HedgeWitch
Page 18
As the sun rises, close your eyes and let the light of the sun wash over and through you. Breathe deeply several times. I always begin by saying, “Thank you for my healing,” as a proactive approach to a healthy mind and body. Then I say several things I’m grateful for, because when you are grateful, a feeling of pleasure and relief washes over your body. Visualize white light flooding through and around your body. Allow yourself to feel that perfect connection with Spirit. You might next intone the names of your chosen divinity. For example, if Egyptian gods and goddesses fill you with a sense of peace and power, repeat those names that match the sun, or simply allow the general connection of Spirit to take place. This is entirely up to you.
Next, repeat your chosen affirmations for the day. These can be different every day, or you can use the same ones all the time. I usually start my affirmations by saying, “I am at peace with the gods; I am at peace with nature; I am at peace within; I am at peace with the world and everything in it,” and then I move on to affirmations that are pertinent to my present situation. For example, when writing this book, my affirmations went something like this: “Spirit flows through my fingers to create peace, prosperity, and healing for others through my words.” I finish by saying, “Peace with the gods; peace with nature; peace within. Thank you!” and smiling. Ring your magickal bell in your personal number.
If you have time, drink your morning juice, coffee, or tea while enjoying a few moments in the sunshine. With every swallow, believe you are drinking in the power and purity of the rising sun. Sit quietly and just observe the waking world. Keep any plans or thoughts of the coming day out of your mind; save those for later. For now, just be !
Extinguish the candle. If you can, leave the glass of water where you placed it for the day. At sunset, pour the water on the ground (or in a houseplant), repeating your affirmations and saying thank you.
For magickal gardeners: Place the candle and water on a special stone in your garden, and walk your garden at sunrise, enjoying this sacred space.
Everyday HedgeWitch Herbals for Hearth and Home
The following mixtures and recipes encourage connecting with Spirit and Nature with every task at hand, helping you to live in harmony every day!
Furniture Polish
10drops ylang-ylang essential oil
5drops lemon essential oil
5drops lime essential oil
2ounces jojoba carrier oil
Blend ingredients and store in airtight container. Makes a marvelous magickal furniture polish! Rub on with a soft, clean cloth. Then polish with a separate soft, clean cloth.
Carpet Freshener
60drops lavender essential oil
20drops orange essential oil
10drops eucalyptus essential oil
10drops spruce essential oil
½cup bicarbonate of soda
Mix all ingredients in glass jar that has a tight lid. Cap tightly and shake thoroughly. Set aside for at least twenty-four hours to allow the oils to blend. Sprinkle over carpet. Leave for fifteen minutes. Vacuum.
Carpet Freshener for Good Luck and Prosperity
30drops lime essential oil
30drops orange essential oil
20drops patchouli essential oil
10drops clove essential oil
10drops cedar essential oil
Mix all ingredients in glass jar that has a tight lid. Cap tightly and shake thoroughly. Set aside for at least twenty-four hours to allow the oils to blend. Sprinkle over carpet. Leave for fifteen minutes. Vacuum.
Air Fresheners
Natural air fresheners help to elevate our mood and can be used in place of incense in ritual. Use spring or distilled water as your liquid base. For all air fresheners, fill a four-ounce spray bottle, then add essential oils. Tighten cap. Shake well. The longer the mixture ages, the stronger the scent becomes. For ritual use, age your freshener for at least seven days before using, shaking bottle every day. Store in a dark place.
What’s terrific about these fresheners? You know what’s in them!
Sacred Woodland Air Freshener
A wonderful formula for creating sacred space, meditation, and for drawing good fortune.
40drops pine essential oil
20drops cypress essential oil
20drops sandalwood essential oil
20drops cedar essential oil
4fluid ounces spring water
Money-Draw Air Freshener
40drops peppermint or spearmint essential oil
40drops bergamot essential oil
10drops patchouli essential oil
10drops cedar essential oil
10drops calendula essential oil
10drops allspice essential oil
4fluid ounces spring water
Healing Glow Air Freshener
40drops lime essential oil
40drops eucalyptus essential oil
10drops sandalwood essential oil
10drops clove essential oil
10drops rosemary essential oil
4fluid ounces spring water
Harvest Spray Freshener
Spray at front and back door during the months of September and October (or your fall- related months in the Southern Hemisphere) to welcome an abundant harvest and good fortune. You can also use this same formula (without the water) to scent your harvest potpourri.
40drops ginger essential oil
30drops allspice essential oil
10drops clove essential oil
10drops dill essential oil
10drops cinnamon essential oil
10drops orange or tangerine essential oil
10drops apple fragrance
4fluid ounces spring water
Devil-Be-Gone Spray Freshener
This formula is terrific for a child who is afraid of the dark and things that go bump in the night, and for nervous pets during thunderstorms!
40drops lavender essential oil
40drops sandalwood essential oil
10drops sweet bay essential oil
10drops rosemary essential oil
10drops chamomile essential oil
10drops marjoram essential oil
4fluid ounces of spring water
Merry Yule Spray Freshener
Welcome good fortune into the home by spraying the house with this mixture every day from the first of December through the Winter Solstice. Spray around a Yule bonfire to encourage good fortune in the home during the deep winter. You can also use this same blend (without the water) to scent your holiday potpourri.
40drops spruce or pine essential oil
10drops cedarwood essential oil
10drops eucalyptus essential oil
10drops sandalwood essential oil
10drops allspice essential oil
10drops clove essential oil
10drops cinnamon essential oil
10drops orange essential oil
10drops cypress essential oil
4fluid ounces of spring water
HedgeWitch Teas
The marvelous thing about blending your own tea is that you can use your recipes for other magickal endeavors as well. Load a bit of a dried special blend into a candle or use in sachets, incense, and even soaps! Experiment with different proportions until you find a blend that’s just right for you.
Herbs you can grow or process yourself that are great for teas include anise; bee balm; calendula flowers; chamomile; cinnamon basil; crushed and dried berries (blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, etc.); dried apple slices; dried lemon, lime, or orange peels; fresh lemon balm; lemon thyme; lemon
verbena; orange mint; peppermint; pineapple mint; rose geraniums; rosemary; sage; summer or winter savory; spearmint; and thyme.
To make your own magickally brewed herb teas, use a heaping teaspoon of each dried ingredient or three teaspoons of each fresh ingredient per cup. Add approximately ¼ or ½ teaspoon of dried fruits or spices and increase the quantity for a bolder cup of tea. Heat water to boiling and pour over herbs, allowing a five-minute steep time. Warm the cups and the pot before making the tea to enhance the flavor of your special brew.
Apple Abundance/Love Tea: Black tea, dried apples, and dried orange rind, flavored with honey. (A great attraction tea! You can also add apple mint for a bit of zest.)
Healing Glow Tea: Lemon balm, chamomile, and dried orange peel. Add a touch of sage or rosemary during flu season.
Prosperity Money Tea: A variety of mints (your choice; see appendix 4 for a listing) with a touch of bee balm and chamomile.
Note:
A food dehydrator
is a great investment
for home-grown herbals
Tea-Leaf Reading
The process of reading tea leaves is primarily an intuitive one based on symbol interpretation and word association. Some practitioners use the leaves to foretell the future, whereas others employ the process for spiritual and creative assistance. Therefore, tea-leaf reading can be a divinatory process or used as a practical psychological tool, showing you what energies you are specifically drawing toward you. If you don’t like what you are attracting, change your circumstances—it is as simple as that! Taking notes can be extremely helpful, especially if you are working in a spiritual or creative venue.
Supplies Needed for Tea-Leaf Reading
Loose tea
Clean spoon
Hot water
Teacup with saucer (preferred)
Paper towel or napkin
Sweetener
Table decorations
Incense (optional)
Candles (optional)
Tea Blend Choices for Readings
Various blends of teas can enhance the focus of the reading. You may wish to choose a matching incense as well. Here is a list of different blends and their associations:
Chamomile: Dreams and wishes
China Black: General
China White: Spiritual
Cinnamon Spice Tea: Action, movement, and creativity
Citrus Teas: Good fortune and business
English Breakfast Tea: Beginnings and new ventures
Fruit Teas: Matters of the heart
Green Tea: Health issues
Herbal Teas: Use magickal correspondence depending upon the herb chosen
Herb and Citrus: Aura cleansing
Holiday Teas: Blends that are available only during specific seasons with aromas traditionally matching the intended holiday. These teas are great for affirmations involving holiday projects, parties, and shopping.
Jasmine Tea: Matters of the heart
Mint Teas: Study, education, learning, and wisdom
Mint and Chamomile Blend: Money and prosperity
Tea-Leaf Conjuration
Repeat this conjuration nine times over the steeping tea, or use your own words of empowerment.
Herbs of earth and sun and rain
Speak to me of life and gain.
Sacred brew, treasured leaves
Reveal your secrets unto me.
Thank you!
It always works. Always a blessing!
General Tea Preparation
Method 1
1.Heat water to boiling.
2.Stir dry, loose tea clockwise three times.
3.With spoon, put loose tea to taste directly into cup. If tea spills outside the cup, this is a good omen.
4.Pour hot water slowly over tea. Allow tea to steep.
5.Querent (person asking question) should pass finger over rim of cup three times in a clockwise direction before drinking, and then make a silent wish. This wish should be formulated in primal language, as discussed in Section 1. Querent should then drink the tea.
Note: The only drawback to this method is trying to drink around the floating tea leaves.
Method 2
1. Heat water to boiling.
2. Stir dry, loose tea clockwise three times.
3. With spoon, put loose tea to taste into the water in the pot. If tea spills during transfer, this is a good omen.
4. When steeped, pour tea into cup.
5. Querent should pass finger over rim of cup three times in a clockwise direction, and then make a silent wish formulated in primal language. Querent should then drink tea.
Note: Fewer leaves flow into the cup with this method.
Method 3
1. Heat water to boiling.
2. Place strainer over cup.
3. Stir dry, loose tea clockwise three times.
4. Put leaves in strainer.
5. Pour water over leaves. Let set five minutes or to taste.
6. Set strainer to the side. Do not throw away leaves.
7. Querent should pass finger over rim of cup three times in a clockwise direction, and then make a silent wish formulated in primal language. Querent should then drink tea, leaving one teaspoon of liquid in the bottom of cup.
8. Use teaspoon to scoop one helping of wet leaves from strainer into cup.
9. Swirl cup nine times clockwise.
10. Drain, then dump the residual liquid on saucer, trying not to remove any of the tea sediment from the cup (see more detailed instructions below).
Dumping the Residue Tea Water
Once the querent, or seeker, has drunk the tea, the reading is about to begin. The querent should swirl the residue three or nine times, and state aloud the purpose of the reading. This should be done in primal language, as explained in Section 1 of this book; the more defined the question or statement, the more defined the answer. Querent hands cup to the reader. As reader, do not turn the cup. Take the cup as it is handed to you, as this has its own significance. Gently pour any remaining liquid onto a napkin or paper towel, trying not to remove any of the tea sediment.
Reading Position and Placement of Symbols
The top of the cup (rim) relates to things, ideas, or events that will manifest in a few hours or are currently present in the life of the seeker. The middle section of the cup indicates a few days away. The bottom of the cup signifies the root of the question as well as the ultimate future for this query. Read clockwise from the handle of the teacup. If your cup has no handle, read from the twelve o’clock position around in a clockwise manner. Some readers believe that the dregs closest to the reader represent real issues, whereas the dregs and their associated symbols closest to the querent stand for thoughts, wishes, and dreams.
If you are reading for others just for fun, make sure the tea-leaf-reading area is well lit, filled with pleasant, natural aromas, and very colorful. These props aid the mind to reach for its fullest potential. In HedgeWitchery tea-leaf reading, the reader is really the orchestrator of the event, allowing the querent’s intuition to blossom (not the reader’s). When the seeker, not the reader, identifies the symbols and does their own word association, they are an active participant in the reading, which allows for a more fulfilling experience.
Omens While Pouring the Tea and During the Reading
Bubbles across top of the cup: Good fortune, money on the way; prosperity and happiness
Stalk bits or leaf pieces floating to top: Visitor or news on the way; hard stalk=man; soft stalk=woman. Place stalk on the back of the hand. Tap hand until leaf or stalk drops. The number of taps it takes for the stalk to drop is the number of days it will take until the seeker receives news or a visit.
If the querent requests sweeteners:
Honey: They are actively working to attract things into their life.
Artificial: Concentrating on dieting and health issues.
Raw sugar: Working to touch Spirit and the inner self.
Processed sugar: Possible resistance to change.
No sweetener: Possible concentration on health issues or living a constrained life.
If the querent is splashed with hot water: A sudden shock may be forthcoming, and it is highly possible the querent is not truly interested in the reading.
Foam across the top of the cup: Busy life and much activity ahead.
Tea too strong: New friendship or partnership on the horizon.
Tea too weak: Querent is working on “endings” in their life.
Spilled liquid or tea: Seeker is surrounded by unhappiness.
Querent who requests strong tea: Likes a full-bodied, adventurous life. Always on the go. Likes to take charge and be in control.
Querent who requests weak tea: Tentative individual, plagued with worries, problems, accidents and unfortunate circumstances. Possible health (body or mind) problems.
Querent who requests whiskey in tea: High stress; however, some readers pour a cup of tea for “the spirits” and add whiskey as an offering. This tea is never drunk, but sits steaming on the table until the reading is completed. Tea is poured outside on the ground at the end of the reading.
Querent who breaks or cracks teacup: Desperately desires to escape current circumstances.
Tea-Leaf Symbol Key
Acorn: Good fortune; growth
Arrow up: Success; action
Arrow down: Working within; don’t miss a good opportunity
Bag, box: Constraint
Ball, circle: Movement; protection from negative influences
Beetle: Change
Bell: Good news; happiness
Birds flying: Information arriving
Butterfly: Freedom; new, exciting experiences
Candle: Transformation; clarity