Just Released- Cupid Shoots, She Scores

(My Original Blog Post: -*http://www.cynnara.com/home/2009/02/11/just-released-cupid-shoots-she-scores/)
It's out! It's out! That's right, my latest book- Cupid Shoots, She Scores is finally out! You can find out more at http://www.loose-id.com/prod-Cupid_Shoots,_She_Scores_-902.aspx

I love this cover and the book. In it are some important dedications to people who helped this book to be the best it could be and there are some people I accidentally left out in the dedication. Without all of you-- I'd never have gotten this book done and THANK YOU! 

*goes off to celebrate*

Sex Ed with Mistress Cynnara- Uninhibited Sex

(My Original Blog Post: -*http://www.cynnara.com/home/2009/02/07/sexed-uninhibited_sex/)
I realize I'm a bit behind on this week's Mistress Cynnara, and I beg the indulgence. There are reasons, mostly physical, I couldn't handle sitting in a chair for longer than fifteen minutes at a time, or standing for more than ten for the past two days, so I apologize for not getting today's talk done on Thursday. 

Mistress Cynnara- You talk about sex and sexuality, but one thing I've not seen talk about is just great, uninhibited sex. No kink, just hot, erotic sex. Is that just out of style now? ---- Curious in Cairo

Sex is a good thing, regardless of  how it's done. But nowadays, we do hear a lot about kinky sex, BDSM, and other types of sex that seem to leave out old fashioned, hot "fuck me" sex. This doesn't mean that it's outdated neither does it mean that it's defunct in our daily lives. What it does mean is that often times, we have incorporated other elements into our sex routine that we ignore that we still indulge in uninhibited sex. 

What is uninhibited sex? It's that hot, skin against skin, kissing, touching, where the only thing you can think about is getting naked and fucking like rabbits. But even in the thrum of this non-thinking, only feeling sex, we can think a bit. We can enjoy it more fully, by integrating things we like within it. How can we get the most of uninhibited sexual play? 

By making sure everything we might want to use is within reach- condoms, lubrication, toys, and other items. The idea here is to create a fantasy "must have you" moment where nothing is held back. Who wants to stop in the middle of the fun because someone forgot the condoms? Not me. Consider the moment lost at that point. 

So, how can you be uninhibited but prepared? This goes again with what I've said at other times- preparations. You know what you like, you know what your lover enjoys. So, take the time beforehand- prepare the seduction room. Get the cds in the multi-holder and ready to play. Put the incense in its holder, with lighter nearby. Make sure all the play objects are near the bed or whatever you think you'll end up on. The idea here is to take as much guesswork and time that would interrupt the moment by having it all within reach. 

Uninhibited does not mean Unplanned. It means allowing yourself to go with what is happening in that moment, not having to stop unless you need to readjust your body, her body, or where you're at. The idea is that you let go, without having to worry about having everything in the right place. 

For me, uninhibited sex, means I don't always have to control what's happening. It's a give and take time, where I get my desires fulfilled, I get aroused and in turn, so does he. We both get to have what we both want and it's frantic, furious, and intensely satisfying. 

Remember, uninhibited sex is what you want it to be- as long as  you're prepared for what might be wanted. If you're not, then you might have to break the moment to find the things that are needed for you and your partner. So have some uninhibited sex- go get things ready and enjoy yourselves! 

Until next time, 

Mistress Cynnara 

 

 

Pagan- Altar Making

(My Original Blog Post: -*http://www.cynnara.com/home/2009/02/02/pagan-altar-making/)
Altars are not just for human or animal sacrifice. In fact, an altar is for communing in a spiritual manner to the universe and those whom we believe in. Some people have shrines, go to church, etc. Having an altar is a way of bringing the divine home and opening you up to your spirituality.

So, what belongs on an altar? What doesn't belong? How big does it have to be? What if you can't publicly proclaim your beliefs, but want something to use when it's time? There is no one right way to create an altar. There are some basic guidelines, but then the rest can be guided by your needs and desires. 

The size of the altar doesn't matter. What does matter is that you use it regularly and that you allow yourself to spend a couple of minutes each day at the altar to not only acknowledge your spirituality, but to also recenter yourself as well. 

What are some of the basics that should be on your altar? 

Most altars have a drop cloth that reflects the season or holiday. You can buy fabric and make your own or convert tablecloths and place mats depending on the space of your altar. In my bedroom, I have a small telephone/nightstand that's been converted to my altar. On the top of it, I've put a blue lace and satin table runner. I normally use the blue one as my daily cover cloth. Then on holidays like Imbolc, Ostara, Litha, Yule, Samhain, and others- I have special cloths to recognize the holidays and seasons. 

The next item should be candles. I normally have one large white one that represents the Elements. (I've anointed and inscribed the Elemental symbols on the candle.) This is for when I call upon the Elements to guide and protect. Then I have a second candle to represent the gods and goddesses whom I serve. This candle is smaller than the Element one and I rotate the colours to match the gods who rule that season/holiday. 

The next item is my athame. Why? Because it's not just a knife. It's an extension of the will of intent. It reminds me that just as a knife is useful, it's also dangerous. Thus is the perils of neglecting my spirituality. I have an Egyptian styled criss athame, so it's beautiful while on the altar as well. 

My wand is also on the altar. I use it when I work magick and since I use my altar when I do so-- there it stays. It reminds me of the responsibility I take in working magick. The wand reminds me that just as we grow, we do change and become closer to our true essences. 

During times where there is no major holiday or the changing of the seasons (like the equinoxes and the solstices), I normally have my divination pendant and my daily Tarot or rune out. This is picked each morning, giving me time to reflect on its meaning and what it might help me do for the day. It's akin to having a Bible verse to start the day, but in this case, it allows me to mentally tune into the desires of the universe along with my personal needs. 

When it is holiday time- I normally decorate with silk flowers and other life-like items. It could be a small basket of fruit to celebrate summer or even a cornucopia to celebrate the harvest season of Mabon. Normally, I even put these things together myself, which allows me to think and imbue those items with magickal intent and power leading up to the holiday. You can find small projects like this at various home and garden websites. 

You're probably wondering what I store my non-used items in when I've changed the altar for a new month. I have two large plastic tubs. The smaller one holds all the fabric cloths. The other holds what I've made and what I've bought in labeled containers. This allows me to easily pull the right holiday without wondering what box it's in. I keep it all in my walk-in closet on the top shelf for out of the way ease. 

What if you can't have a huge altar? Then you can make a mini altar. Take something small, like an Altoid© tin or something around that size and make sure it's thoroughly cleaned and dried. Using the principle of the Elements, include one item that represents them. I have a small birthday candle with holder to represent fire. Then there's the purple feather for Air. Earth is a small jar with sand in it. Water is represented by small foldable cup that can be filled with the element when doing magickal work.

I make sure all the items fit inside the small tin. With a bit of skill, I often include some cone incense and it's holder to represent the gods and the Elements. Then I slide the entire box into a drawstring bag that opens flat to form the cloth when needed. 

Altars can be as elaborate as you want or as simple as they need to be. They should reflect your needs, your goals and your beliefs. Changing the altar regularly- monthly or bi-monthly, opens you up to the changes in the world and the magick placed before your path.

SexEd with Mistress Cynnara- Medical Issues

(My Original Blog Post: -*http://www.cynnara.com/home/?p=332)
Today's topic is not a fun one. In fact, it's one of those topics we do not want to spend time on, when we could be having fantastic sex. Yet, at one time or another, everyone gets sick. Sometimes, what happens is that something develops, and it changes everything in how we enjoy or can play in sex. Yes, this topic relates a bit to my other one, but it's also very personal right now.

See, I've been told that I've got some cysts and an abnormal sized uterus. The C-word was mentioned, but it's a small percent chance. Now, I admit, I'm nervous over the word "cancer" being bandied in conjunction with my body, but more importantly, the thought that hit my mind was- how soon after the hysterectomy (which is what I'm thinking will happen), can I play again sexually. What do I have to do to be careful the first time? 

Once those questions hit me, I realized that a talk on medical issues was needed. See, we as a society still don't talk enough about sexual health to our partners, or those we might not want as partners. You might occasionally get "I'm clean, how about you?" but beyond that, it doesn't seem to be a big thing among the sexually active. 

That needs to change, and it needs to be started with YOU. You need to let your partner know if you're having problems or if certain sexual manuevers hurt now that didn't before. You need to discuss your physical health- if you have immunity issues (I do), or if you have a bad back (my male does). These are health issues that involve your partner because it makes them more aware of how you can adapt positions, techniques and more to accomodate both people. 

The other thing is this- you need to see your primary care doctor at least once a year. Why? You need to have a baseline of what is good health, what you need to improve upon and more importantly, to get anything that's been bothering you helped. I know that doctor visits cost money, but hospital visits are more. Do you really think you're doing anything good by denying yourself a visit to the doctor? You're only ignoring problems that might need to be taken care of sooner rather than later. 

Sometimes, medical problems do interfere with sexual activities and can even stifle your sexual desires. These are things you can discuss with both the doctor and your partner. In fact, in my case, I have done this. I don't mind not being sexually pleased while I'm stressed as long as I can have the fun of pleasing my partner. He knows that. He also knows what I need to get sexually worked up. This is when you realize that foreplay is no longer an option, but a necessity. You might also need to indulge in buying sexual supplies to help augment things- just as lubrication. 

Sexual health and physical health need to be maintained in order to be a healthy person. Don't forsake it because it's embarrassing or wait because it might get better on its own. If you are worried about it for more than a week-- it's time to get to the doctor. 

Always, 

Mistress Cynnara

Sex Ed with Mistress Cynnara- BDSM 101- The Dominant

Let’s hear it for the Dom/me!!

Let’s introduce the Dominant first. The stereotype is either a leather catsuit-clad woman in five inch heeled boots with whip in hand, or the male in leather pants, no shirt, though he may have harness strap-ons, and sometimes wears a mask. Sound familiar at all? According to stereotype, they’re all about control, causing pain, subjugating their submissive until they’re nothing more than pets, right?

Not quite.  Not even close in most circumstances. I won’t say there isn’t something to the outfit, but the reasoning—not even close to being correct.

First, let’s talk about what a Dominant is. A male Dominant is referred to as a Dom. With females, they may be called Domme, or Domina. A professional female is usually termed Dominatrix. The male is still called Dom. Dominants are the ones who protect, challenge, correct, and reward their submissives. Normally they choose the scene, role play, setting, toys to be used in a session, and are responsible for taking all precautions for safety. Dom/mes use a variety of means to help a sub reach a state where only the sensations and emotions exist. There is no thought, there is nothing but feeling. This state of being is called subspace. More on that later.

How they bring a submissive to that state varies on the type of Dom/me they are. Not only are there variations in BDSM generally, even the players come in various forms.

Alpha Dominant- In BDSM, the Mighty Alpha Dominant is trusted implicitly by his or her sub(s) for more than just a good time.  They are entrusted with fulfillment.  When questioned, they respond with whatever answer is appropriate while challenging their submissive(s) to think and better themselves.

The Mighty Alpha Dominant responds rather than reacting (the negative attribute) to situations. S/He is prepared for the worst, celebrates the best and rides things out with a large amount of cool and control.  For them, they want to take care of someone, to fix what’s broken and to help a submissive reach subspace and gain personal acceptance.

Though Alpha Dominants are likely to use physicality to emphasize points, it’s not the end all-be-all of their universe. For them, physical assistance, via toys, furniture and the like help get a submissive into a specific frame of mind. But alpha dominants also know that psychology plays a big factor in how they approach a submissive.

 

Soft Dom/me-- She might be into pain, but probably not.  The Sensual or Soft Dominant is just that, a sensual woman or man capable of administering pain (we all are) but preferring to control through other means. She may prefer toys of a lighter nature as her focus is not on the pain but the pleasure. Make no mistake, the goal is still to help a submissive reach subspace and in turn reach Domspace, but more importantly, they choose a different means to bring a submissive to that point.

Most soft Dominants I know, believe in breaking the mind, for the body will follow. What does this mean for the submissive? They are given lessons, rewards and punishments. Within these means, they’re put on what I call sensory overload—until they can only feel and respond without thinking to anything put to them. Alpha Dominants also use this approach, though they don’t exclusively rely upon it.

 

Notice each has a particular way or style in dealing with submissives. Not all use whips and chains, nor do they take the same approach in what’s called ‘breaking down’ a submissive. They are as unique as each one of us. It’s important to remember that each of us is skilled in different areas. Though some are trained in multiple things, there are some preferential skills over others.

Most Dom/mes have some training with another Dom/me to learn the appropriate techniques and equipment. In many cases Dom/mes must spend time as a submissive to remind them of what a submissive receives. This is something I will stress time and again; if your characters are in the BDSM scene, then this aspect will always be in the Dom/me’s mind. It’s a reminder that they hold power given to them freely and it should not be abused.

When you're learning about BDSM, one thing people will ask you is if you've filled out a Limit List. Where can you find a Limits List? You can find one: http://www.thebrc.net/check_list/check_list1.php?Submit=Continue  Why is it important? Because whether you are a Dominant or a submissive or a switch, it's important to know your own sexual limits, your own pain limits and what you're interested in. This allows you to know what kind of person you're looking for as well. It helps take the uncertainty of meeting someone when you can sit and talk about your limits and desires in a healthy, responsible manner.

Why do Dom/mes dominate? Do they have to call all the shots? What is it about their makeup that places them in this Alpha position?

So mentioned earlier, Dominants are the leaders, the guides, the ones who push to go further, and who comfort when its time. Domination deals with control of another person—helping them physically, emotionally, and in a sexual manner. Most Dominants I know like being given control. It pleases them that this person has placed their trust in them. They know the sub can use the safe words at any time—but that they are the ones who create an environment that allows both Dom/me and sub to enjoy the sensations and freedom from the everyday things.

Dom/mes need control. To lose it is unthinkable. To abuse it is just as bad. Control is a fine line between pushing for change and acceptance. They also need to feel taken care of as well. Though they are more of the caretaker, they expect the submissive to meet certain things which enhance their time together.

Example:

Sarah is a Dominant. She enjoys bondage, caning and some mummification play. What she needs is a submissive who enjoys those things and needs her to give them.

In walks Mike. He’s a submissive who likes being restrained while his Mistress teases him sexually and verbally. He’s not sure about caning, but likes being spanked. They negotiate on the type of humiliation play, so its limited to the teasing you’d experience when you were young.

What can Mike give to Sarah? His obedience to her commands, all of them. Treating her with respect and awe for what she does to teach him and care for him. Mike notices Sarah seems upset and tense one night, so he approaches her, his eyes downcast as he places his hands on her shoulders. Before she speaks, his hands knead the knots as he says, “Forgive me, Mistress, but you looked like you needed this. I want you to be as relaxed, as comfortable as possible.”

He’s taken care of her and is supporting without stepping on her power. Depending on Sarah’s disposition, she’ll either reward the sub’s behavior, punish for breaking the rules, or both. How does this act of affection make Sarah feel?

Safe, cared for, and strong. He’s not tries to fix anything—just offer support and a massage to release tension. One of her base needs—to care for and be cared for—is being met in a way that makes her happy.

 

I won’t lie that there are a portion of Dominant women who are that way due to their past: abuse, neglect, rape, etc. They don’t ever want to be without control and  be weak. Yet many realize that there’s something profoundly comforting in having someone pamper and pleasure you, just because.

Many people will begin asking about the use of various toys and punishment, and say it’s how Dominants get off and subs are trained to take it because the Dominant chooses it. Again, different Dom/mes use different items to teach and train a sub. However, the goal is not to subjugate, but to break down the walls that prevent the submissive from being ‘in the moment’.

Some Dom/mes and subs like pain. They might go into knife play, whips, floggers, and other toys in order to use repetitive low-level discomfort to circumvent the brain, encouraging endorphin release. Others use words, seduction, with an occasional toy used to emphasize or encourage correct behavior.

Dominants like to guide, control and be looked up to. The reasons are varied as to why, but keep in mind that in the private arena of relationships and sexuality, they are leaders. It doesn’t matter that they might be a scatterbrained geek who couldn’t tell anyone off at work, once they’ve crossed the threshold, their words and actions rule.

Now that we’ve covered the Dominants, let’s delve into the world of submission.

 

 

(continue reading &aquo;)

Blog Post: Sex Ed with Mistress Cynnara- BDSM 101- The Dominant http://s3nt.com/avmh

Psychology- Residual Feelings

Recently, one of my dear friends emailed me about something that's been bothering him. Now, you have to understand, he's a fellow writer and ofttimes we use our emotional responses to certain things to help us in our writing but he asked about something that made me realize it was something to discuss.

Was thinking, the problem I’m having now emotionally is that I seem to have residual feelings of anger that won’t go away like the big stuff has.  What can you do to remove the residuals? 

This actually brought to mind a few things that I've been personally working on. We all have residual feelings and influences from outside influences. Whether it be rejection, a relationship not working out or even a moment that brought us to our knees-- we are always on some level affected by what happened. How we make the event into a lesson that we take what we need and leave the emotion behind is not so easy.

I've discovered over this year since my mom's death-- I know she died. That's okay, and honestly, she was in pain- so I'm happy she's no longer in pain. But- she's gone for things she's always been around for and honestly, I'm badly missing her. I mean badly as in severely bad. It's made me pull back in relationships and other things because my health is not great right now. I'm not super sick, but I'm definitely not healthy as I could and should be. Emotionally, I'm hurting and until recently, I couldn't acknowledge or even accept how I was feeling about it.

So what can you do to get over those feelings of pain and more? There are a couple of ways and they work whether your a writer or not. What I've always done and have encouraged others to do is to write down the event as it happened-- according to your recollection. Leave nothing out, include your emotions at the time it happened. Then, I want you to write the event again, this time taking it in the opposite path- give yourself the ending you wanted to have, not the one you just wrote. Take your time, including emotions, reactions and the path to success. Once you've written both- put them away for about 2 days.

Once two days have passed, pick up the second story and reread it aloud. Remember this is the way you wish it had gone. For everything you wrote that you now realize could not have happened-- for whatever reason- death, sickness, other person needed more- mark that point down. Acknowledge that you wanted that ending because it would've been good for you alone and emotionally, it would've been easier for you to handle. Then go to the first story-- read it through, mark where the decisions made could've been handled better on your part and the other person's. Mark where you emotionally feel vulnerable and what things cause you to react emotionally in this vein. The idea here is to acknowledge your emotions and to accept it's happened. You know it happened and if still ended this way, you now know how you would've changed things or dealt with it. Then you must thank the lesson for being learned. You're always going to have residual emotions regarding it, but you'll notice that after pouring out the feelings you wanted and the feelings you got dealt-- the growth you've incurred by doing so.

Another way of handling the residual emotions is by grounding. This is both a magickal concept and a psychological one. The best way I've found when I need to reground myself and to let go over the emotions, especially the negatives ones that haunt me over certain things, I find a quiet place, usually either in my backyard or in my room. I light a couple of candles, light some incense, and sit before the candles. What does this do? It allows me a chance to sit and focus. I bring to mind the incident and the feelings inside. Then I turn the emotions into a ball, sensing myself pouring them out of me and into my hands. I mold the emotions into a ball, pushing more of them out of me and into it. Once I feel what I call emotionally neutral about the incident-- I then open my hands and turn them palms down, letting the emotional ball drop into the ground before me and between the candles. What this does is return to earth that which needs to be cleansed and sanctified. It is from the earth and returns as such. Then I concentrated on deep, even cleansing breaths bringing in powerful emotions of love, happiness, focus and more. You can't just ground and not take in something new. You've emptied that part and you must fill it with something-- and if you do not, something will find its way in there- and you might not like what it is.

Residual emotions are always part of us. But we can reduce their influence significantly by making peace with the past, making peace with our reactions to the event, and by letting the emotions go and replacing it with positive emotions because we've learned a valuable lesson. Only by doing these things, can we minimize the emotional residuals that sometimes cause us to stumble. (continue reading &aquo;)

Blog Post: Psychology- Residual Feelings http://s3nt.com/atir

Pagan- Why the Ritual in Magick?

I know I spoke a bit on this topic, but today, I want to delve a bit more into detail on the hows, whys and explain why there are some cliches that are found within the pagan community which will always be there. Everyone has a ritual in how they do things- in fact, for many in the US, they participated in a huge ritual on Thursday. That's right- those who did a traditional Thanksgiving, have repeated a ritual that was handed down to them from their ancestors. Which makes you wonder- what is ritual and what place does it have in our lives?

The definition of ritual, as per dictionary.com is:

1. an established or prescribed procedure for a religious or other rite.
2. a system or collection of religious or other rites.
3. observance of set forms in public worship.
4. a book of rites or ceremonies.
5. a book containing the offices to be used by priests in administering the sacraments and for visitation of the sick, burial of the dead, etc.
6. a prescribed or established rite, ceremony, proceeding, or service: the ritual of the dead. 
7. prescribed, established, or ceremonial acts or features collectively, as in religious services.
8. any practice or pattern of behavior regularly performed in a set manner.
9. a prescribed code of behavior regulating social conduct, as that exemplified by the raising of one's hat or the shaking of hands in greeting.
10. Psychiatry. a specific act, as hand-washing, performed repetitively to a pathological degree, occurring as a common symptom of obsessive-compulsive neurosis.
–adjective 11. of the nature of or practiced as a rite or ritual: a ritual dance. 
12. of or pertaining to rites or ritual: ritual laws. 

Notice how many of the definitions are linked to the idea of a ritual or a rite, especially religious in nature. What interests me is also number 8. The definition that any pattern of behaviour or practice regularly performed in a set manner is also a ritual. It's this definition that links the traditional holiday entertainment to being ritual in nature. And because of that, it makes the ritual within using magick so easily understood and explainable.

It's like this. Magick is your force of will and belief in changing the reality around you so that what you want comes to be. For many within the Wiccan belief system, you're changing things with the idea of no one else being hurt. The idea of moving reality so others don't pay for your benefits within the universe. It's a huge reason many who are true practioners of magick hesitate before doing any kind of love magick that would bind another person. The idea here is free will and to find which the universe says is for you, not who you think is best.

Ritual in magick is a set of focuses that are created by you to help you focus your intent, focus your end result, and to build up energy to create what you want to happen when you work magick. Ritual is important because many spells must be done repeatedly and having it simplified into a ritual helps with the preparing of the mind, body and receptivity of doing such magick.

What goes into a ritual? Depends on the spell, actually. Are you wanting money? Are you wanting to be open to find your soulmate? Are you wanting a new job or perhaps a way to go back to school without putting yourself into huge debt? Spells can be used for so many different things- remember- working a spell is to help you change your reality and how you look at things- thus providing you new opportunities you'd never see before.

Ritual magick is considered higher magick by many because of the amount of work that goes into it. Whereas low magick, also known as hedge magick or personal magick doesn't require intense preparation, but can be done in a limited moment with hyperintense focus. So, why talk about ritual in magick? Because even in so-called low magick, you will find a basic pattern followed within the spell which is how each person works, tapping their own abilities while calling upon the Elements for their help.

The aspects that make up ritual magick start from the beginning of preparation through the end of the spell until the desired results occur. This is one reason that many pagans don't actively attempt ritual high magick. It's not that it's above anyone- it takes time and focus to develop, but it does take focus and determination to carry this out not just once but multiple times in the same order, in the same way to produce said results.This means, when you're wanting to create an indepth spell ritual for a particular result, you plan from the candle colour to the words said through what will be used to carry the magick charge and more.

Let's discuss what goes into a ritual. It starts with the reason for its existence. Are you creating wealth? Are you wanting better health? Do you want to be open to the love that everyone is welcome to have? You must know exactly what you want and what the end result should be. How it happens will always be flexible, because choices put other things into play and we know the future is always fluid in nature. Keep track of what you've done and what you're still having to accomplish in putting this together. I normally use my grimoire to keep track of what I'm doing and planning.

So, you continue researching on what colours are most effective to bring to mind what you're trying to do along with what is necessary to bring your focus into almost a trance-like state. Researching is a great way of bringing into focus everything you want to accomplish. Normally, I outline what the ritual will consist of from the Cleansing bath through the end of the spell. This includes cleanup and the charging of items. I outline all of these items to be done in my grimoire, and I highly recommend that if you are wanting to do this, you do so as well. This detailed outline will become invaluable the day of the ritual.

I know we've not covered about charging items such as amulets, but there are some great books and articles online dealing with the creation and use of amulets. Authors such as Raven Grimmasi, Amber K, and others have talked extensively regarding their use and the ease of creating such items. For me, I often use stones that I have a special small bag that goes everywhere with me. For me, it's a convenient, yet private way to have my magick with me, reminding me of my focus and goals.

Also, a small point- with outlining what I'm planning, this is when I begin crafting my spell. I use rhymes and couplets. Why? Because they're simple to remember and more importantly, there's power invoked in using rhymes. How so? Can you recite "Miss Mary Mack", "London Bridges", "Ring around a Rosie"? If so, you're showing the power of rhyming. It is simple, powerful and is easy to bring to mind when you need to have flow and confidence. It may sound silly to your ears, but trust me, when it comes time to doing the magick, you'll be grateful for having the simple rhymes which are written down in your grimoire to rely on.

Once I've decided on the day and time, I prepare everything- cleaning the work area where I'll be doing the spell, preparing the candles, preparing incense, making bath salts, etc. The idea here is that by doing such things, you're focusing on the coming ritual and the result- which charges the items you work with in that positive manner and for the purpose ahead. That day, I begin my ritual by taking a cleansing bath, using the prepared bath salts. My mind begins focusing on the task at hand, the ritual has begun.

After the bath is finished, I dress in my work robes, aligning the items to be used in the workspace, my mind focused on the magick created as I move and concentrate on what I want to do. This is when the outline, which has become quite detailed is invaluable. You won't have to think on anything but what you're accomplishing. The freeing of your mind to focus on the goal is a fundamental base which you will build upon. It's a meditation of sorts, one that allows every action you do within the sacred workspace be used to help in achieving your goal.

I follow my outline from the point I've set everything up forward. Since it's all on paper, it means nothing is left to chance. Yes, I've worked magick without writing down anything, but I do find that unless it's a spell I've memorized, it's easier to follow what's written down so nothing is forgotten. Using ritual in this manner, from start to finish, over a period of time- once a day for a week through once a week for months- allows you to focus on your goals and change your reality daily. The ritual effect is that it creates a sense of power within you that carries on in daily life. It's this reason that many people who take the time to craft rituals find them so powerful.

Rituals, like traditions help us to focus on the meaning, not just the actions of what we do. Ritual magick helps us focus on the intent of what we do by using actions and items which resonate within that meaning, within that result we desire. Though many people don't do rituals out of fear of them being too complex, start simple -- doing simple spells over a period of days and notice the results. Then lengthen the process where you break a spell down to be done over days- thus allowing it to build before it's released into the universe. Don't be afraid of using ritual magick, embrace it and the uses to which it can benefit you. (continue reading &aquo;)

Blog Post: Pagan- Why the Ritual in Magick? http://s3nt.com/assa