A MagiQal Life

I found this on some Taiwan news site, so I’m not sure it’s all that accurate, but thought it was worthy of being shared none the less…

On March 1st, 1692, three women were brought before local magistrates in Salem, Massachusetts, accused of witchcraft. This marked the beginning of the infamous Salem witch trials.

In other witchcraft history…

When the battleship Barham was torpedoed by the Germans in November 1941, with the loss of over 800 lives, the Admiralty delayed announcing the news to maintain morale.
But the secrecy was ended within a few days when medium Helen Duncan told a couple during a seance that their son, a sailor on the ship, had appeared from the spirit world to tell them it had sunk.  (source)

Which makes me wonder why, if Witchcraft works, why all the fear? Maybe it’s jealousy over the fact that so many prayers from God go unanswered, those that pray lash out at those who follow different gods that do answer prayer. Blah, but I’m not here to sound bitter, just trying to spread some historical knowledge.

In other witchy news, I found this…

Since 2003, 35 pits at the site in a valley near Truro have been excavated containing swan pelts, dead magpies, unhatched eggs, quartz pebbles, human hair, fingernails and part of an iron cauldron.

The finds have been dated to the 1640s, a period of turmoil in England when Cromwellian Puritans destroyed any links to pre-Christian pagan England. It was also a period when witchcraft attracted the death sentence.

So it seems, that no matter how hard society tries, witches, pagans, and magicians will be around, in the open, hidden, or what have you. Maybe in a hundred years my alter out back will be found and I’ll get an article about me written, then again, if my alter is found in a hundred years it’ll look like a brick and two patio stones stacked up, lol, so I guess that’ll likely not happen… but what about your altar?

Share This

A few weeks ago the Polish Catholic Church announced that it would be opening ‘exorcism clinics’ to combat the rising cases of possession. News from Australia shows that priests are working over time to help the swelling cases of demonic involvement in peoples lives. Throughout other parts of Europe Demons are invading the minds of the populous, and in the US priests are starting to become trained to fight such things in growing numbers. In fact, a recent survey shows that one in ten Catholics have been, or have witnessed an exorcism.

Is this the work of the new Pope, or are the satanic forces finally standing up to claim what is theirs?

Personally, I think it may be hype inspired by the Vatican combined with a growing fad of blaming ones problems on demons.

Thousands of years ago, there was no mental illness. Though there were demons, and those demons would invade the minds of the devout. The only cure for such an invasion would be to visit a priest of whatever faith you were and have it banished. According to record, such practices cured many individuals… CURED! Today of course, we use pills to suppress such things, or psychiatry to circumvent their effects….though today, without taking your medications, there is no cure….until now!

Now, don’t take cleansing herbs to cure what ails you, take FDA approved medications. Natural cures are the work of the devil! And now it seems that medications may also be a thing of the past, as people are flocking to the church to cure their mental quirks. Is this a reversal of technological advances in medicine, or is it a return to doing what actually works? I guess only time may tell…

The Satanic Bible says that “Satan is the best friend the church ever had” and that is once again proving true. With the rising numbers of people leaving the church for nature religions, or alternative faiths, maybe this is just what the Pope needs to once again gain his foothold on the world. If the power of God can cure you of your personal demons, you may be more inclined to go to church on more occasions then just Easter and Christmas…something that will once again get the armchair Christian to keep the faith.

With luck, it’ll lead to other ancient cures, like taking herbs rather then synthetic drugs that you can not pronounce.

Share This

 There is a difference between magic and magick and that distinction was brought about by Aleister Crowley when he added the K to the end of the more traditional spelling. Magick without the K now, for the better part denotes stage magic and parlor tricks, though the two words are still rather interchangeable. Witchcraft gets no such separation, though I’d bet many-a-Wiccan would love for there to be one.

 I watch the web for the term “witchcraft” and often search news sites for current events that revolve around the word. Excluding the gaming circles I find there is a 50/50 mix between the more standard “Wiccan” witchcraft and the standard practice of magick in general.

 During the ‘burning times’ any suspect of practicing magick was considered Witchcraft, and even today, such generalizations still hold pretty true. Countries from around the world have witchcraft laws which encompass any act of magick or spell casting.

 Even the dictionary gives a broad definition, though takes it a step further by saying that it’s an evil act, and again, I bet many a witch would disagree. Webster says that Witches even talk to the devil, though with all of the self proclaimed witches that I know, not one of them has bothered with such Christian trappings such as Satan or even demons. Good spirits and bad spirits yes, but the devil, well, not unless they also call upon God, and he certainly has no place in the tenants of most witches.

 I think that when Wicca was brought about they picked too broad of a term. A word all too often associated with evil. A title that has simply caused too much controversy and that has caused more problems, then solutions.

 Should the “good witches” of the western world keep such a title? I really don’t know, but I can say that I rarely use the word for fear of being stoned (with rocks silly) or worse, burned at the stake. I would honestly rather be called a “Wizard” and get snickered at because of the popularity of Harry Potter. Or a Mage and get poked fun of because of Dungeons And Dragons. At least those words don’t hurt as much…

Share This

I recently started a thread on Occult Corpus on Recession and the price of Vegetables, and while that thread was posted in the Homesteading forum there are magickal applications which can and do apply to the mindset of gardening, especially in times like these.

I am grateful now, more then ever, that I have moved out of the big city to live a simple life here with Cyndi. In the city there was really no option for a garden. There was no option for living off the land, there was no option for eating unprocessed food… but had times gotten much harder I may have been eating that cat food to make it through the next day.

The price of cat food is lower then buying canned human food. Likewise, it is now cheaper to by canned human food over making things from scratch. That fact is upsetting, but it’s also not an absolute fact. On can start a garden and off set much of the prices one finds in the grocery store.

Where does that leave me? Well, it leaves me appreciating that 85×60 foot garden out back just full of veggies. It leaves me with a taste for fresh eggs, and rooster meat. It leaves me with the money saved from not needing to waste gas on the next trip to the grocery store.

It also can go much deeper then your wallet. It can have a spiritual significance as well. By digging your hands into the earth, you can become one with the land. By planting seeds you become akin to the creator. By tending the plants you can provide, not only for yourself, but for the garden. By harvesting all that is sewn you not only save a few dollars, but you also have the fruits (or in ts case, veggies) of your labor.

If you have ever given a sacrifice to the greater spirits and they were happy, imagine the elation of using something you grew yourself! The rituals you use your own creations in will become more powerful, and the appreciation of such sacrifices by those you are offering too will also be seen in the final outcomes of your spells, prayers, and requests.

So whether or not you have a green thumb, plant something that you’ve grown, and you just may find you’ve grown spiritually as well.

Share This

People in magickal circles talk about magickal protection, healing, and other spells and rituals that can aid in making one safe from all sorts of harm, though sometimes magick is not enough, or at least some times it can take more then just a few herbs, a crystal, and some fancy words to make such protections truly happen. Even without magick, it can sometimes take more then just the “self” to keep one free from harm. So with that, self defense should be looked at through as many angles as possible.

A while back I had worries over the safety of a dear friend that arose from a rather stange dream. And while I know they have panic buttons for your car alarm, personal alarm systems, and the like those were not something that would work, as she was living in the middle of nowhere and should something of happened, no one would have been around to hear her yell for help, let alone some wailing electronic device.

So with that, I wrote a poem (based on that dream) and looked into other methods that could call for help should the need arise.

Worry (1) 4-31-05

You talked in your sleep last night
You had a dream
I talked to you of your plight
It was a bad dream
I now worry about you
You getting harmed
You spoke of the things he’d do
Now I’m alarmed
There are things that can be done
Take this advice
There’s things that can’t be undone
Don’t roll the dice
I can’t take this chance of risk
Listen to me
I will try to make this brisk
To make you see
You need a PERS for your purse
Your protection
And there is nothing else worse
You can not run
So protect yourself my dear
So please, this do
So *we* do not have to fear
And I love you

Worried about a loved one? a friend? Family member? Are you yourself prone to accident, or maybe your mother is growing feeble and you are concerned that she may harm herself?

You may want to look into a PERS system. It stands for Personal Emergency Response System. You can find a bit about it by reading up on it from the following links.
FTC: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/services/pers.htm
Pueblo: http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/cic_text/health/pers/pers.htm

Or if you are interested in buy one you can find one here. http://www.americanmedicalalarms.com

I got that site from the BBBonline page…so they got a good track record. AND they happen to be one of the cheapest systems available (that I found).

Because I care…
Q

Share This