Operating Instructions
Picture me, please, sitting on a porch swing in a chic summer dress (visualization is half the battle), sipping a large tumbler of iced tea and gently waving an ornate ivory fan. As I lean forward to give you the secrets of enchante l’amour, I say (with a dark-syrup accent), “Just picking up a book on love spells is not going to solve your machinations of the heart.” I lean back. “No, no. Love and magick require effort. (Insert purr.) Here, my friend, are the rules of the game. . . .”
Magick
• Magick is the art and science of changing thought into form through the use of your belief combined with divinity. That means you can use any deity of your choice. A spell is like a recipe—it doesn’t matter what name-brand products you use (as in your idea of religion) and you are free to make substitutions on any of the physical ingredients listed.
• All positive magick is designed to create balance. If things are really out of whack in your love life, and you choose to use magick in your overall plan of change, expect some major events to occur.
• Be careful what you wish for—you just might get it!
• Magick requires your willingness to change your pattern of living, especially when we are talking about magick that involves the heart. This means that love magick obligates you to put forth the effort necessary to make changes within yourself so that you can be-come a more desirable person (better known as an attitude adjustment!). The use of deodorant and a shower a day would also be helpful.
• If your magick fails, pick yourself up, brush yourself off, and try a new tactic. We don’t always know what is best for us, and sometimes Spirit gives us a good stiff kick and a spin or two so that we are facing the right direction for our mission in life. Hey, it happens.
• Never, ever, ever use magick to toy with another individual’s free will. That’s right. This means that you can’t cast a spell on Michael or Lori to make them fall passionately in love with you. The universe has a way of slapping your hand if you don’t listen to this advice. Now, before you close this book and say, “Well then! I’ll buy a book that does tell me how to force someone to love me”—think again (please). I have many years of magick under my belt and I’ve seen a lot of hocus-pocus messes brought about by people who are thinking with parts of their anatomy other than their noggins while dabbling in magick. Do yourself a favor: play by the rules.
• The complexity of any spell carries less importance than the finesse of the procedure.
• Your skill makes the application fall into the beginner or advanced category. You become what you magick. Think about it.
Love
I have a few general pointers for you in matters of the heart—operating instructions (if you will) that work well with magickal applications.
• People cannot be owned. They are not property. Sometimes we forget that bit of information when we are in the throes of inflammatory situations of the heart.
• A relationship with anyone is not stagnant. All relationships change as we mature or encounter new experiences. Over time, the energy of any relationship moves, grows, changes, and sometimes dies.
• People are human. Although you may seek perfection, you will never attain it on the earth plane. Humans are fallible. This means that any relationship you enter requires responsibility and effort to keep its essence healthy.
• Not every relationship you experience will contain the commitment that you think you need. Learn to recognize the nuances of human behavior and to respect the feelings of others.
• You cannot force another individual to change their behavioral patterns.
• Likewise, you can’t force someone to like or love you. Each person, whether we are talking about the mechanics of a sexual relationship or a business friendship, has a right to free will.
• True love has more definitions than you can count. Each person processes their idea of love differently. You may think true love is moonlight and roses and she may think it’s tickets to the hockey playoffs. My husband had a terrible time understanding that he could keep the fancy bedroom wear, the mushy cards and the flowers—just buy me the dishwasher. Other women, however, would rather have the former. Luckily, we both agree that love is stability—but there are lots of people who might choose a faster-paced, freedom-filled lifestyle, or base mutual happiness on the size of their bank account. None of these ideas of love are wrong, only different.
Love Spells
When learning how to cast spells, my teachers gave me two very important pieces of advice on the nature of love magick:
• It’s temporary. Love, itself, goes through too many phases in a relationship for a one-spell-fits-all scenario. Love magick is to get you going in the right direction and is not intended to overpower another. Consider love spells like lighter fluid and, like this combustible material, handle such magick responsibly. If you don’t, then expect the work to blow up in your face. These magicks are simply designed to kindle nature’s natural fire. You are required to put the mental and physical effort forth (as in any relationship) to reach ultimate success.
• The good love spells, those that could lead to a lasting relationship, are slow workers. Like a fine wine, the energy must age a bit, working subtly to create ultimate satisfaction. If patience is a problem for you, you may wish to work on that aspect of yourself before you go zapping the universe for your soulmate.
Other Helpful Stuff
For those of you who are old hands at spellcasting, or if you have read the other books in the Silver’s Spells series, you may not need to read over the next four sections on correspondences, timing, the magickal circle, and learning to devise a spiritual plan. That’s okay, feel free to skip them. If this is your first time working in the world of magick, or if you are fairly new to how magickal applications manifest, you may find the next four sections helpful.
Correspondences
Most magickal applications contain correspondences. Cor-respondences are items or energies that relate to the focus of the issue. In this book, our focus is on love. Throughout the book I’ve provided various correspondences for each spell. I’ve also given you a few lists in the appendices to aid you in substitutions, or (if you feel brave) the creation of your own spells.
Correspondences here include planetary hours, deities, herbs, oils, basic astrology, angels, totem animals, magickal alphabets, phases of the moon, colors, and elements. Remember, you don’t have to use all the correspondences I mention in any spell. If you’re not into angels, then don’t use those listed. If you don’t particularly like to use plant energies, then don’t use them. Substitutions are acceptable. I simply tried to give you the wide range of choices that have worked for me.
Timing
Many Witches use the phases of the moon in the timing of their magickal applications. Although there are eight separate phases of the moon, we will primarily work with five specific phases:
New Moon—Beginnings
Full Moon—Power
Dark of the Moon—Banishing
Waxing—Building
Waning—Reworking or rebuilding
How long will it take your spell to manifest? How long do you have to wait before something happens? You’ll have to wait as long as it takes. Don’t have such a long face! Here are a few guidelines on timing:
• Magick follows the path of least resistance, so unless you have a reason for guiding the magick along a particular line of thought, just let the magick go. The more blocks you place in the way of manifestation, the longer it will take to make things happen; however, this does not mean that you shouldn’t be specific in your petition.
• Small goals normally (but not always) manifest faster than large goals. For example, creating a glamoury that enables you to put your best foot forward in a job interview is an immediate process, but working on a complete psychological makeover that includes heightening your personal spirituality may take weeks, probably months, even years. Normally, small goals require twenty-four hours to thirty days to manifest (or one full moon cycle). If your small goal does not happen in thirty days, work again. Witches call this technique moon to moon, as the cycle from a full moon to a full moon (or a new moon to a new moon) is approximately twenty-eight days.
• Larger goals require the building of your magickal techniques. It may be necessary to work various types of magick each week to accomplish your overall goal.
• Situations that are double or triple-tiered need to be separated, worked on independently, and then a working for the overall outcome should be performed. For example, planning a wedding takes several months (unless you elope, of course). You may wish to work magick in several different areas to ensure a happy day, separating the event into the following categories: finding the right dress, caterer, clergy, environment, color scheme, floral arrangements, invitations; choosing the guest list wisely; working on your self-esteem and meditating during the stressful planning period; banishing negativity; choosing the proper day and time; etc.
• The old teachers said, “Do a spell, then forget it.” These teachers meant do the spell, but don’t worry about it. Feeding negative thoughts into your spellwork will defeat your purpose. If you worry about the manifestation of the spell, then you create blocks in the path of that manifestation. Building magickal applications is a different scenario.
Keep in mind that your sincerity and needs carry important weight when casting any spell. If today is Wednesday, and the spell calls for completion on a Saturday, but you really need to do the spell today, then go ahead and do the spell today. If the spell calls for a supply that you don’t have, that’s okay. Substitute something else.
The Magick Circle
Many individuals who practice the art of enchantment prefer to work inside a magick circle. I realize that most folk spells don’t mention this little added benefit, and in studying the history of magick I’ve discovered that our forebears assumed that the student had already been taught how to cleanse, charge, and empower items, as well as cast a circle, and therefore didn’t place the wording in the text (as what was written was for the eyes of the student only, not for the general public). As the information passed from initiate to noninitiate, the idea of casting a circle and the other little goodies I’ve mentioned above were lost. The general public, then, assumed that this was all there was to it.
The magick circle fulfills a variety of needs (although I’ve seen disagreements between practitioners on the purpose of the circle, but we’re not going to get into that here). The general consensus is that the magick circle allows you to focus your energies in a cleansed environment, thereby heightening the power of the energies contained therein, and gives you a firm base on which to build your activities. Likewise, it is felt that the magick circle will keep out unwanted, negative energies, and will allow only that which you call to enter your environment. The longer you practice the art of casting a circle, the better you become at the actions, visualization, and ultimately the raising of power.
That said, here is a circle casting written by David Norris to be used specifically for love spells.
Note: There is a cadence to some styles of language that helps us enter that sacred place in our mind. Find the language that best suits you. In this case, we use some words that echo back to the language that many of us identify with spiritual meanings. Sometimes these words can be a trigger to help us enter that sacred place we are creating. You will see that as the circle is cast you will walk around the circle three times, once for each of the first three verses. The words read in such a way as to set up a rhythm of energy. That rhythm is intentionally changed at the time you invoke the God and Goddess energies. That change of rhythm acts in the same way as a musician holding a note before beginning the next section. The proclamation rhythm at the end establishes that the circle is sealed and continues the vibration of the casting. Love is energy and vibration. The rhythm you create while chanting this circle casting can help you envision a bright circle of positive vibratory energy that is actually “alive.”
I conjure thee, a stardust circle,
a strand of light from stars and suns,
I trace thee round to safe enclose me,
eternal magick now begun.
I conjure thee a second time,
moonlight now, to trace around.
O power of tides and love’s deep current,
I trace thee now upon this ground.
I trace thee thrice this flaming circle,
O fire of love protect me here.
I call sincere affection to me,
and by your light may I see clear.
Consecrate this place by fire,
consecrate by water’s flow,
consecrate by earth’s deep mystery,
consecrate by winds that blow.
In the name of he who kindles
in his loins the sacred spark,
in the name of she who bears
the magick seed within the dark,
in the name of these enfolding lovers,
parents of eternal life
I cast this circle, all protecting,
where love is born with their light.
This circle now is three times sealed.
Within all truth will be revealed.
Love be here in harmony,
and keep all harm away from me.
And as you will, so mote it be.
This circle is sealed by power of three!
Intone the words as you walk around the room (or space out-of-doors), holding your dominant hand outward and downward, drawing an imaginary circle with your finger as you walk in a clockwise direction. Walk the circle three times (or one, if that’s how you were trained), then stamp your foot to seal the circle. To release the circle, simply walk around the circle three times in a counterclockwise direction.
Learning to Devise a Spiritual Plan
Throwing magick at a problem or goal isn’t the ultimate solution to anything. Magickal people think carefully before choosing a magickal technique or spell. You need to consider an entire plan of action, of which magick becomes a part. Yes, a spell can take only a few minutes to do, a prayer a moment or two to utter, but without a complete spiritual plan you may be throwing snowflakes at a campfire. A complete spiritual plan includes:
• Logical thought about the goal or situation.
• Building positive reinforcement around you.
• Considering how your actions, both magickal and
normal, will affect the outcome of the goal, the situation, or other people.
• Reprogramming your mind to accept success through thought, word, and action.
• Involving Spirit as much as possible in what you do.
• Listing the magickal and mundane actions needed to manifest your goal.
• Listing all the players in the drama and how you think they relate (or don’t) to the situation at hand. This is especially important when we are meeting a challenge that requires protection magick, as in a love-gone-bad scenario.
This isn’t to say that last-minute magick doesn’t work (it can) but, to be honest, the more you practice magick, the better and faster you’ll become. Like anything else, if you wish to excel then you must seriously practice. Warning: a laissez-faire attitude might just boil you alive in that bubbling cauldron we call love.
I know all this seems a little complicated for something like a simple spell but, if we learn to plan wisely, we have a better chance of success. Just as in the other Silver’s Spells books, many of the spells given here can be linked together to help you design an overall spiritual plan.
Okay! Make the sign of the banishing pentagram in the air with five firm finger snaps for each point plus another snap for the circle around it. Add a flip of the shoulder and a flirt of the hip and we are ready to cruise the nuances of love! The remainder of this book is separated into three parts: Getting It, Keeping It, and Tossing It. If you have recently been through a bad breakup, I recommend pursuing the Tossing It chapter first, where you will find ideas on how to tie up the energies of an old relationship, how to handle grief, and general clearing tips that will help you to mentally and magickally prepare the way for new love. If, however, you are ready to rock-and-roll, then let’s begin with how to bring love into your life!
