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.
Announcement
Collapse
No announcement yet.
Hedge Witch Question
Collapse
This topic is closed.
X
X
-
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.
-
sea witch
- Oct 2005
- 11651
- relational theophysis and bioregional witchery
- coastal Georgia
- *a little bad taste is like a nice dash of paprika*
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
sigpic
Comment
-
Immorisog
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.
Comment
-
Silver Member
- Oct 2010
- 3338
- solitary pagan witch with a strong interest in Anglo Saxons
- South Wales Valleys, UK
- Phantom Turnips never die. They just get stewed occasionally....
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.'
Comment
-
Re: Hedge Witch Question
Originally posted by TearDropStar View PostI 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.
Comment
-
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.
Comment
-
Re: Hedge Witch Question
Originally posted by Gwen View PostWhere does the shamanic element come in to hedge witchery, Thal and Gardenia?.
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.
Comment
-
sea witch
- Oct 2005
- 11651
- relational theophysis and bioregional witchery
- coastal Georgia
- *a little bad taste is like a nice dash of paprika*
Re: Hedge Witch Question
Originally posted by Gwen View PostWhere 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 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.Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of HistoryPagan Devotionals, because the wind and the rain is our Bible
sigpic
Comment
-
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.
Comment
-
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)
Comment
-
sea witch
- Oct 2005
- 11651
- relational theophysis and bioregional witchery
- coastal Georgia
- *a little bad taste is like a nice dash of paprika*
Re: Hedge Witch Question
Originally posted by Gwen View PostFascinating, 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)Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of HistoryPagan Devotionals, because the wind and the rain is our Bible
sigpic
Comment
Comment