Another thing that we talked about the other evening was the way some spells last the test of time, & use certain materials that remain fairly constant over centuries or even millenia. Of course this is because the magical associations of things are actually often common to humanity rather than merely magical people. We specifically talked about hearts used in magic, since my friend was telling me that a certain large supermarket has started selling hearts & he thought this was funny.
Of course the reason these things are used is the reason for the tables of correspondences in the back of Llewellyn books. Like effects like, so finding something that corresponds will influence what you want to, & so on. I actually don't really follow any tables myself - the most important table fo correspondences for any sorcerer is the one (s)he has built up over years in her head. For example keep using a particular herb in magic, & you make a covenant at a deeper level with that herb, with the being of Basil, say, rather than just the basil you are using. This is the really authentic way of doing it, making this relationship rather than looking it up in a book.
Similarly some of the manuals are written by the owners of occult supply stores, & how it shows. By the time you've bought your virgin vellum, sharpened the feather taken from a bird on a particular mountain at a particular phase of the moon, & ground the pigments for the ink yourself, you're all ready to make your sigil. In reality the need will probably have passed by then, but this is the example of magical correspondences gone wrong.
In the ancient world it wasn't actually like this, although some people would have you believe you have to have the particular ingredients the ancients used, for example. The fact they used expensive & rare things indicates that the magic in question was done by wealthy & leisured people with a staff. The magic everyone else did was the same as it has always been, the sort of approach I talk about. Defixios are an interesting case of popular magic in the ancient world, & what I like most was that defixios were often ready-made with the spell all carved into the lead, just waiting for the name of the target to be inserted. This is why there is a remarkable sameness about the spells in the Greek magical papyri: they were mass produced. People seeking magic tend to be at their wits' end, & are gullible to the idea that more expensive/rare/valuable/specialised is going to equal more effective, but it simply isn't so.
The other idea that is simply wrong is that everything should be 'virgin' (for which read brand new & unused), to prevent the intrusion of any previous use it has been put to. This is ridiculous to me - there is literally nothing new, we live in a closed system, everything is reused over & over again. You also have no guarantee that the life of the plant/animal (or even the fossil plants & animals if you're using a mineral) will not intrude. Can these people not get the feel of what they're using? Really?
My personal approach is much more freeform than what the books say. My experience is that when it's time for the magic the ingredients will appear, so I quite often find myself using materials that I wouldn't otherwise have thought to. Nor does it bother me if I use second hand things, if they feel OK to me. I have often found an ornament or doll in a charity shop representing a particular person or thing when I needed it. Similarly the other ingredients for spells will appear as well. I think for this reason I tend to avoid published spells, I like to think I make it up as I go along.
Of course I do keep some things. I have a supply of wool straight off a sheep that I use to warm, comfort, relax things. I keep candles in since candle magic is one of my staples; amongst the few actual magical products I've bought are Essence of Bend Over & High John the Conquere oils to dress the candles. I buy vinegar or lemon juice to embitter things, garlic to get rid of things, chilli powder to get rid of people, & honey to sweeten people & situations. I prefer honey to sugar because you can put an object link in it as it is liquid.
I'm not even too uptight about a link. If someone asks for a spell I'll ask them for a fingernail clipping, which I prefer to a hair because hair is just horrible. Obviously I don't ask for anything if I do a candle spell, but will usually expect them to burn a candle & do some work as well as me. In fact outside of my 'family' of Goddess mother & daughter I would normally encourage anyone to do their own spell. Magic is for all, & there's no point getting someone else to hold your hand.
The other argument about things used in magic is what I mentioned above, whether things should be new, & I said I don't think so. In fact sometimes I think if something is second-hand & fells right for the spell it is better than something new. If the teacher appears when the pupil is ready, on the same principle the magical ingredients will appear when the sorcerer is ready to use them. It may even be something that has been already subjected to an energy that will help. I suppose this is really another aspect of the Hedge.
Finally I 'dispose' of magical remains according to the purpose of the spell. If it's to get rid of something, I will make sure the spell remains (say the end of a candle) gets sent far away. if it's something I want to bring to me I'll make sure the spell remains stay near me. I don't object to putting things in the bin, although I've not yet had to resort to burying something in a grave yard!
The actual heart folk spell involves pricking it with thorns from that year's growth, which should be done by a virgin (that's why this spell isn't found in West Midlands folklore), & placed up the chimney in the smoke. This is supposed to be a protective against witchcraft: that's right, folk magic is a protector against witchcraft, since the modern religious movement didn't exist before the twentieth century. In the absence of a fireplace I have no idea how you would do this spell without it smelling nowadays: presumably it must be possible to cure the heart with salt, but of course that would be taking the heart spell into quite different territory! I suppose that's what always happens when you try to adapt a recipe to the circumstances.
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