longest day of the year

summer solstice

This is a dual celebration. On the one hand it is a celebration of all that has become manifest durng the outward cycle of the sun, and on the other hand, it is a celebration of the return to the dark side of the year, the exploration of the inner world, inner wisdom and inner development. (ref: Kindred, 2007)

Also a time of icecream!

Summer Solstice in Australia 2009 - 22 December 4.47am

word-hoard

"You are labelling pieces of the world with words, then confusing your word-hoard for the totality of life... the threads of wyrd are dimensions of ourselves we cannot grasp with words. We spin webs of words, yet wyrd slips through like the wind. The secrets of wyrd do not lie in our word-hoards, but are locked in the soul. We can only discern the shadow of reality with our words, whereas our souls are capable of encountering the realities of wyrd directly.

You are strangling your life-force with words. Do not live your life searching around for answers in your word-hoard. You will find only words to rationalise your experience. Allow yourself to open up to wyrd and it will cleanse, renew, change and develope your casket of reason. Your word-hoard should serve your experience, not the reverse.

Words can be potent magic indeed, but they can also enslave us..." (ref: Bates, 2004)

ehwaz

The horse is a source of numinous knowledge and it facilitates the journey between worlds... "the vitki may literally ride its power through the realms of reality." (ref: Thorsson)

Slepneir - in Norse mythology, Odin rode Slepneir (an eight legged horse) from one reality/world to the next. The horse was his vehicle but together they travelled.

Ehwaz is the vehicle of transcendence that increases physical power, the body, which is the vehicle for the soul. Ehwaz is the rune of the horse and together with mannaz (man) they form a partnership that is built on trust and  loyalty.

In a reading, ehwaz indicates movement or change. Of interest it can mean the "...development either spiritually or physically, or an increase in capacity in either the physical or spiritual as a result of cooperation with another." (ref: Paxson)

It is also linked to astral travel.......

summer power

Summer in Australia is about power - the raw power of nature.

"We call this the place of the wild, the untamed, the unpredictable. It is often seen as the height of masculine or male energy, of assertiveness, thrust, push and growth, the linear and overt: the opposite of the dark embrace of [winter]. It is the place of power."

but what is power?

"The whole concept of power...is dangerous ground. It pulls without feeling at the roots, testing, testing our resolve and our ability to deal with the consequences of our actions, licking the air with its hunger...it reveals our weakness.

"To grasp our power is frightening. It is our ability to act, which means it's also our ability to make mistakes and to fail. Too often the [north] is avoided."

Mandela tells us: "Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate, but that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that frightens us."

 So, "...avoidance doesn't teach us. To learn, to grow, we must stop, find courage... we turn to look at the beliefs we hold about power. We look at the energy, the unpredicability, the force... It is the spark of our courage, fuelled by the oxygen of our thoughts and the old wood of our past experience, all of which make the fire that is our drive." (ref: Restall Orr, 2000)

Power in summer is the storm that rolls in after a hot day that tests even the most patient. We are afraid of the power of the storm- its unpredictablity, its destruction, its chaos. We can not stop it, redirect it, calm it or reason with it.

Sowilo

"This force is the lightning bolt that links heaven and earth and guides the vitki... It is the illuminating beacon that guides the seeker across a sea of consciousness... The sun rune means strength, energy, life force... the light of truth and enlightened consciousness. It strengthens the will, and helps one to gain access to inner guidance..." (ref: Paxson, 2005)

Be not afraid of yourself

wondering...aching

empowered by

The Richness of Place

The Richness of Time

The Treasures of the Tribe

The Treasures of the Ancestors

The Joy of the Journey

(Ref: Carr-Gomm)

spiral

The circle draws you in. Draws you to the very centre, where it leads you back out again. Renewed. Revived. Released.

'Jung discovered that the circle represents the Self in the unconcious..."

"...over the years...the circle becomes a magical place in which the circumference represents the round of our daily, yealy and whole-life journeys... at the centre lies the still point of being and no-thing. The entire space of the circle becomes our sphere of inner working - it becomes a sacred area in which... we can travel to other states of being. It becomes a doorway...to previously hidden realms and altered states of consciousness." (ref: Carr-Gomm, 2002)

Hagal

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoaGMb8p_PY&fmt=18

In the stillness you can talk to me

artsist: Tracey Mac

the seer

To you alone it is given to know the truth about the gods and deities of the sky... The innermosat groves of far-off forests are your abodes. And it is you who say that the shades of the dead seek not the silent lands

 of Erebus and the pale halls of Pluto; rather, you tell us that the same spirit has a body again elsewhere, and that death, if what you sing is true, is but the mid-point of long life.

(Lucan, Pharsalia, c.AD600)

"Divination... need not be simple fortune-telling...It can be an effective means of revealing hidden dynamics- whether they are in oneself or within a relationship, or within a group. Divination then becomes a means of gaining self-knowledge and a deeper understanding of the hidden causes behind appearances. Seen in this way it becomes yet another way that we can try to go beyond the surface, to plumb the depths, to look at causes rather than effects." (ref: Carr-Gomm, 2002)

laguz

Flow, water, sea, a fertility source, the healing power of renewal. Life energy and organic growth. Imagination and psychic matters.

Water is the symbol of unconscious and invisible Life forces. All of life is dependent on water, and therefore Laguz represents the universal ocean, the supreme unity of all life. The dream state and the shadow element both linger beneath its surface, and the human unconscious is revealed when explored and exposed to the conscious mind. We ‘take the plunge’. (ref: runesecrets.com)

beltane

History: It was a celebration of the fertility of the land and their animals. The main traditional element which was common to all Beltane festivals was the fire which gave it its name. All the fires of the community would be extinguished and a new, sacred ‘Need Fire’ was lit. (ref: beltane.org)

Emma Restall Orr (1998), a modern day Druid, speaks of the 'fertility of our personal creativity'. She is referring to the need for active and creative lives. We need fertile minds for our work, our families and our interests. Fire is still the most important element of most Beltane celebrations and there are many traditions associated with it. It is seen to have purifying qualities which cleanse and revitalise. People leap over the Beltane fire to bring good fortune, fertility (of mind, body and spirit) and happiness through the coming year.

purpose

"We are all visitors to this time, this place.
We are just passing through. Our purpose
here is to observe, to learn, to grow, to love...
and then we return home."

Australian Aboriginal proverb.

equinox

"There is a god called Tyr. He is the boldest and most courageous, and has power over victory in battle...He is also so well informed that a very knowledgeable man is called Tyr-wise." (ref: Snorri Sturluson, Gylfaginning)

conviction. dependable. justice. balance. moral strength. self discipline. determination. spiritual warrior. courage. energy. strength and honour.

awen

The action of connecting (or reconnecting) with the source of the spirit of life that flows through us, body and soul.

We call it inspiration.

...more than just the relief at a piece in a mental puzzle clicking into position... more than just the usual unreliable and erractic flashes that life can bring.

awen comes from being with, being in and being part of all things.

This is where knowledge and understanding comes from.
Andy Goldsworthy

circles

A scared circle is not only a place in which we can play in exquisite safety, but also one in which we can investigate all the dark and dusty corners of our mind... the circle is a haven; it holds the scope of our knowing. Into it we deposit the contents of our soul, our memories, our belief, our understandings, our confusion, our complete experience and observation upon our existence, externalising what til now has been hidden within. (ref: Restall-Orr, 2000)

Andy Goldsworthy

...no beginning and no end, no moment of divine creation and no apocalytic end... The ebbing and flowing process of emergence and dissipation, change and evolution, is perpetual and infinite, sometimes gentle and then dramatic, but never extinguished. (ref: Restall-Orr, 2004)

returning

Muslims talk about people 'reverting' to the Islamic faith, not 'converting'. They believe that their faith is something all people are born into, but they are not necessarily brought up in that faith. Accordingly, when a non-Muslim finds Islam, they are returning to what they inherently know.

When we return home from long distant travels, we return to what we know.

Occasionally,we return to some inherent knowledge that has been locked away for many moons......

returning to what we already know....

this looks familiar

balance...

... how do we find it?

How do we stop one aspect of our life from dominating all others?

Can we change the balance?

imagination

"Many people dismiss the notion of other dimensions to our life as mere imagination. However, as those who do not have the conventional five senses can testify, there are many more ways of understanding the world. Imagination is one of them, a faculty we should not dismiss as mere fantasy... Imagination is the ability to experience the world other than by our five senses. It is the ability to experience aspects of the world we would not normally be able to encounter...Without imagination, we cannot transcend our material existence.

A true realisation of this comes when our inner sacred grove begins to grow. There comes a point when we realise that the place is real and has an independant existence. We might gain access to it through our thoughts, but it is not something that we have created...Our discovery of it is, in fact, a rediscovery of something with which we have always been linked." (ref: White and Talboys, 2005)

Time

The measurement of time is not absolute. Time is perceived by humans in a relative fashion by using human created units of measurement. Examples of human created units of time are the measurement of seconds, minutes, hours, and days. (ref: http://www.physicalgeography.net/fundamentals/3c.html)

The measurement of time is not the same for all observers. It depends on the relative speed of the observer, i.e., the measurement of time depends on the physical condition of the observer. (ref: http://ignca.nic.in/ks_31_cn.htm)

According to Lokesh Chandra, "Time dwells in the depths of full mind. Deep inside us it interweaves the real and the unreal. Sacred time is the pure becoming, where the time of physics is no longer determinant. It is the flowing onward of the essence of life, a value centre in many principles of being, as we seek to create newer and even individualised eyes. The mind renews itself in the intuition of time. It is the laughter of the gods out of which emerge our newest sensibilities of expanding consciousness."  (ref: http://ignca.nic.in/ks_31_cn.htm)

I like laughing gods.......

smelling the past

"...that quiet crack and pop. It's the sound of still moments in tranquil places." (Wilkins, 2004)

"A smell from your distant past can unleash a flood of memories that are so intense and striking that they seem real...called a "Proustian Memory". It's named after Marcel Proust, one of the greatest novelists of the 20th century...We humans smell with a yellowish area in the roof of each nostril, just underneath and between the eyes. This yellowish area is called the olfactory epithelium....Once the nerves leave the olfactory bulb, they're sent to two main destinations...one of them is...the limbic area of the brain, an ancient region that deals with emotion, pleasure, motivation and types of memory associated with food...according to Professor Rachel S. Herz, 'the ability to experience and express emotion grew directly out of the brain's ability to process smells.'" (Kruszelniki, 2001)

"...limbic brain. This is where the soul physiologically lays down its memories of experience...its developed sense of the past peppering the present with anticipation, with expectation..." (Restall Orr, 2004)

bridges

Bifrost... the bridge to Asgard

teaching

Who teaches us? How do we know what it is we have to learn? The best teachers are the ones who teach us without us realising. They are the ones who enter our lives and before we know it, we are learning.

What about knowledge we get from other worlds and times? Who are those teachers? I see these spirits as cloaked beings. No faces, no gender, but a strong presence and something to tell, something to teach.

There comes a time though, when the teaching is done, when enough books have been read and enough lore has been memorised. It is at this time that the student needs to do, practice, experience, move. When we do this, there is a new path to follow. Ironically, on this new path, there are more things to learn and perhaps even new teachers.

Of course, my teacher had to tell me this! But I do understand this now.

My most important lesson so far, "...open up [your] mind- the rational and irrational...accept possibility...and realities beyond our understanding..." (Restall-Orr, 2004)

arrival

dynamic birth - transformation - arrival

Berkano

Berkano "may be interpreted as a symbol of the tree goddess...female and motherly...In the early Germanic period...the birch tree was particulalry maidenly in form, but motherly in function; both tree and rune express the essential paradox of birth, death and transformation that is at the heart of woman's mysteries." (Paxson, 2005) Gundarsson agrees and further states, "it especially rules the birth processes of spring..." (in Paxson, 2005) Berkano can be expected to turn up at significant life passages and it indicates birth and becoming, rootedness and the feminine.

In Norse and Germanic mythology, the Earth mother is Nerthus. In his book Germania, Tacitus (our Roman Friend) writes an account of the Germanic tribes that worship Nerthus and how each year she is brought from her island upon a golden cart and paraded before her people. In this way, she encourages peace amongst tribes, families and clans.

knowing

"An ancient and unutterable longing drew up

through me, gathering me like a needle and

thread gathers silk." (Kim Wilkins)

ægishjálmr

http://www.vikinganswerlady.com/aegishjalmr.shtml

mystical marriage

Gebo

"It is the giver, the giving, the given and that which is given to... By the power of this rune persons are bound together through an act of will in order to effect a result." (Thorsson)

According to Paxson, this rune also governs esoteric exchanges, "especially exchanges of of energy or magical power, whether between individuals or between humans and gods." (Paxson, 2005)

Gundarsson also suggests that Gebo has a sacrificial role - as Odin sacrificed himself to himself, so "the vitki's sacrifice to himself or herself [is] a prelude to transformation."

It's amazing what happens on a misty morning

Bindrunes

A way of combining runes for the purpose of magic. They are a potent force and can be used for good or ill. The vitki can take some creative license in her work to ensure that the bindrune is ascetically pleasing as well as powerful.

Stay tuned

Wherever you are is precisely where I want to be

Thurisaz

Thurisaz represents the giants, Thor or both. The Jotnar were the giants in Norse mythology - the enemies of the AEsir. It fell to Thor to protect humans from the power of the Jotnar - their power being natural forces that can destroy. I see these forces as being psychological, emotional etc. Just as Restall-Orr treats fear as 'deity', a current to be respected but one that can be stepped out of (Restall-Orr, 2006), all such forces can be treated this way. Thus, Thor is needed. James Peterson suggests, 'the thurses, or Jotnar, represent elemental, unconscious, irrational, or chthonic forces." Sibley continues, 'It represents those powers that can grip and seize one with surprise and terror." (Paxson, 2005)

As Thor is a reliable and dependable force for regeneration and fertility, his protection in overcoming these forces is welcome. From their defeat comes new life and liberty.

Realisations

"Realisations come in bursts, exquisite breakthrough moments followed by frustrating periods of no change... Gently we find the freedom to let the wild soul breathe.

What we actually see in our increased sensitivity is up to each individual to decide. The same is true of where we go, when we have broken up the limitations of the mind and, no longer constrained by beliefs and expectations, we find ourselves in what appear to be entirely different worlds.

What the individual sees, what he experiences, is framed by his own footsteps upon the path. We see through the filters of our own physiology, our ancestry, our cravings and understanding.

What is important is simply that in our visions we find inspiration, new ideas, insights and realisations. What is equally crucial is that they are integrated, that the energy of that inspiration can flow through into true expression of our soul's creativity." (Restall-Orr, 2006)

open the door

When you are told to open the door, it is wise to obey.

But, opening the door is only the beginning. You have to walk through into the next space.

There are things to learn, to see and to understand.

Hagalaz

Hail. Ice. Sleet. All things cold that fall from the sky. "Hail shocks you with stinging hardness (confrontation) then it melts into water which creates germination of seeds (transformation)." (ref: http://runesecrets.com/rune-meanings/hagalaz)
It can mean that a destructive power beyond your control is coming and that change will obviously follow in its wake. Esoterically, this can mean that there will be fundamental changes to your own patterns and ways of thinking. These changes will be brought about by external powers. You can prepare for it by accepting that it will happen, and "...live within the limitations of nature and accept events beyond human control." (Paxson, 2005)
When bound by JERA and BERKANO, the outcome is good - JERA is the harvest, the results of the good work done through the season. While JERA is vulnerable to the powers of HAGALAZ, the existence of BERKANO suggests, "...bringing into being..." (Gundarsoon in Paxson, 2005). It is about new growth from the branches broken by HAGALAZ.

Real Spirits?

"The difference between a real spirit and a spirit which we imagine at an idle moment or while reading a horror story is that the former connects with realms of energy and consciousness and the power of the deep mind, while the latter is more or less constructed by the ego and connects with very little. Its shape is like an emplty shell. The real spirt will have a mind of its own and enough power to upset the ego if needed, while the constructed spirit will simply reflect our wishful thinking, and this is a vast difference, no matter that thier bodies are equally imaginary."
(Fries, 2006)

The Druid Philosophy

According to Restall-Orr (2008), "...Druidy is unambiguoulsy polythestic: it accepts that there are not one but countless gods. As far as archaeologists and historians can access and understand the clues left by time, Druidry always has been polytheistic and contiunues to be so."

How does that apply to me:

Who is right? Which philosophy has the answers? I know which ones are more acceptable to mainstream society. I know which ones are deemed to be nothing more than romantic links to a bygone day. I also know what my experience is and how it relates to the theories and practices I have read so far. Restall-Orr's words make sense: "...if we get stuck in the sticky details of other's visions and experience, we can quickly find ourselves tying to accept or believe in something that doesn't settle naturally within us."

Imbolc

Also known as Spring Equinox, Imbolc is a major festival in the Celtic calender. It is celebrated at the first sign of spring. In the Southern hemisphere, that is early August - wattle season. Imbolc celebrates the return of warmth after a long winter.
On a personal level, it celebrates the emergence of a new commitment after a long period of internal reflection. The seed starts to break through the soil and test the air above. Sometimes it is too cold, and the new shoots may be burnt by the frost or want to retreat to the warmth of the soil. Eventually though, it is warm enough to start to bloom and reach for the sky.
It is the time to put into action the new plans and ideas that began to take shape during winter.