A Timeline of Potions

A characteristic image of a witch that many people have is a woman hunched over a cauldron stirring in frog legs or bat wings. There is a rich history of Pagan traditions and European folklore, but the origins of potion making stem from practices of herbalism and medicinal properties. Throughout history, women have been the primary caregivers responsible for the ailments for illnesses. Traditional practices of herbal medicine have been passed down throughout history, and many still uphold their believed medicinal properties. When witchcraft began to be ostracized, a woman who practiced herbal medicine was associated with making potions or creating something magical. Many of the substances used did have benefits for people, and some could be dangerous or if they were used improperly. This created an idea that some of the "potions" that were made were part of the foul play of witches. 

 Today, modern witchcraft is greatly associated with potion-making. With witches in popular television being shown casting spells and creating intricate mixtures with diverse substances. They are associated with giving life, eternal beauty, and changing fate - all magical and alluring topics. In fact, in my first witchcraft presentation in this class, we will be discussing potions and how seemingly mundane objects are used for potions. The Evil Queen in our movie "Snow White" creates a potion that transforms her into an ugly hag that depicts her true nature. Potions create a mixture of seemingly mundane objects and turn them into a mixture that can cause harm, or good in some cases. It symbolizes how objects in witchcraft that are normally seen as innocent, harmless, or even something that can be protective can be turned against us or can be used to manipulate us. 

As a Nursing student, modern medicine is something that has always fascinated me. There are still people today who are part of certain religions that will not take pills or will not get life-saving surgeries because they contain materials that might come from an outside source that they believe is wrong according to their religion. This is something you have to respect in the hospital as well. This can be tied back to times in the 1600-1700s when more and more herbal and medicinal practices were being developed and many of the early Christians believed that this could be seen as sacreligious. In fact, many of the people in the hospital that I have seen refuse medications have been Mormons or members of the Jewish faith. It is fascinating to delve into the topics of medicine and how a lot of people, even if they do decide to take medicine, believe it can bring more harm to them than good. It is important to ask ourselves where this belief came from and how it developed. 

This brings me to another topic of the intersection of science and religion. In many of my labs here at TCU, myself and my fellow peers have joked about our "potion-making" when we coming certain chemical substances in a class and watch its reactions. While herbal medicine was one thing, I theorize that early scientists and early chemists were also at first ostracized for their practices, as it was something that no one had ever seen before or could even fathom the concept. Science has always been a topic that many people think will always clash with religion. I think that these concepts should actually be seen as more similar than different. They are really two studies that have developed as much as they have because of each other.