Upcoming Events
Want to know what kinds of Pagan events are going on in your neck of the woods? The following links takes you to Witchvox event database.
¤ Pagan Pride Events
¤ Conferences
¤ Tarot Readings and Witchcraft Lore with Andromeda
|
This Months Astrological Sign
Aries, The Ram
Color: Red Element: Fire Sign Planet: Mars
Usually: Adventurous, Energetic, Enthusiasatic and Confidant
Can be: Selfish, Quick-tempered, Impulsive and Impatient.
Most compatible with: Leo and Sagitarrius
Least Compatible with: Virgo and Scorpio
|
Whew! Summer is finally over! I can get back to being more active! I trust everyone had a blessed Mabon? I am currently in the works of setting up times for Tarot readings. I will post that soon. I am a web designer during the day and lately we’ve been just slammed with work. Its ridiculous! Its slowing up here quite a bit and this will probably be the last week I have to take my work home with me *groan*.
I will also catch up on the Ask the Witch emails. I have been writing you back here and there when I’ve had time but there are a few of you whom I have not had a chance to reply to. Also please be aware, if I have not mailed you back, be sure and check the website, I may have posted your question! I will do that from time to time when I come across a question that I feel would be of benefit to some of you. As I said before, I don’t know everything about witchcraft, (then again no one does) I’m only in my 30’s, but I can give you an honest answer, and an educated answer, and/or what I would do.
Samhain is fast approaching. If anyone is interested I will post my Samhain ritual for you to download. I will tips on how to dress your altar in the next few days when I dress mine.
Oh also I am not sure if any of you use Live Journal or not but there is this neat little community called Pimp my Altar and it has all sorts of cool altar layouts and ideas. Regardless of which Pagan path you follow. Some of the entries are memebers only, but if you are already a live journal user just add them up to your list. You can check them out by going here –> Pimp My Altar
Besom, broom, wand , athame… when seeing these items for sale or mentioned on the internet Non Wiccans can easily misunderstand their purpose, but they are not the only ones. Practitioner’s that are new to paganism sometimes find themselves overwhelmed by the variety of ritual tools available to them and the uses and correspondences related to them.
What is more symbolic of witchcraft than a broom? A besom of course! While two names for the same object may seem only designed to confuse there is actually a commonly accepted small difference in definition for the two words~ besoms are usually made of twigs and are rounded, whereas a broom is flat and made of primarily straw. Does it actually matter which one you use? Not much, either will serve the same purpose, but owning a traditional witches besom may aid you in creating a sense of magickal awareness. The besom is used traditionally to clear negative energies from ritual space by sweeping. Often it is considered a masculine tool due to it’s shape being similar to that of a phallus, but in a traditional besom made of ash handle and and birch twigs would represent both male and female elements.
There is alot of confusion in the general public with those who are either new or unfamiliar with witchcraft or wicca. Would you believe the majorty of the public believe this is the same thing? I can’t tell you how often I get asked “Are you Wiccan?” to where I simply say “No, I’m a Witch” and wait for the dumbfounded look. The simple break down is this. Witchcraft is a way of life, when you are a witch, you practice witchcraft, it is your “craft”. When you belong to a religious movement that typically follow a god/goddess, this is Wicca.
Witchcraft = Craft
Wicca = Religion
Lets go further. Do you know where the term “Witchcraft” came from? Back in the days of masonry believe it or not, you had a craft. You were a mason, builder, carpenter, healer, apothocary, shaman etc etc, when someone would ask you “Which Craft are you?” You would of course be one of the fore mentioned. Over time when freemasonry came about, and they became a secret society, this lead to alot of people believing they were witches, or malevolent people. Because of course, if you are practicing something in private that no one understands, it obviously evil and malevolent in nature. Mason = Craft - somewhere along the line - Witchcraft. However, thats a whole other tangent for another time.
So are all Wiccans, Witches? Again, no not all, however most are. Most Wiccans do practice the craft, however there are some who are content with god/goddess worship with no desire for spellcrafting or tinkering with energies.
The Chakra or Chakka means “Wheel” in Sanskrit.
The Chakra are energy points. There are 7 diffrent points in the body where energy is absorbed. The 7 Major Chakras are:
- Sahasrara: The Crown or top of head - This color is purple and symbolized by the Amethyst stone.
- Anja: The Brow or “Third Eye” - This color is dark blue and symbolized by the Sodalite stone.
- Vishuddha: The Throat - This color is light blue and symbolized by the Aquamarine stone.
- Anahata: The Heart - This color is green and symbolized by the Malachite or Jade stone.
- Manipura: The Solar Plexus or diaphram- This color is yellow and symbolized by the Citrine stone.
- Svadisthana: The spleen or womb area - This color is orange and symbolized by the Carnelian stone
- Muladhara: The spinal base - This color is red and symbolized by the Garnet stone.
The 4 Secondary Chakras located in the center palms of the hands and bottom arch of the feet.
The 8 Minor Chakras are the knees, elbows, shoulders and thighs.
Many times you will hear about Chakras being off balance or blocked. This just means that one of your energy points is not absorbing energy. This can be easily remedied though meditation and focusing.
How to clear and open up your Chakras
As you concentrate on each area, your chakra should feel warm, letting its location and presence be known. Now that you have located each of these areas, you can begin a clearing exercise. The purpose of this exercise is to push built up energies out of your body to allow a healthy flow of spiritual energy.
Find a comfortable position. You can lay with your feet elevated or sit in a comfortable position. Your back must be perfectly straight. Posture is very important. Consider your spine a pipe through which water must flow. If the pipe is bent, the water will need force behind it to move.
Now that you are positioned, remind yourself that you are a spiritual being as well as a physical being. Life itself is a spiritual experience.
Bring your concentration to your base chakra. Take a deep breath. Hold this breath and concentrate on the base chakra. When you can visualize this ball of energy, release your breath, and push the tension from this area up to the next chakra.
Repeat though all 7 Chakra points
Doing this on a regular basis should reduce your physical stress increase your energy, and give you a more positive outlook on life.
Shiva Lingams are a unique crypto-crystalline quartz withinclusions or a matrix of iron oxide and goethite. These high vibrational stones are found only in the sacred Narmada River, one of India’s seven holy sites. They are gathered from shallow river beds, and while they are naturally egg-shaped, stones are typically polished in order to balance its proportions.
Shiva Lingams represent unity and creation. The body of the stone represents male energy (knowledge) while the markings represent female energy (wisdom). They are often worshipped as a stone of fertility, and they are revered by Hindus as the embodiment of Lord Shiva and his union with his consort, Kali. They have been sacred for thousands of years as symbols of sexuality and strong male energy. They are excellent for sexual healing, and they can help reinstate trust in male energy.
Shiva Lingams help to realign and balance the chakras and are also very grounding. They are a stone of nurturing, and have also traditionally been used to raise and control Kundalini energy, which helps you to comprehend the profound mysteries of enlightenment, bringing spiritual growth and evolution. They also facilitate looking within so that you release all that is outgrown, and they are particularly useful for dealing with emotional pain that arises from early childhood. They are sometimes referred to as “The Jewel of the Lotus”.
Siva Lingams come in a many sizes. From the small pendant size to larger more monumentious sizes for your garden. It is thought that the horizonal markings are more for males and the verticle ones (more represtative of the Yoni) are for females, but either is acceptable.
So is there really any diffrence? Yes, there is a diffrence!
Essential oils are made of acutal essence of the particuar plant that the oil is harvested from. Such as lavendar or pachouli for example. These oils are extracted meticulously via an oil distiller among other devices. This appears to be painstaking and requires a coupious amount of material to produce such a small amount of oil. Whew, I’m glad someone likes to do it!
Fragrance oils are mainly made of artificial scents. This is why you can find oils such as orange creamsicle, sex on the beach, mai tai, nag champa and chocolate mint. They are also substantially less expensive and you can find them virtually anywhere, for example grocery stores, arts & crafts shops and even Target.
Now, I know what youre thinking, essential oils sound expensive do I really need to use them for rituals and anointing? Well yes, they can be expensive honestly and NOPE, you do not need essential oils for your rituals anointing. I’m sure alot of books, guides and videos will tell you to use essential oils in your rituals, I’ve seen this myself. They may even use the excuse of having to be “pure” for your ritual to work properly. Yeah, WHATEVER, I’ve had wonderful success using wild berry fragrance oils for my candles. Remember, the power does not come from your items, it comes from YOU! The fact of the matter is that it can get very expensive and also difficult to locate certain oils. Can you imagine if you accidently broke a bottle of rare $400 ambergris from having oily fingers? I’d be devistated. Maybe not because of the cost but, how the heck am I gonna find it now? It took me forever in the first place!
The only time you actually need to use essental oils is if you are creating an incense blend or if you are making perfume. Because of course, having a fragrance oil will make your incense or perfume come out very strange and not at all like you imagined it, possibly even vile and nasty! Use your fragrant oils for rituals, heck you can even use EVOO for ritual and anointing!
So next time you are at that witch shop, pick up a bottle of Strawberry Cheesecake, it smells so good while you rub it on your candles, and you can throw it in your oil burner too! If it breaks, big deal, you’re out 3 bucks. Go buy more.
You will need something with a fine point to scratch the surface of the candle. It can be a pin, a specialist scribing tool, a cocktail stick or anything else your imagination can dream up. Once you have chosen your tool though, dedicate it properly, then tuck it away in your magical tool chest and reserve it for just this purpose.
Inscribing the candle is simply marking words or symbols on the candle that are relevant to the outcome you want. Perhaps if you need fast money you could inscribe the runic symbol for Gifu (Gift). If you are seeking success in business, you could write the word ’success’ along the length. If you are seeking love, draw a heart on the candle - well, you get the idea……
As you are inscribing your candle, visualise the outcome. Make it a small ritual in it’s own right. Once you have inscribed your candle, you may wish to ‘Dress’ it. This is optional, your choice entirely, but it’s easy and again adds to the potency of your spell.
‘Dressing a candle’ is anointing it with an oil that again is relevant to your desire - To attract love, try the ‘Come to me’ oil, for luck try the ‘Black Cat’ oil, for when you feel Lady Luck is working against you, try a banishing spell and use ‘Jinx Removing’ Oil.
The method for anointing your candle is pretty specific. The most general method is to hold the candle in one hand, dip the first two fingers of the other hand in oil and starting at the top (the end with the wick) run your oiled finger down toward the centre of the candle. Stop at the centre, lift your finger off, turn the candle slightly and repeat the process until all the top half of the candle is covered. Then starting at the base of the candles, run the oiled fingers toward the centre. Again stop at the centre, lift the fingers off, turn the candle slightly and repeat the process until the entire bottom of the candle has been coated.
The whole time your are anointing the candle, concentrate on the outcome you wish to achieve with your spell. Experienced spell weavers often anoint the candle in a specific direction depending on the type of spell they are performing. For spells to attract something to the spell weaver, the candle is anointed from top to middle, then from bottom to middle. For banishing or sending something away i.e.. getting rid of bad habits, negative energy, breaking jinxes or hexes, the candle is dressed from the centre out to the top, and then from the centre out to the bottom.
Once the candle is coated in oil, it can be rolled in herbs relevant to the particular spell you are performing. For example, use Agrimony for breaking hexes and returning them to sender, use Chamomile for attracting friendship, Hyssop for purification and cleansing, Patchouli for wealth and so on. Once you have lit your spell candle and performed your spell, allow the candle to burn itself out completely.
Next Page »
Filed under Information | 
