Lughnasadh

"Lughnasadh is a time of personal reflection and harvest, of our actions and deeds, events and experiences, our gains and losses. A time when we begin the cycle of reflection of that which is our life. A period for personal fertility magic to ensure the bountiful harvest of life's gifts and experiences, that which we have reaped though trial, tribulation, enjoyment, joy, love and loss." -Christina Aubin (Witchvox)

I couldn't sleep. My dreams were dominated by a coffee shop named Positive Energy. This dreamscape coffee shop served simple foods and simple coffees, situated near college, with an apartment above and entrances in the front and back for patrons. It was quieter than another (actual) coffee shop in town.

Recently, other dreams bothered my sleep. Dreams of missing classes, delayed graduation and school-related tears and frustration.

As I fluttered between waking and sleep, Blue, our Russian Blue cat, became restless as well, nosing around my face, patting me with his paw on my cheek, and licking my arm. This is not unusual - he often arrives to pester me in the mornings well before the alarm clock.

So I got up.

It's the first Monday of Lughnasadh, so, prompted by my unrest and the recurring impact of my dreams, I cleared my altar and took my cauldron of Midsummer herbs that had dried since Solstice, out to the deck and burned them, focusing on wellness, productivity, diligence and prosperity for me and my husband. I circled my dominant hand through the smoke to spread the energy to its work and ran my finger along the edge of the cauldron to further focus the working.

Then I broadened my focus to include my close friends, then broadened even further to include my regular friends.

As the fire began to die back, Blue, whom I had just noticed watching my working, entered the circle unbidden from the East and traveled deosil around the deck pausing briefly at different points - though not THE points. Coincidence or design? I'm not sure, but I'll except the connection with nature and thank him for his assistance with some tuna later.

Within the cauldron of herbs was a pentacle necklace, that I had removed months ago. I decided it was too heavy (metaphysically) and needed cleansing. It sat on the altar for a while in a container of salt, then was moved to beneath a white candle, then was placed within the cauldron midst the herbs.

The burning herbs melted away the wax and the ambient energy of the herbs and the focused working now lays within the pentacle. I will start carrying it in my pocket and rubbing it with my fingers to bring back its shine.

Midsummer is Near!

Midsummer Solstice
Observing the Sabbats helps one attune to nature.
Attuning to nature gives one the opportunity to
• stop,
• get centered, and
• release undue stress

Materials
• Burning Bowl
• Matches
• Incense
• Cloth Pouch
• Midsummer Herbs

Midsummer Herbs
Mugwort, Vervain, Chamomile, Rose, Lily, Oak, Lavender, Ivy
Yarrow, Fern, Elder, Wild Thyme, Daisy, Carnation

Mentally pour all troubles, sorrows, pain, problems and the like into a cloth petition (pouch) of Midsummer herbs.

Allow yourself to be drawn to an idyllic spot
Be barefoot, or make contact with the earth

Light the incense in the burning bowl

Clear your mind
Breathe deeply and regularly
Slow yourself down
Open yourself to the energies of nature

Sit and meditate on the gist of the following, don't be worried about the exact words:

In this place of power, I open myself
I breathe the energy into my body
Commingling, blending,
mixing them with mine
In this place and time I am changed

Burn the cloth petition in the burning bowl and meditate on the gist of the following:

In the noon of summer
All nature vibrates with energy
Now is the time of forgetting
Past cares and banes
Burn away the unuseful
Burn away the hurtful
Burn away the bane

Sit and meditate

(This ritual is compiled from various sources, including Llewellyn's Almanac, Scott Cunningham's guide for the solitary practitioner, and Buckland's guide to witchcraft.)

Happy Mabon

I know, it was last Sunday, but...Happy Autumnal Equinox !

Though I missed it here on the blog, I didn't miss it at home. In fact, I did ALL KINDS of fun equinox activities!

Alright, I confess, I did schoolwork all day. This past Mabon, (Sunday), I cleared the altar, lit some incense and decorated it with a pile of oak leaves. Then dove into my books.

If you read my blog a year ago, you'd know that I'm not a big fan of the darker half of the year, but I've learned to wrap my mind around it. It's the second harvest, it's the end of Summer, it's the beginning of the longer dark. And for me that means reflection and soul searching.

I am a big fan of
being happy with what I've got
and where I've been.

If you know where you are, it can help you understand where you're going.
It would be fun to have a Mall Kiosk sort of thing that mapped out your experiences as if they were stores you've visited, and big arrow that floats over you all the time - YOU ARE HERE.


Here are some "stores" I've been to in the last year.

1-We started and finished the outhouse and made a girl cry. (But not in the bad way.)
2-I started college again and have not fallen behind.
3-My husband and I bought some trees and rocks in the form of acreage in W. Va.
4-I quit my job in D.C. leaving behind a certain vague unappreciated feeling and a not so healthy atmosphere.
5-I've been to a Straight Strip Club
6-We've paid off some bills and loans.

I think it's been a good year. And I think it will be a good Winter.

Okay, so for YOU out there....

Think about where you are and where you've been. (I know, I ask a lot of you.)

Then choose to be happy and move forward

because, YOU ARE HERE now.

Chuck's Tarot Daily 3/19 - 4/5

Here are the cards I've been drawing (almost) daily.

In the mornings before I leave for the train, I'll pick up the deck and shuffle until I 'feel' it's been long enough. Sometimes I'll concentrate on something in particular and other times I'll just direct energy into the cards.

Here are the cards I've been drawing for 3 weeks.
If there are any tarot readers out there, I welcome your comments.

Cups = 5
Major = 3
Wands = 2
Pentacles = 1
Swords = 1

Monday - March 19 - JUSTICE = Justice, Responsibility, Decision, Cause and Effect.

Tuesday - March 20 - (I concentrated on success for plans currently in the works.) 10 of Pentacles = Convention, Affluence, Permanence "this is the card you want to see if you are wondering how your latest enterprise will turn out."

Got into a great conversation on the train this morning. Living on a teacher's salary - how does one define 'living?' Is living cable tv and high-speed Internet, two modern cars in the driveway and the deluxe mac and cheese? Or, is living home and family, warm and dry, not hungry.

Wednesday - March 21 - (I concentrated on getting things done, progress.)
Knight of Cups = Knights are intense card of the suit and cups are the symbol for emotions. How will emotions help me make progress?

Thursday - March 22 - 2 of Cups - If you are struggling with two choices or tendencies within yourself, seek to reconcile them.

Friday March 23 - 9 of Wands - Even if everyone and everything seems to be against you right now, don't give up.

Saturday - March 24 - 8 of Cups - The signs of change are in our face, and we must accept them.

Sunday - March 25 - 4 of Cups - You're not motivated to make much of an effort in any direction.

Monday - March 26 - Hanged Man - The main lesson of the Hanged Man is that we "control" by letting go - we "win" by surrendering.

??? - March ??? - 10 of Wands - you are pushing yourself too hard.

??? - March ??? - Ace of Swords - Above all else, commit to being honest and ethical.

I have withdrawn a bit from a another's situation. How many situations do I find myself in that others would consider unethical?

Monday - April 2 - Emperor - Loose ends should be tied up, and wayward elements, harnessed.

I'm consolidating bills and transfering totals to lower interest spots, doing math.

I stayed home sick for two days. April 3-4. Maybe the 10 of Wands was telling me something?

Thursday - April 5 - Queen of Cups - an atmosphere of gentle love, acceptance and respect for feelings.

I plan to stay home this evening. Still not 100% over the cold. Couch and movie and maybe pasta with husband, cat and dogs. Yeh. I can feel the love.

Many of these descriptors are copied from LearnTarot.org. A great site for Tarot knowledge.

Chuck's Tarot Pull for Tuesday, March 20

Tuesday - March 20 - (I concentrated on success for plans currently in the works.)

10 of Pentacles = Convention, Affluence, Permanence "this is the card you want to see if you are wondering how your latest enterprise will turn out."

Got into a great conversation on the train this morning about living on a teacher's salary.

I proposed, how does one define 'living?' Is living cable tv and high-speed Internet, two modern cars in the driveway and the deluxe mac and cheese?

Or, is living home, health and family, warm and dry, not hungry?

Eric expressed interest in knowing what my list of necessities would be and I thought it would be a good exercise. We started throwing out examples and he started tossing in things like cigarettes or beer. I said, "Wait a minute. Those are luxuries."

What would one be able to live with? or without? What constitutes affluence? I would posit that I am happier than many who have more.

Equinox is coming! Equinox is coming! Ostara!

Tonight, tonight, it's equal day and night.

To acknowledge the balance between light and dark; to revere the growing strength and energy of the Sun who is now strong enough to conquer darkness; to acknowledge the time of new beginnings; to bless new goals and projects; to thankfully reflect on the gifts of fertility.

It is the time of the Green Man, that energy inherent in every cell of the natural world.

Tonight, 8:07 p.m. (Eastern) is the Vernal Equinox. (I know, that sounds kind of dirty, doesn't it?)

For observing the sabbats, I just found this GREAT spot on the Web, Archaeoastronomy.com. Check it out.

"Equinox, Solstice and Cross Quarter moments, seasonal boundaries for calendar 2007, precise to the minute, for world time zones, spring, summer, fall, winter, Imbolc, Beltaine, Lughnasad, samhain."

Pick a card, any card - NOT THAT ONE !

Part of my unfinished philosophy (so please comment, but don't hold me to anything yet) is that there is a power or an energy that exists in all things. Perhaps it is the energy that holds the atoms together (Collossians Theory?). Maybe it the same energy that if harnessed can cause something to be moved or formed and reformed. It is an inefficiently tapped energy that we all use daily.

Many religions use prayer, focusing on a desired outcome. Positive affirmation. Ritual. Meditation. Visualization. A gathering of energy and a focusing of will. Many also attribute a different will or persona to control this energy--Mary, God or Jesus, a saint, a Goddess, etc., and rather than imposing their own control over the energy and using it as one would a natural resource or tool, they allow a truly unknowable persona to direct the energy. In the absence of control, the energy simply dissipates.

When one shuffles the deck and turns the cards of a reading, what is it that made the person move the deck in the manner they did and stop when they did? Cut the deck at that level? Turn or choose the card they did? Is it random? Is it an outer persona, or is it an unconscious swaying of the energy to a desired outcome?

When faced with the option to "pick any card," what draws one to THAT card - third from the end? Is there an underlying energy that directed you to THAT card - dead center of the spread? Why did you choose this time, or always, the card at the very end?

There is a part of you, the querant or the reader, that wants this reading to work or fail or just doesn't care. And that part of you directs the energy to that purpose or sits apathetic. The more efficient the control, the more energy is directed to the purpose.

OH! And surprisingly, after my recent thoughts on Justice and Strength being transposed, my card drawing this morning was Justice.

Coincidence? Like I said, the philosophy is unfinished, so chime in as you like.