Cue all the disgruntled people in the more Northern states and countries. Coming here to tell me that I’m lucky that I live in a place that has the same temperature as Dante’s inferno. But I will say something of this place, the clouds tend to be beautiful.
Doesn’t he look like a Great White to you?
I was celebrating the second day of the Noumenia here. And as I went through the litany of prayers that I have been doing today, I suddenly looked up. And I began to think. Was it thinking? No, I think I was praying again without being aware of it.
The Tuatha de Dannan often appear as mist
I was partially thinking of another group of Gods I worship, the Tuatha de Dannan. Not only the Gods and Faeries of Ireland, but one of the most ancient pre-human races that lived there once. Maybe it was because of the clouds. Both they and the Theoi and Theaia are called “the Shining Ones”. And in my mind I prayed in my own way,
“Please bring back the cool, the gentle winds with their fresh air. Please bring back the cool weather. Bring back those beautiful clouds I used to get up and see in the mornings in Miami. That fresh cold air when we did have cold here. One of the only good things I remember from my childhood.
Please bring back the morning mists. The damp dew of the early mornings.Bring back those sweet cold mornings with the frost of the old winter, which still rides the new spring air, bring back that which brings light to my life,”
I stopped, realizing I had accidentally said this in the middle of my official prayers. Or maybe it isn’t a mistake. Nothing done during ritual is ever a mistake. That’s what one of the Priests at my Hellenic temple always tells me. Maybe the ritual brought out what was in my heart.
So I went back to saying the words with an open mind.
“Let me relive the wonderful feelings of joy I had in school when I wokeup on a cold morning. One of the few joys I had as a child. Let me feel alive again with these wonderful clouds and allow my soul to soar. Grant me what I ask. Please I beg of you.
Please O Shining Ones, bring to us the cold,”
SeleneThe Tuatha de DannanMy Totem Pole of the Celtic Gods, not just the Tuatha de Dannan but also other Celtic Gods
For my Druid Master Nicole and my Hellenic Priest Tim, thanks for always being sources of knowledge, wisdom, and inspiration.
Many of you know that among the many traditions I practice, is an esoteric or occult form of Christianity and Judaism. From a Judeo-Christian perspective, this is the time for magic with Rabbi Yeshua Ben Yosef (Jesus Son of Joseph). Because of the miracle of the Fish, it was later taken as an early Christian symbol for his people.
The Gospel of Yohanan (John) 21:1-14, Yeshua replicates the fish and loaves of bread to feed everyone
In modern Astrology, the new moon is seen as a time of beginnings. In ancient astrology however, it’s a time of the dead. And often considered a time of bad luck. For the Romans, the Nones or New Moon was so unlucky, it didn’t even have a God presiding over it. Which meant it was devoid of power.
One would see two different perspectives here. One is the idea of miracles repeating. In modern astrology, Wiccans and other groups perform wishing rituals in which they burn papers with wishes and desires on them using magical candles. The request is sent to the universe. And in theory, the universe obliges you.
It’s a little more complicated than that, but that’s for another time.
The Christianized version of the Celtic Imbolc festival
So the miracle of the replicating fish makes a lot of sense here. In a sense you are replicating your desires and reeling them in with a net. But more important than that is enlightenment. The idea that Yeshua and his followers would become “fishers of men” and that rather than kill them, like fish, the men caught in his net would live forever. This isn’t me trying to convert you.
I’m speaking strictly of Christo-Pagan mysticism. Yeshua’s movement started out as a mystery religion. Where members were eventually sworn to secrecy. And they taught great magics. Including the ability to command the spirits.
To exorcise entities. To heal among other things. Sometimes just by speaking it into existence. But modern Christians follow the bloody dogma of the council of Nicea. The false doctrines of the Emperor Constantine I of Rome.
And with these false doctrines, the religion was demystified. Most of the love, hope, and the wonder this faith once taught, is gone. Like a chalice of fine wine that has been drained.
Meditate with the stars. And allow your miracles to grow.
Not just financial miracles. Everyone prays for more money. But not everyone stops to ask why do we pray for more money. And the answer to that question, is that we’re addicted to it. We live in a world where in most of the planet, you don’t have access to clean drinking water without money.
And thus this is also a time for us to see if we can make our dreams come true without money. Or if we do need it, how to replicate it. But not to become engulfed in selfishness. And not to be slaves of it. And that is probably the most important part of this lesson to learn.
Instead how to use the spirit to work with the material. Because material doesn’t have to be “evil” like many religions teach. I can hear my Gnostic Christian brethren screaming “blasphemy!” but it’s true. Just because something is dense or physical, does not innately make it bad. What’s bad is how it’s used.
But this is also a time of the dead. And it coincides not only with the Roman Parentalia, but also the Greek Anthesteria. Both being times to honor the dead. So the New Moon is a perfect and auspicious time for necromancers and those who work with the ancestors. In fact it magnifies those influences.
Also, Yeshua is a very chthonic God. After all he died and rose from the dead. And was a great necromancer of his time.
Baraka, Asherah, and the Gods of Ancient Palestine
Asherah (GOD the Mother) the GODDESS, the sister and wife of Adonai. Notice her depictions even in ancient statues are very close if not identical to imagery of the Virgin Mary. She is the Supreme Queen of Heaven. She and her daughter Sophia were renamed “the Holy Spirit” in the Bible. Notice almost all descriptions of the Holy Spirit or wisdom show it as a feminine force.
Now more to the point, there is type of energy in Hebrew magic called berakhah. Sometimes written as barak, baraka, bracha, brokho, brokhe. It can be translated as blessing or benediction. One person, a Judeo Christian mystic told me it’s also used sometimes for the word “lightning“. As the energy appears almost electrical sometimes.
It is a blessing or gift we all have which comes from the Elohim (the powerful ones). The ancient Hebrew Gods. Before Monotheism took hold over Judaism. There were many types of Elohim. In fact it’s believed by many that the Greek God Adonis was originally the Hebrew God Adon.
Each of the Elohim were children of Adonai (the Lord) and his wife and sister Asherah. God the Mother, the Mother Goddess. Asherah once had her idol right next to the ark of the covenant. It was a wooden pole dressed like a palm tree, which was sacred to her. Eventually the fanatical sect that worshiped only Adonai, cut down her pole.
And they destroyed imagery associated with the other Elohim. The Bible rewrote this horrific genocide and persecution as “righteousness” and “the will of Adonai”. In my work about Ghosts in Judeo-Christian religion I talk about how King Saul banned witches across Palestine. Despite the fact that witchcraft was a fixture in the Jewish faith. Even under his rule.
And the Witch of Endor was frightened of him being in her house. She believed he would kill her where he stood. Even though he came to her for answers when Adonai would no longer speak to him. It’s interesting here because the Bible acknowledges that her powers are real. And she actually did summon the Prophet Samuel’s Ghost.
It’s even more interesting because it’s mentioned that
“He inquired of Adonai, but Adonai did not answer him by dreams, or Urim, or prophets”.
Urim is the casting of lots by the way. It was popular in the Middle East back then. These were considered acceptable ways to work with God. But when a Pagan does it to talk to their God/Goddess it’s “evil”. It isn’t the only time this happens by the way.
There are many cases of Jewish witches and wizards across the Bible. Including the prophets and priests of Israel who performed all sorts of ceremonial high magic.
The ark of the covenant attended to by one of the Kohanim, the ancient priests of Palestine descended from Aaron, the brother of Moshe (Moses)
Baraka is a divine power granted to worshippers of these Gods. Like the awen granted by the Irish Tuatha de Dannan. The ashe given by the Orishas of Nigeria. The ekat by the Netjer and Netjeru of Egypt, these are all powers. Some have the Baraka that grants prophesy.
Others material wealth. Still others healing. It all depends on the person and what they desire both in this and the other world. Now there are many Gods in this pantheon to work with. But for the sake of this article, I am specifically going to mention two :
Baal (Lord) Hammon, the God of fertility and renewer of all energy. And Dagon, originally a Sumerian God of fertility and fish. But as a Jewish mystic once told me,
“Many of the Gods in Hebrew Polytheism, originally came from the Sumerians,”
He also explained that holy symbols came from them too. The Star of David for instance. And even the Seal of the Prophets in Islam, were based on Sumerian symbols. Even the Hindus have much from the Sumerians. So as with many ancient religions of the Middle East, they are often our forefathers and foremothers.
Fertility Gods, particularly those who renew life and energy are perfect for prosperity Magic. And Lord Dagon also bring
How to work with Baraka
The Light of God Image comes from Rabbi Fryer Modzin’s meditation videos on YouTube
Judeo-Christian witches and polytheists have a radically different perspective of the following text.
“Thou shalt not worship other Gods before me,” – Shemot (Exodus) chapter 20, verse 3.
If you read the Bible, you’ll know that Adonai asks for a lot of different offerings during the whole day. But he requires offerings at the very beginning of the day. And then a final offering at the end of the day as well. Now what does that sound like? A Gatekeeper! In the Greek religion it’s Hestia. In Santeria it’s Elegua.
In Vodou it’s Papa Legba. And some Occult Catholics view St. Peter as the Gatekeeper of the Christian religion. Chosen by Jesus because of the text where Jesus grants him the key to Heaven. And of course Protestant style magic users view Yeshua himself as the Gatekeeper for God. In my case I choose either Adonai or Yeshua.
Or sometimes Simeon son of Yonah (Simon son of Jonah). The original Hebrew name for Peter, before Yeshua gave him a new name after his initiation into his Mysteries. Or I choose Chokmah (Wisdom) the daughter of Adonai and Asherah. Also known as Sophia in Gnostic Christianity. Regardless, many who use traditional Hebrew magic give a first offering to Adonai.
In his name of El-Elyon (El Most High). Which is the origin of “God the most high” in English. The first offering can be anything. Something that comes from your heart. I use a special blend of incenses based on the Ketoret (Incense of the Temple) in the Bible.
This is a combination of frankincense, galbanum (a plant found in Iran), and most importantly, opobalsamum (a rare type of amber from a myrrh tree). In fact this is a high grade extract of light myrrh. And it’s believed by many sources to be the origin of the ingredient “Stacte” from the Ketoret. Now others have other beliefs about what constitutes the temple incense. But regardless this is a simplified version of it.
Pray over it when you get the incense. And let the spirit of Adonai and Asherah flow into it. You can use an oil burner for this. Then walk around the house and purify it in the name of El-Elyon. This acts as both a purification and also an extension of the offering.
For Lord Hammon
For Baal Hammon I give him grain, a golden scented candle to symbolize his Kingship, honey, and fruits associated with male fertility. Such as mango. And anything that represents renewal of life. Save the candle for last, for this acts as the ‘ignition’ for the ritual to activate. Then pray,
“Oh Baal (Lord) of the land, sustainer of the crops, renewer of life, King of the lands, Hammon King of the Gods with power bestowed on you by the Great GOD and GODDESS, please bestow prosperity to me. In the form of…”
(Specify exactly what you want. If you have Bible paper, legal tender paper, or even bay leaves or brown paper bag, write your petition and burn it in the Golden Candle. Make sure you have a fire proof dish to burn the petition in).
When you finish say,
“Thank you O Baal for listening to my petition, I ask that if for whatever reason you not grant me what I ask, that you grant me the equivalent or something better, in the name of El Almighty, Amen,”
For Lord Dagon
A smoked fish, grain, sea iconography. Anything to do with the sea including shells. Or even symbols of fish or underwater creatures. Ironically (or perhaps not ironically at all) the Judeo-Christian fish symbol is perfect for him. It can even double as a representation of Rabbi Yeshua.
A scented blue candle that reminds you of the ocean. Prayer,
“Dagon, God who brings prosperity fromthe waves of the sea, hidden treasures on the ocean floor are yours to give and to take at your command, O divine master, bringer of fish, on this Pisces new moon, I ask you to magnify the power of prosperity and to bring unto me….”
(Make your petition, and as before, wait until the end to burn the candle).
“Father of the Sea, bringer of Prosperity, I end this work begging your guidance and any advice you have on how to acquire what I ask. If for whatever reason you not grant me what I ask for, then I ask for the equivalent or something better, Amen“
Then, give a final offering to El-Elyon. What I use for the final offering is a blessed candle. Shabbat candles, which are environmentally friendly and can be used for any ceremony. This seals the ritual. I leave the offerings on the table for three days.
Then I take Baal Hammon’s offerings to bury them on the land closest to my door to bring in blessings. But Dagon’s offerings go to any body of water. And of course I take a bottle of honey and pour a first libation for El-Elyon to send the offerings to these two Elohim. And then pour a second libation to him when I finish.
The empty candle jars I can recycle for future rituals to those Gods. Or maybe use them for talismans. I could even decorate them. Or simply dispose of them. I dispose of the wax at the areas where I bury the offerings.
This is a prosperity ritual I like to do with both these Gods. However, for some, a ritual to the Elohim might be better if it is with female Elohim. It depends on the ritual caster. And what type of prosperity you seek. I chose Fertility Gods because they can make money and other requests “fertile”.
Allowing them to replicate. Which is perfect for this time. For you, it may have to be someone else. I would look up the list of Bet-ilim and see which one is the one you are looking to work with. Though ultimately I would still pray and work with Dagon if only because this new moon is ruled by Pisces.
So now that I have written all about my particular point of view and Christo Pagan practices, I am going to add some astrological links as well.
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
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”
There’s all manner of rituals and magic for protection and cleansing in the New Year. There’s some amazing things in tradition that one should consider adding to their practice. My witch sister (as in my actual sister) has been practicing magic here with me. Preparing for the New Year’s as well. These traditions come from different groups.
Also known as a Growth Cleansing or a New Year’s Bath, this is a bath with flowers. It opens up the spiritual channels in a person’s body. This is to allow them to release negative or unnecessary energy. While also allowing good energy to enter. The following is a formula we use in Spanish folk magic.
One prescribed by mediums for the new year.
Ingredients :
Note* ingredients must be natural and freshly harvested
1) 5 Sunflower petals
2) 5 Red rose petals
3) 5 White rose petals
4) 5 Pink rose petals
5) 1 Rue branch
6) 5 Jasmine branches
7) 2 yellow candles
8) 2 Rosemary branches
9) 5 Daisy petals
Instructions :
To start doing the bath, heat six liters of water in a pot or saucepan. You’ll have to leave the water heating about 10-20 minutes. Until it starts to boil. Once bubbles begin to appear in the water it means that it has reached the ideal temperature. Remove the pot from the heat and carefully put all the materials in the water.
Once this is done, place the pot back to heat. But this time you only raise the temperature a bit and stir the materials. After another 15 minutes, put the pot to cool. When the water cools put it in the bathtub with the other ingredients. If that water is not enough to bathe, you can put a little more water without any problem.
Essentially the water you prepared, will bless and charge the regular water.
Once everything is ready, light the two yellow candles and take a bathe. Imagine yourself illuminated by the energies of the flowers. Allow the souls of those flowers to enter you. All things are alive. And when you bathe in flowers, the souls of those beings enter you.
So this isn’t just a normal cleansing. It’s a soul cleansing. It washes through you and over you by using pure souls. Those of the flowers themselves. That’s how this works.
Embrace them. Feel the negative energy disintegrate inside you. And then be flushed out naturally from your energy pathways. Allow the calm, nourishing, energy to enter your pathways. Feeding them.
Renewing them. Once you finish the bath, dry with a white towel. This is because white is a color associated with purity. If you have a special color that empowers you, you can use that instead. Then do a regular shower.
And scrub with soap as you normally would.
As my Druid Master recently told me : in our tradition, any form of washing with water is a cleansing. And this is true in more ways than one. In Jewish mysticism, it’s said that water loves bad or impure things. It was made that way by God to absorb the impurity out of things and people. That’s why most cleansings use water as a basic ingredient.
How my sister does it
My sister’s special batch
My sister uses the same traditional flowering formula as described above. The only difference is that she uses Christian Magic to empower it further. In conjunction with the new moon prior to the new year. She also used my balcony shrine which is filled with various plants and astrological idols to empower it. She also adds a few secret ingredients to make hers stronger.
She also added some power to it from a portable altar she brought with her.
But because they are a secret taught to her by her teacher, I can’t reveal that. What I will say is that she combines it with Catholic Masses. She does a mini mass in the bathroom with a specific Gregorian chant playing on her phone. The combination of the potion with the holy music adds to the power of the cleansing. She uses special rites associated with the Catholic Church.
As well as the new moon, and Saints to empower the water. New moons are good for new beginnings.
I do it also not only with Christian Magic but with Santero magic as well. I appeal to Ossian the Orisha of nature and plants, Aroni his faithful servant, and Inle the Orisha of Medicine. I do special Santeria prayers with them. And I charge the potion on my balcony shrine as well. It’s a shrine to both nature and the astrological signs and celestial bodies.
I ask for them to charge it with their powers over night. And once I do this, I leave the potion in a plastic container for the night and allow them to fill it with their Ashe (divine grace). It’s pronounced Ahhh-sheh. Sometimes it’s spelled Ache by Cubans. Which confuses the hell out of English speakers.
I also add Cascarilla and some secret ingredients to the brew like my sister does. Though mine are different. Once charged, I wait until New Year’s Day to bathe. Like literally a few minutes after midnight. Then I try to dress in light colors.
I have a specific color I use to be empowered.
Santeria Cleansings & New Year’s Traditions
Orisha shrines to Yemaya and Oshun
These are cleansings taught to me by my Godmother in Santeria. The traditions here I also learned from my Babalawo. First up is the feeding of the Earth.
This one was taught to me by my Babalawo Warning! Do not do this ritual. Only a Babalawo or high priest of Orula cando this. I am just outlining the basic ritual and the origin. Doing this the wrong way can actually kill you. This isn’t a joke.
You’ve been warned.
According to our sacred texts, it’s said that when the daughter of God ile Oguere reincarnated, she became the planet Earth. Orula the God of Divination and Magic told her she needed to do a special cleansing called an Ebo. This is sort of like a karmic cleansing to change your fate. She did not. As a result, her children (humans) abuse and hurt her.
The Ebo would have prevented that.
Mother Earth herself
A few years later after humanity had populated the Earth, the Orishas (Gods) had invented death itself. This was to prevent overpopulation. They assigned Iku to be the Orisha of Death. And everyone hated Iku. They all wanted to live forever.
What was worse is that back then when people died, their bodies just lay around. Burying a body hadn’t become a custom yet. Imagine seeing your loved one’s body just laying on the ground. And it looks as if it’s still them. Just sleeping.
One day ile Oguere and Iku were spending time together. She complained that her human children abused her. And he complained that her children hated him for doing his job. So she had an idea. She made a pact with Iku.
“If you kill as many of my children as you can, I will absorb their bodies into my body,”
The problem was, it was going to be difficult for him to do it on his own. So he said,
“My wife Arun (disease) will have to do this work with us. She must be given power over everyone equally. The rich and the poor, the young and old, kings and their vassals, the wise and prideful, thieves and honest people. Everyone equally,”
She thought about it, and finally said,
“I accept, however I demand that all people grant me tribute of whatever food they eat. And if anyone does not do this, you will be in charge of collecting their debts,”
From that day forward, Iku sends natural disasters and all manner of unnatural death to fall on humans. And in exchange, ile Oguere will suck down human bodies into her own body. When this happened, human bodies began to decompose. Because the Earth began to call them home. Now since then, many rituals to appease the Earth have been made.
As well as many rituals to ward off Iku. And some ceremonies like this one, do both. The Jorojoro is a hole, representing the mouth of the Earth. Usually, a group of Yoruba practitioners led by a Babalawo go into a barren land. They open the Jorojoro, and perform a ritual which has many prayers and components.
But part of it is a technique called Sarayeye. Basically, this is cleansing your body or a place with a ritually charged object. This can be an idol. Food. Or even the body part of an animal like feathers.
In this case, everyone carries a plate full of food and perform Sarayeye with that food. The cleansing absorbs all the bad energy. Bad luck, death, disease, curses, obstacles in the New Year etc…then one by one, the food is dumped into the JoroJoro to feed the Earth. The Jorojoro has to be deep so that it can absorb all of the food. Then, the ritual is closed, by sealing the Jorojoro shut.
The Earth Mother will be appeased and she will give you powerful blessings. At the same time she is draining all the osorbos or bad energy away from you. Including Iku or death. This is done every new year by Babalawos. The ritual is expensive but well worth it.
But I must warn you that only a Babalawo has the authority to perform this ritual. If anyone tells you they can do it without being a Babalawo, run away. Because doing it incorrectly angers ile Oguere. And it results in death. This is because the Earth is hungry.
And the worst thing you can do, is to leave the hole open. She will devour the energy of the person who didn’t perform the ritual the right way. Pull their soul down into death.
This cleansing was taught to me by my Godmother in Santeria. Oshun and Yemaya are the Goddesses who symbolize cleansing and prosperity the most. Inle does too. But a lot of people leave Inle out. What you do is take a bottle of melao or sugar cane syrup to the beach.
And once there, you pour some in your hair. And the rest into the water. Obviously you have to be in the water when you are doing this. This is an offering to Yemaya, the Goddess of the Seas and Oceans. Really all water everywhere belongs to her.
She is the Mother of the Earth in our tradition. Because without water, no planet can survive. Now, when you do this, it’s an even more powerful cleansing than the flowering ritual mentioned above. Yemaya can open your roads to greatness and bestow blessing so powerful than no force or enemy can stop you. It may take a while with the flowering bath to disintegrate the bad energy.
As well as renew your strength. But this cleansing with the beach is faster. It’s also more powerful because this is a loci specific ritual. A ritual that uses the power of a location to help you.
A variation of this ritual, uses a honey comb or honey. Personally, I prefer to use a honey comb. You can buy those in the supermarket. It’s like a bar of soap made out of honey. You can scrub yourself with it.
They’re usually in square plastic containers like this. Though if you can’t find honey combs, just rub regular honey on yourself. Then pour the rest in your hair. Like the offerings of the sugar cane syrup. Oshun is the one you call with this cleansing.
And you are asking her to pull all the impure energy out of you. All bad luck, everything out of your energy field. Then, you toss the honey comb into the water as far as you can. That will be the offering for Oshun. But I would recommend you bring a change a clothes with you.
Bring shorts or a bikini to enter the water. Because regular clothing in sea water smells like a rotten animal. Better to remove the wet clothing and change back into your normal clothes afterwards. Bring a bag with you for your wet clothing to seal it up until you can wash it. Likewise you can do something with Inle as well.
She is the Doctor of the Orishas. And has great power to heal. What I normally use for her are vines and leaves which symbolize healing. I ask the Earth to charge it with great power. Then when I go to the Ocean, I ask Inle to drain all that is bad from me, to the vines.
And all the good energy from the earth and water to enter me. Then I toss the vines into the water far away from me. And that will be Inle’s offering.
We have already discussed the powers of the Sarayeye technique. And how ritually charged objects can be used in cleansings. This is such a cleansing. My Godmother taught me this one too. The one and only ingredient here is an egg.
If you want you can bless the egg to make it stronger. That’s up to you. On the first Monday of the new year, in the morning, rub an egg from the crown of your head to the soles of your feet. And pray to Elegua. Ask him to take all the bad energy out of you from the old year.
You will wait until you feel lighter. As if everything that was on and in you will be devoured by that egg. Eggs are living objects. They have living organisms inside them. So they are the best things to use for a sacrifice.
Once everything has been pulled from you, you throw it backwards so that it will break. Do not look behind you. Because if you do, whatever negativity you had removed, will return to you. And worse than before. Now you cannot eat eggs for seven days.
Because if you eat the same food you cleansed yourself with, it will also return the negativity to you. Seven days is the cut off point. After the egg fast the day after the seventh day, you will be able to eat them again. You can wash the egg with holy water to give it an added charge. Or anoint it with a holy oil or powder.
If you can’t do this in the morning then do it at night or the afternoon. The point is doing it while it is still Monday. Elegua is the God of the Crossroads in Yoruba religion. He opens all roads and brings success in all things. No ritual or prayer can be done without giving the first and last offerings to him.
He is the Lord of the New Year and Old Year and will open and close all doors. Doing this ritual with Elegua will be sure to remove all obstacles. He is the divine child God and Prince of our religion.
Throwing Water out the front door, the Window, or the Balcony on New Year’s Day
In Latin America and Spain, people throw out a bucket of water at the very moment of midnight of New Year’s Day. Others like the people of Uruguay, do it from December 31st. The water absorbs the old energy of the old Year. So when you cast out the water from your home, you are casting out the old year. Santeros have our own variant of the ritual.
My Godmother puts Cascarilla into the bucket so that the positive energies of the new year can be invited in. Some use a bucket of Catholic holy water.
Puerto Rican women of the older generations also did the same thing. But they would follow that up by burning church incense inside the house to bring blessings. They’d be doing this and praying deep into the early hours of the night. And to ward off evil. I burn Gold Rain incense that I dedicate to the laughing Buddha to bring in money.
The Christian Magicians in the Ozarks in Arkansas have similar beliefs. They believe in sending out the old year. And bringing in the new year. But instead of using a bucket of holy water, they open their windows. Just a crack, not open all the way.
The old year slips out through the same small opening. And at the same time the new year slips in. There are other beliefs concerning the New Year’s in the Ozarks. Namely that a visit from strangers isn’t very good. But especially not from a woman.
Why that is, has never been explained, at least not to me. Only that your year is supposed to be crap if a woman is your first New Year’s visitor. That actually happened to me once. And it wasn’t just any woman, it was an extremely neurotic neighbor. One that drove her family crazy.
Like literally every once in a while there were cops or some other trouble in that apartment. She visited us to wish us happy new year just as I was about to throw the water out the front door. I actually debated tossing the water at her.
“Maybe if I throw the water at her crazy ass it’ll exorcise the bad year or cancel it out,”
I didn’t. And man did I regret that decision. Because it really was a shitty fucking year. I don’t know if it was the power of suggestion or not. But at least that time it was right.
I know in the Ozarks it usually is right. On New Year’s Day they tend to stay home. Almost in lockdown pattern. Until the next day. They also seem to have a taboo against taking something out of their home.
They seem to believe removing anything from their houses on New Year’s Day will bring poverty. For a visitor to be allowed in, that person has to bring something inside with them. Even if it’s a twig. This symbolizes prosperity. Now with me it’s the opposite.
I throw shit out as quickly as possible. I like my energy uncluttered. But every place has its own set of rules. All of this information comes from a Folklorist known as Vance Randolph. His research on the Christian faith healers and magic users of the Ozarks is considered Gospel.
Even by the faith healers themselves. He did everything he could to properly catalog, analyze, and preserve Ozark culture. Especially the magical and mystical aspects of their folk religion. He’s in essence, the Eliphas Levi of Ozark and folklore and folk magic. His second wife was a premier folklorist named Mary Celestia Parler.
And together they created the Arkansas Folklore Society. Unfortunately the society which was started in 1950, ended in 1960. But any books or papers you can get from them are good. For they are necessary if you really want to understand the culture and faith of these amazing mountain people. I became fascinated by Ozark magic and folk religion years ago.
I thought this entry would be incomplete without mentioning them.
Chalking of the Doors : Blessing your home for the whole year with Baby Jesus and the Three Kings
The blessing formula drawn over the inside or outside of the front door to bless the home
It was once believed by Christian denominations from Europe, that Satan temporarily losses his powers. Every year around the time of New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day. Some believe it’s on Christmas Day. Still, it’s important to perform special wardings and blessings. The most common blessing during this time is the Catholic Epiphany blessing.
In fact, practitioners of Hoodoo also perform this blessing themselves. While traditional Catholics only allow a Priest or the head of the family to do it. Anyone who practices the root can do this. When a Priest does this, they do it as a representation of Christ. This is commonly referred to as in persona Christi(in the person of Christ).
This is a fascinating concept. It essentially means that the Priest is making themselves empty of their personal nature. And they ritually “become” Christ. They allow themselves to be filled with his authority. Like a form of divine possession almost.
In Christianity, divine possession doesn’t always mean that a spirit takes you over. Sometimes it refers to inspiration. Gaining prophetic visions and such. In this case it’s the actual authority of Christ being transferred to the Priest temporarily. When this happens, any blessing performed by the Priest, is the same as if Jesus himself were doing it.
Traditionally, a Priest does this. But the father of the family can also do it. I find that kind of sexist because the head of the family could be a woman. So really any head of the family can do it. As long as they are baptized.
Because then they are, they’re included in the “universal priesthood” (belief that all Christians are priests of Christ). In addition to this, practitioners of both Voodoo and Hoodoo can also perform this ritual. In fact this was an old tradition for many years. I was going to write about this. However, there are some amazing articles I found that I decided were better than anything I could write.
* Worship of Jesus in his child form (Divine Child) a theme you can find in many religions
* Worshipping him through a household ceremony as if the house was his house
* Calling on the Three Pagan Kings to aid in the warding and blessing of the home for the whole year until next year by chalking the door.
Using the Blessed Chalk to make the inscriptions
Then
* Blessing the home with Epiphany Water and special prayers.
Again this is me dumbing down the ritual for you. The actual ritual is a ceremony the whole family just participate in. And you are giving cultus to the Christ child by using an image of him. Now, the Catholic Church explains that the formula for blessing the house is Latin. And that the initials mean, Christusmansionem benedicat – (Christ bless this house).
However, these are also the initials of the Three Kings. Casper, Melchior, and Balthazar. And as I said, this is an old tradition done even by Rootworkers in the old days. Granted when we do it, it’s normally just the initials C.M.B., the plus signs are crosses and the numbers are the year the blessing is taking place in. For instance, the formula for this new year will be 2023 so the formula will be,
20+C+M+B+23
Rootworkers also believe that this chalk blessing offerings protection against witchcraft. It calls on the power of Christ and the three kings to block any malevolent influence. Be it magic or evil spirits.
How I do it
I do follow this formula almost identically to the way it’s performed by the church. I find that the chalking formula they use is better than just writing CMB. However, I don’t just write what is there. I add some things to the blessed incantation. For one, there was a Fourth Mage King known as Artaban.
He followed Jesus all his life. There are stories of heroic deeds and even people whose lives he saved along the way. But he never did catch up to Jesus. Finally he died almost at the same time Christ was crucified. And Christ himself crossed him over.
Saying that in everything he did, including saving the lives of the innocent, it was as if he had done those things for him. And There was also a Roman Witch the Magi Kings were friends with. We don’t know her true name. But she is known as La Befana in Italy. So over there it’s a Christmas Witch and not Santa Klaus who delivers gifts.
She was to join them to see Jesus as a child. However, she said she couldn’t because she was too old to make the journey. Later she regretted it. And tried to catch up to them, but it was already too late. So the sack of gifts she intended for the Child Christ, was instead given to the needy children of Rome.
So my formula is :
20+C+M+B+A+LB+23
To invoke all of their protections.
Other Traditions
There are a bunch of other New Years traditions to mention but they are all too numerous to write about here. So instead I brought you links and pictures from Atlas Obscura.
Authorities believe these skeletal remains are that of an Ancient Native American group buried on a Beach
The beach is already legendary among us Floridians. The official name is Chastain Beach. It’s on Hutchinson Island. But most people call it Seven Skulls because once seven human skulls were found there. Every time a Hurricane hits that area in just the right direction, skeletal remains are always discovered.
It’s led to many believing this is an indigenous burial ground. As you can read from the article on it, it’s also believed to be a mystical place. People who live in the town of Stuart say that the bones should be buried again. That interfering with the bodies is bad. Unfortunately the authorities don’t listen.
They were removed from the beach already. Probably on their way to a Museum.
Recently I had talked about a strange Supernatural occurrence during Hurricane Ian. In which I believe a Wild Hunt was unleashed. Some people in Central Florida heard the hooves of Horses on their roofs during the Hurricane. Something none of us have ever reported hearing before. I tried debunking it.
And couldn’t. So I turned to magic. And I saw a horrifying visions. They looked like legions of angry souls. All of them seeking revenge in one form of another.
Go to 1:18 on the video to skip to the part about the unearthed bodies
This video show it from the beginning. The Seminole Nation has claimed the bodies and the beach as belonging to their ancestors. I just thought this was something odd and interesting to put here. Be blessed my friends,
Hurricane Ian was the fifth most powerful storm in terms of speed to ever hit the US
The first time I had ever written an It came with the storm story was due to a hurricane that hit Honduras. The story was so fascinating and strange, I took time to transcribe it and translate it into English. I never thought I would end up creating a series on this. But here we are. And to make it stranger, it’s about something that happened here in Florida.
People say that “things” come with storms. That a storm is a doorway into another world. And spirits can hitch a ride on them to our world. That’s why the story from Honduras I translated didn’t surprise me. If anything it reaffirmed the old tales.
But most people don’t think anything like that could happen here in North America. The US and Canada are considered too modern for such superstitious fancies. Are they now? I’d argue there’s just as much strange activity in the Americas in our age as there is in our countries. And a series of such things happened during the Hurricane. So this is the story of, possibly, Florida’s Wild Hunt.
A Door Between Worlds
Some believe that storms or other weather phenomenon can bring things to this world. Picture.
For many years there have been stories of portals in the sky. Opening at odd times and showing strange lights. And that can happen even under normal weather. Storms can tear into the dimensional fabric even more. How this is possible is unknown.
Science dictates you would need the power of a small star just to power a small worm hole. Although a spiritual being is an entity of a higher universe. And in theory they could conjure up power at a greater level at their finger tips. Is that what’s happening here? Do they just call up a storm with their power?
Or do they hijack an already existing storm? We may never know.
What is known, is that many people have reported strange things happening in storms. Even seeing strange things. Specifically during hurricane or tornados. In Ancient Times, Gods and spirits traveled the skies on storms. Which leads us to the Wild Hunt.
The God, Arwyn Pen Annuvin (Arwyn of the Inworld or inner world) leading a Wild Hunt with his ghostly dogs. From the Celtic Oracle by John Matthews
Essentially, the Wild Hunt is a Supernatural Hunting Party. Sometimes in the sky, or sometimes even on Earth. Wild Hunts very. Some are led by Faeries, and other are led by the Dead. Some are led by Gods and Folk Heroes.
Everyone from Odin, Arwyn, and Arthur have led Wild Hunts. Sometimes they’re led on land with wild dogs.
Wild Hunts were normally considered bad by most non magical people. Because it was believed the Hunters were pursuing evil spirits. And people were scared that witches were astral projecting as spirits to join the Wild Hunt. (1) Not that there’s anything wrong with that. In fact it sounds like good fun!
And they appear in almost every culture. From Polytheistic religions to Monotheistic religion.
A Wild Hunt in Heaven, with Satan being cast out
The Hoofs on the Roof
But this time my family and I didn’t have to go through this. The storm went to Central Florida. A strange place to go to. The people there were so sure they would be missed, that even the authorities slacked off. Big mistake.
The Governor and local leaders didn’t bother issuing warnings to the populous until it was too late. And no one could do anything about it. And the storm roared forth. Like a giant wave of pain and darkness upon the land.
In addition to what you are seeing here, entire roads were either flooded or blocked by debris. But I won’t spend more time on this post on that. Instead I will talk about the strangeness. There was something weird about this storm.
Something the other storms never had.
The feelings in the air was just eerie. It wasn’t even Samhain yet and it felt like the dead were in the air. Some people think that when certain events are going to happen, spirits gather. Is that what was happening here? I wondered as I was throwing the trash out in the days preceding the landfall of Ian.
Many heard it across Florida
For many days we had all been feeling as if someone stepped on our graves. I prayed like crazy and left offerings wherever I could hoping we would be okay. In addition to all the weirdness we were all feeling in Miami, the storm seemed to be alive. I mean storms change courses all of the time. They are alive to a certain point.
But this was different. It seemed like it had a destination it was mapping out. And when it finally touched ground wreaking all that devastation, people talked about their experiences. A lot of people said it sounded like a freight train was hitting their houses. That’s to be expected.
Most hurricanes actually sound like that. Or they have this really deep whistle in the air. That’s how it was for me when I was a kid during Hurricane Andrew. It also sounded like the lightning was actually falling on the road. And it felt like a flood was about to crash through the barricaded front door of my house.
But then, weird stories started to come out of Central Florida. A few people were claiming that they heard what sounded like horse hooves running atop their houses. Now when I heard this, for some reason I felt this electric shock. Like that feeling you get when you know something. I felt like this was a sign of the Paranormal.
But just because I have a feeling doesn’t mean that I am going to come out and say “it’s the Wild Hunt,”. Obviously, that won’t ever be proven by science. What I can do is draw on my paranormal training to try and debunk what I believe. If I can disprove it then than means there’s at least a possibility that it’s nothing paranormal. And I would have to adhere to that unless I have proper proof.
I studied everything I could find online on storms.
Jana Houser standing next to the Rapid X-Pol radar instrument, a new type of rapidly-scanning mobile radar system, during a storm chase on 8 May 2012. Credit: Jana Houser via AGU from this article
I have been waiting since Ian and after Ian. I researched with the mind of someone who doesn’t believe in shit. Who believes there is a reasonable explanation for what happened. First I assumed it was that the storm sounded that way. So I looked up Hurricane sounds.
And while many articles and videos show that they can sound like freight trains or have those same whistle sounds I have heard, nothing about horse hooves. Nothing anywhere. And I used multiple search engines including DuckDuckGo. Nada. Zip.
Zilch. Next I tried psychology. And I tried to reason that because there is such a large farming community in Central Florida, people there reasonably associated storm sounds with sounds they might hear every day. Sounds they were used to. At first I went with that explanation.
But then I realized, that’s BS. We have many farms here in Miami. There’s a place called the Redlands. It’s an agricultural district with mostly wealthy families living there. Gigantic mansions and properties you couldn’t imagine.
Sometimes I just go there to watch the big houses and to buy fruit from the farms. And even in Miami, there are smaller farms and urban farms. Heck it’s not even outside of the normal to see random wild animals and farm animals in the city streets. I have a chicken that somehow made it into my apartment complex. We all feed her.
And I looked at the reports. None of the people who heard the horse hooves had farms. They were all regular people who lived in houses. I’ve probably been to more farms than they have. So it couldn’t be that.
And if living or being near farms would make us believe hear “horse hooves” in a hurricanes I would think we would associate those sounds the same way too. We have had hurricanes for years. And no one here or in any other part of Florida mentioned the hurricanes sounding like horse’s hooves. So that’s a bust too. After all this time researching and attempting to debunk it, it came up empty.
The only other explanation is Oh the Hurricane just happened to sound that way this time. Which is lazy thinking. I have heard half cocked bullshit explanations like that by skeptics and cynics alike. They always end up creating the most idiotic explanations and then pass them off as reasonable ones. I remember a Sheriff tried to tell a family that witnessed a UFO, that they had seen a large owl and became “hysterical,”.
And what’s worse is that the same BS is used by skeptics for that case. It’s a woman and her kids so they have to be hysterical. I am so tired of people who think that way. It’s a lack of intellect and just lazy reasoning. If you can even call it that.
Point is, there was nothing to debunk it outside of lazy reasoning and speculation. None of which holds up to scientific scrutiny. So it’s just as likely that it’s something paranormal as it is non paranormal. So debunking was a dead end. Time to do what I do best.
As the description from the article says, the Gods of death, sleep, and dreams were considered Gods of Prophesy. Normally I call them and other beings to give me dreams to tell me about stuff. But right now I can’t. I lost a friend and am mourning his death. According to Greek tradition that means I have a 13 day mourning and purification period.
But my Druid Master has told me the Tuatha dé Danann have no such restrictions. But instead of a God, I decided to call the spirit of a Druid Seer. I thought this would be a nice concession to all sides of my magical life. After all, as a British witch once told me,
“Why call Gods to know or do things when your dead Aunt Tilly or one of the Fae can easily do the same? If not better?”
So I spoke to an old friend……Fedelm.
A depiction of Fedelm in the Celtic Oracle by John Matthews. She had blond hair that was braided, with black eye brows. And this was supposed to be what she wore.
Fedelm is a dead Druid poet and prophetess. She had exceptional powers when alive. And many people believed that her black eye brows were the sign of the triple iris. Showing that she was meant to be a Seer. Among her many powers is Imbas Forosnai.
A sort of trance state. Where one calls down the Gods to ask for answers to questions. I haven’t read about it in years. But I believe you need a triangular stone and raw ham and cheese that you chew in your mouth. Then you place the chewed up ham and cheese on the stone.
You put this behind the front door. And either sleep or enter a light lucid dreaming state. There you talk to the Gods and inquire what you will. Fedelm was a master of this ability, and probably didn’t even have to do this ritual all of the time to gain answers. She could predict anything at any time.
Even in death, a Prophet’s connection is strong. One would argue it’s even stronger. So I gave her an offering at my shrine for the dead. Invited her to come visit me. And went to bed.
My dreams were weird as fuck. It was like being in Woodstock. Sometimes in my sleep I was awake enough to know that I was talking out loud. Then I woke up and tried to piece together what I was dreaming. I remembered some bits.
I ignored the ones which were obviously my subconscious. But I paid attention to those things that were out of the ordinary. I dreamt of a tidal wave made up of people. But there was no water. Or rather there was.
They were hiding in the water.
In non-corporeal form. And yet they were still able to influence the physical world. I saw them rise up and create the storm from beneath the waters. They were restless. Some were just angry and wanted to destroy things.
And their faces were deformed. Some died of suicide and others of COVID. They were railing against the world. It’s not fair, I felt them saying. It wasn’t our time yet!.
And they just fused into this collective mass of dark water. And I could see lightning inside the water too. And hear many angry voices roaring from within it. And that’s when I woke up. My heart beating and me drenched in sweat.
I felt like I was there. Somewhere in the ocean. Like I had to be quiet so that I wouldn’t catch their attention. It was one of the most intense and fucked up visions I had ever had. Like these were people who died in 2020 and onward till now.
Or from the many suicides that happened in the pandemic. I waited, calmed down. And for the next few days I put it out of my head. And when I felt I was calm and centered enough, I tried normal divinations. And they all confirmed in one way or another what Lady Fedelm had told me.
Of course this is magical “evidence” for myself. I can’t expect any of you reading this to believe. And I’m sure other magic users in Florida have different opinions on the subject as well. But I know, and many of us here in Miami who felt it know, Ian wasn’t a normal Hurricane. Something did come with the storm.
Every time I see somebody post one of those positive blog posts about how positive a retrograde can be, I wanna strangle them. I’m sorry but it’s true. That doesn’t mean that I reject the fact that retrogrades ultimately do help us. But I don’t have to like how the Gods are choosing to help us. In fact if being a part of both the Voodoo and Hoodoo community has taught me anything it’s that I have a RIGHT to say fuck you to whoever is up there ruining my month or months with a retrograde.
Some root workers are even known to use reversal candles to send the retrograde energy back to the planet. So no I have no intention of being positive about it. This is just one giant cluster fuck, from an even bigger cluster fuck of a year. So fuck all you hippies out there telling us it’s for our own good. Because this year was shitty enough without adding to it.
I don’t need someone who looks like they’re high on pixie dust, telling me this shit in a positive Xanax and Weed infused voice. Fuck you!!! I don’t want to hear shit like :
Somebody tell Eobard Thawne I told him to suck it as well.
What all the Retrogrades here have in common?
All three Gods and their planets to a certain extent, have associations with money. Or Systems of authority. Nothing out of the ordinary right? We’re already going through inflation. Well no not exactly. You see, this also has to do with systems of authority.
Which means that there is a greater potential for anger in the streets. As people are tired of the bullshit and will make sure you know it. Especially if that authority is oppressive. And with the recent police execution of Jayland Walker in Akron, Ohio we’re already seeing people defy authoritarianism. Which is a good thing.
What’s bad is that repressive systems tend to be violent and bloodthirsty when they’re being challenged. So expect more police state repression in America. But also expect more rebellion from the masses against the police state. That’s probably one of the few good things about these retrogrades. People are being forced to see reality.
The land of the “free” isn’t quite so free after all.
Jupiter
Jupiter is the King of the Roman Gods. Therefore he’s pretty much is in charge of everything. He can be everywhere and do anything. Like the Christian God. He’s the Great Father of us all.
So when he enters his death aspect, which causes his planet to go retrograde, that means everything is out of whack. The universe almost seems to be in some kind of disorder. He’s mostly associated with : prosperity, destiny, control of your own life, power, magic, order, like I said everything. Usually when Jupiter is in his heavenly state you get a feeling that you have “the golden touch,”. All things can be done by him and through him.
But when things go bad, and the energy turns inwards you get the opposite. Where once there was order, now there is chaos. Where once you had prosperity or at least stability, now all you have are debts and uncertainty. Where before you were powerful and in control of your game, now that potency control is gone. And you can also become petty.
Angry, prone to mood swings almost as if you were bipolar. You become greedy and have a lust for power and all the good things in life. At the expense of others. And the shadowy and darker parts of yourself start to rear their ugly heads. Now there is a silver lining to this.
That’s when you’re being shown the truth about yourself. As with every retrograde, your true motives are being exposed. You’re being shown whether or not you’re acting like a good person or a shitty person. Whether the things you want to do are for the right reasons or not. If they aren’t, don’t expect Lord Jupiter to help you achieve such goals.
You are to take the time necessary to find out what it is Jupiter (the planet and the God) wants you to change in your life. Now this retrograde hasn’t happened yet. Jupiter is slowly moving into his aspect as a God of the dead on July 28, 2022. And will remain in retrograde until November 23, 2022. So you still have some time.
But now is the time to ease into praying to his darker side. And ask for help in changing your life.
Saturn
Next we have his Father, Saturn. There’s a debate about whether or not Saturn is the same as Kronos from the Hellenic (Greek) religion. When the Romans conquered Greece, they started to synchronize some of the Gods together. And don’t get me wrong there are arguments for some of them. But Saturn was originally seen as a peace loving God of abundance and prosperity.
His wife Lua was the one seen as the destructive force. But with time, the story of Kronos was lifted from the Greeks and placed onto Saturn. And he became a bloodthirsty and malevolent God of sacrifice and cannibalism. Where before he was seen as the God of the Golden Age of humanity. Of wealth and of all good things.
Like Jupiter his son, he was also the Supreme Overlord of the Universe. Now regardless of whether you think they are the same person or not, one thing is true. Even if he’s a good and benevolent God, he’s still seen as a God of discipline and karma. Which means his influence can be hard to tolerate. And when he’s in retrograde, he’s in a foul mood.
Retrograde for him actually increases his influence. Saturn is going to influence us in the areas of control over our lives. And whether or not the limits you set on yourself have been restricting you. So this is a time of deep introspection. Find out what is holding you back in life.
And then get rid of it. It went into retrograde on June 4th. And it ends on October 22nd. Of course by then, everything will be on Cthonic power. The dead will rise and what not as the veil starts to thin.
So it kinda cancels it out for me.
Neptune
And last but not least, Lord Neptune. This is a retrograde of head blindness. That means confusion and not thinking clearly. A head fog. It’s a real pain in the ass for getting things done.
Illusions and delusions are also a pitfall of this retrograde.
But there are also benefits. It’s a retrograde of dreams and even shamanic travel. It’s one for grounding and centering and meditating. More so than any other retrograde. For this reason it’s more or less one of my favorites that I can actually enjoy.
Old addictions and repetitive thoughts come out during this retrograde as well. Anything from fantasies and dreams. To painful memories, loss, and I have been told that an addiction or two can be made worse. Or perhaps that isn’t the right word. Obsessions may be a better description.
Things you thought you were over that keep coming back to bother you. In fact that’s one of the bad things (or good depending on how you see it) about this retrograde : To see through illusions and delusions. Even if showing you the truth means forcing you to see it by destroying a false. Obviously it’s good to not have unhealthy delusions. But tearing off the bandaid right away can do just as much harm.
It starts June 28th and ends on December 3rd.
Ritual
Now is the time to also do some clearing rituals and magic to be able to think more clearly. Focus, meditation. The way I would do it is nothing fancy. Low magic and working with the Retrogrades. Mage friends of mine would do a complicated ritual to cut through the Retrogrades.
But I believe in working with them. Still, that doesn’t mean you can’t make a good old fashioned retrograde charm. Something for protection. Maybe a bone charm or a stone. Take care of yourselves everyone.
On this night, starting at midnight the spirits come out
Boy, whoo! My ass is tired. If you’re an avid reader of my blog, then you know I’ve been writing almost non stop from these last two days. For Saint George’s Eve and also for Saint George’s Day. I’m too tired to write an in-depth expose on Saint Mark. But I can do the next best thing. I can do a random links of the day!
I haven’t done one of those in a long time. Essentially, sometimes I would get random information on strange things. The paranormal, or weird history. And I thought to myself that I bet my readers would love it. So what happened is I ended up inventing this type of blog post specifically to share articles.
Or even videos etc..
So today I’m making a random links of the day. All will be about St. Mark’s Eve and it’s Folklore. The main thing to know about Saint Mark’s Eve is that churches will have a parade of future dead people. You will see the Doppelgängers of people still alive marching to the doors of a church. And whoever you recognize from that march will die this year.
Sadly I can tell you this is true. I have observed the vigil myself. In 2020 I couldn’t actually go to a physical church due to COVID. But I performed a divination by casting the bones. And the person I knew who was going to die was my grandfather. And a few days after the divination he died.
So this is very real. The whole thing shocked me to my core. I wasn’t expecting it. The reason I tell you this story is 1) Be careful when doing this. Prepare yourself for the possibility it will be someone you know.
Beware of just sitting anywhere on the Eve of Saint Mark. You might see something you don’t want to see. From DeviantArt
And 2) There is an alternate way to find out who is at the procession. Moving on let’s start with my former articles on St. Mark’s Eve :
Negative Forces are around us since before the end of last year
I didn’t want to comment on this. Largely because as someone who believed in the Paranormal, I am trained to debunk everything. I thought it was just me seeing something that wasn’t there. But I have since changed my mind. Last year, my dog Sheldon was attacked by an American Bulldog.
He’s saved my mother from that dog. Fought like a champion to save her life. Unfortunately, it wasn’t just him. There has been an epidemic of attacks on dogs and dog owners since then. When I translated the Letter of the Year of the IFA Priests, I noticed something.
They said “dogs would bring good luck,” this year. And after that I have seen that all over Florida dogs and dog owners are getting attacked. As my mother and dog had been attacked. I began to see a pattern there. And I divined to ask the spirits for guidance.
Near as I can tell, the Ajogún (warriors of evil) which is what the Yoruba people call demons, are all over the place. Feeding off of the chaos of humanity. Most people believe that human activity is all caused by spirits. But sometimes the reverse is also true. What humans do in our world causes spiritual activity.
Like a massive tremor in the spiritual world. The conflicts in different countries, global food prices going up, inflation and political division. All of this is food for the Ajogún. Negative spirits feed off of negativity. It’s like food and steroids for them.
It increases their powers and gives them a larger foot hold in our world. The Ajogún consist of corrupted spirits. Some were once human.
The Ajogún in their world
And others are forces of nature that have become perverted. So these demons are not like the devils with horns you would see in movies. Not saying there aren’t horned versions of them. But they are living forces, or sometimes even nature spirits that have become bad.
Imagine gravity if it were evil. Imagine a force like the Devil, in a million forms at once. And just having this force visit you is enough to bring bad luck and death. One of the ways in which the Ajogún visit is when you have a “bad head”. If you are angry or depressed or generally have a negative attitude, that’s an invitation for them.
The Ajogún can actually see your negative mental energy from their shadowy world. It’s like a beacon to them
And it’s also food for them and other negative spirits. They will feed off of your energy. Increasing the bad luck and making things worse for yourself. It acts as an invitation for them to come visit you and run amok with your life. And because these negative spirits are forces of nature that are so massive, you wouldn’t know you had a spirit messing with your life. It certainly wouldn’t come out in most divinations. Unless you knew what you were looking for, you wouldn’t know what was going on.
These forces are also called Osorbos, Osobos, or Bears. Due to their aggressive and predatory nature. And those words are also synonymous with bad luck. It’s my opinion that based on this violent wave, and other factors, these entities are running amok this year. And one of the ways it’s doing this is by targeting people’s dogs.
This may sound ridiculous. But remember, they are trying to strike down the sources of our luck. That which protects us. And it won’t just be dogs either. Anyone or thing that protects you is up for grabs.
A person in your life who keeps you safe. Charms that protect you. More than likely any other animal that acts as your guardian which would substitute a dog. The Osorbos are on the attack and we must be ready and prepare to strike them down. Now you must be thinking, What the hell can we do? These aren’t even normal demons.
You’d be right. This is the equivalent of trying to use holy water and prayer to attack the Leviathan. It might effect a small portion of his skin cells, but he’ll barely feel it. No. You need to call in someone who can defeat them. These are the specific Osorbos I believe are involved in all of this :
1) Ofó (Loss)
The living embodiment of loss of loved ones, missed opportunities and so fourth.
2) Iku (Death himself)
Not a God of the dead, though he is a Deity of the Dead. He is the embodiment of death. Like Thanatos in Ancient Greece. It is he who is being used the most.
3) Arún (Disease)
Self explanatory.
4) Oran (Problems)
Again, self explanatory. A force that is the embodiment of problems and obstacles.
5) Ijá (hatred and war, conflict in general)
6) Eyo (tragedy) though I think this one is more a by-product or companion to the others mentioned before.
Now I am not a Babalawo. I am not even a full Santero yet. I’m just an apprentice in training. I have used what I do know to identify these things. I see patterns and I try to identify how to alter or stop certain things.
The only way to stop the Osorbos is with their opposite. The Orishas. So I would give a sort of feast to Elegua the Orisha of the Crossroads. A massive feast asking him to get all of the other Orishas involved to fight the Osorbos. It doesn’t have to be anything too ceremonial.
Elegua, the God of the Crossroads, Magic, Guardian of all dimensions. He is the Master of the Keys and Gatekeeper of all.
Just get a lot of food and drink. And offer it to him. And he’ll ensure the assistance of the Orishas in your general area and especially to you. And then your normal ways of protecting yourself should be empowered by them. Made stronger.
The Babalawos usually do their own ceremonies with tons of food and other offerings. But since not everyone can afford those services, I am giving you a simpler version you can use. Elegua loves lots of food. He also loves fruits like mangos and bananas, and he enjoys rum. His number is three.
He eats everything except pigeon. He will not touch that. And while Coconut is sacred to him, I don’t offer it to him because Coconut is supposed to be his head.
Offerings for Elegua
Elegua’s younger, child-like Avatars usually get candies and toys. But the older Avatars love hard candies, toasted corn or popcorn. Eleggua also eats goat, rooster and bushrat, as well as smoked fish. Now you don’t have to kill any animals. You can serve a cooked chicken dinner to him.
Smoked fish is easy to offer. That should be enough. Make sure you put all of these offerings at the crossroads or on a railroad track. Whichever is closer. Start the offering with a libation of rum, and finish with three pennies.
The Orishas
Three of each offering is good. And at your house, you can burn three candles and offer up three Abre Camino (road opener) incense sticks. Ask him fervently in prayer for help. To bring down the other Orishas to battle the Ajogún. And then finish with three pennies.
Then cleanse and bless your home as you normally would. Keep your head down, and your eyes open. And try your best to avoid conflict, negative attitude, or anything else that could screw you up. That sounds like a tall order. But it can be done.
Especially with prayer, focus, fasting, and meditation. May the Divine Powers protect us all.
Well, we did it. We survived another shitty year. But we’re not out of the woods yet. For one thing, this year begins in a Saturday. Which is a weekend.
Symbolizing that like the year before this one, we still have things we need to finish this year. Probably because no one is listening to COVID guidelines. And we are still spreading this disease like it’s nobody’s business. Also, Saturdays are very chthonic. Which probably means we have far more work to do in the area of destroying things that do not work for us.
One thing I will say is that this year is for healing. The New Moon in Capricorn is here to tell us that we should not be holding on to our pain. This whole “tough love” stuff should take a back seat this year. Take the time to heal and be healed in turn.
The New Moon arrives Sunday January 2nd. Which as you know, new moons are times of the dead and of darker spirits. So avoid going out at night for Sunday and the remainder of the New Moon. Until you see the first sliver of the moon at least. Focus on destroying bad energy and bringing in good luck instead.
Write your wishes in paper and burn it to the Gods and spirits of this year for blessings. Here is some more advice on the New Moon tomorrow.
General He E, the Grand Duke of Jupiter for the year 2022
We are now in the Year of the Water Tiger which is considered a time for your dreams to take hold. Which makes sense considering who we have as our Tai Sui this year : General He E. This General was a bit of a hero. He solved complex crimes and even donated a treasure to the Emperor so that he wouldn’t raise taxes on the people. He was considered an honest politician. And truly Catered to the needs of his people.
The general consensus is that this is going to be a good year. But, there were other years where everything was supposed to be good. And it didn’t exactly turn out that way. Because very few people look at both sides of the Gods and spirits who rule. The shadow side.
So the good side is : honest politicians who care about their people. Who are trying to do something to make society better. Or at the very least as non shitty politicians as possible. The shadow side is what happens if exists. If we have bad politicians trying to force their way on us this year, this will clash with the ruling Tai Sui.
And the clash will be felt. So everything depends on how politicians decide to behave this year. Information on the water tiger can be found here.
On the left Oshanla the Orisha Mother of Light and Weaver of Destiny. On the Right Obatala the White Robed King, ruler of all the Orishas.
This year is ruled by the Orishas of Yoruba Gods Obatala, and his female avatar Oshanla. Obatala is the father of light. The King of the Heavens of the Orishas. He’s also the creator of humanity. The best of all Gods.
While Oshanla, his female incarnation is the Goddess of light. A guardian and sentinel protecting humanity. The weaver of our fates and destinies. So it would seem that like the Chinese Astrologers, the Yoruba believe this year will be a good year.
At least for justice. And as long as those in power don’t misuse their authority.
Phrases for the year
“King dead, king put”
“It is a mistake not to learn from the mistakes made”
Now however, we get to meat of the matter. Each year is ruled by a “Letter of the year” each letter in IFA is an Odu (sacred text). And each text has its own story and a moral at the end. The ruling sign is Baba Ejiogbe. This is the first of all signs. Father of signs hence the word “baba”.
The cliff notes version of the story is this. It talks about loss, stress. General bad things. So I was right to be skeptical of the sunny disposition of the Year in the beginning. It says that one moment you have the best luck, and the next your luck turns to shit.
I started feeling that happening the last two weeks or so. So for me it already hit hard. Perhaps many of you, my readers have already felt that. We are told in this sign that not to expect prosperity. That any good we have will not come from in high, but from the sweat of our own brow.
We are also told that this is a sign of frustration. Which is why we need Obatala’s guidance. We need an elderly mother and father to help guide us and place us in the right path. So overall it seems we will have many hardships this year. But they can be overcome with hard work and determination.
The sign tells us that we really need to control our behavior. We cannot get into conflicts. We should be tolerant of other people’s beliefs and ideologies (well, within reason obviously, Fuck Nazis and Anti-Vaxxers). But we need to avoid warlike energy at all costs. This year it will be only too easy to fall into that.
So we need to work our hardest to ensure it doesn’t happen. It also speaks of diseases. Specifically spinal and sternum problems. As well as anxiety, blood vessels and lymph, colds, breathing, the mitral valve, the stomach, health in general really. Asthma, syphilis and rheumatism, bladder, pneumonia, urinary tract, earaches, and bronchitis.
We’re also told to avoid being outside for at least seven days. They warn of not allowing children to crawl on the floor. A lot of this sign reminds me of sheltering in place and being protected from COVID. They also warn against abortions and premature deaths of children since the Abiku will have a lot of influence in this sign. And all forced good and evil are well balanced.
There’s too much on that sign to write about. So you can learn more by clicking on the link I provided for it above. The sign also warns of government coups. And given all the coups we have already had in the past two years that isn’t very surprising. But it is alarming.
The last thing we need are more. So keep your eyes peeled.
From the Yoruba Cultural Association of Cuba
Ruling prayer
“Ire Ayiku Oyale Elese Odudawa,”
(A firm blessing of health at the foot of Odudawa)
Onishe : Oshun Yalorde (so she’s also a part of this)
Aladimu Oshinshin is : Scrambled eggs, with barley, and Purslane
Ebbo for IFA Practitioners is as follows :
Two roosters, a jug (in Cuba they had clay jugs for keeping water cool), an eggplant, a white flag, a black flag, Water of Olokun, red mangrove and reef, smoked possum, smoked fish (any kind), toasted corn, a coconut, two candles, Brandy, and honey.
Ebbo for Santeros :
A rooster, reef, a sponge, ocean water, two dolls (one female, one male), trap, arrow, a small house, a coconut, brandy, honey, smoked possum and fish, and toasted corn.
Now this part, is pretty much a more condensed version of the article I posted above. The one on the meaning of Baba Ejiogbe which is here. Instead of translating I posted the entire English language article on it. Which is even more specific than what is listed here. Just click on the link and read it.
It also includes the taboos one should follow and what to watch out for this year.
Orixas Regente 2022 (Ruling Orixas of 2022)
The Orixas
Now, in Umbanda and Quimbanda as well as Condomble they are also based on the Yoruba of Nigeria. But they do their own divinations. And with different Orishas or Orixas as it’s spelled in Portuguese. I have translated the report on them here for anyone interested. Original article here.
Orixás regents of 2022
– Exú (from Yoruba Esù)
– The Ibejis (Divine Twins)
– Oxumarê (from Yoruba Òsùmáré)
– Yemanjá
“The year 2022, in all, will have the regency of 5 Orixás. Being that, 3 of them will govern every day and 2 will act at different times that will be the beginning and end of the year. In chronological order, see each of them so that we can understand when we will be according to a particular regency. Orixás, which are: Exú (beginning of the year), Oxumarê and Ibejis (all year round) and Yemanjá to end 2022. In view of this, we will see below in more detail the representativeness of each of them:
Exú (from Yoruba Esù)
We will start with the influence of Orixá Exú – different from the entity Exú also in Umbanda – which represents communication.
He’s the great messenger between deities and humans. Represents the path. Nothing better than starting the year with Exú, your energy will begin to organize all uncertainties we will bring back this year 2021. Whether in the political aspect, economic but mainly in the aspect of world health. As we enter the year 2022 still with many doubts, with fears and without knowing, in fact, which course to take or where to start again. Therefore, it will be a very propitious year for us to put our “homes up to date”, our lives, our families, jobs, health (mental, physical and spiritual) “up to date”
Because Exú will be at our side indicating to us what the best decision to be made before all the questions presented to us during this year. The day of the week dedicated to Exú is Monday, his colors are black and red (predominantly) and his elements are fire and earth.
Oxumare
(From Yoruba Òsùmáré) – orixá regent 2022 In line with Exú, Oxumarê is one of the main energies that will govern the entire 2022 from the first to the last minute. If Exú is the great messenger, Oxumaré is the Orixá who walks between heaven and earth. So much so that one of its representations in nature is the rainbow. It is also represented as a great serpent that envelops the earth and the sky, bringing and ensuring renewal. Oxumarê is recognized as “the great force that directs the movements”, that is, under the influence of Oxumarê we will have a year absolutely conducive to transformations and renewals.
It will be time to put into practice our projects that have been “shelved” due to the various crises that we still go through, because Oxumarê takes the rainwaters back to the clouds and then “the sun will shine” in 2022. It will be a very positive year for transformations in the professional sphere, as well as in the spheres of friendships and romances. To the extent that, Oxumarê represents the wealth and fortune and consequently prosperity. When we talk about prosperity we should not only focus on material prosperity that concerns money, although it is a favorable year in this regard, but especially with regard to spiritual prosperity.
This is because to the extent that we are well structured emotionally and Oxumarê will bring the conditions for this structuring. We will be very close to achieving prosperity also in the spiritual sphere because we must not forget that it is our individual energy that drives us to prosperity or failure. So let’s stick to this great opportunity to definitively take from our paths low vibration energies that are eventually afflicting us and preventing us from reaching our goals. With regard to affective relationships, Oxumarê is the “balancer of love”, so I suggest you wait a little longer for decision-making in that aspect of their lives and especially, do not lose sight of that opportunity that are awaiting possible reconciliation.
Those adjustments that are missing to put love life back on track. The day of the week dedicated to Oxumarê is Tuesday, its colors are black and yellow with regard to candomblé, jeje nation, or green and yellow with regard to to candomblé, Ketu nation, but let us not forget that Oxumarê is the representation rainbow and then all the colors of the rainbow belong to it. Its element is the sky and the earth.
(Oxumare or Oshanmare as we call him/her in Santeria is also worshipped on Sundays).
Once again we have the influence of the energy of deities who bring with them the characteristics of beginning and continuity, multiplication and riches. But they also bring with them the contradictory indicating that opposites can walk together and that all things have two sides. Ibejis will bring to us the importance of movement, of not waiting for things to happen and that it is time to “chase after what we really want” and together with Oxumarê and Exú will give us ways to achieve what we want as long as it is fair to us, that is, we cannot wait for “things to fall from heaven.”
(This is a similar sentiment to the Santero divination.)
The Ibejis (Divine Twins)
The Ibejis are two very little known and/or worshiped deities in Brazil (also in Cuba with Santeria and traditional Yoruba religion in Nigeria) although it is widely associated with two Saints of Catholic Christianity – They are Cosme and St. Damian. Therefore, Ibejis is not the same thing as St. Cosme and St. Damian. Despite the large existing similarities, including on the date of commemoration of these deities who also take place on 27 September. Ibejis will be together with Oxumaré ruling all year 2022 and with them will bring the continuity, since they represent children, especially twin children. In the Yoruba cult and with regard to this cult, children are the greatest riches in existence.
Ibejis represent the balance of the universe and thus will bring to 2022 the opportunity of mental, financial and spiritual balance inviting us to see the good because everything has two sides, as stated above and it is up to us to look to the good side, the pure and beautiful side. The day of the week we dedicate to the Ibejis is Sunday, their colors are green, light blue and pink. Their element is air.
Yemanjá
Far from being the least important, in fact is Orixá best known to Brazilians generally (and other Yoruba practitioners). Yemanjá is the GREAT MOTHER, the mother of all and almost all Orixás. That is Yemanjá is present in the life of each of us and it makes total sense for her to conduct, the end of 2022. She will follow the whole process of reunion, transformation and balance/rebalancing of her children as the great mother she is, she will be “half away” eagerly waiting for every step of ours and giving us the absolute certainty that we will be at all times rested by her love and dedication.
Yemanjá, queen of all waters (salty and sweet). Her name, in Portuguese means” mother whose children are fish” she will bring with her the energy of possibility to reinvent. And she will always be with her arms outstretched to cherish us from the whole process we encounter during the year 2022. And we will meet with that mother’s hug we need so badly. Despite being the divinity of all waters, her greatest energy is concentrated in the fresh waters of rivers that flow into the sea and so we will be, renewed and purified by their clear waters ready to cast ourselves into the seas. The day dedicated to Yemanjá is Saturday, her colors are silver, blue and green. Her element is water,”
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