Laurie Cabot - The Witch in Every Woman: Reawakening the Magical Nature of the Feminine to Heal, Protect, Create, and Emp ower

Women have innate talents and exceptional abilities that go unnoticed by our society, and that even women themselves do not fully appreciate. If every woman were to listen closely enough to her own secret songnot simply with ears, but with eyes, loins, breasts, heart, spirit, and soulshe would discover a power that she has carried within since before the beginning of time. I call this power Witch.

The Witch embodies a womans natural ability to heal, enchant, intuit, nurture, teach, protect, initiate, and create. She is a powerful flow of life carrying the water, soil, and sun needed to make your precious dreams come true.

Now you can embrace the imperishable strength of the Witch within you. She has survived in order to protect and empower you.

THE WITCH IN EVERY WOMAN

A Delta Book

Published by
Dell Publishing
a division of
Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc.
New York, New York

Copyright 1997 by Laurie Cabot and Jean Mills

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and etrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law.

The trademark Delta is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and in other countries.

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Cabot, Laurie.
The witch in every woman : reawakening the magical nature of the feminine to heal, protect, create, and empower / by Laurie Cabot with Jean Mills.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 0-385-31649-6
eBook ISBN: 978-0-8041-5224-2
1. WitchcraftPsychological aspects. 2. Mythology, CelticPsychology. 3. WomenPsychology. I. Mills, Jean. II. Title.
BF1566.C264 1997
133.43dc21 97-3175

Published simultaneously in Canada

v3.1_r1

It comes from the root of me

A fire that once consumed

Burned to ash

Brought to death

The flame of my desire

my pain

my fear

my anger

my passion

my self creation

I swam the depths of blue

I flew the regions of space

I am an extension of the earth

I am a ritual in motion

I am the smoke of the ancestors

I am a child of the future.

Jennifer Noelle Kolb

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

W hen I was a little girl, I instinctively knew that I was a Witch, without at the time identifying with this special word or knowing all that it entailed. I had considered my abilities special, but far from being unique or out of the ordinary, I found early on that my gifts were shared by others. Like all children I was closely connected to the magical side of my nature. Later, as an adolescent, I began to realize that this intuitive, and quite potent, side of me was being slowly eroded by a world that discouraged feminine values, but gave special consideration to masculine priorities. Living in an environment so tacitly hostile to what I knew at heart was my inherent feminine wisdom only fueled my desire to cling to it. I turned to Witchcraft more than forty years ago in an attempt to give voice and context to abilities I did not want to be forced to give up.

Witchcraft is one of the oldest Nature religions on our planet, and, for me, a way of life. Witches who follow the religion of Witchcraft do not now, nor ever have, worshiped Satan or a devil. Satan is a figure who was created by early Christian and Jewish sects and originally intended to engage God in a debate on morality and ethical behavior. Modern Witches believe that the only demons and devils are ignorance and fear. In the religion of Witchcraft, Witches worship a Goddess and a God. There is no evil god or demon in our deity structure. We respect all other faiths and hope to find that same respect for our own religion. Our most sacred tenet is Do what ye will, an it harm none. Unfortunately, even as we embark upon the twenty-first century, Christianity and Witchcraft are often portrayed as enemies, when in fact the two religions have more similarities than differences. Christianitys Pagan roots are well documented. Many religions, however, have their share of militant factions, and Christianity is no exception. Historically, it has been these extremist groups, not the Christian majority, who have been the most cruel to followers of other customs and beliefs.

In order to benefit from the teachings of the Witch, one does not have to follow a specific religion, or even the religion of Witchcraft. For the purposes of this book I am speaking of the Witch in purely archetypal terms. All women possess a magical side of their nature that is embodied in the archetype of the Witch. Despite what many would have you believe, Her gifts are life-sustaining, empowering, and restorative. The Witch personifies a womans ability to intuit, create, enchant, protect, initiate, nurture, teach, and heal. She is a figure capable of extraordinary judgment, compassion, endurance, and strength. Throughout centuries of discord and at times utter chaos, the Witch has remained steadfast in her efforts to balance and transform for the good of all. Time and time again She has proven Herself to be deeply sensual, adaptable, courageous, and wise.

Though She represents a legacy of long-forgotten feminine strengths, the Witch has been so grossly misrepresented by society that, predictably, She has become a mans worst nightmare, and, unfortunately, a womans greatest loss. I am not sure I can count the number of people, both women and men, who upon hearing the title for our book, The Witch in Every Woman, said the word Witch was off by one letter and should read The Bitch in Every Woman. The common and deep-seated misconception is that a womans instinctual nature is unappealingly aggressive, conniving, devouring, and dangerous. Oddly enough, women who rely on their intuitive strengths are also accused by these same detractors of being silly, frivolous, and weak. The Witch has been plundered, exploited, and harassed. She has been persecuted, tortured, and put to death many times over, only to return with Lazarus-like strength and resilience. As modern women we need to be more suspicious of the Witchs mistreatment by others and more protective of Her brave spirit.

For many years I have wanted to write an empowering book for women. With this effort I hope to correct the imbalance brought about by an overemphasis on masculine values by our society and to bring women closer to self-knowledge and responsible action. Exploring the Witch archetype is crucial to the empowerment of all women. Instead of rejecting our heritage, we need to be encouraged to embrace our magical natures and step in time to the beat of the Witchs drumthe magical rhythm of the Feminine. The Witch has faced danger, fear, and the brink of extinction, but has survived in order to protect and reempower us. She continues to guard our magical inner realm with an array of abilities we have neglected in ourselves and a dimension of practical mystery, which, once recovered, will enrich our lives and by extension all of humanity.