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| Only the full of the moon lights the night as figures make their way to a field of young wheat shoots. The group, shrouded by shadow, gathers and begins to slowly chant and dance around in a circle. As the chant becomes faster, their dancing increases and they leap in the air indicating to the God/esses how high they want their crops to grow. An elderly woman looks around at her wilted garden. Bending over, she picks up a handful of the cracked dry soil and lets it sift through her weather worn hands. Working quickly, she goes and gets her broom and a bucket of water. Chanting a few words, she dips the broom into the bucket and shakes the water from it onto her thirsty garden. Later that night a flash of lighting and the following roll of thunder awaken her. She smiles to herself in silent thanks as she hears the sound of one raindrop and then another hit her roof. Both of these stories have something in common. They both involve sympathetic magic. Sympathetic magic is the form of magic that uses the law of sympathy. It works on the theory of �like produces like�. By the group jumping up in the field to show how high they want the wheat to grow and the woman shaking water from her broom to mimic rain drops they were imitating an action to get a �like� result. Sympathetic magic comes from what is known as the �Law of Association� which says that things that are associated can be used to affect each other magically. Examples of this are seen in the use of the color red to do a healing spell, using a Pentacle to represent wealth in a spell for money, or using a poppet to represent a person in spells. This form of magic is also known as symbolic magic. This was very popular in folk magics. This kind of magic is evident in such practices as putting a knife under a laboring woman�s bed to �cut� the pain, or rubbing an apple on a wart and then burning it to make the wart go away. Another law that comes from the Law of Association is the Law of Contagion which is the �once touching, always touching� law. It is believed that if you touch something, you leave part of yourself behind with it. Therefore, if you are in essence always �touching� that object, you can always affect it. An example of this form of magic can also be seen in old folk magics. It was believed that if you were bitten by a dog that you had to have a hair of that same dog to prevent or cure infection. This is where that old saying �hair of the dog� comes from. Other examples of these magics are in the use of a person�s hair to do magic on them or in an old coven tradition of taking someone�s measure with a length of rope upon initiation. This rope was measured and cut in the length of the initiate. In some traditions it could then be used to represent that person. Sympathetic or symbolic magics were the very first magics practiced by our ancestors. Evidence of this can be seen in prehistoric cave drawings. The shamans of these ancient tribes would don deerskins or those of other animals to be hunted and dance around while the hunters ritually danced the hunting and killing of these animals. This would ensure them of a successful hunt and food for their people. After a successful kill the hunter might eat the heart of the slain animal taking into himself the bravery, courage and swiftness of it, thereby honoring the creature for giving up its life so the hunter and his tribe might flourish. The ways to do sympathetic magic are as endless as the caster's imagination. There are several good books that use this principle of magic. Of these �Earth Power,� by the late Scott Cunningham is a very good resource as well as being user friendly for the beginner. �Real Magic� by P.E.I. Bonewits is also an excellent and amusing source of information on the laws of Magic. 1. In what ways have you used sympathetic magic? 2. How might using a poppet effect someone? 3. What is another way you can think of to do a sympathetic rain spell? 4. Give some examples of the law of contagion. 5. How could you use someone�s hair in a protection charm for them? 6. What is the name of the root most often used in sympathetic magic? |
| Sympathetic Magic By: Valkerie Carver |
| "Why wait ? Life is not a dress rehearsal Quit practicing what you're going to do and just do it. In one bold stroke you can transform today." - Phillip Markins |