Tender Dance Of Dark And Light

ג' תמוז התשס"ח
Faunus 5

Meditation On Gratitude, Modah Ani

ג' תמוז התשס"ח
Faunus 5

Goddess Meditation

ג' תמוז התשס"ח
Faunus 5

Coven Space

ג' תמוז התשס"ח
Faunus 5

Visit Liorah Lleucu's CovenSpace. Witches in community.

Ancient Embrace, The Silver Tree

כ"ו סיון התשס"ח
Alban Heruin 27

The newest haunting addition to my mystical music collection. The Silver Tree by Lisa Gerrard

Editoral Review - "Few artists last long in the rarefied terrain occupied by singer Lisa Gerrard over the last quarter-century. She shares a passion with composers like Arvo Pärt in the unrelenting pursuit of the divine. In fact, Gerrard evokes Pärt a few times on The Silver Tree, her first non-collaborative solo release since The Mirror Pool in 1995. The Silver Tree is an album of ancient echoes, ghostly refrains, and hymns to the heavens. On "Abwoon," she intones the Lord's Prayer in Aramaic, orchestrating her own voice in choral harmonies that unfold beneath her like winds on waves. But "Spaceweaver" sends chills through the soul as Gerrard unlocks this peculiar nasal, back-of-the-throat snarl that she only adopts on such tracks, with a menacing blues groove that recalls "Meltdown" from her score to The Insider. You can hear much of Gerrard's soundtrack work mirrored here: "The Sea Whisperer" picks up at the spirit-affirming end of "Now We Are Free" from Gladiator. And I suspect that the 10-minute opus "Towards the Tower" might be her rejected overture for the film Constantine. With Ligeti-like voices, suspended glissando strings, and ominous percussion shifts, it certainly would work in the cinematic context of a supernatural thriller. The album has been available for half a year in Australia (worldwide via digital download), so as a bonus, the American release tacks on a bonus track, "Entry." Its thudding electronic drum loop and sketchy vocal makes for a disruptive exit. But until you get there, The Silver Tree is an embracing experience. Whether singing Aramaic, English, or that language of her imagination, Lisa Gerrard makes the most heavenly music heard on earth--and maybe beyond. --John Diliberto"

Secure Boundaries Of The Universe

כ"ה סיון התשס"ח
Alban Heruin 26

Almandine garnet granules are monocrystalline unbroken grains found in garnet schists (a type of metamorphic rock) and the newest curio added into my witch's cabinet.

"Garnets are most often found in the dodecahedral crystal habit, but are also commonly found in the trapezohedron habit. (Note: the word "trapezohedron" as used here and in most mineral texts refers to the shape called a Deltoidal icositetrahedron in solid geometry.)"

"A dodecahedron is any polyhedron with twelve faces, but usually a regular dodecahedron is meant: a Platonic solid composed of twelve regular pentagonal faces, with three meeting at each vertex. It has twenty (20) vertices and thirty (30) edges. Its dual polyhedron is the icosahedron. To the ancient Greeks, the dodecahedron was a symbol of the universe."

"A deltoidal icositetrahedron (or trapezoidal icositetrahedron) has 24 faces called deltoids or kites" and has been likened to a "window on all space and time."

"Two opposite vertices of a kite are equal." Like Keter-Malchut, balanced in equanimity. "Every convex kite has an inscribed circle; that is, there exists a circle that is tangent to all four sides. Therefore, every convex kite is a tangential quadrilateral. Additionally, if a convex kite is not a rhombus, there is another circle, outside the kite, tangent to all four lines through the kite's sides. For every concave kite there exist two circles tangent to the lines through all four sides: one is interior to the kite and touches the two sides opposite from the concave angle, while the other circle is exterior to the kite and touches the kite on the two edges incident to the concave angle."

12 Diagonal Faces of the Universe
24 Faces of Security = בטחה

Reference: Wikipedia

Involutionary Key To Evolutionary Transformation

י"ט סיון התשס"ח
Alban Heruin 20

A rare dark cobalt blue vintage Fenton carnival glass tumbler of outstanding iridescence in a butterfly and fern design is my most recently acquired ritual treasure.

The butterfly totem symbolizes conscious awareness while within the womb (Niddah 30b), sweet transmutation, soul evolution, clarity of comprehensive vision, and the dance of joy.

Fern is associated with Mercury (mastering magic, wisdom, knowledge, reason, curiosity, telepathy, intellectual progression, self-expression, communication, transmission of the spiritual to the physical, commerce), wards off negative energies and unnatural illness, and promotes the discovery of rare hidden treasure.

Cobalt salts color glass deep iridescent blue. Cobalt is a transition metal with magnetic properties, has an atomic number of 27, and is in group-9, period-4, d-block on the periodic table of elements. Most of the earth's cobalt is in its core. Cobalamine (Vitamin B12) "contributes to the formation of red blood cells and bone marrow, the metabolism of carbohydrates, fats and proteins and the production of genetic materials. It also assists nervous and cardiovascular mechanisms and plays a role in DNA synthesis. Deficiency of this vitamin may cause anaemia, exhaustion, irritation, depression, shortness of breath, difficulty walking, memory loss, mood swings, disorientation, dementia and constipation." Opposite deficiency, sufficient quantity of cobalamine supports healthy blood, vitality, mental health, respiratory efficiency, ease of mobility, memory recovery, mood stability, focus, clarity of mind and clear channels (tzinorot). D-block transition metals such as cobalt are "key elements in life and evolution."

Taken together, this ritual tumbler is a key tool for mastering the Craft, recovering Divine and Ancestral memory, actualizing evolutionary development of esoteric wisdom, achieving clarity of knowledge, acquiring an ability to communicate wisdom, maintaining equanimity, and revealing inner joy.

Heirloom Quality Cresting Moon Pentacle

כ'ח באייר תשס"ח
Mab 29

I've finally acquired the pentacle of my dreams. It's an exquisite 14K gold and heavy silver cresting moon pentacle with a beautiful Celtic weave border design, measuring 1 1/8" diameter with a thick 2.5 gram solid 14K gold pentacle inside the silver pendant. It's heirloom quality made to last lifetimes.

Shamanic Judaism, 2nd Video On Double Portions

כ'ז באייר תשס"ח
Mab 28

Oops? I posted the first shamanic Judaism video twice (a double portion) the first time (correct now). The second video (part 3) is now available for viewing here or here or here. Take another look ... and hear more of the story.

Shamanic Judaism

כ'ו באייר תשס"ח
Mab 27

Hat tip to Asherah's Place for posting links to two available YouTube (of three) videos featuring topics related to earth-based Shamanic Judaism. The teacher in the videos is Rabbi Gershon Winkler of the Walking Stick Foundation.

Part 2



Part 3



I want to make a drum like the one in the videos.

Ofra Haza - Daw Da Hiya

Wow. Hat-tip to lil_tike_oon.



Ofra Haza

Natural Olive Wood Mortar & Pestle

י'ט באייר תשס"ח
Mab 20

I have several stone and porcelain mortars and pestles, but I've recently purchased a natural olive wood set for grinding herbs. Unique and handcrafted from Tunisian olive wood, the mortar measures 5" W x 3.5" H x 1" Thick. Measurements for the pestle are: 7" L x 1.75" W.

Crocheted Natural Hemp Circlet

י'ט באייר תשס"ח
Mab 20

Handmade natural goddess jewelry. My circlet is hemp cord crocheted around a copper wire base. Then wrapped are bone, seed and wood beads that were strung on copper and gold wire. Complimenting the circlet, feminine energy spiral dance earrings feature snowflake obsidian. Obsidian is traditionally used to keep away negative energies and as a skrying surface.

Chaniel & The Mystic Moonstone Of Joy

ט'ז באייר תשס"ח
Mab 17

I received my mystical moonstone pendant today, which I picked up at the post office after work.

The ogham letter I drew out from among twenty feda this evening, under a glorious gibbous moon 99% full (חניאל), during the planetary hour of the moon, was gort - a fid of happiness and joy.

The attribute of joy, the inner dimension of Binah (Understanding), empowers my moonstone.

Four Winds From The Lips Of A Song

י'ב באייר תשס"ח
Mab 13

In kabbalistic shamanism, there is a wheel of 4 winds, where each wind is associated with a corresponding direction/quality [1]. They are:

mysterious NORTH wind of yhvh (illumination)
cleansing SOUTH wind of seeing yhvh (reflection)
shining EAST wind of balance and counsel (balance)
blending WEST wind of wisdom and understanding (healing)

In addition to these directions/qualities, are the lips (יהיה) of a Song (the primeval Breath which is the source of the 4 winds). They are:

wellspring UP
nurturing DOWN

Footnote:

[1] Magic Of The Ordinary, Recovering The Shamanic In Judaism by Gershon Winkler

מכתם לדת - Michtam L'Dat

י'ב באייר תשס"ח
Mab 13

מכתם לדת

I ritually stained the wood of my carved staff this evening with a red-ochre pigmented blend of botanicals, under the waxing gibbous moon 92% full, beginning during the planetary hour of Jupiter (ת) and finishing for the night during the planetary hour of the Sun (ד), drawing out from among twenty feda the ogham letter Saille (aravah) whose keyword is flow and whose corresponding mystical concepts [1] include:

female moon times
connecting with the Ancestors
knowledge of proper timing, tides of time

Additional associations [2, 3]:

liminal zones
witchcraft, magic and the feminine mysteries
divination, seership and prophecy
psychic perception and intuitive sensitivity
interweaving the revealed (itkafia) and the hidden (ithapcha)
water and mystic eloquence

lips
sukkot, joy
hoshanah rabbah
the temple in Yerushalayim


Footnotes:

[1] Ogam: Weaving Word Wisdom by Erynn Rowan Laurie

[2] Ogam: The Celtic Oracle Of The Trees by Paul Rhys Mountfort

[3] Inner Dimension, ערבה

Witchin' In The Wild Woods

ה' באייר תשס"ח
Mab 6

For magic in the wild woods, I've purchased a large 1920-1930's vintage Hawkeye basket by Burlington Basket Company for carrying ritual supplies. In excellent condition, without splits, cracks or damage, it is a wood woven basket, with hinged lid, painted metal handles, and an insert for separating items. It measures 12 3/4" tall, 20" tall to top of handles, and 14" wide handle to handle.

This is going to be a fun summer!

Staff Of Beauty Consecration Blend

ג' באייר תשס"ח
Mab 4

Preliminary list of botanicals to be used to make my staff consecration blend:

base oil (1)

sweet almond

drops of other oils (3)

bergamot
cedarwood
vanilla (absolute)

resins (6)

amber
black mayan copal
dragon's blood
galbanum
labdanum
sweet myrrh

herbs and botanicals (27)

aloeswood
balm of gilead
broom
burdock root
calamus root
calendula
damiana
dandelion
elder flowers
gall nut
ginger root
hawthorne
juniper berries
milk thistle
mugwort
nettle
passion flower
pomegranate seeds
saffron
sage
uva ursa
vervain
white sandalwood
white willow
witch grass
woodruff
wormwood

pigment (1)

red ochre

In addition to the clear natural crystal point that I've already used in crafting my staff, other stones I've chosen with which to empower it are:

amethyst natural point
herkimer diamond
jet
spirit quartz

Bardic Alphabet

ג' באייר תשס"ח
Mab 4

Colbren of the Bards alphabet.

Vowels



Consonants



Information Source: How To Make A Druid's Wand

Staff Of Beauty

ג' באייר תשס"ח
Mab 4

This past Sunday afternoon I found my witch's staff and de-barked it. Then after letting it rest for a few days, this evening I did my initial carvings. I am planning on filling up most of the surface with mystical and symbolic designs.

I have no idea what kind of wood the staff consists of, but it is a hard pale wood. When I decided this past weekend that the time was right to go look for the wood with which to craft my magic staff, I found it immediately, within 1 minute after exiting my car and entering the forest. My staff of beauty measures 58 inches long and is shaped like a tzadi sofit (the fifth of the final letters).

In between cycles of carving (and before sealing it with a protective varnish), I am going to treat the wood with a herb, resin and red ochre pigment mixture in a base of almond oil. I haven't decided on the exact recipe yet. Maybe tomorrow.

I've placed a small clear natural crystal point in one of the top ends of the staff. Other things may be added after the carving, (and initial) protective pigmenting treatments and varnishing are complete.