Familiars and Familiar Spirits

Woodcut depicting witches giving the names of their familiars.

Witchcraft, as we have said before, is a kind of survival or revival of ancient European shamanism.  Just as shamans work with totemic spirits and spirit guides, so do we work with our familiars and familiar spirits.

A familiar is a creature that regularly helps a witch with her Craft.  A familiar can be corporeal (existing in flesh and blood in this realm) or incorporeal (a spirit or astral body).

Corporeal Familiars

The first kind of familiar is usually a common household pet that the witch has a very special kind of working relationship with.  There is a bond (an energy link) created between the witch and her corporeal familiar that is forged through mutual love and trust.  Sometimes this bond is formalized through the creation of a blood link.  This is done by feeding the creature a bit of your own blood.

In the Middle Ages, the Inquisitors of the Catholic Church believed the pets of accused witches to be possessed by demons. A witch was supposed to feed her familiar spirit with her own blood, which the animal sucked from her body at a special nipple that became known as a witch's mark. This nipple might be anywhere on the body. It was identifiable to the witch-finders of the Inquisition because it was completely insensitive to pain. A long needle might be thrust into it without the awareness of the witch, if her eyes were covered or averted during the operation.

Mr. Jinx on the main altar.

A corporeal familiar is usually a singular creature, even if the witch has a plethora of animal companions with which she is close.  This animal will make itself useful whenever the witch is practicing the ways of the Craft in its presence.  Indeed, my own precious companion gets excited whenever I even so much as approach an altar, or talk a bit about the Craft.  He is at my side now as I write this entry.  He has, in accordance with the lore of familiars, even taught me certain types of magic.

Also existing in this realm is the plant familiar.  A plant familiar is a plant grown with offerings of energy and intent to a specific purpose.  The most famous of plant familiars is the storied Aluran, which I will write about more in another entry.

Incorporeal Familiars

The spirit familiar is a creature that most witches are less... ahem... familiar with.  The spirit familiar fits the classical idea of an imp or demon spirit that the witch associates with that gives her workings special power.  The spirits of the Goetia, or the Lesser Key of Solomon, fit the requirements for a spirit familiar nicely, and many of them (Valfor, Paimon, Buer, Purson, Gaap, Malphas, Shax, Alloces, Amy, Amdusias, and Belial) specifically manifest and act as familiars.

Spirit bottles on an altar.

In Vodoun the familiar spirit is known as the Ti Bon Ange or "little good angel".  This spirit is housed in a lidded jar draped with beads, and made offerings to maintain its energy.  This concept can be translated for our purposes by use of a spirit bottle or jar.  A suitable vessel is selected, such as a fancy sugar bowl, or an empty liquor bottle with some character to it.  If you are fortunate you may find a spirit bottle in the shape of an animal, or with a human face, or even an impish one.  Fill the spirit jar with nail clippings, a lock of your hair, and a bit of your blood (if you are a woman of childbearing age some of your menstrual blood would be ideal, as this is the very blood of life).  Add any herbs or charms you feel are appropriate for the type of spirit you want to attract.  Lodestones painted red and fed iron fillings are a good start.  Drawing powder (powdered sugar) or honey are also good additions.

When you have created a spirit jar ready to house a spirit you will need to lay a compass and tread the mill, asking the Gods of our tradition, the Ancestors, and the Mighty Dead to send forth a familiar.  Traditionally it is the Witch Father, in our tradition named Azazel or Tubal Qayn, who offers a familiar spirit to a witch. The payment for this service is determined by the stone bowl, but is traditionally a piece of silver. After receiving a familiar spirit offer it food -- your own blood is best, but milk, bread, honey, or alcohol are all acceptable.  Keep your familiar spirit's jar in a safe place, and adorn it with offerings.  Feed it on a regular schedule, at least once a month.  The familiar spirit can be sent forth to do tasks for you, can teach you the Craft through inspiration and dreams, and can add its energy to any spell as you see fit.

I have also heard of familiars being tied to pieces of jewelry, such a a ring, certain stones, and even mojo hands.  Let your intuition guide you.

In fairy tales familiar spirits come in times of need or crisis, such as Rumplestiltskin (who notably can be controlled by knowledge of his true name), and Puss in Boots (who is inherited as a kuthun and serves his master in exchange for a pair of boots).  Familiars are also alluded to in many Mother Goose rhymes, the most useful of which gives a formula for procuring a familiar spirit.

There was a crooked man, he walked a crooked mile.

He found a crooked sixpence upon a crooked stile.
He bought a crooked cat, which caught a crooked mouse.
And they all lived together in a little crooked house.

"There was a crooked man" -- there was a cunning man, or a witch.

"he walked a crooked mile." -- he tread the mill.

"He found a crooked sixpence" -- he made an offering of a bent sixpence, or silver (see Peter Paddon's Grimore for Modern Cunning Folk for an excellent explanation of this custom).

"upon a crooked stile." -- in liminal space, astral space (a stile is a structure which provides people a passage through or over a fence or boundary via steps, ladders, or narrow gaps).
"He bought a crooked cat," -- he received a familiar.

"which caught a crooked mouse." -- the familiar needed to be fed immediately.
"And they all lived together in a little crooked house." -- he took the familiar in and gave it a place of rest, such as a spirit bottle.

The Staff

Note that this is a discussion of the generic witch's staff. It is not to be confused with the Blackthorn Staff or the Distaff, both of which are different tools with distinct characteristics. These tools will be discussed in future entries.

Witches' staves

The staff is a straight stave cut from any wood.  It can be of any length, usually ranging somewhere from waist height to just slightly taller than full height of the witch who will be using it.  There is no specific type of tree that is chosen for a staff, rather, the witch will wander the woods at will, communing with the spirits there, and feeling for a young tree that is willing to give its life for the creation of a magical tool.

You may already have a piece of dead-fall or a walking stick which you wish to use for a staff.  If you do not, you should seek for a young tree in a copse of other trees.  This will encourage the tree to be straight, and will leave less impact on the forest. Raise the power and send it coursing into the potential tree. Tell the tree in your own words what you are seeking and then ask it if it is willing to give itself to become your staff. The tree must give consent before proceeding.

You will need to make an offering to the tree.  The traditional offering is, as always, a piece of silver.  Birdseed and fertilizer are also good choices, especially if you choose to make ongoing offerings to the tree over a course of time.  When you are ready to harvest your staff take the offerings to your tree along with a mundane handsaw that has been consecrated for this purpose, the shelg, bottled water, and a first aid kit.

Confirm a final time that the tree agrees and desires to be your working tool.  Lay a compass to hold the energy in the grove. Make your offerings to the grove.  Ask the tree to send its life force down into its roots. Cut the tree down with the handsaw, concentrating on the purpose of your task.

When the tree falls use the shelg to cut your palms.  Hold the tree and let your blood and spirit fuse with the wood. Consecrate the wood in the name of any deities and powers that you wish.  Clean your wounds and bandage them well. Use the handsaw to cut your staff to the length you desire.  Cut any “scrap” wood from the tree that you wish to use for besom handles, wands, etc.  Scatter the remaining wood and branches throughout the grove, leaving as little trace of your work as possible.

If you are working from a piece of dead-fall wood be certain that it has not been compromised by rot or insects, then proceed to blood the wood just as you would with a newly felled tree.

You may choose to adorn your staff however you wish.  You may remove the bark, or leave it on.  Your staff can be as elaborate or as simple as you like, and it may evolve in style and decoration as you grow and change in the Craft.  Some witches choose to keep their crane bag hanging from their staff.

One thing that must be done before the staff is used formally in ritual is the shodding of the staff.  You may choose to do this during a consecration ritual for the staff.  To shod the staff you need only to drive a nail up into the bottom end of the staff.  This seals the staff as a weapon in the name of Qayin, and creates it as a properly iron shod steed.

The staff may now be used to cut the boundary of the river of life and death when laying the compass.  It can also be ridden both as a gandreigh and a tool for treading the mill.

The staff is a truly personal tool of a witch. It is not passed down as a kuthun to students or family.  It is best if the staff is destroyed upon a witch's passing, or that it is given back to earth, water, or fire with the witch's remains.

Links and Link Cutting

Magical links are threads of energy fed through the astral that connect each of us and affect us in diverse ways. Links can be formed through repetitive action, great emotion, or an act of Will or magic.

While we were in the womb the first link, the umbilical cord, was formed. At birth that first cord is cut, and we become an independent life. As children we have other links, such as those to our parents and our parents to us. As we develop the links are broken or cut and new links form. As we grow into adults our links with our parents evolve into a basic heart link. As we form relationships new links form, and if they are heart links they are almost always healthy. Heart links make us more caring and give us a feeling of connection.

Some kinds of links are not as healthy. In most people there is often a tangled mess of links weighing them down,  hindering them from life. Links to our hands and feet prevent us from acting of our free will. Links to the back, knees elbows, and navel are some of the links that remain from over protective or manipulative parents. There are links from lovers past and present, If these are heart links they are good but most are there to control or manipulate us. We can and do form links to the people we fear or dislike most either by accident or in misplaced efforts to control them. Remember that all links go both ways. Negative links are draining on us and can hold us back from our potential. Link cutting is a powerful and transformational ritual in which we dispose of all negative or unnecessary links.

Every time we do spell craft or send a thought form we are connected to the work by a link. It is through this link that magical returns travel, be they good or ill. These links can be formed purposefully to weave fate.

A blood link is permanent and cannot be cut. Blood links cannot be created without your knowledge and consent. They are used for some handfasting rites and for initiation into the lineage of certain traditions of the Craft. The blood link, or red thread, connects a witch to the ancestors, gods, and mighty dead of the tradition.

The Rite of Link Cutting

You will need: The black handled knife, salt and water, a besom.  You must be skyclad.  It is best to do this ritual with a partner, who can assist you with hard-to-reach links, and act as a second set of eyes for any lingering links.

To begin cast a lay the compass and cast a circle.  Sit quietly and breathe deeply.  Sense your etheric body.  Feel and/or see the links in your energy field.  Some links may be heavy cables, others may be as fine as spider webbing.

When you are open to sensing the links, you may begin by taking up the athame and dragging it like a razor just over the surface of your skin.  Imagine you are shaving away the links.  When the athame gets too full of psychic sludge, simply shake it off and rinse it in the salt water.

You may find that certain links are too thick to cut through cleanly.  These will require you to pull them out by the root, just as you would pull a stubborn garden weed.  If after pulling a deep link you feel a psychic tear in your energy field, simply cleanse the area with salt water. This will patch up any holes in your aura left by links.

Link cutting can be stressful and emotional work.  Remember, each of these links is there for a reason!  Some of them may have been draining you for years.  You may feel a great catharsis after cutting a particularly deep link.  This is another reason it is best to perform this ritual with a trusted partner. They may be able to help you through your potential emotional upheaval.

The final link to be cut is the one leading out of the mouth and down into the digestive tract.  This link is kept for last as it is a very painful and exhausting link to remove.  Gagging and nausea are common side effects.

After you have completed the business of link cutting you will notice that the circle you are in is filled with psychic sludge that you have cast off.  Take up the broom and sweep up the sludge.  You will notice that, remarkably, the sludge does not adhere to the besom. Sweep it right through the boundaries of the circle and though your home out the back door.  Toss the salt water after it.  Return to the ritual area and take the circle down.  Rest.  The ritual is complete.

Note: After this ritual you will want to do immediate blade care on your athame, as the salt water can damage the blade.