12 Magical Spells, Charms & Amulets for Protection and Banishing

“Boundaries help us to distinguish our property so that we can take care of it. They help us to ‘guard our heart with all diligence.’ We need to keep things that will nurture us inside our fences and keep things that will harm us outside.”
― Henry Cloud

What is Magical Banishing?

In Neo-Paganism, Wicca, and Witchcraft (as well as many other metaphysical traditions) the art of banishing entails dismissing unwanted energy or negativity that impacts our lives badly, impedes our progress, squelches our joy. This energy might come from a person, a situation, a ghost or even an item that simply got caught in a space where adverse vibrations surrounded eventually tainting it.

Ways of Accomplishing a Successful Banishing

Not all magical processes fit all people. So as with many forms of magic, there are some basic methods you can use that will support your goal. Review these and see what makes the most sense depending on your situation.

A Spiritual Eviction Notice

If there is an entity such as a ghost or spirit behind your problems, put your foot down and mark your territory. While at first, you might feel odd talking to “empty” air, but the resident spirit needs to know that they are not welcome. This is YOUR sacred space, and you have the right to say, “get out.”

Now you can certainly kill them with kindess. Wish the spirit well on their journey, use a cleansing and blessing smudging of the space as you speak your intention. Sage is one good option as is Frankincense.

After this, it’s time to reclaim what is rightfully yours. Dab a personal cologne or perfume around your home (or in whatever space that the problem manifested). Visualize a glowing ball of light that surrounds that space – above and below – like a protective bubble. Now imagine a door with a knocker on that sphere. Basically, this says, “knock first.”

Why the door? For one, we have a psychological connection to that symbol as being one of opening, closings, entering and leaving. Also, there are some spirits with whom you may want to share your space like an ancestor or spirit guide. Even tho, dear old dad shouldn’t just pop in without an invitation! There is a distinct inner sound that you will hear when someone or something wants your attention (perhaps like a doorbell ringing or a knocker). It’s ok not to answer the door!

Using the Elements for Magical Banishing

The Elemental Powers are very grand and helpful to all types of magic. When you use them for banishing or protection, you can consider what each Element represents first. You can use water for cleansing away negativity, fire for destroying bad vibes, Earth for grounding out unwanted energy and Air to move it away from you. And if things get really bad, banish whatever ails you to all four Winds. This is pretty harsh, but effective when you’re dealing with puckish and stubborn spirits in particular.

Here are some ways of applying Elemental Energy for Banishing:

• Earth: Bury a symbol away from you in a place where it won’t be disturbed. Alternatively, sprinkle salt around the space. If a home, go around the entire outside perimeter and along the property lines. This cleanses and protects.
• Air: Light incense like Bay, Myrrh, Sandalwood, Angelica, Juniper and Pine and walk counterclockwise around your home reciting a prayer or invocation that reflect your will.
• Windows: Open all the windows in your space during a banishing spell or ritual. Let the old air move out, and renewing winds move in!
• Fire: Burn a symbol of your problem then throw away the ashes outside your space. Alternatively, light candles in all four directions of the problematic area using the flame of the candle to chase away the shadows.
• Water: Freeze a symbol of what’s causing the negativity and leave it where it will be untouched. Alternatively, toss a symbol or a written note into a live water source moving away from you.

Cleansing and Banishing Magic

When your house is dirty, you clean it. That’s why cleansing and banishing go hand in hand. You want that yucky energy lingering on your floors, walls, objects or even yourself to go away. Energetic cleansing has a lot of similar approaches as does Banishing efforts. You can:

• Sprinkle or wash with soap and water (if it’s your aura, take a bath with cleansing additives like Epsom salts, apple cider vinegar, bundled sage and mint leaves, etc.
• Smudge the item, space or yourself with sweetgrass, lemongrass, cedar, juniper, sage and/or pine (all commonly used for smudging and cleansing spells).
• Put the item or a symbol of it in rich soil mixed with cornmeal and salt for the full cycle of the waning to dark moon.
• Sweep energy away, starting at the opposite side of the space from the door – moving in that direction until you gather all that dirt and take it right out the door.

Magic Rituals and Spells for Protection and Banishing

Timing: Waning to dark moon; Noon. The months of January, July, and October. When the moon is in Aries, Gemini, or Sagittarius. During a blue moon.

Props/Focals: The colors of red, white, silver, or black. The numbers 6 and 8. Purifying scents and herbs such as clove, pine, lemon, sage, myrrh, sandalwood, and frankincense. Soap and water, soil, and items that can be reversed or turned inside out. Counterclockwise movement.

Negativity Amulet

Take a white swatch of cloth and some pine needles. Put the needles in the center of the cloth. Place your hand palm down over the pine and recite an incantation like this six times, “This is the light of protection, of purity. As it covers the darkness, so it brings safety to me.” As you speak these words, imagine a blinding white light pouring into the cloth. Tie the bundle securely. Carry the token with you to expel negativity wherever you are.

Ghost be Gone Spell

To rid your home of a troublesome spirit, begin by dabbing a bit of cinnamon and fennel (oil or powder) over all your window edges, door tops, heating ducts, or anything else that represents an opening. Trace the oils in the form of a banishing pentagram, saying, “No darkness may enter this sacred space; unless welcome by me, unwelcome spirits leave this place.” Repeat the incantation any time you sense an unwanted presence in your home.

Ghost be Gone Banishing Spell

To rid your living space of an unwanted spirit, begin by putting everything in its proper place. Clean your house to perfection, open the windows, and bless all your magical implements (see “Blessing”).

Next, moving always to your left (counterclockwise, or widdershins as it is called in magical circles) anoint the doors, windows, and all openings of your home with a mixture of water (water), fennel (fire), oats (Earth), pine (air), and sage (wisdom). These represent all elements of the magic circle. For a blend that is less bulky, place the herbs in hot water to steep, then strain and use only the aromatic tea.

As you go, visualize bright light pouring from your hands into every area that houses shadows, saying, “Where light dwells, all darkness flee; Spirit move away from me. This home is mine, I will not fear, your presence is not welcome here.” Follow the entire circuit of your home, repeating the procedure in every room. When finished, go outside if possible, making one full loop around the exterior. The leftover water can be refrigerated or frozen for future use.

Finally, return inside and move clockwise through each room while burning basil, dill, and marjoram. These herbs encourage blessings and joy. Invoke the protection of your personal God/dess for your sacred space of home. Then close the windows, leaving any negative spiritual energies outside.

Negativity Amulet

Make this amulet to tum negative energy away from you. First gather any combination of the following: eight dried white beans, eight pieces of grain, six peach pits, eight dried chrysanthemum petals, some dill, and a small bit of any reflective substance such as a mirror. Place these in a white sachet with a little oil of pennyroyal or cedar. Anoint the pouch while saying, “Turn, turn, turn, any evil, back to its source, thrice returned.” Keep this with you or in an area that needs protection.

Object Cleansing and Purification

If the item in question can be sprinkled by, or immersed in, water, prepare a solution of 1 teaspoon of lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon, and seven whole cloves in warm water. Place the object in a container and pour the solution over it saying, “Unwanted energy is commanded to flee; with water cleansed, grant purity.” If the item can be soaked, leave it in the water for three hours beneath sunlight, then again beneath moonbeams to negate residual energy on all levels.

If water would prove damaging, instead prepare an incense from sandalwood chips, pine needles, and dried lemon rind. Pass the object through the smoke and modify the incantation to something like “What fire cleanses, the smoke conveys, all negativity blown away. Bless this with divine rays, forever now the magic stays.”

Banishing Gossip Spell

Across a plain piece of paper, neatly write the name of the person gossiping. On the top of the paper attach four metal paper clips (see illustration). As each is placed say, “I bind untruth by ______.” Fill in the blank with earth, air, fire, and water, respectively.

Next, secure a spring-type clothespin to the top of each paper clip. Wait for a southerly wind, then put the paper out on a line and carefully ignite it. Let the winds of truth and transformation carry away any malicious energy.

Knot Magic for Binding Negativity

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For this spell, take a symbol of whatever (or whomever) you feel generates negativity in your life, and tie it securely with a knot using the first line of the following incantation. Make three more knots speaking your spell as you go:

First Knot: I bind you _____; my joy you will no longer take
Second Knot: I banish _____ from my mind and my life; I claim freedom from strife
Third Knot: I cast out _____ on the knot of three; bring only harmony to me
Fourth Knot: I expel ______ with this magic charm
Now protect me from all harm.

Keep this in a safe space. If you feel like the negativity from that person or situation starts ramping up again, release one knot and repeat the line of the incantation associated with it (do not undo the first knot – that should remain firmly in place as that’s the binding spot).

Banishing Nightmares and Bad Dreams

Nightmares are often reflections of our own fears and tensions. Because of this, a calming drink such as chamomile tea or cranberry juice just before bed can have both physical and magical effects. Your verbal component might be something like this: “Past the gums and through the lips, peaceful sleep is in each sip. Fears of things that bump and fright, you’re not welcome here tonight.”

Expelling Prejudice

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To make a tasty sauce for tolerance, combine 2 cups of cider vinegar and 4 cups of salad oil in a saucepan. Warm over a low flame with personally pleasing amounts of basil, caraway, chives, and garlic. Stir counterclockwise and chant, “Warm their hearts, intolerance depart! Ban prejudice today, bad feelings allay.” Once the mixture smells heavily of the herbs, cool it. Then, place it in an airtight container to use on salads or as a marinade for meats for when the person in question visits for dinner.

Protection Charm

To make a protective charm, take a picture of the person or place you wish to protect and wrap it carefully in white cloth so that it is not bent or soiled. Bless this bundle regularly by sprinkling a circle of water around it in a clockwise fashion, and envisioning white light encompassing it. Ask your personal God/dess for favor on your efforts. Keep the item safe with other magical charms.

Home Protection Magic Oil

A practical, refreshing, and useful anointing oil for your living space can be prepared as follows: place 6 teaspoons of dried mint, six cloves, and six each of frankincense and myrrh tears in 1 cup of warm almond oil. Allow these to soak for six days in bright sunlight to empower them, then dab on all your windows, door, and other openings around the home. As you anoint the area add a brief chant such as “Where there is light, darkness may not dwell.” Envision each anointed area being bound together by a network of white-light webs. This strengthens this spell.

If you want the oil to have a stronger smell, warm it over a low flame for fifteen minutes or so at the end of the six-day period. This enhances the fiery, protective nature and incorporates the herbal aromas into the oil base. Keep this blend sealed in an air-tight container for future use.

Coral Amulet of Protection

A piece of coral worn as jewelry has long been regarded as a potent protective amulet, especially in ancient Greece. If you can find a piece by yourself, be sure to thank the sea for its gift. Take it to a private place to bless the talisman, saying, ‘‘In my life, light shall flow, smooth as the sea. Let this token keep safety ever with me.” If the coral ever breaks, that destroys the energy within. At that time, return the pieces to the water with gratitude before making a new one.

Adapted from “Spinning Spells, Weaving Wonders,” by Patricia Telesco. All rights reserved.