How to Use White Candles in Witchcraft 9 Ways

Elegant, versatile and widely available, white candles stand on altars to Christian and pagan gods alike.

Symbolizing purity, justice and hope, this simple spell tool illuminates your sacred space with the unifying spirit of life.

Why work with white candles in witchcraft?

The grace and beauty of this foundational ritual tool make it a perfect starting point for beginning work in candle magic.

They’re cheap.  They’re easy to find (in fact, you probably already have some).

Plus, they look pretty normal and don’t raise the kind of eyebrows a full-on, pentacle-clad altar might.

Here’s a few ideas to get you started.

Chase away Monday blues.

Monday rules the color white in modern witchcraft color correspondences.

Burn a white candle on this day to bless your week and dispel Monday blues.

Burn them during coven initiations.

Of course, your coven may already have its own tradition.

But if your leaders are open to suggestion, ask them to burn white candles.

The color white symbolizes new beginnings and fresh starts.  Let white candles clear and light your path.

Bless the birth room.

If being a midwife or a doula is your witchy side hustle, be sure to pack white candles in your go-bag if you’re headed for a home birth. (Hospitals usually have rules against open flames.)

During the transition from one realm to another, white candles bless the soul for a tranquil outlook on life.

As a bonus, if mom wants the lights dimmed, white candles create a natural, soft light to work in,

Feature them prominently on a handfasting altar.

On a handfasting (wedding) altar, white candles represent the purity and dignity of love.

This looks especially beautiful if you stagger them to symbolize moving through different stages of life as a newly joined couple.

(For more ideas along this line, check out these 40 Ideas for Your Handfasting).

Get your Goddess on.

White often represents the Goddess or feminine divine in witchcraft.

Burn a white candle when trying to evoke your Maid, Mother or Crone aspect.

Also makes a lovely goddess representation on your altar during full moon rites and spells.

Clear the air.

Their purifying and calming vibes make white candles a great tool for energy clearing.

Try this.  If your house recently experienced a disruption (divorce, move, child arriving or leaving the nest), place a white 7-day candle in a deep bowl of water.  (Available at most dollar stores and Latin groceries for a buck).  Allow it to burn all the way down to reset the calm in your space.

Ring the base of a white candle with herbs.

Apply the all-purpose energy of a white candle by surrounding it with herbs appropriate to your spell work.

Rose petals for a love spell, rosemary for protection, mint for abundance, ect.

Want to make this tidy looking?  Use a small embroidery hoop slightly larger than the circumference of your candle base.  Then, wind the herbs around the embroidery hoop for a neat, tied up look.  Here’s a simple tutorial with pictures.

Float them on sacred waters.

Place floating white candles on your next batch of moon water to enchant it with sacred light.

Or, place a bowl of sacred water with herbs and essential oils in the center of your next coven circle for a beautiful ritual centerpiece of purity and light.

Be free.

White candles symbolize freedom from oppression.

Just left a difficult work environment?  Moving on from a toxic relationship?  Finally got a clean bill of health after a long-term health crisis?

Burn a white candle to cast off the chains of oppression and move forward unencumbered.