Years ago I started to carry around a small, tarot sized, velvet bag in my purse or backpack.  It had started out as a way for me to keep with me a few things that I felt I needed to have around all the time.  Things like certain pieces of jewelry, a bottle of very special anointing oil, things like that.  Over the years I’ve add other things that started to become important.  A crystal here, an odd trinket there.  It was never anything I was doing with any real intent other than to keep these things together and keep them with me in a portable way so that, if for some reason I suddenly wanted my pentacle necklace that has the broom, star, and witch hat dangling from them, I would know it’s there.

Because this wasn’t really with intention it doesn’t quite fit the idea of being a true Witch Bag, but in essence it is.  Witch Bags as like the modern Witch’s version of the shamanic and Native American medicine bag.  They contain objects with spiritual and magickal significance and can create a small traveling magickal altar of sorts.  We see similar bags and pouches in different cultures within the mystical and shamanic communities such as the Celtic Crane Bag which we learn of in the myths of Manannan mac Lir may have gained it’s name from being fashioned from crane who was actaully the warrior woman Aoife after she’d shapeshifted into a crane.  Manannan’s bag contained many different things, including his house, but held objects magickal and sacred to him and those in the myths, nine in all, and were used magickally in battle and at other things.

The modern Witch Bag can be made of any material and of any size.  Some prefer the small pouches that are worn like necklaces and carry only a few very sacred objects, while others create whole travel altars with full sized tools in their bag by using special messenger bags or backpacks.  You’ll need to know first what the purpose of your bag is before determining the size.   It’s also important to keep in mind that your bag and it’s purpose will likely change over time, so think only about what you need now while doing this and don’t worry about where it will go in the future.

Here are a few suggestions to get your thinking:

• A bag with items that represent your path right now.  These can be certain stones connected to where you are right now.  A small sachet of the herbs that you are most connected to or most fond of.  Use things that, when you take them out and hold them, ground you in your path now.  This can be a very personal and empowering small bag that would be great for someone that is either just getting started out on the path or maybe for someone that is struggling with their spirituality at the moment.  If you’re someone that has to hide their beliefs from family or friends, especially if you’re living with them, this can be a nice empowerment tool you can make and then, when you need to feel connected to your Craft, you can hold it, take objects out and pray or meditate with them, and so on.
• Create a mini altar.  Gather one object each for the four earthly elements, an object for the God and one for the Goddess, something to represent Spirit (though typically we are the representation of Spirit in circle), and then gather small tools.  I used to have one of these and had a small feather for air, a spiral patterned stone for earth, a piece of carnelian for fire, and a small shell for water.  For God and Goddess I had flat stones with their symbols drawn on them.  I had a small vile of anointing oil, a mini chalice, a tiny candle holder that fit birthday cake candles perfectly, and a small mini athame that was actually a daggar pendant with an ankh on it that I never actually wore but one day felt compelled to buy at the mall.  I eventually added a small abalone shell and a small sage wand to it.  I carried this with me and did many meditations and mini rituals with it on lunch breaks, on vacations, and at random when I was in someone else’s home.
• Make a healing bag.  In this bag you can include certain stones and herbs used for healing.  Maybe include a vile of sacred and blessed moon water or other healing water.  Include Bach essences and crystal elixirs.
• You can also make a general bag.  This is one that would grow with you and is one that is never really complete.  With this bag you may find that the size of it grows over time.  You may start out with it being a small bag with just a special stone or feather and then over time it grows to need a bigger bag.  Add sacred gifts you find on your path, maybe something special that someone gifts you, maybe a special stone that you use in meditation.  But let this one grow with you over time.

In truth now Witch Bag is ever truly complete and there is always room for it to grow.  The idea is that you are gathering together tools and tokens of your path that you find magickal and that you can carry with you to help you in magick along the way.  You can also make a bag in such a way where the items are never removed.  You can create the bag and then do a small ritual to consecrate and dedicate it and create a spirit within the bag itself so that as items are added it adds to the spirit of the bag.  The bag itself becomes the magickal token and the items inside are part of what makes it work, so to speak.

It’s also important to keep in mind that the Witch Bag is essentially a portable spiritual tool kit and not a spell bag or a bag used for manifesting a specific goal.  Instead, when working with a specific intent, you’re working in the confines of creating a bag designed to be used for a specific purpose like tools for healing, tools for personal reflection or empowerment, etc.

Witch Bags are fun, don’t make it a serious pursuit.  Take some time to meditate on what you want from bag and how big you want it to be.  Decide where you want to start; do you want to start with the bag or do you already have items that you know you want to have in such a bag.  In that case you can start gathering together your items and then see how big of a bag you might have to start with.  Some people like to keep their bags tradition and make their own leather bags, others prefer cloth and may also create their own.  If you’re not that great with a needle and thread, purchase a bag crafted by a Pagan artisan on somewhere like Etsy or ArtFire.  Resist the temptation to purchase a premade mini or travel altar.  Creating this bag from scratch is a truly magickal process and you’ll be creating a magickal touchstone for yourself through making this bag.

Visit PardoLeather on Etsy to see many more beautiful medicine bags that could serve as your first Witch Bag!