Category Archives: Witchcraft

Meditation, Paganism, Witchcraft

It’s almost like I planned it.

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Last night, I led my coven through a guided meditation for our full moon ritual.  After much consideration and considering the astrological configuration (sun in Libra, Moon in Aries) for this full moon, I somehow fell upon the idea of making the focus of the ritual be about the third pillar of the Witches’ Pyramid, “To Dare.”  In the traditions I’ve seen, that pillar is usually associated with the element of water, whereas Libra and Aries are an air sign and fire sign respectively.

My idea for the ritual is to consider how Libra’s energy toward finding harmony and balance can actually become a source of blocking the need o push on and face the unknown and the fears that surround it in an act of daring.  The meditation suggested that Aries’s impulsiveness and impression could provide the necessary contrast and catalyst to push past and delve into the depths of daring.

After we finished the mediation, I realized that I had placed the setting of this meditation in a stone edifice (a high tower with a great room at the top).  The stone provided us with a link to the element of Earth, the missing fourth.  And the element was providing the foundation and stability for the working, as is its nature.

I laughed as I realized that without even planning it, I had created a nicely balance meditation in which all the elements were present and invoked in the work we were doing.  Pretty good, considering I don’t actually work much with the elements in my personal practice.

Paganism, Religion, Witchcraft

Let us bring forth that which has quietly formed in dark places.

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Happy Yule![1]

The winter solstice — that point where the sun’s rays are least direct on the Northern Hemisphere — officially takes place tomorrow morning at 5:30 UTC.  For those of us in the Eastern time zone (UTC -5:00), that translates to tonight/tomorrow morning at 12:30am.

The winter solstice marks the longest night of the year and the triumphant return of the light, longer days, and warmth.  To some Pagans and Wiccans, it represents the rebirth of the sun god.  Yule brings a sense of rejoicing, the darkest time following Samhain has is about to pass and the half-year reign of the underworld will begin to wane and give way to the brightness and warmth that is vital to our survival.

However, I think it’s important to remember as we begin to pass back into more light that we need the time of darkness to survive as well.  After all, the growing season and bountiful harvest rely on the gestational period of the dark winter months, just as our own psyches require downtime and decreased activity.

Yule marks the rebirth of light into a fragile, not entirely ready form, but it’s a birth that takes place thanks to the things that have been rejuvenated and seething in the darkness.  And while that fragile light shall grow stronger and eventually overcome the darkness for its time of reign, it will also be nourished by the waning darkness and the slumber it encourages.

So let the light shine in this quiet time, not as a brilliant force to be reckoned with, but as a comforting glimmer and a promise of what is to come.

Note:
[1]  Or for any readers who are in the Southern Hemisphere, happy Litha/Summer Solstice.  I hope you will indulge me in the rest of this post, however, as I focus on the mysteries I am currently experiencing/working with.

Paganism, Religion, Witchcraft

On Mediumship

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Sunday evening, I went to Wegman’s to pick up a salad for Monday’s lunch as well as sodas and snacks for the week.  Derek, the cashier who rang me up, inquired about where I had my face painted (I was done up like Tigger), and I told him it was at the annual psychic fair at Psychic’s Thyme.  He asked me about that and then asked if I believed in ghosts.  I simply smiled and said, “Well, I sorta have to, seeing as I’m a medium.”  I think that answer rather surprised him, as he started babbling a bit.  He mostly started talking about the “Paranormal Activity” movies.

This is something I’ve noticed with some people.  While they are fascinated by movies and tales of the paranormal, they really get uncomfortable around those of us who are (or claim to be, if my more skeptical readers prefer) “the real deal.”  I’m not sure whether it’s because they find the idea of spirits frightening[1] and therefore find a spooky, controllable fantasy more appealing than if they were to consider it a reality they do not understand.  Or maybe it’s for some other reason.

Of course, in reality, communicating with spirits isn’t nearly as interesting or titillating as the stuff they put in Paranormal Activity or similar movies.  In a lot of ways, spirit communication is quite ordinary and unremarkable.  Granted, it’s touching in its own way, but in a very different way than the normal thrills.

Spirit communication is ultimately about connection with our greater spiritual comity.  In Saturday’s post, I spoke of the ancestors as a source of wisdom and the creators of the world we inherited.  Spirit communication is an opportunity to connect with those predecessors — though more recently passed loved ones are the most likely to connect with us this way and maintain that sense of continuity and community.  It’s a way to remember them, honor them, and learn just a bit more from them.

But then, I’m not sure everyone values that the same.

Notes:
[1]  To be honest, I’m more inclined to find them annoying, especially on those occasions where they show up in every day life.  After about the third time I look behind myself to see if the presence I’m feeling is connected to a physical body in a public space, I start to worry that the other people are starting to think I’m weird.[2]

[2]  In fairness, they’d be right…

Paganism, Religion, Witchcraft

Gerald Gardner’s Myth of the Goddess

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The first edition cover of Witchcraft Today, w...

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While I do not consider myself Wiccan and I’m certainly not an Initiate of Gardnerian Wicca or any of it’s close relatives, my own understanding of witchcraft has been strongly influenced by the thoughts and writings of various such Initiates, including the public writers of Gerald Gardner himself.

Gardner presented a piece of writing in his books which he referred to as “The Myth of the Goddess.”[1]  He indicated that it was one of the — if not THE — central myths of the form of witchcraft he taught.  It also happens to be one of my favorite myths.  As it features the god of the witches as Death himself, I thought it appropriate to post it the day before Samhain.

Now, G. (the Witch Goddess) had never loved, but she would solve all the Mysteries, even the Mystery of Death; and so she journeyed to the Nether Lands.

The Guardians of the Portals challenged her, “Strip off thy garments, lay aside thy jewels; for naught may ye bring with ye into this our land.”

So she laid down her garments and her jewels, and was bound , as are all who enter the Realms of Death the Mighty One.

Such was her beauty that Death himself knelt and kissed her feet, saying, “Blessed be thy feet that have brought the in these ways.  Abide with me, let me but place my cold hand on thy heart.”

She replied, “I love thee not.  Why dost thou cause all things that I love and take delight in to fade and die?”

“Lady,” replied Death, “’tis Age and Fate, against which I am helpless.  Age causes all things to wither; but when men die at the end of time I give them rest and peace, and strength so that they may return.  But thou, thou art lovely.  Return not; abide with me.”

But she answered, “I love thee not.”

Then Death said, “An thou received not my hand on thy heart, thou must receive Death’s scourge.”

“It is Fate; better so,” she said, and she knelt; and Death scourged her, and she cried, “I feel the pangs of love.”

And Death said, “Blessed be,” and gave her the Fivefold Kiss, saying, “Thus only may ye attain to joy and knowledge.”

And he taught her all the Mysteries.  And they loved and were one, and he taught her all the Magics.

For there are three great events in the life of man; Love, Death, and Resurrection in a new body; and Magic controls them all.  For to fulfil love you must return again at the same time and place as the loved one, and you must remember and love them again.  But to be reborn you must die, and be ready for a new body; and to die you must be born; and without love you may not be born.  And these be all the Magics.

Notes:
[1] At least that’s the name he used for it in Witchcraft Today.  In The Meaning of Witchcraft, he renamed it to “The Magical Legend of the Witches.”

Paganism, Religion, Witchcraft

The Underworld

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As Samhain approaches, my thoughts turn to the ancestors and the realms of the underworld.  As a witch whose practice tends to be highly shamanistic in nature, I’m quite familiar with these realms and spend a bit of time exploring them and drawing on the wisdom of their inhabitants.

Some of my friends — including Pagans who tend to focus on the brighter side of the divine and upper- and mid-world beings occasionally ask me about my interest in the darker places of our spiritual cosmos.  They find the underworld realms a frightening and daunting place.  And there wariness is not unwarranted.  The underworld can be a strange chaotic, and troubling place.  After all, half-formed and malformed things live their, including our own shadows.  As a witch, I’m thankful that I have guardians, guides, and other allies to walk with me in such places.

But just as I wouldn’t amputate an arm just because because it’s broken or is suffering from pain, the troubling aspects of the underworld are not sufficient reason for me to ignore it.  There is great power and wisdom waiting there.

In addition to everything else it is,[1] it is the home of the ancestors, those who have gone before us, built up the world we lived in, and even gave us our lives.  These are the ones who have set the stage we now walk upon and helped form the person we would become as we walked on them.  The ability to visit them, thank them, and learn from their experiences is cherished.

The fact that we come from the ancestors who inhabit the underworld is also one of the things that makes the underworld the home of all potential.  It is the place where dark — as in unrevealed and unformed — forces exist, waiting to be given shape, form, and purpose.  As a shamanistic witch, I seek to seek out and explore these potentials that lay in the underworld so that I may draw them out and pull them into something in this realm.  It is the realm which provides the source material for new beginnings.

Notes:
[1]  Indeed, trying to describe everything that can be found in the underworld (or mid-world or upper world, for that matter) is not something I can do in a thousand blog posts, let alone this single post.

Paganism, Personal Development, Witchcraft

Video: Personal Power and Silence

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I figured it was time for another video.  I took a break from ethics because I wanted to talk about personal power and silence.

Personally, I think that we as a society tend to forget that personal power comes from those deep recesses inside ourselves that usually get drowned out by the noise of the world around us and even that of the more active parts of our conscious mind.  By starting the journey from a place of silence (or by plunging into such a place), I think we have a much higher rate of success.

I also couldn’t resist putting in a bit of a plug for Psychic’s Thyme and mentioning the fantastic Ostara ritual held there last night.

Paganism, Witchcraft

Solstice Night

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Hemavan

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Winter solstice night is the longest night of the year.  It is the time when the darkness is at its strongest.  The world is deep in its winter slumber, and many creature have withdrawn into their dens to escape and protect themselves from the frosty grip of winter.  This slumber is important, for it allows all living things time to rejuvenate.  It is this time of rest that conserves and builds the energies that will be expended in the active pursuits of life later on.

And while solstice night marks the peak of this time of contraction and conservation, it also marks the turning point.  For this long, dark night shall end with the rising sun, adn that moment will hail the decreasing rein of darkness.  The days to come shall then grow a bit longer in turn, and the sun’s warming influence, though imperceptible at first, shall likewise grow and strengthen.  In the months to come, we will see what was started with that first fragile sunrise.

For now, we wait in eager anticipation of that first morning, haling the change it represents and the new life it promises.  And we turn inward to see what may be stirring anew in our own lives.  For like the trees and animals, we also experience times of withdrawal and contraction.  Like them, we too need those times of deep rest and rejuvenation.  And as with the longest night, there comes a time when something stirs within ourselves to let us know there is new life and growth to be experienced.  Our time of rest is not eternal.

So let us anticipate an end of our own withdrawal and time of silence this solstice as well.  Let us become aware of that inner stirring that speaks of new projects, new celebrations, and new goals to come.  Let us welcome that fragile awakening and nourish it so that we too may become active and lively in the days and months to come.

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Religion, Witchcraft

Control, Influence, and Madeleine L’Engle

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A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

Image by Dana Durell via Flickr

While I was blogging yesterday about community, church, and worship my Zemanta plugin suggested a possibly related link with a quote from the author, Madeleine L’Engle.  I found part of that quote very interesting:

Artists have always been drawn to the wild, wide elements they cannot control or understand — the sea, mountains, fire. To be an artist means to approach the light, and that means to let go our control, to allow our whole selves to be placed with absolute faith in that which is greater than we are. The novel we site down to write, and the one we end up writing may be very different, just as the Jesus we grasp and the Jesus who grasps us may also differ.

We live under the illusion that if we can acquire complete control, we can understand God, or we can write the great American novel. But the only way we can brush against the hem of the Lord, or hope to be part of the creative process, is to have the courage, the faith, to abandon control.

Personally, I think L’Engle is onto something profound here, and it’s something that is as important in witchcraft as it is in L’Engle’s faith.  That profound truth is that it’s never about control, because control is an illusion.  Whether you’re talking about art, faith, or magic, there is no such thing as absolute control.

But something that L’Engle points out that there is a difference between control — especially absolute control — and influence and the creative process.  It is possibl to not still be in control and still hold considerable influence.  It is possible to be a less-than-perfect co-creator.  In fact, it’s the only thing we can be.  I’d even go so far as to say that it’s the only thing we should be.

Our job is not to gain mastery over everything.  That’s good, because that would be an impossible task.  (And my gods and my faith do not require me to undertake impossible tasks.)  Instead, ours is to look at the reality around us and identify what we can do and do exactly that.  No more.  No less.

Magic does not change that goal.  It is not a means by which we discover all the secrets of the universe and therefore become its master.  It’s merely another tool we can use to manifest our limited and imperfect influence.  And it’s a nice tool to have.

I also like how L’Engle makes that connection between faith and art.  I think it’s a great one, and I think there’s a similar connection between art and magic.  After all, they are both processes of creation, and I think all such processes are ultimately of the same essense.

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Magic/Magick, Paganism, Religion, Witchcraft

Choice and Power

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Yesterday, I blogged about how the belief that we have no choices in situations is detrimental to our ability to live an ethical life.  Today, I want to discuss another reason why this belief is problematic for witches(1).  A belief that we have no choice in a given situation also destroys our personal power in a given situation as well.

We in the Pagan community talk about self-empowerment a lot.  It’s a key reason a lot of us came to a Pagan path, at least in my experience.  However, sometimes we talk about it in rather vague terms, never really making it clear what it means to be self-empowered.  To that end, I would like to suggest my own definition:  Self-empowerment is the act of embracing the realization that no matter what situation we may find ourselves in, we always have the ability to choose how we will respond and act.

Note that self-empowerment doesn’t mean we always get to control the situations we find ourselves in.  Nor does it mean that we can magically change everything in our environment to suit our needs.  Such a concept of self-empowerment would simply be out of step with and contrary to reality.  Hardships are going to befall us.  People are going to do things we don’t like and that hurt us.  Circumstances are going to limit our options and even make us face some unpleasant choices.  Those who want to find a way to turn their lives into a fairy tale need to keep looking.  They will not find it here.(2)

But what the principle of self-empowerment tells us is that no matter what those situations are, our actions are our own to choose.  It tells us that even if our choices are limited to unpleasant ones, there are still choices to make.(3)  Self-empowerment teaches us that no matter what is beyond our control, who we choose to be and how we choose to act is still our personal domain.  And that is an incredible power to wield, in my opinion.

Saying we have no choice in a situation robs us of that power.  It turns us into victims of our circumstances rather than people who are working to not only make the best of our circumstances, but improve it insofar as we can.  And that is a great tragedy.

And again, this is a creeping problem.  The belief that we had no choice tends to spread throughout our lives.  What started as one instance where we thought we had no control or no power becomes two.  Then it becomes five.  Then it becomes a regular occurrence.  Soon, we are never empowered because we fail to see our choices.  And then we wonder why our lives are nothing like we want them to be.(4)

Now some may be ready to ask me, “But what about magic?”  And it’s a good question, so I will answer it.  Back in 2007, I blogged about the role one’s will plays in magic.  At that time, I suggested that our will is the part of our psyche that initiates action.  It’s the part of us that actually goes about making all of these choices, and it’s central to the process of working magic.

So what happens when we say that part of us is incapable of making choices because there are none to be made?  We are effectively subjugating it or turning it off.  A belief that we have no choices actually hinders our will.  And a subjugated or hindered will simply cannot operate effectively.  Which means our ability to do magic effectively disappears as well.

Notes:
(1)  As witches are not the only people who believe in or value self-empowerment, I’m sure many other people will be able to identify with much of what I’m saying here.  I think that’s great.  But since I’m a witch, I’m going to focus on witches.  Though I do hope anyone who isn’t a witch still shares with me what value they might find in my thoughts.

(2)  In reality, I suspect they won’t find it anywhere.  But I respect their right to continue searching.  That’s their choice to make.

(3)  The other advantage to realizing you still have choices, even if they’re all less than ideal, is that it gives you the freedom to think creatively and look for even more choices.  The ones you see immediately may not be the only ones laying about.

(4)  Of course, there are also times when our lives are nothing like we want them to be because our desires are simply not realistic.  Again, this is because self-empowerment is not about living a fairy tale life.  Sometimes, we just have to find a way to live within our limitations.  But my experience is that even within our limitations, there’s a life that’s well worth living.

Paganism, Witchcraft

Speak not of such things for they frighten me!

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The following questions come from The Reverend Boy:

If I remember correctly, I believe you said you were a pagan or Wiccan. What about that faith / spirituality gives you fulfilment? Do you have a community with whom to share your experiences?

This is a great question in that it really makes me think. More importantly, it challenges me to express in words things that often defy description. And of course, it also forces me to talk about some things that might cause some of my friends to worry and even consider calling a mental health professional — or worse, an exorcist.

I’d say that my fulfillment from my spirituality is due to two closely related themes. The first is the tendency of Pagan spirituality to celebrate, cherish, and even honor this life. The second theme is the close and curious (if sometimes frustrating and nerve-wracking) relationship I have with Freyja.

Like I said, these two things are quite intertwined, because Freyja is all about life and its joys and sorrows. She is fascinated by people and social settings. There’s been more than one time that I’ve been at a gathering of friends at a coffee shop, dining with friends at a restaurant, or otherwise out and about with other people, and the next thing I knew, she was there with me, taking it all in. She’s fascinated (and sometimes disgusted, I grant you) by how people interact with each other and all kinds of details of my life and the lives of those around me. And seeing it all from her perspective in those moments turns even the most “mundane” experiences into moments of awe and contemplation.

The fact that she’s there at a moment’s notice in any situation is also incredible to me. It creates a very conversational relationship between the two of us. Talking to her is not something that’s limited to rituals (though rituals are wonderful and important things as well), but something that can come at any moment. It’s a comforting and casual thing. Well, okay, it does get annoying at times, like when she pipes up about my eating habbits. But in the end, it’s all worth it.

I’m also finding lately that my faith is becoming very community-oriented. I find myself thinking in terms of what I can do to help others, even in the smallest ways imaginable. To me, even building community is becoming and important way. And my Pagan faith gives me ways to go about helping in this manner (and the occasional kick to keep moving in that direction). And again, that’s all about celebrating life, not just as an indivdiaul, but as a group of individuals.

I’m going to hold off on talking about my spiritual community (though I will point to a couple of previous posts on that particular subject. But I have more on that topic brewing in my mind. So I want to give it a bit more time to percolate before I dump it out into the blogosphere.

Oh, and for anyone wondering, the title of this post is a paraphrase of the response that a witch was supposed to give whenever the subject of witchcraft came up, according to the Ardanes.