Numerology...part I

HEY! How's everyone doing? Tonight let's start looking at numerology. It's the study of numbers and what they can tell you about an individual. In this form of divination, each letter is given a numeric value, wach of these numbers are supposed to have certain cosmic vibrations. Twelve numbers are used in munerology, 1 through 11 and 22. Larger numbers can be reduced to one of these core numbers by adding the digits together. For instance 12=1+2=3....or 1932=1+9+3+2=15=1+5=6. Eleven and twenty-two are the only core numbers with two digits, they are known as mask numbers, and are considered to be intensified versions of the numbers 1 and 2. They indicate a potential for enhanced knowledge and/or potential.

Number Charecteristics

1-(positive) strong leadership skills, inventive, determined, brave, individuality (negative) dominating, agressive, egotistic, impulsive

2-(positive) adaptable, cooperative, considerate, empathetic, spirtual, modest, sincere (negative) shy, timid, fearfull, self-conscious, depressed

3-(positive) self-expressive, inspired, imaginative, artistic, insightful, optimistic, fun-loving (negative) unfinished projects, scattered, moody, self-centered

4-(positive) strong values, scientific mind, attention to details, organized, good managing skills (negative) lacks imagination, caught up in details, slow to act

5-(positive) visionary, quick thinker, versatile, curious, action-oriented, resourceful
(negative) restless, discontent, hasty, edgy,tempermental, impatient

6-(positive) responsible, aristic, nurtuting, community oriented, balanced, sympathetic, unselfish ,domestic
(negative) self-righteous, stubborn, dominating, meddling, egotistical

7-(positive) scientific, inventive, studious, charming, peaceful, perfectionist, analyist
(negative0 suspicious, overly reserved, sarcastic, overly upset by distraction, inflexible

8-(positive) political skills, handles power well, good judgement, decisive, take charge ability
(negative) overly ambitious, workaholic, impatient, repressive of subordinates, stressed out, materialistic

9-(positive) friendly, humanitarian, giving, creative, art & writing talent
(negative) self-adulation, scattered intrests, possesiveness, careless with finances, overly intrested in peer attention



Ok guys...I'll finish this up tomorrow...have a great night :)

Wheel of the Year

OK...so I missed last night..again...sorry..but I did put up some videos...hope you like them. As of tonight I'm back on track. For this blog, I'd like to introduce the Pagan Wheel of the Year, which is basically a calendar of the earth's seasons and the sabbats that correspond to them. It's divides into 8 parts, which are spread out in even intervals for the year. The circular shape represents the fact that time is continuous...it constantly cycles through the seasons paralleling the cycle of the stages of life, decline, death, and rebirth. Four of thesabats fall n the solstices and the equinox, and the other four occur midway between them.

SABBATS

Oct. 31-Samhain
Dec. 21-Yule
Feb. 2-Imbolc
March 21-Ostara
May 1-Beltane
June 21-Litha
Aug. 1-Lamas
Sept. 21-Mabon

im back

Hey all! Sorry I dissapeared for a couple days I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend. I'm in the middle of a 20 page midterm and I don't feel like writng one more informative thing right now, so I'm gonna do something a little differant and talk about what I've been up to the past few days. Basically my entire weekend consisted of trudging through farmlands gathering up apples and pumpkins...it was actually alot more fun than it sounds :) I took the little one with me of course and she was absolutely hysterical. Here are a couple key moments. Sunday, we're scouring the trees for any remaining apples (yes i am a terrible procrastinator and waited untill almost every apple had either been picked or fallen to the ground for the animalls) when one falls off a tree of its own accord. Rowan, being the slightly strange over-imaginative child that she is decides right then and there that we were, naturally, in the land of Oz ("duh mom"). She was quite certain that the trees were angry at us and were retaliating by chucking apples at our heads when we weren't looking. Now let me tell you, if I believed a tree was attacking me I'd be petrified, as soon as I could collect myself I'd hightail it out of there...I'm pretty sure that's the normal response. But no...not her...instead she rushes over to the trees and starts attcking them...punching their leaves and aiming kicks at their branches, the whole bit, to top it all off, she picks up an apple and before I can stop her returns fire at the offending flora...being my daughter, her aim is slightly (and by slightly i mean extremely) off and instead of striking the tree, she instead hits an innocent bystander who was completely unaware of the war being waged not ten feet from him....she immediately apologizes but then launches into a ten minute explanation of why she was throwing apples and tried to enlist his aid in the battle against the trees...his face needless to say was priceless....thankfully the trees seemed to have le arnttheir lesson and the rest of the trip was completed without further assaults...then their was the pumpkin patch...on Saturday we had made a quick stop at a local farm which was having a harvest festival, Rowan did the whole deal...petting zoo, hay rides, you get the idea...at the end of the day she absolutey HAS to have pumpkin, nevermind the fact that we are planning on going to a huge field of pumpkins the next day...she NEEDS one right at that moment, and not just any pumpkin, but one particular, oddly shaped, lumpy pumpkin..."This" she announces "is my baby Alissa I love her and if I leave her here she will be so lonely and miss me so much and she'll cry" Who can argue with that logic? We get the pumpkin...That night she is painting Alissa and I receive a call from my friend, his son had just been born..As I'm excitedly jumping up and down, shouting out the news to everyone in my household a mysterious thing happens...Alissa becomes pregnant...so Sunday we did not go to a pumpkin patch, we instead trooped off to a "pumpkin hospital," and spent an inordinately long amount of time looking for Alissa's baby. Fortunately he happened to be located at that hospital (although there was a few minutes where she was convinced we might have gone to the wrong hospital and wouldn't be able to find him) I asked what she would name this pumpkin and she looked at me totally aghast and exclaimed "mommy i have to let Alissa name her own baby it came out of her tummy!!!" and when she got home she consulted with the new mother for about ten minutes before determing that his name was Kevin...so that was my weekend....apples pumpkins and babies of all sorts and types....tomorrow I'll post a blog chock full of info I promise...untill then stay smiling :)

Hod out your hand....

All right, back to divination...Another famous form is palmistry, where one interprets markings on a person's hand. There's tons of different things to look for, so I'm going to try and keep it pretty basic and only talk about a few key things. OK...here it goes...First of all, it is important to realize that your dominant hand represents your future, while your passive hand holds your past. One of the first things a palmist does is check the coloring of hands. Very pale or bluish signifies poor circulation, very red hints at high blood pressure, whereas a pink tone implies good health. Most hands have four major lines; life, heart, head, and fate. The heart line tells how and why things will happen, but it is not specific on when. It runs from just below the little finger to between the index and middle fingers. A curved line shows the person is aggressive in love, while a straight line shows a person is receptive in love. In some cases the heart line may end below the middle finger which indicates that the person is dominated by a need for love. Branches off this line indicate different sides of emotional nature and if there is a strong branch that touches the life line it implies the person is easily hurt by love. Headlines show how a person thinks.Short line=thinking that is straight to the point and long line=a person who likes to play around with ideas. Slopping lines show creativity and chained implies the person is high strung. If the line forks it shows the person is open minded and can see more than 1 point of view. Life lines are not used to determine the length of life, but rather the quality of it. If it is close to the thumb the person is likely to have a low vitality, if it is far from the thumb the person will have a high vitality. Fate lines that star at the bottom of a palm reveals that the person is settled in their life path early on in life. If this line is weak it shows a tendency to be unsettled and change jobs a lot. Each finger symbolizes something. Index: Long index finger=confidence and awareness, an ability to handle change and crises Short index finger= shy, afraid of failure. If index finger is curved it indicates that the person is a collector and/or has many hobbies. Middle: Long middle finger=serious Short middle finger=carefree Ring: Long ring finger=creative, potential for arts/fashion Short ring fingers are rare and indicate a gambling problem. Pinkie: Long pinkie= high I.Q., talent for writing/speaking, and a strong sex drive Low set pinkie finger can point towards a victim of child abuse A pinkie that sticks out from the hand may imply the person is not happy in their relationships. There is much more to look at and consider while reading palms. For example, mounds, curves, additional lines, and more complicated meanings for the four basic lines.

Samhain Chants

Hecate, Cerridwen
-
Hecate, Cerridwen
Dark Mother take us in
Hecate, Cerridwen
Let us be reborn

In Honor of Most Lovely One, Goddess Hecate

Quiet is the night

Dark is the Moon

I ask Hecate, the Crone

To take Her throne.

Sleep, sister, sleep

Be not alarmed,

For the Great Goddess

Keeps you from harm.

Quiet is the night

Dark is the Moon

I ask Hecate, the Crone

To take Her throne.

Sleep, brother sleep,

Be not alarmed,

For the Great Goddess

Holds you in her arms.

Quiet is the night

Dark is the Moon.

We honor Hecate the Crone

Who has taken Her throne.

The Blood of the Ancients
	Charlie Murphy
	It's the blood of the Ancients That runs in our veins And the forms pass But the circle of life remains

Pick a card any card....

In last night's blog I briefly mentioned forms of divination that require you to look outside yourself for answers. One famous form of this is the reading of tarot cards. A deck of tarot cards contains 78 cards; 22 major arcana, such as the fool, the devil, temperance, and the hanged man and 66 minor arcana which includes the lords, ladies, knights, and knaves. These cards are divided into four suits cups (for emotion and water), wands (intellect and air), coins (money duh lol and earth), and swords (justice and fire). There are numerous different decks. The one that is the most popular and most suitable for beginners is the Rider-Waite deck (see picture above on the left). Some more famous ones include the Allister Crowley deck and the Mason deck, but there are uncountable others. There are decks with fairy pictures, decks with dolphins, decks with wolves....you get the picture. The reader shuffles the cards he or she has chosen to use then draws a set number of cards and lays them out in a certain pattern, both of these things depend on the type of layout you are using. The types of layouts available are almost as numerous as the types of decks. Two of the more popular ones are the Celtic Cross spread and the Eliphas Levi Wheel spread. Once you have mastered the cards you can even begin to design your own layouts. Interpretation of the cards is based not only on the symbols found on the card's face, but also on the cards position in referance to the rest of the layout. Using the cards you can predict someone's overall future or you can focus on answering a specific question. More forms of divination to come tomorrow....see ya then :)

Look into my crystal ball....

October is an excellent month for divination. One of the more difficult forms of seeing the future is known as scrying. In scyring it is possible to perceive events and obtain answers by way of the subconscious. This can be tough to master because it demands a deep understanding of the subconscious symbolism and an ability to understand these symbols. Unlike many other forms of divination which require you to look outside of yourself for answers, you have to look within while scyring. The most famous method of scrying is probably crystal gazing, where one seeks answers in a crystal ball. However, fire, mirrors, and water can also be used.

PREPERATION:

It's best to scry at night because this type of divination is linked to the moon. If you shoose to scry indoors, the only source of light should be candles. Music can be conductive to scrying, however it is not necessary. If you want to use music just make sure that it does not contain lyrics that will influence your visions. Seat yourself in a quiet comfortable place free from distractions. Either hold your scrying tool or have it set up in front of you. Begin with a short session of meditation to relax yourself and clear your mind. Once you begin scrying look into, not at your tool. Keep your eyes focused on one spot, but it's ok to blink :) It's very important that you do not let your mind wander. Often at the beginning of a scrying session you will get swirls of colors. This is normal, just relax and focus. If you can't get past the colors don't get frustrated, the colors themselves can have meaning and you can use traditional color symbolism to understand them. Put a time limit on your sessions (fifteen minutes is a good time to start out with. Keep in mind that scrying is not limited to sight, all five senses can receive info from this technique. Start a scrying journal and have it near you whenever you scry. Date each entry and write down your perceptions at the end of each session. Take another look at them the next day so you can work on interpreting them. If you are familiar with other types of divination you can use them to help interpret the info you got from scrying.

by Liadan, © 1997

Oh, wild lonely places of sweet dread delight
That call to my Children on Halloween night
In whispering wind wisps and whipporwill plight
Tickling the treetops where moonbeams alight.

Come hither, ye Witches, on silver light fly!
Don't dawdle, don't saunter, don't idly stroll by!
Lift your skirts as seer gusts catch the leaves dead and dry
Rise up with the wind soaring hasty on high!

Ride ye thus to the hollow in the wood dark and deep
Where all merry parted shall now merry meet.
At the time 'twas appointed that time shall ye keep
To honor me, hail me in great esbat fete.

When the moon sailing bright in the dark midnight blue
Casts her spell on the landscape, reversing each hue,
And the scent of the night gives the magickal clue
To the circle make haste, give Hecate her due!

Dance wild, draw the power and shape in a cone,
Till the power is thine and the will is thine own
Then hurl't to the wind that thy purpose be flown
And thy wish shall I grant on the Night of the Crone.

One and all then come hither and join the great feast
Where within all are welcome: Spirit, Human, and Beast.
Give hail and farewell to the souls since deceased
Then wend thy way home 'fore the Sun tints the East.

But remember, my Children, remember quite clear
The sound of my voice ringing high in your ear.
'Tis my summoning call in the owl's hoot you hear
To meet merry again on All Hallow's next year.

Hades

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Since I covered a Goddess that corresponds with Samhain, I figured I might as well treat the guys equally and devote a blog to a God associated with this time. Hades, the Lord of the Underworld is one of several that is linked to this season. He, along with his brothers Zeus and Poseidon, were the original Gods, born to the titans Rhea and Cronos. As the brothers grew up, they overthrew their father. In order to determine which God, would rule where, thy drew sticks and it was determined that Poseidon would be in charge of the water, Zeus the Earth, and Hades the Underworld. As I said earlier in my blog bout Hecate, Hades ends up forcing Persephone to be his bride. I left out a few details that poin out Hades' manipulative nature. For one thing, he did not happen to randomly see Pesephone and kidnap her. Instead, he went to Zeus and asked for one of his daughters to be his bride. Zeus offered Persephone to him (which is really messed up at least in my opinion because who allows their daughter to be taken as a sex slave by her own uncle????) and together they devise a plan to kidnap her.
In addition, after he agreed to let Persephone return to the surface, he forces her to eat a pomegranit, ensuring that she had to return to him for half the year whether she wanted to or not. Besides ruling the Underworld, Hades is also the god of wealth and precious metals. He is symbolized byu a forked staff which he uses to drive unwilling spirts into his dark regions. He is also known for his three headed dog Cerebus (who is also frequently pictured with Hecatae), which gaurds the Underworld.

Stars for Satin????????

On a quick note, today, browsing the internet, I came across an article claiming the Pentagram was the sign of Satan. Now I've always known that people have this misconception, but everytime I come across it I still feel shocked at how many actually accept this idea. Though some Satanic cults have taken the pentagram and perversed its meaning, it is in fact paganism's oldest symbol. It does not stand for death destuction, anarchy etc, but instead represents the power of the Spirit and the Deity over matter. Each of it's five points symbolizes one of the elements; eart, air, fire, water, and spirit (see above graphic).

The pentacle, another symbol commonly linked to Devil worship (which is ridiculous in my opinion because most Wiccans do not even believe in a supremely evil being or devil) is merely a pentagram within a circle. It sands for all the things the pentagram does. In addition, the circle around it symbolizes infinity and the cycle of life, death, and rebirth. Ok, just felt I had to clear that up for everyone :) Have a great night!

Hecate

Hows everyone doing? As I mentioned before, the aspect of the triple goddess we focus on during this time of year is the crone. One of the more well-known crone goddesses, and one that has a particularly special link with Samhain is Hecate. She is the Greek goddess of magic, witchcraft, the night moon, ghosts, and necromancy. Her powers lie in her wisdom, her dreams , and her divining abilities. Hecate is known as the Queen of the Night and she's the only Goddess who can grant any and all wishes of mortals. One of the more famous and significant myths concerning Hecate is the story of Persephone's abduction. In this story Persephone, the daughter of Zeus and Demeter, was so beautiful that everyone loved and desired her, including Hades, the lord of the underworld. One day as she was picking flowers, he rose up and kidnapped her, taking her back to his kingdom. Hecate had seen everything and she rushed back to inform Demeter. Demeter was so upset by this that she withdrew into herself and the earth ceased to be fertile (winter was born). Later on Hecate became a trusted friend of Pesephone and helped the young maiden adjust to life in the underworld. In addition she helped Demeter and Hades come to an agreement; for half the year (spring and summer) Persephone would be above ground with her mother and the earth would be fertile, the other half half (winter and fall) she would return to her husband, Hades, during this time Demeter would again go into mourning and the earth would become infertile. Hades was so grateful to Hecate for aiding in these arrangements that he invited Hecate into his kingdom and allowed her the freedom to come and go as she pleased. Though in the story, Hecate, Demeter, and Persephone interact with each other as three seperate characters, they are in fact thought of as one being. On their own they form a triad, kind of like the Triple Goddess on a smaller more individual level, with Persephone being the maiden, Demeter the mother, and Hecate the crone. By being part of a triad Hecate has the ability to see past, present, and future. Indeed, Hecate is often depicted as having three heads or with the three-headed hound of the underworld.

Haunted birthdays

Hi guys...i I apologize. but I don't have alot of time to write tonight, I'm sort of cramming for a test. However, I've noticed a few of you have been posting comments lately and that's awesome :). For those of you who had some advice, thanks for the help and I'll work on making the changes asap...and for those of you leavong compliments, I'm glad your enjoying it! Since I really don't have a bunch of time on my hands right now, I'd just like to answer a question quickly. One of you was wondering if being born on Halloween had any special signifigance. It is a common belief that those who are born on this day are very tuned into the psychic world. They often possess the ability to see and/or communicate with spirts. In addition, these people are often credited with having a special protection against negative spirits. I hope that helps. If anyone else has any other info on this subject please feel free to share. For the individual who asked that question, I hope you have a blast on your birthday, and keep your eyes open for ghosts lol.

Altar prep

Hey there..so in case any of you were intrested in setting up an altar for Samhain, here's some basic tips:

PREPERATION
Place an altar cover of either brown, deep red, or orange on a surface. Have a God and/or Goddess symbol(s) and objects that represent earth (salt, pentegram,dirt...),air (feather,incense...),water (water obviously^_^), and fire (match, rock made of lava, red candle...). Decorate with Autumn leaves, fall flowers, apples, pumpkins, gourdes, corn, dollies, and stalks of grin.Altars are set up to pay respects to departed loved ones including pets so place photos of the deceased upon the altar as well. It can be set up on a bookcase, fireplace mantle, small wooden table, large flat rok, etc. As you pray at the altar, you can do more than pay respect to the dead, this is a perfect time to focus upon giving up bad habits and relationships. It is also a a time for scrying, protection spells.

Trick or treat smell my feet...

Sooooo...Halloween is coming up :) I'm probably a little to old to be this excited about it, but hey what the hell, right? Traditionally, in the pagan world Halloween was known as Samhain which was celebrated on October 31st (duh lol). It's one of 2 spirit nights within the year (the other is Belltaine). At this time the laws of time and space are temporarily suspended and the barriers between our world and that of the spirts are lifted. This makes communicating with our ancestors much easier. Samhain honors the Dark Mother and Father (the crone and her aged escort). It's a time to focus on the dark mysteris and to honor those who have crossed over before us. Samhain places an emphasis on the cycle of death and rebirth, ends must come in order for there to be new beginnings. For pagans, Samhain marked the third and final harvest of the year. Tomorrow I'll put up a blog on setting up altars for this time of year. Talk to you then...Stay happy :)

Broomsticks...not just for flying :)

So, in between the million other things I was doing today, I found myself sweeping my kitchen floor. As I was doing this basic, slightly boring chore I started to think about how closely Wicca winds its way around my life. Even the simplest things canhave meaning. The brrom for instance. A normal, ordinary broom. Brooms are quite possibly the oldest magical tool. Though I have yet to gain the ability to fly on one, they do have other uses. Ofen they are used to cleanse areas of negative energy...you sweep out the bad. Early Americans that practiced magic used brooms to communicate with eachother. The positining of a broom in front of your house told neighbors and friends where you were. A broom leaning against a closed door with the bristles up meant "not home," bristles down meant "I'm home," a broom lying down meant "busy come back later," and bristles up over a window meant "ne nack soon come in and wait." The broom has 3 parts handle, brush, and binding which are symbolic of the three aspects of the Triple Goddess. Brooms can be store bought or hand made. Well, thats all for tonight...be back tomorrow :)

Pumpkin time

Hi again....Im still on my fall kick and since October's begun lets have a little chat about pumpkins. If your neighborhood is anything like mine, pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns are allready scattered across lawns in preperation for Samhein (or Halloween). Pumpkins are one of the most well-known symbolls of what has become a main stream holiday. This time of year pagans and non-pagans alike carve faces into pumpkins, creating jack-o-lanterns. However, not many people know that the first jack-o-lanterns were made in Ireland 2,000 years ago in order to frighten away evil spirits. But the Irish didn.t original use pumpkins...instead they chose..can you gues??...potatoes :). Here's a little recipe I picked up...hope you enjoy.


PUMPKIN PIE (makes one 9" pie)

1 1/2 cups cooked pumpin (canned is ok )
5/8 cups evaporated milk
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 well beaten eggs

preheat oven to 375 degrees farenheit, mix all ingredients and pour into unbaked pie shell, bake for about 50 minutes

Fall

Hey there! Days are getting shorter, nights are getting longer, temperatures are dropping (at least they're supposed to be), the seasons have changed and fall is here. I know I'm a little late on this one since the equinox was the 22nd, but I was outside this morning and noticed the colors of the leaves and was..well...inspired lol. This is a time where we take in the bounties of the year. Crops are harvested and stored and everyone is preparing for winter. Leaves change colors and begin to fall, many animalls are getiing ready to hibernate...it's as if the world is preparing itself for death. Now, that may sound a little morbid, and I don't intend it to, I love this season, in fact it's my favorite. However it does seem as if everyone and everything is setting itself up for a long phase of rest and inactivity. For me fall is a time to take an overview of the year. Appreciate the rewards of my hard work and to put to rest problems I've been facing. What does it mean to you?...Let me know what you think..I am interested...honest :)