Naknaarskama Ona, The Winged Wolves

lt;p>)0( The Key to Happiness 
)0( ~Spell~

~<p>With a key at hand , light a white candle. Visualize the metaphorical door you wish to open with the key. ~On a piece of paper draw a door that will open to your wish. <p>
Pour some candle wax on the drawing of the door and place the key in the wax, to weld the two together. ~Let the wax cool. ~Fold the paper around the key to form a neat envelope or parcel. ~General seal all the edges with wax from the candle. ~Blow out the candle. ~
At night , toss the parcel into a fire, imagining as vividly as possible the door you are passing through. 
Pour your passion into the flames and send your desires upward. ~The spell has been cast do not dwell on your wish, because such thoughts drag it back to earth and sap it of its energy.

~Have faith in your desire becoming fulfilled. :)

~Happy casting ! :D

~The Witch Darkest of Lights

Frost Moon - November 15 2024

Grab your scarves and mittens, witches - it’s time for the Frost Moon!

Frost Moon

The Frost Moon is the name given to the full moon which occurs in the month of November. In temperate zones in the Northern Hemisphere, November is the month during which the first frost or first hard freeze of the season is usually observed.

Like many full moon names, this is an English translation of a traditional name used by one or more North American indigenous groups, in this case the Cree and the Assiniboine. Similarly, the Anishinaabe and the Ojibwe also called this month the Freezing Moon or Freezing Over Moon respectively, as indigenous naming conventions usually refer to the entire lunar month and not just the full moon itself. Other indigenous names include Deer Rutting Moon (Dakota and Lakota), Whitefish Moon (Algonquin), Leaf Fall Moon (Catawba), and Digging (or Scratching) Moon (Tlingit). The latter refers to the habit of deer and other creatures scratching up the ground to find hidden food caches, as well as bears digging their dens for winter hibernation.

Another very common name for this month’s full moon is the Beaver Moon, due to the increased sightings of these busy little creatures shoring up their dams and food stores before the first hard freeze of winter. (Unfortunately, it’s also a reference to the peak days of the North American fur trade, signaling the optimal hunting time for beaver pelts.)

In some modern pagan traditions, particularly those claiming Celtic lineage, the November moon is also called the Mourning Moon. This occurs when the November moon is the final full moon before the winter solstice. In 2024, the November is not a Mourning Moon, as the December full moon falls on the 15th, several days before the winter solstice. (I was not able to find an original source for this claim, but given the celebration of the beloved dead in October, a subsequent period of mourning and remembrance makes sense. It may also be a reference to the Catholic All Souls Day, but that’s just speculation.)

This particular Frost Moon will be at peak fullness in the afternoon hours of November 15th (4:29pm EST). This is the final supermoon in the four-month consecutive series of supermoons for 2024, so make the most of it!

What Does It Mean For Witches?

This is the month when migrations are finishing up, animals are finishing their cold weather preparations, the temperature starts to plummet, and fall descends rapidly into winter. If you haven’t finished your preparations for winter, mundane or magical, this is probably your last chance to do it. (Don’t forget to prioritize and delegate!)

With the days getting shorter and the nights getting colder, the temptation to hunker down and hibernate is STRONG. But we have to remember that just like the eponymous Beaver, humans have to stay active during the cold months. Start stockpiling ways to keep yourself busy and motivated, since that Seasonal Slump is on the horizon for many of us.

Consider also the beaver’s dam. You’ve spent the whole year working towards all kinds of goals. Is there still something blocking your way? What might it be and how can you best address and remove the obstacle? Or, alternatively, is it time to stop and rest and see if that roadblock will clear itself with a little time and patience?

In keeping with the Mourning Moon moniker, this could be a good time for reflection and remembrance. Think back on what you’ve built this year and take time to be proud of yourself. Remember what is dear to you, take a moment to miss someone who is gone, and consider rekindling bonds that may have lapsed or grown tenuous during the hustle and bustle of daily life. It’s always a good time to tell someone you love them.

On a practical note, if you have pets that regularly stay outdoors overnight, start bringing them inside or make sure they have a shelter that is properly warm, clean, and secure against human or animal intruders. If it’s too chilly for you to be out without a coat, it’s too chilly for the critters, fur or no fur. PLEASE do not leave your furry friends out in the cold!

What Witchy Things Can We Do?

As we prepare for winter, this is an excellent time to shore up those magical protections. Check on your longterm spells to see if they need refreshing, or just go ahead and do a quick cleanse-and-reclaim as a proactive measure. Even if everything is solid, practice your technique by shoring up points of egress or adding a new layer to the existing wards or trying a new visualization or method for personal protections. Create a new charm or talisman to carry you through the winter or make something festive and decorative that could be given as a gift.

On the subject of cleansing, this is a good time to clear out any stale or disruptive energy that might be lingering from the recent change of seasons. Solstices can be times of transformation, but change is rarely a calm or peaceful process and it brings its’ own set of challenges and upheavals. If things have gotten a little more chaotic than you’d like, take a moment to put your house in order, metaphysically speaking.

If you’re partial to jar spells, consider putting one together to help maintain safety and abundance through the winter months. If you’re going to be traveling for the upcoming holidays, a bit of luck and protection for the journey wouldn’t go amiss either.

If you've been working any longterm magic over the past few months to coincide with the abundance of supermoons, this is the time to bring your working to a culmination. Finish setting things in motion, tie up loose ends, close loopholes, and send your magic out into the world. Be sure to document what you've done and when and what methods you used, as well as any indicators of success to look for later if (and hopefully when) tangible results begin to appear.

Try a frost divination. If your area is starting to see overnight frosts, take a moment in the morning to examine the patterns that the frost leaves on the windows of your home or vehicle. Do you see any patterns or images in the ice crystals? Check the weather forecast and whisper a question into the wind when the overnight temps will drop below freezing. Then in the morning, see if there’s an answer waiting for you!

Happy Frost Moon, witches! 🌕❄

Further Reading:

Additional Lunar Calendar posts

Beaver Moon Magic: November’s Vibrant Moon Meaning in 2024, The Peculiar Brunette.

Beaver Moon: Full Moon in November 2024, The Old Farmer’s Almanac.

Beaver Full Moon in November - Buckle and Hocken, TimeAndDate.com.

Everyday Moon Magic: Spells & Rituals for Abundant Living, Dorothy Morrison, Llewellyn Publications, 2004.

Image Source - ABC News.

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How to celebrate the Winter Solstice as a practitioner of Celtic (Irish) Paganism and witchcraft (the irish may not have been celts but our ancient customs are often described as Celtic)

•Collect Holly and make a clay wren to celebrate the defeat of Winter: Irish traditions often have different guardians to symbolise the Summer and Winter seasons. You may be familiar with Caileach and Bríd. But there are also other similar equivalents The mythical dark Holly King who rules the Winter , disguised as a wren, and his twin, the light Oak King who ruled the Summer, disguised as a robin. The Irish would kill a wren and decorate it with holly to represent the death of the Winter king. (This custom has been colonised by catholicism but the tradition remains)

Custom: You can now practice this ethically by making a wren out of biodegradable material and decorate it with wild holly.

•Wear a disguise: Similar to Samhain, in which the people wore masks to be concealed from evil spirits. During the day of the Wren the Irish would often wear masks and disguises. There are also plays that people used to preform around those times. Custom: Similar to halloween. There are plenty or ways to dress up. And theres no right way to do it. However here are some Irish people dressing up on Stephens Day.

•Celebrate the beginning of the sunny seasons: In Old Irish culture the new year began in October on Samhain. So rather than the new year, the solstice was most likely a way of predicting what type of year it would be for the crops. Custom: Do some divination, there is a lot of power in the shift from darkness into light. So its a good time to do tarot cards or divination. Though a lot of old irish divination was done using objects, weather and occurrences.

Collect some mistletoe: The old druids often collected mistletoe as it was known for bringing fertility to animals. Since a lot of this season has to do with the sunny weather and production of crops and food for the year ahead. Mistletoe is ideal for bringing fortune and blessings for the sunny seasons of the year. Custom: Try and find some mistletoe in the tree and cut it down with a golden knife and collect it in a white sheet.

DO NOT EAT MISTLETOE IT IS POISONOUS

Visit a well: there a lot of evidence to suggest that visiting magical wells was a pre-colonial tradition in Ireland. That was later claimed by the catholic church. There are still many beautiful wells that worshippers visit and put rags on the nearby trees. Custom: Find a local “holy” well with an ancient pagan origin and bring some organic rags to decorate a nearby tree.

Happy Winter Solstice!!!!

🌙 Simple Everyday Things You Can Do For Protection Source | https://www.instagram.com/mariathearcane/?hl=en

What are some simple things that you do that you think would help another witch? 🌙 My list of daily or easy practices requires little to no prep-work •Use a protection plant ally like a witch’s burr, cloves, thorns, motherwort, black pepper, garlic, or onion. Close your eyes and place your plant ally in your hands. Ask the spirit of the plant if they will offer you protection to see you through the day. Carry it with you. •Alternatively, you can also use crystals. My go to combo is black tourmaline and red jasper! •Use a protection archetype tarot card like the Nine of Wands. Nine of Wands, for myself, symbolizes boundaries and protection when it comes to our growth/life path. Place it on your altar with intention since it is a portal to our intentions, our guides, and the liminal, or carry on your person. •Smoke cleanse the thresholds in your home, yourself, and your loved ones. I personally like rosemary and lavender for this purpose. •As you leave an offering for your guides/ancestors/deities during your daily conversation with them ask them for their help when it comes to protection. •Write the word protection or a symbol of protection on a black candle with intention and light.

“I Remember Everything I Studied”

I recommend keeping this sigil hidden or visibly hung in the area you normally study in (or you can just draw it on paper and keep it on you while you study).

For good measure keep this sigil with you during tests and exams as well.

🍂Other Leaves To Burn In Lieu of Bay Leaves And Their Properties

Source | https://www.instagram.com/mariathearcane/

Which is your favorite?

Elder - New Beginnings

American Elm - Love

Sassafras - Health

Maple - Longevity

Ash - Strength

Birch - Prosperity

🔥 ✨Burn it Down: Banishing Yule Fire Burning Bundle✨🔥

Because this year’s Yule fire is a funeral pyre. Burn it down.

This is a bundle of herbs similar to what you’d normally use for smoke cleansing, only instead of lighting the end, this one is tossed into your Yule Fire.

If you don’t have the ability to have a fire large enough to toss herbs into, you can instead make this into and infused oil to anoint a Yule candle with or whatever you may use to represent the burning of the past year. ***

Gather:

🔥 Something that represents what you want to burn down and leave behind in the dark. It could be anything from a piece of paper with things written on it, to a cord with knots tied in it each representing a different thing to burn, or a tarot card that represents what you’re moving on from (though keep in mind, whatever you use will be destroyed in the fire.) 🔥 Pine or fir boughs. Enough to suite the size of your fire. I usually use 6-8" pieces for a campfire. Or, if you’re making this into an anointing oil, enough needles to fill your jar halfway. 🔥 Hawthorn thorns. For heart protection. Any funeral pyre brings grief, regardless of what’s burning down. Protect your heart and keep your boundaries with thorns enough to lay throughout your bundle. 🔥 Rosemary Sprigs. Banishing, cleansing, clearing the mind. 🔥 Cinnamon stick(s) - banishing but also sweetening the energy, softening the blow. 🔥 Black Candle 🔥 Natural cord of some sort, twine, cotton cord or hemp.

- Light your candle and do whatever ritual openings you usually do.

- Lay your thing to burn down, evergreen boughs, rosemary sprigs, and cinnamon stick(s,) out so that they’re in a ‘log’ or bundle shape that you could get your hands around tightly to bind it up with a cord.

- Start by tying the cord around one end and then slowly and snugly wrap the cord around the bundle working from one end to the other and back. You can tie knots along the way to help keep it securely bound together. As you wrap the cord around, every so often lay a hawthorn thorn into the bundle, careful to place them in a way that you won’t prick your hands.

- After it’s all bound and finished, drip wax from the black candle all over the bundle. Caution of the hot wax on your skin though, unless that’s your kind of thing.

- Then at whatever point in your Yule fire ritual it’s appropriate, toss in the bundle and watch it burn.

- Alternatively, if you’re making an infused oil, it’s best to dry your plant material first to avoid mold growth in your finished oil.  Cinnamon is a possible skin irritant so if you plan on using this anointing oil on your skin, either do a test patch first, or skip the cinnamon stick. Steep the herbs in enough apricot kernel oil (or other carrier oil) to cover the plant material by an inch or so for 4-6 weeks, then strain out the plant material, and you have a shelf-stable anointing oil for candles or your body (external use only.) Apricot kernel oil will go rancid in about a year, so only make as much as you’ll use up! You can further preserve your oil with vitamin e or other skin-safe preservative. Use this to dress your yule candle and witch it burn all the way down.

- You could also grind the herbal ingredients, along with the ash from burning the ‘something that represents what you want to burn down’ in your yule fire, into a powder and use it as a powder if that suits your needs. Though evergreen needs are /very/ resinous, so if you’re using an herb grinder of any kind, keep in mind it will get sticky and is difficult to clean afterwards. Which is why I have one electric grinder for coffee, and one for medicinal/edible herbs, that way my coffee doesn’t taste like pine in the morning.. though that doesn’t sound terrible in all honesty. 

*** Always practice fire safety! Know how to anoint candles with oil /safely/ and have a fire extinguisher near by because oil fires can’t be put out with water. If you’re having an outdoor fire, make sure you’re following your region’s bylaws and have water near by!

Stay Curious, Witches

Fantasizing about a reality where it's far more socially acceptable to be polytheistic and there are many temples around the city like there are mosques and churches where i can join communities with other polytheists and make friends and enjoy my life and be openly religious without feeling the awkward weight of having to explain my religion to someone