A favorite site

http://ravensblight.com/

Haunted Paintings

I have been searching the web for examples of Haunted Paintings. Not haunted as in ghosts emanating from them, but paintings done of houses, etc, that have elements of ghosts, witches, bats, cats, etc. Their are a few talented artists out there and I myself have ventured into this. I have decided to take up the brush again. My first foray is going to be a painting of my own house. Pimped out with all of the above and hopefully more. I am toying with the idea of adding glow in the dark elements as well. Will attempt to post pics when completed. It could take me anywhere from days to weeks to months so don't hold your breath. Or.... hold your breath and I will use you in my next haunt...

MoD

Fehu

Paraphrased slightly from Northern Mysteries and Magick by Freya Aswynn.

The first of the Runes. Fehu appears as a stylized F. The traditional meaning is Cattle/wealth. More specifically to me, moveable wealth. Back in the day, when we were tribes and clans, the Chiefs wealth was measured in the amount of cattle he had. In Rune divination, Fehu is regarded as a persons ability to make or maintain wealth.

I highly recommend the above mentioned book for anyone that is interested in Runes. Freya Aswynn has spent a good part of her life learning and living with Runes and has thus become a (the) leading expert in all aspects of the runes, lore, magick, divination, you name it! (My opinion anyway).

Blessings, MoD

Ostara

Me and the grandbabe had a swell time with a little seat of our pants Ostara ritual today. We created sacred space together with her repeating the words after me. It was quite fun considering she will only be three at the end of this month. We thanked the Goddess Bried for a beautiful spring day and then we grounded with a chocolate crisp bunny and strawberry milk, or strawberries as Princess Evil calls it. If you are wandering if that was a miss-spelling, no, it was not. That little label was given to her, funnily enough, by the USPS. A friend sent a package to us when she was born, care of me of course, but addressed to Princess Evie. When the USPS transferred the info to the label, they addressed it to Princess Evil. She ofter lives up to her name, all in good fun of course. But what do you expect? She is the number one granddaughter of the Mother of Darkness...

Fun

I have found that, in my experience, wicca has been the first religion that did not turn a snobby nose up at having FUN! Of course, not every ritual or working is about fun. Some are truly serious and occasionally heart renching. But having a joyful experience is a big part of the spring and summer celebrations. For me, it balances me out. It allows our playful sides to come out. Weaving a mayday pole. Playing games, singing and making merry in the midst of celebrating the God and Goddess is a great way to connect to spirit. It is one of things that drew me to witchcraft as a child (yes, I have been on this path in one form or another all of this incarnation.) I love the serious side of the craft too, but after the coldness of winter, the joy of spring lets us give free reign to our inner child. Brightest Spring Blessings and Happy Ostara to you all!  MoD

Energy Part Deux

If you have been an art lover like me, or at the very least read any of Dan Browns books, you have probably looked up a few of the paintings that he has mentioned in his books. Of course, these paintings are all Christian in nature, so maybe not. Personally I love the art of the Renaissance. Michelangaelo, DaVinci, they saw something that most people nowadays do not. Auras.

Auras are the energy bodies that surround stuff. Organic stuff and inorganic stuff. Everything has an aura. When I was learning to see auras, I started with holding my hand up in front of a light off white colored wall. I had to focus on what I wanted to do; see auras, THEN I had to let my eyes de-focus. The easiest auric body to see is the one closest to the body and to me it looks like (and may very well be) heat rising. Similar to the heat mirages that you see coming off a hot summer road. It's clear and wavery. Easiest to see on organic objects.

With a whole lot of practice, I learned how to expand what I was seeing to colors. Reds, blues, and greens are the easiest for me to see. I am still learning and practicing when I think about it. It's easiest for me to see these when someone is standing or sitting perfectly still.

Have any of you had any experience with seeing auras? Any great techniques you would care to share?

Blessings, MoD

Energy

One of the greatest things that I ever learned, IMHO, is how to feel, see, and manipulate energy. Everything is made up of energy. The air we breath, our bodies, the table we sit at, the grass that grows, the force that makes it grow, EVERYTHING! I learned, early on, how to create energy balls and send them. It's been part of several different trainings that I have participated in. In my Massage Therapy class we did a weekend intensive on Reiki. Part of that training was concerned with feeling energy. During the weekend we spent some time making and throwing energy balls around. Someone was snapping pictures and in those pictures you can actually see the balls of energy in the room with us. AMAZING!

In the beginning, we were taught to rub our hands together. Feel the tingling sensation? It's created by heat and friction and it very much feels like the energy you manifest when creating energy balls.

Next, Hold your hands in a prayer position about and inch apart. Visualize a small white ball forming between your hands. Feel the energy. Be open to it. Practice this until it comes to you easily.

The next step involves creating the energy ball and then pulling your hands apart, visualize the ball getting larger and smaller. Feel the resistance of your hands pulling apart. Stretch the energy. When you are done, visualize dropping the energy into the ground and it being absorbed by Mother Earth.

When you are comfortable with that, move the energy away from you. Send it into a plant or a tree. Send it into yourself if you feel like you need a boost. Play with it and let me know your results. Have fun with it!

Blessings, MoD