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Winter Solstice 2016 Bright Blessings! The Solstice Season is upon us, and all I can think about is planning my ritual and gathering. Then, I can’t wait until the hubbub dies down from shopping, and parties that last until January. I have done my annual bowing out of all Christmas themed celebrations, and reminded people I do not send cards, or do gift exchanges. I have had the gripe fests with others who want to avoid the mainstream holiday, but can’t get away from it. A friend hit the nail on the head yesterday, and said, “I am just NOT in the Xmas Spirit this year.” I told him that…

The Faeries Winter can often convince us that we are older than we truly are. It is so much easier to take a walk in the summer and sit in the sun and drift back in time. But even though the Winter is a time for quietness and reflection,- there is still much that we can do to reconnect with nature and ,hopefully, our childhood appreciation of the magic which is all around us. On fine days, tuck up well, and walk in the winter forest. Listen to the wind in the trees. Watch the ash swaying and dancing with its beautiful silvery bark. Find a Holly tree, all bedecked in bright…

Nikki Starcat Shields: Centered in Reverence and Joy     Starcat is a Pagan based in Maine, and the author of numerous books, including Starcat’s Corner: Essays on Pagan Living. She’s the co-creator of the 30-Day Core Belief Kit and a personal spiritual coach. Despite her busy life, Starcat took the time to talk to Mabh at Pagan Pages about her world and her inspiration. Mabh Savage: Where does the beautiful name Starcat come from? Starcat: When I was choosing my Pagan name, more than 20 years ago now, I was inspired by Starhawk’s writings and her name. I too resonate strongly with the stars, and I have had a…

Lunar Magick: Part Two A Little Astrology This is the second of a series of articles that explores our connection to the Moon and how to use HER energy for magick and spiritual growth….     So What’s Astrology Got To Do With It? One of the important considerations when doing lunar magick is maximizing the effects of the working through use of the most beneficial astrological sign that your Full or New Moon is transiting through. Each of the astrological signs is identified by two basic qualities: the element (Earth, Air, Fire or Water) to which it resonates and the quality of that particular element (Cardinal, Fixed or Mutable)…

Meditative Mandala Stones By Maria Mercedes Trujillo Arango I am always looking for different and new ways to meditate. While I have heard of mandala meditation, i.e. meditating while looking at a mandala, I have never tried it. This set brings a new dimension to it, in that you make your own mandala on large river stones. My assumption is that it is akin to being stress-free by coloring, another trend. Ms. Arango gives us a brief introduction as to how she came to mandalas, after having a life-long love of stones. She began to draw mandalas in her journals and studying their history. Mandala in a broad sense means…

Maintaining a Book of Shadows This is not the article that I was going to write. I was going to write about Runes. I was going to do a review of the book, Runes for Beginners, by Alexandra Chauran, and write about the history of runes in general. While researching the subject, I looked through the notebooks that comprise my Book of Shadows, sure that I had something about runes. I most certainly did – coincidentally, it was a print-out of a page that I had on my computer screen at that very moment! I had received it in an email from a Yahoo group I was a member of…

    Night star – Dreaming Goddess – Labrys – Snakes – Hand with seeds As we come into this time of the Solstice, I ask the question – What do people need to know in this Solstice season? The Council of Elders came to us this day to tell us, “Make your wishes, dream your dreams, you hold the power, release your fears, plant your seeds and know your dreams can come true.” The Night Star is there to light your way through the darkness. That simple rhyme of our childhood, Star Light, Star Bright, First star I see tonight… by which we made our wishes. Sometimes the wishes…

Flags, flax, fodder, Frig ! This old Devonshire witch greeting conveys best wishes for the four goods in life: (1) a house (flagstones), (2) clothes (linen was common), (3) enough food (for you as well as your livestock) and (4) a good sex life. No. (4) is taken from the name of Odin’s wife, the Goddess Frig. Frig was the Goddess of conjugal love, so you are not wishing promiscuity on someone. No true Pagan will use Her name in coarse expressions, by the way ! Light a Candle Whenever a fundie or some other cowan (non-witch) vilifies my religion, I remind myself of the saying “better to light a…

  Lesser Sabbat – Winter Solstice, circa Dec 21 Other Names: Jul (“wheel”, Old Norse), Saturnalia(Rome ~December 17 & 18), Yuletide(Teutonic), Midwinter, Fionn’s Day, Christmas (Christian~December 25), Xmas, Festival of Sol, Solar/Secular/Pagan New Year Animals/Mythical beings: yule goat (nordic), reindeer stag, squirrels, yule cat, Sacred White Buffalo, Kallikantzaroi-ugly chaos monsters(greek), trolls, phoenix, yule elf, jule gnome, squirrels, wren/robin Gemstones: cat’s eye, ruby, diamond, garnet, bloodstone Incense/Oils: bayberry, cedar, ginger, cinnamon, pine, rosemary, frankincense, myrrh, nutmeg, wintergreen, saffron Colors: gold, silver, red, green, white Tools,Symbols, & Decorations: bayberry candles, evergreens, holly, mistletoe, poinsettia,mistletoe, lights, gifts, Yule log, Yule tree. spinning wheels, wreaths, bells, mother & child images Goddesses: Great Mother, Befana…

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…