The evening darkens towards twilight. The grey half light is just enough so that I can easily pick my way along the path that runs alongside my home, connecting the front garden to the back. There’s a thick wall of ivy that separates the gardens. It’s thick and new growth reaches out towards the house, ever seeking, ever rising. Sparrows live in the ivy, a whole quarrel of them, at least twenty but probably more . They’re a common, overlooked bird. They aren’t brightly coloured but instead a dull grey brown, not overly attractive, but cute in their own way. Nor do they have a particularly attractive song, but there is a charm to their chirruping. I can hear them now, and on this cold, damp and windy February evening, their song seems apt for a witches garden, the little soul carriers even song.
The back garden seems darker than the front. It is more private, the ivy providing a barrier that screens me from the street and does much to hide me from the world of man, from the mundane. This is my secret garden, my night garden. I take the band from my hair and shake loose my dark curls. They catch on the wind and I close my eyes and take in a deep breath as the last of the light fades from the day. The sky is overcast, has been all day, and so the night almost seems to steal in. The moon and the stars cannot be seen tonight and the sky seems low, close.
Somewhere a dog barks and the calls of children fade away. Even the sparrows begin to quieten. A blackbird flies low, it’s warning call loud in the quiet night. It disappears into the ivy and is silent. I open my eyes again and already feel a little bit more myself. The real me. Not the mother or spouse, nor the daughter, the worker, nor the writer. Just me. Here I am, just like the ivy and the elder I stand before now whose bare branches reach up into the dark sky. I make my offering here, a libation of sweet blackberry wine, the last of the summers delights, an offering of water and a handful of dried seeds and berries. Not a lot, but enough.
Here I remember who I am. What I am. Here I connect to the world around me, the hidden world. Here I rediscover the power within that world, and the power within myself. Her I remember: I am witch.
Tools & Time
Quite often on social media posts or blogs I see many posts in which the postee seeks some advice. What tools do they need to buy, or where can they get cheap ones from? Or perhaps they do not have enough time to practise their form of witchcraft as much as they might want to and are looking for ways around lack of time?
The truth is we don’t need anything but time and effort to practise. We do not need tools, we certainly do not need to buy anything. Now, with that said, there’s nothing wrong with liking the aesthetics of witchcraft and all of the trappings that come with it, so long as you realise you don’t need it. And I will say that if you are going to buy stuff, then please do try and choose reputable witchy and occult artisans, business owners and crafters instead of nameless corporations selling mass produced tat.
With all of the constraints placed upon us today; work and family pressures, financial worries, or even issues of abuse and poverty all work to take our attention away from practising witchcraft. By the time we’ve completed all of the mundane things we have to do in our daily lives, we are all too often too tired to put as much effort into our craft as we might like. Everyone will experience this at some point, but if you want to move past it, you will have to put in the effort and sacrifice something. You might have to get up half an hour earlier or go to bed half an hour later. Give up some screen time, even though that might be the only down time you get.
It’s not going to be easy, but then nobody said it would be. But once you get those issues out of the way, things will become easier. It will be easier to feel, to see the power, the magick all around you and also that within you. As within, so without. As above, so below. All is connected.
As Within, So Without – A Meditation To Reconnect With Your Inner Power
You can do this meditation indoors or outside. If doing outside, then make sure it’s somewhere where you will be and feel safe and secure. You may sit up (beneath a tree with the trunk at your back is perfect!) or lay down. If doing indoors, you may also sit or lay down. Either read through the meditation a few times or make a recording of yourself reading it aloud and play it back. Play some gentle music if you want to. Minimise all distractions and get into a comfortable position. Close your eyes and spend a couple of moments letting yourself adjust to your surroundings.
When you are ready, we will begin.
Take a deep breath in. Feel your lungs expand in your chest. Hold it.
1, 2, 3.
Exhale. Feel your lungs empty and your chest relax.
1, 2, 3.
Breath in again. Become aware of the feelings and sensations of relaxation within your body.
1, 2, 3.
Exhale. Notice those feelings of relaxation as they radiate out from your solar plexus.
1, 2, 3.
Breath in. Notice how relaxed you are, and how that feeling is spreading along your arms and legs, right down to your finger tips, to your toes.
1,2,3.
Exhale. You are totally relaxed. Spend a few moments just enjoying this feeling.
The elements make up our entire universe, in varying degrees. As above, so below. They make up our environment, and as witches and occultists we utilise the elements within our practise. We carry the elements within us too.
Our bodies are crafted of the Earth, as are all the physical elements of our world and everything within it. We are of the Earth. We are a part of nature, and the magick that resides within the wilds resides within us too. We come from the Earth and when we die we return to it.
Water allows all to grow. It is the cleansing life force and without it nothing would live. The blood that flows through our bodies is a representation of Water, it is the life force that without we could not live. The magic of blood is sacred and dark, not evil mind, because of its power, its potency. Because of it is the water of life.
Air is that element that goes between, the element of messengers, a bringer of fate, and so the air that we breathe comes within us, bringing the life giving oxygen we need to survive and ridding us of carbon dioxide, the gas trees need to breath. It is that exchange and interweaving of energies. The invisible that connects all things, between all realms of the axis mundi.
And Fire, the most etheral and over-worldly of the elements, it has fascinated mankind since our beginning. The fire of the sun, the life giving light and warmth, that would any warmer or any less would make life impossible, gives life to all things. Fire is the gift from the gods. It is the conscious mind, the animating spark. It is the beat of a heart. It is the Fire within us. It is our drive, our will.
Feel the elements within you. Know that they make you the individual that you are, that you have their power within you at all times. That what resides without, the magick of nature, of the elements, of the universe, reside within you too.
Take as long as you need to consider the power that resides within you. Feel it within you. Feel it’s energies stir within you. Let it fill you. Lose yourself in it. Give in to it. Accept it. Welcome it.
When you are ready, become aware of your natural breathing rhythm. Feel the air as it fills your lungs and then as you exhale. Become aware of the sensations that occur naturally within your body. Slowly, you become conscious of the everyday sounds. When you are ready open your eye. Have a biscuit and a drink of water. Spend a few moments contemplating any thoughts or feelings aroused by the meditation. Use this any time you need to remind yourself of the power that resides within!
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The evening darkens towards twilight. The grey half light is just enough so that I can easily pick my way along the path that runs alongside my home, connecting the front garden to the back. There’s a thick wall of ivy that separates the gardens. It’s thick and new growth reaches out towards the house, […] -
The evening darkens towards twilight. The grey half light is just enough so that I can easily pick my way along the path that runs alongside my home, connecting the front garden to the back. There’s a thick wall of ivy that separates the gardens. It’s thick and new growth reaches out towards the house, […] -
The evening darkens towards twilight. The grey half light is just enough so that I can easily pick my way along the path that runs alongside my home, connecting the front garden to the back. There’s a thick wall of ivy that separates the gardens. It’s thick and new growth reaches out towards the house, […] -
The evening darkens towards twilight. The grey half light is just enough so that I can easily pick my way along the path that runs alongside my home, connecting the front garden to the back. There’s a thick wall of ivy that separates the gardens. It’s thick and new growth reaches out towards the house, […] -
The evening darkens towards twilight. The grey half light is just enough so that I can easily pick my way along the path that runs alongside my home, connecting the front garden to the back. There’s a thick wall of ivy that separates the gardens. It’s thick and new growth reaches out towards the house, […]
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