Sweetness and Light

image via internet search

Life is not all sweetness and light, bad things happen to good people, and sometimes life really does suck and then you die. ( I think I've exhausted all the sarcastically corny sayings about the conditions of life-let's move on.)

The phrase sweetness and light is often used to describe an irony or something saccharine and superficial. The Victorian poet Matthew Arnold used it to describe beauty and intelligence in the broader Greek sense of classical culture in reference to the effect and benefits of positivism in society and self.

In a more magical, occult sense it means favorable outcome and wisdom associated with a situation or influencing another person to have those qualities in regard to your relationship to them. A common way to achieve this is by the use of a honey jar (aka a sweetening jar) to "sweeten" the circumstances. This comes from the Hoodoo Tradition, a form of folk magic. The following instructions are for a very basic jar and a simple way to use it. I encourage you to personalize the spell for your own use and specific situation.

Use a clean jar with a tight fitting lid ( so the sweetening agent won't leak out or draw insects). Some practitioners use locally sourced honey because they believe it is more potent than store bought, but to be quite honest, as with all magick, I personally believe that that the outcome depends more on your intention than the tools. While honey is the traditional medium, golden syrup, maple syrup, corn syrup- in short, any type of syrup-can and has been used as well as brown sugar or regular table sugar. The sweetening agent is a matter of personal preference and what you have available to you. The same goes for the candle you will place on top of the jar to 'heat' it: white candles work just fine, but if you'd like to use a candle in a color corresponding to your intention, that's fine, too.( Dress the candle appropriately before using it, or simply hold it in your hands and dedicate it to the task at hand) Fill the jar with the sweetening agent part of the way and add any corresponding herbs you choose to raise the vibration of the tool. Instead of adding these things to the jar, you may wish to place them beneath the jar if using a photo or paper, and draw a ring around the jar with the herbs. In some cases you may want to also add a photograph, or a slip of paper with the subject's name written out in full. Do the best you can to narrow the focus of the intention in as few words as possible.  When you have placed any additional objects in the jar, fill it up and attach the lid tightly. Shake the jar three times while reciting an incantation or prayer suitable to your need ( one you have composed will most certainly be more effective, in my opinion, because you have imbued it with your personal power and vibration). The wording need only describe your need or desire, but some practitioners like to write their wording to rhyme because they believe that rhyming is more magically effective. After shaking the jar, place the prepared candle on top to activate it, light the candle, and meditate on your target. As always, be sure to place your jar and candle in a safe place away from potential fire hazards, have plenty of clearance around it, and never leave it unattended when the candle is lit. Use the jar once a day, repeating your need-but don't be needy. The point is to petition but not beg. While deities  and spirits do respond to desperate situations, they don't respect groveling and whining!

Sweetening jars are used to "sweeten" a situation, to make a person nicer to you ( such as that nasty boss or teacher) or situation ( a court case, that test you're dreading, or to get a new job).

Another way to 'sweeten' your life is to simply change the energy around you. What is required from you is a combination of mind and magick. First the mind: let go of as much negative thinking as you can through self examination and meditation. Why do you feel the way you do? What is influencing your thinking? Once you have the reason narrowed down you can take steps to deal with it more effectively. It may require a change of attitude on your part, meaning you refocus your thoughts in a more positive manner. You can still be annoyed, angry or afraid of something, but you cannot think things through if your thoughts are not focused. Write things down to help sort them out, so you can see the situation more clearly. Keeping writing and condensing until you have it down to it's basic elements and thoughts are concrete. Then write out what you have in a statement, further condensing if necessary to keep it sharp. When you feel you are ready, take a ritual bath using Epsom salts  (Substitute: sea salt ) to draw the negative vibration from your energy field, then rinse off. Follow by a second a soak in a tub of water containing a bit of Florida Water, or lavender or rose. If using the herbs, steep them into a tea before hand and use the tea only in the bath. A quarter cup of tea should do it; if you're using essential oil, use only a few drops. ( Beware of allergic reactions and test anything you bathe in before hand to be sure you won't have a reaction to it. If you develop redness or a rash or other symptoms, don't use the herbals or solution. Commercially purchased Florida Water is usually in cologne form and is safe for most people to use, just don't over do it.) Allow the bath water to dry on your skin. You may wish to do this several days in a row until you feel better.

A third way to 'sweeten' to improve or change a situation is to dedicate a basic quartz crystal to the work needed and place it on your personal altar or carry it with you. Cleanse a crystal by any means you like, hold it in your hands and "tell" it your need. If you think that's simple, it is. Sometimes simple is best. We don't a lot of tools-remember that words have a power all their own. The crystal does have a particular energy that can be programmed, and it's a great reminder, but it's your heartful, thoughtful words that are the true magick.

From My Personal Grimorie: Binding Jar

I am not malicious by nature...but I am not afraid to protect myself, either. We have knowledge of magick to use to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. There's a rather worn-out saying that "A witch who cannot hex cannot heal". I look upon this type of magick as doing both.

Making magick is not something I take for granted because it's a gift. I try to only use that gift to be beneficial- and never to be malevolent.

But there are times you need to defend yourself against emotional/physical abuse or psychic attack. If you have the knowledge, then you have the power. As a practitioner, you have a duty to use the power in a way that will bring about the best solution for everyone involved in a situation...Sometimes, as a last resort, when the conflict has not and cannot be resolved any other way, you draw upon your knowledge to summon the powers of the Universe to assist you.

Creating a binding jar is not something I do lightly; I can only recall two times in the last 20 years that I've made one. The one pictured above was made the other night because, frankly, I was at a loss as to what else to do with a situation where someone I love and care about has been enduring continual harassment from a group of individuals who are posting negative, damaging, outright lies on a social media site concerning a situation. We've attempted to apply logic and reason, but the main perpetrator of this deed is especially out of control. None of us can spend endless hours policing his vicious lies and having them removed. Two weeks of this extraordinary situation, where everyone's  patience has just been tried over and over has called for extraordinary measures. I will not "blast" or banish another human being, but I will use whatever means necessary up to that to protect myself and those I love if I am in the right beyond the shadow of a doubt. This kind of magick is not for the faint-hearted, or the quick-tempered. I always use a cooling off period and examine my motivation and intention deeply before acting, and I believe you should, too.

To make a binding jar, you will need a small clean jar, a candle to seal it; a piece of paper and a pen to write your petition on; black thread; some sort of herbal hexing or binding mixture, and sea salt. In his book The Witch's Shield [pg. 166], Christoper Penczak describes the method he uses to make a binding bottle and gives an excellent over-view of the technique. I have my own which is similar but uses a few variations.

I compound my own hexing powder, which is a combination of crushed cloves, garlic, hot red pepper , frankincense, myrrh, vervain, dragon's blood  and sea salt, all in equal amounts. Depending on what it will be used for, I add other herbs with the appropriate correspondences, and if I don't have the herbs, I use the essential oils. Once I assemble all the ingredients, they are added  into my mortar, three ingredients at a time, making certain they are well ground while focusing my intention and /or reciting words of empowerment. The intention of the spell, with the names of all the parties, is written on a small piece of paper which I carefully fold away from me nine times, tying it at least  three times around with a black thread. I also seal the edge of the paper with a few drops of wax. I fill the jar a bit less than half full with sea salt, drop in the paper, and nine whole cloves, then top it off with more salt. After screwing on the lid, I charge the jar, including words of binding, and seal it shut around the edge by dripping wax from the candle. The candle can be any color you deep appropriate for the work, or white. After that you can either place the jar in the freezer to 'freeze' the actions you wish to bind, or bury it in the earth to 'ground' the binding.

Usually, before I conjure the work, I write out the binding on a separate sheet of paper so I can create the very best wording possible, and re-copy them as part of the ritual onto the actual piece of paper I will be putting into the jar of salt and herbs. I like to take my time performing the spell, because if it's worth doing, it should be done thoughtfully and in a respectful manner. I usually do the conjuration as a part of a larger ritual inside a cast circle, but, as always, I urge you to follow your own inclination to imbue the work with as much of your own personal energy as possible. You may wish to call upon a particular deity to assist you with the work ( I suggest Hecate, but you may prefer another). I do not recommend the inclusion of any demons or lower entities, because the purest form of intention for this work is to merely bind the actions of the individuals, not to cause them harm. Remember, maleficence begets maleficence, and if you send out evil, it will return to you.

copyright 2013, AmethJera

Swallows: Birds of Magick

There are many types of Swallows (aka as Purple Martins), but the one most associated with the occult is the Barn Swallow. A slim little bird, it has rounded wings and a distinctive long tail which ends in two long points. Swallows are found throughout Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas, and there are six subspecies in the Northern Hemisphere alone.

Swallows are fast fliers: you will often see them diving after insects which have been stirred up by tractors working the fields. They find man-made structures convenient to nest upon-barns, chimneys, houses and bridges. It builds its cup-shaped nest out of mud and straw. Sometimes you will see a large birdhouse with numerous holes in them which look rather like apartment buildings; these are made exclusively for 'purple martins', and are indeed tiny little compartmentalized bird houses within one larger structure.

Swallows are frequently mentioned in religious and literary works due to it's close association with humans and it's migratory habits.They are often referred to by a name which relates to the location where they build their nests, such as 'barn swallow' or 'cliff swallow'. The story of the infamous swallows that return to the mission of San Juan Capistrano, California is still popular. Every year the birds leave town around the feast of the death of San Juan in October and return there in the spring around the feast of Saint Joseph in March. They have traced to a spot in Argentina where the migrate in the winter. The annual return of the swallows to Capistrano each year is a huge tourist attraction for the mission, which is the oldest building still in continuous use in California <sup>http://www.infoplease.com/spot/swallows1.html

Swallows are thought to be both a blessing and a curse. A story related to the crucifixion of Christ claims that the tiny swallows flew around the head of the deceased Jesus and chirping," Dead! Dead!" to the Roman soldiers so they would inflict no more torture on the body.

A swallow nesting in the roof of a building is believed to guard against lightning, fire and other misfortunes. If the bird abandons the nest, it is a sign of ill fortune. Killing a swallow will result in various punishments from damaging rains to soured milk, and even death of the perpetrator. Folk legends abound about birds, and it is especially thought to be unlucky if a bird flies into house; not so with the swallow, who is thought to a sign of happiness.

In many cultures, the swallow is associated with death. A Russian folk tale claims that the spirits of dead children take the form of swallows in an attempt to stay with their families. In Ireland, a hair plucked from the head by a swallow means the individual will not only die but is doomed to reside in Hell; the Scots believe that a swallow has a drop of the Devil's blood in it's veins [Cassel's Dictionary of Superstition, pg 252]. A Native American tale recounts the swallow bringing fire to humans, a feat commemorated by the ring of red feathers about the neck of some. Many folk tales feature the antics of swallows portending the weather, such as  this rhyme: "Swallows fly high, no rain in the sky; Swallows fly low,'tis likely to blow".

A prevalent belief in folk magick is that a swallow carries stones in it's crop which can heal madness, promote eloquence, restore eyesight, or bring luck to the bearer. There are other remedies which endorse the use of the body of a swallow for curing toothache, alcoholism,or epilepsy.
Copyright 2012, Broom With A View/Amaethjera</sup>

Folk Healing, Folk Medicine, Folk Magick

When I was in seminary studying comparative religion, I became interested in the social phenomena of folk healing. In indigenous cultures, the two seem to go hand in hand and are inseparable:  healing the body, mind and spirit are one in the same. These are tenants of  modern Holistic Medicine. Our ancestors understood this and it was simply an assumption that this was how life was.  I believe that when we explore ways of healing ourselves we in turn heal the planet.

Folk healing is based on cultural and religious methods passed through a community rather than on scientific data. It is synonymous with faith healing, where the practitioner and recipient both express a  belief in the intention of the act. So folk healing , in that way, becomes just as much an act of faith as proof of the practitioners proficiency or knowledge.(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faith_healing)


I don't often like to make general statements about subjects when I write, but I think it's fair to state that many forms of folk healing and/or folk medicine defy logic and rational thinking...and yet they seem to undeniably work for a select segment of people while not working for others. Why? What makes the difference? The only explanation for me is that this is where belief enters.(http://cancer.ucsd.edu/treatments/cam/therapies/Pages/default.aspx) This difference of approach is where faith is required, and magick happens, and it is how all of what I've been discussing ties together. In many cases there is no tangible proof yet there are improvements and cures which can be attributed to no other means than through the ministration of a practitioner using folk medicine or magick. When either are used to compliment standard, accepted scientific medicine, it is difficult to sort the effect any single factor had on a cure because so often they over lap. The unfortunate  truth is that when varying modalities of this sort are used simultaneously, science always wins the credit. Modern society wants to appear rational and its corporate logic has not been trained to grasp the possibility that faith and belief can yield results. It's tough to prove otherwise due to the intangibility of faith.

Complimentary alternative medicine (CAM) is dismissed as so much snake oil in some quarters of the scientific medical community in this country and health care practitioners will go to great lengths to discredit it in any form. Pagans, more than any other group, have a  experiential understanding of this. The history of the cunning folk and folk healer is one of the things we universally share when we incorporate the use of oils, herbs and conjure in our individual practice. Our traditions are richly endowed and connected this way.

While it is true that the public's primary exposure to the experience of faith healing is through stories mainly showcasing Pentecostal and other Christian forms of fundamentalism, Christianity by no means has cornered the market on the phenomena. In it's truest form, all faith healing requires is that the practitioner has confidence in his/her abilities and the recipient has unwavering belief in the skills of the practitioner, so it's fair to state here that faith healing as a form of folk medicine is a universal concept that is not limited to one religious tradition. Pagans  have been known to readily use faith healing.

Many  to whom we relate our Pagan cultural and spiritual heritage were considered healers-cunning folk- by the community. Loosely, they can be labeled as hedge witches who integrated the ancient arts of wort-cutting, oil blending, divination and conjure. The cure for some was a simple touch, a laying on of hands while more explicit forms of healing was required by others-an herbal prescriptive, some tea, a salve. Yet others required specific prayers or spell work, using an anointed candle or some type of amulet. Often it was difficult to tell the religion of the practitioner - Hoodoo and other types of folk magick blend native medicine and magick with the veneration of Christian saints, holy water blessed by a priest (Roman Catholic is preferred, although I have never had anyone tell me why it had to specifically come from a Roman Catholic Church, but I suspect it has a lot to do with the ritualistic form used rather than the denomination.), pictures, figurines and other sacramentals.(http://hoodoocrossroads.wordpress.com/carolina-dean/ )

St. Mary is a popular patron for many-her attributes range from the Queen of Heaven to the Virgin Mother of God, and even then she does double duty as the Pagan Mother Goddess, Mari, or Feminine Divine. Co-opting may account for some of this, but the fact that she is an alpha female figure among the saints and gods has also lead to her attracting adherents. The saints have also been stand-ins for many of the loa of Voodoo in Haiti or where African slaves have settled and mingled their indigenous religions with Catholicism, and in some cases, Native American religion of the area.(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louisiana_Voodoo) But folk magick/medicine is not limited to these regions; the Brauncherei are a type of healers associated in the Old Order German or Pennsylvania Dutch communities-who has seen their colorful "hex signs" on barns? (http://braucher.webs.com/)The Appalachian Mountains have many types of faith healers, but most noteworthy are the  Granny Women. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appalachian_Granny_Magic)

The list could could go on into infinity. Each region has a type of healing, folk medicine or magickal practice in place. I hope this post has inspired you to explore some of them.