Also called a black mirror or speculum, a scrying mirror is a darkened piece of glass, mirror, or other reflective surface. The practitioner gazes into the mirror and blurs their vision in order to receive messages. Divination by gazing into a magick mirror is called catoptromancy. Many Witches prefer this method over the traditional crystal ball.
Crystal ball gazing is called crystallomancy and is one of the most well-known forms of divination. The crystal ball seems to have been made famous by John Dee and Edward Kelly, the founders of the Enochian/Angelic system of magick. Kelly preferred a large crystal ball as his divinatory instrument.
Many Witches use “crystal” balls made of either glass or another stone like calcite, selenite (celenite), or any kind of quartz. Some prefer opaque balls, while others like clear. This is entirely a personal preference based on what works best for you. Not to mention, actual crystal balls are quite pricey. If you do decide to save up for a crystal ball, ensure that the crystal (or other mineral) is naturally mined. I tend to believe that stones cultivated with Earth-damaging chemical processes actually put negative and damaging vibes into the stone and thus the user, which has potential to taint any reading.
Stepping Back & Further Application
For the uninitiated (and by this I mean “unfamiliar”), scrying—and indeed any form of divination—can be somewhat frightening and even risky. Accusations of divinatory tools being “doorways of the Devil” aside, the risk is more or less one of insight-gaining. Because divination works so much on the subconscious and unconscious planes, unsettling or suppressed information and insights can come to the surface in the process. In a working such as this, which incorporates a direct scrying on actual shadow, those risks are particularly high. Honestly, I’m not too worried about any readers of this book trying shadow-scrying and don’t believe there’s too much risk involved. (If a person has chosen to be on a magickal-spiritual path, it’s likely that they’re willing to face their inner shadow should it wish to be faced.) However, it’s not a party trick and should be approached with seriousness. Unlike scrying and divining for other people, divination by way of one’s shadow is strictly personal.
Supplies
• a purple candle
• a round incense-burning charcoal disk and sand in a dish or censor
• a large surface (see Notes)
• a small amount of mugwort
• a mug of steeped mugwort tea
• a notepad and pen or recording device (optional)
• a black scrying mirror or speculum (Latin for “mirror”), crystal ball, or other scrying tool
Notes
• For the “surface,” I refer to something huge and monochrome. The best surface is a blank wall, but a big piece of cardboard or something similar can be used.
Procedure
Begin by casting a circle, calling the quarters, chanting, or raising energy as you normally would, performing protective exercises, and altering your consciousness. Clear your mind, bring focus to your breath, and meditate for at least a few minutes. When ready, begin the spell.
Light the candle and incense coal and turn off all the lights in the room. Facing the surface or wall, situate the tools next to you. After the coal turns to a glowing ember, add the mugwort. Throughout the ritual, add pinches of mugwort to the coal and take sips of the mugwort tea.
Sit down and place the burning candle a couple feet behind you until the shadow of your body appears on the surface in front of you. Gaze into the area of the shadow where your eyes would be and say:
Shadow self, make yourself known to mine eyes.
[He/She] who is the culmination of that which I repress, suppress, oppress.
[He/She] who is my unconscious, my subconscious, my superconscious.
[He/She] who is the assemblage of my unseen, my hidden, my forbidden.
Shadow self, make yourself known to mine eyes.
Blur your vision and look at various aspects of the shadow before you. Take some time letting your rational mind slip to the background, bringing your subtle senses to the surface. See if you get visions visually (such as symbols or words), in your mind’s eye, or any other way. Clear your mind and don’t rush the process.
After a few minutes, jot down notes about what you received. Turn to your other scrying device(s) and, after a few minutes of gazing, see if they reveal other messages and whether those messages are clearer or more convoluted than those from the previous method. Experiment with different scrying methods to discover what works best for you.
Do the same with the mug of tea: gaze into its surface, blur your vision, and see if it reveals anything to your conscious mind (hydromancy). Do the same with the smoke of the incense (libanomancy). Repeat this process for as long as you’d like, and be certain not to rush yourself.
Conclude by turning your gaze back to the shadow on the surface. Once again, slip into a trancelike state and record any messages you may receive. Now is not the time to interpret the messages, but to record them for future analysis. If you’re relatively successful in your scryings, ask your shadow to show you different aspects. You can say “show me the shadow of my past,” “show me the shadow of my relationship,” “show me the shadow of my spiritual progress,” or anything else. Some diviners get more specific answers by asking more specific questions. Because this ritual is largely one of experimentation, remember which method works best for you and return to it at another time. For now, thank the spirits of the unseen and close the circle as you normally would.
For æons, numerous artists and creators have said that their work is divinely inspired. Most of these “channelings” aren’t directly related to religion, but are often aligned to emotion. Being a supremely spiritual force, the emotional body is connected to the soul and its progression. Emotions are tied into thoughts, behaviors, and personal expressions such as art.
Whether the medium is music, film, painting, drawing, writing, or photography, where there’s creativity, there’s emotion. Where there’s emotion, there’s spirit. This working is focused on tapping into the subconscious mind and becoming a creative conduit of unseen energies.
This spell makes use of a cauldron. One of the most renowned Witches’ tools, the magickal cauldron is a holy vessel of creation. Even Shakespeare’s Macbeth features three Witches making a “hell broth” over a cauldron while petitioning the aid of Hekate.
In Wicca and other Neopagan traditions, the cauldron is seen as a representation of the womb of the Goddess. The cauldron is viewed as having symbolic powers of healing and creation. In Welsh mythology, the goddess Cerridwen possessed a cauldron whose potion—which takes a year and a day to brew—could give people healing, knowledge, and artistic inspiration. The cauldron also symbolizes renewal, rebirth, and hidden wisdom. In many ways, the symbolism of the vessel is aligned to the existence of the unconscious or subconscious mind.
Semantically, the unconscious is an ancient idea that assumes there is behind-the-scenes action going on behind everyone’s usual perception. It’s from the unconscious that we gain intuition, underlying beliefs and behavioral patterns, and dream symbolism. Many Freudian psychologists prefer the term unconscious mind, while many Jungians prefer subconscious. Some psychologists prefer to recognize the subconscious mind as that which is just “beneath” one’s usual consciousness; for example, forgetting and then remembering a person’s name can be seen as a subconscious-to-conscious transmission of information. Following this definition, the unconscious mind is the portion of the psyche that represses and willfully forgets occurrences of trauma, hiding the pain deep within the mind. Its goal, then, is to never allow the conscious mind to recall the occurrence or emotions attached to it—this is an instinctual coping mechanism. Therapists, psychologists, and counselors work with both the conscious and unconscious minds.
Regardless of terms, it’s essential to realize that
part of human behavior is psychological suppression. Many personal experiences are buried deep within the mind. I would argue that all of our past-life experiences also exist on those deeper levels. I would also say that all of human experience exists deep within everyone’s psyche, linking together all minds through time and space. The art you channel with this working may be blatantly part of your subconscious mind. On the other hand, it may appear to have no relation at all to your own psyche. Be open to any channelings you may receive!
Stepping Back & Further Application
Do you consider yourself an artist? Perhaps you wish to enrich your talents by purposefully tapping into unseen planes. Perhaps you feel as though you’re not too artistically inclined at present, but wish to bring about artistic talents that are somewhere in your consciousness. Whatever the case, a working like this can bring artistic talents to the surface. Because so many art forms are connected to the unseen realms (of the mind or otherwise), a direct connection to these realms—coupled with the intention of creating art—can help hone creative powers. Everyone in the world has the power to create art; it’s just a matter of honing that power, rigorously experimenting, and practicing without self-criticism. Art serves so many purposes: emotional expression, therapeutic release, political and social commentary, healing for others, and so on. What each artist does with their abilities is up to them alone.
Supplies
• a small amount of wormwood and rosemary
• 1 piece of citrine and 1 of orange calcite
• a stovetop cauldron, Dutch oven, or boiling pot
• about ½ gallon spring water
• appropriate art supplies (paints, water, pencils, etc.)
• a large canvas or sketchpad
Notes
• In this working, one can utilize written, drawn, painted, or sketched art. If your artistic medium is something different, you can draw what you receive while in circle and transfer it to the chosen medium afterward.
Procedure
Begin by casting a circle, calling the quarters, chanting, or raising energy as you normally would, performing protective exercises, and altering your consciousness. Clear your mind, bring focus to your breath, and meditate for at least a few minutes. When ready, begin the spell.
Place the wormwood, rosemary, and stones in the cauldron and put in enough water to make a brew. Bring it to the stove and, once it is simmering, chant:
Cauldron of creation, womb of life, Holy Mother who gives birth to all existence! I ask for your aid in channeling creations from the unseen layers of mind. I am an artist, and am thusly your humble servant. Reveal to me the messages I can deliver to this world!
Quickly dip the ring finger of your nondominant hand into the brew (but don’t let it burn you) and put it in your mouth, tasting the essence of wormwood. Smell the mixture and let its essence merge with your own.
Carefully bring the cauldron back to the ritual space. Put it nearby and grab the art supplies. Hold your nondominant hand over the steam rising from the cauldron and place your dominant hand on the canvas and art supplies. Clear your mind and erase the thoughts of the day. Say:
Art is sacred, art is pure.
From the depths, I summon you.
Rush upon me, ether and mind.
Reach through space, stretch through time.
From the watery depths of the psyche’s abyss,
let me gaze into what exists.
Clear the blockages, render them transparent.
Now the unseen becomes apparent!
Take a number of very deep, swift breaths and see your mind going deeper and deeper down a dark tunnel. This is the tunnel of your mind. Draw whatever messages you receive as you go deeper and deeper. If it helps, visualize your perception spiraling down an infinite cauldron.
When your consciousness is palpably altered, don’t struggle to get grounded: let yourself flow into the depths of the mind and the astral. Don’t decipher or decode the messages, just get them down on paper. Whether you write notes about what you see or hear, or you actually start drawing or painting your visions, the important thing is to get it on paper to work with later. If you wish (and if it doesn’t sever your trance), slightly open your eyes to see the images you’re creating.
Continue the trance for as long as you’d like. Push your limits. When you feel like stopping, go deeper. If you start to slip out of the trance early (such as if you start thinking about the day, or the room, or your body), take a series of deep breaths and envision the depths increasing tenfold. Say “deeper” aloud if it helps you go down the mental tunnel.
When you’ve received a good amount of words, sounds, pictures, and so on, and have either made notes of them or have drawn them directly, slip out of the trance by first mentally bowing to the cauldron and then slingshotting out of the tunnel. See yourself rising, rising, rising, and simultaneously coming back to ordinary consciousness. When you’ve successfully returned, perform some grounding exercises and close the circle as you normally would.
Pluto
Zodiacal rulership: Scorpio
Color association: White, ineffable
Sephira: Kether
Number: 1
Day: None
Archetypes: Underworld God/dess
Themes: Death, rebirth, transformation, binding, destruction,
the subconscious, destiny, life cycle, intensity, triumph, absolute power
Many spiritual people say that suffering is a result of not following destiny. In an occult sense, it can be said that not aligning to spiritual Will causes a person to suffer. Other spiritual systems believe that suffering is a result of clinging to worldly experiences rather than being content that all things in reality are subject to change. Whatever the case, suffering exists. Suffering exists to be accepted, to be learned from, and to be released. A ritual death can help with this.
This working is, in a Plutonian sense, connected to the next working in this chapter—the rite of rebirth. As I discuss in the description of that ritual, a part of the self has to die in order to make room for new aspects to emerge. Holding on to the past can cause immense suffering.
In a ritual death, a person lets an old part of themselves die. After cultivating acceptance for past behavior, disposition, choices, and modes of thought, a person can work to release them.
When we realign to our Will—that is, our spiritual destiny—suffering can slip away much more easily. For this ritual, you must prepare by seriously meditating and contemplating what parts of your old self you wish to release. A ritual such as this could even mark a practitioner’s instant of completely severing a physical, chemical, or emotional addiction (see the working on page 134 for another suggestion). What you release is up to you—just the same, you must do the work in real life in order for those things to actually and honestly be put to rest. The purpose of this working is to re-clarify one’s life path so that blockages can slip to the wayside and be forever gone.
Keep in mind that once you ritually die, you must integrate new vibrations into your being that can replace the things you dismissed. Think about paradoxical (equal-opposite) things that can replace what is being put to rest. If, for example, you’re releasing a habit of codependence, you could do work in your life to gather your own energy, rely on yourself, and stop moments of desperation when they start. If you’re releasing tormenting fears, think of ways you can work to face them. This sort of “spiritual replacement” work can occur as you experience reality, seeping into your everyday experience. If the Universe is guiding you to lay down the tired body of your former self, analyze the reasons and intricacies, and work on ways of letting the new self emerge and shine in its place. On one hand, the old and new selves are still “you.“ On the other hand, the same “you” that you were yesterday no longer exists: all that exists is you Now. Reality is change, a process of cont
inual rebirth—it’s just a matter of intending those renewals. Once the nature of change is realized, you can willfully enter spirals of positive encouragement through everyday transformation.
Stepping Back & Further Application
Working to release issues of the past (behavior, thoughts, choices, or traumatic experiences) can be marked with a ritual death like the one outlined here. However, as I mentioned earlier, the work really carries over into your everyday experience. It’s up to all of us to choose how we respond to our environment and our experiences. If we replay cycles of the past that no longer serve us, we are inviting pain into our lives and are allowing it to repeat in a perpetual loop of negativity. We must have the effort and humility to face and conquer our deepest issues.
If we consciously halt and change the things that no longer serve our path, we open ourselves up to learning new modes of behavior, thought, and being. We can choose consciously to integrate new vibrations into ourselves—this, too, reworks the neurotransmitter pathways in our brains, keeping us fresh and revitalized.
Supplies
• appropriate mourning clothing (see Notes)
• a black or white candle
• a stereo, headphones, or music device (optional, see Notes)
• a glass of organic apple juice
• a large semitransparent black veil (enough to cover your body)
• 2 large coins (Sacagawea dollars or Susan B. Anthony dollars work well)
• a glass of red wine or grape juice
• at least a handful of elderberries (fresh or dried)
Notes
Planetary Spells & Rituals Page 26
