The Witch Archetype: Feminine Power and the Fire of Transformation

Have you ever felt a deep knowing, an unshakable inner voice guiding you, even when logic tells you otherwise? That feeling..that instinct, intution, and raw, untamed power, is the very essence of the witch archetype. She is the wise woman, the healer, the seer, and sometimes, the feared and misunderstood force of nature that society has tried to suppress for centuries.

For me, the moment I truly understood the witch archetype wasn’t in a book or a fairy tale… it was in the middle of an Ayahuasca ceremony, where the veil between the seen and unseen felt razor-thin.

Meeting the Witch Archetype

I didn’t walk into the ceremony expecting a profound initiation, but then again, neither did Vasilisa, the heroine of the Baba Yaga story in Women Who Run With the Wolves. Like her, I was on a journey I didn’t fully understand yet, seeking wisdom without knowing the cost of receiving it.

Sitting in the darkness, surrounded by the hum of the rhythmic music and chants of the shamans, I felt the medicine begin to pull me into a realm beyond words. At first, it was terrifying, like stepping into Baba Yaga’s chicken-legged hut, unsure if I would be tested, devoured, or transformed. My body trembled, my mind rebelled, but somewhere in the chaos, a presence emerged.

She wasn’t a physical figure, but rather an energy old, wise, and utterly unapologetic. A witch. The witch. Not the kind from fairy tales with warts and broomsticks, but the primal, wild force of feminine wisdom that had been buried for centuries.

Much like Baba Yaga, she didn’t coddle. She didn’t offer comforting words. Instead, she showed me exactly what I needed to see, the truth I had been avoiding.

The Witch Archetype as Initiator

Baba Yaga, like plant medicine, isn’t here to make you feel good. She’s here to initiate you into your own power.

In the story of Vasilisa the Wise, the young girl is sent into the forest to find Baba Yaga, the terrifying, untamed hag who holds the fire of transformation. When Vasilisa arrives, she’s given seemingly impossible tasks, sorting grains, weaving thread, preparing meals, not unlike the gruelling “tests” that plant medicine presents in ceremony. It’s not about the tasks themselves, but about who you become in the process.

For Vasilisa, help comes from an unlikely place: a small wooden doll her late mother gave her, which whispers guidance when fed. Estés explains that this doll represents intuition, the inner knowing that, when nurtured, leads us through the darkness.

I realized, mid-ceremony, that I had my own “wooden doll” inside me all along, the deep intuition I had learned to silence in favor of reason, external validation, and logic. But the medicine had stripped all that away, leaving only raw, unfiltered truth.

The Fire of Truth and Transformation

Baba Yaga doesn’t hand over the fire easily, and neither does life. The witch archetype always asks for something in return, a shedding of the old, a willingness to burn away illusions.

When Vasilisa finally earns her fire, Baba Yaga gives her a skull lantern, its eyes burning with an eerie glow. It’s not just a light to guide her way, it’s the very truth she needs to reclaim her power. When she returns home, the skull’s gaze burns away the falsehoods, turning her cruel stepmother and stepsisters to ashes.

This is what the witch archetype does, whether through folklore, plant medicine, or life’s brutal initiations. She doesn’t give easy answers. Instead, she hands you a blazing, undeniable truth and dares you to wield it.

For me, that moment in the ceremony was my skull lantern. The medicine showed me all the places I had played small, ignored my knowing, and dimmed my own fire. And just like Vasilisa, I had a choice: hide from it or carry it forward.

Reclaiming the Witch Archetype

Historically, the witch archetype has been demonized precisely because, she is powerful. Women who healed, who knew too much, who didn’t conform, were branded as witches and burned, drowned, or exiled. But the witch was never truly vanquished, she simply went underground, waiting for women to remember her again.

Today, reclaiming the witch archetype isn’t about casting spells or brewing potions (unless that’s your thing). It’s about owning your wisdom, trusting your intuition, and refusing to be diminished. It’s about embracing the parts of yourself that society has told you are “too much”, too wild, too emotional, too independent, too knowing.

So how do we embody the witch archetype in our own lives?

1. Feed Your Intuition – Like Vasilisa’s doll, intuition needs to be nourished. Pay attention to those gut feelings, the quiet whispers that guide you. The more you trust them, the louder they become.
2. Don’t Fear the Fire – Whether it’s a toxic relationship, a limiting belief, or a version of yourself that no longer serves you, be willing to burn away what no longer fits. The witch never clings to the old—she transforms.
3. Honor the Wild Within – The witch isn’t about politeness and perfection. She’s raw, instinctual, deeply connected to the earth. Spend time in nature, move your body, tap into the energy that flows through you.
4. Embrace Your Power – The world may still be uncomfortable with powerful women, but that’s not your problem. Own who you are, speak your truth, and stand unapologetically in your magic.

Closing Thoughts: The Witch is Rising

Whether through myth, medicine, or life’s own ruthless lessons, the witch archetype is calling women back to their power. She is the guardian of the wild, the intuitive, the untamed, and she offers the fire of transformation to those willing to take the journey.

So the question is—are you ready to carry the fire?