Merry Yule, one and all! I wish you a festive season filled with love and laughter, good friends, good food and good times. Whatever it is that you celebrate during the winter months, the themes of family, friendship, and sharing are common within the various celebrations. Light is another common theme during winter festivals from Diwali in October to Imbolc in February, and Winter Solstice is no different. Light within darkness invokes strong primal instincts for modern man, from the physical aspect of warmth and safety to the emotional and mental health that sunlight brings. At Winter Solstice we face the longest night of the year followed by the rebirth of the Sun and the increasing sunlight. Some refer to the Winter Solstice as Midwinter, based upon the Celtic calendar which consisted of just two seasons – Summer and Winter. Winter ran from the Autumn to the Spring, from the last harvest to the first planting, and Summer from planting to harvest. Some consider this shift of seasons to occur on the equinoxes, others believe that Samhain and Beltaine divide the year. However, despite the older term of Midwinter, for many countries the winter is only just beginning and people have a long way to go before the signs of spring surface from frozen white ground. The gradual but perceptible increase in light every day uplifts the heart and mind, and brings a sense of hope and promise. This feeling is encompassed within many stories, myths and legends of the Yule period. (more…)
Posts Tagged ‘Pagan’
From Darkness, Light
Posted: December 21, 2013 in Film/Audio, Inner Journey, Pagan PerspectivesTags: Child of Promise, Dark Night of the Soul, Festivities, God, Goddess, Holly King, Pagan, Pole Star, Sun, Wicca, Winter, Winter Solstice, Witchcraft, Yule
Witchcraft Yesterday and Today
Posted: December 16, 2013 in Film/Audio, Pagan PerspectivesTags: Christianity, Magic, Pagan, Raymond Buckland, Videos, Wicca, Witchcraft, Witchcraft Yesterday
Another video for your viewing pleasure, ‘Witchcraft Yesterday and Today‘ by Raymond Buckland. In this grainy video reminiscent of storytime, Raymond talks about interpretation of deity, sympathetic magic, ritual behaviour, development of the priesthood, the coming of Christianity, and the changing of beliefs and practice over time. This version of Witchcraft history is accepted by many, although presented differently by some. Raymond continues with an explanation of common Wiccan practice – ritual format and structure, tools of the craft, beliefs, and various differences between Wiccan paths. I leave it to you to view and listen, and accept or reject within your own understanding.
Now, are you sitting comfortably? If so, Raymond will begin….
1971 Witchcraft Documentary
Posted: December 3, 2013 in Film/Audio, Pagan PerspectivesTags: 1970s Witchcraft, Cecil Williamson, Doreen Valiente, Eleanor Bone, Maxine Sanders, Pagan, Religion and Spirituality, The Power of the Witch, Wicca, Witchcraft
Here is a rare find, recently brought to my attention by The Temple of Witchcraft and Dangerous Minds. ‘The Power of the Witch’ is a fascinating look at witchcraft from 40 years ago, although the wonderfully grainy footage, fabulous style and plummy English accents make it feel a world away from modern culture. I found it really interesting to hear that some of the same concerns and arguments for and against witchcraft remain almost unchanged through time. A young Doreen Valiente, better known as the ‘Mother of Modern Witchcraft’, (more…)
Many Gods, One Divine
Posted: November 17, 2013 in Pagan PerspectivesTags: Aspects, Divine, Divinity, God, Goddess, Immanence, Pagan, Perception, Personal Identity, Priestess, Reality, Spirituality, Universe
I have often been asked:
“If the Divine is all one,
how can there be so many Gods and Goddesses?”
I am but one body of flesh and bone and sinew, comprised of the genetics of millions who came before me. I am but one body, made of billions of cells that act without my conscious interference, a single entity made of stardust of the universe. When I die my physical form does not cease to exist, it transforms and feeds back into the universe. I am unique, but recycled and recyclable. Therefore I am one, yet also a part of the all that is, ever was or will be.
This Light
Posted: November 7, 2013 in PoetryTags: Dark Moon, Divination, Full Moon, Magic, Pagan, Poetry, Prophecy, Religion and Spirituality, Samhain, Tarot Reading, Wicca, Witchcraft
This Light,
I sit within the spotlight
The stage in darkness lies
Preparing to perform
The arts of times gone by
The light washes down
Upon my upturned face
My tools about me shine
Blessed by unearthly grace
Within the shadows I hear
Soft anticipating sighs
Waiting for my hands to move
And open up all eyes
And I feel blessed
Refreshed
And inspired to be
I craft
And bend
And prophesy
I spin
And weave
All manner of life
I bend
And blend
The Craft of the Wise
For this light is the perfect time
The blending of body and mind
A chance for us all to divine.
by Romany Rivers (c)2013
Romany Rivers is a resident poet with Moon Books, please click here to read her latest contributions.
Breaking Bread with the Dead
Posted: October 30, 2013 in Inner Journey, Pagan PerspectivesTags: Celtic Festivals, Dead, Death, Feast for The Dead, Grief, Halloween, Honour, Life, Loss, Love, Pagan, Samhain, Wheel of the Year, Witchcraft
The wheel of the year turns and Samhain rolls around again. Whilst I attend Halloween parties for small children dressed as Superheroes and Firefighters, whilst I prepare for the onslaught of trick or treaters, whilst I fake shudder at every garish Halloween decoration my son points to, deep down inside I feel the mixture of grief and love this festival offers me. Samhain is a time to honour our beloved dead, our ancestors, the children we never had the chance to watch grow up, the ones we miss with every beat of our heart. As the veil between the worlds becomes thin, we turn our minds to the ones we hold in our hearts, but not in our arms.