Three things make up most craft work: the structure a ritual follows, the shaping of intent through spellcraft, and the gathering of information through divination.
This is the common Wiccan-derived shape; solitary and other traditions often simplify or skip steps entirely.
Mark out a working space, physically or by visualization, considered set apart from ordinary space for the ritual's duration.
Invoke the four elements (or directions) to acknowledge and, in many traditions, request their presence at the working.
Address the God, Goddess, or other power the practitioner works with — the specifics vary enormously by tradition and by individual.
The actual purpose of the ritual: a spell, a seasonal celebration, a rite of passage, or simply meditation and connection.
A shared food-and-drink offering marking gratitude and grounding, common in Wiccan practice specifically.
Thank and release the quarters and any invoked powers, then formally end the working space.
Intention — a spell is only as clear as the outcome it's aimed at; vague intent tends to produce vague results.
Timing — many practitioners align workings with moon phase, day of the week, or season, to match a spell's purpose to a moment already carrying that quality.
Correspondence — colors, herbs, stones, and symbols chosen because folklore or personal association ties them to the intended effect.
Raising energy — through chant, dance, drumming, or focused visualization, building toward a release directed at the spell's intent.
Grounding — returning excess energy to the earth after a working, usually by visualization, to avoid the light-headed, unsettled feeling of an ungrounded ritual.
Different tools for the same basic goal: information not available through ordinary means.
A 78-card deck read in spreads — the most widely practiced form of card divination in modern witchcraft.
A weighted object suspended and read by the direction or pattern of its swing, typically for yes/no questions.
Gazing into a reflective or dark surface — mirror, water, flame — to induce impressions or visions.
Casting or drawing lettered stones or tiles, most often the Elder Futhark alphabet, and reading their individual and combined meanings.
An early medieval Irish alphabet, each letter tied to a tree, used similarly to runes for divinatory casting.
Reading patterns left by tea leaves or coffee grounds in a cup — an old folk-divination method still practiced today.