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Author Topic: Banishing alternatives?  (Read 1507 times)

Haptalaon

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Banishing alternatives?
« on: February 05, 2021, 02:45:00 pm »
Hello all,

Talk me through some ways of thinking about banishing.

I can never get past my discomfort at the idea of cleansing out a space or chasing off whatever is there. But pretty much every pathway I've come across seems united in the fact that this is a Pretty Important Step.

So much of what I do involves cultivating/amplifying local weird that, be it outdoors or inside, commencing by shooing everything off feels odd, and unnatural, and opposite to my purposes. I should probably add that I'm a hoarder, and being in an old charity shop filled with tired energies is blissful.

And then this becomes a barrier to me ever getting out of my armchair, because it's always there in the Setup Stage of the instructions; and even though I am quite the egotist, I'm not going to jump into magic by re-inventing the basics from scratch, without trying out what works for others first (if only as a start-point for redesigning it) buuuuut I'm struggling to get into it, even with that as a pretext.

So yes, let's talk:
  • ways of thinking about banishing which make the idea feel more palatable
  • alternative, non-banishing methods for achieving a similar operation at that stage of a working
  • techniques you've found to create sacred space which don't futz with local vibes

or anything else you'd like to add.

I quite like Operant Field Theory (which states that pentagram rituals are basically clearing your interior, whereas hexagram rituals clear your exterior) - that provides a way through for me to, yes, I'd like a bit of balance and clarity, but I'm not bleaching my surroundings.

But like, ultimately, it seems that cross-tradition most people who do magic, have a "banish stuff from the space" stage, as a core component to Doing Things Properly, so. Talk me through this one, help me find a variant that works.
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Haptalaon

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Re: Banishing alternatives?
« Reply #1 on: February 05, 2021, 03:17:42 pm »
Hello all,

Talk me through some ways of thinking about banishing.


I want to add that - I think part of what's discomforting me is, circles and banishing rituals descending from traditions in which there was a sense of ritual uncleanliness, or in the case of the Key of Solomon, a clear division between the holiness of God and the potential unholiness of magic - for which reason, you were invoking the holiness to ward against profound evil.

& I guess part of my problem is, I don't feel there is a divine sense of clean/unclean or holy/unholy or good/evil that's authentic to (generic) neopagan theology, or at least, not authentic to what I'm doing.

Is this a problem for anyone else, and how have you found yourself solving it?
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Re: Banishing alternatives?
« Reply #2 on: February 06, 2021, 02:34:49 am »
I can never get past my discomfort at the idea of cleansing out a space or chasing off whatever is there. But pretty much every pathway I've come across seems united in the fact that this is a Pretty Important Step.
<snip>
So yes, let's talk:
  • ways of thinking about banishing which make the idea feel more palatable
  • alternative, non-banishing methods for achieving a similar operation at that stage of a working
  • techniques you've found to create sacred space which don't futz with local vibes

& I guess part of my problem is, I don't feel there is a divine sense of clean/unclean or holy/unholy or good/evil that's authentic to (generic) neopagan theology, or at least, not authentic to what I'm doing.

Is this a problem for anyone else, and how have you found yourself solving it?

I've never had this problem with cleansing the space, because I've always thought of it as banishing unwanted factors. The analogies that come to my mind are, if I'm cleaning my kitchen, I'm not banishing kitchen tools (unless it's something I no longer use) or ingredients (unless they're very old and/or have gone bad), nor the overall energies of kitchen-ness, but the germs and clutter that make it a less safe or less useful kitchen; or, when I remove malware from my computer, I'm not getting rid of all the apps and files.

You can adjust any liturgy you use to be explicit about it, but you probably don't need to: your whole mindset is already directed to your particular preferences about what is and isn't unwanted.

I've also found that the 'create sacred space' framing is not very useful: it's already sacred; all I'm doing is preparing it for a particular use.

Where I've had a similar issue - not in my own practice, but with advice given in many books, and by many people - is with cleansing tools and other objects. Far too often the advice/instructions seem to me to be intent on removing any and all energies, whether picked up along the way, or inherent to the object, to leave it a 'blank slate' on which the practitioner imposes what they like. I'm an animist; for me the energies inherent to the object are its spirit (for lack of better terminology), the very things that might make it a desirable 'working partner'. I have no interest in removing those, even if they could be removed (if those energies are at odds with me or my practice, this is the wrong tool for me, and I'm the wrong practitioner for it), nor in traumatizing the object by attempting to do so.

So my cleansing methods are aimed at removing acquired energies that interfere with the tool's being its truest self. I personally find this is usually best achieved with physical cleaning (using methods that don't physically damage the object) done mindfully - with the mindset being much as one might have when bathing one's child or pet, of affection and care.

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Haptalaon

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Re: Banishing alternatives?
« Reply #3 on: February 06, 2021, 09:50:25 am »
I've never had this problem with cleansing the space, because I've always thought of it as banishing unwanted factors. The analogies that come to my mind are, if I'm cleaning my kitchen, I'm not banishing kitchen tools (unless it's something I no longer use) or ingredients (unless they're very old and/or have gone bad), nor the overall energies of kitchen-ness, but the germs and clutter that make it a less safe or less useful kitchen; or, when I remove malware from my computer, I'm not getting rid of all the apps and files.

Thank you, this is a very good analogy.

(although, if you've seen the state of my kitchen, you'll understand why it isn't intuitive to me  ;D)

Two others that came to mind while I was reading your writing was

  • tuning a frequency, as on a radio (I do a lot of analogue media symbolism), as if by turning the knob down transformed a space from itself in the everyday, towards itself in another form
  • inspired, I think, by your cleaning analogy, antique restoration. Restoring an antique or something that's been dug up by an archeologist doesn't make it new, which is I think the thing I'm scared of, but it sort of polishes and reveals it, reveals something already there. Again, that's very within the symbolism of what I do


Where I've had a similar issue - not in my own practice, but with advice given in many books, and by many people - is with cleansing tools and other objects. Far too often the advice/instructions seem to me to be intent on removing any and all energies, whether picked up along the way, or inherent to the object, to leave it a 'blank slate' on which the practitioner imposes what they like. I'm an animist; for me the energies inherent to the object are its spirit (for lack of better terminology), the very things that might make it a desirable 'working partner'. I have no interest in removing those, even if they could be removed (if those energies are at odds with me or my practice, this is the wrong tool for me, and I'm the wrong practitioner for it), nor in traumatizing the object by attempting to do so.

Yes, this is very much where I'm at with it also. Part of my problem is, I think, that I do find full-on ceremonial magic very appealing (and it works! it's intensely shiny), and that's the sphere in which you most often get this *cleanse everything raw* methodology. So that's a lot of what I encounter, and then it's hard to get out of that mindset.
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sevensons

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Re: Banishing alternatives?
« Reply #4 on: February 06, 2021, 11:45:47 am »
I want to add that - I think part of what's discomforting me is,
There wasn't a day gone by that I don't banish I'm endless in the pursuit of purity.
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Re: Banishing alternatives?
« Reply #5 on: February 06, 2021, 12:47:37 pm »
Yes, this is very much where I'm at with it also. Part of my problem is, I think, that I do find full-on ceremonial magic very appealing (and it works! it's intensely shiny), and that's the sphere in which you most often get this *cleanse everything raw* methodology. So that's a lot of what I encounter, and then it's hard to get out of that mindset.

Sunflower's said a lot of what I was working around to having brain to say. When I talk about the more ceremonial methods (for example, the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram/LBRP), I often say it's a very effective method, but it's a lot like taking bleach to everything. Sometimes you want that! Sometimes you know you need bleach because of what's been going on there. Sometimes you're in a space where you've had no idea what other people have been doing in it, and you want to be a little cautious (I've often seen it used in spaces used by a lot of different groups in ritual, and you have no idea what people were doing there before you). Sometimes, you just know you need to start from a clean environment.

(I also talk about how sometimes when doing magic, you want to create a clean room environment, where the only influences there are the ones you've designated. That's a particular kind of magic, and not suited to every goal.)

However, a lot of the time, bleach takes out stuff you might actually want in the ecosystem.

So, the question is what it is in the more ceremonial structure that is what you enjoy. If it's the scriptedness, the 'this is tested ritual tech' thing, there are some approaches that preserve that, but are more 'let's tidy the kitchen' rather than 'let's bleach everything in sight', but you might have to do some testing to figure it out. (For example, the more scripted witchy stuff might be a better fit than the strictly ceremonial stuff.)

In our trad, we do a fairly improvisational banish (focused on removing distractions and influences that will affect the work we intend to do in the space), but our blessing also includes text that might hit some of the right notes for you.

It goes like this (and I'm quoting it not because you should use it like this - in many ways, this is an artifact of a tradition my HPS trained in, and not a great fit for us anymore in some wording, but it works and we are fond of it.) But it might be a useful model for fiddling with. 

You need a small bowl of water, a small container of salt, an incense stick, and a candle. Our process starts with the candle having been lit already as part of our first ritual step but you can also light it when you get there. The actions in the parentheses are done while you say the words for each step, roughly.

(Pick up the water bowl, make a banishing pentagram over the water as you say "banish")

Creature of water, I banish from you all negativity that may have resided in you during your dormancy,

(As you say the blessing words, imagine a small burst of light/energy filling the water and blessing it. Barely touching the surface of the water helps.)

and I bless you in the name of the Lady, the Lord, and the Ancient Ones. 

(Put down the water bowl. Pick up the salt. Repeat the same banishing and blessing steps for the similar text, following.)

Creature of earth, I banish from you all negativity that may have resided in you during your dormancy, and I bless you in the name of the Lady, the Lord, and the Ancient Ones.

(Put down the salt where you can reach it easily. Pick up the water again. Add a tiny pinch of salt to the water for each of the "Once for ..." phrases, stir clockwise a pleasing number of times. I usually go for five or nine.)

Creature of earth, I combine you with creature of water, once for the Lady, once for the Lord, and once for the Ancient Ones, to form the elixir of the mother's womb.

(Wander around your working space clockwise sprinkling water in every direction including the ceiling and floor. You can use a tool or I just use my fingers most of the time. Make sure to get stuff on your altar and items you'll be using in ritual. You can also anoint people in the circle on the forehead with a suitable symbol, including yourself.)

I bless this circle with the elements of earth and water. I bless this circle with the elixir of the mother's womb.

(Repeat as needed, either or both phrases. When you're back at the altar, pick up the incense - we use stick for other reasons - and cup your hand around it.)

Creature of air, I banish from you all negativity that may have resided in you during your dormancy, and I bless you in the name of the Lady, the Lord, and the Ancient Ones.

(Light the candle if you need to. Light the incense in the candle at each "once". I normally light it and shake it out for the Lady and the Lord and then let it burn through from "once for the Ancient ones" to 'life' when I put it out with a sharp snap of the wrist and usually snapping the fingers of my other hand. It's a thing we do.) 

Creature of fire, burning pure with each new flame, I combine you with creature of air, once for the Lady, once for the Lord, and once for the Ancient Ones, to create the spark of life. 

(Wander around your circle clockwise waving incense at all the things including above and below. Make sure to get stuff on your altar or things you'll be using during the ritual. You can bless people specifically by waving the incense up the front of their bodies and down the back, or whatever else works.)

Then you have a nice prepared space that has gotten rid of negative stuff that might have accumulated while your stuff was sitting around, and you have blessed your space with a set of fundamental building blocks. 
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Haptalaon

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Re: Banishing alternatives?
« Reply #6 on: February 07, 2021, 01:58:30 pm »
So, the question is what it is in the more ceremonial structure that is what you enjoy. If it's the scriptedness, the 'this is tested ritual tech' thing, there are some approaches that preserve that, but are more 'let's tidy the kitchen' rather than 'let's bleach everything in sight', but you might have to do some testing to figure it out. (For example, the more scripted witchy stuff might be a better fit than the strictly ceremonial stuff.)

Firstly, I love the idea of having the LBRP or similar on hand for a space where other magical groups have been - that seems like a really good use.

It's definitely the scriptedness, both in terms of the rites, but also "how many times a week do I do this" and "what is the incense for the chakra for the moon for this god" and "what's on the check-list before I can progress to the next level". Like catnip for my brain, just bliss. The underlying theology doesn't work for me, but the structuredness and visualisations and all that jam really does.

Thank you for this sample! I will study it, and some of this language works well for me. I'm putting together a notebook of all the different ones I find, and am going to put aside some time to just try them all and compare their effects.
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