We’ve all experienced spells fallen flat, that working that fizzled out before it even took hold. And, we begin to wonder—about the level of our inherent power, whether we’re working spells the “right” way, or if the universe (or deity or emanation, etc.) is even listening at all.
Image credit: Zoritsa Valova, Unsplash
It’s happened to all of us. We’ve plotted and planned, gathered supplies, put together a picture-perfect working, chanted like a champ, lit all the candles at the right times...only to wait for results that never come.
We’ve all experienced spells fallen flat, that working that fizzled out before it even took hold. And, we begin to wonder—about the level of our inherent power, whether we’re working spells the “right” way, or if the universe (or deity or emanation, etc.) is even listening at all.
Here’s the thing—I don’t personally believe that spells can fail. That’s not to say I’ve seen obvious, positive, intended results from each of my workings. The opposite is true. I’ve often cast spells or performed rituals that resulted in what seemed like the reverse of what I intended them to do, or seemed not to do anything at all.
At first, I thought this made me a bad witch. But, some time and a lot of studying later, I began to understand that spells don’t fail. When we cast energy out into the aether, it always attracts a response—it’s just that the response isn’t always something we’re expecting, recognize, or even think we wanted. Here are a few examples from my personal experience for how that can happen.
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Spellwork Slow Burn
Many of my workings have seemed to fall flat, only for me to realize much later that the vibes I sent into the universe were of the time-release variety.
One of the best examples of this happened when my wife and I cast a working to manifest prosperity. In the week following the spell, we found no fewer than six double-yolk eggs in the package of 5-dozen that we typically keep in the house (yes, we eat a lot of eggs. No shame).
We were so excited! This must be a sign that our spell was in the works.
Over the next month or so, we spent a few dollars each week on lottery tickets, outwardly reasoning that it couldn’t hurt to try, while inwardly hoping against hope that this was what those eggs had meant.
Every ticket was a dud.
The disappointment was real. Logically, we both knew the chances of actually winning were beyond low, but we’re witches, and witches manifest that shit. Right?
Actually, yes, that is right.
Our prosperity and abundance began to manifest in a myriad of little ways. A raise at work for my wife. A $100 win on one of those lottery tickets. Random money stored in a forgotten 401k from a former job. Being separated from a toxic working environment (non-monetary prosperity in action). An overpayment refund from the IRS. And, probably dozens of other little things I’m forgetting.
All of these little windfalls added up and led to us living with less stress and more gratitude, which (as we all know) only leads to more abundance. Although we wanted a one-and-done prosperity dump, the Powers That Be taught us the pleasure and value of playing the long game.
If You Try, Sometimes, You Get What You Need
Sometimes, I didn’t actually want or need what I thought I was asking for, and received what I needed instead.
The above spell is a great example of this. While the abundance we received (and are still receiving!) from the manifestation working didn’t yield the lightning-strike of prosperity we were hoping for, it helped provide what we needed, when we needed it.
In the end, we had more leeway to create and manifest our own experiences along the way. The challenges we continued to face were alleviated just enough to allow us to introspect and see where we could improve ourselves and shine some light on the internal shadows we needed to address. An astronomical windfall might have stunted that growth or triggered big, scary shadows we weren’t ready to face, yet.
In any case, we asked through spellwork to receive abundance, and we did--exactly enough to ensure we were well cared for.
Shout Into the Void, and It Answers
Finally, there are the times when I crafted a spell out of desperation, trying to subvert events already in motion that weren’t meant to be stopped.
There are particular forces in the universe that, once in motion, are difficult (if not impossible) to halt. Natural disasters, for example, or war. As magickal practitioners, we can use our talents to do damage control and help in the aftermath of these events, but stopping them in their tracks would be a herculean task, indeed.
Death also often falls into this category.
One of my primary functions as a witch is to heal. I’m forever throwing herbs, tisanes, tinctures, and essential oil blends at my loved ones. Recently, I’ve delved deep into the art of healing with music and light. I firmly believe in the power of organic entities to regenerate, both through using what’s available in the natural world and through connecting with Source energy (whatever that may be).
However, every healer has also learned the hard lesson that death is a form of healing. The physical body may simply no longer be a good vessel for the spirit. Death, then, allows that spirit to return to Source and choose another experience. It’s a heart-rending but necessary part of life.
The many mischievous faces of Simon.
In July of 2020, our beloved kitty familiar, Simon, became very ill. He wouldn’t eat, which was not usual for him. We scheduled an appointment with the vet and did our best to tempt him with his favorite tidbits, with mixed results.
Throughout the week before his vet’s visit, I plied my altar with candles, petitioning Freyja, Artemis, and others for Simon’s healing and recovery. I created a mental image of him hale and hearty again, screaming for treats and love. Both of us told him over and over that we’d take care of him, he’d be okay. At one point, he even sprawled out under the altar itself. I hoped against hope that meant he was going to recover.
Once at the vet, we learned the worst. Simon’s heart, lungs, and kidneys were failing, likely due to genetic weaknesses from him being purebred. (He was a purebred Russian Blue sent to the shelter as a kitten for having “undesirable features.” #Adoptdontshop, y’all.)
There was nothing we could do. Even if we were able to take him home, his quality of life would be very low. With breaking hearts (and tears as I write this) we said goodbye to our beautiful boy and released him into Freyja’s arms.
Despite this, I didn’t feel all of my petitioning or our reassurances to him were in vain. He brought bucketsful of pure joy into our lives for six beautiful years with his demanding voice, quirky tail, and never-ending readiness for cuddles. He joined us at the altar, circling our workings, and sprawled on the table as we read tarot. He gave and received as much as he could in the time he was with us and, in the end, we listened when he told us it was time for his spirit to move on.
It’s not that the candles I lit didn’t work, or that his under-altar naps were just him being a cat. I asked for his suffering to be relieved, and he approved of what I was doing. His healing simply came in the form of release.
As magickal practitioners, this is one of the hardest lessons to learn. We’re told that we can manifest anything if we do it the right way. The thing is, there are still natural forces--the original magickal practitioners--governing the energies with which we work, and, sometimes, they know better.
Finding the Fizz in the Fails
When faced with a working that doesn't seem to be working, it's important for us to ask some deep questions about what's happening. Is our intent truly not manifesting, or is the result simply taking time? Maybe our spell is coming to fruition in an unexpected or unusual way.
Or, perhaps, we're trying to move a freight train with a feather--something that just can't be done.
Whatever the reason, I'd encourage all of us (including myself!) not to give up when a spell fizzles out. Be gentle with yourself, examine the results, and move forward with the lessons you learned.
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