Basic Witches: How to Summon Success, Banish Drama, and Raise Hell with Your Coven

by Jaya Saxena

For you, a witch is any woman who understands she has power even when the world insists she doesn’t.

Many women are taught from an early age that any power we have, even power over ourselves, is considered dangerous, but witches revel in that danger.

Let my mind be calm My nerves quiet Muscles smooth as silk Let my body fill up With warmth and peace From this honey and milk

cavorting

a 2013 New York magazine article, writer Ann Friedman coined the term “shine theory”: the idea that when remarkable women surround themselves with other remarkable women, we make each other shine more brightly.

If you are stuck in the habit of competing and comparing, try going outside on a clear night during a full moon for a shine theory ritual. Imagine yourself surrounded by friends, each of you softly glowing in the moonlight. Speak this incantation aloud to each imagined friend in turn, until it feels natural and easy: I’m so proud of you. I’m lucky to know you. I’m lucky I get to be your friend.

Ditch Friend Envy

Let Go of a Friendship

With the pen, scratch or write each of your names on the bottom of the respective chess pieces and place them next to each other on the center of a shelf. While placing one hand on each piece, close your eyes and recite the following three times: It is time to say goodbye We will each move forward Thank you for what you have given me Each day for seven days, recite the incantation and move the pieces a little farther apart, so that after a week they are on opposite ends of the shelf. Then thank each piece for what it has done and put them away.

What this exercise can do is remind you that your ideal beloved should be more than just a warm body who isn’t too mean to you. And by training your focus on the specific qualities you want, you’ll naturally keep your eyes open for their manifestation in the real world, which will, eventually, help you summon that kind of person into your life. Here’s how to get started.

Sex shouldn’t be something you merely agree to; it should be something you will into being with your partner(s).

Stairways to Heaven: Drugs in American Religious History.

Saying the Magic Words in Bed

The Malleus Maleficarum talks about witches preventing conception and causing abortions—or, when those failed, eating babies or offering them to the devil. The authors recognize that not all contraception is witch-induced: “a man can by natural means, such as herbs…procure that a woman cannot generate or conceive.” When a woman does it, though? There’s something real suspicious about that.

Think of all the times you or your friends have said things like “I get so hungry by noon if I have anything sugary in the morning,” “Oil cleansing makes my skin go crazy,” or “If I nap for longer than 20 minutes, I’ll be a zombie.” Rarely, though, do we apply that same scrutiny to the way we feel around other people.

But you also have a limited amount of mental and social energy—wasting it on people who bring you down is like being lactose intolerant but eating so much cheese every day that you’re too full for anything else.

Grasp the honey in your dominant hand and draw a heart in the open palm of your nondominant hand. Visualize the face of the person you need space from. Say aloud: I respect your feelings, but I am not responsible for your feelings. Carefully, without crushing the heart, cover it with soap and turn on the faucet. Rubbing in careful circles, completely wash the honey away.

Instead of impulse shopping, buy a gift for a friend, find a homeless shelter’s Amazon wish list, purchase something from an organization that donates proceeds to charity, or contribute to a crowdfunding effort. You’ll still get the endorphin rush of shopping, but you’ll also be giving back.

A recent study by researchers at the University of Zurich found that self-control and empathy depend on the same part of the brain. This makes sense when you think about it: whenever you engage in disciplined behavior, you’re doing so out of compassion and kindness to your future self.

You can use any ritual you want to summon your future self, but we recommend looking in the mirror in a dim room (maybe a bathroom with the light off but the door open), letting your eyes relax, and saying, “When eye meets eye, may I see I.” Then look your reflection in the eye and talk to her as though she’s you from tomorrow, next week, or whenever is relevant.

weigh Future You’s needs against your current wants:

Even when you can’t choose your future, you can choose how you react to it:

While standing, stare at your reflection in the reflective surface and let your eyes relax until your vision blurs. Say aloud: The future is dark The future holds fright Show me my solid ground Show me my light

New Endeavors