Category: Rituals

Smoke and Mirrors: The Art of Mirror Scrying

I did not believe what my High Priestess told me when she said if you sit in the dark in front of a mirror with nothing but candlelight, you will see amazing things. Of course, not believing it meant I was going to try it as soon as I possibly could, which I did.

Scrying is a form of divination and meditation that involves using a reflective object of some sort as a meditation tool to see visions. Those visions can be of the past, the present, the future, or a possible future if different choices are not made. The most commonly known scrying is the use of a crystal ball. Hollywood amped up the mystery behind crystal ball scrying, making it seem more like a psychic television. The stereotypical process of a mist forming in the ball, then parting to reveal actual scenes from beyond time or distance is not how a crystal ball works.

Years ago, there was a craze of 3-D images where a person relaxed their vision and looked at a specially designed graphic, other deeper images would emerge. if you never saw one before (marketed as “Magic Eye” pictures), click on the image to the right until it is at full size and then stare at it, relaxing your vision. Eventually, you may see other images with a 3-D effect develop. In this case, it is four cylindrical shapes in various positions.

Scrying works in a similar fashion. You look into the reflective surface and relax your vision. This gives your eyes a chance to check out while your inner vision starts to work.

Scrying is not limited to crystal balls. “Obsidian Mirrors” are another way to scry. These can either be an actual piece of obsidian polished to a fine shine or a picture frame with the back of the glass painted black. Looking into the blackness is just as effective as looking into clear, smooth quartz. For some people, it is even easier to use black than clear. Scrying onto the surface of water contained in a reflective or back vessel is also effective.

Of all methods of scrying, mirror scrying is arguably the easiest and in my opinion, the most interesting.

After dark, arrange a mirror so that you sit directly in front of it and have a candle on each side, between you and the mirror. Make sure there are no additional light sources in the room. Wear clothing that is dark and does not reflect from the mirror. Sit approximately 18-24 inches from the mirror at most. Light an incense that you enjoy. Play meditative music if you wish. As the candles burn, relax your entire body, starting with your face and working your way down to your feet. Feel your muscles and your mind relax more with every breath.

When you have relaxed completely, work to still your mind from mundane thoughts. See them as tangible objects whirling around you that stop and drop to the floor, then disappear. Make your mind as blank as possible. Focus on the surface of the mirror and the reflections you see from the candlelight and occasional wafts of smoke. Do not strain your eyes to see anything or work too hard. Relax and let it come to you.

With mirror scrying, you will sometimes see physical images. You may see your features shift and change until you look like someone else. You may have images appear in your mind or through your third eye. Pay attention to any impressions you receive when you are in this state.

For my first mirror scrying experiment, I asked, “What did I look like before this life” and I literally saw my features shift and change several times. It was quite a relaxing and enjoyable experience. As my mentor said so many years ago, “You will see amazing things.” It may not happen immediately and may take practice, but this technique is fascinating to try.
A Mabon Ritual

The Mabon ritual welcomes the coming second harvest and gives thanks for the first harvest. A designated leader may say the words that guide the group through the ritual or the speaking portions may be divided among group members. If you enjoy this ritual, you can learn more about the CUSP (Climbing Up the Spiral Pathway) tradition at our website or in the book called CUSP: A New Way to Walk An Old Path. (more…)
High Emotion Magic: Bonus or Bad News?

Emotion is what fuels magical practice because spell work begins with what you want to have happen. If you cannot feel, then you cannot want and feeling is emotion. All intense emotion is high energy and you can, with rational thought and careful planning, direct all the intensity of that energy toward your goal. Passion will spike energy right off the meter, whether that passion comes from lust, anger, fear, or exultation. High emotion of all kinds: love, fear, sadness, anger, frustration, etc, can fuel your magical energy like a stoked furnace. But should you? (more…)
A Lammas Ritual

Set Up: The ritual area is decorated with sheaves of wheat, corn on the husks, fresh vegetables, and brooms. The participants make corn dollies ahead of time. Corn dollies are actually, in our limited artistic ability, more often “corn joints” than “corn dollies,” so the aesthetics are not vital to the magic. We use corn husks, purchased in the Hispanic section of the grocery store for tamale making, as the wrapper for our corn dollies, then combine aromatic herbs affiliated with each of the five elements (earth, air, fire, water and spirit) into five different potpourri blends. I recommend books like The Master Book of Herbalism by Paul Bereyl and The Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs by Scott Cunningham to determine the elemental affiliation of different herbs. Sympathetic essential oils may also be added for increased scent. (more…)
Ceremonial Interruptus: When Rituals Fail

It can happen to all of us, although thankfully, not usually to the degree we see in the graphic above. Rituals fail. It is easy to raise one knowing eyebrow and say that it failed because it was intended to fail and all things are exactly as they should be and blah, blah, blah, but there is a huge difference in knowing that rituals sometimes do not go as planned versus understanding why rituals sometimes go in the ditch and how to manage that inevitability. (more…)
Ritual Crafting: Creating Rituals That Work (Part 2)

In certain rites of passage, in high energy, advanced magical work, and in rituals such as sweat lodge ceremonies that demand endurance and stamina to maximize the spiritual benefits gained, we expect to be tested up to or sometimes past our own limits. In most rituals, however, we seek out personal fulfillment that comes at an easier price. I have found that the enjoyment a person derives from ritual comes from the blending of the personal meaningfulness and relatability of the content with the overall comfort level, spiritually and physically, within the circle area. These sustain the interest and focus required for a strong, impacting ceremony. In this post, we explore some of the components that make a ritual enjoyable and worthwhile to the participants. (more…)
Ritual Crafting: Creating Rituals That Work (Part 1)

A ritual is a specific set of actions, performed for their symbolic value. The words “ritual” and “tradition” are tied tightly together and are often deeply embedded in culture and family life. The usual purpose of ritual is to focus our intent and to connect to our Higher Self and Deity, as well as one another. In ritual, every act is deliberate and meaningful, always leaving room for The Divine to move through the ritual spaces and bring Its own influence. In this two-part series, we explore fundamental structure of ritual and considerations that help create a ritual that is moving and effective. (more…)
10 Spells For Money and Prosperity

photo from https://www.flickr.com/photos/koiquest10/8287469574

Most people find themselves in circumstances from time to time where a little more money is needed. Here are some quick and reliable spells, all personally vetted for effectiveness by the author, for upping the level of financial prosperity in your life and/or generating quick funds from sources expected and unexpected. (more…)
A Different Kind of Spring Cleaning

During this time of Spring Cleaning and the purging, it is important not to overlook home cleaning of a different kind. Just as we track in dirt on our shoes and hands, so do we bring in psychic debris from our ventures into the outside world. “Smudging” is the act of using the smoke from an herb to cleanse away negativity and is an important part of self-care. (more…)
Food and Energy – Part 2

In Monday’s blog, we talked about the feasibility of working magic toward a positive outcome using the food we prepare. In this posting, we will discuss the nuts and bolts of how to do it. When working magic through food, there are two categorizations to consider. (more…)
Food and Energy – Part 1

Creating a particular outcome through the use of food is a practice as old as eating itself. It is less about ideas such as “Apricots will make you flirty” and “Eating bananas will draw in a lover” and more about the way energy operates in the world around us. Where there is energy, there is magic. (more…)
On the CUSP

Eighteen years ago, my priest/husband/co-author and I outlined a spiritual path that got to the bare bones of the agricultural sabbat cycle and created a plan for positive life change through magical manifestation. What was born of those long nights of drinking, writing, drinking, researching, drinking, and plotting was CUSP (Climbing Up the Spiral Pathway). Little did we realize that it would turn into a practice used worldwide and by practitioners of many faiths. It influences our lives daily. (more…)
Simplifying Magical Ethics (Part 2)

Thursday’s blog post discussed ethical considerations such as the power of intent and working for others without their permission. Today, we move further into the subject, beginning with Karma and Three-Fold Law…

(more…)
Simplifying Magical Ethics (Part 1)

There is much to say about magical ethics, especially when you consider the variances from tradition to tradition and spiritual path to spiritual path. A person’s head could explode trying to keep track of what candle to put out first or which way to walk in circle without courting disaster. (more…)