Magical Mondays: Cheese Grater!
Monday August 18, 2008
Magical Mondays: Cheese Grater!
© Getty Images
If you're new to Magical Mondays, here's how it works. Each Monday I'll post a photo of an item -- and the catch is, that it's *not* going to be a traditional magical object. No crystals, herbs, or other things typically associated with spellwork or magic. The idea is to see how many magical uses we can come up with for the item. No right answers, no wrong answers, just sharing ideas. Post your suggestions in the Comments section, and see what other readers have to say as well!
To see previous editions of Magical Mondays, you can read responses (and still contribute) here:
This week's item: a cheese grater! What are you going to do with yours?
Comments
i like to use the cheese grater to grate Ginger and other roots for drying. or to shave down old candles for recycling into new ones.
I tend to bless whomever I make food for, so as I grate ingredients with that grater, I repeat “With this food, I thee bless.”. The grater also reminds me, that when an issue seems to be too big to handle, I can always break it into smaller pieces without changing the issue, just making it easier to handle and deal with, little at a time.
I love the idea of recycling the candles, Ryan!
I think a great use for the cheese grater would be to help in banishing bad situations such as negativity, bad habits, ectra.. I would use a black candle for the banishing part& the grater to grate away the candle while concentrating on the item(s) to be banished! hmmm now if I can just come up w/ an appropiate chant?? LOL
I use my graters(among other things) as candle covers, as we have fans going all the time. This way they burn better. I use w/spells and for everyday candle burning.
Spellcaster —
Send negative away, now not later,
with my magical mystical grater,
Banishing the bad, just as I please,
I’m grating a candle, not my cheese.
:)
patti
who’s feeling a mite silly this afternoon
LOL…..that’s cute Patti.
Patti-
LOL !! Thats a great one Patti!!
I wouldnt really cal that chant CHEESY!! LOL
Spellcaster)0( =)
When obstacles stand in your way, it helps to break things up into smaller bits, so they can be better “digested”. Get a block of your favorite cheese and visualize it as all the mountains of obstacles that stand in your way toward your goal. Next, hack away at it with the cheese grater, and while you do so, think of all the ways that the problem can be broken down into smaller pieces. The harder you work, the more energy you raise! Once the entire block has been grated, put it in a bag. Sprinkle as desired on pizza, microwave nachos, salad, etc. Nachos are particularly good because you can watch those pieces melting away in the microwave. Enjoy!
I’m late getting in on this, but love it!
Everything is a magical item when used with awareness and intent! The cheese grater is actually one of my favorites - the rythym of grating cheese or vegetables helps me stay focused on my intention of creating healthy, energy, and life-affirming-good-for-you food. I sometimes chant while I grate:
Carrots orange, cabbage green,
onion sweet and mild;
thank you for your gift of life
to me, my Love, and child.
My favourite magical use for a cheese grater is the ritual soaps in Scott Cunningham’s Incense, Oils & Brews.
Two of my favourite recipes are the Luck Soap (two parts Vetivert to one part each of orange and nutmeg) and the Witches Soap (three parts rosemary, two parts pine, one part cinnamon and one part orange).
These scents can be achieved with either blended, empowered essential oils or with 5-6 tablespoons of mixed, dried empowered herbs added to about a third of a cup of recently boiled water. Remove the water from the heat and allow the mixture to steep for 9-13 minutes. Strain and reheat the water.
The actual recipe for the soap is really easy and fun to make. Simply grate soap (Cunningham recommends Castile but I have found that any unscented soap will do) into a large bowl until there is enough to pack into a cup. Heat a 1/3 of a cup of water until almost boiling and then add to the grate soap. Whip with a wooden whisk. Once it’s cooled down a little, you can use your hands to mix together.
Separate the soap into three or four equal parts and roll into ball. Place each ball on a nine-inch circle of cheesecloth and tie with an appropriately coloured ribbon. Hang your ritual soaps in your bathroom until you need them!
If you have particularly dry skin, try adding 1-2 teaspoons of apricot, almond or coconut oil to the water before mixing.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, it’s time for me to go take a bath with my Money Soap!
I would use this for sympathetic magic. I have used a colander before to get the magic effect I wanted. You could use the grater in the same way, put some rice, or other ingredient and shake the grater to let the rice sprinkle out, similar to what we need here in Utah, some rain.
Blessings, Ursea, Ogdenppd.org
I like all of the ideas posted before me. That silly poem is just the best. If I ever decided to use a cheese grater, I think I would use it in a self-transformation spell or ritual. The grater could shave away those layers or bad habits that I wished to get rid of. I would use a candle that represented me in its attributes either by color or scent or shape. For me, I’d probably use a yellow female-shaped candle since I am a woman that connects well with air. Oooo! Idea! Maybe you could carve your shape by using the grater on the candle. You know, start with a blank one and shave off the habits or personality traits that you no longer wish to have to form your new self. I never tried it so I don’t know how hard it would be. I might try that now.
Tune it upside down and glue different Fall things to it and put a nice towel threw the bottom of it, are hang a kitchen witch from th bottom. And hang it on the wall
I use my grater, much as others have said- for making smaller, things large. Since we raise much of our own food, it’s preparation takes me back to those sunfilled, days of growth, too. I spend a lot of the summer making cheeses to freeze or brine and when I use them in wintertime, I am always made grateful for our Mother’s gift of the art of cheesemaking. I left the horns on my cow and LOVE to sing to her when the moon rises. Sometimes I can get her to appear as if she is ‘holding the moon’ on her head LOL.
Donna
Celtic farmstead kitchen witch
If I have what seems like an insurmountable problem, I could think of the cheese as the problem, and the grater as figuratively carving it up into smaller, more manageable pieces.
I would bless the grater and use it my cooking I like to infuse all my cooking with energy and light.
I would use the grater to make sure I am dividing my time, energy, money, etc. appropriately or evenly. So, for instance, I would make a meal and invite family and friends (or just have a small bowl or plate representing each person) and grate my cheese over each plate, carefully giving each person the amount they need. The cheese represents whatever object or thing that needs sharing. Some people may require more than others but everyone will get a piece. I’d also say some type of blessing over it to ensure I am giving each person what they really need. This could also work for spreading out money when it seems a little thin. I’d lay out my bills and grate a little bread (to represent money) over each one so that each bill gets paid.
Well, my idea is pretty weird, I guess. I was looking at that cheese grater thinking, “That looks a lot like a bell.” I think i would tie a ringer inside it from the handle, and make my own kitchen cow bell to use in ritual.
I love all of these ideas. One of my fondest memories is when my kids would use mine as a musical instrument when they were toddlers playing in my kitchen cabinets along with all my pots and pans. You could probably use it to play along with song and drums and dance around circle.
reminds me of making challah. i like the candle cover idea!
but, maybe use a soft wood? or an item that represents the bad?
ie.someone at work is sending bad vibes your way, use the company stationary with the grater, or if in a resturant, grate a cup with the logo on it.