While there are many misconceptions about witches, being obsessed with the moon is not one of them. Want to make a witch happy? Tell them you saw the Full Moon and thought of them. For a weed witch, the moon offers up an especially potent source of energy to connect with. While cannabis can help us access new parts of our spirit and subconscious mind, it is the Moon that acts as a guardian and doorway to this connection.

Throughout history, the Moon has represented a bridge and a mirror to the subconscious and the intuitive, all knowing forces that reside within ourselves and in the universe at large. Historically, the moon has been tied to the feminine and receptive. She’s been personified and worshiped as the Great Mother, and her stages of waxing, waning, and full are reflected in the stages of the Triple Goddess through her archetypes of maiden, mother, and crone. Throughout her 28-day cycle, the Moon grows more and more luminous, from her waxing phase up through the Full Moon, until she eventually retires her light and settles back into her darkness, from the waning moon to the New Moon. In her cycles of wax and wane, she reminds us of our own cyclical nature; of our own ability to renew, release and become reborn. Cannabis can foster access to the medicine the Moon has to offer us, by allowing us to more easily step out of our rational mind and into the liminal where ritual and magick take place.

We can work alongside the cycles of the moon to create a more powerful ritual practice, as well as to help bring our highs to new highs by combining the effects of each moon phase with cannabis. After all, if the moon phases affect how your cannabis plant is growing, then wouldn’t it make sense that this would affect how you feel when you work with this plant medicine? Whether you’re looking for manifestation, creativity, protection, or healing, read on for your High Priestess guide to working with cannabis and lunar magick.

Ivory Woods

The New Moon

Work with cannabis to: Get present and set goals and intentions for the month ahead

The New Moon is the beginning of the Moon’s 28-day cycle. Here she is in her truth; there is no light from the sun being reflected on her surface, instead she is inky and black. She reflects our own darkness back at us, alongside the unknown. From the New Moon up until the Full Moon, the moon’s light grows, or waxes. Because of this, the New Moon is an excellent time to set intentions, to plant seeds in the soul and subconscious that you can water and nurture until the Full Moon.

The New Moon, also known as the Dark Moon, is when we are more able to access our inner realms; the part of ourselves that is wild, feral, fierce, sexual, all consuming. This is the shadow; the stigmatized and often shamed parts of who we are- the proverbial cannabis plant of our souls. During the New Moon phase, we may be more connected to our intuition, the gut feeling you get nudging you in one direction or another. You may feel extra sensitive to cannabis, and like you want to spend time in solitude, reflecting and contemplating. The Dark Moon is like winter; it forces us to go inward. Honor this through communing with weed, by practicing ritual and by creating intentions for yourself.

Ritual for the New Moon: Creating declarations and affirmations of intention

At this time of the month, take time to sit with yourself. You may wish to smoke, vape, or dab before this, setting yourself up for meditation, either taking a seat or lying down. Focus your gaze inward, asking yourself what feels true in your soul at this moment, what the darkness and presence are speaking to you of. Think of the month ahead; we are in Virgo season, and on September 23rd we officially enter fall. Take this to create an intention for yourself for cycle.

When you’re finished meditating, get a piece of paper and a pen and write this intention down in present tense. Starting with “I am” is always a good choice. For example, my current declaration is “I am stepping into my fullest power, with grace, purpose, presence and prosperity.” Your intention may be about healing, healthy habits, connecting to your intuition, adopting an abundance mindset, or whatever else is resonating with you at this time. I also write weekly mantras on my Instagram if you need more inspiration.

Once you’ve written this down, hang it up! Tape it on your bathroom mirror, your fridge or your computer; the key is somewhere you’ll see it often. You may even want to place a copy of this declaration on your joint tray or in your stash box; so next time you work with cannabis you’re reminded of your power! If you can, commit to saying this to yourself aloud three times each day up until the Full Moon. On the Full Moon, check back in and see how this intention resonates and feels.

Ivory Woods

The Waxing Moon

Work with cannabis to: Unlock your creativity, find the confidence to try something new, see things in a new perspective

Our intentions our set and our hearts are aligned. Now, as the light of the Moon grows, we too focus on what we want to tend to and nurture. The Waxing Moon is a beautiful opportunity for us to honor ourselves and the commitments we made. This is when we get to see the seeds begin to germinate, how we feel during the new stages of a crush, or that moment when you first realize you’re stoned. This is a transition into something even better than we can dream and the part of the cycle when we’re able to redirect course if needed, adapting so we can stay on route.

This moon phase is an excellent time to try something new; to go on a first date, to try a new edible or strain of weed, to practice a new meditation or take a class. The keyword is growth and evolution! This is when we really get to commit to what we want to cultivate; whether that’s something new, or something we want to keep on caring for. During this moon phase, you may feel a more inspired or artistic high, urging you to reframe things in new perspectives.

Ritual for the Waxing Moon: Collage with a sigil

You can work with the cannabis plant to help you unleash the flurry of creativity this moon phase offers, and by collaging and working with sigils- or magical symbols charged with an intention- you can carry out your declaration from the New Moon while creating a visual representation of this. You’ll need collage supplies; paper, glue, old magazines or books, a glue stick or tape. And your cannabis of choice!

Take some time to gather your supplies and whatever method of cannabis consumption you decided on. Turn your phone on silent, put on some ambient music, light any candles or incense. Then, find a comfortable seat and take a moment to close your eyes and breathe. Come back to the intention you set at the New Moon. Think about what this means to you and how its evolved, if at all. When you’re ready, open your eyes. Now is the time to work with your weed of choice, so consume this as you see fit, and then start to collage around your New Moon intention. You may wish to write this intention out, or you can use images, art and color to express your intention instead. You can incorporate magick sigils into this, either into the art or on the back of your page. To write your own sigils you will:

Take your statement of intention and write it down. For example “I AM MAGICK” Then you cross out all repeating letters and vowels which would leave you with “MGCK” You would take these remaining letters and create a symbol out of them by overlapping them, combining them, and arranging them. This isn’t supposed to look like letters, but a weird symbol your subconscious can bury and attach your intention to.

Once you’re done creating your sigil, you can draw it into your collage or draw it on the back, taking a hit or edible to celebrate your hard work. You may also wish to charge or send this sigil energy by dancing, chanting, exercising, or the witches’ favorite- masturbating. As you get to the peak of this energy raising, send your sigil and intention energy through your mind’s eye. When you’re finished, hang up your collage somewhere you’ll see it often!

Ivory Woods

The Full Moon

Work with cannabis to: Tap into your intuition, own your fullest power, believe in your own magick

The energetic climax of the month, the Full Moon is like a cosmic battery we can use to fuel any and all of our magick (though banishing is best saved for the Waning Moon.) At the peak of her power, this luminary body represents our fullest potential. With the light of the sun reflecting on her, the Full Moon acts as a portal, illuminating our magick and granting us easier access to her ethereal power. This is when our intuitive and psychic senses are on high, when we may be granted with prophetic dreams, see repeating numbers, or feel things more clearly. The Full Moon is the height of the 28-day cycle of the moon, and a time when things come to completion as well. This is when we can see how our intentions held up and when we can bask in and celebrate what we’ve accomplished.

The Full Moon is like the energetic equivalent of a great high; it’s lifting us up, connecting us to the unseen, allowing us to be present with different layers of reality. The Full Moon strips away the illusion that everything is what it seems. Like cannabis, she allows us to shift our perception to see the familiar truth- that we are creatures of the earth, that we’re cyclical, that we’re also all just energy vibrating. With this, both weed and the moon offer us the opportunity to find joy in this state of the ephemeral- as we exist in this tween state, we can grab the golden thread of magick and weave something out of it.

Whether you’re practicing sex magick, connecting to the elements, manifesting, practicing rituals of self-care or going out and dancing with your friends, the Full Moon is the perfect time to do it big. Some may prefer to go out, be seen, and enjoy the heightened energy of this time. Others may prefer to stay in, smoke, and practice rituals and magick with themselves or their coven. There’s no right or wrong way! But if you’re looking to infuse your Full Moon with some weed magick, then you may wish to puff, puff, meditate.

Ritual for the Full Moon : Meditate with cannabis and charge it under the moon

There are two steps to this ritual, and they can be done in either order. We have a Full Moon in Pisces on September 13th, and this is the perfect time to do this ritual, though any Full Moon works.

Step 1- Charge your cannabis or bong water under the moonlight!

Since you can charge talismans and crystals under the light of the Full moon, to clear and cleanse their energy, who’s to say you can’t charge your cannabis? Although this will work best with flower, you can charge whatever you want under the Full Moon, including water to use with your bong. Plan to leave this out for at least a few hours the night before or the night of the Full Moon, either outside or on a windowsill or somewhere similar inside. You can leave a jar or baggie of bud, and a bowl or jar of water, asking that the Moon clear and rid this of any unnecessary energy, and bless it with all its love, healing, magick and abundance. You may wish to mark the day and sign of this Full Moon for future reference as well.

Use this blessed bud to meditate with, (though you can also meditate and then bless your weed), for sex magick, cooking or in ritual settings (like any of the other activities written in this guide) to infuse some moon energy into your life. You can also dedicate this weed solely to ritual or magical use as well. Use your blessed bong water for a balanced high, and sprinkle the water in the corners of your home (before you place it in your bong) to help you energetically cleanse your space.

Step 2- Meditate

You may wish to read through this a few times to get familiar with it. You can also record yourself reading it as a guided meditation.

Take your cannabis and find a comfortable seat, either sitting up or laying down. Take a moment to breathe and find some presence, allowing any worries or thoughts about the day to fall away. Take a few hits of weed (if you’re eating an edible, do this an hour before you begin to meditate,) and as you do so, ask for connection to this herb. Ask for the spirit to hold you, to guide you, to share it’s wisdom with you. Thank it and find gratitude in your heart for it.

When you’re ready to begin to meditate, close your eyes. You’ll start to practice the threefold breath- inhaling, exhaling and holding. Try this for four seconds for each part of the breath, increasing to five or six seconds as you can. As you exhale and hold, feel your breath and body ringing out your lungs and organs of any toxins. Continue to breathe into this as you visualize white light cleansing every part of your body. You relax more and more, and start to feel the boundaries of your body dissolve. Now ask that the spirit of the cannabis plant to make itself known to you. Notice any colors, feelings, sensations, or noises. Don’t force this, and know that even if nothing comes up you can always try again, and that the meditation is still working.

Once you feel this connection to the cannabis plant, ask that it guides you in connecting to your higher self. The Full Moon helps to make this easier, acting as an ethereal conduit to this evolved version of yourself. As you continue to ask the cannabis spirit to help you connect to your higher self, you may visualize the crown of your head opening like a door, inviting in messages from the cosmos. Give yourself permission to receive your own divine wisdom and feel into all of your senses as you ask for this connection. Allow this to come to you through colors, smells, feelings, visions, tastes and intuitive inklings.

You may ask yourself, or the cannabis plant, for whatever guidance or wisdom you need. When you’re ready to finish the meditation, thank the plant spirit and your higher self for their support and wisdom. Then, visualize the door at the crown of your head shutting, and slowly move your fingers, and open your eyes!

Ivory Woods

The Waning Moon

Work with cannabis to: Release what you no longer need, relax, and heal

Between the Full Moon and the New Moon, as the light of the moon grows smaller or wanes, we too focus on what we want to release and banish. While the Waxing Moon is a great time to try something new, the Waning Moon is a beautiful chance to let some shit go! This is when we get to see what habits, patterns, and situations are keeping us from accomplishing our intentions. This is when we can banish and burn away, and when we can protect and bless.

We planted the seeds on the New Moon, tended to the garden on the Waxing Moon, bloomed during the Full Moon and now during the Waning Moon, we get to enjoy our harvest, pick our bounty, and eat it. This is a time of release, and we can work with cannabis as a way to surrender and soften into this. While we may have found the waxing and full phases to be outwardly celebratory, the Waning Moon is the equivalent of Fall, when we’re ready for cuffing season or in the mood to stay home by ourselves to get our shit in order. This is a time to be both compassionate and firm with ourselves; what’s working and what isn’t? Take the time to look back at the intention you set during the New Moon; take stock of what’s been working and what hasn’t and then act accordingly. This is a wonderful time to work with CBD in all its forms, a chance for us to find our center before we begin a new cycle on the New Moon.

Ritual for the Waning Moon: Protection bath with cascarilla and mullein

This ritual is simple; you’ll be creating a ritual bath for yourself for protection and energetic cleansing. This is a good way to shed any baggage from the past month, and to protect yourself as you continue turning inward through the Dark Moon.

You’ll be working with cannabis as a way to either relax deeper into this ritual, by smoking it, or as an ingredient in your bath by adding CBD and THC infused bath salts. For the bath itself, you can use any or all of the following protective herbs. Keep in mind you don’t need much of each herb; a couple of pinches is enough. You may also wish to add herbs like lavender for healing and rose for love as a way to add a stronger scent as well. Keep in mind, if you’re using herbs it’s best to use organic herbs if you’re going to be soaking in them.

Epsom Salt- though it’s not an herb, salt is one of the smallest natural crystals and absorbs negative energy. Epsom salt helps to relax muscles, ground, and soothe the energetic body.

Cascarilla- Powdered eggshell used to banish and protect. You can buy this at your local metaphysical shop or botanica.

Mullein- Associated with the element of fire, mullein is fiercely protective and can be used to help cleanse your system of any negative energy.

Bay Leaf- Both healing and protective, Bay Leaf is classically used in banishing rituals to remove unwanted energies and creative a protective boundary.

Mugwort- ruled by the Moon, Mugwort is an herb of psychic visions and protection. Use it to connect with your intuition and the energy of the moon as you release and realign.

Before you begin, gather all your supplies, including your cannabis, and run the bath. As the bath runs, take a moment to meditate. Breathe into your body, and as you exhale, release anything you’ve been clinging to. Get present in the moment and ask yourself what you need to shed and let go of. You may like to set this as an intention for your bath. Stay here as long as you need, releasing this more and more with each exhale. When you’re finished meditating, you can open your eyes and start to prepare your bath.

Once the bath is almost full, add the Epsom salts. Once the bath is done running, you may add pinches of your herbs. Make sure that you have your cannabis near you ( ‘cause you’ll be smoking in the bath), and once the temperature is okay, step into the tub. Settle into the water as you allow the bath to absorb whatever it is you’re shedding. Consciously declare to yourself that you’re releasing this. Yes, you will have to follow this up with action in real life, but for now, let the water wash this away.

Ivory Woods

Once you’re ready, smoke your cannabis, allowing this herb to also work its protective and healing magick on you. Know that you’re guided and protected, even sitting in the tub. When you’re finished with this ritual, thank the herbs and yourself, drain the tub, and voila! You’re done.

Wait until the next day, when the herbs are dry, to clean the bath for easier pick up. You may also wish to check back in with your New Moon intention at this time to see how that manifested as well.

No matter how you celebrate the cycles of the Moon, cannabis may help you do so with more ease! So mote it be!