22 minute read
FALL IN LOVE WITH CANDLES
By Madame Pamita
As a savvy business person, you’re probably aware of many of the benefits to having candles in your product mix: they’re great for eye-catching and colorful displays, they make great gifts, and they are consumable, so loyal customers will always come back for more. But as a spiritual business owner, there is something extra that you can share with your clients that big box stores and online behemoths will never be able to give their shoppers - the magic of candles!
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Candles are magic! Take a moment and think about what a candle represents. It is a way for us to bring fire, in a very controlled way, into our home. Who else used fire magically? Oh, only our oldest ancestors. More than a million years ago, long before our Homo sapiens great-greatgrandparents were even a twinkle in Homo erectus’ eyes, hominids began controlling fire. Every time we light a candle, we open ourselves up to the awe and wonder of the power of fire that our ancestors experienced. No wonder candles are incorporated into so many spiritual practices.
As business owners, part of our job description is also to be an educator. Our customers love us because we make recommendations and teach them how to use products in ways they may not have thought of before. The customer who walks into your store or checks you out online, might think of a candle as a pretty decorative item, but you have an opportunity to show them that candles can be so much more.
So, what are some of the ways that you can teach your customers that candles are more than a lovely gift for that hard-to-shop-for friend? Invite them to think of candles as an important part of their spiritual practice. No matter what kind of customer you serve, there is a candle practice that they can fall in love with. Check out these different spiritual practices with candles and give them a test drive so that you can share your knowledge with your clients.
If you have a client who is having difficulty focusing during their meditation practice or just wants to try something new, teach them how to do a candle gazing meditation. While most meditation is done with the eyes closed, candle meditation is done with the eyes open and focused on a candle flame. For meditators who have trouble with their mind wandering, this can be a game changer and the steps are simple.
Choose a candle that is enticing and appealing
You want to get entranced by your candle, so choosing one that smells amazing and looks beautiful can help center and focus you. You might want to direct your customers to candles that have aromatherapeutic benefits orcolors that invite stillness and calm – like blue or lavender.
Select a large candle that you are going to use for meditation only
Having a dedicated candle for your practice will get you into a meditative mindset every time you use it. Make sure it’s large enough that it will burn for several sessions, so that you can build up a relationship with it.
Light your candle in a dim room and set it on a table at about eye level
Sit on the floor and set your candle on a table so that you don’t have to crane your neck up or down to view the flame comfortably.
Stare at the candle and let the flame be the focus of your attention
As you gaze at the flickering flame, you’ll find that it begins to become the sole mental and visual focus. The room around you will begin to fade, the flame will captivate your attention and you’ll find your thoughts quieting down.
FOR YOUR LAW OF ATTRACTION FANS
If your customer is one who knows the law of attraction inside and out, turn them on to a new way to bring focus to their intentions. One of the most challenging parts of manifesting is to keep your focus on your good outcomes and to do it repeatedly. A simple daily candle ritual can amplify your intentions, reminding you to keep you focus on your goals.
Start with a candle that aligns with your intention
Choose a candle with a clear intentional focus, such as a candle that says “Healing,” “Love,” or “Luck.” These candles have essential oils, fragrance, herbs, or colors that align with your manifestation.
Set the candle in a place where you will see it often
A candle on an end table, in your bedroom, or in a high-traffic area of your home or workplace will be a reminder of your intention and of your practice.
Create a positive, confident phrase that encapsulates your goal
There are some great guidelines for this: Write a short sentence. Keep in the present tense. Let the phrasing be bold and optimistic. For example, “I have a great new job” or “My new relationship is perfect for me.”
Light the candle daily and speak your positive intention out loud
The daily practice of speaking your positive phrase aloud will reinforce your intention and add juice to your manifestation. Choose a special time of day and try to keep your practice consistent to that time. For example, lighting the candle first thing in the morning or while you are sitting at your desk.
FOR YOUR BRAND-NEW WITCHES
It seems like everywhere you turn you are running into newly-minted “baby witches” who are looking for resources on how to do witchcraft. Lighting candles for spells is witchcraft 101 and if someone is coming into your store, you can teach them a basic format that will work for most of their spell work. And, if your customer wants to dive deeply into candle magic, you may want to suggest a spell book to them.
Reinforce your spell by choosing a candle in a color that corresponds to your spell. For example, if I were to ask you what color would be good for a love spell, you might say “red” or “pink. Or for money magic, you might choose green or gold. Or you might choose a color based on the chakra system. If you aren’t sure what color to pick, this handy chart will give you some guidance.
Candle colors and their corresponding intentions:
Green – Prosperity, money luck, growth, fertility, gambling luck, business, career. Red – Passionate love, energy, action, attraction, sexuality. White – Cleansing, clarity, blessing, healing, connection to spirits or the spiritual world. Black– Cursing, banishing, protection, reversing, freedom from evil. Blue – Harmony, peace, calming, ideas, joy, kindly intentions, healing. Pink – Romantic love, friendship, sweet feelings, heart connection, affection. Purple – Empowerment, success, controlling, commanding, mastery, power, ambition. Lavender – Healing, calming, tranquility Yellow – Optimism, prosperity, happiness, gambling luck, attraction Orange – New opportunities, success, new ventures, change of plans, opening the way Brown – Justice, balance, grounding, legal matters. Gray – Neutralizing negativity, invisibility, working in “gray areas”
Using a nail, knife, or candle inscriber, write pertinent names and key words into the sides of your candle.
Dress the candle in a spiritual oil
Use a prepared magical oil blend or create your own. Essential oils of magical herbs diluted in a carrier oil such as sweet almond oil, can be rubbed into the palms and then applied to the surface of the candle.
Sprinkle light and leafy dried herbs or powdered herbs around the candle
Set the candle in a candle holder or on a tray and sprinkle small amounts of powdered dried herbs on or around the base of the candle. Use a good magical herb book to choose plants that support your spell.
Speak your words aloud and light your candle
Strike a match and speak your spell words aloud as you set the wick alight.
Allow your candle to burn while you are at home and awake
If you go to sleep or leave the house, snuff the candle out to pause your spell work.
Ritually dispose of your candle spell remains
When the candle has burned completely, the spell has been cast. Wrap up your candle wax remains in a paper bag or piece of cloth. If the spell is something that you want to bring to you, you can keep the remains until your spell manifests. If the spell was to get rid of something, take the candle remains to a trash can far from your home and dispose of it.
FOR THOSE WHO CONNECT TO SPIRIT GUIDES AND ANGELS
For clients who love to connect to deities, guides, saints, angels, ancestors, or other positive spirits, candles can be an integral part of a dedicated home altar. This altar can be a place to build a relationship to your spirits and spend time with them, as well as petition them for help or make offerings.
Find a place for an altar
Choose a small area to dedicate as your altar. This can be an end table or tray table, but could also be a shelf, ledge, or windowsill. You can even create a portable altar out of a cigar box or shoe box.
Set an image of your spirit up on your altar
This can be a photograph or illustration set attractively in a frame. You might want to use a figurine or statue or an object that represents the spirit of your spirit. For example, you might use an apple or a seashell to represent Aphrodite.
Choose a candle for honoring your spirit
White candles are considered general, all-purpose candles for spirit work, but you might want to choose a color associated with your spirit or a candle in a glass holder with an image of the spirit on it.
Select a larger candle that can be lit over the course of many days
Unlike a candle spell where the goal is to burn the candle to completion, a spirit altar candle is ongoing. When one candle ends, you begin a new one, so getting a larger candle for ongoing work is simpler and more economical. A novena, sanctuary, or seven-day candle in a glass jar works well for this purpose.
Add offerings to the altar
Different spirits may want different things. Those who were once living, such as ancestors or those loved ones who have departed, may want a little bit of something they enjoyed in life. Offerings such as fruit, tobacco, candy, flowers, or alcohol can be placed in a bowl or glass for them to enjoy. Deities and saints may want particular offerings. For example, St. Expedite enjoys an offering of pound cake, Shiva likes saffron, honey and ghee, Isis appreciates milk, flowers, honey, whileSt. Barbara and Persephone are both associated with pomegranates. A beautiful bowl or glass of water is always welcomed by all spirits.
Burn incense along with your candle
Incense is especially nice for setting a mood, cleansing a space, and connecting with the spirit world. Lighting incense or burning herbs before your light your candle can be an excellent beginning to your ritual of meeting with your guide.
Light your candle on a daily basis
Similar to the Law of Attraction manifesting ritual, you may want to light your spirit candle on a daily basis. Chant, sing, or just have a chat with your spirits as you light the candle. Sit with the candle and speak to your guides or sit in companionable silence as you visualize meeting with them.
Try out these beautiful non-denominational ways of connecting with candles yourself and then share them with your customers. They can be incorporated into any spiritual practice and adapted to any religion. Have an exchange with your clients and discover the ways that they have used candles to connect spiritually and you may discover some new ideas that you can add to your bag of candle magic tricks.
Madame Pamita is a Tarot reader, spellcaster, teacher, author, and a Maker of Magic, music, and mischief. She is the author of The Book of Candle Magic recently published by Llewellyn, and Madame Pamita’s Magical Tarot published by Weiser Books. She is also the owner of an online spiritual apothecary, the Parlour of Wonders and lives in Santa Monica, California. You can find her at www.parlourofwonders.com
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Life, Business & Mental Health
By Emily A. Francis
Even as the pandemic restrictions begin to ease, we they are not the kind of person who wants to take a stand. I personare still left trying to establish the truth and the ally have lost a great deal of respect for friends and even mentors as facts. There is an extraordinary amount of misin- they spew hate and misinformation around the internet. Suspicions formation and our lives are left in disarray. We are about people I’ve known all my life are being confirmed by the posts sitting in the eye of several storms that will forever they make on their social media pages. All of our relationships have be etched into history. We have been put on stand begun to change during this time when personal contact has been still as a massive pandemic hit all over the world. extremely limited or cut off entirely. We are getting to know people We have people who never believed it was real while others have lost on a very different level right now as we collectively watch friends and their lives because it was real. We have seen friends and neighbors act strangers falling apart and also coming together. The behaviors, the with incredible kindness and we have witnessed many other friends words and actions as well as the reaction patterns that are being set and neighbors act cruelly with outright negligence to everyone but all over the world right now are utterly disastrous and the concept themselves. We have seen people turn on each other in the most of unity feels as if it never existed in the first place. This is true inside vicious ways and we have seen the best in people just as often. We our homes and on our screens and it is equally true on the outside as are coming into big truths about who we are, how we perceive and we are either joining in with marching and protesting or witnessing treat our fellow brothers and sisters and which side of history we are through the screens the massive riots and outcries for help, and for choosing to stand. People have not only lost relationships with friends support and God forbid…for LOVE. No one can feel truly at peace and lovers but as the vitriol on social media continues, we are seeing during so much chaos unless possibly you are a Buddhist Zen Master people for who and what they are really about. For many, this can feel and in that case, it’s unlikely you would not be reading this piece as heavy an emotional and spiritual weight as the pandemic itself. right now, nor would you need it.
Respect for people that have been in our lives for many years has Many have lost their life savings, their health and their businesses vanished as we watch them spread hate and prejudice or turn a blind during these trying times. Many businesses have gone under or are away and pretend that so many things are not actually happening barely hanging on while others have been booming. In terms of anything in the world right now. Others feel the pressure to choose a side and marketing, book launching or trying to garner followers on social media,
the playing field has been substantially leveled and every single person has the same chance as anyone else to turn that avenue into something bigger or smaller. I used to think that when it came to selling books the thing that separated the bestselling authors from the less selling authors was their willingness to get out and hit the road and market and speak and show up for any gig big or small. Now, none of us have the ability to hit the road and it levels the playing field completely. It is the realization that in that market, no one really has much of an advantage anymore. We are all at home doing the best we can with what we have. Some will emerge as internet stars, or as someone new who has been spending a tremendous amount of time in self-reflection and realizations. Some will come out of this with a whole new lease on life while others can barely get themselves to begin to take the first step out.
During such a precarious time, wherever you are standing right now during all of this, I do feel it is safe to say at least one thing that we might all have in common. We are left with an overall sense of how do we navigate from this point onward? From a wellness and emotional health perspective, we have to not only continue to look within and question and define, but also we must learn to look beyond ourselves and our own lives and help the collective consciousness rise to a new level as we make our way back out into a world that no longer looks like it did when we all went inside and locked our doors.
In this moment that I am putting pen to paper for this article, many things are still closed and the world does not at all look the same as it did when this whole thing began months ago. No one looks the same to me; not even myself. When you look at people who have been through a terrible illness and survived it, they do not come out looking like they did at the beginning of the journey. Anyone who ever went through or sat with someone who went through chemotherapy can attest to the quickness in aging and full scale rebuild of a body which had been annihilated before the rebuild. In a way, this lockdown and change in the world around us, leaves many of us looking much the same way. In most cases, we come out looking weathered, aged, and a mix of distress and elation all etched into the lines of our faces. It pairs with an unyielding sense of gratitude for being alive. I feel like this describes most of us now as we have weathered this very intense and terrifying time on the inside. We are not going to come out of this looking the same way we did when we all went in. We can’t shake the experiences that every single person has had during all of this. For many it has been isolating, lonely, and terrifying. For many others they came out realizing that everything that they counted on in their lives has fallen quickly and hard. And for some others, this time down low was spent either with ourselves or loved ones in a safe space as we watched the world crumble right outside our doors. Even if this has not been a time where we lost everything, no one will come out of this unscathed.
I write books about healing and our ability to heal. I believe in miracles and in miracle healing, this is true. I believe incredible things can happen when we get into alignment within ourselves and then move as a complete unit toward the target of wellness and health. I
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also know that when it comes to healing, we have to honor where we are in every given moment. When the feelings come and ask us to stay down, then stay down as long as we need to be down before getting back up and creating again. I believe this as a collective, is where we are for the moment. We are down. It doesn’t mean that we won’t get back up, and that we won’t come back stronger and healthier and happier. It means that for now, be ok with being in rest mode and feel all of what is happening.
We are currently and still in the stages of cocooning. We are still figuring out and defining who and what we want to become when the bans lift. What world do we want to have a hand in creating? If our business or personal relationships that we worked many years to build suddenly collapsed during this time, we are having to ask these questions and also bear the extremely heavy burden of the letdown that has been happening all around us. How do we pick ourselves up and begin again? If we do actually have to begin again, is this even what we want to start to do all over or has it played its purpose of what we wanted to get from it? And then what?
In order to help the collective to clean house and make a new start, we must begin to realize and establish what our own behavior patterns are and how we can best navigate them. In traditional therapies that I have found over the years for the purpose of balancing my own mental health, I was often asked by the professional to imagine the very worst-case scenario and then work my way back from there into the present moment where you are alive, breathing and safe. We begin with the big question: “What’s the absolute worst thing that can happen?” Then we answer with whatever we imagine to be the very worst thing that could occur. Then we do it again with one step forward asking ourselves “If the very worst thing doesn’t happen, what is the next worst-case thing that could happen to us if we attempted this or that?” From there we keep walking ourselves back into the present time.
For the purpose of our personal wellness as well as the new elevated consciousness of our personal, professional and more interconnected world at large, I would like to propose the option of taking that same idea from my old therapist and turn it totally upside down. We must be willing to ask ourselves now with regard to each individual subject: “What is the absolute very best thing that could happen to me?” From a conscious collective standpoint, you can ask the same exact question. “What is it that we want to be able to come out and create? What do we want to become?” And then we ask it again “If the very best thing does not happen, then what is the next best thing that could possibly happen to me/us in this situation?” Continue with these questions until we work our way back into the present moment. And then be patient as all of your answers unfold. Soon we will find that we are ready to break our cocoons, and in time, we will fly again.
Emily A. Francis is the host of All About Healing on Healthy Life Radio and the author of the new book Whole Body Healing. You can read more about her latest publications at www.emilyafrancisbooks.com
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