Mention magic to most people and they immediately start thinking about Wicked Witches, Wizards and Sorcerers conjuring up evil-sounding spells and poisons from boiling bubbling cauldrons sat on blazing smoking fires. Most recently it conjures images of Harry Potter-style magick. Others visualize magic like card tricks, rabbits in hats and illusionists that make people simply disappear.
Since history was a thing, magick has been used in witchcraft, and due to witch trials and media coverage many evil associations have been given to its use, so it is no wonder people really don’t have any idea what magick truly is.
In this post, I will concentrate on the style of magick or spells performed by many witches in today’s times.
This is a sensitive topic and many people will not agree with me, this is my take on magick based on my experience and opinion as a solitary practitioner since 1999.
At the end of the day, Wicca is a very individual practice and you will need to form your own opinions based on your experience.
How, What, Where and When of Magick
So what is magick really? I will be aiming to answer the how, what, where and when of magick here.
Most importantly I want to destroy the myth of wizards with lighting doing battle with evil sorcerers as portrayed by Disney and the like.
How magick can be used
Magick can only be used to change things that can be changed, and what I mean is it can be used to cure an illness but not to replace a lost limb. The lost limb could be replaced by using magick to ensure you got on the waiting list for example.
Magick is not a power to be used in place of our other powers, meaning those of our physical, mental or emotional abilities. Neither should it be used as a crutch, or to boost the ego. Magick is an art, a skill if you will.
You need to spend time learning magick, training your skills and then using them, it takes time and patience and should not be jumped into without knowledge first.
As a Wiccan we mostly believe that everything and everyone originates from the same source, therefore we have the ability to use magick within all of us.
Therefore the ability to use magick is within all us and has been passed down through eons of reincarnations. Simply practice and learn and you too can use the magick in your everyday life.
Modern Magick
Modern Witches not only use magick in ritual but also on a daily basis to communicate spiritually with the God and Goddess, for healing purposes, and more commonly for personal problems, like reducing negativity, self-protection and improving oneself. You can, however, use it however you would like, as long and you remember the 3 fold law and understand the consequences.
Types of Power
Magick is ultimately the control of energy to produce the desired outcome.
There are 3 major sources of power, Personal Power, Earth Power and Divine Power.
Personal Power:
Personal power is the force that sustains us and protects our existence on earth. The power you have within yourself sometimes called willpower.
As we carry out our daily tasks we are absorbing energy.
- Energy from the sun, during the day
- Energy from the moon at night
- and from the food and drink, we have.
This energy is normally stored and use for maintaining our body, exercise, sex, and even our emotions. This is all natural.
In magick, we learn to harness and control our personal power so that it can be infused with your desired intent to be released and directed at your goal.
Earth Power:
This is the power that lives in earthly objects. Things like stones, trees, wind, fire, water, crystals & gemstones, oils and scents.
There are too many for me to outline them all but the energies carried by these things can be harness during ritual work, since their energies are more specific.
Try picking up a stone and placing it in your dominant hand. Concentrate on it, can you feel it tingling? That is the direct force of its energy.
For example, a crystal can be charged and then held against the forehead or temple to help with migraines or headaches.
In similar fashion herbs and oils can also be charged and used for healing or other rituals.
Divine Power:
This is the power of the Goddess and God that can be channelled and used as with the above forms. Personal power and earth power are both ultimately manifestations of the divine power. Divine power is the ultimate force of life and the source of everything. The power of the universe that created everything if you will.
If you wish to directly use divine power, this is done most commonly in a properly constructed circle.
During a ritual, for example, personal power may be used to create personal change, then directed to the deities asking for a specific extra goal to be met.
Other Associations
Magick isn’t simply the use of power, you cannot simply call up the Goddess and God and demand that your magickal desire is fulfilled “so be it”.
It takes preparation to use magick.
First, you need to identify that magick can or needs to be used, you then need to give careful consideration to the other associations if a successful outcome is achieved.
Other associations include coordinating colours, candles, incense, oils and symbols and ensure they all align with your intended end result.
Choosing the timing, the correct moon, etc.
As well as which tools are best, and what kind of magick to use.
In the resources tab of the menu, you will find many correspondence tables added now and over time.
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