Post by Mysti on Aug 6, 2007 20:13:44 GMT -5
A CIRCLE FOR CATHARSIS
Introduction:
One of my near and dear once spent an hour in a therapist's
office kicking an innocent throw pillow around the room and screaming
out rage at his abusive father. At the end of the hour, he had a
broken foot -- and the first beginnings of a healed mind.
But we havelearned thatmagic works throughsymbols. Callingan
object by your abuser's name and then abusing that object is
sympathetic magic used for the purpose of cursing. To throw a curse is
to project one's worst feelings out into the world of form, and to
invoke upon oneself the inevitable karmic
feedback.
It isnot our way to blast the cropsand sour the milk. Wiccan
tradition and plain common sense both tell us to avoid the practice of
baneful magic. But, as usual, it's not quite as easy as just saying
no.
Rape and child abuse, loved ones killed by muggers or drunk
drivers, emotional manipulation and betrayal, economic exploitation
and dishonest office politics - people hurt and victimize other people
in many different ways every day. We are not immune.
At somepoint in ourlives, probably everysingle one ofus will
feel violated by some other human being. Often our feelings will be
based in fact. Whether they are or not, however, we need and deserve
a safe way to discharge them.
Symbolic banefulactions arealso cathartic actions.They drain
and clear our poisonous feelings and allow our own emotional healing
to begin. If we deny ourselves this outlet, what happens to the grief
and pain and rage?
If projection is bad for us, introjection is even worse.
Unreleased bad feelings are a major source of stress. In a very real
sense, stress cripples and kills. Ulcers, strokes, heart attacks and
more are all heavily stress-related. A simple refusal to engage in
baneful magic could easily amount to punishing a victim by adding
serious illness to the original harm.
I am partof the All. "Anit harm none"is about me too.Release
of my feelings is my right.
At first it seems like an insoluble paradox. But the same
understanding of magic that forbids projection of our bad feelings can
open a safe channel for those feelings. Here's one possible form:
Preparation:
1) Understanding
Think about the Alcoholics Anonymous prayer. "Grant me the
serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change
the things I can change, and the wisdom to know the difference."
People of any religion can recognize the wisdom in those words. This
ritual is intended to ease emotional pressure. I believe that is a
step towards granting all three of those things to ourselves.
If your hurt isongoing, you must take stepsto stop it -leave
the abusive relationship, begin searching for a new job, begin
organizing politically to stop your oppression. What good this Circle
does you will be temporary at best if you are not acting on both the
magical and material planes to change the things you can change.
But some ofour pain comes from old, oldinjuries. And some of
our feelings are not based on fact at all. The source of those hurts
cannot be changed, but the pain can be. This particular working is to
release any bad feelings, not to judge them.
Don'tworry aboutjustice. Youmay bemistaken about whohas hurt
you, but nobody will be hurt by what we do here. All energy will be
contained within the Circle. The object of this working is healing,
not justice. You deserve this healing simply because you hurt, and
even if you are mistaken.
Prevention and healing arehuman tasks; to dothem is tochange
the things we can change. Justice - the evening of karmic balances -
is the business of the Gods, and may take place across a span of many
lifetimes. Karmic balance is a thing we cannot change.
2) Set Up
You have some decisions to make. Thefirst one is whether you
will work
alone or ask one or more trusted friends to witness and facilitate
your
working. Some of us can only let our feelings go in strict privacy.
For others,
the presence of people who will make sure we don't hurt ourselves or
our homes
removes a source of inhibition. And sometimes simply being heard is
part of the
release process.
Next, exactly what kind of symbolic action will release your
feelings? Will kicking a throw pillow suffice, or do you need to
actually make a poppet? Or just screaming may be enough. If you want
to work with a physical symbol, prepare it in advance, and be sure not
to use anything you will want to keep after the rite or ever use
again.
Introduction:
One of my near and dear once spent an hour in a therapist's
office kicking an innocent throw pillow around the room and screaming
out rage at his abusive father. At the end of the hour, he had a
broken foot -- and the first beginnings of a healed mind.
But we havelearned thatmagic works throughsymbols. Callingan
object by your abuser's name and then abusing that object is
sympathetic magic used for the purpose of cursing. To throw a curse is
to project one's worst feelings out into the world of form, and to
invoke upon oneself the inevitable karmic
feedback.
It isnot our way to blast the cropsand sour the milk. Wiccan
tradition and plain common sense both tell us to avoid the practice of
baneful magic. But, as usual, it's not quite as easy as just saying
no.
Rape and child abuse, loved ones killed by muggers or drunk
drivers, emotional manipulation and betrayal, economic exploitation
and dishonest office politics - people hurt and victimize other people
in many different ways every day. We are not immune.
At somepoint in ourlives, probably everysingle one ofus will
feel violated by some other human being. Often our feelings will be
based in fact. Whether they are or not, however, we need and deserve
a safe way to discharge them.
Symbolic banefulactions arealso cathartic actions.They drain
and clear our poisonous feelings and allow our own emotional healing
to begin. If we deny ourselves this outlet, what happens to the grief
and pain and rage?
If projection is bad for us, introjection is even worse.
Unreleased bad feelings are a major source of stress. In a very real
sense, stress cripples and kills. Ulcers, strokes, heart attacks and
more are all heavily stress-related. A simple refusal to engage in
baneful magic could easily amount to punishing a victim by adding
serious illness to the original harm.
I am partof the All. "Anit harm none"is about me too.Release
of my feelings is my right.
At first it seems like an insoluble paradox. But the same
understanding of magic that forbids projection of our bad feelings can
open a safe channel for those feelings. Here's one possible form:
Preparation:
1) Understanding
Think about the Alcoholics Anonymous prayer. "Grant me the
serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change
the things I can change, and the wisdom to know the difference."
People of any religion can recognize the wisdom in those words. This
ritual is intended to ease emotional pressure. I believe that is a
step towards granting all three of those things to ourselves.
If your hurt isongoing, you must take stepsto stop it -leave
the abusive relationship, begin searching for a new job, begin
organizing politically to stop your oppression. What good this Circle
does you will be temporary at best if you are not acting on both the
magical and material planes to change the things you can change.
But some ofour pain comes from old, oldinjuries. And some of
our feelings are not based on fact at all. The source of those hurts
cannot be changed, but the pain can be. This particular working is to
release any bad feelings, not to judge them.
Don'tworry aboutjustice. Youmay bemistaken about whohas hurt
you, but nobody will be hurt by what we do here. All energy will be
contained within the Circle. The object of this working is healing,
not justice. You deserve this healing simply because you hurt, and
even if you are mistaken.
Prevention and healing arehuman tasks; to dothem is tochange
the things we can change. Justice - the evening of karmic balances -
is the business of the Gods, and may take place across a span of many
lifetimes. Karmic balance is a thing we cannot change.
2) Set Up
You have some decisions to make. Thefirst one is whether you
will work
alone or ask one or more trusted friends to witness and facilitate
your
working. Some of us can only let our feelings go in strict privacy.
For others,
the presence of people who will make sure we don't hurt ourselves or
our homes
removes a source of inhibition. And sometimes simply being heard is
part of the
release process.
Next, exactly what kind of symbolic action will release your
feelings? Will kicking a throw pillow suffice, or do you need to
actually make a poppet? Or just screaming may be enough. If you want
to work with a physical symbol, prepare it in advance, and be sure not
to use anything you will want to keep after the rite or ever use
again.