Chapter 14

november

November can be a challenging month. Winter is setting in. The days are shorter, the nights are longer, and there is less light. It is natural for our bodies to start to slow down. We grow a bit sluggish, and it gets just a little harder to get out of bed in the morning.

As Wiccans, we try to go with the flow of the changing seasons. It is probably not a bad idea to get a little more sleep, and to slow down some if you can. Unfortunately, our modern existence doesn’t often take the natural cycles of life into consideration. And other than eating a little extra chocolate, there doesn’t always seem to be a healthy way to perk ourselves up so that we can keep up with the pace of our still-hectic lives.

Luckily, as Witches, we can always ask the gods for a little boost. The New Moon spell in this chapter is designed to “recharge our batteries” in as healthy a way as possible, while still respecting the quieter aspects of this segment of the Wheel of the Year.

November New Moon

Increasing energy spell

Supplies:

• One red candle per person
• One tumbled stone per person (tigerseye is best, but carnelian or crystal quartz will do.)
• Small glass bottles or vials to put oil in
• A base oil—either olive oil from the kitchen, or an oil from the health or body-care section of a local health food store (sesame and grapeseed are nice, and fairly easy to find.)
• Essential oils: ginger, orange, and carnation (if you cannot find one of these, you may substitute sage or peppermint oils. Those that come with droppers are easiest to use.)
• Optional: red carnations for the altar
• Optional: a small funnel

Note: This spell combines candle magick, stone magick, and plant magick for extra power. If necessary, it can be done with only two of the three elements (if you can’t find the stones, for instance).

• • •

• Consecrate and cleanse the circle with sage or incense (if using incense, carnation, ginger, or something else with a spicy smell would be best—no relaxing lavender here.)
• Consecrate and cleanse the circle with salt and water.
• Cast the circle hand to hand or by having the HPS walk around the outside with her athame or sword.
• Call the quarters.

HPS invokes the goddess:

Great Goddess, you who are warmth in the midst of the coldest days and a glowing light within the darkest hour, come to us in our circle. Help us to find the energy of the summer’s sun despite the winter’s chill and gloom. Welcome, and blessed be.

• Sit down around a table and make yourselves comfortable. You may want to talk a little about how having less energy affects your lives, and what you would accomplish if you had more energy.
• Take the small vials and pour some of the base oil into them (the small funnel is useful here), to about three quarters full.
• Pass the essential oils around the table and put a few drops of each into your individual vials or bottles. While you are dropping in the oils, visualize the energy of the sun going into the plants and the energy of the plants going into the oils. Feel the summer sun on your face and the roots of the plant digging into the soil. Concentrate as hard as you can on the powers that are locked up inside every drop of essential oil.
• When you have combined the essential oils and the base oil, put the cap on your bottle, close your eyes and shake gently to mix. Hold the bottle tightly in your hands. Visualize the oils coming together and becoming even more powerful together than they were individually. See your bottle beginning to glow with light and power, with red or golden light streaming from between your fingers.
• Open your eyes and take a stone and a candle from the altar. Anoint each with a few drops of the energy oil you have just made. You can anoint yourself too—between the eyes and over the heart and the belly—if you wish.
• Visualize the candle and the stone glowing with energy as you did with the oil.
• Now, visualize yourself glowing with energy too, and recite the spell together:

Spell for Energy

I call upon the Power of Air, with energy creative

I call upon the Power of Fire, with energy passionate

I call upon the Power of Water, with energy healing

I call upon the Power of Earth, with energy strong and unending

I call upon my inner wisdom

That I may tap into this energy only when it is needed

And rest when rest is called for

Let the energy be there for me when I need it

Let the energy be there for me when I call it

Let the energy be there for me when I will it

So mote it be

• • •

• Sit for a moment and absorb the energy. Then ground and let any excess go into the floor.
• You can light your candle now, or save it for later. The stone can be carried with you or placed on your altar. Whenever you need extra energy, say the spell again or just anoint yourself with a drop or two of the oil.
• Pass cakes and ale.
• Pass the speaking stick.
• Dismiss the quarters.
• HPS thanks the goddess.
• Open the circle.

November Full Moon

Faith and gratitude spell

We often ask the gods for help. This is not a bad thing. It is, in fact, a great part of being a Witch—knowing that we can ask and that frequently we are granted the thing we have asked for (even if not always in the ways we expected). But we should be careful of falling into the habit of only talking to the ancient gods when we want something from them.

Sometimes it is good to just say “thank you.” I try to remember, whenever I stand before my altar, to start out by thanking the goddess and god for the blessings of that day, or week, or my life in general. Only after I have done so do I proceed with any spells or requests that I might have.

November is a good time to give this issue some thought. Most of us celebrate Thanksgiving in one form or another, and therefore we may already be more conscious than usual of the importance of giving thanks for the good things in our lives. So it seems appropriate to set aside the Full Moon ritual in this month for a focus on gratitude and appreciation.

Wiccans tend to look at the “gifts” in our lives a little differently from most people. For the most part, we believe in reincarnation. We believe that the lives that we lead are filled with experiences from which we will learn and grow so that in the next life we can move on to the next lesson. These experiences are often unpleasant and challenging. Many are painful. And yet, because we know they serve a purpose, we know that these difficult experiences can be as much a gift as prosperity and good health.

This can be a difficult point to remember while you are in the midst of crisis and struggling with day-to-day problems. It is usually only in hindsight that we can clearly see the benefits we derived from the hard lessons with which we were “gifted.”

So, at November’s Full Moon, we pause to look back at the gifts we have been given—the obvious and the not-so-obvious—to give thanks to the gods, and to remind ourselves that sometimes life just has to be taken on faith. For that, too, is a part of being a Witch.

Supplies:

• Large white or gold candle
• Anointing oil (you can use the peace and happiness oil from February if you have it, or any other magickal oil you think is suitable—plain sage or lavender is fine, too.)
• Slips of paper and pencils

• • •

• Consecrate and cleanse the circle with sage or incense.
• Consecrate and cleanse the circle with salt and water.
• Cast the circle hand to hand.
• Call the quarters.
• HPS invokes the goddess (Full Moon invocation—see Chapter 17.)
• HPS or other female group member reads The Charge of the Goddess.
• Sit comfortably and talk a little bit about the things in your lives that you are grateful for. Remember to include the challenges as well as the obvious pleasures. Then, each person should sit quietly and write up a list of everything for which they are thankful. The list may include some or all of the following: friends, family, a significant other, pets, home, food, job, health, money, intelligence, courage, good weather, your Wiccan practice, happiness, an hour of quiet away from your children. Include anything you can think of that you are thankful for. Take as long for this as everyone needs, as this part of the ritual is just as important as saying the actual spell.
• When your lists are complete, light the gratitude candle and recite the spell (you can put a copy of the spell down in front of you and hold hands if you want.)

Faith and Gratitude Spell

We come in thanks and gratitude

In humbleness and awe

With grateful heart and somber mood

And mindful of the Law

The little gifts we’ve given out

Returned to us by three

Remind us to let go of doubt

And say, “So mote it be”

In faith we’ve come before the gods

In love they’ve sent us back

With answered prayers against all odds

And gifts of what we lack

Help our faith be true and strong

To remember gratitude as well

And send our love and thanks along

With each and every spell

So mote it be

• Take a deep breath and send your thanks out to the gods. Focus on your intent to remember to say “thank you.”
• Pass cakes and ale.
• Pass the speaking stick.
• Dismiss the quarters.
• HPS thanks the goddess.
• Open the circle by reciting the Wiccan Rede:

Bide the Wiccan Law ye must

In perfect love and perfect trust

Eight words the Wiccan Rede fulfill

An it harm none, do as ye will

Lest in thy self defense it be

Ever mind the law of three

Follow this with mind and heart

And merrie ye meet and merrie ye part

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