How to Choose Spell Correspondences: A Wiccan Guide to Plant Magick
Wicca is an earth-based religion, and as such, Wiccans use plants extensively. We use plants in practical magick. We use plants in ceremonial magick. We decorate our altars with plants, and we burn plants for cleansing and purification. With plants, we make charmed sachets, bouquets, and wreaths. From plants, we mix magickal salves and oils, and we brew healing herbal teas. We bring fresh plants into a room to affect the space’s vibration, and we use plants outside our homes for blessings and protection.
The use of plants, flowers, and herbs to influence our environments and increase a spell’s effectiveness is simply known as plant magick. The plants used in magick are chosen according to their correspondence. A correspondence is a similarity or connection between the spell ingredient being used and the outcome we are trying to achieve. This is also the basis for sympathetic magick- the concept that “like” attracts “like.”
Witches (and Wiccans) throughout the centuries have always used plant correspondences to cast magick spells. So much so, that the common image of a “witch” as an herbal healer has been ingrained into the psyche of modern society. This is because, historically, it was Witches that possessed knowledge of the plants native to their towns and villages. In fact, before the rise of Catholicism, the terms: cunning folk, wise one, folk healer, and medicine (wo)man were synonymous with the term witch! Individuals would travel far and wide to seek a Witch’s wisdom and knowledge of magickal spells to heal injuries and illness, to recover lost or stolen objects, to bless the land’s fertility and livestock, or to gain protection against future misfortunes.
Witches and Wiccans gained their knowledge of plants’ magickal correspondences and healing properties through a variety of methods. These various methods include: mythologies and ancient tales; plant structure and shape; plant colors and blossoms; plant characteristics; plant energies and aura fields; and, of course, by the accumulated wisdom and experience of their predecessors.
Regardless of the ancient culture, new initiates into the magickal and healing arts nearly always began their studies learning through oral traditions. These ancient tales incorporated stories regarding plants and their metaphysical and medicinal properties- associations that even modern medicine and science can validate. For example, Egyptian and Greek mythologies associate the red poppy flower with pain, death, and grieving. And while the narcotic, opium, produced by the red poppy does relieve pain, it is also highly addictive and responsible for tens of thousands of deaths every year. In Greek mythology, prickly lettuce is associated with impotence. In modern medicine, compounds found in wild lettuce, as well as other high-nitrate leafy greens, are used to treat erectile dysfunction. In Norse mythology, the God Baldor is killed with an arrow made of mistletoe. Science has validated mistletoe’s deadly properties, especially the berries which contain cyanide.
Witches also used the structure and shape of plants to determine a plant’s correspondence. For example, any plant with a natural star formation was considered spiritually sacred and physically healing. As it turns out, an apple cut horizontally reveals at its core, the shape of a star. No need to repeat the age-old adage confirming the scientific evidence of certain compounds found in apples that may cure a variety of illnesses including some cancers. Likewise, star anise, from the evergreen tree Illicium verum, has been revered for its protective and healing properties. Modern science can confirm that star anise contains compounds that are antioxidant, antimicrobial, antifungal, and anti-inflammatory. In Wiccan tradition, a plant or herb that is shaped like a body part or organ was used as a correspondence for the maladies associated with that body part or organ. An example of this is the knobby-shaped ginger root, which resembles intestines. Today, the compounds in ginger are used to improve digestion, ease stomach pain, and relieve nausea and motion sickness.
The colors and blossoms of plants were also used to determine the plant’s magickal correspondences. Flowers with a deep, red hue have always been associated with the Goddesses of Love and Beauty and used as a correspondence for intimate, passionate relationships. They were also used to make beauty products. Chamomile, having a sun-burst shape of white petals circling a bright-yellow center, has always been associated with Sun Gods. And used as a correspondence for the “hot humors” (fever and inflammation) of the body. Orchids, whose flowers resemble female genitalia, have long been incorporated into fertility rites.
Plants are also chosen for magical correspondences based upon their observable characteristics. For example, oak trees can endure incredibly strong storms and still remain standing. They also happen to be the tree most likely to be struck by lightning. Therefore, oak trees correspond to the patriarch of a pantheon associated with: wisdom, strength, power, protection, thunder and lightning. Oak can be incorporated into spells for strength and protection, as well as spells associated with rain and storms. Willow trees remain flexible during powerful tempests, and even though they may lose a great deal of their branches, willows re-grow with great vigor! They also happen to have blooms that resemble the tail of a cat. Goddesses of Magick are often accompanied by feline familiars, so willow trees correspond to the crone matriarch of a pantheon associated with: wisdom, death, rebirth, and magick. Willow can therefore be incorporated into spells for any of those meanings.
Energies and the aura fields of plants are also used to determine a plant’s magickal and medicinal correspondence. An aura is an electromagnetic emanation of energy that surrounds all people, places, objects, and- of course- all plants. This electromagnetic field is composed of thermal energy, infrared energy, electrostatic, electrical ions, and low-frequency radiation, all of which can be measured by scientific instrumentation. And although invisible to most people, auras do radiate colors.
In Wicca, we believe that all things that follow the grand cycle of life, death, and rebirth contain a spirit within, and we believe that it is that living spirit that generates the aura. For us, the aura is not merely an extension of the physical- it is a being’s true essence, and it reflects all subtle life energies. With practice, experienced spiritual practitioners can see the colors of a plant’s aura (spirit). They can feel the energy waves being emitted and they can even listen to the spirit of a plant and communicate with it! It was through this spiritual sight and communication that some plant’s magickal and medicinal correspondences were first deciphered.
Throughout the centuries, Wiccan knowledge and wisdom of plant correspondences has been passed down from generation to generation in one form or another, written or spoken. And while the ancient Witch had the advantage of spiritual sight and communication, the modern-day Wiccan now has all the advantages of the internet! A quick search for specific plants associated with a particular type of spell will easily guide you. For example, if you seek to create a spell designed to attract money, one would simply search “plants and herbs associated with money.” The internet will generate a plethora to choose from.
Florist shops, garden centers, grocery stores, health food stores, and farmers’ markets are great places to source plants and herbs for your magickal rites. Even better, you can source your plants by learning to identify the plants native to your area and collect them yourself! Or you can source your own plants by growing them, even if it’s only a small plant grown indoors.
Plant magick is crucial and extensive in The Craft, and a strong knowledge of plant correspondences is vital to all practicing Wiccans. With today’s information superhighway, obtaining that knowledge has never been easier. However, we should by all means still learn, practice and incorporate the traditional methods of deciphering a plant’s correspondence. By doing so, we infuse our lives, and our spells, with the magickal energies of the plant kingdom, and in turn, develop a closer relationship with the spirit realm and our Goddess, The Great Creatress of All Living!
– The Goddess Kingdom© 2023
