Sara Mastros: Witch for Hire

Saturday, December 21, 2013

Why I haven't been posting here

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

That Shrewd and Knavish Sprite

The Dreamer, Monique Munoz

Lately, I've been doing some work with a secret magical order devoted to Hermes. (I have literally been waiting my entire life to say that sentence!) We've been talking about the various faces of Hermes, and I've decided to do a little bit of work with Puck as an avatar of the Mercurial current. Among my very first conjurations was an evocation Puck, when I was 14 or 15. He's been hanging around in my spirit court ever since. It was based on a spell from the animated show Gargoyles (don't you judge me! I was a kid!) It requires a large mirror, a gold (colored) bell, a silver (colored) ring, some candles, a tree, the full moon, and a handful of white feathers.

Here's the spell as written in my first "Book of Shadows", dated 1993.

Around the edges of a large mirror, inscribe the magical characters.[gee, it would be cool if I'd written down WHAT magical characters, huh? Stupid 14 year old me! I wish I still had that mirror.] Lean the mirror against a tree at night, under a full moon.

Light a white candle and a black one in front of the mirror.

Say: "Cum ascerat argentum, et aurum involare." [With a silver ring, strike a gold bell.] Tap the bell with the ring three times.

Blow a handful of feathers across the mirror, and say "postea Puck ad speculum Titania penetrare." [and then Puck will penetrate the mirror of Titania.]

On the show, Puck actually steps through the mirror, as if it were a portal. I didn't get that, but I did get a noticeable image, although fleeting. It was my first dark mirror conjuration (although I didn't know that name yet). Puck appeared as a late teen or early twenties (older than me - I am 14 in this story) young man, with very pale blond hair. He wore a neon green Tshirt with a monkey on it, and a long black leather coat. He had small faun horns curled behind his ears. He seemed utterly delighted to have been summoned, although I lost my focus and it shimmered out almost right away.

Friday, October 25, 2013

Initiation dreams

4 men, 4 trials, 4 initiations (maybe elemental?)

the first, I don't remember. something about pain, I think. maybe emotional pain (grief)
the second, something about time travel. Waves of deja vu, sliding back and forth between time lines. I awoke from this, and, although it seemed I'd been asleep all night, it was only 11:30. I went back to sleep.
Some stuff I don't remember.
much traveling.

Note: in the dream "cousin" was code for faerie. I don't know how I knew that.

met some british cousin of my father's, a mid 30s tall blond woman (why had I never heard of this person? "My father had a difficult relationship with his father." I was told) she ran a movie business (I think a chain of theaters, not movie production). She was The Mistress of the Movies.

out with the aunts. No place to sleep. A cousin I didn't know. British. Black. Male. Short dreds. Slightly younger than me (late 20s?) Smoking a bowl. Offered me some, I partook. I had to go, to be tested?

I came back later, and all were asleep. I was very cold (it was very cold last night, and I had probably kicked the covers off. All were asleep on the floor. I found a loose corner of blanket near the black cousin, and curled up next to him to sleep.

He woke me up, and said we had to go. He transported us to England, somehow.

the third trial, the trial of pleasure. I was very scared of this trial.
there were 2 men, both british, both "ageless", the black guys, and another, blond, and maybe older. I don't remember him as well. I think he was Oberon. A shallow dish of water; swirling two ways at once, an inner vortex going clockwise, an outer ring counter (or maybe the other way round)
leaning to the dish, wetting my lips
making a circuit, kissed both men. something was happening, swirling, swaying, the world got all fuzzy, I knew I was supposed to just relax, let it happen, not have to understand, but I couldn't just Be, couldn't give in to the good feeling. I was so scared. Then I woke up, so I guess I failed that test, but it seemed like I'd be given another chance.

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Vermont Quarter: Sweetening Spell

The Vermont quarter depicts a man tapping maple trees for syrup. In the background of the coin is Camel Hump Mountain. In today's spell, we use the coin to create a permanent amulet from an otherwise traditional hoodoo-style sweetening spell. Although these first two spells are built on hoodoo foundations, I'll have lots of other styles in future posts. Look for a Celtic-style Oak Tree Protection spell tomorrow using the Connecticut quarter.

Sweetening spells, in general, are used to make someone feel favorably toward you and want to help you. This "good feeling" isn't necessarily (or even usually) romantic in nature; it's a good spell to work on a boss, a parent, or a as well. It's also good to mend hurt feelings in existing relationships with family, friends, or lovers. The version I'm presenting here is all-purpose; you should have no trouble adapting it to your specific situation.

In addition to the quarter, this spell uses maple syrup, a small candle (menorah candles are perfect, but even a birthday candle will work), and a picture of the intended target. If you have their hair, a business card, their signature, or any other kind of "link" to them, that's great, but not necessary. You'll also need some paper, scissors, a pen or marker, and small saucer or bowl.

To begin with, cut out a circle slightly smaller than the saucer or bowl you are using. Next, write your target's full name three times in the middle of the circle. Turn the paper so that their name is upside down, and write your full name over top of the target's three times. Now, around the edge of the circle, write your exact wish. For example, if you want your boss to be impressed by you, you might write: "[boss's name] will be impressed by the quality of my work and give me a promotion and a raise." You need to write it in script without picking your hand up. If there is extra space, complete the circle before lifting your hand. It's really important the script make a complete circle. If you mess up, throw it out and start over. After completing the circle, you can go back to cross t's and etc.

Put the circle of paper, writing side up, in the saucer. If you have hair or etc, put it on the circle of paper. Next, put the picture of the person on top of that. If you don't have a picture, then get better at facebook stalking. Pour a small pool of maple syrup on top, and then put the coin, tree side up, in the center. Light the candle and drip a few drops of melted wax onto the coin. Use that to stick the candle to the coin. Tell your wish to the candle three times, out loud, and then wait for the candle to burn out. It's best to pray over it the whole time, but if you can't, you can't (menorah candles burn for about an hour).

Once the candle is burned out, remove the candle and put the coin in your mouth, with the syrupy side down. With it in your mouth, say (as well as you can around the coin) "As the coin has been made sweet to me, may I be sweet to NAME." Finally, contrive to give the coin to the target. If that is not possible, leave it in their office, or somewhere else associated with them. This is one big advantage of coin magic; no one is suspicious of loose change!

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Coin Magic

I'm writing a book about coins as materia magica. Here's some rough draft notes; expect many state quarter spells over the next month or two. All feedback greatly appreciated!

Why use coins? They’re very cheap, readily available, small metal tokens with beautiful pictures on them. What could make a better talisman? Coins have a long history of being used as amulets and spell components, particularly in hoodoo. Of US coins, the so-called “Mercury dime” (which actually depicts “winged Liberty”) and the Indian Head penny have the most storied use, but neither one is still in circulation. Particularly with the issuing of the “state quarters” beginning in 1999, there are a wide variety of beautiful US coins in current circulation, many of which make great talismans and spell components.

How do I use the coins?

There are lots of ways to use coins after they’ve been “blessed”. The easiest way is to just carry it in your pocket, as a “lucky coin”. You can also drill a hole in it and wear it as a necklace. You can put them in mojo bags or put them on an altar.

You can also give them to other people to “target” them with your magic. Slipping someone magical material in order to “activate” a spell is a traditional technique called “laying a trick”. Getting someone to put a quarter in their pocket is somewhat easier than slipping most magical talismans onto their person, and no one is suspicious if they find some pennies under their bed. For an example of this kind of use, see the Mississippi magnolia fidelity spell below.

How do I prepare coins for magical use?

In the posts that follow, I’ll give specific recommendations for using regular pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters, and dollar coins, as well as for many of the state quarters. In the appendix are some “recipes” that use easy to find old and foreign coins. However, you can use the following method to turn any coin (or other small token) into a talisman.

However, before you enchant a coin, you'll want to clean the coin to remove any “residue” it’s picked up. We're using coins because small metal objects are particularly prone to picking up and holding “magical energy”. The downside of this is that coins are often already "dirty" just from being handled by so many people. To clean them, soak them in salt water overnight.

Mississippi Magnolia "Stay True" spell:

This spell uses the 2002 Mississippi quarter, on which magnolia blossoms are pictured. In traditional hoodoo, magnolia leaves are placed under the mattress to ensure marital fidelity. This spell builds on that tradition. It will help to keep a romantic relationship healthy, equitable, loving, and trusting.

Take your cleaned quarter and hold in in your hand. If you wear a wedding ring, tap the quarter on the ring audibly, so that the magic of the ring will help to infuse the coin. Feel your love for your partner well up in your heart, and then "push" that feeling into the coin. Next, feel your trust for your partner. Even if you don't trust them now, you must have at one point. Remember what that felt like, and push it into the coin.

Next, hold the coin up to your lips, and whisper this to it:

"Set me as a seal upon your heart,

as a seal upon your arm;

for love is as strong as death,

jealousy as unyielding as Sheol.

It's flames are flashes of fire,

the flames of Aish HaShem.

Many waters cannot quench love,

neither can the floods drown it."

(Song of Songs, 8:6-7)

If you're uncomfortable with using a bible passage, find or write another short passage about love that speaks to you. One from a text you consider sacred is best.

Kiss the coin, and place it under the bed you and your partner share. If you do not share a bed, contrive to plant the coin under your partner's bed. If you don't have access to their bed, this isn't the right spell. Tomorrow, I'll show you a "sweetening" spell with a Vermont state quarter that might work better.

Friday, October 18, 2013

Ask the Witch: Love Spells

Sometimes friends/acquaintances who aren't magicians ask me for magic advice. Think of this as a magical advice column. :)

A friend asks (edited for length and privacy), "Sara, Is there such thing as a love spell? How does it work? What is the efficacy of such a spell? How do I do it?"

First off, a disclaimer. I really don't recommend love spells. They often go badly. If for no other reason, it's too easy to wonder "Does she really love me, or is it all just the spell?' That being said, here's some general information.

I'm going to talk about a couple of different kinds of love spells, but I'm only going to teach you how to do one of them. I don't mean to imply these are the only kinds.

The first is the "classic" love spell. It's targeted on a particular person, and designed to make them fall in love with you, "against their will". I really think these are unethical (except in a few particular circumstances, which I'll talk about it a minute.) Even if your ethics are different, I'm telling you that in my experience (and the experience of everyone I know), they go badly. Really badly. I'm not going to teach you how to do this, but I'm sure google will, if you really want to. I don't think you should, but I'm not in charge of you.

The only case where I think it's ok to do a "targeted" love spell is when the target is someone to whom you're married. They've already consented to be ritually bound to you. This is also a fairly classical form of love spell, and there are lots of good options. Here's an example: Take a piece of your hair and thread it through a needle. Take a stitch through his (her) underpants, and tie a knot. Hold the underpants in your hand, and try to feel your love for him, his love for you, the ties that bind you together, well up in your heart. Pray, out loud, that the sacred covenant between you be renewed and strengthened, that the love between you continue to blossom, etc, etc. If you'd like something a little more formal, google "honey pot spell". UPDATE: Here's a version of a honey pot spell using Vermont quarter and maple syrup.

Another time I think it's ok to do this sort of spell is one when married couples perform it together. SERIOSULY, this isn't a thing to do with someone you don't want to be married to. Ritually sealing a commitment IS CALLED MARRIAGE. I have a friend who did this kind of work with his high school sweetheart when they were 15. They've spent the 20 years since in a VERY high drama, mutually codependent, on-again-off-again thing, with lots of unpleasantness and cheating. 20 years of a teenage relationship.
Here's how I've recommended to married couples before, with good results: Find a melon. I like honeydew for this (because of the color) but I don't think it really matters. Mangoes are also good. Cut it in half, and hollow it out. Eat the melon with your beloved. While eating, each of you should, independently, savor the sweetness of the melon and write a list of 7 things about the other person that made you fall in love with them. Fold it up, and hand it to the other person (who SHOULD NOT read it). Burn each list over a red or pink candle, saving the ashes. Carve both of your names or initials into the inside of the melon, and also carve a depression to hold a candle. Put the candle in the "candle holder", and then take the melon to a body of water (the ocean is ideal), light the candle, and leave the melon offering on the beach. You can add other things to the melon; spices if your relationship needs "a little spice", honey for sweetening, etc, etc.

The next kind of love spell, which is what I generally recommend, isn't really a love spell at all, it's a drawing spell, designed to bring you into contact with the right person. If you arleady know them, it will gnereally just "pount them out" to you in some way, or you might find yourself running into an old acquaintance, or meeting someone new that you have an instant connection with. That's all it does; once they're in "your circle of influence", this spell lets nature take its course (or not, as the case may be).

Spend some time really thinking about what you want in a lover. Make sure to include "logistical" necessities; this REALLY is one of those "careful what you wish for" type deals. I've had these spells work perfectly, bringin me exactly who I asked for, except that I forgot to include something really important on the list...he was married, or lived 3000 miles away, or a junkie, or was too young, or whatever. Think it through, and write your list. It's ok to be super, crazy specific, and don't be embarrassed to include "shallow" things, or even things you're "not supposed" to want. It's even ok to put things that seem to be in comflict with each other. The more specific, the better. Then, set your list aside for a day or two, and read it over again. Make sure it really is what you want. Here's an example list. (Don't you judge me!)

Once you have a list, you'll need a 7 day candle in a clear glass jar. Pink is good, but white is fine if you can't find pink. If you can find a pink rose-scented one, that's even better. Virgin of Guadalupe candles are often pink and rose scented, and can be had in any groery store in a hispanic neighborhood. For this, however, peel the label off; you'll need to write on the candle jar. If it makes you feel weird to pull the label off, buy two, and burn the other for Theotokos, and explain to the her you needed her candle, but didn't mean to desecrate her image. Say a Hail Mary or something.

You'll also need a permenant marker ("magic markers" are probably my favorite magical tool. you can use them to write on ANYTHING.) On a pink candle, a black one is fine, but red, green, or gold would also be great. If you use a white candle, a red or pink marker is probably best. Now, write your list on the candle jar. Be sure to eyeball the length of your list and choose an appropriate size, to make sure it will all fit. If you have extra room, draw some hearts or 7-pointed stars, or Cupid's arrows, or Venus mirrors or other "love spell" looking symbols. After you've written the list on the jar, light it, and then read the Song of Songs chapter 3 to the candle. This is important: don't read the passage AT the candle, read it TO the candle. Treat the candle as if it has a real spirit in it, a personality all it's own, one that loves and cares for you, and wants nothing more than to find you a match. (Level up: dedicate the candle to a spirit whose bailiwick this kind of thing is. Promise more candles, and maybe roses, when it delivers. Make good on your promise when you get what you want.)
If that passage doesn't speak to you, you can pick a different verse about finding love. A text you feel is sacred is best. Sufi poetry works well. It is best to do this spell on a Friday or Monday during the hour of Venus while the moon is waxing, but it doesn't really matter. Read the passage aloud again each night until the candle is gone. In my experience, it takes another week or two for the right person to show up, but it's never taken more than a month for me. Obviously, if you never leave your house it will take longer. Go to a party or a Gnostic Mass or Art Church or something.

Friday, October 11, 2013

Root Souls, Reinventing the Wheel

When I was about 13, I discovered Wicca. A few months later, I became disenchanted, and felt a little betrayed, when I found out that all that "ancient pre-christian pagan religion" stuff was nonsense, and it was just some stuff some people made up. Then, I had a revelation...it was just some stuff some people made up, and they hadn't even done a very good job, but it TOTALLY WORKED! (I guess that's when I became a chaos magician) So, I made up my own religion, which I liked much better than Wicca. There was math, and infinity, and a weird sort of polytheist/monotheist/panentheist thing, and four spirit worlds, and 10 powers, and etc, etc.

When I was 18 and a freshman at Caltech, I read a book called "Etz Chaim" (the tree of life) and found out that the ARI had already made up my religion! It was a very exciting thing for me, to have my "unverified personal gnosis" "verified" like that.

Recently, I've been making up a new system, which is based in the idea that, just like our ruach (ego-soul) has ancestors, our neshema (big S soul) does too, and they're not necessarily the same ones. These are sort of like past lives, and those soul-family trees go back to a "root soul", the god (or gods) from which you're descended. Those root-souls (gods) use human generations to breed; the gods reproduce sexually through humans, so there's also a god that you're turning into. A new, strange, alien god.

Last night, I started reading (parts of) a book called Sha'ar HaGiligulim (the gate of reincarnation) by the same student of Luria, and it turns out he totally invented this theory too! EXCITING!!!!!