Practical Magick Series No. 1
Since I’ve posted quite a few blogs on beginner tips, I feel it’s only fair to begin posting some everyday techniques and spells to assist in everyday life once the basics of energy work have been mastered. As long as you have been able to effectively cleanse and banish unwanted energy on a consistent basis, I feel there is no reason why you shouldn’t begin experimenting with some more advanced magickal techniques. You will make mistakes. Magick can be incredibly unpredictable especially when you are still in the beginning stages of learning. That is why it is so important that you know how to banish and cleanse. I would also suggest adding reversals to your tool box. Reversal spells have a bad reputation in some circles, Wicca in particular, but if there is a negative wave of energy coming at you which is too powerful to handle with a standard cleansing, sometimes it’s the better way to go. I had a wave of something messing with me a couple of years ago which was affecting paperwork and legal matters in my life. I’m not sure exactly where I picked up this energy and sometimes you just won’t be able to figure it out but still need it out of your life. The situation I had was affecting closing escrow on a property sale so I didn’t have a lot of time to dilly dally around with divination to try and figure out where it was coming from. I just needed it gone as quickly as possible and so I performed a reversal of the energy back to where it came from. Some magickal circles consider performing reversals unethical especially if you don’t know where you are sending the energy back to, but I have a different viewpoint. If something was physically trying to harm me, I would do everything in my power to defend myself from immediate danger and worry about who, what, when, where and how after I could ensure my safety. I eventually did find out where that negative energy was coming from, but not until after over a year had passed and the escrow transaction had been completed.
Reversal spells can also be used in a positive way such as reversing a bad habit, or reversing the effects of a bad decision you previously made. For example, I have personally performed a reversal to “sway events in such a way as to cause the best possible scenario for the reversal of corruption in a situation”. This spell was AMAZING but because of the gravity of the situation, I wasn’t sure it would take the first time. However I held my power and faith through to the end of the spell anyway and it came through for me. By using your imagination, you can come up with lots of benign uses for reversal spells. If you have been reading my blogs for a while, you know I’m not a black and white thinking type of person. Every situation needs to be evaluated on a case by case basis to determine what is the best course of action, and unfortunately sometimes that requires a more heavy handed approach to eliminate immediate threats. A conjure lady I was fortunate enough to learn from in New Orleans always went straight to a reversal spell once she was sure something was coming her way. One or two cases of random bad luck events can happen from time to time but once it gets to be much more than that, I’d say things are getting a bit suspicious. Unfortunately people tend to error on the side of being “hexed” by another worker and this is seldom the case but it does happen. I myself keep a very low profile as to my magickal activities but I have been hexed by another worker who knew me well and I needed to deal with the situation swiftly. Additionally (and what is much more common), as you begin to do more and more magick on a regular basis is that you do tend to attract energies and entities from the astral planes. Some claim that if you only practice good magick, you are safe but I’ve personally found this to be false and idyllic statement. Opening yourself up to the energies needed for effective magick turns you into a homing device for all kinds of things on the astral plane. Some of the entities are positive, others not so much. As you develop you will find that you are indeed noticed and sometimes toyed with by these energies and entities. Do not be afraid of this, it just another rung on the ladder of your learning the craft.
As explained above, I believe in the use of the reversal spell when deemed necessary and wouldn’t consider my toolbox complete without it. As such, below are the basics to developing your own reversal spell.
Basic Reversal Spell
Supplies:
A double action reversal candle (can also use a plain black candle)
A small mirror to place under the candle (can also use tin foil in a pinch)
Annointing oil (I’d use either a reversal oil or crown of success oil)
First, I’ve been told it’s tradition that you do not catch your reflection in the mirror you use but I have used this spell very effectively before I knew this was the case. Also I was told it was tradition to break the mirror you use when disposing of the remains, but again I have never done this and had a spell manifest with amazing results. As with all magick, your intention will be key in this. If you feel it’s necessary to follow tradition to get results, then follow tradition!
Types of double action candles and how to prepare them
Double action candles typically come in three different colors;
Green and Black for reversing crossed money conditions
Red and Black for reversing crossed romantic conditions
White and Black for reversing general crossed conditions
If you are not able to obtain a double action candle, one can be made easily enough by using one half of a colored candle and one half of a black candle. The way I was taught, was to always have the colored portion on the top and the black on the bottom. Part of the spell involves flipping the candle over, cutting the top off so it sits flat and then carving out the wick from the previous bottom black portion of the candle. This gesture symbolizes the “reversing” aspect to the spell. To do this with a plain black candle, you would complete the same gesture of cutting the top off and making it the new bottom of the candle. With the double action candles, now that the black portion is on top, it plays a significant role in the spell. The black symbolizes what you are burning away, and when the candle reaches the colored portion that will represent what you are bring “in” after burning away what you are sending back. Every magickal tradition I have studied teaches that nature abhors a vacuum. Whenever you banish or send something away, you must always invoke something in its place or else it will just come right back to the void it left. So for example, if I were using a green double action candle, the black portion is burning away my crossed money condition and the green portion would bring in wealth after the condition has been sent away.
After you have prepared a “reversed” candle, carve the name of the person, condition, habit, etc. of what you wish to send back. If it is not known where it came from, you can write something general such as “my enemy” or “negative energy”. Generally speaking, the more specific, the better the results but I’ve also had good success when I didn’t know where the conditions were coming from. Use your anointing oil after carving into it and anoint from the middle of the candle to the outer edges.
The next and most crucial step is to load that candle with your energy and intent. You can revisit my posts in beginning tips on how to do this, but if you are practiced with your visualizations and energy work you will probably already have a method that works best for you. I recently was taught an energy technique which varied on methods I was already using. I first ground to the earth’s core by growing roots out of my feet and then draw up the earth’s core energy into my belly. Then I connect through my crown chakra up to the heavens and my higher self and draw that energy down into my belly to intertwine with the earth’s energy. After blending the two energies, I pour it up through my arms and out of my hands into the candle with my clear intention in mind. I keep drawing and pouring that energy in until I sense the candle won’t hold any more energy. I’ve found this technique to be an incredible source of power and have changed all my spell work to include it. There seems to be something about mixing the higher and lower energies which really packs a powerful punch.
The next step is to place the candle on top of the mirror and light it. If you feel the need, you can also continue to run energy while the candle burns. I will usually do so for a few minutes until the flame is going nice and strong. For fire safety, if you do not have a secured fireplace or wood stove to allow for a continued burn, you can burn the candle in stages but I would refresh the energy work each time you light it again.
The final step is to dispose of any remains responsibly and away from your property, breaking the mirror at this point if you are wanting to keep with tradition.