The Rowdy Goddess

An Ecstatic Vision of the Goddess, dancing in harmony with the Universe.

Archive for the tag “Scott Cunningham”

30 Oct 2013
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Eat, Pray, Love, Rest, Thank, Receive: Some of the Keys to Successful Magic and Life

keysThe other day at work, I was listening to a webinair on workplace drama and how to turn around the situation.  The presenter made the point, one that I have heard over and over again for many things, that the only person you can really change is yourself.  In order to turn around drama, you have to change yourself and not be a part of the drama.  Curtains on your participation.

It’s true about drama, it’s true about spellwork, it’s true about relationships.  You really can’t change anyone but yourself.  Many years ago, I took a professional development course on how to deal with difficult people because I wanted to fix the problem at work and fix those other people!  The course was really good.  They presented people as “types” of dysfunction.  I could clearly see my co-workers in some of those types.  Unfortunately, I saw myself as well.  I can’t tell you how much I hated seeing that.  I realized that before I fixed other people, I would need to fix myself.  Using the strategies for dealing with that type of person, I changed my behavior, which, in turn, changed the way I related to circumstances and the people who created them.  By that time, I realized I would never be able to change my co-workers to be the change I wanted to see in the world.  I could only change myself.  I think that’s called maturity, by the way.

The presenter stated that in order to help change the workplace, you needed to exert mastery on your own energy and the way you related to the world.  She was quick to point out that this was not New Age babble but real neuroscience.  I just laughed to myself, because I could see that her points had applications to following a magical path.  She went on to state, tongue in cheek, that if you wanted live in drama and dysfunction, all you had to do was not do anything to master your energy:  never exercise; eat junk food; work incessantly; procrastinate; and never ask for help.

I began to think of how this applies to our spiritual lives.  I reframed as positive actions, and it’s very similar to much of what others write, and continues to make the point, that in order to live a life in harmony with the Universe, you must have practices in harmony with the Universe.  See, obvious and simple.  This is what I came up with:

  • Rest, eat well, and exercise your body and mind
  • Keep a balance between all the areas of your life including work, rest, and play
  • Ask for help and accept it
  • Be grateful for what you are and what you have
  • Give back to the Universe and the causes you care about
  • Be generous
  • Know yourself and set good boundaries
  • Be willing to receive
  • Express love, joy, Spirit, and gratitude in the ways that fulfill you

It sounds more than a little like Scott Cunningham’s 13 goals of a Witch, doesn’t it?  Each of us are guided by our internal moral compass which has grown from our ethical knowledges and practices.  There are many such lists about witchcraft and each of us will integrate it into our being in unique ways.  Having read students’ perceptions of the 13 goals for many years and having lived a few decades beyond Cunningham, I can say that years of teaching and living la Vida Wicca season my understanding of the goals.

Over and over again, we are told and we read that success in spellwork and ritual is based on our intention and focus.  Where does that intention and focus come from?  It comes from the heart of our energy.  If we are unable to master our energy of living well and living spiritually, then its is very likely that our intention and focus is diffused.  That’s it.  Simple.  Obvious.  And dammit, I have to work on myself some more.

May joy, peace, rest, and nourishment be a part of your day everyday.

Posted in Magic, prosperity, spells, spiritual practice and tagged , , ,
19 Mar 2013

Dimes are Magic Money

dimesOut of all the coins, I have always loved dimes.  They are small and they jingle daintily in your pocket or purse.  A small amont of them can really add up in no time and they don’t take up much room as they accumulate.  When I was in the first grade, our teacher read us a book called Follow My Leader:  The story of a blind boy and his guide dog by James B. Garfield, and that book has had a lasting effect for a variety of reasons.  In this case, his teachers show him how to distinguish dimes from other coins–by sized and by the ridged edge.  I think the ridges make the coin very interesting.

I also like dimes because they used to have Mercury on the face and the reverse was very mythological.  While that has changed, I feel like that magical spirit in today’s coin.  I also like dimes because they used to be silver and are still silver colored evoking the moon.  And of course, I like them because they are shiny.

The very first spell I ever did was a money spell that involved dimes.  It was from a Scott Cunningham book and I have been unable to locate it since.  The spell involved taking seven dimes and a candle (I love fire) and burning the candle over seven days and saying a chant.  I can still picture doing it and the tools I used, clear as day.  It worked too.  I got the first promotion that put my career on a track of accomplishment rather than struggling to succeed.  I didn’t get big bucks that time but I have managed to be have a long and successful career since then.  Whenever I write a money or prosperity spell, there is always a dime involved!

About twenty years ago, I participated in some of the Sisterhood dances from AmyLee, a controversial native teacher, who shared a couple of prosperity methods.  I still consider them what my tradition calls “oathbound, ” so I won’t share them,  but I will share my adaptation of what I learned.  After participating in the dance, I began saving dimes.  Even now, I don’t spend them unless I need to.  I put them in a container.  When I feel like the time is right and I need something, I count them out.  I donate some of the money and then spend the rest on what I want or need.  It has a way of adding up.

A few years ago, I was talking to a friend about money and I told her “dimes are magic money,” and described my first spell as well as my collection of dimes, which is at the very least an intentional action and probably also a spell since I chant “dimes are magic money” as I clean out my wallet!  She began doing the same thing.

Recently, a sister in my circle said she did a dime spell with a wonderful variation.  She really needed some fast cash to cover an expense not covered by their medical insurance.  She empowered a handful of dimes and then sprinkled them along the path for someone else to pick up and use.  Generosity, faith, and hope in one small gesture.  In quick succession, three things happened that brought her family some unexpected money.  Dimes are magic money!

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