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Book Review – Ritual as Remedy by Mara Branscombe
Book Review Ritual as Remedy by Mara Branscombe Publisher: Findhorn Press Publication Date: June 7, 2022 288 pages This book is exactly what it says. The author’s quote before the beginning of Chapter 1 states the following and is very much on point! “Rituals are like mirrors that we can hold up to reflect our lives’ journeys. The ceremonial process allows us to step out of time and experience something beyond the mundane, revealing the sacred turning points in our lives and guiding us deeper into our souls’ calling.” This quote struck such a huge cord with me. I was…
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Book Review – The Fourteen Holy Helpers by Christiane Stamm
Book Review The Fourteen Holy Helpers: Invocations for Healing and Protection by Christiane Stamm Publisher: Earthdancer Books 112 Pages Publication Date: March 29, 2022 This book struck my interest when it was offered for review. This was due to having spent over 30 years of my life as a Catholic. The Fourteen Holy Helpers are Christian Saints. In this book, Christiane Stamm presents how to initiate yourself to use the power of the saints as well as how to preform an invocation utilizing prayers to bring about healing and protection. The book invites you to become initiated by copying each…
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Deck Review – The Mood Tarot by Natalie Meraki
Deck Review The Mood Tarot By Natalie Meraki Independently Published 78-card deck “A Disgustingly Relatable Tarot Deck” What happens when you take a traditional Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot deck and mix it with horrible internet Memes? You get the Mood Tarot! This deck comes in a yellow and white 5″ x 3.25″ inch box with the word MOOD printed on the front, the phrase above is on the back with a website. After opening the flip top, you’re greeted by the 78 plastic cards waiting for you to pull them out of their box. The cards themselves measure 4.75″ x 2.75″ inches.…
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GoodGod!
Meet the Gods: Loki With the renewed interest in Norse mythology, Loki has gained popularity. Today he is typically portrayed as mischievous and self-serving, yet charming and lovable. While he’s sometimes an antagonist, he’s rarely a bad guy. In Norse mythology, he is all that and more; he is know as the cunning trickster god, sometimes getting the Æsir (gods of the principal Norse pantheon including Odin, Frigg, Höðr, Thor, and Bald) in trouble, other times getting them out. The son of the giant Farbauti and brother to Thor, Loki is most often in male form, but does not follow gender norms and changes both his sex and…
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Book Review – Nature’s Hidden Charms by Liz Dean
Book Review Nature’s Hidden Charms Written by Liz Dean Illustrations by Lizzie Harper Publisher: Welbeck Balance 239 pages Publication date: November 2, 2021 Do You Wander in Nature? Nature’s Hidden Charms by Liz Dean, and illustrated by Lizzie Harper, is the book for you if you answered “Yes” to the above question. The book starts with a foreword by Victoria Preston that’s an in-depth look at Nature worship in Europe with sacred wells and springs, “clooties” and coin tossing, and how those old ways of using small, natural objects found on walks can be used to make Charms. Then we…
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The Poetry of Author David Sparenberg
WORD Before the written word, there was the spoken word. Before the chronicles of history, there were stories. Before tabloids and the messy spawn of scandalous gossip, ballads and epic poems sounded in mouths of bards and minnesingers. Against the blind furies of forgetfulness, arose high cultures of memory. Long before civilized humanity slumped into pulp fiction and sado-masochistic fantasies, myths were weaving threads of truth into archetypes, extending the dimensions of reality. Guiding words of fire’s intensity and eloquence resonate joyously through the alchemic laboratories of time! You who have befriended Tolkien and the Shire, Arthur, Merlin, and voyagers to the Isle of Women, far, far off in…
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Book Review – Zen Rohatsu by Nora D’Ecclesis
Book Review Zen Rohatsu By Nora D’Ecclesis Publisher: Renaissance Presentations, LLC 101 pages Publication: July 1, 2022 From the book description: “Zen Rohatsu is the A to Z of Zen, as it is the backstory of why we meditate, live mindfully and have a spiritual practice. The Zazen Meditation combines the practice with mind and body from a 2,700 year old philosophy. It informs us of the potential enlightenment from suffering that historical Buddha experienced while sitting under a fig tree in ancient times. Meditation keeps us in the present with focus, equanimity and stress management. Rohatsu is a spiritual…
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Wishing and Willing – An Excerpt from the Book Higher and Friendly Powers: Transforming Addiction and Suffering by Dr. Peg O’Connor
Wishing and Willing (The following is an excerpt from Higher and Friendly Powers: Transforming Addiction and Suffering by Dr. Peg O’Connor.) A person’s attitude matters enormously. Does he wish to stop using or does he will to stop using? Willing and willingness need to be distinguished from desiring and wishing. The latter two can lead to incredible frustration and suffering. The former makes possible great transformation. James defines desire as wanting to feel, to have, or to do what presently is not felt, had, or done. Desires can be about anything. We desire material goods like cars, houses, a good meal, etc. We also desire immaterial goods such…
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Road to Runes
Reconnecting to Spirituality I recently had to write a little bit about divination for the Pagan Federation, and I realised that my regular practice had become, well, not so regular. For many months, I was drawing a card or a rune daily, and even taking an in-depth course on Ogham with the Irish Pagan School. However, I’d allowed myself to become bogged down in “day job” work and other commitments, and wasn’t utilising the tools at my disposal. What better prompt to get back into my journey learning the runes than this! And, what better question than, “How do I reconnect to my spiritual practice and ensure I’m not…
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Notes from the Apothecary
Notes from the Apothecary: Samhain Special Welcome to the special Samhain edition of Notes from the Apothecary! Samhain is the approximate midpoint between Autumn Equinox and Winter Solstice, and for many in the northern hemisphere, the time when we start to notice the long descent into the colder months. This means there is less wild food, plus fewer herbs and plants growing, so it’s often time to start using up ingredients stored from summer. In this issue, I’m going to go through some of my favourite herbs, fruits, and veggies to use around Samhain, and why I think they’re so magical. 5 Samhain Herbs, Fruits, and Vegetables …
