Magick of Thought

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JP asks:

1. Should grounding be only used after doing any magick work, or is it something that we need to constantly perform since we learn to tap into higher energies?

2. Is there such a thing as “over grounding?” And if yes, how do we determine that we’ve not exceeded that threshold?

Around here, we like thorough, accurate answers, even if it takes a few extra minutes to understand. So let me explain the mechanics behind grounding, and then tell you what I do.

What Happens When You “Ground”

Most teachers say “grounding is sending your energy into the earth / out into the universe” because that’s the visualization they use. But that’s confusing a symbolic visualization with what actually happens. To understand when to ground, we need to understand what actually happens.

Broadly, when you feel like you need to ground, it’s not that you have too much energy, it’s that your energy is the wrong signature. It doesn’t align with your mind and body, so it feels off. The solution is to expel that mismatched energy, so your body can replace it with energy in its signature.

There are 2 ways to do that: Self-grounding and system-based grounding. I’ll tell you what they are, then how to know which one you’re doing.

Self-grounding is when you relax your shielding and let your energy equalize with the energy in the room. Yes, equalize, not release. You have a different signature than the area around you, so you will lose your excess energy, and pick up some of the energy in the area, with its (different) signature. Is that good or bad? Depends on the ambient energy. So do it a little, see how it feels, then decide.

System-based grounding is when a system (the external forces that mages, psychics and healers channel) balances your energy for you. It connects to you, checks out your energy, removes the excess and adds energy with a different signature, hopefully aligned to your body. As with all systems work, the quality of this grounding depends on the quality of the system you’re using, so switching systems can produce better results.

If you are self-taught, and haven’t studied any particular style of magick or energy working, you are probably self-grounding. If your magick involves traditional symbols and rituals in an established style, or an initiation (like Reiki), you are probably using system-based grounding.

When to Self-Ground

I only self-ground when I feel a too-much-energy headache. Usually, this is after a spirit drains me (yes, that still happens to me occasionally), because it only drains energy in its signature, resulting in my overall energy being off.

My energy signature after being drained = my normal signature – the spirit’s draining signature. But you don’t need to know those details. You’re just going to dump the mismatched energy and replace it with good energy.

In that scenario, I make a connection between my head and the area right outside my house and let the energy flow through it. Then I build a bit of energy in my body, to fill it with my energy signature. You’ll know you did it right when you feel normal again.

Until you are used to working with energy, you may get these energy headaches after doing any sort of magick work. I’d ground then, too. And if you know that every time you do X, you get a headache 20 minutes later, I’d ground without waiting those 20 minutes.

When NOT to Self-Ground

Don’t self-ground when you are in an area with energy misaligned to your body. The technical term is “icky energy.” If you start to ground and it feels bad, stop.

Also, if spirits are draining your energy, don’t ground until they’re gone. By opening yourself, you make it easier for them to access you, and by releasing energy, you will attract more drainers. Instead, focus on shielding and on removing connections*, and only ground once they’re gone.

*Post on that coming soon.

When to Systems-Ground

If you use systems-based grounding, you probably follow a traditional style of magick. I’d do whatever that traditional style recommends. Probably, it says to ground after every session, which accomplishes two things:

• Returns your energy to normal, rather than the type of energy you have when channeling those systems.
• Tells the system that you’re done. (The same system does the magick as does the grounding).

Realize that they may not call it “grounding.” But any step you do to close down the magick session probably fills this role. LBRP comes to mind, though I haven’t tested it as a grounding technique myself.

Because there’s a system handling it, you’re releasing the energy to the system, not to the area. So the safety concerns of self-grounding don’t apply here.

Questions?

Often, when someone starts learning the mechanics of magick, the first thing that happens is they realize a ton of questions.

And sometimes, I’m just less clear than I think I am.

Either of those the case? Leave a comment below.

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Tags: Energy, Grounding

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 8th, 2011 at 3:20 PM and is filed under Beginning Conscious Magick. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.