Now, finding where to cast
may seem like a simple prospect but there can be many things to consider and if
you like to cast with flair, as I do, then it can be tricky to find somewhere
with adequate space and privacy.
Ø Privacy
Privacy is an important
consideration and can be split into two areas of importance – physical privacy
and spiritual privacy. The first, physical privacy, takes a higher priority
while searching for a place to cast your circle because remaining undisturbed for
the duration of your working can have a significant impact on its outcome. I
always look for a place where I am confident I will not be interrupted and this
is doubly important when I plan to be casting skyclad (or disrobed for those
who are not yet familiar with witchy terms). Spiritual privacy is also related
to remaining undisturbed – the presence of an unplanned energy, human, canine/feline
or astral, whether around or within circle could cause you to lose focus and/or
have your intention alter whilse casting.
Ø Space
The need/want for a certain
size of circle is an almost obvious area of importance; it will have a strong
bearing on whether to create your circle indoors or out, especially the
physical circle. You may want a 13 feet diameter circle, marked out with
flaming torches – that would be a little dangerous to attempt in 6’x6’ bedroom –
a slightly exaggerated example there but I have seen a circle cast with
torches. The point is to find a space which suits your needs and meets your
wants.
If you feel the your circle
is only necessary in the astral/aetheral, cast only by the intention of the
mind and your visualisation skills, space becomes less about the requirements
of the circle and more about the needs of the working, such as an altar set up.
Ø In or out?
·
Indoors (large space)
When space is not a restriction,
the freedom of expression in physical circle casting becomes limited only by
your imagination. I can only comment on my own personal ideas of that freedom
based on how I feel I would express myself without this particular limitation. Given
free reign, I would adore a large pentacle/triple-moon mural painted onto a
hard wood floor; there would be hollows made at each pentacle point for a
variety of directional/element creations… this particular area of circle
casting is my ideal, given that it is currently unavailable to me and so I
could keep writing for an eternity but I
will let your imaginations run wild and move on.
·
Indoors (small space):
More often than not, a whole
room cannot be set aside purely for magickal workings, this is true in my home
and so I have sectioned off an area of my bedroom where I can cast a circle,
have an altar, perform my rituals and
participate in other witchy activities and crafts. It is situated under
the window and from my altar I can see the moon at night and I get beautiful
sunlight in the late afternoon. When I cast my circle, the energy of it,
obviously passing through walls, is half inside and half outside, my altar and
I at its centre. I turned a small space into a place of charge & consecration,
a place of comfort & safety, a place of energy and elements, the home of deity
& myself together, a place of magick.
·
Outdoors (intended)
Casting a circle under the
full moon, surrounded by the elements at midnight is possibly the most
magickal moment I have ever or will ever experience. As I am not lucky enough to
have an outdoor space I can cast a circle at home, this takes place very
rarely. On the occasions I feel the need to use an outside area for circle, I
will take my wand to the local woods and cast a web of energy between trees. I
have a local place I go to for each full moon, to draw down the energies and
make my waters and oils.
If you have enough space at
home, a permenant outdoor circle can be created in several ways:
v
laying
stones in a circle, sunken or raised, can be a basic perimeter, plant flowers,
trees or fungi to enhance it’s magick
v
turn
over the ground to make a perimeter of earth
v
create
a circular stream/pond with a bridge in and out of the inner circle.
The choices are endless and
dependant only on your imagination.
·
Outdoors (random)
I will sometimes make an
occasion out of finding a place I am drawn to cast a circle. I will go for a
walk, wand in hand, with the intention of ‘finding
a circle’; the idea being that there are circles waiting to be cast at
certain places. I let my intuition guide me to a location which is either
brimming with energy and needs to be explored/released/invoked or lacking
energy which needs to be raised/cleansed/charged. I search until I find
somewhere that feels special and magickal, a place that calls to me, sometimes
it screams even…
When to Cast?
I have found a dramatic difference in opinion on
when to cast circles and on whether it is even necessary and I have concluded
that it really is the most individual choice. If within your own research of
practices and ideals you feel that circle casting should be a part of your
craft, like I did, then when to cast can be determined in two ways; if not by
one or the other then by both:
a) By physical and practical
need
b) By correspondence
Physical & Practical needs
Ø Undisturbed
Privacy has always been and
will always be an prime consideration in circle casting because casting and
working undisturbed is the key to mastering your own energy and keeping it
focused on your intention. It is therefore my advice to find a time when you
will remain undisturbed for the length of your ritual from the start of
preparation to the end of your ‘close
down’.
Ø Timing
This is the culmination of
both the need for privacy and the consideration of the correspondences you wish
to have present or be aligned to for your working. The majority of workings
(spells, ritual, honourings, blessings) will at the very least be linked to a
specific moon phase, possibly defined by a ruling deity, planet or day. A
circle can be tailored to these specifics to enhance the power of the working.
Ø Things
I will say that ‘things, by
which I mean tools, are not a requirement of successful workings but can be
considered as directional aids for your will and intent. I list them because
some people do rely on ‘things’ for there workings and may be waiting on something
arriving by mail or for their favourite witchy shop to have it in stock. I don’t
rely on my wand to cast a circle, I have cast a circle without it but I feel
much more myself, more confident in my casting if I have used it; nor do I
require a smudge stick to cleanse a space before casting but I would feel the ‘dustiness’ of the energy if I didn’t use
one. These and many other small tweaks to the state of mind of the caster are
likely to impact on the strength, integrity and purpose of the circle.
By Correspondence
The casting of circles comes from within, it is
about feeling a personal necessity and creating a space, this is can be the
incorporation of correspondences you’re not even aware of; if you just know you
should be casting a circle, if you feel an intuitive need to be out of the
mundane world, an urge to leave the physical behind and connect to the divine
then the Universe is trying to tell you something. As for the rest of the time,
you may need to rely on other correspondence and association to help decide
when to be getting your circle on:
Ø Sabbats
Any Wheel of the Year
celebration is likely to include an element of ritual; whether to honour a new
season, commune with nature, meditate on the tides, the winds or deity… a
circle will create the perfect environment to call up, release out, consecrate,
charge or otherwise alter something that needs a spiritual/magickal assist.
Ø Esbats
Ah, the moon… the ever
waxing and waning orb of inspiration to witches the world over. What better
reason is there to cast a circle than to be at one with this celestial energy
of silvery-white grace, the physical representation of our Goddess, the Universal
embodiment of femininity. I may have gotten a little poetic there but that is
also the point of casting during an Esbat… Her poetic nature, the fluidity of
her light, the curves of her orb, full or in shadow, can be harnessed, invoked
and projected into the most delicatly misty or hearty steel-like circle. Our
Lady Luna is not just there to be ‘Drawn Down’ but to be drawn upon… and when
you consider ‘As above, so below’ when you draw those silver hues from the
Universe, you also project them back to it three-fold… from your body, from you
mind and from your spirit.
There are other correspondences I could specifically
look into more deeply, such as Rites of Passage, Feast Days, the High Days of
each tradition but there is a world of study to each and there is no rush. I
will perhaps save those for later posts. When to cast a circle is unconditionally
and quite literally in the hands of the caster; there are no rules, no books, no
websites and no individuals who have the right to say “You have to…” or “You
must never…”; as with all areas of witchcraft and spirituality, practice only
what you are at peace with. This may take several years to a lifetime of trial
and error but the Universe in its many shapes, forms, guises and aspects will
always guide your path with an unheard whisper and an unseen hand (unless you
are lucky enough to catch a glimpse or hear a whisper… in circle).
Thank you's
This 'when and where' post has taken a bit
of oomph for me to get written and posted and it still wouldn't have been
completed without the inspiration of a specific YouTube Witch. I would therefore like
to thank the beautiful and talented +TheLadygravedancer for her fantastic videos and unwavering inspiration. I have long found your unique blend of down-to-earth logic, magickal spirit and outgoing nature and source of not only inspiration but Pagan Pride. May you always be that source for myself and many others. Blessed be Tequila. x)O(x
