General Safety Information and Disclaimer
We here at Third Eye take pride in creating beautiful, unique candles perfectly suited to your magickal needs. That being said, there are both magickal and mundane things to keep in mind when you go to burn your candle(s) to ensure your own personal safety and to achieve the best magickal effect.
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First and foremost, NEVER leave a candle burning unattended! It can be common practice to leave your magick to do its work, but *please* follow fire safety protocol when using these candles. We are NOT responsible for any mishaps that occur due to your own lapse in judgement or a failure to follow standard fire safety protocols when burning these candles indoors.
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Please burn your candle in a proper heat proof container! Again, while this should be common sense, we would be legally remiss if we did not place this statement on our site. Glass, ceramic, steel and cast iron are all appropriate containers (solo cups, Styrofoam cups, paper cups, and any other plastic or potentially flammable receptacles are NOT safe or appropriate materials to burn a candle in). Again, we are NOT responsible for any damages or mishaps that occur due to improper usage or a lapse in judgement on your part.
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Most of the candles we produce contain dried herbs, both on top of the candle and within the candle. Dried herbs are flammable on their own (as we know from our use of smudge and incense); they are even more flammable when they are covered in wax and oils. As the candle burns, the dried herbs may act as a wick, catching on fire and creating a larger or wider flame than you may be used to seeing on a standard candle that does not contain herbs. Please keep in mind that this is NORMAL for our candles, and is nothing to be alarmed about. It is also one more reason to follow proper fire safety protocol.
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DO NOT burn your candles all the way down: while this may be called for in magickal practice, this is not safe or suitable, and is out of line with proper fire safety protocol. If you *must* burn your candle down completely for ritual purposes, the following are all acceptable alternatives:
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Place the candle remnant in a cast iron cauldron, place that cauldron on a heat proof surface (asphalt, concrete, sand, etc) and burn remaining portion of the candle down completely that way. Alternatively, if you know that you must burn your candle down completely for ritual purposes, then you could place your candle in the cauldron to begin with so you do not have to move it once the candle begins to burn low.
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Extinguish the flame once the candle has burned down, then take the wax and either bury it or toss it into a ritual fire.
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Every practitioner engaged in ritual activities knows that sometimes things tend to behave strangely when it interacts with the energies of ritual and atmosphere. We urge you to account for this and take extra precautions if burning these candles indoors.
For more information on candle safety protocol along with information on how to properly care for your candle before, during and after use, please click HERE.
Frequently Asked Questions
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How do I use my Third Eye candle?
Candles are tools: they are meant to harness the energy that is ever present around us, to help facilitate change in our lives. We provide the tool, and it is up to you how to use it. There are many fine books on candle magick; some of our favorites include:
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Practical Candle Burning: Spells and Rituals for Every Purpose by Raymond Buckland
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Advanced Candle Magick: More Spells and Rituals for Every Purpose by Raymond Buckland
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Coventry Magic with Candles, Oils and Herbs by Jacki Smith
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Candle Magic for Beginners: the Simplest Magic You Can Do by Richard Webster
This is not by any means an exhaustive list, but it should be enough to get you started if you are interested in incorporating candle magick into your practice.
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Why do you use parrafin wax instead of soy wax or beeswax?
The majority of available soy waxes are a manufactured by-product of GMO crops, and the soy industry has done just as much -- if not more -- damage than the fossil fuel industry. The climate change caused by fossil fuel emissions is exacerbated by the rampant deforestation caused by farmers seeking to grow large soy crops, not to mention the fact that much arable farm land is currently being used to grow soy instead of other vegetables (mainly for the production of livestock feed).
Candles made from soy wax also do not have -- from our experience -- as much fragrance, whether or not they are lit. There is also only 1 ppm (parts per million) worth of a difference in emissions from petroleum wax vs. soy wax; you would inhale more toxins by inhaling the emissions off of the asphalt while walking through a parking lot than you would from burning a paraffin candle in your home.
We also do not feel that it would be a responsible move to start a company based on beeswax candles in light of our current issues with the world's bee populations. Beekeeping is a complex art, and there is additional strain that is placed on a hive when you remove the wax they have built. Owning a hive and using the wax for a small supply of personal candles is one thing; having a company based on needing that wax is quite another.
Paraffin wax is a natural by-product of the oil industry: an unwanted component that would be harmful if left in the finished product. They DO NOT harvest oil solely for the purpose of making wax, they are simply taking what would otherwise be thrown into a landfill and making use of it. So long as fossil fuels are present in our society, paraffin wax will be widely available for use.
These are tough, highly personal decisions that we all must make, and we have done our best here to try and outline some of the factors that have gone into our decision making process. While we don't like the fossil fuel industry as a matter of principle, we feel that paraffin wax is currently the best material upon which to base our products.
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What kind of wicks do you use, and why?
We use a 100% Hemp Wick with a Hemp Wick core. Hemp is such a valuable and incredible resource. Not only is it fast growing but also versatile in usability and is a green resource . Specifically for candles a hemp wick will produce a cleaner burn than traditional cotton and will cut down ( albeit only fractionally) on the carbon emissions from the burning of a candle.