Bad luck/curses: personal query and thoughts in general

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[Bleh, bleh!]

Well, I'm somewhat new to these forums, (this is my first thread so I apologize if it's bad) but not to Pagan religions and I need some advice and would also like to stimulate a conversation on the topic of "bad karma". My partner and I have been having just about the worst last three years of our lives. I'd type it all up if anyone is curious, but so much has gone wrong that it's best to summarize and just say anything that could go wrong, has gone wrong- basically since we've been together and in all areas of our life except our love life.

But at any rate, do you guys believe in being cursed, jinxed, or just plain horrible, awful bad luck?

I've tried to do some purification, protection and good luck sorts of rituals: protection magic is something I've always been familiar with and utilize often but this time I have had no success it seems. My luck seems to be finally getting better but my life is still a mess for many reasons out of my control and in the last year it has been my partner who's gotten the bad juju. For him, his health seems to be failing for no reason and so many things have gone wrong that shouldn't occur in a healthy 25 year old.

I was just wondering what other people think about bad luck or curses or karma or whatever you dub it. One of my core beliefs is in energy, and the effects of positive or negative energy and I do try very hard to keep my actions and intentions pure and ethical in my life. I believe I certainly haven't done anything to deserve all this and was curious whether you all had advice or input. Any rituals or spells or certain stones and herbs which you find helpful for dealing with this kind of situation would be greatly appreciated but are not necessary. 

[RandallS]

But at any rate, do you guys believe in being cursed, jinxed, or just plain horrible, awful bad luck?

I think bad luck, even horrible luck, is far more common than being cursed/jinxed. After all, bad stuff just seems to happen (like my wife getting cancer). And curses require a lot of effort to cast and keep going. So it stands to reason that when bad stuff happens it is far more likely to be a run of bad luck than a sign one has been cursed.

[Devo]

I think bad luck, even horrible luck, is far more common than being cursed/jinxed. After all, bad stuff just seems to happen (like my wife getting cancer). And curses require a lot of effort to cast and keep going. So it stands to reason that when bad stuff happens it is far more likely to be a run of bad luck than a sign one has been cursed.

I tend to agree with this. I've found that curses are truely few and far btwn, and that bad luck just happens. Everything is cyclical- bad stuff happens, good stuff happens. Unfortunately, you have to have both.
I have no idea how to suggest you better your life. If you wanted to try something more... random I guess you'd call it, you could try feng shui principles to bring back good luck into your life. The Chinese believe that you make your own luck, so I guess it could be worth a shot.
-Devo

[Dark Midnight]

I tend to agree with this. I've found that curses are truely few and far btwn, and that bad luck just happens. Everything is cyclical- bad stuff happens, good stuff happens. Unfortunately, you have to have both.

I'm with you on this one-I have 9 different cronic illnesses, but I don't think that it's a curse, more a case of really bad luck. In the other side, I have a husband who loves me, a beautiful 8 year old daughter, some wonderful friends, and a family that is always there if I need them. I think that everything in life must have a balance-good things and bad things happen to us all, and I believe that you need to liik at life in that way.

[Shadowolf]

But at any rate, do you guys believe in being cursed, jinxed, or just plain horrible, awful bad luck?

  I agree that curses are rare, and unless you have a likely suspect who might have cast one, I would doubt that is the problem.   Why things happen the way they do, lessons to be learned? tests?   Who can say.    I try to see the brighter side of things such as "at least I had some extra money to pay for that unexpected car repair'  or "if I had broken the finger on my right hand it would be so much harder to function"  That just changes your mindset a bit so you can feel more in control and less dumped on, and is not one that might attract more negativity

[Makorlious]

I tend to agree with this. I've found that curses are truely few and far btwn, and that bad luck just happens. Everything is cyclical- bad stuff happens, good stuff happens. Unfortunately, you have to have both.

I have to disagree, as one who has cursed and been cursed I can assure you curses are not as rare as you might think, the Darker the practice the more common cursing becomes as anger, hate and spite all help to fuel it's energy. I have seen some dreadful curses truly horrors to behold and I have seen standard curses such as the Ravens Revenge where a  subject looses self belief and becomes a depressed shadow of their former self. However that said I do agree with the opinion that this is more likely to be bad luck then a curse.

As stated perviously curses take a great deal of focus and energy, they can and have left lesser warlocks/witches drained for days depending on the severity of the curse and if they enter into it without thought or preparation. The more common fault of your bad luck could be something as simple as "self fulfilling prophecy" which is where a person feels down to such an extent that each bad thing that happens knocks them further and further down until eventually they come to expect "bad luck/karma" and therefore receive it in spades.

I agree with the optimists approach who said about the payment for the car and the damage to the hand you should always try to find the good in a situation regardless of how hopeless you may feel or the situation may be. Also in agreement with a previous statement if you were cursed the person would have to know you and they would have to have a reason to curse you... If you do not know of anyone who would want to curse you that's usually a very good sign that you have not been cursed.

If you still feel that you have been cursed and have reason to believe this to be the case then there are ways to undo a curse, to get some good luck in your life to counter-act the curse or of course the more controversial method of binding the person who has cursed you (providing you know who they are). There are many good luck spells out there that could assist you but sometimes things do just happen. The cosmos is a vast in interesting place with energies, spirits, demons and all manor of things that exist without reason, purpose or cause (or at least they may appear that way to us) unfortunately bad and good luck or self fulfilling prophecy is just one of those things.

I wish you good luck, hope and happiness on your journey.

Blessed Be.

Antonio   

[Syncearae]

I have to disagree, as one who has cursed and been cursed I can assure you curses are not as rare as you might think, the Darker the practice the more common cursing becomes as anger, hate and spite all help to fuel it's energy. I have seen some dreadful curses truly horrors to behold and I have seen standard curses such as the Ravens Revenge where a  subject looses self belief and becomes a depressed shadow of their former self. However that said I do agree with the opinion that this is more likely to be bad luck then a curse.

As stated perviously curses take a great deal of focus and energy, they can and have left lesser warlocks/witches drained for days depending on the severity of the curse and if they enter into it without thought or preparation. The more common fault of your bad luck could be something as simple as "self fulfilling prophecy" which is where a person feels down to such an extent that each bad thing that happens knocks them further and further down until eventually they come to expect "bad luck/karma" and therefore receive it in spades.

I agree with the optimists approach who said about the payment for the car and the damage to the hand you should always try to find the good in a situation regardless of how hopeless you may feel or the situation may be. Also in agreement with a previous statement if you were cursed the person would have to know you and they would have to have a reason to curse you... If you do not know of anyone who would want to curse you that's usually a very good sign that you have not been cursed.

If you still feel that you have been cursed and have reason to believe this to be the case then there are ways to undo a curse, to get some good luck in your life to counter-act the curse or of course the more controversial method of binding the person who has cursed you (providing you know who they are). There are many good luck spells out there that could assist you but sometimes things do just happen. The cosmos is a vast in interesting place with energies, spirits, demons and all manor of things that exist without reason, purpose or cause (or at least they may appear that way to us) unfortunately bad and good luck or self fulfilling prophecy is just one of those things.

I wish you good luck, hope and happiness on your journey.

Blessed Be.

Antonio   

I agree with the statements above. With all of the energy mixes it is difficult to tell why things happpen the way they do sometimes. Everything seeks balance in some way or another. If you are an upstanding, kind, strong person then you are going to encounter opposition that tries to knock you down,make you bitter and weak. Like seeks like , but opposites are attracted to each other to balance one another out. You should not by any means succumb to these forces, but instead try to learn from them or redirect them. Opposition is difficult and painful but also nessisary, sometimes for reasons that are not yet understood.

If protections and banishings are not effective try redirection. If that is not effective talk to your spirit guides to see why all this is happening. It might be related to past life karma or something else. It could be that the universes timing to bring all this your way is not convient to you but is to the universe. It could be that those things are unrealted and just decided it would be more of a challenge for you if it happened all at once.

I always pray for gentle lessons, because I know it's coming anyway.
The way it has always happened to me is alot of unfortunate things will happen at once for a few years and then it will fade away for a few years.

The Chinese are right about making your own luck partially. There are things you can influence and things you can't. It is best to only try to effect what you can influence, or else you will burn up valuable time and enrgy trying to change that which you can't. You need that energy to cope with the stuff you can't influence.

I wish for you and your signifigant other peace, gentle lessons and healing. May you atleast find gems on your rocky road.

[Tezcatlipoca]

Well, I'm somewhat new to these forums, (this is my first thread so I apologize if it's bad) but not to Pagan religions and I need some advice and would also like to stimulate a conversation on the topic of "bad karma". My partner and I have been having just about the worst last three years of our lives. I'd type it all up if anyone is curious, but so much has gone wrong that it's best to summarize and just say anything that could go wrong, has gone wrong- basically since we've been together and in all areas of our life except our love life.

But at any rate, do you guys believe in being cursed, jinxed, or just plain horrible, awful bad luck?

I've tried to do some purification, protection and good luck sorts of rituals: protection magic is something I've always been familiar with and utilize often but this time I have had no success it seems. My luck seems to be finally getting better but my life is still a mess for many reasons out of my control and in the last year it has been my partner who's gotten the bad juju. For him, his health seems to be failing for no reason and so many things have gone wrong that shouldn't occur in a healthy 25 year old.

I was just wondering what other people think about bad luck or curses or karma or whatever you dub it. One of my core beliefs is in energy, and the effects of positive or negative energy and I do try very hard to keep my actions and intentions pure and ethical in my life. I believe I certainly haven't done anything to deserve all this and was curious whether you all had advice or input. Any rituals or spells or certain stones and herbs which you find helpful for dealing with this kind of situation would be greatly appreciated but are not necessary. 

What comes up, should come down, too. This includes luck. I agree with several of the statements others have made. Curses are very uncommon, plus you seem to have done everything there was to be done if this was the case. Just hang in there. Like the wheel of fortune in the major arcana, luck comes around. Things will get better.

Best of wishes to you and your partner.

[ardnael]

I believe that negativity creates bad karma, which is difficult to break when things are constantly going downhill! Try to stay positive and remove negative people from your life as much as possible, is my first suggestion. Maybe there is something you should be letting go of and life is unable to move forward until you do.

As far as curses go, I found the best way to end them is to refuse to accept their energy. Lighting a candle, burning sage, and repeating something simple "karma return the negative x10, my energy is mine again" over and over you are retraining that to return to them and whatever they are doing towards you, whoever is doing it, that is negative, it will now only hurt them. More of a "shield". Its really interesting then to see who crashes and burns.

There are bad times, too. Many of us are going through difficulty as the world is going through a very dark period. Its approaching fast and we all need to stay strong through it. Do not be discouraged to give up on life, because it will turn around again. There will be short breathers in between just have to hold our breath for the next pocket of fresh air because the Universe is still flowing

[SunflowerP]

Hi, Ardnael,

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This isn't a formal warning, just a reminder.  No reply is necessary, but if you have questions or need clarification, please feel free to contact a member of staff privately.

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Sunflower, TC Forum Staff

[yewberry]

I believe that negativity creates bad karma, which is difficult to break when things are constantly going downhill! Try to stay positive and remove negative people from your life as much as possible, is my first suggestion. Maybe there is something you should be letting go of and life is unable to move forward until you do.

Maybe it's because I'm reading Barbara Ehrenreich's Bright Sided at the moment, but I wanted to address the "get rid of negative people" thing.  She argues, rightly, I think, that cutting loose friends and associates deemed "negative" might be problematic in unexpected ways.  What we perceive as negative often challenges our assumptions and makes us look at situations from different (and deeper) angles.  The danger is that we could easily surround ourselves with sycophantic yes-men in attempt to purge negativity.  Selective pruning of people who regularly create problems for the sake of creating problems is probably a good thing.  Indiscriminate hacking of anyone that doesn't agree with you probably isn't.

Brina

[RandallS]

Indiscriminate hacking of anyone that doesn't agree with you probably isn't.

That's true of things-- not just people. Cutting news sources, books, magazines, etc. to just those that never disagree with you let alone seriously challenge your ways of thinking about things or doing things is going to end up biting you in the back eventually. It may remove "stress" but leave you "mentally handicapped" when it comes to understanding and dealing with the world.

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