Warnings from the Otherside

At the risk of sounding melodramatic, I have been asked to write this post by the spirits and the Gods.

You think I’m fucking crazy? Good. So do I. That said, many of you follow me on here anyways. And some of you have admitted that much of what I warned of, did come to pass in the past. So let’s get to it.

It isn’t just Mercury retrograde. Or the fact that Trump won the election. These are just symptoms of a larger problem. A problem even larger than the corrupt political machinations we’re used to. Something nasty has been called forth this year.

Something that was brought upon by Benjamin Mileikowsky (his real name). Through his Genocide of the Palestinians. His wanton murder of the innocent, is like a sacrifice. The children are like a sacrifice. His soldiers, attendant priests sending babes to be sacrificed to demons in pits of fire.

It’s a calling. A prayer to evil. A summoning ritual. He has called the darker forces to his aid. And they have responded.

Don’t misunderstand me. He’s an atheist. He doesn’t believe in shit. And he doesn’t practice shit either. Neither do his minions.

They’re all puppets used by evil.

Now this isn’t a poetic political condemnation either. I am a Magus. I am a Pagan. I write about what I see through visions. Through premonitions.

By interpreting the signs and omens. Make of that what you will. Whether you think I’m another religious nut job. Only for the left instead of the right. I don’t care. I’ve been asked to give you all a warning.

And that’s what I’m gonna do.

The Storms

“*Water Spirit*”
A drawing by illustrator Wenjun Lin, also known as *Ghost* from Artstation, I use this partial image of one of his drawings to represent the Little Thunders in Miccosukee Religion.

Disclaimer

Because I believe this needs to be shown respect. And adding this to the captions above isn’t enough. This is not a real image of the Little Thunders. There is no artwork available for them online. We know that they are a type of thunder being.

Which means they don’t just command water. But also the storms and lighting. And that they are holy. On the same level as Angels, Saints, and even Gods in some cases. We also know that they’re divine twins.

Hero twins exist in all religions and cultures everywhere. There are even saints that appear like that in Christianity. There are many divine twins in Native religion across turtle island. But I thought it would be disrespectful to use a hero twin image from another native culture. Because I do not believe they are the same beings.

And therefore they shouldn’t be treated as such. I found this image of a water spirit on Artstation. I liked it because it showed a young water spirit boy. Who appeared to be indigenous. And I cropped the image to only show the child spirit.

Since they are the chiefs of all water spirits, I thought this was the best depiction. No disrespect intended. I worship them as the Gods of Florida. Part of our local pantheon. I am not enrolled with this nation.

But as a Pagan I believe in giving honor to the Gods of a country. And I worship them too.

How do I begin to speak of this? I guess I should remind every one of when the storm first came to Florida. And after that a series of storms also appeared. It released great devastation and flooding upon the North side of the state. At first I was very angry. Not at the storm.

How do I say this? It felt as if the Gods had cupped our side of Florida with their hands. As if we were protected. I had never felt that before. Yes we had one scary night in South Florida. And we thought we would get hit. But apart from the wind and downpours of rain, we were fine.

That’s not why I was angry. I was angry at the Governor here. And the last governors too. Whenever a storm like that ravaged us, and in ways that were more intense, they did the bare minimum. And I do mean the bare minimum.

As someone who lives down here, I can tell you this. The South of Florida, is where our local government shits on the most. Because when the hurricane showed up, it was bad. But it wasn’t as bad as the last hurricane we had under DeSantis. But this time, DeSantis pulled out all the stops.

Sent in emergency money, crisis units, and even money from other states. He bent over and kissed their ass nice and good in North Florida. And the North of Florida is fucking racist as shit. There are places outside of South Florida where a black or hispanic person cannot go to. Because they might just disappear.

And the Cops over there are worse than the cops we have here.

So when I heard that they got messed up by this storm, I didn’t care much. I wasn’t happy about it. Because I assume or hope that there surely must be good people there. That not all of them are so nasty and violent towards us. But in my experience the only people there are the black communities who have to keep to themselves.

And try to stay safe amidst a hostile population. I have only ever seen bad people there. So I can’t say that care that the storm fucked them all up. I couldn’t care less if that’s controversial to say. Because they have said worse about us.

They despise us. Therefore we despise them in return. Respect is earned, not given. I was mostly offended by how this bastard helped them but not us. It shows you whose life is more valuable here.

And as I started to think that, I felt something strange. It was that weird goosebump feeling I sometimes get when sensing something paranormal. The storm seemed to usher in change. And I heard a word. Smiting. For those who don’t have a formal religious training, that’s a fancy word for crushing you.

Someone had sent that storm. And I don’t think it was anyone good either. Not only do spirits travel via storms. But sometimes Gods do too. I saw the Little Thunders in my vision.

And they seemed to be concerned. I think something supernatural had sent that storm. I felt that this storm was specifically meant for North Florida. But the Gods of Florida had decided to step in. And so, the Gods of not only the indigenous Seminole pantheon, but also every God from all the communities who live here, helped us.

They couldn’t stop the North of Florida from being struck. But they were able to at least shield many of us in both the Central and South of Florida. Why them is anyone’s guess. All of Florida is filed with assholes. Maybe something in the North was calling to it like a beacon.

I know that sounds crazy in modern times. But spirits and their power to manipulate the weather is common in ancient writings. Of course most of the time, weather and other natural phenomena happen in response to a spirit appearing. And normally is just nature. Weather spirits doing their thing and keeping the natural balance.

Ravens, crows, and black birds in general are in charge of the dead, often seen as birds of ill omen, image is a partial download of an image from
*The Element Encyclopedia of Spells* (2014)

Then Hurricane Rafael’s aftershocks devastated Cuba with a 6.8 Magnitude Earthquake. And even we in Florida became afraid of a tsunami as a result. And though Florida’s rulers have tried to tell us we will be fine, another Hurricane named Sara is fast forming. And this hurricane is also strange.

All the models claim this one will liner and hover above places.

This one should also be considered very dangerous

The aspects of Sara that bothered me the most was what he has said. That it seems to be a long duration event. As I said before it just lingers. And it doesn’t form a triangle per se in Belize. I call this the

Door Formation:

Belize, Providencia, Honduras, Mexico

Something about how the formations are done makes me think “portal”. As if something were attempting to pass through to us. And strangely I felt or saw in vision that the Little Thunders were preparing to fight back. Later I saw in one of those videos that I was correct. Apparently, a high pressure system is coming out to block and pin
the storm down.

I kept hearing bubble in my mind. Please don’t take this to mean you will be protected. Or even that it will physically stop the storm. For all I know that’s a metaphor for something else. It is likely that it will do just that.

It’s important to view all of this through religious metaphor. If only because I am afraid of saying the wrong thing and lulling people into a false confidence. Just because a religious official tells you something, doesn’t make it true or even accurate. And sadly these days that holds more true than in any other era. But I will say this.

I feel that the Gods are angry, all of them, with the state of our world.

Our race has unleashed something that it wasn’t ready for. We had an entire year to prepare for it. Or try to stop whatever it is that’s making its way to us now. Now I fear that it’s too late. Our only course of action now is to dig our heels in and prepare.

Build a trench and start warfare with whatever comes our way.

In Santeria, we believe in evil Gods and Demons called the Osorbos. Also known as the Ajogun (warriors of evil). I feel that the Ajogun have come. That this year of genocide has unleashed their armies and soldiers upon us again. They were never really gone to begin with.

And it’s not just here in Florida. It’s everywhere. Remember that when the good Gods had departed Ireland, the Formorian Giants returned. The evil Gods, the Formori had come back. And they forced the humans to sacrifice their children to their ruler.

The Black God, Crom Cruach. And Crom Cruach has roamed the lands as a mysterious black rider ever since. Now I fear that such an era is upon us yet again. But this has paved their way. I saw signs in the sticks (Xylomancy). I saw signs in the weather (Aeromancy) and in the birds (Ornithomancy).

They all said danger. And spoke of war and violence. Strange birds especially, that normally only come here when a hurricane is on its way. And dreams. Strange dreams with La Santa Muerte and the dead.

They seemed worried as well. Bad spirits are attracted to bad people. And with this many bad people in power, how long before this army of evil spirits reaches us?

Image from the book,
*“Chthonic Revelations”* By Alexander Corvus

I wish I had words of wisdom. But all I have are fears. And I ask you to do whatever rituals you can do block these bastards. To undo whatever they have come to do. I am preparing a whole series of Apotropaic rituals to stem the tide.

And empower anyone or anything that can help us. If there are evil powers don’t fret. For there are good powers as well. I’m asking the plant guides I have for guidance and help. As well as the dead and whoever else helps.

I feel like I’m drowning. Maybe we all are and don’t know it. Did a banishing here for myself and my family. A calling to the ancestors for help. Then followed it up with a summoning,

I asked the Olympian Gods for help. To appear and to fight. I asked them to send down their whole hosts of spirits to fight for us. And for them to take the lead. While the Native spirits protect us and prepare for self defense.

Of course I don’t expect this to actually help other people. I can call magic to help me and my family during this conflict. But such a large number of people is harder. And I’m not a God. So instead I ask all of you to prepare.

And cast on your own. Prepare everyone,

– M

Practical Witchcraft and Worship : How I celebrate Beltane

The next installment of my practical magic and worship series. For those who read my blog yesterday, you already saw this section. So you can ignore this. This is for those who want adapt their practices to modern life. I took this from my article the Fires of Beltane.

So my practice is a bit of a mix. A mix of reconstructionism. A mix of the eclecticism. And a mix of practical magic for modern times. So I do start off trying to recreate the rituals as best as possible.

I live around several bodies of water. So I do have holy places where I do magic by the water. I leave offerings there. I have a sacred tree I use as my May Pole or May Bush. And I left a clootie in the form of a red string tied to a branch.

But that being said, it’s not always feasible. I don’t cook caudles of egg and milk and all this other stuff. And I don’t sacrifice animals to Belenus or any other God. So I have to adapt my rituals to something that is possible. And that doesn’t violate my personal beliefs.

So for a few days, I collected the left overs of all my dinners.

I placed them all in the same sealed bag. And infused them with my prayers. Prayer is a form of energy after all. My spirits did the same. Filling them with our desires and wants.

Then today a half an hour before sunset, I set out to do all my offerings. Rather than a caudle of milk and eggs, I gave crema catalana. Americans normally call it Creme Brulee. But it’s got eggs and milk and is delicious. In this case I didn’t pour it as a libation.

It’s almost like a cake. So I have a cake offering. And I also put fresh fruit with the “cake”. For a libation, I gave milk, cream, and some alcohol. Then instead of the typical bonfires, I added a combination of Celtic and Native American influences. I believe we should all have loyalty to the Native Gods and spirits of this land.

And we should always leave a space for them in any of our rituals. I kept it simple. I burned Sage for the Great Spirit and all the spirits of the land. And used that as the first holy fire. I smudged the whole house myself and my family and pet.

Then I lit a holy candle to Belenus. And I sanctified the home. And I filled the void from the banishing with holy fire from Belenus. The candle acted as the second fire. And I blessed each member of the household.

There is an old blessing charm that used to be sung around Beltane. But the problem was more than the fact that I can’t speak Gaelic. It was also that the words of the charm didn’t 100% apply to me. People who parrot old spells and charms that don’t apply to them are looking for a world of hurt. A spell or blessing may have been good for a peasant farmer hundreds or even thousands of years ago.

But if you try to cast the same exact spell today, it could backfire. Because you are not a farmer or a peasant. So trying to cast the same spell now would be detrimental to you. Like a spell to protect your farm animals. That’s fine if you live on a farm.

What happens if you don’t?

So it’s necessary to take the old spells and adapt them to your modern and personal life. Personalize them as much as possible to what really works for you. The original spell was this.

” Beannaich, a Thrianailt fhioir nach gann, (Bless, O Threefold true and bountiful,)
Mi fein, mo cheile agus mo chlann, (Myself, my spouse and my children,)
Mo chlann mhaoth’s am mathair chaomh ‘n an ceann,(My tender children and their beloved mother at their head,)
Air chlar chubhr nan raon, air airidh chaon nam beann, (On the fragrant plain, at the gay mountain sheiling,)
Air chlar chubhr nan raon, air airidh chaon nam beann. (On the fragrant plain, at the gay mountain sheiling.)

Gach ni na m’ fhardaich, no ta ‘na m’ shealbh, (Everything within my dwelling or in my possession,)
Gach buar is barr, gach tan is tealbh, (All kine and crops, all flocks and corn,)
Bho Oidhche Shamhna chon Oidhche Bheallt, (From Samhain Eve to Beltane Eve,)
Piseach maith, agus beannachd mallt, (With goodly progress and gentle blessing,)
Bho mhuir, gu muir, agus bun gach allt, (From sea to sea, and every river mouth,)
Bho thonn gu tonn, agus bonn gach steallt. (From wave to wave, and base of waterfall.)”
“From The Songs and Rhymes of May, courtesy of the Wayback Machine

As most of you can see, there’s a lot there that doesn’t resonate with everyone. Not everyone is married or has children. Or even has a wife. A lot of people are LGBTQ. And they may or may not have female partners.

They might not have partners period. And like I said before, not everyone has “crops”. Most people in the world live in cities. So I adapted mine specifically for myself. It goes something like this.

” Bless, O Threefold true and bountiful, Myself, my family, including my animals and spirits, My tender animals and trees and stones, and my beloved mother at our head,On the fragrant plain, at the gay mountain sheiling, On the fragrant plain, at the gay mountain sheiling.

Everything within my dwelling or in my possession, all the larders of our food, all our finances, From Samhain Eve to Beltane Eve, With goodly progress and gentle blessing, From sea to sea, and every river mouth, From wave to wave, and base of waterfall, “
My personal adaptation of the Beltane blessing charm

And thus we were all blessed. If I really wanted to get technical about this, I could have taken out the parts about mountains and plains. But then that would have defeated the purpose. Imagine removing parts or Greek prayers that mentioned Mount Olympus. Or taking out prayers that mentioned sacred trees in Yoruba religion.

Its important to not sterilize your prayers. The culture and the land sites and other places are important. You should not remove those parts of the prayer. So ask yourself if what you are taking out, would destroy the cultural identity of the prayer. If the answer is yes then you know you need to leave it the hell alone.

If it needs to be adapted to you, that’s okay. Just make sure you keep the cultural influence alive. I also anointed my animals with lustral water. To keep them safe from malefic influences. The house was blessed.

And from there I did a divination for the Aos Si to speak to me. To grant me any knowledge I needed. And I got answers to some hard questions I hadn’t even thought to ask of yet. And that’s it everyone. That’s how I personally celebrate it.

Cheers,

– M

The Fires of Beltane

For many Celtic peoples, this was said to be the beginning of Summer. Personally, Summer for me is Lughnasadh. Not Beltane. But that’s a matter of where you live. Technically, it’s “summer” all year long in Dumbfuckistan, I mean Florida.

This is the place where Satan sunbathes.

I do not celebrate it on May First. I hate the fixed dates. I try to celebrate them either by astrology or other things. For instance, many Celtic Recinstructionists won’t celebrate it until the Hawthorne blooms.

It’s one of the four fire festivals. I celebrate it every year on May 4th (sunset) the day before May 5th as the Astrological Beltane. But technically I celebrate the festivals as weeks. So Beltane Week for me starts April 30th on May Eve. And continues until today.

Well worship

During the day, the Ancients visited Holy Wells.

Rituals were performed at the site of the holy wells. this has been called “Well worship”. The worship of a God or the veneration of a saint or some other spirit at the place. They exist all over the country. It’s said the holy wells had the purest and most powerful holy waters.

Waters used not only to cure and heal. But to banish evil spirits also. To break curses. Or even to cast spells. They left offerings called Clooties at these places too.

These were necklaces, coins, torn cloth or string. Or even just regular pebbles or nice looking rocks. Even crystals are sometimes left at these places. As well as semi precious stones. Though traditionally, it can be anything.

These are personal tokens. Gifts to the local spirits. And to the Gods. Interestingly enough, in modern times we have cases of both Pagan and Christian clooties being offered. It makes sense since many practice a sort of dual faith.

Christian on one side, and indigenous Celtic religion on the other.

Those who go to these wells or holy water sources, will walk round them nine or three times. Well not walk, you’re supposed to creep on your hands and knees. And they will do it from East to West. Mimicking the journey of the sun each day. Traditionally they would recite prayers to the Gods.

Especially to those Gods and spirits who live at the holy sites. Under Christian domination, that changed. The occupiers forced the indigenous peoples to worship their God. So many of the ancient Polytheists secretly hid their worship under the guise of Christianity. Of course at least some were like me.

People who believe in everything. Who see the divine in everything. Even if it’s the religion of a couple of bloodthirsty murderers. Who use violence to enforce the tenants of their faith. And fear to force their faith upon the conquered.

But I digress. When it was a Christianized ritual, they were saying the Our Fathers and the Hail Marys. In both versions, the celebrants would build small shrines made of the rocks there. One group for their Gods and spirits. The other for their saints and one God.

“At the close of each round they build up a small pile of stones; for at the last day the angels will reckon these stones, and he who has said the most prayers will have the highest place in heaven, each saint keeping count for his own votaries,”

From the article, The Holy Wells of Ireland, by Kyle Hunt (2018)

So this is a magical practice done by the Christians. The more votive offerings given, the more blessings by the Saint. It’s possible that the same was done in the Celtic era. And the more rock shrines one gives to their Gods or the Fae, the more favor they gain. Probably the same for the clooties.

The ancients built small temples around these Holy Wells. Usually with steps descending to the well or body of water. And once the celebrant goes down the steps, they go on their hands and knees. Then they would wash their faces and foreheads. Or whatever part of the body was diseased.

The disease would slowly and gradually diminish. And the person would be healed. It’s even claimed they were permanently healed. Cured. The illness would be banished forever.

Central to the worship at the Wells were the rude stone monuments. These are central to the temples at these wells. Clooties are often left there. They’re charged with magical and spiritual energy. The stone is a massive talisman.

When you pray, you have to focus on the stone. You drink the water to be healed. Then leave offerings of different sorts. Offerings that can never be removed.

“Whenever a white-thorn or an ash-tree shadows the place, the well is held to be peculiarly sacred; and on leaving, having first drunk of the water, the patient ties a votive offering to the branches–generally a coloured handkerchief or a bright red strip cut from a garment;

And these offerings are never removed. They remain for years fluttering in the wind and the rain, just as travellers have described the votive offerings on the sacred trees that shadow the holy wells of Persia. They are signs and tokens of gratitude to the patron saint, and are meant to show the devil that he has no longer power to harm the praying pilgrim, or torment him with pains and aches as heretofore,”

– Article, The Holy Wells of Ireland

by Kyle Hunt

Holy Fires

During this time, cattle and people went between two bonfires. The reason for this was to be protected from the influence of evil spirits. Or even of the Fae. So that the Fae would leave the blessed people and animals alone. A testament to the holiness of fire.

But you have to say magical incantations while passing through the fires. Otherwise, they’re just regular fires. Traditionally the fires were need fires or friction fires. Basically, a wooden drill operated by nine naked married men would be used to drill into a standing log. And the friction would cause the log to burn.

It was said, that these flames, smoke, and even the ashes left behind all had protective powers. Or could be used in some sort of magic. The morning dew on the day of Beltane would also be collected. And placed in a jar which was filtered by being placed in the sun.

Also, you take your animals to fairy forts. And you bleed some of their blood there. So that the Fae will grant them protection from the rest of the year until Samhain. People would also make libations of caudles of milk and egg, as well as oatmeal, and butter was cooked. And poured on the ground for them.

Sacrifices were made to Belenus. But what that sacrifice was I have not been able to find. Whether it was an animal sacrifice or a sacrifice of an offering of bread or food. Thus far I have been unable to find out. Though I am certain it may have been an animal.

How I celebrate

So for a few days, I collected the left overs of all my dinners.

I placed them all in the same sealed bag. And infused them with my prayers. Prayer is a form of energy after all. My spirits did the same. Filling them with our desires and wants.

What happens if you don’t?

So it’s necessary to take the old spells and adapt them to your modern and personal life. Personalize them as much as possible to what really works for you. The original spell was this.

” Beannaich, a Thrianailt fhioir nach gann, (Bless, O Threefold true and bountiful,)
Mi fein, mo cheile agus mo chlann, (Myself, my spouse and my children,)
Mo chlann mhaoth’s am mathair chaomh ‘n an ceann,(My tender children and their beloved mother at their head,)
Air chlar chubhr nan raon, air airidh chaon nam beann, (On the fragrant plain, at the gay mountain sheiling,)
Air chlar chubhr nan raon, air airidh chaon nam beann. (On the fragrant plain, at the gay mountain sheiling.)

Gach ni na m’ fhardaich, no ta ‘na m’ shealbh, (Everything within my dwelling or in my possession,)
Gach buar is barr, gach tan is tealbh, (All kine and crops, all flocks and corn,)
Bho Oidhche Shamhna chon Oidhche Bheallt, (From Samhain Eve to Beltane Eve,)
Piseach maith, agus beannachd mallt, (With goodly progress and gentle blessing,)
Bho mhuir, gu muir, agus bun gach allt, (From sea to sea, and every river mouth,)
Bho thonn gu tonn, agus bonn gach steallt. (From wave to wave, and base of waterfall.) “
From The Songs and Rhymes of May, courtesy of the Wayback Machine

You might not have partners at all. And like I said before, not everyone has “crops”. Most people in the world live in cities. So I adapted mine specifically for myself. It goes something like this.

” Bless, O Threefold true and bountiful, Myself, my family, including my animals and spirits, My tender animals and trees and stones, and my beloved mother at our head, On the fragrant plain, at the gay mountain sheiling, On the fragrant plain, at the gay mountain sheiling. Everything within my dwelling or in my possession, all the larders of our food, all our finances, From Samhain Eve to Beltane Eve, With goodly progress and gentle blessing, From sea to sea, and every river mouth, From wave to wave, and base of waterfall, “
My personal adaptation of the Beltane blessing charm

Cheers,

– M

Links :

PAGAN CALENDAR OF OBSERVANCES – May 2023

The Folk Magician’s Notebook

To know the Spirits of the Land

This May Day, make Beltane bannock, a simple snack with a long history of superstition and divination

Beltane Blessings

Embracing Ancestral Fires and Fire-starting at Beltane

The Holy Wells of Ireland

Random Links of the Day : Beltane Edition

It’s been a while since I did a good old fashioned Random Links of the day. So here we are. The spring edition. Including monsters, Dracula, Pagan Gods and Goddesses. As well as an obscure Christian Saint and a giant snow man from Wisconsin. Sounds like the set up to a joke right? But it’s true.

All of these things have been associated with this time. So without further adieu here we go.

Embrace the Flower Bride

This Witches Country Life – Beltane

The Floralia : Ancient Roman Festival for Sex Work?

(I think this one is bullshit but I added it regardless)

May Day by Sara Wright

Croatia Bans Winter By Partying Like ‘Where the Wild Things Are’

” The Dark Watchers” of California – From the Article “Ghosts in the Rainbow”

The Brocken Spectre Is an Rare, Yet Beautiful, Optical Phenomenon

The Incredible and Rare Optical Phenomenon of the “Broken Spectrum”, How Does it Originate? (Giant Shadow Men)

What is the Brocken Spectre? A misty figure in the fog – EarthSky

Brocken Spectre: What is it and what causes it? – BBC Newsround

Stunning ‘angel in the sky’ photo caused by rare weather event – USA TODAY

Shades of grey: What is the brocken spectre? – BBC News

Brocken spectre | Optical Illusion, Mountain Haze

Explore Sinister Spring Tales with Atlas Obscura

Forget the Wicker Man, look at the burning of the Böögg, an exploding, weather-predicting snowman in Wisconsin

Spring Is for Monsters, Ancient Rituals, and Scary Stories (From haunting tales of the Bell Witch to child-eating swamp monsters, the season is full of frights)

Rites of Spring at Atlas Obscura (mixed articles)

the ancient origins of Beltane

Modern fire festivals in Edinburgh

Spinning Balls of Fire Light Up Spring in This German Town

The Demon Appeasing Dance of Sri Lanka

Fallen Angels and Black Witches partying with the Devil on Walpurgisnacht

Saint Walpurga and the Witches of Walpurgis Night – Daimonologia

In Poland, Drowning the Pagan Goddess Marzanna Ushers in Spring

Welcoming Spring by Burning the Goddess of Winter

The Italian Town that Welcomes Spring with Live Snakes

by Dania Rodrigues

(Every year on May 1st the small town of Cocullo in central Italy celebrates its patron saint San Domenico Abate. The celebration resembles many other Catholic festivities, but during this religious procession the saint’s statue is fully covered with living snakes)

In North Dakota, the Hideous Miniwashitu Ushers in Spring

by April White, Senior Editor/Writer

A dreadful, one-eyed creature with a sawlike backbone, the Miniwashitu is a hardworking monster that, for the Madan people, is all that stands between salvation and destruction.

Spring Rituals

Croatia Bans Winter By Partying Like ‘Where the Wild Things Are’

Spinning Balls of Fire Light Up Spring in This German Town of Lügde (Plus fireworks, music, and maybe a goddess or two)

Dracula’s Guest by Bram Stoker (Happy Beltane Halloween!) this one is a special post for me because it’s sort of a Dracula Prequel. When Johnathan Harker stupidly ventures into a curses town on Walpurgisnacht of all nights. It’s a fascinating read and there are YouTube audio books there too.

Embracing Ancestral Fires and Fire-starting at Beltane

Beltane and Walpurgisnacht

Beltane Lovers Fete: A Poem

The Greek Anthesteria Day 1 : Pithogia (Opening of the Jars)

The Greek Anthesteria Day 2 : Choës (The Pouring) & the Roman Feralia : The End of the Anthesteria

The Greek Anthesteria Day 3 :Chytroi and the Roman Caristia & Terminalia

That’s all for now!

A party the Devil took Faust to in the story. It was supposedly Walpurgisnacht

The God of Fire and Light Belenus, who is worshiped on Beltane

St. Walpurga, the Saint who is associated with the Pagan Grain Goddess and Beltane

– M

Beltane and Walpurgisnacht

For many Celtic Pagans, tonight is Beltane. Actually a lot of different Pagan groups have similar holidays. Celebrated in different cultures under different names. Even the Germans celebrated this holiday. Of course there is a link between Celtic and Germanic culture. But that’s a discussion for a whole other days. But I was once told by a Wiccan herbalist :

“Norse and Celts, we were kin once. And a lot of practices were shared between us, “

For me it’s even more nuanced. I celebrate a Beltane week. That is a mix of many of these influences. And it ends on the Astrological Beltane. Which is on May 5th or Cinco de Mayo in Mexico.

But a friend of mine had no idea what it was. And I wrote out this long ass explanation to him. So I figured it was more than enough to make a blog post. And my original Beltane post is too long to post yet. It isn’t finished.

So this will be my post for Beltane.

Beltane

Beltane is a Celtic festival that is dedicated to Belenus. The Celtic God of healing, light, and fire. He was also in charges of shepards and pastors. Fire is associated with holy magic and healing. But Europeans in different places had dedicated it and named it differently.

Like all Celtic fire festivals, the bonfires were meant to protect people. From the malevolent influences of Faeries. And other spirits who could harm humans. Including ghosts, and in some cases even devils. The idea was to create two bonfires.

And animals and people would be passed through the bonfires. The fire would remove any negative energy from their souls and bodies. And also bless the person. And would warm them of all evil influences. This night, like the other fire festivals of the Celts is liminal.

It is a time when the barrier between the worlds is thin. That’s why the bonfires were necessary. It’s not just something cool to do for the neighbors to see.

Others make this a Hexennacht (Witch’s Night). And focus specifically on magic. Not just worship of the Gods. They take advantage of the fact that the world is in a liminal state to do spells. Or conjure forth spirits.

And some like me do both.

Sankt Walpurgisnacht

(St. Walpurga’s Night)

The Catholic Church tried to convert the German Pagans. So they renamed the fire festival after a Saint named Walpurga. Who in life was a Nun from the church. She was canonized on May the first, 870 AD by Pope Adrian II. She was an Anglo-Saxon Missionary to the Frankish Empire.

She was the daughter of an under king, and came from a family of Saints. She was raised in England in Devonshire. She was one of the first people to write about Palestine. Specifically her brother’s travels there. She was his autobiographer.

She’s considered the first female author of both England and Germany. Which I disagree with. Pagans had their own writings. And their own authors. No one single person from any one country can be named the first female author.

But to get to the point, she was a remarkably accomplished woman in her time. Likely because of her Royal lineage. And the benefits of an up to date education. But when she died, is when her legend truly began. Her bones were in a rocky shrine.

And strangely began to exude an oil capable of healing people. There were also Pagan associations with St. Walpurga. She would be seen frequently with grain imagery in her icons. Holding up stalks of grain. Linking her to the Grain Mother.

Her relics would be moved around this time. Which became a sort of mystical ritual in its own right. Which was also another reason for the Walpurgisnacht feast. They even copied the Pagan corn doll idols for the Grain Mother. Using them instead for St. Walpurga.

There was also a miracle she performed once. These sailors were caught in a storm at sea. They prayed to her and survived. Before her intercession, they believed they certainly were going to die. But she was more than a miracle worker.

As noted before she was called upon to bring in the grain and agriculture of the Earth. But she was also called upon for warding off,

• Pests

• Rabbies

• Witchcraft

• Whooping Cough

The witchcraft I can understand. If her festival of the moving of her relics was used by the church to replace Beltane, it only makes sense that they used her against magic. Even though Paganism is a religious ideology. Not a magical system. But to them Pagan was synonymous with witch.

But her associations mainly seem to be about infusing the Earth with life. And warding off those things that threaten life. Not just disease and creatures that bare them. But warding off death itself. A Saint associated with pure life.

Besides bonfires, people would also go to her tomb in the town of Eichstätt. Located in Bavaria, Germany, the faithful would go in hopes of obtaining some Walpurga’s oil. And use it to cure all matter of ills.

The Witches of Satan, dancing and flying around Mount Brocken to feast with the Devil

Later, the holiday was taken by black magicians, specifically Satanists, to worship the Devil. It was said that on May 1st, the Devil and the forces of evil had full, unchecked sway upon the world. Evil spirits and those witches who pacted with them, would choose holy days.

To mock holy Gods. This isn’t limited to just Christianity. In the old days, Satanists of the old order celebrated their black rites on these days. But not to worship our Gods. But to mock the Gods of our ancestors.

For the demons despise all holy Gods. And all holy things.

A stereotypical depiction of the Devil with a Ram head, leading the Walpurgisnacht festivities

Modern satanists deny that as a false accusation. And claim commiseration with us Pagans. Saying that we have more in common than we don’t. I have met some Satanists. Some are good people.

Others not so much. I suppose it could be argued that they are Polytheist. If they worship more than one Demon as their God or Goddess. And some of the Demons they worship are ancient Gods who are evil. And came from our pantheons.

So I suppose it depends on your point of view. So on this night, there are Old Gods and their Fairies. And their worshippers dancing by the fires. And performing secret and sacred rituals.

But we also have Satan and his demons. And of course his witches. And on this night they roam around their neighborhoods and towns. And do smaller versions of the mythical Black Sabbath at Mount Brocken. A mountain in Germany reputed to be where they held it.

I believe Mount Brocken has Pagan associations. But I wouldn’t be surprised if old Lucifer showed up there to have a party. Doing their own black rites. And dancing and having sex. At least in the Christian folklore.

Ironically or not so ironically, the Christians also used bonfires. For the purposes of warding off evil spirits during this night. Each bonfire was lit with the intention that St. Walpurga bless them all. And protect them and their communities from the forces of evil. For they knew Walpurga shared this night with the Adversary.

In fact, St. Walpurga was invoked against magic. So she became a powerful Apotropaic Saint. It makes sense. After all, she was a Benedictine Nun. And St. Benedict was known to be a mystic.

Who had holy knowledge to ward off evil. She also died in 777 AD. I mean what holier number is there than that? This woman was a hell of a special person. If you’ll pardon the joke. Walpurga was canonized both on May 1st and her relics were moved at that time to Eichstätt by the local bishop each year.

All sorts of miracles were reported during the journey. People that were sick, were cured. Even without being touched by the oil. It seems just being in proximity of her body was enough to heal a person. Even by accident.

A poster for one of the old Faust movies, with Faust and the Devil partying at Mount Brocken

So modern Satanists celebrate this as their highest holy night. Catholic Christians do their own Masses for Saint Walpurga. But the Old Christians, those who know the old ways, they stay inside at night. To avoid being caught outside with the Devil and his minions.

So basically you have a bunch of ancient Nature Spirits and Gods, the Devil, and the Christian God, and the Demons and Angels. And they’re ALL roaming around everywhere. Man that sounds like the set up to a joke. But for all intents and purposes these spirits and Gods keep to themselves. Well depending on your point of view anyway.

I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the angels and demons decided to dance with the nature spirits and faeries. And arm wrestle each other to prove who has the biggest cock. And before you say that’s blasphemy, let me remind you that in ancient times both Angels and Devils had genitalia. The idea of them being “de-sexed” is a modern one.

All this sex aside..my rituals are mixed. They come from various cultures. So for example, I gave an offering to Lord Belenus and the Tuatha Dé Danann. Then after I was done praying to all of them. I gave offerings for light, healing, and protection.

A Beltane celebration with one man dressed as the Green Man

And I immediately went to my Christian altar. And I prayed to St. Walpurga as well as Mary Undoer of Knots. This week is for that aspect of Mary after all. And finally, I did an offering to the Dark Gods. And asked them to pacify the Fallen One on behalf of everyone in the neighborhood. Even someone walking around at night.

Including the animals. We’re also nearing the New Moon. And yesterday was Hekate’s Deipnon. The Feast of Hekate already passed. But it happened close enough to give the darker half of this Walpurgisnacht some extra strength.

So celebrate and worship our Gods. Or your Saint. But also remember to do so with caution. Too many cooks are in the kitchen. And they all want their perspective flavors and seasonings out there for all of us.

Have a good, safe night,

– M

Aztec Futurism

The smell of dog shit on hot pavements in Florida.

That damned heat that could cook an egg on the road. The endless construction projects that are supposed to make travel, and life easier. And instead just give us never ending traffic. Protests over the newest corrupt city officials embezzling funds that are supposed to be helping us. People telling you to not get vaccinated or wear a mask because the pandemic is “over”.

Then saying the biggest threat right now isn’t COVID. It’s kids being allowed to become trans. Or being “groomed” into it. Welcome to a Florida city. Where ignorance is not bliss.

And where Satan comes to sunbathe.

Maybe I’m biased, but to me, modern cities breed anger and resentment. I was just thinking the other day about this. Apartments were originally supposed to be about Community making life easier. Instead it has brought together the most hostile elements of society. Not the community planning they were originally supposed to be about.

Even people with good intentions tend to become hostile busy bodies. Who don’t know how to mind their own damn business.

Futuristic Dreams

“Terraforming and Colonization” by Michael Daglas

I keep praying for a track of land somewhere and a home for my family and myself. To be out there amongst nature. And far the hell away from most people. Or even to make a sanctuary for animals and people I choose. Specifically homeless people.

Or other kinds of people down on their luck. So we can work together. And what I really want to do, is create a submersible bunker.

Dreams of the Future

Terraformer from the Evo Game, absorbs pollution and converts it into vegetation

A sort of land based submarine ark. One that can contain animals and plants and thousands of people. So that if Florida truly is destined to be sunk beneath the waves, we could survive. Ideally, if we had that kind of technology already, it would be a machine that could interface with the Earth itself. As a sort of life sized nanotechnology for the Earth.

A living machine that could be a symbiont for the Earth itself. That way we could heal the Earth while saving ourselves. And let’s go further. Make it so that the Earth Ark could grow. Merge with more and more land.

Creating more land for the animals and people.

Safeguarding more trees and nature in general. Until all of Florida is one with the Ark. So when the massive wave comes, Florida will not sink. But will be shielded.

And if it does sink, it can survive under water. And from there? Who knows, perhaps the whole continent. And the same could be replicated to other lands and continents. Perhaps to the whole entire world. Turn the planet itself into a perfect, life saving ark.

And have a society similar to Star Trek. A society where money and acquisition of personal wealth, is not our guiding force. But rather a society based on community planning. Of sharing of all resources. That’s what I want.

That’s my dream.

Sci-fi City with terraforming partially complete via John Kracke Jr.

These are the things I envision for our future. Organic nanotechnology. True wisdom and knowledge. Inventions that actually help humanity and all of nature. Not just the latest iPhone. The more I live in “modern” or “civilized” world, the more I feel like screaming into the void.

Take capitalist exploitation of the masses which is worse everyday. Is it any wonder we have such a large suicide rate in this country? It’s insane. We need a new society. At some point we have to do something to not collectively lose our shit as a people. And to that end, I think we all need to look at our indigenous ancestors.

Indigenous here means our original societies. Not specifically Native American. But African, Celtic, Sumerian (Iraqi), and so forth. But since we live on Turtle Island, the land that belongs to Indigenous peoples here. I used one of the First Nations as an example.

Back to nature

The Aztecs it was discovered, went back to nature at the height of their civilization. Supposedly, civilizations only do that in their decline. Like the fall of the Roman Empire. When people left the cities in Rome to go to the country. As a way of escaping the carnage.

Because of that, they lost most of their technology and skill. Lost their knowledge and wisdom. And de-evolved under the boot of the barbarian tribes. Tribes once oppressed by the Ceasers. Who now sought to break the yoke of their former masters.

But for the Nahua or Aztecs, this wasn’t the case. At some point they figured out that to truly evolve, you need nature. So they built large eco cities deep within nature. And this served many purposes. For one, it had inherent strategic value.

They could hide in the Wild from enemies using natural land barriers. Instead of being driven into exile in the wild later. Then starting from scratch as the Romans and many Europeans were forced to do. For another, this would have been a survivalist’s and conservationist’s dream come true. They were masters of Agriculture.

And created roads and canals that rivaled the Roman Empire. Their ways were also sustainable and not at odds with nature. It magnified nature. It built upon it. And evolved from it.

They did too. Building tools and weapons using rich resources like obsidian to do it. The first organic based technology.

Using some of the very first eco technology the world had ever seen. Even today these canals and roadways rival much of what we use. We could expand upon that if only our corporate overlords and rulers would allow us to. We could return to nature via agriculture for a better society. The Romans had to create urban areas to do this.

The Nahua did it by embracing the Earth itself. Racial symbiosis of humanity with Earth, our progenitor. We could learn a lot by learning from indigenous people.

Evolve Organically

We have separated from nature so much. Too much, that now technology is replacing things that shouldn’t be replaced. Some people don’t even bother camping anymore. They do this weird thing where they camp inside their beds in hotel rooms. Then listen to nature sounds on a recording.

I think it’s called Glamping.

Don’t get it twisted. I think that as a meditation strategy, or a way to fight insomnia it’s very useful. And ingenious even. But it shouldn’t be used to replace the act of becoming one with nature. We need to be released from the stress and machinery of this world.

It’s necessary to go back to the drawing board. And see what really works. And what doesn’t work. Something’s gotta give. Now we don’t have to give up everything.

I think we can all agree that insulin, computers and phones, vehicles, and air conditioning are definitely a necessity. And not everything has to be a necessity. There’s nothing wrong with tech that’s used for pleasure like a smart TVs or an iPhone. My problem is when it becomes an obsession. When it becomes an unhealthy addiction.

And even more than that, when nothing else is being done. When all our society cares about are meaningless pleasures like social media. Yet no one is doing anything to stop global warming. Now more than ever with global warming. Our pleasures should not override our serious search for knowledge.

And they need to be in-line with nature. And not contribute to our problems.

One Final Thought

Did you know that Tenochtitlan was built at the center of a lake? That’s right. A lake. It was called the city where one “becomes a God”. They used a combination of rotting vegetation and lake water to build massive crops to feed thousands. By doing this, they created an empire from nature.

Can you imagine what they could have become? If only the Colonizers hadn’t arrived. Don’t get me wrong, the Nahua had many problems. But pollution and scarcity weren’t among them. And they kept their population at sustainable levels. Without being underpopulated.

Or succumbing to lack of genetic diversity. If they had been allowed to evolve on their own. They could have created a civilization that rivaled, or even dwarfed the ones we have now. Civilizations built on organic technology. And maybe by now we would have computer-trees.

Or maybe natural power sources that would never run out. Even tapped into the earth’s geomagnetic power. It pains me to think what could have been. All I know is, this world breeds anger and resentment. And disappointment.

We must return to the Earth. For all our sakes.