Thanks Jay, Was Fun To Add To!

Interesting & Useful Occult Unicode Characters

Some of these may show up as a weird square/question mark thing depending on the font used/configuration of your browser. 

𖤐 Inverted Pentagram

Stars:

★ Five-pointed Star ✶ Six-pointed Star ✷ Eight-pointed Star ✹ Twelve-pointed Star

Elements:

🜁 Air 🜂 Fire 🜃 Earth 🜄 Water

Planets:

☉ Sun ☽︎ Moon ☿ Mercury ♀ Venus ♁ Earth ♂ Mars ♃ Jupiter ♄ Saturn ♅ Uranus ♆ Neptune ♇ Pluto

Astrology:

☊ Ascending Node ☋ Descending Node ☌ conjunction ☍ opposition

Egyptian Deities:

𓀭 or 𓁰 or 𓁱 Ptah 𓀲 or 𓀴 Osiris 𓁐 Goddess 𓁚 or 𓁛 Re 𓁟 or 𓅝 Thoth 𓁠 or 𓁡 Chnum 𓁢 Anubis 𓁢 Upuat 𓁣 Seth 𓁤 Min 𓁥 Hathor 𓁦 Maat 𓁨 Hah 𓁩 Amun 𓁮 Menthu 𓁯 Tatenen 𓂕 Nehebkau 𓆫 Selkis 𓅃 Horus 𓋇 Seshat 𓋋 Neith

Alchemy:

☿ Mercury (Mind) 🜔 Salt (base matter or body) 🜍 Sulfur (Soul)

♁ Antimony 🜺 Arsenic 🜘 Bismuth = Boron ⊛ Magnesium ☽☉ Platinum 🜏 🜍 Sulfur

Runes:

ᚠ FEHU - F: Cattle ᚢ URUZ - U: Brute Strength ᚦ THURISAZ - TH: The seeing of the future ᚨ ANSUZ - A: references the ancestral god, Odin. ᚱ RAIDHO - R: Journey ᚲ KENAZ - K: Beacon or torch. ᚷ GEBO - G: Gift of Harmonic Relationships ᚹ WUNJO - W or V: Bliss and Glory ᚺ HAGALAZ - H: Destructive forces ᚾ NAUTHIZ - N: The Negatives of Human Needs ᛁ ISA - I: Ice ᛃ JERA - J or Y: The Cycle of One Year ᛇ EIHWAZ - EI: Yew Tree ᛈ PERTHRO - P: Initiation, Things Unexplained, Something Hidden ᛉ ALGIZ: Z ᛊ SOWILO - S: The Sun ᛏ TEIWAZ - T: Tyr, the sky god. ᛒ BERKANA - B: Birch-goddess ᛖ EHWAZ - E: The Sacred Horse ᛗ MANNAZ - M: The nature of Humanity ᛚ LAGUZ - L: Water - Emotions ᛜ INGWAZ - NG: Fertility ᛞ DAGAZ - D: Daylight or Dawn. ᛟ OTHALA - O: Ancestral property - Inheritance

Other Egyptian Hieroglyphs I thought were interesting:

𓂀 Eye of Horus 𓃠 Cat 𓃩 Set-animal 𓃶 Goat with collar 𓆣 Scarab 𓆸 Lotus

Keep reading

"How do I craft spells?"

A completely valid question, but first, a disclaimer:

I am still learning, most of my practice is spirit work and divination. This post is me recounting how I've came to craft my own spell with the guidance of other witches and my own creativity

So first things first:

Make your intentions precise

Set your intention for your spell. There are spells where you can set multiple intentions (say for example you're doing a spell to find a job and to get more money) but this can muddle the results, maybe you'll get an interview for a job or get a trial shift where you get paid, or maybe the spell just doesn't work.

A point to make: spells don't work sometimes. It's not your fault, sometimes it just doesn't. The universe will only give you what's best :3 other reasons it may not work is: you didn't have the right energy at the time, you didn't have the right materials, you didn't do enough mundane acts. But anyway, back to the post

Precise itentions: do you want a job? do you want a chocolate bar? Do you want a dog? Did you specify how you wanted to receive these things? If not you could get: a job for a weekend by helping a family member move; a picture of a chocolate bar; a toy dog gifted to you for secret Santa. Your intentions have to be clear.

Materials

Now while you don't have to have materials they can help set your intention into your spell and give it the push it needs. There's plenty of resources for what herbs, crystals, incense, oils and candles can be used for what type of spell. You don't have to use all of these (or any of these) but I do recommend it.

If you're someone wondering why you would make your own spell when there's literally thousands of spells out there, here's why. Let's say you're me; you live in an apartment (no garden to grow herbs) you're poor, can't buy speciality herbs or crystals, can't use incense cause your flatmate is asthmatic and every single spell that you find needs some type of special herb, crystal shards or incense to work. Instead of me spending eons looking through books to find a spell that I can actually do it's easier (for me) to make my own and look through the spell books for ideas.

Deities and Spirits

Yeap, you can incorporate deities into your spell, even offer the spell to one or multiple deities, ask them to help it come to fruition give them additional offerings, do whatever you like; who better to give your spell to the universe than those that control the universe.

You can ask dragons, Fae, elementals whoever to help you out, even give the spell a little boost! I'm working on a prosperity spell and I'm planning on getting my fire elemental spiritguide to give the ending (lighting a candle) a boost filled with passion

What else can I use for spells (that's free)

Here's a list of things you can use :3

1. Sigils, either make your own or find some

2. Random rocks and plants outside

3. Drawings

4. Meditation (helps to clear your mind before spellwork)

5. Birthday candles (guarantee you have some in the house)

6. Cooking spices (be sure to look up their magical properties)

7. Energy

That's all I can think of for now, if you have any questions or I didn't cover something feel free to ask!

2nd Comm done for my housemate! Was amazing to work on!

Drawing done for @knowledge-from-the-abyss , Hel! Norse Goddess of the dead and daughter of Loki!

My Comms are open!

Raven’s Guide to Baneful Magic

Baneful magic is magic intended to do harm. So to all the Wiccans, sorry, this one isn’t for you.

Now that I have all you spiteful mad-at-the-world types, let’s begin.

There are generally 4 levels of baneful magic. Jinxes, Hexes, Bindings, and Curses.

A jinx is a small spell to bring bad luck. It could be as little as flipping someone off with intent and they stub their toe. This kind is mostly annoying and pretty harmless to everything except toes and the odd finger pinched in a door.

Hexes are the next step up and it’s not a small step. The best way to describe them would be short term and weak curses. This would take a small spell. The consequences could be anything from being forgetful to anxiety to coming down with a small cold. These are meant to ruin someones day or maybe a week.

A binding is a bigger spell. It’s the black sheep(pun intended) of baneful magic because a lot of witches who won’t use baneful will still bind. It does what it sounds like, it stops someone/thing from doing something(normally harmful). These spells normally have an end condition ie (this person will never find love until they atone for X). These can be pretty bad for the person being bound, but having an end condition makes them more constructive.

Curses. These are the heavy hitters. I wouldn’t curse anyone unless I wanted to wreck their shit. Curses take a major spell(most of the ones you see on Tumblr would actually fall under hexes or bindings). The effects can be ruining a relationship and all ones after, wrecking a career, destroying a friendship, major illness, etc…

For curses, I don’t believe in the rule of 3(I’m not wiccan). But I would still protect myself to the gills before attempting one. Major magical workings move a lot of energy, and things can notice that. Also, a bit of stray energy latching onto you during the spell and you’ll quickly find you hexed yourself by mistake.

“What would I use for a curse?”

Well, specifics would come with what you wanted to accomplish and what you have around, but I can give you very general things.

Anything black will probably be good for baneful magic

Unpleasant things

Certain spirits can help you(not recommended for beginners do not sell your soul to curse your ex)

Salt

Graveyard Dirt(again not a beginner thing)

Poppets are fun! evil cackle

Spicy things, the hotter the better

Things that smell like the garbage after a week(do not use actual garbage it’s a health hazard)

You’re going to need a Taglock

Nails

Fire(don’t burn yourself or your house)

Pretty much anything nasty

Anything poisonous(DON’T POISON ANYTHING OR ANYONE)

There is a very short list that should give you an idea. Each spell would be pretty customized to what you wanted it to do.

And there you have it, a crash course in baneful magic. Do what you will, but don’t be stupid. This isn’t a game and if you want to curse your ex I would suggest leaving off for a few months before you actually do it.

And finally…

NEVER CAST A SPELL YOU CAN’T UNDO!!!

Divination

What is divination? 

Divination usually (but does not always) involves using tools as a way to communicate with deities, guides, spirits etc (any being that resides on the astral plane). Here are some common divination methods people use. 

Pendulums (sometimes used alongside spirit boards)

Tarot cards

Oracle cards

Cartomancy 

Shufflemancy (using music to do divination) 

Osteomancy (bone throwing) 

Dice 

Coins

There are many many different forms of divination that you can research and utilize, however these are some of the common forms of divination that I see people using. I’ll also be covering some information about channeling and automatic writing later on in this post. 

Questions about Tarot, Oracle, Cartomancy (divination using any type of cards)

Can I buy my own decks/divination tools? 

Yes, you can absolutely buy your own decks or other divination tools. I know there is a lot of misinformation about this out there, some communities say that you aren’t allowed to buy your own decks (especially with tarot) but this is not true, you can and honestly should buy your own tools. You can always accept gifts as well, however in my experience with some of my friends getting me decks, I ended up getting rid of them because I didn’t vibe with their energies. When I buy my own decks, it's a lot easier for me to figure out if I’m going to like the energy of that deck and if we’ll get along. This goes for any divination tool as well! 

A huge reason this question comes up a lot when it comes to divination is because hundreds of years ago, people were judged and scrutinized for practicing witchcraft (and divination is considered witchcraft). Divination and other forms of witchcraft had to be done in secret, so going out and buying a tarot deck was not something someone could openly do. Nowadays, of course, most of the world does not have these same views. 

How do I shuffle my cards? How do I pick cards? 

There are many different ways to shuffle your cards; this can also depend on how big or small your cards are. I definitely recommend looking up various ways to shuffle online (most of the tips online will show you different methods to shuffle a regular playing deck). 

In regards to picking cards for a reading, there are also various ways to do this too. Some people will let the cards fall out and whatever cards fall out are meant for the reading. Some people shuffle until their intuition tells them to stop, and then they pull cards until their intuition tells them to stop (this is a method I use sometimes). Some people fan their cards out and pick the cards they are drawn to select. For me personally, I generally do the first method, but I only select cards that fall out with the card face up. 

Do I need to use reversals? What is the use of reversals?

You do not have to use reversals if you do not want to, however they do come in handy. Especially when it comes to tarot, not all the upright versions of the cards are positive, for example the Four of Cups Upright actually has a more negative meaning than the reversal. My perspective is coming from someone who has always used reversals, however I understand especially for someone just starting out, it can be very hard to use both upright and reversals. 

Can I still do tarot even if I can’t remember all the card meanings?

YES! I have been practicing tarot for over 15 years now, I’m a professional tarot reader, and I STILL don’t have all the card meanings memorized. I always use either this website or guidebooks that come with the decks to interpret, alongside my intuition and occasionally channeling as well to do my readings. You should not feel pressured or intimidated just because you don’t remember all the card meanings. I’ve honestly found (and others agree) that not always having the cards memorized and having to look up the meaning can help greatly with the interpretation; a lot of times reading what the guidebook says will give me intuition hits and allow my readings to be much more detailed. 

Do I need to use spreads? 

No, you do not need to use spreads if you don’t want to; I rarely ever use spreads in my practice, I just let the cards fall out and interpret it that way. 

How do I interpret multiple cards for one question? 

Generally, what I do when I am doing a reading is combine the meanings of each card together. I am actually going to use a real reading for myself to give an example of how to do this. 

Question: How can I make this a good week? 

Three of Cups Reversed- this card can often be about not being able to socialize or go out with friends. This shows that this week, there may be a lot going on in my life that will make me very busy; but that connecting back with my friends and family will be important. I know that I am a very social person, so having interactions with my friends and family will definitely help it to be a better week. 

Five of Pentacles Reversed- this card is actually one of the ones where the reversal is more positive than the upright version. This card shows that right now there may be some changes within my life this week. This may be a slow progression toward the changes I’ve been wanting, but I will see progress toward those changes. 

The Fool- this card is about new beginnings, there is always a sense of excitement that I get when I pull this card. This card shows that the changes the previous card talked about will be positive, new and exciting. 

Overall, this is generally the way I interpret the cards. The message here tells me that this week is going to be a very busy week for me; I need to focus on my friends and family, the people I care about, and make sure that I make time during this business to connect with them. This reading also shows that in general, this week will already be a good week for me. I'll see progress being made on some of the changes and goals I’ve been trying to implement, and overall this should be a fairly exciting week for me in general. 

Can I use tarot for yes/no questions? How? 

Yes, tarot can be used for yes/no questions, there are a few ways to do this. Most of these will involve the use of reversals. An easy method to do this with is to take the card's meaning, determine if it's more ‘positive’ or ‘negative’ and interpret that way. So you’d ask a question, draw a card, and if the card is more positive, that means yes, if the card is more negative, that means no. I also see people use upright vs reversals for this; assigning all upright cards as ‘yes’ answers and all reversed cards as ‘no’ answers. I’ve also seen people do something similar to this with three cards. They will shuffle, draw three cards, and interpret any uprights as ‘yes’ and reversals as ‘no’. If they get two or three upright cards, that means yes, and vice versa. My personal favorite method for doing yes/no questions with tarot is to assign certain cards with ‘yes’ and ‘no’. For me, The Magician is my ‘yes’ card and The Fool is my ‘no’ card. I take my deck, shuffle it, and start drawing cards. Whichever card comes up first, that's my answer! I am sure there are more ways to do yes/no questions that I haven’t covered here, however these are the ones that I either use myself or have seen others using. 

How do I cleanse my decks/divination tools? 

Going back to my post on cleansing, there are various ways to cleanse a deck or other tools. Again, referring back to the post, especially with anything that is made of crystals or metal, make sure that they are safe to be put in salt or water if that is the method you chose. Smoke and sound cleansing are also very good options. 

What is the Rider-Waite? Does it have to be my first deck? 

The Rider-Waite is a very popular tarot deck that is widely used. There are many different versions of this deck as well. This does not have to be your first deck, you can pick whichever deck you want to use as your first deck!

Do I need to learn about all the symbolism, astrology, etc surrounding tarot? 

While the symbolism, astrology and correspondences that tarot often have are important and can add more depth to your readings, this is definitely not a requirement. I am not very knowledgeable on astrology at all, and while I know some of the symbolism represented within tarot, again it is not something I am heavily knowledgeable on. When I read tarot, I use the symbology from the card art itself, my intuition and of course the card interpretations to help me interpret the message. 

General Divination Questions

Do I need divination tools for each individual deity/entity/spirit I work with? 

The short answer to this is no, you definitely do not need to buy each individual that you work with separate divination tools. You can absolutely do this if you want, but I know for me, with how many deities I work with, it would be crazy to try to get each and everyone one of them individual divination tools. 

Do AI/digital divination apps work? 

This question can be a bit complicated, and I do have my own opinions on it. At the end of the day, if this is what works for YOU, that's great, and you can definitely utilize it! Its definitely a method that can be useful if you are in the broom closet. For me personally though, I’ve always found that any forms of digital divination I try tend to be pretty inaccurate. Anything digital or programmed with AI is going to work off some type of algorithm, it may not be 100% authentic. 

How do I know who is answering when I’m using divination? 

This depends a lot on the individual practitioner; some people practice divination outside of any religious/spiritual lens. This post is generally more targeted toward people who are practicing divination within the scope of occult/witchcraft practices, so that’s what I’ll be focusing on. 

You can ask the universe/Source to answer any questions you have, your general spirit team/spirit guides, or an individual deity, entity or spirit. 

I also want to point out with this question that certain deities/entities/spirits may have a preference on divination tools; I’ve had encounters where the deity I’m trying to get a message from will refuse to use certain tools I have and will only give a message using specific methods. It's important to verify that the deity is ok using the method of communication you’ve chosen. Of course, if you have very limited options, the deity will absolutely accommodate you even if they have to use a tool they do not prefer. 

Other Forms of Divination

How do I use dice/coins? 

This (for dice at least) can depend on what type of dice you have. I know with regular numbered dice, I mainly use them for yes/no questions. I take one of my dice (I see other people use multiple dice for this method as well) and I assign even numbers to be ‘yes’ and odd numbers to be ‘no’. Then I roll three times. If I get two or three evens and one odd, that means yes and vice versa. With using multiple dice, you may only need to roll once as well, although I’ve also seen people roll multiple times as well. Some people also assign meanings to each individual number of dice; for instance, 1 means hard yes, 2 means yes, 3 means maybe, 4 means rephrase, 5 means no, and 6 means hard no.

For coin divination, the methods are similar. Generally for coin divination, you will not really be able to get ‘maybe’ answers, so keep that in mind. Most times, when people are using coins, they will use heads as ‘yes’ and tails as ‘no’ (you can do the opposite if you feel drawn to). They use one or more coins, and take the majority as the answer. 

How do I use a pendulum? 

Generally, I recommend bracing your arm against something (like a desk, or your knee even) to make sure that you are not accidentally moving while trying to ask questions. From there, you can either ask the pendulum to show you what means yes, no and maybe, or tell the pendulum how you want it to swing to indicate yes, no and maybe. From there, you would start asking questions and allow the pendulum to swing freely to get the answers! 

You can also assign a certain movement to a deity; asking them to show you that they are there by moving the pendulum in a different way than the regular yes/no/maybe. 

You can also make your own pendulum as well, even just using a necklace or anything with a weight on the end can be used as a pendulum, just make sure to cleanse it first! 

What is channeling? 

Channeling generally refers to the ability to allow deities, entities or spirits to enter your body and take some level of control in order to communicate. Channeling is an advanced practice, I don’t recommend trying to start channeling until you are very comfortable with doing the basics (cleansing, protections, banishing, vetting) and you have a deity, entity or spirit you are comfortable practicing with. Channeling takes a lot of trust and the willingness to give up control of your mind and body to someone else. There are different levels of channeling, sometimes the entity will only take over partially in order to communicate. Other times, they will be fully present and will essentially push the person to the ‘backseat’ of their body while the entity has full control. 

What is automatic writing? 

Automatic writing is a type of channeling although it is less of an advanced practice than actual channeling. With automatic writing, you are essentially entering a trance state and allowing either your subconscious or the deities, entities and spirits around you to write for you and give you messages. While it may not be as intense as channeling, it can still be difficult to do and difficult to get into the proper mindset to do. 

Is the keyboard method a valid form of divination? 

The answer to this may be a little controversial; I think the answer to this can be ‘sometimes’. This is a form of automatic writing which involves technology. However, as with automatic writing, you may need to be in a bit of a trance state for this method to really work. Using other divination tools alongside this method (to double check that you are getting an actual message and not just gibberish) is also something I would recommend. 

There are other forms of communicating with deities, entities and spirits that have not been covered in this post, such as communicating with clairsenses or through meditation. I will be covering these in a later post. 

I would again like to credit my friend @astralscraft for helping me with this post!

If you have additional questions that were not answered in this post, feel free to message or inbox me!

This is meant to be a witchcraft blog as well so here's something's I've learned for new witches

1. You don't need to do spells

I think this is important cause when I first started I didn't know wtf to do other than spells. The main thing would be to look at different aspects of the craft and see what interests you.

NOTICE how I did not say "and see what type of witch you want to be". That is because this whole "what type of witch" thing has only started in the last couple years to give people an overview of different aspects. I mainly do spirit work and divination but I also do spell jars and use crystals. See what aspects of the craft you like but please go to number 2

2. Start with the basics.

This is your typical grounding, cleansing and protection! Not enough people know how to do this and I know books are old fashioned (I'm 21 btw) and that everything is on websites (it isn't just btw) but read Witchery by Juliet Diaz! Captivating reading and yes it may look big but the font is massive and there's a bunch of spells you can just skip over cause my one criticism with the book is that the spells take really specific shit? Like I live by a beach, have one metaphysical shop with no herbs, no farmers market and I live in an apartment with no garden. Where am I getting really specific herbs from? Space? Amazon?

3. If you feel like a deity is reaching out to you then ask someone to check!

I work with Loki, a fire elemental in the form of a chimera called Flicker (who is now a spirit guide), Fenrir, Dionysus, Hestia, Prince Stolas of the Ars Goetia, a dragon (who has been a spirit guide for 4 lifetimes), and Hades! Now that may look like a lot and let me assure you it isn't. My mentor/ teacher/ friend has like 30+

I've been practicing properly for maybe two months btw, I started divination three years ago with spirit guides and other people's but I had to take a break for a year at least cause of my housing situation and mental health.

Everyone's path is different.

I started working with Loki first, I had this really weird feeling for ages that someone was reaching out so I asked @knowledge-from-the-abyss to do a reading. Loki and Fenrir were reaching out and from there I found more spirits or they found me. Some people never work with deities, some people do, some people get a nagging feeling that someone is talking to them.

4. Ask questions

Ask them here! I'll respond! I'm unemployed so I've got time lol, you don't have to go this alone and while your journey will be different from mine I'm still happy to help you along the way!

Hope you enjoyed my post! Feel free to ask any questions! If I don't know the answer then we'll learn together!

A Crash Course on Channeling

What is Channeling?

Channeling is allowing a nonphysical entity to use your physical body, in order to accomplish something. If that sounds, vague, it’s because it is. Channeling takes many different forms and intensity levels! Depending on how it’s done, it can be a medium-difficulty task or one of the most advanced things a spirit worker can do. 

Types of Channeling

I once heard channeling described as a car ride, and in my experience that’s very accurate. The car is your body, and you’re in it with an entity. Sometimes you’re in the driver’s seat, and the entity is in the back seat giving directions. Sometimes you or the entity is in the passenger’s seat: not calling most of the shots, but able to reach over and grab the wheel if needed. Sometimes you’re in the backseat watching the entity drive, and sometimes you’re in the trunk. In practice, this can take a number of forms.

Speaking on Behalf. This is the kind of channeling people do most often. The entity isn’t controlling you, just feeding you lines which you can then relay to a third party. You’re translating their messages to something other people can comprehend. If you’ve ever answered a question for a spirit in their words, you’ve done this. 

Isolated Channeling. The entity takes control of just a part of the body, usually the hands or fingers. This is mostly used for things like automatic writing.

Assuming Form. Also known as consensual possession. The entity is in the driver’s seat, speaking and acting for themselves without your help. Some people will call this “horsing.”

Possession. While the word “possession” could technically cover all of this, within the spirit work community it’s usually reserved for channeling where the human did not consent beforehand. This doesn’t necessarily mean in a violating way- I once had a friend who got possessed just long enough for an entity to yank them out of danger; once I was taken for just a moment to convey a quick (but very direct) message to a devotee, and snapped out of it right after. 

Reasons to Channel

Everyone will have a different reason to channel but most of them fall under a few categories:

Helping Someone Else. You’re channeling on behalf of someone who can’t [easily] reach the entity themselves, in order to ease communication between the two parties. This is often seen with mediums contacting spirit guides and Ancestors.

Aid in Other Works. The entity is better suited to accomplish a certain task than you, so you let them take the lead. This is often seen with a familiar or spirit companion, someone the practitioner works with closely enough to know their strengths and trust them. 

Easier Communication Overall. Channeling is a way to get really familiar with an entity’s energy. Again, we often see this with spirit companions and is more to bond than to achieve another goal.  This would include automatic writing or letting a spirit experience things “through” you. 

Ritual Invitation. In some traditions, it’s common to invite deities to ritual events. Often, some type of channeling/possession is expected and is usually reached through ecstatic experiences. It’s taken as a sign the deity has arrived at the party, either a sign the offerings have been received or a time for the deity to convey important messages. 

Before-You-Begin Essentials

Know How To Protect Yourself. This is non-negotiable. Is your discernment tuned enough to spot an impostor or malevolent entity? Do you know how to end a session early? Do you know how to banish a spirit in an emergency? If the answer is no, then study up and return to channeling when you’re ready. 

Know Your Entity. Channeling, by nature, puts the practitioner in an intimate and vulnerable place, so you don’t want to give that access to an entity who may misuse it. If it’s your first time channeling, make sure you trust this entity with your life. 

Don’t Channel Alone. When you channel, you’re in an altered state of consciousness. Having someone grounded near you helps keep the session on track and keep you out of trouble should you need it. (Either by forcing an entity out if needed or just keeping you from climbing that tree.) 

Other Notes

It’ll Probably Take a Lot Out of You. Have something ready to ground and rehydrate yourself after a session, and make sure you don’t have anything high-demand planned after. 

Start Small. No need to jump head-first into the most advancecd and high-intensity types of channeling! Start with automatic writing or painting and get used to the feeling and work your way up.

Don’t Make It Weird. Basic etiquette still matters. Channeling is not a pass to give unsolicited messages to other practitioners, speak on behalf of their deities to them (unless they’ve specifically asked), or say hurtful things cushioned by: “What? It wasn’t me who said it.”

Messages Are Rarely “Pure.” This means everything is still filtered through you, the practitioner. Your values, morals, biases, and beliefs can inform what messages get through and how they are conveyed. Nobody wants to send out a message they disagree with, after all. This becomes less of an influencing factor with experience as one learns to hone their skill and let go more, but it’s important to always keep in mind. (If a channeling friend says a deity doesn’t accept your gender identity or something, that’s a good sign that really your “friend” doesn’t accept it.) 

I love how I get credit when all I do is text jay with questions lol, thanks jay! Love you!

Psychic Abilities

What are psychic abilities? 

Psychic abilities are metaphysical powers that generally cannot be explained or observed by science (although there are scientific studies that are currently trying to understand and delve into psychic abilities). Everyone has access to psychic abilities; the most common psychic ability out there is intuition, that ‘gut feeling’ people get. I will list more psychic abilities down below. 

Please make sure that you are discerning mundane from magical; some of these abilities can and are symptoms of serious mental illnesses, such as schizophrenia, so if these suddenly start happening (especially around the age of 20) please make sure you are checking with your doctor to make sure nothing medically is wrong. 

Clairsenses

Clairvoyance- also known as clear-seeing, this clair allows people to see pictures or images, or even visions in their minds eye or sometimes even manifesting in the real world. This is also a clair that can allow someone to see auras. 

Clairaudience- also known as clear-hearing, this clair allows people to hear deities, spirits and entities, again either in their mind or sometimes manifesting in the real world. This can also manifest as hearing music randomly or having a song repeat over and over and over in your head, or having a deities name constantly on your mind/in your head (this can sometimes be a sign a deity is reaching out or generally trying to get your attention as well). 

Claircognizance- also known as clear-knowing; this can be your intuition going off about something. Just ‘knowing’ that something is going to happen, and then it does. Being able to know what color an object is when its in black and white, etc. 

Clairempathy- also known as clear-emotion; this clair allows the practitioner to sense others emotions, sometimes this can almost manifest as if you are feeling those emotions, even if you aren’t. 

Clairsentience- also known as clear physical feelings; this clair allows someone to feel physical sensations and energies (for instance, feeling like someone is touching your head when no one is physically there). 

Clairtangency- also known as clear-touch; this clair allows someone to receive information through touching objects. This has manifested for me before. I will touch an object and sometimes have gotten downloads of information from that object about the person who previously owned it, or the energies that were commonly around that object. 

Clairsaliance- also known as clear-smelling; this clair is when you can pick up on smells that aren’t necessarily in the physical world. A good example is that sometimes I will smell my deities when they are around me. 

Clairgustance- also known as clear-tasting; this clair is similar to clairsaliance, but with taste. It allows the practitioner to taste different things in the spiritual realm. Similar to clairsaliance, sometimes when I am channeling, I can taste the things my deities have been eating. 

Can psychics read minds? 

This, along with anything you might see about psychics in media (movies, tv shows, etc) is probably fake, at least in the way it is usually presented in these media formats. Using clairsenses, and being able to pick up on subtle cues from the other person, can lead to some ‘mind reading’ or telepathic-like abilities. For example, I know my wife very well, and even if she doesn’t always outwardly say so, I can sense when her mood has shifted. There are other friends that I have been able to do this with as well, including online friends. So the answer to this question is ‘yes, but not in the ways you might think’. I cannot tap into people's minds and see their exact thoughts, but with a combination of my clairsenses, and picking up on cues I see from them, I can figure out what they might be thinking, or how they might be feeling. 

How can I train/hone my clairsenses? 

There are various ways to do this, depending on the clairsenses you’re wanting to hone. Firstly, I recommend figuring out what your strongest clairsenses are. This is basically just about observing yourself and how you experience the world; this can also sometimes correspond to your physical senses. Once you know what clairsenses you have that are strongest, focusing on using those in various settings is a good idea. For instance, if you find that clairvoyance is the strongest clair you have, practicing meditation and seeing things during meditation might be a good idea. 

How do I know it's not just my imagination and it is psychic abilities I’m experiencing? 

This is where discernment and using other tools can come in very handy. Double checking with divination is a very good way to know if you are really using your clairsenses, or if it's just your imagination. There may also be certain emotions or feelings that come with psychic abilities vs imagination. For instance, for me personally, I’ve found that a good way to discern my intuition vs imagination is the emotions that come with it. If I get a sudden feeling about something for instance, I ask myself if there is anxiety or other negative emotions surrounding that situation; if the answer is yes, I often use other tools to figure out if the feeling I’m getting is truly my intuition, or if it's just me being anxious about a certain situation. If there are no emotions that I can figure out are coming from a situation, but something feels ‘off’ I still use discernment, but am more likely to immediately trust the gut feeling I get. In certain situations (like if I’m driving and my gut tells me ‘don’t take this road!) I usually do trust my gut feeling, and later on am often shown why my intuition told me to do that (often it's because of road closures or traffic that my intuition was guiding me to avoid). 

Do mental illnesses (such as autism, ADHD, and dissociative disorders) affect psychic abilities/clarisenses? How do I distinguish the two? 

Yes, mental illnesses can sometimes affect psychic abilities and clairsenses. Again, this is where discernment and using other tools such as divination can come in handy. Practicing can help as well; I have autism and ADHD, and sometimes it’s hard for me to distinguish if it's a deity talking to me, or just my ADHD going ‘brrrrr’. However, as I have practiced over the years, I have learned how to distinguish between the two sometimes; a lot of times my inner voice sounds different than the voices my deities will use, which is a good way to know that I might be hearing something other than my own inner monologue (I also still use divination tools as an extra step to make sure that what I’m hearing is in fact metaphysical). 

What deities do you recommend to help with learning/honing psychic abilities? 

First and foremost, pretty much any deity can help you with learning to hone your psychic abilities; however there are a few (mainly infernals, since I work so heavily with the infernal divine) that I will list that specialize in helping with psychic abilities. 

Hermes is a good option when it comes to seeking help with honing psychic abilities. As messenger to the Greek gods, communication is part of Hermes’ natural wheelhouse; this can go for both mundane and magical communications. He is excellent at helping not only with psychic abilities and clairsenses, but with divination as well. 

Dehuty/Thoth from the Egyptian pantheon is also a very good deity to reach out to for help with psychic communication; he rules over writing and communication. 

Some of the infernals I have listed below are lesser-known or unknown, so the UPG (unverified personal gnosis) listed here are all from my own personal experiences with them.

In my own UPG, the infernal Alcanor is also very good at helping with psychic communication, clairsenses and mediumship. 

Also my own UPG, the infernal Martinet is also excellent at helping with the clairsenses. 

Acuar is another infernal who is listed (VPG, verified personal gnosis) at being good at helping with psychic abilities (especially those that have to do with emotions). 

Lucifuge Rofocale, Azazel and Forneus are also infernals who are listed as being good at helping with psychic abilities. This is also VPG. 

This is not an exhaustive list of course, and in terms of the infernals listed, if you’d like to find out more about them I have more info on them on my Reddit blog; r/DemonStudies. 

Why are some clairsenses/psychic abilities stronger than the others? 

Clairsenses are like muscles; the more you use them, the stronger they will get. That being said, everyone is different; someone who is a runner is going to have very strong legs, but their arms might not be as strong in comparison, but their arms also don’t have to be as strong compared to their legs either. Same goes with clairsenses; the ones you use and focus on more are going to be the strongest ones you have. Some people also have natural talent with certain clairs (again, similar to physical abilities, some people are way better at smelling naturally than others around them, and this might also reflect with them having better clairsaliance as well). You can always hone and practice any psychic abilities even if they are not the ones you are strongest in. 

Do I have to be honed into my clairsenses to do deity work/spirit work? 

You do not have to be honed into your clairsenses to do deity work/spirit work, although from what I’ve seen most people getting into deity work are naturally drawn to honing their psychic abilities as well. 

Can using psychic abilities give me headaches? 

Yes, just like how sometimes you get a headache from eye strain from staring at something too long, using your clairsenses can also give you a headache or affect your physical body in other ways. Taking breaks, allowing your body and mind time to rest, and doing self-care can help to prevent this strain. 

Why do some people hear specific voices for their deities/spirits, while others just hear their ‘inner voice’ as deities/spirits talking to them? 

This comes down to everyone being different and everyone experiencing things differently. Again going back to how people physically experience the world, everyone experiences the physical world slightly differently, one person’s perspective might be different from another person’s. This is the same with clairsenses and how we experience our deities. I know for me, Loki generally smells like cinnamon and smoke (like from a bonfire), but for others, I’ve heard that he smells of just cinnamon, or they say that he smells like cigarette smoke at times.  

Will I be able to hear new deities/spirits I interact with right away? 

The short answer to this question is maybe. Again, this is about personal experiences; for me, when I first started out, I had a lot of trouble hearing new deities that I interacted with, it was very easy for me to pick up on their energies and know they were there, but when it came down to hearing and seeing them, even though I was hearing and seeing the deities I interacted with regularly, it was harder for me to hear and see new ones. Now that I have been doing this for so many years, I do find that I can very easily hear and see the new deities I interact with on a regular basis. So again, this can also be about practicing as well as natural abilities you may have. 

How do I avoid burnout when honing my psychic abilities? 

This is similar to the question about headaches above; taking breaks and self-care are very important when honing your psychic abilities. Also, don’t be hard on yourself if you’re not getting it right away. Again, this is like exercising a muscle; even if you do have natural abilities for the particular clairsense you’re trying to hone, it can still be hard and frustrating at times. Giving yourself grace, and not trying to rush the process will be the best thing you can do for yourself. Don’t compare yourself to others either, learn at your own pace; everyone's practice is different and everyone learns at different paces. 

How do I hone my intuition? 

First and foremost, trusting yourself is a huge part of honing your intuition. Intuition can often be that little voice in the back of your head warning you or telling you about something, or that ‘gut instinct’ many people talk about. Sometimes, it really is ‘just knowing’ something, and trusting that knowledge even when there is no outside evidence is very important. There are also many intuition tests you can do to work on honing (and recognizing!) your intuition and what it feels like. A lot of times I use these intuition tests to test and hone my intuition. Don’t be too hard on yourself either when you get these types of things wrong, sometimes we have off days and it is a learning experience! 

Will every deity/entity want to communicate using clairsenses? 

No, not every deity or entity will want to communicate using the clairsenses; some may prefer to use divination tools or other forms of communication to talk to you. From my experience most deities prefer to work with a combination of some clairsenses (even if thats just you using your intuition to pick up on messages they want to share with you) as well as other forms of communication. 

Are divination tools still useful even after I’ve developed my psychic abilities/clairsenses? 

Yes, divination tools are always very useful especially when it comes to discerning and verifying what you are told through psychic abilities. Using divination alongside psychic abilities is a very good way to make sure you are not going into spiritual psychosis. I always encourage anyone who is getting into any type of spirit or deity work to use divination as a way to discern what they are being told. 

As always I would like to thank my friend @astralscraft for helping me with this; they always ask such wonderful questions that I include and answer in these!

Just btw I'm here too! I'm usually in chitchat and will probably offer free art if you give me an interesting idea lmao

I have an exciting announcement!

Me and a few friends of mine have created a discord server! This server is an education-based server focused around the infernal divine as well as general witchcraft and occult! We are 16+, godspouse and system friendly! We have a section for offering and receiving free divination services as well!

Join us today!