Pagans, Wiccans, please help me create a ritual

[Ann-Marita]

A friend in my neighborhood went through an ugly break-up. She found a "voodoo doll" in her partner's things and thinks the ex-partner's negative energy is still affecting her house.

She has been falling a lot and feels that she is being "pushed" and thinks the ex "gives the doll a twist" sometimes.

I want to help - she's a very sweet person. But I now ID as agnostic, and I was never very good at planning rituals even when I IDed as wiccan.

SOOoooo, I need help from those who CAN create meaningful rituals.

How can I go about cleansing her house (and yard) of negative stuff?

[rhianna813]

Will your friend be involved in the ritual or is this something you will be doing for her? If she is not involved, does she know you are doing the ritual?

Just asking :-)

Rhianna

[Ann-Marita]

Yes, she knows! She's requesting it of me! I told her that I'm not well-trained, not active, now agnostic. But she says she Trusts me and she wants ME to do it. I offered to get her in touch with someone more qualified, and she repeated that she wants ME to do it.

So, I'm doing what I can to help her.

[kcstar]

One time when I felt like someone was being pushy with me, I visualized a mirror shield, and tied it to a very old song. "Return to sender. Address unknown. No such number. So such phone."

[rhianna813]

The most common substance to use for cleansing is sage. People also use mugwort or sweetgrass to burn. Or you can use water or salt or salted water. The only issue with straight salt is that it’s not great for plants when sprinkling around the yard. A bell can also be rung to clear the air.

You can just smudge yourselves, the house and yard OR you can incorporate that into a larger ritual. For cleansing will want to walk clockwise around each room, throughout the house. And around the property. And cleanse each person who is present.

For a larger ritual, here are some suggestions.

Purify yourselves with sage or whatever you choose to cleanse with.
Take a few deep breathes to ground yourselves and focus.
Visualize a circle of protection that extends the whole property.
Call in whichever elements or deities or spiritual helpers you like OR none at all. You can keep these words very simple or say them silently in your mind.

Cleanse the house and open all windows and doors. Cleanse the whole yard. As you do this, you can add in the following:

Singing is a great way to clear the air and welcome positive energy. It does not have to be a spiritual song. It can be anything she likes that is uplifting. We sometimes use the Beatles Here Comes the Sun!

Visualize: have her visualize the ex in her mind. Visualize him getting smaller and smaller, less threatening, less powerful. Smaller and smaller and then floating away like a speck. Have her say Good bye to him. If you want to incorporate an object into this, she can use a dark stone to throw or bury, or a paper to burn. The point is release his negative presence in your life.

Affirmations: have her say affirmations that she is strong, powerful, safe and guarded by spirit. That she only allows positive and loving energy into her life and home. She can also write these words on paper and place it someplace to read like her fridge or mirror.

When you feel done, wish farewell to invited elements, deities or spirits.
Open the circle.

She can continue to cleanse herself and her space as often as she likes by just smudging with sage.

I wish you both the best!

Rhianna

[Tashakittie]

I visualize the triscale protection symbol daily. I burn sage and smudge the house weekly, at the least. I try to invoke a feeling of calm, of safety whenever I need it. I always feel better after smudging. I would visualize myself letting go of all the negative baggage I have towards the situation, visualize a freedom from this person.

[wombatclay]

I'm a fan of supporting the positive...

When the corner we lived on became "the spot" for illegal transactions (of all sorts) I started mixing up buckets of miracle-gro, charging them with positive "growth" images, and watering the curbside plants. I wanted to "grow" miracles, and "grow" health, and "grow" opportunities that would lead people away from the behaviors they were engaging in on my doorstep! I also hung up windchimes and visualized the sound of the chimes cleansing and protecting everything within earshot of their music. I also used chalk to draw designs over windows/doors that could capture/redirect/bounce back negative energy and hung prisms in the windows and on my porch to "transform" the negative energies into positive. Oh, and I mixed up buckets of water, salt, and an essential oil (peppermint, lemon, rosemary... something cleansing and uplifting) and used that water to clean... I'd dampen a dust cloth and wipe down the walls, wash the windows, mop the floors, splash off the porch (just keep the salt water off the plants!).

Anyway... I'd suggest that she try something similar. Certainly get her involved in cleansing the space physically as well as psychic/emotionally. Open the windows and doors, wash things down with salt water, smudge the rooms, ring the bells, and chase the old/negative/stale energy out. Hang up prisms and windchimes and suncatchers to continue the work of transformation. Close the windows and doors and bless them in whatever way feels right (and don't forget that phones, computers, water taps, and chimneys are also "entrances" to the home... make sure they've been cleansed and blessed too!). There are lots of options that would mesh with any decore... from hexmeister signs, to herbal/floral swags, to symbols drawn with salt water, to suncatchers, to window decals, etc. Bake cookies or a favorite meal so the home is filled with comfort. Maybe add some herbal pillows to symbolically "soften" any falls?

I admit I'm not much for ceremony for the sake of ceremony... I try to combine the practical with the spiritual. So I always mop/clean with charged water to get both thet physical and the energetic "dirt". She may want to think about ways she could build protection/cleansing but also the invocation of the positive into her daily routine. Perhaps making and then wearing a piece of jewelry that will act as a reminder to ground/center/focus? I'm a huge fan of bracelets/necklaces that act as "reminders" as well as jewelry... and she can find basic beads at almost any craft store... maybe onxy or obsidian or hematite to drain negativity and protect, a few rose quartz and amythest for self love, and some carved bone beads for strength? I find many of the beads I use at Michaels/AC Moore, just be careful not to grab the "simulated stone" versions!

[Ann-Marita]

Thanks, everyone.

I'll be talking with her, and possibly doing a ritual, soon.