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Building a Daily Practice, by Stephanie Woodfield

(Article originally published in The Llewellyn Journal.)

A good number of Pagan books, including my own, recommend building a meaningful daily practice of some kind. You can find more about creating daily practices and connecting with deity in my book Dedicant, Devotee, Priest: A Pagan Guide to Divine Relationships. Perhaps, its frequent mention is in part because it is a practice that spans traditions. No matter what kind of Witchcraft, Paganism, or Occultism of which you are a part, "practice" is a key part of finding it meaningful or being an adept at what you do. Witchcraft, after all, is a "craft," and no artisan ever became good at their trade by not honing their skills. The problem is that while creating a daily practice is mentioned so often, it is also one of the hardest things to do.

Why do so many folks find daily practice so difficult? We have other routines that we do every day that aren't necessarily fun or exciting. Yet, I have also found myself struggling with this, too. Some days it just felt impossible to carve out five minutes to do something magical, something spiritual. Part of the problem is how we approach daily practices. Although I was not exposed to mainstream organized religion until I had already started practicing Witchcraft, the things I framed my daily practices around still came out of that over-culture of religious thought. I made a set of Pagan prayer beads and tried using them as my daily practice. What I found was that I really wasn't getting much out of it. I dutifully sat with the beads, said words I thought I should say, and eventually it became a boring chore. The more it became a chore, just something I had to do, not something I was getting anything out of, the less I did it, unless I just stopped completely. Ironically, I do use prayer beads as part of my practices now, but at the time I just couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong. The thing was that I was just going through the motions. I didn’t know why I was doing the action. I didn't really have a plan, either; I didn't sit down and decide what I wanted to get out of the practice, or even who or what I was supposed to be connecting to. I had made something very cookie-cutter: it had the shape of what I had seen others do, but that was it. It had nothing personal in it for me. If you don't know why you are saying or doing something, then it is going to hold no meaning for you. Also, if you don't understand the mechanics and meaning behind what you are doing, you'll never be able to build your own and tailor what you are doing to your own needs. The why behind what we are doing matters.

It took me a long time to figure out a daily practice that worked for me. In the end, there were things I had to craft in a meaningful way for myself. I can give you examples of what works well for me, but if you don't change it to fit your own needs chances are you won't keep up with the practice. In the end, I find the practices we create for ourselves are the ones that we get the most out of and the ones we will use consistently. Below you will find a few key things to consider when creating your own daily practice. You could start from scratch, or you could modify one from something that you like.

It Has to Be Something You'll Actually Do
This seems obvious, but I've found I was attracted to do long and complex magical maneuvers when I first started out. I thought meaningful meant that it was to be complicated—it doesn't. There are many deceptively simple practices that can hold a great deal of meaning. I am also not a morning person, so the idea that I was going to get up early and doing something complex to prove my dedication to my spirituality sounded great at one in the afternoon, but at five in the morning you better believe I hit the snooze button more often than not. Be realistic about what you are willing to do on a daily basis. What amount of time can you practically allot for your practice? When should it be? Are you a night owl? A morning person, or something in-between? What fits best with your current schedule? Maybe it's that five minutes after you get the kids on the bus and the house is quiet before you head out for the day. Maybe it's during the time you set aside for your morning coffee. Or maybe it's right before bed. You may want to map out your daily routine. List out all the things you normally do in a day and see where your practice might fit in.

Why Does It Have Meaning to You?
This one is important. If it has no real meaning to you, you won't get anything out of it. A daily practice should be something that you look forward to and enjoy. You should be getting something out of it. Think about words or imagery that have meaning to you. Perhaps there is a certain myth, phrase, or piece of a ritual from your tradition that holds special meaning to you. Think about how you can incorporate that into a less-than-five-minute practice. Also think about what has meaning to you in your ritual set up, cosmology, etc. Should you face a certain way while doing your practice? Are there astrological aspects that should be considered? Do you work with the elements or call on certain spirits in your other magical practices? Should those beings be represented or acknowledged in some way in your daily work? Are there certain hand gestures or movements that have meaning to you? What inspired you? What makes you feel centered and connected to spirit? Whatever those things are think about how you can include them in a very simple, bare-bones way.

What Do You Want to Achieve?
This is the question I really needed to ask myself when I first started my practice. The thing is, not everyone needs the same things. As an empath, I really need to ground, center, and cleanse every day. I also need to feel a connection to my Gods. Otherwise, I feel like a flag blowing aimlessly in the wind. Think about specific things you need. What will make you feel connected and in touch with your spirituality? Maybe you're a healer and need to focus more on cleansing and release. Maybe you are very energy-sensitive and need to focus on grounding. Maybe your goal is solely to connect to a specific deity, your ancestors, or another kind of being. Maybe you want to ask for blessings or aid for the day, or to help you get in the right headspace. Maybe you have trouble shielding and want to ask a deity you feel connected to for helping to do that. The list is endless. Think about what your goals and needs are. They aren't going to be the same as those of other people, and that's perfectly ok. This is your daily practice, not someone else's.

Daily Practice Doesn't Equal Doing the Same Thing All the Time
This one also took me a long time to figure out. Just because I did something daily didn't mean I did the same thing each day. I have a several different practices that I use; some are even for particular times of the year, or when I have a specific goal toward which I am working. Even the best practices can get stagnant, and it is ok to change things up when you need it. The point of a daily practice is for you to connect to the divine, to your magical nature, and to help you in whatever way you need. Needs change. So, our daily practices should shift and change depending on what is going on in our lives, too. Don't be afraid to change things or experiment when what you have been doing doesn’t feel fulfilling anymore.

Daily Is the Goal
I used to feel like I wasn't a good Witch if I skipped doing my daily practices. Don't be hard on yourself. Life is busy and sometimes there are going to be days where you forget, are too busy, or have an emergency. It happens, and it's normal. Daily is the goal, but doesn't always happen. That doesn't mean you shouldn't try to do your practice daily. Just accept that if something happened and you didn't have time in the day, it's ok. It happens to all of us. Your daily practice should feed you, it should uplift you, it should be something we look forward to doing as part of our day. But life is messy, and sometimes it has its own plans for us. So, don't feel bad, or like you are doing something wrong if things get away from you sometimes. The important part is that you keep you with your practice, and change things if you need to. The practice is for you, after all; the only one holding you accountable, or who can look down on you, is yourself. Treat yourself with kindness, and remember you are doing this for yourself.

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

I used to have all sorts of amazing psychic and out of body experiences. My life was full of magic and synchronicity. Over time, however, this all seems to have waned. I'm not really any different now: I'm still interested in spiritual matters, though I guess I don't read about them as much or keep up with spiritual practices like rituals and meditation the way I used to. Is that why I don't have lots of spiritual experiences anymore?

- Dwayne

Dreamchaser:

If you want to have amazing psychic experiences, out of body experiences, or anything else like this, you have to be walking the right path to have them.

Even if you're not, however, you will still have your occasional experience. People who are not in any way spiritual or interested in spiritual matters can have all kinds of amazing experiences. I feel that in your case, the main thing is you stopped walking the path that led to those experiences, and that's why they stopped for you, Dwayne. It's just that simple.

The great thing about this path is that you can just hop back on and pick up where you left off. All you have to do is let your guides, angels, helpers, etc. know that you are back by saying (preferably out loud) something like, Okay, I am back! Please come help me create what I want.

Remember, our spiritual helpers can't help us unless we instruct them to help us, so I suggest you let them know what you need.

You might also want to ask yourself why you stopped your daily spiritual practice in the first place. I frequently hear people say, I just have no time, and if that's what you're thinking, well, you find time to eat and sleep and breathe, and your spirituality is just as important as any other item listed on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.

I used being too busy as an excuse myself for quite a while. I thought that by tapping into Spirit to read for my clients, I was somehow piggy-backing on their spiritual progress. Well, obviously that didn't work very well, and so now I get up really early - earlier than anyone else I know - for my own spiritual practice.

I throw open the blinds and curtains so I can watch the day start, and then I spend at least 15 minutes with my God. I write in my journal. I read Iyanla Vanzant's thought for the day out of her book Until Today. Then I just get quiet and ask for what I need and want for that day. I picture it. I feel what it would feel like to have whatever it is, whether that's patience, wisdom, love or a new pair of pants from the mall. All of this takes me about 20 minutes.

You need to figure out a time when you can spend just 15 minutes or so with whatever you call God or the Divine. You can come up with your own daily spiritual ritual. Let it be whatever works for you.

I also must stress the importance of trying to do something first thing in the morning before you start your day, for this sets the tone for the entire day. It gets you off on such a positive note that you'll find it easy to stay in that zone all day long. You might even find it easier to carve out some meditation time later in the day as well.

I wish you continuing growth and wonderful new experiences!

*****

Astrea:

You've already answered your own question! The reason you're not having those extraordinary magical experiences anymore is you've stopped reading and studying spiritual matters for a while. Unless you make some effort to create those events in your life, they won't happen for you.

I think you should determine why you stopped your spiritual studies and practices in the first place. People stop for all kinds of reasons: They get busy, their families don't like what they're doing, they don't get where they want to be quickly enough and get discouraged.

You say although you're not trying, you still expect magic to happen every now and then. Well, you have to be very thankful for such experiences to summon more of them if you're not putting any other effort into it.

If you're making an effort and it's still not happening, it's possible you brought some Karma from another incarnation that limits the time you're allowed to experience the kind of magic you long to explore in THIS lifetime. Although this is very rare, some people DO carry blocked Karma from one incarnation to another.

The reasons for this vary, but often people tortured or executed for practicing magic in other incarnations will seek a more normal, mainstream life upon their return in hopes that they won't suffer for their spiritual interests the next time around.

Some people ask God to take their magic away from them because they fear the unknown. At the other extreme, some become just plain too lazy to take the necessary steps to achieve the magical spiritual feelings you say you're missing.

You knew at one point how to create that magic in your life, but you stopped. First examine WHY you stopped doing that, and then either move forward and create more of what you want for yourself, or don't complain anymore that you're missing out.

No matter why you stopped working with magical elements for a time, there's no need for you to beat yourself up just for taking some time off. We all need a break now and then. In fact, taking some time out from magic can be as powerful as DOING magic if that's what you most need at that point in your spiritual journey.

Life tends to get complicated and responsibilities drain our time and weigh us down. Remember that the older we get and the more we settle into the adult world, the further we are from the wonder-filled state where magic begins. Then it becomes more difficult to call up the kind of boundless energy we need to expand our consciousness into magical realms of experience.

So if you feel like you're too busy to cultivate the spiritual experiences you miss so much, know that this idea is probably all that stands in your way. If you stop and take a breath and look with wondering eyes, you'll soon be enjoying magic again!

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.