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The Poetry of Author David Sparenberg
WORD Before the written word, there was the spoken word. Before the chronicles of history, there were stories. Before tabloids and the messy spawn of scandalous gossip, ballads and epic poems sounded in mouths of bards and minnesingers. Against the blind furies of forgetfulness, arose high cultures of memory. Long before civilized humanity slumped into pulp fiction and sado-masochistic fantasies, myths were weaving threads of truth into archetypes, extending the dimensions of reality. Guiding words of fire’s intensity and eloquence resonate joyously through the alchemic laboratories of time! You who have befriended Tolkien and the Shire, Arthur, Merlin, and voyagers to the Isle of Women, far, far off in…
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Road to Runes
Reconnecting to Spirituality I recently had to write a little bit about divination for the Pagan Federation, and I realised that my regular practice had become, well, not so regular. For many months, I was drawing a card or a rune daily, and even taking an in-depth course on Ogham with the Irish Pagan School. However, I’d allowed myself to become bogged down in “day job” work and other commitments, and wasn’t utilising the tools at my disposal. What better prompt to get back into my journey learning the runes than this! And, what better question than, “How do I reconnect to my spiritual practice and ensure I’m not…
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Wishing and Willing – An Excerpt from the Book Higher and Friendly Powers: Transforming Addiction and Suffering by Dr. Peg O’Connor
Wishing and Willing (The following is an excerpt from Higher and Friendly Powers: Transforming Addiction and Suffering by Dr. Peg O’Connor.) A person’s attitude matters enormously. Does he wish to stop using or does he will to stop using? Willing and willingness need to be distinguished from desiring and wishing. The latter two can lead to incredible frustration and suffering. The former makes possible great transformation. James defines desire as wanting to feel, to have, or to do what presently is not felt, had, or done. Desires can be about anything. We desire material goods like cars, houses, a good meal, etc. We also desire immaterial goods such…
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Book Review – Zen Rohatsu by Nora D’Ecclesis
Book Review Zen Rohatsu By Nora D’Ecclesis Publisher: Renaissance Presentations, LLC 101 pages Publication: July 1, 2022 From the book description: “Zen Rohatsu is the A to Z of Zen, as it is the backstory of why we meditate, live mindfully and have a spiritual practice. The Zazen Meditation combines the practice with mind and body from a 2,700 year old philosophy. It informs us of the potential enlightenment from suffering that historical Buddha experienced while sitting under a fig tree in ancient times. Meditation keeps us in the present with focus, equanimity and stress management. Rohatsu is a spiritual…
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Notes from the Apothecary
Notes from the Apothecary: Samhain Special Welcome to the special Samhain edition of Notes from the Apothecary! Samhain is the approximate midpoint between Autumn Equinox and Winter Solstice, and for many in the northern hemisphere, the time when we start to notice the long descent into the colder months. This means there is less wild food, plus fewer herbs and plants growing, so it’s often time to start using up ingredients stored from summer. In this issue, I’m going to go through some of my favourite herbs, fruits, and veggies to use around Samhain, and why I think they’re so magical. 5 Samhain Herbs, Fruits, and Vegetables …
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The Lughnasadh Issue
Blessed Lughnasadh! — This harvest holiday, we have a wonderful issue for you! We have an extensive interview with Natalie Meraki, as well as book reviews of the latest books from Jason Miller, Gabriel Herstik, and many more. Visit our Facebook page to enter our Big Harvest Giveaway! We’ll be giving one prize away every two weeks — follow the PaganPagesOrg Facebook page to learn more!
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Book Review – Herbal Tea Magic for the Modern Witch: A Practical Guide to Healing Herbs, Tea Leaf Reading, and Botanical Spells by Elsie Wild
Book Review Herbal Tea Magic for the Modern Witch: A Practical Guide to Healing Herbs, Tea Leaf Reading, and Botanical Spells by Elsie Wild Published by Ulysses Press 224 pages Publication date: November 23, 2021 If you like tea and want to know more about its magical use, you’re certain to enjoy Herbal Tea Magic for the Modern Witch. This book is a modern introduction to basic herbs, mixing and brewing tea, tasseography, and basic herbal magic. The first chapter explores the history of herbalism and tasseography. This history is fairly short, but provides a good basis of context for what follows. Chapter two lists a number of…
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As Above, So Below (How the Stars Became Our Hearts)
Everything, Everywhere, For all Time A fool thinks he knows everything. A wise man knows he knows nothing. But… what is everything? Well. We don’t know much as a species. Our whole existence is a grab bag of unanswerable questions and paradoxes. Like the Fermi paradox, which is the absence of obvious evidence for alien life, despite the clear logical prediction that they should be there. Religion and science have struggled to understand everything, both as individual pieces and as an all inclusive collective. Throughout all time of collective human history, the closer we get to the answer, the further away it seems to be. Religion, and science,…
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Mabon/Autumn Equinox Correspondences
(art: Mabon Blessings Print – Wall Art by Regan Ralston of WaterofWhimsy on Etsy.) Autumn Equinox 2022 in Northern Hemisphere will be at 9:03 PM on Thursday, September 22 Michaelmas (September 25th, Christian), Second Harvest Festival, Witches’ Thanksgiving, Harvest Home (Anglo-Celtic), Feast of Avalon, Wine Harvest, Festival of Dionysus, Cornucopia, Equinozio di Autunno (Strega), Chung Chiu (China), Night of the Hunter, Alban Elfed “The Light of the Water”(Caledonii/ Druidic-celebrates Lord of the Mysteries), Winter Finding (Teutonic, from Equinox ’til Winter Night or Nordic New Year, Oct 15th.) It is the equilibrium of day and night and this represents the light and darkness in our lives. The long…
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Book Review – Higher and Friendly Powers: Transforming Addiction and Suffering by Peg O’Connor
Book Review Higher and Friendly Powers: Transforming Addiction and Suffering by Peg O’Connor Published by Wildhouse Publications June 1, 2022 288 pages I am someone who has struggled with addiction issues for most of her adult life, rotating in and out of AA since 1990. Currently I do not attend any meetings at all, but I do desire to live a clean and sober life so I was excited to get an Advanced Reader Copy of Higher and Friendly Powers: Transforming Addiction and Suffering, by Peg O’Connor, and published by Wildhouse Publications. Very simply, I was dying to transform my addiction and suffering – anyway I could. If…
