Yule Preparations - Day 2

In my last post, I mentioned that I was going to represent the God and Goddess in my Yule celebrations. Now, I am a solitary witch and so do not subscribe to a particular Wiccan tradition - if you do then you are likely to already have close associations with particular deities and the associated names. But I enjoy the ecclectic nature of being solitary in this instance, that I can choose what I feel most drawn to and what I feel would most suit my spell or ritual. As long as I give thanks and am humble, I see all is well with this.

For this particular Yule, I am choosing the Triple Goddess and the horned God.

To represent the Triple Goddess I am going to use an altar cloth with her/their symbol on it. I am also going to use a display that features something else I talked of yesterday - the crystal ball. This will placed at the centre as it's to represent the full moon, the mother - full and abundant. On either side, to represent maiden and crone, I will have an acorn and an owl. Potential and vitality balanced by wisdom and a psychic eye.

Now for the horned God - I am going to use the guise of the Holly King for this. Plenty around and this represents perfectly a rich, deepness in character (in the dark green) and the scary edge (in the prickles)! Holly is something that I'm so happy to use in my Yule rituals and spells as not only does it have its Pagan traditions but it's one of the many things that remains with us today and so brings with it all the happy memories of childhood memories.

Now need to get cracking on putting some structure together for al these ideas!

Fran xxx

Seraphimia: The infamous Crowley still stirring up trouble

Seraphimia: The infamous Crowley still stirring up trouble: "Image via WikipediaI've been rather absent from this blog recently and not simply because of my 101 project keeping me occupied, I've also ..."

Above is a thought provoking blog post from Seraphimia that I wanted to share. It raises some great questions about the nature of faith, beliefs and religion in general. I felt a little sad reading it as I thought of all the leaders and figure heads of religion who are drawn to the power (she talks of Aleister Crowley in particular), leaving all the goodness and dignity to the 'followers'. I hope Seraphimia is strengthened by her time of reflection :)

My Beltane Rituals Article

I've written an article on some simple Beltane rituals and traditions and thought I may as well post it here too! Hope you enjoy it :)

For witches, Wiccans and Pagans alike, the important festive time of Beltane is approaching! Here are some traditional Beltane rituals you might like to try for this special day. 

• Maypole dancing - more associated with May Day for most people but a Beltane ritual all the same! The maypole is a large staff of about 20 feet placed in the ground with long ribbons attached. The merry-makers would then dance with a ribbon in their hand, men going in one direction and women in the other. As they wove in and out of one another the ribbons would cover the pole in an intricate pattern. It’s a ritual related to fertility (which originates from the Germanic tradition) and in the UK it is also associated with Morris dancers, who’s dancing is also associated with fertility rites. 
  

• You can also use your own representation of the may pole such as a branch (fallen not cut) from an Oak or Hazel tree. 
  

• Washing your face in morning dew - tradition has it that it keeps you beautiful all year. So get up early!
  

• Bonfire or fire of some kind - Beltane is to many a fire festival and one version of the origin of the name is ‘bale fires’ which is due to some of the agricultural work at that time of year. It is also connected to the Celtic God Bel, who was honoured on this day. It is part of many Wiccan practices to jump over a small bonfire or a candle flame. Don’t catch on fire though!
  

• Flowers, particularly hawthorn - baskets of flowers were made to make the most of the colourful array of nature’s gifts. So as part of your Beltane ritual, make a basket of flowers to give away as a gift. 
  

• Incense and herbs - angelica, frankincense, hawthorn, lilac and rose are associated to Beltane rituals.
  

• A chalice for fertility - this symbolises the womb. You can also include a dagger for male symbolism. Dip the dagger into the chalice as part of your Beltane ritual or altar work. 
  

• Colours  - white, dark green, red are used to symbolise both the fertility rites and also, because of the return of the sun to the earth, both spring and summer seasons are associated. 
  

• Red and white ribbons to braided around a wand to place on your altar. 
  

• Lastly, binding is also symbolically very important as this is a time for marriage. You can also use your Beltane ritual to bind your desires to you but bear in mind you will be stuck with them so choose wisely! 
  

Yuletide Time!

Is Christmas on its way? I’d hardly noticed! ;)

To you and me of course this means the Winter Solstice - Yule! It doesn’t feel like 5 minutes since I was writing about my Samhain/Halloween plans but already there’s more to do. I’m certainly not complaining though, I absolutely love this time of year and I could do with working some more on my Samhain led focus!

I’m going to do the same thing again, posting all of my plans as I go along, sharing the final spell when I’ve completed it. I’ll also include some of the Yule traditions celebrated by others so this may give you some ideas or inspiration for your own merry making :)

In the meantime, here’s some little nuggets of Yule info to warm the cockles:

• Winter Solstice for 2009 is 21st December. (I’m planning to spread out my spells, rituals and honouring between the 21st and the 25th, for convenience sake as much as anything. Don’t want to be a stick in the mud on Christmas Day either!)

• This is the longest night of the year - it’s all uphill from then on! The sun will be returning to us (in the shape of longer days), bringing life, food and light back into our lives. The fire of the traditional burning of the Yule log represents the sun.

• Mistletoe, holly and ivy were all brought into Pagan homes due to them being evergreen and therefore representatives of the greenery that was to return in the coming months.

• In many Pagan traditions, the winter solstice is the new year.

• This is the time in the Wheel of Life when the God is reborn to the Goddess so birth and regeneration is celebrated.

• Oh, and apparently there’s also always been a tradition of exchanging gifts. Don’t know what happened to that one, eh?!

Happy Shopping Blessings! x

A Reflective Spell for Beating the Bullies

Much as I like to try and see the good in people as much as is possible, it is a sad fact that not everyone you know brings enhancement to your life. They may have reasons for their issues, ranging from low self esteem to personal ambition but this does not mean that you have to accept their destructive, bullying ways. You have a right to feel good about yourself.

I’m aware that some people want to try curses when they feel bullied or upset. There are a couple of reasons why this is not a good idea. First, it will make you feel bad afterwards - if you act like your enemy you become your enemy so try to always be true to yourself and resist the temptation to get nasty. Another is the Wiccan 3-fold law. This states that all energies projected will come back to you but 3 times as powerful so much nicer to make it an act of kindness.

But you should defend yourself as you would defend a friend in a similar predicament. The best way to go about this is to send their negativity back to them rather than unleashing some of your own.

For this spell, all you’ll need is a reflective surface. It could be a mirror that you place on your desk, a shiny broach, you could use a the glass on a picture frame or a crystal such as hematite. I’ve even used the screen on my mobile phone before! It doesn’t need to be pointed at the problem individual, it’s more about making sure that the energies are bounced back so it’s not a physical thing as such. These are the words I choose:

My aura is my sanctuary
I bid you to retreat
I’m shielded from your harmful ways
My spirit will not be beat!

You can repeat this once a day (to yourself so as not to draw their attention of course!) when they are nearby to build the protection. If you can get away with it, repeat it to yourself when they are talking to you, putting you down or generally trying to hurt you. The benefits are two-fold. Firstly, you get the protection of the spell, secondly you drown out their meaningless words :)

Go get ‘em!

Are There Such Things as Spells to Become a Witch?

If there is one question that I get from people that I meet who take an interest in witchcraft it’s this - ‘can you give me some spells to become a witch!?’

The simple answer is I’m afraid no. But that said, it’s not really a simple matter and I understand the confusion. After all, witchcraft is about spells isn’t it? Why not just cast a spell and become a witch - broomstick and all! I’d just like to ask you to consider one thing. If you’re not a witch, what makes you think the spell is going to work? ;)

But onto a more serious look at what’s involved, this isn’t really a yes or no matter. While there is no one spell I could give you to inject special powers into your system, and I certainly can’t wave a magic wand, it is also true that spells are the path to becoming a witch for many. It’s just that their path is more complex than you may think.

I have said it before and I’ll say it again, it’s called the craft for a reason! It takes practice, hard work and dedication to become a witch and it takes skill, solid faith and a respect for nature to cast effective spells. There are no shortcuts.

So if you want a spell to become a witch, this is what I recommend. Take a very simple spell, something that is important to you. Work with this spell over a week and rather than concentrating on the effects, instead focus on how it makes you feel. Start up a book of shadows and write down observations and thoughts. Give yourself a break and time to reflect. Then try again with another simple spell and see how this one goes. Again, observations are important. So in this sense, the all important spell to become a witch becomes ANY simple spell that you can work with.

For me, learning to cast spells was a bit like learning to ride a bike. You may think you’re never going to get it, but then something just clicks! Perseverance is key.

Blessings and good luck!

How To Spot Natural Witch Characteristics

Natural witch characteristics are by no means set in stone and because of this, it’s a topic that causes a lot of disagreements! However, it is an area that interests me as I was aware of some of the signs from an early age so I thought I would put together a small, but by no means complete, list of some of the most popular giveaways.

1) Psychic dreams. This of course will link in with those with psychic abilities, which takes us in a different direction to witchcraft but this is very common with natural witches because of their intuitive personalities.

2) An affinity with nature. A natural witch characteristic that runs through just about all natural witches is that they feel at one with the world around them. They are not good at being cooped up and tend to be fond of all outdoor pursuits from walking to gardening.

3) A close understanding of animals. The natural witch will often be able to understand animals and themselves have quite an animalistic approach to life in some ways. What this means is that they are flexible, able to adapt to the changing environment including the seasons, often highly attuned to danger signs around them and also are affected by moon cycles.

4) Natural witch characteristics will often run in families. But this doesn’t mean that it has to be a parent. You may discover that an ancestor way back was a witch!

5) An aptitude for divination. Again we crossover with the psychic realm but this can also make the natural witch much more adept at using witchcraft tools in general. There is an instinctive ability to work with them.

Having said all of the above it is important to also recognise that nothing will be achieved without hard work and practise. But if you have found that you have one or more of the above, you may find that witchcraft is your true calling :)

Under the Weather?

Swine flu has hit my family :( Fortunately so far everyone has been fine, albeit pretty poorly and feeling grotty. From what I’ve read, it could be a lot worse.

So I wanted to include a spell here for all of you who are also suffering but first, I must make it clear that there are no spells that can cure illness. This spell is more about trying to cleanse your energies, to allow your inner strength to build and to make the path clear for fresh, positive energies.

All you will need is a black candle, a red candle, two pieces of clear quartz and a container of water. The black candle represents the low, clouded energies within you, the red is for bringing vibrancy back and the clear quartz will be reflecting you between your two states of being. And don’t worry if you are not feeling up to much, it’s very simple and quick to do!

Place the black candle to the left, the clear quartz in the middle and the red candle on the right. Light the black candle first and say:
My energy is depleted
My spirit is low

Pick up one piece of clear quartz, place in the palm of your hand but with your hand flat. Look at it to see the reflections of the flame in the stone. Watch and conjure the image of your low energies - both from the candle and emanating from yourself - being absorbed into the stone. Then place the crystal into the water to both hold and surround your depressed energies. Put it to one side and extinguish the black candle.

Now light the red candle, saying:
My energy restored
My spirit as new

Again, take the second piece of clear quartz in the palm of your hand and allow the vital energies to both reflect and combine. Try to feel it embrace and encompass you. It helps to have the visual sign of the candle flame reflecting I always feel. You will then want to hold on to the crystal in order to absorb the positive energies you’ve just created. So keep it with you, be it putting the crystal in your pocket or taking it back to bed with you!

When you are done, make sure that you pour the water away down the sink to wash it away and take it from your life. This simple spell can be done over the number of days that you are ill as it only need take 5 minutes at a time.

Hope this helps to life you and your loved ones!

I just want to add that originally I tried doing this with only the one piece of quartz and tried to have all of the changes in the energies happening in one crystal. I soon gave up on this and recommend using 2 pieces if you can.

Tips For Spells

I’m onto writing the spells for my Samhain celebration but thought I’d put some general tips for spells together for you so that you can see where I was coming from when I post some of the results of my labour!

So, without further ado, 5 tips for spells:

1) They don’t have to rhyme - but it’s nice when they do! The words are a powerful part of your spell but this is more to do with what they mean to you. The power and the magik lies within so always go for a method that you find works best, and this will only be discovered with experience. Personally, I always go for rhymes as I love the feel of the words as I say them; I think it helps to build momentum and energies and also it builds the right atmosphere. But please feel free to do it your own way.

2) Always prepare yourself so that you get into the right state of mind for performing your spell. You can incorporate some of this into the spell or ritual if you wish but otherwise spend some time meditating, listening to relaxing music or even finding clothes that always seem to charge you up with the right energy!

3) Consecrate your work space and tools. Restoring clean energies to your equipment and ridding the area you have designated to work in from negativity will mean your spell work is more efficient and you will feel more comfortable. A very simple but powerful way of doing this is smudging.

4) Don’t write your spell with an aim to getting immediate results as this will often only lead to disappointment. Try to write them so that you can see things happen over a month - eg. Don’t aim for Mr X to fall in love with you right now, go for a man with such and such a qualities to come to you within 3 months. Work with nature and the natural flow, don’t try to bend it.

5) This possibly belongs more in tips for spells for absolute beginners so forgive me if you’re more advanced than this but I found that keeping something familiar to me nearby was extremely helpful. So it may be a favourite piece of jewellery or a photo, but go for something that you find brings you comfort and makes you feel safe. Spells can feel a bit ‘weird’ to start with and this can help it to feel more part of you.

There you go, some very basic tips for spells. Hope they help give you some ideas!

Blessings
Fran xxx

How To Plan Your Witch's Festivals

I wanted to post something today on the processes of creating your own ritual/spell for an occasion or festival. This can seem bit overwhelming at first and I can remember how much I worried initially about getting it right. However, it really couldn’t be more fun!! Here are some important points to get you started:

1) Read up on the festival to look at the traditions. Is it a Pagan Fire Festival for example? Then you will want to include candles, fire spells or even a bonfire in your spell/ritual.

2) What has been happening in your life over the last few months? Have things been going well? If so, give something back and centre your spell on something general such as peace and goodwill, prepare a gift for someone or even plant something in your garden. It’s nice to top up the energies once in a while!

3) Have things not been going so well? Then you may need a little extra help from the universal elements and there’s nothing wrong with that! But don’t try to cram everything into one spell. Work out where you need the help most (ie. love) and make that your focal point.

4) After 2 and 3, decide how you incorporate your general direction back into the main themes of the festival. I find it’s worth it to do this every so often in my planning to make sure I don’t veer to far from the traditions.

5) Most Pagan festivals will of course be based on the seasons already but think about the colours you can include, ingredients for your spells that are relevant to the time of year (leaves, acorns, petals etc.) or how to use the light of darkness of the evenings.

6) It is a large part of many Wiccan traditions to focus celebrations around honouring a God or Goddess so for example, at Samhain you can focus on the horned God or at Imbolc, the Goddess Brigid.

7) It is also ok to break things down time wise if you don’t feel you’re going to be able to do something for the whole evening. I very often decide to split up my day with a 5 minute incantation in the morning, taking a walk at lunch to collect ingredients and then a simple spell with a specially laid out altar in the evening. It doesn’t always have to be a big affair!

8) Last but not least, every festival has a feast at the heart of it. If you are able to, invite friends or family over and just have a great time!

So, what’s stopping you - go get started!

Samhain - Time to Reflect and Get Focused!

Ok, starting to formulate a plan now for my Samhain celebrations! I mentioned before that I wanted to focus particularly on reflection this year and this is actually more traditionally a part of the festival than you may think. In the Wheel of Life, this is the time of the year when the Horned God/Sun God dies - to be reborn at Yule. So it’s a time of rest and recuperation. Not too much of a stretch of the imagination to link this with nature’s time of hibernation!

So I am determined to make this a time to really focus on my weaknesses, to challenge them and to incorporate self improvement into my spell casting. I’ve found over the last few months that I’ve really lacked focus and have tried to do way too many things at once. The consequence of course is that I’ve not completed things and I’ve wound up stressed. So clear minded thinking and prioritising are my aims!

Of course, Samhain is also the time when the veil between the living and the dead are at their thinnest and therefore scrying is often used for this occasion. If you’re not familiar with this method, the crystal ball is actually a form of scrying - you use a reflective surface in order to see images, messages or connect with spirits. Mirrors and water are also used and in fact, a scrying bowl is my preferred mode. I usually opt for simplicity :)

I’m going to be doing this earlier on in the evening, likely around 7pm as it’s already dark but I will have plenty of time to think on the guidance and messages that I pick up on and bring them into my work later in the evening if I need to.

Of course, it’s important that you work on something that is personal to you, but I am going to be putting together a few points on how to take your ideas and structure them into a spell, ritual or rite for an occasion so hope this will be helpful to you!!

Blessings
Francesca xxx

Free Witchcraft Spells Article

Hi, still working away on my Samhain celebrations (yay!) and will post my progress on this tomorrow. But in the meantime, I was thinking of posting something on choosing a free spell, for if you are scanning the net for one, and remembered I wrote an article on this a while back. Pre-written spells can be the perfect solution if you're not yet confident enough to write your own or need something quick. So here's a few tips on how to go about getting the right free witchcraft spell for you! Some of it may not be relevant for Samhain but I think there's some salient points still. Hope it's useful xx

My Samhain Article

Hi, just a quickie to say here is my Samhain/Halloween article as promised!

Samhain (Halloween) Diary 2

I’ve been giving some more thought to my Samhain celebrations and I have decided to use a particular element of the festival that I have not used before - thoughtful reflection.

For the Celts, Samhain is the New Year and this oftens brings with it a focus on new beginnings. But outside of this tradition, the period between Samhain and Yule is known a ‘time out of time‘. In the Wiccan Wheel of Life, the God dies at Samhain and is reborn at Yule so these months represent recuperation or stillness.

To be honest it’s been a bit of a crazy year for me and the last 3 months have been particularly eventful so I have decided that now is just the right time to have a think about what has past and how I would like to move forwards in my life.

In order to start creating the right energies and buzz for this I am splitting some of my decorations for the next few weeks. I am going to go with the more traditional orange and black colours - orange candles for health and prosperity and black candles for depth. But I will be making my altar predominantly blue to encourage contemplation and to help me find the inner wisdom I need to see my way ahead. This will also be accompanied by some divination :)

Ok, enough talking about what I’m going to do, I’m off to go and actually do it! I’ll be working on some spells over the next few days so will post some suggestions soon.

Take care and blessings
Fran xx

Samhain = Halloween!

Oops, forgot to say - for all of you absolute beginners out there - that the festival of Samhain is what is more popularly known as Halloween! A witch's special night no less ;)

I will be putting up an article with all the basics soon so check back over the next few days.

And if you are an absolute beginner by the way, it just remains to say Merry Meet and Blessings to you!

Fran xx

Day 1 of my Samhain Diary

Hello! I meant to post last week to start off a proper lead up to Samhain but didn’t get the chance - but better late than never eh?! On the 1st of October I generally like to change over my altar to mark the beginning a the new season but to be honest it’s as much to do with Samhain as autumn if I‘m honest! I get pretty excited :)

I have now got everything orange, gold and a little green so I feel that the mood has changed in my spells and general work - and as ever I love it.

But you may be wondering if there is anything you need to be doing to prepare yourself for Samhain over the next coming weeks and the answer is YES. This is the perfect time to start collecting leaves and twigs for spells and rituals, get in your candles and start to think of what you will do with your altar on the day. Of course anything collected nearer the time is just as good but I personally think that building excitement is as big a part of the fun and the energies of the night as anything.

I’m going to be working on my preparations from now on and thought I would share them with you to give you some ideas of what to try so be prepared for some diary style ramblings from me.