Yule Positive Spell
♡Happy Solstice!!! Hope you all have a merry Yule!!!♡ We want you to finish this year with the best of energy and positive vibes, so here below will be the steps to take in this longest night of the year.
Gather your items and light the candle. You don’t have to pronounce words but if it helps you visualize, you can do it. Think of how the fire of the candle will cleanse your loved ones and your soul.
Place the red ribbon in the bottle and thing of how this color is the color of love and how it connects you all.
Place the cinnamon with the chestnuts and imagine its all your loved ones together and yourself in this peaceful night even if you wont be able to see them all.
Write your intention on the paper. Any positive emotion or wish you want them all to have.
Put the paper in the bottle and grab the candle. Drip the melted wax on the contents inside.
You can keep thinking on this peaceful moment and the positive energy you are creating to charge yourself more.
Extinguish the candle
*-Highly recommended
All spells have a few components that are absolutely necessary for potent results. It is going to be assumed that physical and/or energetic work was done to actually prepare and cast the spell.
In order to cast a spell, one needs to be in a space of mind that facilitates the spell working. We often refer to this as ‘Headspace”, this assists one to be more focused. This can be the most difficult aspect of spellworking for some practitioners. The mind needs to be honed in on the spell, the energies, spirits, and intentions involved. This headspace exists to channel the practitioner's focus on the task at hand. This combination of headspace and focus is referred to as a state of gnosis.
Secondly, one would need to have passion, an emotional state that is used to fuel the spell.
Lastly, one needs to have an Intention for a spell. This is the most discussed aspect of spell casting, but is also the most misunderstood. Intention is not to be confused with desire. Intent is a personal truth, something that cannot be lied to. It is possible to cast a spell without one of these three components, however the spell most likely will not be as potent as if one did. You totally can cast spells based on desire and not intent, but validating the spell may be difficult or it may have varied results.
When looking through the internet or other informational resources and/or guides on witchcraft, you’ll probably notice that a few things tend to be regularly occurring:
1. That though a lot of practitioners may say that tools and correspondences aren’t necessary, a vast majority of sources and guides include and/or require correspondences and/or physical tools.
2. The correspondences used in each source are only as common as the dominant source for those correspondences within that specific tradition. For some, those sources are books, and for others they are the first result on a Google search.
When it comes to Tools used to perform magic, there are a few things that must be kept in mind. Some tools are culture/tradition specific and it would be disrespectful for you to use them, which may or may not have spiritual consequences. Many tools are used to accomplish the same ends. For example, wands and athames are used for very similar purposes, the casting and/or projection of energies within a specific space- typically when sanctifying an object or opening/closing a space for a working. If you decide to use a tool for your practice, please be sure that you understand the cultural ramifications of doing so within a spiritual space.
When it comes to Correspondences, there are a plethora of sources that may appear to have contradicting data. This is because they stem from various traditions and sources. This occurs because correspondences are 100% subjective. However, if you practice within a specific tradition or culture, then you are expected to follow the correspondences of that practice. This can be incredibly powerful because people have been building on those ideas and connections for lifetimes.
IF you aren’t a part of a preexisting tradition ask yourself what you feel you should use. Magic can be a very personal and intimate experience. Don’t be afraid to create your own correspondences. Furthermore, don’t be afraid to invent your own tools- but be sure to do so as if it were a sacred act. Magical tools aren’t something that should be thrown together thoughtlessly and then treated like pencils or hair ties, they should be created and treated as what they are: a medium for your magic. They should be planned and made with materials that you deem appropriate. The should be stored as if they were fragile or put on display on an altar. If you’re not open about your practice, this aspect may be challenging to hide.
In my experience, there are seven types of spells. Please bear in mind that these are by no means finite boundaries for spellwork to exist within, just an acknowledgement of trends.
Altar Spells: Spells that require not only tools and correspondences, but also require a ritual or ceremony in order to cast it. Often, these spells utilize candles and crystals, prayers and symbology, and may even go as far to actually require an altar.
Glamours: These spells more often than not, require only symbols and energy. They are use to altar the perceptions of whatever they’re placed on, whether targeting other or yourself.
Divination: Spells used to heighten your intuition. A lot of practitioners don’t view divinations as being spellwork, but a good diviner uses all three of the basic components of spellwork for their readings.
Psychological Spells: These are spells put on yourself to altar your own mind by manipulating your own subconscious. These spells are performed often through repetitive action and subliminal messaging through turn of phrase of symbology.
Energetic Spells: These spells require only the energies of yourself and/or beings and objects around you. Most energetic spells that are easy to find on the internet are very small spells, typically aimed at small scale manifestation. However, with enough practice and intuition, Energetic Spells can do anything that any other spell type can achieve.
Astral Spells: These are spells that require being in an Astral form or even on the Astral Plane. They are very similar to Energetic spells but they require even less. However, due to the nature of the Astral, maintaining the basic components of spellwork while in this form can be very challenging.
Spirit Spells: These are spells that either use spirits as the medium for the spell to travel through, or employ a spirit to do the spell work for you entirely. Like energetic spells, this type of spell can achieve anything that all the others can if given enough experience and practice.
Spell dictation: Whether it be for recording a spell that you have already cast or recording how to perform a spell you have only just thought of, the way you choose to record your spellwork with have a massive impact on your craft as a whole.
When performing spells, it is imperative to keep a record of the exact spell process and results. By doing this you’ll be able to keep track of successful spells and those that aren’t. Then it becomes easy to home in on effective spell processes.keeping a record also makes it a lot easier to undo spells that take an undesired turn. I recommend having a dedicated book or Google drive folder to record your spells.
All spells can be thought of as a combination of Thresholds, Nodes, Intent, Focus, and Passion. (And an action)
Without any of these a spell will not function as intended or would not work at all.
Nodes are things like correspondences. They are individual concepts that are connected to form a complete web, or Threshold, for the spell to travel through. Correspondences need not be only for the physical objects involved. They can be as simple as word association or a memory.
Start creating a spell:
1: Decide on a goal, what you wish the spell to accomplish. It is important that your spell takes the path of least resistance in order to have the highest chance at success
2: Create or find correspondences and concepts to create your nodes from and then find how they can be connected. This can be done mentally or by using nodes that are associated with each other.
3: Get all your tools and sympathetic representations together, if you decide to use them. If not, skip to 4.
4: Decide what is the best headspace to be in for casting the spell. It is important to record this as well.
5: Find what is the best emotion to fuel the spell and record that as well.
6: Figure out what energetic programming you wish to use and record that. Do this as best you can, I do realize that the current energetic model definitely leaves a ton to be desired.
7: If you wish to involve spirits, be sure to commune with them beforehand if necessary. And be sure to keep record of the conditions that are reached and which entities you involve.
8: Compile your spell into a single process.
9: Cast and record results.
Be sure to do as much research into your target as possible. Like if you’re casting a spell onto the brain of another person, it would be wise to know their medical history or there could be unwanted side effects.
The best way to keep your spell work private is to forgo your physical tools and sympathetic representations. This can be achieved by relying on spirit work or energy work.
If you wish to keep the physical aspects of the craft and the way you keep records, I recommend having a small discrete bag to hold your tools and such and coming up with a transcription orthography to write with. This can be either a personal alphabet or a simple encryption like a caesar cipher. A lot of discrete practitioners cannot use candles or burn, in order to get around this you can have ashes as your fire representation and draw things you would burn in water soluble inks. You can also draw Sigils using invisible inks as well.
When discussing witchcraft, it is of the utmost importance to first establish personal semantic meaning. Since witchcraft is a multicultural and multilingual phenomenon, the words used to discuss it vary wildly. This is why I take the time to define my terms.
Once the baseline of semantics has been discussed, it is safe to proceed with discussions about magic. It would be easier to start with practitioners who have a similar practice. But I recommend connecting with anyone who is willing to have fair, free and, open discussions. Remain aware of the nuances of culture as to avoid taking and using what is not meant for you.
when recording spells, be sure to note the date and time of casting and have a timeframe in which you would expect a given result. Once the timeline runs its course take any notes of what might be pertinent.
If the spell is continuous, be sure to make note of the situation beforehand so that as time passes you can make notes of relative change.
Sometimes spells don’t work and that’s okay. That just means you need to reassess the working and try again.
If a spell effects more than what was desired, you likely weren’t focused enough or your nodes weren’t connected thoroughly.
If a spell worked but wasn’t to the desired intensity, you likely didn’t fuel it with enough passion during the casting.
If a spell didn’t work at all, it could be that it didn’t take the path of least resistance or you were missing a crucial element. As an example, it is more effective to cast a spell for your employer/client to notice your hard work than it would be to cast one to get a raise.
As you adjust aspects of your working, you’ll be honing it to perfection. Keep track of your changes and overall processes.
If you have any questions, want to know about my blog, commission a Sigil, commission a magical script, suggest content, get a divination reading, or see a list of my planned and published content click here.
1. The Celtic Cross Tarot Spread
Gives you a comprehensive answer to any question
2. The Soulmate Conversation
Tells you everything about your soulmate
3. The Three Wishes Tarot Spread
Tells you which of your wishes will come true
4. The Two Paths Tarot Spread
Guides you towards making the right decision
5. The True God Shuffle
Reveals which higher power you are connected to
6. The What If Tarot Spread
Shows you alternate realities
7. The True Colors Tarot Spread
Shows you a person's true colors
8. The General Prediction Shuffle
Tells you about your life in general
9. The Life Purpose Draw
Reveals your life purpose in this incarnation
10. The Major Arcana Grand Tableau
Shows you the full year ahead
11. Your True Passion Tarot Spread
Reveals your true passion and how to live it
12. The Life Advice Shuffle
Gives you advice about life's many departments
13. The Sex Life Draw
Reveals your sex life with a current or future partner
14. The Past Life Tarot Spread
Reveals the truth about your past life
15. Allies & Enemies Tarot Spread
Reveals who your allies and enemies are
16. Your Future Children Shuffle
Tells you about any future children of yours
17. Sports Match Prediction Method
Lets you win meaningful bets
18. Age at Death Prediction Method
Tells you how long you will live
19. The High Priestess Tarot Spread
Answers any question about the future
20. The Time Prediction Method
Reveals the timing of any event
Your alter should be as unique and personal as you are. It’s a reflection of your space and your connection to your spirits. It should have anything on there that you feel connected to and stirs up magic inside yourself. So even though this is how I set up my alter there aren’t really any ‘rules’. Your alter can be as formal or informal as you like.
Crystals are one of the main things I keep on my alter. A lot of my crystals are small and I usually rotate them out depending on my mood or what I want to influence me or a situation I’m in. Currently I have a bunch of moonstones on there from the Full Moon the other day. I used them during my reading so I wanted to keep that energy present.
I have a little bit of sage in a abalone shell left over from prior cleansing work. I keep that up on the alter too. I never toss out the soot from the burned incense just in case I need black salt for later. (I have heard about the shortage of sage so this is my last bit. I think in future I’ll switch up what I’m burning maybe Frankincense next time?)
Sometimes I don’t have candles up there but I do like them for a fire element representation. My current obsession are white votives in clear glass holders I picked up from the dollar store. I like them because I can purchase so many. Next time I think I’ll grab some pillars and have the back of the alter lined with different sized candles.
I also use seashells for my alter, mostly for a water representation. I always like to have elemental displays just for balance. The other day I swapped out the shells for a jar of moon water though.
Other things I have on my alter are things that represent my ancestors, small animal bones (naturally collected), and eggshells. Some of my other favorites to put on my alter are seeds, salt, flowers or herbs, coins, oils, sticks or rocks or anything that feels like it just goes there and adds it’s energy to that space.
At the very end of the Gregorian calendar comes the winter solstice and Yule. Technically, this is the FIRST holiday on the Wheel, since Samhain is the boundary between the old year and the new. But since most of us have to follow the January to December schedule in our day-to-day lives, we’ll end with Yule.
The winter solstice is a time when we focus on hunkering down and staying warm. We look to the homestead, we take care of our families, and we make sure our communities are surviving the winter as comfortably as possible. This is one of the times that the Wild Hunt was said to ride, their presence indicated by howling winds and stormy nights when it wasn’t safe to venture out. All manner of entities personifying hunger and cold and death stalk the landscapes of winter mythology, so we fortify our homes however we can and indulge in a little midwinter revelry to keep ourselves going until the spring.
Decorate with pine bunting, pine cones, holly, mistletoe, snow symbols, fairy lights, electric candles, ribbons, streamers, local fauna active during winter, whatever you like. There are plenty of Christmas wreaths out there, so don’t be afraid to make a witchy one with a big old star in the middle. Make sure that any ACTUAL foliage is kept away from the pets, and of course, observe fire safety for any lights you put up. Way too many house fires are caused by electrical shorts in holiday lights, so be extra careful. Do NOT plug an extension cord into a power strip. And go easy on the plastic glitter. Anathema to some, I know, but the more of that we can keep out of the waste cycle and the water system, the less will end up in the oceans.
If you have a fireplace, you can burn a symbolic log “to drive the cold winter away.” Or, if you only have a cauldron or a burning bowl, you can find an outdoor space to burn some twigs and incense for the same purpose. Or you can light some candles with appropriately wintry scents. Or, if you can’t burn anything at all, an LED candle left alight overnight on the altar should do the trick. The whole idea is to symbolize keeping warmth in the home, keeping the dark and the cold at bay, and keeping the home fires literally burning for those who must be elsewhere. However you manage this is fine.
Spend time with your near-and-dear, if you can. Eat good food, drink good wine, and do cozy things. Share treasured memories, and tell stories. Fun fact: Yule and Christmas are another traditional time of year for ghost stories, so feel free to pull those out again. If there’s a family tradition of feasting and gift-giving, lean into it. There are a lot of Christian traditions from Christmas that have made their way into the secular sphere. Sure, they still have some religious associations, but I know plenty of atheists who still exchange presents because it’s FUN. You can also give gifts to others by contributing to charitable organizations, donating to clothing drives and food pantries, or through random acts of kindness to those who need it.
Charity and compassion should be emphasized during this time of year. I mean, you should be charitable and compassionate ALL year when you can manage it, that’s just common decency. But especially when it’s cold and people are feeling that lack of money or resources and we’re surrounded by all these super-capitalistic ad campaigns telling us that our love for others is worth only as much as the kitchen appliances and diamond jewelry we put under the tree….yeah, maybe bring something a little more altruistic to the table. It doesn’t have to be huge, it doesn’t have to be performative. Just look for those opportunities to help someone out or make their life a little easier. You’ll know them when you see them.
If you’re crafty, pull out those projects you’ve been saving for a rainy day. We often spend a lot of time cooped up in the house during cold weather, the more so in 2020 with the various lockdowns, so why not turn it into something productive? Fix something, create something new, work on that scarf you’ve been meaning to finish since last winter. Make a pinecone feeder for the local birds, or scatter some nuts and dried berries for any critters that happen to be out and about. Do winter crafts with your kids to keep them occupied, if they happen to get bored of watching Frozen 2 for the hundredth time this week. (Hey, I only have nieces and a nephew, but I’ve still heard the horror stories.)
Let me pause a moment to address the proverbial elephant in the room. And this MIGHT be dipping a toe into the religion pool, but it’s an issue that a lot of us face. Late December can be a tough time for witches who were raised Christian but are, for one reason or another, disconnected from the faith or the Church at present. There’s the constant symbolism in music and decorations all around, pressure from our friends and families, people gnashing their teeth about red coffee cups, and so on. And we’re not even going to talk about the annual arguments over who stole whose holidays. If you know me, you know exactly how salty I can get on the topic, and we don’t have time for that today. This is about finding ways to celebrate, not my personal rage over people who don’t understand the difference between conflation and syncretism, and can’t be arsed to read history that doesn’t come from-...
Ooooo deep cleansing breath. Come on, Bree, you promised. (-hiss- I LIED.)
ANYWAY. Yule is a time when it might be worth remembering literally anything positive that came out of your experience with Christianity. Some of us have it, some of us don’t, that’s purely a personal matter. Some of us miss the carols, okay? There can be a lot of nostalgia involved in the season that’s disconnected from whatever trauma or differences in belief led to that split. And if you want to pause and remember that fondly, that’s okay. I will fully confess to singing along to Christmas hymns on the radio in my car at top volume because that’s a big part of the season for me and always has been. Heck, I might even attend a service at the local Unitarian church. They’re nice and non-denominational and they focus much more on the meaning behind the season than any particular holiday. So if you feel the need for that fellowship, see if there’s a UU church near you, or a virtual service online. There’s nothing wrong with revisiting your roots.
Moving back into witchcraft territory, you can collect clean snow and icicles to melt for winter moon water. This isn’t really much different from moon water you’d make at any other time of year, but it’s another method of gathering the base material. Also, icicles are great for any water you’re setting aside for more aggressive or protective purposes. The fact that they look like hanging spears isn’t lost on me.
Check your household protections and see if anything needs shoring up. Like I said, I cast my wards every year at Samhain, but they always seem to need a bit of detail work by the time Yule rolls around. Or heck, you might find Yule a more appropriate time to perform that casting, or maybe you refresh your wards at every holiday, who knows. Whatever works for you, as long as you remember to do it at some point. Cleanse your thresholds and the corners of your home, at the very least, just for good measure. But don’t go sweeping anything out the door. That’s sweeping away your good luck for next year.
And speaking of New Year’s, if the year you’ve had has been particularly….well, like the year we’ve had, you can also burn the year in effigy and cleanse with incense for a fresh start. Just write it on a piece of paper and burn that S.O.B. in the cauldron. While you’re at it, you can symbolically burn lingering worries, bad habits, bad memories, and regrets with either candle flame or a burning bowl. And yes, that includes all those negative things you think about yourself that you wish would go away.
And finally, reflect on the year as a whole, with all the joys and lessons it’s brought you. What memories have you made? What has brought you joy? What do you regret? What have you learned? What skills have you developed and how will you use them? What improvements do you still wish to make? And what do you want to do with the coming year?
And around and around it goes….
Like I said at the beginning, this is by no means exhaustive. These are just some basic ideas to get you started. You can make your own celebrations and your own traditions as you, either by building off of existing ones or by creating something new. As long as it has meaning to you and marks the occasions you deem important in ways that are fun and festive, it’s all good. This is something I’d love to see more often as a discussion - personal traditions, things that are unique to families or particular regions or individual witches, all the places they intersect, and all the various ways that we celebrate ourselves and each other and our craft.
- Hex Positive, Ep. 011 - Secular Celebrations (November 1, 2020)
Other Posts In This Series:
Imbolc
Spring Equinox
Beltane
Midsummer
Lughnasadh
Autumn Equinox
Samhain
Yule
This is by far the most abundant ink I have in my house is that of inks made from flowers. This is the easiest and fastest inks to be made and require the least amount of materials to produce brilliant and soft colors. The inks from flowers can be either stunning and dark, or a lighter and more pale like one would expect from watercolor. Flower inks don’t last as long as inks produced from berries or nuts, and being left in the sunlight will fade their colors faster, but since this ink is so fast and easy to make, it can always be in supply. The shelf life of this ink is about a month if kept in the dark, but this is dependent on the color itself.
Materials:
Glass containers (preferably mason jars or drinking cups)
A pestle or other wooden tool (to crush the flowers with)
Boiling water
Cheese cloth
Rubbing Alcohol or 100 Proof Vodka
Glass storage container
Optional: Gum Arabic
Steps:
First, gather the flower petals of choice for the color desired (note some flower ink isn’t the same color as the flower petals).
Take these petals and crush them into the glass container, stuffing as many as you can in 1/3rd of the container as possible. The more crushed the petals, the more color will come out.
Fill the container with just enough boiling water to barely cover the flower petals. Do not fill the container, as this will dull the ink.
Set this container aside to brew overnight (I actually leave mine in the window to brew for 24 hours).
Strain the flower petals from the liquid, pouring the colored ink into a clean glass storage container.
Add 1 part alcohol to the container and shake gently (do not shake hard enough to form bubbles).
Optional: You may add Gum Arabic to give the ink a thicker consistency.
A recommendations on flowers, I have found that roses and other soft petaled flowers make a stronger ink.
Hanging rosemary above the doorstep, and/or above doors of the house for protection.
Sprinkling a line of dried red pepper on a windowsill, to counter a curse.
Placing a mix of dried & ground eggshells and black pepper in every corner of a room to keep out unwanted spirits.
Placing a decoration representing a witch in the kitchen, to keep away illness and to favor health.
Crafting an effigie (no matter how crude!) and make it into the guardian of your home by charging it with your intent of protection by placing it near the front door.
Crafting small witch ladders to hang around the house.
Friendly reminder that on this Samhain if you plan to contact spirits, please PLEASE do it safely!
Set up a special place before you get started, make sure you will be uninterrupted while doing your work if possible. I know sometimes it’s hard to work that out for some. I personally have two children and I have to wait till they are asleep to do this kind of work.
Protect yourself, reenforce any protections you may already have, not just on you but on your space as well. Make sure you’re grounded and prepared for the work you’re going to do.
RESEARCH! DO NOT GO IN UNPREPARED! Guys seriously don’t just decided half assed that you’re going to speak with the dead or spirits because you see others doing it. Know what you are going to do. Research rituals, spells, sigils, whatever and make a plan. Stick with the plan, being prepared and having knowledge is honestly your most powerful tools in the Craft.
Tools, be familiar with the tools you plan to use. I am most familiar and connected to my pendulum so he is what I use the most, second is cards and candles I use all three together but I use my pendulum for the main communication, if I need help that he can’t give I use my tarot cards and candles with him. It is important to be familiar and know your tools so that you know when something isn’t right. Spirits can be tricky and your best defense of knowing what’s truth and lie is knowing your tools and how they typically respond to you.
Don’t go in being open to just any spirit that’s willing to talk to you if you’re not experienced. You need to have an idea of who you want to speak with, this comes back to being prepared and knowledge.
If it gets weird or scary don’t just stop. You need to be firm and say goodbye and end any spell you were doing, blow your candles out and close your circle and ground yourself. Take notes of what happened for later. Do not just leave this situation, be firm about disconnecting with the spirit and ending what you are doing.
Don’t get discouraged if things don’t go right or you don’t make contact it happens and Samhain isn’t the only time you can contact them. You can always try again.
If you don’t feel that you are prepared enough or comfortable with contacting the spirit world yourself there are plenty of spirit workers, mediums, witches, Oracles ect that you can contact to do it for you.
If your blog is open for spirit work paid or free reblog this so people will know they can contact you as a safe alternative to going it alone and unprepared. I ask that if you reblog for that reason you note if you’re paid or free please. 🧡🖤
Stay safe, stay witchy, have a blessed and happy Samhain! 🎃🖤🧡
The days of the week each have their own unique magickal properties and correspondences, which can be useful for planning rituals and spells. Here is a brief overview of the magickal properties associated with each day of the week:
Monday: Associated with the moon, intuition, and emotions. Good for spells related to psychic abilities, divination, dream work, and emotional healing.
Tuesday: Associated with Mars, courage, and strength. Good for spells related to courage, protection, strength, and victory.
Wednesday: Associated with Mercury, communication, and intellect. Good for spells related to communication, divination, wisdom, and knowledge.
Thursday: Associated with Jupiter, abundance, and expansion. Good for spells related to prosperity, abundance, growth, and success.
Friday: Associated with Venus, love, and beauty. Good for spells related to love, attraction, relationships, and beauty.
Saturday: Associated with Saturn, discipline, and structure. Good for spells related to organization, discipline, boundaries, and endings.
Sunday: Associated with the sun, vitality, and success. Good for spells related to success, vitality, energy, and healing.
By incorporating these correspondences into your magickal practice, you can enhance the energy of your spells and rituals and work more in alignment with the natural rhythms of the universe.
My Ko-Fi
Robin’s Journal | she/her | lesbian | 20 | struggling with mental health & returning to my craft.
210 posts