Ritual Outline

First I must repeat that this is just a basic guide; some people may do things in a slightly different order, or even omit parts that they feel are not necessary. The outline below will give you a good point to start from, and with experience and further knowledge you can tailor it to something which suits you.

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Casting A Circle

Before you begin, think about what you’ll be doing inside the circle. Focus on the working you want to complete, and clear any negative thoughts from your mind – you want to remove all distractions from the task at hand. When you create a circle it acts as a barrier, containing all the energy you raise until you send it out or dispel it. You should have planned out where your circle will be, and you can mark its outline on the ground if you want. Bear in mind that what you are actually going to create will be three-dimensional; a protective bubble extending above your head, and below your feet. The ‘circle’ is simply where bubble intersects the ground. You will need lit incense and salt water on your altar, and your athame (or wand, or index finger) to hand.

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Zodiac Signs

A person’s zodiac sign (or star sign, or sun sign) is determined by the position of the sun when they were born. During the year the sun will move through each of the twelve zodiac signs, and the approximate dates for it entering and leaving each sign are given below. Also each of the four elements is related to three of the signs, and a person may exhibit traits associated with the element their zodiac sign relates to. Finally each of the signs is either cardinal – characterised by new enterprises and fresh beginnings, mutable – characterised by adaptability and change, or fixed – characterised by stability and dependability.

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Numbers

People have always been interested in the patterns that appear in numbers, attaching certain meanings and relevance to particular values. Various numerological methods exist which assign numbers to letters so that words can be converted into values to be analysed. This can be applied to anything, from your name or birthplace to everyday words. The Hebrew system of Gematria does this very thing and says that words or phrases that equate to the same numerical value must bear some relation to each other.

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Moon

Lunar Month

A lunar month lasts on average 29.53 days, measured from New Moon to New Moon. This figure may change slightly through the year as the moon moves faster at some times than at others, and so some lunar months will last 29 days, and some will last 30. The changing of the phases of the moon is caused by its position in the sky relative to the sun. A New Moon is seen when the moon and sun appear in line when viewed from the Earth – a Full Moon occurs when they are on opposite sides of the Earth. This also accounts for the fact that a New Moon is not seen as often as a full moon; a New Moon rises at sunrise and sets at sunset, whereas a Full Moon rises at sunset and sets at sunrise.

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Extinguishing A Candle

How is it best to extinguish a candle? Is there even a best way of doing it at all?

Many people think that one should neither blow, nor pinch out a candle. Blowing will blow away your good luck, and pinching will pinch out your desire.

I disagree; a large part of spell work exists to put you in the right state of mind to be able to perform magic. It depends how you interpret your actions. I’ve never thought of blowing out a candle as being in any way linked to blowing away luck. To me it represents sending my spell on its way; giving it an added energy boost and seeing it off.

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Drawing Pentagrams

It is customary to draw invoking and banishing pentacles for the elements, as part of a spell or ritual. The traditional ways of doing so have seemed strange to me, and so I would like to explain my own methods, and the reasoning behind them.

The five points on a pentagram can be seen to relate to the five elements; earth (bottom left), air (top left), fire (bottom right), water (top right) and spirit (uppermost point).

Pentagram with colours for the elements
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Days of the Week

This is a quick reference guide to various associations of the different days of the week. You could use this as a guide when planning magical or mundane activities.

Sunday: Associated with the sun (“Sun’s day”). Yellow. Health, hope, joy, individuality, leadership, power, prosperity.

Monday: Associated with the moon (“Moon’s day”). White. Spirituality, psychism, dreams, astral travel, intuition.

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