Can you read it?

When you do a spell that involves chanting are you allowed to read the words off of something or must you memorize it? Thank you :)

Login or Signup to reply to this post.

I don't think it matters.

If you can still put your intent and will into it when reading it off, then it is totally fine :)

You can read it. Just make sure you focus on what you are asking rather than reading for reading sake.

you can read it, but try to read it prior to casting so you're not stumbling over words, or break your focus while casting the spell. bellow is a link to what i mean:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXxrHDKpbkc

while this spell will not work, you should do similar; repeat it a few times beforehand just to be sure you're concentrating more on the casting than reading.

I agree with Neco .You can read it ,but it is awkward feeling ,you will be worrying with doubts and insecurity .This will lead then to lack of focus , concentration and you will loose the momentum to express your Will precisely in full power .
I once tried to do that with long ritual ,I looked and sounded ridiculous and in addition I even forgot which direction should follow .When you know something you feel empowered ,especially in the case of chant ,because chant is song-alike .I used to sing in chorus and it was very strange to all of us when we were trying to learn a new song while singing it in same time ,we used to have those weird pauses ,which would disrupt the rhythm and the flow of it .In similar fashion you will face same problems by doing so ,on all three levels .Physical ,because if you have never read it beforehand ,you might pause and think on the words .Mental ,because you will wonder if that is right thing to do or if it will work and the combination of both will disturb your energy flow and expression of your intend .It is always better to have done your memorizing beforehand, for extra boost of confidence and you will avoid all awkwardness of wondering if you do not sound or look just ridiculous .Besides if you are working with certain energies or spirits ,they like to aid or help people who have put significant efforts in their work .The work we put in has a lot to do with the outcome we get .This is the golden rule in everything even in magic ,despite it might not look this way at first glance .
With the experience you start to realize those things ,sloppy energy flow and focus create sloppy results .