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    Hedge Witch Question

    I am reading a book by Rae Beth called The Hedge Witch's Way and it says a Hedge Witch is just a solitary witch. I was just curious what other people's views were of how they define it.
    "Everyone and everything around you is your teacher." -- Ken Keyes Jr.

    #2
    Re: Hedge Witch Question

    I think a hedge witch is a solitary as well. It really depends on what the word means to you. To me, the "hedge" was always a symbol of a boundary -- between this world and the spirit world, between light and dark, between society and solitude. . . being a hedge witch then is living on that border between opposites. I think that's a balancing act that you can only do alone.

    I remember a website back in the day, saying a hedge witch couldn't possibly be solitary, and I assume the "hedge" label meant something different to the site's owner. So, honestly, it's really subjective.

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      #3
      Re: Hedge Witch Question

      The couple of people that I know (IRL) that claim the mantle of hedge witch practice some sort of a shamanic nature-based witchcraft that focuses on the local environment. In my observation, its fairly accurate to group it with green witchcraft and kitchen witchcraft, just a bit more hands dirty and less hold hands and singing kumbayah than green witchcraft and a bit more wild and less home and hearth focused than kitchen witchcraft.
      Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of HistoryPagan Devotionals, because the wind and the rain is our Bible
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        #4
        hello u2

        Re: Hedge Witch Question The couple of people that I know (IRL) that claim the mantle of hedge witch practice some sort of a shamanic nature-based witchcraft that focuses on the local environment. In my observation, its fairly accurate to group it with green witchcraft and kitchen witchcraft, just a bit more hands dirty and less hold hands and singing kumbayah than green witchcraft and a bit more wild and less home and hearth focused than kitchen witchcraft.

        HI, I am new here too.

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          #5
          Re: Hedge Witch Question

          While I would say that most hedge witches are solitary, not all solitary witches would describe themselves as hedge witches. My own feeling is that hedge witches tend to be very nature based whereas, as Thalassa has rightly said, kitchen witchens tend to be more home and hearth based. But that said, the dividing lines are a bit fuzzy.

          As a solitary witch myself, I tend to describe myself as a pagan witch - a nice big umbrella term that allows me some freedom to manoevre, since one thing I've learned is that my path is never static, but always evolving. Since I couldn't find any one path that fitted my ideas exactly, I struck out on my own and called my path 'Seeking the Green.'
          www.thewolfenhowlepress.com


          Phantom Turnips never die.... they just get stewed occasionally....

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            #6
            Re: Hedge Witch Question

            Originally posted by TearDropStar View Post
            I am reading a book by Rae Beth called The Hedge Witch's Way and it says a Hedge Witch is just a solitary witch. I was just curious what other people's views were of how they define it.
            I disagree with her definition, it's far too broad to be of any real use. Don't misunderstand, it's not that hedge witches can't be solitary (they often are), but saying that a hedge witch is 'just' a solitary witch... well, it leaves a lot to be desired. There are a lot of solitary witches, and they're not all hedge witches - kitchen witches, Wiccan witches, and green witches to name a few. Hedge witchcraft is a specific kind of craft, as are all the others. It's usually defined a a shamanic form of witchcraft, based heavily in nature. There can be flexibility in practice, of course, but that's the bare bones of it.
            Hearth and Hedge

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              #7
              Re: Hedge Witch Question

              Most of my responses have been said already. I tend to use hedge witch and kitchen witch interchangeably. I'm not sure I've met people who self-defined by either name who were not solitaries, but I've met plenty of solitaries who don't use those terms.

              Where does the shamanic element come in to hedge witchery, Thal and Gardenia? That one's new to me. I think of shamanism as meaning something rather specific that doesn't typically overlap much with what I think of "witch" indicating.

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                #8
                Re: Hedge Witch Question

                Originally posted by Gwen View Post
                Where does the shamanic element come in to hedge witchery, Thal and Gardenia?.
                A hedge is a boundary. In the case of a hedge witch, it can be seen as the boundary between the worlds. Crossing (riding/walking) the hedge becomes an euphemism for crossing into the unseen world to work with the spirits/ancestors there, to act as a healer, or as a mediator of sorts.

                I agree that shamanic probably isn't the best term, as there's a lot of debate over that particular word, but it seems to be the most commonly used.
                Hearth and Hedge

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                  #9
                  Re: Hedge Witch Question

                  Originally posted by Gwen View Post
                  Where does the shamanic element come in to hedge witchery, Thal and Gardenia? That one's new to me. I think of shamanism as meaning something rather specific that doesn't typically overlap much with what I think of "witch" indicating.

                  ...ditto what Gardenia said on that...


                  I tend to use hedge witch and kitchen witch interchangeably. I'm not sure I've met people who self-defined by either name who were not solitaries, but I've met plenty of solitaries who don't use those terms.
                  I know a couple ladies that describe their path as being a hedge witch that participate in groups, but keep the two (their individual practices and their group practices) separate.

                  I don't (obviously, given my earlier response, lol) consider them analagous...not that I could really give a defined list that makes them separate--they do overlap, but...I almost think its an *attitude* that one has going into to their work or what/where that work is directed (a fuzzy, ephermal and ultimately unsatisfying answer) as much as the "techniques" involved... But based on my observance (to go back to what Gardenia was saying), hedge witcher seems to rely more on what are generally considered "shamanic" practices.
                  Last edited by thalassa; 07 Feb 2011, 11:55. Reason: dang, the typo faeries are kickin'
                  Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of HistoryPagan Devotionals, because the wind and the rain is our Bible
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                    #10
                    Re: Hedge Witch Question

                    Agree Thal, I don't really see them as interchangeable terms either. I think you hit it on the head in both your posts, it's the where, how, and general attitude that sets them apart. There can certainly be overlap, I know there is in my own path at times, but I think there's enough difference in technique and style that they warrant separate terms.
                    Hearth and Hedge

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                      #11
                      Re: Hedge Witch Question

                      Fascinating, Gardenia and Thal! So let me see if I've got this right:

                      hedge witch: "low magic," herbs/plants, semi-shamanic sense of doing healing work on both sides of the boundary between worlds (more local-wild-places-oriented)

                      kitchen witch: "low magic," herbs/plants, focus on hearth, garden, and home (more domestic-oriented)

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                        #12
                        Re: Hedge Witch Question

                        Yeah, I'd say that's about the gist of it.
                        Hearth and Hedge

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                          #13
                          Re: Hedge Witch Question

                          I always thought it had something to do with shrubberies! This makes SO MUCH MORE SENSE. Thank you.
                          Be Excellent to each other - or something will Happen to you.

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                            #14
                            Re: Hedge Witch Question

                            Originally posted by Gwen View Post
                            Fascinating, Gardenia and Thal! So let me see if I've got this right:

                            hedge witch: "low magic," herbs/plants, semi-shamanic sense of doing healing work on both sides of the boundary between worlds (more local-wild-places-oriented)

                            kitchen witch: "low magic," herbs/plants, focus on hearth, garden, and home (more domestic-oriented)
                            Definitely. Like...I'm totally not a hedgewitch by my consideration...I don't do any otherworld work at all--because I flat out don't believe in and "other" world. But I completely work with herbs, plants, the "spirit"/"energy" of place, etc...and my practices are more inwardly oriented--meditation, mindfulness, etc
                            Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of HistoryPagan Devotionals, because the wind and the rain is our Bible
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