Ariel Gatoga is Back Online

Merry meet!

My sabbatical is over and I have started teaching again. Please visit my website at www.ariels-corner.com to access all of my courses, my videos and my new blog!

My entire course in witchcraft for beginners, A Witch's Primer, is there with each lesson completely indexed.

There are new courses in Psalm Magic, Angel Magic, Intermediate and advanced witchcraft lessons and so much more.

All my social media is back up and running:

Facebook- www.facebook.com/arielgatoga
Instagram- www.instagram.com/ariel.gatoga
YouTube- www.youtube.com/arielgatoga

All my training is offered for absolutely no fee.

Can't wait to work with you again!

Much love and blessed be!

Ariel's Corner Website

Magical Activism

Originally posted on Intersections (a wonderful blog filled with great wisdom).

Magical Activism

By Ariel Gatoga

Something I’ve noticed is that when we are doing magic for the betterment of the world, we can often miss an opportunity to use our own connection to the world as a magical tool. For instance, I was working with a group of people who were doing magic to heal the environment. When I asked them what each of their own carbon footprints were, they were unable to tell me, and surprisingly none of them wanted to go through the trouble to find out. Another time I was working with a lady who was wanting help to do magic to address a conflict in the Middle East. I told her that her magical spell involved her stopping all gossiping for an entire week. I never heard back from her again. My point is that our most potent magical acts come about when, in addition to the candles and rituals, we include our own microcosmic examples of that which we want to see in the world. It’s always easy to see that there are problems in the world “out there,” but as soon as we are confronted with the idea that we have a personal connection to the problem, we often look the other way, rather than realizing that this connection is our power source.

The entire concept of sympathetic magic is that of the microcosm influencing the macrocosm. That which happens to the poppet, happens to the individual. Therefore, when we choose an issue to take action on, if we aren’t willing to take action in our own lives, in a radically meaningful way, then we missing a huge opportunity to have a powerful impact on the matter, magically. Are we looking for an end to racism? Then it’s time to use our own lives as a catalyst for that change. Where is the prejudice living in us? If we are so naive to think that we have none, than perhaps we aren’t mature enough to tackle such a sophisticated magical operation. Are we trying to effect a healing in the environment? If so, then a major part of our magic needs to be centered on our own interaction with the environment. Where are we polluting? I am acquainted with some people who are very proud of the fact that they are very “green” in their lifestyles, but they are also very toxic and abrasive to people they encounter. If they were interested, they could find a way to reduce their psychic pollution as part of a magical operation, and thus influence the whole very deeply.

There are horrible social injustices happening all the time. So horrible, in fact, that it’s easy to see the perpetrators of such heinous crimes as being part of “the other.” The risk of looking at “the other” as being the sole problem, is that we are often tempted to see them as having all the power and viewing ourselves as being left with nothing to do except complain and pray for a miracle. That kind of self image is the opposite of magical. A magical person finds a way to take responsibility for the situation in order to step into a position of power — the power to change — and then makes conscious choices about their responsibility which cause a ripple effect of good which can’t be stopped.

Many of us are fairly well versed in the the “trappings,” or symbols, of magic. When building a spell, ritual or operation, we use those symbols to speak to our deep minds. Our deep minds are connected to the minds of anyone and everyone in the entire universe throughout all time and space. Yet, when we also “put feet to our spells,” by taking action in our own lives within the realm of that which we want to effect change, we become the poppet of a sympathetic magical operation. We can find an infinite amount of opportunity to effect change within our own worlds through ourselves; as a part of a larger magical operation, this change can have a dramatic effect on the larger macrocosm.

Ask And It Shall Be Given

It is said that the world of thought creates the world of the physical.

But what does that actually mean? Is it a silly, sophomoric platitude that's been scraped out of some hot selling, half baked metaphysical self help book within the pop culture? Or is it a legitimate philosophical and metaphysical concept?

I see the world of cause as being the world of possibility. This means that everything that can be, already exists in the world of cause as pure potential. Everything that exists in the physical world is an expression of an inner idea. An automobile is an idea. A computer is an idea. The Earth is an idea. You and I are ideas.

The unwanted circumstances in our world, such as disease, war, hunger, genocide, and the collapse of ecosystems are ideas. When we get sick for instance, the physical disease is a manifestation of an idea. Conversely, our bodies' own healing powers, as well as the medical treatments, which can help to cure us or ease our pain and suffering, are also ideas.

It can be very helpful to remember that in the spectrum of manifestation, everything that exists in the world of form is already manifest. It is not becoming manifest; it has already happened.  If, for instance, you are diagnosed with a disease, that means you already have received that diagnosis. There is absolutely nothing you can do to change that reality. It has already happened. If you break a bone, it has already happened, you can't unbreak it. As the old saying goes, A piece of toast can never become bread again.

When we are faced with crises or problems in life, we are prone to look for answers to our predicaments. This is both an extremely normal and a wonderfully human thing to do. Yet in order to find answers, we must ask questions. The quality of answers we receive depends on the quality of questions we ask.

If we ask ambiguous questions, then we find ambiguous answers. If we ask direct questions, we find direct answers. If we ask disorganized questions, we find disorganized answers. If we ask childish questions we find childish answers.

A common question that is asked when someone receives devastating news is, "Why did this happen to me?" I have asked myself that question many times. It's very normal to ask that or questions similar to it. However, I have come to understand that this type of question rarely leads to answers that are helpful, and can often actually be quite harmful.

When something has happened already, it really doesn't matter, "why" it happened, especially not as the first order of business in taking care of the situation.

Questions of a different order that prompt more helpful answers would be questions such as, "what can I do to help right now?"

Asking how one's personal thoughts contributed to a crisis is a very childish type of question to ask in the midst of the crisis, and you will usually find very childish and unhelpful answers by following that line of questioning.

The difference I see between asking questions like, "why did I do this to myself?" versus questions like, "how can I best take care of myself right now?" is that the first type of question is an attack on oneself, and the other is a loving response to a situation.

The most famous section of a prayer which has become known as the Serenity Prayer states, God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

If you receive bad news, you can't change the fact that you just received the news; yet resisting or denying that which has just presented itself to you cannot bring you serenity. Accepting that it happened is actually the only thing that can bring serenity.

Even though it's not possible to change what has already happened, what can we change? We can change a lot. We can change the quality of questions we ask ourselves, for starters. We can change the way we treat ourselves. We can change the way we treat others. We can change the choices that we make from moment to moment. We can change our behaviors.

We can change an infinite amount of things in any situation, not the least of which are our own decisions we choose to make about ourselves and the world.

Personal choice and responsibility have much to do with how we allow our characters to be formed as we respond to the various circumstances in our lives. Some people go through hell, and the result is that they become more loving to themselves and the world. Others go through similar circumstances and the result is that they become mean, bitter and cynical.

If we get sick, "how am I to blame for this?" is a poor question to ask. However, once the dust has settled and we are capable of looking more clearly and analytically at the situation, we may come to realize, for example, that we are constantly seething with anger, rage and resentment.

Did these thoughts and emotions actually cause our disease? Personally, I don't think it really matters, and would never consider asking that question. However, releasing the thoughts we habitually carry which cause us distress definitely can't hurt our healing process. In fact, most people I know who do so, discover that in letting go of these resentments, angers and rages they are actually supporting their healing, sometimes in seemingly miraculous ways.

Does this mean that we should never allow ourselves to feel angry, upset, victimized, brutalized and abused by the world at times? Of course not. But if we discover that those feelings are our normal baseline emotions, then we may want to consider doing some work on ourselves. We may want to take a good look at the questions we are habitually asking ourselves and the moment to moment choices we are making.

Asking questions like, "Right now, in this very moment, what is the most loving response?" can lead us to answers that make a positive difference in ourselves and the world around us. Asking ourselves, "why did I create this reality for myself?" can lead us to answers that make us feel bad about ourselves and the world around us.

Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye

shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh

findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

Matthew 7: 7-8

Ariels Corner

What is Ariel's Corner?

in 2007, many years after I had stopped teaching local Craft classes, someone suggested that it might be nice if I did a podcast. I hadn't ever heard of a podcast, and I didn't know what they were supposed to sound like, so I just digitized a bunch of tapes of old DCW lectures I had laying around, some from back in the mid 1990s. That was the beginnings of my first podcast, Ariel's Druidic Craft of the Wise Lectures. (I always regret not changing the title of that podcast before it got popular).

Next, I got inspired to do a podcast that was an online version of my original beginning witchcraft text: the non-denominational, A Witch's Primer. I liked that I could include all the material that had never made it into the original text; and I also really loved the idea of a complete audio training, with minimal handouts. It seemed very "old school" to me. I also wanted to make certain that A Witch's Primer was always available to anyone who wanted the material, free of charge.

After AWP had been recorded and completed, I was encouraged to add more DCW lectures, but since I was lecturing only sporadically at that time, I got the idea to go into my studio and just talk, like I do in my live lectures.  I still try to add to my lecture catalogue as best I can, whether I'm speaking live or can get some time to do a studio talk.

Unlike A Witch's Primer, or my other online courses, my DCW Lecture talks are informed by the wisdom I learn from the teachings of the Druidic Craft of the Wise. It is important to note that these talks are not DCW teachings themselves, but my personal pondering on the magical and spiritual principles within those teachings.

I started getting more and more requests for other non-denominational classes along the lines of A Witch's Primer that went beyond the basics These requests inspired me to create several online courses. Each of these courses runs somewhere from 3 to 6 weeks, and includes recorded live lectures, handouts, homework, and often a generous amount of guided meditations.

Each course also has it's own, private, online forum where students can receive support, ask questions and learn from each other. I moderate each forum myself, and group conversation is encouraged.  I ask for a suggested donation for each of my online courses (except for A Witch's Primer). If anyone cannot afford to pay for any of my courses, they are able to take them at no charge, and with no questions asked.

My goal with Ariel's Corner has always been to address a person's solitary magical practice, whether or not they are involved in a Craft or magical tradition. The techniques in magic which I teach are not my own. I teach that which I have been taught by those who came before me. These techniques are tried and true, and tend to produce practical results when the magic is worked properly and systematically.

Currently, I have entered a period in my life where my work in my worldly career is calling for a great deal more of my time and attention, at least for a while. Therefore, I won't be able to put out new classes for a while. During this time I will be lecturing only occasionally as well.

Even though my output will diminish considerably for a while, I am still online in the forums and on Facebook to answer questions and offer assistance and support.

Until I can get back to producing new material, please utilize every part of Ariel's Corner for yourself. We have the entire A Witch's Primer Audio class,  extensive discussion forums, over 90 lectures, guided meditations, articles, and 7 individual courses in magic that go Beyond the Basics.

I will be back to producing new material as soon as I can. Thank you so much for listening. It means more to me than you can ever know.

See you in the forums!

Love and blessings,

Ariel

www.arielscorner.com

Divine Wrath and Vengeance

Why do people freak out when they see the Tower? Because it looks freaking scary, that's why!  

But the Tower is Mars, and Mars can be one of our best friends. We can LOVE Mars, because Mars can destroy on our behalf.

The lightening bolts coming from above have been described by mystics from many religious traditions as the Wrath of God. Esoterically, whenever wrath or vengeance are described as being divine attributes in any mythology or religious teaching, these terms are referring, in effect, to Mars.

The Wrath of Mars is like a divine laser beam that can seek out and destroy each and every thought pattern in your mind that is contributing to the problems in your life.

By invoking the power of Divine Wrath and Vengeance, we are giving all the wrathful thoughts we have been thinking on our own behalf over to a Divine Power that can use this martial force for good. Once we are freed from the disordered and wrongly focused thoughts, we are able to focus our thinking on the state that we desire, knowing that it is manifesting now in delightful ways.

Try this on any Tuesday (waning moons are especially powerful):

Spell for Divine Wrath and Vengeance 

• This spell works best at your altar, or workspace, with a red candle burning. 
• Anoint your candle with olive oil or Mars oil before lighting it.
• Burn Incense, if you can. Myrrh is nice, as is Dragon's Blood. If you have access to a specially formulated Mars Incense Blend, that's even better. Anything you have on hand will do however. It's always a good idea to burn a bit of incense when you invoke, if at all possible. Incense symbolizes gratitude. Whenever we invoke, we do so with a profound sense of gratitude.

1. Take a look at your most vexing problem in life.
2. Let yourself feel all the volatile emotions you have not given yourself permission to feel, if any, as you write these thoughts and feelings down on a clean sheet of paper.
3. Invoke. Call on Divine Wrath and Vengeance, in whatever form feels most appropriate to you. Give your fears, anger, hatred, desire for revenge, destructive thoughts, disordered thoughts and all grievances toward anyone or anything to the power you just invoked. Do this verbally, if possible, spontaneously and in your own words. 
4. If you are able, light the paper from the flame of the candle and allow it to burn in a flame resistant dish. Otherwise simply tear the paper up.  Dispose of the the torn up paper or ashes in the garbage.
5. Give thanks that your problem is solved now.

Let the candle burn down and out by itself.  Either do this a single time, or if desired, you may repeat this ritual a total of 5 times over 5 consecutive days, burning the candle a bit each time and then allowing it to burn down and out by itself.

Sample Spontaneous Invocation

"I call on the power of Divine Wrath and Vengeance. I call on the destructive aspect of Perfect Love. Seek out and destroy all within me that is unlike Perfect Love now.  I know that from the ashes of destruction rise marvelous solutions right now. I give to you (name your problem, and all your feelings and thoughts about the problem). I know that your power brings me only victory here and now. Thank you, 

Always follow through after a spell

Do not concern yourself with the ways and means of the manifestation of your desire, instead focus on using your creative powers of mind to think of what your life is like when your problem is already completely solved. What kinds of things are you doing? What kinds of feelings are you feeling?  

Once you give your problem (and most importantly, all the thoughts and feelings that have been causing the problem) to the destructive forces of Divine Wrath and Vengeance, you are to have any no further emotional attachment with the problem. Your focus is now on feeling the feelings of the solution. You now live, astrally (emotionally), in the solution at all times.  This simply means to do your very best to entertain only relaxed and joyful  emotions, and expect good things to come your way at every turn; as that's exactly what is happening.

In magic, our desires manifest when we are focussed on something else, and in ways and forms we may not expect. After working a spell, get involved in positive, creative and productive activities, while living in the emotional reality of that which you desire, and you will get some marvelous surprises. The solutions which manifest in the physical are always much better than anything we had anticipated.

Breaking the Curse of Envy

Envy is a curse which operates under a very specific magical current.

It is very seductive.

It draws us in and makes us feel bad about ourselves regarding that which someone else is, does or has.

For the duration of time that we are under its spell, the energy of this curse repels everything we desire from us so that we are left empty.

It is insidious.

Here is how I learned to reverse this curse, and cause more of what I desire to flow to me. It will work for you too:

1. I become honest with myself about what I am feeling. I don't try to pretend I am not envious. I look the demon square in its green eyes.

2. I bless the person for whom I am experiencing envy. 

3. I rejoice in their happiness, success, wealth, or whatever it is about which I am envious (faking it if necessary until it starts to take).

4. I name that which I desire for MYSELF, and call it into being, NOW.

5. I give great thanks that it is done now.

Blessed be.

Visit my website for classes, lectures, meditations and magic.

Recommended Reading for Witches

When people ask me for good suggestions on Craft books, they are usually surprised that I recommend only a few books on Witchcraft, Wicca or magic. I usually recommend reading the Classics. 
Great literature feeds the mind and soul; it feeds us nutritious food, rather than junk food. Great literature often takes work to comprehend, but it is work that gives compounded rewards, especially to practitioners of magic. 
Witches rely on imagination as one of their primary magical tools, but imagination is only as good as the ideas that can be called upon at will when it is used. When we constantly feed our minds high quality thoughts, we can use those thoughts to manifest high quality results. But if we only feed our minds trite, silly and weak thoughts, we have only those qualities at our disposal.
When I make a batch of cookies, I know that if I use the finest fresh butter I can find, that they will taste much different than if I use a vegetable shortening or a margarine. No matter how skillful I may be as a baker, my end product can only be as good as the ingredients I use.
Likewise, regardless of the skill a witch possesses as a practitioner of magic, her results will only be as good as the ingredients that she uses in it. In magic, the most important of those ingredients are our thought images.
What do you read? What kind of music do you listen to? What kinds of art do you look at? What kinds of television and movies do you watch? All of these things are the ingredients you are stocking in your witch's larder. If you want great results, I suggest you start stocking up on great ingredients.
Literature is most commonly thought of being in the past, as something that one "read in school." Rarely is literature viewed as something that is necessary to read on an ongoing basis. Literature is food for every mind; but for practitioners of magic, good literature is as vital as oxygen.
I recommend you commit to reading one piece of great literature each month. It can be anything from Hemingway to Plato. Just find one piece that you want to commit to understanding. Get a good study guide like a Spark Notes, or a Cliffs Notes guide, and get through that book with at least some understanding. 
For witches, the process of devouring great literature is a part of our ongoing magical initiation. What kind of witch do you want to be? What kinds of results do you want to have? If you are serious about your magic, it's time to get serious about reading good books.
Am I saying you should ONLY read the classics? Of course not. You should enjoy each and every book, film, work of art, piece of music or television show that you like. What I am suggesting, is that if you start to simply add a bit of classic literature into your daily life that you will absolutely see a tremendous improvement in your magic over time. Of that I am absolutely certain.
Come to my website for lectures, classes, meditations and magic!