Your Personal Pot of Gold

Cauldron magic is less about the eye of a newt than it is about purification by water and pungently perfumed herbs. For a money-attraction brew, fill a big pot with fresh water and place it on your altar during the waxing moon. Place an offering bowl nearby filled with a tablespoon of honey mixed into a cup of milk. Toss a dry palmful of chamomile, woodruff, moss, and vervain into the cauldron.

Head uplifted, utter:

I call upon you, Gods and Goddesses of old,

To fill my purse with gold.

In return, I offer you honey’s gold and mother’s milk.

With harm to none and blessings to thee,

I honor you for bringing me health and prosperity.

Place the bowl outside as your offering and leave it overnight. Whatever the ancients have left behind, pour it into the ground and bow in gratitude for the generosity of the Gods towards you.

Here's a sweet bit of alchemy available to all, handed down from medieval times. Wise women of old taught their children to watch for falling leaves. To catch one in midair is the best kind of luck, direct from Mother Earth herself. Carry it with you for a season and you will be kept safe from harm and receive unseen rewards. If you are especially blessed and catch more than one falling leaf, share it with the one closest to you. You will be bound by both love and fortune.

The Witch’s Toolkit: Everything You Need to Know for Making Fast Magic Part I

Your Essential Tools

Your altar is the center of your enchantments, your personal power space. A Wiccan altar is where you place symbolic and functional items for the purpose of spells and ritual work as well as a space for speaking chants and prayers. Your altar can— and should—evolve and change with the seasons.

Your Book of Shadows is a journal of your choosing in which you write down your magical workings and notes. When you track the effectiveness of a ritual, you can use this to refine your spellcraft in the future and your power will increase.

Candles are truly essential and contain all four of the elemental energies:

* Air—Oxygen feeds and fans the candle flame.

* Earth—The solid wax forms the candle.

* Water—Melted wax is the fluid elemental state.

* Fire—The flame sparks and blazes.

You can “dress” or anoint the candle with a couple of drops of essential oil on the side of the candle using a dropper or cotton ball. Go with your instinct on choosing sizes, shapes, and colors. I recommend keeping an array of options on hand. Different candle colors can enhance your spells and many of the rituals in this book suggest specific colors.

Magical knives: An athame (pronounced “a-thaw-may”) is your magical knife and should be placed on the right side of your altar. The athame is used to direct the energies raised in your ritual and usually has a dull blade. Since black is the color that absorbs energy, athames should have a dark handle. A bolline is a white-handled knife that is used for making other tools and for cutting materials, such as cords and herbs, within a magic circle. You can cut a branch to create your wand, for example.

Brooms (or “besoms”) have certainly captured the popular imagination as the emblem of witches. Using a broom as a magical tool came about from sweeping the ritual area clean before and after casting a spell. Now they’re mostly used in symbolic energy management.

Cauldrons represent the Goddess (also called Source or divine power), their round basins symbolizing the womb from whence all comes. A cast iron cauldron can hold fire and can even be used to burn incense or purifying sage. You can place a cauldron on your altar if there is room, or on the floor to the left of the altar.

Pot of Gold: An Abundance Altar Blessing

Cauldron magic is more about the act of brewing something new than it is about purification by water. To attract money, fill a big pot with fresh water and place it on your altar during the waxing moon. Pour into it an offering of a cup of milk mixed with honey. Toss handfuls of chamomile, woodruff, moss, and vervain into the cauldron. With your hands raised, say aloud:

I call upon you, gods and goddesses of old, to fill my purse with gold. In return, I offer your honey’s gold and mother’s milk. With harm to none and blessings to thee, I honor you for bringing me health and prosperity.

Place the offering bowl on your altar and leave the aromatic mixture there to imbue your space with the energy of abundance. When the magic has been fulfilled (or before the milk and herbs begin to spoil, pour it outside your home into the ground and bow in appreciation of the kindness of the gods and goddesses.