Hedge riding is a form of astral travel in which the rider first reaches an altered state of consciousness before traveling to the Otherworld. Unlike meditation, guided meditation, or pathwalking, the rider loses control of the vision and the beings they interact with and therefore does not determine what will or will not happen during the journey. The only control the rider has is over themselves. Furthermore, hedge riding differs from astral projection in that it takes place outside of our realm in the Otherworld, while astral projection occurs within our plane of existence.
There are much confusion and misinformation floating around about hedgewitches and the practice of hedge riding. I have created this page to help dispel some of these misconceptions and link those interested in the practice to some valuable information and resources. It should be noted that under no circumstances should hedge riding be taken lightly. The act of reaching an altered state of consciousness alone can be dangerous, not to mention the spirits you encounter in the Otherworld. Should you wish to learn how to hedge ride, do so with caution, and always remember to protect yourself.
From Flying the Hedge
What is a Hedgewitch?
Hedgewitch vs Kitchen Witch
Meditation, Pathwalking, and Hedge Riding: Making Sense of it All
Meditation, Astral Project, and Hedge Riding: What's the Difference?
What is Hedge Riding?
Realms of the Otherworld
Focusing the Mind: Getting Ready to Ride
Preparation + Hedge Riding Sachet
Hedge Riding Etiquette: Do's and Don't's of Interacting with Spirits
Hedge Riding Safety Tips: Staying Safe Outside Our Realm
How to Hedge Ride + Flying Ointments
Seeking Your Animal Guides + My Animal Guides
Questioning Spirits: Is This Spirit My Guide?
Developing a Relationship With Your Spirit Companions
After You Hedge Ride: Coming Back to Earth
Setting Up Your Astral Garden/Office
Sigils for Hedge Riding
5 Crystals for Hedge Riding
My Hedge Riding Experiences
How Do I Know If My Journeys Are Real?
Hedge Riding Tea to Aid in Reaching an Altered State of Consciousness
Books
Hedge Witchcraft by Harmonia Saille
Hedge Riding by Harmonia Saille
Witches, Midwives, and Nurses by B. Ehrenreich and D. English
The Book of Hedge Druidry by Joanna van der Hoeven
The Witch's Book of Spirits by Devin Hunter
Hedge-Rider: Witches and the Underworld by Eric De Vries
To Fly By Night: Craft of the Hedgewitch edited by Veronica Cummer
Cunning-Folk and Familiar Spirits: Shamanistic Visionary Traditions in Early Modern British Witchcraft and Magic
Elves, Witches, and Gods: Spinning Old Heathen Magic in the Modern Day by Cat Heath
This post is not officially archived under "Resources" which includes tons of books, blogs, shops, podcasts, apps, and more.
What a tremendous (and wonderful!) resource you've compiled for us here, dear Willow. To my mind, you and your blog are synonymous with hedge riding, and I truly want to thank you for everything I've learned on the subject from you and the ways in which it has enriched my own hedge riding practises.
ReplyDeleteMany blessings & the happiest of wishes for January!
Autumn Zenith 🧡 Witchcrafted Life
Awww, of course! There is so little on the topic and it brings me great joy to continue to add more and more hedgecraft resources every year.
DeleteI just wanted to thank you for all of this.
ReplyDeleteOf course! Thank you for reading and commenting. :)
DeleteHello is this all real
ReplyDeleteI think so. The problem with defining reality is that everyone sees and processes things differently. Two people can watch the same car accident but see very different things. This is why eye witness testimony is not reliable evidence. Hedge riding, spirit flight, and communication with spirits is very real to me and others who practice a similar craft. In the end, that's all that really matters.
DeleteDear Willow,
ReplyDeleteFirst of all i would like to thank you for your hard work. Your experiences and how you write about them is better( and more helpful) than any book i ve ever read.
However i have a loooong question.
I love guided meditations i see really well there but meditation was never my thing i couldnt see almost anything. So i try to be patient to reach the asc.
But here is a thing what happens with me all the time. Is it the state what we are looking for or this is somthing else?
I go to sleep and once i open my eyes. i see everything in the room i honestly dont know that i am “sleeping” until i doesnt hear sombody speaking to me or someone is looking at me from my bed or i just feeling that i am floating in the air. Sometimes i ask it to happen but the majority of the cases it happens accidentally. Like today:
I woke up and floating in the air. I started to laugh because i didnt ask it to happen. I tried to fly out from the flat because somehow i had a feeling that i stucked to my body(than always).
I could but when a i land off the ground i found myself in the city where i was only once before. It doesnt mean anything to me. I saw three people, they were just walking there and i dont know why, i just wanted to dance with them. They didnt really enjoy it but let me to have some joy.
I was thinking to you and i tried to find a portal but what i saw wasnt the right thing to me, shadows and other strange creatuers so a came back to my bed. I wanted to wake up so i did with my hands the same thing you said i felt that strong vibration but (how happens all the time) i couldnt wake up. So after crying and stuggeling i flew to my balcony to fell down from there, maybe the falling feeling will help me to come back. It worked So here i am and writing to you.
Sorry because of the length and i know that my english is not perfect but honestly dont know who could give me better answer than you.
What is it? Why i can not wake up? The asc is like this?
Thank you,
Bianka (A witch from Serbia)
Hey Bianka,
DeleteThank you so much for your support. I apologize for the delay in my response. I have been thinking about it for the past month so I could put together the best response possible.
This sounds a lot like astral projection (not asc/hedge riding) as it appears you are staying within out plane of existence. This is more common than you might think, especially among those interested in the occult. If you struggle with meditation, you are going to sometimes struggle to keep control over your astral projection because they require the same discipline. Its why I always encourage people to master meditation first before attempting astral project and hedge riding.
There are a couple of things you can do in this situation. Since you sometimes leave without first desiring to leave, you can sleep with some grounding crystals such as obsidian or black tourmaline to prevent you leaving your body. Sleep with red string or yarn on your finger so you can always find your way back in case you still continue to travel without wanting to.
Finally, develop a key word, phrase, or action that will bring you home every time that isn't necessarily a common phrase or action in your day-to-day life. This is something you tell yourself or do that will bring you home and cause you to wake up, but will take practice both outside of and during astral projection. Outside of astral projecting, remind yourself that the action will bring you back and wake you up. Say it out loud/perform the action and will yourself to feel more awake or alert. Focus on what it feels like to be awake and fully conscious. Once you feel confident outside of astral projection, begin practicing it within by astral projecting for short periods of time and using your phrase or action to bring you back. Keep practicing until it works every time with ease. This may take awhile so don't be perturbed.
I wish you the best of luck and hope this helps you on your journey!
Warmest regards,
Willow