Being a witch or following a Pagan path means that
the individual needs to take personal responsibility for his/her
actions. This is difficult to do in our litigious society where
everyone is willing to point a finger and place blame elsewhere.
Our society reinforces this idea by giving huge settlements to people
who are generally hurt through their own carelessness. The latest
article in the paper that I read illustrating this fact is of a
recreation center which has banned any form of soap (body washes,
gels, etc.) in the showers because people have accidentally slipped,
fell and then sued for massive amounts of money. The soap ban seems
ridiculous and over-reactive, but the center was going to lose insurance
coverage over it. It would seem that folks can't even handle walking
around in the shower without courts and lawyers getting involved.
What does this have to do with Paganism?
Have you every met a Pagan who has been attacked
psychically? Now, I'm not talking about the kind of psychic vampirism
that can come from just anybody - i.e. co-dependent, whiny people
who suck your energy. I am talking about out and out psychic attack,
performed with direct and nasty intent. What about people who talk
about Mercury in retrograde as a reason for poor communications?
What about folks who have some kind of psychic or other excuse for
why things are happening to them?
Psychic Attack.
It happens rarely - really. It is easy to blame
all of your problems on so-and-so - and it just happens (surprise)
that you're not getting along with him/her. Do you think their dislike
is enough that they are going to spend a bunch of time and energy
on you? I do know that there are some sick individuals who
do this, but they are far and few between. For the most part, people
aren't sitting around dreaming of ways to come after you. (Or is
your conscience really bothering you for some reason?) Most of us
have the occasional crappy day. Do you often think that yours
are created for you by some enemy? If so, you probably need a reality
check. In all of the years that I have been a public witch, and
since I have strong opinions that I feel free to share, I should
be psychically attacked quite often. In fact, I think that only
once have I and the coven actually been the focus for this type
of negative magick. When four coven tires went flat in a week and
mine, twice, I started to wonder. When every Thursday for a month,
very bizarre and strange events occurred, I started getting really
suspicious. When I found out that I very nasty local person did
all of their rituals on Wednesday evening, I became convinced. After
a "return spell" was performed and all of our bizarre occurrences
stopped, I was relieved. Did that prove that I was really attacked?
Not necessarily. But then again, who knows?
Ever notice how Mercury in retrograde gets invoked
after all of the problems occur?
Bright Idea
I would think that as witches, we would use our
knowledge to prevent stuff from happening. Take the Mercury in retrograde
issue. It happens fairly regularly. There are tables documenting
when these occur. Shouldn't we be working extra-hard on those skills
at that time, not just shrug our shoulders and use it as an excuse?
Isn't that the power of the witch? To be proactive instead of reactive?
To be powerful and helpful as opposed to being powerless and helpless?
Why do we need to blame a bad day on someone else?
Can't we just accept that it happens? Whenever a witch or Pagan
hears a Christian blame something on Satan or the devil or demons,
we think that they are weak for giving their power over to their
fears. And yet, when a witch or Pagan cries psychic attack, aren't
they doing the exact same thing? We have many tools in our
witchy bag o'tricks. Shielding, cleansing and protection rituals
are only a few ways of dealing with negativity. If we are indeed
being attacked, lets deal with it in an adult manner. And then let's
move on. Maybe you really aren't being attacked. Regardless of whether
you are really being attacked or not, doing shielding, cleansing
or protection rituals aren't a bad thing to do on a regular basis.
And one could argue that these type of rituals are, at the very
least, psychologically purging. So no harm done either way.
Evaluating your own behavior can be helpful too. Asking
why a person might be doing something to you, might lead you to
making some changes of your own. The results might include better
interpersonal relationships or leadership skills. Take the
time to learn from each experience. Again, it is important to be
proactive as opposed to reactive. No, I am NOT saying attack someone
before they attack you. Geesh! I am saying that if you see a potential
problem in the works, try to find a way to defuse it BEFORE it blows
up.
One final question about psychic attacks - Do you
really want to spend all of your time and energy on people who would
do nasty stuff to you? In these situations you are giving
them your time, energy and power through preoccupation, worry and
obsessivness. Don't do it. Don't give away your power. They can
"win" without lifting a finger or a magick wand. In the end it is
you who must be responsible for your own actions or reactions.
And Before I Forget....
Everything doesn't have to revolve around magick.
Working on the mundane level is at least, if not more, important
than working on the magickal level. I have more to say on
this, and on the ethics of magick. But I will save that for another
essay.
