Cyber Cauldron

The original diagram for this ritual has been lost but if you place the cauldron directly in front of you, the herbs and brewing ingrediance to the left and the cup to the right forming the triangle of the triskalion, once you have placed the tools in position visualiste the energy flow in the patten of the triskelion, before starting the ritual works very well.

Tools:

• Herb(s) for tea
• Container for herb(s)
• Cup(s) and Tea Pot
• Decanter of Pure Spring Water
• Brewing dish with candle
• Scrying Candle
• cauldron

Prepare By: Placing a small table or platform in the center of your working space and arranging the Brewing dish, herbs, cup(s), Tea Pot and spoon on the table. Also place the cauldron with scrying candle within for use during the meditation.  Prior to casting the Circle, light candle and fill the Brewing dish with Spring Water from a decanter. Keep the Brewing Dish covered during the Casting, as I have found this helps the water to heat faster and hotter.

The Blessing of the Herbs

With the tip of your Athame touching the Herbs, intone this blessing:

Thou has grown by favor of the Sun, The Moon, and of the dew. I make this intercession, ye herb: I beseech thee to be of benefit to me and my rite, For thy virtues are unfailing. Thou art the Dew of all the Gods, The Eye of the Sun, The Light of the Moon, The Beauty and Glory of the Sky, The Mystery of Terra. I purify thee so that Whatever is wrought by me with thee may, In all its powers, Have a good and speedy effect with good success. Be purified by my prayer and be powerful!

So mote it be!

When water is hot enough, place the herbs in the Tea Pot and add water from the brewing dish, give it a couple of stirs.

While the tea is steeping, intone this Prayer.

Earth Mother Giver of life Strengthen me during my life-long strife. Teach me Your ways of perfect love, Peace, and wisdom true. Spawn from my purest heart These words to You May this prayer help me to better Myself in word and deed, To a higher plane I shall succeed. Beautiful Light of Goodness Fair Lore of old we both do share A Witch’s brew, I drink to You My love for You, by day, by night In thought and in sight Will my soul learn The meaning of this life again.

Pour out a cup for all present, including one for the Gods, and enjoy.

Sit before the table and meditate on the blessings that the Gods have bestowed upon your life. You may use the scrying candle here to focus upon for your meditation. If the Gods so choose They may give you a Message or Vision through the blessings of the Sight.

You may relax now and finish off the pot. (Note: this rite is not to take the place of The Feast, but is to be used as a time of blessing and communing with the Goddess).

Purpose: The purpose of this working is to pay homage to the Gods and to reflect on Their blessings upon this your life.

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Most of my pagan friends will tell you that me and gardening is not a true match in fact a pagan friend of mine (someone who is now running their own coven) was told that I had spent weeks designing my garden to which he replied why did it take him so long to draw a square and write concrete ‘LOL’.

I always lived in London and gardening was a luxury but since I move out in to the middle of the country I have wanted improve my pagan practices with getting back to ground roots pagan life I could not cope with the “good life” (tv version) of going totally self sufficient but I did want to be able to grow a few herbs for spell and potions and some fruit over the last few years I have not had much success (explains the concrete comment), I have had the dog dig them up, slugs and caterpillars eat them and the frost kill them and the few bit that have survived have been never in time for any ritual or rite.

But this year I have managed to grow stuff that will be ready for the 1^st august it not much I have 1 melon a few raspberries a few black currents and 4 or five broad bean come on don’t laugh I know it not much.

This will be the first year that I will be able to perform a harvest ritual where the harvest will be a physical act, will be able to decorate my altar with something that I have grown and harvested on the day.

As I sit and write my ritual for the 1^st August I am so aware that the physical act of the harvest plays such an important of the day, in previous years my harvest was the things that I was successful at I would metaphorically harvest them and use them as seed to grow more successful. Which in its own way lead me to the understanding that my spiritual needs where becoming less important that working daily life part of the reason I moved to the country. I started to realise that I had become caught up in the city and was losing my connection to nature so about 10 or so years ago I decide that I need to be in Dorset or should buy without a prescription I say the lady herself sent signs that I need to be in Dorset so I moved to Bournemouth which was much like the city and although I had the sea to connect with it still was not quite right, it was only when I move to where I am at present did everything full in to place.

Everything we do in that end up harvested sometimes we receive a bounty other times we end up with something that is rotten and spoilt but no matter what we receive we must accept our part in it creation and accept our responsibilities fairly and with understanding.

I hope that by reading this that you will think of the things you have harvested and work into your ritual something that will help you gain a stronger connection to the life the divine has provided you.

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Originally posted 2010-07-29 16:32:24. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Going through my Book of Shadows this morning I came across this and though I would share I hope JR Grover does not mind but it is only 21 years and I am not sure if it is available anywhere.

I used to have this in my office at work as it gave me confidence in my early days in the craft to come out and be a proud witch

You are politely but firmly requested not to discriminate against our pagan and spiritual heritage.

As pagans, witches and Druids, we have every right to express our views and practices. Our traditions with the fall protection of British and international law.

The last remaining laws prohibiting witchcraft in Great Britain were repealed in 1951.

This was necessary to bring British law in line with the United Nations universal declaration of human rights, which states:

Article 18
Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public Private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

Article 19
Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

Adopted and proclaimed by the Gen assembly of the United Nations on 10 December 1948.

Compared to various Christian persuasion is (a religion of Middle Eastern origin), particularly those of its recent forms of fundamentalists and similar sex often seem ill informed, even ignorant of the original and sacred spiritual heritage of the British Isles. We would encourage them to at least learn about our ways; any scientist will inform them that to criticise with out a reasonable comprehensive grasp of the subject renders the criticism invalid. The blind prejudice frequently expressed against paganism by such people is often the result of such gross ignorance. Here are the two basic areas of information which will dispense with many major misconceptions.

1 Satanism, and the devil
Satanism is an offshoot of that Judaic Christian. Islamic tradition it is then invention and has nothing to do with the symbolic horned God of the witches and pagans come up, which exists as a symbolic representation of the masculine characteristics of nature’s fecundity long before the Judaic Christian and Islamic traditions were culturally developed from Samaria Arcadian and the late Egyptian religious concepts (i.e. monotheistic panentheism). The devil is solely part of the Judaic Christian Islamic pantheon of deific characters. In 1484, Pope Innocent 8th published a bull classify our pagan symbols as personification of their devil. And so on, infighting and promoting deliberate religious persecution and genocide. Pagans (and Christian is deemed heretics), of all persuasions have been so treated by religious authorities from as early as 307CE, and in Europe to date at least 9 million have been tortured and killed by heretic and witch hunts (an academic has recently identified some 35-45,000 recorded arraignments and executions solely of those accused of being witches. In some cases of those countries, and only a few countries were Christianity was the enforced belief system – and those from only a tiny proportion of such records still exist).

2 learn your heritage
the pagan heritages of all nations are the original roots from which the modern religions sprang. These religions usually arose from a significant or, divinely inspired person capable of seeing the armed. The strictures of their cultural norms, who gave guidance to the ordinary people, to enable them to survive conditions. The less perceive Could not comprehend. Inevitably, these charismatic individuals designed their message from earlier knowledge; they are often known to have been educated in earlier traditions, which enable them to see the wider picture – and far at least. As their particular culture would enable them to stop. It is an unfortunate fact that the less adaptable followers tend to create institutions, which often become power hungry to the extent of denying their originators background. For incense, read the Venerable Bede, on the slaughter of the entire pagan population of the Isle of Wight in 686CE. Reid also a bonus (decline and fall of the Roman Empire), and the actions of the Valentitian and Valens. This was long before the Inquisition, where in many celibate Christian monks, refined methods of torture, mainly of women, with zealous enthusiasm. Nowadays, surely all religious except the rights of others, religious freedom of expression? Simply read the exact wording of their current dogma in the light of their history and find out. Then learn your pagan heritage and the concepts behind our traditions; it is your birthright, which they had tried to deny you. As pagans, we are pantheists; we recognise the supernality as intrinsic to existence itself, the order by which time and space and fold, and we find monotheistic panentheism, a pre-existent creator god childishly absurd in a scientific aware world. Our quaint and beautiful symbolic minutes, ceremonies and deities, allegories the processes of nature and existence, and celebrate the existence of humanity as part of the whole. After all, your existence is a result of the evolutionary nature, despite absurd creationist modern sects born of inward looking religious self-delusion. We are happy to coexist with other spiritual paths, and perfectly willing to discuss their validity of each other as core beliefs and morals and natural supernality.
As inheritors of the pagan knowledge, we conceive of Jesus Christ as a magnificent example of a middle eastern known scientific folk of their 2160 year Piscean age, now ending As we enter the Aquarian age. As starch, we have due respect for this figure, and his true followers who wish to peacefully coexist with other spiritual traditions, but not for the Christian churches with their appalling record of genocide, torture, material acquisition suppression of other spiritual traditions, including those from which they descend, their involvement with fascists and various oppressive governments, their suppression of winning, their coal industry a dark and murky politics, and perhaps above all, their doctrinal denial of every human being is divine right to seek spirituality. Based on reality, not confined by an enforced dogma. Nowadays, we do not live under the tyranny of an enforced belief system. Paganism is currently the fastest growing spiritual cosmology. In this land, at least, and a dogmatic religions are declining as progressing human knowledge about our universe, its origins and ours are no longer censored by religious dogma. This is because the pagan principles are absolutely appropriate in a word, where environmental concerns focus attention on the necessity of looking after this beautiful Earth, and of course, there is no contradiction between the experimental concepts underlying pagan knowledge and the knowledge developed through scientific discovery.

After 2000 years of oppression. We say never again! We feel we have the right to express our freedom with the support of decent people throughout the Wales. If you have come across discrimination against pagans weather, which is truth or others including Third World pagan folk. Please inform the perpetrator that they are in violation of internationally enforceable law against religious discrimination and are liable to arrest and prosecution because the civilised governments of the world regards such prejudices as immoral and unacceptable.

Copyright 1990 JR Grover

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Originally posted 2011-05-18 10:33:33. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Many Neo-Pagans and Wiccan adopt at least one new name as a sign of the new person that they have become and as a sign of their belief. A neo pagan and Wiccan will normally have at least 3 names their birth or legal name, the public pagan name that is a name used at public meetings and the final name is the private name a name only known to members of the coven or group that they belong to.

The public working name is a name that a person chooses for himself or herself which can just be made up or contains the names of animals or crystals or magickal symbols or runes.

The private name is normally given by the high priestess to a new member this name will contain information that that person must seek out, you are called that name for a reason sometimes to bring humility and understanding other times to inspire greatness.

During the first few years a neo pagan may change the public name till they find a name that truly fits.

I choose my public name “Draco of the Dragonstar” as I have a very close affinity to dragons and their magicks and I wanted to honour the great dragon who has been my guide for many decades now. Although I do shorten it to draco in letters and emails many people think that my name comes from Harry Potter.

My Private name was given to me and I was a little disappointed that it was not something big and proud like Raven Hunter Hawk but as I sort out my name if found it fits me like a glove.

So how do you start to pick your own pagan name?

Well you can start with the archetypal gods and goddess names choose a deity whose strengths and attributes you would like to embody although I would research any deity you may wish to be called by as you will assume some of their traits positive and negative.

You could also choose mythical beasts or cultural hero as part of the name as well as animals precious stones or even a particular attribute you wish to embody.

If you having difficulties finding a name there are a few techniques such as meditation and asking the divine directly or even forms of divination such as (Tarot, Runes, Ouji Board, Lots, *Numerology and your power numbers, I-Ching) no matter how you find your name it has to be right for you their no wrong name.

(more…)

Originally posted 2010-11-06 09:39:50. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

You may be a TechnoPagan if…

If your athame has a SCSI interface…

If your OBE’s begin with a netsplit…

If your priest robes conceal a pocket protector…

If you calculate the phases of the moon with Windows ‘XP / Vista or 7…

If your altar has a keyboard…

If drawing down a circle is a POST (power on self test)…

If you call the Watch Towers on your cell-tell…

If you do most of your correspondence by email and sign off with Blessed Be…

If you don’t call it a ritual, you call it a Macro…

If you end a circle with Ctl-Alt-Del…

If you have ever attached ribbons to a May Pole using a staple gun…

If you invite the God and Goddess to come online…

If you keep a Disk of Shadows (with encrypted backups)…

If you participate in online rituals more than you do FTF…

If you refer to eclectic ritual as cross-platforming…

If your Beltane ritual includes more than one news group…

If your candles have batteries…

If your cauldron is a crock-pot…

If your deities include Murphy and Gates…

If your drumming is done on a CD player (pre-recorded)…

If your herbs are always mail-ordered (express, overnight)…

If your idea of a great retreat has a Computer City, electricity, and a TV nearby…

If your incense is by Glade…

If your magic wand is a light pen…

If your magical name, email address, and online name are all the same…

If your magical writing is done in binary code or C++…

If your pentacle is made of computer chips…

If your technician compains about the wax and incense ash on your motherboard…

If, instead of asking what tradition someone comes from, you ask what operating system they run…

If your Yule ritual involves defragmentation…

If your coven is spread over a 12,000 sq. mi. area…

If your Book of Shadows has a 6-digit version number…

If you refer to deities using 3-letter acronyms (ODN, LKI, THR)…

If you do cord magick with ethernet…

If you ritually down your server for Samhain…

If your altar cloth is a mouse pad…

If, when your quarter candles burn out, the UPS backup system kicks in…

If erecting the temple entails formatting more than 4 disks…

If casteing the circle changes an (int) to a (float)…

If your Star Trek screen-saver signals when your meditation period is over…

If your Beltane ritual includes more than one news group…

If passing the cakes and ale entails using a /me command…

If your search for truth involves regular expressions…

If your familiar is a computer mouse…

If you draw down the moon using a light-pen…

If your cone of power has a surge suppressor…

If your tarot cards multi-task…

If your daemons collect news for you…

If your crystal ball has a horizontal-hold control…

If you refer to solitary practice as a stand alone…

If you tap into the collective unconscious using Netscape…

If your favorite deity has a homepage…

If the address of your covenstead begins with http://…

and finally, if your circle is a token ring…

Well, you just might be a TechnoPagan!

Originally posted 2011-05-10 17:01:09. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

The year 2000, the new millennium, the bright new age of enlightenment, all brought a massive up-surge of information on all things Pagan, books by the score, mail order companies, distance learning courses, classes, and people claiming direct descent from ancient witches /druids /shamans etc.

The media always so fast to demonise anything pagan, had a field day! People from all walks of life flocked to paganism, and our numbers rocketed. A bright new era of inter-faith understanding happened over-night and we all lived happily ever after! But hang on!

True, with pagans now afforded legal rights as people of other faiths are, there has been progress – and I am sincerely, respectfully grateful to all those who fought long and hard to help to give us protection. But has it all sort of, well, backfired?

True, we see less of the hysteria including sensational press coverage of anyone who wares black and a pentacle and has tattoo being labelled a ‘Devil Worshipper’. In fact the media seems to be leaving us alone , even giving us positive coverage! Result! (Even if it’s possibly more about now having the aforementioned legal right, than a sudden sense of goodwill!). My Concern is about the possible dumbing down of our faith. I’m worried not just about my own pagan path, but all paths.

You see all those books – and lets be honest, the majority are crass, blatant rip offs of the ‘lets cash in quick’ type, which are being used by people to teach themselves (and others) the ‘correct way’ or what purports to be the real deal.

Fine, Okay. I know that any faith needs to meet the needs of the people as and when those needs change and evolve – or it becomes distant and slowly dies, so I am not protesting (too much) about knowledge being, er, interpretive. We’ve all probably read a score of naff American imports which all seem to say the same thing over and over again with out any true spiritual input.

These book are aimed at the fluffy bunny pagan you can say that it harmless to see a teenage girl reading “Teenage Girlie Witch spell craft book vol 3” – but I say it’s a waste of potential, Kids reading sugary so called spell books will try the spells contained with in find out they don’t work will lose heart and quit.

But what if said teenager found an honest, open account of what paganism actually is, the ethics, values and morals? What if they were then inspired to explore paganism, even attend a moot and speak with like-minded people?

This raises another question, fine, society is now more aware of pagans and the reality of who we are and the things we actually do –but at what cost? Altering rituals to be more acceptable to non-pagan audiences, the ‘softening’ of rites to be more conductive to interfaith movement, the merging of paths to mix elements of both into something that ends up being neither. These in my option are a problem.

Could it be argued that legal acceptance of paganism and it’s apparent need to become seen as safe and approachable is in fact sowing the seeds of destruction.

The earliest Christian missionaries here in Briton reported back the native populations spiritual beliefs and practices, the early church then slowly integrated Christian beliefs and practises alongside – and then slowly dropped the native stuff. The ancients were absorbed. My fear is that recent, apparent, acceptance is the beginning of a similar process – albeit one that may take decades or longer.

Occult means ‘hidden’ and I feel that we, as pagans, would do well to remember our history and ensure our rituals, rites and practices are kept safe and hidden from the fluffy bunnies and the more commercially – driven folk. If an individual is called to the ancient ways then they will find their way to a teacher eventually, regardless of how they start their journey.

I’m aware that there is no one answers to the questions raised here and I must admit that I have not only been tempted by and bought fluffy bunny pagan stuff in mail order catalogues myself! However we owe it to our faith to strive to keep our inner practices ‘occult’ as only in that way can we ensure they survive for the next generation.

Biarki.

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Originally posted 2010-11-16 13:34:58. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

For myself and I will assume many other pagans Faith is not something we have in life like most religious people, we do not live our life believing that some supernatural all power being is guiding our destiny.

We know that we are the Masters and Mistress of our own lives our choices are our own and we take that responsibility square on and face what is coming to us. We seek guidance from our gods and goddess, which can come in the form of ideas, dreams, symbols, visions and advice from friends, which we are left to interpret.

All pagans have their fears and doubts we are not immune to human emotions we just have learned to listen to the quite voice inside that says that you’re on the right path and many of us have learnt a lesson or 2 by ignoring it.

This inner voice is often called a conscious, intuition, the inner voice and subconscious. I prefer to call it intuition since someone describes intuition as the Inner Tutor.

Communicating with the inner tutor happens as part of the normal psychological behaviour of us humans. It can be an inner monologue with oneself, a dialogue with your higher self or even instinct (Gut Instinct). But we are all capable of doing it and many do it at time when they need guidance.

For me I believe that we are three in one like the goddess and god, a physical form (our bodies) a spiritual form (astral self / higher self / The soul) and the eternal self (the part of the divine that make us the divine) and the Inner Tutor is that part of us which know all that was and all that will become.

By learning to communicate with our inner tutor helps us achieve the best life, now if we accept that we have Karmic debts to pay we know that our lives will not be perfect and trouble free but by listening to inner tutor we can make our journey smoother.

Now as mention I see us like the goddess and god three in one and the Inner tutor acts on each self in a different way. The inner tutor acts on the physical form and produces physical responses “the Gut instinct” which is very primal and speaks without word and invokes physical responses those feelings on uneasiness, fear, dislike and like that we experience each day of our life that guide us to chose friends, lovers, holiday destinations, small choices turn left not right etc.

The inner tutor to the spiritual form is as much a part of us as our own thought and ideas. We communicate and sometime argue with this tutor it our inner guiding light this is the light that leads us to spiritual and physical wellness, it communicates through internal dialogues it shows us our hopes and dreams and limitations as well as in dream states, meditation. This tutor also allows us to read signs and symbols for ourselves and for others it gives us foresight and hindsight so that we make the right choices.

The final of the three forms is the eternal tutor one that hold all the information and is a conduit of that information it can be referred to as morphic resonance (a term coined by Rupert Sheldrake) or collective memory that is shared by all creatures. Morphic resonance is the creative intelligence that we all share. (According to the hypothesis of formative causation, all self-organizing systems, including crystals, plants and animals contain an inherent memory, given by a process called morphic resonance from previous similar systems. All human beings draw upon a collective human memory, and in turn contribute to it. Even individual memory depends on morphic resonance rather than on physical memory traces stored within the brain.).

Contacting your Inner tutors.

The Psychical Inner Tutor – Learn to listen to you inner body, feel the chemical changes and biological reactions to situations if they feel unpleased avoid then. Insuring you root chakra is open and unblocked helps you connect to your psychical self. This tutor dwells in the area from root chakra to the solar plexus chakra.

The Spiritual inner tutor – Dwells between the solar plexus chakra and the crown chakra and can be contacted via internal dialog or mediation.

The external tutor – exists on all levels and in all things and provides too much information for you to clearly interpret everything but when you do understand the information you get that eureka moment when you feel you understand it perfectly you don’t really contact this tutor it contacts you.

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Originally posted 2011-04-13 16:38:39. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Introduction:

One of my near and dear once spent an hour in a therapist’s office kicking an innocent throw pillow around the room and screaming out rage at his abusive father. At the end of the hour, he had a broken foot — and the first beginnings of a healed mind.

But we have learned that magic works through symbols. Calling an object by your abuser’s name and then abusing that object is sympathetic magic used for the purpose of cursing. To throw a curse is to project one’s worst feelings out into the world of form, and to invoke upon oneself the inevitable karmic feedback.

It is not our way to blast the crops and sour the milk. Wiccan tradition and plain common sense both tell us to avoid the practice of baneful magic. But, as usual, it’s not quite as easy as just saying no.

Rape and child abuse, loved ones killed by muggers or drunk drivers, emotional manipulation and betrayal, economic exploitation and dishonest office politics — people hurt and victimize other people in many different ways every day. We are not immune.

At some point in our lives, probably every single one of us will feel violated by some other human being. Often our feelings will be based in fact. Whether they are or not, however, we need and deserve a safe way to discharge them.

Symbolic baneful actions are also cathartic actions. They drain and clear our poisonous feelings and allow our own emotional healing to begin. If we deny ourselves this outlet, what happens to the grief and pain and rage?

If projection is bad for us, introjection is even worse. Unreleased bad feelings are a major source of stress. In a very real sense, stress cripples and kills. Ulcers, strokes, heart attacks and more are all heavily stress-related. A simple refusal to engage in baneful magic could easily amount to punishing a victim by adding serious illness to the original harm.

I am part of the All. “An it harm none” is about me too. Release of my feelings is my right.

At first it seems like an insoluble paradox. But the same understanding of magic that forbids projection of our bad feelings can open a safe channel for those feelings. Here’s one possible form:

Preparation:

1. Understanding

   Think about the Alcoholics Anonymous prayer. “Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can change, and the wisdom to know the difference.” People of any religion can recognize the wisdom in those words. This ritual is intended to ease emotional pressure. I believe that is a step towards granting all three of those things to ourselves.

   If your hurt is ongoing, you must take steps to stop it — leave the abusive relationship, begin searching for a new job, begin organizing politically to stop your oppression. What good this Circle does you will be temporary at best if you are not acting on both the magical and material planes to change the things you can change.

   But some of our pain comes from old, old injuries. And some of our feelings are not based on fact at all. The source of those hurts cannot be changed, but the pain can be. This particular working is to release any bad feelings, not to judge them.

   Don’t worry about justice. You may be mistaken about who has hurt you, but nobody will be hurt by what we do here. All energy will be contained within the Circle. The object of this working is healing, not justice. You deserve this healing simply because you hurt, and even if you are mistaken.

   Prevention and healing are human tasks; to do them is to change the things we can change. Justice — the evening of karmic balances — is the business of the Gods, and may take place across a span of many lifetimes. Karmic balance is a thing we cannot change.

2. Set Up

   You have some decisions to make. The first one is whether you will work alone or ask one or more trusted friends to witness and facilitate your working. Some of us can only let our feelings go in strict privacy. For others, the presence of people who will make sure we don’t hurt ourselves or our homes removes a source of inhibition. And sometimes simply being heard is part of the release process.

   Next, exactly what kind of symbolic action will release your feelings? Will kicking a throw pillow suffice, or do you need to actually make a poppet? Or just screaming may be enough. If you want to work with a physical symbol, prepare it in advance, and be sure not to use anything you will want to keep after the rite or ever use again.

   Figure out whether you can either cast a Circle to include your bathroom, or leave a cast Circle for a period of time. This will depend on your particular training. If possible, have a warm, scented tub waiting for you. If not, a basin of warm, scented water and a washcloth within easy reach just outside of your Circle will suffice. Also, a ritual meal should be prepared and waiting outside of Circle, and this should include something green and growing — I favor sprouts — and something sweet.

Procedure:

1. Waning moon is a good time for this Circle, and the Dark of the Moon is even better. Cast the Circle and invoke the Watchers in your usual manner. Call on the Crone, on She who weeds and prunes and disposes of the obstructive and unnecessary.
2. Just inside the Circle, like the membrane in an eggshell, cast a grounding shield. One possible image for this shield would be a black absorptive chain link fence, supported at regular intervals by fence posts that are lightning rods. Whatever happens within this space will be contained and grounded.
3. Make clear to yourself what wound you seek to drain. Say it out loud, even if you are alone. Recall what happened to you in detail and let the feelings grow strong.
4. Now, let go of your feelings. Do whatever will help you release what is in you. Beat on a pillow or rip up a doll. Scream till you cry. Don’t stop till you are emptied. Then fling the thing you used as a symbol out of your Circle.
5. When you are sure you are all done, all drained, contract the shield into a tight ball in the center of the Circle. As it contracts, it will gather all the negative energy from the Circle. Ground it. Affirm that you are sending this energy to the fire at the heart of the Earth — to Jarnsaxe or to Pele — to be purified in that blast furnace and cycled to wherever strong energy is needed. Know that what you now let go is gone. Affirm this out loud.
6. Wash or bathe in a ritual manner, feeling the last traces of your bad feelings dissolve away. If others are present, allow them to wash and serve you.
7. Rest a few minutes. Feel the peace of emptiness.
8. Then invoke the Maiden’s energy for new beginnings. Have your ritual feast and otherwise indulge your senses. Gentle and joyful music would be effective, and you may want to switch to a sweeter-smelling incense. This is a time to dream dreams and plan plans. You have removed an energy drain from your life, now you will be able to … ?
9. Thank and dismiss whatever Beings you have called on, throughout the whole ritual. Close your Circle as usual. Do not do any other kinds of working or worship within this particular Circle.

Follow Through:

The final part of any effective magical working is “acting in accordance” on the material plane. By doing this, we give the magic a channel through which to manifest. For this working, there are three forms of follow through, and all are important.

1. Remember that painful feelings are partly habitual. Acting in accordance with magic to banish such feelings requires you to stop feeding the habit. Don’t talk about the pain with anybody until at least the second full moon after the working. This gives the habit a chance to fade out. As much as you can, eliminate the topic from your internal dialogue as well. When you notice yourself dwelling on the old pain, gently and firmly change the subject.
2. Thinking about action to change your life in the here and now is perfectly OK. The problem is reiteration of old feelings of frustration and helplessness that actually impede change.
3. If the hurtful situation is current and ongoing, continue with any steps you were taking to change the things you can change. In fact, you will probably find you have more energy than you did before to devote to your projects.
4. Be sure to use some of your newly freed emotional energy to reward yourself. Take time for friendship, love, and pleasure. The object of the exercise is to clear space for the enjoyment of life, so start right now.

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Originally posted 2011-04-14 09:51:27. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

I have to preface this by stating that I was first drawn to this work by Leigh Ann Hussey, and reacted very negatively to it. This will be my second time through these Laws, with comments that are solely my own opinion. I know that Lady Galadriel put a lot of work (translate: sweat blood) into these Laws, and I am not attacking her or her work. Making my points without sounding negative would have been nice, but I have not been very successful at this; since several people have been asking me to put down why I didn’t like them, I felt that getting the project over with would be better than struggling with a novel-length exercise in not offending anyone. To Lady Galadriel: I, too, have sweat blood over a reconstruction project similar to this (and I got lots of negative feedback, too). My finished copy, which includes the old “Burning Times” laws as a historical source or what to do when things really get bad, can be had from Leigh Ann, Judy Harrow, or downloaded from WeirdBase in St. Louis as “JRFLAWS.TXT”. My heart goes out to you, but I am commenting on your Laws from my head only.

Notes:

On the Preface: The Book of the Law, or Liber Al, which Lady G. refers to as a primary source, is not the same as Craft law in most traditions as it was written by Aleister Crowley; it is, therefore, hardly a wonder why it was not found to be very pertinent by Lady G. If, indeed, Lady G.’s Book of the Law was not Liber Al, it is hard to understand where many of these Laws originated.

The Laws:

1. Form and Order? Ask a Discordian or Shamanic Craft type. The Laws were created for guidance, as the latter part of this Law attests.
2. Channels, and manifestation of the Source? This sounds more like New Age Christianity than Wicca. I should stop talking about the flowers in the language, although they are disconcerting and very distracting from the original goal of “readable, usable, and pertinent to the needs…” I suppose I can just use the term “flowers” as my way of saying that the language is unnecessarily complicated when it really bothers me – and most of these laws do fall in this category.
3. Oh, no. Not the Christian “Ye are as children” routine again. The Gods, in my training, wish us to grow, not perpetually remain children. To not test what they say is the same as channeling some unknown spirit and believing everything he/she says. We are growing, making the Gods proud, not belittling or mocking them.
4. This law is over-judgmental (something I am accused of being at times), and ignores the need for working with our shadow-side; I suppose naiveté is the worst I can say about this Law. I can easily find better in Marion Weinstein’s Positive Magic…
5. The “Mothership” routine smacks of Close Encounters, but other than the children routine and some language problems, this one isn’t too bad – but isn’t there something in an initiation ritual about us and the Gods being the same “but for a difference of power”? I would think Brothers and Sisters of the Gods would be better terminology – feminists are welcome to reverse the wording.
6. Hmmm. Sounds like tithing to me. While it is certainly a good idea, we give back to the Gods all the time – this would be making the meaningful ritual a mechanical one. Sustain its Priests and Priestesses? Paid (or fed) clergy? Shades of Paul! This part would still work in my tradition, since we are all priests and priestesses, but I know some that are different…
7. I can’t see the purpose of this Law, and know of no corresponding Law in the Laws I have come across. It sounds like the God of the Christians again, making people the way they are and then judging them for being that way.
8. A direct statement would be better. Who do you know in these times that goes around weighing silver? Is this a modern metaphor? I don’t think so.
9. Does not parse. Sounds good, though…
10. This sounds like it’s setting up the teacher as infallible – shut up and listen. Also, while I hear Karma used frequently in Craft discussions, it is because it is a useful concept for us; however, this is the first time I have seen the Lords of Karma enthroned in Craft Law.
11. I could have taken the Golden Rule in one of its permutations, but this is much more akin to the concept of “Sin” than that of Karma.
12. “You must not be a teller of tales…”? What, we are to have no Bards in the Craft? If this law means that gossiping is not a good thing, why doesn’t it say so? And “must hold no malice” indicates that we are not allowed to be human again – true, it is better for the Craft that we all be as a loving family, but there are other ways to deal with the problems caused by personality conflicts than to outlaw legitimate feelings.
13. Flowers. Old Law. (Meaning that, other than difference in wording, this is the same as the “Old Laws”, i.e., Lady Sheba and others.)
14. Oh, boy! Priestess Knows Best (and will be happy to be responsible for you). If someone asks me a question, give them the straightest answer I can, and without phoning up my Priestess for permission to do so. I am a trained, adult Witch, and am capable both of making my own decisions and taking the consequences for making a wrong decision. The “You must not put stumbling blocks…” sounds like the old parental admonishment, “Don’t put beans in your ears.” The Christians have enough stumbling blocks of their own; I don’t think ours would even be noticed, and so are unnecessary.
15. The key words are in the Preface: readable, usable, and pertinent. “Fetters” and “woe” are not very meaningful words in this half of the 20th century. Not sure about the use of “souls”, either, since that seems to be mostly a Christian concern. Remember, Lady G. said that she reworded some of these laws “to make them clearer and more understandable”. I think she missed here.
16. Sounds like “Trust in God; He will provide.” Where is the Craft basis for this Law?
17. If you kill someone magically, accidentally or otherwise, you should be sacrificed to atone for it? My Goddess demands nothing in sacrifice. It would be far better to get into therapy and see how you could forgive yourself and help others to forgive you (I’m using “forgive” as a psychological, not religious, term). No problem with the first sentence.
18. Could be said more clearly.
19. The source for this, especially the final sentence, seems to be Jesus in Revelation. “Many say, Lord, Lord, but I know them not…” etc.
20. Sounds like, “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord, thy God in vain”. Either that is what this law is saying, or it needs to be clearer.
21. Old Law. I would have worded it, “In any disputes among the Wicca…”
22. Old Law.
23. To me, my magickal tools are channels between what is within me and what is outside of me (on the magickal planes, which frequently intersect with the planes of reality). Still, Do Not Haggle is Old Law.
24. Old Law, except for the semantical substitution of “Power” for “Art” and the use of the judgmental terms “evil” and “unworthy”.
25. “Thou shalt not steal”? Hinted-at consequences are unnecessary.
26. I don’t understand “Show honor” as a phrase, and the last phrase is not comprehensible to me.
27. “Those who are of the Wicca shall not own slaves,” – good idea, although I have never seen it included in Craft Law. The rest of this sentence is again unclear and/or unnecessary justification. “Nor shall you take as a pledge any person’s life,”; well, the Laws of Karma (if you accept them, which these Laws purport to) demand otherwise from time to time, and again, this has not been found necessary in any other set of Craft Laws I have seen.
28. This is the second time the Golden Rule has been quoted in a faulty permutation. “If a stranger sojourns with you…they shall be as one of the Circle…” What, we’re going to invite total strangers into our rites just because this Law says so? There are enough Laws that contradict this already. This doesn’t sound right.
29. This came straight out of Leviticus, and also exists in Baha’i law in a slightly clearer form. It’s nice that We’re getting ecumenical, but what is the need for this in Craft Law? The Threefold Law applies, and is easier to understand.
30. The Good Wiccan Housekeeping Seal is required for Circle?
31. Not a Wiccan Law. “Cleanliness is next to god/dessliness” would be a shorter way of phrasing this. Although the old customs (not laws) require bathing prior to a ritual, even that has been used to “find” Witches with in some areas (they’re clean and smell nice – they must be seducing our men for Satan!).
32. Not Law, but a start; I believe none should die without someone having cared for them; and that death with dignity is the hoped-for ideal. Many of you already know that I’m initiating action toward Pagan hospice, funeral, and cemetery care. The judgment about “their actions” is for the Dark Lord to make.
33. Threefold Law is all you need here. Anything else is moral judgment.
34. Amended version: “Let those who desire union as a couple (or other forms as might be desirable, such as a triad or a group relationship) be handfasted, sharing their love in a manner they and the Gods find pleasing.” Children are not necessary for shared love (and often separate the parents from their mutual desires), and there is no need to deny Handfasting to couples not wanting children. I also am not certain that this needs to be a Law.
35. “The Law of the Goddess is that none of the Wicca shall take and wed someone who they do not love.” Period.
36. Not Law. Also uses “brethren”, another male term. (Anyone who has read my revision of Gardnerian Craft Law should have noticed the near-total lack of gender terminology.)
37. The first sentence is incomprehensible, immaterial, or both. This law is very flowery, and I would love to know what Lady G. extracted it from.
38. Old Law: “Never boast, never threaten…” seems to be the root here – and is much clearer in that form.
39. The concept of magickal purity is one of ritual magick, not the Craft. This Law is, in letter and spirit, one of ritual magick. While some traditions of the Craft do get into ritual magick, that still does not make this “proper” as Craft Law.
40. Old Law was both clearer and less “new-agey”.
41. Where hath the Goddess said these things? Nowhere in my tradition, and they sound more like things She may have said in circle – certainly no need to canonize them.
42. Back to Leviticus. This is far too judgmental for any tradition I am familiar with. There also seems to be confusion between “work” as in make money and “work” as in learning and teaching the things of the Craft.
43. A sacred trust? This explains why Grove of the Unicorn built a sanctuary in Georgia, but I have never seen this expressed as a requirement. Most traditions are not getting over being hidden; this Law requires total openness. I think it’s dangerous to do this in most areas, and having the Goddess decree (here) that we should do something that could harm Her Witches (something She expressly forbids us to do in the Old Laws) doesn’t feel right. What is the source of this one? It appears to be the inner feelings of some Witch or Witches, which is not good enough to pass off as Craft Law.
44. While I have been taught this, it was under “What We Do” rather than “The Law”. The style of presentation sounds too much like what YHWH would have written as a law rather than the Goddess I know…
45. Am I reading this wrong, or is this saying “Honor the Sabbath and keep it holy”? We need to set aside a whole day(s)? I don’t think that’s realistic in these times, although it might have been in Paleolithic times.
46. Not necessary. Any teacher will give you this information.
47. Definitely flowers. Let each Witch keep a book (she even dropped the “in their own hand” part). What else is necessary?
48. Clumsy, with too many “they”s in spots; How about, “Study the signs of the Gods in all their forms; these shall guide your thoughts to the Gods and the Gods will take notice of you. Turn your thoughts and worship to the Gods, not the signs and statues of them.”
49. The original here says “If any in the Craft owns any land…guard all moneys of the Craft…” thus widening the circle of love beyond just the Circle you are a part of.
50. Old Law. I feel this could be done a bit more clearly.
51. Extremely Crowleyian in content, where the content can be determined. It sounds like it is favoring asceticism “for the good of the Craft…”. Unclear rules like this have led to excesses in other religions they have appeared in.
52. Not Craft Law. Paul would have loved to have this kind of law as stated by Christ, but it wasn’t true then and it isn’t true now. If we’re not supposed to take money for the art, how come we can be allowed to take gifts?????
53. Taken as an extension of #52, this law repulses me; however, having deleted #52, and deleting “offerings of…money”, it could be OK. But it is totally unnecessary unless you’re trying to set yourself up as the First Church of Wicca, N.A., complete with Christian abuses of power. In any loving circle, people will bring the incense, or the cakes and/or wine, or work together on building a new altar. This is already covered in the laws above, though.
54. Harmony will be restored by working toward harmony, not by donating to your favorite non-profit Temple. Again, the emphasis on giving makes me think of televangelists (“I need to make the payment on my Inspirational Cadillac”). I don’t know what problems Grove of the Unicorn has been having in keeping up their payments on the land or whatever, but their problems should not be used as a lever to change Craft Law (if indeed this is the object of these laws).
55. Once more, this law either comes out of ritual magic or televangelism (or both). Every Witch should know (or know how to look up) the proper times for a ritual, and should be able to offer it up themselves (“through the most proper medium” could mean “Pay the Priestess” or it could mean “use the right tools” – if it is not intended to mean the latter, then this law has no basis in the Craft).
56. Old Law, and one of the most important Craft Laws.
57. Separating this Law from the previous one causes a minor problem – it now becomes “Never break the Laws” (and there are some dillies in this set) instead of “Never break this Law”.
58. The “Mighty Ones” decided for us “in days of old” that we cannot use the Art against anyone? A shirking of responsibility is again evident. While the same precept occurs in my set of the Laws, it is obviously a decision made in the light of persecutions, not something decreed from on high.
59. Sentence fragments. (sic) This is a subject that is not in the Laws (but is in the Charge of the Goddess, without the God’s side of things).
60. Why do we need “the dimly remembered dawn of ages past” and Atlantis to make this point? This is the only version I’ve seen that goes beyond remembered history.
61. Should be combined with #60, and have more of the excessive verbiage dropped. Oh, no! Not another cry of “the evil of chaos” again! How can these people even talk to Discordians? Any set of Laws that is intended to be Craft-inclusive must not include value judgments, especially using the words “good”, “evil”, and “chaos”. This law seems to be wishing for the time when we were in power; every set of Laws I’ve seen prior to this one would settle for a time in which we are tolerated or accepted.
62. I don’t understand what this is trying to say – it seems to fluctuate between “No more secrets”, “Only a few secrets”, and “Don’t tell anybody anything”. Since all three of these have been expressed above, I’m not sure this law is needed; it hardly even adds to the confusion.
63. The change from “always heeding the Messenger” to “always heeding the messages” is a little dangerous, but otherwise, this is Old Law.
64. This law sounds pretty Gardnerian in tone, but it does not agree with Gardnerian myths – i.e., while Goddess created everything, she did not create Death itself. Life without Death offers no regeneration, as Life could not continue on its own; the God was outside of Her creation, and so He had things to teach Her about Death. (Those of you who prefer Starhawk’s version of this myth are totally ignored in this law.)
65. I thought an HPs was only concerned mainly with what happens in Her Circle – this Law seems to state that She is concerned with an unstated, but large-sounding, community. Other than that, this is Old Law.
66. I don’t think this needs to be in the Laws, but it’s a good idea for each Circle to consider.
67. This seems to be based upon the Old Laws’ “If any in the Craft has any land…”, but it does take that additional step into demi-deified clergy. I wish I knew whether Grove of the Unicorn was an authoritarian structure or not, but these Laws go a long way toward making its sound like one. (I’m not sure this group could “pass” Isaac Bonewits’ Cult Danger Evaluation Frame after having read this many of their Laws.)
68. Aha! Almost Old Law, and a “Burning Times” law! This is still a good Law, but it was formulated to keep anyone from knowing more than one group to “give away” if they cracked under pressure of Inquisition.
69. Old Law; probably should be included in #68.
70. Are we talking about pneumonia, herpes, or a cold here? You can do a lot better healing work in Circle (in my experience) than outside of it in many cases, and any Witch can decide for her/himself whether they are too sick to be in Circle and ask (or not ask) for healing. I suppose I find this law too judgmental, or too general.
71. Old Law.
72. There is no definition of Council given (the “Old Law” says “the Elders”), and the “Old Law” states that either the High Priest or the High Priestess can convene the Elders (useful if the HPs is out of town…) Otherwise, Old Law.
73. Generally, Old Law. Some of the restatements are difficult or unwieldy, but no real problems.
74. Old Law. (Actually, a bit of another Old Law is grafted in for clarification, but it doesn’t hurt anything.)
75. In conflict with English(/American) Law, “Ignorance is no excuse,” includes threefold law (which is not included in the Old Laws), and throws in the Lords of Karma again; rephrased, this could be an excellent law or rule, but I do not recognize a single source for this one. Some ritual magic, a little Hinduism, no Craft per se.
76. Nice thought; sounds like a personal addition.
77. As above, the “want of an offering” is not an issue in Old Law; the “lack of a robe” has never been discussed, since most groups I am familiar with generally work skyclad or negotiate the issue. Personal addition?
78. Nice thought; sounds like a personal addition.
79. So many flowers that (I feel) most would miss the point. I’m afraid I did, and I’m a musician.
80. Sounds like the Apostle Paul. The qualities I was taught to look for in a High Priestess were caring, leadership, patience, ability, and knowing when to ask for help. This cuts out faith (something Goddess says in Her Charge is not asked for) and belief (something she wouldn’t be in Circle without). More flames on the topic of children.
81. Source? Sounds clergy-like to me…
82. Old Law states that a requirement of being High Priestess is youth; while this is not easily practiced in all covens, going to the opposite extreme is probably not much better. My personal experiences have been in covens where everyone takes their hand at practicing HP and HPs, with the HPs acting more like organizer and running coven meetings.
83. Ouch. Based upon Old Law, this Law removes the aspect of Love as an excuse (or Glands, if you like the Wombat Wicca version) – and demands both judgment and atonement for a HPs who has left and come back – even uses the judgmental term, “deserts”, in dealing with the issue. The Old Law may have its drawbacks, but is a much better guide (I feel) than getting nasty about it. Oooh, they don’t even get to hold office again! Many things are sacred, and certainly being High Priestess is one of them, but in my teaching, Love is a higher ideal, and the Craft has always allowed for it.
84. Old Law, with flames as above. “It is the lives of all of the Craft they endanger.” Honor is still undefined in this context.
85. The use of the word, “Sabbatical” is cute in this context, but this should be a part of #83 rather than separating them out. Also, the phrase, “the Maiden should continue in that office” confuses the reader as to which office – the law has already stated that she should reap the reward; does election of another person invalidate the election? It should read, “…the Maiden shall be the Maiden for the new HPs.”
86. This is a new idea, and probably a good one: the Priestess and the Priest need not be the consort of the other, but are selected each by the coven or circle and are free to choose their own consorts. The one possible negative I can think of concerns the few times when Great Rite is held, and the feelings of their consorts on this matter. But then it lets the coven decide whether the choice was right nor not! If we’re dealing with private lives, let them remain private. Based on Old Law, except that in Old Law the Priestess is chosen and She selects the Priest. This law again contains too many value judgments – if you need a perfect person to run your circle, you will never meet.
87. Adapted from the Letters of Paul the Apostle, not the Old Laws. It is nice to state that we should be responsible for ourselves, but that is a part of being a Witch (oops, by these Laws, Witches are only children, so I suppose making “those of the Priesthood” adults is what this law is about). This also seems to state (per Christianity) that their mates, children, and house are all possessions; hardly a feminist or Craft perspective.
88. Reverse Christian. Extremely sexist, and no more or less bad than making the Man ruler of the world.

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Originally posted 2011-02-16 15:39:03. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Paganism is a term often associated with the Wiccan religion, but it actually encompasses far more religions and philosophies than that. Depending on who is using the term, Paganism can classify any religion outside of the Abrahamic monotheistic religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; or any religion outside of the major world religions like the Abrahamic religions, Hinduism, and Buddhism.

The source of the word pagan has Latin roots that refer to country dwellers or people who live off of the land as opposed to city dwellers. This adaptation of the Latin word for peasants and dwellers of rural areas probably came from the fact that ancient Roman cities accepted the Christianity well before the surrounding countryside did. This was probably caused by a combination of the fact that rural people have always been more conservative and therefore slower to embrace new religions than urbanites and the fact that early Christian missionaries tended to focus their efforts on population centers.

Another interesting interpretation of the word pagan is that it refers to people who are civilians. This application of the word pagan to followers of non Abrahamic religions might have come from the tendency of early Christians to consider themselves part of an army with the goal of promoting the following of Christ. By contrast, people who weren’t part of that army could very easily be considered civilians.

In the context of the spread of Christianity through the Roman empire, the Pagans that hadn’t adopted the new religion still largely subscribed to the older polytheistic Roman religion, which of course was an adaptation of Greek mythology with all of its multiple gods. Because of the fact that these early Pagans were polytheistic, polytheism in general came to be associated with Paganism. This association caused the followers of some brands of Christianity to label each other as being pagan. For example, Catholicism was sometimes called a pagan religion because of all of its saints. Protestants were sometimes labeled as pagans because of their belief in the Trinity. Of course, Islam and Judaism could make the same argument about Christianity because of the worship of Christ as well as God.

Because of the association between Paganism and polytheism, it’s also easy t see how many other religions could be classified as pagan as well. For example, Hinduism worships a variety of gods as do some branches of Buddhism (which grew out of Hinduism). The ancient Norse religion and many branches of Wicca also worship multiple gods and therefore fall under the umbrella of Paganism by this definition. Naturally, the various aboriginal religions of North America, South America, Africa, and Australia with their belief in various spirits all fall under the term paganism as well.

One thing that’s interesting to note is that the number of people in the industrialized world who are considered to be pagans has grown enormously in recent decades and Paganism is considered to be the fastest growing religion in Canada right now. However, as demonstrated in the above paragraphs, given the enormous number of religions that can be encompassed by the definition of Paganism, those statistics should be taken with some skepticism. After all, it’s easy to interpret the data to support the idea that Paganism is rampant if one were to define every religion but their own as being Pagan!

Vidonia Von Ulf has been a practitioner and teacher of Wicca [http://www.mystikrealm.com] for over 15 years. She is a professional artist and believes in using her magick [http://www.mystikrealm.com] in her art and her art in her magick. Vidonia teaches and practices cross-cultural healing techniques from Celtic, Native American, South American, and Greek shamanic traditions, among others.

Author: Vidonia Von Ulf
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Originally posted 2011-07-17 11:54:25. Republished by Blog Post Promoter