Threshold Rite for Creating Liminal Space for Ritual

In my own practice, most magic is ideally performed in a liminal space. I like to be in a position of greater closeness to the Spirit Realm while working. When no natural liminal place is available to me (such as a crossroads, doorway, hallway, forest edge, or shore) this rite can be used to conjure the threshold and create a space between the worlds for ritual.

Stand at the center of your ritual area. Create the threshold by drawing an equal-armed cross in the earth, tracing it on the floor, or laying down two straight objects (such as two long sticks, or a staff and besom) in the shape of a cross. Stand at the center, straddling the space where the two lines of the cross meet.

Say:

Upon the place where ways divide,
Where breath is held and worlds collide,
I call the gate, I call the seam,
A foot in waking, a foot in dream.

Open the way, betwixt and between,
Unravel the threads, undo the seen.
By root and star, by wind and sea,
Threshold spirits, come work with me.

Remain still for a moment. Wait for any signs of shifting energy shift around you. When the threshold feels open, continue onward with your rite.

Laying the Compass for Spirit Flight, Trance-Work and Divination

Like the Threshold Rite, the Compass serves to delineate magical space. However, the Compass aims to create a space that lends itself more directly to spirit flight and workings that require closer proximity to the Spirit World. The rite written here is an adaptation of forms found in formal Traditional Witchcraft, appearing in writings by Robert Cochrane. The core of the rite (the laying of three concentric rings) is retained, but reinterpreted to reflect my own symbolic landscape of initiation and the witch’s journey through witch flight, death journey, and communion with the Spirit Realm.

Tools and Materials

• A marker for delineating ritual area (black cord, chalk, or finger drawn in dirt, salt, or ash)

• Small offerings or tokens to mark the four cardinal points (stones, feathers, candles, coins, etc.). These are optional; the points of the Compass can also be suitably marked with symbols drawn with chalk or into the earth. 

• Materials for the construction of the Three Rings (see below)

The Three Rings of the Compass

As described in Cochrane’s tradition, the Compass is formed by three concentric rings created around a fixed central point. This point can be marked with a bowl of water, a candle, or a cauldron of burning herbs depending on the working. Each ring traditionally represents a stage in the cycle of life. In my own practice, the rings are reimagined as representing phases of the Witch’s Initiation, Death Journey, and Flight to the Realm of Spirit.

The rings are constructed from the outer ring inward, moving symbolically toward the Spirit World:

• Outer Ring – Initiation
  This ring represents the witch’s induction into the craft. In my magical worldview, this the point at which the practitioner is “made witch by no authority but their own”. The physical representation of the ring is made by laying a ring of earth, or powdered botanicals. Some of my favorites are cedar, rosemary, and mugwort.

• Middle Ring – The Death Journey
  This ring marks the death journey, a process that appears in folklore and myth cycles as well as magical practice as a means of transformation through trial. For this ring, lay a ring of ash made from rosemary, graveyard dirt, and oak. Alternatively, you can draw this ring using the end of a burnt oak twig or charcoal stick.

• Inner Ring – The Realm of Spirit
  This ring marks the veil between the mundane world and the Spirit Realm, symbolizing the river or other water place that appears often in European folklore as the boundary between the living and spirit realms. Dip your fingers in water, and trace this final ring with your Witching Fingers (the pointer and middle fingers of your dominant hand).

Laying the Compass

1. Stand in the center of your working space and take a moment to ground and still yourself.

2. Lay the three rings from the outermost inward, as described above. Move clockwise as you construct the Compass. As each ring is laid, focus on the purpose and symbolism of the specific ring you’re making.

3. Mark the four directions around the Compass using tokens or symbols that represent North, South, East, and West for you. As you place each, speak the directional invocation:

To the North:
By the frost and the stone, by the winds and the dark,
I call on the spirits where earth leaves its mark.

To the South:
By the fire’s light and the flame’s gentle kiss,
I open the path where the shadows twist.

To the East:
By the breath of dawn and the rising light,
I call on the spirits to aid in my flight.

To the West:
Through the mist and the dusk, where ancestors roam,
I call on the spirits far from home.

1. Return to the center of the Compass. Take a moment to settle into the space. When you are ready speak the final incantation to bind and activate the Compass:

Ye Crossed Paths of Spirit, I call thee to my side.
Between the worlds, where planes collide.
By ghostly throng and wild night’s air,
I open this Compass with power and care.

The Compass is now laid. Use it for communion, flight, conjuration, or spirit work. When your working is complete, the Compass should be formally released and the space dismantled.

Conjuring a Hedge for Divination, Spirit Work, and Trance-Work

The rite of conjuring the hedge is a rite used to define ritual space for spirit communion, spirit-flight, and other forms of spirit work. While not a required rite, Conjuring the Hedge may serve as more spirit-work specific alternative to the Threshold Rite or the Witches’ Compass, and may be especially suitable for witches who prefer a more folklore-oriented form of boundary-setting.

The hedge itself is visualized rather than physically constructed. It is useful for those involving contact with spirits, journeys into the Spirit Realm, or when working between the worlds.

Planting the Hedge

Stand at the edge of your ritual space. Take a steady breath and say:

I plant the hedge where worlds collide,
Between the living and the spirit's tide.
With thorn and root, with bark and bone,
Beyond this hedge, no spirit shall roam.

Extend the index and middle fingers of your dominant hand (referred throughout this site as the Witching Fingers). Use them to trace the outline of the hedge around your space. As you do, imagine thorns and vines growing and twining into a protective wall. Focus on the spirit of the hedge taking root in the earth; make the roots as deep as the hedge is tall.

Walking the Hedge

Once the hedge is planted, it is time to walk it. This walking serves to stir the spirits and to call those you wish to engage with, much like calling a neighbor to the fence. Begin walking slowly along the inner edge of your hedge. As you walk, you may speak the following verses aloud, either as-is or adapted to your purpose:

I walk the hedge, where worlds do meet,
Between the living and the spirits’ feet.
In this place, no harm shall tread,
The boundary set, the spirits’ thread.

I call to those who walk the night,
Who dwell in shadow, out of sight.
Come, kindly spirits, heed my call,
Step from the dark, one and all.

I walk the hedge, I cross the veil,
Through thorn and root, I weave my tale.
Spirits of air, earth, fire, and sea,
Come now, commune and speak with me.

Crossing the Hedge (Optional)

If you intend to use the hedge as a gateway for spirit travel or journeying, pause at any point within the boundary. Light a candle, ring a bell, or perform another small action to signify your intent to enter the spirit flight.

Speak the following, or your own words, to cross the veil:

Through the hedge, I now do pass,
Between the worlds, through looking glass.
Kind spirits near, I call you forth,
Guide my steps, from south to north.

Take a step forward and imagine that the hedge now stands behind you and you are on the path between worlds. When your work is complete, the hedge will need to be undone and dismantled.

Creating a Circle for Spirit-Summoning

While many practitioners may be familiar with the Wiccan Circle (cast to delineate a workspace and to contain raised energy), many traditional witches use a different form of Circle altogether. Here, the Circle is not cast around the practitioner, nor is it used to gather or hold magical power. Instead, it is drawn as a boundary for the temporary containment of a spirit or entity summoned for communication, divination or ritual work.

This practice is most often used when the practitioner wishes to interact directly with a specific spirit while maintaining a controlled and focused space for the interaction. Such a Circle would be most helpful for unfamiliar or unknown spirits; it would likely not be necessary for communion with guides, guardians, initiators, familiars or allies. (For communication with more familiar or trusted spirits, Conjuring a Hedge may be more useful.

Casting the Circle

Stand just outside the space where you wish to draw the Circle. With the Witching Fingers (the index and middle fingers of your dominant hand), trace a circle on the ground or floor. You will draw the circle three times in succession, each tracing slightly larger than the one before it, giving the effect of three rings similar to the Witch’s Compass:

1. Clockwise — to claim and define the space.

2. Anticlockwise — to banish any unwanted influence or lingering spirits.

3. Clockwise again — to bind and seal the Circle and prepare it for use.

As you trace the final circle, speak the following:

I cast this circle on the ground,
A hallowed space where spirit is bound.
Only the one I call may tread,
To answer what I’ve sought and said.

Calling the Spirit

When the Circle is fully cast and sealed, stand before it. Raise your hand high in a gesture and focus your full intention on the spirit you wish to summon. Speak clearly and steadily.

If the name of the spirit is known, say:

Spirit of (name of the spirit or entity),
I call to you in the dark of night.
Enter this circle, come into sight,
Be with me now, throughout this rite.

If the name of the spirit is unknown or intentionally withheld, you may instead say:

Spirit of the unseen, the silent and true,
I summon thee, come forth, I beseech you. 
Since your name is not known to me, 
I name you (name or title), by Rings of Three. 

At the end of your working, the spirit called must be released and Circle dismantled.