I have a thing for crows. It comes from meeting the Morrighan in the Underworld, being claimed by her as one of her own - complete with armor, sword and a pair of black wings - and encountering beings I call my "crow sisters" in most of my meditative and shamanic journeys.

Photo from Roseburg, Oregon; found in SFGate's Day in Pictures.

This photo is an amazing shot, for the contrast of the black of the crow against the white of the snow if nothing else. But I love the spread of the crow's wings most. It captures exactly the look of the wings I was given and those of my sisters. This could be one of my sisters, flying through Oregon.

Crows have a rich symbolic history that stretches across almost every spiritual pantheon and time in history. From Celtic mythology, the Crow is associated with Morrighan and her triple goddess form that includes her sisters Macha and Badb. In this way and a number of others she is beloved of many witches. The Native Americans see the Crow as a trickster, but also as the protector of the sacred writings of the Great Spirit. In alchemy, encountering a crow is considered a particularly good omen. The Black Crow symbolizes the beginning of the alchemist's journey through inner space and in the symbol of the Black Crow we have the stepping out in consciousness from the world of the physical senses the restrictions that bind us to the physical body. The Crow is an important symbol in Buddhist traditions as well, with many meanings. I have read that the sight of three crows flying over head means that a new Buddha is born.

While there are many stories and superstitions about the Crow and a number of its associations have to do with death and ill omens, the Crow also has powerful medicine and her presence can be very beneficial. A subject worthy of a longer post at a later time.

THE ONES that disappeared are back,
The Phoebe and the Crow,
Precisely as in March is heard
The curtness of the Jay—
Be this an Autumn or a Spring?
My wisdom loses way,
One side of me the nuts are ripe—
The other side is May.

Emily Dickinson (1830-86). Complete Poems. 1924
Part Five: The Single Hound

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 9:29 AM | Comments (2)

I'm working my way up to a big post about all things Fey and the profound influence they have been having on me lately. It seems that they are influencing absolutely every aspect of my life right now. Until I am able to do justice to this subject in a way that even comes close to paying tribute to their effect on my craft and my understanding of myself, I just want to share some of my favorite aesthetic manifestations. Let's just say that the Fey are at play at Prada this Spring.

Must. Have. This. Skirt.

Have bag, will travel. To the Otherworld that is.

Silk, like the whisper of a spiderweb. Sigh

I've already started saving my pennies.

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 9:42 PM | Comments (1)

At 8:35 am EST this morning we had a Full Moon in Leo. If one of the things that this Full Moon represents is the culmination of things started at the New Moon, then I look back to my New Moon in Capricorn post, wherein I wrote about the many signs for positive change in the New Year that seemed to be appearing everywhere. I, for one, have seen positive change in a number of areas of my life since 2008 began - new beginnings that bring me much hope. What better way to celebrate such auspicious harbingers of things to come than under the influence of Leo?

This is a time of warmth and enjoyment. It is a time for romance and pleasure, with our emotions at the forefront of our consciousness. Rather than focusing on spellwork today, I'm drawn to luxuriate in the feelings Leo evokes and to savor the happiness that the last few weeks have brought me. And since Leo is ruled by the Sun, I want to spend my day (here in chilly New England) daydreaming of being on a lovely beach with someone I love.

Cafe Astrology says:

Mercury aligns with Neptune today, which adds to the mystique of the Full Moon. Our intuitive creativity is stimulated under this influence. Conscious reasoning can be distorted by subconscious matter, so concentrating on cold hard facts can be challenging. Daydreaming, visualization, and prophecy are stimulated.

While today may not be the greatest day to conduct serious business, it will be a perfect day for divination and other psychic work. Messages may be unclear or vague, but the energy is out there today to bring them to us in full force.

Leo is ruled by the Sun. He is associated with the tarot card Strength, the element of fire, and the color gold. To look up other correspondences for working with Leo energy, visit Spelwerx and Phoenix Rising.

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 9:02 AM | Comments (0)

Yes, dear readers, another witchy wine! This one? Phantom, a blend of old vine Zinfandel, Petite Syrah and old vine Mourvedre from Bogle Vineyards in Clarksburg, California.

This wine is so witchy, I don't know where to start. The image of twisted old vines, the dense, earthy qualities of zinfandel and mourvedre. I mean, the word mourvedre even sounds like it should be the name of a potion.

When you go to the description of Phantom on the Bogle website, the first thing they offer is the dictionary definition of bogle:

bogle \bõ’g?l\ n. [Scots, perhaps from Welsh] A goblin; a specter; a phantom; a bogy, boggart or bugbear.

Then there are the winemaker notes:

The black magic is back…Phantom. Three unique varietals combine lush berry and fierce spice into a full-bodied wine. Intensely fruit forward on the entry, this deep ruby apparition begins with aromas of blueberries, violets and chocolate-covered cherries, dusted with touches of black pepper. From the deep dark depths, subtle notes of spice, clove and mocha emerge and compliment the concentrated fruit characters of this wine. Aging for two years in 1, 2 and 3 year-old American oak barrels has yielded a vexing array of toasty oak aromas to Phantom. Though this wine is remarkable now, age in the bottle will only integrate the three distinct varietals more. Welcome the winery ghost into your home again with this latest vintage, and enjoy with full-flavored and hearty meals…before it vanishes again.

And last but not least is the vignette on the rear label of the bottle:

In the dark recesses of the cellar you sense a a presence, hear footsteps. Why is it these things only happen when you are alone? In the shadows, a glimpse of muddy boots and old blue jeans...the lurking legacies of hard work an determination left by those who have come before you.

We are proud to carry on the traditions of our founders with this unique red wine: a deep ruby apparition that personifies the true spirit of the Bogle.

How wonderful! Just don't drink it alone!

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 5:32 PM | Comments (1)

Whenever I'm shuffling cards to do a tarot reading and one of them comes out of the deck of its own accord, I figure this is the most important card of the reading - it's the one that actively said, "Hey, look at me!" This morning as I was getting ready to consult the cards about a situation at hand, reading as I do these days with The Fey Tarot, this little beauty literally flew out at me:

Three of Chalices

The simple message of this card is to take pleasure in the simple delights of abundance and joy, to just go with the flow of feeling happy. From the book, we get this more advanced insight into what the Fey version of this card has to teach us:

Happiness is one of the strongest energies that we can generate. It comes from knowing how to see the good in everything, but not only that; it also comes from knowing how to express oneself spontaneously in unexpected circumstances. Happiness is to live absolutely in the present, with no remorse for the past, nor worries for any future. Happiness, therefore, is playing and energy without reason, shape or any other kind of prop.

Seeing this card changed my outlook on the day. Instead of focusing on weekend plans that are threatening to go awry, I will just be in the present, taking my happiness where it comes without investing in a particular outcome. How freeing. How fun!

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 10:31 AM | Comments (2)

As many of you know, I belong to the group Spells for Democracy, started and led by none other than Isaac Bonewits, which is dedicated to effecting political change by pooling the magickal energy of Pagans across the country. In 2006 I posted the 13 Tuesdays spells that were meant to support Democratic efforts to regain the House and the Senate. Now that we are in a Presidential election year, the outcome of which is so important to all of us, it seemed like a good time to revive the practice of sharing the spells with you. The more the merrier and the more effective the magick will be!

The latest spell: Turning up the lights!

Between now and February 5th is a good time to do revelation spells on all the US party candidates for the presidential nominations. Every Monday night (Jan. 21, 28, and Feb. 4th), pick a candidate or two, then invoke appropriate American deities (Justice, Liberty, Democracy) to bring light to all evil shadows around them. Let ugly rumors dissipate and hidden truths stand out clearly, so that even the traditional "mainstream" media cannot hide the results from the American people. These spells will be the ethical equivalent of investigative journalism actually being done about the rich and powerful.

Some of you may want to do divination to decide which candidates to work on and whether revealing negative information is more important than revealing positive. Similar spells will be needed during the following months, but the number of candidates to focus upon should be smaller, except for those of you with important Senatorial or Congressional contests involving corrupt figures.

If none of this makes any sense, or seems somehow "unethical" - imagine forcing politicians to run honest campaigns! - you may wish to read my Spells for Democracy page. Those of you who've participated in spells like this before will notice that we are switching our working nights to Mondays, though some of you may want to work on Friday or Saturday nights instead; especially if you can get a group of friends to help.

Let the light of Truth and Justice shine out brightly!

bright blessings,
Isaac

Imagine witches across the country working together to accomplish some real change in our currently horrible government. It is possible! Remember the story about the witches in England who cast spells together to protect the British from German air attack? With bright blessings, indeed, let's turn up the lights!

If you wish to join Spells for Democracy, visit the website Isaac links in his letter above.

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 8:16 AM | Comments (1)

Nervous System is a mathematically inspired jewelry design company founded by a couple of brainy chicks who graduated from MIT. Jesse and Jessica developed a computer program that uses pattern generating algorithms to create the designs for the jewelry. From their write-up at Daily Candy:

The Los Angeles-based duo writes and runs pattern-generating computer scripts that create delicate, naturey designs. Then they replicate the patterns in real form, using materials like stainless steel and silicone rubber to forge earrings, brooches, necklaces, and bracelets.

One of the coolest parts of the Nervous System website is the Play and Learn page where you can play with an applet they've created to simulate the growth of coral and dendritic crystals. The applet is based on an algorithm called "diffusion limited aggregation." (For the mathematically challenged among us they have kindly provided links to information that explains what diffusion limited aggregation is.) Luckily for us, we don't actually need to know the math to use the applet to create interesting designs, but there is an advanced application where you can plug in specific numbers to control how the applet generates the designs. Once you create a design you like, you can have it made into a piece of jewelry.

What, you ask, does any of this have to do with magick?

Using mathematical formulas to create jewelry designs reminded me of a post by Essais from May of last year wherein she described a system she had developed for creating sigils from sudoku puzzles "via a complicated numerology system involving ogam and fractions." Sigils fascinate me, with the endless possibilities they present for magickal application, and I would like to incorporate them into my own work. I was mightily impressed with what Essais had done and hoped that she might share her technique. Clearly there is something in the numbers that works for her magickally.

If it's possible to use mathematical formulas to create sigils, why not talismans and charms? If you knew - or were able to figure out - how to change the numerical parameters of the Nervous System design applet and you were using magickally significant numbers, you could control the creation of a design so that the end product was infused with magickal properties. Once the design was rendered as a piece of jewelry you'd have a mathematically magickal charm to wear.

This idea is extremely appealing to me. I love talismans and charms and have lots of jewelry charged for one purpose or another. I would love to give Nervous System a try. Using numerology or other methods to determine what numbers to use would be easy enough. The trick would be finding a math whiz who could help me understand diffusion limited aggregation!

Come to think of it, diffusion limited aggregation sounds like the name of spell. I mean, who wouldn't want to limit diffusion? But I digress . . .

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 1:16 PM | Comments (0)

Just this weekend the sun was shining, it was warmish and I was frolicking on the beach. Now it's snowing about two inches a minute and winter is back with a vengeance. I think while it's in the still-pretty-before-becoming-disgusting-black-piles stage that is the fate of all snow in the city I'm going to be brave and go out for a walk. iPhone photos to follow.

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 11:24 AM | Comments (0)

In her book The Art of Being a Woman: A Simple Guide to Everyday Love and Laughter, Veronique Vienne states that "statistically speaking, strong women who have a high stature keep illnesses at bay in their communities." This immediately put me in mind of the village wise women who used to be respected and revered for their ability to help the members of their communities with all manner of ills, bodily and otherwise. Witches of course.

This then led me to wonder how many successful, powerful women out there are actually witches without even realizing it, or at the very least are wielding magickal powers by virtue of the confident energy they put out into the universe every day. Could we chart the relative health of cities with female mayors, for example, against those with male counterparts? Who knows what wonderful work these unwitting witches are doing beyond just protecting their neighbors from illness.

Illustration purloined from Hecate. Original source unknown.

It would have been difficult for the next turn in my train of thought not to have gone toward Hillary Clinton, what with all of the Presidential election campaigning brewing about. With Hillary in the White House, imagine how healthy we all will be, universal health care or no!

With all of these thoughts swirling in my brain, imagine my delight when I read Hecate's post And Your Little Dog, Too and discovered this wonderful illustration. I'm sure whoever created the image intended it to be insulting and Hecate does voice her displeasure at Hillary's being called a "witch" in this Salon article (not related to the illustration). But in light of my recent meandering thought patterns I see all of this from a completely different perspective.

If, in fact, as I suggest, all of the successful and powerful women out there are witches of some sort and this statistic about their mere presence in our communities making us healthier is true, then anyone hurling the word "witch" as an intended epithet is in reality paying the highest of compliments! Instead of looking at this portrayal of Hillary Clinton as a witch and taking offense, why not see it as a celebration of having one of our very own looking out for us from the highest seat in our community, keeping illnesses (and nasty Republicans) at bay. I know I will!

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 1:00 PM | Comments (1)

Tomorrow, Tuesday is the first New Moon of this new calendar year: a New Moon in Capricorn.

One of the reasons we focus on the astrological sign in which a New Moon occurs is because this is the most opportune time for working to incorporate into our lives the constructive qualities that sign embodies and the areas of life it rules. Capricorn, the tenacious Goat, is resourceful, disciplined, wise, ambitious, prudent, and constant. These Capricorn qualities are ideal to help anyone who has made a new year's resolution, or something of the sort, realize those goals.

According to Cafe Astrology:

One of Capricorn's "lessons" is acceptance of the concept that reasonable boundaries and rules actually do offer us freedom--freedom from worry and chaos, for example. Setting goals for ourselves allows us to focus on what really matters. With this potent Capricorn energy, we have the chance to make important changes in our lives.

What did I say about that Three Big Rocks spell? I've figured out what my three big rocks are for this year. Have you?

There are many signs around us that indicate that 2008 will be a tremendous year of positive change. Numerologically, we are entering a new cycle - this is a #1 year (2+0+0+8=10, this reduces to 1). It is a time of potential, of new beginnings and for some, the recognition of what has been missing.

In her January email update, my friend Carolyn of In the Lap of the Goddess Productions says:

I also think of a 1 year as a time to bring our attention back home to ourselves. Many of us have become so externally focused that we may experience burn-out or depression and may find ourselves feeling disconnected from our true nature. This year contains an energy that calls us home to our hearts, reconnecting us to our Magick and the highest expression of all that is waiting to be birthed within us.

For me, this couldn't be more true! One of my "big rocks" is reclaiming and nurturing my true Self.

It seems to be true for many sensitives, who by nature or training are conditioned to focus on the needs of others. Lucid, at Lucid Amphibology, a new blog I recently discovered, writes in her post To the Compassion Fatigued:

I realized that I’d relegated myself to an unconscious and psychologically young paradigm that limited my ability to simultaneously hold compassion for others and myself. In this paradigm, there was an unspoken rule, which is this: Only one person gets to have their needs met. From which I derived a related belief: Taking care of myself comes at the cost of someone else, which I cannot bear.

By setting reasonable boundaries and creating rules for how we choose to give of ourselves, we make it possible to meet our own needs as well as exhibit compassion for those around us, to be true to our nature as sensitive, nurturing souls as well as honoring and keeping whole our internal, essential selves - functioning in the world as I, Not As We.

Spellcasting

One thing to remember is that the Dark of the Moon, that moment right before the New Moon occurs, is the very best time for doing any banishing work. Banishing or releasing the old is the best way to make space for new things to enter our lives. This may be a very important and powerful component to all of the New Moon work we hope to do. Make note of the time of the New Moon - January 8th, 2008, at 6:37 AM EDT - and plan your workings accordingly. Banishing spells should be complete before then, and any work around manifesting new things should happen after that time, when the Moon has moved into its Waxing phase.

Another important thing to note is that the Moon goes Void of Course at 6:37 AM, and will be there until it moves into Aquarius on Wednesday, January 9, at 6:13 AM EDT. Many people believe that you shouldn't perform any magick while the Moon is Void of Course - I'll leave that up to your discretion. But I do think if you wait until Wednesday to do your work, even though the Moon will be in Aquarius by then, you can still tap into the power of the Capricorn New Moon if that is the energy you wish to use. Just put items on your altar that correspond to Capricorn to boost that energy. Your intention is always the most important element to any spell.

Capricorn correspondences:

Ruler: Saturn

Colors: black, brown

Stones: garnet, jet, onyx

Herbs: aconite (monkshood), belladonna, bindweed, bistort, bluebell, boneset, buckthorn, comfrey, cornflower, cramp bark, elder, elm, fern, fleabane, garlic, heart's-ease, horsetail, Irish moss, ivy, knotweed, laurel, lobelia, mandrake, mastic, myrrh, nightshade, patchouli, poke, rowan, shepherd's purse, Solomon's seal, vetch, witch hazel, yew

These correspondences came from Christopher Penczak's Outer Temple Of Witchcraft: Circles, Spells and Rituals.

Other magickal correspondences for Capricorn can be found at Spelwerx and Phoenix Rising.

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 3:24 PM | Comments (1)

A group of three monks began a writing project, challenging bloggers to write about their views on compassion. Although I found out about this project too late to participate officially, I may take on the task anyway and post something soon.

For now, I encourage you to read the entries that were submitted, listed here at Urban Monk.

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 8:18 AM | Comments (0)

In addition to Full Circle and Celestine Musings, which I mentioned before Yule, there are a few other sites I've wandered into lately that I've liked so much I wanted to add them to my blogroll as well. I hope you'll visit them and enjoy them as much as I do.

Audacia Muliebris

Written by Thalia, a Pagan writer "charting her Inner Landscape and its native population," who loves the Monkees and writes frequently of her love affair with a demi-god. I dig it.

Sexy Witch

Red Witch from Australia presents a veritable cavalcade of images from all kinds of sources, many of them historical, that proves that we ladies of the craft are far from ugly green hags.

Witch of the Wildwood

Welcoming back an old favorite with a new name, Steph has become quite the accomplished nature photographer. Her work is stunning. And I love her writing on divination.

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 8:59 AM | Comments (0)

I posted the Alanis Morissette song because I find it hauntingly beautiful and its lyrics so evocative of the process of stepping into the frightening new, necessarily stripped of the old, but being unsure of how to proceed. (Alas, the release date of her new album has yet to be determined.)

"Not As We" means more to me than starting this new year fresh, free from the bonds of a relationship that was killing me slowly, one disappointment at a time. It also means not as we in the sense that I am breaking away from what others expect from me to find, affirm and assert my own true Self. I - not we.

Some of these ideas are coming to me as very powerful messages from Judith Duerk's Circle of Stones: Woman's Journey to Herself. She could have been writing this book as a letter to me. In the preface of her chapter In Search of Her: Self she says:

To discover who she is, a woman must descend into her own depths. She must leave the safe role of remaining a faithful daughter of the collectives around her and descend to individual feeling values. It will be her task to experience her pain . . . the pain of her own unique feeling values calling to her, pressing to emerge. To discover who she is, a woman must trust the places of darkness where she can meet her own deepest nature and give it voice . . . weaving the threads of her life into a fabric to be named and given . . . sharing it with the women around her as she comes to a true and certain sense of herself.

This sounds very much like the shadow work I did as part of my training in Shamanic Witchcraft. Over a year ago, in a journey to the Underworld to meet my shadow Self, she came to me as a small, white cat. She would only agree to rejoin me if I promised her that I would never again subjugate myself to be in relationship with another. As I read Circle of Stones I realize that there are many relationships in which we women feel compelled to do this, not just romantic ones. And as I face the beginning of this new year eager but struggling to discover my own true Self again, it seems I could use a refresher course on reclaiming my shadow.

Duerk talks too of searching for the Great Mother, we orphans of the Goddess who was transplanted by patriarchal authority. "Woman, with the help of the Great Mother, can leave the collective way to find her own individual way, for somewhere deep inside she knows she must leave to become herself."

What better Goddess to call upon to help with this work than Persephone, who must leave to spend half of her life in the Underworld only to return with the power of transcendence and overcoming? She is the power of new life in the Spring, the hidden mystery of the living spirit underground that returns to life in the new planting after the death of winter.

...Thine eyes

Again were human-godlike, and the Sun

Burst from a swimming fleece of winter gray,

And robed thee in his day from head to feet -

'Mother!’ and I was folded in thine arms.

- from Demeter and Persephone, Alfred Lord Tennyson

I am beginning to realize the truth that it is only in claiming one's Self, shadow and all, that we can be free to live and love to the fullest. This "I" is far from lonely - she is a truly unique, divine spirit who can love others because she knows first how to love and honor herself. A paradox perhaps, because one of the things that is most important to me in this new year is to strengthen and cultivate friendships and community and even to be open to a real and lasting love. But this time I as I.

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 3:54 PM | Comments (1)

Reborn and shivering
Settled on new terrain
Unsure, unkind, insane
It's faint and shaken

Chorus:

Day one, day one
Start over again
Step one, step one
I'm barely making sense
For now I'm faking it
'Til I'm psuedo-making it
From scratch, begin again
But this time I as I
And not as we

Verse 2:

Gun-shy and shivering
Tear it without a hand
Feign brave but still intent
Little and hardly here

Chorus:

Day one, day one
Start over again
Step one, step one
I'm barely making sense
For now I'm faking it
'Til I'm psuedo-making it
From scratch, begin again
But this time I as I
And not as we

Eyes wet toward wide open fright,
If God is taking bias, I pray he wants to lose,

Chorus:

Day one, day one
Start over again
Step one, step one
I'm barely making sense
For now I'm faking it
'Til I'm psuedo-making it
From scratch, begin again
But this time I as I
And not as we

Not As We, by Alanis Morissette

Posted by Angela-Eloise at 2:02 PM | Comments (0)