Adapted from The Cherokee Full Circle, by J.T. Garrett and Michael Tlanusta Garrett (Inner Traditions, 2002).The Universal Circle, a symbol of balance and harmony, is included in every aspect of the Native American way of life. In many Native American traditions, to “offer prayers” means calling out to the four winds for their sacred powers, since the four winds offer lessons from the four directions that make up the Universal Circle.
Each of us experiences this Circle and the four directions as we continue our journey of life. What are the lessons of the four directions? How do we experience this powerful image of wholeness? Find out here:
Circle of Life
The circle of life begins with the fire in the center, the birth, that spirals into the direction of the East for the protection of family while developing.
Then life spirals to the direction of the South to learn how to play, “and to learn of the fairness of games in nature.”
At about the age of seven we start our spiral to the direction of the West, where we learn competition and endurance for work and play through the teen years.
Then we spiral to the direction of the North, where we learn the skills and knowledge of an adult to be a teacher and master of our abilities or trade. We continue to spiral until we reach our elder years as we return to the sacred fire of life, to begin again the spirit world as ancestors.
This is the Universal Circle of life that brings us the understanding of our connections with all things within that circle.
As with most types of magick, prevention is better than cure, so if you’re prone to bad health, it might be wise to carry some of these herbs at all times. Replace them regularly (Every three months or so).
Although magickally forcing your loved one to remain faithful is violating one of the precepts of magick (harm none), there are herbs which can be used to gently remind him or her of you and to guard against unwanted temptations used them with love and care.
From the overwhelming number of herbs used for this purpose it is obvious that protection is (and has been) of the utmost concern for many people. Most of the protective herbs are general in their effects; they guard their bearer against physical and psychic attacks; injury; accidents, poison, snake bite, lightning strikes, wicked spirits, the evil eye and so on. In other words they are protective in a general way.
Naturally they won’t do you much good once something has happened–protective herbs should be a preventative. This doesn’t mean that if you wear a protective root or carry a sachet you’ll breeze through life unfettered with annoyances. But carrying some of those herbs will certainly help screen out potential harmful situation.
In today’s world we should guard ourselves with every available means. Protective herbs are one of these. They create a type of force field around your home, possessions, or self. When carried they also increase the effectiveness of your body’s natural defenses.
An ounce of prevention, after all, is worth a pound of cure.
Spells function best when some sort of context exists for them in which to manifest. Have you acted in the physical world to work on the situation you intend to address with a spell? Spells will not solve your problems for you. They will help, but leaving them to function without putting any other effort in on your end reduces the chances of the spell coming to successful fruition. Would you cast a spell to pass an exam for an area of study with which you had no experience? What would be the point of that?
A need or desire has every right to be met, whether it’s a need for a scholarship to enable you to study at the postgraduate level, or a desire for the traffic light to change so that you can cross the intersection to walk on the sunny side of the street. That need or desire is, the first requirement in order for a spell to exist. If you don’t have a need or a desire, don’t waste your time. Spellcraft isn’t something to pass the hours, or an art to practice on a whim. It’s a powerful force for transformation and change, requiring your dedication and involvement. Crafting and casting a spell requires time, focus, great concentration and energy, and if you’re doing it on a whim, you’re going to a lot of trouble for nothing. Emotion is one of the key concepts that powers a spell, and a whim just doesn’t have the depth of emotion required. In addition, there’s the issue of responsibility. If you ask for it, you’re responsible for it.
Unless you intend to perform a spontaneous spell (and there’s nothing wrong with that), you’ll need to create one. In order to do that, the following are steps you’ll need to work through.
Some modern religions use spellcraft regularly as part of their worship. Neo-Pagan religions such as Wicca, Druidry, Ásatrú, and other established path such as Santeria, Voudoun, and Candomblé all use spellwork as part of their worship process. Spellwork can certainly be done within a religious context, whether the religion is one of those mentioned or not. Within a spell, the inclusion of a deity or a higher power of some kind immediately transforms the spell into a spiritual act. However, the deity you appeal to in a spell should be a deity to whom you have at least introduced yourself, and have obtained their permission to work with them, otherwise you’re not going to get much out of it. Several spells in the “cookbook craft” category toss around invocations to Hecate as the Queen of Witches or invoke Aphrodite to help out in a love spell. These are ancient deities, now often thought relegated to mythology books. You can’t just harness their energies; there has to be more to it than that., If your spell knocks at their door, they’re likely to take a look through the spyhole, not recognize you, and won’t answer. Even ancient deities understand what dangers lie with inviting just anyone into their home. Conversely, why invoke a deity associated with another culture or religion just because a spell in a book tells you to do it? What do you know about them? Who knows what kind of energy you might be inviting into your spell?
If you function within an established faith, your best bet is to appeal to the deity or aspect of the Divine that you already work with. You have an established relationship with this deity. When your spell comes knocking,k the deity will recognize your energy, and your spell will have the added boost of love and energy freely given.
If you involve a spiritual entity such as a deity or an angel in a spell does it become a ritual? Not necessarily. It depends on your goal. Is your goal to achieve nirvana, or to become spiritually balanced within your religious path? Then you’re performing a ritual. Is it to obtain a new cat, or to release anger or stress? Then it’s a spell. When you’re not precisely sure if your goal is spiritual or practical, then it’s probably still a spell.
You can pretty much cast a spell any time you feel comfortable doing so. However, there are a few things to keep in mind. You must:
Have a valid need or desire, clearly delineated
Be in the correct frame of mind
Be in the proper state of health
If you cannot aim your spell as a clearly defined goal, then you have no concept of what you truly wish to manifest as a result of that spell. Apart from being a waste of energy, this can create more problems as the energy your spell casts out into the world bounces randomly like a pinball around and through the issues in your life. With no clear goal or need, a spell becomes dangerously unpredictable.
Your mental state is crucial to your success. Being distracted or worried will weaken your focus and your subsequent effects. States of high emotion can also be dangerous. Emotion is one of the energy sources that fuels spells. This might sound ideal to you, and in one respect, it is: the ability to feel intense emotion during the casting process can help you a lot. However, that intense emotion should be summoned and accessed during the process. If you fire off a spell as an emotional reaction to something, you are guilty of not thinking the situation through. You are not in proper command of yourself, which you need to be in order to cast a focused and well-aimed spell. Spells are a method of controlling yourself and your life, and to cast like this is not only irresponsible, it undermines the whole principle of creating positive change in your life.
Your state of health is also vitally important. When you are ill, your personal energies are unbalanced, and your handling of outside energies will be affected. Every spell, no matter how many other power sources you pull in such as components and correspondences, uses your own personal energy to guide it. Casting while ill can worsen your physical health, leaving you low on vital energy. Raising energy is a crucial step within the spellcasting process, and it takes energy to raise energy. Remember, spells don’t replace work: they are work. Many practitioners feel like they’ve run a marathon after casting a spell. If you had the choice, would you run a marathon if you were sick? Probably not: in fact, most of us want to stay home from work as soon as we experience the first warning signs of a cold. Casting while ill is irresponsible, as it counters the principle of creating beneficial change. It is somewhat hypocritical to attempt to create beneficial change in your life when you’re making yourself more ill by doing so.
What about casting a spell to regain your health? This is the one and only exception to the rule about performing spells while ill. However, make sure the spell you craft or use isn’t too taxing, and choose a gentler method of raising energy.
The Witchcraft Chronicles 
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