Mabon

🌱🧚Finding Earth Spirits In The Wild🧚🌱

🌱Earth spirits are just about the easiest ones to make contact with. Their forms tend to be less subtle than those of many fairies,and they generally stick to one place- so if you feel a location is haunted by these beings, it will always be haunted. Wherever anything grows, there will be a fairy to attend to it.

🌱 Earth fairies love gardens,and will gather round you while you are planting and watering. At the end of a hot day they exult when you get out the hose or watering can, and will dance among the refreshed flowers with glee. Often they do not like you weeding,though,so make sure you always do this with respect. Leave a patch of your garden to grow wild, for the fairies love this and it creates a space for all the plants that are unwelcome elsewhere- just because humans do not like them, this does not mean they do not have a valuable place in the scheme of things.

🧚 Method 🧚

To draw close to the gnomes,settle quietly in your garden or in a park,woodland, field, or hillside- close to a barrow-mound may be the most powerful place of all. Gnomes of the deep earth may be experienced in a cave or hollow,whereas others may be more of the flower- or tree-fairy types. Let your bare feet and hands make contact with the earth,mud or stone. Beat a soft rhythm on a drum,if you wish.

Be very still, relaxed,and quiet. Try not to see anything,because that will put you in the wrong frame of mind. Just be there, and be observant- these spirits do not show themselves in the ways you might expect, and seeing them can seem almost ordinary.

Be aware of any little movements out of the corner of your eye, for that is where spirits are often first perceived. An animal running in the undergrowth may also be a shy gnome in disguise. Look out for the face of the Green Man among the leaves, and watch flowers, for they can also be sweet faces, nodding and smiling.

To show they have drawn close to you, gnomes will often give you a tangible gift,such as a coin or a piece of jewelry. If you find this on your path,treasure it, for it is very lucky.

Learning alchemical correspondences

What’s neat about alchemy is that if you know a little about it, you can immediately apply the knowledge because so many magical, scientific and other disciplines were and still are built on basic alchemical principles. This isn’t about whether or not alchemy is right or wrong, just about its place in the evolution of our thought and art and sciences. You will it everywhere because it’s been around… and knowing how to read its tracks will help you understand a lot of things!

For instance, the shorthand of alchemy is used a lot in many places in magic and history. You can find it in heraldry, where it also bridges into the history of important aristocratic houses, and you will find it in chemistry, where it defines our earliest understandings of the behavior of metals and materials. You will especially find it in descriptions and charts dealing with spirits and magical ingredients, or names and descriptions of magical items.

So, here is a list of seven things you can look for that will give you alchemical knowledge about whatever subject is referencing alchemy. If you’re researching historical subjects, it’s especially useful because the further in the past you go, the more you’ll find people depending on alchemical knowledge, because at one time it was all we had. If you understand the thinking of the writers, you can understand their writing more, and find hidden references. You’ll also be more likely to pick up on the things they forgot to explain because they assumed some knowledge would be common to the everyday reader that no longer is. And you’ll know that if a ritual is supposed to be on a certain day of the week, and it asks for iron tools and red decor, you’ll be doing it on a Tuesday, and you’ll know that because you’ll know how to recognize Mars in a ritual.

I’m going to identify the metal, the day of the week, and the color. I say ‘color of decor’ to mean altar cloths, text color, colors of flowers and gems… etc. I’ve listed the colors I’ve often found “in the wild” in different correspondence charts and magical systems–it’s usually determined by what ink colors the author/culture had at their disposal, so don’t stress yourself out on getting it perfect. Once you have these basic correspondences down, you’ll be able to find many more.

Gold

Gold is the metal of the Sun. Sunday is the day that corresponds. The color of decor can vary from yellow to white to gold, depending on the constraints of your palette.

(Since Venus is copper, sometimes your palette’s limits may mean that the Sun is white, Venus is yellow, etc. You’ll find similar behavior with Mercury’s color associations.)

Quicksilver

Quicksilver is the metal of Mercury. Wednesday is the day that corresponds. The color of decor can vary–grey or silver or iridescent is typical, with some way that it is contrasted from the Moon.

(By the way, if you need a shortcut for remembering days of the week and which correspond to which metal, just look at them in French! Here’s a table.)

Iron

Iron is the metal of Mars. Tuesday is the day that corresponds. (Mardi Gras is always on a Tuesday!) The color of decor will be red. Iron is what makes dyes and paints–and blood–red, in fact.

Silver

Silver is the metal of the Moon. Monday is the day that corresponds. The color of decor will be silver or blue, depending on your palette’s constraints, and there’s the option of using white if the Sun isn’t doing that.

Copper

Copper is the metal of Venus. Friday is the day that corresponds. The color of decor will be copper or orange–gold/brass will work if it doesn’t conflict with other planets. (This last part only refers to the color brass. If you use the metal brass instead of copper, that can create conflicts, so be aware of that.)

Tin

Tin is the metal of Jupiter, so put on your tinfoil hat. Thursday is the day that corresponds. The color of decor will typically be green for Jupiter, which gives you a real break from having to find yet another shade of grey or silver in this system.

Lead

Lead is the metal of Saturn. Saturday is the corresponding day. The color of decor should be black or a dark color like purple, just goth it right the heck up.

This is why magicians end up keeping so many correspondence charts–you can find plenty of associations to add with just this basic set of information to start from, I’m sure, and every magician has their set of correspondences they prefer. You’ll find various systems that build on or copy off of this system, or that modify and mutate it. From it, you can also see the structures that make up a base foundation for a creative, scientific and magical system. If you’re interested in rolling your own, then this is a good place to start studying!

Ostara page redo

Samhain

An Samhain sind die Tore zur Anderswelt weit offen und wir gedenken⁹ an die Verstorbenen, die uns mal sehr nahe waren. In der Nacht zum 1. November ist es darum leicht, mit den Geistern der Verstorbenen in Kontakt zu treten.

Diese Nacht ist auch gut für Weissagungen. Orakelt wurde mit der Schafgarbe, Hanf, und dem Bilsenkraut. Nach dem Glauben früherer Völker beschützen unsere Ahnen ihre Familien und so gedachte man ihnen zu Samhain.

Ein Verstorbener musste über ein Jahr tot sein, um das an ihn mit Gaben gedacht wurde, denn nach ihrem Glauben benötigt man ein Jahr um sich von seinen physischen Körper zu lösen.

Wenn die Lebenden in diesem Jahr nicht loslassen oder übermässige Trauer tragen, werden die Verstorbenen viel zu lange in dieser Welt festgehalten und haben keine Möglichkeit in Ruhe zugehen.

Dieses Fest ist auch der Totengöttin Holle gewidmet. Eine Erdgöttin des Totenreiches. Sie wacht über die Verstorbenen und heisst sie willkommen.

Lug der keltische Gott, begibt sich jetzt in die Erde zurück und ihm folgt die Göttin Morrigan. Sie steht im Glauben der Kelten für die Behütung der Seelen und Samen von Mensch, Tier und Pflanze.

- Celticgarten

Rübenlaternen (im Deutschen Rübenlichtle) mit eingeschnitzten Grimassen sollten den geliebten Verstorbenen den Weg weisen und gleichzeitig unleidliche Bewohner der jenseitigen Welt fernhalten. Diese Bräuche finden sich heute noch in Form von geschnitzten Kürbissen, Lampions und Laternen wieder. Verzierte Kürbisse (die Kelten selbst kannten keine Kürbisse) sollen ihren Ursprung in der schon christianisierten keltischen Tradition haben. Hier waren sie gedacht als Abschreckung gegenüber Elfen und Feen, die auf der Suche nach Kindern waren, die sie für würdig hielten, ihre Welt zu betreten. Besorgte Eltern höhlten die Gewächse aus und ritzten Zeichen und Fratzen hinein, die durch ihr schreckliches Aussehen alles Böse in die Flucht treiben sollten. In der Samhainnacht wurden Rüben (später Kürbisse) mit einer Kerze darin nun nicht mehr als Wegweiser ans Fenster oder vor die Tür gestellt, sondern dienten dazu, mißgünstige Naturgeister und unheilbringende Spukgestalten fernzuhalten. Es war zudem nicht ratsam, sich umzudrehen, wenn man Schritte hinter sich vernahm, denn die Verstorbenen konnten einen leicht versehentlich mit auf die andere Seite nehmen.

Wissenswert: Dabei muss man beachten, dass die vorchristliche jenseitige Welt oder keltische Anderswelt nicht gleichbedeutend mit der christlichen Hölle oder dem christlichen Himmel war, sondern ein Ort, an dem Götter, Ahnen und Feen wohnten und wo der ehrlich Suchende große Weisheit erfahren konnte. Die Anderswelt war ein Ort der Wunder, der aber auch große Gefahren barg, was die sichere Rückkehr betraf. Neugierige, die an Beltane oder Samhain in der Anderswelt verschwanden, waren nicht etwa Geistern und Dämonen zum Opfer gefallen, sondern einfach im Bruch des Zeitgefüges zur falschen Zeit am falschen Ort und landeten daher schon einmal auf der anderen Seite.

Aus: Das magische Jahr

Experten vermuten die Wurzeln des Festes weit in vorchristlicher Vergangenheit und geben einen Zeitraum von 3000 bis 5000 Jahren v.u.Z. an. Damit wäre Samhain / Samhuinn / Samhraidhreadh eines der ältesten Feste der Menschheit. Von den historischen Kelten hat sich das Fest Trix Samonis überliefert, welches Anfang November gegangen wurde und weitestgehend dem Samhainfest entsprechen soll. Die Festlichkeiten erstreckten sich über mehrere Tage. Vergleichbar mit der heutigen Karnevalszeit nimmt man inzwischen (mit regionalen Unterschieden) einen ganzen Festzyklus zwischen Oktober / November und Januar / Februar an — ähnlich der nordischen Julzeit.

©️Claudia Liath

Wissenswert: Vielen ist der Begriff Halloween geläufiger als Samhain, wobei Halloween nicht mit Samhain identisch ist, sondern eine nachfolgend in christlicher Zeit entstandene Abwandlung des Festes. Das Wort leitet sich ab von All Hallow’s Eve(ning), während das Fest selbst eine Verbindung aus Allerheiligen und Samhain darstellt - wenngleich eine Theorie existiert, die in Halloween oder Helloween Parallelen zur nordischen Unterweltsgöttin Hel entdeckt haben will.

Halloween vereint zahlreiche Traditionen, von alten germanischen, keltischen, römischen und griechischen Bräuchen, über christliche Sitten bis hin zu neuzeitlichen Jahreskreisfeiern und kann daher auf reichhaltiges Brauchtum zurückblicken. Es ist eine Mischung aus Herbst- und Erntebräuchen, Verkleidungsbrauchtum sowie Heischebräuchen (Bitten um Gaben, oft verbunden mit dem Versprechen, für die Toten zu beten). Einen großen Teil davon nimmt die Ahnenverehrung ein, die sich in ganz Nordeuropa in der Zeit vom Erntedankfest bis zur Fasnacht findet.

Die Thematik Todesfurcht, Geister und Grusel bringen die christlichen Feste Allerheiligen und Allerseelen ein. Möglich sind auch Parallelen zu den römischen Lemuralia, sowie zu den griechischen Anthesterien, deren dritter Tag von ausgeprägter Geisterfurcht bestimmt war. Das Umherziehen von Tür zu Tür, das klassische Trick or Treat, gehört zu den alten Heischebräuchen. Zusammen mit den Rauhnächten oder der Walpurgisnacht zählt man Halloween zu den Unruhenächten, in denen Streiche gespielt wurden und man sich allerhand Schabernack einfallen ließ.

Aus: Das magische Jahr

Im Vergleich zu den Germanen wird Samhain dem Vetrnøttablót (Winternacht) und dem Mittwinterfest gleichgesetzt. Bei den Germanen wurden Herbst- und Totenfeuer entzündet, in denen Strohpuppen und geflochtene Körbe verbrannten. Den Verstorbenen legte man als Wegzehrung verschiedene Opfergaben auf die Gräber. Ein Brauch, der sich im Seelengebäck (Seelenbrot, Seelenzopf, Seelenwecken) zu Allerseelen erhalten hat. In diversen Ritualen hielt man Zwiesprache mit den Verstorbenen, riskierte einen Blick in die Zukunft oder versuchte, die destruktiven Wesenheiten gnädig zu stimmen.

Obgleich auch im Glauben der Germanen der Tod neues Leben barg, verbreitete er zugleich Schrecken. Ehe also der Winter anbrach, eine Zeit des Mangels, der Kälte und Dunkelheit wurde ein letztes Mal mit Verkleidungen und viel Lärm ausgelassen gefeiert. Maskierte verkörperten die Wilde Jagd, das Ahnen- und Geisterheer, das nun in Form der herbstlichen Stürme auszog um alles mitzureißen, was müde, krank, alt und morsch war und keinen Fortbestand mehr hatte. Auch stellte man den Kampf der Götter gegen die Winter- oder Eisriesen nach.

©️ Claudia Liath

S A M H A I N / Ahnenfest

Wenn die Welten sich berühren,

Öffnet still die Ewigkeit

Ihre Tore und wir spüren

Es beginnt die dunkle Zeit.

All die ruhelosen Seelen

Strömen aus der Anderswelt,

Mit Gesang aus toten Kehlen,

Zu dem Licht, das sie erhellt.

Lausche, höre, wie sie singen,

Hörst du diesen Andersklang?

Stimmen, die voll Wehmut klingen,

Ein betörender Gesang.

Niemals darfst du sie verfluchen,

Niemals wirst du sonst erkennen,

Wonach ihre Seelen suchen.

Darum lass das Feuer brennen.

Samhain Fest der Jahreswende,

Fürchte nicht die Dunkelheit.

Nur das Gute siegt am Ende,

Beltane ist nicht mehr weit.

Stimme milde ihre Herzen,

Zeige ihnen dein Gesicht.

Säume ihren Weg mit Kerzen,

Führe sie zu deinem Licht.

©  Simone Wiedenhoefer 

About Lucia

Going by the old Julian calendar, December 13 was the darkest night of the year — the eve of the winter solstice. This, however, changed after the calendar reformation in 1753, when the Gregorian calendar was put into use in Sweden, and the winter solstice shifted to December 21. But the folk tradition still stood — the night before the 13th was still popularly known as the darkest night, and therefore also the most dangerous, for the darkness allowed evil entities to thrive longer than any other night. This, in turn, has led to a number of traditions, but the most important aspect has always been the one of light and feasting. To keep the evil away, it was important to stay awake and to stay indoors with lights.

But to be able to stay awake a whole night, one must eat. Tradition decreed that almost all preparations for jól (the midwinter celebration) should also be completed by the 13th, including the slaughter of the festive pig, meaning there was fresh food prepared already and the long night served as a good reason to get an early start on the seasonal feasting. Sometimes, the teenagers and young adults would walk from neighbor to neighbor, singing songs in exchange for food and drink, protected with light. Sometimes they would dress up, and sometimes they would do some pranks to scare people.

Today, the tradition is still standing: to lussa is to dress up as Lucia and walk to neighbors or family members with song and cakes. However, the act of lussa was originally to stay awake during the night between the 12th and 13th and was called Lussevaka (Lusse watch). Lucia can still be equally called Lussefirande (Lusse celebration) today.

But why Lussa? Lussi, otherwise known as Lussekäringen (the Lussi witch) or Lussegubben (Lussi man), was an evil entity. She often took the form of a woman who came riding through the skies with her companions called lussifreda. She was one of the evil spirits who would lurk around in the night and take naughty children away through the chimneys, or punish those who had not completed their jól preparation.

And it is due to this, in the dark of the longest night with a despair for light, with evil all around, that the myth of a female figure of light arose. During the pre-Christian era, the light was sworn to keep evil away. The tradition of a light-bringing woman may therefore have its foundation in a heathen goddess of light who was invoked during this night. The tradition of celebrating light in this manner through Lussevaka has stayed on in different forms ever since.

There is also a theory that Lusse is Freya, hence the traditional bread called “lusse cats” would refer to the cats pulling her wagon.

Lusse bread is baked to honor Sunna (the sun) and attract it back when it was at its darkest, today's lusse cats still have the old Sunna symbols (the spirals at the ends).

In the 19th century, a special interest sparked in the Lusse celebration, due to the first wave of nationalism and the search for old folk traditions all around Sweden. Lusse, which was mainly celebrated by men or women dressing up in white with a crown of flowers, holding candlesticks and walking around the farm with food while singing in the morning, gave the foundation to the modern Lucia.

Crystals

~ What are Crystals and what are they used for?

   Most crystals ( in this case including gems, rocks, precious stones, semi-precious stones, and simple stones) are of mineral origin. Crystals, like amethyst, come out of the ground naturally faceted and don’t need to be changed in anyway. Diamonds, for example, come out of the ground equally as rough, but are usually polished and cut into intricate styles.

 For many years, crystal have been used as a tool to aid spiritual healing, psychic development, and meditation.

~ How can I incorporate Crystals into my everyday life?

   You can carry around your crystals. This way you can feel your crystals energy when needed. Place them in a little sachet or pouch and they are ready to go!

    Infuse your water with your clean crystals. This is a fast way to feel your crystals energy.

    Decorate your magickal space and/or surroundings with crystals.

    Meditate with your crystals. Just spend a minimum of 30 seconds with each crystal. Hold it in your hands, close your eyes, and feel its energy soaking into your skin.

How Crystals Can Help You

Agate

  ~Banded: help you feel grounded, remain focused, and banishes fears.

  ~Blue Lace: helps you adjust and adapt.

  ~Moss: refreshes spirit, brings peace of mind, helps to develop intuition.

  ~Tree: aids meditation and clear thinking, reduces stress.

Amazonite ~ soothes the nervous system, increases self-esteem and confidence.

Amber ~ relieves depression and lifts your spirits.

Amethyst ~ the great healer of mind, body, and spirit. helps the development of psychic abilities and intuition.

Apache Tears ~ brings good fortune and positive energy.

Apatite ~ aids in motivation and communicative powers.

Aquamarine ~ helps you during hard decisions and times. promotes compassion and empathy.

Azurite ~ relinquishes harmful beliefs.

Bloodstone (aka Heliotrope) ~ calms fears, and dispels confusion and obsessive ideas.

Calcite ~ boosts energy and provides amazing psychic protection.

Carnelian (aka Sard) ~ banishes jealousy and inspires courage. aids perception.

Celestine ~ helps with communication and good thoughts.

Chalcedony ~ balances emotions and lifts your spirits.

Chrysocolla ~ eases stress and promotes self-confidence.

Citrine ~ helps steady emotions and give inspiration.

Coral ~ strengthens and protects emotions.

Desert Rose ~ promotes love and stability in relationships.

Diamond ~ assists in your connection with the universe.

Emerald ~ strong healer with both physical and mental problems.

Fluorite ~ helps with rationality and combats anxiety and worries.

Garnet ~ protects against melancholy and depression. encourages perseverance and patience.

Hematite ~ helps with psychic development and building self-esteem.

Jade ~ a very useful healing stone for both the body and spirit.

Jasper ~ aids with stress relief and grounding. promotes tranquility.

Jet ~ keeps evil spirits at bay and strengthens character.

Kunzite ~ helps align emotions. provides security.

Kyanite ~ helps to align and heal chakras.

Labradorite ~ aids with strong development of psychic powers.

Lapis Lazuli ~ helps develop your sixth sense. stimulates intuition. promotes creativity.

Lepidolite ~ great for relieving stress and dispelling negative emotions.

Malachite ~ used for healing when dealing with negative emotions.

Moonstone ~ restores harmony and emotion balance.

Obsidian ~ helps you to focus on the paranormal, used for protection and a scrying tool.

Onyx ~ instills a protective psychic shield. 

Opal ~ helps with rationalizing emotional states.

Pearl ~ aids self-respect, stability, and self-esteem.

Pyrite ~ opens the mind to new ideas.

Quartz ~ channels and aids in meditation. a powerful healing stone.

Rose Quartz ~ aids in anything love-related. instills comfort, relieves grief, and promotes harmonious relationships.

Rutilated Quartz ~ releases energy blockers.

Rhodonite ~ helps with assurance and confidence.

Ruby ~ purifies love, promotes spiritual knowledge and to be realistic about situations.

Sapphire ~ aids in mental clarity, clearing your inner eye, and bringing good fortune.

Smoky Quartz ~ filters out negative thoughts and emotions. helps with telepathy.

Sodalite ~ heals damaged emotions, and aids in restful sleep.

Tanzanite ~ helps you to accept change.

TIger’s Eye ~ a powerful aid in those seeking knowledge about past or future lives. promotes persistence and protection.

Topaz ~ allows you to transmit your visualizations as universal messages. an aid in telepathy.

Tourmaline ~ repels all negative energy and is a powerful stone for protection.

Turquoise ~ an aid in luck, love, money, and protection.

Unakite ~ heals the psyche, helps you realize your higher self.

Crystal Care Tips

  Some crystals shouldn’t be left in direct sunlight. These include: Amethyst, Ametrine, Aquamarine, Celestite, Citrine, Fluorite, Kunzite, Opal, Rose Quartz, Smoky Quartz, Topaz, and Turquoise.

  Some crystals shouldn’t get wet. These include: Celestine, Desert Rose, Lapis Lazuli, Lepidolite, Malachite, Selenite, and Sodalite.

Click here to learn about Crystal Shapes.

source: Crystals by Cass & Janie Jackson

* If there is anything we missed or you’d like to add, just let us know! *

I hope this is useful! xx ~ @chlovoyant

About grimoires

I have seen a few witchblr post about using your own alphabet, and so I wanted to tell you the application FontForge is a free tool for creating your own fonts. If you have knowledge of graphic design, you can do really professional looking fonts, but if you’re a nob like me you can still create something both usable and good looking like this:

The developer(s) seem very kind people and work hard for having this tool free and open, and you can find very useful tutorials on youtube. Plus, you can add both symbols and letters with accent marks:

This is the working panel. What I did was using the straight line and the curve line and work with that, but you also have more tools, so you can experiment (in my case i didn’t want to spend a lot of time and wanted something that looked more like handwrite than a computer font, but that’s up to you!)

The only important thing is that you have to draw closed figures (you can’t just use one line). 

After you have the font done you can just save it for later edit and and add it to your writting software of preference. I don’t remember how it is done as I used a youtube tutorial, but I do remember it took less than 5 mins, bcause you only have to save+upload.

Celtic Deities: Cailleach, Ancient Old Crone of Winter

'There are three great ages; the age of the yew tree, the age of the eagle, the age of the Cailleach.' -An ancient Celtic poem

The Goddess Cailleach is a mother of Celtic Gods, she is an old crone, a witch, and the Mother of Winter. She is so vastly ancient that the Celts when they arrived in Ireland two thousand years ago, addressed her as already ancient and powerful.

Cailleach was reborn again, an old crone, each Samhain and went about chilling the Earth to halt new growth, to frost the ground with a long wand or flick of her hand, and by calling down the snow. She was a tempest who controlled storms and weather along the shores of Ireland and Scotland and she is still spoken of in winter storm myths and legends today. Her staff had the ability to turn plants (and herself) into grey stone, therefore making lonely standing stones sacred to her.

It is said that her long fingernails carved the rivers and valleys of earth, and that she created the mountains from the stones that fell from her apron. Her appearance was fearsome, she was noted to have sharp red teeth and hair white as a frosted snow covered mountaintop. She was a goddess feared, a goddess respected. In many ways, she was Death personified.

Another Celtic goddess, Brigit was the goddess of new beginnings and birth, the sheering of sheep and the budding fertility of the spring. Twice a year, a challenge was issued with Cailleach against Brigit, the Cold Dragon against the Warm Lamb. At Samhain, Cailleach would triumph over Brigit, but at Imbolc the reverse would be true allowing spring to win over winter and warm the earth once again.

Terrifying old crone, witch, Cailleach, we feel her chill and deathly presence in our bones, our roots hit her frozen waters. We all must follow her crisp air into the dark cold winter of the wood. Here the old hag will test us, and we will be allowed to grow new again by the will of the Gods.