Demystifying Magickal Correspondences

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Dearest witches, what I have for you today is a little piece of wisdom that, in my humble opinion, should be printed in every book of spells, introductory witchcraft guide, and shared again and again on every internet platform that hosts witchcraft communities. Seriously, I considered giving this article the clickbait title "Llewellyn Worldwide Hates Her for this One Weird Trick!" (J/K, Llewellyn staff, I love you, please publish me someday.)

The secret is this: You can pick your own correspondences.

In case anyone is brand-spanking-new and not aware, correspondences are material (crystals, herbs, spices, animals, etc.) and non-material (colors, numbers, times and days, directions, etc.) spell ingredients associated with certain intentions (wisdom, wealth, love, cleansing, etc.) For a common example: red = love, anger, passion, and so on.

So let me repeat that again: you can pick your own correspondences.

Yes, it's true. It's a little more complicated than just deciding two things connect all willy-nilly (unless you're a Chaos Magician, but I'll cover that in another article), but that about sums up what I'm going to explain in today's article.

I'll break it down like so:

• The Chamomile Dilemma

• Sympathetic Magick & Emotional Backfires

• There Are Exceptions to the Rule

• How to Discover Associations for Yourself

The Chamomile Dilemma

When I was a witchling, I remember reading my first few books and deciding I wanted to memorize correspondence tables. Who doesn't want to be that witch we see in movies who can instantly prescribe the exact herb, crystal, or incense someone needs? "Oh, honey, you're having boyfriend troubles? Stick a rose quartz and a sprig of lavender under your pillow and brew a tea from dandelion root and stir in some honey." How cool would it be to pull that kind of witchery out of your butt for every problem under the sun on command?

My ambitions bigger than any reasonable expectations, I got to work. I pulled every book I had that contained a table of correspondences and magickal properties and started making flash cards to study. (In retrospect, this was highly unrealistic. Do you have any idea how many colors, crystals, stones, herbs, and spices there are in the world? Not to mention looking into planetary magick, number meanings, what all the deities in all the pantheons each oversee, etcetera into infinity.)

I quickly started to notice that not everything was quite matching up in my cross-referencing, and this became very apparent with chamomile.

Book No. 1 said chamomile was good for success. I thought, "Okay. I don't see it because chamomile makes me think of sleepy time tea and relaxation, not ambition and drive. But who am I to question this great, published author?"

Book No. 2 said chamomile was good for peace, relaxation, and luck.

Hm. Okay.

Book No. 3 used chamomile in a spell for... psychic visions?

Then Google--oh boy--Google and its 880,696 results answered me with luck, masculine energy, protection, purification, ambition, feminine energy, success, peace, sleep, wealth, relaxation, psychic awareness, love, attraction, abundance--yooooo, the list goes on! At that point I was thinking that chamomile seemed to correspond with just about every intent a witch could think of and it was maybe some magickal all-in-one industrial-strength ingredient. But if that was the case, why didn't any of my books say so?

I would go on to discover that this dilemma comes up with many, many other items. What is this phenomena and why does it keep happening? I honestly don't know. There are some universal correspondences, true, but I think it's that authors are writing from their own personal experience and perspective and what they've been taught while most don't add the disclaimer that if an ingredient doesn't make sense to you, you can swap it out.

Before you jump ahead to how to do that, keep reading. I need to explain a few other concepts first.

Sympathetic Magick & Emotional Backfires

When looking at the Pagan community in general, I would argue that the main method of magick that we use is sympathetic magick. This is the practice of acting out your will in a symbolic manner in order to manifest it in reality. Examples might include:

• Lighting two candles and slowly moving them toward one another during a spell to attract a lover--the candles symbolize you and your future partner coming together.

• Dressing a candle with herbs, oils, and carvings that represent what you want to manifest and then lighting it in order to "ignite" the desired situation.

• Creating a poppet or doll of yourself and sticking pins in the corresponding site of an infection or illness to "kill" your ailment.

This all falls into the theory that "like attracts like" and we use these small-scale, symbolic plays in a ritual setting in order to get the same thing to play out on the larger-scale of real life. But keep in mind that you fuel your own spell. Even if you are petitioning spirit, it is still your emotion acting as the driving force behind delivering your message and manifestation.

The way we associate symbols in our mind is influenced by a number of things: cultural upbringing, socioeconomic background, region, political beliefs, religious beliefs, life experiences and exposure, and on and on. So we can surmise that just as all those experiences and statuses and combinations thereof are unique to each individual, symbols are just as unique for everyone.

There are some things that are universally agreed upon, like the fact that this ♥ and this <3 are hearts and symbolize love. Neither are shaped like a literal, human heart and modern science tells us that the heart is not an organ that creates or remembers emotions. Yet we have all agreed that <3 and ♥ are hearts and stand for love.

But let's examine another symbol: green for money. Here in the U.S., most of our paper money is tinted green with a bit of beige. Some newer bills have some yellow or pink, but even if you look at cartoons, U.S. paper currency will pretty much always be green. For me, as a 'Murican, green is my go-to color for wealth and money magick.

However, look at the Euro or Yen--so many colors other than green! For a practitioner in a country whose currency is not predominantly green, it may make absolutely no sense to them for a money spell. The color green may make them think of grass, or "green with envy", or The Incredible Hulk. But money? Green may not be the first or strongest association color to come to mind.

In addition, I mentioned before that our intentions and spells are fueled by our emotions. So yes, roses for the most part are pretty much globally associated with love. But consider the witch who hates the smell of roses or has allergies so bad that just being around roses makes them uncomfortable. How is that practitioner supposed to visualize a lovey-dovey meet-cute or rustle up the excitement of new love and butterflies in their stomach if a whiff of their ingredient is making them cringe or causing their eyes to start itching and watering?

There Are Exceptions...

Now, as with most things in life and magick, this rule isn't necessarily all-inclusive and there are some exceptions.

The first isn't so much an exception to the rule as it is an entirely different rule: correspondences aren't the same as offerings. Whether you're evoking a goetic daemon or working with your ancestors, you are actively working with another entity. One with its own likes and dislikes (for the most part). So if you are evoking Bune/Bime or placing out offerings to Hecate on Deipnon, you can't just decide what they want on their behalf. That'd be rude. While it's better to make a simple offering of what you have on hand (or can manage in regards to action or time) than nothing at all, it is a good idea to get to know the Spirit you are working with and discover their preferences.

For an actual exception: it is true that in certain Pagan traditions and occult paths and philosophies, magickal associations are assigned with a reason, passed down through either mentors or texts, and should typically be adhered to. Witchcraft, particularly as a secular, general practice, has no One Book that explains everything to us. That's why many say "there are no rules in witchcraft," because for the most part, witchcraft is more about your intuition and instinct than what a book tells you.

For instance, taking a look at ceremonial magick, Aleister Crowley founded Thelema in the early 1900s and published Liber 777, an entire book of correspondences, in 1909. (Although I have studied some of Crowley's work, I am not a Thelemite and I am aware that I am oversimplifying this so don't come at me.) According to Crowley, there is a cosmic law that his table of correspondences outlines.

So it tracks that if you are a Thelemite, you will likely stick to that table of correspondences because you believe in this cosmic law. But it all comes down to belief. It's still the same theory. At the end of the day, I'm an Agnostic for a reason--that reason being: I know nothing with absolute certainty--so I am willing to admit that an existing cosmic law of correspondences might exist. But in my opinion, belief, and experience, the table of correspondences works for those dedicated to that philosophy because they believe that philosophy to be true and that belief has created the mental link I've been talking about.

Again, I might be wrong, but even when you look at the five models of magick--psychological, energetic, spirit (with the exception of offerings I previously mentioned), and information--they still fall in line with this theory. Considering the psychological model, it's obvious. Your mind is powering your spell, so items that strengthen the link in your mind are what you need. But even energetic, you shouldn't just be taking someone else's word for it that x item resonates with y energy. You need to read that energy for yourself and come to your own conclusion.

How to Discover Associations for Yourself

There are several methods for discovering (note that I did not say "making up") your personal correspondences. This is also a wonderful and fun way of getting in tune with your intuition. I recommend as you begin to practice this, you start a log. Keeping track of everything can really help in the future when you are trying to write a spell and need to reference a list of potential ingredients.

Keep in mind--because I have found that people get eager to start casting spells (or desperate in certain situations) and forget this sometimes--every ingredient should have a purpose. You should know why you're using it, and I'm sorry but "because it's what I had on hand and I couldn't remember what else would work and I guess this is maybe kinda sorta fitting so *shrug*" just isn't going to cut it. I would know, because I am definitely guilty of shoehorning ingredients myself.

So keep. a. list.

Here's how you are going to go about it:

• Research Scientific Uses

• Examine Historical Context

• Meditate On It

  • What Do You Know

  • What Do You Sense

• Okay, fine, look it up

• Experiment, Experiment, Experiment

Research Scientific Uses

While this option may not apply to every type of correspondence out there, many have medicinal uses or psychological effects actually backed by science or at the very least, preliminary studies. The obvious is probably medicinal properties of various plants and herbs, but an additional example is the affect colors can have on our moods and mental performance as well as the ongoing study of chromotherapy: the use of color light treatments for physical and mental well-being.

Here are some of the findings regarding how exposure to the color red affects humans listed in the article "Color and psychological functioning: a review of theoretical and empirical work" by Andrew J. Elliot:

Red stimuli have been shown to receive an attentional advantage

Wearing red has been shown to enhance performance and perceived performance in sport competitions and tasks

Viewing red prior to a challenging cognitive task has been shown to undermine performance

There are several more listed, and I encourage you to follow the link and check them out for yourself and even find additional studies and articles on your own. But even just looking at these few would suggest, in a magick-related context, that red would be a good correspondence choice if you're doing a spell to stand out in an audition or to give yourself a boost for a marathon. However, it might be a poor choice if you're working a ritual to not be noticed by your ex at an event you'll both be attending or to increase your chances of acing the SATs.

I am of the opinion that magick is just science that hasn't been discovered yet, and so I find it useful to start taking what we do already know scientifically and applying it to my craft.

Examine Historical Context

Some practitioners may turn their noses up at things like the previously suggested scientific studies and only perceive authenticity in what customs can be dated back at least a couple hundred years. I find value in studying both, and fortunately, despite a lot of information being lost to time, historians still have quite a bit to say about our predecessors' use of magick.

Ancient Egyptians were basically obsessed with scents. Incense was sacred and considered a gift from the gods. The burning of frankincense and myrrh were not only used as ceremonial offerings, but they used them in ritual for purposes of resurrection, connection to the divine, cleansing, and holding solar association. So if you feel a connection to the Ancient Egyptians, you may want to try burning some frankincense for your next cleansing or myrrh to resurrect an old talent you've grown rusty at.

The Ancient Greeks used lead curse tablets and buried them in cemeteries in binding rituals and apple seeds, wine, or a lizard's phallus in love potions. But... maybe just leave reptile penises off your list though, 'kay?

I just use these as examples, but even after Christianity spread far and wide, societies only became more secretive about their use of magick--we never really stopped. Over the course of human existence, I don't know if magick has ever not been practiced in one form or another.

There is certainly something to be said for correspondences that were used and reinforced by thousands of people for hundreds of years, especially considering that magick was used in daily life for the ancient Pagans (even those cultures like the Greeks that frowned upon its practice). If you have a time period and/or region or culture that fascinates you, do a little digging (respectfully, of course) and see what kind of ingredients they used and for what purpose.

Plus, making use of the same ingredients for the same purposes can be a great way to honor and get in tune with your own ancestors.

Meditate On It

That is my nice way of saying, "figure it out yourself." As I was harping on about earlier, deep down inside, you know what something represents to you. You may just need to spend some time figuring it out.

What Do You Know?

Sit down with whatever ingredient you have. Close your eyes for a moment, clear your mind, and then open your eyes and look at the item. What is the first thing that pops into your head? If it has a scent, what does it call to mind? A memory of a time or place? What about the texture or (if safe to eat) flavor?

I'm giving you this paragraph of instructions, but most immediate correspondences will come right up for you. Here are some of my examples with the ingredient in bold and the corresponding intention underlined: I feel powerful and confident in royal blue. The color and texture of bay leaves remind me of U.S. paper currency (i.e. wealth). The smell and taste of cinnamon reminds me of the comfort of home and Christmas (a time of giving/receiving gifts, family, abundance, and joy). A conch shell calls to mind visuals of someone blowing into one for communication.

You might need to dissect some things. If sea glass just reminds you of the beach, dig deeper. What about the beach? The beach can mean romance during a sunset, beachcombing for overlooked treasures, youthful fun in the sun (or in my redheaded case, the misery of the sunburn afterward).

I apologize because I am about to make things more complicated, but you could even have two of the same item with two different correspondences. Say your parents took you to the beach as a child to cheer you up after losing a pet and you found a piece of sea glass that you still have today. Say you also have a shard of sea glass you found during a post-graduation beach bonfire. You might associate the former with grief, loss, comfort and the latter with success, achievement, and growth.

Don't let that overwhelm you. Just know that if that happens while scouring through personal items, it's okay to allocate the contrasting correspondences.

What Do You Sense?

This option in particular is a great one if you come across a rock, twig, piece of bark, leaf, whatever while out in nature. To add to that, yes, you can and should absolutely harvest your own ingredients in your local surroundings if you are able. It's fun, free, you get in tune with your environment, and as long as you're respectful, you are ensuring that your ingredients are harvested ethically. You don't have to be an expert at identifying plants (although they do have apps for that and you should at least be able to identify poison oak, ivy, and sumac on sight for your own sake) and as much as we all love shiny crystals, regular rocks are perfectly valid minerals too!

Ask permission and if you can, make an offering (water a nearby plant, pick up some trash, it can be simple) before just snatching things up. As I said, be respectful. Don't rip up endangered plants or disturb an animal's home. Hold the item in your hand and draw on its energy, just enough to feel it tingle and get acquainted with it. That's about it. I wish I had a better explanation for this, but it's that easy and just takes practice. Your intuition and energy-sensing will tell you what this item can be used for.

Okay, Fine, Look it Up

Sometimes you'll be completely at a loss because it's just something you've never encountered before or your creative spark is a bit dimmed while trying to write a spell. I'm not saying that using a table of correspondences or looking something up on the internet is a witchcraft sin, I just don't think practitioners should rely on them. You want to get the most out of your magick and tune your intuition, don't you?

But fair enough, every once in a while we just need a little help.

Don't bother going out and buying 20 different books. Here is the only one most practitioners will ever need: Llewellyn's Complete Book of Correspondences (paid link). Being completely transparent, yes, I get a small cut if you purchase that book using this link, but I don't go around making recommendations just because one purchase might put an extra quarter in my pocket. I only recommend books that I've read myself and found value in.

This article isn't meant to be a book review, but if you'd like to know more I did a short review in an old video:

This book has a ton of helpful content and is a great resource to get you going in a bind or a rush. I will repeat myself again though, every ingredient needs a purpose and you need to know and feel what it is. Back to the Chamomile Dilemma, yes, this book lists chamomile on the success table. Doesn't mean I'm going to use chamomile for that purpose unless it's in order to relieve my nerves and anxiety in a situation so I have a better chance for success. For me, I just don't feel it.

So look it up, but don't just jump to do what it says. Consider the options given to you and only use what feels fitting.

Experiment, Experiment, Experiment

Just like any other part of magick, you have to experiment. You won't know what does and doesn't work until you try. I always recommend that you keep a journal of all the spells you cast in order to track your results.

Keep what works for you, and set the rest aside.

I truly hope that this has cleared up any confusion you may have had about the sheer number of incongruous tables and lists of correspondences and magickal associations. From here on out I want you to trust your instincts, replace ingredients in spells that don't make sense to you, and don't let anyone tell you that your way is the wrong way.

You got this, witch.