The Personalization of Ritual
As everyone one knows, there are rituals on our website… Well this class is about personalizing them and tailoring them to your own specific style or needs. After all, what works for one person, doesnt necessarily work for someone else. This is a trial and error process important for all magickians who are new to magick, or are learning another style of magick. All magick has the five basic elements to it…Will, Concentration, Imagery, Imagination and energy. The elements that you can not change are the Will, Energy and Concentration. Those 3 elements are what you are and what you give to magick, to make the goal achieved. The elements you can change are Imagery and Imagination. The two I's…or eyes, in essence. They
are how you see things. Some people are like to see what is going to happen, either via their mind, in the form of art, or in the form of words and music. How can you change these things you ask. Well, I am first going to to start with imagery. Imagery is the symbols or signs used in working with whatever spirit/ Demon (etc) that you are working with…Many use sigils…but for some that doesnt work, due to the lack of having them, or not being able to divine them or find them..Sometimes resources can be limited. So what do you do? You can either draw your own image to represent that particular spirit. For example, if you are dealing with any of the four crown princes, make sure you use the proper colors/attritutes for them. Or you can a picture, representing them. Some people even find household items to show that they are working with them…this could be carving a name into candles, drawing your own sigils (which is a bit more difficult) or even using a pentagram with some sort of indication of who you are working with, be it a name in the center, or making it a color to represent them or what have you. As long as you know in your heart and inner self that is who it is, then that imagery is there. Now, on to the Imagination of the ritual itself. This creativity deals with how the ritual goes in your mind. Ritual require you to imagine alot of factors, like imagining the protective circle, and etc. If you are distracted from that, then you are not protected. One way to solve this is by using special incense, a kind that you like alot or dislike alot, and you use taht in concordance with making the protective circle etc…and that will represent it. Also, if you have mood music, that is something that reminds you of your goal…play it during ritual low enough so that you can be heard in group ritual…Some music can have a very strong effect on how you concentrate on you goals. Special lighting also works the same way…I know this sounds like we are trying to be dramatists…but, for some people it is easier this way, and helps them through the rite until they are able to use nothing.. that is the goal in the end, toward priest hood…To be able to use magick, and do rite with out distractions or mood music etc. And when reach a certain level in magick, you will find these things are not necessary anymore. But for a new magickian, they are sometimes helpful. I know this from experience. Another way you can personalize a ritual is by changing it around… improvising. To improvise, it is easy. Go through the ritual a few times…if it feels natural to you then that is fine…but if it isnt comfortable, or you cant seem to get it right exactly…when you do it with out looking at the ritual book is the way you were meant to do it. Some rites are meant to be the way they are written, but those rites are for accomplished magickians and are written by accoplished magickians with the thought process behind it that the ones after them who will be doing the same rite are at least at the same level they are.
The Personalization of Ritual- By Rev. Satrinah Nagash