Category Archives: Witchcraft
Review: The Spiral Dance
The book The Spiral Dance is considered a classic in modern witchcraft literature. The author Starhawk put this book out at a time when there was little to no information published publicly on Witchcraft and people were starving for information. In the 35 years since the original release of The Spiral Dance many more books have been put on the market, but the Spiral Dance remains on the top of many recommended reading lists.
The one down side to this book is that it does focus heavily on the feminist movement and feminism. At the time the book was written the author was heavily involved in the feminist movement and feminist spirituality, so it makes sense that this book would reflect those interests and activities. This book is one of the reasons that religious witchcraft is considered to be “women’s religion”. The theme and focus throughout the book is the use of witchcraft and Goddess spirituality to reclaim women’s rights and women’s power.
The subtext to the title “The Spiral Dance” reads :”A rebirth of the ancient religion of the Great Goddess”. The text is a very apt description for the information that you find within the book. When you combine the focus on the Great Goddess with the feminist movement at the time you have a book that covers feminist witchcraft and feminist spirituality and why its important for the world we live in.
Now Starhawk does talk about why feminist spirituality like the Goddess movement is important to men and what Men can get out of the practice of witchcraft. So while the book is geared towards women and feminist spirituality, there are benefits described for Men and practices of Male witches discussed. The overall tone though is geared towards women and women’s mysteries.
This book is 13 chapters long. Each chapter has a specific lesson that expands on the information in the previous chapter. Within several of the chapters are easy to do exercises and meditations. These meditations and exercises are provided so that a solitary witch or someone seeking witchcraft can learn practices that will allow them to become witches in their own right.
Each chapter starts out with a ritual or a description of the practices found within the chapter to illustrate the lessons and information found within the chapter. Some of these stories are fictional and some of them are from experiences within the authors own coven settings. These personal experience illustrations form some of the most powerful aspects of the book allowing the reader to see what sort of experiences they may have in their own work while not telling them explicitly that these will be your experiences as well.
The first chapter completely discusses witchcraft as a Goddess focused religion. Here is where we first learn the concept of a Great Goddess and of feminist spirituality. The author also goes into the history of witchcraft and what exactly witchcraft is as a religion and a practice. Its a basic starting point illustrating the misconceptions and issues many people have with witchcraft.
The second chapter goes into the worldview of witchcraft. Every religion has a way of viewing the world. Here we re provided with a creation myth for the birth of the God and Goddess within this version of witchcraft as well as the essence of the Great Goddess. Here we are given the concept of the soul/spirit as well as the concepts of energy working and the view on the cosmos.
The third chapter talks about covens. Here we learn about the common structure of religious witchcraft and the way that this structure functions. The author illustrates both same sex covens as well as mixed gender covens and why coven structures work. The comparisson between covens and traditional religious structures provide ways for seekers and students to understand the functional differences between a church and a coven.
The fourth chapter discusses sacred space. One key component in witchcraft rituals is the creation of sacred space. This chapter provides several different ways of working this ritual as well as reasons behind the creation of sacred space.
The fifth chapter is all about the Goddess. This religious witchcraft tradition is Duotheistic meaning it focuses on the worship of a Goddess and a God. In this chapter we are introduced to the Goddess and her roles within the religion. We learn how to call her and how both men and women can relate to her.
The sixth chapter is all about the God. While the Goddess is the focus in the feminist version of witchcraft that the Spiral Dance teaches, the God is still important. This chapter illustrates the relationship between the Goddess and God and how they need each other and work together to be one.
The seventh chapter is all about the use of symbols within magic. Magic works through the use of symbols and directing energy related to those symbols. This chapter in the book has several different spells to try as well as exercises to develop your own understanding of symbols and your own association with symbols.
The eighth chapter is all about the Cone of power. This particular chapter focuses on Coven based workings, but the concepts of raising and directing energy in the shape of a cone is applicable to the solitary student. Here we understand what it means in witchcraft when the concept of energy direction and manipulation is discussed.
The ninth chapter is about trance work. The basic definition of magic given early in the book is the idea and the ability to change ones concious state at will. This chapter explores the use of trance and the reason why trance work is part of witchcraft. Basic meditation and trance concepts are addressed here and there are several different exercises within the chapter for trance work and meditation work.
The tenth chapter of the book focuses on initiation. Solitary witches who read this book will not get as much out of this chapter as a witch who is working for initiation within a coven or specific tradition. This chapter describes what it means to be initiated and provides a coven based initiation ritual as a sample.
The eleventh chapter in the book focuses on esbats or moon based rituals. Within witchcraft the moon is sacred and is revered as a symbol of the Goddess. Moon rituals are typically in many cases working rituals while sabbat rituals are more worship based. Moon rituals can be based on the full or new moons or other moon phases, though full and new are the most common.
The twelfth chapter in the book focuses on the wheel of the year or the sabbats and holiday celebrations of this tradition of witchcraft. Here the author provides sample rituals for ideas as to how to honor the sabbats as well as providing information on the lore and meanings behind the sabbats.
The final chapter of this book is focused on developing religion. Here the author explains the issues that can arrive when religions become based on dogma and established practices and don’t change. The author explains what exactly witchcraft as a religion is and how it has to continue to change and evolve in this modern world. Here we learn the dangers of thinking in strict absolute terms as well as in dualistic terms.
Despite the age, this book is useful. Its a good book for establishing witchcraft as a religion and explaining why religious witchcraft is so different than traditional religions. The book covers the basics and provides enough information that a solitary seeker man or women can start their own practice and create their own relationship with the God, Goddess, and the Great Goddess.
Review: The Wiccan Way-Magical spirituality for the solitary Pagan
The Wiccan Way (Published in the UK as The Hedge Witches Way) is a very good book for beginners. This book covers a very simple way to practice magic and witchcraft without the requirement for long formal rituals. This book covers an important topic that most books on witchcraft don’t talk about, even those which come at witchcraft from the perspective of a religious practice. This book covers the concept, practice, and creation of witchcraft prayers.
For many people the practice of magic and prayer are intricately connected. Many books teach that spell casting is a witches way of saying a prayer. While some spells are prayers, this book examines exactly what a witches prayer is. This book covers what makes a prayer a magical act and what makes a prayer an act of devotion, as a witch uses prayers both for magic and for forms of worship.
The US title of the book is a bit more accurate than the UK title of Hedge Witches Way. The reason behind this is that Hedge witchcraft is a very specific form of witchcraft dealing heavily with trance work and spirit companions. While the author does include prayers for traveling and working with the spirit realms, the focus of the style of witchcraft in this book is not shamanic or trance based, and as such this book is not about Hedge witchcraft but a different form of modern Wicca or Wiccan styled witchcraft.
The author calls the witchcraft and magic described in this book as Wildwood Mysticism. The author teaches that this particular form of witchcraft does not need intense structured and formal rituals. The author mentions here that maintaining an altar and saying a simple prayer to the God and Goddess is all that you need to do to practice this style and form of witchcraft.
The first chapter in the book is all about prayer and enchantment. This first introduction chapter basically covers the nature of witchcraft. Here the author mentions a sense of nature being sacred, a connection with spirits and spirit forces, and why prayers can be effective ways of connecting with the various forces in life and that are responsible for life. The author even mentions just how easy it is for the distinction of the difference between a prayer and a spell to fade for witches, as witches who follow this path work their spells and magic through the use of prayer.
The second chapter is a chapter about the Gods that are worshiped and prayed to in this particular tradition or style of witchcraft. The author starts the chapter by mentioning how the Gods of witches were demonized in the past and how we need to bring their truth back. The author then gives a basic idea about the God and Goddess of this tradition including an introduction to the cosmology or worldview of this practice explaining the three realms or worlds and how their God and Goddess manifests in each of them.
The third chapter of this book is about mysteries. In religious witchcraft the experience of the mysteries is the goal of the rituals. In this specific tradition the experience of the mysteries is related to the prayers. This chapter explains why prayers help us access those mysteries and experiences. The chapter also explains why some prayers should be kept private and why some are meant to be shared. This chapter is key in understanding the importance of prayer in this style of witchcraft, as the mysteries are the experiences of the God and Goddess as well as magic and the flow of the universe.
The fourth chapter in the book is about the theories and practices of magic. Here is where the author describes and defines clearly what wildwood mysticism means and is as a practice. The author here defines what it means to be a witch. The author ends the chapter with a list of the practices that makes one a wildwood mystic and a witch in this practice pointing out prayer being the central component to all of them.
The fifth chapter is a chapter on initiation to wildwood mysticism. To the author the witchcraft is the action and practice of the magical aspects while the wildwood mysticism is the actual spiritual practice and components. Before one can be a witch in this practice they need to become attuned and accustomed to the forces of nature through a wildwood mystic initiation. This chapter provides the ritual and prayer outline for this practice. The chapter ends with ideas and areas of study to increase ones awareness of the tides of nature and the feelings of wildwood mysticsim.
The sixth chapter in this book is about the maintenance and creation of an altar to the Gods and to the practice of wildwood mysticism. Here the author provides a very basic and simple idea of what an altar can be. There are no fancy elemental tools and associations on this altar set, rather a bowl of water, a twig or plant for the world tree and something for the God and Goddess. The key point here in this chapter is the practice of saying prayers at an altar as an act of devotion and worship. Its the idea that you can worship with prayers at an altar without elaborate rituals and ceremonial tools that you see in so many other books on witchcraft.
The seventh chapter in the book covers initiation into the practice of witchcraft and the practice of gaining the powers of the witch. As shown earlier the practice of the mysticism and the witchcraft are separate yet connected. This chapter explores and explains how one can use prayers in ritual to gain the powers of a witch and to become a witch yourself providing several different prayers and ritual actions to naming oneself a witch with the powers of a witch.
The next three chapters are very practical chapters. These chapters focus on the practice of need based prayers and magic. These chapters provide insight into the different types of spell work that wildwood mystic witches can and may perform.
The eighth chapter gets into spells for healing. Here the author provides several different types of healing prayers and spell actions for different situations. The author explains how different types of prayers and a different world aspect should be used for different types of healing work. The prayers provided here serve as an excellent base for healing prayer and spell work.
The ninth chapter in this book is again a chapter focused on spells and prayers for a specific need. This chapter focuses on money and wealth. Like everyone else witches have issues with money and they have bills to pay. This chapter provides several different unique prayers and spell actions for different types of wealth and money.
The tenth chapter in this book focuses on good luck and good fortune. Like the other two chapters the prayers and spell actions in this chapter address the three worlds and the aspects of the God and Goddess in each realm that are important to those prayers. The author also examines the different types of good luck and good fortune out there and why you may want to work and pray for them.
The eleventh chapter in this book is probably the most useful chapter in the book. It is in this chapter that the author finally teaches the reader how to write their own prayers. The nine previous chapters provided several different examples of prayers in different situations. By looking at those prayers a reader can have an idea of how prayers may be constructed. The author provides a three step process for writing prayers and provides blanks in them for you to insert your own concepts and addresses. There are also two prayers for example set up as being written.
The twelfth chapter in the book focuses on writing prayers with the assistance of a familiar spirit. Familiar spirits and spirit guides are common themes and concepts in witchcraft traditions. Here the author explains and provides rituals to get and meet your own familiar spirit, but also explains how and why they are useful in prayer writing.
The thirteenth chapter of the book focuses on another traditional practice of witches. That practice is the ability to travel in spirit body to the different realms and worlds. This is the one hedge witch and shamanic aspect of the book. While the other realms and worlds had been addressed through prayers and had spiritual associations given to the other realms, it is only in this chapter that the reader learns to navigate those realms themselves to gain spiritual insight and prayers of their own.
The fourteenth chapter of this book focuses on steps on the path. Here the author provides different tasks and steps that one can take to making wildwood mysticism and witchcraft their path and part of their daily lives. The author begins the chapter by showing through a symbol that the path of a witch is not straight and that it curves and spirals. The author provides examples of ways we look to the other worlds for guidance and nine different actions we can take to make our spirituality and life whole. This chapter is really about the work it takes to bring this spiritual path to daily life, providing ways to make it a part of your daily life.
The final chapter in this book is about the wheel of the year. This chapter focuses on the typical 8 sabbats of religious witchcraft and ways to celebrate the wheel of the year. There are three different spell actions given for each sabbat (one for each of the worlds and realms) as well as a prayer that focuses on the energetic forces and theme of the sabbat.
By the end of the book the reader has an understanding of a cohesive style and tradition of witchcraft that works with minimal tools, nature energies, and prayer. The book teaches witches not only the importance of prayer work, but how effective prayers can be as a magical and spiritual practice and focus all on their own.
Pagan Blog Project: Intention
Intention:
The power behind Magic
Many times we have discussed magic and spell craft on this blog. There are many different theories about how magic really works and why magic is effective. There are battles on philosophy on if magic is something that is only in the mind or if it exists outside of the mind and the body. I will leave the decision on what magic is and how it really works up to you as a reader and spiritual seeker.
Today we are going to examine and discuss magic from its most basic theory and concept. If you understand the concept of working with your intentions and projecting your intentions to the universe you can start to and understand the very basics of magic and manifesting your needs and desires. So today we are talking about the most basic form of energy work and magic-the work of our intentions and emotions.
So lets get started then. I know every one wants to focus and learn magic at some point in their lives. Who hasn’t wanted to be able to say a few words or do some actions to be able to create change. The practice of magic does this exact thing. Working magic can be a way to manifest your dreams and desires in this world and reality. Magic is one of the tools that we humans have to create needed changes in our lives.
Magic then is the process of directing and manipulating energetic forces towards a desires outcome. So when you work magic you are directing many different types of energetic forces (Energy basics) out to the universe. By programing them with an idea and concept you give the energetic force a job to do. This job is determined by how your program that energy.
So what is it that programs our energetic forces and magic? In the end what programs magic is your intent. Your intent is the desire behind the spell or ritual. To put it most simply your intent and desire is what you want to happen in the end. Your intent when it comes to magic is what you want to happen in your life. Its that simple. Your intent is your desire.
When you cast a spell you are working towards something that you want on an emotional level. Your intent is fueled by your emotions and desires. This is why in magic its always best to work towards something that you actually need rather than something that you just want or would like to have. The things that you actually need will have a stronger emotional tie to them, which means the intent behind the spells will be much stronger.
So how do we know what our intent really is? When a person performs a ritual or a spell for an item they need a clearly defined goal. Common goals worked on in magic are employment and money, health and healing, love and companionship. These are three of the most common types of spells and rituals you will find. With in each of these sections there are many different ways that a specific intent could be found.
Lets work with the example of health and healing. Many people wish that they could have a healthier life. Many people struggle with different health issues from high blood pressure and cholesterol to anxiety and depressive disorders the health issues that humans struggle with come in many different shapes and forms. So it makes sense that the type of healing rituals and health needs that an individual has is going to be very different from any other individual. This is why it is important to have a specific desire and goal in mind.
So if your goal is for healing and health its important to look at your life. Look at your personal health and your personal needs. If you are dealing with issues of high blood pressure you might want to consider doing a spell to release some and relieve some of the stresses that you have in your life. High stress and blood pressure have been linked. So if you work on spells to decrease your stress you will be working on your health. If your health issues are more related to depression and loneliness a spell to increase happiness or friendship in your life would be effective.
So lets focus on depression as the issue that you want to work on with magic. There are many different ways that you can go about this. Because even mental health issues like depression is very unique you need to think about exactly what will help you at this specific time. For example you could work on a spell or ritual to release past hurts and pain, or you could do a spell to increase the amount of joy you have in your life. Both of these goals are ways that you can work on and obtain the goal of minimizing your depression. You need to choose the one that best suits your needs and what you are really wanting to do.
In the end the goal that you choose is the actual intent of your spell. The goal is what you want to make happen. This is why having a clear intent is important. This intent provides the guide for the energetic forces to manifest in your life. The more thought you put into your goal the more emotional power builds up in your intent. The more time you spend working on the spell and the ritual the more force gets built up. This force can be focused just by working on your intent and focusing on your intent.
With out an intent spells dont work. The energy can be sent out into the world, but there will be no directi0n. You may achieve a goal or a desire, but in the end the energy that has been sent out will have no specific outcome that its trying to make happen. If you have a vague idea like simply better health, that goal will manifest but there is no idea exactly how it will show up. Your health could improve in one area but start to loose in another area. This is why having specific intents and goals is essential in working magic.
Now you dont need to do a full ritual to do magic and to work your intent. Working Positive Affirmations on a daily basis is another way that you can work your intent and make magic happen. By stating in a positive way that you already have what it is you want (positive affirmation) the universe knows your desires and intents and can manifest it through your voice and your thoughts. By working on your thoughts and focusing your thoughts on having your goal, you are working your intention and you are able to work magic.
The important thing to take out of this is that having a clear intention and goal makes for effective magic. This is why its always best to work on that which you need. Desire fuels emotional states and emotional states can fuel intention. By working with your emotions and your thoughts you can and will create powerful changes in your life. By understanding the power of your intention you can work magic.
Review: A Witches World of Magick
The book A witches World of Magick is full of magical practices and concepts from around the world. For this reason the book is aptly titled. Through out the book the reader is exposed to magical cultures from the Meso-American cultures (like the Incas and the Aztecs) to Jewish Folklore, to Hindu Vedas. This book covers global magical practices.
The author of this book did a lot of research into the different folk magic practices and traditions around the world in the creation of this book. The authors dedication to providing a diverse selection of folk magic and folk lore on each topic covered is clear by the wonderful footnotes and credits given throughout the book.
This book is not your basic how to book on witchcraft or magic. If you are looking for a how to write a spell or how magic works book than this book is not for you. This book is focused on and for those in the intermediate area of study. This book is designed to provide experienced practitioners new ways of practicing magic and looking at magical concepts from folk magic practices around the world.
A witches world of Magick is an informative guide to folk magic around the world. By the end of each chapter the reader has covered several different approaches to magical techniques in folk magic traditions that they may have never heard of or explored otherwise. Each chapter while they cover specific magical concepts and techniques covers the magical concepts and techniques from different perspectives in different cultures. In doing this the author provides many different views of magic and different ways to look at magic.
There are ten chapters in this book. Each chapter focuses on a specific type of magical concept or practice. With the common thread or practice for the chapter defined, the author in each chapter provides the reader with a ton of different sets of folklore and folk magic.
The book opens by mentioning how universal the concept of magic is and how wide the varieties of magical practices there are. With in the first chapter it is clear that the book does take a global approach to the practices and magical workings. While the title of the book is “A witches world of magic” not all of the traditions and practices that are discussed are considered witchcraft. The book really only touches on witchcraft at the end of each chapter, providing witches with questions to think about for their magical practices as well as concepts for how the folk magic discussions can be applied into an individuals witchcraft today.
To further illustrate that the book is not a book for beginners the first chapter in the book covers working magic with out the use of tools. The chapter is titled No-Tools Body magic. Its clear right away that the author is showing advanced magical techniques covering the practices of the evil eye, through speech and voice alone, to gestures and movement of the body to make magic effective.
The second chapter covers potion or mixing magic. Once again the author provides a few unusual ways of thinking about potion making and mixing ingredients to make a spell work. From gypsy love potions to a tale about two Polynesian wizards the author covers both conventional and unconventional forms of mixing magic and potions. Again the author ends the chapter with concepts for the practicing witch to ask themselves to further their new magical practices and concepts.
The third chapter discusses container magic. The chapter does not mention Jar spells as found in Hoodoo and other forms of magic but rather other types of containment spells. The concept of talismans and amulets as a container for magical energy is addressed her, but is addressed in a manner related to folk magic concepts. Once again various cultures from Egypt to Nigeria and even the PowWow tradition of the Pennsylvania Dutch magical practices related to containing forces and power are discussed in that chapter.
The fourth chapter is all about knot magic and binding magic. The spells covered here include a well known folk charm by sailors to create wind while at seas. Other knot magic and binding spells cover love and protection. From Gypsy magic to the sacred knots of the girdle worn by Zoroastrrians binding and knot based folk magic can be found in that chapter.
The fifth chapter is all about puncture magic. Yes the concept of voodoo dolls or dolls punctured to create a magical effect is covered here. However the dolls are only one of many different magical practices discussed here in this chapter. Not all piercing magic is baneful or curse like. The chapter covers a few examples of healing magic through punctures.
The sixth chapter is all about identification. In magic it is important to have a clear target or concept in mind when working a spell. If you are doing a distance healing for someone its important to know their name or have some way to connect the energetic forces to them. This chapter covers many different ways that a person can identify the target of their spell. From actual names to using body parts the folk magic in this chapter shows how identification of the target is essential.
The seventh chapter is actually related to the previous chapter. This chapter covers decoy magic. Here the magical practices include the well known witches jar, as well as using rocks or stones to distract a spirit. From using masks and loud noises to making an actual representation of the original target as a decoy, decoy and distraction magic is covered here.
The eighth chapter is about curse breaking. The author is clear in the beginning of the chapter that the two most common forms of magic practiced are those of healing magic and those of protection and curse breaking. The various mentioned include using parts of the body (hair, spit, etc) of the curser to remove the curse, destroying the artifacts, and sending back curses. From a modern American curse (the curse of the Bambino) to the Evil eye methods of curse breaking come in as many different forms as there are cultures in the world.
The ninth chapter is about masks and mimic magic. In shamanic cultures shape shifting is often involved in getting to know an animal spirit and to work with the animal spirit. This is just one form of mimic and mask magic involved. Other techniques include jumping high in the fields to show how the crops should grow. The idea is that by showing the fields how to grow they will and that by becoming the animal or spirit, that animal or spirit will manifest there and lend its power to the working at hand.
The final chapter discusses and mentions group magic and ritual. Group magic and ritual was common once but not so any more. From the ancient rituals of those who follow Dionysus to mentions of our modern day Pagan Pride day celebrations, the author covers why group magic is essential and why it should be considered a practice.
By the end of the book the author has given multiple cultural practices that a witch can integrate into their own practices and take inspiration from. The goal of this book is to inspire the witch to look at folklore and folk magic and find new ways of adding to their magical practices. This book is just what the intermediate witch needs to take their magic to the next level using only folklore and traditional practices.
I: Intuition
Intuition
One of the first things most books on witchcraft and spiritual practices say is to trust your intuition. If something feels right then do it. If something doesn’t feel right than it probably isn’t. If you feel like there is something you need to do or really should be doing than you probably should be doing those things. These feelings of something needing to be done, and of something feeling right or off are ways that our intuition comes to us and manifests in our world.
There are many different ways that a person can trust and develop a sense of their intuition. When a person learns to trust their intuition they can really have the world at their feet. By trusting and working with your intuition a person will essentially “never be guided wrong”. Your intuition is really your highest self talking to your conscious mind and telling you basically what needs to be done at that moment. Our intuition is also one of the many ways that our spirit guides can contact us.
Learning to develop a sense of your intuition is typically one of the first things that witches and pagans do. By developing their intuition a person can better understand messages sent from their Gods and spirits. It also helps them to better connect to the spiritual forces and energetic needs going on. By developing a sense of your intuition you also develop a sense of what works and will simply “know” how to work the ritual on that day for that reason. This is our spirit and ourselves working as one, and when this state is reached one really has become a witch if they practice witchcraft and aware of the spiritual nature of reality if they are not a witch.
For me I have only really recently started to work with my intuition. For years I knew I had a strong intuition and sense of energetic flows. I could read energy and see auras. I was especially sensitive to emotional energy. For me understanding my intuition and its strength was a scary process. My readings when I did them were so strong and accurate I scared myself from doing my own readings and for reading for others. Its only been recently I have realized that this intuition is a gift rather than a curse so I am actively working on recognizing my strengths and listening to my intuition.
The very first time I realized that my intuition would guide me in my magical and spiritual spells was when I created an incense I use in all my reiki and healing work sessions. When I created that first incense I didn’t know what I was making. I just grabbed the herbs I had that dealt with healing energies. I laid those herbs on the floor in front of me and I started to just grab and mix the herbs as seemed right. I don’t remember making measurements or anything along those lines. I just knew that the incense was right. I remembered to write down what I put in the incense so I could try and make it again but aside from that no record was made.
The healing incense that I sell in Mystic Echoes was inspired by and is an offshoot of that original healing incense blend. The core is the same, but there were other factors that personalized the other incense so they are not exactly the same but they are related. The tincture blend is also related. The core is the same with some modifications in both situations to be more generic than the original purely intuitive blend. You can buy those items Tincture & Incense blend
One of the many ways I have started to recognize my intuition has been in casting spells when it seems to be the right time. In the past I have felt a desire to cast a spell or thought that maybe a spell would help deal with this, and never done the work. I never really trusted myself to just do the right thing. In this sense I didn’t trust my intuition to basically tell me what I needed to do for that spell. Now I am being more active in my spell casting. I work my magic when it seems right and when it feels right.
The key way I am developing my intuition when it comes to my magical practices and my spirituality now though is through the development of products for Mystic Echoes and the writing of the exercises and content on the Seeker Sight blog that I also run. By working on both projects I am listening to my inner truths and knowledge and my intuition is guiding me.
With the products I develop for Mystic Echoes I have a concept in mind that I want to work with. I do some research. For example if I were to develop a hex breaker product or products I would look up herbs and items that correspond with hex breaking. I would then just let my intuition look over the list and decide what to use for items. In many cases it also depends on what I currently have available to work with.
I test all of those products as well. So by developing the products I am developing my spirituality, my intuition, my magical practices, and my knowledge of herbs. The herbs seem to work together because I trust that they will work together. My intuition guided me and will continue to guide me in my craft and practices.
I am not sure exactly how I define my intuition. I would call it an inner sense of knowing. I would say that for me my intuition is a combination of things I know within myself and messages and content sent to me through guides, ancestors, and maybe the divine. I don’t necessarily know the difference between which intuitive thoughts and practices are from guides and which is from deep within me. I just know that when I listen to my intuition things seem to work out in the end. When I don’t listen to my intuition things don’t always work out, or I will be tested in the same way or manner until I do listen to my intuition and then do something about it.
H: Health and Wellness Tincture
This is a magical curio only and not a medicinal item and is for external use only. The focus of this tincture is to bring out natural healing energies within the body and to allow those energies to flow easier through the body. It was crafted to aid in healing rituals and spells but can be an effective spell on its own.
This particular blend was developed to assist in Reiki treatments. Many healers enjoy using incenses and oils as a part of their treatment, however not everyone and everyplace allows the burning of incense. This tincture can be used as a liquid incense. By crafting a liquid alternative Mystic Echoes provides an herbal product that will allow a healing herbal scent to be present in a room without being overwhelmed. Its designed to be used just like any other oils would be.
The Health and Wellness Tincture is an infusion of Lavender, Peppermint, Spearmint, Ginkgo Leaf. Each of these herbs were chosen for their associations with health, healing, and overall well being. Many of these herbs work healing magic in multiple ways. This allows the tincture to work on many different types of healing rites and services.
Ginkgo leaf is an herb that has seen popularity in iced tea drinks. This is an excellent herb for some base natural healing energy. It boosts your own vitality and inner systems. Ginkgo leaf specifically works on the circulation of the blood and the body which means vitamins and minerals as well as healing forces. This simple herb works in this tincture as the vessel for distributing the energy through the body through circulation.
Lavender is an herb that is used in multiple different ways medicinally and magically. In this tincture Lavender was chosen for a few reasons. Lavender is an herb that works well when fighting depression and anxiety. This makes it a healing herb for mental health issues. Lavender has additional healing properties in that it brings longevity, peace, and happiness. This herb also works to fight depression by allowing for peaceful nights sleep.
Peppermint and Spearmint were added as a pair of power booster herbs. These two herbs work well as a team for powerful healing and mental focuses. This team provides a force that is natural and energetic that allows for versatility and enjoyable scents around the home. These are two herbs that really should be worked in harmony together in most workings.
Both Spearmint and Peppermint share similar properties Healing is one of the properties. In this tincture the team works as a scent carrier. The scent of peppermint is relaxing and typically brings back pleasant memories. It is this both the relaxation and healing properties together that brought the spearmint and peppermint team into this tincture as an energy booster and a scent provider.
This is a spell ready to be used. You can use this tincture in the same way you would use any magical oil. You can apply it as a perfume/cologne, you can burn it as a smokeless incense, you can anoint a blue or white candle and burn the candle or you can place a few drops on the person or around the place/item to be healed
D: The divine in my world-Omnitheism defined
The divine in Ominitheism
I live a constantly evolving paradox in some ways. I am an omnitheist. Its an all encompassing view of the divine. I say all encompassing because depending on what sort of ritual I am working my view on the divine will change or be modified. I make room for experiences of the divine in basically any and all formats as I believe the overall Divine to be something that humans can not fully understand in our form. This also means I will and have experienced the divine in many different forms.
Basically I am a Hard Polytheist in that I believe in all individual Gods in pantheons and religions. I may not have encountered them all like I’ve never met to my knowledge any of the Gods associated with Chinese religions or Hinduism or even Native American traditions, but I still believe those Gods are individual beings. This also means that I Do believe in Yaweh/Allah/Jehovah or the God of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. I can’t emphasis this enough. I just believe that they are an individual God among many.
This also means that when I work a ritual from the context of a soft polytheistic view where they believe all the Gods are one God and all the Goddesses are one Goddess I believe the God and Goddess of that religion are a unique God and Goddess whose impressions are a combination of the psychological archetypes of the many Gods and Goddesses in literature. So I believe that there is a God and Goddess out there who through modern Wicca and Modern religious witchcraft movements who is a manifested form and force of All Gods and all Goddesses, though each person in this religious form focuses on specific names to them it doesn’t matter and to this divine duo the names do not matter. They are nameless and yet have many names.
Like wise my belief in the God of the three big religions allows me to attend church services with family members and treat it as I would the worship of any other God within their specific religious constraints. Yaweh and I have an understanding of sorts in that I believe in him and have accepted that he is the supreme God in those religions. However I never in the Christian tradition I was a heretic of sorts believing that the trinity was a set of three divine beings. So like I said we’ve reached an understanding of sorts that is uncomfortable at best for the both of us. I maintain my belief that he is one of many thousands of Gods and I treat the church services as that Gods particular style of worship.
In this way it is not any different than how I outlined I have approached the worship of Greek Gods and Norse Gods. I approach their worship from a recon style and perspective. I find that recons so long as the worship of the different pantheons or cultures is separate then you can follow more than one path. Its about respecting the Gods and making sure that you worship them in a way that would have been appropriate in that particular culture.
In this way I treat Christianity as a culture which it really is. The Christian worldview has impacted the world culture in many ways, so when I go to church I feel that I am engaging in that aspect of the culture I live in, as well as the culture where this God (Yaweh) is worshiped.
I believe that all the Gods of the Greek pantheon are individuals. I believe that all the Gods of the Norse pantheon are individuals (to the point where even the tribal differences in views and concepts may actually be different divine forces) an so forth for each pantheon. I even believe that the 12 big Gods of the Greek pantheon and the 12 great Gods of the Roman pantheon who are often said to be the same beings are separate beings (Zeus and Jupiter are different Gods in my view and not the same as in other views of the two pantheons).
I have experienced too many different types of divine individuals to not believe that in some way all views of the divine are true. This is why I consider myself to be an omnitheist. While I believe that there are individual Gods and Goddesses (Athena, Frigga, Isis, Ceriweden, etc to name a few and only a few) as individual people (like I am different from you) I also believe that there may be an overruling God of each force like there may be a generic Goddess of Love and God of war that are essentially made up of all the other Gods of each force).
I have experienced individual divine forces and I have experienced overarching all encompassing divine forces. I believe all paths hold truths. This is why I believe that by studying all religions and philosophies I can gain even more insight into the divine and the mysteries of the universe. In this way I may also be a chaos magician where I change paradigms as needed for ritual and spiritual work, if so than I am a chaos witch. I’ve experienced too many different styles of the divine manifesting to not believe that all versions of the divine are true
Suffice to say this basically outlines most of my concept of the divine. My views of the divine are constantly evolving and changing. I’ve had too many different experiences to not be willing to be open to every possible avenue for the divine to manifest. Though because I also believe in the power of the mind I also think that we can create divine forces or manifestations of the divine energy through names and other experiences.
In essence this is where part of my experience of the five Gods and Goddesses that are the divine beings in Pentalism comes from my experience with the various Unnamed Gods and Goddesses of Eclectic Wiccan and Eclectic Neo-pagan witchcraft traditions. Each tradition had some very similar concepts of the God and Goddess but there were enough differences that I started to feel that perhaps there was actually more then one God and Goddess involved in the myths and lore of Modern witchcraft.
Those divine beings are basically a separation and division of the five different types of Gods and Goddesses I have experienced through different versions of modern Eclectic Wiccan lore. I thought that because there were essentially five different ways I saw the Gods manifested that there were five distinct Gods and Goddesses worshiped in Wiccan traditions. The more I study and think about the different God forms and Goddess forms and associations I see the more those five Gods make sense.
So I figure I’m developing a tradition that treats the seasonal versions of the Gods as individuals and the Moon Goddess and Sun God as separate beings. I’m still developing experiential lore in meditations to support this particular divine setting but so far it seems to make sense. The season energies are very different so the Gods involved in each season would be different. There will be more information on those Gods in the next post, outlining the Gods and Goddess of Pentalism.
Omnitheism I feel is important as a view and philosophy of the divine as it allows for extreme personal experiences. It allows people to experience the divine as individual beings while also accessing the divine forces behind say healing with out specific names. This allows people to have both experiences with the individual divine beings in the various pantheons and the overall divine forces that are out there in life.
Grimoire-My Magical record system
Grimoire: My Record system
Most witches out there have books that they keep their rituals and spells in. Many traditions call this book a Book of Shadows. In this book they write down all their rituals, all their spells, and any work that they do with spirits and spiritual beings. This record becomes in many way our personal sacred texts and documents. In some cases witches can use their experiences within their records and books to in effect create the lore for their own system and practices.
Like most witches I do have my own magical book and record system. I actually used to have several different books that I would keep. In an effort to keep all of the rituals from the different systems I studied separate as they were all separate systems I decided to keep my notes and my notes books separate. Its only recently that they have been combined back into one book, at least for the time being.
As a solitary and primarily self directed witch I have the freedom to basically record any information I want in any way that I want. This means that I can have articles from magazines in there as well as any personal reflections. My book is really personal and is my own record. Though this book will in the end be used as the basis for the tradition I would like to found and teach, in general my book is something that really only makes sense to myself.
Now I call my book a Grimoire for many reasons. The term book of shadows just never seem to fit. For one thing I have never been in the shadows with my practice at all. I have always been open and upfront about it. I have never hidden my practice. Though I might not have discussed it or brought it up in front of some family members I’ve never really made any attempts to hide the fact that I am and have always been a witch. So the concept of a book of shadows when I am not in the shadows didnt make any sense.
The other reason is that my book has more than just spells, rituals, and invocations. My book has theory and exercises. It has lore and poetry. My book basically contains the sum of my spiritual knowledge and experience over the years. In this book I have recorded the names of spirits I work with, their personalities, and much more. This book could in essence be used to teach my path to another person. It provides step by step exercises with reflections to give an idea of what could be experienced. The book even has some of the realms and other worlds I have visited listed in there with details.
I also like the term Grimoire. So I use it for my own practices. I know that its not one of the great Grimoires of Ceremonial Magic and Invocation traditions, but for me it still is a Grimoire. Other people when they have read my book will be able to look at it and perform the rituals and the works in there and have effective practices. They can use my book as a step by step manual for the works I have done.
The other thing is that I have material from the official Temple Tradition Grimoire for the first degree in my book as well. The Temple material does have its own book as well. However the material also belongs in my book as I have experiences based on the training found in the Temple tradition. That is the other reason I call my book a Grimoire. If the Temple tradition calls its ritual handbook a Grimoire, than I think I can call my book the same thing. I am after all scribing information from the Temple text into my own text as well.
One thing I am going to try and be better about is actually recording and writing down my rituals and my spells. I’m the sort of witch who may not always write down the rituals and spells that they have performed. For this reason there are large gaps in my book of dates. I also don’t have any information from my early days as a witch. That first book is long gone. So working on my Grimoire is actually one of the ways I have started to get my spirituality back on track.
I have all kinds of notes from books I have read that need to be transcribed into my Book. I am also going to sift through my diaries of a couple years. I know in several of my diary entries I have thoughts on Gods, Goddesses, and my spirituality. The notes and the diary entries will provide more material for my book and show me even more places where I have grown and where my spiritual paths have developed. I just need to spend the time to sort my notes and find out where in my book they will belong.
I do hope that in time I can create different books of Grimoire style work. I want to have a book just for Dragon work. That way in that book I have only information that relates to dragons. By separating that information it also makes it easier to find exactly what I am looking for in my books. The same goes for my work with Germanic paganism and Greek Paganism. I’m also creating a prayer book and a specific spell book. The creation of these books is part of my spiritual development and my spiritual practices. It relates to my view of the importance of the sacred scribe.
Over the next few weeks my Grimoire is going to get more information into it. I am going to be adding spells I have posted on websites and I am going to be adding in all sorts of additional correspondence information and the like. I may have to end up making the main book into separate books any way as this one is already quite full. So I may end up with theory and exercises in one book with rituals and correspondences in another book. We shall see how things develop over time.
I know that as I study Hoodoo and get recipes for various items and spells I will be including those in my book as well. I already have a few recipes for different types of water in my book. Soon I am going to add spells to the book. I just got to the spell centric section of one of the books I have been reading and working through. So that in itself is going to add a bit of stuff to my book. I’m always busy developing something spiritually between my business and this new maintenance of my Grimoire there is always something new to do and make.
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Mystic Echoes 