Ritual Magic: The Importance of Daily Rituals and Ritual Magic Throughout the Year

Why Do Daily Rituals?
With our crazy, busy lives, daily rituals of magic keep us grounded, at peace, and connected to higher powers and beings who can help us get what we want in life. It is not as important what the ritual is as it is that it is done consistently. Daily rituals create a channel for us to connect with our inner guidance, totem spirits, angels and other powers and beings. When we go about rushing through life we are not able to hear the quiet voices of higher guidance. These higher beings are willing and eager to help us manifest what we want in life, but we can't hear them over all the noise of cell phones, radio, TV, video games, gossip and our own mind chatter. I'm not saying you have to give up your job, social life and family and go sit at the top of a mountain. What I am saying is that we all need to set aside some sacred time everyday and daily rituals are a way to do just that. Whatever you pick to do as a daily ritual, going for a walk and tuning into the nature around you, meditation, yoga, hug a tree, the Consistency Exercise, the Navajo Beauty Way...., just take Nike's advice and just do it.

Ritual Magic for Change of Season
It's also important to do ritual magic throughout the year, such as during the change of seasons. Tribal people have always done this as a way to release the energy of the previous season and prepare appropriate energy for the coming season. In modern cultures, we simply get ill or at most do mundane world level tasks such as "spring cleaning". But what about an energetic cleaning or spiritual cleaning? This is even more important for the health of your mind, body and spirit. So maybe the next time you start a "spring cleaning" of your house, you also include doing a 4 element cleansing. For anyone not familiar with a 4 element cleansing of your house, here's how.

Four Element Cleansing
First, you will need a charged firebowl to cover the air and fire elements and a keyed and charged chalice for the water and earth elements.

In the firebowl you will be burning sage and pine resin on a charcoal disc. In the chalice will be spring water and a pinch of sea salt. Stand in the south facing north to do the charging. The charge verses for a cleansing are:

Firebowl Charge Verse:
"Fire and Air where you are cast, Let no spell nor adverse purpose last, Not in accord with me. Cleanse these walls and cleanse this space, Far from here send baneful trace. Thus my will, so it be."

Chalice Charge Verse:
"Water and Earth where you are cast, Let no spell nor adverse purpose last, Not in accord with me. Cleanse these walls and cleanse this space, Far from here send baneful trace. Thus my will, so it be."

(You can learn more about keying, charging and using the firebowl and chalice in the ebooks Firebowl-Cleansing Tool and Chalice – Water Tool.) http://ow.ly/gOhuI

Then:

• Start with your firebowl on the east most wall of the east most room in your house. Start on the lowest level of the house.
   
• Draw a lemniscent (sideways figure 8) with the smoke at your starting location.
   
• Walk slowly along the wall letting the smoke of the firebowl flow into the wall.
   
• About every 2 feet use the firebowl smoke to draw a lemniscent (sideways figure 8) on the wall. Do this also on any windows, mirrors, or reflective glass/black glossy surfaces.
   
• Continue walking along the walls in the house in an uninterrupted manor until you have gone completely around all the walls in your house and return to the exact same place you started. Then make an ending lemniscent over the one you made when you started.

Walk the same pattern along the walls again with the charged chalice, dipping your fingers into the salt water and spritzing some on the walls every 2-3 feet until you again return to the place you started. (Be sure you have put your firebowl in a safe place while you do this especially if it is still burning for fire safety reasons).

A Four Element Cleansing is good for removing psychic imprints from walls, objects and people. It can clear out negative energies or influences and any psychic residue left by any type of beings. We all come into contact with negative energies daily, so taking the time to clear these energies out of your living space will add to your peace of mind and being.

Special Ritual Magic
Other important times for rituals include birthdays, naming days, new moon, full moon, and change of life (such as transition from adult to wise crone). I participated in the naming ritual for the grandson of a dear friend when he was 3 months old. It was a very formal magical ritual done in a full cast circle, for a wonderfully magical child. The child sat totally quiet throughout the entire ritual (not a usual state for him) that lasted about an hour and a half as he received his shamanic name, "Shining Antelope" and watched the various parts of the ritual unfold. It is a very special memory for me still 10 years later and for his family.

Doing special magical events throughout the year is a way of acknowledging higher powers and beings that are at work in your life everyday, acknowledging life transitions and inviting those powers to participate with you. Whether you do a magical ritual in full cast circle, a simple ceremony or just take a longer time than usual to do your daily ritual and connect with higher beings, it is a way to show our gratitude for their presence in our lives and strengthen our connection with them.

If you need ideas for daily rituals you can get started on, check out our Daily Rituals for Attracting What You Want in Life ebook. Get started on introducing ritual magic into your life and you'll be amazed at the changes it can bring to your life.

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Magic Spells: How to Learn Magic

We quite often get emails asking how to learn magic. In this day and time it seems that we have seen an increase in these types of emails. It is exciting to hear that for whatever reasons, more people are seeking out magical knowledge and a different way of life. Whether you are seriously interested in studying magic, just out to see for yourself if it is real or want to dabble in some magical practices, we have lots of resources at the Esoteric School of Shamanism and Magic for you.

Can I Do Magic?
First off we like to make clear that we work on the premise in everything we teach that nothing is taken as true or real until you experience it for yourself and KNOW for yourself that it is true. A magician must experience and verify everything for him or herself to avoid the trap of dogma. That means you have hands on exercises throughout that you can practice and see results from. Many real magic techniques are not instant however and you do need to be willing to put in some time and practice. Some people have natural gifts and may see results sooner and others will need to practice a bit more. Everyone however can do magic. It is actually the "normal" way of life, but we have just lost access to it.

Magic Is a Precision Science
Our approach to magic and spells is that of a scientist since after all magicians and shamans are technicians of the sacred. One of the first things students learn in our Basic Magic Class is that we teach magic as a precision science. That is because magic is the science of:

• deliberate creation 
• effective prayer 
• of manifesting Higher Will on the energetic and material planes 
• of heightened awareness, selective perception and dynamic, harmonious relationships

Magical techniques are taught in such a way that they can be duplicated and replicated if directions are followed. Students do have to follow directions as given since altered procedures produce altered results as many students over the years have found out for themselves.

Rules of the Road
Having said all this, what we respond to those asking how to learn magic is that they should start with basic spells and rituals offered in our free online resources. They also need to become familiar with the Rules of the Road which are the ethics of magic. These Universal laws govern magical practice and are in effect whether you know them or not, believe in them or not or agree with them or not. Practicing magic without knowledge of these governing laws can result in disaster.

Free Resources To Get You Started
In our free resources section of our website, we have access to a wide variety of simple and safe magic and spells for beginners. We also have a newsletter that comes out twice a month you can subscribe to by email, a blog with informational articles and a platform where you can ask questions, as well as our Facebook community you can join in on. Whatever method works best for you, the main thing is to get started exploring the world of magic for yourself. Here are some links to simple, but powerful spells and rituals to get you started:

• Sun Candle 
• Rooting
• Weather Working With Clouds
• The Exit Ritual
• Grounding
• Chalice Blessing

When you're ready for more just go to our Resources section and Is Magic Real page. And remember to have fun and enjoy your journey into magic and spells.

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Tarot: Should You Use the Lovers or 2 Cups When Reading on Relationships?

One of the uses for Tarot cards is to throw a reading for Tarot divination purposes. Divination is a means of obtaining information by psychic or magical means not readily available to the body's five senses. The major purpose of divination is to discover the influences, energies and probability lines that are active in our lives. Having this information allows us to exert control in our lives. When looking at the future through divination means such as Tarot card readings, there are 2 factors you need to understand:

• The future is not set or pre-destined. It may be changed at any time before it happens.
• Divinations concerning the future are only probabilities based on assuming that current influences continue unchanged. Any change in the present will change the future.

So when doing a Tarot card reading, if you find an unwanted future event, you can research to find out what events lead to it and change those events. That will cause the unwanted event to either not happen or happen differently than what you found in your reading.

Signifiers
When doing a Tarot card reading, a signifier is used. This is a card or cards that represent the someone or something the reading is being done on and/or the question we want answered. Different traditions use signifiers in different ways and some people doing Tarot readings today do not use signifiers at all. We find that using a signifier and keying it to the person and specific issues and questions give a more exact reading. When doing a Tarot reading the signifier is very important to getting the exact information you want. Results will vary according to which signifier you use. Therefore it is important to make sure you use the right signifier for the information you are seeking.

Lovers versus Two of Cups
Consider the meanings of the cards Lovers and Two of Cups. When doing a reading on relationships, many people think the Lovers card in the Major Arcana would be the natural choice and many Tarot books say this is the card to use. This is not accurate however if you are doing a reading on intimate personal relationships. The Lovers card is more for looking at higher spiritual relationships, karmic relationships, destined relationships or soul mates. This card indicates primarily a spiritual relationship that we planned when coming into this lifetime or strong spiritual ties and connections we have from other lifetimes. It could also be used as a signifier for relationship and balance to the overall higher aspect of community. It is a higher octave than the Two of Cups.

The Two of Cups is a better choice for intimate personal relationships. As a signifier it looks at emotional involvement of partnerships and is the love card. It also signifies reuniting, coming together and one on one intimate emotional sharing. This is the card to use in a Tarot reading as a signifier when looking for information on intimate emotional or passionate couple relationships of the mundane or worldly existence.

As you can see you would get different results according to which of these 2 signifiers you chose to use in your Tarot reading. As with all magical procedures, just think it through and pick a signifier that will give you the results to what you are seeking.

What are your favorite signifiers to use for certain subjects when doing a Tarot reading? We'd love for you to share yours in our magical communities either on Facebook or our blog. Share your favorite signifier and what situation you use it for and we'll send you a discount code to use on purchasing our Tarot Homestudy course.

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Wanna Do Real Magic? Why You Need a Book of Shadows

One very important tool magical practitioners use is a Book of Shadows. The definition of a Book of Shadows varies among magical and shamanic practitioners depending on which tradition they practice. Some practitioners regard it as a book as used in the TV series, Charmed, where the Halliwell sisters have a big book of spells written by their ancestors which they call a Book of Shadows. Others regard it as a personal journal for Wiccans as described by Gerald Gardner in "Witchcraft Today". Although the definition of a Book of Shadows can vary, there are 3 common usages and purposes that most practitioners can agree on.

#1 Record Spell Details
A Book of Shadows is used to record all the details of spells cast. This includes any divinations prior to the spell, the directors and limiters, methods used, results of divinations to check spell progress, and any results of the spell. Having all these details recorded is especially important if you need to take a spell down because of something going wrong. The way a spell is taken down depends on the way it was cast. For example, if the spell was cast using a carved candle then to take it down the practitioner could break the candle used in the spell and bury the pieces in a garden for a moon cycle.

#2 Track Magical and Shamanic Research
Magical and shamanic practitioners often engage in research such as discovering facts about past lives, divining future events, trying out new techniques or traveling to different planes. In the traditions of the Esoteric School of Shamanism and Magic, we record the results of walks in the black mirror, a portal to other planes of existence or half-worlds. When we do these walks we use a litany or chant to direct the walk and keep from getting lost. Recording details about the walk upon returning adds to our body of magical knowledge and also records the effectiveness of the chant so it can be used again or fine tuned for future use.

#3 Preserve Magic and Shamanism for the Future
Preserving magical and shamanic knowledge for future practitioners is one of the most important purposes of a Book of Shadows. Most traditions recognize the importance of information and practices passed on from past practitioners. A real Book of Shadows can contain the research and results of multiple generations of practitioners handed down through the years. Each generation of practitioners, not necessarily related, adds their experience to the book.

A real Book of Shadows is a record of magical and shamanic experience that is preserved either for a practitioner's own use or for future use. Some keep individual books and never hand them down because they either have no one to pass them down to or because they are secretive. Whatever your reason, if you are practicing magical arts, you should definitely start a Book of Shadows of your own. It will help you remember what you have done, track your magical experiments and possibly be an asset for the future.

Many traditions use symbols on the front and back of the Book of Shadows either for decoration or more likely for its protection. These can range from very simple to very intricate. If you have a Book of Shadows, we'd love you to share a picture of your cover with our magical communities (Facebook or blog) or to know how you use your book. If you don't have a Book of Shadows already, check out some of the ones we have in our school store. To learn more about magical techniques to include in your Book of Shadows, check out our How to Do Voodoo or Psychic Development ebooks.


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Are Your Divinations Being Sabotaged? How to Protect Your Readings

Ever notice sometimes when meditating, doing divination, readings or other particular magical procedures, that you realize your mind is interfering with the process? It is not unusual when you have an interest in an outcome to find that your own opinions and beliefs or sometimes outside influences are entering into the equation and skewing your results. There is a very simple solution to this that will help keep your readings, divinations and other magical procedures objective and keep outside influences at bay when meditating. Using a Wisdom and a Protection candle when doing a card reading, divination technique or meditating will accomplish this.

Picking a Candle Color
These candles can be white, powder blue or sun yellow in color. It is usually best to use the same color for both, but there may be circumstances when you would want a different elemental color for one. Grass green is a color that can be used to ward off earthy influences. Water color candles do not usually work well as they tend to stifle the air energies you need for wisdom and understanding in interpreting results.

Placement of Candles
The Wisdom candle goes on the right of the reading, firebowl, plate, pendulum or other divination tool setup. It prevents you from controlling, coercing or tampering with the reading. It also keeps your self importance, beliefs or opinions out. The Protection candle goes to the left and keeps the person being read or anyone else from tampering with the reading or divination or from hitting you energetically while you are performing the reading, divination technique or meditation.

How the Candles Work
The principle behind using these candles is that any two candles in the same area will trade energies. Lighting both candles from the same match creates a fire loop. To do this, light a match from your charged sun candle. First light the Wisdom candle to the right. Then move the match over to light the Protection candle on the left and loop over the reading or divination space to touch the match flame to the Wisdom candle flame again. You may notice the whole area in and around the reading or divination space is brighter once you create this fire loop. This is not something you will notice if you light the candles with separate matches.

Before proceeding with your magical procedure, watch the candles and wait for them both to get a tall working flame. Relax and breathe and don't focus on the outcome of your procedure. If either of the candles (especially the Protection candle) are dampened or flickering, that can mean someone else is energetically pushing on it or trying to influence it. If this happens, take one candle in each hand

and at the same time draw a lemniscate (infinity symbol that looks like a figure 8 laying on its side) with each candle one in front of the other and put the candles back in place. The flames should then return to normal.

Using the Wisdom and Protection candles in this way can help keep your magical procedures of all kinds objective and giving accurate results and interpretations. To share this and other magical tips be sure to sign up for our free twice monthly email newsletter and pass it on to others. You can also find a variety of magical articles on our blog that you can subscribe to by email and find a variety of candles and other magical items in our school store.


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