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The Road to Runes: The Blank Rune
Welcome back to The Road to Runes, gentle ramblings about my own bumpy journey toward learning the runes, their meanings, and using them for divination and personal exploration. The Elder Futhark runes are what most people think of when they consider a set of runes. These runes are 24 “letters” that represent sounds and words, are used in poems that carry potentially great meaning, and are strongly linked to Norse mythology. Many rune sets include the 24 runes and also a blank rune stone (or piece of wood, or tablet, or whatever the material the runes are made from). There are a few different thoughts on why the blank rune…
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Learning Lunar: Moon Magic & Mystery – Imbolc
Imbolc, Full Moon into Waning Gibbous Imbolc or Imbolg is a very special time of year for many people on a Pagan or spiritual path. It’s also a continuously celebrated Irish festival, although many people celebrate Saint Brigid’s Day instead, which occurs at around the same time. Because there is no hard and fast date for Imbolc, the moon phase will move from full to waning gibbous during the time that people are celebrating this festival. Let’s take a look at what that might mean, magically, astrologically, and practically. Note: Imbolc is happening in the Northern Hemisphere. If you live in the Southern Hemisphere, you’ll be enjoying your full-to-waning gibbous…
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Notes from the Apothecary: Clematis
Clematis is known as a climbing plant that produces glorious, beautiful blooms in summer. In fact, there are so many types of clematis, many of which bloom in spring and some even in early autumn. Some have petite, pretty flowers, while others produce huge discs of colour. Some grow extremely fast, while others are more ponderous, ideal for small pots in limited space. Like humans, clematis plants embody diversity. Let’s take a closer look. The Kitchen Garden If you’re looking for a tasty addition to a practical kitchen garden, veer away from clematis. Every part of this plant is toxic, and you should encourage children and pets to stay away…
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Book Review — Plant Energy Medicine: The Guiding Voice and Healing Vibration of 58 Plants by Rhonda PallasDowney and Sandi O’Connor
Book Review — Plant Energy Medicine: The Guiding Voice and Healing Vibration of 58 Plants by Rhonda PallasDowney and Sandi O’Connor Publisher: Healing Arts Press, a division of Inner Traditions International 320 Pages Release Date: July 8, 2025 I feel like I’m super lucky to get to review some amazing books, particularly ones about nature, plants, herbalism, and other “green” magic-associated topics. This volume, which promises to explore a whopping 58 plants, is, unsurprisingly, very enticing to me. The book starts with some beautifully moving song lyrics by Kate Watters, and a foreword by Rosemary Gladstar, of the Science and Art of Herbalism course. The introduction explores synchronicity and the…
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Book Review — The Divine Nature of Plants: A Medical Intuitive’s Guide to Plant Spirit Medicine by Laura Aversano
Publisher: Destiny Books, a division of Inner Traditions 288 Pages Release Date: July 8, 2025 Content warning: This book contains extensive writing about mediumship, aka, speaking to the dead, including deceased children. If you’re a regular Pagan Pages reader, you know I love plants. I write the column Notes from the Apothecary and love to explore the ways we use plants as medicine, food, and magical companions for all sorts of everyday aspects of life. That respect for plant medicine comes from a scientific viewpoint, for example, looking at the folklore medicine of plants or what Mrs Grieve wrote in her Modern Herbal, and seeing how modern research now backs…
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Learning Lunar: New Moon into Waxing Crescent, Autumn Equinox 2025
If you’ve been following previous issues of Learning Lunar, you’ll see that we’ve looked at some of the major moon phases both generally and in relation to the specific time of year. This month, I want to get super specific and look at the exact phase and movement of the moon around the Autumnal Equinox. Why? Because I love this time of year. The Autumn Equinox is very magical for me, and has seen me go through many changes, some good, some bad; some happy and some sad. This year’s equinox holds bittersweet mixed emotions, thanks to a run of events coming to an end, but with it, the opportunity…
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Road to Runes: Buying a Rune Set
There are plenty of questions you might ask when choosing a rune set. What material should I choose for runes? Do I have to make them myself? Are mass-produced runes okay? To be clear, there are no “right” or “wrong” answers, only answers that are right for you. However, we’ve pulled together some tips and advice to offer guidance with this important choice of divination tool. Materials for Runes You can find runes made out of just about anything, and you can make a set of runes out of any materials you might have to hand. Even runes written on pieces of paper can work. But if you’re in the…
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Deck Review — Mood Crystals by Christel Alberez and Nereus North Goldstar
Deck Review — Mood Crystals by Christel Alberez and Nereus North Goldstar Publisher: David & Charles 50 Cards Release Date: 13th September 2022 Thank you to David & Charles for providing this deck for unbiased review. I really enjoy instructional decks — something beyond the standard oracle or divination deck, where each card carries learning and information beyond connecting with your inner self. This deck certainly ticks that box. From the moment you open the box and pull out the guidebook and cards, you can see that each card is not only beautifully presented but rich in useful detail. Let’s start with the guide booklet. There’s a short introduction that…
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Book Review — The Tarot Spreads Yearbook
Book Review — The Tarot Spreads Yearbook Publisher: David & Charles 144 Pages Release Date: 11th April 2023 This beautifully presented book is billed as “52 Tarot Spreads for Getting to Know Yourself.” In our modern, fast-paced life, isn’t that something we’re all trying to do a little more? It’s so easy to get bogged down in our routines, work, and trying to make ends meet that we can lose sight of our inner selves and what nourishes us. With that in mind, I opened this book with an optimistic frame of mind. At first glance, it’s clear that, like the year, this book is split into four seasons: Growth,…
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Notes from the Apothecary: Bistort
Until the end of August, possibly a little beyond depending on the weather, you may find the bristly, bottlebrush-like flowers of bistort growing everywhere from meadows to roadside hedgerows and verges. Although the bistort we have in the UK and that found in the US are slightly different, they’re all part of the same family: Polygonaceae, under the genus Bistorta. Here in the UK, I always think of the flower as little pink or purple cleaning brushes. The North American variant tends to be a bit paler and fluffier looking — I hope I get to see some with my own eyes someday. The Kitchen Garden The Wildlife Trust reports…