Savanah Fahrney-Day

A Samhain Candle Spell
By LadyHawke, The Mythmaker

Items Needed:

One pillar candle in pumpkin, orange, or black.
Very Finely grated apple peel
Three or four vibrant colored fallen leaves
A Block of Paraffin wax
A heavy, thick nail
An empty coffee can
A Poem, verse or prayer to the Dark Goddess, as an offering from your to Her.

1. Cleanse and purify all ingredients in whatever manner works for you.

2.  Wearing a heavy glove, heat the nail by holding it over a flame for a minute or so.  It doesn’t need to be red-hot, just nicely warm.

3.  Using the hot nail, make nine deep holes in the pillar candle. (Top to bottom)  Reheat the nail as needed.  Nine is the number of the final harvest, just prior to completion and manifestation.  It is also “the power of three times three,” three being the number sacred to the Dark Goddess.

4.  Next melt a block of the paraffin wax in the coffee can.

5.  As it melts sprinkle some of the grated apple peel into it.  You can also add any other ingredients that appeal to you and be in keeping with your goal. Dragon’s blood oil, cinnamon, patchouli, graveyard dust

6.  Pour the melted paraffin into the holes you made in the candle, filling them.

7.  Next melt the second block of paraffin wax in the coffee can.

8.  Carefully dip one of the fallen leaves into the paraffin, and quickly lay the wet leaf on one side of the candle, smoothing it on.  The hot wax should help seal it in place.  If it doesn’t, use a small paintbrush to paint the leaf onto the candle with more hot melted wax.

9.  Repeat this process with all the leaves until your candle is covered.

10.  Allow the candle to dry and cool.

11.  Take the candle to a crossroads at midnight on Halloween (October 31^st) or on the actual Samhain cross-quarter date, November 7^th.  Alternately, choose the darkest moment of a dark moon, preferably in Scorpio on a Saturday. Just such a date arrives on the Saturday before Halloween.  The moon is in Gemini all night, goes void of course at 3:31 am, and enters Scorpio at 5:08 a.m.  The new moon begins at 7:50 a.m.  So if you choose this date, do your work between 5 and 7 a.m., and focus on doing it in the darkness, before sunrise.

12. Sitting as near as you can safely sit at the juncture of the crossroads (off the pavement of course) hold the candle in your hands.  Channel the energy of the Dark Goddess, of the final harvest, of the changing seasons, into the candle as you say:

“I dedicate this candle to the Crone, the Hag, the Witch
Because she is a part of me.
A part I do not fear.
A part I honor.
She is Wisdom.  Knowledge.  Experience.
She is Patience.  Peace.  Tranquility.
She is Power.  Strength.  Courage.
She is, I am.
She is, I am.
She is, I am.
I charge this candle by the powers of the Dark Goddess.
Whenever I light it, I invoke Your energies into me.
I get in touch with my inner crone.
So mote it be.”

13.  Light the candle, and recite the poem or verse you have written in Her honor.  Spend a few moments there, embracing the energy of Samhain.

14. Take the candle home, wrap it in a soft dark colored cloth, and keep it out of the light.

15. You will use this candle whenever you feel the need to get in touch with the energies of the Crone, or the Dark Goddess.  When you’re dealing with a death, or helping others to deal with it. When you’re trying to ease the way for someone who is suffering.  When you need the wisdom of experience. When you need to banish something negative from your life.  When you need to sharpen your powers of divination.  When you seek the final harvest.  Light the candle, recite the verse, and experience the energy.

Reprinted with permission. Retrieved from http://maggieshayne.com/wicca.html#Spell%20of%20the%20Month (This url is updated with new information each month)

A Book of Shadows is a place to record all of your magickal works. Some witches keep everything in one book, while others have a few. A Book of Shadows (or Books) can contain as much or as little as you would like. The important part is that you feel comfortable with your set-up and that you can find what you need without looking through everything.

I like to keep several books for organization purposes. I try to start a new set of books each year, as I grow and change. Since I am a Sacred Sisco Tradition (SST) Witch, my year starts at Yule instead of Samhain or January 1st. At the beginning of each book I have a blessing written specifically for that book. I also end each book with a closing. I write a little about what I learned (related to that particular book) during the year and where I would like to be next year. By breaking this down into several different books, I realize I learned a lot more than I would have thought and that I am able to verbalize what I wanted better than when I only kept one book.

I have a book for prayers, chants, songs, and morals. I always include my personal morals and values in this book. This changes slightly each year as I learn and grow. It also seems to take up more room each room. I write down my goals for the year here, allowing space to remark as I complete or revise them throughout the year. If I don’t meet a goal, I note that at the end of the year. This allows me to either revise it or come up with a new plan to complete it. I like to review my long-term goals on a monthly basis and my short-term more frequently. I also include the standards (Wiccan Rede, Witches Creed, 13 Principles of Wiccan Belief, 13 Goals of a Witch, etc) in this same book.

A meditation/visualization journal split into two sections allows one to record any exercises that are interesting as well as have a section for journaling meditation experiences. A separate dream journal works well, as long as you leave space to go back to a certain dream. It is not uncommon to suddenly remember something about a dream or realize what it meant days, weeks, or even months late when you are consistently recording your dreams. Depending on where you feel the most drawn, you may have one book on healing therapies or a book on psychic development. Some choose to keep these together, while others have a separate book for each healing modality and psychic ability. Make sure you allow yourself plenty of room to write and stay organized.

Deity information can be kept with Sabbat & Esbat information or you may choose to keep two separate books. I have four books on deity information alone (Greek/Roman, Celtic, Native American, and Misc.) My Holy Days book contains information on the Sabbats & Esbats, as well as other holidays celebrated in the SST. It includes the dates and meanings as well as my ideas on how to celebrate each one, how I celebrated it, and ideas for next year.

I have two books that I do not update every year. The first includes basic information, such as magickal symbols, magickal alphabets, basic correspondence charts (herbs, crystals, days, months, colors, moon phases, etc), and information on the properties of my tools. I have left space in each section, so I can add to it. Each new tool I receive, purchase, or make is listed (sometimes with a picture if I am proud of my craftsmanship), along with a complete description of it. I like to list what it is made of, how it was made (if I know), who it came from, etc.

The second is basically a book of contacts and websites. It contains the names, addresses, and phone numbers of all my magickal friends as well as notes about them (birthdays, family members, how we met, lodging space available for visiting, if they can stay here – space-wise & personality-wise). I also use this book to keep track of websites that I love, what I love about them, products/services they offer. If my computer ever crashes again, I won’t have to try to remember all those sites saved in my favorites folder. Another thing I use this book for is courses/workshops. Every course/workshop I take is recorded in here (whether it is online or in person). Contact information, course notes, costs, and other courses offered is all listed. It can be time consuming, but I feel it is well worth it. I also list all of my students (by magickal name) as they complete my courses. On those blue days (where you can’t help but think of “everybody hates, guess I’ll go eat worms”), I use this section to cheer me up. It reminds me that even though I don’t get paid a lot, I still receive some wonderful rewards.

The last book I have is for spell, incantations, herbal remedies, and rituals. I keep everything organized by type, then purpose so I can find it quickly. If I’m looking for a spell for prosperity, I flip to spells, then to prosperity and can find what I want without going through the whole book. I’ve heard that you should only record spells that you have done, but I don’t feel that is necessary. If you leave plenty of space to note if/when you used it, how it felt, and the end results, you can keep all of your spells & rituals together without having a separate book or file that can get forgotten about.

Since some of my family is Christian, some is Wiccan, and some are more spiritual, holidays are a little eclectic at our house. Holidays consists of my household (hubby, two little boys, and myself), my parents household (Mom, Dad, two sisters, my brother and his fiance), as well as many drop-bys.  This year, we decided to do a “small” easter egg hunt for the little ones and then a nice lunch. Since eggs are a great symbol for this time of year, we decided to make homemade ice cream (even though it’s still snowy out).

Most people understand what Easter stands for, although it’s easy to get distracted in today’s materialistic society. Ostara is a Pagan/Wiccan holiday that celebrates the first day of spring.  Ostara is also my wedding anniversary, so this is a very happy time of year for me. Easter is a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, while Ostara looks forward to warmer weather (especially for those of us with snow & freezing temperatures) and the new planting season. We have been able to successfully meld these two holidays into one big celebration in our family, without anyone feeling left out or offended.

Unfortunately, I had a small accident (I fell halfway down my staircase) and was unable to move without pain. My oldest son (2 1/2) was in my arms when I fell, but, luckily, was not hurt. I immediately started doing Reiki on myself. As soon as I was able , I called over to my parents’ house and they all started working on me. My oldest son put his hands on my ankle and started praying (isn’t he cute?) for “Mama’s owwie gone”. Then, he “threw” it away.  With everyone working together, I was able to move around with minimal pain.

After we arrived at my parents’ house, I used the Chi machine. For those of you that have never hear of a Chi machine, it is a wonderful device that you place your ankles on. When you turn it on, it starts a gentle side-to-side motion that helps realign the body. This allows your energy (Chi) to flow freely and speeds healing. After about five minutes with the chi machine and all the Reiki energy I’ve received, I’m feeling great. I have a slight headache (but that may be the puppy barking and kids hollering).

Now, we’ve had an egg hunt, ate a wonderful stew, and ate homemade ice cream/custard. On the 20th, I spent some time meditating and praying. I think celebrating a holiday with family is the greatest ritual/blessing we could ask for.

Savanah