10. Magic - Ritual
Ritual gives magic a place, a system and a purpose.
Ritual is a sequence of symbolic actions that we undertake to make magic as effective as possible. It is a ceremony by which magic is given a place, a system and a purpose. When we work with ritual, we make it absolutely clear what this magic is here to do, and charge it with all the intentions, hopes and desires of the celebrant(s).
We rely on ritual in many areas of our lives, but often do not name it as such. Birthday parties, with cake or other treats, guests singing Happy Birthday, and the opening of presents is a common form of ritual; baby showers, coming out parties, weddings and funerals are others. The steps that are followed to imbue the scenario with magic and shower blessings on the celebrant(s) are socially constructed, meaning they vary from group to group and era to era, but their common existence across human societies points to their importance and necessity for our sense that things are unfolding as they should, which supports our well-being.
Rituals do something for us: like the wedding vow, they may alter our sense of reality from one state to another, or, like circumcision, tattooing or scarification, they mark in a visible way our belonging to a group or a state of being [1]. Recognising ritual in our everyday life helps attune us to its impact and power.
Like all magic, ritual can be small or large, relative to the time you can spare, and the materials and energy you can afford. It may be as simple as lighting a candle, playing a favourite song or type of music before engaging in your work, play, or meditation, or as elaborate as a celebration that you organise for yourself or for others on a special occasion, such as a new moon, solstice, birth, or passing. Aldous Huxley remarks, “Theoretically, any ritual or sacrament is as good as any other ritual or sacrament, provided always that the object symbolised be in fact some aspect of divine Reality and that the relation between symbol and fact be clearly defined and constant.”
The “fact” of which Huxley speaks is the unitive nature of all being, which may certainly be revealed, but can also be obscured through the use of ritual and ceremony. For some, he continues, “it is by immersing themselves in the symbols that they can most easily come to that which is symbolised.” However, he warns that we must take care not to idolise these practices for their own sake, forgetting the deeper truths they are meant to signify. Similarly, Bruce Lee advises: “It's like a finger pointing a way to the moon. Don't concentrate on the finger or you will miss all that heavenly glory.”
As rituals reflect our storytelling and meaning making natures, most rituals have a beginning, middle and an end. You may ritualise any activity, such as a morning or evening routine, simply by introducing it regularly to your life. It becomes a ritual by repetition. But to conduct a magical ceremony, here is a potential template. First, open the ritual by centring and grounding yourself, arriving in your body and noticing your breath. You may wish to burn some herbs or incense to cleanse the air [2], and make intentional space for your activity. Some animist, pagan and wiccan traditions traditionally cast a circle for protection, invoking the elements, and inviting in the spirits they wish to invoke or bless the space.
You can either plan ahead or decide intuitively what is needed for the ritual at hand, or a mix of both. To raise energy to support and uplift an intention, you might drum, dance, chant, pray, or sing. To quieten yourself, reflect and turn inward, you may meditate, write, or draw. To rid yourself of something, you might (safely) burn it or its effigy drawn or written on a piece of paper, or write words on rocks that you carry for a time, then discard. You may also use the ritual format to prepare for bodywork or do energy clearing on yourself or others, or to send good energy to someone elsewhere. If you are offering tarot readings or other divination, it is a good idea to frame the exchange in a ritual format for both seer and seeker’s benefit. An energetic and/or physical cleansing of the tools in a ritualistic way before and after the reading is a common practice, as is the laying out of stones, shells, beads, crystals, candles and other tangible points of focus that assist you in the work.
Finally, close your ritual in a way that makes sense to you. You may gather up the sacred objects, thank them and bless them, hold the hand of your tarot seeker and say a prayer with them, unwind the circle you have cast or blow out your candle. Offer up gratitude for the blessings given during the ritual and for the lessons learnt that you take with you into the future.
References
(1) Huxley, A (1947) The Perennial Philosophy. London: Chatto and Windus. p. 301; 309
[1] I believe infant circumcision constitutes genital mutilation, and that children should never be subjected to bloody adult rituals about belonging, beauty, spirituality and bodily value.
[2] Please educate yourself about cultural appropriation and overharvesting in relation to white sage and palo santo, and consider growing your own. https://www.mindbodybadass.com/sage-smudging-cultural-appropriation/