May 24, 2012 at 9:13 pm (Witchcraft)
Tags: blood, bones, definition, quercus robur, sex, traditional witchcraft, witchcraft
I try and practice Irish Traditional Witchcraft. As I have no teacher, this means reading a lot of folklore and finding crumbs that will enrich my practice.
When it comes down to it traditional witchcraft is all about blood and bones and sex. If those things make you go ick or feel like running away screaming, then I would advise you to choose another path.
I would also caution readers to keep their practices safe and within the law of the country you reside in.
If you let blood, use a pin or needle sterilised by dropping it into boiling water. If you are practising sex for ritual or magical purposes, always use a condom unless you are trying to get pregnant. Also, don’t do it if you feel uncomfortable with what is happening.
Having said that, I do not practice sex magic as my husband would not be happy with me having another partner and I don’t want to wreck my relationship with him, so I find other ways.
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May 16, 2012 at 6:28 pm (Witchcraft)
Tags: quercus robur, warts n' all, witchcraft is dangerous, precautions, safeguards
I often read things about people worrying about the dangers of witchcraft.
What people do not realise is that everything is dangerous in its own way. Crossing the street is dangerous because we could be killed or badly injured. Do we stop crossing the street? No. We take precautions and we have our own rituals for safety. Britain’s Green Cross Code (a ritual for crossing the road) says “look right, then left, then right again, then if it is safe cross”.
It’s the same with witchcraft. We draw circles and put safeguards in and around our workings. For example, I have a charm which protects me on all journeys, including when I dream.
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May 10, 2012 at 5:20 pm (Excursions and Events)
Tags: east anglian folk magic, milfords, quercus robur, warts n' all, witchcraft
Last night I went to a talk on East Anglian Folk Magic at Milford’s in London.
The talk was well presented and with a lot of information in it, but unfortuntely I already knew the majority of the information from reading the Traditional Witchcraft message board.
I was disappointed as there was nothing to separate out East Anglian folk magic with other regions’ folk magic.
If you wanted information on fairies, the horseman’s word or the toad bone rite, then it would have been a good talk.
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May 7, 2012 at 12:08 pm (Book Reviews)
Tags: book, book review, fairies, good people, meeting the other crowd by edward linehan, other crowd, paganism, quercus robur, warts n' all
I bought this book after hearing Edward Linehan speak about fairies on Radio 4. He is unusual in that he refreshingly states that he does believe in them and in this book he has collected stories from all over Ireland about the fairies.
It is an excellent book, covering all aspects of the fairies. From people being “carried”, which means being abducted by the fairies, to the fairy creatures to the revenge that fairies take on people for meddling in their affairs.
You really get a feel for the fairies of Ireland and in particular County Clare in this book. If you have to own just one book on fairies, buy this one. If you are looking for happy endings, buy another one because there are not very many of them in this book. This book clearly warns that no good comes of meddling with the fairies; they are best left alone and are certainly not nice.
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May 2, 2012 at 6:28 pm (Festivals)
Tags: beltane, ireland, land, milesians, paganism, quercus robur, tuatha de danaan, warts n' all, witchcraft
Normally for Beltane I attempt to gather dew on a flannel and wash my face in it. I didn’t try it this year because I had to go to work and also because it has been raining so much lately I thought I wouldn’t get any dew. I had asked for rain at the Spring Equinox and since we’re in a drought condition it’s good to have it.
After work I gathered up my paraphernalia, went to the weeping willow and cast my circle.
Beltane is when the Milesians came to Ireland. They took over Ireland from the Tuatha Dé Danaan, eventually making an agreement that they would have the half of Ireland above ground and the Tuatha Dé Danaan would have the half of Ireland below ground.
When the leader of the Milesians, Amergin, set foot on Ireland, the first thing he did was to introduce himself to the land. Then he blessed the land with fertility and especially fish. So I introduced myself to the land, let some of my blood and asked for fertility for the land and for myself.
I looked at the ritual I’d written just before I was due to perform it. A lightbulb went on in my head and I realised what Amergin’s poems were about, so the ritual was a bit clumsy as I had to improvise at the last minute. Next year’s ritual will be better.
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April 26, 2012 at 5:21 pm (Uncategorized)
Tags: criticism, own your path, paganism, path, quercus robur, warts n' all, witchcraft
Whatever your path is, it is your own individual path to walk. No two people will have exactly the same path or do things in exactly the same way.
Recently I’ve been hearing about people criticising others’ paths. It will happen. Wiccans are commonly known as fluffy, Recons unspiritual, Traditional Witches make things up and so on and so forth.
There will always be criticisms. Sometimes the worst ones come from people who are walking a similar path to you, who ask if you shouldn’t be doing this or that.
Don’t worry about what others think, it’s whether what you are doing is correct and right for your path that is the most important thing. Think through carefully what you are doing and then you will have the knowledge to argue against others’ criticisms of your path, can do so and hold your head up high.
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April 12, 2012 at 5:43 pm (Uncategorized)
Tags: paganism, quercus robur, recognising signs, signs, warts n' all
If you see something which you think is a sign, for example six robins, then the best way to find out what it means is to search on the net for the meaning. Then write the meaning down somewhere, as most of us don’t have people who taught us what the various signs meant and it’s easy to forget them.
If you don’t know what the animal/insect/bird you have seen is, then if you want to find out what the sign means you will have to look through identification books. It can be a long, hard slog, but it’s worth it. This is one of the reasons to keep identifying nature as you come across it.
I go on the principle that if there’s three or more of something, then it’s definitely a sign, as you can go seeing signs everywhere if you’re on the lookout for them.
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April 7, 2012 at 7:33 pm (Book Reviews)
Tags: book review, paganism, psychic attacks, psychic defence by dion fortune, quercus robur, warts n' all
This is a book in which Dion Fortune writes about her own experiences of being psychically attacked and helping others who have been attacked, which serves to make the book feel more real. She is obviously someone who has had extensive experience of psychic attack.
The first part of the book deals with entities that make psychic attacks, the second deals with how they make psychic attacks and the third deals with methods of defence.
I hope to never have to use the methods of defence outlined in this book, as the author states that psychic attacks are rare, but this is one to buy just so that you have the information if you need it. This is an easy and a really good book to read, and fortunately it’s going to be republished soon.
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April 4, 2012 at 6:22 pm (Uncategorized)
Tags: celebrate, death, funeral, paganism, warts n' all
Last Friday my mother-in-law died of a cerebral haemorrhage. This was unexpected and a shock, but what I have determined is that I am going to do my own ritual for her passing.
There will be a funeral service, but I am going to write my own. I’ve been to two funerals where everyone seemed to be going through the motions. The service didn’t have any feeling behind it and there was no celebration of the person’s life and achievements.
I want to celebrate that and say what a great person she was. This seems to be missing from modern British funerals.
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April 1, 2012 at 2:46 pm (Astrology)
Tags: astrology, interesting times, paganism, pluto, quercus robur, saturn, uranus
Of all the planets that make life interesting, in my opinion Uranus is the worst. It is the worst because it governs things that are unseen until they strike, like lightning and electricity.
I have found that Uranus will strike without warning. The best thing to do under a negative Uranus transit is to make sure you are protected and to be careful. For example, Uranus is currently opposite my natal Pluto. Last week a car flashed its lights at me in the street to say I could cross the road. Instead of going ahead and crossing I looked to my right to check there was nothing coming. A milk van immediately whizzed around the corner. If I had stepped out I could have been looking at several broken bones and a long time off work.
Everyone has trouble during their Saturn return, as Saturn stops things happening. When Saturn is in a positive aspect, this means that Saturn puts the brakes on to stop you going full tilt ahead. In a negative one, or Saturn return, things just aren’t happening and the best thing to do is to wait until they start happening again. In my case, this took 2.5 years as Saturn was moving back and forward.
Pluto can be troublesome, but it is a planet concerned with hidden things such as your psyche and identity. Dark and troublesome things can be unearthed during a negative aspect, while even a positive aspect can be unsettling.
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