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🕉 Witchcraft 101: Casting the Circle 🕉

Cast the Circle thrice about

To keep unwelcome Spirits out.

Bind it whole, and bind it well

To serve as altar for my spell.

Mark this ground with all my soul

To consecrate with my control.

The sacred Circle is one of the oldest and most powerful tools of witchcraft. The shape of the Circle symbolizes the unity of nature; the unending cycle of life, death, and rebirth; and most importantly, a structure with no corners, no weak spots, no vulnerability. Casting a magick Circle can provide protection, seclusion, power, focus, and a host of other benefits. It is arguably the first piece of magick a witch should learn when exploring ritual work, and it can serve you in an endless number of ways.

In short, a Circle is a place of power designated by a Witch exclusively for a spell or ritual. The Witch consecrates this space with their energy and declares it to be theirs and theirs alone for the duration of the spell. This area is bounded by a physical circle which no energy can cross without the permission of the Witch.

Circles have been utilized by various magickal traditions for thousands of years, and over that time they have taken many different forms. Almost every tradition has a different method for designing a Circle, casting a Circle, and using a Circle. In this post, I will be discussing my own personal method of Circle casting, along with some traditional methods.

What are Circles used for?

Traditionally, a Circle is cast at the very beginning of any ritual. Before any spirits are summoned, before any gods are invoked, perhaps even before any candles are lit, a Witch will cast a Circle around the area they’ll be performing magick in.

When utilized like this, a Circle has three functions:

1) Establishing a Place of Power

A Circle designates a specific area as separate from the world around it. In a way, you are taking this physical space and removing it from space and time. Outside of the Circle the world continues to go about its unending business, but within the Circle, all energy is dedicated towards the completion of the spell.

This aids the witch in achieving the state of gnosis required for the spell. By removing yourself from the human world around you, you are declaring that you are more than human. You are reclaiming a piece of your spiritual godhood, and I find that this is very lucrative for tapping into that special “energy” of magick (if you’ve experimented with deep states of magickal gnosis, you’ll know what I’m talking about).

2) Protection

This is possibly the oldest use of the Circle, which can be traced back to Ancient Greek and Zoroastrian Craft. In some ways, a Circle is the most basic form of a Ward. You are creating an energetic barrier around yourself and your space that prevents any random energies or spirits from wandering into your spell.

Some of the earliest known rituals involving Circles were summonings and evocations. In this function, the magician would enclose themself in a special protective Circle before conjuring a spirit or deity. As long as they remained within the Circle, the being could do them no physical or spiritual harm.

3) Focusing Energy

This function partially relates to the first function I mentioned, creating a place of power. When performing a spell or ritual, you are essentially constructing a special, high-vibrational energy to be released into the universe. Utilizing a Circle helps to encase this special energy, allowing you to freely manipulate it without interference and without the energy dissipating into the environment around you.

How do you cast a Circle?

A precise method for casting a Circle is hard to pin down, just because they are so unique to each individual practitioner, and there are so many different methods that exist already. In general, though, a basic Circle can be cast with three simple steps:

1) Purify the space

Using any preferred method of purification, purify the space you’ll be performing your ritual in of all disruptive energies. One of the most effective and traditional methods is to burn a purifying incense, such as sage, thyme, frankincense, sandalwood, etc.

For those of you who can’t burn incense for whatever reason, this can also be achieved with sound vibrations (singing, ringing bells, etc.), visualization (manually clearing the space with your own energy), spraying herbal water in the area (a common new age type of cleansing), or any other type of purification you may utilize.

2) Mark the Boundary of the Circle

Mark the boundary of your Circle on the ground. This can be done with salt, chalk, a crystal grid, sticks, leaves, oil, water, or any number of other methods. A Circle can also be traced in the ground if you are standing in sand, dirt, gravel, etc.

A common misconception about Circles is that they have to be physically marked on the ground. This simply isn’t true, though. If you lack the materials, space, or ability to physically create a Circle around you, you can also mark the ground with a Circle through visualization.

Close your eyes, and visualize your energy tracing a Circle in the ground around you and your sacred space. A visualization thats often helpful for me is imagining a Circle of fire igniting around me, but use whatever visualization works best for you.

3) Enchant the Circle and Make It Yours

This step is the most unique from practitioner to practitioner. Every Witch does things a bit differently, but essentially, the last step is to consecrate your Circle to protect this space from invasion and to focus the energies within towards your will.

I commonly perform this step with a simple spoken spell that goes something like:

Hear my words, for they are sacred.

Feel my power, for it is manifest.

I consecrate this Circle as my place of power, wherein I and I alone have total dominion.

I mark its border upon the ground, and by my power, I declare that nothing may enter here without my invitation.

As I command, so must it be.

Final Thoughts on Circles

• This is a very simple type of Circle. While it is perfect for keeping out stray energies and weaker spirits (like ghosts or nature energies), it is reliant solely upon your own strength. Depending on how effectively you cast it, it may not be enough to keep out stronger or more malevolent energies.

• A Circle can be strengthened through any number of methods, such as marking its border with charged crystals or designing an intricate Circle using sigilcraft. Research, experiment, and find out what works best for you.

• A very common method of strengthening a Circle is by evoking the Four Elements/Watchers, which I will discuss in a future post.

• After casting a Circle, make sure to invite in any spirits/deities that you evoke in your ritual. If you summon them to you but don’t invite them into your Circle, they may be present but will be unable to interact with you or your spell.

• After completing your ritual working, be sure to unbind/release your Circle. This will deconsecrate the space and release the energy you’ve created into the universe for manifestation.

Be safe, and Happy Witching! 🕉

by Cat Mallard

Energy Manipulation Guide: Sensing Energy

Hello lovely followers! Recently I’ve gotten an influx of questions about energy manipulation and decided to get around and do a manual about it. Disclaimer, these are all based on my experiences!

What is energy manipulation and why is it so important:

Energy manipulation is just what it sounds like. The manipulation of energy both in you and around you. It’s important because it is a fundamental key in the practice of magic. At its core, magic is energy. It becomes magic when it is manipulated by the castor, witch, or practitioners to do their bidding. 

The first part in this guide will deal with sensing energy. We won’t necessarily be manipulating it today. Sensing energy is perhaps the first step of actually working with energy, as you must sense it to be able to manipulate it. Here, i’ll be going through several different techniques. 

First and foremost, I want to go through a general technique that can be used for both meditations and centering yourself.  

Deep Breathing: 

This is simply a technique that combines both meditation and moving the energy around in your body. In my experience, I am drawing from both energy from the universe, and bringing it into my body, while also expelling negative energy within me. 

This is a simple way to get your energies moving while also cleansing yourself of negative energy. 

You will need to either sit up or lay down. let your palms lay upward, and close your eyes. 

Now, all you have to do is breathe.  As you inhale deeply, envision pure, golden light from the universe coming into your body. This is pure, cleansing energy, Energy that will help and cleanse you. Feel it going in through your nose, down your throat and into your lungs. Feel the warmth. 

On your exhale, envision dark energy leaving your body. This is negative energy, the energy that is weighing you down. These are your anxieties, stresses, and insecurities. Give them to the universe, and let the universe cleanse you. 

Focus on breathing in the energy, and breathing it out. Focus on your breathing. Occasionally you’ll have other thoughts, but that’s fine. Just gradually return to your breathing. 

The Hand Technique:

This technique will be good for those of us who are good at visualization. For beginners, i recommend you get into your deep breathing state. You don’t have to be in a deep meditative state, simply calm your mind, and prepare to focus on something. 

Step one: Sit down. If you have back trouble, then you can also do this laying down. All it requires is that your palms are upright. 

Step two: Hold your hand out forward, palm facing upward. If you have trouble supporting your arm for long periods of time like i do, simply let your elbow rest on your knee, the arm of your chair, etc. Allow your arm to be supported. 

Step three: Look at your arm. Really look at it. Find a focal point that you’ll allow your energy can stem from. When you find this place, I want you to imagine a stream of energy flowing from this focal point into your palm. Envision it like water dripping down your arms, and pooling into your palm.  After a while of doing this, you should either feel tingling, pressure, or warmth. Keep in mind, these are things that I felt, but usually, you can take any abnormal situation as a sign of energy being felt and moved. 

 The Crystal Technique: 

This technique is especially good for those of us who have trouble visualizing things. You will be using aid in order to do this technique, and while I suggest a gemstone, any living thing will suffice. 

 Find a gemstone of your choice. My go-to for high energy is typically smoky quartz and amethyst. After you have centered yourself (use the deep breathing technique), place the gemstone in your palm, and begin applying the deep breathing technique again. In this instance, you won’t have to visualize, just breath and feel the crystal in your hand. Be aware of its presence.  For some, you will begin to feel a tingling right away, or a warmth. The gemstone will typically give off its vibrations. 

If you’re having trouble feeling this, I would consider rubbing your hands together. This sounds funny, but it will get the energy in your hands working. 

*Typically, when I do this, I envision a swirl underneath the gemstone, like a whirlpool, and allow my energy to interact with the gemstones energy. 

*make sure the gemstone is cleansed, especially if it is clear quartz. I’ve done this technique before with one that wasn’t, and my arm was in pain for an hour. 

And that’s the basics of sensing energy, or how it was for me! Please share this around, and feel free to ask any questions if you have them. Next time I’ll be posting ways to actually manipulate energy. 

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witchcraft 101: veiling!

today we’re gonna be discussing veiling. veiling is the act of covering your hair/head either partially or fully. this could be anything from wearing a bandana to wearing a full coverage headscarf.

there are many reasons why a pagan or witch may participate in veiling, here are a few:

as a reminder of a connection with a deity (usually deities such as hestia but it can be any deity)

as an offering or devotional act to a deity

as a reminder of what is above us

to cover or protect the crown chakra

to help with grounding

for shielding (this is often used by empaths)

to focus power or focus the mind

to signify adulthood/womanhood (!! this does not mean that men or nonbinary people can’t veil!! i’m nonbinary and i veil a lot)

as a practise of modesty

because it brings comfort to a person

in old traditions, a witches hair is said to be a measure of their power so people cover their hair in order to protect it

often people veil during rituals as it helps them get in the right mindset

i hope you guys found this helpful!! if you know of any other reasons to veil let me know but these are probably the most common ones used.

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Hi friends! I don’t normally like making posts like this, but times are a little tough and I don’t have many places to go. 

With that being said, I am currently very tight on money. I currently work two jobs and both have cut down on hours considering it’s the “off season”. I have been in severe pain since September 2020 and it can be very difficult for me to even get out of bed. In May I am finally seeing a doctor! I do not have health insurance so I am paying for everything out of pocket. I am currently struggling to even pay bills at the moment. 

Due to work not having many hours to give, I am attempting to work more on my shop in attempts to make a little extra income. My shop has died down quite a bit and am not getting any orders. 

Most things on my shop are inexpensive, and I put a lot of love into my orders! Even if you can’t afford to buy anything I appreciate any reblogs! Sharing my shop helps a lot more than you think. If you want to help out, but the things on my shop aren’t really your thing, I get that, I also have a cashapp which is $smallplum 

Like I said I don’t normally make posts like this of any kind, and I don’t like asking for help, but unfortunately it has come to the point I need to. 

Some things baby witches should know

Scrolling through witchtok -ew- I've come across a ton of misinformation, even some one here. So I've decided to put together a small list of things I feel like baby witches should know.

1. Not all spells need to be in a jar

2. Deities don't talk to you like normal people do

3. You don't have to be wiccan to be a witch

3. You don't need to be religious to be a witch

4. Not every herb is safe to burn

5. Most essential oils cannot go on your skin

6. Some herbs/teas can have side effects

7. Do not try to cleanse your outdoor space regularly. Say youre doing a one time spell, yeah sure but nature doesnt need to be cleansed

8. DO NOT PUT SALT ON THE GROUND, PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GODS.

9. There are other pantheons beside the Greek.

10. The Greek gods are nothing like Percy jackson

11. Shifting is NOT apart of witchcraft

12. Your pet does not automatically become your familiar

13. Entity work/Deity work requires at least 2 years of practice and research IMO

14. Keeping a BOS/Grimoire is not needed but will help you...A LOT

15. You do not need to attend every holiday or full moon

16. CLEANSE THE LID TO YOUR JAR ASWELL AS THE JAR