PICK ONE AND RUN!: KEEPING FOCUS IN SPIRIT-WORK
A theme that has come up a few ways recently is the importance of focus when working with spirits. This would seem a no-brainer, but there are specific challenges to living with this idea. One is that in the current occult world of near-limitless access to materials such as grimoires, we can be tricked into seeing a spirit list of correspondences and think that a spirit for love, let’s say, is only suitable for love. I find it more helpful to see such a list as an insurance provider’s list of Doctors. All medical doctors know how to practice medicine. But some are trained for surgery. Some are trained to deal with vision issues, etc., and I have experienced doctors, such as my PCP, who say that whatever medical issue I bring to them is better addressed by a specialist colleague. You find, then, that the specialist has a depth of knowledge and can speak to your issue in a way a PCP is not.
It can be this way with spirits. But more often than not, I have experienced a guardian spirit who clarifies that although their specialty is what it is, they are also the ones for me to go to first. Sometimes, they will indicate another spirit to go to. Other times, they will note that they are the ones who will address it. When this started to happen more and more, I began to understand that I did not need to summon every spirit on a correspondence table to address the problems and challenges of my life. I had to work with the one I felt more connected to and trust that they would direct me to who to go.
This realization had several consequences for my practice. One is that it kept me from getting overwhelmed and burned out. It also mitigated that sense, when you work with many spirits, that now I have too many mouths to feed. It also took off the pressure of the juggle of time and attention I felt I had to give everyone. As long as I maintained that primary relationship, things seemed to flow like they were supposed to.
In my upcoming class on Shem Angels, I ran with this idea. The foundation of the class is apprehending your guardian Shem Angel, and then building the rest of the practice around that spirit as the spiritual air traffic controller. Once that sort of connection is established, there are many possibilities. One can build everything from a devotional practice to hoodoo-like practical magic and even professional work within one’s community. However, being consistent with results means having consistent relationships with essential spirits. Angels such as the Shemhamforash are one beautiful way this can be done.
If you think this might interest you, I invite you to join me for the class in the next few days. The link is here: https://www.theblackthorneschool.com/courses/working-the-names/.
