Despair is The Undoing of The Witch: The Priest/ess Archetype + Social Justice

I am a white, 30 year-old, cishet female pagan living in the Midwest of the USA.

I took to my altar to contemplate the news-- horrifying news-- and the news of the last two years tumbled in all at once.

"Think. Goddess, this is fucked. Everything is fucked. You need to think. Get focused. Fuck, we are a garbage species. It's too late. It's too big. Shut up brain, Think--"  And then:

"Despair is the Undoing of the Witch."

"You're right."

But, what can do I as one witch? I shuffled my cards.


I pulled the High Priest/ess from the deck. 

Priest/ess. I've been stirring and kneading this idea for several years now. Priest/ess. What does that mean? What does it mean now?  How could I embody that? Can I embody that? 

 In the tarot, we know the Priest/ess as Introspection, Remembering, Intuition, Solitude, Inner Wisdom, Diving within, Wider Vision, Initiation and Seeking Truth.


In the mundane world, the Priest/ess archetype appears in a myriad of ways, but the definition that rings most brightly for me is "A priest/ess is dedicated to their god/dess and their community." 

The Priest/ess is a leader.

"I'm listening." 

The following ideas came to me at my altar about utilizing the Priest/ess archetype for social justice work, my own personal growth and moving forward. 

Due to the influx of mail I've received about how witches and magically minded people could possibly make any difference or positively contribute in a chaotic world, I've decided to share them with you here on the blog. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but it is my hope that it will encourage further discussion, meditation and Inspired Action as a community.

Thoughts from The High Priestess

 Refuse Spiritual Bypassing as a coping mechanism. If your partner or your best friend were diagnosed with a serious illness, would you advise them to ignore it and refuse to seek treatment to make it disappear? Or deny their illness all together and abandon them because it's distressing? Probably not.

When we bypass, we diminish the seriousness of an issue and we diminish the humanity of those in pain. Feel feelings, process them and be here Now.

Anger is not "unspiritual". Willful ignorance, ambivalence and relinquishing your power is. 

 Our friends and family are not exempt from Truth. If hateful speech (both explicit and covert) crosses our path, we have to destroy it. It's much easier to denounce behavior in anonymity or in cyberspace than in our personal spheres-- which is where the real work is and where the most impact is made. 

 Accept that we will likely lose people because of it. Sometimes we will feel alone.

 Listen. Really Listen. Allow people to speak without the need to interrupt, interject, correct, smooth over, comfort or make comparisons. As people who desire to help and feel deeply it can be difficult, but it's imperative that we hold space by actually holding space.

 Make friends with Discomfort. Much of our spiritual practices revolve around maintaining comfort. And why not? It's fucking brutal out there, of course we need a touchstone for healing and sanity. While this is an important tool in the healers utility belt, spiritual growth and development as humans stems from our ability to face challenges and that means discomfort. We will survive it.

 Remember that we cultivate practices not as empty theater or escapism but to carry us through and process our world. 

Throw out garbage myths about money. Reevaluate our relationship with money. Money is energy. When applied properly, money can change lives and uplift communities.

 Learn about the important differences between being an ally and an Accomplice. 
 
Unplugging is not uncaring.  This is a marathon, not a sprint. This is the long haul and our mental health and stamina requires breaks for silence and restorative solitude. Taking time to unplug from social media one-ups-manship, meme wars and youtube comments is not equivalent to abandoning your cause or community.

We minister to our minds and bodies to stay strong, recharge and get back in the game.

Know Thyself. Dive headfirst into our own Shadows and uncover how we may contribute to harm or injustice. By understanding this, we can do a little better every day.

"I did then what I knew how to do. 

Now that I know better, I do better." 

--Maya Angelou 

We're all in this together.

Witch On. Witch Boldly.

 
 

'Honor Me with Beauty'

Honor me with Beauty.
Honor me with good deeds done in secret,
     with knowing that you don't know

Honor me with obsession,
Honor me with passionate perseverance,
     with kindness when kindness feels like a paper cut

Honor me with Indulgence
Honor me at the altar of curiosity,
     with your keen appreciation

Honor me with Shamelessness.
Honor me with the lapping of your blood,
     with passing paper airplanes to your animal imagination

Honor me with Absurdity.
Honor me with awkward balance,
      with your paramour, the Void

Honor me with Uncertainty.
Honor me with ferocious possibility,
      with your pulpy perishable skin and favorite singer.

Honor me with invocation.
Honor me with the sound of your story,
     with your smoking tongue and most prized collection.

Honor me with Generosity.
Honor me with petals and sticks,
     arranged like a skeleton behind your old house.

Honor me with the relentless pursuit of Beauty
     for the sake of Beauty,
          with the map of the night we dreamt.



M. Roberts 2017

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Beauty Revelations Spread

In honor of 28 Days of Beauty, I wanted to start by sharing a simple card spread to help us gain insight into our Beauty mission. This spread works with tarot and oracle cards alike! If you don't have cards, the queries can be easily translated into journal prompts.

[Card 1] 
How am I experiencing beauty in my life right now?
What is my current relationship with Beauty?

[Card 2] 
How am I blocked to experiencing and appreciating beauty?
In what ways am I or (what is causing me to be) constricted, bypassing or missing it?

[Card 3] 
How can I bring more beauty into my experience right now?
Which area of my life can be infused with all forms of beauty: aesthetic, spiritual, trans-personal?

[Card 4] 
Ways I can expand and bring beauty to the benefit of those around me: partners, home, family,friendships, school, work, community, online community or neighborhood? What could that look like?

[Card 5]
In reference to Card 4, by expanding this way-- how is my own essential beauty Revealed?


I would love to know what you discover!
Walk in Beauty, Moon Babies.

Witch On, Witch Boldly.

'Create Beauty' Coloring Page

"Whenever you are creating Beauty around you, 
you are Restoring your own Soul."
--Alice Walker

And in my humble opinion, you restore the souls of others as well.

This month's coloring page was inspired by this gem of a video by Tylluan Penry on why witches should create Beauty...

Witch On, Witch Boldly--
and be with Beauty, Moon Babies.

Magical Swiss Army Knife: 6 Path Paving Ideas

While road opening doesn't get people as hot and bothered as sex magic and fail-safe prosperity workings, I can tell you this:

It's a magical Swiss army knife, has tons of practical applications and Takes Care of Business which is def sexy.

Oh, May I list the ways I adore thee...

So often our spell casting pursuits focus on reeling in our lines and bringing more and more into our lives which may actually complicate things. This witch is willing to bet a sparkly that seven times out of ten, what we want is so close we can taste it, but we can't see it. We can't quite reach it. We're stuck in the mud. 

We may not necessarily need to pile on more Attraction incense and MOAR STUFF.
But instead, bring in a cosmic leaf blower to blast away the debris that is clogging our vision and cut a clean path to our desire. I like to call this Path Paving.

What is Path Paving? 

Path Paving rituals are about creating a trajectory, removing distractions and laying down a path forward. In traditional Rootwork, this is called Road Opening. The goal of this working is to get unstuck, remove obstacles and get moving.

We like moving. 

How is it different from cleansing? It may not be, really. Personally, I find them to be subtly but significantly different. In my experience, cleansing tends to be about "cleaning" a situation, tidying energies, lifting up, bringing closure or levity, clearing physical spaces and the body and usually (though not always) has a healing aspect.

Path Paving rituals tend to be of an active, goal based, chariot-like nature. Most of the time, it's about getting out of our own way. You may find that these work similarly and are interchangeable for you. Witch on!

The Chariot from the Tarot Illuminati

When could we use a Path Paving ritual?

If you find yourself tangled in:

• Creative constipation
• Stagnation and or confusion
• Fear of getting started
• Financial obstacles
• Overwhelm 
• Muddy communications, mixed messages or lack of information
• Feelings of being on the 'outside looking in' or treading water
• Funks (not the good kind), malaise, and garden variety stucknesses
• Picking up on menacing vibes from others
• Generalized anxiety
• Tunnel vision
• Paranoia

A few Path Paving Suggestions:

Tried and True Candle Work
There are scads of Road Opening candle spells available. Though obvious, I suggest it here because I have personally had repeated success using this tactic. I prefer to use dressed taper candles because not only do they burn in one sitting (no camping required) but you can glean all sorts of interesting information about your situation by reading the wax.

Bust out your storm water
That bottle of storm water in your cupboard is a potent cleansing agent and ready to sHaKe tHings uP. Use it to dress candles, add to a bath and laundry, or wear as an energetic "perfume". If you don't have access to storm water, collected river water or any moving water source may be a suitable substitute.

'Open Up' Oil
Road opening oils go by many names, are widely available for purchase and are easy/fun to make.
This is my recipe for a versatile Open Up Oil (It is a traditional Road Opener oil with a twist):

Cinnamon stick, pine needles, rosemary, bay leaves, camphor essential oil, 

peppermint essential oil, black salt, and jazzed up with a selenite chip. 

Place ingredients in a jar that seals tightly and cover with your carrier oil of choice.

Place images of open doors, long roads, scenic paths and open gates on your altar, in your grimoire, in your pocket, in your shoes or on the dash board of your car.

Wear a Key
String a key onto your favorite necklace or keep it in your pocket to help you unlock situations, information or bust through blocks in polite company. (I have a pair of earrings made from car ignition keys that I wear for such occasions...)

Shungite Elixr
Boosting any working with an elixr helps build up intent, and add power to your working aaaaaaand it's REALLY FUN. Create a simple block busting elixr by adding a chunk of shungite to your water bottle. With every sip you take, you'll be reminded that you are a bullshit nullifying creature with places to go and a path to pave.

Now Go Get It.
May your path be clear, Moon Baby. <3

Witch On, Witch Boldly. XOXO

Want more clearing magic?
You can listen to my block busting Night Sky Cosmic Tonic meditation here.

Alchemizing Envy: Salt The Slug + Get Your Magick Back

You know it. I know it.

When you're having the most fantastic, ultra meaningful, extra connected, uber synchronistic dance with a Universe that wants nothing but to blow out all of your birthday candles and send you affirmation chanting butterflies. You are so manifesting your desires, so in the flow, so boss witching and so doing you and suddenly--

Suddenly you are shanked in the ribs with an ugly guerilla stab of jealousy.

The hot prickly static rises behind your eyes and the wriggling, burning, oily slugs of Envy start somersaulting in your guts.

Their shop is expanding
Their work is getting attention 
They are in the throes of a blossoming relationship
Their piece was published
They received the scholarship
...Another album of travel photos
They nailed the interview
They have more friends, subscribers, likes, comments, contacts, chinchillas...

Fuuuuuuuuuq. (Chanting butterflies exit stage left.)

It's not surprising. We are trained to participate in an endless game of one ups-manship and toxic comparison. We spend leisure time in a voyeuristic wonderland of Competition, sizing up everyone we know, don't know and think we know.

Jealousy and envy are normal and natural reactions. However, sitting in our own green-eyed stew is not only unhealthy and disempowering--it's probably definitely smothering your magick.

While it can masquerade as righteous anger or constructive criticism, Jealousy only further distances us from the life we Love. It numbs us and pulls us away from creative processes and generally kicking ass.

So how do we get out of the swamp? As magical thinkers, How do we alchemize jealousy into an elixir that feeds us?


 Magical folks know that thoughts become Things. The more often we pour energy into something, the harder we work at making it into SOMETHING. If we continuously suckle the Envy Slug with our insecurity, hurt, self pity, rage, and frustrations it will grow until it is so grotesquely huge and slippery that we lose control of it. It becomes a THING that controls US. Ick.

The first defense against the Envy Slug is not to feed it. Refuse to hemorrhage your life and siphon that energy into what you want to happen. Salt that Slug. We can use that twinge we feel as a sign that it's time to distill our energy into Feeding what what we really Want.

Jon Mayer and His Slug

Magical folks know that Nothing is ever as it seems. Nothing. Ever. We never know the whole tale. There is always another layer. What appears to be easy, sudden or a stroke of dumb Luck on the surface was most likely a long simmering result of work, hustle, a string of failures, tough decisions and potential sacrifice.

It is tempting to assume that cosmic assistance is out there delivering others to their dreams while leaving us on the corner to wait for a bus that's always late.

Story time...

I had a love-hate (mostly childish internalized misogynistic hate) relationship with another woman in my industry. On the surface, I thought her work was phenomenal and enjoyed her as a person. But in the shadow, I envied the shit out of her success, felt the credit given to her was deeply unfair, that she had access to resources that I didn't, that she was light years ahead of me and there was little hope of catching up. 

It was a lose-lose situation: I felt like a sore loser because her success haunted me as my failure in tandem with deep shame for knowing my girl hate was showing. It killed my confidence, poisoned the well of my enthusiasm, made me say remorseful things in private, filled me with self loathing and was zapping my life force in a HUGE way.  

The Slug had me in a wicked head lock. 

One day we met casually outside of our normal territory. To my surprise, it came out in conversation that she was experiencing many of the same roadblocks that I was--and then asked me for advice.

Wait. What? You're joking. You're out of my league, light years away, AN ALIEN QUEEN ON ANOTHER FREAKIN PLANET. HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?! 
*gnashing of teeth*

The terrain was utterly different than I ever imagined.

It was a huge shift. I was thoroughly convinced that this woman stood for everything that burned me and in a split second it was crystal clear that this self inflicted despair and helplessness had nothing to do with her and everything to do with my lack of confidence and Trust in my own journey.

We can neutralize envy with Confidence. When we bring confidence and trust into the mix, envy transmutes to become its hotter sibling, Admiration. 

Epilogue: We are real friends now. I'm out of shame prison. 

The field is leveled. I have my power back AND I'm up a comrade. 

 

Magical folks know that this Universe is Abundant. For Real. If we really believe the Universe is Infinitely Abundant (like we say we do) we know there is more than enough for everyone.  We know that Success not a cake: If someone has a slice, it doesn't mean there is less for us.

Next time we see or hear something that tugs at our guts and takes a sucker punch at our self worth, counteract with a little spell, a memo for the Cosmic Enchilada,  

"I'll take some of that, please" or  

"I'll have what he's having, please and thank you". 

Magical folks know the power of Polarity. Hermetic philosophy tells us about this hipness Polarity--the idea that everything in the Universe is dual and has two extremes, that all opposites are merely a matter of degree (ex: hot/cold, love/hate). Everything is a spectrum, a sliding scale.

 If we want to stir up our circumstances and break out of the soul suckage and stagnation of jealousy, we can use polarity to push hard in the opposite direction towards support.

Genuinely compliment that person. Ask them for advice. 

Let them know you are thinking of them. Congratulate them. Extend an invite. 

Close your eyes and send them a Well wish, even if it's hard. (It will be hard.) 

I know, I know--"Send them love bleeeeeeeeeeh" It sounds fluffy and annoying and unmagician-y until you try it and see how difficult it really is. 

Here's the thing: I find this more effective than blocking, unfollowing or cutting someone out of my life. While those actions might be a quick off switch for pain, they do nothing to change how I feel about myself or the target of my nastiness. Polarity works. Push that sliding scale, ride that spectrum and get to where you want to be.

And finally--

A Giant Squid: A Prime Example of Freaky Shit being Possible

Magical folks know all kinds of freaky shit is possible. Instead of shutting down, we can choose to be inspired by the actions of others because it is further proof that It Is Possible. If this person can do it--it can be done--and you can do it too. People being in their bliss is an Affirmation of all the woo we hold so dear!

 Magical folks have the ability to honor paradoxical, fantastic, abstract, unexplained glistening thoughts about all of the possibilities of this life--

Believing that you are enough and what you desire 
is possible for you, should be one of them, Moon Baby.



Witch On, Witch Boldly. XOXO

Click the Mermaid to Find my 30+ Page 
Doodle Filled Art Magick E-Primer!

Dandelion Priestess Coloring Page

This month's coloring page was inspired by Joanna DeVoe's stirring interview with Joey Morris of Starry Eyed Supplies.  Special thanks to Joey for allowing me to use her visage!

"The Strongest and most mysterious weeds 
often have things to teach us."
-- F.T. McKinstry

Grow where you're planted, Moon Babies. XOXO