Author: ladyoftheabyss

Saturday’s Witchery (Some of the Witchcraft/Magickal Correspondence) c. 2015

Saturday’s Witchery

Saturday is a day filled with opportunities to clean up and clear out. So if you are wondering why Hecate is assigned to this day, take another look at what she symbolizes and the magick that is associated with her. That should answer the question.

Hecate was the oldest form of the Greek Triple Goddess, as she presided over heaven, the underworld, and earth. Crossroads where three roads met were especially sacred to Hecate, earning her the title of Hekate of the Three Ways. It’s interesting to note that even after the worship of other goddesses waned, ancient people still worshiped Hecate as the Queen of the Underworld and the Guardian of the Three-Way Crossroad. It was also believed that if you left her an offering of food there, she would grant you her favors. As Hecate Trivia, her triple images were often displayed at these crossroads, where she was petitioned on the full moon for positive magick and on the dark of the moon for cursing and dark magick.

While this last bit of information sounds a little ominous, keep in mind that Hecate/Hekate was known by many titles and is a shapeshifter. Her appearance could and did change often. As a dark moon goddess, her faces are many. To some she may appear as a old crone, hunched over a smoking cauldron and draped in a midnight cape. To others she may appear as a dark beautiful, mysterious, and mature woman wearing a shimmering crown. To some she may be perceived as a maiden priestess. She was called the “most lovely one,” the Great Goddess of Nature, and the Queen of the World of Spirits. This dark goddess knows her way around the earth and the underworld. All the powers of nature, life, and death are at her command.

Book of Witchery
Spells, Charms & Correspondences for Every Day of the Week
Ellen Dugan

 

A Thought for Today – Good Saturday Morning To All Our WOTC Family c. 2018

Bless this gathering of Witches
Brought together this day
In the name of the goddess and the god
To dedicate themselves to each other
And to the old ways that led them here

 

Bless this gathering of Witches
That we may work together in harmony
Learning and growing together
As we follow the wheel of the year
And bask in the light of the Sun

 

May the earth grant us strength
May the air grant us wisdom
May the fire grant us passion
May the water grant us flexibility
So we might work together for the good of all

 

Bless this gathering of Witches
Brought together this day
In the name of the goddess and god
To dedicate themselves to each other
And to the old ways that led them here

 

—Everyday Witch A to Z Spellbook: Wonderfully Witchy Blessings, Charms & Spells
-Deborah Blake

 

Spell for Today – CAST A WITCH’S LUCKY CANDLE SPELL c. 2010

CAST A WITCH’S LUCKY CANDLE SPELL

take an orange candle anointed with cinnamon oil, clove, or lotus oil.
Light the candle and say 3 times:
“brimstone, moon, and witch’s fire,
candlelights bright spell,
good luck shall I now acquire,
work thy magic well.
Midnight twelve, the witching hour,
bring the luck I seek.
By wax and wick now work thy power
as these words I speak.
Harming none, this spell is done.
By law of three, so mote it be

Saturday’s Witchery (Some of the Witchcraft/Magickal Correspondence) c. 2019

 

Saturday’s Witchery

 

Saturday is a day filled with opportunities to clean up and clear out. So if you are wondering why Hecate is assigned to this day, take another look at what she symbolizes and the magick that is associated with her. That should answer the question.

Hecate was the oldest form of the Greek Triple Goddess, as she presided over heaven, the underworld, and earth. Crossroads where three roads met were especially sacred to Hecate, earning her the title of Hekate of the Three Ways. It’s interesting to note that even after the worship of other goddesses waned, ancient people still worshiped Hecate as the Queen of the Underworld and the Guardian of the Three-Way Crossroad. It was also believed that if you left her an offering of food there, she would grant you her favors. As Hecate Trivia, her triple images were often displayed at these crossroads, where she was petitioned on the full moon for positive magick and on the dark of the moon for cursing and dark magick.

While this last bit of information sounds a little ominous, keep in mind that Hecate/Hekate was known by many titles and is a shapeshifter. Her appearance could and did change often. As a dark moon goddess, her faces are many. To some she may appear as a old crone, hunched over a smoking cauldron and draped in a midnight cape. To others she may appear as a dark beautiful, mysterious, and mature woman wearing a shimmering crown. To some she may be perceived as a maiden priestess. She was called the “most lovely one,” the Great Goddess of Nature, and the Queen of the World of Spirits. This dark goddess knows her way around the earth and the underworld. All the powers of nature, life, and death are at her command.

Book of Witchery, Spells, Charms & Correspondences for Every Day of the Week
Ellen Dugan

A Thought for Today – Good Morning Blessing c. 2018

We Must Hide No Longer c. 2011

We Must Hide No Longer

Author: Ryan Smith

Welcome to America, the self-proclaimed land of the free and home of the brave. The country where, at least in theory, one can practice any faith one wishes and can fully exercise as the Founding Fathers put it the “freedom of conscience.”

The First Amendment, which starts with “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, ” while plain on its face has had a lot of footnotes attached to it over the years by the Christian supermajority. Freedom of religion as long as your faith is Abrahamic in origin. Freedom from persecution as long as you kneel before the Cross. Freedom to worship openly and unhindered only if your faith is one that was thrust on your ancestors by foreign missionaries who claimed to have their best interests at heart.

As a member of what is America’s Invisible Minority, I am no stranger to what happens to Pagans when one is ‘outed’. While I have not been physically assaulted or fired because of my faith I do know what it is for people to go oddly silent when I offer a blessing. I know what it is to be mocked as “insane” and/or labeled a “devil-worshiper”. And of course, I have heard the ever-popular chastisement of, “You’re going to Hell.” I’m fairly sure that anyone whom is not Christian reading this knows what I’m talking about. I’m also fairly sure most people reading this, if they personally have not been the victims of it, at least know someone who lost their job shortly after being outed for “personality issues” or because “didn’t quite work out” or because “we no longer have need of your services.”

Then we have the worst examples: Brandi Blackbear, who was suspended from school for fifteen days in Oklahoma due to accusations of witchcraft (1) . In 1999 Tempest Smith of Michigan who, after school administrators washed their hands of the ongoing harassment by Christian students at her school, hung herself rather than deal with it any longer in 2001 (2) .

Palmdale, California, the state that is seen by many and prided as the most forward-thinking in the country, in 2002 had a local Christian group invade a Pagan store and harass, browbeat, intimidate, and threaten patrons who were honoring Ostara. The best part was when the Sheriff’s Department refused to investigate because, oh by the way, a volunteer department chaplain was at the attack and helped organize it (3) .

2004 in South Carolina saw local prosecutors state that a man accused of murder did so because he was Wiccan (4) . There is of course the infamous case of the Wiccan Nevada National Guardsman denied a pentacle on his headstone by the US government (5) .

In 2007 an Army Chaplain, in spite of his stellar record as a soldier and Chaplain, was not only denied his request to serve as a Wiccan Chaplain but also removed from the Chaplain’s Corps (6) . I’m sure there are plenty of other incidents like these that are as bad, possibly worse, that have not been mentioned here.

So what, you may be wondering, is the point of all this? The point is simple: we as a diverse group of Earth-based faith traditions are routinely disrespected and disregarded by American society as a whole.

Now I know a lot of Pagans are likely thinking to themselves, “Why should we care what a bunch of superficial ‘sheeple’ think? We’re free spirits who dance to the beat of our own drums and don’t care what other people say about us!” There is a very serious problem with that kind of thinking.

In the United States of America today there are about 300 million people (7) . Of that 300 million it is estimated only 1.3 million are Pagans of some kind or another (8) . As much as our independent spirit and willingness to question convention is probably our greatest strength it cannot be ignored that we are a tiny minority in an overwhelmingly Christian nation.

What would happen if, for example, the good people at Operation Rescue who had regularly targeted Dr. Tiller’s clinic in Kansas for protest (9) were very directly confronted in the national media and asked if their accusations of him being a mass-murderer (10) were responsible in some fashion for his cold-blooded assassination inside his own church? You would have wall-to-wall coverage of pundits, preachers, and politicians tearing their hair out and wailing about “persecution.”

Now what happens if, say, a Druid Grove is accused of human sacrifice? First off you probably wouldn’t see any media attention given to such a story unless someone decides to go and actually do something about “those dangerous cultists.” You would probably also see outrage and condemnation on the web on Pagan blogs. And just like many other instances of persecution after we as a whole vow “Never Again” and some group or foundation takes up the incident as their championed cause, it sinks back into the morass of apathy.

Why does this happen? Are we not devoted enough to our own dignity? The answer is rather more elementary than Pagans being undeserving or incapable of organizing or any of the other excuses bandied about.

With only a small handful of real victories against our persecutors and attackers, any move to do something about it is already seen by many as doomed to fail. Too many Pagans give our independent nature and notorious difficulty in being organized in any meaningful fashion as cop-outs to really having an impact on society and improving our standing in it. It is, sadly, understandable why many would do so.

Who wants to exhaust their time, money, and energy fighting for a cause pre-determined in the minds of their colleagues as lost? Everyone wants to be the hero riding over the hill; no one wants to be the person who makes the glorious last stand for a greater moral victory. Far better, it would be argued, to think small.

Better to gain a seat on an Interfaith Council or use of a Unitarian Church than to run for public office. Better to make small, easy victories than to organize, mobilize, and take the fight to where it matters most: the public square. Better to cede the debate to people who do not understand us and in many cases are actively hostile to us.

To take such an approach is to sacrifice the future of our faith, of our community, and of the next generation of Pagans for the sake of questionable comfort and unsteady safety in the immediate present. As Ben Franklin once said, “He who would give up a little liberty for a little security will gain neither and lose both.”

We cannot continue to “wait and see” or “let our moment come” or “try not to upset people.” We upset a sizable fraction of the population simply by breathing; staying quiet and walking small will not change that. I see no reason why we, a community that wears our free spirits as a badge of honor and believe in the importance of personal responsibility, should be afraid of standing up for what we believe. Every other group striving for rights and dignity in American history has been told the same thing when they began their push.

If all the other groups had listened then we probably would still have slavery in the South, women as property of their husbands, and only those with land of their own having the right to vote. Discretion is said to be the better part of valor, but when discretion is forced by circumstance then it is no longer a guardrail against madness but a straightjacket for the soul.

So long as we allow inaction we will remain the Invisible Minority. So long as we act in reaction to fear Pagans will continue to be harassed, attacked, fired, and forgotten. The promise of the Declaration of Independence of, “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” will remain unfulfilled for all of us. The effort will be long. It will be hard. Only a fool would promise that it would be easy. But America now is no longer the America where the Religious Right stood unchallenged in their agenda by the masses.

The time is now. We stand at a vital crossroads in history. With the power of the social conservatives, at least for now, broken and our numbers on the rise we must seize the moment and begin the long journey to respect and acceptance. In so doing we must remember, for all who join us in the cause, that we do not just do so for ourselves. We fight for each other, our fellow Kin regardless of Tradition.

Most importantly, we are fighting for the future. The future of our Traditions. The future of our community as a whole and the health, vitality, and success of our local communities in particular. Most vitally we are struggling for the next generation. We must take up the cause to demand respect and dignity and work long and hard now so that when the next generation comes of age they will not know the fear, uncertainty, loneliness, and hardship that many of us have been forced to live with.

We begin today so tomorrow we may openly stand on the mountaintops and in the public square with each other, our children, and our fellow Americans and have no fear anywhere in this nation, from Seattle to Atlanta, from San Francisco to San Antonio, from New York to New Orleans there will be no place where we must hide the truth of who we are for the sake of survival or propriety.

We must take up the cause of liberation. We can no longer let fear instilled by our attackers to keep us shoved into the shadows. We must stand up and get involved in our local communities. We need to actively participate in local, state, and federal politics whether or not it is directly Pagan related or not. To give us a voice in public offices, we need to cultivate, assist and support people to run for these offices including those within the existing two major parties.

We must aggressively dispel the lies perpetrated by our foes by coming out to the public where it is safe to do so as a Pagan, as a Druid, as a Witch, as a Heathen so they know we are not some mysterious dark cult but real people they know. We must do this for what are our natural rights as human beings of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness on our terms according to what we believe not what others say we must believe.

We have no time to wait, no time to allow our moment to come. Our time is here.

Every act we take, great or small, alone or in a group, which is one made for the good of our greater community is one worth doing. Every act no matter its impact is one more step on the road to victory.

We cannot wait for heroes to come riding down from on high to our rescue. We must answer the call and rise to the challenge that we all face.

       

Footnotes:
1. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1568/is_9_32/ai_70461580/
2. http://community-2.webtv.net/FullMoonCircle/TempestSmith/
3. Rich Breault, “Wiccagate: What do Witches Grove protesters have to hide?, ” Valley Press, 2002-APR-8.
4. http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S=2347141 and nav=0RaPRIlo
5. http://archives.chicagotribune.com/2007/feb/08/news/chi-0702080027feb08
6. http://www.northcountrygazette.org/articles/2007/032907WitchTrials.html
7. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/US.html
8. http://religions.pewforum.org/pdf/affiliations-all-traditions.pdf
9. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/abortviolence/stories/tiller3.htm
10. http://www.christiannewswire.com/news/8967610531.html

 

A Little Humor for Your Day – White Light Coven Application c. 2013

(Not a real coven)

White Light Coven Application

The Mystical Wiccan Coven Grove of the Glittery Butterfly Unicorn of Magical Healing and Holy White Light of Divine Spiritual Spiffiness and Enchanted Smiling Faerie Goddess of the Brilliant Light of Wonderfulness is Currently accepting applications.

Hi!  On behalf of the MWCGGBUMHHWDSSESFGBLW group, I’d just like to say…Hi!  We’re a loving, accepting group of Eclectic Wiccans who worship the LIGHT!  We believe that you can’t hurt anything, because the Rede says so!  So we don’t eat animals, because animals are people TOO!  You know those meanies say that plants are alive too but they’re just huffy because they’re carnivorous and angry and not enlightened like us.  But you look like a really NEAT person!  You just might be PERFECT to join our group!

At MWCGGBUMHHWDSSESFGBLW, we believe that the God and Goddess have always watched over us, since thousands and thousands of years ago when everyone was Wiccan and bisexual and nothing bad happened and everyone lived in peace and harmony eating only fruits and berries and frolicking merrily through the summer fields.  And they watched over us when the Bad Men came and conquered our peaceful ancestors and forced them to do horrible things like worship male deities and eat meat.  And then they watched over us still when MILLIONS AND MILLIONS OF WOMEN AND CATS BURNED AT THE STAKE FOR THEIR FREEEEDOM!!!!

Anyway.  Teehee!  So the God and Goddess love each other, and they love you too, even if you don’t think they love you, because they do love you, and we love you, and we love everyone, except the mean people who disagree with us.  But we love them anyway!!  Even though they’re mean!!!

But the God and Goddess know who we really are, and I’ve been Wiccan for all my lives, so I know everything firsthand, you know?  Those sillyheads and their stupid “books” and “facts,” yanno?  What the heck are THEY so riled up about? I would SO think I know better than them, ’cause I was Cleopatra in one life and then this one other time I was this Druid priestess so like I remember all those lives because I’m enlightened.

MWCGGBUMHHWDSSESFGBLW has this Book of Shadows that was passed down from my mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother’s mother.  And it was first written by my first incarnation in that one ancient place thingy in that cool swirly language.  Yea.  It’s really cool.

I’d tell you more but um you have to be one of us to know so just fill out these few questions so we can make you one of us and then we’ll tell you the secrets of the universe and give you a neat bumper sticker.  If you answer no to any of these questions, maybe we’re not right for you, but that’s okay…when you stop being a regular human and maybe get reborn as a Witch like us (’cause see we were all born with all these powers because we were chosen and that’s why we’re all together because only special Natural Witches like us can have covens) we’ll let you try again.  Because we love you.

1. Do you watch The Craft religiously?

2. Do you only eat plants?

3. Do you swear to worship ONLY the Light????

4. Isn’t George Clooney hot?

5. No really, I’m sooo totally serious, don’t you think he’s like maybe the reincarnation of Adonis or something?

6. Aren’t bunnies cute?

7. Aren’t Xtians just sooo totally sucky?

8. Can you proof it, hnu?

Thank you for applying, we hope to hear from you SOOOON!!!

Love and light and fluffy truffled lollipop ice cream cuddly snuggly wuggly huggles!!!

High Priestess Lady Moondrip Snowdancer Cloud Cover Cold Front With a 50% Chance Of Rain Treewalker Silver Daydream Sunshine Fluff

—-Sgaileach Sidhe

Spell for Today – Beginning mediation guide c. 2010

Beginning mediation guide

Beginning mediation guide: meditation helps your body and mind to obtain a deep state of relaxation. It is simple to learn and easy to practice. And it is useful to everyone.

Meditation is a wonderful way to relieve stress, clear your mind, and connect with your inner self. Many people have experienced meditation and don’t even know it. If you have ever drifted off into a day dream, got lost in the music you were listening to, or felt like you were floating on clouds then you have already experienced meditative awareness. However, when most people hear the word meditation they do not believe that they, personally, will be able to do it successfully. What they do not know, is that meditation is easy and useful for everyone.

Like any other skill, meditation needs to be practiced to be done correctly. It is very unusual that you will learn it by actually resting but remaining in an active state. The goal is to keep your mind free of distracting thoughts while remaining relaxed, but awake. Done correctly, meditation allows the body to rest more deeply than when you are sleeping. Meditation provides a higher awareness of the details of everyday life. Even a few minutes per day will help you move through the world with more relaxation and alertness.

You have challenged your outer body to explore its full range since you were a young child; with meditation your inner body is given a chance to explore its full range also. Your body works as a whole to make this possible.

People meditate for all types of reasons including curiosity, boredom, and despair. Others meditate to contact nature, to find the essence of life, to keep their senses sharp, or to heal. With so many reasons to meditate, a variety of techniques and traditions have emerged. No one way is correct. You need to use whatever works for you.

Meditation is there to help your fulfill you everyday needs, clear your mind of clutter, and get some perspective on your life, as you would if you were to go on a vacation. Some people even consider it a mini-vacation and look forward to the escape daily. Having more energy is also a key benefit.

The biggest arguments against meditation are not having time to learn how to do it or not having the time to keep doing it. That is simply untrue because meditation is easily learned and practice only can take one to three minutes per day. If you insist your life is too busy to take this time, that is all the more reason that you need meditation in your life.

Another misconception about meditation is that you have to sit in a cross-legged position for a long period of time. This is also false as meditation can be done sitting, standing, walking, or even lying down. Being comfortable is needed to help your relaxation efforts. And again, meditation can take very little time away from your busy schedule.A good start to learning meditation is deep breathing exercises. Choose a comfortable position. As you take a few deep breaths through your nose or mouth, your body automatically begins to relax. Concentrate on the rhythm of your breathing. Focus on whether your inhalation or exhalation is longer. The longer time between breaths also indicates relaxation. Your eyes may be either open or closed. If they are open, pick a spot to focus on and try not to let your eyes wander. If they are closed, look up slightly as if you were looking at the back of your forehead. Continue your breathing and when thoughts come to you, simply put them out of your mind. Relax and let go. This exercise is a good practice to learn meditation and a good foundation to explore further.Successful concentration sometimes comes with reciting a mantra. This is definitely not needed, but for beginners it is a trick to improve concentration. A mantra, in literal terms, means thought as sound. Your mantra might be just a sound, a word, or even a group of words. Whatever the case, it is repeated over and over allowing the mind to focus on it, instead of drifting away. Mantras do not have to be repeated out loud, they can be listened to internally without making any external sound.Other successful tips to meditation are making sure you will not be interrupted, not forcing concentration, and learning not to be frustrated if you cannot do everything perfectly from the beginning. Start with small meditation periods such as one-to-three minutes per day when possible. Then gradually work up to five, ten, and fifteen-minute meditations several times daily. After only a short time, you will realize the effects of meditation and look forward excitedly to those periods of the day.

Some of the Witchcraft/Magickal Correspondence – Thursday’s Witchery c. 2018

 

Thursday’s Witchery

Try wearing some honeysuckle-scented perfume to encourage prosperity. Bewitch someone by wearing deep royal blue or brighten up a dreary day by wearing lucky, prosperity-drawing green. Brew up a pot of mint tea to help increase your cash flow. Try adding a pinch of nutmeg or cinnamon to an unscented candle to encourage some fast cash. Bake up a loaf of wheat bread for the family, and celebrate abundance and be thankful for all that you have.

Conjure up a witchy craft and create a philter or two for your magickal needs. Work with the deities and the magickal plants corresponding with Thursday.

How did the energies of the plants of Jupiter enhance your magick? What did you learn by working with Juno, Jove, or Zeus? The truth is that by adding these new techniques and information into your spellcasting repertoire, you will indeed advance your skills, thereby moving up in the ranks to become a more adept magickal practitioner

Just by believing in yourself and working toward creating abundance, health, and prosperity, you have already begun to transform your outlook on life. Put your game face on; think positively. Work with Thor for perseverance and courage, and apply those qualities to your own prosperity spells and healing witchery. Break out the tarot cards; How could you incorporate that symbolism into other spells of your own design?

Use your imagination, check Thursday’s correspondence list, and see what other bewitching things you can conjure up for prosperity magick all by yourself. Call on the gods and goddess of Thursday and bring some positive change, abundance, health, and prosperity into your life!

Source

Book of Witchery: Spells, Charms & Correspondences for Every Day of the Week
Ellen Dugan

A Thought for Today – The Witch Said What?!c. 2019

A thought to start your week with…

Blessed be dear Sisters, Brothers, and honored Guests!

A Little Humor for Your Day: Phrases You Wish You Could Say At Work c. 2019

Phrases You Wish You Could Say At Work
  1. If you got payed a nickel for every stupid idea you had, you’d be a millionare.
  2. Just when I thought you couldn’t say anything dumber, you keep talking!
  3. If I throw a stick, will you leave?
  4. It might look like I’m doing nothing, but at the cellular level I’m really quite busy.
  5. A cubicle is just a padded cell without a door.
  6. Nice perfume. Must you marinate in it?
  7. And your crybaby whiny-butt opinion would be…?
  8. Any connection between your reality and mine is purely coincidental.
  9. At least I have a positive attitude about my destructive habits.
  10. Can I trade this job for what’s behind door #1?
  11. Chaos, panic, and disorder: my work here is done.
  12. Do I look like a people person?
  13. Errors have been made. Others will be blamed.
  14. How about never? Is never good for you?
  15. How do I set a laser printer to stun?

 

–Turok’s Cabana

Spell for Today – Magickal Goody of the Day – Make Your Own Psychic Visions Oil c.2016

Magickal Goody of the Day

 

Psychic Visions Oil

4 tsp Lemon Grass Oil

2 tsp Bay Leaf Oil

1 tsp Nutmeg Oil

3 tsp Hazelnut Oil (or other carrier oil of your choice)

Unlike the Divination Oil, this Psychic Visions Oil is specifically created to help extend psychic visions to those who are not particularly prone to them. When the forehead is anointed with this mixture, it can cause the user’s psychic awareness to expand, which will manifest itself in dreams.

 

—Sandra Willis, Essential Oils for Witchcraft, Magic and Spells 

Wishing You and Yours A Very Blessed & Beautiful Friday Morning! May The Goddess Fill Your Life With Her Blessings Today! c. 2019

 

We Are Witches All

We sing and dance and hold our rites,
We live and love together.
We go sky-clad or wear our outer robes
If it is chilling weather.
About the altar we do dance;
We praise The Gods
We love and ever do, we give
Our thanks to the sun.
And moon above, We are The Craft;
Love The Craft; We are Witches All.
Join us.. In Our Circle For We Are Witches All.
Walk into our Circle and feel the love Bound,
And Meet The Lord and Lady who guide us in our Rounds;
” An’ Harm None, Do What Thou Wilt.”
It is The Wiccan Rede.
We fear no foe for love we show,
In thought and also Deed.
Our words of thanks, our songs of praise,
We offer them in pray’r.
We sing their praise, we ask their help;
We know that they are there.

—From Pagan Library

Dear sisters, brothers, and honored guests may the Great Mother and Great Father, Lord and Lady, bless you and your family with all things positive! – Lady Beltane

Seasons of the Witch! Ancient Holidays (and some not so ancient!) c.2011

 Seasons of the Witch!   Ancient Holidays (and some not so ancient!)   

Live each Season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influences of each. ~Henry David Thoreau (1817 – 1862)  

)0(
Coronado Day (US Southwest)
Dance of the Secret Places – Fairy
International Clam Chowder Festival
National Chocolate Covered Peanuts Day
National Day – Kuwait
National Don’t Utter a Word Day
Norriture Rituelle des sources têt d’ l’eau – Haiti
Norriture Rituelle des sources têt d’ l’eau – Voudon
Nut’s Day – Ancient Egypt
Pistol Patent Day (Samuel Colt)
Quiet Day
Revolution Day – Suriname
Special Holiday Choiseul Province – Solomon Islands
St. Ethelbert’s Day
St. Tarasius’ Day
St. Walburga’s Day (patron of crops; against coughs, frenzy, plague)
Suriname Revolution Day
Time of the Old Woman begins (until 4 March)

 TIME OF THE OLD WOMEN, lasting up to March 4th, & considered dangerous, especially due to the weather. The Koran says the world will end during this time.

Filling the Granary – On the 25th day of the first lunar month, Chinese grain and rice-merchants make sacrifices to the Granary God (Cangshen). In earlier times, this was the day when everyone feasted on mutton, pork and beef. Blackburn, Bonnie and Leofranc Holford-Strevens, Oxford Companion to the Year, Oxford University Press 1999

St Walburga – This sixth century Anglo-Saxon nun, who became the abbess of the double monastery of Heidenheim in Germany, was also known as a grain protectress. She was depicted holding a sheaf of wheat and was considered a matron of good crops, farmers and pregnant women.

Apparently sheaves of grain dressed like a woman were called Walburga. A legend tells how she disguised herself in a sheaf of grain while fleeing from a pursuer. Her other feast day is Walpurgishnacht (Apr 30), the date her relics were translated, a Christian date superimposed over an old Germanic spring revel, honoring a fertility goddess.Berger, Pamela, The Goddess Obscured, Beacon Press 1985

Day of Frau Holle -A day held sacred by Odinists honoring the industrious nature of women and the rewards they reap for faithlessly helping their folk…often times Gods and Goddesses in peasants clothing. To quote the Havamal “Never mock a wandering man or a guest” Ruthee C Fenian Moon Productions 2002

 

)0(    

Seasons of the Witch!   Ancient Holidays (and some not so ancient!)       

Some of the Witchcraft/Magickal Correspondences Magickal Woods and Their Uses c. 2011

Magickal Woods and Their Uses

Apple: Love, healing, immortality

Apricot: Love

Ash: Protection prosperity, health, the sea.

Bamboo: Protection, luck, hex-breaking

Birch: Protection, banishing, purification

Cherry: Love, divination

Chestnut: Love, strength, money, healing

Cypress: Longevity, healing, comfort, protection

Dogwood: Wishes, protection

Elder: Banishing, protection, healing, wards off attackers, prosperity, sleep

Note: Some Wiccan traditions believe that the elder is sacred to the Goddess and therefore should not be cut or used; however, the leaves and berries are used in spells.

Elm: Love

Fig: Divination, fertility, love

Hawthorn: Fertility, happiness

Hazel: Luck, protection, wishes, anti-lightning

Hickory: Longevity, legal matters

Holly: Protection, luck dream magick

Juniper: Protection, love banishing, health, anti-theft

Magnolia: Fidelity, enjoyment, riches

Maple: Love, money, longevity

Mesquite: Healing

Mimosa: Protection, love, dreams, prophecy, purification

Mulberry: Protection, magickal focus, strength

Oak: All-purpose

Orange: Love, money, luck, divination

Peach: Love, fertility, wishes, banishment, longevity

Pear: Love

Pine: Healing, protection, banishment, money, anti-hunger

Plum: Healing

Poplar: Money, success, personal riches

Rowan: All-purpose

Walnut: Health, mental powers, wishes

Willow: Divination, love, protection, healing.

A Little Humor for Your Day – You Finally Know You are a Witch When… c. 2016

You Finally Know You are a Witch When…

© 1998 Connie Gilbert

1. Your BOS has spots on the pages from spilled brews.

2. When cleaning house you have to specify. “Where is the broom? No, not the broom, where is the one to clean the floor with?”

3. Candle wax has dripped on your keyboard.

4. There are more jars of strange smelling plants in your cupboards than there are cereal boxes.

5. Friends know they can always give you candles and incense as a gift.

6. When watching old re-runs of Bewitched, you find you side with Samantha’s mother Endora.

7. When traveling, stranger and stranger strangers tell you their problems.

8. You find yourself making corn dollies in the checkout line at the grocery store (well, I thought about it).

9. You ask for Halloween off, because it’s a religious holiday.

10. You start answering the phone with “Merry Meet”.

 

Source

 

The Cauldron

(A Thought for Today) Good Thursday Morning to All Our Dear Brothers & Sisters of the WOTC! c. 2019

Dear sisters, brothers, and honored guests may the Great Mother and Great Father, Lord and Lady, bless you and your family with all things positive! – Lady Beltane

Spell for Today – A Spell To See Spirits c. 2014

A Spell to See Spirits

To see spirits, old European grimoires recommend mixing together aloe, pepper,
musk, vervain and saffron, and burning this in a cemetery.
We can adapt this for other locations (like those in which the spirit lived) by
adding a bit of sweetgrass or tobacco to a specially prepared incense.
Create the incense on the anniversary of the death of the individual you wish to
contact.
This is then burned at 11 am, in the safety of a majick circle that also holds
symbolic items to connect you to the entity.
An incantation to encourage the spirit’s presence is:

“Guardians of the Spirit realm,
hear and guide my plea.
When the witching hour rings true,
bring my relationship, name of person to me.
Other souls who hear my call,
are not welcome in this place.
Only the one known as name of person may enter sacred space.”

Repeat the request three times, twenty minutes apart, then wait quietly for
indications of a presence.
Signs include the scent of flowers, or favored cologne, a cool wind, movement of
curtains, and candles going out or twitching erratically.
Once you feel sure the spirit is with you, do not make it tarry overly long.
Take care of your business, say farewell, and thank the guardians for their
assistance before closing the circle.

A Word of Caution:
Spiritual entities should not be banished or called for amusement.
It is best to contact a knowledgeable, experienced psychic for advice or
assistance before undertaking any spells of this type.
It is used for communication, and understanding the purpose of spirits.
The best times are in-between times, such as noon, midnight, dusk and dawn.
Halloween. Seasons of late fall and winter.
When the Moon is in Libra. Eclipses. Wednesday.

Author unknown

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A Little Humor for Your Day – You Know Someone Is New To Magick and Paganism When They Think That… c. 2016

You Know Someone Is New To Magick and Paganism When They Think That…

 

An ATHAME is the gas you use for your grill.

A CENSOR is a drink you mix with alcohol.

ASTRAL PROJECTION is a home-made movie viewer.

A SYMPATHITIC LINK is when you feel sorry because your chain broke.

WICCA is that part of the candle that burns.

APHRODITE is a prehistoric bird.

ARCHETYPES is a kind of building structure.

BLESSED BE is the god of insects.

A BOOK OF SHADOWS contains silhouettes of friends or family members.

A BRAZIER is support wear for women.

CASTING is done with a fishing line, or on a set in Hollywood.

CHARGING is done with a credit card or battery.

The only way to get into a CIRCLE is to have the right of way.

Crystal CLEANSING is done with window cleaner.

CYCLES have to do with your washing machine and when to add fabric softener.

DEMETER is where you put your quarter when you park downtown.

A DOLMAN is a new brand of banana.

HANDFASTING is eating without utensils.

LEY LINES happen at the airport in Hawaii.

PAN is something you fry food in.

A QUARTER is 25 cents and still buys a cup of coffee. (Note: This person is not only new to magick, but they also haven’t been out in a while!)

SKYCLAD is a shade of blue clothing.

A TRAD is a type of geometrical figure.

WHEEL OF FORTUNE is the game show with Vanna White.

 

Source

The Cauldron

Spell – A- Day – Rune Meditation for Clearing Energy Flow c. 2011

 

Spell – A- Day – Rune Meditation for Clearing Energy Flow
Incense of the day: Peony
We have all felt the frustration of spells that flop. While it’s possible that a failed spell is just an indication that the universe has another agenda for you, it’s also very possible that there is a hidden obstacle in the energy flow. Issues with confidence and empowerment are among the greatest saboteurs that block energy. The runes of Ken (k), Haegl (h), and Gyfu (g) will be used in a guided imagery to open and uncover disruptions and to balance the chakra energy flow. Visualize Ken over the root chakra. Focus on opening the energies flowing from your root to your crown. Reveal any blockages by positioning Haegl over your root chakra. Visualize this rune uncovering disruptions as its energy flows to your crown. Return Haegl’s flow from the crown to the root, uncovering any “manifestation” blockages. Visualize Gyfu flowing from your root to your crown to balance your chakra energy. Focus on and journal any feelings or perceptions that you encountered. Reprogram any obstacles that were uncovered.
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By: Karen Follett

, Llewellyn and GrannyMoon’s Morning Feast