January 2nd: The Birth of the Goddess Inanna/Ishtar in Ancient Sumeria “Isis, Astarte, Deanna, Hecate, Demeter, Kali, Inanna…” Who is this Goddess? Inanna and Ishtar are essentially two sides of the same coin.  Inanna came first, the goddess of the Sumerians.  Ishtar came after, the goddess of the Babylonians and Assyrians.  She was found in either her original form or in another form around the world including in Arabia, Armenia, Canaan, Carthage, China, Cilesia, Crete, Egypt, Ephesia, Greece, India, Israel, Japan, Mesopotamia, Phoenicia, Phrygia, and Pontus. Some say that she was the daughter of Anu, the Mesopotamian creator god, similar to the Greek Zeus, while others claim that she was…

Coming Out of the Broom Closet (Very slowly and one foot at a time) If there is one thing the Pagan community has in common with the GLBT community it is being stuck in “the closet.” It still amazes me how many Pagans I meet who are struggling with coming out about their Paganism and witchcraft practices. I know their pain all too well. I am still in the broom closet with my immediate family. My family is super Conservative Christian and they have made it clear that if I even show an interest in Wicca or anything like “that” I will be disowned. It is extremely painful to hear…

Vibrant, passionate, and involved, Susun Weed has garnered an international reputation for her groundbreaking lectures, teachings, and writings on health and nutrition. She challenges conventional medical approaches with humor, insight, and her vast encyclopedic knowledge of herbal medicine. Unabashedly pro-woman, her animated and enthusiastic lectures are engaging and often profoundly provocative. Susun is one of America’s best-known authorities on herbal medicine and natural approaches to women’s health. Her four best-selling books are recommended by expert herbalists and well-known physicians and are used and cherished by millions of women around the world. Learn more at www.susunweed.com Susun Weed’s books include: Wise Woman herbal for the Childbearing Year Author: Susun S. Weed. Simple,…

A visit to the Whaley House This month I decided to take a trip to the Whaley House in San Diego, CA.  This location is known as the most haunted house in the United States. This was not only the home of the Whaley family but it was also once a courthouse, the first commercial  theatre in San Diego, a granary, a ballroom, a classroom, a billiard hall, as well as Thomas Whaley’s own general store.  There were also several hangings on the property before the house was built.  This led to the first reports of a haunting by the Whaley family themselves.  They believed a man called “Yankee Jim’…

Spirituality Or Religion? What is the difference between spirituality and religion? Is there a difference or are the terms interchangeable? Why do some people claim to be religious while others call themselves spiritual? Am I spiritual or religious? What defines these terms and really how can you tell which is which? Are all pagans spiritual and all Judeo/Christians religious? These are the questions that I pondered and wanted to find some answers to. I asked friends, co-works, online buddies, family as well as my husband. After many discussions I found that people had a different opinion depending on where he/she was on their own life path and what spiritual beliefs…

Staying Resolved:  Keeping the Magic of Resolutions Fresh and Effective One year winds down as we look backward and reflect on all we’ve been through and all we’ve learned.  It has been a year of successes and joys and it has been a year of sorrows and failures.  Such is a life, richly and fully lived.  And then we turn towards the New Year and make plans and resolutions.  It’s all about change at this turning point of the calendar.  What can we do better and how can we be better?  All seems possible at the birth of the New Year!  At the same time, we are saddened that through…

Basic Color Chart Black: Usually associated with the energy and ministerial figures, black stops gossiping, meddling people right in their tracks.  It’s also great for breaking bad habits, or for any work that involves separation, wisdom, secrets, or invoking the Crone aspect of the Triple Goddess. Pale Blue: This shade goes a long way in relieving confusion, anxiety, and loss of control.  Try it for effects that involve calmness, peace, tranquility, healing, and pleasant dreams. Dark Blue: If you need to get organized and add some structure to you life, this is the color for you.  It’s also a wonderful hue for invoking the Water Element, or calling upon feminine…

Janus Have you ever had a moment where you feel as if you’re looking forward to whatever the future may bring yet at the same time, looking back as to what the past has brought?  Or have you ever sat around on New Year’s Eve contemplating the coming new year while reminiscing about the past year?  January is the first month of the year and it’s named after a Roman god named Janus. Janus is one of the more….interesting gods in the Roman pantheon. He’s just as if not more important than Jupiter, who is the ruler of all the gods. In Greek mythology Jupiter’s counterpart is Zeus, Janus however…

she moves with care now, her limbs aching with each step eyes shining in the darkness. now, she is old, old as time, beckoned by the gods, needed by so many. they call upon her now to birth their babes, lay out their dead. a-night, they leave her solitary in her home, wary of angering this old, old soul who has such knowledge in her that it carves upon her face deep and careless lines. for pain, they need her, fearful of its claws they beg for aid and always and anon she answers she is all three, maiden, mother, and, now, as aged as the Goddess that she smiles…

An exploration of Near-Death and Out-of-Body Experiences Let’s switch gears this month away from ghosts and the like, and take a look at another huge area of paranormal research- the Near-Death (NDE) and Out-of-Body Experience (OBE).  Hollywood likes to toy with the notion of Life after Death and the Out-of-Body Experience; sometimes in a beautiful way, such as in 1998’s What Dreams May Come, and the 1980 classic Resurrection.  I’d like to note that Resurrection was the first movie to base its screenplay not on superstition and cultural references, but on the research and ideas of Raymond Moody, whose 1975 book Life After Life led to the foundation of the…