Lesson #6

Casting a Circle & Invocations
part 6

Spirited Invocations

Invoking doesn't just mean words. You can invoke in many ways — music and song, drumming and dancing being the most common in Wicca (the Deities love a party!).

Whatever way you're Calling the Deities or the Elements in, do it with energy and enthusiasm, really mean it, and keep it moving until you feel the Deities or Elements have arrived.

AND THEN... cultivate the feeling that they have arrived. Be thankful for this, and appreciate their presence.

That's is a vital part of the Calling process.

The Power Of Belief

For your declarations and invocations to work, you also need to believe that what you're imagining and feeling and doing is real.

At some point, you'll be able to sense for yourself that it's real, and over time as you see your magick getting results, you'll know it's real.

Until then, imagine it as true. Cultivate your faith that even if you can't yet perceive it, you know it's really happening. Fake it 'til you make it, that's called. As Wayne Dyer teaches, the world doesn't work by "I'll believe it when I see it" — you'll see it only when you believe it.

You need to have some energy behind what you say.

Say it like you mean it! Say it like you expect the Universe to listen to you and comply!

Then, She will!

Invoking the Elements

Invoking Elements/Directions is standard Wiccan ritual practice. It's often begun by placing objects affiliated with each Element (e.g., stone for Earth, feather for Air, etc.) on the altar or in the relevant part of the Circle's edge (before Casting). But, like almost everything in Wicca, this is not a requirement.

Throughout this course, you'll learn about the Elements... and when you do, you'll be ready to invoke them.

At this point, what you need to know is why and how to invoke them.

Here's why: Invoking the Elements of Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and Aether/Spirit are ways of connecting yourself with your place in the world. It helps you tune into and liberate these energies that are a part of yourself.

When you invoke or Call
the Elements into a Circle,
it's a way of grounding your Circle in the real world,
as well as Calling in powerful energies
to assist your work.

It's vital to remember that, while the Elements are non-physical, symbolic, and metaphorical, they also represent very real Energies. They don't have to help you or come when you Call Them. They do so because They care about you and about life.

So treat them with respect. Honour their presence and assistance with proper gratitude.

As for how, you invoke Elements just as you do Deities, as described below. ¹

Invoking Elements

There are as many ways to invoke the Elements as there are Circles Cast — it can be different every time, and for every person.

To give you an idea of verbal ways to call in the Elements...

A casual invocation could be something like this:

Earth! Ground beneath my feet; planet of abundance; Mother of All... be here now! Blessed Be!

A formal invocation of the Elements could go something like this:

Hail to the North, and the Element of Earth! Mother of All, fruitful and bountiful, loving and generous. Stones and rocks and mountains and caves: all that is strong and enduring. Herbs and trees and plains and all green growing things: all that is healing and health and delight!

I call upon You to come join this Circle, to keep it strong and clear and safe. I ask You to lend me Your power for the work I do here tonight.

Bring me Your strength, your eternal rhythm of growth and rest. Give me the Power to stabilise and hold what I create.

Speak to me with the Voice of the Ages, revealing the hidden scrolls of knowledge to my sight.

Come, North; Come, Earth: Be here now!

Welcome, Earth!!

Blessed Be!

Do Wiccans Have To Invoke the Elements?

Reluctant as I am to say that anything is obligatory, when you Cast a Circle, you need the Elements/Directions to do so. So you'd better invite them to the party!

Invoking the Elements is important to:

1. Strengthen and hold the Circle
2. Protection from other Energies which may be disharmonious or negative
3. Ground you in the Earth, since they are (collectively) Nature — like a balloon's tether, keeping you connected to where you are belong while you fly
4. Bring their Powers to the work you're doing

Invoking the Deities

You want the Divine to be present in your ritual, right? If for no other reason, that's the source of all Power and magick!

So once you've Cast your Circle and invited the Elements (so that all is in readiness and everyone is present), you invoke the Deities.

At this point we've only covered the One (Divine Source) and the basic duality of the Goddess and God, so other than those you may not know Deities to invoke, or how. This will be covered in an upcoming lesson on Deities. This is just a little introduction to the topic.

You can invite beings such as Deities very casually to come join your Circle, or you can invite them formally. It can be spontaneous, or composed ahead of time, or repeating a formula you've found or chosen... or a blending of all of these.

In any case, it's advisable to call Them by name, and helpful to include appropriate titles or aspects that suit your goal.

A casual invitation is usually done outside of Circle. Perhaps you feel the energy of a Deity close by, or want to Call Them quickly to your side, or just to greet Them (as when you say hello to the Moon).

A casual invocation could be something like this:

Artemis, protectress, be with me now and keep me safe! Blessed Be!

In Wicca, a formal invocation usually goes something like this:

Hail to Thee, Star Goddess, light of the Heavens, womb of the Universe, Mother of All; (or some such titles/designations)

I call upon You to come to this Rite, to lend me Your power for the work here tonight.

Bring me Your deep wisdom, Your ancient knowing, Your penetrating insight to help me know what I seek to know.

Speak to me with the Voice of the Ages, revealing the hidden scrolls of knowledge to my sight.

Come, Star Goddess; Come, my Mother: Be here now!

Welcome, Star Goddess!!

Blessed Be!

Do Wiccans Have To Invoke Deities?

Of course you don't have to. But it's good practice. Invoking the Deities bestows four major benefits:

1. They bring great power to whatever work you are doing
2. They protect you against anything harmful or negative
3. It deepens your relationship with the Divine
4. It brings you more and more into resonance with Divine Energy (which makes your whole life work better!)

In which case, why would you not want to invite Them? The more you have the Divine functioning in your life, the better your life will be!

Fine-Tuning Your Invocation

You can be very specific about what kinds of Energy you are attracting to your Circle.

For example, Fire has a lot of different aspects to it, and you can invite the particular aspects that you need for the ritual or magick you're doing. You can draw on a part that is...

• Full of passion, excitement, enthusiasm, etc.
• Transformative, changing, etc.
• Creative, inventive, imaginative, etc.
• Assertive, inexorable, forceful, etc.
• Virtuous Anger, insistent on change, etc.
• Energised, vigorous, active, etc.
• Illuminating, clarifying, revealing, etc.
• Warming, comforting, etc.
• Healing, purifying, etc.
• Any other aspect of Fire you feel is needed

The more you are specific with the exact energy/aspect you are Calling, the more benefit it will bring to the work you are doing.

But, especially in the beginning, it is enough to Call the Elements in whatever way you can think of in the moment. (It's often those aspects that just pop into your mind, that are exactly what you need most, anyway.)

Devocation

At the end of your ritual, you'll want to release, or devoke, the Deities and the Elements, in reverse order of how you Called them in.

For Devoking, begin by addressing the Deity/Element, just as you did in the Invocations — with their names and titles. Offer them thanks for their presence and assistance. It's best to do this specifically, if you can.

For example, after a ritual for abundance, you could say...

Earth, North;
the planet I stand on and the body I stand in,
source of all physical sustenance:

Thank you for being here with me today
with your strength and firmness,
your generosity and support,
your nurturance and abundance.

Thank you for helping me stay grounded;
thank you for grounding my magick
into the material world to manifest.

Thank you for your ongoing gifts to me
that allow me to live on this wondrous planet!

Blessed Be!

Again, as always, FEEL it — your gratitude, your appreciation, your awareness of Earth's presence, etc.

Then you conclude with some version of the standard Wiccan devocation farewell:

Stay if you will; go if you must. Hail and farewell! Blessed Be!

You've already seen how much of this works in the Dedication ritual. And we'll get into even more detail in the next lesson, Creating a Ritual.

Continue with Casting a
Circle & Invoking:

Adventures in Wicca

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