5 Ways To More Effective Magical Resistance

Whether you have been working for change for most of your life, or started 4-6 years ago, or maybe just figured it out last week: what’s important is that you’re doing it. And that we keep doing it for the long haul. But especially for the newcomers, here are 5 things to keep in mind to make your Magical Resistance work more effective and powerful.

Discern
If you’ve come across a sigil, spell, or proposed working online that’s geared towards magical resistance: do your research. Sit down with it for a little while, see who/where it came from, and consider if the components/ingredients/actions make sense not only to you, but for the cause you’re working for. Does it feel right to you, or is something off? Is there something you could modify to make it more focused? Otherwise keep looking or better yet, create your own. (See “Amplify” below though before doing that.)

Photo by Matthias Oberholzer on Unsplash

Apply
Magic starts with thought, but many spells and sigils benefit from physical interaction. Especially when using the shared magic sigils – drawing or tracing them in some way really has an impact. People say to me, “but I’m not an artist.” You don’t have to be an artist – there’s not going to be a critique of your work. The act of drawing, carving, anointing, painting, etc is what connects the sigil in your mind, body, and spirit. Folks talk about “charging” – well you do precisely that and more when you recreate the sigil by hand (or with your eyes if you’re unable to use your hands). You are aligning your mind, your hand, and your heart in-between. You are focusing your will.

Also consider what magical application works best for the particular spell or sigil. If you’re looking to protect a body or place, then the best way to do that is physically apply it. If you’re looking to send energy to a cause, then working with candles, dancing it, etc – can help. Consider the elements:

Water – can purify or dissolve
Air – can inspire/spread ideas or disperse
Fire – transforms or eradicates
Earth – roots or covers/submerges
Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Educate
If you share an image with the intent to help others also participate in a working, PLEASE provide proper attribution/sourcing so that other people can be properly educated and understand what they’re doing. Being a Witch involves knowing the how and why of your work, as well as helping others do the same. Unsure of where an image came from? Use TinEye to reverse look it up. Of course, if you practiced discernment, you’d already have that info handy. Be sure to credit artists, musicians, designers, and other creators. Don’t be lazy, make an effort in providing the correct information in the first place because things can go viral real fast.

Action
Magical resistance is important work that can have quite an impact when done correctly. It can help bring awareness, direct energy, provoke thought, and manifest change. But make sure that you’re following it up with physical action as well, in whatever form you are able to. Working for change comes in many forms: donating, supporting, sharing verified information, having tough conversations, protesting, getting folks registered to vote, providing emotional, mental, or legal counsel, cooking meals, providing childcare, etc. How can you have an effect locally? For example: 115 Ways to Donate in Support of Black Lives and Communities of Color

Amplify
If a working doesn’t resonate with you, then of course you can create your own. But keep in mind that shared magic workings benefit from many practitioners working collectively. So check to see if there’s something already present you can work with to help boost the signal. Make sure you’re not confusing the message or losing sight of the goal. For example, folks have said to me, “You should create a sigil for BLM”. My response is: a sigil condenses down multiple ideas into a singular focus & works in subtle ways. BLACK LIVES MATTER *IS* the culmination of many important concepts into one simple vital message that needs to be as visible as possible. So #blacklivesmatter IS the sigil. So instead I create and co-create sigils that address those important concepts on a focused level.

Keep in mind the message and the focus – again, this is magic! Lastly, working for change is a marathon, not a sprint. Even when the news has subsided, consider how you can continue to amplify the message, bring awareness to the cause, and keep weaving the pattern strong.