Beginner's Guide: How To Cast A Circle In 10 Simple Steps

Casting a Circle before performing any magical rituals has been in practice since our ancient times. The true meaning of casting a circle is to build an area that partially overlaps our real world with the divine spiritual world. By casting a circle, we tend to work on different levels at the same time. First, on a physical level where you define your boundaries for your ritual. Secondly, on a spiritual level where you fill your space with your power. The magic circle that we cast before we begin our rituals is used to envision ourselves with magic before we actually begin our work. Some Wiccans believe that casting a circle is not mandatory and magic rituals can be performed even without casting a circle. But the true meaning of the magic circle serves two main purposes. The first purpose is for protection. The Wiccans performing the rituals need to be protected from the negative energy or the evil forces that surround them. The circle creates a safe space for them so they can carry out their rituals in a secured environment. The second purpose of casting a circle acts as a container for the high energy that will be generated during the rituals. The circle contains and creates the exact level of energy desired by the practitioner. There are many different ways of casting a circle. For beginners who are trying to cast a circle for protection purpose here is a guide for casting a circle in ten simple steps.

Before you begin casting the circle for your rituals, it is very important that you locate the right spot for casting the circle. Locate a place where you will feel comfortable and might not be disturbed. Choose a place that gives you complete peace of mind and good focus on the ritual. You can cast a circle either indoors or outdoor. There is no time constraint you can either perform the rituals in the morning or even at midnight. There is no perfect place or perfect time for casting a circle. So, make yourself comfortable and choose a place where you feel relaxed and perform the magic spells by casting a circle. Select a spot that gives you complete privacy so that you are not interrupted. Being disturbed while performing rituals can be really annoying and dangerous. Make sure you have good space as the circle needs to be big to hold all your ritual items as well. The demonsions for the circle are set by those fulfilling the rituals. It is usually 5 to 6 feet in diameter just for a single practitioner. If you are a beginner finding the right spot and determining the size might be a little tedious at first but as time goes by it would simply be easier than you have imagined.

Cleanse your space of all the clutter. If you are casting your circle in indoors, make sure you physically clean and free your house from dirt. If you are performing your rituals in the outdoors make sure your space is not messy. Make sure that you clean the place before you begin your rituals. After cleaning your space make sure that you remove the negativity by purification. Purification is very important as the circle tends to amplify the energy that has been there. So, make sure you remove the negativity from your space. For purifying your space, you need to chant the cleansing spell below:

Light up incense and chant this spell inside your space with your hands raised to the direction of the sky or moon or sun. Make sure to chant the spell around your space in the clockwise direction. Repeat it until you feel only the positive energy and all the negative energy has been removed. For a beginner it might not be easy to tell if the negativity has been removed but if you stay focused it gets easier to understand.

Before you cast your circle, make sure you use the right elements for forming the circle. Stand in the center and then define your circle either by using your finger or by using your wand if you have any. Use your hand or your wand to draw the energy from your inside and connect to the earth and then make sure it flows outside yourself and stays within the circle. Move in the clockwise direction as the energy flows in. Make sure your energy flows in a way that you could feel it around you. You need to be focused on this. This process might sound a lot simpler in theory, but when you practice, it is difficult as for a beginner. You can use environment-friendly elements for casting the circle. You can draw a circle and then spray some salt water to the circle that you have cast or use a cord or scarves for forming the circle. If you are performing your ritual on the outside, then make sure you use natural elements like rocks or branches which would be best suited for your place. While casting the circle make sure that you chant the below spell:

The real meaning of casting the circle using natural elements is to bring in positivity and remove negativity. This serves as a protection for the Wiccan from all the evil forces.

This is difficult to practice for a beginner as it might be difficult to make sure that they have all the objects inside the circle. If you are a beginner try to make a checklist of all the items that are needed for your ritual and place them inside the circle. It is dangerous to interrupt the ritual while performing. Make sure you have all the items needed with you inside the circle. The meaning of having all the objects with you is to have a complete focused ritual and to avoid getting pressured or be disturbed. It is also a dangerous experience to keep moving in-and-out of the circle after casting one. This might sound simple but it is really a difficult task for beginners, especially. But with practice, it gets easier. The items that you use for your ritual may vary depending upon the ritual that you are about to perform. So, make sure you use the right elements for the right kind of rituals.

After you have cast the circle, you need to connect the four elements and the four corners of creation inside your circle. Assign each altar to one of the four elements - air, fire, water, and Earth. Some Wiccans choose objects that represent the elements. The direction of the air element is in the east, fire in the south, water in the West, and Earth in the north. Make sure you place items that symbolize these elements. Some of the elements that experienced Wiccans use for representing the elements are either: salt, a stone or a green candle to represent the Earth. A broken glass, incense or a yellow candle to represent the element Air. A blue candle represents the element Water. And, a red candle is used to represent the element Fire. Make sure to chant on all four sides of the circle. For the Element air face east and chant:

For the Element Fire turn south and chant:

For the Element Water turn West and chant:

For the Element Earth turn North and chant:

The meaning of the chants is to call upon the spirits of all the elements on the four sides for protection from the evil or bad forces. With this the circle is complete, and it gives the practitioner complete protection from the negative forces.

After the casting has been done, make sure to bless the circle. Make sure you have blessed every corner of the circle to be free from negative energy. You can add salt to the boundaries and bless the circle either by singing or dancing. It is up to you to decide the method that you use for blessing the circle as it depends largely on the individual. If you are a beginner, chanting around the circle would be an easy way to begin. Lighting candles is also a way of protecting and blessing the circle. The true meaning of all these rituals for casting the circle is to bring positive energy and to create a pleasing environment for the spirits. Make sure to chant for blessing the circle in all the directions.

The next step would be to define the purpose of your circle. Make sure that you state the purpose of your ritual and try to fulfill it. For a beginner, it might not be easy, so it is advisable to practice casting a circle in a group of experienced Wiccans before you practice it alone. Make sure you stick to the purpose and avoid other things. Being focused the complete time is very important to have the universal connection from the spirits. Other rituals can be performed inside the circle be sure that you perform your specific ritual the right way.

Call the spirits and deities that you wish to work with. Ask them for their help for your definite purpose. Make sure that you have objects that have represent them and call them to those objects. By calling the spirits, you connect yourself with the energies that are around you. It might not be simple, but with practice, you might be able to understand that you have energies around you. Firstly, make sure that you are free of stress and turn towards the east before calling the spirits. Raise your hands forming a Y and call upon the spirits that you seek to ask help. Walk in the clockwise direction. Repeat the same procedure for all the four elements. You might find some changes in the objects that represent them if the spirits have answered your call. Be keen and listen to that and make sure you pay your respects. Speak up to the spirits and let them know your intentions. Make sure to you be clear with them when you speak. After communicating your needs, you may begin to work with them.

Never interrupt the circle or the ritual that you are performing after the spirits have answered your call. When the ritual gets disturbed the ritual is considered to weaken, or it might dispel the barrier. So, it is very important that once the ritual has been started, you need to complete the ritual without any disturbance. But if it becomes unavoidable that you need to leave the circle then it is wise to cut the circle with an athame and create a doorway. This way you can leave the circle without harming. Even the energy gets passed through the doorway without creating any harm. Remember to close the doorway by connecting the circle. Make sure that the circle is completely formed again after you have passed through the doorway. Continue with your ritual after you are done with the interruption. This must be used only when your situation gets unavoidable, as it is not wise to keep the spirits waiting. Make sure you don't get disturbed when performing these rituals. As they might be very powerful and the energy might scatter when there is some confusion while performing the rituals.

Once the ritual is complete make sure that you release the spirits or the deities that you have called upon. This way they will be able to help other people in need. Pay your respects to the spirits for their help and for answering your call. Thank the elements that you have placed for your protection and for protecting you from evil forces. After paying your respects and releasing the spirits, it is time to close the circle. For closing the circle, you need to retrace your steps in the counterclockwise direction. You need to start from East, then North, then West, then South and finally to East again, thus closing the circle. While closing the circle imagine the power and energy vanishing around you and that you are back to the real world. While closing the circle, you can also chant for thanking the spirits and releasing them into the real world.

It is vital that you perform the closing ritual properly as the energy will be trapped inside the circle and it has to be released back into the universe. So make sure you never leave a circle unopened.

Here are some useful tips for you to note if you plan on casting a circle. 1. Be very confident when you plan on performing a circle casting. Have no doubts and be positive. You tend to add negative vibes by having doubts. So stay positive and confident. 2. Make sure that you clean yourself up before performing any circle casting. Use organic lotions or oils that bring in positivity. You can also wear some specific clothes for circle casting, so it gets easier for you to be more focused. 3. Being focused during the ritual is very important. It is a must that you meditate before you start to cast a circle. This way you might be more focused and will help you to listen better. 4. It is always better to have more people involved in these rituals as their energies will add up to the energy level and you might have a greater energy force. 5. Stay focused and be very careful as there is the usage of candles and the other items that you use. Try not to get hurt as it might be a major distraction while communicating with the spirits.

All these might sound easy, but when you practice it in real time, it might be really difficult. Be more focused and confident. Take your time and think well before you cast a circle and perform your rituals. There is no right way for casting the circle it purely depends on every individual and how they do it. It is up to you to truly decide how you desire to cast the spell. Some practitioners even believe that there is no need to cast a circle to perform rituals. There are plenty of good reasons for performing the rituals inside a circle, but in the end, it all depends upon the individual's desire. It is also important to take proper aftercare once the ritual is completed when the circle is cast. Make sure you follow all these the right way before you practice casting a circle and perform a ritual. All the Best! And, Blessed be.