A Card Spread for the Winter Solstice

The winter solstice, or Yule, is the shortest day and longest night of the year. Yule is a sabbat on the Wheel of the Year that marks midwinter, and even though it’s the darkest time of the whole year, it represents a sacred portal of death and rebirth. If you're new to The Wheel of the Year, you can find more about it here.

After Yule, each day begins to get a little more light and a little less dark. It’s a time to celebrate the return of the light. 

Yule is associated with evergreen, holly, ivy, mistletoe, red, white, green, gold, and fire. Sounds a little bit like Christmas, right? The pagan holiday of Yule predates Christmas, and when Christianity swept through Europe, Yule's traditions were woven into the Christian holiday of Christmas. 

Like many of us witches, pagans, and/or spiritual folks, you may honor both Yule and Christmas. 

Keep scrolling to find a tarot or oracle card spread for this Winter Solstice and Yule and other ways you might like to honor this sabbat.

A CARD SPREAD FOR YULE 

Take some time to create a ritual space before you pull your cards. Gather a few candles, light some incense or other herbs, and ground yourself before dropping in with your cards. Set an intention for your intuition, your highest self, and/or your spirit guides to communicate with you through the cards.

When you feel ready, shuffle your cards and pull one card for each of the following questions:

• What themes are surfacing most prevalently, within and outside of me?

• How can I tend to and grieve what wants to surface?

• What's ready to pour into the cauldron of the earth this Solstice?

• How can I care for myself during this tender time of shedding?

• What wants to be reborn, within and outside of me?

Image copyright Cassie Uhl 2023.

Consider sitting with your cards, journaling, and meditating for a while to help you process their medicine and really move the messages through your body.

Some other sweet ways to honor the Winter Solstice and Yule:

• Light candles

• Gather around a fire with loved ones 

• Connect with local evergreen trees

• Burn pine incense

• Meditate on a candle flame or fire

• Honor the wisdom of darkness by spending time inside or outside with the darkness of the season.

• Create a Yule altar with holly sprigs, pinecones, evergreen branches, and red, green, or white candles and crystals

• Winter Solstice & Yule Spell Jar

• Find more ideas here

How will you be honoring Yule this year? Let me know on Instagram. You can find more rituals for Yule here and meditations for the Wheel of the Year here.

Card Spread and Self-love Ritual for Libra Season

Libra, our cardinal air sign, invites you to focus on creating right relationships, initiating connection, finding soul fulfillment through the sign’s Venus rulership, and learning to communicate truth, love, and beauty.

In this blog post, I’ll be sharing a card spread and a ritual for Libra season. Check out our Understanding the Energy of Libra Season blog post to learn more about Libra energy and your personal birth chart’s connection to Libra

.Card Spread for Libra Season

We’ll use this card spread to explore the invitations and lessons Libra has to teach you this season. Feel free to use a tarot deck or an oracle deck (like the Journey Tarot!) for this spread - whichever resonates with you. 

I invite you to create a ritual space for you and your deck to communicate by taking a moment to ground and center yourself however feels good to you. In the spirit of Libra season and air energy, you might like to ground and center by taking a few deep breaths or shaking your whole body.

 When you feel grounded and ready, shuffle your deck and draw a card for each of the following questions:

• What is Libra season here to teach me?

• How can I move towards right relationship this season?

• What step can I take towards soul fulfillment this season?

• What possibilities are Libra season opening up for me?

After you pull your cards, sit with them. Try to take some time to journal or meditate with them to really connect with the full meaning they have to offer you. At the end of Libra season, you might like to revisit your cards and reflect on how they unfolded throughout the season. How did they show up? What did you learn about yourself and about the cards through the way they manifested this season?

Libra Season Ritual for a More Loving Relationship with Yourself 

Libra sign points us towards relationships, and one of the most important relationships we have is the one we have with ourselves. This ritual is intended to support you in creating a more loving relationship with yourself.

You’ll need:

• Leaves

• A marker or pen to write on the leaves 

Once you feel grounded, centered, and open, enter into meditation. Meditate on your relationship with yourself — what feels really good in this relationship, and what feels unsupportive? What would you like to change? What’s your vision for a more loving relationship with yourself? How would you like it to feel? Notice how all of these things feel in your body, and breathe into them.

When you feel clear on what you want to release as well as intentions for your relationship with yourself, write them down on your leaves. Then, take a walk through nature and let the wind carry and scatter the leaves. Trust that as the wind and the Earth take them, your intentions for release and growth are being amplified and offered up to the Universe.

Happy Libra season! I hope you find some beautiful support in this card spread and ritual for this season. 

Card Spread and Devotion Ritual for Virgo Season

Virgo, our mutable Earth sign, invites you to consider what you are in service to, to pour your gifts out for the world, to unite your body and mind, and to analyze, discern, and purify. It's a season to find clarity around what you feel called to devote yourself to. We'll be exploring themes of both nature and devotion throughout the following card spread and ritual.

In this blog post, I’ll be sharing a card spread and a ritual for Virgo season. Check out our Understanding the Energy of Virgo Season blog post to learn more about Virgo energy and your personal birth chart’s connection to Virgo.

Card Spread for Virgo Season

We’ll use this card spread to explore the invitations and lessons Virgo has to teach you this season. Feel free to use a tarot deck or an oracle deck for this spread - whichever resonates with you. 

I invite you to create a ritual space for you and your deck to communicate by taking a moment to ground and center yourself however feels good to you. In the spirit of Leo season and Earth energy, you might like to explore dropping a grounding cord into the earth or meditating with a plant.

When you feel grounded and ready, shuffle your deck and draw a card for each of the following questions:

• What is Virgo season here to teach me?

• What am I being called to devote myself to this season?

• What is no longer needed & can be released this season?

• What possibilities are Virgo season is opening up for me?

After you pull your cards, sit with them. Try to take some time to journal or meditate with them to really connect with the full meaning they have to offer you. At the end of Virgo season, you might like to revisit your cards and reflect on how they unfolded throughout the season. How did they show up? What did you learn about yourself and the cards through the way they manifested this season?

Virgo Season Ritual for Devotion 

For me, Virgo evokes a lush, nature-based beauty, so feel free to make your space beautiful for this ritual in whatever ways feel good to you and perhaps align with what you’re devoting yourself to. For example, if you’re devoting yourself to love, it could feel good to sprinkle yourself with jasmine oil and surround yourself with rose quartz and rose petals.

For this Virgo season ritual for devotion, you’ll need:

• A candle 

• Paper and pen 

• Any oils and/or herbs you’d like to roll your candle in 

• Something to carve your candle with, like a safety pin 

• Anything to make your space feel beautiful 

• A small bowl of water 

As always, follow your intuition! That’s what makes ritual the most powerful. Here are my suggested steps for this Virgo ritual.

1. Once your space is set in a way that feels good, take a moment to ground yourself and reflect on what you’d like to devote yourself to this season. 

2. If you did the tarot spread above, you could take that card that answered the question about devotion and meditate with it. Or, you might simply like to journal to the question: what do I desire to devote myself to this season? 

3. When you feel clear, gather your candle and any oils and herbs that go along with that intention. I wrote a whole blog post on oil and herb correspondences for candle magic that you can check out here!

4. Dress your candle by carving your intention into it, rolling it in oil, and rolling it in herbs.

5. Light your candle and take out your pen and paper. Take your time to write a poem, a letter, or any words that feel good to whatever it is you’re devoting yourself to: love, courage, trust, mystery, whatever it is for you. What do you want to say? What do you want to send out into the universe? What are the words and desires in your heart? Write them down! 

6. When you feel complete, read your words out loud to your candle as many times as you’d like. Let them wash over you, let them sink in, let the smoke from your candle carry them into the clouds. 

7. Then, take your water and anoint yourself with it by sprinkling it over your head, on your pulse points, or anywhere else that feels good. As you sprinkle it and let it soak into your skin, know that you are committing to this devotion and asking to co-create with this energy. 

8. Close your ritual by letting your candle burn down and returning the rest of the water to the Earth. 

Happy Virgo season! I hope this card spread and ritual support you this season. 

New Moon in Leo Ritual

The sign of Leo calls for full self-expression, play, creativity, and showing your full and true self to the world. Every new moon is a time to be open to spirit for new opportunities, guidance, and growth.

This new moon is an invitation to tune into spirit around how you can step more fully into expressing yourself in a way that feels joyful and aligned. Read on for a ritual I crafted for you to enjoy anytime during the new moon. The ideal time to practice this ritual will be August 8th or 9th, as the moon will be in the sign of Leo on those days. However, you can still connect with the new moon energy beyond the 9th and enjoy this ritual anytime during the week of the 9th.

Additional resources:

• Learn more about the energy of Leo season here.

• Find more new moon rituals here.

1. Create a sacred space. Sit, close your eyes, connect with your breath and body. Root into the moment. 

2. Optional: Light a red, yellow, orange, or white candle. Hold it in your hands, infusing it with the intention of being open to spirit for guidance in the lunar cycle ahead. 

Additional resources:

• Learn more about candle magick here.

3. Ask yourself the following question, "How can I express myself more fully?"

4. Meditate for 10 minutes or more with the intention of being open to spirit for guidance.

Additional resources:

• Learn more about meditation here.

• Purchase my guided meditations for each moon phase here.

5. Using your favorite tarot or oracle card deck, ask the following questions: 

1. How am I being called to express myself? 

2. What’s blocking me from expressing myself more fully? 

3. How can I move past what’s blocking me from fuller self-expression?

4. How will me living more authentically change my life and the lives of others?

Additional resources:

• Learn more about tarot here and oracle cards here.

• Shop the Journey Tarot here.

6. Close your ritual by connecting with your breath and body again. Thank any guides or ancestors that came through to offer guidance. Consider journaling to process any.

If you enjoy this ritual, consider sharing it with someone who might also enjoy it. This ritual will be shared via my Instagram page as we near close to the new moon for easy sharing. As always, please properly credit when sharing or reposting. All artwork is by me, Cassie Uhl, and is from my "Understanding" book series with Quarto. New moon blessings! 

Card Spread and Authenticity Ritual for Leo Season

Leo, our fixed fire sign, is here to invite you to step into your courage, be seen in your truest essence, and stand in your power. Leo evokes the radiant heart and invites us to stand in our passion.

In this blog post, I’ll be sharing a card spread and a ritual for Leo season. To learn more about Leo energy and your personal birth chart’s connection to Leo, check out our Understanding the Energy of Leo Season blog post. 

Card Spread for Leo Season

We’ll use this card spread to explore the invitations and lessons Leo has to teach you this season. Feel free to use a tarot deck or an oracle deck for this spread - whichever resonates with you. 

I invite you to create a ritual space for you and your deck to communicate by taking a moment to ground and center yourself however feels good to you. In the spirit of Leo season and fire energy, it could feel good to light a candle or take a moment to breathe outside under the sun with your deck. 

When you feel grounded and ready, shuffle your deck and draw a card for each of the following questions:

• What is Leo season here to teach me? 

• How can I step into more of my authenticity? 

• What do I need to embody my bravery? 

• A message from my radiant heart.

• What possibilities are Leo season opening up for me?

After you pull your cards, sit with them. Try to take some time to journal or meditate with them to really connect with the full meaning they have to offer you. At the end of Leo season, you might like to revisit your cards and reflect on how they unfolded throughout the season. How did they show up? What did you learn about yourself and the cards through the way they manifested this season?

Leo Season Ritual for Embodying Your Most Authentic Self

This Leo season ritual is intended to support you in embodying your most authentic self.

You'll need:

• 1 candle (any color, but yellow, red, or orange corresponds well with this ritual)

• 10-30 minutes of uninterrupted time

1. To start, light a candle on your altar or in a quiet space. Get clear on who your most authentic self is in this moment (knowing that who you are and what is authentic to you can and will change over time, and that’s beautiful!). You can start this by asking aloud or in your mind, "Who is my most authentic self?"

2. Sit in meditation and welcome your most authentic self forward.

3. Spend some time in the presence of your most authentic self. Who are they? How do they feel? What parts of themself are they expressing? Just take them in and spend some time with them. Organically as it feels good, start to sense what feels active around this authentic self in your body. What feels especially alive in your body?

4. Ask your inner self, "How can I embody this authentic self?" Don’t overthink it, just flow with it. How does this self move, sound, breathe, feel? Let your body move through whatever movements, sounds, expressions that feel good to you. Know that you are calling your truest self home with each moment and each expression. Take your time here and really let your body develop some somatic awareness of your truest self.

5. When you feel complete, let your eyes open and spend a moment gazing at your candle flame. Let this flame harness the power of you being your authentic self and send it into the universe as a spell for you being who you are. If there are any affirmations, you want to offer to yourself, feel free to speak them to the candle flame and let the smoke carry them.

6. Then, decide on one concrete action you can take in the physical world to embody this authentic self. Maybe it’s having a conversation with someone, starting a new project, saying yes or no to something, or trying something new. Whatever it is, commit to it and make a plan for when and how you’ll do it.

7. Let your candle burn all the way down and close your ritual with a few deep, grounding breaths.

Happy Leo season! I hope you find support in this card spread and ritual for the rest of Leo season. 

Card Spread and Water Ritual for Cancer Season

Cancer, our cardinal water sign, is here to help us tap into our inner world of emotions, heal our ancestry, and connect with the themes of home, family, and mother. Ruled by the moon in western astrology, this archetype connects us to the nonlinear inner world.

In this blog post, I’ll be sharing a card spread and a ritual for Cancer season. To learn more about Cancer energy and your personal birth chart’s connection to Cancer, check out our Understanding the Energy of Cancer Season blog post.

Card Spread for Cancer Season

We’ll use this card spread to explore the invitations and lessons Cancer has to teach you this season. Feel free to use a tarot deck or an oracle deck for this spread - whichever you prefer! I invite you to create a ritual space for you and your deck to communicate by taking a moment to ground and center yourself however feels good to you. In the spirit of Cancer season and water energy, you might like to drink a glass of water and/or sprinkle yourself with a little water. When you feel grounded and centered, shuffle your deck and draw a card for each of the following questions:

• What is Cancer season here to teach me? 

• What is needed in my relationship to family this season?

• What support do I need to connect with my emotional world?

• What possibilities is Cancer season is opening up for me?

After you pull your cards, take some time to journal and/or meditate with them to really connect with the full meaning they have to offer you. At the end of Cancer season, revisit your cards and reflect on how they unfolded throughout the season. How did they show up? What did you learn? 

Cancer Season Ritual for Creating a Home Within Yourself 

Home is a big theme of Cancer season — the homes we come from, the homes we live in, the people who feel like home, the homes we create for ourselves. In this ritual, we’ll work on creating a safe and loving home within yourself. All you’ll need is water to submerge in, whether it’s a bathtub or an outdoor body of water (highly recommended if you’re in the Northern Hemisphere and Cancer season takes place in summer!). 

Open your ritual by grounding and centering yourself however feels good to you. There is no one ideal way to ground — what works for you is what’s ideal! When you feel grounded, soft, and centered, journal and meditate on the following questions:

• What did home feel like for me growing up? (Try to connect with the tactile sensations: what are the smells, sounds, sensations, sights, and tastes of home?)

• What does home feel like for me now? 

• What do I want home to feel like? 

• How can I create a safe and loving home within myself? What does that feel like, look like, sound like? 

Spend some time meditating on that last question and visualizing creating a safe and loving home inside of yourself. What are the textures? How do you speak to yourself? What energies, feelings, and voices are welcome here? Let yourself sink into the soft coziness of this home you’re creating in your body. 

When it feels alive, safely submerge yourself in water for a moment to symbolize your commitment to building this home. When you emerge from the water, affirm that you are creating this home within yourself. Affirm that this home will always be there. Affirm that no one can take it away from you. Affirm that it is yours, that it is holy, that it is healing.

If it feels supportive, you might like to process your experience in your journal afterward. If you have a complicated relationship with home like many of us do, this ritual could feel especially emotional or tender. It could bring up memories or big feelings. Be extra gentle with yourself and make an aftercare plan to support yourself after the ritual. 

Happy Cancer season! I hope this card spread and ritual support you - share your spreads and rituals on Instagram and tag us @cassieuhl so we can see them! 

Card Spread and Ritual for Gemini Season

Gemini, our mutable air sign, is here to help us open our minds, connect to each other, and communicate our truth. At its most soul-centered level, Gemini energy helps us bring together people and ideas, share our message and our voice, create love through connection and communication, and find the magic right here at home in our neighborhoods.

In this blog post, I’ll be sharing a card spread and a ritual for Gemini season. To learn more about Gemini energy and your personal birth chart’s connection to Gemini, check out our Understanding the Energy of Gemini Season blog post here.

Card featured from The Starchild Tarot by Danielle Noel.

Card Spread for Gemini Season

We’ll use this card spread to explore the invitations and lessons Gemini has to teach you this season. Feel free to use a tarot deck or an oracle deck for this spread - whichever you prefer! 

I invite you to create a ritual space for you and your deck to communicate by taking a moment to ground and center yourself however feels good to you. In the spirit of Gemini season and air energy, you might like to take a few deep breaths while holding your cards.

When you feel grounded and centered, shuffle your deck and draw a card for each of the following questions:

• What is Gemini season here to teach me? 

• What truth do I need to speak this season?

• What supportive energies can I draw on as I speak that truth?

• How can I facilitate a deeper connection with myself, and my community?

• What possibilities are Gemini season opening up for me?

After you pull your cards, take some time to journal and/or meditate with them to really connect with the full meaning they have to offer you.

Gemini Season Ritual for Connection to Your Community

This ritual focuses on the aspect of Gemini that speaks to your local surroundings and neighborhood. Gemini drives us to connect, to create love, right where we are (as opposed to its polar sign Sagittarius, which is associated with world travel). 

1. To start, take some time to reflect on the questions below (feel free to meditate on them and/or journal about them).What are your wishes and dreams for the folks in your community (including yourself)? What blessings do you wish for your neighbors and for the land? What dreams do you have for your community as a whole? 

2. When you feel rooted in your intentions for your community, create offerings infused with these intentions and blessings. This could be little pieces of art or writing, plants, food, a sprinkling of oil, flower petals, or anything that feels good to you. Let your creativity and intuition lead you! As you create and gather, focus on your intentions and let them energetically weave with your offerings.

3. Then, take a walk through your neighborhood and intuitively leave your offerings around! You might like to whisper a blessing over them, take a silent, reflective moment, or do something else to honor this process as you leave them out. 

4. After you place all your offerings, close with a moment of gratitude and a deep breath, you might like to place your hands on your heart and feel how your heart is opening and expanding. 

Happy Gemini season! I hope this card spread and ritual support you - share your spreads and rituals on Instagram and tag us @cassieuhl so we can see them!

Card Spread and Ritual for Taurus Season

Taurus, our fixed Earth sign, is here to ground us in our bodies, teach us about beauty, root us into our innate worthiness and value, and help us tap into the tactile pleasures of being alive. During Taurus season in the northern hemisphere, we sink into the aliveness and blooming of spring around us and within us.

In this blog post, I’ll be sharing a card spread and a ritual for Taurus season. To learn more about Taurus energy and your personal birth chart’s connection to Taurus, check out our Understanding the Energy of Taurus Season blog post here.

Card Spread for Taurus Season

This card spread can be done using a tarot deck or an oracle deck. Through this spread, we’ll explore Taurus’ invitation for you. 

I invite you to create a ritual space for you and your deck to communicate by taking a moment to ground and center yourself however feels good to you. In the spirit of Taurus season, you might also want to work with some elements that touch the senses, like lighting some incense or herbs that smell good, having a smooth crystal to touch, or having a tincture to drop some sweetness on your tongue. 

When you feel grounded and ready, shuffle your deck and draw a card for each of the following questions:

• What is Taurus season here to teach me? 

• What can I root into this Taurus season?

• What is my relationship with self-worth?

• How can I start to heal my relationship with self-worth?

• How can I honor my physical body? 

• What possibilities are Taurus season opening up for me? 

After you pull your cards, take some time to journal and/or meditate with them to really connect with the full meaning they have to offer you.

Taurus Season Ritual for Self-Worth

Taurus season is deeply associated with the material, physical world. Its energy asks us to consider questions of value and worth: what are your values? Do you believe in your worthiness? What conditions do you place on your worth (i.e., I’m worthy if/when…)? 

For this ritual, we’ll be working with dropping into deeper self-worth. You’ll need a pen, a piece of paper you can rip or cut into small pieces of paper, a journal, and access to soil (this could be your backyard, or maybe just filling a bowl with soil and using it at your altar). 

1. Create a container for ritual that feels good to you, and ground yourself however you’d like (you can see some grounding tips in this post if you need some ideas).  

2. When you feel ready, open your journal and write at the top of a new page. I am not worthy because…

This exercise is based on Carolyn Elliott’s Deepest Fear Inventory exercise, and it’s one of my favorites. The intention is to list 5, 10, 15, 20 things that come up for you in completing that sentence. Don’t overthink or try to figure it out. Just let the words pour out.

3. Once you’re done, read what you’ve written and notice what really stands out to you. What feels particularly resonant, alive, and true? You could circle or star those. These are your big blocks, your wounded places around worthiness. You’ve touched a part of yourself that believes these things, even if your conscious mind doesn’t. Here is the work.

4. Take a moment to honor and accept these beliefs. There’s nothing wrong with them. We’re going to work with transmuting them, but they’re not inherently bad. They’re just things you’re holding that you might feel ready to complete so that you can hold something different. 

5. Take some time to reflect and/or write about what the other side of these beliefs could be. What beliefs do you want to step into?For example, if “I’m not worthy because I’ve gained weight” is one of the really alive beliefs that came up for you, what do you want to believe instead? That could become “I am worthy regardless of anything my body does or doesn’t do,” “My worth is not dependent on my body,” or “My body changes, but my worth does not.” The point is for it to be intuitive and feel good to you! 

6. Once you have your new beliefs you want to embody, take your small scraps of paper and write on them. On one side, write the old belief. On the other side, right the new. One at a time, read each out loud as you drop them in the soil and bury them. Honor the old belief out loud, and claim the new belief you want to grow into. Know that as you bury these seeds, you are asking Earth's energy to compost the old and grow new, to let the old beliefs transform into something nourishing, something you desire. 

7. Take a moment of gratitude for yourself, and if you worked with a bowl of soil, you could leave it on your altar for a few days before returning it to the Earth.

Happy Taurus season! I hope this card spread and ritual support you - share your spreads and rituals on Instagram and tag us @cassieuhl so we can see them!

Aries Season Ritual + Card Spread

Aries, our cardinal fire sign and first sign of the zodiac, is a fiery and dynamic sign here to bring us a fresh start. It invites us to tap into our bravery and courage, go after our dreams, tap into our inner fire, and move towards more freedom.

In this blog post, I’ll be sharing a card spread and a ritual for Aries season. To learn more about Aries energy and your personal birth chart’s connection to Aries, check out our Understanding the Energy of Aries Season blog post here.

Card Spread for Aries Season

This card spread can be done using an oracle deck or a tarot deck. In this spread, we’ll explore Aries’ invitation for you. I invite you to create a ritual space for you and your deck to communicate by taking a moment to ground and center yourself; lighting some incense, herbs, or candles that help you drop into your heart space; and opening to allow messages to come through.Truly, it doesn’t matter what you do, just that whatever you do helps you feel more grounded, centered, and open.When you feel centered and ready, shuffle your deck and draw a card for each of the following questions:

1. What is Aries energy here to teach me?

2. Supportive energies to draw on to encourage my growth.

3. How can I embody the warrior, and the pioneer this season?

4. What limitations am I ready to burst through?

5. How can I move through these limitations, towards more freedom?

After you pull your cards, take some time to journal and/or meditate with them to really connect with the full meaning they have to offer you.

Aries Season Ritual to Connect to Your Inner Warrior 

As I shared above, one archetype Aries can evoke from within us is the warrior. In this ritual, you’ll work with tapping into and embodying that part of yourself.

For this ritual, you’ll need:

• A candle in a color that connects you to Aries energy and your inner warrior. Orange, red, and yellow are great options, but any color you personally connect to being a warrior will work. 

• A small piece of paper you can burn and something to write with 

• A fire-safe dish 

1. At your altar or wherever you are, ground yourself in whatever way feels good (maybe taking a few deep breaths, touching something soft, or placing your hands somewhere on your body).

2. When you feel ready, light your candle and drop into meditation.

3. Meditate on the archetype of the warrior. Here are some questions to consider to help you tap into this energy:

   • Who is your inner warrior?

   • What does warrior energy feel like in your body?

   • What does being a sacred warrior mean?

   • What are you a warrior for?

   • What feels hard about embodying the warrior?

4. Take your time here and really let yourself sink into this energy. When you feel ready, let your meditation organically move into embodiment. Can you embody your inner warrior? How can you move, sound, breathe, speak to embody this part of yourself? Take some time here to just play, explore, and notice how this work feels in your body. 

5. When you feel ready to rest, take a moment to notice how your body feels. What has opened up and shifted? What is your intention for your inner warrior? 

6. Write your intention for your inner warrior on your piece of paper and read it out loud to let it really sink in. (For example, I might write I am a warrior for love or It’s safe to embody my inner warrior.) 

7. When you’re ready, burn your paper (using your candle and fire-safe dish). Let your intention waft in smoke out to the universe, and let your candle burn all the way down.

8. Commit to taking actions that allow you to access this part of yourself this season. 

Happy Aries season! I hope this card spread and ritual help you feel supported during this energetic and fiery season! Share your spreads and rituals on Instagram and tag us @cassieuhl so we can see them! 

Egg History & Rituals for Ostara + The Spring Equinox

Ostara, also known as the Spring or Vernal Equinox, is the dawn of the fertile season on the Wheel of the Year. Light and dark are in equal balance and moving forward, the light of the sun will outshine the dark of night, pushing nature into a flurry of growth and expansion. 

This season corresponds to growth, fertility, manifesting, and the maiden aspect of the Triple Goddess. The energy of this season calls you to begin taking concerted actions towards your desires. Eggs and hares are common symbols associated with this season, but their associations may not be as ancient as you thought.

I went down a bit of a rabbit hole, no pun intended, on this one! So, before we dive into egg rituals for you to practice, I want to share a bit about the history (we do know) of Ostara. If you don’t care, skip on through to the egg rituals, but personally, I find the history of our rituals not only interesting but important in crafting a meaningful practice.

Eggs and Ostara, Where’s the Connection?  

There are a couple of stories that link Ostara to eggs and hares. One being that a hare out foraging for food found an egg and gave it to Ostara an offering for Spring (read a more elaborate version of this story here.) The other story speaks of Ostara finding a bird with frozen wings that she turned into a hare to save. The hare retaining its ability to lay eggs, laid an egg for Ostara as a show of gratitude. You can find variations of stories passed down similar to these or possibly have some in your lineage. 

As with much of Pagan and spiritual practices from the Celts and Anglo-Saxons, these traditions were passed down orally. However, there’s actually no written pre-Christian evidence of the Goddess Ostara and her connection to hares and eggs. Ostara is first mentioned in a text by a Christian monk named Bede in 725 AD. 

This isn’t to say that it’s not possible that ancient Northern European folks honored hares, eggs, and maiden Goddesses like Ostara and Freya during this season. Still, there’s no written evidence supporting these stories. Here’s a great article that dives deeper into the history we know about Ostara and her connection to eggs and hares.

Card feature from the Goddess Oracle by Amy Sophia Marashinsky.

When Christianity dominated these areas, the oral traditions were slowly extinguished, as well as many of the ancient practices associated with them. So the truth is, we may never know if Ostara and her connection to hares and eggs were real. You can view this as a hardship or an opportunity. I choose the latter. Not having a script for our ancestors' ancient ways offers you an opportunity to go within and form personal meaning with each season. 

Give this post a listen here:

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Symbolism of Eggs

Regardless of how the connection of eggs came to be associated with Ostara and this season, their connection to fertility, life, and union is found worldwide. Vedic texts reference the cosmic egg, the Orphic egg in Greece, and the Serpent’s Egg in Druidic practices, just to name a few, all of which deal with the beginnings of life and fertility. 

Many of the ancient mythologies surrounding eggs tell stories of life, balance, and creation, which are all energies undoubtedly linked to the energy of the Spring Equinox. For these reasons, regardless of the history of eggs and Ostara, the egg is still a beautiful and potent symbol to work with during this season, or really anytime you’re focusing on fertility and growth. 

Egg Rituals for Ostara

Here are a few simple ways to weave eggs into your Spring Equinox rituals. Vegan? No worries, use fake eggs. As with most magical practices, your intention is the most important part. Working with fake egg-shaped decorations is an ideal substitute for the real deal. You can purchase egg shapes in paper, plastic, and wood at most craft stores. For the rituals shown below, biodegradable eggs made from paper or wood are best. Please, don’t bury plastic eggs!

1. Eat them!: Obviously, if you’re vegan, you can skip over this one. But if you’re not, enjoy eggs in your favorite way or bake with them to connect with their energy of creation. Consider holding the egg in your hand and infusing it with your desires that you’d like to manifest over the coming months. 

2. Decorate: Place plain or decorated eggs on your altar or in your home as a symbol of fertility, balance, and growth. If you’re using real eggs, you can blow out the contents of the egg with a needle and a straw; otherwise, fake eggs will work fine as well (raw eggs shouldn’t be used if left out for more than two hours.) 

3. Egg manifesting ritual: Write wishes, draw Runes or a Sigil on an egg (raw, hard-boiled, or a fake egg) in alignment with your desires. Bury your egg in the ground to let the fertile energy of the earth help it manifest. Amplify this ritual by burying your egg alongside some seeds. As your plants grow, they will serve as a reminder of your desires being manifested. 

4. Egg offering: Hard boil one or more eggs and leave them as an offering out in nature to give thanks for the season's fertility and growth. 

Now you can work with eggs this season and have a better idea of what we do know about their history in regards to Ostara. Remember, even though we don’t have written history, it doesn’t mean that Ostara wasn’t honored. In the end, this season is a time to work with the energy of fertility and growth, and if honoring Ostara, the hare, and eggs is a way that helps you do that, I encourage you to do so! Continue creating a practice that’s meaningful to you. 

Check out our past blog posts about Ostara here.

Dreamwork Ritual for Pisces Season + Card Spread

Pisces, our mutable water sign and last sign of the zodiac, evokes the artist, the mystic, the dreamer, in all of us with its connection to music, poetry, spirituality, and the dream world.

In this blog post, I’ll be sharing a card spread and a ritual for Pisces season. To learn more about Pisces energy and your personal birth chart’s connection to Pisces, check out our Understanding the Energy of Pisces Season blog post here.

Card Spread for Pisces Season

This card spread can be done using an oracle deck or a tarot deck.

I invite you to create a ritual space for you and your deck to communicate by taking a moment to ground and center yourself; lighting some incense, herbs, or candles that help you drop into your heart space; and opening to allow messages to come through. 

Truly, it doesn’t matter what you do, just that whatever you do helps you feel more grounded, centered, and open. When you feel centered and ready, shuffle your deck and draw a card for each of the following questions:

• What is Pisces energy here to teach me?

• Supportive energies to draw on to support my learning and growth 

• How can I embody the artist, the mystic, the dreamer this season? 

• What dream(s) to tend to at this time.

• How to tend to those dreams 

After you pull your cards, take some time to journal and/or meditate with them to really connect with the full meaning they have to offer you.

Dreamwork Ritual for Pisces Season

As someone who loves dreamwork already, Pisces season is basically a dream come true! This ritual is intended to support you in receiving a message through your dreams, and so is best done right before sleep. You’ll need:

• A dream tea (many herbs support sleep and dreaming. Personally, I like a simple combination of mugwort, chamomile, and lavender tea before bed. But as always, with herbs, make sure you research or check with a professional about what’s right for your body. Mugwort should not be consumed by pregnant or lactating people.)

• A journal and something to write with 

• If you'd like to add some supportive crystals aquamarine and amethyst are great options.

1. To start, brew your dream tea and take it to your altar (or bed, if you don’t have an altar or that just feels better for you). As you sip your tea, start feeling into what you need clarity on (you could sense into this, meditate on this, journal about this, or do anything else that helps you clarify what you want to know). This is the question you’re going to take into your dream space.

2. When you have that question, you’d like to receive clarity through your dream tonight, spend some time meditating with your question and take deep breaths. Feel the question in your body. Feel your desire for clarity. Let your body soften and your crown open. When you finish your tea, set your journal beside your bed and go to sleep.

3. In the morning, record your dream in your journal (or a voice memo on your phone if you’re not into writing) right away. It’s okay if you don’t know what it means (in dreamwork, I often find there are no clear-cut yes/no answers, rather things to explore, energies to connect with, and more questions to ask).

4. Record the objective facts of your dream (what happened, who was there, what you saw, etc.) as well as how the dream made you feel, what stood out to you, and what feels particularly alive or significant in the dream. Do you have any gut feelings about what this dream means for you? Write them down.

5. After you record, spend some time meditating and journaling with whatever sparks curiosity, feels intriguing about the dream, or feels particularly alive or significant in the dream. Notice how it makes you feel, what it makes you think of, what it brings up for you.

It’s okay if you are left with more questions - this is about engaging with your dreams and coming into a relationship with them, not thinking of them like a vending machine for wisdom. The more you consciously dream, the more you’ll start to understand the language of your dreams! 

You can repeat this ritual as often as you’d like - I think three nights in a row is really helpful, with the same question - to get more clarity. 

(And if you want more rituals to support your sleep and sweet dreams this season, check out our blog post 7 Rituals to Help You Sleep Like a Goddess here.)

Happy Pisces season, dreamers! I hope this card spread and ritual support - share your spreads on Instagram and tag us @cassieuhl so we can see them! 

Card Spread & Sigil Ritual for Aquarius Season

Welcome to Aquarius season! Our fixed air sign, Aquarius energy is about authentic expression, bringing forth the new age and the next world, and upgrading the collective to its highest expression.

To learn more about Aquarius energy, you can check out this blog post. In this post, I’ll be sharing a card spread and a sigil ritual to help you tap into the healing invitations of the Aquarius season. 

Practice these Aquarius offerings together or separately, whatever feels best for you. Scroll down to explore both of them!

Card Spread for Aquarius Season

For this card spread, you’re welcome to use a tarot deck or an oracle deck. In the spread, we’ll explore the Aquarius themes of authenticity and belonging. 

I invite you to create a ritual space for you and your deck to communicate by taking a moment to ground and center yourself; lighting some incense, herbs, or candles that help you drop into your heart space; and opening to allow messages to come through. 

When you feel centered and ready, shuffle your deck and draw a card for each of the following points:

• Where do I have a block from authentic expression?

• How can I support my authentic expression in this area?

• What's keeping me from feeling a sense of belonging? 

• How can I create deeper belonging within myself?

• Who will I be in my most authentic expression?

Take some time to journal and/or meditation on your cards to connect with the full meaning they have to offer you.

Sigil Ritual for Aquarius Season

For this ritual, we’ll be creating a sigil to help you embody your truth. As an air sign, Aquarius evokes truth. You can see this in the King of Swords, our Aquarius card in the court cards of the tarot. It invites us to speak and embody our truth, to take up space with our voice and our message, and to not shrink - even when we’re afraid. When we embody our truth and share our voices, we create more authentic belonging. Associated with group energy and friendships, this is something Aquarius energy is deeply connected to. If sigils are new to you, think of them as a powerful symbol that is completely personal to you. What you’ll need: 

• paper

• pencil

• optional: crystals, herbs, or candles that support the element of air like yellow or blue candles, mint or citrus, and amethyst or kyanite. 

Ritual Steps: 

1. As with the card spread, open your ritual by taking some time to ground and center yourself. You might like to visualize yourself sending roots down into the core of the earth, take some deep breaths, place your hands on your body, or do something else that feels grounding to you. 

2. After you ground, you might like to cast a circle to protect your ritual space and invite any well ancestors, spirit guides, or other loving beings you have relationships with to join you in ritual.

3. When you’re ready, it’s time to create your sigil. Write down some phrases and affirmations on your paper that support you in speaking your truth. Just let them flow! Some phrases to get you started: I EMBODY MY TRUTH. or I AM TRUTH.

4. After you write them down, sit with the phrase (or phrases) you wrote. If you wrote multiple phrases, speak them out loud and see which one lands in your body. Choose one that feels alive and supportive.

5. Re-write that phrase or phrases on a new page. In the next few steps, you’ll work towards simplifying and unifying this phrase into a single symbol. 

6. Re-write the phrase again, removing all of the repeating letters and vowels. 

7. Re-write this line, turning the remaining letters into simpler symbols or shapes, like this. 

8. Connect the lines together into a symbol in a way that feels intuitive and natural to you. This can be as simple or as elaborate as you’d like. As you create, breathe deeply and focus on your intention. 

Tip: If drawing isn’t natural for you, this might feel uncomfortable, and that’s okay! Focus on the intention of your statement rather than what the sigil looks like. Remember this is a symbol for you and you alone. 

Tip: Your sigil will look different than the one pictured.

9. When you’re ready, it’s time to activate your sigil. You can do this in many ways, but for this ritual, I recommend a brief meditation. 

10. Place your sigil to your heart, with your palms on top of it, and breathe deeply. Visualize light (any color that comes intuitively is great) flowing from your heart to the sigil, activating each piece of it. Spend some time here letting energy flow, and when you feel an energy shift you’ll know that your sigil has been activated. 

11. Close your ritual by placing your sigil on your altar, under your pillow, on your bedside, or somewhere else that you’ll see it regularly and be reminded of its power. 

Wishing you a nourishing Aquarius season, and please feel free to share your ritual experience with us on Instagram!

Winter Solstice & Yule Spell Jar for Rebirth

The winter solstice, also called Yule in Germanic traditions, is the longest night and shortest day of the year. It is the time we have the most darkness, and after the winter solstice, the sun returns — growing each day.

Because of this darkness and the return of the light, the solstice is deeply associated with rebirth. A kind of new year for witches, if you will. In this blog post, I’ll share how to make a DIY spell jar for rebirth in honor of the winter solstice. This would be a great practice to do on the winter solstice or in the days after it! 

So what are spell bottles or jars? Spell jars are a form of folk magic that can be used for many different purposes. I share more about spellwork below - keep scrolling to read it!

A LITTLE ABOUT SPELLWORK

To me, spells are about directing energy in a specific direction. They’re about using magick, which Dion Fortune defines as “the art of changing consciousness at will,” for healing, manifestation, and connection. 

I believe that they can be simple, and all you really need is yourself and your energy. Other items, like the ones we’ll use in this spell, are supportive in infusing some extra magick and energy into the work — but you don’t need them to do spells.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

For this spell, you’ll need:

As with all spells, use what you have. Feel free to substitute items, and don't worry if you're missing something from this list. Your intention is the most important part of any spell!

• A glass bottle/jar of any size 

• Salt of any kind for protection

• A piece of paper and pen to write your intention

• 3-5 drops of oil that supports rebirth like eucalyptus or peppermint 

• Stones that represent rebirth to you like moonstone, green aventurine, and howlite for peace as you transform. Other stone options could include malachite, citrine, moss agate, or quartz.

• Dried or fresh herbs that support rebirth like spruce, pine, or nettle.

• Dried or fresh rosemary for clarity and protection.

• Cinnamon stick for luck

• Dagaz rune, which represents dawn. This can be placed inside your jar or drawn/painted on the outside of your jar.

• White candle

• Any other representations of rebirth for you 

Let yourself be intuitive with your spell ingredients, and feel free to use what you have around you! 

SPELL STEPS

1. Like any spell, you’ll want to center and ground yourself before working the spell. You might spend a few minutes meditating, letting your eyes drift around your space, or doing breathwork or anything else that feels grounding to you. Find ideas for grounding here. 

2. When you feel ready, cleanse each of your items. You can use smoke, sound, salt, or another cleansing technique you align with.

3. Write your intention for the spell on the paper to add into your bottle.

4. If you’d like, you can paint your bottle with symbols that represent rebirth to you.

5. After your bottle is ready, take your time to place each item inside your bottle intentionally. Raise energy as you do this, either with deep breaths or chanting. I recommend coming up with your own chant that focuses energy on connecting to your intuition and developing your intuitive abilities.

6. When you’re done filling your bottle, seal it, hold the vessel in your hands, and keep chanting or breathing as long as you’d like.

7. Light your white candle and place it on top of or next to your spell bottle. Be mindful of your candle surroundings and never leave your candle burning unattended. Tip: Melt the bottom of your candle with a flame to make it stick to the top of your jar, or you can purchase spell candle holders here.

8. Spend time meditating on your intention as your candle burns. Connect with the feeling of rebirth. Visualize rebirth moving through your cells, making you whole. What would it feel like, look like, even sound like, to be reborn?

9. Ground the energy after your meditation by placing your palms on the ground and returning any excess energy to the Earth.

I recommend placing the bottle on your altar, keeping it at the forefront of your consciousness while it works its rebirth magic. Keep your Yule spell bottle out for one lunar cycle, until Imbolc, or when you feel ready to take it down.Want more ways to connect with the season of Yule? Check out these articles from our blog: 

• Oracle or Tarot Card Spread for Yule

• 4 Ways to Honor the Winter Solstice

• 3 Ways to Bring Meaning to the Winter Solstice

4 Ways to Perform Chakra Readings with The Ritual Deck

Your chakras are a primary energy source in your subtle energy body. They connect to your physical body and the rest of your subtle energy body, like your aura. If you'd like to connect with your chakra energy in new ways and learn different rituals for balancing your chakras, I created The Ritual Deck to help you do this. This oracle card deck is extremely versatile!

In this post, I will outline four ways to use this deck as an energy and chakra reading tool. If you have the Ritual Deck already, some of this is outlined in the guidebooks (along with other useful card spreads, like working with the moon phases.) Update 2022: The original Ritual Deck is currently discontinued but we're working on having a similar version eventually! 

The four techniques I’ll outline in this post are: 

1. Daily chakra reading

2. Chakra assessment card spread

3. Seven chakras balancing card spread 

4. Using a pendulum with the chakra cards for an energy reading

If you want to learn more about the chakra system in general, you can find blogs for each chakra here, or for a deep dive into the chakra system, explore my new book, Understanding Chakras.

Keep reading to explore four ways to use The Ritual Deck to work with chakra energy.

Daily Chakra Reading

One of the simplest ways to use the Ritual Deck with your chakras is to separate the seven chakra cards and work with just those seven cards. Shuffle the seven cards and ask any of the following questions. 

1. Which of my chakras is overactive? 

2. Which of my chakras is underactive or blocked? 

3. Which chakra should I focus on today? 

You could also spread your cards out and hover your hand over them to make a selection. Here’s a video I shared with these techniques if you’d like to learn more about selecting your cards.

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Select a card when you feel ready. Now that you have an idea of where you should focus your energy, you can separate the cards with that chakra and choose a ritual. For example, if you chose the throat chakra card, you would separate all of the cards with the throat chakra symbol in the correspondence bar and select a card (either intuitively or as a personal choice) to focus on for that day. 

Chakra Assessment Card Spread

This technique works well if you’d like to gain general guidance about each chakra. It can tell you more about each chakra's health and where you may want to focus your energy to help each chakra. You’ll be using the entire deck for this method. This spread works well for yourself or others. Follow the steps below to try it out. 

1. Start by gathering the chakra cards and placing them in order (either vertically or horizontally) from the crown chakra to the root chakra. 

2. Hold the rest of the card deck in your hands and begin shuffling the cards. As you shuffle, ask aloud or in your mind, “What does each chakra have to share with me right now?” or “What do I have to learn from each of my chakras right now?”

3. When you feel ready to stop shuffling, start at one end of the chakras (either crown or root, wherever you feel called) and flip one card over for each chakra card. 

4. The card you selected for each chakra is the guidance that the chakra wants to share with you. It could share a celebratory card indicating it’s happy and open or a card that may indicate that it needs some extra attention. 

As with all card readings, rely on your intuition first and your guidebook second for what each card means for each of your chakras. If, after this spread, you feel like you have some chakras that need some extra love after performing this card spread, check out the one below for help balancing your chakras. 

Chakra Balancing Card Spread

This card spread, outlined in the guidebook, works like a charm to balance specific or all of your chakras. This spread is great to use on yourself, or to use with other people. Follow these steps to perform a chakra balancing card spread. 

1. Start by gathering the chakra cards and placing them in order (either vertically or horizontally) from the crown chakra to the root chakra. 

2. Separate all of the cards that correspond to each particular chakra and place them into piles. For example, all of the cards with a root chakra correspondence will go into a pile together. You should end up with seven piles (one for each chakra). There will be a different amount of cards in each pile. Tip: Use the correspondence legend at the end of the guidebook as a quick reference if you like. 

3. Place each pile on top of its coordinating chakra, shuffle them, and turn them face down.

4. Allow your intuition to guide you in selecting one card from each pile. 

5. Now you have seven cards, each corresponding to one of your seven chakras. Perform the ritual for each card to balance and restore your chakras. 

You can use the same technique for one chakra, the upper chakras (crown chakra, third eye chakra, and throat chakra), or the lower chakras (solar plexus chakra, sacral chakra, and root chakra). If you’re focusing on one specific chakra, you may decide to select multiple cards to practice more than one ritual.

Performing a complete chakra body balance spread will require time, so feel free to spread out the rituals over the course of an entire week. This applies to any other lengthy card spreads outlined here. 

Using a Pendulum with the Chakra Cards for Energy Readings

This is a technique I outline in my new book, Understanding Chakras. You don’t technically need the Ritual Deck to perform this one, but it does come in handy! You’ll also need a pendulum for this technique, preferably one that you’re already comfortable with using. If pendulums are new to you, you can read more about them here. 

Using a pendulum for chakra readings may yield different pendulum movements than you usually receive. Your pendulum will usually react in one of three ways when using them to read chakra energy. The pendulum will circle clockwise, counterclockwise, or be completely still. 

These are not firm guidelines and rather soft suggestions. Energy is unique and fluid. Use your intuition and trust your instincts when using this technique to determine chakra health. 

• Clockwise Spin: Chakra is healthy and open.

• Very Large Clockwise Spin: Chakra may be overactive. 

• Counterclockwise Spin: Chakra may have a disruption or could be releasing negative energy. 

• No movement: Chakra is blocked or has experienced extreme trauma.

Follow these steps to try this technique. 

1. Start by gathering the chakra cards and placing them in order (either vertically or horizontally) from the crown chakra to the root chakra. You won’t need the rest of the deck for this technique.

2. Hold your pendulum in your hands and ask it to help you determine the health of each of your chakras. 

3. Hold your pendulum over each chakra and make a note of its movement for each. Using a notepad or journal is helpful for this technique. 

4. Once you know each chakra's health, you may decide to back to the previous technique to help balance any chakras that need balancing. 

I hope you feel even more empowered to work with your chakras using The Ritual Deck! Chakra energy is one of many ways to use this versatile oracle deck. You can use these techniques in similar ways with the five elements and the moon phases.

Sinking into acceptance // 4 Rituals for the Waning Moon + Card Spread

The waning moon phase is nature's way of calling you inward. How can you truly know what you need to release, shed, or let go of if you haven't allowed yourself time to go inward and fully experience your emotions? This phase is your invitation to feel and allow.

The waning moon phases occur after the peak of the full moon to the dark moon. Energetically this phase represents a time of allowance, acceptance, and shedding.

Growing up, most of us are taught to bottle our feelings up rather than sinking into them and accepting what is. Acceptance doesn't mean rolling over and taking it or being okay with the status quo. Not by a long shot. Acceptance of the current moment means allowing yourself to fully experience whatever is bubbling up in you at the present moment. 

If things in your life, or the world at large, are not aligned with your desires and want them to change, you don't have to accept them as they are. What you do need to accept is your feelings about these situations. It's in the allowance and acceptance of situations that healing, growth, and change can occur.  

There's an opportunity to grow from every situation you're presented with, and this phase asks you to be open to the learning and evolving process rather than pushing against it. Imagine the energy of this lunar cycle as a big unconditional and loving hug. 

Here are a few keywords to understand the basic energy of this lunar phase. 

Energetic Themes for the Waning Moon

• Passiveness

• Acceptance

• Allowance

• Releasing

• Shedding

• Letting go

• Resting

The rituals outlined below will work well together, but if you don't have the time or tools to perform all of them at once, that's okay, do what feels most aligned with your needs. Keep reading for four ritual suggestions for the waning moon phase. 

1. Candle Ritual for the Waning Moon

Candles are an ideal ritual tool for this moon phase because they can be used as a very passive tool. I suggest using this candle ritual suggestion in tandem with one of the ritual suggestions below so your candle can burn as you sink into a ritual. There's more than one candle color that will work for this lunar phase, here are three suggestions, go with what feels best for where you're at, or use all three!

Pink candle: Pink candles offer soft and loving energy. This candle color is ideal for bringing in self-love and acceptance. This candle color is often suggested during the waxing moon phase to call in romantic love. For the waning moon phase, its energy will be used as a tool to call in self-love. 

Blue Candle: Blue candles offer peace and respite. If you've been in a cycle of overwhelm and feel like you can't catch a break, this is your candle. The energy of this candle can help you soften into the present moment to access your emotions better. 

Purple Candle: Purple candles offer inner wisdom and perspective. If you're in a place of allowance with your emotions but struggling with accepting them, the energy of a purple candle can help open you up to a higher perspective and shed light on why you feel the way you do. 

If candle magick is new to you, and you'd like to learn more about how it works and the process I outline here, check out this past blog post on candle magick basics. 

Once you've selected your candle color(s), you may want to anoint your candle with a specific oil. I suggest lavender, bergamot, rose, or geranium work well with the energy of the waning moon. If you don't have any of these available, a simple carrier oil, like almond or coconut oil, will work just fine. 

Anoint your candle with your oil, hold it in your hands, and impress it with your energy. Repeat this intention or something like it that feels good to you, "I love and accept myself as I am. I am allowed to feel the fullness of my emotions and will let them flow through me. I trust that Spirit will show me what needs to stay and what needs to go. So it is."Light your candle(s) and stay with it as it burns. 

2. Waning Moon Meditation

If you're going to do any of these waning moon rituals, meditation is my top suggestion. I covered this topic in-depth in a previous post, so I'm not going to spend too much time discussing it here. But, if you've followed me for long, you know that I adore meditation. 

Meditation opens you up to your inner world, which is step one in allowance and acceptance. As I said above, you have to take the time to explore your inner landscape before you can truly know what needs to be released. Meditation and internal reflection is the first step in this process.  

Click here to get my free waning moon meditation or here to read my previous blog post on meditating with each moon phase. 

If you'd like to add some supportive crystals to your waning moon meditation, I suggest rose quartz and a grounding stone of choice like obsidian, black tourmaline, or garnet.

3. Waning Moon Card Spread

Use this card spread with your favorite oracle or tarot card deck. These questions can offer guidance on finding more acceptance in your life and suggestions for releasing anything holding you back from your highest good.

If you didn't begin with the candle ritual or meditation suggestion above, take a moment to connect with your breath and ground yourself. 

1. In what area of my life do I need to soften my resistance?

2. What lesson does my resistance have to share with me? 

3. Where can I focus my energy to bring more acceptance into this area of my life? 

4. How can I integrate these lessons into my life?

5. How will I hold myself back if I am unwilling to explore my resistance?

6. What old ideas do I need to shed to come into more wholeness?

Be open and honest as your cards reveal guidance to you. The next ritual can help you uncover any confusion you may have about your reading. If your reading is initially unclear, leave it, be open to signs from Spirit, and revisit it at a later time. 

4. Write and Release

This ritual suggestion works well after performing either the waning moon meditation or waning moon card spread because you should be fresh with emotion and insight. Take some time to write about what came up for you. Alternatively, if tarot and oracle cards aren't your thing, you can use the card reading questions above as journal prompts. 

Writing is a powerful tool for exploring, feeling, processing, and releasing your emotions. Here's a conclusion from a study conducted on the healing benefits of writing: "There is power in written expression and the personal sharing of one's story. Writing shows promise not only as a therapeutic tool during intervention, but as an ongoing avocational activity with many personal and health benefits." 

Try to write without judging what you're writing and let your thoughts and feelings flow. 

Choose to release your writing in a way that feels good to you. You can burn the paper in a fire-proof vessel, bury your text in the earth, release it into a flower body of water (ensure that your paper is compostable if you do this method!), or something else that feels good to you. You cannot do wrong; the purpose of all ritual is to bring meaning and healing to your experience, so trust that the releasing method you select is what will serve you best.

 I hope you feel empowered to love and accept yourself fully, emotions, and all. Dance with all aspects of your being. Know that in each moment, even the uncomfortable ones, there is an opportunity to go deeper and find wholeness.

5 Samhain Rituals + Samhain Correspondences & Card Spread

The ancient Celtic celebration of Samhain (pronounced sow-in), celebrated on October 31st and November 1st, marks the end of our seasonal cycle on the Wheel of the Year. This is why it's often referred to as the witch's New Year. Seasonally speaking, Samhain is the third and final harvest of the season or the last rally to store and prepare for the coming Winter season.

This sacred celebration reaches much farther than harvests and is also a time when the veil between the physical and spirit world is at its thinnest. The Celtic people believed that spirits walked among them during this time, so Samhain is accepted as an ideal time to communicate and connect with the spirit realm. Here's a fun drawing I created with ritual suggestions for Samhain. Keep scrolling to learn more about each one. 

Time to pull out all of your favorite intuitive and protective tools! Let's dig into four different ways to connect with this season through ritual. I'll also share correspondences for Samhain and a card spread to use with your favorite tarot or oracle card deck. 

1. Create a Samhain Altar + Samhain Correspondences 

Switching up your altar or sacred space for the seasons is an easy way to bring in each celebration's energy on the Wheel of The Year. Get a quick look at how I do this in this video I shared on Instagram for Mabon. 

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A post shared by Cassie Uhl (@cassieuhl)

When it comes to changing out your altar, understanding the correspondences (items that carry the similar energy) of Samhain will be helpful. Here's a list of tools and symbols that correspond with Samhain. 

Samhain Correspondences:

• Themes: Releasing, cleansing, divination, protection, the underworld, offerings for ancestors

• Moon Phase: Waning crescent moon

• Crystals: Labradorite, obsidian, onyx, garnet, hematite, amethyst

• Candle Colors: Purple, black, orange, silver

• Tools: Besom (broom), cauldron, any kind of divination tool

• Plants and Scents: Mugwort, cinnamon, clove, patchouli

• Foods: Apples, pomegranate, pumpkins, nuts, meat

• Runes: Algiz, Daggaz, Ansuz, Perthro, Othalo

• Gods and Goddesses: Persephone, all crone Goddesses, Callieach, Cerridwen, and Hecate

To create your altar, select items and symbols from the list above and anything else that personally connects you to this season. Clear and cleanse (both physically and energetically) your altar space, then place your altar items with care and intention. I like to end my altar creation by lighting a candle and saying a prayer for the altar's intention. It could be something like this, but feel free to tailor it to your liking. 

With this altar, I welcome the final harvest season and the thinning of the veil. I remember my loved ones crossed over and all ancestors before them and share this offering as a sign of my gratitude. Myself and my space are protected from any beings that do not have my highest good in mind. So it is. 

2. Sweep away negative energy with a besom

With the thinning of the veil between spirit and physical, it's essential to clear out and protect your space from unwanted energies. I shared a thorough post a few years ago with steps to perform a Samhain house cleansing and blessing; check it out here. Because I already wrote all about performing a house cleansing, I'd like to dive a little deeper into using a besom for Samhain. 

A besom, or broom, is a tool used by witches to cleanse a space energetically. Though your besom can clean physically, it doesn't touch the ground when used as an energy cleansing tool. Simply open a door in your house, sweep right above the floor, and visualize negative energy leaving your space. 

You can make your besom or find them for purchase at certain stores. I usually get mine from Trader Joe's and like to add my own decorations to it. 

3. Connect with your ancestors and give offerings to loved ones in spirit. 

There are cultures worldwide who believe that our loved ones come back at certain times to walk among us. We see this in the Dia de Los Muertos in Mexico, Hungry Ghosts day in China, and in Samhain (to name a few.) 

Samhain offers us a special time to connect with, honor, and remember all those who have come before us. You can do this in various ways, including by connecting with your ancestors for guidance through your intuition, remembering loved ones and ancestors passed on, or giving loved ones in spirit an offering. 

Your altar is a great place to give an offering to any loved ones who've crossed over. An offering to your ancestors could be pictures of them or favorite foods and drinks. You can also connect with ancestors in spirit through meditation and breathwork. Check out this past blog post for steps to work with your ancestors through meditation and breathwork.

Find a guided journey to your ancestors here.

4. Protect yourself!

The thinning veil is a double-edged sword for Samhain. Yes, it is lovely to connect with spirit so easily, but it also leaves you more susceptible to all energies, which may not have your highest good in mind. Because the veil is so thin during this time, take care to protect yourself and your space from any unwelcome energy. 

The featured oracle card deck is The Ritual Deck.

A protection tool that works exceptionally well during Samhain is burning dried mugwort. I shared all about this plant here. Some other favorites are salt for banishing, black candles, and the Rune Algiz. Find even more protection tools and rituals in a previous post here. 

5. Pull out your intuitive tools + Samhain Card Spread

If you want to connect with spirit, set the wheels in motion for a new desire, or want to learn more about yourself from a higher perspective, now's the time to pull out all the stops and dive deep into your intuitive practice. With the thinning veil between spirit and physical, the doors are wide open for profound intuitive growth, shadow work, and spiritual connections. 

Here's a suggested card spread to try out with your favorite tarot or oracle card deck. Samhain tarot or oracle card spread.

1. In what areas of my life do I need more protection?

2. What bonds do I need to break free of in my life?

3. What areas of my life are seeking renewal?

4. In what areas of my life do I need to allow grieving?

5. What messages do my ancestors have for me?

There are endless options for performing intuitive work, but some of my favorites for Samhain are candle spells, scrying, oracle and tarot card readings, and journey work.

Samhain is a truly magical time, and I hope you can feel how special it is with everything I've shared here. Remember, there's nothing to fear. At our core, we are spiritual beings too. This unique time offers us the opportunity to connect with a realm we already know so well, even if we've temporarily forgotten. Samhain blessings, dear one!

5 Rituals for Lammas & Lughnasadh

Lammas, or Lughnasadh, is one of the four cross-quarter days on the Celtic Wheel of the Year. This holiday, celebrated by ancient European pagans, marks the beginning of the harvest season. 

The name Lughnasadh comes from “Lunasa,” which means August in Gaelic. Lammas is the English word for this harvest festival, which is Anglo-Saxon for “loaf mass.” I tend to use both names, as I have both Irish and English ancestry. 

At the beginning of the harvest season, the themes of this holiday are abundance, gratitude, harvest, and honoring the fruits of our labors and intentions throughout the year thus far. 

Honoring the sabbats with ritual is a beautiful way to tune yourself into nature and connect with Mother Earth. Scroll down for 5 Lammas rituals to help you celebrate this day! 

1. Meditate to connect with Lugh. This holiday is associated with the sun god Lugh (which you can see in the name Lughnasadh). Lugh is a warrior deity in Celtic mythology known for being skilled in many things, including fighting, building, and the arts. 

For this ritual, sit in meditation (ideally, outside under the sun if that’s possible for you) and ask to connect with the energy of Lugh. In my practice, I like to work with deities energetically as archetypes that are already within myself, but please, do whatever works for you! You can ask Lugh to share a message with you, ask him to share his skills in a specific area you need help with, simply offer him gratitude, or bring forward another question specific to you.

Bask in Lugh’s energy until you feel complete, offer gratitude, and close your meditation with a few deep belly breaths.

You can find a meditation for Lughnasadh here to help you harvest the fruits of your labor over the previous year and tune into the energy of pride.

2. Explore what you are harvesting in your life at this time. Try this tarot or oracle card spread for deeper clarity around the abundance in your life right now. 

• What I am harvesting at this time 

• The roots of this harvest (aka, what happened to make this harvest possible internally and externally?)

• How to step into the energy of gratitude 

• How to continue to create abundance in my life 

Spend some time meditating with your cards or journaling about their meanings to go deeper. 

3. Support local farmers. I love when ritual becomes tangible and infused with life, and this is one of those rituals! Ask yourself how you can support local farmers in your life. Perhaps you’d like to commit to doing a CSA next year or buying some portion of your food locally. Perhaps you can go to the farmer’s market, purchase some things and get to know your local farmers. Get creative and support those who make our physical harvest possible every day. 

4. Bake a loaf of bread. Associated with grains, this is the perfect day to bake a fresh loaf of bread. Do this with loved ones if you’d like for a more collaborative process, and infuse intentions of gratitude and abundance into the baking process. Share the bread with your loved ones afterward, and talk about what the themes of this holiday mean to you.  

5. Make an altar. Making an altar is a beautiful way to honor any sabbat. Get creative and make it your own! To inspire your own creativity, here are some ideas of things you might like to put on your altar:

• Bread or grains 

• Yellow, orange, red, or brown candles

• Local, seasonal fresh vegetables 

• Your tarot cards from the spread above

• The 8 of Pentacles, 10 of Pentacles, or any other cards that represent harvest, abundance, and gratitude to you 

• An ear of corn 

• Sunflowers

• Citrine, pyrite, or tiger eye

To learn more about the different sabbats on the wheel of the year (plus, get a free printable), click here. Learn more about the intersection of the first harvest season, Leo season, and Lughnasadh and the history of the Celtic God Lugh here. 

A Card Spread for Empaths

I've been on a writing break after completing three new books this year. Today I'm dipping my toe back in and sharing a baby blog post with you! I've been feeling called to talk more about processing emotions as an empath. I'm not going to dive into what an empath is, because I've already shared a post all about it, here.

With all that's happening in the collective, you might be feeling like your energy is constantly being bombarded. I have a secret for you. It feels like this because that's basically what's happening. The intensity of emotions arising in the collective, whether people are aware of it or not, is affecting you, especially if you identify as an empath. 

So, what's a super-sensy empath to do? Though it might be tempting to crawl in bed, zone out on Netflix, or enjoy some other form of escapism, I'm going to ask you to do the opposite. The dense and heavy emotions floating around like fear, anger, and judgment really need your full attention. 

Hear me out. Rest is 100% necessary and needed, but so is an equal amount of action, especially right now. It's fine to zone out sometimes, just don't stay there. This world needs you and your unique spirit!

Today, I'm going to share a sweet and simple little empath card spread with you. This card spread is a tool to help you "check-in" with your energy. If you're feeling a little off, this card spread is your call to pause and tune into your energy. Use whichever deck feels best to you. I've performed it with my Ritual Deck and Starchild Tarot Deck and have received wisdom and healing from both. 

Here's the spread. As always, before you perform any spiritual work, take a moment to ground and center. Whatever that means for you, maybe take a few breaths, meditate, or visualize your connection to Mother Earth. 

1. What stuck energy is keeping me from growing? 

2. What do I need to invite in to help process my energy? 

3. In what areas of my life does my energy need more protection? 

4. How can I use my empathic abilities to be of service? 

Looking for more tools? Check out an older blog post I shared here, for eight suggestions to thrive as an empath. Purchase an Energy Reset Meditation Bundle here if you need some extra support. 

A Card Spread for Eclipse Season

Eclipses can seem scary, and they are certainly a powerful energy! Generally, eclipses are thought to be wild cards, magnifying the energy of a new moon (for a solar eclipse) or a full moon (for a lunar eclipse). I like to think of eclipses as portals for endings and beginnings —things may be “eclipsed out” or “eclipsed in.” It’s common for births, moves, engagements, new jobs, break-ups, new relationships, and more to happen around eclipses and during eclipse season.

Eclipses can also be powerful illuminators, bringing hidden truths and feelings to the light for us to work with and heal through. They’re an important time to carve out space for listening, noticing, and receiving information. You can learn more about eclipses and how they interact with your specific birth chart in this blog post. 

With these current (Summer of 2020) eclipses taking place during Gemini and Cancer season, themes you might expect to come up in your life are around communication, being seen, home and family, and ancestral healing. Litha, or the summer solstice, also takes place during this eclipse season, highlighting themes of joy, vitality, abundance, and growth. 

Tip: If you’re reading this post later than the Summer of 2020, the card spreads are valid for any eclipse season!

Working with tarot or oracle cards can be powerful anytime, but especially during eclipse season. You can use the card spread below to more clearly understand the invitations, challenges, and opportunities of eclipse season for yourself. 

A CARD SPREAD FOR ECLIPSE SEASON

Before drawing your cards, take a moment to ground and center yourself. This might look like just taking a few deep breaths, or laying on the ground and feeling all the points of contact your body is making with the Earth. 

When you feel ready, set an intention for your spread. You might ask your higher self, your spirit guides, your intuition, or another helpful energy you’re familiar with to communicate with you through the cards. Shuffle your deck, and pull a card for each of the questions below:

• What (pattern, limiting belief, structure, relationship, etc.) is eclipsing out?

• Who am I right now?

• Challenge of this eclipse season

• What am I not seeing clearly?

• What healing do I need through this season?

• What (pattern, limiting belief, structure, relationship, etc.) is eclipsing in?

• How am I ready to evolve?

• Who will I be emerging from this eclipse season?

Take some time after pulling your cards to meditate and/or journal with them. This can really help you process and integrate their meanings!If you use this spread, feel free to share your cards over on Instagram and tag us at @cassieuhl! We would love to hear your interpretations of your cards.

3 Rituals for Letting Go

What is your relationship with letting go?

Ritual and magical practice can help us with more than manifesting, attracting, and calling in. It can also help us shed, let go, and transform ourselves and parts of our lives. The winter season invites us to incubate, release, and hibernate. It is an ideal time for release work (as well as the fall!). The phases of the moon that correspond to release are all the waning phases - the waning gibbous moon, the last quarter moon, the waning crescent moon, and the dark moon. Learn more about the phases of the moon with The Ritual Deck (pictured below.)

Before we get into the rituals, I also want to add that we can put a lot of pressure on ourselves to let go of things, and I want to honor that letting go can be really hard. Especially if what we’re letting go of has been something we have loved and cherished but is no longer a fit, feels comfortable, and/or feels safe. 

So please, be gentle with yourself, be kind to yourself, and let release happen on your own timeline. 

Keep scrolling to find a few rituals to support you in letting go.

MOON RITUAL FOR LETTING GO

Our sweet, gorgeous moon is more than just an archetype, a deity, or energy. She is a real living body just like the Earth that we can go outside and look at, connect with, and talk to. I think sometimes we forget this but this is one of my favorite practices! 

This is ideal to do when the moon is in its waning phases but still visible (so not the dark moon). 

For this ritual, what you’ll need is yourself, an offering for the moon, and clarity on what you’re releasing. Your offering could be anything - a plate of your dinner, a glass of water, a branch, a flower, a drawing, a song - let your intuition guide you and go with what feels right. 

When you have your offering, it’s ideal to go outside and sit or stand under the moon. If it’s really cold out or you don’t have space outdoors to do this, you can also sit by a window - that works just as well! 

Take some time to center and ground yourself, entering a ritual space. Turn your gaze to the moon, ask to connect with her, and share your offering with her. Spend some time gazing at her and share your offering with her in whatever way feels good to you.

When you’re ready, tell her what you’re desiring to release. Ask for her help letting go. Sit in meditation, drawing down her energy and light through your crown and your whole body, letting this energy fill you up and either help you release whatever you’re desiring to release internally (blocks, fears, internal limits, ways of talking to self, etc), or charge you with the courage and power to release externally (a relationship, a job, a situation, project, etc.). 

When you feel the energy shift, you know you’re finished! Thank the moon, ground yourself again, and spend some time journaling and processing afterward. 

TAROT OR ORACLE SPREAD FOR LETTING GO

For this ritual, you’ll need your tarot or oracle deck and journal. Take some time to create a ritual space, whatever that means to you, and ground yourself before working with your cards. Set the intention to communicate with your highest self, spirit guides, ancestors, intuition, or any other deities or beings you had a relationship with.

Once you’re fully present, shuffle your deck and pull cards for the following questions:

1. What do I need to let go of at this time?

2. Why do I need to let go?

3. What is on the other side of this release?

4. Supportive energies to connect with to help me let go.

Take your time with each card, really letting its messages move through you. I find it incredibly helpful to either meditate with my cards or journal about each card and what the spread means to me. I always get more information and a deeper understanding this way.

When you feel complete, it could be nice to add the cards to your altar - particularly the first and third cards - to support you throughout the release. 

CANDLE MAGICK FOR LETTING GO

I love working with fire in spells and rituals, so naturally, I love candle magick! Fire is such a powerful element with its ability to transform and transmute - think of how fire turn logs into ash. It helps things change shape, die, and transform. 

For this spell, you’ll need a black candle, a tarot card or oracle card representing what you’re releasing, and a safety pin to carve your candle.

Start by grounding yourself and casting your circle. Call in any supportive deities, guides, or other beings you have a connection with to join your circle and help you.

Next, you’ll want to intentionally choose the card from your deck that most represents what you’re releasing at this time. Take your time with this and really make sure you’re clear on what you’re desiring to release.

Once you have your card, it’s time to carve your candle. Carve into your candle any words and/or symbols that represent letting go to you. For example, I like to carve the glyph for Pluto into my candles when I work with releasing spells. Pluto represents change, rebirth, and transformation. Symbols and words work best when they’re personal to you, so don’t worry as much about the technical meaning and just intuitively choose what feels right to you!

Once your candle is ready, set it up with your card under it and take a few deep breaths. Speak your intention aloud as you light your candle, saying, “As I light this candle, I release X.” You might like to spend some time gazing into the candle flame as you focus on this intention.

Then, it’s time to raise energy. You can raise energy however feels good to you - you might chant, sing, dance, do breathwork, or use any other tool that feels good to you. As your candle burns, you are raising energy in order to support this release.

When you feel the energy is at its peak, direct it with your intention towards releasing whatever it is you are releasing from your body, from your life. 

When you feel complete, ground yourself again. Let the candle burn all the way down, thank any beings who joined you to help facilitate this release, and re-open your circle. Spend some time processing in your journal afterward, writing down what came up for you and what you felt.