Oils
Anna Riva's Key Ingredient in Dressing Candles and Performing Rituals
In Anna Riva's words:
The use of oily, fragrant materials to anoint the body is a custom going back to remote antiquity, evidenced in the Old Testament and other early books. The ceremonial and sacred use of oils was of early origin among the Hebrews and continues in Christian rites of baptism and extreme unction.
It has long been believed that odors have a curious effect upon mankind, both natural and supernatural. Magicians of ancient times anointed their bodies with oils that drugged their senses and induced visions.
The use of divine oils is a primary way of getting in touch with the supernatural, and the use of odors as psychological stimulants is well established.
Certain perfumes can act as aphrodisiacs.
Each person may be sensitive to different fragrances to obtain desired effects. There are many ways to employ oils for magical objectives.
A bottle of oil can simply be kept open in a room to entice or repel those particular influences for which it was formulated. Oils are sometimes poured or sprinkled in the bath, on dolls or images. They are added to incenses and scrub waters. They are worn as perfumes and sprinkled on clothes as a deodorizer.
GUIDANCE ON USE ON OBJECTS
Concentrate on the purpose of the ritual and magnetize the candle with your belief and your faith as you anoint it with the appropriate oil.
A candle is dressed by rubbing the oil over its surface. beginning in the middle and applying toward each end, not in one stroke from top to bottom or bottom to top. From the middle upward, then from the middle downward until the entire outer surface is covered with the oil.
ANNOINTING SEALS
To heighten and intensify the powers of symbolic seals, many persons consecrate them with an oil which has been chosen as applicable to the purpose toward which they are working.
Here is the most generally accepted way to magnetize the seal:
First moisten the fingertips with the oil to be used and place a dot of it at each corner of a square seal. Start at the top left, then bottom right, bottom left, and top right. Then connect the corners by beginning at the upper right corner and moving the finger downwards and around the seal, ending as you reach the top right corner again.
On a circular seal, apply four dots of oil, in sequence, to the north, south, east, and west points at the outer edge of the paper, skin or whatever material the seal is made of. Then connect the dots, beginning at the north, going in a counter clockwise direction, and ending back at the north point, completing the circle.
Usually, the consecration is repeated once a week unless other instructions are given in the suggested ritual.
ANOINTING CHARMS
To consecrate or magnetize any lucky charms or talisman, apply an appropriate oil to the outer edges once a week.
ANOINTING OBJECTS
For incense burners, tools, altars, or any irregularly shaped materials, use the oil in an imaginary triangle.
When consecrating the implement for purposes of attracting, holding onto something, drawing vibrations inward, rub the oil in this imaginary triangle with its wide base away from you.
Start at each end of the wide base and rub downward and inward along the sides of the triangle always inward, always toward you, not in an up and down motion.
If you are anointing for the purpose of discarding bad influences, dispelling evil, or getting rid of troubles, begin the anointing at the tip of the triangle near you, rubbing upward and outward toward the wide base of the triangle always upward and outward, away from you.
GUIDANCE ON USE ON BODY
ANOINTING THE BODY
When applying oil to the body, keep the imaginary triangles in mind.
Think of your body as two triangles upper and lower.
The upper triangle would consist of the broad base across the chest area with the tip of it at the middle of the forehead.
The lower triangle would consist of the broad base across the stomach with the tip at the feet placed close together.
From this description of the triangles, you should be able to decide the most appropriate way to anoint yourself or another person to accomplish the most from the procedure.
The most important points to remember in anointing is inward motion for attracting, outward motion for repelling and always in one direction only, never an up and down or backward and forward stroke.
Imaginary Triangles
For instance, if you were depressed and attempting to rid yourself of this harmful feeling, the anointing would begin with rubbing the appropriate oil across the chest and upward over the shoulders, onto the side of the neck, over the cheeks, ending with the hands at the middle of the forehead.
On the other hand, if you are attempting a spell aimed at enticing a lover or attracting favors from others, begin the anointing with the hands at the middle of the forehead, bringing them downwards over the cheeks, neck, and shoulders, then across the body, meeting in the center of the chest.
For the lower portion of the body, such as ridding one of unhealthy sexual aberrations or keeping yourself away from undesirable associations, start by rubbing the oil across the stomach from the navel outward, then over the hips and down the outside of the legs, ending at the two big toes of the feet. In attempting to pull favorable influences into the body, reverse the triangle beginning with anointing the feet, bringing the movement up the legs, over the hips, and then into the body, ending near the center of the stomach area.
Keep in mind always the triangle which can be used on any part of the body.
To bring money into the hands, for instance, start at the finger tips, coming up on each side of the hand and then across the wrists.
Or, to get rid of pain in that area or to help one keep hands off a situation, reverse the process, beginning it across the wrists and away from the body, ending at the tip of the middle finger.
No effort has been made to distinguish between oils, essences, and perfumes. In the occult use, there is no difference in the uses of these three products.
Generally, the difference in terms is one of strength many oils sold are pure, undiluted fragrances, while essences are concentrated but have an aldehyde added to dilute the oil.
Perfumes are basically the same as oils, but with more aldehyde or alcohol included than essences.
Colognes are also similar, but weaker in content, and generally are not as long lasting. Colognes are not popular for occult use.