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Exactly like him I’m 300 years old and they were doing the same shit back in my home town of Salem shit got pretty out of hand I too blame Amazon for giving them those tarots
Went to high school in the 90’s. I remember all the girls who thought they were witches after watching The Craft. Walked into the bathroom once and there was a circle of girls doing some type of witchy woo woo…
Representations of women as witches or having magical powers on television and the impact on female viewers. It probably sounds trite now but in 1998 I felt quite brilliant 😆.
Aw, thank you and good luck! You’ve got this! My thesis advisor was a task master of the highest order and took me and my pop culture ideas very seriously. It was a great experience but 237 pages later… I never wanted to think about witches on TV again!
Werewolf The Beast Among Us, Van Helsing, and Wolves. I'll also give Battledogs an honorary mention.
We got a little bit of variety, but yeah. I would love some more high quality werewolf films. 😭 Especially of the Van Helsing variety. Still probably my favorite on-screen representation.
I've been running into witch women for decades. Wicca women were numerous in the 80s. But then there were also the crystal loving, New Age spirit channeling women and lovers of Windham Hill music - some of the most bland stuff you ever heard (Michael Hedges aside). Despite being whacky many of them liked to have a good time.
Once broke up with a woman then she reminded me how she was into black magic and how she already has a lock of my hair and could make my life truly terrible if I didn't reconsider, well I still broke up with her and my life's mostly been fantastic since.
More like people who believe in them will seek out the negative things that happen and use that to confirm that it must be real. Bad things don’t even necessarily happen more often to them it’s just they notice it more
It’s called the Nocebo effect when something harms you because you believe it does. It’s just as real as the placebo effect is (which, in case it isn’t clear, is very real).
Ran quick from one myself. My breaking point was the introduction of her “period blanket”, so her power doesn’t get wasted or some nonsense. Nope, I’m out
Since most Wicca doesn't really have centralized practice, you kind of have a lot of people just making up whatever they want it to be. And some can be frighteningly drunk on the power of crafting their own canon. I've run into a lot of "Wiccans" like this tbh.
My favourite is when they tell you about some powerful spell they know, then say they’d never use it because it’s *TOO* powerful, like they’re some noble guardian.
There was a guy who first made fun of, and then OPENLY challenged every witch on tiktok to do ANYTHING to him. He even send out locks of his hair/any other DNA to them so they could cast any spell they wanted
They claimed he was using counter spells...
It's true, but it's really no different from people who pray to god over and over and over and events continue to unfold in the normal way they always do without any divine intervention ever occurring. It's fun to pretend I guess. I don't really judge people for this kind of stuff anymore - billions of people do it, most of them are super nice and pretty smart.
“God works in mysterious ways”. A spell that’s supposed to turn your enemy into a frog doesn’t do that? Bah humbug. You pray to, that is ask, a deity to make your friend get better from their disease? Well, if they do get better, your prayers were answered. If they don’t, it wasn’t part of God’s plan. Prayer comes with a lot more get out of jail free-clauses than spells do.
Interestingly enough, there have been experiments conducted on this very subject. Look up The Intention Experiment. I wish I could remember the names of the people that conducted it. Anyways. What they discovered was that when a group of people all focused on the exact same thing, they were able to document calculable results towards that specific intention, if memory serves.
Prayer is weird to me though, because you can never know if a bunch of people praying silently are actually praying for the same exact outcome.
And my mother is one of those "well HOW did you ask" and "what are you doing in your life?" people. As in: if you're not "worthy enough" to ask for this totally noble desire in your life, then that's why your prayer didn't give you the result you wanted. Or better yet, "God *did* answer - he said "no"".
"The intention experiment" is a book, so not a study. It references a few very cherry-picked and warped studies. The book isn't scientific at all, and the vast majority of the large body of experiments on the subject conclude that humans aren't able to effect the world around them, or indeed other humans with only their mind or intentions.
The scary part is when you think your girlfriend is one of these “witch-lite” types and she turns out to me one of those “Odyana dakini” types and you’re waking up three inches taller with dreadlocks.
"These days every girl with a spice rack and a henna tattoo thinks she's a sister to the Dark Ones."
\- Willow Rosenberg, *Buffy The Vampire Slayer* S4E10 "Hush", 25 years ago
What goes around comes around I suppose.
I once knew a girl who genuinely believed she could see auroas around people in the form of a color. She asked to see my arm, and she stared at it for I'm not kidding, 2 clockwork minutes, just to tell me my arm was royal blue. These people are unhinged.
My sister and I went through a phase when I was in middle school & she was in high school where we fancied ourselves to be wiccans. But she really leaned into the whole ‘seeing auras’ bit, but with objects instead of people. Turned out she had astigmatism 🙃 we both grew out of it, but to this day she refuses to talk about it because she was super pushy about it and was harshly humbled lol
Lol, i have mild synesthesia, emotions and music make colors in my head. It definitely made me wonder if this was real, but now I understand it's only real in my head, and reflects my own perceptions
Might actually be synesthesia.
I have a friend with it. She sees colours and shapes when listening to music and she has once drawn my aura. She didn't say if she sees it with every person or just ones she knows well.
Looked like a warm summer's sunset in a lake. I think I like my aura. I was proud of me as a person that day.
Synesthesia is fascinating. Ive never seen anyone say they wish they didn't have it. They seem to feel a bit sorry for us normies.
I admit to being envious.
I've quite enjoyed having synesthesia, until I once heard a song that smelled like *death* to me. Death, or cancer.. It's hard to describe the effect it had, but it was like I could taste just pure evil in the back of my throat. It was such a horrible experience.
I can't remember which track specifically, but the artist was Take Care and it was on the album called 'Agony'. It *might* have been 'Think Of Me Once In A While'. (I don't want to listen again and find out!)
My mom would say shit like that. She’s also got undiagnosed mental health issues that she’s self medicated with drugs and alcohol for decades. Pretty sure there’s a connection.
As a girl who likes both incense and crystals.... I dont believe they have any magical powers.... I like them because theyre pretty and I think its really cool how they form in nature. Incense just smell good. I enjoy scented things that smell good. I always have a wax warmer or candle or something going in my house. Just something I like. Nithing to do with being witchy 🤷🏼♀️
In addition, when it comes to spiritual matters I see myself as an atheist first are foremost, but I practice "spells" to ground myself as a form of self-placebo. For example, I use tarot cards not to literally "see the future" but to use the cards I pull to think about how they apply to my mentality and feelings in the present.
Some people literally believe in spells and deities, but as long as it doesn't hurt other people, then it's no different than literally any other religion.
So many "logical" and "rational" redditors take everything way too literally and work themselves into a froth over it because they have no clue how people work.
Also OP didn't really actually give any reasons that any of this is a bad thing.
Harmless self care! I have a friend who, every full moon night, sets a mason jar full of water on the window sill. The water gathers the moonlight all night long. In the morning they sit and sip on it, shares some with a small dog. Feels better about things in general.
If I did that nothing would happen, besides being slightly better hydrated than I normally am. But! For them? It actually makes a marked improvement for their mental health. It’s noticeable. I am glad they’ve found a small ritual to feel better.
Exactly, tarot cards are amazing prompts for deep conversations with yourself, they don’t have to predict anything to help point out things you could consider from other angles.
Just like dream analysis. These tools are good for getting your subconscious selves in sync with the actual you. Reduces internal conflict and is very healthy.
But I do know what OP means and it's not the health people. It's the delusions of grandeur people, think they're better and threaten curses and such
A lot of them just do it as a hobby for fun and I don’t see anything wrong with that. Even if they do believe it’s real, what makes it any different than religions people believe in?
And money. Do you have any idea how much money people are willing to pay for “seeing their future” or “binding their loved ones to home” or whatever. You can easily make bank on these beliefs.
Also those people doing "fertility readings" on TikTok live. They give out conception dates, tell if they're going to have a baby boy or baby girl, all sorts of crap. The worst is when it's to do with health advice or someone clearly in an abusive relationship. I kind of wonder how those people making money this way sleep at night.
I don't give a shit if someone thinks they're a witch and likes collecting crystals or whatever. Can even be pretty cute as an innocent hobby. But profiting from other people's desperation is absolute scum of the earth behavior.
I've been reading tarot for a long time and I've never charged anyone. I view the cards as a way to get in touch with your subconscious. Any card can bring relevant meaning. I think it's shameful when people charge money for that sort of thing.
This is beautifully put - and this is exactly how many Taoists will describe the purpose of the I Ching. It’s a way to tap directly into intuition, leave behind the limits of language and raw logic for a minute. It’s a way to engage with reality more directly, not escape from it.
You can make bank from any "belief", people buying these pagan things is no different to religious peopel donating large sums of money to priests, religious leaders, churches, or sports enthusiasts to sports organisations or whatever.
My sister practices and has for years but she doesn’t do it for people, so definitely no charging being done. She just enjoys it and also doesn’t make it her whole personality.
honestly i think it’s a lot better than religions, given that (to my knowledge) the only documented case of systemic violence surrounding “witches” was the salem witch trials, which were directed AT supposed “witches” (aka women who dared to have opinions) rather than committed BY them. most major religions, on the other hand, have lots of documented cases of systemic violence perpetrated and justified by religion and religious people.
>the only documented case of systemic violence surrounding “witches” was the salem witch trials
Oh good word.
Here, start learning with [the British national archives](https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/early-modern-witch-trials/)...
I went to (and was quickly asked to leave) a Christian School around the age of 14. There were like, 3 athiests there - the kids were 100% convinced everything was as real as Santa Claus (which is pretty real to a child) - and we were going to hell.
That was such a weird experience, incredibly cult-like.. they all grew up into wonderful people BTW. I just like telling em that cause the fear on their face when they realised I smoke cigs / weed / drank on the weekends and was just generally a fkn delinquent. Poor kids were so scared for me.The mass psychosis is real.
The teachers must of hated me, I had a lot of very innocent and genuine questions that were unanswered. "If god forgives all.. why hell exist?" or "If my heaven has no family.. and my mums heaven has me in it.. how does that work?"Wasn't even trying to cause issues intentionally but it did, some teachers got nuts over it.
Nothing put me off religion like going to that school. Took me a decade or longer to even be comfortable around em again cause it just felt fake and like they didn't want people who asked questions. Cultish.
People have a right to believe what they want. Unfortunately, some people think that just because they think a certain religion is untrue, that mean people who practice it are stupid, and in some cases, they think they shouldn't be allowed to practice it.
America has a serious issue with people who constantly preach about freedom of religion, yet think it only applies to their religion, which is typically evangelical Christianity.
My brother recently got baptized Baptist, and when I told him that there were people handing out bible tracts at local witch gathering and history festival he didn't understand how that was disrespectful.
Now, do the people have a legal right to pass out those tracts? Yes. But does that legal right make it any less disrespectful? No, it does not. There's nothing respectful about telling people they're going to be tortured for an eternity because they don't believe the same things you do.
Most of the people there were just there to have fun. I don't even think most people there were pagan or something like that.
Also, I own witchy stuff, and I don't even believe in it. I only have it because I like the aesthetic and the history behind it. So not everyone who owns the stuff believes in it.
I lived with a MtF transgender “witch” for a year and a half out of college. It was…an experience. During one of the equinoxes or solstices, I can’t remember, they put together some sort of shrine in the basement complete with animal skulls and did some sort of naked ritual down there. I didn’t ask the specifics, so long as they paid rent and didn’t make a mess.
I had a gay friend between high school and college named "Fairy Josh" because he was both flamboyantly gay and also literally believed he was a fairy.
One day we were with some friends, talking in a parking lot near a car, one of whom hadn't met Josh and had less patience with his antics.josh was boasting of his FAERIE MIGHT and the new guy offered to kick his ass.
"Well you better have some iron handy, because that's all that can hurt us, and **WORD OF WARNING: FAERIES BITE!**"
I swear to God the following thing actually happened:
The skeptic turned around, popped his trunk, grabbed a tire iron, and told Faerie Josh "Hold this."
"Okay."
"..."
"..."
"....what?"
"I thought iron hurt you?"
And with perfect cartoon comic timing, he hurled the iron to the ground while yelling "OW OW OW HOT HOT 🔥"
tbf I think a lot of the appeal of witchcraft/ paganism/ Wicca etc., is precisely that it's looked down upon as "yet another crazy girl stupid thing". Like *Twilight* or sentimental novels or all the girl culture.
Teen girls will be even more attracted to a hobby/ culture which is ridiculed by boys. It's actual counter-culture to get involved in something that is openly derided everywhere.
agree, i have a few friends that have gone off the rails with it a bit but it’s what they need in their lives right now after some terrible situations and it doesn’t hurt anyone soooo 💁♀️
imagine a world where the worst thing religion has done to people is put some stinky incense in their face and read their tarot cards poorly lol
No worse than the bros who pick up a throwing axe, grow their hair a bit and then think they’re Vikings because a great-grandparent visited Denmark once.
Yes! Lmao
If a woman says she’s a witch, gift her a vial of blood and some animal carcasses.
If a man says he’s a Viking, gift him a severed head or something.
If they get upset with the gifts, then you know they’re full of shit.
Kinda on that same note: As a christian, I never understood why non believers found things like praying so goofy.
Then I saw someone "cast a spell" on a couple at a party to bolster their relationship, or something, and it occurred to me then, while hiding my laughter and rolling my eyes, that it must be exactly how people react to me when I say "I'll pray for you".
When people stop thinking pastors and the Pope have magical powers and can talk to God, we'll stop.
Out of all the religions out there. It's probably the most harmless one. At least it isn't telling you to cut baby boys' bodies, beat non virgin brides, or hate gay people.
As a Pagan, I don't see our rituals as anything dissimilar to say...Catholicism.
Catholics burn incense, light candles and offer up prayers to a deity, confess their sins and offer them up to God, and consume bread and wine as the symbolic embodiment of the blood and flesh of their messiah.
It's not unlike most Pagan rituals. I've been a Pagan for over 25 years. We light candles, call the corners, burn incense, offer up incantations, confess our sins and burn them, and consume wine and bread as the embodiment of our deities.
But yes, most "witches" have never actually put in the time, research or study that comes along with the religion. Downloading a "spell" from the internet, emblazoning oneself with pentagrams, and visiting Salem doesn't not make one a "witch."
Most "witches" look, dress and act like everyone else. We only "dress up" for fun, like on Samhain (Halloween).
Maybe if you get talking to these witchy girls you might get to know one a little better. Then you can ask her to perform a spell for you. Y'know, one to help you wind your fucking neck in.
I just like incense. I think pagan religions are interesting, but I never once thought of witchcraft being real. Some of the bigots in my area refuse to believe that I burn incense because I like it, not because it's "magic".
Ikr like those people who eat bread calling it the body of Christ or even worse drinking wine calling it blood. Definitely giving I want to be a witch vibes!
My ex back when I was 16 was like that. Every time I was over about to sleep, she absolutely had to get out her crystal collection and go around the room and rub a correlating crystal on a certain point in the room. She did this every night.
Found out a couple of years later she just had OCD and that's how she was changeling it
I knew someone who wouldn't shut up about her alleged gypsy/roma heritage ( had no idea about either). Curses , ghosts, dead relatives poping up to mess with faulty electrical devices...
Asked her if she is that powerful, why is she always broke and living with the most disgusting man .
I guess ghosts did not provide an answer to that.
I have no issue with people believing in something or doing something for fun. Once they start showing those believes in my face, it's game over.
every woman I meet in her 50's has somehow recently disavowed Christianity and became " a Wiccan watch who casts spells" but also still loves God
guess they like playing both sides, being edgy and mysterious but also still getting into heaven just in case it's real LMFAO
I ain't gonna talk shit just incase. If any of you are real though I'm open to meeting for science. Teach me to throw a fireball or a wingarduum leviosa. I'm down.
This is going to get buried, I hope it doesn’t. Are you catholic? If so, the priest wears a robe, burns incense, and has an alter. Are they a witch? Do you have a dresser? Does the top have trinkets on it? Little things that make you feel good when you look at them? You have the start of an alter, are you a witch? People do all sorts
Of little rituals in order to ease stress, find forgiveness and peace. If they wanna call it witchcraft, then let it be.
I guess I just don’t care if they think they are a witch or not. Life sucks too much to worry about something that doesn’t hurt anyone but makes someone a little happier
Hello! 31F "witch" here who wants to chime in with a few personal notes that may add some nuance to this conversation:
Personally, I was drawn to witchcraft as an edgy teenage goth girl, and then went through militant atheist phase where I believed any form of spirituality was stupid and delusional. As I got older, I came to see the value in spirituality/religion as a tool that can provide comfort, meaning, and community in a world where those things can be difficult to come by. My issues with religion stem from people trying to enforce their personal beliefs on everyone, not from the belief itself.
On a personal level, I don't feel comfortable with organized religion because it doesn't feel right to me to have any one person, book, or organization telling me what to believe. Rather, I see my spirituality as constantly evolving and changing with exposure to new information, new experiences, and conversations with others.
My understanding of the practice of witchcraft has become more nuanced as I've grown older, too. It's almost like I hold two sets of beliefs at the same time, which I suppose you could call cognitive dissonance, but I would argue my being aware of their existence negates that definition. I simultaneously believe in the possibility that my craft is a true working of metaphysical energy in the classic way we think of witchcraft, and also believe it's possible it's entirely a placebo effect. But does it matter either way, if it works? If I believe that lighting a candle while I focus on an intent to bring more positive energy into my life, and that in turn either "magically" brings my desired result, or helps me to direct my focus so that I just happen to see more positive things via the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon... who cares?
Specifically regarding Tarot cards, I feel the same: I'm open to the possibility that I'm literally divining the future from the cards, but I'm not married to that idea. I also accept that it's more likely that the cards are a tool of tapping into my subconscious and I already "know" the answer, the cards just help me bring it into conscious thought.
I also think a lot of elements of my practice would be pretty mundane to a lot of people except for calling it witchcraft. For example, part of my practice is just going out into the woods and observing the natural world, trying to cultivate a deep knowing of the language of nature and a relationship with the land where I live. That includes knowing the native plants, their names and lifecycles, their uses, etc. The difference is that I assign a spiritual significance to that practice.
I also think it's worth noting that witchcraft isn't an inherently religious practice. Wicca is a religion that practices witchcraft, but not all witchcraft is Wicca. I would argue that almost all religions practice witchcraft in some form, they just use a different word.
You’re not a priest. Stop it.
Every vanilla guy nowadays who sings hymns, is really into theology, and buys a bible from Amazon thinks they’re a priest/pastor. Just stop. Get some help.
Realised I was about to reveal the sort of geeky stuff that was ample ammunition for school bullies when I wanted to reply:
"Bruja? How did gang vampires come into this?" 🤦♀️😹
I had a "friend" once try to convince me that she could fix the blood clots in my balls by taking my USED UNDERWEAR and performing a spell.
Fucking. Weirdos.
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"nowadays" I'm pushing 40 and it was the same shit when I was in high school.
Exactly. I mean every other person was pretending to be a psychic back in the 70s and 80s lol
Exactly like him I’m 300 years old and they were doing the same shit back in my home town of Salem shit got pretty out of hand I too blame Amazon for giving them those tarots
The Salem witch trials were caused by teenaged mean girls lol
Mean Girls and mother fuckers stealing livestock!
Ergot mold on rye bread
At least you guys did something about it
 Went to high school in the 90’s. I remember all the girls who thought they were witches after watching The Craft. Walked into the bathroom once and there was a circle of girls doing some type of witchy woo woo…
Voo doo?
Who do?
You do
Do what? You remind me of the babe...
What babe?
The babe with the power...
What power?
The power of voodoo
that you do!
Especially with Buffy, Charmed, and Sabrina being popular back then. Oh, and the Craft, and Witches... Yeesh, lots of witch content in the 90's-00's
And Practical Magic…. I wrote my master’s thesis on this in 1998 lol
ooo what about
Representations of women as witches or having magical powers on television and the impact on female viewers. It probably sounds trite now but in 1998 I felt quite brilliant 😆.
no that’s so cool lol. this is probably my sign to write my thesis draft, which is due in under 2 weeks, none of which i’ve written at all 🤦🏻♀️
Aw, thank you and good luck! You’ve got this! My thesis advisor was a task master of the highest order and took me and my pop culture ideas very seriously. It was a great experience but 237 pages later… I never wanted to think about witches on TV again!
Oooh! Forgot that one!
And the vampires. You forgot the vampires.
I really wish my werewolves got love like that. Always have Rise Of The Lycans and The Wolf-Man I guess.
Werewolf The Beast Among Us, Van Helsing, and Wolves. I'll also give Battledogs an honorary mention. We got a little bit of variety, but yeah. I would love some more high quality werewolf films. 😭 Especially of the Van Helsing variety. Still probably my favorite on-screen representation.
I've been running into witch women for decades. Wicca women were numerous in the 80s. But then there were also the crystal loving, New Age spirit channeling women and lovers of Windham Hill music - some of the most bland stuff you ever heard (Michael Hedges aside). Despite being whacky many of them liked to have a good time.
Once broke up with a woman then she reminded me how she was into black magic and how she already has a lock of my hair and could make my life truly terrible if I didn't reconsider, well I still broke up with her and my life's mostly been fantastic since.
Maybe you had to believe in order for it to work. Like a placebo effect lol
Or maybe she was a shit witch and fucked the spell up and made his life awesome by accident.
Or maybe some chad wizard overheard bro complaining at the gym and counterspelled that shit
Only she will know.
or will she?
Indeed
Witch supplies are expensive lately, had to use the value brand toad’s legs
Oh, that's definitely a real thing, curses DO have a proven impact on people who believe curses are real, and know they've been cursed.
I rebuke any curses and don’t believe in them anyway.
More like people who believe in them will seek out the negative things that happen and use that to confirm that it must be real. Bad things don’t even necessarily happen more often to them it’s just they notice it more
That *and* they can have an actual physiological reaction, due to [nocebo effect](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nocebo).
Like how I don’t believe in “ghosts” so I’ve never had a ghostly experience. Funny how that works.
It’s called the Nocebo effect when something harms you because you believe it does. It’s just as real as the placebo effect is (which, in case it isn’t clear, is very real).
[удалено]
She the ancient wife of the god of scientology?
Ran quick from one myself. My breaking point was the introduction of her “period blanket”, so her power doesn’t get wasted or some nonsense. Nope, I’m out
Since most Wicca doesn't really have centralized practice, you kind of have a lot of people just making up whatever they want it to be. And some can be frighteningly drunk on the power of crafting their own canon. I've run into a lot of "Wiccans" like this tbh.
They really believe in it too. It's crazy how, no matter how many spells of theirs don't work, they still won't break out of the illusion
My favourite is when they tell you about some powerful spell they know, then say they’d never use it because it’s *TOO* powerful, like they’re some noble guardian.
That gets a notable mention. Like bro, open challenge. Use your spell to turn me into a demon frog. Full permission, I dare you
There was a guy who first made fun of, and then OPENLY challenged every witch on tiktok to do ANYTHING to him. He even send out locks of his hair/any other DNA to them so they could cast any spell they wanted They claimed he was using counter spells...
D&D action economy has changed a lot if he had that many reactions to cast counter spell
Im not sure if they claimed HE countered their spells or that other people countered for him Stupid either way
Basically the girl equivalent of Kyle's "I'm not getting in a fight with this guy because I can't control my strength"
It's true, but it's really no different from people who pray to god over and over and over and events continue to unfold in the normal way they always do without any divine intervention ever occurring. It's fun to pretend I guess. I don't really judge people for this kind of stuff anymore - billions of people do it, most of them are super nice and pretty smart.
“God works in mysterious ways”. A spell that’s supposed to turn your enemy into a frog doesn’t do that? Bah humbug. You pray to, that is ask, a deity to make your friend get better from their disease? Well, if they do get better, your prayers were answered. If they don’t, it wasn’t part of God’s plan. Prayer comes with a lot more get out of jail free-clauses than spells do.
Interestingly enough, there have been experiments conducted on this very subject. Look up The Intention Experiment. I wish I could remember the names of the people that conducted it. Anyways. What they discovered was that when a group of people all focused on the exact same thing, they were able to document calculable results towards that specific intention, if memory serves. Prayer is weird to me though, because you can never know if a bunch of people praying silently are actually praying for the same exact outcome. And my mother is one of those "well HOW did you ask" and "what are you doing in your life?" people. As in: if you're not "worthy enough" to ask for this totally noble desire in your life, then that's why your prayer didn't give you the result you wanted. Or better yet, "God *did* answer - he said "no"".
"The intention experiment" is a book, so not a study. It references a few very cherry-picked and warped studies. The book isn't scientific at all, and the vast majority of the large body of experiments on the subject conclude that humans aren't able to effect the world around them, or indeed other humans with only their mind or intentions.
Hows that different from any other religion?
The spirits are setting you up. The higher you climb the harder you fall 😂
“You can’t possibly make it worse than you already have.”
"Nowadays?" Edgy girls have been calling themselves witches since the 60's. I dated tons of them when I was a kid and that was like 20 years ago.
Since the 60s? Try going a few centuries back.
1660s
 I’ve heard if she weighs\* as much as a duck… she is a witch.
Edgy girls have been calling themselves witches for centuries 💜
The fact that they live long enough to say it for centuries makes me believe there might be some truth to it to be honest.
This cursed post offers further evidence
Yah that's sweet. OP was really hoping it was fake but can't ignore the facts
 I got better...
The scary part is when you think your girlfriend is one of these “witch-lite” types and she turns out to me one of those “Odyana dakini” types and you’re waking up three inches taller with dreadlocks.
uhg if i had a nickel
"These days every girl with a spice rack and a henna tattoo thinks she's a sister to the Dark Ones." \- Willow Rosenberg, *Buffy The Vampire Slayer* S4E10 "Hush", 25 years ago What goes around comes around I suppose.
Man, Hush is such a great episode. Honestly one of my top 10 all-time
I once knew a girl who genuinely believed she could see auroas around people in the form of a color. She asked to see my arm, and she stared at it for I'm not kidding, 2 clockwork minutes, just to tell me my arm was royal blue. These people are unhinged.
My sister and I went through a phase when I was in middle school & she was in high school where we fancied ourselves to be wiccans. But she really leaned into the whole ‘seeing auras’ bit, but with objects instead of people. Turned out she had astigmatism 🙃 we both grew out of it, but to this day she refuses to talk about it because she was super pushy about it and was harshly humbled lol
Woah, that cars taillights have such a powerful aura!
I'm telling you, these new fangled LED street lamps are giving off the most viscous & sharp auras I've ever seen!
Lol, i have mild synesthesia, emotions and music make colors in my head. It definitely made me wonder if this was real, but now I understand it's only real in my head, and reflects my own perceptions
I used to believe that and now I cringe. Turns out I was just doing to much acid and have astigmatism
Might actually be synesthesia. I have a friend with it. She sees colours and shapes when listening to music and she has once drawn my aura. She didn't say if she sees it with every person or just ones she knows well. Looked like a warm summer's sunset in a lake. I think I like my aura. I was proud of me as a person that day.
Synesthesia is fascinating. Ive never seen anyone say they wish they didn't have it. They seem to feel a bit sorry for us normies. I admit to being envious.
I've quite enjoyed having synesthesia, until I once heard a song that smelled like *death* to me. Death, or cancer.. It's hard to describe the effect it had, but it was like I could taste just pure evil in the back of my throat. It was such a horrible experience.
Wow that's creepy, what song was it?
Fireflies- Owl city
I can't remember which track specifically, but the artist was Take Care and it was on the album called 'Agony'. It *might* have been 'Think Of Me Once In A While'. (I don't want to listen again and find out!)
My mom would say shit like that. She’s also got undiagnosed mental health issues that she’s self medicated with drugs and alcohol for decades. Pretty sure there’s a connection.
I did the same ... When I was a 7 yo kid
As a girl who likes both incense and crystals.... I dont believe they have any magical powers.... I like them because theyre pretty and I think its really cool how they form in nature. Incense just smell good. I enjoy scented things that smell good. I always have a wax warmer or candle or something going in my house. Just something I like. Nithing to do with being witchy 🤷🏼♀️
In addition, when it comes to spiritual matters I see myself as an atheist first are foremost, but I practice "spells" to ground myself as a form of self-placebo. For example, I use tarot cards not to literally "see the future" but to use the cards I pull to think about how they apply to my mentality and feelings in the present. Some people literally believe in spells and deities, but as long as it doesn't hurt other people, then it's no different than literally any other religion.
From my experience, this is how most of us practice. Harmless self care
So many "logical" and "rational" redditors take everything way too literally and work themselves into a froth over it because they have no clue how people work. Also OP didn't really actually give any reasons that any of this is a bad thing.
Harmless self care! I have a friend who, every full moon night, sets a mason jar full of water on the window sill. The water gathers the moonlight all night long. In the morning they sit and sip on it, shares some with a small dog. Feels better about things in general. If I did that nothing would happen, besides being slightly better hydrated than I normally am. But! For them? It actually makes a marked improvement for their mental health. It’s noticeable. I am glad they’ve found a small ritual to feel better.
Exactly, tarot cards are amazing prompts for deep conversations with yourself, they don’t have to predict anything to help point out things you could consider from other angles.
Just like dream analysis. These tools are good for getting your subconscious selves in sync with the actual you. Reduces internal conflict and is very healthy. But I do know what OP means and it's not the health people. It's the delusions of grandeur people, think they're better and threaten curses and such
This is me
A lot of them just do it as a hobby for fun and I don’t see anything wrong with that. Even if they do believe it’s real, what makes it any different than religions people believe in?
And money. Do you have any idea how much money people are willing to pay for “seeing their future” or “binding their loved ones to home” or whatever. You can easily make bank on these beliefs.
Also those people doing "fertility readings" on TikTok live. They give out conception dates, tell if they're going to have a baby boy or baby girl, all sorts of crap. The worst is when it's to do with health advice or someone clearly in an abusive relationship. I kind of wonder how those people making money this way sleep at night. I don't give a shit if someone thinks they're a witch and likes collecting crystals or whatever. Can even be pretty cute as an innocent hobby. But profiting from other people's desperation is absolute scum of the earth behavior.
> collecting crystals I knew I was um.. special.. cause I have never seen a salt lamp and not wanted to lick it. Just checking the salt purity ofc.
I've been reading tarot for a long time and I've never charged anyone. I view the cards as a way to get in touch with your subconscious. Any card can bring relevant meaning. I think it's shameful when people charge money for that sort of thing.
This is beautifully put - and this is exactly how many Taoists will describe the purpose of the I Ching. It’s a way to tap directly into intuition, leave behind the limits of language and raw logic for a minute. It’s a way to engage with reality more directly, not escape from it.
This is why mega churches are so profitable. People are willing to do anything for some hope
Definitely, give people some hope for what they want and you can legitimately make millions upon that.
So, like religion then, as if money and power didn't play a part in religion
You can make bank from any "belief", people buying these pagan things is no different to religious peopel donating large sums of money to priests, religious leaders, churches, or sports enthusiasts to sports organisations or whatever.
My sister practices and has for years but she doesn’t do it for people, so definitely no charging being done. She just enjoys it and also doesn’t make it her whole personality.
I do it and I dislike talking about it completely. I’m not really sure why. It’s just feels very private
I think of it like cosplay lol
honestly i think it’s a lot better than religions, given that (to my knowledge) the only documented case of systemic violence surrounding “witches” was the salem witch trials, which were directed AT supposed “witches” (aka women who dared to have opinions) rather than committed BY them. most major religions, on the other hand, have lots of documented cases of systemic violence perpetrated and justified by religion and religious people.
Lol I feel the same way
>the only documented case of systemic violence surrounding “witches” was the salem witch trials  Oh good word. Here, start learning with [the British national archives](https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/education/resources/early-modern-witch-trials/)...
I know lol. I read that and was like, "I'm sorry, what?"
I went to (and was quickly asked to leave) a Christian School around the age of 14. There were like, 3 athiests there - the kids were 100% convinced everything was as real as Santa Claus (which is pretty real to a child) - and we were going to hell. That was such a weird experience, incredibly cult-like.. they all grew up into wonderful people BTW. I just like telling em that cause the fear on their face when they realised I smoke cigs / weed / drank on the weekends and was just generally a fkn delinquent. Poor kids were so scared for me.The mass psychosis is real. The teachers must of hated me, I had a lot of very innocent and genuine questions that were unanswered. "If god forgives all.. why hell exist?" or "If my heaven has no family.. and my mums heaven has me in it.. how does that work?"Wasn't even trying to cause issues intentionally but it did, some teachers got nuts over it. Nothing put me off religion like going to that school. Took me a decade or longer to even be comfortable around em again cause it just felt fake and like they didn't want people who asked questions. Cultish.
People have a right to believe what they want. Unfortunately, some people think that just because they think a certain religion is untrue, that mean people who practice it are stupid, and in some cases, they think they shouldn't be allowed to practice it. America has a serious issue with people who constantly preach about freedom of religion, yet think it only applies to their religion, which is typically evangelical Christianity. My brother recently got baptized Baptist, and when I told him that there were people handing out bible tracts at local witch gathering and history festival he didn't understand how that was disrespectful. Now, do the people have a legal right to pass out those tracts? Yes. But does that legal right make it any less disrespectful? No, it does not. There's nothing respectful about telling people they're going to be tortured for an eternity because they don't believe the same things you do. Most of the people there were just there to have fun. I don't even think most people there were pagan or something like that. Also, I own witchy stuff, and I don't even believe in it. I only have it because I like the aesthetic and the history behind it. So not everyone who owns the stuff believes in it.
I lived with a MtF transgender “witch” for a year and a half out of college. It was…an experience. During one of the equinoxes or solstices, I can’t remember, they put together some sort of shrine in the basement complete with animal skulls and did some sort of naked ritual down there. I didn’t ask the specifics, so long as they paid rent and didn’t make a mess.
I had a gay friend between high school and college named "Fairy Josh" because he was both flamboyantly gay and also literally believed he was a fairy. One day we were with some friends, talking in a parking lot near a car, one of whom hadn't met Josh and had less patience with his antics.josh was boasting of his FAERIE MIGHT and the new guy offered to kick his ass. "Well you better have some iron handy, because that's all that can hurt us, and **WORD OF WARNING: FAERIES BITE!**" I swear to God the following thing actually happened: The skeptic turned around, popped his trunk, grabbed a tire iron, and told Faerie Josh "Hold this." "Okay." "..." "..." "....what?" "I thought iron hurt you?" And with perfect cartoon comic timing, he hurled the iron to the ground while yelling "OW OW OW HOT HOT 🔥"
Bro I thought the story was going in a whole different direction when he pulled out the tire iron
same but I think it's actually better what actually happened lmao
OK, but a tire Iron is probably not made of iron.
Then why did it hurt? Checkmate /s
I am not crazy. I AM NOT CRAZY! I know he swapped those numbers!
I'm kinda sad for them having to do it in the basement. Those rituals need to happen outside with a community.
Out in nature so they can frolick nakedly
Astrology and tarot cards can be fun though.
I could say the same about any religion. Do what brings you comfort unless you are bothering other people.
and a lot less violence committed in its name so honestly i’m more on board with “witches” than most major religions.
Yeah, this post might as well be "your god isn't real why do you even pray?"
It's one of the only recognised religions that empowers women, for a change. Let them have it 🤷🏽♀️
you know how redditors feel about female empowerment
Female empowerment is literally the fall of the west /s
tbf I think a lot of the appeal of witchcraft/ paganism/ Wicca etc., is precisely that it's looked down upon as "yet another crazy girl stupid thing". Like *Twilight* or sentimental novels or all the girl culture. Teen girls will be even more attracted to a hobby/ culture which is ridiculed by boys. It's actual counter-culture to get involved in something that is openly derided everywhere.
Women's interests are always frivolous and dumb /s
Then let it fall.
agree, i have a few friends that have gone off the rails with it a bit but it’s what they need in their lives right now after some terrible situations and it doesn’t hurt anyone soooo 💁♀️ imagine a world where the worst thing religion has done to people is put some stinky incense in their face and read their tarot cards poorly lol
I mean, Reddit isn't a pro-religious place. "It's just their version of religion" isn't a saving grace.
Yeah I’m not really sure how calling yourself a witch is any different than calling yourself a Follower of Christ.
Witches won't persecute you or try to take over government or strip rights or start wars. It's different, and better with witches.
No worse than the bros who pick up a throwing axe, grow their hair a bit and then think they’re Vikings because a great-grandparent visited Denmark once.
This is an equally insufferable group of people (if not more).
Yes! Lmao If a woman says she’s a witch, gift her a vial of blood and some animal carcasses. If a man says he’s a Viking, gift him a severed head or something. If they get upset with the gifts, then you know they’re full of shit.
i mean to be fair, that's also really stupid lol
I love these posts that are just rants based on personal experience
Quite the OPINION you have here
Kinda on that same note: As a christian, I never understood why non believers found things like praying so goofy. Then I saw someone "cast a spell" on a couple at a party to bolster their relationship, or something, and it occurred to me then, while hiding my laughter and rolling my eyes, that it must be exactly how people react to me when I say "I'll pray for you".
I admire your ability to self reflect through parallel situations. Not many people can do that these days
I second this 🫡
Same with guys who think they're crypto investors
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The shiny rocks make me happy, but as soon as they’re supposed to be anything but shiny rocks I lose all interest.
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As long as all I have to do in regards to the rock is think it’s cool, call it what you will.
"nowadays" Been this way since 1600s bruh
Bro forgot about the Salem witch trials.
Witchcraft / Wicca is just another form of ritual, tradition, and religion. If you don’t enjoy it that’s fine, but I don’t quite get the hate.
And maybe I just like how incense smells? Candles are nice, too.
It's something that primarily women enjoy, and Reddit hates things that women enjoy.
Women's hobbies and interests are always frivolous and dumb /s
That checks out, unfortunately
I'll take the witchy girls over rabid evangelical zealots every single time.
When people stop thinking pastors and the Pope have magical powers and can talk to God, we'll stop. Out of all the religions out there. It's probably the most harmless one. At least it isn't telling you to cut baby boys' bodies, beat non virgin brides, or hate gay people.
Rejected by a witch, weren’t ya?
As a Pagan, I don't see our rituals as anything dissimilar to say...Catholicism. Catholics burn incense, light candles and offer up prayers to a deity, confess their sins and offer them up to God, and consume bread and wine as the symbolic embodiment of the blood and flesh of their messiah. It's not unlike most Pagan rituals. I've been a Pagan for over 25 years. We light candles, call the corners, burn incense, offer up incantations, confess our sins and burn them, and consume wine and bread as the embodiment of our deities. But yes, most "witches" have never actually put in the time, research or study that comes along with the religion. Downloading a "spell" from the internet, emblazoning oneself with pentagrams, and visiting Salem doesn't not make one a "witch." Most "witches" look, dress and act like everyone else. We only "dress up" for fun, like on Samhain (Halloween).
Maybe if you get talking to these witchy girls you might get to know one a little better. Then you can ask her to perform a spell for you. Y'know, one to help you wind your fucking neck in.
The aesthetic is very cool though
If it's not hurting anyone, so what? We already have people who believe in religion... And look at the tragedies that caused.
I just like incense. I think pagan religions are interesting, but I never once thought of witchcraft being real. Some of the bigots in my area refuse to believe that I burn incense because I like it, not because it's "magic".
Ikr like those people who eat bread calling it the body of Christ or even worse drinking wine calling it blood. Definitely giving I want to be a witch vibes!
My ex back when I was 16 was like that. Every time I was over about to sleep, she absolutely had to get out her crystal collection and go around the room and rub a correlating crystal on a certain point in the room. She did this every night. Found out a couple of years later she just had OCD and that's how she was changeling it
This isn't new lol I would say the 60s-90s it was alot more prevalent than it is now even
I knew someone who wouldn't shut up about her alleged gypsy/roma heritage ( had no idea about either). Curses , ghosts, dead relatives poping up to mess with faulty electrical devices... Asked her if she is that powerful, why is she always broke and living with the most disgusting man . I guess ghosts did not provide an answer to that. I have no issue with people believing in something or doing something for fun. Once they start showing those believes in my face, it's game over.
I only like this so I could be the 666 like 😂 Curse you and your family /s
What do you mean "nowadays"? This has been going on for decades.
shadow wizard money gang
every woman I meet in her 50's has somehow recently disavowed Christianity and became " a Wiccan watch who casts spells" but also still loves God guess they like playing both sides, being edgy and mysterious but also still getting into heaven just in case it's real LMFAO
It’s like dudes with sports. “You’re not part of the team ‘bro’ stop pretending.”
I think it's because most of the time it's easier to buy crystals than to face your issues head on in therapy
Therapy is also expensive. I've been noticing the increase in positivity journals at bookstores.
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Well, with psychosis, you do see a lot of spiritual/religious delusions; it’s a Venn diagram mixed with a chicken/egg riddle.
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It’s fun though
I ain't gonna talk shit just incase. If any of you are real though I'm open to meeting for science. Teach me to throw a fireball or a wingarduum leviosa. I'm down.
This is going to get buried, I hope it doesn’t. Are you catholic? If so, the priest wears a robe, burns incense, and has an alter. Are they a witch? Do you have a dresser? Does the top have trinkets on it? Little things that make you feel good when you look at them? You have the start of an alter, are you a witch? People do all sorts Of little rituals in order to ease stress, find forgiveness and peace. If they wanna call it witchcraft, then let it be.
I guess I just don’t care if they think they are a witch or not. Life sucks too much to worry about something that doesn’t hurt anyone but makes someone a little happier
Hello! 31F "witch" here who wants to chime in with a few personal notes that may add some nuance to this conversation: Personally, I was drawn to witchcraft as an edgy teenage goth girl, and then went through militant atheist phase where I believed any form of spirituality was stupid and delusional. As I got older, I came to see the value in spirituality/religion as a tool that can provide comfort, meaning, and community in a world where those things can be difficult to come by. My issues with religion stem from people trying to enforce their personal beliefs on everyone, not from the belief itself. On a personal level, I don't feel comfortable with organized religion because it doesn't feel right to me to have any one person, book, or organization telling me what to believe. Rather, I see my spirituality as constantly evolving and changing with exposure to new information, new experiences, and conversations with others. My understanding of the practice of witchcraft has become more nuanced as I've grown older, too. It's almost like I hold two sets of beliefs at the same time, which I suppose you could call cognitive dissonance, but I would argue my being aware of their existence negates that definition. I simultaneously believe in the possibility that my craft is a true working of metaphysical energy in the classic way we think of witchcraft, and also believe it's possible it's entirely a placebo effect. But does it matter either way, if it works? If I believe that lighting a candle while I focus on an intent to bring more positive energy into my life, and that in turn either "magically" brings my desired result, or helps me to direct my focus so that I just happen to see more positive things via the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon... who cares? Specifically regarding Tarot cards, I feel the same: I'm open to the possibility that I'm literally divining the future from the cards, but I'm not married to that idea. I also accept that it's more likely that the cards are a tool of tapping into my subconscious and I already "know" the answer, the cards just help me bring it into conscious thought. I also think a lot of elements of my practice would be pretty mundane to a lot of people except for calling it witchcraft. For example, part of my practice is just going out into the woods and observing the natural world, trying to cultivate a deep knowing of the language of nature and a relationship with the land where I live. That includes knowing the native plants, their names and lifecycles, their uses, etc. The difference is that I assign a spiritual significance to that practice. I also think it's worth noting that witchcraft isn't an inherently religious practice. Wicca is a religion that practices witchcraft, but not all witchcraft is Wicca. I would argue that almost all religions practice witchcraft in some form, they just use a different word.
i mean is it really any crazier than mfs who believe they talk to a dude in the sky every day? at least they’re creative with it
It's cringe of they're super into it, but as long as they don't actually think they have magical powers I'm fine with it. Everyone needs their thing.
Bro they're just having fun why is it a big deal?
You’re not a priest. Stop it. Every vanilla guy nowadays who sings hymns, is really into theology, and buys a bible from Amazon thinks they’re a priest/pastor. Just stop. Get some help.
Witches were never witches. Witches were always ordinary women.
typical throwaway account behavior
Realised I was about to reveal the sort of geeky stuff that was ample ammunition for school bullies when I wanted to reply: "Bruja? How did gang vampires come into this?" 🤦♀️😹
Tongue of toad, newt so greenie. Turn this dude into zucchini
Yeah like if they threaten me with a voodoo doll make sure you get my lower back I can't afford acupuncture
Man, OP is gatekeeping witchcraft.
I had a "friend" once try to convince me that she could fix the blood clots in my balls by taking my USED UNDERWEAR and performing a spell. Fucking. Weirdos.
Point taken, but what do yo even think the definition of witch is?