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

Mental Preparation and Awareness
Personal Preparation
Workings and Rituals

This is the final stage of preparation prior to the ritual or working itself, and it must be carried out in the moments just before you cast the Circle.

When your body has been cleansed, your internal energy has been purified, and your ritual space has been laid out in preparation for your working, then is the time to begin your mental preparation. You find yourself standing before the ritual space, possibly clad in your ceremonial garb, with your Gathering milling around you. You now need to prepare yourself mentally for the task ahead and raise your awareness of what is going on around and within you to a higher level. You should have your stave with you.

To begin your mental preparation, place your feet together and the base of your stave on the ground between them, with its tip pointing skyward. Holding the shaft of your stave with both hands at shoulder height, push the stave away from your body until your arms are fully extended, so that your body and the stave form an inverted pyramid. The point of the pyramid is formed by the conjunction of your two feet and the base of the stave; the triangular base of the pyramid is described by the lines formed between your first shoulder and the stave, between the stave and your second shoulder, and between your two shoulders.

The focus of power in all pyramids is the central point of the base. The converging sides serve to focus and concentrate this energy before it is projected from the point or tip. The purpose of your inverted triangular pyramid is to focus your internal energy downward, toward the earth from where the matter of which you are formed originates.

Now you want to position the core of your mental preparation and awareness (your mind) at the center point of power within the pyramid (the center of the triangular base). To do this, simply drop your head forward and look at the convergent point at your feet. You will find that your head is in exactly the place you want.

This stance is used frequently in a range of ritual acts because it focuses, concentrates, and projects your energies and thoughts toward the earth, one of the principal recipients of spells and intentions.

In this position you will instantly feel the power of your internal energy. Systematically banish all unwanted and unnecessary thoughts from your consciousness and replace them with positive thoughts related to the ritual you are about to facilitate. Briefly go through the planned successions of the ritual, placing them in order and organizing your intended actions accordingly.

Once you have mentally mapped out your plan for the ritual, focus your concentration on raising your mental and physical awareness. I use five simultaneous actions to do this. If you plan to emulate my method, you will have to remember to place a few leaves of peppermint or spearmint in your mouth before you take up the inverted pyramid stance. Keep them at the side of your mouth, and do not chew them until the appropriate moment.

You will introduce each action in turn, maintaining the previous ones as you go so that as you arrive at the fifth, all five actions will be working concurrently.

Focus first on the sense of feeling in your hands. Rub your hands slightly against the shaft of the stave that you are holding. Concentrate on feeling the sensory stimulation of touch. Now squeeze the stave shaft in a pulsating fashion, feeling the pressure on your hands. Continue this rubbing and pulsing as you proceed.

Now focus on your sense of sight. Examine the ground upon which you are standing. Do not turn your head, but look intensively at the small area surrounding your feet. Try and take in as much detail as you can. Look at every speck of dust, every grain of dirt; try to absorb the infinite details of the area you are scrutinizing. Add this to the previous action and maintain them both.

Next focus on the sense of taste. Begin rhythmically chewing the mint leaves you have in your mouth. Focus on the release of the flavors from the leaves. Experience the taste in all areas of your mouth—the whole surface of your tongue, underneath your tongue, at the roof of your mouth, at the back of your mouth. Let the experience fill your mouth as you chew. Add this sensory experience to your vision and touch actions and keep all three going at the same time.

By now you should begin to feel a sense of heightened awareness throughout your whole body and mind, a feeling of increased energy and amplified sensory activity.

Next focus on the sense of smell. As you chew the mint leaves they release both flavor and fragrance. Focus now on their fragrance. You will be able to smell their perfume as you breathe out through your mouth and in through your nose. You will also sense their fragrance migrating through the areas that connect your mouth with your nasal passages. Feel the aroma acting on all of your nasal sensors, filling your head with their perfume. You are now stimulating four of your senses simultaneously.

Finally, focus on your sense of hearing. As you chew your mint leaves, begin to hum or chant softly and quietly. Listen to the sound of your voice, hearing it resonate through your body as well as the air.

Now try and make yourself aware of all five senses at once. You know that each is being stimulated by a source under your control, so if you are “missing” one from the group, amplify its source a little: squeeze harder, chew faster, or hum louder. Think of each sense as a channel on your stereo that can be amplified or reduced to bring the overall experience into balance.

Once you have balanced your sensory perception, experience it for a few moments, feeling the excitement and letting it build to a crescendo before returning to the conscious world again. Your senses will now be raised and tuned and your awareness heightened; you will have an acute sensory awareness of the world around you. In this uniquely lucid state you are now fully prepared for the ritual or working you are about to undertake.