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New to Witchcraft? Start here.

If you’re a new/ baby witch, it’s easy to get overwhelmed with the amount of information about witchcraft out there. There are tons of Books, websites, videos and podcasts. It’s tough to figure out where to start – these are my suggestions. Spoiler alert: I’m not starting with a book list, though I’ll link you to a list at the end.

Foundation Skills

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I always suggest these four skills to my students: visualization, meditation, contemplation and observation. These four skills are used in so many parts of the witchcraft path- once you become proficient in them, many facets of the path will come more easily. For example, visualization and observation are used in energy work. Contemplation and observation can contribute to shadow work. Visualization, meditation and observation are all used in ritual work. And all four skills are used in deity work. There are tons of resources on these skills, but I’ve created a blog post and a short course on them, so I won’t go into that here. Master these skills, and you’ll have created an awesome foundation that will make the rest of your learning come much more easily.

Intuition and Self-Trust

Work on your intuition and communication with your higher self. First, you’ll want to work on activating and connecting with your intuition. Work on your third eye; work on opening up your crown as well.

Accept that your intuition exists. If you need permission to accept intuition as real- I’m giving that to you. Intuition is about feeling, rather than thinking. Do your best to get out of your head. It’s also not really projective, it’s more receptive.

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One thing many people struggle with is the “is this anxiety or is this intuition” challenge. When you feel like you might be having an intuitive moment, pay attention to your body. Do you feel expansiveness or do you feel contraction? Also, most times, intuition and anxiety are felt differently in your body. Next time you feel anxiety, pay attention to where it manifests in your body. Then, when you feel what might be intuition, where is that felt in your body?

Don’t shy away from your fears and blocks, confronting them is the first step to clearing them out. You may have blocks from old experiences with religion or intuition. Maybe you grew up thinking that listening to yourself was wrong, or your intuition was wrong in the past. Or maybe your fears include things like: what if I’m wrong? What if I invite in negative energy? What if I’m making it up?

What if you’re not?

Confront these issues- write down everything that is holding you back from embracing your intuition. Write them down in question form. Then clear those fears and blocks by answering those questions using journaling- and use your intuition to do so.

Practice your intuition with tarot cards, choosing your driving route using your intuition, or purchasing your groceries using your intuition. Buy a divination deck- like tarot or oracle. They are affordable and can be used in many ways.

Divination

Once you acquire a tarot deck, there are a few things that you can do to get your feet wet. Learn about the suits and how they align with the elements by laying out all of the cards in order. Go through each suit and create a story. This isn’t something you’ll need to write down, it’s really the process itself.

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For oracle or tarot decks, here are three ways you can align yourself with your new cards and remember their meetings:

  • Start pulling one card each morning – note it in your planner or create a document to help you keep track, look it up and think about how it might affect your day.
  • You can play a game where you try to guess characteristics of each card.
  • You can also use them to represent people in workings, or mindfully choose cards to bring specific intentions into your life.

Read ALL the Books

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Read all the books- even the ones that people say aren’t great. “Why waste my time,” you ask? It helps you build your discernment. Discernment is basically your bullshit meter. Reading all the things helps you recognize what resonates with you and what doesn’t resonate with you. Here’s a recommended reading list for you.

Start Practicing Your Craft

Start practicing. The traditional year and a day period that people talk about came about because in this time frame, you will have celebrated all eight sabbats, and been through a year’s worth of full and new moons. But that doesn’t mean that you need to stifle yourself and not practice. Rather, listen to your intuition, what you learn and your discernment. It won’t lead you wrong.

You might like: 21 Types of Witches

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