New Year New Moon Banishing Bath Tea

Ok, so it isn't technically the New Moon, but the wordplay was fun anyway. Today is the first Dark Moon of 2022, the time when the Moon is no longer visible in the sky. While some witches believe no magic should be performed during this time, I strongly disagree. The Dark Moon is deeply associated with banishment, cleansing, and protection, as well as baneful magics such as cursing and binding. This makes it a perfect time to remove unwanted energies, bind negativity, and let go of the past in order to have a fresh start. While most witches were talking about performing banishing rituals on December 31st, I usually wait until the first Dark Moon closest to the upcoming year to fully shed the past year as the magical correspondences are greater during this time. One of my favorite ways to do this is with a bath tea. The following recipe is made using commonly found items in your pantry to ensure you can do this last-minute tonight if you so desire.

What You'll Need

• 3 sprigs fresh rosemary or 2 tbsp dried
• 2 cinnamon sticks or 2 tbsp ground
• 1 tbsp whole cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 orange, sliced
• 1 cup Epsom salt or sea salt
• Obsidian, black tourmaline, or smoky quartz (optional)
• White towel (optional)
  
  

What to Do

Combine rosemary, cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves, and 2 orange slices with 3 cups water in a saucepan and bring to a bowl. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes until fragrant. Cool slightly before straining. Meanwhile, run a hot bath. Combine salt, tea mixture, and remaining orange slices and stir counterclockwise.

As you stir counterclockwise and say, "Through my will and through my might, I banishing all negativity from my sight. With salted water, I shall be free. Past be gone, let me be. I release all burdens from my life. And ask for a future without strife. A new me I shall become. So I will it, so shall  my spell be done." 

If using a crystal, charge it with your intention, asking it to help banish negativity and the previous year.

Slide into the bath and soak for at least 30 minutes, feeling the warmth of the water wash away the preview year, leaving you refreshed and renewed. When finished, drain the bath and rinse off with clean, warm water. Air dry or lightly pat yourself dry with a white towel. Finish the ritual with some light food and a cool glass of water to ground and rehydrate your body.

Why You Did It

Understanding the why's of a spell are just as important as performing it. It helps you understand the process so you can modify the spell or ritual to suit your needs and helps guide you to write your own. It's my intention that by providing these explanations, that you can build a better understanding of how spells are written and executed so you can modify and build your own spells (the goal of my Spellcraft Series). 

For this spell/ritual, the spell is performed during the Dark Moon, which is the perfect time for banishing rituals. This ritual can also be performed during the Waning Moon, which is also associated with banishment.

Rosemary, cinnamon, cloves, and bay leaves are all associated with banishment, cleansing, purification, and protection and therefore help to remove all unwanted energies from the past year while simultaneously protecting you, leaving you with a clean slate for the future. Cinnamon is also associated with success, money, and luck, thus replacing the removed energies with more positive ones. Bay, like cinnamon, is also associated with success but is also associated with healing, allowing you to heal from the traumas of the past year, which have likely been great. Orange, however, is uplifting and is associated with happiness, courage, and success. In this ritual, orange ensures that all the energies you banish are replaced with positive ones.

Finally, the salt in this spell is for purification and protection. Salt is a known deterrent of negativity and is even strong enough to deter wanted spirits. Not only does it remove spiritual impurities, but also bodily ones as well, helping the body naturally detox. As mentioned above, you will want to drink a glass of water after this ritual to rehydrate as salt is naturally dehydrating, especially when coupled with a hot bath.

If you chose to use a crystal in this spell, obsidian, black tourmaline, and smoky quartz are all associated with banishment and grounding. They help remove the negativity from you, either storing it within them or helping transfer it safely into the Universe or Earth. 

Wish to break this spell? Unfortunately, this is not a spell to be undone. If you really wish for the negative energies to come back, invite them back.

Remember to record this ritual on your ritual/spell worksheet or in your Book of Shadows for reference later.

***

I like to combine this type of ritual with a few other magical steps to make it really effective. First, I make sure I clean and cleanse my home. My Deep Cleaning House Ritual is a really good one to use this time of year. I follow up the cleaning with a bath and often light a black candle for further banishment. Etch what you wish to banish on the candle, such as 2021, anoint it with oil, and roll in some slightly ground rosemary. Follow up the entire ritual with replacing the wards and protections around your home and do a tarot or rune reading for the year to come.

I hope everyone has a wonderful 2022. I know things are not looking that bright at the moment, but we will get through this. You are strong and capable of so much greatness. 

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New Moon Depression Banishment Spell

 

Thursday was the New Moon and while many witches believe you shouldn't perform magic on the New Moon, I disagree. The New Moon is a wonderful time to cast potent magic, especially banishment and wish spells. The New Moon symbolizes new beginnings so this is a great time to get rid of the old and bring in the new. This spell is focuses on banishing depression. As many of you may be aware, I suffer from severe depression, which is usually why I will post often one week, and not at all the next. I am taking active steps to get better, including setting up an appointment with a counselor, and this spell is just one of those active steps. I am tried of feeling this way. Enough is enough.

What You Will Need
     Black Candle with holder
     Charcoal
     Lavender Flowers
     Matches/Lighter
     Black Tourmaline

Directions

1. Begin by lighting the charcoal. Allow the charcoal to burn until grey. Add lavender flowers to charcoal. My charcoal looks like a vulva...Ha!
2. Once lavender is lit, light the black candle.
3. Close your eyes and repeat as many times as needed (I said this about 10 times):
   
   
   "Mother Moon on this night,
   While candle burns flame of white;
   Help me banish this pain I feel,
   As it holds no appeal.
   
   This Feeling of despair
   Leaves me feeling less than fair.
   Help me emerge from this hole,
   And release the black upon my soul.
   
   With this candle I cast the darkness out,
   And with lavender light is sought.
   I no longer need this to hold me back,
   And continue to push me off track.
   
   Mother Moon of this night,
   Please help me to be alright.
   Please stand with me,
   And by my will, so mote it be."
   
   
4. After you feel you have repeated the mantra enough, hold the black tourmaline and envision yourself letting go of the darkness surrounding your heart and soul and visualize it being replaced by the light of peace and joy. Imagine yourself bathing in a pool of cool water and the past washing away.
5. After you are finished your visualization, take a bath. Again envision your depression washing down the drain, leaving you renewed. Feel free to add bath salts or lavender to enhance the experience.
6. Allow the candle to burn out on its own and dispose of the wax away from your home.

While this spell alone will not cure depression, it can definitely change your mindset and release many of the negative feelings that are weighting you down. It is important to recognize that magic cannot fix all problems. Seeking medical help is extremely important. If you are having suicidal thoughts, please reach out to someone now. Call the National Suicide Prevention Line at 1-800-273-8255 for those in the United States. Don't feel like calling? They have an instant messenger option available as well. You are NOT alone in this. 

Blessed be, 

Uninvited Banishing Spells

With Halloween around the corner, scary movies are flooding the theaters and the television. I don't know if any of you guys have seen the previews for Ouija, but it got me thinking about the Uninvited. The whole premise of the movie is that some teenagers use an Ouija board to communicate with the dead and all hell breaks loose. I can't even begin to tell you the number of times I have overheard people talking about summoning spirits, demons, etc using any and all variety of methods. In fact, the daughter of a close family friend admitted to her mother that she was summoning spirits in an attempt to help them pass over. She was dabbling, as most people who talk about this sort of thing are, and her mother noticed very marked changes in her daughter. She asked me what I thought (she is a pagan Christian and clairvoyant), and I looked at her and told her that B had invited something in that she had not intended, something very dark.

Unfortunately, this is a very common occurrence when people dabble and/or misuse magic. In many cases, it is easier to summon than to banish. Always keep this in mind when summoning anything, especially if it is malevolent. However, it can even happen to the most skilled practitioner. So for this week's Pagan Blog Project post, I would like to cover how to get rid of the Uninvited, both physically and metaphysically. Sometimes a guest overstays their welcome, a neighbor moves in that is completely awful, or you have accidentally let in something malicious.

Depending on what you need, there are several ways you can handle this problem. Banishing powders are very common in dealing with people. My favorite is based on an old Hoodoo recipe. To make Hoodoo Vanishing Powder, simply combine black pepper, cayenne, salt, and sulfur and grind into a fine powder. Visualize your intent while grinding to infuse the powder.

Banishing powders can be sprinkled on the clothes, especially shoes, of the person you wish to leave, under their bed, on the ground where they will walk over it, or used to enhance other banishing spells including banishing oil. Remember, powders are intended as a subtle form of magic so less is more. You don't want what you are doing to be obvious. Also keep in mind that if you sprinkle this on someone's clothes, you could cause an adverse reaction, so the bottoms of shoes are safest.

Of course, this is only one powder recipe. Mixing any of the following herbs will produce a Banishing Powder:
     Angelica
     Asafetida
     Basil
     Bay laurel
     Citronella
     Cloves
     Cumin
     Devil's bit
     Dragon's blood
     Elder
     Fleabane
     Fumitory
     Garlic
     Heliotrope
     Horehound
     Juniper
     Lovage
     Mistletoe
     Mullein
     Mugwort
     Nettle
     Oleander
     Pepper (both black and cayenne/hot chili)
     Yew

Growing these plants in quantity around your home will also discourage uninvited guests and can be used in your Poison Garden.

To make a Banishing Oil cover your banishing powder in Castor oil and shake vigorously until well combined. If the oil is too thick you can thin it with jojoba oil.

All of the above methods are generally used to banish people, not spirits. If you have accidentally let spirits into your home, whether malicious or not, there are several ways to handle this. A general word of caution; if you wish to practice malevolent magic, know that it attracts the attention of equally malevolent spirits, whether you want them or not. Once present, they often become bored and restless, causing destruction and grief in their wake. The best option for banishing spirits is to contact a knowledgeable professional, but I understand not everyone can or is comfortable doing this. When all actions must be taken into your own hands, the Spirit Banishing Bell and Incense Spell is extremely potent. Burn benzoin, frankincense, and juniper as a triple threat and for triple protection. Evil spirits cannot abide by any of these fragrances, let alone the combination, and should leave. Ringing an iron bell while the incense burns will increase the effectiveness of this spell as it disturbs most malicious spirits. Make your intent known by commanding the spirits to leave and never return.

I hope none of you ever have to use any of these spells, but in case you ever do, do not do it maliciously. These are also not intended to be used all willy-nilly because you can't get along with someone. These are for extreme cases only so please exercise caution and your best judgment.

Have you ever had to use a banishing spell? If so, for what?

Threshold Protection Spell

Note: This post contains potentially problematic practices or language, cultural appropriation, or misinformation. I have been working diligently to decolonize my practice, for which you can learn more about in my article Decolonizing Witchcraft: Racism, Whitewashing, and Cultural Appropriation in Witchcraft and How to Decolonize Your Practice. I believe in documenting my journey in witchcraft and that my readers can learn from my mistakes, so the posts will remain as a learning opportunity.

Last night was the full moon and while banishing magic is best conducted during the waning moon, something told me that I should go ahead and clear out the negativity in our home, redo our threshold protection spell, and strengthen the ward currently protecting us. Sometimes it is better to listen to the universe than force the issue later on.

I spent the entire day cleaning the house and preparing for the moon to rise. Before you put up a ward or a threshold protection spell, you need to take down your previous ward and clear your home of all negativity. Cleaning is the best way to do this in my opinion. Some people take a more "magical" approach, using spells and charms, but cleaning, cleaning gets rid of the mundane and magical "dirt" while freeing your mind of clutter as well. You want to be sure to clean EVERYTHING. Yesterday I washed baseboards, doors, fans, the dishwasher, under all the furniture, even some of the outside windows. Cleaning stirs up stagnate energy, so cleaning behind and under things helps push out the negativity. Closets, where I didn't clean, I stirred up the stagnate energy by clapping, but you can use a chime or drum as well. Clapping is easiest considering I had enough to haul around into each room.

Start at the top of the house and work your way down. This means rooms as well that way you don't have to sweep and vacuum twice. I work clockwise because that is most comfortable for me, but most banishing magical suggests you walk counterclockwise. I can never bring myself to work in the opposite direction. Why? Because I feel counterclockwise pushes not only the negative away, but prevents the positive from entering as well. I find that moving forward and inviting more positive in works best, but everyone is different. Do what feels right to you. I also open the windows in the room I am cleaning as an exit for negativity. No windows? That's fine; sweep the negativity into the next room until there is a window or door for it to exit.

Once your house is clean and the energy stirred up, you are ready to put up your threshold protection spell and ward. I put up the protection spell as soon as I was done cleaning. You can use this spell on every door and window in your home if you want, but I feel confident my ward will prevent the bulk of negativity from entering. Furthermore, everyone must enter through our front door, so anything the ward fails to prevent will be prevented at the threshold. My favorite threshold protection spell is from The Way of the Hedge Witch by Arin Murphy-Hiscock. Its simple and quick, just what you need after cleaning all day.

Supplies:

     1 cup water

     1/2 cup vinegar

     1 tablespoon salt

     1 tablespoon lemon juice

     bowl or bucket

     washing cloth

     sage smudge

     matches or lighter

     olive oil mixed with a pinch of salt

     3 cloves of garlic

1. Begin by combining the water, vinegar, salt, and lemon juice in your bowl or bucket. Using the washing cloth, completely clean your threshold. Wipe down the front and back of the door and both sides of the door frame. Try to get it as clean as possible.
2. Light the smudge stick and move it around the door frame. Waft the smoke so it touches both the inside and outside of the door frame. Lay the smudge in a heatproof dish and allow it to smoulder during the ritual.
3. Dip your fingers in the oil and salt mixture and trace the outside of the door frame. Make sure there are no broken spots; you want a complete seal. As you trace the frame say:

   "No evil or illness may cross this threshold. I hereby bar it from entering. My home is protected."

4. Dip your fingers in the oil again and touch the upper left corner of the door frame. Trace through the air to the bottom right. Dip your fingers again and trace from the upper right to the lower left. Finally, dip and trace from the upper middle to lower middle all while repeating:

   "No evil or illness may cross this threshold. I hereby bar it from entering. My home is protected."

5. This symbol is a hexefus which is a combination of the runes Isa (|) and Gebo (X). When written together they "freeze" the state of your home and possessions, protecting them from physical and spiritual intrusion.
6. Finally take the three cloves of garlic and bury them as close to the threshold as you can. I buried mine in a line. One of the left, one in the middle, and one on the right. As you do this repeat the same chant.
   

   "No evil or illness may cross this threshold. I hereby bar it from entering. My home is protected."

***

I have used this threshold protection spell at every house I have lived in. It works, but you need to keep an eye on it. Depending on how much negativity is trying to enter determines how long the spell will work. I suggest strengthening it every couple of months, but you may need to redo it every month. My husband is a funeral director and when he has had a particularly heavy load of cases dealing with murder, suicide, and unexpected/tragic loss, I find our threshold weakens faster. Its amazing what you can bring home with you. For extra protection, sprinkle a line of salt across the outside of the door frame. This will further prevent negativity and keep away most insects.

I hope this has been helpful. I will post the ritual I use to create my ward later this week. Until then, how do you protect your home?

 

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