Gender Essentialism in Witchcraft

It’s far too common when reading a seemingly useful, or at least interesting, social media post, web page or book that out of left field something is described as having ‘feminine energy’. At this point I’m always left trying to decide if I would be better off disregarding everything else written too. It’s difficult to avoid entirely when so much of paganism seems to have gender essentialism baked into its foundations so I often find I have to work around these ideas to be able to honourably practise my craft.

When I was a child I just wanted to read anything and everything I could find about witchcraft and paganism and I didn’t question the concept of things having ‘masculine’ or ‘feminine’ energy. Now, as an adult, I find the implication of these energies uncomfortable and devoid of any meaningful interpretations, to say the least.

Gender essentialism is particularly absurd when what one culture considers masculine or feminine traits can be completely different to another’s, to say nothing of individual personal interpretations of gender and genders that fall outside of this artificially created binary entirely. Some cultures see the moon as masculine and the sun as feminine but in many pagan spaces the opposite holds true.

This idea of gendered energy poses so many questions:

What is masculine energy? What is feminine energy?
Why are we ascribing human ideas of gender onto that which is not human, both natural and supernatural?
Why do so many pagan resources hold ‘feminine energy’ in such high regard? And why does that ‘feminine energy’ often refer to passive nurturing figures while ‘masculine energy’ refers to strong active figures?

In wicca, the religion that’s often an introduction into paganism and witchcraft, there’s a strong emphasis on a god and a goddess. Early wiccan writings said that ideally covens should be made up of married heterosexual couples. The goddess tends to be the more revered of the two deities in wicca, and women tend to hold more power and influence. But the goddess is a ‘feminine’ figure and heavily associated with bearing children and thus reinforces the same gender roles that wiccans claim their religion is an escape from.

These gendered ideas may not be as present in other pagan religions but as the most common introduction to paganism, wiccan concepts are prevalent in many pagan communities.

This upholding of the gender binary doesn’t just alienate trans folk from pagan spaces but also makes pagan spaces that uphold these ideas far less friendly to intersex people and cisgendered women who, for whatever reason, cannot or do not wish to bear children. It also alienates anyone possessing the slightest iota of feminism.

It is undeniably meaningful that there are important goddesses in religion and it can be powerful, especially given the patriarchal society we all live in, to find yourself reflected in the divine. Nothing written here is intending to invalidate how important this is to many people — myself included. There are many pantheons in pagan religions that certainly do not force the gods and goddesses into these boxes but it’s important to acknowledge that gender essentialism shows up often and be able to recognise when it does so that we can avoid the harmful stereotypes it perpetuates.

It’s impossible to completely avoid these rigid gender roles when researching witchcraft. If I disregarded all the writings I come across that mention ‘feminine energy’, I would have virtually nothing to refer to at all. I disregard the most egregious examples, of course, and I don’t use the language in my own craft. That doesn’t change the fact that the materials I used to build my craft are not devoid of these ideas. Have I really managed to remove gender essentialism from my own use of magic or is it still present below the surface? I don’t know. I know I’m not perfect but it’s important for us all to try — I follow the path that feels right to me.