For The Witches And Pagans Who Need To Hear It, Connecting With Nature Is Supposed To Be About Like,

Metaphysical Shop Red Flags:

Little bit of a disclaimer on this one: This post is made from my personal experience. If you have a small business, this post is not about you, but hey if some of these things stand out to you, maybe it's worth analyzing your business model.

I am someone that's been active in irl and online pagan and witch spaces for over a decade now, and am compiling this from my own experiences, as well as those of my partners. I'm also a tad anti-capitalist, so an alternative title for this post could be "How to Spot if You're Actually that Metaphysical Shop's Cash Cow".

Now, let's get started.

Unknown or unethically sourced White Sage is a really noticeable starting place. Once I was at a market and saw cute smoke cleansing bundles with dried flowers and cinnamon sticks and quartz points, very pretty, very flashy! But when I asked where the Sage was sourced, the lady manning the booth said they were from Amazon. Some sellers value visual appeal to make a sale over anything else.

Overt appropriation via bulk, drop shipped items like “smudging” tools, dream catchers, etc. This list of items can vary dramatically based on who owns the shop, what practices exist in your area, so it’s good to educate yourself on how to spot appropriation. This does NOT mean ethically sourced options that benefit marginalized communities, that’s what we want to insist our local shops have for us to buy!

On that note, a lack of local creators and/or sourcing in general. Not every store has a goal of being a community hub, but beyond that they are still very visible aspects of the community. It strikes me as very odd that I can more reliably buy locally sourced herbs from a random gift shop than I can from a metaphysical store no matter which state I’m in.

Crystals with no information about where they were sourced. There is a growing issue with the intense demand for crystals that has caused an increase in unethical sources, so knowing where your purchases come from is important. Compare prices at metaphysical shops to those at your local rock shop, especially if you are lucky enough to have one run by gemologist, geologist, or rockhound. I have talked about this already elsewhere, so I won’t bog down this post too much with it. The short of it is, transparency is a green flag.

This one may be controversial, but dramatic markups in general. Don’t be afraid to compare prices to other places, particularly other local options if they are available. A few dollars variance is normal, but a huge markup should be obvious. Things like location can have a huge impact on price, which is good to keep in mind. The availability and price of something can vary wildly based on that factor alone, but that’s why I recommend checking against other options within your area. Do remember that comparing to Amazon prices isn’t fair to small businesses, and “cheap” is not the goal here.

If the contents of the store are all drop-shipped, or bulk stock that can definitely be something to keep an eye out for. If the place is full of items you can actually look up on Amazon, that may be worth paying attention to.

Prevalence of well-known problematic authors. If they have Silver Ravenwolf on a central display, that’s always something that tells me a shop prioritizes making a sale over providing quality products. If there’s an overwhelming presence of Lewellyn published books with minimal alternatives, that shows a lack of care for diversity or quality control.

AI items. Let’s be so for real here. Walking into a shop and seeing an obviously AI generated altar cloth with gibberish symbols all over it is a bad thing. I’ll talk more on the rising presence of AI that’s very negatively influencing the quality of information available in the pagan community at a later time.

Bulk resin and 3D printed items. We’ve all seen them, the vendor at a fair with an army of dozens of jointed dragons, or ten resin-cast, glitter-filled Gaia statues that light up! All so sparkly, colorful, and eye-catching. I’d implore anyone to learn more about how much plastic waste is involved in bulk production of low-quality products like this.

What my wife likes to call “Apple Store vibes”. Call me traditional, but when a store is all sleek white lines and tidy, understocked shelves, I know I’m in for some of the highest prices for incense I’ve ever seen. These stores are meant to bring in people with money burning a hole in their pocket, and that’s often reflected in the visually appealing kitsch that never actually seems to serve a purpose.

This can be a red flag SOMETIMES but not always: A lack of diversity in the paths represented. Sometimes a shop is just a reflection of the owner’s personal practice, or the focuses of the local community. Other times, there can be a reflected air of superiority of one path over others. This is entirely dependent on the individual store.

A big one I’d like to end on; they only host paid classes and services with no way for under-served members of the community to attend or participate. This is made even worse if the events are all over $20. Especially if this store is the only option in your area for these things! Instead of providing a service, they could be focused on cornering the market.

A quick Green Flag for some positivity, the presence of the owners or staff’s personal practice! I love being able to ask for insight from the source, I love being able to buy someone’s personal oil blends, I love learning more about things I may not have thought about because I’m not walking that path myself. Staff that want to chat and help can be so nice and really add to a welcoming environment.

Supporting small businesses is so important, and they can really be cornerstones of our community, but we need to be able to see the difference between someone passionate about providing resources and space to a community, and others that are looking to make a quick buck off of people starving for that. We as consumers need to hold our communities to some kind of standard, and I for one find that my standard is a certain level of authenticity. Not everyone selling metaphysical tools and supplies is trying to scam someone, but there are bad actors everywhere. Educate yourself, keep your eyes open, and don’t be afraid to ask yourself what someone’s motivations are.

follow-up to this post

I'm calling it, "how to do magic as if you are magical and the whole of nature is listening"

say = think, sign, write, or any vehicle of communication

presence of energy = candle, incense, sunlight, moonlight, breeze/wind, running water, yourself while you're already feeling those emotions/thoughts/beliefs, etc.

Cleansing object: blow on object, wipe it off

Cleansing object: wash it in the sink

Cleansing self: take shower

Cleansing self: change clothes

Cleansing self: listen to music

Cleansing space: light a candle in the room

Cleansing space: open a window, let air flow through

Cleansing space: sweep/clean floors

Blessing object: look at the object. say, "you are special." also mean this in your heart. give it a lil kiss or a lil pat with your thumb

Blessing space: pat door frame. say, "you are a special room." feel how the room is special and good. tell the room you love it

Charging object: bring object into presence of energy and ask it to fill itself up. tell energy you would like it to fill up the object. leave the two to their privacy

Charging space: exactly as "Charging object" but you cant move the space so you gotta find a way to get the energy to it

Dedicating object: tell object to prepare itself for its new life. tell it that its fate and destiny are about to be forever changed. speak to whomever object will be dedicated to. say, "this is for you. i give it to you. you own it now"

Enchant food or beverage: tell food or beverage what you want it to do. realize you will spend some of your energy to enchant it. say, "I spend my energy to craft my reality." stir food or beverage for a few moments until you suddenly feel more tired. say, "this is magical now, and whoever consumes it will absorb that magic"

Enchant object: tell object exactly what you need it to do. tell it you will feed it energy so it can be born to its new purpose. bring object into presence of energy and ask it to fill itself up. tell energy you would like it to fill up the object, specifically to fulfill the objects new purpose. leave the two to their privacy. when you return, tell object, "i have captured power in you, you are magical now, and you will be forever." (optional: repeat daily for 3 days)

Cast spell 1: exactly as "Enchant object," but object is a candle, incense, or sigil. Once enchanted, burn into ashes. dispose of remnants in a strange way

Cast spell 2: put together a lot of little objects into a container, instructing each one to its purpose. then tell the entire container its master purpose. then enchant the entire container exactly as "Enchant object"

Cast spell 3: take some string into the presence of energy. tell the string it will hold some magic in knots. tell the energy you will capture it in knots. tell yourself what you will capture in the knot. tie the knot. say, "I have captured power." repeat until there are enough knots

Curse others: exactly as any "Cast spell," but your purpose is always to harm another

Curse self: much easier than "Curse others." all you need to do is speak bad words about yourself to others

Undo spell: exactly as "Cast spell 1," but its purpose is to be the exact opposite of the unwanted spell, so they equalize each other

Undo spell: exactly as "Cast spell 1," but its purpose is to be a little knight who rides across the land to slay the first spell-dragon

Undo enchantment: say to object, "yesterday was the last day of forever. it is time for you to go back to your old life. let go of the magic within you, and return to your long sleep." bury in salt or earth for 3 days.

Binding: exactly as "Cast spell 3," but instead of [energy], take the string into the presence of what is to be bound, and tell the string to tie it up and hold it so it can never be let go

Glamour self: your aura is a constant projection of everything you currently are. breathe in how you want to be perceived and breathe out how you will be perceived. your breath coats your aura like steam on glass. it will also fade like steam on glass. repeat every day the glamour is desired

Close yourself off to spirits: say, "i do not want to be in contact with any spirits. no thank you." believe this in your heart also

Mega close yourself off to spirits: say, "i do not believe in spirits actually, even more than that, they are not real at all; so i have no concerns in coming into contact with them." believe this in your heart also

Open yourself to spirits: say, "i am actually quite fine with being in touch with helpful spirits, or at least neutral ones, but definitely ones that mean me no harm"

Banish spirits: say, "i am the only witch in this house, and i choose what energies are here and what spirits may stay. someone else may have invited you, but they do not have the right to invite you, and i am telling you now that you must go. leave now as a friend or be destroyed as an enemy" believe this in your heart also

Banish humans: exactly as "Cast spell 1," but instruct the consumable object to chase the human far away as its released

Pray: say things, but to someone who isnt in the room with you

Build a shrine: make a mood board dedicated to that being, but instead of digital pictures its physical objects, and all the objects are in one little area. then, perform "Dedicating object" over entire space

Build a spellcasting altar: exactly as "Build a shrine," but the vibe is things that remind you of power and your own power. then, perform "Dedicating object," but you dedicate it to yourself

30 Tried & Tested Tips for Becoming a Great Tarot Reader

Stop bullshitting people.

Aim for truthful readings.

Be confident when giving a reading.

Avoid blanking when reading.

Avoid the most common mistakes.

Always trust your cards.

Don’t make your cards hate you.

Create a bond with your decks.

Learn proper tarot etiquette.

Don’t believe in superstitions.

Don’t mistake honesty for hate.

Master the Celtic Cross.

Predict timing accurately.

Read reversals the right way.

Treat rogue cards the right way.

Never pull clarifiers.

Never assign a yes or no value to cards.

Learn how to read feelings, thoughts & intentions.

Learn how to read physical appearance.

Learn tarot's astrological associations.

Know the cards’ literal meanings.

Know the meanings of tarot’s colors.

Know the meanings of tarot’s numbers.

Read one spread in many ways.

Deal cards the traditional way.

Have your own reading ritual.

Properly close every tarot reading.

Gauge yourself.

Master tarot.

Be the best reader you can be.

Advice for if your practice is feeling stressful or unfulfilling (that isn't 'just stop practicing')

Before you expand: long text post!

I think it's interesting that the first line of advice stressed and unhappy practitioners often receive is 'stop practicing! take a break,' because besides a breather this doesn't actually do anything. When a person is done with that break they're still going to have the same stressful, unfulfilling practice they did before.

Stop practicing is useful advice for someone who is about to deep-fry their brain in uncontrolled Witch Fire. It's useful advice for someone who experiences unexplainable catastrophe every time they engage in magic.

I'm not sure it's useful advice for people who want to practice and are actively seeking help figuring out how.

So here are some ideas. Feel free to add your own.

If your practice has too much of a time load:

Scrape over-engineered ritual. Examine ritual formats. Are you spending a majority of your practice time engaging in elaborate ritual? Where can that be paired down?

Swap ritual for enchantments. If ritual performs an action (laying a compass), can you substitute for that ritual action by making enchanted objects that take less time to activate (enchanted compass altar cloth)?

Minimize ingredients. If you regularly perform spells that require lengthy enchantment of ingredients, can you use fewer ingredients to achieve the same results? If you're using more than 3 correspondences for any spell, is this because you are wise in your own ways, or because you just feel that more is merrier?

Mash rituals together. Do you have a string of rituals, even small ones, that you perform one after the other? Is it possible to reorganize these so they're all done at once, in the same ritual? For example, setting out an offering to the gods, a different offering for the ancestors, another for helper spirits, etc. Can you combine these all into one single offering?

Check for over-tending. Is it possible that you're repeating magical acts, like feeding wards and cleansing, more often than you need to? Did you arrive at this schedule through trial and error, or did you just guess this is how often you should do them?

Check for your own levelup: spell maintenance. If it's been a while since you re-evaluated your ritual/offering/maintenance schedule, your increase in skills may mean you need to do these tasks less often to achieve the same result.

Check for your own levelup: techniques and routines. Some techniques, like carefully entering trance, grounding, and centering, are like training wheels that wear ruts into our paths of magic. As we improve in skill, old rituals and techniques that have been carefully couched in these helpful devices may become ingrained in us so that we can perform them in almost any state of mind, much faster and easier than we could before. Experiment with any technique you've been doing for a while and see if you still need to perform time-consuming meditative or focusing techniques before you can perform the skill.

Be reasonable with your own goals. I find most 'laywitches' give themselves daily and weekly schedules that would put actual cloistered monks to shame. Did your spirits tell you they expect daily offerings, or did you decide on that an run with it? Where are you overcompensating and overexerting in your path when nobody, including yourself, asked you to?

If your practice has too much of a work load:

Much of the advice of the prior section applies. Also,

Just work less. Are you putting in 100% effort when 20% or 30% would do? Are you treating every act of magic like a performance review that will control the outcome of your magical career? I'm not being sarcastic; an actual solution to your path being too much work is to just put in less effort. If you've never tried this you may be shocked at how effective magic can be when you're only doing what needs to be done.

Find simpler, more reasonable stuff. Find new techniques, and spell and ritual formats that are paired down to fit the amount of effort that's reasonable to exert for any given magical act. If you can't work with correspondences without a lengthy act of activation, find a way to cast simple spells that doesn't rely on correspondences.

Limit research and prep. Ask yourself how much research you reasonably need to get started on any given project. Remember that a huge amount of a witch's education is experiential; you will probably never know enough until you've already done it three or four times.

Be goal-oriented; prioritize actions. Ask yourself if you've set arbitrary workloads before you can get started with anything, such as forcing yourself to write artistic grimoire pages before you're allowed to perform a ritual you're interested in.

Learn skills to help prioritize actions. If your practice is consumed by acts of upkeep such as cleansing and empowering objects, focus on learning energy sensing so you can reasonably determine whether or not an object actually needs to be cleansed or empowered.

Administrate your own practice - what can go on the back burner? Make a list of all your active ongoing projects and maintenance, including upkeep of energy batteries, spells that require maintenance, and situations you want to change and are casting spells on. Prioritize them; see which ones you can set aside.

Restructure your projects to minimize maintenance. Consolidate spells and projects where possible. For example, if you have multiple protection spells for many people that require upkeep, condense them all onto a protection altar so you can feed and tend to them all at once.

Work in batch and bulk. See where you can do batch work to lighten your load. You can bulk enchant candles and incense, instead of enchanting incense every time you do a ritual. You can enchant oils, waters, and incense to feed your spells, taking time out of upkeep.

Levelup your charging and maintenance skills. Learn energy work to attach energy tethers to batteries and other important projects so they're able to drink from the wellspring you attach them to, and stay charged.

Scrape routines that don't serve you. Examine any daily routines. Are you doing them because they're helping you, or because you feel like you're supposed to be doing something every day? See if you can replace more intensive daily routines with something less tiring, like a prayer to your path itself.

If your practice feels too silly:

You have a right to privacy. Cocooning is valid. It's fine to take steps to limit who can see and potentially judge your practice. You can keep things to yourself until you're ready.

Tend to your emotional wellness. Self-therapy, in any form you feel comfortable with, can help mitigate the inner eye of judgement.

Reduce your beliefs to palatable doses. Believing in magic for only the duration of your work is perfectly fine. You don't have to 'believe-believe' 24/7. If you're not ready to integrate the belief of magic and spirits into your baseline worldview, don't - you can agree to buy in to those beliefs only while you practice techniques and cast spells, and then put them away the rest of the time.

Scrape stuff you really can't get past. Ask yourself what about your practice feels silly. Are there trappings - like altars, ritual movements, and speaking aloud - that you don't like? Change them. Is the idea that religious faith itself is a bit cringe? Self-therapy (or you know, the regular kind) may be assistive.

Ask for help modifying your process.Is there something very specific about a ritual or technique that you just can't get past, but you don't know how to change it? Research and see what other substitute rituals are available. Ask others and see if they can help you brainstorm.

Embrace the silliness. It's not going anywhere. Believing in your practice and holding it dear and sacred is not the same as being ✨super serious gravitas✨ all the time. There are lots of things about witchcraft, and the acts of the witch, that are silly and make you realize you're doing something ridiculous. I came out here at 2 am after it's been raining to climb down a slippery riverbed to get a branch of a tree that I think is talking to me?? Because some medieval guy said Tuesday is the planet Mars and I think trees talk to me?! Ridiculous. Yet I still love it dearly in a sacred place in my heart. It can be silly and glorious at the same time.

Cast a wider net. See if you're barking up the wrong tree. Traditional Witchcraft, folk magic, lodge magic, chaos magic, eclectic neopaganism... these things are not interchangeable. If you've never explored different traditions, why not give it a go? You might find another path that feels a lot more natural to you. A lot of people fall into a certain path just because they don't know what else they could be doing!

If your practice feels unfulfilling:

What are you doing to bring yourself fulfillment? Why did you get into witchcraft? Make a list of your top 5 reasons (if you have that many). Which techniques, spells, and rituals are you regularly performing are designed to deliver these desires to you? If one of your goals of practicing witchcraft is to 'feel connected,' how often are you performing acts where the only goal is to make you feel connected?

Grow your path deliberately in the direction of your needs. What do you wish you had in your life right now? Is it the feeling of being loved? Inner peace? Feeling like nature is alive and watching you? Look for what techniques and rituals in your practice will bring these things to you. If there are none, find or develop them.

Ask for help and share your feelings. If you work with gods and spirits, do you regularly tell them how you feel about your practice and ask them for help finding fulfillment?

Find contentment in the process. It's vital to find joy in the process. If you have regular routines or upkeep you need to do, how can you modify it so that process in and of itself is satisfying to you? Try considering the visceral element of witchcraft: the words, scents, sounds, moods, and thoughts that you want to experience in your present moment. Witchcraft is experiential: a great deal of the experience you create in the tidepools of routine is under your control.

Contemplate the larger purpose. Some witches do have magical chores and responsibilities they can't or shouldn't shirk. If this is true of you, and you can't modify those routines, try refocusing on why you're doing them and the importance they hold in your path. See if you can find balance elsewhere in your practice that feels rejuvenating; sort of a 'work-play' balance of your own craft.

Set short-term goals you can celebrate. Are you undertaking a lot of 'workout routines' that are designed to basically make you magically buff, or get good at a particular skill, but you're doing them with no endgoal? Try creating short-term goals that excite your sense of wonder or accomplishment. Like, practicing tarot until you can read the Celtic Cross, or practicing energy work until you can make a four-element layered energy shield. Build goalposts for yourself, both in the short and long-term, and celebrate your successes.

Scrape routines you're not doing for any good reason. Are your regular practices things you're doing because they fill you with mystery and wonder, or because you're just pretty sure that's the kind of thing witches do? If you're bored or unfulfilled by a particular routine, consider stopping it altogether, especially if you can't think of any short-term goals that it's helping you work towards. Think about the reasons you got into witchcraft: what practices would help you fulfill those reasons, while also feeling good to practice?

Seek out a likeminded community. A good working group of friends can be invaluable. My close group of witch friends, whom I've been hanging out with for years, started as a Tumblr post asking if anyone wanted to make a small server to study witchcraft. Reach out and see who's out there to study with, talk to, and practice with. It can be loads of fun to do short-term study and practice challenges with friends, and a great way to get feedback and support.

Evaluate your spiritual relationships. Although it can be painful and challenging, sometimes we enter into our paths working with gods and spirits that after some time, we need to move on from. Is it possible your path has become stagnant because you don't want to keep working with a god or spirit that your path has been built around? It may be time to see how you can move on.

When 'take a break' might be helpful advice to heal your practice:

Of course, YMMV :)

'Taking a break' doesn't mean stop being a witch, stop believing in magic, or stop 100% of your practice. It can also mean putting a lot of projects on the back burner, switching to bare-minimum (or below minimum) maintenance, and squashing regular routines.

I'm talking specifically about taking a break in the interest of your own practice - not the conditions under which someone is ""allowed"" to stop practicing witchcraft.

Take a break to rest and let your seeds germinate. 'Fallow periods,' when you have no desire or motivation to practice witchcraft, and when it seems like there's nothing for you to do, are normal. Some witches experience this cyclically, perhaps during certain seasons or when predictable life conditions are met. There's no need to force yourself to practice when it's just not flowing. The snow on your mountaintops needs to melt to replenish your waterways, bestie. There's nothing wrong with you, the sun just isn't out yet.

When you're hitting yourself with a hammer. When something in your practice is triggering or harming you, and stopping will have no consequences, then stopping your practice for a while is probably a good idea. Use the downtime to seek healing or reformat your practice.

To open your life up for necessary work. Not every witch can out-path every problem. Consider taking a break when the problem is something you will have time and energy to work on if not for your regular magical practice.

When you're about to deep-fry your brain with Witch Fire. Consider taking a break when the problem with your practice is that you are practicing too often - such as fatigue due to excessive spellwork, divinatory obsession, trouble staying out of the spirit world (compulsive astral travel), or focus on spirits/magic/the spirit worlds are starting to erode your home, school, or work life.

To let the ripples settle. When you've done so much magic or ritual work that your life is a boat on a stormy sea, and you just need to batten down the hatches for a while and let things settle.

“No System but the Ecosystem” back patch

Screen printed on reclaimed fabric: 9″ x 12″ 

You can get one HERE.

Some offerings / devotional acts for Lord Lucifer

- poetry (or art of any kind)

- self care in his name!

- a dedicated candle dressed with herbs that are associated with Him

- prayer in the evening, trusting Him to sit by your side until you fall asleep

- prayer in the morning for a good outlook on the day

- music! playing music, writing music, listening to music,…

- therapy

- taking your meds

- sharing a drink with Him (coffee, tea, wine, anything)

- shadow work!!!

- watching the sunrise

- any kind of magic in His name

- divination

- trying out new things and getting out of your comfort zone

- human rights activism

- focusing on yourself

- questioning authority and standing up for yourself

- enlightenment, learning and pursuing the arts

- studying philosophy

- befriending your local neighbourhood crows

- getting Him scented candles that smell like His associated herbs

- making Him a Pinterest board

- making a playlist with songs that remind you of Him

- learning how to properly ward and protect yourself (magically)

- dedicating a piece of jewellery to Him (and asking Him to bless it)

- making a journal for Him (digital or analog) with prayers, tarot spreads, offerings and information about Him (I recommend this for every deity, honestly it’s really useful and a great way of showing devotion)

- learning more about Him and common misconceptions associated with Him (especially in Christianity)

- wearing clothes that radiate His energy and make you feel confident

In the end, any offerings you give Him are valid and will be appreciated, as long as you put some thought into it. Don’t worry if you can’t give Him the things you’d like to give Him, He will accept anything that comes from a place of love and devotion.

𝐴𝑙𝑙-𝑑𝑎𝑦 𝑂𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝐿𝑢𝑐𝑖𝑓𝑒𝑟

𝑆𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑖𝑑𝑒𝑎𝑠 𝐼 𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ𝑡 𝑢𝑝 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝐼 𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑑𝑎𝑦 (^^)♡:

⚪ 𝐷𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑒𝑎/𝑐𝑜𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑒/𝑑𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑘 𝑖𝑛 𝐻𝑖𝑠 ℎ𝑜𝑛𝑜𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑑𝑎𝑦

⚪𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑙𝑜𝑤 𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑜𝑛 𝑑𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑙𝑢𝑑𝑒 𝑐𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔/𝑒𝑟𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝐻𝑒’𝑠 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑙 & 𝑝ℎ𝑦𝑠𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑙 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑡ℎ

⚪𝑈𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑢𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑧𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑑𝑢𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑/𝑜𝑟 𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑎𝑙𝑠 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒, 𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑔𝑦 𝑑𝑜𝑒𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠, 𝑡𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠 𝑎𝑟𝑒 ℎ𝑒𝑙𝑝𝑓𝑢𝑙 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑦

⚪𝑆𝑖𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛/𝑝𝑟𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 𝑤𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑎𝑙𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑦 𝑜𝑝𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝐻𝑖𝑚: 𝑙𝑜𝑤 𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑦 > ℎ𝑖𝑔ℎ 𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑜𝑛 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑡𝑦. 𝑌𝑜𝑢 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛 𝑑𝑜 𝑎𝑛 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑠𝑖𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑝𝑟𝑎𝑦𝑒𝑟 𝑖𝑓 𝑦𝑜𝑢 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑔𝑦, 𝐴𝑠𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐻𝑖𝑚 𝑡𝑜 𝑔𝑢𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑑𝑎𝑦 𝑖𝑠 𝑎 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚 𝑜𝑓 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑓𝑢𝑙𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑠𝑡/𝑎𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑠𝑡

⚪𝐿𝑜𝑜𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑢𝑛𝑟𝑖𝑠𝑒 & 𝑠𝑢𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑡

⚪𝐹𝑜𝑟 ℎ𝑖𝑔ℎ 𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑜𝑛 𝑑𝑎𝑦𝑠, 𝐼 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑑𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝐻𝑖𝑚 (𝐼 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑖𝑡 𝑚𝑎𝑦 𝑠𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑 𝑤𝑒𝑖𝑟𝑑 𝑏𝑒 𝐻𝑒 𝑒𝑛𝑗𝑜𝑦𝑠 𝑖𝑡 ૮ ˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶ ა)

⚪ 𝐴𝑛𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 ℎ𝑖𝑔ℎ 𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑜𝑛, 𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑚𝑢𝑠𝑖𝑐 𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑖𝑓 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑛𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑝𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑒, 𝐻𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒𝑠 𝑚𝑢𝑠𝑖𝑐 (ง ื▿ ื)ว

⚪𝑅𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑐ℎ 𝑖𝑠 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑝 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑙𝑢𝑑𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑐ℎ 𝑎𝑛𝑑/𝑜𝑟 𝑎𝑐𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑚𝑖𝑐

⚪𝑆ℎ𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔, 𝑔𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑢𝑡𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒, 𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒𝑑 𝑜𝑛𝑒𝑠, 𝑒𝑛𝑗𝑜𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 ℎ𝑜𝑏𝑏𝑖𝑒𝑠, 𝑠𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑠 𝑜𝑓 “𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑓-𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑝” 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑑𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝐻𝑖𝑚

⚪ 𝑆𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑓𝑠 (𝑑𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛) 𝑖𝑠 𝑎 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑝 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑏𝑒 "𝐹𝑢𝑐𝑘 𝐷𝑎 𝑃𝑜𝑙𝑖𝑐𝑒" 𝑜𝑟 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑟𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑠, 𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑓-𝑑𝑒𝑓𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑒 (𝑑𝑖𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑠 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑟𝑢𝑙𝑒𝑠, 𝑑𝑜𝑛'𝑡 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑜𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑒𝑟(￢_￢;))

𝑅𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟: 𝑅𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑑𝑎𝑦 𝑖𝑠 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑝 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑛𝑠 𝑚𝑢𝑐ℎ 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑛 𝑝𝑢𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑛 𝑎 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝐻𝑖𝑚. 𝐻𝑎𝑖𝑙 𝑇ℎ𝑦𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑓!

Things for beginners to know before starting demonolatry or demonology practices

1. The classifications of demons were written by humans, not demons.

Different occult schools of thought will have different understandings of the Hierarchies of Hell, whether Hell even exists, and what attributes are associated with each demon. In some sects Lucifer reigns supreme Emperor of Hell, in others it is Sammael, Moloch, or Baal. It all depends on the perspective of the practitioner. All of these models are equally correct and incorrect. Documentation of de(a)mons were often written by right hand practitioners who saw them as evil, therefore their negative attitudes are emphasized. Other times devotees have documented the same entity as being very kind and affectionate. It is incredibly important to take into account who is speaking whenever you read about demons. No single book or author can deliver to you the most **objective** facts about these demons or the model of reality, if they claim to, they’re lying to you. You as the practitioner must discover and decide what reins true in your reality. Teachers and gurus may influence you but ultimately you must make the decision for yourself.

2. Assume all spirits are multi dimensional

Lucifer, the light bringer, is also the spirit of darkness. He is the sweet prince and the adversary, he is a devil and an angel. It is extremely rare that you will encounter a spirit that is only one thing. There is a little bit of truth to everyone’s interactions. To a Luciferian, Lucifer is a guide, a companion, and a positive presence. To a Christian he is an adversary, a tempter, liar and bringer of evil ; and there is an entire rainbow of other experiences that contribute to the understanding of “Lucifer”. Demons are not all good nor are they all bad, trying to paint them in only one light will only lead to disappointment and confusion. It is just as foolish to assume that a so called angel will always be pleasant and nice, as it is to assume a so called demon will be terrible and mean. Every energy interacts with every person uniquely.

3. Scary and intimidating doesn’t automatically mean “evil”

Nice and pleasing doesn’t automatically mean “good”

If you’re interacting with demons or spirits associated with death, it shouldn’t be very surprising that they’re dark, mysterious, or have a frightening appearance. If you’re dealing with demons or spirits of sex and lust, it shouldn’t be very surprising that they’re alluring, attractive, or beautiful. This doesn’t mean that the scary demon is going to kill you, and this doesn’t mean that the sexy demon is going to fuck you. There are very likely going to be times when your demons will scare you. This doesn’t mean that they’re going to hurt you or possess you (they shouldn’t be frightening you to the point of constant paranoia, but seeing some “disturbing” or strange imagery isn’t out of the norm when you’re contacting a de(a)mon).

If you enter a deep dark cave looking for a bear, don’t be surprised when you see sharp teeth. Demons of violence may summon gory imagery. Demons of death my feel cold and distant. A large part of demonolatry is understanding your fear and overcoming it.

4. Yeah, it’s intense.

Okay. This is hard for me to explain. Infernal spirits and angels alike are entities that force you to confront your innermost self and change. It’s not always spooky and scary and whimsical. Sometimes it’s losing your dead end job, having a serious breakup, losing toxic friends, or having a personal epiphany. When I say it’s intense, I don’t mean that I’m levitating and seeing gnarly gory shit and summoning demons while covered in blood all the time. I have dreams and experiences of course, but seeing a demon work is not about the theatrics. Are you ready to confront the things you rrrrreeaaaaalllly don’t want to think about? Your trauma, the lies you tell yourself to get through the day, and the toxic cycles you comfort yourself with?

Lord Lucifer has made me cry many MANY times. But it was never because he hurt or scared me. I’ve seen many demonolaters refer to Lucifer as a therapist and I couldn’t agree more. He not only changes your understanding of yourself, but others and the world. Through this understanding you can change yourself, and others, and the world.

5. You as the practitioner need to be able to withstand the symptoms of your demonic relationships

Being in a relationship with Lilith or Asmoday is not an excuse to develop a porn addiction. Being in a relationship with Lucifer does not give you the right to psychoanalyze all of your friends, being in a relationship with Eligos is not an excuse to destroy all of your relationships or be cruel towards others. Demons represent energies and concepts that are unfavourable to the masses. When working with Astaroth I will feel more lustful, just by being in her proximity. That is not justification to cheat on my partner or force myself onto him. As much as demons like Lucifer for example can inspire us to be wise and sharp, he can also influence us to be vein and narcissistic. We must always be aware of these effects and resist them, working with demons and shadows does not mean becoming the worst version of ourselves, quite the contrary. Interacting with these negative aspects is meant to show you how to overcome them.

6. Demons cannot and will not replace your relationships with humans

I am very pro godspousing and having friendly and affectionate relationships with demons and spirits. Having said that, as much as our spirits may love us and care for us, they will not be the ones to text you good morning. They will not make you soup when you’re sick, or buy you flowers after a hard day. Demons are guides and companions, but they are not people. Trying to use demons to solve your loneliness will only lead to heart ache. You very much can have a sincere relationship with a demon or other spirit, but be aware that that relationship will not mimic your relationships with humans, and it shouldn’t. Gods and demons are not humans, therefore your relationships with them will not feel human.

7. There’s always more to learn

Devotion to any spirit is an endeavour that can take years or even a lifetime. Your work is not done because you read 3 books and browsed the Occult Wiki for an hour and a half. Become very dedicated to learning about your demons of interest and the culture that surrounds them. Yes, this means boring, tedious research.

8. No, ______ is not mad at you. Please talk to them

You will at some point inevitably do something wrong, especially if you are freshly initiated. Demons understand that we are human, we make mistakes. Instead of becoming paranoid and avoiding your demon out of fear of consequences, put on your big boy pants and confront them directly. Understand what you did wrong and learn from your mistake. There may or may not be consequences, every demon is different. But making yourself sick thinking they’re going to smite you down doesn’t make anything better. I guarantee you that talking to them about it will serve you a million times better than running away.

9. You need to know your boundaries BEFORE you reach out

As important as it is to research your demons, it is equally important to research yourself. You need to have strict boundaries that you will not negotiate. These boundaries should be outlined in your contract if you have one. If blood magic is uncomfortable for you, don’t allow any demon or spirit to coerce you into giving it until you are ready. If you’re a minor you’re more than allowed to not do sex magic. This relationship belongs to you as much as it does your demon(s). If it doesn’t serve you, simply refuse it.

10. On that note, demons can and will reject you. You can and will reject them as well.

On many occasions I have approached spirits who did not want to work with me at the moment. Sometimes they end up showing up later in my life, other times they never do. Oftentimes this is because of an incongruency on an alchemical level, we just aren’t meant for each other. It doesn’t necessarily mean you’re doing anything wrong. Sometimes you are, but your demon or deity will usually make that clear to you in some way. Don’t force it. If I’m already terribly preoccupied with life or other spiritual relationships, I’m within my right to reject another demon trying to enter my circle. That isn’t a rude thing to do. I’m within my right to deny a ritual I don’t have the energy or resources for. We can put it on the back burner for now.

Likewise, if a demon or spirit is repeatedly overstepping my boundaries or harming me in any way, I can (and should) leave that demon. If I’m not doing enough or causing insult, that demon can leave me. As binding as devotional contracts can be, we are not trapped with each other if we choose not to be.

11. Protection shouldn’t only be against spirits. Be very aware of your surroundings and the people around you

Learn the power of secrecy. As a Luciferian living in an extremely conservative area, I have to be extremely careful about when my pendants are visible. I have to be careful when entering certain places because I don’t want to be hate crimed or harassed. Yes, being out and proud of my demonic relationships is very important to me, but it is not worth risking real danger from bigots, or risking my employment. When I go to work, I have to leave my Lucifer ring at home, not because my work is discriminatory, but because I don’t know when I’m speaking to a christofascist grandma who would make a complaint to my boss because she saw my devotional ring. I don’t know which of my coworkers would make my life more difficult if they knew about my practice. If you are visible, people will approach you and make comments. Now, there are those of us who don’t give a fuck, and on most days I don’t. But for those of us who are vulnerable to that kind of discrimination, please be aware.

12. Self mutilation is not demonolatry

If you choose to offer blood it should be no more than a few drops. You should be using safe tools like a lancet, and disinfecting the area you extract from. This should be done in the least harmful manner possible. Devotional markings or tattoos should be done by a professional.

13. This stuff takes time. Relax

These relationships don’t develop in 24 hours. It takes a tremendous amount of repeated effort to gain the favour of a demon or spirit. If you’re not getting the results you want, take a break, reevaluate your methods, and try again later.

Divination and Working with Deities

A few things to keep in mind…

Deities are individuals – no two are identical.

Some deities are easier to offend than others – and some will take that better than others.

Some deities enjoy talking to you by way of pendulum, tarot, oracle, etc. But others find it insulting if you try it – especially if you don’t ask them how they feel about it first.

While one deity that feels insulted might refuse to talk to you for a while, another might use rather more aggressive tactics, to make you realise your mistake.

25 Tarot Books You MUST Read If You Want To Grow Your Tarot Skills! By THERESA REED.

Seventy-Eight Degrees of Wisdom: A Book of Tarot by Rachel Pollack – deep and rich with information, no list is complete without this book.  If I did have to pick a favorite, this may be it.

Learning the Tarot: A Tarot Book for Beginners by Joan Bunning – based on her online course, this book will get any tarot newbie reading the tarot proficiently in no time.

Mary K. Greer’s 21 Ways to Read a Tarot Card by Mary Greer – novel ideas to expand your tarot skills.

The Complete Book of Tarot Reversals (Special Topics in Tarot Series) by Mary Greer – I’m a fan of reversals (they are not mandatory by the way) and this is THE book for those of us who choose to read upside down.  (Honorable mention:  Joan Bunning also has a good book on reversals, Learning Tarot Reversals )

The Complete Tarot Reader: Everything You Need to Know from Start to Finish by Teresa Michaelson – this book has a massive amount of information – it’s like a little encyclopedia

Tarot Masterclass by Paul Fenton-Smith – this book is rarely mentioned but I think it is pure genius.  Not just a tarot primer but also a great section on being a professional tarot reader.  (Honorable mention: Fenton-Smith also has a great beginner’s book, The Tarot Revealed: A Beginner’s Guide )

The Tarot Handbook: Practical Applications of Ancient Visual Symbols by Angeles Arrien – featuring the Thoth deck, this book will help you to understand tarot clearly – even if you do not read with the Thoth deck

The Way of Tarot: The Spiritual Teacher in the Cards by Alejandro Jodorowsky and Marianne Costa – This profound book gets super deep with the Marseille deck.  How I wish I would have had this book when I first started out!

Tarot Plain and Simple by Anthony Louis – loads of interpretations and a slant towards  beginners, this is the book I recommend to all my students

Understanding the Tarot Court (Special Topics in Tarot Series) by Mary Greer – face it, the Court cards are one of the hardest suits for any tarotist to master.  Greer spells it all out with clarity.  LOVE this one.

Tarot: A New Handbook for the Apprentice, Classic Ed (Connolly Tarot) by Eileen Connolly – this is the first tarot book I ever got my hands on.  It’s still a treasured favorite.  Some might be put off by her Christian undertones but I find the interpretations to be pure gold.  I love all of her works.

SuperTarot: New Techniques for Improving Your Tarot Reading by Sasha Fenton – although this is out of print, it is worth searching for a copy. The techniques contained within will help you expand your tarot skills.

The Secret Language of Tarot by Ruth Ann and Wald Amberstone – a fantastic book detailing the symbols in the tarot cards.

Tarot for Life: Reading the Cards for Everyday Guidance and Growth by Paul Quinn – A modern book with real life examples of tarot readings, this one will help you bring your readings to life.

Best Tarot Practices: Everything You Need to Know to Learn the Tarot by Marcia Masino – another great book that tends to be overlooked, this one has novel exercises and good advice on reading tarot professionally.

Tarot: Your Everyday Guide by Janina Renee – this book focuses on using tarot for dispensing advice.

Beyond the Celtic Cross: Secret Techniques for Taking Tarot to an Exciting New Level by Paul Hughes Barlow and Catherine Chapman – a very different approach to tarot – card counting and elemental dignities explained in a conversational format.

Rachel Pollack’s Tarot Wisdom: Spiritual Teachings and Deeper Meanings by Rachel Pollack – once again, Pollack delivers an impeccable and thought provoking book with new insights for the modern tarot reader.

Classic Tarot Spreads by Sandor Konraad – I’ve had this book for years and learned many a good spread from it.  (Honorable mentions:  Learning Tarot Spreads by Joan Bunning and Tarot Spreads and Layouts A User’s Manual For Beginning and Intermediate Readers by Jeanne Fiorini)

The Spoken Cabala: Tarot Explorations of the One Self by Jason Lotterhand – based on the Thursday night talks from Lotterhand, this book will give you some insight into the Kabbalah and how it relates to tarot.  (Honorable mentions:  Tarot and the Tree of Life: Finding Everyday Wisdom in the Minor Arcana by Isabel Radow Kliegman for a glimpse on how Kabbalah weaves through the Minor Arcana plus The Tarot Workbook: Understanding and Using Tarot Symbolism by Emily Peach which is a great Kabbalah/tarot primer for beginners)

Tarot Decoded: Understanding and Using Dignities and Correspondences by Elizabeth Hazel – every single dignity and correspondence you can imagine is featured here.

Who Are You in the Tarot?: Discover Your Birth and Year Cards and Uncover Your Destiny by Mary Greer – this is a fantastic book that gives deep insights on your personality, life and journey based on your “birth card”.

Tarot for Beginners: A Practical Guide to Reading the Cards by Barbara Moore – the easiest beginner book out there, this one will appeal to absolute newbies and those who are really sure they can’t “get it”.  Moore shows you that you CAN.

Tarot 101: Mastering the Art of Reading the Cards by Kim Huggens – excellent exercises, good reading list suggestions and a unique format make this book one you cannot miss.  Good for all levels.

Tarosophy : Tarot to Engage Life, Not Escape it by Marcus Katz – Hip and modern, full of useful information and exercises – plus it has stuff for all levels (beginner, intermediate and advanced).  It’s a very intellectual book – this is no “tarot for dummies”.