Tag: Jesus

How the Ostara Egg Came to Be

How the Ostara Egg Came to Be

The modern belief that eggs are delivered by a rabbit, comes from the legend of the Goddess Eostre. Eostre was walking one fine Spring day and came upon a beautiful little bird. The poor bird’s wing was badly injured and Eostre, feeling great compassion for the little creature, wanted to heal it. But the little bird’ wing was so badly damaged that Eostre knew it would never be able to fly again even after She healed it. So, Eostre decided to help the bird by healing it in a way that would give it mobility and a little something more. She turned it into a rabbit!

 

 

During the transformation, the rabbit retained the ability to lay eggs. The rabbit was so grateful to Eostre for saving its life that it laid a sacred egg in Her honor, joyously decorated it and then humbly presented it to the Goddess. She was so pleased and so touched by the rabbit’s thoughtful gift that She wished all humankind to share in her joy. In honoring her wishes, the rabbit went all over the world distributing these beautifully decorated little gifts of life and continues to do so even today.

Elder’s Meditation of the Day – March 9

Elder’s Meditation of the Day – March 9

“In the life of the Indian there was only one inevitable duty, the duty of prayer, the daily recognition of the Unseen and Eternal. His daily devotions were more necessary to him than daily food.”

–Charles A. Eastman (Ohiyesa), SANTEE SIOUX

The most important habit one can develop is the daily act of prayer. Prayer is our eyes, our ears, our feelings, our success, our guidance, our life, our duty, our goal. There really is only prayer and meditation. We can only help others through prayer. We can only help ourselves through prayer. You can never become an Elder unless you pray. You can never stay an Elder unless you pray. You never get wisdom unless you pray. You never understand unless you pray.

Great Spirit, today, teach me to pray.

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Elder’s Meditation of the Day – March 8

Elder’s Meditation of the Day – March 8

“Balance is implicit in the Red Road. When you’re on the Red Road, you are in the center. Yet, you do not go to either extreme, and you allow both sides to exist. This is accomplished by continually postponing surrendering to temptation, whatever it may be. It is saying `later’ instead of `no.'”

–Dr. A.C. Ross (Ehanamani), LAKOTA

The Sacred Path of life has a middle, a left side, and a right side. As human beings, we are designed to walk this middle path as much as we can. As we walk, we will stray to the left and to the right and come back to the middle. Straying to the left or right side is as sacred as being in the middle. Sometimes we call this straying our mistakes. We are designed by the Creator to walk to Sacred Path of life, and realize that our mistakes are the source of lessons. These lessons give us our wisdom. It is not wrong that we are tempted. What matters is what we do with the temptation.

Great Spirit, today, let me enjoy the Sacred Path of Life.

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Is There a Right Time to Curse?

Is There a Right Time to Curse?

Author: Sleeping Moon

First off, I want to get something straight that even pagans seem to misunderstand. Or have been misguided into believing. (Not all, mind you, but most.) Hexes are NOT curses! Hexes are painted signs posted on barns down in the south to promote positive influences over the property and those that live there.

Curses are quite different. From the Wikipedia (on-line dictionary) the definition is: A curse (also called execration) is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to some other entity—one or more persons, a place, or an object. In particular, “curse” may refer to a wish that harm or hurt will be inflicted by any supernatural power, such as a spell, a prayer, an imprecation, an execration, magic, witchcraft, a god, a natural force, or a spirit. In many belief systems, the curse itself (or accompanying ritual) is considered to have some causative force in the result.

They claim that a curse holds no power unless the recipient believes in it. I don’t believe that’s necessarily true. A curse has merit no matter what. It’s a solid form of magick just as a spell is. It has its purpose and has a place. They exist for a reason and if used correctly, they can be a force of nature to be reckoned with.

There are a few pagans who have called a dark deity as their matron/patron. Kali, The Morrigan, Calliach, Hecate, Badb, Skatha, Nemisis, Morgana, Innana and Lilith, Hades, Anubis, Setesh, Hoder, just to name a few.

What’s the difference with calling one of these dark deities and a curse? There are many forms of magic to use in calling forth the dark deities, but all in all, the dark deities are: Dark. You wouldn’t call on Kali or The Morrigan to cast a love spell. They are more for revenge and war than love and laughter.

In the beginning I would never have even thought about cursing any one. For any reason whatsoever. Many years later, my logic has changed.

I feel that there is a time to curse and a time to use another approach. If harm befell upon your loved one, for example if he/she was raped, shot, or killed, (these being the more serious offenses) , I can agree that a curse is more of an appropriate form of magick than to send that person ‘peace and love’. The damage has been done and is irrevocable so in my opinion, a curse is warranted and justifiable. Surrounding yourself with protection and that loved one (whether living or not) is always a positive take, but you would want to see that person get the justice he/she deserves. Right? You wouldn’t want that person to be able to harm other folk, right? You’d do every thing with in your capable means (with in the law) to get what they deserve.
So why not a curse?

I understand that Wiccans, the traditional ones, wouldn’t condone such a notion because of the three-fold law. But, as I stated beforehand, the damage HAS been done, so there is no further harm. Every thing in life has a good and bad side to it, just as it does in magick. No matter what we do in magick, we are taking something from some one else. That extra energy we use to cast a spell could be used for some one fighting a serious illness. In the air we breathe, we are taking that air from some one else. We use a candle to focus. We use that source of light from some one that may need it during a power outage or in a third world country that has no power what so ever. The list could go on and on. It’s a nice rule, but it’s an oxy moron. It doesn’t fit. Not technically.
Of course I would never agree to a curse just because I didn’t like some one. The damage that would warrant a curse from me would have to be severe.

Curses have a long history. It dates back to ancient Egyptian times. Probably dates back to the cave men, but for theory’s use, I will stick to then.

In Haiti, curses are called getting “crossed”. In Voodoo it’s called a jinx as well as a form of foot track magic. The “evil eye” is thought to stem from the Middle Eastern and the Mediterranean areas.

In Greece they are called katadesmoi and in Rome, tabulae defixiones. In Ireland there are many known forms of curses such as curse stones or egg curses, New Year curses and milk curses. Chinese peoples have them. The Indonesians, the Indians (not with the feather!) the Europeans, the Brits and the Scottish people have curses in their history. Even Native Americans.

The Native American people of the southern plains called these types of witches Skin Walkers. Skin Walkers where as nasty as one witch or wizard could possible get with the use of black magick. These beings are supposed to be able to extract revenge upon the help less victim by placing an animal skin over their human bodies and thus shape shifting into the form of that animal. While in the guise of the animal they choose, they can wreck havoc upon the poor soul they choose to victimize.

Even in the bible there are curses hidden within. God himself placed a curse upon the snake “You are cursed more than all cattle”, (Genesis 3:14) . As a result of Adam and Eve disobeying God, the ground is also cursed: “Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life.” (3:17) . Cain is cursed from the earth, “So now you are cursed from the earth”, (4:11) . In the New Testament Paul sees curses as central to the meaning of Jesus’ crucifixion. In Galatians 3:13 he says: “Christ redeems us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us…”. He refers to Deuteronomy: ” anyone who is hung on a tree is under God’s curse.” (21:23 RAEDM)

So if even God himself used them, they are credited aren’t they? Why can’t we use them if the damage has been done?

I wish the world were all frilly and white. But, it’s not. There are lines of grey that border on crossing over to black; there are lines of grey that border on crossing over to the lines of white. That’s the way life works. It’s the way Nature lives and the way humans are bred. Nature is neither cruel nor loving, it just is. And magick is the same, in my book.

Again, if the damage has been done, why can’t a curse be warranted?

Daily OM for March 3rd – Our Earthly Origins

Our Earthly Origins
Reclaiming Our Roots

 

 

As we begin to see more clearly the people we come from, we can begin to alter our perception of who we are now. 

 

Some cultures are more rooted to the earth and connected to their inherent spirituality. But every one of us, even those of us who have been disconnected from our roots for hundreds of years, comes from a place that was once inhabited by people who worshipped and honored the earth on which they lived. In other words, we can all claim this wisdom as an essential part of who we are.

One way we can begin to rediscover our roots is to explore the early earth-based religions practiced in the parts of the world that birthed our ancestors. If we explore the ancient spiritual practices of our ancestors, we will find that their practices and beliefs share many elements with Native American, African, and aboriginal religious traditions. People who are connected to the earth and honor her share a fundamental philosophy that we can claim as our own because we too are of the earth. Many of us have become so disconnected from the earth that it feels foreign and awkward to imagine communing with her or performing a ritual for her. If we are honest, though, we will find within ourselves a yearning to feel more connected, more grounded, and more at home in this world. This yearning can lead us back to our disowned roots, which, of course, leads us right into the heart of the earth.

As we begin to see more clearly the people we come from, we can begin to alter our perception of who we are now, laying claim to our inherent relatedness to the earth. We might celebrate this by observing the ancient calendar of solstices and equinoxes, celebrating and honoring the cycle of the seasons as our ancestors did, or we might explore any one of the many earth-based practices through reading or participating in ritual. When we do these things, we tap back into our roots, finding nourishment at the wellspring of our earthly origins, the source we share with all of humanity.

 

Conception of God

Conception of God

Author: Katie Koumatos

“How do you envision God?”
“As a witch, do you believe in God? In Jesus?”
“How can you have multiple Gods?”

When I talk to non-pagans about my spiritual beliefs, I get these questions a lot. I imagine this will only increase as I begin my time as a seminary student. While the community at Pacific School of Religion is open minded and welcoming to pagans, I imagine that there is still a lot of ignorance about pagan practices. Even within our community, there are a lot of discussions about how to approach the conceptualization of the divine. So let me share with you my own approach. After many years of searching, I found a beautiful metaphor that describes it perfectly.

Consider the ocean. For any of you who are lucky to have lived in a coastal town, it isn’t easy to imagine that we know the ocean. Growing up in San Diego, I spent many childhood days playing at the foot of the Great Pacific Ocean. As I learned how to spell and do long division, I also learned how to negotiate the fickle nature of the ocean, survive the rising tides and avoid the hidden dangers.

So it is easy to say I know the ocean. But what I actually know is one small piece. I have come to know the Pacific Ocean through half a dozen spots where it comes into contact with the land up and down the California Coast. I know the ocean at its boundaries, its borders. And even then, I only know THIS ocean and I only know it at THESE boundaries.

Every time I go to the ocean, even if I go to the very same beach, it is always a different ocean. Each wave falls differently along the sand, making small but powerful changes in the shape of the land. For me growing up in San Diego, the ocean was blue and relatively warm, playing along long flat beaches filled with sun worshiping beach-goers. The ocean of my adulthood is a colder ocean, breaking against the picturesque rocks of the Northern California coast. Up here the ocean is a grey and windy creature, with swirling and powerful tides. Up here I sit far above the ocean’s break, enjoying the view and the spray but rarely submerging myself in the water.

After many years, I have finally realized that God is like this.

The ocean is truly unknowable. We can list facts and send boats out to gather bits and return. But no human being will ever fully know the ocean. It is simply too vast, constantly changing, and so very deep. However, while the full ocean is unknowable, human beings from the beginning of time have had complex and important relationships with the ocean. We know her in our own spaces, at the boundaries of where she meets the land upon which we live.

Each human being who reaches out into the void seeking the divine cannot ever expect to understand the wholeness of God / Goddess / Universe / Great Spirit / the All. But in our little space, at the boundary between our short, incarnate existence and the vast eternity of divine energy, we find our face of God. Like the ocean, it changes over time, waves shifting the shape of our lives as we adjust and grow in our relationship. And while many people may gather at the same beach, but have different experiences of the ocean, so too may many people gather together in fellowship and yet remain separated by the different faces they see in God.

People can shape God as well, just as humans can shift the land where the ocean meets them. We shape the stories and the perceptions, the expectations and visual imagery. Over time this shaping can become powerful and deeply ingrained. But they are still open to interpretation.

We need these interpretations. The immensity of the divine energy is just too big to engage and feel the comfort and solace that religion offers. Having a personal relationship with God is only possible when God is squeezed down a bit, into a form that we can conceptualize having a personal relationship with. So we humanize the divine energy. Some religions are monotheistic, and give one face of God their full attention. While others simply spread out the realms of symbolic control, creating multiple faces and personalities for us to engage.

Whether your face of the divine is a multi-armed Hindu deity, the kami of the stream near your home, the Virgin of Guadalupe, or your own higher spirit, we are all just seeking a personified form to engage with. As we are made by divine energy, the worship and energy of human beings creates a real and tangible presence for the forms and faces that we have created for the divine. These faces of God are not stagnant, but they can and do exist separately and distinctly from our own personal experience because they are and have been conceived of by other human beings. With each ritual calling, we are making and remaking our Gods just as they are making and remaking us.

In the end, I believe that divine energy is the sum of all of us, along with all the animals and the plants and the whole wide universe. It is the spark of distant stars and the reproduction of the smallest bacteria. It is life and death and the shifting movement of existence here and everywhere, in this moment and in all moments before and after it. I believe that this whole is greater than the sum of these little parts and that collectively, we are conscious. I believe in a pattern, a tapestry of life in which we all play our part. We can make choices in this, but we have a part to play and there are pieces in our lives that guide us. And in all of this, different Gods are just convenient faces, ways to engage an unknowable energy.

The way I see it, God doesn’t care or even acknowledge the differences in our practices. Only human beings, with our limited sight and infinite distractions, could come up with a way to make such a small difference into a reason for centuries of war, dominance, and animosity.

Wicca in the World: Our Place in the 21st Century

Wicca in the World: Our Place in the 21st Century

Author: Ash’lynn Gaoithe

Religion has always been a sensitive subject. Religious conflicts and disagreements have a long and bloody history. I’ve heard it said that a belief system couldn’t be a true religion unless someone has died in its name. And while martyrdom is a powerful way to express the ultimate conviction for a cause, what does that say about human tolerance and our inability to coexist with people who do not believe the same things as us? I have many opinions on this subject, and I’d like to believe that they are a lovely shade of grey, instead of the black and white that religion usually is. I’ll talk about my views of religion in the abstract, how Wicca fits in, and then why I don’t believe that science in any way discredits our faith.

First of all, I think the theory of religion is beautiful and comforting. The belief in a power greater than one’s self puts me at ease, because it puts responsibility in the hands of someone more qualified than any man. I find it easy to rationalize that whatever happens, happens for a reason, and for the greater good (even if the “greater good” doesn’t quite work out in my favor) . There is a Navajo belief that every religion contains a thread of truth, and only when all the threads are woven together can the complete tapestry, the full truth, be seen. I mention this because I have a hard time accepting religions that claim to be the only “right” way to salvation. These religions then of course condemn other beliefs as false.

Now, I was raised a Christian, because it’s what my parents believed. This is easy to understand, because Christianity is the predominant religion where I was born. I’m sure that if I had been born in Afghanistan, I would have grown up a Muslim, or had I grown up in India or China, I would have been Hindu or Taoist, respectively. Religion, it seems, is quite culturally based. That’s why I always felt very uncomfortable with the whole “Jesus is the only way to salvation” thing. If the Christian God knows all, then He must know that a child born in the Middle East is not likely to turn to Christianity, because of harsh social pressure to be Muslim. And what about children born in remote parts of the world, like in tribal Africa, or aborigines in Oceania? In cases like that, He would know, perhaps, that western missionary would come to preach Christianity, at least not in that child’s lifetime. (And it’s not to say that conversions can’t happen; although cultural backgrounds do hold influence on people, personality is not indicative of where you were born. I recognize that. But if religion is part of an accepted social norm, conversion might be unlikely.)

It seemed to me, that if in the Christian doctrine anyone who did not accept Jesus into his or her heart could not enter heaven, then by determining that a child would be born into a “heathen” part of the world, then He was damning that soul to hell. And I could not relate to this God of predestination. He did not strike me as a loving God.

A couple months ago, I read Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. It was a wonderful book, and in the author’s quest to find spiritual enlightenment, she found her spark in a Hindu temple in India. When she described her experience, which happened during meditation, I remember thinking: “Wow, how lucky she was, to have had a personal experience like that. She found her spark through Hindu guidance and meditation; I wish I could find something that would work for me!” When I mentioned book to some women at my church, I was shocked at the reaction one woman had. She warned me that the book was dangerous, that the woman was following a path of evil, because she too, had been raised Christian, but had begun to walk a different path. She finished by locking me in a fixed stare and saying: “Jesus is the one true savior. You know that. Right?”

I nodded, to keep the peace, but inside, I was so confused. The Hindu religion was a peaceful, legitimate belief system, with many followers. How could so many people be wrong? And that’s not to claim that people can’t make mistakes, but when it comes to religion, there is so much doubt. Anyone who commits to a faith, especially those who find a faith without being born into it, does a lot of soul searching. They learn about a belief, and they might test the waters to see if the faith speaks to them. And while nothing is perfect, any widely recognized religion that exists, exists because it has been able to stand up to scrutiny. Organized religion is a mass of variables, but behind religions are thousands of people who are well-learned and accepting of the doctrine. And she had found a religion that spoke to her; surely connection to a higher power of any kind is a good thing? How could anyone condemn that experience, and write it off as a false god, or a path of evil?

I have since come to the conclusion that all Gods are one. I read somewhere that God does not care what you call Him, as long as you call Him. This rings so true to me. I find it very sad when I hear people born Christian that are now atheists, because they carried similar beliefs as me, which simply did not have a place among Christian teachings. And because that belief system did not suit them, they gave up belief altogether. And I’m not saying that Deity is supposed to align with what we want. But different religions exist because people have different views on what God is, and our personal beliefs should align with a belief system.

As a Christian, I was told that Jesus was savior. I could not believe that, it didn’t ring true with me. And there was no good in pretending to believe something that I could not accept in my heart; we cannot force ourselves to believe in something, we either do, or don’t. Therefore if one particular belief system does not “click”, search for something that does. Religions are many, and diverse. Religion should be a reflection of what you already believe. How else can you put your faith in something that cannot be proven?

There are many different types of people in this world (and thank goodness! Without diversity, we would be a boring human race!) . There are introverts and extroverts, athletes and bookworms, liberals and conservatives. Not everyone thinks quite the same way. So why shouldn’t there be different religions?

I believe everyone should explore, to find what suits him or her. There is no conviction without question. And it would be stifling to proclaim yourself a practitioner of a certain faith simply because others around you believe that! You always hear it said: “Be yourself, ” and “If everyone else were jumping off a bridge, would you?” But you never hear those things when it comes to faith; it seems everyone is telling you what to believe, telling you that it’s the only true way, the only right thing to believe.

I mean, belief is a personal thing. Some people can relate to God as a stern, disciplinary father, who has strict concepts of right and wrong, do this and not that. Some people want a loving embrace that can accept them and forgive their sins. Some people can relate more to an ambiguous deity who leaves life a matter of free will. Some people believe in one God, and others believe in many. Even in Wicca, no two people believe the same thing. Some could envision many individual Gods and Goddesses from several different pantheons, another person may call only on the all-encompassing God and Goddess, and another person may call only on the One. To me, all beliefs are just different faces of the same power.

I was recently reading a book in which a very good analogy was brought up: a disco ball. “A sphere made up of many small mirrors, each of which is one named aspect of Deity, and together they compose the whole, the One.” (How to Become a Witch: The Path of Nature, Spirit and Magick by Amber K and Azrael Arynn K)

And to me this is true on a bigger scale as well. Each mirror, each religion and belief system is a facet of the same thing. Whichever one you look at, it’s just a different way to see the same thing. And I just don’t know how someone looking into one tiny mirror can tell someone looking at a mirror on the other side that they’re not looking at the disco ball the right way, or that what they’re seeing isn’t real because they’re not standing in a certain way, looking at it from a certain angle.

Man can never come close to understanding the divine; it is simply beyond our comprehension. We can only seek to understand. Much of any religion is man-made, anyway. Men, believing themselves to be divinely inspired, wrote all the Bible, Torah, and Qur’an. And I’m not saying those books didn’t contain divine truth to the men who wrote them. And there are of course many who believe those sacred holy books to contain the only real truth. But in any religion, you will find man at its roots, seeking only to find enlightenment in the way he believes is best. Likeminded individuals who agree join together to seek the truth together, and a religion is born.

Unless it wasn’t clear, I am not seeking to condemn any religion, or convert anyone. As I said before: I believe all Gods are one, and religions are just different ways to worship. Different methods for different people. I am merely calling you to think and question. Keep an open mind, and learn as much as you can. Find what works for you. I found my spark. I had my own religious experience. And I am happily following my own path.

And that is a part of why Wicca is so beautiful to me: we don’t seek to convert people, or claim that there is only one “right” God to follow, one “right” way to worship. Yes, some Traditions may claim their way has been around longer, or that only people who have been initiated in a certain way are legitimate, but for the most part we respect diversity, and we acknowledge that not everyone thinks the same way. In Wicca, not only do my wide views of religion as a whole fit in comfortably, but also there is a lot of freedom within the Wiccan faith to worship in a personal way. For those familiar with the geometric principle of fractals, having the freedom to choose which Gods and Goddesses speak to you is just the same as seeing which religious path speaks to you, but on a smaller and more specific scale.

The other point I would like to make is on the topic of science: when people of faith are not defending their beliefs from one another, they are defending their beliefs from the chiefly logical and scientifically minded who claim that the existence of deity is scientifically disproven. For me, the more I learn about the laws of physics which govern how our universe works and newly discovered wonders, the more validation I have that a higher power exists. Science and discovery reinforces the belief in a divine being (s) ; they do not disprove it.

Take Stephen Hawking’s theory for example. He said that a God could not have created the universe, because before the Big Bang, there was no time, space, or energy. He says that our entire universe exists deep within a giant black hole, and outside of that is nothing. This baffles me. If we even raise the question ‘Could a God have caused the Big Bang’ only to dismiss it because time did not exist? Ridiculous! It seems to me that if we even acknowledge that a God could conceivably have had the power to create and trigger the beginning of our universe, if only there had been time to do so… I can’t even finish that sentence.

If a God has the power to create the universe, then I don’t think little nuances like lack of the vector of time could stand in his or her way. Anyway, if we buy into the multiverse theory, or even acknowledge that outside our universe there is a timeless void (which Hawking’s black hole theory suggests) , then I believe that something ageless could very well exist there. Whether you want to call it heaven, Summerland, or simply acknowledge it as a place between worlds and out of time, some separate plane of existence other than ours, many scientists agree that it exists. Our universe is ever expanding, and we don’t know the half of what’s out there.

And in Wicca, especially, no part of our philosophy contradicts proven science. We revere what is natural and easily observed: the path of the moon across the sky, the turning wheel of the seasons, the growth of crops and the harvest, etc. And as for the magickal element, we are only manipulating the natural energies that exist on earth to produce results. (At the root of Wicca is ‘wic’ which suggests ‘to bend’ as in wicker chair. In Swedish, ‘wika’ literally translates as ‘to bend’) . (Simple Magic by Michele Morgan)

A mundane example is food: food is a natural product of the harvest and hunt on earth, which turns to energy in our bodies. And because it is natural and life-sustaining, it is sacred, and we give thanks for the sustenance. It is the same energy which comes in light and heat from the sun, and which helps plants grow. Although magick is thought of as supernatural, because it is certainly extraordinary, it is not above of or outside of the natural. It brings about physical effects, and can be measured. Just because other parts of religion, like the existence of heaven or God, cannot be measured yet, it does not mean they do not exist.

Atoms and quanta existed even in the Stone Age, although the people living then were totally unaware of them and could not have measured or even understood them. Perhaps, in the same way, we simply do not have the means (or the imagination) to discover some of these things yet. To believe that everything that exists has already been found and understood would be the ultimate arrogance and stupidity.

In summary, I guess I’m just saying that when rational minds say that a supernatural design cannot exist in an increasingly scientific world, I completely agree. The supernatural does not exist. But something which is a part of the universe just as we are, something natural yet much grander than us…? Yes, I believe that exists, whether it is “out there”, or more simply, alive and sustained in every living thing on earth.

I hope that I have given you something to think about, and some ways to defend our faith to those who would seek to convert us or discredit us, be they missionaries of other faiths or the scientifically minded.

Blessed Be.

Footnotes:
“How to Become a Witch: The Path of Nature, Spirit and Magick” by Amber K and Azrael Arynn K

“Simple Magic” by Michele Morgan

Water Magick – Holy Waters

Holy Waters

 

The Water Witch puts great store in the powers of her holy waters. Natural waters on which she performs a blessing are usually the best for use as holy water, as they are pure. Clear quartz is often added to boost the power of the water even more. A blessing from a Water Witch removes all negative vibrations and recycles them within the water. In effect, she is using the power of water to cleanse the water. The Water Witch knows that all water is blessed from the start by the Goddess. All that is required of a Witch to bless water is a simple statement of intent, something along the line of, “I cast out all negativity and proclaim this water as pure and good. Blessed am I to have access to it, and blessed is it, for it is my mother’s tears and love.” She might choose to be more eloquent at times, but usually she goes with the flow and follows her instincts.

Water collection methods can be elaborate or simple. A jar placed outside during a thunderstorm, a special gourd dipper used to pull water from a crystal-clear brook, or simply cupping your hands under a natural spring-all of these methods are proper. 

I Am A Witch! Hear Me Roar!

I Am A Witch! Hear Me Roar!

Author: Diana Midnight

 

I remember when I was a little girl; I used to ask my mother why we never went to church like other families. My mother used to come up with various excuse, and I kept asking anyway.
Later in life I became friends with the little Christian girl down the street. If I wanted to spend the night on Saturdays they told me I had to go to church with them the next day. I didn’t mind, it was a new experience in my life, and I had always wanted to go. Since we were younger kids, we got to go to youth group. They talked about god and did booklets; by the end of the class they did trivia.

Being stuck watching OPB all my life, I learned a lot about all religions and they had lots of stories from the Bible. Anyway, while my friend goofed off I listened to the teacher. For some reason things didn’t feel right. It felt wrong as soon as I stepped inside the building, I couldn’t breathe and I felt judged. Despite my discomfort, I was respectful and used my manners. I helped my friend answer all the questions, even though she should of known the answers herself. At the end of class, before we were allowed to leave, the teacher asked us a very personal question. “Have you excepted Jesus Christ into you heart?”.

It was said to the whole class, but seeing as I was the new kid, I knew it was directed at me. She told us that if anyone hadn’t that we should all close our eyes and raise our hand. I slowly raised my hand. I knew that for me that this was a brave move. I was the only one. She told us to put down our hands and open our eyes. Our eyes met and she told the class (Well, just me really.) that if we wanted to accept Jesus into our heart we could stay after class and talk to her.

When my friend and I were at the door she looked at me and gave me the meanest most judgmental look I had ever seen. I was glad to get out of there; I knew that I could never be a Christian. After that experience, I was ashamed to claim any religion as my own. I felt that they were all to judgmental and that I’d rather spend my time out in nature.

I’ve always loved nature. Night or day, sunny or cloudy, wet or dry…It’s all so beautiful, so MAGICAL. I could sit in one spot for hours, just laying in the grass and listening to the animals or playing in the water and making images in the sand. In a way, I was always a Pagan, a Witch. But I never put a label on my love for nature, for the Earth.

Watching the moon and stars was just a hobby: hikes and walk in the park just something I did for fun. Gardening. That was what first got my interested in Wicca and Paganism. I could make anything grow, and the results were amazing. I wanted to learn more. I started reading books on herbs and natural medicine. I went online a lot, because I often kept library books too long and my late fees were amazing (and not in a good way.) . I often stumbled onto a few Wiccan websites talking about using herbs for magick as well as medicine. I was…intrigued. I just couldn’t help myself.

Herb lore was an important thing in natural medicine. We wouldn’t have figured out more then half of the things in modern medicine if it weren’t for fork lore. Well, after a while I started to read about the other parts of Wicca. I read everything I could find or put my hands on. The library was limited for Wicca. Judaism and Christianity books filled the shelves, and I found only three books. Sad, I know.

The web was my only unlimited source. But before you get the good you must first sift through the bad. Which is a lot of work, and takes hours upon hours to work through. If I saw sites that spelled magick as “magic”, I ignored them. I ignored websites with free love spells and that told you if you buy their services you could get back your ex or become rich. I focused on the spiritual part of the religion, and that cut out all the weirdoes and creeps. I studied and studied, never stopping, always reading and learning.

Finally, after much study, I decided to call myself a Pagan. It felt as if a great weight was lifted from my shoulders, and as if my spirit was lighter. It felt RIGHT. It was if I was always meant to be Pagan. I was 13 years old by then. 2 years had passed before I was brave enough and sure enough of myself to claim such a strong connection to the Earth and others. I kept telling myself, you’re a WITCH! My passion for my religion made my heart sing, it was the deep bass of thunder, a lions roar. It could never be contained!

Of course I had to tell my family, I was so proud of myself. My father took it well; he wasn’t surprised at all. My mother…well, she was raised Catholic. I don’t think she even took me seriously, or if she did she thought I was crazy. My little brother was (and still is) rude and told his friends that I only thought I was a Pagan and didn’t even celebrate the holidays. Little did he know, I had been celebrating them for years. As for my big brother, he thought I was an idiot. I knew he wanted me to be a Christian, and like my childhood friend, probably thought (and still thinks) I’m going to Hell.

Personally, I not worried. I’m not sure if my big brother ever found out, but his wife (now his ex) after finding out, gave me a small spell book. “The little book of spells” was cute but very cliché. I loved it, it had novelty and it showed that not all Christians thought the same about Wiccans/Pagans. It showed that I had the love and respect of my sister in law.

I’ve been a Pagan for 6 years now, and I will be forever more. I am proud of myself and what I’m apart of. I shall never be ashamed to be me. We are all Earth’s children, and all of us have a need for faith. Even if we hear our wisdom from different voices. That little Christian girl and me are still best friends, despite religious differences. She listens instead of tuning out when I mention something involving my religion. I do the same for her, and I believe no matter what we need to listen to others even if we don’t want to hear it.

I’ve been working on a Book of Shadows for a few months now. My love of poetry has really helped with that, and with all I know about herbs my book is filling fast. I’m hoping that one day I can share the Earth’s wisdom with my children and grandchildren, and hopefully they do the same.

May the Goddess bless you and light your path in your times of darkness.

Blessed Be! XOXO

Prayer Of The Day for Feb. 17th – Prayer for Patience

Prayer for Patience

O eternal Goddess, Maiden, Mother and

Crone. I am made from your flesh, and

you know me better than I know myself.

You understand depression, frustration,

and anxiety. Please me to control

these emotions, and help me to convert

these powerful feelings into love.

 

O eternal God, King of infinite wisdom

and goodness. I am created from your

essence, and  I thank you for the gift of

life. Please teach me to be patient and

humble, tolerant and gentle, especially

when life’s problems become heavy and

difficult to bear.

 

So Mote It Be.

The Wiccan Book of Day for Feb. 9th – Child Of The Sun

Wiccan Book of Days for Thursday, February 9th

Child of the Sun 

The divine infant that, according to many systems of sacred belief, was born around the Winter Solstice in late December, is thought to have grown into childhood by this time of year. The stories associated with these Divine boys which include Christianity’s Jesus and ancient Egypt’s Horus are concerned with their growing strength-of mind, body and spirit-but also with their vulnerability, especially when pitted against the embodiment of evil. In Horus’s case, Set, the murderer of his father, Osiris, presented a hugely dangerous threat, one that could only be neutralized in an epic, coming of age struggle to the death, in which the heroic. Horus would emerge bloodied but victorious.

　

“The Artic Sun”

Light a yellow candle in a gesture of joyful fellowship with the people of Narvik in Norway, who are celebrating their first sight of the sun since early November around

 

PENTACLE AND PENTAGRAM

PENTACLE AND PENTAGRAM

The pentacle is probably the most important symbol in witchcraft. It is a five pointed star with a single point facing upright. A written or drawn pentacle is a pentagram.

In rituals and magic the pentacle is a round disk of earthenware, wax, silver, or clay. It is inscribed with magic symbols including a pentagram and is used to consecrate the magic circle. In some rituals the high priestess may asume the pentacle position.

 

Some witches may wear a pentacle as a sign of their religeon. Some covens use the pentacle as the sigal of the witches who are initiated in to the second degree. The pentagram is the witches symbol of power and protection and used to control elemental forces.

 

Pentagrams are usually drawn in the air with a sword. The method used to draw the pentagram depends on its purpose.

 

Such as pentagrams to invoke are different from pentagrams to banish. Pentagrams are also used in meditation exercises where each point of the star is associated with a specific quality, attribute, concept, emotion or name of a pagan deity.

 

The magicians pentacle is also referred to as the pentacle of solomon. It represents God or man and the four elements of nature, five senses, five wounds of Jesus, and the five points of man.

 

The magician attaches pentacles on his robes. Pentacles are also engraved on rings. As a talisman the the pentacle enables the magician to command the spirits.

 

 

Why I’d Want Darkness In Me (Or, At Least, Not Mind It)

Why I’d Want Darkness In Me (Or, At Least, Not Mind It)

Author: Fire Lyte

While listening to an old clip from The Way of the Master Radio – a Christian Fundamentalist show, the radio host asked why anyone would want darkness in them. He asked this because Kirk Cameron, the co-host, had infiltrated a Mabon ritual and recorded the whole thing. This question came about, because pagans supposedly celebrate the balance of light and dark within them and in the world on the vernal and autumnal equinoxes – contemporarily known as Ostara and Mabon, and the two hosts could not fathom why anyone would want to accept darkness within. This is a really good question, and one that should inspire a lot of internal questioning.

Why in the world would anybody want to celebrate the balance of light and dark within him or her?

This is one of those trick questions kids ask one another on the playground that takes some fact or circumstance, twists it, and asks it in such a way that there is no good answer. For example: Does your mother know you lie? If you say yes, then you admit to lying and you assume the guilt of having let down your mother. Alternatively, if you say no, then you admit to lying to your mother about lying, and you assume the guilt of keeping a secret from your mother. There is no secret option C in which you neither lie, nor have to admit your deceit to your mother.

Well, this question is the same thing. We celebrate the balance of light and dark within us, firmly acknowledging that both exist. It is not that we want one over the other, and it is not that we want only one. This is one of the beautiful facets of paganism that I see as a benefit to our collective ideals. We may not agree on a lot of things, but we agree that we worship something solid, something real. At the heart of many of our religious tenets lies a central Earth worship, or the notion that we tie our sabbats and magical practices to the physical universe. Prosperity spells when the moon is waxing and so on. As such, we have a tendency to honor the natural laws of existence. We celebrate birth and death equally, and know that they are not points of singularity, but rather spokes on an ever-turning wheel.

Let’s try an experiment.

Think hard. Raise your hand if you’ve ever wanted to take an item off the shelf and just leave the store with it without paying. I mean, this economy is pretty tough, and I see lots of things I wouldn’t mind having without burdening my wallet with an inconvenient charge.

Raise your hand if you laughed when someone tripped or saw someone go through hard times and thought, “They had it coming.” Raise your hand if you’ve ever wanted to be the one who collects on karmic debts or if you’ve ever wanted to take a break from monogamy for just one day. Raise your hand if swift revenge seemed like the only option. Raise your hand if you’ve ever really wished someone would die. Raise your hand if you’ve ever thought about what a razor blade would feel like going inside your wrist. Raise your hand if you’ve ever had a dark moment…

Now, keep your hand raised if you didn’t go through with it. And aren’t you glad you didn’t?

Aren’t you glad you had enough inner balance to view the dark thought, shed some light on it, and put it neatly back in the box of dark thoughts where it belongs? It doesn’t matter if you briefly weighed the option of stealing the bottle of soda or if you dwelled upon a guilty conscience for years. The point is that at some point or another, you balanced out. You were not swallowed up by that singular point of darkness.

It would be a wonderful thing if we only ever had good thoughts. It would be great if the world were a fluffy pillow and the sun shone everyday and the radio station only played your favorite songs. But it isn’t. I’ve said before that reality isn’t fun, but it’s what we’ve got, and that’s really very true. As pagans, we acknowledge that we have our dark moments, and we can view them from a balanced perspective, because we also acknowledge our light. We differentiate them, because of one another. How would we know what moments are truly triumphant, truly joyous, if we did not have the hard times to compare them to?

It would be a foolish act on our part if we turned a blind eye on darkness. It exists, and it is as real and corporeal as if it were caressing you in the night. We are only prepared to face it, because of the balance of light and dark, because of the knowledge of past dark times, and the light we brought in to turn the dark away. If you knew an army was going to invade your country, rape your women, kill your men, and burn your cities, would you acknowledge the threat or talk about what a beautiful day it is? There is something to be said for reveling in the good times, but we must not let the good get in the way of reality.

On a different tangent, dark and light can quite literally also mean the times of year. The darker parts of the year are times when we don’t want to be as active, when the earth is bare, and when times are a bit hard. Without the sun, it is easy to become melancholic and shut off. Again, in these instances, we celebrate the light and the dark, because we know that light will come again. We remind ourselves to not get complacent in the dark, and to actively seek to bring light into every corner of our lives during times when it doesn’t come naturally. (Both literally and figuratively.)

Celebrating the balance of light and dark is celebrating the very nature of the universe, celebrating the most natural parts of nature. We acknowledge both, because both exist, and we do not wish to be foolish when the time comes to face one or the other. The good can be just as overwhelming as the bad, and can cause as much harm. Have you ever been so ecstatic that you forgot about your other daily duties? Have you ever let time get away from you when having fun that it turned into neglect of yourself or others?

If we are not conscious of consequences, the choices we make are one-sided and potentially harmful, dark. I see this with a lot of college-aged kids who stay out all night partying, enjoying the goods of youth, but forget to study or don’t get enough sleep or forget to come to work.

Balance, true balance, is what happens when we weigh our decisions carefully before making them. It is acknowledging hard times, dark times, and finding the light in each situation so that we can move forward. It is the quintessential idea of living in the present moment, of accepting the realness of reality.

So, to that radio man, I say that I don’t want darkness anymore than I want light. I simply acknowledge that both exist, because I have a brain and the ability to think and reason and accept the nature of the natural world.

Now, on the topic of sin. I ask you what, exactly, sin is, whether we should be forgiven for it, and, if so, who does the forgiving. However, I want you to think about the definition of sin without using the words Christian, or Abrahamic, or Jesus, or Bible. Remember doing those exercises in English class where you were supposed to come up with the definition of a word without using the word in a sentence? I want you to do that here. Strip away the conventions of Christianity, because sin is most definitely not simply a Christian concept. The notion of sin exists in all faiths.

So…think about it. What is sin? The majority of definitions ascribed to the word sin are that it is a transgression against some sort of moral code of conduct. In some cases this code is set forth by divine law, but in other cases it is simply that which goes against one’s personal ethics or values. But, this is just a theological idea of sin.

Chocolate can be sinful. It can be a sin to throw out a perfectly good jug of orange juice when it’s half-full. Recent statistics show that more and more people are leaving their religion of origin – yes, specifically the Christian and Catholic faiths. Half of all adults have changed religions at least once. Half of all adults! On top of that, most people that change religion do it more than once. 44% of Americans, according to a study done by the Pew Forum, do not belong to their childhood faith. 9% more say that they do belong to their childhood faith, but they changed at some point to another one.

And, in all of this mixing of doctrines, beliefs, and practices, we’ve muddled down the definition of sin. Or, perhaps we haven’t muddled anything. Perhaps, since we are in a constant state of reinvention and evolution, we have created a new and modern definition of sin. As pagans, this is what we are all about. We call ourselves neo-pagan in a nod to the fact that we take the traditions of the past and meld them with modern thinking.

Enough with the set up. What is sin? Well, I am going to say it is an action that goes against our values, morals, ethics, or other personal or social code of conduct. I include social, because some might claim that it is well within their personal system of morality that murdering someone for personal gain, revenge, or other innocuous vendetta. Some claim they should be able to take as much as they can steal, because that’s their own morality. That’s not acceptable; I don’t care if you claim you’re on the most left of left-hand paths or what. It is not ok. Your rights do not expand and envelope another’s right to be left alone.

So, if we commit one of these moral transgressions, should we be forgiven for it? Simple answer: yes. Now, notice I have yet to say I believe sin is some sort of divine act against a deity’s will. I think we should be forgiven for our wrongdoings, because we are supposed to be the best people we can be.

We need to release ourselves from the guilt of carrying around our sins, and we need to allow the person we wronged the opportunity to experience the positive karma of forgiveness. (More on karma in a future article.) In order to move on and be balanced individuals, we cannot be weighed down by too much dark or too much light, and thus we cannot carry around all the darkness of sin. To be balanced is the goal, the epitome of religious study and introspection.

However, balance is not something that occurs by purely singular means. You do not balance yourself by yourself. You shed off what doesn’t work, take on what does, and meld them together in a cohesive lifestyle. Many of us do this by focusing on the positive during the waxing and full moons, as these are times of growth and prosperity. On the flip side, we are taught that the waning and dark moons are times to banish the bad aspects of our personality, to get rid of guilt and worry and the wrongs that are done to ourselves and to others. These are times when we both forgive others and forgive ourselves. Oh…and we ask the Goddess and God for guidance.

Who does this forgiving? I’d say it is a combination of people. I might ask the Goddess to help me shed myself of some sin or other, or I might ask for the opportunity to have a positive encounter with someone I wronged so that I can seek forgiveness from them. However, when that person doesn’t give forgiveness, I simply work harder to be a better person and not wrong someone else in the way I wronged him or her.

I would venture, then, to say that sin is we dipping our toes too far into the pool of dark. It is when we tip the scales too far to one side, and we seek forgiveness from that sin in order attain the true balance that is our end goal.

What we want is not to have the darkness, but to work towards temperance. Wow…isn’t that one of the major Arcana in the tarot? Isn’t that one of the lessons of the fool? We seek true, alchemical balance by transforming ourselves, and understanding that there is no true dark and light but merely lessons we must learn. Sometimes we must learn that something needs to be learned, to be taken on. Sometimes we learn that we must rid ourselves of something. Either way, once balance is achieved, we evolve, we transform into our highest selves.

So, I don’t want darkness anymore than I want pure light. I want to be my highest self, and the only way I can think of to do that is acknowledge my sin, seek forgiveness from myself, my Gods, or those who I have transgressed against. I learn the lessons of life that come from experiencing both light and dark, and I work towards balance and becoming my best self.

Footnotes:
References in article

Celebrations Around The World, Feb. 2

Groundhog Day
Purification Day
Brew Hog Day
Lupercalia
Feast of Pan
Bonza Bottler Day
Wives’ Feast Day
Candlemas
Wand Dedication Day (Fairy)
St. Joan de Lestonnac’s Day
Dia de la Candelaria (Mexico)
Yuma Crossing Day
Feast of Torches
National Heavenly Hash Day
Shaving of the Candlemas Bear Masque (Pyrenees)
Presentation of Our Lord (fka the Purification of the Virgin Mary)

.

GrannyMoon’s Morning Feast

Candlemas / Purification /Presentation / Our Lady of Candelaria

 Candlemas / Purification /Presentation / Our Lady of Candelaria

 
Jewish women went through a purification ceremony 40 days after the birth of a male child (80 days after the birth of a female child) and brought a lamb to the temple to be sacrificed. According to Mosaic law, Mary and Joseph would also have brought their first-born son to the temple forty days after his birth to offer him to God, like all first-born sons, along with a pair of turtledoves.

The Presentation was originally celebrated in Jerusalem on November 21st but once Christ’s birth was fixed on December 25th (near the winter solstice), the Presentation and Purification rituals would fall forty days later, in early February when torches were carried around the fields.

First celebrated on February 14th, in 350 at Jerusalem, when it would have coincided with the Roman festival of Lupercalia, it was later moved up to February 2nd. Pope Sergius declared it should be celebrated with processions and candles, to commemorate Simeon’s description of the child Jesus as a light to lighten the Gentiles. Candles blessed on this day were used as a protection from evil.

This is the ostensible reason given for the Catholic custom of bringing candles to church to be blessed by the priest on February 2nd, thus the name Candle-Mass. The candles are then taken home where they serve as talismans and protections from all sorts of disasters, much like Brigid’s crosses. In Hungary, according to Dorothy Spicer, February 2nd is called Blessing of the Candle of the Happy Woman. In Poland, it is called Mother of God who Saves Us From Thunder.

Actually this festival has long been associated with fire. Spicer writes that in ancient Armenia, this was the date of Cvarntarach, a pagan spring festival in honor of Mihr, the God of fire. Originally, fires were built in his honor in open places and a lantern was lit which burned in the temple throughout the year. When Armenia became Christian, the fires were built in church courtyards instead. People danced about the flames, jumped over them and carried home embers to kindle their own fires from the sacred flames.

The motif of fire also shows up in candle processions honoring St Agatha (Feb 5) and the legends of St Brigid (Feb 1). The fire represents the spark of new life, like the seeds blessed in northern Europe on St Blaise’s Day (Feb 3) and carried home to “kindle” the existing seed.

The English have many rhymes which prognosticate about future weather based on the weather on Candlemas Day:

If Candlemas Day bring snow and rain
Winter is gone and won’t come again
If Candlemas Day be clear and bright
Winter will have another flight.

These are all similar to the American custom of predicting the weather on Groundhog’s Day, in that you don’t want the groundhog to see his shadow. In Germany, they say that the shepherd would rather see the wolf enter his stable than the sun on Candlemas Day.

The ancient Armenians used the wind to predict the weather for the coming year by watching the smoke drifting up from the bonfires lit in honor of Mihr. The Scots also observed the wind on Candlemas as recorded in this rhyme:

If this night’s wind blow south
It betokeneth warmth and growth;
If west, much milk and fish in the sea;
If north, much cold and snow there will be;
If east, the trees will bear much fruit;
If north-east, flee it, man, woman and brute.

This was also a holiday for Millers when windmills stand idle. In Crete it is said that they won’t turn even if the miller tries to start them.
Blackburn, Bonnie and Leofranc Holford-Strevens, Oxford Companion to the Year, Oxford University Press 1999 Kightly, Charles, The Perpetual Almanack of Folklore, Thames and Hudson 1987
Spicer, Dorothy Gladys, The Book of Festivals, The Woman’s Press 1937, GrannyMoon’s Morning Feast

The Wicca Book of Days for February 2nd – Imbolc and Candlemas

Book & Candle Comments 

Imbolc and Candlemas

 

The festival of Candlemas has ancient roots, for in Pagan Europe, fires were kindled at this time of year to reflect and encourage the growing strength of the sun. Its name is Christian, however, being derived from the tradition of the future year’s supply of candles being blessed before the first mass of February 2, and then being carried around the church in a pious procession. This is also the feast of the purification of the Virgin Mary and the presentation of the infant Jesus in the Temple; the parallel between the Vrgin Mary an the Goddess in her maiden aspect, and Baby Jesus and the Solar Child of Promise, are unmistakable.

 

 “Candlemas Creativity”

White represents purity, pale green denotes a fresh start and growth and a flame signifies the kindling of creativity. Light candles of these colors to commemorate the concepts symboized by Candlemas. As you gaze at the flaming taper, ask the Goddess for inspiration. 

~Magickal Graphics~

Candlemas / Purification /Presentation / Our Lady of Candelaria

Imbolc/Candlemas Comments

Candlemas / Purification /Presentation / Our Lady of Candelaria

Jewish women went through a purification ceremony 40 days after the birth of a male child (80 days after the birth of a female child) and brought a lamb to the temple to be sacrificed. According to Mosaic law, Mary and Joseph would also have brought their first-born son to the temple forty days after his birth to offer him to God, like all first-born sons, along with a pair of turtledoves.

The Presentation was originally celebrated in Jerusalem on November 21st but once Christ’s birth was fixed on December 25th (near the winter solstice), the Presentation and Purification rituals would fall forty days later, in early February when torches were carried around the fields.

First celebrated on February 14th, in 350 at Jerusalem, when it would have coincided with the Roman festival of Lupercalia, it was later moved up to February 2nd. Pope Sergius declared it should be celebrated with processions and candles, to commemorate Simeon’s description of the child Jesus as a light to lighten the Gentiles. Candles blessed on this day were used as a protection from evil.

This is the ostensible reason given for the Catholic custom of bringing candles to church to be blessed by the priest on February 2nd, thus the name Candle-Mass. The candles are then taken home where they serve as talismans and protections from all sorts of disasters, much like Brigid’s crosses. In Hungary, according to Dorothy Spicer, February 2nd is called Blessing of the Candle of the Happy Woman. In Poland, it is called Mother of God who Saves Us From Thunder.

Actually this festival has long been associated with fire. Spicer writes that in ancient Armenia, this was the date of Cvarntarach, a pagan spring festival in honor of Mihr, the God of fire. Originally, fires were built in his honor in open places and a lantern was lit which burned in the temple throughout the year. When Armenia became Christian, the fires were built in church courtyards instead. People danced about the flames, jumped over them and carried home embers to kindle their own fires from the sacred flames.

The motif of fire also shows up in candle processions honoring St Agatha (Feb 5) and the legends of St Brigid (Feb 1). The fire represents the spark of new life, like the seeds blessed in northern Europe on St Blaise’s Day (Feb 3) and carried home to “kindle” the existing seed.

The English have many rhymes which prognosticate about future weather based on the weather on Candlemas Day:

If Candlemas Day bring snow and rain
Winter is gone and won’t come again
If Candlemas Day be clear and bright
Winter will have another flight.

These are all similar to the American custom of predicting the weather on Groundhog’s Day, in that you don’t want the groundhog to see his shadow. In Germany, they say that the shepherd would rather see the wolf enter his stable than the sun on Candlemas Day.

The ancient Armenians used the wind to predict the weather for the coming year by watching the smoke drifting up from the bonfires lit in honor of Mihr. The Scots also observed the wind on Candlemas as recorded in this rhyme:

If this night’s wind blow south
It betokeneth warmth and growth;
If west, much milk and fish in the sea;
If north, much cold and snow there will be;
If east, the trees will bear much fruit;
If north-east, flee it, man, woman and brute.

This was also a holiday for Millers when windmills stand idle. In Crete it is said that they won’t turn even if the miller tries to start them.
Blackburn, Bonnie and Leofranc Holford-Strevens, Oxford Companion to the Year, Oxford University Press 1999
Kightly, Charles, The Perpetual Almanack of Folklore, Thames and Hudson 1987
Spicer, Dorothy Gladys, The Book of Festivals, The Woman’s Press 1937

Magickal Graphics

Candlemas: The Light Returns

Candlemas: The Light Returns
by Mike Nichols

It seems quite impossible that the holiday of Candlemas should be considered the beginning of Spring. Here in the Heartland, February 2nd may see a blanket of snow mantling the Mother. Or, if the snows have gone, you may be sure the days are filled with drizzle, slush, and steel-grey skies — the dreariest weather of the year. In short, the perfect time for a Pagan Festival of Lights. And as for Spring, although this may seem a tenuous beginning, all the little buds, flowers and leaves will have arrived on schedule before Spring runs its course to Beltane.

‘Candlemas’ is the Christianized name for the holiday, of course. The older Pagan names were Imbolc and Oimelc. ‘Imbolc’ means, literally, ‘in the belly’ (of the Mother). For in the womb of Mother Earth, hidden from our mundane sight but sensed by a keener vision, there are stirrings. The seed that was planted in her womb at the solstice is quickening and the new year grows. ‘Oimelc’ means ‘milk of ewes’, for it is also lambing season.

The holiday is also called ‘Brigit’s Day’, in honor of the great Irish Goddess Brigit. At her shrine, the ancient Irish capitol of Kildare, a group of 19 priestesses (no men allowed) kept a perpetual flame burning in her honor. She was considered a goddess of fire, patroness of smithcraft, poetry and healing (especially the healing touch of midwifery). This tripartite symbolism was occasionally expressed by saying that Brigit had two sisters, also named Brigit. (Incidentally, another form of the name Brigit is Bride, and it is thus She bestows her special patronage on any woman about to be married or handfasted, the woman being called ‘bride’ in her honor.)

The Roman Catholic Church could not very easily call the Great Goddess of Ireland a demon, so they canonized her instead. Henceforth, she would be ‘Saint’ Brigit, patron SAINT of smithcraft, poetry, and healing. They ‘explained’ this by telling the Irish peasants that Brigit was ‘really’ an early Christian missionary sent to the Emerald Isle, and that the miracles she performed there ‘misled’ the common people into believing that she was a goddess. For some reason, the Irish swallowed this. (There is no limit to what the Irish imagination can convince itself of. For example, they also came to believe that Brigit was the ‘foster-mother’ of Jesus, giving no thought to the implausibility of Jesus having spent his boyhood in Ireland!)

Brigit’s holiday was chiefly marked by the kindling of sacred fires, since she symbolized the fire of birth and healing, the fire of the forge, and the fire of poetic inspiration. Bonfires were lighted on the beacon tors, and chandlers celebrated their special holiday. The Roman Church was quick to confiscate this symbolism as well, using ‘Candlemas’ as the day to bless all the church candles that would be used for the coming liturgical year. (Catholics will be reminded that the following day, St. Blaise’s Day, is remembered for using the newly-blessed candles to bless the throats of parishioners, keeping them from colds, flu, sore throats, etc.)

The Catholic Church, never one to refrain from piling holiday upon holiday, also called it the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. (It is surprising how many of the old Pagan holidays were converted to Maryan Feasts.) The symbol of the Purification may seem a little obscure to modern readers, but it has to do with the old custom of ‘churching women’. It was believed that women were impure for six weeks after giving birth. And since Mary gave birth at the winter solstice, she wouldn’t be purified until February 2nd. In Pagan symbolism, this might be re-translated as when the Great Mother once again becomes the Young Maiden Goddess.

Today, this holiday is chiefly connected to weather lore. Even our American folk-calendar keeps the tradition of ‘Groundhog’s Day’, a day to predict the coming weather, telling us that if the Groundhog sees his shadow, there will be ‘six more weeks’ of bad weather (i.e., until the next old holiday, Lady Day). This custom is ancient. An old British rhyme tells us that ‘If Candlemas Day be bright and clear, there’ll be two winters in the year.’ Actually, all of the cross-quarter days can be used as ‘inverse’ weather predictors, whereas the quarter-days are used as ‘direct’ weather predictors.

Like the other High Holidays or Great Sabbats of the Witches’ year, Candlemas is sometimes celebrated on it’s alternate date, astrologically determined by the sun’s reaching 15-degrees Aquarius, or Candlemas Old Style (in 1988, February 3rd, at 9:03 am CST). Another holiday that gets mixed up in this is Valentine’s Day. Ozark folklorist Vance Randolf makes this quite clear by noting that the old-timers used to celebrate Groundhog’s Day on February 14th. This same displacement is evident in Eastern Orthodox Christianity as well. Their habit of celebrating the birth of Jesus on January 6th, with a similar post-dated shift in the six-week period that follows it, puts the Feast of the Purification of Mary on February 14th. It is amazing to think that the same confusion and lateral displacement of one of the old folk holidays can be seen from the Russian steppes to the Ozark hills, but such seems to be the case!

Incidentally, there is speculation among linguistic scholars that the vary name of ‘Valentine’ has Pagan origins. It seems that it was customary for French peasants of the Middle Ages to pronounce a ‘g’ as a ‘v’. Consequently, the original term may have been the French ‘galantine’, which yields the English word ‘gallant’. The word originally refers to a dashing young man known for his ‘affaires d’amour’, a true galaunt. The usual associations of V(G)alantine’s Day make much more sense in this light than their vague connection to a legendary ‘St. Valentine’ can produce. Indeed, the Church has always found it rather difficult to explain this nebulous saint’s connection to the secular pleasures of flirtation and courtly love.

For modern Witches, Candlemas O.S. may then be seen as the Pagan version of Valentine’s Day, with a de-emphasis of ‘hearts and flowers’ and an appropriate re-emphasis of Pagan carnal frivolity. This also re-aligns the holiday with the ancient Roman Lupercalia, a fertility festival held at this time, in which the priests of Pan ran through the streets of Rome whacking young women with goatskin thongs to make them fertile. The women seemed to enjoy the attention and often stripped in order to afford better targets.

One of the nicest folk-customs still practiced in many countries, and especially by Witches in the British Isles and parts of the U.S., is to place a lighted candle in each and every window of the house, beginning at sundown on Candlemas Eve (February 1st), allowing them to continue burning until sunrise. Make sure that such candles are well seated against tipping and guarded from nearby curtains, etc. What a cheery sight it is on this cold, bleak and dreary night to see house after house with candle-lit windows! And, of course, if you are your Coven’s chandler, or if you just happen to like making candles, Candlemas Day is THE day for doing it. Some Covens hold candle-making parties and try to make and bless all the candles they’ll be using for the whole year on this day.

Other customs of the holiday include weaving ‘Brigit’s crosses’ from straw or wheat to hang around the house for protection, performing rites of spiritual cleansing and purification, making ‘Brigit’s beds’ to ensure fertility of mind and spirit (and body, if desired), and making Crowns of Light (i.e. of candles) for the High Priestess to wear for the Candlemas Circle, similar to those worn on St. Lucy’s Day in Scandinavian countries. All in all, this Pagan Festival of Lights, sacred to the young Maiden Goddess, is one of the most beautiful and poetic of the year.

Celebrations Around The World, Jan. 28th

Serendipity Day
Daisy Day
National Kazoo Day
Hall of Fame Day
St. Thomas Aquinas’s Day (patron of students, pencil makers, theologians)
National Spieling Day
Love Among the Nations Day
Runic half-month of Elhaz (elk) begins
St. Charlemagne’s Day
Rwanda Independence Day
Bald Eagle Day
Smeltana (Betters Homes & Shanties Contest @)
National Blueberry Pancake Day
St. Ephraem Syrus’ Day
Rattlesnake Round-Up (@)
Fond du Lac Winter Celebration
St. Paulinus of Nola’s Day
Rinkydinks Annual Snowball Fight

GrannyMoon’s Morning Feast – Source: The Daily Globe, School Of The Seasons and The Daily Bleed