Tag: Magic
Crafting The Spell: A Need or Desire
A need or desire has every right to be met, whether it’s a need for a scholarship to enable you to study at the postgraduate level, or a desire for the traffic light to change so that you can cross the intersection to walk on the sunny side of the street. That need or desire is, the first requirement in order for a spell to exist. If you don’t have a need or a desire, don’t waste your time. Spellcraft isn’t something to pass the hours, or an art to practice on a whim. It’s a powerful force for transformation and change, requiring your dedication and involvement. Crafting and casting a spell requires time, focus, great concentration and energy, and if you’re doing it on a whim, you’re going to a lot of trouble for nothing. Emotion is one of the key concepts that powers a spell, and a whim just doesn’t have the depth of emotion required. In addition, there’s the issue of responsibility. If you ask for it, you’re responsible for it.
How to Make a Magical Focus Board
How to Make a Magical Focus Board
Author: Deborah
A focus board has been called a lot of different things in a lot of different places. The (in) famous Secret calls it a Vision board. A lot has been made of The Secret‘s many flaws and issues. As Kathy Griffin said when her assistants made focus boards and then attributed her recent uprising in success to said boards, “I’m so sure it was the two of you and your Secret boards that did this, not, like, my many years of constant work.” So besides taking away that you should never get into a sweat lodge with these people*, as my friend and fellow blogger Gordon said, visualization is not enough.
On his blog RuneSoup.com, he calls it a success map. A focus board is not a replacement for solid magical spell work, which should include consistent mundane work, consistent magical work, divination, reachable goals and regular progress check-ins to ensure that what you’re doing is working and you’re not inadvertently missing the forest for the trees. But what a focus board will do is keep your eye on the prize and in my opinion, that’s the real purpose in having one.
You might be easily distracted like myself and get sidetracked from all the important things you’re actually supposed to be doing and instead watch back to back episodes of Bridezillas in your pajamas and/or drinking too many French Greyhounds and getting sucked into Facebook for nine million hours. It’s easy to get completely and utterly off track.
True confession time, I call mine a “serial killer” board. This is not due to aspiring to become a serial killer or advocating for others to become serial killers but because I watch a lot of crime dramas and inevitably if a fictional serial killer is involved on one of my shows, they tend to have a board that resembles a focus board, even on GossipGirl when it was just a run-of-the-mill single white female stalking problem. Juliet still had the Miss Martha level of organization and where-with-all to be sure to have a board neatly outlining all her plotting against poor Serena VanderWoodsen.
For some reason on television or in a movie, a serial killer always has an extremely high level of organizational skills even though they are also completely unhinged. Personally, I attribute that to word count issues for writers and a team of television writers who would like to hold onto their jobs as long as possible by making the main ‘big bad’ hang around for as long as possible, keeping viewers on the edge of their seats. But yeah, while my board is a very benign corkboard with pictures with scrapbook cut edges, pink yarn and a font with hearts in it, I can’t help but think about the crime procedural shows I watch, which gives merit to the argument that television does rot your brain though admittedly no real desire to do anything about it.
Anyway. For an example as to how to make sure you’re approaching your goals holistically, I’m working to bring more money in my life by mundanely working on my freelance writing career as well as a small Internet crafting business. Magically, I have a honey jar that I work with in the hoodoo tradition as well as some Feng-Shui work I do. I constantly make sure I’m working with my honey jar by inscribing words and symbols into candles I burn on it weekly and I make sure to keep my eyes open for new writing opportunities in various places. But, as I’ve said, I get distracted. So when I find myself getting into a massive Twittering frenzy, talking about things that have nothing to do with work, a quick glance to my focus board in my office reminds me when I see a picture of a typewriter and the word “Create” to get back to making sure I’m following through on my work mundanely.
Magically speaking, it gives your subconscious something to focus on to bring about things you would like in your life. I wanted more serenity and a yoga practice, randomly a few days after making my board I noticed a local yoga studio and got up the courage to email the owner to ask about a “work/trade” agreement where I would trade her administrative work for yoga classes. After a very successful interview (and I made sure to do a charm so I was charming) , we’re hammering out the details for the work/trade.
How to Make a Focus Board of Your Very Own
1. First, think about what you’re trying to accomplish in your life. For me I started by thinking of words because my brain sees words before pictures. My words are: Aspire, Create, Live, Serenity, Serve and Want.
2. Now find pictures that you feel are good representations of what you’re trying to accomplish. Some examples of my pictures include candles, a bank vault and the Eiffel Tower.
3. Get a smallish corkboard and push pins. Pick a font if you want to print words. I also used good quality heavy paper for my pictures and scrapbooking scissors to cut out my pictures so they had pretty edges.
4. Arrange. This is an awesome meditative stage where you get to play god of your own life and arrange all the pictures in a way that makes sense to you. I grouped my pictures according to each word.
5. Using yarn or string, carefully weave the thread between your pushpins. Magically speaking, it’s useful, as weaving the yarn through the push pins and connecting them together can be a magical act that’s as simple or elaborate as you’d like to make it. Spinning has long since been thought to be a magical act in many cultures. Grandmother Spider does it, The Fates do it and now you can weave together your goals for yourself. You should also think carefully about which pin to connect to which pin. For me, it was even more magical because I got to use the (pink) yarn that I had handspun myself for this.
6. Place the board in the right position. If you’re constantly glancing at it for a quick second at a time, it gives your subconscious food for thought. Mine is in my office, just out of direct eyesight but I can see it just out of the corner of my eye. When I get bored working, I tend to look around a lot so that adds to the occasionally seeing it but not seeing it too often aspect.
Footnotes:
*Sweat Lodge Deaths Investigated as Homocides http://articles.cnn.com/2009-10-15/us/arizona.sweat.lodge_1_james-arthur-ray-sweat-lodge-spiritual-warrior?_s=PM:USIn
Great Work/ Great Rite: Common Symbolism in Alchemy and Witchcraft
Great Work/ Great Rite: Common Symbolism in Alchemy and Witchcraft
Author: Dawn Phoenix
Few would argue that modern Witchcraft has its roots in many varied historical occult philosophies. One such system, commonly overlooked, is philosophical alchemy. Much of what remains from the original practitioners of this arcane art and science has been left to us encoded in allegorical pictures and laboratory notebooks.
Many noteworthy ideas survived alchemy’s hey-day and have made their way little changed into the modern era.
There is a tendency to think of alchemy itself as an early form of chemistry, and with good reason: it did beget the chemical sciences. Because one of the fundamental tenets (from the Emerald Tablet of Hermes Trismegistus) was “That which is above is like unto that which is below, ” practitioners studied the material world for glimpses into the world beyond.
This is not to say that all engaged in alchemical studies were of the occult bent. However, the great gulf we have built between philosophical and scientific understanding is a relatively novel one. (See, for instance, the works of Aristotle.)
In a nutshell, the goal of the alchemist was the search for a substance called the “Philosopher’s Stone, ” which had two important properties.
First, it would convert lead, the basest metal and a relatively valueless substance, into pure gold.
Second, with it one could produce the Elixir of Life, which cured all illness and rendered the one who possessed it immortal.
This was their Magnum Opus, or Great Work.
They recognized seven metals, each one associated with one of the seven (ancient) planets. Gold was associated with the Sun, and Lead with Saturn. Here we cross into the field of astrology for interpretation. Saturn is the planet of limitations and boundaries. This ranges from the restriction necessary for social order down to our personal detrimental proclivities.
In the medicine of the day, it was seen to rule over the melancholic humour. Melancholic individuals are often introverted ponderers and perfectionists with a propensity for becoming morose and depressed. It was thought that those too overbalanced in this humour would become caught up in their fears and despondencies.
The Sun was seen as the giver of life, the vitalizing force of all creation, as it provides the heat and light we require for our survival. Note that the Sun was also called “Sol” and “Soul” or the animating principle. Most importantly, then, it represents the self.
For this reason, when someone asks for your astrological sign, they are asking about the location of the Sun at your birth. The Sun is associated with the choleric humour, and an individual blessed with it will tend toward leadership, charisma, and personal empowerment.
The alchemist’s Magnum Opus was to seek out the means by which one could transmute one’s restrictions through the necessary stages towards the end of a refined and purified self. Some sources point to a process including conjunction, or the combining of two or more parts: putrification, or a “death” of some sort; purification, or the extraction of superfluous elements; and sublimation, which is sometimes seen as another stage of purification and sometimes as the reanimation of the formerly “dead” being. (For an example, see the Rosarium Philosophorum for the picture-poem “Sol and Luna.”)
Now a side step into the world of modern Witchcraft…
For many, the craft lends itself towards workings of self-refinement, and it is likely that this is so as a result of its connections to Hermetic Philosophy. If we are to recognize Divinity within ourselves, those things, which are less worthy of us or not true to our individual essences, will make themselves apparent. Whatever reason we may have had for initially stepping into the craft, we find ourselves journeying towards a greater commitment to our true selves.
The cycle the alchemist journeys through in the process of transmutation can be compared in many ways to the seasonal cycle of the Earth represented by the Great Lady and Her consort as a story of birth, consummation, and death plays itself out, world without end.
The Lord is born at Yule with the returning light of the Sun. Sometime in the spring (traditions vary) He joins with the Lady (who is always and ever the Triple Goddess) in the Great Rite. She is the receptive principle and He the projective. In accepting His power, She gives it form in the child who now grows in Her womb.
Following the natural progression of things, when it is harvest time He is cut down and makes the journey into the underworld (symbolically, the subconscious self) and becomes the Lord of that land. (In some traditions, the Lady also descends, albeit without being touched by death, as She carries in Her womb the principle of life itself.) At Yule, the Lord is born again of the Lady.
Is it the same Lord? Most would contend yes, and this is the pattern of reincarnation.
In fact, this same pattern is repeated in many different systems. In Ceremonial Magic, it is the IAO formula. Isis, representing all life, gives way to Apophis the Destroyer; Osiris is resurrection.
In Western Kabbalism, points on the middle pillar of the Tree of Life can be seen to represent the same. The great abyss, located between Tif’eret (the heart) and Keter (the crown), is home to Da’at, which, it is often said, may only be traversed through death.
Even in Christianity, the exalted state of Heaven, where one is purified of all sin, is generally unreachable until after death of the body has occurred. Some denominations even place that transcendence at a point of bodily resurrection at the end of time, when Heaven will come down to Earth. The Christ did not become exalted until after His death and resurrection.
Still, religion is comprised of both belief and practice, and practice is where systems diverge. Where the alchemist engaged in meditative lab work, the Christian in supplication, et cetera, what is the Witch’s practice for achievement of the Great Work?
This is a difficult question to answer, as different traditions render different ideas. Some simply don’t address the issue at large, on the grounds that every individual will require a dissimilar tact, and recommend spell workings fitted to distinct issues of personal growth the practitioner comes upon. Yet other traditions have specific methodologies for pushing through specific stages.
I would like to contend that there is one ritual, nearly universal to practitioners of the craft, which at its core is designed for exactly this purpose, though rarely is it acknowledged as such. Referring to the story of the wheel, and to the steps in alchemical transmutation, a common thread does emerge. That is, the conjunction.
In both the Great Work and the Great Rite, two things are joined, resulting in the production of a third. That third is both the Child of Promise and the purified self.
For it to be birthed, a process of death and reincarnation must be undergone. That is, for the newly purified self to come forth, that which has completed its tenure must pass away. The Child is then born of the womb, or the Philosopher’s Stone of the cauldron.
This Child is the Sun King, gold from dross, and the ego stripped of its limitations. It is also the promise of everlasting life, for the wheel of rebirth will ever renew.
In order to live forever, one must embrace death. Rebirth in this fashion is the Elixir of Life.
Practically speaking, this means that the formula of the Great Rite (whether actual or symbolic) may be drawn on for rituals of personal transformation, and need not be reserved as solely a celebratory rite.
Cooking Dinner Does Not Make You a Kitchen Witch
Cooking Dinner Does Not Make You a Kitchen Witch
Author: Deborah
I spent my twenties fighting against who I really was in oh so many ways. I didn’t want to be a kitchen Witch. I thought that was the least impressive, most Holly Hobby branch of magic there is.
You have to picture me from ten years ago: I’m constantly listening to NIN! I wear boots with sparkly laces to my corporate gig! I’m thrashing around on top of tables pumped full of piss and goldschlagger! I’m trying to break glass ceilings! I’m smoking cigars with the boys! I’m demanding my place at the occult table at occult events! I’m getting tats! I’m going through Shamanic trials! I’m punk rock and . . . you want me to bake a cake? Really? Really?
So I fought against it for while, which is why I wasn’t terribly successful in my own personal magic for quite some time. Somewhere around 27? 28? I started really embracing it. Once I bought my own home, my own hearth, I *really* started embracing hearth Witchery. I had the tools all along, it turns out. I just needed to know how to use them.
When I first started blogging, I wanted to bff (best friends forever!) a variety of people in the magical world. But let me be honest, most of all I wanted to befriend fellow kitchen Witches. Sisters/brothers unite! Let’s get some spit, blood, hair, dirt, and basil and get this party started!
But I didn’t find too many. I Googled. I tried tracking down people. I tried a lot of different key words. Honestly, I found a lot of people who claimed to be kitchen Witches, but in scanning their blogs all I generally found were recipes and chatter about their kids. Now, there’s nothing wrong with any of that, but there are some flaws to it.
What Doesn’t Make You a Kitchen Witch Per Se (in my opinion) :
A recipe isn’t magical in and of itself. Just dumping a bunch of recipes on your blog doesn’t make you a kitchen Witch anymore than it makes Wolfgang Puck a kitchen Witch. If you said I use honey in my Chocolate Lavender Mousse to sweeten my mother-in-law towards me because she’s a complete bitch on wheels to me by that point in the meal or I put menstrual blood in my spaghetti sauce so my husband still thinks I’m dropping it like it’s hot even when I’m tired and in sweats, rock! Those are magical acts. Bring on the recipes!
Having children. While yes, it is a very specific way to mark your transition into motherhood (sometimes) , kids don’t really make you a practicing magic type person any more than it makes SuperNanny Mary Poppins. Things that would: Using magic to help soothe a baby/get a baby to sleep (I will only slightly guiltily confess to having done this before) , protection magic, detailing tiny rituals you do with your kids.
Being a Homemaker. I do very much think that unpaid labor in the home needs to be appreciated and ideally compensated (please see here for more clearly articulated thoughts on the matter, it’s applicable for both mono/poly people) , but it’s a job. And just like going to work in an office is not a magical act in and of itself, neither is taking care of your home. If you were talking about cleaning/organizing in a magical blog and discussing how to be more green (because we need to take care of Mother Earth of course and she’s a goddess in and of herself) , discussing what oils you use to scent your house and why, what you do to keep the house spiritually/magically clean, rock on.
What Qualifies You as a Kitchen Witch/Hearth Wo/man/Someone Who Does Hedge-Like Magic (in my opinion) :
If the Personal is Political, then the Every Day is Magical. Look, you don’t have to cast +5 magic every time you make hotdogs for dinner on a Tuesday night. But what can you be doing in your every day life in your hearth to make it more magical? Smudging with sage every few days to clear out the energies? Spray bottling your bed with a water based mist you made that has come to me oil in it? Choosing your cooking herbs based on magical purposes? Go crazy.
Deb’s Example Rite for Making the Every Day Magical: I had been hemming and hawing about starting my current novel because (a) I’ve never finished writing one and (b) it’s a little silly in a genre that’s already a little silly. But it came to me in a dream and it feels right. So I started by not just slap dashing it together, I took my time. I did research on names, other books in the genre, brainstormed and I made a mood board for it. When I knew it was time to start writing, I wanted it started right. I wanted my surroundings perfect, like giving birth (which is what I do with writing) . I made sure my house was clean, went to brunch (appropriate for the kind of novel it is) and then I put on mood music and wrote. When I finished the beginning, I sealed it with eating a really posh chocolate (salted dark chocolate with balsamic and caramel) from the best chocolatier in NJ, which was also appropriate for my novel’s genre. It wasn’t about me putting together a mojo bag in this case; it was about choosing my actions carefully and doing everything with intent. There would have been nothing wrong with making a mojo bag, but it was more important in this situation to write in a magically charged environment for me to get this show on the road.
Get a Base Education in the Lower Arts. Yeah, yeah, you like to put on your robes and call on all the archangels and whatever. Cool. But sometimes for whatever reason, you’ll need to know how to do things quick and dirty, so learn how. Learn what salt and kitchen herbs can do for you, learn about mojo hands and honey pots and spirit bottles. I recommend of course the incomparable cat yonwode’s Hoodoo Herb and Root Magic as your Idiot’s Guide. Test yourself if you’re super structured magically, pretend a friend needs a fertility charm tonight and you need to get to her just using stuff around your house. What do you do?
Get a Base Education in House Wifery. Some men back in the day got married because they had no clue how to take care of themselves. While that’s not so common in this day and age, you still need a base education in house wifery to be a successful hearth wo/man. Thanks to most of the first world being a convenience culture, you may have been getting by on relying on take out, a dry cleaner, and a cleaning service. That’s all well and good, but you’re missing pieces you need to be a successful hearth wo/man. If you are missing any of these things, that’s okay, don’t feel bad about it. But a lot of people cry, ‘Oh I’m no good at it’! Or, I don’t know how! Ignorantia juris non excusat. Ignorance of the law excuses no one, so get to work. It won’t be perfect from the gate, but nothing is. Ask someone better versed for help, if you know someone. Worst case you burn a few casseroles and shred a few shirts; it’s no big deal. Even if you won’t use it for a while or ever (though you’d be surprised) , these are all good life skills to have that will translate over into your magical life. Think of them as Hearth Meditations.
Can you:
* Do your own laundry?
* Have your house clean enough to have your mother or mother-in-law or Miss Martha over without them making a face?
* Cook a dinner for yourself and others?
* Meal plan?
* Budget and financially plan?
* Be able to make a casserole quickly for an emergency?
* Host/ess a party?
* Know how to bake something from scratch?
* Know how to do your own grocery shopping that’s more than just “box food”?
* Know how to do basic clothing repair?
* Know what to bring as a hostess gift?
* Know how to conduct yourself socially at various social obligations?
* Know how to give yourself self-care?
* Know v. basic first aid?
* Know how to care for small children for a day?
It’s okay to have untargeted kitchen Witch practices. Look, I’m the first to say that some of my more focused practice is lacking. You don’t have to use every bread baking experience as a magical attempt to influence a situation. You can use it as a meditational practice and focus on the magic of the experience, that’s perfectly valid. Think about why whatever is you’re doing – baking, cooking, cleaning, sewing, whatever is a magical experience for you. This is a free form essay, you’re not being graded, whatever reason you have for it being a magical experience for you is right. There are things in everyone’s life I think (I hope!) that are magical to him or her but not targeted for results. It’s good to have and share those experiences too.
You need to know how to do this stuff. That does not mean you need to do it all the time. I had suggested a base education in house wifery, but that doesn’t mean that you’re responsible for it all the time in some kind of psychotic Valium laced Stepford scenario. I know how to do laundry, but my significant other does it in our household. If he ever said, do your own laundry, I could. If you know how to clean your house sparklingly clean but chose to not live in a constant Miss Martha police state, that’s okay. If it’s part of your strategy as a hearth Witch, well then you must be a clever kitchen Witch! My house would not pass Lakshmi inspection at all times (or really like 29 days out of the month) either. If you have the means to send out your laundry or order take out every night, rock out. You just need to know how to perform these functions should you ever need to. It’s sort of like knowing how to do long division. It’s good to know how to do by hand, but the gods made calculators for a reason.
Sometimes, simple is best. I suggested a basic practice in kitchen/hearth Witchery for people who work primarily in “higher” magic because like a proper dilettante, I believe in being well rounded. And frankly sometimes if you need to do something on the fly, it’s a lot easier to pour some salt into a bowl and spit into it than to do a long formal practice. I also think it’s good to know simple magic in order to be able to obtain simple things. You need fifty bucks to make your bills this month? You could do something v. formal or you could do something quick and get on with your life. Formal magic often requires a lot more time, energy, and effort. And there are certain things that are better suited to those practices, but you need a quick little something, low magic just seems like a better way to do so.
Furthering the math analogy, you may become so accustomed to Calculus and using a calculator to do so, you forget how to do basic level math. This is not going to help you when it’s your job to do bistro math for the table ’cause you’re the math chick and you left your cell phone at home.
Some of what I suggest needing to know may seem unnecessary and sort of Mr. Miyagi, but look at it from a kitchen Witch’s perspective: You claim to be a kitchen/hearth Witch, I’m supposed to trust you to do a love spell for me using hearth magic, but . . .you don’t know how to take care of your hearth which functions as your temple, your magical work space? Fill in your own mechanic/gyno joke here.
Footnotes:
http://www.polyamorousmisanthrope.com/2007/07/15/being-used/ – Article referenced in “Homemaker” section
Fairy Knot Spell (2) Preserve Love
Use your knot to preserve an already existing love.
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Dress the knot with love oils.
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Make a braid from a few strands of your hair and that of your lover.
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Tie it to the knot with red thread, place it inside a red silk conjure bag and keep it safe.
Should you ever change your mind about this romance, untie the willow knot.
Your Charm for May 11th is The Serpent
| Your Charm for Today | |||
 The Serpent |
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| Today’s Meaning: This aspect will be affected by someone’s illness being shed. Their healing will cause positive changes within this aspect for you.General Description: In primeval days the Serpent deeply appealed to man’s imagination, and owing to its lenth of life was used as the emblem for wisdom and eternity. It was a household god in ancient Rome, and sacred to their god of medicine. The Romans believed that the Serpent renewed its youth by casting its skin, and it became their symbol for long life and vitality. In India the Serpent symbolises the infinite duration of time and wisdom. Serpent rings were worn to ensure health, strength, and long life. The rings were also believed to possess great protective and enduring virtues. The Serpent was a mark of royalty in Egypt, and worn as a head dress or UR.AEUS. |
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Lady A’s Spell of the Day for 5/10: Five Fingers Protection Bath
The following ingredients will be required:
Five dried or fresh baby laurel leaves
One cup (or more) of sea salt
Five limes, sliced in half
A splash of vinegar, preferably lemon vinegar
A glass of spring water
A glass of rose-water or rose hydrosol, or one of the charged water.
1. Draw a warm bath.
2. First add the salt and the bsy leaves.
3. Squeeze the limes into the water, tossing the fruit in as well
4. Add the other ingredients.
5. Enter the waster. Submerge yourself completely five times if possible. Stay in as long as you like. Rub your both with the limes.
6. Drain the water while still in the tub allow yourself to air-dry amidst the remnants of the limes and leftover leaves
Your Candle Altar
Your Candle Altar
Your Altar:
You may use anything that has a flat top.. I use an old trunk with a piece of plywood on it. Be creative.. As for a cover I use white because of it’s kind of a multipurpose color. Although some magic specifies a color then what ever color is specified should be used. Again, be creative… Keep in mind that candle magic is usually done in condensed areas so keep things as simplistic as you can, especially your candlesticks and censors.
Incense:
There are some who believe that incense is unimportant in candle magic. I cannot imagine performing candle magic without the incense. The type that you use may be specified in a specific spell, if that is the case by all means use that. Generally, I use three kings incense as well as vervain. Vervain gives the spell working a little umph. But then again nothing is set in stone.. Be creative.
Incense symbolizes Air… as the smoke rises our thoughts are carried up into the universe.
Preparing of the Practitioner:
Prior to your spell working prepare yourself a nice relaxing bath. Add a hand full of sea salt to get your charges set where they need to be. Light a few candles, turn off the light and relax. Clear your mind of the junk you have picked up through out the day. Visualize the water washing all the negativity away from you. It is very important that your mind be at ease and clear prior to any spell working.
Types of candles:
Any type of candle can be used for candle magic as long as it has been cleansed and consecrated prior to use. Although beeswax candles are higher in price than store bought candles, they are more powerful because they are produced from nature. As with any other tool, the candle made by the practitioner for a specific purpose captures the energy of the practitioner. Many experienced Witches will use only candles they have crafted themselves because of this.
Candle Magick
Candle Magick
Candle Magic has been around for many, many years, being traced as far back as the Palaeolithic era. It is a very powerful form of sympathetic magic.
There are many factors that play into the art of candle magic. As we know any type of magic that is performed will return to you three fold, whether it be positive or negative. Always keep the Wiccan Rede “An harm to none do what thou wilt” in mind when considering your work. Always keep in mind that magic effect’s the entire world around you. Be very careful what you ask for, for it may well come true. The wording in any type of magic must not be taken lightly, be very careful, concise , and precise, make sure you have covered all possible bases.
Keep in mind that some candle magic has to be repeated over a period of days. Therefore, you will want to place them in an area that will not be disturbed. Do not choose a place where there is a tv, radio noise or disturbances of any kind. Keep in mind to not put candles near curtains and such, as you would not want to burn your house down. Candle magic should always be performed in a low traffic area. That is why a bedroom is really nice for such work.
Your Charm for May 3 is The Heart Charm
| Your Charm for Today | |||
 The Heart |
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| Today’s Meaning: A course of eventsthat cannot be altered has been set in motion within this aspect. Accept whatever happens in the near future and do not waste your time fretting about it–you can do nothing. General Description: |
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Iron Protection Spells
Iron Protection Spells
Iron provides protection 24 hours a day, whether you are asleep or awake.
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Bend a used horseshoe nail into a ring
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An iron bracelet reinforces the magickal protection capacities of the hand
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String iron beads and wear around neck and ankles
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For protection while you sleep, slip a knife or horseshoe under you pillow
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If you prefer not to keep anything that hard in bed, a sword or fireplace poker can be kept under the bed
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No need to keep anything in or under the bed: sleeping in a bed crafted from iron creates an island of safety, reinvigorating health, creativity and fertility while you sleep.
Iron Spells
Iron Spells
Iron repels evil of all kind. Most malevolent spirits cannot bear to be in its presence. In addition to providing protection, iron enhances and stimulates the growth of one’s personal magick powers, so that you are stronger and better able to protection yourself, requiring less outside spiritual protection. Iron also invigorates general vitality and energy.
ELEMENT OF AIR
ELEMENT OF AIR
Air
Air is the element of the intellect; it is the realm of thought, which is the first step toward creation.
Magickally speaking, Air is the clear, uncluttered, pure visualization which is a powerful tool for change. It is also the movement, the impetus that sends the visualization out toward manifestation.
It rules spells and rituals involving travel, instruction, freedom, obtaining knowledge, discovering lost items, uncovering lies and so on.
It can also be used to develop the psychic faculties.
Spells involving Air usually include the act of placing an object in the air or dropping something off the side of a mountain or other high places so that the object actually connects physically with the element.
Air is masculine, being dry, expansive and active. It is the element that excels in places of learning, and which is work while we theorize, think and ponder.
Air rules the East because this is the direction of the greatest light, and the light of wisdom and consciousness. Its color is yellow, the yellow of the Sun and the sky at dawn.
Air governs the magick of the four winds, most divination. concentration and visualization magick.
MAKING AN ATHAME
MAKING AN ATHAME
An athame is traditionally a double-bladed knife with a black handle. Very few
people make their own, although it is possible to do so. Most people obtain one
and personalize it in some way. This is most commonly done by inscribing
symbols or runes on it. In some traditions specific symbols are required and
have been handed down through their lineage. In others and among eclectic Wicca
groups, these can be personal.
How do you do this? You cover the blade with Paraffin. (WAX) Then you let it
cool. Next you take a LONG sharp NAIL and inscribe the symbols in the wax.
Then you use dilute Hydrochloric acid – careful, this stuff is dangerous, and
drop by drop place on the blade where it shows through due to your inscriptions.
When the acid has worked – usually fairly quickly – you rinse the blade under
running water THOROUGHLY and then you use VERY hot water and a lot of elbow
grease to remove the wax.
If ANY ACID FALLS ON THE SKIN RINSE THOROUGHLY UNDER COLD WATER IMMEDIATELY and
if there is a burn of any type, seek immediate medical help. IF it gets in the
eyes, again rinse immediately and completely and CALL THE EMT/PARAMEDIC UNITS.
It is best when doing this if you wear either some type of glasses or goggles
and rubber gloves.
DO NOT INGEST THE ACID OR LEAVE IT WHERE IT COULD BE INGESTED BY A CHILD OR
ANIMAL. Also be careful of how you dispose of the rest of it – do so in an
environmentally SAFE way.
This sounded like a little too much for me, so I tried another method. Koren
made a beautiful athame for me and I personalized it by putting herbs of my
choice in the handle and sealing this with a favorite crystal of mine – again
with his help.
Oh, if you absolutely can’t get a double-bladed knife – in Massachusetts, for
example, possession of such a weapon is a CRIME – get a single-bladed knife and
grind down the other edge as much as you can.
As I said, the Athame is USUALLY black-handled, but there are exceptions – I saw
one Lady use a knife with a deer’s hoof for the handle. She was oriented toward
her Native American heritage as much as her Craft, so it had deep significance
for her. I also saw – in fact a friend of mine was selling it – a BEAUTIFUL
homemade athame with copper tubing forming a cross hilt and crystals in each of
the three tips for the handle. (this was almost a small sword) AS ALWAYS USE
WHAT SPEAKS TO YOUR OWN SOUL!!!!!
The athame is usually NOT used in circle for anything other than ritual and
ceremonial purposed. If you need to inscribe a candle for Magick or slice the
bread for the cakes and wine part of the rite, you usually use a BOLINE or white
– handled knife, often a small dagger or even a pen-knife, set aside for these
purposes.
Empowerment Ceremony for Wands, Rods, Staves, Stangs, and Brooms
Empowerment Ceremony for Wands, Rods, Staves, Stangs, and Brooms
Timing: New moon (unless the item will be used to specifically to vanish, then choose dark moon or moon in Scorpio).
Supplies: One red candle; holy water or Florida water; salt; empowering oil; incense of your choice; a carving tool or wood-burning tool; a selection of magickal symbols; a pencil (to trace the designs before you carve or use the wood-burning tool); thirteen bricks or white stones; one cauldron.
Pre-Ritual Preparations: Choose and carve the magickal symbols you desire on the piece. Build your circle with the bricks or stones. When you are finished, sprinkle both wooden tool and circle with holy water or Florida Water. Libation to the Gods.
The Ritual: Cast your circle around the stone circle, which will be in the center. Place the cauldron in the stone circle. Light the fire candle and place inside the cauldron. Call the quarters. Invoke deity. Place the wooden ritual piece inside the stone circle. Pass the four elements over the item (fire, incense, salt and holy water). Stand over the circle, raise your arms to the heavens and say:
Mistress (Master) of the Universe! I call thee forth to cleanse and consecrate this (name of item). Empower this (name of item) in the name of universal perfection!
Outstretch both hands toward the item.
(Name item), I conjure thee in the name of the Mistress (Master) of the universe to work all forms of magick for me! Ye shall conjure, banish, empower or cast aside negative energies as I so dictate. Ye shall overcome all obstacles in the performance of these task. At my very touch ye shall awaken into life in preparation for any and all magick and respond with perfection to my very will, and you shall retain your power in fallow days when magick is not required.
So I will, so shall it be!
Rub the item with the holy oil, then draw an equal-armed cross in the air over the item to seal your work. Complete the ritual by offering a libation to the Gods. Thank deity. Close the quarters. Take up the circle with your fingers and place the circle energy in the tool by directing your finger at the tool and envisioning the energy leaving your finger and entering the tool. Leave the item in the light of the following full moon for at least one hour.
Awakening the Tool
Awakening the Tool
Many magickal people believe that once the tool has been cleansed and consecrated (dedicated to Spirit) and blessed (asking Spirit to fill the object with positive energy), the tool should also be “awakened” before each use. The activation process is often governed by the group that the Witch belongs to, meaning one coven may have a special chant while another group may “alert” the tool by tappping it one to three times on the altar, or they may simple pass hands over the tools and say, “Waken ye unto life.” No matter how it is achieved, this process serves as a trigger to the mind that the time for magick has begun.
The Ultimate Book of Shadows for the New Generation, Solitary Witch
Silver RavenWolf
Your Charm for April 26 is The Bulla
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 The Bulla |
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| Today’s Meaning: You are distracted from this aspect by other areas of your life you feel are more pressing. This aspect is suffering from this lack of attention. You must ask yourself how much more you can let it suffer before you give it due attention.General Description: From remote times the terrors of the arts of fascination have been dreaded, and by wearing this charm, which contained a written invocation to their gods, it was believed that full protection was obtained. The Bulla was popular in Rome from a very early period. It was worn on a necklace, or upon the girdle. The Gorgons head, with hair of writhing snakes, was believed to terrify and drive away the power of the bewitcher. Even today in many countries, the magic power of the evil eye is still believed in. |
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Lady A’s Spell of the Day for April 25: Break Another Witches Spell
Break Another Witches Spell
This spell will help to undo a hex or spell that has been put on you by another witch.
The following ingredients are needed:
A Length Of Silver Cord Or String
Your Boline (Magickal Knife Used For Cutting) Or A Pair Of Scissors .
Tie one knot in each end of the silver cord, as you do this visualize one knot representing you and the other person who has cast the spell or hex.
Cut the cord in the centre, chant the following, and see the spell breaking: “From you to me this spell I break, This was not right for you to make. It’s path I will abruptly end, And back to you the spell I send”
Your Charm for April 25 is Leo the Lion
| Your Charm for Today | |||
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 Leo the Lion |
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| Today’s Meaning: This aspect of your life will be strongly influenced by a person who is generous, warm-hearted, creative, enthusiastic, broad-minded, expansive, faithful and loving. This person is most likely a relative.General Description: Fifth sign of the Zodiac, July 23rd to Aug. 23rd. Ruled by the Sun; correct metal, Gold. Those born under the influence of Leo were believed to be enthusiastic, high spiritied, affable, generous, strong, quick tempered, artistic, inventive, generally successful and proverbially lucky. The Leo stones are the Peridot and Onyx, also Amber. The Peridot was in former times valued more than the Diamond. In Rome it was worn as a charm to drive away evil spirits, despondencey and illusions. Peridot amulets enjoyed a great reputation in the Middle Ages for inspiring wisdom and eloquence. Many medicinal properies were atrributed to Amber, and its supposed virtues are still relied on in the East. |
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