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Notes from the Apothecary
Notes from the Apothecary: The Christmas Tree Straight away, I know many of you will be wondering why I’m bringing Christmas to the table, when most of us are looking forward to Yule or the Winter Solstice. Well, it’s because I absolutely adore the tradition of the Christmas tree. And, despite what many people think, it’s not an inherently Pagan symbol, although there are definite Pagan roots, pardon the pun. Christmas trees are so popular today that they are grown in all 50 American states, including even Hawaii, and most other places in the world. From candlelit trees in Germany in the 1800s to fiber optic light shows…
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Modern Yuletide Tales
**This is an excerpt from my first book, A Modern Celt: Seeking the Ancestors. The Winter Solstice has always been an incredibly magical time for me, despite not being (as far as we know) typically a Celtic festival. Here are some of my more mysterious experiences during the shortest day and longest night. My most precious memories of the winter solstice all seem to be of going to a specific lakeside on the longest night. I remember it always feels later in the day than it is, because despite it only being early evening it is already pitch black, and once you move away from the roads there…
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She Who is All – Goddess of Ten Thousand Names
Hestia & Vesta, the Goddesses of Hearth & Home As we enter into that time of the year when folks gather together with family and friends, what better time to honor Hestia and Vesta, the Goddesses of Hearth and Home, in Greece and Rome respectively. (Photo credit: goddessgift.net) Hestia is the Greek Goddess of Hearth and Home. She took no human form, but was only seen in the fire of the Hearth. Homes were built from the center outward; this center always being the hearth, in which Hestia was always welcome. She was honored each morning and evening with an offering from each family, at their respective hearths, Hestia’s sacred…
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Gael Song
The Sacred Geometry of Nemetons In order to explain the sacred geometry of nemetons, I need to briefly explain the levels of light in the inner planes. My understandings about this topic came through my 30-year druid path, druidry and light healing both. The simple, meditative, healing process I use twice a day moved me gradually through many planes of light, which came into the ethers around me for a week or so and then moved out below, so I was always moving up, an ascension process basically. Altogether, there were 363 planes, separated into seven different inner worlds, or heavens. Each heaven was inhabited by different beings who came…
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MagickalArts
Creating Sacred Space The Experience of Sacred Space makes possible the “founding of the world”: where the sacred Manifests itself in space, the real unveils itself, and the world comes into existence … Mircea Eliade … What is Sacred Space? Read and re-read the quote above. Take it into your space of meditation. Analyze, dissect and observe it from all angles, perspectives and meaning. Try to feel the weight and breath of its meaning and allow the words to gently wash over you. Digest it and then simply sit with the feeling of satiety its inner essence provides. And, once you have done these things, redo them, one by one.…
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Excerpt From Winter Solstice Short Story…
Winter Fires: A Solstice Story in Two Parts Part One Lily pulled on her warmest coat and snow boots, ready for an adventure outside. Snow had been falling for several hours and she loved the quiet that descended when the ground was blanketed in fluffy white snow. Even the coziness and warmth of her cottage could not entice her to stay inside and miss the chance of walking at sunset through the woods that bordered her home. She wrapped a wool scarf snugly around her neck and pulled on the winter cap that she had just finished knitting and had been hoping for a chance to wear it sooner rather…
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Celebrating the Old Ways in New Times
Celebrating the Old Ways in New Times for December 2019 (Photo by Osman Rana on Unsplash) Bright Blessings! The Winter Holidays are upon us, and it seems there are as many different celebrations as there are different kinds of people circle in our Pagan Communities. No matter what you celebrate, though, it is undeniable that Christmas somehow influences you at this time of year. Whether you are like me and get sick to death of it all very quickly, and decry the fact it lasts so long, or you are somebody who enjoys it all, it is very much a part of our culture. One thing that strikes me is…
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This Month’s Freebie From Artist Chiara Torsi of PaperCatLab on Etsy
Yule Coloring Page From Artist Chiara Torsi of PaperCatLab on Etsy Download Your Free Coloring Page PDF Here: yule free coloring page Chiara Torsi is an italian artist, writer, painter and illustrator. She had the chance to grow up in an artsy family because her father is Maestro Luciano Torsi, a professional painter. She is a doctor in experimental psychology. In April 2017 published an essay book (currently on sale) about artificial intelligence and affective computing (“Emozioni umane e Affective Computing“) but she never stop making art. In the middle of a bad time of her life, she felt the need to share her art with…
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Plant Spirit Medicine in Shamanic Practice
What’s in the Brew? Scientist: Mescaline. Shaman: God. Shamans…believe that the information given to us… by other teacher plants or in non-ordinary states such as dreams and meditations is as valid (or more so) than that received from ordinary perception and thought. Furthermore, such information is given to us to be used in daily life not to be ignored, denied, or seen as lacking in merit or purpose. To deny our dreams, after all, is to deny a large part of our human and spiritual experience. Thus, for San Pedro shamans, the visions and insights gained from the plant are there to inform our everyday behavior in the ‘real world’…
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MagickalArts
Creating Sacred Space The Experience of Sacred Space makes possible the “founding of the world”: where the sacred Manifests itself in space, the real unveils itself, and the world comes into existence … Mircea Eliade … What is Sacred Space? Read and re-read the quote above. Take it into your space of meditation. Analyze, dissect and observe it from all angles, perspectives and meaning. Try to feel the weight and breath of its meaning and allow the words to gently wash over you. Digest it and then simply sit with the feeling of satiety its inner essence provides. And, once you have done these things, redo them, one by…