Learn witchcraft spells to protect yourself from ghosts, pagan gods demanding human sacrifice and Death itself.
It really is kind of effed-up what English teachers sic upon impressionable young minds. I read Shirley Jackson’s short story “The Lottery” when I was 15, and it has stuck with me ever since. I was intrigued by the idea of a modern town ritually sacrificing one of its members, based on a pagan tradition so far in the past they’ve simply ceased to question it. And the final scene, where even the poor woman’s own son is given pebbles to help stone his mother to death, shook me to the core.
There’s a similar type situation in this roundup of Supernatural monsters. And we’ll also meet Death himself.
“Symptoms of ghostly possession can include oily skin, rashes, feeling like your eyes are being pulled inside, migraines, the sensation of being strangled, loss of appetite (or increased appetite), tics and miscarriages.”
There were only two people posing for this pic!
Apparently, ghostly possession is way more common than we think
S1 E10: “Asylum”
Monster: Ghost
Where it’s from: All over the world. About 30% of the world’s population is possessed by ghosts, according to the Spiritual Science Research Foundation, which I’m sure is totally legit.
Description: This particular spirit possesses people and feeds off their rage.
Encountering a ghost? Don’t panic — we’ve got you covered
What it does: Symptoms of ghostly possession can include oily skin, rashes, feeling like your eyes are being pulled inside, migraines, the sensation of being strangled, loss of appetite (or increased appetite), tics and miscarriages. In this particular case, those possessed turn murderous and then suicidal.
How to defeat it: A rifle loaded with rock salt can repel the ghost. Salt has a long history of protective properties.
To fully destroy the ghost and restore those who are possessed to themselves, Dean and Sam Winchester have to find the original corpse and burn it.
That scarecrow could come to life with the murderous spirit of a pagan god
S1 E11: “Scarecrow”
Monster: Vanir, a pagan Norse god
Where it’s from: Northern Germany and Scandinavia
Freya is the goddess of beauty (and a bit of a slut, turns out)
Freya is also the goddess of war and death
Description: This branch of the Norse gods holds in its ranks Freya, goddess of love, beauty, sex, gold, war and death (busy gal), accused by Loki of having slept with all the elves and gods, including her brothers.
Pagans would offer sacrifices to Freyr, the Norse god of fertility
Freyr’s power over fertility is symbolized by his giant phallus, as depicted in this idol
Speaking of which, her brother Freyr, god of fertility, was a popular guy. People’s well-being and prosperity depended upon him, including bountiful harvests. This was apparently symbolized by his “enormous, erect phallus.”
What it does: Freyr was a frequent recipient of sacrifices, including the celebration of a harvest. Instead of offering up the traditional sacrifice of his favored animal, the boar, the townsfolk in the episode lured one male and one female to their deaths. With the sacrifice, the town assures a good harvest and general happiness.
The personification of this Vanir takes on the form of a living scarecrow, which actually has more of a connection to the Celts and their wicker man.
Julius Caesar wrote about the Gallic practice of burning humans alive in a giant wicker man
This sick ritual was described by none other than Julius Caesar in Book Six of The Gallic War:
“The whole Gallic race is addicted to religious ritual; consequently those suffering from serious maladies or subject to the perils of battle sacrifice human victims. … Some weave huge figures of wicker and fill their limbs with humans, who are then burned to death when the figures are set afire. They suppose that the gods prefer this execution to be applied to thieves, robbers and other malefactors taken in the act, but in default of such they resort to the execution of the innocent.”
How to defeat it: In Norse mythology, Yggdrasil is the mythical tree that connects the nine worlds, which include Asgard, where Thor and his relations live, and Midgard, their term for Earth.
In Norse mythology, the sacred tree Yggdrasil connects the nine worlds
In this episode, there’s a sacred tree that’s tied to the Vanir. Once the Winchester Brothers chopped it down, the god — and his blessings — abandon the village.
Our personification of death as the Grim Reaper began in Ancient Greece
S1 E12: "Faith"
Monster: Reaper
Where it’s from: All over the world, especially the United States and Europe
An old tarot Death card from Germany depicts a reaper
The reaper uses its scythe to chop up bodies
Description: The Grim Reaper is the personification of death. He’s most often depicted as a skeletal figure wearing a black hooded robe and carrying a large scythe. In some parts of Europe, his robe is white.
Ancient Greeks worshiped Thanatos, or Death, who was portrayed as an attractive, bearded man with wings and an extinguished flame (what vivid symbolism!). Departed souls had to pay the ferryman Charon to get across the River Styx into the underworld. Some sources described Charon as a skeletal figure much like today’s Grim Reaper.
What it does: On the show, reapers can stop time — and only their victims can see them coming for them.
How to defeat it: As the altar Sam discovers attests, you can gain control over a reaper with a binding spell.
Poppet Binding Spell
This spell is best worked on a waning or dark moon.
Cut two layers of black cloth in the rough shape of the person or creature you wish to bind and sew together to create a small poppet. Leave part of the head unstitched.
Fill the poppet with earth, a smoky quartz and an amethyst. Also include hair or nail clippings, or a photograph or sample of handwriting of the person you wish to bind.
Create a sacred circle, then take an altar candle and a black candle. Hold the poppet out in front of you and say:
Creature of cloth thou art,
Now creature of flesh and blood you be.
I name you [name of the person or creature you are binding].
No more shall you do me harm,
No more shall you spread false tales,
No more shall you interfere in my life,
Nor in the lives of my loved ones.
By the power of the gods and by my will,
So mote it be.
Draw an invoking pentagram over the poppet.
Now take some black ribbon or wool and begin to wrap the poppet like a mummy, leaving no space unwrapped and say:
I bind your feet from bringing you to harm me.
I bind your hands from reaching out to harm me.
I bind your mouth from spreading tales to harm me.
I bind your mind from sending energy to harm me.
If you continue to do so, let all negative energy be cast directly back at you!
Tie off the ribbon and hold the poppet in front of you. Visualize all the negative energy this person has sent you being cast back at them.
Wrap the poppet in a piece of black cloth and tie with a black ribbon. Say:
Great Mother, I have bound this person
From harming me and my loved ones.
By the powers of three times three,
By Earth and Fire, Air and Sea,
I fix this spell, then set it free,
’Twill give no harm to return on me,
As I will, so mote it be!
Let the candle burn out while the poppet sits at its base.
Then take the poppet and the remains of the candle and bury them in the ground or toss them in the ocean. Walk away without looking back.
Now, it’s not always possible to get nail clippings and the like from your enemy (does Death even have fingernails?!), so this spell from Free Witchcraft Spells might work better. It takes some time; so hopefully you can avoid the reaper in the meantime!
Black Candle Binding Spell
Anoint a black candle with sandalwood oil while you concentrate on the person or creature you want to get out of your life.
Wrap a piece of black thread around the candle until you use the whole length, then tie it tightly.
Repeat this, with a piece of black yarn. Then, on top of that, wind around a piece of rough twine of the same length. The exact lengths of the cords don’t matter — just use the same for all three. About 18 inches works well.
Light the candle, and let it burn out completely. Try to do this spell in the evening, letting the candle burn down overnight. Keep it somewhere safe and flameproof because the strings might catch fire as the candle burns down. I’ll burn candles in a small cauldron for my peace of mind.
You can try, but there really is no escaping death
Give it a go, but let’s face it: If your time has come, Death will find you. Have the Final Destination movies taught us nothing? –Wally
