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Subscribe to this list via RSS Blog posts tagged in divination

Posted by on in Studies Blogs
Divination, Play, and Sacred Work

If you want to get the magical community riled up, tell us how divination tools often begin their existence as toys. You’ll see how we quickly split into two factions: one which vehemently denies this, and one which asserts the truth of it (with evidence that is often ignored and bypassed by the former faction). For the former set, I’ve sensed a root assumption at work that makes accepting the mundane, unserious origins of many divination forms so difficult, and even heretical. For them, play is inherently secular and unworthy of a sacred function. Divination, and anything else related to spirit work and religion, must be solemn and sober to have value and efficacy.

 

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  • Jamie
    Jamie says #
    Cunning Wife, I believe you are 100% correct. Just look at the 'Chessboard' of Gwenddoleu ap Ceidio, one of the 13 Treasures of T

Posted by on in Culture Blogs
Pendulum of Truth Invocation

Many witches carry a pendulum with them at all times to help make the right decisions. I sometimes see pendulums twirling over herbs and produce at the farmers market or hovering over restaurant menus. They have recently become available at most metaphysical stores, but a lovingly handmade pendulum is imbued with more personal energy. An easy DIY way to make your own pendulum is to take a strong string or length of leather and tie a ring, gemstone, or crystal to the end. By the light of the new moon, take a bundle of sage, light one end and pass the smoke over your pendulum, “smudging” and purifying your space.

Wear the pendulum around your neck for seven days. Each night, light black candles on your altar to absorb negative energy and, holding the pendulum still, chant:

Guide me to the path of truth, O goddess hear my song.
This pendulum I charge with my energy, to judge right from wrong.
So mote it be.
 
On the seventh day, you can begin using your new tool. Any time you need advice before making a decision, dangle the pendulum and observe its movementswaying from front to back means yes, left to right means no.
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Posted by on in Paths Blogs
The Minoan Tarot: An Artist's Journey

Pagans are often a "bootstrapping" sort of people: We do things for ourselves, sometimes because we want to, often because we have to. I'm pretty sure a lot of Pagan resources come into being because someone went looking for something, couldn't find it, and ended up creating it themselves.

That is exactly how the Minoan Tarot was born.

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It's deep Winter, and the People are hungry. Even the wisest and most experienced hunters can't agree where the herds of caribou might be just now.

So they throw the bones. The bones say: Here.

The hunters go There, and—sure enough—they do find caribou: not as many as hoped for, but enough, at least, to get us through.

 

When it comes to the working principles behind divination, I'm of the Projection-and-the-Human-Penchant-for-Seeing-Patterns School myself. I'm a strong proponent of divination nonetheless.

Why? Because when you've weighed all possible actions and still can't reach a conclusion, divination offers a way out of stalemate. When you don't know where the caribou are, it's better to go out and look than to sit around the fire arguing.

Divination makes a good servant, but a bad master. You're a fool if you let the cards run your life. But when you really can't make up your mind, divination can offer a way out of inaction. My father always says, “It's better to make a decision and act, than to dither and do nothing.” I can't help but agree. As a general rule, taking initiative offers a better chance of survival than passively waiting for someone, or something, else to act on you.

Inaction kills. "Going with the flow" is for Newagers. Witches act. You're more likely to get the result that you want if you act, than if you wait to be acted upon.

So “All things being equal, consult divination” is my motto.

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Posted by on in Culture Blogs
Moonstone Mirror Magic

Moonstone is a psychic mirror, especially for females. Wise women of ancient India were the first to figure this out. If you are feeling out-of-sorts or off-center, turn to this lovely stone, sacred to the shining orb in our night sky. Under moonlight, gaze first at the moon and then at your smooth, round moonstone and look for the answer to your personal mystery. A message will come to you in the form of a dream this night. Keep a journal at your bedside to record this moonlit message.

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Posted by on in Paths Blogs
Minoan Auguries: For the Birds?

Birds abound in Minoan art: swallows (shown above in a detail from the Spring fresco from Akrotiri), doves, partridges, hoopoes, and other birds whose exact species we can't identify. I've looked before at the variety of our feathered friends who appear in the frescoes, statuary, and other Minoan art.

In Modern Minoan Paganism, we associate swallows with Therasia, doves with Rhea, and larks with Korydallos. But how did the Minoans view birds, through the lens of their culture and beliefs?

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How I'm Making a Decision About a Convention part 2

I'm deciding a moral dilemma. I have an opportunity to make money while bringing my message to a new and possibly broader audience. On the other hand, there is a risk that instead of bringing my message to more people, association with the convention's sponsor could damage my reputation and thus diminish the reach of my message.

As I mentioned in part 1, my next step was to seek divination from 3 different diviners. I'm not looking for a 2/3 majority on the yes or no question of whether to go any further with the pursuit of this opportunity; divination isn't democracy. I'm looking for what all 3 agree about. The first person I asked is not doing divination at this time, but I know many diviners. I have not seriously sought any other diviner's advice before, so this is new for me. I already know that I can't read for myself, though. Every time I do that, what I see is my own death.

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