How does your practice change in a family home?

[Tryp]

This is not about secrecy, judgement or conflict of beliefs with people in your household. It's rather about the impact your own operations and allies may have in your home and loved ones.

My context: I've been living with my son in my own house, for over two years now. Prior to this, I spent two other years in a limbo of sorts; circumstances in the end of a marriage led me to leave my own place and move to a rented place nearby. I did this to make things easier, especially for the sake of our small son, and because my ex was in a frozen state of sorts, with few resources of her own and not ready to make a move and go live with her new boyfriend. Those two years were rough, but very important for my practice. I was able to do some deep work and to accelerate some of the changes I needed to happen in myself, and to experiment. I believe I made good choices (by no means the easiest) and eventually my own work, both eso and exoteric, helped my ex to make her choice and to leave, leading me to come back to my house and take care of our son. No further drama happened and communication works well today. This implied, though, that parenting has become my priority and responsibility.

Only part of the practice I was following while alone could be brought along with me. I've sustained a devotional with Hekate, crucial for my own change in the past, I've started to give some time to ancestor work, and I've allowed more presence to Bes, a spirit I worked with in the past and who has a strong aspect as protector of home and childhood, aside of his connection to hedonism.

Intuitively I've all but left my work with other chthonic spirits, though. Since of course my own personal needs and shortcomings could still use a hand, I've shyly tried pathworkings and minor invocations to test the waters, but I'm reluctant to formally invite certain spirits to this place or perform any conjurations. The response I've received after such pathworkings is also shy -at least as far as results are concerned- but I've seen some clear signs: flirts in dreams, audible knocks on my roof occasionally. Nothing unpleasant or scary, but I'm getting the memo - either bring us back, or there's not much we can do. However, my own need for assistance is diminished when compared to ensuring a healthy home. In the other hand, I wouldn't want to get too settled in a comfort zone.

Which aspects of your practice do you consider not suitable or undesirable while living with people you love and whose wellbeing is a priority in your life?

Conversely, which operations (or which spirits) have you found beneficial to work with in a household?

I'm interested in hearing your experiences and thoughts. Thank you.

 

[Jadziya]

i think it depends on how psychically sensitive the other people in the house are and if they have any vulnerabilities including young or old age. I have avoided certain conjurations when living with relatives to avoid the spirit bothering them. However in my experience any working you do can have an impact on someone you are close to or related to even if you live in different countries, although physical proximity increases that.

 

[Faria]

Which aspects of your practice do you consider not suitable or undesirable while living with people you love and whose wellbeing is a priority in your life?

I have six children ages 3-28 and have been active in occult practices this whole time. My home has nothing visible that connects to the occult, but my #1 priority in choosing a dwelling has always been access to ritual space. Getting a place big enough to house everyone and still have room for a 9-foot across magical circle is a challenge in itself.

The biggest difficulty has been smoke from coals and incense, for which no modern flooring was designed. A garage is an effective compromise, but nature is better. I usually schedule it so that everyone is somewhere else at the time.

And besides that, I keep it quiet. My kids have a very vague notion of what I'm up to, if at all, and mostly regard it as Dad's nerd stuff. As far as the supernatural side of it, I have not found any reason to worry about summoning demons in the living room while the kids are sleeping, and I tend to think of that kind of "side effect" as hysteria and not as spirits.