Kitchen Witch;
Kitchen witchery is a unique form of solitary witchcraft, which honors the mundane in life and finds sacredness in every day, simple acts. The kitchen witch finds pleasure and meaning in cooking especially, but also knows the secrets of making housework magical and turning the garden into a source of healing and wonder. Kitchen witches, as the name suggests, are most likely to be found in the kitchen. But it is not all about hubble bubble on the stove; there is much to be learned from the ways of the kitchen witch, for theirs is an ancient, traditional magic that honors the goddess in her many forms.
There are several forms of ‘natural’ witchcraft, the most commonly known being that of the hedgewitch. Cottage witchery, green witchery, garden witchery - all follow similar traditional paths that draw on the sacred magic of nature. Kitchen witchcraft is unique, however, in that it makes even the most simple and bland of chores a sacred act, and by doing so, honoring the goddess. This is a Goddess path that truly finds the Goddess everywhere. The following aspects usually form the basis of the kitchen witch’s path:
* Magical cooking
* Completing household tasks with joy
* Honoring the goddess, and keeping a kitchen altar and/or goddess shrine
* Simple, natural magic such as weather lore, ribbon magic, divination and candle magic
* Honoring nature
* Creating and maintaining a magical garden
* Attuning to the cycle of nature
* Being adept in arts and crafts, including traditional and dying crafts
The way of the kitchen witch is sometimes looked down upon by other witches or Wiccans, because she does not practice formally or create structured ritual for working her ‘simple’ magic. A solitary craft, usually self-taught and self-initiated, unless passed down within the family, is preferred to a coven or formal initiation. But is this not witchcraft in its most natural form? Kitchen witchery follows the tradition of the wise women of the Burning Times, who kept their herbal remedies and magic-making subtle and discreet. Kitchen witches connect with an ancient, primeval power that is inherent in all of us.
The kitchen witch recognizes that food is sacred and life-giving. Unlike many modern folk, she does not see cooking as a chore, or something to be done as quickly as possible to get out of the way. Food is life, and part of the balance and cycle of nature. By nurturing our bodies, we honor the Earth, the life-giving goddess, and by creating a sacred act of cooking; giving thanks for what we eat; we show our appreciation for what we have, and respect for the living land.
"When you take the time to put meals together from the basic ingredients, you have a magical opportunity at hand. You can infuse every dish with intent and will. A meal can stop being something you dump out of a can, and start being a ritual in and of itself. When you take time to prepare something with your own hands, that lends it sacredness, and will make you want to spend time savoring it with your family, rather than just snarling it down on your way out the door to soccer practice. By changing the way you view food, its preparation and its consumption, you can craft some practical magic at its simplest level."
