Three Differences Between A Ritual And A Spell
“Ritual: the established form for a ceremony; specifically: the order of words prescribed for a religious ceremony; a ritual observance; specifically: a system of rites; a ceremonial act or action; an act or series of acts regularly repeated in a set precise manner
Spell: a spoken word or forms of words held to have magic power; a state of enchantment; a strong compelling influence or attraction”
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary
The difference between a ritual and a spell can be just about anything and depends on how the practitioner defines the meanings of those words. I like Merriam-Webster’s definitions. A ritual is a ceremony and an established form. A spell is a spoken word, a state of enchantment or a compelling influence. The two are vastly different but still work together.
Sometimes a spell is part of the ritual. At the heart of the ritual, you perform your Ritual Observance or Magickal Work. The magickal work could be a spell and is usually considered such. Using a spell at the center of your ritual allows you to add more power to the spell and receive the blessing of the deities or entities you have called upon.
Using these definitions, here are three differences between a spell and a ritual:
Steps
Time
Types of Power
Steps
Rituals and spells both have steps. The number of steps is greatly decreased with a spell.
When I write a formal ritual, there are 13 steps. Each step builds on the step before until you get to the Ritual Observance/Magickal Work. This is where you release the power you have gathered into the world. After that, the steps are ones of gratitude. You think the deities, entities and people involved before releasing the ritual. After the release, you eat and drink to replenish your body and the body of your circle. In an informal or daily ritual, you may not use the entire set of steps but the general outline is still there.
A spell may only take a few steps. They are usually:
Gather Your Power
Perform Your Spell
Release Your Power
The ‘perform your spell’ step may take the form of an incantation, a gesture, the use of supplies or the combination of the three. It depends on why you are performing the spell and what you hope to accomplish.
Time
Rituals and spells take time. Each one takes a piece of your day, but how much time differs. A ritual usually takes a lot of time. You have to decide what you want to accomplish, either find or write the ritual and gather supplies. Then you have to perform the ritual. Since each ritual takes a multitude of steps, the physical time it takes to perform the ritual can be anywhere from 15 minutes to a couple of hours. Then there are rituals that have a continuous component where you continue the ritual over a series of days, weeks or months. It all depends on what you want to accomplish.
Spells tend to be quick and easy. You say an incantation and see your power out into the world to work your will. It works or doesn’t work depending on what you hope to accomplish and how much power you put into it. Depending on the spell, there may be a gesture, a lying on of hands or a small amount of supplies needed for the spell, but usually it is something simple and easy to find around the house.
Types of Power
Rituals and spells usually use two different types of power, unless you are performing your spell as part of your ritual.
A ritual usually calls on the powers of a deity or an entity. You call the four quarters for protection. You ask your deity or entity for a blessing of energy to add their power to your own. You gather that energy, the energy around you and add those energies to your own. Using the combined powers, you start your magickal work and send all that energy into the world to power your spell.
A spell usually uses personal power. Instead of asking a deity or entity for help, you put your personal power into your spell. If that isn’t enough, you may pull some energy from the world around you. All that energy then powers your spell.
Using only personal energy means that a spell isn’t as strong as a ritual. Depending on what you want to happen, your reason for having that happen and your time limits, you may want to use a ritual for the really important things. The more energy used and the purer the purpose, the stronger the spell and the longer it will last.
Take into account what you want to happen before deciding you want to do a ritual or a spell. Most of the time, the decision is easy, but every so often what you decide won’t be the right choice. You can take a ritual and turn it into a spell and a spell into a ritual. You just have to decide what you want to accomplish and how much power you will need.
Homework: When would you need both a ritual and a spell to accomplish the same goal?
