Tumblr pocket casts 800kcarman4/29/2023 Scythian Princess and her cauldron, 4-5th century BCE Their conical hats and cauldrons date back to the 2nd Millennium BCE and were connected to the female shamans of the Indo-European peoples. Today the witches tall black hat and burbling cauldron have become icons of Halloween kitsch, but they were once hallowed items of the holy women and priestesses, the healers and herbalists, the oracles and diviners of old Europe. One that if resurrected, would be just as subversive and dangerous to the powers that be. H er make-over into nubile fashion siren not only obscures this history but her true relevance as a role model to us today. Yes, many put to death were just ordinary women who practised folk magic, herbalism and midwifery, but according to Max Dashu author of Witches and Pagans: Women in European Folk Religion, many were powerful spiritual leaders of the indigenous, animist faith traditions of the old world – and their magic was earned through a lifetime of spiritual discipline spent in communion with nature. Is it really a feminist step forward that W magazine dedicated a recent issue to the season of the witch, replete with pouting models in gothic dresses, chains and black lace underwear? W Magazine, Salem IssueĪnd while many believe the witch of the middle ages was a spectre created by the church, I believe she was real. Whether we’re talking magazines, tv, movies, or our social media platforms, the image of the witch, once associated with everything transgressive and beyond the realm of normative society, has grown positively mainstream. Sure, she’s being touted as a feminist icon – a “powerful feminine model free from male influence or ownership”. Sure, the witch is emerging from the world of taboo and shadows onto the world stage. ![]() For more on the witches of the social media generation click on the image. In 2019 it was estimated that the #witch hashtag has been used over seven million times on Instagram. ![]() And while this worry seems remote, it’s a plain fact that women in developing countries are still hunted down, tortured and set aflame for the crime of witchcraft. ![]() Not just because top ten lists of hot tv witches and sexy Halloween selfies currently swamp my social media feeds, but because my tables and shelves are currently so laden with herbs, plants, berries, phials and bottles that if an inquisitor of old were to enter, I’d find myself quickly tied to the stake. Lately, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about witches.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply.AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |