A Different Witches’ Ladder

I was involved with a group putting together a system of witchcraft. When one of the people involved was talking about materials and methods the the system would teach early on, one practice that came up was the witches’ ladder. 

I was fairly excited. Witches’ ladders were something I learned as a child but hadn’t seen addressed in NeoPagan books of magic and witchcraft. When I saw what was put together, I found it a bit disappointing. It wasn’t the witches’ ladder I was expecting. It seemed familiar to other people, so I assumed it was the common version of the witches’ ladder in modern witchcraft approaches. Now I’m not so sure. Looking up witches’ ladders turned up many different approaches and ideas. The historical examples line up with what I learned. A couple modern examples fit what others in the aforementioned group spoke of. Then, there were innovations which seemed to be variants of or combinations of, the two approaches I was aware of. 

With the diversity of witches’ ladders, I can’t speak to what is the popular standard or where it came from. So, this post will just talk about a variety of options. 

The version that I took to be the modern sort is an example of basic knot magic. A length of rope or cord is needed for it. Many instructions include that the rope should measure in a multiple of three, so 9 inches, 12 inches, 3 feet, etc. Some instructions recommend braiding three cords. Once you have the cord, tie nine knots into it. There are some variations with different numbers of knots. As you tie the knots, you visualize your intention and put energy into the cord. The spell might be performed by knotting the cord towards you, or away from you, with some instructions saying to begin with each end and alternate working towards the middle. 

A popular incantation is used with the spell. 

“By knot of one, the spell’s begun,

By knot of two, the spell’s come true,

By knot of three, thus shall it be,

By knot of four, it’s strengthened more,

By knot of five, so may it thrive,

By knot of six, the spell we fix,

By knot of seven, the Stars of heaven,

By knot of eight, the hand of fate,

By knot of nine, the thing is mine!”

There are, of course, variations of this incantation. The incantation itself is very common. Apparently, it was used in Deborah Harkness’s A Discovery of Witches novels. If I remember correctly, a version of this spell is included in the Cord Magic or Knot Magic section of the BAM; Doreen Valiente also includes a variation of it in Witchcraft for Tomorrow. In Valiente’s inclusion of it in Witchcraft for Tomorrow, again - assuming I remember correctly, she just describes it as an example of knot magic.

To me this is an example of knot magic. It’s one which was kind of exciting to me when I first learned it because lots of people and books mentioned knot magic. Knot magic was often presented as an old and simple form of magic. But, at least in the late nineties and early aughties, not a lot of books talked about it. So, it was cool seeing an example explained - especially an example which could be applied for just about any goal. 

There are, potentially, some issues with this spell. Knots are usually used to bind something, and untying knots looses that something. So, focusing on your goal while binding it up may not be the most obvious symbolism for manifesting it, or at least it might be more applicable to some goals and not others. 

The incantation is nice and catchy, but the words don’t actually follow a structure for building towards manifestation. By the second knot we’re saying we’ve completed the goal, so why are the knots and words continuing? Three and six kind of reiterate this sentiment. That kind of positive claiming it into being is not uncommon. It might just make more sense to place towards the end. The spell references, but doesn’t necessarily clearly call upon, external powers - the stars of heaven, and the hands of fate - but it does that at the end rather than calling on that power at the beginning and winding or weaving it into the spell to build towards the manifestation. 

Still, it’s a popular spell, so it probably works well for people. 

Another modern variation seems to be the idea that a witches’ ladder is a sort of rosary for witches. This version either has thirteen or forty knots. Sometimes it’s made with beads. The knots or beads are touched as a way of counting or keeping track of chants, mantras for meditation, or short incantations and statements of intention. Some people link this to initiation cords as well. In either case, there doesn’t seem to be a link to the historical witches’ ladder. 

According to blogger Nicole Canfield, Doreen Valiente describes the witches’ ladder in her dictionary of witchcraft, ABCs of Witchcraft. There Valiente says the witches’ ladder was a protection against the evil eye. The braided and knotted rope would catch and draw up the ill intentions of curses. These kinds of house protection charms are ubiquitous in folk magic. Those purposes don’t seem to be suggested by the historical examples of witches’ ladders. 

Historical witches’ ladders have a few more physical pieces, but we don’t know anything about the incantations involved. We can guess as to their purposes, and there are some historical examples that have been found, researchers and historians have some ideas about why they might have been used. For the most part, they are similar to the three variations with which I’m familiar. 

Typically, the historical ladders are usually strings with feathers. The Wellington Witch’s Ladder was discovered in a house in 1878. According to Canfield, the men who found it believed witches used it to climb back and forth between houses. This fits with superstitions that witches would flight through the night like the ill wind and enter houses to despoil things. The Wellington example used chicken feathers.   

Canfield also explains that in Etruscan Roman Remains Leland recounts the story of talking with an Italian woman who explained “the witches’ garland” or “the spell of the black hen,” when he showed her a picture of a witches’ ladder which had been presented in a folklore journal in England. Here is what Leland says:

“In the year 1886 there was found in the belfry of a church in England a curious object of which all that could be learned at first was from the authority of an old woman and that it was called a witch's ladder. An engraving of it was published in the Folk-Lore Journal, and several contributors soon explained its use. It consisted of a cord tied in knots at regular intervals, and in every knot the feather of a fowl had been inserted.

I was in Italy when I saw this engraving, and read that the real nature of the object had not been ascertained. I remarked that I would soon find it out, which I did, and that most unexpectedly. For by mere chance, the very first Italian woman with whom I conversed, being asked if she knew any stories about witches, began with the following:--

"Si. There was in Florence four years ago a child which was bewitched. It pined away. The parents took it to all the shrines in vain, and it died.

"Some time after something hard was felt in the bed on which the child had slept. They opened the bed and found what is called a guirlanda delle strege, or witches' garland. It is made by taking a cord and tying knots in it. While doing this pluck feathers one by one from a living hen, and stick them into the knots, uttering a malediction with every one. There was also found in the bed the figure of a hen made of stuff (cotton or the like)."

The next day I showed the woman the engraving of the witch-ladder in the Folk-Lore Journal. She was astonished, and said, "Why that is la guirlanda delle strege which I described yesterday." I did not pay any attention at the time to what was said of the image of a cock or hen being found with the knotted cord, but I have since ascertained that it formed the most important part of the whole incantation.”

Leland goes on to present the spell, which he said was very difficult to procure because it was considered very dangerous and evil. The rest of the spell involves making a stuffed effigy of a hen, which seems to be a key part of the Italian variety in Leland’s description, but is not particularly relevant to our exploration. 

Returning to the Wellington ladder, Chris Wingfield in “Witches’ Ladder: The Hidden History” says that on the museum display label, the purpose of stealing milk from a neighbor’s cow is listed. This is also in keeping with traditional ideas about witchcraft, and is not far off from the ladders we’ll discuss. Wingfield says the purpose for the ladder was included in a note from Anna Tylor when she donated the ladder, but seems to have originally been provided as speculation by James Frazer. Frazer based this assertion on folklore in Scotland and Germany. 

Leland makes note of this ladder, explaining that Edward Tylor had displayed it in an 1891 Folklore Congress. It may have been the same one which Leland showed to his Italian informant. 

Wingfield further explains that the meaning of the ladder was not originally clear to those studying it. He notes that Abraham Colles, who wrote - possibly with Tylor’s help - the article about the artifact that appeared in the Folklore Journal, noted that old women in the area referenced “a rope with feathers,” in conjunction with witchcraft, and that the men who found it immediately recognized it as a witches’ ladder. So, the concept was well known in the folklore of Somerset. 

While those in Wellington seemed familiar with such things, Tylor was uncertain that they had thorough proof that the ladder was actually a magical device. Another folklorist, Sabine Baring-Gould corresponded with Tylor regarding the ladder. According to Wingfield, Baring-Gould of Devon spoke with a local woman, thought to be a witch in the 1890s, about the ladder. This woman was entirely unfamiliar with them and thought it was likely simply a tool for scaring chickens. 

Wikipedia also talks about the historical sources for witches ladders, and notes the Wellington ladder, Baring-Gould’s fictional description of one, and Leland’s account. So it would seem, almost all our historical examples are just the Wellington ladder. That said, a second item of similar appearance was in Tylor’s possession. Additionally, as we noted, Leland claims to have had two in his possession as well. It’s possible that only one ever survived as an historical example, or there may have been as many as four. 

Whether these witches' ladders were real or not, variations of the concept have become part of magic as it exists today. The term has, for some, given its name to basic knot spells as described above. Variations closer to the Wellington ladder have also made their way into modern folklore and magic. 

The Wellington ladder is likely what inspired the versions of the witches ladder with which I was familiar. 

To me, the ladder is a type of fetish used for the transfer of power. It can be built as a way to draw power from natural sources, to draw power from another magician or person, or a way to inflict harmful power on another person. 

In the most basic instance, a cord is knotted with natural items tied into the knots. The knots might hold feathers, bones, shells, animal hairs, or plants. These items connect to the source from which they were drawn, or the overall spirits which oversee them and their kind. The knots bind some of their power into the charm. A link to the witch casting the spell is tied in the final knot. This could be done moving up the cord towards the witch or down the cord towards the witch based on whether you prefer building up or drawing down the power. 

The natural items need to be awakened before tying them into the ladder. This can be done by speaking with them and offering them a sprinkling of water, suffumigating them with incense, consecrating them with candle light or a combination of these actions. Special spells and incantations calling upon divine powers to recognize or bless the life in them can be used as well.

As the items are knotted into the ladder, you can speak with them and their spirits and instruct them to lend their power to the ladder and therefore the one who it is made for. Alternatively you can design an incantation for that purpose. 

The ladder should be placed in a special, safe place, to add power to the witch, or can be held, worn, or carried when working magic to more directly apply its power. 

If the intention is to take power from another, the process is similar. Instead of using natural objects, as much as possible, use objects either belonging to, having been touched or worn by, or symbolizing the person from whom life, vitality, or magical power is to be taken. Similarly to the other form of the ladder, the items need to be awoken and instructed. If the items are “part of” the person from whom you are stealing power, simply instructing them to give over that power might not be something they will readily do. 

You can take one of three approaches. Regardless of the approach, the items need to be woken up, just like awakening the natural materials. A spell of command can be used to force them to give over their life and power and sap it from their source. The items can be sweet-talked and convinced to give the power over, either as if it is what is necessary for their source or because the items have been left by their source and you have rescued them. An incantation could also be used to command the rope to forcibly take the power from, and through the items. The rope should be enchanted as each knot is tied regardless of which method is used. 

This might sound like a very nasty thing to do, but it is a very traditional sort of witchcraft. Historical witches have many features which are similar to “dark shamans” or beings with spirit flight capabilities who feed from the spiritual power and life of other people and animals in their communities. European witches were also frequently known for stealing the potency from dyes and alcoholic beverages, or the milk from cows and the fertility from fields, and even from other people. 

As noted above, James Frazer believed the purpose of the witches’ ladder was stealing milk from cows. Other commenters have noted that witches ladders create pining and wasting sickness. Canfield quotes Montague Summers who described a witches ladder in connection with the “Island-Magee” witch trial. This trial in 1711 was the last, or one of the last, Irish witch trials. A Mrs. Haltridge claimed that Mary Dunbar was showing signs of demonic possession. Dunbar accused eight women of attacking her in spectral form. Some historians have suggested that Dunbar was aware of accounts from Salem Massachusetts and mimicked the behaviors described in stories of Salem. The records of the trial and its results may have been destroyed, and so details don’t survive. Summers claims that during the investigations of the bewitchment, an apron to Mary Dunbar had been discovered. Summers may not be a reliable account as he claims Dunbar was a guest visiting the bewitched, whereas it seems she was the key bewitched individual. According to Summers, Dunbar’s apron had been tied up with string, and the string had been knotted with nine knots. The string was tied into the folds to make it difficult to remove, and when the apron was bewitched it had caused Dunbar to have seizures and fits and was sickened almost to death. 

According to Summers, witches’ ladders were a common means of cursing and were made by tying knots in a cord while reciting “horrid maledictions,” and then hiding it in a secret place. The intention, according to Summers, was to cause the target to “pine and die.”

Prior to Summers, Sabine Baring-Gould included a witches’ ladder in his novel Curgenven. Baring-Gould’s fictional witches ladder was a tool of cursing, and operated by rotting away to release the ill intentions held within the ladder to impact their target. Baring-Gould explained to Tylor that he had no source for his ladder aside from his own imagination and the inspiration from the Wellington ladder. Baring-Gould’s example is interesting though because the ladder is made from three colors of thread, black, brown and white. Otherwise, it was similar to the Wellington ladder, but had a stone tied to the end so that it would sink into a pond to rot as it released its evil magic. 

The last sort I am aware of is for cursing, like Baring-Gould and Summers described. Unlike the previous example, which could be compared to the wasting sickness Summers describes as it saps power, or life, or health, from someone, this one asserts ill intention upon the target to bring about harm. 

Some of the accounts of ladders describe the knots being made and then the feathers being inserted into the knots. That is the method you will use when using a ladder to curse someone. The rope should be baptised as the target. A physical link should be awakened and tied within the rope prior to the baptism. Then knots are tied into the rope with the negative intentions forced into the rope with each knot, and incantations spoken to bind pain, discomfort, and whatever other ill effects are desired into the target. You could use feathers like in Leland’s Black Hen spell, but I would use pins. The pins should be baptised as whatever ill fate, or ill force is intended to pierce the target. The water can be fixed with herbs and incantations beforehand to add to imparting the intended nature to the pins. The pins can be heated in a candle’s flame or a fire, particularly one with candles or incense which has been consecrated and has the nature of the intended outcome of the curse. The pins should then be stuck into each knot with an incantation as one does so. 

Once the cursing ladder is finished, it should be hidden. It could be hidden in a safe place convenient to the magician. Like most curses, it would be more effective to hide it on the property of the cursed, or within their clothing, or on their person. 

To bring things back full circle, I saw a spell meme the other day that is based on the 9-knot spell but intended to build a power source for the witch. That puts it between the modern 9-knot version of the ladder and the more traditional ladder which draws power for the witch. 

“To increase your personal power take a yard of string, ribbon or yarn, and tie a knot in the center while saying ‘I am power, I’m divine, I am Goddess by design, I am all there is to be power is mine, So mote it be.’ Repeat this spell for eight more days, tying knots of equal distance until there are nine. Then put the cord in a safe place and wear it on Sabbaths.” 

The spell is…kind of awful. The idea is good though. 

The incantation doesn’t call upon any source of power or draw power for anything to increase the power the witch has access to. The witch just makes a couple empty statements about how powerful they are. They don’t structure the incantation to build power, draw power, or invoke power from anything. “Divine,” “Goddess,” “All,” these are all things that the witch could draw on and aspect with a more thorough incantation or invocation. Then having called on that power, the power could be bound into the cord to be used in the future. 

Typically though, these kind of knotting something into a cord for future use spells involve untying the knots when you want to use it. A traditional example of this is tying knots to capture the force of the wind and calm it, and then untying the knots to release the force and raise winds. 

Since the knots aren’t holding things to draw power from, and then conducting it into a link to the witch, a spell like the one presented above would make more sense if the power was knotted into the cord and released by untying. Increasing your power would also be easier by drawing power from elsewhere. I won’t get into the aesthetic choice that is that incantation…

Criticisms aside, the idea obviously connects with concepts that we see in folklore and which seem to be part of old witchcraft. Using knots to build a fetish or charm meant to increase power is solid. The approach of the witches ladder might make more sense than the type of approach presented in the meme. But, the witches ladder involves a much more engaged and enspirited use of material than the meme. Similarly, in comparing the nine knot spell as a version of “witches’ ladder” to the historical examples or the versions with which I was familiar, the difference again is the use of enspirited materials. 

Lots of kinds of magic can work, though. You should do the kind that is well suited to you, your situations and your needs. You have to do the magic that is suited to the materials you have access to. Your preferences matter. You might find that the effects are different based on the type of approach used, so it may be worth experimenting with one if you’ve only tried the other.

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What’s All That Blood??!!?

 

When I was in high school, a friend took a copy of “Magic Power of Witchcraft” by the Frosts from his grandmother’s house and gave it to me because he knew I was into magic. He was not, and in fact, we’re still Facebook friends and he is now raising a very conservative Catholic family. The book was mostly an advertisement. One chapter explained a sex magic ritual for invoking the forces of Mars. It talked about squeezing blood out of meat onto a woman’s bare breast and other bizarre salacious things. My friends and I used to stand out in the courtyard of our somewhat posh Catholic prep school and read that chapter out loud to each other amongst a twitter of adolescent boy giggling. I still remember one guy who insisted he wanted us to read it every afternoon because he thought it was funny, despite the evidence he enjoyed it for another reason. It was hysterical, good fun while ridiculing a goofy description of blood magic. 

Recent discussions of blood have been way less fun. 

I recently taught a class on witchblood. I presented it at two different conferences. It’s a subject that is important to me and that I’ve talked about frequently over the years. As there was interest in the classes, I shared the audio from them for free online once I wasn’t set to present it anywhere else. 

A lot of response has been fairly positive. There have been a few negative responses that were quite visible. There were some more responses in support. This blew up into lots of posts about how everyone was discussing the subject…as happens on Facebook and other social media. 

I have felt some of the negative response has been unfair. There is a possibility that some things were questions with earnest intentions and seemed more intense than intended because of the hubbub. It’s also possible I may have interpreted some people as more confrontational than they were because of it, and if I have, I apologize. 

A very close friend and frequent co-collaborator that I’ve known offline for about 20 years pointed out that she doesn’t know what I mean exactly by “witchblood,” and so it might help if I define it. If she is unsure of my meaning, it’s fair others might not be. A couple other people have similarly suggested a simple definition post. 

So, here we are. My goal here isn’t to further stir up controversy. The controversy has been neither fun nor helpful. I’m also not using this to address an individual who has been intentionally antagonistic. This is meant in good faith to clear up the basic idea’s meaning and a couple other points of confusion for folks who might really just be scratching their head and unsure if it’s safe to ask an honest question…or folks who thought they were but were interpreted otherwise. 

I plan to address…

1. What is witchblood?

2. Is this about physical blood, or genetics or an idea about exclusivity or racial purity?

3. Is this just a way for some people to sound special? Am I just talking about this so I sound special?

4. Why should we even talk about this?

Point 1: Witchblood

Witchblood is a word typically used to describe the nature and power that makes a witch a witch in more traditional or historical modalities of witchcraft. The term is likely contemporary but the ideas behind it aren't new. 

Often it is used in the context of families in which certain affinities, spiritual gifts, and connections with spirits are frequently present. 

The term is not exclusive to families in which such things are inherited. It is also used in some tradcraft contexts to refer to the power that is birthed in and changes a person into a witch through initiation or transmission. Sometimes it is also used to refer to it when someone seems to develop it spontaneously or through experiences. 

Witchpower and witchfire are similar terms. Witchblood was the term I knew when growing up, and as a young adult when I met people with similar experiences they also used this term. I use it largely because it is the one most familiar to me. 

Some people dislike the term but acknowledge that gifts like the sight and connections with spirits may be in born, might pass through families, or might be acquired through dramatic and deeply transforming experiences. They contend that those capabilities or features don't make someone a witch, because you choose to be a witch and you learn the skills or religious beliefs and practices that make you a witch. 

This contention is the newer view. Even through the 1970s, decades into the advent of NeoPagan witchcraft, the common perception and the folklore perception was that having the sight, or consortium with spirits, de facto made you a witch. Prior to the 1920s, witch was never a term one elected for themselves. The idea that possessing these traits was what denoted someone as a witch was the traditionally held view and still influences many traditional concepts of witchcraft. 

This does not invalidate newer concepts of witch or witchcraft. Both can have value and meaning. This also isn't an assertion that this is the only way people can have or do magic. There have always been many types of magic and many types of magician. 

So, when I talk about witchblood and promote the concept, what exactly am I asserting?

The core of my argument is that the historical and folklore conception of the witch is based on real components. While these descriptions need some filtering due to sensationalism and propaganda, we can still look globally at trends and determine ways of understanding the witch as it occurs throughout the world. 

By understanding the witch through an historical lens, we can understand and explore experiences people still have today. This can also create modes for understanding how to approach and pursue witchcraft. 

Specifics of my view have evolved over time as I have continued research. Some core elements I am currently exploring and discussing include:

The witch is a particular subset of magician. Magic is diverse, not just in details of practice but in terms of forms of agency, the ways it works, and the ways in which we engage it. Those elements associated with the witch are one of several ways of experiencing magic. 

Witches are defined by their nature and power as a witch rather than a particular tradition of practice, their practices can be similar to other magicians outwardly, elements of the witch, their agency, and how they engage magical power and practice define witchcraft. 

The power possessed by the witch is innate and intrinsic. It is part of the nature of the witch and can not be removed from the witch. 

The power possessed by the witch can be acquired in several ways which include:

1. Being born so that power or connections with spirits are inherited and occur naturally

2. Being born under particular circumstances or times which imbue power

3. Experiencing life events that connect the individual with power and the spirit world in an intrinsic way

4. Being changed by a spirit through intimate exposure to that spirit’s power

5. Being changed by a spirit through empowerment, or being rebuilt spiritually

6. Being changed by consuming or grafting spirit elements that fundamentally change you

While this includes the idea that people can be born with witchcraft either through familial inheritance or circumstances irrespective of family context, it also includes several options not related to birth by which this can be acquired. These could be sought out by an individual, and some could be conferred as part of initiation or adoption.  

Point 2: Blood and Genetics

For the sake of clarity, to begin I will state flatly that witchblood is not about concepts of blood purity, the passing of traits through biological means of inheritance, any sort of racist or racialist concept, or similar problematic beliefs. 

I do not believe there is any reason to think that physical genetics have any relevance to this concept. I do not think that we have a full explanation of the mechanism for this, or most magical concepts. I believe it is likely that various mechanisms can exist which create this same result. 

I believe this is one amongst many ways to engage magic and is not the only way. I also believe this mode is not specifically a doorway to dangerous ideologies since it includes several ways in which people can obtain this nature without relation to birth. Concepts of power being tied to birth are not exclusively concepts related to familial inheritance. It is neither tied to an exclusionary assertion nor to assertions about national, tribal, ethnic, or racial identities. 

A handful of people are concerned about the use of the term blood. Some have noted that my explanations seem fine but the choice to use the word blood is concerning. Personally, I think the content is more important than the term, and those with an ability to engage and understand the concept and the details of its presentation should be able to engage it, and even express concern over word choice in responsible, civil, and reasoned ways. An inability to do that reflects more of an issue with those individuals than the term or the concept. 

As noted above, the word was chosen primarily because it is the term I’m used to. The choice was not a particularly intentional choice and was innocent in nature. 

There are reasons I do like this term, in addition to familiarity. 

It would be dishonest to say that blood does not apply familial connections. It does. In my case, and the cases of several people I know, family context is part of their experience. There is also a wide community that uses this term for whom the implication of family is important because it describes the nature of the relationship described in the initiatic lineages through which they obtained and through which they pass witchfire. It is also my view that most ways of obtaining this also have the potential to continue to pass this along family lines. 

The utility of the term is not limited to the implication of family. It also describes the intrinsic and permanent quality of the concept more than a word like witchfire. Witchblood indicates the visceral quality. Many writers would say it expresses the “embodied” nature of witchcraft and how the body specifically exists in an embodied context. Embodied also often has links to political discourse and performance art that are less desirable for me, and so I would use “visceral” to describe the idea that this is a core, personal, intimate, organic experience tied to our bodies and our physical experience of life. I wouldn’t be bothered by someone using embodied to express the same idea. 

Blood also has clear links to the concept of life force. Bone is a good physical material for binding spirits to physical locations and structures. Blood can have similar properties for transferring, containing, applying, and linking to spirits and spiritual power. Blood calls to mind that there is a link between spirit presence, and spiritual power with our bodies because of the occult faculties of blood. Bone has a similar potential and could easily result in expressions like “he’s a witch in his bones,” but “witchbones,” feels like an odder turn of phrase. 

I am intimately aware of the types of problems racist and blood purity rhetoric can lead to. As a biracial person, I am very aware that we are frequently seen as worse than others within the ideologies of blood purity rhetorics. As a person of color I have literally snuck away from an event and fled because people showed up in hoods claiming to be from the KKK.  

In terms of Pagan, occult, and cultural identity contexts, I have avoided going to Heathen events I was interested in because I was concerned I wouldn't be welcome. I have been invited to Heathen events and then been told maybe it wouldn't be a good idea since the group was Volkish. I've been warned not to go back to a Heathen group I previously visited because they've become Volkish. I've had people suggest I've been passed over for leadership roles in occult groups, and promotions at work because of my skin color. I've had white family members tell me to drive straight home and not stop anywhere til I was out of their town because my skin made me unsafe there. I’ve had non-family members question my presence at family events. I’ve felt uncomfortable at cultural festivals celebrating elements of European heritage I possess - and with which I was actively very engaged - because I was worried people would look at me and think I shouldn’t be there. I’ve had the leader of a magical group I was in laugh at me when I mentioned European heritage.

I have significant more experience with these issues on a personal level than those who are dismissing my position as Harry Potter level thinking and describing it as blood purity rhetoric. 

Talking about witchblood is dramatically less Volkish than people who say “Only black people can do Hoodoo.” It’s more realistic than NeoPagans doing Golden Dawn derived practices and claiming they’re living the path of their ancestors. 

There are lots of good ways we can talk about heritage, inheritance, talent, connecting with ancestors, and drawing from our past. We can discuss those things with an openness to self-determination and exploration. It’s also possible to drift into AFA style territory and talk about how “we thank our white gods, for our white heritage which has provided us with our beautiful white children, hailsa!” It’s also clear that that isn’t what is going on here. 

Point 3: Well aren’t you special…

Above, I list six ways people can have witchblood - four of them are things people can engage in to acquire it. I have been fairly consistent in discussing it as something that can be acquired. That means it’s open to everyone. Things which are open to everyone aren’t exclusionary and they aren’t modes by which you can claim to be special. 

I’ve never seen anyone who seemed to legitimately have witchblood, whether by family inheritance, circumstance, experiences, or initiation, talk in anyway about how special they were because of it. There are a lot of circumstances where it can be a problem. It can create serious problems for people. Through most of history and in most cultures it isn’t an advantage. Even in contemporary NeoPagan and Occult communities, it might help you magically, but it doesn’t have any social currency. 

Suggesting, in response to me talking about it, that it’s just about being special, is frankly insulting. My bio doesn’t reference witchblood. I don’t lean into it to promote my books or classes. I am a very educated and accomplished magician because of my work and commitment and that should be obvious to most people who know me. I’m also accomplished in several other areas of life. Witchblood discussion tends to result in pushback, not praise. I have no reason to need to talk about witchblood to try to look special, nor do most other people I know who have it. 

Point 4: Why talk about this?

The most absolutely daft example of this question has been someone essentially raising the question “The Greek Magical Papyri aren’t based on witchblood, so why do we even need to discuss it?” There are lots of things lots of sources don’t talk about which are useful to explore in the right context. Most thinking people know that. 

The questions of what do we do with this? Or , is there a reason to explore this? Are fully valid questions though. It’s a topic most people aren’t familiar with so “what’s the point?” is a fair thing to wonder. 

There are three main reasons.

First, it’s part of my experience and so it’s interesting to me to explore. It’s also part of the experience of other people and so they may have interest in exploring it and understanding it more deeply. More importantly, it is helpful for people who have experiences with this and don’t understand it. As was mentioned on one thread, most people with knowledge of this subject or who have experience of it, or who come from traditions which incorporate it, avoid talking about it. A large part of this avoidance is because the reception to discussion of it is usually bad. That’s a problem that can only be overtaken by more openness. That openness can help enrich understanding across traditions and modalities. It can also provide comfort for people who have experiences related to this and don’t understand them. I have had multiple people at this point who felt helped by me talking about this because they felt odd, or they realized things about their own experiences that they hadn’t understood or contextualized before. Being a resource for that is meaningful, and while not everyone needs to be available as such a resource, having resources to make that understanding more common is important. 

Secondly, I believe exploring this can help us deepen how we discuss and understand witchcraft. These are modalities which can be pursued whether they’re things people have already or things people might want to pursue. More exploration of different peoples experiences, understandings, and how it plays out in different cultures, systems, and contexts will give us a deeper fuller picture. We can potentially learn more about different ways of engaging spirits and how power, agency, and authority work, and different ways of exploring how magic and spiritual power manifest within people. The more we understand these things the more we can explore how to use and improve them. 

Third, I don’t think there is a reason to suppress it if its true. That in and of itself is not a reason to explore it, but if its true and exploring that truth involves us expanding our worldview, then that can be useful. Framing this concept as one which is reasonable and comprehensible involves a relatively traditional mythopoetic worldview. That kind of worldview inherently looks at the world as alive, magical, and immanently active and present in a spiritual sense. It’s a deep counter to an overly materialistic worldview. I think that is part of the fear of it. It requires not just thinking of magic as something reasonable to do and explore as a mode of spirituality, but magic as a viscerally and meaningful real and present active element in the structure of ourselves and the worlds around us just as much as thinking, breathing, flesh, bone, water and dirt are. This apprehension of the world is something people are moving towards, but a lot of people still struggle to fully immerse themselves in that as a defining view of existence consistently. This idea confronts us by demanding we engage the world through that mythic lens.  

Anyway, hopefully that cleared things up some. Thanks for reading with an open mind. If you haven’t checked out the classes that have created on the stir, you can check them out here. Two versions are available for free.

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