Tag: Pagan

To Advance …Or To Go Within

To Advance …Or To Go Within

Author: Sarrestia

Several years ago I was on a mission to find what books, what outlets, existed that went into the Advanced arts of Witchcraft, Wicca, Paganism, etc. I didn’t succeed very well, in fact, after several days of religious online searching and bookstore hopping I became rather disenchanted by the whole concept of advancement. I did learn, however, that I am not alone in this. Hundreds if not thousands of pagans that enter into our respective paths reach a point where the 101 books are not only redundant, but become rather irritating with the same replicated material.

I realized, and constantly have to remind myself, that looking for advanced methods, an advanced teaching is the wrong approach. It isn’t about how to advance in one’s path, but how deep you have gone, and could go. And not just how deep into your path, but how deep into yourself.

With the massive amounts of books, websites, groups, etc. throughout the country I have noticed one thing: they all teach you the basics (which are bloody necessary in the beginning and throughout, for many concepts) but they don’t really teach you to stop looking out and start looking in. I have read Silverwolf’s books, Grimassi’s books, Cunningham’s books, Buckland, Conway, Morrison, Penczak, Andrews, etc. I have read their books, their 101 and branched-off books. They are all wonderful authors in their own right, and amongst each other. But their books are all about them, what they have learned, what they have done (Well, duh, you say, how else would they right a book, if not about what they’ve done?) , which is great! Many do have their little disclaimers stating that what they’ve done might not work for everyone, with a slight passing sentence stating that you need to figure out what is right for you.

In this day and age, when the young and the middle and some of the old are always looking for assistance, especially when they do not have the ability, in any way, of being around people with experience and with the knowledge and wisdom to pass on, that someone could hint or blatantly tell them that: you need to STOP reading this, and look at what YOU believe, what feels right to YOU and base your path, your actions on what YOU have learned about YOURSELF.

Which brings me to another point that I would like to mention: the lack of depth from the very beginning. Everyone who identifies himself or herself under the umbrella term of Pagan knows, if not in the beginning then later on, that the paths that we choose are not easy; they are bloody difficult. There are immense ups and downs, trials and errors, good times and bad times; but no matter what, at the end of the cycle when you stop and look back at what happened, what you overcame, you are damn proud of yourself, and even better you learned a lot about what it is you can do in your life. Even though the books and websites may say that it is hard, they don’t explain what that means. They don’t teach how hard it is and how much work you really have to put into it. Most of all, they don’t teach that the focus of your intentions, the focus of your work isn’t the world around you, but YOU.

I have always found it interesting when I see people performing Reiki, or some other psychic healing who are just as traumatized by their past as the people they are trying to help. How can you help anyone when you have done nothing to help yourself? Everyone wants to pick up on how to work with the many cool things that Pagans have at their disposal (which is one of the things I love about being Pagan!) , but they don’t want to stop and fix themselves first.

I also see, overwhelmingly, what happens when someone who has no concept of just how deep our paths can get see with their own eyes…and then freak the bleep out. Which is also probably the reason that I see so many young people coming into Wicca for a brief amount of time. They see some real sh*t, and then disappear.

I also find the ‘hidden’ seriousness of our paths is the reason that people have come up to me and said they had ‘dabbled’ in Wicca or one of the paths, before returning to their previous religion. [By the way, the following will be a severe digression from the above and below: these are the people who see the tattoo on my left arm (which happens to be a very personal symbol – that I created – of the goddess, triple moon with a pentacle in the full moon and the triquetra being help up by the goddesses’ arms) and feel the need to impart that they were ‘once Wiccan’.]

The discussion usually stems from my interest in talking with someone who knows about the different paths. But then I become irritated with these people when they inform me that they scared themselves by delving into the black arts. At which point, I want to ask them if they are truly racist and see the world only in black and white. At which point they call me a witch and walk away. But that is a whole ‘nother essay on my feelings towards Black vs. White…oooh, I’m leaving it at that.

I know what I am saying because I did the same thing. I came into this walk in my life bumbling along until I experienced my own Shamanic Death, which forced open the layers in my life and forced me to see why I do the things in my life that I do. And quite honestly, I did not handle it well: It took two AWOLs from the military and nearly cutting off all ties to my family and friends before I found the brass bra to start picking myself up out of the chasm I threw myself into.

All I am saying, really, is that maybe we should try to not surprise the new ones with the depth of what really takes place along these paths later on, but let them know in the beginning that there is a deep level of seriousness that underlies the laughter, parties, and joviality that are far more apparent by sight. That, while they are learning the basics of herbs, incense, the elements, the casting of the circle, the gods, they should also be working on their own lives, their pasts, their wounds and, also, what part of what they are learning actually means to them.

And if it is too late to learn this in the beginning, then to say: instead of looking for advanced concepts and practices, how about deepening yourself in your path, deepening your knowledge and wisdom? Instead of going out, go in.

The Rise of Wicca and Neo–Paganism in the United States

The Rise of Wicca and Neo–Paganism in the United States

Author: Govannon Thunderwolf

Wicca is becoming the fastest growing religion in the United States. This statement was something I was hearing and reading more and more. Being a member of the Pagan community, I didn’t really notice any of this growth happening. The more books and articles on the Internet that I read, the more I kept seeing this statement. The research into this declaration became my focus of interest. What fascinated me the most about this account was the fact that Wiccans and neo – Pagans do not go around with the specific intent of finding converts. In the teachings and ideas of Wicca and Paganism, the idea of looking for converts is not encouraged and is looked down upon. Anyone seeking converts into Wicca or Paganism is breaking a cardinal rule.

Even though Wicca is generally a female dominated religion, there are men involved as well. Wicca is a religion that recognizes women and men as equals, but it does put a slight emphasis on women and the Goddess. Female witches out number males two to one in the United States, according to the Covenant of the Goddess’s estimates. Covenant of the Goddess is one of the oldest and largest Wiccan groups in the United States. They also state that much of the recent growth in Wicca and neo – Paganism has been among women. (Sanders xiv)

Where would someone look to find followers of Wicca and Pagans? They can be found anywhere and everywhere. The actual number of Wiccan and Pagan followers in the United States changes constantly, but in 1999 Helen Berger, a sociologist who spent ten years as a member of the neo – Pagan community, estimated that there are between 150, 000 and 200, 000 Pagans in the United States. It is suspected that there are many more among the ranks of Pagans today. Berger’s census also found that California has the highest amount of Pagans living within its boundaries at 15.7 percent, followed by Massachusetts at 7.6 percent, and New York at 7.3 percent. (Sanders xiv)

While there were many contributors to the construct of Wicca since the 1890’s, there was one man, who in 1954 wrote and published Witchcraft Today, and that man was Gerald Gardner (1884 – 1964) . Even though Druidism, Witchcraft, and other forms of Paganism were originally oral traditions, their revival is attributed to written text. (Clifton 14 – 15)

Very little is known about Gerald Gardner except for what is public record. He was a civil servant for the United Kingdom, and spent most of his career in Britain’s Asian colonies before he retired and settled in southern England. Gardner was one of the many who thought it more prestigious to have learned the “craft”, a term used for Witchcraft, an elder of one’s own family. Gardner didn’t claim to have learned Wicca from an elder of his own family, but did claim to have learned it from elders with family ties that went way back many generations. For most people in the Pagan community, it was well know that Gardner was considered a bit of a pervert due to his tendency toward bondage and ritualized punishment. It came through in his writings and ideas of practice, but the resurgence of “the craft” is mainly attributed to him. The people of Britain have always made changes to religions to try and make them their own, but Wicca is the only religion that originated in the United Kingdom. (Clifton 14 – 15)

Wicca is generally a solitary religion and seventy percent of its followers are solitary, taking personal responsibility for their own religious practice, rather than following an authority figure. Without a strict set of beliefs, “each practitioner can add or subtract beliefs at will, ” this is a part of what makes Wicca so popular. (Sanders 5)

Now I will continue this paper on three main reasons that I found the most compelling reasons for people of all walks of life to be drawn to Wicca and Paganism, beginning with a concern for the Earth.

The fear of Global Warming and preserving what we now have for future generations is a major common concern among contemporary Pagans. Most of modern society has lost an important connection with nature. In some cases there is even a fear of nature. To be fearful of the natural world, in which we as human beings came from, just as all life has, is quite a cause for alarm. When the system of Wicca was originally developed, its focus was on fertility, just as the ancients were focused on fertility. As history has shown, fertility was a main concern for all people in ancient times.

Life was hard for our ancient ancestors and fertility of the land, animals, people, etc. was the only way for them to continue life and surviving. With human fertility becoming less of a concern in modern times because of improvements in science, the focus has now shifted to nature. This change is another way in which Wicca and Paganism can remain a positive religion. It is a religion that recognizes change and changes with it. If something can’t change with the times, it will get left behind and become history.

The American mainstream religions have done very little to foster concern for nature. Never, have I heard of any sermons given on how people should be encouraged to care for the environment, be good caretakers of nature, and preservation of natural resources. This again, leads many to view Paganism and Wicca more approvingly. (Sanders 22)

Paganism also acknowledges nature by following the cycles of the seasons and life. Pagans and Wiccans are encouraged to live their lives by looking to nature as their guide. They live in the here and now as opposed to living and planning for the end of life. Through this view of nature, Wiccans and Pagans acknowledge their connection to all life and the greater cosmos. Many mainstream religious writers believe that honoring nature is not enough for religion or life because it contains violence and brutality. (Harvey 187) This worldview on life and nature is the basis for Wiccans and Pagans to believe in no absolute good or evil. All things in nature are good and evil at the same time and therefore it applies to life as well.

The second reason for the attraction to Paganism and Wicca is empowerment for women. The Christian church has treated women like “second – class citizens” for much of its history. This treatment of women is also prevalent in much of the Western world as well. (Sanders 22) Many women have become quite discontent with the Christian church. When women have expressed an interest in becoming more involved in the church, they are usually directed to make coffee and teach Sunday school. With the concerns of equal rights coming more and more to the forefront in our society, how do the patriarchal religions expect women to remain subservient? (Sanders 22)

For the last several thousand years of patriarchal religions domination of the Western world, large numbers of women have been searching for a spiritual existence free from the patriarchal dogma. With Wicca’s emphasis on Goddess worship, it attracts those women who want to find a spiritual side to their feminism. (Adler 207 – 24)

The feminist views of women have been the main driving force pushing Wicca to be accepted as a religion. Not all Wiccan groups are feminist though. Most Pagans and Wiccans have a more moderate view of the feministic ideas. Feminist Wiccan groups have dropped a lot of common beliefs in the Pagan community in favor of an all female belief system. By doing such things as only recognizing the female deities and eliminating the male deities, they are alienating themselves from the rest of the Pagan and Wiccan community. (Adler 180 – 81)

Many women have become quite discontent with the Christian church. When women have expressed an interest in becoming more involved in the church, they are usually directed to make coffee and teach Sunday school. With the concerns of equal rights coming more and more to the forefront in our society, how do the patriarchal religions expect women to remain subservient? (Sanders 22)

One doesn’t need to look very hard to see the atrocities that have been committed against women in history by patriarchal societies. One common saying in modern Pagan communities that can be found imprinted on t – shirts and bumper stickers is, “Don’t forget the burning times.” This refers to the days of the infamous witch-hunts. Malleus Maleficarum (The Hammer of Evildoers) published in 1486/87 by Jacob Spenger and Heinrich Krämer was the authoritative witch hunter’s manual. One key phrase from this manual that modern Pagan writers like to quote is: “All witchcraft comes from carnal lust, which in women is insatiable.” (Clifton 100) This “authoritative” work also stated that women were created from the bent rib of Adam, therefore women are “imperfect animals” if they are even animals at all. (Pearson 302)

In the Malleus Maleficarum, inquisitors, the ones who were authorized to verify involvement in witchcraft, were informed that guilty women would make sexual pacts with Satan. Therefore, after this pact was made, any event in the local community that disrupted the well being of the people was most certainly caused by a witch in their ranks. (Pearson 302 – 3)

When the inquisitors were in search of a “witch”, one could be found quite readily. More often than not, the accused was just a woman that someone had a grudge against. Many also speculated that these “witches” might have been highly learned women, such as early scientists. Because of the ridiculous information contained in the Malleus Maleficarum on how to proceed with the “trials” of the accused, there generally was “no mistake” of finding them guilty. Guilty women and a few men as well, were relatively few in the colonies of America. On the other hand, in Europe the numbers of the accused were astronomical. Imagine the amount of people that lost their lives due to the feelings of resentment of some sort or other, such as the amount of land they owned or a person’s general success. Many Wiccans and Pagans feel that the amount of people who were actually true witches during these “trials” was closer to none. (Gibson 112 – 18)

The final main reason that I would like to point out for the attraction of Wicca and Paganism is the attraction of the supernatural. While Pagans and Wiccans accept the belief in an unseen world, forces, and entities, many, if not all, Christian churches, in these modern times, ignore this belief. In many cases, a person could stir up quite a bit of trouble for themselves by stating a belief in an unseen world in the Christian church. (Sanders 23 – 26)

Reading ones future by using tarot cards and runes are very popular forms of divination among Pagans and Wiccans. There are many other popular forms of divination and occult sciences such as the use of crystals. Even though many of these beliefs forms were allowed by Christianity in their early years of development, now these systems have no place in Christianity. Many people have speculated when and why this shift occurred. Modern science has been trying to validate these occult sciences for quite some time now, but with limited success. The simple fact that the occult sciences are being tested gives valid support in their existence. (Handbook of Contemporary 425)

There are still many things in the world that can’t be explained by modern science. In the acknowledgement of this fact is where modern Pagans revel. It still gives room for belief in the ideas of fairies, mythical beings, and other such beliefs.

Discussions of the supernatural will quickly conjure up visions and ideas in relation to recent popular movies such as Harry Potter, The Seeker, Lord of the Rings, and many, many other movies. While these movies and books quickly catch the imagination, their similarities to actual supernatural occurrences are very, very limited. For the most part, these movies and books are purely fantasy. Even so, there have been some Christian based groups that are in opposition of these forms of entertainment. They believe that it sways people, especially children, to take an interest in Wicca and Paganism. (Handbook of New 459 – 60)

As Catherine Edwards Sanders, a Christian journalist, points out, “most Wiccans [and Pagans] have thought more seriously about spirituality and some of life’s big questions than many in the secular and even Christian cultures. They have not been content to skate through life seeking the gods of fashion, peer pressure, or materialism, reserving religion for weekends and special holidays.” (30)

Most Pagans and Wiccans actually view their lives as being interconnected with the rest of the world as a whole. They realize that there are, in fact, fewer events in their lives through this interconnection with the rest of the world.

With the impending end of the Mayan calendar in 2012, there have been many theories in reference to the end of the world. In fact, recently the “dooms day” movies have been coming out more and more frequently. One can only speculate that as 2012 draws nearer, the apocalyptic world movies and theories will by coming out at a frantic pace.

In the Wiccan and Pagan groups though, ideas of the world coming to an end are not so prevalent. Many think that the date of 12 December 2012 will be a beginning of a ‘New World Age.’ Many experts believe that this will be an age of peace and interconnection with the rest of the world and beyond for the next 5, 200 years. The experts are also saying that the ‘veil’ that separates our world from the spirit world will be lifted. The descendents of the Ancient Mayan’s say that we are already in the twenty – five year timeline of this change. (Rennison np.)

This information of the coming change according to the Mayan calendar is something that modern Pagans and Wiccans are looking forward to.

In conclusion, is there a rise in the Wicca and Pagan belief system? Given the research, the answer would definitely be a resounding yes. The movement is very broad and difficult to pin down, but it has been noticed. Many authors and professionals are calling on others to try and do research on the subject. With others taking an interest in the movement, maybe someone or maybe a group of individuals will come forward with some new views or theories on this movement. With these new views and theories we can only hope to find a definite reason for this shift.

Until then, there will be many I’m sure who will take on this daunting task. There are hundreds of theories already studied or in the process of being studied. I’m sure that there are many other ideas out there that have not yet been discussed or found in the public forum. With the case of the ancient Mayans, their descendants have said that there is plenty more information that they are in possession of, but have yet to let the rest of the world know about it. Whether there is more information yet to come remains to be seen.

I’m sure that there other ancient civilizations out there that have possessed knowledge or information, now lost. Unfortunately, just as these civilizations have disappeared, so has their immediate knowledge of this information. They did leave behind recordings of information that are in the processes of being deciphered and theories investigated. The only problem is that many individuals in the modern world have a very difficult time believing what the ancients were saying. This in turn leads to very different ideas in what is being told, many times the information is right there, but many misinterpret the information only because the obvious is just too difficult to comprehend.

Footnotes:
Works Cited:

Adler, Margot. Drawing Down the Moon Witches, Druids, Goddess-Worshippers, and Other Pagans in America. New York: Penguin (Non-Classics) , 2006. Print.
Berger, Helen A., Evan A. Leach, and Leigh S. Shaffer. Voices from the Pagan Census A National Survey of Witches and Neo-Pagans in the United States (Studies in Comparative Religion) . New York: University of South Carolina, 2003. Print.
Clifton, Chas S. Her Hidden Children: the Rise of Wicca and Paganism in America. Lanham: AltaMira, 2006. Print.
Gibson, Marion H. Witchcraft Myths in American Culture. New York: Routledge, 2007. Print.
Handbook of New Age (Brill Handbooks on Contemporary Religion) . New York: Brill Academic, 2007. Print.
Handbook of Contemporary Paganism (Brill Handbooks on Contemporary Religion) . New York: Brill Academic, 2009. Print.
Harvey, Graham. Contemporary Paganism Listening People, Speaking Earth. New York: NYU, 2000. Print.
Pearson, Joanne. Belief Beyond Boundaries Wicca, Celtic Spirituality and the New Age (Religion Today-Tradition, Modernity and Change) . Grand Rapids: Ashgate, 2002. Print.
Sanders, Catherine. Wicca’s Charm Understanding the Spiritual Hunger Behind the Rise of Modern Witchcraft and Pagan Spirituality. Wheaton: Shaw, 2005. Print.
“Susan Rennison’s Website.” Susan Joy Rennison’s Website. Web. 18 Dec. 2009. .

Today’s Runes for Jan. 13th is Ken

Today’s Runes

Stone Runes are most commonly used for questions about the natural world and things beyond human control. Ken is the rune of light and knowledge, driving away darkness and ignorance and revealing hidden truth. This rune also brings forth images of friendship and comfort. Ken is the light of inspiration, the light of imagination, and a beacon in the darkest hours

Are The ’13 Goals of the Witch’ Being Thrown Out the Window Today?

Are The ’13 Goals of the Witch’ Being Thrown Out the Window Today?

Author: Gullveig

The 13 Goals of the Witch has been attributed to Scott Cunningham and other authors, but is treated by traditionalists and non-traditional Pagans alike to be the cornerstone of what a Witch is. However, many Pagans pay lip service to these rules in public while going against them once they are in their own groups and private lives. Even our group leaders, who are supposed to support and encourage us, fail in passing on these goals and living by example. How can we be great Witches if our leaders are backstabbing and living chaotic lives? Simple. We can’t. So we have to be those leaders.

Each goal is listed with a modern explanation below, most having to do with how I see those goals being violated in our Pagan community and how to stop such behavior.

Know Thyself – This is the most important of the goals. This goal is often taken as if you are a jerk in life and you know it, then you “know yourself”. People do believe this. Know Thyself, however, means to be constantly working on yourself, to know your shortcomings and not give in to them. It means also not to make up excuses for bad behavior. If you do not know yourself or work on yourself to make yourself better and therefore be in a spot to help others become better, you might as well not be a Witch.

Know Your Craft — The Craft is a vague word for getting to know your world; because anything you learn in the world can be applied to Witchcraft. I have known natural Witches in my time that would say they could do magick without reading a single book, but these Witches I found had no sympathy or empathy with the world around them. You need to learn about religions, even Christianity, the good points and the bad, in order to see how paganism fits in the time frame of history and religion. On top of this, you need to practice, meditate and keep notes of your observations. That way you can reflect on them and share them with others.

An open mind is key, but there are a good number of Witches out there that can be as judgmental as those closed-minded. A Witch who isn’t educated in the sense of being a “world student” isn’t a true Witch.

Learn — How many of us learn from our mistakes? How many Witches redo the same hurtful actions to others without thinking, “Maybe I shouldn’t start any ill will in the Pagan community?” The role of learning goes way beyond books and knowing your Craft, but how you apply the knowledge gained. It is to learn how to fix problems, heal hurt and bring people together instead of gossiping, sneering at the nemesis coven down the road or sitting back and doing nothing when you want a problem to be solved. This learning is key to being a moral Witch. We only will repeat ignorant actions if we never learn to stop them.

Have Patience — Patience is essential for the Craft. You have to have the patience of a spider, still in its web in order to deal with others and your life goals. People take advantage of patience, such in covens where one person does all the work and the others come and go when they please, not understanding the violation of trust they are causing. They hurt this person by thinking that the person will always have patience with them. It is up to every single witch to be patient and also not violate the patience of others, even if they have a lot of it. It is the one goal that is used most by others disrespectfully.

“Don’t like the childish way I am acting? Don’t you have patience? A Witch has patience, so you shouldn’t be upset I am here two hours late.” Don’t be one of those people. Don’t turn patience on those in your life.

Apply Knowledge With Wisdom — A Witch can know a lot about the world. But Witches that run off at the mouth about this knowledge can be show offs. A true Witch takes what he or she has learning and tapers it with wisdom, also known as tact. If you are a leader, don’t put down others because they don’t understand what you know.

If you are a student and your coven is being immature, speak out about it; use your knowledge to help to solve the problem. Add action into the mix of knowledge and wisdom, and you can be a Witch who does good for yourself, your group, the Pagan community and for humanity and the world. Use your knowledge for good too, not to put someone else down. Set a good example to others about what a Witch is.

Achieve Balance – Witches try to live lives of balance, not chaos. Yet many Witches try to live lives of drama and anger. Some think being a Witch will add spice or drama to their lives. Some of these Witches do it intentionally; some may have an inner problem they need to work on. They might not mean to cause harm by the chaos in their lives, but give into it.

A Witch’s life should be like the calm sea. Not that storms can’t rage in the sea, but problems are taken care of. Stress is controlled and moderate. A Witch tries to combat anxiety and depression, not let illness take over them. A Witch tackles problems head on and doesn’t let others do it for them. Sometimes in the Pagan community, people try to hurt those who have balance. Maybe it is human nature, but it is a sad display of our Witchcraft community to hurt someone just because your life is chaotic and theirs isn’t.

Keep Your Words In Good Order – This means, no gossip and gossip runs rampant in our community. I’ve known Witches who have gone out of their way to say insulting things to others. If you wonder why the Pagan community isn’t taken seriously, this is why. You can’t be a good Witch if you are smiling and talking to someone at a Pagan event, only to stab him or her in the back once you are done. I’ve had people praise a Pagan ritual only to laugh at it to others once it was done.

If everyone would lock their lips and not try to hurt others with words, more problems would be solved or probably wouldn’t happen in the first place. Your words are your honor and those who use them badly don’t have honor for the Craft. If your words don’t ring true, people can’t take you seriously. They will never know if you mean you will show up for event or can be trusted if your words don’t match your actions. So say what you mean and follow through with your actions. If you say you are going to do something, do it. No excuses.

This goal can be lifted if you are having abuse problems with your coven. By all means if someone is hurting you mentally, psychologically or physically or threatens you in a pagan group or coven, let the Pagan community know. This not only helps you, it also helps those who might end up getting the same teacher or stop them from having a bad experience. Don’t let the seriousness of this goal stop you from using your words to make things right. Sometimes a little speaking of the mind works miracles, even if it is tough love.

Keep Your Thoughts in Good Order – Try to solve problems. Sometimes people don’t care how you feel so you have to take the time to get over that and move on. It is hard not to hold malice if someone hurts you, but holding in means thoughts about a person inside yourself will only hurt you. Try to talk and if that person doesn’t wish to listen, move on. Don’t dwell on bad things in your life. This goal is much like keeping your words in order.

Speak out when a situation is bad; use your thoughts to try to heal it. Think good of people. If you can’t then try not to think about the person or situation at all, if you tried your best to clear it up. But please, use your thoughts and words to try to problem solve instead of doing nothing. Make your thoughts strong and positive. Focus on goals. Live those goals. And be aware getting over problems can take a long time. Give yourself that time.

There are comments in our community that state there will never be any more Scott Cunninghams or Doreen Valientes. But we can be. Why can’t I use that as a goal? Why defeat myself with the thought I can never be grand? These thoughts are what hurt our community. We need thoughts with more ambition. We need to think we can all be leaders and that starts now!

Celebrate Life — Celebrate your own life, the lives of others, the lives of animals and nature. This means not harming nature. This one can be tricky if you own a car. But try to respect nature by being as eco-friendly as you can. Some Pagans I have encountered smoke like chimneys, flicking their butts into the street and littering the road with pieces of paper from their cars. It is like kicking the Goddess in the face. She made you this great world and you litter and make it toxic.

Take care of others, work in the community, donate items to your Pagan community, and ask how you can be of service. It isn’t only about having fun, but when you celebrate life, you should have that too. You are a Pagan, connected to all life. What hurts humanity, should hurt you. You should want to take action, even in small ways, like recycling or spending time helping those less fortunate.

Be happy for what you have. Maybe of us Pagans come from countries where we think luxury items are needed for our survival, but we don’t take time to reflect how lucky we are to live in places where we can get an education and have our wants taken care of. One should pray to the God and Goddess for these gifts.

Observe insects and other animals. Pay attention to the value of life. Take joy in the flight of a month or the jumping of a cricket. Or the smile of a friend.

Attune With The Cycles of the Earth– I am surprised by the number of Witches who don’t celebrate the Sabbats or Esbats. Even if you don’t have a ritual, one can toast Demeter during Lammas, for example or harvest berries during Strawberry Moon. Talk to animals and trees. It may sound overly hippie, but you will find you connect. As I said before, many Pagans I have seen, even leaders, throw trash into the street or don’t keep the Sabbats. How will students learn if their leader doesn’t care if it’s the full moon or not? Again, they won’t.

Not keeping the Sabbats also creates a wishy-washy year for students and missing pages in their Books of Shadows. If a group can’t meet, a ritual should be provided for those to do at home. Solitary rituals should be encouraged. I find writing my own rituals helps me develop as a person, because I put myself and my goals into them. They transform me into a better person.

So attune yourself with Mother Gaia, plant native plants, treat animals with respect, acknowledge and learn the cycles of the moon and names of the seasons. Even their symbols. If you don’t live in a place with four seasons, use the ebbs and tides of your areas or imagine how it must be to live in a place with snow in December.

Being a transplant from the Midwest to Southern California, it is hard to do, but must be done. There are lessons for each season to that reflect into one’s own life. It is hard to be a Witch without knowing the land, the grass, the sun, the moon and the stars.

Keep Yourself Healthy – This means, healthy food, no smoking, no excessive drinking, exercise and no harmful activities affecting the body. Yes, I know pagans who tan in tanners, who smoke, who drink and who have even done drugs. This violates the temple the Goddess has given you.

I am not saying you can’t have a burger if you want it, or a cigar at a party, but constant use of these or addiction to them can hurt your temple and also hurt your mind and your outlook on life. I don’t think one has to be a vegan to be a better witch, but a healthy diet helps. I do eat meat, but sparingly. I would smoke a cigar at a party. Yet I don’t have addictions to these things.

As your body ages, you realize you may want to become healthier and quit even the occasional cigarette or dinner of fast food. That happened to me! I even know people I tried to teach meditation too that coughed when they took long breaths because of smoking. So how can you meditate if you can’t even breathe?

Take care of yourself. Be a healthy weight. Note I didn’t say starve yourself either. A person can be a size 0 and be very unhealthy. Witches look healthy and alive. Even the Goth ones. (I would consider myself Gothy by nature.) Take care of yourself before you have to see the doctor.

Meditate – Meditation is a state of mind. It can be from a book or walking along a shady path in the woods. All Pagans should make time for personal meditation and reflection. They should make time to talk to their deities or to nature. This can be a time to write out one’s problems in a journal or to be creative. To me, this should be at least an hour a day, or more ideally, an hour in the morning and an hour at night.

If you don’t think you have time for meditation, you do. Turn off the TV, get off the computer and find a silent place to be. Let your thoughts go. Sit quietly and hear the world around you. Fall into that noise and be. Get books on meditation if you can’t focus. All Witches should be able to meditate because you need to be able to focus in rituals and to direct magickal energy, for example, in spellwork. It is a very crucial part of our religion, being able to focus our will.

Honor the Goddess and God — I wonder when this one went out of style? I have run into a lot of people who tend to speak very vaguely about Gods. As if I need to hide my Athena worship from someone who is into Freya as not to offend their sensibilities. There are a lot of Gods out there and some pagans who don’t even have Gods, but to me, there is nothing more spiritual than making an altar to a God and praising them. I feel it connects action to ritual. It tells the ritual where to go.

So what if someone does a ritual to Shiva when I only worship Diana? Can’t I get something out of that ritual as well? I also find Pagans calling and dismissing Godforms like they are puppets to do their bidding.

What happened to thanking the Gods? Thanking the Sun and the Moon, being grateful for each day given? Listen to what the Gods say to you. If you have a pantheon, read up on the Gods in it. Sometimes I go to rituals and people, even though they are in a coven with a certain pantheon, the members of that group can’t even recite the names and myths of their Gods. It’s a shame.

Study up on the Gods, read mythology and folklore; learn how stories connect to people in real life. You will learn much. Planting an organic apple in the ground for Venus or pouring spring water in the ground for Elen of the Ways is good practice to showing the Gods you appreciate them.

Looking at these goals, I can see why they have stood the test of time and people use them as public domain, though I know that Scott Cunningham’s Wicca: A Guide for the Solitary Practitioner has these goals phrased like this but I have seen it in many other forms. Using this goal list as a moral framework, a Witch can succeed in magick and working in the community, both the Pagan one and world of humanity and nature.

As Witches, we need to go back to structure in our practice and not freeform, to turn our passivity and bad character traits into ones that benefit life, from without to within. I urge you to print these goals out and follow them. I challenge you. And in meeting the challenge, we can be better Witches and better people.

Can A Pagan Still Have Blind Faith?

Can A Pagan Still Have Blind Faith?

Author: Lady Julie of Ravensgrove Coven

Can you be Pagan and still have blind faith? Do you have to have tangible proof of the Goddess’s and the God’s existence? Do you actually have to see the gifts bestowed upon us by deities to believe in them?

Growing up in the Christian churches, the one thing that I have carried with me in my Wiccan path is the idea of blind faith. You sometimes just have to believe and just leave it at that. Not to say that you cannot have questions, it would be silly not to. If I do not understand an aspect of the path or a topic I am learning, I have no qualms about asking a question to try to understand it better. If we do not question, we cannot find answers, therefore we cannot grow. I do not want my high priestess to tell me, as the ministers of my early youth did, “Because the Goddess/God said so.” That is not what I consider faith.

Then again, I do not feel the need to question every single thing and need that tangible, “I have to touch it to believe it” proof. Do I need to see a physical manifestation of the Goddess or God? No. Would it make my belief in them stronger if I did? I do not think so.

I feel them with me everyday. I see their existence in the sun and the moon, in the flowers and the trees. I see them in the faces of my coven family during ritual. I see them every time I look into my granddaughter’s eyes. I feel them every day when I get out of bed to start my day, and I feel them every night as I ready myself for sleep.

My High Priestess is a gifted psychic and medium. I have seen the reactions of people after she has done reading for them. I have seen the looks on the faces of some when she describes a spirit that she sees. I cannot see what she sees; yet I still believe her. And there are times that what she sees may not make sense to the client, or even her at that moment, yet I still believe in her and her gifts. I am not going to run and throw everything I have learned from her away because something did not come through to her clearly and I felt it should. What kind of student would I be then? And most often, in time, what she had seen becomes clearer to all involved and they begin to understand.

It would be a very hard life to live, I feel, if we did not just sometimes believe, to feel that we had to have everything explained and proven in detail. It would be exhausting to question every aspect of your life, religion, belief, etc. How sad it would be to never be happy with just knowing that sometimes, things just are; that there is no rhyme or reason to the universe around us, to know that life is everywhere without having to see its DNA. I love the fact that I look around my life in wonder and see the gifts that have been bestowed upon me, knowing that I am a child of the Goddess and God.

I know the concept of “blind faith” carries a tremendous amount of Christian connotations to it, especially for those of us who grew up in the Christian churches. I cannot tell you how many times I was told that it were “God’s will” or “Give faith unto the Lord” in times of trouble. I know my mother has “put things in God’s hands” when money was tight or there was some other crisis in her life.

I believe that you have to help yourself to achieve your goals. Every time I cast a spell, no matter what the need, I know that I have to take actions myself to obtain that goal. I do not have the mindset that I am going to get what I want or need just because I have faith.

I know many Pagans who grew up in the Christian churches moved on from them because of the “just believe” attitude and the inability to feel free to question what they were being taught, the scorn that they received from the members of the congregations if they spoke out and questioned the Bible. I remember the fear I felt as a child when I was told that if I did not believe I would burn in Hell. The fire and brimstone fear, as I call it.

Yet now, in my Pagan life, there are times that I cannot see, or hear, or touch something, but I still believe it is there. I know that the Goddess and God are with me daily, because I feel their presence, yet I do not question their existence because they are not in a physical form.

I believe that there are spirits around me all the time, yet I am not one of the lucky ones who can actually see them. I believe that there is life in the grass, flowers and trees, yet I cannot physically hear them breathe.

I believe that there are people who have lived many lives, yet I was not there to witness those lives that they lived before. I believe that my High Priestess can see people and places here and now as well as the past, yet I cannot see them with her.

Blind faith, to me it is a comforting thought. To know that there is something out there that you believe in, that you cannot explain. Something you cannot see, but it is out there regardless. You do not have to be Christian to have blind faith. I believe that in any religion you have to have to have the ability to say, “I cannot explain it, I cannot see it, but I know it is real.

If you do not, then you might as well stay in bed and not look forward to a new day, not raise you face to the warmth of the sun, or breathe deep the fragrance of the flower. You might as well not look into the night sky and smile when you look at the Goddess in her moon form.

Can a Pagan still have blind faith?

I certainly hope so. I do.

Brightest Blessings,

Lady Jasmyne Dragonskye
Ravensgrove Coven
Indianapolis, IN area

Today’s Runes for January 10th is Raido

Today’s Runes

Ice Runes are most commonly used for questions about struggle, conflict, and achievement. Raido means to ride. In this rune, the image is not so much the riding of a horse as in riding in a cart or as cargo. As such Raido may suggest a journey, but is much more indicative of communication. Alternate interpretations based on the use of Raido as a cognate in other words give it the meaning of council, judgment, and moral correctness. Therefore, this rune is the rune of wise advice and good leadership.

What Is In a Name?

What Is In a Name?
image
Author: Siren Starsong

Something memorable happened to my children and me the other day. I believe I was mystically guided by the hand of Bast, the Egyptian goddess of cats, women and children, to call my children together in what will surely be a defining moment in all of our existences as witches. We decided to choose our Wiccan or “Magical” names, as I like to refer to them. Some Wiccans do this; some do not. But being that I’m such a believer in dreams and all things magical, as are my children, I knew this was something we would do with incredible enthusiasm. Of course, recently my studies have included many of the Eastern and Asian traditions as well as the Stars, Ruling planets, Zodiacal signs, and the Elemental dispositions of people.

This knowledge being fresh in my mind and so eerily accurate in the descriptions of these little people that I knew better than anyone, I knew it was the right time to do this. For lack of a better word, I was inspired. It was not an easy task and it took pretty much all day to create their perfect and everlasting, Wiccan identities. Coupled with some further online research during this process, our names emerged. Names that would keep my children ever mindful of an innately good presence guiding their every movement as well as keeping a little magic in their daily routines. I also knew that we would be able to actively use these titles whether in ritual or rite or if nothing else, just to show each other affection. In perfect love and perfect trust.

My name was easy. I chose my name shortly after realizing that Wicca and Witchcraft were to be the path that my own life would follow. I had read a few books, and researched extensively online for something that I could believe in and feel good about. I was raised Baptist and had become so disenchanted with how Hollywood-ized it and many other western, Christian denominations had become. I knew that what I believed was different than how I was “conditioned” by my society to believe, but was unaware that there were a vast number of individuals whose views were just like mine.

And once I realized Wicca was right for me, it just seemed like the next phase of my metamorphosis to adopt my Wiccan identity. You know me as Siren Starsong. Being born a Capricorn and an Earth sign, I often wondered why I never really seemed to fit that description. I mostly exemplified the Aquarian traits and personality type.

Once I started reading about the Western Zodiac, my eyes were opened. See, I was a preemie. Born just over two weeks early. Had I finished my gestation and made my due date, Aquarius all the way honey! Maybe this would explain my recurrent dreams of being a mermaid. I’ve always been inexplicably drawn to the water.

I ache for the sea. To taste the brine on my lips, the sting of it in my eyes, the incessant rhythm of lunar-pulled, rolling tides. When I’m too far inland, I yearn for the seashore. When I’m standing on the sand, sea foam licking my toes, I feel I’m home and never want to leave. Then, there is the facet of music. It’s in my blood. Born to generations of gifted musicians,

I’m sure it was imparted to me as my mother’s voice penetrated the womb while singing lullabies in anticipation of my arrival. My instrument is my voice. It is my gift. Mermaids sing to the sea.

In legends, Sirens were known for voicing the most unfathomably beautiful serenade, that their songs actually hypnotized sailors, unfortunately to their tragic demise. Therefore, with two such powerful forces in me, I settled on SIREN and SONG. STAR had to be a part of it too. Stars in the sky (luv ’em) , starfish in the sea (duh) , pentagrams, pentacles (full of meaning) , you can see where I was headed with this. They are my favorite shape. Anyway, after saying it a bunch of different ways, once I heard THE ONE, it was like MAGIC. It was obvious at that very moment that I would forevermore be SIREN STARSONG. Merry meet.

So the process of finding a name had been established and I knew it would be such a magical and binding journey for my children. Don’t get me wrong, they are free to believe as they see fit. I only see to it as my duty to guide them in a path of light. The right-hand path of Wicca. If they grow out of adolescence only to choose a belief system different than mine, then so-be-it. At least I know that I had a hand in imparting them with the insight of the different worldly and otherworldly spiritualities. Gifting them along their way with a metaphysical window to see all that is, and can be good. Should they, in their adulthood, choose another way or craft, I’ll know they did it intelligently, wielding a wealth of divine knowledge and strength.

So, I just thought I’d share with you all exactly how we came to be who we are as a family of witches. What our names represent. Maybe a bit about who each of my children are and an idea about their signs and elements will highlight just how our names evolved. Again, the Internet proved to be an amazing and helpful tool in helping us with our quest.

Here’s the rundown:

Morgan Ashlee is the birth-name of my first-born daughter. She is sweet and strong-willed, self-aware and sassy! At 12 years old she is quite the super diva, singing ever so much better than I did at her age. Always the performer, she loves positive accolades and tons of attention. Immensely helpful, excellently intelligent, spirited and graceful. She can dance like nobody’s business (a cheerleader, GASP) . Though, she is more apt to befriend the wallflower than the debutant just out of sheer good will. She is eternally optimistic and rarely downtrodden. Super-emotive and affectionate, she is hilarious, entertaining, and one of my all-time, very best friends. She is fair-haired with snowy pale, glowy skin and cool, azure eyes. To me, she is what I envision angels looking like. She radiates light and warmth. Her beauty is luminous and celestial. She is a Libra, an Air sign.

Her Wiccan or magical name selection of ARIA represents her gift for and love of music. She also chose AQUA signifying both her physical characteristic of blue eyes and for her primary eastern element, which is Water. STAR was a given. Symbolic of her desire for admiration as well as her radiant beauty and kindness. A YIN to both mine and her younger sister’s Yang, she is also the Pig per the Chinese zodiac and a secondary Wood element. With a little help from myself, Morgan chose a name that suits her to a “T”. She is ARIA AQUASTAR and the only one of my children to share a common name (STAR) with myself. And here’s the weirdness. When she was born, I had yet to study any of these philosophies and had no idea of her astrological essence. So it is astonishing to me that the name I chose for her so long ago, simply because it sounded pleasing, was curiously accurate by definition. Morgan means “of the sea” or “by the sea” (her primary eastern element is Water) and Ashlee means “grove of Ash trees” (her secondary eastern element is Wood) . A little pre-Wiccan divination perhaps? Amazing!!!

Second by birth order is my daughter Shayne Alexis. She is 10 and was born on the fourth of July. She is the Yang of the two girls. She is soft-hearted and quirky, meek and wildly artistic, imaginative and silly. She is often misunderstood by those with little patience, due to her fluctuating disposition. She is the instigator, the ringleader of the younger children into a realm of dreamy, euphoric play. She wears her heart on her sleeve, loves all animals, and would rather be outdoors to run free. She’s a hard one to keep still for very long. She loves to tend a garden and can skillfully grow most anything. She’s adventurous yet clingy to the comforts of her own home.

Shayne is exquisitely petite, almost pixie-like, despite her inflated appetite. Her dark hair, saucer-sized, brown eyes and creamy complexion are reminiscent of a china doll. And much like a fairy, she’s often found perched comfortably atop seemingly awkward places (like the corner of a dresser or the back of a sofa) as if she is weightless. She and I are the most alike personality-wise which makes sense since we are both Tigers per the Chinese zodiac. She is a Cancer and a Water sign.

TALLULAH was decided upon after much aggravation to Shayne. She was harder to impress than the others. It means “running water”. Her ruling planet is the MOON so that one was a must. And then of course, GARDEN because her eastern elements are both Wood and Earth and because of her “inner” gardener. With her delicate and ethereal beauty, it is no wonder that she fell in love with her own new title in an instant. Close your eyes and say it aloud…TALLULAH MOONGARDEN. Doesn’t it just ooze fairy magic?

Third-born is my first son, Logan Aric. Born on 9/11/2001 during the World Trade Center tragedy, at just 6, he is an old soul. He is the introspective, introverted, soft spoken, observant, inventive, considerate, little professor. He is the boy-wonder genius, with a razor sharp wit and puppy dog gaze. Big brown eyes, golden hair and a tawny glow make this lanky, golden-boy striking to behold. Yup, he’s sure to break a few hearts. He’s extra loveable and super affectionate. He is just as content to be sitting quietly, turning his fantasies into artwork as he is to be spastically jumping on the bed like a daredevil with his brother. And though he is rarely ruffled, if angered, he erupts like a volcano and sulks for hours. He is the Virgo and an Earth sign like myself. A Snake per the Chinese zodiac, his elements are Fire and Metal. He is the YIN of my two boys.

We chose PHEONIX like the bird that perishes in a torrent of flames and falls to the Earth as ash. Then from the ash, is reborn. This name is symbolic of both Logan’s Earth sign (ash) as well as his Fire element. And, for his own deeply, reflective personal trait as well as representing his secondary element of Metal, SILVER seemed fitting. Something I’ve learned while reading about Chinese Snakes is that they are prone to psychic tendencies. Strange then how, one of Logan’s favorite pretend games involves portals. Always daydreaming of portals. SEER is sure to hone his future talents. Altogether, he is PHEONIX SILVERSEER.

Our fourth child and second son, Gage Anson, was born the day after my first-born’s birthday. It seemed we had come full circle. My husband and I had originally chosen the name Gabriel for him pretty early on in my pregnancy. At the last minute though, for no good reason at all, we changed our minds and agreed on Gage. And WOW, was he determined to be here too, as he defied all contraception. This would be a telltale sign of who this little boy would become.

Gage is wild, exhaustingly energetic, and dripping with happiness. He loves to make people laugh, even at his own expense. He is almost freakishly, physically strong, but is quite attached to his soft blankie and pillow. He is loud, huggable, goofy, mischievous, laid back, sneaky, musically inclined, and is delightfully charming. He’s gotten away with so much due to that last point. He has dark hair and eyes, milky, porcelain skin, and pomegranate red lips. He’s built stocky and muscular, almost plump, completely opposite of his older brother.

As a baby his hair was full of gorgeous curls and we were often complimented on our “beautiful little girl”. He is beautiful, no doubt. Ironically, he is that kid who will secretly create a mural in the laundry room where you’ve purposely hidden the Sharpie markers, while standing atop the dryer. But, then he’ll pass out the next instance amongst the dirty clothes, as if his batteries have run out, looking nothing but angelic as he slumbers.

I was elated when, while browsing the Internet for names meaning “strong”, I found that GABRIEL was on the list. I think I actually screamed a little. Plus, I’ve always said Gage looked like an angel while he slept and Gabriel is the name of an angel. Next, we chose FIRE in honor of his primary element.

Gage is a Scorpio and an amorous Horse by Chinese tradition with Water as both his western sign and his secondary eastern element. We picked STORM for its aspects of Water, unpredictability, and occasionally destructive nature. He may have the coolest name out of the bunch. Gage is now known also as GABRIEL FIRESTORM.

THIS CONCLUDES OUR BROADCAST DAY. But in all seriousness, I’m so thankful to have come across this site where I can share my enthusiasm for my beliefs. You all are now a treasured part of my days. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on these names. Also, I’d love to hear the stories behind your names. Thank you for taking the time to read this and blessed be.

Siren Starsong

Today’s Runes for January 6th is Dagez

Today’s Runes

Spirit Runes are most commonly used for questions about mysticism, spirituality, and religion. Dagez means daylight, and represents divine light. This rune generally refers to dawn (the initial sparking of energy) or to midday (the climax of energy). Both dawn and midday are symbolic of change, but unlike the changes in the perpetual circle of the year which are slow and subtle, the changes over a day are much faster and more dramatic. The breaking of a new day is symbolic of the rapid illumination of dismal circumstances, and is suggestive of Satori. Be careful – although this rune generally suggests a positive change, the symbology of a peaking point suggests that there must be a change downward as well. Fortunately for some, this rune is cyclic and irreversible, and so permanence is not promised – the only thing you can be sure of is an exciting ride.

Those Dabblers!

Those Dabblers!

Author: Llewthena

I have found that so many books, articles, blogs and other forms of communication offer advice on how to spot a “dabbler” or a “fluffy bunny”: Essentially, avoid those who do not seem serious about the Craft. This bothers me on so many levels, as I’m sure it bothers others. In the spirit of such bothering, I give you the levels on which this type of attitude bothers me.

Level 1: Don’t insult my intelligence. I did not begin practicing Witchcraft in order to become ignorant.

Level 2: Don’t assume we have the same definition of “dabbler”. A ‘’waste to one person, may be a treasure to someone else.

Level 3: Do not presume to tell me who I should or should not spend my time with. It is my business who I allow into my life. This kind of overlaps with the first and second levels but this is why I have entitled them “levels” and not “points”. They build on each other. My levels have teamwork. Moving on…

Level 4: Finding the Goddess within does not a Goddess make. This goes for the Gods as well. I am still determining my destiny. I highly doubt you know it better than I do.

Level 5: “Live you must and let to live, freely take and freely give”. An amateur has the right to live without professional intervention, unless they seek it, which I guess would then make them a novice. As far as I can ascertain, the great and knowledgeable anti-dabbler authors think novices are peachy keen. After all, whom are they writing their books and such for? Be wary the labels that get bandied around.

Were we not all “dabblers” at some point? Some of us may still be. Perhaps I am mistaken, but I doubt that every currently “serious” or “true” Witch began as such esteemed individuals. We dabble to learn new things. We try out different experiences. For many on the Pagan path, we followed our intuition and found a spirituality that has become home. But it wasn’t an immediate and perfect fit.

Anything worth learning or doing takes time. Finding a spiritual path can be harrowing, exhausting, frustrating, fulfilling, joyous, and so much more. It is not, however, easy. At least, not if one is trying to make lasting changes. And not every new experience will initiate change.

Every advanced, expert, grand poomba Witch began as, well, beginners. Life is an ongoing lesson. I think a truly “serious” Witch, Wiccan, Pagan, Heathen or whoever ought not shy away from “dabblers”. Yes, some people try out the Craft and find it is not for them for various reasons. Those people will eventually move on of their own accord as they do not find here what it is they’re seeking. Yet, some of those whom you might prematurely be advised to run away from could be those you are meant to learn from.

Have you ever learned a lesson from a child or someone younger than you? A less experienced person is not, by default, less serious, less committed or less worthy of time. Teaching increases learning so it is reasonable to think that a less expert individual will retain their own lessons more if they teach others.

How boring and useless it would be to start something if you already knew everything about it! Our spiritual journey is no different. If we are perfect at the onset, we have nothing to learn and no incentive to change. If we have nothing to learn, there really isn’t any point in continuing on. Let me embrace my inner fortune cookie and say, the journey is the prize.

I am a Priestess and I am not perfect. (Don’t tell anyone.) I am continuing to grow and change. I ever strive to hone my skill and develop my Craft. I hope never to become so “advanced” that I cannot learn from a mere “beginner”. When my journey is complete, it will be the end of this lifetime and I am in no rush to get there.

I will join the rank of advice authors! I advise we not become judgmental of the person who has a ‘Blessed Be’ bumper sticker on their car and just gave the finger to that Hummer that cut them off. Maybe they’re having a bad day. Maybe someone else is using the car. Maybe they are from a culture where saluting fellow drivers with an upraised middle finder is considered to be a friendly greeting. Or maybe the driver of the Hummer deserved such a gesture. Who can say for sure? Don’t judge a Witch until you have spent a day on her (or his) broom.

This is not to say that you should run up to everyone wearing pretty Pagan jewelry and invite him/her home to join your coven. When dealing with any stranger, use your common sense and trust your intuition. You will not always be right, but as you learn to trust that inner guidance, your success rate will definitely improve.

This is not advice regarding abusive relationships. That is an entirely different subject and is not being addressed here. No one deserves to be abused. Ever. Enough said. Other, less harmful but not good relationships are often put in our way to teach us something.

A common goal, it seems, among Witches (and all Pagans, really) is to find balance in their lives and unity with the Divine. We seek to be connected to the Universe. We commune with Nature, realizing that Nature is not always pleasant. I hope never to become that annoyingly perky person spouting such eloquent sayings as “Turn that frown upside down!” I am that person who will say “Look at the whole picture and see what you might learn from it”.

We are but threads in a great tapestry. If we all start picking at the looser threads, the whole article unravels. A loose thread can be woven back into the piece but no mortal on this plane is skilled enough to weave such a Divine craft. Maybe Clotho will plait that loose thread with yours and enhance the beauty of that Universal cloth. Maybe Lachesis will move that thread someplace else. Maybe Atropos will cut the thread. Such decisions are not ours to make.

We should ever strive to avoid those who would do us harm. But not every “fluffy bunny” with a pent and a bumper sticker should be treated like the plague. If that newly Paganized furry rabbit remains fluffy, learning nothing and progressing no further, it is not another’s responsibility to force them along or become/remain attached to them. Still, that dabbler may be in need of a teacher or role model before they become the “serious” Witch so many authors claim to be.

Instead of “How to Avoid the Dabbler”, maybe we should be learning “How to Spot Potential”.

What’s In A Name?

What’s In A Name?

Author: Life is a Dance Regardless

Recently, someone spoke with me about some problems surrounding the word “Pagan”. This person told to be careful about who I speak to when claiming that I am one, even other people claiming to be Pagan. It is hard for me to agree with her. I can’t wrap my head around it actually. Truly, I understand exactly where she is coming from, but I disagree with her entirely.

What she is saying is that people may tell me that I am going about being Pagan in the wrong way. Other pagans may be angry with me for the way that I practice my faith. People may advise me on what I should do differently, whom I should speak to, and which people to avoid. What books should I read? Where should I go? What should I do? How should I practice my faith? How, in fact, should I practice my life?

Admittedly, I am new to it, and perhaps I need guidance but I have realized something important. There are people in every faith who think that their way is the Truth. There are people in Life in general who think their way is the Truth. This is something we all have to deal with throughout our entire lives because people have different opinions.

For the most part, I have not respected religion in the past because of its inability to recognize that everyone needs something different in his or her life. Some people do not need faith, and most religions fail to allow room for that view. I explained to my friend that being a “good Pagan” was like declaring oneself a “good Christian”. The term is likely to mean something different from one person to the next.

For one Christian, being good may be hating people in other religions, and another, it may be loving and accepting no matter what. The Bible can be interpreted differently, though some people think otherwise. As such, different people can interpret Paganism differently.

It is not, in fact, a problem with religion, which is why I respect religion so much at this point. It is, has always been, and will always be a problem with individuals. No way is the right way. No way is the wrong way. Religion is not math or science, where one false move can completely screw up your equation, or burn your eyebrows off. Religion is something to be taken seriously, but it is not rocket science. It is for the pure and sole purpose of finding yourself. What do you, as an individual think is right or wrong?

I am 18, graduated high school last spring and am now looking for a job. For me personally, I believe going into college using someone else’s money is wrong. It is my preference to earn enough money to enter a trade school of my choice without needing debt solutions. My aunt suggests I get a loan from my grandpa, but even then, I have debt. There are certain things I do not want to deal with at this point in my life. I would rather have the means to rely on myself. I believe that I should enjoy the little things. There are more important things than brushing my hair in the morning. Sometimes, it may be drinking coffee, watching the sunrise, or simply dressing and running to wish my neighbors good luck on the first of a new month. I water my plants every day. I enjoy what I have. I take time to enjoy my connection with Mother Earth.

I realize to some people that this may be the wrong way to go about my faith. However, I also told my friend that calling myself Pagan, to me, would be like calling myself Christian. There are many different facets to each religion. If I were a Christian, I could go more in depth and say I belonged to the Baptists, or that I was Episcopalian. I am not, as it happens. I claim to be Pagan because I am not yet sure of my choice of where to go on my spiritual path. I am also unsure of what I want to do in life.

I believe there are simple principles imbedded in the Pagan practice that I have tried to honor for my entire life. We must love, honor, and respect others regardless of what their belief is. It is best to live naturally. We must not harm others, regardless of our feelings toward them. If others discriminate, we should not sink to their level. We are better than that. We share a love of all things in nature and we worship that which enables to live and prosper.

I honor my Mother. I honor my Father. Both biological and spiritual. I love my neighbors. I love myself. I honor my Elders, but I also believe you have to earn my respect and attention to get it. I try to live in the best way I can. I try to love even those who do me wrong, because they show me exactly what I do not want to be.

I wrote a poem for one of my friend’s birthday. I put in what I thought she could use in her future, things I myself wish to live by.

Never regret the mistakes you have made
But never forget, or you’ll trip on your blade
Always know, you are never alone
Even when you’re lost, you always have home
Good people with good hearts are far between few
Always aim sharp, always aim true
Whether or not you can witness the fight
Fight for what you believe with all your might
Know that a moment comes only one time
Soak in the moment before the clock strikes and bells chime
Try to live each moment in grace
Those you hate, you should try to embrace
For they show you who you ought not to be
And that is a gift, to the highest degree
Do not get mad if a beggar can’t help you
They may be more in need, so bid him adieu
If possible, speak in whispers, and listen when you can
An inadvertent learning is most precious and most grand
And finally, never stumble on a grain of sand
But hold the world in the palm of your hand
You are a Goddess, and if you try, you’ll always win
The courage of a Goddess always comes from within

Forgive me if I am wrong, but for me, I am not.

The ‘Power’ Of A Word

The ‘Power’ Of A Word

Author: Lady GoldenRaven

I am so tired of hearing the constant misuse of one particular word: POWER.

We need to lose the egos people. Being a Wytch, Pagan, or Wiccan is not about power. It is about honoring and celebrating the Old Ones and Their Ways. It is about keeping them alive.

Being a Wytch (from this point on WYTCH will refer to Wytch, Pagan and Wiccan only to simplify the writing) is about caring for Mother Earth and her children. These children include ALL life, not just human. Being a Wytch is about honoring the God and Goddess. It is about observing the Sabbats as well as other rituals.

First, we must understand what the word power itself means. According to Merriman Webster Dictionary, the word power means:

Main Entry: 1pow·er
Function: noun
Pronunciation: ‘pau (- and ) r
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: Middle English, from Old French poeir, from poeir to be able, from (assumed) Vulgar Latin potere, alteration of Latin posse — more at POTENT
1 a (1) : ability to act or produce an effect (2) : ability to get extra-base hits (3) : capacity for being acted upon or undergoing an effect b : legal or official authority, capacity, or right
2 a: possession of control, authority, or influence over others b: one having such power; specifically: a sovereign state c: a controlling group

For most people, the word usually refers to the second meaning: possession of control, authority, or influence over others. For those making the transition from other religions to the Old Ways, they misuse this word.

As a Wytch, we DO have power according to the first definition. We can produce effects, but we can also misuse it as in the second definition.

Being a Wytch for over 30 years, I have seen many folks attempt to threaten others with their wytchy “powers”. I have seen wytches brag how “powerful” they are over other wytches.

In those 30 years, all those who claim to have this “power” have all misused it. They use it to control other people.

They use it to get what they want instead of either working for it, or obtaining it from some other means such as bartering for it. Most of what they want is not material items, but just the ability to “show off” to friends, feel threatening to those they wish to bully.

We need to first of all, strip the old familiar mindset of what power truly is. The power as described in the second definition is one that comes from man’s need to control everything. Yes, I mean men as opposed to women.

Don’t get me wrong, many women throughout history have misused this as well, but true misuse did not come along until Christianity and when MEN decided they had more power than women. I am not writing this to bash men–that is not my intent.

When women ruled this planet, there was a lot less war, killing, and rape? Puh–leeease!

But, I digress.

I hear so many young people say that they turned to Wytchcraft for the power. They are NOT in it for the religion. This upsets me terribly. We are trying to get rid of negative connotations to our religion and along come those who think they can have Power like they see on television.

I tell people, if I were a wytch like they portray on television, why would I be working my butt off week after week? I would not be in debt; I would have enough food so I would not go hungry, etc.

If I were a wytch as seen on television, I would be popping over to Paris for lunch with a twytch of my nose. I would be in the Bahamas with a blink of my eye during the cold winter nights.

I would not be driving a car that is old and falling apart. I would drive my Mercedes one day, my Porsche the next. I would have hit the lottery for millions several times over.

You get the picture.

What really almost pushed me to my limits was an event that occurred the other day. Debbie, a friend of mine considered an “adopted” daughter, is under my guidance as she learns our Ways.

She met a 23 yr old girl whom I will call Mary and they were talking about wytchcraft.

Mary said my daughter, ” I am more powerful than you will ever be!”

At age 23!

This girl claims to have more power than those older than her?

The wrath of a pissed off Wytch comes to the surface. Now, all my self-control was sorely needed. Not just because I felt the urge to just slap her silly, but I also had to watch my mouth.

I think the definition of the word ‘Power ‘should be changed to “the ability to maintain control over oneself”.

I am glad I had some time in between hearing the above statements and in my future meeting with Mary. It gave me time to think how I would handle this situation. I am still torn in some ways. The egotistical human side of me wants to just beat her down (verbally), but the Old Crone in me knows there is a better way to handle this situation.

I think we need to redefine the word power. As wytches, we do have the ability to influence not just other people, but events our professions, etc.

Have you ever heard the phrase: He had the Power to Influence others on the jury?” (Ok, the statement is redundant. It is like saying He had the Power to Power others.)

Our biggest “job” as a wytch is to not just worshipping and praying to our respective God/Goddesses, it is not only to heal Mother Earth and Her children.

Our biggest job is not letting egos affect us in any way.

We are HUMAN–we will NEVER be so powerful that we can instantly snap our fingers and have a mansion appear on our path.

Our jobs in healing the earth and in other rituals and/or spell works that we do is, in fact, to act only as a conduit through which the Ancient Ones may affect Their will. They alone know the Big Plan.

Let’s say we were doing a healing ritual for a person who is ill. This person recovers. Did WE do the actual healing? No. We sent our energies, prayers, and thought forms to the Ancient Ones. It was in Their plan that this person recover.

What if this person had crossed over? Some people blame themselves. Again, it is not our choosing nor is it our call on what happens to whom. If this person has crossed, the Ancient Ones had it in Their plans long before any of us were born.

As a Reiki Master/Teacher, I give my body to the God/Goddess to use as a conduit for their energy to heal. One can stand in the room and feel the heat increasing.

I am not supplying the energy that is being used to heal. If this were the case, none of the Healers in this world would be doing anything except sleeping to restock their supply of energy. The amount of energy used is far greater than what I as a human could ever “conjure” up.

Final words: Drop the word POWER from your repertoire. You really are not all that mighty and powerful.

Grasping Witchcraft

Grasping Witchcraft

Author: Charmed By The Moon

I know the title is a bit misleading as Witchcraft isn’t something we can physically hold. In fact, it’s more of something we can embrace and become. I’m referring more to the idea of getting a hold on it, seeing it, understanding it and living it.

I’ve been on this road for so long but haven’t made the true connection to the facts and ideas that are Witchcraft. There is so much to learn and so much to do and so much to envelop, it can often feel like a horse running down the road and I’m trying to get a rope on it to bring it back in again. It gets away from me sometimes. It becomes too big for me to truly grasp and hold close to me.

Some would say, “Well faith isn’t something you can capture; it is a free moving spirit of the Universe knowing no bounds, limits, or time”.

I agree to a point.

How do Christians and Jewish and Muslim people get a hold of their religion? I believe in some cases it is indoctrinated into them at birth and they have spent years studying and applying what they learn through weekly ritual, holidays etc. They have parents and family and friends in the same realms and it becomes a part of their life.

They have many years of preparation and teaching to reach the important milestones of their particular faith. There are huge parties and gatherings of celebration, families bonding and loving, and a strong sense of community.

That’s fine and wonderful if you are of a major Belief System but what about us? Or should I say me?

What about the Witchcraft of today and how it is still perceived by our peers?

There is no building to belong to, no sense of community really. No one wants to hear how you just made a second initiation and chose a new name. No one wants to know what crystals you bought for ritual. No one cares about the books and discoveries you are making.

Point is unless you have friends and family in the know, you don’t have any real support or ways to learn and certainly no one to celebrate with that might matter to you.

I do have a partner in my life and for that I am grateful and he too is on the same road as I but he knows about as much as I do. We can share moments and lessons but we still need more, still need direction so I set it as my personal goal to gain enlightenment on a different level at least for myself.

That leaves us on fact-finding missions. It leaves us open to strangers in our Belief System to guide us. (Some of which I have to say based on personal experience are total flakes!) Or, we meet people whom ‘don’t owe us anything’ and they choose not to teach what they have learned or even help to get us started. Fine. They have the right.

Next we have books by 1, 000 authors at least! Some writers and practitioners are on the same page, others are more complex, more don’t make any sense, some are so busy saying “this is the only way” and how do they really know? Books are great but there is no real way to ask a book a question! No way to talk to the author directly so it leaves many an unanswered query. So then we move to the online world and there is no real way to know if the person on the other end is real or not, what their motivations are, what they represent and where do they get their information. I suppose you can find a local coven and hope they accept you if your willing to do the work. Again these are strangers and you are in a vulnerable state as it is and for some insecure people they can fall into a terrible way.

It can be such a lonely world and very disheartening. There had to be a better way and I think I may have found it! I had to put some trust in someone I didn’t know and I am pleasantly surprised to say the least.

I paid for my classes. I exchanged money for knowledge.

Granted it isn’t a lot but there is a personal responsibility to each person and we carry it out. I know there are many people who are telling me that I shouldn’t have to pay. I can find information everywhere and yes, I have indeed found info. I’ve found so much I can’t organize it all and I don’t know how to manage one particular sect of Witchcraft.

I’m overwhelmed. I need direction, accountability, projects, motivation, detail, organization and even coaching.

That’s it!

I needed a Witch Coach! I needed someone to break it down and give me a starting point.

So, after a 2-year search and investigation I did come across one woman. She teaches many classes in person as well as correspondence and her style completely resonates with me, and I like her! I like the way she thinks. I like how she isn’t all about props and deliverance as much as common sense and developing natural ability. I got a cool little lesson book with projects, ritual ideas, reading material, supplies to buy, etc. and a nice note saying to me “Welcome” and a few other things.

I loved it. Granted I’ve not had a conversation with her yet and I will soon but I still felt like someone was at least a nice person and to the point. Anyone can say welcome to the group but I picked up a sincere feeling.

Upon receiving my materials I set out to start by doing the first lesson and I am still doing them day-by-day.

I feel good and I feel like I might actually one day grasp the element of being a Witch. I know I am one. I always knew but didn’t know how to get it off the ground.

It isn’t a race to ensue one’s faith; it is a journey of mind, body and spirit and it is meant to be as such. I want to taste it in my breath, feel it in my soul, and wake everyday knowing I am special and I know what many others do not know but seek.

No one can become anything over night. it takes study and determination and a natural love of what your doing. It takes wanting it more than you’ve wanted anything and not giving up because it becomes hard. In reality if we don’t learn how to do things right, we can cause more harm than good.

In all the information I’ve gathered in four years I couldn’t differentiate what was bogus and what was truth and then who deemed it to be truthful? I discovered I have to find my own truth in what makes sense to me and what calls to me.

I found it, finally.

Today’s Runes for December 24th is Inguz

Today’s Runes

Ice Runes are most commonly used for questions about struggle, conflict, and achievement. Inguz is the rune of completion and fertility. The presence of this rune suggests that tasks which have been initiated will come to fruition. This rune is associated with Ing and Frey, it is this connection that explains its connotations of both fertility and sexuality. The variant of this rune shown here is reminiscent of the twin strands of life, and of the challenge and rewards of bringing together things complimentary.

Happy Winter Solstice & A Blessed Yule To You All!

Yule Comments & Graphics 

Wishing You and Yours a Very Happy Winter Solstice and a Very Blessed Yule!

 

Yuletide Cheer

(poem by: Isha ArrowHawk )

The chill breath of winter touches us,
As blankets of snow cover the ground.
With the glow of moonlight upon them,
Its like diamond sparkles all around.

 

Inside the room is cozy and warm,
The scent of evergreen wafts from the fire.
Surrounded with love and family,
I’ve got all that I could desire.

 

Sleigh bells jingle from the front porch,
As my coveners decorate outside.
They’ve no need of blankets,
They have the warmth of love inside.

 

In my home we all gather round,
And with Pagan carols our voices ring.
Then we settle down to enjoy the tale,
Of the Oaken Lord and the Holly King.

 

For our holiday is quite different,
Than the cowan Christmas night.
We cast our Circle, join together,
And welcome the return of Light.

 

Then we sit and share the feast,
As we pass bread and wine around.
As blessings from mingled voices…
“Never hunger,” “Never thirst” abound.

 

All too soon the rite is ended,
And we greet the newborn day.
As we clasp hands together,
This wish we send your way….

 

It’s no matter your tradition,
Be you family, friend, or guest.
We wish you joy and peace,
And may your Yule be Blessed!!

 

“On the first day of winter,
the earth awakens to the cold touch of itself.
Snow knows no other recourse except
this falling, this sudden letting go
over the small gnomed bushes, all the emptying trees.
Snow puts beauty back into the withered and malnourished,
into the death-wish of nature and the deliberate way
winter insists on nothing less than deference.
waiting all its life, snow says, “Let me cover you.”
– Laura Lush, The First Day of Winter

  ~Magickal Graphics~

Today’s Runes for December 19th is Ken

Today’s Runes

Ice Runes are most commonly used for questions about struggle, conflict, and achievement. Ken is the rune of light and knowledge, driving away darkness and ignorance and revealing hidden truth. This rune also brings forth images of friendship and comfort. Ken is the light of inspiration, the light of imagination, and a beacon in the darkest hours.

Doing The Work: Building a Spiritual Practice

Doing The Work: Building a Spiritual Practice

Author: Faye Dewell

What defines a Pagan? Is it just the belief in the old Gods and Goddesses? Is it doing Ritual work? Do you even have to believe in Magic to be a Pagan? At this point in time, it often seems like anything goes. And while I agree with the general premise that we should be careful about how we limit who and what we define as Pagan, because it can have detrimental effects on our community, I also believe that we need to have a clear look at what we define as being a practicing Pagan versus holding Pagan beliefs. Because I think there is a difference.

While there is no such thing as being “Pagan enough” there is something to be said in terms of qualifying our practice in regards to Sunday or Holiday Paganism (to borrow a Christian term) or Armchair Paganism (to take from Pop Culture) . There’s nothing wrong with being an Armchair Pagan if that’s what you want from this path. And if you only want to sign up for public rituals, so be it. I’m not here to judge those choices.

However, the fact of the matter is, whether you’re a 101 or 1001 Pagan, if you’re still stuck in your armchair, you’re not going to get as much from your craft as you could be. And that’s a choice you have to make for yourself: What do you want from your spirituality? Is Paganism even about spirituality for you? Or is Paganism a set of beliefs that help you understand the world, but nothing more?

We bandy about terms like Priest and Priestess, identifying Pagan practitioners (often, not always) as being Priesthood holders. But what does it mean to be the person responsible for your own faith, your own spiritual path?

Well, in a very literal sense, I suppose it could mean whatever you want it to mean. It could simply mean holding a certain set of beliefs. For example, it could mean believing in Lugh, Brighid and Tuatha de Danann without actually doing any more than praying to the Deities within that pantheon. Is that Pagan enough? For some it might be and I’m not in a position to judge that as being wrong. If it works for you and defines the space spirituality takes in your life, all the more power to you. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that if that’s what you are looking for from your Paganism.

However, I would argue that there is a great difference between holding Pagan beliefs and carving out a Pagan lifestyle. Wherever we are on our path, and however we define the nature of our path, I think it’s important that we make the effort to understand what our pathwork entails and then hold ourselves up to that level of commitment. And even within the ways we carve out our Paganism, there may be vast differences that can lead to arguments between members of the community in terms of what is “right” and “wrong.” I’m not here to look at that. I’m here to think about what it means to you (and me) to do the work if the work itself is something that interests you. For me, that means making an effort to actually claim my path, do the work, develop a practice, and make it mine, which is very different than Sunday (or Ritual) Paganism.

After all, how in Hades are we ever going to be any good at things like magic if we don’t take the time to hone our skills? Or have a relationship with the Divine if we don’t take the time to get to know them? How will we know ourselves enough to live a life of spiritual intention if we don’t spend time getting to know ourselves and contemplating what our spiritual intentions are?

Seriously.

I’m not asking the question to be rude or confrontational. Because honestly, these are questions that I ask myself on a regular basis, every time I fall off the wagon and let every day mundane (muggle) life draw me away from my practice. And it’s harsh but honest, and it keeps me in check. These questions keep me doing the stuff and developing the path that I am committed to following.

Every week I create new prompts for a 52 weeks of Pagan Art Journaling project I’m hosting, and in this week’s art journal prompt, I asked: what do you want people to know about your path? And my answer was this: that it requires serious levels of commitment and self-discipline. It requires that I do the work. Often without support systems, often at odds with the materialism in the world around me, often despite my own personal laziness and apathy. Because more often than not, I am my own worst enemy and as a member of a “fringe” religion, I don’t have the benefit of mainstream culture keeping me accountable or reinforcing the value system I’ve “created” for myself. (Which sounds like a lot of big pompous words to just say that sometimes this path is a bit more challenging because it isn’t necessarily aligned with what the world around us is doing and how our society is encouraging us to live) .

But more importantly, a Mystery Tradition, by its very nature requires a great deal of inner work in order to understand it. No one expects a yogi to reach enlightenment without yoga and meditation. So why do so many modern Pagans expect to being able to do magic and understand the Divine without doing the “Pagan variation” of the same things? Exercise and contemplation (or rather, if you will, practice and meditation) . If we can’t discipline our minds enough to focus our will on the intent of a spell, how will we actually create strong and effective spell work?

And more importantly, beyond the magic, how do we complete the “Great Work” of our Mystery Traditions if we don’t understand what the hell that means?

Don’t just take my word for it. Pick an area and focus on it, work it. Get to know the feel and shape of it. Study it like you’d study a university subject. Be dedicated to learning your craft on a daily basis (or at least somewhat regular basis) , be it doing the Sabbats and Moons, or meditating daily, or taking time to observe the lunar cycles. Start small and build up. Don’t try to do it all at once because that’s a recipe for failure. But pick one thing, get that down, and then add another.

At this point in my practice (in loose, ambiguous terms that you can read between the lines of) , this is what my daily practice includes:

Meditation
Exercises
Dream keeping
Study
Weekly Classes
Journaling (art and written) reactions, thoughts, questions, emotions, etc
Tarot Work

On average, I spend at least 30 minutes a day devoted to my practice, if not double or triple that. If you’d asked me at the start of this work if I’d be capable of that, I would have emphatically denied my ability to be that self-disciplined. I am not good at self-discipline and never have been. But I started slowly. I have a buddy system. I am accountable to others when I fall off the wagon. And all of these things are things that help me stay focused. And it’s been worth it. Because trust me, if you don’t know it already, this path is amazing in terms of what it can bring into your life.

My practice has turned my world upside down and inside out, but the things that I have learned about people and myself have been phenomenal. I returned to this path after years in academia feeling jaded and wanting to believe but having a hard time reconnecting. Now I don’t just believe. I know again.

And knowing is half the battle!

Cobwebs

Cobwebs

Author: Brewan Blacksmith

A little while back, while driving around with, a friend I asked a simple question. “Is an artist still an artist if she loses her hands?” After a brief moment of pause she replied, “Yes.” I knew this was to be her answer and it was the same for me when the question first arose in my mind a while ago. It was easy for the both of us to answer being we are both artists. We understand that the underlying beauty in an artist is what resides in her mind and heart. At the same time, we both thought of the hardships that would come should an artist lose their outlet of expression. Painters paint and sculptures sculpt, but what if they no longer did? They would still see and think as they once had, but without physically doing what calls to them, what kind of an artist would they actually be?

For me, the thought later crossed over into another subject matter. “Is a Pagan still a Pagan if he no longer practices?” I asked myself. It was uncomfortable to think about as it pertained specifically to how my life hit me. For ten years I have been a Pagan, but since the recent recession a few years ago, day-to-day living removed the comforts of past practices. I wasn’t celebrating lunar rites, esbats, or sabbats like I used to. What once were coven celebrations amongst friends were now a lit candle and a prayer of thanks at best.

No more smudging, no more spell casting, no more divining and no more creating sacred circles for me. Good jobs became very sparse, living conditions changed, and disposable income disappeared. The time I once had for sharing with my coveners was removed, and all I was able to do was keep in connection with my gods through short prayers and silent conversations. The old ways of practicing the Old Ways were gone. The same held true for my coven friends.

While in this state of staleness I pondered briefly a few scenarios in which I wouldn’t be affected as much by these sudden changes in the way I lived my new life. Perhaps if I were a materialist I could cope by buying new things. Or maybe if I were of a more mainstream religious belief it would be easier as society makes time for it. If I were working a job that actually paid well, that would solve most of my problems. But, I’m no materialist, I’m devout Pagan until the end, and my job was a dead end. I always kept in mind that many people have it worse. I always kept in mind the beauty of my family and the smiles that they bring. But still, there was a void inside me. A great part of me remained dormant without my coven and all the great things we did. Within me there was a shadow, a lack of motion, a death.

Death, however, is often a misunderstood thing. People fear death because it is a physical end to what they know to be true. Death is a removal of what we see and that with which we are familiar. It is change, and it is inevitable and because of these it is something feared. Yet if you truly think upon death, which can be perceived as a lack of growth or motion, you will find that even in this state of stillness there is a spiraling of energy. Like the winter months when the trees shed their leaves and cold blankets the soil, beneath the snow there is life. In shadow there is gestation, evolution, transformation, and change. All of the energy witnessed during the warmer parts of the year trickle down the roots of the trees and plants and gather in the dark earth below.

The caverns of the Underworlds are filled with this energy. The realms of shadows and death are filled to the brim this time of year with the same energy the spurs us along when the sun is bright in the warm sky. So in death there is life, and also change.

When a mythic hero would die and enter into the Underworld, a place where one would never return, he in fact would eventually return. How is this so? The hero would escape death by embracing change. Through transformation he evades the clutches of death, but upon his return he is no longer the same person. He returns to the realm of the living, but at the same time he does not. Had he accepted his new place in dreary shadows in a void of timelessness? Only then would he truly have died.

It was this lesson that I learned during my college years that helped me get through a couple somber periods of my life, including this recent recession. At some point my inner, Sagittarian optimist took hold of it and I was altered by these life changes. Whether it’s making lemonade out of lemons, or always doing the best you can with what you have, death is not an enemy but a teacher about living. It is about transforming who you are to move unhindered with the ebb and flow of each incarnation.

We are given but a few decades with which to learn as much as we possibly can before we must start over again. Yet even within the span of a single life we can experience minor “deaths” which we can either submit to and become lethargic, or emerge from and become something more than we originally were. Within in each life we can mimic the life-death-rebirth cycle much like one year of Sabbats symbolizes the life’s journey of the Goddess and God. These murky times that shall strike our stable existences over and over are cosmic challenges, or tests, that help forge who we become. They bring sadness, depression, struggle, fear, and often hopelessness. But through them we become great, and that is one of the tasks this Earth is designed to do for us. So long as you do not succumb to stagnation and ignorance, even the darkest moments can strengthen you on your journey through each life.

It is through this wisdom that I tread forward. I feel no guilt any longer when I brush the dust off my old texts on Paganism. The cobwebs that have gathered on my robes and oils and tarot cards are wiped away free of sadness. I have missed my old tools that have gone years without use. But here they are now awaiting me once again. Little by little I get back into the habit of practicing as I once did. Yet every act now is different, improved, changed from my changed perspective.

I spent the last few years with my hands cut off. No Arte did I make. Yet within my inactivity my mind still churned, and many lessons were learned. And in many cases, epiphanies pertaining to Paganism came to me only through temporarily leaving behind my familiar Pagan rituals. Various mysteries are solved beyond texts and temples. Many require you to step outside your comfort zone and take with you only what you once knew.

It may seem through this that sometimes the Path of the Wise trails beyond our sights or that we lose our footing. But often it remains right under our feet as we walk upon it the entire time despite feeling otherwise. Rites and spells may be what a Pagan does, but in the mind and heart is where a Pagan resides. In my humble opinion I believe this as true, and with this I eternally move forward through every obstacle without regretting facets of the past. So long as I change for the better from every dark struggle, I can never consider those moments a waste of time. Learning keeps you moving forward no matter which direction life takes you.

My hope is that these words can bring a little comfort and understanding to those who have gone through recent hardship.

Today’s Runes for Monday, December 12th is Eoh

Today’s Runes

Jade Runes are most commonly used for questions about love, friendship, and relationships. Eoh refers to the Yew tree. The Yew does not go dormant and therefore represents endurance. Even the wood of the tree is strong, resilient, and pliable – the Yew bends, but does not break. The evergreen nature of the Yew is present even in the rune itself, as it cannot be changed even by reversal. This rune is historically symbolic of death, but, as in the Tarot and as suggested by the nature of the Yew tree itself, death is seen only as a transmutation of something eternal and unchanging – the spirit.

Following Our Ancestors’ Path

Following Our Ancestors’ Path

Author: Gloria Gypsy

Modern Druids must research what Druidism was or is and apply it to our modern times. A modern Druid’s role does not differ much from that of his or her ancient ancestors, although Druids of today face many more challenges in teaching and giving service to the world. Many people have forgotten the ways of they’re ancestors. They are not at one with nature or their spiritual selves. Many people live in crowded urban areas and have lost touch with their bonds to nature. Today’s Druid I believe would spend more time working toward caring for our planet and nature since pollution, over-population and technology have begun to destroy our very life force. Today more than ever we need the Wisdom of the Druid.

One important role for a Druid today would be in preserving our wildlife. So much of our natural woodlands, prairies, etc., have been lost to pave the way for more urban areas. When we destroy a forest or field or what have you we are also destroying the wildlife that lives in that area. As an example, in certain parts of the United States, Wolves, Coyotes and Bears are seen more and more in urban areas looking for food. This is because we are taking away they’re natural habitats and they have nowhere left to go.

And so a modern Druid may join a committee that is dedicated to saving our wildlife or forests. He or she may work toward animal sanctuaries or for a national forest. In preserving and caring for nature we are giving back to our life force. Without it we would not exist.

The Druids were a people of integrity and service. In the past they were healers, judges, priests, poets. But unlike most people today they were all these things and also in tune with spirituality and honor. Today we still seek wisdom and must strive to give as well as receive knowledge, to lend our services to our communities and families (tribe); to nature/the gods; to our planet and also to our self.

Society today lacks much integrity and truth. People are not honest with themselves let alone as a culture or community. The modern Druid has a responsibility not only to him or herself but to they’re community as well to practice and teach the lessons of truth, honor, integrity and love. Without these virtues we are not true to ourselves, each other and our god/s. Passing this knowledge on gives us hope for the next generation and those generations yet to come. “We must give of our selves so that we may receive of ourselves.” (Searles O’Dubhain)

A Druid as teacher could be a father or mother teaching they’re children, judges or law enforcement teaching these lessons by example, and teachers themselves in schools teaching in they’re specialized fields. If we learn and live as the ancient Druids did we are able to communicate on all levels of human awareness, we are the caretakers of nature, and the teachers of wisdom and spirituality. We are enlightening others and ourselves, we are making our lives and our world a better place. We are improving the quality of life and our spirituality. We must research what Druidism was or is and apply it to our modern time.

“The value of a life is great but it is small next to the value of a spirit.” (Searles O’Dubhain)

Following I offer a meditation for speaking with the spirit of place as an example on how to get started becoming one with the earth and learning from the wisdom of the earth.

Meditation: Speaking with the Spirit of Place…

  • Sit down near, preferably touching, that with which you plan to speak with. If it is a tree, perhaps face it, placing your hands on it. Try to avoid animate things such as animals and moving bodies of water until you get better at this. Otherwise the movement will likely break your concentration.
  • Close your eyes or keep them open, depending on what works best and how you feel most comfortable.
  • Calm your mind, and quiet it in an attitude of meditation. Any thoughts that enter, simply acknowledge them as a thought, and push them aside, returning to your concentration.
  • Focus on your breathing. If you find it difficult to quiet your mind, perhaps try chanting (to yourself or aloud) a mantra, play some soft music if you can. Anything to focus your attention.
  • Breath in for a count of four, hold it for two, then out for a count of four. Keep doing this until you feel that your mind is peaceful and calm enough.
  • Focus on moving your consciousness into what you’re trying to speak with. I’ll use the example of a tree. It is easier if you are touching it, and I will assume your hands will be on it. Adapt this as you see fit, however. Move your awareness down into your arms, allowing it to travel to your hands, and then your finger tips. You will find it will slip into the tree with as much ease as it went down your body. Always remember to get permission before moving your consciousness into something that is not your own. If you feel that you are being allowed in, then proceed; otherwise do not.
  • Allow yourself to orient in the tree. When you feel ready attempt to speak with it. If you do not yet feel ready, simply sit with it and hold off until you do feel ready.
  • Think about your own relationship with the Land, what you feel is appropriate, and what you feel needs to be changed. Think on why you should change these things, and why certain things are in right relationship.


Footnotes:
Sources

1.The Traditional Roles of Druids, Searles O’Dubhain

2.The Nine Strands of Druidism, Jason Kirkey

Witches Ballard

Witches Ballard

Oh, I have been beyond the town,
Where nightshade black and mandrake grow,
And I have heard and I have seen
What righteous folk would fear to know!
For I have heard, at still midnight,
Upon the hilltop far, forlorn,
With note that echoed through the dark,
The winding of the heathen horn.
And I have seen the fire aglow,
And glinting from the magic sword,
And with the inner eye beheld
The Hornéd One, the Sabbat’s lord,
We drank the wine, and broke the bread
And ate it in the Old One’s name.
We linked our hands to make the ring,
And laughed and leaped the Sabbat game.

Oh, little do the townsfolk reck,
When dull they lie within their bed!
Beyond the streets, beneath the stars,
A merry round the witches tread!
And round and round the circle spun,
Until the gates swung wide ajar,
That bar the boundaries of earth
From faery realms that shine afar.

Oh, I have been and I have seen
In magic worlds of Otherwhere.
For all this world may praise or blame,
For ban or blessing naught I care.
For I have been beyond the town,
Where meadowsweet and roses grow,
And there such music did I hear
As worldly-righteous never know.

Doreen Valient

Original Post By Natural Wytch