Welcome to the First Official Installment of Saturn-Day Morning Magick!

It's not morning for most of us, but this is my second post of the day. I have been up all night doing art (watch for a post on that soon as well) and then working on journaling and magick. I am loving this idea and inspired. While I know that journaling may not be everyone's favorite subjects, I wanted to start with it for a number of reasons. We will get there, I have a lot to say about how it is important. But first, let me first officially start here.

Yes, I did say your life.

Journaling is indeed that vital for your magickal practices and for yourself. Don't believe me? Well, how about this. This is journaling. The bad guys that get the clobbering, they are your feels.

There is no going light on your feels. There is no waiting for it to pass. They are and they will remain until you do something about them. There are times when you need to protect yourself, give yourself some time and to let a funk pass. However, by and large if you don't do something about making your own boundaries then your feelings will beat you up. Here is a better example.

It's Journaling Time!

If You Don't Journal, Now is the Time to Start!

Let me start by saying, I know that when you first started out on your witchy or occult path, it probably wasn't to explore your feelings. It probably wasn't to have a diary either. That being said, I am going to tell you that without journaling of some kind, chances are that your magickal practices aren't going so stellar. That may sound like a bold statement, but the truth of the matter one of the most important and necessary components to any positive practice. At least any practice that is one that maintains itself over time.

The reason for this is because you can record progress, affirm your own positive practices and helps the practitioner to maintain perspective.

Getting To Know YOU!

Through journaling, you are able to get in touch with the you within and through this, you'll be shocked at how much more things make sense, how it is easier (over time) to control those pesky emotions and even how you by being more accountable you are able to pinpoint the origins of your practice. This can be as simple as noticing that in a certain emotional state that you are more prone to be successful or that you are unable to make a psychic connection when in another state. Because our emotions are tied so closely to many of our practices, these kinds of observations alone are often helpful and one of the initial reasons that journaling is recommended to those that are just getting started on their path.

Afterall, the other good thing about starting with journaling early on is that it is easier to incorporate into your work when you are used to it. That isn't to say that it can't be worked in to those practices that have been established. It is just my experience that it is not as likely. ;)

What We Mean By Journaling

The act of journaling should be more than writing down your day and telling some book what is going on in your life. Magickal journaling is in depth and there are a number of areas that it can apply to. As a practitioner, you will need multiple journals. The easiest way to do this is to get a separate journal for each area, though it is not the only way. You may also consider getting a large binder and then placing pages in an organized area, such as with binder dividers. You may also choose to use a multi-subject notebook for each. The problem with using one book for all of your journaling though is that you are likely to run out of space in one area and then need to separate them later. Sometimes it takes a while to figure out the way that is right for you. For this example, we will be referring to each subject as having their own notebook for familiarity sake.

Getting Familiar With the Different Kinds of Occult Journaling Methods

Diagramming and explaining your magickal practice in a log is one of the most important things that you can do as a magician or a witch. In this journal, you will want to record anything that is important to your practice. This book may double over on some of your other journals, as it is a wide brush about what you do in your practice and how you do it. I suggest trying to keep to a log format if you can. In this journal you should include any notes about:

• Practices done
• Public attendances
• New Classwork (Such as when you learn a new skill for divining or begin working with a new kind of spellwork)
• Emotional tendencies (tracking mood and responses)
• Dreams (Notes when needed, but save the entire dream process to the dream journal which we will go over)
• Indexes (for astrology, tarot, etc).
• Lists (for herbs, language alphabets, correspondences)
• Any relatable information you may want to remember

You can create your log as you see fit. I recommend using a standard though, at least. Personally, I still use a variation of the one I learned out of Don Michael Kraig's Modern Magick.

Date:
Time:
Location:
Weather Conditions:
Physical Condition:
Emotions and Mindset:
Name of Rituals Performed:
Performance:
Results:

Dream Journal

This is where you record your dreams. I would suggest getting a smaller book unless you remember your dreams all of the time. Most people don't. They tend to remember fragments and then forget them through the day. For this reason, it is recommended that you keep this notebook separate, near your bed, near a pen and use it daily. Every morning when you get up, one of the first things you do (preferably even before you get out of bed) is filling this out. Even if you don't remember your dream it is good to get in the habit of logging. You will likely find after a few weeks of logging, "No dream recall" that you'll start to remember bits and pieces, then more will come as you do regular practice.

Again, you'll want to keep a regular log with typical markers to remember the important details.

This should include:
Sleeping Location:
Time to Bed:
Time to Rise:
Disturbances or Alterations to Sleep Cycle:
Mood Upon Going to Bed and Waking:
Dream Details:

Here is my sample:

Divination Journal

This journal should be just for tarot, numerology, geomancy or any other divining method that you use. It can also be used for psychic impressions. Log when you did the reading, what you did it for and any details about the reading. This can help to identify ongoing patterns or to establish practices based on divine guidance.

Give it a Try for Your Microcosm's Sake

The whole topic of journaling, when I began writing this, I didn't realize that it was so extensive. Perhaps it is because I have my standard reasons that I give for journaling, perhaps it is because I have been doing it for so long. In either case, I have come to pretty much insist that any student that I have that they must journal. If they don't like it after a certain time, that is another thing. However, I do at least tell them they need to try.

A final big reason, that I was going to skip but decided to add in here on the tail end is the topic of the microcosm and the macrocosm. If you are unfamiliar with the terms, they are basically a way to describe the self and the small personal bubble that a person has around them and the world on the outside. The micro, being the smaller of the two, is about you. The macro is about the world outside of your sphere.

An important component of the microcosm is our mundane perception of it. Unfortunately, while we may be magical and Spiritual Beings, that doesn't mean that we can always control everything that happens in our microcosm. I already mentioned a few reasons why journaling is so important, but one that I would like to talk a bit more about really briefly is about it allows us to be responsible for our experience as the microcosm and a much larger macrocosm.

Share Your Journal Journey!

If you use a different method of journaling or if you have tried this method and would like to provide feedback, please let me know. I always love discussing the journaling topic because it is so helpful to an occultist. I know personally, I am more likely to take a person seriously if I know they journal as well. This is because they are more likely (in my opinion) to be mindful of their journey and have more details and information about their process.

With that in mind, if you don't journal but you feel that you do a good job of documenting your occult practices, I would love to hear about your practice and how that works for you :) Knowledge is indeed power! Keep in mind that journaling allows you to write your journey down and to be accountable. This can help to build community and establish a line of your practice. This can be mighty helpful when being active in a pagan, occult or witch community... especially that of the online variety.

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First Saturn-day Morning Magick
Some Mabon Musings As We Enter the Dark Part of the Year
Mindfulness and Meditation

The Beginning of my 30 Days of Transparency

And if you're in the mood for art....
Beautiful Monsters Comp - I got 2nd Place! Woot!

For the Love of Fight Club