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Once a means of creating light during the night, candles have taken on a different meaning since the invention of electric lights. Today, many people enjoy selecting candle colours to complement home design and aesthetics. More than a decorative item used for interior design, candles are often burned to create a sense of calm or a place for meditation.
Beyond a primary focus on prayer and reflection, candles have often been used in rituals for divination or to find a divine spirit.
Candle magic involves adding candles to spells and rituals as candles combine the natural elements of air, water, Earth, and fire. By igniting the candle, all four of these elements come into play. The physical wax (Earth) transitions after flame (fire) is introduced to the wick. The atmosphere (air) surrounding the candle allows this process, and the liquified wax (water) dripping from the candle completes the cycle of these four essential elements. The light of a candle also serves as a beacon for invited spirits.
To perform the simplest form of candle magic, all you need is a candle that is the colour of whatever you are trying to attract, banish or manifest in your life. Try our crystal candles that are beginner-friendly.
Remember, when you first light your candle, focus entirely on your intention. That focus will help you manifest your desire.
However, the candle's colour will affect what type of energy it brings to the ritual, and this guide offers an overview of how some colours are better for specific desired outcomes and may have more profound spiritual significance or a divine nature to people who practice candle magic. Through the practice of candle magic, people channel energy in ways that promote and speed up changes taking place in their lives.
Why does the Magic Candle Color Matter?
Let's dive deeper into why the candle's colour matters in candle magic. The colour of the candle matters for a few reasons. One is symbolic. The brain has a subconscious response to specific colours. That response is rooted in your personal experience with that colour and what meanings your culture assigned to it.
There's also a prevailing belief that there's a connection between candle magic and colour therapy and that different colours emit different frequencies. This is true to some extent, as each spectrum colour reflects a specific light wavelength.
The meanings I listed in this candles guide correspond to those found in the Western world, as many neo-pagan beliefs can be traced back to Ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt, Ireland, and the Nordic countries.
What Do Different Candle Colors Mean?
Different colours have different vibrations - we can use those vibrations to influence the energy we focus on. Understanding the various meanings ascribed to each colour allows you to make the best decision for the type of candle you wish to get. For example, darker colours have a lower vibration and are better for banishing negative energy or creating safe, protected energy. Cooler colours are refreshing and healing, with warmer colours giving us more energy.
Colours of Candles Based on Your Intentions
Red - Passion, sex, action, courage and strength
Orange - Success, stimulation, attraction and legal matters
Yellow - Joy, manifestation, creativity and intelligence
Green - Money, luck, fertility and healing
Blues - Healing, health, forgiveness, communication and calm
Purple - Spiritual power, wisdom, tranquillity and psychic power
Pink - Romance, love, harmony, affection and friendship
White - Purity, peace, truth and hope
Gold - goal-setting, influence, power, persuasion, creativity, divination, happiness, and masculine energy.
Brown - Grounding, Earth, stability and family
Silver/Grey - neutrality, balance, divination, purification, the pursuit of psychic powers, femininity.
Black - Banishing negativity, safety, protection and binding
And now, let's dive deeper into every colour's meaning and effects.
Red
Red candles can be used for many different things; in particular, red is associated with romance, love, desire, loyalty, passion, action, energy, motivation, assertiveness, creativity, courage, power, strength, and survival.
This colour offers a sense of magnetism based on human attraction. Red colour may represent anything from trading fear for confidence to an intense feeling of passion and lust. Red is the root chakra.
For spells, red candles are a great tool. They tap into the power of Mars and are best for lust or intentions tied to determination or survival. Burning a red candle can help increase passion, potency, and stamina or attract a sex partner. They can also help with fresh starts and attracting good luck and may improve confidence, willpower, physical strength, courage, and determination.
Orange
Orange is the colour of creation, so this is an excellent candle for boosting creativity, releasing anger and frustration and embracing the feminine creator within all of us. Orange is energising and promotes stimulation, joy, and success. The vibrant orange evokes ambition expanding your horizons, and may span from healing within to the way others see on your outside. New relationships and connections are associated with this colour and establishing or building upon friendships with powerful emotional bonds. Other traits ascribed to the colour orange include courage, adaptability, justice, freedom, meeting goals, travel, strength, discipline, celebration, money, positivity, independence, and reconciliation. Orange also represents the sacral chakra.
Orange candles combine the intellectual energy of yellow candles and the aggressive intent of red ones. Light an orange candle if you need help with things that involve both quick action and the mind - for career workings or any other time you need to assert your strength and individuality. Also good to call fortune, prosperity, power, success, warmth, ambition, action, energy building and courage. It also can be used to call in new relationships, such as friendships with deep emotional connections, and to heal the mother's wounds.
Orange candles may also invite joy, playfulness and stimulating energy into your life.
Yellow
This profound colour is often associated with caution when at a traffic light but has a different meaning than a candle. Rather than calling for slowing down or proceeding cautiously, yellow encourages a person to consider new career directions, focus on social or networking activities, or expand a person's skills. Other traits of yellow candles include intellect, wisdom, knowledge, gaining skills, developing intuition, travelling to expand horizons, communication, business knowledge, engaging in action, and experiencing travel or other stimulation. Yellow stands for the solar plexus chakra.
It is associated with the elements of air and the powers of the mind. Witch usually burns a yellow candle for success in the school of the arts or to enhance communication in a relationship, as it can help with all things tied to intuition, intellect and focus. These candles are great for business spells, especially when you need fresh ideas and inspiration.
Burn a yellow candle to enhance learning, overcome mental blocks, expand your wisdom, gain clarity and confidence, bring in new ideas, and see things more logically.
Green
When you think green, think growth, so if you want to level up, this is a good candle colour to consider.
The green colour is associated with luck and prosperity, abundance and generosity, balance, marriage, physical and emotional healing, rejuvenation and renewal. It is also a colour often linked to money and financial success.
A soothing colour, green, can heal the heart and soul or help a person find a path toward prosperity. For those who hope to move forward - green is the colour of a candle to choose. Other traits associated with green candles include acceptance, beauty, the environment, peace, fertility, creativity, abundance, longevity, harmony, and change. Along with pink, green is often considered part of the heart chakra.
If you are looking to do money magic or good luck magic, burn a green candle - it is known as the colour of money magic. Witches use it to invoke or represent the element of Earth in fertility earth magick - as a symbol of the Goddess and her green Earth. They also assist in agriculture to encourage a good harvest. Moreover, green candles are ideal for asking for abundance in all earthly things, whether you're doing Earth and plant magic or need help manifesting more in success, prosperity, or health.
Light blue
Light blue has two frequencies: acceptance and truth. If you're working with either or both of those themes, whether you're having trouble accepting a situation or want to tap into the truth, a light blue candle is a good option.
You can use the light blue candle to improve patience, friendship, and mental fortitude or to help release anger. Light blue is generally coupled with the throat chakra.
Blue candles are great for spiritual or emotional healing, improving communication, and tapping into creativity. Light a light blue candle to enhance focus, memory, justice, prophetic dreams, and inspiration.
Indigo
Indigo, characterised by its dark blue, nearly purple hue, is all about intuition and breaking through illusion. It's also a frequency of opening new doors to uplift or see the world differently.
Hues across the blue spectrum are often associated with healing, including the repair of emotional wounds. Darker blues and shades of indigo that transition toward purple offer a colour full of perception, intuition, and transcending illusion. Common themes include trust, communication, wisdom, honesty, study, the pursuit of justice, sleep and rest, marriage, pregnancy, leadership, and the desire to fulfil career objectives. A colour sometimes associated with dreamwork. Indigo and darker blues correspond to the third-eye chakra.
To use an indigo candle would be to call in a higher frequency life purpose—things that are not only for your benefit but also have the collective in mind.
Indigo candles can also be burned for harmony, peace of mind, truth, healing, and connection with the higher self.
Purple
Historically, purple was connected with royalty and with the mystical arts. This colour is well-known as the colour of mystery and magic, is highly spiritual and is associated with psychic abilities, spiritual awakening, and ancient wisdom.
Purple also has a tradition of being related to power, emotions, writing, imagination, pursuing the truth, gaining greater enlightenment, seeking authority, gaining independence or influence, and overcoming fears.
It is the colour of the third eye chakra, where your psychic vision and inner eye reside, so purple can open your third eye to invite ideas and enhance intuition.
A purple candle is ideal for accessing the dream world and invoking vivid dreams. Light a purple candle to explore dreams or even access a cleansing frequency.
Witches also use a purple candle for spiritual protection, healing insomnia and stress, gaining respect, honour, wisdom, purification, sensitivity, progressing spiritual growth and dissociating from the ego.
It is also widely used for meditation, divination, uncovering secrets and knowledge, tapping into one's intuition and listening to spirits, guides, and the Universe for guidance.
Pink
If you're looking for love, pink is the candle to go for. Pink is better than red regarding true love; red is more about physical love or lust. The pink one is calling in a pure connection, so it depends on what kind of lover you're looking for. Along with expanded opportunities for love with another person, pink heals through the promotion of self-love and self-care. Other traits associated with this heart chakra colour include sensuality, passion, marriage, femininity, kindness, healing, nurturing characteristics, fidelity, family, affection, friendship, compassion, and seeking reconciliation.
Pink candles should be burned for spells connected to unconditional love, romance, affection, warmth, joy, friendship and self-love. You can also use pink candles to enhance happiness, harmony, empathy, connection, and intimacy, strengthen new relationships, and facilitate relationship healing, reconciliation, forgiveness, and emotional healing.
Magenta/Dark Pink
If you're looking to do a love spell but want a little lust involved, a magenta candle is an excellent way to blend the intentions of the red and pink candle colours. Great for improving your flirtation skills and sexual confidence.
White
This colour, often associated with tranquillity, purification, and peace, may also promote healing, guidance, grounding, protection, balance, willpower, truth, clarity, optimism and a desire to find a path to reach a higher self or better workplace situations. This colour offers a different way to reach the spiritual realm. Church candles are usually white; thus, white is associated with prayers, remembrance, and devotion.
White contains all colours - it can replace any other colour candle when that colour is not available.
White candles are also ideal for new beginnings and fresh starts. It represents purity, innocence, spiritual enlightenment, cleansing, clairvoyance, truth-seeking, unity, dawn, spirituality, and spiritual strength. It also heals emotions and repels negativity. Creating a clean path, white candles may be lit to encourage a fresh state, a new beginning, or aura cleansing. It symbolises the Maiden aspect of the Triple Goddess.
Witches usually use a white candle for rituals involving healing, new beginnings, and spiritual growth. It is also used for Lunar and Goddess workings. This flexible colour is often tied into the crown chakra. They're great for cleansing your house, so you can light new white candles to elevate and keep that purified energy after you cleanse the house.
Gold
Gold is a goal-setting colour and may be used with other colours to amplify their impact or focus on them as goals worth pursuing. Specific traits coupled with gold include positivity, ambitions, fame and fortune, abundance, and luxury. In addition, golden candles may enhance bonds with money, influence, power, persuasion, creativity, divination, happiness, and masculine energy.
Gold candles are one of the candle colours that draw on male energy or the energy of God. It's best to burn if you need help with success, happiness, enlightenment, confidence, prosperity, wealth, personal power, and wisdom.
Brown
Brown is an intense, grounding colour. This Earthy tone implies a connection with intentions such as courage, endurance, energy levels, health, pet companions, personal possessions, stability, good grounding, demonstrating courage and balance, perseverance, and hard work.
Brown candle assists in clear thinking and decision-making. It promotes concentration, intuition, material gain, wealth, common sense, and stability. It also encourages telepathic abilities.
Some witches use brown for manifestation magic and connecting with the realm of animals.
Those interested in interacting with ancestral magic or planetary connections should choose this colour. When you feel untethered, brown candles can help ground you. Brown candles represent the Earth and are ideal for any situation that calls for neutrality, understanding, balance, and building trust. They also help you have a stronger connection with animal guides.
Consider adding a gold candle to your collection if you're looking for a high-vibrational frequency. This candle can be used for various goals, as it will help amplify your intention. You can also pair gold candles with other coloured candles to amp things up (i.e., orange for a new relationship).
Silver/Grey
Silver (or light Grey) rests halfway between white and black. It is the colour of neutrality and balance. The soothing shade of silver (light Grey) may represent a path toward divination, purification, or the pursuit of psychic powers. Sometimes associated with feminine energy and fertility, this healing colour implies intuition. This is the right colour to consider for those wishing to find a sense of awareness, seek their hidden potential, find a path to success, or develop a plan to enjoy stability. Silver is well-known as the symbol of the Moon, psychic receptivity, dreaming, love, rest and healing.
On a Wiccan altar, a silver/grey candle is often used to represent the Goddess. This colour candle may also be used in protective magic when you wish to neutralise the negative energy that may be directed at you.
You can use silver/grey candles to tap into astral and female energy and help you strengthen your intuition, telepathy, and clairvoyance. They may also result in more powerful dreams.
Black
Black is a strong and banishing colour. Black absorbs all colours and is often used to absorb or remove negative energy. Black candles are also used to destroy negative habits and patterns. It reverses curses and hexes. It enhances inner strength, resilience, and self-control and can be used in meditation to delve deeper into the unconscious. It is also burned for powerful healing and support through loss and grief, representing the Crone aspect of the Triple Goddess.
Other characteristics often associated with black candles include acceptance, self-control, strength, security, determination, release, persistence, patience, and justice. In some instances, the colour also takes on a darker focus and breaks from traits associated with anger, secrets, death, banishment, negativity, loss, endings, and the afterlife.
You shouldn't use black candles all the time, but instead, use them for a certain amount of time for a specific thing you want protection from, and then let it go, releasing that energy. This candle should be set aside after banishing the things that need to be removed or reversed.
The candle colour and days of the week
Most candle magick practitioners believe that specific colours align ideally with different days of the week. According to them, energy levels and the impact of your efforts will increase if you correctly select the ritual, candle colour, and day of the week.
Here are the colours often associated with different days of the week:
Monday: white, grey, and silver
Tuesday: brown, red, and shades that offer the perspective of autumn
Wednesday: grey and yellow
Thursday: Deep rich shades of blue and purple
Friday: lighter shades of blue, pink, green, and a variety of copper hues
Saturday: black, maroon, and darker shades
Sunday: orange and gold
Ritual for candle magic spells
1. Set an intention (and the scene)
Before starting, just as with any spell or ritual, it's important to set an intention and energetically clear the space you're in. The intention should be simple rather than complex, and each candle should have only a single intention at a time. Clearly define your objective or intention for each candle. I recommend writing down your intentions to bring them from the mental realm into the physical. You'll also want to use something cleansing - like sound or smoke - to clear the space.
While you light your candle - recite your intentions aloud.
2. Tap into your intuition.
Select a place where you can feel comfortable meditating in nearly all circumstances. Avoid crowded or noisy areas of your home.
As you prepare to sit for your spell or ritual, take a moment to get comfortable and centred. This is also the time to call on any deities, spirits, or guides you like to work with.
3. Safely Light the Candle When Ready.
After lighting the candle in your dedicated space, spend time watching and trying to make connections with the flame emanating from the candle at the same time that you think carefully and entirely about your intention. Watch as the flames extend your intention to the larger Universe. Meditate, and appreciate the moment.
4. Proceed with your ritual/spell
Now that you're ready, it's time to do your ritual or spell. There are many different options to go through here, but the idea is to keep your intention in mind and use a candle corresponding to that intention.
5. Close out the ritual/spell
When you're ready to close out your ritual, it's important to snuff your candles rather than blow them out. That's because you can clear the work you just did energetically when you blow them out. Once your candle is out, close out your practice and thank any guides you worked with for the opportunity to partake in this experience.
6. After thought
When doing candle or colour magic, make sure your focus is clear and thought out.
If you purchase one of our runes candles - read and follow the instructions provided with it carefully.
What else important
Besides colours, there are also several different types of candles to choose from. Those just beginning to practice candle magic may wonder if they should select a particular type of candle. Some believe that any brand of candle will suffice. Most believe that practitioners should refrain from using scented and decorative candles.
When selecting candles, attention should be given to all aspects of the candle that are important for the magick.
Essential considerations for those selecting candles include the following:
How fast the candle burns.
The length of time the candle will burn.
The quantity of smoke the candle emits.
The movement of flames as the candle burns.
Determining the amount of residue that is acceptable.
The money that is available for purchasing the candles.
Finding Pre-Made Spell Candles
We have handmade spell candles coming very soon to Steel Butterfly Healing. These handmade candles in magical colours combine Reiki and Runes symbols and energies. You can read more about them and their creator here.
Check out our crystal candle collection for those just starting candle magick and wanting something simple to try.
To ensure you are kept up to date with the launch of the new candle range, sign up for our mailing list.
We leave you with a disclaimer that we are not responsible for how you use the information presented above or its accuracy or effectiveness.
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