The Enchantment of an Old World Witch

Every culture has a witch.

Maybe it’s an old hag who concocts delectable potions to lure lost children or flies on a broomstick through the moonlit night. Maybe it’s a grumpy crone with a face full of moles in a Miyazaki film.

Whether in Salem, Massachusetts or Western Africa, every community has had to deal with its fair share of witches.

Threatening witches may be, they were historically connected to a deep inner knowledge in Slavic countries. Peasants in Russia and neighboring regions relied on village sorceresses for solutions in times of hardship. Plus, Russian people were deeply superstitious. Witchcraft in the old days consisted of earth magic. For instance, the process of gathering herbs affected their success, such as the location of the sun at the time of harvesting.

Unless your family comes from Slavic roots, you may have never heard of the spooky (but popular and sometimes comical) Baba Yaga.

Baba Yaga is the central witch in these Slavic tales. Baba Yaga can fly. She has a broomstick but she also uses her giant mortar (mortar and pestle) to zoom across the forest floor. She tucks up in the vessel and uses the pestle as a rudder. One can sense that she is near because a chilly wind starts blowing, leaves eddy through the air, and the trees groan in anticipation.

Baba Yaga is fun and a great character because she is not entirely evil. In most Slavic folk tales, she is portrayed as the bad guy. Seeking out Baba Yaga is usually dangerous. Folklore speaks of threatening tales of her deceiving naive children and attempting to cook and devour them! For strangers who were unlucky to lose their way in her deep forest, she tricks them with her magic and provides misleading directions.

In rare cases, but the moments that Baba Yaga shows her special good side, some characters seek her out for her wisdom.

But she is full of dark knowledge. Living in the forest in a hut that walks on chicken legs, she understands the mysteries of nature. The story shows her demanding her servants who represent the natural elemts; the White Horseman, the Red Horseman and the Black Horseman through the powerful words “My Bright Dawn, my Red Sun and my Dark Midnight” because they control daybreak, sunrise, and evening.

One famous story is that of Vasilisa the beautiful. Because Vasilisa confronts her deepest fear and listens to intuition, Baba Yaga enchants her with a gift and a chance for a better life.

Witches are strong symbols of healing and knowledge. If you are wise and respect your intuition you will be rewarded.

Do you have a favorite witch story? How do these powerful woman of the forest inspire you?

Please comment and read more at PsychicReadingsbyRonn.com. Follow me on Twitter and Facebook. I’m always happy to schedule a phone reading.