Grimoire for the Apprentice Wizard

178 Grimoire for the Apprentice Wizard

“Grapevine” dance steps

(attributes...) we invite you to enter

this Circle and join with us in our

magick work. Bring us your

(wisdom, strength, inspiration,

courage, etc.) and your blessings.

Hail and be welcome!

And of course, everyone else echoes, “Hail and be

welcome!” As They are called, candles may be lit for

Them on the central altar.

Lesson 8: The Working

Now we have reached the heart of the ritual: working

the magick! Magick is “the art of probability

enhancement.” We work our magick by focusing our

individual or group energies all in the same direction,

like a laser beam, to shift the patterns of possibilities

so that the things we want to happen are more likely

to come about. The power of magick comes from our

will. When we do magick, we never say, “I hope such-

and-so will happen,” or “I wish such-and-so would

happen.” We say, “It will be so!” The ritual words for

this are So be it! or So mote it be!—which everyone

else in the Circle repeats.

There are several steps in doing a magick working

in the Circle. First is the declaration of intent, where

the purpose of the working is explained and agreed

upon by everyone. Then comes raising the cone of

power, where everyone’s energy is combined and built

into a powerful force. Next is releasing the power

and sending it out to do its work. Finally come

centering and meditation, as we recover some of the

energy we have just put out.

Declaration of Intent

The purpose of using magick is to change things

for the better. Most of our workings are for healing—

healing ourselves, healing each other, and healing the

planet. Other purposes might be protection, peace, or

justice. Finding love, a good job, a home, or an an-

swer to some problem may also be a goal of a magick

working. At this point in the ritual it is important to

decide exactly what the energy you are raising will

be used for, and to state this plainly. This is your dec-

laration of intent. Often, the declaration of intent is

determined and written down before the ritual even

starts.

Sometimes the declaration of intent may be stated

by one person (especially if you are doing a solitary

ritual!). A good way to do this is to write down the

Intent in the form of a brief spell—especially in the

form of a little rhyming couplet that will be easy to

hold in mind during the power raising. (A simple

example could be something like: “Bring the one I

love to me; As I will so mote it be!”) At other times

everyone in the Circle may be given a turn to state

what it is they want to accomplish. It works best,

however, if everyone focuses on the same basic

goal, to keep the group’s energy together. If some

folks really want to work for different things,

these workings should be done in different rituals.

After everyone agrees and the intent is clearly

stated out loud, say, “As I/we do will, so mote it be!”

and everyone should repeat, “So mote it be!”

Raising and Releasing the Power

If you are working a solitary ritual, one of the

best ways to raise and release energy is through the

Breath of Fire. You sit in a meditative position, and

breathe rapidly and deeply in and out as fast as you

can. Repeat over and over the words of your intent or

spell in your mind, while visualizing the thing you

want. Start out slowly and go faster and faster until

you feel like you’re about to explode. Finally, when

you can stand it no more, exhale with a last great rush

while shouting out: “So mote it be!” Fling your

thought and visualization out into the Universe as if

you were throwing a spear. Then just collapse and lay

down until you have the energy to sit up again.

A favorite way to raise energy in a group is the

Circle Dance. While everyone holds the intent in their

mind, hold hands and dance faster and faster deosil

around in the Circle, weaving your steps in and out in

a “Grapevine” step, like this:

Slowly bring your hands up as you dance, until

at the most exciting point they are high above your

heads. At the same time, visualize a cone of bright

shining energy forming around everyone in the Circle,

raising higher and higher, like an upside-down

tornado. Or, if the working is to create a spell of

protection, imagine your combined energies spreading

out into a great dome—an umbrella-shaped shield,

with an outside surface like a mirror that will reflect

away all negativity.

For the energy-raising Circle dance, a good

drumbeat is great (or you can put on a CD with a

good heavy beat!), and a Circle dance song will help

create the right juice. Here’s one of my favorites,

which I have found to be very effective:

Circle ‘round the fire

To raise the cone of power

To win what we desire

So mote it be!

Repeat louder and faster until you can’t dance

and sing any faster, then on the final “So mote it be,”

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