#skeptical witch

[glamourous-world]

I sit on my little skeptic throne of witchcraft and enjoy it all because either magic is real and I’m very in tune with myself and the world around me, or it’s not and I become a master of meditation and good mental attitude and I get a fuck ton of shiny little trinkets and nicknacks that bring me immense joy there is no losing here

[spiralhouseshop]

It's the season of the witch and until the end of October I'm offering Brainscan issues 33 & 34 by Alex Wrekk at a price where it will be about $10 including postage anywhere in the US! In these two zines Alex explores over a decade of building a secular witchcraft practice.

Brainscan #33 - DIY Witchery invites you into a deeply personal journey through the world of witchcraft. Over the course of a decade, the author has explored and practiced witchcraft, and this zine shares their unique experiences. It's not a how-to guide, but rather an insightful personal narrative. The author delves into their journey into witchcraft, the development of their secular and non-pagan practice, and the distinctions between their approach and contemporary witchcraft. They also tackle critical issues within the modern pagan and witchcraft communities, including discussions on racism, cultural appropriation, colonialism, and capitalism, reflecting their intersectional politics. For those interested in venturing on their own path, the zine offers tips and resources.

"Brainscan #34 - A Dabbler's Week of DIY Witchery is a zine born out of a challenge sparked by a cntroversial witchcraft book review in January 2020. The review suggested that modern witches were anti-vaccine and climate change deniers, leading a witch to question what it really takes to explore witchcraft for a week. The author, an experienced witch, takes up the challenge and presents their response in this zine.

Within these pages, daily activities are proposed, designed to shift your perspective and introduce you to their personal world of witchcraft. Activities include space cleansing, simple energy exercises, correspondences, animism, and basic spells. All of this is presented in a friendly, non-authoritative tone, making it perfect for those curious about witchcraft.

https://portlandbuttonworks.com/secular-witchcraft-zine

[god-blog]

Hello!

This is a side blog I made dedicated to my adventures in witchcraft and Hellenic Polytheism. My main blog is @little-cereal-draws

I'm still figuring things out so this will probably be a mix of personal posts and devotional/general Greek mythology stuff. I am a baby witch and a baby Hellenist so pls be patient w me.

My current witchcraft situation: somewhere between green witch and secular witch

My current godly situation: I'm working with Artemis but I would also like to work with Hermes, Apollo, and Athena (I know that's a lot but I love them all ok)

ABSOLUTELY NO TERFS

(Also, shameless self-promotion, if you want to read a very queer original comic about ancient Rome and Egypt that I'm making with @the-voice-i-was-given, go check out @ancientcivilizationnonsense!)

[beththeskepticalwitch]

On skeptical witchcraft:

"I realized that most of what I was doing already could be explained through science/psychology, with the placebo effect being the main aspect of it. If I was doing the spells and the rituals in the same way that others do and they were having the intended outcome, how could I not call it magic? Even if the belief behind the way it works differs from most’s. It is about why I do what I do, and what I do to achieve my desired outcome; it is not about how it is achieved."

Quote from @beorhtsgrimoire (reposted with permission)

[the-witch-of-cedar-and-bone]

Hello.

I'm Theo [they/them]. <- Follows from @earthenremains

A thirty year-old non-binary secular witch.

I've been loosely practicing for seven-ish years.

My path is solitary mostly by choice, and I can be quite skeptical and realistic, which as I'm sure you can imagine, can make practicing witchcraft a challenge at times.

My current areas of interest are:

Death work - My path started in earnest in 2017 while dealing with the grief accompanying a very sudden and unexpected close familial death. But my interest in death work precedes this, as I have been a member of the Vulture Culture community for over ten years, working with animal remains in all their forms.

Tarot/Cartomancy - Despite owning a handful of decks, I am still very much learning to read the cards. And before you ask, no I do not offer readings nor do I ever plan to.

Shinrin-yoku (forest bathing) - I have been a patron of the trees since I was a child, always content to sit beneath their branches and focus solely on nature. Well before I knew its name or origins, forest bathing was my way of meditating and finding calm.

The personalized path - I've spent far too long trying to follow the 'trending' paths of others. Forcing myself into a mold that has never felt quite right. So I am learning how to carve my own path and do what feels right for me.

Welsh witchcraft - It may or may not become part of my craft, but after some recent family tree delving, I'd like to learn more about Welsh witchcraft, folklore, and general history. So if you've got some resource recommendations, send them my way.

My intentions for this blog are to collect and curate posts I resonate with, and to eventually create some posts of my own to better define my path.

Personal Tags:

#theobell -> My posts

#forthetome -> Things to add to my journal

Other blogs:

Main/Vulture Culture blog - @earthenremains

Mundane/personal blog - @thicketry

Other socials:

Witchy Instagram - @thewitchofcedarandbone

Vulture Culture Instagram - @earthenremains @curiotheo

Personal Instagram - @thicketry

Tags for Organization {WIP}:

#correspondences

#offerings

#ancestorwork

#deathwork

#deathwitch

#spiritwork

#skepticalwitch

#witchyreminders

#magicbeforemundane

#witchycrafts/thingstotry

#deitywork

#spellcraft

#grimoire/bookofshadows/witch'sjournal

#journal prompts

[crazycatsiren]

Call me a skeptic, but astrology doesn't predict or decide shit.

[booksandwitchery]

Wish me luck because I’m desperately going to need it

[witch-of-the-threshold]

"What kind of witch are you?"

Every witch has a different approach and practice. Here is mine. ^_^

I consider myself a secular witch, in that, if you put a gun to my head and demand to know whether I "really believe" in spirits and supernatural powers, I would have to say "no." My personal gods and spirits are all extensions of my own consciousness, combined from my own experience and media I've consumed. I also do not follow any organized religions, though I do study Shinto and Zen Buddhism. I find the beliefs of those (open, btw) practices appealing and the resulting behaviors (such as care of one's body, possessions and the environment) edifying.

I consider myself a pop culture witch, and this has only grown stronger in my general practice and in tarot reading. Like Emily Carlin, who is often cited in introductory articles about pop culture magic, I use a living band of musicians to represent particular aspects of my magic (a huge chunk of it, to be honest). Additionally, characters and scenes from favorite movies and books have become the go-to imagery behind some cards. I'm not shy about calling on my pantheon of personal gods/spirits when I need a guide, cheerleader, or servitor in some particular role.

I consider myself an eclectic witch, in that I draw from many sources for my practice and much of it is my own devising and interpretation. I have no study (or major interest) in herbs, but I keep some whose scents and flavors evoke a particular emotion for me. I have no study (and only a mild interest) in crystals, but I have several that I have found myself particularly attracted to. I may research the traditional historical correspondences of these tools, but I always settle on a meaning that's unique to me and my practice.

I consider myself a skeptical witch who follows the psychological model, and I have an education in science and psychology. I love understanding how the brain interprets the world around us, whether that's understanding one's own body, relationships to others or place in the greater universe. The placebo effect—which is far, far more complex once you get into the literature of it—is an easy go-to to explain to people who might be new to SASS witchcraft, but there are even more ways to use what we understand of human thought to work through magic. The power of ritual can reliably call forth a particular mindset (professional athletes do this with their "superstitious" pre-game rituals) or even collapse time (as tea ceremony masters experience). Knowing how (if not why) a feeling of a bad omen comes over me, I know what steps I can take to counter it: Rather than trying to beat my mind into behaving "It's not real. Get over it!" I've instead learned to recognize that my fears are my natural instinct and that I can gently guide my brain back to a calm state when I need to.

What labels do you use for your practice if any, and why do you use them to describe it?

[dr-awkkward]

Slay the Princess text posts, part 10

[part 9] [part 11]

[criticalthinkingwitches]

CritWitchCon 2024!

Critical Thinking Witch Con 2024 Sept 27th - 29th Connect, learn, and get involved with community of science-minded witches and seekers from around the world! All-Access Pass - $35/40 Saver Pass - $25/$30 Early Bird Pricing ends 8/30! Scholarships available! Tickets on sale now! CritWitchCon is a virtual event. WWW.CriticalThinkingWitches.Com/Events [Image ID: background is deep teal. Upper right hand corner shoes cartoon image of a purple & and yellow ticket. The CTWC logo, a question mark cauldron with "Critical Thinking Witch Collective" wrapped around it in white sits beneath. White block text across image reads: "CritWitchCon 2024, a virtual convention Sept 27th - 29th" Purple, yellow, and a lavender rectangle hold white text with white text beneath each box. Text read: All-access $35. Watch & interact while it happens! Saver Pass $25 Recorded sessions at your finger tips! Scholarships available. Tickets @ CritWitch.com" Bottom right corner shows cartoon of yellow and pink laptop with a purple person holding a laptop on screen.]

[stormofthesea]

Does anyone else hate how much generalization is in the astrology community?

Like me for example, I have my moon, venus, and mars in 8th house and I see soo many posts how “people with their mars in 8th house are always cheaters, don’t trust them. Their’s something off with people with so and so in their 8th house, they’re creepy.” Your projection is so obvious. Just because you had a bad experience with someone with a certain aspect in their birth chart doesn’t mean everyone with that aspect is like that. I’ve had someone straight up say I’m “a two-faced b*tch” just because she saw that my mars is in gemini. 😭 Let’s use our critical thinking skills. I love astrology too, but I don’t let it take the reins in my judgment of others. Your assumptions of me reveal more about you if anything.

[deconstructthesoup]

Differences between my five favorite Slay the Princess ships:

Witch would storm up to the counter and say that Damsel asked for no pickles, while Damsel is right behind her quickly saying that it's okay and she doesn't want to cause a fuss.

Both Adversary and Razor asked for pickles, but they both cause a scene anyway so they can get another free meal and maybe punch a waiter or two. They also dare each other to try the spiciest thing on the menu.

Hero doesn't want to bother any of the waitstaff because they might be overworked or having a bad day, but Contrarian gets him a meal without pickles anyway. When Hero asks, Contrarian just shrugs and says that he's not good at doing what people tell him to do, but it's obvious that he did it because he cares.

Skeptic asked for pickles, Prisoner didn't, and they both got the opposite. Prisoner simply gives her pickles to Skeptic and they go back to speculating what those guys in dark suits in the corner are up to.

Smitten is absolutely aghast that someone would dare give pickles to his amazing and lovely significant other when he didn't ask for it, this is an outrage, I demand to speak to whoever is in charge and for the kitchen to bring back an entirely new meal, free of pickles! And when he's finally done ranting and looks back at the table, Cold has eaten the entire meal, pickles and all, and proclaims that he's changed his mind and that he likes pickles now.

[the-moon-will-sing-for-me]

I’m bored so here are (some) of the Slay the princess pairings as The Crane Wives songs:

(I haven’t played through the entire game yet so forgive if I get some of these dynamics wrong)

Voice of the hero/The princess - Scars

Voice of the smitten/The damsel - The moon will sing

Voice of the skeptic/The prisoner - The well

Voice of the hunted/The beast - Show your fangs

Voice of the opportunist/The witch -Steady Steady

Voice of the Cheated/The Razor - Tongues and teeth

Voice of the broken/The Tower - Nobody

Voice of the Hero (or smitten)/The thorn - How to rest

Feel free to add to this

[beththeskepticalwitch]

Saved posts

Here are links to resources/information I like or want to refer back to:

Skeptical witchcraft:

What is skeptical witchcraft? by Sarah Lisbeth

This post by @beorhtsgrimoire

Psychological witchcraft:

Q&A by Rachael Stephen - the video that first introduced me to psychological witchcraft

The psychological model of magic by Áine Órga

Educational blogs:

@hallow-witxh

@eclectic-witchling

_

[sapphicslaylist]

STP Design Dump

Can’t draw humans super well so I’ve been working with some Anthro/feral designs of these guys!

In order, left to right:

Thorn (Chinese Water Deer), Witch (Hazel Dormouse), Spectre (Coati),

Den, Beast, Hunted (Mouse Deer Peryton),

Skeptic (Rat), Opportunist (Weasel), Smitten (European Badger)

More to come! I plan on doing all the voices and several of the Princesses.