Ask Alan – Help With Cloud Magic and Weatherworking

Dear Alan,

About two years ago I had this compulsion to move a cloud, out of nowhere. I practiced and moved them with great ease, to my surprise. I began moving wind in whatever direction I chose as well, and during this past storm, it seemed as though the heavy or lightness of the rain was responding to my thoughts and emotions. I never wanted to lose the ability to move the clouds, but a part of me was alarmed at this power and I think the responsibility was taken away from me. I can still affect the wind (and I think the clouds too just not intentionally), and apparently now the rain. I guess my question is, can I ask for the power back? And are there any risks involved? I've been a wicca enthusiast for most of my life now but I'm still afraid to work spells (I can do innocuous blessings) because I'm afraid they'll turn out badly or reverse themselves. I'm also afraid to think certain things for fear of bringing them about in my life. Please help. -- A Disciplined Mind

Dear Disciplined Mind,

What a great series of questions about weatherworking and cloud magic. I truly understand your concerns and want to reassure you about your situation.

First I want to clear up a particular point. You said that you became alarmed at your weatherworking powers and that the "responsibility" was taken away from you. Don't worry. This is not possible. Anyone who wishes can work with clouds and weather and no one can take that ability away from you.

Having said that, there are two factors that can improve your ability to work with weather:

1. practice
2. good relationships with the beings that control weather, including the Winds of the four directions, Sky Father, Earth Mother, and storm spirits

As with any magical art, practice makes perfect. If you want and need practice, clouds make great practice targets for your intention. It sounds like you have quite a bit of natural talent when it comes to moving clouds.

If you want to develop your weatherworking skills beyond working with clouds, the next step would be to develop relationships with the beings that control the weather. As mentioned above, these include the Winds, Sky Father, and Earth Mother. To begin developing a relationship with these beings, go outside and bid them good morning at the start of each day and bid them good night at the end of each day. Greet each of them individually by facing each different direction. Face east to great the Winds of the East, face south to greet the Winds of the South, and so forth. Start in the east and move clockwise until you are facing east again. Then greet Sky Father above you, and Earth Mother below you. In this way you introduce yourself to these beings and open a relationship with them.

Then, the next time you want to affect the weather, address the appropriate beings. For instance, if you know a storm is blowing in from the west and you want it to avoid your property, after greeting the winds, ask the Winds of the West to assist you in moving the storm around your property rather than over top of it. Thank the Winds of the West in advance for their help and then let the magic happen. Thank the Winds of the West again when your request has been fulfilled.

As you can see, we humans don't control the weather directly because weather is not directly in our domain. However, we can ask the beings that do control the weather for help and assistance. Since so few people actually ask for help, the Winds, Sky Father, and Earth Mother are usually quite happy to assist us.

There are exceptions, of course. One time, during the Yellowstone fires of 1988 I attempted to direct a storm toward the national park to douse the fires. Though I am usually able to get help from the Winds in these endeavors, I was told in no uncertain terms that the fires needed to burn in Yellowstone. The Winds did not fulfill my request in that instance for that reason.

I hope this helps to ease your concerns about your weatherworking abilities and encourages you to start building a relationship with powers and beings in the weatherworking department!

Want more information on working with clouds? Send a blank email to clouds@shamanschool.com and you'll receive directions on how to get started with this beginning step in weatherworking.

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Need a Good Read?

Sometimes we just need to read for the "brain candy" value of a paperback book. For those of us who do magic though, we need to take in reading material from "higher influences" on a regular basis. This helps us remember why we are here and what we chose to do on this planet.

A Sample Bookshelf
So what can you read to feed yourself on all levels? Well, a magical bookshelf might include but is definitely NOT limited to some of these items:

• "Bringers of the Dawn" by Barbara Marciniak (written in 1992 but totally true today)
• Abraham-Hicks' Daily Quote via email 
• "Psychological Commentaries on the Teaching of Gurdjieff and Ouspensky" by Maurice Nicoll
• "Medicine Cards" by Sams and Carson
• Any number of magical ebooks and Kindle books from the Esoteric School 
• "In Search of the Miraculous" by P. D. Ouspensky
• "Magic in Theory and Practice" by Aleister Crowley (a classic)
• "Fools Crow" by Thomas E. Mails
• "Iron John" by Robert Bly
• "A First-Rate Madness: Uncovering the Links Between Leadership and Mental Illness" by S. Nassir Ghaemi

What are you reading to take in spiritual food? We would love to hear from you! Please share with us on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/EsotericSchool

Thanks and enjoy!


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Feeling Stressed? Magical Ways to Feel Fantastic Anyway

We all have stress in our lives, but we don't have to put up with feeling stressed when we have magical interventions. In our 1st Kindle book, Learn How to Do Witchcraft Rituals and Spells with Your Bare Hands, you'll find magical techniques to help you cope with stress such as doing the bathtub litany, rooting, walking meditation, and more. But don't take our word for it, try one of these out for yourself next time you are feeling stressed and experience firsthand how magical techniques can help you deal with stress.

Rooting to Let Mother Earth Soothe You
Rooting is a ritual that connects you with Mother Earth and lets you ground out negative energies into the Earth. Since the Earth is huge and able to absorb lots of negative emotions, this ritual is very grounding and can help you deal with stressful times and events. Basically, with this ritual you are flowing excess energies of any kind into the Earth and then pulling up grounding and nourishing Earth energies into your body. Here's how you do it.

1. Sit in a comfortable position making sure your heels are touching the ground. Some people find it useful to close their eyes for this ritual so if you find you have trouble "feeling" or sensing your "roots", try closing your eyes.

2. Feel yourself extending roots from your feet and imagine or "see" roots growing out of your heels into the Earth, through your shoes if you are wearing any, through the flooring, into the sub-flooring, and down into the Earth through the topsoil continuing down through all the layers until you reach bedrock.

3. Once your roots have reached bedrock burrow into it and lock them in.

4. Sit for several minutes breathing. Each time you exhale, push excess stress and tension or any other unwanted energies through the roots into the bedrock.

5. Each time you inhale, pull up minerals and energies from the Earth for stability and balance.

6. When you feel relaxed and nourished, pull the roots back up through each of the layers and going back up into your feet. Be sure not to stand up before pulling your roots back into your body or it can cause you to be sore for a few days.

You can use this ritual as much as you need to and don't need any special magical training to start using it right away. Next time you are feeling stressed out, try rooting and see what relief it provides you. Then check out our Kindle books and learn other magical techniques to help with stress and lots more.

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Learning Without Struggle

Schools, churches, authority figures, parents and friends influence us in ways we aren't even aware of! One of the main ways that they influence us is by teaching us the old adage, "no pain, no gain." With their help, we have all become quite accustomed to believing that we must experience struggle and pain to succeed or create in this world. This belief is so common that, for most of us, it is the lens through which we view our world – a lens of which we are hardly aware.

Luckily for those of us who are tired of struggling, this Earth School has very flexible rules. In fact, we make our own rules. What does that mean? It means that if you want to learn and create without struggle, you only have to inform the Universe of your decision. If you never want to learn another lesson through pain and struggle, just tell the Universe that you'd like to learn exclusively through pleasing experiences.

We have a friend who, whenever he asks the Universe for help or assistance, tells the Universe to bring him the results in pleasing ways that he can easily understand. And does he struggle? Not much! He lives the most peaceful life we have ever witnessed, and he does it all by choice.

So the next time you ask the Universe for some result or some lesson, add the caveat that you do not wish to struggle or experience pain. Then, get ready to have fun and experience some really wonderful times. Good luck!

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Getting Your Mind On Board Magically

To shamans, each person is a spirit with a mind and body. The mind and body are like magical tools for spirit to use. Just like other magical tools need to be keyed (programmed) or trained, the mind must be trained in order to be a helpful magical tool. We constantly take in thoughts, behaviors and responses from the environment which are not always aligned with our goals and aims. The untrained mind can throw magical monkey wrenches in the mix to keep us from achieving our goals.

Training Mind
Think about all the great ideas you come up with and make resolutions to do: lose 10 pounds, get that promotion at work, quit smoking... and the list goes on. You get off to a running start and then forget those promises to yourself or get distracted by a new list of priorities. This is a sign of mind taking over and that it is not trained to help you as a magical tool. So how do you go about training your mind? One way is through practicing segment intending.

Segment Intending
Segment intending is an exercise from Abraham Hicks (www.abraham-hicks.com) that helps train your mind as a magical tool. Here's how it's done:
1. Pick a length of time for your "segment." It can be any length of time, but no more than an hour. Thirty minutes or an hour works well.

2. Decide exactly what time the segment will start and end.

3. Choose an aim for that segment. It could be a list of tasks, a state of being, or both. For instance, you might decide that you will strive to have a pleasant demeanor while you spend the next 30 minutes returning phone calls.

4. Once the time you chose to start your segment arrives, start on your chosen aim with no second thoughts. Put your attention solely on the tasks for that segment and nothing else.

5. If you get interrupted during your segment, you need to decide whether the interruption is important enough for you to stop your segment (for instance, if your boss calls you to come to his office). If the interruption is not important enough or can be delayed, keep going on your segment. If the interruption is important, make a conscious decision to stop your current segment and start a new one (one centered around the interruption).

Practice doing segments such as this all during the day. Each one is a training period for your mind. These segments will train your mind to assist you as a magical tool rather than dictating to you. The more you practice segment intending the more responsive mind will be to your needs as a spirit.

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