Tag: Home & Garden

Calendar of the Sun for April 10th

Calendar of the Sun

Aequinoctium Vernum

Colors: Yellow and light green
Element: Earth
Altar: Upon cloth of yellow and light green set a pitcher of rainwater, small dishes of seeds (as many as there are people), a vase of budding branches, and a single green candle.
Offerings: Seeds to be planted in the garden.
Daily Meal: Vegetarian

Aequinoctium Vernum Invocation

Earth, you begin your awakening
To the touch of the life-giving Sun
Whose rays stroke you like a lover.
Earth, your joy in awakening
Springs forth first golden
And then the green of life.
We awaken to your new life
And your new season,
And you help us to believe
That no matter how long the winter,
Spring will always come again.
We stand in the time of the year’s morning
And, like all living things,
We reach upwards for the sky.

Chant:
We open Earth and
Earth receives you
She gives you life and
We believe in you

(Each takes a pot of seeds and goes to the garden, and hoes or otherwise prepares a space for planting, and then plants their seeds, chanting while doing so. The pitcher of rainwater is carried out and ritually poured onto the seeds.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

10 Ways to Reuse and Recycle Materials in the Garden

10 Ways to Reuse and Recycle Materials in the Garden

  • Shelley Stonebrook

A major goal of gardening sustainably is to cut off the waste stream, and one great way to do that is to reuse and recycle materials that others may see as trash. Here are a few first-hand ideas shared by gardeners.

1. I use an old plastic mesh bag to round up leftover slivers of soap. I rubber-band the bag so it’s tight and hang it next to the hose. The combo of the slightly abrasive bag and the soap scrubs off garden dirt.

2. I made row covers out of tomato cages, old rebar I got free, and used blankets I got at the local thrift store.

3. Instead of purchasing expensive weed-blocking landscape cloth, I use free old tarps from my local lumber store that they used to cover wood during shipping.

4. I gather pieces of concrete to use as stepping stones in my garden.

5. I recycle drink cups to grow tomatoes from seed. When they’re ready to transplant, I simply remove the bottom inch or so of each cup and plant directly in the ground. This prevents cutworms from making a meal of my transplants.

6. I was given some heavy-duty metal “for sale” sign frames, and I placed them in my raised beds to support bed covers in early spring.

7. Old pantyhose are my friends: They make garden ties, and I use them to “bag” cantaloupes growing on trellises so the melons have extra support.

8. I make all my garden fencing with scrap wood and build my veggie trellises and arbors with fallen branches and saplings.

9. My plant tags are twigs with a shaved-off area to write on.

10. For a cold frame in late winter, we prop old windows against straw bales. When I know we’re in danger of a frost, I take old bean poles and jab them into the ends of my beds, throw old sheets over them, use stones or bricks to hold down the edges, and voilà! I have a makeshift tent in my garden.

Calendar of the Sun for Friday, April 6th

Calendar of the Sun

Aequinoctium Vernum

Colors: Yellow and light green
Element: Earth
Altar: Upon cloth of yellow and light green set a pitcher of rainwater, small dishes of seeds (as many as there are people), a vase of budding branches, and a single green candle.
Offerings: Seeds to be planted in the garden.
Daily Meal: Vegetarian

Aequinoctium Vernum Invocation

Earth, you begin your awakening
To the touch of the life-giving Sun
Whose rays stroke you like a lover.
Earth, your joy in awakening
Springs forth first golden
And then the green of life.
We awaken to your new life
And your new season,
And you help us to believe
That no matter how long the winter,
Spring will always come again.
We stand in the time of the year’s morning
And, like all living things,
We reach upwards for the sky.

Chant:
We open Earth and
Earth receives you
She gives you life and
We believe in you

(Each takes a pot of seeds and goes to the garden, and hoes or otherwise prepares a space for planting, and then plants their seeds, chanting while doing so. The pitcher of rainwater is carried out and ritually poured onto the seeds.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for April 5th

Calendar of the Sun

Aequinoctium Vernum

Colors: Yellow and light green
Element: Earth
Altar: Upon cloth of yellow and light green set a pitcher of rainwater, small dishes of seeds (as many as there are people), a vase of budding branches, and a single green candle.
Offerings: Seeds to be planted in the garden.
Daily Meal: Vegetarian

Aequinoctium Vernum Invocation

Earth, you begin your awakening
To the touch of the life-giving Sun
Whose rays stroke you like a lover.
Earth, your joy in awakening
Springs forth first golden
And then the green of life.
We awaken to your new life
And your new season,
And you help us to believe
That no matter how long the winter,
Spring will always come again.
We stand in the time of the year’s morning
And, like all living things,
We reach upwards for the sky.

Chant:
We open Earth and
Earth receives you
She gives you life and
We believe in you

(Each takes a pot of seeds and goes to the garden, and hoes or otherwise prepares a space for planting, and then plants their seeds, chanting while doing so. The pitcher of rainwater is carried out and ritually poured onto the seeds.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Calendar of the Sun for April 4th

Calendar of the Sun

Aequinoctium Vernum

Colors: Yellow and light green
Element: Earth
Altar: Upon cloth of yellow and light green set a pitcher of rainwater, small dishes of seeds (as many as there are people), a vase of budding branches, and a single green candle.
Offerings: Seeds to be planted in the garden.
Daily Meal: Vegetarian

Aequinoctium Vernum Invocation

Earth, you begin your awakening
To the touch of the life-giving Sun
Whose rays stroke you like a lover.
Earth, your joy in awakening
Springs forth first golden
And then the green of life.
We awaken to your new life
And your new season,
And you help us to believe
That no matter how long the winter,
Spring will always come again.
We stand in the time of the year’s morning
And, like all living things,
We reach upwards for the sky.

Chant:
We open Earth and
Earth receives you
She gives you life and
We believe in you

(Each takes a pot of seeds and goes to the garden, and hoes or otherwise prepares a space for planting, and then plants their seeds, chanting while doing so. The pitcher of rainwater is carried out and ritually poured onto the seeds.)

[Pagan Book of Hours]

Lady A’s Spell of the Day for Mar. 29th – Candle Spell Against Psychic Attack

CANDLE SPELL AGAINST PSYCHIC ATTACK

–white candle red candle black candle
Imagine a blue ball of energy inside the candles. Caress the candles as you chant:
Goddess of Three, I call upon thee,
To protect from those who wish to harm me
Keep them from using the gift from thee
Keep them from using thy gift to harm me
When you finish chanting, imagine the blue ball exploding into lines of blue.
Imagine the lines surrounding you and wrapping you in warm blue energy.
See the blue light as a shield. Know that it is unbreakable.
Think about how it is the Goddess’ Light protecting you.
Then put the candles someplace where they can burn undisturbed and let them burn themselves
out, sending all the energy into your shield. This spell is best performed during the full moon.
For longer effects you can make it a seven-day spell.

Spell to Banish Personal Negativity

Spell to Banish Personal Negativity

We have all from time to time experienced feelings and thoughts that there is a negative force around us. To banish these feelings you will need the bowl of water and the salt. Sprinkle some salt on the altar cloth and, using your finger or your Athame, say,

“I bless this salt to make it fit for these my rites. Blessed Be.”

Now add a little salt to the water and hold the bowl up towards the sky. Visualize your past relative being present and say

“I ask … (say the relative’s name) to let this bowl be the receiver of all my negativity, so that I can cleanse myself and became whole again once more. Blessed Be.”

Place the bowl down safely, dip the fingers and thumbs of both hands into the water, and visualize all your negative thoughts and feelings moving through your body, down through your arms and out of your hands into the water. As you do this be aware of yourself becoming lighter, of losing the weight that has been on your mind.

When you are sure that this is completed, remove your hands, shaking the last drops of water from them into the bowl. Take a moment to centre yourself once more, and again, holding the bowl up, say,

“I ask … (say the late relative’s name), to take this negativity through their power of the Elements to keep me safe in their hands. Blessed Be.”

Now throw away the contaminated water into the earth, but not near any plants that you are trying to grow, or down the drain.

Break the Powers of A Spell

Break the Powers of A Spell

 
You Will Need

Large Black Candle

Cauldron (Large black bowl will do)

The Spell

If you believe that a spell has been cast against you, place a Large Black Candle in the Cauldron (or Large Black Bowl), the candle must be tall enough to extend a few inches above the Cauldron / Pot’s rim.

Affix the candle to the bottom of the Cauldron / Pot so that it will not tip over, and fill the Cauldron / Pot to the rim with fresh water without getting the candles wick wet.

Deeply breathe, or meditate, clear your mind and light the candle, visualize the suspected spells power residing within the candles flame, sit in quiet contemplation of the candle and visualize the power flowing and growing within the candles flames. (The power against you)

As the candle burns down, its flame will eventually sputter and go out as soon as it contacts the water, as soon as the flame has been extinguished by the water, the spell will be dispersed.

Break your visualization of the spells power; see it explode into dust, becoming impotent.

Pour the water into a whole in the ground, a lake or stream and bury the candle.

SPELL FOR BANISHING AND NEEDED CHANGES

SPELL FOR BANISHING AND NEEDED CHANGES


Instructions: Sit in a quiet place that is special to you.
Hold a white or cream candle in your hands and visualize the area of your life that this
candles energy is needed in. After you light this candle the energy will come to you.
It may come right away or when you lease expect it.
When you are ready recite the spell or use your own words of power.
This candle I see before me, its color so bright,
Holds my needs of change in its light.
I call in the forces higher than I
To release the energy that is held inside
May it work for me in the most correct way,
Harming none and helping all as it leaves my stay.
I call on thee in perfect trust and love sending me guidance from above.
This I make happen and so be it will.

Take away this thing that brings me ill.
So mote it be.3x3x3

Problem Banishment Ritual {Chaste Moon}

Problem Banishment Ritual

{Chaste Moon}

Remember, banishments should be used as a last resort when everything has failed to solve the problem. When you banish something from your life, you bind it away from yourself for the rest of your life. There is usually no going back on this decision once you have banished something away from you.

For this spell, you will need a green candle, a red candle, a white candle, a writing pen and a pie of paper.

Light the green candle, and dedicate it to the Goddess by saying:

Goddess may your divine light
Always shine bright in my life.
 

Light the red candle, dedicating it to the God, and the white candle dedicating it to Oneness. Place the green candle on your left, the red candle on your right, and the white candle in front of you, but up about a foot from the imaginary line formed by the green and red candles. The candles form a triangle.

Write what you want to banish on the piece of paper, and place it in the middle of the triangle. Use your athame to point a the piece of paper,and as you do so, say:

{The problem written on the paper}
I banish this problem forever from my life
By the powers of the God and Goddess
So be! So Mote It Be!

Complete the ritual by burning the piece of paper and throwing the ashes in the garbage or down the garbage disposal.

LOVE SPELLS (1)

LOVE SPELLS

You will need 1 red candle and some crystals to lay on your alter. It is best if you have something to
symbolize the person you want to attract such as a picture to lay under your candle. Turn off all lights
so that the only light is from the flame of the candle. Then repeat three times:
” I call on the forces higher than I, to awaken the dreams that I hold inside through this connection that
knows my need I ask for love’s enchantment with all speed….. may this work for me in the most correct
way attracting the love I need today…. I call on thee in perfect love and trust working with me sending
what’s just harming none and helping all is how it shall be this I make true 3 times 3 times 3″
After repeating three times blow out all candles and imagine the one you love.

REVERSE MAGICK

REVERSE MAGICK

When one feels under psychic assault or if concerned that they are the recipient of adverse
magick, one solution is to use reverse magic. One effective method of implementing this is utilizing
candle magic. A reverse candle is one that reverses whatever the individual who is attempting
to harm may be doing. If there is a specific individual in mind (an ex-spouse, an ex-lover, an
ex-employer, etc.) then write his/her name on the candle (red on top half, black on bottom half)
using permanent markers or some other indelible method. Each night for three nights, burn
about a third of the candle.
While the candle is burning, visualize positive outcomes (such as a move to a new location for
the other party, a move to a new location for you, successful mediation of a problem, etc.) and
how the situation can get reversed for the good of you and any other individuals who may be
involved (children, elderly parents, etc.) including the individual who’s name is inscribed on the candle.
When the candle is burned down to a stub dispose of it immediately by taking it to a body of fresh water.
Once the candle is in the water, turn and walk away. If it is winter or if you can’t get to fresh water
then bury it in the earth (not near your home) or dispose of it in a dumpster or some other waste
area as far away from your home as possible.
When you return to your home after the disposal, return by a different route from the one you
took to get there. It is critical to think positively during the process. Negativity will bog the
process down. Upon your return home create a positive spell outlining what you want the
situation to be — use a white candle or one that represents the positive to you.

DREAM PROTECTION SPELL

DREAM PROTECTION SPELL

You Need: 1 tablespoon of lemon juice (or another fruit juice) 1 tablespoon of sea salt
1 teaspoon of vegetable oil 1 light weight cauldron (a glass bowl works too)
1 piece of paper 1 black pen 2 black or red candles (1 of each works best)
Mix the lemon juice, sea salt, and oil into your cauldron.
Place the cauldron in front of you on the floor.
Sit comfortably and place the candles beside the cauldron (red on left, black on right.)
Rip the piece of paper in half then set it aside.
Light both candles, left one first. Now close your eyes and visualize a sphere.
In the middle of the sphere, visualize yourself stuck inside, trying to get out.
See the black and red candles burning around you. Watch as the candles spin around you,
getting faster each time they pass. Then see yourself magickally being released.
On one piece of paper, draw a picture of what you saw. On the other, write down your biggest fear.
Light both pieces of paper on fire, using the black for the written half, red for the drawing.
Then throw them into your cauldron.
Take the cauldron outside and pour it (paper and all) into a hole in the ground.
Cover the hole with dirt. The spell is done.

Cutting The Cord Spell

Cutting The Cord Spell

When one has been involved (either Emotionally, Physically or Spiritually) with another
person it can create an ‘Etheric Link’ that resemblesa red cord binding between you.
When the friendship or relationship ends it is often difficult to move on, as you are still
linked to this person. The Cutting of the Cord Spell is ideal in dissolving the bonds
between people allowing them to move on.
You Will Need:
–2 Red Candles, Length of Red Cord
–A photograph of you and your friend or ex (or a picture to represent you both drawn)
–A pair of scissors.
Preparation: Bathe & Cleanse yourself before starting, set out materials, and
Cast a Basic Magickal Circle.
The Spell
Mark the first Candle with your name and the second Candle with the other person’s name.
Charge the Candles with Anointing Oil, starting from the center moving
outwards (sending energy out), seeing the person named on the Candle as you anoint it.
Take the first Candle in your hand hold it over your Altar Candle visualizing it
being Charged with energy to do your bidding, then present the Candle to the Altar saying:
As the Goddess gave form and substance to our spirits,
I give form and substance to this candle,
As She named us Her children,
I name this Candle as (insert name).
As this Candle is wax and wick,
So it is also flesh and blood, So Mote it be!
Repeat with second Candle.
Sit in meditation and think of the joy this person brought you, picture your favorite memory.
Visualize the link between your hearts as a thick red cord joining you from heart Chakra to heart Chakra.
Tie an end of the cord to each candle, joining you together, as you are joined in spirit.
Place the photo or picture over the center of the cord saying:
As the Goddess links us in Spirit, I link these forms together,
As above, so below, As within, so without!
Again sit in meditation, and think of the reasons you want to cut all ties to this
person, think about the events that have lead up to this decision. Face any doubts
that you may have and see them for what they are, fear. Know in your heart that the
Goddess wants only the best for you and She wants you to want the best for yourself.
When you are ready visualize yourself telling the other that it is over and that
you are moving on, then see yourself turn and walk away – not looking back!
Cut through the Cord that binds you to each other (as well as through the
picture symbolizing your togetherness) and say:
By my free will, with harm to none,
I sever the cord that binds me to (insert name),
As we once chose to share the road we walked,
Now we choose to walk a different path,
Although we still journey to the same destination,
No longer do our steps move in time you are no longer my friend (or
lover), I release the (insert name) from all ties to me
As I am released from thee, As I do will, so mote it be!
Take the candle, 1/2 the cord and 1/2 the picture (the part representing your ex)
in a heatproof bowl, tip a little ‘goodwill incense’ over it all, with a little mentholated spirits,
then as you light it say:
As this smoke rises and drifts away,
So do all my bonds to you… So mote it be!
Place ‘your’ candle on your Altar to burn when you find yourself wishing ‘what if’.
Clean up and Close Circle, then bury everything else except your candle.

Cutting The Cord Spell

Cutting The Cord Spell

When one has been involved (either Emotionally, Physically or Spiritually) with another
person it can create an ‘Etheric Link’ that resemblesa red cord binding between you.
When the friendship or relationship ends it is often difficult to move on, as you are still
linked to this person. The Cutting of the Cord Spell is ideal in dissolving the bonds
between people allowing them to move on.
You Will Need:
–2 Red Candles, Length of Red Cord
–A photograph of you and your friend or ex (or a picture to represent you both drawn)
–A pair of scissors.
Preparation: Bathe & Cleanse yourself before starting, set out materials, and
Cast a Basic Magickal Circle.
The Spell
Mark the first Candle with your name and the second Candle with the other person’s name.
Charge the Candles with Anointing Oil, starting from the center moving
outwards (sending energy out), seeing the person named on the Candle as you anoint it.
Take the first Candle in your hand hold it over your Altar Candle visualizing it
being Charged with energy to do your bidding, then present the Candle to the Altar saying:
As the Goddess gave form and substance to our spirits,
I give form and substance to this candle,
As She named us Her children,
I name this Candle as (insert name).
As this Candle is wax and wick,
So it is also flesh and blood, So Mote it be!
Repeat with second Candle.
Sit in meditation and think of the joy this person brought you, picture your favorite memory.
Visualize the link between your hearts as a thick red cord joining you from heart Chakra to heart Chakra.
Tie an end of the cord to each candle, joining you together, as you are joined in spirit.
Place the photo or picture over the center of the cord saying:
As the Goddess links us in Spirit, I link these forms together,
As above, so below, As within, so without!
Again sit in meditation, and think of the reasons you want to cut all ties to this
person, think about the events that have lead up to this decision. Face any doubts
that you may have and see them for what they are, fear. Know in your heart that the
Goddess wants only the best for you and She wants you to want the best for yourself.
When you are ready visualize yourself telling the other that it is over and that
you are moving on, then see yourself turn and walk away – not looking back!
Cut through the Cord that binds you to each other (as well as through the
picture symbolizing your togetherness) and say:
By my free will, with harm to none,
I sever the cord that binds me to (insert name),
As we once chose to share the road we walked,
Now we choose to walk a different path,
Although we still journey to the same destination,
No longer do our steps move in time you are no longer my friend (or
lover), I release the (insert name) from all ties to me
As I am released from thee, As I do will, so mote it be!
Take the candle, 1/2 the cord and 1/2 the picture (the part representing your ex)
in a heatproof bowl, tip a little ‘goodwill incense’ over it all, with a little mentholated spirits,
then as you light it say:
As this smoke rises and drifts away,
So do all my bonds to you… So mote it be!
Place ‘your’ candle on your Altar to burn when you find yourself wishing ‘what if’.
Clean up and Close Circle, then bury everything else except your candle.

Calendar of the Sun for March 8th

Calendar of the Sun

Media Hiems

Color: White and grey
Element: Earth
Altar: Set out a cloth of white and grey, a vase of bare branches, a single grey candle, a pitcher of melted snow or rainwater, pots of earth, and seeds to be sown and nurtured in the greenhouse.
Offering: Seeds, preferably saved from the year before.
Daily Meal: Vegetarian.

Media Hiems Invocation

Earth that lies asleep
Waiting for the touch of the Sun
To grow in strength and light
And awaken thee to life,
We warm thee with our breath,
We prepare thee with our hands,
We plant thee with our hopes,
We await thy awakening
With faith in the coming of Spring.

Chant:
Breath warms thee
Hands prepare thee
Hope sows thee
Sun awaken thee.

(All take seeds and plant them in the pots of earth, water them, and breathe onto them, visualizing the seeds awakening and growing. The remainder of the water is poured out as a libation to the Earth. The pots are then taken to the greenhouse in procession to be nurtured until planting time.)

The Dragon Altar

The Dragon Altar 

An altar can be any table, chest or microwave cart that is large enough and of a comfortable height to stand and do magic. If you find it impossible to stand during ritual, choose an altar that is a comfortable height while you sit. Colored scarves coordinated to the elements of various dragons can be used to cover the altar. For magicians who are hampered in movement, whether by a broken leg, physical disability, or confinement to a wheelchair, do not despair. Sit at your altar and visualize yourself going through each moving step of the ritual as if you were physically doing it. I known one magician who, while flat in bed for a time, meticulously visualized her way through rituals and got excellent results, although she was unable to do so much as light a candle.

To illuminate the altar, use a black candle on the left end and a white candle on the right. A knowledgeable magician knows that using black candles is not evil magic. The color black is merely the opposite of white; it balances the energies. If you feel you cannot use black, use a very dark blue, purple or indigo.

However, if you do have an aversion to the color black, it signals a need for you to do some intense work on the programming you have accumulated in your subconscious mind. All of us have, at one time or another, received and accepted undesirable programming from others, whether it be from parents, teachers, friends, colleagues, a religious group or simply society in general. Unfortunately, much of this programming is give to us at a very impressionably age when we are not aware enough to reject it. What we acquire at an older age is accepted because we want to fit with a special group, et. Although it take determined effort to undo this programming, it can be done.

Calendar of the Sun for Wednesday, March 7th

Calendar of the Sun
7 Hrethemonath

Psyche’s Day

Colors: Pastels
Element: Water
Altar: On cloth of shimmering pale colors place two white candles, a crystal bowl of water, a chalice of wine, a bell, and the figure of a maiden.
Offerings: Votive candles. Undertake a difficult quest for the sake of love.
Daily Meal: Pastries with fillings of any kind; the idea is to have things hidden in other things.

Invocation to Psyche

Deep within every soul
Is the longing for Love,
Yet Love is often cruel to that soul.
Love must not keep the soul in darkness,
Living only by Love’s rules,
Nor hide its face behind many masks,
For soon or late the night will come
Of reckoning, light, and betrayal.
The soul is willing to toil for Love,
Sorting through its hopes and fears.
The soul is willing to brave danger for Love,
Gleaning what it can from anger’s leftovers.
The soul is willing to seek far and high for Love,
Diving from impossible cliffs.
The soul is willing to go into darkness for Love,
Yet it must be given the right to refuse
And it must be appreciated in its own right,
As the divine gift
That it is.

Chant:
Love to soul,
Soul to darkness,
Darkness fades to light.
Soul to love,
Love to morning,
Sun gives way to night.

(All go forward and set lit candles about the altar in a circle, and then process out.)

Removal of a Spell #2

Removal of a Spell #2 

Items you will need:

Oil

1 white candle

1 black candle

Best time to perform spell:

First Saturday after Full Moon

On a Full Moon

Spell:

Rub and light the candles, saying:

“On the Eave of ( ) I cast a spell

And the effect I created I must now quell.

Specifically ( ) May this spell be lifted.

And I now be gifted specifically with ( ).”

Calendar of the Sun for Sunday, March 4th

Calendar of the Sun

Media Hiems

Color: White and grey
Element: Earth
Altar: Set out a cloth of white and grey, a vase of bare branches, a single grey candle, a pitcher of melted snow or rainwater, pots of earth, and seeds to be sown and nurtured in the greenhouse.
Offering: Seeds, preferably saved from the year before.
Daily Meal: Vegetarian.

Media Hiems Invocation

Earth that lies asleep
Waiting for the touch of the Sun
To grow in strength and light
And awaken thee to life,
We warm thee with our breath,
We prepare thee with our hands,
We plant thee with our hopes,
We await thy awakening
With faith in the coming of Spring.

Chant:
Breath warms thee
Hands prepare thee
Hope sows thee
Sun awaken thee.

(All take seeds and plant them in the pots of earth, water them, and breathe onto them, visualizing the seeds awakening and growing. The remainder of the water is poured out as a libation to the Earth. The pots are then taken to the greenhouse in procession to be nurtured until planting time.)