The Crooked Path Quotes

“By labeling the different gods and spirits as the Devil, it created a catchall that coalesced their unique essences in a workable archetype that survived in the popular folklore. Author Gemma Gary captures this idea beautifully when she writes, “Ironically, it may perhaps be the Church, in its keenness to eradicate adherence to pagan divinity by grafting and projecting it onto the diabolical, that has, unwittingly, most thoroughly preserved the potency, liberation and illumination of the ‘Old One’ and handed him back to the Witches as the ‘Devil.”
― Kelden, The Crooked Path: An Introduction to Traditional Witchcraft

“Accused Witch Isobel Gowdie and her coven began each of their Sabbath meetings by recounting their various acts of magic while the Devil recorded them in his Black Book.72 At this time, the Devil would also instruct Witches on the use of different magical techniques. Moreover, Witches would work new spells and rituals with the assistance of their covenmates.”
― Kelden, The Crooked Path: An Introduction to Traditional Witchcraft

“As accused Lancashire woman Margaret Johnson explained in 1633, whenever Witches desired to be somewhere, they would be transported in spirit upon a rod, dog, or other such item.69 The meeting itself often took place outside and in liminal settings such as churchyards (between the living and dead), mountaintops (between the land and sky), and fields (between one property and another). In many cases, these settings appeared as Otherworldly parallels to locations in the Midworld. It was claimed, for instance, that the accused Witches of Salem, Massachusetts, convened for their Sabbath in the Reverend Samuel Parris’s pasture.70 Meanwhile, the Witches of German folklore were said to gather on the Brocken, which is the highest peak of the Harz Mountains.71”
― Kelden, The Crooked Path: An Introduction to Traditional Witchcraft

“Recorded instructions for creating a Witch bottle advised one to “stop the urine of the Patient close up in a Bottle, and put into it three Nails, Pins, or Needles, with a little white Salt, keeping the urine always warm.” 33 The magical theory behind the bottle is that it acts as a representation of the ill-wisher’s bladder. The cork prevents them from passing urine while the pins cause them great pain, which would be exacerbated by the bottle being placed on a fire. It is thought that the guilty person would become so anguished that they would be forced to reverse their hex.”
― Kelden, The Crooked Path: An Introduction to Traditional Witchcraft