To understand why things are used in magic, we need to recognize an old teaching. From an occult view anything that is previously part of something will always maintain a connection to it. This belief is the root of the magical idea of using a person's hair or fingernail clippings to cast a spell on her or him. This is what I sometimes refer to as the "leap-frog" principle of primitive magic; however, the series of lily pads or stepping stones in this analogy leads to other connections as well.
The idea of leap-frog magic is to reach one point through a series of connecting ones. The points generate communication to and from each other, and this can flow in the form of magical energy. One example is the toad. Why would someone want to use this creature in a magical sense? The answer is that the toad is connected to the real source of power that a witch wants to tap. It is not the toad; it is what can come from the links leading to the toad. The creature is simply what we can touch or hold in the material world, but what the witch seeks is that which can be attracted through contact with the toad. This does not reside in the flesh of the toad; it comes from non-material reality directly linked to the toad. These links were fashioned long ago by witchcraft practitioners, and this is very old magic we are dealing with here.
Images of toads or frogs appear in prehistoric times in the form of carved and painted figures. They often seem to be symbols of fertility and birth. Anthropologist Marija Gimbutas points to the frog or toad as symbolic of a goddess associated with death and regeneration. She also links the creature to the ancient belief in a "wandering womb" found in Egyptian and classical sources.54 The frog or toad is associated with the goddess Hecate who was a Titan, which links her with a prehistoric race of deities.55
One form of magic involving the frog or toad is the belief in a key-shaped bone inside the body. To possess the key-bone granted one special powers (and the powers vary according to regional folkloric beliefs). Whatever the case may be, the symbol of the key can be linked to Hecate. She is the source of power at the end of the backwards leap frog journey from the frog or toad. One of her aspects is the guardian of portals and gateways. She is also intimately connected to the Underworld and to the crossroads.
In witchcraft, bones are used to contact spirits, especially those of the dead. Objects like the frog-bone can be left at the crossroads overnight in the belief that a faery rider may take it. In old lore, faeries ride on white horses, and if one makes off with the bone, it takes its otherworld counterpart and leaves behind the material bone. Because links remain between objects previously connected, the physical bone possesses power through its faery realm connection. A related belief holds that the frog-bone grants its possessor power over horses. Here we see a connection back to the faery rider and the white horse.
In the literary tradition of witchcraft tales, the witch does not generate power from within herself. She calls upon external things that release their power to her, which she can then direct. The writings of this period are in keeping with associated beliefs that objects possess a type of consciousness, or force, known as numen. In other cultures this is known as mana. The witch communicates with objects, and they transfer some of their energy to her or him.
As the centuries pass, the idea of the witch's power changes with time. In the Christian era we find traces of a belief that the witch herself has internal power. This power is either inherited or passed through an object. The latter can be a charm, a piece of parchment, a book, or a familiar spirit. Eventually, the belief is distorted, and the power of a witch becomes attached to a pact with the Devil.
The introduction of the Devil is an interesting event, and the question must be asked-did witches involve themselves with him? But the more important question is how did witches perceive the Devil? Witches in the Christian era certainly knew about this character because it contaminated the views of all social classes. Was he a distorted form of a pagan god? Or was he a new figure that arrived in the witchcraft scene?
In her book, By-Paths in Sicily, author Eliza Heaton presents an interesting view of the Devil in folk magic circa 1920. Heaton describes various personal encounters with a woman named Vanna, who many people might call a witch, but she refers to herself as a Christian. In her hair Vanna wears what are called elf-locks. This is a very long braid that marks her as a person trained by faeries. In Heaton's book there is a fascinating report of faery encounters that Vanna relates from childhood days.
One day Heaton asks Vanna why her incantations often include calling upon the Devil. Vanna replies, "He has great power," and apparently she sees no conflict in including him in her magic.56 In the book it is clear that Vanna thinks of the Devil in keeping with the stereotypical depiction. This is an interesting view of working with the Devil while not venerating him, making a pact, or accepting him as a personal Master.
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