A Practical Guide To Witchcraft And Magic Spells Part 3

* Stir the water, also three times deosil with the athame, wand or pointed crystal, asking the light and the G.o.ddess to enter it.

* Add a few grains of salt to the water and stir it, saying: May power thus be doubled,thus increased,as life joins lifeto create a greater forceeven than these.

* Stand either just within or beyond the first circle perimeter.

* Walk deosil round the circle, sprinkling the circle line, physical or envisaged, with your salt water.

In formal rituals, the High Priestess consecrates the salt and the High Priest the water and they mingle them. The High Priestess then creates the first circle and the High Priest the second.

Casting A Triple Circle Three is a sacred number in magick and for special ceremonies you can create a triple circle of both power and protection. The number three represents the three aspects of the G.o.d figure in many religions: the Holy Trinity, the Triple G.o.ddess, the three aspects of the Moon -maiden, mother and wise woman or crone - the trefoil or triple G.o.d of the Celts, and the even older Egyptian trinity of Isis, Osiris and Horus, the young Sky G.o.d. This triplicity is still celebrated when we turn our money over and bow three times to the Moon for good luck.

* Create your first two circles of light and salt water.

* Return to the place where you began.

* Place the bowl on the altar and light your incense; you can either light a stick in a secure holder or sprinkle incense on a charcoal block burning within the censer.

* Make your final circle with incense, just beyond the lines of salt and water.

There are other variations of this, including creating your outer circle of light by walking with your candle in a broad-based holder, followed by the salt water and the incense.

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Uncasting The Circle When you have completed your spells or rituals, you should close the circle. This is done by simply reversing the casting process.

* Thank the Guardians and send the light of the elemental candles to whoever needs it.

* Extinguish the elemental candles in reverse order of lighting. Visualise the light fading and say, together with any present: Let the circle be uncast but remain unbroken. Merry meet and merry part and merry meet again.

* Leave the altar candles to burn down.

Preparing Your Mind For Magick As well as preparing the physical area for magick, you also need to prepare your mental state.

It is universally agreed that we have two hemispheres of the brain -the left, logical, and the right, intuitive, side - and that generally in the everyday world the left brain predominates. This may be no bad thing; after all, buying golden sunflowers and oils pressed from fragrant herbs may lift the spirits, but they will do little for us if we are so disorganised that we fail to remember the cereal and cat food -and the yowls of hungry children and cats ringing through the early morning air are not conducive to relaxation.

These demarcations within the mind have not always been so clear. Julian Jaynes, in his book The Origin of the Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicarmel Mind, suggests that self-awareness in humans has existed for only about 3,000 years. In stating this, he was defining self-awareness as the awareness of our own separateness and our private thoughts.

This state of mind, normal in adults, is very different from the more primitive state of mind of small children, who keep up a running commentary on their actions. But young children are also incredibly skilled at mind-hopping and reading the thoughts of others. This is precisely because they do not have the adult's strong sense of the individual and private self.

In so-called primitive societies, the individual does not have the same importance: it is the collective responsibility that matters. So the rituals that are carried out to ensure the fertility of the crops and animals and the community are performed in a group.

In a sense, magick is about using the bicarmel mind, placing the brain's right hemisphere in the driving seat, taking concentration, focus and determination from the more logical side as fuel and a map, and reconnecting our unified self with the undifferentiated universe.

You can carry out magick absolutely anywhere as long as you are in a positive frame of mind. But many pract.i.tioners believe that by entering an altered state of consciousness, you remove all the conscious blocks and allow the intuitive brain free access to the unconscious mind and with it the repository of human and cosmic wisdom. This brings about a state of mind in which energies can flow between the dimensions.

You are in your most relaxed state when your brain is generating alpha waves. They oscillate about ten times per second (the range is eight to 13 cycles per second) and are less common in our modern stressful lives. But they are naturally generated, for example, when you daydream, or sit by a fountain and let the rushing water fill your mind, or gaze into a candle flame, or have a lavender- or rose-scented bath. Compare these with the traditional routine preparations of fasting and ritual bathing of pract.i.tioners of the craft and you begin to see why these are important.

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Invoking your protective angels to stand at the four corners of your magical circle, performing the rituals of preparing your magical tools and, in more formal magick, casting a circle - these are all ways of marking the limits of the everyday world and the entry into this magical s.p.a.ce in which all the normal laws are suspended. There are many ways of reaching this state, techniques to still inner turmoil and outer demands that block the easy access to the deeper psychic states.

At times when you feel unhappy, tense or anxious, you may need tranquillity; alternatively, there may be times when you need an infusion of power to meet a challenge, restore confidence or gain energy when all you feel like doing is sleeping.

Breathing in light and colours is a method of creating a cone or vortex of power, that can be released as magical energy or healing power in the cosmos. In addition, by absorbing the light of the Moon or Sun you may take in either tranquillity or energies for those moments when you are particularly in need. Perhaps you will find yourself in an artificially lit building, crammed on a commuter train or rushing to get the children to school and go to work. At such times you may feel like one of the hags from Macbeth, ready to turn the entire carriage of commuters into toads - that's when good magick is what you need.

A Moon Magick Ritual For Calm * Wait until the Moon is moving towards full, and is quite bright in the sky.

* Find somewhere as dark as possible so the light is undiluted and slowly 'inhale' the light through your nose, looking at the Moon and drawing its light towards you.

* Hold your Moon breath for a count of 'One and two and three'. Remember to say the 'ands' to stop yourself rushing - this is relaxing, not a race.

* Close your eyes and exhale the darkness of your panic, frustration or unhappiness.

* Continue alternately inhaling with your eyes open and exhaling with your eyes closed until you feel that you are filled with silver light.

* Now gently exhale a little of that light in a single breath, this time with your eyes open, directing it in your vision towards someone you know who is also feeling stressed or anxious.

* Inhale more moonlight and continue to exhale, still with your eyes open, continuing to direct the healing light.

* Let the Moon shine into a silver or crystal bowl of water. Before bedtime, tip the water into your bath so you can absorb the Moon energies through your pores.

Whenever you feel stressed, visualise the Moon, close your eyes and gently inhale; peace will come to you because you gave it out to others.

You will find more detail on Moon magick in the chapter on Moon energies.

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A Sun Magick Ritual For Energy Because it can be dangerous to look directly at the Sun, catch your sunlight close to noon in a large crystal or in water in a bra.s.s dish.

* As before, 'inhale' the sunlight via the crystal or water with your eyes open. Hold the Sun breath, counting 'One and two and three', then close your eyes and exhale the darkness of your doubt, anger or lack of confidence. With practice, this will become a single movement.

* Continue until you are filled with light and energy, then exhale a Sun breath, directing it to someone who is exhausted, frightened or ill.

* Inhale the Sun and again exhale it towards a person or people in need.

* Rinse your face in the Sun water, then tip the rest into the ground to energise a plant.

Whenever you feel tired, recall the Sun and inhale its light in your mind's vision.

Repeat both these intakes of power once every month. If you have a particularly stressful or challenging time, hold a moonstone for your Moon energies in your power hand. Hold a sparkling crystal quartz for the Sun in the other (receptive) hand to boost the flow as you visualise the natural sources. In this way, you can balance the energies in both spheres of the brain for integrated mind and soul flow.

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4 - G.o.ds and G.o.ddesses

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The Mechanics Of Witchcraft Magick takes place at what TS Eliot in The Four Quartets called the 'still point of the turning world', that moment of timelessness that enables thought to be turned into reality on the material plane.

It operates on the principle As above, so below'. This phrase comes from the beginning of The Emerald Tablet, attributed to Hermes Trismesgistos (thrice-blessed Hermes), thought to be a powerful first-century Egyptian sorcerer who became worshipped as a G.o.d after his death.

This tablet is said to contain all magical knowledge as well as the principles of alchemy, and states that human action and events reflect what occurs in the heavens. And so by releasing magical intentions into the cosmos, as I said earlier, they will be reflected back as actuality.

Since time immemorial, humans have called upon the power of higher beings to help them, whether it be to deliver them from enemies, to bring rain for their crops or to cure their children's illnesses. Every religion and every culture believes in a divinity of some sort, whether it be G.o.d, G.o.ddess or spirit, good or evil.

Evocations were performed by medieval pract.i.tioners of magick to summon up angels (and sometimes demons) and bind them to perform tasks, rather like the Middle Eastern djinn, or genie, who, in faerie tales, would appear from a magick lamp or corked bottle and grant wishes. Incense would be used to give substance to the etheric form of the angel or demon concerned. (Modem magick tends to be a little wary of calling up spirits, however, whose malevolent energies may cause harm.) In contrast, invocations were used to endow the pract.i.tioner with the power to carry out magical purposes through a form of possession, with the angel or G.o.d acting directly from within the pract.i.tioner's body.

Elementals have also been a.s.sociated for hundreds of years with more formal magical traditions. Elementals, rather than having a permanent form themselves, are the forces or energies that give shape to living things. They also bring thoughts and desires into actuality, invoked by symbols.

Thus medieval occultists sought mastery over the elemental beings that they fashioned by their incantations. Sometimes, if pract.i.tioners used the elemental forces for negative purposes, they would create a tulpa, or thought form, that became an elemental demon. This was hard to banish, even though the magicians worked within a square enclosed by two magick circles -hence the origins of warnings about magical effects coming back threefold.

The G.o.ddess And The Horned G.o.d In Wicca Neither evocation nor invocation is part of modern witchcraft, however, and white witches do not recognise any demonic figures in their religion. When we refer to the G.o.ddess and her son-consort, the Horned G.o.d of Wicca, we are referring to the archetype or source energies of the feminine and masculine aspects of ultimate power. They are the creative female and male principles, acting not in opposition to each other but as complementary and necessary parts of a whole. All the named G.o.ddesses and G.o.ds in witchcraft represent the different qualities of these supreme forms, for example the G.o.ddesses of the hunt, or specific forms in different cultures.

There are, of course, variations within Wicca; some traditions emphasise the importance of the G.o.ddess, while others regard the Horned G.o.d as her equal, with each a.s.suming different aspects according to the season and ritual. For example, the G.o.ddess may appear as the Earth or Moon deity, and her male counterpart as the Corn G.o.d or the Sun.

Reaching G.o.ds And G.o.ddesses In Trance Modern Wiccans call into themselves the energies of the G.o.ddess to amplify their own innate divine spark and at times may work in a deep trance, uttering words of prophecy or profound teaching. This is said to increase the power entering the body, like turning up the current from a power source. But until you have practised magick for many years, I would advocate working only in light trance and then only in the controlled situation of a very spiritual group. You can think of this as opening a channel between your own higher energies and the G.o.ddess or powers of light.

I said just now that the power of a trance can be compared to an electric current. The a.n.a.logy can be taken further: just as sending a sudden surge of electricity can cause a power failure, deliberately inducing a deep trance can be dangerous. Those who use drugs to induce such experiences are, in my opinion, playing with fire and may in fact be blocking their innate wisdom in return for an artificial mind-bending experience.

Most people quite rightly shy away from the idea of possession by a force, however benign, preferring to work with the energies indirectly - and this is what I believe is safest and most effective. For even if you are working with an experienced group in healing magick and do want to allow power of light or the G.o.ddess to manifest in you directly, it is pretty heady stuff. So go cautiously, work only in the most positive of minds for the good of all, and for trance work have other experienced witches or mediums to guide you and help you to centre.

The G.o.ds themselves can offer protection when you are performing rituals. In formal magick, the Guardians, or Devic Lords of the Watchtower, are invited to guard the four directions of a magical circle. The term deva in Sanskrit means 'shining one', and the Devas represent the higher forms, akin to angels, who watch and direct the natural world.

They communicate with people by psychic 'chanelling' and rule over the beings a.s.sociated with the four elements, Fire, Air, Water and Earth. In less formal practices, either archangels or pillars of light may be visualised in the corners of the room to offer protection at a time when a person is opening then-psyche to the cosmos, to keep out all negativity, earthly or otherwise. But the greatest protection is a pure heart and pure intent, much harder to attain than learning any complex ritual.

The G.o.ddess as focus Many beliefs emphasise the polarity of the female/male, G.o.ddess/G.o.d and anima/animus energies. The bringing together of these two powers, the Sacred Marriage that is celebrated symbolically in the Great Rite of the union of Earth and Sky, is a ritual that permeates all cultures.

In Egyptian mythology, Isis, the sister-wife of Osiris, sought and rea.s.sembled his body after his murder and dismemberment by his brother Seth. In this connection, she took on the role of the G.o.ddess of rebirth, the Bone G.o.ddess, and restored him in a more evolved form. The annual celebrations of this event coincided with the rising of the dog star, Sirius, which heralded the flooding of the Nile and the restoration of fertility to the land and symbolically to the people.

As the Sky G.o.ds gained supremacy, they married the Earth G.o.ddesses who slowly evolved into patronesses of women, marriage and childbirth. So, for example, Odin the Norse All-Father married Frigg, G.o.ddess of women, marriage and motherhood.

But in witchcraft, though the Sky Fathers and their wives are used for the focus of specific rites, the G.o.ddess retains the earlier form as the creative principle. As the Triple G.o.ddess - maiden, mother and wise woman or crone - she is frequently central to coven work.

Generally in magick the G.o.ddess is recognised as the prime mover of existence, bringing forth from herself in the first virgin birth the animus, or male, principle. For this reason, it is often the High Priestess who casts the circle, though in some covens the G.o.ddess rules over the spring and summer and the Horned G.o.d over the autumn and winter.

Other G.o.ds And G.o.ddesses There is a vast selection of G.o.ds and G.o.ddesses from many different cultures that you may choose to form a focus for particular energies in rituals. I have given a list of these later in this chapter, but I have not given much detailed description, as it is important we create our own deity images. There are many excellent sites on the Internet, ill.u.s.trated with paintings and statues of the deities, where you can read their mythical stories.

Because the deities come from so many cultures and times, it is important to invoke only the positive qualities you need and to remember that some did reflect dark as well as benign aspects of divinity. For example, Diana, the G.o.ddess of the Moon and the hunt, is thought by most to be a sympathetic soul; but you might be surprised to learn that she would, according to myth, have her rejected lovers torn apart by her hounds. So, when setting up your icons, read about them first, and decide which are the attributes that will a.s.sist your magical workings. Some deities fit into more than one category, so I have listed them under their most significant one.

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Deities Of Love And Pa.s.sion

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Aphrodite Aphrodite is the Cretan and Greek G.o.ddess of love and beauty. Her name means 'born from the foam'. She can be invoked for the gentle attraction of new love as well as for s.e.xuality and pa.s.sion (hence the term 'aphrodisiac'). Aphrodite is especially potent in candle and mirror spells, romance and for love rituals involving the sea.

Artemis Artemis is the twin sister of Apollo, the young Greek Sun G.o.d, and is G.o.ddess of chast.i.ty, virginity, the hunt, the Moon and nature. Although a virgin G.o.ddess, she also presides over childbirth. Because of her connection with the hunt, she is altogether a more active G.o.ddess than Aphrodite if you are seeking love or, perhaps, trying to encourage a reluctant lover of either s.e.x or win love under difficult circ.u.mstances. She is perfect for outdoor love spells and for casting your love net wide to attract an as yet unknown lover.

Freyja Freyja is the Viking G.o.ddess of love and s.e.xuality and can be invoked for rituals to increase confidence in inner beauty and worth, for the increase of pa.s.sion and for fertility in every aspect. A witch G.o.ddess, she is potent for all magick, especially astral projection and crystal and gem magick.

Venus Venus, the G.o.ddess of love, is the Roman form of Aphrodite and by her liaison with Mercury gave birth to Cupid. Although she had many lovers, she was the G.o.ddess of chast.i.ty in women and is a joy-bringer, and so represents not only s.e.xual pleasure, but also innocent love and especially love in the springtime. Her planetary a.s.sociations mean she is the focus in all kinds of love rituals. As the evening star, Venus takes on a warrior aspect and so can be invoked in fighting for one's lover or tough love in relationships.

Deities For Power These deities may be invoked for strength, success, energy, inspiration and increase.

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Apollo Apollo, the Greek Sun G.o.d, was twin brother of Artemis, the Moon G.o.ddess. As G.o.d of the solar light, Apollo made the fruits of the Earth ripen, and at Delos and Delphi where he slew Python, the first crops were dedicated to him.(Python, the great lightning serpent, was the son-consort of the Mother G.o.ddess in her form of Delphyne, the Womb of Creation, fertilised by Python. Python in this sense predated all other G.o.ds and was later called the Dark Sun, Apollo's alter ego. The Ancient Greeks rededicated his shrine to Apollo.) Apollo was G.o.d of prophecy as well as music, poetry, archery, healing and divination. He is very strongly animus and is good for all rituals of power, ambition and inspiration, as well as those areas under his patronage. Men tend to work better with him than women.

Aine Aine is daughter of Manananann, Celtic Sea G.o.d and ruler of the Isle of Man and G.o.ddess of the cycles of the solar and lunar year. Even during the twentieth century, she was remembered on the Hill of Aine in Ireland, by torchlight processions and burning straw at midsummer and also at the old corn harvest, Lughna.s.sadh, at the beginning of August. She is also linked with love, fertility and healing.

Ama-terasu Omikami Ama-terasu Omikami is the Ancient j.a.panese Sun G.o.ddess. Her name means 'Great August Spirit Shining in Heaven' but she is also called Shinmet, 'Divine Radiance' and O-hiru-me-no-muchi, 'Great Female Possessor of Noon'.

She is good for female-focused Sun rituals and for ceremonial magick.