If not curses, then what?

[lumineth Realm Lord]

If you have a problem with someone, as in to say a practical issue, like some creep stalking your wife or child, or something like an asshole coworker or bully, who'd actually be hurting you, or your reputation, in ways that has real effect, how do you deal with them magically if you're not using a curse or hex?

 

[SkullTraill]

If you have a problem with someone, as in to say a practical issue, like some creep stalking your wife or child, or something like an asshole coworker or bully, who'd actually be hurting you, or your reputation, in ways that has real effect, how do you deal with them magically if you're not using a curse or hex?

Cleanse/banish/protection/removal

 

[AbammonTheGreat]

If you have a problem with someone, as in to say a practical issue, like some creep stalking your wife or child, or something like an asshole coworker or bully, who'd actually be hurting you, or your reputation, in ways that has real effect, how do you deal with them magically if you're not using a curse or hex?

Thats an appropriate time to curse. There is a concept within the occult of "sharpening ones sword". In all the esoteric/magical practices there are associations with wrath and hell as a part of the path. Tantra associates the right arm of the practitioner with Yama and the king of hell, and Moses Cordevero very interestingly claims that Geburah is related to Gehinnom and a strength of judgement that pleases God. Notice that God is externalized in this claim, which is granting license to the kabbalist to practice Gods wrath/severity/judgement.

Now why do we recommend against curses? Because ultimately there should be very few situations that you should utilize them. Ideally, never. But there are situations where the spiritual thing to do is not to turn the other cheek but exercise your full authority as an actualized integrated Being. And this includes Wrath, Hellfire, and Destruction.

People should not be weilding curses until they are highly advanced and have a mystic practice. It is only through the cultivation of virtues like surrender, acceptance, and compassion that one can clearly discern between these situations. Theres a difference between getting screwed by an employer and being victimized by a psychopath that refuses to back down.

Sometimes the appropriate thing to do is bring down the wrath of the gods and spirits on the aggressor. Sometimes it IS the spiritual thing to do.

Also, as a side note: there are things out there that will use humans to attack you. Keep this in mind.

 

[lumineth Realm Lord]

So, what do you do to hold someone accountable for something?

 

[Durward]

Unless you want to be cursed or whatever yourself, since nobody is perfect and all of humanity has something putrid about them, how about live and let live and you just move on? Why is there a need to try and use special skills to lash out, except that some superiority or righteous nonsense is bubbling up?
Do you want to be controlled and manipulated?

to regain a sense of control and safety. It often stems from poor emotional regulation, unresolved trauma, or chronic stress, where anger serves as a secondary emotion masking deeper fear, insecurity, or sadness

How do you know what the consequences of lashing out with a curse are?
The human ego is a huge problem. We have enough division and hate going on without this.
I feel like these are the conversations that need to be deleted. Absolutely useless waste of energy and talent to be lashing out like a Kindergarten brat.
What is the measure going to be? Every time someone upsets you? Wow. Try therapy.

 

[borbponderer]

If the curse is in alignment with the values of your deity then I say go for it. You can draw on a much greater pool of energy that way, and any blowback is less likely to impact you personally. But if you are cursing over a personal matter, that's when it can get murky.

If you are doing it to protect a third party, how do you know you aren't getting drawn into some drama triangulation bullshit? Or some cycle of provocation and reaction, in which case your energy and credibility is being leeched by a parasite.

Not everyone appreciates chivalry. Some might see it as possessive and controlling behaviour and would prefer to fight their own battles. And anyone who does seem a little too eager for your "protection" is someone I would tend to automatically distrust.

 

[lumineth Realm Lord]

Unless you want to be cursed or whatever yourself, since nobody is perfect and all of humanity has something putrid about them, how about live and let live and you just move on? Why is there a need to try and use special skills to lash out, except that some superiority or righteous nonsense is bubbling up?
Do you want to be controlled and manipulated?

How do you know what the consequences of lashing out with a curse are?
The human ego is a huge problem. We have enough division and hate going on without this.
I feel like these are the conversations that need to be deleted. Absolutely useless waste of energy and talent to be lashing out like a Kindergarten brat.
What is the measure going to be? Every time someone upsets you? Wow. Try therapy.

Last year, there was a racially motivated murder of an immigrant woman, at the hands of a man with 14 prior arrests, in the city where I was born.

Would you call it ego to want to make sure this man doesn't hurt anyone else?

 

[borbponderer]

Last year, there was a racially motivated murder of an immigrant woman, at the hands of a man with 14 prior arrests, in the city where I was born.

Would you call it ego to want to make sure this man doesn't hurt anyone else?

That's a heinous crime, but I think I would favour a more direct approach to justice in that case, rather than flinging curses.

Good chance the perp is already an utter loser who is already leading what is effectively a cursed existence. Did they catch the asshole, or is he still at large?

 

[Durward]

Last year, there was a racially motivated murder of an immigrant woman, at the hands of a man with 14 prior arrests, in the city where I was born.

Would you call it ego to want to make sure this man doesn't hurt anyone else?

Obviously, that's not what you started the question with. Now it has escalated to some murderer. Are you probing for where the boundary or limit is to justify attacking other people with magic?
If people could curse or stop murderers with magical practices, all the murderers would be running scared. Plus, that is not your job unless you are in law enforcement. Most of these creeps likely got their start in skanky occult practices like curses and sacrifices, or many of the other things that the immature of this place seem to find cool or ok to practice. Who is going to stop someone from coming after you when you start doing curses and are then considered rotten or evil?
It is never ok to try and make your own rules or laws, or to attack other people because you think you are in charge of justice. Not your job.

 

[lumineth Realm Lord]

If this can happen to one person, it can happen to me. And my own protection is my job.

 

[AbammonTheGreat]

So, what do you do to hold someone accountable for something?

A curse. You can use poppets, wrathful dieties, or feed them to your favorite legion of spirits.

 

[Jumi]

Banish. Bind. Ward. Those are my three that I like to use if I don't want to curse and would like protection. Of course binding someone from doing something is still directly messing with their freewill. But if there's reasonable grounds to go off of then why not?

However, reading deeper into your thread the question has since evolved from this and gone straight to a case of a murderer, and wanting protection.

If that's what you really want to ask about then you would be looking straight into deities of wrath and those of protection/safety.
Remember, if their circle of influence is wrath/protection, the opposite is equally possible; bringing lack of security to an individual, or requesting to calm their wrath and transmuting that energy into something more positive. You can ask for protection and ask to take away protection from the perpetrator. There's plenty of demons to work with if you decide to go that route, too.
Petition deities/demons. Or directly evoke your preferred demon. Evocation will involve ceremonial magic methods or 'calling down' these demons if you're looking for a more contemporary approach.
The Keys of Solomon and Grimorum Verum systems are two roads you can choose from. Get well acquainted their methods. Decide on your favorite system and go hog wild.

Alternatively just curse them. Poppets are one way, cursing jar spells are another.
Just throwing out some ideas.

 

[FireBorn]

Interesting takes here. But I think some of this is dressing up preference as virtue.

Magick is influence. That’s the whole point. We manipulate reality towards our will all the time and then suddenly get the vapors when that influence is directed at a person instead of a circumstance? That seems inconsistent to me. Fuckin silly.

If for you cursing is off the table because you genuinely dont want to harm people, fair enough. I can respect that. But be honest that this is your ethic, your preference, your line, not some universal truth, because its not.

What I find hypocritical is condemning manipulation in one breath, then turning around and blessing bindings, love/lust work, domination, or other forms of interpersonal influence in the next. That’s still manipulation. Just because it sounds prettier doesn’t make it morally clean, or superior in any way.

And let’s also be real: some people talk as if they are holding back godlike power out of noble restraint for the good of the innocent. I don’t buy that either. Most are not brimming with infinite force and heroically choosing not to unleash it. We’re just people, making subjective calls, with subjective limits, in a subjective practice.

Own your line. Just don’t pretend it’s some sort of cosmic law.