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embarrassment has good bones

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farming magic versus wild foraging magic

It's been on my mind a bit but I really think in Witchcraft, a lot of it is finding power. A LOT of it.

You know I talk about my system a lot, building relationships with ally spirits ("correspondences"), evoking and petitioning spirits, laying a compass, carefully storing and distributing energy between spells.

And this is all kind of like farming; you can learn how to cultivate the magical ecosystem around you to carefully seed, grow, harvest, and store power, and to make friends with the gods and spirits within and around this system who help you (or decline to hinder you, which is also very good).

This farming is good because it serves the same function as regular farming, i.e., it's hard work but it provides reliable and predictable resources available throughout the year.

But that's not finding power, that's farming it.

Several months ago I did one of the most powerful workings I had done in a while, which transformed my life. There was no evoking correspondences or compass laying or invocations or spirit offerings.

I found a free-flowing source of incredible power (an eclipse, and I found it by looking up), called it into myself, and asked that it do something specific.

No candles, incense, bells, talismans, or whatever: the actual technique I performed was extremely basic energy work.

The results were humbling, and continue to humble me, and I believe it is probably beyond what I would have been able to accomplish working only through 'farming'.

After all, I am a competent adult. I could build a fish farm. I could learn to keep it regulated and sustained to provide fish all year round.

But it doesn't matter how good of a farmer I am, I'll never be able to compete with the open ocean.

A lot of this stuff about Witchcraft techniques - if it seems like a lot, that's because it is a lot; it seems like hard work because farming is hard work, and it seems like you must plan ahead so much because farmers must plan seasons ahead.

But that's not all of Witchcraft, and homesteading your magic isn't just farming - it's wild foraging, too.

So if all this Traditional stuff seems a bit stuffy and laborious and lacking in spontaneity, perhaps it's good to ask if you're ever leaving the boundaries of your homestead and venturing out into the woods.

And all those planets and transits and holy days and plant lore and special tricks for foraging power without profaning it are not tedious rules, but maps that show pathways to wild foraging your own power, bringing great boons and benefits to uplift your seasonal farming.

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good things will happen 🧿

things that are meant to be will fall into place 🧿

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See, our first mistake was trying to have a civilization in northern Europe between October and February. The darkest three months of the year should be for staying home under the blankets, midwinter festivals, and getting blind drunk when the sun goes down at 4 pm like the bog gods intended.

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One of my favorite art pieces of Aphrodite from the 4th century BCE: Men, women, and children alike (possibly a family) approaching the Goddess in worship.

If I have a family of my own some day, I would like to lead them in worship this way for the Heavenly Mother

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comparing my life to that of moss, stones, the lifespan of a honeybee. things of that nature. it tempers the insanity.

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Growing.

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This is Money Snake. She only appears every 312 years. 

If you reblog her picture within the next twenty-five seconds you will have good luck and fortune for the rest of your life. 

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Astragaloi

Astragaloi is a form of Ancient Greek divination using the knucklebones of a sheep. They can be real, or fake ones made from pottery, metal, or wood.

Numerical Value

The curved, small side is called “Chian.” It counts as a 1. The wide, convex side is called the “belly.” It counts as a 4. The wide concave, side is called the “back.” It counts as a 3. The flat small “S” shaped side counts as a 6.

Here is a visual to show you:

Throwing

The divination can be performed two ways. One way is to throw the same bone five times, using the first throw as the first number, the second as the second, and so on. Or, one could have five bones, and read them from left to right.

Interpretation

Each series of numbers has a name and an interpretation. They are as follows:

11111 - The Sky above Olympus: you will think well and find happiness in your work. But appease beauty (Aphrodite) and the messenger (Hermes).

11113 - Warlike Wisdom: By avoiding enmity and Animosity, you will reach your prize. The activity that you have in mind will turn out as you wish it.

41111 - Fate: Don’t do the business that you are engaged in; it will not turn out well. It will be difficult and impossible around someone who tires himself out. But if you go abroad for some time, no harm will come from it.

33111 - The Eagle: you will achieve your goal; do not fear.

61111 - The Largest Daimôn: It will be better to fulfill whatever vow you made to the daimôn, if you intend to perform what you ponder in your mind. You will be saved.

11143 - Caring Fortune: Do not do the business you are about to do.

33311 - Victory: you will win; you will take what you wish, and you will achieve everything; you will be honored, and you will overcome your enemies, the plan that you are about to realize will be according to your desire.

44111 - Joyful Victory: Do all your business because it will turn out well. The sick will be healed; and he who is in another country will return home.

41133 - Healing: A storm will come about your business, but it will turn out well; who is ill from his suffering will be freed, and safely home the one who is abroad will come.

11163 - Steering Fortune: Do not yet make haste to go; rather wait, if you set out to rush mindlessly, you will do great damage to yourself, but if you wait, blameless time will accomplish everything.

11164 - Beauty: Sail wherever you wish; you will return full of joy, for you have found and accomplished everything that you ponder in your mind; but pacify beauty (Aphrodite) and the messenger (Hermes).

13333 - Lightning’s Wisdom: you are fit for every business and ready for any undertaking. He who is ill will be saved.

33331 - The Seasons: the plan that you follow is not allowed, thus wait; it is terrible to walk into enmity, competition, and a trial.

13334 - The Sea: do not hasten to do business. Now is the wrong time.

61133 - The Daimôn: Do not project terrible things and think terrible thoughts. There will accrue no gain from it, and no reward will come from this path you are walking.

44411 - The Good Daimôn: you will be lead down a good path. You will return with rich fruit and an untroubled Fate.

13344 - The Savior, the Sky: Approach with courage the business that you set out to do; do it! You will win.

11166 - The Egyptian Sky: Undertake with courage the way you set out in your mind. you will accomplish whatever your mind tells you.

33333 - Fortune the Savior: The woman who has given birth to a child, had both breasts dry, but then she again flourished and has milk in abundance. Then you too will reap the fruits about which you ask.

43611 - The King of Hosts and Guests: Do not make haste with the business for which you set out, it is not yet time. Him who is ill will be saved, and and an end to the travel of him who is in foreign land will come.

63331 - The Strong Hero: The moment has not yet arrived, you make too much haste. Do not act in vain, nor like the dog that has borne a blind puppy. Act Deliberate calmly, and you will be lead rightly.

64411 - War: Why do you hurry? Wait calmly, the moment has not yet come; if you hurry without sense and in vain, you pursue something that is not yet ready. I do not yet see the right moment, but you will have success when you wait a little while.

43333 - Time: Scorpions stand in your way, do not hurry towards the business that you intend; wait, and what you wish will arrive later; neither to buy this nor to sell is better.

44413 - Music at Delphi: Do not make haste, it will not be better to go; when you wish to rush mindlessly, you will damage yourself very much; but when you stay put, blameless time will perform everything.

66113 - Marriage: The time is ripe for marriage; you will marry and return home. You will achieve whatever you want in your business, having found the thing about which you are anxious.

16634 - The Messenger, The Savior: I do not see anything painful among the things about which you ask me; do not think small, go forward with courage; you will find everything you wish: your vow will be fulfilled, and there is a perfect occasion for you.

44333 - The Sun: Take courage and fight. You will punish your opponent.

14444 - Revenge: now everything will be fulfilled and you will be lead the right way. You will perform everything according to your mind, do not wear yourself out anymore. You will achieve beautifully whatever you desire.

66114 - She Whom You Cannot Escape: Do your business and undertake it; the time will be favorable. In the middle, difficulties and danger are waiting. As to the other oracles, things will turn out well for you.

16443 - Lightning in the Sky: What you plan will not turn out according to your liking, when you do it; it is not useful to travel to foreign lands. You will show no insight if you sell now, nor will it be useful.

44433 - The Greatest Daimôn: I do not see this plan as safe for you; thus wait. You will do well, after this there will be luck; as for now remain calm, and stay helpful.

63333 - Good Time: Do not make haste, rather wait and do not act like a dog that gave birth to a blind litter. Take counsel calmly, and things will turn out happily for you.

66133 - Good Hope: Everything about which you ask me is smooth riding for you and safe; do not be afraid, the painful difficulties will end and you will disprove the suspicions.

44461 - The King of Possessions: Proceed with courage, the oracle is about hope; it announces also that the sick person will be saved. If you need to consult an oracle, you will receive what you desire.

34444 - The Messenger who Brings Gain in Trade: you will think of a good plan, undertake what you desire; you will find whatever you ask the oracle for, and nothing will be bad for you.

33364 - Victorious: You pronounce a good oracle, once you have thought it through, you will do whatever you desire; you will win, you will reap the fruits, and you will achieve everything.

44444 - Inexorable Fate: The sun has gone down, and terrible night has come, everything has become dark. Interrupt the matter about which you ask me; it is neither better to buy nor to sell.

43661 - The Moon: Do not undertake this business; it will not turn out well for you. One will help the one who is ill, and if there is any fear, nothing bad will happen to you.

63344 - The Protecting Boys of the Sky: A man who makes haste does not achieve what opportunity offers. You have a profit, and there is fear everywhere because of evil; your business is ill-fated, and everything is painful; watch out!

66611 - The Fire: It is impossible to do business; do not toil in vain! And do not turn every stone, lest you chance upon a scorpion. Fussiness will not bring you luck, be on your guard for all sorts of misfortune!

66441 - The Harvest: Everything about which you ask me is on a smooth way for you and safe; do not be afraid; I see nothing that will bring you harm; take heart and go forward.

44463 - The Sun, Bringer of Light: You will achieve whatever you desire, and you will find whatever you worry about. Make an attempt, having taken heart; everything is ready; you will find what is invisible, you will come to the day of salvation.

33366 - Fortune, who Leads to Good Things: Your matters are doing well; this oracle tells you to press forward; you will get away from difficult illness and master everything, and he who is erring in a foreign land will return.

16663 - The Manifest Fates: Do not put your hand into a wolf’s mouth, lest some harm happens to you; the matter about which you ask is difficult and delicate; but you stay quiet, avoiding travel and business transactions.

44446 - The Ocean: throwing seeds and writing letters on the sea are both pointless and fruitless doing.

43366 - Terrible War: Do not undertake the travel that you intend! Nobody will do it. A large fiery lion is about, against whom you have to be on your guard, a terrible one. The oracle is untractable, wait quietly.

16664 - Wisdom: Honor wisdom (Athena), and you will get everything, whatever you wish, and everything which you are planning will turn out well; she will free from bonds and will save the sick person.

66443 - Happiness: Sail, wherever you want, you will return home again, having found and done everything according to your wish; you will achieve everything, and thus to buy and to trade is happiness.

66633 - The Music of Delphi: Stay put, do not act, obey oracles. With time, you will find an occasion, but for now stay quiet. If you wait a short while you will achieve everything, whatever you desire.

44466 - Time, the Eater of Children: Stay at home with your possessions and do not go somewhere else, lest a terrible monster and a revengeful demon approach you. I do not see this business as reliable and safe.

46663 - The Moon, who Brings Light: Take courage; you have an opportunity; you will achieve what you desire, and you will come upon the right time to begin your travel; your toil will have its chance; is is good to engage in work, competitions and litigation.

66661 - Mother of Gods: As wolves overpower sheep and powerful lions overpower broad hoofed oxen, so you too will master all this, and everything about which you ask will be yours.

66644 - Thunder of the Underwold: The business has its obstacles, do not make haste, but wait; there is a road, painful, impossible and not to be approached; to buy is painful and to sell brings loss.

66663 - Heavenly Beauty: a good oracle, travel to you will be granted; you will escape from sickness and vainglorious thoughts.

66664 - Damage: It is impossible to undertake something vain; do not in vain toil uselessly, lest you incur damage by pressing on. It is not good to begin traveling nor doing business.

66666 - The Square Messenger: Do not go, wherever you intend to; it will be better for you to stay; I see something hostile to you, thus wait; afterwards, it will be possible, and you will be freed from fear and saved from toil.

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A Hittite ritual for depression

One of my favourite things to study is ancient medical texts. It’s strangely comforting to find so many of the things we suffer from today, from blindness to celiac disease to infertility, described by people thousands of years ago. The text I came across today is a particularly special example, since it deals not with a physical but a mental illness: depression.

The text in question (CTH 432) is a Hittite ritual, written in the 14th or 13th century BC in Anatolia (modern Turkey), and intended to make the Gods favourable to the person with depression. Unlike today, people in the Bronze Age didn’t differentiate between mental and physical illness: to them, many persistent afflictions were simply a sign that a God was had turned against the person. To make the God favourable again, a ritual was necessary.

Our ritual was done at night, and involved the person washing, shaving, cutting their nails, and having a palm frond placed on their head while they prayed for forgiveness. While this all might seem strange and even funny to us, some passages are familiar and touching even today.

The opening paragraph describes depression in the following words:

If a god or goddess is [angry(?)] with a person, so that his mind is ever spinning(?), and [during the day] everything is difficult for him while at night he cannot sleep. (If) by day [and] night he is always in a foul mood. Further[more], (if) he keeps having bad dreams and cannot [get a good night’s] sleep, so that he is always irritated, and […] consume him - then [they] placate the god or goddess in respect to that person (in the following manner).

(Translation: G. Beckman, 2007)

This is one of the prayers recited:

Quiet is the countryside, silent are the hills. The door is …, the gate is closed, and the door-bolt is set. The gods of the night are silent… The city gate of the great gods is open. Enter, O gods and goddesses of the night: Qaqqad, the South Wind, the North Wind, the East Wind, the West Wind, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Mercury, Pegasus, the Pleiades, Hyades, Orion, Sirius, Canis Major, Scorpius, Aquila, Pisces Austrinus, Pisces W, Cygnus+Cepheus, Lyra, and Perseus. O those of Ea, stand by me! O those of Ea and all those of Anu, help me!

And this is said about the outcome of the ritual:

During the propitious months, in whatever month he cries for mercy, it will be fine.

The expression “it will be fine” is common in this type of ritual, but it’s reassuring to find it written about depression, is it not?

This text shows that across time, we have never been alone in our experiences. Even depression was shared by people thousands of years ago. Though our interpretations and treatments may have changed, we still tell each other the same thing:

Depression can heal.

It will be fine.

***

This post was inspired by G. Beckman, “A Hittite Ritual for Depression (CTH 432)”, in D. Groddek (ed.), Tabularia Hethaeorum: hethitologische Beiträge Silvin Košak zum 65. Geburtstag (Wiesbaden 2007), 69-81.

More references to mental illness from Mesopotamia proper about can be found  in J. Scurlock, B.R. Andersen, Diagnoses in Assyrian and Babylonian Medicine (Urbana 2005). Chapter 16 contains the following description of anxiety: “… he continually has a crushing sensation in his chest, speaking and not being heard, calling out and not being answered…” And about depression: “If a person continually has a crushing sensation in his chest and depression (and) his heart ponders untruths…”

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Aphrodite’s Marjoram

It is often repeated that Aphrodite first planted Marjoram in her divine gardens on Mt Olympos. The plant was to represent joy, and in turn because of its association with Aphrodite the herb corresponds with marriage and happiness. It is also said to smell reminiscent of the goddess herself.

Marjoram is indigenous to Cypris, Turkey, and the Mediterranean, and was in fact known to the ancient Greeks and Romans as a symbol of happiness. It's botanical name, origanum, is perhaps derived from the words oros 'mountain' and ganos 'brightness', meaning 'brightness of the mountain’ or ‘mountain’s bright joy.’ [1]

Marjoram and Oregano are often mistaken and their names were used interchangeably in ancient texts - either as sampsuchum or amaracus, though there are some subtle differences between the use and description of the two. It is generally assumed that both refer to Sweet Marjoram in ancient texts. [2]

When discussing perfumes in his encyclopaedia Natural Histories XIII, Roman author and naturalist Pliny the Elder says, 'The best [marjoram for perfume oils] comes from Cyprus and Mytilene, where sampsuchum abounds in large quantities,' [3] which is why there is such a strong association of marjoram with Cypris and therefore Aphrodite. Marjoram was used often in sweet oils and perfume ointments, as well as it's more common culinary and medicinal uses.

[...] She went to Cyprus, to Paphos, where her precinct is and fragrant altar, and passed into her sweet-smelling temple. There she went in and put to the glittering doors, and there the Graces bathed her with heavenly oil such as blooms upon the bodies of the eternal gods —oil divinely sweet, which she had by her, filled with fragrance. And laughter-loving Aphrodite put on all her rich clothes, and when she had decked herself with gold, she left sweet-smelling Cyprus and went in haste towards Troy, swiftly travelling high up among the clouds. [...]

- Homeric Hymn to Aphrodite

The “divinely sweet oil” - ambrosial oil - would not be solely made from a common herb, but it would not be a stretch to assume that the sweet-smelling fragrance of Aphrodite’s temples and a component of the sweet oil would be the famed perfume herb of her homeland.

In Virgil’s Aeneid 657-694, Aphrodite (Venus) must put Ascanius to sleep so Eros (Cupid) can impersonate him:

But Venus pours gentle sleep over Ascanius’s limbs, and warming him in her breast, carries him, with divine power, to Idalia’s high groves, where soft marjoram smothers him in flowers, and the breath of its sweet shade.

We have to suppose that Virgil deliberately chose Cyprus because of its significance to Aphrodite, and therefore also deliberately named the marjoram on which Ascanius lay because of its significance.

Both Pliny the Elder and Dioscorides, a Greek physician 40-90AD, describe multiple gynaecological uses for marjoram. While Aphrodite is rarely associated with medicine, the link to gynaecology is an interesting nod to her. Referring back to marjoram supposedly carrying the divine scent of Aphrodite, the link to the sexual nature of the goddess becomes obvious, especially when considering the typical placement points for perfumes are also erogenous zones (neck, breast, inner arm and wrist, inner thigh, etc.)

🪴

Sources:

[1] Wikipedia

[2] Natural Histories Note 34 and Natural Histories Note 1

[3] Natural Histories Book XIII

Aeneid

Smell and the Ancient Senses by Mark Bradley

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“Hygeia (Health), most revered of the blessed ones among mortals, may I dwell with you for what is left of my life, and may you graciously keep company with me : for any joy in wealth or in children or in a king’s godlike rule over men or in the desires which we hunt with the hidden nets of Aphrodite, any other delight or respite from toils that has been revealed by the gods to men, with you, blessed Hygeia, it flourishes and shines in the converse of the Kharites (Charites, Graces); and without you no man is happy.”

Ariphron, Fragment 813 (from Athenaeus, Scholars at Dinner) (trans. Campbell, Vol. Greek Lyric V) (text source)

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BYDŁO ••• CATTLE - "Dobre rezultaty dawały również następujące poczynania: pasterz brał do do jednej ręki wesz, a do drugiej pchłę, po czym biegł nago na granicę wsi. Jednego owada wypuszczał z jednej strony granicy, drugiego - z drugiej. Dzięki temu bydło pasło się spokojnie" - "Another good result occured this way: a shepherd took a louse into the one hand, and a flea into another. He ran naked to the end of the village, where he released instects to the two sides of the border. After that, the cattle pastured calmly." - from "Góralskie Czary. Leksykon magii Podtatrza i Beskidów Zachodnich"

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A, B, C, H, G: To reconcile individuals living in the same house but who hate each other, the following spell would be written on a piece of paper that was then placed beneath the doorsill over which all them had to cross:

A, b, c, h, g, g, T, g, v, x, o, o, g, k, F, s, z

Vaitkevičienė, no. 1630 (spell from Poland)

+B:+N:+G:+N:+R:+4: For protection against any kind of damage in nineteenth-century Poland, the caracteres below would be written on a piece of paper to be carried on one’s person:

+B:+N:+G:+N:+R:+4 O:+B:+C:+B:+4:+ C:+C:+M:+N:+S:+B+e

Vaitkevičienė, no. 1621 

XF IOX: To enjoy the favor of one’s patron, a person should write and carry:

XF IOX, Foraun[?] x Flior  x Atatnreg[?] x: w imię patrix  x str.F ily x

Vaitkevičienė, no. 1633 (spell from Poland).

- from Dictionary of Ancient Magic Words and spells From Abraxas to Zoar by Claude Lecouteux

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Kirke/Circe (Κιρκη) - Magic Weaver of Aeaea

I’m working on writing up a more in-depth introduction to worshiping her, but in the mean time I wrote this as a crash course on Kirke/Circe, an ancient Greek (and sometimes Roman) goddess of witchcraft and sorcery  :) This is by no means intended to be an exhaustive guide to Kirke and worshiping her, but more as a quick summary and reference to guide further research. If you have further questions, feel free to DM me any time !

Overview: Goddess of/Domains (1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7):

Sorcery and Witchcraft

Transmutation

Illusion

Necromancy

Prophecy

Realm: Island of Aeaea (1, 2, 4, 5, 6)

Main Myths 1. Odysseus/Ulysses on Aeaea: See the Odyssey, the Library, Fabulae, and Metamorphoses 2. Medea, Jason, and Kirke: see the Argonautica and the Library 3. Kirke and Scylla: See Fabulae and Metamorphoses

Associations and Symbols: Symbols:

Cup/goblet/wine bowl (1)

Loom (1)

Wands (1)

Masks (UPG)

Sacred Animals:

Lions (1, 4)

Wolves (1, 4)

Beasts (2)

Hawks (7)

Pigs (1, 2, 4)

Associated Plants:

Moly

Magical herbs

Hallucinogenic plants and fungi(UPG)

Wheat ( UPG)

Bleeding hearts (UPG)

Colors (all from 1)

Purple

Gold

Silver

Red/Crimson

Misc Associations, Powers, and Traits

Can summon wind (1)

Associated with the sun & fresh water via her family (Assorted)

Braided hair (1)

Golden eyes (2)

Speaks with a mortal voice (1)

Relationships: Family

Father: Helios, the Titan of the Sun (1, 3, 4, 5)

Mother: Perseis/Perse, the Okeanid (1, 3, 4, 5)

Brothers: Aeetes (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) and Perses (4, 5)

Sister: Pasiphae (The Library, Fabulae)

Children:

Telegonus by Odysseus (4, 5) or by the will of Aphrodite (3)

Agrius by Odysseus (3)

Latinus by Odysseus (3, 6) or Telemachus (5)

Nausithous by Odysseus (5)

Romus, Anteis, and Ardeias by Odysseus (6)

Romanus by Odysseus (6)

Loves:

Odysseus/Ulysses (1, 4, 5, 6)

Glaucus (5)

Retinue/Attendants

Assorted nymphai (1)

Offerings Traditional/Literature supported Offerings (all from 1):

Barley

Pramnian Wine

Honey

Meat

Bread

Hawk, wolf, and lion votives

Weaving

Modern/UPG offerings:

Herbs, particularly lavender

Poisonous or hallucinogenic plants (do your research and handle with care!!)

Frankincense and myrrh incense

Bleeding heart flowers

Snowdrops

Divination as a devotional act

Bibliography

Homer. The Odyssey. Translated by Emily Wilson. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, inc. 2018.

Apollonius Rhodius. Argonautica. Translated by William H. Race. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. 2009.

Hesiod & Homer. Works of Hesiod and the Homeric Hymns. Translated by Daryl Hine. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press. 2005.

Apollodorus. The Library. Translated by R. Scott Smith and Stephen M. Trzaskoma. Indianapolis: Hacket Publishing Company, Inc. 2007.

Hyginus. Fabulae. Translated by R. Scott Smith and Stephen M. Trzaskoma. Indianapolis: Hacket Publishing Company, Inc. 2007.

Zalewska-Jura, Hanna. “Circe and Rome. The Origin of the Legend.” Studio Ceranea 8 (2018): 77-87

Yarnall, Judith. Transformations of Circe: The History of an Enchantress. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. 1994.

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There are old gods, gods older than human history. Even the vanir and the titans are young to them. The faeries only talk about them in legend, and the djinn only whisper their names in secret. They are gods so old no human remembers their name, gods of the mammoth steppe and the green Sahara, their last strings upon this earth kept alive by faded paintings on cave walls. They are the gods the nomads prayed to when dodging Saber toothed cats, and the gods that the old shammens evoked when the seas at doggerland. Some of them so old they were prayed to by the Neanderthals and Denisovans.

Their names are forgotten but they stalk the forgotten woods, still existing at the heart of the dreaming, waiting for us. They're so ancient they no longer even look like the gods of humanity, only like strange shapes, and eldritch things. And when they come to humanity now, they come as alien strangers, as things of the night, as things to be feared. These are the elder gods, those first gods that seem so alien to us, long alienated by their subjects, long changing and scheming. Perhaps they still remember us, remember what we once were. Perhaps they miss us.