You Can Make Your Witchcraft And/or Your Religion(s) Your Whole Life, Or Not. Nowhere Are There Rules

You can make your witchcraft and/or your religion(s) your whole life, or not. Nowhere are there rules for how much to practice, how much to worship. It comes down to as much or as little as you want, because it's your life after all.

Seasonal Divination: Halloween/Samhain

I do divination throughout the year. Occasional single-card draws to see how a day will go, three-card spreads to answer questions, spirit communication with all sorts of methods, readings for others... Divination of all sorts (particularly tarot) is a pillar of my practice.

For some holidays, though, I like to do extra divinations that are specific to that holiday. New Year's Eve and Day, the Equinoxes, Midsummer, and the day of the first snowfall are examples of days I mark with special divinations.

The biggest one for me, and for many witches, is Halloween. Like a lot of others, my practice was born (and reborn!) around this time of year. Something about the atmosphere and the changing season encourages introspection and connection to the realm of magic. Whether you believe in the thinning veil or not (personally, I'm dubious about it), there is an energy to the days surrounding Halloween that can't be denied.

In my practice, I don't do Samhain or consider this to be my new year. Rather, this is the turning point where the weather tips into cold. It's a time of anticipation. Preparations for the dark half of the year start at the Autumn Equinox, but they become more urgent and real around Halloween as we take in the last fruit and vegetable harvests of the year.

Halloween is a big day for spirit work for me. This is the day when I call on my spirits to give me guidance and advice -- whatever they want to say. I don't ask any questions. I just draw and interpret using a standard spread.

The Spread

You can technically use this at any time of year, but I recently redesigned this spread specifically for Halloween and spirit work purposes.

This is an eight-card spread intended to receive general advice and guidance from spirits. In particular, I'm looking for advice I either missed, ignored, or didn't understand previously.

The cards, in order, are:

Me (or the querent), one card (1)

Opportunities, two cards (2 & 3)

Areas of growth, two cards (4 & 5)

Obstacles or warnings, two cards, one to modify opportunities, one to modify growth (6 & 7)

Wild card, the certified "yell at me" card, intended to let my saucier spirits say whatever they want within the spread (8)

So, the spread ends up looking something like this:

Using the Spread

Often, even divination is pretty casual for me. But this, like other special holiday spreads, requires a bit more involvement. Note that it doesn't really matter what time of day this reading is done, but I typically do it after nightfall.

First, I light at least one candle. Several is ideal, but one will do in a pinch. I prefer to do this at an altar or in a space that's been set up specifically for spirits to visit and use. I'll set out an offering such as whisky, coffee, bread, or cookies for the spirits in return for their wisdom. Remember: Even if your relationship isn't purely transactional, it's respectful to give something in return for a spirit's efforts.

Next, select a deck. Any deck will do, but I prefer ones that my spirits are particularly attached to. For me, this is usually my Deviant Moon Tarot, which you can see pictured above.

Now, we shuffle. I like to shuffle for jumpers, but you can do it however you like best. If no jumpers pop out, that's usually a sign that there's no message for me right now, and I ought to try again later. But sometimes, I'll feel called to stop and draw or pick a card from somewhere random in the middle of the deck. It all depends on which spirit sets their influence in the moment. Set the cards down in order as they jump or are drawn.

Once all the cards are down, interpret as usual.

The self card represents me (or you, as the case may be). It's where I am right now in the moment, how I'm feeling, and my current status.

The two opportunity cards are just that -- opportunities. These are things coming up that I should take advantage of. They could pertain to relationships, money, or life in general.

The growth cards are more personal. These are areas of focus to improve myself and grow as a person. Whether it's in relationships, spirituality, self-love, or something else, these cards represent the path of development.

The obstacle cards correspond to the opportunities or growth areas they sit between, representing the things that stand in their way. They show possible conflicts, problems, and things that will prevent growth or opportunities from reaching me, or things that will prevent me from taking those opportunities.

The wild card is a bit different. This card is intended to be a sort of "free space" for the spirits to use to say whatever they want. It could have to do with literally anything. Often, this card ends up being a message I missed or misinterpreted at the time I originally saw it, redelivered with a bit of attitude.

Take notes on your observations. I write down everything, whether I think it's relevant or not. I'll also take a picture of the spread to paste into my digital grimoire. Everything speaks. This reading looks at the next several months. Every so often, I'll come back to these notes to see how accurate it was and draw on the wisdom offered.

Once your reading is complete, thank your spirits. Sit with them for a while before blowing out the candles (or snuffing them, whichever you prefer) and cleaning up the space.

I hope this spread is useful to you! If you enjoyed this post or use this spread, please consider dropping a tip in my tip jar. Every contribution helps me keep making posts like this!

Also, if you have time, please check out my Divination Theory Survey! I'm studying sentiments surrounding digital divination and the efficacy of digital divination tools (like shufflemancy, tarot apps, and the like). Every response helps the research!

Happy Halloween!

Hehe

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Next month is Yule!! Time to learn, my beautiful lovelies,

What is Yule?

Yule is one of the first holidays celebrated, originating from Pagan Traditions, things such as the Christmas Tree, Yule Log and Yule singing were originally Yule celebrations. Christmas is a Christian-ized version of Yule, it's celebrated same time, depending on who you ask, or your opinion, it can be celebrated same day as Christmas, from the 21st-23rd, or from the 21st-1st of January. There's no specific reasons on these different dates, besides most witches in the Broom Closet (meaning they hide their craft, rather for personal reasons or because of where/how the they live) when a witch is in the broom closet it might be easier to celebrate more across more days, for those who have to keep their craft and celebrations a secret. With more Wiccan traditions it celebrates the Oak and Holly King belief, that the Oak King takes half of the year (Spring and Summer) and the Holly King takes the other half (Autumn/Fall and Winter) some say they battle all year, and Summer and Winter Solstice is when each respecting brother is the strongest. Some say they're battling for the Goddess, other say they're fighting for their part of year, other's say it's just them being rivals. In more Pagan Traditions it celebrates Odin, as that's also were Santa Claus originated from. Odin lead the Wild Hunt through the Sky

"As far as practitioners of nature spiritualities are concerned, the Wild Hunt offers an initiation into the wild and an opening up of the senses; a sense of dissolution of self in confrontation with fear and death, an exposure to a 'whirlwind pulse that runs through life'. In short, engagement with the Hunt is a bid to restore a reciprocity and harmony between humans and nature."

— Susan Greenwood.

Not only this, but it also celebrates the new year (if you go by traditional new year) it's about preparing for the new year, a fresh start

How to celebrate Yule?

There's many ways to celebrate Yule, I recommend you do your own research or ask your family or friends (if you have any) about their beliefs and celebrations, but here's some ways

You can have a Christmas like tree, but instead put orange peels on the tree for celebration of a new year, and the close return of the Oak King. You can write wishes or spells on bay leaves and put it on the tree as well, the star originated from putting candles on the tree, BE CAREFUL though, obviously can be dangerous if you light the candles. You can also put bells on the tree to let Spirits know it's a safe place to stay, and to make their presence aware (not all spirits are bad) you can decorate your altar with things like colors associated with Yule or Christmas if you have experience with Christmas, like red, green, Gold, Silver and maybe even white. Pine cones, snow water, or pine needles from your tree(s) it's also common to make Vision Boards for the new year and do shadow work for the new year on Yule. It's also common to make a bonfire, write all you want to release on paper or bay leaves and throw it into the bon fire. If you can't have a bonfire you can also just a fire safe container and candle, I recommend a Yule colored candle if possible. You can also make the very famous Yule Log, rather it be the actual thing, a tiny version using a stick, or making a Yule Log pastry/dessert.

(Image not mine) I always provide an image with information in case of those who are into Witchcraft, Paganism or Wicca, and have select internet options or they lose this post. They can download this image and have portable knowledge even if they're in a place without internet, or they lose their Tumblr account, or many other things.

That's all for now!!