Visualization Visualization within meditation is a wonderful tool, used for a specific goal or purpose. For those of us who also walk the Pagan path, it can also be used in ritual, in deep inner journeys, and in our magick. Visualizations can be as simple as closing your eyes and imagining yourself on the beach, to a complex guided meditation that takes you deep within yourself. For example, if you make or use candles for specific purposes in your workings, let’s say for healing, you would visualize a healing energy going into the making of the candle, and again when you charge it for your working. Another example of visualization…

Mala Beads Mala beads are used when chanting, repeating mantras, or the name of a deity. They are also used to focus your mind during your meditation. The word “mala” comes from the Sanskrit word for garland. The earliest traces of mala beads dates back to at least the 3rd century BCE. However, it is said that Buddha himself gave us the instructions for their use. There is a sutra (teaching) that tells us that there was once a king who prayed extremely hard to Buddha for a simple way to help ease his suffering from all the difficulties he faced. Buddha responded by telling him to get 108 soapnut…

Freya     Freya, or Freyja, Queen of the Valkyries and Queen Mother of the Vanir, is both a goddess of love, peace and sexuality, as well as the ruler of war and death. As a goddess of peace, she is the spirit of the Earth’s fertility, as she is always there when Spring has awakened, and removes herself from earth in the Fall and Winter. As one of the Vanir, she was a giver of magic, and as such, she taught women chosen by her, magic songs to allow them to see into the future. As Queen of the Valkyries, she clothed herself in a falcon-feathered cloak and her…

Mudra   I love mudra.  It is a simple, yet fulfilling, peaceful part of meditation.  Mudra is simply yoga for your hands.  It is a Sanskrit word, meaning “seal”.   The ancient yogis found that each part of the hand and how it moves correspond to certain other parts of the body or the mind.  It can also relate to your emotions, feelings and your behaviors.   There have always been hand languages and hand gestures in many of the cultures around the world.  Look at paintings of Buddha, Jesus, many saints and religious icons; notice the hand gestures, palm open facing forward or fingers touching.  These are mudras.  Hand…

Brigid As I sit here writing this column, it is only a handful of days until Imbolc, which makes it easy to choose Brigid as this month’s Goddess.   She is known today, by many, as St. Bridget of the Christian church.  Oh, but she was and is so much more.   Brigit, pronounced “Breed” started at a triple goddess in Ireland and surrounding areas.  In England, she was known as Brigantia; in Scotland, Bride; in Celtic France, Brigandu.  Her name means “bright one” or “bright arrow”.  A great flame went out from her head and into the sky on the day of Her birth.  This flame, tended at a…

Kali   “By you this universe is borne, by you this world is created By you it is protected, O Devi. By you it is consumed at the end You who are eternally the form of the whole world, at the time of creation you are the form of the creative force, at the time of preservation you are the form of the protective power and at the time of the dissolution of the world you are the form of the destructive power You are the Supreme Knowledge, as well as ignorance, intellect and compassion” From the Devi-Mahatmya I was unsure of which Goddess to choose for the January column. …

Mantras As someone who has been teaching Kundalini Yoga for 17 years, I think mantra has been the things I have been most leery of teaching. Most people do not understand it, even when it is explained. I have had students refuse to use mantra at all. Even though yoga and meditation are secular and can be done by anyone regardless of religion, some felt it went against theirs and were very uncomfortable with it. I understand all of the reasoning behind why they did not wish to do it. In my OWN PERSONAL OPINION, I feel the real reason behind their refusal was fear. They think mantra is different…

Winter Goddesses As I am writing this, it is a week before the holiday of Thanksgiving, meaning that Winter Solstice is just around the corner. Here in the northeast section of the United States, the weather has begun to get quite chilly and we have had the first tiniest taste of snow, while in other parts of this country, the ice and wind chill has already begun to wreak havoc. So, I thought this would be the perfect time to write about just a few of the many Winter Goddesses that abound throughout the world.     Colleda is the Goddess of Winter in Serbia. She was the one to…

  Pranayama – Breath   I hope that you have been practicing the simple breath meditation I spoke of in last month’s column. This month, I would like to continue talking about conscious breathing, also called Pranayama. The inhale, what you bring in, is called prana; the exhale, or what you put out, is called apana. I’m sure it sounds strange to say that I want to teach you how to breathe. We all breathe everyday, constantly, all day. It’s what we do. But, we are not consciously breathing. Think about how you breath in different situations – when you are exercising, when you are thinking over a problem, when…

Preparing to Meditate In the last column, I discussed the benefits of meditation and why you should attempt to practice it in your life on a daily basis. Take meditation to heart as a golden path to Infinity which must be experienced in practical activity each day ~ ~ Yogi Bhajan Preparing for meditation is more than just sitting down, closing your eyes and breathing.  You must be present and open, as meditation is opening yourself to the Universe, to Infinity. Go to your sacred space that you have set up for meditation.  If you have not set up a special place, then go someplace quiet where you will not…