The Real Witches’ Garden: Spells, Herbs, Plants and Magical Spaces Outdoors. Kate West
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Название: The Real Witches’ Garden: Spells, Herbs, Plants and Magical Spaces Outdoors
Автор: Kate West
Издательство: HarperCollins
Жанр: Эзотерика
isbn: 9780007397280
isbn:
Many people still have the image of Witches working at the dead of night. This has been so in the past for fear of discovery and today is often so with a group or Coven as it is the time when daily life is complete and everyone is free. But Witches on their own do not need to wait for darkness to fall, they can work whenever suits them. With an outdoor space you can perform your magic at any time of day.
An outdoor Sacred Space is particularly good for working magic relating to the cycles of nature; for spells affecting fertility, plants, animals and healing. All these benefit from, and are stronger for being worked close to the land. As mentioned above, when working outside you do not need to summon the elements in the same way as you would for an indoor Ritual. Nor will you need representations of them on your Altar, as they are all around. It is enough to turn to face each quarter and call upon the elements in turn, making sure that you recall each one’s personal associations as well as the external ones. You then invite the Goddess and the God as usual. Of course it is still important to remember at the end of your Ritual to thank all the elements and deities which you have called.
An outdoor Sacred Space is also useful for other magical steps which may not be a part of a spell or Ritual. When you need to place something in the light of the Full Moon, then the centre of your space is an excellent place to put it, so long as you remember to remove it before any children or pets can interfere. The centre is also a good spot to place any poorly plants which you intend to nurse back to health. Of course this latter, like many Craft activities, should be tempered with common sense. There is no use putting a sensitive tropical houseplant out into the Winter’s snow and expecting it to thrive!
A HEALING SPELL FOR PLANTS
There are very few Witches or gardeners around who do not, sooner or later, have a poorly plant or two. It is important firstly to ensure that any obvious causes have been addressed: if you have been away for two weeks and the poor thing received no water, then water it; if it is infested with some kind of parasite then remove the offending bugs and so on. But once these practical steps have been addressed then it is time to use magic to help it on its way back to health.
At some point during the Waxing Moon take your plant to your Sacred Space, place it either in the centre or upon your Altar. You will also need a small amount of rainwater in a shallow dish or bowl.
Call upon the quarters, starting with the east; saying:
‘I call thee O element of Air, to give your healing strength to this (name the plant) … Blessed Be.’
Then move to the south, west and north calling upon Fire, Water and Earth, respectively. Now stand facing the north and invite the Goddess and the God, saying:
‘I call upon the Goddess, Mother of all living, and the God, Lord of the Land to aid me in healing this (name of plant) … Lend your strength to it and watch over it, that it might flourish in your name.’
Wait until you can clearly visualize their presence, then say:
‘Blessed Be.’
You can either use the names of the Goddess and God which you most favour working with, or you could use those with particular associations for the plant in question.
Now take the water and draw an invoking Pentagram in it with your finger or Athame [see Terms and Definitions], then hold it up to the Goddess and the God and say:
‘May this water be blessed and consecrated by the Gods. May it purify and heal this plant. Blessed Be.’
With your fingertips sprinkle a little of the water over the plant’s foliage and then pour the remainder into the soil around it. Thank the elements by going back to each quarter, starting with the east as before, and saying:
‘I give thanks to thee O element of Air. May your strength ever watch over this place. Blessed Be.’
Repeat for the south, west and north. Then, facing the north, visualize the Goddess and the God and say:
‘I give thanks to the Goddess and the God for aiding me. May their light ever shine here and on all that dwells in this place. Blessed Be.’
Assuming that the weather is clement, or reasonably so, leave the plant there for three days and nights before returning it to a suitable location.
If the plant is not in a pot then you will need to take a small cutting or sprig into the Circle with you, so that it is represented there. Consecrate and bless the water as above but keep it on the Altar until your Ritual is completed. Then take the water out of the Circle to the plant and sprinkle and water as above.
Of course, not everyone’s celebration of the Craft takes the form of active Circle work, but there are other ways we can bring nature into our magic and magic into nature.
FOUR THE GARDEN FOR THE GODDESS AND THE GOD
In the Craft we believe that there are many facets of the Divine. Individual Goddess and God forms have different attributes and characteristics, such as Aphrodite Goddess of Love, Mercury God of Communication, Herne Lord of the Forest, Cerridwyn Goddess of Wisdom, and many, many more. All of them, however, are linked to the cycles of life, death and rebirth, and all are in some way linked to nature and the land. Thus it is through nature, the plants, trees and herbs, etc, that we can become closer to them; closer to understanding their nature and more able to connect with them. Just as there are many Goddesses and Gods there are many ways of celebrating them within your garden – even a single plant can be your offering to the Divine. Chapter 10 lists some plants which are linked to different aspects of the Goddess and the God. But you can also dedicate a corner, or even the whole space, to a design which will help you to develop a closer relationship.
The first step is to decide which aspects of the Divine you intend to honour in the space you have available to you. If you have been practising the Craft for a while, you will already be aware of the Goddess and God forms to which you feel closest. You may even have some idea of how you would like to do this. However, you may prefer to honour the Divine in a less specific way, simply having an area set aside for meditation and contemplation of them in general. There are many shapes which are linked to the Divine and which can be introduced into your plans, such as the spiral, the triple moon
