Full Moon Ceremony, April 2024

I performed this last night, ahead of the Full Moon due to scheduling, at the Grove of Sacred Oaks in a public ceremony.

Opening:

This opening was written by the lovely, and talented, Priestess of our Circle, Sylvir Strands,  back in Denver. I’ve adapted it slightly.

Guardians of the East, bringers of beginnings and knowledge, grace us with your presence on this night of the full moon. Fill the air with the sweet fragrance of spring and fill our bodies with your life giving essence. We ask, if you will, please  watch over this sacred circle and join us in this rite. Hail and well met!

Guardians of the south, bringers of passion and fire, grace us with your presence on this night of the full moon. Shine your warmth and light upon us and fill our spirits with courage and strength. We ask, if you will, please watch over this sacred circle and join us in this rite.Hail and well met!

Guardians of the west, bringers of the waters of life and psychic awareness, grace us with your presence on this night of the full moon. Wash over our spirits and cleanse us with your oceans and rains. We ask, if you will, please watch over this sacred circle and join us in this rite. Hail and well met!

Guardians of the north, bringers of balance and practicality, grace us with your presence on this night of the full moon. Help us to stand rooted, as the seeds of our beings are sustained within you. We ask, if you will, please watch over this sacred circle and join us in this rite.Hail and well met!

To all the deities worshiped by those assembled here, by our collective will, in Spirit, we ask that you, if you will, please watch over and bless this Circle as we perform this rite. Hail and well met!

The Circle is now set. We are in a time that is not a time, a place that is not a place, where joy and sorrow, birth and death, exist as one. Merry Meet!

<To those in Attendance>: We’re going to do a Full Moon Blessing I’ve adapted from something I wrote earlier.

May the Powers of Air blow the winds of Peace through you all..

May the Powers of Fire spread the passion of existence through you all..

May the Powers of Water wash the feeling of Love through you all..

May the Powers of Earth ground you in its stable foundation.

And may the Powers of Spirit be felt in each of us so that We may recognize the Commonality We have with others and the Power of Unity that it gives us.

Lady Moon, you shine down on us in your glory. May your light illuminate the beauty within each of us.

So Mote it Be.

Cakes:

Blessed be these Cakes, that  bestow health, strength, and that fulfillment of love that is perpetual happiness.

Wine:

As Athame to Cup, so male to female. Neither greater, nor lesser. But, when joined, the essence of true magic.

Closing:

We thank the Guardians of the North for watching over this Circle. Stay if you will, or go, as you want. Hail and farewell!

We thank the Guardians of the North for watching over this Circle. Stay if you will, or go, as you want. Hail and farewell!

We thank the Guardians of the South for watching over this Circle. Stay if you will, or go, as you want. Hail and farewell!.

We thank the Guardians of the East for watching over this Circle. Stay if you will, or go, as you want. Hail and farewell!

To all the Deities of those assembled here, we thank you for watching over this Circle. Stay if you will, or go as you want. Hail and farewell!

The Circle is open, but unbroken. Merry Meet, and Merry Part, till we Merry Meet again! Blessed Be.

Thoughts On Sanctuary: A Witch’s Tale

I just binge-watched S:AWT, a very cool, one-track, urban fantasy, on AMC+. I say “one-track” because the modern urban fantasy genre is usually populated with a mix of mythological characters such as vampires, werewolves, etc., alongside strongly powerful witches. This series is strictly about the latter and omits any mention of the former beings.

Not to worry, to those who may not have seen the series, and still may wish to; I will not disclose any spoilers about the major plot points. The story line concerns a witch who, in her mind, is trying to use her powers to help people. It’s set in present day England, with mentions of the historical persecution of witches in the burning times. By the way, although the series is set in England, it has not yet aired in the U.K.

The main character Sarah Fenn, who has a teen daughter named Harper, lives in an alternate timeline in which witches (I won’t apologize for the punny alliteration) struck a deal with the royalty of England to continue their existence in the open while adhering to strict laws about how their powers may be used; thus avoiding the worst of the burning times.

The story starts with the tragic death of a teenage boy who has, at least what is initially believed to be, an accidental fall. It’s a plainly an allegory for several issues facing the real world, including persecution of the innocent, prejudice based on lies and deceit and the tendency of humans to go along with the madding crowd <my apologies to Hardy.>

The main character, while having the best of intentions, sets off a chain of events resulting in the aforementioned persecution. This is compounded by several things which she’s done in the past that were also well-intentioned. Suffice to say that it is an entertaining and well acted series but here is where I veer, briefly, from a review of the show into the reason I titled this as “Thoughts On…”

There is an oft-said, and well known, proverb about good intentions which, I’m sure, all of you know by heart. This show illustrates (in an extreme and exaggerated fashion fit for a TV show) why I refuse to do any spell or charm which affects others without their permission.The effects of what we, as witches, do are usually unseen. There may also be unforeseen consequences, fortunately not quite as drastic as those shown in this series. 

The point is that one should always think about what they do and how this may affect the subject of your workings and those around them. I‘m not going to hammer you over the head with my point of view on ethics, as I’ve done that in past posts. If you’re a regular reader, I’m sure you’ve tired of that. But if you watch this show (and I recommend you do so) you will see what brought these thoughts to my mind and woke me up with a compulsion to write them down.

All of that being said (in a hopefully entertaining and not boring way), I’ll leave you, my reader, with my usual valediction:

Bright Blessings!

The Art of Witchcraft

Author’s note: This is something I wrote a while ago. I rediscovered it while searching for something else in my files, but after doing a search on my site, I don’t think I ever posted it. If I did, and you read it before, my apologies. If you haven’t read it before, I hope you enjoy it

I was watching a television show about Picasso last night. At one point the art dealer who was financing Picasso’s early work told him that he should learn to start separating his life from his art. Being a writer, I shared Picasso’s outrage at this. Because all true works of art, music, literature and poetry are defined by life. This is what inspires me and it is what drives me to make posts that may, in turn, bring others to find a reflection of their own life in my art.

So what does this have to do with the Craft? It should also be a reflection of your life. Ask yourself why you are drawn to an Earth-based religion, or philosophy if you will. Think of the feelings you get while walking in a nature. The smells and sounds around you. The sense of life at the core of it draws you in and makes you think about your own life and existence.

Remember the crisp air of a fall day. Neither Summer nor Winter yet, but that wonderful in-between time that makes you think about the cycle of life. Have you found yourself watching a fire and being entranced by the constant and ever changing motion of the flames. Or sitting on a porch and just finding yourself lost in the sound of the rain.

And then there is the day to day of life itself. The longing to break free of the drudgery. To find a deeper meaning within it all. To let your spirit soar on wings of inspiration. Isn’t that, at least in part, what led you here?

This is Magick. It is, and should be, an outward expression of the inner you. The Deities you choose. The Path and Tradition you follow. The Spells you Weave and the Charms you make. Your choice of ingredients. Your aims and goals.

And no great artist becomes one without experimentation and mistakes. When you say “I am a practicing witch” it does not just mean that you are casting spells. It also means that you are constantly learning, perfecting and experiencing your craft.

Life changes. It is not just one single thing. Do not let yourself become stagnant and dogmatic in the ways in which you practice. One thing I’ve discovered through teaching is that I am always learning things from my students. Each of us, as individuals, have our own points of view; our own way of looking at things. And students, especially those who are new to the Path, may be approaching things from an entirely different direction and viewpoint.

There may be something you’ve done the same way for years. And then a student says, “Why couldn’t it be done like this?” Resist the impulse to say “That’s the way it’s done.” You will be doing them, and yourself, a grave disservice.

Think always on the “why not?”

Let it reflect what you are feeling at this moment. And, most of all, let it reflect your values.

Do not be afraid of change. It is what makes this mortal coil so interesting. There is not just one season in life just as there is not just one season of the Earth. And no one way that is right. Keep moving forward.

Also, be aware that what you do does have an impact on others. Keep your Intent as pure as your Will.

What you put out is what you will receive in turn. Know yourself, what drives you, and what you desire. Mindfulness should always be intrinsic to what you do.

There it is; your Practice is your art. And your art is your life. Embrace it and be one with it. And let your Soul be filled with the wonder of it all.

Brightest Blessings.

On Gender-Centric Groups

By Andrew Brown

(Editor’s note: This is the first ever guest post on this blog. I read this originally as a Facebook post and I thought it was brilliant. Yes, I and Andrew both understand why there are female only groups. As he mentions in the post, after centuries of Patriarchal religion it is a natural response. And it is not one which I would dispute in the least. But, as I mentioned in a previous post, in the future that gender distinction may not exist in society. Or it may only be a minimal consideration. Which is why I support the gender neutral title of Mx. even though I admit it doesn’t flow naturally from my tongue or keyboard yet. With that being said, enjoy the article.)

I had a lengthy message exchange, and video discussion, with a person who was interested in joining my group. The individual noted the group came up in the “possible interests” on a Facebook feed, and our group had been mentioned in another group (positively, thank you.)

But, with a name like ours , the person was shocked to learn we have members who aren’t men, or who don’t identify as male.

“Shouldn’t a male witch group be only for male witches?”

“No. To do so would be like removing half the brain. It might function, but it won’t be terribly effective.”

“Well, I’ve been in women-heavy groups and they tend to ignore or sometimes even push out the males. And, I looked at a male community and it was only men’s issues.

Okay, I’m not sure what men’s only issue would be, but I asked how effective, supportive, and informative the content of those other groups and pages were.

The answer didn’t surprise me: “They were pretty terrible. People fought and bullied and worse. I never felt good there.”

To remove either major portion of the divine, masculine or feminine, is beyond crippling to spiritual growth, much less spiritual health. And, yes, they are different things. But that is another concern for another time.

I realize societies and eras tend to see which activities are more male-centric and which are less so; and the same goes for females. (And yes I realize I’m committing a binary fallacy here)

As a male, I can be creative, nurturing and caring. And I cook, clean and garden. I also like wearing brightly colored clothing at times. Those would be traditionally female-centric aspects.

But, I can also be war-like with a fierceness which will make someone question if the fist of heaven has crashed down upon them (Yes, I am an Aries, thank you). I enjoy the occasional bit of demo and destruction. Those would be male-leaning traditional facets. And I could go on with examples, but I know this is boring for those who know where I am going with this.

We learn from one another; person to person, male to female, binary to non-binary, cis to non-cis, and down the line. To remove any portion of that, is to break the line of what we are.

I finally asked this question to the potential member (remember this is how the topic began?): “So, if those single-gendered, single-focused groups are terrible and their energy was so negative, doesn’t that tell you why a group, with a male-centered focus should be more than only guys? Our female members are here to learn what they can’t in women-heavy groups, and to help us guys have a wider perspective. We learn from our trans and non-gendered members the same ways, and they from us.”

My goal in starting this group, even going back to its first incarnation, was never to be one gender only. We’ve seen how well the Church managed to turn male and female witches against each other in ages past and they did a damn great job of it. Now, groups over-compensate and swing too far off center. And that means they are further away from balance.

We are more than one kind of people here because there is more than one kind of person, and more than one kind of witch (or whatever you consider yourselves).

Thank you for listening.