SSProtect-1

Personal Prevention
Magick

When you practice magick, you are orchestrating an individual tune that vibrates throughout the universe. Protection magick establishes energy barriers between yourself and the negativity (such as negative people, negative energies, etc.) and either pushes or pulls manifestations toward you or away from you in the manner that you specify. Preventative protection magick offers us the following opportunities:

• Strengthens our self-esteem.

• Catches and deflects situations that we may have consciously overlooked.

• Fills us with a sense of responsibility for our own actions, and reminds us that as we sow, so shall we reap.

• Leads us away from the victim mentality.

• Allows us to better control our environment.

• Increases our productivity through focus of our thoughts, feelings, and desires by removing some of our daily fears (real or imagined).

• Puts us in touch with our personal choice of divinity.

Are You Sending the Wrong Message?

Whether we’re talking about love, money, or success, there is a certain element of our society that looks for victims. These horrid people consider themselves predators, and you (my little pretty) have been sized-up on numerous occasions to determine if you fit within the parameters of the victim profile. Let’s face it, even serial killers buy groceries. The way you walk, talk, and interact with others gives the predator enough information to determine if you are a delicate morsel waiting to be seized or a tough old bird too difficult to bother plucking.

The spells in this chapter all fall under the heading of preventative magickal practices—those workings that you do before a challenge or opposition occurs. I’ve also divided these workings into topics. Just because I’ve applied a magickal technique to a “self” topic, however, doesn’t mean you can’t use that technique for a “social” topic. Feel free to mix and match the spells, rituals, or techniques to the focus you desire.

Clarity Spell

Here’s a spell to help you think first and speak with clarity later. Although most often used for potions of passion and love, sugar (especially brown sugar) works extremely well in protection spells. Although most magickal people scatter salt around their homes as a protective device, one could use brown sugar; however, with summer ants and other little buggies that like sugar this may not be a wise idea (at least inside your house or apartment). The color brown has two primary associations, although there are others—one vibrational use is for sympathy between two parties or two issues. Another use is for protection, and some magickal individuals prefer using brown although a spell may call for the color black.

Supplies: Brown sugar; bowl; brown votive candle; your name on a piece of paper; a brown ribbon, 13 inches long; a lock of your hair tied or glued into the ribbon.

Instructions: Put the candle in the bowl. Surround with brown sugar (to bring sweet things to you). On the piece of paper, write your name and the words “Wisdom and Power.” Hold your hands over the unlit candle, and say:

Holy Mother, bring to me words of power,
so that whenever I utter any word
the thoughts behind it
contain kindness and clarity.
Bless me with inner wisdom.

Light the candle. Take a deep breath and see yourself being happy and wise. Be sure to capture that feeling-good emotion. Envision yourself speaking with clarity and grace. Tie seven knots in the ribbon, saying:

With knot of one, this spell’s begun.

With knot of two, my wish comes true.

With knot of three, wisdom enter me.

With knot of four, I fear no more.

With knot of five, this spell’s alive.

With knot of six, my words are quick.

With knot of seven, power’s given!

With harm to none. So mote it be!

Stand at the outskirts of the room and begin to walk in a clockwise direction in circles (you will be walking in a spiral) until you reach the center of the room. Hold the ribbon up over your head and proclaim (aloud) your wisdom and your power! Ask for blessings from the Holy Mother. (Note: You can use this spiral walk to enhance any spell.)

Allow the candle to burn out. (Be sure you are doing this in a safe place.) Bury the brown sugar and the remaining candle (if any) in your back yard. Keep the ribbon with you. Anytime you feel nervous, hold it and repeat in your mind, “My words carry great wisdom and power.”

Next time someone attacks you verbally, or you want to attack them, ask yourself this Jungian question before you speak, “Is God/dess inside, or is God/dess outside?” and then speak—from the heart.

To enhance this spell:

• Perform on a Sunday for success.

• Perform in the hour of the sun (see planetary hour appendix).

• Perform on Beltaine (May Day).

• Add gold or silver glitter to the brown sugar to assist in drawing shining energies toward yourself.

• Perform on the new moon or the full moon.

• Perform on Wednesday for communication.

• Ask for assistance from the sylphs (energies of the east quarter).

• Perform on Tuesday if someone is attacking you (Mars energy).

• Use during a Mars retrograde (which happens every two years) to contemplate how you would like to improve yourself. Determine a plan of action, and then carry out that plan after Mars turns direct.

Practical Tip

With every nice thing we say, we increase the positive energy around us and therefore enhance our protection, health, and success in any venture. With every mean thing we say, we increase the negative energy around us. Scary thought, huh? It’s very important to feel comfortable with who and what we are, because our words and actions communicate to the world around us how we feel about ourselves.

Avert Disaster Planned by Others

Coffee contains caffeine, which can help to avert negativity through your direct action.

Supplies: 1⁄2 cup coffee; 1 stick pure, unsalted butter; the names of those who stand against you, written on a small slip of paper; 1 coffee filter; 1 small bowl.

Instructions: Place the coffee filter in the small bowl. Draw any magickal signs or runes on the filter that you feel would be appropriate, or write the name of your chosen god or goddess. The double-headed god Janus works well for this particular magickal working.

Heat the butter. Remove sediments. You only want the clear liquid, called ghee. Strain this liquid.

Place the names of the individuals against you on top of the filter, followed by the coffee grounds. Pour warm ghee over the mixture. Call on Janus for assistance in removing these individuals from your life. When the spell is completed, dispose of the mixture off your property. As the mixture rots, those individuals will be removed from your life.

Black Madonna Protection Incense

When burned, incense is your gift to Spirit. The fragrant smoke also helps to put you in a calm, relaxed state of mind. There are a variety of recipes throughout this book that you may like to use in conjunction with a spell, or to burn “just because.”

Probably the most well-known of the Egyptian goddesses, Isis represents ceremonies, immortality, time, astrology, earth, nature, moon, and night. She holds a number of titles (Queen of the Earth, Mother of the Seasons, and Protectress of the Dead). She was worshiped throughout Egypt, the Roman Empire, Chaldea, Greece, Germany, Gaul, and many other areas—a very encompassing feminine energy. With Rome’s occupation of outlying territories came the expansion of Isis worship. With the advent of Christianity, many of the chapels in Europe dedicated to Isis changed the representations of this goddess holding her son, Horus, to the Virgin Mary carrying Jesus. Because Isis was dark-skinned, these representations became known as the Black Virgins or Black Madonnas. These Black Madonnas have been discovered on most continents: Europe (France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, and Switzerland), the Americas (Mexico, Central America, and South America), Africa, Asia, and the Pacific.1

The following incense protection formula was designed by Morgana.2

Supplies: 1⁄2 cup coarsely ground cedar chips; 1 tablespoon coarsely ground myrrh resin; 1⁄2 tablespoon finely ground dragon’s blood resin; 11 drops lily oil (lotus oil may be substituted); 5 drops rose oil; 1⁄2 teaspoon crushed vervain;
a few crushed rose petals.

Instructions: Start with cedar shavings, adding ingredients in the order given above. Mix well after each addition. Concentrate on the protective energy of Isis while mixing. Store in a jar or plastic bag. Add to charcoal to burn. As you begin to burn the incense, hold your hands over the smoke, and say:

Spirit to herbs,
herbs to incense,
incense to flame,
flame to smoke,
smoke to Spirit,
I empower thee
in the name of the Black Madonna.
So mote it be!

Protecting My Body (Shielding)

One of the most important techniques any magickal individual should learn is a process called shielding that repels negative energy. There are several ways to do this, from learning the simple white-light technique to the more complicated procedures. It is important that you choose the technique that is right for you and stick with it.

Shielding is primarily the act of practiced visualization. Here are some ideas to help you (practice five minutes each day):

• Envision yourself encircled in pure white light.

• Envision yourself encircled by angelic wings.

• Envision yourself encircled by a dense hedge.

• Envision yourself encircled by a force field.

• Envision yourself encircled by mirrors that face
outward, away from you.

Four Directions Protection Spell

For this spell we use the lunate cross, which defends the center (you) with crescent moons directed outward. This particular sign was popular with European shamans.3 In alchemy, this sign stands for vinegar. (Note: Although we are using this symbol in a protective ritual here, you can inscribe the design on a black candle, dress it in vinegar, and place over your picture to stave off future attacks from someone who has turned negative energy toward you.)

Goddess energy for this spell is Luna, Roman goddess of the moon, night, and time, meaning if you want to put a more complicated twist into your magickal working by designating a specific amount of time, Luna will oblige you. Luna’s name means “the moon that rules the months” and she is associated with the seasons as well as the first day of the waning moon. Her holiday is March 31.

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Lunate Cross

Supplies: The four aces in any poker deck; a black marker.

Instructions: Draw the lunate cross with the black marker over the face of each card. Cast a magick circle. Place the aces in the following manner: club in the north (money, wealth, work, luck); diamond in the east (courage, energy, daring); spade in the south (destiny, logical thinking); heart in the west (love, family, growth). You can illuminate the four quarters with votive candles if you desire (green: north; yellow: east; red: south; blue: west).

Envision yourself surrounded by white light. Call forth the assistance of Luna. Feel the power of her spirit encompass you. Walk to the north, hold the ace of clubs, and say:

By the power of the north,

protective energy now flow forth.

Keep the card in your hand and walk to the east. Hold the ace of diamonds, and say:

By the power of the east,

bring wisdom within my reach.

Keep the cards in your hand and walk to the south. Hold the ace of spades, and say:

By the power of the south,

I do not fear, nor do I doubt.

Keep the cards in your hand and walk to the west. Hold the ace of hearts, and say:

By the power of the west,

ebb and flow, and coalesce.

Walk to the center. Hold the four aces over your head, and say:

Protection around me, above me, below me,

from all directions, love and hold me.

By the power of the One,4

Lord and Lady it is done!

So mote it be!

Glue the four aces together and keep in pocket or purse for continued protection. Thank the goddess Luna.

Practical Tip

So everybody doesn’t like you? So what? As long as you are not doing things to hurt people, their opinion of you should not matter. Likewise, you need to monitor what you say about others. Sometimes we don’t realize that the words or feelings we communicate can harm people, simply because we didn’t think about what was coming out of our mouths (or, in the case of the Internet, off our fingers). It’s one thing to have an opinion, it is another to humiliate people by calling them names or attempting to denigrate them to make yourself feel better.

Dragon’s Eye Triangle

For a negative circumstance to occur (whether we are talking about an immoral or criminal action), three elements must be present: desire, ability, and opportunity. The easiest way to stop a negative action before it happens is to eliminate the opportunity. The simplest way to eradicate the opportunity is to use the best defensive weapon you have: your mind. Most actions against us, whether it is your mother-in-law ripping on you or the guy standing too close to you at the ATM, happen when we aren’t paying attention. Things are going well and we become complacent, and that’s when the predator strikes!

Every morning, why not concentrate on your own triangle of protection? In magick, most three-way motifs, including the triangle, represent the female principle. The Goddess was the original trinity, followed later by patriarchal forms. From Australian aborigines to the original Goddess of India (Trimurti), the triangle was viewed as the focus of the spiritual universe, and was often associated with creative intellect.

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Dragon’s Eye Triangle

The dragon’s eye triangle is a triple triangle used to invoke the Goddess in her nine-form (the muses or the nine Morrigans). For protection, we employ the Morrigan, or Dark Mother of the Celtic peoples (who was originally, I might add, an earth goddess, not a battle one). The dra-gon’s eye triangle also has Germanic associations (called the eye of fire), and was the alchemical sign for the four elements combined.5

Each morning, simply draw the dragon’s eye triangle over your reflection in the glass as you get ready for work or recreation. Ask for the protection of the Divine Goddess as well as for the gift of discernment so that you won’t walk blindly into any negative situations. Incorporate the four elements if you desire.

Other ways to use the dragon’s eye triangle:

• On your mail.

• Sew the design onto your clothes.

• Put in decoration form on your front door.

• Carve into candles for other protection spells.

Dragonbane Protection Oil 6

Protection oils are used to anoint candles, talismans, windows, doors, favorite objects, and so on to enhance the purity of spiritual vibrations. This one is best made on the dark moon.

Supplies: 1 dram bottle; sweet almond oil; 3 drops amber oil; 1 drop jasmine oil; 7 drops dark musk (plain musk can be substituted); 5 drops rue oil; 3 small pieces dra-gon’s blood resin; 1 pinch coarse sea salt.

Instructions: Fill dram bottle halfway with sweet almond oil. Add each oil, shaking gently to mix well. Add dragon’s blood resin and sea salt. Shake to mix. Charge. When anointing an oil, you can use the following spoken charm:

Spirit to oil, oil to candle, candle to flame,
flame to smoke, smoke to Spirit.

Your Internal Warning System

According to the National Law Enforcement Memorial Fund, more police officers are killed:

• Between the hours of 8 p.m. and 10 p.m.

• On Friday evenings.

• In the months of January and December.

Obviously, if more police officers are killed during these times, then it would behoove us as magickal citizens to pay attention.

Although this may sound like oversimplification, I learned a long time ago that an easy way to ensure the removal of chaotic events from my life was to simply ask Spirit (or whatever you believe in as the All who runs the universe) to guide me away from harmful people and events if at all possible. This works very well, IF you listen to your gut instincts, which is how Spirit usually talks to us in these matters (though some of us may be lucky enough to get louder warnings).

Your body does contain an Internal Warning System that sends a message to your beta awareness center (the state of mind you are usually in when walking, talking, or doing an activity). This warning system actually begins in the theta state of mind (although some scientists believe it comes from an even deeper recess), bips through the alpha awareness, and then is spewed into beta, often through emotional impulses or feelings. If we harness these feelings of unrest or nervousness without trying to determine the cause, then we aren’t paying attention to our private Internal Warning System (IWS). Police officers and military personnel learn to listen to the human IWS. They have to. If they don’t, they die. Your IWS is just as potent. If you pay attention you will soon learn who is lying to you, and even why. It just takes your willingness to be observant to the messages you receive from your own body.

Yes, Virginia, there is a reason why your skin is crawling while the guy with crazy eyes is talking to you. And all this stuff about women’s intuition? Fellas have it too.

The Witches’ Girdle

Not to be mistaken with the cords of a traditional Witch, the Witches’ girdle is a folk magick practice thought to be a means to seal off one’s aura and prevent mental and physical attacks.7 When I visited Missouri several years ago, many of the local Witches talked about the “Witches’ girdle,” and I finally found the origins of this practice in local folk magick, thanks to a dedicated researcher in the 1930s who took the time to write down a large compendium of information about the Ozark Mountain people.

Supplies: A red cord the length of your body (a favorite belt may be substituted).

Instructions: When the moon is full, raise the cord to the heavens and entreat the Lord and Lady to empower the cord with protective energy. Say:

Spirit to cord, cord to Witch, Witch to Spirit,
I empower thee in the names of
the Lord and Lady.
Bring to me joy, peace, and reverence.

Each morning, before you put on the cord, hold the cord (or belt) to the rising sun, asking for divine presence in your life and blessings upon yourself and the day. Tie the cord around your middle, using a square knot to secure. The knot should ride in the center of your abdomen.

Practical Tip

Never give your credit card, phone card, social security, or bank account number to anyone over the phone. It is illegal for telemarketers or mail marketers to ask for this information. Beware of 900 numbers. Check out all charities before donating, and ask for a financial report. Investigate before you invest. Don’t ever give your Internet password to anyone, and change it frequently to numbers or letters that do not in any way relate to your life (birth date, family member names, etc.). Use an answering machine to screen your telephone calls.

Sea Salt Protection Bath8

Spiritual baths are excellent to rid physical and astral bodies of negativity, and to encompass your mind with relaxing energy. We’ll talk a little more about spiritual baths in the following chapter.

Supplies: 1⁄2 cup Epsom salts; 1⁄8 cup coarse sea salt (finely ground sea salt can be substituted); 5 drops sandalwood oil; 1⁄8 teaspoon finely ground (to a powder) dragon’s blood resin; 1⁄2 teaspoon crushed lavender; 7 drops red food coloring.

Instructions: Mix Epsom salts and sea salt well. Add ingredients, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add food coloring. Store in a jar, and tie with a red ribbon. Charge. Best made on a new moon. To use, add two tablespoons to running water.

Spells for Protecting Your Stuff

You may not own a diamond tennis bracelet or a Mickey Mantle baseball card but, all the same, your stuff is important to you. Con artists are smart, aggressive, and persuasive. If a fraud “looked like” a fraud, then (obviously) no one would fall for a fraud. Unfortunately, people lose millions of dollars to swindles every year. From the telephone to the doorbell, a con artist has numerous ways to enter your life and dance off with your hard-earned cash: dressed like a bank examiner, a bum, a service repairperson, or in any number of costumes and disguises. The old adage “If it sounds too good to be true, it is too good to be true” should be your magickal motto.

Penelope’s Protection Web

Using Penelope’s web to stop fraud doesn’t mean that you are to cease being observant when it comes to protecting yourself or your property; however, it is an excellent charm that works in tandem with your good sense, especially if you transform the design onto a small mirror that can be placed under your telephone, in your safety deposit box, or under your front or back doormat. Crossing-line designs are often used in protection as the lines confuse negative energies, forcing them to lose focus and eventually burst apart or slowly fade away.

Penelope’s web design is a pattern of interlocking pentacles composed of only two lines. The defensive ring of twenty outward points (much like the philosophy behind a Pennsylvania Dutch hex sign) protects the wearer or one’s property. Penelope’s name means “Veiled One.” She is a Fate goddess, responsible for determining one’s destiny. Mother and consort of Pan, Penelope acts as a personal guardian angel when needed. She is said to have refrained from cutting the thread of Odysseus’ life so that he couldn’t die.

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Penelope’s Protection Web

By surrounding this design with a crushed, protective herb, you are further insuring protection of any one or anything, especially if you find yourself in a desperate situation. Place a picture of the individual who needs protection on the center of your altar. Cover with Penelope’s web. Surround with one or a combination of the following: myrrh, rue, patchouli, or rosemary (herbs magickally associated with protection). If you don’t have any of these items, regular table salt will do. Utter your own words of power, entreating Penelope to assist you. You can also enlarge the drawing in this book on a copy machine and write the letters of your first name in between the spokes of the wheel for added protection for yourself, or write down the name of the item you wish to protect evenly spaced among the spokes of the design. Laminate and carry with you as a protective device, especially if you think you are walking into a shady business deal.

To enhance this spell:

• Perform on a Saturday.

• Perform on a full moon.

• Place your personal sigil on the back of the drawing.

• Sew into an expensive piece of clothing (like your winter coat that cost you five hundred dollars).

Too Hot to Touch Spell

Okay, you’ve been a very smart person and you don’t swing your purse over your head when you walk down the street. You don’t put your wallet on the counter in the dry-cleaning store while you search your pockets for your ticket. You remember to have your car or house key in your hand before you reach the car or apartment. Is there an added zap of energy to help keep you safe? Yes, indeed! Try this spell.

Supplies: A pin or nail; a white candle to help you focus; your two hands; the object you wish to protect.

Instructions: Heat the end of the pin or nail, then carve your name into the candle. Light the candle. Study the flame. Close your eyes and see the flame. If you cannot visualize, “feel” the flame. Keep practicing this exercise until you are comfortable. Once you are confident, hold your hands over the object you wish to protect, and say:

Too hot to touch!

Keep repeating these words as your hands grow warm over the object. Envision the heat and light of the candle going into the object, and making that object too hot to touch for anyone without permission. Make the sign of the pentacle (page 66) over the item with the candle. Allow the candle to burn completely.

To enhance this spell:

• Perform on a Sunday in the hour of the sun.

• Perform on a full moon.

• Renew once a month.

• Add a personal protective sigil on the item.

• Use on your car or truck.

• Keep a record of all expensive equipment, jewelry, etc., in your safety deposit box.

• Use on a new purse, wallet, or briefcase.

• Use on the front and back doors and windows, if you want to feel extra secure.

• Use on expensive jewelry, art collections, CDs, etc.

Spells for Travel and Trips

Most of us aren’t sedentary people. We travel to and from work, we go shopping, and we take day trips, weekend trips, and long vacations. We visit our relatives, run errands, and if we have kids, become a veritable bus service. With all the tearing around that we do, we really need to think about our safety outside of the home.

Shopping with a Gargoyle

We all have to go shopping, whether it’s for food, medicinal needs, or just for fun, but while we are shopping, we can be vulnerable. From bait-and-switch schemes to unknown creatures who slaver after our swinging purses (or back-pocket wallets), we can be a target.

Predators look for victims who seem unsure of themselves or who are not paying attention to what is going on around them. Learn to walk with confidence. That’s where the gargoyle comes in. Gargoyles are man-made mythical beasts prominent in the Middle Ages, and the favored guardian for cathedrals (they also functioned as rain spouts).

You may wish to copy a picture or purchase a small statue of a gargoyle to help you visualize the first few times you try this technique. Simply sit down, concentrate on your ever-friendly gargoyle, close your eyes, see it in your mind, and ask for its assistance in protection while you shop. As a fun experiment, shop without the gargoyle, then shop with the gargoyle, then again, shop without it. Keep a record of your experiences.

Other suggestions:

• Take your gargoyle with you on a camping trip.

• Take your gargoyle with you to your mother-in-law’s house. Tell your gargoyle that your mother-in-law is dessert (just kidding!).

Practical Tip

Do use your common sense. Park your vehicle in a well-lighted area, and never, ever park next to a van with a sliding door. Don’t swing your purse around like a shot put. During holiday shopping, make more than one trip to the car if you have a lot of packages and lock them out of view. Better yet, take a friend with you. Keep your eye on the people in front and behind you in the mall (use that peripheral vision Spirit gave you). Don’t flash your cash.

Vacation Magick

Everybody wants to beat feet to that favorite vacation spot, but before you do that you need to ensure that the property you leave behind will be safe and secure (and there upon your return!). Inform your neighbors that you will be away. If you can get a housesitter, go for it. Have someone pick up your mail and other deliveries while you are gone. Stimulate that “somebody’s home” idea by using lights on timers, along with a radio that will turn on and off by itself. Use the “Too Hot to Touch Spell,” page 36, on the front door of your home, then station your friendly gargoyle directly inside the front door. Ask a deceased relative (I’m not joking) who loved you very much to watch over your property while you are gone.

Ward your car (if you are traveling in your vehicle) with holy water and a circle of salt. (This is, of course, after you have taken it to the garage and mechanics have done a thorough check for your safe travel.) Hang a piece of smoky quartz somewhere in the car to keep it from breaking down. (Now, if your car is put together with rubber bands and glue, don’t expect the gem to keep it together.) Plan the most direct route to your destination. Do invest in a travel program that can tell you what roads or towns to avoid. Before you leave, put your hands over the map that marks your route and ask that Spirit guide you safely on your trip.

Hotel and Motel Magick

Supplies: Place a small piece of amethyst in every bag (especially if your bags are flying without you). Carry a small bag that contains the following items: Incense or sage; holy water; a piece of amethyst; a burning bowl; and a religious icon of your choice.

Instructions: Clear every room you stay in with the sage, holy water, or both. Set the religious icon where it is reflected by a mirror. (It is better if the icon is innocuous or very scary.) Once you have cleared the room, take a glass from the bathroom and fill it halfway with water. Ask that your ancestors protect the room and your belongings for the duration of your stay. Ask that the water soak up any negativity that enters the room. Before you leave, throw the water away and thank your ancestors. When you take a bath or shower, draw the rune Algiz () in the condensation on the mirror in the bathroom. This rune is associated with the Valkyries, female warriors of the Heathen Way who protect and guard you in life and after death. Algiz deflects negative influences from people and property. For extra protection, combine the runes Sol, Algiz, and Asa.

If You Get Lost

They are now installing “man finders” in cars—yes, those great little compasses that bob about on the ceiling close to the windshield. If your “man finder” poops out, here are a few mundane and magickal tips.

• Drive to a public place and check the map. Do not stop on the highway or along a dark or deserted street.

• Hold your hands over the map, and say, “Holy Mother, Goddess Divine, make my path clear, give me a sign.” (She will.)

• You can also purchase the new satellite-driven Magellan System. With this new-fangled gadget, you won’t ever be lost!

Practical Tip

Take only the credit cards you plan to use. Never, ever tell strangers who you are, how much cash you are carrying, or where you plan to go. Determine the most direct route from your room to the fire escapes and elevators. Use all auxiliary locking devices. Never leave expensive items or cash in your hotel room. Arrange your things in the room so that you will know immediately if anything is amiss.

Web of Light

A Pagan police officer in Tennessee told me that when he was out in his patrol car, he would often conjure a web of light around himself if he got that “particularly hairy feeling” before he went into unusual situations. “I would also cast the web in front of the patrol car while I was driving to help me ferret out people in trouble. And you know, it worked every time!”

Airplane and Airport Magick

Statistically, you have a very slim chance of spiraling from the heavens and into a flaming pile on the face of Gaia—but that doesn’t help the preflight (or in-flight) jitters for some. Here are some magickal tips for you frequent (or infrequent) fliers.

• Make sure each piece of luggage carries a small amethyst for protection. Empower the stone to meet you safely at your destination.

• Tag your bags with a black silk cord. Empower the cord to protect your baggage. You will also be able to discern your baggage from others much like it when you pick it up at the baggage claim.

• Pack as lightly as possible. The heavier the bags, the bigger the target you become.

• Expensive designer luggage or clothes draw unnecessary attention. Trust me, I’ve flown all over the United States. Jeans, tee shirts, sweatshirts, and sneakers are quite acceptable, help you to blend in with the masses, and keep you free of setting off the airport security alarms (since you have no reason to wear all that jewelry). If you must take that designer stuff, then do an invisibility spell, which is a simple form of visualization. See your luggage turning into various colors that blend into each other, and then the colors blending into the other luggage at the airport—sort of like a heat mirage. Don’t get too good at this though, or you’ll go to Kansas City and your luggage will land in Baltimore.

• Although you should lock your bags in the hotel room, don’t bother on the airline. To search your bags, they will bust the locks or delay you at the baggage claim area while your bags are systematically searched. Instead, entreat Mercury, the god of travel and communication, to protect your belongings.

• As you step onto the plane, draw a banishing pentacle on the outside of the plane, asking for protection and banishing any negativity surrounding the plane. (I do it all the time. I don’t care if the steward thinks I’m nuts.)

• If you are really nervous, say the following: “Dear guardian angel (or spirit guide), if there is something wrong with this plane, please don’t let them board us.” Three times in the last five years I have made this request, and three times they have had to make major repairs and didn’t let us board. In one case we took an entirely different plane.

• If you start to panic during the flight, close your eyes, count down from ten to one, and repeat a positive affirmation. Be sure to check that it is your panic you are feeling. Planes are enclosed places with lots of people. The man three seats behind you could be in a frenzied spiral, and it is his energy you are feeling—not your own emotions. If you feel uncomfortable, look around you. I’d bet my broomstick someone else is feeding your fear.

Protecting Your Vehicle

With the rising costs of owning, maintaining, and insuring a vehicle these days, it is a definite financial setback if something happens to your car, and even more of a catastrophe if you happen to be in it when the rubber of a tractor trailer hits the roof of your vehicle rather than on the pavement it belongs. This spell is designed to ward your car from damages and keep you safe. I can’t swear in a court of law that it will stop accidents from happening, but my family feels that it has certainly helped, and my daughter will tell you honestly that she thinks this particular spell saved her life when she was involved in a bad accident.

In this spell, we call on the power of the goddess Hecate. Hecate, the Grecian, pre-Hellenic goddess of the moon, night, magick, wealth, education, knowledge, and ceremony is the goddess of the crossroads. In this position she is called Hecate Trevia, Hecate of the Three Ways. During the Middle Ages, Hecate was called the Queen of Ghostworld. German worshippers knew her as Dame Holda, Queen of the Ghostways. Hecate has the power to avert physical and financial storms and her mythos entwines with several triads, including Hecate, Diana, and Lucina; and Hecate, Pers-ephone, and Demeter. You may wish to entreat her assistance when dumping the dirt at the crossroads. Hecate was later identified as a form of Artemis. Although Middle Age sources lend Hecate’s magick to wicked intent, she is truly the Goddess of Great Mystery, embodying the dark side of ourselves that we must reach to obtain wholeness. Therefore, she did not stand for evil, but for the mystery that these writers could not comprehend.

Supplies: A small bottle of blessed spring water; 3 cups pickling salt, sea salt, or table salt.

Instructions: On a full moon, take the spring water and, with your finger, draw a pentacle (page 66) on the following:

• All windows.

• All doors.

• All tires.

• On the hood.

• On the trunk (back hatch, or bed of truck).

• On the roof.

Say:

Great Mother, Hecate, I call ye forth.
Gracious Goddess up above,
protect herein all I love.
Keep them safe and free from harm,
if not be right, set off alarm.
Transport us safely from here to there,
let no weather be a care.
My car (truck) turns right,
my car (truck) turns left,
keep it free from harm or theft.
Circle of protection gather round,
when danger comes hunting
we can’t be found.

Sprinkle the pickling salt in a clockwise direction on the street around the vehicle. Try to keep an unbroken line. Say:

This spell is sealed. This spell is locked.
All negative energy is thoroughly blocked.

To enhance this spell:

• Place a piece of empowered smoky quartz on the dash or in the glove compartment to ward off mechanical failures.

• Place a bag of protective herbs inside the car to ward off negativity or theft.

• Perform on a full moon or when the moon is in Mercury (as Mercury governs transportation).

If Your Car Breaks Down

I was originally taught this spell for healing unknown maladies of the body, and you’ll find it for that purpose in my book American Folk Magick: Charms, Spells, and Herbals. However, I’ve had more than one magickal practitioner who has told me that this verbal chant works well for sick and broken cars. Hey, it can’t hurt to try!

Instructions: Hold your hands over the hood of the vehicle and recite the following verse three times:

And these signs shall follow those
that believeth in Spirit.

They shall cast out demons,
and they shall speak in new tongues.

And if they drink anything deadly,
it shall not harm them.

They shall lay hands upon the sick,
and they shall recover,

In the name of Spirit, so mote it be!

Tap the hood of the car three times with your fingers. Seal the spell by using your index finger to draw an equal-armed cross over the hood of the car.

Protection Spells for Your Home

We’d like to think we are always secure in our homes, but if that was so, then there wouldn’t be any such thing as burglary (or worse). A house blessing and protection ritual can be as complicated or as simple as you like, but usually incorporate the use of the four elements (earth, air, fire, and water) and the request that Spirit guide the energies in and outside of the home.

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Equal-armed Cross

Bless Your House

Choose the deity that most represents your feelings about the divine. For this particular spell, I’ve used Brigid, Celtic (Irish) goddess of water and fire, whose healing energies will help to cleanse a home where the environment has been punctured by abuse, harsh arguments, or other negative manifestations. Her festival is one of the four great feasts of the Celtic religion, held on February 1 (Candlemas). The totem for this goddess is the cow, and offerings of milk are acceptable. Carry the four elements around your house, imagining that all negativity is banished from each room.

When finished, stand in the center of the room, and say:

I am the wind on the sea.

I am a wave of the ocean.

I am the roar of the sea.

I am a powerful ox.

I am a hawk on a cliff.

I am a dewdrop in sunshine.

I am the strength of art.

I am a spear with spoils that wages battle.

I have cleared the stony place upon the mountain.9

From basement to attic. From sill to door.
From roof to landscaping. I fill this house
with the protective energy of (name deity)
and ask for blessings upon each person
who resides here. So mote it be!

Renew every six months. This ancient Celtic poem magickally declares your sovereignty over your home.

To enhance this spell:

• Perform on a full moon.

• Perform on Monday (family matters) or Sunday (success).

• Perform when the moon is in Cancer or Virgo.

• Perform in the hour of the moon.

• Perform yearly on February 1.

• Perform on New Year’s Day.

The Morrigan Protection
Incense for the Home10

Supplies: 1⁄4 cup coarsely ground cedar shavings; 1⁄2 tablespoon finely ground dragon’s blood resin; 15 drops musk oil; 11 drops patchouli oil; 1⁄2 tablespoon crushed lavender buds; 1⁄4 teaspoon crushed mugwort.

Instructions: Best made at the dark of the moon. Start with cedar shavings, adding ingredients in order given. Mix well after each addition. Concentrate on the protective energy of the Morrigan while mixing. Store in a jar or plastic bag. Add to charcoal to burn. As the incense burns, hold your hands over the smoke, and say:

From Spirit to herb, from herb to incense,
from incense to flame, from flame to smoke,
from smoke to Spirit, I empower this incense
in the name of (pick deity)
for the purpose of (state intent).

Florida Water

Florida water recipes are magickal washes for floors in homes or businesses, and are primarily used for ridding the environment of negativity and evil. You can also use these washes to cleanse magickal tools, or put in a spray bottle for quickie cleansings.

Supplies: 1⁄2 gallon of 90 proof alcohol; 1 pint spring water; 1 tablespoon squeezed lemon juice; 10 drops protection oil.

Instructions: Mix during a full moon, though anytime will do, especially if you feel you have an emergency.

Practical Tip

Have you run a safety check on your home or apartment lately? Have you secured your doors with good quality single or double-cylinder locks? Do you have a door viewer (peephole)? Have you replaced hollow-core doors with solid-core doors? Taken special precautions with a sliding glass door or sliding windows? (Hint: use a broomstick.) Do you have adequate interior and exterior lighting? Have you trimmed your shrubbery so a criminal cannot find easy concealment? Padlocked exterior electrical boxes to prevent someone from cutting your power?

Folk Charms for House and
Apartment Protection

Here is a great list of quickie protection charms I’ve collected over the years.

• Cut an onion in half and set both halves on the windowsill in the kitchen. Empower to suck up negativity. Change when the onion sprouts.

• Hang a pair of open scissors over the front door to cut off negativity from entering the house.

• Put garlic under the bed to ward off nightmares.

• Scent your pillow with lavender to bring sweet dreams.

• Place Penelope’s protection web (page 35) over the mouth of a Mason jar filled with broken glass. This is to trap unwanted nasties and cut them to smithereens!

• Place holy water by the left side (as you face it) of the front door.

• Make a prayer monument built of small, round, white stones in one corner of your property. A small pile will do. Leave milk and honey for the spirits of the property and entreat their protection.

• Place a small bag of angelica, rosemary, and mint under the four eaves of the attic (or on the four corners of the property).

• To stave off a coming storm, stick a knife in the ground, blade pointing in the direction of the oncoming nasty weather to split the wind. Scream, “I am the presence!” at the top of your lungs, directed at the oncoming storm. (You think I jest? It worked for me!)

• Hang a cluster of acorns on the front door to protect the residence and those who live there.

• Place a full glass of water by your bed every night to collect any negativity in the room. (No, you can’t put your teeth in there!)

• Put a mothball in each corner of the room to absorb negativity. (And if you put them around your trash outside, the critters won’t rip open your garbage.)

• If you can help it, don’t make a major housing move when the moon is void of course, or when Mercury, Jupiter, or Venus are retrograde.

Practical Tip

There’s crime in rural areas, too. Be a good neighbor and keep your eyes open. Use your locks. Just because you made it out of the sweltering city doesn’t mean that criminals aren’t lurking. Keep locks, gates, and fences in good repair. Secure access roads, equipment, outbuildings, and livestock. (Use Pennsylvania Dutch hex signs—they work!) Store harvested crops in protected areas. Post your property. Use outdoor lighting with automatic timers.

Fruity Vibrations

Exotic incenses too much of a pain to make? Can’t afford good, prepackaged incense? Dried, thinly sliced, or crushed fruit skins can clear out any room in your home and increase the positive vibrations. You can place the shavings on a charcoal brick (made especially for incense) or simply put them in a little pile and burn them with your lighter.

Orange peel: Harmony and positive production

Lemon peel: Clarification and stimulation

Apple peel: Love and healing

Not allowed to burn stuff? (Hey, sometimes you can’t.) Add to a pot of boiling water, throw in a little silk bag, or scatter in the corners of a room. You’ll get the same results.

Evening Prayer

In Pennsylvania Dutch Country (my neck of the woods), it is appropriate to request a blessing of the home and property as you make your last rounds before retiring. You are to repeat the following prayer three times:

My house has four corners

One, two, three, four.

Four holy angels adorn them

From rafter to core.

Neither criminals, nor charmers

Above or below.

Nor those who do evil

Can enter my home.

My house has four corners

One, two, three, four.

Four holy angels adorn them

Protected to the core.

My home stands with Spirit

Encompassed by love.

Protected from evil

And blessed by the dove.

My house has four corners

One, two, three, four.

Surrounded by angels

Infused by Spirit

From present to future.

So mote it be!

This is a great prayer to teach your children. You can also anoint the four corners of your home with protection oil while repeating the prayer.

Protecting Those in the Home

Handkerchief Spell

My great-grandfather was a tent revivalist first in West Virginia, and then in Pennsylvania. When I was a little girl, my grandmother would purchase white handkerchiefs (for the men) and embroidered ones (for the ladies), and then take them to her weekly ladies’ prayer circle. In the heyday of her father’s spiritual pursuits it was common practice to place said handkerchiefs on the altar, and either the minister would imbue them with healing and protective energy or the congregation as a whole would pray over the pieces of cloth. Sometimes, photographs of those requesting protection or healings would be placed on a specific handkerchief (that was in later years when cameras and photos were more easily obtained).

Supplies: A white handkerchief for each member of the family; blessed spring water; sea salt or table salt; your choice of protection incense; an individual picture of each member of the family.

Instructions: Lay the handkerchiefs on a flat surface. Make sure they are opened, not folded. Sprinkle each one with the spring water and sea salt, envisioning the pieces of cloth glowing with purity. Pass the handkerchief over the incense three times. Place a photo on each piece of cloth. (Remember which handkerchief belongs to whom.) Hold your hands over the first picture, and say:

And Spirit wrought special
miracles from the hands
of the children of the Gods,
so that from their hands were
brought unto the sick or
fearful pieces of cloth or aprons,
and the diseases departed from them,
and the evil spirits went out of them.11

Take your time and envision pure, white light entering your body from the crown chakra and moving down through your heart, out your arms, into your hands, and into the photo and handkerchief. When you lose your concentration, or feel that you are finished, take a deep breath and seal the magick by making the sign of the equal-armed cross (page 48) over the photo and the handkerchief. Go on to the next piece of cloth. When you are finished, thank Spirit for your work this day. Give the handkerchief to the appropriate person to carry with them. Renew every six months, or before if you feel it is necessary.

To enhance this spell:

• Add a mixture of personally chosen protective herbs to the sea salt.

• Perform on the full moon.

• Perform on a Monday in the hour of the moon.

• Perform on the individual’s birthday.

• Empower in the name of a specific divinity.

• Give to a sick friend.

• Tuck into an ailing pet’s collar.

• Give to your favorite police officer, EMT driver, fireman, or military service personnel.

Protection Against Pregnancy12

In the 1960s, Dr. Eugene Jonas, a Czechoslovakian gynecologist, discovered a method of family planning that had actually been used for centuries by European women. He determined that a woman is at the peak of her fertility at the time of the month when the moon is in the same phase in which she was born. Therefore, if you were born during a first quarter moon, then for the three days surrounding that same moon phase (given that you are a woman), you will be the most fertile of any days in your current cycle. Of course, this information will work quite well for you if you are trying to have a baby, and if you’re not, then stay away from those passionate moments during the three days surrounding your original moon-birth phase. How do you find out what phase the moon was in when you were born? Many astrological charts will give you this information.

Preventing Barrenness

The Pennsylvania Dutch, of Old World German extraction, had a compendium of folk magickal practices that, if you dig deep enough, you can find and put to modern use. Easter egg coloring and decoration have been widely practiced in the Dutchified areas since the 1800s. To prevent barrenness, each family would decorate dozens of eggs with cheerful, unique patterns. Then the eggs were hung on a birch or cherry tree whose trunk and limbs were wrapped in cotton batting. The egg, seen as an ancient fertility symbol, brings the same energies in sympathy of the woman of the household, and she is responsible for hanging the eggs and asking for the blessing of deity with the tying of the ribbon suspending each egg. If you don’t want to go to all the work of blowing out each egg and then decorating that delicate shell, you can always purchase those colorful plastic eggs that are so abundant around Easter, insert various symbols of fertility in each egg, then hang them on a miniature tree dedicated to the spirit of fertility.

For Your Friends and
Social Situations

Interacting with others outside the family can be just as important to your emotional well-being as associating with your blood relatives. The following rituals and spells were designed especially for your friends.

Wolf Protection Ritual13

Our country is rich with Native American heritage that many of us have been unable to tap. This ritual was sent to me by Dream Wolfdancer and works well by yourself, or within a group or coven environment, or just for your family.

Supplies: Fire pit, old grill, or cauldron; the means to make a fire; sage.

Instructions: Make the fire. Light. Say:

Hiya . . . hiya . . . hiya . . . hekohey!
On this night, from the forest and field,
den and dark, I call you, great wolf!

Clap your hands or beat a drum in rhythm like a heartbeat as you say:

Mother, mother, nursing your pups,

Watch over me and mine.

Father, father, protecting your family,

Watch over me and mine.

Come O sisters and brothers of the clan!

Come dance in the firelight!

Feast on the bounty of the hunt!

Sing with us in the dark!

And hunt within our dreams.

Owoooooooooooo! Owoooooooooooo!

Burn the sage and spread smoke over each friend or family member. Pick up dry earth and sprinkle over the flames, saying:

We are one!

Visualize an alpha pair playing with their pups. Say:

My clan is safe. Many thanks, brother wolf.

Leave an offering for Father Sky and Mother Earth.

The Charm String

Popular in the Ozark Mountains in the early 1900s, the charm string consists of buttons and good wishes from your friends, and is used to ward off negativity and bring you good fortune. The charm string was not only considered lucky, but became a beloved memory book for women who could not read. A button from someone’s birthday party, a wedding, christening, first date, etc., was thought to be extra special.

Supplies: Collect a button from each of your friends, asking them to bless it with protection and love.

Instructions: String them together, asking deity for protection, love, and luck. Use the charm string for all sorts of protection magick, or carry it in your purse or briefcase to bring continuous good fortune and protection. If you are having a particularly bad day, arrange the charm string in a circle around your picture.

To enhance this spell:

• Make on a Friday in the hour of Venus.

• Make on the full moon.

• Make when the moon is in Leo.

Collect buttons from your friends for:

• A friend who is sick.

• A friend who is moving away.

• A child going off to college.

Sexual Assault Prevention
(SAP) Spell

Don’t be fooled by what anyone tells you—rape is definitely about control, power, and anger. Rape is an act of violence—an attempt to control and degrade you by using sex as a weapon. Rape can happen to anyone and the attacker can be anyone. There is no delineation between the type of victim or the type of attacker.

This simple little spell finds its roots in Pennsylvania Dutch Pow-Wow magick and was used to ward off negativity of all types.

Supplies: 1 large safety pin.

Instructions: Hold the pin in both hands, and say:

Blood and bone

Wall like stone

Protect me by my Lady’s throne.

Edge of pin

Strike at them

Hit your mark like a javelin.

Envision yourself surrounded by a protective, white light. Move the light into the pin. Keep chanting the above charm until the pin grows very hot in your hand. Then hold the pin over your head, and say:

It is done!

Wear the pin on the left sleeve of your shirt, blouse, jacket, or dress. Re-empower once a month.

To enhance this spell:

• Perform on a Saturday.

• Perform on the dark of the moon.

• Perform on Tuesday in the hour of Saturn.

• Perform when the moon is in Scorpio or Leo.

• Add black beads to the pin and give to a dear friend before they go on vacation or a business trip.

• Bless the pin with the energy of a protective god or goddess.

• Add extra punch with your choice of protection oil (though wipe thoroughly before you slip that pin onto your favorite silk blouse). Note: Some women prefer to wear the pin over their heart, pinned to the bra.

Practical Tip

Be smart! Walk with confidence and purpose wherever you go. Always be aware of your surroundings. Don’t let drugs or alcohol screw up your thinking process. Travel with a friend if you must go to strange places or parties thrown by people you don’t know. If your Internal Warning System is beeping like crazy—listen to it! Avoid date rape. Know your intentions. Say what you mean and mean what you say. If you don’t know your date well, always drive your own vehicle.

Protecting the Servant
Who Protects You

Police officers in our country have an especially difficult job. As our population increases, so does our crime rate. When your law enforcement spouse or partner leaves the protection of your environment, they face far more negative energies than most ordinary people. Here’s a spell to help keep them safe and alleviate some of your worries. And what better symbol to use in our spell than the star, probably discovered as a result of astronomical research in the Euphrates-Tigris region about 6,000 years ago, and used today for various law enforcement agencies as well as the American Military.

The points of the star (or pentacle) have two meanings—earth, air, water, fire, and the Spirit of man (enclosed in a circle adds the Universal Spirit); and the arms, legs, and head of the human body. In 400 b.c. Pythagoreans used the sign widely and added it to the bottom of any missive to send a wish of good health. The star was the official seal of the city of Jerusalem during 300–150 b.c. We can also find the pentacle in pre-Columbian America through the Mayan culture. Some historians believe that the pentacle is based on the symbol of the goddess Kore (Grecian), although she is also identified with the Roman goddess Libera. Clement of Alexandria, in a Christianized version, celebrated her worship on January 5 as the Eve of Epiphany of Kore. Finally, the pentacle signifies one’s oath (apropos here with the oath of an individual in law enforcement).

The pentacle (star) used as a protective symbol is the sign of the Roman Venus, goddess of fertility and war. Other goddesses associated with the pentacle are Ishtar, Astarte, Kore, Nephthys, and Isis. (Does your mother belong to the Order of the Eastern Star? Now you know where the symbolism really comes from.)

Pentacle

Venus, with her love of order and beauty, is a perfect choice when petitioning for protection of your loved one. Her festival, the Vinalia, was celebrated on April 23. Venus was once a Lady of Animals, and her horned consort, Adonis, was both hunter and sacrificial stag. The word “veneration” has its root in Venus. Although modern historians often equate Venus to sex and the pleasures thereof, she is a powerful protective Goddess and cares deeply about those who petition her for assistance.

Supplies: A white candle; a needle or nail; ground mistletoe (if you don’t have mistletoe, choose another protective herb from the appendix); a pentacle (above) drawn on a white piece of paper; a picture of your loved one; his or her law enforcement badge; holy water (water mixed with three pinches of salt and empowered to Spirit).

Instructions: Inscribe the pentacle, point up, on the white candle with a needle or nail, then inscribe the symbol of Venus () over the pentacle. Rub with crushed mistletoe (if you have used the berries, do not put your fingers in your mouth before washing thoroughly). Place the paper with the pentacle (point side up) on your altar or working surface. Set the candle at the top point of the pentacle. Put the picture of your loved one in the center of the pentacle. Place the badge on top of the picture. Sprinkle the badge with holy water, visualizing white light and protection around the shield and the picture. Light the white candle. Hold your arms in the air so that your body becomes a star. Say:

I call forth the energies of Venus to protect you
every hour and every minute of every day.

You have the strength of the ocean waves.

Ho. (Touch the badge, visualizing this gift pouring into the badge and into your loved one.)

You have the protective love of your family.