The snow still glimmers atop the grass and the trees still bow to bitter winds.
Yet underneath the frozen ground a bright flame sparked to life upon this morning.
A red flicker beneath a mountain of front. Feeble in size yet full of potential; it burns steady.
I carry that fire within my heart, and together with the goddess, we prepare the earth for life.
Imbolc is a time for fresh starts. This sabbat is all about rebirth, new growth and emerging from the darkness. Bits of green begin to poke out of the rain- and snow-soaked ground and whispers of spring appear everywhere, once you start looking for them.
Spells attuned with this time of year should focus on new beginnings. Think of Imbolc sort of like the new moon. Here, you set your intentions, at Ostara (or the waxing moon), you take action, and hopefully at Beltane, or the full moon, you see manifestation.
Creating seasonal charm bags is one of my favorite types of spellwork, as it is so easy to customize to the time of year and your intentions. You can generally even make them from things you have on hand, or can easily pick up at your local spiritual or craft store, nursery or flower shop.
The main themes of Imbolc you will want to touch on in this spell are beginnings, rebirth, setting intentions and the fire of creation, as Imbolc is a traditional fire festival. This is partly because Imbolc is a celebration of coming out of the dark: while we celebrate the return of the light and the lengthening of the days at Yule, late December is still a very dark and wintry time. Imbolc is when we really start to notice the days getting longer; February 1 is the halfway point to spring! To represent this emersion from the darkness, we burn candles at Imbolc. In Christian traditions, Imbolc is even known as Candlemas.
For this charm bag, you can either choose a specific project or goal you want to manifest or you can focus on general new beginnings. For a specific goal, I would recommend adding at least one or two elements to these ingredients to give the spell focus.
Imbolc Charm Bag
Small piece of clear quartz, preferably charged at the new moon
Pine needles for purification
Cinnamon sticks for power
Nettles for strength in overcoming obstacles
Daffodil petals for fertility
Dandelion puffs for making wishes come true
White muslin or sheer sachet
Light a few white candles and take a few moments to meditate on your intentions.
Rub the pine needles between your hands to release their scent and power. Sprinkle them into the sachet, saying aloud: I purify this space and this spell.
Carefully place the clear quartz and cinnamon sticks in the bag, saying aloud: To lend power and fire to this spell.
Sprinkle in the daffodil petals, saying aloud: To create a fertile space for fresh starts.
Sprinkle in the dandelion puffs, saying aloud: To help Imbolc wishes come true.
Sprinkle in the nettles, saying aloud: To help me overcome obstacles that may arise on the path to realizing my intentions.
Tie the bag shut and tuck away in a safe place, such as your glove compartment or lingerie drawer.
Want to customize this bag even further? Some other Imbolc crystals and herbs that could be appropriate include:
White lily petals for rebirth
Cedar needles for purification
Ginger root or crystallized ginger for fire and power
Crocus for new love, intuition and dream magick
Violet petals for lust, love and protection
Tulip petals for protection and prosperity
Amethyst for spirituality and intuition
Garnet for fire and creation
Rose Quartz for love and friendship
This is a guest post from the Witch of Lupine Hollow
Be sure to check out her lovely blog and comment blow to let me know how you'll be celebrating this sabbat!
A lot of witches are good at what they do. Some are even elite with their skills. But very few are totally unstoppable.
This is not to say that one needs to be unstoppable with their craft. One can certainly practice every once in a while and still achieve success in their spells and rituals. Witchcraft often needs to come second after work, family, etc and that's fine.
But as this is a new year, I’ve made some goals for myself. I desire for my Paganism and witchcraft to become a major player in my life and I will practice, practice, practice till I become unstoppable. If your goals for this year align with mine, buckle up, because here’s what we need to do.
You need to have the faith and confidence to know your desires and address them fully. I knew I wanted to start Arcane Alchemy about a year ago, but I kept waiting out of fear. I knew I was unhappy at my corporate job but first I needed to gain the confidence to leave. I needed to fully realize my desires and respect that they were worth my time and energy.
When I finally left to work on this website full time I was truly filled with joy and excitement for what lies ahead. Holding on to things that made me unhappy delayed my growth. This year I will continue to live life on my own terms, and if something isn’t right I will not hesitate to change it.
To find what works best for us, we will need to try different things. Currently I’m a solitary witch who is often shy in large groups. As such, I have little experience working magic with others. This year I’m going to push myself out of my comfort zone to expand my network and find others to practice with. Strive to find what you're apprehensive of within your practice, and give it a try this year.
Just because something is written in a spellbook doesn’t mean we need to follow it. No one knows what works for you better than yourself. Stay attuned to your senses and don’t be afraid to act on what feels right.
While everyone else is following routine instructions, we’ll be considering alternatives and new ideas that could help improve our spells and rituals. In doing so we’ll be creating our own blend of magic stepped in wisdom.
We must learn and practice not to reach a goal, but to see how far we can push ourselves. Fight the urge to become lazy or complacent. There is infinite knowledge out there. We are on a unstoppable quest to discover it and practice what we learn.
Magic is energy and energy is an extension of mind and body. To release large amounts of energy and direct it towards our intention we need to be sound in both mind and body. Meditation and exercise is not an afterthought, it is an active component necessary for our success.
Failure is just another step on the way to success. Finding magic that works successfully for you is a process and failure will happen.
Don’t let it discourage you. Keep going!
Unstoppable witches have an insatiable thirst for knowledge. We desire to become the best at what we do and in order to do that we will never stop learning. We will actively find ways to discover new ideas and knowledge that will propel our success.
Are you up for the challenge? Do you have your own goals? Post below in the comments.
What are your goals for the new year? Post in the comments below.
My life is becoming quite chaotic (last minute holiday shoppers unite!) as the end of December approaches. My weekends have been filled with commuting back and forth all over the city to various dinners and festivities and I haven’t had as much time as I would like to focus on my practice.
Like many pagans, I will be celebrating Yule this week. I’m mostly a solitary witch so I’ve planned a simple feast (with a tasting of my Solstice Brew) and ritual that I will be performing at home. Sometimes I wish I was a member of a coven that had big sabbat celebrations I could join. Despite Chicago being such a large city, the pagan groups here are fairly small and often too far away to go to regularly. I like to think that in the future I might create my own coven, but if that’s to happen, it would most likely be a couple years from now.
That hasn’t dampened my spirits much though. I really enjoy my solitary rituals and I’ve been filling my time with lots of Yule-themed crafts and meals. The most recent activity I’ve worked on was to create a Yule Witch Ball.
Witch Balls can be used for protection against negativity, evil spells, ill fortune, and sickness. They are best hung in an east window where they can catch the morning light, though you can really place them anywhere in your home or garden.
The theory behind Witch Balls is that negative energies or malevolent spirits become mesmerized by the bright colors on the outside of the ball and get trapped inside, thus preventing any bad energies from affecting its surroundings.
My Yule-themed Witch Ball is filled with fragrant cinnamon sticks and anise stars, silver snowflakes made from cardboard, and a variety of red (fake) berries. I draped the ball with bright red ribbon to make it even more festive. I look forward to displaying this object each Yule season and I’m confident that it will facilitate positive thoughts and energies at this joyous time.
It’s now less than two weeks till Yule. Though the days continue to shorten and the nights seem forever long, I feel much joy looking forward to the upcoming solstice. In this great countdown to the return of the sun, I try to surround myself with as much festivity and comfort as possible. I’ve strewn bright twinkle lights around my city apartment and decorated with garlands made from pine branches. My kitchen is warm with scents of cinnamon and clove as I cook my Yuletide favorites.
Each day, despite the often bitter cold, I walk to lakefront path and find beauty in the gentle snowfall and icy winds. I’m not alone, every day I see runners and bikers upon the path. Looking at them running through the frost in their brightly colored neon gear always makes me smile. I admire their determination and resolve to get outside everyday no matter the weather.
Yesterday while I was walking amongst the path, I noticed many small branches that had fallen to the ground. I took some in hand and headed home to make a rustic Yule wreath. One of the great things about decorating for the sabbats is that it’s best to use natural materials when possible, which means of course, that the materials are free. While I have made more of an effort recently to incorporate natural materials in my craft, I still couldn’t resist buying a big red bow to place upon my homespun wreath.
Below are instructions for making your very own festive Yule wreath.
These instructions adapted from Starburst Twig Wreath
You will need:
A collection of branches
Cardboard cut into a disc shape
Twine
Glue and a hot glue gun
A bow (optional)
The instructions are as simple as wrapping your cardboard disc in twine, gluing your branches to the disc in a starburst pattern, and finally adding a bow and a string to hang the wreath from.
Looking towards the next month I know that the days will continue to shorten. Luckily, December is a month filled with merriment and joy for Christians and Pagans alike. As the days get colder, we decorate our homes and make time for dinner with friends and family. The city too reflects our cheer as red bows, pine garlands, and bright lights cloak the city in merriment.
For me, the festivities culminate at the winter solstice. A joyful time as we can welcome the growth of the sun and take comfort in knowing that the daylight hours will extend. If I can manage, I like to wake up to see the sunrise on solstice morning. I take a mug of coffee out to the lake, find a good bench, and watch the sun illuminate the city. Our winter season in Chicago is long, but I take comfort through the months knowing that after the solstice each day becomes just a little bit longer than the day before.
As I walked home from work the other day I stopped to pick up a few items to make a certain winter brew. Something that will surely warm me and my friends through these upcoming winter months.
This jar of spiced deliciousness takes 5 weeks to fully infuse so I recommend making it as soon as possible. I confess that I should have planned it a bit better. I was hoping to have the brew ready for drinking by the solstice. Though of course, life tends to get in the way at times so I will need to wait till the very end of December to taste my first sip.
This recipe is from the lifestyle blog Sidewalk Shoes
- 4 cups brandy
- 1 piece cinnamon stick
- 2 star anise
- 1 vanilla bean, sliced lengthwise
- 24 black peppercorns
- 4 navel oranges, chopped into large pieces
Instructions
Combine all ingredients in a large mason jar. Cap it tightly and store in a cool dark place for two weeks. Shake the jar daily.
After the two weeks strain the brew through a fine mesh strainer or coffee filter. Return the liquid to the jar and let it mellow for three weeks in a cool and dark place.
Enjoy with friends throughout the winter.
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Cord or knot magic is an old form of folk magic that is still widely practiced today. What I like about cord magic is that it’s simple and can be done for any intention. Cord magic is all about trapping your desire in a series of knots and then releasing that power over several days as you untie them.
All you will need for this is a simple chord. Traditionally, chord magic is done with a 9 feet or a 9 inch cord. Though you can use a different length if you would like incorporating numerology that corresponds with your desire.
The color of your cord should also reflect your desire. You can view various color correspondences below:
The timing that the knots are released should correspond with the cycles of the moon. For example, if you are trying to gain wealth you would release the first knot shortly after the new moon and would proceed to release the other knots during the next consecutive days (one knot per day). This way as the moon grows so shall your spell.
The pattern of tying the knots is as follows:
1--6--4--7--3--8--5--9--2
This means that you tie the first knot on the very left side of the cord, the second knot on the far right side, the third knot in the middle, the forth knot in between the far right and the middle knot, etc. It is not necessary to tie the knots in this order, doing it this way just helps to insure the 9 knots are evenly spaced on your cord.
While making the knots, visualize your desire being fulfilled and say the following words as you tie your knots:
By knot of one, the spell’s begun
By knot of two, it cometh true
By knot of three, so mote it be
By knot of four, this power I store
By knot of five, the spell’s alive
By knot of six, this spell I fix
By knot of seven, events I’ll leaven
By knot of eight, it will be fate
By knot of nine, what’s done is mine
Upon completing the last knot your power is now stored within the cord. When you decide you untie the knots it’s best to do so in the same order that they were tied. Also, be sure to meditate upon your desires coming true as you untie the knots.
Do you incorporate cord magic in your practice? If so, post about your experiences in the comments below.
Cord magic information adapted from Cord or Knot Magic