Power Wand

Prosperity and purification go hand in hand. One of the greatest tools for purification, sage, can be found growing wild by most roadsides and in many meadows. While every metaphysical store has it in quantity, I highly recommend growing and harvesting it yourself. Aromatic sage dries quickly and can effortlessly be bound into thick “smudge sticks” which you should keep at the ready in a fireproof clay dish.

To make a smudge stick, take dried sage leaves and bind them with green and gold thread, wound nine times around the bundles, and knot at each loop. Leave room for a “handle” at the base of the wand.

Know the green and gold threads thrice more. This will honor the muses and please the fates that hold the thread of all our lives in their hands.

Use your smudge stick any time a purification is in order, especially if you’ve moved, started a new job, bought a new car, or purchased any “recycled” clothing or furniture. This will help remove any energy that might be clinging from the previous owner.

Light your smudge stick and, moving clockwise, circle the areas or items to be purified.

Speak aloud:

Great spirit, with this smoke, your blessed protection I invoke. Out with the bad, in with the good. With harm to none.

Communing with Your Coven

The path of Wicca can often feel solitary, but it doesn’t have to be. Witchcraft, which is in itself highly creative, is even more so when practiced in a supportive circle. Wednesdays are wonderful for getting together with like-minded folks. Invite four of your fellow pagans over.

Gather together

    * a censer or incense burner

    * 2 green candles

    * 2 yellow candles

    * palo santo incense

Place the ritual elements on a table that will serve as an altar. Stand in a circle near the altar, holding a censer or incense burner. Ask each of your guests to represent one of the four directions: north, east, south, and west. Give the people representing north and south green candles and east and west get yellow. Light the incense and bless each candle with the sweet-smelling smoke.

Bless the candle of the East, saying:

    Inspired by air.

Bless the candle of the West saying:

    Burnished by fire.

Bless the candle of the North, saying:

    Cleansed by water.

Bless the candle of the South, saying:

    Strengthened by earth.

Together, everyone chants:

    Blessed be.

After the ritual, sit in a circle and share your ideas and creative vision. Talk about how you can support each other in realizing your full potential.

Wanderful Invocation of Love

All of us want our home to be a welcoming place for love and contentment for ourselves and our significant other. You can greatly abet that outcome with this simple spell for binding love.

Gather together

    * 2 pink candles

    * rose essential oil

    * 2 long-stemmed pink roses

    * rose incense and incense burner

    * 2 rose quartz crystals, of any size

    * a tray to hold all these elements

    * your wand for love magic

Place all your ritual elements on the tray. Go to your bedroom and place the tray on your nightstand or another chest or table nearest your bed. Anoint your wand and both candles with the rose essential oil and place the roses and the quartz crystals beside the candles. Now light the candles and incense. Pick up your wand and intone aloud:

    This is a place where joy lives.

    This is a room where my heart gives.

    Here is a temple to love and delight.

    Here is a home filled with bliss and light.

    Blessed be, and so it is.

With your wand, draw a heart shape twice in the wafting smoke of the incense while saying “I love ____.” Stand, eyes closed, while visualizing you and your partner enjoying each other’s company, happy and in love. End the ritual by saying: “Blessed be.” I recommend keeping the tray in your bedroom where it can be a mini shrine to love.

Dreaming Devotion

This charm will help you see whether a newfound interest will become long term. If you lack clarity on this issue, your dreams can guide you. Use this talisman for clairvoyance.

Gather together

    * a small red pouch

    * 1 teaspoon each of dried lavender, dried thyme, and cloves

    * bolline

    * 1 vanilla bean pod

    * 12 inches (30cm) red string or cord

Take the small red pouch and place the lavender, thyme, and cloves into it. Using your bolline, cut the vanilla bean pod into two pieces and place them in the bag. Now cut the red string or cord in two, using your sacred knife. Close the bag by tying it with the two sections of cord and hold the pouch in both hands until your warmth and energy fully infuse the potpourri inside. Recite:

    Venus guide my dreams tonight—is he [or she] the one?

    I dream of devotion and a lifetime of love.

    Please give me your answers from the heavens above.

    So mote it be. Blessed be.

Tuck your talisman under your pillow. Upon waking, think of your dream. You will receive your answer immediately.

Cash in a Flash: Crystal Currency

Another charm for solvency is to take seven tiny turquoise stones in the palm of your hand and speak this wish-spell aloud:

    Luck be quick,

    luck be kind,

    and, by lucky seven,

    good luck will be mine.

    Blessed be.

Place the seven small stones in your wallet or purse; more cash is on the way.

Goddess Visualization: Group Guided Meditation

I have led many groups in this guided meditation. Everyone should gather in a circle and make themselves very comfortable, sitting on the ground, standing, or even lying down. All you need to bring is an open mind and a pen and paper to record the special message Mother Goddess has for you.

Blessed beings, you are about to enter the Mother, our great earth Goddess, Gaia. In your mind, you are standing with bare feet on the ground. You can feel the grass with your toes, the solid earth underneath your feet. Feel the solidity and power of the earth as it fills your body with strength; we are all made of clay. We come from her, and we are made of earth. Feel your connection to the Mother. We are made of stardust and clay and the waters of the ocean. Feel the blood in your veins. The water of life. Know that you are alive. Feel her winds, the breath of life. Breathe deeply ten times, completely filling your lungs and completely emptying your lungs. Breathe and feel your chest rising and falling with each breath.

Now feel your backbone connecting to the earth; you feel a cord connecting you and your life to the earth. Concentrate on the cord until you can feel it running all the way through you and deep into the earth. Tug on “the cord; feel it give. Now, take the cord in your hands and follow it down, down deep into the earth. It is dark as you go down and down, but do not be frightened. Trust in the universe and keep descending into the bosom of the Mother. Down we go, not falling but moving purposefully, gracefully, following the cord of the earth. Now you see light. Keep moving toward the light and keep holding the cord as it leads you to the shining distance.

The light grows nearer, and you see that it is an opening, a cave, a safe place in which to shelter. Enter the cave. It is filled with light, firelight reflected off a thousand crystal points. An old woman sits at the fire, warming her bones in her cozy dry cave. It is beautiful, more beautiful than the palace of any king or the castle of any queen. It is the crystal cave of the Goddess, and you are with her. Show your respect to the Goddess and light the incense at her altar at the side of the cave, piled up with many shimmering stones and priceless gems, the bounty and beauty of our generous benefactor.

Sit quietly and heed the special message she has for you. You are her child, and she has dreamed a dream for you. Now we listen and breathe. Blessed be.

Now open the circle and sit in silence for a moment, so that everyone present can record her impressions and visions in a journal. In years to come, if you and your circle of women decide to observe this rite annually, as I recommend, you can share and compare notes from prior years. This is a wonderful way to process the passages of your lives

Midsummer Day: A Summer Solstice Rite

Essential elements for a Celtic-inspired Midsummer ritual are a wooden wheel, fallen branches and firewood, multicolored candles (and also torches, if you can acquire them), multicolored ribbons, food and drink, and flowers for garlands. This ritual should be performed outside, ideally on a hill or mountaintop at dusk. Call the local fire department to verify the fire laws in your area. You will likely need a special permit to light a bonfire, and certain areas may be restricted. Always clear the grass and brush away from your fire area, and make sure to dig a shallow pit into the ground. Circle the pit with rocks to help mark the edge of the fire pit as well as to contain the accidental spread of fire. Have a fire extinguisher, a pail of sand, and water bottles nearby in case the fire gets out of control. One person not directly involved in the ritual who is designated as the fire-tender should be on hand to watch the fire at all times; be sure to find a constant and observant volunteer for this quiet yet vital duty. Make sure the fire pit is far enough away from surrounding trees and other landscape features to allow room for a group to dance around it.

Lay the wooden wheel down in the circle of stones, and arrange the fallen branches and firewood around the edge of it. The wheel represents the turning of the year, and the sun on its daily and yearly cycle. Tie the colored ribbons on the nearest tree. While these preparations are being made, the priestess to lead the ritual should meditate in the area where the ritual will be held, focusing on connecting to the goddess. The gathered celebrants should weave garlands of flowers while the sun slowly sets. Just before the sun vanishes completely, the priestess should direct participants to ready their candles, or even better, torches. The priest lights them, declaring:

    The fire festival is begun.

    Under this longest day of the sun.

    Let us go forth and make merry.

    The god and goddess are here!

All say:

    Blessed be!

The priest leads the celebrants into the circle where the priestess waits and directs them to throw their torches and candles in the bonfire. The priestess raises her arms and invokes the Goddess:

    Great Earth Mother and Lady of the Forest,

    be with us here and now!

    On this night the Goddess reigns supreme.

    On this, our Midsummer’s night!

All say:

    Blessed be!

All should dance in the direction of the sun (clockwise) around the fire, raise their arms, and clap and shout for joy for as long as they want. When people begin to tire, it is time for the feast. The priest directs the blessing of the food:

    Blessed Lady of the Forest,

    Old gods of the animals, spirits of the wild,

    bless this food and drink,

    that it may strengthen us in your ways.

All say:

    Blessed be!

Everyone should share in the refreshments and eat, drink, and make merry. Another round of dance and song is in order. When the bonfire has turned to ash, the priestess declares the ritual to be over and says:

    Our revelry this day is done, dear one.

    Gods of the old and spirits of nature,

    we thank you for your blessings this night.

    This rite is done.

All say:

    Blessed be!

Make certain the fire has completely gone out before you leave the ritual site. Soak the ashes with water and clean up the site. Always leave a natural area cleaner than you found it.

Saturn-Day Soul Tribe Gathering

It is very important to gather your soul tribe and just celebrate each other from time to time. Here is a pagan ritual I have performed on weekends—I call it “Saturn-day night fever.” Over the years, I have added many embellishments, such as astrological or holiday themes. The basic ritual of cakes and ale, however, is a timeless and powerful classic.

Gather a group of friends either outdoors under the moon or in a room large enough for dancing, drumming, and singing. Have the guests bring a cake of their choice as well as a cider, mead, beer, or juice to share. (Note that the cake can be of any style, so it does not have to be an iced sheet cake; banana bread, Irish soda bread, or a braided honey bread will do just as well.) Place the offerings in the center, on an altar table. Then light green and brown candles for home and hearth.

Once everyone is seated, the host or designated leader intones:

    Gods of Nature, bless these cakes,

    that we may never suffer hunger.

    Goddess of the Harvest, bless this ale,

    that we may never go without drink.

The eldest and the youngest of the circle rise and serve the food and drink to everyone in the circle. Last, they serve each other. The ritual leader pronounces the blessing again. Then everyone says together, “Blessed be.”

The feasting begins, ideally followed by a lot more ale and lively dancing. A wonderful way to keep a group of friends connected is for a different person to host the circle one Saturday each month.

Declare Your Radiance and Claim Your Potential

Throughout your practice, make sure to maintain a sense of personal abundance and acknowledge the great spirit within you. Be grateful for your body and for your health. Stand in front of a mirror, preferably naked, and drop all self-criticism. Concentrate on your real beauty and envelop yourself with unconditional self-love. Wrap your arms around yourself as you say:

    In Her/His image, I too, am a Goddess/God.

    I walk in beauty; I am surrounded by love.

    Blessed be.

Light three candles in your favorite color and scent. Sit in front of your altar and meditate on what will make you achieve your full potential.

Do you need to change your health habits? Do you need to open up your creativity? Do you need to revitalize with a vacation? Concentrate deeply, and choose three wishes to write down and place under your three candles. Every night for seven days, repeat this spell:

    Today I arise.

    This night I embrace my serenity, radiance, splendor, and wisdom.

    Blessed be.

Prosperous Possibility Enchantment

Cinnamon, which you probably have a plentitude of in your kitchen cabinet, is a major source of prosperity and can even bring it about in a hurry. Here is a Jupiterian Thursday spell that will bring excellent opportunities your way.

Gather some cinnamon, both sticks and the powdered kind, and place it all on your altar. On a Thursday, light incense (preferably cinnamon) and walk through your house, wafting the delightfully sweet smoke into every room. Light two altar candles, one brown and one green. Gather yellow flowers such as daisies and adorn your altar with them. Stand in front of your earthen altar and consider the wonderful, full life you are going to enjoy. Pour the cinnamon spice and sticks into a bowl and pray aloud:

    This humble spice I offer to the gods who provide all.

    I am grateful for all I receive, no matter how small.

    Now, I find I am in need,

    blessings shall come now with great speed.

    As above, so below,

    the wisdom of the world shall freely flow.

    To perfect possibility, I surrender.

    And so it is. Blessed be to all.

Perfume of Peace Oil

This candle spell involves creating and consecrating a lovely oil you can use to instill a greater sense of peace within your mind and heart. Into a blue bottle, pour almond, soy, or any other unscented base oil, then add two drops each of neroli, chamomile, and Turkish rose essential oils. Shake the oils together to blend them. Next, take an orange and place it beside a lit lavender candle you have anointed with the potion. Chant aloud:

    By my own hand, I made this balm.

    This divine essence contains my calm.

    By my own will, I made this charm;

    This precious potion protects from all harm.

    With harm to none and health to all.

    Blessed be.

Anoint your pulse points—your wrists, throat, and heart, behind the ear lobes, and behind the knees—with the unguent and bask in a sea of calm.

Some other excellent oils for anxiety or a quick pick-me-up include frankincense, marjoram, hyssop, neroli (orange blossom), jasmine, nutmeg, and valerian. You can apply them directly to the skin or use them for dressing your candles!

Fall Equinox Ritual

Establish one room in your house as the temple. Ideally, it is the room in which you normally keep an altar or sacred shrine. In any case, you should create an altar in the center of the space. Place four small tables in the four corners of the directions and place four evenly spaced candlesticks between the tables. Place a loaf of freshly baked bread (bread you have made with your own hands is best) in the east, a bowl of apples in the south, a bottle of wine in the west, and a sheaf of wheat or a bundle of dried corn in the north. Upon the main altar, place a candle, a plate of sweet cakes and a goblet. Light incense and place it in front of the cakes. Before your ritual, take some time for contemplation. Think about what you have achieved during this busy year:

What have you done?

What do you need?

What remains to be done? 

What are your aspirations?

Write down your thoughts and feelings and the answers to those questions. Read what you have written and ponder it. Look for continuing ideas or themes and make notes of these on a piece of paper. Next, take a calming and cleansing quiet bath, and snip a lock of your freshly washed hair and place it on the paper where you wrote your notes. Dress yourself in a robe and enter your temple space. Light the candle on the altar and use this candle to light all the other candles in the temple. Speak the traditional Hebrew words of self-blessing: 

Ateh, Malkuth, Ve Geburah, Ve Gedulah, Le Olahm, Amen: Through the symbol of the pentagram in the name of Adonai.

Repeat this facing each corner, and then face your altar and say: 

In the east, Raphael; in the south, Michael; in the west, Gabriel; in the north, Uriel. Welcome to this place in the name of Melchisedek, the High Priest of the Godhead.

Then go to the east and raise the loaf of bread as offering and say: 

Raphael, Lord of the Winds of Heaven, bless this bounty born of sun and air and earth. Let us feed the hungry and bless the hand that gives it. Place the bread back into the bowl and go to the southern corner. Raise an apple as offering and state:

Michael, protector of the weak and the oppressed,

bless this sun-ripened fruit and let it be not the fruit of temptation but the fruit of our knowledge so we know how to make our choices and understand the measure of both good and evil.

Place the apple back into the bowl and go to the western corner. Lift up the bottle of wine and say:

Gabriel, bringer of the word of God, bless this wine that we may take into our body the wine of life shed by all saviors since time began.

Place the bottle back on the western table. Turn to the north and raise the corn or wheat as an offering and say: 

Uriel, Lord of the Earth and all its bounty, bless this crop that it may be plentiful all over the earth, that this may be a year when all mankind will know the comfort of food and hearth.

Now return to the altar in the center of the temple. Light the incense and place some bread and the chalice of wine on the altar. Dip a piece of bread into the blessing wine. Proclaim:

Melchisedeck, priest of the most high God, in the desert after the battle with the kings of Edom you brought bread and wine to Abraham. In this communion shared between man and priest of the most high God, a covenant was made. I pray that this coming harvest makes bread for the world. In token of the ancient custom, I take this bread and wine into my body.

Now in this sacred place, guide and teach me, show me how to pursue knowledge for the power of good. Help me to grow in wisdom. Bless me. Bless those who share my life. Bless all of those with whom I work. Bless this earth and sweet, green world that gives us all the blessings we enjoy—all the water and wine, all the corn and wheat, all the joys of life in this body. Bless my home.

Take a lock of hair and light it from the candle and burn it in the bowl of incense and say: 

This is the offering of myself.

In the east—blessings to Raphael. 

In the south—blessings to Michael. 

In the west—blessings to Gabriel. 

In the north—blessings to Uriel. 

Blessed be to all.

Now go around your temple space in reverse order and extinguish all candles. Then declare your temple closed. The common wisdom is that you should place the apples, bread, and wine in your garden as an offering the next day, as a blessing to all of nature. 

Palm Leaf Protection Talisman

This simple ceremony blesses your home with the power of the sun and the protection of the palm leaf. Essential elements for this ritual are a palm leaf or front, incense, cup of water.

Take your palm leaf outside on a sunny day. Cast your sacred circle. Light the incense and pass the palm leaf through the smoke, saying:

By air and by fire I cleanse and consecrate you to the purpose of protection.

Touch your fingertips to the water, sprinkle a few drops onto the leaf, and say:

By water I cleanse and consecrate you to the purpose of protection.

Lay the palm leaf on the ground, saying:

By earth I cleanse and consecrate you to the purpose of protection.

Now hold the palm leaf up to the sun. Visualize the warmth and strength of the light permeating the palm leaf and filling it with power. Say:

Honored Sun,

Beloved light of the day,

Bless this palm with your protection and light. 

So mote it be!

Pour the remaining water out onto the ground as an offering. When you return home, hang the palm leaf up over your front door. 

Midsummer Day

Essential elements for a Celtic-inspired Midsummer ritual are a wooden wheel, fallen branches and firewood, multicolored candles, multicolored ribbons, food and drink, and flowers for garlands. This ritual should be performed outside, ideally on a hill or mountaintop, at dusk. Call the local fire department to verify the fire laws in your area. You will likely need a special permit to light a bonfire, and certain areas may be restricted. Always clear the grass and brush away from your fire area, and make sure to dig a shallow pit into the ground. Circle the pit with rocks to help mark the edge of the fire pit as well as to contain the accidental spread of fire. Have a fire extinguisher, a pail of sand, and water bottles nearby in case the fire gets out of control. One person not directly involved in the ritual should be on hand to watch the fire at all times. Make sure the fire pit is far enough away from surrounding trees and other landscape features to allow for a group to dance around it.

Lay the wooden wheel down in the circle of stones, and arrange the fallen branches and firewood around the edge of it. The wheel represents the turning of the year, and the sun on its daily and yearly cycle. Tie the colored ribbons on the nearest tree. While these preparations are being made, the priestess to lead the ritual should meditate in the area where the ritual will be held, connecting to the goddess. The gathered celebrants should weave garlands of flowers while the sun slowly sets. Just before the sun vanishes completely, the priestess should direct the gathered celebrants to ready their candles, or more ideally, torches. The priest lights them, declaring:

The fire festival is begun.

Under this longest day of the sun. 

Let us go forth and make merry. 

The god and goddess are here!

All say:

Blessed be!

The priest leads the celebrants into the circle where the priestess waits, and directs them to throw their torches and candles in the bonfire. The priestess raises her arms and invokes the Goddess:

Great Earth Mother and Lady of the Forest, 

Be with us here and now!

On this night the Goddess reigns supreme. 

On this, our night of our midsummer!

All say:

Blessed be!

All should dance in the direction of the sun (clockwise) around the fire, raise their arms, and clap and shout for joy for as long as they want. When people begin to tire, it is time for the feast. The priest directs the blessing of the food:

Blessed Lady of the Forest,

And old god and animals, spirits of the wild, 

Bless this food and drink,

That it may strengthen us in your ways.

All say:

Blessed be!

Everyone should share in the refreshments and eat, drink, and make merry. Another round of dance and song is in order. When the bonfire has turned to ash, the priestess declares the ritual to be over and says:

Our revelry this day is done, dear one. 

Gods of the old and spirits of nature,

We thank you for your blessings this night. 

This rite is done.

All say:

Blessed be!

Make certain the fire has completely gone out before you leave the ritual site. Soak the ashes with water and clean up the site. Always leave a natural area cleaner than you found it. 

Personal Ritual for Renewal: Bed Blessing

Turn back the bedspread to reveal fresh sheets. In a red cup, mix a half-teaspoon of jasmine oil and a half-teaspoon of rose oil. Hold it with both hands and speak:

In this bed, I show my love.

In this bed, I share my body.

In this bed, I give my heart.

In this bed, we are as one.

Here, my happiness lies as I give and live in total joy. 

Blessed be to thee and me.

As you say, “Blessed be,” flick drops of your bed blessing oil from your fingers all across the bed until the cup is empty. Now, lie down and roll around in the bed. After all, that is what it is there for!

Croning Rituals

Our modern society has taken an unfortunate attitude toward aging, characterized by denial and shame. Rather than embracing the realization of their own highest wisdom, aging women are socialized into unhealthy regimens such as Botox and plastic surgery in vain attempts to turn back the clock.

Women should feel good about aging. They should celebrate long, full lives. Women should be respected and honored for the wisdom they bring to the community. One of the roles ritual plays in the world is to change the dynamic between a person and her community. Therefore, croning rituals are the signal to the group that a woman has ascended into a new role of service and leadership to the family, the tribe, the village, and the sisterhood.

Theories vary as to when a woman becomes a crone. Z. Budapest in her Holy Book of Women’s Mysteries says it happens to every woman at age fifty-six. Others say it is at age fifty-four, and Diana Paxson says it’s a range from sixty to seventy-one for the evolution from Queen to Crone. Often cronehood is confirmed at fourteen months past a woman’s last period, and when she has come to her second Saturnreturn. A woman should decide for herself when she feels

she has reached the age of “cronehood,” however; if she is not prepared to take on the title, then by all means she should wait until she is ready. Discussing it with other women will help authenticate what you know and feel inside. Support from the sisterhood is essential, and in many circles of friends and family, women who are of similar ages should sustain each other in life’s passages and honor each other as they wish to be honored.

The Crown of Cronehood: A Ritual of Honoring

The essential elements for this ritual are enough candles to represent every year of the crone’s life, flowers, silver wire, crystals, water, flowering branches, silver moon-shaped paper cutouts, and potluck food. The potluck food served at the party after the ritual will be even more special and good for all if they are “women’s food,” such as estrogen-filled yams, calcium-rich broccoli, and yogurt. Soy is recommended as well.

The first part of the ritual takes place before the honored guest, the new crone, arrives. Working together, women should take the silver wire and form a round crown. Glue semiprecious crystals to this crown, attach charms and amulets, and affix the silver crescent moons. Make it beautiful and meaningful. The silver moon is a sign of the Goddess, and the new crone is a representative of the Goddess’s third aspect. The crystals, which are the stones and bones of Mother Earth, add power and the beauty of Gaia. Charms and amulets are for health, protection, good luck, and good life. As you make it and place the jewels and charms on the crown, state your intentions and hopes for the new crone.

When the crown is complete, place it on a beautiful purple pillow or the altar.

Upon the arrival of the soon-to-be-crowned crone, the eldest woman present should take a flowering branch and dip it in water and sprinkle it on her head, just a few drops, and speak a blessing, such as:

I bless you in the name of the Goddess.
I bless you in the name of Mother Earth.
I bless you in the name of every woman.
Sister, do you accept the role of teacher and leader as crone?

The crone responds. If she accepts the title, then the eldest woman says:

She is crowned.

Now the elder places the Crown of Cronehood upon the new crone’s head. Go around the circle and have each woman speak of the gift she added to the crown.

I give you amethyst to represent the healing power of the planet.
I give you silver, sacred to the moon.
I give you roses, the flower of desire.
I give you a sacred heart charm to represent the mysteries of love.
I give you a blue star because you are a star.
I give you an abalone shell because you are powerful like the ocean.
I give you moonstone because you are wise and reflective.
I give you an angel pendant because you are so beautiful in body and in soul.

Now everyone should speak together:

We gather together to celebrate that [new crone’s name] is entering the Wise Age.

Now the eldest woman lights one candle, and each woman present takes turn lighting a candle until all fifty-six (or the appropriate number equaling this crone’s age) are lit.

Singing and chanting now take place with the circle holding hands:

[Crone’s name], Lady Mine,
We now honor you; we will never forsake you.
[Crone’s name], we listen to your wisdom with the love of our hearts.
We accept your teachings with ears and hands.
Blessed be the new crone! Long life and good health! Happiness and joy!

After everyone has spoken her tribute to the crone, she can speak her thanks. At this point, the crone assumes her leadership role. Leadership is best handled with great gravity and lightness at the same time. “Benevolence” and “wisdom” are the watchwords. The crone should speak anything she is holding in her heart. Doubtless, she will want to speak her gratitude toward the support of the sisterhood, but she should also speak forth any concerns she has. The concerns can be specific to her world, which is now her domain—her family, her group of friends, her spiritual circle, her community, or even the planet. The crone can choose to ask a pair of disputing friends to make up and work it out. She can request that a healing garden be made for her people. Whatever comes to her mind that will be helpful and essential to the group and the greater good is what she should speak. I know a crone who has asked people to help her build a community center, and it is happening. I know another crone who quit her high-powered corporate job to study the medicine wheel and become a shaman. Still another elder friend has taken up the brush and is painting beautiful art after years of working for the defense department. This is my mother, Helen, who is a wonderful example of the power of cronehood.

When the crone has spoken from the wisdom of her heart, everyone should again hold hands. The eldest woman who inducted the new crone again holds out the flowering branch and hands it to the new crone. The crone speaks her blessing to everyone present, touching everyone’s heads with a few drops of blessing water and reciting words from her heart to each person. When she is done, she says:

This circle is now open. Blessed be to all.

Now the food is served, and it should be a birthday party to remember for the rest of the crone’s life. 

Prosperity Altar: Using the Laws of Attraction

Your altar is the nexus of your magical powers; it is also your medium through which you give gifts to the Roman god of abundance, Jupiter, also known as Jove. Jupiter is a rain and thunder deity who also controls fertility. He will rain abundance down upon you if you gain his favor through ritual observance. His “jovial” qualities include leadership, jollity, generosity, expansiveness, and a royal manner. Your middle finger is your Jupiter finger and you can also increase your fortunes by leaving a ring on your altar overnight and then place it upon the middle finger of either hand. Ideally, for the best result, it will be a green or gold stone such as peridot, tourmaline, or citrine. If you can find a statue or bust of Jove, you should place this symbol on the right side of the altar, accompanied by the image of an eagle, which is the ideal prosperity altar emblem, as the eagle is Jupiter’s bird totem. The eagles of Rome and America are this royal bird of the king of gods. Lapis lazuli, the beautiful blue stone beloved of the Egyptians, is also sacred to Jupiter. The alchemical symbol for this stone is the astrological sign of Jupiter in reverse, and the blue of the lapis stone is associated with the blue of the sky god. You can increase your prosperity by remembering one of the most basic principles of prosperity: By giving, so shall you receive.

To create a prosperity altar, consecrate the area with sea salt. Cover a low table with green and gold altar cloths or scarves and place matching candles on it. Each day, “recharge” your altar with an altar gift such as flowers, jade or other green crystals, golden flowers, scented amber resin, and coin-shaped pebbles. On any Thursday or new moon, light your candle at midnight and burn frankincense and myrrh incense. Make an offering of a golden fruit such as apples or peaches to Jupiter, and anoint your third eye with a corresponding essential oil such as myrrh, frankincense, apple, or peach. Pray aloud:

This offering I make as my blessing to all.

Greatest of gods, Lord Jove of the sky.

From you, all heavenly gifts do fall.

Most generous of all, you never deny.

To you, I am grateful, and so mote it be!

Put the candle in a safe, fireproof place and let it

burn all night. You will dream of your loved ones,

including yourself, receiving a bounty of material and spiritual wealth. 

Blessed Batch of Pickles: A Garden in a Jar

This is a recipe handed down from generation to generation in my family. My mother was very proud of and famous for her pickles. This same cucumber recipe can be used to pickle almost any vegetable, including onions, peppers, squash, baby corn, green tomatoes, cauliflower, and anything else you might fancy. Growing your own dill will be a wonderful finishing touch. Gather:

• 3 dozen baby cucumbers (three to four inches long)
• 3 cups water
• 3 cups vinegar
• 6 tablespoons kosher salt
• 1 bunch fresh dill or ½ teaspoon dried dill per jar (you can use seed heads, leaves, and stems, too)
• ½ to 1 clove garlic per jar, blanched and sliced
• ½ tablespoon mustard seed per jar
• 2-quart Mason canning jars (or 6 one-pint jars), sterilized

Wash all the cucumbers using cool water. In a big stockpot, pour in the vinegar, three cups of water, and the kosher salt and bring to a boil. This is the brining liquid. In the bottom of a sterilized quart jar, place a generous layer of dill, a clove of garlic, and ½ tablespoon mustard seed. Pack the cucumbers vertically into the jar until half full, then add another layer of dill and fill the remainder of the jar with cucumbers. Fill all the jars in the exact same way, leaving a half-inch at the top for brine. After you have poured in the brining liquid, go ahead and seal the Mason jars. Place the jars in a boiling-water bath for fifteen minutes. Label once your pickle jars have cooled and store on a cool, dark shelf for two weeks to allow the flavor to develop.

Magical correspondences to draw from in labeling your fresh batch of pickles:

• Cucumber: healing, peace
• Vinegar: security, cleansing
• Dill: prosperity, safety, luck
• Garlic: protection, healing
• Salt: purification

DIY Digestive Elixir

You can make simple syrup, a base for any liqueur, in five short minutes by boiling a cup of sugar in a half cup of water. The method above can be used to create distinctive after-dinner drinks and digestives with angelica, anise, bergamot, hyssop, all mints, fennel, and perhaps the most special of all, violets. To your health!

Rosemary and Thyme: A Rejuvenation Retreat

All of us get worn down due to the sheer busyness of life. Oftentimes when we feel depleted, we get a little sad, too. To rid yourself of negative emotions, try this purification bath. Draw a warm bath at noon when the sun is at its healing peak, then add the following essential oils into the water as it flows from the faucet.

• Two drops rosemary for calm
• Two drops peppermint for stimulation
• Three drops lavender for energetic cleansing
• Three drops thyme to relieve mental exhaustion

As you soak and steam, repeat this prayer four times:

Sadness, I release you—goodbye.

Fatigue, I release you—goodbye.

I greet this day anew. My life is now renewed.

Blessed be me, so mote it be.