Setting Lights - What Is It, and Why Would You Want It Done for You?

Many times in conjure and hoodoo, and sometimes within other witchy contexts you will hear about setting lights, or candle altar services. If you're unfamiliar with the rootwork and folk magic culture these may seem like beautiful and intriguing concepts - so just what does "setting lights" mean?

Setting lights is a lovely service that many magical practitioners offer to the community. Sometimes setting lights is referred to as a candle altar service. Generally speaking, a client will tell a practitioner about their current situation, and the practitioner will decide what color candle and what herbs and oils would be best used to dress that candle in order to have the desired effect on the client's situation.

What the client is getting is a very basic magical consultation, spiritual prescription for a candle magic remedy, and a candle prepared and dressed especially for their case by that experienced rootworker.

Dressing a candle is when magically-potent essential oil blends and traditional herbs that resonate with an specific spiritual goal are rubbed onto or worked into a candle, to impregnate the candle with the desired energies.

The candle is dressed by the spiritual practitioner, while they pray or otherwise channel large amounts of energy for that particular purpose into the wax. The name or initials of the client, or symbols of their goal may be inscribed onto the surface of the candle, and then oils and herbs applied to it as well. The prayers of the practitioner help to awaken the spirits of the herbs that are within the oil blends and also in the dressing mixture, and call them to play a role in manifesting the goal on behalf of the client. The prayers also call upon the aid of the Divine &/or other helpful spirits such as saints and angels, asking for favor to be shown to the situation at hand. The candle may also be impregnated with planetary energies of the day and hour if a practitioner utilizes such in their work. All of this creates a candle that is "programmed" to manifest a very specific intent for the person for whom it is made. Once a candle has been dressed and is ready to be set working, it is referred to as fixed.

A small paper that has the name and goal of the client may also be prepared and will sit under the candle while it burns in order to help personalize and direct the energy even further. Such a paper is called a name paper or a petition paper. Petition papers usually include some form of a formal statement of the desired goal, and the name of the person the candle is meant to aid. Sometimes the name and petition statement will be written a certain amount of times for a stronger effect. In hoodoo 3, 7, 9, and 13 are common numbers used in work - but they are not a hard-and-fast rule. The name will sometimes be written in such a way as to cross the petition statement, which is a way of symbolically claiming power over the situation stated in the petition. If the candle is for money, dollar signs may be drawn upon it in the corners; if it's for love, hearts may be added. This just further solidifies the nature of the energy being summoned into manifestation by the candle. This petition paper will also usually be dressed with dabs of the same oil blend that has been used upon the candle. In some cases some of the same herbs which have been sprinkled onto the candle will be folded into the petition paper to make sure the request is well surrounded by the energies of the oils and herbs.

Sometimes a photo may be used, or a hair or fingernail of the person for whom the candle is being fixed may be also folded up inside the petition paper to make a powerful sympathetic link to that person. Modern quantum theory has shown us that matter that was once part of something will still be effected and be able to effect the original mass of which is was a part, even if it is far away from its source. Using a hair or nail, also called a personal concern, from someone is a very potent energetic link that will help the energy speed to its target without any trouble. Photos and handwriting can also be used very effectively as links, because these do carry an energy pattern closely related to the person, however they are not as reliable as actual personal concerns which come from the person's body. A good practitioner will be able to have some measure of success without having a personal concern, as long as they have the full name of the person for whom the work is being done. Names have power!

Once the candle has been dressed and fixed, and the petition paper prepared and set underneath, that candle - usually a 7-day glass encased vigil candle - will then be set to work by the practitioner there in their own home altar or an altar at their place of business. The practitioner will watch over the candle and see how it burns over the days, as they can often tell alot about how the energy is moving and working by observing the burn and any signs that occur during it.

For example, if a candle burns very quickly, it can indicate that there will be a strong positive result, but that it will not be long-lasting. The practitioner may wish to inform the client that they may wish to back-up their work with something else to make sure the result will last. On the otherhand, if the candle burns very slowly, it can mean that there are delays and obstacles that the energy is having to wade through before being able to manifest. Depending on how the burn finishes and what other signs may be present, it could mean success, but at a weaker level than desired, or simply that it will take longer than expected for the result to manifest. In both cases the practitioner will want to help the client decide if more work is needed for the desired outcome to be reached. However, if the burn is clear and steady, and finishes cleanly, this means that the energy has not encountered any serious impediments, and that all signs point to a successful outcome.

When the candle is through, the practitioner will report back to the client with news of the how the candle burned. This is sometimes referred to as a candle burn report. Often the petitioner paper which was underneath the candle during the work will be returned to the client - they can then bury it on their own property to create a physical link for energy of that work drawing it to their home, or they may carry it with them until the goal has manifested. If the candle burn showed some difficulties, the client may want to schedule to have a full reading and consultation with the practitioner to get a more detailed perspective on the situation, and determine what magical actions should be taken to assure the greatest possibility for success.

Having lights set is a very traditional way to have spiritual work done on one's behalf.

Considering all the work and knowledge that a client can gain through having this simple ritual done by a practitioner, the costs for this service are usually very low. Depending on the base costs that a practitioner incurs from the supplies needed to perform this service (some can afford to buy in bulk, while others pay retail or close to it for their own supplies), the price ranges from $10-30 for the entire personalized 5-7 day service. It is especially useful for those people who wish to utilize magic to influence their lives, but for various reasons are not at liberty to have candles burning in their homes - either for nosy or dissapproving housemates, not wishing to have candles burning 24/7 with a baby or pet in the home, or some other reason. Even if the client is able to work on their own behalf, it can be extremely beneficial to have another practitioner perform this service for them.

For one, it gets a completely separate and potent stream of intent pouring towards one's goals. Some practitioner like to back-up their own work by having another practitioner set lights on their behalf for just this reason. I know I often ask trusted workers to set lights for me when I feel I could use some extra support! It also can provide you with divinations as to how the work is going overall, when you may be doing more complicated work that doesn't present such visible evidence of how the energy is moving and manifesting. Sometimes I will have a worker set a light for me at the outset of a new complex working, just to get a read on the situation as a whole. Hearing the candle report gives me another source of info to work with in addition to my own divinations on the matter.

When having work backed up by having lights set, some clients may request that candles be set on their behalf in runs. This means that once one candle finishes, another one fixed identically, will be set working. This keeps heat on the situation and ensure that energy will be moving towards the goal 24/7 for the duration of the run. Court cases or other legal matters are situations where keeping the work going constantly during the period of time that things are taking place on the physical plane, is one example of when someone might have candles set in runs. Someone having a run of lights set for the healing of a loved one who is chronically ill, or in the hospital, is another example.

Professional practitioners will likely have a much larger inventory of oils and herbs than your average non-pro practitioner, and may also have a wider set of knowledge about which oils and herbs would be best suited to your particular situation. Rather than needing to go out and buy all the necessary supplies, you can have the professional prepare the work for you for you to burn at home. In this case, the candle is still dressed and fixed for your individual needs, but rather than having the practitioner burn it and watch over it, you can take that fixed candle home and do all that yourself. This service requires even a smaller monetary investment than having the light set for you, as the practitioner does not need to watch over your candle for signs for a week. However you still reap the benefits of the practitioner's skills, experience, and inventory!

Some people like to take advantage of this even more by employing a tandem burn. This is where two identical candles will be burnt - one by the practitioner and one by the client. This doubles the output of energy towards the goal, and also provides the service of the candle burn report. In most cases the client can present the finished glass candle jar from their home to the practitioner to get a general read on its appearance, and compare that with the candle burnt on the practitioner's altar for a larger picture of the work at hand.

Having lights set for you is also a great way to establish a working relationship with a magical practitioner. It involves very little financial investment, and with it you can get a good idea of how a practitioner manages their cases, get a feel for their working style, and also get a taste of their skills as a reader of signs. If you enjoy working with a practitioner through the process of having lights set, you will feel more confident in investing more time and money with them in the future for things like readings, consultations, individualized services and products such as mojo bags, bottle spells, etc, and even altar work done on your behalf by them.

I hope that you've enjoyed learning about candle altar services - and that you'll take advantage of enlisting spiritual aid in this way sometime in the future! It really is a unique and powerful experience to be part of, and it can be quite a comfort when times are challenging.

Queen of Pentacles Conjure Shop and Village Witchery offers a full range of candle altar services for nearly any need - aside from crossing/cursing, revenge, break-up, or other aggressive or unjustified coercive work which we won't accept. Having a light fixed and set working for you, and with a detailed candle burn report complete with digital pictures of your candle is $15. We are more than happy to accommodate tandem castings, and setting candles in runs.

Our Setting Lights page provides pull-down menus listing all of the conditions for which we can fix your candle. If you are unsure as to what condition might suit your case best, please do not hesitate to contact us directly before ordering, and we can make sure that you get exactly what you need.

Working with St. Dymphna

During my regular work with the Archangels, I was guided to begin seeking the aid and intercesson of another order of divine beings, the Saints. Today I would like to introduce Saint Dymphna, the Patron Saint of Nervous and Mental Disorders (as well as of Incest Survivors and Runaways), along with ideas for calling upon her aid and intercession for those who may be in need of healing on the mental/emotional levels. In my healing practice and in my personal life as well, I’ve had a great deal of experience addressing concerns related to mental wellness – and it is a subject that is very close to my heart, and on which I’ve done a great deal of study and research in holistic approaches to care, and having a spiritual patron to call upon for healing and comfort on that level has proved very useful.

As with the Angels, one does not necessarily need to be of the Catholic or even part of the Christian faith to petition the aid of the Saints. Doing one's best to live the core values of Love and Compassion, and wishing to work for what is good and just is what is important. The traditional understanding of the intercession of Saints is that the Saints will pray on the petitioner's behalf, with the idea that having lived extremely devout lives and having crossed over already they are "closer" to the Divine and better able to deliver messages to the Source. I suppose being Saints they get the privilege of priority when it comes to prayers being answered! However, those that work with Saints on a more personal level, tend to believe and experience that the Saints are much more active in working on our behalf then simply delivering messages back and forth to the Divine; that they take an active personal interest in our petitions for aid, and personally work through whichever metaphysical channels and resources that they have at their disposal for our aid. In my time working with the Saints I have also had the experience of them working very directly for our cause.

The story of Saint Dymphna is a relatively short and sad one, as she was murdered when she was only 15. There are many different versions of the story, but all seem to agree on one core storyline.

Dymphna was the daughter of an Irish chieftain, and was a devout Catholic like her mother. She decided to dedicate her life to her faith, and took vows of celibacy to this end. Her mother died tragically when she was in her early teens, and in his deep grief her father went mad with despair. In his madness he felt that only through being wedded to another women who looked like his late wife would be feel whole again. A search was conducted, but no women met his demanding requirements for appearance and character. It was then that he came by the dark idea to marry his daughter Dymphna, who was (unfortunately) the spitting image of her mother. When he presented Dymphna with his proposal she was shocked and refused on the grounds that not only was it unnatural, that it was against her vows to enter into marriage to any man...let alone her father. His advances become ever more insistant and threatening, and finally Dymphna ran away from home in the company of her confessor in order to find a more peaceable environment, and to persue her life as a holy woman.

For a short while Dymphna found shelter in the village of Gheel, and with the help of the money that she had absconded with (she was a Chieftain's daughter after all and had access to great wealth) she funded and participated in a healing ministry. It's thought that it was so successful due to the fact that her money could buy the best healing herbs and ointments that may have been difficult for most people to obtain. She was greatly loved and her ability as a healer and as a dedicated woman of God was well respected.

Sadly, her father was eventually able to track her down. His obsession with her had not abated with her dissapearance, and once he had confirmation of where she was residing he set out to find and claim her. When he arrived in Gheel, he once again proposed marriage and ordered Dymphna to return with him. Her confessor tried to intercede on her behalf, but her father simply cut him down where he stood. He turned his sword on her, and when she once again refused him - he beheaded her.

She was only 15 years old.

Since then Gheel was known as a place of healing for all those with mental and nervous disorders. The whole community rallied around those who came to them for healing, and once they were released from the hospital they were provided with jobs and other roles within the community to help them reintegrate into society successfully. Everyone in the area had a very postitive outlook about the fact that those with mental wellness issues could certainly recover fully, and they all supported them in every way possible. It is a (sadly) unique model of care that has been copied in several other places in Europe.

Saint Dymphna is credited with continuing her healing ministry by interceding on behalf of the many, many people that came to Gheel seeking her aid - and this news spread and motivated untold thousands of others to petition and receive her aid all over the globe!

For those who may wish to start working with the Saints, but not coming from a Catholic background, or who may have but are unsure how to go about it in a more magical context, here are some simple steps you can follow to start bringing St. Dymphna’s presence into your life. The same basic process will work with any Saint that you feel drawn to petition.

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HOW TO START WORKING WITH SAINT DYMPHNA

1) Set up a small space that you can use for daily devotions and meditation. Acquiring a picture of some sort that can serve as the central focus of this space will be very helpful. If you live near a Catholic supply store, or want to search Ebay, you can find many different statues or holy cards that you can use for this purpose. Of course you can also find an image online that appeals to you and print it out for free! St. Dymphna is often associated with the colors red, as she was a martyr, white, which symbolizes her purity, and green which is related to healing. You can use any of all of these colors when decorating a space for working with her.

2) Feel free to personalize your sacred area by putting other items on the shrine area that is resonate with your intents and desire - such as healing crystals, oils, herbs, or other images that symbolize mental/emotional balance to you.

3) Simply spend a few minutes every day at this sacred space, asking for the guidance or aid, or even simply the presence of the Saint you are trying to work with. If you enjoy praying, you can Google for prayers dedicated to that Saint - as the Catholic church has plenty! You may wish to slightly alter some of the wording so that it is more resonant with your own belief system, or needs. I often do this. Try looking for chaplet prayers and novena prayers (novenas are generally repeated daily for 9 days, or some factor of nine), as these are generally said for the purpose of gaining the blessings of or aid from a Saint for a particular purpose.

A nice site that has alternative versions of the traditional chaplet and novena prayers (that are Divine Feminine-inclusive) for Saint Dymphna can be found here: http://www.santuariosanrafael.com/index_files/Page1490.htm

However you don't need any specific prayers or special words to say - you can simply speak from your heart or sit in quiet meditation while concentrating on your intent.

4) Mark the time that you spend at the shrine by lighting a candle, and/or burning incense with a high and holy vibration such as frankincense. This will help set the time you spend at the shrine as seperate and sacred, and show your respect, as well as your positive committment to your intent.

5) If you wish, you can concentrate on your petition - what you are asking the Saint to help you with - while rubbing oil into the candle before you light it. A nice quality olive oil will work well, but you can use essential oils blends that promote healing and emotional balance too (lavendar works well for this). You may also want to consider purchasing some St. Dymphna Oil from Lucky Mojo , as it is made using traditional folk-herb associations, is of the highest quality, and is extremely reasonably priced.

Visualize the end result that you would like to achieve with the help of the Saint. Glass encased novena, also called 7-day candles are made just for this purpose, and you can often conveniently find them in dollar stores or grocery stores. While the candle is lit it will keep releasing your intentions out into the Universe - like an ongoing prayer or affirmation! If you are going to be extinguishing the candle between your visits to the shrine, make sure to snuff it out rather than blowing, as it is consider more respectful.

6) In addition to, of in lieu of a candle, you can write out your desires by hand on a piece of paper and leave it in front of or beneath your central image. This will help keep the energies of your request present at the shrine at all times, even when you are not there working or meditating.

7) You should begin to feel the presence of the Saint at your shrine, or in your life, within a few days or weeks. Look for subtle signs that the Divine is at work! Synchronicities, or some people call them striking coincidences, will likely be one way that you will start perceiving the intercession.

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I've made a small shrine for Saint Dymphna, and obtained a pearl (a stone of peace) chaplet for use with her. Every day I pray her chaplet at least once...and I'll tell you why I decided to do so!

When I was first beginning to work with St. Dymphna I was with a client in my Reiki practice one day, and I felt an intuitive call to include Saint Dymphna in the healing session. I wasn't sure how to "call in" Saint Dymphna in this context, so I asked the Archangels to help me by finding her for me.

Within a few seconds I definitely felt a new presence in the room, standing beside the massage table. I greeted her, as I could plainly see that it was Saint Dymphna - she was a young teenager, standing about 5'2" high, and was dressed similarly to how I had seen her depicted in many of her icons. There was a very quiet and gentle, but very bright, energy around her. I thanked her for coming and asked if she would aid the healing. She smiled and placed her hands onto the body of my client - right on the two chakras that I knew had been most involved in the core issues we were working on. Her energy seemed to glow and as the light increased, her form become more diaphanous...not as easy to see. In just a few minutes I saw her draw away from my client, her work finished.

I thanked her for her participation in the healing, and asked if she would be willing to work with me on a regular basis, aiding my healing practice and helping me more effectively address the mental wellness of those who came to me. I felt her walk over to me smiling brightly, and felt her embrace me warmly. "Of course" was the soft answer that whispered inside my mind. I then asked her what I should do to keep her presence close to me, as a constant guiding force in my life. I distinctly heard "pray my chaplet". And so I do, and as I pray it I feel her very close and a gentle warmth fills and comforts me.

Because of her compassionate response to my request for aid, a request which I firmly believe was suggested by the Archangels, I felt the need to share my experience with others who may be looking for sources of Divine Healing in the face of mental wellness challenges which they, or someone they love, may be facing. I hope that this information is inspirational to some out there, and will be a source of hope and healing!

To aid those who would like to work with St. Dymphna either for their own needs, or for those of a loved one, I have created a St. Dymphna Bottle Spell.


This St. Dymphna Bottle Spell has been crafted to help bring a sense of calmness, clarity, healing, and overall mental wellbeing to whomever it is fixed. It contains 9 authentic hoodoo herbs and roots for healing, clearance, wisdom, and clarity, and is dressed with 3 complementary condition oils. It is particularly suited to use with novena work for mental wellness with St. Dymphna, as one of the herbs utilized is strongly connected to her energies and is a powerful healing in its own right. However, it can also be used alone on its own merits and still be extremely effective.

There are many different ways that you can work the bottle. To use you only need to add personal concerns of the person for whom it is being worked & a petition paper into the jar and pray over it for it to start working on your behalf! Burning candles dressed in an appropriate oil on the lid of this jar will help amplify the effect. You may also wish to fill it with honey to further "sweeten" one's mind, and work it in the same manner as a honey jar. Complete instructions for use are included with purchase.


Also available through our Queen of Pentacles Etsy Conjure Shop you can purchase small wooden hand-painted folk shrines for St. Dymphna that I have crafted, that can be used in any spiritual practice calling upon St. Dymphna’s aid.





If you are in a situation where you would like to petition St. Dymphna, but are unsure if you are able to work for yourself, or else would like to have your own petition backed-up by another spiritual worker, please feel free to contact me at Queen of Pentacles Conjure Shop & Village Witchery to arrange to have lights set on your behalf, schedule distance healing to be sent, or if you would like more extended or complex spellwork done you may arrange for a consultation for a reading and assessment of your needs.