I've been wondering for a long time about this, is it easier to awaken to magic if you see someone do it, or it's not really necessary to awaken because anyone can inherently do it without any special steps to follow
I've been really wondering for a long time now because I still can't conjure any spells no matter how precise I follow the spells instructions
Magick doesn't need to be awaken like you mean expect if you have any curse or block which stops you using your energy than you must first try to meditate and them conjure spell you can easily initate your energy into the spell
You don't "awaken" your magick, you connect with the natural flow around you. No matter how carefully you follow the instructions, if you are not channelling magickal energy, the spell won't work. Look into grounding, shielding, and creating psi balls. This should help you feel and connect with magick so you can cast spells.
How you cast spells, you don't simply light a candle and read words off a page. Some cast circle or cleanse, but you need to start by shifting your focus and setting your intention. [don't treat it like running to the kitchen during a commercial break, clear your schedule and be present] get the energy flowing [charge/ground/shield/meditate] hold the candle [or cup your hands around it] and feel the energy travelling into your body, through your body, down your harms, and pooling into the candle [candle should feel warm. might even "pulse"] when you feel you've charged enough energy, light the candle. As it burns, reflect on the situation, visualize your desired outcome, imagine how you will benefit from it, then say the chant. Don't just read it once. Repeat it over and over until you get lost in the rhythm and lose track of time. This would be considered a trance state. Continue to chant for as long as you feel compelled to do so. Finally, release the energy in some way [clap your hand, stomp your feet, fall to the ground, tap the ground, say a phrase, jump, do a dramatic movement, whatever signals to you that your casting's complete] then let the candle burn out. Be observant, but you don't have to stand around for hours staring at it [I suggest smaller candles like birthday candles at first. Most spell candles are tiny for a reason] Finally, once the spell is cast, go out and work for your goal, confident it will come to pass.
Magic is a natural ability inherent within all of us.
Using it and making it work is not as simple as chanting some words, or tying a red ribbon around a white candle and lighting it. Spells require time, effort, and energy. Energetic practices such as raising, directing, and grounding energy are the bare bones of spell work. It isn't about the ingredients, but the energy you put into a spell.
Neko explains it so much better than I could.
Learning to sense, work with, and direct energy can really help you to gain more confidence with spell work.
Magic is natural and inherent within all of us. You shouldn't need awaken to it. It is simply a matter of learning how to work with it.
I recommend you look into some techniques to help you along with the basics of energy in spell work. The techniques Neko suggested are great.
If you need help with anything along your path, feel free to ask.
There are a great many members here willing to try and help.
It is worth mentioning first off that not all the spells on this site are legitimate. A lot of them are written as fantasy. They're fun to think about, but they aren't realistic orpossible. If you're trying to become a vampire or shape-shift or move things with your mind or anything that violates the laws of nature and physics, it's just not going to happen.
That said, magic does not need to be awakened. It is something within each of us. I think of it as similar to intuition in the sense that, even though it is there, a lot of us need practice to recognize it and what it's telling us. For me, it was easier to just start with some meditation until I could feel it within me before I began to cast spells.
I would lay on my back with my palms facing upward and imagine tree roots digging into the Earth beneath me, the moon shining on me from above, my own energy swirling from within, and the energy from my surroundings. I would imagine all of them swirling together to form a single aura around myself until it began to feel like a pulse, very similar to what Neko describes with the candle flame.
We all have something that works best for us, so it may take a bit of experimentation to find what feels right to you. From there, it is simply practice.
Sometimes, you may even need to modify a spell you are practicing if it just isn't resonating with you. If you have trouble focusing or visualizing or feeling it, you may need to add or remove certain things. I often used candles when I was starting out, and I still do, but I've recently begun studying up more on herbal magic and I find that it adds an extra somethingwhen I am casting that helps connect me to my practice. This is why spells you write work best, because it's made from the way you envision something working already.
There was a pretty good Spielberg movie in the '80's called 'Willow'. It's fun, cheesy, and kind of unique. Well worth the watch for people looking for underrated classics.
In an early scene, Willow (the protagonist) is a hopeful in apprenticing under the village elder/magician. He and a couple others are lined up and they are asked a question; (paraphrased from memory here)
"Magic is the life-stream of the universe! And the power to control it lies... in which finger."
The elder then held out his hand, fingers spread for the hopefuls to all choose from. Each one took a turn, picked a finger, and they all failed the test. Spoiler alert, the correct answer was later revealed to be none of the elder's fingers but "my own".
The moral? It doesn't matter what finger you use, it matters only that it is -your- finger. Your connection, your emotion, your commitment, your effort. To help with magic, study the symbols behind the steps. Understand why you are doing each stage of the process, what it represents and calls on, and why it should be significant to you personally.
This is one of the reasons why it can take some time of study and learning before most people really start to see success in their workings.
