spacemagick

[spacemagick]

Fighting Consumerism in Magic

aka, little things to distance your craft from capitalism

Let’s all just admit that buying stuff is fun. That said, there’s a big issue of consumerism within the witchy/pagan scene. As magic work and the pagan “aesthetic” becomes more of a commodity in the mainstream, there’s a mounting attitude of needing All The Items in the highest quality (even if we’re not certain we’ll use them,) and big corporations mass-producing cheap stuff to make a buck off of a growing trend. Here’s some things you can do to help detach your practice from that and support other people in the craft:

Go outside. Check your backyard or local park for local plant life, waters, roots, etc. If your work involves things from nature at all, you can probably find a lot of your supplies… in nature. It takes a little more time, but it’s free and then you’ve gathered stuff yourself! 

Make stuff. This one is pretty straightforward. There may be key items to your practice that you can make yourself instead of buying it! That said, I know sometimes spending money is inevitable so I won’t dwell too much on this… let’s talk more about shopping:

Shop mindfully. The price of a lot of items will skyrocket once it has a pentacle or other symbol engraved on it. For example, little mortars and pestles can be very pricey in witchy shops, but you could probably get a bigger one that’s actually food safe for less at a nice grocery store. Antique stores and international markets are now your new best friends.

Support small businesses! Things are cheaper on Amazon, but the extra money goes to support real people, likely other practitioners. If you can, supporting small, local, independent shopkeepers and crafters does a ton of good. It also helps build and sustain a local community. 

Shop based on need. Don’t get something “just in case” (unless it’s banishing or hex breaking stuff; those are decent to have on hand.) It’s tempting to impulse-buy a ton of niche items and ingredients, but unless you have a reasonable idea what you’re going to use them for in the near future, it’ll probably just create clutter for you to deal with later.

Prioritize effectiveness over aesthetic. Ultimately your practice has to work for you, not just look good. I think making your work aesthetically pleasing to yourself can be an important part of really connecting with what you’re doing, but don’t make that desire burn a hole in your wallet and distract you from what brought you to this path in the first place. Altar envy is a real thing. 

Recycle/Upcycle. Use old clothing fabric for an altar cloth. That old trinket dish makes a great offering dish. Enchant jewelry you already own. That jar of strawberry jelly you just finished off will work just fine for that spell. Things can be re-purposed and made into new things.

Analyze your offerings. Special occasion wine isn’t a special occasion if you do it every time. Not every offering needs to be a grand gesture, regular maintenance is more important generally.

Organize trades. Have any pals that also practice? See if you can help each other! You could trade different goods (that old mini cauldron you bought and never used for that abandoned tarot deck, maybe?) but also services. A protection spell for a luck charm. A reading for a reading. You help them with the laundry and they cook you a meal one day. 

As always, the goal is to foster a local community of individuals doing honest work, and shedding the consumerist mindset society taught us to make us spend more money. Take up the idea that you can do magic completely on your own with what you already around you, and if you do want to spend money, see if you can do it in a way that helps the world a tiny bit.  :) 

[spacemagick]

*grabs Witchblr by the shoulders again* Drink some water. Drink some water. Drink some fucking water.

[spacemagick]

"How can I be a witch/pagan without falling for conspiracy theories/New Age cult stuff?" starter kit

Posts & Articles

Check your conspiracy theory. Does any of it sound like this?

Check your conspiracy theory part two: double, double, boil and trouble.

QAnon is an old form of anti-Semitism in a new package, experts say

Some antisemitic dogwhistles to watch out for

Eugenicist and bioessentialist beliefs about magic

New Age beliefs that derive from racist pseudoscience

The New Age concept of ascension - what is it?

A quick intro to starseeds

Starseeds: Nazis in Space?

Reminder that the lizard alien conspiracy theory is antisemitism

The Ancient Astronaut Hypothesis is Racist and Harmful

The Truth About Atlantis

Why the Nazis were obsessed with finding the lost city of Atlantis

The Nazis' love affair with the occult

Occultism in Nazism

Red flag names in cult survivor resources/groups (all of them are far right conspiracy theorists/grifters)

The legacy of implanted Satanic abuse ‘memories’ is still causing damage today

Why Satanic Panic never really ended

Dangerous Therapy: The Story of Patricia Burgus and Multiple Personality Disorder

Remember a Previous Life? Maybe You Have a Bad Memory

A Case of Reincarnation - Reexamined

Crash and Burn: James Leininger Story Debunked

Debunking Myths About Easter/Ostara

Just How Pagan is Christmas, Really?

The Origins of the Christmas Tree

No, Santa Claus Is Not Inspired By Odin

Why Did The Patriarchal Greeks And Romans Worship Such Powerful Goddesses?

No, Athena Didn't Turn Medusa Into A Monster To Protect Her

Who Was the First God?

Were Ancient Civilizations Conservative Or Liberal?

How Misogyny, Homophobia, and Antisemitism Influence Transphobia

Podcasts & Videos

BS-Free Witchcraft

Angela's Symposium

ESOTERICA

ReligionForBreakfast

Weird Reads With Emily Louise

It's Probably (not!) Aliens

Conspirituality

Miniminuteman

Behind The Bastards

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Nazis will never be welcome in paganism. They have no space in our communities, we will have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to nazis. You have no right to the cultures, gods and religions you hijack to spread your disgusting ideologies. You will find no refuge or comraderie amongst pagans.

Reblog to let nazis know they’re not welcome here.

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Did you know you can download the entire Rider-Waite-Smith tarot deck from the Internet Archive?

The art is in the public domain now, so go wild.

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Meme tarot spread for Evaluating a Plan

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low effort witchy things ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 .ᐟ

first thing in the morning—take three slow deep breaths (air/sky) more grounding than immediately checking a phone

notice your feet on the ground taking root when you stand up for the first time of the day, take a little stretch (earth/land)

wash or splash your face to get alll the way awake. then chug a big glass. (water/sea)

appreciate any trees, plants, dirt, or clouds you see

place both hands on your heart to feel your own heat and warmth. feel your heart beating. “i am alive” (fire)

wear or carry a rock, hagstone, crystal, talisman, or amulet

in times of stress or dissociation, rub your thumb in small circles on the back of your other hand to ground and soothe. (clockwise for attracting an intention, counterclockwise for banishing)

color magic with clothing

add cinnamon, lavender, or peppermint to coffee according to intention if you don’t want to drink tea

stirring tea/coffee according to intention

sometimes i pick a little affirmation for the day— “may i forgive myself” “the universe is within me/the wild is within me”

visualization—inhale a bright light and let it fill your lungs, exhaling clouds of negativity

or create a shield with breathing. with each breath, imagine a bubble forming around your body, then your aura, growing with strength.

cleansing shower at the end of the day (intending it to cleanse my aura makes me more motivated to take one, idkw)

if taking a bath, add a dash of moon water

sniff lavender essential oil before bed

look at the moon, talk to it. remind yourself that it’s the same one your ancestors knew.

[spacemagick]

all the moons of 2024

[spacemagick]

Bedridden Witch Series

For those of you who don’t know me, I suffer from a chronic illness and I spend a LOT of time bedridden. I also happen to be a witch! I don’t let being trapped in bed stop me from practicing my craft. Here are some resources I’ve compiled from my personal experiences and the help of others <3

Bedridden witch - Original edition

Bedridden witch  - Nature edition

Bedridden witch  - Worship edition

Bedridden witch- Divination edition

Bedridden witch - Stale energy edition

Bedridden witch - Elements edition

Bedridden witch - Pastel edition

Bedridden witch - Kitchen edition

Bedridden witch - Winter edition

Bedridden witch - Ocean edition

Bedridden witch - Love edition

Bedridden witch - Weather edition

Bedridden witch - Garden edition

Bedridden witch - Bath edition

Bedridden witch - Wheel of the Year edition

Bedridden witch - Discreet edition

Bedridden witch - The Setup

Bedridden witch - Space edition

Bedridden witch - Seasons edition

Bedridden witch - Solar and Lunar edition

Mini series:

Bedridden witch - Sun edition

Bedridden devotion to Hestia

Click the original post to check for updates! Updated October of 2024

[spacemagick]

Here is a little graphic I did to get people in the mood for Imbolc!

[spacemagick]

low effort witchy things ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 .ᐟ

first thing in the morning—take three slow deep breaths (air/sky) more grounding than immediately checking a phone

notice your feet on the ground taking root when you stand up for the first time of the day, take a little stretch (earth/land)

wash or splash your face to get alll the way awake. then chug a big glass. (water/sea)

appreciate any trees, plants, dirt, or clouds you see

place both hands on your heart to feel your own heat and warmth. feel your heart beating. “i am alive” (fire)

wear or carry a rock, hagstone, crystal, talisman, or amulet

in times of stress or dissociation, rub your thumb in small circles on the back of your other hand to ground and soothe. (clockwise for attracting an intention, counterclockwise for banishing)

color magic with clothing

add cinnamon, lavender, or peppermint to coffee according to intention if you don’t want to drink tea

stirring tea/coffee according to intention

sometimes i pick a little affirmation for the day— “may i forgive myself” “the universe is within me/the wild is within me”

visualization—inhale a bright light and let it fill your lungs, exhaling clouds of negativity

or create a shield with breathing. with each breath, imagine a bubble forming around your body, then your aura, growing with strength.

cleansing shower at the end of the day (intending it to cleanse my aura makes me more motivated to take one, idkw)

if taking a bath, add a dash of moon water

sniff lavender essential oil before bed

look at the moon, talk to it. remind yourself that it’s the same one your ancestors knew.

[spacemagick]

Every spiritual practice should be based on these three pillars:

1.) Study- reading, listening or otherwise absorbing information about your practice, learning about theology, metaphysics, and the theory behind your path.

2.) Contemplation- internalising what you learned through study, connecting it to your experiences and letting it absorb into the way you see the world around you.

3.) Practice- taking what you contemplated on and using it to alter the reality you live in

[spacemagick]

Quick Tips for Grounding

Go outside touch grass. No literally. Spend a moment with your bear feet touching the earth and visualize the grounding energy entering yourself from your soles to the top of your head

Start a journal: Journaling doesn't have to a rigorous routine writing down the who what when where of your life. It can be more relaxed and something you reach for when you need a better understanding of what your actually feeling or wanting.

For those of us with familiars spend some time with them. Not with the goal of getting anything done but with the goal of decompressing and connecting with them. Before you know it you'll be brought back to center and leave grounded.

[spacemagick]

this book is worth more than a dozen restaurants that grow their own microgreens on the roof

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White pagans of today really need to remember that the people of ancient non Christian and pagan religions across the globe have been colonizers and oppressors throughout history, too. Ancient Greeks, ancient Romans, ancient Egyptians, the Vikings, the list goes on.

Religions have been used for the wrong reasons for as long as human civilizations have been a thing. Any religion, in the wrong hands, can become a tool for conquest and destruction.

No religion is inherently "good" or "bad" for being a religion.

[spacemagick]

Your Local Library Can Be A Great Source of Witchy Books

I never expected it either, but my little local library has witchcraft, paganism, and other spiritual books in its' collection. In fact, that is how I first read Kelden's 'The Crooked Path.'

If you want to be more secretive, check to see if you can get a card for e-books. Apps like Libby can help you keep track of books you've read, how far you've progressed in them, and you can request your library to get books that aren't currently available.

It's free, it supports your local library, and if you don't like the book you're reading you are out nothing.

One downside is, is that there is going to some wait time involved. Popular books will have a lot of people in line to rent them.

[spacemagick]

Samhain Traditions

✨ Go for a meditative nature walk. Observe colors, aromas, sounds, and sensations. Contemplate the circle of life and death as crucial parts of nature.

✨ Create a Samhain altar. Incorporate things like skulls, skeletons, ghosts, pumpkins, squash and gourds, nuts and berries, dried leaves and acorns,/‘d cider.

✨ Have a ceremony with food. Invite your friends and family for fruit, veggies, game, dark bread, and apple cider. Light candles around the table while dining.

✨ Create an altar for ancestors. Set up photos of deceased family members, heirlooms, mementos, and votive candles. Speak their names and offer them well wishes. Thank them for their lineage.

✨ Guide spirits. Place a white seven-day candle in the window to guide the dead to the spirit world. Speak a chant of guidance.

✨ Reflect on your life since last Samhain. Consider personal growth and your accomplishments, travels, challenges, adventures, and learnings.

✨ Create bonfire magick. Write down things to release and burn them in a bonfire or even a small cauldron outside. Dance around the fire and thank the universe for its services.

✨ Divine invocations. Call upon the powers that be in nature. Invite them to aid you in your remembrance of the dead and understanding of life, death, and rebirth.

✨ Community connections. Join a group ritual. Exchange ideas, information, and celebration experiences.