If you found yourself in good spirits at the end of the evening yesterday, you'll want to do an offering to the Powers That be as a means of giving them thanks for the boons you've received.

Procure for yourself one white candle, rose petals, rose hips, wine, and a photo of your honey. Create for the candle a bed a rose petals and hips, pour a glass of wine, and set the candle up so that it is near the herb base but cannot set it aflame. Take the picture of your missus or mister and place it to the right of the candle. The glass of wine should be placed to the left.

Light the candle and give a simple prayer of thanks. This should be in your own words, and you should include a relationship-focused blessing requesting even more good times in the coming year.

Simple, but effective.
Have a great day folks!
​-SE

May you and your loved ones have a most enjoyable time this evening.

For those of you who find yourself unattached today, engage in some self-care, connect with your Powers & Potencies, do something kind for yourself and stand tall. 

Blessings,
​SE

There’s this minimalist trend going around right now thanks to Marie Kondo’s show on Netflix titled “Tidying Up with Marie Kondo”, and it’s gotten me thinking about this in a spiritual context. This idea of questioning whether or not things bring you joy is pertinent in mundane matters, but it also matters insofar as magical and spiritual efforts are concerned.   In both, it’s easy to get bogged down by too many things, focusing less on experiences and growth and more on the hallmarks of whatever success you’re chasing. As such, it’s important to consider the ramifications of what these projects and processes entail. 

How many altars do you have? How many talismans? How many ongoing works? How many decks of tarot cards, sets of runes, etc.? It’s a pretty unfortunate thing to take in, but much of magic has been commercialized by the lowest common denominator. There are those who are incredibly powerful & talented, and there are those who simply aren’t....we live in the day and age where the best-marketed product wins out over the better-quality product. 

Knowing this, how much of this baggage have you brought home to roost? How is that affecting your home, your goals, your life, your magic? This might just seem like a trendy way to insert myself into the discussion (and it is is), but this really is an extremely important topic to be considering. 

I, for instance, have loads of books about magical practice. I use them for inspiration, and sometimes as a means of getting a different viewpoint. I can count, however, on one hand how many of them have actually been useful or illuminating. Among them, the most beneficial have been texts like the Bible, the Qu’ran, the Rig Veda, and the Tao Te Ching. Otherwise, most of them are a dime a dozen. Every once in a while I’ll see a phenomenal book that’s entirely worthwhile....that’s pretty rare though. 

As I write this, you can bet that I’m taking stock of what I have on hand and what I actually use. To be honest, the ratio isn’t that good, and I’m a professional sorcerer by trade. For those of you shaking your heads right now, GOOD. That’s the point! If I’ve fallen prey to this, you sure as hell have too!

This isn’t a criticism, it’s a matter of being real and bringing us all back to brass tacks. For every amazing piece of inspiration, literature, or profoundly potent magical tooling, there’s at least a dozen polished turds & space-wasters. To use Alton Brown’s assessment, if it’s a “unitasker”, you need to consider whether or not it’s being used often enough to be worth the space and effort. 

Sometimes they are. More often than not, they aren’t. 

If you make this assessment and decide that various items are not for you, you should dispose of them properly. I’ve included below a ritual to do so, and this will work for most items. 

*note: books can always be traded in or donated. Do not treat them in the way I’ve described below, for they are a sacred thing.*

When endeavoring to work with spirits, self-development becomes a substantially important concern. How are you to perceive or work with them if you've failed to put yourself into a mode that allows for this kind of awareness?

We've discussed mindfulness via meditation many times over in the past, but how does one apply that to their day to day lives? The answer is simple, but the act isn't quite so: work to remain aware of what's occurring in your periphery at any moment in the day. 

When you're in your cubicle and responding to emails, take out your headphones, quiet the music, and keep your eyes and ears open to hear what's occurring in your immediate vicinity. Become aware of both the little and the big things, and simply take a mental note of them so that you can reflect on those details later in the evening. This might seem incredibly mundane, but spirits tend to interject between the words others speak, and they do so in moments of silence or pause. Sometimes this will manifest as a disembodied voice, or other times you'll mishear what others say in a way that actually gives you more information.

Its easy to write this off as a hallucination or a misdirect, but this is where the mindfulness comes in. If that information you've "misheard" ends up being correct, continue to follow it. If you do so correctly, you'll find yourself stepping-stoning your way into success with both the mundane and spiritual worlds, increasing your grasp of the conceptual knowledge needed in both. 

Magicians work in this world and the next. Thus, you should endeavor to do the same if you wish to be more readily able to conjure and work with spirits to advance your position.

Regards,
SE

​I've been spending a fair amount of time, over the past week, working with Raziel, an archangel who is said to have been present at the time of Creation. Not a whole lot is written about him, but that tends to be the case with spirits who are essentially abstracts unto themselves. Most folks are interested in what gives them money or gain, rather than in what allows them to be at one with the flow of the universe, so it stands to reason that he wouldn't really be a big hit at parties.

I'm not at liberty to share most of what's been shared with me, as I cannot yet claim to understand a good chunk of that data. However, what did come out as a useful talking point in all of this is confronting an idea of some pertinence where seeking after power and monetary benefit are concerned. 

We each have baggage to deal with on account of being human beings. We've all encountered some kind of adversity in our lives, and while the severity of those difficulties changes according to each of our personalities, the perceived impact of these trials and tribulations is more or less equal. We're going to struggle with one thing or another over the course of our lives, and according to Raziel, the events that stick with us have a tendency to become lead weights about our ankles.

If you find yourself in a situation where you're making no progress or the way is more difficult than you would have expected, consider what is holding you back. Sometimes it'll be other people, adverse circumstances, or a hex...when its not, however, the damage is more likely than not internal.....I would advise you to contemplate what fills your head and heart with sorrow so that you can then take steps against it. This isn't an easy road, by any means, and you are more than likely not fully at fault for whatever's occurred, but its your responsibility to handle these issues and get back on the road to success.

So by all means, find those chains and cast them off. You'll find that they've done far more to hold you back than you might initially expect.

Blessings,
Chris

We're welcoming in the Lunar New Year today, and the Year of the Pig is upon us. Pig's are, in the Chinese cosmology, associated with luck, optimism, and good things, so I'd like to wish you luck & loads of success!

Blessings!
Chris

Since we are all human beings, each of us experience anxiety & stress. We've got quite a lot to worry about, as we're seeing very real threats develop in front of us. We're bombarded with clickbaitey media on a day to day basis, and the news parades the latest hairfire in front of us to garner attention and viewership. Its all well and good to stay informed, but there's a point at which this can all become too much to process.

I seek to discuss this point a bit and give you some tools to handle it so that what was once too much becomes manageable and well within your control. To this end, if you find yourself stressed out without an obvious cause, take some time to quiet the mind. When you've achieved that state, ask yourself "what's bothering me right now?" and listen for an answer, whatever it may be.

There are times where that fear or concern is entirely legitimate in nature, and there are times where that internal response is laughable. If its a valid reason to be concerned, the next thing you want to ask yourself is "what can I do to take steps to remedy this situation?" and again, listen for answer. Repeat this process until you have an idea of what needs to be done next so that you can make yourself more comfortable.

You might find yourself in a situation where you're banging your head against a wall because there's no end in sight, but that's going to be relatively rare. This rather simple meditative exercise gives you a tool to first determine what's upsetting you, and secondly gives you the ability to brainstorm and respond to that perceived threat in a rapid fashion instead of simply agonizing over it. As you then take the steps necessary to resolve the trouble, you should begin to notice less fear and anxiety in response.

If, however, the trouble is something that you cannot make mundane steps to resolve, can you, through magical works, begin to create a situation in which steps can be taken? If so, do that, and then begin to take mundane steps in conjunction with the magical remedies applied, as you'll then make it possible to work against what was once an insurmountably difficult hurdle.

Seems pretty simple when written out in this way, no?

If you, however, find yourself in a situation wherein the stress is neither valid nor useful, you can take steps to minimize the fear itself. To do so, calm the mind then mix together benzoin, sage, and neroli (or substitute dried citrus peels). Use a mortar and pestle to pulverize the mixture, and then place the mixture in a dish. Place upon it a candle, light it and say the words "Stress from within me, I acknowledge you and lessen the loudness of your voice. You are valuable and wanted, but I have heard your words and make this choice."

When the candle has burned down, take the herbs and place them into a jar. Fill the jar with oil and consecrate it. Whenever you find yourself in a stressful place of mind, anoint your forehead with the oil and then go back to focusing on your endeavors. This creates a mental link, a magical link, and a mundane link to the point at which you've taken action against your stress, freeing you up to use the aforementioned exercise to deal with actual stresses instead.

Just something to think through and work with. Its a surprisingly handy tool.

Blessings,
SE

Greetings folks,

As many of you are aware, there's a massive polar storm causing crazy temperature drops throughout most of the US. If you're in an area affected by this, please be safe & stay warm. Layer up, get a fire going, and stay inside where possible.

Blessings,
Chris

​Greetings folks, I hope this Monday has greeted you well & that your respective weekends were enjoyable.

I've been exchanging emails with a dear friend of mine and something he said got me thinking about a concept worth bringing to the table: offerings of gratitude. In my line of work, one spends a lot of time working to bring various desires and wants into manifestation, and this gives me a greater field of data to observe and understand. Through much in the way of analysis on my part, I've found a few trends and I seek to share one of those trends with you today.

It has been my experience that those who are consistently thankful for what they've got tend to receive more in the way of boons than those who are selfish & entitled. Neither attitude is immune to disappointment, but both attitudes have a direct effect on the nature of the magical effects achieved, and the difference between what these mindsets receive in turn is generally pretty staggering.

There are paths in which this is simply understood, and this concept is essentially the basis for the ideas around the Law of Attraction. If we boil it down, the takeaway is essentially that by being positive & appreciative of the boons we have in our lives, we're going to enjoy more of those boons. With spirits like St. Expedite, its simply well known that if you thank him publicly, more good things tend to occur.

I would suggest that you use this to your advantage and offer thanks to the spirits you work with for any and all boons brought to your table. Be mindful of what you ask for and further mindful of what you receive in turn, as gratitude is a currency of serious worth. We all like to work for those who are appreciative of our efforts, and the same can be said for spirits. ;)

Blessings,
SE

One of the more consistent areas of discussion that comes to my door centers around the idea of creating opportunities. Its been my experience that folks often look to cultivate these wonderful circumstances through overt, powerful-feeling extremes, though that's not often the appropriate response.

It is instead more useful to edge forward, one step at a time, being mindful of what you're trying to create without overdoing it. Too much force applied at the wrong time will destabilize oneself enough that taking advantage of fortunate occurences will become arduous. Better instead to conserve energy while taking one step at a time, ever mindful of the ability to create advantageous circumstances through chain reactions.

In whatever you seek, be it friendship or love, gain or stability, these things are achieved through time and consistent efforts, not through grand displays. ;)

Blessings,
SE