DREAMWALKING

This is a place I have never been in before – it is night, the sky is a deep royal blue and filled with white diamond stars.  I do not see the Sister Moon.  The ground is a vibrant orange-red, and is a desert marked with huge rock formations that form a surreal landscape.  These rock formations have been honed by the wind to resemble statues, some squat and round, others lean and tall.  Against the starlit dark sky, these become alive, denizens of the desert.  It feels neither too warm nor too cold, and is too constant to feel natural, although it is very natural indeed, while the winds are light, stirring up the red dirt into small dust devils that settle just as quickly.

Now I see that there are two other men there, one very young, barely out of his teens.  His companion is an older man just entering his middle age span of life.  Both are attired in North American Native garb – buckskin, furs, and homespun garments, jewellery of turquoise, shells and agate, head dresses of feathers.  They have drums and rattles and woven blankets which they spread on the red ground, and wave me to come closer. 

I do so without hesitation, because I know I’ve been called here, and I recognize this now as a place in the spiritual realm, what their vision of The Great Spirit would be.  Speaking to me without speaking, they tell me that they need to work in opening a temporal gate, because some people are trapped behind that barrier.  I nod my understanding, and wait for further instructions.  The men strip their clothing off, leaving only their footwear, loincloths and jewellery on.  The younger one takes up a drum and begins to walk the circle drumming.  The older man lies down on the blanket and motions me to lie down with him.  I do not hesitate, and do so immediately.  He instructs me, again without words, that we must now enter into our Dreamwalker state, and travel across the temporal wall to create the doorway from there.

He holds me tightly, and I am very, very aware of his chiseled hard body spooning next to me, but I turn away from such thoughts and set my intent in concert with his, as we both, entwined more intimately than in sexual bond, let our spirits fly.

The world blurs around me, and although it is still the same, it is somewhat different.  I recognize this as “seeing it from the other side”.  I find a native rattle trimmed with buffalo hair in my hand suddenly, and am jolted with a sense of honour that this confers to me.  I feel humbled and elated, silently thanking the Powers for this blessing, and knowing that I know what to do, begin to beat a counterpoint rhythm to the drumming I still hear as a pulse of my blood.  My Dreamwalker partner is now dancing to the beats, his feet barely stirring the dust.  Our work is separate yet as one… the beats of rattle, drum and dance … our hearts beat as one… as one… one…

… and now we’re back, with about a half-dozen other people around us.  The drumming still continues, as the younger man circles the space and we Dreamwalkers get up off the blanket.  I suddenly feel annoyed, because one of the women with curly blond hair, starts talking non-stop.  The other people appear to be too dazed to say anything, while she keeps chattering as though she never stopped even during her entrapment.  All the people rescued are dressed in 19^th century clothing, and I get a sense that what has happened transversed across all time, and somehow threw it out of balance.  These are mysteries I do not understand, knowing only that we succeeded in our mission.

My elders are now getting dressed again, and I approach them to return the rattle, but they tell me it’s now mine, as thanks for the work I did with them.  Again, I feel deeply humbled and honoured, as I bow my thanks.

We are instructed to stand in a tight group.  The spectacular royal blue sky and burning red sands fade around us, and I drift gently towards wakefulness…  

WEEKEND IN THE ASTRAL

This summer was not an easy one for me so far.  It showed me that I could not go camping any more, which meant I was not able to attend WiccanFest, and I realized that I missed such an outing.  So when I received an invitation to attend a weekend in London involved in a workshop exploring Astral Travel, I jumped at the chance.  I passed the invitation to my friend, Mary Ann, and she too was very excited to take a break from “life”.

We left on Friday, which was the hottest day of the year.  With temperatures shattering records, soaring into the mid 40’s with the humidex, it proved very difficult for me but stoically made my way to the Aldershot train station.  Fast forward to London, and we were eventually picked up by Kim, one of the organizers and someone I met two years ago at WiccanFest .  Since we were early, she kindly opened up her home to us, until it was time to head out to the venue.

Mary Ann and I speculated as to how our accommodations will turn out.  We imagined that it would be very much like a utilitarian university dorm room, with a wooden plank supporting a foam pad for a bed.  And then we drove up to this beautiful Tudor-style house, nestled deep In the university property, surrounded by trees, lawns and even a forest in the back!  I noticed details like the dark-stained oak beams, showing the axe marks, the diamond-paned windows, the solid oak door with iron bound hinges, and… and… AIR CONDITIONERS!!

Inside the house carried through the theme.  The floor was hardwood, secured with wooden pegs and laid out in a beautiful pattern, a huge living room where we were going to meet, an elegant dining room, and our bedroom, oh, my gods, the bedroom was huge, with two double beds, desks, and dressers, a dressing room with more closets and shelves, and a bathroom that was almost as large as the bedroom, complete with a tub and walk-in shower.  And an AIR CONDITIONER all to ourselves!! 

Friday was an afternoon and evening of just getting settled and acquainted with all the participants.  Sadly, in spite of the comfort and coolness of the room, I did not sleep well, but still managed to have a very strong dream, which I wrote down quickly while we all gathered for breakfast.  Over cereal, eggs, toast, bagles, strawberries, bananas, yogurt, etc., not to mention pots of coffee and tea, we got fueled up for the morning session.

T. Thorne Coyle – she was the magnet that drew us all to this spot.  A beautiful person, wise soul, wonderful teacher and an overall joyous presence.  Starting the morning session with drumming, singing, dancing, invocations and gratitude praise, she then spoke of inward and outward journeys of the spirit. 

Deep meditation, deeper journey…

Drumming, singing…

Prayers, praise,

Dancing, sinking into bottomless silence…

Weeping, confessions…

Pouring out of the soul, comfort and encouragement…

How can I possibly describe the intensity of such exploration, both personal and group incorporate, of journeys we made together and individually.

Questions, concerns…

Answers, discussions…

Crayons, oil pastels…

Writing, drawing…

Visualizing, manifesting…

And so it continued.  Lunch was a welcome break – we needed to refuel and ground, then back for the afternoon session…

Out of body, etheric body…

Internal, external flights…

More words, thoughts….

Spirits, souls intertwined,

Grief and joy…

Teaching, listening...

Flying, grounding…

Supper – time to take a deep breath and ground again.  We all relaxed, visited, evaluated, laughed, and finally went our different ways – some to the Sun Festival, some to the planetarium or the labyrinth.  There was lots to do, and lots to explore, but I passed it all up, because what I needed most at that point was solitude and sleep.  Solitude to start digesting all the day’s exercises, and sleep, because by then I was about 40 hours without solid sleep.

Sunday morning, I got up before anyone else, except for the person who started the coffee brewing – I never did find out who that was.  I made myself a large mug of tea and went out onto the patio to enjoy the beauty of the green grounds and the forest at my back.  The horrible heat broke, so the air was cool and fragrant with the living green and filled with the songs of birds.  I saw squirrils, and so hoped to see a fox.  I was told that there is a rather large population of foxes there, but sadly, none showed up for a visit.  I had to be content with seeing one in my dream.

People started to filter down stairs, and soon I was busy setting out the breakfast stuff, and then eating, and once again we gathered in the living room ready to take on the next challenges.  The morning was spent in building our Astral Temples, and painstakingly setting paths, keys, gateways and intent – ah yes, Intent!  - to all our work.

More drumming and dancing…

More singing and chanting…

More flights of soul and spirit…

And finally, it was over. 

What!?  Where did it all go?  Wait – bring it all back!!  It can’t be time to go home yet!!  And yet, and yet… yeah, I had to admit that I was feeling somewhat overwhelmed.  It was indeed time to head home, to sleep in my own bed and begin digesting the huge amount of teaching, inspiration, of input and output.  Fast forward, to home, to my own little cocoon. 

Slept for 12 hours…

And now feel ready to start processing and practicing what I have learned. 

It was a perfect weekend, one that has enriched me in so many ways, and one that will continue to enrich my spirit for every day.  It was life-altering, and forced me to grow in unexpected ways.

Thank you, my deepest thanks to Thorne, for travelling so far to share your wisdom with us.  Thank you, Kim, for being our chauffer, and for opening up your Goddess Grotto to us.  Thank you, to the organizing committee for putting all of this together.  Thank you to Brough House for hosting the event, and to all the people behind the scenes that made this possible.  Thank you to all who attended – you have enriched my life in ways I can never express adequately.

Thank you, Goddess, for bringing me in contact with these wonderful people.

Thank you, Nagas, for intertwining yourselves into my life.

Thank you…! 

G IS FOR GODDESSES AND GODS

A number of years ago, shortly after I my first initiation, I was having a conversation with a friend who is a hard-core skeptic.  He tried not to smirk at my new-found path, and I tried to contain my adoration for the Gods from spilling out too much.  Neither of us succeeded.

Not for the first time – or the last – I was told of how religion has come to be and how useless it is.  He told me of how ancient men responded to a thunder storm, and how frightening it must have been to them to see the lightning flash across the sky and the thunder roll through the clouds.  And how in fear and defiance, they raised their spears and sticks heavenward, shaking them, throwing them towards the powers they did not understand.

And in that instant, I was flung back, back through history, back through the ages and civilizations, to that point in time when there were no cities, no buildings, no roads.  Back to the time when only wilderness covered this earth and these first forbearers, the first ancestors of our ancestors walked the earth in small familial tribes.  And I saw that first thunderstorm that frightened them so.

It was an instance of great enlightenment and awakening, for I realized how significant it was, that first instance, that mankind’s first encounter with something larger and unmistakably beyond them.  That recognition of the Great Spirit!! 

That recognition could only have come, because mankind itself was endowed with the same Spirit!

People all over the world went on to develop civilizations, each with their own views, each with their own Gods and Goddesses, each building monuments and pyramids of great structures to honour these invisible but incredibly alive Deities, each thinking they were the only ones who have seen Them truly.  Somewhere along the line, these views of the Divine caused schisms and divisions, and in an effort to protect their views, their ways of seeing the Gods, wars ensued.

From my vantage point, in the next instance, I saw things differently – each civilization, each ethnic group of people saw the Divine exactly as they were supposed to see it.  The Divine is simply too large, too universal, too cosmic to see as a unified force.  Whether one sees the Gods and Goddesses through the eyes of the Hindu, Egyptian, Buddhist, or Norse, whether Jewish, or Christian, what people see here are just splinters of the Godhead.  Further, these splinters are sub-divided and every human, whether a believer or not, carries this spiritual fragments and it is by these, the earliest of mankind was able to recognize that Gods exist.  Each culture is like a facet within the great diamond which is the Divine Godhead.  Facets of a diamond do not fight with each other – they glow with their own unique spiritual light, even as each culture, and each person within each culture is supposed to shine with his and hers own unique spiritual light.  Together, we all create a mosaic of light and wonder that reflects the Light and Wonder of the already eternally established spiritual realms of the Gods.

Ours is a very small planet spinning around a star of no great significance in the skies, and yet, we have here a life form called human beings.  Around this planet is an aura, a spiritual cloud to which we all are connected, not only to each other and every other person on this world, and to the Divine power, regardless of how it chooses to reveal itself to us! 

F IS FOR FLOW

Life is a river that flows within all

Flows smoothly, flows relentlessly,

Flows through and about

Life is a river of energy and spirit

Flowing towards and in everyone

Flows – there is no stopping it

Flows – you cannot avoid it

Or sidestep it

Or run away from it.

Flowing from you is an endless stream

Of thoughts and emotions, will and spirit

Flowing from others is a constant torrent

Of thoughts and emotions, will and spirit

Flowing, colliding, mingling,

Contributing, dividing, touching

The flow of life emanating from

Each and every life and spirit

On earth and the universe!

Flow the red stream from the bodies of women

Flow the white stream from the bodies of men

Flow the gush of water that brings forth new life

Flow of Spirit that ends the earthly journey

Flow of Spirit to Spirit

Flow from Divine to Mortal

And Mortal back to Divine

Flow, flow, flow eternal

D IS FOR DEFINITIONS

Another "D" article:

Recently I posted a Facebook status saying that I’m far more a Priestess than a Witch, and that I deal with the Spiritual rather than the Supernatural.  Here I would like to explore the definitions more closely.

It’s taken me a long time to understand the differences in these definitions.  It confused me.  Right from the start of my Pagan path, I adopted the term “Witch”, and ran with it.  Then after initiations, I added “Priestess” to that.  Were they different aspects of the same thing?  Were they the same?  No, they’re not the same, although they overlap, and it took me until just earlier this year to discover the difference.

When I do “witchy” things, as I did yesterday in blending all the different herbs and flower petals, it is with the focus of creating alchemical changes in engeries, for the specific purpose of achieving certain goals.  It’s working spells and magickal manifestations. Cooking is one of the greatest acts of Witchery I can think of, because it takes ingredients from different sources, and combines them in a way that creates a meal which delights all senses.  Witches are, for the most part, skilled in working with herbs and crystals, brewing of tinctures and oils, differentiating and working with the energy forces that are all around us, mostly for the purposes of healing.  Witchy stuff doesn’t need to have anything to do with the Divine.  Witchcraft is something that can be done and engaged in without bringing any element of worship and service into it.

As a Priestess, my main focus is in serving the Goddesses and Gods.  I am always conscious of my connection to the Divine.  In meditations, I open myself up to whatever They are wanting to tell me.  I research the pantheons from around the world, because I want to know  more of how the Goddess, in particular, manifests Herself globally.  I conduct rituals of honour and devotion.  Often, I get direct instructions as to how to conduct these rituals, and found that in doing so, the Gods bring about the greatest blessings to those who participate in these rituals with me. 

Witchy stuff plays a big part in my Priestess duties.  I am inspired to use herbs, crystals, stones and candles in different ways during rituals.  So the two go hand in hand, sometimes so seamlessly that the two aspects appear as to be one.  This is me – even when I do “witchy” stuff, it’s always with view of how it  can be incorporated into a ritual of worship.

And this is how I define “Witch” and “Priestess”.

Now to go on to Spiritual and Supernatural – my definition of “Spiritual” is simple:  My spirit is connected now and forever to the great universal Spirit of which we are all part.  I am acutely aware of this part of myself and it is through this means conduit that I am linked to the Godhead which contains all the Aspects we know as Gods and Goddesses.

I do not have the ability to see auras, or see ghosts and spirits.  I do not sense any kinds of spirits, good or bad, and I have never been bothered by things that go bump in the night.  I have no idea as to what all this means, because that’s not what I pay attention to.  These are external forces that may or may not exist, and in my life, I have no desire to know one way or another.  I am not someone who can read minds, exercise telepathy, or receive messages from those who have passed on.  And I absolutely have no interest to delve into any study of demons, minions of hell, the devil or Satan.  None of these have any place at all in my life, since I prefer to align myself with the light of the Gods.  This all belongs to the realm of the Supernatural, and is of no use to me.

And that in the simplest terms, is how I define what I am!

E IS FOR ELEMENTS

E IS FOR ELEMENTS

Most pagan and Wiccan rituals involve the calling of the Quarters.  These are the compass points of East, South, West and North, also known as The Elements – Air, Fire, Water and Earth, which in turn are based on many ancient philosophies and spiritual paths.  Buddhists, Hindu, Ancient Babylonians and Greeks all worked with what was considered the basis of life in these Elements.

Over time, these Elements have acquired a number of correspondencies, or meanings.  Although depending on the Tradition these may change somewhat, the most common correspondencies  are composed of the  following (all right, I must confess that I unashamedly stolen it from someone who had already worked it all out – you gotta love the world wide web!):

 AIR
Direction: East
  Rules: The mind, all mental, intuitive and psychic work, knowledge, abstract learning, theory, windswept hills, plains, windy beaches, high mountain peaks, high towers, wind and breath.
  Time: Dawn
  Season: Spring
  Colors: White, bright yellow, crimson, blue-white.
  Zodiac: Gemini, Libra, Aquarius.
  Tools: Wand, Incense, Creative Visualization (Some traditions align the Athame and Sword with Air but most Celtic traditions align them with Fire).
  Spirits: Sylphs, Zephyrs and Fairies who inhabit the world of trees, flowers, winds, breezes, mountains. Ruled by King Paralda.
  Angel: Michael
  Wind: Eurus
  Sense: Smell
  Jewel: Topaz
  Incense: Galbanum.
  Plants: Frankincense, myrrh, pansy, primrose, vervain, violet, yarrow.
  Tree: Aspen.
  Animals: Birds.
  Goddesses: Aradia, Arianrhod, Cardea, Nuit, Urania.
  Gods: Enlil, Khephera, Mercury, Shu, Thoth.
  Ritual Work: Dawn, Sunrise, Spring, Knowledge, Inspiration, Hearing, Harmony, Herbal Knowledge, Plant Growth, Intellect, Thought, Ideas, Travel, Freedom, Revealing the Truth, Finding Lost Things, movement, Psychic Abilities


 
  FIRE
  Direction: South.
  Rules: Energy, spirit, heat, flame, blood, sap, life, will, healing and destroying, purification, bonfires, hearth fires, candle flames, sun, deserts, volcanoes, eruptions, explosions.
  Time: Noon.
  Season: Summer.
  Colors: Red, gold, crimson, orange, white (the sun's noon light).
  Zodiac: Aries, Leo, Saggitarius.
  Tools: Dagger/Athame, Lamp or Candles, Censer, Burned Herbs or Requests on Paper (some traditions align the Wand with fire, but most Celtic ones align it with Air).
  Spirits: Salamanders, Firedrakes, the consciousness of flames; Ruled by King Djin.
  Angel: Ariel.
  Wind: Notus.
  Sense: Sight.
  Jewel: Fire Opal.
  Incense: Olibanum.
  Plants: Garlic, hibiscus, mustard, nettle, onion, red peppers, red poppies.
  Tree: Almond, in flower.
  Animals: Fire-breathing dragons, lions, horses (when their hooves strike sparks).
  Goddesses: Brigit, Hestia, Pele, Vesta.
  Gods: Agni, Hephaestus, Horus, Vulcan.
  Ritual Work: Summer, Noon, Freedom, Change, Sight, Perception, Vision, Illumination, Learning, Love, Will, Passion, Sexuality, Energy, Authority, Healing, Destruction, Purification

WATER
  Direction: West.
  Rules: Emotions, feelings, love, courage, daring, sorrow, the ocean, the tides, lakes, pools, streams, and rivers, springs and wells, intuition, the unconscious mind, the womb, generation, fertility.
  Time: Twilight.
  Season: Autumn.
  Colors: Blue, blue-green, green, gray, indigo, black.
  Zodiac: Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces.
  Tools: Cup, Cauldron, Goblet, Mirrors, The Sea.
  Spirits: Undines, Nymphs, Mermaids and Mermen who live in the sea, lakes, streams, and springs, and Fairies of the lakes, ponds and streams; Ruled by King Niksa or Necksa.
  Angel: Raphael.
  Wind: Zephyrus.
  Sense: Taste.
  Jewel: Aquamarine.
  Incense: Myrrh.
  Plants: Ferns, lotus, mosses, rushes, seaweed, water lilies, and all water plants.
  Tree: Willow.
  Animals: Dragons (as serpents), dolphins and porpoises, fish, seals and sea mammals, water-dwelling snakes, all water creatures and sea birds.
  Goddesses: Aphrodite, Isis, Mariamne, Mari, Tiamat.
  Gods: Dylan, Ea, Llyr, Manannan, Osiris, Neptune, Poseidon.
  Ritual Work: Fall, Sunset, Plants, Healing, Emotions, Taste, Smell, Absorbing, Communion with the Spiritual, Purification, The Subconsious mind, Love, Emotions, Pleasure, Friendships, Marriage, Fertility, Happiness, Sleep, Dreams, The Psychic


  EARTH
  Direction:     North
  Rules: The body, growth, nature, sustenance, material gain, money, creativity, birth, death, silence, chasms, caves, caverns, groves, fields, rocks, standing stones, mountains, crystal, jewels, metal.
  Time: Midnight
  Season: Winter
  Colors: Black, brown, green, white
  Zodiac: Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn
  Tools: Pentacle/Pentagram, Salt, Images, Stones, Gems, Trees, Gem Magick
  Spirits: Gnomes, Dwarfs and Trolls who inhabit the interior of the Earth and are the consciousness of precious gems, minerals and the Earth herself.  Ruled by King Ghob, Gob or Ghom.
  Angel: Gabriel
  Wind: Boreas, Ophion
  Sense: Touch
  Jewel: Rock crystal, salt
  Incense: Storax
  Plants: Comfrey, ivoy, grains: barley, oats, corn, rice, rye, wheat.
  Tree: Oak
  Animals: Cow or bull, bison, snakes (earth-dwelling), stag
  Goddesses: Ceres, Demeter, Gaia, Mah, Nephthys, Persophone, Prithivi, Rhea, Rhiannon
  Gods: Adonis, Athos, Arawn, Cernunnos, Dionysus, Marduk, Pan, Tammuz
  Ritual Work: Night, Midnight, Winter, Riches, Treasures, Surrenering of self-will, Touch, Empathy, Incorporation, Business, Prosperity, Employment, Stability, Success, Fertility, Money.
 

Night, Midnight, WInter, Riches, Treasures, Surrendering of self-will, Touch, Empathy, Incorporation, Business, Prosperity, Employment, Stability, Success, Fertility, Money


  SPIRIT/ETHER
  Direction:     Center and circumference, throughout and about.
  Rules: Transcendence, transformation, change, everywhere and nowhere, within and without, the void, immanence.
  Time: Beyond time, all time is one.
  Season: Beyond time, all time is one.
  Colors: Clear, white, black
  Tools: Cauldron
  Sense: Hearing
  Plant: Mistletoe
  Tree: The flowering almond
  Animal: Sphinx
  Goddesses: Isis, the Secret Name of the Goddess, Shekinah
  Gods: Akasha, IAO, JHVH


“Oh, wait!” you say, “What is this about the Fifth Element – Spirit?  Where did that come from?”  Yes, is that too.  In fact, there are actually seven directions.  In addition to East, South, West, North, there is also Above, Below and Within.  This is known as The Quabalistic Cross, but for the purposes of this article we’ll stick with the Five.  Most pagans wear a pentacle/pentagram, the five-pointed star, which incorporates these Five Elements into one compact and beautiful symbol.

In my studies of the Elements, I have undergone a series of rituals – four rituals a year for three years - which were designed to have Elementals, creatures from these Realms, to bond with me in service.  While the first and third year were okay, it was during the second year rituals that each of these Elementals were made manifest to me… not quite physically, but in a way that I was actually able to see and interact with all of them in turn.  To this day, I can distinguish that gust of wind which is my Air Sylph, a drop of water which is my Water Undine, the flicker of the candle which is my companion from the Fire Realm and most of all, I see my Gnome in every hedge and tree trunk, for he comes to me in the form of The Green Man.  They all have names, individual personalities, and appearances.

In rituals, the Quarters are called and invoked for witness, protection, and blessing of the proceedings.  The energies of all four Elements are woven into the Circle, doorways opened by which these Elements join us in ceremony and lend their aid.  On the altar these Elements are represented by Incense, Red Candle, Water and Salt.  The Spirit can be represented by a Goddess and God candle and appropriate statuary of deities.


One of the ways of invoking the Elements is by chanting.  Here are a few chants that are in popular use:

1. Earth is my body
Water my blood
Air is my breath
And Fire my spirit.

2. Air I am
Fire I am
Water, Earth and Spirit I am

3. The Earth, The Air, The Fire, the Water
Return, return, return, return


At one time, I was working on a ritual that involved herbs, and each of these had to correspond to the Elements.  What is listed and normally assigned did not work for me.  The main priority facing me was that I had to use herbs that I could easily find in the local grocery store.  After much thought and meditation, I came out with the following:


Blessed be, oh Creature of Sage
Blessed be, sweet child of the Air
Be you empowered in this rite
To give my wisdom connection to the Divine
And abundance of inspiration
As you are cut, your virtue is released –
So Mote it Be!!


Blessed be, oh Creature of Ginger
Blessed be, aromatic Child of Fire
Be you empowered in this rite
To give my wisdom keen sharpness
And clear understanding.
As you are cut, your virtue is released –
So Mote it Be!!

Blessed be, oh Creature of Mint
Blessed be, refreshing Child of Water
Be you empowered in this rite
To give my wisdom calm rationality
And gentle reasoning.
As you are cut, your virtue is released –
So Mote it Be!!

Blessed be, oh Creature of Parsley
Blessed be, green Child of the Earth
Be you empowered in this rite
To give my wisdom solid grounding
And continuous growth
As you are cut, your virtue is released –
So Mote it Be!!

I IS FOR INTITIATION

This article is a bit out of order, but I felt deeply moved to write and post it today:

Probably no other subject in pagan circles incites so many feelings as “Initiation”.  I discovered this after my 2^nd degree initiation into a very established Tradition that hails back to the beginning of modern Wicca.  So caught up was I in the process that it wasn’t until almost a year after that I realized exactly what it was I was making vows to/about.

I am no longer part of that Tradition, but am practicing a far more eclectic form of paganism.  Nevertheless, I am a High Priestess – nothing can take that away from me but the Gods!  As such, I have come to realize that there was a huge need to re-define Initiations for people who feel drawn to serve the Gods in a more formal way, but do not belong to any formal Traditions.  These needs and desires need to be recognized and acknowledged.

In doing so, I do not wish to disrespect what Traditions have established.  And in doing so, I  have, as Priestess, come to the conclusion that Initiations are necessary regardless of lack of formal Traditional training.   Something happens during this Ritual, something deep and alchemical that opens the Spirit and Heart to the Divine Godhead.  And I for one do not wish to see so many deserving people struggling for internal acceptance for the lack of external acceptance, and will, whenever needed, assist them in reaching their goals and potential.  It may not be seen as “official” by some people but what matters here is that the Initiates will move forward.

Lack of such eclectic elevations means that more of these people resort to doing a self-dedication and self-initiation.  In my eyes, they are no less serving the Gods than ones that have undergone full coven training in established Traditions.  In my experience, this amounts to putting down as unworthy those whose hearts are deemed worthy in the sight of the God and Goddess.

Initiations are, as I said before, very important ceremonies.  All over the world, in all sorts of cultures, initiations at all levels are being performed.  These ceremonies bring young people into adulthood, couples into marriage, acknowledge and celebrate accomplishments through education and employment.  Lack of such ceremonies creates girls who are very scared of their own powers and left with painful self-images; boys who really don’t know how to be men; women who fear their cronehood and men who are unsure of their place in the world.  Some tribal initiations may seem cruel and frightening by today’s standards.  Children are made to endure pain, solitary quests, or public displays that may seem humiliating, such as young girls undergoing puberty walking through the centre of the village bare-breasted, but in each of those cases, the adults have undergone the same procedures and are there to train and prepare the young ones.  It is true that even in some cases, initiations may have even killed – if one survives the test, one is then worthy of initiation.  Each culture developed these ceremonies and they all have strong significance in the collective consciousness of the people.  It is not up to us to judge them as “wrong” or “cruel”.

Nevertheless and fortunately, in our society today, we do not have such drastic trials.  In fact, perhaps we have gone too far the opposite way, saying that none of these are important.  Or there is a notion that if one has been trained in a certain Tradition, that is the only way for initiations to be done.  Here I am speaking only for myself with all due respect – others may not feel comfortable in a Circle setting, but are just as worthy of being brought into Priesthood because of their love for the Goddess and God, and their willingness and desire to serve Them.

In a day, I shall be elevating a friend to the status of Priestess.  It will be an eclectic ceremony that’s designed especially for her.  I have worked with her at length, listened to her, corresponded with her, watched her create the most amazing tools of devotion, and judge her worthy of such Initiation ritual.  Her heart has been ready, and it is my deepest and humblest privilege in bringing her to the thrones of her Gods.  She may not be recognized as a Priestess by the Traditional Wiccans, and so be it.  I for one would rather be guilty of doing this and be found out wrong, than not proceeding with the ceremony and be guilty of holding a very worthy person back.  I feel it is my duty, as much as it will be hers some day.  It will not be an initiation into any Tradition, but one that directly links her to the Gods. 

I am deeply grateful for the opportunity the Gods have placed before me.  Tomorrow, another Priestess will walk among us, and my heart will rejoice at her strength and service.