Preparing for a ritual for beginners - what to do before any spell

2009-10-08T02:14:00Z

Today I am writing about how to prepare for a simple ritual. Even if you are just doing a basic candle spell, it is important to be in the right frame of mind. Whenever beginning spellcasters open spell books with pre-printed rituals in them, they usually just follow the instructions to the letter, but it is always important, even as a beginner, to learn to think outside the box. Many typical spell instructions go something like this:

Gather your ingredients and supplies
Light your candle
Say these words
Concentrate on what you want
Put out the candle.

But what they rarely tell you is how to get into the correct frame of mind, and how to protect yourself from outside forces that may obstruct your progress. It is important to have a clear mind when casting spells so you can put all your concentration into manifesting what you want. It is also important to protect yourself from negativity, which can come from external sources, and also from your own doubts and fears.

So here is a very simple way to center yourself and set up protective boundaries before beginning any spellwork.

The goal is to reach a relaxed mental state where you can clearly visualize what you want, and where normal thoughts will not interfere with the mental part of your manifestation.

1) Gather all the materials you need and read the spell through completely before you do anything. Once you get going in your mental process, you don’t want to have to stop and collect materials or worse yet, realize you forgot to buy something you needed. And yes, read the spell all the way through first— do the preparation work and don’t take shortcuts because you are feeling lazy or rushed, or you may shortchange yourself in the results of your spell.

2) Pick a time and a place where you will not be disturbed. Some spells suggest a certain time that they should be performed. If none is suggested, then do the spell any time that works for you. Always remember that magic must fit into your life, and nothing written down by people is the final word on anything, at least, not at the beginning level.

3) Turn off your phone, turn off the TV, lock the door. You must be able to concentrate without interruption and not have to feel anxiety about the possibility of being interrupted. If you have other people in the house, tell them you may not be disturbed for however long you think you will need.

4) Acknowledge whatever feelings you are having, and if they will not help you in your ritual, let them go. So, for example, if I have had a bad day, and I am coming home to do a prosperity spell, I allow all the frustrations of the day to come up in my mind, I see how I feel, and then I release them. I do not begin my magical work until I have a clear mind and I can concentrate on money and business success without irritating thoughts of my day creeping in to distract me.

This step takes as long as it takes—do not be discouraged if you one day only take five minutes and another day take half an hour or longer. Even after almost two decades of practice, each time is different for me.

This particular step may be more difficult in times of personal stress, like a divorce, trouble at work, etc. But it is by far the most critical part of preparing for spellwork, and this is a process you must make up that works for you.

If you simply can’t come to a relaxed and centered place in your mind, try doing vigorous exercise for ten or fifteen minutes—if you have stress in the body it is very easy to have stress in the mind. Body and mind are intricately connected, and thus it is important to take care of yourself physically, but that is a subject for another blog… this exercise can be running up and down stairs, running in place, jumping jacks, whatever you can think of. Exercise out the anxiety or at least tire yourself physically so you can more easily access the mental place where you can easily concentrate.

5) Test yourself to see if you are in a relaxed mental state—count backwards from 10 to 1 and see if you can actually concentrate on the counting without other thoughts creeping in. If they do, consider writing them down to remember later. Writing things down always helps. I often have a lot on my mind, so I keep a pen and paper close to my altar at all times, and if I start going over my “to-do” list, I just write it down so I won’t forget it later. If you find yourself not in that desired relaxed state, count backwards from 10 again, and if that doesn’t work, repeat step #3 and then this step #4 again.

6) Protect yourself by visualizing silver light coming from whatever positive source you feel comfortable with—this may be the earth, for Christians practicing magic it may be God, for pagans it may be the Goddess, for Muslims it may be Allah, for Buddhists it may be a universal force, etc. But wherever you see it coming from, see it blazing through your body and burning away all negativity. See it extend out from you in all directions as far as you can picture it. Say out loud something like “I am protected from all negativity. This space is protected from all interference that would block the success of my magical work. And so it is.”

Now perform your spell.

Welcome

2009-10-06T22:56:43Z

Welcome. This is the blog of Angellica Black, practitioner at The Magic Candle Shop. Our store is located online and based in Los Angeles, CA. Here I will be sharing my thoughts on spellcasting, magical work, and the other side, but also some case studies as I see fit.

Please note, these opinions are my own and not to be replicated without credit. If you would like to replicate any of the writings here, you are welcome to do so only if a link back to my site and full credit appears clearly at the top of the entry. For more information on this, contact angellica@magiccandleshop.com.

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Preparing for a ritual for beginners - what to do before any spell

Welcome