N - Necromancy #paganblogproject

Among the many labels that I give myself, "necromancer" is probably the most surprising for those who don't know my magic very, very well.

Merriam-Webster Online defines necromancy as the "conjuration of the spirits of the dead for purposes of magically revealing the future or influencing the course of events." It is also more generally defined as "magic, sorcery." This latter definition gets translated as "black magic" quite frequently, and a quick look at the etymology of the words in question might clear up why this is.


"Necro" comes from the Greek νεκρός (nekrós), meaning "dead body."
"Mancy" comes from the Greek μαντεία (manteía), "prophecy or divination."
The term νεκρομαντεία (nekromanteía) was first used by Origen of Alexandria in the 3rd century CE.

"nigro-," however, is Latin and means "black," and the term nigromancie was the more common term used in the Middle Ages to denote all of the forbidden magical arts, including the conjuration of spirits.

Glaux and I quite strongly believe that among the work of Witches is the communicating with the Unseen Forces -- the Dead and those Unseen Ones who never lived. I've written a little here about daemons, and I take great comfort, inspiration, knowledge, and wisdom from the Dead and the Daemons with whom I've worked. In the sense that Glaux and I conjure and request magical aid from both sorts of spirits, I suppose we fit both descriptions of necromancers -- conjurers of the Dead and black magicians.

In the same way that Glaux and I each have a couple of Daemons with whom we are particularly familiar (Samagina for me, and Issachar for her), we also have a single Ancestor with whom we work who acts as a tutelary spirit for our coven. She prefers that we call her Zeta, though she had another name in life, and she came to us at Samhain 2011 via the Ouija board. (We LOVE using the talking board as a method of spirit contact.)

As it turns out, in some parts of the UK, it has long been common practice for covens to be in contact with a departed Witch -- someone who acts as a guide and friend, a mentor if you will, ... or more poetically, as an Ancestor to the coven and its individual members. The skull that sits at the base of the stang (or on it) is thought to house this spirit, and sometimes the coven fashions a doll in the likeness of the Witch.

I'll be covering Zeta in a little more detail when we get to the end of the PBP. She is a fascinating spirit, and she has been extraordinarily helpful and sweet.

So, why did I say it is surprising for folks that I am a necromancer? My Goddess is a giver of Life. She is the embodiment of it. She is fertility and virility, Springtime, hope, and Love. I wear pink and aqua and flowers in my hair. My familiar is a rabbit, the symbol of fecundity and an icon of cuteness. But let's not forget that the rabbit is prey, and she knows of sacrifice and death. My Lady dances across the ocean, in the groves, and amongst the stars; but she also knows the Mysteries of the Underworld. She is the secret initiator, the bright gate-keeper, while her Dark Sister is the Queen of the Dead.

Christian Day has written a book called The Witches' Book of the Dead. I highly recommend it for anyone who feels drawn to the path of the necromancer. It is a fine place to start. In it, he talks about embracing life and celebrating your non-conformity -- that the Dead are drawn to Life! So ... surprise! ... Love (ie, Life) and Death are two sides of the same coin, and work them both in my magic.