Mystic Gifts and Charms Blog

Festivals of Light form a religious focus in many cultures, commonly held on the darkest days of the year. Their roots may be found in the ancient sympathetic magical tradition of attracting light and new life back to the world at the coldest part of the year. In modern magic, invocations for personal illumination are carried out by coverns and individuals at times of spiritual and amotional, as well as seasonal, darkness. Fires, candles and torches are used in these rituals to mirror the energies of the more formal festivals.

Christmas / Yule

Light was the focus of the annual midwinter solstice around December 21st from which the modern Christmas derives. These magical solstice ceremonies to selebrate the rebirth of the sun, and later the Sun Gods, and in Christianity the nativity of the Son of God, can be found in many cultures and are often celebrated by the sending of cards, and later gifts. Instead of sending a regular Christmas card this year, why not try sending your friends and relatives Yuletide Greetings instead?

Check out www.mysticgiftsandcharms.co.uk or go straight to our Yule Cards section. All cards are colour printed and come with full colour matching envelopes. We have designs from leading fantasy artists Briar and Anne Stokes.

Yule Cards by Briar & Anne Stokes

Sodalite Tumblestones

Sodalite is a dark blue stone with white calcite interspersed. It is sometimes confused with lapis lazuli as it also has small specks of pyrite in it. The largest deposit of sodalite is in Brazil.

Carry Sodalite to promote harmony, trust and solidarity. Used in healing to balance the emotions and calm panic attacks.

Dont forget to check out or Crystals and Gemstone products for Tumblestones, Crystal Keyrings and Jewellery.

The Midwinter Solstice - Three days from sunset from around 21st December according to the calendar.

The Midwinter Solstice marks the longest night and the shortest day, and pre-dates organised religion. Because early humans saw the sun at its lowest point and the vegetation dead or dying, they feared that light and life would never return, So they lit great bonfires from yule logs and hung torches from trees to give strength to the sun. They also decorated homes with evergreens to persuade the bare trees to grow again after the winter.

The psesent Christmas festival is a glorious amalgamation of many ancient festivals thta centered around the midwinter solstice, Norse, Celtic, Greek and Roman, as well as Christian celebrations. The common theme is that the sun itsself, the sun God or Son of God is reborn at the darkest hour of the year and life begins again.

The feasing of Christmas, like the Harvest Festival, formed a magical gesture to ensure there would be food again in the spring and good harvests the following year, through eating abundantly at a time of dearth.

Midwinter rituals are potent for prosperity as well as abundance in many less material ways. The herbs and incenses of Midwinter include bay, cedar, holly, juniper, pine and rosemary.

For Midwinter Solstice candle colours use White, Scarlet, Brilliant Green and Gold.

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Once we get the hang of it we will be sending out tweets with special offers in the run up to Christmas.

Jaspers are a varied group of stones. They occur in many different colours due to different balances of minerals combined with microcrystalline quartz. They are often slightly dappled in appearance because of the tiny quartz crystals inside their structure with beautiful variagtion of specks and stipes.

Red Jasper is coloured by iron oxide and is found in massive natural formations. The colour is really emphasized when its polished. As far back as roman times, jasper was used in mosaics as well as stone cladding for the insides of buildings. It has also been combined with marble to make spectacular stone floors.

Healing uses of red jasper concentrate on the raising of energies, increasing the ability to cope with pressures. It is seen as a strenthening, life enchancing stone. It also enchances the root chakra, creating a connection with the earth. It is very soothing used in a crystal bath to suppport the system if energy is low.

Dont forget to check out or Crystals and Gemstone products for Tumblestones, Crystal Keyrings and Jewellery.

Hypnosis is a state of intense concentration or altered state of consciousness when a person can be more receptive to new ideas and suggestions. They may display heightened psychic awareness.
The technique of hypnosis has been known and used for centuries, it was practised in ancient Greece, Egypt and India. The term hypnosis comes from the Greek word Hypnos, the Greek god of sleep.

It has been shown that hypnosis can help with performance, especially if positive suggestion is made. It has also been shown that hypnosis can help with memory and learning and can form part of a treatment plan for psychological disorders and behaviour modification. Hypnosis is often used by mediums to communicate with spirits and is the preferred method for past life recall.

Individual response to hypnosis can vary enormously. It is thought that the majority of the population – around 85% can be hypnotized, although only a small percentage actually achieve a deep trance.

Several steps seem essential to achieving an altered state, these include deep relaxation, concentration, turning inwards, focusing on specific sounds words or images and choosing to change ones conscious state.

There also appears to be 3 major stages of hypnosis: Light, in which the individual feels lethargic but is aware of what is going on around them ; Cataleptic in which the muscles become tense; and somnambulistic, which is a state of deep trance where the subject can be manipulated by the suggestions of the hypnotist and experience psi phenomena.

Contrary to popular belief hypnosis cannot be used to force people to do things against their will. In a sense hypnosis is like a guided meditation, the individual passes through a series of steps to go deeper into the unconscious, but actually hears every word during the process. Hypnosis is achieved when the brainwaves slow down and the individual reaches such an intense level of concentration that he or she blocks out any interference or distraction to his or her focus. During this state of intense concentration certain innate abilities are heightened including imagination, memory and suggestibility. All these abilities are linked to the initiative part of the brain which explains why hypnosis is considered a powerful tool by psychics and those seeking intuitive insight.

Check out our range of Self Hypnosis Cds

I was sorting out some old papers recently and came across a single piece of A4 paper with a long quote on it.  I vaguely remember reading it before but there is nothing on the paper to say who wrote it and no handwritten note from me saying where I got it or when.

But I wanted to share it with you because it’s a useful reminder for all of us to be grateful for what is both under our nose and, literally, our nose:

Is there anything more miraculous than your amazing body?

There is no excuse for undermining the health of the human body, the most wondrous creation of the Supreme Spirit.  Perfect in every detail with working parts that replace themselves constantly, built in thermostats to guard against the cold and changes in the atmosphere, an automatic cooling system that refreshes you in the extreme heat and essential organs that work for twenty four hours every day and never go on strike unless you overload them and they all do their own particular jobs to the very best of their ability without thanks or recompense.

No engineer could ever design a machine that could do the same job over and over again throughout such a long period of time.  No heating expert has ever devised such a marvellous automatic system and look at the wonderful way everything within this physical structure, called the human body, can not only look after itself and arrange its own maintenance but also renew its own parts.

It has within itself a huge workforce which it feeds, houses and, if they die, replaces them at very short notice.  It has the most efficient power and sewerage systems ever designed.  This wonder of wonders, this miracle of miracles, this treasure beyond all treasures and yet many constantly abuse it every day: sending the workers on strike, killing off the army of protectors, severely overloading the power and sewerage systems and packing out the warehouses with useless rubbish so that there is no space left for the essentials.

If you owned the greatest treasure in the world, what would you do?  You would make sure that it was fully protected in every possible way.  You would see that it was kept at the right temperature, regularly cleaned every day so that its beauty could be admired by everyone and you would be proud to put it on show for the whole world to see.

Are you taking care of your treasure?

Jackie Notman is a copywriter, feng shui consultant and e-commerce retailer.  This article is from her blog ‘Life – and everything else’ where you’ll find an eclectic mix of articles and information. Visit her Feng Shui site for top tips and info.

We started doing crystal of the month, but got a bit sidetracked and it got forgotten about, so we thought we would start it up again. For the month of May we have chosen Snowflake Obsidian.

Colour : Black with White specks.

Snowflake Obsidian is a form of volcanic glass that cools very quickly when lava flows come into contact with water. This produces a glassy textured mineral with a tendancy to break into flakes when struck in a particular way. This gives a razor sharp edge so obsidian tools and blades have been found dating back thousands of years. Obsidian is mainly composed of silicon dioxide (Quartz) and containds many other minerals such as iron and magnesium, giving it its dark colour, snowflake obsidian has other minerals such as mica or feldspar. These look like tiny snowflakes which is the reason for its name.

Physical / Emotional uses: Transmutes negative energy and provides energy for creative problem solving. Protects the root and sacral chakras, helping to preserve vitality as well as strengthening the aura from environmental stress.

Carry Snowflake Obsidian to enhance peace and balance to the mind and body. Used in healing to improve the circulation to benefit the skin and veins.

Dont forget to check out our other Crystals and Gemstones

Astral Travel

The astral body is believed to be capable of a very special type of travel. While leaving the physical body at rest, it can get up, walk around and look at psychical body, explore its surroundings and journey to new places.

What makes this experience unique is that you are fully conscious and in control throughout the experience. This process of consciously leaving the body and travelling free of physical constraints is often referred to as astral projection and astral travel.

Although the terms are often used interchangeably, experts define astral projection as becoming aware that your consciousness is separate from your physical body. For instance, people describe floating above themselves and viewing their bodies during astral projection, with astral travel an individual uses this conscious awareness to experience a sense of flying to new non physical or physical realms.

How the mind disconnects from its everyday type of consciousness and separates from the body remains a mystery. Experts agree that having a relaxed focus such as in meditation or when you are just about to fall asleep helps you to reach that stats. As concentrating too hard on achieving the experience may interfere with the process.

Getting started with astral travel

Like any skill astral travel takes time and practice, and it is difficult to prove what actually happens, but those experienced in astral travel tell fascinating stories of their experiences.

Some travel to secret realms where they meat spirit guides and spend hours researching ancient texts. When they wake up their clocks show that only a few minutes have past. In all likelihood most of us will not be able to accomplish these feats.

Here is an exercise that can help you get started on the astral travellers path.

·         While relaxing imagine your astral body positioned just above you in the exact position of your physical body.

·         Take note of how your astral body looks, check out the back of your head and body and parts of your body you can’t normally see.

·         Allow your consciousness to move into your astral body and look at your surroundings from this new perspective.

·         Ponder what you would like to do next and where you would like to go. You may want to visit a place or person that is normally far away through a process called targeting.  This can be done by focusing on the image of the location or the persons face. Then seeing it at the end of a tunnel. Move forward through the tunnel until you arrive at the desired place or the intended person.

·         When you are ready to return think yourself back into your psychical body and move your body until you feel comfortable back in it.

Welcome Spirit and Destiny Readers. You may have seen us in the December 09 Issue.

We would like to say a big thank you to everyone at Spirit and Destiny magazine for featuring our Wish Upon a Star fortune telling kit in their December Retail Therepy page.  They have done a great job and the photos look really good.

Click on this link to go straight to our Wish Upon a Star Kit. Make sure you check out some of our other while your here, we have lots to offer and with Christmas on its way its never to early to think about prezzies! Check out our Gift Kits and Mini Kits category.

www.mysticgiftsandcharms.co.uk