Depending on our routine, we interact with a wide variety of people on a daily basis. Thus, we somewhat change our methods of interaction based on our immediate situation. This is part of life, and it’s nothing fake or inauthentic. However, if we become accustomed to acting a certain way, our minds may become accustomed to this behavior and the effects it produces.
Psychologically, this can be considered a reaction to positive reinforcement: if we act a certain way in life, we can be rewarded with praise, respect, or material items. In a sense, this could very easily be a throwback to our primal survival instinct, which tells us that we must remain “on top” to prevent our demise. Hiding certain aspects of our personalities can produce a comfortable illusion of empowerment. If we know ourselves and our minds (and thus our vulnerabilities) more than others possibly could, it gives a sense of protection from the outside world. Knowing oneself is a priority to the humble spiritual seeker.
The false projection of personality is illusory. Aside from instances in extreme situations, putting up a façade in life is dreadfully unhealthy. In an extreme scenario, constantly altering one’s personality is outright manipulation—not only of others, but of oneself! On the other end of the spectrum, never altering one’s personality or communicative methods can lead to misunderstanding and alienation. As with everything in life, striking a balance is the key.
What it boils down to is this: are you being yourself? Do you change the way you respond to people based on what works for them in the moment, or what works for you? What are your motivations behind the changes you make? If you find yourself putting up different social masks and façades, and you recognize this as being unhealthy, dishonest, or deceitful, you may want to consider performing this working.
Stepping Back & Further Application
The primary reason for performing this spell is for releasing social aspects of yourself that are not aligned to your true personality.
What are the roots of your masks, walls, and façades? Where did this behavior originate? How will you function without the aid of these energetic walls? How will your relationships (of all kinds) change if your personality becomes more authentic in any given situation? Will you be able to hold true to your views and emotions, even when it becomes tempting to act differently? These are some things to seriously ponder when preparing for a ritual of this sort.
This spell is a good one to perform multiple times. Additionally, constantly monitoring your daily interaction is key. When, in your daily life, you find yourself putting up one of these masks, bring awareness to the behavior and alter it accordingly. Performing this spell will not remove all these masks instantly. Instead, you must regularly and actively weave the spell’s metaphorical work into your life.
Supplies
• a yellow candle
• a stick of cedar, frankincense, or sandalwood incense
• a number of plain plastic masks, either full-face or masquerade masks. These must all be the same size, thin, and should be transparent or white. Additionally, the masks should fit comfortably on top of one another, and should have an elastic cord on the back so that you can wear them all simultaneously.
• a black permanent marker
• a 3×3-foot black veil
Notes
• I don’t normally endorse using plastic of any type in ritual work. However, these masks will be reused and are appropriate to the working at hand.
• For this spell, please wear no makeup or decorative jewelry.
• The best time to begin this spell is just before sunrise.
Procedure
Begin by casting a circle, calling the quarters, chanting, or raising energy as you normally would, performing protective exercises, and altering your consciousness. Clear your mind, bring focus to your breath, and meditate for at least a few minutes. When ready, begin the spell.
Light the candle and incense, placing the candle in front of you (elevated if possible). Sit facing the east.
Examine the masks in your hand. See them as representations of your false personality types. Grab the marker and, on the forehead area of the first mask, write a word or short phrase that summarizes a false aspect of your personality. This should be a characteristic that you tend to overemphasize or create for yourself. You may have a habit of portraying these qualities to other people or may trick yourself into believing them to be true about yourself. This could be anything from “yes-man,” or “know-it-all” to “perky and chipper” or “unforgiving brute.” If you are familiar with sigilry, symbolism, and pictorial communication, you may wish to decorate the mask with these things rather than words alone. Whatever the case, imbue the mask with the energy of the façade.
Repeat the exercise with each mask, assigning one characteristic or term to each. Each mask should be assigned its own individual “face.” Take plenty of time to think about your daily life, scrutinizing any possible falsities in personality that you may put up, even unconsciously.
Once finished imbuing each mask, place them atop one another in descending order: the “mask” that you wear most frequently should be on the top, while the one you utilize the least should be on the bottom. Hold these masks up before you, saying:
Hail be, guardians of the east and spirits of the Sun! Be with me as I perform this rite. To the great rising Sun of Truth—the All-seeing, All-knowing King—I offer up these masks to you. These represent false aspects of my personality. These are façades I wish to diminish from my life. Blessed be the power of the Holy Rising Sun: you are God, you are Truth! Shine through illusion, shine through fear! Hear my praise, mighty Center of this Universe! Oversee this END to my masquerade.
Put the masks on your face, stacked on one another as they are. Cover yourself with the veil. Through the masks and veil, you should be able to see the dim light of the candle flame in front of you. Say:
The guiding light of the flame before my eyes represents my true self, my pure self: that which I seek to bring to the surface.
Meditate for a few minutes, thinking about what you wish to accomplish with the spell. In your mind, deconstruct many of the prominent moments in which you allowed various untrue aspects of your personality to emerge. If you cry or feel frustrated, channel that energy into the masks and veil on your face.
When ready, lift the veil and throw it behind you, shouting:
With the parting of the veil, I begin my process of transformation!
Take the outermost mask from your face. Look at it and declare out loud what it represents (e.g., “This mask represents the illusion of superiority I place on myself …”). Throw the mask behind you and, while staring at the candle flame, bellow the word “Sol” six times.
Repeat the process for all masks, one by one.
When finished, gaze at the flame and say:
With your infinite light, oh mighty Sun, I ask you now: align my soul to your very essence. With the glory of your radiance, may my true personality shine through illusion.
ZAHAV! ZAHAV! ZAHAV! ZAHAV! ZAHAV! ZAHAV!
So mote it be!
Close the circle as you normally would, saving the masks in a hidden place, wrapped in the black veil. The masks can be reused in the future (individually or altogether) if the need arises.
Whereas the previous spell was concerned with shedding masks and façades, the following working is designed for those who wish to construct a temporary “face” for one reason or another. This face is not designed for daily use and should have a distinct purpose in mind.
In many ways, the magick of glamoury is manipulating and should not be used frequently. The most pertinent reason for using glamoury is for the purpose of guising: assuming the qualities and characteristics of a choice deity. This is most applicable before the act of invocation, which is an advanced Pagan ritual where a participant (often a Priest or Priestess) assumes the guise of
a god or goddess, who then speaks through the practitioner as a human conduit.
Though there are many forms of glamoury, the most successful may be through the use of archetypes. Because the following spell focuses on the melding of one’s energy with a particular deity rather than an overarching archetype, the practitioner should be aware of archetypal parallels between traditions and consider common views (both ancient and modern) held by devotees and observers of the god or goddess being worked with.
Every god and goddess in existence embodies a certain set of characteristics and energies, and most have relatively “equal” archetypal representatives across cultures. For example, the Egyptian Ra and Horus are both solar deities, but so are the Greek Apollo and Helios, the Roman Sol, the Hindu Surya, the Norse Balder, the Celtic (Gaulish) Belenus, and so on. Among other things, they all represent the archetype of “Solar God.” (Keep in mind that, at the same time, a number of mythological associations attribute goddesses to the Sun and gods to the Moon, so this celestial genderization isn’t the same in all pantheons.)
Archetypal alignments occur across all cultures and religions, from ancient indigenous and tribal religions to more well-known paths like Buddhism and Christianity. These forces can be summoned for a number of purposes, including the act of guising, which, in this case, I see as an act of partial invocation. Additionally, it can also be called an act of enchantment. Glamoury is a temporary act of illusion in appearance, energy, or general demeanor and can precede a ritualistic act of invocation.
Those readers who are artists, creators, or performers may benefit from the following working. If you have a patron deity, you may wish to choose to work with them directly. Depending on the aspect—or archetype—you wish to draw into yourself, your glamouring may last anywhere from a few minutes to an entire day. If one is a devotee of the god or goddess being summoned, the spell can be practiced more frequently. Still, this can be dangerous if the practitioner does not know themselves first. If one becomes unable to differentiate between one’s own, inherent personality and the external force that is invoked, confusion and disorientation can ensue.
Glamour magick is not to be taken lightly, nor should it be performed on a regular basis unless the user has good reason. In medieval times, it was common to believe a Witch deceived others through glamoury. This definition of glamoury is, of course, negative in nature and assumes the practitioner to be deceiving onlookers for evil, scheming purposes. While this sort of dishonesty through glamoury is a legitimate practice, I would advise against it unless circumstances are extreme.
Please be aware that other forms of glamoury magick exist. The term glamoury represents, in general, an act of deception that can be either beneficial or destructive in nature, and it is widely believed that the term, in reference to magick, originates with Celtic mythology and lore. One form of non-guising glamoury I’ve heard of is to perform random acts that make others question their reality. For example, I’ve heard of people working with the faerie realms practicing glamoury in the form of inconspicuously putting food coloring and bath fizzies in public fountains, putting dollar coins in mailboxes, leaving tarot or oracle cards in random locations, and writing intuitive messages on slips of paper for people to find serendipitously. While these things are fun (and certainly make people think twice about their reality, even if for a moment), and I do recommend performing such things when the mood strikes (hey, I do this sort of thing regularly!), the following working is concerned with glamoury in a personal or interpersonal sense.
Stepping Back & Further Application
What are your reasons for wanting to glamour onlookers? Are you avoiding certain aspects of yourself, or is your purpose something of temporary or ritualistic fulfillment? Do you objectively believe the god or goddess you have in mind would like to work with you on altering your appearance and demeanor, or would they find it insulting? These questions and others should be considered before performing glamoury.
It is essential not to constantly practice this form of magick. While it can be tempting to try to align our personalities completely and entirely with a deity or archetypal force, this can lead to internal confusion and even manipulative falsity. One’s actual personality should always come before that of a deity; we must work with what we have before merging with forces we idealize.
Before practicing deific glamoury, know yourself and know your mind. If you are going to interact with others, be prepared for any possible scenario, including the need to dismiss the guise. Additionally, and for a more successful glamour, try surrendering to the energies you’ve called into and onto yourself rather than amplifying aspects of your personality that you feel are aligned to that which has been summoned. The more one allows the magick to work more than the mind or ego, the more successful and accurate the act.
Do not call deities you are unfamiliar with or whose energy may potentially pose a risk if it were to blend with yours. Though glamoury is not full, proper invocation, external energies are still being called somewhat into (or onto, rather) one’s person. In other words, be intelligent when choosing a deity to align yourself with, and know all of their symbolism, mythology, and character traits.
Supplies
• 1 yellow candle and 1 purple candle
• items and clothing appropriate to the deity being called (see Notes)
• a small sachet filled with a mixture of catnip, dragon’s blood, foxglove, marigold, and poppy, as well as your own hair and fingernail clippings
• an accurate and preferably ancient depiction of the deity being summoned; this could be a statue, painting, print, tapestry, or other image
• appropriate offerings for the deity (research their mythology and common offerings given)
Notes
• In the [bracketed] areas of the spell, fill in the space with the appropriate word or words, depending on the deity you are calling. I suggest only working with deities you are familiar with, have worked with before, or are previously aligned with. Additionally, do not perform glamoury for a long period of time, particularly if it is your first time. If, during the duration of the glamour, you feel intimidated, overwhelmed, or not in control, dismiss and thank the deity earlier than you may have planned.
• Common glamours revolve around changing one’s appearance to make it more attractive, honing one’s mental or creative focus, gaining compassion, or invoking intimidating aggression. Respectively, one could call forth a deity of beauty, a deity of the arts, a deity of love, or a deity of war. In the spell, use characteristics and other adjectives in the [characteristics] brackets. The possibilities are as endless as the archetypes. All glamours are energetic enchantments, as instantly changing one’s physical characteristics is not possible.
• After selecting a deity, choose clothing and other items you can wear or use for the duration of the glamour. This could be makeup and jewelry for a deity of beauty, paints and canvas for a deity of the arts, flowers and gifts for a deity of love, or chainmail and a staff for a deity of war. Be sure your items are deity-specific.
Procedure
Begin by casting a circle, calling the quarters, chanting, or raising energy as you normally would, performing protective exercises, and altering your consciousness. Clear your mind, bring focus to your breath, and meditate for at least a few minutes. When ready, begin the spell.
Facing the east, light the yellow candle and chant six times:
Ascending spirits of the east, enter this space and illuminate my intention. My guise I intend to shift; that I am radiant with the characteristics of
[name of deity].
[His/Her] face shall be as my own, that the glory of the Old Ones be ignited into this realm through the Star that is me, but a devoted servant. So shall it be.
Facing the west, light the purple candle and chant six times:
Descending spirits of the west, enter this space and
carry forth my intention. My guise I wish to shift; that I am filled with the characteristics of [name of deity].
[His/Her] face shall be as my own, that the glory of the Old Ones be woven into this realm through the Vessel that is me, but a humble servant. So mote it be.
Prepare your offerings and dress in the chosen clothing/adornments. Wear the herbal sachet around your neck.
Gaze at the depiction of the deity you are calling forth. Examine their facial features, clothing, and demeanor. Pay particular attention to the symbolism within the depiction: what does the god or goddess’s image suggest, including their clothing, stance, expression, and symbolic items depicted with them?
Facing the direction most aligned with the deity, recite:
I summon you from your abodes, mighty [name of deity]!
I, [your own name], invoke your assistance in this rite.
My guise I will to shift, in alignment with your [characteristics],
for the means of [state your goal/intention].
In adoration I have called out to you,
and with honor I shall carry forth your [characteristics].
From your abode to my own, be with me!
For the duration of [state duration of time], meld with my person!
Let us dance with one another; let us work together for but a time.
Come! Ride me! Let me be ridden! Let us be as One!
My appearance and demeanor shall be as yours,
as I simultaneously function within my own paradigm.
As a servant I do now manifest your power within my own.
Planetary Spells & Rituals Page 4