Tag: spells

Tips for beating anxiety.
Hi!

I came across this article this morning in my inbox. Belleruth Naparstek has a wonderful collection of guided imagery recordings on her website Health Journeys. I have been listening to her for many years. She is a pioneer in this area, and also has quite a nice collection of articles and summaries of scientific studies done on the effect of guided imagery on various conditions. I know many folks (my self included) suffer from anxiety, and I hope you find these suggestions below helpful.

Love

Sister Bridget

BR’s Tips for Beating Anxiety

Anxiety causes people to lash out, react impulsively and jump into places and relationships they shouldn't. Nine times out of ten, anger and nasty behavior is born of anxiety, looking for a place to get released.

It's also a huge energy waster and time-sapper, preventing people from getting things done, simply because it sucks up so much time and focus. More often than not, efficient, productive people aren't any more talented or educated than others, but they're people who are unhampered by anxiety, so they get a straight shot at their goals.

I recall seeing a surprising statistic that 50% of all office visits to the doctor are due to anxiety in one form or another (as opposed to illness).
So here are a few tips and tricks for anyone who wants to better manage his or her anxiety and get back into the driver's seat, where surely their tush belongs. I doubt any of these will be news to you – but they might serve as a good reminder and punch list. Please add your own suggestions – this is by no means comprehensive. And, of course, if you've got persistent, unrelenting anxiety that is interfering with your life, get some professional help too.
1. Get Mindful of Your Triggers
  Focus your attention on your innards enough to become mindful of how and when your anxiety gets activated. You're going to need to know this if you want to get ahead of it and short-circuit it, before it develops into full-blown flooding. So this is the key to everything else, unless of course, you want to become a full time meditator, 24/7 – a pretty ambitious alternative.
2. Learn to Breathe
  Learn to breathe slowly, deeply at will. It's the quickest way to trick the body into thinking it's relaxed, and everything else will follow suit. When we're relaxed, we breathe like sleeping babies – slowly, with the belly rising with the in-breath and emptying with the out-breath. Practice at this and you're halfway there, even if you do nothing else on this list. (You may also want to read Priscilla Warner's book by this very name: Learning to Breathe: My Yearlong Quest to Bring Calm to My Life).
3. Listen to Guided Imagery or Affirmations
  Take a few minutes each day to listen to some soothing guided imagery listen to affirmations in the car while driving. Again, all your'e doing is habituating your mind and body to the habit of relaxation. Then when something happens and you need it, it's right there for you, in your back pocket.
4. Get Stuff Out of Your Head and onto a List
  Carry around a lightweight notebook, so you can relieve your mind of having to keep track of all the dumb detailed stuff you need to do. Simple, it's true, but you'd be surprised at how unburdening this can be on your mind. Plus, it's a good habit for actually remembering to do them!
5. Use Physical Exercise to Channel Anxious Energy
  You don't have to run a marathon – just walk briskly or go crazy with the vacuum cleaner. Like learning to breathe, this is a physical way to approach calming your mind, as old as dirt, but very effective.
6. De-Clutter Your Surroundings
  Studies show that messy, disorganized surroundings subtly but surely feed anxiety (depression, too). This doesn't mean you should become a compulsive neatnik and give yourself one more thing to worry about. But if you can reduce the clutter in the living spaces that you use (or even throw it all in one room you don't use, where you don't have to see it) you can reduce your baseline anxiety levels.
7. Eat Smart
  You know the drill. Take it easy on the caffeine – coffees, colas, teas and, yes, even chocolate, all stimulate adrenaline, so use them wisely and judiciously. And do lean on the omega 3 fatty acids, vitamin B's, and whole grain carbs for regulating serotonin. And big doses of sugar is NOT your friend.
8. Practice Silence
  Give yourself some quiet. Shut off the radio, take a news fast from the TV, let the phone go to voicemail, get away from chattering colleagues and friends (even the really nice ones) and help yourself to some silence. This includes text messages on your phone and emails on your computer. Mini-retreats taken during the day give your brain a chance to rest and your psyche to sort itself out.
9. Try Aromatherapy
  You'd be surprised at the relaxing impact of aromatherapy and what certain fragrances can do to make a dent on your anxiety levels. Scents like lavender, sandalwood, pine, chamomile, lemongrass and bergamot can be mixed or matched uniquely to suit you – all it takes is a little experimenting to see what works best. And you can access them through lotions, candles, bath oils, inhalation beads and diffusers – even scented pillows.
10. Laugh, Play, Smile
  Even if you don't feel like it at first, and even if your anxiety is telling you that you can't possibly afford to take the time for it, a little break with friends or an absorbing, light-hearted movie or just a laugh with a laugher can interrupt anxiety.
May 13, 2015
Ancestor Candle Making!

Hello dear readers!

As most of you probably already know, we have begun making ancestor candles and offering them in our Etsy shop! Parran Matt is hand making these candles and we are consecrating them in the names you provide for ancestor service. Each and every candle is handmade, hand poured, specifically for the person who orders it. Even though we always think of the ancestors at this time of year, we certainly will be offering this candle year round, as anytime is a good time to work with and honor your ancestors.

The making of these candles has been such a fulfilling experience! We ask each person to send in names of their ancestors when they order the candle. Then using an "ashes to ashes" type of mindset, we burn those names and offer up a prayer of honor to your ancestors.

After the ashes are burned and the proper prayers have been said, the ashes are then added to the candle wax of your candle.

Your candle is then poured into the skull mold and allowed to cool and then get ready for shipping to you along with incense, a little bottle of Fet Ghede potion, and instructions on how to use your candle for ancestor service.

If you don't know WHY you are serving your ancestors, let me just say that you must thank them for life itself… without them, there is NO YOU! If you are going through tough times, feel lost, have problems you cannot find the solution to, call upon your ancestors. If you are doing well, prospering, and living a happy life, then thank your ancestors!

Ancestor service is certainly not unique to the Vodou life; many, many cultures and religions offer honor and service to their ancestors. All Souls' Day, Dia de los Muertos, and many other celebrations all offer honor to our ancestors. However, as Vodouisants, we believe that not just one day is for ancestor service, but rather we always want to keep our ancestors in mind. Our hierarchy is: God, ancestors, the lwa. So your ancestors are considered even more important than the lwa themselves; if you call upon the lwa, you should also be honoring your ancestors! 🙂

Your ancestors know you; they can protect you, guide you, and walk with you. All you need to do is call on them and offer them the respect that they so richly deserve. This particular candle is one way to do just that!

If you need it by Fet Ghede (November 2, 2014), then please order by 10/24/2014. However, the candle can be used anytime!

https://www.etsy.com/listing/207245046/maman-brigittes-ancestor-memorial-candle

Love, light, and peace,

Mambo Samantha Corfield

www.spellmaker.com

October 21, 2014
The Making of a New Oil – Holy Spirit Psalm Oil

Hello everyone,

Hope your summer is going great so far! People often asks how we do things… oil making is definitely one of those things that people ask about. I thought using our new Holy Spirit Psalm Oil as an example would be a good way to explain how we do it. We have this oil available both on the website and in our Etsy shop.

First, new products are added as we see a need for them. Nothing we sell at www.spellmaker.com is arbitrary. Nearly every product has been created because a number of people asked for it. Obviously, since 1995 there has been a lot of asking.

There is a lot of interest in the Psalms of the Bible both for religious and magickal reasons. The idea was born to make an oil that could be used both ways; it is appropriate for religious practices and also for magickal practices. All of the nine ingredients in the oil are mentioned somewhere in the Bible. This includes things like mustard seed, rose, olive oil, etc.

Second, with all of our oils, there is a "mother." The mother is the first batch of the oil with all of its herbs, stones, resins, etc. Usually this is made in a glass jar of some kind. Every Spellmaker oil that you have used had a mother. Naturally, over the almost 20 years, the mother has been absorbed into most of the oils but we continue to use the same containers and keep the essence of the oil alive over the years.

With the Holy Spirit Psalm oil, we started out with our dry ingredients not mixed with the wet ingredients. Everthing was consecrated and dedicated separately and left to absorb the consecration energy for three days. On the third day, the ingredients were mixed and two jars of mother oil were made. These were then left for 7 days to steep and create their own spectacular energy. The oil turned out to be amazing!!

This oil is great for praying with the Psalms in a religious way and in a magickal way (and we provide you with a PDF of the Book of Psalms and also a PDF of how to use the oil in candle burning as well as with certain affirmations that go with certain Psalms). It is also perfect for protection, blessing, anointing… just about anything, really, for which you would want to use a good all-purpose oil.

If you have a problem with things of a "Christian" nature, then all I can say is don't use it! But remember, the Psalms, historically speaking, predate the birth of Jesus. In fact, many theologists, including yours truly, see some of it as a prediction of the birth of Jesus. But that is a discussion for another day, I suppose.

Magickal usage of the Psalms has been around for more years than any of us really know. Particular Psalms are prayed for particular things. Many books have been written about the magickal usages of the Psalms! If you look at the page referenced above where the Psalm oil is listed on our website, and take a look at the document about Candle Burning and Affirmations, you will get the idea how the Psalms are used in magickal practices. (It's free to download the documents.)

Anyway, hope this gives you an idea of how we have always made our oils!

Love, light, and peace,

Mambo Samantha Corfield

www.spellmaker.com

Ingredients!

The Mothers

June 24, 2014
Happy Summer Solstice 2014!

Hey all!

Wishing each of you a very happy Summer Solstice today! It is the longest day of the year (and the shortest night!) I hope each of you get to enjoy it in your own, unique way. There are many different things you can do to honor the day. If you do not have alot of time today, your celebration does not have to be elaborate. Or you can work it in to your already busy schedule! You can sit in the grass and meditate for a few minutes, or read a book in the sun, or have a cook out, go for a swim, water your plants, wash your car. You get the idea! Get outside and feel the warmth of the sun on your face and breathe in the fresh air! Whether it is for a few moments or a few hours, enjoy the warmth and energy of this special day!

I will be posting some pictures of the Spellmaker Solstice fun later on! Stay tuned!

Love

Sister Bridget

June 21, 2014
BELTANE! A Time for Renewal.

Hello, everyone!

Happy May to all. Spring often brings about a sense of renewal in us. The trees, birds, and earth itself seem to be coming out of their long winter's sleep.

One of the rituals performed on May 1 is burning a fire for Beltane. Of course, this is also considered "May Day" and is known by other names as well. It is a ritual stemming from Old Gaelic tradition and is celebrated by many Wiccans, Pagans, and other spiritual groups. It is about renewal, protection, fertility,asking for abundance in crops, safety for our children and animals, etc. It is a fun holiday and can be simple, as ours was, or can be much more elaborate (next year, we hope!). In my opinion, you don't have to be any particular religion to benefit from this cleansing and protecting ritual!

Parran Matt and I did the ritual part as the High Priest and Priestess and Sister Bridget was the May Queen. It was simple but powerful with a ritual fire for Beltane. We said our parts and walked around the smoke of the fire to ask for protection and prosperity for ourselves and all those we know and love.

I had mentioned that if people saved their ashes, I would tell them how to use them and here I am to do that!

There are several ways to use these ashes. After reading the list, you might think of some creative ways of your own. I would love to hear them!

1. They are used are for protection. Putting the ashes around the ground of your home. It just takes a little bit. Sometimes they are used on one's body – just rubbing a little bit around your heart area if you are going into a dangerous or scary situation is said to help protect you. It can also be put around areas where you keep animals.

2. The ashes are used to encourage growth. People scatter them in the garden, potted plants, yards, and fields, anywhere that you want to encourage growth. This growth can also be in the form of luck, having enough food, providing for your family, etc.

3. They can also be used to encourage spiritual growth. A little bit can be put in a bath or even mixed in with some kind of oil and anoint yourself with the oil and ashes. If you are a Vodouisant, or like to use Spellmaker oils, you can definitely mix a few of these ashes in any of our oils that would be used to encourage growth of any kind.

4. If your fire was big enough that it left you coals, you can use those coals in magickal writings, veves, wards, drawings of magickal symbols, etc. Commonly, the coals used for writing would be used for petitions in love, life, luck, abundance… rarely is the word "money" used at this time. Mostly it is "abundance, plenitude, bounty" or some similar word.

5. Some people like to save a coal and put in a little bag and use it as a protection charm year round, returning it to the Beltane fire the next year. Then they get another coal from the new fire, and so forth and so on.

6. It isn't uncommon to even mix a little bit of the ash into a big glass of water and drink it. This is said to encourage protection from hexes, enemies, and illness. At one time, these ashes were used as medicine, put into wounds, etc. They are said to aid in fertility. Please use common sense if you are going to imbibe the ashes.

7. What are your ideas? If you bear in mind that these ashes are meant to cleanse, protect, and represent renewal, you might find some very creative ways to use them yourself!

So there are some ways to use your ashes! I also wanted to mention that one should not mix up this tradition with the Catholic tradition of getting ashes on your forehead on Ash Wednesday. That is about repentance and humilty. Actually, there are lots of ways that different ashes are used in spiritual rituals – might expand on this topic later!

Peace out, kiddos,

Mambo Samantha Corfield, www.spellmaker.com

P.S. Look for our mighty stag in the pictures! You can barely see him! LOL

May 3, 2014
Freya, a May Queen.

“With a crown of the lilies of light —

For a maiden they crowned her in May,
For the Queen of the Daughters of Day
That are flowers of the forest of Night.”

~~~May Queen by Aleister Crowley

Freya, a May Queen.

Yesterday, during our Family Beltaine/ May Day activities, I played the role of the May Queen. Mambo Sam spoke about the holiday and its significance, and how it is celebrated in many cultures across the world. Today, I was doing some reading about the May Queen and how she is represented in other places and times. I found myself drawn to some information about Freya, an important Germanic Goddess. Her main festival is May Day. Walpurgisnacht ‘Walpurga’s Night,’ when the festival actually begins, is April 30, the evening before May Day is named for Freya. This time of year coincides loosely with the first dew fall, that is the time of year when frost no longer forms at night, but rather the temperature remains above freezing at least for some of the nights. This change in the weather allows the growth of green things and the blooming of all the flowers. This in turn allows for the cattle to be turned out of their winter quarters and released to graze on the new grass which increases the amount and quality of milk available to humans.

Walpurgisnacht is not named after St. Walburga, as is commonly said. However, the saint’s name became attached to the festival as a way of “explaining” the meaning of the name of the holiday. St. Walburga’s feast day is set to May 1st because that was already the name of a major festival of Freya. The pretense that the festival of Walpurgisnacht is named for St. Walburga provides a convenient way of obscuring the festival’s older Pagan origin.

Freya’s domain is the garden, especially a walled garden with fruit trees, properly an orchard with a spring or well. She is responsible for making the flowers bloom and she is always associated with flowers especially flowering trees. As a Goddess of spring time, she is especially associated with romantic love among human beings. Songs of love are well-pleasing to her; it is good to call on her for furtherance in love.

An important event in the changing of the seasons was the moving of livestock from their winter pastures to summer pastures, and vice versa. In some areas of Europe, as the weather permitted, cattle were moved to summer pastures during the May Day/ Walpurgis/ Spring time festivities and Freya was invoked for their protection and fertility.

The following Middle High German charm is to protect cows when they are turned out into the forest, as they were in spring in northern Europe. The exact date would depend on the climate and when the grass was sufficient to support the cattle, though some traditions closely associate this prayer with May Day and associated festivities. “Lady” may refer to the Goddess Freya, the Virgin Mary, or to any unspecified but highly respected woman. The ambiguity may be intentional, and possibly life-saving, since people could ask for assistance from the Goddess while pretending to refer to one of the Christian deities.

Herdsman’s Charm to Protect Cows

Today my herd I drove into our Lady’s grove,
Into Abraham’s garden; Be, good St. Martin,
this day my pledge and warden,
and good St. Wolfgang, good St. Peter,
(whose key can heaven unlock),
throat of wolf and vixen block,
against blood shedding, and bone shredding.
Help me, holy one, who ill hath never done,
and [by] his five holy wounds;
keep my herd from all wood-hounds!
[Say] 5 Pater Nosters (Our Fathers) and 5 Hail Marys

Hope you enjoyed reading about this as much as I did!

Love

Sister Bridget

May 2, 2014

I came across this post early this morning in one of my files. It is by my dearly departed friend and mentor Orleanna, the original Spellmaker Caseworker and first ever Khouzhan of our House of the Nine Mysteries. The post talks about a method Orleanna developed to use her Voodoo Love Doll (www.spellmaker.com/doll.htm) while communicating with her fella via AIM or some form of online messenger. After rereading the post, I can see how this method can also be used while texting! I hope some of you find the information helpful! If you have any questions about using it, or anything else for that matter, please feel free to email me at bridget@spellmaker.com

Have a wondeful day!

Love

Sister Bridget

************************************************************************

Begin Post:

Now, here's another little trick I liked to use when I'd use our

#VDK1 Voodoo Love Doll(tm).

Most of us have computers - that's how you're reading this forum,

that's how you write email, etc.

Most of you also use some type of instant message service like

AOL's Instant Messenger (AIM).

My love would usually be on online around 10:00 p.m. and we'd

always (and still do) chat via AIM then if he wasn't with me that

night.

I'd set up the doll in front of my computer. I'd place the doll in front

of the monitor, a candle to each side of the monitor and then the

incense to the very left of the left side candle.

I also made up a "buddy" to represent the intruder as well as all

other lovers - something like "Her&AllOthersButMe"

Take some of the leftover banishing oil from the #5 Leave My

Man Alone Spell(tm) and make a cross over the buddy's name to

represent the intruder and all others. Then take any leftover love

oil and make a cross over your lover's buddy name. Later, wipe

your monitor clean with glass cleaner like Windex.

Now, per the instructions with the doll kit, light the candles and

incense, sprinkle the herbs over the doll (I kept it in a shoe box

for that) and say the chant that comes with the doll kit. I'd do that

just before 10:00 p.m. and then I'd log on when I knew he'd be

online.

Voila, I'm now actively working magick on him WHILE in contact

with him but he has no idea!

Note: The instructions talk about 13 minutes but you can have a

longer session with a doll - the 13 minutes are more of a

suggested guideline.

So, after I'd get the doll all set up and done the opening ritual,

then I'd log on and while typing to him via AIM, I'd also say aloud,

"While we type, the doll work is affecting you right now. You're

thinking of the last time we were together and you want me even

more. Your desire for (intruder) is totally leaving and if she's

online now, I'm banishing her from you - anything she types,

you'll hardly pay attention. Your attention is focused on me, solely

on me. You find your thoughts of love for me are getting stronger

and stronger right now as we type."

Then, I'd go into whatever detail for anything specific on my mind

aloud with the doll. For example, suppose I wanted to see him

on a Wednesday night, I'd say aloud with the doll set-up and

candles still burning, "You'll find a way to see me Wednesday.

You'll WANT to see me Wednesday. You miss me and can

hardly wait to see me - you'll find yourself making plans to get in

your car and come over on Wednesday evening." Then I'd type

an IM to him, something like "I look forward to seeing you next

time." And you'd be surprised how often I'd get an IM reply like

"Wednesday night looks good." (Or whatever night I'd have

petitioned for with the doll while I was online then.)

The whole time, he and I are exchanging IM's - and I'm actively

using magick on him WHILE in contact with him - but he has no

idea!

That's a great way to use a doll, folks :) I know most of my clients

use some type of online messenger service to chat via typing

with the person they love - try setting up the doll for when you do

that!

I also found beeswax candles to last a long time. I bought red

beeswax candles and used them for my "AIM-doll sessions."

(You can use either purple or red candles with the doll.)

Light and love,

Orleanna

March 18, 2014

You Were Made For This!

Hello!

Having gone through a great many changes in my life the past two years, there were many times I have read and reread this article below. The images of ships upon the water spoke deeply to me, and reminded me frequently to seek guidance from Capitaine Agwe. Master of the Sea, he is one to go to for guidance, setting a course through the stormy seas of life. Our own Brother Menfo now offers readings and rituals to his guardian lwa, Capitaine Agwe and his wife, LaSirene. You can view his offerings at www.spellmaker.com/menfo.htm I hope you find some jewels in this article to help you through any stormy patches you may find yourself in.

Love

Sister Bridget

You Were Made For This

By Clarissa Pinkola Estes

My friends, do not lose heart. We were made for these times. I have heard  from so many recently who are deeply and properly bewildered. They are concerned about the state of affairs in our world now. Ours is a time of almost  daily astonishment and often righteous rage over the latest degradations of what matters most to civilized, visionary people.
      You are right in your assessments. The lustre and hubris some have aspired to while endorsing acts so heinous against children, elders, everyday people, the poor, the unguarded, the helpless, is breathtaking. Yet, I urge you, ask  you, gentle you, to please not spend your spirit dry by bewailing these difficult times. Especially do not lose hope. Most particularly because, the fact is that we were made for these times. Yes. For years, we have been      learning, practicing, been in training for and just waiting to meet on this exact plain of engagement.
      I grew up on the Great Lakes and recognize a seaworthy vessel when I see one. Regarding awakened souls, there have never been more able vessels in the waters than there are right now across the world. And they are fully provisioned and able to signal one another as never before in the history of humankind.

Look out over the prow; there are millions of boats of righteous souls on the waters with you. Even though your veneers may shiver from every wave in this stormy roil, I assure you that the long timbers composing your prow and rudder come from a greater forest. That  long-grained lumber is known to withstand storms, to hold together, to hold its own, and to advance, regardless.
      In any dark time, there is a tendency to veer toward fainting over how much is wrong or unmended in the world. Do not focus on that. There is a tendency, too, to fall into being weakened by dwelling on what is outside your reach, by what cannot yet be. Do not focus there. That is spending the wind without raising the sails.

We are needed, that is all we can know. And though we meet resistance, we more so will meet great souls who will hail us, love us and guide us, and we will know them when they appear. Didn't you say you were a believer? Didn't you say you pledged to listen to a voice greater? Didn't you ask for grace? Don't you remember that to be in grace means to submit to the voice greater?
Ours is not the task of fixing the entire world all at once, but of stretching out to mend the part of the world that is within our reach. Any small, calm thing that one soul can do to help another soul, to assist some portion of this poor suffering world, will help immensely. It is not given to  us to know which acts or by whom, will cause the critical mass to tip toward an enduring good.

What is needed for dramatic change is an accumulation of  acts, adding, adding to, adding more, continuing. We know that it does not take everyone on Earth to bring justice and peace, but only a small, determined group who will not give up during the first, second, or  hundredth gale.
      One of the most calming and powerful actions you can do to intervene in a      stormy world is to stand up and show your soul. Soul on deck shines like gold in dark times. The light of the soul throws sparks, can send up flares, builds signal fires, causes proper matters to catch fire. To display the lantern of soul in shadowy times like these – to be fierce and to show mercy    toward others; both are acts of immense bravery and greatest necessity.

Struggling souls catch light from other souls who are fully lit and willing to show it. If you would help to calm the tumult, this is one of the strongest things you can do.
      There will always be times when you feel discouraged. I too have felt despair many times in my life, but I do not keep a chair for it. I will not entertain it. It is not allowed to eat from my plate.

The reason is this: In my uttermost bones I know something, as do you. It is that there can be no despair when you remember why you came to Earth, who you serve, and who sent  you here. The good words we say and the good deeds we do are not ours. They are the words and deeds of the One who brought us here. In that spirit, I hope you will write this on your wall: When a great ship is in harbor and moored, it is safe, there can be no doubt. But that is not what great ships are built for.

    Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Ph.D

March 12, 2014
New Moon, New Year! Super Moon, Super Year!

New Moon, New Year! Super Moon, Super Year!

The night of New Year’s 2014 is also the night of the first Super Moon (when the moon orbits slightly closer to Earth than usual and looks bigger in the sky) of the year, AND it is a New Moon as well. What does that mean for us? Many say that the New Moon is a time for setting intentions. The new moon is seen as the beginning or birth of the moon’s various phases. The night of the new moon is is the perfect time for birthing and planting your intentions. The dark side of the moon, with its mysterious unseen forces, offers a nurturing environment where our intentions can establish roots before their manifestations begin to sprout and reach out to the light. A New Moon on the New Year seems a really great time to set forth some positive intentions for 2014! Forget resolutions, and all that is associated with them. Take a few minutes this special night to focus your intent on what you wish 2014 holds for you. What a wonderful energy to begin this new year on 🙂

I wish each of you a Super New Year 🙂

Love

Sister Bridget

December 31, 2013