Gratitude as Money

One of the most frequent requests for help that we receive is around the issue of money. There are many different magickal ways to attract money, increase your bank account, or solve monetary problems. Many people find simple candle spells with a well-defined set of Directors and Limiters (what you want and what you don't want) works very well. Many people also like this approach because it seems to tackle the issue directly.

However, many of the same people who use this approach find that they have to use money spells frequently because they often need to solve financial problems. This is usually because some aspect of their lifestyle consistently produces a lack of money.

Another magickal approach to more permanently solving financial problems is to do a simple daily magickal ritual. This ritual is mostly about changing one's view of the world, as well as altering the energy that one puts out into the world.

Money As Energy
When you spend money you can easily see the exchange being made: dollars for goods or services. You can also see the exchange when you work to receive a paycheck: money in exchange for your work effort. But if you look behind all of these transactions, you will see that an energy exchange is at the heart of all of these transactions. When you work for a paycheck, you are being paid for the energy that you expend in different ways. Similarly, when you buy an item, you are ultimately paying for the energy that went into producing that item.

So money is really just a form of energy that we humans trade back and forth many times per day.

If we look at what occurs on the next higher spiritual level, we will see this energy exchange even more clearly. Consider the angels. They help us whenever we ask. So how do angels get paid? Partially by helping us. Angels get "brownie points," if you will, by helping us. These brownie points help angels ascend up their evolutionary ladder. Beyond that though, angels are paid in the spiritual coin of appreciation and gratitude.

If you consider the process we outline for hiring an angel for help from the higher, we recommend that people thank angels when they request help, while waiting for help to arrive, and after the desired result has manifested. When we express our gratitude to our angels before, during, and after the whole process, we are paying angels with the spiritual coin of gratitude. What's more, we are exchanging energy, which is at the heart of the monetary exchange system. Instead of dollars, we use the energy of gratitude and appreciation to pay the angels.

At the end of the day, whether we consider spending and receiving money or doing the same with gratitude and appreciation, we are exchanging energy with beings on the Earth plane as well as beings on higher spiritual planes.

How to Use Gratitude to Increase the Money in Your Life
Using the above idea that gratitude is the spiritual coin we use to barter with higher beings, and considering the idea that all types of money (on Earth and on higher spiritual planes) are simply exchanges of energy, we can come to a radical conclusion. Any form of energy exchange can be profitable. So what does that mean?

Let's say that you have a financial crisis in your life. You have more bills than you have money. In addition, the bills are due and you have no idea where to get the money to pay the bills. Can you use another form of money to pay your bills? Yes... albeit in an indirect way. Instead of getting a second job to pay your bills, how about using spiritual coins to pay your bills?

This is how you can use spiritual coin to attract enough money into your life to pay your bills. For the next 40 days, spend as much spiritual coin as you can. In other words, for the next 40 days feel as much gratitude and appreciation as you can about anything and everything in your life. In addition, spend as much spiritual coin as you can for the next 40 days. That is, express as much gratitude and appreciation to others as you can. When you express gratitude to someone, they are paid in spiritual coin that gives them a spiritual boost. The Universe notices that you have paid someone with spiritual coin that led to a higher state of being for the recipient. According to the Law of Karma, what comes around goes around (or, what you sow so shall you reap). The Universe will then convert that expression of gratitude into something you need: money to pay your bills.

This may sound a little crazy, but if you try this experiment for the next 40 days, you will be amazed at the variety of sources from which your money will come. If you spend the next 40 days noticing every "little joy" in your life, expressing sincere gratitude and appreciation to others (and yourself!), you will be paid tenfold in both physical money and spiritual coin. It is Universal Law. You need only practice this to verify the truth of this law for yourself.

It's a good idea to keep notes about your starting point, the ways you express and feel joy and gratitude and appreciation in your life, and the flow of money and spiritual coin that is returned to you. Keep track of the ways in which you spend your spiritual coin as you would a bank ledger. Then see what changes are reflected in your actual checking account ledger. You will be surprised at how quickly both ledgers fill up on the positive side with credits in abundance.

Gratitude and appreciation require only true sincerity and the willingness to keep an open mind. Spending a little energy each day giving yourself and others a spiritual boost costs so little that the risk and reward ratio is very good. If it doesn't work (but it will), you have lost nothing more than a few kind words that are appreciated by those around you. Learn more about daily rituals and how they can enhance your life and bring magic to your life with our Daily Rituals for Attracting What You Want in Life ebook.

Ready... Set... Spend!

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Touched By An Angel

I have been inspired lately by some of the magical stories submitted by my students to include a few of my own from the past. I teach several classes at the Esoteric School, have been a magical practitioner for about 30 years and am a co-founder of the Esoteric School. Over the years I have personally witnessed so many magical events that I am sure I could fill a very thick book or two with them. This experience though was a very personal one that I have never forgotten. I call it Touched By An Angel.

This story takes place back around 1985. At that time my life was undergoing a period with a lot of stress and emotional turmoil. Among other life stresses, there were problems with my newest relationship in terms of a controlling mother who disapproved and my girlfriend struggling with freeing herself from her mother's grasp. My situation became stressful enough that I felt the need to get away for a while. So I packed up myself and my dog and I began driving west across country to go stay a while with a friend.

I drove all night and finally stopped at a rest area in Nebraska just approaching dawn. The site was empty with no other people in sight. While my dog was exploring the picnic site, I sat down at a table and began meditating just as the sun was rising. I had my eyes shut, was totally relaxed for the first time in quite a while and began to feel like I was coming out of a void and back into life. I sent up a prayer asking for resolution of my stressful situation and suddenly out there totally alone I heard a voice. The voice was very clear and strong. The words I heard were, "Everything will be fine and work out".

At that point I had the most incredible physical sensation that felt like feathers of a huge wing brushing against my face and down the left side of my body. My first thought was that my dog was brushing up against me to offer comfort, but upon opening my eyes I saw the dog a good 12 feet away from me. The feeling that continued to stay with me was one of total peace and healing and I knew at that point I had indeed been touched by an angel.

If you have any magical stories or experiences you'd like to share, leave us a comment on Facebook or on our blog. We love hearing about how magic has enhanced the lives of others and sharing your experiences could have a huge impact of the life of another just as that angel impacted my life so many years ago.

In Magic,
Alan aka RavenWindStar

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Calling All Angels

Jayne Sieberry created this gradient song whose refrain is "Don't leave me alone!"  Yet we walk with angels, talk with angels, live with angels, but most of the time we are woefully unaware!

Conditions useful to know about angels:
1. There is an angelic code: One of the principle responsibilities that angels live by is to be of service to we humans, usually having been invoked, although there are times when angels apply their trade unannounced.

2. Angels have the ability to shape-shift, even appear as one of us, much like in the movie: "It's a Wonderful Life".

Working With Angels
Years ago I attended a workshop featuring working with angels.  For us disbelievers we were instructed to start simply by "hiring" parking place angels, as follows:
"I wish to summon a parking place angel who is stable, enthusiastic, powerful, clear, and swift--I need a shaded parking place close to the theater and I will be there in ten minutes--and I THANK YOU!" 

As I drive up to the theater, a car just backs out of my shaded spot--it's totally Magical!  I pull in and again give thanks to my angel!

Over the last thirty years I have been successfully using angels, Totem spirits, and Guides to handle all kinds of living situations.  It's fun, easy, and reliable.  Anyone can do this--all that is required is that we suspend disbelief! Acknowledging they exist is after all the first step in working with angels or any spirit being. Then it is a simple matter of letting them know specifically what you need and thanking them before their help and after. Gratitude is the "payment" we offer them for services rendered. It is important to give thanks just after voicing your request as well as after the task is accomplished. This sets up the energy of belief by showing you know the help will be given as well as creates a reciprocal exchange of energy.

Of course with any type of magical practice, the more you put into it, the more you will get back. Start being aware of anything you could ask for that would make your day go smoother and make the commitment to ask for help from an angel at least once a day. Then work your way up to more and more requests. The more you use angels, the more you will start to see all sorts of ways they can help you. Don't think any task is too small or unimportant to "bother" an angel with. I've seen people ask for angelic help with everything from being on time to an important meeting, to helping catch a runaway dog, to how much salt to put on their food. You can learn more about working with angels and other spirit beings in our Learn How to Do Witchcraft Rituals and Spells with Your Bare Hands Kindle book.

I will be doing a series of articles: "Touched by an angel"--"The value of a Magical Practice"--"Spellwork, simple, effective and fun"--"The ancient art of Witchcraft in modern times". So stay tuned for those.

Magically Yours:  G. Alan Joel

P.S.:  Should there be interest, another topic for investigation will be the Urban Shaman's abilities to make a difference in a troublesome world!

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The Magick of Laziness

You have probably heard of the old joke in which a British diplomat is sent to India. Upon arriving in India, this diplomat observes men just "lying about," sunning themselves, and generally being lazy. Shocked at this display of sheer laziness, the diplomat approaches one of the men lying in the sun. The diplomat asks, "Why are you wasting your life away just lazing in the sun?"

The Indian man, having been asked this question many times before, replies, "And how do you choose to spend your life?"

The diplomat bristles and says, "I intend to work very hard, accumulate a vast fortune so that I am independently wealthy."

"Once you have achieved your wealth, what will you do with your life?" asks the Indian.

The diplomat replies, "I will buy some sea side property and lie in the sun and relax, knowing that I have worked hard all my life and can rest easy."

The Indian man laughs so hard he can hardly gasp out his answer: "Silly man, why bother? I have not worked a single day in my life and am living your dream of lying about in the sun, resting easy with no regrets. Laziness has its benefits, no?"

So who is right: the British diplomat or the Indian man? The answer depends on how you view the world, and how you see your place in the world. If you require a lifetime of hard work before you feel that you "deserve" to rest easy, then pursuing a life of hard work (like the British diplomat) is the life for you.

But if you want to achieve your life goals with as little effort as possible, then studying the use of magick and the power of laziness in everyday life is the way to go.

What is the Magick of Laziness?
If you are at all plugged into the digital age, then you know that our phones, tablets, beepers, and TV programs engage us endlessly. We never get to "unplug and turn off" unless we do so on purpose. In fact, most of us are trained to check email endlessly and chat at will. This is certainly not a magickal lifestyle, nor does it take advantage of the power of laziness.

But don't worry, even if you start living a magickal life of laziness, you don't have to ditch your digitals. You just have to adapt your relationship to those machines to make room for magick... and, of course, laziness.

So how do magick and laziness go together? Simple. Magick is the art of calling upon various beings in the Universal Hierarchy to do the heavy lifting in our lives. With a magickal practice, you cultivate and enhance relationships with these beings. The more you work with magickal beings, the more willing they are to help you. This all sounds pretty good, but a few people may wonder what all this "heavy lifting" by magickal beings will cost at the end of the day. This is a great question. Any interaction with magickal beings requires an even exchange of energy... so working with magickal beings will have an energetic cost.

The good news is that most universal beings who do the kind of work we seek need only appreciation and some recognition of the work being done. That is literally all they require in the energy exchange. For instance, there are many angels hanging around waiting for humans to ask them for their help. The energy exchange required by angels is simple: the expression of appreciation before and after the work is done, as well as a positive attitude. Angels can and do work with people who have a negative or "Doubting Thomas" attitude, but the results are rarely happy. Thanking angelic beings plus being open to the belief that magick and universal beings exist to help seems pretty simple, right? And yet these two simple factors (appreciation and faith) are like manna to angels. This type of energy feeds their souls, and also helps advance them to the next level of their spiritual path. The same simplicity applies when angels perform actions that seem like miracles in our eyes. What would take us days and weeks of work is nothing to an angel. An angel can do some pretty heavy lifting in the blink of an eye. This is because angels exist at a different level than we do (here on planet Earth), and manifesting what we desire is much simpler at the angelic level.

The Laziness Factor
Now that you understand the relationship between angels and humans (and this is just one of many possible relationships humans can have with magickal universal beings), you can probably see how the laziness factor fits in. If you have an impossible situation or task, don't try to do it by yourself. Hire an angel to help (learn how to work with angels by reading the article on working with Unemployed Angels) do all the work. You just specify the job at hand as accurately as possible.

After you have solicited the help of an angel, the next part is truly about the laziness factor. Once you have hired one or more angels, and have sent them on their merry way to work for you, your job becomes very simple. Your job is to be as lazy as the Indian man lying on the beach. With regard to the tasks you have assigned to the angels, you just have to keep your head down and stay out of the angels' way. Do not start "doing" anything that you have asked angels to do. This kind of interference creates double work for the angels. If you have other work to do, go do it. In other words, do whatever it takes to keep your grubby little hands out of the angelic pie. Read a book, lie in the sun, go do other work unrelated to the angelic tasks you have assigned. Be lazy. Really lazy. And have faith that angels will deliver what you have hired them to do.

Start Small
When you first begin working with angelic and other magickal beings, it's best to start small. Tasking angels with small assignments makes it easy to have faith that angels with deliver. Also small tasks matter less, so you will be less likely to want to interfere by "doing" what you have asked the angels to do (because you don't yet have enough faith that angels will deliver). For all of these reasons, we start most students with hiring parking angels. Parking angels are dedicated to reserving the best parking spots for you, whether at a crowded mall or at the county fair. Read up on Parking Angels to learn more, and start working with angels at this level. As you see angels performing miracle after miracle, feel free to ask for ever bigger favors. Just remember that the more heavy lifting you do, the lazier you have to be. Once you have hired an angel your job is to be lazy, to have faith, and to express your appreciation before, during, and after the work has been done. Simple and lazy, right? That's the way to leverage magickal laziness in your life!


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