and spaces, well actually Train Stations.
its something i have been looking into of late.. the liminal places of a city.. of which there are quite a few, not alwasy on the outskirts of the city. sometimes, actually many times these 'liminal' places can be found in the middle of the city, or in one area of the city where 'liminal' type people hang out. Liminal, according to one definition i found is a "state of being on the "threshold" of or between two different existential planes" liminal is also a space that is outside mainstream community, set in contrast to mainstream community, it is Victor Turner calls liminal communitas, which has always fascinated me i guess as i am a pagan and have studied modern paganism i can understand that this "community" while constructed somewhat differently from a physical community, is also a community that is Liminal Communitias, it is in opposition to that of mainstream. but that is a different topic for a different day.. *grins* so City Liminal Places..
Lets look at Train Stations, i can remember recently posting on a list about train stations and its liminal status, like that of a hedge, where instead of crossing the hedge you are crossing the Trax, or perhaps travelling in-between stations. I may of not been very eloquent about the concept that i was trying to get across, which was one of Urban Witchery, verses Hedge Witchery, as you see i live in a city, the capital of New Zealand and while Wellington has a fantastic green policy and there are huge green belts all over the city, it is still a city. I was also drawn to hedg witchery, but not at the same time, something was missing, something was not quite fitting, and what was missing was the city aspect. You see in my head there is a disconnect with Hedge Witchery and cities, mostly because there are not many hedges in the city itself, and i associated Hedge Witchery with meandering country pathways that are lined by hedges not concrete and tall buildings. then yesterday i checked my google reader and New World Witchery had a post about City Spirits and low there was a picture of a train station as well as mentions of train stations a liminal places, so i started to post a reply but it turned itself into a blogg post.
so to Train Stations: in some cities train stations can be found in the middle of the city, and sometimes they are found on the outskirts, it depends i am guessing, on whether how much the trains are used as a medium on transport for the inhabitants of the city. which will also i figure, change the energy of said train station. also public train stations that have commuter trains as opposed to freight train yards, will, while generally close to one another will also have somewhat different energy.
Wellington Train station is however quite a liminal place. i know that here in Wellington the trains are one of the more important modes of transport in and out of the city, they are also have a strong connection with the sea and ships that bring stuff to our port not just from other countries but also from the south island. So in many ways major railway stations that contain junctions can be similar to that of ley lines in that sense of connecting the station with everywhere else in the world. Like Cory said from New Word Witchery, similar to hoodoo in that crossroads sense, if that crossroads are the initial connect to the universe and world.. *ponders this*
Like the people who use the trains travel to and fro, from work, the energy at the train station itself ebbs and flows, like the tide on the seashore or rivers close to the ocean. The energy is different during the week than it is during the weekend. During the week there are distinct steams of traffic that head out towards the city to the various places where people work. If you panted the bottom of the peoples feet, i know in Wellington the resulting image would look like a delta that is sometimes found at the beginning of rivers, crossing and weaving flowing into and out of the city, similar to the tidal flows. The energy flow during the week is different from that of the weekend. there is more traffic and a determination about which is spiced with despair and tiredness nearer the end of the week as people come to realise the drudgery of not liking the job that they are in, which worsens over winter as they trudge to work and from work in the dark. The money is good but the work, not so much, the energy flows and ebbs following the seasons and the peoples work lives.
During the weekend, the energy has lost that intense focus of determined going to work, stress and general tiredness, and has become more about enjoyment, going into town to have breakfast or brunch with friends, meeting up with others, shopping relaxing and just enjoying the city itself. There is still that determined work type energy as people do work in the weekend. But as a general rule the work is different, less office orientated and more people orientated.. thus a slight difference in undertones to that energy. In the evening the energy changes again as a slugish beligeriance of achole takes over, drunken stumbling to get home on the midnight trains, secutiy guards everywhere. disafected teens hanging out, as the night falls the energy shifts to a feeling of mistrust and danger tinged with the sadness and a slugshniess with a dirty air.
I suspect that you can use that energy, as well as the phycisal trains themselves to release things into the universe, to encourage good will and good energy to return, and also to send energy and or something to someone or to break/send away energy.. you could use different days and times of day depending on what type of energy you are needing to do your working or spell, have you ever spend the night of the full moon hanging around the train station?
i have in my head this image of a fetish spell, found objects, a leather glove, to represent a strangers helping hand, (a stranger being a city deity, the energy of strangers helping strangers) a found key to help unlock esoteric secrets of the city, maybe to unlock a locked situation or energy and a newspaper to represent local and national knowledge, or to connect you with a different city, or your spell with a different city or to even connect you with you local city divine, These objects are gathered together and tied wrapped however you see fit, energies given intent, and then left on an outbound train, be it to one of the blurbs, or to another city. It is not difficult to get onto a train going to another city as a general rule, leaving the fetish where someone will fine it or where someone won't, again depending on what the purpose of said fetish is. then getting of the train and leaving the fetish to do its work, the energy to take the form of the intent that you have given it and be boosted by the energy of the train station itself.
I see leaving things inside a train as a working to gain something or positive, and if you leave something on the tracks, to banish or break away from./
So many possibility's.. liminal spaces in a city..hmmm..
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Sunwise
In the northern hemisphere to go sunwise is to walk in a clockwise direction, whereas in the southern hemisphere it is anticlockwise, that is the sunwise direction. Its not hard to figure this out as the sun is quite prominently in the north, and when it rises in the east as it does everywhere in the world, it heads north to where the equator is. Well it does do for us southerners. Now why am I posting about this, well you see being that I live in the southern hemisphere, and being that I am a Witch, I cast my circle and sacred space in a sunwise direction, and I use the word sunwise, however many of the books I read are written in the northern hemisphere, thus, their circle casting is in the other direction, which more often than not is referred to as clockwise. which makes me grind my teeth a little cause sunwise is not clockwise everywhere in the world…. And given that clocks were invented in the northern hemisphear, it is not a supprise that they turn in a sunwise direction for where they were invented. But then the adventures came south, passed the equator and low and behold the sun went in a different direction…. But that is a whole nother story. Well actually its not.. here in the southern hemisphear pagans of what every variety cast their circles starting in the east and then go north, then west then south and then finishing at east completing the circle. I did spend quite a bit of time contemplating this, and trying to figure out if this was an arbitrary thing or if it really had any merit this sunwise thing.
Then I got to wondering why it is that we cast in a sunwise direction, and uncast or banish in a widdershins direction.. why is that? How does that work.. and an answer arrived, which happens when you think about things. *grins* You see the sun rises in the east, no matter where you are in the world the sun will always rise in the somewhere in the east. However depening on where you live in the world can change which way is sunwise, left or right of east. The sun is also what powers our planet and in many ways it is representative of the element of fire, being a large fiery ball in the sky. First thing in the morning just as the sun peeks over the horizon, it does not have much heat energy, but as it rises, and heads towards its zenith, which is north for us southerners, and south for you northerners, (say that ten times fast) its power grows, its heat grows as to the light grows, bringing with it clarity, shedding its light if you will, as well as heat and a fast moving energy that is associated with things when they heat up. Once it has reached it zenith, things start to slow down, perhaps they start to temper, like tempering after the blacksmith has finished shaping his metal, once the sun dips behind the horizon in the east, the light fades away, and night is upon us reaching its zenith at midnight, south for us southerners and north for the northerners, (now that is easer to say ten times fast) with the darkest hours just before dawn, and the rising once again of the sun in the east.
So when casting you are repeating the same kind of cycle, with the exception that insead of lessening energy you are continuing to build energy as you call the various elements from the cardinal directions, following the building path of the sun and increasing the energy as you by pass each of the stations, dawn, midday, dusk, midnight, and back to dawn, so that the energy is contained, the energy is balanced, and ready for you to give it its intention and send it out to the world in that ‘change the world’ like way.
Gosh, that made sense to me, and what’s more I could picture it happening, almost feeling the energy of the elements combine with that of the sun and universe to create a circle as I moved in a sunwise direction.. excellent. ! did it make sense to you? *ponders this*
Just one more thing tho, you budding authors out there and you veteran ones, we don’t have many books that are written from down here, thus we do spend quite a bit of time reading ones written in the northern hemisphere, so if you would be ever so helpful and remember that down here south of the equator, our sun goes from east to north, not clockwise, and our season are about six months different from yours.. so when you are celebrating Beltane however you want to spell it, we are celebrating Samhane, however that is spelt. And for you others playing along at home.. the above is also a reminder that you must practice your magic in the land you live in and with the direction that your sun goes in as well as the season that your land has for the land you live, that is where much of you magic comes from.. mmk…
*skips about*
Then I got to wondering why it is that we cast in a sunwise direction, and uncast or banish in a widdershins direction.. why is that? How does that work.. and an answer arrived, which happens when you think about things. *grins* You see the sun rises in the east, no matter where you are in the world the sun will always rise in the somewhere in the east. However depening on where you live in the world can change which way is sunwise, left or right of east. The sun is also what powers our planet and in many ways it is representative of the element of fire, being a large fiery ball in the sky. First thing in the morning just as the sun peeks over the horizon, it does not have much heat energy, but as it rises, and heads towards its zenith, which is north for us southerners, and south for you northerners, (say that ten times fast) its power grows, its heat grows as to the light grows, bringing with it clarity, shedding its light if you will, as well as heat and a fast moving energy that is associated with things when they heat up. Once it has reached it zenith, things start to slow down, perhaps they start to temper, like tempering after the blacksmith has finished shaping his metal, once the sun dips behind the horizon in the east, the light fades away, and night is upon us reaching its zenith at midnight, south for us southerners and north for the northerners, (now that is easer to say ten times fast) with the darkest hours just before dawn, and the rising once again of the sun in the east.
So when casting you are repeating the same kind of cycle, with the exception that insead of lessening energy you are continuing to build energy as you call the various elements from the cardinal directions, following the building path of the sun and increasing the energy as you by pass each of the stations, dawn, midday, dusk, midnight, and back to dawn, so that the energy is contained, the energy is balanced, and ready for you to give it its intention and send it out to the world in that ‘change the world’ like way.
Gosh, that made sense to me, and what’s more I could picture it happening, almost feeling the energy of the elements combine with that of the sun and universe to create a circle as I moved in a sunwise direction.. excellent. ! did it make sense to you? *ponders this*
Just one more thing tho, you budding authors out there and you veteran ones, we don’t have many books that are written from down here, thus we do spend quite a bit of time reading ones written in the northern hemisphere, so if you would be ever so helpful and remember that down here south of the equator, our sun goes from east to north, not clockwise, and our season are about six months different from yours.. so when you are celebrating Beltane however you want to spell it, we are celebrating Samhane, however that is spelt. And for you others playing along at home.. the above is also a reminder that you must practice your magic in the land you live in and with the direction that your sun goes in as well as the season that your land has for the land you live, that is where much of you magic comes from.. mmk…
*skips about*
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Witch, Priestess, Teacher, Bard, Ovate, Druid,
I have been having some interesting conversations of late with various Witches and pagans in wellington, some from here and some from not here. One that struck me as being quite interesting was one about what the various levels of witchcraft, although levels is not quite the right word, and the different aspects of Druidry, namely OBOD Duridry, and not surprisingly these aspects and levels come in threes. Perhaps within witchcraft and Wicca there should be more emphasis on aspects as opposed to levels as to me that just smacks of elitism with judgemental pants and hierarchy, where as aspects is more about following where your own heart and skills take you. Anywhoo i have not heard the various levels and aspects explained this way, and it struck a chord, thus i thought i would share some of my ponderings, which start like this.. if i was ever to create a ‘tradition’ what would this aspect of it look like?
I think for me there would be three aspects, as well in a way three levels, but without the overt of nasty hierarchy of your doing it wrong.. gosh that sounds difficult.. lets see.. to start at the beginning..
The first level would be Witch, when a person first starts out, when they are finding their feet and learning about magic, witchcraft, and the basics, so to speak. The grounding framework of this type of path. This would not necessarily take a year and a day, for some it might be longer and for others it might take less. I believe this obsession with things taking a year and a day is for some quite unrealistic. Sure its fine if you like formulaic styles, “and by the word of the god and goddess this first phase will take a year and a day as they have decreed.. blar blar blar”. Not really me, i am much more of a person who is comfortable to go with what feels right, and for me, this initial stage of being a witch was well over a year. Before i learnt anything or perhaps it is more accurate to say that before i stepped? Found? Was pushed *cough* onto this path, i was a seeker. I knew that there was something out there calling, but could not find it, however i was defiantly looking. From the ages of about 16ish to the age of around 24 i was seeking, i went to the theosophical society, various talks on various spiritualities, talked long hours with a naturopath, and homeopathy, and various other ‘alternative’ healers and thinkers. It was not until i was 24 and a friend gave me a deck of cards that my feet start to find this path of the Witch. My years as a beginner where fruitful and full of the wonder of discovery, reading, experimenting, talking, formulating ideas and then reformulating them as i learnt more and then having that all change as i experienced things that are difficult to put into words.
The second step if you will, is a more conscious one and for me, although i did not think of it as such until recently, is that of the priestess or priest if you are a boy. As i said this step is a more conscious one, as opposed to the sometimes foundering around that i did in the first step, i did not and have not lost the Witch aspect, as it is very defiantly who i am and how i live my life, but i am also priestess, and this came about during an odd spontaneous dedication ritual, where i made myself known to the divine, and that i was open to the divine will, but at the time i perhaps didn’t see it in those exact words, but then on one level i am currently wondering if i did.. *ponders this*. Anyway, i can remember the dedication, me standing in front of my altar, with my naked self, just me and the divine, stating firmly that i was purposely stepping on to this path, i was making a very conscious choice to continue on this path that felt so much like home.
The third step? Aspect? Is that of teacher, or what i am calling teacher because this is how my path has formed. Just over a year ago i did a self witnessed dedication, some might call it an initiation, but as i do not belong to any tradition as such, i have come to see it has a dedication, where i once again dedicated myself to the divine, and my community as Witch and Priestess, this was a couple of months before is started to ‘offically’ teach others in small classes, to impart knowledge and what i knew and also encourage others to figure out what and where their path lies. I have come to realise that it dosn’t matter what style, tradition, formal or informal path you chose to walk on, if it is not speaking to you, if it doesn’t raise your spirit, move you, then it is not for you, and i am happy to help those who are looking to find what path that they are crying out for, no matter if that is pagan of whatever flavour, Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, whatever.. just so long as it speaks.
Now the thing about these levels is that they are also aspects to, because i have not forgotten or forgone what came first, i am still a Witch, a Priestess, and now a Teacher, and while i have and am experiencing all three, i also can see that each is important in its own right, none is more or better than the other, they are aspects as opposed to levels. Which neatly brings me to the second three aspects of my imaginary tradition. These three are much stronger aspects and not so much level as they are quite important in their own right. Now Ali from Meadowsweet and Myrrh sums up these three aspects quite beautifully, so instead of me bumbling along you should go along there and read what she says. *nods*..
Druidry i have been told recently is not so much about the levels in a hierarchal sense but more in teh sense of giving a space and framework for people to try out all manor of things that they may or may not have any talent in or draw to. And that this is so that they may find that aspect, that talent and that calling which is home and become a mastercrafts person, so to speak.
Right back now, ok so when you mix both of the threes together, i find that this path becomes less about who is grand poohbar and who has reached the highest level, nor is it about the race to the top to see who can get there the fastest because to do or believe any of the afore mentioned i believe means that the message of this path has been lost. However for me the mixing of these three aspects, these three learning stages, these levels if you will is more about understanding and learning where your or in my case my talents lie. For me it was about teaching and ministry but not in the sense of healing, or counselling but more in the way of helping light up someone else’s way, or as i was to learn helping them light up their own way, these things are and have been much more important to me than being at the top or having teh official initiations of “insert tradition here” tradition. But having said that, if that is your path, and is what speaks to you, being and or finding a tradition to belong to or to initiate into, then i am more than happy to help you find that, more than happy to help you understand what that means to you, because that is my path as Witch, Priestess, and Teacher.
Of course i wonder if there is further steps, and if i really did have a tradition how that would work in with other things that i believe traditions have or need.. hmm.. *ponders*..
What would you tradition look like if you equated your journey so far to one?
*contemplates navel*
I think for me there would be three aspects, as well in a way three levels, but without the overt of nasty hierarchy of your doing it wrong.. gosh that sounds difficult.. lets see.. to start at the beginning..
The first level would be Witch, when a person first starts out, when they are finding their feet and learning about magic, witchcraft, and the basics, so to speak. The grounding framework of this type of path. This would not necessarily take a year and a day, for some it might be longer and for others it might take less. I believe this obsession with things taking a year and a day is for some quite unrealistic. Sure its fine if you like formulaic styles, “and by the word of the god and goddess this first phase will take a year and a day as they have decreed.. blar blar blar”. Not really me, i am much more of a person who is comfortable to go with what feels right, and for me, this initial stage of being a witch was well over a year. Before i learnt anything or perhaps it is more accurate to say that before i stepped? Found? Was pushed *cough* onto this path, i was a seeker. I knew that there was something out there calling, but could not find it, however i was defiantly looking. From the ages of about 16ish to the age of around 24 i was seeking, i went to the theosophical society, various talks on various spiritualities, talked long hours with a naturopath, and homeopathy, and various other ‘alternative’ healers and thinkers. It was not until i was 24 and a friend gave me a deck of cards that my feet start to find this path of the Witch. My years as a beginner where fruitful and full of the wonder of discovery, reading, experimenting, talking, formulating ideas and then reformulating them as i learnt more and then having that all change as i experienced things that are difficult to put into words.
The second step if you will, is a more conscious one and for me, although i did not think of it as such until recently, is that of the priestess or priest if you are a boy. As i said this step is a more conscious one, as opposed to the sometimes foundering around that i did in the first step, i did not and have not lost the Witch aspect, as it is very defiantly who i am and how i live my life, but i am also priestess, and this came about during an odd spontaneous dedication ritual, where i made myself known to the divine, and that i was open to the divine will, but at the time i perhaps didn’t see it in those exact words, but then on one level i am currently wondering if i did.. *ponders this*. Anyway, i can remember the dedication, me standing in front of my altar, with my naked self, just me and the divine, stating firmly that i was purposely stepping on to this path, i was making a very conscious choice to continue on this path that felt so much like home.
The third step? Aspect? Is that of teacher, or what i am calling teacher because this is how my path has formed. Just over a year ago i did a self witnessed dedication, some might call it an initiation, but as i do not belong to any tradition as such, i have come to see it has a dedication, where i once again dedicated myself to the divine, and my community as Witch and Priestess, this was a couple of months before is started to ‘offically’ teach others in small classes, to impart knowledge and what i knew and also encourage others to figure out what and where their path lies. I have come to realise that it dosn’t matter what style, tradition, formal or informal path you chose to walk on, if it is not speaking to you, if it doesn’t raise your spirit, move you, then it is not for you, and i am happy to help those who are looking to find what path that they are crying out for, no matter if that is pagan of whatever flavour, Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, whatever.. just so long as it speaks.
Now the thing about these levels is that they are also aspects to, because i have not forgotten or forgone what came first, i am still a Witch, a Priestess, and now a Teacher, and while i have and am experiencing all three, i also can see that each is important in its own right, none is more or better than the other, they are aspects as opposed to levels. Which neatly brings me to the second three aspects of my imaginary tradition. These three are much stronger aspects and not so much level as they are quite important in their own right. Now Ali from Meadowsweet and Myrrh sums up these three aspects quite beautifully, so instead of me bumbling along you should go along there and read what she says. *nods*..
Druidry i have been told recently is not so much about the levels in a hierarchal sense but more in teh sense of giving a space and framework for people to try out all manor of things that they may or may not have any talent in or draw to. And that this is so that they may find that aspect, that talent and that calling which is home and become a mastercrafts person, so to speak.
Right back now, ok so when you mix both of the threes together, i find that this path becomes less about who is grand poohbar and who has reached the highest level, nor is it about the race to the top to see who can get there the fastest because to do or believe any of the afore mentioned i believe means that the message of this path has been lost. However for me the mixing of these three aspects, these three learning stages, these levels if you will is more about understanding and learning where your or in my case my talents lie. For me it was about teaching and ministry but not in the sense of healing, or counselling but more in the way of helping light up someone else’s way, or as i was to learn helping them light up their own way, these things are and have been much more important to me than being at the top or having teh official initiations of “insert tradition here” tradition. But having said that, if that is your path, and is what speaks to you, being and or finding a tradition to belong to or to initiate into, then i am more than happy to help you find that, more than happy to help you understand what that means to you, because that is my path as Witch, Priestess, and Teacher.
Of course i wonder if there is further steps, and if i really did have a tradition how that would work in with other things that i believe traditions have or need.. hmm.. *ponders*..
What would you tradition look like if you equated your journey so far to one?
*contemplates navel*
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
are you pagan enough? you are pagan enough
I have been reading around the internet on various message boards and other places of pagan focus, of late and what i keep coming across is the attitude of ‘your doing it wrong’ or you shouldn’t be doing this, or you can’t do it that way, or you can only do it this way and you know what, this bugs me a lot. It makes me roll my eyes and wonder why and how some people can be so closed minded that they are unable to put themselves in others shoes, or unable to conceive that the actually may be a different way of doing it, and that that different way while not working for them may well work for another. The other reason this makes me roll my eyes and bash my head against the wall is the fact that with in Modern Paganism there is no central authority or liturgy or governance or papal authority to tell us how it is, it doesn’t exist.. zip narda nothing, thus those that are stating that you should or shouldn’t are actually going about it all wrong or in the word of so many other pagans out there.. ‘YOU ARE DOING IT WRONG’
Of course with no central authority, liturgy, governance or papal authority there is no doing it wrong, instead there is doing what feels right. Now if you join up with a group, grove or coven of a particular tradition there will be rules and indeed a central type authority even a coven book of shadows which will need to be adhered to, of course you will have permitted to adhere to these rules and authority by the initial step of joining said group, grove, or coven. However if you are a solitary or no longer wish to belong to or take part in that group, grove or coven, the rules etc of that group, grove or coven no longer apply. Paganism in its many forms is after all a religion of assent. That is you assent to be a part of that religion or spirituality or group and for as long as you associated with that religion, spirituality or group you identify yourself that way. I.e. I am a ‘insert tradition here’ wiccan, because i am a member of this ‘insert tradition here’ wiccan group. Whereas if you stop associating with that group or grove or coven, you are no longer that you no longer identify with whatever religion or spirituality it was. Ie, i used to be a Wiccan of ‘insert tradition here’ but i left and now i am a Buddhist. In the example the person is no longer assenting to be Wiccan of whatever tradition but instead assenting to be Buddhist. Ostensibly with communities of assent a person chooses to belong or not to belong.
So back to the should and should nots, one of the other ways of defining what something actually means, cause you know the hugest flameings happen around terminologies and authority, *this is me once again rolling eyes* is majority consensus, that is that most of the people agree with this statement or this interpretation of x.. For example.. Wiccan Witch Wicca Witchcraft. As far as i can tell there is a group of people out there getting their panties in a bunch over these terms and how they are to be used and not be used, and there are a bunch of people out there who use these terms interchangeably and there are some people in-between.. a sliding scale if you will.
Language like many things in this world is quite fluid, and living, English is a living language thus prone to change, and change of meaning, for example, arse, now about 8 years ago, when hanging out with a group of friends, when the comment arse! was said, it meant that an error had accoutred.. someone had forgotten to bring their wallet, or someone had dropped their phone, it was said when misfortune occurred, however when a new friend was introduced into the group she had a new meaning for the word. How she used it was that whenever anyone said arse, it meant that they had spotted a tight perky look worthy specimen of arse and that we should all look at it. Quite a different meaning from the original one of misfortune. As you may be able to guess the transition of arse from one of denoting misfortune to one of site to behold, was a very quick one, and one that expanded out beyond the core group of friends to that of associates and acquaintances and occasionally hangers on. It is also interesting to note that this new usage, while continued for a couple of years did eventually fall into disuse, actually the word arse itself also pretty much fell into disuse.. arr younglings so fickle.
Right then back to Wiccan Witch Wicca Witchcraft. When a person is first starting out or discovering this path of magic and paganism, they are bombarded with a variety of words, which at first glance denote the same thing.. namely wicca and witchcraft, but sometimes pagan and paganism, druid, etc etc, these seem at first glance to be the same, especially wicca and witchcraft, in fact some of the literature and books is quite misleading, i mean to say that guy Gardner who wrote the first book used both and it seemed that he was using them to denote the same thing, and now there are a whole bunch of these other books using the word wicca and witchcraft, and when i surf onto the internet and go onto pagan message boards, or text achieves, often the wiccan and witchcraft stuff is on the same page. (Go use the Google oracle and find out) And given that my friends do not react with such disbelief when i say wiccan, as to when i say witch so i am going to be using the word wicca Are you getting a picture here.. you should be.. in fact i bet many of you older pagans out there have memories of similar instances, where they used the word interchangeably partly because you didn’t know any better and partly because you were still figuring it out, and partly because it was the most common word in use of the day...
See now i believe that the main reason that i always referred to myself as a witch, was because way back when i first started out, i very quickly became unimpressed with those that referred to themselves as wiccan, and many of the books that were available in New Zealand were lacking something and because i felt this magical path as being something much more serious than those oddly dressed, bawdy uninformed non thinking wiccans over there i would be a Witch thank you very much, and that would be Witch with a capital.. recently i have attached priestess to that title but that is a whole nother story
But after a while i did settle on the title of witch and have never really changed it.. eventually i came to the understanding that wiccans were part of a tradition of some sort, and witch’s where solitary , along the way i can remember understanding it wiccan as a religion and witchcraft as a practice, also that Wicca was the religion that all Witches practiced..a lower case w referred to historical witches, and a Capital W referred to Modern.. and several variation on those ideas, understandings and terms.. all very complicated, and it did take some years to understand, to feel the difference and to be comfortable in how i labelled myself.
Now there really is the curx of it all, labelling yourself because not only is Modern Paganism a religion and spirituality of assent, it is also one of self labelling. And given that there is no central authority, liturgy, governance or papal throne, you can pretty much label yourself anything you want moonbeam starflower. *cough* As an aside to this the understanding of the labels have also changed over the last 60 years or so. This was pointed out to me by a good friend Grail For at first you called yourself a witch and then went and joined a coven, and studied hard, (i guess you could add here became wiccan) now days you did not call yourself a witch or wiccan until you have joined your coven or studied for at least several years.. it is reversed, people scoff at others who have deemed themselves wiccan or witches but are only just starting out and i wonder if its cause is because of the turn away from groups and the emphasis on the individual.. but alas that is also whole nother story.
Back to this self labelling.. often the label that you start of with changes and grown as your understanding of your magical path also grows, deepens, and changes. Some may start of as referring themselves as wiccan, and then a few years down the track they opt for pagan, as they are no longer practicing as much or no longer feel the calling they once did. Others change and add titles and labels priest, priestess, high priestess,
Gardnerian, Alexandrian, Traditional Wiccan, hedgewitch, urbanwitch, traditionalisy, cabalists.. gosh they are quite endless as well as the many woven paths that are available to a magic worker or spiritual explorer.. or plan old pagan. Some even come to the conclusion that it is not the label that is important but how one lives one s life. Although a label can help in finding information, books and heading in the direction that you are called to head in.
In practical terms, and what this post is all about, when a newby arrived on your blog or message board, and uses the word wiccan, and you have decided that to you a wiccan is a tradition and that you must be initiated etc etc or however you use the word.. do not jump down their throat about it, can come across with the almightily authority on high, cause it is your way and only your way is correct, because as mentioned before “YOUR DOING IT WRONG” and you end up doing a couple of things, 1. Looking like a completely close-minded egotistical bigoted idiotic prat.. CEBIT.. and 2. You will end up not just sending the original enquirer fleeing for the hills, but a bunch of other people like me who have been around for a while, know what they know and are happy for the most part to share that, and also know that what they know might not be knowing for others. And frankly having someone else shove their interpretation of what every word down your throat is really off putting. There are better ways of dealing with this.
So ask yourself, is the original enquirer asking a honest question, but have used terminology that you do not agree with? So perhaps they have come up said the dredded i’m a solitary wiccan, and i wanted to know if i can include roman pantheon in my daily devotions? Quite often these questions are short and lacking on context but still there is no reason to flay them alive, instead it would be more useful to engage them in further discussion with the added bonus of non judgemental information about the roman pantheon, not to tromp over this persons beliefs with your big cauldron of goo.. the phrase, ‘how i see it’ or in my opinion, or variations on that would be much more likely to be read, by your original poster, and others who also come along and who knows it might even spark an interesting tread about the original topic that has now morphed into a deeper discussion or into a completely different discussion.
So remember folks There is no central authority, liturgy, governance, or papal authority within Modern Paganism, this means that everyone has the right to believe whatever it is that they believe even if we do not believe it. And starting out a conversation with “YOUR DOING IT WRONG” or shouldn’t and should, will get you nowhere and just make you look stupid.
And finally, if it speaks to you, if what you are doing, what you believe and what you practice speaks to you in the centre of your heart, and makes it sing, you are so doing it right, no matter what anyone else says.
Of course with no central authority, liturgy, governance or papal authority there is no doing it wrong, instead there is doing what feels right. Now if you join up with a group, grove or coven of a particular tradition there will be rules and indeed a central type authority even a coven book of shadows which will need to be adhered to, of course you will have permitted to adhere to these rules and authority by the initial step of joining said group, grove, or coven. However if you are a solitary or no longer wish to belong to or take part in that group, grove or coven, the rules etc of that group, grove or coven no longer apply. Paganism in its many forms is after all a religion of assent. That is you assent to be a part of that religion or spirituality or group and for as long as you associated with that religion, spirituality or group you identify yourself that way. I.e. I am a ‘insert tradition here’ wiccan, because i am a member of this ‘insert tradition here’ wiccan group. Whereas if you stop associating with that group or grove or coven, you are no longer that you no longer identify with whatever religion or spirituality it was. Ie, i used to be a Wiccan of ‘insert tradition here’ but i left and now i am a Buddhist. In the example the person is no longer assenting to be Wiccan of whatever tradition but instead assenting to be Buddhist. Ostensibly with communities of assent a person chooses to belong or not to belong.
So back to the should and should nots, one of the other ways of defining what something actually means, cause you know the hugest flameings happen around terminologies and authority, *this is me once again rolling eyes* is majority consensus, that is that most of the people agree with this statement or this interpretation of x.. For example.. Wiccan Witch Wicca Witchcraft. As far as i can tell there is a group of people out there getting their panties in a bunch over these terms and how they are to be used and not be used, and there are a bunch of people out there who use these terms interchangeably and there are some people in-between.. a sliding scale if you will.
Language like many things in this world is quite fluid, and living, English is a living language thus prone to change, and change of meaning, for example, arse, now about 8 years ago, when hanging out with a group of friends, when the comment arse! was said, it meant that an error had accoutred.. someone had forgotten to bring their wallet, or someone had dropped their phone, it was said when misfortune occurred, however when a new friend was introduced into the group she had a new meaning for the word. How she used it was that whenever anyone said arse, it meant that they had spotted a tight perky look worthy specimen of arse and that we should all look at it. Quite a different meaning from the original one of misfortune. As you may be able to guess the transition of arse from one of denoting misfortune to one of site to behold, was a very quick one, and one that expanded out beyond the core group of friends to that of associates and acquaintances and occasionally hangers on. It is also interesting to note that this new usage, while continued for a couple of years did eventually fall into disuse, actually the word arse itself also pretty much fell into disuse.. arr younglings so fickle.
Right then back to Wiccan Witch Wicca Witchcraft. When a person is first starting out or discovering this path of magic and paganism, they are bombarded with a variety of words, which at first glance denote the same thing.. namely wicca and witchcraft, but sometimes pagan and paganism, druid, etc etc, these seem at first glance to be the same, especially wicca and witchcraft, in fact some of the literature and books is quite misleading, i mean to say that guy Gardner who wrote the first book used both and it seemed that he was using them to denote the same thing, and now there are a whole bunch of these other books using the word wicca and witchcraft, and when i surf onto the internet and go onto pagan message boards, or text achieves, often the wiccan and witchcraft stuff is on the same page. (Go use the Google oracle and find out) And given that my friends do not react with such disbelief when i say wiccan, as to when i say witch so i am going to be using the word wicca Are you getting a picture here.. you should be.. in fact i bet many of you older pagans out there have memories of similar instances, where they used the word interchangeably partly because you didn’t know any better and partly because you were still figuring it out, and partly because it was the most common word in use of the day...
See now i believe that the main reason that i always referred to myself as a witch, was because way back when i first started out, i very quickly became unimpressed with those that referred to themselves as wiccan, and many of the books that were available in New Zealand were lacking something and because i felt this magical path as being something much more serious than those oddly dressed, bawdy uninformed non thinking wiccans over there i would be a Witch thank you very much, and that would be Witch with a capital.. recently i have attached priestess to that title but that is a whole nother story
But after a while i did settle on the title of witch and have never really changed it.. eventually i came to the understanding that wiccans were part of a tradition of some sort, and witch’s where solitary , along the way i can remember understanding it wiccan as a religion and witchcraft as a practice, also that Wicca was the religion that all Witches practiced..a lower case w referred to historical witches, and a Capital W referred to Modern.. and several variation on those ideas, understandings and terms.. all very complicated, and it did take some years to understand, to feel the difference and to be comfortable in how i labelled myself.
Now there really is the curx of it all, labelling yourself because not only is Modern Paganism a religion and spirituality of assent, it is also one of self labelling. And given that there is no central authority, liturgy, governance or papal throne, you can pretty much label yourself anything you want moonbeam starflower. *cough* As an aside to this the understanding of the labels have also changed over the last 60 years or so. This was pointed out to me by a good friend Grail For at first you called yourself a witch and then went and joined a coven, and studied hard, (i guess you could add here became wiccan) now days you did not call yourself a witch or wiccan until you have joined your coven or studied for at least several years.. it is reversed, people scoff at others who have deemed themselves wiccan or witches but are only just starting out and i wonder if its cause is because of the turn away from groups and the emphasis on the individual.. but alas that is also whole nother story.
Back to this self labelling.. often the label that you start of with changes and grown as your understanding of your magical path also grows, deepens, and changes. Some may start of as referring themselves as wiccan, and then a few years down the track they opt for pagan, as they are no longer practicing as much or no longer feel the calling they once did. Others change and add titles and labels priest, priestess, high priestess,
Gardnerian, Alexandrian, Traditional Wiccan, hedgewitch, urbanwitch, traditionalisy, cabalists.. gosh they are quite endless as well as the many woven paths that are available to a magic worker or spiritual explorer.. or plan old pagan. Some even come to the conclusion that it is not the label that is important but how one lives one s life. Although a label can help in finding information, books and heading in the direction that you are called to head in.
In practical terms, and what this post is all about, when a newby arrived on your blog or message board, and uses the word wiccan, and you have decided that to you a wiccan is a tradition and that you must be initiated etc etc or however you use the word.. do not jump down their throat about it, can come across with the almightily authority on high, cause it is your way and only your way is correct, because as mentioned before “YOUR DOING IT WRONG” and you end up doing a couple of things, 1. Looking like a completely close-minded egotistical bigoted idiotic prat.. CEBIT.. and 2. You will end up not just sending the original enquirer fleeing for the hills, but a bunch of other people like me who have been around for a while, know what they know and are happy for the most part to share that, and also know that what they know might not be knowing for others. And frankly having someone else shove their interpretation of what every word down your throat is really off putting. There are better ways of dealing with this.
So ask yourself, is the original enquirer asking a honest question, but have used terminology that you do not agree with? So perhaps they have come up said the dredded i’m a solitary wiccan, and i wanted to know if i can include roman pantheon in my daily devotions? Quite often these questions are short and lacking on context but still there is no reason to flay them alive, instead it would be more useful to engage them in further discussion with the added bonus of non judgemental information about the roman pantheon, not to tromp over this persons beliefs with your big cauldron of goo.. the phrase, ‘how i see it’ or in my opinion, or variations on that would be much more likely to be read, by your original poster, and others who also come along and who knows it might even spark an interesting tread about the original topic that has now morphed into a deeper discussion or into a completely different discussion.
So remember folks There is no central authority, liturgy, governance, or papal authority within Modern Paganism, this means that everyone has the right to believe whatever it is that they believe even if we do not believe it. And starting out a conversation with “YOUR DOING IT WRONG” or shouldn’t and should, will get you nowhere and just make you look stupid.
And finally, if it speaks to you, if what you are doing, what you believe and what you practice speaks to you in the centre of your heart, and makes it sing, you are so doing it right, no matter what anyone else says.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
it was a busy day today and all with the making magic, interspersed with visits from ![[info]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u7nDywG0DYXyAb4feJYU7uogsW1fxUAwXGRKFgZeM8EftXTGr9hUwdmYhSun_vS7JXbwd8Kvy_gYI20z8Vv9uZrmwUzlc8pgLMIsb4YSkRPQ=s0-d)
fallaras and The Aunt *grins* who dropped off some wooden rounds from when i was up at mums place last weekend..
it was a lovely day so i set up outside.
so whiletatjna sewed i burnt Stuff to make sure that it smelled 1/ smelt nice, one in that.. ewie ewie get that stench away from me, and 2/ that it smelled like the element i was working with. please not the cups of tea.. always important for the tea fuelled witch when making magic. *grins*
i quiet like that there is a bubble in the middle of my teacup.. (not that you can see it.. *ponders why) but there is a cup of tea in this picture and the one above.. you might just have to take my word for it..teheh
so first up was Fire Elemental Incense.. which was just as well at it turned out that Tommy reacted to one of the ingredients, it could of been the juniper,, or umm..Frankincense.. but hey, i always put what is in said incenses just in case people have these types of reactions..
this one contains, bay, juniper, clove, cinnamon, rosemary, frankincense and red ceder (all the way from canadia via this nice lady the Forest Witch) nom nom..
Second Up Air Elemental Incense
this one contains Lavender, Lemon Grass, Star Anise, Dammar (and lucky find at the health food store, i might have to go and purchase the rest that they have) and Benzoin..
third to bepounded into submision err made with the duitiful respect required... Earth Elemental Incense
now this one contains some hard to get ingredents, if you live in New Zealand.. and they are patchouli leaves, (and they smell divine nom nom, i am such a hippy) manuka leaves, Vervain, and the last of the Amber that i got in Brisbane.. eek not to worry i have some other amber honey amber, but alas not very much.
then next was Water Elemental Incense,
this one contains myrrh, thyme, rose, sandlewood, and hyssop
see Water Elemental incense was quite challenging, cause really i can see fire, earth, and air, but water.. not so much, however when you change your thought pattern, as aim it at the fact that the aim of this incense is to call in the energetic energies of water...(not sure if energetic is the right word.) then it becomes much easier.. of course then you have to run back and smell the other incense's that you have made just to make sure that they have the same signature.. so to speak... quite complicated in a way but also instinctual in others...hmmm.. but still much fun and astheically pleasing.. look how pretty the different mixes came out.. yay...
and finally Wisdom Bath Salts (i got the idea for these from Ms Sarah Lawless of the Forest Grove.. and will be making other bath salts, maybe tomorrow, i hope that she doesn't mind. *beams*)
so this contains salt, of three different types.. epsom, sea, and Himalayan as well as culinary sage, white sage (another difficult plant to get here in NZ) and rose buds. i thought that i had muslin to make little bags to go with this but alas,, the weave is to large.. opps...
so there you go.. all with the crafting and witching.. yay..
also that last jar, the big one contains smudge incense, something i have been making for years.. the recipe came from one of my first teachers, Morgan, way back in the day.. i have added to it, but it is essentially culinary sage, lavender, basil, and rose petals, and i do not have a picture of that in my mortar as i made it on thrusday nite, and didn't think to take one.. doh...
and soon these lovely incense and other stuff will end up on my etsy store, but i still have to figure out postage, and packaging.. oh and prices.. and to start with they will only be avaiable with in New Zealand, however if it happens that i get quite a bit of overseas interest we can always make changes.. but still sending loose herbs overseas.. could be a customs issues.. *ponders this*..
right now to figure out what to wear out this eve.. *ponders this to*
*Twirls around*..
(cross posed to my LJ)
fallaras and The Aunt *grins* who dropped off some wooden rounds from when i was up at mums place last weekend..it was a lovely day so i set up outside.
so while
tatjna sewed i burnt Stuff to make sure that it smelled 1/ smelt nice, one in that.. ewie ewie get that stench away from me, and 2/ that it smelled like the element i was working with. please not the cups of tea.. always important for the tea fuelled witch when making magic. *grins*i quiet like that there is a bubble in the middle of my teacup.. (not that you can see it.. *ponders why) but there is a cup of tea in this picture and the one above.. you might just have to take my word for it..teheh
so first up was Fire Elemental Incense.. which was just as well at it turned out that Tommy reacted to one of the ingredients, it could of been the juniper,, or umm..Frankincense.. but hey, i always put what is in said incenses just in case people have these types of reactions..
this one contains, bay, juniper, clove, cinnamon, rosemary, frankincense and red ceder (all the way from canadia via this nice lady the Forest Witch) nom nom..
Second Up Air Elemental Incense
this one contains Lavender, Lemon Grass, Star Anise, Dammar (and lucky find at the health food store, i might have to go and purchase the rest that they have) and Benzoin..
third to be
now this one contains some hard to get ingredents, if you live in New Zealand.. and they are patchouli leaves, (and they smell divine nom nom, i am such a hippy) manuka leaves, Vervain, and the last of the Amber that i got in Brisbane.. eek not to worry i have some other amber honey amber, but alas not very much.
then next was Water Elemental Incense,
this one contains myrrh, thyme, rose, sandlewood, and hyssop
see Water Elemental incense was quite challenging, cause really i can see fire, earth, and air, but water.. not so much, however when you change your thought pattern, as aim it at the fact that the aim of this incense is to call in the energetic energies of water...(not sure if energetic is the right word.) then it becomes much easier.. of course then you have to run back and smell the other incense's that you have made just to make sure that they have the same signature.. so to speak... quite complicated in a way but also instinctual in others...hmmm.. but still much fun and astheically pleasing.. look how pretty the different mixes came out.. yay...
and finally Wisdom Bath Salts (i got the idea for these from Ms Sarah Lawless of the Forest Grove.. and will be making other bath salts, maybe tomorrow, i hope that she doesn't mind. *beams*)
so this contains salt, of three different types.. epsom, sea, and Himalayan as well as culinary sage, white sage (another difficult plant to get here in NZ) and rose buds. i thought that i had muslin to make little bags to go with this but alas,, the weave is to large.. opps...
so there you go.. all with the crafting and witching.. yay..
also that last jar, the big one contains smudge incense, something i have been making for years.. the recipe came from one of my first teachers, Morgan, way back in the day.. i have added to it, but it is essentially culinary sage, lavender, basil, and rose petals, and i do not have a picture of that in my mortar as i made it on thrusday nite, and didn't think to take one.. doh...
and soon these lovely incense and other stuff will end up on my etsy store, but i still have to figure out postage, and packaging.. oh and prices.. and to start with they will only be avaiable with in New Zealand, however if it happens that i get quite a bit of overseas interest we can always make changes.. but still sending loose herbs overseas.. could be a customs issues.. *ponders this*..
right now to figure out what to wear out this eve.. *ponders this to*
*Twirls around*..
(cross posed to my LJ)
Friday, April 9, 2010
crafting, burning, creating, sewing and cups of tea
this weekend, i plan on creating some incense recipes, some non combustible incenses, as well as sewing up some tarot cloths, altar cloths and little muslin bags for the bath salts i will also be creating. it is going to be a weekend of crafting and drinking tea.
you see i have this plan, here in Wellington there is a possibility of night markets opening up next spring which will be some six months away, and i plan on having a stall at these markets to sell witch's crafts. Urban Witchery is the name these crafts will be going by, because not only do i want to make various magical products i also have an urge to explore this concept of Urban Witchery. Urban Witchery in a similar sense of Hedgewitching & Hedgecrossing, however i am an urban Witch who lives in a large, by New Zealand standards city, the capital in fact.
so to start the ball rolling, so to speak i am going to be spending the weekend creating incense mixes, herbal bath salts, bath bombs, (i'm a huge bath fan) and bath milk powder. as well as sewing up a storm of altar cloths, tarot wraps, rune bags and the like. of course hopefully by the end of the weekend there will be pictures of what i have created. sounds like fun yeah?
*beams*
Polly
you see i have this plan, here in Wellington there is a possibility of night markets opening up next spring which will be some six months away, and i plan on having a stall at these markets to sell witch's crafts. Urban Witchery is the name these crafts will be going by, because not only do i want to make various magical products i also have an urge to explore this concept of Urban Witchery. Urban Witchery in a similar sense of Hedgewitching & Hedgecrossing, however i am an urban Witch who lives in a large, by New Zealand standards city, the capital in fact.
so to start the ball rolling, so to speak i am going to be spending the weekend creating incense mixes, herbal bath salts, bath bombs, (i'm a huge bath fan) and bath milk powder. as well as sewing up a storm of altar cloths, tarot wraps, rune bags and the like. of course hopefully by the end of the weekend there will be pictures of what i have created. sounds like fun yeah?
*beams*
Polly
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Podcasts, the new black..
Standing Stone and Garden Gate Podcast Review.
Well i am currently yup to episode 4, and i have to say that it is going to be one of those podcasts that i recommend to my students, friends, and anyone who will listen. Why because it is one of those food for thought type podcasts. And yes it is a pagan podcast, but it is for the thinking pagan, good for those who are beyond pagan 101 of any flavour, there is theology, thinking, philosophy, more thinking, hedge witchery thinking, bardic songs and poems, and thinking.. did I mention the thinking and great food for thought!
Standing Stone and Garden Gate, hosted by Brendon Myers and Juniper, both Canadian with the cutest accents, and lovely to listen to which is always important when listening to podcasts.
The podcast has several sections all of which i was pleasantly surprised by. To start with there is a short introduction that includes what incense they are using that day what it is made from and how it is used. There is usually a discussion on what they are drinking, which so far has been wine, and mead, although I am confident that they will be drinking tea at some soon enough. During this there is also random discussion which is feels very welcoming, as though you are sitting there with them enjoying a nice cuppa tea and listening in. (although I have found myself joining in the conversation once or twice, to the amusement of my office mates)
There is also a bardic section, a section on philosophy called Standing Stone that is reminiscent of Deo’s Shadow podcast, philosophical sections and just lovely, I may of have mentioned before great food for thought.
I have to admit when i listen to the first episode i was concerned about the Rants Raves and Reviews, section as i was dreading that it was going to be more bitching about those disliked in the pagan community, however i was pleasantly surprised because this section was again more food for thought, and the first rant was about gossip. Juniper and Brendon instead of spreading gossip or bitching about the pagans, instead there was a thoughtful discussion about the harm and help that gossip can cause. With the second rant about pagan elders and pagan leaders, again excellent food for thought.
Juniper has a section called garden gate, where she looks at the more practical aspects of witching, and magic. I really enjoyed episode one with the discussion on house blessing, she gave a really interesting view on house energy, cleansing and blessing.. do I need to say it again.. really good food for thought..
There is also a fourm which I have not yet explored but will be doing so momentarily. Whee!
I am very excited about listening to the remaining episodes that I have down loaded and might be impatiently waiting for the next one to be produced. This podcast i recommend, and give it a 5 tea cup rating our of five tea cups.. *nods* it will defiantly be going on my list of recommended podcasts, Excellent Job Brendan, and Juniper *skips about*
And if you wanted to know below is my list of recommended good food for thought podcasts,
Druidcast (http://www.druidcast.libsyn.com/)
Standing Stone and Garden Gate
Deo’s shadow (no longer in production)
All of these can be found on itunes, and all have their own website. Also it has been suggested by one podcaster, thorn from elemental castings, that it would be respectful if everyone paid $1 for each podcast that they downloaded. Even though these are free to down load, the podcasters themselves still have to pay costs for hosting, and their websites, not to mention recording equipment. and a$1 per episode is quite the bargin, cause many of them will for me become a part of my library*nods*..
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