It’s that time of year again, when (at least in the Northern hemisphere) the leaves turn colors, the air chills, and Witches say that the veil is thinning.
October is likely to be a Witch’s favorite month. And also, possibly the most dreaded. This is often an active time for us, when the world suddenly remembers that real Witches exist and scramble to interview us for local papers and TV stations and customers emerge seeking tarot readings and magical work for hire. Back when I owned a shop this was when things really started to get busy.
Beyond the public and commercial aspects of this time of year, this is often a time where Witches gather to honor the dead and to reconnect with the spiritual world. For most, Samhain, a modern celebration of an ancient Celtic festival of the dead, is arguably the most iconic of the Witches’ sabbats.
A sabbat is traditionally a time of celebration in which we come together to work big, often seasonal, magic. The Modern Craft usually recognizes eight such celebrations a year: the Solstices, the Equinoxes, and the Cross-quarters. Exactly how many are actually celebrated (and what they are even named!) is ultimately left up to the coven or tradition.
Historically, the sabbat was any large gathering of Witches. They were described in scandalous detail during the time of the Witch trials, where they were portrayed as an orgiastic revelry in some wild, remote location, that involved an ecstatic celebration with dancing, feasting, sex, infanticide, cannibalism, and the mocking of Catholic symbols and rites, all done in the name of “the Devil.”
Witches presenting wax dolls to the devil, featured in The History of Witches and Wizards (1720) — Source (Wellcome Library)
Most modern Pagan Witches understand that this “Devil” is the Horned God of the Hunt and the Forests, and so we might look at these historical accounts and feel a spiritual connection to an ancient and often misunderstood figure.
It is all too easy to see this as a reflection of the Church’s own fears and obsessions, but there is more to the imagery than just frivolous shock value. As a projection of collective fears and fantasies, the iconography of the Witches’ Sabbat is a detailed look into the collective primal consciousness of humanity, which is itself a powerful window into the realm of the magical.
The fantastical tales told of the Witches’ Sabbat contained fragments of authentic visionary lore. These are oneiric entry-points into the Witch’s Dream: The Eternal Sabbat of celebration and magic, from which all Witches may draw inspiration and power.
This is a foundational basis for what has come to be called the “Sabbatic Craft,” an idea that this collective mythic imagery constitutes a set of symbolic keys which unlock a deep, primal layer of human consciousness. This “Eternal Sabbat” can perhaps be best understood as a temple on the astral; an “inner temple” in which we can project our consciousness in order to commune with the deep, primal powers that characterize Witchcraft.
Familiarizing oneself with historical accounts can provide us a workable framework for when we engage this imagery in the context of a meditation, trance, or ritual, but one need not devote their lives to pouring over obscure manuscripts or academic texts. One need only a passing familiarity with the basic elements of the historical sabbat to use this as a guiding narrative for engaging this real, living presence in our own work.
Before we engage in the journey, we can better prepare for it by first empowering a tool to assist us in this work. Traditionally this would be either a broom or a stang. Most everyone is familiar with the iconography of the witch flying astride her broom (or besom) but the stang offers us the same opportunity for astral flight. Consisting of a pole with two tines at the end (reminiscent of a pitchfork) decide for yourself which of these two tools would better suit your sensibilities. Presented here is a spell I wrote in the form of poetry to enchant the tool for the purpose of assisting in our astral journeys.
To Enchant a Broom or Stang for Astral Flight
Items needed:
- A black candle
- A cauldron
- A “perfume” oil or cologne that smells intoxicating
- A small amount of: Mugwort, vervain, wormwood, and thyme
- Red wine (Or a simple infusion of the above herbs)
- A broom or stang
A Witch astride a stang or broom
With head that swims with dark perfume
Shall rise above the land below
To fly beyond the world we know.
Into a cauldron here combine
Mugwort, vervain, wormwood, thyme
To steep within some dark, red wine
While you speak aloud these words of rhyme:
“From the darkness down below
And rising up into the light
I petition you to now bestow
The potency of astral flight.”
Strain the herbs and let them dry
Underneath the full moon’s light
Then burn to cause the smoke to rise
Into the clouds beyond the sky.
By Queen of Heaven, Queen of Hell
With broom or stang held fast in hand
The sacred smoke shall thus compel
The tool to fly beyond the land.
A sip of herbal wine and then
The mortal form thus freed
Our astral journey shall begin
Astride the Witches’ noble steed.
Now that you have empowered your preferred tool of astral flight, let us take it for a test drive and fly to the sabbat!
Journey to the Witch’s Sabbat
Items needed:
- A candle
- Your tool of astral flight
- A small bowl of cool water
- A tiny amount of sea salt
- Some rhythmic instrumental music of your choosing (optional)
Ground and center. Cast a circle, if that is your practice or otherwise designate ritual space. If you are using music, you may play it now.
Light your candle. Hold your tool of flight and close your eyes.
Imagine that everything around you is fading away into darkness. Sit with this peaceful darkness for the span of several breaths.
To journey in between the worlds
Unto the place where witches dwell
Just light a flame and speak these words
to bid the human world farewell.
“Darksome cloak of velvet night
Obscure my form as I take flight
To soar across the moonlit sky
To the Witches’ Sabbat here I fly!”
Imagine that a silver fog is emerging in the distance and is surrounding you in every direction. Imagine it growing closer with each breath. When it reaches you, imagine that you become completely enveloped in this thick, luminous mist and that you and your tool are becoming weightless, floating upward.
Now, imagine that you dart forward at great speed. Imagine you are up among the clouds looking downward on the dark earth, illuminated by the full moon. You fly across the sky and toward a distant mountain. As you get closer you see a fire on top of the mountain’s peak. Focusing on that flame, you are drawn ever closer until you see it is a raging bonfire, around which several Witches are dancing in a circle to the sound of drums.
Imagine landing softly and being greeted by one of the Witches.
Now in this temple space, just allow yourself to commune with the powers here: the bonfire, the full moon overhead, the other witches. Using your imagination, try seeing if you can employ your senses to get a more robust experience of this place. You may join in the dance, raising energy to direct to a personal working or simply to assist the others here in their work. Perhaps one or more of the other witches will talk to you. Or perhaps other spirits will present themselves. Try not to force a narrative. Just observe whatever you feel may be happening while in this space. Be here for at least a few to several minutes.
When you feel it is time to return, bid the witches farewell and then take hold of your astral flight tool once more. Close your eyes and say,
“Tool of flight to which I cleave
I summon thee awake
From the sabbat now I take my leave
And into flight I take.
The fire burns and I return.
The fire burns and I return.
The fire burns and I return.”
With your eyes still closed, imagine your body. Be aware of your skin and your extremities. Remin yourself of the room in which you are in, or otherwise your immediate environment. Reimagine your grounding cord or otherwise reaffirm your grounded state. Open your eyes. Anoint your face with some of the water and place a few grains of salt upon your tongue. Snuff out the candle. It is done.
May your sabbat visits be filled with insight and potency. IO EVOHE! Blessed be.
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