Casting a Circle + Opening a Circle

Make sure you have everything you need before you begin. You do not want to have to leave your circle in the middle of something to get an item you missed. Make sure you have enough space for whatever you wish to do. 

Cleanse the area you want to work in. Tidy if you need to, physically. Vacuum or sweep (with a regular broom if needed). Then cleanse the area of negative energy. You can fan incense around the area, use a besom, smoke cleanse (smudge if that’s something you can do. I’m white so I cannot.), sprinkle salt or saltwater (not suggested if outside), or playing a musical instrument like bells or chimes. I personally use my cleansing spray.

The most important thing to do while cleansing is to visualize. So focus.

The most common way to cast a circle is to wave a wand, an athame, or even just your hand in a circular motion. Keep in mind, you do not have to actually touch the ground, you only have to point down. Visualize protective energy coming from within you and direct it toward your casting arm. Focus it through your casting tool and visualize a beam of energy coming from it and settling on the ground. Some people (like me) like to call the four quarters - north, east, south, west. Sometimes a circle is marked with candles, stones, cords, or some other marker. Usually, a circle is imagined as a sphere or dome of energy. 

Keep in mind that the stronger your visualizations are, the better your circle will be cast. Take your time and focus.

After your circle is cast, proceed with your ritual but always try to be aware of your circle. It would be unhelpful if you forgot about it and stepped outside.

Casting a Circle

Casting a circle is one of the most fundamental and widely used practices in magic work. The circle functions as a shield against any undesirable influences, as well as a container for the energy generated during spells and rituals. It also separates magical space from mundane space. A circle isn’t a flat ring, nor is it a dome around you. Your circle is a sphere surrounding you above and below the place where you do your magic work, as if you were standing in a bubble. You draw a circle, but envision a sphere growing out of the line you draw - it's a circle in three dimensions, a shell that allows the sacred space within the circle to exist between the worlds.

Yes, you can cast a circle by imagining yourself surrounded by a sphere of pure white light - and that circle will work just fine. But many witches enjoy a more active ritual. Do whatever you feel inspired to do, what works best for you. Here are a few suggestions.

Basic steps

Stand in the centre of the space you will define as your circle

Facing east, point your magic wand or athame outward toward where you’re going to draw the circle’s wall. (if you don’t have a wand or athame, then you can point your finger,)

Centre your personal energy within your body. Then ground your energy by envisioning it flowing down through your feet and into the earth, where it connects with the energy of the earth.

Draw energy up from the earth, through your body, and out to your hand, into your wand or athame.

Allow this energy to flow out to the point where you intend to begin forming your circle.

Slowly turn in a clockwise direction until you are again facing the original starting point and the flow of energy joins up with where it started, forming a seamless ring.

Visualize the ring thickening and curving inward until it meets above your head and below your feet, forming a perfect sphere of energy.

Lower your wand or athame to shut off the energy flow

With a sword

Hold the sword with the point facing outward. Beginning in the east, walk clockwise three times around the space where you will work. Chant the following incantation (or you can make up your own) as you walk:

“Thrice around the circle bound

Evil sink into the ground.

This charge I lay by the number three

As is my will, so mote it be.”

With Pentagrams

If you’re using a wand or an athame you might want to stop at each of the four directions - east, south, west, and north - to draw a pentagram in the air before you. (You can also use your hand.) The pentagram represents protection, so this step in your ritual reinforces the protective nature of the circle.

Hold your wand or athame in your hand, with your arm outstretched before and slightly above you, pointing outward.

With the tip of your tool, draw a pentagram in the air.

Visualize energy flowing from the cosmos into your tool, down your arm, through your body, and into the ground.

Repeat this action at each of the four directions.

Calling Quarters

As you walk around the circle, stop at each of the four directions and call out to the guardians of those directions. You can craft an eloquent incantation or use this simple one:

“Guardian of the eastern sphere

Now we seek your presence here.

Come, east, come.

Be with me tonight.”

Repeat at each of the four directions, substituting the name to the specific direction. You can also choose to light a candle at each point.

The Four Elements

Fill a bowl with salt water, which represents earth and water. Beginning in the east, walk in a clockwise direction, sprinkling the saltwater on the ground to define a circle as you say; “with earth and water I cast this magic circle.”

Next, light a stick of incense, which represents fire and air. Again, start in the east and walk clockwise around the circle, trailing the smoke behind you while you say; “with fire and air I cast this magic circle.”

Opening the Circle

At the end of your spell or ritual, you must open the circle in order to return to your ordinary realm of existence. Once you’ve removed the “psychic fence”, your magic can flow out into the world and manifest. Additionally, you must release the entities you’ve called upon (if any). An easy way to do this is to retrace the steps you took while casting the circle, but in reverse order.

Instead of walking clockwise, walk counterclockwise. Imagine the circle you erected dissolving behind you as you move. If you invited any guardians, the four directions, or any other nonphysical entities to join your spell then take the time now to thank them for their assistance and bid them adieu until next time. Pause at each direction and say aloud:

“I thank you for your presence here

And for the aid you gave to me.

Until we meet another time,

Hail, farewell, and blessed be.”

If you lit four candles at the four directions, snuff them out as you release the spirits of each of the directions. After you’re finished, record all your spell work in your Book of Shadows, everything you did and how it all turned out so later when you see the results, you can see how everything came about. Every piece of information is important.