Cunning Folk with Aerinn Hodges

In recent years, more and more attention has been directed at a somewhat neglected tradition of Magic- The Cunning Folk. Otherwise known as White Witches, they were known for providing many functions and needs all over Europe for a time. Divination, blessing, curse-breaking, dreams, conjuring of spirits, potions and much more were just some of the tools in their magical arsenal. They fulfilled many roles for those whom they served, for a price of course. In this Episode of WMiT? we are joined by The Wise Woman of Bushwick Avenue, Aerinn Hodges!

My guest for this episode is none other than the modern Cunning folk Aerinn Hodges. Aerinn is an artist, magician, and animist excavating the role of women and trans feminine people in magic, religion, and healing. Their work is inspired by the embodied mysticism of medieval visionaries, the community-based sorcery of early modern cunning folk, and the haunted medicine of charming traditions. They are a student of divination, herbalism, folk magic, and spirit work. Later on in June of 2021 Aerinn will be co-hosting a class with Dr. Alexander Cummins on Cunning Woman Anne Bodenham, as well as teaching courses at Catland Books in Brooklyn. Click the Pic below to head to Aerinn’s Blog Love + Blight!

Show Notes

• Popular Magic: Cunning-folk in English History by Owen Davies
• Cunning Folk & Familiar Spirits by Emma Wilby – Great Book
• The Cunning Man’s Handbook: The Practice of English Folk Magic, 1550-1900 by Jim Baker – One of my favourite Magic books ever. Highly Recommended
• The Discoverie of Witchcraft by Reginald Scot – A fantastic book. So much great stuff in here. Supposed to be about debunking witches but soon became a Grimoire for magic itself
• Cunning Folk, Conjurors, and the ‘Lancashire Seven’
• ‘Sieve, Shears and a Swallow – Lancashire’s Cunning Folk’ in Studies in History, Archaeology, Religion and Conservation
• Cunning-Folk.com – Old site by Owen Davies
• Between the Living and the Dead: A Perspective on Witches, and Seers in the Early Modern Age by Éva Pócs – Fantastic book. Please consider purchasing
• The Night Battles: Witchcraft and Agrarian Cults in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries by Carlo Ginzburg
• Palgrave Historical Studies in Witchcraft and Magic – Some absolutely amazing books here. Many of these titles touch on Cunning Folk. Seriously great stuff
• Executing Magic in the Modern Era by Owen Davies & Fancesca Matteoni
• The Magical Adventures of Mary Parish: The Occult World of Seventeenth-Century London by Frances Timbers – Such a great story
• Doctor Lamb revived, or, VVitchcraft condemn’d – The condemnation of Anne Bodenham. Extremely fascinating stuff here
• Witchcraft, Politics, and Memory in 17th Century England – Great read about Cunning Woman Anne Bodenham
• Framed for Murder: The Witch of Wapping – Joan Peterson
• Ursula Kemp
• Serpent Songs: An Anthology of Traditional Craft – Scarlet Imprint – Love this book
• The Book of Oberon: A Sourcebook of Elizabethan Magic
• The Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy
• The Grimoire of Arthur Gauntlet: A 17th Century London Cunning-man’s Book of Charms, Conjurations and Prayers
• A Cunning Man’s Grimoire – Stephen Skinner talks about this book on Glitch Bottle Podcast
• The Cambridge Book of Magic – I love this and have adapted a few of the spells within. Please consider purchasing a copy
• The Book of Gold: The Magic & Spells of the Biblical Psalms
• The Encyclopedia of Mystics, Saints, and Sages by Judika Illes – Judika is such a wonderful source for so much Magic. Plenty of Cunning-ish spells in this work and most of her other books. Please check them all out!
• Of Angels, Demons & Spirits: A Sourcebook of British Magic
• The Book of St. Cyprian: The Sorcerer’s Treasure by José Leitão – A great source of so much Iberian magic. Another one of my favourites
• Bibliothèque Bleue
• At the Bottom of the Garden: A Dark History of Fairies, Hobgoblins, Nymphs, and Other Troublesome Things by Diane Purkiss
• Cunning Folk Magazine
• Fatal Words: Restudying Jeanne Favret-Saada
• The Anti-Witch by Jeanne Favret-Saada
• Andrew D. Chumbley

Many Thanks to Dr. Alexander Cummins for his guidance and help, as always