foundational practices
how to do magic (without going crazy)
Last time I wrote about Sirius, I talked about the fear that can come from working with the Big Dog Star. I’ve grown so much through my work with them, but I think it’s also worth it to note gloss over the ways it can be destabilizing, too.
Returning to stability after the kinds of experiences that can be brought on by magic is a key part of the art. I really don’t think we talk enough about the role that wellness plays in developing a sustained spiritual practice—addressing that is something that I’m trying to do with my work in general. I’ve described the themes I share here on Celestial Dew as “nocturnal astrology, embodied magic and the Moon.” Embodied magic is what I’m describing here.
Roman marble sculpture of four puppies, all curled up asleep together. Unearthed from the ruins of the House of the Faun in Pompeii, 1st century BCE, now housed at the National Archaeological Museum of Naples, Italy
The body is the beginning and end of the spirit.
Chloe’s and my class on Sirius has dropped today :)
We’ve got everything you need to start your own Sirius practice. Check it out on chloe-margherita.com
For more of my Sirius stuff:
I believe this question of sustainability is something lineage traditions have to offer us. The built up practice of teachers and students over time seems what makes these spiritual, esoteric and occult practices sustainable.
That’s not really something most of us have access to, though, is it? It isn’t for me.
Once upon a time, I wrote about my intentions entering into the conversation on astrological magic. I talked about how difficult I found a lot of the scene surrounding the practice and I asked myself: why?
I think that part of what is missing from the conversation is often the role of embodiment—the literal body and also the physical realm. We spend a lot of time talking about correspondences, reading books and debating theory and a lot of time tearing elections apart. What about the physical side of things? How do you prepare yourself to interact with the astrological spirits? What do you do when you’re done?
The more I thought about this and talked about it with my friends, the more I realized that there’s nothing about this specific to astromagic. Maybe astromagic, as a very celestial, heady and expansive art, especially needs this grounding and care of the physical form. That doesn’t mean that other esoteric practices don’t need it, though.
These days destabilization faces us everywhere. We’re attempting to have serious conversations about the nature of consciousness and the role of humans in creativity. We’re living in an era of spiritual crisis and AI-induced psychosis.
If ever there was an era to return to grounding spiritual practices, we’re in it.
Two of my magical friends, Chloe Margherita (Recent Bedroom) and Ione Richards @iynxwheel, have been a huge part of this conversation with me and I’ve learned so much from both of them. I realized that, despite us having three pretty different starting places with magic, we had found success in a similar approach.
It’s not a specific technique or practice necessarily. It’s more like a similar orientation. One that doesn’t disregard the body, one that seeks balance and rootedness, one that is built on relationships.
And I think we reached this similar meeting point because of the foundational practices that we’d developed for ourselves before we started seeking mystical gnosis or crafting magical objects.
This Sunday, 4/26, we’re going to be hosting a free workshop together :)
How to do magic (without going crazy)
foundational practices for any practitioner + Q&A
Sunday 4/26 10:15 am (pacific time)
Zoom link will be sent out that morning <3
I want to stress that we don’t use the term “going crazy” here pejoratively or in jest, but rather as an acknowledgement of the kinds of psychic disruption that esoteric practices can induce. I don’t believe that you have to have some specific level of wellness to engage with mysticism. Madness seems inherent to the edges of this territory. What we’re really saying here is that groundedness and wellness are antidotes to destabilization of the soul and psyche.
At our workshop we’re going to share some of our thoughts on how to build a sustaining foundational practice and share some techniques that we have each used to create a grounded magical practice. I’m especially excited about the practical part! I really want this workshop to exist as a reference to come back to at any point in your journey with these kinds of esoteric practices.
That’s why we decided to make it free :)
Some topics we’re gonna talk about:
the land, the body and the ancestors as your starting point
the power of words and cycles of practice
some deceptively simple skills you really should start with
some spirits who have been our allies in this work and we recommend to you
the role of ethics and values in all of it
Chloe had the great idea to host it as a live class with a Q&A afterwards. I’ve never done something like this before but I thought it was such a great idea, especially for this kind of topic.
We’ll share the link soon and I’ll send out a brief reminder on Sunday morning before we start.
I really hope I see you there! Bring questions! If you’ve already got one, feel free to drop it down there in the comments and we’ll address it during the workshop.
Take care,
Shuly Rose