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The Magic Circle

Page history last edited by PBworks 16 years, 1 month ago

The Magick Circle by kashinthegreen

 

During our rituals and magical rites, you may have heard it is usual to 'cast a circle'. There are as many ways to cast a circle as there are witches.

 

The casting of the circle is probably the most commonly recognised Pagan ritual, it is also frequently done very badly.

 

To cast a circle badly, go out and buy almost any book on beginner's Wicca; there is bound to be a section about circle casting: Follow the instructions to the letter, and take care to stumble over the words, as you are too nervous to remember properly. Remember to be very angry with yourself for this to introduce bad energy to the circle. Above all make sure you concentrate so hard that you forget why you are doing all this, and don't visualise anything.

 

Casting a circle well, like anything else, takes practice, preparation and a bit of background knowledge. So let's get to it!

 

Why do we cast a circle?

 

There are very few Pagan temples, and very few Pagans who want temples, after all our religion is about connecting with our roots, nature, the land, it is not always easy to do this in the confines of four walls. It is because of this that Pagans have learned to take their temple with them everywhere.

 

The circle is a 'safe' space within which we practise our ritual. It is, like all useful commodities, multi-functional. The circle is a barrier between your energy and that outside, it keeps out uninvited spirits (like fairies if you are outside). It also keeps your energy in, at least until you choose to release it, allowing you to raise a large amount of energy without it leaching away before you have a chance to do anything with it. When I cast I use the phrase 'nought but love may enter, nought but love may leave' I am therefore not just excluding nasties from elsewhere, but also putting a leash on myself, that I cannot send out 'unloving' energy.

 

A circle capable of the above can officially be deemed a darn good circle, don't worry if your early attempts fail in these departments. At the very least, your circle should be a place where you are comfortable and feel safe. The act of casting a circle brings you into a state of mind conducive to magical rite, and is a way of honouring your gods, spirits etc as you are creating a meeting place, where the barriers between your world and theirs is dissolved. The circle has been described as a place where the veil between the worlds is thin. All this and it is totally portable.

 

Where do I cast my circle?

 

Anywhere you like, within reason. Many Pagans keep an area for ritual purposes (a sacred space), it is a good to have a place to practice your rituals as it will always feel sacred (even if it is usually just a corner of your bedroom). However, the circle creates a sacred space anywhere, so you do not always need to retreat to your physical temple to practise a ritual. A circle can be cast for a number of reasons, it is a valuable psychic shield if you feel threatened, with practise you can learn to raise a bubble around yourself, while travelling alone on the train, or even while walking down the street.

 

So how should I do it then?

 

Firstly there is no 'should' about it, there are many methods you can use, and eventually you will evolve your own. Casting the circle can be a fancy affair with chanting and flowery words, usually accompanied by waving of cutlery, equally you can cast a circle in a way that would be totally undetectable to an onlooker.

 

You need to find a way of firstly making your space feel safe and sacred, and secondly creating the bubble that contains/keeps out energy.

 

Many paths consecrate the area with salt and blessed water before casting the circle; some sweep the area of negative energy with a broom. You can push out other energies by expanding your spirit body. You can sit quietly and let the peace and safety flow from you and all around you, you could walk the perimeter of the circle telling the world in general that this is your space now and it is free from malice.

So how should your circle feel?

 

The cave game, an exercise in security

 

Before you try to cast a circle, you may find it useful to get a clearer idea of what you are looking for, to do this you are going to play a game, because its more fun this way. All you need is a spare afternoon or evening, and everything else, you can scrounge from around the house.

 

Remember when you were a child, and you would make a den out of soft furnishings? A blanket over a table, making a tent out of your duvet? Well, there is your first step, make a den, a cave, a wendy house if you must! In a quiet area of the house, where you won't be disturbed, gather together all the bean bags, cushions, blankets etc you can and make yourself a nest. It's best if you have a roof, like a tent. Bring in some soft music, lighting (watch the candles though, tea lights in jars are safer), maybe some incense. Gather together a few books, maybe equipment for drawing or a musical instrument. Put together a picnic in case you feel peckish. Wear comfy clothes and set the heating so you don't get cold.

 

Now lock the door (and stick a Do not Disturb sign on it), turn down the lights and wallow. For an hour or so, let yourself relax in your new environment. This sort of set-up is particularly conducive to meditation as well.

 

Once you have got used to this, pause and observe. Your space is totally isolated, but you have all you need. You are safe and comfortable, but unimpaired; you can still carry on with the activities you brought with you. The whole place is a little otherworldly, the lighting, the incense, the music, you probably haven't had any human contact for a couple of hours. Soak up the atmosphere, let it penetrate your very bones, imprint it in your spirits memory. For this is it, once you have felt it, you can take it with you anywhere, and apply it to your ritual space. This is what your circle should feel like.

 

Building your circle

 

Now we have some idea of what we are aiming for, we ought to get down to the subject of building your temple. Like any place of worship it needs architecture and craftsmanship, and as this temple is to be the product of your mind, it is your job to decide the nitty gritty. The following are two examples of circles, the blueprints and the building methods, these are easily adaptable to suit your own style of working, and don't be scared to experiment with them.

 

The Smokescreen

 

This circle conforms to the casting style commonly seen in modern Witchcraft and Druidry. I tend to cast it fairly loosely, and do not consider it a great barrier. It is useful when spell casting for someone/something outside the circle as it is easy to push raised energy out. I use this one when practising indoors; or outdoors if I want the input of local spirits.

 

The circle may be marked on the ground, by a drawn line, a trail of salt, or lamps/candles, it is best to at least mark the corners to indicate the boundary in a physical manner.

 

Walk the circle, deosil is usual (north-east → south-west/clockwise), you can start anywhere you like, although it is usual to start in the east or the north. As you walk project energy from your hand (through an Athame or wand if you prefer to use tools), imagine the energy to be like a laser beam, leaving your body in a straight line and hitting the ground on your marked physical boundary. When the energy hits the ground a trail of white smoke rises, simultaneously, underground, black smoke sinks to mirror the effect beneath your feet. When you have walked one turn of the circle you find that you have left a circle 'burned' into the ground, visualise your smoke rising (and sinking) to form a complete sphere. The smoke swirls like clouds around you, leaving you enclosed in a clean-aired sacred space. If you go on to call elementals, it is fitting to visualise them as coloured smoke at the quarters.

 

You don't need to say anything when you cast a circle but it is always nice to state orally what you are doing. I always like to include the 'nought but love may enter or leave' bit, and a statement that my circle is now both physical and astral ('as above so below'). There are many scripts for circle casting, and if you feel like you want to use one, then do.

 

The Plasma ball

 

This is a more solid circle, its casting is fairly unceremonial. I use this when making astral journeys, when in a place with a hostile atmosphere, when feeling threatened (such as when travelling alone on a train), and when casting for myself or making talismans, as it is a more 'magick-tight' barrier.

 

Sit or stand quietly and breathe slowly, extend your spine upward and your shoulders out, make your body fill as much space as possible. Draw energy up from the base of your pelvis to the level of your navel. If you are in a 'friendly' place you could draw up energy from the earth below you through your tail (if you are sitting on the ground) or you feet, a word of warning, don't attempt this on unfamiliar ground, or in the city, there can be side effects.

 

Make a ball of energy in your belly, like a swirling sphere of fire, when it feels strong enough, let it grow. Stretch the ball beyond the boundary of your body so it encloses you, feed more energy into it and let it expand like a balloon to fit the desired space. Pause and notice that you are sealed on a bubble. You could visualise it like a rainbow hued soap bubble, personally I see it as one of those big glass plasma balls you get in novelty stores, a barrier of glass containing the flickering lights of my own magick.

 

Doors and windows

 

Almost every time I read about circle casting, I find a section about how to open a door in the circle to let people in and out.

 

I am afraid to say that I cannot include such a section here as this is a practice I don't like, possibly because I have never done this myself with amazing success. This may be because I work mostly alone, and it seems a little absurd to wander off and leave an empty circle behind. Although even with a large congregation of people left inside I have always felt that crossing the boundary somehow weakens the 'structure'; no matter how much knife waving and fancy chanting you do first. I often visualise the energy that makes the circle (or sphere as it actually is) with currents of energy swirling on its surface, like the clouds around our planet; surely cutting a door would upset the flow?

 

My advice on this is to make extra sure you have everything (and everyone) you need inside the circle before you start (and make sure everyone has visited the loo as well). If you have to move elsewhere (for example to libate) take up the circle and thank (that's thank, not dismiss) your elements and deities first, there is no law saying that a ritual ends just because the circle has been opened. If you do want a circle that people can move in and out of, weave it loosely, the smokescreen visualisation would work well in this case.

 

Removing the temple

 

Once you are done with the ritual you will need to take up or open the circle, however you have cast it, opening a circle is the reverse, literally retrace your steps, if you walked the boundary deosil to cast, walk it widdershins (anticlockwise) when you open the circle. Reverse your visualisation as you take the energy of the circle back into your own body.

 

When the circle is opened always try to take some of the atmosphere with you, preserve the protection of the circle as you return to the mundane world.

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