A spell begins with a thought – a wish, or a prayer for something that is not already in existence. It is an intention or a desire to make that wish manifest, to bring it into reality, through an act of will.

 

Human beings have used spells since the dawn of recorded time. The paintings of animals on the walls of prehistoric caves are believed to be the first spells. By painting the images of their quarry on the rock face, our ancestors believed that they gained control over the spirits of the animals, and thus assisted the hunt.

 

We may laugh at such beliefs, but anthropologists who have spent time amongst the hunting cultures of so called “primitive” tribes have been frequently amazed by the accuracy with which the shamans or magicians of the tribe have directed the hunters towards animals very distant from themselves. Such shaman have often directed the hunters to set their snares in such a way that the animals appear to be driven towards them by inexplicable means.

 

We are told in The Bible: “Ask and it shall be given you.” (Matthew 7:7) This is a promise that prayers are answered. And the advocates of “Mind Power” all agree that by focussing our energies towards achieving specific goals we will meet with success.

 

What we are doing when we cast a spell is directing all our energies towards making our wish a reality, and directing the natural energies of the Universe towards helping us to achieve our desire. We are focussing or concentrating all our powers towards a particular outcome.

 

A spell has three aspects – preparation, performance and follow up. Each is discussed separately.

 

Preparation

 

 

Preparation for spell casting is as important as the spell working itself. The first thing to think about is exactly what it is you want to ask for. This may require a period of meditation, as it is not as straightforward as it may first appear. Let’s say you want to travel overseas. You decide to do a spell for some money, because you don’t have enough cash to buy your ticket. Simple? Maybe not!

 

You get the money – but it is because your grandmother dies and leaves it to you. You feel guilty all the time you are away. Did your wish for money somehow contribute to her death? Everything in the Universe is part of a web of inter connection. Touch one part and the vibrations are felt everywhere else. So before you tinker with the natural order, think very carefully about the possible consequences of your actions.

 

What would be a better way of achieving your desire to travel? For a start, don’t assume that you have all the answers. A little humility goes a long way in magic. Leave it up to the Universe to decide how to deliver your wish. In other words, don’t ask for the money for the trip, just ask for the trip, and leave the means of providing it to be decided by the Higher Power.

 

On the other hand, be specific about the end goal. It is not enough to ask for “a trip” when you really want to go to Nepal.  You might end up going to Antarctica instead! And why do you want to go to Nepal anyway? To meet the Dalai Lama? The Universe might arrange it so you “coincidentally” bump into him on your own street during one of his world tours! See what I mean about being specific, but leaving it up to the Higher Power?

 

The next step is to assemble all the items required for the spell. A spell is like a recipe – you need to get all the ingredients ready before you begin cooking. You may need to do some research to see what substitutions would be acceptable if some of the ingredients are unavailable. Yes, you are expected to put in some effort here! The more effort you put in, the more quickly a successful result will be achieved. There is no substitute for plain hard work.

 

One word of caution – a lot of older spells contain ingredients that are no longer regarded as acceptable in modern spell workings. When people kept and killed their own animals routinely for food, the addition of some fresh chicken blood to a magical potion did not imply cruelty. These days, you would have to go out of your way to obtain such an ingredient, and it would be repugnant to the average person to slit a chicken’s throat to procure it. So unless you live on a farm and are accustomed to slaughtering livestock – substitute!

 

Similarly, some ingredients come from sources that are now either politically or environmentally suspect. When people cleared out bats from the rafters the same way we rid our homes of mice, a bat’s wing was not an ecological no no. These days, they are endangered species. Don’t even think about it! Think instead about why the bat’s wing has been included in the brew. Does it symbolize flight? Then a feather or a paper dart would be a suitable substitute. If it doesn’t seem to have any purpose, then leave it out. Our ancestors were not above including things for theatrical effect! (By the way, Dragons Blood is the folk name of the red resin from a particular tree!)

 

On the subject of substitutions, where colour is involved, white is a suitable substitute, as it contains all colours within it. Split a ray of white light with a prism and your get the full rainbow spectrum of colours. So if you don’t have the right coloured candle or piece of paper, white will always do.

 

The final step, once you have clarified the purpose of your spell working and assembled the ingredients, is to prepare yourself and the space you will be working in. Many people like to take a ritual bath, dress in special clothes, and meditate for a while before beginning their spell casting. If your wish is a simple one, you may not wish to go to such elaborate lengths, but the more significant your request, the more important the correct procedure becomes. In other words, if it’s not worth going to the trouble of doing it properly, then it’s probably not worth doing it at all! If you are half hearted about the work, then the response will be equally half hearted. Do you really want it or not?

 

The ritual bath is for cleansing – add a handful of salt or an essential oil like lavender to the water for this purpose. Then put on the clothes you feel comfortable and special working in. Diaphanous robes and flowing sleeves look good on television, but in real life they can be very dangerous if working with fire and/or candles. Use some common sense! I have seen long hair go up in flames at a ritual. Remember what happened to Michael Jackson and be warned!

 

Now prepare the working space. This involves cleansing the area, and ridding it of negative entities or vibrations. There are several methods of doing this – use what feels best for you. At the most basic level, the space needs to be cleaned of dirt and dust. If outside, pick up any litter, and rake away dead leaves and vegetation. Inside, use a vacuum and some elbow grease and get everything sparkling clean.

 

Ritually, the area is then prepared with cleansing and banishing.  Some people use sound for this purpose, e.g. bells, cymbals, or hand clapping. Others sprinkle with salt, water, or herbs. Ritual sweeping with a broom is also common. Negative energies and entities can be verbally ordered to leave – some magicians wield a sword while carrying out this part of the ritual.

 

Traditionally, spell casting is carried out within the protection of a circle. Make your circle of salt or herbs, draw it with chalk on the floor, scratch it into the ground with the point of your staff, or inscribe it invisibly with sword or broomstick. This is where the witch’s girdle or waist cord comes in handy – anchor one end to a point in the centre of the space, and use it to mark out the circumference of your circle. The circle is usually made clockwise or “sun wise” and unmade anticlockwise or “widdershins.” The direction of the sun’s rotation does not alter with a change in hemispheres. If you are doing a banishing ritual, you might consider casting the circle in the opposite direction, but this is a matter of opinion – there is not a fixed rule about it, despite what some people would have you believe!

 

Once your circle is in place, you can put on some appropriate music, light some incense and candles, and put the elemental symbols in place. These can go on an altar, or at each of the compass points. Most books are written for the Northern Hemisphere, where the sun’s fire comes from the south. It is more sensible for those of us Downunder to put Fire in the North, Earth in the South, Water in the West and Air in the East (East and West don’t change no matter where in the world you are!)

 

Suitable elemental symbols are a candle for fire; a bowl of water or a cup of wine for water; incense or a feather for air; and a crystal or an earth bowl for earth. The more attractive your altar the better. Add some fresh flowers and fruits, goddess images, Tarot cards – whatever you like to make it look special.

 

Now is the time to invoke your guides and guardians, and to call in the spirits of the Universe to help and protect you and your working. Who you call upon will depend upon the tradition within which you are working, depending upon whether it is Druidic, Wiccan, Norse or Native. If you are not working within any particular tradition, simply ask your guides and guardians to support you.

 

You are now almost ready to begin. But first, a word about timing.

 

Timing

 

Although in an emergency a spell can be carried out under almost any circumstances, the best results are obtained with correct timing. The first thing to consider is the Moon phase. A spell for increase should be carried out at a time when the Moon is increasing or waxing. A spell for decrease or banishing should be done when the Moon is diminishing or waning.

 

Then the day of the week should be looked at. The following are the recommended days for specific activities, and their associated colours, planets and aromas:

 

Monday: travel, magical working (silver, white, violet); Moon; amber, sandalwood, jasmine

Tuesday: military matters, fighting, discord (red, orange, dark blue); Mars; benzoin, geranium, cedarwood, cinnamon

Wednesday: study, inspiration, communication (purple, yellow, light blue); Mercury; sandalwood, marjoram, benzoin

Thursday: luck, success, wealth, honour (purple, gold, green, blue); Jupiter; sandalwood, benzoin, frankincense, myrrh, patchouli

Friday: love, lust, beauty, friendship (pink, green, red); Venus; rose, violet, jasmine, ylangylang

Saturday: study, esoteric ideas, calmness (black, indigo, light blue); Saturn; myrrh, cypress

Sunday: health, success, luck (yellow, red, gold); Sun; myrrh, frankincense, sandalwood

 

If you are an astrologer, or have a good astrological calendar, even the time of day can be taken into consideration. Although Hollywood has led us to believe that spells are cast by the light of the Moon, in fact nothing could be further from the truth. Gardeners who “plant by the Moon” do not do so in the dark! But this is a bit too complex for the average person. If you are not an astrologer and don’t have access to a good almanac, then the best time of day is the time you are least likely to be disturbed. Take the phone off the hook, hang the Do Not Disturb sign on the door and away you go…

 

Footnote: Everything you have done by way of preparation will have to be undone when you are finished. Thank your guides, guests and guardians and send them on their way, disassemble your altar or set it to one side, unmake your circle in the opposite direction to that in which it was made, and return everything you have used to its correct place.

 

 

 

Performance

 

 

A key factor for success in spell casting is visualisation. As you carry out the instructions for carrying out the spell, visualize your energies flowing into the work and see clearly in your mind’s eye the end result – your wish coming true.

 

The correct energy path is for the energy to enter your body through the crown chakra and flow out through the solar plexus. This is the route that channels energy through you rather than from you, and avoids the lower chakras where our baser emotions reside. The best way to get this energy flowing correctly is to spend a short time before commencing the work centring yourself and breathing the energy through the paths you want it to follow.

 

The trick is to relax and concentrate simultaneously. Relaxation is achieved by knowing exactly what you intend to do before you start – memorising the instructions, in other words, and feeling confident in performing the steps according to the directions. Concentration is achieved through grounding, energy channelling and visualising.

 

The other key factor is intention. As long as our intention is clear, the odd mis-step or inaccuracy will not be too damaging. (This is not to say that carelessness is acceptable – carelessness conveys its own message!) It is helpful to add the phrase “for the highest good of all concerned” to any spell performed. We generally have the best of intentions, but since we cannot see the whole picture, we have to take it on faith that the Higher Power knows best what is good for us and for others. 

 

Another important precaution is to treat magical equipment with the respect it deserves. The New Age rediscovery of candles, incenses and oil burners has led to a crop of accidents involving fires, burns and poisonings. Always use sensible fire proof containers for candles and lamps, never leave them near soft furnishings such as curtains, never leave burning candles unattended, and be particularly cautious if children are around – essential oil burners can scald and essential oils can burn or poison. Just because a product is “natural” is does not mean it is harmless – deadly nightshade is “natural”!

 

To remind yourself of the dangers of fire and to give due reverence to its elementals, it is customary to say “Blessed Be, Creature of Fire,” when striking a match, and to shake it out rather than blowing it out. For the same reason, magical candles should be pinched or snuffed out, not blown out. Dispose of incense cones and blocks carefully – they remain hot long after they appear to have gone out. Many a rubbish bag has caught fire this way.

 

Carry out the instructions as accurately and precisely as possible, with the highest degree of concentration and attention you can attain. Understanding the whys and wherefores behind what you are doing is important, so the more research you do and the more you learn the better. Any cook can dutifully follow a recipe, and will generally turn out a reasonably acceptable result. But a master chef understands the underlying principles of the process, and can adapt, expand and turn out something that is truly memorable. It is the same with magic.

 

            The more knowledge you have, the more confident you will be. Most people interested in magic have heard of the witch’s Book of Shadows or Grimoire, but many have the impression that it is only a book of spells, like a recipe book. Far from it! A Book of Shadows contains all sorts of useful information collected over the years – the properties of various plants; old wives tales; observations; the names of the gods and goddesses in various mythologies; notes about how a spell worked (or didn’t work) and the pitfalls of certain procedures. There is no limit to what it might contain, as long as it contributes to the spell worker’s magical knowledge. And these days, it may be contained on a computer disk rather than handwritten in a leather bound journal!

 

Ironically, the more you learn about magic, the less inclined you will be to use it lightly. The beginner tends to rush in with enthusiasm, firing off spells in all directions. The master magician tends to be a lot more circumspect, and will often meditate on a situation for days before deciding to leave it up to the Higher Power after all.

 

 

 

A Helpful Hint

 

 

Spells make great gifts. Assemble all the ingredients for a spell, write out the instructions in your best handwriting on a nice piece of paper, and give it to a friend as a present. The instructions can be rolled like a scroll and tied with a ribbon – add a wax seal if you have one. The only limit is your own imagination.

 

Another great gift is a pretty journal, with a spell or two written in it, for a friend to start their own Book of Shadows in. These can often be found in bargain bins – keep an eye out for them. Or you could cover a hard backed notebook with some appropriate cloth or paper.


 

 

 

Follow Up

 

Many spells include in their instructions some advice about disposing of the remains of the ingredients. The best general guideline, if no specifics are given, is to be respectful. Burying the leftovers is generally acceptable. If it is a spell to bring you something, bury them close to home. If it is a spell to dispose of something, then bury it away from the home.  Be mindful that you do no damage in disposing of leftovers. These days, an instruction to cast something into a stream or into the sea might not be the environmentally friendly thing to do.

 

Once you have carried out the spell, do not repeat it unless the instructions state otherwise. Leave it up to the Universe to deliver your wish, and trust that it will do so. Doing five different spells aimed at the same result is the equivalent of picking at a scab and wondering why it won’t heal. It demonstrates lack of trust and scatters the energies of the spell working rather than concentrating them.

 

The other step that is often forgotten is to give thanks once the blessing is received. Thanks may be given verbally, or in the form of an offering – a libation of wine tipped on to the ground, a donation to charity given to show gratitude, or food left out for the wildlife by way of thanking the Universe.

 

My personal recommendation is the keeping of a Gratitude Journal, in which thanks is recorded daily for the blessings received in abundance that are so often overlooked. At the end of each day I record five things I am grateful for, and I make it a personal challenge that at least one of them must be something I have never listed before.

 

If we don’t notice what we already have, and show appreciation for it, why should we be blessed with more?