What is a White Witch? Tips to the Beginners' Practice in Benevolent Magic
Updated by Jaime Netzer
Here at Cratejoy, we're head over heels for green witchery , kitchen witchcraft , and all things spiritual. When we launched our subscription box marketplace years ago, we noticed a trend: the witch is back, baby.
The New York Times published a piece in October of 2019 titled "When Did Everybody Become a Witch?" . The #witchesofinstagram hashtag has more than 5 million posts associated with it on social media. The coven became the new well-being squad. According to The Atlantic , a 2014 Pew Research Center report suggested that the United States’ adult population of pagans and Wiccans was about 730,000 — on par with the number of Unitarians. And while magick has been on the rise for some time, we have perhaps never had a stronger need for white witchcraft than we do right now. Let us explain.
What is a White Witch?
White witches practice "white magic," aiming to do good for the world and greater community. And as The Atlantic points out in their April 2020 article "Why Witchcraft is on the Rise," witchcraft traditionally rises in popularity as faith in institutions -- and establishment ideas -- plummet, while instability rises. Given the still current pandemic, not to mention broader social forces, we're currently living through one of the least stable periods in American history. It is perhaps no surprise, then, that a growing number of witches want to practice white magic, also often referred to as natural magic.
White magic is practiced through healing, blessing, charms, incantations, prayers, and songs. A white witch is a good witch: think Glenda, not Evillene (better known as the Wicked Witch of the West). A white witch uses practical magic aimed toward the greater good, a modern witch with noble aims.
If you're interested in white magic or any other kind of witchcraft, a good place to start your investigation is always a witch's guide. And while there are podcasts and Google searches aplenty to guide your questions from tarot to love spells to crystal healing, we know it can seem overwhelming. We've gathered a few ideas to spark your white witchcraft imagination—so that you can start your modern-day journey into pagan practices like Wicca (or just on your own!) as a white witch.
The Difference Between a White Witch and a Black Witch
Consider white and black witchcraft as two sides of the coin: light and darkness. Traditionally, black witchcraft or black magic refers to the use of power for evil or malicious purposes. White witches focus on the benevolent greater good. In "White Witches and Black Magic: Ethics and Consumerism in Contemporary Witchcraft," author Douglas Ezzy notes that modern white witches often dabble in the black magic that is consumer Capitalism without using those powers for the consumer good.
The term “Black Witch” can also refer to the skin color of the witch. In popular culture, television shows, and movies, witches have mostly been perceived as white women, and when Black witches are cast, they are usually placed in roles depicting evil tendencies.
However Black witches are changing the narrative of Black witchcraft, with new stories such as “JuJu” which is available on Amazon Prime, and “Spell” which can be watched on the Roku Channel.
How to Get Started as a White Witch
1. Start Your Healing Crystal Journey
It's always a relief to have all the tools needed for enlightenment delivered right to your doorstep. Try Awakening in a Box to support you as you strengthen your connection with the universe. They will bring you healing and positive vibes every month with crystals picked intuitively just for you and products designed to aid you on your path toward enlightenment.
Some of the best tools to get started are magical crystals, and for those, you need not look any further than Enchanted Crystal , which offers hand-selected and carefully curated crystals and stones sourced from all over the world.
2. Indulge in Self Care and Ritual
As your own intuition gets stronger and you develop a sacred space for your practice, it's time to do some self-reflection and practice rituals and apothecary to strengthen your skills in intuition, psychic ability, and manifestation. The Divine Feminine includes everything you need such as hand made dual-purpose (mundane and magickal) ritual wellness apothecary items, altar wares like washes, sweeps, candles, bath bombs, soaps, glamour magick kits, herbal tinctures, oxymels, gem & floral essences, hair serums, foot scrubs, and many other made-from-scratch items.
The only way to spread joy and kindness to others is to start with yourself first.
3. Participate Meaningfully and Charitably
There are other options to satisfy your white witchcraft desires for good, too: the Anchor of Hope box offers beautiful jewelry made by refugees and survivors of trafficking, while the Earthlove box supports a variety of environmental conservation causes! The white witch is almost surely a conservationist, so the Life's a Wave beach subscription box might also prove a great fit — proceeds support ocean conservation, specifically.
No matter which cause you choose, or which spaces you smudge with sage, it's important to remember that for most neo-pagans, witchcraft is about being more in tune with the world around us than is typical. White witchcraft takes that connection a step further and intentionally uses it for good in the world. And as circumstances remain unprecedented and our future remains unknowable, white witchcraft might be just the thing to provide a bit of respite and hope for an uncertain world.
