The Four Directions /
Ritual Tools - Q & A with Jamie
Q - I've been reading
The
Teen Spell Book: Magick for Young Witches, and I have a few
questions about some things.
When we get our tools for performing the spells or rituals, do any tools
have a specific use? Like, let's say a dagger might be a use of
something or broom and wands have a use of some kind. I would like to
know what's the use for having a wand, broom, and dagger?
Also the Four Directions. Why is there a season of life? What's the
purpose of having that?
A - The specific use for the tools are included in the information under
the four directions in the Teen Spell Book, so you can find their
relevance and associations there. I've added to this information, which
will soon appear on my website
www.jamiewood.com/motherearth. So for example wands would relate to
all the correspondences of East and Air - new beginnings, birth,
intellect, etc. I really believe that line from Harry Potter that "the
wand chooses the wizard" extends to all the tools of the magickal craft.
These tools seem to choose you, or perhaps they are a hologram and
manifestation of a need that is born in you. They will appear on a shelf
at a shop or some obscure festival and you know you need to have it. Or
they come as gifts. After years of magickal practice, I still don't have
an athame/dagger. I just haven't been drawn to one or felt the need for
one. Though I am debating using a really cool hand crafted wooden letter
opener I just found at a garage sale. Typically, I use candles for my
fire magick. You don't have to have a specific "set" of magickal tools.
I recommend having some representation of each of the four directions,
but it can be really anything. The tools are simply symbols that
represent the four elements. The four elements live in you (earth as
your body, air your breath, water your blood and fire your spirit).
Eventually your magickal practice and knowledge would become
transparent, so that the tools are no longer necessary for you to call
up the magic that already lives inside.
Each of the seasons of life are associated to the directions and
elements, et al. to further help deepen the understanding of these
magickal quadrants at work in the stages of life and seasons of the
year. Again, you are the magick, and with each season of the year and
stage of life we see the examples of the elements playing out their
specific type of magick.
 Jamie
Martinez Wood is a teacher and the author of eight books on empowerment,
magic, earth spirituality, and Latino culture. A firm believer in the
power of writing, Jamie has kept a diary since she was eleven years old,
and she still has that first one. Her passion is to provide support and
encouragement to young women on their life’s journey. She teaches
workshops, leads retreats, and gives performances on personal power,
seasonal living, the faerie essence of herbs and ritual ceremony. She
conducts classroom visits and assemblies on writing, publishing, and
self-esteem. Visit her at
www.JamieMartinezWood.com.
Spells |
