Many misconceptions surround witchcraft and the people who practice it. In the popular, ever-changing imagination, witchcraft is either a dark art filled with power-mad crones seeking eternal life and beauty, or a toy for children. The people who consider magic thus often don't realize the countless people with ordinary lives and jobs, but practice witchcraft privately, either as part of a religious experience (such as those associated with followers of Wiccan religion)

Stripped of all extra qualifiers, witchcraft is a process that its practitioners use in order to gain a measure of control over unpredictable events that ordinary skills cannot do. Witchcraft has been practiced for eons. From Hammerabi's tablets of Mesopotamia, we can tell that it existed during the earliest recorded civilizations. It was used for everything from helping crops to grow to healing the sick and bartering with the gods of their religions. Over the course of history, humans invented technological means of doing many of the same things—means which could be done by anyone, regardless of whether or not they had the special talent for magic or even knew of its existence. Furthermore, witchcraft was pushed further into the shadows by certain religions, which suppressed its practice in order to increase its own influence.

In olden times, the practitioners of witchcraft were called witches by some, but they were also referred to as “wise men” or even “wise women.” They were often respected community members for their abilities. “Witch doctors” existed as a term to refer to these faith healers long before the term came to be associated with African and African diaspora witches. Witchcraft was passed down from practitioner to practitioner within the traditional structure of master and apprentice. As a result, magic tended to stay within easily broken lines of descent, not necessarily related to blood descent. This meant that the average person knew very little about magick —an ignorance that bred fear and distrust. As the power of witchcraft was greatly respected, those who abused their powers were punished severely, both in Hammerabi's time and after. It was, in a sense, the only way to control the power of magic, which could not be understood or controlled by everyone.

There are many aspects of the practice of witchcraft, and the number of aspects has only grown with time, as magical practices from countries all over the world became incorporated into each other's traditions. Witchcraft practices from Europe, the Middle East and Asia became intermingled first, with Africa and the Americas following after their discoveries. From Africa came the African diaspora forms of witchcraft, as slaves were brought over to the Americas.

Witchcraft Spells

Witchcraft spells can involve many elements. They may include a chant used to focus the mind or a ritual dance. They can be carried out by one participant or many. They can involve the use of ritual ingredients to form protection charms, which is known as “talisman magic.” Witchcraft often involves an appeal to gods (Wiccan or otherwise), but belief in these same gods is not necessary, only belief in the magic itself and your ability to connect with the supernatural world. Christians other monotheistic believers can practice witchcraft, although it is heavily discouraged by the religion (this should be no surprise given the long history of religious warfare on the planet). Christian witches often choose to appeal to saints or angels during invocations of magic, instead of the pagan gods, to avoid idolatry. The “proper” practices of witchcraft, as well as the desires of the spell caster, all vary greatly depending on the individual tradition and practitioner.