You are the SUM in the Flesh!

Although I have done some work on the Temple lately, unpacking boxes and moving things around, I have not established any altars as of yet. Today, I will set up the Ancestors first. No my Gods and Goddesses, not my various patrons, or a work space, or even a dedicated space for the Family Altar and Deities. The Ancestors are first.

The Ancestors are first because they are the root from which the whole tree of my life has grown, without them I would not be. You don’t have to have liked your departed kin in life, or even have gotten along, for them to always, and I mean ALWAYS, be there for you spiritually and magickally. They have passed unto the last great initiation and no longer hold judgment or the bias of life. They have your back—always. For you see, you are the SUM of their incarnation in the flesh.

Your Ancestors have an invested interest in your well-being and success. This is why they will come and give their best advice (which you may not always like), work on your behalf, stand as front-line guardians against anything that opposes your prosperity, and much more. By dedicating space for them, you give them a physical space to “sit” and be involved in the affairs of your life.

You don’t even have to know who your Ancestors were to tap into a relationship with them. If there is blood in your veins then you can reach them. Additionally, not all Ancestors are “of the blood” and may be tied to the particular land upon which you live or link through your lineage and or membership with an established group. All of these are important to have some basic relationship with. It doesn’t need to be complicated. Simply by giving them offerings of dark bread or red wine will do wonders. As you lift them up, so too will they lift you.

I’m not going to dig too deeply into the intricacies of working with one’s Ancestors, but if you don’t already work with them, it may be time. Start with just one, and have a bit of tea.

Boidh Se!

-SM

“Lost in a thicket, bare-foot upon a thorn path.”

Gateway of Eternity

Listen to the rhythm of the beat. Whether it comes by drum or rattle doesn’t matter. Or if it is in the resonance of a chant or the stomping of feet doesn’t matter. Listen to the beat and let the time between echo into the background. The rhythm does not have to come by instrument but can be the swish of the broom when cleaning, the pounding of one’s feet when running, or even the breathe as it pauses on the in and out. It doesn’t matter; just find the rhythm and focus.

Focus upon just the moment of the stroke. Grasp for it just as is slips between the proverbial fingers of the mind—ever changing. Each zenith passes into the past to be refocused upon the next. Hold space for the beat and nothing else, focus there. Allow the beats to become one, to become a gateway through which your awareness steps across the abyss of the personal into that of the eternal.

Boidh Se!

-SM

“Lost in a thicket, bare-foot upon a thorn path.”

Bring on the Basics

One of my Craft teachers-past once told me that one of the first things to get thrown out in magickal/spiritual practice was meditation. Although I advocate heavily in favor of a strong mediation practice, that’s not what I am on about in this blog though I will mention mediation in regards to my experience. When life gets hectic, busy, chaotic, or simply out of the norm, it is the basics of our routine practice that get neglected first.

Think about your own practice. Honestly, when was the last time you did a relaxation exercise or basic grounding exercise merely for the practice of that specific technique? Maybe my stone cast doesn’t hit you, which is great. But if you are like me, “when the going gets tough…” you put them off. You let that part of yourself that likes the comfortable and routine and easy talk you out of it. This is part of being human; overcoming it is also part of developing discipline in one’s practice.

I’ve spent the better part of the last month in some stage of moving roughly 1,800 miles (about 2,896 km) across the map. My altars are all in boxes, all my tools, and other than BoS*, which I don’t trust the movers with, so is my library. This is the time when the basics are the most beneficial, not when set in a routine of normalcy or within the general range of comfort, but when life steps out of the norm.

Yet, the basics went right out the window, most of them anyway. There are a small handful of daily practices that I’ve kept up but most of them flew the coup fairly quickly. Now that I’ve arrived and things are beginning to come out of boxes it is time to reestablish a whole host of practices. However, just as they were the first to go, the basics need to be the first to return. Not all at once either. Every few days to a week, after getting the previously added set back into routine, I’ll add another in until the whole corpus of my Craft is up and running in this new place.

This morning I sat** for the first time since before the move began and I plan to sit again later tonight. I have nothing else on my practice schedule at the moment other than sit twice a day until the habit has returned and then I’ll pick up something else. This doesn’t mean I won’t do things like set up my Temple space or go meet the local spiritual landscape, just that my focus on getting the basics back on track is first.

So if you have fallen off the proverbial basics horse, add them back in—gradually. Or if you’ve never really had a regular practice that includes the basics, it might be time to pick them up. There is a reason they are the foundational basics.

Boidh Se!

-SM

“Lost in a thicket, bare-foot upon a thorn path.”

*Book of Shadows

**It’s kinda code around my house for what in mediation circles is known as cushion time. If I say I’m gonna go “sit” in the Temple for a few, everyone knows I’m going to go meditate.

The Nomad's Life

My life just transformed itself. It was not unexpected but it is major. As I have mentioned on occasion in this blog, I move every three years or so. Well, my time in New Orleans came to an end at the beginning of the month. I learned a lot while there, made many great friends, and my Craft grew by leaps. I am glad for the transfer though as the long hours that my previous position at work required was full of stress—tons.

As I type this, I am sitting on my air mattress awaiting the delivery of my household via the moving company in two days’ time. For the first time in my life, I am on the West Coast of the U.S. and have found myself in a place I don’t know. It can be quite transgressive learning about new areas and

temporarily putting down roots. I’m a nomad by occupation and though I am sure I will love my time here, I know that there will be an end.

There is much to do in the coming weeks. There is a new Temple Room to establish, consecrate, and bless. There are altars to unpack, spirit allies to welcome into their new homes, and a landscape to learn. The land here is not the South Eastern forest I have known my entire life. The flora and fauna are alien.

I went running yesterday and didn’t know the names of almost all of the plants, no birds, and even saw a lizard that I can’t identify. As a Witch, I have my work cut out for me. Also I need to meet the genii loci of the area, ancestors, patrons, and much more. I need to learn of the local indigenous peoples. I need to stir the landscape and fold it into the vocabulary of my Arte. Finally, but hopefully not last, I need to find Her Hidden Children. I know they are here and have already made electronic acquaintances, but that isn’t the same as standing in the circle with them.

It is a whole lot to consider. I’ve decided to take a middle road approach. I’ll make a list of what needs to be done but approach it with whims and let spirit lead when to mark off an item. Mostly though, I sit and once again have the blank potential of a new place before with which to create my life for the next few years.

I can't forget, and hopefully this post reminds you, that the potential for transformation lay in each moment and that one does not need to move across the country to make change.

Boidh Se!

-SM

“Lost in a thicket, bare-foot upon a thorn path.”