And Now, the Circle is Cast

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Back to the spell.

There are at least three reasons to cast a Circle.
One of the foremost rules of Witchcraft is to pay attention to what you are doing. The Circle has the psychological effect of focusing your awareness and calling your full attention to the work at hand. 

A well-cast Circle contains the power that is raised within it. You cast a Circle for the same reason that you close your windows of your house when you turn on the heat--to contain the energy you will raise so that it is given to  the work you plan to do, and not dissipated into the surrounding environment.

Finally, the Circle alerts the Powers that you will invoke that you are ready to receive them. 

There are as many precise ways to cast a Circle as there are Witches. Witches who work together on a regular basis, with specific Deities, will generally have a certain way that they always cast the Circle. Whether you work with others or alone, it is best to establish your system and keep with it again and again over time, to build its power.

The Robert Glass number that you hear in the above YouTube video is based on a Circle-casting taught by the great sorcerer Victor Anderson (although Glass does not credit, or perhaps did not know, the source). If you need instructions, this provides is a good way to start:

Face North and say: BY THE EARTH WHICH IS HER BODY,

Turn or walk around to the east while you visualize a veil of light falling around your working space, saying: BY THE AIR WHICH IS HER BREATH,

Continue around to the South, still visualizing the veil of light and saying, BY THE FIRE WHICH IS HER BRIGHT SPIRIT,

Around to the West, saying: BY THE LIVING WATERS OF HER WOMB,

And return to your starting place in the North, saying: THE CIRCLE IS CAST.

Once your circle has been cast, do not break it or your concentration until your work is done, except for a bona fide emergency.