Tag: Religion and Spirituality

Ecomagick

Ecomagick

The following is excerpted from an article, Making Magic For Planet Earth,
written by Selena Fox for Circle Network News (Box 219, Mt. Horeb, WI 53572 )
and presented here as being of public interest to the pagan  community at large.
Selena, I didn’t have time to ask your permission, I presume that by the very
nature of your writings you want them to be shared with as many people as
possible, and so they are presented here. This is submitted with this statement
and not to be edited, by Shadowstar of Boston, MA.

“There are many things that can be done in spiritual realms to help bring about
solutions to the world’s problems:

* We can kindle spiritual friendships with other lifeforms through communication with Nature Spirits, who can be teachers for us and allies in bringing about planetary healing.

* We can do daily meditations in which we creatively visualize the spiritual
body of the planet glowing with radiant healing light.

* We can organize and/or take part in ecumenical planetary prayer services and
rituals with practitioners of other spiritual paths and cultures.

* We can honor Mother Earth as an aspect of the divine in our solo and group
rituals.

* We can send Mother Earth our love and pray for planetary health each time we
visit a stone circle, sacred grove, place of power, temple, shrine or other
sacred site.

* We can do spiritual healing magic for the planet in our circles.

It is important to reinforce whatever spiritual work we do with physical action.
There are a variety of ways to do this and you should decide on at least one
approach and then carry it out. Here are a few examples:

* Recycle trash from your household, take paper, plastics, glass, aluminum cans,
and other recyclables to recycling centers.

* Recycle clothes and no longer needed household items by donating them to
charities to distribute to the needy.

* Join and actively participate in environmental action groups.

* Write government officials and urge them to take specific actions on specific
environmental issues, such as stopping all ocean dumping.

*  Write letters and articles for publications about the need for environmental
preservation.

* Plant trees as part of reforestation efforts.

* Compost food scraps.

* Stop buying and using non-bio-degradable detergents.

* Boycott products from companies that are destroying the Amazon rainforest.

* Pick up cigarette butts and other non-biodegradable litter from parks and
other wilderness areas.

* Donate money to nature preserves.

* Give talks at schools, civic groups, churches and in other places in your area
about ecological issues.

* Read publications, view films, and attend presentations in order to keep
informed about ecological conditions and to learn about additional ways you can
work for planetary healing.

* Conserve electricity, water and other resources on a daily basis.

Network with others.

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Blue Magick

Blue Magick

Wealth is not to be measured in terms of assets, but rather in terms of how much
control over people and material, and thus ultimately one’s own experiences, one
achieves by economic activities. Money is an abstract concept used to quantify
economic activity, thus wealth is a measure of how well you control your
experiences with money. Assuming that varied, exciting, unusual and stimulating experiences are preferable to dull ones, and that they tend to be expensive for this reason, then the main problem for most people is to find a highly efficient form of money input which has the above agreeable qualities. The aim of wealth magic is to establish a large turnover of money which allows agreeable experiences at both the input and output stages. This demands what is called Money Consciousness.

Money has acquired all the characteristics of a “spiritual” being. It is
invisible and intangible, coinage, notes and electronic numbers are not money.
They are merely representations or talismans of something which economists
cannot coherently define. Yet although it is itself intangible and invisible it
can create powerful effects on reality. Money has its own personality and
idiosyncratic tastes, it avoids those who blaspheme it, and flows towards those
who treat it in the way it likes. In a suitable environment it will even
reproduce itself. The nature of the money spirit is movement, money likes to
move. If it is hoarded and not used, it slowly dies. Money thus prefers to
manifest as turnover rather than as unexploited assets. Monies surplus to
immediate pleasure should be re-invested as a further evocation, but the truly
money conscious find that even their pleasures make money for them. Money
consciousness gets paid to enjoy itself. Those in money consciousness are by
nature generous. Offer them an interesting investment and they will offer you a
fortune. Just don’t ask for small cash handouts.

The attainment of money consciousness and the invocation of the Wealth-self
consists of the acquisition of a thorough knowledge of the predilections of the
spirit of money and a thorough exploration of personal desires. When both of
these have been understood, real wealth manifests effortlessly.

Such invocations must be handled with care. The blue gnosis of wealth and desire creates demons as easily as gods. Many contemporary success and sales seminars concentrate on creating an hysterical desire for money coupled with an equally hypertrophied desire for the mere symbols of wealth rather than the experiences the punters actually want. To work like a possessed maniac all day for the questionable pleasure of drinking oneself into near oblivion on vintage
champagne every night, is to have missed the point entirely and to have a
entered a condition of anti-wealth.

However, the majority of those who are poor in relatively free societies where
others are rich, owe their poverty either to a lack of understanding of how
money behaves, or to negative feelings which tend to repel it. Neither
intelligence nor investment capital are required in any great degree to become
wealthy. The popularity of tales about the misery and misfortunes of the rich is
testimony to the ridiculous myth prevalent amongst the poor, that the rich are
unhappy. Before beginning works of blue magic it is essential to seriously
examine all negative thoughts and feelings about money and to exorcise them.
Most of the poor people who win in lotteries, and only the poor regularly enter
them, manage to have nothing to show for it a couple years later. It is as if
some subconscious force somehow got rid of something they felt they did not
really deserve or want. People tend to have the degree of wealth that they
deeply believe they should have. Blue magic is the modification of that belief
through ritual enactment of alternative beliefs.

Blue magic rituals may thus involve exorcism of negative attitudes to wealth,
divinatory explorations of one’s deepest desires, and invocations of the Wealth-
self and the spirit of money during which the subconscious wealth level is
adjusted by ritual expression of a new value, and affirmations of new projects
for the investment of resources and effort are made. Hymns and incantations to
money can be delivered. Cheques for startling sums can be written to oneself
and desires can be proclaimed and visualised. Various traditional god forms with
a prosperity aspect can be used to express the Wealth-self such as Jupiter, Zeus
and the mythical Midas and Croesus.

Simple money spells are rarely used in modern blue magic. The tendency nowadays is to cast spells designed to enhance schemes designed to make money. If one fails to provide a mechanism through which money can manifest then either nothing will happen or the spell will flesh by strange means, such as a legacy from the untimely death of a much beloved relative for example. Serious blue magic is never attempted by conventional forms of gambling. Conventional
gambling is an expensive way of buying experiences which have nothing to do with increasing one’s wealth. Blue magic is a matter of carefully calculated
investment. Anyone but a fool should be able to devise an investment that offers
better odds than conventional forms of gambling.

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A Little Humor for Your Day – Circle Etiquette for Beginners, It’s A Joke!

“A HUMOUROUS GUIDE TO CIRCLE ETIQUETTE FOR BEGINNERS”

1.  Always visit the bathroom before you step into the circle.  Some High
Priests and Priestesses tend to be a bit long-winded and it may be a while.

2.  Never tell a High Priest or Priestess that they are a bit long-winded.

3.  If you MUST drop your athame on someone’s foot, drop it on your own, but
remember, reconsecration is long-winded.

4.  Never wear ritual jewelry that is gaudier than that being worn by the High
Priestess.  Rank has its privileges.

5.  Privileges of rank include chanting loudest and singing off-key.  If you
wish to usurp these privileges, do so SOFTLY.

6.  Never goose anybody with your wand, unless it is specifically called for in
the ritual.

7.  Always move and send things Deosil around the circle. Deosil meaning in the
apparent clockwise rotation of the sun around the earth; unless of course you
are from the Southern hemisphere (or otherwise facing North), where the sun
seems to go counterclockwise around the earth.  Then again, there is always the
moon which although it seems to be going Deosil is actually sneaking around
going Widdershins…When in doubt, stand between two or more people and do what they do.

8.  Never drink the last of the wine. The High Priest or Priestess are probably
saving the dregs for themselves.

9.  Don’t worry about how you look when you’re skyclad.  Everybody else is too
busy worrying about how they look skyclad to notice.

10.  Never “accidently” drip hot candlewax on someone else’s naked tush.

11. Always allow at least two hours after eating Schezwan or jalapenos before
attending a circle and kissing everyone.

12. Do not disrupt a closed circle by walking through it.  Many insects and
small animals may cross the circle without disrupting it and under these
circumstances are considered psychically Null and Void.  Disrupt the circle and
you may be considered a bit Null and Void yourself.

13. In the case of unwanted or unforeseen spiritual manifestation do not run or
scream.  You will only draw their attention.

14. Remember: Your gravitational attraction to candlewax, spilled wine, incense
smoke and candle flames is in direct proportion to the cost of dry-cleaning
your robe.

15. Anything which you allow to follow you home from the Astral is unlikely to
be housebroken.

16. Never touch anyone else’s ritual tools or gear without their permission.
Attack training is common.

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Daily Feng Shui News for Jan. 22 – ‘Answer Your Cat’s Questions Day’

It’s ‘Answer Your Cat’s Questions Day’ and if one of those kitty questions asks why their ears itch so much, then your pet might have ear mites. Take a flashlight and look inside the cat’s ears. If you see something that resembles coffee grounds, then your pet has ear mites. Puncture two vitamin E capsules and squeeze out the oil from one each into the cat’s ears. Gently rub the oil in and carefully clean out both the oil and the mites with a cotton swab. Repeat this process for three days in a row and the mites should disappear. The oil not only suffocates the mites, but will help Kitty heal from all that itching. Next question.

By Ellen Whitehurst for Astrology.com

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Today’s Tarot Card for January 22nd is The Magician

The Magician

Wednesday, Jan 22nd, 2014

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Traditionally, the Magus is one who can demonstrate hands-on magic — as in healing, transformative rituals, alchemical transmutations, charging of talismans and the like. A modern Magus is any person who completes the circuit between heaven and Earth, one who seeks to bring forth the divine ‘gold’ within her or himself.

At the birth of Tarot, even a gifted healer who was not an ordained clergyman was considered to be in league with the Devil! For obvious reasons, the line between fooling the eye with sleight of hand, and charging the world with magical will was not clearly differentiated in the early Tarot cards.

Waite’s image of the Magus as the solitary ritualist communing with the spirits of the elements — with its formal arrangement of symbols and postures — is a token of the freedom we have in modern times to declare our spiritual politics without fear of reprisal. The older cards were never so explicit about what the Magus was doing. It’s best to keep your imagination open with this card. Visualize yourself manifesting something unique, guided by evolutionary forces that emerge spontaneously from within your soul.

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The Witches Magick for January 22nd – Attract Love Spell

Witchy Comments
The Witches Magick for January 22nd

Attract Love Spell

You will need:

A blank sheet of paper
Scissors
A small wooden or cardboard box
¼ cup of dried pink rose petals
2 pink quartz crystals
A ring for the finger
A pink candle
 

The Spell:

This needs to be performed after the sun has set.

First, you must “charge” the objects listed above with love.

This you do by concentrating on the objects and visualizing love entering your life.

Next, cut out a paper heart on which you will then draw two hearts intersected. Place the paper in the box.

Hold the dried rose petals close to your heart for approximately one minute before depositing them in the box.

Place the crystals in the box.

Now, by hold the ring in your hands and repeat 3 times:

“Symbol of love, send me my love”

Then, gently place the ring in the box.

Light the candle and set it to the left of the box. Allow the candle to burn exactly 13 minutes, during which time you must visualize love entering your life.

After exactly 13 minutes, extinguish the candle and close the lid on the box.

Repeat the ritual of the candle burning, leaving the box closed, every evening until the candle is completely consumed.

Once the candle has burned down to a height of less than approximately one inch, remove the ring from the box and carry it with you.

0Bury the box with the remainder of its contents.

Your love should not delay.

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Wednesday Is Ruled By Mercury

Witchy Comments & Graphics
Wednesday Is Ruled By Mercury

Archangel: Raphael

Candle colour: Yellow

Incenses: Lavender or fennel

Crystals: Citrine or yellow calcite

Use Wednesdays for spells for money-making ventures, learning new things, passing examinations and tests, house moves and travels, overcoming debt and repelling envy, malice and deceit.

Where possible, work in a windy place or when the clouds are moving fast across the sky.

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Brighid’s Crossroads Divination

Brighid’s Crossroads Divination

By , About.com

Imbolc is a time when the Wheel of the Year has reached a crossroads between light and dark. The earth is about to quicken, and yet no one knows exactly what lies ahead of us. There are twists and turns on the path to come, although where it leads is anyone’s guess.

Among her many aspects, Brighid is considered a goddess of the crossroads. She is said to be able to see where we’ve been, and where each road might take us, should we choose to follow it. A Brighid’s Cross unites the four elements, and creates paths which travel in the four directions. Because of this, Imbolc is an ideal time for divination. Not sure where your headed this year, or what choices lie before you? Let Brighid help guide you as you weave a crossroads of your own in her honor. As you create a Brighid’s Cross as part of this divination, ask her to inspire you, and guide you towards the right path in the coming months.

For this divination, you’ll want to find a place where you can be alone and undisturbed. If it’s warm enough, try to get outside, perhaps out in the woods where two paths intersect. Before you begin, read the instructions here on how to Make a Brighid’s Cross. Have all your supplies on hand prior to beginning your divination ritual.

Begin by closing your eyes, and thinking about where you’ve been in the past year, spiritually, emotionally, even physically. What things have you done that bring your regret? What things have brought you joy? Is there anything you wanted to do, but didn’t get a chance to? Picture yourself wandering along a path, out of the past and into the present. Let your mind roam freely, and visualize yourself approaching a crossroads. Perhaps it’s a place in a forest, where a pair of deer trails run together. Maybe it’s in the mountains, where streams intersect. Or maybe you picture yourself out in a wide open space, with roads connected in the middle of nowhere.

Regardless, see yourself at that crossroads. You are at the center, and branching out from where you stand are many paths. Each leads in a different direction. Each path will take you to something new. Begin creating your Make a Brighid’s Cross, and as you weave the straws together, think about what may lie in each direction. As you look out over your choices, thinking about which way to travel, Brighid herself is standing beside you. Continue weaving your cross, and watch her. She points out one of the roads.

When you’ve finished your cross, close your eyes once more, and meditate on the path which Brighid indicated for you. What lies in that direction? Is it something familiar and comforting? Something new and unknown? Focus on the cross you’ve made, and let this newly chosen path inspire you. Know that it will ultimately bring you to something good and positive and strong.

When you’ve finished, you may wish to make an offering to Brighid as a gesture of thanks for her guidance.

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Daily Feng Shui News for Jan. 21 – ‘National Hugging Day’

Here’s a day that you can really wrap your arms around — it’s ‘National Hugging Day!’ As an anonymous author once wrote: ‘A hug is universal medicine, it is how we handshake from the heart.’ Virginia Satir, often referred to as the mother of family therapy, determined that we need four hugs a day for survival, eight for maintenance and twelve for growth. Part of the reason why hugs are so beneficial is that they touch the part of the brain that puts out positive and optimistic emotions. Have you had your daily dozen today? If not, then you better get hugging. You’ll feel so much better.

By Ellen Whitehurst for Astrology.com

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2014 Numerology Predictions

2014 Numerology Predictions

Reaching our limits

Hans Decoz   Hans Decoz on the topics of numerology, horoscopes, 2014

2014 is the year when we become aware — aware of the destructive nature and the inherent danger that exist in a world of extremes. We will begin to see a trend this year, through all areas of human life, to search for ways to bring us together. There will be people in power who change overnight, and institutions that will reconsider their ideologies, giving us hope … but we will also see the negative forces become more desperate and violent.

The number 7 rules the year 2014 — it is a 7 Universal Year, because 2 + 0 + 1 + 4 = 7. The number 7 is analytical and self-examining. It starts a turnaround as, even the mind, as cold as it is, recognizes that duality doesn’t benefit anyone.

But other numbers play a role too… In the chart below, which breaks down the year 2014, the numbers in the upper half show the positive influences of this 7 Universal Year, which are found by continuously adding the digits in a pyramid-like system. The numbers in the lower half show the negative influences, and are the result of subtracting. They are therefore mirrors of each other. The strongest relationship any one number in this chart has, is with its mirrored partner.

 

 

 

The 9 at the top represents compassion and empathy, while the negative influence of its mirrored partner, the 1 at the bottom, reflects egotism and cruelty. The contrast is obvious and appropriate. The 3 and the 6 in the upper half tell us that art and communication (3), and a deepening sense of responsibility (6) will be the primary channels through which the energy of the 9 flows in 2014, while their mirrored partners, the hostile 1 and the sly 2, oppose them. The 5 represents a big change or shocking and unexpected event around October or November of 2014, caused in large part by miscommunication (the 3 below it).

A matter of extremes

Since the year 2008 — the first year of this current nine-year epicycle that runs through 2016 — we’ve been experiencing an extreme increase in polarization. This schism affects the human race across the globe. Whether political, social, economic, environmental, or religious, our positions tend to be more and more black and white. Gray, the color of compromise, is no longer in-vogue.

Polarization is the quintessence of a climaxing force delivered to us precisely on schedule by this nine-year cycle. It’s a natural, if difficult and painful, part of our evolution. As a species, we are young and immature, given to rebel and push the envelope. We have created long-term instability in our environment, economy, and social structure because we can’t see beyond the desire for instant and superficial satisfaction.

Extremes continue to rule during this nine-year cycle, after which we enter a new nine-year cycle that is dominated by information. The 2017 – 2026 epicycle will see the end of many centuries of long-held secrets. No one will be able to hide then, no institution will be able to hold on to its secrets. Light will shine on everything, and symbolize the most dramatic change in history.

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Your Tarot Card for January 21 is The Fool

The Fool

Tuesday, Jan 21st, 2014

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pamela Coleman-Smith’s artful rendition of an “innocent Fool” archetype (Rider-Waite deck) is often used to represent Tarot in general. Early classical versions of the Fool card, however, portray quite a different character — a person driven by base needs and urges, who has fallen into a state of poverty and deprivation.

In some instances, he is made out to be a carnival entertainer or a huckster. In others, he is portrayed as decrepit and vulnerable — as the cumulative result of his delusions and failures. Not until the 20th century do you see the popular Rider-Waite image of the Fool arise — that of an innocent Soul before its Fall into Matter, as yet untainted by contact with society and all its ills.

Modern decks usually borrow from the Rider-Waite imagery. Most Fool cards copy the bucolic mountainside scene, the butterfly, the potential misplaced step that will send the Fool tumbling into the unknown. Don’t forget, however, that the earlier versions of this card represented already-fallen humanity, over-identified with the material plane of existence, and beginning a pilgrimage towards self-knowledge, and eventually, wisdom. The Fool reminds us to recognize the path of personal development within ourselves — and the stage upon that path where we find ourselves — in order to energize our movement toward deeper self-realization.

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Happy Birthday, Aquarius!

Happy Birthday, Aquarius!

Kick up your heels with the worldly Water-bearer

Maria DeSimone   Maria DeSimone on the topics of birthdays, astrology, aquarius

 

Although you’re a social sign, Aquarius, you’re not the type who enjoys being the center of attention. As a result, on your birthday you might celebrate casually with a group of friends, but you’d feel just as comfortable working the night at your favorite soup kitchen or on your latest humanitarian cause. You are definitely the altruistic type! As long as your personal space is respected, you’ll go out of your way to help mankind.

The most unique party in town

While it’s true that you have your pulse on the most visionary of concepts, you also have the reputation for being offbeat — even weird — in your approach to life. The good news is that you’re an incredibly strong-willed individual. But at the same time, you might be uncompromising and rebellious — especially when you sense any threat to your personal freedom. When you need breathing room and ask someone to give you space, you tend to mean it … even if it’s on your birthday!

Some may accuse you of being cold or detached … and at times this might be the case. If this happens, however, it’s usually because you prefer not to reveal yourself until you’ve decided someone is worthy of something more than a superficial alliance. Once you’ve made that judgment, you’ll be a loyal friend through thick and thin. If your pals or relatives are planning a special birthday surprise for you, you may not get all gushy and sentimental about it, but that doesn’t mean their gesture hasn’t affected you. You may not wear your heart on your sleeve, but you certainly have feelings that run deep. True, you might be a little strange sometimes, but you’re also always authentic.

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A Wall of Magick Power

Celtic & British Isles Graphics
Like a line drawn in the sand
I set this boundary.
 
To mark where I now stand
With light all around me
A wall of magick power
To keep me safe and sound
From this magick hour
I draw it all around.
 
That which I call mine
I let cross onto my side
That which I deny
Will face a chasm wide.
 
With harm to none at all
With positive intents
I build this sacred wall
A strong protective fence.
 

So Mote It Be.

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Total Protection Incense

Experiences We Don’t Understand
Hidden Gems

by Madisyn Taylor

All of the events in our lives lead to other events, they are all connected.

Sometimes we have an experience that we don’t understand, but if we look deeply, or wait long enough, a reason for that experience will usually reveal itself. All the events in our lives lead to other events, and all that we have manifested in this present moment is the result of past events and experiences. We cannot easily tease apart the many threads that have been woven together to create our current reality. Experiences that don’t make sense, as well as any that we regret, are just as responsible for the good things in our lives as the experiences we do understand or label as “good.”

This is especially important to remember at times when we feel directionless or unsure of what to do. It is often at times like these that we take a job or move to a place without really knowing if it’s the right thing to do. We may ultimately end up leaving the job or the place, but often during that time we will have met someone who becomes an important friend, or we may have an experience that changes us in a profound way. When all the pieces of our life don’t quite make sense, we can remember that there may be some hidden gem of a reason that we are where we are having the experiences we are having.

It’s fun to look back on past experiences with an eye to uncovering those gems—the dreadful temporary job in a bland office building that introduced you to the love of your life; the roommate you couldn’t tolerate who gave you a book that changed your life; the time spent living in a city you didn’t like that led you into a deeper relationship with yourself. Remembering these past experiences can restore our faith in the present. Life is full of buried treasures. Chances are, you’re sitting on some right now.

Daily OM

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Wiccans Who Never Experience Magic

Wiccans Who Never Experience Magic


BellaOnline’s Wicca Editor

Though it seems like a contradiction, many Wiccans do not experience obvious magic or other mystical states. Understandably, no one wants to admit to being too mundane, earth-bound, or any other label that implies that we are not real Wiccans who walk around in continuous mystical state. So should we just work harder to force the magic? Give up? Or accept our inferior lot in life?

One of the most appealing things about Wicca is its emphasis on each Wiccan’s personal connection with magic and deity. Wiccans are expected to communicate directly with their patron gods and goddesses. Most religions expect you to interact with the divine through an ecclesiastical authority such as church, minister, or priest. Others emphasize the need for metaphysical intervention such as with saints, lwa, or ancestor spirits. But Wicca is built on an acceptance of personal mysticism. This includes the possibility that Wiccans may experience extensive psychic phenomena such as seeing ghosts, having visions, divining the future, accessing past lives, and casting spells with immediate and obvious results.

So what happens if you are a Wiccan who has never had a mystical experience? The gods have never spoken to you – not even a few cryptic lines in a dream. You try divination and are successful only fifty percent of the time. You have never glimpsed an aura or a ghost. When you attempt to practice witchcraft, the results from your spells are so open to interpretation that you feel you are fooling yourself. You might feel frustration, guilt, shame, and even desperation.

Meanwhile, your envy may intensify as you encounter other Wiccans who seem to live with one foot in a supernatural realm. Some claim to have such a close connection to their patron god that they are spouses or lovers. Others see portents and currents of psychic energy everywhere. Many speak of extensive exploration of past lives, or long meaningful conversations with spirit guides. Are these Wiccans faking it for competitive reasons? Are they completely deluded? Or is all this magical stuff really happening? And why isn’t it happening to Wiccans like you and me?

Believe me, I can relate to these questions. I have been studying Wicca and paganism for years – reading the right books, meditating, and observing the sabbats. However, I have never had a profound mystical experience. The gods have never spoken to me though I have always been drawn to Odin All-Father (or Wotan, as we Anglo-Saxons call him), and was even born on his day (Wednesday). When I hear about other Wiccans having a close connection with the gods, I sometimes I wonder if I am feeling the same way as most of the Carmelite nuns did, plodding along with their bookkeeping and chicken raising while living in the shadow of the great Spanish mystic Saint Teresa of Avila.

I wish I could offer reassurance that you and I will have a dramatic supernatural break-through someday, if we work hard enough. But I don’t know for sure. Opening up to the otherworldly realms is not something that we can force. For most of us, it might have to happen naturally in a state of pure relaxation. This means that we should probably let ourselves forget about it while concentrating on learning as much as we can about the Wiccan path. Meanwhile, our subconscious will be free to open to the mystical realms. Maybe the gods intend some of us to walk our Wiccan path, feeling alone amidst self-doubt, and we will never communicate directly with them. Maybe they know that we can develop the strongest and deepest faith of all Wiccans because we are not getting rewarded with obvious feedback from our efforts. Therefore, our faith has to be strong enough to guide us.

Try not to compare your own Wiccan path to anyone else’s or you may come to the false conclusion that you are doing something wrong, or even that you are not intuitive, psychic, or spiritual enough to be Wiccan. There are many ways to be Wiccan, and not every path is the path that gets the most publicity – the magical mystery tour. Your intuition guided you to Wicca for a reason. Until you feel in your heart that it is not right for you, you should practice Wicca with an open heart and an inquiring mind to find out not what marvels Wicca can show you, but how you can refine yourself through Wicca in order to help bring light to the world.

BellaOnline

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Wiccan Atheists and Agnostics

Wiccan Atheists and Agnostics


BellaOnline’s Wicca Editor

Can Wiccans also be atheists or agnostics? This may seem a strange question because the worship of the Lord and Lady is so central to many Wiccans’ daily spiritual practice. But the short answer is yes. It is possible to concentrate on the cultural aspects of Wicca rather than its religious concepts.

According to the Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition, the definition of atheism is, “1. archaic: Ungodliness, Wickedness 2a: a disbelief in the existence of deity, b: the doctrine that there is no deity.” And, from the same source, here is the definition of agnostic: “1: a person who holds the view that any ultimate reality (as God) is unknown and prob. unknowable; broadly: one who is not committed to believing in either the existence or the nonexistence of God or a god.”

Atheists do not believe in deities. Agnostics believe that there is no way to prove or disprove the existence of deities. But that does not necessarily mean that atheists and agnostics limit their curiosity only to those phenomena currently verifiable by science. Sometimes it takes the scientific method awhile to explain things that previously seemed like magic such as the laws of gravity, solar eclipses, electricity, hypnosis, and acupuncture. An atheist might not believe in the existence of gods, but she might acknowledge flows of electromagnetic energy that make up the universe. She might keep an open mind about an individual’s ability to influence energy by honing intent through ceremony, which is another way to describe witchcraft.

Atheists or agnostics might believe in witchcraft but not in gods. Maybe they feel strongly that the universe invented itself to its own pattern – which includes the ability of individuals to influence the flows of energy through witchcraft – but the universe itself is not a sentient being that requires worship. Or maybe they believe that everything in the universe is randomly generated, including witchcraft. There are also Deists (not atheists or agnostics) who believe that a deity or deities existed long enough to create the universe and its energy flows, but then ceased to exist and left us all to our own devices.

A Wiccan atheist or agnostic might recognize no higher power than his own moral code. And he might see his moral code and experience as sufficient to guide him through the practice of any skill from accounting to knitting to witchcraft. This type of Wiccan is the opposite of the Wiccan I described in a previous article who is not interested in practicing witchcraft, but seeks only to worship deity.

Another type of Wiccan atheist or agnostic disbelieves in deity AND witchcraft, but finds a strong identity in Wiccan cultural concepts. This might include reverence for nature, a heightened awareness of environmental issues, attraction to Celtic and Anglo-Saxon history, and an affinity for seeking balance and symmetry between the male and female energies present within each of us.

This type of Wiccan is similar to a secular Jew such as J. Robert Oppenheimer, father of the atomic bomb, who was an atheist and a scientist, but culturally Jewish. A secular Wiccan might not be interested in practicing witchcraft, and might observe the festivals of the Wheel of the Year mainly as a way to enjoy and connect with the ancient harvest rituals and not as a religious observance. So, as you can see, there is much diversity in what it means to be a Wiccan, which means that our cultural and religious identity has the potential for broad horizons if we can accept our differences.

BellaOnline

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Your Ancient Symbol Card for Jan. 20th is Wisdom

Your Ancient Symbol Card for Today

Wisdom

A very, very few of us are fortunate to be born wise. For most of us our Wisdom evolves, grows as we move through life gathering experience and knowledge. Wisdom denotes your thoughts and feelings derived from the melding of your life experiences with all that you have learned. Our Wisdom can get us through the difficult  moments in our lives as well as provide the mental and spiritual tools we need to succeed.

As a daily card, Wisdom indicates a time when you should rely heavily on past experiences and knowledge attained to make important decisions in your life. This is a time where reflection and planning should guide your actions. To act rashly, on impulse at this time may well cost you in the future. Go slow, think things out, weigh all of your options carefully and then proceed.

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Let’s Talk Witch – Mojo Bags, What Are They & How To Make One

Witchy Comments & Graphics

What is a Mojo Bag & How to Make One for Any Purpose

A mojo bag is an amulet, generally small and made of flannel though they can be larger and made of other materials, in which magical objects are combined in order to manifest intent.  It is a physical representation of a spell.

Other names include conjure hand or conjure bag, gris-gris, jomo, lucky bag, mojo hand or simply hand, trick bag, toby, prayer in a bag, root bag, and wanga or oanga bag. Different names are popular in different areas of the world and with different people but these things are all basically the same.

How to Make a Mojo Bag for any Purpose

The first thing to do when you want to make a mojo bag is to determine your intent.  Once you know where you want to go, creating the bag is very simple.

While making every mojo bag out of red flannel is common in some parts, many people prefer to choose a color which corresponds with their intent and by doing so, strengthening their spell.  You’ll need to decide if you want to stick with traditional red flannel or employ color magick.

Nearly all mojo bags are made of flannel, though sometimes other materials are used such as leather or silk, depending on the desires and intentions of the maker. Any material will work, your intent is always going to be the key in making a successful bag, but flannel is generally preferred.

After creating your bag in the color and material of your choosing, you’ll want to fill it with magickal objects. Items commonly placed in mojo bags include herbs, crystals and gemstones and papers. Really anything can be included as long as it strengthens your work.

Some people will always include the same number of items in any bag they make, others will always include an odd number of items in their bags; while still others will just add whatever they believe will work together and don’t pay attention to the number of items they use. Seven is traditionally a magickal number, so if you have no preference you can start using seven as your base point.

Once you’ve determined what you’re going to put inside the bag, you are ready to fix it. There are many acceptable methods to do this.

Tomorrow, we will discuss items to put in your mojo bag, breathing life into it and feeding it. Yes, no typo, feeding your mojo bag! Who knew?

Excerpts from:
Magical Mojo Bags
Lady Gianne
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Start This Day In Our Divine Mother’s Name……

Witchy Comments & Graphics
Banish now with spell and will
Banish now with Spirit’s grace
Banish now with magick’s power
All that’s wrong and out of place.
 
Banish now with water’s rushing
Banish now with Earth’s strong might
Banish now for once and all
That which stands against the light.
 
Banish now with Fire’s heat
Banish now with blowing air
Banish now with root and stone
Pain and illness and despair.
 
Banish all that is not working
Banish all that hold us back
Banish all the seeks to harm us.
As we start this beautiful day in
our Divine Mother’s Name.

So Mote It Be.

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Good Monday Morning To All Our Brothers & Sisters of The Craft!

DID YOU MISS US?

I can’t hear you, lol!

Well, whether you missed us or not, we missed you! We love ya’! In case you are wondering, we did not have a flu relapse, we did not run out of broom fuel in Alaska nor did we hibernate for the rest of the Winter. Instead we took a little working vacation. That kills me, working vacation. How on Earth can it be a vacation if you are still doing work??? I don’t know I am still trying to figure that one out myself (when I do I will let you know). But seriously the WOTC must be getting publicized somewhere out there. Why, you might ask? Now are you ready for this because we are all still scratching our rumps over all of it……we have had two networks approach us about doing one reality show and the other a documentary. Then we have had several radio stations ask for interviews. I can see someone doing a reality show around here, HA! We are not a very exciting bunch of witches, in fact, rather boring. Well not boring, just private. I do my rituals and spell work with no one around except my familiars (that’s the way we all are unless it is a Sabbat). I am sure the viewers would love to see me sleeping in the floor or chasing the lynx off the porch. Yes, I have a new critter that has moved in with me. The lynx is not welcome because I already have the wildcat outside and one inside. I have a fight out on the porch every night. Now the documentary sounded pretty cool. I would get to sit in front of a fake background and discuss our earlier history. I think their main focus is going to be on the Burning Times. And as everyone knows that is one topic I am very passionate about (Oh, Brother)! It makes me angry to even thing about how our Ancestors were treated let alone talk about it. And talking about talking, the radio shows are fine. But does anyone know of a cheap voice coach, lol! I don’t want to sound to “hicky.” I have been told I have a very heavy southern accent. Perhaps if I leave ain’t and ya’ll out of the discussion I might make it through. But if and when all this happens, we will give you times and dates. We want the moral support, pleezzzeee!

Now on the world stage, I was listening this morning to the News and I heard something that was disturbing to me. I know you probably heard it also. It was a report about a group of terrorists that have threatened the Olympics. To me this is appalling and it’s sickening. I think we all need to keep all the athletes from the different countries in our thoughts and prayers. And ask the Goddess to watch over the Olympics and protect everyone there. Also pray the President Putin finds this terrorist organization for they can do any damage. To be truthful, I believe if he catches them, we won’t never know it and we won’t never hear from them again. As the Olympics draw nearer, keep the athletes, the visitors and everyone else in Russia save and sound.

Well, it is great to be back with you again. I did notice one thing, we leave we pick up a huge following. What’s up with that? We won’t bite I swear (well, we really don’t know about Mystie but she has been vaccinated so you should be safe, lol)! But anyway, you know me I could talk forever but let get back to it and get some work done. For everyone new to The WOTC, welcome, make yourself at home and enjoy! For everyone else, we are glad to see you and look forward to spending the day with ya’!

Have a very Blessed Monday,

Luv & Hugs,

Lady A & The WOTC Team