Opening Our Hearts and Minds to the Wise Women

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Wise women have been a part of our history and pop culture throughout time.

The original wise woman was the “witch” or Wiccan practitioner. According to Gerald Gardner, the founder of Wicca, the word “Wicca” has its origins in Scotland and England and means “wise.”

Wise women or “witches” have been portrayed in movies, TV shows, video games, and books throughout history. There are two ways they have been depicted.

The first has been through dehumanizing stereotypes which portrayed them as evil old women who use their magic to harm others. While the Salem witch trials are largely responsible for this negative view, corruption in Christianity set the stage long before.

Prominent was the Church’s disapproval of women who used herbs or were independent thinkers and didn’t conform to the church’s standards for women at that time. Women who were not meek, submissive, and were not easily controlled were seen as threatening.

In the 1960s shows like Bewitched and I Dream of Jeannie changed the way we see witches and witchcraft. In the early 2000s, Charmed featured beautiful, wise witches who used their magic to heal and protect others. Expert witch historians see witches as wise women.

The modern positive view of the wise woman can be attributed to the returning of the Divine Feminine around the world. In the present day, however, you do not have to be a woman to practice these healing arts. You can be any gender.

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Wiccan practitioners can be highly intuitive. They use herbal remedies as one of many tools to heal themselves and others. They use the knowledge and energy of the five elements in their practices.

The knife is used to work with energy and to cut out negative energy. It represents the air element and corresponds with the heart chakra.

 Another tool is the wand. The wise woman uses the wand to work with and direct her own energy.

The wand is made from holly tree wood and represents the element of fire. The chakra associated with fire is the solar plexus.   

The chalice is the next implement in the Wiccan toolbox. It represents the water element and the goddess, who oversees all feminine aspects.

The chalice, corresponding to the sacral chakra, holds water, balances the moon cycle, the different stages of a woman’s life, and the menstrual cycle.

The broom is another item the Wiccan practitioner uses. Many people think of the broom as a travel mode, but the broom is used to sweep away negative energies in the home. The broom can be used for oneself or for others to sweep away negative psychic energies.

The next tool is the pentagram. It represents all five elements, including ether or spirit, and is associated with the throat, third eye, and crown chakras. In movies and TV shows, it has been negatively stereotyped as evil.

In truth, it symbolizes the five elements, as well as the earth. The earth element is associated with the base chakra.

The wise Wiccan practitioner uses the pentagram to cleanse energy. Before the cleanse, a pentagram will be drawn within a circle where people are gathered. This brings the energies of the five elements into focus and allows any negative energies to be released from the circle and the people.

Some wise women use the pentagram as a fashion accessory to destigmatize and normalize it. It is the equivalent of someone wearing a cross. The pentagram can benefit the wearer by strengthening and balancing the chakras and elements.

Reading tarot cards is another tool of the wise woman. Tarot cards reveal the possibilities that are in the universal field. The practitioner can advise the client of potentials in this astral field.

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The wise woman uses astrology to see the patterns of the moon and planets when the client was born and how they affect the client’s life.

Her place of worship, the altar, is not anything sinister, as it has sometimes been portrayed in movies. It is the wise woman’s worship space. Here, she gives thanks to her gods and goddesses and the natural world.  

So, if you see a wise woman, do not be afraid of her. She does not want to hurt you but wants to give you her wisdom and knowledge.

Don’t push her away. Listen, because she might have something that could improve your life in ways you can’t even imagine. You just need to be open to her wisdom.