Why a Class In Petitions?
On the 14th of September I am giving a class in magical petitions. A friend noted that I focus a lot on advanced teachings, and was wondering why I was doing something so basic and foundational.
It’s true, petitions are foundational. When it comes to practical magic, I can’t think of anything more foundational than making a petition: a statement of what you want to happen connected to the powers or means through which you are working. No matter how advanced the sorcery gets, there is usually a petition at the heart of it. That’s foundation for sure.
I remember a couple decades back a big box hardware store was constructed in New Jersey that had to be abandoned because the architect had a foundation that would accommodate the building structure, but not the things in it. Once they started building shelves and loading in lawn mowers and paint gallons the building started to sink. Poor foundation yielded an unusable and dangerous environment.
Another building that had been standing for decades recently fell down because the foundation that was once very strong, was neglected. It’s easy to ignore foundations when so many complex and interesting structures are built upon them.
When we go back over basic elements of practice, we aren’t just reviewing our foundation – we are filling it in.
I am very lucky that I get to teach thousands of students magic every year as my job. It gives me the opportunity to see what folks need and how to help them. I get to learn not just from my own mistakes but my students as well.
There are a lot of you out there running around with deep occult knowledge and powerful magic at your disposal, but no idea how to aim it at things that matter. Most of the time using magic this way results in underwhelming results, but sometimes it can actually be dangerous or self defeating.
Whether you are petitioning a person, a god, a spirit, or your own mind, there is an art to asking, and power to a well crafted petition.