Recently, I was asked a question that surprised me. Maybe I shouldn’t have been, but it did take me off guard. The question was, “what is wrong with using spells found on Pinterest?” My first thought was, where do I start?

The ease with which we can gain information and ideas through the internet can be overwhelming. Everywhere you look, you can find nearly anything you seek where knowledge is concerned. The problem is that not everything you read is reliable.

I’ve found on Pinterest, for example, that there are pages of correspondences and spells. Sigils are another easily found resource. To a new or inexperienced witch, these can seem like a treasure trove of ready-made items to incorporate into their Book of Shadows or their workings. Sadly, many do utilize these offerings. But should they?

This gal told me that she was happy to find all these resources on Pinterest because they saved her a lot of hours of study. I nearly choked. It took me a moment to find a response other than calling her a blooming idiot.

I challenge people all the time, even with information that I provide. Never take one person’s opinion as truth or the only way of doing things. If you learn something new, check for accuracy. Never take one person’s ideas as being the absolute truth. I few YouTube videos on the exact same topic can provide many variations. Each person seems to have their own spin on the knowledge that they share. The same goes for Pinterest and social media of any form.

When someone shares a spell, for example, they are telling you what works for them. Admittedly, some have me rolling my eyes or wanting to smack them upside their head asking, “what are you thinking?” One topic I see a lot currently is a recipe for hot foot powder. Hot foot powder is a mixture made and used by practitioners of hoodoo. It is designed to banish someone from your life who is causing trouble. It would seem that each person who makes it likes to add ingredients that are not in the traditional recipe. Many ingredients make no sense at all. Though they call their blend Hot Foot Powder, they have changed it so much that it is no longer the authentic version. It has been morphed into something else altogether.

Before adopting someone else’s ideas, always research it for yourself. Do reputable resources back up the information you found? It would be a waste of your time and resources to make a spell “recipe” only to find it ineffective or possibly counter-productive to your workings. Some share recipes that are actually closer to a very different, sometimes dangerous, spell.

In witchcraft, you must study. There are no short-cuts. Sadly, some choose to take the easy way out. They base their practice on the ideas of others without checking the accuracy first.

Using someone else’s ideas as a starting point isn’t a bad thing. Using their ideas blindly is the issue. Ideas shared are based upon that individual’s experience. What works for them may not work for you. This is where doing your own research comes in. You need to understand the uses for each ingredient. How does it work when mixed with the other ingredients in the recipe? Do the ingredients make sense to you? Do they work together or do they work against each other? What reason is there for each ingredient to be added to the recipe? In spells that have a chant, does the wording really produce the effect you are working towards? Or are they just a nice rhyming verse written to sound good, but lacking the energy you need for your workings?

Sigils are especially problematic for me. A design given could have a very different meaning or purpose that what you require. Only the one who made the sigil knows what it’s true intended purpose is. They are the hardest to research as people can take the exact same words and make very different designs. The only standard in sigil making is the process. There are no sigils that are always effective no matter who is using them.

Correspondences can vary in what they contain. Some have more information than others. Others may have errors in them. It is by researching the topic that you know what is accurate.

The idea of anyone looking at Pinterest as the “one stop shopping” resource for their practice is risky. The information is only as good as tbe study that went into it. Don’t set yourself up for trouble or failure by blindly following what you find. Do your own research and come to your own conclusions. Is the information you find on Pinterest and social media accurate? Does it resonate with truth? By finding the answers yourself, you can eliminate many problems in the future.