The Magickal Cottage

Do not do what you desire – do what is necessary.
Take all you are given – give all of yourself.
What I have – – – I hold!
~ Robert Cochrane

So, you have watched the first two videos on cleansing and protection on my YouTube channel and you feel ready to cast a spell. Good for you! Here is the link if you need a review 😀 The Magickal Cottage on YouTube But first, let’s take a step back and consider all that is involved in spell work.

Just as the magickal path in general involves constant study and work, so, too, you must carefully “craft” your spell craft. I know, I know, I’ve seen these people, too, on social media who say they do “whatever they feel is right” with no rules to bind them. But please consider what I’m about to tell you about spell work before deciding on how to proceed.

At the risk of oversimplifying, I’d like to mention something about “karma”. To my way of thinking karma is a metaphysical term related to the mundane principle of cause and effect. You stick your hand in a flame and you will get burned. And I know there are those who don’t want to equate anything in the astral with things on the physical plane, but isn’t that what “As above, so below” is about? Enough said. I will give you my take on spell casting and you can decide for yourself how to go about things. I do like the quote above by Cochrane: “do what is necessary”. Being a light in the darkness for others is sometimes the best use of magick.

If you click on the menu tab of this blog site for the “Correspondences” page you will see a list of very useful information that should be helpful in spell casting. I will be adding to this page over time, so be sure to check back occasionally to see what is there. Feel free to copy this information into a word document and print a copy for your book of shadows. I will be referring to this information in this post on spell casting.

The Witches’ Pyramid (pictured above) has been around for quite a long time and has been a model for following a magickal path. There are lots of great blog posts and videos on the general meaning of the pyramid, so do some research on the topic. I have also found that the witches’ pyramid can be used as a model for spell casting, and that’s how I will be using it in his post. We will take each of the components of the pyramid in order and discuss how they can be applied in creating and casting a spell.

To Know

This is the part of the spell that involves doing the research. This component can make or break your spell. If your timing is off or your wording is wrong things might just go haywire, and they probably will.

I’ve heard it many times: “I tried a spell and it didn’t work!” If you sent out energy with intent it did work, just not the way you wanted it to. If you ALWAYS bear in mind that energy follows the path of least resistance it will serve you well. If you do a spell to “win the Lotto“, the Universe might present you with a child’s Lotto game. That would probably be the easiest way for the Universe to deliver what you asked for. That might be the path of least resistance. See what I mean?

And then there is timing. I make it a policy to never do spell work during Mercury retrograde or when the moon is void of course. You can find the Mercury retrograde periods for each year online with a simple search. For finding the moon’s void of course you can use a lunar app such as ILuna. The void of course period is when the moon is changing signs. With both the Mercury retrograde and the void of course periods Mercury ( about communication) and the moon are not able to lend their energies to your spell. And let’s face it! We will take all the help we can get in our spell work. It’s not just that these heavenly bodies can’t lend their energy, but they can’t lend their control the way they usually do. You may also consult the tables for the BEST moon sign or day of the week to work your spell. Consider all of the energies you would like to incorporate to help bring about your magickal goal.

So you have decided you have a need for a spell. If the spell is for yourself then you can proceed. If the spell is for someone else then you need to get their permission. There’s a little thing called “free will” that I like to respect. Take it from me, casting a love spell on another person not only violates their free will but is manipulative. You don’t like being manipulated, right? It probably makes you angry, right? That’s exactly how it will make your “target” feel.

I have included a “Spell Worksheet” on the Correspondences page. You can create a document by copying and pasting the text into a word document and make copies for planning your spells. You can even change the font to something more “witchy” and add artwork. Have fun!

Go ahead and fill in the spell worksheet by stating your purpose, figuring out your timing and correspondences and what supplies you will need. I plan to go into various types of spells in future posts, but for now let’s just go through the steps. You are making a plan. Here I would like to add that the wording of your petition is SO important! Here are pointers for writing a good spell petition:

1. State your request in simple terms that cover every aspect of what you really want.

2. Don’t use euphemisms or expressions because the Universe is very literal. Asking for “showers of blessings” could bring a downpour of rain or a leaky whatever…be specific.

3. State things in a positive way. Avoid negative words if possible.

4. Cover every possible outcome with “for the highest good in a happy, joyous way for all concerned“ … or something similar. You don’t want your new found income to be the result of an inheritance gained from the death of your favorite uncle.

5. “To bind the spell every time, let the words be spoke in rhyme.” This is worth the trouble of doing if you can manage to write your request in rhyming phrases. For one thing, it makes it easier to remember your request and say it without reading it. It also seems rather like a chant….very magickal! If you can’t manage a rhyme, then skip it. You don’t need to stress yourself out over this.

To Dare

So now you are ready to take action! You gather your supplies making sure to cleanse them. You ground yourself. You create a sacred space by either putting up your protective shielding, or you can cast a circle. There is a video on my YouTube channel that covers circle casting. Here it is: Casting a Circle

Remember that circle casting is not just for protection but to help with focusing the energy. You can decide if shielding or casting a circle are called for. I would say a simple healing tea light for someone’s headache could be done with a simple shielding. A more elaborate spell for protection or uncrossing might merit a circle casting. Call in or invite any guides, angels or ancestors to help you with the spell.

To Will

As you perform the actual spell you are going to want to generate some energy to charge the spell and send it on its way into the cosmos. You will raise energy over the area where you have performed the spell on a table or altar. There are lots of ways to raise energy like chanting, dancing, making sounds with rattles, drums and chimes, OR you can create what I call an “energy ball”. Above your spell work area, place your hands with your palms together and rub them back and forth to create friction. Then slowly separate your hands to feel the energy you have generated. There should be a springy feeling between your palms.

Shape the energy into a ball with your hands. Don’t worry if you don’t see anything! You can infuse the energy ball with your spell intent repeating your petition three times, allowing the energies of your spell ingredients to rise up into the energy ball and, when ready, you can release the ball along with your intent upwards into the cosmos. When you are infusing the energy ball try to visualize the outcome of your spell in the ball as if you are seeing it as a scene in a crystal ball. Use your inner knowing to decide when you have generated the right amount of “intention energy” into the ball, and then let it go by giving it a little (or big) push with your hands. Sometimes you get the feeling of that energy ball taking off like a shot! Sometimes it just drifts upwards and away. Just trust in whatever happens.

Ground yourself. Take three deep breaths and release the circle or shield. As you do this be sure to thank any spiritual helpers you may have enlisted and bid them farewell along with your blessings.

To Keep Silent

Congratulations! You cast a spell! You may feel like sharing this on social media, but DON’T. It’s important to keep silent. You don’t want other peoples’ energy adding to your spell and possibly altering the outcome. Make note of any events, contacts or other occurrences that may reflect the results of your spell work as well as opportunities that come your way as an answer to your spell request. The spell may bring opportunities for success but it’s up to you to act on those opportunities and do your part on the physical plane. You can cast a spell for a great job, but you still need to do the legwork and conduct a job search. So be silent and observant and receive your blessings quietly! It’s ok to smile like the Cheshire Cat as you do so! (Wink)

To Go

Now go about your business! Trust in your spell work. Have faith. No, you don’t need to rethink anything. No, you don’t need to do the spell over again. Release the spell and don’t take it back. You are the magick!

Bright Blessings,

SARINA