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For some individuals, witchcraft is a journey of finding one's unique style of magic, own cosmology, and personal philosophy.

Have you seen the popular lists of different types of witches—e.g., traditional witch, Gardnerian witch, Faerie witch, eclectic witch, hedge witch—with precise definitions for each category? These charts help some beginners. Learning you fit a certain style can be validating and reassuring. It also makes some newcomers feel they belong. 

But this post is for beginners who find the categories make things really difficult. Everyone else, I'm not naysaying what works for you; this entire post is simply ideas and methods that work for me, in case they're useful to someone. I don't want the charts thrown out. They're great for some people. And with that:

Australian Pagans in Tasmania plan for a midwinter festival (yes, it is winter in the Southern Hemisphere). A prominent Pagan critiques her spiritual brethren's misuse of science. And a Shinto-Pagan writer considers the nationalistic associations of her religion. It's Watery Wednesday, our weekly segment on news about the Pagan community around the world! All this and more for the Pagan News Beagle!

Title: Hexbreaker (Hexworld #1)

Last year I facilitated a (very) small gathering devoted to the Goddess Hekate in the basement of a local metaphysical shop. My Comrade and I celebrated The Rite of Her Sacred Fires, a global ritual written and organized by Sorita d’Este from the Covenant of Hekate, an organization devoted to Hekate, Our Lady of the Crossroads.

The Rite of Her Sacred Fires is a very sweet and very powerful ritual, celebrated annually by people all over the world on the full moon in May. (This year the full moon is on Saturday, May 21.) We chanted, we sang, we decorated candles, we raised some power, and together we spoke these words:

“Great Hekate, who spins the web of the stars and governs the spiral of life, guide us through towards pathways of understanding. From crossroad to crossroad, the torchbearers and the keybearers of your mysteries will always find one another.”

Pagans get ready to celebrate Earth Day. Oklahoma Pagans face persecution from neighbors. And the role of magic in anarchism is considered. It's Watery Wednesday, our weekly segment on news about the Pagan community! All this and more for the Pagan News Beagle!

A self-proclaimed witch stokes controversy after documenting human bones she'd acquired and offered for sale. A Pagan politician in Florida draws fire for his authoritarian views. And what should you know if you want to perform shadow work? It's Watery Wednesday, our weekly segment on news about the Pagan community! All this and more for the Pagan News Beagle!

I would love to take you on a journey, one that leads us through the wilds of nature and back to the roots and bones of witchcraft, a natural witchcraft that works with the seasons and all the natural items that Mother Nature provides drawing on magical folk lore and a little bit of hedge witch and wanderer magic too. No fancy schmany tools or ceremonial rituals, this is about working with the source.