I almost wanted to rename “Green Witch Ways” to “Finding my Magick.” If I ever write a book, I think that’s what I’ll use as the title. But, I’ve sat down to write this book multiple times and it is daunting. So, I’m going to write bite-sized thoughts in the form of blog posts. Which may or may not get integrated into a book at some point.
First, let me explain the term magick with a “k.” I’ve learned it separates magic sleight of hand “tricks” and magick practiced by witches. This is the definition I like from a Llewellyn article:
[T]echniques for harnessing internal and external energies that will help us change ourselves and our environment.
Donald Michael Kraig
I already see Magick. Every day. In a bird’s song, a beautiful sunset, a kind word from a friend—all of which uplift my soul. I feel the energies of plants. I speak to them. This isn’t woo-woo stuff. There is the famous experiment with water by Dr. Moto that demonstrates the power of words on what most people don’t think of as a living entity. There have also been experiments done on plants. And ones on using prayer for healing even when a person doesn’t know they are being prayed for. I believe that everything is energy, including words, water, plants, and people. I think we humans really haven’t tapped into the energies all around us. Magick, as in the definition above, is all about working with that mysterious, unseen energy.
It’s not just witches that believe you can influence energy. It’s humanity in general. Every religion, really. What else is an incantation but a prayer? What else are spells but religious rituals? What else is divination but an attempt to connect to the divine? I’ve even recently begun to entertain the idea that Jesus was a witch. What else is magick but a miracle?
I’ve finally broken free from the fear instilled in me about witchcraft. It is not scary. It is not evil. It is actually rather magickal if you ask me. And it’s very similar to things I was taught in Christianity. It’s just that some sects of Christianity see magick as perfectly normal in their own beliefs and evil in the hands of people of other beliefs. That is what I find scary.
By the way, my husband started calling me a witch to people, recently. I told him that I don’t call myself a witch, but that I do like witchy things. I don’t know if I’ll ever really label myself. I’m too fluid. But I, also, never say never. And, I’ve been a spiritual being my whole life. My husband also used to call me “the church lady.” But, ever since I’ve made the forest my church, I’ve never felt so joyful and connected to the divine.
Image by magicksupply from Pixabay