A silvery stream of moonlit water is delicately poured from an earthen jug into a crystal vial. A cauldron filled with water reflecting the moon above and flicked by flames beneath begins to brew, sending its magickal vapors into the cool night air. Moon water is an intriguing, enchanting, effective, and highly adaptable ingredient to add to your practice of witchcraft, magick, and divination. Learning how to make moon water and discovering ways to use moon water for magick are basic and beneficial skills that warrant mastery for both beginning and experienced witches alike. Moon water can be used to transform situations, enhance psychic abilities, amplify magickal power, spark inspiration, encourage love, bring tranquility, achieve balance, and more. Moon water can be made in many ways, and used in many ways. Here you'll find an overview of the essentials to making an effective moon water, as well as thirteen ways to use moon water in your magick. For those who would like to further explore the subject, Llewellyn's Little Book of Moon Spells devotes an entire chapter to the art of lunar potion-making in addition to covering the basics of moon magick and offering detailed instructions for more than sixty moon-powered spells and rituals.

What is Moon Water?
Even if you're not already familiar with moon water, there's a good chance that you're well-acquainted with the basic concept and formulation, if not the specific term and the multitude of its variations and uses. While video tutorials and conversations on social media focused on the topic of "moon water" have cropped up in abundance in recent times, many adept and accomplished witches who have been practicing the craft for much of their lives are scratching their heads wondering, "What in the heck is 'moon water,' and how have I never heard of it in all my many years as a practicing witch?!" There seems to be somewhat of a generation gap when it comes to this multi-purpose magickal solution, but moon water is actually nothing new. It's simply a water-based lunar potion that can be made in different ways for different purposes. Though we may not have used the term "moon water" to describe it, most experienced witches have charged up water via the power of the moon more times than we can possibly count. Water, moonlight, and witches go hand in hand, and a desire to link these forces by means of crafting a magickal potion is rather instinctual for those who feel the heartbeat of nature and the call of the mystical intrinsically woven into body and soul. Yesterday's "water-based lunar potion," "basic moon brew," or "moon tea" is today's "moon water." Time changes language, but the core reality of magick remains the same. It's this core of the magick, however, that is often missing from the information that can be found in today's online forums.

How to Make Moon Water
Many online recipes for moon water call for a container of water to simply be placed outside under moonlight. While that's certainly part of the usual formula and an accurate description of the magick's visible, outward form, making moon water requires a little more than just putting some water outside. The key to any good moon water is in the crafting, and while the power of the blend comes primarily from the moon and all it encapsulates, it is the witch who must thread the threads and stitch the stitches that ultimately bring these forces together to make it all possible. It's up to you to let the moon know to where to send its power, and it's up to you to direct the water to absorb that power. Otherwise, you just have some water that's been left outside, nothing more and nothing less. To make a moon water that's going to be maximally effective, you'll need to take an active role in its creation.

Begin by filling a non-plastic container with water. Some recipes call for water to be gathered from a natural source under the light of a full moon. While water gathered directly from a natural source such as rain or a lake will have a stronger inherent "charge" and a more distinct magickal signature, it might also contain bacteria, parasites, and organic or chemical pollution. Drinking water such as purified spring water or even tap water is a more convenient and practical choice for certain workings, as it's easy to find and makes for a safe and imbibable potion base. Let the intended use of the moon water determine the type of water best suited to your recipe.

Bring the container of water outside, or place it near a window, exterior wall, or high point inside your home. You can heat the water, cool it, or keep it at room temperature. Spend some time thinking about the moon and centering your thoughts on your intentions for your moon water. Think of the water physically opening to the energies of the moon, and will it to absorb as much of the moonlight as possible. Focus your heart on the lunar essences that you wish to transfer to your potion, and directly invite and ask these energies to enter into the water. It may help to envision connecting threads of energy flowing from your own body to the moon, and flowing from the moon into your container of water. Envision the internal structure of the water actually changing, its vibrations increasing as it absorbs and harmonizes with the energy flow of the moon. Trust your intuition and connections to nature as you ask for the moonlight to enter the water, and believe in your authority as a witch as you tell the water what it is meant to become.

A basic moon water will be effective for any lunar working, and will give a boost to any spellcastings intended to promote healing, encourage love, boost psychic power, or enhance creativity. The only essential ingredients to a moon water are moonlight, water, and the witch's own willpower. You can add herbs or stones that more specifically reflect your intentions if you like, but take care that you don't add anything toxic to a potion that you're planning to eat, drink, or put on your body. Many of the herbs utilized in witchcraft are poisonous, and many common stones can leave behind traces of toxins in your moon water! Although moon water can be utilized anytime day or night, it's best crafted at night, and should generally be stored away from direct sunlight when not in use.

How to Use Moon Water
Moon water can be a blank slate or a fully contrived masterpiece of magick. You can use it as a magickal power-enhancing base for making other potions, adapt it with additional ingredients to suit any specific magickal goal you may have, or let the creation of the moon water act as a spell in and of itself. You can also utilize the phases of the moon to create moon water with different qualities, which you can read more about in Llewellyn's Little Book of Moon Spells. Take care to never ingest any toxic ingredients and avoid putting potential irritants on your skin, but beyond those basic guidelines, your imagination can have free reign when it comes to deciding how to use moon water. Here are thirteen ways to use moon water; let these ideas inspire you and challenge you to think of thirteen more.

1. Anoint ritual spaces, altars, magickal tools, and even your own body before lunar-themed workings.
2. Use it for basic cleaning to bring an infusion of tranquility to the home.
3. Use it to water plants in the home or in the garden to encourage growth.
4. Spill some moon water to mark the parameters of a magick circle, or to delineate the boundaries in which a spell is intended to take effect.
5. Use it to wash your hair and face to enhance beauty and bring out your inner glow.
6. Fill a balloon with moon water, freeze it, then remove the balloon to create a lunar-attuned scrying orb, or make mini-sized versions to create magickal ice cubes to add to drinks or utilize for spellwork.
7. Place cut flowers in a vase of moon water to enhance and prolong their beauty.
8. Paint a picture with moon water and a water-based paint to help manifest your wishes.
9. Use it as a base for magickal inks to use in written spells, or for writing in a Book of Shadows.
10. Anoint letters, cards, and applications with moon water to encourage cooperation and agreement to your requests and petitions.
11. Sip on plain moon water (devoid of any inedible toxic ingredients) while doing tarot readings or performing magickal work to replenish your energy stores and to enhance your psychic sensitivity.
12. Bring transformation to a situation by placing a symbol or written description of the situation inside a jar filled with moon water.
13. Use it in cooking for boiling or steaming vegetables or add to recipes to infuse your meals with the magick of the moon.

More Lunar Potions and Moon Magick
These are just a handful of ideas to get your thoughts flowing. Your moon water can be adapted any way you like, and your moon magick can take any form that feels right to you. You can learn much more about moon magick and find an abundance of moon water recipes, moon spells, lunar correspondences, seasonal lunar workings, and ideas that will increase the power of your moon magick in Llewellyn's Little Book of Moon Spells.