Self-Initiation into Witchcraft

While many traditions and most covens have very specific initiation rituals members perform in order to be a full-fledged member, there are many reasons why a solitary or eclectic practitioner (or one who just hasn't found their path or group yet) would want to perform a self-initiation ceremony on their own.

Before we begin I would like to note the difference between an initiation and a dedication. While the two are similar and a ritual for either can be performed nearly identically, they ultimately serve different purposes. Yes, they both function as a rite of passage or the first step on a journey, but while an initiation is an admittance into a group or organization, a dedication is a commitment through an oath-taking. Initiations often contain dedications, but not all dedications are necessarily initiations.

For the sake of keeping things simple, in this article I will primarily only mention dedications in regards to how you may want to work one into your self-initiation.

First Things to Know

Research Your Path

If you follow a specific tradition--not that you have to in order to self-initiate, as I will touch on a few times throughout this article--check to see if that tradition has a specific ritual for self-initiation or even just a recommended template. For instance, some Wiccan sects have suggested templates you may wish to follow, although they are often not a requirement.

There is no Need to Rush

If you are new to the craft, you may want to wait until you find your path or you know for certain that you are not going to follow any path (potentially as an eclectic). Many practitioners start with one path or tradition (for me, it was Wicca) and eventually find it isn't for them after further examination (my practice and beliefs nowadays have some overlap but pretty much look entirely different from my early Wiccan practice). Take your time to explore and dabble in a few. Know that it is perfectly okay if this takes years! Many witches go their entire lives without ever feeling a need to perform a self-initiation or dedication of any kind, so why force the process?

Additionally, many practitioners are initiated into multiple covens, groups, and/or traditions over the span of their lives and practice and invest time into all of them simultaneously. Or they find that one served a great purpose for a specific time in their life and they eventually evolved into another.

That said, you're not necessarily going to get punished if you change your mind, this should be taken seriously and done with purpose, in my opinion. Otherwise, what's the point? Consider that this is a ritual of making a promise. Breaking a promise in general is frowned upon with good reason. It could, of course, be argued that even if the purpose is only there for five to ten years, that's fine! So long as it wasn't just something jumped into blindly on a whim and cast aside as soon as something shinier came along.

The same can be said of making a dedication to Spirit, which I will also address...

Making Dedications to Spirit

Relationships with Spirit--whether deity, ancestors, the fae, etc.--often function like any other relationship in your life. If you make a vow to dedicate yourself to someone, like during a wedding ceremony for example, would you feel it is acceptable to ghost that person with no notice? Or start slacking off in the relationship so all you ever do is take and never give? Of course not, so long as they are also keeping up with their vows too.

However, the vast majority of us wouldn't make a marriage vow without spending an adequate amount of time--often years--getting to know this person. So why would you make a solemn dedication of yourself to any entity without extensive research and getting some experience working with them? I'm not saying don't dedicate to a Spirit, I'm only saying that it isn't something to take lightly or rush into.

Don't Make Promises You Can't Keep

I don't mean vowing to protect nature and then forcing yourself to cycle 30 miles to work each direction every day in order to keep your word. It's really easy to go into the craft with idealistic expectations of yourself and how the world and magick itself works, swearing you will only use magick for good and to never harm, to only manifest love and light, or to never use it for selfish purposes but only to better the world around you!

Those are just some examples, of course, but so many young witchlings enter their practice with a set of guidelines they have decided on that dictate how they will and won't use their magick when they've just barely scratched the surface of what their magick can do. It's easy to say "I'll never cast a spell that will affect another person" but not as easy to actually stick to. (Not to mention that one could argue that every spell, just like every mundane action, has a ripple effect that affects others.)

In general, it's rarely a good idea to speak in absolutes.

Designing Your Ritual

I will apologize here if you were expecting step-by-step instructions. I will offer you suggestions, inspiration, and a general template, but I feel this is a deeply personal ceremony that should be unique to the practitioner unless their tradition dictates something specific (in which case, you don't need this section of the article anyway).

Before you begin designing your ritual, there are several things you need to consider:

• What is the purpose of your ritual/what do you hope to get out of it? - Unlike most intentions when performing a ritual, this does not need to be concrete. It could be as simple as "To make a promise to myself," "To express my wishes and goals in ritual form," or "To initiate myself as a member of the worldwide magickal community."

• What are you promising? - To use your magick wisely and for personal growth? (Again, don't rush into promises you may not keep.) To use your magick to help others as well as yourself? (Much more realistic, in my opinion.) To strive for personal growth? To improve the world around you as well as your own life? To incite terror and chaos? 😈 This should reflect your personal beliefs, the general direction you are headed, and what you hope to achieve by following this path.

• Who is this ritual being delivered to? - This is for yourself, of course, but who do you hope is listening, if anyone? As someone new on the path, you may have no clue and that is perfectly okay. It may just be something that you feel is more powerful and concrete if said aloud. But perhaps, whether you are making a dedication or not, you have a deity or a group of ancestors you would like to ask for guidance as you continue down your path or to oversee your initiation as well as your journey as a form of accountability.

• Who or what are you dedicating yourself to (if applicable)? - As previously discussed, it is not wise to dedicate yourself to a deity early into your exploration. However, you may want to consider dedicating yourself to serving your own Higher Self or to serving nature or The Universe/The All. Remember, a dedication is not a requirement of an initiation, so don't feel pressured into dedicating yourself to any kind of "who" or "what". Although an additional option would be to dedicate yourself to a concept or set of principles.

Write Your Statement of Intent

With all of that considered, you should have a general idea of your overall intention for this ritual. The first thing you should do is commit a statement of intent to paper. Whether it'll be your style to chant it aloud, sing it, or simply write it out and burn it. It can be long, short, rhyming, bullet pointed, written in any language you're comfortable with, and so on. It's your statement, so how it is written and performed is entirely up to you.

Choose a Time that is Meaningful to You

I chose to perform my self-initiation on Samhain night and held off until it landed on a year with a full moon. A friend of mine did his at sunset on his late-mother's birthday. Trust your gut on this. Whether you wish to do your ritual on your favorite sabbat, Midsummer (a popular sabbat for initiations), during an eclipse or specific moon phase, your birthday, or a particular day of the week for its ties to a patron deity, select a time that you feel a personal, powerful connection to.

Remember, there is no need to rush! If everything in you is saying Ostara is the best day for your ritual due to its ties to new beginnings, trust your instincts even if Ostara just passed and you'll have to wait an entire year. That just means you have a year to plan.

Set the Atmosphere

This is, again, highly personal and can be as simple or as extravagant as you feel is fitting. I performed my initiation skyclad on my balcony at night with candles and incense lit. I opted to skip music only because it was rather late at night, but I would be shocked if the rose oil I slathered myself in didn't waft far enough to bother my neighbors anyway.

Use items, decor, scents, sounds, and attire strategically in order to build up the atmosphere and get you into the exact witchy headspace that makes you feel the most powerful and magickal. Not only will this help to naturally raise and enhance the energy of the space, but this is a kind of celebration and should be treated as such.

Make Use of Meaningful Tools, Actions, and Ingredients

During my initiation, I used a candle to signify the start of the ritual and allowed it to burn all the way down, well after I was done, as a symbol that while my ritual was closed my vow would carry on. I also set out a symbol for each of the four elements as they are something highly important in my Pagan and magickal practice and to represent nature.

A friend of mine chose to dance during her entire self-initiation as a form of self-sacrifice (physical exertion), to raise energy, and as a way of physically expressing her statement of intent. Another practitioner I know used twine to create a witch's ladder while he spoke his intent aloud. With each emphasized statement, he formed a knot, some of which had a corresponding item or charm tied to them. He still wears this cord as a part of his ceremonial garb for large rituals.

This is going to be the major chunk of your ritual and I cannot tell you how to perform it. As you can see from the examples above, the manner in which self-initiations are done can vary widely and should be specific to the practitioner who designed it for themselves. You know what calls to you, what your instincts are telling you, what feels right, what interests you, and what works in your practice. Follow that.

Make an Offering (Optional)

If you are making a dedication, or if you are asking Spirit for assistance or guidance, you may wish to include an offering. This could be a material offering of food, wine, or incense; a self-sacrifice such as giving something up for a temporary or specific period of time; or an offering of a service.

Fill in the Blanks

Finally, I cannot tell you whether to cleanse your items first or not bother or in which manner to cleanse them; to cast a circle or open sacred space or not worry about it. These and many other little decisions will be entirely up to you and your beliefs and practice. Follow your instincts and it will go exactly how it is meant to.

Whether you've just done it for the first time or decades ago, how did your self-initiation look? Or did you opt to not do one at all? Tell me all about it in the comments below.