{"id":9304,"date":"2014-01-01T01:10:02","date_gmt":"2014-01-01T06:10:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/paganpages.org\/content\/?p=9620"},"modified":"2014-01-01T14:26:53","modified_gmt":"2014-01-01T19:26:53","slug":"a-day-and-a-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/2014\/01\/01\/a-day-and-a-year\/","title":{"rendered":"A Day and a Year"},"content":{"rendered":"

Daily Wicca<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

While a witch\u2019s life might be full of Sabbats and Esbats, one might have trouble finding the magic in everyday life.\u00a0 However there are some things you can do daily to assist your spiritual growth and connection to Wicca.\u00a0 A few minutes a day can help build upon existing knowledge and create a deeper connection to your Wiccan practice.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mirror Book<\/strong><\/p>\n

Scott Cunningham suggests keeping a Mirror Book to record your progress in Wicca.\u00a0 Different to a Book of Shadows, a Mirror Book is like a diary and can include thoughts, feelings, your magical successes and failures, your doubts, fears, significant dreams and anything else part of your spiritual (and even mundane) life.\u00a0 Reading over past entries can assist in teaching you what has worked and what didn\u2019t.\u00a0 As self-knowledge is one of the goals in Wicca, the Mirror Book seems a perfect way to learn more about yourself.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Breathing Exercises<\/strong><\/p>\n

Many Wiccans use deep breathing to aid in meditation and entering altered states of consciousness.\u00a0 You can practice deep breathing by finding a comfortable place to sit, relaxing your body, and beginning by slowly inhaling in through your nose and out through your mouth.\u00a0 Try to make full use of your lungs, filling and emptying them with each breath.\u00a0 Breathing should be controlled, calm and free of tension.\u00a0 Incorporating visualization with deep breathing is a great way to relieve stress, by imagining breathing in love, health, tranquility and peace, while breathing out hate, disease, anger or anxiety.\u00a0 Practicing daily deep breathing will help you in other exercises, like energy work and meditation, as well as can help diffuse potential explosive situations in your mundane life.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Visualization<\/strong><\/p>\n

Visualization is used frequently in Wicca and involves \u2018seeing\u2019 what cannot be seen physically.\u00a0 One of the most important uses of visualization in Wicca is in forming the magic circle, which is usually performed by visualizing energy growing outwards to form a protective sphere around the ritual area.\u00a0 Using visualization, we can see with our minds instead of our eyes.\u00a0 This can help during energy work to bring things to fruition, such as visualizing ourselves in a great new job or healing from an illness.\u00a0 This is similar to using affirmations or positive statements that you repeat to yourself to imprint them on your subconscious mind.\u00a0 Since it is common that \u201cenergy follows thought\u201d, it is important to keep your thoughts in line with your desires and needs.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Meditation<\/strong><\/p>\n

Meditating allows a quiet and relaxing time to commune with our deities and ourselves, as well as a way to explore our subconscious mind.\u00a0 Techniques vary with tradition, but most involve placing yourself in a sitting position with a straight back, legs crossed, and hands placed gently on your knees.\u00a0 Start by breathing deeply for a few minutes, then starting to open your consciousness.\u00a0 This is a good time to commune and pray to the Gods, visualize symbols or chant a word or phrase that has meaning to you.\u00a0 You can begin with five minutes a day and still recognize the relaxing effects of meditation.\u00a0 After meditating, it\u2019s a good time to record thoughts or images in your Mirror Book.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Energy Work<\/strong><\/p>\n

All natural objects are manifestations of divine energy, from the rocks and trees, to animals and humans.\u00a0 Working with energy is as easy as rubbing your palms together quickly.\u00a0 The heat and tingling you feel is a manifestation of energy and power.\u00a0 Wiccans often raise energy during ritual for a specific purpose, such as for healing or strength.\u00a0 Visualization is very useful during energy raising, for example you can imagine energy swirling around you in a clockwise fashion, or from your receptive hand to your projective hand.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Grounding<\/strong><\/p>\n

After energy work, it is useful to ground to rid yourself of excess energy or protect yourself from unwanted energy.\u00a0 While the earth is our greatest source of power and energy, it is also useful for neutralizing it.\u00a0 Grounding is useful before ritual to rid yourself of mundane energy, after ritual where energy was raised, or after an argument if negative energy was transferred.\u00a0 A useful way to neutralize energy is through imagining a taproot extending from the base of your spine to the centre of the earth, where excess energy is pushed down and dissipated.\u00a0 This technique also helps when raising energy, by imagining the earth\u2019s energy and power being drawn up the taproot.\u00a0 Sometimes grounding is as easy as sitting or touching the ground, or even hugging a tree!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Praying<\/strong><\/p>\n

Praying has different meanings in different cultures and religions, however Wiccans can also pray to their deities or Gods.\u00a0 This can be done during meditation, visualization, breathing exercises, or even while sitting or lying down.\u00a0 Communing with our Gods is something we all can do and there are no rules as to who can do it, how or when.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

References:<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner\u201d by Scott Cunningham (1989)<\/p>\n

\u201cWicca For Beginners: Fundamentals of Philosophy and Practice\u201d by Thea Sabin (2006)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Daily Wicca   While a witch\u2019s life might be full of Sabbats and Esbats, one might have trouble finding the magic in everyday life.\u00a0 However there are some things you can do daily to assist your spiritual growth and connection to Wicca.\u00a0 A few minutes a day can help build upon existing knowledge and create a deeper connection to your Wiccan practice.   Mirror Book Scott Cunningham suggests keeping a Mirror Book to record your progress in Wicca.\u00a0 Different to a Book of Shadows, a Mirror Book is like a diary and can include thoughts, feelings, your magical successes and failures, your doubts, fears, significant dreams and anything else part of your spiritual (and even mundane) life.\u00a0 Reading over past entries can assist in teaching you what has worked and what didn\u2019t.\u00a0 As self-knowledge is one of the goals in Wicca, the Mirror Book seems a perfect way to learn more about yourself.   Breathing Exercises Many Wiccans use deep breathing to aid in meditation and entering altered states of consciousness.\u00a0 You can practice deep breathing by finding a comfortable place to sit, relaxing your body, and beginning by slowly inhaling in through your nose and out through your mouth.\u00a0 Try to make full use of your lungs, filling and emptying them with each breath.\u00a0 Breathing should be controlled, calm and free of tension.\u00a0 Incorporating visualization with deep breathing is a great way to relieve stress, by imagining breathing in love, health, tranquility and peace, while breathing out hate, disease, anger or anxiety.\u00a0 Practicing daily deep breathing will help you in other exercises, like energy work and meditation, as well as can help diffuse potential explosive situations in your mundane life.   Visualization Visualization is used frequently in Wicca and involves \u2018seeing\u2019 what cannot be seen physically.\u00a0 One of the most important uses of visualization in Wicca is in forming the magic circle, which is usually performed by visualizing energy growing outwards to form a protective sphere around the ritual area.\u00a0 Using visualization, we can see with our minds instead of our eyes.\u00a0 This can help during energy work to bring things to fruition, such as visualizing ourselves in a great new job or healing from an illness.\u00a0 This is similar to using affirmations or positive statements that you repeat to yourself to imprint them on your subconscious mind.\u00a0 Since it is common that \u201cenergy follows thought\u201d, it is important to keep your thoughts in line with your desires and needs. \u00a0 Meditation Meditating allows a quiet and relaxing time to commune with our deities and ourselves, as well as a way to explore our subconscious mind.\u00a0 Techniques vary with tradition, but most involve placing yourself in a sitting position with a straight back, legs crossed, and hands placed gently on your knees.\u00a0 Start by breathing deeply for a few minutes, then starting to open your consciousness.\u00a0 This is a good time to commune and pray to the Gods, visualize symbols or chant a word or phrase that has meaning to you.\u00a0 You can begin with five minutes a day and still recognize the relaxing effects of meditation.\u00a0 After meditating, it\u2019s a good time to record thoughts or images in your Mirror Book.   Energy Work All natural objects are manifestations of divine energy, from the rocks and trees, to animals and humans.\u00a0 Working with energy is as easy as rubbing your palms together quickly.\u00a0 The heat and tingling you feel is a manifestation of energy and power.\u00a0 Wiccans often raise energy during ritual for a specific purpose, such as for healing or strength.\u00a0 Visualization is very useful during energy raising, for example you can imagine energy swirling around you in a clockwise fashion, or from your receptive hand to your projective hand.   Grounding After energy work, it is useful to ground to rid yourself of excess energy or protect yourself from unwanted energy.\u00a0 While the earth is our greatest source of power and energy, it is also useful for neutralizing it.\u00a0 Grounding is useful before ritual to rid yourself of mundane energy, after ritual where energy was raised, or after an argument if negative energy was transferred.\u00a0 A useful way to neutralize energy is through imagining a taproot extending from the base of your spine to the centre of the earth, where excess energy is pushed down and dissipated.\u00a0 This technique also helps when raising energy, by imagining the earth\u2019s energy and power being drawn up the taproot.\u00a0 Sometimes grounding is as easy as sitting or touching the ground, or even hugging a tree!   Praying Praying has different meanings in different cultures and religions, however Wiccans can also pray to their deities or Gods.\u00a0 This can be done during meditation, visualization, breathing exercises, or even while sitting or lying down.\u00a0 Communing with our Gods is something we all can do and there are no rules as to who can do it, how or when.   References: \u201cWicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner\u201d by Scott Cunningham (1989) \u201cWicca For Beginners: Fundamentals of Philosophy and Practice\u201d by Thea Sabin (2006)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":184,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"iawp_total_views":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9304","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9304","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/184"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9304"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9304\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9304"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9304"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paganpages.org\/emagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9304"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}