Earth Witch, page 7
As a cosmological view, the World Tree can provide us with a framework for doing deeply personal transformative work within ourselves, connecting us to both our bodies and the earth. It enables us to move through the Otherworld. This is also known as “walking the hedge,” journeying, and spirit flight. With time—with baby steps and practice—you will be able to do these things.
The Spirit Body
As I mentioned earlier in this chapter, our physical bodies are both connected to and inform our spirit bodies. I must warn you, however, that the anatomy of the spirit body can be difficult to describe. My understanding of it was informed by the work of American witch and co-founder of the Feri tradition, Victor Anderson, author of Etheric Anatomy: The Three Selves and Astral Travel.
Feri is a tradition of North American witchcraft that emphasizes awareness and sensual experience. In my practice, this tradition has been immensely helpful in understanding how parts of my spirit interact with the living world my body inhabits, and with the Otherworld. If this doesn't align with your personal understanding of your spirit body, however, I completely understand, as there are a multiplicity of views on this subject. In my own case, the Feri tradition has shown me how the different parts of our spirit body work, and how we set these parts in motion. As we go forward, I invite you to consider how this understanding might apply for you. For instance, if it feels uncomfortable at first, that may be because parts of your spirit body have been long neglected (usually the shadow or lower self).
The Feri tradition recognizes three essential parts of the spirit body—consciousness, or the waking self; the shadow, or the lower self; and super-consciousness, or the higher self. The conscious or the waking self is the part of you that is mentally processing the words you're reading right now. This is the part of you that makes your coffee, goes to work, engages in conversations, and thinks thoughts. The ego—the mediator between the person and reality—is part of your conscious self.
Your lower self, sometimes called the shadow self, is your unconscious, primal, and instinctive self. Your shadow self is part of your unconscious mind, which is comprised of impulses, repressed ideas, and embarrassing fears and tendencies. The beliefs that are buried there can cause you to react to certain situations instead of responding. “Why do I always do that?” is a refrain often heard from people who “selfsabotage.” The answer to that question is often found in the beliefs of the shadow self. Carl Jung, famous 20th-century psychoanalyst, pointed out the importance of this part of the spirit body: “Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.”
Some witchcraft traditions call this part of the spirit body the “fetch,” which is a part of you, but is also its own self. The fetch is possibly related to your daemon, a personal spirit that comes to you at birth. You are most connected to your fetch when you are a child.
For witches, fetches take the shape of animals or creatures. They are our chief familiars. They go and “fetch” information for us. I personally believe that my fetch lives at my heart center, attached to me by an etheric cord—an emotional energy connection. I inhabit this part of myself when traversing the other worlds. My fetch comes to me in animal form, giving me information and showing up in my dreams. Some describe it as the etheric body—the part of us that engages in astral travel or out-of-body experiences.
Fetches are sometimes suppressed and shamed into hiding, so it may take years to connect with yours. Do not rush to get to know exactly how your own fetch takes shape. For now, imagine it as a white and lightblue ball of light until it reveals itself to you in time. Respect the time it takes for your fetch to reveal itself and relax into knowing that you're working to bridge the gap between you and this part of your spirit body.
The irony is that understanding your lower self also offers the fastest pathway to your higher self, as they communicate with each other quite easily. This communication is how you begin to integrate your shadow self. Your higher self resides in the space just above your head, connecting to the base of your neck. This is where spirit may enter you. Also known as the “godhead,” this is your direct connection to however your “god” appears to you. The godhead is where you receive the divine essence and can connect to a higher consciousness. When you receive these “downloads” or intuitive messages, they arrive via your godhead. Connection or integration with your lower self—your shadow and your fetch—can help clarify these messages.
You aren't meant to master all of this overnight. Allow this information to sink in over time. Focus on your fetch, your lower self, and your shadow. Our shadows hold many dark desires, and the key is not to shame them, but to invite them in and give them deep approval. Hold them in the deepest of love—claws, fangs, and all.
The Spine and the Spirit Body
Most of us know the physical importance of our spine. It carries information from the brain to all other parts of the body. But your spine is also the gateway to the Otherworld—it acts like the Axis Mundi, or the World Tree we spoke of in the previous section. It's the built-in system that connects you to spirit. Your spine is the trunk of your tree (body) and, from it, you can move your spirit and energy from top to bottom, and back up from the Lower to the Upper World.
Connecting your spine to the generally gentle and friendly ally spirit of a tree not only enables you to explore other realms, but also to sense and feel into spirits who interact with you. This connects you more deeply with your spirit body. Having a strong and active bodily connection lets you go deeper into this work with a sense of safety, especially if you're wandering around the Otherworld and want to know how to return to your body. This sense of safety can prove useful during deep dreamwork, where you may sometimes feel lost or trapped within your dreams.
This is another reason loving your body, exactly as it is, is so important to your practice. When you feel in touch with and in connection to your body, you can return to it with ease and security. That's why I stress a bodily acceptance and movement practice, as it can teach you how to be in the body and to love it. The grounding and centering practice below can help you make and maintain that connection. It teaches you how to connect with earthly and celestial realms. It helps you move into the earth, draw up energy, and ascend to the heavens, then bring down energy to create a circuit within your body. This helps you create a boundary that you can erect to carry with you through your day. While this ritual may seem long, it's actually quite a quick process once you get the hang of it.
Practice: Grounding and Centering
Settle yourself quietly in a comfortable sitting position. If you can, sit directly on the ground and not in a chair. It's important here to keep your spine upright and erect, but do whatever is most comfortable for you and your body. You can lean against a wall for support and/or place a cushion or pillow under you if needed.
Begin by taking a few deep breaths. Feel into your body and bring your awareness to your spine. Visualize being able to move up and down it energetically. As you do so, move your energy into your pelvic bowl where your “root,” your energetic connection, begins.
Send your roots down into the soil like a tree or a plant. You may need to pass through the wood of your floor and the concrete of a city full of steel beams and sewers. You can pause here in these places to feel what they're about if you like. Move farther downward until you hit the soil. Feel its texture. Is it cool and damp? Warm and dry? Are you crossing paths with a nearby tree, plant, man-made structure, or mycelial network? If so, appreciate them by giving them a nod.
Keep moving downward. You may begin to push through solid rock, a water table, or an aquifer. Keep moving down, down, and down.
Eventually, it will begin to grow hot and the earth may rumble. Keep moving until you reach an orangered heat. Pass through it until you've found the whitehot core—the heartbeat of the earth that sustains all life on our planet. It is pulsing.
Give thanks for the earth's heartbeat and share any words you feel compelled to speak. From here, draw the earth's energy back up into your body. It is snakelike and red. Allow it to fill you completely, from your toes to the crown of your head. Sit here in appreciation for a moment if you like.
Now, begin moving energy upward. Eventually, move up through your roof or whatever is located above you. Move into the sky and the atmosphere. Is it raining? Are you passing through clouds? Is it morning or nighttime? In which direction is the sun? Where is the moon? Continue moving upward until the sky gives way from blue to black and is flecked with stars and planets. Reach out to your star kin or any heavenly body to which you feel called. Touch in with them and yourself here. Give thanks and share any words you feel compelled to speak.
Bring the celestial light of your star kin and the moon downward into the crown of your head. It is dovelike—the color a glimmering silvery white. Allow this glorious light to fill your whole body, mingling with the red serpentine energies you gathered from the earth.
Now, place your palm over your heart and your other hand on top of it. Gather these energies together at the center of your heart. Watch them form into a ball that encapsulates your heart, then have this ball of energy expand into an egg-like shape that surrounds your whole being. It may be light-golden in color or whatever color it manifests for you. Set this capsule with an intention to protect you, calling on any guardian spirits you wish to help as needed.
This capsule will serve as a protective energetic barrier with flexible boundaries. You do not want to create hard and brittle boundaries—they must flex with the environment you inhabit. Be thankful for this layer of protection and say a prayer of thanks to any guardian spirits involved and for the energy your environment has given you.
This practice will most likely not look the same for you as it does for me. Your own experiences will surface here, as you have your own inclinations and preferences. And that is how it should be.
Practice: Accessing the World Tree
To begin this practice, find a tree that you can connect with within a safe space—in your backyard, a local park, a nature preserve, any place that feels safe to you. You will know the tree when you find it, as this is where the deep listening comes in.
Next, do some research. Come to understand your tree's ecological role and growth patterns. Is it a native species? (This does not matter, but it's good to know.) Do some folkloric research on the species to understand how and why it is important in a folkloric sense. Is it protective? Does it have a reputation for being a tree that helps facilitate exploration to other realms? Does it have a medicinal quality?
Begin to forge a relationship to this tree by making frequent visits and leaving offerings. Sit with the tree. I find it helpful to place my back against the tree's trunk and align my spine with the spine of the tree. From there, you can perform a grounding exercise to meet with the tree's roots. Leave offerings at the roots or in a convenient hole or notch. Honey, hair, or bits of sweet foods are good offerings with which to start. Carry a leaf, a twig, or a bit of the tree's bark near your body or sleep with them under your pillow. Touch and speak to them. Ask what they want for future offerings. Invite the tree completely into your life.
When you have found your tree and have developed a relationship with it, try the grounding practice above while sitting at its base. This can bring you into further spiritual alignment with your tree.
Practice: Know Your Body
It is important to engage your body in ways that are safe and interesting to you. This can help you discover what gifts you hold within your body and where you struggle the most. Often, the struggle point can be a great place of exploration and can build character.
Engaging in a movement practice can begin to open you up to a greater connection to your body and the resonances it carries. Your movement should suit you as an individual. It should stimulate your body and move it out of a cerebral place and into your instinctual, felt self. Here are some options:
Simple breathing exercises
Yoga
Self-pleasure (having orgasms)
Powerlifting (my personal favorite)
Walking
Running
Riding a bike
Dancing
Mobility exercises
Gardening
Playing and/or creating music (very much an embodied practice)
Crafts involving the hands and body, like knitting, basket weaving, painting, or creating any art
Use this list as a starting point to find what works best for you and what resonates with your body and proclivities. Any movement of the body that works for you and feels sustainable can get you out of your head and into your body and deeper states of awareness.
If you're exploring a movement or embodiment practice that is new to you, it may take some time for muscle memory or a comfortable and relaxed state to develop so that you can make the shift from a cerebral state into a state of body awareness. This may be a little difficult at first. Don't give up immediately. Give yourself the time and space needed for the practice to take shape.
Be gentle on yourself and challenge yourself where you feel called to do so. Witchcraft will move you into many uncomfortable moments and facing your physical discomforts (within reason) can become a valuable experience that informs your practice.
Chapter 5
The Cycles of the Earth
If I believe in anything, it would be nature—trees, clouds, rain—the life cycles that begin and end, season after season. That makes sense to me—nature as God.
—Ellen Wittlinger
In our society today, “progress” is seen as linear. We are constantly encouraged to get better, to do more, to make more, to have more, to be more, as if we are eventually going to reach some imaginary Utopia where everything is perfect.
This linear concept of progress is a fantasy of the human ego, as nothing in nature works in this fashion. Instead, nature shows us the power of cycles. There is no linear progress in nature, but rather a continuous process of birth, death, and rebirth, in a beautiful rhythm that invites us to just be and experience the grandeur of it all.
Because witchcraft teaches us that we are, after all, of the earth, it also invites us to reflect and embrace these rhythms. As we move through the days, weeks, and seasons, each carries its own peculiar quality. As we move through the moon's many phases, they reflect our own phases. And seasonal cycles invite us to live more deeply connected to the earth, the moon, and the stars. By living with more awareness of these cycles, we can see how they guide and shape our lives.
The seasons of the year can act as cues for us. In summer, we gather experiences and growth. We bloom into the fullness of our expression. In winter, we slow down and hibernate in warmth and tend the seeds that we carry from the fall. In spring, the sap moves, and we stir from winter hibernation into new and exciting activities, and those seeds we nurtured begin to grow.
Living in rhythm with the seasons is a lot easier than some may think. All you have to do is simply go outside and pay attention. In this chapter, I'll show you ways to explore these cycles and how to connect to them. My approach may seem a little unconventional, however. I want you to connect to the seasons in the location in which you live. Because of this, we will not be working with the traditional Wheel of the Year.
The traditional Wheel of the Year comprises an annual cycle of seasonal festivals that are based on European pagan and folk practices that mark and celebrate the turning of each season. Many of the “witches’ holidays”— like Beltane, Lammas, Imbolc, and Samhain— are based in these traditions. But, while beautiful and inspiring, these festivals don't always line up with our own spirits of place. In some ways, I feel we do the land and the locations we inhabit a disservice by applying a ritual framework that is foreign to them and therefore rather incomprehensible to the spirits of place themselves. These festivals may apply if you live in the British Isles or in parts of Western Europe where much of the traditional Wheel of the Year is grounded. But they don't necessarily connect us to the reality of our own experience of the unique and varied places in which we live. If you live in Western Europe, the Wheel of the Year may very well work for you. But we need to discover our own ebbs and flows and how they're connected to the cycles of the land we inhabit.
In witchcraft, there are various ways to celebrate, honor, and pay heed to seasonal shifts, and they don't all necessarily align with the older traditions. The seasons and patterns of Ayrshire, Scotland, may not look like the seasonal patterns of say, Tucson, Arizona. I invite you to take a bioregional and animistic view of how you notice seasonal shifts and patterns, rather than concentrating on the framework and traditions of a location to which you may not have a direct connection.
In my early days of witchcraft, I was very eager to follow the Neopagan Wheel of the Year by rote. And that worked for me for a time. While I was living in the lush rain forests of western Oregon, where the climate is quite similar to that of the British Isles and parts of Western Europe, winter still held a lot of green life, as lichens, mosses, and ferns still thrived and even brightened in the depths of winter. Spring usually arrived on time and was fully alive in April. In July and August, the environment began to dry out and fruits ripened, and the harvest season lined right up with Lammas, the first day in August. It was a beautiful and solidifying experience to follow these seasonal shifts, and I loved honoring them.
However, when I reflected on my childhood in southern Florida, it made me wonder: How would this work there? Winter in Florida is almost imperceptible. The climate there seems to be a constant state of spring- and summer-like conditions. I wondered how I would apply the Neopagan Wheel of the Year in a place where it wasn't really relevant.
