We just closed our spooky season, but some are still feeling the witchy vibes abound. The witch archetype is portrayed in our society as an outcast — a spell binding recluse, capable of only evil. She is to be feared. Or is she just misunderstood? In recent history, many researchers have begun to explore the misunderstanding of this archetype and just how detrimental it has been in the women of our society.
They deem it the Witch Wound.
It is a wound that all women carry that impacts their ability to live as their sovereign self. Women are left feeling like they are not enough, don’t have a voice, and are not safe to express themselves in their full capacity. Sound familiar? Keep reading.
Long ago, women were the hinge of their tribes as a vessel for new life. They were the life-givers, healers, midwives, medicine women, and, above all, had a voice within the tribe as “the wise one.” The power of a woman was honored through divine feminine energy: emotion, creativity, intuition, flow, nurture. A woman who was connected to the earth, relied on her intuition, and lived in flow without fear of sharing this knowledge was known as a witch of sorts. In fact, the mere etymology of the word witch is derived from the term “wicca” or “wise woman,” a complete misunderstanding from the archetype we are programmed to fear and avoid in today’s world.
The intersection of the patriarchy and religion
In Europe centuries ago these institutions denounced many of these tribal healers, particularly Pagan women, as “evil doers” as their knowledge and gifts often threatened the agenda of those institutions. Women who stood in assertion, held knowledge of healing, or lived outside the “good girl” rules were burned at the stake. It’s estimated nearly one hundred thousand women have been condemned and executed over the course of history for their connections to the witch. In a complete gendercide, women were almost guaranteed to be accused at some point in their lives.
Generational Trauma and the witch wound
To understand that women innately carry a Witch Wound is to understand the science of generational trauma. Generational trauma, in a nutshell, is the idea that the trauma in which our ancestors endured biologically changes the expression of the epigenetics in subsequent generations. In other words, trauma can be inherited and can change our psychology or the way in which we react to the world. Think: deep seated fear and anxiety that one doesn’t quite understand, but full on feel it during certain situations. All women in today’s world carry the trauma of the witch wound because many of our female ancestors and the collective of our feminine energy endured the prosecution of women in the witch hunts of the late Middle Age. Whether they were accused or executed, this trauma has stuck into our programming into the modern age.
The Persistence of the Witch Wound in Modern Times
Despite the fact that women are no longer violently burned at the stake here in the US (ps: this is still occurring elsewhere in our world), condemnation of women still exists in less seemingly obvious ways. One of my favorite authors, Majo Molfino, is an expert in this realm and has discovered that there are 5 myths in which many women align themselves to to fit the role of the “good girl” to prove they don’t fit the mold of what our witchy ancestors were burned for (read about it here). Today, the Witch Wound translates into women being “good girls”. Good girls follow rules, they strive to make their homes, careers, children, etc. perfect because they believe the things they do equate to who they are. Good girls believe in what they have been told, rather than utilize their intuition or empirical knowledge. They do not stand in their own truth if it means harmony will be disrupted in their inner circles, families, or careers. They tend to others at the expense of themselves and burn out. All women have all been a victim of these rules at one point in their lives.
Reclaiming the Power of the Witch Within
Women often feel uncomfortable with the idea of a witch; she is the obscure, ugly, typically without a man, often evil, and is ostracized by society. We fear her, the power she holds, and everything she stands for. It’s a misunderstanding that has been programmed into a woman’s literal genes over the course of history. However, the reality is that there is a part of you dying to fall back into the natural rhythm of the energy of Earth and into your sovereign self. The further you press into your desire to break free of the bullshit that takes you out of your own power, the more aware you become of how each invisible rule holds you back from being your own sacred self; a woman who honors herself wholly and stands assertive in her own truth without fear of condemnation.
I implore you to explore further into your own witchy ways. I’m not talking about cooking up spells (although equally as empowering); I’m talking about really having power over your own truth as a woman. Do your research on the invisible good girl rules. Explore how they hold you back. Find ways to release that programming. Let go of the idea that a witch is one to fear; she’s not. She is you.
She is the dream you secretly hold for yourself; the one you daydream about at your shitty 9-5. She is a desire in you to say fuck the rules and forge her own sovereign path. She is your shaky voice around the table of men, rusted beyond years. She is the voice telling you to take the risk on the crop top you love, despite what others may think about your midriff that kept your babies safe as they grew. She is your mama bear intuition and voice inside your head, the one nobody in your family seems to understand.
She is the wise woman who keeps it all together. She is the inner knowing that she is fucking magic and deserves for others to know it too.
Let her out.
Heal your Witch Wound, babe.
She is the wise woman who keeps it all together. She is the inner knowing that she is fucking magic and deserves for others to know it too. Let her out. Heal your Witch Wound, babe.
