A Druid's Handbook to the Spiritual Power of Plants: Spagyrics in Magical and Sexual Rituals - Jon G. Hughes 2014

The Maceration of The Three Cardinals of The Tree
The Refinement Process: The Complex of the Tree
The Druidic Workshop

Maceration is the first step in the crafting of the individual cardinal essences of the tree. This is where the cardinals of the tree are soaked in alcohol spirits for a number of days or sometimes even weeks. During this process the cardinals give up the greater part of their physical and magical (spiritual) attributes to the alcohol spirit, and this empowered spirit is the beginning of the cardinal essence we desire.

Maceration always takes place immediately following the separation of the cardinals, so normally there would be a work table prepared close to the working stone in order to begin without delay.

Maceration: The Working

For this working you will need:

· The bowls holding the three separated cardinals of the tree.

· A suitable heavy cutting knife, to cut the bark of the tree into small pieces.

· A grater, used along with the heavy knife to grate the wood of the tree into a fine, powderlike consistency.

· A cutting board, upon which the cutting and grating will take place.

· Three (250 ml) powder jars with screw caps, to hold the macerating plant material and spirit of alcohol.

· Spirit of alcohol (40% by volume). I use proprietary poteen, sufficient to cover the plant material in each of the powder jars.

· The spatula or stirrer, to stir the macerating plant material.

Begin by preparing each of the cardinals for maceration. The leaves need no additional work, as they are ready to place into the spirit alcohol just as they are, so let them stay in their bowl until they are required. The bark is chopped into a fine, powderlike consistency using the heavy knife on the cutting board. The bark powder is placed back in its bowl. The wood is the most difficult cardinal to prepare, particularly as in this case it is the wood of an oak. First cut it into manageable lengths, then grate each length into the consistency of powder. This may take some time, but remember, as with the other two cardinals, all of the wood must be included. Once it is grated, return the wood powder to its bowl. All three cardinals are now ready for maceration.

Place each of the cardinals into its own powder jar. Cover each with sufficient spirit of alcohol just to cover the plant material in the jar. Stir the contents of each jar well and push down the plant material to ensure that it is submerged in the alcohol. Tightly seal all three jars with their screw caps.

Label each jar with the name of the tree (the oak), the name of the cardinal it contains (the male leaves, the female wood, or the hermaphrodite bark), and the date on which the maceration began. The three jars are then stored in a cool, dark place for the period of maceration. Return to the jars each day and shake them vigorously to make sure all the plant material is being immersed in the alcohol. If the level of spirit alcohol falls below that of the plant material, top off the jar until all the plant material is submerged.

Macerating cardinals of the tree

After five days you will begin to notice a difference in the appearance of the plant material. The leaves in the first jar will be darker in color, and the spirit alcohol in which they are macerating will take on a light green hue that will become darker as the maceration continues. The wood in the second jar will take on a transparent appearance and the maceration liquid will look slightly milky. The bark in the third jar will also become darker and the alcohol will become the darkest liquid of the three. Continue to shake each jar daily to ensure even maceration of the plant material.

After four weeks, the maceration of the three cardinal essences will be complete, and they will be ready for the leaching process.