Bless Your House and You'll be Happier!

Blessed Balm Spell                                                                 (Waning Moon is Optimal)

Simmer this mixture whenever you feel the need to infuse your home and heart with the energies of protection. A waning moon is the time to banish old negative energy. This will safeguard you and your loved ones from outside influences that could be negative or disruptive. Set your intention and gather together the following herbs:

                        ¼ cup rosemary                       1 teaspoon dill weed

                        4 bay laurel leaves                   ⅛ cup cedar

                        1 tablespoon basil                    1 teaspoon juniper berries

                        ⅛ cup sage

Mix your herbs together by hand. While you are doing this, close your eyes and visualize your home as a sacred place protected by a boundary of glowing white light. Add the herbs to a pan filled with simmering water. When the aromatic steam rises, intone:

            By my own hand, I have made this balm;

            This divine essence contains my calm.

            By my own will, I make this charm;

            This precious potpourri protects all from harm.

            With harm to none and health to all,

            Blessed be!

Moon Mojo: Clear A Space and Make It Yours

To purify your space with as much of your own personal energy as possible, a broom you have crafted by hand is best. You don’t have to wait until you are holding a circle or performing spellcraft, it can be after a squabble with a loved one, to rid yourself of a bout of the blues or any upset you need to sweep right out of your home. Many a kitchen witch begins the day with this simple ritual of a clean sweep to freshen surroundings and to make room for good energy in your life.  This is, of course, not a white glove-type cleaning; it is a symbolic act that is effective in maintaining your home as a personal sanctuary.

You can make your own purification broom from straw bound together and attached to a fallen tree branch, or you can add mojo to a store-bought broom. Wrap copper wire around the bottom of your broom handle and also use it to bind straw to a sturdy stick or branch for the DIY kind. Venus-ruled copper lends an aura of beauty and keeps negativity at bay. Attach crystals to the handle with glue to boost your broom’s power. Recommended crystal for space clearing and purification are as follows:

Amber for good cheer

Blue Lace Agate for tranquility and a peaceful home

Coral for wellbeing

Jet absorbs bad energy

Onyx is a stone of protection

Petrified Wood for security

Tiger’s Eye will protect you for energy-draining situations or people

Turquoise creates calm and relaxation.

A Charm to Bring More Happiness Into Your Life

                                   

When the moon is waning, this is your opportunity to release anything that no longer serves in your life. We all need to embrace the winds of change in our life, clearing away the old and making room for the new. This charm helps overcome upset and can help release anger and grudges. And isn't this and important first step to happiness? What you’ll need: A blustery day, access to the outdoors, basil and sage.

Well, it's not mandatory that you have a hill for this, but you do need an open area outside for happiness spells like this. It does need to be windy.

Take your herbs to your spot of choice with your back to the wind. Take the basil and sage and throw them up in the air as you visualize your problems blowing far, far away. Repeat this charm aloud:

No more fear and doubt and pain

Nothing to lose and only joy to gain.

Now, turn around and face into the wind. Speak aloud:

May the winds of change be kind to me

And bring about happiness and glee.
Stress-free and happy I will be

Close your eyes and feel the breeze on your skin and blowing through your hair. Stand still for a few more moments, focused on the release of your problems and the acceptance of peace and the calm that lies ahead in your future. 

Lucky 13 Waxing Moon Spell

Your altar is the heart center of your home, your sanctuary. Yet the world is constantly coming in and bringing mundane energy over your threshold- problems at the workplace, financial woes, bad news from your neighborhood or the world at large. All this negativity wants to get in the way and stay. While you can’t do anything about the stock market crash in China or a coworker’s divorce, do not allow this bad energy to cling to you. That you can do something about with this homekeeping spell. The best times to release any and all bad luck, is on a Friday the 13^th or on any waxing moon. As you know, Friday the 13^th is considered a lucky day on the witch’s calendar. However, any Friday will do and anytime during the waxing moon phase is the best, like right now!

Get a big black candle and a black crystal, a piece of white paper, a black pen with black ink and a cancellation stamp, readily available at any stationery store. Go into your backyard or a nearby park or woodlands and find a flat rock that has a slightly concave surface. Using the pen, write down on the white paper that which you want to rid yourself and your home of; this is your release request. 

Place the candle, the black crystal on the rock and light the candle near an open window so the negativity goes outside while the candle burns, intone:

Waxing moon, most wise Cybele,

From me this burden please dispel

Upon this night so clear and bright

I release ___ to the moon tonight.

Go outside and place the rock altar on the ground and visualize a clear and peaceful home filled with only the positive as the candle burns for 13 minutes. Stamp the paper with the cancel stamp. Snuff the candle, fold the paper away from your body and place it under the rock. Speak your thanks to the moon for assisting you. If you have a truly serious issue at hand, repeat the process for 13 nights and all will be vanquished.

DIY Destressing With Floral Healing Remedies

Let's face it, we are living in stressful times. These floral healing remedies will soothe your soul and aid your immune system. 

Flower essences mixed with 30 millimeters distilled water can also be used as the following remedies:

Addiction: skullcap, agrimony

Anger: nettle, blue flag, chamomile

Anxiety: garlic, rosemary, aspen, periwinkle, lemon balm, white chestnut, gentian

Bereavement: honeysuckle

Depression: borage, sunflower, larch, chamomile, geranium, yerba santa, black cohosh, lavender, mustard

Exhaustion: aloe, yarrow, olive, sweet chestnut

Fear: poppy, mallow, ginger, peony, water lily, basil, datura

Heartbreak: heartsease, hawthorn, borage

Lethargy: aloe, thyme, peppermint

Stress: dill, echinacea, thyme, mistletoe, lemon balm

Spiritual blocks: oak, ginseng, lady’s slipper

The Dark Side of the Moon: Eclipse Enchantments

When the moon passes into the Earth's shadow, this is a lunar eclipse. These are rare occasions that make for a truly enchanted evening, I recommend you think ahead to what you want to accomplish in this phase since an eclipse only lasts several hours. Think about what you want brought out of the shadow and into the light –do you need to dust off old dreams and reactivate them? Do you have old hurts and wounds you need to let go of and purge from your life? Do you feel there is a secret being kept from you? This one night is perfect the purposes of saying goodbye to the old and ushering in the new.  Simply plan your magical workings to coordinate with the passing shadow. When the moon is in full eclipse, treat those few moments as if the moon was in its Dark phase. It is also an excellent time to honor the goddess of the moon in a group or solo ritual. Think through carefully your heart’s desire and what you serve you for many months to come. 

What Does an Eclipse Mean on a Spiritual Level?

Solar Eclipse for the Soul

This Great American Eclipse has the potential to be a turning point for Americans.

What does an eclipse really mean?

Eclipses usher in a time of change. New moons and full moons bring with them a special kind of power, one that casts experiences in your life in a new light? Well, since eclipses tend to coincide with new moons and full moons), they bring all that power and then some. They signify the closing of one door and the opening of another. Solar eclipses in particular are the time to heal deep soul wounds, as they mark an evolving sense of self. You may begin to find new, inventive ways of addressing long-standing hurdles in your life.

Eclipses are also a time when secrets are revealed.

Might this solar event be a watershed moment when we discover something important that has been kept secret? Time will tell but, since the first humans looked into the sky, solar eclipses have been important events with a rich history and meaning.

Viking sky wolves,  Korean fire dogs  and African versions of celestial reconciliation—these are only some of the many ways people around the world, and through the ages, have sought to explain solar eclipses.  Vietnam’s’ lore told of a toad or frog who swallowed the sun and the first peoples of Canada, the Kwakiutl tribe believed the mouth of heaven consumes the sun.  Many cultures explain eclipses, both solar and lunar, as a time when demons or animals consume the sun or the moon. The Vikings of early Scandinavia told the store of wolves chasing the sun or moon through the sky.

These celestial events necessitated a gathering of the tribe to ensure that the sun would indeed come back, bringing with it the life-giving the warmth and light. In order to combat this devouring, people in many cultures made noise in order to scare the demon or animal away. People banged pots and pans or played on drums to get whatever was swallowing the sun or the moon to go away. People built big bonfires and sang chanted, drummed and told stories while experiencing the solar eclipse. This year, in 2017, people from all over are making their way to the path of the eclipse. People are taking off works, kids taking off school that day and families are camping out all over to share this rare time together.

SOLAR ECLIPSES ARE VERY MEANINGFUL NEW MOONS.  THAT MAKES THEM SPIKED TIMES OF CHANGE -- BOTH WITHIN AND WITHOUT.  

Since the Sun and Moon are in the same Zodiac sign, the energies of that sign are supersized.  It's a concentration that can greatly impact you, if it glances off a significant point in your chart.

The power of a Solar Eclipse will be heightened, if it engages (by aspect) a planet or significant point in your birth chart. 

. This eclipse blocks the Sun, a symbol of radiating outward, and conscious awareness, along with all things worldly. 

The Sun is vitality, personal will, making this a highly charged, though internal moment. It's how we see ourselves (identity), and the shared reality.  And yet this is eclipsed, and an underlying reality is revealed.

Talking points:

1)     Why this Great American Eclipses could be major moment for the world.

2)     How it effects individuals

3)     How to seize this opportunity for spiritual growth

4)     How the Bible discussed solar eclipses

5)     Why this celestial event could bring people together and unite them in a time when this is really needed.

6)     What are the political implications of past solar eclipses?

7)     How an eclipse also informs “hidden aspects” of all of us and how you can learn from it.

8)     Past major solar eclipses and what happened.

9)     Why it’s a good idea to see it (and how to do it safely)

10) Suggested ritual gathering of the tribe for community, unity and peace- how Americans can use this celestial event for heart-healing.

Cerridwen Greenleaf has worked with many of the leading lights of the spirituality and Wiccan world including Starhawk, Z Budapest, John Michael Greer, Lon Milo DuQuette, Christopher Penczak, Raymond Buckland, Luisah Teish, and many more. She has led ritual and magic workshops throughout North America. Greenleaf’s graduate work in medieval studies has given her deep insight into ancient spells she utilizes in her work, making her work unique in the field. Her latest books for Running Press are bestsellers, selling over 100,000 copies.

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Count Your Blessings: Morning Moon Meditation

Plan this for an early morning when you can still see a sliver of the moon as the sun rises. Sit in a comfortable position in front of your altar and meditate. Think about your blessings. What are you grateful for at this moment? There is a powerful magic in recognizing all that you possess. Breathe steadily and deeply, inhaling and exhaling slowly for twenty minutes. Then chant:

            Great Goddess, giver of all the fruits of this earth,

            Of all bounty, beauty, and well-being,

            Bless all who give and receive these gifts.

            I am made of sacred earth, purest water,

            Sacred fire, and wildest wind.

            Blessings upon me. Blessings upon thee,

            Mother Earth and Sister Sky.

            So mote it be.

A wonderful practice is to record your gratitudes in your Book of Shadows or a thankfulness journal. At the end of the lunar year, you’ll have your own Book of Blessings you can reflect upon and share with others.

Lunar Eclipse Magic

The Dark Side of the Moon –Eclipse Enchantments

When the moon passes into the Earth's shadow, this is a lunar eclipse. These are rare occasions that make for a truly enchanted evening, I recommend you think ahead to what you want to accomplish in this phase since an eclipse only lasts several hours. Think about what you want brought out of the shadow and into the light –do you need to dust off old dreams and reactivate them? Do you have old hurts and wounds you need to let go of and purge from your life? Do you feel there is a secret being kept from you? This one night is perfect the purposes of saying goodbye to the old and ushering in the new.  Simply plan your magical workings to coordinate with the passing shadow. When the moon is in full eclipse, treat those few moments as if the moon was in its Dark phase. It is also an excellent time to honor the goddess of the moon in a group or solo ritual. Think through carefully your heart’s desire and what you serve you for many months to come.