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Crow Folks: Hold Fast

During the dark moon this week, I went to visit Na Morrigna in my usual manner, and we again gathered outside around their large cauldron.  I had pulled an ogham fid as an anchor before starting the journey — Dair, associated with the oak tree (among other things) — and when I arrived at the cauldron, I found myself holding the walking stick I had received from the spirit of Dair during my work with them and the rest of the spirits of the ogham feda.  There was also a small stump I hadn't seen before, and I was instructed to stand on the stump — which was hardly big enough for both my feet — and to hold my walking stick parallel to the ground, for balance.  "Hold fast", They told me, and I was given images and sensations of things flying at me, trying to make me move, but I resisted and kept my footing.

My personal kenning for Dair (which I developed in communion with the spirit of Dair as I came to understand them better), is "Dignified Steadyness" and that seems to be the lesson Na Morrigna were ingraining in me, this time, and the message they mean me to pass along to all of you.  Hold your ground.  Be immoveable.  You are strong; they cannot harm you, and they cannot sway you.

While I wasn't expecting to basically have a martial arts lesson, I guess it makes sense after last month's message asking us to plan.  We planned, and now its time to keep moving on those plans, to implement them and make sure the foundations are solid.

I expect we're at the beginning of another uptick already, though it may not be obvious until we get closer to the equinox.  Make sure your agreements are honored and your wards are tight, and it might be time to reread my blog series about a Defensible Home (1, 2, 3) if you haven't, and the one about protection during otherworldly high tides.

Freyja’s Falcon Flight: Beneath the Tree

Late Late Late, but better late than never, Freyja assures me.  This should have been posted more than a week ago, apologies, but, hey, the website is up again!

As before, this is based on my experience, and I’m offering it to the community in case it’s helpful or resonates with some of you. If you’re used to doing journeys from a script, great! Otherwise feel free to have some one read it to you, or record yourself reading it. Edit the intro and expand the outro if you need to, but please leave the middle intact, and don’t share the recording without telling them where to find my original post!

I recommend lighting a devotional candle and/or making a small offering to Freyja (perhaps a libation) and to the Norns before you begin. Prepare yourself however you normally would, to do work at an altar. For my part, that usually means wearing one of my devotional hair ribbons and perhaps donning magical jewelry, and acquiring something to go over my head while I journey.

Falcon Flight: Beneath the Tree

Begin in stillness, and quiet, and darkness. Find your center, and align yourself with earth and sky. As you stare at the darkness behind your eyes, feel and see as mist swirls up from the ground, obscuring everything around you. After a moment, it begins to part, leaving you standing in a flowery meadow.

When you arrive in the meadow, take a moment to observe around you, turning until you see a path. At the entrance to the path are two shrubs, and as you move on that direction, you see trees as well. Shrubs give way to trees and undergrowth on either side of the path, getting taller and denser as you move onward, until they join overhead into an arch, forming a tunnel of trees that slopes downward, getting denser and darker.

Eventually, you notice that the path has become flat, and then it begins to rise. Now the trees are thinning again, branches giving way to brightness, and as the trees again give way to shrubs, you see a gate in front of a wide plain and beyond it, the great world tree. If you have any guides or guardians you wish to accompany you, ones who can join you in flight, call to them now, before you step through the gate and make your way towards the tree.

As you approach the World Tree, prepared to circle around it clockwise as before, you instead see Freyja standing in front of you.  She beckons you in the other direction, and before the entrance under another great root, she casts a cloak over you, turning you into a falcon, and as you fall to the ground, she changes herself and leaps into the air, giving you no choice but to follow her through the opening under the root, and into the gloom.  

Within, she glows brightly enough that you can follow her easily: down and around the path spirals, over rivers and past mountains and forests - other worlds branch out from here.  And then, in front of a large well, around which sit three ancient beings, Frejya throws back her cloak to regain her usual form, and reaches out an arm for you to land on.  When you do, she changes you back as well, and holds you by the arm lest you stumble into the Well.

These are the Norns - Urd, Verdandi, and Skuld, who know the fate of all beings and can read all of time in the runes in the rime.

"Put your offering into the water," Freyja instructs you, "and then speak the question that weighs heavy on your heart."

Do so, and wait patiently for the answer.

[interlude]

When you are satisfied with the answer, or when they have no more to tell you this time, thank them for the wisdom you have received, and turn back to Frejya.  She will turn you back into a falcon and then lead you on the return journey: up and around, up and around, back out the entrance you came through beneath the root.

Out in the open air again, she removes her cloak and yours, and at this time if you have anything you wish to tell her or ask her, you should do so, before departing.

When you are finished, return the way you came, across the plain, and back to the gate, through the tunnel of trees, and back to the meadow. Then the mist will swirl up again, and take you back to your body.

Crow Folks: What Plans Will You Make?

Once again during the dark moon earlier this week I went to visit Na Morrigna in the place I usually find them.  This time we gathered around their large cauldron outside again, and when I arrived, I placed some incense into the fire below it.  When I asked for an omen or message to share, I was instructed to stick my hand into the fire in the journey while using my physical hand to draw three ogham feda, and had a sort of double vision of my ogham set (birch coins I pyrographed myself) overlaid with a birch limb darkened by fire, with clear markings down one side.

The three ogham feda I ended up with were hÚath, Dair, and Coll.  Broadly, I understood these together to mean that yes, we have been wounded, and scared.  We have fought packs of wolves, we have been battered and bruised.  But nonetheless, we are still standing.  We stand tall, we stand strong.  We have healed our old wounds as best we can, and we are centered, in alignment, and ready to continue.    We have learned much from our trials, and we have tasted sweet wisdom.  We need to integrate all that we have learned, and we must be ready for the next challenge.  It is time to harvest wisdom and prepare ourselves for the work of the autumn and winter.  We should be consulting our allies, both human and Other, and making plans.  So, what plans will you make, Crow Folks?

What I’m hearing from my allies is that, in my local area at least (DC/MD/NoVA), the run up to the equinox is likely to be Particularly Intense as far as Otherworldly Activity is concerned.  So I’m focusing on my Local allies, first and foremost, as they are likely to have things they’d like me to do, and I’d like to continue being in their good favor and under their protection.  The next dark moon is the 14th of September, just about a week before the equinox, so I kind of expect that to be the “deadline” for figuring out what things I’d like to focus on in my personal work with Na Morrigna from now until Imbolc.  I’ll still be doing these, of course, and that seems to be mostly oracular poetry or ogham or both, for the most part, but I do have some things that are just for me, and I’m sure I’m not the only one with shadow work that needs doing, as that is a constant process!

Freyja’s Falcon Flight: The Grain Harvest

I was late this month in my journey to see Freyja, and so I am late getting this to all of ya’ll, but hopefully it’s helpful or resonates with some of you. If you’re used to doing journeys from a script, great! Otherwise feel free to have some one read it to you, or record yourself reading it. Edit the intro and expand the outro if you need to, but please leave the middle intact, and don’t share the recording without telling them where to find my original post!

I recommend lighting a devotional candle and/or making a small offering to Freyja (perhaps a libation) before you begin. Prepare yourself however you normally would, to do work at an altar. For my part, that usually means wearing one of my devotional hair ribbons and perhaps donning magical jewelry, and acquiring something to go over my head while I journey.

Falcon Flight: Whose Wisdom Will You Seek?

Begin in stillness, and quiet, and darkness. Find your center, and align yourself with earth and sky. As you stare at the darkness behind your eyes, feel and see as mist swirls up from the ground, obscuring everything around you. After a moment, it begins to part, leaving you standing in a flowery meadow.

When you arrive in the meadow, take a moment to observe around you, turning until you see a path. At the entrance to the path are two shrubs, and as you move on that direction, you see trees as well. Shrubs give way to trees and undergrowth on either side of the path, getting taller and denser as you move onward, until they join overhead into an arch, forming a tunnel of trees that slopes downward, getting denser and darker.

Eventually, you notice that the path has become flat, and then it begins to rise. Now the trees are thinning again, branches giving way to brightness, and as the trees again give way to shrubs, you see a gate in front of a wide plain and beyond it, the great world tree. If you have any guides or guardians you wish to accompany you, ones who can join you in flight, call to them now, before you step through the gate and make your way towards the tree.

As you approach the World Tree, circle around it clockwise, until you see an opening beneath one of the great roots. Duck under this root and enter the tunnel beneath. There is hard dirt packed beneath your feet, and the entire tunnel seems to have been hewn from that same clay-rich dirt and sandstone. Not as many feet come this way — the floor is still rough in places, so watch your step as you continue forward. There are torches set into sconces in the rough hewn walls, and their light looks like fire but you feel no heat as we continue past, and you smell no smoke or pitch.

The tunnel curves gently and then begins to rise in a gradual incline, ending in a doorway, two huge stones on either side and capped with a third. Touch one gently as you step out into the fresh air — these are worn by the elements and smooth to the touch. If you look back to the entrance, you will notice that on this side, the tunnel leads into what looks like a large burial mound, standing alone in a large clearing, though the forest is slowly encroaching from all sides.

Smell the air — the pine sap scent is strong, and your nose can tell there is moving water somewhere nearby, even if your ears cannot yet hear it. Now you should continue, following a clear trail deeper into the forest. Your footfalls are muffled by pine needles, and the air seems still. The scent and after a while the sound of water is to your left as you walk, and after a short time, you arrive at a fork, with three paths to choose from.

You have been here before – normally we take the middle road. But today, coming walking towards you down that middle road is our Lady herself. She nods at you, and indicates for you to follow, leading you down the path to your left. A bit further on, she crosses a bridge over a small creek that is running high, and then the path turns again, and you can see that ahead of you it dead ends into a large field of some kind of golden grain, ripe and ready for the harvest.

As you come to the edge of a field, you see many people dressed in clothes of the early medieval period, singing and doing the hard work of harvest: those with strong shoulders swinging scythes, those with nimble fingers tying bundles, and others reaching down to collect the pieces that fall to the ground.

Two figures are larger than life and seem almost to shine with divine light, much like Freyja does. The man in stripped to the waist and wielding a scythe. With every swing of his scythe he cuts more than ten times any other person here. And when he turns to look at you and Freyja, you notice the family resemblance, how he is like a mirror of his sister: this is Freyr. The other figure is a woman with long golden hair that flows unbound around her. She is using her own hair in place of twine to tie the heaps of grain that Freyr cuts into bundles. As she looks up to smile at you, you realize this must be Sif*.

You may speak to either Sif or Freyr if you choose; or else join in the work and speak to the ancestors gathered here, to see what wisdom they might share about the work of the harvest.

[interlude]

When you are finished speaking with whomever you chose, say your farewells and return to Freyja’s side. You may speak to her as well, if you wish, on the walk back to the fork in the path. When you return to that crossroads, bid Freyja farewell, and then continue back the way you came: through the forest, to the mound, through the mound-tunnel and out from under the root, across the plain, and back to the gate, through the tunnel of trees, and back to the meadow. Then the mist will swirl up again, and take you back to your body.

* Okay, yeah, I know, Sif being a grain goddess is just supposition with no real evidence to back it up, but a lot of people do cast Sif in this role, and also when I tried to ask Freyja if I could equivocate without naming her as Sif, Freyja point blank insisted. Which still doesn’t prove anything, but my role here is to share what I’m told to share and I’m sure Freyja has her reasons.

Also, announcement: I’m currently migrating the website, so things might be a little wonky for a bit; bear with me, and as always, you can reach me via email and I’ll sort you out!

Mystic South 2023

This year I was presenting a workshop on four Irish Fairy Queens I titled “Into the Hollow Hills”. Like last year, this year my workshop was in the first block on Friday, and also like last year I did not expect very many people… and was proven wrong! I ran out of handouts, which is always a good position to be in! I think it went pretty well, though this was the first time I’d run through the entire thing with an actual audience, and it ended up taking a bit longer than I expected, so I skimmed some of the additional material after I covered the four main fairy queens. I basically only included information on other fairy monarchs if they had a connection to one of my main four: Úna, Áine, Clíodhna, and Fand. Fand is not necessarily known as a folkloric fairy queen, but she has shown up in that role in my own life for a long time, and she is the wife of a very well known fairy king (Manannan Mac Lir), and I thought it would be best to include her with those caveats. (Aoibheall I approached to see if she would like to be included but she demurred, so I only mentioned her briefly. I would not have chosen to exclude a fairy queen known as Clíodhna’s sister and rival, otherwise! I wouldn’t want to have my firstborn cursed to prick their finger on a spindle.) Then I covered some basic safety rules for the journey, and led a guided journey to a liminal place between our world and the world of Fairy, and brought everyone back right as the block ended, though I stuck around a little to chat with folks for a bit!

Meeting people finally in person is really one of the highlights of Pagan events for me, and I got to meet a couple of people I’d only known online again this year, and got to spend more time with the ever-amazing Daniela Simina (who has two books coming out next year, and I am finally the proud owner of a signed copy of her first book)! I also went to a bunch of really great workshops, both by people I hadn’t heard of before, and people whose work I’ve admired for a long time.

In that second category, Llevin and Gwen Ithon were back and teaching several workshops, and I went to most of them! The class on “Raising Bairns” was taught by Gwen and their (adult) daughter Aurelie, and was a really good look at how to raise kids within a pagan/magical culture without indoctrinating them into a specific tradition. Instead, Gwen and Llevin emphasized the philosophy and core values of their culture and traditions, taught their children some basic skills (grounding, centering, cleansing, etc) and involved them in the home practice (rituals to the household gods, prayers said when lighting a fire, etc). Gwen and Aurelie both emphasized that their culture believes that if one family continues only in one magical society or tradition, it stagnates; having generations each find their own preferred way to practice keeps things fresh and invigorated and breathes life into the practices. They also talked a bit about rites of passage. Then Llevin and Gwen together taught “Soul Burden”, about releasing illness and negativity from the spirit body. It included an esoteric discussion of how souls and reincarnation are viewed in their tradition, and a few examples of healing modalities, including one using a bowl of silvered water that I’m going to have to try for myself! I also took their class on fairies, called “Conjured by Candlelight” and though it took a more ceremonial bent than my practice, there was a lot of valuable information, and some streams of continuity for me that I’m going to be chewing on for a while.

I also went to Daniela’s paper presentation on fairies, specifically on “Apotropaic and Propitiatory Elements in Home Design”, which was full of great information, and even better pictures! I love hearing Daniela present, because our paths are so similar, and while I did already know a lot of the information, I also learned some new things! And in any case I wouldn’t have wanted to miss it; I always try to go to my friends’ workshops! I went to Debra Burris’s workshop “An Eclipse is Coming!” for the same reason, but by about ten minutes in I had caught the hype bug. That workshop was a fun mix of science, mythology, and folk practice, and I’m really glad I went. The only other person I really knew who was teaching was John Beckett, and alas the class I most wanted to take was scheduled in the same block as mine, so I’ll have to grab notes from someone!

Of the people I had never taken a class from before, I think Nathan Hall’s workshop “Hedgeriding: Experiencing the Liminal between Animism and Witchcraft” aligned the most with my own philosophies (if not quite with the specifics of my practice). He talked about how it’s not re-enchantment of the world around us, it’s ourselves that we need to reenchant, and I could not agree more. And as for rewilding, that, too, is necessary to internalize: “What can you do today,” he asked, “to make yourself 10% more feral?” The last part of the workshop was a guided meditation to meet local land spirits, and it went a little sideways for me (I got the Fair Folk first instead, which shocks no one), but I did end up having a powerful experience with the local river. I liked the workshop so much I bought his book!

I went to three classes about plants, two by Anastasha Verde and one by Ivy Laine. Anastasha’s first one was “Sacred Botany, Sacred Grief” and it focused on ecological grief and presented an overview of pagan rituals she’d found that were meant to address that. It definitely got my ritualist brain wheels turning! Her second one was on “Rewilding Your Practice with Bioregional Animism” which I am ALL ABOUT, and it was great to have an open discussion about the Appalachian and Piedmont regions. She also emphasized knowing your local watershed, which is particularly important to me. I came away from that one with a lot of good ideas. Ivy’s workshop was “Beautiful but Dangerous”, on poison plant allies of Appalachia, and it had a lot of good information. I learned a lot, and got to finally ask someone what I might use Carolina Horsenettle for. I’ve been wondering about it since that plant popped up in my yard two years ago, and while I’ve been trying to get to know the plant spirit, I’ve not found much folklore on it, but Ivy (and others) agreed that generally you’d use it the same way you might use bittersweet nightshade that is to say, as a a slightly less malefic substitute for belladonna.

All in all, it was an amazing conference (as always), and I can’t wait until next year!

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Crow Folks: Three Things for Lughnasadh

I was planning to write up my experiences of Mystic South for this week’s blog, but while I was there I attended a ritual to the Morrigan and the Dagda (run by the same lovely people who put on the Morrigan’s Call Retreat), and I was reminded that my service usually starts on the dark moon closest to Lughnasadh, but that the timing was at Their discretion… and yep, that started this past weekend, and I’m already running a little behind on posting, as I try to catch up on sleep and get unpacked and the bunnies resettled from their vacation, and my house even remotely organized, while my child is doing his best impression of velcro.

So.

I did the journey to my usual place, and was given a set of three tasks to share with you all, for Lughnasadh, or perhaps more appropriately for Brón Trogain, the Earth’s Sorrowing:

  1. Fearn: Renew your protections
    Both shields and wards: on yourself, your children, your animals; on your house, your car, your place of work

  2. Idad: Honor the Might Dead and your own personal allies
    It’s a good time for renewing oaths but also for just coming together with those who are your kith and kin

  3. Gort: Blessing the first fruits of the harvest
    Whatever is coming into ripeness right now, collect some and hallow it and offer it to those same allies

Fairly simple, fairly straightforward, and honestly it seems very doable, even for a very busy practitioner. Reminder, however, that this is of course all UPG – I seek what wisdom they would have me share, and they tell me in a mixture of ogham, imagery, and words, and then I write it up and ask for their approval… and edit and tweak until they give it.

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Lenormand Deck Review: Queer Lenormand

Deck: Queer Lenormand

Publisher: Self published

Writer & Artist: Mariana Andrade

Overall Rating: 10/10

Cardstock: The cardstock is on the thin end of standard, more like cards that come with a board game than something like a pack of poker cards. But they’re easy to riffle shuffle.

Artwork: The artwork is a digital illustration style with a low amount of shading that reminds me of old scum pop art. It’s vibrantly colorful, as one would hope! There are a rainbow of background options, each chosen to contrast the illustration.

People Cards: I’m adding a section for this, because where this deck really shines is the wealth of options available for Person cards. There are only two Child cards (one with light skin and one with dark skin), but there are five each of “Woman”, “Man”, and “Person” cards, with a variety of skin tones and presentations, as well as two “Drag Queen” and two “Drag King” cards, each with light skin or dark skin options.

Book: The book has a decent sized paragraph and a list of keywords for each card. The “Man” and “Woman” cards also invite the reader to think outside the box about femininity and masculinity, while the “Person” card explicitly refers to people outside the gender binary. The paragraph for the two drag cards talks about our ability to explore binary energy, no matter what our actual gender is, if we have one. The booklet also gives a couple of brief spread examples. I do wish it gave a little more info on the Lenormand system itself, though.

Likes: I love the art and I love the diversity of the people cards, it does make it a lot easier to read for more people, and for my clients to see themselves reflected in the cards

Dislikes: I do wish there was a third option of skin tone. The five options in the “Man”, “Woman”, and “Person” cards include two people with light skin, one person with light skin who seems East Asian, and two people with dark skin, but no medium tone. Still, it’s way more diversity than usual!

Overall Recommendation

This is the deck I most commonly bring with for reading in person. The artwork is colorful and engaging, and people enjoy selecting a card for themselves and their partner or whomever they’re asking about. The box is also two parts and pretty sturdy, so it travels well. I personally love buying indie decks, especially from queer creatives, and I’d recommend this deck to anyone – with the single caveat that if you’re new to Lenormand you might want to pair this deck with a book on the system itself, since it does read differently than either tarot or regular oracle cards.

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Freyja’s Falcon Flight: Whose Wisdom?

It’s a little past the waxing half moon, so I’ve once again gone to see Freyja and have been shown something to share with you all. And as before, this is based on my experience, and I’m offering it to the community in case it’s helpful or resonates with some of you. If you’re used to doing journeys from a script, great! Otherwise feel free to have some one read it to you, or record yourself reading it. Edit the intro and expand the outro if you need to, but please leave the middle intact, and don’t share the recording without telling them where to find my original post!

I recommend lighting a devotional candle and/or making a small offering to Freyja (perhaps a libation) before you begin. Prepare yourself however you normally would, to do work at an altar. For my part, that usually means wearing one of my devotional hair ribbons and perhaps donning magical jewelry, and acquiring something to go over my head while I journey.

Falcon Flight: Whose Wisdom Will You Seek?

Begin in stillness, and quiet, and darkness. Find your center, and align yourself with earth and sky. As you stare at the darkness behind your eyes, feel and see as mist swirls up from the ground, obscuring everything around you. After a moment, it begins to part, leaving you standing in a flowery meadow.

When you arrive in the meadow, take a moment to observe around you, turning until you see a path. At the entrance to the path are two shrubs, and as you move on that direction, you see trees as well. Shrubs give way to trees and undergrowth on either side of the path, getting taller and denser as you move onward, until they join overhead into an arch, forming a tunnel of trees that slopes downward, getting denser and darker.

Eventually, you notice that the path has become flat, and then it begins to rise. Now the trees are thinning again, branches giving way to brightness, and as the trees again give way to shrubs, you see a gate in front of a wide plain and beyond it, the great world tree. If you have any guides or guardians you wish to accompany you, ones who can join you in flight, call to them now, before you step through the gate and make your way towards the tree.

As you approach the World Tree, circle around it clockwise, until you see an opening beneath one of the great roots. Duck under this root and enter the tunnel beneath. There is hard dirt packed beneath your feet, and the entire tunnel seems to have been hewn from that same clay-rich dirt and sandstone. Not as many feet come this way — the floor is still rough in places, so watch your step as you continue forward. There are torches set into sconces in the rough hewn walls, and their light looks like fire but you feel no heat as we continue past, and you smell no smoke or pitch.

The tunnel curves gently and then begins to rise in a gradual incline, ending in a doorway, two huge stones on either side and capped with a third. Touch one gently as you step out into the fresh air — these are worn by the elements and smooth to the touch. If you look back to the entrance, you will notice that on this side, the tunnel leads into what looks like a large burial mound, standing alone in a large clearing, though the forest is slowly encroaching from all sides.

Smell the air — the pine sap scent is strong, and your nose can tell there is moving water somewhere nearby, even if your ears cannot yet hear it. Now you should continue, following a clear trail deeper into the forest. Your footfalls are muffled by pine needles, and the air seems still. The scent and after a while the sound of water is to your left as you walk, and after a short time, you arrive at a fork, with three paths to choose from.

One path curves to the left, and you can just make out a bridge over a creek in the distance. The one to the right seems to vanish into the trees. Continue down the middle path, which leads straight ahead. After a while, the trees seem to thin a bit, and the underbrush grows less tangled.

As the path reaches the edge of the forest, and the pine needles give way to a large open field, your eyes are drawn to the great hall. It is large, and you know at once to whom it belongs. This is Freyja’s Hall, Sessrumnir, and you are in Folkvangr. Approach the door, and when the guard calls out his challenge, announce yourself and your purpose. He will stand aside and let you in.

When you enter the hall, stop for a moment to let your eyes adjust, and then turn to your left towards the dais, where Freyja is waiting.

Give her your gift, when you approach, and listen to see if she has a personal message for you. When she is finished, she will gesture to the doors on either side of her, and explain this moon’s choice.

There is wisdom to be found in disaster and adversity – would you hear the words of Odin, or Njordr?

To the left, Odin awaits, sitting on his great high seat, in the judgement hall of the Aesir. He is ready to share the wisdom he’s gleaned from his many wanderings and his quest to avoid Ragnarok… for a price.

To the right, the door leads to a fisherman’s hut beside a dock, and docked there you will find a great sailing ship. Help Njordr ready the ship for his journey, and he will impart advice on how to weather storms without losing your bearings.

Choose a door, and walk through.

[interlude]

When you are finished speaking with the one you chose, look for the door you entered by, and go back through, back into Freyja’s hall.

Then say farewell and leave the hall, and go back the way you came: across the field, to the forest path, through the forest, to the mound, through the mound-tunnel and out from under the root, across the plain, and back to the gate, through the tunnel of trees, and back to the meadow. Then the mist will swirl up again, and take you back to your body.

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Song for the Returning

Last fall, I shared two poems/songs/prayers I called “Song for the Way Opening” and “Song for the Winter Rade” after getting a message from some of my allies that I should be celebrating the movements of the Pleiades more intentionally. Last month, I shared one more, the “Song for the Darkening”. And now, like the others, I’ve reworked Morgan Daimler’s prayer for the Returning of the Queens into a song to the tune of the ballad of Thomas the Rhymer.

The first two stanzas of the song are the same, and the last two stanzas are as well, except for the two seasonal words in the last line, and the end of the third line changed to rhyme properly.

Song for the Returning

I call to all you goodly wights,
My kin and friends whoe’er shall be.
All you who’d be my allies true,
And come and walk this path with me.

I call to all the Queens and Kings,
Monarchs and Sov’reigns, all gentry near —
If you would celebrate with me
’Tis time to come and join me here.

Today the Queens have their return,
Their constellation back in the sky,
As their stars move from day to night,
We look above us with raptured eye

The Seven Queens they rise up first,
And then behind them the Hunter’s light —
For he is their great Guardian,
And he’ll defend them with his might.

The bright blue fire of Seven Queens,
A blazing beacon ere morning dawn,
It shows us they are with us still,
And thus the cycle goes on and on.

As they ride past, may we be blessed,
With token or with smile or nod,
And may they take our offerings,
As their refreshment while they’re abroad.

A good word to the Fairy Rade,
And may you never do us harm!
Ride out along the fairy roads,
Bringing with you Summer’s warmth.

I’ve also pulled another omen to share: one rune and one ogham fid, to symbolize the two groups of fairy folk with whom I work most closely. I pulled Jera, and Quert. Jera is a rune of time and cycles, and sometimes a year completed. A fitting omen, I think, for the last song in the cycle; a reminder that the cycle goes on and ever on. Quert is an ogham fid traditionally associated with the apple tree, and my kenning for it is “Queer Wit”. This is the fid I most associate with the phrase “dead, mad, or a poet” — a calling to go deeper with our own practices in this next cycle, or perhaps a prediction that we will end up in deeper, whether we will it or no.

Open post

Fairy Witching in Connecticut

My packing list for the Morrigan’s Call Retreat, among the usual camping and witching bits and bobs, also included a completely metal-free drinking vessel that could lock shut and stay shut tossed around in a bag. So I brought that I bought shortly before the trip, because I was gently reminded by some of my allies that all of my usual travel mugs were stainless steel! I was not about to spend a whole weekend without tea, and I needed the ability to share it in case that was requested – a lot of spirits appreciate a small pour of your beverage, the Fair Folk included. It’s also better for me – if I’m in too close contact with Otherworldly beings averse to iron, touching it can cause sudden painful grounding. Which is why I also tend to travel with some titanium-coated tableware! It’s a thin layer but it seems to be enough to blunt the effect, at least for me. Though at this retreat, the tableware was mostly plastic so that was a non-issue.

In addition, I made sure to pack a variety of offerings so that I’d have something suitable for the local Fair Folk when I arrived and did my check in. I brought mead and whiskey and honey candies this time, as I didn’t really have a way to keep any dairy products cool, nor did I have the time to make baked goods. I usually have to “check in at customs & immigration” whenever I’m in a new area, especially if I’m spending the night or planning to do any magic or ritual, and that check-in always requires at least a gift and a formal introduction, including an explanation of my relationship to the fairy court I serve. But in order to introduce myself, first I have to find a suitable place!

My general approach to finding the Fair Folk in a new place is to send out a sort of notice of intent, and then to wander about with no particular destination in mind, just letting myself move where I feel drawn to, and trying to observe the area around me very deeply. Often I find myself feeling like I’m being led by a bird or insect, and then as I follow, I find a place that feels otherworldly. I stop, and open my subtle senses, and reach out, to see if this is what I sought. If it is, I then inquire about preferred offerings, and give those and do my introduction. Usually I also ask for a name for their group that I can use to identify them, and ask what type of being they are (or are closest to) so that I have a general idea of their likes, dislikes, and expectations. After that I’m free to do what magic I see fit, so long as it doesn’t interfere with or harm the Locals in any way – I strive for peace between their Folk and mine.

In these wanderings, I’ve been building a sort of network of friendly-inclined groups, with my understanding of (or best guess about) their territorial boundaries. In my home region, I’ve been finding that a lot of the territories seem to be tied to watersheds: the Chesapeake Bay watershed being something like a High Court, with the smaller streams being smaller territories, and the rivers being a sort of in-between space, belonging to the river deities themselves and home to all the indigenous spirit beings of that river’s watershed. This kind of overlap confused me at first, but then again – the Otherworlds and Spirit Worlds are plural, so maybe it makes sense that they’d be enmeshed and yet distinct.

This network-building, particularly within the Chesapeake Bay watershed, is a huge part of my personal practice, but it’s hard to talk about openly. Both because it’s Very Woo and unsubstantiated UPG, and because there’s a lot of stuff I’m just plain forbidden to share! But I’ve been trying to share more of what isn’t explicitly forbidden, in what will hopefully become a semi regular blog series!

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