OK fine, I'm jumping on this grenade.
1. where does this energy originate from (the elements?)
I know that different people have different ideas about this, so here's my conjecture. Energy came from the Universe being created/evolved/whatever.
It's the glue that holds the Multiverse together. *queue Jedi theme music*
Some say it comes from the cauldron of creation, I tend to think it just pools there and cycles through the universe like a cosmic endocrine system. The cauldron at the center of everything is just a massive endocrine gland, just like the poles of the earth are( The Elements, Directions, Etc). Oh, and there's one at the center of the Earth, and at the center of every major celestial body, including the Sun, Luna (moon) etc, just as there is at the center of you and me. Some say it comes from the Gods. I think we're all just made from it (deities included), and that after the singularity went *bang* the energy came out just like matter did. For all we know, there are other nodes like the ones I describe that no one uses because we don't know what their attributes are. The Multiverse holds all possibility.
2. how do you call up on it without a ritual or chanting?
Energy is intimately tied up with
Will. Yepers, I tend to agree with the Hermetics here. Voice is but one aspect of calling upon your will. There are as many other ways as there are Will workers out there. Ecstatic Dancing, concentration or meditation, drumming, tai chi, rubbing your hands together, all these things and many more can be done with intent can create massive amounts of energy. Please note that a spell is not a ritual unless you call God(s) into it.
3. the basic workings of said energy?
Will-working, or magic is the province of the mind. Mind over matter in it's most basic form. Energy work isn't always magic but all magic is energy work, if that makes sense. We only call it energy because it is a useful metaphor for what it could be, plus a historical artifact of some pseudo-science in the early 20th Century. Not only that but many people believe that it vibrates, or has a vibrational rate. I don't know if I believe this or not. I've never tried energy work in a vacuum for example. However, since I'm convinced that I can get energy from the Moon, or the Sun, it must travel through space... so this begs the question... if it goes through space, what the hell is vibrating? But I digress. The big secret is that we don't know why it works, we just have an idea of how it works.
That being said... You direct that energy with your mind. You think it somewhere, and it's there. There's something beyond just thinking that I call "willing" it there. It doesn't always work the first time, so you have to sit there, concentrating until the build up or whatever takes place so your energy is there.
I tend to use a chakra based system for energy manipulation so I would pull up energy from Mother Earth, draw it through my feet chakras to the root chakra, to my belly chakra and either direct it out through my hand(s) or out through the third or sometimes the heart chakra depending on what I wanted to do.
If it's just creating energy balls or basic energy work, I draw it out through my hands or my third eye (center of the forehead). You shake out your hands first, and then focus your mind on your hands for a bit to get "base normal". Then, you feel for the tingle at the core of your being (basically the column of energy at the center of you) and will it out to your hands. Then you start forming the energy ball once your hands are tingling. Then you try to feel the warmth increase between your hands while they are separated at the desired size of energy ball you are trying for. Sometimes you can "see" a faint fuzzy glow between your palms when you are really "on".
4. how to decide how much energy a spell needs and how to give the spell energy
Well, this, in my mind is the hardest question to answer, because it's a matter of experience. As far as I know, there's no good way to measure energy rate and flow except by how tired out you are when all's said and done. Also, what's a heavy-duty working for one will-worker could be a snap for another. Not only that, but what day it is, what you personally feel like health-wise and or emotionally, or even how you feel about this given working can also effect how much energy you need to get things moving. Not only that, but for some things, it won't matter how much energy you push behind something, it Just. Won't. Happen. Call it Wyrd, Fate, the Will of the Gods, whatever. And you don't always find out until later. However, I never like leaving well enough alone, so I'll give you a rough outline from my personal experience. Remember: Your Mileage May Vary. That's what YMMV means.
Generally, I find that having props lowers the amount of energy you need to pile into a working. For example, charging a pendulum takes less juice than making an astral help mate. A LOT less. One could also say that, *in* *general*, a meditation will take less energy, even raise it, than a spell would. Energy flexing excises take less energy than a spell does.
However, if you are doing shadow work in a meditative state, you may find that you'll wake up feeling like you've just run a marathon. Without any sports drink. So it really depends on what you're doing. I don't recommend doing more than three workings a day, and that's on the outside. But, charming items, such as amulets and talismans, or blessing incense or cleansing, tend to take the least juice. Unless it's a cursed item, or something like that.
On that note, I'd like to give a little advice about spell working.
Never do energy work/spell work when you are too tired,drink or high, sick, or too angry/upset. Things go weird, wrong, or just plain fail when you are altered that way.
I have heard stories that magical abilities can be more potent under some kinds of chemical alteration, but let's face it... do you really trust all your decisions when you are high, stoned or drunk? Um, I don't for myself.
I'm not even trying to be moralistic here. Doing energy work, especially spell working, is like operating heavy machinery. You need a clear head and all of your attention to do what you intend to do, no matter how much experience or talent you may have.
The only exception I can think of has to do with shamanic vision quests.
These are different, but you should be working under supervision with someone with experience in this area who seriously knows their stuff.
Suffice to say, it is not that difficult to have great experiences in this category without using serious drugs.
End of lecture. There will be a quiz on Friday.
