Walking the Hedge

The Witchy/Pagan meme that newbies probably wouldn’t be able to do! *evil laugh here*

Please describe briefly your Path:

Hedgewitch. Shamanic, Nature and animal oriented, some Hearth Craft as well.  My practice has a weird flow to it, a push and pull; I focus more on different things at different times. Celtic, some interest in Anglo-Saxon as well.

Please describe briefly how you practice it:

Lots of little things, such as simple around-the-house-magick, a fair amount of spirit work. Ancestors worship, working with the Land, devotional work with my god. Seasonal rites (now often with my ritual group). Working with animals in one form or another. Meditation, trance and shamanic work, mostly for my own self though as I don’t feel quite advanced enough to offer my services to others. Divination. Observation. Making incense and such. Always learning.

When did you first commit to your Path?

In my mid teens and again in my early twenties.

How is your practice different now than it was then?

So many ways! I started as a silly young solitary Wiccan. My practice is much more slow and careful in some cases and much more bold and brazen in others. I know enough to know how much I don’t know, and to have an idea of what I want to learn, and what I just don’t have enough years in a single lifetime to learn. My practice is much more incorporated into my daily life now. It is less all-about-me, yet it is also much more introspective. Much more practical and down to earth, more mature in general. Hitting the big challenges now, hacking my way through the underbrush rather than following the trails blazed by other people and the books they have written. Much more focused and I have real goals now.

Is your practice different today than how you thought it would be back then?

Oh yes. When I started the plan was to grow up to be some awesome Wiccan High Priestess and have a Coven who loved me! hahahaha

Does your Path and core belief system differ now than how it was when you first started?

In many ways yes, gone is the Wiccan rede and many other beliefs I gained from Wicca. No more utilitarianism! I am much less black and white in many ways, more conservative in some ways and more rebellious in others. My world view is very different. Also my views on things like the otherworld, spirits, gods and magick has changed as well. None of this “I used such and such god for my spell” stuff anymore! I realise both how small I am in the grand scheme of things, but at the same time how powerful I can be when focused and working hard enough.

What is your heritage and how does this inform your Path?

I am Scottish (Fergusson) on my mother’s side and English on my father’s. I am first generation born Canadian on my father’s side but my mother’s side has been Canadian since the Highland Clearances. This informs my Path a great deal as I practice a mostly Celtic and somewhat Anglo-Saxon inspired Paganism. I also tend to look to English, Scottish and Canadian folk lore, mythology and such for ideas and inspiration in my Witchcraft as well.

What are your main influences for your Path?

Celtic, Canadian and Anglo-Saxon lore. Farm traditions. The Land itself. Gut instinct. Dogs and horses (and cats!) Historical Paganism and Witchcraft, modern Paganism and Witchcraft. Hedgerows, trees and shrubbery. Mud. Large bodies of water. Mountains. The hearth. Bushcraft and wilderness survival. Herbalism. Animal husbandry. Arts & crafts.

Which do you do more: practice or research?

It depends, some years it seems I do more of one than the other for a time, then the pendulum swings back again.

Do you feel that one is more important than the other?

Each informs the others. Think of venn diagrams.

What values and ethics are important on your Path and in your practice?

I am not a fan of requirements, so these are just the things that matter to ME. Reverence and respect for Nature and the Land. Respect for spirits and ancestors.  Reverence and respect for the gods. Know thyself, as a never ending adventure. A love of knowledge but not worship of it. Fluidity. Pluralism. Seeing dark and light not as two opposites but as parts of a whole, paying attention to the grey areas. Celebration of life and death and that that crazy shit in between. The acknowledgement that the multiverse and all of everything is bigger and vaster than I could possibly ever even begin to comprehend. Honesty, loyalty, trust, kith & kin, justice. Dancing in the agony and ecstasy of living. The importance of sharing knowledge and not hoarding it.

What sort of cycles do you feel your practice goes through?

First there’s the more research vs more practice cycle. Then there’s the lots of practice vs not very much practice cycle. There’s also a more focused on the Land and Nature vs not so much cycle. Solitary vs community. Inner work vs application of. It goes on and on. This is why no one can accurately judge another person’s Path or practice, because of all the cycles.

What is one of the greatest obstacles or struggles you have had to over come?

The need to do it right (especially the first time)

How do you see yourself practicing in ten years?

I am not sure. Hopefully much more experienced, more specialized. Able to contribute more to the community. A better healer and shamanic practitioner. Write a book or two. Hopefully deeply connected to a plot of land that is my own, one that I can put down roots in.

How do you incorporate your practice into your life?

In many ways! What I read, what documentaries I watch. In my choices for schooling and work (can I learn something from this?) In how I cook and even shop. Working with house spirits a lot. An on going conversation with the spirits and various plant life in my neighbourhood. Watching the land, the rivers, and the sky. Keeping a certain awareness going. Making regular offerings. Superstitions, geas, and keeping traditions. Baths and showers are more than just baths and showers. Sweeping the floor or washing the walls is more than just … well you get the idea.

Has walking your Path changed you as a person?

YES! Uh, I think so!

Do you consider yourself to be a priest/ess? How so?

With a small “p” … I am a priestess of Cernunnos and the priestess of my home and a priestess within my hedge Group. But I am not a capitol “P” Priestess, I don’t do Clergy work (such as training, public rituals, pastoral work etc etc)

A witch? How so?

Yup. Hedgewitch and a little bit of hearth-y stuff too. I work the magicks, I cross the Hedge, I do a wee bit of healing, divination and augury, and I have relationships with spirits and gods.

A shaman? How so?

Yup. See above.

Which matters more: getting the vocabulary right or the actual practice of what we are trying to define?

I hate word based power games. So long as we can understand each other well enough to have a conversation lets just get on with actually doing the shit.

One of the most profound things anyone ever said to you was:

Acceptance of what is, is essential to the discovery of Truth.

A defining moment on your Path was:

Agreeing to a contract with a god who likes to use skulls for his head sometimes.

Have you ever taken a “leap of faith”?

See above

Please tell us something stupid, reckless or embarrassing you did once in your practice:

Almost setting the house on fire a few times (be careful where you leave candles burning!)

What is the most frustrating thing about your Path?

Finding people who “get it” and who have “been there” without all the stupid ego stroking and dick measuring.

Have you ever been frightened?

Oh yes.

Can you perform ritual without a script?

Yeah!

Have you ever preformed spontaneous magick/spellcraft?

Usually

What are you still exploring or experimenting with?

See the last two above. Also group work. Also trying out different methods of poking holes in the Veil *poke poke poke*

What (or whom) are you the most committed to in your practice and on your Path?

The dude with the antlers, the Land, critters.

Ritual tools are …

Useful and fun to make.

Magickal tools are …

Also useful and fun to make.

The one thing you can’t do without is:

Anything that makes a racket (lately this is my tambourine)

Seeking personal power is …

For ceremonial magicians *snerk*  … something that I get poked and prodded to do by my spirits.

Politics and you Path are …

Only slightly related

One thing you wish people would understand about your Path and/or practice is:

Its good to have a clear definition of what you do and all, but really, lets just stop with the whole “I’m a  real Hedgewitch and you’re not” stupidity please.

Do you teach?

Eh, not really, though I’ve tried my hand at it. I do share what I know. I feel there’s a difference one is guiding someone, the other is “Look this is what I did and this is how it worked or failed, try yourself and let me know your results, thanks!”

What do you feel is the role of clergy in modern Paganism and Heathenism?

Public and community services; teaching leading, organizing, pastoral care, counselling.

When the Veil (or Hedge!) is thin, how does that feel to you?

Prickly, dizzy, a little out of my head, lighter and heavier at the same time, wooosh!

What entities do you work with most? (ancestors, gods, fae etc)

Ancestors, spirits of the Land and Nature, certain gods, my own (familiar) spirits, the house spirits who live with me.

What is your relationship with the Land?

Complicated.

The most important aspect of ritual is:

Actually having it work, not assuming it is.

The main purpose of ritual is:

YO! GODS! Over here … I’ve got cookies!

What is the purpose of divination/dowsing (or whichever for of augury you use)?

Spirit communication.

What was the most difficult book you ever read? (Either difficult to understand or hard to face what it said or both)

Umm, probably one of Bren’s philosophy books.

What book do you recommend the most to others?

The Joy of Cooking. It depends on the person and the subject.

What is you favourite podcast (if any) and favourite blog (other than your own)?

Favourite podcast is Elementals casting because of the interviews. Favourite blog is Tiger Lily Cottage because she’s my friend!

If you could impart only one last piece of wisdom or knowledge, or share one experience with the world at large, what would it be?

Oh, just fucking do it already!

Is there an additional question you would like to see here? What is it? (please also answer)

Since I made this thing, I’ll pass. But I am very curios to see if anyone else does this!

Please finish this meme with a picture, image or photograph of some sort:

Okay.

Related posts:

1. Not
2. Heart on Sleeve
3. Horned God Devotional