But why does anyone want to use magic? Everyone seeks control of their lives; from the youngest toddler to the oldest wise woman, we all want a say in what happens to us. Magic was more common in times past when we were still close to our native beliefs. It may have been driven underground and turned into superstition for a while, but now it is returning. In a world where just about everything is overlooked or controlled, by laws and people outside our personal influence, we are now remembering and returning to the old ways of taking personal control of our lives and our world, and of making the changes we seek in them. The Craft gives us the ability to do the former and the skills to work the magic to do the latter.
In the Craft we learn:
* Self-development and understanding.
* Personal responsibility and control.
* To live with nature and the elements, in balance and harmony.
* The cycles of the seasons and how they relate to us today.
* To comprehend the energies created by the phases of the Moon and the Sun.
* How the elements relate to us, our lives and our personal balance.
* To use the energies both within and outside of us.
* How to personally communicate with the Divine.
* To live as a part of the real world whilst enhancing our inner lives.
* To focus our will and direct our intent.
* When and how to use the above to create magic to change our world and our lives.
* How to structure our magic through Rites and Rituals to make it work.
In the Craft we use magic and spells to:
* Understand ourselves and those around us.
* Make personal change.
* Understand the world and our place in it.
* Bring inner peace and harmony.
* Bring about physical, emotional and spiritual healing, for ourselves, our near and dear, and for those who seek it for themselves and others.
* Ease communication and aid understanding.
* Aid in study, tests and exams.
* Find work, do well at it and achieve our potential.
* Protect ourselves, our homes and our near and dear.
* Find and nurture friendship, romance, love and partnership.
* Work towards healing the land and protecting the life that grows from it.
* Help us in all aspects of our lives, and the lives of those we care for.
Many people think that magic is a question of saying the right words, in the right way, at a specified time. They’ve seen it on TV so it must be true! Others think that it is a question of mixing the right ingredients in the right way. But magic isn’t cookery and you need to do more! Some think it requires you to step back from real life, to insulate yourself from normal activities such as work, to isolate yourself from normal people by dressing strangely or behaving oddly. But a Witch must live as a part of the real world, not apart from it, to maintain her/his connection with life. A few still believe that magic involves selling your soul to some mythical devil and invoking hypothetical demons to do your bidding! Magic requires none of these, most especially the latter. Magic will only happen by working with, not against, nature to bring about natural change in life and the world. For magic to work it does not require special ingredients and words, but knowledge, effort, energy and understanding.
In finding out how to make your magic work you will have to clear away your personal emotional baggage and come to terms with who you really are and what you can truly be, which is almost certainly more than you think possible now. You will come to understand and harness your personal energies, as well as the energies of the elements. And you will find that you come to know, and be known by, the Goddess and the God.
In this book I have given you not only a series of spells which might be made to work, but also the foundations of the magical practice of Witchcraft, so that you can make your spells work if you are prepared to put the effort in. I know, even as I write this, that there are some readers who will want to go straight into trying the spells, and I cannot stop you. But I do offer the following caution; attempts to practise magic without a good understanding of the basic techniques can result in the magic failing to work, or working in a way that you did not intend. In magic, as in all things, you should be careful what you wish for, as you just might get it!
Most of the magics practised by the non-Witch are done to ward off the bad things in life, rather than to bring on the good. But Witchcraft is not just there to fix that which has gone, or might go, wrong. If you work your spells within the practice of the Craft, you can take control of your life and make positive change. Just remember, magic does not happen ‘as if by magic’ – you have to work at it!
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