Dracula in May

The original Dracula was an old man, who became his younger self only after consuming blood

Most people don’t realize that Dracula takes place in May. First in “Dracula’s Guest” we have Jonathan Harker arriving in Transylvania during Walpurgisnacht. He ends up needing to be rescued from other vampires in a Village of Vampires. Because the idiot didn’t heed his guide’s warnings. His guide specifically told him that the village was damned.

And abandoned for that very reason. But he thinks it’s a lovely day. And after his driver refuses to drive through that village, he decided he will walk all the way to his destination. Through said village. Not only is Harker one of the dumbest literary characters in history.

He’s also the luckiest. How he survived to the end of the book and beyond, is beyond me. So I am going to share some Dracula links with all of you. Both the literary Dracula as well as his more historical version. I thought both these articles were amazing start.

First one is this one. The epidemic in Ireland which inspired Stoker’s concept of Vampirism by contagion. Even though Vampirism by contagion is something far more ancient. Going back to several ancient civilizations.

Forget Vlad the Impaler. A 19th-century cholera outbreak in Sligo may have been Bram Stoker’s chief inspiration.

BY RONAN O’CONNELL JUNE 3, 2020

AN AFTERNOON WIND FUNNELS DOWN deserted Old Market Street, past shuttered shops and darkened restaurants. The rowdy Irish student town of Sligo has been frozen. It is two months into a strict nationwide lockdown enforced by the Irish government to combat the novel coronavirus, which has killed more people per capita in Ireland than in the U.S.

The last time Sligo was this empty—this lifeless, this restricted—was 188 years ago. Cholera was the culprit. That epidemic spawned not just death, poverty, famine, chaos, and desertion but also a legendary vampire. Yet only in late 2018 did Irish researchers make this startling discovery: Dracula was born in Sligo.

In 1832, on Old Market Street, a 14-year-old Irish girl hid in her home during the cholera outbreak, which killed more than 10 percent of the town’s population. The ghastly scenes around her—mass graves, corpses in the street, victims buried alive—she later recounted to her son. His name was Bram Stoker, and those bleak stories were a key source of inspiration for writing Dracula—one of the most influential novels in history. First published in 1897, this vampire tale has spawned dozens of movies, plays, TV shows, and books.

Continue Reading

(Amazing eh? Now we have the real life Castle Dracula. Which was a military fortress that Vlad Dracula used as a base of operations).

EVEN WITHOUT ITS BLOODY HISTORIC ties, Poenari Castle, also known as Poenari Fortress, would be a majestic, exciting place to explore on its own merit. Architecture buffs would marvel at the 13th century mortar work, lovers of fantastic scenery would find the cliffside view mind-blowing. Poenari Castle doesn’t need a sordid story to be spectacular, but it happens to have that as well.

The story is a legendary one and to many, a confusing mixture of truth, history, legend, and fiction due to the convolution between the novel “Dracula” and the factual history of Vlad III Dracula “The Impaler”, whose name inspired the book. Bram Stoker modeled some of his main character on the more basic facts about Dracula’s actual life, but his knowledge of Romanian history and the true story of Vlad the Impaler remains suspect.

Continue Reading

Then we have the amazing Dracula’s Guest

I tried to put the embedded video but it wouldn’t do it here. So I had to put the link instead. That’s one of my two favorite versions. Here are some images from that story.

Yes people, when caught in a snowstorm, this idiot thinks the safest place in a haunted village is……the CEMETERY

And there he sees the uncorrupted body of the Countess. Who committed suicide in life. And was cursed to become a Vampire in death. And yes, this is one of the ways in which a person can become a vampire.

The Countess arisen

The Countess shape-shifted as a Wolf, keeps Harker warm and drives off the other Vampires. She wants him for herself.

I also think this is the creepy tall vampire from the beginning of Walpurgasnacht
Harker Rescued
The End is the Beginning

Other fun facts

The beginning of Dracula is set a few days after Walpurgisnacht. On St. George’s Eve. In fact, Jonathan Harker is even warned about it. By one of the people he’s traveling with on the stage coach.

“Just before I was leaving, the old lady came up to my room and said in a very hysterical way:

‘Must you go? Oh! young Herr, must you go?’

She was in such an excited state that she seemed to have lost her grip of what German she knew, and mixed it all up with some other language which I did not know at all. I was just able to follow her by asking many questions. When I told her that I must go at once, and that I was engaged on important business, she asked again:

‘Do you know what day it is?’ I answered that it was the fourth of May. She shook her head as she said again:

‘Oh, yes! I know that! I know that, but do you know what day it is?’ On my saying that I did not understand, she went on:

‘It is the eve of St. George’s Day. Do you not know that to-night, when the clock strikes midnight, all the evil things in the world will have full sway? Do you know where you are going, and what you are going to?’

She was in such evident distress that I tried to comfort her, but without effect. Finally she went down on her knees and implored me not to go; at least to wait a day or two before starting. It was all very ridiculous but I did not feel comfortable. However, there was business to be done, and I could allow nothing to interfere with it. I therefore tried to raise her up, and said, as gravely as I could, that I thanked her, but my duty was imperative, and that I must go.

She then rose and dried her eyes, and taking a crucifix from her neck offered it to me. I did not know what to do, for, as an English Churchman, I have been taught to regard such things as in some measure idolatrous, and yet it seemed so ungracious to refuse an old lady meaning so well and in such a state of mind. She saw, I suppose, the doubt in my face, for she put the rosary round my neck, and said,

‘For your mother’s sake,’

And went out of the room. I am writing up this part of the diary whilst I am waiting for the coach, which is, of course, late; and the crucifix is still round my neck. Whether it is the old lady’s fear, or the many ghostly traditions of this place, or the crucifix itself, I do not know, but I am not feeling nearly as easy in my mind as usual,”

Count Dracula and The Eve of St George at The Great Hall in Toronto

– Excerpt from Chapter 1 of Abraham “Bram” Stoker’s Dracula

I actually wrote a whole article on why St. George’s Eve is considered a night of evil spirits. And of black magic etc…for anyone who is interested. So enjoy your evening of Drakula.

Cheers,

– M

St. George’s Eve

From
The Legend of the Will-O-the-Wisp

St. George’s Eve is here yet again. The time of the dead.

And of the dark spirits. Demons roam the skies and land. And wicked things are everywhere. Satanists practice their rites to Satan and Lilith on this night. And the Fallen rise once more to plague those of the mortal world.

As soon as the sun set today, the wicked creatures came out to play. Some legends say that you see Will-O’-the-wisps at night and the pathways. And that these are souls of the dead that guard treasures they buried before they died. So that if you see these fiery spirits, you must mark on a map where you saw them. So that you can take the treasures.

Yes this is a dark night indeed. Don’t think for a moment that you’re safe in this modern world. You aren’t.

They slip between the cars as you travel at night. Or maybe they’ll enter the cars with you and give you a good fright. Not even police or taxis are safe. Phantom riders are known to hitchhike. Even the police aren’t immune from such mischief.

Ask not for whom the bell tolls…

The Fell Spirits are out and about. Dancing on the tombs of the dead. Waiting to see whom they should strike.

Beware, for the Black Mass shall be tonight. And soon the dead warlocks shall arise. Don’t be caught out when they party though. They don’t like being spied on. Just ask Tam O’ Shanter.

Enjoy your parties this Saturday night. Just be wary of those who appear on the roads……

Cheers,

– M

Astrological Forecast : The Stars of the Dead

Hermes in his Reaper aspect

Mercury retrograde is upon us once more. We approach that time of the month again. When our divine messenger becomes a psychopomp. And leads the dead away for the mysteries of the afterlife. Let’s begin.

From Witches of the Craft,

Pretty straight forward. The usual stuff about not making concrete plans or important decisions during a retrograde. However there’s another side to it. A side that is way more positive. The way of silence.

The way of silence involves using dark energy. And dark beings also. For the healing of the mind, body, and soul. It isn’t the typical new age stuff. Not that I am against the New Age.

One of the people I admire the most was Edgar Cayce, the Father of the New Age. He was a Christian Mystic and Prophet. This man had powers that baffle even the more traditional mediums. My problem is with people who have taken the New Age and perverted. Making it into the trendy, feel good, Splenda flavored crap it has become today.

Simply, dark energy does not always mean evil. It actually doesn’t ever. All energy, such as light and dark are neutral. And can be used for evil or good accordingly. Let me show you an example of the darkness being used for good.

The Path of Silence

Sister’s of Perpetual Indulgence,
Day of the Dead Shrine, at the Ceremony of Altars at SF’s Garfield Park in the Mission District on the evening of November 2.
By
Walker Dukes

This is what I call the path of silence. It’s a term I sort of self coined in my own meditations. For my own brand of shadow work. So in my shadow work, when a Retrograde comes, I try to sit still in the pain. Sit outside of my comfort zone.

Where most people don’t like to be. I think of the things I typically hold in. Like a closed fist. And I unclose that fist. I let the flood waters out.

I react in a variety of different ways. Including crying. I let myself shake even. Or sometimes I get so overwhelmed I sleep. And sleep is actually the best way to do this work.

There in the Darkness

Hermes is one of the Theoi Khthonioi the Gods of the Underworld

There in the darkness, I eventually quiet the voices down. Until I hear nothing. Just the empty void. As quiet as a tomb. I hear a single water drip down into a pool.

And when I open my eyes I’m in a cave. And there, walking towards me out of the infinite shadows that would drive all of us mad, is Lord Hermes. The Shadow Lord. No longer the young, clean shaven youth. But the older, darker, bearded man.

I am on the cold sandy floor crossed legged. He sits on a stone in front of me. He studies me for a long time. It makes me uncomfortable as hell. And he asks me what I wish to discuss.

And I begin my therapy with him.

Actually this is therapy and confession as well as cleansing. During this time I practice pure necromancy. I avoid anything related to the light as much as possible. And I gaze into the void we all carry within. And I try to learn more about myself.

I don’t hate myself at all. In fact it’s the opposite. I hold court with myself. Different versions of myself appear behind him. And each speak and tell me their problems.

I begin to strategize with Hermes and my guides. About what changes to make. One by one each version is purified in a ritual cleansing that is secret. Then I re-absorb them into myself. In this way I am regaining my personal power.

And doing away with negative things that only hinder me. I am also promising to myself in the name of a God, that I will at least try to be better. And to do better next time. This is a form of shadow work you can do during any retrograde. You just substitute Hermes for the whatever God of whatever planet is in Retrograde.

And of course the problems each retrograde brings out are different. Another thing to do, is perform a Necromantic Ritual. Either with your own ancestors or the God whose planet is about to enter retrograde. Asking them for a deliverance from the bad luck and other negative aspects of a retrograde.

The Shadows Grow……

but that’s not a bad thing

There’s a solar eclipse tonight. Which when combined with the New Moon and the Mercury Retrograde unleashes a lot of shadow power. When there is a solar eclipse, it’s the Sun Gods and Goddesses entering their death forms. This may sound like a contradiction right? How is it possible. How the fuck can a Sun God like Ra or Hawk Maiden or Apollon or Amaterasu be dead? Because everything dies.

Even our sun will one day die.

And then it all comes back in an endless cycle. A hoop that never breaks. The Sun Gods can and do die. In fact they appear in several funerary texts. Eternal life can also be the same as death.

In Christianity, you can only gain immortality through dying and entering Heaven. And then you become one with Jesus and therefore be eternal. So it’s not a contradiction. The Solar Deities entering their deathly aspects increase the powers of the Retrograde and the New Moon. Which is the natural time of the dead.

Now to make it even stronger, today is the feast of Baron Samedi. The Vodoun Loa (God) of the dead. And it’s also the feast of Saint Expedite.

The Stars of the Dead

From :
SamanthaMarsWriter.Blogspot.com

This is what I am calling all the astrological forces I am seeing and sensing right now. Because I view them in my mind as stars. And they are lining up in Star form. Right now it’s a Hexagon. A six pointed Star.

The New Moon in Aries. This also means Aries the God of War is in his death aspect.

And therefore he adds his own power and wrath. Barron Samedi the Vodoun Loa (God) of the Dead and Saint Expedite. Tonight’s solar eclipse. And finally, the effects of the Mercury Retrograde. Tomorrow it drops to a trio : Mercury retrograde, and the New Moon with chthonic Aries.

Then a Pentagram with those two plus Saturn’s Day (Saturday). The day for the dead. And St. George’s Eve which is the time of the dead and phantoms. But also the dark spirits.

Eve of St. George

Demons roam the skies and land. And wicked things are everywhere. Black Witches practice their rites to Satan and Lilith on this night. Mercury Retrograde takes place on Friday. Any and all kinds of magic during this time will be powerful.

For good and bad.

Some legends say that you see Will-O’-the-wisps at night. And that these are souls of the dead that guard treasures they buried before they died. So that if you see these fiery spirits, you must mark on a map where you saw them. So that you can take the treasures. Yes this is a dark night indeed.

The veil will be at its lowest this week. So what does it actually do? I’ll make it easy. It can,

• Magnify all magic by means of lowering the Veil

• Create doorways to facilitate travel between the worlds

This goes both ways. Certain witches have been known to use times of the day or night of year to enter the spirit world. During the Wild Hunt, some witches used to astral project and join the Hunt. And this is such a time. The Stars of the Dead as I call them, will begin to fade Sunday morning.

Leaving only the New Moon in Aries and Mercury Retrograde. Then the New Moon will vanish with the first quarter moon. And it will be just Mercury Retrograde (for now). But this is just for now. I haven’t consulted my calendar in a while.

Some links and info!

From Pandora Astrology

Also from Pandora Astrology

NEW MOON 29°49’ ARIES | WEDNESDAY 4/19/2023 AT 9:12 P.M. PT

The Seven Symptoms of every Solar Eclipse By The Alchemist

It makes sense when you remember all of the positive things that the Sun embodies. So the Sun dying on us spiritually would cause all that

Three Crystals for the Solar Eclipse By The Alchemist

NEW MOON APRIL, 20 2023 AND A RARE HYBRID SOLAR ECLIPSE

Total Solar Eclipse and New Moon in Aries By The Mage

See you all soon,

– M

The Pink Moon from Miami

I’m on my Earth and Air shrine which I use for meditation and Astrology. And the view of the moon is good here. I’m waiting for it to be 12:34 am my time to get a good sight of the moon. So I figured I would show you my pictures so far.

Yesterday before I went with my Mom to her church. For a witch, going to holy ground before a ritual is both good in the sense of grounding, and also good for soaking up spiritual powers.
When I came back

I’m just here on my balcony, praying to the Gods (which includes Jesus). Enjoying the night breeze with my plants. And listening to advice from my spirit guides. Grounding with the Earth, because one does not need to be on a tree or dirt to ground. You can ground from anywhere.

If you’re on planet Earth, then you could be a thousand feet in the air and still access it.

Even while one looks up at the Moon. Here, let me entertain you with some of the links on the moon sent to me today.

A Gorgeous Ritual for Tonight’s Magic

Courtesy of Lady Beltane

FULL MOON IN LIBRA 2023 (also courtesy of Lady Beltane forwarding that article from Vibrational Astrology.com)

Full Moon Libra April 6th 05.34am BST – A Pause in the Mayhem

Year of the Water Rabbit 2023 – Chinese Astrology Predictions

I saw a herd of animal shaped clouds from my shrine. Weird eh?
You wouldn’t see it very well from this picture. But in real life it looked like the Fiji Mermaid.

Part way through I realized I would not be able to see the moon from my shrine. As it moved, it got into place above my roof. So I had to go downstairs just to see it get to it’s peak. But I waited until the appropriate time so that I could enjoy being with my plants and spirits. Just a little while longer.

A cloud cover started to come in at the last minute.

So I decided to hurry my ass down and hope for a good image.

Mother Fucker
As predicted the cloud cover showed up
But eventually it all cleared up
Look at how it shines like a beacon in the darkness
Blazing like the sun

So I took out my wallet as is the custom among the old witches of England and I opened it up. And I prayed to the man in the moon to fill it up with money. And any and other forms of prosperity. I already had my Moon water prepared when the Moon began to show how big it was on Tuesday. This time I prayed also for my other charms to be blessed as well.

I also uttered a secret wish.

And I left. Oh by the way the ritual I did for protection worked. For those who are wondering. I will write that post up soon enough. But for now, I’m going to take my moon bath.

And pray some more. Good night everyone,

– M

Well, this looks comfy

I have to say, I am loving this. My Mom sent it to me. Before she read what it was she said,

“Oh! What a beautiful little neighborhood,”

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

To be fair, this looks better than anything we have in Florida. We just might have to talk to the local funeral director and God of the dead about ownership prices.

– M

Of Death and Life and Dreams of Night

Tatagua, the Witch Butterfly of Cuba. It’s said to be the spirit of the indigenous woman Aipiri who was cursed into that form. A beautiful omen of Death or bad luck

This seems like such a morbid subject. And maybe it is. It’s something that’s been on my mind lately. I’m observing the Parentalia. A Roman festival where the gateways of the dead are opened to the living.

When our ancestors are honored with banquets, prayers, and other offerings.

Of Death

Head of the family leading the prayers to the Ancestor shrine and its figurines by Jesus Leon

In the last week of the Parentalia, the Greeks have the Anthesteria (blossoming rites) sacred to Dionysus. Anthesteria has a touch of the chthonic in it. I have been meditating on the dead everyday. On people I have lost. Friends and mentors.

The Greek Day of the Dead: the Anthesteria of Dionysus

Relatives. Animals that I have loved as children. It’s not all because of the Parentalia or the Anthesteria. It’s also because I have a health scare. I am too obese for my height.

And I am hypertensive now. And pre-diabetic. I gave my mother a good scare today. All I could think of was, if I died today, how will she and my dog be? I’ve been suffering from low blood pressure lately. And I’ve been having these throbbing headaches.

I keep thinking about something my Druid master had been teaching me. I have studied death midwifery as part of my necromancy. I’ve been helping the dead since I first came into my power. Protecting them from predatory spirits. Assisting them with crossovers and also aiding their living families.

After all that, I now realized I should have made a will for myself. And paid a for my own funeral. There was a wise Santero. His wife and him were both masters of magic. And well known in some parts of Miami.

My mom is the nurse that goes to her house to assist the doctor there. She learned this man had paid for his own funeral years in advance. So that by the time he actually died, it would be paid in full. And his family would be okay. He was buried in all honors like King Tut.

An intro to ancient Egyptian tombs

Which leads me to other things. To how the ancient Egyptians believed that preparation for the afterlife was so important, you had to dedicate part of your life towards it. So what seems morbid to others is actually preparing for the next life. Necromancy isn’t some morbid fascination with death. It’s the celebration of life and continuing it and even conquering death.

Or at least living with it in a way that doesn’t scare anyone. But now I am thinking I need to set up a living will. I don’t really own much. But I need to make sure my things are taken care of so my family doesn’t have to do it. I need to ensure that my spell books and idols go to someone who would appreciate them.

Preferably someone who wouldn’t abuse them or separate them. Or sell them. They are a family and belong together. Some of them are spirits I made friends with. They need a new friend and caretaker.

Furniture and clothing to go to someone who needs it. And finally, rituals done. Funerary rituals done for me. And a 13 day purification ritual done on my home so that the spirit of death can be chased away. And my family can live in a clean and cleansed home.

In my case I don’t want or need a grave. I want to be burned. Most Cubans I know want that. Most people regard corpses as empty shells that have outlived their use. For necromancers not so much.

We understand they can have all manner of uses. But I don’t want or need someone digging me up (no I haven’t done that). And I don’t want my shell. All I want is for the ashes to be tossed somewhere and that’s that. Not even kept.

I have heard there is an environmentally friendly use for ashes now. It’s a way to contribute to life. No, I am not suicidal. I am worried. Worried that if something happens, I’m just not ready for it.

I mean if I passed away tonight, none of you would know it. I don’t have a contingency plan for it. I realize now that I need to make one. And entrust several people with how to send out the message should it happen. And not just for here.

Old relations that I have fallen out of touch with. To make sure they are aware of me gone. To get a network of people to do special prayers and rituals on my behalf. To ensure I cross over. And of course from different religions because that’s just how I roll.

To reach out to certain women I have loved in my life. Who I didn’t treat the way they deserved. To tell them that I have passed. I have been trying to make amends lately for being such an asshole in the past. But I have been unsuccessful because I lost touch with so many people.

It’s really hard.

Of Life

Love Me Not
by Easheta Shah

I have been thinking of some ex girlfriends, and realized they really did love me. But I was incapable of truly loving them back. Because I didn’t know how to. My father wasn’t a good role model. Between cheating on my mom and also being an abusive prick who even stalked her.

All of my examples of a “healthy” relationship were patriarchal and sexist shit. Do I even deserve to be loved? I had it before. And I sneered at it. Mocked it. Abandoned it.

Betrayed it.

Which is why I deserved what I got a few years ago. Someone I wanted to marry, left me. She said,

“I can’t be with someone who is so angry with life,”

And she was right. In the end she did us both a favor. For her sanity and mine. I get it now. But back then I didn’t.

I lost everything I worked so hard for in just three days after our breakup. I lost the respect of my peers. I lost my job a few months after this. I lost my will to truly live my life. I lost respect in the eyes of certain relatives who told me, that my reaction was “unmanly”.

That figuratively speaking my manhood was taken away by my ex.

She basically insinuated that I lost some of my worthiness by falling apart. That I should have just let her go and move on. I couldn’t believe this person told me this and thought it was helpful critique. I didn’t know what to say to that. Which is why I didn’t even bother telling any of the male relatives, it probably would have been worse.

I ended up a thousand dollars in debt to the hospital. Turns out heartache in general feels suspiciously like a heart attack. My purpose in life was to help build us a life. I wanted her to have all of her dreams. But me taking the caretaker role was probably sexist to begin with.

Maybe she didn’t want that. Maybe I was being domineering without meaning to be. I don’t know. All I can think is that I lost myself somewhere along the way. And then lost her.

Of Dreams at Night

An aerial view of Takis Shelter in Greece

I keep envisioning my life alone in the future. With animals in an animal sanctuary somewhere off the beaten path. There’s this man on a Greek Island called Takis. He gave up everything to save the dogs of Crete. Guy was a nightclub promoter and he gave it all for them.

And now he has a massive land in the middle of no where with animals he saves. He gets up at dawn and works until 2am everyday. Did I say alone? Never mind. Fuck that shit. Maybe I wouldn’t go that far.

Takis place

I would get bring many homeless people. And we would have a commune. And the work would be divided between a night shift and a day shift. That way it would work around the clock. We would grow our own food.

Be Vegan so we wouldn’t kill animals. Heck maybe a bunker. Why not? If some idiot presses a button we could at least survive. I’d love to just have a Mount Weather style bunker within a mountain. But I would want it to be like the Dwarf fortress in Lord of the Rings.

Erebor by Matt Zolman

Some badassery right there. Maybe invite others and grow a community. Scientists and mystics, hippies and free thinkers, and artists. Librarians with every book you could imagine. These are things I often dream about but have not done.

So much I want to do. But right now I need to focus on keeping my health. And on making special plans in case something were to happen to me. Florida has become too insane even by Florida standards. Now we have road rage shootings.

Now you have to be prepared for all things.

These are just some of my thoughts at night. I lay awake in the early hours of Saturday morning. Afraid to go to sleep in case I not wake up again. The worst part? Not having romantic love. I have familial love.

And the love of my dog and friends. But you need other types of love. Someone to warm your bed at night. To lay next to and tell you everything will be okay. A true partner to adore with all of your heart and soul.

I relish that love that I took for granted once.

How I wish I could have it again. How I wish this loneliness would just die and leave me be. How could I feel so alone in a city filled with 455,075 people? I wish I knew the answer to that.

Random Links of the Day : Places and Magic Addition

Haunted Land by D-P Photography

On this addition of random links of the day, we have some interesting articles on places and magic. And magical places in some cases. I kept getting so many of these articles that I made them into a random links addition. We’ll also be exploring ghosts and at least one article on haunted objects. Let’s get started!

Timeo Danaos et Dona Ferentes : The Dangers of Malevolent Spirits and Haunted Objects

From the same author :

Crosswords Work

Hear the Wind on Mars

The Algae that might save Earth’s Coral Reefs

The Iceberg Cowboys that Wragle Pure Water from the large frozen blocks

Clean and ethically sourced diamonds using air pollution?

🔝 I’m skeptical of this to be honest. It sounds like BS like “carbon capture” which only transfers the pollution from the air to the ground. Still I figured I would add this here and take a look.

Iceland’s Eruptions reveal the hot history of Mars

What Caused This Massive Mud Volcano Eruption in Indonesia?

5 Colorful Stories About the Pageantry of the Lunar New Year

Celebrating Scotland’s Bard? Break Out the Haggis for Burns Night

The Covington Film Garden

Mother Goddess Tefnut and a Morality Tale: The Lion in Search of Man

The Fairy Glen of the Black Isle

Kami the spirits of Japan

The Holiday That Welcomes Back the Sun With Pancakes and Coffee

Offerings to Ghosts by Bodhi-Bowl which is an amazing mystical blog of Buddhist thoughts and teachings

Political Witchcraft: A Brief Overview of Occult Activism in Thailand from Upon the Altar another amazing mystical blog

Place Names : The Origin of Location Names

The Bird Migration Explorer App from the Audubon Society

Fear of the Unknown

Atlas Obscura Email

Bob the Street Cat Memorial in London

Christians, Pagans, Muslims, Hindus what happens when we all get together

Enjoy!

– M

Land Wight (Spirit) from Of Mythic Creatures Great and Small

The Jade Buddha

Wonderful isn’t it?

I promised I would talk about this as soon as I had the chance. And I finally did. So what exactly happened the day I brought the Buddha statue and the Guardian Lions home with me? Something weird. I knew something was off. And in hindsight, I should have listened to my gut.

But I just ignored it as me being paranoid or looking too deeply into something. My friends always say that about me. And they constantly tell me to chill out. But as I tried to perform the cleansings on them, they kept being blocked. I just assumed that they had heavy residual energy from whoever owned them before. 

The objects weren’t evil or impure or whatever. But they were Haunted.

The Old Neighbor

Old Woman Praying by
Matthias Stom Dutch

late 1630s or early 1640s

So according to my Aunt, she was friends with a wonderful older resident. A few years ago this woman died of natural causes. I think she said it was cancer. Before the woman died, she gifted the Jade Buddha and Guardian Lions to my great aunt. It was as a way of saying thank you for always looking after her. 

Now my Great Aunt is a Christian and doesn’t believe. But she didn’t want to disrespect this woman and shun her gift. So instead, she kept it in her home in a place of honor. Kudos for my great aunt! But it looks like the older resident didn’t leave. Apparently that elderly old woman was still watching over my aunt from beyond the grave.

While attempting to cleanse the statues, I discovered her presence within them. I kept trying to force the energy out. But whatever it was, it would not leave. So I realized this wasn’t the standard run of the mill imprint. This woman was living inside of her Buddha and Guardian Lions. 

I hadn’t sensed her because she was so dormant, that she might as well not have been in those items. It was only after I took them to my house and started trying to cleanse them that she woke up. She had been protecting my great aunt all this time. But eventually she “fell asleep” so to speak because there was no danger. 

Communicating with the Dead

From Witchcrafts Artisan Alchemy

I communicated with her soul once I realized there was person in those statues. I explained to her that my great aunt gifted them to me because I study and partially practice Buddhism. And that she believed they would be better off with me. Instead of just being a home decoration. She agreed, but was worried about my aunt.

 I told her I could cross her over. And that once in Heaven, she could become a powerful guardian spirit and could return to my Aunt’s house with greater power. And greater ability to aid her. She agreed and I performed a simple crossing over ritual with a candle. She entered the light. 

And the next day, I confirmed with Bone Casting that she was well and now watching over my great aunt. Acting as her new spirit guide. All’s well that ends well right?

Family

A family dinner
by MotionAge Designs

Blood doesn’t always mean family. Sometimes family is the one you make. Your tribe, your people. Those whom you stand by and who stand by you. Even in death. 

There is also an old Spanish Spiritualist saying,

“What my eyes can’t see, my dead see,”

Meaning what I can’t sense, they will. And they will tell me about it. My Christian Great Aunt has a new spirit guide officially added to her guides. Whether she believes that or not. Moving on, I was finally able to cleanse the statues. 

And this time the ritual took. I then began blessing them and calling the spirit of the Buddha to enter his image and live there. I also did prayers for the Guardian Lions to enter their own statues. So now I have extra house hold spirits. Extra family to watch over me. 

I placed the Buddha and his Lions upon my Buddhist shrine.  

And for the elderly woman, I took several stones. I cleansed them. And enlivened them for her and put them on my shrines outside. That way whenever I do religious rituals, I am feeding her spirit along with the spirits and Gods I work for. That way she will never become forgotten or unnamed dead. 

And she will grow stronger with each offering. As a reward for her kind heart and generous spirit. And now I keep this Buddha statue and the Guardian Lions. As a way to honor her good deeds.

Ritual & literal death in 2023 : Otura Niko strikes again

It looks like the long winter goes on, as death continues to reap the living. After the intense period of the Super New Moon in Aquarius, we have all been left shook. New Moons are times of the dead and bad luck. But a Super New Moon is like Mother Nature was on her period and flushed all the nasty negative shit out. And you better watch out that you don’t get swept in it too. s

As mentioned this year we are in the sign of Otura Niko, the Foreman of Death. And this year is full of death in every which way. My friend just lost his other friend to a car accident. I had to perform a ritual to cross him over last night. And there is the incident of the dead woman who was attached to a statue I had gained.

The irony is that the signs of the spirits are all saying the same thing : drop your to-do lists, relax, be present. Don’t worry about the next thing to do. It’s kind of hard to do that when you have friends and family dying off. Or when you have to constantly watch your ass to make sure the sky isn’t falling. I have a headache.

But not a normal headache. It’s more like a spiritual headache. And I need a pill that lasts the whole year.

Oya the Orisha who escorts the dead to the Cemetery

Random Links of the Day : Friday the 13th Edition!

The Magus, Dr. John Dee

Welcome to the first Random Links of the New Year! Today is the birthday of the Magician John Dee. The Founder of Enochian Magic. The personal occult advisor of Queen Elizabeth. And a powerful Divine Magician, a Mage who gains powers from holy beings such as the Angels. And his birthday coincides with Friday the 13th this year.

I had written a blog about that a few years ago but I can’t remember exactly when that happened. So to start off, here is an amazing article by Icy Sedgwick on John Dee. It includes an image of the varying crystal that supposedly was granted to him by the Archangel Uriel. By the way Icy is an amazing author who has written the Necromancer book series. A really dark version of Harry Potter.

I freaking love it! So please check out Icy’s books!

John Dee and his friend and colleague Edward Kelly, the Angelmancer and Scryer who would receive visions from Uriel via a crystal ball. Behind John Dee you can see the spirit of a woman. Most likely a shade of the dead conjured by them both from a cemetery. To read more on that and also on Edward Kelly’s necromancy for here

Friday the 13th and the Divine Feminine

Omens & Symbols : Friday the 13th

The History of Friday the 13th

Haunted Houses are nothing compared to Haunted Lighthouses

The Glowing Orbs of Route 66

The Ancient Tale Of Gello, The Supernatural Baby-Snatcher by the Historian’s Hut

9 Foot Skeleton Found in the 1900’s

Nian : The Monster Behind Chinese New Year & Firecrackers by Hatty Liu

These passages are from Dee’s Monas Hieroglyphica (1563), a work in which Dee provides an explanation for his famous Monad symbol. In Latin he’s showing the Monad Sigil is actually the combination of the signs for the moon, sun, elements (+) and finally fire. Which would explain why it has its own magical powers. It’s because of all the power is already contained within the sigil itself.
The Rune Soup interview on “John Dee and the Empire of Angels”

Whom do Banshees’ visit? The Visitation Rites of Banshees

The Wisdom of Cherokee Billie E-Book

A Story of Loss, Meaning, and Mutual Aid (Funeral Rites for a Neigboor’s Pet)

Monkey’s made stone tools in the Americas, not humans Scientists say

The Lost City of Zezuria, the City of Little Birds

Tending the Hearth Fire Modernly

Schedule a reading with Psychic Cherokee Billie

Friday and Thirteen: A Brief History by Christine Valentor

The New Version of Magical Prayers (From a Catholic Occultist, fascinating blog)

In Ghana, the New Year Starts With a Fancy Dress Masquerade

The Story of how an Heiress who lived to be 104 saved the Ossabaw Hogs in a Heist for Conservation. An eccentric heiress, a daring mission, and the fight for North America’s most unusual pig.

How do you get rid of Demons? You challenge the Fuckers to an ultimate Dance Off! At a Festival in Bhutan, Some Dancers Bare All to Ward Off Evil Spirits

The Ghost House and House of Witches : Villa de Vechhi

12 Famous Graves

Hawaiian Adventure Shamanism

Add DE to Your Protective Circle – a Hearth Witch Tip

The Serpent King and the Prince (Another blogger worth reading on here, amazing post!)

The Witch’s Rest from New World Witchery

Happy Friday the 13th!

– M