Akashic Meditation

While the Akashic records are believed to contain a record of all human existence and the knowledge of all the universe from beginning to end and everything within it, they are also said to contain, on a more intimate scale, the knowledge of all our past lives and deaths. So it would be only natural that if one was able to access these records, one would be privy to knowledge of who and what they were before they became who and what they are now. This is a simple little meditation that, if done successfully, will enable the participant to access that part of their mind and soul that contains this deeply hidden information, and then while dwelling in the silence be able to watch the details of their past lives unfold before them like home movies being projected within their mind.

Lie quietly and comfortably on your back on the floor. Align yourself with the earth's energy and feel yourself protected. Breathe slowly and deeply as you fully relax. Take your time. When you are ready, begin to feel the sensation that you are both simultaneously rising up a bit above the floor and sinking into it. Try to focus on this feeling as you continue further into this meditation as this will help you to remain grounded within present time. Visualize your Third Eye which is just between and just above your eyebrows in the lower center of your forehead. This is the seat of your esoteric knowledge. Concentrate on the energy you generate from this point. Feel your body filling up with the color indigo which is representative of this energy point for your soul. In theory, once tapped, the images should start to flow freely and you will be able to see that which has been hidden deep within your psyche.

While each experience is unique to the individual, this is a meditation that will undoubtedly open you up to your inner tranquility, help to ground you more fully, and quite possibly give you a peek through the keyhole into the mystical knowledge your amazing brain holds within it.

Kitchen Witch

The kitchen is the place where we make simple, common magick every single day and while we are in there working, why not make sure both ourselves and our homes are protected?

Grow an aloe plant in the kitchen for protection from negative energy and accidents while cooking. Placing it in a sunny window is best, but if you can't keep one in your kitchen, having one somewhere else in the home is almost as good. Onions, garlic and peppers are also known for their protective properties. Hang a rope of any one of them in your kitchen to keep you and your family safe. If a whole string of them is too much for you, a single onion or a bulb of garlic placed on the windowsill will ward off negative, harmful energy. If you are using these as a protective measure, be sure to never use them to cook with. You don't want to ingest any of the negative energy they've been absorbing!

It's considered very bad luck to ever run out of salt in your kitchen and home. It's long been thought that to do so means certain bad luck, bad health or even worse, so be sure to keep an extra container of salt at the back of your cupboard that you never open or use and this will never be an issue for you.

Make yourself a Kitchen Witch Bottle. Take a clean bottle and place within it three needles, three pins and three nails. Fill the jar with salt and a pinch of dried rosemary, shake it nine times and drip red candle wax over the jar lid to seal it. You can say a brief protection incantation and make the sign of the pentagram over it if you'd like before you place it in the dark at the back of a cabinet where it won't be seen.

Stay safe while making your house a healthy, well-fed and happy home!

Photo courtesy of The Titus on flickr.

Trees 101: Brambles and Vines

While we may not consider brambles and vines trees according to the modern definition of what constitutes a tree, the ancient Celts classified anything with a woody stem or stalk just that. Consider blackberry or grape vines, or even ivy, for example. Vines tend to grow in the shape of a spiral and the spiral is symbolic of the Goddess and the unending continuation of life. Wine, essential to so many rituals, is made from blackberries and grapes. Imbolc is the Goddess Brigid's sabbat and it is customary to use blackberry wine in rituals for this sabbat and anytime you choose to honor her.

One of the nine sacred woods of the sabbat fire, vine represents joy. It has many medicinal uses. The leaves of the blackberry vine may be dried and made into a tea used to cure gout and the leaves may also be used in a poultice to treat burns. If you find a bramble bush with a natural arch to it, crawl through the arch backwards and then forwards three times, going as close to east to west as you possibly can, and you will be cured of boils, acne, whooping cough and rheumatism. Grapes (and raisins) increase fertility and hone mental powers.

Dreaming of blackberries or grapes that are still on their vines means abundance, success and prosperity. As such, use blackberries in spells to increase wealth. Grapes may also be used for money spells. Place a bunch of them on your altar while working your magick.

Vines and brambles vibrate to a feminine energy and the element of water. They are ruled by the planet Venus and the Moon. Use these plants in rituals to enhance psychic abilities and deepen levels of conciousness, for grounding, for celebration and to access the faery realm.

Photo courtesy of photofinger on flickr.

Imbolc Poetry

I pray to the Goddess of the waning night,

I honor your presence as the earth grows light.

Deep in this darkness of winter's last days

I yearn for young buds to begin to show,

I listen for the young who'll begin to grow,

And I wait for the coming of life's warmer ways.

The God, deep in your womb, grows stronger

As days and light grow steadily longer,

And Mother Earth's renewal begins once more.

I feel the green again beneath my feet,

I taste her fruits that will again grow sweet

And feel the warm sunny days and balmy nights I adore.

Rest for now, Goddess, for the God's birth is nigh,

Slumber still longer before the sun sits high.

For soon the God will be grown into man.

In the warm days of his rebirth he'll grow strong,

He'll provide through the days that grow long,

And all life will sing his abundant song.

But for now, Goddess, rest quietly while you still can.

Copyright Victoria Marks. Written for an Imbolc ritual, February 2, 2007.

Photo of Y Lleuad courtesy of Giles C. Watson on flickr.

Full Wolf Moon

Today is the Full Wolf Moon, so named by our Native American forebears for the wolves that howled beneath the moonlight on these cold, bright winter nights. And tonight will be the brightest of all the full moon nights for the whole year yet to come, for tonight's moon is going to be 14% wider and 30% brighter than all the lesser moons of 2010. This is because the moon is in perigee, which is when the moon is physically closest in its orbit to us here on earth, and when that coincides with a full moon it gives the impression of being far bigger and brighter to the naked eye. Not only does this cause higher tides in our oceans, but tides within the earth's crust as well, thus shaking up our energy fields a bit.

Tonight's moon is also known as the Winter Moon, the Quiet Moon, and in China it's called the Holiday Moon for Lunar New Year. Native American tribes had several different names for it, such as the Cold Moon, the Cooking Moon, and the especially unpleasant Moon of the Terrible. Its neo-pagan name is the Ice Moon, which is more than apt in many locations right now.

Like last month's rare Blue Moon, tonight's moon is powerful and special (Mars will also be visible just to the left of her) making this a wonderful time to both honor the Goddess and draw potent energy from this moon for whatever ritual you may have planned.

Familiars

A witch's familiar is defined as an animal, usually a cat, toad, bird, mouse or dog that serves its witch as a loyal domestic servant, spy, companion or muse in witchery. I'm not sure I believe in the idea of the familiar as an acting agent for a witch, but I certainly do agree with them being companions and even muses. While not much of a cat person, I am very much a dog person and have always since childhood been drawn most strongly to black dogs, which may be my own personal version of the "witch's black cat."

My two dogs are my constant companions and we have a keen sense of communication between us that amazes most people who relate to their animals only as lowly animals, rather than as the uniquely sensitive and responsive creatures they really are. My dogs (and occasionally my cat) join me in circle quite frequently, sometimes getting cozy within its boundary for the duration of my ritual and sometimes coming and going quietly throughout. The interesting thing is that their normally silly, hyper behavior is instantly turned calm and respectful when they are within my sacred circle, even when my own energy is charged up in spellwork. And as to being my muses, I couldn't work without them. They are always on the floor at my feet as I paint in my studio or sit at my computer writing, and nothing calms my restless soul at the end of the day more than curling up with the two of them under the blankets as the night grows old (much to my husband's frequent chagrin).

I draw energy and inspiration from them. They make me feel alive, whether we're sitting indoors hard at work or romping through nature and feeling the beauty of Mother Earth. They speak to my inner child and the one that sits in perfect view for all to see. So while I may not call them my familiars, in reality that it what they are: the perfect unconditionally supportive and endlessly loyal companions who bear witness to all I am and all I do, both the magickal and the mundane, as I travel this path of my life. And it doesn't get more "familiar" than that.

Incense & Oil for Imbolc

With Imbolc just a week away, it's time to make some preparations for observing this sabbat. I tend to keep things quiet for this one, and usually I don't even decorate my altar for it. Lots of people find this odd as given that I am an artist by trade, this one should be a slam-dunk for me when it comes to observing the sabbat with art or poetry, which are traditional for Imbolc. But maybe that's exactly why I don't go to the lengths I do for some of the other sabbats: because I live with and honor my creativity every single day. Regardless, I do enjoy a quiet circle that night and it's nice to have some oils and incense made especially for it.

Imbolc Incense

3 parts Frankincense

2 parts Dragon's Blood

1 part Red Sandalwood

1 part Cinnamon

1 part Rosemary

Grind all herbs one at a time and then combine together. Burn over a charcoal in a censer during ritual.

Sun Oil

4 drops Frankincense

2 drops Cinnamon

1 drop Petitgrain

1 drop Rosemary

Combine all essential oils in a base of 1/8 cup of sunflower oil or jojoba oil and use to anoint the candles used during ritual.

Sun Oil recipe is courtesy of Scott Cunningham, The Complete Book of Incense, Oils, & Brews, Llewellyn Publications, 1989.

Photo of Dragon's Blood courtesy of Treasach on flickr.

Circle, Part II

"The medicine wheel is the nucleus of an atom; it is the universe, and it is everything in between. It offers a series of circles within circles which correspond to a day, a year, a life and so on. It is a philosophy, a way of thought and a learning tool. It is both a physical solid and pure energy...this naturally shaped structure can be used to explain and understand all the complexities of existence...We begin simply but add the layers slowly to build and develop our knowledge."

The Native American medicine or earth wheel is not so different from the basic circle cast by a witch. The circle represents the universe, the Goddess and God, the elements of nature, the sacred space between that which is seen and unseen. It is reflective of the phases of the moon and the orbital rotation of the planets; the days, weeks, months, years, and seasons. It is a microcosm of energy, a cone of power, and as stated above, it is a learning tool by which we learn about the Craft, our own personal power within that faith, and even ourselves as mere humans. The circle teaches us lessons within lessons as we channel our beliefs into something potent and tangible, and within its boundaries we continue to grow each time our circle is cast.

I find it endlessly amazing how many old religions, beliefs, and cultures shared the tools used to honor the divine and utilize that power. So much of the mainstream world no longer sees nor feels this infinite wisdom and instead prefers to mock or vilify those to whom the ancients call today. It's a powerful universe out there at our fingertips, and it all begins with a circle.

Photo and text courtesy of Grey Wolf, Earth Signs: How to Connect With the Natural Spirits of the Earth, The Ivy Press Limited, 1998.

Circle, Part I

Circle is something that is very personal to each witch. Granted, there are generalities we all adhere to, but everyone brings their own personal stamp to their ritual. I tend to keep mine on the simpler side of things, preferring the plain over the extravagant. I mark the quarters with candles of the appropriate colors for their cardinal directions, though I do occasionally change them to a single color for various observances and sabbats. I use plain white candles to represent the Goddess and the God, and the elements represented on my north-facing altar (that direction speaks to me far more deeply than the east) are also very plain and simple. But recently I have been giving this a bit more thought.

While circle shouldn't become a busy little one-ring circus with so much going on that you lose the true meaning of its spirituality, it also needn't be static and dull. After all, changing things up a bit keeps things dynamic and can even alter your focus just enough to help you see things you might otherwise never have seen. Or felt. So it occurred to me, given that I've brought Native American ritual into my circle when honoring my ancestors, that I could also use Native American beliefs in the building of my sacred space.

In the past I've built small personal medicine wheels and earth wheels using the energies of the various stones to represent the directions and the winds of Mother Earth. So, for me, the next logical step would be to build a circle using the stones of an earth wheel in place of (or placed around) the candles for each quarter, and choosing stones to represent the Goddess and the God. By carefully choosing these stones for their properties and charged powers, the energy of my circle will be vastly different. And as the needs of myself or my circle change depending on the purpose for casting it, my choice of stones can change depending on that need. The combinations are virtually endless.

And with Imbolc just around the corner, the tiny seeds of this idea I've planted are growing stronger every day. What better time to bring something new and fresh to circle than on the sabbat that honors creativity, growth and the birth of new life and ideas?

And So Thinks the Witch

"The tree which moves some to tears of joy is in the eyes of others only a green thing that stands in the way. Some see nature all ridicule and deformity...and some scarce see nature at all. But to the eyes of the man of imagination, nature is imagination itself."

-William Blake

Photo of the oak tree near Ashdown House courtesy (once again) of the amazing Giles C. Watson on flickr.