Basic Candle Magick

Candle Magick is one of the simplest, and most used forms of magick. It has been used for ages by many people and religions; in fact religions today still use candles for devotion and prayer. In Pagan and Wiccan faith, candle magick is a staple of the use of Witchcraft. Candles are used to represent the Goddess and God, as well as the Elements; and are also used in many spells for healing, money, love, protection, and many others.

Basic candle magick uses a few small steps that any person (Wiccan or not) can do. More advanced techniques add objects such as symbols, stones, herbs and oils to the mix. In order to preform candle magick there are a few things that you first need to understand.

First, you should understand that you are working with your energy and the power of manifestation when you are doing candle magick. You are focusing on a want, or need and "charging" the candle with that energy so that it may continue to put it out into the Universe sending it to the Goddess and God. Second, you need to understand the power of the element of Fire. Fire is passion, creation, and energy. The flame should be respected as it is working to send your energy out. When doing basic candle magick it is a good idea to never blow out the candle when you are finsihed. Instead, use a candle snuffer to suffocate the flame. Blowing out the candle flame disperses the energy that you worked hard to create, and can affect your ritual or spell. Snuffing has the opposite effect, it contains the energy so that it may prepare to be lit once again. More advanced candle magick practitioners may have spells that require you to blow out the flame, there are certain situations that call for this, but I will save that for another time.

To start your candle magick you need to be aware of the different color candles and the energy that the color holds. There are thousands of colors of candles out there, even more if you make your own but I am only going to go over a few of the most common ones here. In addition to the color, it is usually best that the candle not be scented. Artificial scents may affect the spell casting, and certain ones can negate the ehergy that you are looking to raise. Save scented candles for a time when you become more advanced, and are more familiar with the magick of oils and herbs.

First you will need to have in mind the type of candle spell that you want to do. After that you can choose the appropriate color candle to use for the ritual.

Red: Energy, Lust, Sex, Fire, Passion, Root Chakra
Orange: Creativity, Art, Expression, Sacral Center Chakra
Yellow: Communication, Speech, Listening, Air, Solar Plexus Chakra
Green: Healing, Money, Unconditional Love, Earth, Heart Chakra
Blue: Emotion, Feeling, Trust, Clarity, Water, Throat Chakra
Violet: Psychic Prowess, Meditation, Psychic Ability, Third Eye Chakra
White: A "Do All" menaing that a white candle will work as any other color candle. Also represents Purity, Goddess, Innocence, Protection
Black: God, Negativity removal, Banishing, Binding

Now that you have your spell and candle color you need to know how to charge the candle with your energy.

Charging a candle for starters is a simple task. You are going to hold the candle between both hands and focus energy into it. Use your visualization skills for this part. "See" yourself attaining the goal, "feel" it on all levels of your being and push that energy into the candle itself. Sit for a while focusing on this, the stronger your focus and intent, the stronger the energy of the ritual.

Now it is time to begin your candle magick. Se the candle up ina place where it will remain undisturbed for small periods of time. Best to keep away from pets and kids, as well as things that are flammable! Some spells will require you to burn the candle continuously until it burns out, this can be a task being that you are not always going to be home to watch it. In cases like that, I like to take the candle and place it in my bathtub (after filling it with some water), this way if it falls over it will be snuffed out and not burn down the house. Doing a spell like that can be dangerous, so do be careful, for now though we are going to focus on intervals.

Burn your candle for about an hour a day, until the candle has completely burned out. Oh! Before I forget to mention, place a small saucer, or plate underneath to catch all the excess wax that drips off. This is to keep your surfaces nice and clean, and some spells use that excess wax for other things as well, so it's best to start getting into the swing of it.

When you burn your candle each day you can choose whether you want to sit and mediate with it (great for adding in some extra energy), or simply let it do its work for you. When it is time to put the candle out, remember that we are looking to build energy with basic candle magick, so we are going to snuff out the candle not blow it out. Another thing many witches like to do is to use matches to light their candles. In a home this works great, but outdoors sometimes you need a lighter! To me personally, though matches are a bit more "old fashioned" and "natural", fire is fire regardles of how it comes to be. It is the energy of the fire we want.

As with any spell or ritual you preform, don't expect immediate results. Think of it this way, you've spent the time gathering the energy, and now you need to release it to the Goddess and God in the Universe and allow them to mold it into your need and send it back to the physical plane. This takes time. A good idea is to keep a spell journal, (also known as a Grimiore) where you can record your progress, your successes and your misses as well.

That's your short into into Basic Candle Magick. Feel free to post below if you have nay questions, or comments!