I am a witch, artist, and writer cultivating a relationship with the spirits of hearth, home and the land beneath my feet. I live in the southern hemisphere and I celebrate the seasons as they happen in my yard. I follow a wild path, influenced by fairy tales, folklore, and the spirits on my doorstep.
As a child I had powerful dreams about magic and the spirit world which called me down this path of witchcraft. I am an animist, and have always felt an affinity for the spirits, animals and plants. From the earliest of times I remember always collecting feathers- from the garden, from the school yard, from the side of the road- they had always held magic for me, even before I understood how deeply powerful that magic was.
The spirits of the graveyards and wild nature gave me solace and a deep and abiding love and respect for nature and the dead. The spiders, wild flowers, and spirits of the weird and wonderful would trace their pattern on my bones- leading me to chthonic gods and beings of the old wild magic.
My Witchcraft is spontaneous, poetic, artistic, wild. It is the witchcraft of cottage witches and Spirit worship. I dance with Jackal Gods, Wolf Gods, Serpent Gods, liminal gods, gods of dance, death, love and passion. I honour the small gods, the small spirits, the spirits in my garden, the spirits in the feathers, the spirits in the parks and the wild growth in the velds and along the side of the roads. I honour the ancestors, the dead, and I give offerings to the restless and unknown spirits too.
From the youngest age I was always drawing and telling stories and this has stayed with me for many years through both the fallow times and abundant. I create watercolour, pen, ink and acrylic illustrations influenced by folklore, mythology and witchcraft in honour of the spirits. My art can be found Here.
I take my pen name “Nightshade” from the Solanaceae family of plants which I have a deep love for. While many of the plants are edibles like tomatoes and potatoes, it also includes the deadlier plants like Belladonna, Mandrake and Henbane. Like the title “Witch”, I embrace all the qualities and connotations of Nightshade. While others may think it folly to have what may deemed a “magical” name, there is wisdom in keeping some things secret, like personal identity, secret ingredients in Grandmother’s recipes, and specific formulae for spells and ointments.
All artworks and writings on this site are Copyright © of Nightshade author of The Purple Broom
The Purple Broom 
Hi! Thank you for visiting my blog and I was really happy to go through yours, as I feel so many things in common!
Thank you very much! I am quite enjoying your blog as well 🙂
Thanks for liking my latest blog post. Knowing that someone is reading it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Namaste 🙂
No problem! Many pagans can relate to what your experience, and it is often hard for people to admit to feeling that way. I’ve read some topics about a fallow period over at another blog I’m following. I’ve even experienced it myself!
Thanks for stopping by at my blog, I thought it was about high time that I popped by to see what’s what! It’s great to read about someone else’s way of life, and how being a witch in the Southern hepmesphere is different to how I live. I look forward to many more posts from you 🙂
Thank you very much for following my blog! I’ve enjoyed reading many of your posts too!
That’s alright 🙂
Thank you for visiting & following my blog, especially after just the first post! Love, love, love your blog. We seem to share a similar life and Craft outlook. I look forward to exploring your blog in depth!
Thanks for liking my article, I’m having a bit of a stroll through your site right now.
Hi, just wanted to let you know that I nominated you for the Witchy Blog Award! The rules to it are on my page here: http://thenemeton.wordpress.com/2012/11/16/the-witchy-blog-award/
Thank you very much!
Hope you can answer my question. I’ve been reading something that says that I should “center” myself before meditation but I don’t know what it means. Do you know? What’s it’s purpose? Something about balance (center)?
Yes, Centering is about balance :). Ivo Dominguez in “Casting Sacred Space” gives this definition “Centering is the finding of balance and true identity within yourself while being open to the flow of energy. Centering involves bringing different parts of the psyche into focus and conjunction with each other.”
Often centering is spoken of alongside grounding, so one would ground and center. Grounding is “a process of dynamic contact with the Earth and its edges, boundaries, and limitations. Through a combination of relaxation and energizing we allow our subtle energy to condense and solidify.” Anodea Judith “Wheels of life”. Ivo dominguez writes that “Grounding is connecting with our bodies to affirm their importance before shifting our focus outward to encompass the physical, and more than ourselves. Grounding is also an affirmation of interconnectedness of living things on Earth”
A very simple grounding and centering exercise that I do before meditation and ritual is to sit in a comfortable position and envision the redness of my root chakra. Within this warm redness lies a fertile seed. The warmth of the root chakra allows the seed to grow, from the seed, sprouts roots, these roots I envision pushing through the base of my spine and into the earth. I envision them going deeper and deeper until they have touched the core of the earth.
From the seed is also the green sprouting from the top, it reaches up through each of my chakra points aligning them and cleansing them with it’s healing energy, it pushes up through the crown and reaches to the sky, (depending on whether it is night or day I often envision my branches moving toward the moon or the sun), feel the light of the sun or moon through your branches and the warmth of core of the earth through your roots. Let this warmth and light touch every cell of your body. I concentrate on the moment of connection, I am centered and balanced through each of my chakras, and my roots hold me firm while my branches move gently in the breeze.
A nice and simple form of centering which I do throughout the day in order to remain clear and be aligned when I am feeling unbalanced combines mindful breathing with a short mantra. I simply stop whatever I am doing and breathe. With each inhalation I know that I am breathing in and with each exhalation I know that I am breathing out. You can breathe in the energies of love, peace and balance, and breathe out tension, anxiety and disorder. When I feel completely in the moment and in the here and now I say “I am the center, I am balance, the universe spins and I spin with it”. You can combine this with grounding as well if you wish.
I hope that I was able to help with your question 🙂
Thanks. Yes, this is really helpful thank you.
I love your Tumblr page, especially the recent Marilyn Manson tarot cards.
Thank you! Mr Manson, Tarot and “dark” occult – stuff of my dreams lol
I love everything I’ve read. Very interesting, I must say. Merry meet! )O(
Thank you! Merry Meet and Many Blessings! )0(
Hi, discovered your blog last week, and finally had some time to look properly! Being a fellow South African witch, and fairly new to the path, it is great to find you! Merry meet, and blessed be.
Merry Meet. You can follow me on Facebook if you want to know a little bit more about me, the link is on the side bar. I’ve been so busy lately that I haven’t updated much on Facebook or here, but I’m always available for a chat if you wish to talk to me about anything. If there is anything you would like to know or anything you need help with I can help where I can. It is indeed very nice to meet a fellow South African Witch! Brightest Blessings )0(
I’ve only just stumbled upon your blog, and read a bit over my morning coffee. We share some aspects of life, and I am honored to know you. Many blessings to you, soul-sister.
Thank you very much! Many blessings to you too )o(
Found this today and thought your would enjoy it http://thejourneyofalotus.blogspot.com/2010/09/ancient-egyptian-sexuality.html blessings.
Thank you for the link, it was indeed a very interesting, informative and delightfully saucy read 🙂 Many Blessings )0(
That was a link to a pic i had when i posted on http://blausternschlonge.wordpress.com/2014/01/08/king-tuts-mummy-had-a-hard-on-note-post-contains-erotic-images/
Have you read Women Who Run with the Wolves? Reading it was like riding a ocean wave for me. Your site is fascinating. Thank you for liking my post “Unleashed” and bringing me here.
Women Who Run with the Wolves is one of my favourite books, I absolutely adore it, it is one of my biggest inspirations for writing and living. Thank you for stopping by!