Magick's Mirror

      When you journey outside the 'spell-book' and decide to take magickal matters into your own hands, sometimes it's hard to know where to start. So this month we are going to examine the creation of spontaneous ritual. We'll do this by peeking in on a group of friends (no, they aren't real, but they'll do for our purposes here!) who are visiting the beach for the weekend, and explore how we can use only that which is around us and readily available at corner grocery stores to create a meaningful and powerful ritual.

      Brenda, Naomi, Justin, Darrin, Tara, and William have packed up their swimsuits and gone to stay at a beach cabin for the weekend. They luck out and realize that on Saturday night, there's going to be a full moon. The beach is gorgeous, and few others wander this part of it, so
they have a little area all to themselves. The water is cool against the warmth of the day, and the wind picks up and almost makes it chilly at times, but in that I've-got-good-goose-bumps sort of way. While they brought food and clothes and a few games, they didn't bring any of their
magickal equipment or books. So how can they possibly plan and hold a ritual within one day's time? Easy!

      First, they decide on their focus-that's simple, they want to honor the water and wind spirits under the full moon.

      Having decided on a focus, they go through their clothing and find that they have nothing even vaguely ritual-like. But this doesn't bother them because their focus is on the energy, the elements, the water and wind, and not on looking like they just stepped out of Athames-R-Us. So they choose warm, comfortable clothing that won't interfere with
frolicking on the beach.

      After dividing up the tasks-Brenda, Naomi, Justin and Darrin will invoke the elements, while Tara and William will invoke the Lord and Lady-they each go search for something that represents the energy/entity they are calling upon.

      Naomi has volunteered to invoke the element of earth. Since the most plentiful 'earth' at the beach is sand, and since their focus is on wind and water, it makes sense to scoop up a clear glass bowl of sand to represent the element of earth. Naomi will meditate on the sand and bless it, during her invocation she will scatter it back to the dunes.

      Brenda is invoking the element of air. This is simple, with so many seagulls flying over the beach, feathers are plentiful and so she gathers a whole bundle of feathers, rinses them in the ocean to clean them, dries them under the sun. She binds them together with a string to create a makeshift feather fan; she will use the fan in a simple dance while invoking the element of the winds.

      Justin is invoking the element of fire and his is the hardest task to plan for. He sits on the beach for awhile, observing the interplay between the sunlight and the water. It strikes him that the fire of the sun would be perfect for the invocation-but during the evening, the sun will be setting. And the beach rules state no campfires. Not wanting to take a chance on breaking the rules-or on causing any accidental blazes-he looks for another alternative. He cuts out a cardboard sun-face and spray paints it gold, then glues it to a thin stick of driftwood which he will firmly plant in the sand. He will invoke the heat of the sun that still radiates through the sands.

      Darrin is invoking the West. He chooses to catch some ocean water in a jar and then drape a thin vine of seaweed around it. He will invoke the ocean waves with this. He will buy a pretty bottle of juice or soda, drink the juice, wash out the bottle and remove the label, and use it for the ocean water.

      William is invoking the Lord of the Winds. Wine is traditionally used to invoke the Lord, but Justin is a recovering alcoholic. So William chooses to invoke the Lord of the Winds with a carafe of white grape juice-white to represent the lightness of the air currents.

      Tara is invoking the Ocean Mother-Goddess of the Waves. Since cakes are the Lady's territory, and since there is a full moon tonight, Tara visits the bakery section of the grocery store and buys Russian tea cakes covered with confectioner's sugar. Light and delicate, these will mirror the moon, especially when served on a foil-covered plate.

      So far their shopping list looks like this:
          o One little glass bowl
          o Ball of twine
          o Gold paint and brush
          o Glue stick
          o Bottle of juice or soda (pretty, for the element of the West)
          o White grape juice
          o Plastic champagne glasses (for toasting the God)
          o Russian tea cakes
          o Aluminum foil

      While at the grocery store, they also pick up a couple of children's glow sticks to play with, colored crepe paper and balloons, all sorts of finger-food goodies, they buy some inexpensive (read: the brands like Wet 'n Wild) make up-lipsticks, eye shadow pencils.

      They gather on the beach near sunset. There, they build their altar out of driftwood, shells, and rocks, blowing up balloons and tying them to the driftwood, draping long vines of seaweed and crepe paper over the area. They also adorn themselves with vines of seaweed and crepe paper streamers in honor of the ocean and the wind. During the afternoon, they made simple necklaces-shells hung on string. They use the makeup for face paint, to draw spirals and water drops and magickal runes on their faces and arms and hands.

      Since they don't have drums or instruments with them, they've searched their cabin and come up with: a five gallon plastic water jug (makes a wonderful drum when you fill it partially with water); a sturdy pot and wooden spoon (ditto), two stainless steel pan lids (cymbals), a
whistle, and what do you know-the owner happened to have a jar of pinto
beans which, when shaken, makes a nice maraca.

      When the sunset bleeds across the water, they take their places and begin their invocations-sand, wind, sun and ocean. They invoke the Lord and Lady, honoring them with simple poetry and love. They toast the gods and the elements with juice and cakes. Then they begin to make
music with their makeshift instruments, dancing under the dying sun, honoring the power of the waves with their rhythms and dancing. They build the energy, dancing into and out of the edge of the cresting ocean waves that kiss the shore, and when they peak the energy, sending it
into the wind, into the waves, into the sand and the last glimpses of the sun, they truly feel they've honored the land and water rather than spent their focus on making everything 'perfect' or a 'show'. Afterwards, they eat their finger-food feast and tell stories of the sea, and when it's very late and the moon is very high, they pick up the balloons and streamers-simple clean up, and head for their beds.

      And so, you see-ritual doesn't need to be planned months in advance, nor does it need to cost a lot of money or have fancy tools. All you need is a little creativity, and the passion in your heart for the gods and the land.

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