The Anatomy of a Magic Spell

When many people think of magic, they think of a magic spell such as they have seen on TV or in the movies. These fictional works often don't portray the way real magic spells work or what they actually are. Magic spells are a real part of a magical practice however and you can do amazing things when you use them correctly.

About Magic Spells
Basically a magic spell is any psychic or magical operation that uses some combination of the four elements, air, fire, water and earth and programs factors into the energy matrix that is built using these elements to produce a certain result over a certain period of time. A magic spell is usually used when there are complex factors or barriers that have to be overcome to achieve the goal. Magic spells are not usually the first operation that magical practitioners turn to however since they require a bit more work and preparation and often a simpler magical technique will do. But in cases where we are not able to directly affect a situation with other magical techniques, a magic spell is well worth the extra effort it requires. Our students learn how to create magic spells in the third part of Basic Magic. Whereas you can go to this level just to learn about magic spells, it is recommended that you take Level 1 and Level 2 first so that you have a sound foundation of magical practice before attempting spellwork. Having this foundation not only helps you create a better spell from the perspective of understanding what elements will be helpful to build into the spell, it also helps keep you out of trouble with the Universe and avoid backlash should you build something into the spell unintentionally. After all the Universe doesn't care what you intended to do, only what you did do and will deliver accordingly. So for example, if you are creating a spell to receive a certain amount of money and neglect to include in your directors and limiters that no person will be harmed for that money to come to you, you may find yourself the beneficiary of a life insurance policy that a beloved family member has left you. The problem with this is that they had to die for you to get it. Maybe not what you intended.

Creating a Magic Spell
When beginning spellwork, it is a good idea to start with simple spells that would produce a small effect in a short time. Then as you see results from these type of spells and increase your experience with them, you can move on to magic spells that are more complicated, operate over a longer period of time to gain more force, and cover more complicated issues. Just to give you an idea of what all is involved with the creation of a magic spell, here is a list of the basic skills you should have before attempting to create a magic spell.

• Understanding of basic magical operational laws and how they work
   
• Basic working knowledge of the four elements and their characteristics and correspondences
   
• Knowing how to find the exact meanings of any words being used in a spell verse and choose appropriate ones
   
• Know how to think through creating directors and limiters for a spell to include specifics of what the spell should accomplish and protect against unwanted contingencies
   
• Have an understanding of how sonics works and how the spell can be affected by the tone of voice you use as well as the sounds used
   
• Have an understanding of various types of magic spell formats such as candle spells and Tarot spells and be able to choose which type will be the most effective in your situation
   
• Be able to use Tarot card readings to obtain information on what aspects may need to be included in a proposed spell, get information on if the spell will work as designed, to check up on your directors and limiters for the spell and to check up on the progress of the spell once it is launched
   
• Have an understanding of how to write effective spell verses
   
• If doing a candle spell, how to design and prepare the candle for carving and anointing and choose effective colors and symbols for it
   
• Know how to pick the timing for launching a magic spell according to astrological and other factors that can affect the spell
   
• Know how to record the spell in your Book of Shadows
   
• Know how to take a magic spell down should you need to in case something goes awry with it

As you can see there is quite a bit of preparation and work involved in creating a magic spell. You can also see why Basic Magic Level 1 and Level 2 are recommended before going on to Level 3 and starting spellwork. Having the foundation of lots of practice with the four elements and with magical tools will help get you ready for the tasks involved in creating a successful spell. And whereas a magic spell may take more work than other magical techniques and operations, there are times when it is necessary, can give you a real sense of achievement, and is just plain fun to do.

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

Why You Should Never Trust Magic Without an Explanation

Some of the top rated books in the magic, wicca, and similar categories are those that have the reader dive straight into rituals with no explanations, no explanation of the universal rules of magical practice, and no word on precautions. Thumbs down to that because it is one of the best ways to get into trouble. You could break a magical universal rule and have a magical side effect without ever knowing why or how to take it down. We always offer Rules of the Road and explain what the topic is, how to maximize the knowledge, and how to prevent trouble in our ebooks, courses, and Kindle books. If you read any book that doesn't offer you that, beware for your own sake!

Magical Trouble
Here are some examples of the type of trouble we have known people to get into by either not having the right foundation to perform the magical operation they undertook or by not having a good understanding of how the Universe works and its laws. In some cases the operation just didn't seem to bring any results and in other cases results were achieved, but not in a way that was acceptable.

A Financial Disaster
One of our students used a free online money spell and the results were both great and tragic. She got the money she wanted. The only problem was that the money came from her husband's life insurance policy, and he died three weeks after she cast the spell. Powerful spells without limitations (specifying, for instance, that no one die as a result of this spell) can often lead to disaster.

Let It Rain
A man trying to help his community that was suffering from drought set up a spell for it to rain. Unfortunately no rain came to his area. Upon examining his spell we found that there was nothing built into the matrix to specify where and when the rain should happen. It probably did rain somewhere as a result of his spell or it may rain in his area in the future as a result, but without these specifics included in the spell we'll never know and his community did not get the relief he hoped for.

Love Spells
We often hear from people asking about casting a love spell to make a particular man or woman fall in love with them. This is something we never recommend anyone do. This type of love spell has a good chance of backfiring. Love spells of this nature break one of the fundamental rules of magical practice, rule #2 in Rules of the Road, which says:

Don't bind another being unless you are willing to be likewise bound. This applies to many love spells and some kinds of healing rituals.

The good news is that you can cast a love spell that will work to bring you the partner you seek. You just can't name a specific person. If you set the spell up with a list of characteristics you want in a partner, then the Universe will deliver that relationship. It may or may not be the person that you had in mind. It might be someone even better and more perfect for you.

As you can see there can be catastrophic consequences, inconveniences, and loading of karmic debt to yourself by not taking the proper safety precautions in magic. Magic can help you achieve wondrous things in your life, just be sure you understand the operation you are performing and have the basic knowledge you need to perform it safely.


If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

 Image courtesy of   Vlado / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How Do You Study Magic? Here's How

We get this question all the time from people all over the world. They are ready to dip their toes into the magical pool but are not sure how to get started. Check out this online tutorial to get an idea; here's what's covered.

This tutorial starts you out with an explanation of what real magic is and the universal laws that specifically govern magical practice. It then moves on to the topics you need to learn to begin a magical practice starting with mastering the four elements of Air, Fire, Water, and Earth. It then goes through how to use those elements with handwork, magical tools, and in magical operations such as divination, spellwork, and self-defense and then how to add the Tarot to your magical practice.

Since the four elements are the foundation of a magical practice, our students spend a lot of time experimenting with each of the elements with each of the colors and characteristics; increasing each of those and decreasing each of those. That allows you to feel for yourself what each element in all its variations is like and become personally involved with them. This will pay off as you progress in your magical skills and practice. For example, let's look at all that is involved with just the Air element in terms of colors and characteristics our Basic Magic students experience and experiment with.

Air Colors
Clear: breathing, physical reactions, physical sensations, seeing
White: mental processes, thinking, planning, communicating
Sky Blue: spiritual enlightenment, wisdom, understanding

Air Characteristics
Transparency or clarity – can see through it
Carrier – carries fire energy and light objects
Reflectivity – can be mirror like or silvery under some conditions
Compressible and Expandable – able to occupy less space or more space
Easy Flow – flows readily
Reactive – reacts quickly to energy input
Shape Malleable – changes shape easily
Mutable – can be changed into other elements under some conditions
Insulator – can insulate or separate from conditions
Inherently Stable – doesn't move unless acted on by an outside force
Direct Mediator for Fire – mediates fire so it can be applied to water and earth
Lightweight – very light, almost weightless
Masculine – outgoing or forceful

Did you have any idea this one element has so many characteristics? By gaining an in-depth understanding of how these work, you have a wide selection of characteristics to add in when using the Air element for unlimited operations. If you aren't sure how to get started on your magical learning, begin with the tutorial and get an overview of what your magical path can look like. From there you'll be able to find your interests and how involved you want your magical learning experience to be. Then we have a full selection of online courses, ebooks, and Kindle books as well as our free blog and articles library to choose from and really get going on your magical journey.

Image courtesy of   sirikul  / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

Want to Study Magic Now? Get Started at No Cost!

Want to learn magic and magical things like how to invite angels into your life to help you with everything from what foods to eat to finding the perfect parking space? How about having the Spirit of Owl help you access knowledge that may be currently hidden from you? Get all of this and more by signing up for our newsletter and getting our no-cost 10 Magical Quick Fixes ebook. This is a limited time offer so get it while the getting is good!

Here's a sample of one of the 10 techniques in the ebook that you can use to get a spiritual or energetic boost, clear away negative energies or to create sacred space for yourself.

The Sun Candle
Using a Sun candle and charging it with the charge verse is a great magical solution for when you wake up groggy from a poor night's sleep, or anytime you feel tired, depressed, overwhelmed by negative energies or just need a lift. Your Sun candle should be a pure yellow candle which is bright yellow with not too much orange in it. These are usually easy to find and many grocery stores have them in the religious candle section enclosed in glass jars. If you can get one that is unscented, that is best. If you have trouble finding one in your area, take a look in our school store. For this particular technique with the Sun candle, you will need wooden or paper matches (don't use a lighter) and you will need to know which direction is South. Then follow these directions:

1. Stand or sit in the South facing North and have the Sun candle in front of you

2. Light the candle with your wooden or paper matches.

3. Let the flame grow steady and tall which we call a good "working" flame.

4. Now charge the candle by holding your hands so that they are close to (not too close that you get burned though) and cupped around the flame.

5. Focus your attention on the candle and flame and say this verse out loud in a voice of command (strong, powerful voice):

"Child of Wonder,
Child of Flame,
Nourish My Spirit,
And Protect My Aim!"

6. Now simply leave the candle burning for at least 30 minutes making sure it is on a plate or other protective surface and not a fire hazard.

Once you feel ready and at least 30 minutes have passed, blow the candle out. Take a few moments to see if you feel a difference in your energy level and quality of your energy. Most people report they feel lighter, more harmonious and more peaceful.

This is an example of the type of quick magic techniques that can help you in everyday life available to you in this limited time offer. So don't put it off, get to www.shamanschool.com, sign up for the newsletter and get your no-cost copy of the 10 Magical Quick Fixes ebook.

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

Esoteric School Discovery Guide to Magic – Part VIII

How to Learn Magic

If you have started looking into the world of magic, you may be overwhelmed by all the different disciplines, traditions and types of magical practices that exist. So where do you begin? While looking around at magical topics you may have already discovered a discipline that has resonated with you or that you are attracted to. If so then great, you have an idea of where to start. If you haven't gotten that far then we invite you to explore our website and our blog that cover a variety of magical topics for ideas. One of the basics that is a good place to start to learn magic no matter what tradition or discipline you end up following is learning the four elements of Air, Fire, Water and Earth.

How to Learn Magic: The Four Elements
Everything in the Universe is made up of some combination of the four elements of Air, Water, Fire and Earth. If you understand this and know how to work with these four elements, you can understand and create anything you wish to. This is the place we start with our students who want to learn magic because when we say the four elements are what everything is made up of that also applies to magical powers and abilities. For example, if you are drawn to and interested in developing your clairvoyant or telepathic abilities then you will want to work with your water element. Water is the language of Spirit. Any magical study you decide to pursue will advance by having an understanding of the four elements and which to work with in your chosen path. The four elements also help you learn to listen to Spirit guidance, live a more creative and peaceful life, understand the driving forces of life and follow your birth vision.

How to Learn Magic: What Next?
After getting a good working knowledge of the four elements, we can use our hands and bodies to conduct these energies for a variety of magical topics including self-defense, healing, divination and more. Each element also has a tool associated with it and we can learn magical techniques using these tools. The tool for the Air element is the Wand, for Fire the Athame, for Water the Chalice and for Earth the Plate. Then there is the Firebowl that almost every spiritual, magical and religious system throughout history has used in some form or fashion. This tool also sometimes called a thurible, can be used for cleansing, purification, to help in meditation and divination. After mastering the four elements and how to use them with and without magic tools, there are many different magical pathways you can decide to follow and various magical techniques that you can explore to see which ones interest you. For example, divination is the art of accessing information that is not directly available to the normal five senses. There are a variety of magic techniques to use for divination according to what information you are seeking. The Tarot, pendulum, scrying, I-Ching, and Runes are a few examples of divination techniques. And then of course there is spellwork to move into in your magical studies. A magic spell is a magical operation that combines the four elements in a particular way with a specific intention and can also have factors programmed into it to produce a specific result over a period of time. Chants, litanies, prayers, sonics, voodoo dolls (simulacra magic) and directors and limiters are all spells. Prayers are also spells. Spells are energy matrices programmed to build momentum and overcome obstacles until the end goal is manifested.

Magic is a fascinating study that can change your life. It is important however to find a way to learn magic that will give you the skills and techniques, but also that teaches you how to use magic safely. For example, before you create a spell, you must also know how to work directors and limiters into it, understand basic magical operational laws and understand the terminology associated with spellwork. Otherwise your spell might work and reach the end result that you intended, but happen in a way that you did not intend to happen and can sometimes be disastrous. The Universe doesn't care what you intend, just what you actually do, so undertaking an operation without a good understanding of it can cause backlash to you. Magic is a precision science and altered procedures produce altered results. You can avoid this by studying under an experienced teacher. Our website gives you resources to get you started learning how to learn magic in a safe and effective way. From free articles to online courses and ebooks to magical materials and tools you need in our online store, we hope you find the offerings we provide at www.shamanschool.com a place to get you started exploring the wonderful world of magic.

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

Image courtesy of digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

You Are Psychic--Yes, You!

Not only can everyone learn magic, everyone is also psychic. Yes, that means you too! We all have these abilities in us. Some people are just better at using these abilities naturally than others. Just like some people are better cooks than others or better athletes than others, some people are more naturally clairvoyant or use their psychic abilities better than others. All that means is that you need some instruction and practice to wake up those hidden abilities and to learn how to develop psychic abilities that you can use. That is why we created our Psychic Development ebook. This book will give you exercises specifically to practice using and develop psychic abilities to their fullest. Don't believe it? Here's one of the exercises from the ebook to try out for yourself.

How To Develop Psychic Abilities Exercise
There are people who are naturally more tuned-in to psychic wavelengths than others, but there are also many other psychics who simply practice, refine, and verify their abilities with regular exercises. Everyone has these abilities, sometimes they are just weakened from non-use. Here's a simple exercise to start waking up those abilities. Don't be concerned about your results in the beginning. The goal here is to start giving your psychic abilities a little exercise to wake them up, energize them and get them going.

You can start by practicing this exercise in accessing information that you can't possibly know from your five physical body senses. Begin by becoming aware of your environment and asking yourself questions about the places you go and the people you see. For example, if you are going into a workshop or conference presentation, ask yourself, "How many people will be in this workshop?". Ask yourself this question before you walk into the room where the presentation is taking place. Then stop and take the time to listen for an answer. Take the first answer that comes to you, don't stop and think about it or try to figure it out, just see what number comes to you. Then thank yourself for the answer.

Now here's the hard part. Don't walk into the room and start counting people to see if you were "right". Instead, walk into the room and go to your seat acting as if you never asked yourself the question at all. This is important because first we are just beginning to exercise these psychic abilities and if you don't get the exactly right answer the first time, your mind will start interfering with the process by introducing the doubt factor. You know what I mean, the "see I got it wrong, I'm not psychic", "boy did I mess up, won't try that again" type messages. Adding this kind of uncertainty into the mix in the early stages will not help you develop psychic abilities.

Why Can't I Verify My Answers?
At some point, you will ask questions that it will be hard to avoid seeing the answer to. For example, if you are shopping and ask yourself what the highest discount being offered in a particular store is today. If you go into that store, it will be hard not to see what the actual percent-off sale is. Or if you ask if you will meet someone you know in the store, that would be hard not to see the answer. In the beginning though, try to avoid verifying your answers. This will allow you to be more open to what your psychic abilities tell you without your mind chatter shutting you down. Practice this a little every day and soon you will start noticing that your "answers" are accurate most of the time. How long before this happens? That totally depends on the individual. Just like some people can learn to cook quickly and others take more time, the same is true when you set out to learn how to develop psychic abilities. Selective perception is one of the basic principles in magic and in developing your psychic abilities. You are trying to access information in another realm and therefore have to learn to focus your attention in that realm. Putting your attention only on the asking and receiving is the key to success.

So remember these steps in this exercise when you start out learning how to develop psychic abilities.
1. Ask yourself a question you couldn't know with your 5 senses
2. Listen for the first answer you get
3. Thank yourself for the answer
4. Avoid verifying your answers

Now give the exercise a try for yourself, don't get discouraged, have fun with it and you'll be on your way to beefing up your psychic abilities.

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

Image courtesy of graur codrin / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Are You a Magical Geek? Learn Magic by Email

There are many different ways to learn magic and we have an easy way for beginners to get started. You can actually learn magic through your email. If you're ready to get started on a magical path and looking for a way of how to study magic that will work into your busy schedule, then our Everyday Magic Email Course may be the solution for you. This course sends you an email each week for 52 weeks with magic tips and techniques to try out to learn magic. Here is a sample of one of the many magic techniques you can get from this course:

Slow Down Your Mind
If you have one of those minds that stays in high gear and is hard to turn off or stays in worry mode, you can use magic to help slow it down. A mind that is constantly going can make it hard to go to sleep at night, to meditate or just enjoy some silence and relaxation time. With this technique you slow down your body to slow down your mind.

Here's all you have to do. When you feel your mind taking off and getting out of control, get up and start moving around very, very SLOWLY. Walk from one side of the room to the other taking very slow and deliberate steps. As you move, feel each sensation in your body. Feel your feet making contact with the ground, your arms swinging by your side, your breath moving in and out of your lungs and so forth. The more you sink into the physical sensations and slow your body down, the slower your mind will start moving. Doing this regularly will help your mind be able to slow down when you need it to like when you want to go to sleep or meditate and keep it much more focused when you need to work.

This is also a good technique to use if you are feeling anxious or nervous. Give it a try and then get the Everyday Magic Email Course for a simple way to learn magic and get more magical insights like this.

If you enjoyed this post, please consider leaving a comment or subscribing to the feed to have future articles delivered to your feed reader. Or, visit our website for more great resources.

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles / FreeDigitalPhotos.net