Creating Sacred Space

Internal Preparations
    In order to have a successful circle your internal structure must be sound. Safe and Sane, if you are not feeling well, if you are being over whelmed with anger, or being swept away by sadness,  you need to step back and get yourself in check.
    If you’re working with a group the whole group needs to be comfortable, if someone is harboring misgivings, grudges, or is hiding secrets from the group the circle will not work and it can be very dangerous. Everyone needs to be open with each other and not hid things from the group that pertains to the group.
    The next thing you have to do is to familiarize yourself with what is going to be happening within your circle. Do you have all your visualizations ready? Do you know the sequence of events. Yes? Good...time for a bath!
    Within the group this will be a time known as Quiet time or Attunment. This is a brief time of solitary  meditation and reflection.

Ritual Cleansing
    Ok so a bath isn’t always going to be an option, neither is shower, in the group setting you all can’t just jump in a bath together, but pre-ritual purification is a must! Now at it’s most elaborate purification is seclusion from others, special diets or fasting, ritual baths, and meditation. It is the essence, not the form, that matters in purification; therefore, in most cases less elaborate methods will suffice. What you are striving for in your purification is to achieve “Perfect Love and Perfect Trust” or as close to is as humanly possible.
    So what is this purification? In definition it is the removal of undesirable elements, an increase in homogeneity, and/or a greater adherence to a pattern or standard.  You need to put aside all your worries, and anxieties from your life. Your not letting them go , dismissing, or releasing them. You still have to deal with them but this isn’t the time so just push them to the back of your mind. Now you will find it is easier purify yourself if your physical being is being Kept up with proper exercise, diet, sexuality, adequate rest, and the avoidance of toxins.  “if the flesh is weak, the spirit eventually loses its will, and its home.

The Ritual
    Alright you’re prepared, your cleansed, and you are ready to go. So what’s  to keeping your successful ritual going once you get started. Let loose, let go, and roll with the flow. First off forget about how silly, awkward, clumsy, or comical you see yourself or others as you are casting. It will throw off your mind set and your groups. Physically it will make your stiff, the voice will lack force, and your life force will stop it’s flow into the astral plane.
    Vulnerability and intimacy are often linked, and magical work, whether undertaken alone or in a group, Is self-revelatory and intimate. You will learn things about yourself through enacting castings and rituals, and what you learn may not always be comfortable. You will also learn that the things that you shy away from the most such as dancing, singing, or expressing affection are things that we most deeply want to do. Strong desire often encourages vigorous efforts at overcoming or releasing obstacles in our path.
After the Ritual
    Alright you ritual went off great! You are buzzing on the energy you created but now what? You can’t just let it bounce around unattended. You need to ground or Center.  Grounding is connecting with our bodies to affirm their importance before shifting our focus outward to encompass more than the physical, and more then ourselves.
    Centering is finding balance ad true identity within yourself while being open to the flow of energy. When your sense of your will and intent is clear, your actions will be truer to your karma, dharma, and life goals.