Craft: How to Be a Modern Witch - Gabriela Herstik 2018

Not Your Grandmother’s Grimoire

In this chapter, you’ll find some basics about different forms of magick you can experiment with, some basic ritual and spell outlines and tables of correspondences so as your craft develops, you can begin to create your own distinct brand of magick. This section will guide you in writing your own spells and rituals and combining herbs, crystals and candles so you can create a grimoire customised for your own form of witchcraft.

May it help inspire you and lead you further on your path of witchiness! As always, listen to your heart and intuition and see what feels right. Honour your own path, practices and passions to craft a magick that’s tailored to you.

a basic ritual outline

Rituals serve a variety of purposes, but mostly they are a way to connect us to something bigger than ourselves. There is comfort in ritual, and knowing the steps can allow us to be even more present in what we’re doing, allowing us to connect to the Universe more completely. There are rituals for love, for abundance, for protection, for healing, for everything; and each culture, each tradition, each country, each family and each person will have their own specific set of rituals. Creating one of your own, with which you work regularly, is a really important way of curating your own magick.

Here’s a basic outline that you can adapt for your own wants and needs. Maybe you don’t need to cast a circle or invite the Elements in each time, or maybe your work is honorary and you don’t need to release a cone of power. Maybe you ground, cast a circle and then make art. However you go about it, the aim of ritual is to connect you with your intention, while connecting with your own power and the power of the Universe. That’s it. Ask yourself what you need, what your magick needs and what the most powerful process will be for you — and then go there.

Create your own basic ritual outline in your grimoire and add in details as you go. You’ll have something to look back on in a year as a baseline of how your magick has grown and evolved. And you’ll have your own personal ritual practice to turn to again and again.

STEP 1: PREPARE YOURSELF AND THE SPACE

This can be by burning palo santo, frankincense and sage, cleaning, wiping everything down with Florida or flower water, sprinkling salt in the corners, using holy water or sweeping with a cinnamon broom. This is also when you prepare your altar and place any talismans, crystals, herbs or other correspondences you need for your work on it. You should also prepare yourself: you can take a ritual bath or shower, put on certain clothing, take clothing off, put on certain perfume, smudge yourself with sacred smoke and do whatever you need to get yourself in the magick space.

STEP 2: GROUND AND BREATHE

Connecting to the Earth and the breath is always an important way to centre our energy and allow ourselves room to create magick. You can ground your energy as described in the Introduction, here.

STEP 3: CAST THE CIRCLE

Casting a circle of protection will not only protect you, but it will create a safe container for all the energy you raise, so when you release that energy it will be potent and powerful. You can walk around and use an athame or wand to cast your circle, as described here, or you can imagine a sphere of protection growing from your heart and encompassing your space.

STEP 4: INVITE IN THE ELEMENTS

You can call in the Elements, as described in Chapter 1, here, setting up your altar to face North, and calling in the Element for each direction: North/Earth, East/Air, South/Fire, West/ Water.

STEP 5: INVITE IN WHICHEVER DEITIES, GUIDES OR BEINGS YOU WORK WITH

You can call in any specific ancestors, gods, goddesses, masters, faeries — or whoever else you work with at this time.

STEP 6: STATE THE INTENTION

During sabbat celebrations, often the intention or myth of the holiday is read out or stated. You can likewise state the intention of your ritual if you wish.

STEP 7: PERFORM THE MAGICK

If you’re performing a spell, working with divination, meditating, creating art, or whatever else, now is the time to do it.

STEP 8: RAISE THE CONE OF POWER

Once your magickal working is done you’ll want to raise energy to release. You can do this by chanting, dancing, doing vinyasa yoga or doing anything that raises the energy up. Once you feel the energy is at its peak, imagine a cone facing upwards, with its base at your circle of protection. This funnels all the energy upwards, releasing it into the Universe so your magick can manifest. Stay with this energy for a few breaths.

STEP 9: DISMISS WHATEVER DEITIES, GUIDES OR BEINGS YOU INVITED

Thank them for lending their energy to your ritual.

STEP 10. DISMISS THE ELEMENTS

If you worked with the compass directions and the Elements, move anticlockwise around your circle, starting with West/Water and then dismissing South/Fire, East/Air and finally North/Earth.

STEP 11: CLOSE THE CIRCLE

If you walked the perimeter at the start of your ritual, walk it again in an anticlockwise direction, imagining the energy of the circle moving back up through your arm, through your heart, through your feet and back into the Earth. You can say, ’The circle is open, may it never be broken’, once you’re back at the front of the circle. If you did the sphere visualisation, imagine the sphere returning into your heart, flowing down the base of your spine and back into the Earth.

STEP 12: GROUND BACK INTO THE EARTH

Press your forehead and palms back into the Earth, and imagine any energy that wasn’t released into the Universe is now moving back towards the core of the Earth so she can manifest it. Once the ritual is done, eat something, drink some water and enjoy!

DIY spellcraft

Spells are personal; even if you cast the same spell as someone else, yours will probably look and feel different. After all, if you’re unlike anyone else, why would your spell be any different? One of the best parts of spellwork is that we can customise and write spells for ourselves when we need to. I like to think of this as being the all-you-can-eat buffet of spellwork: you pick the means to the end (a plate or a bowl), the main, the sides and the drink. The same is true of magick: you’ll pick a method (e.g. candle or sigil magick), the stuffing (the correspondences you use) and the toppings (any chants or magick you pair with it). You can eat this like tapas or have a complete meal (like just a quick spell versus a full ritual).

how to write your own spell

Use the questions below to help you concoct and customise your own spell in no time.

1. WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO DO?

Are you trying to attract, banish, create boundaries — or something totally different? Get clear about what you want out of this spell.

2. WHAT KIND OF MAGICK DO YOU WANT TO PERFORM?

Are you trying to work with candle magick, sigil magick, sex magick, visualisation, body or energy work, or something else entirely?

3. HOW CAN THIS SPELL REPRESENT YOUR OUTCOME?

Get creative! If you’re trying to protect yourself from someone abusive, maybe draw a protective sigil over a map of your area. If you’re hoping to banish a feeling, think about burning it away. If you’re planning to attract love, think about how you can give the love you want to yourself. If you’re doing a spell for a specific person or thing, what can you use to represent them? If you’re trying to cleanse, how can you incorporate ritual handwashing or a bath into the spell? Try brainstorming a few ideas to get inspired. You can create a multiple-step spell this way too if there are different things you’re trying to do.

4. WHAT CORRESPONDENCES DO YOU NEED?

Think about the candle colours you can use; what oils you can anoint yourself and your candles with; any herbs you can burn or incorporate into the magick; any tarot cards that represent your outcome; any crystals that will help channel the energy; any things like hair, clothing or belongings you can use to represent someone in a binding spell… etc. Are you calling in any faeries, deities, masters or other beings? Are there any spirit guides or animal spirits you can work with? Think about this like a project you’re creating; what can you use to further explain the message? Using Pinterest, technology, cut-outs, photos, magazines and icons can all be useful. Once you know the intention behind your spell and you have a better idea of what kind of magick you want to perform, use this chapter and the correspondence table to help you pick out specific energetic allies you can work with.

5. WHAT WILL YOU BE SAYING?

Think about your intention, and how you plan on translating that through the spell. An easy way to do this is to include a verbal charm to accompany it. Take some time to write this down, experimenting with prose and poetry and different beats. You’ll want to make this as clear and intentional as possible to call in what you’re asking for. Take into account the steps you’ll be taking and if you can say multiple things throughout. If this is going to distract you from the magick you’re working on then maybe say something simple or nothing at all. If you like you can write your charm and display it in your grimoire on your altar or work space.

6. HOW CAN YOU PLACE THIS IN THE CONTEXT OF A LARGER RITUAL?

Once you have the basis of the spell, think about the larger ritual. Will you be cleansing yourself as part of the spell? Will you want to take a ritual bath? Will the way you’re raising the energy impact the spell?

7. WHEN WILL YOU PERFORM THE SPELL?

Keeping in mind the intention of the magick, now’s the time to pick a day and a Moon phase on which to perform it. Remember that from the new to the full Moon we manifest, and from the full to the new Moon we banish. If you can, working a spell on a new or full Moon would be best. Use the correspondence table to pick a specific day on which to work your magick.

8. WILL YOU BE WEARING ANYTHING SPECIAL?

Last but not least, think about what you’ll be wearing. Will you be working skyclad, i.e. nude? Or do you have a special dress or cloak you can use? You can even buy something you only wear for ritual and spellwork if you desire.

Once you have all this figured out, record it in your grimoire and get to work. Recognise that spells take time to work, and allow at least two to four weeks for it to really settle in. Take notes of any outcomes.

A NOTE ON LOVE MAGICK

I know, I know — it can be so tempting to craft a spell to get your crush to love you. The thing is, has this ever worked? Well, not for long. As much as it sucks, and as frustrating as it is, performing love spells on people is a big no-no. With free will, and the possibility of everything going wrong, it’s better to just avoid it. Instead, when crafting love spells and love magick, think about the traits and characteristics that you’d like to find in somebody. Look at your favourite couples and ask yourself about the dynamic you’re looking for. What is it that your soul and heart desire, and what are they longing to feel? Casting spells using this sort of approach is bound to bring you something even better than any particular individual you might have wanted to cast the spell on.

candle magick 101

Candle magick is a practice that can be incorporated into other energetic and magickal workings. You can use this guide to help you pick certain candles for spells, and to help you figure out how to dress them.

For candle magick, the colour of the candle, the oils and herbs you use to dress it and the way you put on the oil are all significant. You can mix and match the following suggestions to suit your own candle-dressing situation. Use these in conjunction with ’How to Write Your Own Spell’ and ’A Basic Ritual Outline’ above and you can create your own rituals.

STEP 1: PICK THE COLOUR OF YOUR CANDLE

White will always work and is good to use when you don’t have a lot of supplies, or simply want to attract positivity and protection. For more specific purposes, consider the following:

STEP 2: PICK YOUR OIL

You can always use olive oil to dress your candle, although there are plenty of other oils available in metaphysical shops, like love oil, candle-dressing oil or essential oils.

STEP 3: PICK YOUR HERBS

Although it’s optional to dress your candles with oils and herbs, herbs do add some extra energy and will make your spell more powerful. See the Tables of Correspondence to help you decide which essential oils and herbs to use for your magick.

STEP 4: DECIDE HOW TO DRESS THE CANDLE

Anointing with oil: for spellwork designed to attract, dress the candle with the oil by moving from the top to the middle, and then the bottom to the middle. To banish, dress the candle with oil by moving from the middle up to the top, and then from the middle to the bottom of the candle.

Writing on the candle: you can also write your statement or intention, or a sigil (like we did on our shoes here), on the candle using a toothpick, pen or needle. If you’re writing a statement, follow the same procedure as for dressing it with oils, moving from top to the middle and then bottom to the middle to attract; and moving from the middle to the top and then middle to the bottom to repel.

Herbs: sprinkle your herbs of choice in the same way you wrote and anoited your candles. Make sure you cover the candle on all sides with the herbs and oils, but you don’t have to go too overboard with herbs.

Pair with a written intention if you like: once your candle is dressed, you can pair it with a written intention. Write down your intention beforehand, then light your candle, read out the intention, fold up the paper and place it in front of the candle. Focus your energy on your intention as the candle burns.

sex magick 101

Sex magick is an umbrella term for a type of magick that works with sexual energy (like orgasms) as a form of magick and energy release. As you’ll notice in this book, I mention using masturbation as a way to harness and release energy for spell and ritual work; this is a form of sex magick. Contrary to popular belief, sex magick isn’t all about orgies with the devil under the full Moon! Sex magick utilises sexuality, but this doesn’t necessarily have to involve having sex. It can be magick surrounding any sort of sexual energy and sexual exploration. This will mean different things for different people, just like sex itself — and that’s totally okay!

The most popular way to work with sex magick is through masturbation. Masturbation is not only totally normal and natural, but something most of us do anyway. Sex magick gives this a little twist. By masturbating while concentrating on manifesting something, you’re charging energy (your orgasm) with intention. And this is especially effective when used in conjunction with a magickal working such as a spell as a way to raise the cone of power. Though orgasm is the goal with this practice, the raising of the energy is the most important part. Even if you don’t achieve orgasm, the energy is still potent.

And even if you’re not working with sex magick in this way, you can still utilise this practice by exploring your own body and whatever sexual energy means to you. You can even create a ritual out of this, allowing yourself to breathe and feel deeply as you take your time exploring what feels good and what doesn’t. This can be its own form of energy release, and one into which you can ease at your own pace. Like any other aspect of the craft, allow this to unfold naturally. And don’t forget — you don’t ever have to do anything you’re uncomfortable with.

HOW TO MAKE HOLY WATER

Holy water is energetically charged salt water that is used to cleanse and clear energies and spaces. It can also be used to call in the Elements, to represent the ocean, to cleanse ritual tools and to anoint people.

You’ll need: a chalice; salt in a small bowl or dish; water; an athame — or your fingers!

Step 1: Fill your chalice with water and connect.

Fill your chalice with water; spring water works best but filtered or tap will also do. Start to breathe, imagining the water as perfectly clear, vibrant energy.

Step 2: Add three pinches of salt.

Using your athame, or your fingers, put three small pinches of salt into the water.

Step 3: Stir clockwise (deosil).

Using your athame or your finger, stir the water in a clockwise direction until the salt starts to dissolve; stirring in multiples of three is best. As you do this, imagine the water going from a clear colour to a vibrant, bright white. Once you’ve stirred, hold your palm over the cup and say:

’I cleanse and consecrate this holy water in the name of the Universe and my highest power.’

Hold this white, healing energy in your mind for a few more breaths until you feel it in your body.

Voilà! Holy water! You can sprinkle this in front of your door for protection, in the corners of your house to cleanse it, over your altar tools to cleanse and consecrate them, and you can anoint your third eye with it to help you channel its energy. You can also use this water to call in the Elements and to charge it under the Moon to create Moon water. Use it in rituals when you need to cleanse and in spells when you need some extra protection.

cleansing ritual items

Cleansing items like an athame or a wand is a way to clear their energy, like smudging. You can do this when you first get the item, and whenever you feel like it needs to be cleared. Performing this practice at the sabbats or esbats would be perfect.

You can say:

’I cleanse and consecrate this [say your ritual item] in the name of the Universe and my highest power’

while doing one of the following:

” Smudging with the smoke of frankincense (which you can burn on a hot coal to keep the smoke going if you’re not using sticks of incense).

” Sprinkling holy water on the ritual item.

” Passing the item through sacred smoke.

” Calling on the Elements and cleansing the item with their assistance, while using holy water and sacred smoke to cleanse and consecrate it.

” Leaving it under the full Moon and placing selenite and citrine around it.

tables of correspondences

Magickal correspondences are based on the notion that everything has an energetic signature of sorts, which makes it suitable for being worked with in a particular way. If you become familiar with the correspondences of colours, crystals and days of the week, for instance, you’ll be able to harness this knowledge in your spellcraft and make your magick even more powerful by working with energetic allies that help your work towards your desired outcome.

Your grimoire will also grow as your magick grows. Allow your magickal diary to expand, and enjoy the process of adding to it. Like your practice, your grimoire won’t look like anyone else’s. Whether you use yours as a way to record your dreams and hopes for your magickal journey, or for recipes and spells, it will evolve just like you. Enjoy the journey, and don’t forget to take a second to record your process every now and then.

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Some people prefer to use a magickal name for all their workings, and for their grimoire. Many incorporate elements from the natural world. If you feel inclined to create and use a magick name, please do!

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There are also different individual stories and myths for each of the festivals, which you may like to research further as you develop your craft.