Magick and Health: Food for Magick

Many believe in a strong connection between the physical body and the magick within. When the physical body is strong, everything in magick — from casting spells and working rituals, to meditation and visualization — will be easier. Food is one way to increase the energy of the physical body.

The Link Between Food and Magick

There is no perfect magickal food. Some practitioners like to eat exotic fruits that are sacred in different parts of the world. Others, usually those who follow a specific tradition, consume entire meals from certain regions. However, it doesn’t have to be that complicated.

For the purpose of discussing food, there are two types of magickal workings:

• Those that take a short amount of time and use little energy; and
• Those that take a longer amount of time and use much more energy.

Food is one source of energy, not just physically, but magickally. When it comes to choosing foods to eat right before practicing magick, even if that magick is small, it is best to choose foods that release their energy in the manner which will most benefit you.

Selecting Foods for Magickal Work

When performing magicks that will only take short while, such as most simple spells, choose foods that release their energy fairly quickly, but steadily. This does not mean chocolate. Yes, it releases energy quickly, but in an extremely short burst, and will leave you feeling drained rather than energized. Instead, choose fresh fruits. Some good choices are:

• Apples – are a powerful magickal fruit, as they reveal a pentacle when sliced open;
• Apricots – are said to be a fruit of love;
• Bananas – are helpful for prosperity;
• Blueberries – are excellent for protection spells;
• Oranges – have the power of divination and luck; and
• Pomegranate – work well for wishes, wealth, and fertility.

Magicks that take longer, such as most rituals, need a more sustainable source of energy. Generally, if you’ll be engaged in your magicks for more that approximately ninety continuous minutes, it is a good idea to pick foods higher in carbohydrates. Some good choices include:

• Pasta;
• Rice; and
• Potatoes.

Foods to Avoid During the Practice of Magick

There are some foods that impede the practice of magick. These should be avoided in the last four hours before a spell or ritual. This does not mean that you have to give up these foods all the time, but to maximize the effectiveness of your magick, their consumption should be limited during spells and rituals.

Some foods to avoid include:

• Red meat;
• Alcohol;
• Salt (though sea salt is acceptable);
• Refined sugars;
• MSG;
• Caffeine; and
• Soda pop.

Organically grown fruits, vegetables, and carbohydrates are probably the best for working magick, but that certainly doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy your favorite foods. As long as they are consumed in moderation, and not immediately before a spell or ritual, they should not have a completely adverse effect on your magicks. It's believed that by combining the consumption of food with exercise, fresh air, and light will enhance your magick even more.

Preparing for Magick: How to Cast Spells

Spells are really just the manipulation of energy. This energy must then be sent towards a specific goal, and any excess energy should be released into the earth. This process can seem rather complicated, but as long as you’re centered and grounded correctly, the manipulation of energy can be fairly simple.

The Energy Within — Personal Power

Every living thing is full of power. The magick within is incredibly strong, and ready to be used. All the strength and power you will ever need is within you, including the strength to draw upon outside energies when necessary. However, for most people, these skills have never been used, or were used so long ago that they have forgotten them completely.

Personal power is like a muscle. It strengthens with use, and will atrophy with neglect. Start small, and practice frequently to encourage your personal power to become stronger; there are many exercises you might use to help learn to direct your own energy. Eventually, your own personal power will be strong enough to accomplish what might seem to be impossible.

Using personal power requires intense emotion. It is best to focus on a goal you can feel passionate about for maximum effectiveness. The modern world teaches that strong passions must be repressed and controlled, so you will have to break through these years of conditioning, finding the flame that will fuel your own magick.

Raising Magickal Energy From Outside Sources

Raising energy can be done in many different ways. Some common methods of raising energy are:

• Chanting
• Drumming
• Stomping
• Clapping
• Breathing
• Singing
• Dancing
• Visualization
• Meditation

Many Pagans and Wiccans use ritual to raise energy. This allows for the combination of many methods mentioned above. When raising energy, let the feeling that has been awakened using personal power permeate your entire body; feel the power surge through you.

Remember to draw energy from the earth, the same way you do when you’re grounding. Channel energy from the sun, the moon, a lake, or whatever natural sources are nearby. Open yourself to nature, or you will only have access to your own personal power, and this will quickly leave you exhausted.

One must see the desired goal as real and already accomplished. Experience the feeling of achievement that will accompany success. You will know instinctively when the energy is at its peak. In that instant, it is time to send it towards its goal.

Sending Magickal Energy Towards Its Goal

Raising energy does no good if it’s not eventually sent out to accomplish its goal. To do this, visualize the energy streaming from you into either the object of the goal itself, or a visualization of this goal. For example, for healing, you would visualize the energy entering the person to be healed (following all magickal ethics, of course).

If the person is not sitting directly in front of you, try using a photograph, or perhaps a lock of hair. Even picturing the person sitting in front of you will do. Imagine them as hale and healthy, raise the power, and channel it into them. Keep the vision of them fully healed in your mind for the duration. Avoid distractions during this process.

Some visualizations are not as easy as this. For example, if you’re casting a spell for increased concentration, you may have to visualize yourself studying, or working, or whatever image works for you. See yourself participating in an activity that is associated with your goal.

Releasing Excess Energy Into the Earth

After the energy has been raised and sent towards its goal, you will probably still feel as if you’re vibrating, too keyed up to sleep. This means that there is still excess energy circulating throughout your system. This energy is fine in the short term, but it will eventually begin to have adverse effects such as:

• Headaches;
• Inability to sleep;
• Too much tension; and
• Hyperactivity.

There is no need for this, as the excess energy can be sent into the earth. Simply place your hands upon the ground (preferably the earth itself, but it’s not strictly necessary). Allow the excess energy to drain through your hands and into the earth. As an alternative, you could try sitting on the ground and allowing the energy to drain though your ‘roots’ into the earth. This is the reverse of most common grounding exercises.

Many rituals, especially Wiccan rituals, involve ‘cakes and wine.’ This is a more mundane method of releasing excess energy. When your body has to digest physical food, it can return to its normal state much more quickly. Releasing excess energy is highly important, no matter which method is used, so if simply having a meal after spells and rituals is easiest for you, then do so.

Casting spells is not necessarily an easy process at first. However, with time, patience, practice, and an internal elemental balance, it does become easier, and eventually second nature. Some spells have a long list of ingredients and tools, and while these may enhance the working of a spell, they are not strictly necessary.

Preparing for Magick: Centering and Grounding

The art of grounding and centering is necessary to the successful practice of magick. Before approaching this task, it is important to properly cleanse the aura and the chakras. After this has been accomplished, you should center and ground before attempting any magickal work.

How Do You Know if You Need to Center and Ground?

The easy answer to this question is that you always need to center and ground before working magick. But there are signs that centering is especially necessary. If you pay close attention to how you feel on an internal level, you will notice when you begin to feel off-balance, confused, uncertain, or weak. To successfully practice magick, you must be aware of your own inner state.

If you notice that you feel somehow ‘off center,’ take the time to ground and center, even if you will not be performing magick. You’ll both feel and function better as a result.

How to Center the Spiritual Self

The art of centering is really very simple. Start by taking a deep breath and turning your focus inward until you are acutely aware of your inner state of being. Close your eyes and visualize a point of light approximately two inches below your navel. Feel how solid this point is, and the sense of calm that emanates from it.

This point is the center of your own internal universe, the seat of your body’s energy. If you are truly seated in this point, nothing can move you from it. As long as you remain focused on this center, you and your energy are untouchable. Take a deep breath and relax into your center, allowing its peace to fill you. Remain in this state as you open your eyes and proceed with grounding your spiritual self.

How to Ground the Spiritual Self

Grounding your energies takes a little more visualization to accomplish successfully. If you can, take a seat upon the earth. If not, a comfortable position anywhere will suffice. Visualize the root chakra at the very base of your spine. See your backbone as the trunk of a tree, and allow your root chakra to stretch out as ‘roots’ reaching deep into the earth. Feel them as they penetrate the soil.

Inhale and draw the earth’s energy up into yourself. Allow its energy to flow up the roots, into the trunk that is your spine, and permeate your entire body. Feel the earth’s stability, strength, and wisdom fill you. When you are ready, draw you roots back into yourself, sit quietly for a moment, and then proceed with your magickal work.

Grounding and centering, which are really just a form of meditation, are necessary steps for working any magick, Wiccan or otherwise. When done correctly, you should feel energized, calm, and at peace all at the same time. Once centered and grounded, spell casting and rituals can be performed.

Preparing for Magick: The Body of Energy

Energy exists within you and around you. It is everywhere. Every living thing both generates energy and uses it. This constant generation and use of energy creates an energy field. This energy field should be strong, bright, and clear for your magick to be at its best.

The Aura of the Physical Body

The energy that powers the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual bodies forms a kind of ethereal body. This energy, sometimes called chi or mana, permeates the entire physical body, and even extends out from the skin. It manifests itself as a glow that is usually invisible to the naked eye, but can be seen by most magicians.

This glow is commonly called the aura. Most people can learn to see it, with just a little training and practice. Some people will see it in black and white, and others have the privilege of seeing it in full color. There are a few who cannot see this aura at all, but these are few and far between. Usually, these people can sense it, rather than see it directly.

The aura reflects both your energy level and your general health, including physical health.

The Energy Centers of the Physical Body

Within the aura are several centers of energy, commonly called chakras. While there are likely hundreds of these scattered throughout the body, most traditions agree that there are seven major chakras.

• Crown chakra – Represented by the color purple, located at the top of the head, and is the center of divine connection.
• Third Eye Chakra – Represented by the color dark blue, located between the eyebrows, and is the center of psychic sensitivity.
• Throat Chakra – Represented by the color light blue, located at the base of the throat, and is the center of communication.
• Heart Chakra – Represented by the color green, located at the heart, and is the center of emotion.
• Solar Plexus Chakra – Represented by the color yellow, located beneath the rib cage, and is the center of vitality.
• Sacral Chakra – Represented by the color orange, located near the navel, and is the center of sexuality and creative energies.
• Root Chakra – Represented by the color red, located at the base of the spine, and is the center of survival and basic life functions.

The chakras are points of energy located within the body where certain types of energy are concentrated. They can be visualized as spheres of colored light, and reflect the general health of their respective qualities, as indicated above. When an individual is trained to visualize chakras, it's said that you can locate energy imbalances within each point. For example, a dim or murky heart chakra could mean weak or damaging relationships. However, a clear and bright throat chakra may symbolize strong and healthy communication skills.

All magicians should monitor and maintain both their aura and their chakras. If your body of energy becomes dim, weak, or debilitated in some way, you may become both physically and emotionally ill. There are many ways to maintain the body of energy, such as meditation, adherence to the Witches’ Pyramid, and practicing magick ethically. There are also methods for cleansing the body of energy, once it has become contaminated. All of these should be used when necessary.