Book Excerpt: Pagan Portals: Celtic Witchcraft by Mabh Savage Stepping Stones Celtic Triad: Three candles that illumine every darkness: truth, nature, knowledge. In magic we look to the elements, the directions and spirits among many, many other things, as a way to quantify and understand the universal energies we are harnessing. In Wicca and other ritual based on a similar foundation, the cardinal points are the focus for an individual or coven to consecrate or cast a circle; North, East, South and West, and their associated elements, respectively Earth, Air, Fire and Water. The practitioner can then go deeper to the aspects of the world associated with each element; birds…

Notes from the Apothecary: The Dragon Tree I recently returned from an eye-opening trip to Tenerife, where I saw a multitude of flora and fauna the like of which I had no idea even existed. Lizards scooting in and out of cracks in walls, some as tiny as your pinkie and some as long as your arm. Hawks hovering overhead, trying to catch the unwary ones. Smaller birds hopping from prickly pears to aloes, to plants I don’t even know the name for yet. The crown jewel in this cornucopia is the famous dragon tree at Icod de los Vinos: El Drago Milenario. Although the age of the tree is…

I saw a crow carrying a hedgehog today. The hedgehog was dead, crushed by a car whose driver was oblivious to its small, spiky presence. Maybe that driver was in a hurry, or didn’t see, or simply didn’t care. The crow waited for a gap in the traffic, and, just a few yards in front of me, it glided smoothly down to the tarmac, grasped the sorry, squashed creature in its beak, hopped ungainly a couple of times to catch its balance and flew on to the railing separating road from grass verge. Nature’s cleaners, I thought. It immediately struck me that this wouldn’t be everyone’s reaction. Probably more like…

When I was doing an online course about magic in the Middle ages, a question was posed: How does magical thought differ today, from that in the Middle Ages? One thing that magic in the Middle Ages and magic today has in common is that it is always a form of transformation. The sick are healed; the weather is changed; a shapeshifter moves silently through the night; a lover changes his/her mind. The main difference that I can see is that there was so little understood about the world in the Middle Ages, almost everything could be seen as a magical act. A woman who used Willow bark to ease…

Notes from the Apothecary: Horse Chestnut Conkers! That was always the main appeal for me. This grand, stately tree with its leaves like great hands, giving shade from the summer heat, and shelter on a rainy day, and all we wanted to do was wait until the conkers were falling. We would string them up and smash them together, revelling in this annual autumn battle. I still collect conkers, but they don’t get strung up any more. Rather, they sit on altars, usually at north, as a reminder of the changing season and that great things start small. I have one in my pocket right now, and feeling its smooth,…

 I Rose (from a  Hekate Meditation):  My rose was blue I stepped beneath the arch My rose was gold Or peach Softness incarnate Never crimson Never bold Tentative like my Steps. I rose beneath the arch To meet four faces Framed with snake With sea With sinister teeth With chains With all the keys I need To break free. I rose and took The proffered seaweed Tiny bladders ready To pop with salty sweetness A shoreline promise Of things to come. I rose, hands out Filled with light; Stepping into darkness My rose was black Ashen; withered Suddenly alive again! Gold and glowing Snakebite antidote Starlight flowing I rose; I…

Anxiety vs Meditation I’m getting back into meditation this month. I’m fortunate enough to be involved with groups of spiritually minded people who are far more organised than I and can arrange structured workings. Without this kick in the butt I struggle to grant myself the time needed to clear and de-clutter my messy mind space. It’s strange, isn’t it, how we can work so much harder for others, than we can work solely for ourselves… Or is that just me?   Anyhoo, I’ve done my first, proper meditation in months and it was wild, intense, and full of vivid imagery that almost immediately led to poetry. This makes me…

Notes from the Apothecary: Oak There are very few trees with as many mythological and folklore links as the oak. For many, the entire wheel of the year is based on the eternal battle between the Oak King and the Holly King, with the Oak King’s power now ebbing and fading as the nights draw in and the season gives way to autumn.   Robert Graves drew on various myths and folklore to create the image of the two great spirits locked in endless struggle, in his book The White Goddess. However, the idea of light battling dark is, of course, much older than Graves’ description, and can be seen…

Joanna van der Hoeven: Breathing the Ancient Breath   Joanna van der Hoeven is a best-selling author, teacher, and co-founder of Druid College UK. Joanna took some time out to speak to Mabh here at Pagan Pages. Mabh Savage: Pagan Portals: The Awen Alone has been an incredibly popular release. Tell us a bit about the book, and why you think it has such wide ranging appeal. Joanna van der Hoeven: I’m absolutely delighted at the reception The Awen Alone: Walking the Path of the Solitary Druid has received. It’s a book in the Pagan Portals series, a lovely series of books that provides an introduction to a certain topic…

Notes from the Apothecary: Maple   How beautiful the maple tree is. Also known as acers (from the Latin for sharp, due to the points on the leaves), maples range from small shrubs to 45-metre-high trees, are spread all over the world and although can be evergreen, are normally renowned for their spectacular colour show in the fall. The picture to the left is a collection of autumn leaves my boy and I collected a couple of years ago. As you can see, the maple leaves (from Norway maples) are very prominent in the display. Well known as the symbol of Canada, and also the state tree of Vermont and…