Working magic

Do we lapse as time goes on, or do we become accustomed?

Several of my witchy and/or New Agey friends who have identified as such for a long time have expressed some guilt that they’re ‘not really doing it any more’. I know the feeling.

But when I take a good look, I realise it’s more that my practices have become so routine and accustomed, so everyday, that I forget they are anything special. They are incorporated into my life, like brushing my teeth or feeding the cat.

Daily ritual

For instance, it has become natural and unremarkable to me to start my day, immediately after my morning shower, with a ritual to greet that which we call God (which I like to think of as Goddess) as well as my various guides and guardians.

This has altered over the years, from a very traditional Wiccan or Druidic casting of circle, through the Middle Pillar Exercise beloved of ceremonial magicians, and various tips and suggestions from my teachers and mentors, to a very personal sequence.

With intention, visualisation, words and physical action, I create around myself a sphere of light. I express gratitude to my patron deities* and ‘to all my guides, guardians, friends, well-wishers, lovers and beloveds in any and every realm.’ I also ‘acknowledge all the nature spirits who look after the earth, and all the angels who look after me.' I then recite the Druids' prayer aka Gorsedd prayer (I say it in English) and finish by intoning the 'Awen'.** 

On leaving home

(going out to shop or visit friends or whatever)

I put protection over my little cat, then over my home and its contents, and all living things in the front and back yards. Then, when I get in my car, I call the angels to bear witness that I’ll have ‘safe, easy, uneventful driving … taking me safely with ease and grace, and in perfect timing, everywhere I want and need to be.’ (My own wording, arrived at after trying a few options.)

Going about my days / meeting the unexpected

Being a Reiki practitioner, it’s also natural to me to put my hands on myself or my cat if there are any symptoms of being unwell (as well as seeking appropriate medical help when required). 

I can also clear a space of negative vibes with Reiki, or smudging, or an arrangement of crystals, or calling on a suitable supernatural being.

Often one doesn’t think twice, just starts doing when need arises. It feels no more extraordinary than washing the dishes or the clothes when they need it, or weeding and watering the garden.

Spells

I like to work in the energy of unconditional love as much as possible, and to observe the intention not to do harm, therefore I never do hexing and seldom do banishing spells.

When I do use a banishing spell, my intention is to remove harmful behaviours rather than the person who is committing them — but sometimes that happens too. If it rebounds on me I don’t mind, as I would prefer to have any harmful behaviour on my part removed.

(Rebounding is not necessarily bad. It can be an unexpected blessing, e.g. when I banished some very evil neighbours who were harming everyone in their vicinity, in this case meaning to get rid of the persons, not just their behaviour. They very quickly got moved out of that house — by the police, as it happened (which I had not specified in my working)— and immediately afterwards Andrew and I got moved out of our rental too, as our landlord wanted to occupy it himself. We were actually given the option of moving into the one the criminals had vacated, but we chose another place we were offered, which was much nicer than either that or the one we’d had, and lived there very happily for the next few years.) 

I seldom do spells for good outcomes. I don’t feel the need, as I’m a Reiki Master. I find that what I can do with Reiki is quick, easy and powerful (and often beautiful).

Reiki also works for charging new crystals. and cleansing old ones. It’s even quicker and easier than using running water or leaving them out in the light of the full moon.

If I want the answer to a question, I could do a Tarot or an I Ching reading for myself, and sometimes do if it’s a complex question, but mostly I use a pendulum to get a quick ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer.

Shelter from the storm

One magical worker I was friendly with, now deceased, told me her method for protecting her home during violent storms. She put a dome of whitish-blue light over her property for the duration of the storm.

Not a physical dome, of course, but one made with visualisation, intention and willpower. Her house, on a high hill in the path of many storms coming in from the ocean, always survived undamaged even when some nearby didn’t.

I do my own home, plus those of my neighbours, and any friends I can think of who might be in danger. So far so good! (Coincidence? Ah well, nothing can be proved, of course. But when one builds up a long-lasting track record …)

Notes:

* Patron deity

A patron deity is a god or goddess who takes a special interest in a particular person, group, profession, or place, acting as a guardian, protector, and guide. While historically deities were associated with specific places or crafts (e.g. Thoth for scribes), in many modern contexts, particularly in Paganism, it refers to a personal, deep relationship where the deity has chosen the individual. This relationship is a significant commitment that often extends beyond ritual work into daily life.

** Awen

Awen is a Welsh and Cornish word meaning 'inspiration,' particularly poetic inspiration, but it has a broader meaning of 'flowing spirit' or 'creative force' in Celtic spirituality and Druidry. It represents a creative energy that can flow through all things, connecting the individual to a deep source of creativity, divine inspiration, and the energy of nature.

(Notes supplied by Google AI)

Background: the quick version of how I got to be me

 For more personal and literary details, please view my website. For the magickal/spiritual/healing background, read on:

I was a psychic child who learned to suppress that early, when it became clear that not everyone shared or approved of these experiences.

Eventually, though (when I was in my thirties) they refused to stay suppressed. After fearing I was going mad, I realised I was still functioning in my life, and was doing no harm to myself or anyone else. Maybe I wasn't mad after all. I began allowing myself to experience my extra-sensory perceptions.

In my forties I was mentored — informally, in the course of friendship — by a great magician. (No, I don't of course mean a stage magician.) 'Ridge' was a private, anonymous man, not widely known for his gifts, but they were formidable, and included clairvoyance (since his childhood). After he died, I gradually realised how much he had taught me. He left me some of his books, and I began studying Ceremonial Magick.

I taught myself Tarot partly due to my friend's encouragement, and eventually progressed to being a professional reader and teacher.

Meanwhile I became part of a loose-knit circle of meditation groups known as the Andronicus Foundation. Our purpose was planetary and personal healing, and the attempt to contact Higher Intelligences — in all of which we succeeded beyond our wildest dreams. This too was a source of much learning and growth.

I did a personal development course called The Forum, which led to further courses and training with the organisation now known as Landmark Education. I also completed an innovative and dynamic spiritual development course called The Master Game and its post-graduate follow-up, Master Connections (both developed by Jenette Youngman of Melbourne).

I began learning Reiki in 1988 with Rev. Beth Gray. I became a Reiki Master in 1992, training with Ann Adcock in the lineage of Iris Ishikuro. I was fortunate to do my Master training in the old way, intensive and one-on-one, with a very esoteric emphasis. Much was demanded of me before I was deemed ready to receive Mastery (although I was well looked after too, along the way) and the gifts that came with my initiation were proportionate to the demands.

I was invited into another group of meditators, the Sabian Foundation. We too experienced great development, and became specifically involved in flower essences co-created with the Devic kingdom.

Later I explored Shamanism. I was also much drawn to Druidry and became a member of OBOD, though I never progressed beyond the Bardic grade.

I found all these paths powerful, and full of sweetness, truth and beauty. I have certainly not revoked any of them! Each in turn felt like coming home. However, in the course of time I embraced witchcraft. For a long time I had a resistance to it, even when I was getting involved in other forms of magick. (I now realise I have suffered for it in other lives.) One day, quite quietly, it came to me: 'Of course you're a witch. You've always been a witch.' Yes, it was obvious. I realised the truth of it. That was the ultimate homecoming.

It took me longer to identify as Wiccan. I'm a bit anti-religion, in particular 'organised religion'. Yet perhaps I was looking for something I could call mine. When I understood that Wicca has no dogma and only one rule: 'Do as you will so long as it harms none', I became able to adopt it as my primary spiritual path and ethical code.

After much study and practice I was guided to self-initiate as a witch. Later I had a hankering for something more formal, so I studied Correllian Wicca for some years, in their online WitchSchool, progressing to Second Degree. But I never sat their final exam for that degree. Every time I tried to go to a new level in the Correllian tradition, bizarre things would happen – the site would be hacked and records lost, or my tutors suddenly leave the organisation. I sorted it with great difficulty after First Degree; didn’t bother next time. Evidently I am not meant to identify specifically with the Correllian path. Yet I have the greatest respect for their teachings, some of which I think you will not find anywhere else, and found the members of the tradition very helpful and understanding. I highly recommend them.

I now identify as a contemporary eclectic Pagan witch, meaning that I don't restrict myself to any one tradition but embrace aspects of many. (I also mix pantheons, i.e. I relate to deities from several cultures: Celtic, Egyptian, Greco-Roman, Hindu ...)

I learned Qabala from a local teacher, in the alchemical tradition of Frater Albertus.  (I don't think the course I did bears much resemblance to whatever they're teaching in Hollywood — though of course I have no real knowledge of the Hollywood version.) As with Reiki, I had to promise my teacher to pass it on in the way I had learned it, without alteration. It has a magickal rather than religious emphasis.

I am now trained in many spiritual and energy healing modalities, have developed my psychic work to include mediumship, and have been High Priestess of a contemporary, eclectic coven called Star Circle.

Besides all the above, much of what I have learned has come directly from Spirit.

As well as my wonderful personal guides and guardians, I have at various times worked with faeries, angels and dragons.

I also work a lot with crystals. I have done courses in crystal healing, but work best intuitively.

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(Sometimes it's fun to confirm what you already know. Some test results I received online):

Thank you for your interest in the Institute of Psychic Development. Your psi-q test results as requested are as follows.


You scored highest in Channeling.

One who communicates with spirits is called a channeller or medium. Channelling is the ability to communicate with those who once lived or with spirit who have never taken a human form such as angelic beings. Channelling is the communication that takes place between a spirit and a living human. There are several forms of spirit communication and a channeller does not have to be in a trance state to receive messages. However, with regard to the quality of channelled information it is reliant on the channeller rather than the spirit. This is because the information has to be passed in an energy form for interpretation from the channeller. If the channeller has not learnt the skill adequately the information can seem vague and jumbled.

Channeling can be a learned skill. As you learn though, it is important to remember that everyone has a different experience of what it is like to channel. Your style will depend on your spirit guide and your particular energy level, focus, and clarity. Before consciously channelling it is a good idea to learn the skills of quietening the mind. This is to ensure the quality of information you receive. Many people however, experience 'unconscious' channelling, a random act of communication with a loved one who has passed over. This means a person has the ability to successfully channel but has not yet developed it.


Your next highest score was for Precognition.

While clairvoyance and telepathy have to do with perceiving events across distance, precognition focuses on the ability to 'see' events across time. Specifically future events. Precognition is often, for a lot of people, totally unexpected and not asked for. It is the ability to see the future. It is usually experienced in a variety of ways; among the most common are through feelings, brief inner glimpses, dreams and the third eye (the mind's eye). For some, especially if not understood, this ability can be disconcerting until the gift is properly managed. This can be done through reading, experiencing and understanding psychic ability.