Its a sad state of affairs when folks hit rock bottom - one I've been hearing more and more about over the past few months. It seems the tax-time slowdown was more than a good chunk of society could handle, and now there are more than a few of you looking to pick yourself back up.

I hope to provide some guidance here, as that can feel like a pretty miserable place to be.

The image I've chosen above is a fair means of capturing the essence of descending to your nadir. When one achieves that state of being at the lowest point in their arc, its easy to get side-tracked by despair and feel like the whole world's against you and you'll never get out.

This state of mind is something of a trick, though.

I know, it sounds cliche, but think about it: When you finally hit that point where everything else has been stripped away, you're finally clean. You aren't clothed in finery that traps you, and you're not really bound to anyone or anything. You've given all there is to give and others have taken all there is to take.

From that point forward, you've got optionality. You can cultivate brand new means of generating wealth, making yourself happy, and choose to start over if the thought appeals to you.

So embrace the Fool when you seek to restart your journey. He's a pretty solid advisor when the going gets rough, as he's endured it all before. ;)

Be well,
​SE

Saw this one earlier today & thought it worth sharing.

So many things in life require an inordinate amount of work to achieve.....often times, the effort seems so burdensome as to not be worthwhile. Don't trick yourself into thinking this way.

Instead, stick to your guns and drive the point you seek to make home until you've achieved that goal. Then, set new goals for yourself and work to achieve the "barely impossible" again in the future.

As long as your goals are realistic, they should be achievable.

Happy conjuring!
​SE

Greetings folks. Hope you guys and gals had a great weekend. :)

As a continuation of the last topic (on one's mindset), I'd like to talk a bit about how we put our minds in order.

By now, you folks are probably pretty aware of how our mindset is rather important. When we're up in a tizzy, it tends to mess with us a fair deal. What gets us into this semi-frenetic state isn't so important, as life is full of stresses; instead, getting out is important.

If you're a mess and need to sort yourself out, the following list of tips should help you.

This might seem a bit over-the-top, but if you're in a bad situation that has heretofore prevented you from sorting yourself out, its time to withdraw. Take a step back for a time, stop playing the game that's upsetting you, and adopt a wider view.

There's a overwhelming tendency to over-commit to something because it seems like the only path to joy. If it is, then this advice won't work for you. If it isn't, which is considerably more likely, taking a step back and focusing on you is key.

Much of our stress comes from an overwhelming lack of much-needed clarity. When you're too close to the situation, you're more than likely going to lose the forest for the trees.

Use the distance you created with step 1 to collect your thoughts. If you're not sure what to make of something, seek advice. You can talk to a trusted friend or diviner and get their take on what's happening around you.

Once you have a better understanding of what's going on in whatever situation was stressing you out, use that new information to plan a way forward.

If a business deal is upsetting you, and there's a specific person in that deal that seems to be the linchpin of what ails you, target them. Think tactically and come up with a means of starting a chain reaction that works for you. Plan your steps carefully, then enact them in the order that seems most effective, respecting proper timing along the way.

The point of this step is to use your newfound awareness most effectively. When you come back, you want to be strong & well-prepared. If you're not, this hiatus wasn't worth it.

Take some time, once your plan is formed, to take care of you. Pamper the heck out of yourself. Go see a movie and have a nice meal. If you're a drinker, spoil yourself with a good Scotch (or whatever else appeals to you). Use this time to unwind and get your head ready for the challenges to come.

If you're to return, as in step 5, you want to be mentally ready to do so. ;)

Finally, come back to the world ready & willing to take care of business. Enact your plan smartly & carefully. Make sure each step you take is wisest, and pay attention to what's going on around you.

Be well,
​SE

Your mindset is everything. No, I am not kidding, so I'll say it again: your mindset is everything. It might not seem like much, at first, but how you respond to stimuli, your thought processes, what you feel, what you think of, how inspiration strikes, what effect it has, and how you just go about your day to day life depends heavily upon what's happening in your gray matter.
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In my life & line of work, I've seen a lot of cray cray things. Spirits manifesting out of nothing, folks getting ridden by unseen phantoms, possessions, light shows, flames going nuts without an apparent cause, and so on. Some of it alarming, and some of it is pretty cool.

All of that pales in comparison to what's going on inside our headspace. Its a world all its own, and so few of us spend any time really paying attention o what's happening there. That's a shame, and its a bad idea to be that ignorant of something that drives all that we do.

Just something to consider before I get into the reason for this post....

A gent posted a query on an older post of mine that got me thinking about what can best be termed as the "Magical Mindset" and how it influences one's work. Its something that seems to be either misunderstood or otherwise conveyed in such overly scientific terms as to render itself useless, so I'll take a stab at it here.

Any time you're looking to do magical work, be it through conjuration, prayer, sigils, rootwork, or some combination of the above, you're looking to effect change in the world around you through the sacred act. By interfacing with this tech, you're literally looking to terraform the world to your standards, and that requires something more than the day-to-day POV we all have. When you're simply "Bob who works Construction", you might be well-ascquainted with building things, but you're not bloody likely to be all that comfortable with directing the construction of something (unless you happen to be the Foreman).

This might seem a bit silly, but its worth mentioning that boots-on-the-ground construction worker will see things differently than the Foreman. You're concerned with making things fit together such that each other person around you can do their job unimpeded, but you're not really focusing on how to make it easier for everyone to do their job, nor are you looking at what it takes for them to carry out their function.

Likewise, in magic, to effectively create change in accordance with your will, you need to see the playing field differently. How you get to that state of mind isn't really important, but achieving that state and using it appropriately is absolutely crucial to making magic work effectively for you.

Now, there is no way for me to adequately convey what that feeling is or even how to get there. Its different for all of us, but you'll feel it when you get there.

For me, slipping into this state of mind is a bit like stepping into an open doorway. Its not difficult, and it happens with a subtle intellectual/emotional shift. Pride doesn't really have a place there, and neither does wrath or any other such distraction. Instead, its something akin to a place of raw analysis and utter competence. Its my "comfortable place", in a manner of speaking, though the words fail to convey the point effectively.

If you're looking to get there, try different methods of attaining that zone. For some, its sex that gets 'em there. For others its running, jumping, pushups, meditation, masturbation, self-flagellation, prayer, singing, or something else. So I recommend you experiment until you find that thing that gets you there.

Then do it again, and again, and again until it becomes second nature to you. You can do it, but it will take time.

Happy magic'ing.
SE

For you Star Wars fans out there, may the 4th be with you. :)

#HanShotFirst

In this time of need and financial desperation, I've been noticing that there's been a great deal of interest in getting out-from-under bad debts, vocational entrapment, and in finding better financial straits. Knowing this, I'd like to help.

In this post, I'll be providing several means of helping yourself to achieve success. Some of these things will be magical, whereas others will be somewhat more mundane. Many float somewhere in the middle of those two extremes, as magic is amazing at helping you to grease the wheels.

For those of you who are familiar with Geoff Gray-Cobb, Elubatel is something of an old hand at success rites. Whether E appears to you as male or female, it's essence is powerful and generally pretty positive.

I highly recommend printing this sigil out and lighting a daily offertory candle to Elubatel. It certainly can't hurt.

Jason Miller talks about this a lot in his work, and I feel similarly: offerings are very important. Its like giving thanks for the help you've gotten from others, only it can include spirits too.

To use an analogy, If you're living in a neighborhood and one of your neighbors is generous & friendly, and another is sort of a stingy jerk, you're more likely to help the nice guy out when he needs it. Offerings make you the nice neighbor, and so they really can't be overused in my experience.

Whether you decide to light incense for the spirits around you or pour booze out for them, take the time to do so. Over a few weeks you'll likely notice a substantial shift in your life.

Yep, I know. For some of you, this is the scourge of all that is holy. We frequently don't want to take physical actions to sort ourselves out, but this is an important one.

Take the time to dust off your home, clean your magical goods, reconsecrate them, and remove extraneous crap from your home.

Do you have a bunch of stuff you no longer use, or clothes you no longer wear? Time to take those things to Goodwill (or another such establishment) to donate them, as the very act of donating things can be seen as an offering too.

The less clutter and distraction you have, the better. You don't want to have more & more stuff getting in the way of your focus, as it screws up your energy flow and messes with your juju.

Once you've cleared out your home, its time to do the same thing with your mind.

As time allows, find yourself a comfortable place to relax, sit yourself down with some pleasant-smelling incense and retreat inwards. Close your eyes, stop moving your lips, and just watch what comes to the surface.

Don't try to interact with these things. Just take note of them and keep a journal.

Generate some good-will and aim it at yourself. This might seem like derpy new-age material, but you're a complex organism with a great deal going on. You need to take care of you, just as much as you're inclined to take care of others.

Put another way, generate some good vibes for yourself. Light candles with the intention of looking after yourself. It wouldn't be wrong to view blessings as offerings for the self. :)

If you believe in a higher power, work with Saints, or otherwise have a specific Divine avenue you'd like to use to better your life, backing your work up with prayer is a good way to go.

Pray for happiness, monetary success, and financial health. Those are good goals that most spirits aren't going to take issue with.

For those of you that are like me and secretly love sigil magic (well, not so secretly here), yep, I'm telling you to play around and have it.

In doing all of the above things, you'll have primed yourself for having the mental attitude necessary for magic, so sigils are a good way to go. Here are a few to get you started:

If you can't be positive, be neutral.

Its a simple enough statement, but take it to heart. The calmer you are about your situation, the more available you'll be when opportunity strikes.

Blessings,
SE