44 Days of Witchery: Day 3

3. Witchy tools: Athame(s)

I have two, one of which is extremely non-traditional.


There you have it. My first Athame was a letter opener. My second was a kris knife a friend gave me. I still have that one stashed away for the day when I can do some much needed repairs on it.

The two I use now are as follows.
My older of the two is the deer antler pocket knife. I use it as an athame and as an art tool and for harvests. I am not one who believes that the athame shouldn't be used to cut. It's a knife! If the athame is a symbol of one's Will, it does not do to immediately castrate the item's central purpose of being.

Anyway...
The other I commissioned from Lupa. She is far more specialized and nothing feels like she does in ritual. She responds very quickly to me and is truly my ritual knife. She is not sharp, but her purpose is not the same as that of a pocket knife, and she does her job very well.

Hefty Thinkin': Patience

I've been on my spiritual journey for over twenty years, but I've never been in a coven. My lessons are from life, from nature, from socializing with other people, and from a lot of reading and work.
My first Athame (ritual knife typically used by those inspired by Wicca and by Wiccans) was a cheap kris dagger given me by a friend. It was missing the pommel and part of the wood was damaged on the hilt, but I loved that thing to bits. I still have it tucked in my ritual gear. It is such a piece of crap! :)

My second was a letter opener designed to look like a medieval hand-and-a-half sword.

I've been through a succession. Some were gifts, others were bought online.

Last year, I commissioned a dagger from Lupa and she is so beautiful. I've been half afraid to mess her up with further personalization.

I tried stringing beads on her but that didn't mesh and were that same night rejected by the blade.

Patience is important in any spiritual life, but some things take that to new levels. It took relationships with a series of Gods and Goddesses (both called by them and simply groping in hopes of their response) and almost twenty years for me to find my Patron Goddess, Hekate.

I had to live with my new Athame for a smidge over a year to get to know her well enough to know how to fully work with her. Tonight I add my personal touches. It feels right and well and awesome. Each stroke is gliding on.

Patience pays off, whether that's in learning to sit for meditation and breathing, or in listening for what will belong upon your athame. Cultivate it, and the rewards can be massive.