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Wednesday 29 September 2010
Mabon - The Autumn Equinox
Wednesday 15 September 2010
On Children by Kahlil Gibran
On Children
Kahlil GibranYour children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might
that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.
Monday 13 September 2010
The Hedgerow
'The bramble has much folklore attached to it: sick children used to be passed through an arch of bramble that had rooted at both ends in order to make them better; it was also believed that this could cure rheumatism. The Greeks and Romans used blackberries to cure gout, and infusions of the leaves are still used in folk medicine to relieve sore throats and tonsillitis. Current medical researchers are investigating the possibility that the leaves contain anti-diabetic properties.'
Sunday 1 August 2010
Lughnasadh
Wednesday 28 July 2010
The business of bees
Sunday 4 July 2010
Four winds and flight
Dear Goddess of the moon, I still have work to do. Grant me a safe journey through the stars to my English home.
Allow me the chance to work in my beautiful garden again and the time to stroke the black fur of my dear little cat, Patch who waits so patiently for me.
So mote it be
Star
Monday 21 June 2010
The Summer Solstice
The Maiden Goddess gives way to the Mother Goddess for the time of planting and tending is now at an end and it the time of nurture in readiness for the harvest. All things have their beginning and their end.
Are you like me in that just when you are used to a season, suddenly it is ended? I have been enjoying the spring, with all it's hope for the coming summer and now, all of a sudden it seems that summer is coming to an end. We have harvest to prepare for. We must look after the plants we have bought and grown. Already we are planning, saying 'those tomatoes are almost ripe' those beans are getting tall etc.
Tomorrow the day will be very slightly shorter and the night a little bit longer and so it will carry on until the end of the year. We must treasure the daylight. Years ago, before we had electric lights, the daylight must have been even more precious than it is now. We take so much for granted these days.
Let's not lose touch with the bounty that nature offers us in so many ways.
This is the perfect time for family and friends to get together and celebrate with parties and barbecues. It is the time for weddings. The courtship time is over and the more serious time is beginning.
I wish you all a very happy Summer Solstice.
Star
Tuesday 15 June 2010
Hawthorn
Many legends are attached to the hawthorn.
" The most famous Christian legend concerning hawthorn is that of the Glastonbury Thorn. This sixteenth century story tells us that as Christianity entered Britatin, the Celtic spirit was moved by the spirituality it expressed and that this was emphasized when Joseph of Arimathea came to Glastonbury. On Wearyall Hill he rested, leaning upon his staff, which during the night rooted into the ground and became a blossoming hawthorn tree. This was taken as a sign that the new religion of Christ was to be founded at Glastonbury and Joseph and his 12 disciples built the first Christian chapel there.
Joseph's staff became known as the Glastonbury Thorn, which ever after blossomed on Christmas Day in honour of the divine birth of Christ.
Hawthorn radiates qualities of growth and health. People have always approached it for healing, especially those trees that grow near wells and springs."
From 'Tree Wisdom' by Jacqueline Memory Paterson.
I like the hawthorn mostly because it reminds me of childhood. I remember looking for birds nests in it when I was barely tall enough to reach the branches. It is very good for keeping animals out and children in and when in the late 1970's I was living in the cathedral city of Ely in Cambridgeshire, we had a large back garden surrounded by the beloved hawthorn.
Because it usually flowers in May, it is a favourite for making the crowns that go atop Maypoles, these representing the female, where the pole itself represents the male in the rituals.
Does the hawthorn play a significant part in your life?
Sunday 6 June 2010
My Pentagram
The following comes from Wikipedia.
A pentagram (sometimes known as a pentalpha or pentangle or, more formally, as a star pentagon) is the shape of a five-pointed star drawn with five straight strokes. The word pentagram comes from the Greek word πεντάγραμμον (pentagrammon), a noun form of πεντάγραμμος (pentagrammos) or πεντέγραμμος (pentegrammos), a word meaning roughly "five-lined" or "five lines".
Pentagrams were used symbolically in ancient Greece and Babylonia, and are used today as a symbol of faith by many Wiccans, akin to the use of the cross by Christians and the Star of David by Jews. The pentagram has magical associations, and many people who practice Neopagan faiths wear jewelry incorporating the symbol. Christians once more commonly used the pentagram to represent the five wounds of Jesus,[1][2] and it also has associations within Freemasonry.[3]
The word "pentacle" is sometimes used synonymously with "pentagram", and this usage is borne out by the Oxford English Dictionary, although that work specifies that a circumscription makes the shape more particularly a pentacle.[4] Wiccans and Neo-pagans often make use of this more specific definition for a pentagram enclosed in a circle.[5]
I wear mine almost every day and it feels like a talisman, as if I won't be safe without it. Interesting, isn't it how we use these tools to aid our passage through life.
Thursday 27 May 2010
Collecting Spring Water
Tonight is a full moon, so I will be offering up the water to be cleansed by the moon in order to make it even more potent for spelling in the coming year.
The water I am collecting has come straight down from the Cumberland Mountains in Tennessee and just as I was wondering how to collect it from the water wheel directly, the lady at the mill decided to take her lunch break. She didn't want to leave the water wheel running while she was away so she diverted the water temporarily down the shoot you can see here, straight into the creek at the bottom. I believe I was very lucky to collect the water this way. It was a safe way of doing it and very timely.
The sound of water is very calming and relaxing, restoring our spirits and healing our troubled minds.
Wednesday 12 May 2010
The Willow Tree - Healing
Tomorrow we start the Celtic tree month of Hawthorn, but before I leave off thinking about the Willow Tree, I want to visit one more time. This time I am thinking about the healing qualities of willow. Did you know that aspirin is derived from the bark of the willow tree? and where would we be without that, I wonder?
Willow has always been used to protect against diseases caused by damp conditions. The bark and leaves contain salicylic acid. Gypsies have long known of the qualities of the willow tree bark, giving it as a bitter drink for the relief of ailments like rheumatism, influenza and headaches.
Culpeper advises us to 'slit the bark from the willow in flower and collect the water from the tree.' which is good for problems of sight, dimness and soreness of the eyes. It is also good for clearing spots from the skin.
The Bach Flower Remedies, see one of my previous posts, advise using it to clear severe discontent, both with yourself and with others. Irritability, fault-finding, self pity, unhappiness and resentment as well as jealousy and other such negative emotions are dealt with by willow.
I like the idea of going back to my roots, trying to put myself into the position where I have to think about what I would do if, sort of scenario...
So, thinking about the willow and its affiliation with water, it is just one more step to see why the moon is so important to the willow. The moon is responsible for controlling the tides and willow is a water tree. Now, suppose I was an ancient being and I depended on rain to water my crops, it would follow that I needed to ask the moon and the willow tree for help. I wouldn't be able to tune in to the weather channel and see what sort of weather was coming my way. I would have to devise a different method. If I looked in the sky and saw no clouds, I would be worried. So by honouring the tree and through it, the moon, I would use the energy in me to make contact with the element of water and ask for rain.
A good way to do this would be to cut a willow knot. Use the knot as a visual aid to your wish, or spell; honour the tree and the moon (Goddess) and if the intent is for good, not evil, then your wish will be fulfilled.
There is so much we can do with what we already have instead of rushing off to the shop each time we need something.
There is so much more to the willow, but tomorrow I will be turning my thoughts to the hawthorn. Will you travel with me as I go down the country lane and discover what this next tree has to offer?
Source: 'Tree Wisdom' by Jacqueline Memory Paterson
Tuesday 4 May 2010
Celtic month of Willow
Their silvery leaves rippled in the breeze, looking every bit like babbling water .
Witches have long been associated with the willow tree, probably because in the dark, their gnarled trunks look like old crones walking about.
Life is sacred, but what makes it sacred? It is the coming together of all the essential elements and the properties that they create. We cannot do without any of them. We need water, fire, air, earth and spirit to survive.
This month I am thinking about the willow tree and its connection with water. Water symbolizes our dreams, emotions and visions. A willow tree branch is an excellent tool for divining water. Since the willow tree is affiliated with the moon who controls the tides and since the willow loves to grow near water, it follows that it is a perfect choice. Interesting that we are receiving such a lot of water in Tennessee right now. Too much water is flowing our way and we won't need a willow branch to divine it for the moment. Since I got here we have had a lot of rain and a lot of sun.
You could also say that there is much emotion in the world today, much sadness as well as much joy.
Just as we can use the willow tree to find water, so we can also ask for its help with our emotions. The branches of the weeping willow bend downwards. It has the power to empathise with our tears. Likewise the wiccan tool for water is the chalice. This tool is also associated with the willow tree and is used to catch our tears.
During a 'Celtic sacred grove handfasting' (wedding), the officiant calls upon Arianrhod, the Lady of the Moon.
The willow is the sixth tree of the grove, the tree of enchantment and intuition.
The weeping willow is a native of China, having been introduced to Britain in the eighteenth century. The Chinese see the willow as a herb of immortality for it has the ability to grow from the smallest branch stuck into the earth.
Some beings are drawn to the willow tree. The Wryneck birds like to nest in it.
Dryad fairies like to live in it.
As I get older I have turned away from the Christian religion that I was brought up to believe in. I no longer want to go through a priest to reach God. I no longer want only to believe in a masculine deity. I want to spend more time and energy on Mother Earth. I question why I should believe in a religion which is steeped in the culture of the middle east when there is such an abundance of spirituality right here on my doorstep. I no longer want to worship a man hanging on a cross, I would rather hug a tree.
All these issues have been going round in my mind for some years now.
I am happy in my nature spirituality. There is so much to explore and so much to re-learn in life. My heart sings with the joy of all of it.
Star
References from 'Tree Wisdom' by Jennifer Memory Patterson
Sunday 25 April 2010
The Silver Walking Cane - Magpie Tales 11
This is a Magpie Tale. For more Magpie Tales, click here.
Tuesday 20 April 2010
Willow
The west quarter of the Wiccan pentacle represents water and is the place to find emotion. It is where the water filled roots of a weeping willow tree would seek succour. It is where I, an emotional being, am drawn. The Celtic tree month of Willow began on 15th April and I have been thinking about this dramatically powerful magical tree.
I love the idea of a tree for each month. It helps to focus my thoughts and this month I am happy to think about emotion. There is a lot of water in me.
This is an enchanting time of the year. It is a time to use scents to enhance our bodies and an exciting time for our minds because nature is waking up. Birds and other animals are becoming vivid in their livery in order to seek a mate. We, as humans, are doing the same, preparing for the big spring Sabbat of Beltane on May 1st.
When we think of the willow tree, we usually think of a weeping willow but there are many other kinds. The Druids favour the Goat Willow for its branches make a good wand. It has special spring qualities - silvery flowers on the female tree followed by golden pollen on the catkins. It is an important moon and sun tree.
So, what better time to sit beneath a willow tree with a willow basket in your hand and enjoy the warmer days. Who knows, if you look in the water beneath the tree, you may even see your future lover.
At Imbolc the triple Goddess was a maiden. Now she has become a seductress, ready to seduce the young God. He will consummate their union on May 1st.
Many ancient Goddesses are associated with the willow tree. Persephone, the Queen of the Underworld and the daughter of Zeus and Demeter, the Greek Goddess of the earth, had a sacred grove in Tartarus. It is said that the grove was remarkable for its black poplars and aged willows.
Beltane
'The ancient Sumerian goddess Belili was a goddess of trees and willows in particular. She also ruled over the moon, love and the Underworld. As a willow-goddess, she resided over springs and wells. Belili was dramatically superseded by her willow-god consort Bel, who became the supreme lord of the universe through a solar (patriarchal) revolt against Belili's lunar (matriarchal) order. In Europe the Celts honoured Bel as Belin the sun-god, and his worship as 'lord of life and death' slowly entered Britain during tribal migrations and eventually ousted the indigenous lunar worship. Belin's feast days were 30th April and 1st May. So these celebrations became known as Beltaine and during them great fires were lit in Belin's honour.'
from 'Tree Wisdom' by Jacqueline Memory Paterson.
Next you will see an excerpt from the Beltane fire festival held in Edinburgh, Scotland in 2009.
Some nudity in this video.
Friday 16 April 2010
A Timely Death
Death occurred at 10 o'clock. As the departed soul of Mr. Magander, lifted by angel wings, began its journey, his friends could only stand around and keep vigil. He died with his best suit one, suddenly and without a fuss as befit his stature in life.
His friends, memories over-flowing in their minds, regarded each other - a state of bewilderment having already set in. It would be hard to imagine life without this pillar of their society, but what made him really special was the timepiece.
The day he brought it home for them all to admire, was the day he won their respect. To be in possession of something so precious and to go to such lengths to purloin it, was a cause for celebration. Even on a full moon they could, if they wanted to, still see it: its gold colour a burnished glimmer in the moonlight. It was a treasure beyond price and forever his... From that day forward, they would look to him to lead them and he would have his choice of the females. It was only right.
"We must tell the gypsy," said the second in command. 'She'll know what to do."
"Where is she?" said another. "Has anyone seen her?"
They looked from one to another. Anxiety hung in the air as the clouds turned black in front of the sun.
"She washes her hair, down by the brook," said another of their number.
The gypsy saw them coming, upside down in her vision as her hair hung free and reached the water.
"What is it?' she asked as they flocked around her.
"We have a funeral to attend," they told her, their voices loud and in unison.
"Oh, I see. Must I attend?"
"You must come. Please say you will; and scatter flowers round. It's all we ask."
"I shall attend."
Mr. Magander's friends collected suitable matter for the funeral circle and the gypsy attended as she had promised.
Each friend laid a special wreath near the still body - a blade of grass, so gently laid and another and another.
The gypsy placed the time piece at his head and the chain reached to his feet: a circle of gold.
For a few precious moments, the friends stood still and said 'farewell", each in his own way and then departed. A flurry of darkened wings as they took flight...
When they had all gone, the sky seemed black, covered as it was by a cloak of magpie wings.
The gypsy, looking this way and that, stooped down and picked up the timepiece, putting it gently in her pocket.
Star
NB Magpies are said to hold funerals for fallen friends and even bring along wreaths.
For other Magpie Tales, click here to access Willow's website.
Saturday 10 April 2010
Monday 29 March 2010
Ostara
~Magickal Graphics~