The holidays are a particularly challenging time of year for many folks. Reports and rates of loneliness, substance abuse, and suicide all increase this time of year. Many pagans talk about the Dark Half of the Year as a time for introspection, and I’ve anecdotally found this to be true for myself. I’m less active this time of year and spend much more time reading, indoors, and socializing much less. It’s a fabulous time to have an existential or spiritual... Read more
I think it’s pretty safe to say that most witches and pagans love Samhain the most, except for Jason Mankey — his favorite might be Yule! I’m like any other average witch, though, and I adore Samhain. The costumes, decorations, Fall scents and colors, spooky movies and television episodes…what’s not to love? It’s the most BOO-tiful time of year! Samhain is the time of year we tend to talk about death the most. It’s also an excellent opportunity to set... Read more
This is the second part of a two part series, titled “Tending to Tradition.” You can read Part 1 here. Today I’m continuing on with my garden metaphor to talk about how we can choose to evolve our traditions, and ourselves, with the times. Weeds or Flowers I used to think that dandelions were weeds that distracted away from the beauty of a manicured lawn. I now view them as gorgeous flowers with incredible medicinal properties. Dandelions are also a... Read more
Tilling the Soil Let’s pretend that every person involved in a religious or spiritual tradition is a gardener. Some of us grow vegetables, herbs, or exotic flowers, and others tend fruit trees. Some of us prefer organic farming and others use pesticides. A number of us might say “Meh” to gardening and head on over to animal agriculture instead. No matter what type of gardening we prefer, we all must till the soil in which our precious plants will grow.... Read more
TLDR; (Too Long, Didn’t Read): Altar Within really is a radical guide to liberating your divine self! It leaves out the toxic positivity trash and encourages actual self-reflection and hard work to accomplishing real change within ourselves. Do yourself a favor, witch — pick this book up and do a deep dive into a new reality for yourself. LbDR; (Long, but Did Read) Today I’m reviewing The Altar Within: A Radical Devotional Guide to Liberate the Divine Self by Juliet Diaz,... Read more
Scroll to the end for some chants I made up for Beltane! This weekend I’ll be celebrating Beltane with my coven and there’s been a lot of preparation going into it. For starters, our coven is broken down into Outer and Inner Courts, which means we plan for two separate Beltane rituals. Outer Courts are typically comprised of non-initiated students (though initiates of the coven are welcome to attend from our group) and Inner Courts are solely for initiates. FYI:... Read more
I’ve practiced Wiccan witchcraft for nearly 20 years and 8 years of that has been Gardnerian Wicca. Gardnerian Wicca is very different from the Wicca most often portrayed in books and on television. It’s more ecstatic than one might initially think and there are a lot of candles. Candles burn on the altar, in the quarters, and for other various purposes. My Temple Room is often sweltering after Gardnerian ritual because of all the flames and energy raised. Gardnerian Wicca... Read more
This post is dedicated to Seamus from West Hollywood. You’re welcome, WeHo. Shadow Work. Big. Bold. Beautiful. Until it’s not. But it’s a shiny phrase in today’s magical community. Why are so many of us obsessed with “Shadow Work”? What is it? What does it look like in practice? That answer varies from practitioner to practitioner. My own simple definition is that Shadow Work entails intentional, mindful attention and commitment to working through some serious shit. What kind of serious shit,... Read more
One thing is for certain about the occult community: we love books. I think it’s pretty safe to say that most of us own at least a couple dozen books on paganism and occult. But what about those who own upwards of a hundred or more magical volumes? You know, those folks whose bookshelves stand as testament to their insatiable appetite for knowledge? How the hell do we keep it all organized?! Read on for a few librarian pro-tips for... Read more
I was asked to give my thoughts on a current Witchtok trend concerning witch and pagan accounts being divided into “safelists” and “blacklists.” My understanding is that a Tiktok creator created a Discord server whereby people could submit accounts they feel should be added to either the “safelist” or “blacklist” with an accompanying reason. This whole thing screams Burn Book from “Mean Girls”. I’ll tell you something real: I finally had to download Tiktok just to see what the hell... Read more
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