Category: Rituals

Handfasting Tips: How to Have a Magical Ceremony

Handfasting Tips: How to Have a Magical Ceremony

Handfasting was a popular custom in the British Isles centuries ago. Now, however, it’s seeing a rising popularity among modern Pagan couples who are interested in tying the knot. Many Pagan and Wiccan couples choose to have a handfasting ritual instead of a traditional wedding ceremony. If you’re lucky enough to have someone you love this much, there are a few things you may want to keep in mind in order to make your handfasting ceremony a success.

  • Plan as far ahead as possible, especially if you’re going to be writing your own vows. It will be far less stressful if you — and your clergyperson — have been able to get familiar with the wording, rather than waiting till the last minute.

 

  • Consider how long the ceremony is going to be. If you want people to stand in a circle, and have elderly relatives or small children present, anything longer than about half an hour is going to require chairs for some of your audience. In total, try to keep the ritual to about an hour — if the crowd is really big, make your ceremony even shorter.

 

  • Bear in mind that if you want to have a circle, you’re going to need far more room than if you just stand at the altar with your beloved. Dancing, spinning, calling of the quarters — all that stuff takes up space. Make sure that your location will accommodate all of your guests.

 

  • Many Pagan and Wiccan couples hold their handfastings outdoors. If you choose to do this — great! But make sure you’ve done your homework — some public places like parks require you to have a reservation, or to fill out paperwork if there will be a large crowd present. When you make arrangements in advance, if you’re concerned about public perception, you don’t have to say “It’s a Wiccan handfasting ceremony.” Typically just the phrase “family gathering” or “we’re getting married” will be sufficient, and both are truthful. Regardless, make sure you have permission to be where you’re having your ceremony.
  • If you hold your handfasting in a public place, be sure to respect the rules of the area — if there are signs that say “no open flames,” then don’t have a bonfire. If food and beverages are prohibited, then go somewhere else for the potluck after the ceremony. Make sure you check into noise and entertainment ordinances as well — the last thing you want is the police showing up at your handfasting because your drum circle was too loud. Be sure to plan ahead to have a cleanup crew — designate specific individuals to be in charge of this task, rather than just saying “Hey, can someone pick up the trash?” as you and your new partner leave the site.

 

  • If you plan to invite non-Pagan relatives or friends to the ceremony, you should probably prep them in advance. Don’t ask them to do anything that makes them feel uncomfortable, but do let them know that the ceremony has aspects of your spiritual path in it. Depending on just how Pagan your handfasting is going to be, and how your non-Pagan family feels about it, you may want to let them know about any non-traditional activities before the ceremony — and not at the last minute. That way, if great-aunt Matilda feels icky about you calling upon a bunch of gods she’s never heard of, she can bow out altogether. It’s a good idea to provide seating outside your circle for those who would like to watch but are uncomfortable with actual participation.

 

  • Don’t use your handfasting as a way of coming out of the broom closet. You need to be able to focus all of your energy on the handfasting itself, and not spend it worrying about what your parents are going to think when they find out you and your beloved are practicing Wicca. Have that conversation well ahead of time. If you have family members or friends who are adamantly opposed to your having a Pagan ceremony, remember, it’s your marriage, not theirs. You can either have a non-Pagan ceremony later and invite them to attend, or you can tell them that if they can’t attend your handfasting, you understand and you love them anyway. 

Author: 

Article found on & owned by About.com

 

Sabbat Themes for Handfasting

Sabbat Themes for Handfasting

 

Although there are many traditional themes to choose from when planning your wedding, as a Pagan you might find it more meaningful to plan your wedding during one of the following Sabbats. I have included some ideas on how to incorporate the theme into your special day.

Samhain or Halloween

Theme A Gothic wedding theme could be perfect for a Pagan-only couple. The clothing style could be primarily black, somewhat medieval or punk looking, but definitely Witchy. There are many styles of gothic clothing in dresses, long skirts, short skirts, pants, long-sleeved shirts, short-sleeved shirts and more—the list is endless. It would be in keeping with the gothic style for a Wiccan to wear a cloak or cape over this type of clothing. When you walk into the room to exchange your vows, consider walking in together, to an almost completely dark room, carrying a silver candelabrum with lit black taper candles. Draw Halloween into the theme as well, decorating with cobwebs that house plastic spiders, and setting out carved pumpkin centerpieces filled with black tulips or roses. The favors could consist of small cauldrons filled with candy corn or a black votive candle. You might want plenty of bats hanging from the ceiling and decorated sugar cookies shaped like bats, cats, and witches. Also, be sure that the DJ has plenty of Halloween music on hand, including “The Monster Mash.” If you went with a live band, you could ask them to join in the fun and dress according to your theme. The tables could be decorated with white or orange tablecloths and have smaller black ones on top. There should be plenty of black candles lit everywhere. You could really have a fun time with this one, and the decorations could be saved to decorate your home on Samhain as a yearly reminder of your special day together.

 

Mabon or Fall Equinox Theme

A fall theme can be one of the most beautiful that you could use. There is nothing like the smell of the clean crisp air in the fall and the beauty of the leaves changing color. If you spent a few days before the wedding collecting the colored leaves off the trees, these would make fabulous decorations. You would want your tables covered with white tablecloths, covered with smaller brown ones. The leaves that you collected could be scattered on the tables, and the centerpieces could be cornucopias filled with gourds. It would be really spectacular to have the bride’s headpiece made out of the leaves, too, with the veil hanging from that. The food could consist of a traditional Thanksgiving dinner complete with pumpkin pie for dessert. All of the ingredients of a traditional Thanksgiving dinner are Native American, so your theme could include gratitude for the land and its lessons, including the teachings of the people of its first nations. Favors of leaf and Thanksgiving theme candles would be perfect.

 

Yule or Midwinter Theme

A Yule theme could be quite beautiful and would make any Christian guests attending comfortable, too. Decorations of pinecones, poinsettias, mistletoe, and evergreen garlands with red bows for accents all over the room would look so inviting. If you can decorate the day before the wedding, you might be able to bring in a Yule tree, strategically place red bows on its branches, and add a red tree skirt. Invite your guests to leave any gifts they have for you under the tree. The meal could be whatever your family traditionally serves at Yule or Christmas, but be sure to have hot chocolate and gingerbread cookies. The tables would have white tablecloths with smaller red ones on top, and the centerpiece could be a Nutcracker Prince and a Sugar Plum Fairy standing on a round mirror with holly around their feet, sprinkled with glitter or white snowflakes. The favors could include a Yule ornament with the bride and groom’s names and wedding date engraved on it. If a lot of children are expected, you can even have a surprise visit from Santa. A friend of mine cautions, though, that Faeries love Yule and Christmas, with all the glitter, sparkle, gifts, and treats. Be sure to include dishes of sweetened milk at each table, or no one will be able to find their car keys when it’s time to go home.

Ostara or Spring Theme

You could incorporate an Ostara or springtime theme. This wedding could take place in a floral garden, home to an abundance of fresh flowers, butterflies, and dragonflies. Pick a flower that symbolize springtime and new beginnings and place one in a small vase at each place setting. This will be your favor, too. The tables will be covered with white tablecloths with smaller tablecloths of pastel yellow, green, or purple on the tops. The centerpiece can be Ostara baskets, filled with decorated eggs or the plastic eggs that open with small candies inside each one. The centerpiece can be given away at the end of the night to the person who finds a flower, somewhere in the hall, with a tiny bumblebee attached.

If you have a lot of children in attendance, you can have an Ostara egg hunt planned for them. The little ones may keep the treasures they find.

 

Litha or Summer Solstice Theme

You could plan this wedding on the beach or in a yard that overlooks the beach. You could decorate with stylish citronella candles around the perimeter of your event, to keep the mosquitoes away, while at the same time setting the ambiance from the day into the evening with candlelight. You could do all of your decorations with seashells that you collect from the beach yourself in the weeks before the wedding. Use the seashells to make matching place settings, napkin holders, and favors that with a little imagination can be truly impressive. Maybe for your favors you would want to give each guest a beach towel imprinted with your and your partner’s names and the wedding date.

Your meal could consist of a lobster bake or some type of shellfish dish with plenty of watermelon on the dessert table. New Englanders could plan a full-scale clambake with all the trimmings.

The summer solstice is traditionally a time for festivals and bonfires, and a time abounding with Faeries. It’s also a time for first harvesting magickal herbs, so your party favors could include purchased or harvested bundles of sweet-smelling, medicinal, or romantic herbs. Even if you are not yet adept in the details of herbal magick, you can’t go wrong with basil or other favorite aromatic herbs you can safely buy at the grocery store.

Be careful that you have the correct location, skills, and permits for any bonfire you might plan. You and your guests will want to remember the wedding and its magick, not visits from the police and fire departments.

 

 

Passages Handfasting: A Pagan Guide to Commitment Rituals

Kendra Vaughan Hovey

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History & Origins of Handfasting Ceremonies

HISTORY AND ORIGIN OF HANDFASTING CEREMONIES

EXPERTS DISAGREE ON the origin of handfasting. Some Neo-Pagans insist that the handfasting tradition can be proven to date back to ancient Paganism. Others say that handfasting can be traced back to pre-biblical times, but that there is no solid evidence suggesting that it was a Pagan tradition at all. One thing is certain: modern Pagans, and especially Wiccans, use the handfasting ritual for everything from declaring mutual romantic love to expressing legally recognized marriage vows.

Understanding handfasting requires that we understand the concept of marriage in Scotland starting from pre-biblical times. It was necessary then for anyone who was to marry to have the consent of their parents. More importantly, the marriage was not considered binding until it was consummated. Often young children would declare their love for one another, or be betrothed by their parents, with an agreement to marry in the future. This was considered a legal contract between the two and would prevent either of them from marrying anyone else. This vow of future commitment can be compared to that of the modern day engagement ring, which is a conditional gift. It is not legal in the United States for a woman to keep her engagement ring today unless she makes good on the promise to marry. If the marriage ends in divorce, it is acceptable that the ex-wife keeps her ring under the grounds that she fulfilled her commitment to marry.

The Christian Church, in the late Middle Ages, taught that even if two people ran off together against their parents’ wishes, this would still constitute a legal marriage. In fact, the Christian Church didn’t even require that the couple consummate the marriage for it to be legally binding. The “consented marriage” was considered a legal union from around the 1200s until the Protestant Reformation in the 1500s. It was common in Scotland and England to be married on the porch of the church (being married inside the church was only for the affluent). Of course, there were many couples that did not want to be married the traditional way, for many of the same reasons that couples elope today. The most important factor that bound two people in marriage was mutual consent.

Many couples would perform marriage on their own, knowing that their vows wouldn’t be recognized by both church and state. Often, they chose this option because they could avoid uncomfortable conflict if someone did not approve of the marriage, because it was a cheaper option than a church wedding, or because it could be performed on a whim. These “secretive” marriages, performed alone on a hillside in the country, were no less marriages from a civil perspective than the ones that were performed on the porch of the church. Also, unlike today, if a couple were married in the late Middle Ages they were considered married for life in Roman Catholic Europe. The only thing that could break a binding marriage was death.

It wasn’t until the 1500s in Scotland and England that divorce and remarriage even became a possibility under canon law. Although the Catholic Church and some emerging Protestant churches preferred a “proper” church wedding during medieval times, consisting of a formal ceremony with witnesses led by clergy in order for a couple to be recognized by the church, the civil laws recognizing personal, private vows remained in effect until 1939. In the late Middle Ages in Scotland and Northern England, the term handfasting was used to describe the mutual commitment ceremonies discussed above, and also commonly referred to agreements to marry in the future. These agreements bound the two people together in the eyes of the church and the state, and prevented them from handfasting or marrying another. The interesting fact here is that the handfasting was used more as a promise between two people, often minors, to declare their love for one another and a promise to marry at some point in the future. These declarations were considered completely binding by both the church and the state. If the couple consummated the marriage, then they were no longer considered “engaged.” They were married.

By the late 1700s in Europe, handfasting ceremonies were no longer practiced as a common form of engagement. Instead, in Ireland from the 1700s through the early 1900s, there are several documented cases of handfasting being used as a trial marriage. Men would choose their wives on a trial basis by engaging in handfasting rituals. The couple would live together, engage in sex, and act as a married couple for a trial period of a year and a day. When that time was finished, if the couple had no children, they could choose to part ways, free to find new partners. Or they could call for a priest to marry them permanently.

The word handfasting derives from the wedding custom of tying the bride and groom’s hands or wrists together. The hands were bound with a cloth or specially designed cord as part of the ceremony or ritual. In some ceremonies, the cord was not untied until the marriage was physically consummated. The term itself comes from the Anglo-Saxon word handfaestung, which was a custom of shaking hands over a contract. This was often the contract entered into when a man made a down payment, or wed, to his future wife’s father in order to have her hand in marriage. This was the origin of the modern word wedding.

The Irish maintained an ancient tradition until the nineteenth century in which men and women would gather on opposite sides of a high wall, men on the North side and women on the South. The women would put their hands through holes in the wall and the men would pick one of the hands. The pairs thus formed would then live together for a year and a day. After that period of time they would decide whether or not they wanted to enter into permanent marriage.

Interestingly enough, this festival took place on Lughnassad, a Sabbat celebrated on August 2nd by Neo-Pagans. By the late 1900s, this concept of handfasting as an ancient Celtic practice became well established and accepted. Several Neo-Pagan faiths have adapted the concept of ancient handfasting, and added their own beliefs and practices to the ritual. Some examples of ancient and new traditions used in modern handfasting ceremonies are:

The renewal of handfasting vows several times without the permanency of marriage

Stating in the handfasting vows that the bond lasts only as long as the two shall love one another

The handfasting ribbon or cord ceremony where the couple hold hands, right hand to right hand and left hand to left hand, and then intertwine a cord or ribbon in the infinity sign, knotting it three times

Keeping the handfasting cord bound until the union is consummated

Keeping the handfasting cord bound until the ritual is over

Using a handfasting as a religiously recognized but state-unrecognized marriage

Performing a handfasting ritual

with an ordained cleric so it is a state-recognized marriage, incorporating a “legal” handfasting with an exchange of wedding rings

Thus, the history of handfasting is not entirely clear. One cannot prove that it was primarily a Pagan practice, nor trace its precise roots. Today handfasting is clearly a Pagan practice, and especially Wiccan. Like many Wiccan rituals, handfasting can be celebrated in a multitude of ways to fit the couple’s particular Wiccan tradition

 

 

Passages Handfasting: A Pagan Guide to Commitment Rituals

Kendra Vaughan Hovey

Ritual for Beltane Coven Gathering on 4/30/2015

04-la-wicca

 

Picture from: http://www.venusvoyance.com/wicca-vieille-religion-devenue-religion-nouvelle/ .If you go to the siteit is all in French.

I thought would share how I will be doing the sacred circle April 30th at 6:15 PM CT in the Chat Room. For more information click on Coven Life banner on right side of this page. This will take you to Coven Life Home page scroll down just a little and you will see the post for this gathering. I will be typing the ritual into the chat room as I do each part, so everyone can follow where we are. I ask that no one else post in the chat room during the ritual please. Thank you. Hope to see you tomorrow.

If you want to empower candles during the ritual as I will be doing, you will need to have a 1 yellow taper candle and 1 green taper candle. Length is your choice depending on how many gardens you will be taking them to, to use the power from. To give power from the candles to your garden:

To give power from the candles to your garden: Light candles hold them sideways so some wax can drip from them onto the ground. You will want to hold the candle over each corner of each garden. As you do light the candle, hold both in your power hand (the hand you write with) if possible, say: Candle burning bright. Release your power with all its might.

BELTANE COVEN GATHERING RITUAL

I am in my backyard for this ritual. I am lucky my neighbors have grown use to me doing them and do not talk to me now when they see my altar set up.

I will be closing the circle around us:

With Sword pointed at the ground: I call upon Fire to guard this circle from all things negative outside of it.

With Sword pointed at shoulder level: I call upon Water to keep this circle safe from all things negative.

With Sword above head: I call upon Air to keep this circle safe from all things negative.

Lay sword on altar.

Facing East: Power of ancient dreams, ancestors of the mighty east

Come forth, O guardians of Air.

Let your wings of intelligence my protection be

Hear this call, let my words draw you near.

Lock the gate that none may pass unless

They come in love and trust. Blessed Be!

Facing South: Power of ancient dreams, ancestors of the mighty south

Come forth, O guardians of Fire.

May your firey breath cleanse my work.

Hear this call, let my words draw you near.

Lock the gate that none may pass unless

They come in love and trust. Blessed Be!

Facing West: Power of ancient dreams, ancestors of the mighty west

Come forth, O guardians of Water.

May your sweeping waters bring protection all around.

Hear this call, let my words draw you near.

Lock the gate that none may pass unless

They come in love and trust. Blessed Be!

Facing North: Power of ancient dreams, ancestors of the mighty north

Come forth, O guardians of Earth.

Let the North Star crown your brow.

Hear this call, let my words draw you near.

Lock the gate that none may pass unless

They come in love and trust. Blessed Be!

This circle is now closed around us and I say: We stand in a place that is not a place, in a time that is outside of time. I welcome you in perfect love and perfect trust. Merry Meet and Merry greet.

I invoke Morrigan to come into our circle. I invoke the Green Man to come into our circle.

Waiting for the power to rise and the deities to enter.

Sitting before me is a green candle on my right and a yellow candle in my right.

With my pointer finger on each candle I say,

“I empower these candles with love and light,

to keep my plants healthy from blight.

They will bless my gardens from sunrise to sunrise,

My harvest from ,my plants will be my prize.

With my finger on the green candle I say, “Morrigan I ask you to infuse this candle with your power and energy to help my plants be bountiful and prosper.”

With my finger on the yellow candle I say, “Green Man I ask you to infuse this candle with your power and energy to help my plants be bountiful and prosper.”

These are my words, This is my will, so mote it be.

I pick up the chalice from the altar which has sparkling grape juice in it: Morrigan and Green Man I offer you libations in thanks for your power and energy to enhance my spell. I thank you Mother Earth, Ra, Rain and wind for helping my gardens to grow and be bountiful. I offer these libation to you. I then pour a bit of juice on to the ground.

I pick up the plate from my altar (which has some crackers on it): Morrigan and Green Man I offer this substance to you in thanks for your power and energy to enhance my spell. I thank you Mother Earth, Ra, rain and wind for helping my gardens to grow and be bountiful. I offer this substance to you. I than crumble a couple on to the ground.

I ring the bell on my altar: I ask the Fea folk to watch over my gardens and to help them grow. In thanks I offer you this ginger, butter and cake.

Before dismissing the Watchtowers and opening the circle I say: May no harm come to those within or without as my spell takes hold

I dismiss the Watchtowers starting in the North and walking counter clockwise/witthershins.

Earth I now send you back for where you came with thanks for your protection and power you have given this circle.

Water I now send you back for where you came with thanks for your protection and power you have given this circle.

Fire I now send you back for where you came with thanks for your protection and power you have given this circle.

Air I now send you back for where you came with thanks for your protection and power you have given this circle.

Walking counter clockwise/witthershins

Holding my sword above my head Air I send you back from where you came with heartfelt thanks for your protection.

Holding my sword at should height Water I send you back from where you came with heartfelt thanks for your protection

Holding my sword towards the ground Fire I send you back from where you came with heartfelt thanks for your protection

The circle is now closed. May you go from it with peace and love. Merry part  until we merry meet again.

Copyright 2015 Lady Beltane

Wiccan Samhain Sabbat Solitary Ritual Guide

Supplies
Black altar cloth
Scrying mirror or bowl of water
Four white pillar candles for the four quarters
One gold taper candle for the God
One silver taper candle for the Goddess
One black candle
Natural bowl (shell, horn, seed pod, etc)
Slice of bread
Apple cider
Any ritual tools you normally use
Most would usually wear black during this rite

Cleanse the space and cast the circle.

Lighting their candles, call the elements:

“I call upon the spirits of the North, that they join my Circle and bring word of the dead, and take my words to them! Welcome, spirits of Air!

I call upon the spirits of the East, that they join my Circle and bring the comfort of the Earth, the flesh of the Mother, to which we all return. Welcome spirits of Earth!

I call upon the spirits of the South, that they join my Circle, bringing purification, that my soul learns from the trials and joys of life. Welcome, spirits of Fire!

I call upon the spirits of the West, that they join my Circle and bring peace, that I may take comfort in the Cycle. Welcome, spirits of Water!”

Call down God and Goddess.

Light the Goddess candle, saying:

“Lady, may your love shine upon us in bounty and in loss.”

Light the God candle, saying:

“Lord, though extinguished for a time, your light will return to us!”

Extinguish the God candle, saying:

“I mourn and celebrate the death of the God. For the Light is now short, yet our harvest is great, and the light will rekindle again, the Cycle begin anew in Nature. I take comfort also in knowing that no soul is lost or forsaken on the Wheel. Blessed be your rest, Lord.”

Sit in the circle with the bowl (or mirror) before you, the candle behind it, unlit. Have the slice of bread beside you to the left, and the drink to the right.

Pick up the bread and tear off a small piece, dipping it into the drink. Say something like:

“I offer this sustenance to those who have passed before me, this bread of the earth and air, and this drink of the water and fire. With the union of the two, they become whole and I offer it to my ancestors, to the Gods and Goddesses who would have it.”

Place the bread in the natural bowl, taking a moment to contemplate who has passed on that would come to take some of the food you have offered. Once done, pick up the black candle and light it, saying something like:

“I light this candle as a lantern to guide those who have passed before me. I welcome them to this rite so long as they offer good will to it. Negativity will be turned away, positive energies will be welcomed. With this candle, I illuminate the circle as a beacon to those who have passed that I love and cherish.”

Set the candle down behind the bowl of water (or mirror). Stare into the water, preferably at an angle so you can see the flame of the candle dancing on the surface of the water. Let your mind go and concentrate on meeting up and connecting with those that have died before you that you wish to contact. Be they pets, persons, or Deities, concentrate on connecting to those that have gone on, and ask them for guidance, or ask them whatever you like.

Take as long as you like on this part of the ritual, for it should not be rushed.

When done, lift up the bread and take one more piece, dipping it into the drink. Say something like:

“I offer more of the food that sustains me, soaking up some drink to quench the thirst of the thirsty. Thank you for coming to me, sharing in your wisdom, guidance, and company.”

Set this piece in the natural bowl with the other one. Share in with the meal by eating the bread and drinking the cider that you have beside you.

When this is done, dismiss the deities and all others you have called and close the circle. Ground and center.

From: http://www.wiccanway.com/Samhain-Solitary-Ritual-Guide_c_198.html

Solitary Moon Rite

Solitary Moon Rite

 

This rite may be used for either New or Full Moon. The difference is in your meditation and mental attitude in preparation. Remember that the New Moon is a time of outward work and thought, building to the peak which is the Full Moon. At the Full Moon, you should be preparing to lessen the outward flow of energy, bit by bit, until the period before New Moon, during which you are passive, building a pool of energy within you, in preparation for the New Moon. 
 

The altar should be placed in the center of the ritual area. On it should be placed a rose or stick of incense on the eastern side, a red votive candle to the South; a cup of water on the West, and a bowl of salt or living plant on the North. 
 

Around your ritual area, you should place an unlighted candle at the cardinal point of each direction. 
 

To begin your rite, enter your darkened temple, carrying one burning candle, white or lavender, with you. Place it on the center of your altar, sit, and meditate on the meaning of the rite. When you feel the time is right, stand, and go to the eastern point, carrying with you, the burning taper. Light the votive at the eastern point and go to the southern, picturing, as you do, an arc of pure strong light curving from one candle to the next. Continue to the West, and then to the North, lighting the candles as you go, and then walk to your eastern candle again, having formed a circle of protective light surrounding the area in which you worship. 
 

Return to the center of the circle, replace the candle on the altar, and say:

My Lady of the Moon, who is called Diana, Artemis, Levanah, Isis and by any other names, I come to you to bring you my love and my devotion. May you grant me the joy of your presence. 
 

Mentally divide the room into four quadrants by visualizing a line of silvery moonlight from the southeast to the northwest, and from the northeast to the southwest. Go the East, taking with you the rose or incense. Say:

 Sweet Goddess, the gentle breeze is the touch of your loving hand, the wind of storm a reminder of your strength. The sound of the trees in the wind is your voice, and the fragrance of flowers borne on the wind is your gift of beauty. 
 

Place the rose next to the votive candle, then stand there as you picture the quadrant filling with moonlight. See the moonlight streaming quietly and gently into the room, filling the quadrant from center point to the edge of your circle. 
 

When this is complete, take the red candle to the South. Place the gift and see the quadrant fill with moonlight. Say:

 Most loved Lady, the light of the candle is a guide along our path leading to you; its warmth the reassurance of your presence and your love. The light of the Sun is the knowledge you impart to us, driving out ignorance and those things which can survive only in darkness. 
 

At the West:

Lovely One, the quiet pool is the serenity of your being. The vast sea where life began on this planet is the vast sea of your being whence all life came; its waves are the ebb and flow of the universe you rule. 
 

At the North:

Goddess of all, the fertility of the earth is a sign of your fertility, whence all life rose. The solidity and permanence are still of it are still less than yours. The Earth’s fertility feeds our bodies, and your fertility feeds our souls. 
 

Go to the center of your temple, which is now filled with moonlight. 
 

Everything in the circle is touched by it, blessed by it, including you. Sit down and feel this moonlight around you. Know that it is the Goddess. Realize that you are in the center of a sphere of light that is half above and half above and half below where you sit. Begin to breathe slowly and evenly, deep breaths that penetrate your whole body. When this rhythmic breathing becomes natural, imagine that the moonlight by which you are surrounded enters you, fills you entirely. 
 

With each exhalation of your breath, some of the essence of yourself leaves your body, and with each inhalation, the light enters you. You are being filled ever so gently with this beautiful light. This light, which is the presence, the being of the Goddess, is within you as well as without. With each breath, you are less yourself and more the Goddess. 
 

When you are filled with light, filled with the Goddess, the shell of your body fades away. You have no body; there is nothing to separate you from the entire being of the Goddess. Nothing exists but the being of which you are apart. You have ceased to be a separate entity. You are nothing and everything. All that was, that is, and all that will be, you are. 
 

Enjoy this feeling as long as you like. When you feel it is time, picture the outer shell of your physical body reforming, becoming solid again. It is being built out of the Universe of which you are a part. 
 

Now, as you continue your slow deep breathing, see the moonlight flowing out of your body, as gently and slowly as it entered. As it flows out, realize there is a difference. Because you have become one with the Goddess, with the Universe, your being has changed. As the moonlight flows out of your body, it takes with it a part of that which was yourself, now part of the Goddess, and leaves behind a part of the Goddess, forever now part of you. You become yourself again, solid as you were, but changed. You are surrounded by the presence of the Goddess, which now contains a part of yourself . 
 

Move again to the East. As you speak, and after, picture the moonlight in that quadrant flowing back to its source, leaving that quadrant as it was. 
 

Do this at each quadrant, until all the moonlight has returned to the Moon. 
 

At the East:

My Lady, guide my thoughts. Let them lead always closer to you. 
 

At the South:

Gracious Goddess, guide my actions. Let them always help and never harm others or myself. 
 

At the West:

Lovely One, guide my emotions: Let them be healing and touched always by you. 
 

At the North:

Sweet Goddess, let my mind always be fertile and strong, that I may grow always toward you. 
 

Return to the East to complete the circle and say:

Queen of Heaven, I thank you for your presence, both now and always. My love and devotion are yours. 
 

Blessed be! 
 

All spirits who have joined me tonight may depart, with my love. Return to your proper places. 
 

Walk again around your circle, but this time counterclockwise, extinguishing the quadrant guards as you go, and at the same time, mentally erasing the white line which surrounded your circle. When the candles are out and the circle gone, rap on your altar and say:

The rite is ended.

 

 

Ritual by:

Ellen Reed

 

 

Outline of a Ritual for the Solitary Witch

OUTLINE OF A RITUAL FOR THE SOLITARY WITCH

 

Ritual Preparation

1.Define purpose

2.Write ritual

3.Gather necessary tools

4.Prepare area

5.Prepare body
 
 

Open Circle

1.Find compass North

2.Set up door between the worlds

3.Call the Watchtower/Elemental Quarters
 
 

Invocation to the Deities

1.Align self with deity

2.Invoke Deities
 
 

Statement of Purpose
 
 

Actual Working or Act of Honor

1.Working

2.Complete preliminary manual or visual tasks

3.Raise power/energy

4.Focus Power/energy

5.Ground power/energy
 
 

Honoring

1.Complete preliminary manual or visual tasks

2.Dedicate cake & wine

3.Partake of cakes & wine

4.Meditation
 
 

Thanking the Deities
 
 

Closing the Circle

1.Mentally & verbally close the circle

2.Physically close the circle

3.Clean-up

 

Washing of plates & glasses

Putting away tools & other implements

 

Centering Ritual

Centering Ritual

 

Purpose:

To establish a calm place to think.

To reconnect to your center.

To listen to the small voice within.

 
Timing:

Any time you need centering.

 
Materials:

None.

 
Preparation:

If you meditate regularly and have a ritual or routine that helps you prepare, use it.
This ritual may be done anywhere and anytime. Just make sure you will not be disturbed. Visualize if you need to.

 
Part 1- Preparing the Space
Face East:

I greet the Spirits of the East

Who inspires Inspiration in all of us

Come and join with me

For you are welcome here.
Face South:

I greet the Spirits of the South

Who inspires Compassion in all of us

Come and join with me

For you are welcome here.
 

Face West:

I greet the Spirits of the West

Who inspires Faith in all of us

Come and join with me

For you are welcome here.
 

Face North:

I greet the Spirits of the North

Who inspires Wisdom in all of us

Come and join with me

For you are welcome here.
 

Move back to the center:

I greet the Spirits Within

 Who inspires Understanding in all of us

Come and join with me

For you are welcome here.
Part 2- Preparing the self

Sit in the center facing whichever direction you feel most comfortable. Visualize or touch each body part as you say the following:
I bless my Mind

So that it will always be open to understanding.
I bless my Eyes

So that they will always be able to see the truth.
I bless my Ears

 So that they will always hear what is said.
I bless my Mouth

So that it will always speak honestly.
I bless my Heart

So that it will always be full of love.
I bless my Hands

So that they will always build for the good of all.
I bless my Womb

So that it will always spark creativity.
I bless my Feet

So that they will always walk in balance.
I bless my Soul

So that it will always guide me home.
Take time to listen to yourself and know that the answer you seek is within you. Be open and let the answer flow freely on this journey within.
Part 3- Giving Thanks
Face East:

I bid farewell to the Spirits of East

Open to the Inspiration you inspired

 Attuned to the energied of Air

Thankful for your attendance.
Face South:

I bid farewell to the Spirits of South

Open to the Compassion you inspired

Attuned to the energied of Fire

Thankful for your attendance.
Face West:

I bid farewell to the Spirits of West

Open to the Faith you inspired

Attuned to the energied of Water

Thankful for your attendance.
Face North:

I bid farewell to the Spirits of North

Open to the Wisdom you inspired

Attuned to the energied of Earth

Thankful for your attendance.
Stand in the Center:

I bid farewell to the Spirits Within

Open to the Understanding you inspired

Attuned to the energied of the Spirit

Thankful for your attendance.
So Mote It Be.

 

Balancing and Grounding Ritual

 

Balancing and Grounding Ritual

 

Face East and center yourself.

I am grounded in the center of my being.
 

Visualise energy of below.

I am supported by the powers of below.
 

Visualise the God/Goddess of above.

I am guided by the powers of above.
 

Visualise the unity of self with center above and below.

I am balanced in the axis of my being.
 

Extend your hand to the East.

Visualise and make contact with the powers of the elemental forces.

 Visualise clarity.

I am inspired by the powers of Air.
 

Visualise purifying/transforming.

I am enlightened by the powers of Fire.
 

Visualise healing/cleansing.

I am renewed by the powers of Water.
 

Visualise nurturing/stability.

I am nurtured by the powers of Earth.
 

Establish the balance of axis and elements.

 Feel this to be true.

The forces are in balance within me and about me.
 

Feel the Sphere of the Circle.

The Sphere is placed.
 

Feel the Cube of the Temple within the Sphere.

The Temple is established.
 

Feel the Temple within yourself.

I am the Temple.

 

 

Basic Ritual

Basic Ritual

 

A circle should be marked on the floor, surrounding those who will participate in the ceremony. An altar is to be set up at the center of the circle. At the center of the altar shall be placed an image of the Goddess, and an incense burner placed in front of it. Behind the image should be a wand fashioned from a willow branch. Candles should be set upon the altar … a total of five, since on is to be set at each quarter and one will remain on the altar during the rite.

When all the people are prepared they shall assemble within the circle. The woman acting as priestess shall direct the man who acts as priest to light the candles and incense. She shall then say:

“The presence of the noble Goddess extends everywhere,

 Throughout many strange, magical, And beautiful worlds,

To all places of wilderness, enchantment, and freedom.”

She then places a candle at the north and pauses to look outwards, saying:

“The Lady is awesome,

The Powers of death bow before Her.”

The person closest to the east takes a candle from the altar and places it at that quarter, saying:

“Our Goddess is a Lady of Joy,

The winds are Her servants.”

The person closest to the south takes a candle from the altar and places it at that quarter, saying:

“Our Goddess is a Goddess of Love.

At Her blessings and desire The sun brings forth life anew.”

The person closest to the west takes a candle from the altar and places it at that quarter, saying:

“The seas are the domain of our Serene Lady,

The mysteries of the depths are Hers alone.”

The priest then takes the wand, and starting at the north, draws it along the entire circle clockwise back to the north point, saying:

“The circle is sealed, and all herein are totally and completely apart from the outside world, that we may glorify the Lady whom we adore. Blessed Be!”

All repeat: “Blessed Be!”

The priest now holds the wand out in salute towards the north for a moment and then hands it to the priestess, who also holds it out in salute. She motions to the group to repeat the following lines after her:

“As above, so below …

 As the universe, so the soul.

As without, so within.

Blessed and gracious one,

On this day do we consecrate to you

Our bodies,

 Our minds,

And our spirits.

Blessed Be!”

Now is the time for discussion and teaching. Wine and light refreshments may be served. When the meeting has ended, all wil stand and silently meditate for a moment. The priestess will then take the wand and tap each candle to put it out, starting at the north and going clockwise around the circle, while saying:

“Our rite draws to its end.

O lovely and gracious Goddess,

Be with each of us as we depart.

The circle is broken!”

 

Earth Day Ritual

Earth Day Comments & Graphics
Earth Day Ritual

The Celebration of Earth Day is of great importance to the Pagan community. It is after all Mothers Day.

Although this was written as a group meditation ritual it can easily be modified for a solitary ritual as well.

You will need;

White or Yellow candle (Air)
Red candle (Fire)
Blue candle (Water)
Green candle (Earth)
Goddess candle

Set up your altar, with the colored candles at the four cardinal points. Purify with salt water or sage

Light your Goddess candle and cast your circle.

Light the other four candles. Take a moment, stand peacefully until their flames burn slowly and steadily.

Sit or lie down so you are relaxed, with a pillow under your knees if that helps your back to be straight and comfortable. Look at the five candle flames.

Breathe slowly and deeply, not straining. With every breath in, take in relaxation and calm. With every breath out, release tension and worry

Feel gravity gently pressing against your body, pressing you to the ground, to the earth, and then slowly, feel yourself sink into the earth. Slowly, slowly sink slowly into the earth. Send your consciousness down through the grass, down through the soil and down, deep down, into the earth. Be aware of the mass of rock that lies beneath the soil- shale, quartz, sandstone, granite; the black, white, and red-shot through with bands of minerals, darkly glittering; crystals that shine like stars within the stones ….Let your consciousness become one with the earth: You are a mountain as old as the planet itself, once part of the seabed, thrown up by unspeakable forces now stilled, silent, enormously, timelessly rooted in the earth, your head in the stars………or perhaps a minute grain of sand, one among trillions and trillions, endlessly shifting, sifting, with the ocean tides … Forever a part of the earth ….

Now shift your consciousness and become aware of the plant kingdom: algae and seaweeds, forests of kelp, grasses blowing gently in a savanna wind, yellow and orange lichens on a rock in a woodland, prickly pears, an ancient oak wood, a rain forest blooming with delicate orchids, vines hanging heavy with fruit … You are the earth, the soft green moss on a rock by a stream, a mountain strawberry, a wild rose………..do you feel the wind blow your petals ever so softly …….

Again alter your consciousness to become aware of the animal kingdom…. listen to the voices of the wild: the roar of the tiger, the belling of the stag, perhaps the howl of the wolf; the cries of owls and the tap, tap, tapping, of woodpeckers, the whirring of a birds´ wings as it passes over head, the padding of soft paws………become one now with the animal kingdom, with the salmon leaping upstream, the fox gliding silently through the night, or the snake shedding its skin…feel what your new body is like and what it feels like to creep, or walk, climb, run or fly in free motion….

And now once again alter your consciousness and become aware of the human kingdom …mankind, human, you are standing on two feet …notice how different that feels: you can stand like a stone, grow like a plant, move like an animal, but you can now create with your mind and your hands and you can sing and you can dance and you can dream in your heart and make that dream real upon the earth …for you are a Goddess/God on this earth. You are a part of the Mother.

Now when you are ready, slowly open your eyes .

Ritual Chant

Mother Earth, We have seen your rocks and layers
We have been the dust storm, the ancient volcano’s lava;
We have Swum in your oceans, and flowed in your streams.
Run with the wild brothers and sisters, And howled at the Moon.
We have spun amongst the comets and asteroids,
Burned with creation’s fire, frozen in ice in the void.
We have been music, the song of the spheres, the frequency of the stars.
We have been a human being and feel our connection
Our connection to every other thing that lives; for everything has life.
Mother Earth we pray to love You and protect You.
So Mote it Be

Feel the Earth under you, draw up power, raise it up fully, feel it streaming out of your hands and your third eye. Hurl the power over your head to close the hole in the ozone layer; to shower down and bring understanding to those who do not know our Mother; to heal and to bring peace.

“Pagan Prayer”

May my heart be gentle;
My mind still and open;
My spirit unshackled;
My awareness keen;
My conscience clear;
My nature giving.
May I be a healing energy;
May I be of benefit to all;
May my life enrich others;
May I know what matters;
And live in harmony with Nature.

Close the Circle and thank the Mother

 

 

Elemental Magick

A Little Extra Magick for Your Day – A Healing Ritual With Sunlight And Moonlight

Witchy Cat Graphics & Comments
A Healing Ritual With Sunlight And Moonlight

 

This is a very magical form of healing and can be carried out either alone or as a group activity. Quartz crystal balls were traditionally used medicinally to concentrate the rays of sunlight upon a diseased or painful area of the body or in the direction of some internal organ.

This clear crystal stone has always been associated with energizing powers and with healing. In its spherical form of completeness, it is perhaps the ultimate healing and magical stone. You can buy tiny spheres quite cheaply and these work just as well as a large crystal ball.

Sunlight is good for energizing and improving physical health and vitality, encouraging re-growth and regeneration, and for matters of the mind where clarity and optimism are needed.

Moonlight is potent for removing illness or pain and for all problems concerning emotions, hormones or fertility and is especially effective in healing women, children and pets.

* Direct the sunlight or the light of the full moon into your crystal sphere, so that it shines on the person you are healing, or their photograph or other symbol. If you are using sunlight, be careful that the crystal does not become too hot and of course do not look directly at the image of the Sun.

* Stand in a circle in the open air and in the centre, place a dish of pure spring water. Use a golden coloured bowl for sunlight, and a silver bowl for moonlight.

* Into the water, drop tiny clear quartz crystals (if you are working in a group, each person adds one crystal). As you cast the crystals, make a wish for healing the sick or distressed person.

* Hold a crystal pendulum and swirl it on its chain to catch within it either rainbows or sunbeams, or the silver light of the Moon.

* Cast the beams into the water, calling:

Go forth with love and healing.

You can, if you prefer, create your own words.

* Pour the water into a clear glass bottle with a stopper and send or give it to the sick person. They may drink it or use it in a bath.

* Return the energies to the cosmos by placing yellow flowers or seeds in a pot for the golden energies if you used sunlight, and white flowers for the Moon.

The Witches Magick for May 14th – A Ritual for Creating Healing Magick

Witchy Cat Graphics & Comments

Ritual For Creating Healing Magick

 

Each evening or morning – or whenever you have time – light your healing candle and hold one of your special crystals and your crystal sphere or pendulum and focus on of the names in your book, sending the candlelight reflected though the crystal to wherever it is needed. The traditional healing hour is ten o’ clock at night, but what is more important is that the time is one where you can be quiet and are not pressurized by other demands. Begin by holding a healing crystal and focusing the energies through the candle flame; you can then extend this ritual for specific healing purposes.

You will need a photograph, newspaper cutting or symbol of the person, animal or place to which you are sending healing energies.

* Take a dish of sacred water and place it near the candle.

* Hold the symbol of the person to be healed between your hands and speak a few words of love and reassurance as though they were with you. If you have already created for the sick person a herb poppet or sachet, hold that between your hands and repeat the original herb empowerment or sit in silence recreating the ritual in your mind. You can add words of healing as above. If the object of the healing is a place, such as a lake or woodland under threat, imagine that you are in that place.

* Circle your crystal pendulum or a pointed healing crystal over the symbol (or sachet or poppet) nine times widdershins, saying as a mantra:

Go, pain and sorrow, change to star or sunbeam, transformed in joy and in tranquillity.

* Plunge the pendulum into the water and hold it to the light so the drops of water fall off and scatter as rainbow light beams all around the symbol. You can also create the light beams by angling your candle or hanging rainbow crystals in your window. It is not cheating, but directing natural forces for a purpose and infusing physical light beams with spiritual energies. Mirrors are another good way of

reflecting light beams.

* Now circle the pendulum nine times deosil over the symbol, saying:

Sunbeam, star beam, rays of light, replace, restore, renew, rejoice.

* Blow out the candle, sending the light to the sick or sorrowing person, saying:

Go, light of healing, radiance of love and friendship, to where you are needed most this night, with – [name the person, animal or location].

May blessings fall, darkness and doubts recede into nothingness. So may it be in the name of all that is good and loving and pure [or ‘in the name of the Goddess’, if you prefer].

If you are feeling ill, worried or afraid you can go to your healing place and light the candle, holding your favourite crystal and expressing softly your needs and fears. However, the more healing you carry out for others, the more harmony will fall on you under the Threefold Law.

If you are working with friends or in a group, after showering it with light beams, pass the symbol round to each person, adding individual blessings. Give each person a small, white candle to set before them so that they can personally send light and blessings.

The words can be spoken as a joint mantra or chant.

Source:
A Practical Guide to Witchcraft and Magic Spells
Author: Cassandra Eason

 

 

 

Phase of the Moon & The Hours of the Day Magickal Correspondence

Witchy Comments & Graphics

Phase of the Moon & The Hours of the Day Magickal Correspondences

 

Your magickal workings will also benefit from knowing the daytime correspondences..

Morning- Daylight hours are best for matters of the conscious mind, including magic for leadership, intelligence and all cognitive functions.

Night- Nighttime magicks are best for all things relating to the intuitive, emotional self, healing, fertility, and Moon magick .

Dawn- the dawn brings a time for new beginnings; it freshens, brings warmth and renewed hope.

Dusk- Magick performed at dusk would involve conclusion and endings.

Midnight and Noon- Excellent for all magic involving positive change in your life. Also good for endings and beginnings.

Below you will find the times of the day J

1 a.m. – The first hour of a new day. Focus is on wholeness of self and the banishing of any shadows.

2 a.m. – Ridding partnerships or relationships of negativity.

3 a.m. – Determination, especially in matters that seem to hold you back.

4 a.m. – Improved luck or victory over a specific set of deterring circumstances.

5 a.m. – Encouraging growth of the psychic self.

6 a.m. – Tenacity and perseverance, especially with something you have been putting off.

7 a.m. – Hope, improved insight and perspective.

8 a.m. – Personal change aimed toward the conscious mind.

9 a.m. – Assistance for others, focusing on concrete matters.

10 a.m. – Improving personal convictions and resolutions.

11 a.m. – Energy directed toward transformations, which may have seemed impossible.

(Noon, see above)

1 p.m. – Self-image and personal security.

2 p.m. – Building relationships, encouraging understanding and love between people, sexual symmetry.

3 p.m. – Balancing matters of the body, mind and spirit.

4 p.m. – Harmony of elements, sticking to schedules, magick to accentuate goals.

5 p.m. – Insight to the self. Communicating with spiritual guides.

6 p.m. – Matters of safety, protection and completion.

7 p.m. – Diversity, blending or healing differences, gentle care towards others.

8 p.m. – Leadership, command and guidance.

9 p.m. – Comprehension of universal truth.

10 p.m. – Improving the rational mind, sensibility and clear mindedness.

11 p.m. – Coping with drastic change in a positive manner.

Source:

PaganPath.org

The WOTC Extra – Template for Spell and Ceremony

Flower Graphics

The WOTC Extra – Template for Spell and Ceremony

This guide can be used to help you create spells for every occasion.

It lists all the materials, tools and stages that may be included in a spell but you will not need to use every item every time – some you will only use for formal rituals.

Preparation

* Choose the subject matter of your spell, bearing in mind the Threefold Law.

* Note down the purpose of the spell and the order in which you intend to work. Decide whether it will be divided into phases, such as invoking the four elements, raising and releasing the power or merge into one.

* Plan what you are going to say and write it down. (You may of course let the words come to you spontaneously.)

* Choose the time for your spell. Check the following influences:

The seasons

The equinoxes

The phase of the Moon

The day of the week

The hour

* Check any time limits (for example, ‘May this spell hold sway until the Moon has ebbed away’) and ensure that you can adhere to them.

* Choose the place for your spell. If you are working out of doors, and it is a spell that will last over several days, bear in mind any possible changes in the weather. Make sure you have enough room for the circle you intend to cast. Set up your altar in advance, if you can.

* Choose candles for the altar, to mark the quadrants of the circle and to represent people. Check they are the right colour. Choose elemental candles.

* Inscribe your candles.

* Anoint your candles.

* Choose your associated symbols that will act as a focus for the spell.

* Choose your elemental tools.

* Choose your herbs. Decide if you are going to empower them before or during the ceremony and write down the words if necessary. Make any sachets or poppets you intend to use.

* Choose your oils.

* Choose your incenses.

* Choose your crystals.

* Choose your ritual substances.

The Ceremony

* Cast your circle.

* Invoke the elements and angels.

* Focus on the symbol of the spell and declare your intentions.

* Endow the symbol with magical energies, chanting if appropriate.

* Consecrate the ritual substances.

* Raise the power to absorb energy from the cosmos, creating a cone of power.

* Release the power, sending it out into the cosmos.

* Close the energies down.

* Uncast the circle.

* Ground the energies.

After The Ceremony

* Dispose of materials – some may need to be left out in the light of the Moon, or buried or thrown to the winds; others may be kept, wrapped in silk, or sent to the person for whom the spell is intended.

* Blow out all the candles, unless they are to be left to burn down. If this is the case, make sure there is no risk of fire.

* Cleanse and recharge your tools

 

A Healing Ritual With Sunlight And Moonlight

A Healing Ritual With Sunlight And Moonlight

 

This is a very magical form of healing and can be carried out either alone or as a group activity. Quartz crystal balls were traditionally used medicinally to concentrate the rays of sunlight upon a diseased or painful area of the body or in the direction of some internal organ.

 

This clear crystal stone has always been associated with energising powers and with healing. In its spherical form of completeness, it is perhaps the ultimate healing and magical stone. You can buy tiny spheres quite cheaply and these work just as well as a large crystal ball.

 

Sunlight is good for energising and improving physical health and vitality, encouraging re-growth and regeneration, and for matters of the mind where clarity and optimism are needed.

 

Moonlight is potent for removing illness or pain and for all problems concerning emotions, hormones or fertility and is especially effective in healing women, children and pets.

 

Direct the sunlight or the light of the full moon into your crystal sphere, so that it shines on the person you are healing, or their photograph or other symbol. If you are using sunlight, be careful that the crystal does not become too hot and of course do not look directly at the image of the Sun.

 

Stand in a circle in the open air and in the centre, place a dish of pure spring water. Use a golden coloured bowl for sunlight, and a silver bowl for moonlight.

 

Into the water, drop tiny clear quartz crystals (if you are working in a group, each person adds one crystal). As you cast the crystals, make a wish for healing the sick or distressed person.

 

Hold a crystal pendulum and swirl it on its chain to catch within it either rainbows or sunbeams, or the silver light of the Moon.

 

Cast the beams into the water, calling:

 

Go forth with love and healing. You can, if you prefer, create your own words.

 

Pour the water into a clear glass bottle with a stopper and send or give it to the sick person. They may drink it or use it in a bath.

 

Return the energies to the cosmos by placing yellow flowers or seeds in a pot for the golden energies if you used sunlight, and white flowers for the Moon.

 

A Ritual For Creating Healing Magick

A Ritual For Creating Healing Magick

 

Each evening or morning – or whenever you have time – light your healing candle and hold one of your special crystals and your crystal sphere or pendulum and focus on of the names in your book sending the candlelight reflected though the crystal to wherever it is needed. The traditional healing hour is ten o’ clock at night, but what is more important is that the time is one where you can be quiet and are not pressurised by other demands. Begin by holding a healing crystal and focusing the energies through the candle flame; you can then extend this ritual for specific healing purposes.

 

You will need a photograph, newspaper cutting or symbol of the person, animal or place to which you are sending healing energies.

 

Take a dish of sacred water and place it near the candle.

 

Hold the symbol of the person to be healed between your hands and speak a few words of love and reassurance as though they were with you. If you have already created for the sick person a herb poppet or sachet, hold that between your hands and repeat the original herb empowerment or sit in silence recreating the ritual in your mind. You can add words of healing as above. If the object of the healing is a place, such as a lake or woodland under threat, imagine that you are in that place.

 

Circle your crystal pendulum or a pointed healing crystal over the symbol (or sachet or poppet) nine imes widdershins, saying as a mantra:

 

Go, pain and sorrow, change to star or sunbeam, transformed in joy and in tranquility.

 

Plunge the pendulum into the water and hold it to the light so the drops of water fall off and scatter as rainbow light beams all around the symbol. You can also create the light beams by angling your candle or hanging rainbow crystals in your window. It is not cheating, but directing natural forces for a purpose and infusing physical light beams with spiritual energies. Mirrors are another good way of reflecting light beams.

 

Now circle the pendulum nine times deosil over the symbol, saying:

 

Sunbeam, star beam, rays of light, replace, restore, renew, rejoice.

 

Blow out the candle, sending the light to the sick or sorrowing person, saying:

 

Go, light of healing, radiance of love and friendship, to where you are needed most this night, with -[name the person, animal or location].

 

May blessings fall, darkness and doubts recede into nothingness. So may it be in the name of all that is good and loving and pure [or ‘in the name of the Goddess’, if you prefer].

 

If you are feeling ill, worried or afraid you can go to your healing place and light the candle, holding your favourite crystal and expressing softly your needs and fears. However, the more healing you carry out for others, the more harmony will fall on you under the Threefold Law.

 

If you are working with friends or in a group, after showering it with light beams, pass the symbol round to each person, adding individual blessings. Give each person a small, white candle to set before them so that they can personally send light and blessings.

 

The words can be spoken as a joint mantra or chant.

 

How-To Become Calm and Centered

How-To Become Calm and Centered

 

Make your magic more effective by building emotional and psychic intensity and focusing clearly on your goal. Here’s how:

Equipment:

A very smooth, rounded stone, smaller than your fist: and some soothing taped music.

The Spell:

(Beginners’ Note: It is recommended that you perform this spell in the context of a fully cast circle and Quarters. Take this spell seriously, and it will open the door into the effectiveness of your future studies.)

Sit while holding the stone and listening to the music in a quiet room at home, or in the outdoors if the weather is nice. Breathe deeply and rhythmically. Begin inhaling through your mouth, then exhaling through your nostrils with a long, steady humming note. With each exhalation, make the note smoother and draw it out longer. Breathe your tension and anxiety into the stone. When you feel calm and centered, put the stone on the ground, open the circle and walk away. The stone will dissipate the tension into the Earth to be transmuted; if you wish, you can retrieve the stone in a day or two for later use.

 

 

The Mystical Pentagram Technique for Self-Awareness

The Mystical Pentagram Technique for Self-Awareness

The Mystical Pentagram is a technique which will enhance psychic self-awareness. Practiced on a daily basis it will produce surprising individual results.

To begin, you will need a table of correspondences such as “777” by Aleister Crowley. Look up the names of the gods and goddesses and pick a name for each element(air, fire, water, earth, spirit) which when chanted ‘feels’ right for you.(if you feel relaxed, comfortable and generally positive you would know that a name would be in tune with my inner self.)

Once you have found the five names you are ready to proceed.

Visualize the five psychic centers. Memorize their positions so that you become familiar with the positions. Visualize a brilliant white light forming a circle above your head in the spirit center. Mentally draw a white light pentagram within the circle of light. This should be an invoking pentagram.

Next see a shaft of white light radiate down through your head stopping at your throat. See a circle of white light begin to form and pulsate. Mentally draw an invoking pentagram within the circle of light and vocally vibrate your chosen name for the air center. Continue to stimulate this center for at least five minutes.

Repeat this procedure for your torso(fire), stomach area(water), feet(earth).

When all of the energy centers have been stimulated, direct the light energy from the spirit center to the earth center. As you exhale see the light travel from the top of your head down through your body to the bottom of your feet. As you inhale see the energy travel from your feet up through your body up to the top of your head, the spirit center. This circulation should be persisted for at least seven minutes. See the energy cleanse and vitalize every part of your being and expand your awareness to cosmic consciousness.

Continue to repeat this technique each day you will begin to see and feel a change in your psychic awareness and a marked improvement in your health. Don’t become discouraged if you don’t achieve results immediately. This technique produces very positive effects but they are cumulative in nature.

 

 

 

Lesser Ritual of The Pentagram

Lesser Ritual of The Pentagram

 

One of the most basic and useful ceremonial rituals of magick is called the banishing ritual, or lesser ritual of the pentagram. The banishing ritual is helpful in psychic protection and healing because it forms a protective barrier against evil forces. The psychic barrier it creates can be made to permit entry of desired (constructive) forces and the exclusion of negative ones.

The banishing ritual is an essential first step in almost any formal full magick ceremony. The ritual requires that you use a ceremonial knife, and to “draw” the pentagram in the air above your head.Also, you will be chanting (‘vibrating’) Eh-Ei-He.

Holding your magical weapon extend your arm out straight in front of you. In this ritual you will use the full sweep of your arm to draw the pentagram in the air. Follow the description below by beginning at the lower left and sweeping your magical weapon up toward the right, etc. as shown. Do not bend your arm at the wrist or elbow. While you do this, visualize the lines and eventually the star as vibrant white, floating in the space before you. You are projecting energy to do this, and the result will be a gleaming 5-pointed star floating in the air. Visualize this as vividly as you can. Now you will energize it further by piercing the center of it with your magical weapon and vibrating “Eh-Ei-He”.

One of the primary uses of this ritual is to ward off psychic attack — that is, when another is attempting to harm you, cause sickness, accidents, bad dreams or to force you to do something against your will.