How to Create a Spell

 

Magic is energy plus intention. It's not the tools you use to channel your energy or magnify it (the objects you put on your alter, the crystals, candles or herbs you use in your spells). Nor is it the special words you might say to complete a ritual. It is your energy working in harmony with the energy of the Universe combined with - and this is the important bit - your intention.

Your intention is your desire, your wish, the purpose you're setting about to do a spell in the first place and what you want to achieve. 

That is not to say that using objects in your spell work doesn't have any effect. Some people are able to focus their intention so keenly that they do not need objects, or rituals, to help them cast out their intention into the Universe. However, most witches will not see results without the use of additional elements to help them cast.

In my years of practicing witchcraft, I feel like the most important thing to know about creating a spell is balance. There has to be balance between what is a specific enough intention that the Universe knows what you wish to accomplish, but enough room for the Universe to manifest your intention without disrupting the energy of other's or the natural balance of things. 

An important thing to understand before you begin is that your energy works in harmony with every living being on this planet, and that - like everything in Nature - there needs to be an equilibrium. 

Being too specific about how you want your spell to manifest can mean the Universe doesn't have the freedom to work around the desires and fates of other people/living creatures of the world. Think of it as the butterfly effect that is present within Chaos Theory. Every action has a reaction, and one small change can have a massive effect that you don't personally see but could negatively harm another. But (!) you can't be too loose with your intention. The Universe needs to know what to do with the desire you have put out into the world.*

That seems overly complicated, right? Well, luckily I'll be able to talk you through all the stages so it will become much clearer.

Creating a spell boils down to three simple steps: the components of magic.

Intention + Energy = Magic.

1. Finding your desire. (Intention)

2. Setting & focusing your desire. (Energy)

3. Sending out your desire into the Universe. (Magic)

FINDING YOUR INTENTION

The beginning of every spell is the first part of the magical equation: the intention. For general spell crafting, the simple way to find your intention is by using The 4 Tier Spell Approach, or simply, the four questions we have below:

1. What is your desired outcome?

2. What desired feelings do you wish this outcome will create?

3. What has led you to wish for this desire to manifest now? 

4. What (loose) timeline do you wish to have this outcome/feeling manifest?

You may notice as you meditate on these thoughts that it is your intention doesn't link to any specific feelings and is entirely based in the physical manifestation of a desire. 

If you cannot find any emotional link, this is where I would advise you to be as specific as possible with what you intend to manifest - and then accept the compromise the Universe extends. Compromise because the more specific you get with your spell, the less room the Universe has to find a way to bring your desire to you within the parameters it is able to when considering all the other energies and the natural balance of things within the world.

SETTING YOUR INTENTION

1. Block out a set time where you will be able to focus on your spell work. 

2. Meditate** on your desired outcome (this would be where you discover if your spell is emotionally or physically based. Start with the 4 questions. If your desired outcome doesn't have an emotional basis, and requires a physical manifestation, you should think about the specific details of your desired outcome in as much detail as you feel comfortable/able). 

3. Write out these desires. Either in your Book of Shadows, on a piece of paper (that you can later use in a spell jar/part of a ritual), on an app on your phone - the where should just be somewhere that feels right for you. If you feel more comfortable speaking than writing, you could save a voice clip of yourself stating the desires you have discovered you would like to manifest. Similarly, you could draw them if that feels more right for you.

(Outlining your intention outside of your own mind will help focus the intention and also becomes the first stage of combining your energy with your intention). 

On our website we have a free PDF you can use print out and write down your intention. Please click on the link to go to the download page if you would like to try out our template. 

4. With the physical document of intention you have just created, note down what you can do to manifest this intention. What elements can you put in place in your life to leave the door open for the Universe to work with you. 

(This is key. This is the energy part of the equation of magic. You have to work with the Universe to create the possibility of manifestation. If there is nothing you can do/you don't add your own actions, then it is likely the timeline for when this spell will manifest will be longer as it relies heavily on the Universe setting everything in motion.)

FOCUSING YOUR INTENTION

Select a candle colour whose colour symbolises a key aspect/feeling you want to focus your spell on.

Choose a crystal whose energy resonates with that of your intention.

Use a herb which has properties that work with your desire.

All of the above are all ways you can focus and channel your energy so the Universe has a clearer idea of what you are wanting to manifest. (Crystals can be used to magnify this energy).

The more complicated the spell (the combination of the above three elements, with water, salt, a time of the month, ritual words, etc) the more you are diving into the particular of what you're attempting to manifest and truly focusing your intention. That sureness of what you are trying to manifest combines with your intention to send your energy out to the Universe with a specific vibration.

SENDING OUT YOUR INTENTION

This is where you cast your spell out into the Universe to allow the energy and intention you have combined in the above process to be taken into the arms of the Universe to manifest for you.

The simplest of ways to cast out your intention would be to use candle magic in this case, or to create a spell jar. Both of these spells and processes will be explained in further blog posts.

If you're a beginner witch, and you'd like more guidance on how to cast a spell don't worry. This is not the only guidance I'll be giving you. More blog posts will follow that detail different types of spell rituals you might like to try out to help you cast out your intention once you have created the framework for your spell. To search for these posts, type "spell" into the search bar. There will also be spells and tips in Season of the Witch, our quarterly magazine.

In the meantime, you could do your own research on the internet to see how other witches might send out their intention into the Universe. If you feel comfortable, you can follow their ritual, but if you find yourself wanting to cast your intention in a different way, go with your intuition. Witchcraft is specific to you. However you feel works best in sending your intention out into the Universe is the right way.

I hope you have found this guide to creating spells useful and informative, and I hope you succeed in your manifestations! 

Blessed Be, 

Diana Greenbird.

*This complicated balance of the Universe and the "failure" of desires manifesting in your planned timeline is something I explore in more detail in another blog post. If you would like to know more about the compromising that is in place with spell work, as well as why your spell may not have worked the way you intended it to, please check out the post 'Why Your Spell Didn't "Work".'

** To learn how to meditate, or know more about this process, please see the blog post How to Meditate