Did you know... The act of researching and writing your own spell is an important part of the spell itself. I know it's often easier to simply duplicate a spell created by someone else. Yes, these spells can be effective. When you research and write a spell, ritual or working yourself, you are creating energy and purpose to your working from the moment you start the process. A working doesn't start when you add flame to candle, it starts when you make the decision to do it. Through researching the best path to take, what ingredients / supplies you will need, why you need those specific ones, creates a deeper energy and attachment to the working than simply recreating one you found in a book or online. Putting pen to paper, or typing out the process and words, adds further energy and focus to the process. This process puts your own energetic signature on your working, giving it energy and focus before the actual working itself starts. Simply going through the motions of a pre-written working, using suggested ingredients and tools without fully understanding why they're being used, prevents the process of building this energy for your working. It prevents your working from being as effective as it could be. Researching and writing your own workings and rituals is more work, yes. That's the point. I'm sure you'll find the extra effort benefits you more at the end of the process. Now you know.

Did you know? Zsuzsanna Budapest was the last person to be tried for witchcraft in the U.S. In 1975, Z Budapest was arrested for Tarot reading and found guilty. She spent the next 9 years repealing the verdict. In the end the state's Supreme Court ruled that the verdict was in violation of the Freedom of Religions Act. Zsuzsanna later went on to form the Susan B. Anthony Coven, which was the first coven based on feminist ideals. This later evolved into the feminist Wiccan tradition, Dianic Wicca, that we know today. Now you know.

Did you know, the youngest person jailed for witchcraft was only 4 years old? In Salem, 1692 Dorothy (Dorcas) Good was jailed for witchcraft. At the age of 4 Dorothy was jailed along with her mother, Sarah. While in jail she was seperated from her mother and interrogated for two weeks, at which point she finally admitted to everything she and her mother were being accused of. Her mother was later convicted based on Dorothy's admissions. Sarah also gave birth to Dorothy's younger sister Mercy while imprisoned. The infant did not survive. Even though young Dorothy was never formally convicted, she was held in custody in Ipswitch until her father could pay her bail. This took some time due to the family being homeless and destitute at the time. She had been taken into custody in March of that year. Her mother, Sarah, was hanged in July. Dorothy was finally released that December. By this time the experience had caused her serious trauma with some found records indicating she had possibly gone insane. ~ in remembrance and honor of all those falsely convicted of witchcraft. May their souls find peace. ~

Did you know ... ... that liminal spaces hold unique and powerful energies? Liminal spaces are those that are both and neither. Doorways Bridges Crossroads Shorelines They aren't always physical, they can be temporal as well. Sunrise (Dawn) Sunset (Dusk) True Midnight The hour of New Year's Ritual spaces are also within the liminal world. These are spaces and times that are neither one nor the other, and both at the same time. "A time that is not a time, in a place that is not a place." These spaces and times hold significant energy because there are where and when the veil between material and spiritual are thin. Traditional "Hedge Witches" were known to work specifically within this realm of energies. In the "between spaces". They were also known to use mild hallucinogens or psychoactives to aid in their travels to another consciousness. Remember "flying ointments"? These comprised of mild psychoactive plants applied as a salve and absorbed through the skin. While working within liminal spaces can provide powerful results, these spaces are not usually entered into and worked within lightly. They require a deep understanding of their energies and strong connections to guides. And now you know ...

Did you know? Doreen Valiente met Gerald Gardner (the founder of Wicca) in the 1950's. Initially Gardner's Book of Shadows (pretty much the original blueprint of Gardnerian Wicca), was heavily influenced by Aleister Crowley and aspects of Ceremonial Magic. Soon after Valiente's initiation into the Bricket Wood Coven, she began assisting Gardener in re-writing much of his original Book of Shadows. The influences of Crowley and Cermonial Magic were removed in favor of those by Charles Leland (Aradia, The Gospel of the Witches) and Valiente's own writing and poetry. It's this revised version that Gardnerian Wicca is based on today. It was also during this time that Doreen Valiente wrote "The Charge of the Goddess" and assisted in writing "The Wiccan Rede". Both of these writings later became the guideposts for ethical practice within modern Neo-Paganism. You can learn more about the Ethics in Paganism and Magical Practice in the Classroom where you will also find PDF downloads of both The Charge of the Goddess and The Wiccan Rede. Now you know...