Burning Bowl: A Ritual for Release

 

It wasn't until I was in my thirties that I heard the term "burning bowl." Someone invited me to participate in one and I was immediately nervous. This was something new I had never encountered. I felt like this was something I should have at least heard of. As it turns out, I have been practicing burning bowl rituals since I was a child; I just didn't call it that. 

The biggest secret to moving forward is release of the past. When we hold stagnant energy, we keep ourselves from moving forward into our true joy. As a little witchling, my mother would sit with me in front of our big, brick fireplace with our cauldron and we would write the things we didn't want to keep in our lives on little slops of colored paper, the color depending on what we wrote down. I had no idea this was a burning bowl ritual, or that we were using color magick. It was just what we did. 

To do a burning bowl ritual, all you will need is a fire safe vessel (this can be as simple as a votive candle holder or as extravagant as a large cast iron cauldron), small pieces of paper, a pen, and fire (this can be a big fire, a candle, or a lighter).

Set your intention that you are burning away the old to welcome the new. When we release an old energy, we need to let the Universe know what energy we want to replace it with; otherwise, the old energy will just boomerang right back to fill the void.Write the thing you want to release, as well as the energy you want to bring into your life, on the paper. Example: I release anxiety about my job. I make room for new job opportunities.

Take a breath, light your paper on fire, and drop it into your bowl. As you exhale, envision that which you have released burning away with the smoke and fire in your burning bowl. Allow any feelings that may come with this, and honor them, even if they don't make sense to your logical mind. As you inhale, welcome the new energy you wish for into your body, mind, and spirit. I always thank the Ancestors and the Universe as I bring the ritual to an end. Take as long as you need to process your loss and grieve if needed. 

I would love to hear about your burning bowl experiences, thoughts, and feelings! If you are so called, please share in the comments! Blessed be!

Down the Rabbit Hole; or A House of Mirrors & Dreams

 

Most of us are familiar with the classic book, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and the curiosity that begins Alice’s adventure. We see Alice chase the strange, white rabbit, peering over the edge of a steep incline, before falling down the deep dark hole, staring upward, watching the world as she knows it disappearing into a tiny speck of light. But soon, Alice is engaged in the new and strange world around her, exploring and trying to figure out just how she might make it home again. As of late, I have been feeling very much like Alice. 

As a frightening pandemic has swept the globe, we are finding ourselves in new territory. The world as we have known it is shifting, and we are left wondering if things will ever be the same. Maybe hoping they will be. Maybe hoping that they won’t. But regardless of what we hope for, we are faced right now with the changes, the fears. Families are on top of each other or separated and isolated from each other until further notice. We are stuck inside. With ourselves. 

I never noticed how many mirrors I had in the house until a few days after our city was put under a mandatory quarantine order. Every time I look in the mirror I see a different me. My body distorts. My age changes. Sometimes I’m pretty. Sometimes I put on a sweater to cover my belly. I have put on makeup a total of one time. But more than my outer self, I see so many things I have been ignoring. 

This quarantine has forced us inside our homes, but more than that, it has forced us inside ourselves. It has forced us to face the mirror and look deeply at “Me.” What have you been avoiding? What thoughts, ideas, dreams, wishes have you shoved deep down that are now surfacing? I live in a house of mirrors and dreams. I sleep at least 10 hours every night. And the nights are filled with dreams. Dreams of friends I haven’t seen in years, family who have passed to the next realm, past loves, the family I have and treasure now. I have dreams of dreams I had forgotten, dreams of eyes glinting in mirrors that might be mine or might be yours. We’re all disappearing into the dreamtime, the world that exists inside the looking glass, down the rabbit hole. 

As a lightworker, I talk to people about this type of work often. Shadow Work and Inner Child Work are different, but connected. Two sides of the same coin. I have done my fair share of this type of work and guided others through theirs. Usually, it’s controlled. We choose to carve out precious time from our hustle and bustle, to look inward, to pinpoint something we want to focus on. We pick it up, connect with it, examine it, manipulate it, try to heal from it, with it… This is not that. This is very much like being picked up and dropped into an ocean of ice and undercurrent. And there’s only so much we can do to distract ourselves. 

In 2018, I was fortunate enough to become friends with some of the most fascinating people I have ever known. It was a magickal year for me and one I will never forget. We did a lot of work. A lot of predictions were made, by us and by others. All through 2018 and 2019, we worked long and hard, on ourselves and with anyone who would listen to us. We could see 2020. We saw massive destruction, world-altering natural disasters, the reclaiming of the Earth by Nature Herself. But we didn’t see what and where and how. We just knew things were coming. And come they have. And now we don’t have the security of the others around us. Because it’s time to come home, to come back to the self. 

Tonight, I looked in the mirror, and I don’t even know who I am. My identity is so wrapped up in others that I, alone, feel like a blank slate. In a way, I am a mirror. I see others’ lives and needs and feelings; reflect them back to them so they can make their choices. Who am I without others? Who have I been? Who do I want to be? Perhaps a mirror is just that. Perhaps acceptance is needed. Perhaps I will find another world as I give up control and peer more deeply into my Self. 

This is my journey, but it is also for you. This is a journey for all of humanity. We share a path, though our journeys are not the same. We are all one. We are all connected. We are all falling down the same rabbit hole. We all have a mirror to face. My journey may not be yours, but I feel you as you feel me. We are destined to create this existence together. We must allow before we become. The caterpillar must disintegrate before it becomes a butterfly. And so I urge you: Let go. Let yourself fall. Lose track of time. Let yourself sleep. Dance. Howl. Paint. Revel in the dreams. Look in the mirror.

Originally published 4/26/2020

Simple Homemade Cough Syrup

 

Happy Magickal Monday, Witches! As some of you may know, I have been knocked out for the past week with the flu, so it seems like the perfect time to share this simple and magickal home remedy with you. This syrup is so easy to make and it works like a charm! All you need is an onion, some honey, and a little bit of magick! 

I make this syrup anytime I feel a cough (or even a tickle) coming on. Both onion and honey are antibacterial and antiviral, so putting them together makes a pretty powerful concoction. But it’s not just the ingredients that make this potion so powerful, it’s also in the way it’s made. 

Be sure you are setting your intent when creating your medicine, always stir in a clockwise motion to speed up healing, and envision healing energies going into any brew you make. If you are making this for someone who is already sick, envision them healing and becoming well as you chop and stir.

Every witch has their own way of doing things, so there are variations on this recipe out there. When you find your perfect concoction, don’t forget to put in it your Book of Shadows and let us know what worked for you in the comments!

What you’ll need:

• ½ small onion (more for a bigger batch)
• Honey, to cover the onion
• Sharp knife
• Bowl or jar to make it in
• Jar for storage

To make it:

1. Chop your onion. I dice mine, but you can leave it in thin rings, too.
2. Cover the onion in honey and stir clockwise 7 times (to align healing energies). While you stir, send your intentions down through your arm and into your mixture.
3. Cover with a lid or plastic wrap and allow to set somewhere dark and warm for about 24 hours.
4. Strain into a jar, label, and refrigerate for up to a month.

 Originally published 9/19/19

Vulture's Message: Musings of Death

 

 

Vulture has long been viewed as a negative symbol or a bad omen. A warning, sign of death, an image of mourning. In fact, it has been seen as a living embodiment of Death itself. It isn’t surprising, as Vulture does follow death and the dying to sustain himself. However, the negative view of Vulture really begins within the negative view we carry of Death. To many, Death represents fear, pain, and the ending, as opposed to what comes after. When we begin to see Death as a rebirth, as a process of moving from one state of being to another, we begin to fear Death less, and see her as a guide into a new life, a new way of being. In this way we can also view Vulture in a new light.

As death overcomes, as it inevitably will, Vulture swoops down, transmuting it into new energy, using it as nourishment, and creating a new life force. During our lifetimes we will all die a thousand little deaths. How we choose to respond and move forward with new life and vibrancy is what matters. We will all release old energies, grow into future selves, and create new lives out of the void of the past. In these moments, when you feel most lost, wandering between the veils of ending and beginning, call upon Vulture. Pay tribute to your past, get excited about your future, and never stop flying.

Vulture Meditation for Transmutation

Find a comfortable place to sit or lie and take 5 deep, grounding breaths. Sink into your body, noticing the air on your skin, the floor, chair, or bed beneath you, and take some time to really get grounded in your body.

When you feel ready, call to Vulture and ask him to bring you the message you need most right now. Take your time to sit and listen, watch, or just feel what Vulture brings to you.

When you feel ready, thank Vulture for sharing his message with you, release him, and wish him well.

* Pro tip - If you’re worried about spending too much time in meditation, set a timer for your desired amount of time to bring you out of your meditation. Try to set your alarm sound as something gentle and quiet so you won’t be too abruptly jolted from your meditation.

Originally published 3/6/2019