The Magic of the Corn Dolly
As the sunny days of summer begin to grow shorter, our Mother Earth blesses us with the gifts of the harvest season. Her gardens and fields have again given us sustenance, and soon it will be time for the earth to rest under the snowy blanket of winter.
Ancient peoples, who held mankind’s connection to nature very near and dear, would craft an image of the Goddess using the very materials she so lovingly provided for them. Between the first harvest of grain in August and the last harvest in October, effigies were created to nurture and house the precious spirit of the earth. And so, by keeping this image of Mother Nature safe and sound inside the home during the renewing slumber of wintertime, her spirit was honored and preserved for the next growing season.
I began making corn dollies for some friends and family last year and they were a big hit!! I found that making them took a bit of practice, but once I got the hang of it, it was super fun and really helped me feel connected to the changing of the seasons. For people that don’t have a garden, a back yard will do, or even a flower box or potted plant. Of course if you know anything about the practice of voodoo, them you know I’m no stranger to burying the remnants of magical workings in the ground.
Honestly, any park, patch of wooded area or-and you knew I was gonna say it-cemetary- is fair game when I’m burying something of the magical sort. For those naysayers who might think the cemetary is not a good place to bury a corn dolly because that’s where deceased people are buried, remember that our souls are eternal, and death is just a path we take at the end of life on the mortal plane. The journey is not over, just the part that requires our human bodies is ended. As long as you are respectful and clean up after yourself, not leaving plastic bags, water bottles etc on the ground, burying an offering or spellwork feels very natural and finite. You are leaving that buried item in the ground to kind of “transfer” the work to the Universe. That’s just my 2 cents on the matter, anyway!!
So, if you’re looking for a way to connect with the transition from summer to fall, and a witchy little crafty thing to do, even with little ones, I’d highly recommend getting some corn husks and twine and making a corn dolly or two!!
In Service,
Khouzhan Morgan
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