antler-witch

[antler-witch]

Spell for Nightmares and Insomnia

Alright, this is my first time sharing a spell that I created, so I hope this works for others. I've always found it to be very helpful when suffering from anxiety-related insomnia, and it also works a treat for children suffering from nightmares, which was what spurred me to craft this in the first place.

This is a two-part spell, but if you lack components, you can just use the candle spell part.

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Part One - Calming Night Balm

You will need:

15g beeswax or carnauba wax for a vegan alternative

10g shea butter

2 1/2 tbsp almond oil

2 tbsp jojoba oil

bain-marie (heat-proof bowl and a saucepan)

3 drops mandarin oil, 4 drops lemon balm, 5 drops chamomile, 5 drops lavender

lidded jars (I like the aluminium ones)

thermometer

labels

Sterilise the equipment by washing throroughly and then drying in an over at 140c (275f) or in a microwave for 30-45 seconds if microwave safe. Gently heat the wax, butter and carrier oils in the bain-marie until melted.

Once the ingredients are fully melted, pour carefully into your jars.

When the mixture is about 40c (104f), add your essential oils. I've opted for the above blend, but depending on your relationship with oils, you can adapt as needed. The noted amount of essential oils in the mixture works out at about 5%, so while this is safe for application to your body, I would avoid applying it to your face or more sensitive areas.

In regard to timing, I like to make this up on Mondays for a lunar connection to peaceful sleep and dreaming, or you could also time it with the Full Moon for some lunar oomph.

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Part Two - Candle Spell

You will need:

Jade crystal (calming, balance, protection against negativity)

Indigo chime candle

Dried chamomile flower (calming, peace, healing) & cloves (protection against negative energy)

Lavender essential oil

Perform this before you go to bed.

Grind together the chamomile and cloves, I usually use about 1 tsp of chamomile and 2 tsp of cloves.

Anoint your candle with the oil and then roll in your ground herbs. I don't really work with sigils much, but if you do you could also carve a sigil into the candle at this stage.

Light your candle and hold onto your jade crystal. Visualise yourself sleeping deeply, visualise waking up from a restful nights sleep, refreshed and ready for the next day.

If you prepared the balm, apply this to your body as you visualise. If doing this for a someone else, have them hold the jade while you rub the balm into their skin and speak the visualisation over them.

I tend to use chime candles and will repeat this candle spell over a day or two, so often, I will blow out the candle once I've finished rubbing in the balm rather than wait for the candle to burn out. Also, a reminder to make sure the candle is extinguished before you go to sleep. Stay safe!

Disclaimer: A lot of my choices in components are due to my own relationships with the herbs, oils and crystal so if you know of something that would be more effective for your personal practise feel free to substitute.

[antler-witch]

If someone said to me, "I'm a beginner witch and I want to cover my bases in case I run into magical trouble," I would recommend:

One home ward for general protection, probably as a container spell or as an artificial spirit (perhaps using clove, red pepper, cinnamon, and soil or dust from the corners of the home/property), for the purpose of keeping out ill-fortune, ill-intent, and unwanted guests

One completely separate home ward, probably as a container spell (perhaps using dill, rosemary, and garlic), for the purpose of keeping out uninvited spirits, unwanted spirits, and malefica sent intentionally or unintentionally by other practitioners

One heavy-duty protective amulet, probably made of rusty nails or a piece of hematite or otherwise iron, for the purpose of behaving as a suit of heavy armor in case of spiritual alarm; to be carried about as you solve the problem; the effects of which may be encumbering and too imposing for everyday use

One more mild protective amulet (perhaps made of amethyst jewelry, or an acorn, or an oak twig cross), for the purpose of providing an immediate protection against ill spirits and energies; to be worn when a shield is desired, but a shielding energy-working technique is too draining or time-consuming; should be comfortable to wear as often as desired

Of all of these things, avoid repeating ingredients across charms, unless you are in special allyship with a certain spirit.

Those persons also suffering from nightmares or disturbed dreams may also benefit from:

One bedroom ward, probably a container spell or Witch's Ladder (perhaps containing star anise, amethyst, knotted cord, spiders or the forms of spiders, and rosemary), for the purpose of tangling up ill spirits and ill energies which inspire bad dreams.

Of any ward and amulet, feed it a minimum of once a season; if they're working often to provide assistance, or if the effects run out, increase feeding to once a month; in times of distress, feed weekly or as needed.

[antler-witch]

this is so fucking cool actually thank u

a spell technique:

don't like your divination on an event? don't like your gut feeling about an event? don't like anything about an event, but have limited irl ways to sway it?

lay out an 'ideal' reading. whatever you can believe coming to pass, pie in the sky or just somewhat better.

lay in your justifications. the magician card and the chariot both speak of will making change.

appeal to the weaver, the fate, the wheel, the river--however you recognize the great tapestry of causality and effects that ripple on down.

tell the story of the fate you wish, why you are working it, how you are working it. make the story live.

"i will not fall into the despair of the ten of swords. i am the chariot; i drive up and out of the pit and turn all these limiting beliefs into weapons to break the road wide open. i am the magician, to whom all elements and all creation bows; in my hands, these painful blades are just beliefs, malleable, alchemizable. i transform them into wands, passionate, energetic, fresh and new, reborn."

tell fate the story, and lay so much power into this story-telling that fate is persuaded. call your power and transform what was into what you wish it to be.

then live as you told fate you would.

[antler-witch]

Hello! I’d consider myself an intermediate practitioner but I often have mental blocks and end up being more of an “armchair occultist” than a practicing one. Sometimes I feel uninspired and struggle to see opportunities or reasons to perform spells. Any advice? Thanks in advance!

Hi Anon, I have written on this a few times. Let me try and see if I can find links.

the Chicken furthermore tries to convince you to practice sorcery in a fun and fulfilling way

Ok, so you want to practice every day?

Introspective journaling questions and activities for those who are veryyy inspired but also feeling a little overwhelmed

do you think its good to try doing one spell a week or once every two weeks?

I feel I have other relevant ones but they're not coming to mind. Will reblog if I can think of them.

[antler-witch]

Low-Spoons Record-Keeping: Practicing Spells & Techniques

While record keeping has benefits, it is not necessary or required to progress in your path. While low-spoons record keeping is right for some, please do not feel pressured that you "should" be able to keep records. It is still a burden and a time and energy consuming task, even if you have found ways to simplify it.

Fact: Writing down a spell or exercise each time you do it is the worst.

Fact: Casting lots of different spells introduces lots of different variables and makes it all the more difficult to track progress and see what works for you.

Fact: Fix both of these problems at once by writing down one spell or exercise and just annotating the page with the date every time you perform it.

Examples:

> Spell/exercise written in shorthand. If I already know how to seal a spell, if I already know how to do a saltwater cleansing, I don't need to explain that to myself every time I write down the spell.

> Symbols let me quickly reference aspects of the spell.

> No optional steps. I think ahead and really consider what I'm willing to do every time I cast the spell. The more variables and inconsistencies I allow, the harder it will be for me to know what is really working and what really isn't.

Now, each time I perform the spell, I'm going to follow those steps exactly.

This eliminates the need to take notes when I actually cast the spell.

This keeps my practice consistent.

This lets me know if the spell, as I have written it, actually works for me or not.

I write down the date every time I perform the spell/exercise.

> All I do is add the date.

If the spell/exercise delivers the expected results, I add a second notation to indicate that I achieved manifestation.

> For spells that manifest days or weeks later, I strive to mark down the exact date I noticed manifestation, even in hindsight.

> I might add symbols to indicate the date of manifestation is approximate.

> For an energy work or "instant magic" exercise, I might mark down how many hours or minutes it took before I noticed results.

> For an energy work or instant magic exercise, I might simply make a check mark (especially if I am updating records after the fact and only remember that it worked, but not exactly when)

Tracking Progress:

> By looking at how often I add a second notation, I can see at a glance if I am making progress or not.

> I can see that as I practice this candle spell over the months, manifestation becomes more consistent, and days to manifestation get shorter.

> I can see that I am not getting better at this energy exercise as time goes on.

As I work with one technique over a period of time, I will likely notice things about it that weren't apparent to me at the beginning. I may choose to add notes.

> These notes will help me decide how to build/adjust the next techniques I work on.

To practice general ritual formats, extra notes may be helpful to track success with intents and correspondences.

Let us imagine for example that I have chosen to experiment with basil, chamomile, and rosemary. I'm only using those three herbs right now no matter what spell I cast.

To keep track of this, I need to add a few extra notes, but I can still keep them to a minimum:

(I apologize for the unlined visual clutter, hell if I know where my nice dotted paper went).

> Now, looking back, I can see that chamomile doesn't work for me when I want to banish, and basil doesn't work for me when I want money; but if I swap their roles, success seems likely.

> If I am consistent with my technique, I don't need to write everything down. If my statements of intent are always present-tense simple sentences, like "I have cash now," or "I fall asleep quickly," I don't need to write down the exact wording.

The time may come when you're done with a specific technique.

Noting down an "exit interview" may be helpful so you remember what happened or why you're moving on.

Apparently only 10 images allowed per post ^-^;

If you're done with a technique, consider writing why in the remaining blank space.

"2/20/22: Stopped practicing, waste of time," is a very helpful note for me. Yes, I will forget why I stopped and question going back to it in the future.

"8/8/20: Updated spell to include spirit offering, see 'Candle Spell Spirit Honoring'," is useful for me, because it creates a link in the narrative. Two years from now, I will have forgotten why I stopped using this specific spell. "I updated my technique and I'm trying something new, look for a page with this label" is going to keep me on track in the future.

Summary

By writing down a specific technique and practicing it over and over, you not only give yourself the benefit of consistent practice with limited variables, but you significantly reduce the burden of updating your records each time you practice.

While this technique can be expanded to add extra notes for each iteration, at its core, only the date is required to mark down when practice occurred. Everything after that, including whether or not to track manifestations, is optional.

[antler-witch]

Energy Work 101: Basic Shielding

"Shielding" is an energy work technique that puts a protective sphere of energy around you. This technique is basic at its core, but can be continually evolved and upgraded to become very advanced and powerful indeed.

Concepts & Theory

Most all shields are spherical or egg-shaped.

Shields are often sized to be an outstretched arm's length away from your body, plus a foot (30cm) or so extra all around. You can make them any size you like. Because they are made of energy, the bigger they are, the more energy they take.

Shields fade away. Depending on how stable they are when you make them, they may fade within hours or days.

Shields can and will affect your mood and how people perceive you.

It is a good idea to practice dismantling/undoing shields as often as you practice creating them.

While the most basic shield is a bubble of white light, they can be endlessly modified.

You can have more than one shield at once. They can be stacked concentrically. Think about which shields you want to be closer to you and which you want on the outside next to others.

One of the most useful ways to modify a shield is to specifically choose what kinds of energies you want to bet let in, and what kinds you want to keep out.

The basic technique used for energy shielding can also be used for other techniques such as glamours, energy cleansing, object charging, and some forms self-care. Because of this, shielding is a good place to start practicing practical energy work.

Shielding is a cousin of aura-imprinting. The technique I am talking about here puts a bubble of energy on the outside of your aura. Aura-imprinting/strengthening techniques refer to changing your aura itself.

Methods of Shield-Raising

There are as many methods to accomplish shielding as there are people. Here are a couple:

1. Make one hand into a fist and place it over your heart. Place your other palm on top of it. Gently push down on your chest to create pressure - not so much that it hurts. Imagine, feel, believe, or know that within your chest is a wellspring of energy. This energy pools around your fist as you create pressure there. When you are ready, move your fist away from your body (experiment with both fast and slow motions). Imagine, feel, believe, or know that an energy sphere grows from that place in your chest and expands until it surrounds you. It stops expanding about a foot away from your outstretched arms.

2. Breathe in. As you breathe in, consider that you are pulling pure energy out of the air and into your body. Hold your breath for a beat and decide that when you exhale, that pure energy is going to start forming a sphere around your body. As you exhale, imagine, feel, believe, intend, or know that this energy flows around you to start forming an energy shell. Continue breathing in and out with intent until you can easily imagine, feel, or believe that the shell has become solid and complete.

3. Consider a pop-culture method that a character uses to shield themselves. Steven Universe can do that rose quartz thing, for example. Or, imagine Captain Picard of Star Trek saying, "shields up!" and the Enterprise being surrounded by powerful protective energy. Copying a pop-culture technique can be extremely effective for shielding. Put your intent towards causing real power to flow, and let culture be your guide.

4. Consider that your body is permanently connected to your environment and there is always free energy exchange passing between you and the world around you. This process is automatic, but like your breath, you have the ability to take control of this process if you so choose. Feel the parts of you making contact with the world below (your feet, or bottoms of your legs if you are sitting). Decide, intend, choose, or will that the energy passing into your body at those points will instead rise up and surround you in a shield. You may need to actively stay with this process and continually will it to occur; with practice you may need to only check in every now and then.

A Method of Shield-Dissolving

1. Consider that you have placed energy around yourself which exists there whether or not you can feel it. Decide, intend, choose, or will that this energy breaks up and dissolves. You get to choose what to do with the energy. Options include:

Drawing it back into yourself

Pushing it down into the earth

Releasing it into the air around you

Would you like to do a fun experiment? Release the energy into the air around you in a closed room with no open doors or windows :)

Consider drawing energy back into yourself until you feel your storage containers are full, then pushing the rest of it downwards and into the earth.

Basic Shield Programming

For practice in raising and putting down energy, the form or shape your shield takes doesn't really matter. If you need to know what form it will take in order to complete the exercise, the most basic shield is considered to be a smooth bubble of white light; you can choose to practice with any form you like.

Programming a shield basically means to choose its effects. Common effects include limiting emotional intake from others, and blocking out environmental energy.

Form should follow function. If you want an energy shield to totally completely block out 100 of environmental energies, its form may take an opaque, solid black orb. If you want the shield to limit some energies but not others, it may take the form of a chain-link fence, be semi-opaque, or be like vines with gaps-inbetween them.

Experimenting with what forms work best for you is worthwhile. You do not necessarily need to choose a specific form: simply putting willpower behind your intent will also suffice.

Two Methods of Programming

I recommend trying the first technique for initially creating the shield, and the second technique for making adjustments once it exists.

1. Choose the intent of your shield before you even begin making it. As you begin gathering power, hold your intent in the forefront of your mind. Understand, believe, or know that the shield will not be created in general, but that it will be created within the specifications of your intent, like pancake batter poured into a cookie cutter mold. Hold your intent at the forefront of your mind while energy is gathered and released into the shield. (This is what you're doing automatically if you choose a pop culture technique with specific shield purpose and form)

2. Create a general/basic shield in any way you prefer. Observe, believe, feel, understand, or know that this basic shield is under your control and will respond to your intent. Select an intent. Pour your intent into the existing shield. This may be done through the vehicle of the breath, hand symbols, eye gazes, chanting, or any desired method. Observe, believe, feel, understand, or know that the shield responds to your will like a pond rippling when a rock is thrown in. Maintain your focus until you sense the work is complete, or until you're tired or bored.

[antler-witch]

follow-up to this post

I'm calling it, "how to do magic as if you are magical and the whole of nature is listening"

say = think, sign, write, or any vehicle of communication

presence of energy = candle, incense, sunlight, moonlight, breeze/wind, running water, yourself while you're already feeling those emotions/thoughts/beliefs, etc.

Cleansing object: blow on object, wipe it off

Cleansing object: wash it in the sink

Cleansing self: take shower

Cleansing self: change clothes

Cleansing self: listen to music

Cleansing space: light a candle in the room

Cleansing space: open a window, let air flow through

Cleansing space: sweep/clean floors

Blessing object: look at the object. say, "you are special." also mean this in your heart. give it a lil kiss or a lil pat with your thumb

Blessing space: pat door frame. say, "you are a special room." feel how the room is special and good. tell the room you love it

Charging object: bring object into presence of energy and ask it to fill itself up. tell energy you would like it to fill up the object. leave the two to their privacy

Charging space: exactly as "Charging object" but you cant move the space so you gotta find a way to get the energy to it

Dedicating object: tell object to prepare itself for its new life. tell it that its fate and destiny are about to be forever changed. speak to whomever object will be dedicated to. say, "this is for you. i give it to you. you own it now"

Enchant food or beverage: tell food or beverage what you want it to do. realize you will spend some of your energy to enchant it. say, "I spend my energy to craft my reality." stir food or beverage for a few moments until you suddenly feel more tired. say, "this is magical now, and whoever consumes it will absorb that magic"

Enchant object: tell object exactly what you need it to do. tell it you will feed it energy so it can be born to its new purpose. bring object into presence of energy and ask it to fill itself up. tell energy you would like it to fill up the object, specifically to fulfill the objects new purpose. leave the two to their privacy. when you return, tell object, "i have captured power in you, you are magical now, and you will be forever." (optional: repeat daily for 3 days)

Cast spell 1: exactly as "Enchant object," but object is a candle, incense, or sigil. Once enchanted, burn into ashes. dispose of remnants in a strange way

Cast spell 2: put together a lot of little objects into a container, instructing each one to its purpose. then tell the entire container its master purpose. then enchant the entire container exactly as "Enchant object"

Cast spell 3: take some string into the presence of energy. tell the string it will hold some magic in knots. tell the energy you will capture it in knots. tell yourself what you will capture in the knot. tie the knot. say, "I have captured power." repeat until there are enough knots

Curse others: exactly as any "Cast spell," but your purpose is always to harm another

Curse self: much easier than "Curse others." all you need to do is speak bad words about yourself to others

Undo spell: exactly as "Cast spell 1," but its purpose is to be the exact opposite of the unwanted spell, so they equalize each other

Undo spell: exactly as "Cast spell 1," but its purpose is to be a little knight who rides across the land to slay the first spell-dragon

Undo enchantment: say to object, "yesterday was the last day of forever. it is time for you to go back to your old life. let go of the magic within you, and return to your long sleep." bury in salt or earth for 3 days.

Binding: exactly as "Cast spell 3," but instead of [energy], take the string into the presence of what is to be bound, and tell the string to tie it up and hold it so it can never be let go

Glamour self: your aura is a constant projection of everything you currently are. breathe in how you want to be perceived and breathe out how you will be perceived. your breath coats your aura like steam on glass. it will also fade like steam on glass. repeat every day the glamour is desired

Close yourself off to spirits: say, "i do not want to be in contact with any spirits. no thank you." believe this in your heart also

Mega close yourself off to spirits: say, "i do not believe in spirits actually, even more than that, they are not real at all; so i have no concerns in coming into contact with them." believe this in your heart also

Open yourself to spirits: say, "i am actually quite fine with being in touch with helpful spirits, or at least neutral ones, but definitely ones that mean me no harm"

Banish spirits: say, "i am the only witch in this house, and i choose what energies are here and what spirits may stay. someone else may have invited you, but they do not have the right to invite you, and i am telling you now that you must go. leave now as a friend or be destroyed as an enemy" believe this in your heart also

Banish humans: exactly as "Cast spell 1," but instruct the consumable object to chase the human far away as its released

Pray: say things, but to someone who isnt in the room with you

Build a shrine: make a mood board dedicated to that being, but instead of digital pictures its physical objects, and all the objects are in one little area. then, perform "Dedicating object" over entire space

Build a spellcasting altar: exactly as "Build a shrine," but the vibe is things that remind you of power and your own power. then, perform "Dedicating object," but you dedicate it to yourself

[antler-witch]

Guardian Animal Shielding

I find this technique to be extremely comforting. It may be adapted to many models of magic, including psychological ones.

I find that this shield is better performed alone or when you can focus on it. It is more of an event than a practical utility.

TL;DR: Put yourself in a headspace where your favorite natural biome is all around you. Call a guardian animal. Spend time with the animal and thank it when you are done.

TIPS & TRICKS: Build a folder of gifs, video clips, photos, audio tracks, etc. that just take you to your favorite biome (perfect chance to create mood boards really).

You can perform this technique as a meditation, but also you can employ it as energetic shielding.

SHIELDING: Choose what biome you want to spend time in. You can be very specific (like choosing to be near a body of water, the time of day, the weather patterns, or the types of flora and fauna present) or you can be very general. Decide if you would like to call on a specific animal from that biome, or if you will call for any animal in general.

Draw energy up a shield around you in whatever method you prefer. I generally find it to be much easier to pattern the shield while you make it, instead of creating a white bubble and modifying it after the fact (e.g. if you create your shields by exhaling energy, exhale the biome itself).

Once your biome shield has been created to your satisfaction, consider spending time within it to feel it. This is a good opportunity to practice psychic senses. Try feeling, smelling, seeing, tasting, and hearing what is within the shield.

When you are ready, speak, think, sign, or indicate that you want an animal to join you in the biome. If you use words, they might be, "otter, come join me. I need a friend and a protector. Come sit with me in my shield." Or, "Mother Earth, I've called you to be around me. Now I ask you send an animal to protect me and be my companion at this time."

If you do not want to use words, you can pattern an animal into your shield using energy work techniques or any technique you prefer.

Try spending time feeling, smelling, seeing, (maybe not tasting), and hearing the animal. Try talking to it and watching its behavior.

You can go about your day and this biome and animal will travel with you. Reinforce it by adding more energy to it using whatever technique you prefer. When you are done, if you remember to do so, thank the animal for its company and ask it to return home.

MODIFICATIONS: If short on time, create the shield to include the animal automatically, instead of having to invite it.

You can invite the same animal over and over again, or invite a new one each time.

The guardian does not need to be an animal and the environment doesn't need to be a biome. Consider a heavenly shield and pearly gates with an angelic guardian, for example.

Especially if you call out for a general guardian, your actual guardians and guides may appear, even if they are unknown to you at this time. Especially watch out for specific beings that show up time and time again. (this technique was how I first met my primary spirit guardian, although I didn't know it at the time!)

This technique can be a form of divination and self-reflection. Let everything be very general, including the biome. Pattern your energy work to "bring forth the environment I need the most." Call for "the guardian I need the most." Observe what is created around you.

As stated above, this technique in general is excellent for practicing psychic sensing.

Once you have a protection amulet or two in hand, try this in a natural area. Pattern your shield to be the energy of that area. Call for a local benevolent spirit. See what happens.

[antler-witch]

You can literally just ask your ingredients/tools what they are best at, or if they'll be helpful in a specific spell, or for advice on how to best utilize them.

Yes, you can, right now. You can just do it, whether or not you're a spirit medium or can "visualize".

Don't get me wrong, I find cultural and historical research of correspondences to be very important. But also, just ask the thyme in your cupboard what it likes to do in its spare time. (Bonus points if you take notes and compare to your research later on)

Here's how I do it. I call it my "pinging" method, like how a modem pings a server. Here's how:

Prepare your question.

If you want to be polite, start with a, "hello, is anyone there?" Although admittedly this is more for animists. If you believe you're just reading energies and there is no indwelling spirit, why not get right to it?

Questions to explore utility and correspondences include:

"Magically speaking, what are you best at?"

"If I added you to this spell, how would you influence/affect it?"

"What kind of intents are you best at supporting?"

"What kind of magic do you not like to be involved in?"

"What other ingredients do you work well with?"

"What other ingredients do you not get along with?"

Focus on the thing which you would like to communicate with.

Avoid performing this technique on living animals, as it often scares them :(

Have it in your field of vision, or touch it, or do whatever you need to do in order to feel focused on it.

Observe, Believe, Feel, Understand, or Know, aka OBFUK (my handy acronym I use to replace "visualize," which I ordered that way because it kind of sounds like "oh f*ck," as in, "oh f*ck, the ubiquitous use of the word 'visualize' has caused many witches to be ironically equipped with blinders that require energy perception and control to be funneled through a filter of sightedness and images, which for many is counter-intuitive and detrimental to their practice"). Anyway -

Observe, Believe, Feel, Understand, or Know that the object which you would like to communicate with is aware of you and will hear you when you send your question.

Send your prepared question.

Speak or think your question to the object. OBFUK that the object receives your question.

Anticipate receiving the answer.

Listen, here's the downfall of this technique: You need a wee bit of open space in your mind. No, you don't have to be a meditator to do this technique (I did it for years before I began meditating). You just need enough space for the answer to arrive.

I have found that ideally, this means actively anticipating receiving your answer for 1-3 seconds.

This works on the same meditative trick as, "wait for your next thought to come and it never will." The force of anticipation itself is what creates an open platform for your answer to arrive at.

Your mind does not have to be "totally clear". You can have a lot of tabs open and still be able to pull off this technique.

Analyze what comes.

We will all get answers in different ways. Repeat: there is no golden standard for how you are "supposed" to receive your answer. Here are some ways your answer might appear to you:

Snippets of memories, songs, scenes, verses, or literature pop into your awareness.

A fully or partially formulated concept comes to you all at once.

You are strongly reminded of something (say, the god Aries, or a soothing woodland scene).

An image or images come to your mind's eye, either still or animated.

Nothing seems to come to mind at all, but certain things on your altar or around your house, or certain colors, suddenly stand out or seem especially relevant.

Nothing seems to come to mind, but you feel energy moving on or around you.

Nothing seems to come to mind, but you feel as if you can smell or taste something that wasn't there before.

It is unlikely that you will hear a voice in your mind that says, "hi, I'm Basil, and I'm good at..." Our particularly clairaudientally blessed friends may receive such information, but the rest of us are likely going to have to apply some level of interpretation to what we receive.

Be aware that if you're talking to something with an indwelling spirit, it may not be interested in trotting out answers to your question, and may have questions of its own, or something else it wants you to know instead.

Ask more questions, or say goodbye.

I believe good manners go a long way, so even if you feel you haven't received any answer, it's polite to send a message like, "thank you for your time, have a good day."

Your answers are now UPG.

I really want us all to understand this!

UPG stands for Unverified Personal Gnosis. It means that you have personally received information through spiritual means, however, that information is not necessarily agreed upon or accepted by anyone else but you.

Please don't go around sharing your UPG as if it is actually verified spiritual canon!

Even if that information is totally cohesive within your personally constructed spiritual system, I'm sorry, but your personal spiritual system is not universal.

If I have a communication session with my rosemary plant, and it tells me, "yes, I'm a plant of protection and dreams [community accepted correspondence], but that's only one side of me; I'm also a spirit of evil, nightmares, and destruction, and that's why I can also defend against them [unverified personal gnosis]," it is wildly misleading of me to go on Tumblr and post a new rosemary correspondence that includes "cursing, nightmares, and destruction" as if everyone needs to automatically accept and believe my own claims.

It is now on you to experiment with the information you receive, compare it to other resources, and decide if what you heard was valid, legitimate information for a certain group, tradition, or practice, or if it is untrue, or if it is only true for you.

Your UPG might end up being totally valid and verified by others (this is then called verified personal gnosis) and this is such an exciting, wonderful, and validating thing to experience.

However, every single time I have a question about a spirit or god, and someone says, "hold on, I'll ask them!" and comes back 5 minutes later with an answer they assume I should accept as canon, I want to reach through the screen and slap them.

Your spirit communication is not automatically spiritual canon, and should probably undergo many steps of testing and verification before EVEN YOU accept it as true.

Troubleshooting

"It isn't possible for me to complete the active anticipation portion, what could I do instead?"

This technique is specifically a telepathic one; you receive communication within your mind. If doing so on the fly isn't possible, I'd recommend trying an entirely different technique, such as asking the same questions through tarot or another divination system, or petitioning the ingredient for a dream.

"I don't think I'm receiving any answers, what do I do?"

Not all spirits want to talk to us. Or from a secular perspective, not everything is imbued with enough energy for us to get a reading, or that energy may be hard to access or understand.

Objects which are very often used in witchcraft, such as magical and culinary herbs, minerals, and animal parts, often have something to say. (Perhaps the reason they are used in magic is because they're so willing to work with us in the first place!)

You can also gently cleanse the object and offer it some incense or water, then invite the spirit/energies back, and see if that changes your results.

Or, you may need to try contacting it over several days, maybe also with feeding and cleansing, before it responds. (Remember, it takes the object energy to communicate with us, whether it is a spirit or just a lump of energy, something must be expended to send you a message).

Plus also: This technique is a skill you need to practice. If I tell you how to hold a guitar and how to make three cords, it's still going to take you a minute to strum out Wonderwall. I recommend a minimum of hours of practice before you write off your own psychic abilities.

"I don't know how to tell the difference between a spiritual answer and my own thoughts."

Practice, practice, practice - and verify. Also be patient and gentle with yourself, and move forward with the understanding that far from 100% of people are magically born with thought patterns clear, regular, or tame enough to easily (or ever) track.

Perhaps the best way to move verify is to communicate with common ingredients in witchcraft, ask them for information, and then verify it against information online. Don't give up too quickly; common correspondence lists are often oversimplified to the point of uselessness. Your herb might have given you a snippet of information commonly ignored by mainstream witchcraft.

"I'm only getting invalid answers - my rose quartz told me it's used for blood magic and banishing."

Try cleansing and charging objects before you read on them. For beginners, it may be difficult to discern whether you're contacting an object, or the energies it's sucked up or wallowed in.

There may be an indwelling spirit or energy "haunting" the object and returning invalid or silly answers. Try reading on different objects and see if your luck improves.

You may be particularly psychically closed off. When I don't properly connect, I get all kinds of nonsense that seems like a real answer, when it's just my random thought generator (un)helpfully trying to fill in the blanks. General practice of divination and spellwork will assist you. I would avoid using this technique to practice, as it may confuse your discernment to accept your inner voice as external communication. Set it aside and come back to it after a couple of months and see if there are changes.

Similarly, the spirit might just not want to talk to you, or isn't present in the item (or, the energies you seek to understand don't exist in that item).

The spirit may be giving you valid information that most people just don't agree with. My UPG for rosemary is that it is sort of an "uncrossing" agent for your life in general - part of the way it protects you is to align things around you so that misfortune is diverted. It's not a good luck charm, this is just how it achieves its goal of protection. This isn't totally off the wall; I think almost everyone agrees that rosemary is protective, powerful, and "high vibrations." But I don't think I'm going to find anyone else talking about how rosemary works the way it does, so I'm not going to be able to cross-check this anyway. But even if they do, they might talk about a different aspect of rosemary or something else it does. So I'm caught in a limbo where this information is true for me and the plant works that way every time I use it, but I can still never verify that with my community. If your answers aren't totally out of left field, you may be receiving genuine information about how the object wants to work with you. But that doesn't mean you will ever be able to verify that with your community.

[antler-witch]

Hypothetical routine(s) and stuff for a baby witch to do

So a lot of people I think are feeling that once you become a witch you need to do lots of things, but they aren’t terribly sure what it is they are ‘supposed’ to do. Here are just a few little ideas for things you could do, if you wanted to.

During creative free time:

Write affirmations or prayers

You could write them for daily use (like a morning affirmation), one for each day of the week, one for phases of the moon, or different ones to encourage or bind emotions or help you get through tough days.

Doodle sigils for use during a later time

Be creative and have fun, as you are not ‘required’ to use any sigil you have made. 

Think about what kind of energy (elemental, herbal, animal, planetary, etc) you thin would best be used to charge each sigil

Create lists of magical ideas you would like to explore or write spells for

Don’t worry about whether something is ‘real’ enough or will work or not.

Make a list of tools you would like and tools you already have

Draw or write about your perfect ideal tools and what you expect them to do for you

Include herbs, stones, crafts, natural finds, and anything else you like

Create an inventory of things around you, in your home, or that you can easily find, for use in your craft

Write what your current beliefs are

Contemplate your current belief system and morals, and how you think magic works.

Make a list of the most important things you want to learn more about or explore

Write down your current talents and abilities and try to think of ways they can be used magically

Build altars

Draw ideas or create digital altars if you do not have the physical space

Be inspired and create them spontaneously or spend your time and research all the elements.

Try writing a spell - it doesn’t matter if you know a ‘right’ or ‘correct’ way. Just give it a try and see what you come up with!

During research time:

Research what sort of plants are local to your area and discover what their uses are

Look up the medicinal and magical uses of herbs and plants you have in the house and on your property

See if you can discover what sorts of special crystals or stones are near your area or mined close by

Take your lists of magical items you want and research their uses, both modern and historical

Try to discover not only what an item is used for, but why, and how it became associated with those actions.

Research what kind of religions and magical traditions have historically been practiced in your area

Look up lore and mythology for your geographic location

Find what sorts of helpful books are at your library, whether they be related to religion, psychology, meteorology, mythology, history, gardening, herbalism, cooking, magical traditions, or anything else pertaining to your magical education.

Find a popular pagan or magical author and research them to understand the context behind their writings and get an idea of what others think of them

Create your own reading list of library books to keep you occupied

Research closed religions/closed magical systems so you can understand what is not available for you to use, and to gain valuable information on other magical cultures.

During practice time:

Choose 2-3 energetic exercises such as these:

How to send energy to other people

Energetic Check

Distance Charging

Texting Predictions

Energy Ball

Energy Cannonball

Witch’s Guide to Programing

Witch’s Guide to Grounding

Witch’s Guide to Centering

Witch’s Guide to Shielding (Shielding Masterpost)

Witch’s Guide to Charging

Work on a couple of exercises until you feel really comfortable with them and are satisfied that you now have that skill. Then try practicing others.

Spend 50-70% of the time figuring out how to make the exercise personal to you and comfortable for you

Spend 10-20% of the time learning how to focus and get in the necessary headspace to do energy work

Write (if you want) and/or perform simple candle, knot, paper, (whatever) spells as need arises

Try spells for bringing peace and calmness in to your space, giving yourself good luck, protecting against certain dangers, causing small events to happen, or binding harmful actions done against you

Identify unique needs you face in your everyday life and try to manage and control them with energy work

During upkeep time:

Cleanse your personal spaces

Learn floor washes and keep the recipes and ingredients handy

Discover what cleansings and purifications will work for your situation

Personally cleanse

Take a cleansing shower or bath with special ingredients or using the powers of elemental energies

Do healing/balancing meditations or spells

Clean your altars and tools, keep your spaces tidy

Leave offerings to any spirits you work with

Weed your gardens, check on your plants or pets

Update your grimoire or journals

Include personal experiences, new successes, or things that you have learned

After waking up for the day:

Repeat appropriate prayers or affirmations

Spend time in meditation

You can try to clear your mind, magically make way for the day ahead, or do a guided meditation for preparedness or any other purpose

Draw a tarot or oracle card for the day

Use any magical oils or soaps as part of your waking routine

Including glamoring magic as you get ready for the day is a good way to practice

State your goals for the day with magical intent

Magically plan for free time you need during the day so it will be sure to be open for you

During snacks and meals:

Enchant food by adding in herbs or spices with a little energy and a magical command

Enchant drinks by stirring, adding energy, and a command

Give small offerings to spirits you work with by leaving a little food left over on your plate

Magically affirm that the food will bring you energy

Before going to bed for the day:

Repeat prayers or affirmations

Spend time in meditation

If you meditate when you get up and when you go to bed, try a sunrise or sunset meditation, or complementary meditations 

Identify what successes you have had that day

Push away or transform any negative energies send to you that day

Add additional protective shields for sleeping

That was all I could think of. Add more if you think of some!

[antler-witch]

Hello! I’d consider myself an intermediate practitioner but I often have mental blocks and end up being more of an “armchair occultist” than a practicing one. Sometimes I feel uninspired and struggle to see opportunities or reasons to perform spells. Any advice? Thanks in advance!

Hi Anon, I have written on this a few times. Let me try and see if I can find links.

the Chicken furthermore tries to convince you to practice sorcery in a fun and fulfilling way

Ok, so you want to practice every day?

Introspective journaling questions and activities for those who are veryyy inspired but also feeling a little overwhelmed

do you think its good to try doing one spell a week or once every two weeks?

I feel I have other relevant ones but they're not coming to mind. Will reblog if I can think of them.

[antler-witch]

How do you know what’s a sign and what isn’t?

I’m in this online folk witch group and the other day a lady made a post asking about the meaning of something she experienced that she believed to be a sign. One morning she was making breakfast and cracked an egg as usual, but the contents of the egg had sent a shock down her spine—the egg had been full of blood.

This happens when a blood vessel is ruptured in the process of forming the egg. It’s not common but it’s perfectly natural and not harmful to the hen or the egg. A lot of people in the comments of the post were telling her this, so she edited the post to include something along the lines of “This is a witch group, so obviously i’m looking for witch answers. I didn’t think i’d have to make that distinction but i’m not looking for mundane explanations.”

If you search for spiritual and magical meaning in regular things in your day-to-day life, you’re going to create a lot of chaos for yourself (and you’re to be making a lot of misinterpretations!!). here's an example of what i mean—

Let’s say you’re going for a walk through your neighborhood, and you see a crow. There’s a lot of folklore around counting crows, and the spiritual symbol of seeing 1 crow according to such folklore is one of bad luck, tragedy, and loss. But it is important to take into consideration any other regular reason for a crow to be seen! If your neighborhood has trees, it likely has a population of crows. Thus, seeing one crow is no reason to expect bad luck and tragedy in your life.

so when am I supposed to know if something’s a sign??

Generally speaking, it would be wise to consider the possibility of something as a sign when it is repeated and when your intuition is alerting you to the presence of the sign. For example—instead of just seeing one crow on a walk, you see one crow everywhere you go. Not just as the animal itself, but in other places/forms as well. Maybe you see someone with a shirt that has a crow on it, and then you overhear someone say “crow” to someone else in passing, and then you see a post on social media by an account with the word crow in it, etc, etc, etc. At this point, it’s clear something is going on. Your intuition will also likely be alerted by these appearances of crows and you’ll maybe have an instinctive feeling that something’s up. THIS is what you should look for in an actual sign. One may then go the extra mile and perform some form of divination or meditation to confirm if what they’re experiencing is a sign and further clarify the meaning of the sign.

but what’s so wrong with asking others what something could mean spiritually?

it’s great to communicate with different witches and learn from others, but one thing you need to keep in mind is this: if what you experienced was truly a sign of something—whether that’s an entity trying to communicate, a sign of something that had yet to happen, etc—then that sign was meant for you. Not online witches or anyone else—YOU. it would be wise to try interpreting a sign yourself. Ask your intuition, meditate on it, pull a few tarot cards or break out the pendulum, whatever you need to do to narrow down the meaning of what you’re experiencing. And again, you shouldn’t be doing this at any everyday occurrence. You should be doing this when it really feels necessary, and when it’s clear that something is up.

main takeaway

to clarify !! i’m not claiming that the lady’s experience with the egg wasn’t a sign, it’s just that the isolated incident of the egg isn’t enough to assume spiritual meaning. There’s a possibility she experienced other things that day, like a reoccurrence of the color red, seeing blood more than usual that day, having a reoccurring feeling of doom or nervousness, etc. In that situation the egg could absolutely be part of a spiritual sign of something. Even in this situation however, she would be wise to interpret this on her own. The sign was meant for her—that means her mind and her intuition. In this situation she’d likely interpret the sign best and most accurately if she did it herself without intervention from others who have different associations with eggs, the color red, blood, and whatever else she was encountering.

utilizing critical thinking, being smart about your craft, and learning to rely on yourself and your intuition are some of the best things you can do as a witch!! practicing witchcraft and connecting more deeply with the spiritual side of your life doesn’t mean you need to throw logic, science, and reason out the window—you’ll find that very often such things work in tandem with witchcraft! science is your friend yall

[antler-witch]

”Of the folklore I’ve studied, what initiation into witchery often boils down to are some simple components in the European model: The calling, the acceptance, the contract and the gift. […] There were steps to be taken in terms of the initiatory process with a devil/spirit and it all came down to some fundamental components:

- Calling by the spirits: in most regards, the craft is initiatory - even when the initiation is brought about in private by the spirits. Common folklore provides examples of callings in the forms of visitations from the spirits in dreams or in person, or, being spirited away (like Jack and the Witches of Southern lore), or, the sudden revelation of power. This may be a holdover from the time of the witch trial records, but it has since joined the broader folklore of witchcraft. What calls the witch varies from place to place, person to person, culture to culture: in many cases a witch is called by her own ambitions and desires, in other cases he is called by the spirits or demons or wee-folk without much of a choice. The calling is a very personal thing, but once it is heard, it is the first step in pursuing witchcraft.

- Acceptance, or, the renunciation of old oaths: acceptance of the terms and conditions set forth by whatever spirits or gods or coven has called you to the craft. In order to accept the terms of the spirits, traditionally one would then be expected to renounce all former allegiances (washing away the grace, saying the lord’s prayer backwards, the like). After one has rid themselves of old oaths, they are free to promise their soul elsewhere - to spirits, devils, demons or gods.

- Contract, or oath to the spirits/gods: a contract of give-and-take between you and whatever entity has called to you. In folklore, there is a distinct understanding that whoever takes up witchcraft is doing so with the aid of unseen allies and familiars, and these entities have their own demands for the power they give; whether it is to suckle from the witch’s teat or be fed of butter and cream. The contract with the Devil takes the shape of a ritual at sunrise or the signing of one’s name in his book or some other symbolic action of dedication.”

- Folkloric American Witchcraft and the Multicultural Experience, Via Hedera

[antler-witch]

I've spent a few years on the "stirring intent into your [beverage] isn't necessary or even that great of a way to formulate a daily practice" train and now I've wrapped 100% back around to that it's actually pretty decent and more people should take it seriously.

[antler-witch]

By prick of Pin and Cushion of Couch

So the number one rule of folk magic is you don't know why it works you just know that it does. That's about how this little trick was explained to me by my aunty. What you'll need: -A Sewing Pin -A Couch or Mattress So you've lost something. You've overturned every cushion, tossed every blanket, and yet it is still missing. You're at a loss, what do you do? Well if you asked me, I'd say you should stick a sewing pin in your couch or your mattress and ask for the item to return to you. I know. If you're not already folk magic inclined that probably sounds a bit odd but it works. And it's all you have to do. I consider this a must-know for Appalachian & southern folk magic so if that's your end game, next time you loose something; give this a shot!

[antler-witch]

Tincture For Sleep

For those who suffer from Insomnia may this tincture lull you into a slumber most calm.

Opus Est~

Honey

Everclear as high a proof you can buy

Valerian Root(Fresh or Dried) 5oz

Chamomile ( Fresh Or Dried )1oz

Lavender Flower ( Fresh Or Dried )1oz

Mason Jar 16oz

lunar water

sugar

To Begin

In a mason jar cleansed using lunar water, place it in the center of a circle made from sugar and honey. Add First Valerian Root to the bottom of The Jar, Then the Chamomile, and then the lavender. If herbs are fresh please mull to release the oils.

Top the Jar Off With The High Proof Everclear.

Raise your hands and hold them to your chest while thinking of the types of slumber you wish to have. Once the image is in your mind hold your hands loosely around the tincture without touching it. Surround the tincture with energy and begin the chant below.

"Light of the hidden star, blessed are your children in the shadows unbound by the material plane, grant passage into the Realm Of Dreams, and bless with Slumber most sweet."

Top the Tincture And Seal For 3-6 Weeks then strain into a dropper vile.

The mixture will last for 2 years before losing effectiveness.

Dosage for Adults

1.5ml-2.5ml or 1-2 Droppers full an hour before bed to treat Insomnia

Warning Please Consult your doctor before trying, some herbs can clash with your daily medications, better to stay safe than sorry

Aside I am not responsible for any adverse effects which come from trying this, always speak with your doctor before trying a new herbal remedy.

Thank you for letting me teach you something today, have tea with me soon when I do another Wanders Tea Time in a few weeks