Interview with George Bowling
June 7, 20201. What led you to the practice of Traditional Witchcraft?
That’s a tough one! The first time or the second time? I first came to traditional witchcraft when I was very young. However, being 11 at the time, there were aspects of it I didn’t fully understand, so went onto different paths. I had been involved with a myriad of magical traditions over the years, and had become involved with Haitian voodoo for five years, and as much as the experiences were incredible I knew the religion wasn’t for me, and so it was when I was around 22 that I was instructed by an ancestral spirit to set up a small space and start again within the practice. The only way to describe it is that it had felt like I had come back home to a relative that welcomed me with open arms (and I was able to fully understand every aspect!)
2. In your experience, how would you say traditional witchcraft differs from other forms of magick?
I think because traditional witchcraft has got a lot of aspects of it that has taken from older sources, and tends to be adapted to suit that individual’s needs. Tt tends to be a lot more personal in my opinion than from other forms of magic. That’s not to say other forms of magic aren’t personal. Of course, they are. However, because there is adaption there from older sources to suit an individual’s needs, it tends to radiate some elements of that person’s Essence in terms of bridging that connection to the old. Many people think aspects of reconstructionism voids a practice in some ways and I don’t think it does at all. In fact, it can add to it. Even view points on situations regarding ethics and morals when casting are personal to that person. Also, the aspect of working with the genus loci and land around you, and how different variations of regional witchcraft can occur around the different areas, I find it a very personal practice 🙂
3. We know everyone is intrigued by the horned god, can you shed some light on the witches devil?
Of course! Aulde Nick can be a right funny one! He is the embodiment of nature and man in perfect union. Many associate nature with being purely benevolent and generally focus on the more timid or softer aspects. However, he represents the feral and wild aspect of nature, that unpredictability of it all. It’s this aspect that modern man is uncomfortable with, especially in a society that is based around order, structure, and rigmoral. And he takes all of that and rips it up. The irony is that the embodiment of what he stands for lives within every human being when they’re comfortable enough to embrace that other aspect of themselves. He also acts as an otherworldly being standing between the two realms. Many see him as a faery given the trickster nature he holds. Some also see him from folklore as a faery king, and some will see him as a more satanic influence. To me, I see him as a folkloric devil rather than the Christian devil, but he finds his ways to come across in people’s day-to-day lives who acknowledge him. The other day, myself and my mum were talking about him over the phone. The phone then cut off and my mum rang back saying: I don’t think he liked that!
4. How does Christianity tie into the practices of traditional witchcraft?
Well, that’s an interesting one because it then can have a tendency to cross over into the aspect and role of the cunningman/wisewomen, in which most time scales would have been horrified to have been called a witch (however, what is interesting is that from the 1900s onwards, there were those that used the terminologies interchangeable more frequently than other time periods). You have to remember, Christianity has been around in Britain and other countries in Europe for at least a thousand years. It has had an influence on our culture, history, including our magical traditions. And to sit and pretend it hasn’t, is closing our eyes and remaining ignorant to history itself. Even old spells and charms that utilised elements of Christianity and also combined pagan remnants of the past such as incorporating the use of the holy trinity to ward away the little people or utilising the holy trinity along with Odin and Loki for ridding fevers. Even the early modern period ideas on witchcraft permeate Christianity such as flying to the Sabbat to meet the devil, renouncing the baptism, figures having Christian names (such as the idea of the Queen of Elphames partner named Christ Sunday). These are all practices based around Christianity. It’s been around for so long it is in my opinion wrapped around history and one only needs to look into older folk charm’s to see that.
5. Can you tell us how one can work with the spirits of the land?
Three words: eyes, ears and gut. Just be open and receptive. That’s the best advice I can give. Spend some time in a natural place that you wish to connect with. Giving suitable offerings and making a point of speaking out loud, from the heart and being polite! But also being very careful what you say as spirits can and do find loopholes with things. Also knowing when things feel right, because sometimes some genus loci don’t want humans around them, or it can take more than a first go for them to open up to you. So listening to your gut on things and looking out and listening for signs, gifts, omens are all part of the parcel towards a successful working relationship with the genus loci.
6. You have a large following on YouTube. What can we expect to learn from your YouTube channel and what can we expect from you in the future?
So I’d like to think that by me making video blogs, that it keeps British folk magic and traditional witchcraft in the now and the future. I hope that by sharing the information I supply it helps preserve it as a tradition whilst also giving credit to those that have originally shared the information and that my channel carries on those traditions through other practitioners around the globe. It’s amazing when I get emails saying how my channel has added to people’s practice. I am actually currently working on something; however, at the moment, I am keeping shtum! As I know what I get like in terms of focus and pressure. I genuinely have the attention span of a wasp sometimes.