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Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. Pagan Portals Candle Magic A Witch's Guide to Spells and Rituals By Lucya Starza John Hunt Publishing Ltd.Copyright © 2015 Lucya Starza All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-78535-043-6 Contents Introduction, One: Candle Spells, First Steps in Candle Magic, Types of Candle, Colour and Correspondences, Scent and Essential Oils, Herbs and Crystals, Bells and Whistles, Candlesticks, Tea-Light Holders, Bottles and Jars, Purification and Anointing, When to Cast Your Spell, Moving it all About, Ethics and Curses, Wax Poppets, Talismans and Amulets, Grimoire, Two: Ceremonies and Rituals, Basics of Ritual, Altars and Altar Candles, Circle Casting, Candle Ritual to Send Healing, Outdoor Candles, Candles for Seasonal Celebrations, Devotional Candles, Sacred and Eternal Flames, Three: Meditation, Divination and Psychic Sight, Meditation, Divination and Oracles, Using a Candle to Increase Psychic Sight, Four: History, Chandlery and Safety, Chandlery, Candle Safety, History of Candle Making, References and Bibliography, About the Author, CHAPTER 1 Candle Spells First Steps in Candle Magic A Simple Candle Spell If you're reading this book, I'm guessing you want to do some candle spells, so I'll leave the history, theory and safety advice until later. Let's start with some practical magic. Go and find yourself a tea-light candle; an ordinary white one will be fine. Most people have one or two somewhere around the house, even if that's just in case of a power cut. Obviously if you are reading this book on the bus, in the library or sneakily beside the shelf in a shop, you will probably have to wait until you get home to find a candle, but do it as soon as you can. The best way to learn magic is by doing it – not just reading books. Once you have a candle, find something to scratch a word onto the wax – a small craft knife will do, or a pen knife. If you are an experienced witch you might have a special knife set aside for this kind of thing (sometimes called a boline if you want to get technical). Or you could use a cocktail stick or toothpick. Any of these will do just fine. Now think of something you want to wish for. Keep it simple and try to sum it up in one word; health, wealth, happiness, love, success, security, justice are all good words to use. Take the tea-light out of its casing and scratch that word onto the side or bottom. If you want a new job or a new home, just scratch 'job' or 'home'. Short and simple is best. While you are inscribing your word, concentrate on a mental picture of what your life will be like when your wish comes true. (This technique is called 'visualisation' and it draws on the powers of the imagination to help you see clearly what you want and work towards getting it – but that's enough theory for now.) Hold the candle in your hands for a moment or two after you have finished carving your wish, but continue the visualisation. Find something safe to put the tea-light in. If you have a pretty tea-light holder, that's ideal, but you can put it in a glass or ceramic dish or a jam jar – or a cauldron if you've got one. (I find cauldrons are better as candle holders than as things to brew potions in – I usually use a saucepan for potion brewing, but I'm digressing.) Light the candle. Ideally, let it burn down all in one go, but that isn't always practical and you shouldn't leave a lit candle unattended. An alternative is to burn the candle over several evenings until it is finished. One final bit of advice – don't keep wondering whether your spell will work. When you aren't actually doing the spell, try to keep it out of your thoughts. Carry on with your normal life and let the magic happen. If you keep worrying about whether your wish will come true there's a chance you will disperse the magic through fretting about it. Looking Ahead Now you've done a candle spell. You may be thinking that if it works, why do you need to read a whole book on the subject?