Sunday, October 31, 2010

Make a Witch Bottle this Samhain…Halloween by Cherie Desues


A friend reminded me lately of a very ancient way to draw in and trap forever the evil lingering outside your door. This wicca device is the witch bottle and making one can protect you against evil spirits and attack by magick or from black witches and their spells against you.

Traditionally, a witch bottle was a jug or flask. They were made of stoneware or green, amber or blue glass depending on the available ingredients of the witch. The stoneware was glazed with salt with evil looking bearded men to ward off evil. A replica of any earlier time, of a tyrant who killed witches.

Historically, the witch's bottle was filled with the maker's urine, hair or nail clippings and red thread from sprite traps. In more recent years, witch's have filled their bottles with protection herbs like rosemary, nails, needles and pins, and red wine.

The bottle has always been buried at the farthest corner of the maker's property, beneath the hearth, or placed in a secret spot in the house, like inside the walls. After being buried or hidden, the bottle captures evil by impaling it with the sharp objects, drowning the negative energy with the wine, and sending the evil packing from the rosemary.

Seawater or earth may be used if you know what kind of evil is looking for you. Other types of Witch bottles contain sand, stones, knotted threads, feathers, shells, herbs, flowers, salt, vinegar, oil, coins, or ashes. A similar magickal talisman to protect yourself when you travel is the "lemon and pins" charm.

When you've captured an evil within the confines of the witch's bottle, cast it into a fire and when it explodes, the spell is broken and the evil dies.

Bottled spells date back hundreds of years to Elizabethan England, when witches were in vast numbers and not always conjuring "white magick". In ancient buildings, people find witch bottles buried under the stones of the fireplace, under the floorboards, and plastered inside walls.

As long as the witch bottle remains buried, hidden and unbroken, the spell is strong. The tradition has it's origins in the 16th century. In very ancient times witch bottles were made of stone and were filled with rusty nails, urine, thorns, hair, menstrual blood, and pieces of glass, wood, and bone.

To make a witch bottle today, choose ingredients that will benefit you the most. Seal the bottle with wax to make sure the contents stay within and bury or hide your witch bottle.

20 comments:

Annie Nicholas said...

I found this to be one of our most interesting blogs this weekend. Thanks, Cherie.

Judy said...

This was a great post!! I love hearing about the spells, potions, how they are done, and what they entail. Thanks!!


Happy Halloween everyone!!

Judy
magnolias_1@msn.com

Maria D. said...

Interesting post- a lot of historical info. Thanks

junegirl63(at)gmail(dot)com

Jennifer Mathis said...

wow cool post but eww on the traditional filled with things :)

meandi09@yahoo.com

JeanMP said...

That was really interesting, had never heard of this before. Interesting to find out bits of history.

skpetal at hotmail dot com

ladydi6497 said...

Thanks for the history. I love the idea of bottling evil and hiding it.

dbarskey(at)hotmail(dot)com

elaing8 said...

Interesting post. I never heard of one of these before.

elaing8(at)netscape(dot)net

Tabitha Blake said...

Wow! Very interesting. I love learning about old beliefs and as a paranormal writer stuff like this fascinates me. This would work well in a paranormal story.

Rachel Green said...

I've always put a witch bottle in the houses I've lived in

Carlie Angelus said...

I have never heard of this! I love it. Wonder if I could make one of these. We are in a fairly new house and I'm wondering if it would be nice to leave behind?

I always love a great lesson like this one and learning new things is a plus. Thanks for sharing!

--Carlie
carlieangelus@gmail.com

Lil said...

I have never heard of a witch's bottle. It certainly is fascinating. Thanks for the informative post.

Cathy M said...

Very interesting post, and something I haven't heard about before.


caity_mack at yahoo dot com

LORETTA CANTON said...

That is exactly what I need.


loretta

lbcanton@verizon.net

annalisa said...

What a great post! Fascinating information! :)

TOPSAIL246(at)aol(dot)com

The Scarf Princess said...

Very intriguing post! Do the Winchester boys know about this?

joderjo402 AT gmail DOT com

*yadkny* said...

That's an awesome post! Might have to try this:)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
yadkny@hotmail.com

Kate Richards said...

Really interesting Cherie. I tend to do so many of my spells in odd places, like at my desk at work, where I have a few moments but not too many ingredients at hand. It's great to have a focus like this, and the history is so interesting.

Linda Henderson said...

Fascinating information, I'd never heard of this before. Witches are one of my favorite paranormal characters.

seriousreader at live dot com

Rae M. said...

Cool post! Although I'm going to have to be honest, I'd have to pass on the urine!

Thanks and Happy Halloween

rachaelgwen(at)yahoo(dot)com

Kim S. said...

Happy Halloween everyone!

What a truly interesting post Cherie! Thanks!

thewildtwo @ gmail [dot] com