Magic and new age supplies can be VERY expensive and sometimes it can seem like a lot of money to spend for an ancient earth-based religion. At least, that’s my feeling on it. You’ve got candles, herbs, spices, athames, wands, staves, bessoms, altar supplies, crystals and gemstones, cauldrons, and things to keep all the things in! That can add up to an awful lot of money – but is it all really necessary?
In short – no. We’re talking earth-based religions where many practices come from ancient tribal people. These tools are, in all actuality, very simple. Carefully thinking about what purpose things are to serve and what role they originally played in people’s lives, a little elbow grease and some creativity can go a long way!
For instance – my favorite examples are the bessom and the cauldron. Cauldrons can easily cost hundreds of dollars and bessoms can easily run $50 or more, depending. But what ARE these things in actuality? Well, a cauldron is a cookpot and a bessom is a broom. What qualities are important in a cauldron and a bessom? Well, most work with a cauldron involves burning things and holding things, and an important quality is the rounded womb-like shape. These are similar qualities to what you can find in a modern saucepan which you can pop down to your local home goods store and pick up for relatively cheap. A bessom has a handle and is valued for it’s natural bristles. I can find a perfectly good broom at my local home goods store with these qualities fairly cheap – ironically, natural bristles tend to be cheaper than synthetic ones!
So when it comes to magical supplies, a little research and practicality can really go a long way.
Another thing to consider if you’re wanting something a little more special or upscale is handcrafting your own items. Cauldrons might be a little on the complicated side, but there’s no reason you can’t make your own bessom, wand, altar cloths and adornments, custom candles, magical mixtures and formulas, etc. Handcrafted items already have the virtue of having energy invested into them by their makers, and if you have the chance to make these items yourself, you can imbue them with whatever additional energies that you want to as you go.
In addition, they make wonderful heirlooms. I have several staves, but my absolute favorite is the one my grandfather had made himself for himself from bamboo he grew himself. It’s held up over the years and has such a wonderful energy!
So if you’re feeling overwhelmed by the cost of your spirituality or craft, look into making items or reasonable alternatives – if you can, ask around and find out what other people use, check out various DIY websites and find something that really does work for you.
As another example, check out this post on wands by Azzrian Visions.
