by Pyro
Shielding is one of the most basic and most important skills for any practitioner to learn.  For those that don’t know a shield erects a barrier between you and the outside world.  There are as many ways to shield as there magical practitioners.  I prefer layered elemental shields that blend more than one element and not only block out harmful energy but cause a light slap to the face of anyone trying to cross it, building in intensity the deeper in layers one gets.  However casting a complex shield is not for beginners, not because they can’t do it, but simply because running before you walk leads to a lot of unnecessary bumps and bruises.

In order to cast a shield the first thing you need to do is gather energy.  For those that aren’t sure how to do this read my article at http://core.otherkinalliance.org/articles/metaphysics/pyros-magic-lesson-of-the-day/

For those who already know how to gather energy then use what you know best.  You take the gathered energy and form it into a sphere of force with your mind. Take this sphere and center it in yourself.  Make this sphere hard enough to repel any attacking force yet elastic enough to avoid shattering.  Once you’ve done this then expand the shield so that it surrounds your body.  A good method for this is to visualize yourself pulling on the sphere from the outside until it is outside of yourself then visualize pushing on it from the inside until it is large enough to surround you with no bits sticking out.  Lock it around yourself so that you don’t walk out of it after you cast it.  Make sure that your shield covers you completely including above and below you not just on your sides.

Remember that you are creating a barrier between yourself and the universe.  This means that the wall not only keeps out the bad stuff like harmful energies but it also keeps out the good stuff like universal energy, the lifeblood of most magical works.  So while it is a good skill to know it is not recommended to keep an impenetrable shield around yourself at all times.  Shielding is important not only for keeping yourself safe from spirit beings but it can also be used to keep out overwhelming emotions or other spiritual detritus that one can come across in their daily life.  A note, knowing how to shield is like knowing a martial art, its good to have it if you need it, but if you can avoid being in a situation that you need to use it, your better off.

This is by far not the only method of shielding, this is simply the basic form I learned years ago when I was a beginning practitioner.  I hope it works for you, if not please don’t give up on shielding instead find another method of doing it.