:aether_spirit: WITCH CHALLENGE - Spirit & Aether Magick

[tracyS]

@Greenbriar Wonderful entry

[Amethyst]

@tracyS

@Amethyst I like this, I’m thinking of borrowing this from you please.

Go right ahead, like I said, I got it from an old Spells Almanac. It just seemed perfect for this week!

[Jeannie1]

@dan3
Your poem gave me goosebumps and I feel the feelings and I love how you can use the writing as a tool tool to manipulate and change the course!
@Artemisa
I love your ritual and will probably use this one thank you so much for sharing!!
So as you guys know, I wasn’t really feeling good today so I really didn’t get too much done, but I did give a small offering to Hecate and Hermes for healing!
I did a bit of art and am using a wheel for change

I did a small meditation and did a prayer to Hecate for Deipnon.
Here is an offering
•Smudge stick Sage
•Cornbread/ Chlli
•Bee Candle
• Art work
• Bay Leaf
•Prayer I’m still working on
•Pendulum Divination
• Washed hands
•Kurnips Ritual / Thyme Cleansing Ritual

My prayer Incantation
Processing: image.jpg…
Jeannie

[dan3]

@Jeannie1

@dan3
Your poem gave me goosebumps and I feel the feelings and I love how you can use the writing as a tool tool to manipulate and change the course!

Thank you! That was very nice.

Also, thanks to @tracyS , @Mystique , @georgia and @BryWisteria - it feels good and I needed a little pick-me-up this morning!

[jennifer1983]

Challenge entry

For my challenge entry, I want to talk about “bayie”

What is bayie?

We are visiting akan mythology once more. Bayie (sometimes spelled bayi or bayifoɔ in plural) is sometimes likend to the magic spark. The flicker that lives in you, awakening your spiritual journey. But bayie is much more than that. Bayie is the inate power, the fire that lives within you. It is your gift and sometimes your birthright. It is usually passed down by ancestors but can also be given or awakend by an elder. It can also be taken in by food or drink. But a lot of times bayie already lives within you. If you are part of this community, it is very possible that you bayie called you upon your craft.

Bayie is sometimes used as the akan word for witchcraft but it is important to note that the craft works differently in western african culture.

It can mean:

• A person (usually secretly) gifted with spiritual power
• The act of wielding that power, often in the spiritual or astral realm
• A spiritual condition that can be inherited, initiated, or transmitted

As such Bayie could represent:

• The Shadow Self – spiritual power that must be understood and honored, not feared
• A Rite of Passage – learning to wield magic with integrity
• A Bloodline Gift – inherited strength from matriarchs or ancestors

Bayie is your raw spiritual potential. You decide if it will heal or harm.

The plural of bayifo (witch) is abayifoɔ, though the term Bayie can also refer to the force or collective of witches

How do You Get Bayie?

You can be:

• Born with it (especially through maternal lines)
• Given it through spiritual inheritance
• Initiated by spirits, dreams, or trauma
• Recognized by an elder, spiritualist, or priest/ess

Some people are unaware of their bayie until they start dreaming, speaking prophecies, or attracting spiritual disturbances.

While still very much in the patriarchy, Akan culture does work through the maternal line. That can be as “simple” is spiritual gifts, wisdom and secrets to actual inheritances. As such, bayie is oftentimes linked through the maternal line. But bayie does not link itself to a sex. So whether you are female, male or enby. You may possess bayie and you may “gift” it to an ofspring.

I think here is the right place to note, that while “bayie” is a deeply akan concept, it is not inherently a closed practice. I would still be careful of worshing deities so you do not accidently try to invoke Sasabonsam cause it sounds cool. That would be bad!

Bayie is often not “taught” in the traditional way. Instead, there is a multitude of ways you can aquiere bayie:

Mode of Acquisition	Description
Inherited (Bloodline)	Passed maternally, usually from grandmother or mother. A baby born with a caul or born breech may be marked.
Spiritual Awakening	Dreams of flying, walking backwards, or fighting animals. Emotional trauma can “activate” latent Bayie.
Forest Initiation	Spiritual beings (like mmoatia, forest dwarves) grant it during sleep or trance.
Passed in Food or Drink	Bayie can be given through a ritual meal — especially in rivalry or initiation.
By Choice	One may consciously agree to spiritual initiation — through danger, sacrifice, or a spirit pact.

Bayie may not be evil. But it is powerful.

Bayie is a multi layered concept. For once people who hold bayie may still be feared. In fact, if you want to discover and work with you bayie, you are encouraged to do shadow work and confront what may scare you yourself. At the same time, traditional priest and priestesses (or Komfo), who are indeed sought out and revered usually or most of the time hold bayie. The more powerful the komfo, the more powerful the bayie. But komfo have learned to work with, worship, harness and confrot their bayie. They have learned to use their bayie to heal, to comfort, to give .

You might say that Komfo use bayie within the respectable boundaries of ritual and practices. But both bayifo and komfo can be good, evil or neutral. In fact a “Nokware Bayifoɔ” – the true witch is spiritually powerful, morally guided, and deeply respected, though often feared by those who don’t understand their depth. Knowledge has always been power. And the people who hold said knowledge have always been feared.

Types of Bayie

Bayie exists on a spectrum of morality. In Akan belief, what matters is how you use your power. Intend is everything.

Type	Name	Nature	Use
Destructive Witchcraft	Abonsam Bayie	Dark, feared	Curses, spiritual attack, draining life force
Protective Witchcraft	Nokware Bayie (True Witch)	Secret but moral	Protecting family, healing, hidden justice
Inherited Witchcraft	Bayie Afa Owo	Passed down	Lineage-based power (often female line)
Initiated Bayie	Bayie Asuo	Spirit-granted	Through dreams, forest spirits, divinations

But is bayie only akan/ african?

No. While, as mentioned before, bayie is an akan concept, bayie can be found in non african people. But if you want to explore bayie, please remember that bayie as a concept, and the language and practice is akan and should be seen and remembered as such.

Still, while bayie is akan, the concept is universal. So even if you have never left your non akan place you may still possess bayie. You just might call it something else.

If you are in yoruba traditions, you may call it Aje (oh! that sounds familiar ), if you are from Kongo, you may have heard the term kindoki before. And if we bring it back to the most widely known witchcraft, the european one, you may have heard from a witches mark or hedge riding. It can also be called seers fire if you follow celtic beliefs.

Wait hold on! A witches mark? Isn’t that e deeply problematic way of persecuting witches?

Yes! But so was knowing not to eat every mushroom.

But it is also believed that the gift is given by your ancestors. And that this act of giving might leave a mark on your body. So a birthmark can very well be a sign of your bayie.

So Can You Work with Bayie if You’re Not Akan?

Yes — if you approach it with respect, clarity, and guidance.

Here’s how to be respectful

• Know that Bayie is alive, not just an idea. Bayie is deep within us.
• Work with your own ancestors first. While deity work is exciting, your ancestors gave you your bayie in the first place. Do not disrespect your (great, great great…) granny
• Don’t try to “claim” Akan culture — but rather, listen to what your blood and soul say While I have akan ancestry, akan culture is not mine. I exist as a part of it.
• Let your spirits tell you what they call your power. If you are more experienced you can work and request more power. But you ancestors tell you what is what.
• If you’re called to learn from Akan ways, do it with spiritual consent (dreams, omens, or a real call)

Think of Bayie like a word for something your spirit already knows — even if your body comes from somewhere else.

Interesting! But how do I know??

There are many signs that point to bayie. It can be part of your birth, like a twin birth, a breech birth, a caul or being born during an important astrological event (eclipse, full moon etc.)

There may be ancestreal signs, like “the aunt who knew things.” or ties to akan culture.

If you had an imaginary friend as a child it may point to strong divinational ties to bayie.

Symptoms of an Awakened or Active Bayie

If you carry Bayie energy, you may notice:

• Sudden psychic gifts (visions, dreams, gut instincts)
• Feeling spiritually “full” or overheated at night
• Difficulty sleeping, spiritual visitations, or waking at 3 AM
• Knowing things you weren’t taught
• Feeling drawn to the woods, bones, or graveyards
• People either gravitate toward you—or fear you
• Magical “blowback” when angry (people fall sick, arguments spiral)

Ok. So I might hold bayie. Now what.

Bayie, like any power, likes to be recognized. So acknowledge it. Out loud if you want to. Acknowledge that you carry power within you.

Second, learn. Learn about your Nsamanfo (ancestors). Who could have given you the gift of bayie? Connecting with your ancestors will help you with learning the nature of your bayie.

Remember: No one walks without their Nsamanfo.

After you studied and acknowledged give your bayie a place to breathe. Even a black candle (remember that bayie is deeply rooted in shadow work) can be a good start.

Respect it.
Bayie is gained through inheritance, blood, soul or contract. Do not disrespect it. Disprespecting yourself is disrespecting bayie. The more you face your truth, the more your Bayie strengthens.
The more you run, the more it causes chaos.

I felt drawn to my bayie because european traditional witchcraft never really felt 100% right. I may have been because I did not connect with my bayie. And maybe that may help you too.

I used AI to make my tables look like tables since Microsoft word hates me.

[dan3]

@jennifer1983

Microsoft word hates me.

First, interesting submission! Thanks!

I have a love hate relationship with Word. One issue is that everything is adjustable and it assumes I know that so it gives a default that no one would use and gives it a name that I can’t find in the menus.. I downloaded LibreOffice and it is similar but it is a lot cheaper (free). I still have Word on two of my machines (I bought the single use with no updates) but I think LibreOffice will work fine for my current 'puter.

I’ve been using AI for formatting, too.

[georgia]

@jennifer1983

Magical “blowback” when angry (people fall sick, arguments spiral)

… Businesses which mistreat you go out of business.
I relate to so much of this! Thank you for this superb post!

[jennifer1983]

@georgia if you relate, you might have bayie

[georgia]

I have not traced my lineage all the way back to Africa, but there are theories which my go further than I am aware. Theory is some of the Celts may trace back to Phoenicians via China, and some of the Lithuanians may trace to the House of Levi, which may put me squarely in Egypt. There doesn’t seem to be much proof, though.

[jennifer1983]

Well, as I said, while bayie itself is part of the akan mythology, the power is not. It is a spiritual essence, a power that lies within you. If you want to find parallels to celtic mythology, you might call it Awen (divine inspiration), Draíocht (magic), or An Dá Shealladh (Second Sight). You might also draw a connection with being fey-touched.

Exploring the connections between bayie and similar concepts of other mythologies could fill a whole book. But you don’t need to have akan heritage to have bayie.

[BryWisteria]

This is the last day to join the challenge

A big thank you to all those who have shared their aethereal spirit magick with the coven so far

This is your heads up that the challenge is approaching its end. It will close to entries tomorrow: Tuesday, July 1 at 7:00 AM ET (Eastern US Time)

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If you haven’t already shared an entry with the coven but would like to join in, this is your friendly reminder that you still have time left to do so.

Blessed Be!

[AIRAM]

SPIRIT – THE AETHER
Challenge Entry
I am the air that is not seen,
the flame that does not burn,
the voice that is not heard,
the shadow that does not disappear.

I am the infinity that fits everywhere,
the silence that fills the world,
the breath of the world,
the soul of the world.

I am the connection of the visible with the invisible,
the bridge between the body and the spirit,
the energy that moves everything,
the essence that unites everything.

I am the aether, the fifth element,
the power that gives life,
the flame that illuminates the darkness,
the love that unites souls.

[celineelise]

Challenge Entry
Luckily I was woken by Remy to go pee in the middle of the night and I realized that I didn’t make my post!

I have been really cultivating my relationship with aether/ spirit since leaving my ex 4 months ago.

I have been listening to guides and allowing them to lead me throughout out my day instead totally being run on self will. I have been mediting for at least 5 minutes a day.
I have been listening to the birds and trying to interpret their messages. Spirit talks to me through nature, also through what is at the thrift store.
Last week I found out a few shitty things about my ex that were helpful so that I could further let them go.

I was furious that they hve been talking shit about me. But I went to the garden to water my plants and next to my plot were Crows wings . That were perfectly separated from the crows body and nothing was left but the wings.
I work with birds alot in my magic and they represent spirt and my ancestors for me.
I asked them if they were for me and i heard yes. I treated them with Borax and salt. I am currently drying them out.
It feels that spirit was pointing me to let go and flying away from the situation and move on. That is what i have been working on for the post week. In the image below there I also so fennel I picked and it looks like a crow!

In many cultures, crows are believed to carry messages from ancestors or the spirit world. They are seen as intermediaries between the physical and spiritual realms, offering guidance or reminders from loved ones who have passed on. (Source)

[BryWisteria]

This challenge is now CLOSED

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A Props and Presents post will soon appear with shout-outs and prize details for everyone who submitted an entry. Please keep an eye on the main page of the forums.

Note : To avoid confusion, this discussion will be locked until the Props and Presents post appears. At that time, this thread will reopen for discussion for a few more days- comments are welcome during this time, but please note that no additional prizes will be given.

Thanks again for joining in the challenge

Blessed be

[BryWisteria]

The Props and Presents award post for this challenge is now live in the forum and badges have been sent to all entrants!

→ Award Post for the Spirit Magick Challenge

Thank you once again to all those who joined the challenge! I hope you enjoy your new badge

While no additional badges will be given out now that the challenge has officially closed, this thread has been reopened for discussion- feel free to comment on the theme, ask questions or reply to entries.