Celtic Magic
Ritual
Ritual is a system of transitory symbols and gestures formed in a liminal space to transition a person from an ordinary to an extraordinary state. This chapter will offer you a ritual system that is rooted in Celtic mythology and thought. Its function is not to replace your current ritualistic practice but to offer you a system that is not wholly reliant on the common Gardnerian-influenced rituals of modern Paganism. The function of this type of ritual is to offer you a portal that accesses the storehouse of Celtic wisdom by utilizing words, symbols, and energies that are indicative of Celtica. By performing these rituals you will be aligning yourself with a system that is rooted in the Celtic tradition. They will serve to enhance your practice and deepen your connection and relationship with the spirit of Celtica.
ª ª ª
Ritual is essential for effective magic in that it provides a space wherein we straddle the worlds—we leave behind the humdrum of ordinary reality and assume a magical reality. The symbols and gestures that we use take on many forms: they can be the particular use of language and words that may be presented in verse, the use of various tools and clothing, and the utilization of liminality—all of these things tell the mind that something extraordinary is about to happen.
Ritual is about preparation, and its focus is to cause the magician to enter a state that is betwixt and between the worlds, without preferring one over the other. Ritual induces a state that is conducive for magic, and that is why we use it.
Our reality is dense and material, and we are products of this reality, stuck within the solidity of our bodies and the world upon which we live. When we practice magic, the restrictions of the physical dimension become irrelevant; it is by the effective use of ritual that we learn to leave the limitations of the physical world and access the storehouse of magic that is just beyond the edge of reason.
Ritual acts as a bridge that connects the finite mind to the infinite mind; it serves to inform us that we are about to participate in something extraordinary. Effective magicians see, sense, and feel more than is apparent in the visible world, and it is ritual that is utilized as a conduit for this to happen. In order to sense the magical world, the ordinary senses must be temporarily disabled to allow for the subtle senses to be given voice, but they are normally overwhelmed by our tremendously sensory, vivid world. So we must quieten the noise of the ordinary to enable the subtle senses to rise and do their work. Without preparation, magic is ineffective. Ritual is the classroom of the magician, the place where the subtle senses are nurtured and the spirit is given a voice.
Generally we live busy lives. How often do we get an opportunity in our schedules to stop, unwind, and relax—to have some quality leisure time to ourselves or to spend with friends and family? Magicians are busy people; not only do they have jobs and families to contend with, they also have to make time for study and practice. Ritual facilitates this; it causes the temporary stopping of all that business. We rush here and there in our tasks, lost in the simple act of living, and yet magic asks for us to use our subtle senses, but how can we when we are so damned busy?
Ritual is the key. It provides the space that we need to breathe a little, to step out of humdrum and out of the rush of life and step into the magical persona that hides just beneath the veneer of ordinary. It’s always there; we just have to give it the space it needs to leave the shadows and become a part of our life. This is part of the discipline of magic; we must have ritual in order to become the sensing beings that we must become in order to be effective magicians. It causes us to listen.
Intent
At the heart of any magical act there must be firm and solid intent, and that intention must be grounded in integrity. If it isn’t, and things go horribly wrong or not quite in accordance with your desires, then you will have only yourself to blame. Magic comes with great responsibility, and the key to that is your ability to respond to all the variables. So to ensure that everything is taken into consideration, meticulously plan your magic ahead of time. Using oracles and systems of divination may, on the surface, seem a little excessive, but on the contrary, the utilization of such skills is vital to a magician’s continuous development.
Plan, plan, and plan, and when you think you have planned sufficiently, look at it again, make lists for and against, the pros and the cons. Evaluate, see the woods for the trees, keep your actions as honorable as humanly possible, and ensure that you can justify working the magic in the first place.
When it comes to intent, keep in mind these three words: clarify, state, and maintain.
Clarify your intent by examining it closely and asking yourself important questions relating to the issue at hand. What are your motives for doing this? What will the possible outcomes be? What are the variables—the unforeseen things that initially may not be apparent? What do the oracles say? Question, examine, and clarify the issue so that it is perfectly clear in your mind.
State your intention within the ritual and during the act of magic. This sends a powerful message to the gods, goddesses, and the universe that you are being grown-up about it all; you are taking responsibility, and you are willing to face the consequences of your actions.
Maintain that intent throughout the ritual. Do not flounder; you are a magician of the Celtic traditions. Maintain your confidence and intent. Carry the intent beyond the ritual in the quiet parts of your spirit, that place that knows all things. Maintain that magic; keep it close to you. Do not speak your intent to anyone who is beyond the ritual space.
The Tools of Ritual
The beauty of Celtic magic is that you won’t need a whole repertoire of tools, where you are faced with the anxiety of having to get them and finding the money to buy them. All you will require is a wand and a cauldron (or something that vaguely looks like a cauldron, as long as it’s watertight and can take some heat). The function and purpose of the wand will be fully explored later, but suffice to say that, for now, this is the tool which functions as your bridge to the natural world; it is an extension of your will. It will act in a similar function to the way wands are used in other magical traditions; the only difference here is that preferably you will have created your own and will already be in relationship with it. Full instructions and advice on wand-making will be given a little later. Your wand also will be representative of directional energy and creativity.
The cauldron will sit at the center of your ritual space. Its function is to act as the vessel of crossing; it is symbolic of the bubbling of inspiration and magic that seeps into our world from the fabric of the cosmos. This is a portal to the otherworlds and will serve as the heart of your ritual space. It is via this portal that the energies you will be using will be summoned, and it is through this portal that you will focus your intent and will.
Whatever arbitrary tools you may wish to have present in your rituals are entirely your own choosing. You may wish to decorate the space with lanterns or candle holders that have significance to you; you may choose to delineate the space with stones from a sacred river, lake, or beach. You may wish to have a special plate or dish to hold the incense prior to casting it onto the coals. Celtic magic gives you the freedom to decorate your magic with whatever you see fit. The primary symbols are simple, easy to understand and connect to, and they are all that are truly necessary. Anything else is fine—use your inspiration and intuition, go by hunch and gut feeling. The triskelion ritual in chapter 5, although complete, is also a clotheshorse that you may adorn with your own attire, colors, and style.
Protection
Attitude goes a long way in magic—a good attitude; that is, one based on the intent that you are bringing to the ritual and the integrity that you carry with you. The powers of nature have no ulterior motive to kick your ass just because they want to, and in Celtic magic there is no concept of absolute evil. Spirits of the otherworld may challenge you, but they do not pose you great threat; however, a good dash of magical health and hygiene is recommended. Depending on your own magical background, you may choose to enclose your ritual space in a magic circle, a sphere of energy that keeps what you are doing in and possible negativity out. In Celtic magic it is the ability of the magician and his or her own power that protects the space and the work from any interfering influence.
Later you will discover the value of summoning and invoking powerful allies to assist you in your magic. These act as a buffer, deflecting or neutralizing any negative influences that may affect your magic, as will the spirits of the three realms, which will be explored just a little later. Protection—in the sense that something is out there and if you don’t look out, it’s gonna get you—is a somewhat disempowering concept. In Celtic magic one uses common sense, ensuring we know what we are doing, what the influences are, and that what we are about to do has integrity. If you feel in any way threatened during a ritual, then you must ask yourself why; what is causing you to feel like that? You are a magician; take to your oracles and systems of divination. If anything feels a miss, then seek out an answer. Be well versed in issues of psychic health and hygiene: read up on the matter, study, and learn. 11 However, if you do feel the need to protect yourself, try this meditation before and after ritual work.
Meditation
the light shield
Stop for a minute or two—take a breath with the land beneath you, breathe in the sky above you, and deeply breathe with the rhythm of the seas that surround the shores of your land. Draw up a surge of emotional energy from the core of your being and focus on the center of your body—the area known as the solar plexus. Pull your emotions into this place; you will feel a flutter like butterflies in the stomach. Keep doing this in multiples of three. With every breath you take, hold that breath, pull raw emotional energy, and direct it to this place. Imagine that a circle is drawn around you only a few feet from your body; it may be tubular or you may visualize it as a sphere. See the emotional energy seething in your midriff. It begins to glow; keep directing energy into this place. When you sense it is at its optimum, send it out in a flash of light, exactly as you would imagine the flash from a camera. Exhale as you see this light, this shield of energy, erupt from your solar plexus and form a shimmering shield at the edge of the circle. Look at it with your subtle eyes—it appears like the waves of heat that rise from hot tarmac. Know that it is there. Sit with it for a few minutes, and then draw it back to yourself, a reverse flash that implodes into your body.
Become aware of your surroundings, and record your visions and thoughts in your journal.
11 I highly recommend you read Dion Fortune’s Psychic Self-Defence and Ellen Dugan’s Practical Protection Magick.