I’m generally an easy going, “live and let live” kind of woman. I understand people well enough to know that we’re all just doing the best we can with what we’ve got. Every now and then however, something pushes me a little too far or someone does something unnecessarily spiteful and I get the urge to throw a little baneful magic at them.

Yep, today I’m talking about cursing.

Now I know cursing is a controversial topic, many people don’t like it and if you’re in that boat that’s just fine, you do you. Here at The Traveling Witch we don’t abide by any rede and we understand that karma is specific to Hinduism and Buddhism and does NOT apply to our more pagan leanings. Cursing has long been a traditional part of the witch’s toolkit and as much as many modern movements have tried to stamp it out there are many of us who keep to a more traditional path and respect the power and responsibility that comes with it.

So what is a curse?

A curse is a spell done specifically to cause harm to another. In some cases the curse can achieve other ends as well but the intent to harm has to be there for it to be a curse.

Curses can be immensely useful but more than any other spell I feel that curses are often turned to in situations where the curse won’t actually solve the problem. Since I’m pretty heavily against wasting my energy on non-solutions to my problems I always take the following considerations into account before deciding if a curse is the appropriate path.

1. Do you want to keep this person in your life?

If the answer is yes then you should avoid cursing them. In my experience, regardless of spiritual ability, a person who has been cursed will sense the negative energy coming from you. This frequently makes them increasingly hostile. In most cases the relationship ends due to the stress between the two, but not before a lot of unnecessary emotional damage on your part.

2. Do you want this person to “learn their lesson”?

Nobody learns anything from being cursed. Honestly, who thinks stuff like “Look at all of this bad stuff happening to me, maybe I should stop picking on that kid/maybe I shouldn’t cheat on my girlfriend/maybe I should be less racist/etc.” The answer is no one. No one thinks like that. There’s no logic to support such thoughts unless you intend to straight up tell them “Hey, I’m cursing you because you did X”, which is a bad idea and can land you in hot water. If you just want them to change their behavior, try something different. Maybe talk to them or try a different sort of spell.

3. Are you willing to be responsible for any energetic or physical harm that will come to them as a result of your curse?

This isn’t a “Woo, bad karma~” point. I’m just saying, are you going to want to take the curse back when someone gets hurt? What if the curse is stronger than you intended and someone dies? Can you handle knowing that you had a hand in it? I’m all for cursing but these are things that CAN happen and they need to be considered before attempting curses.

4. Are you willing to accept that this person IS going to change, probably in unpleasant ways as a result of your curse?

Nobody gets away from a successful curse unscathed. The possibility for permanent physical damage, mental trauma and major (and likely negative) personality changes is very real. Are you going to be ok if that ex that you curse for dumping you goes on to seriously abuse his future partners? What if that “little curse” goes on to cripple your target? Will you feel guilty?

If you've gone through these questions and still want to throw that curse then by all means, do.

Remember: You're the witch, you make the rules!

The important thing to recognize here is that these guidelines are largely about YOU. I want you to be every bit the badass witch that you want to be but in order to do that you need to understand the gravity and potential consequences of your magic. Curse regret isn't any fun and I'd much rather you choose your actions confidently and with the full knowledge that you're ready to handle the outcomes.

Do you feel more or less likely to try a curse now that you have a better idea of how to assess these questions? Tell me about it in the comments below!