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May 24 through May 30, 2021

The highlight this week will be Wednesday's Sagittarius full Moon/lunar eclipse! Eclipses typically come in pairs, lunar and solar. The lunar eclipse will call for us to pull back our emotions and look at things from a more ego-based angle. For the next two weeks, our focus should be on justice, balance, and creating more stability in our lives. Once the solar eclipse happens on June 10, we'll reverse this focus to inner and emotional well-being. Eclipses tend to happen twice a year, and when they do, their goal is to shift our focus for the next six months. Once we complete the process the eclipses generate, we'll be ready to move forward into new enterprises and goals. Mercury will also turn retrograde on Saturday, so if we can, we'll need to backup all our electronics and prepare for electrical glitches and miscommunication for the next three weeks.The Scorpio Moon on Monday and Tuesday will add an intenseness to our lives, creating a quite productive and determined atmosphere. Once it moves into Sagittarius on Wednesday and Thursday, a lighter tone to our thoughts and movements will prevail. Our most productive days of the week will be Friday and Saturday as the Moon travels through diligent Capricorn. Sunday is all about socializing and connecting with friends and loved ones under the Aquarius Moon; enjoy!

Sacred Sprays for Magical Self-Care, by Katrina Rasbold

(Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal.)

One of the easiest ways to change your energy is by using sacred sprays. You can purchase these through online or brick and mortar establishments, but it is even more fun to make your own. Admittedly, my favorite is Pastor Davis 7 African Powers, which we call "The Holy Aquanet" at my shop because it is in a fat aerosol can. I have been unable to duplicate the scent, and we use it to seal our magical work, especially a spiritual cleansing.

For most people, sacred sprays create an immediate effect. I like to spray it into the air above me and then let it rain over me in a soothing rush of scent. For that moment, I can merge with the energy of the spray and give myself over to its power. That boost can carry me forward for several hours. I keep small bottles of magical sprays in my car to cleanse and refortify me after I have been out in the world too much and I am "over-peopled." It also comes in handy if I have a negative energetic encounter somewhere. The spray will reseat me and bring me back into myself.

There are sprays dedicated to refreshing you, calming you, protecting you, grounding you, and empowering you. The good news is that you can make the sprays yourself if you do not want to buy them. The outcome is a product that belies the simplicity of the process. The sprays discussed here are all safe for skin, fabric, and pets.

Why Do They Work?
The power behind sacred sprays is four-fold. In most cases, the recipe is a long-established, traditional combination, so there is power in using the same components that magical people have put together for hundreds of years. There is the natural power inherent in the ingredients, such as the magical properties of the herbs and stones used. Next, the fact that you are the one creating the mix, so your personal energy invests into the process. Lastly, there is the power of aromatherapy, both from a traditional standpoint and as elicited from your own conditioned triggers. If someone you love(d) always wore rose scent, then that will likely have a positive effect on you. If you had lavender in your garden growing up, then that may immediately relax you above and beyond its natural properties.

What Do I Need to Make my Own Sprays?
To make magical, sacred sprays, you will need to following items:

• Eight-ounce plastic spray bottles: In our post-COVID times, obtaining spray bottles can be a bit of hit and miss, but you can usually get a set of eight-ounce bottles on Amazon or even at your local dollar store. The eight-ounce bottles hold a good bit without becoming cumbersome to hold. I recommend a spray bottle with a fine mist rather than a utility bottle for cleaners and such (Those tend to give a fire hose effect that is not always pleasant).
• A large bottle of vodka: You will not make a superior product using expensive vodka, so leave the fancy stuff and get the cheapest you can find.
• Essential oils: There are numerous resources on the internet to tell you the magical properties of different essential oils. Most of the sources are consistent with their information. You can follow traditional recipes or you can experiment and make your own, using the magical properties resources as a guide to create the effect you want. Make sure the oils you use are skin-safe and not caustic.
• Dried herbs, resins: Dried herbs support the essential oils in the fulfillment of your goals. As with the oils, you can find information on the properties of resins and herbs through a quick Google search. Only use herbs if you are creating a "mother bottle" (more on that in a bit) and be sure to strain out all herbal matter before you put the liquid into the spray bottle. Herbs tend to clog the tube to the sprayer.
• Small stones: I put small stone chips, usually 1-2 depending on the size, in the bottom of my spray bottles not only to add their own energy to the process, but also to assist with the mixing when we shake the bottle to blend the oils and the vodka.
• A small funnel: It is much easier to pour the vodka or the spray mix into a spray bottle if you have a small funnel.
• A mesh strainer or cheesecloth: You will need this if you have a mother bottle of spray and need to remove herbal matter before putting the liquid into the spray bottle.
• Paper towels or shop towels: I recommend having a whole roll. It is rare for spills not to occur.
• A pipette to add oils: This lets you add oils a few drops at a time. Oils have different intensity levels, and it is easier to add more oil than to take it out after you add it.

How Do I Make the Sprays?
There are two ways to make amazing magical sprays, and both will render excellent results.

Slow and Patient
For this method, you will create a designated mother bottle. The mother bottle is where the spray will cure into a strong concentrate that you can then dilute when the time comes to pour it out into the spray bottles.

Vodka is your carrier. As an alcohol, it evaporates quickly, so you are not left with droplets all over your fabric and skin. I tend to pour out four to six ounces of vodka into a clean cup and use the large vodka bottle itself as a mother bottle. I then use a Sharpie marker to write the recipe for my mix onto the mother bottle once I am satisfied with the outcome.

You can also use a quart canning jar or any other large jar with a lid that seals well. You want to leave room in the bottle for your additions and then you can pour the excess vodka back into the mother bottle to top it off once your mix is right.

For any of the recipes given, you can use the appropriate essential oil, herb, or resin, or you can use a combination of them all. For instance, if a recipe calls for lavender and lemongrass, you can use lavender oil, lemongrass oil, lavender flowers or sprigs, and dried lemongrass in any combination. If it calls for frankincense and dragon's blood, you can use both resins plus the essential oils, or just the resins alone. If you do not use the oils and rely on resins and herbs, you will need to let the spray cure for several weeks to get the stronger results. That is why this is the "slow and patient" technique.

I included recipes at the end of this article. In Conjure practice, the idea is that you use what you have readily available, either in your magical cupboard or what you can easily obtain. This will often influence how you make your sprays. None of the recipes here call for exotic, obscure ingredients.

Clear your working space and assemble your ingredients and tools. Make sure your mother bottle has a large amount of vodka in it, but still has room for your additions. Put in your oils first, then your herbs and resins, then your stone.

Close it up and shake it well. Check the smell. If you have not used oils, you may have to wait a week or two for the scent to develop. You will smell the vodka until the scent leaches out of the resins or herbs.

Put the bottle in a cool, dry, dark place to cure and check it once a week. Each week, it will become stronger until it levels out, usually in two or three months. You will know it is ready to use when you no longer smell the vodka.

When the scent is strong, use a mesh strainer or cheese cloth to strain the herbal matter into a measuring cup or other temporary vessel. Drop the stone into your spray bottle and carefully pour the spray mix into the bottle. Dilute the spray mix with additional vodka if it seems too strong.

Secure the cap onto the spray bottle and enjoy your spray.

Fast and Easy
With the fast and easy method, you must use essential oils as there will be no curing time to coax the scents out of the resin and herbs.

Add your stone first. Pour the vodka directly into the spray bottle, leaving approximately 2" of room in the top to add your oils. Drip your oils in a few drops at a time. Secure the cap, then shake the bottle vigorously. Uncap the bottle.

Close your eyes and center yourself, then smell the product. Does it need more sweetness (add florals)? Does it need more sharpness (try some citrus)? Do you have enough earth tones to it (add herbs)? Keep mixing until you find a blend you love, but carefully note each addition so you can duplicate your recipe later if desired.

You can add resins and herbs to the fast and easy mix, but the herbs will often start to disintegrate over time and clog your spray tube. Resins normally will not do this.

Be careful of adding too much oil or your spray will be sticky. Be sure to add enough oil or your spray will not have scent. In true Conjure, the scent is not the magic. Instead, the power lies in the properties. Admittedly, I am a fan of the smells.

With either method, be sure to shake your product well before using to mix the vodka and oils.

Recipes
We use sprays for many magical purposes. Here are some of my favorite recipes. They may sound simple, but they pack a powerful energetic punch. You will notice that there are no amounts listed for each ingredient. This is because it is important that you find your own identity with the sprays. Hint: start with equal parts of each ingredient and explore from there. When a recipe requires oil rather than the actual ingredient (such as "cucumber"), I have noted it in the recipe. You can use essential oils or fragrance oils but be careful of oils that have a high synthetic chemical component rather than natural ingredients. Synthetics can interfere with the desired magical properties.

Purification Spray: For a Quick Spiritual Cleanse

• Lavender
• Lemongrass

Inner Sanctum: To Engage the Higher Self

• Nag Champa oil
• Dragon's Blood

Motivation: –To Get People or Situations Moving

• Lemon oil
• Orange oil

True Romance: To Manifest or Encourage Love

• Rose
• Patchouli

Healing: To Promote Healing Energy

• Cucumber oil
• Rose

Protection: To Create a Protective Boundary Around a Person

• Dragon's Blood
• Myrrh
• Frankincense

Cut & Clear: To Break the Ties That Bind a Person to Another Person, Behavior, or Situation

• Peach oil
• Cucumber oil

Serenity: To Evoke a Feeling of Calm and Peacefulness

• Lavender
• Rose
• Cedarwood

I hope you enjoy making and using your own magical sprays. They make wonderful gifts and are a fantastic addition to your spiritual cupboard!

Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal. Copyright Llewellyn Worldwide, 2021. All rights reserved.

Can the departed actually show you a physical sign that they are there with you? I went to visit my dad at the cemetery the other day and wanted to place a stone on his grave as is tradition in Judaism. I walked around for a few minutes, looking in the grass for one. When I came upon a stone, I picked it up and discovered that it was a clump of dirt, pebbles and debris, all shaped in an absolutely perfect heart. I placed it on his grave. Do you think this could have been a sign from my dad?

Sherry

Susyn:

The departed can absolutely guide you to signs that they are with you. It's a wonderful gift that we can connect with our loved ones in these unique and tangible ways.

I have heard many stories of people who were hoping for an indication that a loved one was near and had that wish fulfilled in a wonderful way. I have experienced it myself. Soon after my mother passed away, I ran across a CD about angels she had given me years before, stuck in the back of a drawer as I was searching for something else. My brother had this experience with a unique sunrise while praying for a sign that our mom was doing okay.

Another friend of mine was standing on a beach, watching the ocean and contemplating the recent loss of his partner. All of a sudden, a glint of light caught his eye and he too was directed to a stone that was in the shape of a perfect heart.

Our longing to connect with our departed loved ones combined with their ability to send us a sign tends to produce some very powerful spiritual experiences. Whether they send us a sign through dreams, smells or images, they are usually so profound as to be undeniable.

Many of my clients lament the fact that they do not dream about their loved ones or hear from them directly. The key to experiencing these types of messages is an open heart and mind. While spirits try to send us clear signs, they can be overlooked if we expect them to come in a certain form.

One of the most effective ways to connect with a departed spirit is through a psychic channeling session in which the psychic acts as a third party and can relay messages between you and your loved ones. With this method, you will be able to ask direct questions and receive specific answers.

Many times when channeling spirits during a reading, the spirits will specify how they will appear to their living loved ones. Sometimes it is in the form of a certain animal, such as a bird, horse or lion that shows up in unexpected ways or places. At other times, loved ones in spirit may indicate their presence through scents that are familiar to us, or unusual songs, images or memories that may come up out of the blue.

You can also perform guided meditations in which you request that your dad come visit you, or return to his gravesite and try to communicate with him there. Though you may not always feel like you have connected with him, the more you practice, the better your chance of experiencing many amazing signs that your father is near you.

*****

Oceania:

I believe that departed loved ones can communicate with us if we are open to receiving their messages. Your father may have been aware of the heart-shaped stone in the vicinity and nudged you towards it. The stone served as a meeting place for your two souls, a physical focal point for the love you share. Even the shape of a heart suggests two blending into one.

Another explanation for the stone's appearance is the mind's amazing ability to filter out irrelevant data. As we are constantly bombarded by more information than we can pay attention to, only that which matches up with what's important to us tends to make it through to our conscious awareness.

During your visit to the cemetery, your love for your father was your focus. As you scanned the environment, looking for a stone, much information was discarded, but the heart-shaped stone caught your attention. Had you not been feeling immense love, you may have overlooked it.

I live in a large condo complex with a circular drive lined with many dumpster corrals. Because I walk dogs several times a day, I regularly enter those corrals to toss my baggies after the dogs do their business. It is customary for our residents to leave usable items sitting next to the dumpsters as opposed to tossing them inside the dumpster. Whenever Iím in need of a particular item, it invariably appears.

I was in need of large vase and found one. I needed a pot to make a big batch of soup in and - hello! I wanted a few more nice wine glasses for entertaining - check! Were these gifts from the Dumpster Gods? Maybe. Did I manifest them through the Law of Attraction by focusing my mind on them? Could be. Were they examples of synchronicity, the universal order underlying all the seeming chaos? Perhaps!

However, I tend to believe that because I needed an item, it was on my mind and so my mental filter brought it to my attention instead of overlooking it. There are always items alongside the dumpsters, but my mind tends to be too full of other thoughts to even notice them unless they hold meaning for me.

With the greatest of ease, you overlooked what was insignificant at the cemetery and stumbled upon the perfect symbol for your visit. However it got there and however you found it, that heart set in stone served as a solid token to represent the eternal love you share with your father. As that loves lives on in YOUR heart, the thing to do now is ponder how you can carry it forward in your life and share it with the world.

Astrea:

Many times in life we hear, "You will always have what you NEED, but not necessarily what you WANT." Your spirit must have needed to experience the feeling of leaving your human body, and the suggestion in the next chapter of Sylvia Brown's book was all it took to get you there.

Even though you hadn't read it yet, your SOUL recognized the title of that chapter as something it had been seeking, and your soul, knowing that you had that reference to read after your experience, got with it and out you went!

While I don't usually recommend her books, Sylvia Brown has a wide reaching and powerful effect on lots of people. A Gemini like you would be able to relate easily to her writing and put it to good use. Synchronicity - you gotta love it!

I like your description of "getting caught." That's exactly what it feels like, isn't it? One minute you're free and hovering above the room, and the next minute, ZAP! back down into your corporeal form you go!

As a little kid, I loved that "feeling of return." With practice, most of the time we can control that event, but sometimes, when our physical ears hear a distracting noise or something else occurs to knock us back into reality, back we go. With practice you will be able to control your return better.

I find it interesting that you were visiting your mother-in-law and not someone in your own genetic family. Evidently, you and your husband got married for reasons that are even deeper than love. His family's interest in "psychic stuff" will nurture your children in such matters and help them to grow into their own abilities.

You'll never have to be concerned that when your daughter visits them, she'll be discouraged from exploring her own psychic life and power. My parents encouraged me to develop my psychic senses in a time when it wasn't nice to even discuss such things in public. Heck, it's STILL not considered a great topic at the dinner table in some families!

Your kids will get to talk about it ALL and ask questions and read and study. This is going to give them such an edge in life! Talk with your husband about how you want to present this to your kiddos, so that you are united in your approach and ready to tell them their experiences are all natural and okay.

A word or two of warning: Geminis often have difficulty staying grounded in REAL LIFE. Don't get so strung out on your ASTRAL life that you neglect what you're doing here on Earth.

You are at the beginning of a long journey to learn where your power really lies. Try to be patient with this process and take your time.