Reflecting on... Affirmations

I have technically been reflecting on shadow-work as research for my Thurisaz Magick post but shadow-work implies the intent of self-improvement and that is the purpose of affirmation. Whether you use affirmation to increase mental or magickal proficiency, it is an excellent way to help you accept yourself as you are and to expect more from yourself.

There are several ways to practise affirmations but my favourite is to use a notebook. Think of 2 goals you wish to accomplish and form them into positive statements (this should be something within your power to achieve; winning the lottery really doesn’t count). Each night, write each statement repeatedly on a page of your notepad until a page is full of one statement. Date each entry and continue until the goals are accomplished.

Another technique is to record yourself. This is a great way of not only practicing affirmation but learning to trust your voice. Purchase a Dictaphone or use another recording device, such as your phone or laptop; write a total of 5 statements and record yourself speaking them aloud. Say them over and over, or put them on repeat. Play it to yourself morning and night until you feel they have come to fruition.

There is a third option I use, although less often because it takes a high level of self-control. It is the act of listening and recording your thoughts for a full 24 hours and determining the level of negative programming you use. When you have a negative or defeating thought, blast it with a red circle and put a big slash through it. If you discover through this practice that you have a high level of negativity, repeat this process daily until you have your thoughts under control.

The exercises I have brought up here are how I have been practising affirmation for years; since I first started practising witchcraft in fact. They were taken from ‘To Ride a Silver Broomstick’ by Silver RavenWolf and though I am sure there are other ways to affirm, these are the ones that work for me. There is one other that I would like to bring up though, something I have developed over the last few years which I only recently decided was a form of affirmation.

Stand in front of a full-length mirror and undress yourself. As you remove each garment, imagine it is a part of yourself that you give out to other people: remove the layers of personality that you add on for the benefit of those people. When you are left with no clothes in front of yourself, repeat 10 times out loud to your reflection: “I accept you for all that you are”.