Corn Dolly’s

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

“An ancient and widespread custom across northern Europe was related to the cutting of the ‘last sheaf’ of the crop. The belief was that the ‘spirit of the corn’ was present in the grain; as the harvest proceeded, this spirit would become concentrated in the remaining crop and the final sheaf to be cut would contain its distilled essence.

Shown: Corn dollies collected by anthropologist Robert Craig Maclagan (1839 – 1919). Left Cailleach from Islay; right Maighdean Bhuana from Argyllshire

“In Gaelic tradition, the last sheaf or sguab mu dheireadh would usually be barley or oats, or a mix including rye. Once cut, the sheaf was crafted into a superstitious charm, which could take the form of a simple plait of straws tied up with ribbon, or may be crafted into a corn dolly and even clothed. The charm was displayed in the home over winter until it was time to start the growing process over again – often it was fed to the birds, horses, or ploughed back into the field to replenish the soil.

“As Calum MacLean writes (Scottish Studies, vol. 8, 1964), traditions relating to the last sheaf were found all over Scotland in various forms and with various names. In Gaelic it was called the maighdean-bhuana (the harvest maiden), the cailleach-bhuaineadh (the old woman of the harvest), or clàidheag, which became the Scots clyack.

“In some places it was the youngest female who cut the sheaf; in others it was the oldest person in the community. It was sometimes considered good luck, sometimes bad.

“It’s fascinating to listen to the different explanations – for example, the recording of William Forbes speaking to Ann Ross in Highland Perthshire in 1964 (Track ID 75601) or Janet Shaw speaking to Calum Maclean in Jura in 1953 (Track ID 6998).
Different localities had different names for their harvest celebrations. It was often called the ‘Harvest Home,’ but it was also known as a ‘Kirn’, a ‘Meal and Ale,’ a ‘Muckle Supper’ or Deireadh Buana in Gaelic.”

“These were events in which the the whole community took part and served as a thank you to those who had helped make the harvest successful. There would be plenty of food and drink, as well as games, divination, music, singing and dancing.

“There is a cheerful recording from John MacDonald in Elgin, with an explanation of the last sheaf, a dram and the tune ‘Harvest Home’ played on the melodeon (Track ID 25999). [Each of these audio tracks is linked in the article] Calum Maclean interviewed Kate MacRae from Lochalsh about the feasting and dancing at the Fèis Deireadh Bhuana (Track ID 1283).

“And in Orkney, Ethel Findlater spoke to Alan Bruford about the ‘Muckle Supper,’ which used to take place in people’s homes before the village halls were built (Track ID 64275): “After the harvest wis all in and they hed their potatoes up and everything ready for the winter, and the cattle all inside, they had a jollification they called the ‘muckle supper.’ And it was just held in the farm house and in the barn…the ones that had been helping them in the harvest time they would all invite…Plenty to eat and plenty of fun. Somebody would maybe sing a song or two…and then they danced ‘til maybe four o’clock in the morning!””

Power of 3 Healing Spell

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

This spells uses the strength of the number 3 to help speed healing of an illness. It’s best used when someone is ill, rather than injured. You can use this spell for yourself (if you are well enough to really focus on it) or for someone else.

3 candles (1 each of purple, blue and white)
Myrrh oil
Mint oil
Sandalwood oil
3 pieces of quartz
3 small pieces of paper.
Anoint each of the candles with all 3 oils, and set them up in an even triangle shape on your altar. Anoint the stones as well, and place one in front of each candle. Write the name of the ill person on each piece of paper, and place them in the center of the triangle.

Light each candle and focus on the person who is sick. Think about them being healthy and free of their symptoms. Picture them strongly in your mind as the candles burn. Repeat the following three times:

Magick mend and candle burn,
Illness leave and health return

Leave the candles to burn for 3 hours, then snuff them out. Your subject should soon start to improve, but you can add some extra power to your spell if you do the entire ritual for 3 nights in a row rather than just once 

How To Master Witchcraft Even With Absolutely No Time…

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

Is your life filled with so many responsibilities that you can barely make time for yourself, let alone try to master the art of witchcraft? You feel like you have no time and no energy to pursue your interests. You see so many witches online talking about the books they’re reading, the spells they’re casting, and the meditations they’re doing every. Single. Day. Sometimes it feels like you’ll never have the time to really devote yourself to your craft in the way that you “should”.

But here’s the truth: you don’t need that much time or energy to start learning the craft. In fact, all it takes is a bit of dedication, some self-compassion, and a little loop de knowledge, and you can become the witch you’ve always wanted to be.

So if you’re feeling like life is standing in the way of your dreams of being a witch, don’t worry—this is for you. In today’s blog post, I’ll share my secrets for mastering witchcraft despite life’s challenges.

When Life Makes Practicing Witchcraft Difficult
Are you finding it hard to make time for your daily magical practice? Do you feel overwhelmed by all the other obligations of life, and have no idea how to fit one more thing into your already crammed schedule? You’re not alone! This is one of the most common things that I hear when I ask my audience what’s stopping them from really pursuing the craft. It always comes down to too many responsibilities and too little time.

The truth is that the ultra-polished, high-frequency witchcraft practices you see online are often staged, exaggerated, or even entirely made up. Comparing yourself and your practice to what you see other people doing online simply isn’t reasonable. Why would a mom of three who also works full time have a witchcraft practice that looks the same as a university student on TikTok who has no job and very few responsibilities? The answer is, she wouldn’t! That would be insane!

The thing that is actually causing such a major block in your ability to practice witchcraft isn’t a lack of time, it’s actually a lack of self-compassion. By constantly comparing yourself to other people and getting down on yourself about how you can’t, or you’re not good enough, or you’ll never be a real witch because… you’re adding a huge amount of judgment and shame to your life and your craft.

In all honesty, this kind of negative self-talk takes up a ton of time and energy! That’s time and energy that you could be putting toward literally anything else, like, y’know… witchcraft. Rather than spending a bunch of time and energy beating yourself up for not being a good enough witch, why not make ANY amount of witchcraft a win?

The key is to start small. Instead of fitting an hour-long ritual into your daily life, try sneaking in a few minutes of magical activity here and there. Regularly writing down your thoughts in a journal that you keep near your bed or planning out a few quick spells can be just as powerful as doing full-fledged rituals. Just because it’s not big or flashy doesn’t mean that it doesn’t count! Start counting absolutely every magical moment, even 10 seconds of tuning into the energy of a room, as real witchcraft and you’ll likely find that you’re already doing way more than you thought.

You can also try to make mundane tasks magical. Channeling your energy toward something mundane can help increase the power of your spellwork and ritual work significantly. Even doing small things like taking care of plants or wearing particular colors or jewelry that have special meaning for your practice can add an extra layer of magic to any activity.

Most importantly, give yourself permission to take breaks from witchcraft when needed—it’s ok if you don’t always find time for it! It’s more important that you take care of yourself first—and will ultimately help maintain stability and balance in both your magical and mundane life.

Where to Find Magical Time in Your Schedule
You don’t need to give up on living a magical life just because you don’t have the time to focus on witchcraft. With some creativity, you can find a few moments here and there to fit in magical practice this with self-compassion. You may not be able to find time every day. Even one extra moment of focus on your craft during the week counts as a win!

Start by mapping out your weekly schedule. Take a look at the hours you spend on work and other responsibilities. Think of what small changes you can make in order to create space for witchy activities—even if it’s only five or ten minutes here and there.

For example:

Wake up 10 minutes earlier for a morning tarot card pull
Take a short meditation break during lunch
Spend half an hour listening to an audiobook or podcast before bed or during your commute
Fit in manifestation sessions or spell casting during study breaks
You’ll soon find that you are able to fit in small doses of ritual and these small moments can really add up!

Finally, if even these small moments still don’t seem to be enough, look into creative ways to practice and immerse yourself in the world of witchcraft. From joining online communities to taking classes or workshops, to learning from books, there are plenty of ways to enrich and add depth to your craft that don’t have to take up a ton of time.

At the end of the day, carving out a successful magical practice requires a bit of ingenuity and flexibility. Don’t feel bad if you can’t meet the expectations of a grandiose witchy lifestyle—start with small changes and over time, you’ll be able to gradually create a more robust and fulfilling magical practice.

Establishing a Daily Practice
You might not think you can make time for a daily practice of witchcraft, particularly if you have a demanding job or too many responsibilities. But it’s actually easier than it sounds—you don’t need to do something elaborate. All it takes is a little bit of effort and the right mindset.

To establish a daily practice, start by carving out just a few minutes each day for yourself. This could be during your lunch break, when you wake up, or before bed—it doesn’t matter when, as long as it works for your schedule.

Here are some simple steps to get you started:

1) Choose something that resonates with you—this could be divination, journaling, or meditation.

2) Create an easily accessible space where you can set up everything you need for your chosen practice. Not having to do any setup or put things away every single day takes a LOT of the friction out of this process and makes you much more likely to return to it regularly.

3) Be flexible. If something in your life changes, let your practice change with it. Consistency requires that you keep the reality of your life in mind! Sometimes schedules change, your energy levels change, and what you need and want from your practice changes. Switch from mornings to evenings when you need to, let yourself do a tarot pull instead of meditation sometimes, and build ease into the practice.

4) Finally, BE COMPASSIONATE WITH YOURSELF. Did you miss a day? That’s fine, life happens. You missed a week? No sweat, that’s life. Get back to it when you’re ready just stop agonizing over not doing things exactly right all the time. You can become a perfectly good witch even if you get it “right” less than half the time! You are good enough.

What Do You Do If You’re Short On Time And Not Sure Where To Start?
I get it. You’re busy, you have a million responsibilities, and finding time to practice witchcraft is one thing but you don’t even know what to DO with that time when you manage to find it.

Make Figuring It Out The Goal
If you have no idea where to start, the first thing you should do with the time you do manage to carve out is figure out where to start. Literally. That is a perfectly good goal to begin with. This could mean something like spending 15 minutes a day reading about witchcraft or spending a few minutes journaling about what you actually want to do with your craft. It’s ok to srpend a few weeks or even months just getting the lay of the land and figuring out where you want to focus your energies first. Witchcraft is a huge and incredibly varied subject and nobody expects you to just jump straight in and know exactly what you’re doing.

Start With What Interests You
It’s important to focus on what really resonates with you when it comes to your craft. Pick one thing that speaks to you the strongest and start there—maybe you begin by studying astrology or learning spells—and go from there. This way, you don’t feel overwhelmed with all the options out there and can concentrate on mastering that one thing first before moving on to something else. It doesn’t really matter what you pick as long as it’s something that piques your interest, there’s really no “correct” order to learn things in.

Learn from Others
No one ever said that mastering a magical practice had to be done alone. Reach out to experienced practitioners and those knowledgeable in witchcraft to pick up tips and learn from their experiences. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and to open up about your own struggles—not only will it help you to get perspective on things but it will also create a sense of community among those who have similar interests and goals.

Track Your Progress
Finally, make sure to keep track of your progress. This doesn’t have to be complicated; it can take no more than writing a few words in your journal each day or creating a spreadsheet or digital document to track your spells, rituals, divination, and other activities related to your practice. Write down all of your wins, big and small. In fact, especially write down the small wins! Remember that those little moments add up and they DO count.

By tracking your progress, you’ll be able to easily refer back to your successes, what worked and what didn’t. And on days when things seem to be hitting a dead end, you’ll be able to look at the progress you’ve made and remind yourself of how far you’ve come.

By integrating these tips into your magical practice, you’ll be well on your way to mastering witchcraft despite life’s little hiccups and obstacles.

When life gets overwhelming, don’t forget that you can still practice witchcraft. It doesn’t have to be an in-depth practice or a lengthy ritual – it can be a five-minute positive affirmation every morning or lighting a white candle every night before bed. While it’s important to build a strong foundation of knowledge and practice, a lot of times the sim plest techniques are the most powerful.

Reminss and have the power to shape your life. Invest in yourself and create a personalized practice that works for you, but remember that a d bit goes a long way. No matter how busy or stressed you might be, a few simple steps can take you a long way on your journey to mastering witchcraft.

Creating a Garden Sanctuary

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

A personal outdoor sanctuary is an important part of feeling connected to all of life.
Each of us has been blessed with an innate need to celebrate and glorify life. At a most basic level, we honor the forces that came together to bring us into being by caring for our bodies and our souls. To truly rejoice in existence, we must also learn to cultivate loveliness in those special places that replenish the soul. When we create a garden sanctuary, we are reminded that we are a part of both nature’s essence and something more. An outdoor retreat is a place we can surround ourselves in nature, beauty, and the life force. It is not difficult to create a sanctuary–we should endeavor, however, to create sanctuaries that speak to us as individuals.

Whether we have a yard, a grassy corner, a patio, or a porch at our disposal, our creative potential is infinite. Any of these spaces can become a magnificent garden. When we feel drawn to specific themes such as Zen, angels, paradise, or the ethereal, we should explore them. Décor and furniture crafted from natural materials like wood and stone blend seamlessly into nature. Yet we can also augment the natural world by filling our garden sanctuaries with statues, bells or gongs, or colorful flags. Running water, like that in a created stream or fountain, helps energy flow smoothly. If space is a concern, crystals and mirrors can fulfill the same function. Hidden features like concealed swings and reflecting pools veiled in shadow can surprise and delight. As your garden sanctuary evolves, remember to invite the elemental spirits of nature to assist you in your efforts to create a small pocket of harmony, beauty, and peace in your own backyard. If you have not already felt their presence, sit quietly in your garden and reach out to them. You will feel these earthly guides at your side as you continue to develop your sanctuary.

In the refuge of brilliant color, sweet scents, and stillness you create in your garden, the burdens imposed upon you by a sometimes hectic world will melt away. The splendor and tranquility of what you have brought into being will entrance you, allowing you to forget the constraints of time and space. No matter how large or small your garden sanctuary, the time you spend reveling in its pleasures will refresh your spirit and provide you with innumerable opportunities to celebrate life.

Spirit Animal, Power Animal, Totem Animal – What’s the Difference?

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

These terms are often used interchangeably, but there’s a difference. Put simply:

A Spirit Animal refers to an ally who helps teach/guide you.
A Power Animal refers to a creature that empowers you.
A Totem Animal refers to a creature that is inherited (ancestrally or as part of a tribe/clan).
While a Power animal can be invoked or called upon, it’s often thought that a Spirit Animal chooses you (and the same applies to the Totem Animal).

7 Ways to Discover Your Spirit Animal

At this point, you may be wondering, “okay, so how do I discover my spirit animal?”
1. Spend more time outdoors
This helps you to forge a greater connection to nature which you’ll need to identify your Spirit Animal.

2. Pay attention to the animals appearing in your life
Do any particular animals keep emerging? It’s said that if a particular animal continuously appears in your daily life, this is an indication that your Spirit Animal is trying to contact you. For instance, a certain animal could repeatedly show up on your daily walks, in the books you read, TV shows you watch, or pictures you glimpse.

3. Pay attention to the animals appearing in your dream life
Spirit Animals are also said to contact us in our dreams. Look out for animals that seem to persistently appear while you sleep – this could be a sign that your Spirit Animal is trying to manifest itself to you.

4. Be aware of the unusual behavior of animals around you
Does a particular animal run up to you, make strange noises around you, or otherwise display strange behavior patterns in your presence? This could be a strong indication of your Spirit Animal trying to contact or form a connection with you.

5. Think about what animals you have always been attracted to
Are you drawn to any particular animal, either out of fear or adoration? This could reveal an unconscious connection to your Spirit Animal.

6. Try meditation
Our Spirit Animals often reveal themselves during practices such as meditation because the mind because still. If you don’t often meditate, or if you would like assistance, there are many free meditation videos on YouTube.

7. Keep a journal
Record what animals you encounter in your meditations, dreams, and waking life. Look for patterns or recurrences of a specific animal or animals.
******
21 Common Spirit Animals:
While there are nearly an endless array of Spirit Animal guides out there, there are some that tend to continually emerge.
Here is a list of them:
Bear (strength, confidence)
Butterfly (personal transformation)
Cat (independence, curiosity)
Coyote (playfulness, adaptability)
Crow (vision, intelligence)
Deer (innocence, gentleness)
Dog (loyalty, love)
Dragonfly (transformation, adaptability)
Fox (agility, awareness)
Frog (rebirth, renewal)
Hawk (focus, leadership)
Horse (freedom, passion)
Hummingbird (positivity, playfulness)
Lion (strength, courage)
Owl (wisdom, intuition)
Rabbit (abundance, vulnerability)
Sheep (vulnerability, innocence)
Snake (healing, transformation)
Spider (creativity, receptivity)
Tiger (willpower, aggression)
Turtle (determination, persistence)
Wolf (intelligence, freedom)
*****
Here are 5 Ways to Discover Your Spirit Animal’s Lessons (Medicine) :

Once you have discovered what your Spirit Animal is, your next question is:
How can you harness the new knowledge of your Animal Teacher to benefit your life?
Here are a variety of ways to learn from your Spirit Animal:

1. Discover its symbolic wisdom (or ‘medicine’)
Each Spirit Animal has strengths and weaknesses which are important for you to learn about, as they directly apply to your life. The better you understand the symbolic meaning of your Animal Teacher, the better you will come to understand yourself and what you need to improve or change in your life.

2. Apply your newfound wisdom
Learning about your Spirit Animal will help you to learn more about yourself, and will consequently help you to make important decisions, deal with difficult situations and people, and reach your personal goals and aspirations. Reflect on the three main ways you can apply what you’ve learned to your life (short-term, medium-term, and long-term).

3. Don’t humanize your Spirit Animal
Anthropomorphizing (aka. humanizing) your guide will do nothing but silence their unique way of expressing themselves. To be open and receptive to your Spirit Animal’s message, you’ll need to embrace their exclusive language and form of self-expression first. To be receptive to your Spirit Animal and embrace their authentic being, take some time to observe them. Either observe them in nature (if they live in your vicinity) or watch them online. Take notes if needed.

4. Pay attention to when your Spirit Animal appears in your life
Be aware of dreams, or real-life occurrences in which your Spirit Animal manifests itself. Also, remember that your Spirit Animal can choose to manifest itself in a very subtle way; for instance, in poems, a song, or even a picture in a book or poster in the street. Our Animal Teachers are thought to serve as both omens, as well as messengers and guides. So consider the following question in your daily life:

What feelings do you experience when your Spirit Animal appears in your life? For example, do foreboding or comforting feelings arise within you?
What message does your Spirit Animal appear to be communicating to you?
Is your Spirit Animal trying to lead you in a certain direction?
5. Honor your Spirit Animal,
Shamans believe that by honoring and venerating your Spirit Animal, you grow and gain a deeper connection to them. Many people like showing respect to their Animal Teachers by placing objects of the same species around their houses (like feathers, skulls, statues). Others like wearing symbols of their Spirit Animals on their bodies (amulets, pendants, etc.). Simply saying “thank you” and being grateful is sufficient.
Remember all of us have at least one spiritual connection to another physical being such as a particular animal or plant species.

Yuxa, or Yuha (“Sly Snake”), the Queen of Serpents in Turkic folklore. 

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

 She manifests in every serpent that is at least 100 years old. She can become a beautiful maiden, and makes an excellent fairy wife.

A human husband must never speak of what she really is, or their family life will end, and if there have been no children, she may even kill him. But if they do have offspring, she leaves him to care for her children, and returns to her supernatural realm, both sad and angry.

There are many tales of a youth who meets Yuxa and falls in love; more rarely it is a maiden who loves Yuxa, in which case, as a generality, she will manifest as a young man.

In her natural form she is a serpent with a dragon’s head and can breathe fire. Sometimes she has two forelimbs, sometimes none, as she resembles a legless lizard aka sheltopusik, or an amphiuma. Her tail is a barbed weapon. She can protect or terrify.

===

Art: “Salamander” (1886), but more like an emphiuma, by British artist, author, printer and book designer Charles de Sousy Ricketts (1866-1931). Charles’ lifelong romantic partner was portrait painter Charles Haslewood Shannon (1863-1937) , met in art school. The “two Charleses” founded Vale Press and designed, illustrated, and printed books togethter. 

The Fairy Sibylia

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

On the tools used to conjure the fairy Sibylia in the 1584 Discoverie of Witchcraft. Text from the book Fairy Magic in the Grimoires.

Comments:

Carrying out the previously described operation is a serious work of magic which leads the magician or witch into the cemetery and into the practice of necromancy, the conjuring of the dead. Further exploration of this is given in operation 9.

The previous spell is taken from the 1584 Discoverie of Witchcraft. The Discoverie was not originally published as a grimoire, but rather it was a skeptical book denouncing witchcraft as being mostly foolishness and the witch hunts and burnings of the time to be misguided. However, in the
process of stating his case that the old women accused of witchcraft were simply deluded, Reginald Scot, the author of the Discoverie, also published several examples of real witchcraft of the day.

It was certainly not his intention to provide a manual for witches to use, but that happened anyway. It is not known where Scot found the ritual, but he did not create it, and we can compare it to spells designed to conjure Sibylia from other texts such as the Book of Oberon and the Cambridge Book of Magic to see that Scots fairy spell was
not a lone example but rather part of a larger body of fairy magic in the 1500s. Now let’s look at the magic tools used to carry this work out.

Tools used:
1. The Magic circle
2. The Wand made of Hazel wood
3. The Crystal Stone or Ball
4. Frankincense
5. The Shield
6. White candles
7. The book of Conjurations
1. The Magic circle
Names used: Agla, El, Ya, Panthon, Messyas, Emanuel, Alpha et Omega, Tetragrammaton, Elfelbey, Jesus Nazarenus, Adonay. Dextera Domini fecit virtutem; dextera Domini exaltavit me.

16Dextera Domini fecit virtutem; dextera Domini exaltavit me: dextera Domini fecit virtutem. Psalmi 117:16 Biblia Sacra Vulgata
Translation in English:
The right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength: the right hand of the Lord hath exulted me: the right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength. -Psalms 117:16
The instructions mention that outside the main circle should be drawn another smaller circle, for the fairy to appear in.

In this case, the smaller circle outside the magic circle functions in a similar manner as the triangle to summon spirits in the Lesser Key of Solomon.
In the four corners appear the words AGLA, EL,
PANTHON, and YA. Around the square are written Alpha and Omega, Messyas, and Emanuel. Around the edges of the square are Tetragrammaton, Adonay, Jesus Nazarenus, and Elfelbey. Magister is written in the center.

Around the ring itself is the Bible verse Psalms 117:16.
16 Dextera Domini fecit virtutem; dextera Domini exaltavit me: dextera Domini fecit virtutem. Psalmi 117:16 Biblia Sacra Vulgata (The Vulgate)
The right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength: the right hand of the Lord hath exulted me: the right hand ofthe Lord hath wrought strength. -Psalms 117:16

Dreams of Witches: The Meaning of Meeting Mystics While Asleep..

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

Dreams tell us a lot about ourselves. They can take us to other far away places, other realms of existence, other universes. Sometimes they can even predict the future or clarify things in the past. More often, our dreams introduce bizarre, enchanting, and sometimes otherworldly beings to us. If you’ve been having dreams of witches and you want to know the meaning, read on..

If you’ve come here looking for a meaning to your witchy dream, than you likely at least believe our dreams can show us hidden truths about ourselves. Perhaps they show us things we’ve hidden deep in our psyche that are trying to come to the surface. Maybe they reveal suppressed memories. You would be like the majority of people and acknowledge a psychological aspect to dreams (of which I believe in too!)

But you might also believe in a spiritual aspect to dreams – that dreams allow us to travel to other dimensions, meet otherworldly beings, be visited by passed loved ones, foretell the future, and clarify on the past and present. If you ask me, I believe dreams are all of these things and more. And, to be honest, sometimes dreams are so bizarre they might not truly mean anything! I would ask you to determine what it is you believe your dreams tell you. What YOU believe dreams actually are. Are they messages from the universe? From your higher self or spirit guides? Are they your subconscious trying to communicate with your conscious mind?

Now let’s talk about dreams of witches…

The word witch is translated many different ways but has its root in the words wicce and wit…both of which basically mean wise. So, if you didn’t already know, witches aren’t necessarily people or beings to be afraid of. They aren’t going around eating babies or making sacrifices in the forest (most of the time, that is LOL). The witch’s job, in the past and today, is to aid their community in healing, cleansing, protection, fortunetelling, and more.

The witch represents wisdom. Consider what the witch is doing in your dream…do they say anything to you? Do something to you? Give you something? The bottom line here is, the witch in your dream might be trying to give you a piece of advice that you need in a complicated situation you’re currently going through. They often try to reveal deeply hidden truths to the dreamer. This will be particularly evident if the witch in your dream gave you something like a book, a candle, a deck of cards, or some other gift that symbolizes clarity or wisdom.

Witches in Various Dreamworld Locations
Depending on the setting in which you meet your dream witch will give you an interpretation. Here are a few common witch dream settings:

A witch walking along the seashore might indicate you have buried emotions that are trying to come to the surface or unrequited love

Witches in the woods might indicate you have a big transition or change coming up in your life (and it could also mean you are being called to practice the craft)

A witch walking through the cemetery indicates your ancestors are trying to grant you their wisdom

Dreams of witches in magical shops or bookstores might mean you have a new project or career path to tend to

A dream of a witch in your own home, depending on if its light hearted or scary, means someone new has come into your life OR someone is working against you

Being in a witch’s home in your dream means you have a lot to learn

Witch Dreams that TERRIFY: The Night Hag Attack and Sleep Paralysis
Sometimes dreams of witches aren’t mystical and whimsical, they’re the exact opposite. Terriying and terrible. I can’t lie and tell you that every witch in the dream world is out for your own good. There are many spirits on the astral plane that take on the image of others…including witches.

Did a witch attack you in your sleep? Sit on your chest, choke you, and try to squeeze the life out of you? This is called a Night Hag attack. Otherwise known to the scientific community as sleep paralysis. I have had these types of dream attacks since I was in my early twenties. And while I’m used to them now, they’re still rather unpleasant to deal with. But what is the meaning behind a witch attacking you in your dreams?

We could write it off and say it’s simply a sleep disorder, but I believe there’s more to it than that. Night hag attacks are often a sign that someone is out to get you…maybe professionally or maybe personally. They might even (knowingly or unknowingly) be sending bad juju your way. Time to spiritually protect yourself.

And still others say when a witch chases you or attacks you in your dreams, it’s a sign that your deepest feminine urges have been suppressed for far too long. That this aspect of you is trying to claw its way out. Consider exploring what shadow of yourself you’ve been hiding from the world.

Naughty Dreams of Witches
Are your dreams of witches more on the naughty side? Do you wake up sweaty and all worked up? What is that witch doing to you?

Sure, the naughty witch in your dream could very well be a witch projecting her image into your dreams from somewhere far away. OR it could be a sexual fantasy that you’ve been suppressing subconsciously that’s trying to tear its way out into the real world through your dreams. If this dream repeats itself, think about what side of yourself you are hiding…particularly when it comes to your sexuality and/or your own self image and power.

When a Witch is Laughing in a Dream Meaning
Common dreams of witches involve the witch laughing at the dreamer. There are a couple different meanings here. But first, answer this question – is she laughing AT you in a maniacal or evil way? Or did she tell you a joke and you’re both laughing together? The context of the dream is EVERYTHING when interpreting your dreams for yourself.

If you answered the question as the witch is laughing at you, this means you’ve made a bad decision in life OR are about to make one. Tread lightly on making any rash emotional decisions in the near future. She is warning you of potential disaster.

If you answered the witch is laughing with you, this is a good sign and means you are on the right path in life. And that a period of learning in your life is about to begin.

Initiation: Magical and Mysterious Dreams of Witches Covens
Once I dreamed that a witch in a dark green hood led me into the deep woods. I didn’t know who he was or where we were going, but I trusted him. He led me to a clearing with a candle-filled table and there were other witches around us (a coven). There was one candle that hadn’t been lit. And he called me to light it together with him.

In another dream of a witch, I was brought into a wooden shop deep in the Black Forest. It was filled with sunlight, plants, wildlife, and people. I knew it was my very own witchy shop on the astral plane. There were other witches there with me, who were coven-mates, friends, and co-workers. It was one of the best dreams I’ve ever had in my life!

So, here’s the rub. If you’ve had a dream of witches that seems mysterious, mystical, or magical in its very nature…then that’s exactly what it is! I’ve found that the witches on the astral plane, our mighty dead (witch ancestors), and familiar spirits will sometimes come through to us in our dreams to teach us something. To lead us to an initiation of sorts. Whether you’re brand new to the path of the witch or experienced, mystical dreams of witches are almost always exciting and are a sign the otherworldly witches are with you!

Sometimes our dreams are memories of past lives…

Dreams of a Past Life as a Witch
Sometimes dreams give us a glimpse into our past lives or possibly future lives, for that matter. Dreams of past lives as a witch are common…if you’re a witch in this life. These dreams will be obvious in that you feel the dream is real and seems to be in another time and place entirely. And you are physically there but in a different body, strange style of clothing, or you’re potentially being called or accused of being a witch. You might even find yourself in the middle of a Witch Trial in your dreams.

To put this simply – dreams of being a witch in another time period or place are typically not just a dream but a memory. My advice here is to write it down before you forget! These memories might be resurfacing to teach you something in this life. Or even to warn you not to repeat the same thing in this life that you did in that other life.

What to do if your witch dreams are violent and repeat
Because I am a witch and I know the ways in which witches work, I can tell you that sometimes (but rarely) witches have the ability to project themselves into other people’s dreams. Sometimes this is done with intention…sometimes it is malevolent in nature. Maybe you’ve done something wrong to her and she is seeking revenge. And sometimes it’s done unintentionally. Meaning the witch herself doesn’t realize she’s walking into other people’s dreams while she’s “out and about” at night.

If you find your dreams of witches are particularly terrifying AND they are recurrent, you can do a few things to protect yourself. And prevent these dreams from recurring.

Clean your bedroom from top to bottom. Declutter under and around your bed.

Next, you’ll choose some method of spiritual purification. You can smoke-cleanse, use an herbal spray, etc. And cleanse your space thoroughly.

Last, place a glass or bowl of water under your bed before going to sleep at night. I also recommend placing a piece of black tourmaline near the head of your bed and any other protective charms or symbols you feel drawn to use.
Don’t think about this dream that’s brought you fear. The more you feed into the fear, the bigger the fear grows. You are POWERFUL and strong and above any dream!

CERIDWEN

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

Ceridwen is a Welsh sorceress, a white witch with the power of Awen. She can brew life-altering potions, to change her form, and to inspire knowledge and beauty in others. In some tellings of her legend, she is a goddess of creation and inspiration, giving her further powers. Her symbols are:
cauldron, pigs and grain

Ceridwen is a name of Welsh origin, originally rendered as Kerdwin or Cyrrdven. Its exact meaning is unknown, due to the fact both parts of her name, Cerd and Wen, could have multiple meanings. Wen most likely means “woman,” but if originally derived from gwen it may be interpreted as “fair”, “blessed”, or “white.” Cerid can be translated as “bent” or “crooked”, but could potentially mean “poetry” or “song.”

Ceridwen is a powerful Welsh sorceress, and one of the most powerful witches in Celtic mythology. A mother and a wise woman all at once, she is blessed by the gift of poetic wisdom, inspiration, and prophecy, called collectively Awen in Welsh lore. This power comes from her magical cauldron, where she brews great potions to help others. She has many of these abilities herself without the cauldron’s power. She also has a magical throne, from which she derives her sovereignty and some of her powers.

Potions brewed from her cauldron range in effect, such as changing the appearances of others, allowing the imbiber to shapeshift, or give the gift of Awen itself. Though her potions grant the gift, they are also quite dangerous. After the gift is given, a single drop of the potion has the power to kill. Ceridwen is thus careful with whom she gives her potions to, as she wishes no harm on others but knows that power comes with a price.

Ceridwen is a white witch, meaning that she uses her gifts and her cauldron to help others. While this is largely altruistic, at times she does use it for the benefit of those immediately around her, such as her intention to help her son Morfran. When her ploys backfire or go awry, she can let her anger get away from her, but ultimately finds herself before she does anything drastic.

She is sometimes depicted as a mother or a crone figure, varying depending on the ages of her two children. She resides at Bala Lake, also called Llyn Tegid for her husband.

Depending on the translation Ceridwen can also be seen as a goddess, specifically a creator or sovereignty goddess. Her story was recorded centuries after it was first told.

In this form, modern neopagans worship her as a prominent deity of wisdom and creation, though sometimes liberally mixed with other goddesses.
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Ceridwen is married to Tegid Foel, translated as “Tacitus the Bald,” a powerful leader who resides at Bala Lake. They have two children: a daughter, the beautiful Creirwy, and a son, the hideously deformed Morfran Afaggdu, whose skin was burned and mind was warped. Morfran later appears as a warrior in the court of King Arthur.

By way of sorcery, and perhaps by accident, Ceridwen becomes the mother of a third child, the famed bard Taliesin. Carrying all the gifts of his mother, he is advisor to many rulers of Britain, a powerful druid and bard, and a figure that is often depicted as a precursor or regional variant of Merlin.
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Family Tree

Consorts

HUSBAND

Tegid Foel

Children

DAUGHTER

SONS

Creirwy

Taliesin

Morfran Afaggdu
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Ceridwen appears primarily in the Book of Taliesin, a story sometimes included in the famous Mabinogi. It is her only appearance, but one of the most famous in according to reception

Ceridwen and her husband Tegid Foel worried over the life their poor son Morfran might live in his current state. Deformed and lacking any wit, Ceridwen thought to use her cauldron to make him at once beautiful and wise. She began to concoct a potion in her cauldron and set a blind man, Morda, to tend the fire beneath while a servant boy, Gwion Bach ap Gwreang (meaning “son of Gwreang”) stirred the pot.

They continued in this role for one year, upon which the potion was completed. But Ceridwen withheld important information from them: only three drops of the potion held the power to make the imbiber beautiful and wise. The rest was a deadly poison. Upon finishing the final stir, three drops fell onto Gwion’s thumb, which burned him. He put his thumb to his mouth, and at once became beautiful and wise.

The boy knew that Ceridwen would be angry with him and fled. Catching herself before she fed the potion to Morfran, she chased Gwion in a rage. Now gifted with the same knowledge of magic as Ceridwen, Gwion transformed himself into a hare and ran. Ceridwen became a greyhound and pursued him. He then became a fish; she transformed into a hungry otter. Again, he changed shape, becoming a bird. And again, Ceridwen transformed into a hawk.

Finally, knowing that she would catch him, Gwion transformed himself into a single grain of wheat. Ceridwen, using her magic (or being a goddess), found the grain and ate it. But the potion had another effect, and Gwion did not die. Instead, the grain took seed and Ceridwen became pregnant. Though she thought she would kill Gwion when he was reborn, she ultimately relented when the child was born, more beautiful than anything she had seen.

Instead, she resolved to push the child out to sea. Placing the boy into a leather-skin bag, he was eventually found by Prince Elffin ap Gwyddno, who in turn raised the boy as a prince. He named him Taliesin, and he grew to be a wise bard and advisor to kings.

Elsewhere in the legends of the Celtic world, cauldrons of inspiration are highly common, making Ceridwen’s cauldron one of the most archetypal symbols of power. The cauldron is also a symbol of the Underworld.
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The Circle of Ceridwen series by Octavia Randolph uses a character sharing the same name as Ceridwen in a historical setting, but draws in elements of Norse and Germanic MYTHOLOGY.

What It Means To Be A Spiritual Person Vs. A Religious Person

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

What It Means To Be A Spiritual Person Vs. A Religious Person
Knowing the difference will let you discover your truth…

Are you a spiritual person or a religious person? People are inclined to think that these two lifestyles are the same, and on the surface they are.

What they both have in common is connecting to something larger than themselves. And knowing the difference between spirituality and religion will help anyone decide which path they should take to discover their truth.

Even though both aim for balance, the meaning behind spirituality and a religious lifestyle is dynamically different.

Being spiritual doesn’t mean you have the responsibility of worshiping a God. Instead, spirituality helps others focus not just on their own well-being, but for others, nature, or any sacred being. It focuses on the art of understanding the way of life, change, and living in a sacred manner.

Being religious is a personal system in which one follows spiritual guidelines, beliefs, practices, and worship of God or Gods.

Both of these are routes to discovering the divine truth. While religion looks to God for purpose, spirituality looks within life’s foundation.

Whether religious or spiritual, it’s vital that both are used for balance and not for selfish desires. Even though the connection shares a major common ground, spirituality and religion differ in more ways than one.

Here are some examples of the differences between the two.

1. Religion focuses on groups, spirituality focuses on individuality.
Religious people lean on gathering with others, to reach a unison connection with God, but spirituality develops their own belief system. Spiritual people tend to be more individual and less dependent on others to seek a stronger connection.

Sunday services and disciple groups help religious people study the Bible together to understand scripture. Religion is the belief of another man’s experience written down in sacred scripture, but spirituality is the belief of one’s own experience.

2. Religion has rules, spirituality has privacy.
Religion has a set of rules that followers must obey in order to stay “pure” and “holy.” Those rules encourage them to develop discipline to grow closer to God. These rules are public so others draw near, all in order for a church to increase their congregation.

Spirituality is more personal. While religion has various rules that others may or may not agree with, spirituality focuses on an individual’s aspect of a belief.

Spirituality offers an endless amount of potential benefits, while with religion it offers punishments or rewards. Spiritual people listen to their hearts and their own conscious mind in order to do what is right for their unique self.

3. Religion is tradition, spirituality tends to change as we grow.
As a spiritual person grows in life, so will their perception and beliefs. Through experience and self-reflection, a spiritual person will express a different aspect to reveal their version of the truth.

Religion is an ideology that holds ancient traditions that have kept communities together. If a change was to occur in religion, it would be a slow process. For example, churches are slowly accepting LGBTQ acceptance into their congregation, which before was unheard of.

If you notice, others abuse religion to inflict fear into another’s mind. It has caused wars and major conflict between ecocentric groups and countries.

Spirituality focuses on spreading love and selfless acts. It focuses only on good energy to allow people to be the best version of themselves.

4. Religion defines the truth, spiritual people decide their own truth.
Religion includes a preacher or religious leader who defines what the truth is to their congregation. They believe in sacred scriptures and expressing their own translation.

Spirituality seeks its own truth and translates it based on one’s experience. While one truth is being defined, the other is being discovered.

5. Religion intends to please a God or Gods, spirituality focuses on relationships.
Spirituality is a part of humanity that’s seeking a purpose in life. Being religious has a more connotative reaction from others.

It’s common to abuse religious power to degrade others for their lack of “purity.” But spirituality doesn’t aim to please a specific God; rather, it focuses on interpersonal and intrapersonal relationships.

6. Religion can be exclusive, spirituality is inclusive.
Religion is based upon traditional beliefs and teachings that may impose very strict interpretations and limitations, often excluding people of certain communities. Their worldview can isolate people who don’t see it that way.

Spirituality doesn’t make distinctions of that sort. The foundation of spirituality is a pure spirit of unifying force. That is, nobody is left out, behind, or forgotten.

7. Religion leans on faith, spirituality leans on experience.
Religion is faith. There’s no scientific evidence to corroborate its existence.

It’s a blind belief in something with unconditional acceptance of its teachings. There’s no questioning it. It’s believing without having it proven to you.

Spirituality leans heavily on the personal experience of one’s soul. The practices of spirituality, like meditation and yoga, gives people the chance to make “conscious contact” with expanded states of consciousness. This allows those who practice the teachings to experientially validate them.

8. Religion focuses on the future, spirituality deals with the present.
Spirituality focuses heavily on the now. It deals with being fully present and living as it happens. Spirituality embraces everything good, bad, and neutral as it happens without worrying about a future reward.

Religion requires one to worship so they will be rewarded later on. Some religions have a reward that comes after death, like getting into heaven.

Can you be both religious and spiritual?
Yes, someone can be both spiritual and religious.

Spiritual people can feel a stronger connection when their beliefs are intertwined with religion. For example, they may believe in God while asking for positive energy through their journey of self-discovering.

A way to practice both in a healthy manner will take some adjustment. A person will tend to lean on one side instead of balancing both. For example, if a person is more religious, they run the risk of becoming socially dependent on their church peers.

Being too spiritual may also cause long-term separation from loved ones or more concern for their own issues, instead of trusting a higher being for tomorrow’s worry.

Make sure that whatever path you choose to follow you bring a healthy balance to your lifestyle

HOLDA, GODDESS OF THE WINTER SOLSTICE

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

Mother Holda, an ancient Germanic Goddess, has many surviving stories. She is connected in several ways to our contemporary concept of Santa Claus. She was a teacher, a spinner, a wise woman. She was a Fate Goddess, a Protector and Guide of the souls of the dead to their new life in the next world. Even in modern day, when it snows, people say that Mother Holda is shaking out her down comforter.

An old Germanic tradition that survives is the laying out of an offering of a bowl of milk and food for Holda by the hearth fire on the eve of Her festival day, December 25th. The custom evolved to the setting of a place for Mother Holda at the table the meal before the family went to Christmas Mass, leaving her a bowl of milk when the family left the house, then carrying it outside to pour on the ground or leave for the animals after the family returned. This custom seems very close to the leaving of cookies and milk for Santa by the fire, doesn’t it?

Holda is the Queen of Winter in Her Crone aspect. The snow flies as She shakes out Her cape or Her down comforter. Goddess of Prosperity and Generosity, gold coins drop from Her cape when She unfurls it. But She also holds people to standards of hard work and industriousness. She does not brook laziness. Holda, or Frau Holle, travels in the winds with the souls of the dead, mostly children and babies. She can be heard howling with grief as she bears the babies’ souls tenderly to Heaven.

Holda is connected to the 12 days of Christmas because Her festival days beginning on the evening of the 24th of December began a 12 day party that lasted to January 6th, the Festival Day of Her sister Goddess Perchta, the winter hag Goddess. The Catholic Church assimilated both these Solstice festivals in northern Europe as Christmas ending in Epiphany (commemorating the visit of the Magi to the baby Jesus – bringing gifts).

In Her Mother aspect, Holda appears as the body of the World Tree – front half woman, back half tree – who gave birth to humankind. The name Holda, or Holle, is also associated with the holly plant or tree, which has been used for centuries to decorate and protect the home for this season.

This Northern European Goddess Holda (Hulda or Holle) is a Triple Goddess who as Maiden appears as beautiful and stately, flowing blonde hair shimmering and shining like the light of the sun, with a white, or red and white, goosedown cape. She flies through the night sky on the night of December 24th bringing gifts and joy. Her name means, “kind”, “merciful” or “gracious one”. It was She who determined who was “naughty or nice”. She rewarded the industrious and kind with good health and good fortune, and punished the lazy and selfish.

May Holda bless you with much good health and good fortune in these days surrounding the Rebirth of the Sun.

A Guide To Dragon Magick

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

Dragon Magick is a unique form of magick that draws upon the energy and wisdom of dragons. Dragons are often seen as guardians of hidden knowledge and symbols of strength and power. Practicing Dragon Magick allows us to tap into these energies, offering us guidance and protection as we navigate the challenges of life.

To begin your journey into Dragon Magick, here are some fundamental steps:

Study and Research: Start by immersing yourself in the world of dragons. Read books, explore online resources, and learn about the various dragon myths, cultures, and traditions from around the world. The more you know about these majestic creatures, the better you can connect with their energy.

Meditation and Visualization: Meditation is a crucial part of Dragon Magick. Find a quiet and peaceful space, close your eyes, and envision a dragon. Visualize its form, color, and energy. Through meditation, you can establish a connection with the dragons’ spiritual realm.

Create a Sacred Space: Design a personal altar or sacred space dedicated to Dragon Magick. This space should be adorned with dragon-related items, such as figurines, candles, crystals, and images. This is where you’ll perform your rituals and connect with dragon energies.

Spells and Rituals: Craft your own spells and rituals or find existing ones to suit your needs. Dragon Magick spells often involve invoking the assistance of dragons in various aspects of life, from protection and healing to wisdom and abundance.

How to Summon Dragons for Help
Summoning dragons is a sacred and powerful aspect of Dragon Magick. When you seek their guidance or assistance, it’s essential to do so with respect and intention. Here’s how you can summon dragons for help:

Prepare Your Sacred Space: Ensure that your altar or sacred space is clean and free of distractions. Light some dragon-themed candles and incense to create an inviting atmosphere.

Clear Your Mind: Before invoking the dragons, clear your mind through meditation. Focus on your intention and what you seek from the dragons.

Invocation: Speak or chant an invocation to call upon the dragons. You can create your own words or find existing invocations. Be sincere and respectful in your request.

Offering: It’s a tradition to leave an offering for the dragons. This could be a small token, a crystal, or some incense. It symbolizes your appreciation and respect.

Listen and Feel: After invoking the dragons, pay attention to any signs or messages they may send. These can come in the form of feelings, visions, or even dreams.

The Different Color Dragons and What They Can Help You With
Dragons come in various colors, each representing different qualities and attributes. Let’s explore some of the most common colors and what they can help you with:

Red Dragons: Red dragons are symbols of courage, strength, and passion. They can assist with matters of protection, vitality, and motivation. When facing challenges that require bold action, red dragons are powerful allies.

Blue Dragons: Blue dragons are associated with healing, wisdom, and serenity. They can help with emotional balance, tranquility, and mental clarity. Call upon blue dragons when seeking guidance in matters of the heart and mind.

Green Dragons: Green dragons are linked to growth, abundance, and renewal. They can aid in matters of prosperity, fertility, and environmental healing. Seek their assistance when working on projects related to growth and prosperity.

White Dragons: White dragons symbolize purity, truth, and spirituality. They can guide you in seeking truth and purity in your spiritual journey. They offer protection from negative influences and support on your quest for enlightenment.

Black Dragons: Black dragons are often misunderstood but can be valuable allies in shadow work and transformation. They help you confront and overcome your deepest fears, making way for personal growth and empowerment.

Gold Dragons: Gold dragons represent wisdom, enlightenment, and divine guidance. They can offer profound insights and help you connect with your higher self. Seek their assistance in matters of spiritual evolution and self-realization.

Dragon Magick and Elemental Associations
In the enchanting world of Dragon Magick, the elemental associations of dragons play a significant role. Much like other magical practices that draw upon the power of the four classical elements—earth, air, fire, and water—Dragon Magick aligns various types of dragons with these elemental forces. This connection allows practitioners to harness specific energies and qualities to enhance their magical workings.

Earth Dragons: These mighty creatures are closely tied to the element of earth. Earth dragons are often seen as guardians of the physical realm, offering strength, stability, and protection. Practitioners working with earth dragons can seek their assistance in matters related to grounding, abundance, fertility, and overall stability in life. When treading the path of Dragon Magick with an earth dragon by your side, you may find your spells and rituals anchored in the solid foundation of the earth, providing a sense of security and abundance.

Air Dragons: Dragons aligned with the element of air are associated with intellect, clarity, and communication. They hold the wisdom of the skies and can guide you in matters of knowledge, creative inspiration, and enhancing your mental faculties. When working with air dragons, you may find your thoughts and intentions taking flight, helping you gain new perspectives and fostering open communication in your magical endeavors.

Fire Dragons: Fire dragons embody the fierce and transformative power of the element of fire. They are linked to passion, courage, and the ignition of change. When you call upon a fire dragon, be prepared to unleash your inner power, ignite your passions, and overcome obstacles with determination and strength. These dragons can be particularly helpful in protection spells, personal growth, and any magical work that requires a fiery spark.

Water Dragons: Water dragons, as you might expect, are attuned to the element of water. They are associated with emotions, intuition, and the ebb and flow of life. Working with water dragons can help you navigate the depths of your emotions, enhance your intuition, and connect with the mysteries of the subconscious. In your magical practices, water dragons can be invaluable allies for healing, purification, and enhancing your emotional intelligence.

To work with dragons aligned with a specific element, it is crucial to understand the unique qualities and characteristics associated with that element. When performing spells or rituals, practitioners can call upon the corresponding elemental dragon to amplify the energy they wish to channel. For example, when seeking emotional healing, you might invoke the assistance of a water dragon, or when pursuing a creative project, an air dragon can offer inspiration.

Incorporating elemental associations into your Dragon Magick practice not only adds depth to your magical workings but also strengthens your connection with the natural world. By aligning with the elemental energies of earth, air, fire, and water through dragon companionship, you can create a more profound and harmonious connection between your intentions and the forces of nature. Each elemental dragon brings a unique flavor to your practice, enriching your journey through the mystical realms of Dragon Magick.

Dragon Familiars: Mystical Companions
In the realm of magic and mystical practice, the concept of familiars has long held a place of reverence. Familiars are often seen as guides, protectors, and companions for those who traverse the path of the mystic. While cats, owls, and other creatures have frequently been associated with familiars, the mystical world of Dragon Magick offers a unique perspective – the notion of dragon familiars.

Connecting with Dragon Familiars
A dragon familiar is a mythical being that has chosen to ally itself with a practitioner of Dragon Magick. This sacred bond is formed through mutual respect, trust, and a shared spiritual journey. Those fortunate enough to connect with a dragon familiar find themselves gifted with a remarkable companion on their magical endeavors.

Benefits of a Dragon Familiar:
Guidance and Wisdom: A dragon familiar serves as a wellspring of wisdom and guidance. Their ancient knowledge and profound understanding of the spiritual realms can provide invaluable insights for practitioners. They often act as mentors, helping individuals navigate the complexities of their magical path.

Protection and Warding: Dragon familiars are fierce protectors. They safeguard their human companions from negative energies, psychic attacks, and spiritual threats. The presence of a dragon familiar can create a powerful protective barrier around the practitioner.

Enhanced Magical Abilities: The connection with a dragon familiar can amplify one’s magical abilities. Practitioners often find that their spells and rituals are more potent and effective with the assistance of their familiar. They act as conduits for channeling dragon energy into magical workings.

Spiritual Growth: Dragon familiars are catalysts for spiritual growth and transformation. Their profound influence can facilitate personal evolution, deepen spiritual insights, and help practitioners reach higher levels of consciousness.

Emotional Support: In times of emotional turmoil or spiritual crisis, dragon familiars offer solace and emotional support. Their presence can be comforting, providing a source of strength during challenging moments.

Responsibilities of Having a Dragon Familiar:
While the benefits of having a dragon familiar are profound, the relationship also carries responsibilities. Here are some key considerations:

Mutual Respect: The relationship between a practitioner and their dragon familiar is built on mutual respect. It is essential to honor the dragon’s autonomy and not attempt to control or dominate them.

Communication: Establish open and clear communication with your familiar. This can involve meditation, dreams, or divination techniques to receive guidance and insights from your companion.

Protection and Care: Just as they protect you, it is your responsibility to protect and care for your dragon familiar. Ensure they have a safe and energetically nurturing environment.

Mutual Growth: The relationship should be a mutually beneficial one. The practitioner should not merely seek to exploit the dragon’s powers but should also assist the dragon in their own spiritual growth and evolution.

Confidentiality: Maintain the confidentiality of your interactions with your dragon familiar. It is considered respectful to keep many aspects of your connection private and sacred.

Offerings and Gratitude: Express gratitude and make offerings to your dragon familiar regularly. These can be physical offerings such as crystals or herbs, or simply expressions of thanks during your rituals and meditations.

The concept of dragon familiars in Dragon Magick is a powerful and sacred one. When practitioners form a bond with these mythical beings, they unlock a wealth of magical potential and spiritual growth. However, this relationship should always be approached with reverence, responsibility, and a deep commitment to mutual respect and understanding. In the mystical journey of Dragon Magick, a dragon familiar is not just a companion; they are a wise and eternal friend on the path of magic and spirituality.

Guardians of the Dream Realm: Dragons in Lucid Dreaming
Dreams have always been a mysterious gateway to the subconscious, a place where the mind can roam free and explore the realms of the unknown. For practitioners of Dragon Magick, the dream realm offers a unique opportunity to connect with dragons on a profound level. Lucid dreaming, in particular, allows you to not only witness but actively engage with these magnificent creatures in your dreams.

Connecting with Dragons in Lucid Dreams
Lucid dreaming is a state of consciousness where you become aware that you are dreaming and can even influence and direct the dream’s unfolding. To connect with dragons in your dreams, it’s essential to practice lucid dreaming techniques. Here are a few tips to help get you started. Refer to our guide section for more tips on lucid dreaming.

Dream Journal: Start by keeping a dream journal. Every morning, write down your dreams, even if they seem trivial or fragmented. This practice will help you improve dream recall and recognize recurring dream symbols, including dragons.

Reality Checks: Throughout the day, perform reality checks. Question the nature of your reality by asking, “Am I dreaming?” This habit will carry over into your dreams, making it more likely that you’ll recognize when you’re in a dream.

Meditation and Visualization: Incorporate meditation and visualization techniques into your daily routine. Visualize yourself becoming aware in a dream and encountering a dragon. The more you practice, the more likely it is to occur in your dreams.

Intention Setting: Before falling asleep, set a clear intention to meet a dragon in your dream. You can do this by mentally affirming your desire to connect with these mystical beings.

Dream Incubation: Use a technique known as dream incubation, where you focus your thoughts and intentions on a specific dream scenario, such as meeting a dragon. This plants the idea in your subconscious mind, making it more likely to manifest in your dreams.

The Significance of Dream Encounters with Dragons
Meeting dragons in your lucid dreams is a powerful and transformative experience. These dream encounters can carry deep symbolic meaning and offer valuable insights. Here’s what they may signify:

Guidance and Protection: Dragons are often seen as protectors and guides. Meeting a dragon in your dream may symbolize their willingness to offer you protection and guidance in waking life.

Unconscious Wisdom: Dragons in dreams can represent the untapped wisdom within your own subconscious. Pay attention to any messages or wisdom they impart during your dream interactions.

Inner Transformation: Dragons are creatures of transformation. Dream encounters with dragons may indicate that significant changes or personal growth are on the horizon.

Psychic Development: Some believe that dreams involving dragons can be a sign of latent psychic abilities or spiritual awakening. These dreams may mark a deepening connection to the spiritual realms.

Using Dream Experiences for Personal Growth
The wisdom gained from dream encounters with dragons can be applied to your waking life and your magical practice. Here’s how to use these experiences for personal growth:

Journal Your Dreams: Record your dream encounters with dragons in your dream journal. Reflect on the messages, guidance, or symbolism they carry.

Meditation and Integration: Use meditation to delve deeper into the meaning of your dream experiences. Integrate the wisdom gained into your daily life and magical practices.

Set Intentions: Before sleep, set intentions for specific areas of your life where you seek guidance or transformation. Ask the dragons for assistance and clarity in these areas during your dream encounters.

Share and Seek Guidance: Discuss your dream experiences with fellow practitioners of Dragon Magick or dream interpretation experts to gain different perspectives and insights.

Meeting dragons in your lucid dreams is a magical and enlightening experience, one that can deepen your connection with these mystical beings and provide invaluable guidance and wisdom. As you explore the dream realm with an open heart and an inquisitive mind, you’ll find that the dragons are not just guardians of the physical world but also enchanting guides in the realm of dreams.

Dragon Magick and Healing
In the realm of Dragon Magick, the role of dragons extends beyond mere mystical symbolism and into the realm of healing. Dragons are believed to possess immense energies that can be harnessed for physical, emotional, and spiritual healing. This ancient practice intertwines the raw power of these majestic beings with the healing energies they offer to those who seek their aid.

Harnessing Dragon Energy for Healing
Physical Healing: In Dragon Magick, dragons are often revered for their ability to infuse one’s being with vitality and strength. To channel dragon energy for physical healing, practitioners often perform rituals or meditations where they invite the assistance of dragons. By visualizing the dragon’s healing breath or light surrounding and permeating the body, practitioners believe they can promote physical wellness and aid in recovery from illness or injury.

Emotional Healing: Dragons also play a crucial role in emotional healing. Their wisdom and guidance can offer solace and support in times of emotional turmoil. Through meditation or rituals, practitioners can call upon the energy of compassionate dragons to soothe emotional wounds, providing a sense of comfort and inner peace.

Spiritual Healing: For spiritual healing, dragons serve as conduits for enlightenment and spiritual growth. Their ancient wisdom and connection to higher realms can guide practitioners on their spiritual journey. By invoking the energy of dragons, individuals can seek clarity, understanding, and alignment with their higher selves.

Simple Healing Rituals and Techniques
Dragon Breathing Meditation: Find a quiet and peaceful space. Close your eyes and visualize a healing dragon—choose the color associated with the type of healing you seek (e.g., green for physical healing, blue for emotional healing). Envision the dragon breathing its healing energy upon you. Breathe deeply, imagining you’re inhaling the dragon’s healing breath and exhaling any ailments or negativity.

Healing Altar or Grid: Create a healing altar or crystal grid dedicated to dragon healing. Place items associated with healing (crystals, herbs, images of dragons) in a pattern, inviting the energy of dragons to infuse these items. Sit near the altar or grid, focusing on the intention of healing and absorbing the energy emitted.

Dragon Chant or Affirmation: Develop a chant or affirmation that calls upon the healing energy of dragons. Repeat this chant during meditation or as part of a ritual to strengthen the connection with dragon healing energy.

Healing Visualization: During meditation, visualize yourself in a serene and healing environment, surrounded by gentle, radiant dragon energy. Imagine this energy enveloping you, permeating every cell of your body, bringing about the healing you seek.

Cleansing Ritual with Dragons: Use the power of dragons in a cleansing ritual. Light a candle representing the color associated with the type of healing you desire. State your intention for healing and invite the assistance of the dragons, asking them to cleanse and purify your body, mind, and spirit.

Remember, the efficacy of these practices lies in the intention, belief, and connection established with the dragon energies. Approach these healing rituals with sincerity and an open heart, allowing the mystical power of the dragons to assist in your healing journey.

Connecting with Dragon Energy in Nature
In the enchanting world of Dragon Magick, the natural world is viewed as a canvas of mystical energies, and one of the most potent and profound sources of these energies is the elemental world itself. To practitioners of this ancient tradition, connecting with dragon energy in nature is not only a ritual but a deeply spiritual and transformative experience. The natural elements—earth, air, fire, and water—are believed to hold the essence of dragons, and attuning oneself to these energies can be a powerful and enlightening practice.

Techniques for Connecting with Dragon Energy in Nature:
Seek Dragon’s Sanctuaries: Certain natural locations are believed to hold a strong connection to dragon energy. Mountains, cliffs, caves, and rocky terrain are often considered dragon sanctuaries. Waterfalls, lakes, and bodies of water, with their constant flow and change, are also believed to be inhabited by dragons. Seek out these places and spend time there to absorb the elemental energies.

Observation and Meditation: When in a dragon sanctuary, take the time to observe the natural surroundings. Breathe deeply and let the energy of the place wash over you. Find a comfortable spot to sit or lie down and meditate. In your meditation, visualize the presence of dragons in the natural elements surrounding you.

Breathing and Elemental Connection: As you meditate in these natural settings, practice elemental breathing. Inhale deeply, imagining you are drawing the essence of the specific element into your body: earth for grounding, air for clarity, fire for passion, and water for emotional healing. Feel the elemental energy coursing through you as you exhale.

Offerings and Tokens: To show respect and gratitude to the dragon energy in the natural world, consider leaving offerings or tokens. These can be crystals, herbs, or even words of appreciation. It’s a gesture of acknowledgement and a means of creating a bond with the dragons of the land.

Symbolic Visualization: Visualize the dragons present in these natural surroundings. Imagine their forms in the shapes of rocks, cliffs, or the patterns of flowing water. See their eyes in the glittering reflections of sunlight or moonlight on the water. As you practice this, you may begin to sense the presence of these mythical beings more acutely.

Elemental Communion Ritual: Perform a ritual to establish a deeper connection with the elemental energies and the dragons that reside within them. This can include chanting, invoking the elements, and offering your intentions and gratitude for the connection.

Elemental Magic: As you spend time in these natural dragon sanctuaries, consider engaging in elemental magic, such as grounding exercises, weather-working, or rituals that honor the elemental forces. Align your magical practice with the energies of the land and the dragons that inhabit it.

Maintain a Nature Journal: Keep a journal where you record your experiences, thoughts, and feelings during your encounters with dragon energy in nature. This can help you track your progress and reflect on the significance of these connections.

By embracing the natural world and attuning oneself to the elemental energies believed to be inhabited by dragons, practitioners of Dragon Magick can deepen their spiritual connection and access the ancient wisdom and power that resides within these mystical beings. These encounters with dragon energy in nature offer not only a profound sense of communion with the elements but also a doorway to a greater understanding of the mystical realms and the magic they hold.

Dragon Altar and Tools
Creating a dragon-themed altar is a sacred and transformative act in Dragon Magick. Your altar serves as a focal point for your rituals, a place of connection with dragon energies, and a reflection of your devotion to this mystical practice. As you embark on this journey, it’s essential to understand the significance of various tools and how to set up a visually stunning and energetically charged space for your Dragon Magick practice.

Setting Up Your Dragon Altar:
Choosing the Location: Select a quiet and undisturbed location for your altar. It can be indoors or outdoors, depending on your preference and the availability of space. Ensure that the energy in the area is peaceful and conducive to your practice.

The Altar Surface: Your altar can be as simple as a dedicated table, shelf, or any flat surface. It’s preferable to choose a surface that resonates with the earth element, such as wood or stone, to ground and anchor the energy.

Altar Cloth: Cover your altar with a dragon-themed cloth. The cloth not only adds an aesthetic touch but also defines the sacred space of your altar.

Candles: Place dragon-themed candles on your altar. Red, green, blue, and black candles can represent the elemental dragons and their unique energies. Lighting these candles symbolizes the presence of dragons and invokes their power.

Dragon Statues and Figurines: Dragon statues are central to a dragon-themed altar. Choose statues that resonate with your intuition or specific intentions. Dragon figurines are believed to embody the essence of the dragons they represent. Position them as guardians and sentinels of your sacred space.

Crystals and Gemstones: Select crystals and gemstones that align with your purpose. Clear quartz for clarity, amethyst for intuition, and carnelian for courage are excellent choices. Arrange these stones in a manner that enhances the energy flow on your altar.

Herbs and Incense: Burn dragon-themed incense, such as dragon’s blood or a blend of earthy scents, to purify and charge your altar. You can also use herbs and dried flowers with dragon associations, such as lavender or rosemary, for added energetic significance.

Ancestral Items: Incorporate any ancestral items or personal mementos that hold significance for you and relate to your Dragon Magick practice. These can enhance the personal and spiritual connection with your altar.

Offerings: Create a small dish for offerings to the dragons. These can be simple offerings like herbs, crystals, or small tokens of appreciation. Offerings show respect and gratitude to the dragon energies.

Setting Up Your Altar Space:
Cleansing: Before setting up your altar, cleanse the area to remove any stagnant or negative energy. You can use a smudging ritual with sage, cedar, or dragon’s blood incense.

Centerpiece: Position the largest dragon statue or figurine as the centerpiece of your altar, symbolizing the central connection to the dragon energies.

Candle Placement: Arrange the elemental candles around the central dragon figurine, with each candle corresponding to one of the four elements.

Crystals and Gemstones: Place the crystals and gemstones around the candles, ensuring they resonate with the intentions of your practice.

Incense Holder: Position the incense holder on your altar, ready for use during rituals.

Ancestral Items: If you have ancestral items, position them in a manner that resonates with the overall design of your altar.

Offering Dish: Set up the offering dish near the center of your altar, as an invitation for the dragons to accept your gratitude.

Maintaining Your Dragon Altar:
Regular Cleansing: Keep your altar clean and energetically pure by performing regular cleansing rituals. This can include smudging, as well as energetic clearing and charging with intention.

Updating the Theme: Over time, you may want to change or add items to your altar based on your evolving practice and goals. Trust your intuition and make adjustments as needed.

Connecting and Meditating: Spend time at your altar, meditating, and connecting with the dragon energies. This enhances the energetic charge of your sacred space.

Rituals and Spells: Use your altar as a dedicated space for performing Dragon Magick rituals and spells. The energetic connection you’ve established will amplify the effectiveness of your practices.

Creating a dragon-themed altar is a beautiful and powerful way to deepen your connection with the mystical world of Dragon Magick. By thoughtfully selecting tools and items that resonate with your intentions and setting up your altar with care, you create a space where you can work in harmony with the energies of dragons, enhancing your magical practice and spiritual journey.

Dragon Magick and Elemental Rituals
In the captivating world of Dragon Magick, the four classical elements—earth, air, fire, and water—play a significant role, and rituals that align with these elements offer practitioners a powerful means to harness the energy of dragons. These elemental rituals allow for a deeper connection with the natural forces that underpin the world of magick. Here, we’ll explore specific rituals that focus on harnessing the elemental energy of dragons for purposes ranging from protection and purification to transformation and manifestation.

Earth Dragon Protection Ritual:
Intent: Protection, Stability, and Security

What You’ll Need:
A small representation of an earth dragon (statue or image)
A black or green candle
A bowl of salt
Earthy incense (such as patchouli or cedar)
A piece of black tourmaline or obsidian (for grounding and protection)

Begin by setting up your ritual space. Place the earth dragon representation at the center.
Light the black or green candle to represent the element of earth.
Sprinkle the salt around the dragon figure in a protective circle. As you do this, envision a shield forming around you.
Light the earthy incense and pass the dragon figure through the smoke to cleanse and purify it.
Hold the black tourmaline or obsidian and ask the earth dragon for protection, stability, and security. Place the crystal in front of the dragon figure.
Meditate on the earth element’s grounding and protective qualities, visualizing yourself enveloped in a shield of earth energy.
When you feel the connection is strong, thank the earth dragon, and extinguish the candle. You can leave the salt circle in place for ongoing protection.

Air Dragon Clarity Ritual:
Intent: Mental Clarity, Communication, and Inspiration

What You’ll Need:
A small representation of an air dragon (statue or image)
A white or yellow candle
Incense with a light, airy scent (such as lavender or frankincense)
A clear quartz crystal (for mental clarity and amplification)

Set up your ritual space, placing the air dragon representation at the center.
Light the white or yellow candle to symbolize the element of air.
Burn the airy-scented incense and pass the dragon figure through the smoke to cleanse and purify it.
Hold the clear quartz crystal and ask the air dragon for mental clarity, communication, and inspiration. Place the crystal in front of the dragon figure.
Meditate on the air element’s qualities of mental clarity and the free flow of ideas. Visualize your mind becoming clear and focused.
When you sense a strong connection, thank the air dragon, and extinguish the candle.

Fire Dragon Transformation Ritual:
Intent: Transformation, Empowerment, and Overcoming Obstacles

What You’ll Need:
A small representation of a fire dragon (statue or image)
A red or orange candle
Fiery-scented incense (such as cinnamon or clove)
A piece of carnelian or red jasper (for courage and transformation)

Prepare your ritual space with the fire dragon representation at the center.
Light the red or orange candle to represent the element of fire.
Burn the fiery-scented incense and pass the dragon figure through the smoke to cleanse and purify it.
Hold the carnelian or red jasper and ask the fire dragon for courage, transformation, and the strength to overcome obstacles. Place the crystal in front of the dragon figure.
Meditate on the fire element’s qualities of transformation and empowerment. Visualize yourself overcoming challenges and emerging stronger.
When you feel a strong connection, thank the fire dragon and extinguish the candle.

Water Dragon Manifestation Ritual:
Intent: Manifestation, Emotional Healing, and Intuition

What You’ll Need:
A small representation of a water dragon (statue or image)
A blue or silver candle
Water-scented incense (such as jasmine or rose)
A piece of moonstone or aquamarine (for intuition and emotional healing)

Arrange your ritual space, with the water dragon representation at the center.
Light the blue or silver candle to symbolize the element of water.
Burn the water-scented incense and pass the dragon figure through the smoke to cleanse and purify it.
Hold the moonstone or aquamarine and ask the water dragon for manifestation, emotional healing, and heightened intuition. Place the crystal in front of the dragon figure.
Meditate on the water element’s qualities of emotional healing and intuition. Visualize your desires coming to fruition and your emotions in balance.
When you sense a strong connection, thank the water dragon, and extinguish the candle.
These elemental rituals in Dragon Magick enable practitioners to tap into the diverse energies of dragons associated with the four elements. Whether you seek protection, clarity, transformation, or manifestation, these rituals empower you to work in harmony with the natural forces of the world while connecting with the mystical guidance of dragons.

Final Musings:
Dragon Magick is a fascinating and empowering path that offers a deep connection to the energy of these mythical creatures. As a woman in her forties, I can attest to the transformative potential of this practice, and I encourage you to explore it for yourself. Remember, like any magickal practice, patience and dedication are key to unlocking the full potential of Dragon Magick. May your journey be filled with wisdom, strength, and the blessings of the dragons. Embrace the mystical, for it has the power to shape your life in extraordinary ways.

Malleaus maleficarum

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

The Catholic Inquisition published a book that was probably the bloodiest work in the history of humanity: the “Malleaus maleficarum”, “the witches’ hammer”, had indoctrinated the world on the “danger of free-thinking women and taught to the clergy how to locate them, torture them, and destroy them.
The category of so-called “witches”, defined thus by the Church, included all women:
– educated,
– the priestesses,
– the gypsies,
– nature lovers,
– herbalists
– and many women “suspiciously linked to the natural world.
Midwives were also killed for their heretical practice of using medical knowledge to alleviate the pain of childbirth, a suffering, the Church proclaimed, which was God’s just punishment because Eve had wanted to taste the Fruit of Knowledge, with the consequent original sin .
In three hundred years of witch hunts, the Church had burned hundreds of thousands of women at the stake.
The propaganda and bloodshed had worked.
Today’s world is living proof of this. The woman, once celebrated as the essential half of spiritual enlightenment, had been banished from the temples of the world.
There were no female Orthodox rabbis, no Catholic priestesses, no women of religion, no Islamic imams.
The once sacred act of “hieros gamos”, the natural sexual union between man and woman, with which each of the two acquired spiritual unity, had been redefined as a sin.
Men of faith, who once needed sexual union with their female equivalents to commune with God, now feared their natural sexual impulses and saw them as the work of the devil, who worked with his favorite accomplice, the woman.
Not even the association between the left side and the feminine had escaped the defamation of the Church. In France and Italy, left and left had taken on a negative connotation, while the terms relating to the right took on a connotation of justice, correctness and skill. Even today, everything evil is considered “sinister.”
The goddess’s days were over.
The swing had swung the pendulum the other way. Mother Earth had become a world of men, and the gods of destruction and war had taken their terrible toll.
For two millennia the male ego had no longer been held back by its female counterpart. This elimination of the sacred feminine in modern life has caused what the Hopi Americans call “kojanisquatsi” – life without balance – a situation of instability marked by wars fueled by testosterone, a plethora of misogynistic societies and a growing lack of respect for Mother Earth! 

What is a Solitary Witch?

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

A solitary practitioner is an individual who chooses to practice their spiritual faith in the privacy of his or her home or other designated space, without the need to participate in a group such as that of a Wiccan coven; although it’s not uncommon for solitaries to participate in some communal activities (e.g. Sabbats). Many solitary practitioners are Neo-pagans, who adhere to a diverse group of pagan religions that include various forms of Wicca, Traditional Reconstructionism and Traditional British Witchcraft, among others. About half of all pagans are self-ascribed solitary practitioners.

While formal training is not a necessary component of solitary practice as it is in more organized groups, it is nevertheless a supported recommendation and practitioners can find myriad workshops, seminars and classes, in their local communities and online, that help to provide a more well-rounded approach to their spiritual practice. In most cases books are the primary means of education of the solitary practitioner, along with CDs and instructional videos. Furthermore, the internet has provided for innumerable avenues of personal education in several spiritual faiths, Neo-Pagan or otherwise, making it possible for an individual to learn all he or she can about a particular path. In addition, that individual may decide to merge the various beliefs, legends and rituals they’ve researched from differing paths into a diverse, yet coherent whole known as being “Eclectic.”

Decisions for choosing solitary practice over community gatherings are as individual as the practitioners themselves, but a few common reasons are often cited. The reason most often given is that of fear, in that the practitioner is concerned he or she might be the subject of harassment or abuse, whether physically, emotionally and/or socially, should the individual publicly express his or her beliefs, especially when those beliefs are in direct contrast to those of their local community. This mentality is often referred to by those in the Neo-Pagan community by the slang phrase, “still in the broom closet.”

However, another reason is mere personal preference: the individual simply feels more comfortable practicing alone, rather than with others; entering into sacred communion with his or her deities on a one-to-one basis in private. There have been historically wise women, oracles, shamans and the like, who practised alone and offered essential services to their communities, choosing a select few to inherit their knowledge (most often members of their family or people they were particularly close with). The claim could be made that such exclusivity contributed to the targeting of witches, genuine or not, whose secret arts caused fear and suspicion in the minds of the general public and jealousy in medieval doctors, whose practices were ineffective.(This last statement is inferred from historical premise and opinion and should not be treated as fact).

Solitary practice has been the subject of scrutiny within the Neo-Pagan community by those who feel that the practice is uncommitted, or in some way insincere, especially within the Wiccan community who consider a witch’s power to be transferred or bestowed upon an individual by the leading authority of a group, for instance a High Priest or Priestess. Regardless of public opinion, several proponents of solitary practice, such as Doreen Valiente and Raymond Buckland, have advocated and promoted the act of “self-initiation”, a process by which an individual professes in private (usually through a ritual of some kind) their commitment to and worship of a particular deity or pantheon. In this way a practitioner may acquire in his or her own way a feeling of authenticity, with the added benefit of remaining exclusive, and an extensive amount of self-initiating rituals have been written and published for the general public by popular New Age authors like Silver RavenWolf and the late Scott Cunningham, both of whom having written educational guides for the solitary practitioner.

Samhain Is What You Make Of It

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

There always seems to be so much more Witchcraft and Paganism than usual at Samhain. Some of that is because there’s often just more to do. For many of us there are just more rituals to partake in, and there’s something about Autumn and Halloween that just feels like Witchcraft. You might blame the thinning of the veil for this, or maybe it’s the chillier weather, or shorter days.

Just why so many of us love this season the most will vary from person to person of course, and it should, because there are very few (if any) absolutes in Witchcraft. One of my colleagues here recently pointed out that “Samhain was not a cutesy sabbat” and made light of love spells on the holiday. But love spells have actually been a part of Halloween celebrations for hundreds of years, and while this time of year has been associated with the dead for at least 1200 years, Samhain specifically as a day of the dead is a rather new association.

(My colleague, Cyndi Brennen, assures me she was not being as dismissive as I make her sound, and she’s right! As she says in the comments below “My concern was that I, along with others, were exploring the lighter sides of this day while ignoring the darker aspects” which is completely understandable. Sorry for my issue with reading comprehension Cyndi!)

What I’m here to tell you is that if you want your Samhain to be cutesy, by all means have it be cutesy. The Wheel of the Year is about what you need it to be, it’s not about preconceived ideas or the interpretations of others. Only we get to walk in our shoes, and we should do what most resonates with us. If someone has had several family members die in a given year, maybe they don’t want to participate in a deep and death focused Samhain. That’s fair right?

I know people who absolutely love Halloween, and their Samhain observances more closely resemble All Hallow’s than a Witch ritual, and that’s OK. At their core, sabbats are meant to be celebrations, and while many of us do “work” on them, that’s not required. I’m not harmed if people are more enamored with jack-o-lanterns than their ancestors on Samhain.

And in some ways this was actually me for a couple of years. Ari and I were coven-less and our “Samhain celebrations” mostly consisted of lighting a couple of candles for our beloved dead and then passing out candy to trick-or-treaters. These small things were all preceded by a Michigan’most kick-ass Halloween Party, and we were okay with that. I wouldn’t want to go back to that model, but it was my reality for a couple of years.

Most of us today associate Samhain with the dead, but it’s not a requirement. The idea that the “veil is thin” at Samhain was first articulated by the Scottish anthropologist Sir James Frazer (1854-1941) who wrote in his multi-volume work The Golden Bough that at Samhain “the souls of the departed hovering unseen” were thought to be at ancient celebrations. Frazer was probably on to something because the holiday certainly feels like that, but that’s not an association that was present at Samhain celebrations 2000 years ago (they were far more worried about the fair folk than visiting with dead ancestors).

I had a friend write once that “Witches work with the dead,” but do all Witches work with the dead? Certainly many do, but some of us are far more focused on deity, or magick, or building community in the here and and now. Witches work with all sorts of energies and entities, the dead and our ancestors are only a part of that tapestry, and it’s not something embraced by everyone. Don’t want to work with the dead or visit with Grandma (and I guess that could be dead or alive) at Samhain? Then don’t do it. It’s fine.

New Year’s and Samhain is another one of those associations that we’ve come to accept as some age old tenet, but like the dead specifically at Samhain it’s a rather new idea. The idea that Samhain is the Celtic New Year only dates back to the start of the Twentieth Century. The idea was first put forward by Welsh scholar Sir John Rhys (1840-1915), who interpreted many of the goings on in early November as related to the idea of new beginnings. In Celtic Folkore: Welsh & Manx he writes that “This is the day when the tenure of land terminates, and when servantmen (sic) go to their places. In other words, it’s the beginning of a new year.”

There are Witches that celebrate their new years at Yule, Imbolc, Ostara, and Beltane, and some who celebrate on January 1 (a date established by a Pagan by the way). If Samhain doesn’t resonate with you as the start of a new year you are free to discard it. There is no one “Witch’s New Year,” besides the Wheel of the Year is a wheel. There is no specific starting point, only ones we arbitrarily decide on for whatever reason.

We don’t exist to celebrate the sabbats in a certain way, the sabbats exist for us to celebrate them in whatever way we might like. This Samhain, feast, make love, hand out candy, work with your dead, have a party, toast the Witch’s New Year, celebrate the Autumn, or do absolutely none of those things. As Witches we are beholden only to ourselves and the deities and powers we honor in our lives.

Enjoy your Samhain no matter how you do or do not celebrate.

Tarot Card Meanings: A Beginner’s Guide

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

Before you learn all the tarot card meanings, you should start at the basics: Tarot reading is the centuries-old practice of using a 78-card deck as a tool of divination—that is, the art or practice of discovering hidden knowledge or unusual insight through divine messages. Tarot card interpretation can be used to answer a multitude of questions by those who have learned and connected with their deck.  

Whether you’re reading for yourself or others, the symbolism and stories interwoven with the tarot deck are meant to procure a reaction from the subconscious in order to make connections that might not have been seen otherwise. While tarot cards do not give the reader the ability to see the future, they are a way to reflect, react, and respond accordingly. (Not unlike how someone reads a horoscope for their sun sign, rising sign, and moon sign.)

Interested in learning tarot? Read on for all the tarot card names before you begin your own journey.

What are tarot cards?

Each card in a deck has its own unique imagery, and the deck as a whole is broken into two categories: the Major and Minor Arcana. 

The Major Arcana consists of 22 cards, spanning from numbers 0 through 21 that tell “the fool’s journey.” In short, it’s an archetypal story of life. The Minor Arcana is made up of all four elements—fire, air, water, and earth are represented by wands, swords, cups, and pentacles respectively—and counts upward from ace to 10 and then through four court cards (page, knight, queen, king). The Major Arcana is said to represent big life-changing events, while the Minor Arcana usually represents people, feelings, and day-to-day occurrences.

What is the history of tarot?

Tarot cards are thought to have originated in the 15th century in Europe, more specifically in Italy, and originally the deck was called Tarocchi. The cards quickly gained traction throughout many other European countries after the French conquered Milan and the Piedmont in 1499. The Major Arcana, previously dubbed trump cards, were custom made and painted for wealthy families, including multiple decks that were created for the Visconti family in Milan. The oldest surviving cards are the 15 Visconti-Sforza tarot decks commissioned by Duke Filippo Maria Visconti between 1418 and 1425, which means that people have been learning how to read tarot cards for over 600 years.

What was the original purpose of tarot?

While we know that tarot cards were used in aristocratic society, their original purpose is still not fully known. Whether they were family heirlooms to be passed down to the next of kin, simply a fun customized card game, or something in between is up for debate. What matters now: Over time, tarot cards became symbolic divinatory tools. Their use has far expanded beyond their original purpose as they assist us with spiritual guidance and self-reflection. 

What is the difference between tarot and oracle cards?

Tarot decks have to consist of exactly 78 cards made up of 22 Major Arcana cards and 56 Minor Arcana cards. No more and no less. They also need to include four different suits. In the traditional Rider-Waite deck, these are pentacles, swords, cups, and wands; however, some decks use different representations of these same four elements. Tarot will also always include court cards (traditionally page, knight, queen, and king), though some decks swap out pages for princesses or other minor shifts in the deck’s creative direction.

While oracle cards are used in a similar way—that is, as a tool of self-reflection—there are fewer rules. An oracle card deck can include any number of cards and meanings. 

How can I learn how to read tarot?

Tarot as a tool of divination is meant to give clarity to the person being read for. That could be either you reading for yourself, you reading for someone else, or someone else reading for you. In order to learn how to read tarot, it’s important to start by understanding the meaning behind each archetypal card. Much as we learn words before we start stringing together sentences, knowing the meaning of the cards individually will the guide you as you read them in tarot card spreads.

How do you ask tarot questions?

When you are asking your tarot deck questions, it’s important to set an intention first. Try something like, “I call forth my spirit guides of the purest and highest intention to give me messages of clarity for each question being asked hereafter.” From that point, ask the tarot questions that are both specific and nonspecific. A specific question would be, “Should I move forward with the new job I was just offered?” or “Am I really falling in love?” Nonspecific questions sound more like, “Tell me about my current relationship.”

As you study the tarot, learn which cards represent yes or no within the deck to answer your own “yes/no” questions. However you choose to ask the tarot your questions, just be sure that it’s always done with sincere intentions and a level of respect for the guidance you’re seeking. Each answer will show itself through the cards, but it’s important to understand that tarot is not information written in stone. You always have free will and the power to change your approach to life, whether that’s to continue or to diverge from the path you’re currently on.

Why is it important to clean tarot?

If you’re the owner of the tarot deck you’re reading from—so, reading for yourself—keep your deck clean and treat it with care. Clean your deck by smoking it using sustainably harvested sage or palo santo, bathing it in the aura of cleansing crystals like clear quartz or selenite, or placing the cards under the moonlight. This helps clear energy away from previous readings and any influence not from a pure space; as a tool of divination, tarot cards can absorb energy from the people using it—so any past readings or spiritual entities that try to come through. Cleaning helps your deck maintain energetic integrity to ensure a more accurate tarot card reading. 

What are tarot card spreads?

The position of the cards that you put down on the table to be read is called a tarot spread, meaning that cards are placed down in a specific order and spot, and each placement has its own meaning. Two of the most common tarot spreads include:

Past, Present, Future: A three-card spread in which the cards are placed with the leftmost (and first) representing the energy of the past, the middle representing what’s currently happening in the present, and the rightmost representing the energy of the future.

The Celtic Cross: A 10-card spread that starts with two cards pulled in the middle overlapping one another. These first two cards represent:

1. The central focus of the person being read for;

2. What is helping or hindering this focus presently.

Then cards are placed clockwise around these center two cards, starting with below, then left, above, and right. Their meanings are:

3. The subconscious (below);

4. The recent past, or events leading up to this moment (left);

5. The higher path or destiny (above);

6. What lies ahead, or the near future if you stay on your current path (right).

Then four cards are pulled up the right side of this central area from bottom to top. They are:

7. The questioner—that is, the person being read for and their energy;

8. Outside energy and influences and/or the questioner’s environment;

9. The questioner’s hopes and dreams;

10. The final result.

Most readers will say that the placements of the higher-path/destiny card (#5) and the final-result card  (#10) are interchangeable if the questioner is willing to follow their intuition moving forward, as the destiny is the best possible outcome and the final result is what can happen given the culmination of other cards and their circumstances. 

Both beginning readers and seasoned professionals use these two tarot spreads, and they work as a great foundation for those learning how to read. As with many things, it’s important to learn the basics of reading tarot before getting creative and branching out into your own unique style—which will come with time, practice, and experience!

Once you’re ready to get creative, you can even connect the tarot cards to your zodiac chart. Glamour’s monthly tarotscopes combine tarot with astrology to help guide the zodiac signs.

Which tarot cards represent which zodiac signs? 

Although they are not intrinsically interwoven, there’s been a long-standing tradition of placing astrological influence onto each tarot card. This helps to get more accurate readings with timing and identifying the people whose energy is showing up in a reading. It’s said that each suit is associated with an element in the zodiac, so:

Each zodiac sign can also be seen in the Major Arcana cards. There’s a slight discrepancy between readers and which sign they assign to each Major Arcana card, but these are the discoveries that I’ve seen most accurately in my years of professional readings:

  • Aries: The Emperor, The Fool;
  • Taurus: The Hierophant, The Empress (Venus ruled);
  • Gemini: The Lovers, The High Priestess (both showing duality);
  • Cancer: Temperance, The Chariot, The Moon (Planetary Ruler);
  • Leo: Strength;
  • Virgo: The Hermit; secondary: The Maiden in Strength;
  • Libra: Justice; secondary: The Empress (Venus ruled);
  • Scorpio: Death
  • Sagittarius: Judgment, Temperance
  • Capricorn: The Devil
  • Aquarius: The Star, The Hanged Man
  • Pisces: The Moon

The World card and The Wheel of Fortune also represent and show imagery of the four fixed signs (Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius), so it’s important to note that they all share influence over these two cards. 

What is the most powerful tarot card?

Each of the 78 tarot cards holds different importance to each person who interprets them. The 22 Major Arcana cards are said to be representative of big, life-changing events in comparison with the Minor Arcana’s 56 cards, which are more indicative of emotions, people, and day-to-day experiences. 

For this reason alone, we can say that one of the Majors is more likely to be the objectively most powerful card. This list below of the basic tarot card meanings can help you narrow down your decision on which one holds the most significance for you:

  1. The Fool: The first card of the tarot. The beginning and ending of everything, a quick change that requires a leap of faith. The Fool card, sometimes called the Idiot, represents infinite possibilities and potential—something no other card could accurately portray.
  2. Strength: Literally translating into power and inner strength, the Strength card is one that asks the questioner to reach deeply into their power reserves and push forward so they can overcome whatever is in their way. 
  3. The Sun: The happiest card in the tarot deck, this represents positivity and optimism. Without a shadow of a doubt, a bright future lies ahead when this card is pulled.
  4. Death: As with happy, positive beginnings, sometimes new life is born from the ending of something else. Although it rarely indicates a physical death, the death card can signal an ending that will eventually lead into a new beginning for the questioner. This phoenix-rising-from-the ashes archetype is important and powerful, and it’s something that cannot be avoided in life. Once death is embraced, it can act as a powerful catalyst into change and transformation. 
  5. The World: When this card is pulled, know that there is an undeniable sense of wholeness for the questioner. This card signals that a cycle has ended and all is well for the questioner. This card makes the pause before the next chapter it’s own important moment in time and usually represents achievement, fulfillment, successful conclusions, and endless possibilities that can come from it all.

What are the tarot card meanings?

Although every card cannot be the most powerful, they all hold an undeniable importance. See below for the meaning of all 78 of the tarot cards, starting with the 22 Major Arcana cards and then broken down into Ace through King of all four suits (cups, wands, pentacles, swords). Consider this Tarot Cards for Beginners.

Ghostly Connections

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan

Ghosts are universal, some quiet, some noisy, most benevolent, some malevolent. However a ghost presents itself to the individual or the many, you are forced to take notice. Ghosts make contact for a variety of reasons, they will find one way or another to contact those on the earth plane if they choose. Whether you believe or not the supernatural is all around you, and for centuries people have been drawn to and fearful of anything they cannot logically pinpoint. That fleeting shadow out of the corner of your eye, the feeling that someone is standing behind you, or leaning over you, that bump in the night. Can you really just brush everything aside and put it down to your imagination? Anyone can see spirits at any time, at any age, in any place, anywhere in the world, ghosts disregard doors and windows, they enter at will.

Often if someone you love leaves the earth plane suddenly and they are unprepared, their spirit will remain near where the death occurred, they may not be aware that they are in fact dead. In this instance they will attempt to make contact with loved ones through a spirit medium or someone who is especially sensitive and aware. At the time of death the usual occurrence is for the physical form to be left behind, the soul is set free and moves to a higher realm. For whatever reason a spirit at times remains earthbound, whether this is unfinished business, a powerful bond with another person or an overwhelming connection to a place or situation.

Every haunting is different and by seeing a ghost we understand that death is but a doorway to a different realm. We leave our physical body behind and become an ethereal entity that vibrates at a different frequency. There are different types of apparitions, one is in its own world oblivious to anything else going on, it is the echo of a person no longer on the earth plane. The more powerful and quite often noticeable ghost, the one that usually makes its presence known, is the actual spirit of a person, usually this spirit is attached to a person or place, very tuned in to the earth plane and those living on this plane of existence.

Many fear ghosts, some welcome them, while others dismiss them as nonsense, but still look over their shoulder when they feel a presence they can’t explain or turn their head when they catch sight of something out of the corner of their eye. Ghosts will always be there whether we like it or not, whether or not we believe. In human terms it would be difficult to define ghosts absolutely, as they appear in so many different ways and in so many forms. Ghosts are there all the time and it is the more intuitive or sensitive individuals who are aware of them, they are walking the earth and are all around us when we are awake and while we are sleeping.

It is usually those who die tragically, suddenly or by the hand of another, who remain attached to the earth plane, there is possibly unfinished business or an intense tie to people or a place. Spirits remain earthbound for various reasons, some only for a short period of times, others for longer, some remaining for centuries leading to the tales of haunting we hear about. On occasion a spirit feels compelled to pass on a message, and through the assistance of a well schooled medium they manage to do this, they are then at peace, having moved into the light and eternal rest or to await their reincarnation.

Fear of the unknown, and individual fear based belief systems may cause a spirit to remain earthbound, these spirits tend to remain between the earth and the next realm until their fears subside or are released completely. Others stay because they are worried about their families and the affect their death will have on them. Sometimes the living can interfere with the dead’s ability to pass over, especially if they are unable to let go and think about the person all the time. Maybe even going to the extreme of constantly trying to contact them hoping to hold onto them, once they accept that their loved one is gone the spirit is then released and readily crosses over.

Spirit, comes from the Latin spiritus (breath), a supernatural being or essence, spirits are less definitive than ghosts, who are the apparitions seen by the living, ghosts are quite tuned in to the earth plane and aware of the living. Spirits attempt to communicate with the living usually for a specific reason and once their task is complete they cease contact.

Anyone with ghostly experience or encounters will tell you that the first sensation is a feeling of coldness, a chill in the air like someone has turned on the air-conditioning just above their head, or an extreme drop in temperature regardless of the weather. This chilled feeling often occurs in a place of worship during religious ceremonies, in occult gatherings or cemeteries. If a home or any abode for that matter is haunted, there is usually one particular spot or area that is especially cold. Cold spots can also be doorways between the earth plane and the ethereal. When the living want to make contact with spirit they will hold a seance or use a Ouija board, this is a way of opening a portal through which a spirit may pass, it is important when working in this way to close the portal after the session has ended. If the doorway isn’t closed, and this can happen in the hands of beginners, a home can become full of ghostly activity. If this happens the best way to remedy it is to cleanse the entire house, this can be done by carrying a lighted candle and incense into every room in the house and placing incense in each room. When you enter the individual room, walk around with the candle holding it to every corner of the room moving clockwise, gently but firmly ask the spirit to leave and return to its own plane. You may also use a classic broomstick with a little lavender, geranium and rose essence dotted on it, then symbolically sweep the entire house ending at the front door where the spirit is released to return to the place from whence it came.

A determined spirit will transmit a message to the living one way or another, there may be signs such as items moved around the home, or even taken out of drawers and placed in specific places where they will no doubt be noticed. You may have an overwhelming urge to do something or see someone, you may have been procrastinating about something and are suddenly compelled to attend to it. If the spirit is unable to contact you in your waking state it will most likely contact you through your dreams.

Much loved animals often stay close to their owners when they die, and both seem comforted by this continued relationship. Cats and dogs can feel as though they are sitting next to, or on the lap of their owners, they may brush against their legs or be seen in a flash moving across the floor. Many elderly people who loved their beloved pet are often comforted by the continued spirit contact with them until the time of their own death.

Samhain (Night of the Dead), Halloween, All Hallows Eve, the last night of October when the veil between the living and the dead is at its thinnest. The ancient Celts celebrated Samhain by lighting bonfires to help the souls of the dead to the Celtic underworld and to protect against evil spirits. Food and drink was left for the spirits, faeries, elves and nature spirits gathered at this time.

The Chinese celebrate the Feast of the Hungry Ghosts, beginning on the Ghost Month, which is 15 August, the seventh month of the Chinese Lunar Calendar, and lasts for six days. The Buddhist ceremony of putu (the deliverance of the spirits of the dead), is also celebrated at this time. Feasts are prepared and left out for the spirits walking the earth, while Taoist priests and Buddhist priests chant, perform rituals and burn incense in honour of the ghosts. During this celebration the ancestral spirits of Chinese families are asked to join their families for a meal and ritual of burning items such as paper clothing, radios, shoes, cars and other items. This is done to ensure the families, present and future generations, are blessed and protected.

The Feast of the Hungry Ghosts is dedicated to bringing peace to the abandoned and forgotten dead who are not associated with any particular family. It is believed bad luck to marry during the Ghost Month, to relocate, or to die, as the dead will not be able to rest. On the final day the Feast of the Hungry Ghosts, a bonfire is lit and paper effigies of ancient deities, paper currency known as hell money, and other gifts for the dead are thrown into the flames. It is believed that as soon as midnight strikes on the 30th day of the Ghost Month, wandering souls of the dead return to the underworld where the gates are then closed for another year.

Spiritualism became popular throughout England and America in the 19th century, it came about as people felt the need to gather with others and share a new faith beyond anything scientific. There was a need to confirm life after death, mediums were coveted worldwide due to the new collective unconscious. Many fraudulent mediums surfaced at this time which stifled the new thinking until after the First World War, when many people consulted mediums in order to contact loved ones who had died. The 20th century has given rise to spiritualist churches, mediums, meditation groups and spiritual healers around the world, with England boasting the greatest number of spiritualist churches.

Labeled in the late 1900?s were crisis apparitions, these are the ghosts of people who are still alive and due to a crisis in their life are able to appear to a loved who is hundreds or thousands of miles away. The living person may be in pain or danger, they may be in mortal peril, their anxiety such that they appear at times on the verge of death, other times in crisis, or distressed. The person who is projecting is unaware of what they are doing, unaware they are projecting their image possibly to the other side of the world. The person projecting can be perceived by their loved one either in the mind’s eye like a psychic vision, or as the actual person appearing in front of them. Like any matters to do with the occult, scientists have been unable to explain the phenomena of a person being in two places at once. On occasion a person will see their doppelganger (double walker), appear before them. It is believed that we are able to detach from the physical body for a short period of time and be visible to others, and then return to our physical body.

The ancient Egyptians believed every soul had a double (ka). Other beliefs are that a living person can project their astral body or their soul which is a reflection of their physical form. It is also thought to be a type of telepathic and clairvoyant projection, an expansion of a person’s consciousness. Crisis apparitions show that a living being is capable somehow of projecting themselves and presenting themselves as a complete entity far away from their physical form.

If you are curious, daring or fearless, you may choose to go in search of ghostly encounters, finding such in all places where the dead rest, these being ancient burial grounds, graveyards, mausoleums, or historic buildings, churches, battlefields, old theatres, school buildings from previous centuries, old houses and hotels. Nighttime is the best time to encounter ghosts and spirits, occasionally ghosts can be caught on camera, usually seen as a misty blur. If you do hear, see, or feel something, document everything that takes place, it may not make sense in the moment but when you go over your notes and images later you will have a clearer sense of what took place. Take candles, a lighter or matches and incense with you so you can have a quiet meditation before you begin ghost hunting. Many witches carry amulets with them for protection. Take your time and allow your intuition to guide you, often you will feel a chill, you may see an aura and there could possibly be a strange smell, this often precedes a ghostly presence.

Those who are beginning their occult journey may wish to try a Ouija board, with one or several people, the best conduits are wooden. Each person touches the message indicator lightly with the tip of their finger and one person asks one question at a time, then waits for the indicator to spell out the answer. Contact with spirit depends on the awareness, sensitivity and receptiveness of the individuals involved. Before beginning, all those taking part should hold hands and silently ask for spirit guidance, then hold hands at the end of the session and quietly thank the spirits who came through. Throughout the session take notes of everything that occurs from words to feeling and any smells, or auras. If, when you are working with the Ouija board, you feel at all uncomfortable or unsafe, end the session immediately and close off communication.

If you choose to conduct a seance (in French means sitting) where several people gather to communicate with the spirits of those deceased, seances have more power when conducted at night, although they can be carried out in a darkened room lit only by candles. The attendees sit around a round or oval table with no objects on it but a lighted candle, or several lighted candles. Before you begin turn off all power points in the home and work with only candlelight, burn incense and fragrant oils. Ideally work with no more than twelve and no less than three. It is necessary to have at least one medium to conduct the seance and it is not recommended for novices without the guidance of a seasoned medium. Children should not be present during a session.

Some mediums work with a particular spirit guide, while others call upon spirit assistance and wait for one to make contact. To begin each person closes their eyes and holds hands with the person on either side of them, left palm down, right palm up. The circle is not to be broken while the session is in progress and all participants must remain holding hands until the session is ended. Once the medium verbally ends the session all participants are to place their hands face down on the table and give quiet thanks to spirit.

The session will begin after everyone has joined hands and closed their eyes, the medium then calls on spirit for messages and guidance and waits for the portal between the two worlds to open, and words, feelings, auras, smells to occur, confirming there is spirit presence. A voice may be heard, there could be a message for one or more people, or a communal message, there may be sounds such as tapping or bumping, some may feel something touch them. It is necessary to be open to communication in any way shape or form. During a seance one or more participants may find words pop into their head or an image may appear in their mind’s eye. Others may witness an apparition clearly as though someone is physically standing in the room, as no two seances are the same the outcome cannot be anticipated.

On occasion during a seance, someone who has not before beheld any phenomena may find that quite suddenly they become aware and that their nascent abilities have been kick started. This usually happens to someone who has a natural latent ability and just needed the right catalyst to awaken it. Generally a seance will go for one hour, any longer will be tiring for all concerned, especially the leader of the circle. Always treat spirit with dignity and thank those who have come through to assist.

There are certain herbs associated with ghosts, these can be used before ghost hunting, seances and Ouija board participation or psychic work. These herbs can be fresh or dried depending on availability. If using dried herbs, place a container with the herbs in near a window in your home where moonlight streams through, this will charge the herbs before use. The herbs to use are bamboo, althea, anise, balsam tree, pipsissewa, sandalwood, dandelion, catnip, thistle, willow, wormwood and tobacco.

When you embark on your search for spirits and ghosts, do so with love in your heart. You are entering a portal of multiple dimensions and entities, proceed with care, dignity, reverence, and respect for the ethereal encounters that await. When you ask for guidance and receive a response, make sure you thank those who travel through the portal to assist you on your life path.

Old Ancestral Magik

Apple Pie Biscuits

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan


Ingredients
1 can of buttermilk biscuits
1 can apple pie filling
1/2 c butter melted
1/2 c brown sugar
1 tbs cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla extract
Icing: 1/2 c confection sugar. 1 tbs milk
Lightly grease pan or skillet. In a bowl mix brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg. Dip each biscuit in butter and cover all sides with the sugar mix. Arrange in pan.
Chop the apple pie filling into smaller pieces. Mix in vanilla extract. Arrange over the biscuits, sprinkle remaining sugar over top and remaining butter. Bake for 35 min at 375 degrees.
Make icing and drizzle over top. Serve warm

BANANA BREAD BROWNIES 

Posted on by A Solitary Pagan


Ingredients:
1-1/2 c. sugar
1 c. sour cream
1/2 c. butter, softened
2 eggs
1-3/4 (3 or 4) ripe bananas, mashed
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 c. all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. chopped walnuts (optional)
Brown Butter Frosting:
1/2 c. butter
4 c. powdered sugar
1-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 tbsp. milk
Directions:
1. Heat oven to 375F. Grease and flour 15×10-inch jelly roll pan. For the bars, in a large bowl, beat together sugar, sour cream, butter, and eggs until creamy. Blend in bananas and vanilla extract. Add flour, baking soda, salt, and blend for 1 minute. Stir in walnuts.
2. Spread batter evenly into pan. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.
3. Meanwhile, for frosting, heat butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until boiling. Let the butter turn a delicate brown and remove from heat immediately.
4. Add powdered sugar, vanilla extract and milk. Whisk together until smooth (it should be thicker than a glaze but thinner than frosting). Using a spatula, spread the brown butter frosting over the warm bars (the frosting will be easier to spread while the bars are still warm).