Witchcraft 101: Magick Is What You Make It, or Is It?

0 Comments

If you were to go back to your newbie witch self, what piece of advice would you give them?

The number one question I receive from those new to the craft is “can I?” Whether it be from using a certain crystal in a particular way, to leaving out a certain ritual in their practice, newbies are convinced that there’s a particular set of rules when it comes to witchcraft.

When I first started, I collected every book I could on Wicca. The more I read, the more confused I grew. Not because of the tradition of the religion itself, but because it didn’t mesh with what I felt deep within myself.

I wanted to be free. I wanted to explore my spirituality without restriction. I wanted to know my inner self in a deep and profound way, through my own experience, not someone else’s.

For some, that sounds like absolute chaos. For some, following rules, or set guidelines created by others is how they wish to practice.

However, if you constantly find yourself asking if you can do something, perhaps what you’re trying to learn isn’t in a book.

I can feel Levar Burton scowling at me right now.

I read The Crystal Bible, and took classes as to what stones resonate with others, and how this herb means this- and when I left those classes, half the information I’d learned was written down and forgotten. I had to constantly refer back to my notes, because Judy Hall’s version of what Malachite meant didn’t resonate with my own experience.

You see, as newbies, you’re not shown the battles we wage in our practices.

They’re silent, but just as violent as any war you’ve seen in history books. We constantly teeter between what someone else tells us is right, and what our inner selves tell us.

I am confident in my craft- but that doesn’t mean that confidence didn’t come at a price, nor that it didn’t come without compromise.

I gave up a path paved before me for one of uncertainty. I gave up my robe of covenship and belonging for one of solitude and sometimes loneliness. I gave up other’s definitions of magic to create my very own magick.

However, the greatest gift I gave myself was permission. Permission to refuse another person’s definition of what things mean, what they stand for, or what to believe in. I gave myself permission to listen to my inner self, my higher vibrations, and my learnings, to create a craft that was all my own.

And, I’m here to do the same for you.

I give you permission to dismiss everything I say on this site to carve your own path. I give you permission to do what it is you’d like to do, without asking the opinions of those who are not you. I give you permission to love what it is you want to love without asking if it’s something that should be loved.

The biggest piece of advice I’d give myself, way back when, is simple- and I’d like to give it to you now. It would be this:

You are already magick.

Whether you decide to follow Jungian principals or Ms. Cleo- what you decide is what’s right. If you want to follow Gardener’s path to the letter, you’re allowed to. If you want to have strict rules about what crystals do, what certain herbs mean, or what tools you have to have- you’re allowed to. If you want to mix and match, take and refute, you’re allowed to do that too.

The only guidelines in witchcraft are those you instill for yourself.

So, to all the newbies who are constantly asking “can I?”- I give you permission to stop asking and just start doing. The answer is, and will always be, an emphatic and resounding YES!!

Unless, of course, you don’t want to.

Your magick is a Nike Commercial, and I’m telling you now- just do it. If it feels right, then it is- if it doesn’t, find out what will make you feel that way. And don’t stop exploring until you’ve got all the answers and asked all the questions- because soon, you’ll find that every time you solve a riddle, ten more pop up in its place.

And guess, what? That’s allowed, too! 🙂

Until next time, my friends…

One Reply to “Witchcraft 101: Magick Is What You Make It, or Is It?”

Leave a Reply

Related Posts