Today I want to talk about a branch of witchcraft I knew virtually nothing about before my recent move to the seaside, and also an exciting project launched by my favourite Pagan author and teacher, Starhawk.
Sea witchcraft
I've been meaning to write about this fascinating topic since I moved from a quiet village in Suffolk to the bustling Swansea seafront just over a month ago. From the first time I stepped out onto the beach during the heatwave at the end of September (which has since rapidly subsided into the grey, cold, wetness that we were expecting), I knew I'd come to the right place for University. Sea witchery isn't a popular or well publicised path, but after a quick walk around the seafront I realised what a huge potential there was for it in my practice.
In days gone by, witches who lived by the sea were called upon by sailors to conjure favourable winds for safe passage over the oceans; they were attuned to the power of water and specialised in controlling the weather. Nowadays sea witches tend to be solitaries who use all types of water and weather magick as a central feature in their practice. Everything from the weather, the tides, water in its different forms, the properties of differently shaped shells, and different types of seaweed etc. can be used in sea witchcraft. The sea witches' tools are made as much as possible from things that can be found on the beach; work is in progress at the moment on a driftwood wand with a seaweed handle (rather than leather or suede etc) and a long shell point (rather than a crystal), a candle made from a bowl-shaped shell, beach runes painted on small shells or stones, a dreamcatcher made from seaweed, driftwood and seagull feathers...the possibilities go on. Given that I couldn't do this topic justice with my ramblings here in my blog, I offer you the most extensive and comprehensive website I've found on the subject, which makes great reading for any witch, particularly those living by the sea....
seawitch.org
In the news
"Where there's fear, there's power," Witches say.
In 1993, when this blogger was but a wee tot, Starhawk, Wiccan author, teacher and activist wrote a novel about a ecotopian San Francisco set in 2048.....in this city the concrete streets have been torn up for gardens and streams which flow freely between the rows of homes, children are brought up speaking at least 3 languages in schools where knowledge is taught in a hands-on basis, and anything that must be learned by heart is set to music; cars have been largely done away with and public transport run on vegetable oils; every home has a garden big enough to grow food to feed each household, and each family and collective is interconnected; the city's defence is managed by women who dedicate their lives to 'dreaming and listening'; music, arts and cultural and religious diversity are valued second only to the four sacred things of Earth, Fire, Water and Air - things so important to life that they cannot be owned by anyone. But an ever-lingering threat lurks outside the city's perimeters - the fundamentalist, militarised nation that dominates the rest of America and threatens attack to reclaim the city for their own at any moment. The main theme then that Starhawk explores in her novel is this:
How does a society rooted in peace defend itself against violence, without becoming what they're fighting against?
Now Starhawk is working on making the novel into a film, to try to bring her message to a wider audience. Film making isn't generally considered a very green or sustainable industry, but she has created a 'Green Plan' in an attempt to set new standards for environmental accountability in film production. The Kickstarter campaign launched over the summer to raise funds to start the project exceeded its target and now the exciting task of casting, set and costume designing and bringing the novel alive is under way. Below I've included some useful links for the project, general information on what its all about, how to get involved if you think you have a skill that you can contribute, and a video by Starhawk about her vision for the film and for the future of our planet.
I hope that some of you will be inspired to get involved in some way and support this wonderful woman's work, as I have time and time again. A blessed Samhain to you all, Blessed Be. )O(
"One act of courage can change the world." -Starhawk
http://www.starhawk.org/writings/fifth_sacred_SFvision.html
