Witchcraft Book of Shadows

Cleansing/Consecrating/Charging

Cleansing:

All tools and your altar need to be cleansed. You can make holy water to cleanse them with. Holy water is easy to make. You need some water and salt. You can simply place the water in a container and add salt for purification. You can hold the water and say a short spell for purity.
"Mother Moon please purify this water so I may use to wash away impurities from ________." You can say this anyway you want. When you add the salt you might say, "Salt, purify this water and make it holy." Or, "I add this salt for purity." You may stir the water and salt and say a short spell, "Salt and water combine to cleanse." You can then use the water to cleanse your altar and any other tools you have.

You can also sprinkle holy water around your home and doors to cleanse. Some people use it on the walls of their homes.

With my gemstones, I usually bury them in my back yard and ask the earth to cleanse them, after I dig them up and I usually add water to my sink and add salt or herbs or a special salt. I then place my hands in the water and say a short spell and let them soak in the water for a while then rinse them.  

You can also use sage incense to cleanse items. My wand and athame I usually take a sage incense and run them through the smoke as it burns.

I also like to take ritual baths. I usually run my water then add special bath salts and put my hands in the water and say a short spell. I then cleanse my whole body. I like to take ritual baths on the first three nights of the new moon.

You can add many different salts and herbs to the water. We will get more into this when we talk about the water element.

Everything needs to be cleansed and should be cleansed on a regular basis to keep it clean and clear away any negative energy that gets attached.

Consecrating:

Consecrating an item is giving it a blessing and asking for it to be taken care of and made holy.

You altar should be blessed. After you cleanse it, you should offer it the Sun, Moon, God and Goddess. This should be like a ritual. Light the candles and take a moment to state that you would like to bless your altar and offer it to the divine. You might say,
"Dear divine energies of the universe I dedicate this altar as a place to connect and commune with the divine as I grow and learn on my journey. Please, bestow blessings upon my altar and receive my altar to you this night."
I want you to practice saying spells and prayers like this. You can use what I wrote or you can say what you feel is in your heart. It's okay to say it how you want. I want you to get good as saying the spells and prayers.

You need to consecrate all your items and you would do this just like your altar only you say something different and more specific to the item.

Like with my athame, "I offer this athame in service to my God and Goddess. I ask that you bestow blessings upon my athame and guide my hand as I use this for good only."

Charging:

After items are cleansed and consecrated,  they then need to be charged. I suggest always filling them your energy to start. I would hold the item and send your energy into it while saying a short spell, "Gemstone of earth, I fill your with my power and energy so that we may work together in harmony and balance."
I always like to fill my items with my energy because I work with them and they are a part of me and they can meld with me and my energy which is unique to all of us. The way you work with magic is different from how I do magic. Everyone is unique. This way your magic can work through your items.

You can also charge your items under the sun and moon too. You can lay them out under the sun and then again ask for them to be charged.
"Sun, radiant and powerful, fill my _______ with your light."
The same with the moon.
"Mother, empower my wand to work beautiful, positive magic."
Certain gemstones are charged under the moon and under the sun. Some during new moon, some during full moon. It's best to go by the meanings of the moon phases. I like to charge my tiger's eye directly under the sun and my amethyst under the moon.

I keep water and salt on my altar and I usually light my altar on the new moon and full moon and I ask for the salt and water to be charged and purified and then I can use it after for whatever I might need it for.

You altar when lit and prayed at and worked at holds energy and can become very powerful. It's a good place to charge items. It also good to put them directly outside under the sun or moon but I find an altar is more convenient. 

You can charge your oils, tools, water, and much more.