I once saw a social media post recommending that if a witch should knock on your door,
You should invite them inside and immediately put on a pot of tea.
This humorous posting suggests a correlation between witchcraft and tea drinking.
And while the two aren't necessarily interwoven,
Many practitioners of the craft do enjoy a good cup of tea.
Why?
Because tea is pure magic.
There is much to this notion that goes far beyond tasseography,
Which is a form of divination most commonly known as reading tea leaves.
With Wicca being a nature-based spirituality,
Tea is basically nature and a cup.
It incorporates the elements of earth with the tea itself,
Air with the steam that rises during the brewing process,
Fire with the heat source that boils it,
And of course water.
Spirit comes into play with it being made by our hands and with our intentions.
In olden days,
Practitioners of witchcraft were often referred to as the wise ones or healers due to their vast knowledge of herbs and their both medicinal and magical properties.
Witches and Wiccans still call upon herbs for the same reason to this day,
With the rising popularity of naturopathic remedies having at the very least some of its roots in the old ways.
Herbs such as sage,
Chamomile,
Lemon balm,
Mugwort,
And nettles are as common in tea blends as they are on the shelves of alternative medicine cabinets.
Herbs and plants also have distinct energetic and spiritual properties and are regularly used in spell work.
I will often enchant my tea by saying something like the following.
From earth's bounty and to table mine,
I give thanks for and bless these gifts of the divine.
Energy,
Strength,
And love come to me.
This is my will,
So mote it be.
So with the proper selection of herbs and the infusion of intention,
Tea can also be viewed as a spell in a cup.
An easy way of setting intentions is by using a spoon to stir your tea.
Stirring clockwise is considered to be an invoking gesture,
While stirring counterclockwise is for banishing or sending away.
So by calling upon the properties of the herbs you choose and stirring accordingly,
You can signal that you're either inviting something to you or directing it to go elsewhere.
With this in mind,
Tea also becomes energy in a cup.
Back to tasseography,
Or reading tea leaves for a moment.
This form of divination is based on the idea that the person receiving a reading has infused their energy into the tea leaves,
And that is what is being interpreted by the reader.
Many who enjoy herbal teas also find benefits in growing those very herbs themselves.
This is a wonderful practice,
And it further attunes one to the plant's energy as well as nature.
Even a small patio garden can produce an abundance of herbs for cup after cup of nature's magic.
However you enjoy your tea,
Do so mindfully as you drink in blessings from the elements.
May your cup always be filled to the brim with magic.
