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Why were hair, nail clippings, and bodily waste feared in some witchcraft beliefs?

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Oil painting The Witches' Sabbath by Francisco de Goya shows a group of figures in dark robes gathered around a crouching person, with eerie creatures flying in a moonlit sky. — Witchcraft *El conjuro* or *Las brujas* (“The Conjuring” or “The Witches”), oil on canvas by Francisco Goya, 1797–98; in the Museo Lázaro Galdiano, Madrid.

In the context of witchcraft and occultism, the fear surrounding items like hair, nail clippings, or personal belongings stems from the principles of contagious magic.

This belief system is rooted in the "law of contact," which posits that objects that have been in physical contact with a person retain a permanent, mystical connection to them even after they are separated. Because of this ongoing link, it is believed that a practitioner of sorcery can manipulate or harm an individual by performing rituals upon these personal items.12

Essentially, anything done to the hair, nail parings, or clothing is thought to affect the former owner directly. Consequently, these items were often guarded or disposed of carefully to prevent them from falling into the hands of someone with malevolent intent who might use them to exert supernatural influence over the victim.312