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Pagan writers when talking about female deities: "They're a mother goddess"

Pagan writers when talking about male deities: "Well, their role and function is a lot more complicated and important than just just being a father god, and here's a 10k word essay discussing why they're more than just a father god"

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When you try explaining to a Christian that I am not a Christian and don’t follow or believe in Christianity or the Christian God because I am a pagan, witch, or divination practitioner that is based off my cultural beliefs and traditions:

Typical God_is_King ✝️☦️🙏 answer: But the Bible says “insert out of context passage here” and you won’t be entering in his kingdom.

Like yes I know I just said that, I expect that when I die I am not being with Christ because I don’t believe in him is that so hard to understand. Christians who try to convince their beliefs are right don’t have any reading comprehension skills or human decency and empathy nor they care to learn anything outside of their worldview. They can’t read comments and other media without judging it immediately as “demonic” or “blasphemy” when they can’t even read the Bible properly and believing every single word without question or looking into the actual original translation. These are bot answers online who have these savior complex or holier than thou mindset, I don’t believe every Christian is like this but Cornstarch Christians need to understand their religion doesn’t revolve around the world nor their beliefs, this isn’t the 1400s when people were controlled what to think that’s what they are imitating not Christ. It’s not just pagans or witches, Muslims and Jewish people who believe in the same God just a different variant also gets this treatment as well.

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I have multiple decks for multiple deities, seasons, what energy I am feeling currently.

Hey, people who do tarot reading/cartomancy, I'm curious:

Please feel free to give as much or as little details possible, I'm really just curious to see what other people do💜

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That’s why it’s one of my favorite stories in Norse Mythology

PSA from the story of Thor's Journey to Utgard:

Those who see your potential and what you are capable of, who are scared of/intimidated by you will absolutely go out of their way to try to make you feel like you have to waste your time proving yourself to them and will absolutely belittle you and try to make you feel small, try to make you unable to see how great you are so you only feel like a failure.

Don't fall for their bullshit.

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Pennsylvania Dutch Folk magic or Braucherei

Pennsylvania Dutch or Deitsch/Deutsch is a diasporic culture of German-Americans that came from Germany or what was then Germany Prussia. Mostly made up of Southeastern German speaking immigrants that settle Pennsylvania in the New World, but it also consist of people from Austria, Switzerland, Bavaria, or the Alpine region. The language of Pennsylvania Dutch has no connection to the Netherlands rather dialect of southern German which if you speak German and are from Southern Germany you may understand Pennsylvania Deitsch really well. Dutch is mispronunciation of saying Deutsch it sounds the same way to us (Americans) but Dutch or Deutsch can be used either or. Now not all Pennsylvania but the heart of steel country of southern central PA, mostly farmland and a lot of Mennonites or The Amish settled an off branch of Christianity that also speaks Pennsylvania Dutch. These are farmers with cattle and agriculture land essential when discussing folk magic of Pennsylvania Dutch, through it seems like a close knit community Pennsylvania Dutch traditions have branched out in different areas of America in Appalachia, New England, even some parts in Canada.

What is Braucherei?

Braucherei is the official name of Pennsylvania folk traditions of healing and blessing. But you will hear another term which is called Powwowing which is an Native American tradition that has nothing do with the folk magic or traditions of Braucherei. The reason why that name is associated with the folk magic is because when Pennsylvania Dutch traditions were becoming well known in early 20th century in America, people refer to it as Powwow or Powwowing because of it’s exotic and spiritual implications it was seen as derogatory to describe folk magic, but people today reclaim it as a unofficial name of Braucherei but I feel like it’s outdated and offensive since Powwowing is a sacred ritual by Native Americans that had nothing to do with Braucherei nor Pennsylvania Folk traditions. I don’t personally use Powwowing only Braucherei and that is what I am going to use going on forward and mention it when it is necessary but I want to be clear Braucherei is not Powwow and has nothing to do with the sacred traditions of Native Americans both symbolize healing but their not the same not even close.

Braucherei or Die Braucherei meaning ritual tradition. In Pennsylvania Dutch it’s called Brauche which means to need, to make use, or to employ. die Bräuche/ Breiche means customs, practices, rtiuals, and ceremonies. Braucherei is used for healing, blessing, and protecting. There is a baneful magic called Hexerei which is curses, spells of revenge and jealousy, and witchcraft

Pennsylvania Dutch magic is Christian based magic but more Lutheran since Martin Luther who was German split from Catholicism many Germans became Protestant Lutheran, but there is a bit of Saint magic and catholic folk magic. The Braucher would NOT identify themselves usually as witches or practicing magic like in Italian folk magic these are healing traditions pass down from generations and blessings that are given were performed with prayers and such. They would see witches as evil and league of the devil, I want to make it very clear this is how they believed in. The Braucher is like a doctor and I’ll explain that later, any gender can practice the traditions, if you want to learn from your family members traditionally if say you’re a female identifying and want to learn a male relative has to teach you and vice versa traditionally. Also to clarify the Amish don’t practice Braucherei and don’t support it because they are extremely religious community and closed to the outside world usually but they do include Hex Signs in their communities.

Braucherei can range from incantations, energy work, charms, herbalism, and prayers. They also encourage to be practiced along with conventional medical care. A Braucher use to travel in their wagons offering services to those in need with help it’s a valid business for them back then however if your grandmother that practices Braucherei and helped her neighbors with ailments she won’t charge anything as it would seen as helping out of the goodness of her heart. Like I said they work well with conventional medicine so they don’t reject modern medical science or diagnoses rather they encourage it and help them how to treat it properly.

Hex Signs

Hex signs are probably the most popular and common symbols in Pennsylvania Dutch Communities. It’s part of their culture and folk art (Fraktur) which is a significant feature in their community and history. The Distelfink is the most popular and common symbols a bird painted as a welcome sign or symbol of Pennsylvania Dutch as a whole it means good fortune, happiness, and prosperity the name Distelfink in Pennsylvania Dutch means “Thistle Finch” and there is many depictions of it

But it’s not limited to this design usually these signs be painted on barns and usually stars (Schtanne) in circles or flowers (Blumme) if you live in America in the United States these spread across the country as “Barn stars” with a star or star in a circle hanged on your typical American house or barn. In witchcraft we would see hex signs as like sigils or talismans which the Pennsylvania Dutch saw as such each one meaning different ones including what colors were to be used. Warding off evil and bringing good luck was common.

Above are examples of what a hex sign would look like and what the various types and meanings and show of their skill in their artwork.

“Powwow Chair”

The powwow chair is a tool and method for the Braucher to heal or treat the sick. The chair be place in center of the room with a Bible beneath and a person to be seated as the Braucher would hover their hands over the body but not touching and sense the imbalance and use of prayer for the illness of the person wherever the area needs to be treated. Drawing it out and restoring sense of health to the body. You find very similar to reiki or other energy healing practices.

Common treatments

Curing warts with potatoes by rubbing them on the wart and burying it on the property

Colic (livergrown)

Curing thrush - an illness of the mouth by blowing into the mouth and saying the holy trinity

Stopping blood from the verse Ezekiel 16:6

Blowing burns by blowing across the burn

Unrun (insomnia) - believed one is being disturbed by evil spirits and used salt to bless the bed.

Blowing or use of breath is common in not just in Lutheran tradition but in German pagan traditions as Odin/Wodan uses Incantations, blowing, his breath or Galdr for spells of healing and giving life. Martin Luther in his own Basptismal rite would be sign of the cross, anointing oil, blow 3x over the child to banish the devil. Blessing with salt that was blessed on the altar and place the salt in the mouth of the child then anointing with spittle (spit), licking the thumb and make the sign of the cross and over each eye, nostril, mouth, and ears of the child 7x. Mind you it’s back before they knew germs spreading so be mindful of that.

Also they use the Merseburg Charm which is a medieval incantation in Old High German that includes Wodan and Frigg and Baldr. They used this specific charm when Baldr’s horse broke its leg or sprained its leg. The charm in Pennsylvania Dutch folk magic was used for healing horses broken bones and injured limbs since agriculture was a huge part of their income and business plus transportation. In some cases Wodan and the Germanic gods are replaced with Jesus and Christian figures.

“From the bone to marrow

From bone to tendon

From tendon to the flesh

From the flesh to the skin

From the skin to the Har

From the Har into a stone

Fifty fathoms deep.”

This is one of the many incantations found in Pennsylvania in Berks County others in Lebanon where it’s shorten and changed “Flesh and blood, marrow and bone, and sweeny are hard than stone.”

Other means of healing

-Scriptures like I said Braucherei is a Christian form of tradition so a lot of them would use biblical scripture, praying over injuries, writing them backwards, and blowing and such about 3x usually

-Knot work fabric arts like sewing or embroidery are good for symbols, sewing while praying or chanting and drawing strings over wounds.

-Charms for animals said in Pennsylvania Dutch

-Herbs and plants and trees- Potatoes, onions, leeks, but also oil.

-Using biblical metaphors and examples in prayer “cure for snake bite” be treated by a snake prayer found in a Bible of Regina Selzser (1837) “…And God created everything in Heaven and upon the earth, and everything was good, except the snake alone, which he cursed.”

-Cosmological symbology: manuscript from Harrisburg Powwow Book (1853)

“Fire is an element

Which burnth hot water and wind

Thus I pass over ther with my hand,

And ask God to destroy this burn,

Destroy it, destroy it, though to my honor

Make it as dead as the sand by the sea.”

Not limited to other elements, stars, moon, the sun to evoke because they were created by the divine.

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THE CAPITOLINE TRIAD HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH HELLENIC POLYTHEISM IT HAS ROOTS IN ETRUSCAN MYTHOLOGY AND RELIGION FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY KNOW THE DIFFERENCE AND DO NOT SAY IT’S GREEK MYTHOLOGY OR PART HELLENIC POLYTHEISM NOOOO STOP TAGGING IT AS SUCH!!

Okay got that off my damn chest carry on

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American here! Las Vegas, NYC, San Francisco, and Boston

looking for opinions both from americans and non-americans: what would you consider to be the big 4 american cities in terms of like, vibes-based cultural impact?

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Hekate Trimorphis Prayer

O’Hekate

Earth, Sea, and Sky you are Trimorphis!

Three gazed Queen of the crossroads Enodia you are!

Key bearer, Torch bearing

Ever lasting light

Snake biting, dog barking, rumble of horses you are Hekate Trimorphis!

Beneath my feet you are Kthonia, protector of lost souls, the dearly departed, and banisher of evil.

Before me Eninalia, the dweller in the harbor, Medusa of the sea rising her trident as the waves stretch high towards the heavens.

Above me you are Ourania! Celestial goddess of heaven and stars,

Star-walker, shining light of the night

You bear your torch as you pass to and fro from the voiding wheel across the sky

You are Trimorphis!

Let it be so.

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I’ve been seeing this a lot yes there is evil spirits or “trickster spirits” in every religion or practice. When you’re directly communicating with spirits at times a spirit will impersonate that spirit you call upon, does it happen all the time? No the best way is to know the basics of spirit communication and formality with that spirit if it’s a deity you must first pray to them using a epithet or a general prayer then invite that deity into your space by doing so you created a secure link with that deity like a phone line. Plus use protections like salt, wards, sigils, statues, etc energy shield or casting a circle makes that connection even stronger.

If you feel like it’s not the spirit you are calling upon question them if you met this spirit before ask specific questions that you and that known spirit would know, don’t give the answer if that suspected spirit gives the wrong one or doesn’t answer that’s most likely isn’t them. Use code words which I like to use a lot. The most likely reason a impersonation happen when say you are doing a spirit session using a spirit board, you aren’t formal and used the name “Dionysus” for instance without any formality or intention and focus on his energy will result in interruption or interference. “Is Dionysus here with me in this room?” Is informal and starting with that is not ideal.

That being said can you pray to an evil spirits instead of that deity? No, again like I said before you created a secure link between you and that deity using epithets and prayer to reach out including offerings. Plus if you set wards these spirits cannot touch that sacred space. Evil spirits do exist and people tend to forget that. That’s why protection is soooo important when doing spirit work or any deity communication.

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Concerning The Strophalos and Wheels of Hekate

I mention in a previous post a while back about it saying that yes the Strophalos may have not been associated with Hekate originally but it is a ancient wheel. Strophalos wasn’t associated with her but wheels were definitely were especially eight spoke wheels in Lagina on the steps of her temple the stone was carved a eight and four spoke wheels but also charms, amulets, etc. She was associated with the inyx wheel a whirling toy that was used in ritual to draw down power, not specifically associated with her but Aphrodite also used Inyx wheel since it was used for love spells like drawing a lover to the caster.

Now I stand by when I said in the previous posts that you can use Strophalos for Hekate if you feel that’s right in your practice. Many Hekeatens use it including myself and made it Hekate’s modern symbol. However due to historical context and you feel uncomfortable about using the strophalos with Hekate. You can use a eight or four spoke wheel instead, for charms, tools, jewelry, etc.

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You’re very welcome! It’s okay to use some satanist symbols and associations he doesn’t mind it in my experience.

Ok I’m sorry if I get something wrong but this is me trying to learn. Recently, someone offline told me that Christianity’s Lucifer is heavily borrowed from Roman paganism’s minor deity of the same name. But when I try to find info about ancient Rome’s Lucifer, I can barely find things about him and mostly only things relating to the Bible.

Am I completely misinformed or do y’all know some better sources?

I’m guessing there’s prob overlap between helpols and rompols and I’m tryna reach more people so please don’t mind the cross tagging ok

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Lucifer wasn’t burrowed the Roman Catholic Church demonized him to be Satan. We mostly know from Ovid as him being a minor Roman deity of sim, Dawn, and light. I have a blog post all about him if you want to take a look more about his origins. It comes from mythology and folklore.

The fourth star is that of Venus, Luciferus by name. Some say it is Juno's. In many tales it is recorded that it is called Hesperus, too. It seems to be the largest of all stars. Some have said it represents the son of Aurora and Cephalus, who surpassed many in beauty, so that he even vied with Venus, and, as Eratosthenes says, for this reason it is called the star of Venus. It is visible both at dawn and sunset, and so properly has been called both Luciferus and Hesperus - Hyginus, Roman scholar

Aurora, watchful in the reddening dawn, threw wide her crimson doors and rose-filled halls; the Stellae took flight, in marshaled order set by Lucifer who left his station last. - Ovid metamorphosis

Lucifer is said to be herald of dawn and light bringer he carried a jar of light to pour light into the world and catch the catch the stars.

Ok I’m sorry if I get something wrong but this is me trying to learn. Recently, someone offline told me that Christianity’s Lucifer is heavily borrowed from Roman paganism’s minor deity of the same name. But when I try to find info about ancient Rome’s Lucifer, I can barely find things about him and mostly only things relating to the Bible.

Am I completely misinformed or do y’all know some better sources?

I’m guessing there’s prob overlap between helpols and rompols and I’m tryna reach more people so please don’t mind the cross tagging ok

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Witchcraft Weeds

Plantin

This typically seen as a common garden weed here in North America is called “Blackseed Plantin” (Plantago rugelii) but “Broadleaf Plantin” (Plantago major) grow in Europe and Asia and is invasive in America. Blackseed was used by the first people of America by Iroquois, Menominee, Ojibwe, Miami, and Potawatomi tribes.

Uses: Strength, Healing, Protection, Healing Snake bites and repelling snakes.

Associated with the feminine and Planet Venus, element is earth.

It is an edible plant leaves and flowers DO NOT EAT RANDOM PLANTS MAKE SURE REALLY SURE IT IS THE PLANT! But if you go out in your backyard you can find lots of them, Black Seed Plantin particularly have four leaves on bottom and four leaves on top in oval shaped that is flat on the earth that crowns long stems with tiny little green bubs grow on the stem those are tiny seeds. All the plant is edible BUT IF YOU ARE STARTING TO GET RASHES OR NAUSEA STOP EATING IT AND GET PROPER MEDICAL CARE IT’s SIGN OF ALLERGIC REACTION also its advise to not eat it while on blood thinners, best to speak to a doctor or certified herbalist about it before eating it.

In Traditional medicine it was used to fight against headaches, infections, also stops bleeding and helps the digestive system and sore throats. it has been also used for burns, coughs, snakebites, insects sting and bites. But also used as fiber for weaving.

Other uses: Plantin can be used for birdseeds

Anglo Saxon herb

Plantin is Waybread/Waybroad/Waybroed in the Anglo-Saxon herb poem.

And you, Plantin/Wayboard, mother of herbs, open from the East, mighty within. Over you, chariots creaked. Over you, queens rode. Over you, brides cried out. Over you, bulls snorted. You withstood them all. You dashed against them. May you likewise withstand poison and infection and the loathesome foe running through the land.

It’s a important herb in Norse/Germanic paganism to be called “Mother of herbs” that’s a pretty useful and popular herb to be called that.

The Folknames of the plant are: Cuckoo’s Bread, The Leaf of Patrick, Patrick’s Dock, Ripple Grass, St Patrick’s Leaf, Slan-lus, Snakebite, Snakeweed, Waybread, Waybroad, Waybroed, White Man’s Foot

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This makes me feel better about a tree I grew up with behind my childhood home, I think I gave him a name but I got my friends do it but I would come up with his “birthday” and we gifted him rose petals and other things. I am glad I did that, looking back at it now that’s one of the big call signs of being a pagan

the trees you grew up with have not forgotten you. their branches still whisper your name in the breeze and their roots remember the paths your feet once traced through their shade.

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In order to know how to live, you must know death. To know death you must know life.

In order to love you must know pain, to know pain you must know love.

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If you’re someone who preaches love and love will solve anything in the world but still ignoring what’s happening in the world like Gaza where children are being starved and civilians dying and you refuse to see it because “I’m all love and healing.” In order to love is to know the suffering of children, is to know how this genocide is affecting thousands of Palestinians, is to know how many refugees are affected by the invasion of Ukraine, the separation of families and put in camps and having their rights violated in the US, the rise of antisemitism, people’s medical care being stripped away, etc.

If you want to be a healer you have to know pain and suffering not going through yourself of course but acknowledge it and put that “Love and peace” into action. Cause without it it’s meaningless if you refuse to see it. Hippies in the 60s-70s who preached love and peace, protested with Black Panthers, stood with Angela Davis, against Vietnam war because they recognised the oppression, the violence, the colonization, and racism and their own privileges. Not all Hippies had these sentiments but my grandparents were hippies and they taught my mom and she taught me and my sister how to care for people, how to be a good and empathetic person how to help people who marginalized and oppressed.

How does this connect to witchcraft? Well everything, you don’t have to practice baneful magic to make a change where ever you are. Cunning folk, people who practice folk magic and traditions that heal the community is extremely important. To be a healer is to know suffering of the community and what’s going on in the world. When all light go out we have to be a beacon of hope for people who are struggling and its not limited to just spells or rituals. But protesting, donating, and spreading awareness.

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.: jera :.

- The Chaotic Gingers, 2025

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Just something I want to say

If you’re any type of polytheist, witch, or/and pagan with specific traditions from a culture ancient or not, RESEARCH THE HISTORY OF WHERE THESE PRACTICES CAME FROM. I am not talking about TikTok or yes sometimes YouTube has great resources but your best tool is academic works by scholars and historians. If you’re a Hellenic polytheist research Ancient Greece how their religion was different than other parts of Greece, how did these deities came into Hellenic polytheism like Aphrodite or Hekate. What was their society like how they treated women and their roles, festivals, even food. Ancient Norse and Germanic history especially since it’s tainted with nazi ideology and pseudo history, how they used runes, what clothing they wore, where they more agricultural base or sea faring. How Ancient Roman Gods were not copy and pasting Greek mythology they had their own indigenous culture and gods and goddesses.

These are important because to know the gods is to know the people that they worship them in the first place beyond religious worship we intend to forget these cultures still exist and carry on ancient traditions. Why and how these religions came to be was of people polytheism especially Ancient Greco-Roman societies it was imbue in their culture art, music, literature, politics, etc. Best way to learn is actually studying it by reading and listening to and from academic who know what their talking about. I’m not saying you should follow the steps of the ancients but learning the past is honouring the traditions and the gods and those who came before.