Dear Reader,
An altar lit by wax candles is a romantic image. Some people have the space to make a grandiose job of it. It can be really impressive. And then there's what they show in the movies where the back room of the spooky spell shop turns out to be a cathedral of sorts with hundreds of candles and elegant icons. (That movie back room has to be a TARDIS because every spell shop I've been in has a back room that's barely big enough to turn around and spit in.)
If you're in the position that I'm now in (the landlord renewed the lease and said no candles or incense) or you simply can not afford actual candles even from the discount store, this post will give you some ideas on how to work around this.
The first suggestion I have is a little on the pricey side for initial payment but as a long term budget expense, it actually turns out to be less expensive than buying candles in bulk every few months. Get a package of electric tea lights. "Burn" them only for the duration of your work. As soon as you finish your spell or prayer session, turn it off to conserve the battery for the next use. And screw anybody who says you can't use a candle over again or that electric candles will screw up the magical energy of anything.
Experience has shown me that electricity in the vicinity of any magical item serves to increase it's capacity for use. They act like spiritual batteries/capacitors that release the energy when you put them to use. And unlike a battery or a capacitor, they won't explode if you try to push too much energy through them, they'll simply ground the excess. But I digress.
My second suggestion is a bit cheezy but it works. Take some colored paper, make a tube of a suitable length. Glue together. Add a flame shaped bit at the end that you've determined is your top. With this version of a 'candle' you are going to focus elemental fire energy into the candle until it feels 'full'. Remaining on the altar, this paper candle will be continually replenished by the high magical energy quotient naturally present in the altar space. Shrines are also places of high magical energy that can recharge these.
My third suggestion is take an item associated with elemental fire energy and place it on the altar. Citrine is a good stone to use for this because of its association with the Sun. Equally good to place on the altar is lava rock. This includes: obsidion of all varieties, lava stones, and pumice. Any igneous stone is a good choice as well because they are formed in the Earth under high heat and pressure, and they will carry traces of that heat in their matrix.
