Day: April 21, 2014

‘THINK on THESE THINGS’ for April 21

‘THINK on THESE THINGS’
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

If you’ve ever been along in a strange place, you’re bound to know how wonderful it is to have someone make you feel welcome.

Many people have the knack for being at home in whatever place they find themselves. And in this gift they find no loneliness to tug at them, but more often than not most of us feel like strangers. And in doing so we set ourselves apart, or make it sometimes questionable as to the wisdom of asking us into a friendly circle.

A friendly face and a friendly voice can make the most timid souls feel welcome. It can make them feel at home. For in the midst of many there is loneliness. Perhaps it is because our feigned look of self-sufficiency made someone question our need for help.

Many a door has opened, and many a sound friendship won when someone said, “We’re glad to have you…” The very atmosphere can be charged with concern when we see others who cannot find their way. The warmth of divine love is for daily use in making someone feel welcome.

We should not forget nor fail to see the wisdom of Hebrews 13:2: “Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unaware.”

There must be no stronger feeling in the hearts of most people than the desire to belong. To belong to something, to someone, and in a place where the feeling is warm and friendly. The most blessed children in town are the ones born and raised in the same neighborhood, who have the tightly knit sense of belonging to everyone. Suddenly these children are not just the children of their parents, but the children of everyone in the church, in school, and anywhere where there is warmth and love and peace.

War rages within so many, disallowing then any connection or any strand of love that would tie them to anything that gives them a sense of security. And when people become insecure they become demanding. And in demanding they lose the most essential part – the ability to attract love to themselves simply by loving first.

In the words of William Blake: “Love seeketh not itself to please….Not for itself hath any care….But for another gives its ease….And builds a Heaven in Hell’s despair.”

Some of my most productive moments are not when I consider how evil the world is, but how powerful is my God.

Some of the best times are not all when I’m enjoying life, but when those I love are knowing happiness.

The highest peak of wealth comes when the joy within surpasses anything I can create out here.

The bloom of good health is felt more richly when I let it flow through me rather than swelling on the possibility of sickness.

Friendships are strongest and most true when I don’t worry about giving more than I receive.

In order that others forgive me, I must also learn to forgive.

I must never forget that negative thoughts feed on fear and starve on faith.

One of the greatest mistakes I can make is to believe myself to be without friend or faith or opportunity.

These personal proverbs belong to all thinking persons who want their lives to have more meaning, know more happiness and feel more richly the love that is the medicine for the sickness of the world.

 

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Available online! ‘Cherokee Feast of Days’
By Joyce Sequichie Hifler.

Visit her web site to purchase the wonderful books by Joyce as gifts for yourself or for loved ones……and also for those who don’t have access to the Internet: http://www.hifler.com
Click Here to Buy her books at Amazon.com

Elder’s Meditation of the Day
By White Bison, Inc., an American Indian-owned nonprofit organization. Order their many products from their web site: http://www.whitebison.org

Elder’s Meditation of the Day April 21

Elder’s Meditation of the Day April 21

“Conciliation is the key to survival. Peace is the goal.”

–Haida Gwaii, Traditional Circle of Elders

When we make decisions or experience conflict we need to look at the greater whole. The end result we want to accomplish is peace of mind. If we keep this goal in mind, we will, overall, live a happy and fulfilling life. Everything in the world is constantly changing so we should not resist this change. A good question to ask ourselves is, “Would I rather be right or happy?” If we would rather be happy, then it is easier to let the little things go. If we would rather be right, we tend to look for the WIN/LOSE.

Great Spirit, today, give me the tools to seek peace of mind.

April 21 – Daily Feast

April 21 – Daily Feast

Peace is like a river….Feel it, think it, see it. Peace that flows not in wild frothy turbulence but in smooth currents that will not toss the smallest boat. Think of peace that so permeates our entire being, a peace that is closer than our hands and feet, closer even than our breathing. To hi ge se s di, came with great difficulty to the Cherokee. Peace on earth seems distant to almost anyone in any age, but it is still sought, and the lack of it still effects each of us personally. Stress raises our blood pressure, makes our hearts race and our ears roar with panic. We can stop right here and now and put it all down. Speak the words of old that stopped a storm, “Peace be still.” It worked centuries ago and its power is still intact. Say it many times a day to stop the negative flow that intends to sweep us away.

~ I am Dekanawidah, and with the Five Nations confederate lords I plant the Tree of the Great Peace. ~

IRIQUOIS LEGEND

‘A Cherokee Feast of Days’, by Joyce Sequichie Hifler

The Daily Motivator for April 21 – There is so much to value

There is so much to value

Getting uptight won’t get anything done. Relax, enjoy the moment, and you’ll get more positive value out of it.

The work may be difficult, complicated and challenging, but that doesn’t mean you must fight against it. Be genuinely thankful for the opportunity to make a difference, and the difference you make will be a beautiful one.

Being resentful about what you must do will only make it more burdensome. You can choose instead to be enthusiastic, and you’ll immediately feel a great weight lifted off your shoulders.

There is so much to value, appreciate and enjoy about life. It really makes no sense to fight against it.

Take a deep, relaxing breath and remind yourself how good you have it. Choose to use your considerable energy to live your best possibilities.

Embrace your precious, unique and wonderful life. And live it with the peaceful, positive power that is always yours to choose.

— Ralph Marston
Source:
The Daily Motivator

The Daily OM For April 21 – Intention Set in Stone

Intention Set in Stone
Prayer Stone Stacks

by Madisyn Taylor

Add a stone blessed with a prayer to a mound and your intentions merge with those who have left stones before you.

Stone has played a role in spirituality from the very moment humanity externalized its sacred vision. Humans gave form to their devotion by scratching images of their deities into rock faces, carving holy statuary, and building stone shrines. The earliest of these were nothing more than simple piles of rocks that honored sacred places, revelations, people, and events. Following in the footsteps of this ancient tradition provides us with an simple and beautiful way to externalize our own spirituality. In your travels, you may have encountered on the sides of roads, trails, or pathways stacks of stones that look like random sculpture. Add a stone blessed with a prayer to such a mound, and your intentions merge with those who have left stones before you, empowering you all.

Associating a prayer with a particular stone alters the substance of both, and the formation of a prayer mound can balance and intensify the energy of a site. The mere act of choosing a stone can inspire mindfulness, as we lose ourselves in the moment seeking a pebble that speaks to our souls. And placing a prayer stone on a towering cairn is a meditation in patience—slowness and stillness allow us to find our stone’s center of gravity so the delicate ceremonial structure before us remains intact. Be cautious, however, when you feel guided to place a prayer rock upon stone mounds you see intermittently alongside well-worn but unmarked hiking paths. Hikers often use small cairns as guide markers to ensure that those who follow in their footsteps will not lose the trail. When in doubt, begin a new prayer pile slightly further away from the path itself and consider adding a relic of some kind to help others understand its purpose.

When you mindfully place a prayer by beginning a stone heap or adding to an existing mound, your thoughts and intentions are left in the care of fate itself. The cairn of which your prayer was one part may be unintentionally knocked down or destroyed by Mother Nature’s own hand. Try not to let this weigh heavily upon your spirit. The potent energy of your prayer was released by this destruction, ensuring that the purpose underlying that prayer will spread outward in the direction of the furthest reaches of the universe. 

 

Source:
The Daily OM

Incantation of the Stars

Incantation of the Stars

Items you will need

  • Best when cast on the third night of the waxing moon.
  • You will need three sticks of wood of equal length, a hand?s length each being ample enough.
  • You must be out of doors when the spell is cast

On the night you wish to cast this spell, go out to a quiet and secluded place. One need be seated, and if at all possible, it be best if one be seated on the earth. Take some time and meditate on one?s desire, be it general or specific. Next, take the three sticks of wood, and lay them flat on the ground to form a triangle. In the center of the triangle, place your index finger of each hand, tips side-by-side and held firmly against the earth, as if with both fingers you are pointing in unison at that one spot. Repeat the following incantation: Stars of heaven Holders of the ancient knowledge Watchers of our ascents and declines Silent yet strong Grant me this I ask Aid me in mine quest, yea, slake my thirst And fill mine mind With that I wish to know So, this I ask, as it may be So let this thing be so

Peppermint Distance Healing Spell

Peppermint Distance Healing Spell

 

  1. Place peppermint leaves on top of a photography of the patient.
  2. Charged a blue candle with your desire
  3. Carve and dress the candle as desired.
  4. burn it beside the photography.
  5. When the candle has burned down, dispose of the peppermint leaves
  6. Repeat as needed, with fresh leaves each time.

TIPS FOR MAGICKAL HEALING SPELLS

TIPS FOR MAGICKAL HEALING SPELLS

  • Where illness derives from bewitchment, particularly where a hex was cast using some sort of tool like a wax figure,it may be necessary to find and remove the trick for healing to be accomplished. There are also usually specific magickal antidotes and jinx-reversing spells. {These issues are dealt with amongst hexes and their antidotes).

  • In general, one must cast one’s own spell. How every healing spells are unusual in that it;s very likely that someone else just cast the spell on behalf of the ailing person. The Person who needs or  desires the spell may be in   no condition to perform the spell. Most, although not all, healing spells demand the presence and sometimes the participation of the patient however.

  •  Given the opportunity to choose, many traditions assert that the full moon  is the best time to initiate healing-spells because as the moon diminishes, so should pain and illness.

Home-made Air Fresheners

Home-made Air Fresheners

Natural air fresheners help to elevate our mood and can be used in place of incense in ritual. Use spring or distilled water as your liquid base. For all air fresheners, fill a  four-ounce spray bottle, then add essential oils. Tighten cap. Shake well. the longer the mixture ages, the stronger the scent becomes. For ritual use, age your freshener for at least seven days before using, shaking bottle every day. Store in a cool, dark place.

Banishing Spells

Banishing Spells

There’s often confusion over the difference between banishing spells and binding spells, however it’s crucial that you understand this difference.

  • Binding spells attach something or, more frequently, someone to you with great intensity, often permanently
  • Banishing spells remove something or, more frequently, someone from your presence, often permanently.

It’s an important distinction. Although magick spells are typically used to manifest something or someone, quite often the reverse is needed. Something or someone needs to be sent packing quickly.

Banishing spells are traditionally timed to coincide with the waning moon, in the hopes that just as the moon diminishes, so will the unwanted presence.

Also falling under the category of banishing spells are Avoidance Spells–those spells required when you wish to avoid contact, for instance with creditors or debt collectors. Banishing spells are used to prevent any unwelcome returns, too. However, you may wish to consider Protection Spells to reinforce or in some circumstances replace, banishing spells.

Animal Spells (Magickal Partners)

Animal Spells (Magickal Partners)

Is it time to measure the cat for a magick wand? Perhaps the parrot needs to learn some chants? Maybe there is a set of dominations spells so that the dog can force you to walk him on the schedule he chooses? No, spells regarding animals are still meant for people to perform, although some benefit from some animal assistance. Many of these spells involve protecting animal from physical and spiritual harm. Others benefit humans, through the power and gifts of animals.

Animals who participate in your spells and rituals, enhancing them with their own powers, tend to fall into one of two categories:

*  Familiars

*  Allies

The concept of an animal as a pet is a modern one. Those who possessed this concept of interspecies friendship ahead of their time often found themselves condemned for witchcraft on grounds of familiarity with demonic creatures like cats, birds, rabbits, black dogs, reptiles, and amphibians. Sound like what’d find for sale in any local pet store? Well, familiar animals are exactly that: Familiar. The classic witch’s cat, rabbit or toad, a familiar is an actual, individual animal with whom one can live and share an intense psychic, personal bond. If this characterizes a relationship you have ever had with an animal, then you have had a familiar, regardless of whether you engaged in magickal practices together. A dog who won’t sleep unless it’s under your bed, the cat who follows you from room to room the bird who spends the day perched on your should: these all qualify as familiars.

A familiar’s presence may be sufficient to spark and enhance your magick, whether there is any conscious active involvement or not. For others, the psychic and magickal bonds possible between animal and human create profound power and satisfaction and working closely with other species–those species that usually do not life amongst people—-may discover psychic and magickal bonds, as well. Wild animals that remain wild can also qualify as familiars, though invariably they choose you rather than the other way round. These include those birds or bees that, taking a liking to someone in the family, stop by daily. Scandinavian witches traditionally favored flies as familiars. Wild dolphins occasionally single out as individual human and initiate a relationship. It is not unknown for people living on the edge of woods or in a wilderness place to develop a special relationship with an individual creature.

A familiar is a specific, individual creature with whom you have established a psychic bond. Of course, the limits the creatures with which you can magickally interact. What if your magick requires a rhinoceros or crocodile? What if it requires a dragon or unicorn?

A familiar may be considered an animal ally but animal allied transcend the boundaries of familiars. Animal allies are a form of spiritual relationship: because the relationship may occur entirely in the realm of spirit, any animal may be approached. The presiding spirit of the animal may also be approached, rather than any individual creature.

A person may have as many familiars and/or allies as needed.

Personal Journal/Book Blessing

Personal Journal/Book Blessing

 

These words herein are mine alone

fashioned deep inside my bones

each picture, thought, and quote you see

are all reflections of what is me.

Beware the urge to take this book

or read it in some private nook

because its magick isn’t blind

and I will know you’ve touched what’s mine.