In this episode of The Hermit's Land podcast, I sit down with Althaea Sebastiani to dig into the heart of witchcraft—animism and spirit work. We explore what it means to walk this path with patience and authenticity. Learning to listen and truly hear will help you build deep relationships with spirits over time.

We get into the how-to of working with spirits and deities, discussing ways to practice outside formal or initiatory structures. This episode offers guidance on how to find the spirits where you live. We also dig into the responsibility of navigating cultural appropriation and engaging respectfully with Indigenous and other living traditions.

The conversation also covers spirit workers and teachers—the role they might play in your journey and how to decide if someone is truly trustworthy. With more sketchy folks gaining reach in the spiritual marketplace, discernment is more important than ever.

Finally, we remind listeners that spirituality doesn’t exist in a vacuum—the physical world still matters. Your health, well-being, and everyday life all shape your practice. Common sense is just as vital as intuition when walking a spiritual path.

If you're looking to start practicing witchcraft, this episode will give you the pointers you need to begin. With patience and practice, you’ll be building solid relationships with the spiritual world in no time.

You can find us on the socials. Or Althaea is here and Andrew is here.

Episodes with drop biweekly going forward. Help me let the world know I'm back by sharing on socials and leaving review on the platform on which you listen to us.

Much love

Andrew

Chapters

00:00 Introduction to Witchcraft and Animism

04:54 Starting Your Journey in Witchcraft

11:04 Engaging with Spirits and Deities

21:12 Navigating Appropriation and Authenticity in Practice

26:56 Personal Rituals and Nature Connection

28:57 Engaging with Indigenous Traditions

30:53 Understanding Living Traditions

32:21 The Role of Spirit Workers

34:29 Finding Authentic Spirit Workers

36:42 Navigating the Spiritual Marketplace

40:34 Cautions in Spiritual Practices

43:04 Balancing Spiritual and Physical Worlds

Full transcript on my site here.