Magick

Call Upon the Goddess and God

Seven Beliefs for Manifesting Real Magic

Rev. Terry Michael Riley

Rev. Terry Michael Riley is the founding High Priest of the Southern Delta Church of Wicca - A.T.C. in Jonesboro, Arkansas, established in 1994. He was ordained by the Aquarian Tabernacle Church in 1993. He is a respected sage in his Pagan community. He has been teaching men's mysteries in the craft through workshops, classes and open festivals for the past sixteen years. He is a healer and teacher.

Since 1995 Terry has performed over 180 Rites of Passage for the Pagan community in his tri-state area.

Rev. Riley has also published a book via Createspace.com called Brothers of the Sun: Pagan Men Mysteries

With the final recognition of Paganism as a world religion it is more essential now than ever before to teach accurate information about the Pagan God. This book is to help men connect with their inner God, understand why they do what they do; and give them the tools to empower themselves so that they continue a legacy and traditions in the Pagan community as a whole. If you only buy one pagan book this year, this is the book. It includes rites of passages, a Book of Shadows, Candle magick, and the philosophy and the psychology of why the God is so essential to our Pagan community.

Myths of the Elements

Babylonian mythology: Earth, Sea, Sky, Wind
Buddhist mythology: Catudhatu, "four elements": Air, Earth, Fire, Water
Greek mythology: Aether, Air, Earth, Fire, Water
Hindu mythology: Pancha Mahabhuta, “five great elements”: Aether/Void, Air/Wind, Earth, Fire, Water
Japanese mythology: 五大 (go dai, "five great"): Air, Earth, Fire, Water, Atmos
Tibetan mythology: Air, Earth, Fire, Space, Water

Aether/Akasha/Space
In the West, sometimes perceived as the mysterious "fifth element" that relates to the soul.
The substance that fills the heavens (Greek).
The source of everything in the universe, including the other elements; related to sound (Hindu).

Air/Sky
Associated with spring and the northern compass direction (Greek) or the northwestern compass direction (Hindu).
Representative of things that move.
According to Aristotle, primarily hot and secondarily wet.

Earth
Associated with communication, business, practical matters, fall, and the southern compass direction (Greek) or the southwestern compass direction (Hindu).
Representative of things that are solid or things that grow.
According to Aristotle, primarily dry and secondarily cold.

Fire
Associated with energy, passion, summer, the eastern compass point (Greek), or the southeastern compass direction (Hindu).
Representative of things that are hot or things that destroy.
According to Aristotle, primarily hot and secondarily dry.

Metal
Associated with inward motion, persistence, determination, ambition, the west, autumn, and Venus.

Void
Representative of things that are not normally encountered in everyday life.

Water/Sea
Associated with emotion, intuition, imagination, wisdom, winter, the planet Mercury, the western compass direction (Greek) or the northeastern compass direction (Hindu).
Representative of liquid things or cold things.
According to Aristotle, primarily cold and secondarily wet.

Wood
Associated with anger, patience, spring, the east, Jupiter, green, and wind.

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The Power of Intent, Focus, and Energy

A Pagan Guide to the Days of the Week

We Are Not Evil

Making Magic

Natural Witch

Remember the Burning Times

To Know, To Dare, To Will, To Keep Silent

Thirteen Goals of Witch

Eight Qualities of a Pagan

About Candle Magick

Candle magic is one of the simplest forms of spell casting. Considered sympathetic magic, it's a method which doesn’t require a lot of fancy ritual or expensive ceremonial artifacts. In other words, anyone with a candle can cast a spell. After all, remember when you were a child and you made a wish before you blew out the candles on your cake? Same theory, only now instead of just hoping, you're declaring your intent (and by now you've probably stopped hoping for a pony). If you think about it, the birthday-candle ritual is based on three key magical principles:

Decide on a goal
Visualize the end result
Focus your intent, or will, to manifest that result
What Sort of Candle Should I Use?

Most practitioners of magical systems will tell you that, much like a few other aspects of life, size really isn't important. In fact, really big candles may be counterproductive -- a candle that takes too long to burn down can be highly distracting to someone working a spell that instructs you to wait until the candle burns out on its own. Typically, a short taper candle or a votive candle work the best. In some cases, a spell might call for a specific type of candle, such as a seven-day candle or a figure candle, which may represent a particular person. One of the most popular candles, believe it or not, is in fact the little menorah candles which are sold by the box in the kosher section of the grocery store. They're about 4" long, white, unscented, and thin -- perfect for spell work.

You should always use a brand new candle for spell work -- in other words, virgin materials. Don't use the candles that you burned at the dinner table or in the bathroom yesterday for spell work. In some magical traditions, once a candle is burned it picks up vibrations from things around it -- in other words, a used candle is already tainted by vibrations, and so will lead to a negative or ineffective magical outcome.

When it comes to colors, you may wish to have a variety on hand for different magical purposes. Typically, color correspondences for candle magic are as follows:

Red: Courage and health, sexual love and lust
Pink: Friendship, sweet love
Orange: Attraction and encouragement
Gold: Financial gain, business endeavors, solar connections
Yellow: Persuasion and protection
Green: Financial gain, abundance, fertility
Light Blue: Health, patience and understanding
Dark Blue: Depression and vulnerability
Purple: Ambition and power
Brown: Earth-related or animal-related workings
Black: Negativity and banishment
White: Purity and truth*
Silver: Reflection, intuition, lunar connections
* Note that in many Pagan traditions, it is acceptable to use a white candle in place of any other color.

Using Your Candle in Ritual

After you've selected a candle, you'll want to oil it or dress it before burning. This is a method by which you'll establish a psychic link between you and the candle itself. In other words, you're charging the candle with your own energy and personal vibrations, and projecting your intent into the wax before you burn it. To dress a candle, you'll need a natural oil -- many practitioners like grapeseed because it has no smell. Another option is to use special candle magic oils from one of the Wiccan supply stores. Begin at the top of the candle, and rub the oil downward to the middle. Then, begin at the base of the candle and rub the oil up towards the middle, ending where the first coating of oil left off. In some traditions of Wicca, the anointing is done just the opposite way -- start in the middle and work your way towards the two ends.

If your working calls for herbs to be used as well, roll the oiled candle in the powdered herbs until it is coated all the way around.

The most basic form of candle magic uses a piece of colored paper that matches the intent of your candle. Decide what your goal is, and write it on the piece of paper -- just for an example, let's say we're going to do a money working. Write down your intent -- something like I will become financially prosperous. In some traditions, you would write your intent in a magical alphabet, such as Theban or Enochian. Because this is a money-oriented working, we would select either a gold or green piece of paper, and a candle of the same color. As you write down your goal, visualize yourself achieving that goal. Think about the different ways in which your goal might manifest -- could you be getting a raise at work? Perhaps someone who owed you money will arrive out of the blue to repay their debt.

Once you've written down your goal, fold the paper, concentrating on your intent the whole time. Some people like to say a small incantation as they do this -- if you're one of those people, this is a good place to do it. It doesn't have to be anything fancy. You can use something as simple as:

Extra money come my way,
I could use a little cash today.
Extra money come to me,
As I will, so it shall be.

Place one corned of the folded paper into the candle's flame and allow it to catch fire. Hold the paper as long as possible (without burning your fingers) and then place it in a fire-safe bowl or cauldron to burn the rest of the way on its own. Allow the candle to burn out completely. When the candle has burned out completely, dispose of it, rather than saving it to use again for another working. Usually there's not much left of a candle except a stub of wax, and you can either bury it outdoors or dispose of it in whatever manner you choose

About Centering

the practice of centering. Much like grounding and shielding, in many traditions it's crucial that you learn to do this before you begin working magic. Why? Because it's the beginning of energy work, and if your tradition's magical practices are based upon the manipulation of energy, then you'll need to learn to center. If you've done any meditation before, it may be a bit easier for you to center, because it uses many of the same techniques. Here's how to get started.

First, find a place where you can work undisturbed. If you're at home, take the phone off the hook, lock the door, and turn off the television. You should try to do this in a seated position - and that's simply because some people fall asleep if they get too relaxed lying down! Once you're seated, take a deep breath, and exhale. Repeat this a few times, until you are breathing evenly and regularly. This will help you relax. Some people find that it's easier to regulate their breathing if they count, or if they chant a simple phrase, like "Ohm," as they inhale and exhale. The more often you do this, the easier it will become.

Once your breathing is regulated and even, it's time to begin visualizing energy. This may seem weird if you've never done it before. Rub the palms of your hands lightly together, as though you were trying to warm them… and then move them an inch or two apart. You should still feel a charge, a tingling sensation between your palms. That's energy. If you don't feel it at first, don't worry. Just try again. Eventually you'll start to notice that the space between your hands feels different. It's almost as though there's a bit of resistance pulsating there, if you gently bring them back together.

After you've mastered this, and can tell what energy actually feels like, you can start playing with it. This means you can focus on that area of resistance. Close your eyes, and feel it. Now, visualize that tingly area expanding and contracting, like a balloon. Try pulling your hands apart, and stretching that energy field out, as if you were pulling taffy with your fingers. Try visualizing the energy expanding to the point where it surrounds your entire body. After some practice, you'll even be able to fling it from one hand to the other, as if you were tossing a ball back and forth. Bring it into your body, and draw it inward, shaping a ball of energy inside yourself. It's important to note that this energy (in some traditions called an aura) is all around us at all times. You're not creating something new, but simply harnessing what's already there.

Each time you center, you'll repeat this process. Begin by regulating your breathing. Then focus on your energy. Eventually, you should be able to control it completely. The core of your energy can be wherever it feels most natural for you -- for most people, it's ideal to keep their energy centered around the solar plexus, although others find the heart chakra to be the place where they can focus on it best.

After you've been doing this for a while, it will become second nature. You'll be able to center anywhere, any time... sitting on a crowded bus, stuck in a boring meeting, or driving down the street (although for that one, you should keep your eyes open). By learning to center, you'll develop a foundation for energy work in a number of different magical traditions.

Beltane

Beltane Celebrations

Beltane, Bright Fire