#grimoire inspiration

Well, he’s by no means perfect, but this is my squash Green Man helping me decorate for Mabon.

My grimoire page on Hawkweed.

Here is my grimoire page on dill. More extensive information on dill in another post. I’m really proud of this page, especially because dill is my favorite culinary herb.

Medicinal and Culinary Uses: Soothing to the stomach, helps with digestion. An antimicrobial. Calms the mind and sharpens the senses. Is considered to help with the mind in general. Used to ease the symptoms of colic. Dill, being a very aromatic plant and delicious herb, is of course used as seasoning and for flavor in many dishes, especially in fish and pickling. Dill is also said to repel pests when planted in the garden. 

Symbology:protection, preservation, good spirits, security, courage, calming, dispel bad dreams, good luck, emotional balance, love, romantic attraction

(Mercury, Fire/Air, Male, Gemini, Hermes/Janus/Mercury/Anubis)

Lore and History: Ancient Egyptians used dill as an aphrodisiac and to ward off evil spirits. The Greeks saw it as a symbol of wealth and prosperity and would also sometimes cover their heads with dill to induce sleep. It soon became widely regarded as a symbol of good luck. In Europe, during the Middle Ages, bundles of dill were hung over doorways or beds to protect the home and deter curses. It is widely considered to be able to counteract spells and curses. 

How It Is Used: The leaves can be made into a tea that is drunk (this was said to cause sexual arousal by the Egyptians and to ease children’s stomach pains by the Greeks and British). The leaves and stem can be chopped and added to any dish fresh or dried. It can be ground into a paste. The seeds can be eaten (and were previously chewed to stay awake in boring meetings but also to induce sleep in children). Chewing on the seeds is also said to improve one’s breath. The blossoms of dill can be used in the same ways as the leaves and stem.

My grimoire’s page on Lady’s Slippers. With more extensive information in another post. 

19.02.17

Monday: Altars

• Does your practice incorporate the use of altars?
• Are altars imperative to have for casting?
• What are pros and cons of altars?
• Do you prefer casting at your altar or is your place of magick not set or permanent?
• What entity (if any) is your altar dedicated to?
• What objects do you keep permanently on your altar? What purpose or personal meaning does it have?
• Do you change your altar to correspond with the sabbats? 
• Draw and label a diagram of your altar. Include an explanation of their meaning to you.

Tuesday: Sigils

• Are sigils something you use through out your practice?
  
• Choose your three favorite sigils. Include their meanings as well as any personal interpretations. Why are they your favorites? What is the most common place that you add sigils too? 
• Research and write down the steps to take in order to create a sigil. Use these steps to create your own sigil.

Wednesday: Local Fauna

• Create a list of your local animals.
  
• For each profile be sure to include the following: Any lore, superstitions, their meanings to you, their magickal and spiritual meanings, and ways they can be incorporated into your craft.

Thursday: Seven Planes of Existence

• What are the planes of existence?
  
• How can they be incorporated into your craft?
• Do they seem believable to you?
• Draw and label the seven planes of existence. 

Friday: Lightning

• Is lightning a form of energy you incorporate into your craft?
  
• How could you incorporate lightning into your practice?
• Create correspondences for lightning. 
• Plan and write a spell that incorporates lightning. 

Saturday: Quote Interpretation

• Choose a quote that speaks to you on a spiritual level and expresses your path. 
  
• Do a deep meditation with the quote in mind.
• Write down all the thoughts and visions you have about the quote. Go into as much detail as possible.

Sunday: Amethyst

• Sketch a picture of Amethyst.
  
• Create it’s correspondence that includes its magickal and healing properties.
• Is amethyst a crystal you use lots in your practice?
• Include any amethyst lore or superstitions.
• What effects does amethyst have on your emotions? 

Moonlight Grimoire Challenge 

12.02.17

Monday: The Elements

• Is there a particular element you gravitate towards or work with the most? 
• What other elements do you work with? 
• Do you work with the four: water, earth, air, and fire? Or do you have other elements you include (ie. spirit, metal)? 
• Create a correspondence chart for the elements you incorporate in your craft. 
• What do they represent? Do they correspond with certain deities, herbs, directions, animals, seasons or crystals?
  

Tuesday: Your Daily Practices

• What is involved in your day-to-day magickal routine? 
• Map out or create a timetable for your daily magickal practices and routines.
•  Do you follow a certain schedule? If so, include it in your grimoire. 
• What is one routine that your day cannot go without?
  

Wednesday: Best Time to Perform Magick

• What time do you cast magick?
•  Do you believe that casting at a certain time will have any effect on your spell? 
• Create a entry dedicated to the best time of day, day of the week, month, and season to do magick. 
• Will you be using any of these correspondences in your future practices? 
• Experiment and journal the outcomes of corresponding time in your practices.
  

Thursday: Ritual Planning

• Plan out your own ritual. Create a step by step guide to help your perform the ritual. Make sure to include every minuscule detail. 
• Be sure to use the time correspondences from the previous entry when planning your ritual.
•  Write down and memorize any chants you want to include. 
• Are you incorporating any deities? What will you use for offerings?
• Do you call to the four elements?

Friday: Eleusinian Mysteries

• What were the Eleusinian Mysteries? 
• What deities were involved? What was there purpose? 
• Who participated? 
• Why were the rites done? 
• What were the lesser mysteries? 
• What are the Greater Mysteries?
  
• How did they come to an end?

Saturday: Famous Witches

• Research a famous Witch.
•  Create a profile or biography for them. 
• If you are the artistic type sketch or paint an image of them to add to their profile.
  

Sunday: Dream Journaling

• Create a section in your grimoire dedicated to dream interpretations. 
• Include descriptions of your dreams. Be sure to add as much detail as possible as well as your own interpretation of it. 
• Do your dreams tell the future or the past? 
• Are they any symbols that appear consistently throughout your dream? What does it mean to you? 
• Draw out your dreams, you may find hidden symbols and meanings throughout the drawings. 
  

Post on tumblr under the tag #moonlight grimoire challenge so they can be shared here. Good luck!

Moonlight Grimoire Challenge

05.02.17

Monday: Preparing your grimoire

• Include your name and the date
  
• Create a dedication to put into your grimoire. Dedicate it to whatever or whomever you praise.
  
• Write it out and put it into your grimoire. Make sure to ask for protection as well.
  
• Create a color magick chart. Correspond ink colors with your intention when writing in your grimoire.
  
• Draw sigils that bring protection to your grimoire and wards off unwanted eyes. 
  
• Chart out or make a timeline of your witchcraft so far, make it easy to expand and add onto. Include any events that helped shape your path.
  

Tuesday: Start of the year journal prompts

• Define your path.
  
• When did you begin your path?
  
• How has it changed over time (more specifically how has it changed since last year?)
  
• What makes witchcraft YOUR path?
  
• What does being a witch mean to you?
  
• What do you hope to achieve and and learn through witchcraft?
  
• How has time affected your beliefs?
  
• How did you come across witchcraft?
  
• What made you want to practise witchcraft?
  
• What do you hope to achieve by doing the 2017 grimoire challenge?
  
• Is there anything you fear while following this path?
  
• What type of entities do you believe in?
  
• Who are your patron Gods and Goddesses, if any?
  
• In what ways do you hope to grow?

Wednesday: Goal Setting

• Set a goal you want to complete by the end of the month.
  
• Set five goals you want to complete by the end of the year.
  
• What are your witchcraft related life goals?
  

Thursday: Chosen tools of your craft

• What is the one tool you use immensely in your craft that you could not practice without? Why? What are its correspondences, properties, uses?
  
• List the main tools used in your practice.
  
• Do you work with crystals? Bones? Herbs? How do you use them? Why do you use them? What kind or role do they play in your craft? 

Friday: Types of Witches

• Are you a solitary practitioner or do you practice with a coven? Why do you choose the solitary path or vice versa?
  
• Do you use a label?
  
• If so, what kind of witch do you label yourself as?
  
• If not, what are your reasons for not using a label?
  
• Do you agree with the use of labels? Are they used too freely, with not enough thought put into them?
  
• Is there a certain witchcraft path that you may not agree with? What is it that you do not agree with?
  
• Do some research on it, gather enough knowledge for you to understand their practise. Once you gather enough of an understanding do an entry on it. Make sure to include your opinions before and after you did your research.
  

Saturday: Full Moon

• There is a full moon on Saturday, February 11th.
  
• Do you have anything planned for the full moon?
  
• What is your favorite activity to do during the full moon?
  
• Do you perform rituals? Cleanse crystals? Cast spells?
  
• Do you have any full moon traditions?
  
• Create a correspondence between full moon and the months. Does a certain month influence the moon’s magick?
  
• Create a list of 2017′s full moons.
  

Sunday: February Magick Calendar

• Draw out the February calendar in your grimoire. Include any important magickal dates such as the full moons, sabbats, retrogrades, eclipses, and any other important magickal workings. Use this to organize when you want to practice magick or meet with your coven.
  

If you post your progress make sure to use the tag  #moonlight grimoire challenge so I can reblog it here. Good Luck!

Moonlight Grimoire Challenge

Today’s Prompt is: Make a list of reasons why you would enchant something.

Not feeling great so far this week (my health is terrible, I know), so be prepared for short and simple prompts.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s prompt is: Make a page on how to enchant different stationary items.

This includes pens, pencils, paper, and other stuff used for writing things.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s Prompt Is: Make a page on how to enchant make up and personal care products.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s prompt is: Make a page on how to enchant different articles of clothing.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s Prompt is: Make a page on how to enchant items larger than your fist.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s Prompt is: Make a page on how to enchant items fist-sized or smaller.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s prompt is: Make a page or more on how to enchant different types of jewelry.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s Prompt is: Make a page on how to convince a spirit to stick around.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s prompt is: Make a page on the most offensive ways you could possibly banish a spirit.

For those spirits who really need that extra “fuck you”. Use with caution

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s prompt is: Make a page on how to banish a spirit with no regard to politeness nor offensiveness.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s prompt is: Make a page on how to banish a spirit in the most polite way possible.

Granted, you are basically kicking them out, so it won’t be perfectly polite.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s Prompt is: Make a page on ways to say “no” to a less powerful entity or spirit.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s prompt is: Make a page on ways to politely say “no” to a deity or other powerful entity.

We all have to say “no” sometimes. Don’t feel pressured to do something you don’t want.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s Prompt is: Make a page on how to break a curse that went awry.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s prompt is: Make a page or more on what to do when you mess up on a spell.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s Prompt is: Make a page or more on what you should do when receiving contradictory messages or signs.

- Aydan Nightshade

Hey guys, I know that I do this, like, every other week, but this weeks prompts will be a day behind, so the prompts this week will run from Tuesday to Saturday.

You’ll get the same amount of prompts, I promise. They’ll just be a day later than normal. This is because my A/C went out, and I really can’t think when I’m this hot. The HVAC tech is coming out on Monday, so that’s why it’ll be starting up again on Tuesday.

Today’s prompt is: Make a page or so on what circumstances can lead to divination being wrong.

- Aydan Nightshade

Today’s prompt is: Make a page on types of magic you can do with tea.

- Aydan Nightshade