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Poppet Magic

A poppet is a cloth, clay, carved wood, straw, or wax figure used as a representation of a person or animal during magical work. Poppets are mainly used in magic designed to affect people rather than situations. The poppet is used in a process known today as sympathetic magic. Sympathetic magic works by creating a spiritual link by similar properties (such as making a poppet to look roughly like a person). The poppet is then loaded with items that once belonged to the person that still contain a portion of that person’s energy, such as nail clippings, locks of hair, etc. Last, the poppet is consecrated and named to magically “be” that person. The poppet is then used in ritual to affect that person (or animal) in the desired way.

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If the poppet is made of cloth, clay, or wax, then herbs and symbolic items are worked into it or used to fill it; if, however, the poppet is constructed of wood or straw, then herbs, symbols, and symbolic items may be attached to the outside of the doll. Here, you will only learn to make a cloth poppet. A cloth poppet is relatively easy to make, and a poppet that you make yourself will be infinitely more powerful than one that is store-bought.

Cloth Poppet

Items needed:

Procedure

Fold the fabric in half and cut out a “gingerbread man” human shape about six inches to one foot in height. Now, thread the needle and stitch the pieces together around the perimeter of the human shape. Leave a small space open at the head or side of the body (wide enough to get two fingers through), so that you may turn the figure inside out (to hide the stitches). You can then stuff it with the necessary ingredients and sew the small opening closed. It may be decorated if desired.

After the poppet has been fully constructed, it is necessary to name it as the individual that you wish to affect before using it in your spell.

Naming Ritual

The naming ritual is used to create a psychic link between a poppet and the subject of a spell. Have the poppet stuffed with the appropriate herbs and personal items from the subject of the spell. Place a censer (with appropriate incense) and the knife in the north part of the altar, a bowl of salt in the southeast, and a bowl of water in the southwest. Set the cauldron in the center. Have a beeswax or appropriately colored candle in front of the cauldron.

Take a cleansing bath, arrange the altar, and cast the circle. During this rite, continually concentrate on the subject of the spell. Take the poppet and pass it over the candle flame and say, “You are charged with the power of will.” Then, pass the poppet over the censer and say, “You are charged with the power of thought.” Next, place the poppet in the cauldron, sprinkle it with salt, and say, “You are charged with the power of being.” Finally, sprinkle water over the poppet while saying, “You are charged with the power of feeling.”

Next, summon energy and take the poppet in your weak hand and the knife in your strong hand. As you pour energy through the knife into the poppet, strongly visualize the person whom the poppet represents while chanting at least three times:

With flame of spirit and by sky, by land,
and by sea, [name] you are now represented to me.
All that you are is now a part of [he/she],
[name], you are now represented to me.

As you close the rite, say:

In the name of [chosen deity], so it shall be.

Unnaming Ritual

The unnaming ritual is used in order to remove the identity attached to a poppet used in prior magic when a spell has been removed or reversed. Take the poppet and wash it with cold, blessed saltwater while saying the following at least three times:

I take away your name, strip your power, cut the tether,
Your link to [name], broken,
You are nameless, now and forever.

After the poppet is washed and the name removed, take apart the doll and bury the bits in the ground so that the earth will absorb it and it will lose any remaining connection to the person for which it was named.

Bonding Spell

This spell is old and designed to bring together two people in marriage. Use this spell with caution and proper intent. A word of caution: Do not use this spell as a means of forcing another to do your bidding. Use it when you truly believe that two people love each other and want to get married, but something (nerves, outside influences, etc.) is holding them back. Cast the spell to remove their fear or obstacles and pave the way for the future that they desire. There is much potential for misuse of this spell, but I am including it here because it is traditional. In truth, any spell has the potential for misuse.

Items needed:

Procedure

Take a cleansing bath, arrange the altar, and cast the circle. Create and name the poppets. Light the love incense, then the left candle, and finally the right candle. Go into a meditation. When you are ready, focus on the couple and a loving sense of the bond that they share. In your mind’s eye see them embrace, see them at their wedding, and call out a heartfelt plea to your chosen deity, such as Hera, the Greek Goddess of marriage, asking that the couple be brought together in marriage if both of their true wills are to be together. Next, pick up both poppets, female in the left hand, male in the right (if applicable), and infuse your loving thoughts, emotion, and desire into the bodies of the poppets.

Now, join the poppets together in an embrace. Slowly wrap the pair with the red cord, binding them together. While you do this, visualize the couple being married and lovingly hugging each other. When you have finished binding the pair, tie a knot in the ends of the cord and place the poppets in the cloth bag. This ritual is best performed on the night before the full moon because the last step of this spell must take place on the full moon.

Finally, at midnight on the night of the full moon go to a dirt crossroads (previously selected) and bury the cloth bag containing the poppets in the center of the crossroads, asking that the couple will be married within the year if it is by the couple’s free wills to be together. The year timeframe is traditional, but you can ask for a longer amount of time if desired. If you cannot find a dirt crossroads, you may take cornmeal or wheat flour and pour a plus sign on a patch of ground and bury the bundle next to it. After the bundle is buried, leave the crossroads without looking back. It is done.

Binding Spell

A binding spell is used to restrict the actions of another in order to prevent them from doing harm. It is powerful magic that definitely straddles the ethical boundary; it should only be used in cases of clear need and after all else fails. One of the dangers in using this spell frequently is becoming attached to the feeling of dominant power that goes along with the spell’s successful results. The other danger is causing harm, whether through the thoughtless use of this spell on an innocent person or through improper, angry, vengeful use on a “deserving” person. Be wary of misuse.

Items needed:

Procedure

The spell is best performed the day after the full moon or a Saturday during the waning moon for Saturn’s influence. Take a cleansing bath, arrange the altar, and cast the circle. Make a cloth poppet. To stuff the poppet, gather together personal items or photographs of the one to be affected and the proper herbs. Name the poppet with the naming ritual.

Tie the ribbons or cords together in a single knot at the end. Hold the knot in your teeth and slowly braid together the ribbons while concentrating on the outcome of the binding. At the same time, gently rock back and forth with a “pulling” sense to draw the outcome to you. When the braiding is complete, tie a knot at the other end of the ribbons to complete your binding cord.

Now hold the poppet and imagine the person it represents bound in gray ropes, much like a mummy. Firmly tie the braided cord around the poppet, binding all parts that could possibly do harm. Next, charge it by saying:

No longer suffering by your hand,
Torment, strife, brute force be bound.
With this cord, I now entwine,
Peace and comfort shall be found,
In the name of [chosen deity], your power I bind!

This is followed by specific commands told to the poppet as if it were the actual person (it is a psychic link to them). These commands must be precise and “positively” phrased, meaning “I want” language rather than “I don’t want” language. Some examples are, “I want you to avoid my presence” or “You must stay out of my sister’s life.” The wording must be in terms of what you want, spoken of in the present tense and definite, as opposed to, “I don’t want to see you anymore” or “I don’t want you to use drugs.” The mind seems to respond more to “positive” language and phrasing. Remember to feel fully the relief of having the person finally bound.

Once you’ve given the command(s), place the poppet in a blessed spell box (see Chapter ten) or wrap it in black silk cloth and hide it away until you are ready to remove the spell. Burying the poppet may be done if you wish the binding to be permanent, but the spell would be much harder to undo once the poppet is buried. In a binding spell, burning the poppet is not recommended.

Unbinding Spell

It should be emphasized that it is harder to remove a binding spell (or any spell in general) than it is to cast one. This rite requires a lot of energy in order for it to break the original binding and may need to be repeated at regular intervals. The unbinding ritual can be used to help someone break free from an addiction or obsession, if you see the condition as a form of binding.

Items needed:

Procedure

If you were the one to bind the person in question, use the same poppet from the original binding spell in this ritual to free them. If not, or if you no longer have the doll, you must construct a new poppet, name it after the individual you wish to unbind, and wrap it in white cord to represent their condition. If you have to make a new poppet, it is recommended that it be constructed out of white wax, clay, or straw, as it does not have to be stuffed with anything and can have a personal item attached to the outside.

To begin the ritual, take a cleansing bath, arrange your altar, anoint the candles with the unhexing oil, cast the circle, and name the poppet with the naming ritual. After you have named the poppet, go into a meditation while holding the poppet. Imagine the poppet is bound in gray ropes, much like a mummy. Now see the ropes breaking and falling away from the poppet. Open your eyes and cut the poppet’s cords while chanting:

These bonds are now broken—
[Name], you are now free.
Strength and free will are yours again,
As I will, so it shall be!

This chant is followed by specific commands told to the poppet as if it were the actual person (remember, the poppet is a psychic link to that person). These commands must be precise and “positively” phrased. Some examples are, “You desire healthy food” or “You are free of the one who tries to control you.”

Once you have given the command(s), place the poppet in a prepared box and hide it away or give it to the person whom the poppet represents. Unbinding spells are best done during the waning moon.

Healing Spell

Healing spells can be tricky. When attempting to heal someone in pain, you need to know the correct diagnosis in order to properly treat the condition. It is important to know why a person is in pain to avoid treating only the pain; treating the pain alone masks the source of the problem and leaves it to fester. Before you even consider using magic to heal, your “patient” must go to a doctor and you should advise them to seek all available modern Western treatments. Healing spells can be used in conjunction with other medical treatments, energetically enhancing the effects of the conventional treatments as well as providing healing effects of their own. In using healing magic, it is best to make sure that your intent is to make the patient whole. For this reason, this spell is shown in a general way to avoid any magical errors. The energy is sent to make the patient whole, which should heal whatever ailments need healing.

As you advance, this spell should ideally be done with a poppet made from light-blue wax into which you have worked thyme, mint, sage, and some hair or nail clippings from the person needing to be healed. Because you will not be instructed in how to create wax poppets here, this spell will be described with a cloth poppet (simply stuff it with the herbs and personal items as previously instructed). If you do know how to create a wax poppet, they may be interchanged.

Items needed:

Procedure

To begin the ritual, take a cleansing bath, arrange your altar, cast the circle, and name the poppet with the naming ritual. Anoint the candles with the healing oil. Go into a meditation and visualize the “patient” in a completely healed state. Raise healing energy by visualizing pure white light streaming into your body through your third eye and up into you from the earth. Pick up the poppet and infuse it with this energy by sending the light through your hands into the poppet. Place the poppet back on the altar and charge the crystal with healing energy in the same manner. Now, place the crystal on the poppet, over the area of the body most affected by the illness. If there are multiple areas of the body affected, then you will need as many crystals as necessary. After you place the crystal, sweep your hands over the poppet in a clockwise circular motion to remove any negative or unhealthy energy from the afflicted person. After you sweep away the negative energy, chant the following:

Wrapped in magic, healing power,
Strengthen your body, every hour.
[chosen deity], Goddess/God of earth and stars
Wrap your arms around this one
and heal him/her of all harms.

As you chant, visualize that the patient is fully healed and strong. Wrap the poppet and crystal(s) in white cloth of a natural fiber and keep in a safe place until the healing has been successful.

Reversal of Fortune

This spell is worked when a wrongdoer seems to be getting away with a crime. This spell calls for nonspecific justice to come upon the person to correct the wrong that has been committed. There are two important keys to this spell. First, this spell must only be performed on someone who has committed a genuine wrong, otherwise it will turn back on the spell caster. Second, nonspecific justice is the only goal that must be kept in mind, and the feeling of relief must be kept in your heart throughout the casting. If these conditions are not met by the spell caster, this spell could act as a curse and cause damage to both the sender and target. With this spell you must trust that the deities will know how to properly handle the wrongdoer and that the best correction to their behavior will be found without your specification. This magic hurries the natural cosmic balancing (karma) that would already occur in the wrongdoer’s life.

Items needed:

Procedure

First, take a cleansing bath, cast a circle, and name the poppet with the naming ritual. With the poppet in your hands, in your own words ask the deities to ensure that justice is truly delivered to the wrongdoer and that the wrongdoer is stopped from committing further harm. Burn the poppet in the cauldron. If you cannot burn the poppet in the cauldron, cut a doorway in the circle, take the poppet outside, and bury the doll in the ground. Chant the following:

For what was done, justice is due,
hastened and strengthened, three times three.
What was sent out returns to you, as I will, so shall it be.

If the poppet was burned, open the circle and end the rite, then bury the remains in the ground. If the poppet was only buried, return to the circle, thank the deities, and end the rite by thanking the deities and opening the circle. The wearing of a protective amulet is advisable until you are sure that the spell has taken effect.

Unhexing Spell

This spell will help you cleanse your body, mind, and spirit of negative energy. It will remove a curse if one has been cast upon you and can be cast upon another hexed individual.

Items needed:

Procedure

First, take a cleansing bath. Cast your circle with everything necessary for the rite inside. Make the cloth poppet and name it with the naming ritual. Dress the candles with unhexing oil. Go into a meditation. When you are relaxed, visualize the hexed person as perfectly happy, healthy, and surrounded by an aura of pure, white light. When you are ready, pick up the poppet and transfer this energy into the doll. Next, set the poppet on the altar and light the candles and the incense. Anoint the poppet on the head, chest, and genital regions with unhexing oil. See this oil as cleansing the hexed individual of any and all negativity. Pick up the doll once more and state the following with conviction:

Loathsome cloud, heavy and bleak
Loose your grip on one so dear.
Darkness withdraw, [name] is released
I call an end to negativity and fear!

After chanting, it is a good idea to add a blessing element so that the “energy vacuum” of cleansing is filled in with positive energy. You may state:

You are now blessed and pure.
New joy and purpose fills your life, blessed be.

The poppet should be wrapped in white cloth and kept safe.

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