When I take on a new student in the Faerie Faith, I require four things of them, which
they should adhere to the whole time they are a student:
1) An awareness of and involvement with political, social and/or economical issues; i.e.,
working at a rape crisis hotline or an AIDS outreach program, working for a political candidate,
involvement in NOW, Amnesty International, or religious freedom issues, or supporting a cause
by letter writing, protesting, etc. Too many pagans today have a limited awareness of the world
around them, being so involved in their spiritual path that they forget that they are an inseparable
part of the modern world. Social and political problems affect everyone, like it or not,
and even
monks and nuns, throughout history, have been involved in the social issues of their day.
2) An awareness of and involvement with ecological issues; i.e., recycling, conservation,
conscious consumerism, etc. This can also include social activism, either on a small scale, such
as finding out where your garbage goes, or where your tap water comes from, or a big scale, such
as working with Greenpeace. As part of an earth-centered religion, any pagan who dumps used
motor oil on the ground, doesn't take the time to separate the aluminum cans from their garbage,
or tosses litter on the roadsides, is being just as hypocritical as some pagans accuse Christians of
being.
3) Some type of health-oriented physical activity; i.e., daily exercise, bike-riding, swimming,
karate, etc., and an attention to good diet and healthy habits. Most pagans have no problem with
physical pleasure and fun, but some tend to ignore the fact that our bodies are our vehicles on
this path. Just as we can't separate ourselves from the mundane world, we cannot separate
ourselves from our bodies on our spiritual quest (beyond vision questing, that is). We are not
ascetics (look it up!), and an unhealthy body is an outward sign (and sometimes the first
warning) of an unhealthy spirit.
4) A physical involvement with the Earth Herself, usually in the form of a garden. We are, after
all, Faerie Faith; and we can't learn to get in touch with the Earth if we are unwilling to dirty our
hands (and our knees) in the process!
Touching the Earth
Back about 15 years ago, when Epona and Mark Roberts were establishing and
publicizing the path of Hyperborea, Roberts wrote a series of lessons which I was very impressed
with. The first one was titled "Touching the Earth," and works nicely with my fourth student
requirement.
The activity outlined in the lesson is to go outdoors, find a quiet, private area, and pour
enough water on the ground to make it good and muddy. Then take off your socks and shoes and
roll up your pants, and step in. Don't think about it, don't analyze it; just do it. Feel the wet
earth, enjoy it, play in it. Be a child for a few minutes! As Roberts says, the purpose of it is to
feel childish--to return to a time before you started unlearning how to be sensitive to the earth.
Your Low Self will love it! And when your Low Self is happy, it communicates better with your
Middle Self and High Self, making true magic possible.
Several years ago, a person came to me asking to be taught. So I took him out to the
garden, pointed to the potato patch, and told him to weed it. As we were tending our respective
patches of earth, he said, "Don't you people ever do any magic?" I said, "What do you
think
we're doing right now?" He left, and I never heard from him again.
True magic comes from the earth, and it comes from within. If you cannot take yourself
back to a childlike state, and simply enjoy the feel of the earth, how can you learn anything from
Her?
Another thing Roberts mentioned was barefoot gardening. Let me paraphrase his story:
For awhile he had been telling people to get in touch with the earth by playing in a mud puddle.
Then one afternoon while he was laying down stepping stones in his garden, he "heard" a
message, saying, basically, that while he taught others to step barefooted on the earth, yet here he
was laying down a stone walkway and wearing shoes in the garden! He was told to learn from
himself, and to walk barefoot in the garden.
Apart from the obvious benefits of simply feeling and enjoying the earth, touching the
earth, whether with the feet or the hands, can teach us things about the condition of the soil; its
temperature, moisture content, compactness, etc. This awareness is very basic to being a good
gardener, and is the first step toward learning to make magic. In other words, we must apply our
energies at a practical level first if we want to affect the energies on a higher level. You can go
out and commune with the devas and plant spirits all day, but none of this matters if you don't
first touch the earth on a practical level: plant the seed at the best soil temperature, at the proper
time of year, at the right depth, and then extend your energy to it in the form of a water
hose.
This lesson relates to other areas of life, also. A good example are people who are in need
of a job, and attempt to aid their search with some form of ritual, prayer, candle-burning, crystal
meditation, etc. These are all good ways of focusing your energies on your goal, but if you don't
focus just as much time on the want ads, you probably won't get a job. Learn from the lesson of
the barefooted gardener.
So sometime before the next issue comes out, go out and play in your very own mud
puddle!
CREATIVE RITUAL FOR
SOLITAIRES
by Chrisailes
Creative ritual is the best term that I have come up with to describe my simple,
home-spun rites. Over the years I have learned that for me the most meaningful rituals are the
ones that are created in the moment and for the moment. Of course, I write them out, sometimes
in detailed form, but only so that they might inspire me at some later date, not so they may ossify
into anything remotely akin to holy writ.
There are four basic questions which should be considered in developing any rite, no
matter how simple:
1) What materials do I have on hand?
2) What am I celebrating?
3) What do I want from the ritual?
4) What other factors should I consider?
Obviously, it is futile to plan elaborate rites if you lack the props to perform them. One of
the joys of solitary worship is that it can be spontaneous, and sometimes the spirits might move
you when your working tools are elsewhere. When hiking through the back woods or walking
along a private beach, fallen limbs or driftwood can serve as 'windfall wands,' which can be used
to draw the circle on the ground; feathers can serve as athames to call the quarters; gourds or
shells can hold water for sprinkling the circle.
Books can also provide inspiration. I remember reading in one version of the exploits of
King Arthur how Morgan Le Fay drew her circle (around Merlin) three times using her wimple
or head scarf. Such informal circles seem to work best for the sabbats, when there isn't magick to
be worked. Whatever way you draw the circle, however, remember to create it in your mind's eye
as a circle of witchfire, a ring of flame the color of burning alcohol.
The core of any ritual setting will reflect what it is you are celebrating, while at the same
time expressing what it is that you want from the ritual. Usually this will be in the form of a
symbolic act, accompanied by appropriate words. For a vernal equinox rite, a seed might
be
planted while one meditates on new beginnings in one's own life. In such a ritual the larger
cycles of Nature and the smaller cycles of our human lives are entwined about each other so that
each may take on a deeper meaning for the Pagan or Witch.
Sometimes what is being celebrated can become the ceremony itself. A simple full moon
rite for someone uncomfortable with complex rituals might be to simply cast a circle, sit down
and watch the moonrise. Later, this might be embellished with the beating of a drum, or the
pouring of a libation when the Moon clears the horizon.
What you want from the ritual might be something abstract like 'healing' or 'acceptance,'
or it might be mundane. Sometimes I want paper stars in my rites which I give to the boon fire as
symbolic of my dreams which take flight in the fire's light. On the Summer Solstice I often enjoy
the roses and I make a small gift of them to the river which flows nearby.
Other factors to be considered include such things as privacy, what to wear, what the
weather is like and so forth. Privacy and dress seem to go together in my mind. I remember when
I was new to the Craft, I had made myself a lovely purple robe. It was late autumn when I slipped
it on in the woods only to realize that a neon sign proclaiming "HERE I AM!!!" couldn't have
made me more obvious.
Performing a simple rite in blue jeans and T-shirt will attract no real attention.
You'll just
be another person in the woods. A robed figure catches the eye, at least during the daylight
hours.
Black or dark colored robes can also prove handy, as they blend into the night when you're out
and about after dark. I also keep a pair of black sweat plants and a shirt which I often use for
my
nocturnal doings. Some rites may not be appropriate during extremely cold weather. My favorite
full moon rite is to fill my cauldron, symbolic of the Lady's womb, with spring water, symbolic
of Her fructifying 'moon blood' or menstrual blood, and splash it about the circle, wash my tools
in it, etc. No one wants to catch their death on a cold winter's night, however. So instead I watch
the moonrise and then kindle a small fire to 'Guide the Lady across the heavens.'
Of course, I know the Lady doesn't really need a light to guide her, but my reasoning is
that by offering her a light to guide her, she will in turn guide me to where I need to be, when I
need to be there. It is Fate or Karma, a simple 'I give you this and I hope you'll return the favor.' I
feel confident She has.
All of this is just suggestion, food for thought. Following someone else's ideas are well
and fine, but following your own are even better. I cannot begin to tell you how to be creative.
All I can do is point out some of the things which have inspired me. It doesn't matter if the rituals
we invent are good or pretty pathetic (I have had my share of both). It is in the act of creation that
we tap into our own Essential Being and begin to know the deity within.
- by Miraim Carroll
Stars look down in awesome solemnity
upon the servants of the Goddess readying their tools
to honor fruits of Her earthly womb
With serious mein Corn God and Goddess
cut a magic space for these Wiccan rites
Mortals do not alone attend this celebration
Athames held high
voices loud and sturdy call forth dread hosts
From all corners of the Universe
come flying whirling winds reined in by swirling sprites
intent of hearing praises sung
Swing about a quarter turn and listen
to the banshees wail astride their giant newt
And then again the shining blade
calls mermaids from their salty depths
until at last the circle is complete
as flitting fairies assemble dressed as butterflies
Once settled round and quiet now
the mortals rightly wait arrival of those
not ready for these secret rites
The circle's cut!
This periphery silver shining
is slashed in twain
and dark of night beyond
bursts blackly through this rent
Pious children enter to participate
in ancient scene enacted to a concert
of rainbow hues invisible just beyond
the spectrum of the human eye
Spirit felt ..... thanks given ..... healing done
cries subside
The spectral hosts take leave
attending to Important Matters
Story told
Now glean the gold
THE THREE WORLDS OF THE OÍDE
A VIEW THROUGH THE EYES OF A CELTIC SHAMAN
PART II
by Adrian Loaghrian
In the canto below the use of the word "I" is employed to express the awareness of the
traveler speaking as a soul undergoing many transformations at once. I say this because without
this explanation, these words might seem to be the voice of a braggart or spaleen proclaiming his
or her mystical power or prowess. To the unprepared reader the proclamations made here could
easily seem as though they were delusions of grandeur. However, this is no psychosis, only a
very different form of spiritual experience.
The Song Of The Traveler
The canto of a traveler embarked upon a journey:
You ask, who am I that I dare walk between the twain worlds? "I am only who I am. Yet
I am the Raven that watches from high in the forest. I am the Salmon that swims swiftly up river
to keep the Wisdom of my ancestors alive. I am the Ram that grazes among the high cliffs
overlooking his offspring in the valleys below. I am the Eagle that swoops down upon the pests
that vex my people. I am the fiery Passion of a midnight's dream. I am the cold nightly Wind that
brings a deathly chill to your bones. I am the Warmth of a child's sweet laughter. I am the Rain
that falls gently upon your field in spring. I am the Gale that sends fishermen, young and old
alike, spinning to the depths of the raging sea. I am the old White Oak that feeds the wandering
elk. I am the Hickory that arms the hunter. I am the Pine that renders pitch to the bow of your
currachs. I am the Turf that burns to warm your hearth. I am the eternal Warrior, and I am the
eternal Poet. I am the Watcher in the wood, I am the Healer of wounds unseen. All that a Dream
may be, am I. I am the Mystery that many wish to seek, but few are willing to know. I am at once
the Stag and the Doe. I am free even though I may be imprisoned. I move through the world as
though I were not here at all. Yet I am visible to all who wish to see. Seek me! I will not be
found. Listen for me, I will not be heard. Hunt for me, and I will become the hunter. Praying to
me, you will hear only my mocking laughter, for I am neither Goddess nor God. Fearing me, you
will bear the burn of my scorn, for I have come to show you that fear alone shall destroy you.
Loving me you will be loved in return. Need me, I will come and do whatever I may. Yet know
that I am not lesser, nor greater than any other living being. I am only who I am."
You ask of me, from whence have I come? I say to you, "I am borne of all that have gone
before me. I am all that shall follow me, and I am all that was said and done while I was in my
mother's womb. I am the mirror of all that was said, done and felt before, during and following
the moment of my birth. I am each of my ancestors and each thing that shaped them all. These
are the fibers that were spun to build the fabric that makes me what I am today.
I am the fabric brightly woven of three dark threads. For I am all at once 'whom I
perceive myself to be, how others perceive me, and what I am in my truthful soul of souls.' All
my life-long journeys are meant to weave me into a oneness with all creation.
Yet each of these three dark threads are as three children at play. Any two children will
be in harmony, but the third child will ever seek to tear the one or the other away to make a
separate union. It is only by my constant and willful efforts to unite these three children into one
that I shall ever hope to reach a state of lasting inner peace.
I have encountered travelers other than myself. Some were as Tigers, serene and graceful.
Some were as Dragons, dark and intimidating. Some were as pools of still water, teaching me to
yield and thereby overcome. These teachers have added new dimensions to the jewels of my
spirit. For now I am the son of the Oak who is known as the Tree of Life. I am the daughter of
the Holly who is known as the Tree of Light. I am the grandchild of a Willow's root, once
thought long dead. I am the golden sprout that tears apart the great mountain of darkness. I have
grown tall. I have grown wide. I have grown deep. Having learned the things that these
growths
have taught me, I am compelled to pass them on as the farmer turns a fallow field into a fruitful
garden.
Already I have begun to spread the multi-coloured seeds that sing of my sacred journey. I
shall give them freely to all who will plant them, nurture them and harvest their fruits. Yet I
know not all fields are fertile, and few are the fields that know both the light of the sun and the
weight of the moon."
Now you ask me where shall I go now. I say to you: "I have been the wide-eyed child,
and my wonderment ceases not! I am now the curious traveler, and my wonderment ceases not!
When this body will carry me no more, I shall become one of the many guides of the Sacred
Journey itself, and still my wonderment will cease not!
When new travelers encounter the Great Gate I shall greet them. I shall do nothing, and
yet leave nothing undone. I shall serve as the guide of souls that binds them with the sacred
knots, that they shall know freedom. I shall blind their vision that they shall see beyond the
emptiness of the great white light. When asked the right questions I shall provide the needed
answer. I shall say to them 'Welcome a hundred thousand times over.'
This shall be my charge to them: 'Savour each of your Sacred Journeys, and may your
wonderment never end!' In all your many travels, ever honour the ways of others, allow their
path to be their path, judge them not, and remain true to your own path. In this way, true wisdom
may be gained.
As long as you and I shall live, our children shall hear us sing of our travels. When we
may sing no more, may our children sing of our journeys and their journeys as well. May their
children hear the songs. May they ever know the power of the tears and the laughter that have
paved the roads before them. As long as the songs shall live, the journey and its travelers shall
never die. Even if one generation shall refuse to hear the songs, another generation shall call
them forth from memories' dust. For no tree may grow for long without the presence of its
roots."
You ask me, how shall I prepare you for your journeys? My reply is simple. "I am not
here to lead you, for among our people there are neither sheep nor cattle. I am not here to teach
you, for it is the duty of both the Earth and the Sky to fill each empty well. I am not the
gatekeeper that will allow or disallow your entry to the evergreen fields of fruition. I am but the
holder of a lantern whose light burns within the soul of every living being.
I sing with joy. I sing with tears. I dance to the beat of a living drum. I adorn myself with
the skins of the Elk and the Crane. I shift my shape and stretch my voice until you look into my
eyes and know that it is I who shows you a new view of yourself. Once you know who I am, I
will change again. For in guiding you I am like the worlds around you; ever constant, ever
changing, doing nothing, leaving nothing undone. Speak to me of your troubles, speak to me of
your mysteries. I shall digest them and sound them back to you with another point of view.
Doing this, I act as the mirror of your soul. For you already possess the answer to all your
questions. The only mystery is that there are no mysteries.
Once you are centered and begin to see the many facets of yourself as one being attuned
to the great center, then our relationship shall change. For then I will behave like the farmer in
spring setting to ground new seeds that are borne of my experiences and the experiences passed
on to me by my forbearers. You shall be not as fallow ground, but rather as a freshly plowed
field. Yet remember, even the smallest of seeds builds first its roots then the skyward bound
shoots. The shoots must fight their way toward the warmth of the sun and the majicke of the
moon."
What I May Give You
Within our fellowship I am considered to be one of the
Oidí-spioradálta {wee-jee
spear-aj awl-ta}. The Oidí-spioradálta are guides of the souls. We are both like
and unlike
paracultural Shamans in the classic sense. We serve as foster-parents and spiritual guardians to
all who come to us for guidance. The operative phrase here being those who "come to us," for
the Oidí do not seek out fellow travelers upon our path. It is against all principles for us
to
attempt to convert a person of one faith into forsaking the faith of their choice or heritage. If a
person is spiritually lost and in dismay, then our first obligation is to assist that person in
rebuilding his or her own root-borne foundation. If a person says to me, "How may I see with
your eyes?" I answer, "Only I may see with my eyes, but you may look through them to find
your own. To look through the eyes of my mind you would become me. If you became me,
where then would you be?"
If a person asked me to 'heal' him or her, I would say, "Take my hand and we will find a
way for you to heal yourself. For whether you see it or not, you already know all that lives within
you. You are inwardly aware of all that is right in your life and all that is unright. The first step in
climbing any ladder is to let go of the rung below to grasp the rung above. By this I mean that
you must throw away the destructive baggage that you have collected along your path. Then you
must strengthen the constructive gifts you have received during your life. Then you may mold of
these constructive gifts a force called the Neartú Bheatha {nere too vah ha}. The
Neartú Bheatha
is our personal innermost living fortitude, or our vital inner strength. The Chinese call this the
'Chi.' The Magi call this 'supernatural power.' The Native Americans call this 'finding your
power animal and becoming one with it.' For this is a light that burns within each of us but must
be cultivated and nurtured unceasingly. Only by finding your own Neartú Bheatha will
you find
the key for allowing yourself to become healed."
If you said to me, "I wish to study under you," I would reply, "You may walk by my side
for a while. Sharing the same road we shall both see familiar places. Perhaps we will both be
welcomed in these places. If we are both welcomed we shall both enjoy the repast offered there.
If we are not both welcomed in these places then we shall part and hope our paths shall meet
again. While we share the road I will present you with what few gifts I may. If you accept these
gifts you may offer me similar gifts in kind. I will accept them with honour. If you reward my
gifts with usury or betrayal of trusts, our paths will part. We shall part our ways because it
disgraces us both to live amid the vexatious spirit now kindled between us.
If you choose to walk beside me for a while I will tell you now, "The gifts I bear are
simple, yet they often seem complex. What I share with you now is known by the many, yet only
seen and heard by the few. How you use what you are about to receive is entirely up to you. But I
warn you that what you see and hear and touch will mold a newborn person out of you. For I will
allow you to see through my eyes, hear through my ears, and touch through my hands. For I am
all things within the universe at once, and I am just a human being."
Next Issue:
Part III: "As We Begin Our Journey Together"
Dear Earth Kin:
About two months ago I channeled a wonderful light being that appeared to be feminine.
She told me,"I have been here many different times in many different places as many different
teachers. We are all the same." I got the impression that her name was "Seeda" or "Sita" and have
since learned that "Sita" is the Hindu God Shiva's wife. During her visit I smelled the most
wonderful pungent smell of flowers which I think is lotus. I have never smelled lotus before and
have nothing to compare it to except it was a beautiful smell. I think it is important to realize that
all the great teachers are teaching the same thing, "Love." That is the most important message I
got from her.
During one of our Thursday night Eclectic Metaphysical meetings, my brother, White
Bear, took home my Phoenix Rising Deck of cards for one week. I got his guide "Two Feathers"
who adamantly told me during that week to go to Horseshoe Bend National Military Park,
Alexander City, Alabama to do some healing of the earth.
After learning this, we tried to find someone at one of the Pow Wows to tell us what to do
or get in touch with someone for help and/or answering questions. At the first Pow Wow White
Bear went to no one thought he was crazy, and he was told to get hold of someone whom he
could meet only if he got a formal introduction.
For the next Pow Wow a group of us went, including White Bear, Lady Olivia de
Orleans, Steve, Shadow, Chrisailes, Medicine Fire, Loraine, Diana and myself. At that Pow Wow
some of us met Running Fawn. She told White Bear and I about the rift among Indian people and
other people. She said, "You have to heal the rift between people as well as the earth!" She told
me that her daughter was receiving messages a lot like what I was getting. There were other
people, too, and some of them were talking "Ghost Dance," The original intention of the "Ghost
Dance" was to dance til they dropped in order to call down the warrior spirits to make the Indians
invisible from their enemies. Some tribes danced for 3 days and 3 nights and some as long as 5
days and 5 nights. There were variances in whether food or drink was allowed from tribe to tribe.
Ecstatic shamanic experiences were very common. Speaking to the spirits of the departed often
imparted needed words of wisdom and advice for the coming times.
"Two Feathers" gave me direction three different times. The first time I learned where to
do the healing and the second time I learned when. The date was on June 21, 1995, the Summer
Solstice. The third time I talked to "Two Feathers" was the last time, and I received some very
personal information about a departed soul I cannot share at this time.
I have since talked to Medicine Fire, White Bear, and John Paul, enabling me to learn
some very interesting things about "Two Feathers." Medicine Fire said that "Two Feathers" was
a young warrior who thought he had done harm to his people and was trying to make up for it.
He also said that "Two Feathers" was a Trickster. That would explain why I see him as an older
androgynous looking individual instead of a young warrior. White Bear said that "Two Feathers"
always disappeared when you asked too many questions. John Paul said that the drawing I did of
"Two Feathers" looked exactly like his version of "Coyote Man," also a Trickster and a shape
shifter. Sometimes it takes a Trickster or a Fool to see our lower selves and then get us going in
the right direction! When that happens we have to become stronger and rely on ourselves, our
higher power and our intuition.
Since June 21 was the date "Two Feathers" directed for the healing, I arranged to take
that day off to go to Horseshoe Bend with Lady Olivia de Orleans, White Bear, Chrisailes, King
John, and Wild Flower. I was tempted to move the date to the weekend before or after, but this
time I knew we had to do the healing on that day. I didn't know who would go, but the people
who needed to be there were there. Like James Redfield says in his book, The Celestine
Prophecy, there are no coincidences!
I had no idea how we were going to do a healing at Horseshoe Bend. This was the site of
a terrible massacre of 1,500 Creek Indians committed by Jackson's army and a renegade faction
of 500 Cherokees who were promised by the government that they would be able to keep their
land and possessions if they fought against the Creeks (the government lied).
As I said, there are no coincidences. The same day we met Running Fawn at the Pow
Wow, I met a girl in desperate need of Reiki. I gave her a treatment almost as soon as we arrived
at the Pow Wow and again before I left. I spent almost two hours with her. She and her husband
were so grateful that they wanted us to have a beautiful piece of obsidian stone to take back to
our Thursday night group. My dear friend and sister, Lady Olivia de Orleans, carefully wrapped
it up and we took it to our next meeting.
Each Thursday, everyone in our group takes turns being in charge of the meeting, Two
weeks after the Pow Wow visit, and prior to Solstice, Lady Olivia de Orleans was in charge of
the meeting. She introduced the black obsidian-the Whispering Stone-to the group. The circle
was prepared for the event with smudging and blessings to the four directions. Everyone was
smudged before going into the circle. Indian music was softly playing on a cassette player.
Anyone who wanted to could place something special or sacred next to the burning incense in the
center of the circle for empowerment. When everyone got into the circle and was seated, Lady
Olivia de Orleans introduced herself and told the story of how we got the stone. Then she told an
old Indian story about how the seven menstruating women got rid of the Ugly Stone Monster.
Then she passed the stone around.
As the stone was being passed around each person listened and then commented on what
they heard from their higher self or higher power. Everyone talked about healing and love. These
are two priorities in our combined eclectic spiritual group no matter which path we each
take.
Those of us who know how to reach alternative states quickly quieted ourselves to the
very core of our souls. During my alternative state, I was told by my higher self to put my left
hand up, which I did. I received a very disturbing vision. I saw many Indian warriors on horses
galloping at full speed from the heavens to the earth. Strangely they were not mad about what
had happened to them at Horseshoe Bend, for these warriors had died honorably in battle. They
were angry at what we as Earth Kin had done to the planet and are continuing to do in the name
of progress and materialistic gain. I saw terrible things happening to people in war, famine and
oppression.
The key to this healing of the Earth, Mama Gaia, is that we need to heal the rift between
the peoples of the Earth with love. It was a very disturbing vision and my friends tell me I came
back to this dimension crying. It is painful, but I refuse to believe there is no hope. We will
survive and we will heal this planet and each other. We have to! White Bear participated in the
Native American Circle also. He received a lot of disturbing information as well.
We were still planning on going to Horseshoe Bend for healing on Solstice and we still
did not know what kind of healing we were going to do.
On Saturday, June 17, 1 was at Etc., a metaphysical store in Auburn, Alabama doing my
usual Rune and Palm Readings. Imr6 was also scheduled to do Tarot readings and White Bear
was working behind the counter so Dina could work on her farm that day. Imré was
getting ready
to set up his stuff so he could do Tarot readings. Well, he had the most beautiful
double-terminated double-phantom smokey quartz crystal I have ever seen. For some reason
while he
was taking his cards and candle out of his bag, the beautiful one-of-a-kind crystal fell out onto
the floor before anyone could catch it, breaking into three pieces. Each end became a perfect
point with a dark phantom crystal inside and the middle had a phantom running through it! It was
truly heart-breaking to see that crystal broken.
It was definitely a dead day in Auburn that Saturday. My I o'clock reading didn't show up
and neither did my 2 o'clock. Imr6 didn't get anyone to read for either. Well, we got to talking
and I proceeded to tell Imré the entire story from beginning to end about "Two Feathers"
while
he did a badly needed Reiki treatment on my nose, head and neck. I also told Imré the
story I just
told you about how our group got the Whispering Stone. I mentioned we were going to do the
healing at Horseshoe Bend, but had no idea what we were going to do still.
Then Imré's higher self just about knocked out his lower self when he
remembered what
his teacher, Cynthia Rose Young in Atlanta, GA, had told him over a year ago. It's like that
sometimes, when you learn from someone with a great deal of knowledge to pass on. They have
so much to teach you and you wonder if you have learned it all! So again, there are no
coincidences. Imré told White Bear and me what his teacher (who is a Native American
Medicine Women, a Reiki Master, Spiritual Teacher, a Kahuna and is also trained in Psychic
Surgery) told him. "She said I would remember what I need to remember when the time was
right. She said to find the sacred places where the ley lines cross and erect a Medicine Wheel on
these power spots. This would help heal the Earth and her people."
Upon hearing this, a light bulb turned on in my head and one also went on in White
Bear's head. I envisioned us doing this with the broken crystal representing the rift between all
people buried under the center spirit stone in the middle of the four direction stones. We did this
somewhere near Prophet Hill at Horseshoe Bend. I used a pendulum to dowse the map of the
park to see the best place to erect the Medicine Wheel. We also dowsed with pendulums and
dowsing rods again on the site to make sure that it was the right place. While we were dowsing,
Wild Flower said the dowsing rods were not working for her and she decided to go off without
them. The rest of the group was trying to decide between two places. It was slightly overcast and
the sun was shining but then all of a sudden a shaft of light came down in one of the two places.
Lady Olivia de Orleans said it was appropriate for the sun to decide on the Solstice where to put
the medicine wheel. Upon closer investigation we noticed that a stag had left a hoof print and
that is exactly where the spirit stone went. Chrisailes and White Bear collected the rest of the
Medicine Wheel stones. 'I'hey were just about laid out perfectly and the four directions were
being anointed and empowered with appropriate rocks, minerals, oil, incense, tobacco and
sage.
The healing was the best thing we have done. It was the right thing to do. White Bear
smudged each of us before entering the circle. We circled deosil three times before taking a
direction we were most attracted to. We blessed the four directions and thanked our Great Spirit.
We asked for healing of the Earth and the rift between all the people. Chrisailes broke the earth
with his athame and Lady Olivia de Orleans put a rose quartz crystal into the Earth for healing.
Wild Flower put a purple wild flower into the Earth. Chrisailes put a Scallop sea shell from the
Mexico Gulf into the Earth. I put the broken crystal representing the rift that needs healing into
the Earth. Chrisailes covered the dirt over the hole. We blessed the four directions and circled
three times widdershins before leaving the circle. After this ritual I realized how similar the
traditions between the Red Path and the Wiccan path were.
After the Medicine Wheel ceremony, we went to the top of Prophet Hill and sat in the
open building erected there with a wonderful view of the old primal oaks still standing and the
Tallapoosa River in the distance. We had a feast and gave thanks to our Higher Spirit again.
We will continue healing and there are already proposed sites we are thinking about. We
share this experience to encourage others to do the same. Love, peace and happiness to all!
Blessed Be,
Stormy, Auburn, Alabama
by Sherlock
ACROSS
3 The Great Herbal by Shen Nung.
5 14 nights and 14 days.
8 And ye harm done, do as ye will.
10 Travellers in three living worlds at once.
12 Your inner child.
13 You can take four drops every half hour to get over a hangover quickly.
DOWN
1 An annual cleansing which takes 5 to 10 days or longer.
2 Life force is called _______ by the Hunas.
4 If you were born on August 12 at 7:35 AM, your birth rune would be _______.
6 This oil aids in depression and helps the body fight infection.
7 Before taking a wand from a tree, you should first get _______.
9 According to the Dianic calendar: The moon following the Summer Solstice.
11 The medicinal use of natural aromatic essences or oils extracted from the wild or from
cultivated plants.
14 There tend to be more accidents when the moon is in this.
The solutions to this crossword puzzle can be found in the June/July 1995 (Issue #15) of
The Hazel Nut. I took the questions from last issue's articles, so you'll have to read
them to
answer this crossword. Oh, and don't throw away this issue; its articles contain the answers to the
next puzzle. Have fun!
Answers to last issue's Ankh-Word Puzzle
Across: 1 Gentian, 2 Hawthorn, 3 Sparkling, 4 Pokeroot, 5
Fools, 6 Solar, 7 Blank, 8
Moondance, 9 Robin
Down: 5 Futhark, 10 Pleiades, 11 Fearn, 12 Willow, 13
Trees, 14 Holly, 15 Atlantis, 16 Gowk
Dear Muirghein:
I love The Hazel Nut! It's full of useful information and good sharing, and it
comes out
six times a year so I don't have to wait as long. You've provided a forum for ideas and concerns
without the snippiness I sometimes find in other Pagan journals. Reading it makes me feel
refreshed, and I thank you for it.
Thanks and blessings,
Shannon
Seattle, WA
Dear Linda:
Thanks to Sherlock for her letter about Christians. She's right, you know; all Christians
aren't pagan haters. Even though an event like Moondance helps us to realize how lovely it
would be to be isolated from the world, we are in reality a lovely planet full of beautiful
diversity--let's not forget that the Mother loves wondrous variety.
Blessed Be,
Lark
Wetumpka, AL
BUBBLES FROM THE
CAULDRON
BOOK REVIEWS, ETC.
Positive Magic, Occult Self-Help, by Marion Weinstein, Revised Edition
with
Foreword by Colin Wilson. Phoenix Publishing Inc., Custer, WA. Softcover, 283 pp.
$9.95.
- Reviewed by Stormy
This book was originally published in 1978 and went out of print. The author was 'told
that the occult was dead and to forget about republishing it. Then Phoenix Publishing consented
to publish it again with a re vision by the author! Here is another one of those books that is great
to read whether you know a lot about the subject or absolutely nothing at all. Ms. Weinstein's
views are refreshing and appreciated.
Read this book; it's time well spent.
Unsolved Mysteries, Past and Present, by Colin Wilson. 1992. Contemporary
Books,
Chicago, IL. Softcover, 417 pp. $13.95.
- Reviewed by Stormy
This is a nice book to curl up with when you just want to be entertained. It consists of 33
unsolved mysteries just like you see on the TV program. "From Arthur and Merlin to vampires
and zombies, spellbinding true cases of historical enigmas, voices from the grave, and psychic
and supernatural occurrences." (Taken directly from the front cover of Unsolved Mysteries,
Past
And Present.) As my husband says about this book, "It's just the kind of book you like to
read."
