A Witch and Her Poisons: A Look at the Toxic Herbs Used by Witches in Past Centuries. For as long as there has been talk of witches, there's been talk of witches using various poisons from the solanaceae family of plants.
You might not have heard of the scientific names, but you might have heard some of their common names: belladonna (deadly nightshade), mandrake, and datura. These three in particular are doused in folklore and have aided the witch in her wiles for centuries. The solanaceae family of poisons include chemical constituents such as atropine, scopolamine, and hyoscyamine; these ingredients have various effects on the human nervous system (amongst other bodily systems). Atropa Belladonna, also known as nightshade and deadly nightshade, is a poisonous herb that has been used by witches in creating flying ointments since at least the ninth century. Celebrate La Befana at Christmas: The holidays need a wine-drinking witch. Photo by Tiziana Fabi/AFP/Getty Images Let’s be frank: Santa Claus is overexposed.
Even before Thanksgiving, Americans are bombarded with Santa songs, movies, and commercials, most of which seem to invoke the nonexistent children’s character to persuade adults to buy new motor vehicles. Betsy Woodruff is a Slate staff writer. There’s nothing wrong with St. Nick, per se. Who Are We? - paganSquare. My home Reclaiming community has launched a series of meetings to try to define ourselves as a community.
What is our history? What are our values? What is our power structure, and how do we make decisions? Who, exactly, are "we" in the first place? To folks in long-standing Pagan groups or lineaged traditions, it might seem strange for a community to have existed, in one form or another, for nearly two decades and its members not know these things. Then, too, this local autonomy is integral to the nature of Reclaiming, both one of its greatest strengths and highest hurdles: on the one hand, no central authority tells us what to believe or do.
As with all things, the Principles of Unity offers a strong foundation on which to base these discussions but doesn't tell us how to do any of it or what conclusions we must come to. "We make decisions by consensus... " Reclaiming is meant to be a nonhierarchical tradition, a structure that usually empowers all but sometimes leads to struggle. SOPHROSYNE : Goddess of Moderation & Temperance. Deep Grounding Meditation. Earth Grounding Meditation (Part 1) Begin this grounding meditation by standing on the Earth.
Stand to your full height. Take a deep breath, hold it, then let it go. Do this again, and let it go with a gusty sigh. Feel your feet on the ground. Notice your breath. Wand of the Week: 5 Oct “Dragon Sorcerer” By SplendidFish « Fields' Wand Makers Gild. When searching around the web world for a dragon wand for my daughter I came across this beauty.
Now don’t worry, my daughter is just 5 years old so this particular wand is a bit out of her league, so for today at least, this wand is still available. Here is a partial description from the creative wand maker that is B. De Corbin of SplendidFish: “The Wand of the Dragon Sorcerer is a handcrafted, high quality, collector’s grade magic wand which features a genuine dragon’s claw (OK, I was fresh out of genuine dragon’s claws, so I substituted a preserved turkey leg) with outstretched talons on one end, and a secret compartment covered by a copper cap set with a nice peach colored agate. The agate is set in a copper bezel. Truly inventive, imaginative and everything else that defines a magickal tool. Like this: Like Loading... Ellen Evert Hopman - Herbalist, Druid Priestess, Author. Free forum : Northern Tradition Paganism Forum. BDO Ritual in Paralympics Closing Ceremony.
Click the photo to view a short (5 mins) video of the Druid speeches and other beautiful highlights of the closing ceremony.
We were sworn to secrecy beforehand, but Emma Restall Orr and I were approached by the organisers of the 2012 Paralympics closing ceremony with a surprising request. They wanted our permission to use parts of the gorsedd ritual we wrote in 1997. Pagan. Pagan. Hearth Moon Rising's blog. White Birch tree. Photo Willow. The birch was discussed a few months ago in the series on the witch’s broom , but a whole book could be written about this magical tree. This week we turn to the relationship between the birch tree and the Germanic goddess Frigga. Trees going by the common name of “birch” belong to the family betula , which abounds in northern climates, though the various species differ in appearance, habitat, and other characteristics.
The two species prevalent in North America are the Paper Birch, which produces the material for the lightweight birch bark canoes that were once the predominant mode of travel in the north, and the Yellow Birch, which is known for its highly aromatic leaf buds. The birch is an attractive tree, often quite tall, that buds early in spring. The rune Boerc. The birch tree is believed to dispel evil, which is why participants leaving the traditional Nordic sauna are gently flogged with birch twigs. Boerc is Frigga’s rune. Silver Birch. Sources.