The Season of the Witch
We are now just past the midpoint between autumn equinox and winter solstice in the Wheel of the Year. This is a time when the veil between the worlds thins, and nature exhales, ready for the deep rest of winter. In many parts of the world we have just celebrated the festival of the dead, Halloween.
We enter what folklore calls the witch’s new year: the season when intuition sharpens and unseen forces stir beneath the soil. The witch has always been the woman who knows: she who sings to plants, dreams with the moon, and walks on the edges between life and death. To live in tune with the seasons is to live as she once did – reverently intimate with the Earth herself.
At this threshold, we turn to two allies of the deep feminine current: Wisdom of Hekate and Black Moon Lilith. Together they honour the witch within – the part of you that trusts your own knowing, speaks uncomfortable truths, and tends the sacred fire of transformation.
The Descent into Knowing
As we turn from autumn to winter, we enter a portal where endings dissolve into new beginnings. The life force retreats back into the roots, and unseen forces draw closer. This is the season of Hekate: the goddess of crossroads, who lights the way into the underworld.
In the Braïdo tradition, autumn is not a time to resist darkness but to lean into its intelligence. This is the moment when Lilith rises from the margins to remind us that truth and power are born of embracing your shadow.
Wisdom of Hekate – The Oil of Vision and Shadow Integration
Scent Profile: Frankincense, Jasmine, Neroli, Pink Lotus, Bergamot, Patchouli, Mandarin, Rhododendron.
This oil was crafted for those who stand at thresholds – between what has been and what is yet to be. When you anoint yourself with Wisdom of Hekate, you invoke the guardian of liminal spaces, she who holds the keys to transformation. Her scent is both smoke and star, and reminds you that vision comes only when the eyes adjust to the dark.
Why it works:
The essential oils in this blend act on the limbic system – the part of the brain that governs memory, intuition, and emotional processing. Frankincense calms the amygdala, Jasmine heightens receptivity, while Rhododendron and Lotus expand awareness. Together, they guide the nervous system toward coherence, allowing fear to dissolve into clarity.
Micro Rituals for Autumn:
- Anoint the Third Eye – Place one drop of Wisdom of Hekate at the brow. Breathe deeply three times and whisper: “I walk between worlds, guided by inner knowing.”
- Candle for the Crossroads – Light a candle at dusk. As the flame steadies, invite insight to rise from within the body rather than the mind.
- Dreaming Practice – Before sleep, anoint pulse points and note any symbols or sensations that come. The threshold dreams of autumn often speak in archetypal images: note them down in your journal, draw them, hum them.
Black Moon Lilithh – The Oil of Balance and Empowerment
Scent Profile: Geranium, Ylang Ylang, Rose, Clary Sage, Copaiba, Marjoram, Linden Blossom, Bergamot, and Helichrysum.
Lilith invites us to reclaim the parts of ourselves that patriarchy, propriety, or fear have exiled. The Black Moon Lilith blend belongs to the deep undercurrent of feminine intelligence: fierce, erotic, honest. She is the body’s rebellion against suppression, the subconscious urge towards integration. A grounding, feminine oil crafted for the woman reclaiming her untamed power.
Why it works:
The essential oils in this blend support both the nervous and endocrine systems, helping the body find equilibrium during hormonal or emotional shifts. Geranium harmonises mood and hormones; Clary Sage soothes cyclical tension; Copaiba eases inflammation and emotional heat. Together, these botanicals restore the body’s natural intelligence, inviting calm presence and embodied strength.
Micro Rituals for Autumn:
- The Womb Anointing – Warm Black Moon Lilith between your palms and place them over your belly. Breathe deeply, repeating: “I trust the rhythm within me.”
- Ritual of Sovereignty – Smooth a few drops over your heart and throat before sleep or meditation. Whisper: “I speak my truth with love and power.”
- Cycle Reflection – After bathing, anoint wrists and temples. Reflect on the patterns you are ready to release and those you wish to strengthen as the new year begins.
- Full Body Connection – gently smooth onto your whole body after a shower/bath, during a massage or before going to bed. Camellia oil softens the skin, while the combination of touch and essential oils boosts blood circulation and helps you feel relaxed, grounded, and centered.
The Body of the Earth is You
To follow the way of the witch is to remember that the body is not separate from the Earth. The tides of blood, sleep, and feelings move with the rhythms of the seasons and the moon. During autumn, as nature slowly turns inward, so too do we – resting, slowing, listening inward. This descent into stillness is itself a spell: re-enchanting yourself into surrender.
Neurosomatic insight:
When we consciously enter darkness – through ritual, rest, or reflection – we activate the brain’s default mode network, the system that integrates memory, intuition, and self-awareness. Darkness allows the psyche to reorganise; it is as essential as sleep to healing.
The witch, the wise woman, and the healer are one. To walk the path of Hekate and Lilith is to know that descent into darkness is not the absence of light but its seed. In surrender, we remember that power means truth, integration, and sovereignty.
May this autumn – this witch’s new year – guide you into deep rest, clear sight, and radical belonging.
Restore. Remember. Return.