Wednesday 22nd July Musing - The Hedge Witch

Merrie Meet

As I sat here listening to Cream's Cocaine I suddenly felt the urge to update my blog and was drawn to the subject of The Hedge Witch and what that means, so I began to research and came across this description by Rae Beth published in 2005

"Hedge-witchcraft. This is a place of the solitary wise woman or cunning man, we who use natural magic to help and heal. (text omitted here)

Hedge Witchcraft is the natural magic of hedgerow and forest, hilltop and seashore. It can be and is often practised indoors but our contacts with the nature spirits and the Fae and our communion with and respect for the natural world are all important.

This is Green Spirituality of the environment as well as an ancient and effective way to resolve problems.

When it comes to enhancing the quality of our lives it works extremely well but it is not a quick fix necessarily. Rather, it turns our lives into a true magical quest. And you could study Hedge witchcraft for many lifetimes, (perhaps you already have). Yet you could never get to an end of it because it is aligned with life’s cycles of change and growth. However, you can experience its effects and get real results even as a beginner (if you are of the type whose heart lifts when entering realms of natural magic).

We may work in hedgerows or on other boundaries, treating them as symbolic borders between the human everyday world and the domains of elves, nature spirits and other otherworldly presences. In this way we achieve communion with those from more subtle dimensions and can join our magic with theirs, to the benefit of all, creating new harmony.

There is actually nothing new in these ideas. They are based on the work of the ancient Northern European Hagazissa, the 'Hedge-sitter', one who worked on the boundary between the human community and that of spirits to promote a good balance between wild spirit lands (such as a forest). Bad human areas such as the farmland, so that each could be sound and healthy. And it does not take a very bright person to work out the implications for us now at this point in history.

A Hedge Witch's territory is wherever any Hedge Witch happens to be."

A Hedge Witch is not governed by any specific geographical location and there are plenty of places that are inspiring, magical, tranquil which could hold special significance.

Further researching the subject I came across this piece from Suite101.com

"According to the book The Wiccan Path (The Crossing Press, 1990) by Rae Beth, a hedge witch is “…a lone priest or priestess of natural magic, open to requests for healing spells or for advice or divination from the people who live near them.” Other scholars argue that the path of a hedge witch is a nature based neo-pagan religion combining elements of divination, herbal healing and natural magic.

The hedge, or some type of fence or wall, once signified the boundary of ancient villages. As pertains to shamanism this boundary also represents the border which exists between the world of the living and the under-world of spiritual beings. Hence practitioners of this type of magic were often referred to as hedge witches and were thought to be able to talk with spirits in addition to being experts in the use of natural magic and herbal remedies".

Also from Suite101.com

"Hedge witches, also known as the village wise woman or cunning man, were the people habitually accused of practicing black magic and were labeled as being demonic witches and sorcerers. In reality they dispensed a wide variety of herbal remedies to their fellow village inhabitants for healing and magical purposes. Wealthy city and town dwellers had access to the services of formally trained physicians while the poor masses and country dwellers most often had to rely on these local herb men and women for a selection of herb based remedies.

The majority of these natural healers were men and women living solitary lives at a distance from the rest of the village inhabitants. They collected and harvested a variety of plant materials from their personal gardens and the surrounding forests which they used to make a multitude of lotions, ointments and poultices which were used for their healing and magical abilities.

Hedge witches are practitioners of earth-based spirituality and don’t follow any particular path of witchcraft. They employ a variety of herbs and other natural objects in their magical and healing endeavors. They perform magic on an as needed basis and aren’t strict followers of the traditional witches holy days otherwise known as the sabbats."

And so my friends that brings me to the end of this short discourse on Hedge Witches and their craft, I truly hope that it has proved enlightening and a worthwhile read.

Go forth in peace until we meet again

Love, Light and Blessed Be

The Merlin