#Sumerian polytheism
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Y'all I'm about to start crying (positively) there is a man who has tried to recreate recipes from Mesopotamia and is sharing stories and he wrote a whole cookbook and he is talking about the gods!! He's talking about Inanna! Here is his website it's called Table Of The Gods! The cookbook isn't out yet but I've got the recipe for cookies and I can't wait to make them because they! May have been made her honor!!
#witchblr#deity work#deity worship#devotee#deity devotion#inanna devotee#goddess inanna#witchcraft#pagan#pagan worship#mesopagan#mesopotamian pagan#sumerian polytheist#sumerian polytheism#polythiesm#polytheist#paganblr
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Altar April 22, 2025
🎊🌎 Happy Earth Day 🌍🎊
Gods on Altar: Sunerian Uraš, represented by her cuneiform 𒀭𒅁 and the left candle; Hellenic Gaia, represented by her name in Greek Γαῖα and the right candle. A globe sits between them representing the physical Earth.
Individual libations of water given to each and a joint offering of strawberries and blue berries.
The "entertainment" for this ritual was reading various bits of the Smithsonian Earth book to appreciate its history and composition.
The Homeric Hymn 33 to Gaia — Link
A Hymn to Uraš — Link
#polytheism#paganism#mother nature#mother earth#urash#uraš#gaia#gaea#gê#helpol#hellenic polytheism#ofthetheoi#landof2rivers#hellenic polytheist#sumerian polytheism#sumerian pagan#altar#shrine#sacred space#religion#earth day#celebration day#earth
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Goddess Ishtar on an Akkadian Empire seal, 2350–2150 BCE. She is equipped with weapons on her back, has a horned helmet, places her foot in a dominant posture upon a lion secured by a leash and is accompanied by the star of Shamash. 𒌋𒁯👸🏻⚔️❤️🌿⋆⁺‧₊₊‧⁺⋆𒌋𒁯👸🏻⚔️❤️🌿⋆⁺‧₊₊‧⁺⋆𒌋𒁯👸🏻⚔️❤️🌿⋆⁺‧₊₊‧⁺⋆
source: wikipedia
#Inanna#Ishtar#Sumer#Akkadian Empire#Mesopotamia#Babylonia#babylonian cosmology#babolynian polytheism#mesopotamian polytheism#sumerian cosmology#sumerian polytheism#mesopotamian cosmology#akkadian polytheism#akkadian cosmology#assyrian polytheism#assyrian cosmology#phoenician cosmology#phoenician polytheism#love goddess#fertility goddess#fertility#war goddess#babylonian polytheism#polytheism#The Queen of Heaven#Queen of Heaven#Phoenicia#Astarte
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I’ve started working on my Greek Gods 101 project again. I am a little over halfway done, with only 120 posts left to make. So, when I am done, which pantheon would you like to see next?
For context, I would complete 101 projects on these pantheons the same way I have done with my Greek Gods 101 series. Name, domain, offerings, devotional acts, and holidays.
There are a few I will not be doing. This includes any closed religions and any non-pagan religions (like Hinduism or Shintoism). Most of these religions are closed to me and/or I do not experience the culture surrounding them (as in Shintoism, since it’s so connected to the typical culture).
#deities#hellenism#helpol#hellenic polytheism#norse pagan#norse paganism#norse mythology#egyptian paganism#kemeticism#Kemetic pagan#celtic polytheism#celtic paganism#Sumerian paganism#Sumerian polytheism
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welcome to religious-access! this is an account to provide accessbility to people for religion.
tags on this post will be the commonly used tags for this account!
if you see a tumblr post you'd like to be made accessible, please tag us!
note, we are a system and do not have a dni. we refuse to have one as accessibility is for everyone
this account is run by @borderschizo
#image description#video description#captions#simplified text#plain text#the following tags are related to religions#christianity#protestant#islam#judaism#shintoism#buddhism#zen#pagan#hellenic polytheism#norse paganism#sumerian polytheism#the following tags are related to the language(s) that might be in the posts#not english#japanese
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Today I'm hosting the return of one of the weirdest, drunkest, most entertaining events I get to be a part of: BEER LARP. Breweries compete for the fabled Chalice of Ninkasi by bribing arcade regulars with beer and swag to play in their names. There are no losers

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#2726
I can’t believe I forgot to post this! I drew this shrine to the goddess Inanna and based the statue on a (much smaller) alabaster statue of Ishtar in the Louvre. 🕯️ Hail Inanna, Queen of Heaven! 🕯️

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Sumerian Gods: February/March
Since the Sumerian year starts at the Spring Equinox, the period starting from the Winter Solstice could contain from three to four months. The lunar months of the calendars of the cities have to fit within the solar year of equinoxes. The fourth month (intercalary) was usually inserted by a decree from the King. In […]Sumerian Gods: February/March

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#A.D.#After (Christ&039;s) Death#B.C.#before christ#dark gods#EL#God#gods#old gods#paganism#polytheism#polytheist#polytheist-pagan#polytheists#study of witchcraft#Sumeria#sumerian#sumerian gods#the first gods#the gods#the old gods#witch#witch stuff#witchcraft#witches#witchy
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Sumerian names are almost entirely theophoric/religious:


and could be straight up sentences and phrases that had to be abbreviated:



So you end up getting a list like this:

Note: The name list contains both Akkadian and Sumerian there is like 2 or 3 pages worth of context about that in the section.
Meaning if you want to create a Sumerian name that includes colorful or joyous. You would have a name that means "[Deity title/name] is joyful" or "[Deity title/name] makes joyous" or "[Deity title/name] is colorful" something along those lines.
Looking at the examples I can't figure out how the grammar would work but "lugal" and "gunu" would probably both show up in a Sumerian name meaning "The King is colorful"
Words that fall under the deity/name title I have seen throughout various name lists include: King, Lady, sister, mother, 'the man', 'my god', 'the protective deity' or just the actual particular god's name. "King" could mean your personal god or the chief god of the city— such as Nanna if you were born in Ur. A specific name, like An or Enlil, could mean your personal god if they are identifiable or a god your parents ask to watch over you, and so forth.
I haven't noticed any gender differences. I would assume Ur-Nammu, Servant of Nammu, could be either a woman or a man if you didn't already know that its the name of a king. It could have easily been the name of his queen.
Source: You have to scroll to page 191 (as shown on the top corner of the scanned page not the google page) after clicking "read free of charge." The Sumerian Names are in the "third volume". https://href.li/?https://www.google.com/books/edition/Lists_of_Personal_Names_from_the_Temple/SA8TAAAAYAAJ?hl=en
I link other sources of Mesopotamian (not just Sumerian) name lists in this post about how I chose my own one.
*The alt text for the photos is iPhone generated since I don't have the energy to transcribe.
Hello!
What is a female mesopotamian name or title that means colorful and joyous?
Hello! I'm not sure of a name specifically, as there aren't comprehensive sources on Sumerian names (see my Sumerian onomastics tag for more) - and Sumerian words often weren't gendered the way vocabulary in many European languages is. But I can translate these words for you!
"Colorful" in Sumerian is gunu 𒁯, also meaning "speckled, spotted, multicolored, variegated, decorated," etc.
Hul 𒄾 means "joy, joyful, joyous, joyously, to be joyful" - basically "joy" as any part of speech. It's not to be confused with its homophone, hul 𒅆, which means "evil, hostile, malicious, violently, to destroy".
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Welcome! My name's Dorian, and my blog is 18+ only. I'm primarily a pre-Hellenic to Mycenaean/Minoan polytheist, but loosely include the Archaic era in my worship, and I'm a Sumerian and Irish polytheist. I am a devotee of Hermes, Peitho, and the Kharites. I worship Athene, Rheia (Mater Theia), Hera, Leto, Maia, the Pleiades & Hyades, Okeanos, Tethys, the Okeanids, the Nereids, the Nymphai as a whole, Hemera, Aphrodite, Artemis, Hekate, Hestia, Demeter, Diwia, Dionysos, Persephone, Poseidon, the Horai, Selene, Hāwélios (sun goddess, possibly Helen), Eos, the Erinyes, Mnemosyne, Themis, Gaia, An Callieach, Grian, Mebd Lethderg, Ereshkigal, and Inanna. I honor Zeus, Apollon, Hephaistos, Ares, the Mousai, and many more gods across the pantheons I worship. Penthesileia, the Dioskouroi, the Amazons (as a whole), and Perseus are a part of the heroes I honor.
My worship is complicated, as I rely on archaeology, and as close to a yes as I can get from scholars studying the eras the gods in my life exist in, with sources backing it. Separating (Minoan/Mycenaean/pre-Hellenic) gods into realms and limits of what they do or rule over isn't a part of my praxis, even more so than what is found in Hellenic polytheism. My worship mainly revolves around nature, writing, space/stars, and knowledge as the most important fixtures. Hermes is the Lord of the Dead and Death, Demeter & Persephone are also Rulers of the Underworld, as well as Poseidon, Hekate, Maia, and Dionysos are heavily involved in the underworld, where the answer is yes to who's what. Hera, Poseidon, and Rheia are leaders in their (original) pantheons. Athene, Hermes, and Hestia are all primary home gods, while Athene leans more heavily into defending/protection than being war-centric. Aphrodite is Cyprus' mother goddess (for me), and Artemis is not a maiden goddess in my worship. Finally, caves and trees are very important in my practice.
All my writing related to worship can be found here: devotional masterpost.
Finally, I am a godspouse to Hermes and godpartner to Artemis and Aphrodite, as well as potentially a fourth that’ll never be mentioned here due to both of our wishes. All I ask is that this last part is respected as I’m an adult and it’s not hurting anyone, if I wanted your criticism and distaste for it, I will ask at a later date for just that.
Links:
Old tag / New tag for my other religious posts Worshipping Maia Introduction to Worshipping Hemera My experience with the Kharites (and resources on them) Worshipping the Mousai (resources) Worshipping the Nereids (resources) Want to worship Peitho? Here you go: one, two, three Lists: Knowledge, Winds/Storms, Flower, Curses/Magic, Day & Night, Pride Celebration Gods Epithets of Leto Epithets of Hermes, Hermes Epithets Continuation Epithets of Athene Epithets of the Pleiades (and by extension, the Hyades) Epithets of Rheia Epithets of Hestia I find Hermes ___ I find Artemis ___ My Hermes playlist My Peitho playlist My Aphrodite playlist
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How did you discover/First start working with Inanna?
:)
This is a long one, as Inanna has been around my whole life. I just didn't always know who she was. I first read her name my senior year of high school, but she's been with me for a decade at least.
I first learned of the Gods when I was about 9, reading Percy Jackson. I would burn offerings to them as the characters did, bury offerings in the backyard, light candles for them, pray to them. I even had an altar set up for them, full of grass, acorns, flowers, feathers. I lived on a farm, and was an odd kid so it wasn't weird. (I still have and read those books)
I don't know how old I was when I first started seeing signs, but the first sign I remember is the tree of life. I saw it everywhere, I had to have been about 11-13 because I had easy access to the internet and I saw that Lady Athena was associated with it, so I thought it was her. But after a few months i realized I still felt the presence on top of Athena, and she felt more feminine than Athena, so maybe it was Athena and Aphrodite, but the presence of Athena and Aphrodite both feel different than my presence, so maybe it's Artemis? Still not correct, maybe it's Freyja? Maybe it's all of them? Maybe more? It took a while for me to keep collecting deities like Pokémon cards, at one point I was trying to work with just about every deity I thought it was, but none of them felt right. They all felt distinctive, but different than what I felt when I saw the tree of life. I could feel her presence all the time, but I couldn't find out who she was. It went on for years, i think I hit 16 and burned myself out trying to do everything. I was lost and confused, and I stopped trying. At 17 I tried to get back into it but still tried working with everyone. I realized that the path I took must be wrong, I must've messed up somewhere. I cut off the very strained relationships with the various deities and tried again with only Athena.
Lady Athena did interact with me, but she knew I wasn't meant to work with her, at least not yet. She was kind, but she wasn't very interactive. I felt like I had pissed everyone off and that nothing I did was good, the only thing that I ever did was make mistakes.
I was a senior in high school and I had pretty much completely grown stagnant in my practice. I had cards but I never used them, my pendulum never left my room, I was bored and drained and tired of everything. And then I had to read the Epic Of Gilgamesh and Inanna was named and something clicked. I immediately started googling her (did not finish my work that day) and read about the huluupu tree, one of her myths, and it felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. Like I was in the audience of a show that was about to begin and in that moment she stepped on stage and revealed herself. She is the presence I had felt since I was kid.
But that's not where my mistakes ended. I didn't officially end my relationships with everyone else, I just sort of cast them aside. Eventually I felt that tension, I got into a bad place physically and mentally, and I stopped doing everything. Inanna never abandoned me, she never left me, she stuck with me, until I eventually got myself together, apologized to everyone I had tried to work with, and told her I was ready to get back into it.
It's been a long road. But ultimately it's all worked out.
#witchcraft#deity work#deity worship#devotee#deity devotion#inanna devotee#goddess inanna#mesopagan#mesopotamian pagan#sumerian deity#paganblr#pagan worship#pagan#sumerian polytheism#polytheism#polytheist
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Altar for Emesh the Spring Equinox ☀️🌷 Celebrated March 28, 2025
Gods on Altar: Inana, Dumuzid (black beads), Ĝeštinana (white beads)
Here is the full altar set up pre-ritual on the actual Spring Equinox — Link
I gave praise prayer to Inana, a prayer of joy for Dumuzid, and a lament for Ĝeštinana. I supplicated for global food security. Did readings for foundation of Emesh, one for Inana & Dumuzid's initial marriage, and one for their reunion. I played a recording of historical-informed Spring & Summer by Vivaldi. A libation was poured out for Dumuzid & Ĝeštinana separately as one is ascending and one is descending. The food offering was cut peaches. Dumuzid's black beads were placed on Inana his wife and will stay for the duration of Spring/Summer. Ĝeštinana's white beads are on Gugal-ana, My Queen Ereškigal's husband for now. It seemed the most appropriate place. The beads will switch at the Fall Equinox— Enten (Winter).
This is a modern ritual celebrating the arrival of Emesh (Sumerian Summer). There were historical festivals of Dumuzid's dying cult but I have found nothing I could use as a basis. [Edit: within Mesopotamian proper there seems to be no evidence of any "rising" cult based on Ayali-Darshan Noga, so this is fully based on Inana's descent]
I localized this practice to celebrate my Spring/Summer and the arrival of Dumuzid because Spring/Summer is the planting and growing season in my region. Unlike Sumer which was the exact opposite; Dumuzid would die at this time in their climate and agriculture cycle. I did ask the Diĝirene in ritual to allow me to swap them.
Localizing Practice — Link.
Praise for the Return of Dumuzid — Link
Lamentation for Ĝeštinana — Link
Emesh Prayer for Global Food Security — Link
The Spring & Summer historical informed performance of Vivaldi that I used — Link
#polytheism#paganism#landof2rivers#sumerian deity#sumerian polytheism#mesopotamian polytheism#levpag#inanna#inana#dumuzi#dumuzid#Ĝeštinana#geshtinanna#spring#spring equinox#shrine#altar#ritual#emesh#holiday#celebration day#izkurereshkigal altars
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If we study the literature of the ancient Babylonians and Sumerians, we can no longer believe the description of "pagan" religion that has long been part of Western tradition and is still often found in modern religious writing. Instead of capricious gods acting only in pursuit of their own desires, we meet deities concerned with the proper ordering of the universe and the regulation of history. Instead of divine cruelty and arrogance, we find deliberation and understanding. Instead of lawlessness and violence, we see a developed legal system and a long tradition of reflective jurisprudence. Instead of immoral attitudes and behavior, we find moral deliberation, philosophical speculation, and penitential prayer. Instead of wild orgiastic rites, we read of hymns, processions, sacrifices, and prayers. Instead of the benighted paganism of the Western imagination, cuneiform literature reveals to us an ethical polytheism that commands serious attention and respect.
But this new valuation of paganism creates its own dilemmas and awakens new questions. If the Bible is not the first dawn of enlightenment in a world of total darkness, then what is it? If polytheism was not the dark disaster that our cultural tradition has imagined it to be, why was it abandoned in Israel and replaced by biblical monotheism? If the old religions swept away by our own monotheist tradition were not grossly deficient, how can we find the precise significance of one God as opposed to the many? How does a monotheistic religion develop? Did the god of Israel simply absorb all the functions and attributes of the pagan gods, essentially changing nothing? Or did monotheism represent a radical break with the past after all, a break not as simply defined and immediately apparent as has been believed, but no less revolutionary?
The discovery of advanced polytheism poses a central theological issue: if polytheism can have such positive attributes, what is the purpose of monotheism? Did the Bible simply substitute another system, one that represented no advance towards a better understanding of the universe and a more equitable way of living? Indeed, were there some aspects of paganism lost in the transition that present, in fact, a more positive way of living in the world? The immediacy of these issues makes imperative an analysis of the nature of paganism and the precise nuances and essential messages of the monotheist revolution of the Bible. We cannot build our spiritual quest on prejudiced assumptions and polemical attributions. We must attain a profound knowledge of ancient polytheism and a sophisticated reading of the biblical texts informed by this knowledge. Thanks to the discovery of ancient Near Eastern literature, we have the ability to study these questions, understand our own past religious development, and make informed contributions to our future.
-Tikva Frymer-Kensky, In the Wake of the Goddesses: Women, Culture, and the Biblical Transformation of Pagan Myth
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Mušḫuššu dragon from the Isthar Gate 𒈲𒍽
#Inanna#Ishtar#Sumer#Akkadian Empire#Mesopotamia#Babylonia#babylonian cosmology#babalonian polytheism#mesopotamian polytheism#sumerian cosmology#sumerian polytheism#mesopotamian cosmology#akkadian polytheism#akkadian cosmology#assyrian polytheism#assyrian cosmology#phoenician cosmology#phoenician polytheism#love goddess#fertility goddess#paganism#war goddess#babylonian polytheism#polytheism#The Queen of Heaven#Queen of Heaven#Phoenicia#Astarte
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Bible used for spell work . 🖤🤍✝️🛐✡️
Did you know that the Bible, along with other traditionally Christian items like rosaries and icons of Saints and even the Eucharist, have been used in folk magic for centuries? From English Devon folk magic to Italian folk magic, from superstitions and syncretic practices to prayer books such as the Slovenian Kolomonov Žegen, the use of Christian iconography, literature, figures, and holy names (like the name of Jesus Himself) have featured prominently in some of the most potent magical acts and procedures.
When it comes to witchcraft today, though, people traditionally think of a Book of Shadows or a grimoire—a book full of a witch’s spells, information, and good old fashioned trial and error that they’ve accumulated over the years. These books are wonderful treasures as they continue to be filled, full of spells and incantations and prayers created by the practitioner that have been proven to work, and many people write them with the specific intent of passing them on to children or apprentices or other practitioners.
But one often overlooked resource, especially for those looking to reconnect with the folk culture of their ancestors, is none other than the Bible itself. Within it are many different sections that can be used to focus one’s magic, as has been done over the centuries by Christian cunningfolk and other magicians—often with the intent of defending against harmful or evil intentions from other practitioners. And given that so many members of the Abrahamic faiths use actual pieces of scripture in protections (like the Jewish mezzuzah or the different types of wearable amulets with pieces of the Qu’ran inside), the power of the Word of God is acknowledged even among those who have nothing to do with the concept of magic and the Craft.
Of course, it’s strange to think about for many a modern witch–the idea that magic is not only possible, but prolific in religions that seemingly condemn it so harshly—but the reality is that no religion can truly be operated without magic. How else would we interact directly with our God, exorcise evil spirits, or transmute our Eucharist? This is why you might notice a group of Christians calling themselves witches, using the modern idea or witchcraft that spawned thanks to Wicca and 90’s new age spirituality as a type of cultural shorthand to explain the spiritual work we’ve always done.
In fact, the words used to denote witchcraft in the Bible were actually ones that dealt with specifically harmful or foreign magic, which both Abrahamic and other religions had issues with (including Babylonian, Sumerian, Greek, and Roman polytheism). It’s also why you’ll see so much of what we would call witchcraft today in European and Christian folk magic dedicated to warding against witchcraft (like German mothers putting lavender under their children’s beds to protect from evil magic, Slovenian unwitchers doing elaborate prayers and rituals to break curses, or cunningfolk doing counter magic on cheese that allegedly wouldn’t curdle right due to a witch’s curse). When you’re a rural European farmer who can’t afford to wait for a doctor or a priest, the only option is to learn defensive and healing magic for yourself.
I myself am a Christian witch, and I can tell you firsthand: Christian magic is a staple in our ancestors’ interactions with God, especially when tools like the Bible are involved. And, of course, the more of your own folk practice and ancestral traditions you learn, the more unique and inventive the magic gets. As a Christian Witch goes about learning more of their heritage and ancestral practices, however, it’s good to know the basics of using the Bible in witchcraft—so let’s talk about it!
DIVINATION WITH THE BIBLE (BIBLIOMANCY) A seasoned witch will tell you that before any spellwork or ritual, it’s wise to do some divination with your guides, whoever they may be.
As a Christian witch, our foremost guide is, naturally, God. And there’s an age-old practice that many Christians might not think of as divination, but absolutely fits the bill, and that’s bibliomancy.
Bibliomancy, as the word suggests, is any sort of information we can gather from a book (any book, not just the Bible). After all, that first part of the word, biblio- shows up in more than just the Bible, right? Think of a bibliography, a list of compiled sources, or a bibliophile, a person who’s really enthusiastic about books. But when it comes to bibliomancy, the Bible is certainly a top contender for the divinatory tool of choice, even if plenty of other interesting books are available on your shelf.
Bibliomancy is simple. Just like shuffling a deck of oracle or tarot cards, you want to really focus on your question and intention. Hold it in your mind even after you ask God, and then open your Bible and flip the pages until you feel compelled to stop. You may feel a sensation like:
A tingle in your ear or at your fingertips A sudden silence in the mind that interrupts your flow & catches your attention A heavy feeling in your stomach when you reach a certain section Whatever your intuitive signs are that you’re used to with other methods of divination, look for that here and fish out a specific part of the page with it. You might find yourself landing on a verse of Scripture, or you may find yourself looking at an insightful footnote you didn’t consider before. Either way, thank God for His attention and HIs message, and decide from there whether or not spellwork is even a good idea that day.
PSALMS & PROVERBS FOR QUICK CASTING Once you’ve gotten your divination out of the way, the first thing you’ll hear anyone tell you about using the Bible for witchcraft is that the Psalms are insanely overpowered.
And they’re right!
One of the most prime examples of a powerful Psalm is none other than Psalm 109—an imprecatory Psalm, meaning one in which the speaker asks God to incite some serious punishment on whoever did something wrong. My Bible, the Jewish Study Bible, notes that because of its focus on what words were said against the speaker, and the long string of asks that come after pleading their case to God, it’s entirely reasonable to say that this Psalm was actually written as a counter curse.
It’s awfully brutal for a counter curse, I will say. But it is an example of magic you can use through the Bible, especially if you’re looking for quick, pre-written incantations or spells that hit the mark. The Psalms and Proverbs are so varied in their talking points, purposes, and themes that you can find one for pretty much any occasion, and when you read them aloud with the intention of them being a spell—really connecting to God and channeling down His blessings through your own magic—you’ll find it’s like the difference between a static shock from your sweater and a full on lightning blast.
And remember: you don’t have to use an entire Psalm or Proverb (they run quite long!). Sometimes, just a verse or two is enough to get your point across and focus your magic and intention in your spellwork.
Some of my personal favorites include:
Psalm 147 (for emotional healing & fortification) Psalm 146 (anti-gossip and slander) Psalm 81, 142 (security & comfort) Psalm 39:13-14 (A great opening section for plainly stating a request later) Proverbs 1, 8 (Wisdom/Knowledge) Proverbs 3:9-12 (Prosperity) Proverbs 17 (Peace/Anti-Conflict) Proverbs 22 (Softness of Heart against greedy folks) Proverbs 31:25 (Empowerment/Anti-Anxiety)
THEMATIC RITUALS AND INGREDIENT INSPIRATION Lastly, those who know the Bible well and know the story inside and out will find all kinds of beautiful lessons tucked in between all the raw humanity of this book. Yes, you read that right, and I’ll repeat it again: the Bible, the Word of God, is such an inherently human and vulnerable and raw book, full of tragedy and celebration side by side, just as Life itself is.
But when you know the stories, and you can pull out core lessons, you can actually find a lot of fantastic focusing or centering verses and chapters to build your spells around. I’ve even made amulets with lockets that have a verse number or bit of Scripture tucked inside, along with corresponding herbs and spices and other such things. All of the Psalms and Proverbs I listed have their functions, including anti-anxiety, but they’re not the only ones that can do that!
For instance, one of the most powerful pieces of the Gospel for spellwork is none other than Jesus’s admonishment of his disciples in Matthew 6:25-34:
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Jesus had a lot of wonderful things to say that can strengthen us even in the darkest of times, and those make for some powerful magic. In fact, it’s Jesus Himself that delivers the secret of Christian magic in the Gospels: faith, even that the size of a mustard seed, can move mountains.
Speaking of the mustard seed, though, now’s also a good time to mention: the Bible has quite a few spots that signify specific stones, incenses, herbs, and spices throughout its stories. Frankincense, after all, isn’t only something offered to Jesus and His family when He’s born; it’s also an integral part of the holy incense of the very Temple of God. And mint, anise or dill (depending on translation), and cumin are among the spices Jesus mentions as being a tithe in Matthew 23:23, too—along with justice, mercy, and faith. When you find mention of herbs, spices, or other abstract concepts like these, pay attention!
They’re significant to God, and when you combine their associations in the Bible (rue and hyssop, for instance, being apotropaic, along with lamb’s blood or cedar), with traditional witchy associations with them, you can get a lot more bang for your buck. Mustard has always meant power and passion thanks to its fiery, Mars-based associations, but combining it with its ability to surprise us with its aggressive growth and its representative qualities regarding faith, it gets all the more important.
You might also take the time to learn from cultural practices that become apparent in places like Leviticus 14, which is a ritual to cure people of leprosy, or in the story of Jesus casting demons into a herd of pigs. Both of these represent the idea of giving an evil spirit or malady somewhere else to attach to (the bird, the pigs) and driving it away from the afflicted person. That’s some powerful banishment and exorcism technique!
GET CREATIVE WITH THE BIBLE AND MAX OUT YOUR SPELLWORK All in all, like any other magic, what matters with using the Bible in spellwork is how creative you are in applying it. The book contains the hopes, dreams, fervor, and faith of millions of people over the course of thousands of years, and it’s also had the honest energy and belief of millions more poured into it as a sacred object. Even if God’s power weren’t in that book, that alone would make the Bible super powerful as a magical focusing tool and ritual item.
Whatever your intention is, I can almost guarantee you can find a verse to match it, so go wild! And even if you aren’t Christian, chances are that you have ancestors that might’ve been (or who had to use the cover of Christianity to cloak the magical work they did as folk magicians). The Bible is powerful on its own, and there are so many instances of syncretic crossovers in folk magic (such as German folk magic, where many pagan practitioners still incorporate items such as rosaries and Bible verses into their spells and ritual workings). But also remember, that when it comes to Christian Witches, the place our power comes from isn’t a book (even if it is God’s word): it’s God. So when a Christian uses their magic to connect to Him, that’s where the real power lies.
No matter your background, and no matter your beliefs, though, remember to stay safe in your spellcasting, take your proper precautions, and overall just enjoy the moment. Happy witching!
#folk magic#spellcraft#paganblr#traditional witchcraft#book of shadows#witchcraft community#witches of tumblr#witch stuff#pagan wicca#eclectic witch#HexePrietess#german#french#state#louisiana#common#new york#california#cannabis#armstrongblood#energy#meditation
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Hi, I'm a multigender trans intersex person (bigender transmascfem androgyne, sometimes agender) and I've been feeling a calling towards some kind of occult / pagan / witchcraft practice but am having a very hard time finding anything that will honor both my multigenderness and my intersex body/variation. I was wondering if you knew of any resources or specific practices that might be accepting of this? I had a friend tell me to try out Wicca but it seemed to be very binary-focused in everything I read. Thank you so much for your time!
Wicca is definitely pretty binary focused. Its also diverse and there are many different ways of practicing Wicca, but the fundamental theology is based in a strict binary of the Mother Goddess and the Horned God, and a lot of its beliefs are based on this balance of male/female. As a result much of early Wicca (and some modern Wicca) was very homophobic & gender-sex essentialist (there's also Dianic Wicca, which is goddess-centric and therefore very popular with TERFs). There are trans Wiccans & Wiccan paths which are less binary (or less strict about it), but I wouldn't blame you for not wanting to engage with it.
With Witchcraft, there's a lot more room because "witchcraft" itself isn't its own spiritual tradition as much as a practice or skill you can engage in. In a very general sense Witchcraft is "doing x thing to get y result (through some spiritual/supernatural/mystical method)," so how much you get into cissexism and binary thinking is really dependent on how you see things. For example, a Wiccan might have a very binary view of magic & spiritual energy, but another person might not consider gender at all when doing magic.
A lot of European & WANA (West Asia North Africa) polytheism has some genderfuckery somehwere in its mythology. Inanna/Ishtar in Sumerian/Akkadian/Assyrian polytheism is one example: you might be aware that She had transfeminine devotees called the gala, and she was described as having the ability to "turn a man into a woman and a woman into a man." She has a myth where she descends into the Underworld to confront her sister Ereškigal and gets trapped there. To get her out, Enlil/Ea creates either two sexless beings (gala-tura and kur-jara), or one androgynous being/eunuch (Asušunamir) to save her.
There's also Cybele/Magna Mater in Rome, who also had transfeminine devotees called galli. In Greek polytheism, there is Dionysus, who was heavily associated with gender non-conformity, having been raised as a girl in some versions & having the epithet Androgynos. Aphrodite has the form Aphroditus, who has a beard penis and was worshipped by male and female devotees through crossdressing rituals, and generally her role as Aphrodite Pandemos, a love goddess for all people, has made her popular with queer polytheists. There is also Hermaphroditus, the child of Aphrodite and Hermes, who became intersex/genderqueer when he joined bodies with the nymph Salmacis; a pool formed where this happened that was said to have the ability to androgynize anyone who bathed in it. They were, as you can imagine, heavily associated with androgyny and the union of male and female. In Norse Heathenry, Loki has been seen as an androgynous figure; he transforms into a woman/female animal in multiple myths, and in the Hyndluljóð he eats the heart of a woman and gives birth to several creatures.
There are definitely other deities who have androgynous aspects who I'm forgetting, but in general you can find a lot of genderqueerness throughout polytheist religion. Although there are still transphobic & intersexist witches/pagans/polytheists, and those who use ancient patriarchal practices to justify their behavior. In general I'd recommend seeking out specifically trans & intersex pagans/polytheists/witches and learning from their practices to see what calls to you. Even beyond ancient practices, a lot of modern trans & intersex polytheists worship modern, specifically trans forms of otherwise binary deities. so don't feel the need to limit yourself to just what people in the past practiced. I hope this was helpful.
#m.#ask box#advice#hellenic polytheism#heathenry#aššurism#religio romana#witchcraft#trans witch#trans pagan#intersex witch#intersex pagan#trans devotees#aphrodite#aphroditus#hermaphroditos#inanna#asušunamir#cybele#magna mater#loki
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