Some of you will remember my retelling of the Welsh story “The Very Black Witch” from “How Culhwch Won Olwen”. This new telling is from the Welsh storyteller Michael Harvey. Enjoy "The Darkest Blackest Witch daughter of the Brightest Witch." It's also found in his book entitled "Pig Boy."
Tammy Blee
I’m currently taking an interesting class on British folklore taught by Mark Norman. One of our many topics was witches. In Britain, old women witches are called either wisewomen or cunning folk. They are called "wise" because they have skill in herbs or divination. Cunning folks might be able to cure you of a malady, help you find a lost object, or protect you from a curse. From medieval time onward, these women (and men) supplemented their income by using their “craft” for others.
We’ve been exploring the archetype of the wise old woman for some time here. But even so, perhaps a reminder of the core elements of this archetype might be needed. The “Wise Old Woman” archetype has two primary roles within folktales. The first is as a helper, tester of worth and guide. The second is the role of the unlikely hero. The “Old Woman Helper” and the “unlikely hero” motifs are both found within two models for analyzing the structure of folktales. In addition, we are looking at wisdom rather than knowledge or skill. The cunning woman of Britain may or may not embody the “wise old woman” or “wise crone” archetype.
Let’s look at a real-life example. Tammy Blee (1793-1856) was a 19th Cornish wise woman. She was known as the white witch and is said to have cured people with spells and magic powders. The film “Tammy Blee – The Notorious Witch of the West” tells her life story. As the film states, “Widely celebrated for her skills throughout the Duchy, Tammy Blee's reputation as one of the most gifted of 'wise woman' ensured a steady stream of visitors, to her home in Helston.” As you watch the film, pay special attention to the ending. It will help you determine if Tammy Blee was the wise crone or simply a cunning woman after all.
“Tammy Blee - The Notorious Witch of the West”
“You must know it is a dreadful thing to undertake [to summon a spirit]!” Tammy said. And so it was! Even though the event was staged and her fraud uncovered (for the spirit was her husband), Tammy’s suggestion as to how to share this story left the client with treasure. And so, was Tammy a witch, a cunning woman, or the wise crone (as defined here)? I think there is evidence enough to identify her as all three. She certainly knew how to keep her clients happy and how to turn a very bad situation into a good one. Tammy had knowledge of the "old ways." She was a helper and a guide too. But wise? Well, I’ll let the reader make that determination.
Previously, I’ve discussed the wise woman as depicted in Irish folklore. In Ireland, she is known as the bean feasa. In my podcast covering the folktale “The Brewery of Eggs,” the wise old woman saves the day in a changeling tale. If you listen to the podcast, you’ll discover how folktales can be coded to mean much more than what’s on the surface.
It’s
Halloween. The witching time of
year. The witch is a character, an archetype,
and an epitaph. Starting in the middle ages as a healer, she later became associated
with the devil; and either burned at the stake or hung, when identified. Women
outliers were most often accused. Single women, widows,
and other women on the margins of society were especially targeted.
Over
time, the witch became a universal archetype, closely associated with the
crone. Both are portrayed as old and ugly.
Both are clever and, at times, cunning.
What distinguishes them is not magic-making or flying on broomsticks,
but on the crone’s desire to serve as a mentor or guide for those who are found
worthy. These are the young heroes-in-training,
usually, orphans lost in a world in which they have no value. The line between the witch and the crone is rarely clear.
Yet
a question remains. Is the witch born or
made? Is she the product of trauma, a wrong that remained un-righted, a
solitary weakness in character, or was her fate destined? It’s the back story we never hear of a witch
woman we never truly know. If that story
was told perhaps our view of her would change.
Perhaps we would see her in a new light, a light of understanding and compassion. And in doing so perhaps women today could also
stop judging themselves against a single measure of perfection – the archetype
of the princess. The princess is the antithesis
of the witch. She is meek, well mannered,
and beautiful. She never is “too smart,”
or “too gifted.” She knows her place and
only rarely moves beyond her assigned role.
The
witch in folk tales, however, is no sissy.
Smart and skilled, she causes chaos, places curses, and sometimes eats
small children for dinner. She is no one to be crossed. Accordingly, many women today would do just
about anything to avoid being called her name (or some variation thereof!). But is the witch beyond redemption? Is she always the evil antagonist or is there
a reason for her madness?
The
poem that follows is one of these backstories.
It’s the story of a woman who became a witch only after she lost her
love. Many years later, as an old, old,
woman (perhaps even a crone), she crafts a spell to begin again.
Magick Spell for Lost Love
“Double, double toil and trouble….”
I cast
this spell in the darkest night; the moon is full, owl, and wolf share my plight.
“Fire burn and caldron bubble…”
The
words I speak brand my heart, I set my intention and release the dark arts,
“Fillet of a fenny snake…”
for an
incantation truly meant to find lost love and heal laments.
“In the caldron boil and bake…”
No visage reflects on my mirror shard, nor fortune fated on a Tarot card.
“Eye of
Newt and toe of frog…”
My power
lost, so freely given; in spurts and sputters, and without reason.
“Wool of
bat and tongue of dog...”
“Nose
too long and hair too straight,” poisoned thoughts that suffocate.
“Adder’s
fork and blind-worm’s sting…”
Potions
of hibiscus and rose hips fail against the sin of self-betrayal.
“Lizard’s leg and howlet’s wing…”
The
raven gives its warning cry, as I mark a pentagram in the sky.
“For a
charm of powerful trouble…”
My skill
grew less, my anger rose, as I recalled my troubled woes.
“Like a
hell-broth boil and bubble…”
No one
can put me in my place, say I am less, or make me wait.
“Double,
double toil and trouble…”
Send me to trial, or burn at stake, release me from this awful hate,
“Fire
burn and caldron bubble…”
that
strips my skill and leaves me bare, forget and forgive, not ensnare.
“Cool it with a baboon’s blood…” (And let me remember how to love.)
My power
comes from deep within, this magick’s in my very skin.
“Then
the charm is firm and good…”
Love is
stronger than the night, it gives me strength, so I take flight.