Love Spell Ritual Bath

The purpose of a ritual bath is to cleanse yourself and prepare yourself for the spell work at hand. A ritual bath is a rite in and of itself. This bath can also be done just prior to casting your spell to lend power to your magic.

The bath water should be infused with salts, herbs oils and colors that are harmonious with your love spell, such as rose, love attracting oils and pink colored salts.

To prepare for the bath, anoint a pink or red candle with love spell oil.
Have a censer and charcoal block ready to burn love spell incense on.
If you have an altar set up in your bathroom there should be a Goddess and God candle present.
A glass of wine, preferably red, is also needed for consumption upon completion of the rite.

Turn out the lights and light the candles and incense, fill the tub with warm water and add herbs, oils, salts. With your Athame, wand or hand, draw and visualize the symbol of Venus over the bath water.

Lower yourself into the water and visualize it cleansing you of all negativity and worries of the mundane world. Know that these energies are releasing into the water. Relax and enjoy the warmth of the water, the scents in the air and the feeling of being cleansed of all negativity, let yourself drift. Now concentrate and visualize attracting love and know that you are truly prepared for it to manifest in the perfect way you envision. After offering a drop of wine to your bath, drink deeply from your chalice. When you feel you are ready, pull the plug and stay in the tub until all the water has drained.

Love Spells: Magical Properties of Rose

Roses are primarily used in Love Spells to attract love or passion. Rose petals can be used in love spell incense or you can make a magic love attracting bath. The rose is sacred to both Venus and Aphrodite

"The Rose is the flower of love. It was created by Chloris, the Greek goddess of flowers, but of a lifeless body of a nymph which she found one day in a clearing in the woods. She asked the help of Aphrodite, the goddess of love, who gave her beauty; Dionysus, the god of wine, added nectar to give her a sweet scent, and the three Graces gave her charm, brightness and joy. Then Zephyr, the West Wind, blew away the clouds so that Apollo, the sun god, could shine and make the flower bloom. And so the Rose was born and was immediately crowned Queen of the Flowers." Quoted from Pickles, Sheila. The Language of Flowers (New York: Harmony Books, 1989).

In addition to love spells, roses are also used in beauty/glamor magic, harmony & peace spells and for good luck/fortune spells. Plant roses in your garden to attract faeries, to protect the house and those that live there.

Libra Full Moon

April 9, 2009. 12:56am GMT

Use the Libra energies to add an extra boost to your spells involving themes of organization, , justice, education, communication and restoring balance. In terms of balance, readjusting the polarities in your life (male/female, yin/yang, disease/wellness, poverty/abundance) can be done on a full moon in Libra. It is a good time to use opposing color magic in your ritual.

Astrology

There are a couple great astrology sites I check on a regular basis:

Susan Miller writes a great monthly forecast at Astrologyzone . She is consistently uncannily accurate. Her forecast are substantial in length and full of real advice, not superstitious speculation. The specific dates and windows of opportunity are particularly useful.

Lisa Dale Miller at Astrowidom writes great detailed reports, called Moon Messages, in the full moon and new moon phases.

Stephanie Azaria at Cosmicpath provides a daily weather report (retrogrades, moon transits etc) and a weekly sign horoscope.

The folks at Astro offer an amazing assortment of personalized free charts & reports, using your birth data. The astrocartography is one of the features that makes this site stand out from the others.

All of these sites offer great information at no charge. Detailed personal readings are usually available for a fee.

Imbolc Bannock Bread

The Scots made an unleavened oat cake cooked in a skillet called a bannock. For each holy day (holiday) they had a different recipe. Here is one for Imbolc - the festival of light.

1 1/2 C Flour

2 C Rolled oats

1/2 C Sugar

4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 C raisins

1 egg

1/2 C butter, melted

1/3 C buttermilk

Mix flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, salt and raisins together. Make a well in the center. In a separate bowl whip eggs, butter and buttermilk. Add to the dry ingredients and stir until a batter is formed. Scrape onto a well floured surface and knead lightly. Shape into a ball, then place on a greased baking sheet. Mark a Bridget's cross in the center using a sharp knife. Bake @ 425 for 15 minutes.

Wolf Moon

Have you ever thought about the Wolf Moon?

January 10th is the full moon this month. As the full moon is always in the sign opposite the of the sun, the full moon is in Cancer, (while the sun is in Capricorn). So it's a great Sabbat to create ritual around hearth, home, family, and anything sensual. Cancer is also ruled by the breast, so a health ritual for anyone suffering from breast cancer would be appropriate.

It is also known as the Wolf Moon. Wolves, Jackals and Dogs have been associated with death, reincarnation, and funerary customs and often guarded the gates to the underworld. Dormarth the wolf was the Celtic guardian of Death's Door. In Ireland, two dogs guarded the gate of Death, the Moonland Emania. Since so many died in the dead of winter when survival depended on your hearth fire and your food stored from the harvest, naming this full moon the Wolf Moon makes sense.

So, honor the wolf. Howl at the moon. And give thanks for your family, home and all that you have. You have survived the winter, the days are getting longer and spring is on it's way.

Dedication in the new year

While we celebrate the new year as Nov 1 according to the Celtic Year, I still observe the Roman New Year as so much psychic energy is created by the masses who recognize this as the time of new beginnings.

I think the Romans chose January 1st because it follows so soon after the Winter Solstice and instinctively people knew the winter was coming to an end. The shortest day of the year passes as the Mother Goddess gives birth to her Sun (son) when it's first rays touched the altar stone at Stonehenge. It felt as though there was hope to get through the rest of the winter and a time to start over.

While the Sun is just a babe, the winter belongs to the Crone or Cailleach. Hers is the power of death, the dark, secrets, seeds, and all that is wild and unborn. Nothing is beyond her reach. The three moons that occur in this season (Jan-Mar) take us from Winter into Spring, but it's the Esbats, the dark moons, that are for dedicating yourself to your magical universe. Use these new moons to carry out a dedication ritual, stretching it into all three months. Recognize what you have been and are choosing to be. What will you dedicate yourself to this year? To what will you give birth this spring?

The most powerful among us take responsibility for what we create and do so with intent. Be aware of what you create for it effects us all.

A point of time

Time is something we measure and certainly can be measured in effect. But, most of all it's felt. We try to use it wisely. Sometimes it gets away from us. Sometimes it seems endless. But, although you can't hold it in your hand, we spend a lot of effort to capture it.



Time can give you a magical boost. While many pagans are aware of timing their rituals according to the phases of the moon, spell working is also effected by the time of day it is performed. Magically, the day is divided into quarters: sunrise, noon, sunset and midnight.



Each has a set of attributes:



Sunrise: new beginnings or new projects. Sunrise rituals are best for a new job, home, romance, etc.



Noon: the solar hour is for health, energy and increase. Want to grow your business or add to your family? This is the time of day for it.



Sunset: Twilight spells cross the veil into the emotional and spiritual realm. It is a time of endings, like getting rid of bad habits, or sending away negativity. If you want to make contact with someone on the other side this is the time to do it.



Midnight: The witching hour. The perfect time to create rituals to increase your knowledge of the occult. If you study any of the divination methods, such as Tarot, this is a wonderful time to ritually increase your knowledge of the arcane. Secrets are revealed in the dark so they may come to light at the right time...

Labyrinth Meditation Solstice Ritual

A labyrinth is an ancient symbol that relates to wholeness. It combines the imagery of the circle and the spiral into a meandering but purposeful path. The Labyrinth represents a journey to our own center and back again out into the world. Labyrinths have long been used as meditation and prayer tools.


A labyrinth is an archetype with which we can have a direct experience. We can walk it. It is a metaphor for life's journey. It is a symbol that creates a sacred space and place and takes us out of our ego to "That Which Is Within."



This year we used the labyrinth to create our circle for Winter Solstice ritual. The labyrinth ended with our Yule tree in the center. Our ceremony included a blessing of the tree and decoration, giving thanks to all that has been sacrificed to sustain us.



The addition of a walking meditation was critical to developing a new level of magic for our coven. It created a sacred space for each individual and heightened the trance state of all who entered. It automatically cast the circle for us and held the energy invoked. Then, as we processed out, the labyrinth served as a division between the worlds that we could re-enter slowly in contemplation and at our own pace. For rituals centered on giving thanks, a labyrinth is a highly recommended addition.

Scorpio Oil

Scorpio is the eighth astrological in the Zodiac and is a fixed water sign. Water signs are considered an introverted, feminine sign, dealing with the watery realms of emotions, dreamtime and intuition. Scorpio is associated with the 8th house which deals with natural Scorpio matters - birth, death, transformation, deeply committed relationships of all kinds, and the occult and psychic matters. Use this oil to boost your Scorpio powers or as a path into the watery depths of Scorpio.

2 drams of Grapeseed oil
4 drops of Sandalwood
3 drops rose
2 drop geranium
1 drop Pine
1 drop Basil
1 drop Ginger
1 drop Cinnamon

Love Divination Spell

The ancient game of bobbing for apples is actually the remnants of a love divination spell. If you want to find out about the man whom you will marry, follow the ancient practice.

Gather many maids together. Fill a large cauldron, barrel or pot with water and as many apples as maids. Each maid may try to grab an apple with her mouth. With her hands behind her back, she must try to bite the apple and bring it out of the water with her.

If she is successful at grabbing an apple, then she should cut it in half sideways so the star is revealed in the center. Sprinkle some cinnamon and mugwort into a handkerchief along with the two halves of the apple. The treasured apple should be placed under the pillow and the maid is guaranteed to dream of her true love.

Fire Magick - breaking bad habits

To break a bad habit:

Create a circle of nine taper candles on an altar. Place a dish of white sage incense in the middle of the circle. Have a large feather or a hand-fan as well.

The color of the candle should correspond to the habit
smoking-orange
overeating-brown
alcohol-blue
overspending-green
white is okay for any habit

Carve the name of the negative habit into each candle. Place a ring of salt around the candle circle. Light each candle in succession, saying " As this candle burns and disappears, so my ____________ leaves me free and clear." Light the incense. As the smoke rises, wave the smoke towards you with the feather. Bathe your head, heart and hands, saying "My head fills with happy thoughts, my heart is free of fear, my hands deliver me from my _______________." Let the candles burn all the way down.

*never leave burning candles unattended.

Hunter's Moon

October's Full Moon is called the Hunter's Moon and is also known as the Blood Moon, Shedding Moon, Falling Leaf Moon or Sanguine Moon. It is the first Full Moon after the Harvest Moon (the Full Moon nearest the Autumnal Equinox) and it gets its name from hunters who tracked and killed their prey by autumn moonlight, stockpiling food for the winter ahead.

It is a time of sacrifice, letting go and divination.

* Colors: Dark blue, black, purples
* Gemstones: Obsidian, Amethyst , Tourmaline
* Trees: Apples and yew
* Gods: Herne, Apollo, Cernunnos, Mercury
* Herbs: Apple blossom, pennyroyal, mint family, catnip, Sweet Annie
* Element: Air

The Resurrection Dance

This dance is known as the Hag of the Mill Dust (Cailleach An Dudain). This dance dramatized the seasonal cycle to come as both a man and a woman would play the parts of the changing seasons. The woman represented mother nature and the fertility of life. The man represented the reaper and the coming winter.

To begin the dance, the man held the druid wand, Slachdan Druidheachd, first over his head and then over hers. When the wand passed over her head, she dropped down to the ground as if dead. Dancing aroud the body to mournful music, he greived the loss of life. Then, he raised her left hand and touched it with the wand. The hand seemed to come alive. It began to move up and down. Overjoyed, the man continued to dance around her. Next, he would bring her other arm to life. The legs would follow and finally, he kneals over her, breathing into her mouth and touching her heart with the wand. She leaps joyfully to life and they both dance together.

This passion play illustrated the death of the Mother during the barren months to come and also, the promise of her reurrection in Springtime.

Enchanting an instrument

This is a method of enchanting a creative tool, filling it with a creative energy for a specific use.
For example, by tools we mean, a musical instrument, a special pen, a laptop, paint brush. Anything that you are going to use in a creative way to express yourself.

This is the month of Awen or inspiration, so focusing on connecting to your creativity and the tools for it is a perfect New moon ritual. Especially potent at the beginning of any new creative project.

Using the Labyrinth, you can meditate silently while walking. Either visualizing your new project to completion or charging the instrument with focused intent. Sometimes having a mantra, that you repeat while walking, is helpful.

"By the Power of Three times Three,
Let this instrument sing with creativity."

The labyrinth above is at Glendalough, in the Wicklow mountains in Ireland. Photo by C. Siobhan Halstead, Shoobee Designs

Blessing of Awen

"The Awen I sing, from the deep I bring it . . . "
~ Taliesin

The basic meaning of Awen is "Blowing, Breath, Wind" for inspiration. It literally means to "breath in" as in the word inspire. One of the best ways to access you inspiration is through meditation. Building a labyrinth for walking meditation is a centuries old tradition. Walking a labyrinth allows you to clear your mind and become inspired by the Goddess.

You can construct a labyrinth out of stone, plants, painted on cloth or contrete.
Here is a link to a Laying Out Labrinths to give you some ideas.

Mabon Barley Bread Blessing

The making of Barley Bread is a traditional way to celebrate Mabon (September 20, 21 & 22nd) in the British Isles.
It is usually shaped into a sheaf of grain to grace the Harvest table.
There are many blessings that you can chant while kneading the dough to imbue the bread with luck and good fortune. Here is a favorite:

"Peace to all our family.
Plenty in all out days.
Protection of the sacred three.
Bless us in all their ways."

Harvest Moon

The Harvest Moon occurs in late summer or early fall, at or after the autumnal equinox, Sept 21st. Farmers and farm workers in the Northern Hemisphere would take advantage of the additional hours of light and work through the night in order to complete the harvest.

An old Celtic harvest Moon ritual was to gather a key, a ring, a flower, a sprig of willow, a small piece of cake, a crust of bread, and 4 cards (the 10 of clubs, 9 of hearts, ace of spades, and ace of diamonds). Wrap these items in a handkerchief and place it under your pillow.

As you lay in your bed, say
"Luna, luna, every girl's friend,
to me your clarity you will lend.
Let me this night in visions see,
Emblems of my destiny."

If you dream of storms, it means coming trouble
if the storms end, a calm fate after strife.
a ring or the ace of diamonds = marriage
bread = a good job
cake= prosperity
flowers = joy
willow = treachery in love
spades = death
clubs, = living in a foreign land
diamonds = money
keys = great power
birds = many children
geese = more than one marriage.

Making Moon Water

On a full moon night, gather water in a glass bowl from a fresh spring. In the bowl add a quartz crystal, a piece of silver, and a moonstone. Place it in full view of the full moon with two white candles burning, one on each side. Dress the candles in oil of:

• Citronella, if water is for protection spell
• Coconut, if water is for purification
• Lemon, if water is for love healing

Chant: nine times over the water-
"Lady of the Moon, Lady of the Moon
Come to us, be with us, Lady of the Moon
Lady of the Moon, Lady of the Moon
Come to us, be with us, Lady of the Moon
Hecate
Demeter
Cerridwen
Venus
Epona
Netaxs
Lady of the Moon, Lady of the Moon
Come to us, be with us, Lady of the Moon
Diana
Rhiannon
Morrigan
Aradia
Hathor
Arachne
Lady of the Moon, Lady of the Moon
Come to us, be with us, Lady of the Moon
Lady of the Moon, Lady of the Moon
Come to us, be with us, Lady of the Moon"

Leave the water in the moonlight for at least 3 hours.

Keep it covered in a white cotton cloth. Now you may add it to your spell-working. Moon water may be used for divination when Mugwort is added. Bottle and keep refrigerated if you are not going to use it right away. Only make small batches.

Sun Tea

Sun Tea - recipe calls for fresh herbs.
If you are using dried, reduce amount by 2/3 (3C would be 1 C)

For this spell, you will need:
1C Lemon Balm
1C Hibiscus Flowers
1C Spearmint
Juice of one lime
Honey to taste (add when warm)

Place herbs into a 1-gallon glass jar
Fill with spring water
Steep in the sun for several hours.
Remove herbs, strain and filter tea.
Sweeten with honey if desired.