Welcome to #MagicMondays! Every Monday, I will post an article exploring All Things Witch. I often receive texts about witchy practices and answer emails about symbols and talk ritual over shared meals. I decided to compile all that knowledge into one place and share the hell out of it. I am currently drawing tarot cards on Instagram for the rest of October if you want to follow @flashreads for #dailydraws. I also offer tarot readings for $25 – $75 sliding scale out of my home in PHL or over video. I love giving tarot readings so if you are interested, we can set up something IRL or on video chat for this Friday Saturday or Sunday Nov 1 2 & 3, 2013. We are all capable of magic because magic is within us! Now let’s get to work!
This week we enter the high holy days for a witch, friends!!! May your days be full of magic blessings and connection to all worlds! There’s Halloween, aka All Hallow’s Eve or the Gaelic harvest festival Samhain (“Sa-wen”) this Thursday Oct 31. Halloween is commercially observed by dressing up in costume, trick-or-treating and taking part in fall time activities like hayrides and pumpkin carving. Wiccans and solo practitioners celebrate Samhain by inviting the dead to the table with gifts of food from the final harvest. These tokens beckon spirits to a harvest feast (often observed entirely in silence and always with an extra open chair) while the veil between worlds is believed to be most thin. Divination rituals with nuts and apples are made, as well the donning of disguises, believed to hide one from negative spirit. Recognition beyond disguise was the true test of a visiting spirit. The following day, Nov 1 marks All Saint’s Day, wherein many traditionally Western Christian traditions begins a 2-day holy time for honoring our loved ones who have passed, including friends and family, martyrs, saints, ghosts, and other spirit allies. Sunday Nov 2 is All Soul’s Day, “Commemoration of All Faithful Departed,” which continues the reverence, specifically for people closest to us who have passed. Dia de los Muetros, a traditionally Mexican festival, is celebrated Oct 31 – Nov 2. Day of the Dead rituals include building altars to loved ones, carrying their likeness through the streets in parade, decorating sugar skulls, leaving loved ones’ favorite foods as offerings and decorating graves with marigolds. This is only a fraction of the festivals held this time of year. There are so many cultures who perform rituals to honor the dead. What are some that I am missing? Email me – I want to know!
It is clear that the energy in the air today is ripe for the last push into winter and the darkness. When the veil is thin between the worlds of the living and the dead you have an extra boost of spiritual energy from your guides, angels, and loved ones who have passed. It’s a great time to give thanks to them for helping you in life and to mark their lives in some way that is special to you. As you could guess, now is an incredible time to make magic. Often people will ask me very simply: But how do I make magic? They get shy about their practice or performing a ritual. Things like “spells” and “intentions” feel silly or even scary. It is hard to go at it alone sometimes. I always say, very simply: Just do it! Seriously! Or look it up? The internet can be a blessing for deciphering metaphysical meanings of objects and reading about the roots of ritual practices. Be creative. There are signs and symbols all around us that can be integrated into ritual, spells, and healing for our own highest good. Lighting a candle is a good start. Some people say getting dressed is like making magic. I trust any witch who can cast a spell with a good look. Start there!
Now because I want to keep this participatory, I’m going to show you a spell for this time of year that I really love. I experienced a turning point in my magic practice when I did this on Nov 2, 2011, All Soul’s Day. I had an experience that really shook up some hard shit for me and blew me away with it’s powerful impact on my life and my body. The spell is an adaptation of a Samhain divination practice with an apple and spices. I want to share it with you because it’s super easy and I want you to have magical experiences, too!
You’ll need: 1 apple (or more if you want), a knife, some white string or ribbon (long enough to wrap around the apple and hang it from something), and the following ingredients you can use and mix as you desire.
Slice the apple in ½ so that the star or pentagram is revealed in the center
Lay the following ingredients in the apple and meditate on your intentions for each element
Lavender – for healing
Basil – for love
Mint – for wealth
Bay Leaves – for protection
Honey – for sweetness
Salt – expels negative energy
When you complete this task, put the 2 sides atop each other and tie them together with the white ribbon or string. Leave enough ribbon or string to hang the apple from a tree branch a statue or a gravestone. You could also bury the apple in the ground if that feels better for you. Before you release the apple, hold it in your hands and feel the energy. What does the apple feel like in your hands? What does it remind you of? How are you reading this energy?
After you finish releasing the apple by tying the string to something, keep your eyes on the apple and walk backward 5 steps. Before you turn away say the words:
“As you return to the Earth and the Sun, let my magic be done.”