Part 23 (1/2)

* Go to the seash.o.r.e just before high tide and, in a bottle, collect some sea water, saying: Lady Ocean, Mother Sea, I take of yours, not willingly, but as a token of what I lack, I ask your help to bring him/her/it back.

* Wait until the tide turns and tip the water back into the sea, saying: Lady Ocean, Mother Sea, I return what is yours, send mine back to me.

* Cast flowers on the water, sending a silent message to the person you have lost or whoever now has your missing item, asking for its safe return - if it is right to be.

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Spell Template

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This guide can be used to help you create spells for every occasion.

It lists all the materials, tools and stages that may be included in a spell but you will not need to use every item every time - some you will only use for formal rituals.

Preparation * Choose the subject matter of your spell, bearing in mind the Threefold Law.

* Note down the purpose of the spell and the order in which you intend to work. Decide whether it will be divided into phases, such as invoking the four elements, raising and releasing the power (see pages 40-1) or merge into one.

* Plan what you are going to say and write it down. (You may of course let the words come to you spontaneously.) * Choose the time for your spell. Check the following influences: The seasonsThe equinoxesThe phase of the MoonThe day of the weekThe hour * Check any time limits (for example, 'May this spell hold sway until the Moon has ebbed away') and ensure that you can adhere to them.

* Choose the place for your spell. If you are working out of doors, and it is a spell that will last over several days, bear in mind any possible changes in the weather. Make sure you have enough room for the circle you intend to cast. Set up your altar in advance, if you can.

* Choose candles for the altar, to mark the quadrants of the circle and to represent people. Check they are the right colour. Choose elemental candles.

* Inscribe your candles.

* Anoint your candles.

* Choose your a.s.sociated symbols that will act as a focus for the spell.

* Choose your elemental tools.

* Choose your herbs. Decide if you are going to empower them before or during the ceremony and write down the words if necessary. Make any sachets or poppets you intend to use.

* Choose your oils.

* Choose your incenses.

* Choose your crystals.

* Choose your ritual substances.

* Consecrate the ritual substances.

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The Ceremony * Cast your circle.

* Invoke the elements and angels.

* Focus on the symbol of the spell and declare your intentions.

* Endow the symbol with magical energies, chanting if appropriate.

* Raise the power to absorb energy from the cosmos, creating a cone of power.

* Release the power, sending it out into the cosmos.

* Close the energies down. * Uncast the circle.

* Ground the energies.

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After The Ceremony * Dispose of materials - some may need to be left out in the light of the Moon, or buried or thrown to the winds; others may be kept, wrapped in silk, or sent to the person for whom the spell is intended.

* Blow out all the candles, unless they are to be left to burn down. If this is the case, make sure there is no risk of fire.

* Cleanse and recharge your tools.

Glossary

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Akasha: The fifth and greatest element, formed by the combination of the ancient elements of Earth, Air, Fire and Water that were considered in cla.s.sical times and by alchemists to be the components of all life and matter. Also sometimes called Spirit or Ether.

Akas.h.i.+c records: The collective memory bank on the spirit plane said to hold the experiences of all people, past, present and future.

Alban Arthuran: The festival of the mid-winter solstice, named after King Arthur, the legendary Sun King, which takes place on or about 21 December in the northern hemisphere.

Alpha waves: Brain waves, cultivated in psychic work, that are a.s.sociated with a very relaxed state of mind in which it is possible for intuitive faculties to find expression.

Amulet: A charm carried on a person or placed in a house to offer protection against danger and illness. When charged with healing energies, it becomes a talisman and can attract health and good fortune.

Anima: The term coined by Carl Gustav Jung to represent the female power within men as well as women.

Animus: Jung's term for the male power within women and men. Ankh: An Egyptian symbol of eternal life.