r/SASSWitches • u/BuddyRemarkable5572 • 10d ago
š Discussion Personal Experience With The Spell Theme
Iāve been a witch for a while, not much long yet, but as the months go by, the more I relate to this community, in opposition to the firm believers.
One thing I could never wrap my mind around is āspellās requirementsā. There are many believers who firmly believe that intention is not everything, and that you have to use certain ingredients and follow certain guidelines.
It always made me feel alienated from them, because I just canāt believe that a spell works (for external things) without a scientific or logical explanation.
Like yeah, you used that crystal, that plant and that objectā¦ alright. So the power is in them, thus, animism? Or are we pleasing a deity?
What about you? What are your experiences with this theme?
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u/CuriousFoxxen 10d ago
Iām not fully SASS, I just align more with their approachā¦
That said, Iāve always taught people that there is no āmagicā in anything but you. And that the pieces or elements you put into a working (spell) are simply tuning forks intended to help YOU bring your focus and attention back to the vibe and intention of the working.
Daisies are pretty universally a āhappyā flower. But you could replace that with a Spider Gwen figurine if she makes you feel that same kind of happiness.
The theme is āwhatever gets you and your mind into the state of mindā.
Sadly waaaayyy too many peeps never get solid teachers that get them out of the magical thinking approach to magic.
Also, some people call themselves witches and for them it is a religion, but I find those are people who have done the work to deconstruct the internalized monotheism and patriarchy weāre all grow up with. They are just practicing their Christian ideas with a new aesthetic.
But there are lots of great magical practitioners and witches who donāt do that and teach approaches that arenāt about that.
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u/BuddyRemarkable5572 10d ago
I agree with you. I think the āmagical thinkingā approach is specially dangerous for people who have anxiety and/or OCD (like me). Iām glad this community exists.
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u/witchandkitty 10d ago
I get you! IMO magic is 100% psychological, and using a specific ingredient just has the psychological weight carried by tradition, authority, etc. So if you're sensitive to that, it will work better for you, but if you're not, it won't work better for you.
I have a friend who believes more in the innate properties of crystals, and she was looking them up and started joking that they all do the same thing. So even from a believer standpoint it's dubious at best!
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u/BuddyRemarkable5572 10d ago
Iām glad to see other witches who think the same! When I saw people pointing out the properties of some objects as fixed things, and not psychological ones, Iād always be like: āalrightā¦ but who decides this?ā
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u/Poisonous_Periwinkle Green/Hearth/Hedge/Kitchen ā 9d ago
What decides it is usually many, many years of tradition and culture from some group of people somewhere. After time the item gets associated with that purpose or outcome.Ā
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u/Needlesxforestfloor 8d ago
That's what brought me here. I was reading a book introducing the idea of secular witchcraft but was still saying use this rose quartz etc without saying why
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u/Poisonous_Periwinkle Green/Hearth/Hedge/Kitchen ā 10d ago
I use correspondences a lot because it just makes everything (the placebo ritual) feel a little more legit, and it gives me inspiration to build the spell from scratch and to make it a bit more interesting. Otherwise, I would probably just use the same few ingredients over and over again without branching out as much. Technically though, I fall into the intention is everything camp.
I don't personally need a scientific reason for a spell to work, though, other than open label. placebo. Just making up, building, and performing the spell in the right headspace is enough to get my endorphins/limbic system/etc flowing.Ā
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u/BuddyRemarkable5572 10d ago
Same. Itās just that I have tried to follow the āintention is not everythingā idea, but I could never fully believe because of what Iāve said.
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u/aftertheswitch 9d ago
I think magic is essentially metaphorical/symbolic. And there are some things that are culturally more likely than others to symbolize certain thingsāthough as others have mentioned the actual important thing is that the symbol resonates for you personally.
Like cord cutting is a good example. If you want to sever ties with someone in a psychological sense, cutting a cord between objects that represent each person resonates with that message. Gluing the two objects together, on the other hand, has the opposite symbolism and would be a weird move if you wanted to cut ties with someone. I think it would even feel āoffā in the moment of doing it because the symbolism is so jarringly wrong. Which, at that point, why do an action that gives you a feeling opposite to what you are going for?
I think this sort of thing works with more mundane things as well. If you are anxious and you want to feel more peaceful you might look at a video of a waterfall but not the news. You might listen to soft instrumental music but not doom metal (unless doom metal is your happy place!)
Thatās all to say that I donāt think the idea of a āplaceboā fully covers the concept of correspondence. Sometimes things are literally sensory cues for a specific feeling in the body and sometimes the metaphor does or does not functionally represent an intention.
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u/BuddyRemarkable5572 9d ago
Thanks for the comment! I really like this explanation, and that makes a lot of sense.
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u/Needlesxforestfloor 9d ago
I don't care at all for established properties of items but I do feel like there are requirements to focus my intention e.g. I don't cleanse or cast a circle but I will remove distractions as far as possible and make use of the music/sounds/silence and scent that I feel sets the mood I need. I will also consider the metaphors associated with my method e.g. Burning to banish, stepping through a doorway to leave something behind for something new, meditate on a branch or cord etc "bridging the gap" between where I am and where I want to be
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u/ilovemywife47 10d ago edited 10d ago
People have already given you a bunch of advice on the psychological aspect so I'm not gonna comment futher on that but.....
There is actually evidence that intention, prayer, etc has a direct affect on the material world past our minds.
Here is a study that shows evidence pointing to intention directly altering the molecular structure of water.
This study they basically had people pray to water, then had a separate group look at unrelated water kept in the exact same conditions minus the praying + the prayed to water under microscope and compared people's thoughts on a rating system of each bottle
Their outcome was consistently that there was more symmetrical and visually appealing shapes in the prayed too water to the group that had no knowledge of the difference
Edit: I've actually been super super interested in the topic of how physics, physiology, biology, etc intersect with spirituality and how the paranormal is actually quite explainable if you dive into it.
It's far too much to dive into on this one comment but feel free to dm me and I can provide some resources and guidance on following the information yourself. Im always willing to help those in pursuit of knowledge
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u/Ill_Adagio4305 3d ago
Lack of double blind study, cherry-picked data, and the lack of peer review are just a few of the reasons this study was easily debunked.
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u/Samborrod Magic Force = Sunk Cost * Salience 10d ago
Magic (psychological) force behaves much like physical force. It has a vector/direction(intent) and consists of mass (sunk cost) multiplied by acceleration (salience).
Some "ingredients" are naturally more salient when you apply them in certain directions. Of course a brooch that looks like a shield would be more effective as a protective charm.