Category: Spellcrafting

Creating A Magickal Circle

Creating A Magickal Circle

 

Your Spiritual Space


A magik circle is a space where a Witch will conduct rituals and ceremonies. It is the gateway between worlds, spirutal and physical realms come together and allow you to communicate with spirit, conduct spiritual work, rituals, ceremonies and castings.

As with everything in the spiritual essence of the world, even a circle has a few guidelines that need to be followed. The circle is not to be broken by someone stepping into this space unless a gateway has been prepared for them to enter. Nor should a Witch step outside the cirlce during a ritual unless a door way has been prepared.

A circle is used to draw a visionary broundry that protects a Witch from outside forces while conducting spiritual work. Many witches use visions of blue flames or divine white protection to create this boundry.

Others choose to create this circle in the physical sense as well. Either by drawing a circle on the floor in a permanent means, or by using a nine-foot cord made from natural fibers that can be easily placed and removed as needed. Sand, salt or herbs can also be used to draw the circle.

When you have selected the area to place your circle, you should Clear and Cleanse the energies before you draw the circle. Many Witches will place a broom at the doorway of the circle as a tool that designates the entry point of the witch or someone else who will be called into this space for work. The broom is also a symbol of a spiritual barrier to keep out unwanted energies from entering your sacred space.

To draw a doorway, a Witch should use a wand or athame to cut a “hole” in the energy field. Many Witches will use incense to close the doorway, using the smoke to symbolize the divine energy field.

Once your work is complete, you must close the circle and ensure the energy has been properly shut down. Leaving an open gate is not only disrespectful to the forces that assisted you, but also dangerous for you and your home. Closing the circle is as simple as 1-2-3.

  1. Thank the guides, teachers, God/Goddess that you called or who came into the circle to offer assistance during your work.
  2. Imagine the energy around the circle lowering around you, toning down and fading so to speak.
  3. Finally, clear the space with a blessing and ask the energies to close the gate. If the circle was a temporary fixture, then remove it and store it appropriately.

Experimenting with Circles

Experimenting with Circles

When you feel comfortable in your ability to cast a circle, it is time to start finding new ways to do it. There is no limit to what you can do to create sacred space. It can be as simple as sitting and drumming the circle into existence or chanting something to create the energy to draw your circle. Movement is something used in lieu of everything else. It is possible to use a piece of recorded music to cast it, or to dance to the music to cast the circle. You can create a circle by telling stories or sharing your day with others.

Some of the techniques that can be used will be very difficult at first, and that is why you should learn to cast in one of the first two ways before you begin experimenting. If you do, you know what the end result should be and will know when you reach it. As you develop a new way to cast a circle, you will find certain things that work and certain ones that don’t. Don’t be afraid to change elements around or substitute things in or out to make it work. This is one of the first totally creative things that you will do as a witch.

Copyright © 2000, Jet Blackthorn

Casting a Formal Circle for a Group or Solitary

Casting a Formal Circle for a Group or Solitary

If there is a limited amount of space within the circle, it is often easier to cast the circle and admit the participants after creating the space. There are pros and cons of doing it this way, mainly having to do with making the participants feel excluded from part of the ritual. In order to avoid this, it is important to have them focus on the people or person casting the circle and adding their energy to what is going on. If you choose to have them within the circle, it is best to have them kneel at the boundary and cast the circle just behind them and over their heads, having them focus on the casting.

With this particular method, you can have one, two, or three people cast the circle, splitting the parts up as you desire. In a large group, splitting up the jobs in this manner helps everyone to participate when there are a limited number of things to do. Any of the parts of the ritual can be split up this way, but some will work better than others. Having more than one person cast the circle is a nice way for a group to maintain the bonds of working together.

When everyone is prepared and quiet, the person casting the circle should move to the altar and touch the pentacle with his or her athame. If the altar is set in the north, all that they need to do now is to visualize energy coming from the pentacle and walk the edge of the circle until they return to the starting point again. Once the caster is there, they should touch the pentacle with the athame again to seal the circle and then visualize pulling the edges of the boundary around to form a sphere above and below. This can also be done by actually using the athame to cast by starting at the pentacle and pushing the energy up over the heads of everyone, around, down through the floor, and back to the pentacle.

If the altar is elsewhere in the circle, the person touches the athame to the pentacle to perform a connection to it and then walks to the east to begin casting. They proceed to the south and then the west and then finally to the north before returning to the east. At that point, they can return to the altar and finish sealing the circle.

NOTE: Circles may be cast in either direction, depending on the work being done. Clockwise (N, E, S, W) tends to be the most common. This sunwise direction is used to invoke and bless. It is useful when the ritual has an outward focus. Moonwise circles (N, W, S, and E) tend to be used for banishing or rituals that focus inward or on the self.

Once the circle is cast, the next person should bless the salt and water to use for purification. Tip three pinches of salt into the water and stir it three times moonwise saying, “By the powers of Life, Death, and Rebirth.” Take this water and go to the east, sprinkling it around the edges of the circle, walking in the opposite direction of the circle caster. Once you have moved all the way around the circle, and if the people are within the circle, sprinkle each of them saying “Be washed clean.” (Make certain that you have someone do this for you, as well.) If they are not in the circle, place the salt water on the altar for later use.

The third person (Or the first, if you are only having two perform this) will bless the incense to consecrate and fill the circle. Place some of the loose powder incense on the hot coal (or light a stick incense) and draw a pentagram over the burning saying, “Blessed be the union of fire and air, the breath of the Gods.” Walk around the edge of the circle with the incense in the direction that it was cast in, slowly, and call the Ancestors to come and witness your circle.

Finally, the fourth person (or number two) moves to the center of the circle and declares that this is sacred time and sacred space. The circle exists outside of our normal time and reality. The shift from mundane to sacred should now be complete and should be a tangible feeling for everyone. The air may look or feel different, or the people may experience a shift in consciousness.

At this point, if you have cast the circle with the people outside, it is time to let them into the circle. The person who cast the circle will take their athame and cut a doorway into the boundary. This is done by inserting the tip of the athame into the circle at the level of the floor and cutting along it to make a wide enough entry for people to pass through. Then they cut upwards to the height of the people outside the circle. They should arch the top and then cut down the other side and across to meet the original point on the floor.

The person who blessed the salt water will switch places with the caster and stand in the doorway before each person as they enter, sprinkling to cleanse them. The caster will hug the person and pull or spin them over the threshold of the circle, bringing them in as a part of the company that will perform the ritual.

Once everyone is inside the circle, the caster will “erase” the doorway by placing the tip of the knife to the floor again and move it upwards, “sealing” the circle again. The “door” should be removed exactly opposite of how it was placed. When you are finished, there should be no trace of a break left in the circle wall. If you can see one, mend it with your own energy and close the break.

Copyright © 2000, Jet Blackthorn

Grounding Energy and Releasing What Was Called

Grounding Energy and Releasing What Was Called

 
Before you end a circle, it is important to leave everyone feeling refreshed and the space in its original state. When rituals are long and complex or there is a great deal of energy raised, quite often there will be energy left that wasn’t used, both in the participants and the circle itself. Grounding this extra energy prevents it from escaping to run into an unsuspecting person when they visit the space next and allows the participants to center themselves again and prevent having jittery nerves or suffering from an inability to rest or sleep.
 
Take time to have everyone sit in a circle with his or her palms pressed to the floor. Visualize the extra energy passing into the hands and out into the earth, only keeping enough to be balanced and centered. The leaders of the ritual should then gather up all the excess energy free in the room and send it down into the earth as well. Everyone present should, at the end of the ritual, have a sense of wholeness within themselves.
 
Once this is accomplished, releasing the Gods and elements with the participant’s thanks can begin. Usually, proceeding in reverse order of calling is appropriate. When the Gods and elements are release, they should be thanked and told that they may stay as long as they are needed and they will be welcomed by all present again.

Spell Caster’s Affirmation

There is one Presence and Power in the Universe
That manifests to me as Goddess and as God
It guides the stars and the planets
It guides me and moves through my life
For I am a perfect incarnation of God /dess
And a perfect priest/ess of God/dess
I am a complete manifestation of this power
I release all imbalanced energy and it’s effects
I harness harmonious energy
And shape it for the good of all
In accordance with free will
With ease and with joy
With love and kindness
So mote it be

*Information taken from the old WOTC Group,
Author is unknown to me at this time*

Magickal Intentions – Protection

From the overwhelming number of herbs used for this purpose it is obvious that protection is (and has been) of the utmost concern for many people. Most of the protective herbs are  general in their effects; they guard their bearer against physical and psychic attacks; injury; accidents, poison, snake bite, lightning strikes, wicked spirits, the evil eye and so on. In other words they are protective in a general way.

Naturally they won’t do you much good once something  has happened–protective herbs should be a preventative. This doesn’t mean that if you wear a protective root or carry a sachet you’ll breeze through life unfettered with annoyances. But carrying some of those herbs will certainly help screen out potential harmful situation.

In today’s world we should guard ourselves with every available means. Protective herbs are one of these.  They create a type of force field around your home, possessions, or self. When carried they also increase the effectiveness of your body’s natural defenses.

An ounce of prevention, after all, is worth a pound of cure.

Crafting The Spell: Laying The Groundwork

Spells function best when some sort of context exists for them in which to manifest. Have you acted in the physical world to work on the situation you intend to address with a spell? Spells will not solve your problems for you. They will help, but leaving them to function without putting any other effort in on your end reduces the chances of the spell coming to successful fruition. Would you cast a spell to pass an exam for an area of study with which you had no experience? What would be the point of that?

Crafting The Spell: A Need or Desire

A need or desire has every right to be met, whether it’s a need for a scholarship to enable you to study at the postgraduate level, or a desire for the traffic light to change so that you can cross the intersection to walk on the sunny side of the street. That need or desire is, the first requirement in order for a spell to exist. If you don’t have a need or a desire, don’t waste your time. Spellcraft isn’t something to pass the hours, or an art to practice on a whim. It’s a powerful force for transformation and change, requiring your dedication and involvement. Crafting and casting a spell requires time, focus, great concentration and energy, and if you’re doing it on a whim, you’re going to a lot of trouble for nothing. Emotion is one of the key concepts that powers a spell, and a whim just doesn’t have the depth of emotion required. In addition, there’s the issue of responsibility. If you ask for it, you’re responsible for it.

White Magick, Black Magick

Magick, is, in essence, the use of energy for a variety of purposes. Energy is neutral. What isn’t neutral, however, is the intent of the person casting the spell, and this is where the misunderstanding of calling magick “black” or “white” arises. Generally, if the spellcaster seeks to cause damage or perform a malicious act, then it’s referred to as “black magick.” If the spellcaster seeks to do good work and benefit themselves or others, this is seen as “white magick.” In reality, it’s a lot more complex than this simple dichotomy, good versus bad and the importance of employing an ethical system in conjunction with spellcasting. The point is that magick is neutral. A common illustration is the use of a tool such as a knife. The knife itself is a neutral object. However, it may be used to cut someone’s throat, to cut up vegetables to feed a family, or to slice through the bonds holding someone prisoner. The knife isn’t good or bad: what you choose to do with it determines its value within the content of a situation.

As a rule, the energy you will use in spellcraft is neutral. It is true, however, that if it has at some time been programmed with a strong intent, energy can sometimes retain the echo of that original purpose. People visiting various monuments or historical sites often comment on a certain feeling that seems to be perpetuated or generated by the location itself. Energy in the form of strong emotion has soaked into that area, creating a permanent echo of the of the original event. Take, for example, the islands used as quarantine containment areas off the coast of Australia. As each ship of settlers arrived, a doctor inspected the passsengers, and if anyone was deemed a health threat, then the entire load of passengers was exported to one of these islands. Close quarters ensured that whoever wasn’t sick would become ill through contact with those  who were, resulting in a pervasive feeling of dread and despondency throughout the quarantined community. Visitors to these islands today remark on the feelings of despair, fear, and resignation that the islands possess, even though their original purpose of isolating immigrants has long passed.

These echoes of strong energy can remain for years, and sometimes give rise to the belief that a place or an object is “haunted.” However, the majority of energy that a spellcaster will encounter and work with throughout his or her practice is neutral, and safe to use in spells to improve one’s life.

Guidelines for Crafting Your Own Spells

  1. Identify your goal or desire.

  2. Examine the context of the situation.

  3. Evaluate the repercussions

  4. Refine the specifies of your need or desire

  5. Decide on a time.

  6. Decide on a method.

  7. Choose correspondences and components.

  8. Creat central symbolic action.

  9. Write the text of the spell.

  10. Write the complete list of materials needed.

Spellcraft And The Divine

Some modern religions use spellcraft regularly as part of their worship. Neo-Pagan religions such as Wicca, Druidry, Ásatrú, and other established path such as Santeria, Voudoun, and Candomblé all use spellwork as part of their worship process. Spellwork can certainly be done within a religious context, whether the religion is one of those mentioned or not. Within a spell, the inclusion of a deity or a higher power of some kind immediately transforms the spell into a spiritual act. However, the deity you appeal to in a spell should be a deity to whom you have at least introduced yourself, and have obtained their permission to work with them, otherwise you’re not going to get much out of it. Several spells in the “cookbook craft” category toss around invocations to Hecate as the Queen of Witches or invoke Aphrodite to help out in a love spell. These are ancient deities, now often thought relegated to mythology books. You can’t just harness their energies; there has to be more to it than that., If your spell knocks at their door, they’re likely to take a look through the spyhole, not recognize you, and won’t answer. Even ancient deities understand what dangers lie with inviting just anyone into their home. Conversely, why invoke a deity associated with another culture or religion just because a spell in a book tells you to do it? What do you know about them? Who knows what kind of energy you might be inviting into your spell?

If you function within an established faith, your best bet is to appeal to the deity or aspect of the Divine that you already work with. You have an established relationship with this deity. When your spell comes knocking,k the deity will recognize your energy, and your spell will have the added boost of love and energy freely given.

If you involve a spiritual entity such as a deity or an angel in a spell does it become a ritual? Not necessarily. It depends on your goal. Is your goal to achieve nirvana, or to become spiritually balanced within your religious path? Then you’re performing a ritual. Is it to obtain a new cat, or to release anger or stress? Then it’s a spell. When you’re not precisely sure if your goal is spiritual or practical, then it’s probably still a spell.

When To Cast a Spell—and When Not To

You can pretty much cast a spell any time you feel comfortable doing so. However, there are a few things to keep in mind. You must:

  • Have a valid need or desire, clearly delineated

  • Be in the correct frame of mind

  • Be in the proper state of health

If you cannot aim your spell as a clearly defined goal, then you have no concept of what you truly wish to manifest as a result of that spell. Apart from being a waste of energy, this can create more problems as the energy your spell casts out into the world bounces randomly like a pinball around and through the issues in your life. With no clear goal or need, a spell becomes dangerously unpredictable.

Your mental state is crucial to your success. Being distracted or worried will weaken your focus and your subsequent effects. States of high emotion can also be dangerous. Emotion is one of the energy sources that fuels spells. This might sound ideal to you, and in one respect, it is: the ability to feel intense emotion during the casting process can help you a lot. However, that intense emotion should be summoned and accessed during the process. If you fire off a spell as an emotional reaction to something, you are guilty of not thinking the situation through. You are not in proper command of yourself, which you need to be in order to cast a focused and well-aimed spell. Spells are a method of controlling yourself and your life, and to cast like this is not only irresponsible, it undermines the whole principle of creating positive change in your life.

Your state of health is also vitally important. When you are ill, your personal energies are unbalanced, and your handling of outside energies will be affected. Every spell, no matter how many other power sources you pull in such as components and correspondences, uses your own personal energy to guide it. Casting while ill can worsen your physical health, leaving you low on vital energy. Raising energy is a crucial step within the spellcasting process, and it takes energy to raise energy. Remember, spells don’t replace work: they are work. Many practitioners feel like they’ve run a marathon after casting a spell. If you had the choice, would you run a marathon if you were sick? Probably not: in fact, most of us want to stay home from work as soon as we experience the first warning signs of a cold. Casting while ill is irresponsible, as it counters the principle of creating beneficial change. It is somewhat hypocritical to attempt to create beneficial change in your life when you’re making yourself more ill by doing so.

What about casting a spell to regain your health? This is the one and only exception to the rule about performing spells while ill. However, make sure the spell you craft or use isn’t too taxing, and choose a gentler method of raising energy.

Magickal Focals

Focals are used for amplifying, focusing and concentrating magickal energy. They should blend with the potion you are making or spell you are casting. You can use many focal blended together. You will find that focals like food, music, scented oils, candles, incense and decoration, all add more power to your magick. The following is a list of focals used in magick.

Visual Focals—-Sight. Things you look at. Examples include: photographs, symbols, drawings, paintings, statues, flowers.

Auditory Focals—-Sound. Thing you hear. Examples include: music, singing, chanting, drumming, humming, breathing, ocean, fountains, birds.

Gustatory Focals—-Taste. Things you taste. Examples include: food, beverages, and the salt on your skin.

Kinesthetic Focals—-Touch. Things you can touch. Examples include:  skin, plants, fabrics such as velvet, carved chalices, shells and crystals.

Olfactory Focals—-Smell. Things you can smell. Examples include:  scented oils, scented candles, foods and incense.

Intuitive Focals—-Psychic. Sense. Things you can sense intuitively. Examples include: ritual jewelry and talismans.

The Three Steps of Magick

Your altar provides the sacred space for doing magick to attain your goals. The three basic steps of magick are:

  1. intention and expectation

  2. desire

  3. experiencing

You can apply the three steps to all your magick making. First, you need really understand what your intentions are and what it is you expect, and most of all, that you really want it. Second, you must have a strong desire to attain your magickal goal. Third, you must merge with Oneness, with divinity, as deeply as possible, and then a little deeper still, allowing your intention, expectation, and desire to flow out of you and move out into the world. Imagine releasing thought energy so strong that it becomes real.

Charge of the Star Goddess

Traditional, based partly on the “Charge of the Goddess”
by Charles Leland, Gerald Gardner, and Doreen Valiente.
 

Here ye the words of the Star Goddess; she in the dust of whose feet are the hosts of heaven, and whose body encircles the universe.

I who am the beauty of the green earth, the white moon among the stars, and the mystery of the waters call unto thy soul; arise and come unto me.

I am the soul of nature who gives life to the universe. From me all things proceed, and unto me all things must return. Before my face, beloved of gods and of me, let thine innermost divine self be enfolded in the rapture of the infinite.

Let my worship be within the heart that rejoices, for behold! All acts of love and pleasure are my rituals. Therefore, let there be beauty and strength, power and compassion, honor and humility, mirth and reverence within you.

To thou who thinkest to seek me, know that thy seeking and yearning shall avail thee not unless thou knowest the mystery. If that which thou seekest thou findest not within three, thou wilt never find it without.

For behold! I have been with thee from the beginning; and I am that which is attained at the end of desire.

Charge of the Dark God

Listen to the words of the Dark God, Who was of old called Dis, Hades, Osiris, Hunter, and Lord of Shadows.

I am the shadow that is cast by the sun in the brightest of days. I am the reminder of sudden mortality in the midst of joyous life. I am the black velvet night where dances the stars and the planets, time everlasting, unperturbed dancer of fiery endings and new beginnings. I am the Horned Hunter, bow drawn in my hand, gathering the living with my arrows and leading the Wild Hunt. By ny hand are ye lead from this life, that life may continue, for behold! My mystery lies in the movement of life energy from life unto life, for the reminder that all life feeds on life and that only through death is life found anew.

I am the strength that protects, comforts, gives solace and renewal. I am the one who stands by the Crone of Transformation, then enters her Tomb for birth through her womb. Follow my lead and find thy immortality. Together we shall laugh at the threshold of death passage as awareness awakens, and I shall embrace thee in thy last moments of life.

Remember me on dark moonless nights; look for my Rade in rolling storm clouds and the clash of bright lightning. I carry thee to the one who transforms. Dark Mother of all, releaser of strife. Sing to us thy songs in the tongues of ecstasy, for we understand the music of the soul. Blow me a kiss from the palm of thy hand when the moon is dark, and I shall smile upon three, but no kiss shall I return, for my kiss is the final one for all mortal flesh, nepenthe  to drink at the end of thy days.

Song of the Goddess

I am the Great Mother, adored by all creation which I have brought forth from my fertile womb. I am the Primal Mother, life-bringing force of the Divine Female, boundless and eternal.

My faces are many, for I am Transformation and I bring change to all. I am the Goddess of the Moon, Lady of all Magick, passing through phases of Maiden, Mother, and Crone. I am the Maiden whose name is carried upon the tides and the winds. I wear the Moon upon my brow as Crescent, Full, and Horned the stars rest beneath my feet, and the Serpent of Regeneration gazes up as me in adoration. I am Mysteries yet I reveal these to any who seek such of me. I open the New Path for the spiritual questor, comfort the weary traveler upon the old, and receive into my arms and soul in passage.

I am the Blessed Mother, the Bountiful Lady of the Harvest. I am clothed in the cool depths of the waters and draped in the gold of fields laden with grain. My tabard is the myriad forms of life in woodland, field, valley, river, sky and sea. My hair cascades across my shoulders as soft shadows stirring in the forests. By me are all seasons of the earth ruled that all things come to fruition through me, for lo, I am the Life-Giving Mother, fertile and joyous in my abundance.

I am the Crone, Grandmother, and Dead Mother, wise and tender. Through me pass all in the spiral dance of life, death and rebirth. I am the Wheel, the shadowed Moon, giving release and renewal to weary souls. The God ushers the Spirits unto me, for I am the Tomb through whom all must pass to be born of my Womb.

I am the Eternal Maiden, Mother of All, and Crone of Transformation. I stir the cauldron of Wisdom, Abundance, and Renewal, and I pour forth my Limitless Love upon all my peoples of the Earth.