Magic Boxes

Traditionally when making spells I have made bags from appropiate coloured fabrics and filled them with objects that are linked to whatever the spell is for. Yesterday whilst reseaching 'luck' I came across the use of magic boxes. These boxes work in the same way my spell bags did except that there is emphasis on having seven items in the box...

So I'm going to give this magic box thing a go!

Have already found and bought a box from ebay. I am now trying to buy an key for my box as keys apparently open doors to luck. But I have been a little shocked at how expensive antique keys can get on ebay. Sure they may be antique - but they don't open anywhere? And I am pretty sure they can't all be bid on by fellow witches...

Mandrake root was also proving tricky to find - but I have no ordered some. I am quite grateful that the rest of my ingredients for this spell I can buy in Sainsburys :-)

Which Tarot Card Are You?

You are the the Hierophant card. The Hierophant, called The Pope in some decks, is the preserver of cultural traditions. After entering The Emperor's society, The Hierophant teaches us its wisdom. The Hierophant learns and teaches our cultural traditions. The discoveries our ancestors have made influence the present. Without forces such as The Hierophant who are able to interpret and communicate traditional lore, each generation would have to begin to learn anew. As a force that is concentrated on our past and our culture, The Hierophant can sometimes be stubborn and set in his ways. This is a negative trait he shares with his zodiac sign, Taurus. But like Taurus he is productive. His traditional lore can provide a source of inspiration for the creatively inclined, and his knowledge provides an excellent foundation for those who come into their own in the business world. Image from: Morgan E. Cauthers-Knox. http://elfwood.lysator.liu.se/loth/m/o/morganc/morganc.html Take this quiz! Quizilla | Join | Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

Squeamish Concerns

Apologies for the lack of posting of late, however I have been a bit focused lately on other stuff. However yesterday I managed to leave work early and it allowed me the opportunity to do some much needed research for a spell I have been asked to do...

During the time I have been learning about magic I have done two money spells. One worked fantastically well, the other did not. The latter did not work because I had nothing personal/special of the person who was doing the spell for.

So I started researching about how to make a spell more powerful and I discovered that a lot of practicing witches/wizards etc use blood.

Girls are expected to collect blood from a certain time of the month. Euwwwww!!!!!!

Yuck, yuck and more yuck!

I have no qualms about pricking my fingers - but period blood is gross!

I also found this whilst researching runes (see the section on the Consecration Ritual, point 4) - it suggests that as part of consecrating your runes that you insert them inside your vagina whilst on your period. Made me feel so sick.

Well I guess that makes me a squeamish witch - I'll be happy to prick my fingers when the occasion calls for it.

In the end I also managed to get something personal from the person who needs a powerful money spell. A chunk of their hair. Far less icky than blood...

The Italian Connection

Since getting my runes I have done quite a bit of reading about their background. The stories and histories surrounding them are enchanting and feel very familiar. Interestingly though it seems that runes, like Tarot have their origins in Northern Italy... Oh how wonderful it would have been to mix with the bohemian types back then... Well I can dream I guess!

Runes

It was my birthday on Wednesday and my lovely friend Kira bought me some quartz crystal runes... I've ordered three books from Amazon today about how to read them - very excited about learning another method of divination!

Will note on here if the books are any good.

Tarot Discoveries

I always believed that the origins of tarot were a mystery. Certainly all the reading I had done on it suggested that this was the case, no book had a clear definitive answer as to where they came from. Not knowing how they started or came to be certainly added to their allure for me, however there was one story of their beginning that I did sort of believe (or liked!) because of its fairy tale quality.

...Apparently there was a rich Italian King who wanted to give his Princess daughter a special gift and so he ordered that a unique set of playing cards was created for her - The Tarot... I think this version appeals to me because I always imagined the King to be the Emperor and the Princess the Empress. I guess that through my fictionalising the tarot I never expected to come across anything that gave it roots. So whilst visiting Malta recently I was very surprised to find some the symbolism of the Tarot in a church of all places!

St John's Co-Cathedral in Valletta is an absolutely stunning catholic church - incredibly ornate and beautifully decorated it really is impressive to look at. The floors are covered with rectangular pictures of skeletons, cherubs and towers - when I saw these it seemed to me that the floor was covered in Tarot cards. However it turns out that these huge rectangular tiles are infact tombstones...

Much of Malta's history has been marred by regular invasion by bigger countries, often they were saved by the Grand Masters and Knights of St John. One Grand Master donated some hand written books which have highly detailed and decorated margins. In these margins you can see the Ace Swords, possibly the fool and there are many fruit trees which look to me like the pentacles suit...

Well that ended all my fantasies of the tarot origins being all mystical but bizarrely there may have been one shred of truth in the story of the King and the Princess. The art work in the church and Grand Masters were in the main Italian, like the King. So maybe Italy is where the Tarot comes from...

And even if I could trace all the imagery of the tarot back to Italy - how the card readings work will always be a mystery.

The Magician's Toilet

I decided to name this blog after one of my favourite tarot characters - The Magician. I'm pretty sure if he was a real person he would have a toilet too... Anyway I'm thinking that what I post here will be my findings and thoughts about all things magical but they won't be too serious and heavy!