DISCLAIMER: If you are on any pharmaceutical medications or have a serious medical condition, are pregnant or nursing, consult your health care provider before ingesting anything that you do not normally ingest, including herbs and over the counter medications. When you choose to self medicate, *you* are responsible for what you put in your body. If you show any symptom after ingesting an herb or any other substance that you do not normally ingest, stop taking the herb, etc., immediately. The symptom may or may not have something to do with the herb, etc., but you can always try again later, after the symptom has disappeared, to test if it was the herb, etc.
DO NOT INGEST
1/2 of a 500gm bar of beeswax
10 drops of the pure essential oil of bog myrtle
9 drops of the pure essential oil of hops
10 drops of the pure essential oil of linden (careful! often adulterated!)
11 drops of the pure essential oil of jasmine
8 drops of the pure essential oil of Mysore Sandalwood
12 drops of the pure essential oil of ylang ylang
In a double boiler melt the beeswax gently using as low a heat as possible using a wooden spoon to stir. This will coat the spoon in wax but this is necessary before adding the essential oils.. Once the beeswax has melted, allow to cool slightly without allowing to harden. At this point, remove the wax from heat and water and add all your essential oils gently stirring with a wooden spoon until they are completely mixed into the wax.
Once done, pour small quantities into small ceramic solid perfume vials and cap tightly. You now have a witches flying ointment in a portable perfume! To use, apply first a small amount to the inside of your elbow and wait 24h to check for reactions. Then if it is safe, apply a small amount to the inside of your wrists and your temples before going into ritual.
Do not use this mix if you are pregnant, breast-feeding, or have high blood pressure as these oils could be toxic to your baby and may cause an elevated heart rate. This will not work as a candle.
Witch Sabbat Balm
10g skullcap
25g jasmine flowers
10g witch grass rhizome
25g lavender flowers
15g hawthorn berries - crushed
5g mistletoe
5g mugwort
10g rue
250 mL sweet almond oil
75g beeswax
First, place the herbs in the bottom of a large bottle - 500mL or bigger. The more finely chopped the herbs are for this recipe, the better however they should not be powdered. Now, over these herbs pour the 250mL of sweet almost oil and give it a bit of a shake. The oil is used as a type of releasing agent - a solvent which extracts the medicinal properties from the herbs and provides a healing base or carrier for the oils. Essential oils are an excellent short cut but for magical recipes, it is always best to do more rather than less work as this helps you put more work and magickal intent into your work.
Now you'll need to strain the oil using cheese cloth or a fine mesh strainer. Add this oil blend to the beeswax and heat the oil to and beeswax together over very low heat in a double boiler until wax is completely melted. You can, once the wax is melted, check the firmness of your mix by placing a tablespoon of your mixture into in the freezer for a minute or two. This is a method used in beeswax candle making to get the candle to firm up more quickly as well as extending the life of beeswax candles by freezing them first. Check the firmness of your mix and you may now wish to add more oil for a softer blend or more wax for a firmer blend.
Once you have achieved the desired consistency, remove the salve from heat and pour into heatproof jars of an appropriate size. Air and organic matter promote decay in your mix so to get it to last for months or years, careful preparation and storage is necessary. Some people like to add natural preservatives to their mixtures such as tincture of benzoin. This was a measure popularized in certain pagan books and is not particularly necessary although you can trace the origin of the inspiration of a recipe by the addition of this preservative. Salves kept in direct sunlight lose their healing properties after only a short length of time. You will notice the colour of the salve will have faded and your mix may smell rancid.
Some sources: "An ABC of Witchcraft Past and Present" by Doreen Valiente "Magical Aromatherapy" and "Incense, Oils and Brews" both by S Cunningham "The Encyclopedia of Essential Oils" By Julia Lawless
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