Interview of Si of Mandragora Magika
Bright Blessings,
October 19 would have been my priest’s 74th birthday had he not crossed the veil. Being the crybaby that I am, I was weeping my eyes out, posting tearfully on my personal social media page about how much I miss him.
Something told me to look up his name, include the word “Pagan” and our hometown on the search. Mandragora Magika came up- as a way to find Pagans. I believe my priest was telling me that he wanted me to list our group in our hometown, which I did, and I messaged Si, the page admin and creator to tell him so. I also asked if I could do an interview. My wish was granted.
Let me just say WitchVox was the way I met a lot of the Pagans I did as a baby witch. Si knew we needed something to replace WitchVox when it ceased to exist. I want to say I am eternally grateful to Si for all the good work that is being done. I want all of you to go view the page and register. While many of us don’t fish for members, claw for new friends, or overextend ourselves to meet new people, this page is necessary and helps us to find one another. You can find it here: Wiccan, Pagan, Coven Finder & Witchcraft Worldwide Network | Based in Florida, USA | Mandragora Magika
Next, please read the words of Si, in this intimate interview I was granted below.
Interview with Si
Lady Saoirse– Bright Blessings, Si, thank you for allowing me to interview you for PaganPages.Org. First, I would like to commend and thank you for the tremendous undertaking of creating and maintaining Mandragora Magika. I have found info online about why you started it. I can only imagine how many lucky people who circle with our groups have located people to practice with because of you and your good work. As a magical individual, what started you on your magical path? How do you personally identify? Tell us anything you like about yourself in general.
Si– I was born and raised in Central Florida in a ‘Southern’ culture, so I was introduced to Hoodoo/Conjure practices as a young kid. I visited a root worker/herbalist often, in a small shop with jars of herbs up to the ceiling and I felt like I’d grow up to be just like him. As I got older, I was pretty disenchanted by anything going on at church, so I started visiting the new age section of the local bookstore. At that time in the 80’s, books like Scott Cunningham were on the shelves. Those books were influential to me opening my mind to the idea of Paganism as religion. I eventually went to college for Graphic Design in South Florida and after graduating I decided to search out a local coven. I ended up meeting with a Gardnerian Coven and joined that group and worked through those degrees. I was with them for 15 years before moving back to central Florida and with the help of a Priestess, formed a new coven there, the training group is called ‘Circle of Oaks Grove’.
I also initiated into the Minoan BrotherhoodThe Minoan Brotherhood https://www.mandragoramagika.com/post/the-minoan-brotherhood-a-witchcraft-tradition-for-men-that-love-men, which is a tradition that has a similar framework of Gardnerian Wicca but is for gay and bi men. I now run a Grove for that tradition as well with my husband called ‘Alsos Ampelos’.
Because of my background I have always felt very connected to African traditions and am an initiate of Haitian Vodou, but that is part of my personal practice. Being outside of that culture I don’t teach that. So, to make a long story short, I identify as a Gardnerian/Minoan/Polytheist/Animist/Wiccan with a background in African traditions. LOL!
Lady Saoirse– Tell me about one or more of the magical people who influenced you most in your youth, who got you started on your magical path please. How do you keep the legacy they established alive?
Si- Well, I think the rootworker/herbalist I met as a child really got me started thinking about herbs and plants as not only having healing powers but also having a spirit of their own that we could communicate with. He really made me feel like there was an entire untapped world that needed to be explored and is probably responsible for my animistic beliefs. My Gardnerian initiators were also very impactful to me. Coming from a Gardnerian background, we place some emphasis on lineage, our shared praxis and love of the Craft. I teach the Craft as I was taught and continue to pass that same energy to every student that crosses my threshold.
Lady Saoirse– Besides serving the magical community through MM, what else do you do as a Witch/Pagan/Magical person in general? Besides what you have done, and are doing now, what would you like to plan for the future as your work with the community?
Si– I try to pass on the traditions that I practice and give to others what was so freely given to me. I focus mostly on my immediate students as they are the ones I have truly committed to, but I do try to do as much outreach as I can. Even though I come from a very traditional Wiccan background I love interacting with all types of Pagans and Witches from every path. I believe we all have something important to share. I am a lover of nature and the environment, so I have always had a focus on preservation, and I think those things are very tied to my path as a Pagan. As I continue in my life, I will always try to help people find others to grow and learn with but I hope that I can be active in my community to help with environmental issues and involve more pagans in that aspect.
Lady Saoirse– Where do you see our magical community today in the post-COVID world, and in times of dealing with our political climate worldwide, specifically? Are there any calls to action you want to make for today’s magical people? What would you like to see us all dong on our personal magical and spiritual paths?
Si- For quite a while I have noticed people moving to this online world and remove a lot of the personal part of joining an intimate group of people that have similar interests. COVID exacerbated this quite a bit, but I am starting to see a little shift where people are recognizing the importance of ‘spiritual family’ and hands on experience. It was one of the goals of Mandragora Magika to help people find each other. I also sponsor a Discord group for individuals to talk with others in their area. Because of Mandragora Magika, I get A LOT of unsolicited messages from people that I’d rather not talk to. There is absolutely a facet of the population that believe Pagans, Witches, Wiccans etc. are evil and need to repent or be removed. While I would like to believe this is just a few zealots I hate to report there are way too many.
Even though the website is worldwide I live in the US and we are seeing a very targeted movement for Evangelical beliefs to infiltrate the government in order to push back on religious freedoms. We see this as government officials pass laws to place the 10 Commandments on the walls of public schools for instance which is in direct violation of the Establishment Clause that prohibits government establishment of religion. I have seen video of a local church praying to help a school board member win an election so that she could bring her Christian values to the high school (which under the Johnson Amendment prohibited 501(c) organizations from endorsing or opposing political candidates until recently when the IRS shifted their ‘interpretation’ and enforcement of the amendment making it much muddier). This is one of the very big reasons why I think it’s weird that some covens choose to not discuss politics in their groups out of fear of division, I’d say you should review your interviewing process if you have those fears. Christians direct their prayers for political means! Why wouldn’t we use our methods to make non-violent changes in our world? I would implore all Pagans and Witches to really study who they are voting for from the local school board member to the highest elected offices to make sure those people will uphold the separation of Church and State as your civil liberties might be questioned next.
Lady Saoirse– Since its inception, how do you feel MM has done, and how is it doing today? Any idea of how many people it reaches and supports? The progress? What are your hopes for the future of MM?
Si– When I first started the site, I really thought it would just be a short listing of a few Covens that I knew. It quickly became much larger than I anticipated. I am currently getting over 20,000 hits a month. I suspect that it will continue to grow. I hope that it does continue to grow. I hope that seekers find their spiritual family because of the site. I hope that it helps them on their path, and they will make a difference in their community because of it.
Lady Saoirse– What can people do to help support you in any of the missions you have as a personal magical person, and as the creator and maintainer of MM?
Si– Well, share us on Social Media, Podcasts, YouTube channels etc. Help get the word out. We do not profit from Mandragora Magika, but I do have a small shop on the site. That shop is a third-party printer that prints my art and designs on T-shirts and different things. We get a very small return on that, just a couple dollars for each product but it adds up throughout the year. People get something tangible in their hands, and I can pay for the yearly costs of the website. I do not make money off the site; we do not allow advertising or anything like that. There is a Donate button on the site where people can donate if they like but it is not required to list your information. I really see this as my service to the Pagan and Witchcraft communities and the world.
That’s it folks. A lone magical practitioner is running this page for all of us worldwide. WitchVox did an immense job and left some big shoes to fill, but Si stepped into them, clicked the magical heels, and seems to be effortlessly maintaining a great network online for all of us.
You can find more about Mandragora Magika here: https://www.mandragoramagika.com/ MM Discord – https://discord.com/invite/APsdSPGfQR
Also, you can learn about The Minoan Brotherhood here:
Blessed Be!
Lady Saoirse is a practicing witch, and initiated Wiccan of an Eclectic Tradition.
A recovered Catholic, she was raised to believe in heaven and hell, that there is only one god, and only one way to believe. As she approached her late 20’s, little things started to show her this was all wrong. She was most inspired by the saying “God is too big to fit into one religion” and after a heated exchange with the then associate pastor of the last Xtian church she attended, she finally realized she was in no way Xtian, and decided to move on to see where she could find her spiritual home.
Her homecoming to her Path was after many years of being called to The Old Ways and the Goddess, and happened in Phoenix, Arizona. She really did rise from her own ashes!
Upon returning to Ohio, she thought Chaos Magic was the answer, and soon discovered it was actually Wicca. She was blessed with a marvelous mentor, Lord Shadow, and started a Magical Discussion Group at local Metaphysical Shop Fly by Night. The group was later dubbed A Gathering of Paths. For a few years, this group met, discussed, did rituals, fellowship, and volunteering together, and even marched as a Pagan group with members of other groups at the local gay Pride Parade for eight years.
All the while, she continued studying with her mentor, Lord Shadow, and she became a Third Degree High Priestess in 2022 and is a Priestess of the Temple of the Goddess. She belongs to the Black Dragon Clan. She does readings, Sabbats, and classes in her hometown in Ohio. She has been with PaganPages.org since 2016 and writes for SpiritualBlossom, and Mysticsense.
