The Elixir of Love

Perhaps you've heard the term "elixir." In some magickal circles, elixir has a special meaning. This spell, excerpted from my book Nice Spells/Naughty Spells (published by Adams Media) explains one way you can use the elixir of love to enhance a romantic relationship. 

Best times to perform this spell:

During the waxing moon

When the sun or moon is in Taurus, Libra, or Scorpio

On Tuesdays or Fridays

Ingredients or equipment needed:

A chalice or goblet

Wine or apple cider

Male and female sexual fluids

Engage in sexual intercourse. Afterwards, pour some wine or apple cider in a ritual chalice or goblet. Add a few drops of “elixir”––the mixture of male and female sexual fluids––to the chalice. Focus on each other and your love while you drink the “potentized” wine (or cider) together. 

Brigid’s Day, Imbolc, or Candlemas

This sabbat honors Brigid, the beloved Celtic goddess of healing, smithcraft, and poetry. A favorite of the Irish people, Brigid was adopted by the Church and canonized as Saint Brigid when Christianity moved into Ireland. Her holiday is celebrated either on February 1 or around February 5, when the sun reaches 15 degrees of Aquarius. In the Northern Hemisphere, daylight is increasing and the promise of spring is in the air. Therefore, Imbolc is celebrated as a time of hope and renewal.

The Holiday’s Significance

Brigid is one of the fertility goddesses, and Imbolc means “in the belly.” This holiday honors all forms of creativity, of the mind as well as the body. Illustrations of Brigid sometimes show her stirring a great cauldron, the witch’s magick tool that symbolizes the womb and the receptive, fertile nature of the Divine Feminine. As goddess of inspiration, Brigid encourages everyone, regardless of gender, to stir the inner cauldron of creativity that exists within.

Brigid goes by many names, including Lady of the Flame, Goddess of the Hearth, and Bright One. Her feast day is sometimes called Candlemas due to her association with fire. In magickal thinking, the fire element is believed to fuel inspiration and creativity.

Although Brigid is an aspect of the Divine Feminine, her day falls under the zodiac sign Aquarius, a masculine air sign in astrology. Her blazing hearth is both the metalsmith’s forge and the homemaker’s cook fire. Thus, she represents mind and body, a blend of yin and yang energies, and the union of polarities that is necessary for creation.

Ways to Celebrate

On Imbolc, the Sun King’s chariot ascends in the sky; the sun’s rays grow stronger and days grow longer. Witches celebrate this spoke in the Wheel of the Year as a reaffirmation of life and a time to plant “seeds” for the future. You may wish to build a fire in a magick cauldron to honor Brigid. On a piece of paper, write wishes you want to materialize during the year, then drop the paper into the cauldron. As the paper burns, the smoke rises toward the heavens carrying your requests to Brigid.

In keeping with the holiday’s theme of fire, many people light candles to honor the Goddess. Candles are the most common tool in the witch’s magickal toolbox, used in all sorts of spells and rituals. Engrave words that represent your wishes—love, prosperity, health, etc.—into the candle’s wax. Then light the candle and focus your attention on its flame, while you envision your wishes coming true.

Excerpted from my book The Everything Wicca & Witchcraft Book, published by Adams Media, copyright 2008. To order this or my other books on magick, please click the link to my website www.skyealexander.com and go to the books page.

Magickal Mini-Mystery

This is the second in a series of mini-mystery stories with magickal themes––see if you can solve it, just for fun.

The Librarian's Discovery

The library was moving to new quarters and her job was to pack up the old books in the west wing that no one ever read anymore. As she removed several moldy texts from the top shelf, she accidentally knocked an ancient leather-bound volume onto the floor. The book fell open to a page illustrated with a peculiar-looking diagram.

The librarian climbed down off her stool and picked up the book to examine it more closely. No title or author's name appeared on the cover or front matter; only a caption under a strange diagram identified it as "a map of the journey to the soul."

Intrigued, the she read on. "The journey to the soul is a winding route indeed, yet if you follow it faithfully you cannot become lost. Seven paths lead to the center, but all are one. The journey leads in and the journey leads out, yet you’ll only find the way in and the way back out by walking in circles. Turn left and right and left again, and you will reach your goal.

"Each path is governed by a celestial body; therefore the map of the journey to the soul is a map of the heavens. Each path resonates with a single note; therefore the map depicts the musical scale. Each path is aglow with a single color; therefore this map describes the visible spectrum. Each path is aligned with one of the body's energy centers; therefore the map shows the way to health and harmony."

QUESTION: What is the strange map?

Magickal Mini-Mystery

One in a series of short puzzles with magickal themes, just for fun.

The Old Astrologer's Secret

Sadly, the old astrologer gazed up at the sky. The stars told him that soon his art would be vilified and many like himself would be put to death for practicing it. A new ideology was dawning; its proponents would attempt to destroy the Knowledge of the celestial bodies and how they influence life on earth.

So the old astrologer set out to preserve the Knowledge for future generations. To keep it safe, he knew he'd have to hide the information about the four elements, the thirteen lunar months, the fifty-two weeks of the solar year, and the two archetypal forces in the universe (masculine and feminine) someplace where antagonists wouldn't recognize it. But he also wanted the Knowledge to be easily accessible to all who sought it.

The old astrologer thought and thought, until finally he came up with a clever solution. He'd hide the Knowledge in plain sight! 

Thousands of years later, this ancient Knowledge is still with us. Nearly everyone in the Western world has touched upon it at one time or another, without realizing it. The secret Knowledge is hidden in millions of homes around the world––probably in yours––where it is available to young and old alike.

QUESTION:  Where did the old astrologer hide the Knowledge of the heavens?