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Spring, Beltane, and the Magick of Renewal: A Special Column from The Modern Merlin
Hello friends, and welcome to May! Happy May Day, and Merry Beltane/Bealtaine! After a short hiatus, I’m back, and will slowly be picking up the pace in my writing so as to not burn myself out. How often I’ll be posting this month is TBD, if I’m being honest, but I’m excited to be back! That aside, I’m excited to be sharing with you a unique perspective I’ve come to regarding Beltane. Beltane is, and always was, a fertility festival; there’s an energy of renewal in the air, and love, too. Culminating with the Solstice at Midsommer, this season is truly about life renewed, as the bees and various critters…
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A World Re-Enchanted April 2025
The flowers of spring are now in full bloom as the days grow longer and the weather warmer. The winter season has passed as spring continues assert its influence and time upon the world of Arda. Spring is a time of great change and as the vitality of the world grows again, the world is ready for prosperity and change. The month of April focuses on Youth which is viewed differently among the races of Arda. For example, the Hobbits can be described as being carefree and innocent focused on the simple pleasures of the shire. The Hobbits are not considered adults until 33 years old. As a result…
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April 8th, 2024
I wrote this last year right after the solar eclipse. I figured it was worth sharing since this month it had been a year. Enjoy! … I drag myself out of bed after only a few hours of sleep. I’m a nocturnal creature who has found her home on third shift. I leave the house in my galaxy pajama pants and “I love horror movies,” t-shirt, with my curly green hair floating around my head like seaweed. So many people asked me if I would get up to watch the Eclipse. I asked myself who would sleep through it?The roads are abnormally quiet for the middle of the day,…
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A World Re-Enchanted March 2025
The month of March brings the first day of Spring. The clocks spring forward for places that have daylight savings time (not something that exist for us in Hawaii) and flowers start to bloom and there is a vitality in the air. The elemental focus for this month based on the Elven lore of Arda is Air. As with last month another of the three Elven rings forged by Celebrimbor in the second age is associated with Air. The ring is called Vilya also known as the Ring of Sapphire, the Blue Ring or the Ring of Air. The powers of this ring while never directly stated are speculated to…
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Cody’s Column: Working With Land and Animal Spirits
It is eclipse night, and the rain is pouring down. I won’t get to see the eclipse, but I will feel it. I have been feeling it in the land and animal spirits that live here along the Magic Skagit River. The ravens who have been visiting again, the elk all standing in a line alongside the road, two eagles perched on a branch chattering with each other, circles of water rippling on the river, nettles peeking up off the forest floor, Indian Plum flowers blooming, and of course the iconic daffodils blooming in the Skagit Valley. Tonight, I write to you about being receptive to these spirits. For some…
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SpellCrafting: Cord Cutting With a Candle
There are multiple ways of doing a cord cutting. This one uses two candles and a looped cord. The ritual energetically cuts ties with something – be it a person, a place, a habit, etc. Unlike a binding and some other forms of magick, this will not create a bond with what you cut from your life. If possible, do this work on a dark moon, or when it is waning, for an added boost. Choose a candle to represent yourself and one to represent what you wish to cut loose. White for you and black for the other person or thing are probably the most commonly used, but the…
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A World Re-Enchanted February 2025
“It is said by the Eldar that in water there lives yet the echo of the Music of the Ainur more than in any substance that is in this Earth; and many of the Children of Ilúvatar hearken still unsated to the voices of the Sea, and yet know not for what they listen.” R. R. Tolkien The elemental focus for this month based on the Elven lore of Arda is Water. As the above quote shows for the Elves of Arda water is a powerful force holding extensive wisdom and knowledge from the past. The Teleri or coastal Elves are most deeply connected to the ocean primarily and…
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The Modern Merlin’s Corner-February 2025: Embodying the Divine Masculine in a Toxic Masculine Society
Hello, and welcome to February! I hope everyone who celebrates had a wonderful, and inspiring, Imbolc. We’re currently seeing the effects of toxic masculinity in our society-especially if you live in USA. Our leadership, to be blunt, embodies everything that the masculine energy has to offer in its shadow: greed, hatred, bigotry, intolerance, and more. While there are many who support this cult of personality surrounding the “FOTUS”, I believe there are many more who are opposed to him, including within the United States. As a male leftist, pagan, witch, sorcerer and mystic, embodying the masculine comes with a sort of taboo these days; many see anything masculine as simply…
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The Rite Way: Blessing Tools at Imbolc
Imbolc marks the return of spring, even as winter continues its reign. It’s a time of rebirth and fertility, hope and new growth. It’s time to prepare for the warm spring days to come and for the renewal of Mother Earth and her bounty. This ritual is written for a group but can easily be modified for a solitary practitioner. The goddess most associated with Imbolc is Brigid, a triple goddess, the patron of poets and bards as well as healers, magicians, and smiths. She was especially honored when it came to matters of prophecy and divination. She is the keeper of the flame, the protector of the home, and a…
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A Word Re-Enchanted January 2025
The Gregorian calendar has once again turned over and the start of a new year has begun. Change is a constant aspect of the seasons and time moves steadily forward. Here on the Big Island of Hawaii however things progress along pretty normal timelines. The seasons do not really exist and so tracking things like winter, spring, summer and fall are completely different. That being said even January has an impact as people look towards the newly unfolding year. Many people drawing on the fire ignited by the energy of the new year have started resolutions and sadly some have already ceased them and an estimated 43% will drop them…
