How To Write Powerful Poetry Spells

BY LISA MARIE BASILE

Poetry is magic. And poems are spells. The spirituality of poetry is clear — but it’s not always obvious; like many paths and practices (especially witchcraft, folk magic, or other spiritual paths), poetry is a way toward self-reclamation, finding autonomy, understanding yourself and the world, and getting in touch with the divine, mysterious force within us — creativity.

And like a spell, a poem is born of intent and uses specific ingredients. Poetry is shadow work, a way of mining the depths. And through that act, it is a torch of illumination.

If we are the soil, the poetry is the rose that blooms. And the magic — that’s what brings it to the surface.

But why poetry? Poetry moves and slides and breaks rules; in fact, we make the rules as we write it. It defies structure, as it is a living art form, ever-changing. Its power lies in what it contains, what it doesn’t, what it gives, and what it hides in its white spaces — and it thrives in liminal spaces. It’s witchcraft.

It says, “I won’t tell you the truth, but I’ll tell you a part of it.” Poetry gives you clues. It asks you to think. It reveals according to its own rules. That’s why we always ask, “But what is it about?”

And that mystery makes it so beautiful — both to read and to write. It helps us stretch our imaginations, get out of our comfort zones, and offers a glimpse of something that one might never see or realize or pay attention to.As a poet and teacher of poetry, I think that is magical. In fact, I wrote a whole book about it: The Magical Writing Grimoire.

Like one’s magical craft, poetry asks us to return to the process. It asks us to spend time with it, nurture it, and go deeper. You are never done with learning as a practitioner of any sort. There are always more questions and always more epiphanies — and there are always more poems to download, to meditate over, and to write.

Poets are the alchemists of the page.

As witches, we carry — and work with — the great energy within us. We are always aware of, directing, or manipulating energy and emotion. This is such an incredible thing — it allows us to make the choices that enable us to be free, find relief, find purpose, find power, find clarity. To divine. To grow. Poets do this too, even if unconsciously; we bring energy and emotion to the page. We manipulate that energy and emotion — deeply aware of its powers and its meaning. How we are changing with every line we write.

We create our altars on the page, pulling together our tools and objects — words and sounds and space — to cast our spells. And just like witches, poets love our rituals: wine, a cigarette, a cleansed space to work, a quieting.

Each word is meticulously selected as an ingredient or power object. Each stanza is a breath of purpose, a standing in the crossroads. Each turn of phrase, a candle lit by the wick of another. And when read aloud, all at once, a spell cast.

How to write poetry spells & practice wordcraft

Image by Lisa Marie Basile

There are many ways to write poetry spells. The poem itself can work as a spell through its language (calling on what you want or releasing something), or through its structure and pacing (emphasizing breath work and musicality can create a prayer-like experience).

You can also create poetry spells by focusing each line or section on a specific intention, color, archetype, or goal.

By the way, don’t feel constrained or pressured by ideas of “good poetry,” or popular poetry. These are poems for you; they’re magic. They’re your essence. They’re not meant to be published or shared with the world. Write the poetry that speaks to you. In your voice. In whatever language you want to write in.

Here are some of my favorite techniques.

Writing consciously

Whether we realize it or not, when we write poetry, we are programming our creation with our intention. Like drawing a sigil, a poem is the shape and sound of our intent. Is it a poem of personal power? Is it a poem of memory? Is it a poem that recalls love? Is it a poem of reclamation? Being conscious of what you’re feeling — and programming your poem to achieve a certain goal when it’s read aloud or finished — you imbue your poem with power. It is a spell cast.

And like an incantation or a mantra, we can read a poem anytime to evoke the energy we programmed to it. It will always be there, encapsulated at the moment we created it. It can transport us, infuse us, remind us. 

Write a poetry spell with a certain number of lines or stanzas

You’ll dedicate each line or stanza to a specific idea or feeling you’d like to conjure, let go of, or release. Each line, in effect, will give you the opportunity to focus your intention and energy. This is where poetry spells really get powerful since you can focus stanzas or lines on archetypes, gods, goddesses, guides, ancestral symbols, power colors, sacred sounds, or goals and conjurings.

Want to try one? This 11-line poetry spell for healing is accessible and potent.

Write automatically

On the other end of writing with conscious intention, automatic writing is a way of writing — freely, without censorship or goal — in a sort of trance state. Think of yourself as a vessel, downloading the information and translating it to the page. Writing a poem this way means writing anything that comes to mind — and then deciphering that when you’re in a more conscious state.

Write the liminal

Write a poem that speaks of the in-between, the crossroads, the liminal. What does it look at dusk? What does it feel like to be almost touched, almost loved, almost lost? How you capture what feels to straddle the liminal — in a poem?

Word Worship

A book of poetic spells, The Lost Words, aimed to reclaim and celebrate natural words that were taken out of the Oxford Junior Dictionary. These words, acorn, adder, bluebell, dandelion, fern, heron, otter, and willow were replaced with words like blog, broadband, bullet-point, cut-and-paste, and voice-mail.  

What words mean something to you? What words speak to your memories and personal power? Are there words that speak to your identity, your resistance, your body, your journey? Choose five of these words and write a 5-stanza poem using each of them, or write five poems (as a set to be read aloud together) utilizing each. When you speak them aloud, you can call on these qualities.

Dream poetry

When we wake up, our minds are loose and fluid, capable of magic — still tethered to other conscious states. Once away, tap into that dream space and write a poem about your dream. Let its contradictions and messiness and weirdness soak into your poetry.

What is the dream’s message? Write that message into your poem. In this way, you are divining from the subconscious mind, mining the dreamscape, and channeling it from the ether into a physical thing to be explored and tapped into. Dedicate a whole section of your grimoire to dream poetry and you’ll watch the themes and messages unravel — allowing you to swim in a literary sea of the self.

Herbal poetics

Are you a fan of cannabis or mugwort? Both are used for spiritual purposes, opening a sort of mental portal. In a high state, write what comes to mind. Don’t bother making sense or trying to define meaning right away; just let the feelings guide you. Ride the wave of the self, and let your words slip onto paper, unregulated. Light your joint with the flame from a candle lit in your sacred space.

These poems capture the experience of liminality, highness, and the dream state. As you write, you are channeling, translating, and creating a space of sacred connection. A spell is an active, dynamic thing — one that is created as it is cast. Every time you read the poem aloud afterward, it can call on that same energy.

You can read more about weed witchcraft right here — Weed Witchcraft: A Ritual With The High Priestess of Smoke by Moxie McMurder, who writes, “Smoking the holy herb is a spiritual act, one that puts you in touch with the four elements and when practiced correctly can lift the veil reveal and nature's secrets.” Just remember to stay safe, be legal, and talk to a doctor before using any psychoactive substance. 

Parts of this article were excerpted from The Magical Writing Grimoire.

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Lisa Marie Basile (she/her) is a poet, essayist, editor, and chronic illness awareness advocate living in New York City. She's the founder and creative director of Luna Luna Magazine and its online community, and the creator of Ritual Poetica, a curiosity project dedicated to exploring the intersection of writing, creativity, healing, & sacredness.

She is the author of THE MAGICAL WRITING GRIMOIRE, LIGHT MAGIC FOR DARK TIMES, and a few poetry collections, including the recent NYMPHOLEPSY, which is excerpted in Best American Experimental Writing 2020. Her essays and other work can be found in The New York Times, Narratively, Sabat Magazine, We Are Grimoire, Witch Craft Magazine, Refinery 29, Self, Healthline, Entropy, On Loan From The Cosmos, Chakrubs, Catapult, Bust, Bustle, and more. She is also a chronic illness advocate, keeping columns at several chronic illness patient websites. She earned a Masters's degree in Writing from The New School and studied literature and psychology as an undergraduate at Pace University. You can follow her at lisamariebasile.

Witches, Here Are The New Books You Need

BY LISA MARIE BASILE

I am fortunate to receive tons of wonderful books on a wide range of topics, but some of my favorites include those by talented witches and magical beings whose books approach magic in accessible, inclusive, radical, and fresh ways.

I am always on the lookout for books which a) present an updated look at magic and witchcraft to a modern audience, b) frame witchcraft in a way that is inclusive and holistic — meaning it addresses systemic issues in society, and c) blend and blur genres — books of narrative non-fiction alongside research, poetry entwined with spellcraft, or divination techniques alongside storytelling.

Personally, I love books that can be read through an open-ended and intuitive lense, and approaches that permit those of us from even an eclectic or secular background to take part. I think all of the below books make space for the witch, the feminist, the curious, and anyone in between. So, for witches and non-witches alike, these are the books I’ve been reading as of late:

THE GLAM WITCH

I LOVE this book. Michael Herkes’ voice is a dream. His passion is palpable, lifting out of the pages and into your hands and heart. It looks at how the goddess/archetype Lilith has for so long been worshipped and feared, and walks readers through how they can create a relationship with Lilith, as well. In fact, it’s called The GLAM Witch because Herkes explores the Great Lilithian Arcane Mysteries (GLAM). Through luminous text, you’ll find astrology, ritual, and a magic that is steeped in power.

INITIATED: Memoir of a witch

Amanda Yates Garcia — known as the Oracle of LA — writes a potent story of becoming and reclamation in Initiated, which shows how she became a High Priestess, and how she tapped into her inner power. With her shedding light on feminism, culture, earth, sex work and poverty, the underlying message here is one that matters most in today’s world.

Also read: 7 magical & inclusive new books witches must read

TAROT FOR TROUBLED TIMES: CONFRONT YOUR SHADOW, HEAL YOURSELF, TRANSFORM THE WORLD

In Theresa Reed and Shaheen Miro’s Tarot for Troubled Times, we see a radical and transformational text that uses shadow work (a throughline of the book), archetypes, reflections, and prompts to reframe the power of tarot. I can’t get enough of this one. And I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Theresa (The Tarot Lady) for quite some time. Her generosity, support, wisdom, and love for magic is a continual inspiration to me.

HONORING YOUR ANCESTORS: A Guide to Ancestral Veneration

As someone who has always been interested in ancestor veneration in a specific sense — more in my writing practices than anything else — I have not read a book on the topic that has so deeply and beautifully spoken to my needs. Mallorie Vaudoise’s book does not go into the topic lightly, addressing plenty of the big issues — like not knowing who your ancestors are, for one. The book explores everything from making ancestral altars and spell-work to mediumship. It’s splendid and healing.

Read also: 4 witchy podcasts you need in your life

REVOLUTIONARY WITCHCRAFT: A GUIDE TO MAGICAL ACTIVISM

In Sara Lyon’s work, we find a potent and necessary look at how we can make magic in a world that is too often broken by hatred, fear. It is a world that needs transformation, and witches have that very power. I have always thought that the witch was a political figure, whether or not one intends or feels that way. Witches have long stood for the marginalized, the forgotten, the invisible. And power, as Lyons says, is political. With topics ranging from history, magic (ancestral magic, sigil creation, and spells), ally-ship and the natural world, this book is a must-have for today’s practicing witch. I also love its inclusion of the Trans Right of Ancestor Elevation, which is a ritual for trans and GNC witches to honor their ancestors of spirit killed by murder.

CAT CALL: RECLAIMING THE FERAL FEMININE

I have long been a fan of Kristen Sollée’s work (and her person) and I am indebted to her for the knowledge and support she has given me, and the magic she has brought to my life (and all of ours!) through her words. As an intersectional feminist and a witch, her books (do yourself a favor and also read Witches, Sluts Feminists) speak power into my world. In Cat Call, she brings the histories, superstitions, stories, and mythos of the feline to life, and weaves all of that into how we understand (and can better understand) sex and femininity and taboo. Fuck yes.

TAROT FOR SELF CARE: HOW TO USE TAROT TO MANIFEST YOUR BEST SELF

I love Minerva Siegel’s book for its simplicity and care. It walks readers through the tarot with care and ease, feels inclusive and avoids culturally appropriative terms, and addresses some of the big obstacles to our self-care practices. It frames the book so that it covers mental, physical and spiritual self-care, while walking you through each card and its magic.

OTHER BOOKS I’VE BEEN READING OR LOOKING FORWARD TO READING:

Pam Grossman’s Waking The Witch, Theresa Reed’s Astrology for Real Life, Astrea Taylor’s Intuitive Witchcraft, Apocalyptic Witchcraft by Peter Grey, Gabriela Herstik’s Bewitching The Elements, Juliet Diaz’ Witchery, Working Conjure by Hoodoo Sen Moise, The Door to Witchcraft by Tonya A Brown, The Astrology of Sex & Love by Anabel Gat, Weaving The Liminal by Laura Tempest Zakroff,

IAlso recommended: Catland Book’s Monthly Reader’s Coven (which I subscribe to, and which delivers gorgeous books to my door, monthly).

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Lisa Marie Basile is the founding creative director of Luna Luna Magazine--a popular magazine focused on literature, magical living, and identity. She is the author of "Light Magic for Dark Times," a modern collection of inspired rituals and daily practices, as well as "The Magical Writing Grimoire: Use the Word as Your Wand for Magic, Manifestation & Ritual." She can be found writing about trauma recovery, writing as a healing tool, chronic illness, everyday magic, and poetry. She's written for The New York Times, Refinery 29, Self, Chakrubs, Marie Claire, Narratively, Catapult, Sabat Magazine, Healthline, Bust, Hello Giggles, Grimoire Magazine, and more. Lisa Marie has taught writing and ritual workshops at HausWitch in Salem, MA, Manhattanville College, and Pace University. She earned a Masters's degree in Writing from The New School and studied literature and psychology as an undergraduate at Pace University.

Hearthcraft & the Magic of Everyday Objects: Reading Arin Murphy-Hiscock's 'House Witch'

BY TRISTA EDWARDS

I was immediately hooked on Arin Murphy-Hiscock’s The House Witch: Your Complete Guide to Creating a Magical Space with Rituals and Spells for Hearth and Home in the first chapter when the author writes, “the home itself is an essential element within a nourishing, vibrant, ongoing spiritual practice.” 

She continues, “Honoring the hearth means honoring your origins, where you come from each day, and where you return each night.”

I read this one morning right after sitting down at my dining room table having just lit a candle, putting on a vinyl record, and ritualistically preparing my morning coffee. I took a long slurp from my cup and smiled. Oh, this is the book I’ve been hungry for.

Photo credit: Author

I was already familiar with term and practice of hearthcraft (Chances are, even if you are not familiar, you already practice it to some degree or another.) but I had yet to find a book that spoke on it so directly. 

Hearthcraft, as Murphy-Hiscock explains it, is the “belief that the home is a place of beauty, power, and protection, a place where people are nurtured and nourished on a spiritual basis as well as a physical and emotional basis.” 

 It roots itself in practicality and, as the author stresses, with little ritualistic guidelines or necessary formality. Murphy-Hiscock asserts that hearthcraft functions on one very basic truth—

 Living your life is a spiritual act. 

How is this different, you may ask, from keeping a warm, nurturing house filled with loved ones or pets or material objects that provide you with joy, comfort, or relaxation? How is this different from opening up your home to host friends and family as a safe place to gather in times of celebration or even grief? 

 The answer in that lies, as so many things do, in performing domestic acts with mindfulness and intention. 

 BUT! 

Keep in mind, this is with daily tasks, rituals, or routines you are already performing. No need to feel overwhelmed with the call to add another activity or tool to your spiritual arsenal if you don’t want to. 

 I mean, I love a good crystal grid, tarot deck, and DIY potion as much as the next magickal seeker. I am not knocking these things. I get giddy at the sight of a new, beautifully illustrated deck and my home is chockfull of magickal crystals, stones, witches’ bottles, incense burning cauldrons, botanical curio, and the like. 

RELATED: Interview with Arin Murphy-Hiscock, Author of ‘Protection Spells’

 All I’m saying is I get it. Sometimes we can even get overwhelmed by the things we love. Sometimes I just want to scream—I can’t do another thing! Please, please, please don’t make me add another thing!—when a well-meaning friend suggests yoga for my anxiety or performing paced breathing exercises while taking a cold shower. 

 With hearthcraft, you are already doing it. 

 Now you just will think of it with more purposefully intention and mindfulness. Murphy-Hiscock’s book helps “recognize those things and lend awareness to them so that you can appreciate them all the more.” 

 The concept of hearthcraft always reminds me of the painting “The Light of Coincidences” by the surrealist artist René Magritte. In the painting, a single candle lit in a tall candlestick rests atop a table casting light on the sculpture of a nude, female torso. 

Photo Credit: Author

The candle throws shadows on the torso, highlighting its depth and dimensions which makes the torso appear to be a three-dimensional object displayed in a box. The sculpture, however, is a framed painting itself. The eye is tricked into seeing both the torso as flat painting and three-dimensional sculpture. The painting as a whole, represents everyday objects but undermines our commonly held perceptions of the everyday world—allowing us to see in a myriad of ways. 

 Hearthcraft is like that candle that lends awareness, new perspective, and appreciation to the everyday world, particularly the domestic sphere. 

 For me, I started becoming more aware of how I “wake up” my house every morning. I take the same path through the house every morning—From bed to the back door to let my two pups out. While they are outside, I circle around the house and open up all the blinds to let in the morning light. I refill the water in their dog bowls and scoop out their kibble. By this time, they both let out two sharp little barks at the backdoor saying they are ready to come back in. I set their bowls down on my way back to open the door. 

 Next, I begin the process of making coffee. I pull out a small electronic scale. Place a ceramic bowl on top and measure out some whole coffee beans. I toss them in the automated grinder and then get to work on filling the gooseneck kettle with water, lighting the stove, and placing the kettle, just so, on the burner. 

 While the water heats up, I grab my Chemex pot and a filter from the cupboard. I crease the filter just so and place it in the mouth of the pot. When the kettle shrieks that it is ready, I pour, with a swirling motion, a small amount of water over the paper filter, saturating it, and letting it trickle down into the belly of the pot to pre-heat the glass. I then pour this water into my chosen coffee mug to pre-heat that vessel as well.
I add my coffee grounds to the paper filter and the perform a series of small, measured circular pours, stopping periodically to watch the water and coffee perform the magic of science with their gaseous blooming of bubbles. When the brew is complete, I toss the hot water that was warming up my coffee mug, take cup and pot to the table, sit down, open up my computer, and light a candle to keep on the table beside me while I work. I pinch the corners of the filter together, lift it up from the mouth of the pot, and pour into my cup. 

Discover & share this Coffee GIF with everyone you know. GIPHY is how you search, share, discover, and create GIFs.

Yes, I understand that I may have a more extensive coffee routine than some, but I never fully thought of this whole process as a ceremony unto itself until I began to more fully involve hearthcraft into my life. 

 I would often sweep through this coffee making routine without much thought. Sometimes with the TV on in the background, sometimes mindlessly scrolling through my phone while sloppily pouring water or impatiently pulling it from the burner too soon. I would make a mess with the grounds, hurriedly mis-measuring the beans resulting in either too weak or too bitter of a brew. I found mornings where I skipped even a lackluster process of brewing coffee, I would miss this allotted time that was specifically for this purpose. 

 This ritual was intuitive ceremony, one that I put more and more conscious and mindful practice in. 

House Witch stresses that everyday things can be magical. 

RELATED: A Simple Spell to Summon and Protect Your Personal Power

Making coffee. Arranging your tea caddy. Wiping down your kitchen counters. Washing the dishes. Organizing your desk. As Murphy-Hiscock says, “It isn’t the addition of something that is necessary, so much as a recognition and acknowledgement of something that is already there.”

 How do you recognize the magic? 

The author breaks it down into—

 1.    Live in the moment. 

2.    Be aware of your intent.

3.    Direct your energy properly. 

4.    Focus on an action.  

Simplicity. Work with what you have. Build awareness and appreciation into the everyday actions of how you use your house and the everyday objects that fill it. 

 For more, The House Witch goes in depth to detail the kitchen as a scared space, magic in everyday objects, using a cauldron in hearthcraft, cleansing rituals, preparing food with awareness (accompanied with magical recipes), various activities in which you spend timegetting to know your physical house through traveling from room to room and journaling your emotional observations in each space. 

You can find more on the author and purchase The House Witch: Your Complete Guide to Creating a Magical Space with Rituals and Spells for Hearth and Home HERE.

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Trista Edwards is an associate editor at Luna Luna Magazine. Her first full-length poetry collection, Spectral Evidence, is forthcoming from April Gloaming Press in 2019. She is also the curator and editor of the anthology, Till The Tide: An Anthology of Mermaid Poetry (Sundress Publications, 2015). You can read her poems at 32 Poems, Quail Bell Magazine, Moonchild Magazine, The Adroit Journal, The Boiler, Queen Mob's Tea House, Bad Pony, Occulum, and more. She creates magickal candles at her company, Marvel + Moon.

The Power Of The Herbal Household

BY SOPHIE MOSS

For most of us, the home is our safe haven. It’s the space in which we sleep, create, cook, nurture relationships, create art, celebrate successes, think our most private thoughts and feel our most deepest feelings, and is a space to be honoured. Just as we respect our homes by dusting away dirt and cleaning up messes, it is also helpful to clean away the energies and vibrations that harbour in our homes over time.

To extend the metaphor, there can be little doubt that an untidy, dirty, cluttered house takes its toll on our happiness and wellbeing, leaving us feeling stagnant, unhappy, and unhealthy. The energies that exist in our home are no different: allowing negative, stagnant energies to manifest in our safe, personal spaces can have a detrimental effect on our professional, personal and creative wellbeing, and it is important that we cleanse these spaces of unwanted energies in order to allow us to fulfill our utmost potential.

There are many ways one can cleanse the home, and these can vary from culture to culture, religion to religion. Using herbs, for instance, has played a major role in magick, religion and divination throughout history, and remains one of the most widely used tools for magick and healing today. In old magickal books, elaborate and strange herbal ingredients were often called upon to create a host of recipes and spells, such as adder’s tongue and the heart of a baboon (which are actually just unusual code names for plantain and oil of lily), and herbs have been historically used for homeopathy, natural medicine, and magickal applications such as health, healing and cleansing.

Below, we have created an easy, cost effective, do-it-yourself guide to using herbal magick to cleanse the home of cosmic nasties and invite health, happiness and prosperity into your household.

The Way of Herbs

There is no easier, cheaper and failsafe method of inviting prosperity into the household (and banishing negativity from it) than to use herbal magick, and I am absolutely fascinated with it. For me, there is something so inexplicably comforting and organic about placing one’s trust in the very Earth itself and, in turn, having this trust rewarded with love and protection.

The great thing about using herbal magick is that a) there are so many ways to use herbs, and b) we can use them for so many different purposes:

• When it comes to inciting general positive vibrations into the home, a really easy way to do this is to incorporate herbal magick into your household decor. Buying small pouches or sachets from the store and filling them with different herbs, for example, is an easy way to not only spruce up the come with kitsch decor, but also to incite positive vibrations and a host of positive magical properties.

• Hang a sachet filled with chamomile flowers from the doorknob in your bedroom to calm the nerves and promote natural sleep, or place a chestnut in the corner of your bedside table to bring love and peace into the bedroom. Similarly, you can sprinkle cumin seeds into a pouch and hang it from the doorknob of your kitchen cupboard as a general home blessing.

• An interesting way to incorporate herbal magick into your household and inspire positive, protective vibrations is via a locket. Sprinkle fennel seeds into a locket and hang from your bedpost, nightstand, or even your jewelry stand to bring protection, purification, healing, passion, courage and strength. Alternatively, wear it around your neck and carry the good energies with you.

• Sprinkle allspice in all four corners of the home, or burn it as incense. It is thought to attract success in both personal and business life.

• After going through a difficult break up, moving into a new property, or embarking on a new venture, it is important to rebalance and realign the energies in a household, and an efficient way to do this is by performing a sage cleansing ritual. To perform this, purchase a sage smudge stick (I typically buy mine from natural food or new age stores) and set it over a flame-resistant bowl. With every window and door in the house open, light the stick, blow it out and watch as it begins to smoke. Visualising your intention, wave the stick gently and watch as the smoke glides through the room. As the smoke ghosts towards the far corners of the room… along the ceiling… around the windows… up the fireplace… imagine it absorbing the negativity, toxicity and harmful energies from the space, taking any cosmic nasties with it as it dissipates out the open windows. When you have cleansed each room of the house, extinguish the sage smudge stick and discard.

• Research the different properties of different herbs, and see which ones are relevant to your needs and requirements, using as necessary. Remember, thorough research is absolutely imperative, as some herbs can be toxic once ignited or ingested.

A Magickal Garden  

Indeed, if you are lucky enough to live in an area that affords you garden space (or, even, a window-box on a balcony area), you might want to take advantage of this blessing and plant a garden, grow some herbs, and harvest some plants. However, before jumping right into creating a magickal garden and earning your green thumb status, it is important to keep in mind the general magickal rules for gardening.

In her widely acclaimed book, Solitary Witch: The Ultimate Book of Shadows for the New Generation, magickal practitioner Silver Ravenwolf details a host of astrological rules and considerations for growing a successful magickal garden:

• When collecting seeds, for instance, it’s better to do so when the moon is full, or in a fire or air sign — Aries, Sagittarius, Leo, Aquarius, Libra or Gemini.

• If you are growing plants that will produce crops above ground (perfect for those of us who live in apartment buildings), it is important that they are sown the day after the new moon and up until the first quarter.

• Growing plants that will produce crops below the ground, however, will require plantation during the day after the full moon.

• When it comes to harvesting, the smallest harvests and fresh flowers needed for immediate ritual (or recreational! Or culinary!) use should be done in the evening, during which time the plants have maximum food reserves. Herbs and flowers that will be dried and preserved should be cut mid-morning, once the morning dew has cleared. Also, it is better to harvest fruit and vegetables during the waning moon, and when the moon is in the barren (or semi-barren) air or fire signs of Aries, Sagittarius, Leo, Aquarius, Libra or Gemini.

• When cutting flowers, always try and cut the stem at a slant. This way, the stem can continue to absorb water and nutrients.

• During the Autumn, when the last of the herbs, fruits, and vegetables have been harvested, the last of the dead leaves and plants should be cleared away. It is when the last of the dead plants have been swept that you can perform an Autumn Blessing. To perform this blessing is simple. Firstly, you stand in your garden and ignite a white candle, taking in your surroundings and giving thanks to the year’s harvest. When you feel ready, or when the candle has extinguished, simply bury it somewhere on your property. (Important: please, please take extra care with this if you have animals or small children and bury the candle in a place where children and animals won’t be able to find it. If this isn’t possible, keep it somewhere safe within the household.)

Solitary Witch also contains an incredibly helpful gardening guide to help you with your astrological timings when growing, planting or harvesting, such as being careful to plant beans in the second quarter when the moon is in Taurus, and planting house plants in the first quarter when the moon is in Libra, Cancer, Scorpio or Pisces. Seriously, that book is 590 pages of pure magickal wisdom.

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Sophie E. Moss is a dark witch & literary maven. She writes essays for LunaLuna and poetry for all the people she used to be. @Sophiedelays

Salem: Is it a Must-See Destination for the Occult?

BY ALAINA LEARY

As a kid, I was enchanted by Salem at Halloween. Growing up just outside Boston, Salem was one of the hottest travel destinations for Halloween night for kids, teens, and adults in the area. Grasping my mom’s hand, I felt that I was a part of something larger – something magical. 

I’ve always been sympathetic to the plight of those harmed by the witch trials in Salem in the 17th century. As a child, I saw these people as mere outsiders, those who maybe came off as quirky or different in society. Not all who were accused were even experimenting with anything occult. Jenny Rogers sums it up in her essay in Autostraddle: “A few young girls from well-to-do families allegedly experimented with trivial fortune-telling — the kind of folk rituals that claim to tell girls who their husband will be. Afterwards or around the same time, children in the village began to fall ill with alarming symptoms — convulsions, claims of pain all over their bodies, fevers and hallucinations. Witchcraft was suspected.”

According to Rogers, people think the real life probably causes ranged from ergotism from hallucination-causing fungi, biological illness, true mass hysteria, or simply an easy way to kill off women and men who were “disliked, too powerful or inconvenient.”

Two years in a row, I’ve gone to Salem around Halloween. Not exactly on the weekend that the holiday falls, but sometime when it’s nearing in October. What was on my mind while I was there was this: is Salem a good place for those who are genuinely interested in witchcraft and the occult, in the way that they are practiced today, to visit? Or is it simply a tourist city, filled with too many black cat mugs and cheesy professional witch photography?

As someone who actually did Salem Vintage Photos with my girlfriend’s family during one of my two Salem visits this year, I can say this: there’s a fair amount of both hokey and legitimate to be found in Salem, and it all depends on what you’re looking for.

Salem capitalizes on its reputation to foster tourism, and I can’t blame them. It probably brings in enough revenue just in the fall to profit the local economy year-round. If you’re into cheesy, spooky tourism, there’s plenty to be found in the area, from the Harry Potter themed store selling Butterbeer and wands to the hokey haunted houses to the vintage white dress-up photos, it’s a prime destination for kids with families who just want to gawk. To be fair, the witch photos are a great way to get a laugh out of everyone involved, even if they’re super cheesy, with poses on broomsticks while a fan blows your hair out of your face.

The slightly-less-hokey tours are one way to connect past and present. It depends on the tour, since there are quite a few, but many of them seamlessly blend the history in a way that is factual and pays tribute to the people who were tortured and killed during the trials. The Bewitched After Dark Walking Tours, Salem Witch Walk, and Candlelit Tours are known for being detailed and informative.

There’s also plenty to see if you’re interested in learning more about modern witchcraft and the occult. Magic Parlor has a lot of gags and jokes, but there are items like candles, herbs, incense, and oils in the back of the shop. It’s also less expensive than a lot of other frequently visited tourist stores. Pyramid Books offers psychic readings, stones, candles, jewelry, and everything ranging from Wicca to Reiki. Artemisia Botanicals is an apothecary filled with over 400 herbs, 100 teas, and more magick. Crow Haven Corner is said to be Salem’s first witch shop, and hosts classes in addition to readings with Tarot, palms, and mediumship. My friends and I found that it matched its quality items, such as smudge sticks and hand-mixed spells, with its tourist items. 

I also attended a psychic reading last year, and a spell casting this year. The psychic reading had me more skeptical, as a lot of what was said seemed very general and like it could easily apply to anyone. The spell casting was a lot more interesting, and was held by a woman who said she’s a practicing witch. She left us by saying “Blessed be,” to everyone, and we cast powerful, positive spells under all the elements and with the power of the spirits. I felt a palpable energy in the room as we all chanted, “So mote it be!” as we held our spells in between the palms of our hands. 

A few weeks later, I buried the knotted string, the source of my spell and positive energy, into the ground at the base of a beautiful tree in a Boston park. I spoke my desires aloud as I buried it, because giving voice to your spells is said to make them more powerful. Everything that I cast was in hopes of a brighter future for the people I love, so even if a lot about Salem has the potential to be cheesy, I feel this is one experience that I really want to believe in.

I’m giving my spell a chance to settle its roots and grow.