The Modern Witchcraft Grimoire Read online

  Dressing Candles

  Dressing or anointing candles gives your spell a bit more “octane” by adding the scent (and natural energy) of essential oils. The act of anointing also carries the implication of sanctifying something, making it sacred.

  Choose an oil that corresponds to your intention. You could use rose, ylang-ylang, or patchouli for love spells, peppermint oil for money spells, cinnamon or sandalwood for success spells. (For an example, see “Spell to Get a Raise” in Chapter 4.) Start applying the oil to the middle of the candle and then work it gradually in each direction to balance the polarity of the two ends—as above, so below. Think of your request or intention rising into the heavens as you rub oil upward toward the top of the candle. Envision the completed work coming down to reality and materializing on earth as you rub the oil toward the bottom of the candle. Inhale the fragrant aroma and let it trigger impressions in your mind of how your spell will manifest.

  Apply a thin, even layer, letting the oil seep into the carvings. Want to dress up your candle even further? Sprinkle a little glitter on the surface—or mix glitter into the oil beforehand. The oil will make the sparkly glitter stick to the candle.

  If you wish, you may say an incantation to bind the spell, such as the following. Better yet, improvise your own.

  “Blessed be thou creature of wax.

  You were made by the art of the hand

  And now by magick you are changed.

  Thou art no more a candle, but [state your intention].

  Blessed by the sweetness of the Goddess,

  Consecrated by my will and hand,

  You are bound now to this charge,

  For strengthening the greater good,

  For manifesting intention on earth,

  As an agent of the Tripart Goddess.

  Charged with the power of three times three

  As I will, so mote it be.”

  How you choose to burn your candle will be determined by the nature of the spell you are doing. Some candles should be burned completely and without interruption—in this case, mini candles and small votives in glass containers are best. Other spells call for burning a candle for a period every day, at a specific time. Pillar candles lend themselves to this. Tapers can set the mood for any spell or ritual, in the same way their lovely soft light enhances a dinner party.

  Safety First!

  Remember never to leave a burning candle unattended! If you want to burn a candle without interruption but need to leave your altar, consider placing the candle in the fireplace with the screen closed or in the center of your bathtub with the shower curtain removed. But do this only if you don’t have rambunctious pets or kids who might be tempted to investigate, knock the candle over, or otherwise interfere.

  After you finish your spell, write down what you did in your grimoire. What color candle did you use, and why? What symbols did you engrave on it? What oil(s) did you select to anoint it? Utter an incantation or petition a deity? You may want to drip some of the candle wax on the page where you recorded the spell, and perhaps dot the page with essential oil as a reminiscence. How about inscribing the soft wax with the symbol you carved into the candle? Of course, you’ll want to note the results of your spell and any other relevant experiences.

  Scrying with Candles

  The term “scrying” refers to tapping into your second sight to see what you can’t see with your physical eyes. This may mean peeking into the future or glimpsing something that’s going on in another place beyond your ordinary range of vision. Often we think of scrying as something a witch does by gazing into a crystal ball. It’s not the only way, though. You can look at clouds or into a body of water—or a candle’s flame. Here’s how:

  In a dark room, light a candle (set it on your altar or in another place where it can burn safely).

  Watch its flickering flame, allowing it to gradually quiet your thoughts and bring on a state of relaxation.

  As you gaze at the flame, allow your vision to “soften”—that is, don’t try to focus clearly or intently on the flame. You might even want to let your eyes drift slightly to the side of the flame, rather than staring directly at it.

  As images begin to arise in the flame, permit them to develop as they will, without trying to direct them. Just observe, as if you were watching a movie.

  Gaze into the smoke rising from the flame. Do you see images there as well? Allow them to unfold before you, without attempting to control them or even make sense of them.

  Notice any emotions, sensations, or impressions you experience—prickling on the back of your neck, a fluttering in your heart, or the presence of an unexpected scent, for example.

  Continue gazing at the candle’s flame and smoke for as long as you like, or for as long as the images remain.

  When you’re ready, snuff out the candle and ease yourself back into ordinary reality.

  Write in your grimoire what you experienced. What did you see in the flame and/or smoke? Did you recognize any of the images as relating to your everyday life or to the purpose for which you sought visions? What did they mean to you? Describe anything else you sensed or felt. Note details that may seem insignificant at the time—they may turn out to be meaningful. Revisit your grimoire at a later date and record anything that you feel ties into what was revealed to you while scrying. Practicing this technique regularly will strengthen your psychic muscles and enable you to gain insight readily.

  Wax Poppets

  You can shape candle wax into a human or animal form to create what’s known as a “poppet.” Typically, a witch creates a poppet to represent someone he or she wishes to send magickal energy to, usually at a distance. Whatever you do to the poppet symbolizes what you intend to do to whomever the poppet represents. For instance, if you fashion a poppet to signify a beloved pet and carefully wrap it in white cloth to protect it, the animal will receive the benefit of that protection.

  Wax Heart Spell

  This spell is sure to melt your beloved’s heart. Perform it during the waxing moon, preferably when the sun or moon is in Libra, or on a Friday.

  TOOLS AND INGREDIENTS

  A ballpoint pen (or other engraving tool)

  1 red candle

  1 pink candle

  An essential oil that corresponds to love and that you find pleasing

  Matches or a lighter

  Aluminum foil

  With the pen carve your name on one candle and your beloved’s on the other.

  Dress both candles with the essential oil.

  Light both candles, then tilt them so the melting wax drips onto the foil, blending to form a single mound of wax.

  When you have enough wax to mold, allow it to cool slightly, but don’t let it harden. Form a heart out of the wax.

  Place the wax heart on your bedside table. If you prefer, you can insert a wick into the wax heart while the wax is still pliable and use it as a candle to fire up your romance.

  BOTANICALS

  It’s reasonably safe to say that every plant has probably been used at one time or another in spellcraft. A Greek myth explains that the daughters of Hecate (one of the patronesses of witchcraft) taught witches how to use plants for both healing and magick. The Druids considered trees sacred. According to green witchcraft, all plants contain spirits—to work effectively with plants, you must communicate with them at a spiritual level, not just a physical one. Even the pages of the grimoire in which you are writing come from plant material.

  To practice plant magick you’ll need to reconnect with nature. You can’t honor something you don’t feel an intimate connection with, and you certainly can’t call on the plant spirits to assist you unless you develop a rapport with plants. If you live in a concrete jungle, this may present some challenges. But even in the heart of the city, you can find parks, botanical gardens, greenhouses, or garden centers where you can commune with plants.

  Earth Spirits at Findhorn

  In the early 1960s, Eileen and Peter Caddy and their ass
ociate Dorothy Maclean began a spiritual community in a wild and windswept area of northern Scotland known as Findhorn. Even though the soil there was mostly sand and the climate inhospitable, Findhorn became famous for its amazing gardens, which produced tropical flowers and forty-two-pound cabbages. How could this happen? According to Dorothy, the spirits of the plants—she described them as “living forces of creative intelligence that work behind the scene”—guided Findhorn’s founders in planting and maintaining the incredible gardens. In the book Faces of Findhorn, Professor R. Lindsay Robb of the Soil Association writes, “The vigor, health and bloom of the plants in this garden at mid-winter on land which is almost barren, powdery sand cannot be explained . . .” Well, not by ordinary thinking anyway.

  Spellworking with Botanicals

  Every plant is unique, with its own special energies and applications. Rowan, for instance, hung above a doorway protects your home from harm. Mugwort improves psychic awareness. Healing plays an important role in the work many witches do, and in this work they often draw upon the powers of botanicals. For thousands of years and into the present, people have relied on herbal medicine to heal everything from the common cold to a broken heart. Here are some other ways you might choose to work with the magickal properties of plants:

  Press pretty flowers and herbs in your book of shadows.

  Watch plant behavior for omens and signs.

  Mix leaves and petals into magick potions.

  Use plant matter in amulets and talismans.

  Add plant matter to incense and candles.

  Blend herbs for poultices and healing teas.

  Mix healing plant oils into lotions, salves, and ointments.

  Decorate your altar with flowers.

  Plant flowers in a magick garden to attract nature spirits.

  Make fragrant potpourris to perfume your closets and dresser drawers.

  Place live plants in various parts of your home or yard to encourage personal growth and well-being.

  Lavender

  Red Clover

  Rosemary

  Some plants may be burned in ritual fires, as offerings or for purification. Sage is one of the most popular plants to use for this purpose. Many botanicals also come in the form of incense (sticks, cones, coils) that you can burn in spells and rituals. You can make an herbal infusion by boiling water, removing the water from heat, and then letting the plant material steep in the water for several minutes. If you wish, set flowers in water and leave them in the sun to “steep.” The essence of the flowers will be imparted to the water. Add a tiny amount of liquor such as brandy or vodka to the water to preserve it. Mist a room with flower water to purify it or sprinkle a little on an amulet or talisman to charge it.

  As any good cook will tell you, the key to great food lies both in the ingredients and how the cook combines them. The same holds true for spells. If you think of a spell as a magickal recipe, you begin to understand why the components (that is, the ingredients) are so important. If you don’t measure them correctly, add them to the mix at the right time, and give them enough time to “bake” properly, the magick goes awry.

  Choosing Botanicals for Spells

  So what constitutes a good spell component? Anything that’s essential to the recipe—anything that builds the energy until it’s just right. All the ingredients must mesh on a metaphysical level. Of course, the witch herself is the key component of any spell, adding a word, a touch, or a wish.

  When selecting botanicals, choose organic plants if possible. You don’t want the poisonous vibes of pesticides present in your spellwork! If you are purchasing your herbs and do not know under what conditions they were grown, wash them thoroughly to remove any residual chemicals that may have been used. If you’re harvesting a plant that you’ve grown yourself or found in the wild, ask the plant’s permission before picking it, and thank it for its help.

  The Magickal Properties of Botanicals

  Acacia: For meditation; to ward off evil; to attract money and love

  Aloe: To soothe burns or skin ailments; for digestion and internal cleansing

  Angelica: For temperance; to guard against evil

  Anise: For protection; burn seeds as a meditation incense

  Balm: To soothe emotional pain, mitigate fears

  Bay: For purification, divination, psychic development, heightened awareness

  Basil: For protection, balance, purification, divination

  Burdock: For purification, protection, psychic awareness; to ward off negativity; aphrodisiac

  Catnip: For insight, love, happiness

  Cayenne: To stimulate courage, sexual desire, or enthusiasm

  Cedar: For wealth, abundance, success

  Chamomile: For relaxation, peace of mind; as a digestive aid; to bless a person, place, or thing

  Cinnamon: For financial and career success, love spells, mental clarity

  Cinquefoil: To stimulate memory, aid communication; for divination or psychic dreams

  Clove: For success, prosperity; to remove negativity; to numb pain

  Clover: For love spells, psychic awareness, luck

  Comfrey: For protection, cleansing, endurance

  Daisy: To attract good luck

  Elder: For protection, healing rituals

  Fennel: For protection

  Foxglove: To heighten sexuality (poisonous)

  Frankincense: To aid meditation, psychic visions, mental expansion, purification

  Garlic: For protection, healing; to lift depression

  Ginger: For love, balance, cleansing; to speed manifestation

  Hawthorne: For success, happiness, fertility, protection

  Jasmine: For love, passion, peace, harmony; to sweeten a situation or relationship

  Kava-kava: To heighten psychic awareness, to calm anxiety

  Laurel: For success and victory

  Lavender: For relaxation, spiritual and psychic development, purification

  Marigold: For happiness, psychic awareness, success in legal matters

  Marjoram: For acceptance of major life changes

  Mint: For prosperity; to speed up results

  Mugwort: For divination, psychic development and awareness; good for washing crystals

  Myrrh: For protection, healing, consecration

  Nettle: To mitigate thorny situations such as gossip and envy

  Parsley: For prosperity, protection, health

  Rosemary: For protection, love, health; to improve memory

  Rue: For protection; to strengthen willpower, to speed recovery from illness and surgery, to expel negativity

  Sandalwood: For consecration, spiritual communication, travel spells, success

  Skullcap: For relaxation before magickal practices

  Thyme: To focus energy and prepare oneself for magickal practice

  Vervain: For protection, divination, creativity, self-confidence; to remove negative energy

  Willow: For love, protection, conjuring of spirits, healing, dowsing

  Wormwood: For spirit communication; to enhance psychic ability (poisonous if burned)

  Yarrow: For divination, love, protection; to enhance psychic ability

  “And above all, watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you because the greatest secrets are always hidden in the most unlikely places. Those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.”

  —ROALD DAHL, THE MINPINS

  GEMSTONES

  Today, people wear precious and semiprecious gems mostly because they’re so pretty. Witches, however, realize that crystals and gemstones can also be used for spellworking, divination, shamanic journeying, meditation, and dowsing. Stones also play important roles in healing, and each of the body’s seven major chakras corresponds to one (or more) gems based on their colors and resonances.

  Gemstones and jewelry have long been favored as talismans and amulets. The Chinese, for example, prize jade and wear it to bring health, strength, and good fortune. During the Crusades, ladies gave opals t
o soldiers to keep them safe in battle. Originally, people wore birthstones to enhance, balance, or moderate their own personal characteristics. Birthstones resonate with the qualities of the zodiac signs to which they correspond. By the way, you should look at your sign, not the month of your birth, to discover your true birthstone. If you’re an Aquarian, for example, your birthstone is garnet, regardless of whether you were born in January or February.

  “When you wear certain gems on your left side you can consciously control and modify stresses from your environment. . . . [W]hen you wear gems on your right side, your gems can aid your productivity.”

  —DOROTHEE L. MELLA, STONE POWER

  Spellworking with Gemstones

  Like plants, crystals and gemstones are living entities, although they resonate at a rate so slow that most people can’t perceive it. However, their slow, concentrated energy enables them to keep working their magick for a long time. You can include gemstones and/or crystals in virtually any spell to increase, focus, stabilize, or fine-tune your spell’s potency. Here are some suggestions:

  Wear them to enhance your personal energy field.

  Put them in amulets or talismans to augment your intentions.

  Set them near the windows and doors of your home to provide protection.

  Meditate with them.

  Infuse magick potions with them.

  Dowse with a gemstone or crystal pendulum.

  Display them on your altar to attract positive energy.

  Offer them to deities or nature spirits as gifts in return for assistance.