Terry Pratchett enthusiasts might notice the similarity between my magickal paradigm and “headology” – the preferred magick of Granny Weatherwax, the ‘head witch’ in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld. Indeed, when I first read the Witches series, I was blown away by how marvellously Pratchett had captured my own brand of magick (with a touch of humour and fantasy) and was admittedly a little annoyed that I wasn’t the sole inventor of this paradigm. Indeed, I now know of many other examples of people using a similar approach to magick, and I simply love the sense of community this has given me.

Weatherwax What-now?

“Mistress Weatherwax is the head witch, then, is she?’

‘Oh no!’ said Miss Level, looking shocked. ‘Witches are all equal. We don’t have things like head witches. That’s quite against the spirit of witchcraft.’

‘Oh, I see,’ said Tiffany.

‘Besides,’ Miss Level added, ‘Mistress Weatherwax would never allow that sort of thing.”

– Excerpt from A Hat Full of Sky

In Pratchett’s Discworld series, Granny Weatherwax is revered as the most powerful of witches (the “Hag O’ Hags”) yet she avoids using magic unless absolutely necessary, relying instead on headology. Headology is a form of folk psychology and that has power because people believe it does. Thus, the Discworld witches are more likely to make people think they are frogs than actually turn them into frogs – it’s less effort and just as effective in achieving the desired outcome.

Key to successful headology is the use of accessories and symbolism, for example, in Discworld, a witch’s hat is a symbol of office bequeathing her authority and identity. A moving example of this is when Granny Weatherwax gives Tiffany Aching “a Hat Full of Sky” (in the book of the same name). The Hat Full of Sky is an invisible witch’s hat and its legitimate existence and authenticity is irrelevant, rather it serves as Granny’s recognition of Tiffany’s ability as a witch, represents her official initiation as a witch, and is a silent communication of her respect for Tiffany – it is better than any verbal praise would have been.

One of my favourite examples of headology is when Granny Weatherwax is paid a visit by old Jarge Weaver who was seeking a cure for his bad back (in the book Masquerade). During this visit Granny applies a convincing magickal remedy to treat old Jarge, but in actuality she uses herbalism and physical therapy, and solves the root cause (a soft mattress). It’s a hilarious, yet insightful encounter that is an absolute delight to read (click here if you’d like to read it), but it also raises some points that stand out to me about effective magick, psychology and medical treatment.

Headology as legitimate magick

Foremost, I appreciate that headology applies a holistic approach: it covers all bases by applying ‘evidence-based’ medicine (in the case of old Jarge, herbalism and physical therapy) whilst also tending to the psychospiritual welfare of the patient, and their belief in the cure facilitates recovery. The latter of which may be seen as unnecessary or just plain nonsensical, misguided woo in the medical field, however I am becoming convinced that this is a major oversight of western medicine, especially when it comes to the field of psychiatry.

“It has been said that the difference between headology and psychiatry is that, were you to approach either with a belief that you were being chased by a monster, a psychiatrist will try to convince you that there are no monsters coming after you, whereas a headologist will hand you a large stick and a chair to stand on.”

One of the (many) things I appreciate about headology is that it does not attempt to invalidate the individual’s belief system or reality. The existence of the underlying fears, superstitions and situations in consensus reality is irrelevant – it’s a moot point – headology simply gets to the crux of the matter by offering a practical, actionable solution.

Personally, in my daily life I leverage a set of practises reminiscent of headology. The most important application of this is to maintain my mental and emotional well-being. As a trauma survivor, I find that unless I’m actively working on maintaining or improving my well-being then I’m actively regressing. My craft helps me in this realm where modern medicine cannot offer me a cure.

Thus, although Discworld headology is tongue-in-cheek, it’s fair to say that this form of magick has saved my life.