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NATURAL SYMBOLS FOR COMPASS WORKING

5/28/2019

Books will give a whole list of correspondences we can utilise to symbolically mark the cardinal points of the Compass for magical working - but some work better than others. To built up a collection of naturally-charged quarter-markers we need to keep our eyes open at all times for those ‘gifts’ that come our way while out walking. For example:

North: The Place of Power magically speaking since ancient times - and ancient mystics and alchemists called upon Gnomes as an invocation of the properties of Earth in ritual. Gems and crystals are all part of the Element of Earth and the most natural would be the small pieces of quartz (milky, rose and clear) or flint that can be found in any handful of gravel, a stream bed, or by the side of a path we walk along every day. Remember that the tiniest of pieces were once buried deep inside the Earth and have worked their way to the surface over millions of years.

South: Fire is the only one of the Four Elements that humankind can produce itself, so it bridges the connection between mortals and gods because it was Prometheus, the Titan culture hero and trickster figure who defied the gods by stealing fire and giving it to humanity: an act that enabled progress and civilization. Slivers of seasoned wood from the Craft’s totem trees can be prepared and sprinkled in the censer over a charcoal disc; or if working outside small faggots can be made from twigs from the ‘nine sacred woods’ - birch, rowan, ash, alder, willow hawthorn, oak, holly and hazel.

East: The smoke that rises from the incense burned on the altar is a symbol of Elemental Air; or we can collect feathers from the birds sacred to Craft – the corvids who serve as messengers from Otherworld. Keep them fresh and safe by wrapping them in a silk scarf when not in use.

West: Rain-water collected in the cup-marks on ancient monuments or from the hollows in the boles of totem trees is the most sacred representative of Elemental Water. Failing that, collect water from a local spring or holy well.

This means that along with the poop-scoop bags in our pockets, we need an array of small plastic bags, bottles and containers so that we can bring our finds safely home. Stones and pebbles can be ritually cleansed by holding them in a fast running stream or spring, other more perishable items shouldn’t need to be cleansed if they have been brought in straight from the wood otherwise we will destroy those natural propensities they were chosen for. MD

The Power of the Elements by Melusine Draco is published by Moon Book ww.moon-books.net.

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TRADITIONAL WITCH’S CALENDAR: JUNE

5/26/2019

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JUNE and JULY were together known as Liða, an Old English word meaning ‘mild’ or ‘gentle’, which referred to the period of warm, seasonable weather either side of Midsummer. To differentiate between the two, JUNE was sometimes known as [OE]sÆrra Līþa ‘Before Midsummer’, or ‘First Summer’. [OHG] Brāh-mānod Brachmonat ‘fallow month’. In the 14th century misericord calendar, it was shown as the time for hawking and leisure before the start of the harvest. The tree representing June is the Oak, symbol of the god in his guise as Oak King or the Green Man.

Oak Magic: The old saying: ‘two hundred years growing, two hundred years staying, and two hundred years dying’, reflects the great age, which oaks can achieve. Much of European folklore is based upon an inherent reverence for the oak, whose human qualities included a voice that screamed and groaned in agony if the tree was felled – as if it were the genius of the oake lamenting. Touching wood for luck is an expression of these ancient beliefs, reflecting the respect given to the guardian spirits of the tree. The close grain of oak means that the wood burns slowly and gives off a lot of heat; although magical need-fires should not be fuelled with oak timber, the fire can be lit with a brand of burning oak.

9th Vestalia honours Vesta, Roman goddess of hearth and home, who was worshipped in every household, while the sacred Fire of State was kept ever burning (except on the first day of the new year when it was ceremonially renewed). Domestic and family life in general was represented by the festival of the goddess of the house and of the spirits of the store-chamber – Vesta and the Penates – on Vestalia. Today: Use the following poem to carry out a magical cleansing or banishing for the family home.

11th St Barnabas’ Day. Named because this is the time of the hay-harvest and as the saint’s symbol is the rake, he fitted nicely into the Church calendar. A cartload of hay would seem to be too common a sight in rural areas to excite much notice, but an odd set of beliefs held it to be unlucky, which could be averted by spitting for good luck. Today: Celebrate hay-making if only to enjoy the scent of the freshly cut grass.

11th Matralia was the annual matron’s festival at Rome. The festival was only for single women or women in their first marriage, who offered prayers for their nieces and nephews. Today: A good time to treat your favourite family members to a special day out.

Weather-lore: ‘Summer doesn’t start until the elder is in flower.’

13th Feast of Epona. Epona is the Gallo-Roman horse goddess often linked with similar deities such as the Welsh Goddess Rhiannon and the Irish Macha. In statues she is shown seated between two foals, holding a sheaf of wheat or a cornucopia and her worship was introduced to Britain by the Roman Legions. Today: Make it a special day for your equine companion.

15th Anniversary of the signing of the Magna Carta in 1215 at Runnymede. Magna Carta is one of the world’s most influential documents – an agreement granted by King John in 1215 as a practical solution to a political crisis, which in the centuries since has become a potent symbol of liberty and the rule of law. Like other medieval royal charters, the original Magna Carta documents which were drawn up for distribution across the kingdom were authenticated with the Great Seal, not by the signature of the king. The original Magna Carta manuscripts were dispatched over a period of a few weeks in late June and early July 1215. It isn’t known exactly how many copies were drawn up in 1215, but of the original Magna Carta manuscripts, only four survive. Today: Make a point of visiting one of the copies of this famous document if you or any of your family haven’t seen it before.

19th St Edmund’s Day Fair at Abingdon. Traditionally this was celebrated with an ox roast and the meat given to the poor. Dancing the Morris is an integral part of the festivities. Today: If there’s a fair or market in your vicinity, make it a family day out.

21st The Summer Solstice is the pivotal day that heralds the long slide into winter and is a highly significant date in the pagan magical calendar since it is the true Mid-Summer Day at the half-way mark between the Venal and the Autumnal Equinoxes. Check with the Internet for the correct alignment and organise a summer party.

23rd St Audrey’s Fair. At the annual fair in the Isle of Ely, showy lace called St Audrey’s lace was sold, and gave foundation to the word ‘tawdry’, which means anything gaudy, in bad taste, and of little value. Shakespeare makes an allusion to this lace in the Winter’s Tale and possibly the later post-Reformation calendar on 17th October: “Come you promised me a tawdry lace, and a pair of sweet gloves.” Today: Beware of buying anything that isn’t what it seems, i.e, dishonesty.

23rd The Carn Brea Midsummer Bonfire [Cornwall] ceremony was a pagan festival before it was hallowed by the Church to celebrate the Eve of St John. Today: Light the patio fire for Mid-Summer Eve and enjoy a simple meal outdoors with friends or family.

Midsummer: In Britain from the 13th century, Midsummer was celebrated on Midsummer Eve (St. John’s Eve and St. Peter’s Eve (28th June) with the lighting of bonfires, feasting and merrymaking. In late 14th century England, John Mirk of Lilleshall Abbey, Shropshire, gives the following description: “At first, men and women came to church with candles and other lights and prayed all night long. In the process of time, however, men left such devotion and used songs and dances and fell into lechery and gluttony turning the good, holy devotion into sin.” The church fathers decided to put a stop to these practices and ordained that people should fast on the evening before, and thus turned waking into fasting.

24th Mid-Summer Day was merged with St John’s Day in the Church calendar, and is considered in ancient folklore one of the great ‘charmed’ festivals of the year. Hidden treasures are said to lie open in lonely places, waiting for the lucky finder. Divining rods should be cut on this day. Herbs are given unusual powers of healing, which they retain if they are plucked during the night of the feast; rose, St John’s wort, vervain, trefoil and rue, all of which were supposed to have magical properties. Today: Make sure to stock up with any wild herbs and plants and throw the old stock away by burning them on the bonfire.

24th Mid-Summer Night. Circles that form naturally in the grass were regarded as having magical properties and were termed ‘fairy rings’. In Sussex these are called ‘hag tracks’ and believed, as the names implies, to be caused by witches dancing in the round.

26th Death of the Emperor Julian, the first pagan martyr (d.363). He was a man of unusually complex character, being ‘the military commander, the theosophist, the social reformer, and the man of letters’. He was the last non-Christian ruler of the Roman Empire, and it was his desire to bring the Empire back to its ancient pagan values in order to, as he saw it, save it from dissolution. Today: Light candles in remembrance.

29th St Peter’s Day Hay Strewing. New-mown hay is spread over the floor of Wingrave church [Buckinghamshire] replacing the ancient practice of rush-spreading, when the earthen floor of churches were covered with fresh rushes once a year. Tradition tells that a local woman lost her way one winter’s night and nearly dying from exposure was led to safety by the sound of the church bells. The hay is cut from a nearby field she bequeathed to the church. Today: Bring fragrant herbs and cut grasses into your home in a gesture of ritual cleansing.

29th St Peter’s Day and the annual Yarnton Meadow Lottery when the mowing rights of certain meadows in Yarnton [Oxfordshire] are allocated yearly in a ceremony which has remained unchanged for nearly 1000 years. The distribution of the plots is allocated by the drawing of lots. Thirteen ancient wooden balls – known as Mead Balls – possibly made from holly wood and each marked with a name, thought to be that of the original tenant-farmer who held the mowing rights in the 11th century. Today: Take the dog for a long walk and enjoy the day.

Weather-lore: ‘Rain on Peter and Paul (29th June) will rot the roots of the rye.’

Taken from Old Year, Old Calendar, Old Ways compiled by Melusine Draco. ISBN: 9781788762052 : Type: Paperback : Pages: 210 : Published: 25 January 2018 :: Price: €7.95 from
https://www.feedaread.com/books/Old-Year-Old-Calendar-Old-Ways-9781788762052.aspx

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BLACK SALT

5/20/2019

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Not to be confused with kala namak, a kiln-fired rock salt manufactured from the salts mined in the regions surrounding the Himalayas with a sulphurous, pungent-smell; also known as ‘Himalayan black salt’ and used as a condiment in cooking. Neither is table salt recommended because it has been treated with iodine and therefore considered impure for ritual use, so when casting important or powerful spells Maldon salt is the ingredient of choice and is available from most major supermarkets. Remember when adding liquid to salt it sticks together or dissolves so we need to use something dry to colour it.

Maldon salt, incidentally, has a very long history. Humans have been harvesting salt there for thousands of years, even before recorded history. The spring tides come in over the seagrass and, when the water retreats, leave salt to crystallize. In the Iron Age, people heated clay vessels to reduce the salty water. Two thousand years ago, the Romans scaled up that operation by trapping water in clay-lined pits and boiling it off in pans heated from underneath by wood fires, and the salt was left in the bottom of the pans. In the Domesday Book of 1086, large numbers of brine pits and pans were recorded along the Essex coastline. So it makes sense to use Maldon salt as a magical ingredient although the ‘black salt’ recipe given here probably comes from vodun sources … hence the occasional inclusion of ‘graveyard dust’.

2 parts Maldon (sea) salt
1 part scrapings from a cast iron skillet or pot to included iron filings OR
1crushed charcoal disk or activated charcoal created from burned wood OR
1 part fine dry ash from your fire pit OR
1 part dry soot from the hearth fire
1 part finely ground black pepper

Depending on the density of the coloring ingredient, we may need to adjust the portions a little, but these are the basic ingredients pounded and mixed together with a pestle and mortar. If we have a well-used coven cast iron pot or cauldron, we should be able to get a good amount of black scrapings (including iron filings) out of the bottom of it - if it seems too oily, use the ash or soot instead. In addition to being a powerful ingredient in protection magic, black salt is used in some folk magic traditions for cursing, hexing, and binding. Black salt prevents and repels negative magic and energies. Sprinkle this around the property to prevent those who wish us harm or place in an enemy’s footstep to prevent them from returning.

When using black salt in any form of magic, we will need to get rid of it - after all, because of the nature of its use, we don’t want to keep it hanging around once we’ve finished with it. There are a few easy ways to dispose of it. We can take it somewhere far from our home and bury it; many voudun practitioners recommend burying it near a crossroads or even a graveyard. We can also toss it into moving water, like a stream or river having made sure the water is moving, since we don’t want the salt just swirling around in one stagnant spot. Finally and probably the best, consider disposal by fire. If you choose to use this method, however, be sure to take the ashes far away and bury them - and don’t use them for any later magical applications.

Salt marshes: North Sea (below)

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THE POWER OF MYTHOS

5/14/2019

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All magical energy should be looked upon as dangerous, if the magician fails to understand what it is that he is calling upon. ‘God’-power can be equally as destructive as demonic-energy if we haven’t bothered to find out exactly what it is that we’re channeling for magical purposes. Any problems stemming from this lack of recognition are the result of sheer arrogance on the part of the magician, who believes he can control something that he isn’t even on nodding acquaintance with.

For the reasons of self-protection, we must be fully conversant with the nature of the energies we encounter on the astral levels. We need to differentiate between the individual god-power represented by Aphrodite (Greek), Venus (Roman), Hathor (Egyptian), Ishtar (Babylonian) or Astarte (Phoenician). In eclectic paganism, all these energies would be identified as having one source, i.e. the Goddess — which is why much of what passes for modern magic is often sterile.

To understand the true god-power emanating from each source, we have to understand what the indigenous peoples who worshipped them called upon, not what we read in dumbed-down, quasi-magical books. If we read genuine magical material from the Golden Dawn or Aleister Crowley, for example, we are instantly struck by the wealth of classical references in the texts. These were not scattered through the text at random; they were carefully controlled and contrived in order to produce the maximum effect in a particular working.

It may also come as a surprise to learn that myth, folklore and legend are now recognized as a vital part of the development of the human race, rather than just a confused jumble of ancient cultural stories. Myths that might, at first glance, seem merely products of fancy are very far from being merely fanciful, and are the means by which ancient peoples expressed their fundamental notions of life and nature. These enduring myths are the actual methods by which they expressed certain ways of viewing the ‘rules’ of life, and which were brought into existence by the manner in which life was regulated in their society. The myths reflect the morality according to the lights of their time.

When we talk about the ‘mythology of Egypt’ for example, we are referring to the whole body of Egypt divine, heroic and cosmogonic legends, together with the various attempts that have been made to explain these ancient narratives for the benefit of modern thinking. The real function of these myths, however, was to strengthen the existing tradition and endow it with a greater value and prestige by tracing it back to a higher, more ‘supernatural’ reality of ancient events. What men have thought throughout history about the supernatural is important not only for what it may tell us about the Mysteries of life and death as the ancients viewed it, but for what it tells us about human beings today. If nothing else, it shows what we have lost!

Very early in the history of conscious thought, the priesthood awoke to the reality that their religious stories (i.e. those that concealed the Mysteries) were much in need of public explanation. As a result, popular versions took over and the esoteric became exoteric. The myths of civilized peoples: the Aryans of India, the Celts, the Egyptians and the Greeks thus contained two elements: the rational and what to modern minds sees the irrational. The rational myths were those that represented the gods as beautiful and wise; but the real difficulties presented by mythology spring from the irrational elements, which to modern minds appear unnatural, senseless or even, at times, repellent.

It is to these irrational elements that the magician must turn if he wishes to reconnect with the ancient Mysteries, which still lie at the very heart of the Great Work. For the true seeker, the great classic myths remain ‘true’ stories; not because we think they really happened but because they contain certain ‘universal truths’ about humanity and life. Truths which cannot be translated
into plain statement.

Extract from The Dictionary of Magic & Mystery, complied by Melusine Draco and published by Moon Books. ISBN 978 1 84694 462 8 : 370pp : UK£12.99/US$11.95 on in e-book format. www.moon-books.net

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NATURAL SYMBOLS FOR COMPASS WORKING

TRADITIONAL WITCH’S CALENDAR: JUNE

BLACK SALT

THE POWER OF MYTHOS

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