Holiday Magic Spell
incantation
White lights aglow
Warmth of night
Speed of fairy
Spirits alight
Filled with love
Tinsle in hand
Sparkle through
Holiday land
Ingredients
- • The Star
- • Glass of water
- • Ace of Wands
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
December’s holidays
celebrate light in the darkness. We gather with loved ones, indulge in hearty foods, and celebrate the year’s closing. Amidst the flurry, keep your heart warm and your spirits high by inviting the magic to glow inside of you. Become the light in the darkness.
The Star card reflects sacred illumination, and the Ace of Wands is the spark of passion.
Place the Star card before you. Enter the card. You stand naked with your bare feet on warm grass, looking up. A shining night sky glimmers above you. The universe is ablaze with points of light. Move toward a glistening pool of water. It reflects the night sky like a mirror. A cup is next to your feet. Kneel to scoop up the star water, sending little waves as you do. Drink the star water (your physical glass of water), feeling it cleanse and electrify you.
Place the Ace of Wands. See yourself bringing this wand of fire into the Star card with you. Hold the wand firmly in both hands. It warms your body, yet it does not burn. Your skin reflects the powerful red glow. Internal warmth creeps through your body. It moves through your arms, up your spine, and spreads to your head and down to your feet. It is the warmth of love and generosity.
You spy a village below. It is a snug little town with snow-encrusted roofs and white lights. You walk toward it and peek into homes, seeing roaring fireplaces and tables set with sumptuous food and drink. Shiny gifts peek from beneath evergreens. Children’s laughter floats through the air. A bonfire is alight in the town square, and people are dancing and singing.
All this happiness and celebration resides in your heart. The bonfire is the warmth of your spirit.
December • 2
Eight of Wands Connection Ritual
Ingredient
incantation
Eight of Wands
Passion in flight
Streaks across the sky
Heart’s delight
A plan in motion
No stopping now
When you see the result
The response is wow!
- • Eight of Wands
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Enter the arcana of the Eight of Wands.
The Eight of Wands
was called the Lord of Swiftness by the magicians of the Golden Dawn, who assigned it the time period of November 23–December 2.
Fields of green spread around you as far as your eye can see. Fertile hills slope in the distance and settlements lie beyond a lazy, winding river that meanders like a blue path through the countryside.
The sky’s blue is reflected in the cool water that runs its course in its own perfect time, bouncing and babbling over stones and rocks. A far-off sound, the spring of a catapult is heard. As quick as the sky was empty, it is now full of flying wands, like shooting stars, moving at incredible speed. Your hair flies up and around your face as eight wands come flying past you. You crouch to avoid being knocked back by one of them. They are precise, not randomly flung, but moving with specificity and elegance. Someone unknown to you launched them with intention and knows exactly where they aim.
Tiny sprouts of vegetation spring from each wand. They grow, like seedling transplants, in mid air. There is nothing you could do to stop this energy in motion. Their course is set.
Deep down, you know their energy is harnessable. The only things needed to launch these wands of change are passion, poise, and a plan.
What shall you set in motion?
3 • December
Bona Dea Personal Healing Spell
incantation
Health of sun
Warmth of one
Heal this body
Return to fun
Strength and health
Physical wealth
Come to me
So mote it be
- • The Sun
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
The Festival of Bona Dea was held today in Rome. This “Good Goddess” was sacred to women and healing. No man was allowed to speak or utter her name. Her rituals were known as the “secret sacrifice,” and men were banned from her ceremonies.
The Sun card represents perfect health. Perform this healing spell in conjunction with other medical or holistic treatments.
Scan your body to discover the areas requiring healing. If you are suffering from congestion, focus on the nose or lungs; if you are suffering foot pain, focus on the feet. Remain open to discover any surprising and unexpected spots.
Place the Sun card before you. Allow the warm exuberance of the sunshine to envelop you. It is the gentle, early warmth of summer. This is the healing energy that entices the world to wake up, quiver, and expand.
Feel the spot in your body awakening. Feel and focus on the sun’s energy as if it were raindrops of light.
Place the Sun card on that part of your body. Feel the warmth on the top of your skin. Let it saturate and move through your layers of skin, into the blood and flesh beneath. Bring the heat between your skin and bone so that everything between sucks in the Sun’s healing warmth. Your cells soak and receive the yellow sunlight. Each molecule of your body glows with health, becoming plump and rosy.
Blanket your cells in warm, healing light. Let the energy in a ball glow with healing, pulsating light. Any darkness or decay, any sickness, becomes dispersed and inoculated with white light. Allow the energy ball to grow large enough to encompass your entire body.
December • 4
Get It Together Jupiter Pasta Spell
incantation
Spinning planet
Globe revolve
Gather together
Problem solve
Equilibrium gained
Balance back
Now I’m feeling
Back on track
- • The Wheel of Fortune
- • 4 sage leaves
- • 2 tablespoons butter
- • Single serving pasta or pumpkin/butternut squash ravioli
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Pioneer 10 reached
Jupiter on this day
in 1973.
Jupiter rules luck, growth, enthusiasm, and expansion. The Wheel of Fortune and hearty sage leaves are both ruled by Jupiter. Sage offers strength and calm for any situation.
Place the Wheel of Fortune card before you. See the elements on the card spinning just like our solar system’s planets. Which part of the card stays still?
The only way you aren’t going to spin out of control is to find the exact center of the wheel.
Find your personal center inside your body. Breathe deeply to fill this centered place with warmth and light. This marks the ultimate center of your universe.
Move to the stove and to your frying pan. See the Wheel of Fortune’s circle inside the pan. Place over a low flame and add the butter. As the butter melts, feel your stress melting away. As the aroma fills your kitchen, allow the sweetness to calm you down. As the butter browns, toss in the sage leaves. Allow the sage to brown (not burn).
Toss over prepared pasta or ravioli with fresh cheese and enjoy. You have found your grounding and thereby gained control over your situation. You are ready to face anything.
5 • December
Venus Spell to Stop Being So Hard on Yourself
incantation
Sharp words, piercing thoughts
Bring forth blood
Transform to kindness
And forge bloom to bud
Love myself in
Kind, gentle ways
Away my weapons
Goodness stays
- • The Empress
- • Sprig of holly
- • Soft piece of fabric
- • Wooden box
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Pioneer Venus 1 began to orbit Venus on this day in 1978. Venus represents the epitome of love.
Do you brush off compliments? Do you make excuses for your talents and gifts? Do you put yourself down? This is not kind, nor is it productive. If this sounds like you, perform this spell to stop being so hard on yourself. Replace the inner critic with Venus, planet and goddess of love.
The Empress is ruled by Venus. Ancient Druid priests utilized mistletoe for fertility rituals.
Place the Empress card before you. Enter the card. Stand in the Empress’s wheat fields. See the person you love most in the world standing in the fields of gold. What do you say to them? How do you act toward them? How do you encourage them? What is your general feeling toward them? Reach forward to embrace them. Smell the nape of their neck and their hair. Feel love emanating.
Let them go and discover it is you you have been hugging. Feel all those feelings of love for yourself.
Walk to the Empress. She is the essence of love. Feel her capacity of love coming toward you. Exit the card.
Take the holly in hand. Gently trace the outside of the leaves with your finger, feel the sharpness but don’t poke yourself. These poking edges represent the words and thoughts you have used against yourself. Make a solemn promise you will never do this again.
Wrap the holly up in the fabric while whispering the incantation.
Place inside the box for safekeeping. Use the holly for future self-protection spells.
December • 6
Psychic Self-Defense Spell
incantation
Reflective bubble
Bounce, refract
To others
I will not react
Deflect their energy
Duck and pass
This spell will be
Sure to last
1. The Moon
2. Page of Cups
3. All four knights
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
The Moon card is associated with the colo
Dion Fortune, the author of Psychic Self-Defense, was born today in 1890.
r of silver and represents the subtle psychic landscape. The Page of Cups is the most impressionable card of the deck. The knights offer their protective energies.
You will create a mirrored bubble surrounding your entire body. The reflective surface will bounce all unwanted energy away from you.
Lay the Moon card. Enter its vague shadows. Walking toward the mountains, note how different everything looks in the moonlight. You walk past the towers. This psychic landscape is the place of the mythic and the imagination. Honor and validate the psychic power you possess.
Lay the Page of Cups over the Moon card. Hold the cup in your hand, as pictured on the card. Watch carefully as something emerges from the cup. A water creature pokes his head at you. To your surprise and delight, you notice he is blowing a bubble. The clear bubble is blossoming, becoming so large you put the cup on the floor. Step back as the fish continues to blow and release the bubble.
The bubble is now large enough for you to step inside of it. You pass through its membrane. It encloses you perfectly. You are able to see the room around you with perfect clarity, yet the shimmering bubble protects you. It bounces and refracts all energies and emotions back to the people who created them. At any point in your life when you need to activate this bubble, imagine it around you. You will be sealed and protected.
Place the knights at the four corners of the Moon card for protection.
7 • December
Attract Positive People Spell
incantation
Three of Cups
With love and light
Bring wonderful people
to my sight
My circle surrounds me
Honest and true
A sweet, delightful
Witch’s brew
Friends come to me
Come quick, come soon
Find you by the
Light of the moon
- • 2 cups chamomile tea
- • Honey
- • Three of Cups
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Galileo Spacecraft went into orbit around Jupiter on this day in 1995.
Sticky honey is used in drawing and attraction spells. Its sweetness brings things we desire to us. Chamomile, a sacred Druid herb, is a bright and cheerful flower containing the qualities of people you’d like to attract. Jupiter, the planet of luck and expansion, also helps attract upbeat people into your life.
Prepare two cups of infused tea. Add honey. Take one cup for yourself and place one at the seat next to you. This is an offering to your future friends.
Place the Three of Cups card before you. Enter the card. Feel the warmth of good feelings surrounding you. Feel the celebration and camaraderie of being among people who make you feel good. See their cups lifted in the air and then feel how high other people can bring you when they shine the light on your positive qualities. Return the love.
The three figures inside the card are like flowers in a garden. Each carries unique beauty and talent. They inspire one another to do better, be greater. Each member of the circle is better for knowing the others. Friends with warm hearts and good intentions are heading toward you as you work this spell.
Contemplate the card as you finish your tea, taking your time and enjoying the space of friendship. When your cup is empty, take the second cup and pour as a libation outside of your home while repeating the incantation.
December • 8
Four of Cups Unseen Opportunities Spell
incantation
Opportunies thrive
Discover you now
Marvelous things in life
I do allow
Perception opens
To include
Things that foster
A good mood
- • Pen and paper
- • Four of Cups
- • Dried figs
- • Goat cheese
- • Honey
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Today is Bodhi Day.
According to Japanese tradition, Buddha became enlightened on this day as he sat under a tree and meditated until he found the root of all suffering.
The figure on the Four of Cups is often associated with the sitting Buddha. How often have we missed opportunities and not even realized we didn’t see them? Our brain/eye connection to the world filters portions of perception; otherwise, we would be inundated with too much information at once. Cast this spell to hone your perception and allow the most useful, positive, and uplifting opportunities and people to be noticed. You may also perform this spell when you are searching for something in particular, such as a new home, a new lover, or a new perspective.
Figs are sacred to the Bodhi tree. Goat cheese connects to lunar energy. Write down the opportunities or types of people you would like to notice, attract, and cultivate in your life. Hone your list into a series of simple descriptive words.
Take the seated position of the Four of Cups. Place the Four of Cups before you. Enter the card, becoming the figure under the tree. Feel the tree bark against your spine. Look out at the three cups before you. These cups represent your current state of being and seeing. State each item of your list out loud, ending with “I see you now.” Repeat each item on the list three times.
Exit the card.
Place goat cheese on figs, drizzle with honey, and enjoy your sweet, rich new reality.
9 • December
Releasing Stress/Invoking Peace Spell
incantation
Release the stress
Invoke the calm
Tonight I am
Safe and warm
Night fades softly
And I see
A peaceful
Calm reality
1. Nine of Swords
2. Ace of Swords
3. The High Priestess
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
The holidays are gearing up, expectations abound, and there’s a good chance you are feeling overloaded with responsibility. Cast this spell to free yourself.
Swords represent the mind, thoughts, and calculations. The Nine of Swords represents a stressful state of mind. The Ace of Swords will be used as a tool to remove stress triggers. The High Priestess represents your natural state of calm and peace.
Place the Nine of Swords. Enter the card. Embody the woman in bed. The springs of the mattress support you. The nightgown’s soft cotton folds caress your shoulders and waist. Your head is in your hands with emotional despair. Remove your hands from your eyes. Look at the wall next to you. Each sword represents a trigger to stressful thinking. You have the power to change your thoughts. Grasp one sword by its cold steel handle. Use it to strike the other swords from the wall.
Place the Ace of Swords over the Nine of Swords. You have harnessed the power of thought. The strength of the sword reverberates in your hand, up your arm, and through your whole body with a gentle hum. You have command of your thoughts. If a stressful thought enters your consciousness, notice it and let it pass.
Turn both cards sideways so the sword faces right. Place the High Priestess to the right of the sword. You now direct all your mental energy to the calm resting place of your natural intuition. Moonlight filters the card. The gentle waves break behind her. Your sleeping gown has become regal robes whose silken fabric shimmers with the moon’s luminescence. Each fiber of her gown carries the vibrancy of a moonbeam. You sit in her chair, at perfect peace. This is your natural state.
You are perfection.
December • 10
Increase Productivity Spell
incantation
Spinning wheel
Glowing wands
Energetic release
Of my bonds
Move with grace
I’m free and clear
The wheels turn
A clock’s clever gear
They spin, revolve
And circle so
My life moves
With perfect flow
- • List of things to accomplish
1. Five of Wands
2. The Wheel of Fortune
- • Mint gum
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Have a million things to manage and accomplish? This spell acts like a power boost to help you blow through your day with ease. It aids in productivity, ensuring things run smoothly and your work is effective and quick.
The fives in tarot’s minor suits represent the friction that keeps the momentum going through each suit as it grows toward the ten. The Wheel of Fortune, bearing an old, iconic image, keeps energy moving. It ensures things get done. Mint enlivens the senses and increases memory recall so you are faster and more effective.
Place the Five of Wands before you. See the energy that the five characters are generating from their heat and play. Do not move too close. Stay at the outskirts. Simply observe their momentum and exertion.
Place the Wheel of Fortune above the Five of Wands. In your mind’s eye see the wheel spinning. Listen to the whir as it speeds up faster and faster. As the wheel revolves, look at your to-do list. See the first item, pull it toward you off the list, and throw it toward the wheel. It happens effortlessly, pleasantly. Continue down the list until all items have been thrown into the wheel.
Pop a stick of mint gum in your mouth. Get to work on your list, and enjoy your productivity.
11 • December
Nine of Wands Connection Ritual
incantation
Nine of Wands
Passions fight
Move, evolve
Break forth tonight
Seek the dark
Untrodden lands
Cause the future
In my hands
- • Nine of Wands
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
The Nine of Wands
was called the Lord of
Great Strength by the magicians of the Golden
Dawn, who assigned it
the time period of
December 3–December 12.
Enter the arcana of the Nine of Wands.
Nines in tarot reflect the closing of a cycle. Nines are akin to standing at the front of a long line, knowing you are next to be called. Nines provide what is wanted: wishes are granted, actions have culminated, the experience of manifestation is at hand. In the best cases, we sit on cloud nine.
A beaten and bruised actor stands before you. Turning his head cautiously left and right, a fence of upright wands stands behind him. He grasps a single wand in his hand. He has taken this wand from the fence. Doing so opens a new door for himself. He steps onto a virgin path.
You have seen this moment in films and plays. It never ceases to thrill you. The character you’ve been rooting for breaks through their barriers. Moving past self-imposed walls, they enter new territory.
The figure’s fear and uncertainty do not cause him to retrace his steps and return to the field of comfort. He has come too far. The drama unfolds before you like a tasty meal.
But long after red velvet curtains drape across the stage in finality, after the actors have finished their post-show cocktails, after the torchlights are snuffed out, after you’ve returned home, paid the babysitter, brushed your teeth, and gone to bed, how does the story resonate in your dreams? Has the hero taught you how to move past your comfort zone? Was it merely entertainment?
When will you supersede your barriers? When will you break the bonds that hold you? When will you pick up your wand and open a doorway to a new reality?
December • 12
Perfect Gift Spell
incantation
Perfect present
Find you soon
Come to me quick
Make them swoon
A gift to others
Is a gift to me
Abundance abounding
Is what I see
Shop with ease
And fun and flair
By end of day
All gifts are there
1. Ace of Pentacles
2. Seven of Swords
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
There are a lucky thirteen days left until Christmas Day. That means if you are shopping for gifts, you have less than two weeks to get it done. Perform this quick spell before shopping for any type of gift any time of the year.
All aces in tarot represent the gift of their suit. The Ace of Pentacles is the gift of earth, which reflects things we can see, hold, smell, and touch. These are physical gifts. The Seven of Swords is the selection and editing card. Harness the Seven of Swords card to gain the power of quick decisions and see with clarity.
Bring to mind the person or people for whom you are shopping.
Place the Ace of Pentacles. See yourself giving your gifts. Experience the delightful look of surprise on their face when they open it. How does this make you feel?
Place the Seven of Swords over the ace.
See yourself shopping. The figure selects carefully, taking only what is needed. This is the card of curation, discrimination, and speed. See yourself shopping quickly, speedily, and being directed exactly toward the item that will make your giftee’s heart glow. Become the Seven of Swords as you shop, picking and selecting only what you need, leaving the rest behind.
13 • December
Page of Pentacles Connection Ritual
incantation
Page of Pentacles
Study is play
What should I
Grow today?
Plant the seed
Of learning now,
Future brilliance
I will plow
- • Page of Pentacles
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
The Ivy League’s Dartmouth College, one of only nine colleges founded before the American Revolution, broke ground on this day in 1769.
Enter the arcana of the Page of Pentacles, the perpetual student who is fascinated by the very process of learning and the physical world around her. The Apennine Mountains reach toward the sky in the distance, and cheerful spring poppies dance in the breeze. A grove of cherry laurel trees offers shade from the vibrant sun. The hum of tractors plays over the landscape as they turn the soft earth up to receive seeds.
A young person stands before you with a golden disk balanced in her fingertips. She is absorbed by the globe’s complexity and refracted, vibrating light. She memorizes its every detail, including the five-pointed star at the very center. The star rotates, whirring with energy. She and you realize at the same moment that the power inside the pentacle is magic. It is magic that, when imbued with solar energy or intention, creates growth. When fed by the sun, it germinates a seed. It is the spark of physical magic. It propels the growth of everything, from individual molecules to the expansive solar system. All retain the shape of the pentacle.
The student recognizes that the circular, global nature of the pentacle lends itself not only to the molecule, our planet and solar system, but also to the nature of time, the scope and range of personal emotion, and even a human life span. Even tarot’s journey is circular in its narrative pattern, though it deceives the reader as a rectangular stack of cards. The Fool moves through the majors to the World, only to begin again. The minor arcana’s ace appears, grows, and blooms to the tenth card, only to return again in ace form.
The Page’s hat is red, the color of creation; her tunic is green, the color of manifestation.
What will this pentacle become when you plant it?
December • 14
Abundance in All Things Garland
incantation
Tie the knot
Fast and tight
[Insert desire] comes
It feels right
- • Ten of Pentacles
- • Bag of fresh cranberries
- • Bowl of popcorn (homemade or bought)
- • Strong waxed thread
- • Needle
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
One of the best ways to manifest abundance is to offer it up. Winter creatures such as birds and squirrels will quiver with excitement when you make an offering of a popcorn and cranberry garland. This is an excellent spell to perform with children.
The Ten of Pentacles represents complete material abundance that encompasses everything touchable, from people to objects to finance. Cranberries are ruled by the element of water and offer protective qualities. Corn is a symbol of prosperity and is ruled by fire; it is useful for abundance spells.
Refine your intention before casting this spell. Are you seeking general abundance or something more specific? See clearly in your mind’s eye what you would like to attract.
Place the Ten of Pentacles before you. Enter the card. Stand under the threshold of physical manifestation. This is the arched doorway to the city. Look toward the inside of the city. See what you have already manifested in your life within the city walls. See the things you own, the people you know, the items you currently have.
Turn and look outside the city to what is available to you in the outside world. The possibilities are infinite. See very clearly what you would like to bring to your world. Invite it in.
Begin the garland’s construction by creating a knot at the end of the string. While knotting, repeat the incantation. String the cranberries and popcorn alternately until you have finished. Fasten a new knot at the other end and repeat the incantation over the knot. Make as many as you like.
Hang your garland outside in the trees when you are finished.
15 • December
Ten of Wands Connection Ritual
incantation
Ten of Wands
Passion spent
It’s curious to discover
Where time went
Kindle again
A new day will rise
And with it comes
A delightful surprise
- • Ten of Wands
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Enter the arcana of the Ten of Wands.
The Ten of Wands was called the Lord of Oppression by the magicians of the Golden Dawn, who assigned it the time period of December 13–21.
You are in a theater. The thunderous sound of clapping fills your ears. The audience is on their feet cheering, hooting, and stomping.
A man walks across the stage carrying a mysterious bundle of wands that have been fashioned together like a bundle of corn stalks. His clothing matches the color of the sticks.
Tears stream down the plump cheeks of the woman sitting next to you. “Bravo! Bravo!” calls the tuxedoed gentleman behind you. One couple rushes out of their seats to avoid the crush of people. The red curtains above descend across the stage as the crowd roars louder. The play is over. The drama is done. The passion and energy has come to its logical yet surprising conclusion.
Actors line up in the wings, getting ready to come out for their bow, each in the order of their character’s importance. Producers nod to themselves, satisfied with the evening’s receipts and the audience reaction. Bow-tied ushers stand straighter and ready themselves to fling open the doors.
The pub next door readies itself for the influx of customers, the bartender inhaling one last drag of his cigarette in the alley. A single-file line of black taxis waits at the curb outside the theater.
The passion play is over. Out of a playwright’s single flame came a fire. It is now extinguished. But as easily as night has fallen, a new day soon begins. With the new day comes new fires, new passions, and different stories.
This is the rhythm and flow of our life.
December • 16
Go Away Head Cold Roasted Garlic Spell
incantation
Knight of Swords
Lord of air
Keep my health
Hear my prayer
- • Large bulb of garlic
- • Olive oil, salt, and pepper
- • Knight of Swords
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Drippy noses and congested heads are the last thing you need in the bustling holiday season. Cast this spell as a preventative measure or when you feel run down or when you’ve got a touch of the sniffles.
Garlic is known to ward off those pesky, blood-sucking vampires, but it’s also a treasure trove of antibacterial and health-inducing properties. No wonder garlic picked up a protective reputation. Garlic undergoes a magical transmutation when it roasts. Its spiciness and bite become mellow and sweet.
The Knight of Swords is also known as the Knight of Air. He will combat airborne sickness for you and keep enemies and germs at bay.
Focus on the Knight of Swords. Feel his protective properties surrounding you. In your mind’s eye allow him to hand you his sword. Feel it heavy in your hand. Use the sword to create a protective barrier around your entire body. Draw a protective barrier in the air around you and the ground before you. Stand inside and light the barrier with protective white light. Repeat the incantation.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Slice the pointy head of the garlic off so each clove is exposed. Rub exposed cloves with olive oil and sprinkle fresh pepper and salt on top. Wrap in tin foil, place in oven, and roast for one hour, letting the aromatic smell entice you.
Remove from oven when the garlic is soft and spreadable.
Spread across hearty toasted bread with cheese or whisk into soups, stews, sauces, or pastas.
17 • December
Let Go of Old Behavior Spell
incantation
Dark of night
End of year
Release behaviors
That aren’t dear
You depart
Are left behind
Embrace the new
Possibility I find
1. Ten of Wands
2. Ace of Swords
3. The Star
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
The darkest night of the year draws close. Now is the time to extinguish old habits, disruptive thought patterns, and lingering strange emotions for good. As psychic ties to behaviors, people, or habits are officially released, new growth occurs. New potentials and possibilities will emerge.
The Ten of Wands represents endings and the finality of passion, effort, and energy. The Ace of Swords is the tool used to cut away what is not needed. The Star card represents an open soul, ready for nourishment that is blessed by the celestial realm.
Place the Ten of Wands. Note the figure in the card and what he carries. What are you carrying? What do you want to rid yourself of? Filter through your thoughts. Choose one particular thing—the most annoying, plaguing issue. Become the figure on the card holding ten wands in your arms. This is the issue at hand. Stand up. Release the wands. They scatter before you like pick-up sticks.
Place the Ace of Swords. Enter the card. Grasp the cold steel of the sword. It glitters in the December sun, reflecting the cold light of truth. Use your blade to mark the ground in front of you. Mark a line in the dirt that separates you from the wands. The wands disintegrate before your eyes.
Place the Star card. Feel her freedom and vulnerability. The weight of the wands has been replaced by the weightless light of inspiration. It is energized. The starlight comes from millions of miles across the galaxy, but you can travel there in a thought. A seed of brilliance has been planted where old blocks once stood. You are free and clear.
December • 18
Ace of Pentacles Connection Ritual
incantation
Ace of Pentacles
Root of earth
All around me
Life gives birth
I take this energy
Spend it well
And honor the place
Where I do dwell
- • Ace of Pentacles
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
The time period near
a solstice is a good time
to connect with elemental energy.
Place the Ace of Pentacles. Enter the card. You are standing amidst a lush garden. Foxglove reaches for the sun as bees bounce from flower to flower collecting nectar. Crickets chirp in symphony around you.
Lie on the soft green grass. Feel the weight of your entire body supported by the earth. Garden beds have been churned. The earth waits for seeds bursting with life energy. Fat earthworms burrow down, and spiders scurry from the sunlight, finding refuge amidst tender green shadows.
You see the sprig of green and tug on it. A carrot slips from the ground. You brush off the dirt and taste the crunchy, sweet orange flesh. Press your fingers into the earth. Feel the warm, crumbly, mossy dirt fall between your fingers. Anything planted in this garden will bloom.
A mysterious hand extends before you from a swirling cloud. It is the hand of magic, synchronicity, and mystery. A pentacle rests on its palm. The pentacle transforms into an atom, a nucleus surrounded by a cloud of electrons. It transforms again, now into a seed, then a shiny golden coin, a planet, a witch’s pentagram, a sequence of DNA yet to be unraveled. In a flash you see the entire life span of a human, wobbly infant to old man and back to atom. The entire physical world is contained in a ball.
The pentacle belongs to you. It always has. It always will.
Emerald ivy dappled with red berries covers the fence. An opening invites you out of the garden and down a new path. Mountains rise up to the sky’s embrace in the distance.
Will you walk through?
19 • December
Embrace the Darkness Spell
incantation
Pregnant, fecund
Darkest night
Deepest slumber
Brings new sight
1. Four of Swords
2. Eight of Cups
3. The High Priestess
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Dark, chilly mornings beg for extra sleep and five more minutes under the covers. Honor this special time of year. Allow gloomy nights to lead to the manifestation of your heart’s desire, creativity fulfilled, and authentic manifestation that will blossom and emerge with clarity in the new year.
The Four of Swords reflects deep slumber. The Eight of Cups shows a willingness to take a road less traveled. The High Priestess is personal authenticity.
The longest night of the year is upon us. It is human nature to be afraid of the dark. Animals and danger lurked there for ancient man. Modernity brings us electricity, safety, and the knowledge that inside darkness, true birth occurs.
Lay the Four of Swords. Enter the card and become the sleeping knight. How deep you sleep! Feel the darkness behind your eyelids. You know you are safe to wander, dream, and invent.
Lay the Eight of Cups. Rise from your slumber. Begin an upward trek. Feel the moonlight around you, lighting your way. Stand at the foot of a hill. At the summit is an answer, a solution, a new way of being. It is a new evolution and manifestation of your deepest personal self. It is a part of yourself that has always wanted to surface. Step toward this.
Lay the High Priestess card. She sits on a throne at the top of the hill. The waters flow around you both. You move toward her and touch her glowing, pale skin. Your fingers move right through her; she is pure spirit—not of the physical realm. You heed her silent invitation to sit down on her throne. You are her. On this deepest night, she fills you with knowledge. Look through the High Priestess’s eyes. What do you see? What do you now know? What will you do?
December • 20
Page of Wands Connection Ritual
incantation
Page of Wands
Excited fire
Magic wands
Youths never tire
Point the wand
Where shall you go?
Once you get there
You will know
- • Page of Wands
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Enter the arcana of the Page of Wands.
Sacajawea, the intuitive female Indian guide of Lewis and Clark, passed away on this day in 1812. Her exploratory spirit perfectly embodies the Page of Wands, the natural-born explorer of the deck.
The dry sands of the desert blow past your shoulders and through your hair. The fiery orange landscape rises to meet the expansive blanket of blue sky distance like a woman leaning back to receive her lover’s body. Aromatic sagebrush, acacia, and tamarisk shrubs bearing pink flowers dot the scene. Salamanders scurry at the sound of your footsteps. A darting antelope catches your eye in the distance.
A spark, an ember of a girl, stands before you. She is costumed in vibrant orange and yellow as if leaping flames of desert fire had transformed into clothing. A single flame of red feather extends from her hat. A sense of déjà vu washes across your psyche. It feels like a ghost skipped over your grave, but then you realize where you have seen the feather before. The Fool, the Sun, and the Death card wear the same red feather on their heads.
This golden girl with locks of pure sunlight holds a wand in her hand. She is captivated by its tip. Cool green leaves shoot out. She realizes the power of attraction something can hold. The magic she makes with this wand is the ability to follow the flame of passion. It is the journey from point A to point B. Her wand will transport her anywhere.
Where shall you journey? The world is waiting.
21 • December
Goal-Setting Capricorn Spell
incantation
List of goals
Get me straight
Bring what I need
To my plate
I reach, I strive
I get it done
The battle’s over
And I’ve won
- • Pen, paper, and scissors
1. The Devil
2. Eight of Cups
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Today marks the first day
of the astrological sign of Capricorn, the pragmatist. Capricorn’s Saturn energy is steady, sure, and always operates with the end goal in mind.
The sign of Capricorn is assigned to the Devil card. The Devil can represent a person rooted in the material who is ever thirsty for more. It is Capricorn’s steady nature that makes Capricorn’s dreams and reality. The Eight of Cups represents the journey toward the manifestation of desire.
Make a list of the goals you would like to achieve.
Lay the Devil before you. Stand before the great beast. Feel how his energy has been operating through you, keeping you stuck in habits that are comfortable yet no longer useful. Walk over to the two nude figures. Lift their chains above their heads. They exclaim with excitement and run off. The Devil turns his eyes to you, but his energy is different now. You are no longer enslaved. You are now empowered.
Pick up the scissors and cut out each goal. Arrange the goals in order of ease and short term to more difficult and long term.
Place the Eight of Cups. Place the simplest goal at the top right corner of the card. See yourself setting off in a new direction. Move the card past it, to the top right side of the goal. Place a new goal at the top right side of the card. See yourself moving toward it. Repeat with all goals.
December • 22
Ritual to Align with Winter
incantation
Season of winter
Bright, white light
Lays in opposition to
Long, dark night
Snowflake crystals
Are very clear
What will I
Create this year?
- • Death
- • Favorite winter items and symbols
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Winter solstice is upon us. It marks the shortest day of the year and the longest number of nighttime hours. Creativity and rumination spells are well cast at this time of year. Winter energy aligns with the new moon, a return to sleep and rest, pregnancy and potency.
Working with seasonal energy is like working within the moon’s phases. The energy surrounds us; we need only to be open to it in order to access its gifts. The energetic qualities of winter include rest, sleep, silence, stillness, pause, stark clarity, and focus.
Gather seasonal energy like a weaver gathering silken strands. Cold nights, frosty air, falling snow, bare trees, bubbling stews, roasting vegetables, and white winter light support you and your magical intent.
Gather your favorite winter objects to place around the Death card. You might select mistletoe, pine cones, holiday chocolates, fairy lights, or garlands.
Enter the Death card.
Watch as Death marches across the card. As he moves, he leaves silence and stillness in his wake. A fresh, blank slate is left in his wake, as fresh as newly fallen snow. Death clears the space for us so we have room to blossom, grow, and expand. This season brings rest to our bodies so, come springtime, we can burst with fullness.
What do the qualities of dreamtime mean to you? What is changing in your life along with the Death card, quietly, under the surface, where no one else sees? What are the realms you visit when you slumber? What do you fill your mind with? What visions appear on snowscapes? How does the quiet feed you?
Explore into the card as far as you can go on your own.
23 • December
Holiday House of Spirits Spell
incantation
Happy home
Family tree
I accept the gifts
You offer me
Gratias tibi ago
(Latin for “thank you”)
- • Photographs of the departed
- • Nine of Pentacles
- • Six of Cups
- • Four of Wands
- • Small chocolate offering
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Today was Larentalia, the Roman festival honoring ancestors and blessing the home with joy. Prayers were offered to Lares, small figures displayed in the home. The Lares represented ancestor spirits who watched over the welfare of each family.
Bring family close together and draw the departed closer to you with this spell.
Ancient Romans used Lares to represent ancestors, but you can use photographs. It is best if the photo is inside a frame and can freely stand on an altar or table. The Nine of Pentacles represents our family tree connection through the familial castle and vineyard. The Six of Cups reflects emotional attributes that are passed down to us. The Four of Wands reflects happiness and stability in the hearth and home.
Place the family photographs before you. Lay the Nine of Pentacles. Enter the card. Smell the vineyard’s fertile earth. Consider those spirits who lived before you. They are as old as the grapevines surrounding you. They are as loyal as the falcon. These spirits wrote their story and passed their themes and qualities down to you.
Place the Six of Cups. Think of the emotional gifts that have been passed to you. How does the sense of humor thrive within you? What is your relationship to art? How do the issues of love and support play out in your family? Think of positive emotional qualities and thank them for it.
Place the Four of Wands. Feel the stability of the ground you walk upon. The house your family has built, the support you stand upon that was created by those who came before. They can feel your warmth and thanks, and they will feed you through the coming year in invisible ways. Place an offering of chocolate before each photograph while repeating the incantation.
December • 24
Gift for Me Spell
incantation
By the holiday lights
Hanging bright
My wish is coming
True tonight
- • Tarot cards representing what you want
- • Gift for someone else
- • Wrapping items
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
It is Christmas Eve. Children and adults will soon eagerly tear apart wrapping paper and open gifts. Perform this spell for the gift you most desire. It doesn’t matter if you celebrate Christmas or not.
Choose the cards that express your desire. If you want a trip to Aruba, you might choose the Eight of Wands and the Sun card together. For heightened creativity, choose the Empress; for a financial windfall, choose the Nine and Ten of Pentacles. The sky is the limit. Ask for anything your heart desires.
Place the cards before you. Walk away from your table. Return to peruse them with a fresh set of eyes. See yourself unwrapping the gift you desire. Imagine yourself doing, enjoying, and basking in it.
Now that you have enjoyed receiving, pick up the gift you have selected for another.
Wrap it carefully. Imagining their joy opening it.
While uttering the incantation, place it in a unique and surprising place where they will discover it upon waking up.
25 • December
Open Third Eye Chakra Energy
incantation
Third eye truth
The second sight
Glow within me
On this night
I look, I see
The truth reveal
Use this knowledge
To help and heal
- • The High Priestess
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Give yourself the greatest
gift today by opening your third eye chakra energy. The third eye is the seat of your intuition and the base of spiritual knowledge. Access this to open yourself to giant leaps of awareness and connections regarding your life.
The third eye chakra is located in the center of your forehead, between and slightly above your eyebrows.
Sit on a chair with your feet flat on the floor or sit on the floor in yogi position, legs crossed.
Place the High Priestess card before you. Focus on the third eye space on your forehead. Feel the energy there begin to warm and glow. Imagine it is colored indigo or royal blue. You might even begin to spin the chakra’s energy, revolving it in a whir of color. Sit straight. Perhaps you hear the energy, smell it, or even taste it.
Focus on the High Priestess while spinning the energy in your third eye. Connect your eyes with hers. Drink her essence in through your eyes. Note the full moon on her crown. It matches your third eye chakra.
Feel the connection of divine love. Let the indigo energy move from yourself to the High Priestess and back again. Feel the ball of energy fall through your body and move up your spine. It fills your entire essence with divine vision.
December • 26
Two of Pentacles Connection Ritual
incantation
Two of Pentacles
Endless dance
Life moves quick
Strut and prance
Stay nimble and quick
Upon my feet
When destiny knocks
How will I greet?
- • Two of Pentacles
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
The Two of Pentacles was called the Lord of Harmonious Change by the magicians of the Golden Dawn, who assigned it the time period of December 22–30.
Enter the arcana of the Two of Pentacles.
You have entered the space of division. One has become two. In this space of duality, the pentacle has become aware of itself. Context is provided by means of a second. Opposition is born. Oppositional tension creates a new energy.
Bring your mind’s eye inside the card and smell the fresh sawdust and wood of a stage. You are standing in an outdoor theater. You stand opposite a curly haired performer who is dressed in a colorful costume. Painted ships traverse rolling waves behind him. The performer hops from one slippered foot to the next. He is passing two yellow balls across the front of his chest. The balls move in tandem with an odd green band of energy in the symbol of infinity, the figure eight. He doesn’t stop to look at you but remains absorbed in his work.
Choices, choices, this card reflects choices. It holds a deeper truth as well. It is the nature of life that every single thing is in motion. Your table, chair, glass of water, and even the tarot card you gaze upon is alive and in motion. This energy is reflected inside this card. It is the energy of division, motion, attraction, and reaction. Everything you do creates an effect on the world.
And like a mini Wheel of Fortune, which echoes the movement and passing of time, this performer shows you how to dance and leap and stay fluid. He also reminds you to take your time. Never rush. Let the situation unfold.
Hold the tension of opposites. If you do so long enough, a third option will emerge.
27 • December
Destroy Fear Spell
incantation
Fear and joy
A coin of two sides
Pull out the stress
From my insides
Cleanse me, clear me
Awake, anew
Pure joy is now what
Will run through
1. Card representing your fear
2. The Tower
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
Use this time to your best advantage. The week between Christmas and New Years Eve holds a succinct and particular magical quality. The year is winding down; we rest from holiday madness and plot and plan for what’s to come in the year ahead.
The implicit destruction observed within the Tower card can be used to your advantage. Use the power of the Tower card to transform a tightly grasped fear into a positive association. Your fear also may be something causing you extreme stress.
Choose a card representing your fear. We often fear the very thing we desire. Consider the Celtic Cross spread’s position 9; hopes/fears are represented by the same card. If we fear what we desire, this is often why we don’t have it yet. Discover and visualize the underlying emotional reaction that blooms when you are close to getting what you want. Choose an appropriate tarot card to represent your fear or stress.
Place your chosen card in front of you. Enter the card. Face your fear. What does it look like? Select a piece, an aspect, a visual from the card to embody your fear. Allow your fear to become the tangible form inside the card. Discover a zipper running vertically up and down this embodiment.
Walk closer to your fear and unzip it.
Place the Tower card above your chosen card. Hear the crack of thunder, feel the heat of the lightning, and smell the smoke of the explosion.
Your fear is turned inside out. Gaze at what lies on the opposite side of your fear. What is there? What does it look like?
Your fear is now the opposite state. Walk into that state. Dwell inside it.
You are now free.
December • 28
Spell to Stop People Pleasing
incantation
Magic flickering
In the card
Change my ways
It’s not hard
My boundaries set
My mind is staid
I no longer please like
The scullery maid
1. Seven of Wands
2. Eight of Cups
3. The Hanged Man reversed
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
It’s a crazy time of year and demands run high. Cast this spell when you find yourself running ragged trying to please everyone and find yourself getting lost in the mix.
The Seven of Wands represents your current state of people pleasing. The Eight of Cups marks the transition to a new reality. The reversed Hanged Man reflects a new and settled reality.
Place the Seven of Wands. Enter the card with your mind’s eye. See yourself standing on the rocks’ edge. All of the demands and needs are placed on you by others who hold the wands. See each person or situation holding a wand upward demanding your attention. See yourself for a moment in a frantic effort to satisfy them all. Stop. Stand back. Thank each and every one of them for being in your life. Tell them it is time for you to go. Put down the wand and walk away.
Place the Eight of Cups. Enter the card. Become the figure walking up the mountain. You have entered a quiet, solitary space of twilight. The cups behind you represent your old way of life. Reach the top of the mountain. An infinite ocean expands before you. Place the reversed Hanged Man. The glow around his head represents the new reality of headspace you have entered. You do not shun your responsibilities to others, but you put yourself first. Doing so, you become more helpful and vivacious to the people in your life than ever before.
29 • December
Weird Witches of Macbeth Power Spell
incantation
Wool of bat
And tongue of dog
Adder’s fork and
Blind-worm’s sting
Lizard’s leg
And owlet’s wing
For a charm
Of powerful trouble
Like a hell-broth
Boil and bubble
1. Three of Cups
2. Page of Wands
3. Queen of Wands
4. Strength
- • Ginger tea
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
London’s Lyceum Theater hosted its first production of Macbeth today in 1888. Raise energy and send it toward your desired goal in this spell inspired by the Bard’s famous witches.
Increase your own power by performing this spell when you need more energy and desire to become more effective, proactive, and powerful.
The Three of Cups represents the three witches and the Maiden/Mother/Crone energy. The Page of Wands represents youthful passion (Maiden). The Queen reflects mature passion (Mother). The Strength card is the mastery of personal power (Crone). You will call to the three archetypes using Shakespeare’s powerful speech.
Place the Three of Cups before you. Focus on the power of the triad, the power of three, and see the cone of energy these dancers create by coming together.
Place the Page of Wands and chant:
Double, double, toil and trouble
As I speak, my powers double
Place the Queen of Wands and chant:
Fillet of a penny snake
With this spell its power I take
Place the Strength card and chant:
Eye of newt and toe of frog
Power fills my monologue
Feel the power generated by your words and the cards. See your ultimate goal, and send all this raised energy toward it. Sip the ginger tea to kindle your growing power.
December • 30
Fabulous Party Spell
incantation
Party night
Shining bright
Fabulous party
Disco light
Wicked fun
With harm to none
I do declare
This spell is done
- • Oregano (fresh or dried)
1. Queen of Wands
2. Queen of Pentacles
3. Queen of Swords
4. Queen of Cups
5. Three of Cups
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
An unforgettable evening can be as mysterious as the nature of magic itself. It is almost that celebrated night of the year. Help the stars align with memories that will last a lifetime and be talked about for years to come.
Oregano is ruled by Venus and used for happiness, luck, and protection. The four queens represent the stability of planning and effort. The Three of Cups reflects the creativity abounding as everyone draws together. If possible, leave this mandala out for the duration of your planning stages and up till the event itself to connect you with party creativity and good ideas.
The Queen of Wands (fire) connects to charisma and the Egyptian cat goddess Bast. The Queen of Pentacles (earth) relates to food, decorations, and comfort. The Queen of Swords (air) relates to guest selection and conversation. The Queen of Cups (water) represents the emotional levels of guests and good feelings.
Lay the Queen of Wands. Feel her warmth radiating. You absorb her sparkling party hostess personality. Stroke the cat’s soft black fur. Her purring hums under your palm and fills you with wicked delight. Lay the Queen of Pentacles. Smell the richness and luxury, the scent of good food and festive decor. Lay the Queen of Swords. The wind whistles as she calls forth electric people and stirs the energy of your party with exciting conversation and exchanges of clever wit. Lay the Queen of Cups, who guarantees that each guest feels welcome in your space. Lay the Three of Cups, representing the party itself; it pulls the creativity of each queen in the center of the mandala.
When you are finished, take your oregano and walk clockwise around your house or block while sprinkling it for the love and protection of all who enter.
31 • December
World Card’s Fabulous New Year Spell
incantation
The end of year
Time is here
Goodye to old
Usher in the new
Acknowledge everything
I’ve been through
1. The World
2. Ten of Swords
3. Ace of Swords
4. Ten of Wands
5. Ace of Wands
6. Ten of Pentacles
7. Ace of Pentacles
8. Ten of Cups
9. Ace of Cups
Method, Visualization, and Meditation
It’s the last day of the year. Time to say goodbye to the past and walk through the gate of the world dancer into a new year of wonders.
Nine is the number of wish fulfillment. Nine cards are used for this spell.
Place the World card before you. Enter the card. Allow yourself to become the world dancer. Feel the energy of the past year swirling around you like warm and cleansing ocean waters. Float in the middle of her nebula. Recall a way of thinking that you ended this year or a decision you made that put an end to something negative. State out loud what you decided or did as you lay down your Ten of Swords card. Focus on this card and honor yourself for removing what was no longer needed. What new decision have you made? State it aloud and place your Ace of Swords to the left of the ten.
Think of a work or passion project you completed this past year. Say it aloud as you place the Ten of Wands. Where and what new project will you focus your attention on? Say it as you place the Ace of Wands below the Ten of Wands.
Think of the material things you manifested into existence this year: the money you’ve acquired, the people you’ve attracted, the food you’ve cooked, the environments you’ve created. Say out loud the thing you are proudest of manifesting as you lay the Ten of Pentacles. What new thing do you want to bring into existence? Say it aloud as you lay the Ace of Pentacles.
Think what you’ve felt good about in the past year, especially relationships with others, as you lay the Ten of Cups above the World. What new emotional opening do you desire? Say it aloud as you place the Ace of Cups.