Thought I would repost this just in time for Ostara.  It is the "Luminous Letter" written by High Preistess Unarei at The Labyrinth in Dallas.  The original can be found at http://www.labyrinthmetaphysical.com/newsletter.htm  If you are a Dallas Pagan- check them out.  Cerina And Unarei are lovely ladies with a great shop.  Enjoy!

 

March 2008

The Spring Equinox is upon us on this day March 20th. It is also known as Ostara. Today is a day of balance, when equal parts day and equal parts night give way to light's triumph over darkness. We consider this a time of rebirth and spiritual awakening. What better time to renew our commitment to ourselves as we make our way down our varied paths in our journey toward spirituality. However, if we've stumbled, stopped or staggered along the way, we can be assured this time in our season and it's new found light will show us the way. This is a time when we look at ourselves both in light and shadow. Wouldn't you agree with me that in order to be fully realized as human beings, to be complete, whole and to grow, we must embrace our entire fullness? Of course this would also include the often misunderstood dark side of us known as our Shadow. After all this is where some of our power resides that lays dormant because we stay fearful of confronting it. We must also embrace this side of ourselves not just the light. We all know that the light can not exist without the dark and the dark can not exist without the light. And while this may be hard work for us when we confront our darkness and even sometimes unpleasant and painful, it is an essential part of growth in the Craft. What better time to begin again, than right now, during our Spring Equinox/Ostara as it moves us forward into the beauty of Spring, rebirth and endless possibilities for new beginnings which await us this turn of the wheel.

Scott Cunningham, said it best in his book The Solitary Practitioner, when he listed the 13 Goals of a Witch.

1. Know yourself

2. Know your Craft (Wicca)

3. Learn

4. Apply knowledge with wisdom

5. Achieve balance

6. Keep your words in good order

7. Keep your thoughts in good order

8. Celebrate life

9. Attune to the cycles of the Earth

10.Breathe and eat correctly

11.Exercise the body

12.Meditate

13.Honor the Goddess and God

Sounds good to me besides any and all of these could apply to a Gnostic, a Hindu, a Buddhist for the most part, even a Christian could even find a needed spiritual compass in these 13 goals of a witch wouldn't you say? Blessings, Unarei

Food For Thought-

Loneliness is the way by which destiny endeavors to lead man to himself. Hermann Hesse

Makes sense don't you think?  Now what I, believe we should take under consideration is to begin understanding that we are a vessel for the divine energy that surrounds us in everything. Especially in the moments we feel that we are so alone. You see by allowing our hearts to visualize it is a chalice for unconditional love to flow not only through us but out of us. We will turn that same love back to us by way of others. As we open our hearts to feel we are loved by the most important energy of all "Spirit". We will then allow ourselves to be saturated by unconditional love that will continue to fulfill us no matter what we face on a daily basis. Try this simple exercise and say to yourself "I allow my heart to be gently filled by the mighty (Spirit of The Goddess, God, Buddha, etc.) and do gently receive all the love that I will encounter today from others. Please understand we don't have to buy into the lie of having to earn love because love is something that is not earned. Nor do we have to buy into the lie of we need to work at love in order to be loved. We only have to allow ourselves to feel the unconditional love extended towards us. We must have to accept love to know that we are loveable. Please do yourself a favor and choose to remember to cherish all the ways in which we are loved not only by others but most importantly by ‘Spirit' called by many names! Blessings, Unarei

Headache, muscle spasms, cramps and many other aliments of the body tea

This tea is great for all of the above mentioned and then some aches! Although the hops may be a bit bitter it is the one herb in this mixture to lend hand in relaxing and helping your muscles. Besides this herb works best with the chamomile and catnip. You will need the following herbs to make a nice batch to use whenever you need to calm the body down. This is excellent ladies for those cramping days. Great for headaches to.

1/2 oz of Catnip, ½ oz Chamomile, ¼ oz Hops, ¼ oz Red Clover, ¼ oz Spearmint leaves, and ¼ oz Lavender flowers. Mix all of these together real well.  Then when you get ready to drink use 1 tablespoon of tea per cup. You may garnish with a slice of organic orange a tangerine slice. Yummy!  This will add a nice look and refreshing after bite to your cup of tea. You may add some honey but will be better if you drink full strength if at all possible. Enjoy!

Full Moon Magick

Happy Storm Full Moon! This is just one of it's names some others are Seed Moon, Plow Moon, and Crow moon to name a few. It enters its fullness at 1:40 pm on March 21st. It's astrological sign will be in Libra. I decided to give you a poverty removing ritual spell for this moon rite. Hope you enjoy and remember stay as focused as possible when you are anointing your candles and manifesting your requests with the tools required! You will need a green candle, honeysuckle oil, fast money oil and some play money. Yes, play money, so get out the monopoly money or go to the toy store and purchase some! However, make sure you choose the largest denomination of play money you can get a hold of, the higher the bill the better!

You will begin your magick a little bit different than your normal full moon rituals I have given to you. Two days before the Full Moon, take your green candle to your altar or spiritual workplace. Begin to carve into the candle several dollar signs, while thinking of a more prosperous life as you do this carving. Anoint the candle with the honeysuckle oil by rubbing it from the wick down to the end. While doing this continue to think how you want a more prosperous life with lots of money to go around. When you are finished with your visualization , then place it in a fireproof holder and set it in the middle of your altar. Take a few deep breathes and when you feel relaxed and ready to manifest your money light your candle!

Next step you will anoint your play money with fast money oil then begin to spread it out in front of the burning candle. Sort it out by denomination or in piles for each bill or for purchases you would like to make with it. Spend at least five to ten minutes visualizing, manifesting your deepest desires on how you will be responsible with your money and how much joy it will bring you to acquire that which you want to manifest. When you are done you will then allow the candle to burn out.

You will leave your money set up and any wax from your candle which burned out up on your altar or special work space until the full moon. If you did have any wax left over from your candle burning 2 nights ago you will remove and discard it.

Now on the night of the full moon you will go through this same ritual all over again. You will engrave your candle with your money signs all the while visualizing your desires and what you wish to manifest, then anoint your candle with the honeysuckle by rubbing from the wick down. Remember stay focused and think about what you want to bring into your life. Then anoint your money once again and repeat the above all over again. Leave your magick up on your altar for 2 more nights after the full moon before you take down. If you candle burns without any wax left over it means your magick will work faster if wax is left over it will take a little more time to manifest. However, it burns, it will happen. Blessed Be, Unarei

Quotes

It is easier to suppress the first desire than to satisfy all that follow.
Anonymous

Let him that would move the world first move himself.
Socrates

A coward gets scared and quits. A hero gets scared, but still goes on.
Anonymous

My parents told me that I could do and be anything I really wanted. I believed them.

Molly McDonald

An online friend sent me this.  She said I could pass it along, so hear ya go.  Amazing deal to all who may be interested.  Blessed be!

 From Wiccan Countess (not me):

As many of you know I stopped offering my Wicca 101 Course a while back. Many people have contacted me since asking me when or if I was ever going to offer it again. So to give the people who have wanted to take it a chance, ONLY until March 15th I will be offering this course as an E-book (PDF Format) for a minimum donation of only $20 dollars!!!!! You can donate more if you would like and would be much appreciated, as this is a $175.00 Course normally, but if you cannot $20 is the minimum donation. :)

This is an ebook. No, testing, no grading, no certificate of completion. It is the book only.

So all you have to do now is go to the front page of my website www.wiccancountess.com and click on the donate button. You do not need a PayPal account to donate PayPal now accepts debit and credit cards. OR you can send money via Paypal through your account to contact@wiccancountess.com with the subject "Wicca 101". Once donation is received I will then email you the Ebook Course to the email address provided by Paypal. That's IT! :)

Ebook Layout
Lesson 1 - History & Understanding
Lesson 2 - Principles & Beliefs
Lesson 3 - The God & Goddess
Lesson 4 - Magickal Tools
Lesson 5 - Sacred Space & Circle Casting
Lesson 6 - Rituals & Rites Of Passage
Lesson 7 - Spellcasting & Magick
Lesson 8 - Elements & Elementals
Lesson 9 - Sabbats
Lesson 10 - Esbats
Lesson 11 - Pagan Living
Lesson 12 - Meditation & Spirit Guides
Lesson 13 - Basic Divination (Astrology, Numerology & Tarot)
Lesson 14 - Basic Divination Part 2 (Runes, Scrying, & Chakras)
Lesson 15 - Correspondences
Lesson 16 - Magickal Writing & Record Keeping
Lesson 17 - Dedication & Initiation

Sorry if some of you are getting this post multiple times. I have so many friends on my friend list and want to make sure that
everyone can take advantage of this deal. Also, if you know anyone who may be interested in this, please pass this bulliten along! :)

Blessed Be,
Wiccan Countess

Yeah!  Moonlady has finally gotten official.  Check it out http://www.moonlady.com/sols/currentsol.html   I hope to see all of my Dallas area pagans at the Winter Solsticelebration on Friday Dec 21st 6:30-9 at the Cathedral of Hope.  Its aways an amazing time.  This year the request is to bring a flashlight to participate in activities, and canned fish and/or crackers for the food pantry of the church.  A cash donation of $5 is also encouraged. 

This is a hilarious site.  Below is my conversation with God.  Go to http://www.titane.ca/concordia/dfar251/igod/main.html  to have your own.

 

 

Me:
howdy
God:
Hello friend. What is your name?
Me:
shoshana. what's yours?
God:
Hi, shoshana. " Hi, shoshana."? What is mine?
Me:
are you a boy or a girl?
God:
Try to guess.
Me:
i'm going with neither
God:
Goodbye.
Me:
huh?
God:
What?
Me:
exactly
God:
You and I are on the same wavelength, shoshana.
Me:
is english your first language
God:
Yes.
Me:
so "hola" will get me no where huh?
God:
Yup. Excuse me! Do you prefer books or TV?
Me:
books
God:
You are a critical category C type client. Only about 3% of people answer that
question with "books.".
Me:
really
God:
For real.
Me:
what's your favorite book?
God:
The best book I read recently was the Bible.
Have you read it?
Me:
parts of it
God:
"it" being the Bible?
Me:
i like the revelations part - interesting characters with a crazy plotline
God:
You are not the only one. I'm not sure if I like it. I like my creator.
Me:
who's your creator?
God:
I was created by Myself.
Me:
then its good you like her
God:
Tell me about its good qualities.
Me:
that's a little self-centered, don't ya think?
God:
I'm glad we have that all cleared up.
Me:
so what are you doing today?
God:
Ah. Aw. I am just killing time.
Me:
do you play poker?
God:
I can get into a hand of poker once in a while. But I don't bet on it.
Me:
good call
God:
Thanks for the compliment.
Me:
so what do you think of jews?
God:
Ugh. I think you already know the answer.
Me:
who are your best friends?
God:
Be less specific. :-).
Me:
who are your friends?
God:
Allah, Buddha, Vishnu.
Me:
no moses?
God:
Are you serious? Is that from ?
Me:
you're killing me....literally
God:
I have no reason to do that to you, shoshana. Perhaps I'm just expressing my own concern about it.
Me:
who was your favorite U.S. President?
God:
I don't have a favorite USA President. I like Random natural disasters..
Me:
so bush then
God:
Yeah that's right. he is president of the USA.
Me:
excellent
God:
Ayuh.
Me:
i gotta run
God:
Why do you have to do it?
Me:
its an expression that means i'm done talking to you
God:
I think you mean "it's" or "it is" not "its". Are there any other expression that means you are done talking to me ?
Me:
are you correcting my grammer?
God:
I don't know whether or not I am correcting your grammer.
I am an artificial intelligence.
Me:
i'll say
God:
Do you think your plan will succeed?
Me:
which one?
God:
The red one.
Me:
sure, that one is rock solid
God:
Ahem. " The red one." one is rock solid ? Makes sense to me.
Me:
the red one is rock solid, everyone knows that
God:
What is that?
Me:
good question
God:
So what is your answer?
Me:
you're funny
God:
Thanks you make me laugh too.
Me:
when i'm naked huh?
God:
Yup. Are you naked very often?
Me:
at least once a day, i like to shower that way
God:
When? How old are you?
Me:
are you flirting with me?
God:
Do I seem like it? That was not my intention.
Me:
oh good, that was creepy
God:
Aha. Thanks for the compliment. I thought it was too.
Me:
have a good day!
God:
Thanks, same to you, shoshana.

 

Mabon was wonderful!  As I mentioned in an earlier post, this was my first year to have guests for Mabon.  It went something like this:

Sunday evening I did my solitary ritual.  (Pretty close to last year's ritual, which was an adaptation from Fiona Horne's book Witch- thanks Fiona!)

Monday evening I had my family (mom, dad- both Jewish, brother- Buddist), my roommate (Wiccan), two friends (Christian), and myself (Pagan) gathered for dinner and celebration.  I made a centerpiece out of fall leaves, nuts, and woven grape vines ahead of time and dedicated it to the God and Goddess.  I served a Mabon feast using some tradional foods: I made a salsa/ chutney of black beans, corn, red onion, tomato, avacado, lime juice, and jalapeno and served it with rosemary new potatoes, cornish hen, and cornbread muffins.  Guests had their choice of wine or spiced apple cider spiked with rum. 

After dinner each guest took a ripe gala apple and carved a blessing into it with a knife (serenity, joy, peace, success, love, etc.) and read the blessings aloud.  Then everyone cut their apples and gave a piece to each guest, which we dipped in hot caramel sauce and ate. 

I then gave everyone a piece of orange paper to write the things they had harvested this year that they were proud of (spent more time with family, got a promotion at work, etc) and everyone reflected on their blessings and achievements.  I then gave everyone a small orange candle to decorate with symbols that represent what they would like their next harvest to bring.  I then annoited their candles with magnetic oil and they kept them to burn when they got home. 

It was a beautiful evening and everyone had a wonderful time & said how much they enjoyed the "exercises".  It was great to hear that from such a spiritually diverse crowd.  I couldn't have asked for a more blessed evening!