Magical Healing: Folk Healing Techniques from the Old World - Hexe Claire 2018

A Few Tips for Getting Started
Tools of The Trade and Practice

The principle for healing work of any kind is this: as much as necessary, but as little as possible. You should also stick to this rule when it comes to magical healing work, since body, mind, and soul should be nudged to do their own job rather than weakened, which can result if we ease their burden too much. “Use it or lose it.” This work is not about spinning a soft healing cocoon around ourselves, but about getting fit again, so we can stand up to our daily lives as well as possible.

Sometimes relief is the first and most important goal. Not everything can be healed completely, even if the trend of believing everything is possible spins fine yarns in this regard. A friend who is a physical therapist developed a system for her work which you can use or adapt as needed. Since many patients come to her with the expectation “now fix me right away” and like to announce their displeasure when decades of stress or strain fail to disappear in a single session, she asks patients to estimate how they are feeling before the session on a scale from one (really bad) to ten (excellent). She asks them after the session which point of the scale they see themselves at now. This shows much more realistic results.

Don’t try to “collect” every available method, but rather concentrate on that which truly moves you forward, and polish it over time. We often subscribe to the erroneous belief that everyone has to know as many methods as possible. The old healers viewed that very differently. They had their pet subjects, but there were also areas in which they deferred to other people because it was simply not their area of expertise. They knew their limitations and knew that it is normal to have some limitations.

Having such an attitude does not mean that you are a bad healer. If you are extremely good at something and are well versed in it, it is a thousand times more valuable than knowing a little bit about twenty techniques. Psychology also comes into play here. When you help someone and are sure of what you are doing, the other person will perceive you very differently than if you are unsure of yourself. This goes for yourself as well, since you can’t fool yourself.

Under no circumstances should you start healing work with any sense of vanity, overestimating your capabilities because you want to look good. Stay courageous, but humble. Don’t let others put you on a pedestal or put pressure on you even if you have a sure hand for some things. This is important because we tend to put pressure on ourselves to the tune of: “It has always worked. Hopefully it will work this time as well.”

Over time you will develop an intuition about how to proceed. Think about who and what you want to include, and respect your personal preferences. You don’t have to be instantly good at everything. Not everyone likes plants, stones, or wants to lay hands on people. Find your own way. As a little help for starting out, I made up a little list of questions for you.

• Which spiritual power/presence do I want to bring aboard? Do I want to skip this for now?

• Are there certain stones I would like to use?

• Should plants be involved and if yes, what kind and in which form?

• Do I wish to use a spell?

• Do I want to lay my hands on someone or work with direct contact (blowing, stroking, brushing, etc.)?

• Would I rather work magically with symbols and candles?

• Will nature be involved, for example, by leaving symbols of the illness at rivers, trees, or special places, or do I want to magically pass on ailments?

• Do I want to incorporate the days of the week and the phase of the moon?

If you are unsure, stick to the formula “less is more.” It does not help to pile on multiple methods. It is important simply that you truly feel something and can tell by the results that you are making progress. This is your path. Don’t expect it to happen instantly. A lot of people are too impatient. I will exaggerate a bit to make my point: they want to read a book and be a good healer afterward. It’s a nice idea, but how is that supposed to happen? You can’t gain experience from a book. You can only gain it by doing. This requires time, patience, and commitment.

Let’s assume you are working with a spell and experience success with it. You have gained important experience, namely the fact that it can work. You are now in a different position than before when a book promised you that it works, but you still had your doubts that it was possible. So you continue your path and try out other spells. Over time you will find out which areas suit you and which questions seem to lead you nowhere. You will learn the talents and gifts that you were given, and surprises are sure to find you along the way. You walk your path in life, not in a book. Your inner spirit will awaken and start to pull you toward experiences and information that will be helpful for your further development. Sometimes they can even come in the proverbial form of problems that are opportunities in disguise.

The nuts you will need to crack in order to move ahead are often very hard.

Don’t throw in the towel too soon, but allow yourself to be present and patient. A lot of people get nervous when something doesn’t happen for them right away and they immediately give up on the whole subject. Instead, stay vigilant and see if you can’t learn something from the whole experience. Such stumbling blocks are often like tests and, as a thank you, a door opens afterward. Sometimes the timing isn’t right, but that does not mean you should then abandon the whole matter. If a subject is truly important for your path, if it is fate of some kind, it will find you again. You may not have a use for it immediately. It may take weeks, months, or years. Subjects like this are like seeds that slumber in the earth; when the conditions are right they will one day sprout and grow. You won’t lose anything. What is truly important rests within you already. It cannot be forgotten or overlooked because it will come to life on its own when the time is right.

If you prefer to work for others, respect their preferences and life circumstances. A lot depends on the familiarity you have with each other. As an example, I once heard of a man who thought it was horrible to have hands laid on him. It felt uncomfortable to him, but he did not say anything because he thought this was the way it had to be. Issues like this can only happen when people do not clearly discuss their expectations and the course of the treatment ahead of time. Apparently even during the man’s session there was no room to discuss this. Open communication is vitally important in healing sessions. What are your expectations? What is the procedure? Are both sides okay with it?

Distance Healing

Those who think the subject of distance healing is a modern development are wrong. Distance healing was common in the old days as well. When a patient was too sick to make the trip to see the healer, friends and relatives went instead to ask for help for the sick person. They often brought a few hairs, nail clippings or similar things with them, so that the healing work could be specifically tailored to the patient. Nowadays people primarily use photos.

Of course, all this carried with it the sensitive question of what to do if people request help on behalf of a sick person who is unaware of the request? What to do with a worried mother, for instance, who would like her daughter to be worked on even though the daughter is against alternative healing methods and would consider her mother’s endeavor laughable hocus pocus? Or what to do when someone cannot communicate due to health reasons and cannot answer questions?

There are several different approaches to this. Some healers flat out refuse to work with cases like these while others have no problems with it and are happy to help.

In the old days people were of the opinion that if the illness is bad, it needs to go. Today we tend to start ruminating on whether or not the illness could possibly serve as a warning to the patient and may help them change his or her behavior (I am not speaking of “karma” or what most people understand it to be, or of guilt, but of instances where people may have an epiphany). If we begin working with it and thus shorten the illness, we may deprive the individual of an important process of realization.

As I wrote about in my book Magie Leben (Living Magic), I do believe that we can work for this patient; however, it should be without specifying which path the energy should take. Figuratively speaking, this is like creating an energy depot for someone while letting the subconscious of the person decide if and how it will accept the energy.

You will need a connection to the affected person in order to do distance healing. It can be a name or a birthday, but also hair, nails, worn clothing, writing samples and many other things are imaginable. A photo is ideal, of course. One depicting the whole body is best. The affected area should be on the photo. If someone has back problems, for example, it is recommended that the photo shows the person from behind. The person can be dressed in normal clothing, of course. What’s important is simply that the person can be seen from head to toe and that the affected area is in the picture.

I am ending this book with an old book theft blessing I found by accident during my research. Finding thieves and preventing theft was actually an additional job for many healers in the old days, as surprising as this may sound today (but not so surprising if we see that shamans do exactly the same things even in modern times).

Theft was a widespread problem in the old days; doors with secure locks did not exist back then. The so-called theft blessing was supposed to prevent such pilfering. Healers were often active in warding off thieves as well. Precious as books were in these days, they had to be especially secured.

This book is loved beyond belief

He who steals it is a thief.

Be he a lord or be he serf,

The gallows are what he deserves.

Should he come upon a house,

He will thence be chased right out.

Should he find a ditch as haven,

He will be eaten by ravens.

Should he come upon a stone,

He will break his neck and bone.