#don't do witchtok shit

[khaire-traveler]

Hi! Sorry to bother you, you can delete this ask if it will overwhelming somehow.

How do I become a good follower? Whenever I see posts about paganism and/or polytheism on the internet, it's people talking about receiving signs, how their Deities talked to them, how they feel them, and I don't get any of that and it makes me feel really bad.

Maybe there are some kind of exercises or something else to experience what all other people do? Do you have any advice?

Thank you, if you will answer this ask.

Hey, Nonny, thank you for your patience!

Most of the time, people on the Internet are exaggerating or wording things in a very casual way (when in reality, it looked a lot different or took a lot more work to figure out). Honestly, the best thing you can do for yourself - as a follower or even as a person - is try not to compare yourself to others. Practices vary wildly from each other, and what works for one person may not actually work for you anyway. Maybe your happiness will be found through other means.

Nonny, you're not doing anything wrong by not receiving/interpreting signs or whatnot. You're not a bad follower for not catching onto such things. I'm certain your deities wouldn't dislike you over something like that. It's also likely that they do send you signs, but you aren't used to interpreting them yet. Or maybe they're waiting for you to ask for signs! You're more than welcome to simply ask directly. I promise they're not as scary as some people make them out to be.

As for things you can do to practice, I'm honestly not sure. I'll try to provide some suggestions anyway, though. You could try deity meditations where you focus on the thought of a deity for awhile, maybe listening to peaceful music that reminds you of them. You could try identifying the "energy" of offerings you've given them, as those are likely to have the deity's energy on them. You could light a candle in honor of that deity and ask for them to increase the strength of their energy/presence while closing your eyes and attempting to focus on it. I'd recommend looking at my pinned post in the Deities & Entities section. I have a lot of more useful information there, most likely.

But I'll be honest and say that sometimes people are just headblind - meaning you can't really feel anything spiritually at all. There's nothing wrong with it if you are. I'm not saying that's an issue for you, by the way, but I think it's important to acknowledge the possibility.

I do also want to say that "talking with deities" is a very common thing I see on sites like TikTok, though, and I strongly advise you to 1. not listen to a damn thing you see on TikTok and 2. be extremely skeptical of the experiences people are willing to share online. Oftentimes, and I hate to say it, people tend to post such things for the attention they get. Either that, or when they say they "talked" to a deity, they really mean that they sat down and did divination or had a meditation. I say these things to make it clear that many of the things you'll see online are not 100% true to the way it actually happened. Sometimes people just make shit up, too; I see that happening constantly, especially on PaganTok and WitchTok. I cannot stress enough that you don't go there for genuine information. In fact, I highly recommend trying to read books on such topics rather than Google them or read about them online; that's where you'll find the best information!

But yeah, this is what I have to say: deities love us for who we are, not for someone we wish we were. They love us for the person we actually are, and in my experience, they enjoy it when we are ourselves in our worship. They tend to support authenticity. Instead of trying to be someone else, focus on who you already are, and the many strengths and talents that you may not even be aware of yet. Maybe you're amazing at different types of divination! Maybe you're fantastic at dream interpretation! May you're a wiz at bird identification (something I see a lot for deity signs)! Focus on learning more about yourself and less about others. You are talented, worthy, and powerful in your own way. And it's a beautiful thing to be you, to be who you are.

I hope this helped, Nonny! Please take care, and I wish you the best on your newfound journey. Have a good day/night. 🧡

[gothicprep]

in december, many of us watched a 4 hour long argument about plagiarism on youtube, and how bad this is for creativity more broadly. but here's another thing that bugs the hell out of me, that i'd argue is just as bad for creativity online: influencer circle-jerk. luckily, i can make my case for how disheartening this is in under 4 hours.

there's a podcast i listen to sometimes called otherworld. it's aiming to be the "this american life" of ghost stories, but its secondary purpose is also to give advertising plugs to the host's insufferable LA transplant friends. it's incidentally good when it's not doing that, but it's insufferable to listen to when it is.

some of the podcast guests include:

bonnie mckee, songwriter for the worst things that plagued your ears in the early 2010s, such as "california gurls" by katy perry and "dynamite" by taio cruz. poor bonnie's solo career never really took off – can't imagine why that is – but she's still giving it a go. incidentally, she started re-recording some songs that were left on the cutting room floor for an earlier album of hers in 2022, which lines up with when she appeared on the pod.

kareem rahma, also known as kareem on instagram, host of a tiktok series that's basically just bothering people on the subway for content. he's also co-founder of something called "nameless network", with some ex-vice employees (put a pin in vice, we'll come back to it later). the purpose of the company is making viral hack shit: "i promise this made for instagram pizza museum is more than a cynical waste of your time. pwomise 🥺". hmm, what do you know. vice is the outlet covering it. the host says they met at a dinner party thing in los angeles.

two episodes about a married couple named sean johns and gina. they're psychics but the real deal! there's definitely a real deal for this sort of thing! the wife is, as you may have already guessed, big on tiktok, and you should listen to her because she uhhh knows what she's talking about for real. not like those other fraudulent people on witchtok (which is all of them, including her, but whatever). unfortunately i forget what her handle was, but i'm sure someone who has more time on their hands to dig for it can dredge it up.

two more episodes with, what do you know, a clairvoyant. did you know that she's the real deal and not one of those fake ones? she's referenced in the episode series prior to this, and what a fucking coincidence, the host of the show had an appointment with her before he began this project. oh, and someone from a more recent episode happened to be a client of hers too. (side note: one episode has a recorded reading of hers, and it'll come as no shock to anyone, but she's just as vague as every other hippie con artist who does this shit for a living)

one guest named alex doesn't outwardly seem like he's an influencer or trying to be, but it's probably worth noting that he's told the same story on at least one other podcast, so who knows what this guy's motivations are

gabi abrao, another influencer and one of the countless writers riding rupi kuar's coattails. i probably don't need to elaborate further.

actress and comedian sarah sherman guest hosts one of the episodes for no clear reason.

jack corbett, who makes bad tiktoks about economics for npr, is another guest. i'd be more forgiving of him, because i don't think it's possible to make good tiktoks about economics, but sadly his episode was one of the worst on the show. guy gets drunk after a bad breakup, fucks his leg up, blames it on tiktok astrologers cursing him. whatever dude. and get this – he and the host both say that they met at the same dinner party that the kareem guy i mentioned earlier was at.

bear in mind, this is only nine episodes out of a 65 episode show, but i think that's enough to say that there's at least some clout-sharkery going on. it doesn't help that the "official" subreddit – meaning, the one moderated by one of the show's producers – has a tendency to go dark when the fans complain about one of the guests. this happened with the psychic married couple and the npr tiktok guy. it's one of those things that makes you wonder if the motivation behind the blackouts is that the complaints give away that this is a bad avenue to plug your shit.

i'm not the only one who's suspicious of this. see this post on the fanmade sub, which asks, "what are the odds that this podcast is total bullshit?" OP defends this in part by saying, "Jack [the host] literally got famous from being a troll/social media guru/guy who’s good at making things go viral"

about that. you might remember this dumb thing that went viral in 2018 of a mural in LA that only influencers could take pictures at. it ended up being a publicity stunt to promote a webshow that jack from this podcast was attached to. what makes that vice article i linked to, imo, really unethical is that the author, justin caffier, is friends with jack. or at the very least, well-acquainted enough that jack was a guest on an episode of caffier's podcast that was published a few months earlier.

i don't know. when you dig shit like this up, it just seems like there's so much content out there that's mostly created as avenues for the worst people alive to network with one another. or if not that, this is the foundation for an argument that those vice pieces like "some fucking idiots took 20 tabs of LSD in the desert" solely exist for whoever wrote them to advertise their vapid friends' social media whatever. and nothing good ever comes out of it. it's a shallow gambit for quick money and attention, designed to be thrown away and forgotten about in 2 weeks. it's depressing!

jack holds that "otherwold isn't a show about the paranormal, it's a show about people". and given all this, that statement feels revealing.

[creature-wizard]

Man, witchtok and witchbook sure do love the narrative that Christianity stole everything from them, huh?

So I see that you asked a mutual of mine the same question, while also asking what can be done about this problem. Since said mutual suggested that you come to me for advice here, that's what I'll post.

First of all, understand that this is nothing new. this has always been a popular narrative among neopagans, because it gives people a narrative in which they can frame and talk about their grievances with society. "The Catholic Church stole Christmas" isn't factually true, but it's easier to learn and spread than advanced socioeconomics. People believing this stuff is not a personal failing. It's a consequence of systemic failure. We live in an information crisis, with conservatives effectively sabotaging education at every turn and algorithmic feeds designed to serve up whatever will get the most clicks, not what's most accurate.

The problem, therefore, must be addressed systemically. This means participating in politics, voting on whatever elections you can vote on, spreading relative political news, whatever. Do whatever you can do keep the GOP out of power or from gaining more power. Get involved in political activism circles if you aren't already.

You can also put out your own information to counter the misinformation, and boost or promote good info. Work with the limitations of social media - short, memeable content is always more likely to spread.

When you catch yourself wanting to complain about something you hate, try to find a way to transform it into praise for something you love. Like instead of complaining about people who post misinformation about the goddess Aphrodite, find some cool facts about Aphrodite to post instead.

When you're creating educational content of any kind, follow this very simple guideline: don't shit on the dinner table. That is, don't mix big ranting gripes in with content meant to educate the masses. If you got a big gripe to get out of your system, put that gripe in its own space.

When you do have to address incorrect beliefs specifically, try to avoid shaming believers, because not only does it not work, it's just unnecessary cruelty. Nobody misinforms themselves on purpose. Nobody wants to be a bad person. What we have are a lot of people suffering from systemic fuckery and just want to not feel sad, scared, and helpless, because feeling that way hurts.

(This post is an example of how I took something frustrating and put a positive spin on it. I wrote it when I was feeling pissy about the kinds of problems you mention in your message.)

Prepare to deal with the same misinformation a lot. Like not just intellectually and emotionally, but physically - create FAQs, masterposts, whatever. It can get really frustrating trying to deal with that stuff a million times, but the reality is that there are billions of people in the world and they're making new ones every day.

Keep a list of resources on hand that you can share with people you're talking to, depending on what they're searching for. The fewer steps/resources that are needed to access said resource, the better. Keep a list of podcasts, scholars with YouTube channels, blogs with good information, whatever, that you can just suggest to people looking for info.

And finally, take care of yourself. If you find yourself wanting to rip people's throats out or something, it's time to take a break and focus on yourself.

[anhed-nia]

It's always a little sad when one of your precious niche fetishes gets popular. I'm not proud of admitting this; on the whole, you should want success for the things that you love. But in some cases it's like the sad stereotype of the childhood weird girl friendship that is doomed by the onset of adulthood. The friendship is such an important of your identity and your sense of place in the world, but then one day your weird girl friend starts to realize that she has more potential than that, she wants other things and she can get them too, and suddenly one day she's back to her natural hair color and she's wearing bad clothes and having sex with jocks, and even worse than your personal sense of being left behind is the realization that she's boring now. It's not just that you don't have that special person in your life anymore, it's that the person no longer exists. Um anyway that turned out to be a major exaggeration of what I was trying to say about the explosion in popularity of folk horror, which was previously one of my favorite flavors of horror; I mean I guess it still is, but the now when I see the trappings of folk horror it's no longer a must-see matter. It's just as likely to signal a generic, predictable, pandering movie as anything else.

Why has folk horror blown up like this? Kier-la Janisse would tell you that it's because of her epic documentary WOODLANDS DARK AND DAYS BEWITCHED, which is genuinely great and you should see it. But I have a sense of today's folk horror boom being "an idea whose time has come", something that is emerging in the popular consciousness because of our collective experiences. Like it's probably not a coincidence that folk horror has come into focus at the same time that the trad wife trend is happening, and witchtok has become a thing. I could say some pretty hackneyed things about the psychological effects of the digital age and our increasingly technologized, disembodied existence, but I will just let you imagine them instead.

Even though I know that the whiff of folk horror no longer promises me a great time, I still watch new specimens pretty slavishly, and LORD OF MISRULE doesn't totally suck. Actually it's tense and interesting for quite a stretch, up until you realize that it really isn't pursuing any big ideas. But my favorite part of it is--this is one of my favorite things in general, where something outrageous happens in a movie and the characters have a completely bizarre reaction: A child is abducted during an old pagan festival, and the parents slowly realize this is no ordinary crime. Actually the mom realizes immediately that something fucked up is happening while the husband keeps trying to do things by the books, almost hilariously, even after they stumble upon something so appalling that it's hard to even describe. I wish I had a screenshot for you. They find this piece of...art?...that's like a dripping wet animal hide wrapped around a hideous diorama involving baby dolls and all this shit, and underneath it is text that says HE STANDS IN THE FIELD AND WAITS. The whole thing is incredibly repulsive and shocking and you can't even begin to imagine who would make such a thing, like the fact that it even exists is really bad news in and of itself...and then the husband is driving them home calmly musing, "Hmm, WHO stands in the field and waits?", as if the most interesting thing is the exact meaning of this caption and NOT the fact that they've seen one of the most arrestingly disgusting objects that you could possibly stumble upon. I really wish the rest of the movie lived up to that one construction, but I guess nobody else found that as exciting as I did!

[covenofhecate]

My belief system ig

So, to all my practitioners and spirituals, let me help you figure out if my idea of faith fits your needs🫦🫦

We are going to start off with spirituality then witchcraft, they do kinda tie together for me.

I believe that a “source” or god exists. She had this “i am” moment which turned into the universe and souls. She wants us to learn about everything there is to learn and come back to her with that information.

Our souls are fragments of he, therefore we can manipulate the energy of this life. Every planet has this “council” right, every member of said "council" governs a certain section of life. That is why I believe we have the gods, they are the "council".

in a post i made down, it talks about the council more in-depth so go look through that.

Now, witchcraft. i believe witchcraft to be manipulating the energy around you, and its totally customizable. if someone says "oh rosemary is used for (insert use)" and someone doesn't agree with that, its fine. many cultures around the world held different meanings for these herbs therefore not everyone is going to agree with them.

witchcraft can literally just be burning herbs and throwing them into the wind or offering something to river nymphs for a friend to have a smooth recovery or birth, idfk. (invisible life of addie larue reference.

i hate witchtok creators that make shit up and add a standard to witchcraft. like bbg no, you don't need a diety to practice but you can work with one if you want to.

before i started doing more complex spells I literally used to burn herbs and bury them and it worked, so.

manifestation is like putting your energy into the universe and waiting for it to throw it back. witchcraft is throwing that energy like a boomerang, you don't need to wait for the universe to be like "oh shit there's some energy, lets give it back."

thats all for today, if you have any questions make sure to ask them. blessed be💜💜

[chaosprincess2]

TECH WITCHCRAFT!

So, what is it? Is it useful?

Tech Witchcraft was seen for a while to only be the use of some apps and maybe some "emoji spells?" But, in my experience and personal research I've come to find there is much more you can do to make it a more solid "practice". Well, here's some ideas I've gathered that are very simple to either add/convert in your craft.

So, first things first the phone. Everyone talks about how phones are toxic and bad for you, when really it's the holder. Phones are used alot more these days, and it's a tool at this point. One that you choose how to use.

Your phone has quartz in it, which already sucks up energy on its own. But your phone is now bonded to you naturally and picks up unwanted energy. Cleanse that shit while you clean your phone, something that already is rarely done you can incorpate cleansing into it.

Changing your case for its intent, and hiding sigil in it is a nice little tip. You can also make charms with crystals or spell bottles to hang on a phone charm.

There is a type of sorcery that involves hiding images within images... you can do this with your wallpaper ! (If you care to research it, you'll find the name of it.)

Apps. Of course, can't go without apps. But it's how you use them that matters! Rather than the traditional Self Care app or Tarot and Moon Phases, use other apps that you are connected to to turn them into something else.

For example, for tiktok I only use it for inspiration or for signs. I also get signs through Instragram and sometimes Pinterest, whether thru angel numbers made from the like numbers or an image of something.

Pinterest. Easy to use and make digital Book of Shadow, Journal, Vision Board, or altar! You can do the same with Google Docs, but more work....

Shufflemancy. Using your music app as divination!

Your clock and battery percentage can become a angel number channel.

Finding ebooks and audio books. Much cheaper and easier to get a hold of and keep safe.

Do a deep clean of your phone from old data, songs and photos. Maybe even schedule days to do those things if they're too big a hassle.

Refresh your profile! It's the equivalent to a glamor spell. Clean up your account too! On whatever it is. And don't forget social media detoxing when it gets overwhelming!

Online communities are cool as long as everyone participates. Reddit, Amino, Tumblr, are a few to get started.

Guided meditations on YouTube and stuff! There's also so many videos you can watch.

Watch witchtok complations on YouTube for inspiration.

Digital self care, grimoire, dream, and manifestation journals!

Emails can send signs. Ever had a astrology email send you a WAY to close to home message that day?

Using someone's profile as a tag lock can be useful.

Sound cleansing. Learn what types of music/ sounds you like and how the affect you. Learn it, live it, love it.

Google Maps can let you digitally go to special places. So why not use that to your advantage?

When your phone is turned off,the screen is black. Scrying, anyone?

You can use the phone camera as a mirror for mirror spells.

You can also use it for spirit communication.

Of course, digital tarot. Remember the thing about cleansing your phone? That may be why your tarot app is weird. There's also digital magic 8 balls and Runes if tarot isn't your thing or you wanna try something new.

Ask for a message from whatever and then go into an algorithm based app. Sometimes you'll get messages <3

Headphones can make good subtle veiling option!

Tech witchcraft is just so much simpler and easier for low energy people and the typical busy witch. :(

[hiswitchcraft]

Hello :)

I've discovered your blog a day ago or so and been reading through because you make so many good points and just give me a lot to think! And one thing in particular is resonating: talking about witchcraft and mental health! Because I have a mental illness that can lead to auditory and visual hallucinations, so for me it is very important to try to discern and to balance my belief with my fear off getting actively ill again!

I also struggle with people's blanket opinions of "hallucinations and voices and shit are signs of the devine, the other", because its not! Not for me! For me, it's suffering!

So er, yeah, sorry if this is too much or something, but it is a part of the conversation I think we all should have...

I wish you a lovely day,

Donna

Hello there. I was so happy to see this because my ask box has felt a bit empty since it was so busy for a few days. Welcome to my blog. I'm glad you're here. If you have any more questions or need resources just let me know!

Anyways, I was also excited to see this in my inbox because it is another opportunity to open up the discussion for this topic!

"I also struggle with people's blanket opinions of "hallucinations and voices and shit are signs of the divine, the other", because its not! Not for me! For me, it's suffering!" I completely agree with this part and I'm glad you shared this, I think it's really important! I don't experience hallucinations but I do experience paranoia and know many people who experience hallucinations.

I see a lot of people normalizing symptoms of mental illness or things like ringing in your ears or symptoms of other conditions and I can't think of anything else that makes me quite as agitated. This is especially something I notice on tiktok. There's been several trends in the witchtok community that just downright seem like the normalization of hallucinations and conditions that cause them. it often seems like videos about it are meant to drawn people who experience this and don't realize it and it's very worrisome to me.

Auditory and visual hallucinations are not normal! Ringing in your ears is not normal! The law of attraction/assumption is harmful to mentally ill people! I get suspicious of creators who push any of these concepts and more, because people could get hurt.

In addition though, it's not being a very good witch or a teacher in my opinion. Call me a skeptic but it's best in my opinion to assume an experience was of a mundane nature and keep an open mind. People who push these ideas are also not aware of mentally ill people at all.

This was just a bit of a thought dump... I have a post about this topic in my drafts but I've been hesitant to tackle it. I think because this is one of those topics that I feel more comfortable having a back and forth or personal conversation about.

[bl00dh0rs3]

Wait im sorry. I need to talk about witchcraft real fast

First of all; magic and science are one in the same, always have been always will be, so jot that down.

The line between the two is ever fluctuating and drawn by whether or not it invokes WONDER and if you ENJOY and REVEL!!! In that wonder.

Magic, as i am talking about it right now (the spell jars and the cord cuttings and all the shit those witchtokers are doing) still follows the laws of physics! Those spells DO NOT WORK ~MAGICALLY~! They are a TOOL to help you steer your focus and keep that focus ENGAGED on what it is you are trying to achieve!

Tell me--what is going to be more effective at helping you get money.

A.) Endlessly scouring job listing sites for a better paying job because thats the Logical way to get more money.

Or B.) Doing a silly little money spell on a full moon, all dressed up and maybe a little inebriated with candles and herbs, singing a silly like chant or just straight us putting on a Song like "money money money money money money money money money money motherfucker -- Money on my motherfuckin m i n d"--all of which puts the *search for money* quest on your mind in a POSITIVE and fun challenge light--where before you know you, like after learning a new word for the first time, you start seeing opportunities pop up everywhere! Your friend mentioned their work place is short staffed! You go to your favorite game store and chat with the clerk about it and he says hes been thinking about hiring someone if your interested! You suddenly get a few asks about you potentially doing commissions!!!

Magic is not about ACTUALLY changing the world around you its about opening your eyes to SEE THINGS MORE CLEARLY, MORE BRIGHTLY, MORE WONDEROUSLY!!! Coincidences are beautiful!!!!! Coincidences are something to be treasured and looked upon fondly, not disregarded as something "mere" or inconsequential!!!!

Every society in the world every culture every human EVERYONE!!!!!! fucking believed in magic once upon a time!!! We used ethereal heavenly mystical words to describe the world around us because it is WONDEROUS!!!!!!!!! And this perpetual push to demystify Everything to explain Everything to remove the soul the energy from Everything is wretched!!! It is wretched behaviour!!!

If you are talking about magic, if you are talking about science, it doesn't matter--don't brush it off as "not that special". Dont let yourself say "whatever, its just what it is".

Let yourself be dazzled by it. Let yourself engage with it in excitement and openness and delight. I am so fucking serious. Endeavor to incorporate Wonder into your daily life. Let yourself feel the magic of being alive.

[nonbeas]

Tarot is Actually Kind of Helping Me

Wednesday, October 16th, 2024

It could also be confirmation bias, but who knows. I'm woo woo enough for this.

I have a crystal deck that I bought (I know, I know) a long time ago. I don't even remember when I bought it, but it was sometime in college, either during or right before COVID. I got mainly into witchtok during Covid, and that's when I started practicing.

Practicing is a really generous term. I'm generally very much lost, and any practice that I did was just re-purposed Catholicism.

I have devotion candles to Hades, because I like the guy. I don't know if he likes me, but I like him.

In modern times, I light my green candle with the pluto/hades signs to keep me company while I do chores, or while I do some kind of ritual for myself/others. But I don't do it a lot.

I collected a fair number of crystals, I have a pendulum- it's rose quartz. I also recently discovered a goldstone pendulum that I don't recall buying and no one knows where it came from. So, that's cool???? (I probably did buy it and just don't remember doing it. I find that a little hard to believe though because I generally don't buy things that I already own.)

I always loved the idea of tarot but always had a hard time actually doing tarot. I can't read the cards, I have a hard time remembering what each one means without a guide.

So, something randomly motivated me to start doing tarot with my journals, and just like, writing it down and looking up what it means. You know, for fun. But now I'm suddenly more into it.

The tarot reading before the wedding was not for the wedding, I found out. it was a precursor for the whole shit that was going on with the cafe. That let me be in a shit mood for the whole wedding. But I also recognize that it's just pushing me further towards a feeling I was already beginning to feel - identity crisis/feeling lost in general. Not to mention financial stress. I haven't been particularly frugal because I wasn't aware that my idle-ness was going to be followed by real unemployment.

I had a tarot reading today before I went to teach piano. Just being in a room with a piano with time to kill - a piano not a marimba, made me just practice scales and modes, and try to memorize the formula for the modes without relying on thinking of playing each mode in a different key signature.

Like which modes are based on major or minor, and what modification has to be done.

Like, the major modes are ionian (regular major), lydian (major with a sharp fourth), mixolydian (major with a flat seventh, like a dominant chord!) and the minor modes are dorian (minor with a sharp sixth) Phrygian (minor with a flat second, although there's definitely a different version of a Phrygian that has a major third also...) aeolian (regular minor) and locrian ( flat second, flat fifth... the hardest for my head to wrap around using just the rule and not justing thinking about playing it in the key of whatever the second note is instead.)

And I remembered that when I actually apply myself, I rock at music. I rock at music theory. I re-took music theory 3 for fun and did fantastic. (It's the hardest level of theory???? Turns out it's not that hard when it's the only thing you're focusing on.)

I looked up what being a musicologist is - remembering that I do like ethnomusicology. it think that shit is the bomb. Real music is varied. I'm good at the western stuff but that's not even all that music is. Being a percussionist gives a small bit of insight of what it can be like, but even then it's still generally in a western lens.

My student also did not cancel on me, like what I thought death could've been predicting. On the contrary, it's true they didn't really practice. Half their reason is valid - some life trauma was going on. (They still could've practiced... they had a whole month. I'm generally noticing a trend in primary and secondary school dealing with time management skills...) But even when they could've practiced more, they generally hit the mark of the goal through last minute practice in the hour the lesson takes (which means they could get that shit perfect in a month, and we could do a lot more. But we'll go at their pace, there's not a rush for most of this stuff... yet.)

I realized I could probably try to be a private lessons teacher, like, in general. And I might not be total shit at it. Maybe I'd like it, maybe I won't, but I can at least try.

Something I thought about a lot when I tried to teach elementary school is I feel like I can teach the individual student. Kids by themselves are amazing creatures. Kids in a classroom... is a completely different story. Social learning and social constructs, and social perceptions, and personalities, they are the death of learning, because they're not focused on their individual learning when they're in a group. They're focused on social learning. Those are two completely different things. People are different when they're with their friends. People are different when they're with their enemies. People are different when they're being perceived in a group. A classroom is the worst combination of all three of these things. And public school is only trending towards larger class sizes for no reason.

Kids like to learn. But you can't force them to learn what you want them to learn sometimes. Only kids who really really like school will forgo the constant social learning by really engaging with individual learning. And there's a reason "nerds" are seen as socially awkward. Because it's really hard to fully commit to both types of learning at once.

People who do are seen as crazy or psychopaths. Think of someone who is incredibly smart, did well and school and were charismatic, well liked, and invited to parties? If you know someone like this, truly ask yourself if you see them as sane. Do you have a positive perception of them?

The people I know from high school who are even remotely kind of like this... tended to also be bullies. There was something left out in their learning - maybe emotional? It might've been there but was pushed aside because they didn't have the bandwidth.

I'm not saying they're all bullies, but that's who comes to mind.

Back to my original point. I'm starting to think I could realistic try teaching music again - but in a private setting. if this goes well... that opens up a new door of consideration. Performance majors often have private studios or teach in college. That's not something I'm totally against.

If not performance, then musicology of some sort. Most of music learning is theory after all, just applying technique to it.

I'm still stressed, and a little depressed, but I'm in a much better headspace. And it's kind of what the tarot cards told me this morning?

More to come,

Bea

[thatawkwardwitch]

#OcculTea

I've been seeing stuff about this conversation and I want in so here's my contribution! (questions from @ ella.harrison's Instagram)

Hi! I'm thatawkwardwitch or kit whatever you wanna call me is fine! I've been participating in the online community for about as long as I've been practicing. I sought out an online community pretty early on because I started practicing during lockdown and I desperately wanted to find people I could connect with about witchcraft. I usually reblog informational posts for beginners. When I make my own content, it's usually just little snippets of my practice. I'm still trying to find my groove here and figure out exactly what kind of space I want my blog to be.

I like sharing my practice online because I don't have a strong in-person witchcraft community. A few of my irl friends practice, but it's not something we talk about for whatever reason

I hope to learn more about other people's practices and experiences as well as to connect with other people

I really only know the online community and don't have an in-person community to compare it to, so I feel like I can't fully answer this question

I'm not primarily on Instagram, I'm mostly there just for art stuff so I'm going to skip that one. Uh oh god tik tok. I feel like TikTok is good if you want aesthetics and that's about it. As far as sharing information, the format of the app doesn't really allow for any in-depth discussion. I've seen and heard a lot of misinformation being spread and people just running with it. I like YouTube a lot though! There are good educational videos, and because the format allows for longer videos, it's great for discussing and sharing information on more complex topics. However, I feel like most people don't go to YouTube? I feel like everyone's first go-to is TikTok even though WitchTok doesn't really exist anymore. I feel as though TikTok has sort of accustomed people to being spoonfed information, so beginners are less likely to go to other sources where they actually have to work for information.

yes and no. I think it's really easy to get into a rut in your practice and just stick to consuming content instead of working through the rut. But it's not just social media. "Armchair occultists" have been around forever, as long as there have been books about it. So yes, I guess it can be a substitute, but no, in the sense that, it's not everyone. Most people I know online still practice outside of social media so I'm not sure how much of a problem it actually is

I don't share a lot about my own personal practice on social media, or irl for that matter. I've posted a few spells and those weren't fully staged but they also weren't fully reality either. Like, I actually did the spell, but I kept some parts of it offline so it couldn't be undone since it was a protection spell. As far as all the experiences I've shared, I share them as I've experienced them. I do experience psychosis so I can't say that all of them were 100% reality looking back on some earlier experiences (but I'm not sure if I've even shared those ones), but I report things as I perceived them happening to me.

I don't know shit about social media etiquette so that's definitely not a part of whether or not I share stuff. Most of the time it's personal preference not to share. I try to be very careful about asking my spiritual team what I can and cannot share. Lately, I've been trying to practice more of what chaoticwitchaunt called "moving in silence" mostly as a way to protect myself from the evil eye, but also because I've definitely gotten in trouble with my spiritual team because I've shared stuff I wasn't supposed to. In general, there definitely is censorship. Most platforms won't show or let creators talk about blood, bones, fire, etc. and then there's cancel culture. which I'm not going to go too far in depth about but people love to censor each other.

Yes. I've thankfully never encountered any, but there's gonna be grifters in any community that can be capitalized on. Because I don't have any experience with grifters, I'm not sure what all the warning signs are but definitely double-check and cross-reference people before doing business with them.

I think the best way to stop the spread of misinformation is to develop and hone your media literacy skills. Critical thinking is so important, especially in this space. Do your own research on a topic; don't just take one person's word as fact

I feel like a lot of people will look at someone with a large following and immediately assume that they're an expert, but in reality it just means that they know how to work an algorithm, a completely different skill than witchcraft.

While I don't quite consider myself a witchy content creator, I am still a content creator for fandoms/bandoms. The main thing I do to keep authenticity is to take breaks from content creation. I can't work well when I'm struggling with schoolwork or mental health. When I take a break from social media, I usually state why so my followers know what's going on, but I never try to promise content I'm not sure I can or will make

I like seeing content from other creators. I find it particularly inspiring, especially if I've gotten stuck in my own practice or if I've fallen out of a daily routine. It's motivation to keep practicing.

I don't think I've ever let FOMO get me to the point where I've been taken advantage of. I guess I got lucky where all my beginning resources stressed the importance of not needing tools, so it really stuck in my head. I don't think I've ever purchased anything because of FOMO.

Unfortunately, yes. The main way that FOMO gets me is when I see people who have been brought up practicing or people who have easy access to their ancestral practices. As someone who's trying to reconnect, when I see other people who have reconnected or are further along in the process, I do feel a bit bad and frustrated with where I'm at, but it is something I am working on. I don't want it to prevent me from practicing

I haven't really experienced imposter syndrome in this area of my life yet. And I think that's just because I don't have a huge online witchy presence. But because I've experienced imposter syndrome in other areas of my life, one of the things I use to fight it, is to remind myself of all the work I've done to get to where I am

Oh god. I think I'd be Wiccan and I'm not saying it like it's a bad thing but most of my early books on witchcraft were written by Wiccan authors. If I didn't have online media, those Wiccan sources would be all I had because that's what my dad reads. I'm sure eventually, I would have found my way to Christian Witchcraft, but I think I would have never worked with the Norse gods and I would have missed all their lessons. Because my dad is into Gnosticism and Wicca, without online resources, I don't think I would have ever explored other routes

I think having an in person community is far more fruitful than an online one. Not that online spaces can't be important, but there's only so much connection you can get from behind a screen

Like I said above, I don't think I would have gone down the path I did if I didn't have an online community. It's how I learned about ancestor veneration, and folk magic, and it gave me a reading list outside of the stuff my dad reads.

I think the biggest danger to the capitalization of witchcraft is the appropriation of closed cultures and practices

I have not, and I don't know anyone who's been personally affected (to my knowledge)

Yes. If people are providing you services that they worked hard on, they should be compensated for their work. While I think knowledge should be readily accessible in general, it is still important to protect that knowledge as well as people's time and efforts. Especially in the world we live in where everything costs money. If people are providing a service, it's almost a necessity that they be duly compensated

Again, cross-reference and double-check everything

I wish people would talk more about how to do research. We're always telling people to do the research, but as I'm finding out just from group projects in college, most people don't know how to do research. And I think I'll make a quick and dirty guide to research at some point because this is something that's been bugging me for a while

I feel like I just need to interact more. I do a lot of lurking so I feel like my needs will be met once I start interacting

Honestly, I don't know. I think assuming the best out of people, not to the point of naivety but assuming good intentions.

Again assuming good intentions.

chaoticwitchaunt on YouTube is the main person I go to. Seeking Witchcraft (podcast) was a vital source for me as a beginner. I also like The Red Text (podcast) as well

I'd just encourage my mutuals and followers to comment and share their own experiences. I really want to be more engaged in this community so this is an attempt at doing so <3

[the-gods-and-me]

i legit only realise i've had encounters with the Gods until after the fact

and either way, i don't hear them. i have a very specific thought pattern, and way of speaking (it's the way i type on these posts, too!). so if there's something that sounds, well, not like me, i usually follow that.

i either feel their presence (Athena was with me when i was at a museum, i could feel Her there), or something so incredibly obvious happening (getting about 40 Apollo signs, Poseidon absolutely soaking my shoes).

if you can't hear your deities, you are valid.

if you don't have a "godphone" or some shit like that, you're valid.

if you do have one, you're valid.

you're valid, and i hate WitchTok for making people feel they aren't.

There are so so so many ways to experience the gods.

There is no right or wrong way. There is no blunt way. Its all feeling and ephemeral.

If you’ve felt warmth, if you’ve had a dream, if you’ve seen a crow that stares at you for too long, if something inexplicable happens and you’re lucky suddenly, if you’ve caught eyes with a stranger and felt like you knew each other. If the candle flickers a certain way, if one time when you’re singing your voice sounds gorgeous in a way you weren’t expecting, these are all the presence of a god.

God phoning is popular on witchtok but half the time what they’re saying is bullshit. I’ve very very rarely heard a voice and every single time it was my own voice, just suffused with something, saying something I normally wouldn’t say. Or maybe I would. I’ve never heard a clear, distinct, audible voice. Its an invisible world we’re connecting with, its a different plain. We cannot experience it the same way we experience every day life.

We’ll never sit down at a coffee table across from the physical manifestation of our god, and know that its them, not until after. And even then we can never be sure. That’s the nature of it. There are no absolutes, there cannot be. That’s what makes it beautiful. That’s where belief comes in. It isn’t about being good enough or worthy enough or devout enough, that doesn’t exist. That isn’t what its about at all. You are worthy even if the divine doesn’t manifest in a way we’ve been told is the only real way, and you are connecting even if you cant see it now. My most intense spiritual experiences are never something I realize are happening in the moment, its always only after that I can see it clearly.

The gods are all around us.

[dracota]

to post videos i must record them.

screaming internally doesn't help recording them. trust me i'v tried.

i just need... to do... as many as possible but i don't have editing software and the presets won't let me do what i want. i know there is free stuff but i can not find the links at all.

at least i have one costume. Maybe two if i lie to myself. because can i remember how to goth? nope!

and then there is the lipstick. at least i have cool colors!

why did i think this would be easy to do to go live on October 1? because i thought that i started this at the beginning of sept! not the middle of it. what do you mean my adhd ass is shit with time?

am i going into the depths of witchtok to grab tag ideas? sadly yes.

would i much rather be doing this then my day job? also yes? i'm shy and loud and wtf am i thinking but... might as well try.

i am predicting that this will be ripped appart. so the suprise will only be in which parts are chosen to be ripped appart. my only consolation is that new stuff is expected to be not the best.

i'll work on scripts in the future. voice overs how now? at least i can try to put the text on the screen at a rate that can actully be read. scripts would let me copy & paste. Oh.

crap.

[lokilysolbitch]

the only thing that was holding my interest and that tiktok would Actually put on my fyp (since the very start i've wanted cottagecore, not the aesthetic shots, just 17-20 something year olds baking snail cookies and getting excited about finding mushrooms and making paper crafts. tiktok gives me Anything But That) is witchtok and it's even started showing me less of that. most of what i'm getting every now and then is someone being an ass or a literal serial abuser or those "when ppl culturally appropriate ew🙄" posts which are SO Fucking Annoying because it's about the equivalent of "racism? that's for dorks. bullying?? don't do that dweeb" like it's not gonna do anything. all that's happening is a bunch of (usually white ppl) going "i'm so cool bc i don't steal from cultures. i'm literally the best. unlike those guys" over and over again. and generally the ppl loud and proud about how they Don't do something are either doing that same thing or something worse behind the scenes. also it's boring and repetitive.

like pls pls pls. make some fun content. is there a funky way you like to read tarot. do you have a niche herb you really enjoy. any funny stories of times you fucked up. cool rocks you found. strange upgs that are just for fun but you kinda believe them. something. anything.

to be fair i know exactly why ppl don't wanna post that bc witchtok is an echo chamber and anything that isn't ew racism or burning incense will get you bullied to hell and back in there. i'm careful with my own posts too (kinda stopped filtering so much tho bc i was getting annoyed) bc i've seen ppl get harassed and cyber stalked or mass reported over tedious shit. either that or they get discussed by less aggressive accounts. which. is it's own situation

these discussions can be semi or fully respectful (always calm tho) but i just think it's really weird. to post. a short video and have a group of people you don't know publicly breaking down every detail of your video saying things like " i don't know this persons situation but it COULD be a sign of psychosis" in a calm polite voice. i think it's so so weird. especially if in said video you're in distress. its like having a panic attack and some random person turns to the rest of the people in the room like "let's discuss the ethics of this situation" and starts a socratic seminar. it's treating a human like a hypothetical example. either help them if you know them well enough or leave them alone.

anyways tiktok is just making me angry. i have a few creators i think are super cool and i appreciate the disabled ppl on there bc they usually make me realize "oh feeling like my arm slips a little out it's socket or go limp often probably isn't normal) but other than my following list it's just so unfun

[trials-of-a-spirit-worker]

This is the LAST Goddamned Time I'm Snitching on Witchtok

Hi, gang. It's me again. 

Witchtok has come onto my damn feed once again, when I should be simping over fictional characters and questioning my life choices from said fictional characters and also learning my aesthetic in people's WIP worlds they made based on my FYP alone. Cause that's fun. People are so damn creative~ But this ain't about that sadly!

Now, I'm not gonna sit here and continue to snitch on fucking Witchtok like y'all don't know witchtok is bad. This isn't gonna be my platform.

Witchtok is fucking bad. Just...rule of thumb.

But we here are and the title says what it says so—!!

Just checking really quick...y'all know not to do spells intending to make people fall in love with you...right?

Right?!

It's...not nice. To say the very least.

And by love spell I don't mean making yourself more attractive and you know just catching someone. By all means you're just enchanting your net to cast wider. Just be careful with what you reel in you know...Florida water and the like, whatever you know...that's not what this is about.

By all means if your partner is consenting to a love spell where you two (or more, polyamory and all that, so long as everyone is enthusiastically consenting) can grow closer with each other where the shit is mutual, or just flat out consenting to sex magic and reaping the benefits to that, go right ahead. Get your freak on.

But using magic to make a random person or someone of your affections look at you romantically? Not cool. Massive ethic no no. Don't fucking do it.

Also... menstrual blood in people's food is...gross to say the very least. Don't do that. Don't listen to people who advise you to do those things. For a time, it was going around my feed, telling you how to strategically hide it from your partner so they don't know and just...it gives me roofie vibes you know? Lemme bind this person to me for good because I want them.

Sounds real healthy...

Yes, it was a method used back in older times to keep a man from cheating. But that's was like 1800 early 1900's Voodoo/Hoodoo shit and that's where it should stay. Times back then were not as aware as the contaminants and health risks that kind of shit brings like we are today. Let it be a product of its time, please for fucks sake.

Also...no... No, it will not work on a deity to fall in love with you (tf is with people trying to get at the deities all of a sudden?). No you cannot love spell a god to be at your beck and call. 

Godspousing is a huge commitment and should get the respect it deserves. This ain't the way to do it! Also just...massive kudos to godspouses in general. Y'all some real ones.

It's not just the previous idiot from my other post about witchtok, though I believe they did some dumbshit regarding this too, going after Loki. But also there are other people are messing with shit they have no business in and then telling others to do the same. That is where I draw the line. Get fucked by your own consequences if you want to, but do not drag others down with you in your fuckery.

And for those who have been like, 'oh its just satire its meant to be funny.' I fail to see what joking about shit like that is funny. And if it is truly meant to be a joke where witches who believe they can do some massive disrespect like that are the punchline, they need to be much clearer and work on their humor execution. Cause, this ain't it.

Bottom line: Love Spells (without consent of all parties) are just wrong. As an experienced witch on here once said,

Just don't do stupid shit. For the love of everything. Please. Especially don't try some shit on the gods. They will solo you, without effort.

[archie006]

Witchtok is lowkey shit don't believe everything you see on it yall 😭😭🙏🙏🙏

AND I CANNOT EXPRESS THIS ENOUGH, DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH YALL PLEASE 🫶🫶🫶

Witchtok: We must de-christianise our practice

Also witchtok: There are evil spirits everywhere pretending to be deities so make sure you have 200 herbs and incense and a candle and a big altar or a trickster spirit will upend your whole life!!!!

Witchtok: You have to be respectful to the Gods

Also witchtok: If you don’t give the right offering x deity will give you nightmares especially if they haven’t “chosen you”, also don’t even think about worshipping this deity alongside them/any other deity or x deity will get angry and jealous!!! I should know, because I make skits where I act like I should be involved in their personal affairs!!! What do you mean research historical texts?

[normal-horoscopes]

I like it when WitchTok talks about blood magic because it’s either blood magic being casually used to always tie a man to you or whatever by having sex or how blood magic is super dangerous because it’ll open a demon portal through your soul and by doing it you mark yourself as space orc food or some shit. I get how it could be dangerous in terms of like, taglocks, but people will skip right past that and imply the cells in your plasma are secretly demon walky talkies these people are WILD

From an occutlt perspective, human blood is like magic rocket fuel. It's explosive! Burns hot and fast! People throw around blood magic way too much. Like don't cook soup with jet fuel. It makes bad soup and wastes jet fuel.

The magical importance of blood isn't because demons live in it or whatever, it's fuckin people juice!! We need it to be alive!! Is that not magic enough??