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Candle Magick
Talisman Winterhawk L.C.W. U.L.C. PhD.
As in ancient times before civilization, fire has always been used to
promote a feeling of safety and warmth. When our fore barriers found that
sticks in the fire would burn longer and brighter with the fat from a kill on
it the first candles were born.
Fire has always held a sacred position in the hearts of human kind. The use
of candles whether from animal fat or bees wax were common by the 5th Century
A.D.
In the Middle Ages they found that bark from trees, berries, and other dyes
could be added to the fat or wax for coloration. Michelangelo used ores to
give candles a blue color. The Catholic Church found that using red candles
brought a higher level of energy to their Hi Mass. Our Wicca mothers used to
add hemp or aloe to green candles for financial gain.
With the advent of color psychology we now know why yellow would be a good
color to stimulate the intellect. The full list of candle colors and their
associations are as follows:
- White Day - Monday, Planet - Moon, Purity, Truth, Sincerity, Hi
Spiritual Ideals.
- Gold Day - Sunday, Planet - The Sun, Attraction, Persuasion, Charm,
Confidence. Zodiac sign - Leo
- Yellow Day - Wednesday, Planet - Mercury. Stimulates the intellect.
Anything to do with the mind or the brain. Business. Zodiac sign -
Gemini
- Green Day - Friday, Planet - Venus. Vitality. Money. Balance. Zodiac sign
- Virgo and sometimes Taurus
- Blue Day - Thursday, Planet - Jupiter, Lighter... Tranquility,
Understanding, Patience, Health. Darker... Impulsiveness, Depression,
Changeability. Zodiac sign - Sagittarius The more teal or blu green
belongs to Aquarius
- Red Day - Tuesday, Planet - Mars. Lighter... Honor, Love, Morality. Mid
rage... Hi levels of energy. Sexual energy. Darker... Martial pursuits,
hate, vengeance. Zodiac sign - Aries, darker red - Scorpio
- Orange Encouragement, Adaptability, Stimulation, Attraction. Zodiac sign -
Taurus
- Purple Day - Saturday, Planet - Saturn, Ambition, Power, Royalty,
Darker... Restriction. Zodiac sign - Capricorn and Pisces. The more
lavender belongs to Libra
- Brown No day or hour. Planet - Earth. Keeps thing as they are. The darker
the color the more stagnant things become.
Black Reversing, absorbing.
- Silver / Gray Cancellation, Neutrality, More Silver... True Moon Psychic
Powers. Zodiac sign - Cancer
What is on the following page is a list derived from several of my teachers
and my own experience:
Table Of Mental Poisons
- 1. Emotions Resentment. Bitterness. Hatred.
Symptoms Skin rash. Blood disorders. Boils. Allergies. Heart disorders.
Joint pain.
- To Cause: Black
- To Cure: White
- 2. Emotions Confusion. Anger. Frustration.
Symptoms Common cold. Pneumonia. All respiratory problems.
- To Cause: Red
- To Cure: Green
- 3. Emotions Anxiety. Inpatients. Greed.
Symptoms High blood pressure.Ulsers. Near sightedness. Deafness.
Heart attacks.
- To Cause: Orange
- To Cure: Blue
- 4. Emotions Cynicism. Pessimism. Defeatism.
Symptoms Low blood pressure. Anemia. Polio. Diabetes. Leprosy. Kidney
disorders. Low income.
- To Cause: Dark blue
- To Cure: Pink
- 5. Emotions Revulsion. Fear. Guilt.
Symptoms Accidents. Cancer. Bad Blood. Stammering. Poor sex life.
Failure. Poverty
- To Cause: Sick yellow/green
- To Cure: White
- 6. Emotions Antagonism. Inferiority. Introversion.
Symptoms Allergies. Headaches.Heart murmur. Accidents. Lack of Friends.
- To Cause: Gray
- To Cure: Yellow
There are several very good books on Candle Magick but my favorite one is,
"The Candle Burning Encyclopedia" by Tina Ketch. It may be geared a little
more to xians than Wiccan but the colors and causes hold true. It is also
cross referenced and indexed.
Why does Candle Magick Work
As a candle burns it releases not only it's wax but it's color into the
atmosphere. What ever has been connected with the candle as in the form of
embedded energy or written on the candle will transmigrate to a plane where
it can do what you have intended and focused on it to do.
A candle, like everything else used for a magickal purpose, has to be
consecrated. Use the general consecration for candles. They are creatures of
Fire or of Art.
After consecration a candle must be dressed. This consists of anointing the
candle with a special oil you have chosen for the purpose in mind. If you are
drawing money to you I would suggest "Money Draw". If you are healing a
friend I would use "Health" oil. The recipes for these and other oils and
incense are in Herman Staler's, "Magical Formulary" or Scott Cummingham's.
Both are excellent.
To dress a candle correctly, dab some oil on your finger (and be liberal)
touching the top of the candle say, "As Above". Touch the bottom and say, "So
Below". Starting at the center touch the candle with more oil and move your
finger to the top. Lift you finger off and place it again in the center and
stroke the candle to the bottom. Do NOT move your finger in an up and down
motion. This confuses the energies. Do this until the candle is coated.
There are many other things you can do to embed a candle to your purpose.
You can etch runes in it; a name on it; a purpose for it to perform.. Really
the list is endless.
Remember the chapter on timing? This is where it comes in handy. If you are
doing a Solar spell consult the table for the proper hour, i.e., Sunday on a
Sun hour. Consult the celestial guide to see if Mars and Saturn are not
square, in opposition or conjunct to your purpose (unless you are trying to
reck havoc... watch that Karma) and that the Moon is not V/C. (void of
course). For a spell that is to bring things to you the Moon needs to be
"waxing" . For a repelling or banishing spell the Moon needs to be "waning".
Simple Spells, Mixed Spells, and Complex Spells
All the formulas given here have the same basic concepts. They are Timing,
Intend and Focus. For timing one would go to the Astrological tables
(celestial guide), Days and Hours table. For focus the Magical Herb table,
perhaps Gems too, and last but not least the Oil and Incense formularies.
(Not eazy being a Witch is it?). Next decided whether the spell is going to
need a Deity push (invoking the God and Goddess of your choice) or maybe just
an elemental. Decided how much power this spell will need. (You wouldn't use
a nuclear weapon to blow out a match but you do want to make sure that the
spell will work.)
Simple Candle Spell
A simple candle spell consists of usually one candle of the necessary color,
the special purpose oil and the matching incense. The spell will be performed
on the correct time with all necessary symbols ingraved on the candle. The
candle is lit and allowed to burn all the way down at one time.
Mixed Candle Spells
This gets alittle more complicated. There are 1 day spells as the one above,
3 day spells, 7 day spells, 14 and 21 day spells. I have yet to see a 28 day
spell work. (Something about the Moon going full circle nulifying the
spell...try it if you don't believe me..).
A 3,7,14,21 day spells all have the same thing in common. They are started
on the appropriate hour and last only one hour per day, that is to say... If
we are doing a Solar spell we would start on a Sunday in the first hour (Sun
hour for that day) and let the candle burn for only one hour. The next day we
would light the candle in the first hour which would be a Moon hour on a Moon
day. Lastly we would light the candle again on the first hour of the last day
and that would be a Mars hour on a Mars day letting the candle burn all the
way down on the third day.
A note here about putting out candles. DO NOT BLOW OUT A CANDLE. Snuff it.
Blowing out a candle finalizes the energy not to mention pissing of the Fire
elemental. The only time you would blow out a magickal candle is when you
need and emergency STOP. There will be a backlash so be prepaired.
Irregardless if the Moon is V / C on any of the other days you would still
follow through just as long as when you started the spell the Moon was in a
possitive aspect to your intent.
Adding power is really a simple process. Before starting the spell write a
chant that you will do upon lighting the candle each day. Once the process
of the spell is underway (the candle is lit) one could write a petition to a
Deity or an elemental using Dragons Blood Ink on parchment and burn it with
the incense in the thurible. Further, one could use a sigil or seal and do
the same thing. A sigil or seal can be placed under the candle and burned
later after the spell is complete. The combinations are endless.
Specific gems and stones can be placed around or near the candle to give it
more power. Herbs can be embedded or sprinkled around the alter area for more
potential too.
Complex Candle Spells
Complex candle spells require some space. The idea behind them is that you
are building a world with candles and influencing that world by moving the
candles around as you would have events move in the physcial plane. When
candles move toward something then that "thing" is getting closer to the
person the spell is for. As the candles move away from a person then that
"thing" is moving away in turn.
In a complex spell there are many factors to contemplate. What color candles
do I use for what. What different incenses and oils for what candle and how
many different sigils or seals are necessary?
Before attempting the complex varity I would suggest reading all the
information there is. These are the hardest to reverse.
In general a candle spell looks like this:
Gather materials ie., what color candle, type oil and incense. Will I need
inks? Will I need to write on the candle? Do I need to invoke the God and
Goddess? What is the Timing?
- Cast a circle ( not absolutely necessary but I do it).
- Consecrate candle
- Write on candle (if desired)
- Dress Candle
- Write petition (if using one)
- Add incense to thuaible
- Light Candle and meditate on intent
- Burn petition in thurable ( if using one)
When the spell is complete if you are trying to invoke something cast the
ashes to the wind and bury the excess wax in a secret place. If you are
banishing something.. Throw the remains in the garbage.
To reverse a candle spell
(this works for most other spells too)
Gather all melted wax, burned incense, recopy all sigils, seals and even
the chant used in the spell you want to reverse or stop. ( Sometimes it
isn't available due to throwing things to the wind or puting things in the
garbage... get what you can!) Gather up a gray candle. You will need
reversing oil and incense.
On a waning Moon duly cast a circle. Place the candle in the middle of the
alter. Place all the items from the spell you want reverse or stop around the
gray candle. Using your athame point at the gray candle and say:
These things have I enmagicked be will now cease to exisist,
Go back the way you have begun, cease now and desist.
With harm to none and no alarm the energies disipate,
Return all things now as they were, I relinquish them to fate.
Nema, Nema, Nema
(make banishing Earth Pentagram and light candle)
(let burn all the way)
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