In this installment of Practical Magic, Lisa Stardust talks with Bri Luna of The Hoodwitch about what scares her. Always remember that magic is for believers, but this column can also simply serve as a guide to getting in touch with yourself — magically or not.
Witches are powerful beings, harnessing the universe into magic and manifesting what they want in the world. As a community, witches have a rich history of doing good and offering positive influence for themselves and those around them. Bri Luna, the owner of The Hoodwitch just released her book, Blood Sex Magic: Everyday Magic for the Modern Mystic, which digs into the magical past, rooting her own rituals in her ancestry and offering spells and tips to hone your own practice. Luna's book, much like the witch community at large, is based in power, celebrating magic “from dirt and blood, jewels and bones, moon and sun.”
With all that power, it's hard to imagine Luna — or witches in general — being afraid of anything. I chatted with Luna about her fears as a witch on the heels of her book release, and it turns out she's scared of your run of the mill, everyday things: scary movies, gaslighting, betrayal, and dark forces (ok, mostly everyday things).
Like any good fan of spooky season, Luna likes a scary movie — but she's only scared by certain elements of them.
“I don’t find gory movies to be scary. For me, it’s the paranormal and psychological films,” Luna says. And her list of frightening films will send chills down your spine (trust me, I attempted to watch them and had to keep the light on while I was sleeping).
The original Suspiria tops Luna’s list. Not only is the film’s score super intense, but the ending is suspenseful and shocking. Luna jokes, “it would be scary to go to ballet school to find out that it’s run by evil.” Yes, it would. Luna also calls out “the psychological horror" of The Shining and Rosemary's Baby. If Luna lived in the home of Poltergeist, she’d “burn the house down” — a sentiment anyone can understand since the house in the movie was built on a burial ground. “Getting lost in nature scares me," she says, which is why The Blair Witch Project makes it to Luna’s top 10 list.
As a witch, there are a few things that really spook Luna — things that non-witches might not fully understand the gravity of. The Exorcist and Witchboard, she says, are terrifying because of their dealings with the supernatural. In Witchboard, “they summon a demon by playing with ouija board” — that is something that mediums and witches advise against unless you are well versed with spirit boards because one never knows what type of entity is being summoned. In the movie, it’s a murderous one — which is truly terrifying for witches in the know. “The Exorcist should have called in witches to help” Luna says. Agreed, since witches have power that transcends dimensions and know how to get rid of demonic spirits.
Beyond movies, the things that scare Luna most involve her magic. “Losing one’s power and having spells backfire or sending back negative consequences” is something most witches probably fear — especially when those forces come at you. Luckily, Luna has the strength and ability to ward off negativity and to protect her magic. But it does worry some people since the evil eye is considered bad energy and witches can feel its gaze upon them. Luna says “Betrayal from your own coven, as we see in The Craft, is frightening,” adding that “manipulation from those you’ve trusted in your spiritual community” can have devastating effects on people. After all, witches consider the members of their covens to be like family.
To learn more about Bri Luna and her magical practices and journey, her book Blood Sex Magic: Everyday Magic for the Modern Mystic is now available.
