My Insight for Starting Out On The Witching Path
We’ve all been there- just starting out on our path and rooted firmly in ’absorb-it-all” mode. After a bit of internet searching we find ourselves lost in a sea of Blog Posts, Craft Items, Forums, and Books, our heads spinning at all that information coming at us. Between traditions and religious paths, it can all be very overwhelming not to mention confusing.
In the spirit of finding a foundation or start point, Wikipedia defines Witchcraft as:
”the practice of what the practitioner ("witch") believes to be magical skills and abilities, and activities such as spells, incantations, and magical rituals. Witchcraft is a broad term that varies culturally and societally, and thus can be difficult to define with precision....”
The term ‘Witchcraft’ is an extremely broad term and, currently, can be loosely defined as a Craft, a Religion or a Lifestyle. For those in like-mind with myself, I consider Witchcraft to be a practice or a craft. It is something that I ‘do’- it is a verb in my dictionary. Although I loosely claim the title Witch to define my position on this planet, I am essentially a human that has practiced and honed a craft. I see this as no different from a Writer, an Artist, a Chef, or a Machinist. In fact, it is my opinion that you could take ALL Creators and place them under that umbrella term.
I am not a 'religious' person, as I was raised in the church and found at a very young age that the practice of Christianity was not a good fit for my brain or my soul. I am, however, deeply rooted in my own brand of spiritual practice- one I have developed over decades and pieced together to fit my personal journey here. Although I have much to say on the subject of Spirituality, I will refrain from pouring that thought bucket out in this post as it would derail the subject matter at hand.
I am a practitioner of a traditional form of the Craft. My strengths lie with herbcraft or ‘Wortcunning‘ as its referenced, as well as divination, spell casting, and different forms of healing. 600 years ago I would have been the strange lady living just outside perimeters of the village. The woman folks left alone until they needed something. If this sounds like you and you’re looking for a direction to go for information, you’ve found a good place! As a new person to the Craft, where do you begin? I have fielded this question so many times and continue to enjoy sharing the information I have gathered. For those that aren’t interested in diving into a religious practice, I have created a list of books that have become my go-to for those that are interested. Over the years, I’ve added to this list as new books are published and have often found these books are becoming increasing harder to find, not to mention sometimes quite pricey! So, to remedy this issue in the only way I know how, my company has joined forces with two publishing companies and will now provide all of the books in my list in one location! I’m very excited about this newest addition.
My favorite authors include Gemma Gary, Nigel Pearson, Kelden, Daniel Schulke, Corinne Boyer, Christopher Orapello, and Mat Auryn to name a few. Gemma Gary’s book Traditional Witchcraft - A Cornish Book of Ways really allows the reader to develop a firm foundation for a traditional approach to the Craft. Nigel Pearson writes about ritual practice in Treading the Mill, and Daniel Schulke adds a whole new level to herbcraft in Veneficium.
Whatever direction you take with your craft, always remember- you are unique. Your experiences in this life are your own and there’s no other person out there that sees this world the way YOU do. Read, study and learn....but refrain from falling into dogma when it comes to the Occult. There are no absolutes in this practice, although there will be plenty of folks out there to tell you there are. Unless you are practicing a medicinal form of Herbalism, the parameters can remain loose. Collect information, learn something new every day and assimilate what works and feels right to you and your journey. As a beginning Witch, start simple and build on your experience. Before you know it, you will be sharing knowledge with other new witches!
Blessings!
You can find a whole selection of books on my site here
There is so much information out there, and many, MANY different opinions, interpretations, and practice parameters to absorb, but if I could close this post with one bit of advice it would be this: