VERY important part of the Traditional Witches’ practice, is what we call ‘the Becoming’. It is a trance-like state, not infused by drugs, though sometimes natural means, mostly plants from theNightshadefamily can be used, with caution, though the Becoming is an essential state of mind, in combination with ‘gathering Sprouse’, a Cornish word for ‘the power of the Red Serpent, AKA the Magical Power that infuses the Earth. This is not something just drawn from the Earth fort our own benefit. The Law of Receiving and Giving is of the utmost importance. Some choose a shortcut by summoning Spirits, but in the Old Ways it’s a way of respect and a long road of patience and hardship to undergo as a means go discipline and hard work. I feel that any shortcut will never gain any benefit. The most powerful witches and wizard acquired their strength without any shortcut.
Without the God of Witchcraft, in Cornwall Bucca, nothing can be accomplished. Hallowing the land and the creature therein, is to hallow Bucca, Who is intrinsically connected to the soil and its magic. Everything, visible and invisible is connected to the Bucca or The Cornish Devel. Traditional Witchcraft is therefore not an easy road to succes, and one of the ways in acquiring the necessary power is ‘the Becoming’. I certainly would recommend the Book: Traditional Witchcraft, a Cornish Book of Ways by Gemma Gary. A lot can be said about that, but those who seek shall find.
HERE have been a few articles and YouTube videos that claim that ‘Traditional Witchcraft’ is ‘the original religion that was introduced by Gerald Gardner’. This is a misleading and incorrect conclusion, based upon the fact that ‘the original forms of western witchcraft had died out because of the witch-hunts’. Now there are several reasons that this was never the case:
During the Witch-hunts that formally began with the introduction of the Maleus Malificarum (the Hammer of the witches by Heinrich Kramer & Jacob Sprenger). Scholars found out that there were no ‘real witches’ persecuted, but rather old and suspected women that did not fit the required role of submissive women and thus were suspected of being witches. Most of the were christian
Those men and women that didn’t conform to standard church doctrine, they also could be priests, ministers and/or were from other denominations.
Those witches, wise ones, druids, folk healers and pellars (a Cornish term for those who can provide counter curses) where still held in high regard and were protected by those who needed their services, some of them were persecuted, but quite a number escaped and survived.
The notion that the original form of witchcraft died out and thus Wicca is the only remaining form of western witchcraft that remains until today is therefore totally wrong. Families and individuals that kept their traditions survived because of secrecy and still exist in UK regions like Cornwall, Devonshire, Dartmouth, Exmoor, Wales, Scotland etcetera.
Other forms of magic like Rootworking (Hoodoo/Voodoo) Shamanism, Gipsy Witchcraft (Romania etc), Guna Guna (Indonesia), Seidr (Scandinavia) survived the wheel of time.
Now I notices a number of articles and videos where people suggest and claim that ‘Gardnerian Wicca in its original form is Traditional Witchcraft. One should study books, among those published by Troy Books Uk to see that Traditional Witchcraft is still alive and kicking
IT was monotheism, in all of its controversies, that gave way to ‘holy’ scriptures that forbade humankind to acquire any kind of knowledge outside of the parameters that clergy prescribed. What is: many scripture passages, like the Garden of Eden story, that warned humankind to gain knowledge. Now that’s only an explanation that men in power used to subdue the masses that were held in ignorance. A littoral explanation of, mainly, fundamentalistic christianity, ignoring the huge amount of interpretations commonly known within Judaism. All for the upholding of christian dogmatics, hermeneutics and theology.
Then cane the Middle Ages, with the, still held in high esteem, Maleus Malificarum , which set the tone for persecutions of ‘so called’ witches, the majority of them being christian, women or just being a persona non grata, old or demonized simply for not fitting in.
Yes, the wise ones, healers, expellers (pellets in Cornish), wayside witches and folk magicians were always there. Just as everywhere else the good had to suffer because of the bad ones, but just look at church history that killed around 600 million innocent people.
The clergy raised there finger, working about, what the deemed to be ‘forbidden knowledge’. A lot of these ‘forbidden books’ are still under lock and key within the Vatican. But many of these books like the Picatrix, the Red Dragon, the lesser and greater key of Salomon, the Kymbalion, the works of Abramelin the Mage, High Magic by Eliphas Levi and later works, inspired by the former, by Aleister Crowley, Anton Szandor LaVey (like the Satanic Bible ao), Michael W. Ford, found there way into the bookshelves and practice of many.
With the popularized Wiccan movement also came works from the Clan of Tubal-Cain and books about Traditional Witchcraft (British from the publisher Troy Books UK and books about the American Appalachian Witchcraft. People can find out Magic for themselves without restriction.
In this short reflection I want to give you a framework of a magical ritual, this is not a step-by-step instruction, but contains tips that help you prepare, a kind of step-by-step plan. It is not my intention to work out a ritual in detail. I believe, as is true in traditional witchcraft, that each individual witch must discover their own specific path. This also applies to skills that you acquire by experimenting in a safe way, whether or not under the guidance of someone who can guide you in this. In the end, you have to be independent; an expert in your field. That’s why I offer you this framework. For people who are just starting out, this can be a valuable document, but don’t stare at it blindly. It’s not ‘holy’ in the sense that you couldn’t deviate from it. Do what you want with it, forget what doesn’t suit you.
WHAT DO I WANT TO ACHIEVE, THE ‘WHAT‘
I You’ll ought have a goal in mind. The ritual is not an end in itself unless you want to practice, then this can be a goal in itself. The goal must be clear, not: ‘I want to be happy’, that is too general. It can be anything: a job, a loved one, health, financial matters. If it is a ‘big goal’, you have to work in small steps. Works it out in In detail and use your mind here. You can’t get a job if that is above your abilities, unless a learning trajectory is set in motion. In this phase you will have to use your intellect. You don’t put a ritual together ‘just like that’ . An effective ritual requires planning. Is it a main goal, or are there sub-goals? Write it down. It can be random at first, later you can organize everything.
FOR WHOM DO I DO THE RITUAL, THE ‘WHO’
FOR YOURSELF?
If it’s for yourself, this is enough for the moment, then the question is answered.
FOR SOMEONE ELSE ?
If the ritual is for another, it is first and foremost necessary to know whether the other person has asked for it and agrees. With that you can also go in different directions. Does the other person want that? Is it meddling? Did that other person ask. Did you say ‘yes’ too quickly and find out that it is actually undesirable. Is that other also a witch, shaman o.i.d. and is it familiar? Know one thing: sometimes someone can ask for something and it is meant to undermine you, to gain access to your mind. Magic is not child’s play and not all witches have good intentions!
If it’s for someone else, do something for someone else, or help that other in the growth as well. Your help can strengthen another or make it dependent on you. The latter is disastrous for you and the other, an unnatural bond develops. If someone is weak at that moment, you can give that person strength to develop further yourself. That should always be the goal.
Can I help the other in her/his way to independent witchcraft, that is already a goal. It may of course be that the other person is so in the penarie that your help is indispensable. Then always do that. Agree in advance whether a consideration is required. Some of us, me too, have our own business. It can’t all be love work old paper, but you agree in advance. If you haven’t agreed, it’s free and the universe will compensate you.
WHY DO I WANT TO ACHIEVE THIS GOAL, THE ‘WHY’
Another word for ‘why’ is the intention. Intention is everything, because it determines whether your ritual is conducive to you and/or the other. Now there is no ‘black’ or ‘white’ in Traditional Witchcraft, I prefer to call it: Want to call constructive or Destructive magic and this works both ways. So let your intention be pure! A short explanation:
Constructive
The ritual has the intention of helping yourself or another achieve your goal, without this at the expense of either party, even if it means doing something that does not belong to the white magic. Examples are: throwing a counter-curse at a person who knowingly harms others to achieve his/her own self-centered goals. This may be for the purpose of money, power, sex (the favorite trinity that corrupts). It may be necessary to sell another a ‘magic optater’ in order to stop this injustice, but the goal must be pure.
Destructive
This is not always knowingly, purely self-centered magic, because destructive magic can be necessary, but if there’s no other way to stop an enemy, in order to hurt others, ‘just for fun’, commissioned to earn a lot of money, manipulate others, is in my practice a no-go. This is an irresponsible, immature, impure form of magic and will not remain without consequences for the perpetrator either.
PREPARATION: MEDITATION
In preparation you can meditate. This also ensures that you gain further insight into your intention and it removes the wrong elements. You calm down and allow your mind to receive impressions, points that matter. Always write it down to get things clear, it frees you from hasty decisions. Control is a key word in witchcraft!
WHAT DO YOU DO WITH MEDITATION?
Of course you can do a lot with meditation, but in this case we ensure that we are relaxed. Sit on a mat or comfortable pillow. Put on easy clothes that don’t pinch. Close your eyes and breathe deeply through your nose, exhale through your mouth. Breathe in calmly, in for about 4 seconds, and out for as long. Feel your feet and your seat bone on the ground. If there are thoughts on it, let them float by like clouds. Focus on your intention. Visualize the desired effect. Be sure to stay calm. Never do anything out of anger. Every magical ritual benefits from, and cannot do without, control. Without control, also in Chaos Magic (this is not chaotic), your energy is lost, energy you need to achieve your goal(s).
PREPARATION: DIVINATION
To know how to do things, divination is necessary. Examples: Tarot, Commuting, Runes, Crystal Ball, Reading Tea Leaves or Necromancy. Of course, don’t start anything you don’t have experience with. Never trade out of spide, especially when it comes to spirits, angels, earth- and air creatures. Then it is better to consult a friend or teacher, but one who knows about the hat and the edge. ‘Don’t dabble with demons’. I have seen people go into the fog with this; even to the point of admission to a psychiatric institution and permanent residence. Magic is not a game! If you do Tarot, or another divination method, for example commuting, ask your question as concretely as possible. Divination can help you adjust your ritual. There is no standard story in traditional witchcraft, every situation, intention, every goal is unique. Methods can be permanent, but be prepared to adjust any ritual. Be a flex witch, not a float (both words I made up myself, although words sometimes go viral)
GATHERING SPROUSE, COLLECTING ENERGY
Energy is indispensable for magic. It’s not in our system alone. Just as we have to eat and drink, so magic requires energy. Energy is in the elements: fire, water, air and earth. Traditional witches in Cornwall call this process ‘Gathering Sprouse’, sprouse cannot be translated, it is more than energy. You have to learn this too. Go very consciously, for example in the dark at full moon, walk and try to feel the energy from the earth. It is energy that is present in slate lines, in power places, in natural ‘wild’ places where raw energy can be found. First you have to experience it. Don’t be discouraged, it takes time, but it’s an essential process. You have to long for it and the universe, the spirits, the earth- and air creatures can help you. They know everything about it, you may well ask for help, which you will receive. I was busy for a long time, puzzling and suddenly: bam, I started to experience it. It has made my magic more powerful and controlled.
STORING ENERGY
Energy can be stored in minerals such as crystals and magical objects. In this way your magic actually does something. Everything is energy! So by sending this something happens. You have to be aware of that and not ‘believe’ that it works. Believing is: ‘assuponing that it will probably work’, knowing is ‘being aware that it works’.
PREPARATION: SUPPLIES
Shower yourself, remember drinking, drugs and even sex, but that depends on the concentration you need. If in doubt, consult a professional! If it is already you, consult yourself or your family spirit or through divination.
Any kind of ritual benefits from necessities. Examples: for a love ritual, use pink candles, rose quartz, sweet herbs and incense, beautiful romantic music. It is not about the objects in themselves, because they are only objects, but they create an atmosphere, an atmosphere that suits your ritual and strengthen your intention. Let your heart, your mind and your feeling flow through with it, become one with it. This way you increase and experience the tension to the point of discharge. In the Traditional Witchcraft of Southwest and the west coast of the UK, this state of ‘trance’ is called ‘The Becoming’, you become one with your goal and your intention, this is particularly powerful and also indispensable for effective, powerful magic.
In Traditional Witchcraft it is not always necessary to draw a circle, although we call it otherwise, namely ‘laying the compass’. The compass is ‘a place between place and time’, the domain of the hedge rider. The Wise Woman or Man knows that that place is a place to travel.
PREPARATION: COMPOSE YOUR SPELL
Don’t use spell books! Don’t use spells from others! In a spell is your intention, your strength, what you want to achieve. Make it short, concise, and use words that evoke something in you. Don’t be humble, put your heart and soul into it, your sadness, your desire. Make it a ‘that’s how it will be’ spell and not a ‘may it happen, maybe, maybe’ spell. It’s your intention, it’s about you. Give yourself the best!
Think of a spell, or a Word, that is personal, intuitive, powerful and effective because it is yours. You are the one who sends it. Doesn’t it work all of a sudden? Keep going until it works! You can do it!
PREPARATION: THE PLACE
It may be necessary to go to a special place, to the forest or in nature. It has to be a place where you feel at home and can be alone. If you’ve been there before and it feels good for you, you have a connection to it, so to speak. Go there. Check in advance whether you should pay attention to things, such as possibly other people or tourists. You don’t want to be disturbed in the middle of your ritual. It must be a magical ‘home’, or a place where you are at least not disturbed, heard or seen.
Don’t forget your magic stuff and make sure you go alone. If you go with others and others are involved, you are always assured of a backup, see the following point for this.
PREPARATION: BACKUP
(WHO HELPS ME IN THE BACKGROUND, WHO KEEPS AN EYE ON ME?)
If you work alone, make sure there is a reliable person in the background, including someone who can call you or that person you. Discuss your plan with that person, and make sure you can call her/him if there is something urgent. Don’t call that person for advice, but only if there is really no other way, for example in emergencies. It’s not a hobby! Discuss when and how long you are away, and also agree on whether you can subsequently share experiences that are important and that you cannot yet get along well with. Magic is dangerous, so you need back cover.
PREPARATION: CHARGE YOUR SUPPLIES WITH ENERGY
Load your objects, the space and yourself with energy. Concentrate. You can’t use an object, no herb without charging it with energy, even if you’ve used them more often. Just as a car can’t drive without fuel, a magical object can’t drive without energy. You can do this if you are at the location, or in advance. I recommend doing it when you arrive.
You take your object, your herbs and candles. And visualizes the magical energy (which you obtained as in step ‘6 Gathering Sprouse’.) I use the word visualize, but it is not about a ‘word’ but about consciously sending energy to your supplies. You can do this in advance, and you prepare the supplies, or at the time of use itself. Do what works for you
THE RITUAL ITSELF
In the Traditional Witchcraft, rituals are done in a state of ‘conscious trance’, we call that ‘the becoming’. It is a trance that makes you experience a state of unity and helps you make your magic powerful, controlled, driven and effective. This is essential! Be aware of your responsibility. Don’t walk next to your shoes, be real, well-founded and sure. Joy, anger, any kind of energy can be used and strengthens your magic!
You do the ritual itself with the intention, concentration and with everything you have in you. That’s not crazy, nothing is too crazy. If you sing, dance, perform your ritual skyclad (naked), make sure you don’t get in the eye. You have prepared your ritual well. Follow the steps driven, with concentration, clear-minded and know that what you do works. So don’t use soft drugs such as hash or weed. It opens your third eye too far and you lose control! Use the items you’ve loaded and it’s okay if things go differently than you planned, as long as it’s good. There is no fixed working method at the Traditional Witches in, for example, Cornwall. Your intuition is essential!
CLOSURE. GRIMOIRE OF BOOK OF SHADOWS
When you’re done, close. Don’t forget, never, to give anything, to, for example, Mother Nature, or the earth- and air creatures or the Goddess and Gods you have involved in your ritual. Show your gratitude. Also be grateful to yourself. Relax, pamper yourself and wait. Don’t go straight to the order of the day. Go for a walk and enjoy.
After some time you take your Grimoire or your BoS and you write what you have learned. Don’t forget any details no matter how trivial, by that I also mean what you have felt, heard, experienced, the insights you have gained. A ritual never fails, if it ‘hasn’t succeeded yet’, then continue until it succeeds, but from relaxation.
Your Grimoire of Book of Shadows is for yourself. Don’t go look up a publisher. The magic will lose its effectiveness. Every ritual is like a first time. It depends on yourself, the astrological influences, the place, the time, the person and how you feel about yourself. A ritual is never the same in content in Traditional Witchcraft. That is why it is unique and incomparable with other forms of magic, although this is labeled as ‘higher magic’. Remember that ‘house, garden and kitchen witchcraft’, or ‘folk magic’, can be very powerful. But everyone feels at home in the shape that suits you best.
AFTERWARDS: CONTEMPLATION, WHAT DID I LEARN
Wait some time to think about the effect of your ritual. If you have helped someone, ask for an answer. Even though that’s ‘it didn’t help’, it doesn’t have to be up to you! Magic always works. You always learn, you always grow. Always see it from the positive side, you learn from it. With all ‘professions’ it is not the case that you are immediately accomplished. You learn from the things you do, there is no right or wrong. Write down the things you have done, where you have the idea that there can be planing, feel free to consult a skilled friend or friend, but never be dependent on that other. That is not healthy in any relationship, and sometimes you grow apart. It’s mainly about what you’ve learned.
A WORD AFTERWARDS
I tried not to hang up a rigid story. A well-known witch told me personally: ‘When magic become rigid, it soon becomes frigid’. That means that you unpack for you what appeals to you, you forget the rest. You are skilled enough. All wisdom is in yourself, the more you learn and are attentive, you will notice that you are deepening the knowledge in yourself. Why? Our body comes from Mother Earth, so all knowledge of the earth is already present in you. Your mind and soul come from the Universe, the inseen world, and with that you take all the knowledge that the Universe carries with you. By learning to recognize things, she practices and you become capable.
I hope I helped you a bit with this framework, where your own interpretation is completely free. I’d love to hear from you if I can improve anything on this framework, we’re all on our way!
SOME people ask: how can I become a witch? It is much simpler than that: one is born a witch, here are a few signs that you are born a witch:
You were interested in witchcraft since you were a kid
You love to be in nature a feel the need to protect nature
You feel connected to the moon
You have intens feeling a about the Netherworld, maybe you’ve seen ghosts, spirits, the little people (goblins, pixies, leprechauns, fairies) or a least you know they exist
You are a strong connection to animals and you have ability to communicate with them (or you want to)
You experience emotions intense, also from others
You like to study Magick and Witchcraft and all things related and have more than average knowledge and wisdom (and/or to attain more of it)
Health is very important, you rather choose nature supplements over chemicals, but you choose wisely
You have premonitions about events in dreams or during daytime
Maybe it run in the family, or you’ve regained some of much of what I call ‘soul-memory’, knowledge and wisdom of former lives.
If some or all of the above apply to to, and maybe you’ve stumbled upon my webpage it it a valuable step in the process of becoming (or acknowledging you are) a witch.
Furthermore you’ll have to find out what’s your focus.
When you’re born in Scandinavia you’ll have a tendency to Seidr Witchcraft and/or shamanism
When you’re born in the UK it could be regional firm if folk- and traditional witchcraft, the same goes for you ancestry
Etc
Just start your journey and if you have any questions feel free to ask me
In Traditional Witchcraft initiations are vital. It’s not as easy as becoming a Wiccan and every Coven, Circle, Grove or group have their own prerequisites, conditions and often tests. My own prerequisites are likewise. Novices have to stand the tests and before that I must know who someone really is, their attitude, stubbornness of those who refuse to be taught, because ‘the know everything’. The last example is someone I would absolutely refuse. My own Craft, Rites, Initiations and Grades require a mental, spiritual and intellectual receptiveness, otherwise I simply refuse to share anything.
Magick and Witchcraft is not to be taken lightly, it can heal and destroy and everything I do takes time, effort and most of all discipline.
I even don’t want to talk on my blog about the outer perimeters of my Craft, the divinities, rituals and tools. I have complex ones and nothing ‘electric’, like a mixture of thing I like and others I dislike. My Grimoire is about 700 pages with incantations, initiations, of which some have to be learned by heart. There is ancient language involved and that’s why initiations can take time, forming a Counsel, different function in order to become potent. Secrecy is required and transgressions or offenses against the rules have severe consequences. That’s all I can say about it.
There are many secret societies who have similar conditions, that’s why I will stay in the shadows and not advertise.
FOR long Samhain was the feast of the Turn of the Year. That was on the Eve around October 31 on November 1. Meteorologically speaking the shortest day is yet got to come (December 21), but magically speaking the Veil between the worlds is open and Time and Space, Life and Death, the Material and the Ethereal Spheres become One, but the Wise are already familiar with the fact that these worlds are one as the Hedge Riders travel Between the Realms of this world and the Netherworlds.
Ne, my mother, my grandfather and Aunt Kee always lived in harmony with the Moon and her cycles . I often encounter Wiccans who find it difficult to harmonize with the Moon cycles, because are new to their craft, I was raised this way; our hereditary Craft never seized to live and work with the moon and we were never fond of christianity, because we were hated by the ultra-orthodox, who used to spit on the ground whenever they saw us. My grandfather, mother and aunt Kee used to help anyone in need, the ill and brokenhearted, but whenever we were cursed or mistreated, my grandfather, aunt Kee en me successfully counter- cursed it hexed the ill-doers. That how I became a Pellar.
Now I’ve astrayed from my original subjects, but Samhain is a perfect opportunity for hexing and/or counter-cursing if you know how to, but these are family- and personal secrets I’ll never share
ITCHCRAFT is not something you have to believe in to make changes your life. Believing is something monotheistic religions invented to keep people from using their intellect and ‘sixth sense’. You have to believe in their non-sense, one of these believes is that witchcraft and magic(k) are bad. It is bad for their income and power-hunger to control the masses. In the days before christianity witchcraft and magic was the realm of healers, wise ones and those who acquired knowledge of cattle, farming, hunting, to lift curses of to cast them. People knew their way to the Wise, the Pellars, the wayside witches, the wizards, the druids and shamans.
Now Traditional has never been eradicated by all means, because, in the UK for example, in regions like Cornwall, Devon, Dartmoor, Exmoor, Wales, Scotland (mostly Celtic regions), Witches were and are always present, despite of christianity who wanted to eradicate magic folk. Also in the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Romania, the Americas, folk magic and other forms of magic never died out, it was preserved.
You don’t need faith for it to work, it simply works, but you have to be cautious of the charlatans, who make use of superstitious believes. Nowadays I encounter a lot of fakers who want to earn money and take advantage of superstitions, they are the worst of all. It’s not, by any means, prohibited to ask money for services, as long as they really help, but saying “I sense something about you, do you want a reading?”. I usually say: “no, I can do my own readings”. If I need any, I can use a witch friend whom I trust.
All the bad religions ask for some kinda blind faith, we don’t, because, like I said before, I simply works.
Sone traditional witches have incorporated christian influences and portions of the Bible. I come from a tradition free from those influences, because of the harm Christianity has done and because in our villagers who encountered us used to spit on the ground when they saw us. We never went to church, though my mom sometimes went on Christmas Eve or when the Mattheus Passion was preformed with the Dutch opera singer Marco Bakker.
My father, not in any way a witch, but a socialist pur sang, just hated christianity , because of his own past with his father and stepmother. I never set foot in a church before 1985, when I was lured into the Pentecostal church and stayed there until 2015 and left with aversion and hatred because of their attitude against LGBTQIAPQ people and other religions.
Because of my past I swore to remove all remnants of christiany and the bible and never incorporate any influences into my practice. I researched on Wicca also and the Cult of Tubal-Kain and the influence of christianiy in Traditional witchcraft and Folk Pratices and found to many biblical influences and couldn’t understand why this religion still had so much of an impact, for me it’s a ninefold NO.
I went back to my roots, for my any name of the Jewish and christian god has any significance to me, no charm, blessing or curse with these abominable names of the biblical god has any relationship with my practice. It took me years of rituals to get rid of those remnants, so for me any circle, coven of grove that has some relation with the bible would ever fit in my life.
A few years i was with the Satanic Temple, but they are very much against the supernatural, and it was just too much of the same and often just make belief fakeism for me
Am I a black witch? There ain’t nothing like that in traditional witchcraft, though there are benevolent and malevolent witches, but nothing like white witch Wicca and the ‘Wiccan Rede’. It’s hard to explain, because I don’t share my practice, only to the seekers who are already familiar with the Craft. I do respect Wiccans, though, but it’s not my path.
I hold my practice free of the evil bible and any christian influence and that has healed a lot of wounds that were inflicted upon me in 30 years of Pentecostal influences. I studied church history and the influence the Maleus Maleficarum had, which even today influences the ‘Satanic Panic’ and ‘Witch Panic’ caused by fundamentalistic religions.
For a life without ‘biblical influences’ is a great life.
ALAN GWAV (Cornish for Halloween), for some just a dress up party, for the ones that kwiek the Craft a time where the veil that deprecates the worlds is at its thinnest. A time for travel, not to earthly realms but the other realms, a hedge-riders journey. Here we can meet Bucca Dhu at his darkest hour. It’s a time that religious people fear the most. For us it’s nothing to fear, a time to energized for our Craft. Little can we say, little there is to share.
For some, in Covens, Groves or Circle it is a Hollowed Eve, even the High Feast, a celebration of which we share nothing to the outside world, nor those who have other practices.I’m a solitary witch, I have my own practice. It’s gonna be a wonderful Hallowtide
VERY important part of the Traditional Witches’ practice, is what we call ‘the Becoming’. It is a trance-like state, not infused by drugs, though sometimes natural means, mostly plants from the Nightshade family can be used, with caution, though the Becoming is an essential state of mind, in combination with ‘gathering Sprouse’, a Cornish word for ‘the power of the Red Serpent, AKA the Magical Power that infuses the Earth. This is not something just drawn from the Earth fort our own benefit. The Law of Receiving and Giving is of the utmost importance. Some choose a shortcut by summoning Spirits, but in the Old Ways it’s a way of respect and a long road of patience and hardship to undergo as a means go discipline and hard work. I feel that any shortcut will never gain any benefit. The most powerful witches and wizard acquired their strength without any shortcut.
Without the God of Witchcraft, in Cornwall Bucca, nothing can be accomplished. Hallowing the land and the creature therein, is to hallow Bucca, Who is intrinsically connected to the soil and its magic. Everything, visible and invisible is connected to the Bucca or The Cornish Devel. Traditional Witchcraft is therefore not an easy road to succes, and one of the ways in acquiring the necessary power is ‘the Becoming’. I certainly would recommend the Book: Traditional Witchcraft, a Cornish Book of Ways by Gemma Gary. A lot can be said about that, but those who seek shall find.
HERE have been a few articles and YouTube videos that claim that ‘Traditional Witchcraft’ is ‘the original religion that was introduced by Gerald Gardner’. This is a misleading and incorrect conclusion, based upon the fact that ‘the original forms of western witchcraft had died out because of the witch-hunts’. Now there are several reasons that this was never the case:
ITCHCRAFT is not something you have to believe in to make changes your life. Believing is something monotheistic religions invented to keep people from using their intellect and ‘sixth sense’. You have to believe in their non-sense, one of these believes is that witchcraft and magic(k) are bad. It is bad for their income and power-hunger to control the masses. In the days before christianity witchcraft and magic was the realm of healers, wise ones and those who acquired knowledge of cattle, farming, hunting, to lift curses of to cast them. People knew their way to the Wise, the Pellars, the wayside witches, the wizards, the druids and shamans.
ALAN GWAV (Cornish for Halloween), for some just a dress up party, for the ones that kwiek the Craft a time where the veil that deprecates the worlds is at its thinnest. A time for travel, not to earthly realms but the other realms, a hedge-riders journey. Here we can meet Bucca Dhu at his darkest hour. It’s a time that religious people fear the most. For us it’s nothing to fear, a time to energized for our Craft. Little can we say, little there is to share. 
Morghain’s Traditional Witchcraft 