Ritual Prep
When preparing to do a ritual of any sort, many things need to be considered. It’s extremely beneficial to plot a procedure accordingly, ensuring that everything is in alignment to the intention at hand. I’m certainly one to advocate proper, and even in-depth, occult correspondences in magick, but I am not one to endorse becoming paranoid about everything being exactly, perfectly “right.”
Magick is both an art and a science, and spellcraft blends intellect and intuition. Erring too much to one side of the spectrum can inhibit the success of any working. For instance, if you believe yourself to be of a more intellectual and scientific mind, try pushing yourself to bring out your creative and spontaneous side in ritual.
“Emergency magick” should also be mentioned: if something comes up that requires you to perform magick, prayer, or spellcraft as immediately as possible, it would be wise to simply perform the magick in the moment rather than stressing about the zodiacal configuration of the day or all of the spell’s ideal ingredients. When you don’t have much time to prepare, you must work with what you have. Remember that all the components are only tools that amplify the intention being woven into reality. You are the magick, and sometimes rituals need to be performed quickly, regardless of planetary and material alignments.
If, however, you have ample time to prepare for a ritual procedure, be very precise when calculating the best time. For example, a spell for success in communication would be best performed when the Sun or Moon is in an air sign (air ruling communication and the intellect). One could be more precise and hone this air sign to an additional alignment: because Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius are all ruled by air, examine them further. Gemini is governed by Mercury, Libra by Venus, and Aquarius by Uranus (or Saturn in classical astrology). Because this spell is to be concerned with communication, it would be most ideal to select Gemini because of its Mercurial alignments. Or, if the spell was for communication in a romantic partnership, for example, one would best choose to utilize Libra because it is ruled by Venus, the planet of love.
One could wait until the Moon and/or Sun is in Gemini to perform this communication spell. If you feel the need to perform this spell before the Sun shifts into Gemini (which, of course, only happens once a year and only for four weeks), you may instead choose to wait until the Moon is in Gemini, which occurs much more frequently. If, however, there is a deadline and this spell should be performed as soon as possible, the caster may choose an astrological hour of Gemini. The caster could also wait until Wednesday (governed by Mercury) and/or perform the spell at sunrise (to represent new beginnings) or during the waxing Moon (to represent “increasing” energies). In any example, the caster should be mindful of the additional astrological configurations occurring at the time. What sign is the Moon in? The Sun? What day of the week is it? Is there a planet in retrograde? If there is a particular time frame in which the spell must be cast, the caster should incorporate and utilize the current astrological energies rather than just disregarding them. For information on further reading on correspondences, astrology, and occult systems, please see Appendix 1.
The caster of this spell may intuitively feel the desire to further exalt aspects of air, and may decide to summon elemental spirits associated with air (such as sylphs, the eastern wind Eurus, a god of the Sun, etc.) and will face the east during ritual. Because elemental correspondences are virtually endless, there are a multitude of routes the practitioner can take when choosing appropriate spellcasting components, times, tools, and methods. There are also a number of ways the practitioner can hone the energies to precisely fit his or her magickal purpose—the most common way to do this is to utilize planetary energies (schools of esoteric Qabalah, Hermeticism, and alchemy had mastered and continue to master such categorizations through the cataloguing of all aspects of reality). The complexity of spellcraft is up to the individual caster, and everyone must create or modify spells according to what they personally know.
Astrological Timing
The history of astrology and planetary magick is vast, hearkening back to the beginnings of human civilization. Mythos surrounding the cosmic bodies is interwoven with creation mythology worldwide, and the archetypal alignments of the celestial forces are vast, spanning virtually every culture imaginable, both past and present, to some degree. It’s widely accepted that planets influence energy (physical, mental, emotional) beyond simply the Moon and Sun, whose effects are obvious and palpable.
In the West, astrology and astronomy were once indistinguishable, operating simultaneously as a conglomerate science. Astrology is ever-evolving, and this particular book makes use of modern astrology as opposed to classical astrology. These two Western astro “types,” as well as descriptions of Vedic astrology, Chinese astrology, and so on, can be explored in some of the reference books mentioned in Appendix 1. It is assumed that all readers are familiar with basic astrology, including their own natal zodiacal charts, or will familiarize themselves before performing the rituals aligned in this book.
When timing a spell, and in particular when utilizing a spell from this book, the planetary influences present must be given attention. For starters, be sure you have an astrological ephemeris or a calendar that gives, at the very least, the Moon sign transits. Aside from a complex astrological ephemeris, ideal daily planners include Llewellyn’s Witches’ Calendar, Llewellyn’s Astrological Calendar, and the annual Witches’ Almanac published by Rhode Island’s Witches’ Almanac, Ltd. There are also many astrology-centered ephemerides and planners which give complete and precise astrological information that other planners may not. Regardless of calendar, it’s important to know what is going on astrologically each day. If you use the Internet, you may wish to subscribe to astrological update forums or newsletters, which give precise information about certain planetary shifts, both simple and complex. (I personally recommend the accurate and eccentric—and free!—Astro Missive email updates from MoonCat! Astrology. See www.catoverthemoon.com for more information.) You may also wish to find daily email updates that give you exact astrological information based on your own unique natal chart.
Please note that zodiacal and astrological correspondences are listed in Appendix 2 of this book—just flip to the back for easy reference while reading this section and while determining times to work magick.
Remember that the Sun influences the external or projected, while the Moon influences the internal or receptive. It’s important to note which sign the Moon and Sun are in at any given time for spellcraft, as well as any other planetary occurrences going on (such as a planet in retrograde motion, a planetary opposition, and so on). Again, this takes much more time to describe than I have here; astrological sciences are incredibly vast! (I’ll explore these things a bit more in my eventual follow-up book Zodiacal Spells & Rituals.)
To simplify, let’s take an example from the book. Let’s say I wanted to perform the spell “Sweeten Up & Chill Out: To Mend Quarrels with Another.” Because the spell falls under the Venus chapter, it’s correct to assume that the spell is aligned to Venusian energies. Therefore, I’ll utilize the planet in my spellwork. First, I’ll consider the energy of the situation in my circumstances. Because I’m utilizing the vibes of Venus, I can choose to work with the signs Taurus or Libra, seeing as Venus rules both. Looking at the qualities of the signs (again, see Appendix 2 if necessary), I see that Taurus deals with fruition, strength, fertility, abundance, and is associated with the element of earth (stability, structure). I see that Libra represents balance, diplomacy, art, and other qualities, and is associated with air (the mind, communication). Because, let’s say, I’ve been arguing with a good friend and wish to use the spell to help mend the situation, I decide that Libra would be the most ideal sign to utilize. Had I been arguing with a lover or family member, I might choose to utilize Taurus instead.
Let’s say that it also happens to be New Year’s Day today. This means, of
course, that the Sun is in the sign Capricorn (December 22–January 20). Because of this, I’ll wait until the Moon is in Libra to take advantage of Venusian energies. Because the Sun is in Capricorn, which represents structure, work, discipline, and other qualities, and is associated both with earth and Saturn, I decide to draw upon Capricornian energy in the spell as well, and modify the spell to work with its energy. For example, I may incorporate an additional prayer or representation of “working together,” which can be seen as Capricornian, and I may add some extra stones to the ritual for earth, or paint the Capricorn and Saturn symbol on the spell’s items.
So, in this example, I’m working with the Moon in Libra to assist with inner balance (and draw upon the energy of Venus, since the spell is in the Venus chapter), and I am working with the Sun in Capricorn (simply because it happens to be in Capricorn during the month I want to cast), and I have modified the spell according to these energies. Great!
For some people, this may be enough of an alignment. For those who wish to take it a couple steps further and hone the energy even more, they can follow the daily and hourly alignments. For example, let’s say that the conflict I had with the friend was highly emotional in nature. Thus, I would like to perform the spell on a Monday, which is ruled by the Moon. Since I already decided to perform the spell during a day in which the Moon is in Libra, I check my calendar to see if one of those days is a Monday. But let’s say that the next Moon in Libra cycle occurs on a Tuesday through Thursday. Drats! Because of this, I look at these daily planetary energies: Tuesday is governed by Mars, Wednesday by Mercury, and Thursday by Jupiter. Okay: no Venus there either (since Venus governs Friday). Looking at the qualities of these three planets, I realize that I don’t want to perform the spell on that Tuesday (because Mars has aggressive qualities, the very thing the spell is working against). Thursday (Jupiter) might be a good option, but I decide that Wednesday is best, seeing that Mercury oversees communication (and can thus assist in forming better communication between myself and my friend). Cool.
Finally, I’ll choose a planetary hour during which to perform the spell. Following the directions given, I calculate the daily increments of time (see the description on page 16) and decide to perform the spell during a daytime (as opposed to nighttime) hour of Libra, because I really want to draw upon and exalt that sign’s energy for the spell—not least because the spell is listed in the Venus section, and, again, Libra is governed by Venus. (If I had been arguing with a roommate or family member, I might choose Cancer because of its representing home and family.) If I feel that the element of communication is particularly important in this spell, and since I’m planning on utilizing Mercury’s energy within the working anyway, I might choose an hour of Virgo or Gemini instead—both signs being ruled by Mercury. (And if I was doing this, I would probably lean toward Gemini simply because of its “twins” association, and its alignments with “duality,” which would aid in the spell’s success.)
Now, I’ve aligned the spell as follows: Sun in Capricorn, Moon in Libra, during the day of Mercury, and during the daytime hour of Libra.
Capricorn’s energy will aid in grounding the situation (earth) and working together. The Sun is in Capricorn, meaning that the greater or external energy of the spell will be Capricornian.
Because the spell is listed in the Venus chapter, I’ve chosen a time when the Moon is in Libra. This means that the internal energy of the spell will be concerned with reaching balance (Libra) and will utilize the mind (air).
Because I am using Wednesday as a working day, Mercury will aid in communication.
Because I am performing the spell during a daytime hour of Libra, this sign’s energy of balance will be emphasized even more.
So, the spell’s astrological alignments are Capricorn, Libra, Mercury, and Libra. This can also be translated as Saturn, Venus, Mercury, and Venus. It can also be looked at as earth, air, air, air. As you can see, there is a zodiacal abundance of air energy in this spell, which means that the applicable qualities of air in this spell (which are mostly that of communication) will be particularly accessible. Thus, I may wish to alter the spell to focus more on energies of “healing through communication.” Assuming I work each of these zodiacal energies into the spell, even slightly, the working has potential to be extremely successful.
Confused yet? If so, try slowly reading through these last few pages a few times, ensuring first that you have a basic understanding of astrology. If you can follow my descriptions, you’ll be able to construct a cosmically aligned spell or ritual almost automatically after a short period of time. (However, my guess is that a majority of readers are already familiar with this sort of ritual planning.)
If this book is your first dose of astrological timing, I recommend seriously getting to know the planets and signs—something beneficial to every Witch and magician. Delve deeply into astrology if you wish; there are tons of resources out there, and the topic is supremely fascinating and significant. Again, please see Appendix 1 for further reading on astrology and Appendix 2 for zodiacal and astrological correspondences.
Also, if you’re relatively new to astrology, don’t feel too intimidated by all this zodiacal and planetary stuff. It takes time and dedication to learn, and there is always more to learn on top of that (such is the nature of occultism and spirituality!). Spells can be as complex or simple as you wish. For the purpose of this book, however, I recommend at the very least you make sure that, when you perform a spell, either the Moon sign or Sun sign is one that is ruled by the planet under which the spell you’re performing is listed. If you perform a spell at any ol’ time, it won’t go wrong; it will simply not be as honed as it could be. Keep in mind that simple charms, prayers, meditations, candle lightings, and so on, probably require very little astrological timing, if any. Again, coding your spell astrologically by use of the Sun sign, Moon sign, planetary day, and planetary hour are ways to deeply hone and intend your magick: they are, like anything else, tools. You are the magick.
These astrological hours, used in a variety of magickal systems, are aligned to daily increments of time. The increments of time during which each planet has daily (or nightly) influence are different each day. Rather than being increments of 60-minute hours, the times take a little calculation.
I’ll give an example. Grabbing the newspaper (or looking on an online weather site), I see that sunrise today is at 7:55 am and sunset is at 5:46 pm. From here, I must determine exactly how many minutes exist between sunrise and sunset, and between sunset and sunrise. Using my calculator, I discover that between 7:55 am and 5:46 pm there are 591 minutes. Because there are 1,440 minutes in a 24-hour period, I take the above minutes of sunset and subtract them from 1,440. This gives me 849. So, my daytime minutes are 591 and my nighttime minutes are 849.
Because the “hours” are in divisions of 12, I divide each number by 12. Doing so, this makes my daytime increments 49.25 minutes and my nighttime increments 70.75 minutes. These are the figures I’ll be using to calculate today’s daytime and nighttime hours.
Let’s say that today is Thursday and that I wish to work my magick during a daytime hour of Venus. The first thing I do is look on the chart of planetary hours found in Appendix 2. For Thursday-daytime-Venus, I will use the fourth planetary hour. Because my daytime increment is approximately 49 minutes, I calculate when the fourth hour will begin. I know the first hour lasts 49 minutes and begins at sunrise (7:55 am). This means the second hour will begin at 8:44 am, the third at 9:33, the fourth at 10:22, the fifth at 11:11, and so on. Because I’m using Venus, the fourth hour, I will perform my spell between 10:22 am and 11:11 am. The same type of calculation, using the approximately 71-minute figure in this case, can be done for nighttime hours.
Altering Consciousness
Because this book is centered on personal ritualism, I can’t do without a mention of the importance of consciousness alteration. The physic
al act of casting a spell is but a metaphor. Spells operate on a number of planes, and the caster’s state of being is of utmost importance. Witches and magicians must be aware of their minds at all times, both inside and outside of ritual. If, during spellcraft, one’s mind is wandering away from the intention at hand, the flow of energy becomes interrupted. One way of stopping this from happening is to enter a ritual state of consciousness, wherein the practitioner is entirely and undividedly focused on the intention at hand.
Without the practitioner engaging in meditation and the altering of consciousness, it’s likely that a spell will not work. In ritual, we have the option of either controlling or surrendering to the forces at hand. One’s approach to this option depends on the purpose of the ritual. To control is to externalize, whereas surrender is internalization. Most rituals should contain a blending of the internal and external. Celebratory rituals like Sabbats are generally more external in nature, whereas personally significant spellcastings are oftentimes more internal or shamanic.
Because Witchcraft is, at its core, rooted in shamanism, one must take a serious look at some original and existing shamanic techniques. The altering of consciousness is something that is promoted in any mystically inclined religion, but is also a term that is misunderstood. It’s only from experience that we can learn our own methods of expanding and changing “normal” perception. It’s also important to decide exactly how altered one wishes to make their consciousness. One must alter their perception in the way that works best for them personally.
Ecstatic dance, trance drumming, fasting, sexual magick, pain induction, and deep meditation are all methods of altering consciousness. It’s not enough to “do” a spell—one has to set aside daily thoughts and distractions and fully immerse oneself in the energetic current they’re tapping into. When doing this during a ritual of any type, it tells the mind and the Universe that you are intending to enter a ritualistic atmosphere that is apart from usual waking perception. Entering Gnosis, or a mystical state of consciousness, is not achieved instantly. Realizing exactly how to enter a mystical state of consciousness takes time, practice, and sometimes the pushing of one’s own perceived limits.
Planetary Spells & Rituals Page 2