Elminx's Guide To Augmenting Your Spellwork

Blessed Mabon witches!

My favorite season and sabbat to celebrate, such fun activities to do and delicious recipes to make.. I went apple picking and we got bags full of big red apples, sweet pears and a few pumpkins of which we made soup from!

How did/will you be celebrating this turn of the wheel?

offering ideas for local spirits:

-crushed eggshells

- water

- reflective things such as coins, metal objects, and beads in place of candles. 

-bread, crackers, matzo etc. 

- carved or painted stones. 

- woven grass or flowers 

- origami animals and houses

-milk (milk combined with water may kill fungi when sprayed on plants)

- avocado pits, cherry pits, apple seeds etc. 

- leftover tea/tea leaves

- hanging flags, wind-chimes, strips of cloth etc. 

cosmic friends earrings by AbovearthAU

For the witchy asks: 🌹🦄

witchy asks

8. (🌹) - what's something that isn't talked about enough in the witchcraft community?

I don't know if it's not talked about "enough," but I find it very curious how many witches who are also animists totally ignore inherent correspondences within nature.

Arguments about where correspondences come from and what they mean very often seem to focus totally on human decisions and desires.

I've always been under the impression that the fact that correspondences for a single thing often vary from culture to culture causes people to assume that humans make them all up.

There rarely ever seems to be an idea that oak trees in England are different fellows from oak trees in Ohio (pretending that the couple hundred of species of oak don't exist and it's all just One Guy), and that authentic connection to the tree will validly produce different correspondences in each area.

Or that spirits are as multifaceted as humans. As an individual, to some people I bring pain and injury, and to others I extend deep love and protection. But if an animal spirit does so, that means those two "correspondences" are incompatible, and therefore the human made them up and projected them.

Or that as humans, two of us may see the same facet of a spirit and we ourselves respond to it differently - so of course, there is nothing inherent in the herb, all that matters are our own reactions, and there is no meaning within the plant beyond our attitudes towards it.

Or that the individual spirit of a single plant is an individual, and is not a nameless hivemind pouring fourth an unwavering, set pattern of meaning and power.

Of course not everyone works with spirits, or is an animist. But for spirit-working witches who are animists, I often question why they speak of natural things as being meaningless until a human ascribes the meaning.

9. (🦄) - what's something that's talked about too much in the witchcraft community?

I'm not sure I can say. I haven't been back in a "big" community long enough to comment on it.

But you know what, let's go ahead with TikTok.

People talk about TikTok too much.

troubleshooting spotty spirit connections/"godphoning"

This post is full of my personal UPGs and stuff. These are just my beliefs and what works for me. YMMV.

It takes them a lot of energy to come through to us. Feed them and help them get across the veil.

Have you ever done a big tarot reading and got really drained? Or focused really intensely on a spirit guide meditation that left you feeling lightheaded and hungry? When we connect to the spirit world it is tiring and energy-intensive. There is no reason to believe that connection on their end is any easier.

A lot of rhetoric gets tossed around that spirits and guides are so powerful and life-changing, etc. And this might be true, but I think it gets construed in a way where we assume that because they're so powerful, it must be very easy for them to appear to us - so any failure of communication is squarely on our shoulders.

This is unfair to both them and us.

Your offerings aren't just token gestures. You are actually providing energy to your spirits - dense, earthy energies they need in order to be able to come through to our world. Fresh water is refreshing and polite, but not really energizing. Food offerings are especially helpful.

This is the point of spirit houses and spirit vessels. You create a sacred object or space aligned to a spirit's energies, and invite them to come inside of it and use it as they please. As a magic-worker, your words of dedication and consecration make a literal foothold for that spirit to more easily come to our world. This also provides a place for the spirit to rest and relax as they speak to you.

Liminal times and spaces make it easier for us to reach the spirit world, and therefore easier for them to reach us. Taking actions such as laying a compass, casting a circle, or reaching trance states can actually be extremely helpful. It's not about "spirits are dangerous so cast a circle first," and it's not about "you have to meditate and clear your mind" (trance can be achieved ecstatically, after all). It's about creating or entering into in-between spaces where our worlds more easily meet.

If you primarily use tools to communicate with spirits, cleanse and charge them more regularly. The spirits can direct the energy within your tools instead of having to use their own.

If you're already using spirit vessels or houses, try gently cleaning them and re-consecrating them. Provide as much energy as you can to the spirit at that time, so that they can more strongly imprint upon the vessel.

Stop trying to talk to them all of the time.

Spirits are people too. They shouldn't be treated like invisible humans with cool new skins, but that doesn't mean they don't have autonomy and personhood.

Spirits exist independently of us and they don't disappear and go into the void when we stop paying attention to them. They are living their own lives. Even if you believe the spirits do revolve around you, at some point they have to leave to go find information you're asking about, or review the strands of fate to make sure you're headed in the right direction, or whatever.

You don't expect your human friends to be on call 24/7 and it's rude and inconsiderate to just assume all spirits are going to want to communicate with you every single time you want to communicate with them.

No, the point of this is not "you're clingy and the spirits need space."

The point is that if you're just picking up the spirit phone at any random time, of course some of your communication will "fail" because they're not free to answer!

You might be blaming yourself for having unreliable psychic abilities when the reality is that you're just sending a FaceTime request at a bad time.

It is my experience that this is true even of gods. Sometimes I walk by the shrine of my primary god and it's just empty - he's not there right now. It's not because he hates me or because my psychism failed. He's probably off chasing nymphs or something, he'll be back later.

Try setting a schedule with the spirits if possible, such as determining what time(s) of day they're free to talk, what days of the week or moon phases they're usually free or busy, and so on.

You have times when you're more or less attuned to communication, too. The most random stuff can make psychic senses go haywire. For some, a strong cup of coffee will turn off their second sight like flipping a switch. If you try to get more of a schedule going, it will be a lot easier for you to control the variables contributing to your successes or failures. It's not fair for you to assume your psychic senses are static and you should just be able to turn them on at any time you want.

Give them a good reason to talk to you.

There are many kinds of spirits. Some we primarily interact with as friends and companions. For them, the reason for them to talk to you is that you're cool, interesting, and they want to spend time with you (all your friends think that about you! I promise!).

Other spirits can hold a much more spiritual or tutelary role in our life. When they speak, they have something important to say - and they're not necessarily going to let that be drowned out by everyday chatter.

Have you ever done a tarot reading you didn't like or understand, and then re-drew the spread to ask again? And the second time made even less sense?

Talking to spiritual teachers can be like that. They tell you something important, and they're not necessarily going to rephrase it. The problem with spiritual teachers and guides is that you still have to be the student and the explorer.

I have often communicated with the gods and spirits of other people. In these situations, I do my best to give them a really good reason to want to talk to me. "Hello, gods and spirits of [client]. I am helping [client] with [their question/problem]. I will be empty, and you can speak through me. I'll do my very best to clearly share everything you want them to know."

No matter what, though, spirits might just not want to talk. And that's ok.

Ask yourself the kinds of relationships you have with the spirits and beings you're attempting communication with. Having a very close and fulfilling relationship with a spirit doesn't mean it's appropriate to treat them like a casual friend (just as I can have a very fulfilling relationship with a professional mentor, but it's still inappropriate for me to call them at 3am after some wine).

Keep an eye on the intention of your communications. Are you unable to "find" your guide when it's about an important spiritual question, but they show up just to chat? Or vice-versa? Ask why a spirit might choose to not respond to some types of communication.

I find that spiritual guides can get irritable and non-responsive if you continually request communication without applying their advice.

In the case of spirits who are primarily friends/companions, try thinking of a fun activity for the two of you to do together, or something interesting to show them. Spirits enjoy novelty, too. Maybe you could read a new book together :)

Conversational skills transcend dimensions.

There is a difference between requesting communication and just vibing with a spirit's vibes.

When you want to communicate with the spirits, do you actually think, say, or sign, "hi, it's me, I want to talk to you today about [topic]"? Or do you just kinda show up like, "I'm here, so... yeah."

I like vibing with the vibes. I like sitting quietly with people and spirits and just existing with them. But I wouldn't sit quietly in the vibes and then say, "okay, so you're just not going to talk to me??"

Other things like manners go an incredibly long way. Spirits have a concept of boundaries and politeness - some more than others.

Active listening and critical thinking helps a lot too (and it's a great way to strengthen relationships with other humans!). Make sure you're treating spirits like a conversation partner, and not a novelty toy that spits out mystic answers to your questions.

One of the best ways to bond through communication is to create the space for the other person to share their thoughts. It's more than reasonable to show up to a spirit with a question.

But if you redirect the conversation always to be what you want to talk about, think your senses are going haywire just because a spirit is showing you something that isn't what you asked about, or only want to talk about yourself or your problems - it's not reasonable to expect that 100% of spirits want to be a part of 100% of those conversations.

Try approaching every spirit communication with clear intent. Just wanting to chat and hang out is more than okay, but be upfront with your interests and needs.

Try asking the spirits if they're free to talk and if they're interested in talking about what you want to discuss.

Make time and space for the spirits to bring up their own topics.

Employ manners at all times, even if you think your communication effort failed. Please, thank you, hello, and goodbye are powerful words.

Be open to the idea that the spirit might not want to talk about your question or your problem, and that they might have something to share with you that doesn't appear to directly benefit you.

Witchcraft Exercise - Quantifying Your Craft

Witchcraft is a complicated business. There are lots of moving parts, dozens of things to study, and so much information to try and keep straight in your head. It’s easy to become overwhelmed. Sometimes we forget things. Not just when the full moon is (although plenty of us do) but what it is we want to do with our craft.

And sometimes we feel like we’ve lost our drive. Like whatever moved us to become witches in the first place has somehow slipped away, leaving us with just the dregs. Sometimes we feel stuck, unable to make progress. It’s easy to become frustrated too, but it’s important to push on.

To that end, I offer this exercise.

Choose a journal or open a word document and begin quantifying your craft.

Start by outlining the broad concepts. Do you follow a particular path or tradition? How would you classify your craft, i.e. green witchcraft, cottagecraft, sea witch, lunar witch, and so on? Do you work with any deities, and if so, which ones? Do you work alone or with others? How long have you been practicing? What, to you, is the most important aspect of your craft?

Then get into your working space. Do you have an altar? If so, what’s on it and why? Do you have a dedicated workspace, or a place you go to work magic outside of your home? If you could describe your ideal workspace, what would it look like? 

Next, describe your tools. Do you have cards or runes or a wand or other specialized tools that you work with? What do you use most frequently? Do you have favorites? Do you make or grow any of your components? Where do you acquire the things you use in your magic, if you can’t make them at home? Do you have a personal library? What are your favorite sources of information? Do you have ritual garb or jewelry that connects you with your craft?

Sketch out your year as a witch. What holidays do you observe and how do you celebrate them? What seasonal festivals or special occasions do you mark? Which ones do you enjoy the most? Is there a time of year when you feel more energized?

Once you have all of this recorded, think back to what first interested you in magic and witchcraft and describe that. Was it a movie? A favorite book? A personal experience? Were you raised in the craft or did you come to it on your own? What made you decide to become a witch?

Then think about how you’ve progressed since you started. Have you achieved a particular goal you set when you began, or are you closer to achieving it then you were? What have you gotten really good at? Where are you still struggling? Where would you like to be a year from now? Are there things you’d like to try but haven’t yet?

And of course, if anything else occurs to you, record that too.

There is no need to share these thoughts with anyone if you don’t want to. This is purely a personal exercise, to help you understand where you are, where you’ve come from, and where you want to go. Quantifying this information might provide some much-needed inspiration, in addition to helping you solidify any nebulous thoughts that might be floating around. It’s much easier to progress in your craft if you have an outline for what you’re already doing.

Happy Witching!

Guardian Animal Shielding

I find this technique to be extremely comforting. It may be adapted to many models of magic, including psychological ones.

I find that this shield is better performed alone or when you can focus on it. It is more of an event than a practical utility.

TL;DR: Put yourself in a headspace where your favorite natural biome is all around you. Call a guardian animal. Spend time with the animal and thank it when you are done.

TIPS & TRICKS: Build a folder of gifs, video clips, photos, audio tracks, etc. that just take you to your favorite biome (perfect chance to create mood boards really).

You can perform this technique as a meditation, but also you can employ it as energetic shielding.

SHIELDING: Choose what biome you want to spend time in. You can be very specific (like choosing to be near a body of water, the time of day, the weather patterns, or the types of flora and fauna present) or you can be very general. Decide if you would like to call on a specific animal from that biome, or if you will call for any animal in general.

Draw energy up a shield around you in whatever method you prefer. I generally find it to be much easier to pattern the shield while you make it, instead of creating a white bubble and modifying it after the fact (e.g. if you create your shields by exhaling energy, exhale the biome itself).

Once your biome shield has been created to your satisfaction, consider spending time within it to feel it. This is a good opportunity to practice psychic senses. Try feeling, smelling, seeing, tasting, and hearing what is within the shield.

When you are ready, speak, think, sign, or indicate that you want an animal to join you in the biome. If you use words, they might be, "otter, come join me. I need a friend and a protector. Come sit with me in my shield." Or, "Mother Earth, I've called you to be around me. Now I ask you send an animal to protect me and be my companion at this time."

If you do not want to use words, you can pattern an animal into your shield using energy work techniques or any technique you prefer.

Try spending time feeling, smelling, seeing, (maybe not tasting), and hearing the animal. Try talking to it and watching its behavior.

You can go about your day and this biome and animal will travel with you. Reinforce it by adding more energy to it using whatever technique you prefer. When you are done, if you remember to do so, thank the animal for its company and ask it to return home.

MODIFICATIONS: If short on time, create the shield to include the animal automatically, instead of having to invite it.

You can invite the same animal over and over again, or invite a new one each time.

The guardian does not need to be an animal and the environment doesn't need to be a biome. Consider a heavenly shield and pearly gates with an angelic guardian, for example.

Especially if you call out for a general guardian, your actual guardians and guides may appear, even if they are unknown to you at this time. Especially watch out for specific beings that show up time and time again. (this technique was how I first met my primary spirit guardian, although I didn't know it at the time!)

This technique can be a form of divination and self-reflection. Let everything be very general, including the biome. Pattern your energy work to "bring forth the environment I need the most." Call for "the guardian I need the most." Observe what is created around you.

As stated above, this technique in general is excellent for practicing psychic sensing.

Once you have a protection amulet or two in hand, try this in a natural area. Pattern your shield to be the energy of that area. Call for a local benevolent spirit. See what happens.

Cartomancy cheat sheet for fortune telling with playing cards.

Amulets vs. Talismans

Both Talismans and Amulets are magickal objects that are small in nature, therefore making them conspicuous and able to be worn or carried without arousing suspicion. Often, they will be pieces of jewellery suitable for everyday wear or objects that can be discreetly carried on your person.

1. Amulet: provides protection from danger and harm.

2. Talisman: attracts a particular benefit to the wearer/carrier. 

AMULETS:

The general consensus is that Amulets provide protection against bad luck, illness, and evil. They may do this in a general sense, or serve a more specific protective purpose.

The most common form of Amulet to be found, are necklaces and pendants as they can be worn daily without raising alarm, and it is believed by some that the closer to the body an Amulet is worn, the more powerful its effects will be.

Some potential Amulets include: gems and crystals, stones, figurines (people, deities, animals, mythological creatures); diagrams; bones; plants, and words.

TALISMANS:

Talismans are, like Amulets, items that hold magickal power. 

There is debate over what the exact differences between Amulets and Talismans are, and it will vary between sources as to what you read or see. 

In general, Talismans are said to draw things to the wearer/carrier, instead of have a passive protective effect and their magick is specific and not generalised; by this, I mean that unlike Amulets that can just serve general protective purposes, Talismans are used to attract specific benefits tat are determined by their design. They can also be charged to increase their power.

Talismans are more complicated than Amulets in appearance; Amulets can simply be a crystal hung on a leather throng that you wear around your neck, whereas Talismans tend to have symbols, figures or incantations carved or engraved onto them in colours that correspond to the intended benefit you wish to bring upon yourself. 

When it comes to having your Talisman on your person, it is much more common for the item to be something you can carry in your purse, pockets or bad than something you’d wear. They can also be placed near the item or person you wish to bestow the benefits upon. For example, you may place the item above a child’s bed if you want to give them good dreams, or put it into your purse if you wish to draw wealth and prosperity to yourself. 

Tip Your Witch: ✧ Buy Me A Coffee! ✧

What do you use deadnettle for?

Mostly I use it for magic pertaining to happiness, growth, beauty, or opportunity. I also associate deadnettle with the ability to make proper use of available resources, so I sometimes add it to a spell if a little bit of flexibility, fortitude, or Making The Best Of Things is called for.

Purple deadnettle is an early spring flower, very popular with the bees, and it grows abundantly pretty much anywhere it can find loose damp soil. It turns my yard into an oasis of tiny bell-shaped wildflowers and happily bumbling bees long before the early summer clover begins to bloom. This sweet little flower was one of the first gifts my new home gave me and it helped kickstart the bond I'm developing with the land.

(Apparently, it's also edible, although I've never tried it.)

Pictured: A patch of purple deadnettle in my yard, with vetchweed and dandelion puffballs mixed in.