Which Witch Candle Is Which? A Primer by The Madame

16 Apr Which Witch Candle Is Which? A Primer by The Madame

Witches love candles. And witches love options. Hence, the many and varied sizes, shapes, and types of candles available for your magickal candle working. The first thing you should know is that there are no hard and fast rules as to which candle type you need to use. This is determined by you, based on your particular needs. So how do you decide which candle you need?

1. What is your intention for the working?
2. How much time is necessary to complete the task?
3. What correspondences can you use to boost the energy of your intention?

Burn time is a good place to start when it comes to size of the candle. For this post, we will cover the most popular sizes of taper style candles – the perfect blank canvas for your Candle Magick!

Spell Candles (Also known as Chime Candles) are usually 4″ tall by 1/2″ diameter. Burn time can vary from 30 minutes to 2 hours.

Ritual Candles are usually 6″ tall by 3/4″ diameter. Burn time can vary but averages 3 hours.

Altar Candles are usually 9″ tall by 1.5″ diameter. Burn time is usually between 10 hours and 14 hours.

Burn times are estimated because many things can effect how quickly or in what manner your candle burns. Dressing a candle with herbs and oils (giving it a job to do) will make your candle burn quicker. A drafty room will effect if the candle burns quicker on one side than the other. Type of wax plays a big role as well. Most tapers for candle magick are made of paraffin wax that has a high melting point, making them stable enough to stand in a holder while burning. Some waxes “evaporate” as they burn (dripless candles) leaving no wax flow to “read”, and some make beautiful lava like lakes that make for interesting divination (Ceromancy).

Let’s say you have 30 minutes to devote to a particular working (look, we’re busy people!). A spell candle will fit this purpose. Maybe you want to meditate and perform a full moon ritual. A ritual candle would be perfect. If you are using the candle for daily devotionals, an altar candle is what you want.

Keep in mind that once a candle is charged for a particular purpose, I don’t suggest you reuse it for a different purpose later.

For example, you dress a green ritual candle for prosperity. You only burn it for 1 hour, and there is still a lot of candle left, but you need to go to work. You snuff the candle out. Next week, you decide you need a green candle for some heart chakra work, and you reach for the half used candle that you’ve already dressed and burned for prosperity...

Do you really want to confuse that candle as to what it’s job is, and possibly send mixed signals? By all means, don’t throw out the candle dressed for prosperity! Save it and use it again for that same purpose, but start a new candle for each intention. A way to avoid waste in this instance is to plan out the length of time you have available to complete your working, and choose a candle with a burn time that corresponds to that. In the example above, a spell candle would have been more appropriate than a ritual candle.

Now that you’ve determined your purpose, chosen the candle with a burn time that meets your needs, now you can move on to Step 3: What correspondences can you use with that candle that will lend more synergistic energy to your intention? Here is a list of candle colors and their related correspondences to give you a start:

White – (Spirit Element/Crown Chakra) Purification, Consecration, Inspiration, Positivity, Can be used as a substitute for any color

Purple – (Crown – Third Eye Chakra) Intuition, Wisdom, Psychism, Channeling

Blue – (Water Element/Third Eye -Throat Chakra) Emotional Healing, Astral Travel, Dreams

Green – (Earth Element/Heart Chakra) Prosperity, Fertility, Abundance, Physical Healing

Yellow – (Air Element/Solar Plexus Chakra) Thought, Communication, Creativity, Optimism

Orange – (Sacral Chakra) Business/Legal Issues, Energy, Confidence, Attraction, Encouragement

Red – (Fire Element/Root Chakra) Passion, Sex, Action, Courage, Transformation

Black – (Root Chakra) Banishing, Transmuting Negativity, Protection, Mysteries, Grounding, Focus, Meditation, Spirit Communication, Binding

Don’t forget to consider herbs and oils that can empower your candle’s intention! Incorporate carving sigils or names into the wax, as well as crystals, pins, or binding string to aid in your purpose.

Something to ponder: There is a theory in some parts of the metaphysical community to not blow out your candle when you’re done, but to instead use a snuffer. Blowing it out is thought to be “disrespectful” to the spirits that are aiding you in your working. However, another perspective to consider is that snuffing the candle would be to suffocate the working, or the Spirits therein, whereas blowing the candle out is supplying it its source of energy (oxygen) until it has consumed all it needs to fulfill it’s task and extinguishes. Personally, I like that theory better.

Disposing of your magickal candle remains is a point to consider when you’ve accomplished your task. Some theories are:

If you did a working to bring something to you (love, money, healing), keep the wax remains close and undisturbed (ex: in a box under your bed, buried in your back yard)

If you did a working to banish something from you (your ex, gossip, bad habits), dispose of the remains by dispersing at a crossroads, or bury far from your own home.

Find our selection of Spell Candles HERE

Find our selection of Ritual Candles HERE

Find our selection of Altar Candles HERE