The Real Witches’ Craft: Magical Techniques and Guidance for a Full Year of Practising the Craft. Kate West

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       Chapter Two

      CREATING THE POWER TO MAKE MAGIC

      Magic doesn’t just happen because you say the ‘right’ words or go through the ‘right’ movements. Nor is it cookery; simply putting the ‘ingredients’ together to get a result. There is more to the practice of effective magic than simply assembling the ‘right’ tools, equipment, candles and crystals and saying the ‘right’ words. For spells and magic to work they have to have energy, which is also needed to focus and send the magic to its intended destination. Much of this energy comes from the person working the magic, which is why magical working is usually quite tiring. Indeed, if you are not tired after working magic, then you are probably not putting enough of yourself into it.

      The energy used in magical working comes from outside as well as from within. It is in part the energy of the Elements, which we discussed in the first chapter. But it is also that of the Goddess and the God who we call upon when we create the Sacred Space. But most of all, it is our own personal energy which can be harnessed and directed. This is often referred to as magical power, and the techniques to access it are called raising power. However, it is important to realize that we are not talking about power, or control, over others, but control of ourselves to create power for use in magical working.

      We all have magical power within us, but it is usually dormant until we learn to access it. For many people it is also suppressed in our younger years, as demonstrating any ‘unusual’ ability has been, for a long time, considered not ‘nice’. It is thought by some that it is the combination of this suppression and the hormonal changes of adolescence which gives rise to poltergeist activity. For some people, their first experience of magical power can be when they find themselves in extreme circumstances, much in the same way that some people exhibit ‘superhuman’ strength when a loved one is endangered. However, this is not an effective way of dealing with the day-to-day magic which we want to practise. Moreover, it is usually harder to maintain the focus and control needed when in the grip of extreme emotion. So we need to learn how to harness this energy when we wish.

      WAYS OF RAISING ENERGY

      Whilst magical power is inherent in everyone, some people find it easier to harness than others. Because of this there are a number of techniques which are often recommended. Since the time of Gerald Gardner these have sometimes been grouped together and called the Eight-fold Path, although that actually encompasses more than eight different methods. Some of these are more appropriate for achieving a state of altered consciousness than for actually raising energy for magical working. Here I will give the Eight-fold Path as it is usually depicted, but will discuss its components separately. All of them are intended to create a state of altered consciousness, but it is important that this is controlled, otherwise the practitioner will not be able to focus and control the power.

      1 Meditation or concentration

      In meditation, the mind is focused solely on a single objective, to the exclusion of all other thoughts. For some people this comes very easily, for others it can take months of regular practice to be able to achieve it. Unless you have a very strongly developed will, or in exceptional cases a very strong feeling attached to your magic, then meditation and concentration are rarely enough to raise power for magical work. However, as meditation and visualization are both crucial to the working of effective magic, and not just to raise power, chapters four and five deal with them in some detail.

      2 Chants, spells, calls and invocations

      Chants are one of the most popular ways of raising power in the Craft today. They are used in groups and by individuals alike. Sometimes they are used on their own, at other times they may be combined with dance and/or music. There are a great number of chants in common use, many of which you can learn at conferences and the like, or which appear on CDs, including my own. Alternatively, you can create your own.

      ‘Spells’ is used here in a slightly confusing way as it refers not to pieces of magic, as in ‘a candle spell’, but to verses, whether rhyming or not, which are used in a spell as in the verses for weather magic in the preceding chapter. Again, there are many spells available today in books and the like, or you can write your own. It is usually the repetition of the verse which makes it take effect as it is actually a method of focusing the mind on the desired magic.

      Calls are usually wordless cries which are sometimes combined with dancing. They are a common feature of ritual dances in many non-western societies, especially those which have strong traditions of inducing states of altered consciousness.

      Invocation is the act of calling upon a deity or spirit in such a way that their presence and energy come to the person invoking them. Drawing down the Moon is a powerful invocation which is covered in detail towards the end of this chapter.

      3 Trance and astral projection

      Very few people are capable of entering a trance state whilst still maintaining the focus necessary to perform effective magic.

      Astral projection is a form of trance in which you send your astral body, or spirit, out of your physical form and travel elsewhere. Whilst some people find this easy, there are also those who never master the technique. Should you be one of the fortunate few who find it easy to astrally project, it is important that you do so safely. You need to ensure that both your astral and physical forms are safe at all times, and take care that you know how to return at any time. Certainly, it is not something which is easy to learn through reading, and you may need to find an experienced mentor to assist you. Personally, I feel that neither trance nor astral projection are going to be successful ways of raising power for the vast majority of people, although working on the astral is a different matter.

      4 Incense, wine and other aids to release the spirit

      The practice of burning herbs and other substances has long been used to create a state of altered consciousness. Indeed, other forms of fragrance can also be used, as they are in aromatherapy. There СКАЧАТЬ