Oracle's Veil Water Recipe

A little creation of my own; Veil Water can be used for a multitude of things but is primarily used in death magick. 

Primary uses include:

Protection against malevolent spirits

Summoning spirits

An offering to chthonic/death deities

Annointing death magick tools

Offering on Samhain

How to: 

A jar or bottle of some sort

Rosemary

Cypress

Poppies/Poppy Seeds

Rosewood thorns

Graveyard Dirt

Mandrake

Rusty Nails

Water

Rubbing alcohol

Essence of death, like bones or dead bugs (I used 3 dead bees)

Old coins (think Charon)

Mix them up however you please. Charge during the Full or New Moon. Give the jar a good shake a couple times a day for one week. Strain and bottle and VOILA!

First Meditation with Death (2014)

I am at the river, and I decided to sit on the docks, the furthest point IN the water, to sit and meditate, feeling the ebb and flow of the water while looking out into the endless darkness of the water blending seamlessly with the night.

I turned on my meditation music and attempted to focus. I couldn't. Took me at least 3 tries before anything came to me.

I played 'O Death' by Jen Titus and closed my eyes...drifting off into meditation. It was a dark cemetery gate, which I seemed to move through as if it were a portal. Once there, I stopped in my tracks, as Death stood in a dimly lit area in the moonlight as His Grim Reaper form. I was immediately drawn to him and began to walk to him. As I approached I felt the need to kneel or bow or something, but a moment in His presense told me it wasn't necessary.
We stood in silence for a moment before He suddenly raised His hand, offering me a Poppy flower. As I took it, still in awe, he immediately shifted into what I like to call His "business man" appearance. He simply gave a smirk, placed a finger to His lips in a "shh" motion before grabbing my shoulders and turning me around.
Still holding my shoulders I was now faced with a large crowd of people with blank expressions.
I had to open my eyes at this point because I felt as if I was barely breathing.

Working with Death (Thanatos)

The Greek God Thanatos- God of death, essentially tied with the iconic image of the Grim Reaper, is the son of the Goddess Nyx (Primordial Night) and the God Erebus (Primordial Darkness). His siblings, most notably being his twin brother Hypnos, the God of Sleep, were all portrayed as negative spirits associated with death and dying.


When I mention Thanatos, people most often have a negative image of him: a skeleton wrapped up in a disheveled black hooded cloak, carrying a scythe. The 'Hollywood' Grim Reaper. Funnily enough, I do sometimes see Thanatos in this image. I suppose he finds it humurous?

Most often though, Thanatos appears to me as a middle-aged yet young, timeless looking man clad in an all black suit, and neatly combed, short black hair. I've yet to get close enough to see what his eyes look like in this image.

Though ancient, wise and powerful, I suppose this more modern form is for the comfort of his followers. Though I've heard everyone sees him differently.


Thanatos is a mentor to me, similar to a father figure who will not hesitate to slap your hand, so to speak, if you've done something not to his liking. A God who, though seemingly cold and callous, has a soft spot for his followers (despite never wanting to admit it).


People find it quite odd that I worship the entity of Death. I really don't blame them. Death has become such a taboo in today's society that even mentioning Death as a deity or sentient being might classify you as a bit crazy.

To each his own, I suppose. But I have always had a morbid interest in death, dying and mourning. I am even getting ready to attend Mortuary School to become a Funeral Director. Maybe this is why I have such an attraction to this God of Death?

In any case, I've had questions about my relationship with this powerful deity, and again, I can't blame them for their curiosity. Let me just go over a few.


Q: What do you learn from Thanatos exactly? How to reap the souls of the living?

A: Cute, but no. In all honesty, not all of what he teaches me is based around Death. Thanatos is like a strict but loving father, constantly pushing you to achieve great things. He will not settle for anything less than what you are truly capable of. Like for instance, I am a very intelligent young woman, studying for my GED so I can apply for mortuary school, but I also procrastinate a lot. Something Thanatos does not appreciate. Most often, while relaxing, or out on the town, I can FEEL this deity trailing behind me, as if to say “Is this what you're doing instead of studying? Really?”. It can be tiresome, but I know he has my best interests at heart. And I appreciate his lectures, his following, and everything.

He teaches me patience, wisdom and understanding, and if I make some rude remark, or deal with a situation in a 'less than adult' type of way, he will ask me to rethink what I had said, and ask me if that was the appropriate response. A sort of, 'think before you speak' lesson.


Q: Do you think he'd give you cheat sheets for Mortuary School?!

A: That would be aweosme! But sadly, no. More often than not I find myself reading books or articles on Death culture, running to him: “Look what I found! Did you know such and such culture partakes in such and such death ritual?” The expression I get is absolutely priceless. I have to keep reminding myself that this is DEATH we're talking about. Though having him over my shoulder, helping me study and to pass my state board exams would be great, right?


Q: What types of symbols or items do you offer him? He must be really picky.

A: Eh, he can be picky, but he appreciates things that have some thought put into it. Even if you buy something at the store, a candle or something, with the thought, “Hey, Thanatos might really like this!” just know that he appreciates that you are thinking of him. Most often I will offer him all sorts of things, (Halloween being both our favorite holidays- I mean, there's a lot of death based things in stores to offer!) such as black coffee, skull candles, black candles, raven/crow feathers, butterfly symbols (I have a large butterfly I found just as it died, and dried it out), tobacco (cigars being his favorite), honey, milk, bread, rum or brandy (bourbon works too), snake symbols, etc. But that's just me.


All in all, Thanatos might be terrifying to approach at first, but he really is worth all the scoldings and lectures when you realize the types of lessons you are learning from him.

My First Time: Shadow Magick

So, upon researching Shadow Magick, I found it slightly terrifying, but I knew it was something I needed to do for myself.


Essentially, shadow magick is psychological witchcraft. You connect with your shadow- your true, whole self. The bad things, the things you like to hide and pretend are not really a part of you. Depression, anger, hatred, bad habits, etc. Like it or not, all these aspects are just that; aspects of your true self. It might be terrifying facing these ‘horrible’ aspects of yourself, but once you truly face your shadow, you can become centered, balanced and whole. They are there, your shadow exists, whether you like to admit it or not, You can either befriend it and use it to your advantage, or become enemies and spend your life fighting what will never go away….essentially, your ‘demons’.


I know I am a rather dark person, and I have a lot of messed up history and emotions, but I am tired of fighting them. I needed to face it head onnand embrace it. So, I did. I sat in complete darkness and used music as a channel for these raw emotions and thoughts, an idea brought to me by the writer of ‘Magic Under the Black Sun’, who goes really in depth on shadow magic.

I shielded and got straight to work. I grabbed a pen and notebook and began my journey into my subconscious, seeking out my darker counterpart. I found her. Locked away in a cript, and she was way too excited to see me. I told her my intentions: “I need insight. I want to know who I really am. I want to see my strengths and weaknesses.”


She stood there with a sharp toothed grin, her entire being a mixture of pure darkness and tar. Pitch black. In a courageous act, I held out my hand to her. When I move to connect with a divine being, I will dance with them, (I do this often with Thanatos) in an attempt to sync with them entirely.


Her grip was tight and uncomfortable. Her moves were fluid. She was comfortable in her own darkness, and I was not. I fumbled around, I was stepped on, I was jerked around like a puppet. She delighted in my fear, but I could tell she was also frusturated and needed me to step up my game. So I did. I let it all out, I cried, I screamed, I hated, I loved…I faced her, looking into those dark pits of her eyes, and I danced. I let her lead me.


In the real world, I had lost it. I had began writing down these weaknesses, but they soon turned to scrawled scripts of anger, sadness, desperation, and the phrase, ‘let me out’ repeatedly. She took hold and began to scribble all the horrible things she was comprised of.


After the page was full, messages and words overlapping, I began to feel exhausted and drained. I needed to stop. Our dance ended, I meakly thanked her and allowed her to return to her now unchained crypt.


It took me 15 minutes to properly ground and center. But somehow…I feel vaguely…satisfied.

Erebus & Shadow Magick

There is little mentioned of the Greek Protogenoi (primordial deity) Erebus in books or on the web. Erebus was one of the first of five deities born from the primoridal chaos in the beginning. He is darkness and shadows. His consort and sister, Nyx, is the most well known of the two, as the Goddess/Personification of the Night. Many seem to think Erebus is simply her counterpart, associating him with the night aswell. No, Erebus is pure, pitch black darkness. Erebus is the shadows that thrive in both the day and the night. But there are many ways to interperet what darkness and shadows might mean…


Shadow magick seems to be the perfect way to accept Erebus into your life. Embracing your own darkness and working side by side with your shadow (see my previous post on shadow magick). Erebus is raw, primal and chaotic. I can hardly see him as a deity in a tunic in a chariot, but instead as a raw, black, shadowy figure that not only embodies, but also brings about necessary darkness in humans. Shadow magick is focused on balance, and becoming whole with your ‘other self’. Playing well with your demons.


Accept that the ebb and flow of darkness is all around you and is found in all things, and you will find that you have accepted Erebus into your life.