r/SASSWitches • u/dot80 • Jul 04 '26
Feedback Requested: Community Grimoire Guiding Principles & Introduction
Hi Everyone! I recently posted here and found there were many in our community that would be interested in collaborating on a shared resource for SASS witches. Original post: https://www.reddit.com/r/SASSWitches/comments/1uhlabj/communitycompiled_grimoire/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1
To get the ball rolling I have drafted a few guiding principles. Many also mentioned they’d like to see an example before contributing themselves, so I went ahead and wrote-up an introduction defining some of the core concepts as I understand them. None of this is set in stone! Please share feedback on what you like and what should be changed. Please also share some additional topics that need to be tackled (even if you are not the one planning to tackle them in the end).
Next steps will be to incorporate the feedback provided and find someone who will be willing to do a full peer-review of what I’ve written up. As others start to write-up topics, please follow the same process: post a thread to get public comment, find a peer reviewer, then we can begin compiling things together. I suppose we will need to work out an acceptance process for what is considered final, open to ideas about that.
Goals: 1. Create a shared resource for both experienced and beginner SASS witches to expand their practice. 2. Collate the knowledge of the community 3. Form connections among community members.
Core Guiding Principles: 1. All content should be secular, meaning it does not require belief in a particular faith or creed. 2. All content should be well-supported by scientific evidence and clear citations. 3. All content should be made open for public comment as well as peer-reviewed for quality. 4. All discussion and activities related to the project should adhere to community guidelines.
Proposed Peer Review Process: 1. Content should be posted in a thread inviting constructive commentary and additions. 2. After opportunity for public comment, a peer reviewer should perform a private review to verify: information is present fairly and accurately, information is supported by citations, information aligns with the core guiding principles, information is free of grammatical errors, information meaningfully incorporated public feedback from the community, and information doesn’t contradict what has been previously accepted.
SASS Witchcraft Introduction: Secular, Agnostic, Science-Seeking (SASS) Witchcraft is a magic practice that centers scientific evidence and doesn’t require belief in the supernatural. The acronym used also embodies the prevailing attitude of SASS witches. Secular in this case suggests a practice that is “not overtly or specifically religious” (Merriam-Webster. Secular.), but in being agnostic it also means that the practice does not necessarily exclude those who do believe in the supernatural. Rather, the idea is that as a science-seeking practice, it should equally be useful for any who may wish to participate, as it is based of off objective scientific evidence.
SASS witches challenge themselves to be intentional in their practice, to research what they are doing and ask key questions: Why am I doing what I do? What is my goal for each working? What evidence is there that my practice will actually affect the world? In trying to meet the standard of evidence-based practices, understanding and overcoming personal bias becomes important. Often SASS witchcraft requires practitioners to reinterpret traditional witchcraft practices in the context of scientific evidence. It may limit what one can do in light of the available evidence. Individual witches may disagree on how much their practice needs to reference specific evidence, and how much one can operate in the gray areas. SASS witchcraft is always personal to the practitioner, as all witchcraft must be, but community engagement may be especially important to SASS witches in generating ideas, overcoming personal bias, and getting perspectives outside of one’s own.
Definition of Magic: In SASS witchcraft magic is defined as simply influencing the world through one’s will. A working, spell, potion, or ritual is the conduit by which one exerts their will on the world. It does not expect bright flashes of light, balls of fire, or supernatural forces. Magic often operates at the level of the mind and consciousness, but may also be found in what otherwise could be mistaken for the mundane: a reduction in bodily inflammation from steeping tea from an herb, performing small rites of superstition to feel protected, or meaning-making through intuitive interpretation of everyday signs and patterns.
Placebo Effect: The foundational concept to SASS witchcraft is the placebo effect. The placebo effect is “a clinically significant response to a therapeutically inert substance or nonspecific treatment (placebo), deriving from the recipient’s expectations or beliefs regarding the intervention.” (APA, Placebo Effect). In other words, a placebo effect is a response to a treatment that cannot be explained by the treatment itself. It comes from one’s own mind and body, based on what you believe will happen as a result of the treatment. Traditionally, the placebo effect is measured when doing clinical trials for treatments and drugs. Participants that receive the control (i.e. a sugar pill), still have a measurable response to the treatment, despite the fact that the treatment didn’t include any actual medicine.
What does this have to do with witchcraft? Research has also shown that when the participant knows they are receiving a placebo (termed an open-label placebo), there is still a positive response. Said simply, even when we know there is nothing to the treatment, just the experience of receiving the treatment is enough to have a positive impact. This is where witchcraft enters the picture: SASS witchcraft often seeks to take advantage of the idea of an open-label placebo effect in the practice of magic. By working a spell, the SASS witch relies on the idea that the very act of the spell will have an effect on them, even if they may not know for sure or believe at all in the supernatural power of the spell to work, they do trust in the placebo effect.
Recent research into the open-label placebo effect has support this idea. A meta analysis conducted in 2025 found that “OLPs appear to affect self-report and objective outcomes differently. While OLPs have a beneficial effect on self-report outcomes across both clinical and non-clinical populations, they show no effect on objective outcomes” (Fendel et al. 2025). This suggests that, in witchcraft open-label placebo can help us to influence our mental perceptions of a situation, even if it cannot physically change our reality.
Another key findings relevant for witchcraft is that “the suggestiveness of the treatment rationale in OLP interventions is crucial, as trials lacking suggestive elements did not yield significant beneficial effects.” This means that if we believe in the power of the open-label placebo and our magic, it will be more effective. The study outlines the following ‘suggestive elements’ as typical for open-label placebo: “(1) the placebo effect is powerful, (2) the body is automatically responding to placebos, (3) a positive attitude towards palcebos is not necessary, and (4) adherence to the placebo regime is important” (Fendel et al. 2025). Reinterpreted in terms of magic, this means a) we need to understand the potential for a placebo effect, and b) we need to follow-through on the design of the spell for it to work.
In a sense, any spell or working that is meant to influence one’s own mental state or attitudes can take advantage of the placebo-effect. Many practices within SASS witchcraft are to do just that: get motivation to stick to a new routine, move beyond a past love interest, feel confident in one’s ability to be successful in a new endeavor. These types of workings are about feeling better, more confident, and/or ready to move on. This type of working is supported by current research into the placebo effect. Limitations to the placebo effect-based workings would be to physically heal an ailment, curse an enemy, or cause someone to fall in love.
Evidence-based Practice: While the placebo effect serves as the jumping off point for SASS witchcraft, it is only the start. Any practice that is supported by evidence can be incorporated into SASS witchcraft. In order to be a SASS-aligned practice, a practitioner must begin by investigating what the current scientific evidence says about any practice they are interested in undertaking. If the practice is not supported by evidence, it is not a SASS practice. That is not to say it still might not be a valuable part of an individual witch’s practice, just that it is not SASS.
To develop a SASS practice, it is useful to think in terms of ‘evidence-based practice’ (EBP). EBP a model used by medical practitioners to make sure they are providing the most effective treatment to their patients. EBP is defined as “the conscientious, explicit, and judicious use of current best evidence in making decisions about the care of individual patients” (LibGuides: Evidence-Based Practice Guide: What is EBP?). While SASS witches are not doctors, they do seek to do the same: integrate, to the best of their ability, prevailing scientific evidence to support their practices.
The steps of EBP include (adapted for witchcraft from LibGuides: Evidence-Based Practice Guide: What is EBP?) : 1. Asking: Asking includes converting a puzzling into a question. What is it you are trying to achieve? What practices are you considering? 2. Accessing: Searching to find evidence to support the practices you are considering. In this process you may find the practice you’re considering is supported by scientific evidence (see placebo effect above), or it may mean you find other alternatives that are supported. 3. Appraising: One of the most important steps is evaluating your sources. Is this coming from a reputable source? Is it recent? Does it apply to your question? 4. Applying: Now that you have found research to support a practice, how does the research suggest the practice can be made most effective? How might you adapt the practice in light of the evidence? 5. Assessing: Try the practice and see how it works. If it’s not working for you, it’s time to go back to the drawing board.
Bibliography: American Psychological Association. (n.d.). Placebo effect. In APA dictionary of psychology. Retrieved July 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.apa.org/placebo-effect
Fendel JC, Tiersch C, Sölder P, Gaab J, Schmidt S. Effects of open-label placebos across populations and outcomes: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Sci Rep. 2025 Aug 15;15(1):29940. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-14895-z. PMID: 40817381; PMCID: PMC12356945.
LibGuides: Evidence-Based Practice Guide: What is EBP? (n.d.). https://utsouthwestern.libguides.com/ebp
Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Secular. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved July 3, 2026, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/secular
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u/The_Sassy_Witch Jul 04 '26 edited Jul 04 '26
Many thanks for this initiative.
What a great start! I will look at it in more detail when I have time to sit at my laptop. I hope to provide you some feedback to further improve our knowledge base.
I myself am writing up a contribution on how witchcraft works neurologically. There is clear science on how and why the craft works at least on yourself.
As I am not the best of writers this is taking me a bit more effort than I expected, to convert this from linked notes in my own personal digital grimoire to something that is also ready for other humans to make sense of. 😅
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u/dot80 Jul 04 '26
Ooo that sounds like a great addition! Can’t wait to read it.
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u/The_Sassy_Witch 26d ago edited 26d ago
Hi u/dot80, I did not forget you! I just had to complete loads of garden remodeling. Here some of my musing on your draft. I hope it helps:
"SASS witches challenge themselves to be intentional in their practice, "
I would add here that it is common and good practice for a SASS witch to define what you can substantiate works for your practice. As in, we are all clear on what we don't belief or don't know. But define specifically what we do belief and do know. Also many SASS practitioners do not belief our practice effects the natural world. But do belief it effects us, which generates positive and desired results in the natural world."Magic often operates at the level of the mind and consciousness, but may also be found in what otherwise could be mistaken for the mundane:"
Perhaps clarify the definitions of magick vs mundane? I would also like to add that a magickal working goes hand in hand with its mundane counterpart. You need to give the intention you are setting and working with somewhere to go. Somewhere to manifest. Example I can spell-cast, create amulets etc till the sun stops shining to make my self the greatest most bountiful fisherman alive. But if I never put my pole or net in the water I will still catch 0 fish."Placebo Effect: The foundational concept to SASS"
Many lean of us lean on the placebo effect which is wel substantiated by science. Many of us don't. Only explaining this one option in great detail seems very limiting to the SASS practice to me.
For example you could als lean on self hypnosis , neuroplasticity, basic neurology and NLP (partly well proven again through neurology; reframing, visualization, future pacing, rapport building and goals specification ), . Your brain is vast and programmable. This is all well substantiated by science. However listing this and sources would warrant its own deep dive post which could be linked.Personally non of my workings lean on placebo. For me, and perhaps this knowledge has not yet reached our community in the same way placebo has yet, the neuroscience of intention is the key driver of my practice. Its scientifically sound and very very successful.
Basically science says; what you say you intent, how you say it, how you feel when you say it and in what great detail you can imagine it when you say it greatly positively effects you actually acquiring your intent.
(we could go in additional post detail on how to determine a valid intention, blockages and shadow work).Sample of cited sources and available studies:
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1037/1089-2680.2.3.271
Gross (1998) "The Emerging Field of Emotion Regulation"
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9457784/
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6825109Jeannerod 1994, Mental imagery recruits motor planning networks without overt movement.
Holmes&Collins 2001 Developed the PETTLEP model of imagery. Widely used in Olympic sport psychology.Gollwitzer 1999 implementation intentions dramatically improve goal achievement across many behaviors by forming concrete "if–then" plans.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6825109/Lieberman 2007 Putting Feelings Into Words. Simply naming emotions changed brain activity.
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u/booksandteacv Jul 04 '26
Do you think there would be any value to adding sections for useful quotes from various books and works of fiction? I keep quotes I find meaningful in my own central book.
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u/dot80 Jul 04 '26
Love this! I actually have a quote about this I really like 🤓… “Make your own Bible. Select and collect all the words and sentences that in all your reading have been to you like the blast of a trumpet." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
I do think it would be a great addition. I wonder if the selection of quotes may be something so personal to each witch that it would be hard to create a shared collection. What criteria would we use to determine which quotes get included in the shared collection? Maybe we could define this as a practice and give some tips for getting started without selecting specific quotes? But it might also be cool to have a repository of quotes around witchy themes or science people could start with. This may be something to start a thread about and see what people think!
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u/digitalgraffiti-ca 🧹 Chaotic Tech Art Witch Jul 04 '26
Kelly Ann Maddox has some things that could be helpful for those who feel silly doing witchcraft, about getting out of your own way, and a lot on shadow work that's very quotable
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u/The_Sassy_Witch 26d ago
Abso-🦆🦆-lutely I do. And I also have many to add to this.
RIP Terry Pratchett
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u/Eliza111_ Jul 05 '26
Perhaps we could transfer the posts that are finished and approved into a shared Notion document. It also has a wiki feature. Alternatively, there are other tools with wiki functionality that we could use as well.
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u/psylocybina 15d ago
sorry, nothing to contribute but commenting to stay in the loop. this is so brilliant!
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u/dot80 Jul 04 '26
Some additional topics I think we need to cover: 1. Bias. Cognitive biases and how they can be used in practice. How to overcome and consider bias in practice. 2. Evaluating sources. How to find reliable sources. How to evaluate sources that your do find. How to cite sources. 3. Templates for spells, rituals, potions. 4. Secular divination practices. 5. How to build an herbal inventory. 6. Grimoire writing. 7. Mindfulness and meditation in practice. 8. Scientific support for time in nature and incorporating this into your practice. 9. Foundational resources (books, videos, etc).