A little departure from tarot with this post as I’m going to address the question “Do spells work?” First a little bit of a back story about what inspired me to write this. We receive a lot of requests from people who want their websites featured on Aquarian Insight. For the most part, this is not something that we do, but this person was particularly dogged with their messages, so I decided to take a look at their website. The site is apparently run by someone who is a Spiritual Healer and Spell Caster who claims to be able to help people with health, wealth and love problems. I felt some real worry as I looked through the types of spells offered, especially when I saw a section on using voodoo to exact revenge and punish people, or to cast spells to change the will of others. Needless to say I made it very clear to the person that contacted me that I wanted nothing to do with their website. So here I look at some aspects of spell casting for anyone who is interested in spell work.
What is a Spell?
A spell is usually an incantation; the recitation of a combination of words, sometimes in conjunction with a ritual. The act of repeating these words and completing an action are believed to harness some magical energy and effect the change desired by the spell caster. Many traditions believe in some form of spell casting and it goes back to ancient times; back to the very origins of language and spoken words.
In modern times, there are many practitioners who can cast spells for those interested. There are too many types to go into here and the debate rages as to the different types of spells (such as black magic, white magic, even green magic) and the ethical uses of magic. Some even argue that there is only one type of magic; neither good nor bad.
Casting a Spell, Saying a Prayer
To look at whether spells work or not, it is important to note the different ways in which spells are used. Most of the legitimate spell casters do so as part of a religious or spiritual belief. These can just be spells performed at home or sometimes for others. I have always seen this as akin to prayer; a way of focusing ones energy on a desired goal or outcome. I know a green witch and her spell work is oriented around nature and most of her spells are to do with the promotion of healing and are a part of her own spiritual beliefs. Asking if these spells work is the same as asking if prayer works, or cosmic ordering; only the individual can say what benefit they receive.
The two aspects of spell casting that I do not agree with at all are when the spells are promoted as a quick fix to any problem and are used as a way to extort serious amounts of money from people.
Free Will and Self-Empowerment
I do not have a problem with anyone who practices spell casting for themselves as a way to focus energy, meditate or as a spiritual belief. I do believe that spell casting to remove another’s free will is wrong. Whether spells work or not, to be the kind of person who would want to control the will of another is not something anyone should aspire to do. Spells which claim to make another person love you, to stop your lover leaving you, to change any action another person does and anything similar, all fall under the banner of removing someone’s free will. If you believe in magic and energy, then you should also believe that the intention behind your magic is also important. Few people would want their own will removed, so why wish that on anyone else?
For too many, a spell provides a quick fix to life’s problems. This is something seen all across the divinatory arts. But the job of any practitioner, be they a tarot reader, psychic or a spell caster is to empower their clients to make positive choices in their own life. Thinking that a simple recitation of a spell will remove any and all obstacles is not just unhealthy but impractical and does not allow growth.
Unscrupulous Practices
Unfortunately, there are many unscrupulous individuals who are all too willing to prey on these weaknesses in others and offer the very things stated above. No matter what you believe about spell casting in general, I can tell you that this type of spell casting never works. Let’s go back to the website I looked at this morning. The home page is full of spell after spell for any ailment you could imagine. You want revenge and to punish someone? They have a spell. Do you want a lover to return to you? They can do that too. Black magic, white magic, voodoo, money spells, a spell to win the lottery; they have everything. This was the first red flag for me. I know many practitioners and none of them offer spells in this manner, in fact their spell work is always part of a bigger reading or spiritual counselling, where self-empowerment is the goal.
Then you have numerous testimonials on either side of the page. Every single one of these testimonials is a fake, and it is easy to tell because the website is written by someone who does not speak English as their primary language. All the testimonials claim to be from the United States, and yet they all seem to be written in the same way as the rest of the site.
People like this offer a spell for anything and charge a pretty penny for the ‘service’. These are not real practitioners and it is a blatant fraud. It is not just websites like the one I refer to here that one has to be wary of; there are people who claim to be tarot readers and psychics. They will tell you that some problem they have seen is a curse and they can remove it for you for a fee.
So .. Do Spells Work?
I’m afraid the answer to that question is another question: what do you want the spell to work for and how? If you really want to look into spell work and energy, there are numerous groups where you can learn the bigger spiritual practices around magic or there are books and courses that also teach the same and all these can help you to create your own spells in a way that enhances your spirit and empowers you. This is the only way I would ever recommend anyone get involved in spells. Be very wary of just Googling a spell and carrying it out and I don’t say that because I believe something bad will manifest from the spell, but because you are doing yourself emotional and psychological harm in the long run by relying on a quick fix, rather than looking at ways to empower yourself and overcome problems. Think twice or even thrice about paying someone to cast a spell for you, because if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is and then you’ll have the added problem of just having lost a load of money.
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