Needed This Today

BANEFUL INGREDIENTS AND USES

This is a list I have compiled and have created. With the herbs, they must be negatively charged, just like anything else. Tell them what to do and charge them with your intent. Herbs have polarity, they can heal but they can also hex.

BANEFUL HERBS

Angelica root - misery, strife, distress

Asafoetida - drives enemies away

Bayberry - depression

Blueberry - confusion, strife

Catnip - distraction, loss

Cayenne - anxiety 

Chickory - to sow discord 

Chili powder/flakes - discord, spicy misery

Clove - stop gossip

Dahlia - bad luck, loss

Foxglove - causes, nightmares, vanity

Gardenia - seal their love life

Ginger - bitterness

Hemlock - discord, misery 

Ivy - binding

Lavender - depression, insomnia

Lotus - depression

Mandrake - misery, strife

Mint - visions, nightmares

Mistletoe - serious harm, anxiety, confusion

Mugwort - nightmares, hallucinations, paranoia

Mullein - nightmares

Nightshade - nightmares, anxiety, sickness

Onion - strife

Poppy seeds - discord, nightmares

Rose - tempt into cheating

Rosemary - nightmares, insecurity

Rue - misery 

Spanish moss - bad luck, binding

Tobacco - substitute for (most) any baneful herb

Vetiver - silence

Wormwood - misery, strife

OTHER INGREDIENTS Glass shards - reflect transgressions, to cause harm

Sharp objects (pins, needles, thumb tacks, thorns, etc) - damage, cause harm

Rusty nails - cause harm

Glitter - make their problems stick to them

Price tags - Debt, financial troubles

Dead battery - drain their energy

Vinegar - to sour, to rid yourself of them

Charcoal - block their vision, lack of clarity

Hot sauce - spicy misery

Cover hex jar with tin foil - make victim feel isolated and alone

Googly eyes - evil eye, to make them always feel watched, paranoia

Agar or Pectin - stick their problems to them, cause them stagnation

dog/cat shit - to shit on their life (energetically sever the connection to your pet though)

Cigarette butts - to cause addiction and troubles

Salted earth (just combine hydrophobic soil and salt) - dry up their resources, cause infertility

Nasty bong water - it's gross, need I say more?

Dog hair - fear, anxiety

Urine - to sour

Citric Acid - to pucker, to get them to stfu.

Pro-tip: use ingredients your target is allergic to. This can really help make a powerful hex, especially if they are allergic to nuts and go into anaphylactic shock or have any other extreme adverse reaction.

Any herb CAN be used banefully. Any crystal CAN be used banefully. First see what the herb/crystal is used for and, well, reverse it. Love => loneliness/loss of love. Peace => paranoia. Dream work => nightmares. Mental Clarity => delusions. All you need to do is negatively charge them. Tell them what to do and focus your rage and hate into the herbs/crystals to charge them up.

For more information on baneful ingredients, spellwork, and other herbs' uses, check out The Cobalt Athenaeum discord server!

To the Gods lost to time

We may have no way of knowing your name, but we do know you. We know you existed.

We may have no way of knowing what purpose you served in your pantheon, but we appreciate the work that you did, and the work you continue to do.

You may be older than what we think of as the first civilizations, you may be older than evolution, but thank you for being with our ancestors.

Thank you for holding their hands, teaching them how to hunt, which plants were edible, how to walk, how to develop.

It's because of you that humanity exists in the way we know today.

I'm sorry you've been lost to time.

Todays witchcraft is realizing that my body is a temple so taking care of it is actually sacred work✨

When I brush my teeth it’s like intention setting and cleansing of my mouth and all the bad things I’ve said about me

When deciding what the properties of a crystal are, please do yourself a favor and look up why. WHY is obsidian associated with cutting ties with things or reflection? Ohhhhh it’s because the Aztecs used it as sacrificial knives and reflective mirrors. WHY is rose quartz associated with love? Ohhhhhhhh because the goddess of Love (Aphrodite) had a lover who bled out onto the stone. WHY is amethyst- ok you get the point. Context is EVERYTHING. Otherwise it’s just meaningless regurgitation of concepts missing their original relevance. Then, after you figure out why they are associated with certain attributes, decide for yourself if you subscribe to this. If YOU feel a difference in energy then obviously use it differently.

Witchcraft for Beginners: Lesson 2

There are so many different paths and different practices you can take as a witch. When starting off, don’t stress about the labels too much. Take a moment to read through some of the different potential paths you could take and see which ones sound the most interesting to you!

Air Witch: Witches who work with the element of air, and the energies thereof. They may work with things such as feathers, movement, incense, breath, and other air-based magick.

Ancestral Witch: Witches who focus their craft on connecting to and working with one’s ancestors.

Animal/Creature Witch: Witches that work with animals or creatures. They may use their energies within the craft for attunement, aid, or protection. Considered a branch of the green witch path, these witches may work with either spiritual or physical forms of animals/creatures.

Artistic Witch: A witch who is artistically inclined within their craft. They typically have a strong desire to create and work with colours. Art witches tend to draw, paint, sculpt, act, dance, sing, (etc.) within their practice.

Astro/Space Witch: Considered a branch of the cosmic witch path. An Astro/ space witch may be adept at cosmic magick as well as astral travel, astrology and science-based magick.

Atheist Witch: Simply witches who do not believe in any form of deity. Also called Secular Witch.

Blood Witch: Witches who practice blood magick, and use the energy and power of blood within their practice. Considered a branch of the chaos witch path.

Bone Witch: Witches who use bones in their practice, and can typically tap into the energy of or communicate with the spirits who used to own the bones. This may allow their assistance to the witch within their practice. Could be considered a form of animal or ancestral magick. May also incorporate components of death magick and/or necromancy practices.

Ceremonial Witch: Witches who practice a great deal of ceremonial magick in their practice. They may focus on rituals and formal practices of casting of magick as well.

Chaos Witch/Chaote: (difficult to define) Some may also call this ‘result-based’ or ‘success’ magick. A chaos witch usually focuses on the attainment of specific results, typically emphasizing will and intention in their practice. They tend to advocate and pioneer diverse approaches to magick. Some feel that through experimentation, it does not matter what one believes so long as their tools or system of magick were implemented effectively. Therefore, belief may be considered a tool in and of itself. On the same note, they tend to feel intentions/will are key above all else, and the tools will not make or break the practice. They may have a more scientific or experimental approach in their practice.

Closeted Witch/Subtle Witch: Witches who are not open about their practice. They tend to practice in secrecy, for a variety of reasons. These witches are not quite ready, or may simply not wish to share their practice with the general public or friends/family.

Colour Witch/Color Witch: Considered a branch of the art witch path. These are witches who specifically use and revolve their practice around the metaphysical properties of colours within their magick.

Cottage/Hearth Witch: Witches who specialize in magick surrounding the home. Similar to the kitchen witch, but less emphasis on food or cooking. They tend to consider their home a sacred place, and their magick usually focuses on the home, and their families. They will make the place they live comfortable and protected.

Cosmic Witch: Considered an umbrella term for witches who use cosmic, or astrological bodies in their crafts and practice such things as astrology and/or astronomy. They tend to work with the energies of the stars, moon, sun, and planets among many other celestial bodies.

Coven Witch/Circle Witch: Witches who practice within a group of witches. They typically practise and learn with others in their group.

Crystal Witch: Witches who primarily use crystals, stones, gems, or rocks in their practice. Considered a branch of the green witch path, they will practice such things as crystal meditation, protection, and crystal grids, among many other things. They tend to have in-depth knowledge of different crystals/stones/ (etc.) and are able to identify them based on their properties.

Death Witch: Witches who practice death magick. These practitioners typically work with and honour the dead, along with the power of death itself. Death witches tend to advocate death as a new beginning, and an essential part of the life cycle. They may or may not incorporate necromancy in their practice (divination through the dead). They may also integrate ancestral and/or bone magick in their craft as well.

Demonic Witch: These witches work heavily with demons. They differ from Exorcists in that they typically summon demons and get them to do their bidding, rather than casting them out.

Desert Witch/Witch of the Waste: Witches who focus on desert magick. Working with things of and from the desert such as desert sand, cacti, or spirits/animals of the desert. They may, or may not live in/near a desert.

Divination/Oracle Witch: Witches who emphasize on divination practices such as tarot, pendulum, ouija, runes, or any other form of divination.

Draconian/Draconic Witch: Witches who work with dragons, and draconic magick. Fueled by the symbolism and energies of dragons, these witches will typically embrace balance and wisdom within their craft. Many of them will consider dragons to be higher beings, or even deities themselves, and work with them as such.

Dream Witch: Witches who work on, and in their dreams, and may practice lucid dreaming along with other dreaming techniques. They may cast magick, work with deities, access other realities, among numerous other things in their dreams. Dream witches may also be known as dream walkers. Some may use the dreamscape as a home away from home. They tend to be influenced by the moon and spirituality and may incorporate many practices of lunar magick, hedge magick, or practice psychic abilities within their craft as well.

Earth Witch: Witches who work with the element of earth, and the energies thereof. They may work with things such as crystals, herbs, rocks, dirt, the spirit of the land, and other earth-based magick.

Eclectic Witch: Witches who have an eclectic practice. This means that they will work with, and learn from many different types of paths, practices, philosophies, traditions, knowledge, and sources. They typically will end up knowing about all of them and will choose to incorporate whatever suits them within their craft. They may tend to specialize in a handful of paths which fit them best.

Elemental Witch: Witches who work with all of the classic elements; fire, water, earth, air, and spirit. Although, some elemental witches choose not to incorporate the element of spirit.

Fire Witch: Witches who work with the element of fire, and the energies thereof. They may work with things such as candle magick, bonfire rituals, and fire scrying among other fire-based magick.

Flora Witch: Witches who emphasize the use of flowers in their practice, and may use them just like herbs. Considered a branch of the green witch path.

Forest Witch: Witches who focus on working with things from the forest such as the trees, forest spirits, and forest animals. They may or may not live in/ near a forest.

Garden Witch: Witches who emphasize working with plants, herbs, and the earth. Much like a green witch, or earth witch, but are focused on their garden, and how to incorporate the garden within their craft.

Green Witch: Witches who use nature-based items in their practice such as herbs, trees, stones, animals, and other natural elements (can be considered an umbrella term for many nature-based paths). These witches tend to focus on holistic medicine and may, be learned, healers. They are usually very familiar with their local region, having much knowledge of different species of plants, trees, insects, wildlife and flowers.

Hedge Witch: Witches that use magick that is oriented around the spiritual world. They would practice such things as astral travel, astral projection, lucid dreaming, spirit-work, and journeying. These witches are able to walk between worlds and explore alternative realities. Many hedge witches are known for working with herbs and divination as well and tend to live very mindfully.

Herbal Witch: Witches who mainly use herbs in their practice. As another type of natural magick, they will usually grow herbs and will use these herbs in many different ways in order to produce magickal effects such as burning them, turning them into tea, or sprinkling them around places.

Hereditary Witch: Witches who are usually born into a family of practising witches. They get their tradition passed down to them by their family. They also usually have their family to practice with, and assist in their development. However, not everyone born into witchcraft or raised by a family of witches choose to practice or become a witch.

Kitchen Witch: Witches who work magick in their cooking and/or baking. Focusing on the magickal properties that they can obtain from many different ingredients. They may also to be drawn to arts and crafts, sewing, cleaning, and gardening as well. Many of these witches are typically skilled in potions and/or herbology.

Lunar Witch: Witches who focus their work with the energies of the moon, and the moon’s cycles. They will typically time their rituals and spell work in correspondence to lunar phases. They may also incorporate certain items or other things in their craft that correspond with the moon such as minerals, crystals, herbs, animals, deities, (etc).

Metal Witch: Witches who work specifically with metal and using the magickal properties of different metals within their craft. These witches may be found creating their own jewellery, talismans, amulets, wands, (etc.) incorporating a base metal and/or combinations of metals.

Necromantic/Necromancy Witch: Considered a branch of Chaos magick, these witches take spirit working a step further and are adept at communicating with and controlling the dead. Their practice typically involves communication with the deceased,  either by summoning their spirit as an apparition or raising them bodily. They may do this for the purpose of divination, imparting the means to foretell future events, obtaining hidden knowledge, to bring someone back from the dead, or to use the dead to do their bidding.

Practical Witch: Considered a branch of the kitchen witch path. These witches are adept at spellwork and use their magick for everyday, mundane things. They are typically found experimenting with ways to use magick in order to make their daily life easier and more enjoyable.

Religious Witch: Witches who hold some form of religion. These are going to be such witches as Christian witches, Luciferian witches, Pagan witches, Wiccan witches, Buddhist witches, Muslim witches, Jewish witches, Hindu Witches, along with any other type of religious witch.

Science Witch: Witches who have a higher focus on science, and will use their understanding of science in practice. These witches usually do not portray scientism and may emphasize a higher connection between science and magick.

Sea Witch: Witches who work with things from the sea such as seawater, sea glass, beach sand, seashells, and other things that are associated with the sea. They may, or may not live near the sea.

Seasonal Witch: Witches who work with the energies of the season. They may incorporate weather/ storm magick within their craft. They tend to be adept with knowing what energies each season may hold and may time their rituals and spell work accordingly.

Secular Witch: Witches who are not religious, or do not incorporate religion in their craft. They typically do not subscribe to religious dogma. Most of these witches usually stay away from deities, but they do not have to in order to remain secular.

Sigil Witch: Witches who have in-depth knowledge of sigils, and focus on using sigils in their practice. Sigils are symbols drawn for specific magickal purposes. These witches may be adept in using their emotions or energy within their craft to charge sigils as well.

Solar Witch: Witches who focus their work with the energies of the sun, and the sun’s cycles. They tend to time their rituals and spells in correspondence to the suns position. They may incorporate fire magick within their craft, or anything relating to the sun such as minerals, crystals, herbs, animals, deities, (etc.).

Solitary Witch: Witches who practice their craft alone, or without a personal group such as a coven, or circle of other practitioners. These types of practitioners are going to practice primarily alone but still can have access to communication, and resources from other witches.

Spirit/Medium Witch: Witches who communicate with the dead spirits of humans, animals, and other entities. Some can even communicate with the spirits of trees, rocks, and man-made items. They tend to use spirit boards and pendulums, among many other tools.

Stitch witch: Witches who work with thread, yarn, or other fibres for their work. Considered to be a branch of both the kitchen and cottage witch paths, they hold magickal fabric work in high regard. They tend to focus primarily on the knot and stitch magick.

Storm Witch/Weather Witch: Witches that work with the weather, and the energies thereof in the same way other witches may work with elements. They may be found doing things such as charging magickal tools with the use of storm energy, or certain weather (warm, cold, etc.).

Swamp Witch: Witches who mainly work with things from the swamp such as the swamp water, swamp spirits, and swamp animals. They may, or may not live in/near a Swamp.

Tea Witch: Considered a branch of the herbal witch path. These are witches who focus on the use of tea in their practice in order to facilitate certain effects through the act of drinking certain teas. They may also be drawn to tasseography or reading tea leaves as a means of divination.

Tech/Techno/Cyber Witch: Considered a branch of the urban witch path, and may be able to use or direct electrical energy. These witches work with modern technology in their practice and may integrate all forms of computers, and electronics within with their magick. They may be adept at coding and/or creating emoji spells, along with other things related to electronics.

Theistic Witch: Witches who believe in a form of deity, or many deities.

Traditional Witch: Witches who practice forms of traditional witchcraft, claiming older or more “traditional,” roots.

Urban Witch: Witches who practice their magick in urban environments. They may be found graffitiing or painting sigils on abandoned buildings, growing herbs in pots in their apartments, dancing on the roads late at night, and tend to be adept in using technology.

Water Witch: Witches that work with the element of water, and the energies thereof. They typically work with things such as different types of water, water elementals, and water scrying among other water-based magick.

Winter Witch: Witches who reside in the colder climates of the world and draw their power from the snow and clouds (rather than the sun or moon) They may be found casting snowstorms, collecting hail and/or making poppets from the snow.

I know this may seem like a lot, but don’t worry, you do not need to memorise these! Just understand that there are many different paths and practices in the community, and these are the vast majority of them.

Hera by Eduard Niczky (German painter, 1850-1919)

In ancient Greek religion, Hera is the goddess of marriage, women and family, and the protector of women during childbirth. In Greek mythology, she is queen of the twelve Olympians and Mount Olympus, sister and wife of Zeus, and daughter of the Titans Cronus and Rhea. ~ Wikipedia

My Personal “Pillars of Hellenic Polytheism”

You may have seen or heard of the “7 Pillars of Hellenism”. The creator of these pillars, Timothy Jay Alexander, is known to be extremely homophobic and bigoted, and therefore these pillars aren’t seen in a positive light by many Hellenic Polytheists, including myself.

That being said, personally, I like to have sort of guidelines to follow, and Alexander isn’t the only one to have created “moral pillars”. So I took inspiration from multiple sources, including @/hyakinthou-naos in one of their recent posts, to make my own pillars. These are things that are important to me, personally, and they may differ from yours if you have some. I chose to have 5 pillars as it is a number associated with Lady Aphrodite, and the pillars will be listed in alphabetical order.

Hekousios- Ε´κουσίος

ἑκούσιος translates to “free will” or “voluntary”. To me, this means to do things at your own pace, and to always have worship be a personal choice, not something put on someone.

Kharis - Χάρις

Kharis can be translated to “grace, kindness, goodwill, elegance, favour, joy, charity, beauty”, “reciprocity”, “grace, favor, goodwill”, or a reciprocal relationship with the Gods. To me, this means to not ask for things without offering something in return, to not take advantage of gifts from the Gods.

Periergia - Περιέργεια

Periergia translates to curiosity and is often associated with devotion to researching something. For me, this means to always be curious, open to new ideas, and never stop learning new things. It also means to never claim that I know everything, and be willing to research things I don’t know much about.

Symmakhia - Σύμμαχία

Symmakhia translates to “allyship”. It also happens to be an epithet of Lady Aphrodite! It is usually used in the context of military and war, but here, I am using this word in the context of allyship and support towards marginalized groups. Allyship is active, and so to me, this pillar means to show active support to those that are a part of marginalized or minority communities.

Xenia - Ξενία

Xenia is the concept of guest-friendship or hospitality. For me, this means kindness and hospitality towards those from all walks of life and lived experiences, as long as it is safe to do so.

Daimones Part 2: Children of Nyx

In Greek mythology, there are various personified spirits called daimones. Eventually this word evolved into what we now know as “demon” (a word with negative connotations), but daimones weren’t necessarily “evil” spirits. Most of these daimones are the children of Nyx, Eris, or Zeus. In general, the daimon children of Zeus are personifications of morally good concepts, while the children of Nyx and Eris represent the malevolent forces which plague humans. Some daimones (like Hebe, the goddess of youth, or even Eris herself) were full fledged gods, while others were mere personifications with no mythology or cult.

According to Hesiod

Moros: the personification of doom (the force which drive humans toward inevitable death). Prometheus saved mankind from misery by taking away the foresight of our own doom (Moros) and replacing it with Elpis (hope).

Keres: female spirits of violent or cruel death. One of the Keres, Akhlys, was the goddess of deadly poisons and the death-mist which clouds the eyes of mortals before death.

Hypnos: god of sleep, husband of Pasithea (relaxation)

Thanatos: god of peaceful or non-violent death. As the twin brother of Hypnos, he represented the eternal slumber of death.

Oneroi: spirits of dreams, they were sometimes considered the children of Hypnos rather than Nyx. Their leader was said to be Morpheus, a man who appeared in the dreams of kings bringing messages from the gods.

Nemesis: goddess of righteous indignation and deserved retribution against those with too much good fortune. She represented the balance of good and bad fortune.

Hesperides: spirits of the evening sunset. They were sometimes called the daughters of Atlas.

Momos: mockery, blame, complaint, and harsh criticism. Zeus expelled him from heaven for criticizing the gods.

Oizys: female spirit of misery, woe, distress, and suffering

Apate: female spirit of deceit, guile, and fraud

Philotes: friendship and affection. She may have also been the spirit of sexual intercourse.

Geras: male spirit of old age

Eris: goddess of strife. She is the mother of a host of malevolent spirits of war.

Moirai: the fates were sometimes called daughters of Nyx, although more often they were the daughters of Zeus and Themis.

Likely Children of Nyx

Anaideia: ruthlessness and unforgiveness

Adikia: injustice and wrong-doing

Adephegia: gluttony

Aergia: idleness, laziness, and sloth

Alastor: counterpart of the Erinyes who punished the family of murderers

Aporia: powerlessness

Lyssa: mad rage, fury, rabies

Epiales: nightmares

Dolos: trickery, cunning deception, and craftiness

Koalemos: stupidity and foolishness

Kakia: vice and immorality

Epiphron: prudence, shrewdness, and careful consideration

Phyge: flight, escape, retreat, and exile

Phrice: horror, she is a more severe counterpart of Deimos and Phobos.

Phthisis: wasting away, perishing, and decay

Hubris: insolence, violence, reckless pride, arrogance, and outrage. Her son, Koros, represented insolence and disdain

Dyssebia: impiety, sometimes called the mother of Hubris.

Amekhania: helplessness and want, sister of Penia and Ptokheia

Ptokheia: beggary, sister of Amekhania and Penia

Penia: poverty and need, sister of Amekhania and Ptokheia

Eleos: mercy, pity, compassion

Sophia: wisdom

Elpis: hope. She was the last spirit that remained in Pandora’s box, representing humanity’s hold on hope in the face of all of these terrors. Her daughter, Pheme, was the personification of rumor, report, and gossip.

Sophrosyne: moderation, self-control, temperance, and restraint

Phthonos: jealousy and envy, especially in the context of love

Nosoi: male spirits of plague, sickness, and disease

Maniai: spirits of madness, insanity, and crazed frenzy

Arai: female spirits of curses (this is where I got my URL)

Poinai: spirits of vengeance and punishment

Magical Powder Recipes

A collection of some of my original magical powder recipes.

All-Purpose Cursing Powder

Bree's Banishing Powder

Clean House Powder

Come Hither Powder

Dead Man's Dust

Dream Dust

“Eye of Sauron” Revelation Powder

Get Thee Hence Powder

Ghost-Be-Gone Powder

Heal Thy Heart Powder

Hexbreaker Powder

Inspiration Salt

Lucky Day Powder

“Outta My Way” Powder

Peacekeeper Powder

Persuasion Powder

STFU Powder

Traveler’s Luck Powder

Truthfinder Powder

For those of you who may not be able to find herbs locally, here are some online suppliers who consistently have affordable and high-quality products.

Penn Herb Co. - Bulk herbs, spices, and botanicals - including over 400 wildcrafted herbs, gathered from the United States and worldwide. Single ounce packages are available. Excellent source for powders.

Starwest Botanicals - Bulk herbs, spices, oils, and teas. Good amount of organic and Fair Trade products, as well as supplies for holistic medicine and tea-making.

Mountain Rose Herbs - Bulk herbs, spices, and sundries. Also carries organic products and essential oils, and has link to schools that offer courses in herbalism and herbology.

Bulk Apothecary - Bulk herbs, spices, and oils, in addition to materials for the home production of soap, candles, wine, and beer.

For more recipes to fill out your potion kit, you can check out Pestlework: A Book of Magical Powders & Oils. (Available on Amazon and in my shop!)

If you're enjoying my content, please feel free to drop a little something in the tip jar or check out my published works on Amazon or in the Willow Wings Witch Shop. 😊