added to the water). After you put the Resurrection plant in water, you simply place it near your door to draw in abundance. When you need a little prosperity, you asperge your house and/or yourself with the water in the bowl, or use the water as a floor or door wash. Since you need to replenish the water weekly for the plant (or it will moldy and get slimy), this means you can perform weekly prosperity spells with ease.

You can also "wash" a grave with this water in order to receive messages from them through divination or dream.

It is also thought if you wear the dried plant as an amulet it will promote a long and healthy life. I suspect a charm to help a very ill person that includes this plant could aid in a miraculous" recovery.

Voudou:
The Resurrection Plant is considered a rare magical commodity and is sought after for use in Voodoo and Cuban Santeria love and money spells. In Voodoo spells, it can also be used to conjuring spirits- sometimes causing possessions and then curing one of a possession.

Santeria:
In Santeria and other Yoruba-based traditions the plant is sometimes believed to be sacred to the Orisha Shango (the spirit of lightening), probably because of the story of Shango committing suicide and then coming back to life. The Ressurection Plant is sometimes placed on his altar by his devotees or used as an ingredient in powders, incenses, oils and baths that are made under the patronage of Shango.

Tips on growing:

What it looks like in the first few hours,

Do not swamp the plant with too much water, they can easily grow moldy, the rose should rest on top of a small amount of water, there should be no water on the top side of the plant.

For prosperity, add a few coins, but DO NOT add lodestones to the water, unless you desire a rusty dead mess. Hardly an auspicious spell for prosperity!

Some people recommend adding holy water (I've also seen people add water from sacred pagan sites, like the Chalice Well) to the plant. That is fine if you are sure the water is healthy for living things. Some waters are not.

Change the water at least once a week, don't allow the water to become stagnant.

Don't place them in direct sunlight but do place them somewhere warm.

Allow your plant to dry out occasionally if its just being kept in water. And benefit magickally from another resurrection!

False Rose of Jericho can be planted in soil. If you desire to do this, allow it to bloom in a dish of water for a few weeks until you see small roots appearing, then transplant to a large pot. Don't overwater!

Boline

My partner and I have been thinking about offering certain Witchcraft goods and services for a while now, but have been hesitant. We are not the "we make big bucks off of the Craft" kind of people. We don't associate with those folks nor do we want to become those folks. We value our gifts, our relationships with the gods and ancestors, and consider this kind of work a blessing and duty. We are often turned off by the opportunists making money off of the Craft and paganism in general.

In the past, we were content to do quiet work for friends (and friends of friends). But we still had the incessant nagging feeling to reach out to more people. Now that we are in a new place with very few traditional Witches in our area, we felt perhaps that time has come to offer our gifts to our new community. The nagging has only gotten stronger since returning to my partner's place of origin- Appalachia. The land spirits are poking him to follow the Wyrd. I too have been dreaming, almost every night, of a life that involves tangible work with my hands and heart that serves others.

Witch bottle from 17th century.

While we are making some of these offerings available on Etsy to the global village, we are offering far more to our local geographic community. (Witchery is more of a village affair, after all.) And while Etsy can only do basic cash exchange type commerce, here at home in our new community we value and encourage barter, the gift economy, and fair trade.

My partner is incredibly gifted at divination- both tarot and runes. I am a creative and powerful spellstress- I can make charms, talismans, witch bottles, candle spells, and more that pack quite a wallop (if I do say so myself).

I am so excited to grow my own magical and medicinal herbs and create my own remedies and toiletries. Excited to become more tied to a piece of land (and its cycles) and how it can give to me (and I to it). I am going to be making tinctures, balms, oils, lotions, sachets, poppets, wreaths, and much more with all kinds of plants, curios, and such. Making blessing soaps, floor washes, wards for folks' homes, candle spells, and the like sounds like a fabulous way to spend some time each week. Growing Reishi and other medicinal mushrooms, mugwort, and henbane.

I will also be using the Etsy store (and this blog) to share my homeschool curriculum. I start writing units this semester and will be selling .pdfs of units as they happen.

While the Boline Etsy store won't be fully operational until after our move next month we are offering a limited number of services until we are up and running at full speed.

Using Energetics as a Parent

I live by animist principles (every thing is alive in its own way, has a purpose, and a specific energy pattern that can help or hinder the things around it (depending on context and setting)). As a Witch,  I also work on moving and controlling those energy patterns for my own purposes in many ways: herbalism, conjure, reiki, other forms of energy healing, astral projection, and divine possession. All of these things to me are energy work on some level.

How does this benefit me as a parent? How do I use this knowledge and understanding to benefit me and my family, in particular my son?

Herbalism and Diet:

Thyme is one of my favorite herbs.

If all plants and animals have their own energetic resonances, we can use them to tweak our when we are out of whack or maintain a state of health. From chamomile tea (medicinal grade, not the bags from the grocery!) to tinctures for gas, colic, teething, and colds or flu, to herbal baths, my son has benefited from me learning the skills of a green Witch. He gets gentle, effective remedies that help his own body heal itself. His immune system is robust not just from breastfeeding at an early age but also because now that he eats solids I strengthen it with probiotics every morning in his kefir.

When I was in herb school, we learned many ways of working with and relating to the plants. While learning the medicinal properties and making medicines were important, so was communing with the plant (rooted through nature walks and wildcrafting and also harvested), learning what it does in myriad bodies (including our own), and listening to that plant. We were given tinctures each week and told to dose ourselves in ever-increasing frequencies to learn the effects in our bodies first hand. Sometimes effects would increase along similar lines, sometimes completely reverse themselves with increasing doses, and sometimes completely new sensations would arise as I increased the dosage. We were taught that lower doses work on a more energetic level, while larger ones work on a physical level. So the same remedy can do myriad things, depending on the dosage.

Scrappy Manzanita

We were taught traditional medicine as well as how to listen to plant spirits (and unless you work on this gift, it is a hard one to maintain and use!). I remember well the lesson of Manzanita, as I sat under a large bramble of it on Mount Diablo: "I was the first", was what She told me. Then She showed me pictures of a vast red clay and rock desert with little to no life. Manzanita and Madrone were busy moving throughout it, populating it, taking root in hard rock and breaking it down into soil for the plants to follow them. I did research after that experience and found that what She told me was true. Pretty awesome!

My theory is that the first Witches and Shamans (who were the first healers) had the ability to listen to plants and learned about what plants do to our bodies and spirits from the plants themselves. They had the ability to shift their energy patterns down to listen to plants.* I continue to listen to plant spirits for both medicinal and spell work to benefit my family.

Conjure and Spellwork:

Witch bottles

From his conception, to my complicated pregnancy, to his everyday life- he has been impacted and shaped by my making my Will manifest in this world. I carried a specific talisman around with me while trying to conceive. It called to the child who visited me in my dreams and also worked to make my uterus ready to be a home to that child.

When I conceived, I also had several spells going during the pregnancy- as I had a complete placenta previa that was keeping me from delivering naturally. Me and my whole magical community prayed and worked to move move move that placenta- and it did. Rowan was born vaginally.

I regularly do small bits of conjure to benefit my family and friends- if it is done right- with a theological context, conjure (also known as rootwork) acknowledges the spirit in each of the ingredients in your spell: be it an oil, bath, bag, or bottle. Each plant, rock, coin, or curio adds to the mix its own energetic essence that helps to create the outcome you are seeking.

Reiki and Energy Work:

I am a level three Reiki practitioner, and use it when needed. It helps soothe upset tummies, reduces too high a fever, takes away pain, and generally feels good. I recently read this study about the healing effects of touch, specifically kissing an injury on a child and its long lasting effects.while it doesn't surprise me, I am delighted to see the research is finally being done on energy healing, the laying on of hands and other therapeutic touch.

I also work to keep Rowan safe from harm with types of energy work and manipulation. I have protection surrounding my home all the time. When he has bad dreams, I cast circle and call in protectors for him. He is sometimes put to sleep using gentle energy work (when he gets overtired and has trouble getting to sleep himself).

There are so many ways I manipulate energy! What are some of yours in the context of your family?

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*For those unfamiliar, I think of humans operating at a fairly rapid energy frequency. To communicate with non-human animals, you shift down a notch or two, depending on the animal (mammals and birds are higher than reptiles and amphibians, in my experience). For plants, you must shift down more, to become even slower.