Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Pagan
Politics and Religion
Welcome to the Resistance: Raise Your Snake & Lantern

Welcome to the Resistance: Raise Your Snake & Lantern

Last updated on: January 23, 2025 at 7:18 am by Laura Tempest Zakroff

0 Comments

Welcome to the Resistance: Raise Your Snake & Lantern 2025-01-23T07:18:14-08:00 Laura Tempest Zakroff

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Over the last 8+ years, I’ve thought/talked/wrote/taught about magical resistance work a whole lot. And the thing I keep coming back to is this: the work we do at the local level that aids, builds, and protects community is the most essential and effective.

People have referred to me as “hex-positive” when talking about my general magic approach, but the reality is that magic is magic – and its effects are rarely easily sliced up into good/bad, heal/curse, etc.

People have asked my opinion of various public political workings over the years. I think there are merits & I’m not the kind of a**hole to disparage the sincere work of others.

Instead, I point out that I prefer to focus on working at the root level. That it is key to understand that what’s going on now has been seeded 30-50 years ago, and that is a model for cunning that needs both serious consideration and action. You have to get at the roots to pull something out and to start something new.

And when considering if I thought like “they” thought, that I would perhaps craft a protection that feeds on raw emotion: fear, anger, hatred, distrust, anxiety. That the harder someone tried to attack the target, the stronger it becomes. Much like a virus or bacteria that becomes harder to kill as it mutates. It’s not hard to imagine, nor is it anything new.

Technically, a lot of basic protection work is about transmuting energy to strengthen or repelling it back as a defense. Basic, yet crucial to understand and utilize in daily practice.

So IMHO, instead of hurling raw anger and aggressive attacks at a distant target that’s going to just feed on those efforts, transmute that energy within instead to strengthen your own goals, defenses, community.

This is not “love & light” work as some would be too quick to label. It’s dirt work: planting seeds, cultivating, pruning, and fertilizing within your local sphere of influence. There’s love here, but it’s fierce and resilient. There’s light here, but it illuminates and glares.

There’s darkness here too, because the dark plays an important role in germination, generation, and overcoming fear.

2025 is a Hermit year (2+0+2+5=9). The Hermit represents introspection, guidance, gathering wisdom, knowing when to lift up the lantern, and when to use the darkness to your advantage.

It’s also a Serpent year rising. Throughout the world, the snake is a symbol of creation and renewal, life and death cycling, protection and healing, primal wisdom unbound. The Serpent is both revered and reviled, just like Witches in many ways.

Lessons from both the Serpent & Hermit remind us to be wise and creative, daring yet stealthy, flexible and untamed. To not come from a place of kneejerk reaction, but of being both re-wilded-wise and responsive. Sovereign and steadfast.

Lift up your lantern, transform the rising power, and walk the serpentine path with wisdom, integrity, and resilience. We are Aradia.

(This short article I initially posted on threads late on 1-22-25. I collected the posts into one and then expanded some ideas and adjusted grammar to share it here.)

Politics and Religion

Uncategorized

laura tempest zakroff

magical resistance

we are aradia

About Laura Tempest Zakroff

Laura Tempest Zakroff is a professional artist, author, performer, and Modern Traditional Witch based in New England. She holds a BFA from RISD (the Rhode Island School of Design), and her artwork has received awards and honors worldwide. Her work embodies myth and the esoteric through her drawings and paintings, jewelry, talismans, and other designs. Laura is the author of the bestselling Llewellyn books Weave the Liminal, Sigil Witchery, and Anatomy of a Witch, as well as the Liminal Spirits Oracle (artist/author), The Witch’s Cauldron, and co-author of The Witch’s Altar with Jason Mankey. Laura edited The New Aradia: A Witch’s Handbook to Magical Resistance (Revelore Press). She is the creative force behind several community events and teaches workshops online and worldwide. You can read more about the author here.

Previous Post

January 23, 2025

Re-Introducing the ICE Sigil

Next Post

January 31, 2025 Revisiting the 2020 Freedom Sigil

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"A great read, thank you! I'm so obsessed with KDH it's basically my personality now. ..."

Timber Paris

Cuddling the Universe: The Joy of ..."

"Thank you for sharing these thoughts. Loved reading about your morning routine. Mine is near ..."

"Love this."

"It's very important to avoid knee-jerk reactions. It's good to be angry but you have ..."

WildestSea

Welcome to the Resistance: Raise Your ..."

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Art Books cats cauldron month community contest Events home Metaphysics Modern Practice Movement Myth & Folklore satire sigils Tradition travel Uncategorized video

Select a Month October 2026 May 2026 March 2026 January 2026 September 2025 August 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 August 2024 June 2024 May 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 February 2023 December 2022 November 2022 September 2022 July 2022 May 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz