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Death is a life teacher because it is unavoidable.  It makes life that much more precious to know that your death is around the corner.  It can teach you about what is important and what is not.  It can jolt you into an understanding of how each moment is fleeting.  It destroys the illusion that things remain the same forever.  Death is also present in every experience of change that you have because there are always losses associated with it.  Whether the change is good or bad, self initiated or a surprise, it creates a hole in the reality you have constructed. -Hyemeyohsts Storm? from “Lightningbolt”  Death is considered one…

“The Enchanted Tarot” has sold more than 250,000 copies since its release in 1992. On the 25th anniversary of the project that defined their lives, the creative couple – collage artist Amy Zerner and author Monte Farber – took the time to answer questions for PaganPagesOrg.   PaganPagesOrg: How did you two meet? Monte: My first prophetic dream when I was 14 years old was really my best, for that is where I first “met” my gorgeous future wife, soulmate and artistic collaborator. I actually felt the then-indescribable feeling of being in love with her! It was a harbinger of the total and complete love that is my present daily…

A Few Words Tired of all the chemicals beauty products put into your hair? There is an alternative and it may be more beneficial than using store-bought shampoos. If you love your hair, then you should consider switching to using natural ingredients to clean your hair. Natural ingredients bring with them all the vital nutrients your hair needs to look its best. If your hair looks good, then so do you. You may not be sure that you can use natural ingredients on your hair. That is okay, our guide on how to do wash hair properly with natural ingredients will provide you with the confidence you need to try…

Yuletide Sobriety Who doesn’t party during the holidays? Scrooge? The Grinch? But when you’re in recovery, holiday parties – whether they are office parties at work, family parties around a table groaning with food and drink or coven Yule rituals with “cakes and ale” – are a challenge, to say the least. What do you do? How do you navigate these chilly, choppy waters? I’ll be honest with you – I’ve relapsed over the holidays more than once. It’s so easy to see everyone else – those so-called “normal” people – with drinks in their hands – laughing, happy – and want what they seemingly have. Yeah! Just one drink.…

Notes from the Apothecary: Mistletoe A poisonous parasite by nature, yet revered throughout history as sacred and mystical, mistletoe (viscum) is a strange plant that exists only via the bodies of other plants, mainly trees. Viscum album is the most widely recognised form of mistletoe, and often appears latched on to the oak tree, making a pairing that is very significant within the Druidic path. Several 18th century paintings depict druids cutting or having cut mistletoe, which refers to the account by Pliny the Elder of the Ritual of Oak and Mistletoe which involved Gaulish druids climbing an oak on the sixth day after a new moon, and cutting the…

The Wild Hunt of Frau Holle and Her Heimchen In Europe the months of November and December are the classic time of year when the Veil is thin and we catch glimpses of a phenomenon called The Wild Hunt. In this art video shamanic teacher and painter Imelda Almqvist explores the role of a very ancient Northern European goddess called Frau Holle, as a soul conductor for children. There are many reports of her roaming the land and night sky accompanied by the spirits of dead children. This phenomenon is called The Wild Hunt. In Middle Dutch the name of the Milky Way was Vroneldenstraet: the street or highway of…

White Buffalo Woman (Photo Credit: ancient-origins.net) The legend of White Buffalo Woman is an old one and centers around the spiritual practices of many Native American tribes of North American. It centers mostly around the Lakota Nations, but She is also central to other Tribes, including the Sioux and the Oglala. It is important to know that the buffalo are sacred, representing abundance and harmony. White Buffalo Woman, also known as Ptesan-Wi is a strong, powerful woman, bringing to the North American Native Americans some of their most sacred ceremonies. The myth, as it is told, tells of two warriors sent out from a Lakota camp, looking for food. Appearing…

(image from: http://startliving-now.blogspot.ca )   At Yule the world returns to its birth, recalling the awakening of our primeval ancestors as children beside their Mother, the World Tree, in the place of origin in the deep forest, now long lost. The Mother nurtured her children, and reached up to the world of the Sky Gods, through the portal of the Pole-star. This is why the Yule tree is still decorated on top with a star. From that world beyond Polaris the beneficent creative energies of the Sky Gods descended through the Mother to her children. The trees round about the place of origin were radiant with many-colored fruits, each potent with a…

The Natural Storyteller is a gorgeous heart-warming book full of stories that children (and people any age!) can relate to. It is a collection of stories, carefully gathered over a period of years, from all over the world (different sources, locations, periods in history). Some are based on myths, others on legendary figures or even saints (e.g. St Francis of Assisi makes an appearance – but in the story we meet his child self!) or extraordinary things that happened in the lives of ordinary people. What steals my heart about this book is that it unflinchingly addresses the turmoil and realities of life in the 21st century. The author does…

Does our world need a Global Apology Project?! About a week ago I ran the following post on my personal Facebook page: “While I was teaching in Philadelphia recently I received a piece of guidance (and it made me sit up in bed and pay attention): “our world will not heal until there has been acknowledgement and apology for every single act of injustice ever committed”. I teach all my students (in my Ancestral Healing work component) that shamanic healing work often means taking the place where an apology is owed and voicing that. I am teaching my students to get “beyond their own ego and their own ideas about right…