Thursday, April 29, 2010

Need Just a Wee Bit 'o Magic in Your Life?

Every now and then even the most accomplished magician likes to take a break and have some fun.

I love the magic vials created by CraftyChick101 on Etsy.

Her "Little Bit of Magic" Vial Pendant Necklace is just that: it is filled with little bits of sparkling magic.

Wear this pendant necklace as a talisman or use it as part of a small daily ritual. What you do with it is up to you. It's fun, pretty, and magical. What else could you ask for?

The pendant comes on a thick 17" silver chain, which is perfect since silver is very stable for use in magical rituals.

Visit Etsy to get a good look at this fun wee bit 'o magic ...

Vial Pendant Necklace

Most of all, enjoy your magic ... whether you're dowsing with pendants or doing daily rituals or just plain having fun spreading the magic around!

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Photo credit: CraftyChick101

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

One Step Over the Line Sweet Jesus or Universe or ...

"One step over the line sweet Jesus."

This line from the song has always fascinated me because it speaks so eloquently of how little it takes to go from living a crappy mundane life to a magical miraculous life.

The difference is just one step. One itty-bitty step.

It doesn't matter whether you say Jesus or Universe or Great Spirit ... you fill in the blank. The key is that the line between the mundane and the magical is a fine one. It takes just one step to cross that line.

Crossing the Line from the Mundane to the Magical
So how do you step over the line from the everyday ordinary world into the magical world? How do you cross that line? How do you take a magical step?

There are so many possible magical solutions that there is no way to cover them all in one article. The point is this: do magic.

Any sort of magic will help you step over into the magical world. Now here's the really good part:

Any intentional act is a magical act.

Stop and savor the power of that for a moment. ANY intentional act is a magical act. That means that anything you do with intention (or attention) is a magical act. That means that anyone can do magic. There are no muggles. Everyone can do magic.

A magic ritual done with intention is a magical act. A power walk around the neighborhood driven by intention is a magical act. Taking a deep breath on purpose is a magical act. Are you starting to see how easy this can be?

What is an Intentional Act and How is that Magical?
So let's clarify. An intentional act is any act you do on purpose. A very simple act can be an intentional, and hence magical, act. Here's an example of an intentional act.
  1. You look at a pen on your desk.
  2. You decide to pick up the pen right now.
  3. You pick up the pen immediately after you make the decision.
There, you have just done a magical act ... and crossed the line from the ordinary world to the magical world. It's simple.

Of course, the scale of the intentional act dictates the level of its effect. A small intentional act will give you a little magical power boost ... help you step over the line, so to speak. A stronger magical ritual will help you stay over the line. Even more powerful, magic rituals done on a daily basis as part of magical practice will help you live a magical life, even as you move through your ordinary daily activities.

For instance, if you call upon the Spirit of Owl each morning to help you plan your day, you start your day by stepping over the line. Intentionally following the guidance from Owl will help you stay on your magical path all day.

Get directions for communicating with Owl here.

Or if you are feeling blue, doing the Sun Candle ritual for even 5 minutes will shift you from mundane to magical.

Get directions for doing the Sun Candle magic ritual here.

Or, if you choose appropriate daily rituals to match life situations that crop up every day, you will literally be steeped in magic. It just takes one step, sweet Jesus, or Universe, or ...

For more ideas on simple daily magical rituals, check out our ebooks that offer rituals you can do immediately and also teach you how to create your own (at least, the Daily Rituals ebook does):

Daily Rituals Ebook
Magical Quick Fixes Ebook

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Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/richardsummers/436786394/

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Magic Rituals: Easy Freebies to Help You Get Your Feet Wet

One of the most common questions we get about magic rituals is, "Where do I start?"

A lot of people go into information overload when they start delving into a magical practice, and have no idea where to start. They wonder which magic ritual they should they first? And should they read and study first, then do the ritual? It's enough to make anyone's head spin.

Well, if your head is spinning, here's how to make it stop.

Magic Rituals in Three Easy (Freebie) Steps
Magic rituals don't have to be overly complicated or filled with smoke and mirrors. In fact, a lot of truly effective and fun rituals are very simple. So here's how you get your feet wet with a magical practice in three easy steps.

1. Pick a Ritual
First, you have to find a magic ritual that really calls to you. You also need to find one that is safe and not going to wreak havoc with your karma or cause you any spiritual backlash. We've got a bunch of them in our online library of articles. Feel free to check 'em out.

2. Do the Magic Ritual, Right Now
You'd be amazed at how many people get hung up on this step. They read about a ritual and think to themselves, "Wow, this one looks great. I'll do that as soon as I have some time." Yeah, right. When do you think that's going to happen? Never. So when you find a ritual that really calls you to you, drop everything you are doing and do the ritual. If the ritual calls for some special tools or ingredients, go get them, right away. Then come right back and do the ritual. It's the only way to dive into your magical practice without letting doubt, schedules, or anything else interfere.

3. Reflect on the Effect
Once you have done the ritual, take a moment to reflect on what happened. You may want to jot down any immediately noticeable effects in a journal. Do the same reflection 12, 24, and 48 hours after you have done the ritual. Maybe check back in a week later as well. Be sure to look for good things that might have entered your life.

You may also want to check for negative things that have left your life. This is very important. Most of the time, when something negative leaves our lives, we don't notice it. We just move on with our lives.

For instance, when I counsel people about health care, I often ask them to tell me if anything has changed or improved with their health after we have completed a treatment regimen. Many times the person says, "No, nothing has changed." But when I ask them whether they still have headaches or back pain, they suddenly wake up to the fact that the pain is gone. We often fail to notice when pain leaves our lives. Pain, or negative events, are usually noticeable only when they are present. So be sure to check for anything negative that might have left your life.

See, that's pretty easy, right? Pick a ritual, do it, and reflect on it. How much simpler can it get? Don't over-think this. Do as Nike suggests:

Just do it!

For some more ideas for magic rituals, check out our

Daily Rituals Ebook
Other Magical Goodies in our Expanded Online Store

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Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/makelessnoise/453186563/

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Magic Rituals: The Art of Calling in the Muses

Uninspired action really sucks, and I mean really, really sucks.

Not just because doing something you're not thrilled about is a total bore, but also because it's a useless waste of effort. I'm sure you know what I'm talking about ... that useless head-banging that doesn't net you anything but a headache?

Yeah, that would be because you are working without the magical benefit of muses, our sources of inspiration. Without that kind of inspiration, action is fairly useless. I believe that the metaphysical teaches Abraham said it best:

"Take time to line up the Energy first, and action becomes inconsequential ...if you don't find the feeling place of what you're looking for, not enough action in the world will make any difference."

That's pretty clear, huh? So if you are feeling dull, lackluster, and totally not into what you're doing, just stop. Do a magic ritual to call in the Muses. When they appear, then it's time to spring into action.

A Magic Ritual to Call in the Muses
Muses do exist in the world, and as magical creatures they bring us inspiration. People call them by all kinds of other names--angels, spirit guides, helpers, totems--you name it. But it's not all that important what you call them, just that you allow them into your life to amplify your heart's desire and call your forth in happy and inspired action.

So how do you call forth a muse? There are several magic rituals that you could use to do this, and my favorite is the simplest one of all:

Just sit there and call for a Muse.

Yup, just sit on your fanny and call for a Muse. You can do it out loud or just ask silently. Use whatever words come naturally to you. Your own Muse is always hovering nearby, just waiting to hear your call, so the words really don't matter. I often just think the word, "Muse."

Then I wait. This is the part of the magic ritual that is the most difficult for most people. If you can master the art of sitting and waiting, then you have mastered the art of control, at least in one area of your life ... and control of your attention and intention is crucial to a successful magical practice.

Why Sitting and Waiting is So Difficult

Did you know that you expend more energy just sitting in a chair doing nothing than you do digging a ditch for a couple of hours? You do. Why is this? Because movement is life, a natural part of life, so it's much easier for our bodies (not to mention our minds) to be in movement than to be still.

When we hold ourselves still, we actually have to exert tension over our bodies to do so. This tension expends a lot of energy, far more than movement, which is why we have such a hard time sitting still. It takes a lot of work to sit still.

But if you can manage to hold yourself still, both in body and mind, while you wait for your Muse, you'll find that you don't have to stay still for long. Muses can only speak to us when we are quiet, both inside and out, so the sooner you can be still the sooner your Muse will deliver the inspiration you have asked for.

Sometimes it helps to stare at a candle flame or listen to the gurgling sound of a fountain as you do the magic ritual. This keeps your mind occupied, which means your body will naturally be still.

For instance, the other day I was having difficult with this ritual. I needed to write the notes for a magic class I was teaching, but could not concentrate. I had asked for a Muse but felt so jumpy that I couldn't hear anything from my Muse. So I plunked myself down in front of the woodstove and simply watched the flames as I waited for my Muse. My mind and body calmed immediately, since flames are notoriously hypnotic. About 15 minutes later, I sprang into inspired action (after, of course, thanking my Muse).

Doing the magic ritual this way works particularly well, especially if you are feeling the pressure of a tight deadline, are experiencing an adrenaline rush, or are downright frustrated with your lack of progress. Just watch of listen to something distracting, call your Muse, and practice the art of waiting.

Patience, my friend, is a virtue ... and luckily one that yields many magical rewards

For more magical rituals, resources, and fun stuff, check out our newly expanded

Magical Online Store


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Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ajy/53493636/

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Free Magick: Why it is Never Free No Matter Which Way You Slice It

Throughout the fifteen years we have had our magick school, we have tried various ways of offering free magick ... and time and again we have reached the conclusion that there really is no such thing as free magick.

Free Magick: Let Us Count the Ways
Over the years, we've tried various ways of offering free magick.

For instance, we currently offer:
These seem to work fairly well in that people can access magical knowledge for free, and there's no trouble. But then we tried to take the whole concept of "free magick" to the next level and offer it more deeply, and it has always backfired on us. For instance, we have offered:
  • full scholarships for our live weekly teleconference magick courses
  • free live one-time magick tutorials
  • scholarships on our home study courses
Most of these have not produced the intended result, which is to expand magical knowledge and the use of daily magical rituals in the world. Now why is this?

Why Free Magick is Never Truly Free
The reason that free magick is never truly free is because there is always a price to be paid by both parties involved: the people teaching the material and the people learning the material.

Anyone teaching magical material has already paid the price, and continues to pay it. For instance, all of us who teach have already put in the time and effort to learn what we teach. We also continue to deepen our knowledge by taking advanced courses in magick and practicing daily magic rituals.

Anyone who wishes to learn magick must also pay the price, and therein lies the rub. Most who believe they want to learn this material can only see the physical "price tag" attached to the material, whether it be a daily magic rituals ebook or an in-depth teleconference course.

But there is a second price to be paid: the effort that a person pays into his or her own magical practice. While some people can afford the first price, the dollars, they can't or won't pay the second price-the effort.

And that explains why our scholarship recipients have never really done well in our courses. In our experience, a student who cannot pay the physical price of class usually does not have enough "will" or "force" to pay the price of effort required to learn this material. As odd though it may seem, there is a correlation between a person's "will" and his ability to manifest dollars in his life.

Even recently we offered several scholarships to students for our teleconference class, and the results were no different. In fact, they were much worse than ever. One scholarship student never showed up while another one dropped out quickly. This tells me that in this particular period of time, when karmic effects are speeding up, the correlation between a person's willingness to pay into his magical practice with effort and the number of dollars in his bank account is stronger than ever.

That's Why We Don't Teach Free Magick
We get loads of emails all the time asking us why we don't offer free magick. The fact of the matter is two-fold:
  1. We offer tons of free magical resources on our website (see the list above)
  2. No matter how many scholarships we offer, no student who gets a free ride every has the force or will to stay the course
The price for magick must always be paid, in one form or another. Thus, there is no free lunch, free ride, or free magick. For those who want to learn for free, there are few who are willing to spend the effort to browse all the no-cost resources on our website. They want the knowledge handed to them on a silver platter, at no monetary cost and with no effort.

Not gonna happen. It's not in accordance with the tribal magical and shamanic laws and traditions that have been passed on through the eons. So if you want free magick, we wish you the best of luck and we point you to free our online resources.

Dig in, dive in, delve in. Get your magick there at no monetary cost ... all it costs you is your effort, and you may find that the effort is a higher price than any of our classes or home study materials!

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