NATURAL MAGICK SHOP SANITATION PROTOCOLS
My Dear Natural Magicians,
I want to tell you about my sanitation protocols for the production of Natural Magick Shop potions.
First, while I was getting my degree in Biology at University of Texas in the early 80’s, my summer job for two years was in a cell biology lab at UTMB. I was trained up in sterile cell culture where 0% incidence of contamination of the cultures was expected, so as to not cause expensive wastes during lab procedures. At UT I also learned and was trained in other sterile and sanitary protocols in microbiology lab. Chemistry and Organic Chemistry lab also have stringent sanitation and cross-contamination regulations.
My production at Natural Magick does not need to be so aseptic, but it is well-informed by my lab and life science science background, and I’ve been doing this throughout my career as a potioneer.
My three sanitation products are soap (usually Dr. Bronner’s Sal Suds), 91% rubbing alcohol and grain alcohol.
Before and many times during a potion session, I wash my hands thoroughly with the Sal Suds, which is super concentrated and leaves no scent residue. This is not just for your health. Ordinary, healthy skin bacteria would cause degradation of my herbs and essential oils and other raw materials. I can’t afford to ruin my backstock with microbial contamination.
Before any session, I wipe down my lab table working surface with rubbing alcohol, if it is not going to come in contact with the herbs and oils. It’s super cheap and I use lots.
If the work involves the herbs or candle wax coming directly into contact with the lab table or the big mirror I often work on, those surfaces are swabbed down with pure grain alcohol, which dries leaving no residue. It’s super expensive and I use lots.
In addition to protecting you and the raw materials, these protocols protect the magickal number in my products. For example, if there is Sandalwood powder on my hands from grinding the Blessing incense, and then some gets on the herbs in the Protection Mojo kits I make next, the magick number of ingredients has changed from five to six, and we can’t have that! I must wash my hands in between potions. So, this magickal ingredient protocol reinforces the sanitation overall of all the products from Natural Magick Shop.
My protocols are also to protect me, your humble potioneer. If I handle the Acacia flowers in the Success Mojo kits and then rub my eyes, I will for sure get an allergic itchy red eye reaction. The power of many of the herbs lies in the active ingredients, and I must avaoid overloading my system with so many biologically active ingredients! (Conversely, the microdoses I get from everything I attribute to improving my health overall; before I started doing this stuff I used to get sick all the time.) So I have to wash my hands after that and never touch my eyes while formulating! Over the course of a decades long career, I have occupational exposure risks much higher than the average Practitioner to essential oils. I come into contact with a lot of EOs while working. They unavoidably absorb into my skin, and then into the bloodstream and end up in my liver. Even worse if I forget and put a finger in my mouth with Eos, yechh!!! Essential oils are difficult for the liver to metabolize, and so they build up, causing risk for any number of maladies, including liver cancer. So I must wash my hands frequently, to avoid the amount of EOs building up in my liver.
Years ago, I developed a contact dermatitis sensitivity to Dragon’s Blood resin. When I grind incense, the dust inevitably gets deposited on my inner arms and legs, and Dragon’s Blood is especially irritating in such large quantities. The average Practitioner need not worry, but the potioneer with occupational exposure levels must wash up with soap and water after a session with it. I got over my sensitivity with DB a couple of months after implementing the wash-up protocol and have not had a problem since.
Again, my ordinary protocols to protect myself also serve the dual purpose of insuring that your potions are super clean.
Am I perfect? Hells, no. During the production periods of the Moon cycles, I often work very long hours, and it is not uncommon for me to pull all-nighters for day in a row to make all the potions. I may forget to close a bag or put the lid on a bottle and leave a drawer open. Touch my face and out of weariness forget to re-sanitize. Also I have cats. They are not allowed on the lab tables, of course, but one, Dottie, is always super interested in the potioneering, and I appreciate the company of my Magick Kitty over the long lonely nights in the lab. The nature of the production is messy and cluttery, and I struggle to keep the lab tidy, even as the sanitation is excellent otherwise.
There are things that I struggle to control, especially at fairs and festivals when I set up vending the Natural Magick booth. Many people touch the packaging, and open and smell the bottles of oils. I now have my hand sanitizer (12 parts grain alcohol, 1 part coconut oil, and a dollop of Sal Suds to emulsify), and I implore people to sanitize their hands before touching my stuff (“Because you are really grateful if the person before you did!” – I can be VERY persuasive) but during a busy crush I can’t get full compliance. And sometimes people open and smell the magick oils; this is allowed and is one of the great pleasures of the biz. Sometime a customer will sniff something and accidentally touch their nose to the bottle.
I am now introducing the above standard lab sanitation protocols to my shipping and handling of orders. This is a new thing and it is now necessary. At the time of this writing, it has been ten days since the general public has had access to the packaged product (Witchfest, which was a doozy!), and as I understand, the CV-19 virus survives no more than 3 days on surfaces like my packaging. Obviously, I will not be vending at any fairs in the foreseeable future, so any product you get in the mail has only been handled by me using lab-protocol sanitations.
I believe that my science background and now upgraded sanitation make Natural Magick Shop potions the cleanest and healthiest as they can possibly be. Be safe and stay healthy everybody, and try to help out your neighbors and friends who are hard-hit by the economic impact of the closures. That would have been me, just one year ago. I am fairly optimistic about my own immediate well-being, being married now to somebody whose employment allows for social distancing. So I am asking y’all to help those who do not have a safety net like me. Love, Health and Blessings all around, my dear Natural Magicians.
]]>Natural Magick Shop pendulums are handmade of high quality material, ritually crafted, and some are made to become family heirloom tools built to last many lifetimes. They are made on the Wednesday or Monday when the Moon is halfway between New and Full, for the very balanced energy at that time. As I craft each pendulum, I ask it how long it wants to be, and when I get an affirmative, I finish it according to the wishes of its Genie.
When you try out a new pendulum, I recommend to first ask it how it registers "yes" and "no" responses. To do this, dangle the pendulum in front of you, let it come to stillness and then just ask, "Show me your Yes," and see how it swings. Then ask, "Show me your No," and see how that swings. For most pendulums and most people, a circular motion is "Yes" and back and forth is "No." However, I have a friend who "programmed" e.g. instructed, her pendulum to swing up and down for Yes and back and forth for No, kind of like nodding your head Yes or shaking your head No.
Another system I've seen is a clockwise circle for Yes and counterclockwise circle for No. There are some people who use a pendulum radii, where you hold the pendulum over the radii and how it swings over the radii answers the question.
Pendulums are also used by police psychics to find the missing child, murder weapon, etc., and for this use you move the pendulum slowly and systematically over a map and see if it starts freaking out over a certain location. You might use this technique to find a house to buy, where you left your cell phone, or any other location-seeking question. Pendulums are used for Geomancy, to determine on the landscape/premises the power potentials of any location.
Another use for pendulums is for questions related to calendar dates. Say you are trying to pick a date for a party, wedding or garage sale, or when to pop the question, ask for a raise. Move the pendulum over a calendar in front of you and when it starts swinging crazy, that would be considered the best date.
An old fashioned farmer's use for the pendulum is to determine the gender of eggs. Hold the pendulum over the egg and a swinging circle is female and back and forth is male. This way you can use the male eggs for breakfast scramble and not get too many roosters in your coop.
Similarly, the nurseryman would use a pendulum to determine the gender of certain shrubs, for example when you want to make sure you buy a female Holly bush so it will have the ornamental red berries in time for Christmas. Likewise, a pendulum made of a silk thread and the wedding ring would be held over a pregnant woman's belly to divine the sex of the baby.
Some people say that the pendulum is powered by the inner place in you that really knows the answer all along. Others say that each pendulum has a spirit (called a genius) that does the answering, and some spirits get along with some people better than others. My opinion is that all pendulums are inhabited by the same spirit genius. In any of these cases, the pendulum seems to "resent" being played with like a toy, and it will stop talking or give misleading answers if asked a series of testing, frivolous questions. So don't do that, okay? Good luck with your pendulum!
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Dear Cedar,
I have received the parcel today. i dont know how to express myself. but you have really impressed me with the qulity of the packing, and important of all the quality of the items. i wanna congratulate you for such a wonderful job you have done. thank you for the charcoal tablets.
thank you for the smooth transaction between us. will be ordering some perfumes from you soon.
All the best,
kind regards,
A.S.
Seychelles
Hi Cedar,
I am interested in ordering again from you as I really align with your items. I have been using the stardust for my personal self and it has helped me overcome certain issues I have been working on including self worth and depression. It definitely helps to lift my spirits in dealing with a few present circumstances.
Thank you so much,
Anonymous
Los Angeles, CA
I was getting ready to embark on a really important and stressful journey so I went to my friend Cedar for some metaphysical help. Cedar suggested since I was doing a Comic-Con type of event that I might find the "Thor" oil helpful for strength and fortitude in the face of all the stress and unknown. On my way home from Cedar's Magick Shop, I decided to get the oil out and give it a smell...hmmmm musky, but somehow totally alluring. While driving down the highway (in the safest way of course) I put a little of the oil on my finger and dabbed some here and there. I then (feeling kind of silly) said in my most loud, theatrical and booming voice "Thor, God of Thunder, bring your strength to me. Make me strong with your power!!" As soon as the words were out of my mouth, the AC/DC song "Thunderstruck" came on the radio and I cranked it up to maximum volume and felt Thor's power running through me. Coincidence? Maybe, but that is a sure sign to me that someone or something was listening to my plea. Needless to say my event was a total success since I had brought the power of Thor with me.
Thank you Cedar for all your wisdom, support and most importantly, LOVE!!
Deanna,
Austin, TX
Just received my second package from your shop! My fiancee is CRAZY about your Pan oil , and I adore the way it smells on him!
Thank you so much for carefully crafting your lovely oils! They are quickly becoming a staple in our household!
Pwny Marie,
Morton, Illinois
I wanted to thank you again for making your Amber Paste available for sale. Cannot tell you how pleased I am with this product. The scent lasts for DAYS and beats anything else sold in health stores.
I can tell you put a LOT of love and energy into making this wonderful Amber Paste.
Please feel free to use my review on your website. It’s an outstanding product.
Blessed Be
Jeffrey K, Stamford CT
Hello Cedar!
I just received my order of Deer oil and I just wanted to let you know it's exquisite! It was my first order, and I'm definitely going to be a repeat customer. :) Thanks!
Rochelle
North Dakota
Hi Cedar,
Just wanted to let you know I love the oils I bought from you, that is the High John the Conquerer and Spirit Summons they work for me quite well. Especially the spirit Summoning. When Damn Mercury retrograde is over ( It hits me hard ) I would like to talk with you about the Abramelin oil.
Take care for now
Billy
Lake City, FL
Hi Cedar,
Just wanted to let you know I received my parcel, and I have paid the outstanding freight charge.
I absolutely love my products, they are gorgeous, and beautifully presented.
I can see that you put a lot of time and care into your products, and for that I thank you.
Will definitely be ordering from you again soon.
Kindest regards,
Bryony W
Queensland, Australia
CedaR
I previously purchased a wand of willow from you. It is travel size. I simply LOVE it and I have given your information to other friends. Be well, and please continue your good work! Bright Blessings~ I look forward to more of your products and postings!
Charisse
Birmingham, AL
Hello
I received my Faery oil and Faery bath herbs today. I am just *delighted* with the oil and I look forward to using the bath herbs very soon. I dabbed the oil on my lids, wrists and behind my ears. It smells so wild and free, like summer. I never smelled anything like it before.
Angeline Pang
Toronto, Canada
Wow that was really fast shipping! And it has a very good feel to it. When I opened the bottle and smelled it it was definitely Green Tara. :-)
Ruth Oschmann
Palmdale CA
Hi,
My order arrived today, perfectly and carefully packaged, and earlier than I would have expected. The oils are exquisite.
Thank you, William D., Ft. Washington PA.
I just wanted to thank you for how well your products work. I had purchased many, including Djinn, Dream, Black cat, and Fire. I have had amazing outcomes, of which I will not write on account of it being quite lengthy. Recently I purchased Ghobe for my dear friend who has a great love for gnomes and will be spending his summer mining to find Red Beryl (apparently a rare stone of great worth). As a token of pre-thanks for aiding in the find, and a token of thanks for your highly under-priced products, I have done a picture for you. Seeing as I am unable to send it, I will merely put it up in my show this July and put it as 'not for sale', for at some point we may meet or I may be able to give it to you. Good luck in your future ventures. I will continue to patron your site.
Sincerely,
Gamaliel Azbury
Hey, Cedar!
I’ll go on the site and order extra Aura Docs and Healing Lotion – you may be getting new orders from my colleagues, too. I can’t tell you what a hit your products have made in our office. Everyone is saying, “WHAT is that wonderful smell?” and “WHERE did you get that?”
This is great! Thank you, Cedar. I am so glad that my guides led me to your site over the cyber waves. You are a treasure!!!
Have a great day and enjoy settling in to the new space. Continued good luck in your wonderful alchemy!!!
Marybeth,
Santa Monica, CA
Hi Cedar,
Your Love Spray is awesome personified! Clients are asking for it… need to stock up next I'm in ATX.
Lynnivere,
Grapeland, Texas
Hi, Cedar,
Just got my order, wow, that was fast! Everything arrived just fine. The wand is just great. You know how some things feel new and take a little breaking in? Well, not this one. It felt comfortable the first time I held it. Amazing. Speaks well of your methods. I am very happy with the "Newtonian".
Thank you so much and Blessed Be.
Paul, Austin, TX
Good Evening Cedar!
I received Rhianna today, she arrived save and sound. Of course I have not had time to get to know her, but my first impressions are tremendous. Visually the wand is truly a splendid work of art. She is understated in design, yet through the almost austere appearance there is a classic elegance portrayed by the clean slender lines, and lack of superfluous ornamentation. To me there is an aura of energy and function. I was also struck by the shape of the shaft and crystal, sleek and straight, almost arrow like. The initial feeling was of focus and purpose, an unwavering true flight. Needless to say, I am very happy right now.
Safety and happiness to you and yours,
Seenidog, Fennimore, Wisconsin
Cedar,
I really like the ex-smoker blend. I had already quit for about a week when I received it, I wish I would have found it on the web in time to order for my quit date. It has really helped me get through my first bon fire and drinking get together without a cig. I really only smoke about 1 ex-smoker a day right now and its just good to know there is something to smoke when I am really craving a cig. I also liked what you wrote about the effigy, I may try that. I had smoked for 20 years and quitting is one of the hardest things I have done, I still want to smoke everyday but I haven't so far for 15 days.
Thanks again,
Marcy from Wisconsin
Cedar,
I never quite got around to saying "thanks" for all the wonderful gifts you sent me. You far exceeded my expectations with customer service.
Bonnie B. of Maryland
Hello! It's Zach again. I just wanted to thank you for the wand. I used it recently, and it worked wonders. I'm going to place another order soon, because I've been using the Full Moon oil I ordered as well and the effects are amazing. Looking forward to more of your excellent product!
Zach P. Tyler TX
Dear Natural Magick,
I wanted to thank you for the fast delivery! My wand and incense arrived yesterday. I am speechless when it comes to the wand. All I can say is magnificent! The incense smells amazing as well even having not lit it yet! Thank you for everything! I have never been as happy with a product as I am when I use yours!! Everything is simply wonderful!!!
Jennifer, Washington State
Cedar,
I wanted to give you an update on my job situation....
I went by your house to pick up my oils on Wed 4/9. The following day I lit a green candle with the symbol you showed me for money and wrote on the glass "I Am Prosperous" with gold paint. I also dabbed it with the Money, Good Job & Success oils. That evening I saw an ad for an Office Manager and sent my resume. The following morning on 4/11 I got a call from the recruiting agency. She wanted me to come to her office on Monday so she could meet me and have me take some tests. After meeting with her on Mon, she scheduled the interview for Tues (following day) with the company hiring the Office Manager. I went on the interview on Tues and it went very well. I was also told that aprox 10 people were going to be interviewed. I was invited back for a second interview 2 days later on Thurs and offered the job! (that was on 4/17....just a couple of days ago). All of this happened in only 8 days since I went to pick up the oils and started using them. To put all of this into perspective: I was working with a very controlling man who was very abusive to his daughter who also worked with me in the office. He had awful energy. Before him I had walked out of a job I had been at only 2 weeks because the boss raised her voice to me (I think I told you this when I met you). I had also told you that I desperately wanted to "shift" my employment situation as circumstances had been quite negative in the workforce for at least 2 years (I had had 7 jobs in 2007). The man at the company I was working at was paying me $12/hr. At my new job I was offered $18.50/hr.! And the woman I who owns this company --- that I will be working with --- is about 60yrs old and oozes warmth and kindness. For the first time in a LONG time, I really think this is going to be a nice place to work at.
The reason I wanted to update you is because everything shifted when I began to use the oils I bought from you.
Thank you!!
Gisele
Hi, Cedar,
Just got my order, wow, that was fast! Everything arrived just fine. The wand is just great. You know how some things feel new and take a little breaking in? Well, not this one. It felt comfortable the first time I held it. Amazing. Speaks well of your methods. I am very happy with the "Newtonian". Thank you so much and Blessed Be.
Paul, Austin, TX
Hello,
I have been meaning to write you now for some time.
I was your first international customer.....from Canada.
I just wanted to thank you so much for your write up on how you stopped smoking.
I could truly relate to the visuals you described.
I have now been a non smoker for a month and a half.
I really did enjoy smoking ....BUT.....it was harming me and it was time face that fact and do something positive about it.
Your write up gave me the courage to honor myself and release all that did not serve my highest good.
I just wanted to share that with you and tell you that your article truly helped someone.......me.
Have a blessed day,
Angela.(45 yrs young and getting younger every day).
Kirkland , Quebec, Canada.
Hi y'all,
Cedar's handcrafted items are some of the best I've ever come across. I'm a huge fan of her pendulums. The positive energy is hands down the best you will ever come across. I also love her oils!
Sincerely,
Melissa S., Austin Texas
Dear Cedar,
I received my order Saturday! Thank you sooo much! They are all so unique and beautiful! I will certainly be ordering more soon! Thanks again for working things out with me regarding my recent address change. :-) I couldn't possibly pick a favorite! I love something special about each one. The Pele oil is really great! I was lucky enough to learn a traditional Hula to Pele once and this oil brings up many of the same feelings and energies! I also wore the Circe oil out Sunday night and when I got home I had some very vivid dreams! I am already planning my next order! I'm sure my H.P. will love his two oils as well! Thanks again.
Blessed Be,
Meghan Rice
Cedar,
My order arrived earlier than I expected. Everything is perfect -- all the finest ingredients, crafted with greatest skill, knowledge, and care. Natural Magick Shop is my favorite place to shop!
Crow, Houston, TX
Hey everybody!
When I got the role of Coyote in a play, I tried Cedar’s Coyote oil. And instantly I felt sneakier, sillier, tricksy-er, and all of the thing Coyote should be. If the audience response is any indication, the oil worked like a charm!
Mindy, Austin, TX
Cedar, thanks for opening the online store. When I moved to Portland I thought I would have to stock up on Pan Oil during my annual pilgrimage to Austin.
My boyfriend always knows he’s getting lucky when I wear that earthy scent, of course he might get stuck out dancing for hours before it happens.
I like to put it in my beard and in my armpits and crotch. Smells like a healthy happy man’s body that’s been rolled in the forest floor.
Birch, Portland, OR
Planetary Magick is the next system to layer onto one's practice, after mastery and understanding of Solar, Lunar and Elemental Magick. If you have a yearning for an ancient link to magickal practice, it is more likely to be found through the seven "fixed stars" or planets than by any particular witchcraft tradition or magickal system, most of which date to the 1950's or Medieval times.
In ancient times, the movements of the "planets" were easy to observe as different from the stars. Most of the stars rotated in unison, over the course of the night, but seven heavenly bodies could be counted in different rhythms. Fastest moving among them is the Moon, whose orbit has a periodicity of about 29 days. Faint, but still observable much of the year also, Mercury travels its path every 59 days (or 88 days, it used to be believed). Venus at 243 days, the Sun itself at 365 days, Mars at 687 days, Jupiter at 12 years and elder Saturn takes 29 years to complete its circuit, from an Earthling's perspective.
From Sumerian times, these unique heavenly bodies were seen as representations of the gods, if not gods themselves. And through the ages, the names of these planets have changed, but the roles of the gods they have been named for have changed very little. For example, in ancient Sumer, Enki was the name for the planet we now call Mercury, and they are both gods of information and communication. The Babylonians called the planet Mars by the name Nergal, who was also god of war. Our beloved planet Venus was Aphrodite in Greece, Astarte in Phoenicia, Ishtar in Babylon, and Inanna in ancient Sumer, love goddesses all of them. Solaris or Helios is the Sun god, Iuppiter or Jupiter is a god of kingship and growth, Selene or Luna is goddess of the Moon.
The association or correspondences of these gods with the planets is discernible from their colors, movements, or time signatures. Saturn, with its lengthy period, was associated with elder or death gods, gods of the underworld or harvest, master of time, architect of destiny. Mercury, with its speedy cycle and quick changes of direction were related to the messenger god.
Some astrologers and magicians have added Neptune, Uranus, and Pluto to the classic seven planets. These planets are not discernible to the eye without telescopes, and therefore they are not as familiar to humanity, and they have fewer Earthly correspondences. Neptune is viewed as a higher frequency of Venus, Uranus likewise is an octave over Mercury, and Pluto is the dark reflection of the Sun. Their distance from our planet makes magickal correspondence much more tentative and not especially useful to most practitioners.
Most important for the modern practitioner is that, since the times of the most ancient western civilizations, these planets or deities have determined one of the most basic conventions of social organization: the seven day week. Each day is said to be "ruled" by one of the seven planets, and further, each hour of the day and each hour of the night are ruled by the same succession of planetary deities. We have lost a bit in the translation of the names of the week to the Germanic roots. The Norse gods are not associated with the planets themselves, though their diety functions are still correspondent to the ancient rulers. The Latin names of the planets and the days still correspond exactly.
Note that our familiar workweek begins on Monday, ruled by the quickest planet, and ends on Saturn's slow day, the day of rest. More recent calendars have changed the Sabbath to Sunday, or alternatively had Sunday begin the week. Over time, and even in our current datebooks, which of these three days is the start of the week has rarely enjoyed consensus. If you consider the matter you could derive logical arguments for all three cases.
Our reckoning of the day as beginning at 12 am (the middle of the night) is a new convention. For millennia, the day began with sunrise, and the night began with sunset, and the planetary hours commenced their count at sunrise. The order of the hours follows the periodicities of the planets: slower, elder Saturn begins the week (or used to do) and the quickest planet, the Moon is the last, repeating eternally in the pattern:
But this is not the order of the days of the week! Which is of course:
The explanation is that in Babylonian times, the day was divided into twenty four hours (Sumerians used a twelve hour day) with twelve hours of day and twelve hours of night. If you begin at sunrise on Saturday with the first hour being ruled by Saturn, 24 hours later you will end up at dawn the next day with the hour of the Sun. That being the planet governing at the time of sunrise, that planet governs and names the new day, Sunday. Beginning with Sun ruling that first hour of the day it rules, if you tick off another 24 planetary hours in that order: Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, etc., you will arrive at Moon at dawn of the next day, Monday. After another 24 hours you will arrive at dawn at the next day, Tuesday. Repeat this pattern and you will derive the order of the days of the week.
It is easy to think of time and days of the week proceeding this way, a function of the relationship of the number seven with the number twelve, and indeed, this relationship is expressed elsewhere, most notably in music in the relation of the chromatic to the diatonic scales. Mystics, alchemists, and early philosophers were always seeking to understand, and emulate in law, architecture, art, and social convention, the music of the spheres, a way to harmonize human activities with the movements planets of our solar system and then hopefully, further into the heavens. (You might note that the next tier of magickal practice after the seven-planet realm is the astrological zodiac, which is a system of twelve.)
One problem is that nature does not always fit the philosopher's ideal mathematics. We have here the inconvenience of unequal day length caused by the seasons. With the advent of uniform timepieces, the convention has moved toward the fixed hour. But in ancient systems, the length of the hour changed according to the length of the day. Around the equinoxes, September 22 or so and March 22 or so, the hours of the night and day are equal, and this is where convention set the fixed hour. Somewhere along the way, the rigid application of fixed hours made it expedient to even change the time of the beginning of the day to the darkest hour of night!
In Natural Magick, we follow Nature and ancient customs. Wednesday morning begins at Dawn on Wednesday, and it lasts all day and all night until the Sun rises upon the next day. If that Wednesday is near the Winter Solstice, the hours of the day are shorter, and the hours of the night are longer. We go through the exercise of calculating the relative length of the hours through the seasons in order to precisely time magickal operations, especially those that are related to the planets. A bit of algebra and interpolation is applied to our magick. This brings us closer to the magick of the Spheres and the practices of ancient magickal systems. Not to mention, it reminds us that we did once pass Algebra in high school!
With this we introduce the Natural Magick line of Planetary oils. Each of these oils is made on the day ruled by the planet and in the hour of that day that is ruled by the planet. Five of the seven planets are made during the day in the waxing Moon. Moon is made at night under the crescent Moon in the hour of the Moon. Saturn is made on the first Saturday after the Full Moon, in the Saturn hour of the night, to fully capture the elder and dark aspect.
Each oil is potentiated with a mineral which corresponds to the power of the planet concerned:
Each bottle of oil has a 4mm bead of the same stone as a focus. As each oil is made, I use the following binding spell: This is the Day that you were made
This is the Hour that you were born
This is the moment of your creation
To magick of ___________, you are now sworn.
Each of the planets and the gods that govern them has resonance with different parts of our Selves. In a sense, by honoring each of the planets in a ritual way, we are dissembling, re-assimilating, and reclaiming each part of our Selves, the whole and separate parts of which issue forth from the Music of the Spheres.
by Cedar Stevens
]]>The colors of the Rainbow were described as numbering seven by Sir Isaac Newton, no doubt building from and explicating his studies of classic natural history. Newton's color wheel is: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Purple.
On more modern painter's color wheels, the Rainbow is usually divided into six colors, omitting Indigo, which is a tertiary color. All of the other colors of Newton's Rainbow are primary: Red, Yellow, and Blue, or secondary: Orange, Green, and Purple. Why is Indigo included in this system? Newton probably had other, very good reasons to define the Rainbow as a function of the favored magical number of seven, and far be it from me to argue with Isaac Newton on that account.
I hereby propose that the Newtonian Rainbow be relieved of the anomalous Indigo color, which does not even manage a scientific definition (expressed as a range of frequencies of vibrations of light) in an ordinary college dictionary. I recommend that we preserve the magic number seven of the Rainbow by including "Clear," as the combination of all the colors. Allow me to explain.
The natural, undissected Rainbow is known to us by two phenomena: the appearance of the Rainbow Arc in the Sky, and the division of white light by the art of the Prism. Both are really expressions of the same basic reality of perception. Visible light, perceived and often described as white light, is a combination of particles of energy which express themselves in a cyclical nature, known as waves. A triangularly shaped transparent solid which is the prism, or a drop of water, by the process of diffraction, has the power to separate the colors hidden within white light, according to frequency of the waves. This is then very easy to measure experimentally, and to demonstrate with ordinary graphics.
It bears mentioning that white light itself is just one small fraction of the kinds of electromagnetic energy that communicates through the universe. Others are radio waves, infrared radiation, etc. When we speak of the Rainbow, or white light, we are speaking of: that subset of electromagnetic radiation which is discernible by the eyes of human beings. It is known that other waves of energy are perceived by other living beings, such as magnet fields by pigeons, or ultraviolet colors by many kinds of insects. Other forms of this wave type of energy transformation are sensed by hearing, or by tactile sensation of vibrational motion. In between the high frequency vibration of visual light and the relatively low frequency of sound waves, there is a lot of room for imagination. Therefore, the Rainbow colors are one subset of energy that is especially applicable and useful to humans.
The other, lower octave of energy waves well known to humans are known as sound waves, and Sir Isaac Newton and others have attempted to correlate the two phenomena.
(graphic of Isaac's do re mi with colors coming soon)]]>
- Red - do
- Orange - re
- Yellow - mi
- Green - fa
- Blue - sol
- Indigo - la
- Purple - si (which was recently replaced with "ti" for reasons that do not pay homage to the original meanings of the words they were derived from.)
In our modern adjustment of the Newtonian Rainbow, Indigo would be replaced with Purple for "la," and Clear (or White or Silver) would be given to "si." There are reasons for this correlation, which are useful in order to correlate the classic Rainbow with the Hindu and Yogic understanding of Chakras.
Chakras are energy centers of the human body as perceived by Yoga practice. We find alternative examples of the same system which can resolve light, major scale musical notes, the Oriental chakras and perhaps even fragrance.
- Red - 1st chakra, root, base of spine
- Orange - 2nd chakra, sex belly below navel
- Yellow - 3rd chakra, solar plexus
- Green - 4th chakra, heart
- Blue - 5th chakra, throat
- Purple (or Indigo in other systems) - 6th chakra, third eye, middle of forehead
- White/Clear/Silver (or Purple = Violet in other systems) - 7th chakra, crown, above the skull.
This review of chakras is much abbreviated, since many excellent books give further information and alternative color systems for the chakras. This system of healing is highly individualistic and many people have different color expression of their chakras. For example, Pink is a common color replacement for the heart chakra. The seven-scaled Rainbow as applied to the Chakras is a generalized, idealized imaging of the average Human. Your mileage may vary!
Let us return to the Prism and the Rainbow. There are two easily observable differences between the two phenomena. A prism, resting on the lab table, splits the beam of light and onto the screen. At the bottom is Red, the color with the longest wavelength, and less affected by the diffraction of the prism. The other colors proceed, with Purple at the top. To contrast, the Rainbow casts its colors with Purple at the bottom, inside of the arc, and Red at the top. To simplify the explanation, the water drop of rain not only acts as a prism, which separates light into its component colors, but it also acts as a mirror, and a concave one at that. This concave mirror reflects light in a reversed manner, which is why the colors of the primary Rainbow is "upside down" Oh, but there are many things that can transpire within a droplet of water, and here is another. Sometimes light is refracted, and then reflected and reflected a second time within the drop of water. And since the Rainbow is cast by not one drop of water, but by many, the many droplets often conspire to cast a second Rainbow above the first, in which the colors are reversed, with Red at the bottom and Purple at the top.
If we have all the colors of the Rainbow plus White, then what of the color Black? Black is the 0th chakra. Below the feet, corresponding to primordial darkness, that which came before the light, before the Big Bang. Then, seemingly for no reason at all, Nothing anomalizes into Something, and the world is born. It sounds as good a theory as many, at least, and science has made some compelling scenarios upon the hypothesis.
First the darkness, then comes lightAnd now behold by Iris' might:
Purple! (Response: Purple!)
Blue!
Green!
Yellow!
Orange!
Red!
And by Her Rainbow,
The Artist's palate fed!In this proposed sevenfold package of the Rainbow, the six primaries and secondaries, we name "Clear" as the seventh and combination of the six. Clear can be understood to be both Black and White, recognizing the origin of light, and the end of the Palate where all colors blend again to return to darkness. Representationally, in art or function, White, Silver, or Black could be used to stand in for clear, as the aesthetic or interpretation requires.
The colors of the Rainbow are not evenly divided according to the frequency range of light. We perceive a disproportionate range of visible light as the color Red, from 6220 to 7700 Angstroms, about 38%. Green is the next most popular, with 22% of the spectrum as we perceive it. Violet weighs in next from the lower end of our range 3900 - 4500 Angstroms, or 15% of the visible spectrum. Yellow and Orange get a small bandwidth each, and Blue accounts for 11% of the spectrum we perceive.
(graphic coming soon)This seems to tell us a lot about ourselves as monkeys. Leaf Green, fruit Red. But: flower Purple? What does color Purple teach us? Do other monkeys favor it as we do?
Magical Associations and Mythology of the Rainbow
Simply because of the power and universally shared perception of color, the Rainbow becomes an alphabet of the range of human emotions. These associations of colors easily translate into magical and perceptual technology applied to everything from psychotherapy to candle spells.
(graphic coming soon)Used all together, the Rainbow then translates into an open road for That Which is Possible for human beings. Appearing after a storm as it does, the Rainbow offers promise, hope and healing, as Noah and his wife saw it after the Flood.
Iris is perhaps the most personable mythic deities to represent the Rainbow. She is given as the daughter of the Oceanic Elektra (not the Electra of Trojan myth or the Pleidean star sister) and Thaumus. She often appears in the same capacity, and even in the company, as fellow messenger god Mercury, and she shares with him the depiction of winged head and feet. Her duty is primarily to Zeus and Hera. Many other religions see the Rainbow as not a deity but as a road, a connection between Heaven and Earth, and it is not wasted on many mythopoetic systems that the Rainbow appears to go beneath the Earth at the horizon and then back up again, suggesting a continuously circular bridge between above and below, between life and death.
In tarot, the 14th trump card, Temperance, is often depicted as an Angel who mixes fire and water into a vessel which then pours forth a Rainbow. In some decks, including the Crowley Thoth deck, Temperance is replaced (or reinterpreted) by the Art card. Crowley was himself something of an artist and many of his groups of associates and friends as well as he had little use for Temperance but religious devotion to Art, so the transposition suggests. Since the Rainbow is the basis of the Artist's palate, it makes magical sense to correspond the two. As in the nature of the Rainbow, the Temperance Angel combines the pure elemental essences of Fire (light) and Water (the drop of cloud vapor) to create the Rainbow. This would explain why even older interpretations of the Tarot do not give Temperance the modern day definition of purity and restraint, but rather one of transformation by way of alchemy, the perfect combination of elements. One element in the right proportion perfectly tempers another to create a thing of beauty. The Temperance Angel is often depicted standing next to iris flowers, reinforcing its association or equivalence with the Goddess Iris.
The other Tarot card that features the Rainbow is the Ten of Cups. Usually, it depicts a heterosexual nuclear family of two parents and two children, boy and girl, celebrating home, prosperity, and family beneath the Rainbow, which is encrusted with ten golden, overflowing Cups. It symbolizes the attainment of material and familial blessings, the crowning glory of adulthood, presumably after all the prerequisite rites of passage, the Storms.
The arch of the Rainbow has also been used as a political symbol of diversity, and it may be that Reverend Jesse Jackson was not the first who used it as a symbol of racial tolerance and mutual support, as the Rainbow creates an arch, and each block that forms the architectural arch is necessary for creating that portal from one stage of understanding and evolution of thought into another, following the imperative of Grace. By the alchemy of all the races and of all walks of life, the strength of the arch and the permanence of the doorway are improved. Evolution and ecology also teach us the lesson that strength and resiliency of the ecosystem are improved by diversity in species.
This very radical concept that differentness is acceptable, and that even our survival may depend upon it, is certainly one of comfort to any individual who has ever been marginalized or made to feel different or even unwelcome in the dominant culture. The next political use of the Rainbow's power of diversity is by the Gay Pride movement. Was the Rainbow borrowed from Jackson's Rainbow Coalition, or is it Judy Garland's rendition of "Over the Rainbow" in Wizard of Oz that made the Rainbow flag colors a banner under which to rally? I believe it fair to say that Art and Gayness have long felt comfort in each other's arms. The alchemy of the Temperance angel would imply that a serendipity of the several theories would combine to make the most radiant of hues, and perhaps a most splendid political alliance.
Could it mean that Iris of the Rainbow is therefore the Goddess of art and creativity, of the diversity of race and human expression of sexuality and all other potential ways of being and vision? I propose that she be considered as such, and her conversations with me on these subjects lead me to write this very monologue. Iris is easily the Goddess of Gay Pride, Art, and Racial and Political Diversity. In other words, everything under the Rainbow, creative potential as perceived and expressed by humans.
The Rainbow is not the creatrix, nor is Iris, but Iris of the Rainbow speaks to those created by the Mother, who eventually terrifies, abandons or at least disappoints us by becoming the Destroyer (the Storm). Often immediately upon separating ourselves from the Mother, many of us undergo a Storm of spirit, where our basic right to exist, our ability to "fit in" or care for ourselves is called into question. By looking to the promise in the sky, the light of the sun transforms within the tears in our eyes into the Rainbow, which offers hope, Redemption, and a promise that all of us have a part in creating the world.
In nature, the Rainbow has but few rare natural expressions. In the hands of humans, however, it becomes the basic tool of art, allowing the creation of many forms of color, including the return to Black, a combining of all the colors of pigment, which combine to approximate the primordial lack of light, absence of color. As a tool, the Rainbow artist's palate combines in limitless colors, shades, and shapes to create that which is possible.
Magical operations involving the rainbow
Just viewing a Rainbow is purifying and blessing. It is considered to be bad luck, taboo, or just plain rude, to point at a Rainbow. If desired, a magical object can be placed where it appears that a Rainbow ends in order to bless or consecrate it. The Rainbow is supposed to point towards a pot of gold, and it could be used in divination. For example, where I often viewed Rainbows from my former magick shop, I could usually make them point to the "Everything 99 Cent store." Wishes are often uttered to be taken on this bridge from Earth to Heaven to the Underworld and back again. Photograph yourself or friends for a long lasting reminder of your blessing.
Rainbow water is a multipurpose blessing water appropriate to any magical use. I have a distinct memory of reading in Scott Cunningham's Earth Power something like this "The three most magic waters are 1) Sunshine Water, rain that is collected when the Sun is shining, 2) Rainbow Water, which is rain collected while a Rainbow is in evidence, and 3) the most magic water of all is Tears shed for Joy." I began collecting accordingly. But since then I have been unable to source this memory! The best I can find in the Rainbow Brew in Cunningham's Incense Oils and Brews, which has you collect the Rainbow water for multipurpose magical use, since it has all the colors in it.
Rainbow water would then be very potentiating as an addition to any magical baths, teas, or water used for inks, magical painting or sacred art. Blessings, creativity workings, or any artistic operation could only be enhanced by the Rainbow water. Likewise, any spell designed to imbue Hope after the Storm, or instill attitudes of Tolerance or even just eye opening could find use for it.
Ceremonial magicians, especially in the Golden Dawn tradition also make use of a Rainbow wand. While the precise procedures of its construction are probably initiatory secrets, it involves a wand that is Black at the handheld end, radiating upward beginning with Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple then White. My personal adaptation for this is a 7 inch wand with one inch per color. I use Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple then Clear (which can represented as Pearl, White or Silver). Alternatively, a 49 inch or 49 centimeter wand or staff could be constructed with the same proportions. While each color is being painted, the corresponding note is sung, and the wand is imbued with this note while visualizing and uttering words of power relating to the color. Each band of color is thereby informed of its power as it is being painted. A pitch pipe is very helpful to this exercise. If at all possible, the wand should be oriented such that the root end of the stick or dowel is the bottom, colored as Red (or Black in the Ceremonial tradition). If you buy prefab dowels from a craft center, the orientation of the wood can often be determined thus: hold a pendulum over each end of the rod. The root end should cause the pendulum to swing in a circular (feminine) direction whereas the (masculine) branch end should make it swing back and forth.
Just as the seven notes are correlated to the colors of the Rainbow, it could be attempted to correlate olfactory notes to color. Without giving my own recipe for Iris of the Rainbow oil, I can tell you that clove, oak moss, and sassafras are usually interpreted as Red, and these combinations can be used monochromatically or synergistically for aromatherapy and chakra alignment.
- Red: clove, oak moss, sassafras
- Orange: ginger, lemon, nutmeg
- Yellow: lime, champa flower, vetiver
- Green: rosemary, pine, bay laurel
- Blue: calamus, cardamom, hyssop
- Purple: Rose, lavender, birch
- Clear/White: sandalwood, ylang ylang, frankincense
There are some individuals who by accident of birth have crossed lines of perception, allowing them to experience color as sound, sound as scent, or scent as color. It is also known that certain psychoactive drugs can mimic this integration temporarily, giving a glimpse into this mesmerizing experience which is called synaesthesia. So boggling as it is to the mortal mind, it may give us a hint as to that which lies beyond life and death, over the Rainbow Bridge.
The Rainbow appears but of rare occasion and ephemerally, but we have borrowed the component colors to load the paint which is ever on the palate, and what we will create of it is our future, before us on a blank canvas.
This is an explanation of the Alchemical reasoning behind the Natural Magick Shop Elemental magick oils and Elemental ritual incenses. I will describe the methodologies behind their production to show how I endeavor to capture the fullest power of the Elements.
These most basic of formulations have taken fifteen years to develop. For both my Planetary and Elemental potions, I wanted very special, very rational, extensively researched formulae. I wanted them to be &endash; if not at first perfect in subjective Fragrance (though NOT out of reach of my capabilities) &endash; as Alchemically perfect in Magick of Number, Planet, Phase of Moon, Time of Day, Color, and Cardinal Direction.
For the Cardinal (tangible) Elements, Earth, Air, Fire, and Water, I deduced that each would be ruled by the number Four, for the four Directions with which they are associated, East, South, West and North. Each of these has four ingredients.
For the Intangible Element, called Spirit or sometimes Akasha, the ruling number is deduced to be Five, the top peak of the Pentagram, and the number which guides the unfurling of the Spiral, which is one of the magickal symbols for Spirit, the Elusive Element of Time. Spirit oil and incense are therefore compounded of five ingredients.
Since Center or Spirit partakes of, and is the source of each of the tangible Elements, these formulations would include one of the four ingredients of each, plus one rare ingredient which only could be ruled by Spirit.
This set of correspondence is not as easy as number. While the four Elements are easy to unfold into Planetary correspondences, the reverse operation is less natural. I do my best, hoping it benefits us all.
Air Element breathes the nature of two Planets: Mercury and Jupiter. Air incense and oil is made on Wednesday.
Fire Element burns with the nature of Sun and Mars. Fire incense and oil is made on Sunday.
Water Element reflects the nature of Moon and Venus. Water incense and oil is made on Monday.
Earth Element resides only in the nature of Saturn. Earth incense and oil is made on Saturday.
Spirit infuses all of the Planets, but Mercury carries its message best of all. Spirit incense and oil is made on Wednesday.
Many Magickal and Alchemical scholars have provided time-tested process for Lunar harmony in our spell work and magick. Here I have again taken the uncomfortable task of folding the Lunar correspondences back into the Elements.
Air Element blows through the Crescent Moon, since the New Moon rises at dawn, Air incense and oil is formulated in the morning.
Fire Element charges the Second Quarter of the Moon, since the waxing half Moon is seen rising at noon. Fire incense and oil is therefore concocted at midday.
Water Element flows down from the Full Moon, and since the Full Moon rises at sunset, Water incense and oil is potioned at the end of the day.
Earth Element weighs in on the Third quarter, which rises at midnight. Earth incense and oil is compounded around midnight.
Spirit envelopes all phases of the Moon, and is integrated on the Dark Moon/ New Moon.
This correspondence has plenty of tradition, so all that was to be done for my potions was apply it.
Air Element is corresponded to Yellow or Clear/White, easy to achieve in the Air oil with just my pale yellow base oils of Almond/Jojoba and the light, colorless essential oils affined to Air. For the Air incense, Benzoin base makes for a relatively colorless powder.
Fire Element is colored Orange and Red, and Dragon's Blood resin gives both my Fire oil and Fire incense a burning red/orange color.
Water Element is naturally associated with the color Blue. Water oil is given blue by Blue Chamomile essential oil, and Water incense approaches a blue/green with Blue Tansy essential oil.
Earth partakes of the colors Brown, Black, and Green. Earth oil is deeply brown/black with Mushroom essential oil. Earth incense is the color of good garden soil with, among other things, Wood Aloes.
Spirit is alternatively imagined to be: White, Black, Grey, or Purple. Spirit oil is given an approach to Purple with Alkanet infused oil and Blue Tansy. Spirit incense is Grey with the mixture of all the elements plus the rare and esteemed clear colored Oud wood powder, also known as Lignum Aloes.
This is one of the really easy correspondences often overlooked by even professional potioneers. As I create each oil or incense, I face the Cardinal Direction indicated. While I employ an energetic shield between myself and my potion, (to prevent my energies from contaminating YOUR potion) that same shield serves to catch and concentrate the Elemental energies flowing from the cardinal direction. As I face East, the winds blow towards me, but are blocked with my shield and directed into the Air incense or oil being created. And so I face South for the Fire formulation, West for the Water workings, North for the Earth aggregations. For Spirit, I will necessarily change directions as each Element is integrated into the incense or oil.
As you might imagine, the exacting circumstances indicated by my process limit the production of some of these formulae to a few times a year. They are consequently more expensive than my main line of ritually crafted potions, which don't slouch a bit. It is my hope that my Alchemical Oils and Incenses will satisfy the requirements of the most diligent Hermetic practitioner, or the wild desires of the studied eclectic NeoPagan. With one set each of the Elemental and Planetary kits, any magician of any tradition could produce a spell or ritual for any required end.
With These Potions
Your Desires and Notions
An It Harm None
May Thy Will Be Done
Elemental oils are sold separately in my usual 1/2 ounce bottles for $7 each. Elemental oil sets are sold in sets of four (Earth, Air, Fire and Water) 1/2 ounce bottle size for $27, and sets of four 1/4 ounce vial size for $18. They are also sold in sets of five (Earth, Air, Fire, Water, Spirit) 1/2 ounce bottles for $37 and five 1/4 ounce vial size for $20. Elemental incenses are in 1/2 ounce corked vials for $6 each, or sets of four for $24, or sets of five for $30.
Cedar Stevens
June 2008
I make and use wands as a big part of my magickal practice. It is something of a specialty for me, and here I will share my understandings with you. I learned these things by reading them in books, listening to trees, interpreting the growth of vines, and by working directly with the god Mercury.
The Wand is a tool of Air. The Wand is a tool of Fire. Which tradition do you subscribe to? The confusion between the use of knife and wand for fire or air is a problem for many practitioners, especially if their tradition calls the wand an air elemental and they read Tarot cards, which calls the wand a fire element! I made my acquaintance with wands before I did with Tarot, so it was easy for me: Wands are Air. Branches waving in the Wind. Wind, Wand, possibly even cognates. Words and Will Winding through the Wand. Thoughts and ideas directed to make manifest. The teacher's pointing stick, the conductor's wand. Of course, the wood burns! And many other arguments, but my main point must be: the elemental association of fire/air wand/knife is mutable and the practical applications of the tools partake of either or both elements.
Wands are usually made of metal or wood, and often topped and sometimes bottomed with stones. The wood or metal conducts the magical energy, and the stone point is to direct or radiate the energy. If a bottom stone is used, it is to absorb or ground energy in the hand before it is transmitted up into the wand itself. Although the wand is primarily used to transmit energy, words, or will from the practitioner towards the goal to manifested, sometimes the wand can be used to receive or summon energy or deities, and in this case a grounding stone is especially functional, and top stones can be selected to enhance this capacity.
The energy transmitted from a wand can be of two natures: directional or radiating. The type of wood or metal influences the propensity to direct or radiate, but the top stone and the will of the practitioner is more important. Directional energy travels very far and is used primarily for directing will into the universe. Radiant energy is more localized in effect, resembling the glow around a candle flame, and is used primarily for healing (the caduceus) or altering the energetic natures of objects, as in blessing and empowering a crystal ball or talisman.
If you read a magic book it will tell you that you must make your own wand. If you are a good craftsperson, this is probably true. If you are not a craftsperson, this is probably false.
If you follow the instructions from a magic book for making your own wand, there are some things they tell you to do which will hamper or impede the usefulness of your wand. First, many will tell you to be sure to harvest your wand at the proper pruning times of the year, so that you don't hurt the tree. While as an avid environmentalist I agree with not hurting trees, harvesting at any time of the year hurts just a little bit whether you call it pruning or not. For the best energy potential, especially directional energy transmission, harvest your wood during the active growing phase of the tree or bush and the branch you are harvesting. You want to maximize the upward/outward motion in your wand, and that is happening most during the active growing seasons in your area.
Some books will tell you to gather virgin wood, of one year or less growth, but I don't always find this new wood big enough to harvest, nor do I find older wood less conductive. They also say that your wand should be as big around as your middle finger and measure from the tip of your middle finger to your elbow, but I use this as just an old guideline, preferring to harvest the wood at lengths that maximize the transmission of energy (e.g., between joints or taking advantage of knots where energy can be gathered from the hand, etc.).
Wood for wands is harvested during the waxing phase of the moon on Wednesdays. I only harvest on the first Wednesday of the new moon, to maximize that fresh, upwardly oriented energy. Fashioning the wands is done on either the first or second Wednesday. Why Wednesdays? Wednesday is ruled by the planet and god Mercury (Hermes), the messenger god who is a god of the air element. Mercury rules the creation of magical tools in general, and the wand especially, since his symbol is the caduceus, the healing wand. Mercury favors creative disciplines of words and the intelligent and exalted execution of will power, obviously corresponding to the functions of the wand. Because of Mercury's benevolent influence, Wednesdays in the waxing moon have become "Wandsdays" to this wand worker. I recently found corroboration with this tradition in the Key of Solomon, although there is no explanation of the correspondence between wands and Wednesdays.
The ceremony of harvesting is to in some way ask permission from the tree or bush or vine, to in some way cast a circle about the tree, to explain to the tree what your intention is, to knock three times on the branch selected (to advise the tree or deva or hamadryad to vacate said branch), to cut as quickly and cleanly as possible, and to give thanks and some offering. It is traditional to gift the tree with some of your saliva applied to the cut, so as to offer some of your own vital energy in exchange for the wood, and if the tree is especially rare or sacred, a blood offering is appropriate. I also often leave a dime, especially if there are elves or faery presences in the vicinity. Everyone gets a cut!
The magic books will tell you to peel or shave the bark from your wand. Lots of people do this, especially if they want to carve, burn, or paint and polish their wand. I prefer to leave the bark on, because the tissue in a branch which has the most directional energy, the most conductivity, is the phloem and xylem, just under the bark. This is the sugar, nutrient and water transport tissue, and if you peel off the bark of your wand, you have peeled off this very conductive tissue. I also like the wilder look of a wand with the bark still on, and it helps me remember what species of tree I received the wood from.
Once harvested, the wand wood needs to dry out for at least one month before fashioning. During this period I try to not let the wood touch the Earth, so as to preserve the upward energy in the wood and not "ground" it out. I also take care to store it in such a way that I will remember which end of the wood was "up" so I don't make an upside-down wand!
I use only copper or silver wire to attach stones to a wand. I developed this technique in order to avoid using glue. At first this was just an aesthetic choice. Glue just seemed all wrong, it felt tacky, cheap, and like it was cheating, shortcutting. Now I know that the metaphysical properties of glue are also antithesis to the function of the wand. Glue is by its nature unstructured, nondirectional stuff. It is sticky and attaches, all properties you want to avoid in a tool used for directing and releasing organized energy! So I use wire to "cage" my crystals, and coils of wire attach the stones to the wood by dynamic tension alone. Dynamic tension holds and transmits energy while adding to its structure and integrity. Mercury told me so!
Whatever your construction or finishing technique, if you use spirals of wire, or carved or painted spirals to decorate it, and I highly recommend doing so, your spirals should always spiral up in a clockwise direction! Again, at first this was aesthetic; it just seemed right, but just recently I noticed corroboration in nature: vines that spiral almost always spiral up clockwise, and even many trees spiral like this to give themselves spring-like strength and flexibility in their trunks and branches. Counterclockwise is a downward spiral (water going down the drain) and is used for receiving and absorbing. So the clockwise up and out spiral on the wand helps energy flow in either direction. I am writing from the northern hemisphere. My guess is that for wood and wands in the southern hemisphere you would go counterclockwise up, but look to the vines and trees to make sure.
The next discussion needed regards selection of species of wood and stones. There are many good references for this information, like Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs, Melody's Love Is In the Earth, and Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Gems, Mineral and Metals. I use all three of these references, but for native trees not in reference books I must use my own knowledge of their natural and metaphysical properties. For example, while Willow, Mulberry and Ash all grow in my bioregion and are known to be excellent wand woods, Rowan is often mentioned as a favored wood, but it does not grow here. What is the native analog? I have several tests for good wand species. First, fruiting and nut-bearing species are excellent candidates, especially if favored by wildlife for food. These plants have chosen livelihoods of giving to make their way in the world, and they give of their wood and energy freely, without resentment or attachment. In general, denser woods conduct better. In general, species that produce naked seeds or pods without fruits are poor wand woods. This includes almost all legumes and conifers, which actually conduct too much energy to be good wands.
There are of course exceptions to these rules, and the different tree species favor different people, so the final test is what I call energy twiddling. Using your strong hand (right if your are right-handed), point the wand or stick into the palm of your receiving hand, and twiddle the wand tip at the center of your palm, about two inches away. There is a very sensitive energy organ right in the center of your palm which transmits and receives energy, and if your wand works well, you will feel a tingling or tickling sensation coming from the wand tip. Practice this one - it has many non-wand applications.
Copper (and silver, if you can afford it) are also often used for wands. I like to use copper tubing, in which case I sand the copper to resemble wood grains, stroking from bottom to top either straight or spiraling upwards.
The bottomstone (which I consider an optional feature) of a wand absorbs energy and will from the practitioner before it is passed into the wood or copper. In general, darker stones are best for this. Avoid metallic stones which gather but do not release energy readily, such as hematite. I find that bloodstone, black glass, obsidian, onyx, or brown jaspers are good bottomstones. Sedimentary stones like sandstone or limestone mute energy and are poor choices for bottomstones or topstones.
Topstones gather and organize energy before directing or radiating it into the environment. Many people use natural quartz crystals, but I usually use tumbled polished stones. Glass (or natural glasses like obsidian) must be cut, have broken edges, or be knapped into shape or it can only radiate gently. In general, natural crystals or faceted cut chipped stones, clear or translucent stones or those with striations or chatoyancy or cat's-eye or tiger's-eye patterns direct well, and rounded, tumbled, opaque, blue, green or iridescent stones radiate, but these properties can usually be modulated by the will of the practitioner.
Here is a great way of choosing ready-made wands or the materials for constructing them: Sheer aesthetic! Does it look cool, go with the clothes you wear or match the color you dye your hair? I highly recommend this technique. Magical properties are strongly corroborated to beauty and aesthetics, and if you dye your hair red or bleach it blond, or wear blue all the time, there is a magical power that you are choosing for a reason whether you know it or not.
For consecration of a wand I recommend against using the Earth or Water elements, and in favor of any ritual that reinforces the upward, outward and spiraling directions. Do it on a Wednesday in the waxing moon, preferably just before the full moon. It is helpful to use a gravitational body, as in the sun or moon, to help draw energy up and out, through you and your wand as a part of your consecration, which is your first use of your wand. Be well grounded and allow the energy to be pulled up from the center of the Earth, move through your body, spiral clockwise up through and around you wand, and pausing momentarily in the topstone, then releasing upward, being drawn out naturally.
As you perform this potentiating ritual, you can say, "An it harm none, may this Wand well work my Will. So mote it be." From here on out this would be the binding and enabling command for your wand.
The more energy you run through your wand, the clearer it stays, and the more energy it can run. A wand that has been resting for a while can always benefit from a potentiation "tune-up" before being applied to a magical task.
May Mercury bless and guide you, your wand, your words, your will and your way.
by Cedar Stevens
]]>A skilled Witch or Wizard knows how to make a great mug of brew, whether it is from ordinary commercial teabags or from their own ritually prepared complex formula. This guide is to help you get started making the Perfect Cup of whatever brew you have in mind.
First, before we get brewing, just what IS "tea"? It is a little confusing because one species of plant, Camellia sinensis, has "Tea" as it's common name and the leaves of this plant are the most common ordinary black tea. (I will use capital Tea to indicate this proper named plant.) The Tea plant also gives us Green Teas, White Teas and Kukicha Teas. But the word "tea" (not capitalized through the rest of this tract) is used generically for any drink that is made from water and any type of plant that tastes good, has active ingredients, or is medicinal.
Lets start with an ordinary teabag. Whether it is an Earl Grey or Green Tea or an herbal teabag, most folks will use one bag per cup. Most modern coffee mugs hold two cups, where the traditional old fashioned tea cup was just that, one cup. Boil some water, (filtered, spring water or distilled water is ideal) then turn off the heat and for best taste let the temperature lower for a minute. Water that is right at boiling brings out bitter compounds in just about any leafy Tea or herbal tea, but if it is just below boiling, the brew will be mellower.
Steep the tea for 2 to 5 minutes and enjoy. White and Green Teas are delicate and should be steeped for only a few minutes. Black Teas and herbal teas that have lots of cinnamon and spices will become more flavorful with longer steeping.
Now lets talk about brewing herbs, seed, barks and roots. There are so many kinds of plants that give us wonderful teas for enjoyment and medicine!
In general, herbs that are leafy only need to be infused, that is, steeped. Pour water that has been boiled over the herbs, let steep and strain (or remove the teaball) after a few minutes. I generally use about two heaping tablespoons per mug of tea. Leaves and flowers often have light aromatic ingredients that will be destroyed or wafted away too quickly by high heat or too long of a brew time. Lemon Balm, Lavender, Rose petals and Mints work well like this. Some of these can be also be added as a lovely fresh garnish if you grow your own herbs.
In general, herbs that are hard seeds, roots, or barks will yield more flavor and active ingredients when decocted, which means you bring the herbs to a simmer in the water, simmer gently for a about three to ten minutes, then strain and serve. For most of these herbs, about a heaping tablespoon per mug is strong enough. Cinnamon, Ginger, Marshmallow root, Anise seeds, and Ginseng root are examples of herbs you would brew this way.
Many herbal tea formulations are going to include both leafy ingredients and woody ones. You will have to strike the difference with these blends. I usually bring the herbs just to a simmer, then turn off the heat and infuse for as long as ten minutes. A lid on the pot will keep the aroma and the heat in the brew.
My girlfriend Nikki, who is a very wise herbalist, taught me about the cold/hot infusing technique for getting the goodie out of hard rooty, barky or woody herbs. Put the herbs in a jar of water and cold infuse them overnight or for up to 48 hours in the refrigerator. Soaking like this helps soften up the hard herbs so that they will give up their flavors and active ingredients to the brew. Then bring the mixture to a gentle simmer for a minute or a few, strain and drink your hot brew. While this is ideal for barks and roots, there is no reason you can't cold infuse leafy herbs in this way as well. You would just not want to bring the tea to a simmer, just heat it until it is hot enough to drink.
How about cold teas? Try the traditional Sun tea brewing technique, by adding an ounce or two of herbs or to a clear glass gallon jar. Let it sit in the direct sun for several hours, then chill. Or try a hot/cold infusion. For this, bring your herbs and water to a simmer, then cool off in the fridge for iced tea enjoyment. Again, do not let herbs stay in water even in the fridge for more than 48 hours, or you risk spoiling them.
With some herbal tea ingredients, you are not so much extracting active or flavor ingredient out of them as you are dissolving them into the brew. Examples of this would be Elder berries, Hawthorn berries, and Rose hips. These benefit from long brewing times, since it just takes awhile to dissolve the sweet dried fruity goo off of the seed and into your cup. So use the longer cold/hot infusion technique, or let the brew steep on the stovetop, covered for at least ten minutes. Sir or agitate the tea to loosen the fruit and dissolve it into the water. Teas like this will get "trapped" in paper teabags, since the fruity pulp won't go through a teabag. Another example is Slippery Elm. The gooey mucilage just won't go through a paper teabag, so you must blend it directly into your cup or use a more open strainer.
Confused by all the apparatus and gear you can find for teas and brews? Obviously, centuries of many different cultures all seeking the Perfect Cuppa Brew has led to what we have now, a bewildering wealth of tea brewing gadgets! Here is my lowdown on the main types of these:
The teacup infuser is shaped like an ordinary teaspoon with a perforated enclosure. These are great for brewing Green and Black Teas that only need a teaspoon per mug. But for other herbal tea mixtures, they don't have enough volume to get a strong enough mug of brew.
Larger mesh teaballs work well for leafy or flowery herbal teas and for larger volumes of herbal tea. If you are simmering a small pot, you will want the water level to cover or almost cover the mesh ball. These also work well for cold infusing in large mason jars or gallon jars, and for Sun tea brewing.
How about a classic Tea pot? This really only works well for traditional Green or Black Teas (Camellia sinensis) with larger leaves. Us a scant teaspoon of bulk Tea per every teacup. Add water that has boiled then cooled for a minute. Let steep for a few minutes before serving your Tea party.
Bamboo tea strainers are great if your tea leaves are large. Otherwise your cuppa is going to have herb or Tea silt at the bottom.
Muslin bags work very well for most brewing techniques. The main down side is they are a bit messy to clean, and will go moldy in just a day or two if you don't wash them well.
There are seal-your-own paper tea bags and disposable teacup strainers made of paper. These work very well and keep silt out of your cup. They take a bit longer to break down in your compost pile. You do have a compost pile, don't you? As mentioned previously, they are not good for Slippery Elm or fruity/pulpy sorts of herbs.
I most often use an ordinary kitchen strainer. I steep or simmer my herbs in a small pot and then strain out the herbs as I pour into my cup. Everything is easy to wash.
Whatever device you use, it is important to leave room for the herbs to expand in the hot water. If the herbs are all lumped up in a small teaball, there is not room for the water to get around the leaves and extract the flavors and active ingredients.
Most brew experts agree that glass, ceramic or earthenware apparatus is best. It is believed that metal pots especially change the flavor and healthful ingredients of herbs. I scour resale shops and the internet for old glass cooking pots, and I always use these for my brews. Of course, none of my ritual blends come into contact with metal under my watch!
You are now well on your way to being a tea and brew expert! Enjoy your kitchen witch brewing experiments and trials!
]]>Witch bottles have been used for centuries in various ways. Nowadays, as perhaps before, they are used primarily as decoys to attract, absorb, confuse and defuse negative psychic energy being sent to a target or victim, whether it be random ill will or malicious cursing.
All it takes is a bottle or jar with a good watertight lid, and all sorts of bent pins or nails, broken glass or mirrors, cactus thorns, anything spiky, bent, or broken. Fill the jar or bottle with this stuff and then fill it a little more than halfway with one or a combo of: your own urine and/or a drop of blood or menstrual blood, and either plain water or vinegar, or for stronger effect, Four Thieves Vinegar. Cap the jar tightly.
Then you bury the bottle somewhere near your house, preferably under the front porch or near your front door. This is best done during the dark moon or just before, at midnight, but really anytime will do.
Here is the theory behind why the Witch Bottle works so well: Your urine or blood identifies it as “you,” and so then acts as a decoy for energy sent your way, the bent pins confuse the hex, the mirrors reflect the energy back to sender, the vinegar dissolves the curse, and the burying "buries the hatchet".
Good luck!
]]>I smoked for about twenty five years, the last ten years of which I primarily smoked filterless hand-rolled cigarettes. I was deeply addicted, no doubt about it. Here is how I finally quit.
I was strongly motivated to quit, because whereas before I had experienced few health side effects, now I could see my skin aging and worse, my gums had started to recede pretty quickly. Also I got a boyfriend for whom a smoking habit was a non-negotiable. Probably any one of these would have been good enough motivation, but for me, the signs just all piled up at once. I was about to turn 40 years old.
I planned my quit date, giving myself nearly two weeks. I timed it such that my "Q day" was on the first day of the month, so that my nicotine-free days would count out with the date. I knew it would be nice to have that record, to reward myself with.
F or about a week I just lived with the impending quit date, continuing to smoke while I allowed myself to argue with myself into quitting and then back into not quitting, just having all that conversation in my head. Screwing myself down to the task, you might say. I told a few friends what I was up to, to get some support. Then a week before Q day I started to take measured doses of an herbal tincture blend called Smoke-Free drops by Herbs Etc. It has the alcohol extracts of a number of herbs which take the edge off of the nicotine craving, help you kack up the crud out of your lungs, and mellow out the bitchies. I took about four or five droppers full of the stuff during the day, trying to dose myself in between cravings for cigarettes. The effect is that when you do light up a smoke, it's kind of icky, like you have just already had too much to smoke. I am pretty sure that that is the effect of the lobelia. What I understand is that the lobeline in it fits into the nicotine receptor sites in your brain, which satisfies the craving. But it doesn't cause the mild exhilaration, so it is not addictive. As each nicotine-free day allows you body to detox, the unused, bored nicotine receptors detach from your brain and get recycled. My experience is concordant with this theory, anyway.
By the night before Q day, I had polished off a bottle of the Smoke-Free drops and with its help I had gotten myself down to only four cigarettes per day for the last two days. That was a pretty mellow jumping-off point for total nicotine cessation. The strength of your addiction is directly related to the daily dose of your substance in this case.
I had a non-nicotine smoking herb blend prepared for this phase of smoking cessation. Starting with Q day, I switched from tobacco to what developed into my own Ex Smoker blend. I gave myself two days off work and a TV to watch by myself if I wanted to, and it was okay! On day two, no kidding, I was in a bar drinking beer (before the smoking ordinance ended smoking in bars). During this phase I smoked the blend as much as I wanted. It contains several of the herbs also contained in the Smoke Free drops, which I also continued to take in between Ex Smoker cigarettes.
I did affirmations. Every morning, every night, and ever time I looked into a mirror, I smiled to myself and said aloud, "Congratulations, you're a non smoker!"
Here is where the magic comes in. I had come to see my addiction to nicotine as a dysfunctional relationship. Tobacco was my demon lover. I had noticed that I would make love with my boyfriend and then afterwards sneak out onto the porch to smoke. The cigarette was my real lover. And I was the one to blame for initiating the codependent relationship. I had to smoke the tobacco first; it had not come to seduce me. My own feelings of social inadequacy were at the root of it. I chose tobacco so that I would never be alone, not because we were suited partners.
I made an effigy of my addiction lover. I had already had strong visuals, being an imaginative child and having seen enough horror movies. The demon lover had no feet, just pointed roots which occupied my lungs. He wrapped around my heart and larynx and hid just behind my mouth in my esophagus, with his hungry mouth open, ready for the opportunity to dose. When I smoked, this demon wraith would emerge from my throat just enough to partake in the smoking. I built the effigy, made crudely of packing paper and masking tape, so that I could mentally project my demon lover out of my body into an external form. A few people saw him and were very creeped out, he was so pale and eerie and hungry looking, a parasite. I spent a few nights with him several days after Q day, and we had the breakup talk, cried on each other etc. Yes, very weird, but I really think that having a form like this, a voodoo doll if you will, to project my addiction into was extremely important to my ultimate success. In this way, I was able to metaphysically, perhaps even metabolically, take the addiction out of my body so that my body could begin recovery. Perhaps you can imagine how this technique could be used (or rather has been used throughout history in many cultures) to aid in the healing of many illnesses.
Then, I stuffed all my remaining tobacco products into his mouth and burned him in a backyard campfire. Goodbye demon lover.
About a week after Q day, I was able to stop taking the Smoke Free drops. Really, I think the lobelia is kind of toxic, it satisfies the nicotine jones but it makes you feel icky. Likewise I had had enough of smoking the Ex Smoker blend after about two weeks of using it. It is smokable but it is slightly harsher than hand rolled tobacco, so after awhile you are sick of it. Time for the final phase.
I had another substitutive behavior lined up, just in case. I got ginseng roots, about 3 inches long, and I would chew on them when I drank coffee or beer, or at parties. Ginseng tastes good with both coffee and beer, and it is a mellow, nutritional stimulant, which helps you to be more social, more extroverted. Cigarettes are used to compensate for social anxiety (although they actually contribute greatly to feelings of social anxiety), so I think this is an important problem to address for anyone who is quitting smoking.
All along this process I was regularly blessing myself with the "Congratulations, you are a nonsmoker"" affirmation. I added another: "It just keeps getting easier, the longer you go." I also had to avoid marihuana use, because for me it was a serious trigger for social anxiety. The couple of times I failed at this were the scariest trials of my nicotine withdrawal.
It has been nearly four years that I have been nicotine free, and I mean totally. Yay for me, but let me warn you about a few traps that could force you to start over again at Q day #1.
Because it is probably going to be longer than it would have been! While many people describe having a lot more energy, that didn't happen for me, possibly because I was very physically active during my smoking years. What did happen was very positive, however. I could see the fine lines in my face disappear, and I actually aged backwards for the next three years, as far as my facial appearance went. The receding of my gums reversed itself, I actually gained ground in dental health.
The forecast may be better for quitters because social norms have grown towards strong negative reinforcement against smoking. This is a persuasion of personal liberty in favor of the greater social good, but when does negative reinforcement become a violation of personal liberty? I am very much in favor of persuasion over the use of regulation as far as personal liberties are concerned. While new anti-smoking regulations have definitely given society some tools of negative reinforcement, I would ask you to look for any negative reinforcement in my successful smoking cessation program. What worked was a program of substitutive behavior and positive rewards in a context of self-compassion. Remember, it just keeps getting easier. I hope it works for you.