AUTHOR’S NOTE: I was conversing with someone online who is apparently dealing with an “earthbound spirit” in the house, one that is feeling a bit annoyed about being “stuck” although to date there have been no outward signs of this, just a general atmosphere of psychic malaise. My suggestion was that perhaps some kind of “releasing” (or even “banishing”) ritual is in order. I fully expect to be asked for recommendations, so I thought I would organize my thoughts in this post.

As I understand it, “releasing” a troubled spirit to pass on involves gentle persuasion (not coaxing or wheedling, but “permission”) from a sympathetic standpoint that is aimed at easing the transition. Any distress involved (and there is likely to be some) should be soothed in as comforting a way as possible, considering that the “victim” of the visitation almost certainly shares that state of “high anxiety.” Having never done it, I know of no formal technique to go about it other than in a civil “conversational” way that acknowledges and engages with the spirit in a kindly manner.

Banishing is a ruder practice since we are often confronting a belligerent (or at least uncooperative) entity, and have to be more assertive. A straightforward approach is presented by the Lesser Banishing Ritual of the Pentagram (LBRP), which can be found in books and doesn’t require a ton of “occult horsepower” to attempt, just a bit of knowledge combined with sincerity, dignity and firmness. (Another less-demanding way to sever an unwanted connection is “candle magic,” but that is a different topic that I covered in a previous post.)

I haven’t done one in years, but my recollection is that the LBRP “operator” creates a physical talisman and “charges” it with the adjuration (an appeal that can be mentally formulated or as simple as writing the petition on a piece of paper while in a properly reverential frame-of-mind), then “shows” it to the four quarters of the area to be cleared while orally invoking (“vibrating”) the god-name for each direction and for the overall operation, which results in empowering the operator to enlist the energies thus summoned for the purpose of the transaction.

This is aimed at energizing the volume of space with the operator’s magical Will, from the center of which he or she can, under the authority bestowed, sternly order the presence to depart and not return. This might have to be done for each room in the house, working from the inner rooms to the outer walls; I’ve also read that opening the exterior windows and doors while banishing will symbolically let the pent-up aura of unpleasantness out, although I’ve never been in that situation myself.

Of course, it’s always possible to just live with the inconvenience and hope that the spirit will find peace sooner rather than later, but the risk is that the intrusions will become more unnerving and ultimately demand the intervention of a professional exorcist. Given the uncertain pedigree of many such practitioners, I suggest that it’s better not to let the problem get that far.